Chop Wood, Carry Water 12/5

Anything for our country!

Hi, all, and happy Tuesday!

I’m afraid I have to skip the pep talk today! I’m about to leave to drive to Norwalk with a group of fellow would-be candidates. There I’ll be submitting my paperwork to get on the March, 2024 ballot here in Los Angeles. If all goes well and my signatures get approved I’ll be running for Los Angeles County Democratic Party Central Committee again—I am currently an incumbent.

I’ll be honest: I don’t particularly like this position—I’m not into contentious meetings, Robert’s Rules of Order, crafting resolutions, or playing local politics. (I especially hate that last part.) But the Democratic party is my party—there is, in our current situation, no other. It needs people from all walks of life to participate, to push it to improve, and to help keep it honest. And it very much needs more activists.

So I’m running one more time. After all, if I’m going to ask YOU to go outside of your comfort zones then I must as well.

Anything for our country, right? Even a drive to Norwalk in the middle of a week day and lots more Roberts Rules.

In the meantime there’s lots of important stuff below. Let’s get to it!

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.

I understand that tomorrow Leader Schumer will be offering Unanimous Consent on S.25, Senator Feinstein's bill to ban assault weapons and Senator Blumenthal and Senator Murphy will be offering Unanimous Consent on two more gun violence prevention bills: S.173 Ethan's Law and S.494 the Background Check Expansion Act. I want the Senator to please support unanimous consent on all of them—I very much want these bills to pass. [Talk for a second about how gun violence has affected you personally.] I’ll be watching this vote closely. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.

As his/her constituent, I am urging the Congressmember to co-sponsor H.R. 6191, the Curtailing Executive Overcompensation (CEO) Act.

CEO’s are currently earning 399 times the pay of the median worker -- the highest disparity in 50 years.

America’s workers keep our economy moving and they deserve to be compensated fairly for their work. The massive public support for recent worker strikes demonstrates that decreasing the disparity between worker and CEO pay is not only popular, but the right thing to do. Thanks. [H/T and more info Robert Reich]

Extra Credit ✅

A massive liquified “natural” gas (LNG) export facility could soon get the green light to be built on the Gulf Coast of Louisiana. If approved, the Calcasieu Pass 2 (CP2) facility could pollute up to 20 times the annual carbon emissions of the Willow drilling project in Alaska — equivalent to emissions from more than 42 million gas-powered cars or more than 50 coal-fired power plants.

We have an opportunity to tell the federal government to put people over polluters and reject the CP2 project. Please use Earthjustice’s tool to write to President Biden and FERC and say no way! Please be sure to personalize it so your message counts.

If this issue is important to you I also highly recommend signing up with the wonderful Louisiana Bucket Brigade, which is leading opposition to this project on the ground.

Get Smart—and Spread the Word! 📣

Today the Supreme Court is set to hear Moore v. United States, a case that could preemptively outlaw a wealth tax. The case is a gift to the billionaires that have heaped luxury travel and gifts on Justices Thomas and Alito.

Here is a brief explainer of Moore; it also has examples of conflicts of interest in the case and sample social media posts. Spread the word, please. This case is an outrage.

Give 💰!

Tonight’s the night! Hear Senator Raphael Warnock and Congressman Jeff Jackson! Be inspired by the two young Democratic Party chairs, Anderson Clayton and Drew Kromer, and NC America Votes director Ashlei Blue.  On Zoom, 7:30 pm ET.  

Every dollar you give up to $25,000 will be matched 1:1 by generous donors. Register here: Winning North Carolina Starts with Mecklenburg County

Your donation will go toward our goal of hiring new organizers in Mecklenburg County to carry North Carolina for Biden, for governor, to take back legislative seats, to win other critical races, and to build for the 2026 US Senate election.

Please note: to attend the event, you will be directed to a Swing Blue Alliance Mobilize event.  Register there and you’ll get the Zoom link by email and text. 

Win Races! 🗳

Postcard alert!

One of the great accomplishments of President Biden and Democrats in Congress is the reduction of insulin prescriptions to just $35 a month under Medicare, a rate quickly matched by many leading insurers. More than one in ten Americans live with diabetes, and ongoing treatment is vital to ensure quality of life. Yet before Democrats intervened to lower the cost of insulin, far too many Americans were delaying or not seeking treatment because they couldn’t afford it.

While 83% of Americans support this policy, only 29% know it happened. That’s why Activate America is launching a new postcarding program into Arizona to make sure that Democratic-leaning voters there know that the Democratic choice for Senate, Rep. Ruben Gallego, voted for this life-saving reform.

Sign up to request postcarding lists today.

Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻

[To all 3 reps] [Text SIGN PSJYPE to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]

I understand that Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) is leading a group of more than 200 Republican lawmakers in demanding that any final government funding bill contains language banning the EPA from enforcing electric vehicle regulations.

The proposed EPA rule in question aims to quickly transition the U.S. automobile market toward electric vehicles to cut down on carbon emissions.

House Republicans have even included a provision in their Interior-Environment appropriations bill that would stop the EPA from spending any money to implement the proposed EV rule.

I’m extremely angry over and frustrated by this. We are in a climate emergency. Our air is polluted. EVs are fast becoming cheaper than ICE cars and the IRA is ensuring that they are American made. This, in turn, is creating millions of jobs. What are these Republicans thinking to try to sabotage all of that?

Please ensure that the EPA is allowed to continue to enforce electric vehicle regulations without Congressional interference. Thanks.

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OK, you did it again! You helped save democracy! You’re amazing.

Talk soon.

Jess