I just called Kevin Mullin's office to thank him and the staff for everything they're doing, and to specifically ask him to try to get the GOP's removal of taxes on silencers and other weapons out of the bill again, The Senate Dems got the parliamentarian to disallow that removal, but the Senate GOP put it back in.
The staffer told me something I hadn't heard before - that they make a summary of all the day's calls, and she knows he reads it because he always gets back to her with questions about the calls. She sounded tired, and sad, but very determined.
I'm glad I made the call, even though I know he's already working as hard as he can.
You may know Po Murray is Chairwoman of Newtown Action Alliance. I’m on their mail list and respect NAA’s work, highly. This morning, I received an email from NAA with the subject line: Stop Trump's Murder Bill. It reads as follows:
"The MAGA Republicans in the Senate just passed a reckless budget bill that weakens one of our nation’s most important gun control laws — the National Firearms Act — by eliminating the $200 tax on silencers, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and other dangerous weapons.
"This $200 tax isn’t just a fee — it’s a safeguard. It helps slow the spread of uniquely deadly and concealable weapons by adding a layer of accountability and federal oversight. It’s been part of U.S. law for nearly a century.
"These deadly weapons have been regulated under the National Firearms Act for nearly 90 years — laws put in place to protect communities from mob-style assassinations and surprise attacks. But now, Donald Trump’s allies in the Senate have handed a billion-dollar giveaway to the gun industry while making it easier for mass shooters and criminals to get their hands on military-style weapons and devices designed to conceal gunfire.
"This isn’t a movie. It’s real life. Silencers don’t make communities safer — they make it easier for shooters to kill without being heard.
"At a time when public servants are being assassinated and law enforcement is under siege from sniper-style attacks, it is outrageous that they chose to pad gun industry profits over public safety.
"We worked hard to remove this provision earlier in the Senate budget process. Now, we need your help to urge the House to stop this dangerous rollback.
"CLICK HERE to send an urgent email to your representative to demand the House strip this provision and protect the National Firearms Act."
______________________________
I made some edits to the letter and sent it off to my representative through the NAA portal. That is, post my call of outrage to his office earlier for the cruelty we are witnessing in their effort to pass inhumane legislation.
P.S. I realize the "CLICK HERE" is not an active link, given my cut and paste. I'm working on it and hope to be back soon. Tech savvy, I am not. Not even with the simplest of tasks, such as this.
Wonderful! So glad, and thank you, Trina, for calling attention to this, amid the chaos and inhumanity of the moment. Naturally, of which this is a very horrific part. Seems we need to find hope, somehow. Jess is surely high on the list of helpers, as are those with whom we can take action, together. So again, thank YOU!
Thank you Jess! I’ve put together a list of vulnerable Republicans, their contact info/social media accounts with links and everything you need to know about this 💩 MAGA budget.
Friends - As Jess said, let’s spread the word to everyone we know. And definitely comment on their social media posts!!
The one-pagers on the hits to health care are fire! I just called my GOP rep (who is continually sending out emails about how great the BBB is for his constituents, ugh) and asked for an answer in writing to my question: as an older adult and a Medicare recipient, thanks to the Medicare sequestration rule the BBB will trigger as well as its provision that means I could lose my home if I need long-term care — exactly HOW is this bill good for me??
Passing on the tip to FAX republicans if you can't get through otherwise, or do it in addition to calling. There are free fax apps online if people don't have a machine.
Plus anyone can fax an office. Doesn't have to be a constituent.
I have heard a rumor that the house has made an amendment(s) on the budget bill, does anyone know if this is the case and that it will be going back to the Senate?
I'm in District 21 and have emailed Elise Stefanik. I tried calling her Plattsburgh office and the voicemail was FULL. Good. So I called her DC office and left a message. It is important to tell all the Republican't reps that you don't want them to vote for a budget that prioritizes the gestapo over feeding our hungry neighbors and caring for elderly people. I reminded Stefanik that my family came here for prosperity and safety JUST LIKE HERS DID... and that this budget makes our nation LESS SAFE and definitely LESS PROSPEROUS.
Why don't I see anything about how the money for ICE is quadrupled, as is the money for Tom Homan's organization? It's in the bill, isn't it? This is truly scary for all of us.
I’ve seen posted within the last week that it is probable that many people who receive Medicaid through their state exchange are on a plan with a different name and may not realize they’re actually receiving Medicaid insurance coverage. For example, in Vermont, Medicaid for children is called Dr. Dynosaur. It would be really helpful to post that list of what is Medicaid called in your state and it may generate some “oh crap that’s my insurance” phone calls to the house.
Even if you take the obvious efforts to keep us hungry, sick and poor out of the equation, this is pretty much all you need to know about the road ahead……. (From TIME mag….) ICE’s current annual budget is around $10 billion. Under the version of the bill that passed the Senate, the agency would receive an infusion of more than $100 billion through 2029: $45 billion for detention facilities, $46 billion for border wall operations in the U.S.-Mexico border and $14 billion for deportation operations. The agency, which currently has about 6,000 deportation officers, would also receive billions of dollars more to hire an additional 10,000 new agents by 2029.
I would like to see more about how all the numbers they're using to justify this bill are basically comparing it to the budget bill we had, which Trump also called his bill, which was unprecedented in its giveaways to billionaires. So that became the new normal, and I was really sorry that this didn't get nearly enough coverage during Biden's tenure with his reluctance to engage in that way.
I just sent this email to Lalota in NY. I tried to leave it on a voicemail but think I got cut off:
Congressman Lalota and staff:
I just read on “X” that you are analyzing the bill. You may not have this necessary information about people living with chronic illness who might not yet be diagnosed and “labeled” disabled, as these illnesses are very complicated and hard to diagnose. It is not unusual for it to take years to be diagnosed, hence leaving sick people without the disability status to “allow” them to bypass the Medicaid work requirement.
With just 4 categories (see references below) of chronic illness we have a count of 40 million people in the United States with chronic illnesses. These illnesses have a range of being mild to debilitating to life-threatening.
Let’s say just 5% of those 40 million people are not able to work at all. Conservative estimate.
That is 2 million people.
Are you willing to risk people, with devastating but not yet diagnosed illnesses, being thrown off Medicaid due to a “work requirement” they are physically unable to do? Millions of disabilities are “invisible.”
I appreciate you working towards the SALT cap, but you should have looked elsewhere for cuts.
Pentagon? Subsidies to corporations who don’t give low wage employees medical coverage? SPACE-X?
Vote no and rewrite a moral budget.
Lucille Sanders—-an RN who has not been able to work due to dermatomyositis but was "lucky" to be diagnosed.
References:
John Hopkins Lyme Research Center:
Estimated 2 million patients in US living with persistent chronic Lyme
500,000 new cases of Lyme per year, increasing numbers will become chronic Lyme
Many of symptoms overlap with Long COVID and ME/CFS
Yale Medicine: “For the 20 million Americans who are impacted by Long COVID gaining access to disability benefits and effective treatment is most important.” Dr Al-Aly
Mayo Clinic: estimates 15 million Americans have at least one autoimmune disease.
CDC: 3 million people have ME/CFS. 9 out of 10 of them have NOT yet been diagnosed, hence they do not have disability “status.”
Can he read the whole bill during his magic minute? I am so sick of hearing people say that we (those not in the house or senate) don't actually know what's in the bill, that we are being misled by the left or right.
I just called Kevin Mullin's office to thank him and the staff for everything they're doing, and to specifically ask him to try to get the GOP's removal of taxes on silencers and other weapons out of the bill again, The Senate Dems got the parliamentarian to disallow that removal, but the Senate GOP put it back in.
The staffer told me something I hadn't heard before - that they make a summary of all the day's calls, and she knows he reads it because he always gets back to her with questions about the calls. She sounded tired, and sad, but very determined.
I'm glad I made the call, even though I know he's already working as hard as he can.
Hey Trina,
You may know Po Murray is Chairwoman of Newtown Action Alliance. I’m on their mail list and respect NAA’s work, highly. This morning, I received an email from NAA with the subject line: Stop Trump's Murder Bill. It reads as follows:
"The MAGA Republicans in the Senate just passed a reckless budget bill that weakens one of our nation’s most important gun control laws — the National Firearms Act — by eliminating the $200 tax on silencers, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and other dangerous weapons.
"This $200 tax isn’t just a fee — it’s a safeguard. It helps slow the spread of uniquely deadly and concealable weapons by adding a layer of accountability and federal oversight. It’s been part of U.S. law for nearly a century.
"These deadly weapons have been regulated under the National Firearms Act for nearly 90 years — laws put in place to protect communities from mob-style assassinations and surprise attacks. But now, Donald Trump’s allies in the Senate have handed a billion-dollar giveaway to the gun industry while making it easier for mass shooters and criminals to get their hands on military-style weapons and devices designed to conceal gunfire.
"This isn’t a movie. It’s real life. Silencers don’t make communities safer — they make it easier for shooters to kill without being heard.
"At a time when public servants are being assassinated and law enforcement is under siege from sniper-style attacks, it is outrageous that they chose to pad gun industry profits over public safety.
"We worked hard to remove this provision earlier in the Senate budget process. Now, we need your help to urge the House to stop this dangerous rollback.
"CLICK HERE to send an urgent email to your representative to demand the House strip this provision and protect the National Firearms Act."
______________________________
I made some edits to the letter and sent it off to my representative through the NAA portal. That is, post my call of outrage to his office earlier for the cruelty we are witnessing in their effort to pass inhumane legislation.
P.S. I realize the "CLICK HERE" is not an active link, given my cut and paste. I'm working on it and hope to be back soon. Tech savvy, I am not. Not even with the simplest of tasks, such as this.
Thank you!
Figures crossed, hope this works, Trina.
https://secure.everyaction.com/coJ22-V-REGUKi7UFKHi0Q2?emci=9f3dc3b9-4257-f011-8f7c-6045bdfe8e9c&emdi=6cc5d75c-4657-f011-8f7c-6045bdfe8e9c&ceid=363311
It worked! Thank you!
Wonderful! So glad, and thank you, Trina, for calling attention to this, amid the chaos and inhumanity of the moment. Naturally, of which this is a very horrific part. Seems we need to find hope, somehow. Jess is surely high on the list of helpers, as are those with whom we can take action, together. So again, thank YOU!
Thank you Jess! I’ve put together a list of vulnerable Republicans, their contact info/social media accounts with links and everything you need to know about this 💩 MAGA budget.
Friends - As Jess said, let’s spread the word to everyone we know. And definitely comment on their social media posts!!
https://open.substack.com/pub/democratsdeliver/p/we-ride-at-dawn-bitches?r=51f18&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
Thanks for this! My boy Tom Barrett will be getting another call from me right now.
YOU'RE AMAZING!!
The one-pagers on the hits to health care are fire! I just called my GOP rep (who is continually sending out emails about how great the BBB is for his constituents, ugh) and asked for an answer in writing to my question: as an older adult and a Medicare recipient, thanks to the Medicare sequestration rule the BBB will trigger as well as its provision that means I could lose my home if I need long-term care — exactly HOW is this bill good for me??
Passing on the tip to FAX republicans if you can't get through otherwise, or do it in addition to calling. There are free fax apps online if people don't have a machine.
Plus anyone can fax an office. Doesn't have to be a constituent.
I have heard a rumor that the house has made an amendment(s) on the budget bill, does anyone know if this is the case and that it will be going back to the Senate?
I'm in District 21 and have emailed Elise Stefanik. I tried calling her Plattsburgh office and the voicemail was FULL. Good. So I called her DC office and left a message. It is important to tell all the Republican't reps that you don't want them to vote for a budget that prioritizes the gestapo over feeding our hungry neighbors and caring for elderly people. I reminded Stefanik that my family came here for prosperity and safety JUST LIKE HERS DID... and that this budget makes our nation LESS SAFE and definitely LESS PROSPEROUS.
Why don't I see anything about how the money for ICE is quadrupled, as is the money for Tom Homan's organization? It's in the bill, isn't it? This is truly scary for all of us.
If anyone is done with their own calls & exhausted friends, family & other contacts;
Phone banking is fairly easy & can be effective & rewarding! Some people were happy to help!
I abbreviated the script.
https://susanrogan.substack.com/p/action-guide-taking-down-the-maga?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
1AM and 5PM with Medicaid Defenders/SEIU, sign up here
4PM-9PM ET with People’s Action, sign up here
5:30PM-10:30PM ET with Together for CA Health, sign up here
5:30PM-10:15PM ET with Grassroots Democrats HQ and Chop Wood, Carry Water, sign up here
6PM-7:30PM ET with Activate America, sign up here
6PM-8PM ET with MoveOn, sign up here
I’ve seen posted within the last week that it is probable that many people who receive Medicaid through their state exchange are on a plan with a different name and may not realize they’re actually receiving Medicaid insurance coverage. For example, in Vermont, Medicaid for children is called Dr. Dynosaur. It would be really helpful to post that list of what is Medicaid called in your state and it may generate some “oh crap that’s my insurance” phone calls to the house.
Even if you take the obvious efforts to keep us hungry, sick and poor out of the equation, this is pretty much all you need to know about the road ahead……. (From TIME mag….) ICE’s current annual budget is around $10 billion. Under the version of the bill that passed the Senate, the agency would receive an infusion of more than $100 billion through 2029: $45 billion for detention facilities, $46 billion for border wall operations in the U.S.-Mexico border and $14 billion for deportation operations. The agency, which currently has about 6,000 deportation officers, would also receive billions of dollars more to hire an additional 10,000 new agents by 2029.
The NYC primaries are over. Election Day was June 24th.
Murkowski did not "know her power?" Oh stop the lies.
I would like to see more about how all the numbers they're using to justify this bill are basically comparing it to the budget bill we had, which Trump also called his bill, which was unprecedented in its giveaways to billionaires. So that became the new normal, and I was really sorry that this didn't get nearly enough coverage during Biden's tenure with his reluctance to engage in that way.
I just sent this email to Lalota in NY. I tried to leave it on a voicemail but think I got cut off:
Congressman Lalota and staff:
I just read on “X” that you are analyzing the bill. You may not have this necessary information about people living with chronic illness who might not yet be diagnosed and “labeled” disabled, as these illnesses are very complicated and hard to diagnose. It is not unusual for it to take years to be diagnosed, hence leaving sick people without the disability status to “allow” them to bypass the Medicaid work requirement.
With just 4 categories (see references below) of chronic illness we have a count of 40 million people in the United States with chronic illnesses. These illnesses have a range of being mild to debilitating to life-threatening.
Let’s say just 5% of those 40 million people are not able to work at all. Conservative estimate.
That is 2 million people.
Are you willing to risk people, with devastating but not yet diagnosed illnesses, being thrown off Medicaid due to a “work requirement” they are physically unable to do? Millions of disabilities are “invisible.”
I appreciate you working towards the SALT cap, but you should have looked elsewhere for cuts.
Pentagon? Subsidies to corporations who don’t give low wage employees medical coverage? SPACE-X?
Vote no and rewrite a moral budget.
Lucille Sanders—-an RN who has not been able to work due to dermatomyositis but was "lucky" to be diagnosed.
References:
John Hopkins Lyme Research Center:
Estimated 2 million patients in US living with persistent chronic Lyme
500,000 new cases of Lyme per year, increasing numbers will become chronic Lyme
Many of symptoms overlap with Long COVID and ME/CFS
Yale Medicine: “For the 20 million Americans who are impacted by Long COVID gaining access to disability benefits and effective treatment is most important.” Dr Al-Aly
Mayo Clinic: estimates 15 million Americans have at least one autoimmune disease.
CDC: 3 million people have ME/CFS. 9 out of 10 of them have NOT yet been diagnosed, hence they do not have disability “status.”
She won: https://youtu.be/GW9CWej-rlY?si=M4Yt90YxG7fVX9K6
Can he read the whole bill during his magic minute? I am so sick of hearing people say that we (those not in the house or senate) don't actually know what's in the bill, that we are being misled by the left or right.