Chop Wood, Carry Water 6/27
Hi, all, and happy Tuesday!
And it is happy indeed! What a win in SCOTUS this morning, right? In case you missed it (which is unlikely), the Supreme Court ruled the best possible way in Moore v. Harper, rejecting the Independent State Legislature Theory and standing firmly on the side of democracy and fair elections.
It’s a minor miracle…but it’s also not. The court is behaving with more care and caution for a reason: You have raised your voices loudly and continuously about its corruption, its partisanship, and its extremism. They don’t operate in a vacuum. The right-wing SCOTUS justices are proceeding more gingerly because you are making them do so. They are afraid of upsetting the American people because you have made them so. Never forget it: Your. Voice. Matters.
This is a good day.
Of course there are many more battles to be fought; despite two good rulings from SCOTUS this month fair elections are still under attack. Just this year rightwing state lawmakers have advanced a near-record number of anti-voter policies.
Rightwing state legislative majorities will, in short, continue to test the limits of their power in every way possible. Which is why we can’t let today’s decision distract us from our goal. We must remain laser focused on building power in state legislatures. Today, in short, would be an excellent day to donate to the States Project. It would also be a great day to sign up to phonebank into Virginia with Sister District. Consider either action a thank you gift for recent victories as well as a downpayment on future legislative wins.
Let’s not rely on SCOTUS to protect our rights. Let’s strengthen and enforce them from every possible angle, starting with state-level elections.
Onwards!
Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
I understand that Democrats have re-introduced the Equality Act as S. 5 this week. This bill would would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.1 I strongly support it. [Add a personal reason that you support LGBTQ protections]. Is the Senator a co-sponsor? [If yes thank. If no add:] I’d like them to sign on at once. With all the attacks happening against LGBTQ folks right now, I expect my lawmakers to stand up loudly for this community. Thanks.
Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.
I understand that a bipartisan group of lawmakers is working on two bills to improve maternal outcomes in the US. The first is HR 3838, to authorize federal funding to sustain the health of mothers during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. Second is the Protecting Moms and Infants Reauthorization Act. This bill would provide resources for pregnant and postpartum women with substance abuse disorders. I’m not sure what its number is, as Reps Young Kim and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez just introduced it, but I’d like the Congressmember to support both bills. The United States ranks very poorly in maternal mortality, and it’s getting worse. This must be fixed. Thanks.
Extra Credit ✅
Evergreen Action is asking us to send comments that call on the IRS to step in and make sure taxpayer money won't undercut our clean energy future.
Here's the deal: If new IRS guidance on the hydrogen tax credit within the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) isn't clear about what makes hydrogen truly "clean," billions of dollars in taxpayer money meant to speed up the clean energy transition could instead go towards increasing climate pollution.
Hydrogen, used right, can help us decarbonize entire industrial sectors. But if we produce it with dirty fossil power, it can increase carbon pollution emissions by hundreds of millions of tons. Done correctly, the new hydrogen energy should instead lift up clean power and help shut down fossil power—but that all depends on how IRS defines "clean" hydrogen in the fine print. So let’s make sure they do it correctly!
Fossil fuel industry lobbyists are dominating the conversation. We need to be louder. Send a comment here—please make sure to personalize slightly!
Get Smart! 📚
Tomorrow at 5:00 PM PT / 8:00 PM ET Blue Tent USA is hosting Stephen Vladeck, Author of The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic to discuss the dangers around the U.S. Supreme Court’s growing use of the shadow docket. The discussion will be moderated by Dahlia Lithwick. Should be phenomenal.
Spread the Word! 📣
Common Cause has some excellent messaging guidance on the Supreme Court’s decision today in Moore v Harper. It was a huge win and we should trumpet it as such. Find the guidance here.
Give 💰!
Former Navy SEAL officer Tim Sheehy announced this morning that he is running for Senate in Montana against Jon Tester. Sheehy, of course, is a Republican; Trump won the state by 16 percentage points in 2020. To quote Punchbowl, “Sheehy is a big get for establishment Republicans;” this race is gonna be tough.
Fortunately, Force Multiplier is doing a fundraiser for John Tester on Monday, July 10, 7:00-8:00pm ET on Zoom. The Senator will actually be there to speak and answer a few questions. Your donation will support his reelection campaign.
REGISTER + DONATE here.
Suggested donation $100.
If you can give more, please do.
If not, please give what you can + join them.
Win Races! 🗳
I’ve signed up to call into VA with Sister District tomorrow, from 2:30-5PM PT. They also have shifts on Saturdays. Now’s the time, y’all. This election is the next “big one” and we HAVE to win.
Sign up here. These calls are easy, important, and effective.
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[to all 3 reps] [H/T] [Quick send: text SIGN PLIBHA to 50409]
First House Republicans took our economy hostage over demands for caps and cuts to services for working families―all under the guise of deficit reduction. Now they are rushing to pass a budget-busting package of tax cuts overwhelmingly tilted toward the ultra-wealthy, billion-dollar corporations, and foreign investors.
The tax cuts passed by the House Ways and Means Committee on June 13, and soon headed to the House floor, would cost U.S. taxpayers $1.1 trillion if made permanent—which is Republicans’ ultimate goal. The top two recipients of the new Republican tax package are the ultra-wealthy and foreign investors. The losers are working people and low-income families.
To make matters worse, this is just the first step in the GOP’s longer-term fight to double down on the failed 2017 Trump-GOP Tax Scam. The combined cost of this new Tax Scam 2.0 package plus making all of the expiring parts of the 2017 law permanent could cost over $4 trillion—putting public resources directly into the pockets of the richest families in the country while making public services worse for the rest of us.
Over and over again, Republicans feign concern over our country’s debt only to turn around and pass tax bills that benefit the ultra-wealthy and billion-dollar corporations at the expense of working families.
I urge you to vote NO on the Republican tax package, which, once again, is a handout to the rich and corporations at the expense of investments in our families and communities. Thanks.
OK, you did it again! You helped save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk soon.
Jess
That I felt tears welling up upon seeing the Moore v Harper NYT breaking news at 8:43 AM Mountain is painfully telling of how far "normal" has shifted -- that such anti-democracy garbage made it to the SCOTUS at all.
As Rolling Stone summarizes well:
"Crackpot MAGA Theory (Thankfully) Loses at the Supreme Court
"The court rejected the type of anti-democratic madness Team MAGA tried after 2020. But it wasn't unanimous — and that's a problem...
"A host of legal authorities — the chief justices of all 50 states, conservative and liberal legal authorities, and three recent solicitor generals — have said this is nonsense, arguing in amicus briefs that, of course, the Founders intended election lawmaking to be just like other lawmaking, subject to ordinary constraints, including review by state courts."
Thankfully, there are more of us (pro-democracy and pro-human rights) than there are of them, and with millions more regularly taking action than before 2015, and GenZ rising in power, there are reasons to be hopeful.
Jess, thank you so much for all of your hard work and for your tireless commitment to advocacy and informing all of us. Genuine question here. I have done advocacy work in my spare time, including calling, writing, signing petitions, attending protest rallies, etc. What do you recommend (besides moving to a saner place) to those of us in now very red states with legislators, state and district-level, who are now known for their hard-right stances? I want to keep doing my part but I ask myself what good will it do talking to a wall again? They seem so unlikely to budge, as one of those “convention of states” participant states. My state used to be have a blue majority. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you again! Your outlook and efforts sustain me in this sea of dread.🤟🏼