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8/31/18 

There will be no Rogan’s List on Monday, Labor Day.

Contact Federal Government Officials


Fax legislators for free: 

or use Resistbot:  https://resist.bot/

 
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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.       Next week, Speaker Ryan has said that “Goodlatte can move forward with a contempt hearing in the House Judiciary Committee he chairs if he determines Rosenstein has not fully complied with the unprecedented GOP House subpoena seeking confidential information about the on-going Russia investigation. It is nearly certain Goodlatte will determine Rosenstein has not complied and that his committee will rubber stamp his determination, sending the matter to the full House for a vote.”  This will be the beginning of shutting down the Mueller investigation and cannot be permitted to happen.  Loyal Opposition explains this and tells that all Democratic representatives will vote against it, but that 22 GOP members are needed to stop it.  https://www.theloyalopposition.net/daily-ctas/urgent-cta-protect-mueller-reps-must-vote-no-on-rosenstein-contempt/  If we have a GOP rep, let’s call and tell them to vote against this travesty of justice.  Let’s all call the GOP members of the House Judiciary Committee:  https://judiciary.house.gov/subcommittee/full-committee/  Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich has five things we can do as well:  https://www.facebook.com/RBReich/videos/2116403255038926/

2.      On September 4th, when the Senate begins hearings for Brett Cavanaugh's confirmation to the Supreme Court, it will be considering whether to install the potentially decisive vote on questions about Trump's legal immunity (e.g. whether a president can be indicted) at a time when Trump is already a named co-conspirator in a criminal case. To those of us who think a president should be answerable for criminal acts, Kavanaugh's record on this issue is unacceptable (https://www.npr.org/2018/08/23/641359601/where-supreme-court-nominee-brett-kavanaugh-stands-on-executive-power), so let's put our resistance into action. In addition to making our opposition known to our senators, check Indivisible's text hotline to keep people informed of practical ways to oppose Cavanaugh's confirmation (text SCOTUS to 97779 to join).

3.      Keeping in mind that sweeping tax cuts, which primarily benefitted the very wealthy and corporations, it seems that the country now has a money problem.  So much so that “Trump announced Thursday he was canceling across-the-board pay raises for civilian workers across the federal government, citing the “nation’s fiscal situation.””  https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/30/trump-cancels-pay-raises-federal-workers-804574  Let’s let our MoCs know that this is not okay with us and that cutting taxes should only happen when we are doing everything we should be doing as a country.

4.      Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer yesterday made a deal with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. "The New York Democrat and Kentucky Republican reached an agreement on Tuesday to swiftly confirm seven federal district court judges nominated by Trump and put eight others on deck for confirmation next week." https://www.vox.com/2018/8/29/17797230/harry-reid-adam-jentleson-trump-judges-schumer Given the administration's obvious efforts to pack the courts and the dangers of that (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/commentisfree/2017/dec/12/donald-trump-right-wing-takeover-court-system), why would Senate Democrats do this? Even if the judges were going to be confirmed anyway, we'd rather see Dems make this as difficult for Republicans and their questionable objectives as possible. Let's let our Democratic Senators know that we don't want them to cave to any further Republican "deals." We can use Celeste Pewter's script, here:  https://twitter.com/Celeste_pewter/status/1034876396168867840

5.      “CEO pay continues to be very, very high and has grown far faster in recent decades than typical worker pay. Higher CEO pay does not reflect correspondingly higher output or better performance. Exorbitant CEO pay therefore means that the fruits of economic growth are not going to ordinary workers. …CEOs are getting more because of their power to set pay, not because they are more productive or have special talents or more education. If CEOs earned less or were taxed more, there would be no adverse impact on output or employment.” https://www.epi.org/publication/ceo-compensation-surged-in-2017/ Let’s tell our MoCs to enact laws recommended by the Economic Policy Institute to address this problem: “reinstate higher marginal income tax rates at the very top; set corporate tax rates higher for firms that have higher ratios of CEO-to-worker compensation; set a cap on compensation and tax anything over the cap; allow greater use of ‘say on pay,’ which allows firm’s shareholders to vote on top executives’ compensation.”

6.      Prisoners across the U.S. are continuing their strike until September 9th, calling for "humane living conditions, access to rehabilitation, sentencing reform, and the end of modern day slavery," (https://twitter.com/JailLawSpeak/status/988771668670799872). Among their ten demands is the repeal of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), a law which was passed in 1996, and effectively shut incarcerated people who wish to file grievances out of the court system (https://bit.ly/2C34imvhttps://bit.ly/2MCq4SV). Let's read this piece in the New Yorker about how the PLRA has played out. Then, let's contact our MoC at the state and federal level, and tell them that we want to see prisoners' civil rights enforced, and that there needs to be more accountability in the prison system, and they can do both of these things by repealing the Prison Litigation and Reform Act.

Election 2018 – General

An election guide from Postcards for America:  In this Google doc (updated regularly), each State shows ALL Democratic Candidates running for Congress, Governor, Lt Gov, Attorney General, Secretary of State (if applicable) with links to their websites and Twitter. Each has a link to a Twitter Thread, a Shareable Facebook Post and a Document. For most States, there are also Info & Links for Voter Registrations, Absentee Ballots, Early Voting & Voter ID, Age Requirements and being a Poll Worker.  Let’s check this out and use and share it:  

1.       The “big blue wave” taking back the House of Representatives is likely but hardly a foregone conclusion, as these graphs from Nate Silver’s FiveThirtyEight suggest: 
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2018-midterm-election-forecast/house/#maps Our takeaway? Each and every one of us is needed to get out that big, blue vote. To help us do that, the Democratic Party is adopting a one-stop shop for volunteers interested in working for Democratic campaigns and progressive caucuses. The tool, called MobilizeAmerica, aims to provide a single "marketplace" for volunteers, where a wide range of left-leaning campaigns and causes can connect with activists looking to get involved. We can read more at NBCNews and check out high-impact opportunities near us at MobilizeAmerica.  (also on Facebook) We can get the tools to help magnify our own group's actions here.  Let's be part of the Blue Wave.

2.      Postcards To Voters has launched Campaign 103: Blake Morris for NY State Senate. Morris is among the progressive candidates running against incumbents in the NY State Senate who have run as Democrats, but then worked on and voted for and supported Republican-led initiatives to the exclusion of reform measures that passed the Democratic State House. We can read about Blake and his campaign at WNYC. If we are Postcards To Voters volunteers, let's write 5 cards today to voters in this Brooklyn district. We can request addresses using our usual methods. (Remember: Facebook ABBY is more cost-effective for P2V than Text ABBY .) New volunteers can sign up here.

3.      Spread the Vote has partnered with Resistbot to help people be ready and able to cast their votes in November.  Let’s check this out and share it:  https://resistbot.news/get-ready-to-vote-4e88ba8124aa

4.      Want to see how voting equipment stacks up in each state and who has a paper ballot and who does not, check out Verified Voting’s  “Verifier”:  https://www.verifiedvoting.org/verifier/  If our state does not have a paper ballot, let’s call and ask our election officials what they will do should a back up be needed:  https://www.usa.gov/election-office

5.      Turnout is the key to winning our 2018 Midterms and Pod Save America offers us a simple way to help get out the vote locally. When we visit their Vote Save America site and enter our zip code, we will see a list of events near us. We can then choose from a variety of canvassing, phone banking activities in our area, with the highest priority ones clearly marked. Once we have found our events, we can share this link with our friends. The more we try, the better our chances are!  https://votesaveamerica.com/dosomething/


Election 2018 – By State

1.       Upcoming voting dates and deadlines:


September 1
New Hampshire
Voter Registration Deadline
Primary by mail: in person-same day
September 3
Alaska
Voter Registration Deadline
REAA
September 4
Massachusetts
Election date
Primary
September 6
Delaware
Election date
Primary
September 11
New Hampshire
Election date
Primary
September 12
Rhode Island
Election date
Primary
September 13
New York
Election date (State primary)
State Primary
September 17
Alaska
Early Voting begins
REAA
September 17
Illinois
Early Voting begins
General
September 21
Minnesota
In person absentee voting begins
General
September 21
South Dakota
In person absentee voting begins
General
September 21
Wyoming
In person absentee voting begins
General
September 22
Vermont
Early Voting begins
General
(source:  by date:  https://goo.gl/gjFv2u  / by state:  https://goo.gl/7gTzvE)

2.      Upcoming Primaries:

A)    Tuesday, 9/4


B)    Thursday, 9/6


C)     Tuesday, 9/11


D)    Wednesday, 9/12

3.      NY:  From Indivisible Nation BK (INBK), a reminder that:  NEW YORK STATE PRIMARY IS THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 13TH!  Primary turnout in New York is historically dismal partly because of soft voter suppression tactics like the split primary.  This year, it is especially confusing for voters because the state legislature voted to change the election to Thursday, September 13th because both September 11th and Rosh Hashanah falls on that Tuesday. There are so many key races this year-- Governor, Attorney General, and state Senate candidates taking on the IDC. Because much of New York is “blue,” voting in the primary is our opportunity to choose elected officials who will fight for what WE believe in, so we need to spread the word and make sure progressives turn out to vote!  To find out more about INBK’s endorsed candidates, we can click HERE: https://indivisiblenationbk.org and then check out all the candidates challenging the IDC HERE: https://makenytrueblue.org  For help finding out if we’re registered and where to vote, we can sign up at https://turbovote.org/.   For more information, we can watch and share INBK’s VIDEO about NY’s dirty little secret: the DOUBLE PRIMARY! 

Other Actions

1.       There was a huge ICE raid on Tuesday in Paris, TX, 100 miles north of Dallas today (https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/more-150-arrested-massive-ice-raid-texas-n904581). 160 people were detained. Texas Organizing Project and Workers Defense Project are on the scene and are working alongside a coalition of folks from Dallas, NILC, Cosecha, and others! TWO BIG ASKS:  A)  Share the following link to fundraise for the bond and basic needs of the affected families: https://www.gofundme.com/families-of-the-north-texas-raid, and B) Organizers and volunteers on the ground, if anyone is available to come please fill out the following link:https://actionnetwork.org/forms/support-160-immigrant-families-affected-by-the-ice-raid-in-paris-texas/

2.      Who can resist “The Resistance Cookbook: Nasty Women and Bad Hombres in the Kitchen”? Featuring 100 recipes contributed by members of Action Together Massachusetts, we can enjoy recipes like Comey Testimony Minestrone, Conspiracy Cake with Indictment Icing, and Impeach Mint Mojitos. Proceeds go to support the Florida Immigrant Coalition, The New Florida Majority, Black Lives Matter, and Black Leaders Organizing for Communities. Let’s purchase our cookbook today: https://actiontogetherma.com/the-resistance-cookbook/  Just in time for holiday gift-giving!  We can also host a Resistance Cookbook Party by using this toolkit:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HBVrU3VFJ8KZZYkZUBpTCNiL_Wmc-DMR/view

3.      "Almost 8 in 10 Americans would rather fix public education than experiment with other options — the highest percentage in two decades. That’s roughly the same window of time that educational "choice" has been heavily promoted by those who see K-12 education as a market opportunity. Taken together, these poll results could be evidence that Americans are realizing that local investment in public school infrastructure and human capital is a better bet than silver-bullet solutions." http://pdkpoll.org/perspectives/enrich-upgrade-and-invest-in-the-schools-we-have  Let’s read this opinion blog based on the results of this year’s PDK Poll.  Then, let’s see how we can help fix public education in our own areas.

4.      “The California Democratic Party chairman is calling for a boycott of In-N-Out Burger after it was revealed this week that the fast food chain donated $25,000 to the California Republican Party. “Et tu In-N-Out?" Eric Bauman tweeted.  "Tens of thousands of dollars donated to the California Republican Party... it’s time to #BoycottInNOut — let Trump and his cronies support these creeps... perhaps animal style!" http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/404323-california-dems-call-for-boycott-of-in-n-out-after-donation-to  Well, this is a bummer. In-N-Out is one of the healthier fast food burgers but let’s pass on this burger treat and the “animal fries”. We can choose to spend our dollars elsewhere. 

5.      Thousands of teachers are on strike, with many more threatening to join them, in Washington State after lawmakers passed $1 billion in funding to address a state Supreme Court case determining that Washington was failing to fully fund basic education.  As a result, all 295 school districts in Washington state are renegotiating their teacher contracts:  https://www.npr.org/2018/08/30/643246137/thousands-of-southwest-washington-teachers-strike To stay updated, we can check the website of the Washington Education Association-- https://www.washingtonea.org/ourvoice/ --and we can contact them to offer our help at 253-941-6700 or 32032 Weyerhaeuser Way  S, Federal Way, WA 98001.

Marches/events/webinars/TwitterStorms to attend/organize

1.       Tomorrow, on September 1, from 1-2:30ET, Red2Blue texting is offering a webinar to teach you how to text bank for candidates. We can sign up here!  Once we feel comfortable texting, we can sign up for a volunteer shift with Red2Blue here.

2.      On September 8, the Peoples Climate Movement will lead a national mobilization for climate, jobs, and justice. We can find a Rise for Climate event near us here, or we can sign up to organize our own.  (Note:    Rise for Climate, Jobs, and Justice action in New York City will be held on THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 6 at 5:30 p.m. at Battery Park.)  

3.      National Drive Electric Week, September 8-16, 2018, is a nationwide celebration to heighten awareness of today's widespread availability of plug-in vehicles and highlight the benefits of all-electric and plug-in hybrid-electric cars, trucks, motorcycles, and more. Each of the 296 events is led by local plug-in drivers and advocates. We can find events near us here. If we are not already driving or familiar with electric vehicles, let's attend an event to learn more about this clean option.

4.      On September 22 there will be a protest at Trump’s Mar-A-Lago in Florida in commemoration of the first anniversary of Hurricane Maria:   

5.      The 2018 March for Black Women will occur in Washington, D.C. on September 29 and New York City on September 30, with sister marches all over the country.   Let’s fine more information here:  https://www.blackwomensblueprint.org/march-for-black-women and here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/187741818714062/ Let’s learn how to start a sister march/townhall here:    https://www.blackwomensblueprint.org/town-halls-sister-marches

States


Find elected state officials: https://openstates.org/


Reading/Watching

1.       Democratic Unity – The Only Way to Create a Blue Wave - https://demwritepress.com/2018/08/30/democratic-unity-the-only-way-to-create-a-blue-wave/

2.      If ‘facts and science still matter,’ as Jerry Brown claims, then you need to see this scary visualization on rising temperatures - https://www.marketwatch.com/story/if-facts-and-science-still-matter-as-jerry-brown-claims-then-you-need-to-see-this-scary-visualization-on-rising-temperatures-2018-08-29

3.      This Is How Russian Propaganda Actually Works In The 21st Century - https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/holgerroonemaa/russia-propaganda-baltics-baltnews





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