Chop Wood, Carry Water 4/20

Hi, all, and happy Thursday.

Kevin McCarthy released the GOP’s “budget plan,” such as it is, last night. If budgets are moral documents, then it’s clear the GOP has lost every shred of humanity they had left—if, in fact, they had any to begin with. They also seem hellbent on driving away as many young voters as possible—you literally couldn’t design a document to be more antagonistic to Gen Z’s priorities than this one.

It’s distressing, but it should only fuel our determination. The GOP’s wish list—repeal climate provisions! Expand mining and drilling! Cut Medicaid! Make work requirements—already stringent—even stricter! Block audits for rich people! Cut housing funds for old people! Cut healthcare benefits for veterans! Block student loan forgiveness!—is devious and cruel. Most share this sentiment once they learn the plan’s details—just look at the comments on the TikTok I posted about it last night, which has over 124K views as of this writing.

Y’all. We’re on full-time war footing now. There’s no gray area left. Republicans have become a party that’s both unforgivably inept and indefensibly cruel. Fortunately, they’re also increasingly bad at politics. We can and must defeat them, and we will.

So, to summarize the arguments in this excellent piece: let’s stay unified; let’s stay mobilized; let’s fan the flames of Republican division every way we can…

And let’s crush them everywhere.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I know the Republican-controlled House passed legislation today that would ban transgender women and girls from competing in female school athletics. I oppose such legislation, which is unnecessary, transphobic, and causes harm to an already marginalized community, and expect the Senator to do so as well. Instead Congress needs to pass legislation to protect LGBTQ people, and trans people especially, from the vicious attacks they’re under. The EQUALITY Act would be a great place to start. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I know the Republican-controlled House passed legislation today that would ban transgender women and girls from competing in female school athletics.

[If GOP add:] I also know that the representative voted for this bill, and I’m calling to say that I’m appalled. I strongly urge him/her to leave trans people alone and get to work addressing our actual problems. Where are Republicans’ bills to strengthen the middle class? To solve the gun violence crisis? To address the climate emergency? To prevent the next bank failure? To regulate the rail industry? We have so many urgent problems. Why are Republicans focussed on culture wars instead of helping their constituents?

[If Democrat add:] I want to thank the Representative for opposing this awful bill. I hope s/he will continue to work to pass legislation to protect LGBTQ people, and that s/he will continue to stand with trans people during this difficult time. Thanks.

Extra Credit! ✅

Move On has a petition to Fox News demanding that they apologize for lying to their viewers. It has almost 50K signatures so far—I typically don’t amplify petitions but this one just could send a message if enough people sign it. Why not add your name?

Get Smart! 📚

Please join Big Tent on Wednesday April 26th at 7pm ET to welcome Charlie Sykes, founder and editor-at-large of The Bulwark, host of The Bulwark Podcast, and Rick Wilson, Co-founder of The Lincoln Project, political strategist, award-winning ad-maker, and political commentator. 

Sykes and Wilson will discuss the American Far-Right and dig deeper in to the crucible in which we find ourselves and why this is an inflection point for American democracy.

Register here.

Spread the Word! 📣

Here are the DNC’s talking points for McCarthy’s new budget demands. Please implement them in your conversations!

Talking Points: House Republicans Threaten Default to Help the Wealthy at Expense of Middle Class

• Speaker McCarthy and extreme MAGA House Republicans are threatening 22% spending cuts to education, veterans’ health care, child care, and opioids treatment. 

• They are trying to take away food assistance and health care from millions of Americans.

• And they want to repeal clean energy investments from the Inflation Reduction Act -- which would send historic manufacturing investments overseas.

• The President is rebuilding our infrastructure, supply chains, and manufacturing here at home. He is lowering costs on health care and home energy, with inflation down 45%. House Republicans would undermine all of that.

• All these cuts would not even reduce the deficit, they would just pay for part of more tax giveaways that overwhelmingly benefit the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations.

• Imagine denying some veterans the medical care they need so that big corporations can keep paying zero taxes.

• And they are threatening to default on America’s debt for the first time ever, which would destroy our economy, if they don’t get their way.

• The President’s plan would cut the deficit by nearly $3 trillion over 10 years by asking the super-wealthy and large corporations to pay their fair share, and cutting wasteful spending on special interests like Big Pharma and Big Oil.

• The American people overwhelmingly support every element of the President’s plan, and oppose House Republicans’ trickle-down priorities. Threatening default to make wildly unpopular cuts is outrageous, America is a not a dead-beat nation.

Win Races! 🗳

I’m VERY excited to see that the DNC is now running phonebanks for down-ballot elections, and today they’re making calls to voters in Lincoln, NE to support the city elections, particularly the pivotal mayor's race.

Join me and the DNC Call Crew for this phonebank! We will get together on Zoom, learn about the calls we are making and get more information about the election, and then get started!

Today 6-8 PM ET (there are lots of other shifts, too). Sign up here.

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

[to your Senators—this is IMPORTANT!] [Quick send: text SIGN PCBHSY to 50409]

Today, Julie Su will have her nomination hearing to serve as the U.S. Secretary of Labor.

Julie has a proven track record of working across the aisle, sitting down with the business community as well as organized labor, and delivering strong results for the American economy. That’s why she was unanimously confirmed as Deputy Secretary of Labor by all Senate Democrats. It’s also why Julie’s nomination has been endorsed by a range of business groups -- from Small Business Majority to LA Chamber of Commerce -- and labor leaders from the AFL-CIO and NABTU, to LiUNA and United Mineworkers

Julie served as Marty Walsh’s right-hand as they helped produce historic job growth. She helped avert a major rail shutdown last year, keeping business and labor at the table to reach an agreement that Congress approved.

This is a pro-business and pro-worker Cabinet. Julie has worked consistently with her counterparts at the Departments of Commerce, Energy, and more on issues important to businesses large and small. 

Stalling a history-making nominee who’s ready to hit the ground running and work with all sides would hurt our economy.

Julie’s qualifications and track record show that any doubts about her ability to get the job done are unfounded. Confirm her now! Thanks.

---

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

Talk soon.

Jess