Chop Wood, Carry Water 3/4

This is a silly meme. Felt like we needed it this morning.

Hi, all, and happy Monday!

I know. Not super happy, really. Starting the week with another gut punch from the Supreme Court—even if it was an expected gut punch—is less than ideal. I’ll leave the analysis of their decision to others who are more capable than me, but perhaps there’s the tiniest silver lining contained in it—CREW, who brought the lawsuit, issued this statement this morning:

While the Supreme Court allowed Donald Trump back on the ballot on technical legal grounds, this was in no way a win for Trump. The Supreme Court had the opportunity in this case to exonerate Trump, and they chose not to do so. Every court–or decision-making body–that has substantively examined the issue has determined that January 6th was an insurrection and that Donald Trump incited it. That remains true today. The Supreme Court removed an enforcement mechanism, and in letting Trump back on the ballot, they failed to meet the moment. But it is now clear that Trump led the January 6th insurrection, and it will be up to the American people to ensure accountability.

I mean, maybe it’s grasping at straws, but I’ll take it.

Look. I’ll repeat what I’ve said over and over again: the courts are not going to save us. Not only that—they are actively hindering progress. It’s deeply troubling, yes, and scary too. But we must fend off the tendency to grow cynical over these hard losses. Republicans would love us to throw up our hands and give up. After all, it feels like we’re fighting everything: the courts, the GOP, the mainstream media, disaffected youth voters, disaffected Muslim-American voters, third-party candidates, voter suppression, a climate emergency…the list seems to be interminable.

I was rattling it off to my husband this morning, an aggrieved tone in my voice, when he said, with his usual trenchant wisdom:

“Then maybe you need to stop fighting, period.”

And of course he’s right. Because fighting is exhausting. It’s depleting. It’s next to impossible to keep up over a sustained period of time.

Working to help the helpers, however, is totally doable. It’s more appealing. It’s more fun. It’s service-oriented, which feels GOOD. It can be sustained indefinitely because it’s endlessly re-energizing. And it works just as well!

So let’s not fight today, folks. Let’s help the helpers—the democracy helpers, I mean. It’s a frame that will enable us to keep up this work until we win.

And by God, win we will.

P.S. —Speaking of helping the helpers, I am on a briefing right now and it looks like we have successfully blocked Republicans from cutting WIC funding! Not only that, Democrats have gotten them to increase it to cover the WIC budget shortfall! This is a HUGE deal and you helped make it happen. Congratulations!

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I understand that the Wyden-Smith tax bill is now stalled because Republicans think the Child Tax Credit expansion in it is too generous? This is unbelievable. The extension is so modest, and the tax benefits for rich people are so huge in this bill. Now Congress wants to take away the small amount of relief the CTTC expansion would bring? No way. No cuts. In fact, we should expand the CTC even further.

[If GOP add:] We’re talking about poor children who don’t have enough to eat. Anyone who calls themselves pro-life should be 100% behind a more generous Child Tax Credit. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I understand that some in Congress are still trying to cut IRS funding in the appropriations process. I am indescribably frustrated by this. The cuts Republicans want to make will come out of the IRS’s modernization funds. The new funding Democrats passed for the IRS means they are finally able to upgrade their technology, which is currently from the 1960’s. They have cut wait times dramatically, they’re getting our returns back to us faster, and they’ve brought in a half a billion dollars in owed taxes from millionaires. I want to know exactly what justification there is for cutting their funding—because there isn’t any. Please do not let their funding be cut one penny. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

The Biden campaign is holding a virtual watch party on Thursday night for the State of the Union. Sign up and join supporters and campaign leadership as you listen into the State of the Union and learn more about how you can get on board with the campaign.

Thursday, March 7 from 8:15 – 10:30pm EST. Sign up here.

Get Smart! 📚

Want to help win in Pennsylvania?

Join NOPE  on March 5 to hear how we win Pennsylvania by supporting candidates up and down the ballot. You'll hear from US Sen. Bob Casey Jr., who's in a tough reelection battle, and from Steve Paul, executive director of grassroots organizing partner, One Pennsylvania, that organizes in the Black community in Philly and Pittsburgh.  You'll learn about opportunities to volunteer and donate to win PA. There’s no obligation to do either,  all are welcome to attend.  

Sign up here. (You can also donate to re-elect Sen. Casey here.)

Spread the Word! 📣

Another great one from Framelab: George Lakoff on Twelve Communication Traps Democrats and Progressives Must Avoid.

Twelve Communication Traps Democrats and Progressives Must Avoid

Give 💰!

Join a Force Multiplier Zoom event tonight from 7:00 – 8:00pm ET to meet three candidates who can flip a seat and help Democrats win a majority in the House!

You’ll meet:

TONY VARGAS | A Nebraska State Legislator + Teacher of the Year, who is making a 2nd run for a critical seat.

KIRSTEN ENGEL | A former member of the Arizona State Legislature, who is a renowned environmental advocate + is challenging the vulnerable Republican incumbent who won in 2022 by 1.5%.

ADAM GRAY | A champion of responsible water policies + public vocational education in the CA Assembly.

REGISTER + DONATE—suggested donation is $100 but give what you can and come!

Win Races! 🗳

We need help in California, all, where turnout remains terrible. First, I made a TikTok encouraging Californians to get out and vote, especially in CA-22. If you feel like sharing it, please do.

Second, if people are confused about how to vote they can go to https://progressivevotersguide.com/california or https://bluevoterguide.org to get a ton of help. Highly recommend. And my voting suggestions for the L.A. area are here.

Finally, please join a phone bank for CA-22 today or tomorrow. Grassroots Dems have a bunch of guided phonebank shifts over the next 48 hours here. And if you’ve phonebanked before you can use their “phonebank anytime” system here.

And if you know anyone in CA just ping them today, would you? Tell them turnout is terrible and you’re happy to help them find a voter guide if they need it. There’s a lot on the line.

Chop Wood, Save the Planet —Special action for NY readers!🔥

Hey New York State residents! NY is on the verge of passing a great plastic reduction bill but industry is fighting tooth and nail to stop them! If you live in NY can you do this?

Call and email Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie's Albany office at 518-455-3791 (if you can't get through, try 718-654-6539) Use script below as a template, but feel free to lean into your own concerns (climate, environmental justice, health, water quality, taxpayer savings, etc.)

Hi, my name is ____ and I am calling from ____, NY to urge Assembly Speaker Heastie to prioritize passing A5322-b, the Packaging Reduction & Recycling Infrastructure Act. Please bring it to a vote this session to reduce packaging waste and climate change emissions, boost recycling, and protect environmental justice communities. Passing this legislation is one of the key recommendations in the scoping plan for the state's Climate Law and we cannot wait to act on climate. Thank you.

After you call, take a minute to send a quick email to Heastie: Speaker@nyassembly.gov (need a sample email? click here to send one automatically).

Bonus points: call Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins Albany office at 518-455-2715 (if you can't get through, try 518-455-2585) with the same message. Let us know how your calls went.

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

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

I’m writing as your constituent to urge you to cosponsor the Supreme Court Tenure Establishment and Retirement Modernization Act of 2023 (H.R. 5566, TERM Act), re-introduced by Rep. Hank Johnson. The United States is the only major constitutional democracy in the world that doesn’t have term limits for our top justices. It’s a flaw in our system that must be corrected.

Rep. Johnson’s TERM Act would introduce fixed 18-year terms for current and future Supreme Court justices and establish regular nominations of justices in the first and third years of each presidential term as the sole means of Supreme Court appointments.

This reform is supported by 7 in 10 voters, including myself, and would put an end to the partisanship that surrounds Supreme Court vacancies, and return the Court to a body that is representative of the values of the American people.

Help restore trust in America’s highest court by cosponsoring the TERM Act! Thanks.

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

Talk soon.

Jess