Chop Wood, Carry Water 6/29

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Hi, all, and happy Thursday.

Another day, another disastrous SCOTUS decision. It’s heartbreaking, it’s devastating, and it’s enraging, but it’s not surprising. The MAGA majority on the Supreme Court is owned by the Federalist Society, and the Federalist Society has, by all reports, been gunning for affirmative action for a long time.

So they won the battle, this time. But the war isn’t over, and we will, in the end, defeat them. Channel your rage into action. Sign up with Demand Justice so that you’re kept updated on court expansion efforts, and join the Brennan Center in their new campaign to pass term limits for Supreme Court justices.

And let’s all commit, one more time, to renewing our own education about systemic racism in this country. I’ve finally just started reading the 1619 Project book, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. Also, this week’s deep dive by Reuters into which American political elites have slaveholder ancestors is FASCINATING, revealing, and deeply important to our understanding of American history.

This stuff goes deep, it goes far back, and it’s going to resist being uprooted every step of the way.

Nevertheless, we will persist.

One day at a time, y’all. We chop wood and carry water no matter what. Today’s a tough day, but we’ve seen tougher. We’ll see many more grave defeats. We’ll see many more spectacular victories.

In the end it’ll be our side that prevails.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

First, please ask the Senator to reject the Sinema-Thune amendment to the FAA reauthorization bill. I strongly oppose it; putting less experienced pilots behind the controls of commercial flights is a terrible idea.

Second, this morning’s Supreme Court decision on affirmative action was another disastrous one. It’s a further reminder that this is an illegitimate and corrupt court, several of whose members have been bought and paid for by the Federalist Society and its billionaire backers. We need court expansion, we need term limits, and we need a Code of Ethics for what’s become a renegade, partisan and extremist court. Please ask the Senator to support all of it. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling to ask Congress to prioritize passing further permitting reform legislation. The new package should boost transmission projects, improve early community involvement, and speed up the pace with which the U.S. builds and deploys new clean energy projects. If Congress acts quickly, clean energy permitting reform legislation could reduce carbon pollution 12% by 2030. Please get this done. Thanks. [H/T and more info]

Extra Credit ✅✅

In Louisiana the EPA is considering a new rule that would give all the power over carbon capture, a dangerous, untested, technology, to the fossil fuel industry and local regulators so corrupt that the EPA was investigating them for civil rights violations until last week. The precedent set there could be deadly for the rest of the country. 

Carbon capture is an unproven technology that would create yet another volatile situation in Louisiana by storing carbon beneath their unstable, swampy earth. What’s more, the Louisiana legislature voted last year to absolve companies of long-term responsibility for any problems from this process.

Many organizations, including the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, the Alliance for Affordable Energy, the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, and Climate Hawks Vote are sounding the alarm. They are asking all of us to please take a moment to send a comment to the government agencies making decisions about this right now. The comment period ends on July 3rd, so time is of the essence. This could be a trial run for CCS across the South and across the United States. We need to stop it.

Comment using Climate Hawks Vote’s tool here or the Bucket Brigade’s tool here.

Extra EXTRA Credit ✅

Please consider posting this on twitter or Facebook and signing the petition yourself:

It's unacceptable that at the end of this week, Museum of the American Revolution & the Philadelphia @Marriott Downtown hotel are hosting right-wing extremist group Moms For Liberty's national summit.

Sign the petition: DO NOT HOST MOMS FOR LIBERTY! 👇 https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/museum-of-the-american-revolution-marriott-don-t-host-moms-for-liberty?source=twitter_share_button&utm_source=twitter&share=53c9d058-79c1-49bc-acd6-22e81ecab9ab

Get Smart! 📚

Friendly reminder: tonight at 5:00 PM PT / 8PM ET Living New Deal's NYC Chapter and the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis will present:

Social Security Webinar: Demographics, Economics, Politics & its Future: From introduction in 1935, Changes Over the Decades, to Today's Challenges.

From them:

Please join us for an expert roundtable to explore Social Security, from its New Deal inception, growth and adaptation through the decades to current challenges and future prospects. The program will feature three prominent speakers followed by a panel discussion. Kevin Baker will speak on Social Security's inception, followed by Douglas Arnold on Social Security's growth, and adaptations to the present. Nancy Altman will focus on current challenges Social Security faces. The panel discussion to follow will be moderated by Teresa Ghilarducci. She and the speakers will together explore and debate how Social Security can meet the challenges it faces through in this period.

Register here.

Spread the Word! 📣

So I don’t like to promote my own TikToks, but I worked really, really hard on this one and feel like I (hopefully) did Simon Rosenberg and Dan Pfieffer proud. I’m posting it here as a YouTube video so you can share it if you want, but it’s on TikTok here and IG here. This is the Bidenomics message in under three minutes—or so I hope.

Win Races—WRITE! 🗳

Activate America has launched their first Senate postcarding action of the 2024 election, and it’s good one—to OUST Kyrsten Sinema! Lists are now available for Arizona! You can sign up HERE.

Win Races—CALL!

I’m making calls into Virginia with Sister District again today. Join me? 1PM PT / 4PM ET. Register here.

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

[to all 3 reps] [Quick send: text SIGN PDREBN to 50409]

Every day, the U.S. immigration system separates people from their loved ones, their livelihoods, and their communities — that can include people with the legal right to be here, people who have families, and even infants.

That’s why I’m writing to ask for a nationwide immigration public defense system, so that no one facing detention or deportation must stand before a judge alone.

The Fairness to Freedom Act (S. 1187 / H.R. 2697) will create a more just and balanced system where all people — regardless of means — have access to a skilled and trained lawyer. Please support it. Thanks.

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

Talk soon.

Jess