3/8/18
Contact Federal Government Officials
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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.
As of
right now, S. 2155: The Economic Growth and Recovery Act (a rollback on Dodd-Frank
bank regulations), has enough Democratic support in the Senate to pass the
bill. The Brookings Institution has a helpful rundown of what the bill
includes, both the good and the bad, to help us understand how the bill has
received bipartisan support
http://brook.gs/2D8VtCP Since
the bill needs 60 votes to pass, Democrats should be using the leverage they
have here to receive better concessions in the bill for consumer protections.
For instance, they could demand a change of leadership for the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau, which is currently run by Mick Mulvaney http://bit.ly/2FjV3Q4 On
Tuesday, the Senate voted to move forward with the bill, with a final vote
expected this week. If we have a Democratic senator who voted for the bill to
proceed, let's give them a call and ask that they only pass the bill if they
are able to leverage for better consumer protections at the same time. We can
see how our senator voted here: http://bit.ly/2D5e2bf
2.
Democrats
on the House Intelligence Committee have become increasingly frustrated that
former Trump advisor, Steve Bannon, refused to answer any unscripted question
about the Russia scandal, and have been calling for the committee to initiate
proceedings to hold Bannon in contempt of Congress. http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/376149-frustrated-dems-demand-contempt-action-against-bannon
However, Republicans, have not only refused to
take further action, they are intent on winding up the investigation as quickly
as possible. https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/chances-of-contempt-for-bannon-fade-as-house-gop-eyes-end-of-russia-probe/2018/03/05/b5c7bcf4-20df-11e8-badd-7c9f29a55815_story.html?utm_term=.15d88cb6d4c7.
Let’s tell our representatives that Bannon should be held in contempt, and that
the American people are counting on them for a full investigation. Anything
less would be considered participating in a cover-up. If our rep. Is a Republican or Democratic
member of the Intelligence Committee, they especially need to hear from us.
3.
Rep. Betty
McCollum (D-MN) introduced a bill in November that seeks to
prohibit US funding that facilitates human rights abuses that impact
Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, including East
Jerusalem. The Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention
of Human Rights Act, H.R.4391,
would require the US secretary of state to ensure that US financial aid to
Israel does not contribute to the "ill treatment" of Palestinian
children in the West Bank. Let's read more about this bill at Aljazeera.
Let's contact our Democratic representatives to encourage them to join as
co-sponsors of HR4391.
4.
To help
put the United States' federal gun laws into perspective, the New York Times
has published "How to Buy a Gun in 15 Countries," http://nyti.ms/2FflJAB Let's
check it out, then use the information in the article as we contact our MoC and
ask them to support the Assault Weapons Ban of 2017 (S.
2095) and 2018 (H.R.
5087)
5.
House
and Senate leadership are attempting to further weaken campaign finance laws.
And, because they know how unpopular this is, they are attaching these bills as
riders to the must-pass omnibus spending bill. This would be a Citizens
United, part two, provided yet another channel through which the 1% could
funnel dark money into our politics. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/01032018/spending-bill-riders-environment-climate-dark-money-campaign-finance-political-donations Let's
tell our MoCs "No!" to any dilution of campaign finance laws in the
upcoming spending bill. Also, please consider signing Issue One's petition in
support of this issue:
6.
While
there is a lot of talk about our country’s opioid epidemic, and Trump has
called it a national emergency, there is not much happening. In fact, in just one year, “overdoses from opioids jumped by
about 30 percent, according to a report released
Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” No additional funds have been allotted to
address this growing problem. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/03/06/590923149/jump-in-overdoses-shows-opioid-epidemic-has-worsened Let’s contact our MoCs and the White House
and ask them to fund treatment and responses to this deathly problem.
7.
After
the mass shooting in Charleston, we learned that the killer was able to buy his
gun without passing a background check, because licensed dealers can choose to
sell firearms after three days if their check hasn’t cleared yet ( http://time.com/5170667/the-gun-loophole-congress-isnt-talking-about-put-4170-guns-in-wrong-hands-in-2016/).
Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) has introduced legislation (H.R. 3464) to
close the Charleston loophole, and on February 27th filed a discharge petition
to force a vote on it. Let’s contact our reps and ask them to support this
legislation and sign the petition.
8.
Yesterday
Trump tweeted, “From Bush 1 to present, our Country has lost more than 55,000
factories, 6,000,000 manufacturing jobs and accumulated Trade Deficits of more
than 12 Trillion Dollars. Last year we had a Trade Deficit of almost 800
Billion Dollars. Bad Policies & Leadership. Must WIN again!” https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/971349864125788160 Let’s tell Trump that we could not agree more
and that we want him and his family to lead the way by bringing all their
manufacturing jobs to the U.S.A.
9.
Mick
Mulvaney received more than $50,000 in campaign
contributions from the payday lending industry over the course of his career,
and as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) he’s in
a position to regulate his benefactors. He’s ripped up several
Obama/Cordray-era protections against the industry, and the CFPB quietly closed
a nearly four-year-old investigation into a payday lender that had financially
backed Mulvaney (http://www.ibtimes.com/political-capital/cfpb-drops-investigation-payday-lender-contributed-mick-mulvaneys-campaigns). Senators Blumenthal, Merkley and Warren
have called on Mulvaney to provide answers on why he’s taking actions that have
benefited payday lenders. Let’s ask our senators to join their call and ramp up
the pressure on Mulvaney, up to and including holding hearings on why this
investigation was closed and whether or not Mulvaney’s conflict of interest
interfered with justice.
10. From the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance:
According to a poll conducted by Colorado College State of the Rockies, 71% of
the voters in Utah believe that national parks, forests, wildlife areas and
monuments support the economy, provide recreation opportunities and enhance
quality of life. https://suwa.org/wp-content/uploads/ARRWA_4pager_9.2017update_v2.pdf.
The Red Rock Wilderness Act, S948/HR 2044
aims to protect 9.2 million acres of environmentally sensitive wilderness in
Utah. Let’s call our MoCs now and ask them to co-sponsor this important
legislation.
Election 2018 –
General
1.
If we
want the Florida state legislature to stop ignoring what Floridians want, we’re
going to need to elect a better quality of legislator. Postcards is doing
its part, helping out Ricky Shirah’s
campaign for state rep in a May 1st special election (http://www.theledger.com/news/20171218/shirah-files-to-run-for-house-seat). Let’s sign up and write postcards to get
out the vote for Ricky! We can join by emailing Join@TonyTheDemocrat.org or by
texting JOIN to 484-275-2229.
2.
On
Tuesday, Beto O’Rourke won the position of Democratic nominee opposing Ted Cruz
(R-TX) in November. The Cruz campaign has released its first ad which contains
a negative attack on O’Rourke calling into question the nickname he uses:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2018/03/07/ted-cruzs-new-jingle-if-youre-going-run-texas-you-cant-liberal-man/402689002/ Let’s
remind Cruz’s campaign that resorting to negative campaigns is the sign of a
weak candidate: https://www.cruz.senate.gov/?p=general&id=23
3.
The
Environmental Voter Project has a mission: “to significantly increase voter
demand for progressive environmental policy by identifying inactive
environmentalists and then turning them into consistent activists and voters.”
Let’s see how we can help them with their voter registration and
get-out-the-vote efforts. www.environmentalvoter.org/
4.
College
students are a diverse and important sector of the electorate, but many
students do not vote (particularly in mid-term, state and local
elections). However, when armed with the relevant information, students
will vote. If we are students, or other campus community members, we can turn
to Campus Vote Project for help developing a school-sponsored student
voting information website, registering students at freshman orientation,
informing them of early voting options, or getting a polling place on campus to
eliminate some of the barriers that keep students from the polls. We can find
out more here: http://campusvoteproject.org/
Election 2018 –
By State
1. PA:
Tuesday, March 13 – 18th Congressional District special election. Let’s get
the vote out for Conor Lamb: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2018/03/07/joe-biden-campaigns-in-pa/
Other Actions
1.
In honor
of International
Women's Day, let's put the spotlight on some political
organizations run/founded by black women. Donate. Follow on social media.
Volunteer. Get involved. By lifting all women, we lift everyone. https://www.bustle.com/p/11-black-women-run-political-organizations-to-support-if-youre-inspired-by-doug-jones-victory-7579321
2.
The Last Plastic Straw is a
project of Plastic
Pollution Coalition. Over 500,000,000 plastic straws are used
each day in the United States. The Last Plastic Straw movement seeks to
activate citizens through a grassroots campaign to encourage individuals to
push for change in restaurant protocol and practices in their local communities
around the world. Let's read more and sign up to take the straw-free
challenge ourselves here.
Let's also be inspired by efforts by others by reading about restaurants in
Long Beach, California that have taken the challenge in this Long Beach Post article.
3.
Whether or not we are able to physically join the March For Our
Lives on March
24, there are many ways we can support common sense gun reforms and safety
measures. We can help spread the word by joining this Thunderclap, a
social media flash mob message blast. Please click, add your social media
support on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. THEN cut, paste and share -https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/68668-vitual-march-for-our-lives If we would
like to know more about how Thunderclap helps grassroots organizing before we
commit, we can click here: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2013/10/02/thunderclap-can-help-grassroots-organizing/amp/ This event is organized by Rose Tyler on
Twitter to offer disabled and international activists, as well as others who
cannot attend a march, a way to participate. We can see her announcement and
discussion here: https://mobile.twitter.com/RoseResists214/status/967157764970635265
4.
Regardless
of the color of our skin, let’s show the content of our character by becoming
members of the NAACP, http://www.naacp.org/ .
Annual membership is just $30. If you’re under 21, you can join for $10. This
venerable institution is on the frontline of civil rights, racial justice, and
voter registration & turnout. Imagine what the NAACP can accomplish with
the support of all of us!
5.
In yet
another creative way to respond to the need for gun reform, Kentucky youth are
saying “Enough is Enough” and staged a die-in at their Republican senator,
Mitch McConnell’s home. https://www.facebook.com/laura.landenwich/videos/1770528679659913/
Let’s consider other ways to peacefully add to this growing voice for reason.
Marches/events/webinars/Tweetstorms to
attend/organize
States
1.
ALL (but
MD): The Maryland Senate has approved a
bill that would require any Presidential candidate to release their federal tax
returns in order to be on the state ballot. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/03/06/591165165/md-senate-passes-bill-requiring-presidential-candidates-to-release-tax-returns.
Let’s contact our state legislators and ask them to introduce a similar bill in
our state, because voters deserve to know this important information about
their candidates. We can find state legislator contact information at https://openstates.org/.
2.
MI: In
recognition of the 65 years since Enbridge was first granted an easement to
operate Line 5 through the Great Lakes, Oil & Water Don't Mix is asking that
we host Line 5 Retirement parties in our communities. Parties will be connected
digitally, so that we can attend a live video feed where the organizers of Oil
& Water Don't Mix will address the steps we need to take to ensure that
Line 5 is finally decommissioned. We can learn more about the parties, then,
let's sign up to host a party in our area:
Reading/Watching
1.
“Here's How to Prevent The Next School Shooting,
Experts Say” - https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/03/07/590877717/experts-say-here-s-how-to-prevent-the-next-school-shooting
2.
City planners are on the front lines of climate
change adaptation, and their ability to implement effective changes, from
policy and regulation to infrastructure and technology, will determine their
city’s capacity to cope with the next big storm. Recent disasters are forcing
an examination of how urban preparation, response, and recovery mechanisms
require a redefining of cities as vulnerable ecosystems. Let's read this Nature
of Cities article "Rethinking Cities as Vulnerable Ecosystems" to
understand more.
3.
Senate Democrats held a hearing yesterday
afternoon during which students, parents, and others pushed for Congress to
enact tougher gun control measures in order to help prevent school shootings
and protect children from gun violence.
We can watch it here: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-gun-violence-survivors-speak-out-at-hearing-with-senate-democrats
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