Chop Wood, Carry Water 3/20

Hi, all, and happy Thursday!

Hope you’re holding up as well as possible amidst the mayhem. I heard someone describe reading the news these days as drinking out of a fire hose that’s attached to the Pacific Ocean. Seems about right.

I remain hopeful, however, because of you. I am loving the resilience, determination, and creativity you continue to bring to this situation. I fully believe, furthermore, that it’s only beginning to make itself felt. With Tesla stock continuing to fall—even after Howard Lutnick’s pathetic ad for it on Fox News, more Cyber Trucks being recalled, and mass Tesla protests being planned for the 29th (more below) things are also looking increasingly poor for Musk, which is exceedingly good news for us.

In slightly less good news, I made an error in judgement last week, and I want to talk about it for a second. It involves the postcarding campaign to Trump I included in last week’s newsletter.

I put this action into last Wednesday’s post against my better judgement because so many of you had written asking me to do so. In retrospect, I shouldn’t have put it in at all. Why?

I try hard to curate this newsletter so that you are only taking actions that have a good shot at efficacy. This is why I discourage you, for example, from calling representatives that aren’t yours, or signing vague petitions to Congressional members that they’ll never read, or donating to Democratic fundraising arms. I want you to use your time, energy, and money wisely and strategically—it’s better for you and better for our cause.

The truth of the matter is that sending postcards to Donald Trump may feel cathartic, but it is not a good use of our time. He’s proven himself to be utterly uninterested in, and even disdainful of, his constituents’ opinions. We could send him ten tons of postcards and he’d never acknowledge it, let alone read what we wrote. It’s the kind of action I try to avoid here—it feels good but has no impact. Including it in the newsletter was a well-intentioned capitulation that I should have resisted. While I often include actions here that are submitted by readers, I also need to know when to say no. This time I didn’t. Sorry about that.

To those of you who wrote to find out “what happened with our postcards?” the sad truth is that you’ll never hear a word about them. Even if the White House did receive a large number of them they won’t acknowledge it. I don’t mean to sound cynical—it’s just true.

Going forward, then, I will renew my commitment to only putting strategically sound efforts and causes in this newsletter. Please feel free to keep sending action suggestions my way, but also please understand if I occasionally decline to run them. I promise there’s a good reason. I’m trying not to waste your time or mine.

If you’re looking to channel all that beautiful energy and patriotism you have into writing postcards that will have an impact, however, please remember that several organizations still have addresses for Wisconsin and Florida. You can find a few Wisconsin postcarding campaigns in this doc, and one for Florida here.

OK, all. Onwards! Let’s remember to keep breathing in strength and breathing out fear. Remember, as Aristotle said:

You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor.

And it’s a quality you have in spades. So let’s get to work.

P.S. — Our newest podcast episode is out—it includes an interview with actor and activist Jon Cryer. You can watch here or listen here.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) and your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling because I understand that President Trump plans to sign an executive order today calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Education Department. I am sick over this, but I’m also angry. Trump doesn’t have the authority to eliminate the Department of Education. The department is created by statute; changing a statute requires approval from Congress. So what is the Congressmeber/Senator doing to take their power back and protect this department? I’m sick of seeing Congress cede their power in these decisions. We have a Constitution. We have a system of laws. Congress needs to take its power back, protect our institutions, and protect public education, about which I care very deeply. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

Activist and author Charlotte Clymer wrote an excellent post this week about why Chuck Schumer should step aside from Senate leadership. Her argument, with which I agree completely, is quite convincing. I urge you to read it and then, if you agree, sign and share her petition calling on him to do just that. The please share! This is an example of a petition that could, because of its author, subject, and target, make a difference.

Get Smart! 📚

Join me at a Red, Wine and Blue event next week called How You Can Help in the First Major Elections of 2025!

From the invite:

Key elections in Wisconsin and Florida could shape the future of our rights, our democracy, and our everyday lives. In Wisconsin, a crucial Supreme Court seat could decide everything from voting rights to reproductive freedom. In Florida, Congressional races could change the balance of power in the House — and decide whether we keep moving forward or get dragged backward. Join us for an empowering conversation with activist and author Jessica Craven of Chop Wood, Carry Water. She’ll break down why these elections matter so much, what’s at stake, and most importantly — how you can make a difference from anywhere in the country.

The event is on Tuesday, March 25 from 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM ET.

Register here.

Messaging! Messaging! Messaging! 📣

Here are some important talking points on Trump’s awful economy, courtesy of Align and Amplify. Share them everywhere!

Talking Points on Unstable and Revised Economy

Instead of prioritizing lowering costs for hardworking American families, Donald Trump and his Republican allies in Congress are working on another round of tax cuts for billionaires and instigating an unpopular, unaffordable trade war with our allies that will raise prices even higher.

• Unemployment Forecast To Go Up: Federal Reserve officials forecast that the U.S. unemployment rate will hit 4.4% by the end of 2025. This is an uptick from the previous forecast.

• Inflation Predicted To Rise: Powell and Fed officials acknowledged that inflation “remains somewhat elevated” and forecasted a year-end inflation rate of 2.8%, up from 2.5%.

• GDP Expected To Drop: The Fed now believes that the U.S. gross domestic output is less than forecasted and will be 1.7%, down from 2.1%.

• 170,000+ layoffs in February: U.S.-based companies cut 172,017 jobs last month—that’s the largest February lay-off since the Great Recession.

• Millions Can’t Find Full Time Work. Almost half a million more people are working part-time for "economic reasons," (meaning they could not find a full-time job) bringing the total to almost 5 million Americans.

• Costs Are Going UP. The Peterson Institute predicts that Trump’s tariffs will mean an annual cost increase of $1,200 for the average American household.

Give 💰 AND Grab Your Wallet! 💳!

Several large corporations, including Comcast, Anheuser-Busch, and Diageo, just announced that they are pulling funding for San Francisco Pride this year. Their excuse? A “shortage of funds.” Nonsense. They’re afraid of the Trump administration; it’s shameful. Let’s make sure we don’t give these companies any of our business, but more importantly let’s try to help make up the 300K shortfall this has caused in the historic event’s budget by donating here.

Get in the Streets! 🪧

I found the Tesla Takedown call yesterday to be wildly motivating and uplifting. I highly recommend watching the recording here. Most excitingly, they’ve announced a worldwide Tesla Takedown action on March 29—I truly hope as many of you as possible will take part! I know I will!

Learn more here and/or watch the video!

Win Races! 🗳

I’d love to see you at our weekly Grassroots Dems HQ phonebank into Wisconsin! This election is getting close, Musk has now poured TWELVE MILLION DOLLARS into it, and we simply must win. Please join if you can!

Sign up here. (They also have shifts several other days of the week)

Chop Wood, Save the Planet 🔥

This Wednesday, I'll be moderating an event to protect the popular electric vehicle (EV) tax credits!

The popular EV tax credits have fueled U.S. EV growth, providing nationwide climate and health benefits. But this month, congressional Republicans aim to cut the EV tax credits—potentially taking away an average of $5,124 in savings from new EV owners and slowing climate progress!

Join me on Wednesday March 26 from 7-8 pm ET to learn about this threat to the EV tax credits. You learn from a panel of EV experts from Consumer Reports, Plug In America, and Sierra Club. And, you'll be invited to use the free Climate Action Now app to tell Congress: Don’t pump the brakes on EV tax credits! This Climate Action Party is hosted by Climate Action Now, and I will moderate.

Register now to join the Climate Action Party on March 26 from 7-8 pm ET

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

[To: all 3 reps] [H/T] [Text SIGN PWDGZJ to 50409, or to @Resistbot on Apple Messages, Messenger, Instagram, or Telegram]

As your constituent, I’m very worried about Social Security. The Social Security Administration has recently laid off thousands of workers and announced plans to close at least 50 offices. These workers are what makes Social Security work.

Social Security’s most recent Senate-confirmed commissioner predicts that these actions will result in a “system collapse” within the “next 30 to 90 days.”

Rep. John Larson (D-CT) has introduced the Keeping Our Field Offices Open Act to put a moratorium on the closure of Social Security Field Offices for the rest of the Trump Administration. He has also introduced the Protecting Americans’ Social Security Data Act to block Elon Musk and DOGE’s access to sensitive beneficiary data. Lastly, he introduced a Resolution of Inquiry to compel President Trump to disclose to Congress information about DOGE activity at SSA and any plans to close field offices or cut staff.

I urge you to vocally co-sponsor all three to protect our Social Security system, and to stand up and fight for the workers that keep Social Security working. Thanks.

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

Talk soon.

Jess