11/21/19
NATIONAL
ISSUES
(Including Emails & Twitter)
Fax
legislators for free:
Or use Resistbot: https://resist.bot/
Or use StampsLicked to
have messages hand-delivered to our own legislators: https://stampslicked.org/
White
House contact: https://www.usa.gov/federal-agencies/white-house
|
CORRECTION: “UNIFIED
SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN”: From
one of our own: Twitter warriors (#TW) and Demcast (#DEMCAST) are
working together to coordinate social media campaigns across various Resistance
and pro-democracy groups. Our purpose is to join the collective power of our
voices to support Blue electoral wins in 2020. If your group would like to join
us, we will add you to a group in an application called basecamp and as a team
will pick no more than 2 campaigns per month to cross promote within our
groups. Our first campaign is for ACA - #GetCovered Let’s sign up:
CORRECTION:
PRESSURE THE SENATE TO TAKE IMPEACHMENT SERIOUSLY: After a week of damning public testimony,
Republicans in the Senate are refusing to consider the many ways in which Trump
risked national security for his own political gain, instead calling on every
tactic to deflect the issue to illegally outing the whistleblower and focusing
attention on the Bidens.
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/470746-impeachment-hearings-dont-move-needle-with-senate-gop. Let’s
keep telling our Senators that we expect them to put country over party and
consider the evidence in the upcoming impeachment as impartial jurors, the way
the Constitution dictates.
IMPEACHMENT
HEARINGS: US Ambassador to the
European Union Gordon Sondland testified Wednesday before the House
Intelligence Committee during the Impeachment Hearings and revealed far more
than was expected about the culpability of Trump, Pence, Pompeo, and
Mulvaney: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/nov/20/trump-impeachment-hearings-gordon-sondland-testimony Let’s
get all hands on deck to respond: 1. Call the White House to demand Trump’s
resignation 1-202-456-1111 2. Call our MoC to demand their support for
impeachment (Congressional reps) and removal (Senate) 3. Contact friends and
family (particularly in red and purple states) to ask them to also contact
their MoC to help create a critical mass. 4. Prepare to attend an Impeach and
Remove protest which will occur the night before the eventual impeachment
vote: https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/
SUPREME
COURT COULD CRIMINALIZE IMMIGRATION ADVOCACY: The Supreme Court will be hearing a case on
whether a
federal law that criminalizes “encouraging” undocumented immigrants to stay
here violates First Amendment free speech. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/11/us/politics/supreme-court-immigration-speech.html
and https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/11/supreme-court-criminalize-immigration-advocacy-sineneng-smith.amp?.
This will make it even more difficult for attorneys to provide due process to
clients they are trying to help. Let’s ask our MoCs what can be done to
amend and clarify the intent of that law so that attorneys can still give their
immigrant clients due process and people’s First Amendment rights can be
protected.
IRONIC,
MITCH COMPLAINS OF CONGRESS HOLDING BILL: “Senate Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell (R-KY) ripped House Democrats on Wednesday, arguing they
were holding President Trump's trade deal with Canada and Mexico in
perpetual limbo. Speaker Pelosi has refused to allow a vote," he
said. "In public, House Democrats insist and insist and insist that they
care about more things than simply impeaching the president. They insist that
they want to work together and legislate. But actions speak louder than
words." https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/471278-mcconnell-rips-house-dems-for-holding-up-usmca-trade-deal Mitch neglected to mention the 200 bills that
are sitting on his desk that he has refused to place for a vote in the senate that
congress has sent to him. Let’s tell Mitch to practice what he preaches and
get those bills to the floor for a vote and stop picking and choosing what he
likes: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/449780-a-list-of-the-democratic-legislative-priorities-being-held-up-in-the-se
and https://medium.com/@SenateDems/senator-mcconnell-has-turned-the-senate-into-a-legislative-graveyard-acd87f2c4e10
PROVIDE FLU
SHOTS FOR MIGRANTS: A group of
doctors have offered to provide free flu shots to migrants on the border, but
Customs and Border Patrol has indicated that it will refuse the offer. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/doctors-offer-give-free-flu-shots-detained-migrants-warn-trump-n1085206.
Contagious disease is more rampant in closed conditions, and this refusal is
putting many people’s health at risk. Let’s ask our MoCs to intervene and
also contact DHS (202-282-8000) to ask them to reverse this decision.
STOP
DEPORTATION OF ASYLUM-SEEKING MIGRANTS TO GUATEMALA: A new controversial
program that allows the administration to deport immigrants from El Salvador and Honduras to
Guatemala has just been piloted in El Paso, raising concerns even among career
asylum officers. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/hamedaleaziz/trump-administration-deport-asylum-guatemala-lawyers-border?
The program allows federal asylum officers to interview people and decide who
is elegible to be deported to Guatemala and denies these immigrants a right to
consult an attorney before their interview. So far, the program has been
shrouded in secrecy, due to its controversial nature. Let’s raise awareness
by posting about this on social media and through letters to the editor, and
also express our concerns to DHS (202-282-8000) and our MoCs.
DECOLONIZING
THANKSGIVING: Christine
Nobiss, Plains Cree/Saulteaux, George Gordon First Nation, is an activist and
de-colonizer, who has some very clear action items for us this holiday season:
"With Thanksgiving fast approaching, I ask you to please take the time to
educate your peers about Thanksgiving's real history; to support Native people
as they resist the narrative of the holiday; and to organize or host
alternatives to this holiday." Let's read through her
article here, and take the time to check out the resources she has
provided for us, including this toolkit for correcting harmful Thanksgiving
curricula in schools.
CLIMATE
CHANGE FOR INVESTORS/CONSUMERS: Our carbon-spewing economy is powered by money, and a sub-2C future
depends greatly on us redirecting the flow of that money. This sounds
daunting, but ultimately, it is individual people like us who both fund the
companies (through our investments, pensions, etc.) and consume their products
& services. It is literally our money, and the brilliant folks at Influence
Map have created a clear set of infographics and reports to tell us
exactly how our dollars can support (or hinder) a sub-2C future. Let's
all do our homework by using this valuable information to intelligently direct
our investing and spending:
GRATITUDE
TO THOSE TESTIFYING: Let’s join Postcards for America in thanking Lt. Col.
Vindman and Jennifer Williams for their testifying on Tuesday. Send postcards of support to Lt. Col.
Vindman: Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, Eisenhower Executive Office Building, 1650
Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20502 (*Add #PostcardsforAmerica at the bottom of your cards) Watch the
video of his opening statement here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dABObw-pAps Or read it here:
https://www.axios.com/trump-impeachment-hearing-alexander-vindman-opening-statement-0de5fcec-7ffd-49e4-9359-05057958fd9f.html Jennifer Williams was limited in what she
could say as The White House had classified it. But, one could still write her
c/o the Vice President's office. Here was her opening statement: Video - https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/11/19/jennifer-williams-full-opening-statement-impeachment-hearing-vpx.cnn
and transcript -https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/ukraine-clearinghouse-jennifer-williams-opening-statement-november-19-2019.pdf Here was her behind-closed-doors statement: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6551184-Williams-Final-Version-With-Letter.html
TEACHING
STUDENTS TO SPOT FAKE NEWS: Facing History and Ourselves, an organization
that fights bigotry and hatred using the lessons of history https://www.facinghistory.org/about-us ,
is offering to teachers, for free, an approach to helping students learn how to
spot fake news through a technique called “lateral reading.” It’s called “How
to Read the News Like a Fact Checker: A Media Literacy Strategy” https://www.facinghistory.org/educator-resources/current-events/how-read-news-fact-checker-media-literacy-strategy Let’s
take a look and share it with the teachers in our lives.
ELECTION/VOTING
2020 ELECTIONS: If we are looking for 2020 Election information
or if we have some to share, we can check out Equal Vote Local’s BlueWave
Database 2020. We can click here to find information about candidates,
voting and more arranged by state. This editable document also allows us to add
our groups and any candidates running for office: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ir8YGs1F0Lfayl6T7XR7tklnYrEk4VcEzTkPumLVWAI We can also
find out more about Equal here at their website: https://www.equalvotelocal.com/
VOTER ENGAGEMENT—The Right Question Institute: A Catalyst for
Microdemocracy offers tools and training for increasing voter engagement among
low-income people. Let’s sign up and use their resources: https://rightquestion.org/voter-engagement
BLUEPRINTS FOR CHANGE: The Blueprints for
Change Progressive Organizing and Campaigning Manual is a compilation of
all guides produced through Blueprints for Change up till November 2019 in its
current edition. This PDF doc, which is full of internal links for easy
navigation, also contains information on the project, its policies, values and
a full list of all contributors. “The
“blueprints” we are talking about are collaborative how-to guides designed to
capture, communicate and inform innovative campaigning strategies and tactics.
This project focuses on how-to’s drawn from campaigning practices that are
emergent (new and not yet fully documented), in demand by campaigning groups
and field-proven (have been applied with success in prior campaigns).” Let’s
sign up for our copy here: https://blueprintsfc.org/manual/
SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT SUSAN COLLINS: Collins claims to be a
moderate who puts Maine’s interested first, but her record, including the 156
extremist judges she has confirmed, shows otherwise. We can find out more
in when we check out Suite Up Maine’s comprehensive guide to her voting record
and its harmful effects on Mainers and other Americans, along with the damage
done by judicial and executive appointees she has confirmed. We can then use
the letter to the editor guide, shareable, printable graphics, PDFs
resources in the Collins Toolkit to share this information with, friends,
family and on social media.
OH: STOP DEATH
PENALTY FOR ABORTION BILL IN OHIO: Ohio
lawmakers just introduced a Total Abortion Ban, House Bill 413, that could sentence
women and abortion providers to death. Under this proposed law, doctors
and pregnant women could be charged with murder for abortion care, birth
control, help during their miscarriage and fertility treatments. The new
proposal would also require doctors to attempt to re-implant ectopic
pregnancies in the uterus, which is extremely dangerous and physiologically
impossible. https://www.whio.com/news/national/ohio-lawmakers-propose-total-ban-abortion/ogvwKHuHwZY0RVtLq6xPNM/
and https://www.newsweek.com/ohio-abortion-ban-force-ectopic-pregnancy-1473050
If we live in Ohio, we can call our Representatives now. If we
don’t live in Ohio, we can ask our family and friends there to call. 20
Republican Legislators support this bill, including two of the bill’s main
sponsors, Rep. Candice Keller, R-Middletown, OH and Ron Hood, Dist. 78. If
our OH rep is in this link, we can flood them with calls
at 1-800-282-0253 to say NO on House
Bill 413. If we are able, NARAL
Pro-Choice Ohio would welcome our financial help, too: https://secure.everyaction.com/e5Mag0L5HE6xm_CapHeRBA2
WI: VOTER ROLL PURGES: Approximately 234,000
Wisconsin voters could have their voter registration de-activated, depending on
the outcome of a lawsuit filed by the conservative Wisconsin Institute for
Law and Liberty (http://strib.mn/35gDIjF).
These voters have been identified as having possibly moved, and according to
the Wisconsin Elections Commission, should have received mailers in October,
asking them to confirm their address. Currently, the voters should be able to
vote in February and April 2020 elections, but that could change depending on
the court's ruling. If we received a postcard from the Wisconsin
Elections Commission, let's be sure to confirm our address ASAP. If we have any
questions, we can also contact the Elections Commission directly.
Phone: (608) 266-8005, E-mail: elections@wi.gov, or in-person at 212 East Washington
Avenue, Third Floor, Madison, Wisconsin 53703. We can also check to see if we
are registered to vote here.
RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS
CLIMATE STRIKES CONTINUE: From Future Coalition: On Nov 29 & Dec 6, we strike again! Youth
across the U.S. will lead a #ClimateStrike on
Nov 29 & Dec 6 to demand legislative action to combat the climate
crisis. Strike with us! Let’s find or host an event: https://strikewithus.org/
MORE CLIMATE STRIKE: The climate
crisis is accelerating and slowing it down will require our sustained
attention and effort, and that climate strike we marched in back in September
was just the beginning. On December 6th, as world leaders gather at
the UN’s annual climate conference, young people across America will join a
national #ClimateStrike to take the momentum from September to our elected
officials’ doorsteps. Climate change is the biggest issue humanity has ever
faced, so let's all pledge to help our kids tackle it, here: https://www.sunrisemovement.org/climate-strike
ATTEND A NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW RALLY: MoveOn is
sponsoring “No One is Above the Law Rallies on the night before the House votes
on Articles of Impeachment. We can sign up here to organize or attend an event in our
area.
READING/WATCHING
The
Invention of Thanksgiving -
The
Whistleblower Complaint has largely been Corroborated. Here's How - https://www.npr.org/2019/11/09/776173492/the-whistleblower-complaint-has-largely-been-corroborated-heres-how
The
Electoral College's Racist Origins - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/11/electoral-college-racist-origins/601918/
Why I
Quit My Job Carrying Out Trump’s Immigration Policies - https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000006819236/trump-asylum-remain-mexico-policy.html
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We can stay up
to date on Congress by checking out their schedules. a) The House publishes
a weekly schedule at The Weekly Leader (published and dated Friday)
as well as daily schedules at The Daily Leader. b) The Senate updates
their schedule daily at the Senate Floor Schedule
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