56 Comments
User's avatar
JustRaven's avatar

Thanks so much, Jess! I look forward to these every Sunday. 💖😊

Jess Craven's avatar

Yay! I'm so glad.

Alison's avatar

I've been phone banking with Swing Left's Ground Truth project and am convinced that instilling hope in people will be a key component of getting people to vote this November.

Jess, I think this type of info is so important for giving us all hope. Thank you!!

Jess Craven's avatar

Thank you! I intend to try that soon! Robert Hubbell put in a huge plug for it today!

Alison's avatar

That's wonderful. I'm sure they'd be very happy to have you participate. They regularly hold phone banks on Wednesdays 3-6pm pacific time and Sundays 11am-2pm pacific time. There's a brief training at the beginning of each session for those who are new and there's support available throughout the session. There's a debrief conversation during the last 30 minutes of the shift.

Here's the link for anyone who is interested and wants to sign up:

https://www.mobilize.us/swingleft/event/872281/?utm_medium=website&utm_source=sl_action

Xander H's avatar

Thank you, Jess. This is much-needed news and I appreciate the time it takes to track these things down.

Paula Simmons's avatar

Thank you, Jess! I so look forward to this every week, and I know it’s time consuming. I was getting bit worried as I hadn’t seen it yet. I expect that’s what many of us think when it’s “late.” Not, “where is it,” but, “is Jess ok?” 😘

Pat Robinson's avatar

So well said!!!! I didn't get this till this morning and to use words I've come to hate, I was "concerned".

Paula Simmons's avatar

You’re not Susan Collins. Lol.

Pat Robinson's avatar

There are few people I have less regard for than Susan Collins. And I spent many years investigating child abusers......

SCS - Michigan's avatar

Always a welcome, much-appreciated list of positive movements, Jess. Your heroic efforts are inspiring and valued!

Susan Cord's avatar

Another A+ job, Jess Craven!

Star's avatar

Please stop celebrating these age-gating laws getting passed. As I've said before, celebrating age-gating laws getting passed is something you have in common with the Heritage Foundation. Because they know they're really about surveillance and censorship, and that is what they want. Here is their web page arguing in support of age verification laws.

https://www.heritage.org/technology/report/age-verification-what-it-why-its-necessary-and-how-achieve-it

Star's avatar

The EFF has some great writing on how dangerous these laws are in terms of both surveillance and censorship, and how explicit some people and organizations have been that a major part of the goal of these laws is to remove queer and trans content from the internet.

https://www.eff.org/issues/age-verification

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/01/impact-age-verification-measures-goes-beyond-porn-sites

Melody's avatar

Agreed. Several of us commented on this last week and here it is again. Sigh

Tom Prorok's avatar

Luv Mr. Trash Wheel!

K Doyle's avatar

That’s my state! And Baltimore needs all the positive media it can get!

Punkette's avatar

I love Baltimore, Charm City! 💙 And your governor is awesome too!

Pat Robinson's avatar

Not quite my "state" but part of where I consider home (I grew up in New Castle County in Delaware back in the 60s and 70s) and I love this video. For a while my grand parents lived in Baltimore and my brother lived in DC and often when I'd visit him we'd go to the aquarium in Baltimore. Despite living in DC he was a big Orioles fan, so, so was I (after moving to MO and abandoning the Phillies sort of...remained sort of a fan for years!). And of course the Bay was part of who we were (great memories of weekend excursions to go crabbing or just enjoy the water. I'm sure Baltimore has changed a lot probably some good and some bad, but I will always think of Baltimore as a great place!

K Doyle's avatar

Baltimore is awesome! Like every city, it’s urban, and yes has its challenges. But it’s vibrant, has character and always comes back swinging! The people are great and love their hometown. It’s always so funny to me what people say about San Francisco, Chicago, NYC, Philly and how terrified they are of all the crime and turns they’ve never stepped foot in any of them. 🤔🤣

Eric Lin Doub's avatar

Heroic and helpful work by you once again, Jess! Ongoing gratitude.

Hey, we don't see a PLAY button. As author, do you have to click something to activate the Read Aloud feature?

Eric Lin Doub's avatar

(Oops. Disregard that second part.)

Mary Clarke's avatar

Thank you so much! Do you have a reference for the statement about Ebola gone from Uganda?

Sky Blue's avatar

The man who killed Melissa Hortman and her husband Mike was sentenced to life in prison!!

Patricia Marlatt's avatar

Thanks Jess !! A perfect way to end the day !! Definitely needed an injection of good news and some hope !! 🙏

Passidrole's avatar

I am so disappointed to have missed you and Robert H during your Northern California visit. Alas, I was traveling!

Dave Conant - MO's avatar

The song tribute to the Trash Wheel project is excellent, thanks.

>A Massachusetts doctor who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 has had her medical license revoked." This isn't quite correct. What she lost was her ability to renew her license but to the extent that it's current she can practice until it expires. Good to see some accountability regardless. Now if only some of the bar associations would get active about disbarring Trump's buffoonish lawyers.

Janis's avatar

Do you have better links to Russel Vought leaving OMB? The MS Now link is older news about Tom Tillis yelling at Vought (yeah!) and a Google search did not come up with the happy news that Vought is leaving.

JustRaven's avatar

You are correct, in that there is no news that Vought is leaving OMB, only stepping down as acting director from CFPB (and one of his friends has been nominated to take over CFPB and continue the attempts to dismantle the CFPB).

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/05/cfpb-vought-court-cutbacks-00985183

Vought is apparently continuing with OMB.