Rogan's List : December 2019

12/19/19

The Rogan’s List crew is taking a two-week hiatus so that we all,

contributors and readers alike, can spend time with family and friends during the holidays. We will be back on January 6, 2020. We will publish special editions, if necessary. From our families to yours,

Happy Holidays! Here’s to a wonderful new year!

NATIONAL ISSUES

Addresses (District) for Members of the House of Representatives

(Including Emails & Twitter)

All Addresses for All US Senators

(including District Offices, Website Emails, Twitter & FB)

Fax legislators for free:

Reps: https://faxzero.com/fax_congress.php

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

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

CALL OUT REPUBLICANS FOR DISLOYALTY TO THE COUNTRY: House Republicans were whipped to take a unified stance against the articles of impeachment as a test of party loyalty and did just that. Every single Republican voted against both articles of impeachment. https://apnews.com/d78192d45b176f73ad435ae9fb926ed3 Let’s make sure to call out those Republican members of Congress who voted against these articles, as well as the three Democrats who also did (http://www.rollcall.com/news/campaigns/meet-democrats-broke-party-impeachment), and remind them that their key loyalties should be to our country’s national security and our Constitution, not to a President gone rogue who continually puts his personal and political interests before the good of the country. Let’s also thank our representatives who voted in the affirmative.

ASK DEMOCRATIC MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO CONSIDER NOT SENDING ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT TO THE SENATE: With Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on record for saying he’s coordinating with the White House, and rejecting Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer’s requests for witnesses to assure that the trial is fair and evidence is heard, it is clear that the Republicans’ end game is to dismiss impeachment as quickly as possible. Several pundits have floated the idea that it would be more effective to pass the articles of impeachment but not send them to the Senate for trial, keeping a cloud over Trump so he can’t claim “total exoneration” before the 2020 election. Let’s read this article from Politico that explains the option and also includes a twist that would force both the Senate and the House to censure Trump for his behavior. And then let’s call our Democratic MoCs and ask them to consider this idea.

ANOTHER IMPEACHMENT OPTION: From Act 4 Progress: Republicans have said impeachment will be "dead on arrival" in the Senate. Closed door proceedings and a SECRET BALLOT might just get us a conviction. Tell your Senator that removing this President is more important than anything else. 202-224-3121. Of course, not sending the articles to the Senate is our first choice, but if they do, #SecretBallot Read more: http://bit.ly/2M6M5ak

FLOOD THE SENATE WITH IMPEACHMENT POSTCARDS: Impeachment now moves to the Senate where a two thirds vote is needed to impeach, which means convincing 20 Republican Senators to do the right thing. Even if they decide to ignore all the evidence, there’s no reason to make complicity easy for the GOP Senators, so let’s flood then with postcards demanding a Yes vote on Impeachment. We can buy or make postcards, then write to as many Republican Senators as we can by the year’s end, urging them to do the right thing and CONVICT Trump. To fill Senate mailboxes with Impeachment postcards, we can click here for more information, sample messages, postcard graphics to use and a list of Senators’ addresses: https://drive.google.com/drive/mobile/folders/1cBQ37TbUrNVkRWdgLeDA2W_5zUysWf1B

IMPEACHMENT GRAPHICS AVAILABLE TO USE ON SOCIAL MEDIA: The message in Impeachment is YES, so let’s spread the word as much as we can. To do so, we can use these Impeachment graphics from Need to Impeach to spread our message on Social Media platforms. These are sized for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and ready to use: https://www.needtoimpeach.com/library/

FRIDAY DEADLINE FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON DISCRIMINATION: We know this administration does not support non-discrimination and now there is a Dept. of Health and Human Services proposed rule change that will make some discrimination legal. Let’s read what Suit Up Maine has to say, then use their link to comment and ask our own senators what they plan to do: https://www.suitupmaine.org/oppose-hhs-discrimination/

DEMAND JUSTICE FOR PERPETRATORS OF MIGRANT FAMILY SEPARATION: This damning investigation of newly obtained government documents shows that the Trump administration knew of the long-term harm and trauma that could be caused by family separation, but they did it anyway. And while that policy has ended, children can still be separated from older siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles and other accompanying adults. https://www.texastribune.org/2019/12/16/trump-administration-knew-family-separations-harm-migrant-children/?. Let’s ask our MoCs to demand that key people in Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, Stephen Miller and Donald Trump himself be held accountable. And let’s demand Miller and HHS Secretary Azar’s resignations.

#NOTABOVETHELAW PROTESTS: Over 600 #ImpeachmentEve protests took place on Tuesday evening around the United States: https://www.newsweek.com/impeachment-march-trump-house-vote-congress-rally-protest-1477867 and https://demcastusa.com/2019/12/17/scenes-from-impeachment-eve-around-the-country/ If we attended one, let’s be sure to share photos on social media and thank the organizers of the one we attended.

BORDER ANGELS PROJECT: From one of our own: Here is a wonderful opportunity to help the most vulnerable immigrants from our good friends at BORDER ANGELS: Hello everyone! Border Angels is so excited to launch our Familias Reunidas Immigration Bond Fund Program! If your family or community member needs help to pay for their immigration bond, please have them email me at garcia@borderangels.org and have them fill this form! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfNNytZFmrwNNSlllgLb-eXwU5E_TtzT8dQREtTkFKjzY7V_g/viewform Please note that Border Angels has contributed $50K to this campaign and is ready to bond folks as soon as next week Monday! Thank you!

NEED FOR TAX REFORM: “Nearly 100 Fortune 500 companies effectively paid no federal taxes in 2018, according to a new report.” https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/16/these-91-fortune-500-companies-didnt-pay-federal-taxes-in-2018.html Let’s tell our MoCs that it is time for some tax reform that gets companies paying their fair share of taxes once again so that we can re-distribute the tax burden, bring in more revenue and take better care of our infrastructure.

GRATITUDE: As we gear up for a holiday pause in Rogan’s List, let’s take a moment to express gratitude to someone in our circles who has helped us get through this challenging year.

ELECTION/VOTING

LET'S MAKE A DIFFERENCE! With Postcards To Voters' (P2V) volunteer campaigns, we have the opportunity to reach individual Democratic voters throughout the country to encourage them to vote and sometimes, to make them aware of small elections they might not have known about otherwise. Volunteers have been writing now since 2017 for the over 180 campaigns that have launched. If we have been volunteers, let's keep on writing in 2020! If we are new to the effort, let's request 1 address today to start the process. P2V makes everything easy! We can receive addresses via ABBY the address bot on Facebook Messenger (lowest cost option), text and email. They can accommodate us all and we can request as few as ONE (1) address at a time. This holiday let's be sure to tell others about this low key, low cost, at-home activism effort. We can read more and find out how to sign up at postcardstovoters.org.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION—In a democracy, community organizing is the most effective way to make change. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/16/opinion/activism-power-victories.html In the New Year, let’s resolve to organize voter registration drives in our communities. Let’s consult these resources and then get started! https://www.lwv.org/blog/planning-voter-registration-drive and https://www.rockthevote.org/action-center/host-your-own-event/

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/1ir8YGs1F0L fayl6T7XR7tklnYrEk4VcEzTkPumLVWAI We can also find out more about Equal here at their website: https://www.equalvotelocal.com/

STATE/LOCAL

GA: SECOND STATE TO PURGE VOTERS: “Overnight, the number of registered voters in Georgia shrank by more than 300,000 in a contested but court-sanctioned action that could redefine the 2020 election, critics warned. State officials have downplayed the mass cancellation, arguing it is routine “list maintenance.” Others say the practice amounts to a large-scale and undemocratic voter purge, which comes just over three months before Georgia’s presidential primaries. This week, a federal judge allowed the secretary of state’s office to remove about 4 percent of registered voters from the rolls, a move officials said was aimed at those who have recently died or left Georgia. But there were also more than 120,000 people included in that cull simply because they hadn’t voted since 2012 or responded to mailings from the state, according to a lawsuit filed to halt the purge. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/12/17/georgia-purged-voters-its-rolls-its-second-state-make-cuts-less-than-week/ Now is the time check if we are still registered to vote in our state. The 2020 elections are crucial to our democracy. We can check here at https://www.vote.org/am-i-registered-to-vote/ to be sure we are registered. If we are not registered, here is a link for information on how to register: https://www.rockthevote.org/voting-information/

RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS

READING/WATCHING

Historians’ Statement on the Impeachment of President Trump - https://medium.com/@historiansonimpeachment/historians-statement-on-the-impeachment-of-president-trump-6e4ed2277b16

Understanding The U.S. Economy: Lots Of Rotten Jobs - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2019/12/05/understanding-the-us-economy-lots-of-rotten-jobs/#1ca5bdb12d97

For our holiday listening pleasure - https://www.facebook.com/MakeItPlain/videos/527644547830041/

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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

12/17/19

Here's a fun way to support groups working to increase voter participation!

It would make a fun holiday gift to our favorite activists!

Click here for info: bit.ly/dirtytrickskickstarter

NATIONAL ISSUES

Addresses (District) for Members of the House of Representatives

(Including Emails & Twitter)

All Addresses for All US Senators

(including District Offices, Website Emails, Twitter & FB)

Fax legislators for free:

Reps: https://faxzero.com/fax_congress.php

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

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

IMPEACHMENT RALLIES AND VOTE: Momentum is building as the House vote on impeachment is tomorrow: https://apnews.com/cebb308b1c7bd81e715da5d2bd51a47a and https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-impeachment-poll/trump-campaign-says-impeachment-backfiring-not-really-polls-suggest-idUSKBN1YK0XP In addition to attending one of the Tuesday evening www.impeach.org rallies, let’s stay connected with our MoC in the lead-up to the vote to show our support and gratitude or to implore them to do the right thing depending on their stance.

CONTRIBUTE OUR IMPEACHMENT RALLY VIDEOS TO A NATIONAL VIDEO: With Impeachment rallies set for TODAY, 5:30 local time. DemCast will be working with Eleven Films to do up a video of events tomorrow. We can find our Impeach Rally at https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/ After the event, we can email our videos to Jamie@Demcastusa.com

DEMAND THAT MITCH MCCONNELL AND LINDSEY GRAHAM RECUSE THEMSELVES FROM THE SENATE IMPEACHMENT TRIAL: Anyone who has been called for jury duty knows that there are tons of small reasons that jurors might not be able to serve on a case due to pre-established bias. In fact, at the time of the OJ Simpson trial, the standing joke was that they wouldn’t be able to find people to be on a jury because nearly everyone had read the newspapers and already made up their mind. Yet Senator Lindsay Graham has publicly said he’s already made up his mind, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-impeachment-trial-lindsey-graham-senate-republicans-ukraine-biden-a9248336.html and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has gone even further, coordinating with the White House on the parameters of the trial. This is not what a jury does, and this was not the intent of the founding fathers, who are probably rolling in their graves. Let’s join the call by Florida Congresswoman Val Demings https://floridapolitics.com/archives/313523-val-demings-charges-mitch-mcconnell-cannot-take-oath-for-impeachment-must-withdraw? and ask our MoCs to demand that both McConnell and Graham recuse themselves from the proceedings because we expect a fair trial that upholds the Constitution.

ASK PELOSI TO APPOINT JUSTIN AMASH AS AN IMPEACHMENT MANAGER: Congressman Justin Amash (I-MI) is an Independent Congressman who, since leaving the Republican Party, has made strong, clear arguments in favor of impeachment. He has also taken Senators McConnell and Graham to task for their stated intent to acquit Trump no matter what the evidence shows. For these reasons and more, over 30 Democratic Members of Congress support making Amash an Impeachment Manager, who would argue the case for impeachment to the Senate. The Clinton trial had 14 Impeachment Managers, so there is plenty of room, also adding Amash to the team would make it bi-partisan, and potentially more credible with some conservative voters.

We can read more about Amash and the reasons 30 MOC’s are calling for him to be an impeachment manager in this Newsweek article. https://www.newsweek.com/30-democrats-push-ex-gop-lawmaker-justin-amash-become-impeachment-manager-trump-senate-trial-1477360 We can then call our reps, or Speaker Pelosi directly, at 202-224-3121 to ask that Speaker Pelosi appoint Justin Amash to be one of the Impeachment Managers.

IMPEACHMENT TEXTING: From one of our own: IMPEACHMENT TEXTS ARE LIVE! This is our chance to make our mark on the impeachment vote. We’re texting 100,000 contacts in thirteen key congressional districts. Help us put pressure on vulnerable Republicans and keep the Democrats united ahead of this important vote! Can you send texts today? Start texting: https://rr.team/spoke Instructions:

https://rr.team/impeachment-instructions

HOW TO WRITE IMPEACHMENT OP-EDs: Indivisible has put together a short guide to help people write op-eds in support of impeachment for their local paper. It's a great way to be seen by your Congressperson but also by the local community. There is power in seeing that you have neighbors who feel the way you do about impeachment. The national news conversation may or may not match what you're seeing locally. Indivisible's guide includes a tool to help you find local papers that will accept your op-ed, talking points to include, writing tips, and a sample op-ed to give you some ideas. (h/t Political Charge)

HELP PERSUADE REPUBLICAN SENATORS TO IMPEACH: From one of our own: I heard two Republicans say (on George Stephanopoulos) that if more than TWO Republicans vote for impeachment, Donald Trump will be in serious trouble. So, I’m suggesting a new goal for us – to persuade THREE Republicans to vote for impeachment. Let’s click here for instructions: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1USoTO6RGswkzv-NKm0DsxL9uFBxOS9Dp

DEMAND FAIR ASYLUM HEARINGS FOR MIGRANTS STRANDED IN MEXICO. Since the Remain in Mexico Program took effect, only 0.1% of the cases heard have resulted in asylum being granted. Meanwhile, 636 cases of kidnapping, torture, and violence against asylum-seekers (including 138 cases of child-kidnapping) have been reported. Let’s make sure to read this eye-opening article from the LA Times about the many ways the system is now even more stacked against people fleeing their home countries because of violence. Then, let’s call our MoCs one more time and demand that they do something about ending this program.

DEMAND CLIMATE ACTION: “Congress is currently considering legislation that would provide federal tax incentives for clean energy and electric vehicles—a critical down payment on our nation’s efforts to help limit climate change impacts.” Let’s send a letter to our Senators through the Union of Concerned Scientists and tell them to support clean energy and transportation incentives in 2019: https://www.ucsusa.org/

HOLD ICE ACCOUNTABLE: "The New Sanctuary Coalition (NSC) accompaniment program recruits and trains volunteers to accompany people facing deportation to their immigration hearings and ICE check-ins. This provides moral support to the person facing deportation and enables volunteers to hold immigration authorities accountable."

https://www.newsanctuarynyc.org/accompaniment_training This group is based in NYC, but similar trainings are available in most states. For the nearest immigrants' rights group near us, check out this spreadsheet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1onS-oiXj20IYTeaKNtan_4SB7ccv3Ypg5efqBRIkUgg/edit#gid=0 Let's consider becoming volunteers to help protect immigrants and bear witness to ICE's misbehavior!

ACCURACY OF 2020 CENSUS AT RISK: The crucial accuracy of the 2020 Census, on the basis of which political representation and federal funding are allocated, is gravely at risk; California and some other states and cities will devote huge sums to counting their residents, but not surprisingly, 24 states, including population-heavy Texas, Florida, and Ohio, will spend nothing; 17 of the 24 have Republican governors and legislatures, while only 4 of the 26 states spending on the census are Republican-controlled. Excluding people from harder-to-count and heavily Democratic groups like Hispanics, African-Americans, Asians, and the poor, not to mention those without access to the new online census form, would shore up the Republican vote: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/money-power-fearing-undercount-states-cities-pour-millions-2020-census-n1061961 or https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/15/us/census-california-texas-undercount.html It is urgent that we offer our support, time, or dollars to whichever private entities are working to ensure a fair count (In Texas, these include the Center for Public Policy Priorities, Communities Foundation of Texas, the Hogg Foundation, the United Way, and certain big cities).

HALLMARK AND DIVERSITY: “”The Hallmark Channel, reversing what it called a “wrong decision,” said Sunday it will reinstate commercials featuring same-sex couples that it had pulled following a complaint from a conservative group.” https://apnews.com/97aa3098502ea48ef087f03ccdc29396 Let’s contact Hallmark (https://corporate.hallmark.com/contact/contact-hallmark/ ) to thank them for that reversal and to encourage them to be more inclusive in their movie-making. Let’s also contact Zola, the wedding planning site in question, to thank them for a beautiful ad and the right decision: support@zola.com or 1-408-657-ZOLA

WEEKLY POSTCARD WRITE-UPS: From one of our own: Here are this week's postcarding write-ups. Please use/share/distribute as you see fit. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OaDoccF74M3KdmSlQWWPVTz_FB40j1koPWH4VRNo7LI/edit?fbclid=IwAR2vxhOeTAOTYDXA4amORb18vsBab0WxxXFnOmJBZgsRg30s1SW6HyZu7HY

LIE OF THE YEAR: “PolitiFact will soon announce our Lie of the Year -- the most significant falsehood of 2019, as chosen by our editors and reporters. We're also inviting PolitiFact readers to vote for the Readers' Choice award.” Vote here: use this link to our survey.” https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2019/dec/09/lie-year-2019-readers-choice-poll/

APP TO FIND A BLACK SANTA—A Texas mom has developed a free app to find Black Santas for children to visit. Here’s an article about it:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cant-find-a-black-santa-now-theres-an-app/ We can download the app here: https://www.findblacksanta.com/

COMMUNITY SOLAR GARDENS—Last year, Shiloh Temple, a majority Black church in Minneapolis, MN, installed 630 solar panels on the roof of the church. Those panels provide green energy not only to the church, but also to a nearby mosque and 29 neighboring households—while also lowering utilities costs for low-income families. https://www.npr.org/2019/12/15/784483810/powered-by-faith-religious-groups-emerge-as-a-conduit-for-a-just-solar-boom? Let’s learn more about community solar gardens and other community solar initiatives and think about starting something in our own communities:

https://www.seia.org/initiatives/community-solar

ELECTION/VOTING

WISCONSIN VOTER PURGE. Last Friday, a Wisconsin judge ordered the state to remove over 234,000 people from Wisconsin's voter rolls because they may have moved. We can read more at USA Today. Wisconsin Democrats vowed Monday to double down on efforts to ensure that any voters whose registrations are nullified by a judge's recent ruling will be able to register again before the 2020 presidential election. (Source: Boston23News). Let's alert all the Wisconsin voters we know and encourage them to check their registration at My Vote Wisconsin (state gov. site)

ELECTION RESULTS: HOUSTON, TEXAS. Postcards To Voter's volunteers helped get out the vote for Houston's runoff election on Sat. Dec. 14 with Campaign 185 to re-elect Mayor Sylvester Turner and to elect Janaeya Carmouche to City Council. Mayor Turner has won a second term with 57% of the vote. Receiving 39% of the vote, Carmouche did not win her bid for the City Council At-large #3 position. We can review all of Houston's election results at KHOU.com.

STATE/LOCAL

MI: TRUMP RALLY PROTEST: From MI Resistance: "On December 18th, the actual day of the [impeachment] vote - Trump and Pence will hold a campaign rally in Battle Creek. Multiple groups are organizing a mass protest at a nearby park. Resisters are coming from all over the state to make a strong showing." Groups will be meeting at the Soujourner Truth Monument in Monument Park at 5pm., then marching to Wave Square. We can find the Facebook event here. For those of us who either need transportation to the event, or are able to offer a ride, we can check out GroupCarpool: https://www.groupcarpool.com/t/9tq853

WI: VOTER ROLL PURGES: Update- Circuit Judge Paul Malloy has ruled in favor of the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, giving Wisconsin 30 days to remove more than 200,00 people from the voter rolls because they may have moved (https://bit.ly/35rOHHv). 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. 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. Let's also double check to see if we are registered to vote here.

WI: GET FREE ORGANIZING TRAINING WITH A STIPEND: The 2020 election results may depend on one state: Wisconsin, so let’s get busy. If we are interested in working on the campaign, we can get paid training and organizing program to build our skills in these fundamentals: persuading voters, managing volunteers and using digital and data analytics tools. Post training, we will get help finding campaign jobs this summer. Organizing Corps is offering a 5-week Immersion program this spring, with stipends to help us through. We can learn more and apply at

https://www.organizingcorps2020.com/

RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS

IMPEACHMENT RALLIES: There are now nearly 600 Impeach and Remove rallies planned for this evening. Here is what we can expect: https://demcastusa.com/2019/12/15/what-to-expect-at-a-political-rally/ Let’s make sure we are signed up for one (or organizing one if none of them are near us): https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/

READING/WATCHING

Rally for Impeachment - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZtZBWESbNw&feature=youtu.be

Kamala Harris Did Not Fail - https://zora.medium.com/kamala-harris-did-not-fail-c5af04cb06df

Finland is winning the war on fake news. What it’s learned may be crucial to Western democracy - https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2019/05/europe/finland-fake-news-intl/

Democracy Grief is Real - https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/13/opinion/sunday/trump-democracy.html

Increasingly a Necessity: A 15-Point Guide to Surviving Authoritarianism - https://billmoyers.com/story/increasingly-necessity-15-point-guide-surviving-authoritarianism/

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12/16/19

On Mondays, Rogan’s List features a listing of proposed rule and regulation changes that are currently accepting public comment. Commenting is the way to show government agencies how we feel about these proposed changes. Our comments also become part of a record that will be reviewed by courts if and when a reg change is contested. Courts use comments to judge whether an agency is acting arbitrarily and capriciously.

Organization

Closing Soon

Recent

Section I - ICE, DHS, DOL, NLRB

Section II - everything environmental - EPA, BLM, DOE

Section III - Civil rights, housing, education, healthcare

Other: More on regulations (tracking the trackers/general information)

(Note: After a couple of weeks items are moved from “Recent” and “Closing soon” into the Roman numeral sections. A note on regulatory processes: there are three stages - Notice, Proposed Rule, and Rule. There’s usually a time lag of a few months to a few years between them, and they must be published in the Federal Register before appearing on Regulations.gov. Comment time varies from 10 days to 2 months, sometimes with extensions.)

Social Security Disability is now at the top of “Recent” - proposed changes would possibly eliminate over 4 million people from SSI and SSDI. For this and more, click here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1v4AwwrvkhPkllDCYR4AfAIRPXtqjp4u-/view

12/15/19

SPECIAL IMPEACHMENT EDITION

It appears that the House will hold the vote on impeachment on Wednesday, December 18. As announced previously, the night before the House of Representatives takes a somber vote to impeach Trump, we'll head to every congressional office and public square to declare that Nobody Is Above the Law as representatives finalize their positions and senators look on. Over 500 Impeach and Remove events have already been arranged for Tuesday, December 17th at 5:30 p.m. local time, but let’s check our local event for a confirmed time and location.

Let’s check here to find an event near us: https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/

If there is not an event near us, we can coordinate one for our area using these instructions: https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove/create/

Let’s “join this historic nationwide mobilization on the eve of Trump's impeachment vote: RSVP for an event near you or sign up to host one. Events will be visible, family-friendly, public gatherings to demonstrate to our lawmakers that their constituents are behind them to defend the Constitution—and that Trump has left them no alternative to uphold their oath of office but to support impeachment and removal.”

12/12/19

NATIONAL ISSUES

Addresses (District) for Members of the House of Representatives

(Including Emails & Twitter)

All Addresses for All US Senators

(including District Offices, Website Emails, Twitter & FB)

Fax legislators for free:

Reps: https://faxzero.com/fax_congress.php

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

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

IMPEACHMENT MARKUP: The next step in the impeachment process is the markup to discuss and vote the two articles of impeachment out of the Judiciary Committee and onto a full House vote probably next week. The markup session began last night and will continue today with a vote expected yet today. https://www.npr.org/2019/12/11/787000939/house-panel-to-begin-markup-of-trump-impeachment-articles “Members of the House have been given a simple test of their fidelity to the Constitution. Are they enablers of presidential abuse of power and corruption, or will they do what their oaths of office require of them and hold a corrupt president in check?” Let’s ask our MoCs, particularly our GOP MoCs, this question and share this conservative source with them to remind them what honorable party members think and do when they put country over party: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/the-case-for-impeachment-is-overwhelming/

IMPEACHMENT PROTEST: “The night before the House of Representatives takes a somber vote to impeach Trump [likely next week sometime], we'll head to every congressional office and public square to declare that Nobody Is Above the Law as representatives finalize their positions and senators look on.” There are now over 400 protests planned for the night before the impeachment vote, which could be this week. Let’s make sure we are signed up for one (or organizing one if none of them are near us): https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/

DEMAND REPEAL OF THE EXECUTIVE ORDER ON ANTI-SEMITISM THAT DEFINES JEWS AS A NATIONALITY: Trump is planning to sign an executive order that redefines Jews as a nationality rather than a religion, in order to give them protected status against “discrimination” on college campuses, which is slated to include programs that criticize Israel or promote the boycott movement. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-sign-executive-order-targeting-college-anti-semitism-israel-boycotts-n1099601. Regardless of our position on Israel, we should be extremely concerned about this designation, which implies that Jews are not full Americans, and that their loyalty is to a foreign country. The Nazis did a similar thing in 1935 when they redefined Jews as a separate nationality and took away their German citizenship. Many progressive Jewish organizations including T’ruah, the rabbinic call for Human Rights, and J Street are speaking strongly against this measure. In fact, As T’ruah points out, in supposedly combatting anti-Semitism, Trump is perpetuating an anti-Semitic trope that Jews are not loyal to the state in which they live, a position that has led to horrific incidents of violence and discrimination against Jews throughout history. Let’s call the White House and our MoCs to protest this executive order. As part of our argument, let’s make sure to mention that Trump is no champion of anti-Semitism and no friend to Jews. He came under severe criticism from Jewish leaders just a few days ago for his anti-Semitic statement that Jews should vote for him to protect their wealth. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/12/08/jewish-groups-condemn-trump-remarks/4375229002/. If we are Jews, let’s make sure to say that we are Americans and we reject any designated status that could call this into question now or in the future. Let’s also contact the Anti Defamation League and express this concern and ask them to withdraw their support for the Executive Order.

NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORICATION ACT (NDAA): After months of negotiations, Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate have agreed to the language for the NDAA 2020 (H.R. 2500). The House version initially included language to withdraw U.S. support for the war in Yemen which has caused the spread of widespread famine and disease, implement toxic PFAS standards, reverse the military ban on transgender individuals, and also included a broad family leave policy for government employees (https://bit.ly/348ufd1). None of those provisions are in the final language of the bill. Instead, the bill will officially write a new branch of the military, the Space Force, into U.S. Code, increases spending by $22 billion over the previous fiscal year, and the family leave policy has been limited to 12 weeks of parental leave. Let's contact our MoC and tell them that we agree with Representative Ro Khanna and Senator Bernie Sanders that " this bill does nothing to rein in out-of-control military spending, prevent unconstitutional war against Iran, limit the poisoning of Americans’ drinking water, or end the obscenity of innocent children in Yemen being killed by U.S. bombs...Congress must say no," (https://bit.ly/2RFzxKE)

BILL FOR LOWER PRESCRIPTION PRICES: “House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Wednesday that later in the day the House would debate and then vote Thursday on a bill that she said would reduce prescription drug costs, the latest example of Democrats drawing attention to their legislative efforts while they pursue impeachment.” https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/amid-impeachment-house-democrats-push-measure-lower-cost/story?id=67653547 Let’s tell our representative to pass H.R. 3. While the bill is very specific the message we want to give is simple: it’s more important to make sure drugs that millions depend on such as insulin are affordable than to make pharma rich and hope they spend it on developing new drugs—which are likely to be expensive and benefit fewer people.

CALL OUT ATTORNEY GENERAL BARR FOR CONTINUING TO SPIN LIES: First Barr attempted to spin the Mueller report in a way that made Trump appear completely innocent, https://www.npr.org/2019/04/30/718883130/mueller-complained-that-barr-summary-of-trump-russia-probe-lacked-context. Now he’s denying the conclusions of the report from the non-partisan Inspector General, which found no evidence of political bias on the part of the FBI’s investigation into the Trump campaign. https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/10/barr-fbi-russia-probe-bad-faith-080754. Let’s express our outrage to the Justice Department (202-353-1555) or via this form, and ask our MoCs to consider impeaching Barr for continuing to spread falsehoods.

IMMIGRATION/HEALTH: Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials are continuing to refuse flu vaccines for immigrants held in detention (https://bit.ly/2PysOzC). This follows nearly a year of refusing to comply with written recommendations by the CDC to vaccinate refugees in detention centers. Let's join the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and Doctors for Camp Closure in demanding flu vaccines for immigrants. We can contact the Secretaries at the Departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services: Kevin McAleenan Acting Secretary U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 3801 Nebraska Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20528. Alex Azar Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201

HOUSTON POLICE CHIEF SPEAKS OUT TO GOP ON GUNS. “Houston's police chief sharply criticized the two Republican U.S. senators from his state and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell over gun control legislation during an emotional news conference as he prepared to escort the body of a police officer killed in the line of duty to a funeral home. Police Chief Art Acevedo called on the Senate on Monday to renew the Violence Against Women Act, which expired in February. In April, the House passed a version of the bill that includes a provision expanding the definition of domestic abusers who would be prohibited from owning guns. “We all know in law enforcement that one of the biggest reasons that the Senate, and Mitch McConnell, and John Cornyn, and Ted Cruz, and others" have not reached a compromise on the bill is that the National Rifle Association "doesn't like the fact that we want to take firearms out of the hands of boyfriends that abuse their girlfriends," Acevedo said. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/12/10/houston-police-chief-art-acevedo-slams-mc-connell-cruz-cornyn-nra/4385183002/ “The Houston Police Officers' Union has hit out at Chief Art Acevedo's words against GOP lawmakers for failing to pass the Violence Against Women Act.” Act.” https://www.newsweek.com/houston-police-chief-art-acevedo-christopher-brewster-1476400 Let’s send our condolences for the loss of life of police officer, Christopher Brewster and also thank and support Chief Art Acevedo for speaking out about the GOP’s lack of support for the Violence Against Women Act. You can send your cards here: Chief Art Acevedo, Houston Police headquarters, 1200 Travis, Houston, TX 77002 or Tweet him here@ArtAcevedo. Then, let’s contact our MoCs to address this ever-growing problem.

JOIN COMMON CAUSE ACTION TEAM: Common Cause is fighting to make our democracy more open, honest, and accountable -- and they need our help. In the past year, Common Cause activists have helped to establish new public financing programs... spread automatic voter registration to several new states... hold the Trump administration accountable... and achieve dozens of other victories. If we are ready to reach out to other people to hold power accountable in our community, state legislatures, the halls of Congress or even the White House, we can help these ways. Organize: lead action teams, get trained, train community members, win reforms in your state and community. Volunteer: Help with in office needs at a Common Cause state office. Rapid Response: Phonebank, Text Common Cause members, Plan Mobilizations (e.g. petition deliveries, rallies). We can sign up here to join Common Cause’s Action Team -- a dedicated group fighting for our democracy online and offline with support and training from our staff. https://actionnetwork.org/forms/join-the-action-team We can also learn more about Common Cause’s mission and achievements at their website here: https://www.commoncause.org/

POLITICAL GIFT GUIDE II: Looking for gifts that will make a difference this holiday season? Here are a few more options:

“Supermajority is a new home for women's activism, training and mobilizing a multiracial, intergenerational community who will fight for gender equity together. Learn more and become a founding member at supermajority.com” We can shop for merch here: https://store.supermajority.com/
Crooked Media is the network that brings us podcasts including Pod Save America and numerous publications including the daily “What a Day”. We can shop their wares here: https://store.crooked.com/
USPS Operation Santa lets us read letters from Santa’s mailroom and answer the ones he can’t. We can learn more here and make a holiday wish come true: https://www.uspsoperationsanta.com/

NO DEBT RELIEF FOR DEFRAUDED STUDENTS: Ed Secretary Betsy DeVos is, once again, trying to avoid student debt forgiveness—this time not for students who were promised relief after completing 10 years of public service but for the 200,000 students defrauded by for-profit “colleges,” like Corinthian and ITT; having failed once in court, she is now again launching a program that would override the recommendation of her department’s Borrower Defense Unit and provide, at best, partial debt relief for students who were lied to about job prospects and the transferability of credits: https://www.wnyc.org/story/betsy-devos-overruled-education-dept-findings-on-defrauded-student-borrowers Let’s tell her what we, the taxpayers she claims to be defending, think of this new ploy to avoid responsibility for the DOE’s accreditation of fake “colleges”: (202) 401-3000: Fax (202) 260-7867 or 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20202.

ELECTION/VOTING

SATURDAY ELECTION WATCH: TEXAS. Postcards To Voter's volunteers will be watching the results of Houston's runoff election on Sat. Dec. 14. Campaign 185 is to re-elect Mayor Sylvester Turner and to elect Janaeya Carmouche to City Council. If we are Houston voters, let's make a plan to vote on Saturday.

PONY UP, BILLIONAIRES: David Axelrod tweets that presidential billionaire candidate Michael Bloomberg has donated $10 million to defend the seats of Democrats who vote for impeachment. He then asks whether presidential billionaire candidate Tom Steyer, who has been running on an impeachment platform, will match Bloomberg’s donation. https://twitter.com/davidaxelrod/status/1204787117085384706?s=12&fbclid=IwAR1-trEJD0KtjoLdtmDFp81GuskrYuYKyDKFz9MQj1YUPN7lVvWrfALyAHw It doesn’t hurt to ask. Let’s do so: https://www.tomsteyer.com/contact/ or @TomSteyer

ELECTION RESULTS - SOUTH CAROLINA: Postcards To Voter's volunteers wrote to get out the vote for the Aiken County School Board special election on Dec. 10 WITH Campaign 182. Unfortunately, Dr. Kristin Beard was not elected to the open seat for District 8. We can read about the new representatives at The Aiken Standard.

FLORIDA VOTE BY MAIL-NEW CAMPAIGN: Postcards To Voters has just launched their 17th campaign to encourage Florida Democrats to sign up to vote by mail. The focus this time is Duval County with its county seat in Jacksonville. Let's request 5 addresses today to help increase Duval County voter turnout in 2020.

SUPPORT COMMUNITY-BASED VOTING EFFORTS: The Movement Voter Project (MVP) funnels money to community groups that organize youth and people of color “to turn out unlikely voters AND organize communities to grow their power and create transformation” This model was an essential part of the victory of Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) over Roy Moore, and in the recent legislative sweep in Virginia. Now MVP is focusing on 5 battleground states that are key for the 2020 presidential election. We can find out more and donate here, either to the 5-state battleground fund or directly to one of the many effective community groups that are working to get out the vote as part of that fund. We can also sign up to hold a house party to spread the word to our friends.

STATE/LOCAL

CO: Help Pass the National Popular Vote Law: Our legislature and Governor joined 15 states and D.C. in passing National Popular Vote legislation, guaranteeing the presidency to the candidate with the most popular votes in all 50 states. That way, every vote counts. Now extreme special interests have been trying to reverse those actions and have now forced the law onto the 2020 ballot. It’s time to fight back and make sure Coloradans vote YES on the National Popular Vote. We can sign up here to learn more about ways to get Coloradans to vote YES on National Popular Vote in Colorado: https://petitions.yesonnationalpopularvote.com/beta/petition/npv-signup

We can also find more, including an informational video about the YES on National Popular Vote in Colorado here: https://www.yesonnationalpopularvote.com/

MA: PERIOD-POVERTY IN THE US: Dignity Matters is a Massachusetts-based non-profit that “collects, purchases, and supplies feminine hygiene products, bras, and underwear to women and girls who are homeless or disadvantaged, in order to help them stay healthy, regain self-confidence, and live with basic dignity.” Let’s learn more about Dignity Matters and see how we can help: https://www.dignity-matters.org/

RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS

IMPEACHMENT PROTEST: “The night before the House of Representatives takes a somber vote to impeach Trump, we'll head to every congressional office and public square to declare that Nobody Is Above the Law as representatives finalize their positions and senators look on.” There are now over 400 protests planned for the night before the impeachment vote, which could be this week. Let’s make sure we are signed up for one (or organizing one if none of them are near us):

https://www.impeach.org/event/impeach-and-remove-attend/search/

READING/WATCHING

Greta Thunberg Is The 'Time' Person Of The Year For 2019 - https://www.npr.org/2019/12/11/787026271/greta-thunberg-is-time-magazine-s-person-of-the-year-for-2019

The public servants Trump smeared as 'traitors' and 'human scum' are Time magazine's 2019 'Guardians of the Year' - https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-impeachment-witnesses-time-2019-guardians-of-the-year-2019-12

The Ripple Effects of Taking SNAP Benefits From One Person:

https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2019/12/trump-snap-food-stamps-cuts/603367/

Stephen Miller has betrayed his Jewish roots, relative says - https://www.orlandosentinel.com/opinion/guest-commentary/os-op-stephen-miller-family-tree-20191210-ocajlsa3ofbd3pao6e4gc7ydg4-story.html

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