Rogan's List

3/23/18

Contact Federal Government Officials

Find senator’s contact info here: https://goo.gl/RLiotu

Find representative’s contact info here: https://goo.gl/5i7SXC

Fax legislators for free:  Reps:  https://faxzero.com/fax_congress.php

and Senate: https://faxzero.com/fax_senate.php

White House contact:  https://www.usa.gov/federal-agencies/white-house

********************************

Many newspapers, including New York Times and Washington Post require subscriptions, but without one we can see a few articles each month.  We can also check with our local libraries to find out how to get online access through them.

1.       Correction:  Tammy Duckworth is a Democratic senator from IL.

2.      Update:  The Dickey prohibition against gun violence research is being debated right now in the spending bill and our reps need to hear from us by today.  http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/379563-republicans-agree-to-clarify-that-cdc-can-research-gun-violence  Did you know.... A) the CDC has not been able to study Gun Violence for the past 22 years? B) Gun Violence is the 3rd leading cause of death in children? C) The Dickey amendment prohibits the CDC from "advocating or promoting gun control.”  Restoring Gun Research is about saving lives. It's about gun safety not control. (Analogy is safe sleep and MV safety) Even Rep. Dickey regretted the results of the Amendment in his name.  Let’s let our representatives know that we support HR1478 allowing the CDC to find solutions and save lives.

3.      The omnibus spending bill, which passed the House yesterday and is expected to pass the Senate today, contains $1.6 billion for border security but no provisions to protect the Dreamers. http://thehill.com/homenews/house/379753-house-passes-13-trillion-spending-bill  Let’s make sure to tell our MoCs that we have not forgotten DACA recipients. We need a clean Dream Act as soon as possible to protect these young hard-working people from deportation and provide them a path to citizenship.

4.      Trump has nominated Mike Pompeo to be secretary of state, and Gina Haspel to run the CIA. Both have espoused and/or supported cruel and unethical treatment of vulnerable people, whether it be bigotry against Muslim-Americans:   https://www.theatlantic.com/amp/article/555680/) or torture of detainees (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/02/us/politics/cia-deputy-director-gina-haspel-torture-thailand.html). Both Pompeo and Haspel will soon have their qualifications and fitness for office debated in the Senate, so let's make sure our senators know that we say 'No!' to bigots and torturers acting in our name.

5.      Donald Trump announced last night that he will replace H.R. McMaster as national security adviser with John Bolton. Bolton has a record of extreme and dangerous foreign policy views, including advocating preemptive strikes on North Korea and Iran (https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/22/politics/trump-replace-national-security-adviser-mcmaster-bolton/index.html). He wrote this piece last month:  https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-legal-case-for-striking-north-korea-first-1519862374  This position is not Senate confirmable, but we can call our MoCs and demand they issue statements opposing this move and demanding fast action on the Markey-Lieu bill limiting the President’s ability to launch a first nuclear strike. We can find a script here.

6.      “On the heels of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos saying the Trump administration won’t take up complaints of anti-trans bathroom discrimination in schools until Congress clarifies the law, lawmakers have reintroduced legislation that would spell out anti-LGBT discrimination is unlawful.”  http://www.washingtonblade.com/2018/03/21/snda-reintroduced-as-trump-administration-declines-to-help-trans-students/  Let’s let our MoCs in both houses of Congress know that we support the re-introduced The Student Non-Discrimination Act (no bill numbers yet).  No student should be the victim of government-sanction discrimination. 

7.      “Congress should act to close the boyfriend loophole by passing the Protecting Domestic Violence and Stalking Victims Act/Zero Tolerance for Domestic Abusers Act (S.1539/H.R. 3207). The bill from Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) and Representatives Dan Donovan (R-NY) and Debbie Dingell (D-MI) would close the loopholes in federal law that allow stalkers to buy and possess guns and allow domestic abusers to have guns simply because they are not married to their victims.”  https://everytownresearch.org/close-boyfriend-loophole-s-1539h-r-3207/  Most people do not realize this loophole exists; let’s tell our MoCs to close it. 

8.     There are steps that the Federal Trade Commission could take in regulating Facebook to protect users: 

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/mar/22/restructure-facebook-ftc-regulate-9-steps-now  Let’s tell the FTC that they need to look at this:  https://www.ftc.gov/contact

9.      Obviously not fully understanding the complexities of the opioid epidemic in our country, Kellyanne Conway told a group of college students “to indulge in junk food in place of buying fentanyl-laced narcotics.”  http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/379801-conway-on-fentanyl-eat-the-ice-cream-have-the-french-fry-dont-buy-the  Let’s share stories with Conway of the toll that these drugs, usually beginning with prescription drugs, have had on so many of our families, regardless of social status.  Let’s also remind her that urging a junk food lifestyle is not in our best interest either.

10.  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are conducting raids on Greyhound buses, without warrants: 

 http://wapo.st/2Gi7GLr http://cbsn.ws/2ucnE4I ACLU affiliates in ten states have penned a letter to Greyhound Lines, Inc., asking the company to change its policies, and prohibit warrantless searches, as is their right under the Fourth Amendment:

 https://bit.ly/2udkTQA Let's join the ACLU and ask Greyhound president and CEO Dave Leach and Senior Legal Officer Tricia Martinez to change their policies. Dave Leach President and Chief Executive Officer Greyhound Lines, Inc. 350 N. St. Paul Street Dallas, TX 75201 Tricia Martinez Senior Legal Officer Greyhound Lines, Inc. 350 N. St. Paul Street, Dallas, TX 75201 e-mail: Tricia.martinez@greyhound.com

11.   Cover Up Caucus is a new website devoted to tracking Republicans who have acted to cover for Trump.  “Donald Trump is covering up the truth, and House Republicans are helping him by undermining investigations into Trump’s ties to Russia and Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. election. This site gives you a way to fight back by signing a petition to your representatives in Congress or contacting them directly via phone, Facebook, and Twitter. Let’s check it out and use it:  https://www.coverupcaucus.com/

12.  The new U.S. advisory board created to help rewrite federal rules for importing the heads and hides of African elephants, lions and rhinos is stacked with trophy hunters and Trump cronies. It seems reasonable to conclude they’re likely to impose looser rules that put these rare and beautiful animals in more danger (https://apnews.com/07c11b7884174e68b75d6fdd52e9da91/Trump-wildlife-protection-board-stuffed-with-trophy-hunters). Trump and Zinke aren’t going to protect these creatures, so we will. Let’s call our members of Congress and tell them to support a bar on any money being appropriated to the Interior Department to issue import permits for the bodies of elephants, lions and rhinos.

13.  ICE’s courthouse arrests are a threat to the safety of our immigrant friends and neighbors, who are being scared away from getting justice because they think they’ll be deported. Civil rights groups have filed a ground-breaking legal challenge in Massachusetts to help these folks, asking the Supreme Judicial Court to stop federal agents from arresting immigrants targeted for deportation at courthouses (https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2018/03/15/advocates-petition-massachusetts-supreme-judicial-court-to-stop-courthouse-immigration-arrests). Let’s show them some support! We can donate to the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice, one of the organizations leading the legal effort, here, and follow them on Twitter to amplify their message here.

14.  Turns out the members of the Senate Intelligence Committee were not impressed by the urgency, thoroughness, or speed DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and her deputies are bringing to their job of securing our elections: https://www.newzcliq.com/efforts-to-secure-elections-moving-too-slow-senators-tell-homeland-security-chief/and https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-cybersecurity/2018/03/22/insights-from-the-senate-election-security-hearing-147342  We need to know our elections are fair and secure, unconnected to the internet and with a paper record of the vote; let’s pressure Nielsen to guarantee that they are: 202-282-8495 or Secretary of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20128.

15.  A rider was attached to the “Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act” that would allow armed Secret Service agents to be dispatched, at the president’s discretion, to polling places nationwide during federal elections.  The House passed the bill but did not include this rider in the legislation it passed to the Senate--to which 19 secretaries of state wrote stating their objections to this “unprecedented and shocking” proposal: https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/12/politics/secret-service-polling-places-white-house-elections/index.html and https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/12/politics/secret-service-polling-places-white-house-elections/index.html  The Senate has not yet acted, and hopefully this rider is dead, but we should remind our senators that we do not (yet) live in a banana republic--and keep our eyes open.

Election 2018 – General

1.       The Women Rule Candidate Tracker, an innovative research collaboration, will provide a detailed snapshot of how women are performing. It will include up-to-date information about who’s winning and losing, where election dollars are flowing and the issues dominating the debate. We can read more about the tracker at Politico.  Let's bookmark the tracker for future reference and think about ways we can help women candidates in our own local elections.

2.      “Crowdpac CEO Steve Hilton regularly launches ugly attacks on Democrats and progressives during his Fox News appearances. Yet his business, Crowdpac, makes money off progressive campaigns.”  Let’s see how we can help our candidates move away from this organization:  https://medium.com/@GeorgeLakoff/are-you-crowdfunding-a-fox-news-host-5f45ce15d5f5

3.      “On Wednesday, Mississippi became the 49th state to choose its first woman to send to Congress. The appointment of Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith as Mississippi's junior senator comes 101 years after the first woman, Montana Rep. Jeannette Rankin, went to Congress. Republican Gov. Phil Bryant appointed Hyde-Smith to fill the seat being vacated by Sen. Thad Cochran, who announced that he would resign as of April 1 due to poor health. That will leave just one state — Vermont — that has never sent a woman to Capitol Hill. Let’s check here to see when our state sent a woman to Capitol Hill:  https://www.npr.org/2018/03/21/595702178/mississippi-is-sending-its-first-woman-to-congress-heres-when-your-state-did-tha  Now let’s find a woman candidate to support in the midterms. 

4.      Women are underrepresented in politics. This is even more true for women of color. Let's read this piece by non-profit org The Arena to learn about the actual statistics around this issue (they're not pretty) and more on why it's so important to support women of color running for office. Among other things, "women of color are more likely to champion the interests of everyone in their districts - not just those who look like them, or who voted for them, or who vote at all. They bring a valuable perspective to policy debates that can give voice to the voiceless." Finally, there are links to groups/resources besides The Arena who support WoC running for office. https://thearena.run/blog/2018/3/7/women-of-color

Election 2018 – By State

1.       LA:  There’s a special election tomorrow for Louisiana’s House District 93. Democrats Eldon Anderson, Kenny Bordes, Royce Duplessis and Danil Faust are all running. If we live in the district, let’s check them out and make sure to go vote. We can find info on what we need to vote and where to go to cast our ballots here.

2.      Whatever your political affiliation... anyone who has been following the special election races knows the feeling of losing by a handful of votes. For example, the vote in PA-18 this last week was conducted almost exclusively via electronic touchscreens, and as Nate Silver reports, this leaves no recourse for those demanding a recount. (https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/pennsylvania-18-district-lamb-results/) It's important now more than ever for ALL of us to lobby for voter-verified paper ballots and rigorous post-election audits, so that we can continue to have faith in the results of our electoral process. This week Rogan's List will be providing several interconnected steps we can take to hold our local election officials accountable. Step 5:  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1nWIFAk8Qxi0x3qMtZFMayoGPu85spuH8LF705Pudrd8

Other Actions

1.       It’s not too late to join in the Poor People’s Campaign led by Rev. William Barber who has taken up the torch of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Let’s learn more about it:  https://youtu.be/bWyF94XfcZw, then sign up:  https://poorpeoplescampaign.org/

2.      Retired General Barry McCaffrey has been speaking up loudly and clearly about Trump and Kushner: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/379685-retired-four-star-army-general-tears-into-kushner-simply-outrageous Let’s take a moment to thank him on Twitter: @mccaffreyr3  or here:  http://www.mccaffreyassociates.com/form/contact-form

3.      There are huge crowds expected at the March for Our Lives across the nation, and as many of us experienced at the Women's March that can make cell phones difficult to use. Let's consider downloading the free FireChat app for us and those we'll be headed to the march with. It's a messaging app that allows us to chat without signal, data or an Internet connection, so we can remain connected even in the midst of a crowd. We can find it on iTunes here and from Google Play here. (Note that it only works as a non-cellular network with Bluetooth on.)

4.      In preparation for Saturday’s March for our Lives, Suit Up Maine has “compiled nine important gun violence facts and provided rebuttals to nine of the most common gun rights arguments. There's some Maine specific stuff at the bottom, but besides that tons of great stuff anyone can make use of”:  https://www.suitupmaine.org/arm-yourself-with-facts/

5.      Elected in a landslide this past November to become the new district attorney of Philadelphia, Larry Krasner is exceeding expectations on his promise for a criminal justice revolution. Let's read about the changes he's made already at The Intercept. Let's think about how some of these ideas might be adopted in our own cities and towns and contact our local district attorneys with our ideas. We can also send thanks to Larry Krasner for his efforts.

6.      Participating in a local March for Our Lives on Saturday? If we are not already the organizers, we can check-in to see if volunteers are needed – set-up, clean-up, bus captains, etc.  Let’s check in with the folks organizing the march we are planning to attend and offer our help:  https://marchforourlives.com

7.      “Starbucks Corp. is aiming to eliminate pay disparities based on gender and race, a move that it says will level the field for employees across the globe. The coffee giant said Wednesday it would achieve and maintain 100 percent equal pay for all its employees, known as partners, who perform similar work in company-operated markets. It didn’t give a timeline for the goal, which includes countries such as the U.K., France, Canada, Japan and China. Starbucks has already done this domestically it said.” http://fortune.com/2018/03/21/starbucks-equal-pay-women-minorities/  Let’s say thanks by purchasing a drink there this week.

8.     A reminder that Lyft has announced it is offering free rides to those attending the March For Our Lives rallies in selected cities. Here is how to receive the promotion:  http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/lyft-offering-free-rides-to-march-for-our-lives

9.      John Oliver’s “A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo,” a gay-positive rewrite of the Pence family's book about their rabbit, is number #1 on the Amazon best seller list. https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/john-oliver-book-about-mike-pence-s-gay-bunny-bestseller-n858646. Proceeds go to the Trevor Project, a suicide hotline for LGBT youth, and AIDS United. Let’s order a copy from our favorite independent book store.  

10.  Citigroup has become the first mainstream banking institution to enact commonsense restrictions on gun sales by their partners.  “The New York-based bank on Thursday said it is requiring its partners to bar firearm sales to customers under age 21, as well as those who have not passed a background check.  The bank is also barring clients from selling high-capacity ammunition magazines and so-called bump stocks that enable more rapid firing.” https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/03/22/citigroup-requires-business-partners-restrict-gun-sales/449181002/ Let’s thank Citigroup for taking this step:    http://www.citigroup.com/citi/about/countries-and-jurisdictions/united-states-usa.html  Then, let’s contact our banking/credit card companies and ask they do the same. 

11.   Police in Sacramento shot and killed Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old African-American father of two, in his own backyard on March 18th. Clark was unarmed and was shot 20 times (https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/22/us/sacramento-police-shooting/index.html) and  http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article206379574.html. Let’s make sure to share this story widely and join the NAACP’s call for a full investigation. We can contact the Sacramento Police Department through this link. Color of Change is also demanding accountability for Clark’s death from a district attorney with a history of decline to prosecute police officers who kill black people. Let’s amplify their call by signing the petition at justiceforstephon.org. And we can help his family bury him next to his brother, who was also a victim of gun violence, by contributing here:  https://www.gofundme.com/justus4zoe

12.  As we approach the March for Our Lives on Saturday, we should consider the fact that the US is by far the largest exporter of arms in the world.  Not only our children, but the world’s children are threatened by US guns.  In fact, this week Trump bragged that the US will sell Saudi Arabia $12.5 billion’s worth of military aircraft, despite Saudi Arabia's role in the devastating war in Yemen: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-saudi/trump-praises-u-s-military-sales-to-saudi-as-he-welcomes-crown-prince-idUSKBN1GW2CA  In preparing for the march, let’s make clear our opposition to guns used against children everywhere.

Marches/events/webinars/Tweetstorms to attend/organize

1.       Tomorrow, Saturday, March 24, is the March for Our Lives:  https://marchforourlives.com/ We can find sibling marches to attend here:  https://event.marchforourlives.com/event/march-our-lives-events/search/

States

1.       AZ:  From Equal Means Equal:  The Arizona state legislature failed to put the ERA on the docket, which means legislators can’t vote on it – but there is another way! It’s called a “striker bill” and would allow the ERA to take the place of another bill that is on the docket but already dead (a striker bill removes everything after the title and inserts a whole new bill). Representative Michele Ugenti-Rita is open to doing this, but only if we convince her that there is a lot of support for it!  LET’S DO IT!  Please take 60 seconds TODAY to send an email and make a phone call to contact Representative Ugenti-Rita. Urge her to please introduce a striker bill in the Ways and Means committee to get the Equal Rights Amendment on the agenda! Contact:  Ways and Means Chair, Representative Michele Ugenti-Rita, mugenti-rita@azleg.gov or 602-926-4480

2.      GA: Georgia's current legislative session only has three (3) days left. If we are Georgians, let's plan on following future legislative activity by bookmarking Politically Georgia and its Legislative Navigator tool. 

3.      IL, IN, MI, MN, NY, OH, PA, and WI:  In 2008, the eight Great Lakes states entered into an agreement, titled The Great Lakes–St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact, which allows any of the states to block withdrawals (or diversions) of water from the Great Lakes basin, in order to protect the water supply http://bit.ly/2DJT55P FoxConn, an electronics manufacturing company, has gone through the Racine Water Utility to submit an application to the Wisconsin DNR for an exception from the Compact, so that they can pump 7 millions gallons of water per day from Lake Michigan http://bit.ly/2udcnkA Because it is Racine making the request, rather than FoxConn themselves, and Racine has already received approval for water withdrawals, and because Racine is a straddling community that does not need approval from all of the states in the Compact, it is quite possible that the request will be approved. Let's contact our governors and ask them to publicly oppose this diversion, as well as FoxConn's attempt to get out of acquiring approval from each of the states in the Compact. If we are Wisconsin residents, let's also contact the DNR and ask them to deny Racine Water Utility's request: Wisconsin DNR Central Office phone: 608-266-2621 Mailing address: 101 S Webster Street PO Box 7921 Madison WI 53707-7921

4.      MA: The group Lift Every Vote https://lifteveryvote.net/ is lobbying to get Automatic Voter Registration (H.2091) passed in Massachusetts. Let’s learn how we can help:  https://lifteveryvote.net/help-pass-avr-in-ma/ , and let’s pressure legislative leadership, supporters, and holdouts to bring this important bill up for a vote.

Reading/Watching

1.       "Why Is Trump So Afraid of Russia?" -   https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/21/opinion/donald-trump-russia-putin.html

2.      More than 140 million people in just three regions of the developing world are likely to migrate within their native countries between now and 2050, the first report on the subject has found. The climate-change effects most likely to force migration will be drought, crop failure, sea level rise, and increased storms. Let's read more at The Guardian. Let's stay informed about climate change.

3.      Race can affect the enforcement of laws on a wide range of ordinary conduct, from driving to bicycling. ProPublica takes a look at whether that kind of profiling is taking place with Jacksonville’s pedestrian statutes in their award-winning article "Walking While Black". The team of journalists from ProPublica and the Florida Times Union won the Al Nakkula Award for Police Reporting. (Source: ProPublica) Let's read this important article.