Chop Wood, Carry Water 1/26

Not a bad day!

Hi, all, and happy Wednesday!

And it’s happy indeed! Steven Breyer is retiring and—assuming Kyrsten Sinema doesn’t leave the Democratic Party—we will be getting a new, liberal, YOUNGER Supreme Court Justice! We’ve been burned so many times that it’s hard not to worry, but barring something unforeseen we should be able to get a confirmation past even Mitch McConnell. It’s another reason we should celebrate our hard work flipping two Senate seats in Georgia..and having Sinema and Manchin in the Senate, despite their glaring flaws.

In other good news, this morning I spoke at a meeting of Seniors Taking Action, a group of folks from all over the country who get together weekly on zoom to hear speakers, write postcards, and share action opportunities. They were so terrific and inspiring; I left with a feeling of pride in being on the side of so many good and hard-working people. If anyone is a senior and looking for such a group they welcome new members—you can sign up for their mailing list here.

Have no doubt: all across the country stellar, smart, decent people are showing up, rolling up their sleeves and doing the work. It’s heartening and deeply encouraging.

Also? Chuck Schumer just announced he will follow a similar confirmation schedule to the one Mitch McConnell used on Amy Coney Barrett. As in:

Manu Raju @mkraju

Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Sept. 18, 2020 -- and Barrett was nominated on Sept. 26, 2020. She was confirmed Oct. 26, 2020 -- just days before the election

Two can play at that game, Mitch.

So let’s stay hopeful, which is to say, let’s stay busy. We can’t control what will happen tomorrow, but we can control what we do…today.

Call Your Senators (find yours here)

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

I’m glad Justice Breyer has announced his retirement so we can appoint a new Supreme Court Justice who isn’t in the pocket of the Federalist Society. But the fact remains that our Supreme Court is hopelessly imbalanced. I want the Senator to co-sponsor the Judiciary Act of 2021 (S. 1141), which will expand the Supreme Court by four justices. Nothing less will protect us against the illegitimately-stacked radical, right wing Court that McConnell has installed. [H/T]

Call Your House Rep (find yours here)

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

I’m glad Justice Breyer has announced his retirement so we can appoint a new Supreme Court Justice who isn’t in the pocket of the Federalist Society. But the fact remains that our Supreme Court is hopelessly imbalanced. I want the Congressmember to co-sponsor the Judiciary Act of 2021 (HR 2584), which will expand the Supreme Court by four justices. Nothing less will protect us against the illegitimately-stacked radical, right wing Court that McConnell has installed. [H/T]

Extra Credit

Let’s call or write President Biden at 1-202-456-1414 and ask him to deny a key federal water permit for the Mountain Valley Pipeline!

1. Call 1-202-456-1414 to be connected to the White House public comment line. Please note, you must call between the hours of 11am - 3pm ET (8am - 12pm PT) Tuesdays - Thursdays while the phone line is open. Otherwise send this as an email through their “Contact Us'“ form.

2. Script:

My name is ___, and I live in _____, I am calling to ask President Biden to deny the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s 404 permit. This project is a threat to water supply and violates the Clean Water Act. Please deny this permit. Thank you.

Win Races! 🗳

OK, all, I am now hosting a Grassroots Dems phonebank every Thursday from 4-6PM PST. We’re calling into Arizona to help hold Mark Kelly’s seat. Who will join me? The first one is tomorrow!

Sign up here. I’ll do training and then we’ll all call together. We’ll be reaching out to low propensity Dem voters to make sure they’re gearing up to vote in the Midterms and ask them what issues are important to them.

Remember, the Midterms start NOW! Join me!

Get Smart!

Don’t forget Congresswoman Liz Cheney is coming to speak at Big Tent tonight at 7PM EST. Within a very polarized political environment, she will discuss the pursuit of truth and accountability in what has been the largest assault on our democracy, the Constitution and the rule of law. I’m excited for it. RSVP here.

Resistbot Text (new to Resistbot? Go here!)

[to your Senators] [H/T] [Quick send text SIGN PALVLB to 50409]

Please support S. 2992, the American Innovation and Choice Online Act (AICO). For too long, big tech firms like Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple have had free rein to abuse their market power. S.2992 is a groundbreaking measure that will update the antitrust laws to address digital harms that have allowed tech companies to grow into harmful monopolies.

Big tech firms and their aligned industry groups claim that this bill will hurt companies by restricting their ability to offer popular services, such as Amazon Prime, Gmail, and the Apple App Store. However, these concerns are nothing but a bad faith effort to evade accountability for anticompetitive conduct. This bill will simply prevent tech monopolies from using their products and services in a manner that hinders competition and harms small businesses. Additionally, S.2992 is well-tailored to address anticompetitive conduct, allowing companies to put forward affirmative defenses proving that their actions did not, in fact, harm the competitive process to avoid liability under the Act. 

S.2992 is a critical measure to ensure that big tech firms are held accountable for the anticompetitive conduct which has allowed them to develop monopoly power in their respective markets. This bill will help chip away at that dominance, giving the antitrust enforcement agencies more adaptable tools to fight anticompetitive conduct in the digital era. Thanks.

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

Talk tomorrow.

Jess