Learn About Our Voting Rights
Thursday, February 9th
On this snowy day, take the opportunity to increase your knowledge of the importance of voting rights.
- Read Ari Berman's "Give Us The Ballot: The Modern Struggle For Voting Rights In America" (review here)
- Then try Michael Waldman's "The Fight To Vote" (review here).
- Join former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander's Let America Vote campaign, a newly launched national effort to address voter suppression.
- Read Governor Cuomo's proposal to modernize voting in New York.
- Congress is considering H.R. 634, the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) Termination Act, which would eliminate the EAC — the only federal agency charged with improving voting systems and helping states with other critical functions of election administration. Learn more about the EAC.
If we lose the ability to vote and have our votes counted accurately, we lose our ability to preserve our democracy.
Support Elizabeth Warren's History Lesson on Jeff Sessions
Wednesday, February 8
Support Senator Elizabeth Warren's History Lesson on Jeff Sessions
On Tuesday night, Senator Warren announced via Twitter that Senate Democrats would be speaking through the night in opposition to Senator Jeff Sessions' nomination for Attorney General.
As reported in The Washington Post, Senator Warren attempted to read this letter from Coretta Scott King into the record, and was stopped by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who "said that she had breached Senate rules by reading past statements against Sessions from figures such as the late senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and the late Coretta Scott King....The Senate voted, 49 to 43, strictly on party lines, to uphold the ruling that Warren violated Rule 19 of the Senate that says senators are not allowed to “directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator.” Pursuant to that rule, Warren was ordered to sit down and forbidden from speaking during the remainder of the debate on the nomination of Sessions."
Action You Can Take Today
Whether you've already called 25 times or not, please call our Senators, Chuck Schumer (office locations here) and Kirsten Gillibrand (office locations here), who are pledged to vote NO and tell them THANK YOU and tell them you support their action against Sessions' nomination. You could even ask them to attempt to read Mrs. King's letter into the record, if that's still possible by the time you call. Consider sending a copy of Mrs. King's letter to those GOP Senators who are supporting Sessions.
Read more
Remind Yourself What A Normal Presidency Looks Like
Monday February 6
(adapted from Jen Hofmann's blog, Action Checklist for Americans of Conscience)
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A normal president respects democratic ‘minority rights’
Source: GOP Changes Rules To Push Through Nominees After Dem Boycott
Source: ’Trump to McConnell: Go Nuclear If Necessary’
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A normal president respects the authority of the third branch of government
Source: Trump Attackes "So-Called Judge" Over Travel Ban Ruling
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A normal president respects longstanding alliances
Source: Trump’s Harsh Talk With Malcolm Turnbull of Australia Strains Another Alliance
Source: White House investigates leaks of Trump calls to Australia, Mexico)
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A normal president pays for his own family’s vacations
Source: Eric Trump’s business trip to Uruguay cost taxpayers $97,830 in hotel bills
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A normal president doesn’t target or blame one group
Source: Critics decry Trump plan to limit counter-extremism program
This is #NotNormal
Add Twitter To Your Toolkit
Sunday February 5
(adapted from Rogan's List)
If you don’t have Twitter, get it! You’ll need it for the resistance.
Once you've joined, then mosey on over to “Tweet Sheet Tuesdays”, a group where folks can all simultaneously post prepared tweets on Tuesdays at noon Eastern. It's great, and it's SO EASY.
On Tuesday Jan 31st, this group posted a tweet about the EPA, and next Tuesday, Feb 7th, all will be tweeting to Senate Democrats encouraging them to resist the Trump agenda. Take a look at the group Facebook page and the Tweet Sheet now.