Chop Wood, Carry Water 9/19
Hi, all, and happy Tuesday!
Deep breaths. That’s what I tell myself pretty much every day now, as the news swirls around like a maelstrom and the worrying headlines pop up one after another in my phone, my Substack feed, my in-box. Biden’s age! Climate catastrophe! Ken Paxton! Abortion bans! Bad polls! MSM fails! Democracy attacks! Invasive plants! (OK, that last one is a local issue. Still.) Everything seems to be contributing to a feeling of overwhelmedness, of anxiety, of a lack of control.
Deep breaths.
We live in exceedingly challenging times. It can feel fruitless to keep toiling against what feel like insurmountable, intractable, and endless obstacles.
But I am reminded of the Thomas Edison line: “Many of life’s failures are people who didn’t realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
Right. Let’s not fail in that way.
Deep breaths. We’re closer to success than we feel. And even if it weren’t, could we ever forgive ourselves for quitting on our country in its moment of need?
Of course not.
Times are tough, but we’re tougher. Keep trudging, and know that I am ALWAYS at your side. None of us have to do this alone, and none of us is.
Don’t forget it.
Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲
[Yes, this is repetitive. Please keep calling anyway!]
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.
I want the Congressmember to reject budget cuts that hurt working families and drag us backwards on progress. The House needs to pass a clean funding bill now. Republicans’ proposed cuts would be shattering for working Americans and horrific for our climate progress. And a shutdown would be equally disastrous. Pass a clean funding bill with no cuts now. Thanks.
[If GOP add:] If Republicans were truly serious about addressing our federal debt, they’d stop handing out tax breaks to the rich and corporations. Why don’t they consider doing that? Thanks.
Extra Credit ✅
Several people have asked me how best to contact NBC News about their disastrous Trump interview. The email address I used is contact.nbcnews@nbcuni.com. I’m not going to copy and paste what I wrote here, as I think it’s important to express your own view on this (also my email was a bit of a rant). I do think it’s worth writing, though—it’s important for NBC to hear that we expect better. You can also call 212-664-4444 (press 1, then 1) and leave a message.
Extra Extra Credit ✅✅
One of my subscribers alerted me to a petition they’re running on change.org; it calls on the U.S. Judicial Conference to set aside Rule 53 to allow USA v. Trump to be televised. To quote my subscriber:
The petition is getting a lot of traction, it just passed 21,500 names. Change.org tells me it’s the most successful Trump-oriented petition they’ve published in the past three months. I pitched the story to media in Connecticut (where I live), and it’s been picked up by three outlets, including Hearst CT Media (and on the front page of the Greenwich Time edition, where I live).
Nice advocacy! Feel free to add your signature here and share!
Get Smart! 📚
Abortion Rights and the Future of State Constitutions
Tuesday, September 19, 6–7 p.m. ET
Join the Brennan Center for a live virtual panel exploring the aftermath of Dobbs and its implications for state courts and constitutions.
Panelists include Cheri Beasley, former chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court; David Cohen, reproductive rights scholar at Drexel University; and Alicia Bannon, director of the Brennan Center Judiciary Program and editor in chief of State Court Report. Emily Bazelon of the New York Times Magazine and Yale Law School will moderate a conversation on the role of state courts in adjudicating reproductive rights cases, as well as the future of state constitutionalism.
Give 💰!
Please Join Force Multiplier to hear from—and help re-elect—Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin!
Wednesday, September 20, 7:00-8:00pm ET on Zoom
Suggested donation $100.
If you can give more, please do.
If not, please give what you can and join us.
Win Races—Write! 🗳
Activate America has launched THREE new postcarding campaigns in California, all focused on Republican opposition to abortion rights. The postcards are reaching Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents voting in districts presented by Rep. David Valadao (San Joaquin Valley) , Rep. Mike Garcia (Ventura county) and Rep. Ken Calvert (Riverside).
Interested? Sign up HERE.
Win Races—Call!
I’ll be running my weekly phonebank for Danica Roem in Virginia today from 4-6 PT, and then tomorrow I’ll be at the Supermajority “Power Hour” phonebank where we’ll be calling women in VA and PA. Woot! Join me! (Oh, and if you’re wondering just how important the Supreme Court race in Pennsylvania is in November? Read this.)
Today’s phonebank 4-6 PM PT / 7-9 ET
Wednesday phonebank 4-5 PT / 7-8 ET
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[to all 3 reps] [H/T and more info] [Text SIGN PIKUDC to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]
I am writing about the supplemental funding request sent to Congress from the Biden Administration.
I am extremely alarmed at this request to provide DHS with more funding for detention, enforcement and surveillance operations, and militarization at our borders, on top of the $25 billion Congress spends annually, despite the deaths and abuse documented by ICE and CBP. I’m particularly concerned about the huge sum of unrestricted funding for ICE and CBP, as well as the hundreds of millions requested for surveillance technologies and reimbursements to the Department of Defense for unwelcome military deployments to the border. I am also firmly opposed to authorizing ICE to fund new “residential facilities” that, as requested, would create a new version of family detention.
Please use your leadership to reject the DHS enforcement provisions in the supplemental funding request and ensure that it is excluded from ANY appropriations package under consideration. We want to welcome migrants with dignity and respect, not weaponize tax dollars to cause further harm and abuse. Thanks.
OK, you did it again! You helped save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk soon.
Jess
Biden's age!!! I have to say that I am concerned about how many Democrats seem to be buying into the vicious, slanderous "sleepy Joe" smear that has been repeated a zillion times. I am on phone banks every day, these days to Wisconsin and Ohio, and instead of appreciating his monumental accomplishments like the bipartisan gun violence prevention bill, the Inflation Reduction Act, The CHIPS Act, actually saying "NO" to big pharma, getting out of Afghanistan albeit with some tragedy, and reducing some student debt, here and there a Democratic voter is more interested in how old he is. Really? Last week he flew to India, then to Vietnam, then to Alaska, then back home. He hits the ground running, all on camera! Biden is one of the most energetic, undaunted, accomplished and focused presidents since FDR, who, by the way, lived in a wheelchair and actually died in office. Can anyone imagine not having voted for FDR that last term! President Biden's record during this polarized, impossible era is sterling and I hope Democrats get off this rant and go out there and get President Biden reelected.
Thanks for NBC address. Added my rant.