Chop Wood, Carry Water 5/15

Finding hope in the solutions!

Hi, all, and happy Wednesday!

I’ve been on back-to-back meetings this morning, including a one-hour Zoom about upcoming Supreme Court decisions and what they’ll mean for our democracy, a Navigator Research briefing on Americans’ views of the economy, and a Run For Something webinar.

The takeaways from all of these meetings were both grim and hopeful. Let’s review the problems discussed, and the solutions offered. Because it’s in the latter that we’ll find our inspiration.

Problem: The Supreme Court has been captured by neo-Confederate billionaires, as has the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. While some of the decisions we’re going to see in the next six weeks may look like SCOTUS is “moderating” (because they’ll reverse some of the 5th Circuit’s most insane rulings), they are not moderate and we shouldn’t mistake them as such. SCOTUS wants the same things as the extremists on the 5th Circuit—they just know it can’t all be done at once or Americans will revolt.

Solution: United For Democracy is launching a ten million dollar campaign to raise awareness about the problem of our captured judiciary and make sure people connect it to the Presidential election! They’ve got a toolkit filled with ways to help spread the word. Let’s use it!

Problem: Voters are really, really not feeling the economy. They are struggling mightily with costs—of groceries, of housing, of gas, of higher education. They are unhappy and stressed about it. They’re also feeling “lonely” in their financial struggles. They are angry, in particular, at corporate greed and want the government to do something about it.

Solution: President Biden has an agenda specifically geared towards doing this, and towards helping middle and working class Americans. If we can help voters see what he’s doing and what he wants to keep doing—as compared to Trump’s disastrous plans—we can harness their concern to help us win!

Problem: Voters are not feeling President Biden for a variety of reasons. They are also hugely apathetic about voting—more so than ever. They are cynical and feeling negative about their presidential choices.

Solution: Run For Something is helping young people to run for office and, in so doing, to connect with voters—especially younger ones—and get them excited about voting. The “reverse coattails” effect is real, and could be the biggest story of this presidential election!

See my point? Yes, there are a multitude of problems. It’s discouraging, if you just stop there. But we also have solutions! We have smart, resourceful, well-funded groups working on all of these issues, and none of them came to play, as it were. They are determined to win, and they can!

So while the challenges we face are formidable, the solutions on offer are, too.

You, of course, are part of those solutions. Thanks for that!

Now let’s get to work one more time.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I know Sen. Klobuchar has introduced three bipartisan bills to protect election integrity amid the use of AI in campaigns and election administration. They are S.2770, the Protect Elections from Deceptive AI Act, S.3875, the AI Transparency in Elections Act of 2024, and S. 3897, the Preparing Election Administrators for AI Act. These are important and worthy bills and I want the Senator to co-sponsor all of them. [H/T and more info]

Also, please ask the Senator to prioritize funding the Affordable Connectivity Program! This is really important to me. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling to urge the Representative to pass HR 7788, the Firefighter PFAS Injury Compensation Act.

I’d also like him/her to support HR 8097, a bill to reauthorize the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. This program will sunset in less than one month. An extension won’t do.  Please fully reauthorize it.

Finally, please ask the Congressmember to prioritize funding the Affordable Connectivity Program! This is really important to me. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

House Democrats have launched an investigation into a meeting between oil company executives and Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago last month, following reports that the former president offered to dismantle Biden’s environmental rules in exchange for $1 billion in contributions to his presidential campaign.

Let’s ask the Senate Subcommittee on Investigations (a part of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee) to do the same. You can contact them here.

We can say some variation on:

I understand that Democrats on the House oversight committee have sent letters to nine oil executives requesting information on their companies’ participation in the meeting with Donald trump during which he offered to overturn President Biden’s environmental policies in exchange for a billion dollar donation. Where is the Senate investigation? This is an egregious abuse of power, a rampant display of corruption, and also possibly illegal. When will the Senate act?

I want immediate investigations into this offer of quid pro quo, as well as a complete airing of whether or not Donald Trump tried to bribe oil and gas executives in order to extort money from them to win an election.

There must be consequences. Thanks.

Get Smart! 📚

Do you wonder what to say to friends or relatives who aren't sure who to vote for -- or even if they will vote this November? Do you need to know more about the issues most important to voters? Then this Zoom is for you!

On Wednesday, May 15 from 7 – 8:30pm EDT join Do the Most Good to hear about formulating effective messaging for reluctant voters from Paul Kendrick, Executive Director, Rust Belt Rising!

Paul has researched the issues voters care about and has great suggestions for how to address them in ways that are applicable to swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, or anywhere. Don't miss this informative presentation that will help us win in November!

Register here.

Give 💰!

Join Walk the Walk USA on Wednesday, May 22 at 8:30pm ET/ 5:30pm PT for a dose of inspiration and to learn more about Walk the Walk’s strategy to win up and down the ballot this November.

They will be in conversation with Make the Road New York, a group working  to build the power of immigrant and working class communities to achieve progressive changes in New York.  In 2022, New York State played an outsized role in Republicans taking control of the U.S. House and could determine which party wins a majority in November.

Sign up here for the Zoom.

Win Races! 🗳

Indivisible Evanston is hosting a zoom meeting on Empowering the Youth Vote this Thursday, May 16 at 7:00 pm Central. It’ll feature the Biden Administration's head of youth outreach, Victor Shi, as well as Jill Wine Banks, Legal Analyst on MSNBC and co-host of the Sisters in Law Podcast. 

It will be a terrific opportunity for people to get up to speed on what is going on with youth voter outreach. 

Register here

Chop Wood, Save the Planet 🔥

Climate Change Resources is recommending a new publication highly—it’s called Covering Climate Now. It’s a new collaboration of journalists and newsrooms working together to improve climate coverage. This is so important—the New York Times STILL hasn’t done a piece on the Big Oil hearings the Senate has been holding; we need better climate journalism.

Subscribe to this new newsletter here. 

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

[To: all 3 reps] [H/T] [Text SIGN PNQFKQ to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]

As your constituent, I urge you to co-sponsor and support the Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023 (H.R.6643 / S. 3423) to guarantee voting rights to ALL Americans.

Right now, Jim Crow-style felony disenfranchisement laws deny voting rights to over 4.4 million Americans. The Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023 comprises a series of transformative measures that would end the broken system of felony disenfranchisement and empower marginalized communities:

- Guaranteeing the right to vote in federal elections to all Americans who have criminal convictions.

- Eliminating state-level barriers that prevent individuals with criminal convictions, whether they are incarcerated or have been released, from exercising their right to vote in federal elections.

- Ensuring citizens in carceral settings have access to information about elections and candidates

27 Members of Congress have signed on as sponsors or co-sponsors of the Inclusive Democracy Act of 2023. If you haven’t already, please join your colleagues and add your name to that list. And if you’re already a co-sponsor – thank you, and please do everything you can to help pass this groundbreaking legislation into law.

---

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

Talk soon.

Jess