Chop Wood, Carry Water 9/25
Dems are better on the economy. Tell a friend.
Hi, all, and happy Wednesday!
In a major speech this afternoon in Pittsburgh, Vice President Harris will speak about her common sense economic philosophy and pragmatic vision to help the middle class. You can watch her remarks HERE around 3PM ET this afternoon, and I hope you do. It’s important that we all become conversant with Harris’s policy proposals so that we can counteract Republicans’ absurd claims that Trump would be better for the economy. He wouldn’t. In any way.
It is past time that we all stopped apologizing for Democrats’ economic records and started trumpeting them instead. We’re simply better at this, and have been for well over fifty years. In Biden’s case the record is eye-poppingly good. But Democrats have consistently outperformed Republicans on job creation, the deficit, and the GDP. We need to be shouting it from the rooftops. (If you need an explainer on this, complete with stats and charts, Simon Rosenberg’s “With Democrats Things Get Better” is the place to start.)
As for Trump’s economic “plan” for a second term, such as it is? It’s catastrophic. His tariffs will increase inflation dramatically; his mass deportations will shrink the GDP, increase prices, reverse job growth, and quite possibly lead to an economic collapse. His tax cuts will add another 4-5T to the deficit. In his last term he added EIGHT TRILLION DOLLARS to it, largely because of those same tax cuts, which he wants to make permanent.
And Republicans talk about fiscal responsibility!
The awfulness of Trump’s economic policy proposals, by the way, isn’t something that needs to be “spun.” Economists from across the political spectrum agree on it. I have a long list of articles—put together for a TikTok I posted recently about the economy—warning about the “inflation bomb” we’ll see under Trump’s plan, the recession that’ll hit in mid-2025 if he wins, and the catastrophic worker shortages, price increases, and job losses we’ll see if his mass deportations are enacted. (Since I know some of you will ask me for that list I’ve put it on a google doc here.)
All of the above is why a group of more than 400 economists and former policymakers just endorsed Vice President Harris in an open letter, arguing that former President Trump’s policy proposals would create “uncertainty” for the economy—which is putting it mildly.
But it’s not just that—it’s that Harris’s policies are good! They would continue along the general lines of Biden’s, but with even more attention paid to lifting up the working class. Harris’s housing proposals are promising and needed, as is her pledge to increase the new business tax deduction from 5K to 50K, and her promise to wipe away large amounts of medical debt. There’s so much more, but I’m trying to keep this opening from growing too long. You can, and should, read about her economic policy proposals here or on her website.
After all, if people are voting for Trump, despite of all of his flaws, because of the “economy,” (and I question if that’s true), we need to be able to debunk the idea that he’s somehow better on it quickly and effectively. And then we need to be able to talk about what a President Harris would do for them!
We are not just phonebankers, texters, postcard and letter writers, door knockers, and political donors, folks. We are information warriors. We have to be!
And in this case we have all the best weapons at our disposal. So let’s use them!
After all, that’s what we’re best at.
P.S. — Here’s the above-mentioned TikTok explaining why Trump will be a disaster for the economy in case you’d find it helpful.
Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I'm a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
I’m calling in support of an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 4638) called the Fulfilling Promises to Afghan Allies Act. Three years after our withdrawal from Afghanistan, our Afghan allies who were evacuated to the U.S. still have not been granted refugee status here, and over 250,000 remain stranded in Afghanistan and other countries. I’m counting on the Senator to establish pathways to permanent U.S. status and protect those stranded outside the U.S. by supporting this crucial amendment to the NDAA. Thank you.
Extra Credit ✅
Your extra credit assignment is to read these talking points on “noncitizen voting” and mass deportation so you’ve got facts at your disposal to rebut the total nonsense Republicans are spewing.
Here is link to a clear “explainer” produced by the Migration Policy Institute on the subject of non-citizen voting. (Spoiler alert: it’s not a thing.)
And here’s a press release from America’s Voice about “the Costs and Consequences of Making as Many Immigrants Deportable as Possible.” (Spoiler alert: it would be a disaster for the economy.)
Get Smart #1! 📚
Preparing for Post-Election Chaos.
Join Run For Something on September 26 at 3pm ET for a quick briefing on how RFS will work to stop anti-democratic extremists from sowing chaos in the post-election period. (Spoiler alert: We’re going to run up the score and protect and complete the count.)
Get Smart #2! 📚
Join People’s Action to learn about how private insurance companies are extracting billions of dollars in profits from taxpayers through overpayments — and keeping people from getting treatments they desperately need through claim denials. And it could get even worse…Trump’s Project 2025 includes plans to grow this program to privatize Medicare entirely.
Join this Teach-in to learn more about the problems with Medicare Advantage and how we can win lower out-of-pocket costs for traditional Medicare!
Stop Corporate Greed in Medicare: Protecting & Improving Medicare Teach-in: Wed, Sept 25th at 7pm ET//6pm CT//4pm PT.
Spread the Word! 📣
Early voting is happening and we need EVERYONE to know about the amazing Blue Voter Guide, which helps you fill out your ballot before going to the polls.
Please spread the word by using this toolkit to share about BVG on social media! Remember, “ballot intimidation” is a huge reason that Americans—especially young people and less politically engaged folks—don’t vote. Blue Voter Guide can help!
Give 💰!
So, the States Project just announced another big matching campaign! North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and his team have been energized by the power of States Project Giving Circles, and they've offered to match every dollar raised by the Giving Circles community up to $100,000 total across all Giving Circles!
I want to use this opportunity to try to make our Giving Circle’s 150K stretch goal! Our “Chop Wood, Carry Statehouses” Giving Circle is raising money for state legislative races in PA and AZ, but the success of those races also makes presidential wins more likely in those states. Since I’m still hearing that downballot races are grossly underfunded I’m asking that you please give what you can, knowing that it’ll all be matched up to 100K! WOW!
Win Races—Help with Rural Voters!
Rural Urban Bridge Institute is working with Rural for Harris to sway undecided rural voters by spreading rural success stories far and wide. This effort will include both social media and letters to the editor in local papers. Media coverage of rural America usually focuses on what’s wrong with rural communities and small towns, rather than what’s going right. This perpetuates the widespread belief among rural people that they are misunderstood and looked down upon. It hurts Democrats' chances.
Changing that narrative is critical to persuading our political leaders to invest in rural communities, continue the Biden Administration’s vigorous antitrust enforcement, and help beat Donald Trump and begin to shift rural votes away from the one-party rule we now have across the countryside.
To do this, Rural Bridge is looking to build a small army of letter writers and social media advocates for rural. No doubt many of you already have plenty of experience in this area, but if you’re new to it, they have a “toolkit” and other materials to help, including sample letters and posts, examples of rural success stories across many parts of the country, and information about how the right investment and federal policy supports rural renewal.
If you’re willing to do this, or interested in learning more, please sign up here. You’ll be contacted within the next few days.
For everyone interested in the LTEs or social media posts, they have a zoom call this evening, Wednesday, September 25th, at 7pm Eastern.
Win Races—Make Calls! 🗳
Indivisible Illinois does a weekly Sunday Rockin' Zoom Phone Bank Party that’s supposed to be FANTASTIC. On Sunday, September 29, at 4 pm CDT please join me there as we phone-bank into the battleground state of Michigan for:
Kamala Harris for President
Rep. Elissa Slotkin for US Senate
Justice Kyra Bolden & Professor Kimberly Ann Thomas for Supreme Court Justices
For those of you who are new to phone banking, they do training at 3:45 pm CDT.
They also host Rockin' Zoom Phone Bank Parties every Saturday on Zoom at 4 pm CDT, with phone-bank training at 3:45 pm CDT. On Saturdays there are nine campaigns to choose from! Many of these races will be very close, so your phone calls will make a difference.
Sign up for Sunday here. And Saturday here.
Chop Wood, Save the Planet 🔥
Habits of Waste hosted a conversation about the convergence between individual action and large scale change.
Major themes of the conversation includes collective action which causes a ripple effect. The panelists’ consensus was that people DO have the ability to create change and have to apply pressure to corporations for change to occur.
To see the full panel please view the video on youtube.
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[To: all 3 reps] [H/T] [Text SIGN PECPVG to Resistbot at 50409 or via Apple Messages / WHATSAPP / MESSENGER]
This past year was the toughest year yet for the freedom to read.
PEN America’s latest research counted more than 10,000 book bans in the 2023-2024 school year, a steep rise caused by politicians and extremist special interest groups. People have a right to complain about specific books, but one person’s complaint shouldn’t dictate what every child is able to read and learn.
Defending diverse literature means defending those books that teach us, challenge us, entertain us, and introduce us to new ideas. I believe in the freedom to read.
Books are a gift, and I will always support students’ freedom to read and to learn from books—including those that have been banned. I believe in empowering educators, parents, and students.
No one else has a child’s best interests in mind more than their educators and parents. Teachers are trained to select and teach age-appropriate books and curricula—let’s empower them to do their job in the classroom so we can do ours outside of it and give our kids the honest education they deserve.
This Banned Books Week, I’m asking you to stand up in support of banned books and protect the freedom to read by speaking out loudly against legislation that takes away the right of students, parents, and educators to access age-appropriate books in schools and in libraries. This is not 1930’s-era Germany. This is the United States in the 21st century. Please fight for our freedoms—all of them—and against book bans. Thanks.
OK, you did it again! You helped save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk soon.
Jess
I also question people who say they are voting for Trump based on the economy; it's easier to say that instead of saying they don't want to vote for a woman or a person of color. I agree, we need to unapologetically push the message about all the good the Biden/Harris administration has done for the economy, and how Harris/Walz intend to carry that forward.
I found this little gem about Arizona Congressman Juan Ciscomani, in today’s Tucson Daily Star. It’s something to keep an eye on or write to our Congresspeople to oppose. In his weekly newsletter of September 23, Rep. Juan Ciscomani informed us that he had introduced H.R. 9678, which would among other things “prohibit taxpayer dollars from being used to house inadmissible migrants on federal lands.”
I’m fine with reducing hazardous trash piles along the border, another goal of the bill. But I wonder why the federal government should be forbidden to erect temporary shelters, perhaps tents, to protect eventual deportees from increasingly hot Arizona summers.
People die all the time in the Sonoran Desert. Ciscomani will be condemning to death many people with his highly Un-Christian perspective on how we treat our neighbors and fellow humans. So much for loving God…