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
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(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
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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:
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:
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.
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/
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
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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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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