Chop Wood, Carry Water 4/25

Justice can't wait.

Hi, all, and happy Thursday.

Notice the lack of an exclamation mark in the above salutation? That’s because I’ve been listening to SCOTUS arguments again this morning—this time in Trump’s immunity case. It’s hard to feel “happy” when the same justices who just yesterday were twisting themselves in knots to not protect women are today doing the same to protect Donald Trump. I’m seething.

But instead of continuing to listen I’ve turned off the hearing and opened my laptop. Because it always comes down to the same thing: what can I control, and what can’t I? Or, more succinctly, what can I do about it?

There is nothing I can do to influence Samuel Alito or Neil Gorsuch right now, and yelling at my phone only stresses me out.

There is, on the other hand, plenty I can do to let my lawmakers know I’ve had it with this court. There is plenty I can do to make sure that Joe Biden gets re-elected, and that Democrats hold the Senate and retake the House, so that we can pass court reform. There is plenty I can do to communicate the stakes of this election to everyone I talk to. There is money to be raised; there are voters to be registered, postcards to be written, doors to be knocked.

There are, in short, no end of things to do. These are things I can control.

It’s hard to feel this much righteous rage all the time. It’s painful to watch corruption run rampant in our most cherished institutions. It’s infuriating to see it go (for now, at least) unpunished. It’s ghastly to see the power dark money has gained in what is supposed to be a representative democracy.

But never, ever forget: all of this is fixable. Within a fairly short amount of time, too.

Those of you who were on the call with us last night had the good fortune to hear Wisconsin Democratic Party chair Ben Wikler tell the story of democracy’s resurrection in Wisconsin over the last six years. It was a great reminder of how dark it can be before the dawn!

Wikler started by describing the dire condition the state was in just 6 years ago. It, too, looked like a lost cause. Democracy was on life support.

Then he described the painstaking, smart, patient steps Democrats, organizers, and countless volunteers took to bring it back. And look what they’ve accomplished! A liberal-majority state Supreme Court, new maps, two terms of Tony Evers, and soon, hopefully, a far more balanced state legislature!

According to Wikler there were three key components to their success:

1. They zeroed in on the things that “made all the difference in the world.” They didn’t, in other words, expend energy on things that weren’t strategic. The things that were strategic they went all in on. (We talk about this all the time here!)

2. Wikler made sure the people doing the work were the heroes of the story. Also, he said, “You have to give people specific things to do. There is no better cure for political anxiety than taking action.” (Um, YES!)

3. Wikler emphasized celebrating wins and focussing on incremental progress. “In order to sustain the energy,” he said, “you have to find the joy.” (Again, YES!)

See what I’m saying? We’re already doing everything we need to do! We need just be patient and not quit before the proverbial miracle.

We have the tools, we have the materials, we have the blueprint, we have the workers. But re-building a democracy takes time.

So let’s breathe in faith, breathe out fear, and get to our “construction” work one more time.

P.S. — The RFK petition link was broken yesterday. I posted the correct link in the comments, but in case you missed it it’s here.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling because I’m alarmed by the corruption on our Supreme Court. Between yesterday’s arguments in Idaho v U.S. and today’s in the Trump immunity case it’s clear that some of its justices are compromised. They’re extremists who are clearly ruling from the bench and acting against Americans’ interests. It’s got to be addressed.

I want the Senator to co-sponsor S. 1616 the Judiciary Act of 2023, S. 359 the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, and S.3096, the Supreme Court Biennial Appointments and Term Limits Act of 2023. Please ask him/her to make court reform a top priority. Because it is one for me. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling because I’m alarmed by the corruption on our Supreme Court. Between yesterday’s arguments in Idaho v U.S. and today’s in the Trump immunity case it’s clear that some of its justices are compromised. They’re extremists who are clearly ruling from the bench and acting against Americans’ interests. It’s got to be addressed.

I want the Congressmember to co-sponsor HR 3422 the Judiciary Act of 2023, HR 926 the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, and H.R.4423, the Supreme Court Term Limits and Regular Appointments Act of 2023. Please ask the Congressmember to make court reform a top priority. Because it is one for me. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

Emergency medical providers in Idaho risk jail time and losing their professional licenses for providing lifesaving treatment. If the Supreme Court sides with extremists, Idaho v. United States could make this medical nightmare a reality in every state in the country.

Not sure it’ll make a difference, but let’s all sign CAP’s letter asking the Supreme Court to protect access to emergency abortions.

Get Smart! 📚

As our anxiety increases about the unpredictability of the youth vote, Airlift has an antidote:

Winning The Youth Vote, headlined by yours truly 😀 on April 30, 5:00 PT/8:00 ET.

Come hear how Leaders Igniting Transformation (LIT), Airlift’s partner group in  Wisconsin, engages youth through their high school, college, and post-education civic engagement and leadership programs, particularly in Black and Brown communities. Your anxiety will decrease! A great ground game in Wisconsin ended gerrymandering, and can again help win the state for Democrats up and down the ballot.

Although this is a fundraiser for LIT, you do not need to donate to participate. Register here for what promises to be an inspiring program.

Spread the Word! 📣

The folks at ASO Communications are holding a #justicecantwait day of action to encourage SCOTUS to rule quickly on Donald Trump’s claims of immunity. From them:

As the Supreme Court hears Trump’s claims of presidential immunity today, we are making our voices heard loud and clear. We will not allow justice delayed to become democracy destroyed. 

The Supreme Court has ruled swiftly in critical cases, especially about electoral concerns, before; they can and must rule on immunity by May 20th. This timeline ensures a jury of everyday Americans can  reach a verdict in Trump’s 2020 election insurrection trial before voters must reach our own verdict in this year’s election.

Please post at least twice on social media using the #JusticeCantWait toolkit (and share the toolkit with your organization, fellow activists, and progressive friends).

You can see a sample post from me here. It’s easy! Again, the toolkit is here.

Give 💰!

Join Walk the Walk USA on Sunday, April 28th at 5:00pm PT / 8:00pm ET to learn how abortion access issues in Arizona could impact the future of democracy in the U.S. and around the world – and what we can do to help right now.

They’ll be in conversation with their long-time partner, Our Voice Our Vote Arizona, which will play an outsized role this year in determining control of the U.S. presidency, U.S. Senate, U.S House, and the Arizona state legislature.

Sign up here for the Zoom.

Win Races! 🗳

Like textbanking? Sign up for Movement Labs' weekly volunteer training on Tuesdays from 6-7 PM ET! 

Movement Labs works with a diverse mix of progressive candidates and campaigns working to build a better country. Their volunteer texting team (13,000+ strong) helps move people to take action in their local communities. This training is aimed at new texting volunteers, and they'll cover how to get started texting with them. 

SIGN UP HERE.

[H/T Lean Left Vermont]

What I’m Reading 🔥

Interested in fixing our broken news media system? I’ve got great news! The Media and Democracy Project (MAD) has started a weekly Substack! It’s called “Good News/Bad News.”

MAD plans to publish good and bad examples of media coverage using the Pro-Democracy Election Coverage Guidelines they developed. They hope the media will make copious use of their guidelines from now until November.

Please read their inaugural post and subscribe to their Substack. 

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

[To: all three reps] [Text SIGN PDXMVG to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]

Rep. Wiley Nickel has introduced a bill, the FAIR MAPS Act, to combat partisan gerrymandering by establishing independent, non-partisan redistricting commissions in every state. I’d like you to support it.

Across the country, partisan gerrymandering has been used as a tool by politicians to manipulate electoral outcomes with almost surgical precision. This leads to hyper-partisanship, a lack of trust in government, and disenfranchised voters. In America today, politicians too often choose their voters instead of voters choosing their elected officials. It's troubling and anti-democratic.

Independent redistricting commissions, which the FAIR MAPS Act promotes, are a common-sense solution to gerrymandering that puts power in the hands of the people – where it belongs. When districts are drawn fairly, all voters – Republicans, Democrats, and independents alike – have a fair shot to make their voices heard.

For that reason, please co-sponsor and work to pass the FAIR MAPS Act. Thanks.

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

Talk soon.

Jess