Chop Wood, Carry Water 6/3

Hi, all, and happy Friday.

I wanted to pass along a wonderful quote a reader sent me yesterday in response to my newsletter. It’s from an Elizabethan era poet and critic named Matthew Arnold, and it goes like this:

Astonishing things are not accomplished by astonishing means.

All astonishing things are accomplished through ordinary means.

I love it. Why?

In our country, at this moment, we are faced everywhere with a deeply stressful and anxiety-producing conundrum: we are told we must solve problems of existential weight (gun violence, climate change, democracy subversion) and simultaneously that we can’t solve these problems. That they are all either too big, too hard, or too far advanced to be addressed.

The implication, of course, is also that we are not up to the task. That we have inadequate power, intelligence, strength, or capacity for change. That we are, essentially, impotent in the face of overwhelming forces bent on ending our freedom, our prosperity, and even our lives. And that only something “astonishing” could save us. Something we don’t have, because we are ordinary.

It’s a formula for misery, for giving up.

Except it’s not true.

Why? Because we are ordinary. And all astonishing things are accomplished through ordinary means.

Through hard work. Through persistence. Through a refusal to give up. These things can and will bring us victory. Our only job is to remember that.

Every “miracle” that’s ever happened, every astonishing victory, every “impossible” feat? Has been accomplished by ordinary people just showing up and working really, really hard.

When we fight and don’t quit, we win.

When we remember what “ordinary” is capable of, we fight.

So I’m here to remind you. Ordinary is all we need. It’s everything.

Never doubt it.

Now let’s get to work.

Call Your Senators (find yours here)

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

Last night the President gave a speech in which he called for common sense gun measures that almost all Americans—including gun owners—support. These including banning assault weapons--or at least raising the age to purchase them—banning high-capacity magazines, strengthening background checks, enacting safe storage laws and red flag laws, repealing the immunity that protects gun manufactures from being sued, and addressing the mental health crisis in our country. I support all of these provisions strongly and expect the Senator to as well.

[If GOP or Manchin or Tester add:] If s/he refuses I will actively work to make sure s/he loses his/her seat. Americans are fed up. Do something about gun violence now.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here)

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

Last night the President gave a speech in which he called for common sense gun measures that almost all Americans—including gun owners—support. These including banning assault weapons--or at least raising the age to purchase them—banning high-capacity magazines, strengthening background checks, enacting safe storage laws and red flag laws, repealing the immunity that protects gun manufactures from being sued, and addressing the mental health crisis in our country. I support all of these provisions strongly and expect the Congressmember to as well.

[If GOP or Cuellar add:] If s/he refuses I will actively work to make sure s/he loses his/her seat. Americans are fed up. Do something about gun violence now.

Extra Credit ✅

First, read this excellent, short explanation of why the below action is critical.

Then let’s all call Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin at 202-224-2152 and say:

My name is [NAME] and I live in [city, state.] I’m contacting Senator Durbin in his role as Senate Judiciary Chairman, to ask him to please, please, move Steve Dettelbach’s nomination through his committee as soon as humanly possible. Confirming Dettelbach to direct the ATF is one of the few things Democrats can do with no Republican votes. The fact that we have no director for the agency tasked with enforcing gun laws and prosecuting illicit activity like gun trafficking is INSANE. It needs to be fixed immediately. Thanks.

[H/T]

Get Smart! 📚

NOPE’s June 7 meeting sounds incredible, and I intend to go. Their speakers will share stories about the races in the West that highlight our opportunities to win.

• Senator Mark Kelly will share insights on gun violence, his Senate re-election campaign, and how to keep Arizona blue in '22 and '24.

• Director of Make the Road Nevada, Leo Murrieta, will talk about Nevada's political success stories and opportunities.

• Kim Rogers, director of the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State, will tell us more about the critical role the Arizona and Nevada Secretaries of State will play in the midterms and the presidential election. 

All are welcome to attend. There will be an opportunity to donate, but it's optional.

Tuesday, June 7th, 7-8PM EDT. Register here.

Win Races! 🗳

Y’all, as of this morning turnout in California’s primaries, which are on Tuesday, is at an abysmal 11%. 😱 We need help getting voters out, as many seats will be won or lost not in November, but next week.

As such, I am running an emergency phonebank into CA 22 today. We want to flip that seat back from red to blue in November, (we lost it by just .09% in 2020), but first we need to get our preferred Dem candidate, Rudy Salas, through the primaries.

The phonebank is from 12-2 PDT today. Won’t you come and keep me company? We’ll be calling registered Dems only, and I will train you! Sign up here.

Also, Grassroots Dems has GOTV calls into six CA Congressional districts—including the wonderful Katie Porter’s—all weekend long and Monday and Tuesday, and really needs more volunteers. Please consider signing up for a shift here. Election Day is TUESDAY! Thanks.

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

[Send to President Biden] [H/T] [Quick send: text SIGN PBICGL to 50409]

I’m writing again about gun violence, which has me in despair. You spoke yesterday about how Congress must fix it, but there is so much you can do, too. And you must.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was created in 1970 to prevent deaths on national roadways. Yet, beginning in 2017, more American children were killed by guns than in motor vehicle collisions. Please use your executive power to create a National Gun Safety Administration to make guns harder to get, safer to use, and reduce the number of gun deaths in the U.S. You must act. We cannot continue to live this way. Thanks.

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

Talk tomorrow.

Jess