Chop Wood, Carry Water 2/7

One for the record books.

Find this GIF here.

Hi, all, and happy Wednesday.

Well, that was one for the record books. I’ve seldom—if ever—seen such a public display of weakness, ineptitude, and self-destructiveness as we saw from Republicans in both chambers yesterday. Punchbowl News described what happened in the lower chamber as "one of the most embarrassing days in recent House GOP history," and the same could easily be said of the debacle that unfolded in the Senate.

There, of course, we saw Republicans kill a bill they had demanded and that several of them had worked on for months. Four months, to be precise. This is a bill, mind you, containing about 90% of the GOP’s top border policy wishes; they’ll literally never see its likes again. There was, apparently, screaming behind closed doors over its implosion, as well as “open rebellion against McConnell,” and bafflement from “moderate” Republicans, who still don’t seem to recognize that their party, as they understand it, is no more.

On the House side, of course, we saw the total (and delicious) humiliation of Speaker Johnson as he oversaw twin defeats: first an unexpected loss on the Mayorkas impeachment vote and then a second loss on a stand-alone Israel funding bill.

Remember, Nancy Pelosi knew how to count votes better than any speaker in history. Her abilities have been called “titanic.” Johnson’s tenure as Speaker, on the other hand, more closely resembles the ship of the same name; yesterday may have been his “iceberg” moment.

Add to all of this that Ronna McDaniel is stepping down—the latest to learn that blind fealty to Donald Trump always backfires—and that Trump’s immunity claim got beautifully swatted down by the D.C. Circuit Court, and we have to admit it was a pretty good day for Democrats.

But not, of course, for democracy. Or the American people. For while our collective schadenfreude over the GOP’s many failures is delightful, our collective problems remain unsolved. We still have a mess at the border. We still have no Ukraine funding. The impeachment vote will likely be tried again when Scalise returns from treatment. We don’t know how speedily SCOTUS will deal with Trump’s inevitable appeal. We still have a climate crisis. We still have Trump’s deathgrip on his MAGA followers.

There’s much, in short, to worry about.

Still, it’s important to celebrate our wins when we get them. And it’s critical that we seize every opportunity we can to highlight the Republican party’s staggering incompetence and our side’s consistent competence. Yesterday gave us some excellent material. Let’s use it!

After all, they would, were the roles reversed.

One last thing: the platform I used for yesterday’s survey about our States Project Giving Circle limited the responses I could see for free to just 25. Whoops! I should have read the fine print. Please indulge me by taking the two-question survey one more time, this time on Google forms. It seemed like we had a clear frontrunner, but with only 25 answers I don’t actually know if that’s true.

OK, all. Let’s get to work.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling to express deep disappointment and frustration that the Senate will not take up the Emergency Supplemental bill championed by members of both parties. Republicans seem to be totally beholden to a criminal—Donald Trump—and unable to govern —it’s a real concern.

If the Senate is going to break the bill up into parts then please make sure the Senator supports aid for Ukraine, money for humanitarian assistance in Gaza, the West Bank, Ukraine, and other conflict zones, and the provisions that would provide a path to citizenship for Afghan refugees who came here after our forces withdrew—it’s essentially the Afghan Adjustment Act. There are some other good things in the bill but those are a priority to me.

Also, please ask the Senator to support the Expanded Child Tax Credit bill. Half a million children are waiting for help. Don’t disappoint them. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

[If Democrat or Ken Buck, Tom McClintock, or Mike Gallagher]

I want to thank the Congressmember for voting against the Mayorkas impeachment. We all know it’s without grounds, pure political payback, and in no way solves the problems at the border. Please vote against it again when and if it comes up for a second vote, and keep pushing to pass legislation that actually addresses our broken immigration system. Thanks.

[If GOP]

I am extremely disappointed that the Congressmember voted to impeach Secretary Mayorkas, and I’m delighted that the vote failed. The Congressmember surely knows how utterly groundless and inappropriate this impeachment is, and I expect him/her to change his/her vote to NO should it come to the floor again. Republicans are in chaos—they’re embarrassing themselves and showing themselves to be unfit for office. Please get to work solving real problems—like the climate crisis, income inequality, healthcare costs, and gun violence, for starts, and stop with the political theatrics. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

Please join me in contacting EPA Administrator Michael Regan at 202-564-4700 or via email at Regan.Michael@epa.gov to say (and please personalize just a bit):

Hello, I’m a resident of [STATE] expressing my concern about the use of the neurotoxic pesticide chlorpyrifos on food crops. The EPA and its Scientific Advisory Panels have repeatedly found that any level of chlorpyrifos exposure is linked to immediate health problems for any exposed person. It also causes learning disabilities in children—whether they’re working on treated farms or living in nearby communities.

I urge you to put workers’ health and safety first by reinstating the chlorpyrifos ban at the federal level.

[H/T Americans of Conscience]

Get Smart! 📚

What’s on Congress’ To-Do List? Must-Pass Bills in 2024

The Progressive Caucus Action Fund recently released an explainer, What’s on Congress’ To-Do List? Must-Pass Bills in 2024, which describes must-pass bills Congress will likely consider in 2024, based on statements from congressional leaders and historical precedent. This essential document highlights major priorities on Congress’ legislative agenda, like appropriations, the National Defense Authorization Act, the Farm bill, and more. This guide is a crucial resource for understanding impactful legislation on deck this year and the pivotal discussions and decisions ahead. You can check out the explainer here. 

To learn more about what makes a bill “must-pass” and how members of Congress have used must-pass bills to advance their priorities, check out Understanding Must-Pass Bills.

Spread the Word! 📣

Please share this article—Republicans Are Planning to Totally Privatize Medicare — And Fast—and these talking points from the White House:

• Make no mistake – if Donald Trump wins this November, he and Republicans will continue their crusade to end Medicare as we know it for millions of Americans. 

• Brand new reporting this week detailed Donald Trump’s close allies’ plans to privatize Medicare.

• Let’s be clear what that means: Trump and his allies want to leave millions of seniors with fewer benefits and less access to doctors – all to benefit their big insurance donors.

• It’s not surprising given that Trump only cares about helping himself and his rich friends – his record of trying to sabotage American seniors’ earned benefits shows it: 

  • As president, he proposed cuts to Medicare and Social Security programs every single year he was in office.

  • He called for privatizing Social Security, which he called a ‘Ponzi scheme.’

• It’s a stark contrast with President Biden’s record of strengthening Medicare and bringing down health care costs for America’s seniors:

  • Capping the cost of insulin at $35 for seniors.

  • Allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices.

  • Making hearing aids available over the counter without a prescription.

  • Protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid from extreme MAGA attacks.

• One thing is clear: in Trump’s America, the special interests win while seniors and working families lose. 

Give 💰!

Announcing the States Project’s State Preview event series! Join them for this 3-part deep dive into the stakes, opportunities, and goals in each of their 2024 target states. 

• Tuesday, February 13, 2024 - State Preview #1: Michigan / Minnesota 

• Tuesday, February 27, 2024 - State Preview #2: Nevada / Kansas / Arizona 

• Tuesday, March 12, 2024  - State Preview #3: New Hampshire / Pennsylvania

Click here to RSVP.

Win Races! 🗳

Sorry if any of you tried to sign on to the Grassroots Dems phonebank yesterday and couldn’t. I myself never received the Zoom link. I will, however, be giving a short pep talk at the beginning of today’s Suozzi phonebank with the Bay Area Coalition, and then I’ll stay on to make calls.

Early voting is very close. We need EVERY VOTE. Please come if you can.

2:30-4:30 PT / 5:30-7:30 ET. Sign up here.

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

[To: your HOUSE rep] [H/T] [Text SIGN PYBUWH to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]

Corporations’ impact on the environment is outsized and concerning to Americans and investors alike. Many firms and nonprofit organizations work to hold corporations accountable and help them transition to meet a changing climate and economy.

The House Judiciary Committee is using its time and taxpayer dollars to open an antitrust investigation targeting shareholder representative As You Sow and 13 other organizations working to secure corporate action on climate change. This is an attack on all Americans’ freedom of choice, freedom to invest, and freedom to assess and address risk.

Investors have a legal right to engage and interact with other shareholders and the companies in which they hold a financial stake. They certainly also have the right to point out the grave economic risks of climate change.

Climate-induced superstorms and wildfires are wiping out homes and making insurance unaffordable. Extreme heat, floods, and droughts are reducing harvests of wheat, sugar, coffee, cacao, and cotton, leading to increased prices for all Americans. In 2023 the U.S. had 28 climate-related disasters costing $92.9 billion.

Climate change already impacts all Americans and our economy. I do not support this investigation and hope you will join me in calling out this waste of time and taxpayer dollars.

I also urge you to join the Sustainable Investment Caucus that is standing up for our freedom to invest responsibly.

Thank you for your consideration.

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

Talk soon.

Jess