Chop Wood, Carry Water 12/13
Chop Wood, Carry Water 12/13
Hi, all and happy Tuesday!
Good Lord. So much happening. One really wishes that insurrectionists, white supremacists, ego-drunk billionaires, anti-LGBTQ fanatics and power-besotted tyrants would all take a break for the holidays. They seem, however, to eschew rest. So here we are, two weeks before Christmas, and things are…crazier than normal.
And that’s saying something.
I leave it to to others to help you digest and understand the news. I’m here to help you know what to do about it.
First things first: deep breaths.
Democracy is still threatened, and will be for a while. We know this; we have known it; we will continue to know it. We can address it in small, manageable steps.
AND we can eat cookies.
We are living in a momentous time in history. An era, mind you, not a moment. It has lasted for years, and likely will continue to. We must learn to live with anxiety, anger, fear, and disbelief, while simultaneously embracing our humanity, finding gratitude in all we have, feeling joy, working to connect with our loved ones, and caring for our own and others’ welfare.
While also, of course, working steadily, diligently, and bravely for change.
It’s a challenging task, but we’re up to it. We’re already doing it, in fact!
So, let’s breathe in faith—in ourselves and in each other—and breathe out the fear that cripples us.
Then let’s take action one more time, knowing that such actions, when taken in great numbers and repeated, will, indeed, lead us out of this mess eventually.
Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
I am calling to urge the Senator to pass farm worker legalization by the end of this year. Farm workers put food on all our tables and deserve the chance to live and work without fear. It’s urgent that the Senator take action now to ensure they can obtain legal status before the end of the year. [H/T]
Also, I understand that Joe Manchin is now trying to find another vehicle for his dirty permitting deal; either through an amendment to the NDAA when it comes to the Senate, or by attaching it to an end-of-year spending bill. Please ask the Senator to vote NO on any amendment or bill that includes Manchin's Dirty Deal. The bill will be a disaster for our environment. Thank you. [H/T]
Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.
I’m calling because I know that the Cherokee Nation is asking for Congress to seat its delegate, as the Treaty of 1835 requires. The Cherokees have fought for this by legal and diplomatic means since before the U.S. existed. The Senate and President Biden have already indicated their support. Now it is up to the House to follow through and make it happen. Please support the resolution to honor this Treaty and seat the Cherokee Nation Delegate to the US Congress. It’s what we promised, and it’s the right thing to do. Thanks. [H/T]
Extra Credit ✅
Send this letter to President Biden via his web portal (if you want to edit) or via Resistbot quick-send (if you don’t) by texting SIGN PAPVWF to 50409.
[H/T
, whose text was excerpted for almost the entirety of this letter.]I know the Fed will meet today, and likely raise interest rates again. I oppose this. To quote Robert Reich:
“The Fed should stop believing it can easily stop profit-price inflation by hiking interest rates. It should pause interest-rate hikes long enough to see — and allow the nation to see — they’re harming workers and consumers more than corporations that continue to rake in record profits.”
Reich correctly suggests that the government should use other means to tame inflation. Like what?
Like windfall profits taxes as California’s governor Gavin Newsom has proposed for oil companies there, and Representative Ro Khanna and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse have proposed nationally.
Like tough antitrust enforcement aimed at reducing the pricing power of big corporations (as Lina Kahn is attempting at the FTC and Jonathan Kanter is trying at the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department).
Like a new antitrust law that allows enforcers to bust up big corporations (and prevent them from buying other businesses) when they’re powerful enough to continue raising their prices higher than their costs are rising.
Seven Fed rate hikes in just nine months have barely dented corporate power to raise prices and profit margins. The Fed is putting the onus of fighting inflation on workers and consumers rather than on the corporations responsible for it.
This is wrong. It’s bad economics. It’s bad politics. And it’s profoundly unfair. Please take the fight where it really belongs—to the giant corporations profiting off of our misery. Thanks.
Get Smart! 📚
Interested in Supreme Court reform?
Demand Justice, a smart, progressive organization that’s laser-focussed on court reform, has an exciting event lined up this week — I hope some of you can join!
On Thursday at 7pm ET, they will welcome freshmen House members-elect who support Court reform to share remarks during their national organizing call. The event is called “New Congress, New Champions for Supreme Court Expansion.”
Come hear why Court expansion is important to these new members and how we'll work together to get it done!
Register here. And learn more about the amazing work Demand Justice is doing here.
Spread the Word! 📣
President Biden to sign legislation protecting marriage equality:
Today, President Biden will sign the bipartisan Respect for Marriage Act. This landmark legislation is a step toward reaffirming the fundamental truth that love is love, and Americans’ right to marry the person they love should be protected. Read Chair Harrison’s statement here and uplift this story on President Biden’s legacy of fighting for marriage equality.
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[to all 3 reps] [H/T] [Quick send: text SIGN PVMHCN to 50409]
I’m writing to ask that you sign the letter by Rep. Bowman and Senator Warren calling on President Biden to address rent inflation and rent gouging.
As prices soar across the country, families are feeling the pinch at the grocery store, at the gas pump, and as they look at their monthly rent checks. Corporate landlords are raising rents higher than general inflation, and are using inflation as an excuse to drive up the cost of housing—all while bragging about it on their earnings calls.
Rents are 27.6% higher in the top 50 largest cities than they were in June 2019; in some cities the rent has gone up even more. While families can cut back on some expenses, cutting back on housing is not an option. With a shortage of truly affordable housing, moving or downsizing are often not viable options. The alternative is homelessness.
Now Congressperson Bowman and Senator Warren are collecting signatures from Senators and Members of Congress on a letter to President Biden asking him to take administrative actions to protect tenants rights and address rent inflation and rent gouging. Please sign on to this letter! Something MUST be done! Thanks.
OK, you did it again! You helped save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk tomorrow.
Jess
Thanks for highlighting the work of Demand Justice today. I like the irlaser focus on very specific, incremental objectives framed as priorities. I also like that the priorities extend beyond expanding SCOTUS by four justices to also include expanding the lower courts and (especially!) diversifying the bench. This seems to me important because, frankly and somewhat sadly, I don't believe that the new composition of the U.S. Senate with 48+3 Democrat+Independent in the Democratic caucus will be able to set aside the Senate filibuster in order to bring such a measure to the floor. Therefore, although expansion of SCOTUS remains the top priority for the Demand Justice movement, it is good to have other priorities available to work toward.
And I hit the send button before I was finished. A classic example of how much your work helps. To sum it up, you do the hard work of putting the important stuff together and where it needs to go. I am honored to make my point and send it on💖