Good to see our work paying off. The rhetoric from the right has been very alarming. I’m working lightly at postcards, watching some football (Go Vikings), and reading more of Mann and Hotez’s new book about the attacks on science. I can’t recall the title but it just came out and is so far very good.
SCIENCE UNDER SIEGE: How to Fight the Five Most Powerful Forces That Threaten Our World, by Michael Mann and Peter Hotez (PublicAffairs, 2025). I was intrigued by your mention so I looked it up -- and put it on my list. <g>
Yeah, he might be losing "all the arguments that matter," but the SOB is still popular enough with millions and millions of Americans – plus that insane complicity of Republicans and those corporate oligarchs and SCOTUS – that he's still an existential wrecking ball that excites other wrecking balls. We're all still at maximum risk. Doesn't mean I'm not looking for ways to contribute to his defeat, downfall. But I'm not holding my breath. I NEED REAL GOOD NEWS!
Gregg, I see that you are new here - today, in fact - but our analysis which I strongly urge you to dive into a bit more is this - Trump's ebbing powers and loss of control over our discourse, and the growing intensity of the opposition, are all necessary steps for whatever version there is in your mind of how we mitigate the damage and win back power. Downplaying legit wins when they come and turning them into losses is doing MAGA's work for them.
If you are going to become a regular contributor here but please try to understand the work we do here a bit better for we have a pretty strict no dumping your shit on here rule.
Simon, I am very grateful to you for all you do. As a NJ resident, I’m eager to do what I can to help Mikie Sherrill win. I tried to connect with the campaign but—apart from donating and volunteering ( I’m doing both)—I can’t see a way to leave a message. Though I could be wrong, I haven’t seen evidence she’s reaching out to young voters where they are—not on Facebook, where she’s often visible. And though she spoke in her great interview with you about how important Democratic governors are, I haven’t heard her talk about ways she and other East Coast governors can join in efforts to promote clean energy, ensure vaccine availability, etc, or talk about the excellent work our state AG is doing in behalf of the people.
Like you, I regard her election as a state and national imperative, so unless you have info that I lack, I’m hoping you’ll think these observations are worth passing on to her. Thank you!
Did you hear that the Bureau of Labor Statistics revised the jobs report down 900,000 from March 2024- March 2025? Do we believe this coming from an incompetent partisan Trump appointee or is there any truth? I haven’t seen any of my network commenting on this yet.
The "incompetent partisan Trump appointee" to head the BLS has not been confirmed yet. So, for the time being, the BLS is still being run by competent professionals, albeit fewer of them since DOGE/Trump took a wrecking ball to this agency, too. Inadequate funding makes it more difficult to get accurate, timely information reported from employers and means fewer professional to analyze it.
If you watch the video of Trump when his face sagged, you will see that he first looks down at his hands and moves them a bit, first one hand and then the other. My late husband had a TIA stroke. He said that his brain was disconnected from his arm and hand for five minutes while the stroke was happening. The video of Trump reminds me of that.
"Shocking but not surprising" has become the mantra phrase to describe Trump 2.0. So, I guess it was shocking but not surprising to hear Brian Kilmeade of Fox opine that homeless people who won't do what the government commands should just be dealt with "by lethal injection." Yup and who's next? No doubt they're working their way down Stephen Miller's list.
Maybe that Fox video needs a content warning like DEEPLY DISTURBING.
I know there is no bottom with these people, and possibly I should have expected such utter moral depravity, but I wish I could bleach my brain and unsee it.
It was the first time I had heard about it (I spent yesterday working on politics but not following it at all). It was so awful and left me crying. But I guess everyone else already knew about it.
I understand. I'm trying not to let crazy pronouncements upset me. 'Look for the helpers' as it were. Trying to see through the chaos to the general direction. T weakness and that of other evildoers is making for dangerous desperate things. As a counter, James Talarico, Texas guy, now running for senate is on fire. Saw a video clip today where he said "I'm tired of being told I should hate my neighbor". will try to find clip and add it here
But re: kilmeade. The Charlier Kirk situation is a crisis for them exposing a major fault line because CK wanted the Epstein files released. There's a lot of over reaction happening on their side.
Edit: So I went to look up Talarico, and even though I don’t have an Instagram account, Google gave me the very clip you mentioned, about not hating your neighbor, as a top hit.
when will the MSM start talking about the shooter of kirk as being MAGA and from a MAGA family? the grandmother has said everyone in the family is republican. its also directly linked to a certain video game with the language on the bullets. in any case, he is not a leftist. they need to do this because FOTUS is calling on violence on "leftist murderers" which is not the case here. the record needs to be corrected before things get out of hand. bravo to utah gov! a steady hand for sure.
It sounds like you didn't hear about his previous comments when the alleged gunman was still on the loose. He hardly deserves praise for his conduct in this IMO.
A big part of the problem is that the suspect is not cooperating, thus leaving a vacuum for the right to try to tie all of this to leftist transgender people. I also think it's not coincidental that with the midterms coming up, this is yet another chance to rile up the base. Nothing excites MAGA more than the chance to be a victim as well as perpetrate revenge on "leftists."
It really irks me how much more attention the Charlie Kirk killing is getting than the recent assassination of Democratic politicians. The attention is orders of magnitude greater – which is just insane.
The difference in reaction, and reaction to the reaction, to the MN shootings vs now is utterly from the Upside Down. Infuriating, frightening, and also just plain bizarre. Good tagline for 2025, come to think of it.
I didn’t know anything about Charlie Kirk beyond his name and that he was a right wing pundit of some kind. But apparently he was a big deal to MAGA, like Tuckems used to be.
Also, they seemed to believe that political violence was something to be used only on people they hate, and this maybe came as a surprise to them.
he was no pundit, he was an out and out hatemonger, and flying flags at half mast for this guy is just an in your face, eff u to every american who loves this country. someone even wanted his body to lie in state in the rotunda.....i mean wtf...there is just no bottom with these folks. i hope it gets my fellow jerseyans to vote for mikie sherrill this fall and not fall for the maga candidate.
a lot of people didn't know how extreme he was; some people only heard his religious commentary which was not as extreme as his racial stuff. but flying the flag at half mast....this is just bizarre and beyond the pale. and the post just fired their only remaining black opinion writer because they did not like her very rational and measured thoughts on charlie kirk. i mean, the mask is off...they are not even pretending to be tolerant anymore.
The DownBallot is always excellent! I strongly recommend supporting David Nir & Jeff Singer’s work by subscribing to their newsletter. David Nir’s interviews are very worthwhile.
well imo anything keeping the discussion in the news is good however flawed b/c it's linked to the Epstein files. as far as MN goes I assume their top notch AG is doing good work on the case.
btw, I saw a note that they have the votes for the discarge petition, but no name for the new vote. anyone see anything on that?
I haven’t been following the case in the House, but I did see that Democrats had been outmaneuvered in the Senate. Or rather: that Republican senators who want the Epstein files released were too chickenshit to join Democrats and demand it.
I'm also perplexed by how outsized MAGA's response has been, from the McCarthy 2.0 witch hunts of the left reporting posts not sufficiently honoring him, to targeting transgender people on the thinnest of pretexts, all while portraying themselves as the victims and under assault- when it's likely the shooter was himself part of a far-right infighting going on. The only thing I can think of is that this is the first time that this has happened to a figure on the right in such an immediate and stark manner, and they literally do not know how to process it. They are going over the edge (saw one post where someone was hoping he'd raise from the dead after 3 days, I'm not kidding). Someone had done a great post on Facebook (author unknown), with this quote being especially relevant: "Notice what’s happening: an unelected, militarized bureaucracy is declaring that not only is dissent out of line, but even your emotional response to dissent is subject to discipline."
Yes, on the thinnest of pretexts they are attacking the left as well as transgender people. Even the Governor of Utah is throwing fuel on that fire.
PS. Yesterday, elsewhere, I quipped that perhaps we should celebrate Kirk. However, I am of course thinking of the better Kirk – Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise.
Trump is using his WAR CARD to justify anything and everything. We must be vigilant to ensure AMERICAN ELECTIONS take place peacefully and uncontested. We can't be NAIVE to assume the freedoms we have known will endure without our efforts. Unite locally to observe at your polling stations.
The Missouri Independent had an article on how the Republicans rushed through Trump’s order for the gerrymander. My state senator is one of the only reasonable Republicans I’m aware of. He voted against a procedural move that foreclosed debate on the initiative petition bill altogether. His party retaliated by removing him from chair of appropriations. I know this is a state thing but it’s clear the Trump administration is reaching deep into red state legislatures. Voters are angry about this, and I think it puts the whole issue of Democrats’ attempts to flip red states or make them competitive much more in reach than it was even last year.
Your comment is well paired with Simon's note about the devastating impact on farmers and farm communities.
I'd also note that a bunch of the factories that Biden's Chips Act and IRA got going were in red states or red areas. To the extent trump has succeeded in closing those, it's probably hitting some of those same states. (Sorry I don't have citations for that- it's a regular topic on Canary Media, clean energy news I follow)
I live in St Charles, Missouri, and over the last couple of weeks have been involved in organizing against the unconstitutional gerrymandering of our state commanded by Trump. Democrats could lose a seat from the new map drawn. Over 5000 folks showed up in the state capital to protest, over 4000 testified against the proposed map the week before during the MO house hearing, compared to just 40 who testified for the map. The map passed this last Friday by the MO senate, after clearing the MO house earlier in the week. Disappointing, yes. Surprising, no. Our MO legislature is a Republican supermajority, and they do not listen to their constituents, year after year, but keep getting reelected. Very frustrating.
The new map divides the city of Kansas City in such a way that it purposely dilutes the voice of POC. Our state constitution says that maps are to be drawn once a decade, in conjunction with the census, so some legal experts believe it is unconstitutional. Missouri citizens are not done fighting. There is a referendum in the works to require Missouri voters to approve the new map, and we will overwhelmingly reject it. The ACLU has also sued, along with the NAACP.
It was so uplifting to be with all the folks at the Missouri state capital (Jefferson City, MO) this past week, fighting for democracy, with a wide political mix in attendance. The vast majority of Missourians believe in one person, one vote, and that every voice should be counted equally.
I have to remind myself of this every day, sometimes every hour of every day, because the noise machine from the extreme right wing is constantly spewing that to just give up, democracy is over. And this could not be further from the truth!
I have been participating in the One Million Rising project sponsored by Indivisible. One of the actions our local group is taking is to talk to locally owned businesses and ask them to support immigrants and reject ICE by placing signs in their windows showing their support for the immigrant community. We are going to go out together in the next week and try this out, first with businesses we know share our values, to get our feet wet. There is a sense from what I am hearing from other groups that we will run into some resistance. But courage is contagious, from what I've heard, and we will push through, I am sure.
I went out in our suburban locations to talk to owners of small owned businesses that were in Spanish speaking areas. We talked about their rights if ICE arrives, and we were well received. Returning with laminated signs that say:STOP Employees Only. The current regime seems so lawless, but they need a warrant to enter.
⬆️" We talked about their rights if ICE arrives, and we were well received."
Are you familiar with the Immigration "know your rights" red cards? My local indivisible chapter is making them available to our members to hand out to the Hispanic community. (NOTE: They are available in many languages).
more outrage. brian kilmeade on fox says homeless people who dont obey govt orders must be lethally injected. said this on air with a serious face. and not fired. how violent can you get?
Hey Republicans, Trump says mail-in voting is crooked, rigged, and helps Democrats steal elections, so be sure to wait till election day and go to the polls and make sure your vote counts!
Peg, have you signed up for the VA postcard party? The second one is tomorrow evening and participants will hear from a couple of the House of Delegates candidates.(The list of candidates participating is in the link below). I went to the one last Monday and it was great!
In addition, Blue26 (https://blue26.org/) has created an ActBlue fundraising page for those brave candidates running in the reddest (mostly rural) districts - running from R+16 to R+ 68. They are calling it the VA Value Pack: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/vavaluepack27
These are the Virginia Democrats who are contesting the 27 most Republican-leaning districts. They’re keeping GOP incumbents bank accounts busy protecting red seats & away from flipping blue seats. This "value pack" group is punching well above their weight class. All legislative districts listed on this page include their partisan lean rating based on the 2024 Presidential election results via State Navigate.
FYI - I have been writing postcards with Postcards to Voters (https://postcardstovoters.org/) for Cindy Green who is running in an R+53 district where the last time a Democrat ran for the seat was 2011!
If you prefer to donate to those districts that are key targets to hold and to flip, there is a separate fundraising page: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/vablue25. These districts range from D+9 to R+15 using the same metric as the VA Value pack.
Trump may be losing ground in some areas, but unless he starts to lose support from his core base, he remains on a viable path to influencing the mid-terms. I’m hoping that continued increases in the cost of living will push more voters away from his style of politics.
Good to see our work paying off. The rhetoric from the right has been very alarming. I’m working lightly at postcards, watching some football (Go Vikings), and reading more of Mann and Hotez’s new book about the attacks on science. I can’t recall the title but it just came out and is so far very good.
SCIENCE UNDER SIEGE: How to Fight the Five Most Powerful Forces That Threaten Our World, by Michael Mann and Peter Hotez (PublicAffairs, 2025). I was intrigued by your mention so I looked it up -- and put it on my list. <g>
Thanks. I almost never remember the title of whatever I am reading.
I have a hard time with ebooks (about 2/3 of what I read) because the title isn't in my face every time I put it down.
Me too. This one is physical and it’s right next to me now. So who knows?
Worth mentioning on Wednesday that September 17 is "Constitution Day"-- as it is the day it was ratified back by Congress back in 1787!
Yeah, he might be losing "all the arguments that matter," but the SOB is still popular enough with millions and millions of Americans – plus that insane complicity of Republicans and those corporate oligarchs and SCOTUS – that he's still an existential wrecking ball that excites other wrecking balls. We're all still at maximum risk. Doesn't mean I'm not looking for ways to contribute to his defeat, downfall. But I'm not holding my breath. I NEED REAL GOOD NEWS!
Gregg, I see that you are new here - today, in fact - but our analysis which I strongly urge you to dive into a bit more is this - Trump's ebbing powers and loss of control over our discourse, and the growing intensity of the opposition, are all necessary steps for whatever version there is in your mind of how we mitigate the damage and win back power. Downplaying legit wins when they come and turning them into losses is doing MAGA's work for them.
If you are going to become a regular contributor here but please try to understand the work we do here a bit better for we have a pretty strict no dumping your shit on here rule.
For more on our posting guidelines see here - https://www.hopiumchronicles.com/p/hopium-housekeeing-itemspaid-subscribers. Thank you and welcome aboard - S
Simon, I am very grateful to you for all you do. As a NJ resident, I’m eager to do what I can to help Mikie Sherrill win. I tried to connect with the campaign but—apart from donating and volunteering ( I’m doing both)—I can’t see a way to leave a message. Though I could be wrong, I haven’t seen evidence she’s reaching out to young voters where they are—not on Facebook, where she’s often visible. And though she spoke in her great interview with you about how important Democratic governors are, I haven’t heard her talk about ways she and other East Coast governors can join in efforts to promote clean energy, ensure vaccine availability, etc, or talk about the excellent work our state AG is doing in behalf of the people.
Like you, I regard her election as a state and national imperative, so unless you have info that I lack, I’m hoping you’ll think these observations are worth passing on to her. Thank you!
Did you hear that the Bureau of Labor Statistics revised the jobs report down 900,000 from March 2024- March 2025? Do we believe this coming from an incompetent partisan Trump appointee or is there any truth? I haven’t seen any of my network commenting on this yet.
The "incompetent partisan Trump appointee" to head the BLS has not been confirmed yet. So, for the time being, the BLS is still being run by competent professionals, albeit fewer of them since DOGE/Trump took a wrecking ball to this agency, too. Inadequate funding makes it more difficult to get accurate, timely information reported from employers and means fewer professional to analyze it.
interesting, thanks
If you watch the video of Trump when his face sagged, you will see that he first looks down at his hands and moves them a bit, first one hand and then the other. My late husband had a TIA stroke. He said that his brain was disconnected from his arm and hand for five minutes while the stroke was happening. The video of Trump reminds me of that.
"Shocking but not surprising" has become the mantra phrase to describe Trump 2.0. So, I guess it was shocking but not surprising to hear Brian Kilmeade of Fox opine that homeless people who won't do what the government commands should just be dealt with "by lethal injection." Yup and who's next? No doubt they're working their way down Stephen Miller's list.
Maybe that Fox video needs a content warning like DEEPLY DISTURBING.
I know there is no bottom with these people, and possibly I should have expected such utter moral depravity, but I wish I could bleach my brain and unsee it.
I took it as another sign of their desperation, totally unhinged,
It was the first time I had heard about it (I spent yesterday working on politics but not following it at all). It was so awful and left me crying. But I guess everyone else already knew about it.
I understand. I'm trying not to let crazy pronouncements upset me. 'Look for the helpers' as it were. Trying to see through the chaos to the general direction. T weakness and that of other evildoers is making for dangerous desperate things. As a counter, James Talarico, Texas guy, now running for senate is on fire. Saw a video clip today where he said "I'm tired of being told I should hate my neighbor". will try to find clip and add it here
But re: kilmeade. The Charlier Kirk situation is a crisis for them exposing a major fault line because CK wanted the Epstein files released. There's a lot of over reaction happening on their side.
I think Mister Rogers would approve of your reply, which is very kind. I suspect you are one of the helpers.
Thank you so much!
Did not find the James Talarico clip I mentioned, but here's a really nice one
https://nitter.poast.org/firsttohearit/status/1967378149127409735#m
That made me so happy! Thank you!
Edit: So I went to look up Talarico, and even though I don’t have an Instagram account, Google gave me the very clip you mentioned, about not hating your neighbor, as a top hit.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOj0PIFEVO_/
when will the MSM start talking about the shooter of kirk as being MAGA and from a MAGA family? the grandmother has said everyone in the family is republican. its also directly linked to a certain video game with the language on the bullets. in any case, he is not a leftist. they need to do this because FOTUS is calling on violence on "leftist murderers" which is not the case here. the record needs to be corrected before things get out of hand. bravo to utah gov! a steady hand for sure.
⬆️ "bravo to utah gov! a steady hand for sure."
It sounds like you didn't hear about his previous comments when the alleged gunman was still on the loose. He hardly deserves praise for his conduct in this IMO.
https://newrepublic.com/post/200421/utah-governor-spencer-cox-kirk-death
A big part of the problem is that the suspect is not cooperating, thus leaving a vacuum for the right to try to tie all of this to leftist transgender people. I also think it's not coincidental that with the midterms coming up, this is yet another chance to rile up the base. Nothing excites MAGA more than the chance to be a victim as well as perpetrate revenge on "leftists."
It really irks me how much more attention the Charlie Kirk killing is getting than the recent assassination of Democratic politicians. The attention is orders of magnitude greater – which is just insane.
The difference in reaction, and reaction to the reaction, to the MN shootings vs now is utterly from the Upside Down. Infuriating, frightening, and also just plain bizarre. Good tagline for 2025, come to think of it.
1000%
I didn’t know anything about Charlie Kirk beyond his name and that he was a right wing pundit of some kind. But apparently he was a big deal to MAGA, like Tuckems used to be.
Also, they seemed to believe that political violence was something to be used only on people they hate, and this maybe came as a surprise to them.
Check out this post from G. Elliott Morris:
www.gelliottmorris.com/p/people-are-more-likely-to-support
Thank you, that provides really good insight!
he was no pundit, he was an out and out hatemonger, and flying flags at half mast for this guy is just an in your face, eff u to every american who loves this country. someone even wanted his body to lie in state in the rotunda.....i mean wtf...there is just no bottom with these folks. i hope it gets my fellow jerseyans to vote for mikie sherrill this fall and not fall for the maga candidate.
There is no bottom.
I know NOW that he was a hatemonger. But before this week I was picturing a sort of Rush Limbaugh person, or Alex Jones lite.
a lot of people didn't know how extreme he was; some people only heard his religious commentary which was not as extreme as his racial stuff. but flying the flag at half mast....this is just bizarre and beyond the pale. and the post just fired their only remaining black opinion writer because they did not like her very rational and measured thoughts on charlie kirk. i mean, the mask is off...they are not even pretending to be tolerant anymore.
Yeah, they didn’t want to lower the flag for Jimmy Carter.
1000%
Yes, though I'd need verb stronger than "irks." infuriates - horrifies - deeply saddens
I just finished listening to this replay of a Substack Live event from Friday. IMO well worth a listen:
https://www.the-downballot.com/p/how-maga-is-abusing-charlie-kirks
The DownBallot is always excellent! I strongly recommend supporting David Nir & Jeff Singer’s work by subscribing to their newsletter. David Nir’s interviews are very worthwhile.
well imo anything keeping the discussion in the news is good however flawed b/c it's linked to the Epstein files. as far as MN goes I assume their top notch AG is doing good work on the case.
btw, I saw a note that they have the votes for the discarge petition, but no name for the new vote. anyone see anything on that?
I haven’t been following the case in the House, but I did see that Democrats had been outmaneuvered in the Senate. Or rather: that Republican senators who want the Epstein files released were too chickenshit to join Democrats and demand it.
yes, coward from Alaska. I'm hoping Mary peltola runs against her, but I will accept Simon's word on what her chances would be.
I'm also perplexed by how outsized MAGA's response has been, from the McCarthy 2.0 witch hunts of the left reporting posts not sufficiently honoring him, to targeting transgender people on the thinnest of pretexts, all while portraying themselves as the victims and under assault- when it's likely the shooter was himself part of a far-right infighting going on. The only thing I can think of is that this is the first time that this has happened to a figure on the right in such an immediate and stark manner, and they literally do not know how to process it. They are going over the edge (saw one post where someone was hoping he'd raise from the dead after 3 days, I'm not kidding). Someone had done a great post on Facebook (author unknown), with this quote being especially relevant: "Notice what’s happening: an unelected, militarized bureaucracy is declaring that not only is dissent out of line, but even your emotional response to dissent is subject to discipline."
Wow, Faith, that’s one helluva quote!
Yes, on the thinnest of pretexts they are attacking the left as well as transgender people. Even the Governor of Utah is throwing fuel on that fire.
PS. Yesterday, elsewhere, I quipped that perhaps we should celebrate Kirk. However, I am of course thinking of the better Kirk – Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise.
Trump is using his WAR CARD to justify anything and everything. We must be vigilant to ensure AMERICAN ELECTIONS take place peacefully and uncontested. We can't be NAIVE to assume the freedoms we have known will endure without our efforts. Unite locally to observe at your polling stations.
The Missouri Independent had an article on how the Republicans rushed through Trump’s order for the gerrymander. My state senator is one of the only reasonable Republicans I’m aware of. He voted against a procedural move that foreclosed debate on the initiative petition bill altogether. His party retaliated by removing him from chair of appropriations. I know this is a state thing but it’s clear the Trump administration is reaching deep into red state legislatures. Voters are angry about this, and I think it puts the whole issue of Democrats’ attempts to flip red states or make them competitive much more in reach than it was even last year.
Your comment is well paired with Simon's note about the devastating impact on farmers and farm communities.
I'd also note that a bunch of the factories that Biden's Chips Act and IRA got going were in red states or red areas. To the extent trump has succeeded in closing those, it's probably hitting some of those same states. (Sorry I don't have citations for that- it's a regular topic on Canary Media, clean energy news I follow)
Self-reporting -
I live in St Charles, Missouri, and over the last couple of weeks have been involved in organizing against the unconstitutional gerrymandering of our state commanded by Trump. Democrats could lose a seat from the new map drawn. Over 5000 folks showed up in the state capital to protest, over 4000 testified against the proposed map the week before during the MO house hearing, compared to just 40 who testified for the map. The map passed this last Friday by the MO senate, after clearing the MO house earlier in the week. Disappointing, yes. Surprising, no. Our MO legislature is a Republican supermajority, and they do not listen to their constituents, year after year, but keep getting reelected. Very frustrating.
The new map divides the city of Kansas City in such a way that it purposely dilutes the voice of POC. Our state constitution says that maps are to be drawn once a decade, in conjunction with the census, so some legal experts believe it is unconstitutional. Missouri citizens are not done fighting. There is a referendum in the works to require Missouri voters to approve the new map, and we will overwhelmingly reject it. The ACLU has also sued, along with the NAACP.
It was so uplifting to be with all the folks at the Missouri state capital (Jefferson City, MO) this past week, fighting for democracy, with a wide political mix in attendance. The vast majority of Missourians believe in one person, one vote, and that every voice should be counted equally.
I have to remind myself of this every day, sometimes every hour of every day, because the noise machine from the extreme right wing is constantly spewing that to just give up, democracy is over. And this could not be further from the truth!
I have been participating in the One Million Rising project sponsored by Indivisible. One of the actions our local group is taking is to talk to locally owned businesses and ask them to support immigrants and reject ICE by placing signs in their windows showing their support for the immigrant community. We are going to go out together in the next week and try this out, first with businesses we know share our values, to get our feet wet. There is a sense from what I am hearing from other groups that we will run into some resistance. But courage is contagious, from what I've heard, and we will push through, I am sure.
Have you seen Jess Piper's latest column? (It isn't about the MO gerrymander though.
https://jesspiper.substack.com/p/dont-bring-us-into-this
Yes. I love Jess Piper. She is spot on.
Wow, thanks for those details -- the inspiring image of 5000 protesters and testifiers.
I went out in our suburban locations to talk to owners of small owned businesses that were in Spanish speaking areas. We talked about their rights if ICE arrives, and we were well received. Returning with laminated signs that say:STOP Employees Only. The current regime seems so lawless, but they need a warrant to enter.
i guess they are like vampires, you have to invite them in.
Awesome!
⬆️" We talked about their rights if ICE arrives, and we were well received."
Are you familiar with the Immigration "know your rights" red cards? My local indivisible chapter is making them available to our members to hand out to the Hispanic community. (NOTE: They are available in many languages).
https://www.ilrc.org/red-cards-tarjetas-rojas
Yes. Great idea to get some of those as well to hand out!
Thank you!
Thanks so much for your update! great work!
more outrage. brian kilmeade on fox says homeless people who dont obey govt orders must be lethally injected. said this on air with a serious face. and not fired. how violent can you get?
Hey Republicans, Trump says mail-in voting is crooked, rigged, and helps Democrats steal elections, so be sure to wait till election day and go to the polls and make sure your vote counts!
Postcards4VA.com
For rural VA addresses
Peg, have you signed up for the VA postcard party? The second one is tomorrow evening and participants will hear from a couple of the House of Delegates candidates.(The list of candidates participating is in the link below). I went to the one last Monday and it was great!
https://postcards4va.com/parties
Mobilize link to register for tomorrow's zoom (9/15 7 - 9 pm ET): https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/Pvte5kyZSk-1IMYibvWhTg
In addition, Blue26 (https://blue26.org/) has created an ActBlue fundraising page for those brave candidates running in the reddest (mostly rural) districts - running from R+16 to R+ 68. They are calling it the VA Value Pack: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/vavaluepack27
These are the Virginia Democrats who are contesting the 27 most Republican-leaning districts. They’re keeping GOP incumbents bank accounts busy protecting red seats & away from flipping blue seats. This "value pack" group is punching well above their weight class. All legislative districts listed on this page include their partisan lean rating based on the 2024 Presidential election results via State Navigate.
FYI - I have been writing postcards with Postcards to Voters (https://postcardstovoters.org/) for Cindy Green who is running in an R+53 district where the last time a Democrat ran for the seat was 2011!
If you prefer to donate to those districts that are key targets to hold and to flip, there is a separate fundraising page: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/vablue25. These districts range from D+9 to R+15 using the same metric as the VA Value pack.
Trump may be losing ground in some areas, but unless he starts to lose support from his core base, he remains on a viable path to influencing the mid-terms. I’m hoping that continued increases in the cost of living will push more voters away from his style of politics.
Trump is amassing a record-size war chest for the midterms.