Chop Wood, Carry Water 5/8

A pep talk on VA / Help us win two Supreme Court races in GA / Donate to my new Giving Circle / No white paint on the Eisenhower building! / Save the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program!

May 08, 2026

I stole this image from Olivia Julianna, who used it in a Chorus zoom meeting I was in this morning. Thanks, Olivia!

Hi, all, and happy Friday,

Of course it’s not happy at all, is it? We got some deeply disappointing news this morning: The Virginia Supreme Court has overturned the new maps that voters in the state approved last month. They’ve done so on procedural grounds, and they may be right—on paper. That doesn’t make it sting any less or feel any less devastating.

Having said that, I’ve been distressed at the immediate doom-prophesying I’m seeing from sources across the media spectrum—this includes friends, folks who do political social media content, and also major news organizations.

I call BS. Certainly, this sucks. It’s unfair. It’s depressing. It’s enraging. And certainly we will win the House by fewer seats because of this decision (and Republicans’ absolutely ruthless racist gerrymandering). But there is still a clear path to winning it, and we will. Because we have to. And because voters are pissed in a way they haven’t been in years.

I’ll go a step further and say that telling people “we’re f*cked,” or “the House is gone,” or “what’s the point?” right now is abetting the enemy. That is exactly what they want you to do! MAGA has always been excellent at depressing turnout via sowing division, killing morale, and using skewed polls. They love that Democrats are throwing their hands up right now. They are counting on it. Because they are still likely to lose in November, but if we give up, then maybe, just maybe they’ll have a chance!

I’ll say it again: our giving up is the one thing that can enable Republicans to win. Not the gerrymandering. Not ICE at the polls. Not Trump threatening to federalize the elections. Yes, all of that can make our fight harder. But we are the X factor, the one thing they can’t overcome if we decide not to be overcome.

Remember these things today: Republicans have gerrymandered themselves about an 11 seat advantage max when all is said and done. We won 40 seats in 2018. In 2010 Republican won 63 seats in the midterm elections. Wave elections can be crazy! This particular wave election is shaping up to be historic. Don’t discount that!

And on the subejct of Republicans’ newly drawn seats, some will likely prove to have been dummymandered. I was told by a reputable source this morning that half of the new seats Texas Republicans drew for themselves could actually go blue. Florida could furnish some pleasant surprises, too. There’s a reason Florida Republicans are reluctant to approve the maps DeSantis is proposing—even though they will. They’re no fools. In a wave election—and again, this will be one for sure—they could lose some of those seats. We must make sure they do.

Also, as Environmental Voter Project’s Nathaniel Stinnett pointed out in his newsletter this morning, “The original (new again) Virginia congressional map still might yield 4 Democratic pick-ups.” He referred us to a G. Elliott Morris piece written before the referendum was passed. Check it out! At the very least everyone I’ve spoken with feels that two are likely to flip.

Consider these facts as well: Trump will only become more unhinged between now and the election. The Republicans are about to pass a deeply unpopular reconciliation bill that adds 71B to the deficit and helps Americans not at all. The generic Congressional ballot has Democrats up between +6 and +10. Democrats are wildly overperforming in special elections. Trump’s approval rating is the lowest it’s ever been, and his disapproval ratings are breaking records. Gas prices are averaging $4.50 a gallon and they won’t be coming down to pre-war levels for at least a year. Speaking of the war, it’s a disaster, and no matter what resolution we get, we’ll be in a worse position than we were before. Trump has no message, no plan to get prices down. Latinos, upon whom Republicans are relying to win their newly drawn seats in many places, have utterly soured on Trump. Young people have, too. Heck, even Evangelicals are losing faith in him—no pun intended.

I could go on. There are a million reasons why we can and will still win in November. So please share a can-do message rather than a doom and gloom one. Remember, people are looking to you for guidance! They will follow your lead!

Here are a few pep talks about where we are after this ruling: mine (on video), Robert Hubbell’s spur-of-the-moment Substack Live (spotty reception, but still worth listening to), Amanda Nelson’s video (she’s great), and Dan Pfeiffer on why we can still win. More will come.

OK. Everything in this newsletter is solutions-based, friends. We don’t do doomsaying here. We brush ourselves off, stand back up, and get back to work. And that’s what we’re going to do right now. Because there’s simply no better tonic than action. Call your reps. Help us win elections. Send a Resistbot letter. Get smart about what organizers are doing across the country to fight back. Donate to my new States Project Giving Circle campaign to win statehouse seats everywhere. Share this email with folks who are looking for ways to fight back!

Action is the way we change our circumstances. So let’s gooooo!

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

First, I am furious about the racist gerrymanders being enacted by Republicans in Tennessee, Alabama, and elsewhere. We need legislation to make all redistricting non-partisan, and we need to pass the Freedom to Vote Act at the earliest opportunity. I am sick and tired of watching voters of color be disenfranchised.

Second, I'm calling to urge the Senator to support S.J.Res. 182 to repeal Trump’s changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Trump's weaponization of the PSLF jeopardizes not only the careers and finances of over 2 million public servants but also the public and nonprofit services our communities rely on. [H/T]

Finally, please oppose the reconciliation bill to fund ICE, Border Patrol, and Trump’s disgusting ballroom. It will add 71B to our debt, which is now higher than our GDP. This is unacceptable. I will be watching the Congressmember’s vote closely. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

Second, I'm calling to urge the Congressmember to support H.J.Res. 155 to repeal Trump’s changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. They jeopardize not only the careers and finances of over 2 million public servants but also the public and nonprofit services our communities rely on.

Extra Credit ✅

One of my readers sent me a suggested “chain letter” we can send to friends and family in California. This is something we can do whether we live there or not:

Dear Friends and Family
I’m forwarding this email—and I’m going to ask you to forward it to other Californians, too— because I’m concerned that, in California’s crowded “jungle primary,” the large number of excellent Democrats running for Governor could split the Democratic vote and inadvertently leave us in the terrible situation of having only two Republican choices in November.
One simple way to reduce that risk is to delay voting until around May 20th, after most of the debates, town halls, and major interviews have taken place. At that point, we can check the polls (Blue Voter Guide has an excellent CA poll tracker at https://ca-gov-polls-chi.vercel.app) to see which Democrat is leading, and then unite behind that candidate rather than dividing our support among our various favorites.
If even half of those receiving this email forward it to 10 others who do the same, within 10 rounds it could potentially reach millions of voters. If you share my concern about electing a Democratic Governor and think this approach makes sense, I hope you’ll quickly forward this email to 10 Democrat friends and family
Warmly,
[Name]

Let’s do it!

[H/T Geraldine A.]

Get Smart! 📚

Learn how you and your community can make a difference in the 2026 midterm elections. Learn what is working.

Volunteer Blue and Activate America, All In for NC, Commit to Democracy, DemCast, Grassroots Democrats HQ, Indivisible Tucson Action Alliance, Swing Left, Swing left Maricopa County, and Third Act will host a special zoom event on May 13 at 4pm ET.

Speakers

Doran Schrantz, The Organizing Lab Founder; Minnesota and National Organizer
Yasmin Radjy, Executive Director, Swing Left and Vote Forward
Chuck Albrecht, Swing Left Maricopa County
Marlene Silva, Political Organizer, All In for North Carolina
Heather Haggarty, Founder, Donuts + Democracy

This is going to be a really cool conversation about how some truly incredible grassroots organizers from across the country are breaking through, gearing up to win elections, and making progress even under difficult circumstances. These are some of the best in the field!

They’ll also tell you how you can get involved! It should be really good!

RSVP here.

Give 💰!

I’ve got a meaningful way for you to help us fix the maps debacle!

The Supreme Court’s decision to gut the Voting Rights Act in Louisiana v Callais has given even more power to states to draw Congressional and state maps. States have power awarded to them by the Constitution to run elections, decide who votes, and how votes are counted. Winning power in the legislatures where these rules are decided is how we keep all elections competitive and fair.

Our Chop Wood, Carry Statehouses Giving Circle with The States Project is raising money to help fuel state legislative campaigns in key states that will determine our future. This is the most strategic investment you can make in protecting our democracy right now.

AND, thanks to an incredibly generous friend of CWCW, we have a $5000 matching opportunity for the first $5000 we raise. Let's do this!

Give here.

Win Races! 🗳

This is a bit long but so important from Rogan's List :

The Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais is going to mean an intense amount of redrawing of districts over the coming years, and a lot of litigation attached to it. These battles will be fought at the state level, making control of state supreme courts that much more important.

We have a chance to shape them in Georgia in less than two weeks. Republicans are planning to redraw Peach State maps this year for 2028, and they’re currently benefiting from a GOP-dominated high court the state director of the ACLU described as “not very sympathetic to civil rights.” On May 19th, we can win two seats on it for pro-democracy progressives.

Former state senator Jen Jordan and trial attorney Miracle Rankin are trying to unseat Republican-appointed Justices Sarah Warren and Charlie Bethel. They’ve emphasized taking on corporate power and protecting voting and reproductive rights as they challenge judges who upheld a six-week abortion ban and shielded Trump from accountability for his coup. Victories by Jordan and Rankin would cut the GOP majority to 6-3 and position us to flip it just months before the 2028 presidential election.

This is the sort of low profile race where a little bit of our efforts can make a big difference – especially because party IDs will not be on the ballot to guide folks.

Here’s some ways we can help:

Phonebank to turn out voters
Postcard to turn out voters
- Activate America is turning turnout for the 5/19 election in general – sign up here
Canvass and poll watch on the ground in Georgia
- Opportunities on the Justice for Georgia resource page
Signal boost on social media
- Use these toolkits from DemCast and the Democratic Party of Georgia…
- …or this voter guide from the Justice Project
Donate to the campaigns
- Oath has set up a page to allow us to easily donate to Jordan, Rankin and other key state supreme court candidates here

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

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

(Note that for the most effective RESISTBOT it’s best to personalize this text. More about how to do this here. But if you’re short on time just send it as is using the above code.)

As your constituent, I urge you to publicly oppose any effort by President Trump and his administration to paint the historic Eisenhower Executive Office Building white and to prevent any work from proceeding until full review is complete. Congress must not remain silent while a nationally significant historic landmark faces a potentially irreversible alteration driven by personal aesthetic preference rather than preservation standards.

PRESERVATION STANDARDS CANNOT BE IGNORED.

The Eisenhower Executive Office Building is not an ordinary office structure. It is a National Historic Landmark and one of the nation’s most important federal buildings. Preservation experts, historians, and members of the Eisenhower family have reportedly warned that painting the granite facade could permanently damage the building and alter its historic character.

[Read the rest here]

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

Talk soon.

Jess

Chop Wood, Carry Water

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