2/20/20
NATIONAL
ISSUES
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Contact all Federal
Members of Congress
(includes contact info and
links to social media)
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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DEMAND THAT
CONGRESS TAKE MEASURES TO REIGN IN TRUMP’S POWER: Since his acquittal by the Senate, Trump has gone
even more rogue than usual (if that can be believed), demanding that all cases
generated from the Mueller investigation be thrown out https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia/trump-calls-for-all-cases-stemming-from-mueller-probe-to-be-thrown-out-idUSKBN20C1RG.
Let’s tell our Republican Senators that their actions have enabled the death
of our democracy and ask all our MoCs what they are going to do now to stop
Trump’s executive overreach.
DEFUND ATTORNEY GENERAL WILLIAM BARR, It’s unlikely that AG William Barr will respond to the 2000 prosecutors and former DOJ employees calling for his resignation, so Indivisible is proposing a course of action we can all get behind. Let’s tell our MoCs to publicly support “investigating Barr's ongoing misconduct and demand that they defund Barr’s office until he and all other Trump appointees at the department recuse themselves from any investigation of prosecution relating to Trump or any Trump’s co-conspirators.” We can remind them that it’s essential to our democracy to have an independent judiciary and a fair judicial process. We can get more information on the Indivisible website here.
TRUMP’S
PARDONAPALOOZA: On Tuesday,
Trump went on what Rick Wilson described as a “pardonapalooza” – giving pardons
and commutations to an odd assortment of convicted criminals including Rod
Blagojevich: https://apnews.com/0aefe46218f914a2adb5d4e68ffc5bb0
Then on Wednesday, the lawyer for Julian Assange of Wikileaks asserted that
Trump offered Assange a pardon in exchange for refuting Russian involvement in
the hack of the DNC: https://apnews.com/3934adc00f38667b267345b8628e4f12
It is clear that Trump has not learned the lessons that GOP Senators hoped he
might. Let’s be in touch with our MoC to say that he is out of control
and we expect them to speak out.
DISABLED
IMMIGRANT CHILDREN FORCED TO WAIT IN MEXICO IN VIOLATION OF MPP’S OWN PROTOCOLS:
Four families with disabled
children including one with a life-threatening condition were denied entry to
the U.S. last week despite rules that exempt them from the MPP (Wait in Mexico
Program). CBP turned down requests for entry for three days in a row despite
appeals from a physician. https://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/local/feds-deny-families-passage/article_6d5ef456-5296-11ea-8909-931da3f6a113.html.
Let’s make sure our MoCs are aware of this situation and ask them to
intervene.
END VIOLATIONS OF CONFIDENTIALITY FOR IMMIGRANT
YOUTH IN PSYCHOTHERAPY: Unaccompanied
immigrant children held in US detention centers must undergo psychotherapy
through the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). In 2018, ORR began
requiring its therapists to share their confidential psychotherapy notes with
US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE has been using those notes
to deny asylum to some of these children. The American Psychological
Association (APA) is protesting this practice. https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2020/02/sharing-therapy-notes Let’s
support the APA’s efforts by calling on:
1) ORR to stop this practice: Jonathan H. Hayes, Director, Office of
Refugee Resettlement, 330 C Street SW, Room 5123, Washington, DC 20201, or
202-401-9246, 2) US Department of Health and Human Services (Secretary Alex
Azar, Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20201, or 1-877-696-6775) and our Members of Congress to
investigate this practice, and 3) ICE to release any immigrants who have been
denied asylum as a result of this practice: Acting Director Matthew T. Albence,
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 500 12th St SW,
Washington, DC 20536
HARRIET
TUBMAN ON THE 20-DOLLAR BILL: It’s been a year since the Harriet Tubman Tribute
Act (H.R.1083/S.872) was
introduced in Congress to honor the abolitionist. Last June, the Woman on the Twenty
Act (H.R.3082) was introduced following a May 22nd Financial Services Committee hearing where Treasury
Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the change will never happen under a
Trump Administration: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/harriet-tubman-20-dollar-bill-2020-release-delayed-trump-administration-treasury-secretary-steve-mnuchin-2019-05-23/ Let’s contact all our MoCs to let them
know that we want these bills passed and the 20-dollar bill changed.
SUPPORT
CLIMATE CHANGE LEGISLATION—Plastics
are a leading contributor to greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. H.R. 5845
and S.
3263, the Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act of 2020, will reduce single-use
plastics, improve local recycling efforts, and prevent plastic waste from
winding up in the ocean. https://www.surfrider.org/coastal-blog/entry/federal-break-free-from-plastic-pollution-act-introduced Let’s
tell our MoCs to co-sponsor H.R. 5845 and S. 3263.
POVERTY IN
THE U.S.: Despite tweets of a great economy, too many
people in our country live in poverty. https://poverty.umich.edu/about/poverty-facts/ Following in the footsteps of Rev. Martin
Luther King, Jr., Rev. William Barber continues his work on the Poor People’s Campaign. http://www.thecharlottepost.com/news/2020/01/23/local-state/poor-people-s-campaign-leader-takes-on-national-crisis-of-social-ills/
Let’s find ways to stay in touch with this group and support their work: https://www.facebook.com/anewppc/,
https://www.breachrepairers.org/news,
and let’s be planning for the June 20, 2020 Mass Poor People's Assembly &
Moral March on Washington: https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/june2020/
NATIVE
AMERICAN VOTING RIGHTS: North
Dakota’s voter ID law requires voters to show ID with their residential street
address. But many Native Americans living on reservations do not have
residential street addresses and so could not vote. Plaintiffs sued in federal
court and, last week, won a victory for voting rights. North Dakota is now
required under court consent decree to recognize tribal IDs, and ensure that
Native American voters without a residential street address can vote. https://campaignlegal.org/press-releases/secretary-state-agrees-settle-voter-id-lawsuits-entering-consent-decree-north-dakota and
https://publicintegrity.org/politics/voting-settlement/ Let’s send a message of thanks and, if
we’re able, make a donation to the organizations that represented the
plaintiffs: Native American Rights Fund,
https://www.narf.org/contact-us/ ;
Campaign Legal Center,
CORONAVIRUS/RACISM: Since the outbreak of Clovid-19, the
coronavirus, racism and xenophobia have proliferated against people of Asian
descent across the globe (https://lat.ms/37zzODe, https://bbc.in/2SJECBT).
While individuals are being targeted with everything from microaggressions to
overt attacks, businesses are also being impacted, with some having to close
because of the sharp drop in sales. (https://cnn.it/327AwXa, https://bit.ly/2SH6vdR). Let's
all make sure we are checking our own actions, and speaking with our family,
friends, and neighbors about what is happening. Then, let's make sure we are
supporting Asian-owned businesses in our communities. We can also follow
Boston's lead and organize a Dim Sum Brunch in our area.
ELECTION/VOTING
PRIMARIES/CAUCUS CALENDAR: https://ballotpedia.org/Elections_calendar
FLIP THE SENATE: The Payback Project launched shortly after
Trump's so-called acquittal by Senate Republicans. The project targets 10
vulnerable Republican Senators, and they're asking for our help in a
texting campaign to reach out to voters. They ask volunteers to participate
in a texting training webinar, and there's one coming up on Feb. 20. We can
sign up here: https://indivisible.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_PkZPG7FcQU6pg3X-FXZrwA
TX: FREE CAMPAIGN TRAINING WORKSHOP IN HOUSTON THIS
SATURDAY:
Time to get ready for the Elections! If we are a candidate, campaign
staff or local leader, the National Democratic Training Committee and the Texas
Democratic Party has a free, one day Blue Bench Campaign Training workshop just
for us! This Saturday, February 22nd, we can attend a free in-person training
focusing on fundamental aspects of campaigns or growing our organization
including fundraising, communications, digital strategy, and field operations.
During the training day, there will be 3 different audience groups Candidates,
Campaign Staff, and Local Leaders. Each group will move through four 80-minute
sessions covering different skills relevant to their audience in field,
fundraising, communications, and digital strategy.
We can find out more, including the day’s agendas, and
then sign up for this free Campaign Workshop here: https://traindemocrats.org/event/houston-texas-2-22-2020/
WV: FREE CAMPAIGN TRAINING WORKSHOP IN CHARLESTON
THIS SATURDAY: Time to get ready for
the Elections! If we are a candidate, campaign staff or local leader, the
National Democratic Training Committee and the West Virginia Democratic Party
has a free, one day Blue Bench Campaign Training workshop just for us! This
Saturday, February 22nd, we can attend a free in-person training focusing on
fundamental aspects of campaigns or growing our organization including
fundraising, communications, digital strategy, and field operations. During the
training day, there will be 3 different audience groups Candidates, Campaign
Staff, and Local Leaders. Each group will move through four 80-minute sessions
covering different skills relevant to their audience in field, fundraising,
communications, and digital strategy. We
can find out more, including the day’s agendas, and then sign up for this
free Campaign Workshop here: https://traindemocrats.org/event/charleston-west-virginia-2-22-2020/
STATE/LOCAL
MA: RESPONDING TO IMMIGRATION RAIDS: The Trump
administration is cracking down on municipalities with sanctuary policies
protecting immigrants. Boston is among them. https://www.wbur.org/news/2020/02/14/swat-like-immigration-officers-are-in-boston-ready-to-cooperate-with-ice-arrests A
rapid-response hotline, 617-863-7783, has been set up for reporting raids. If
we live in the Greater Boston area, let’s put the number in our cell phones in
case we ever have to use it. We can also
share this chart: https://www.facebook.com/welcomeprojectSomerville/photos/rpp.146980652019799/2967618579955978/
RALLIES/GATHERINGS/TRAININGS
READING/WATCHING
Trump’s
latest pardons show how quickly he’s normalizing corruption - https://www.vox.com/2020/2/19/21142836/trump-blagojevich-kerik-milken-negron-debartolo-pardons-corruption
U.S.
judge sides with migrants in Arizona case against Border Patrol - https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/u-s-judge-sides-migrants-arizona-case-against-border-patrol-n1139101
Lawyer:
Assange was offered US pardon if he cleared Russia - https://apnews.com/3934adc00f38667b267345b8628e4f12
Florida can't bar felons from registering to vote over fees and fines, court rules - https://www.cbsnews.com/news/florida-cant-bar-felons-from-registering-to-vote-over-fees-and-fines-court-rules/
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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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