Expand solar options, flip the House, Liberal Rocks, and more!
JAN 31
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Contact all members of Congress:
- By phone: (202) 224-3121
- By email: democracy.io
- By US mail: Representatives / Senators
- By fax: Representatives / Senators
- By Resistbot: Resist.bot
Contact White House or other federal agencies:
- POSTCARDS TO VOTERS WRITING FOR TOM SUOZZI IN NY SPECIAL ELECTIONThis week, Postcards to Voters volunteers are writing for Tom Suozzi for the special election that will take place on February 13 to fill George Santos’ Congressional seat in NY. Becoming a volunteer involves sending a sample postcard to prove we’re not bots and then we can begin requesting addresses (each volunteer supplies the postcards and stamps). If we are already a registered volunteer, we can email, text, or Slack for addresses and instructions. Let’s get writing!
- EXPAND SOLAR OPTIONSWe’ve seen in press coverage recently that the Bureau of Land Management is proposing using 22 million acres of public land for solar farms, but we have other options to consider. And those options could also help us address the problem of increasing drought. California, Idaho, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Puerto Rico, Texas, and Washington have thousands of miles of aqueducts, most of them uncovered. California has just begun Project Nexus, which will begin covering some of its canals with solar panels. This has two benefits: first, less evaporation of aqueduct water, and second, a new source of solar power. Yes, covering canals requires money, both for construction and ongoing maintenance, but it also offers an opportunity to address some of the consequences of our climate crisis. Let’s urge our governors, State houses, and federal agencies to view solar aqueducts as part of those 22 million acres, which would significantly lessen the use of public lands to build our solar capacity.
- FLIP THE HOUSE IN 2024The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has announced the first set of 17 Democratic congressional candidates they are supporting to turn these districts from Red to Blue and take back the House in 2024. Let’s look at the list of 17 candidates, and if we are in their districts, let’s reach out to their campaigns (Google for their campaign websites) to see how we can help get them elected.
- LIBERAL ROCKS FOR INTROVERT ACTIVISTSMany activists are introverts at heart but still find ways to be effective change makers. Postcarding is a big favorite, but there are other options, too. For example, Liberal Rocks are a way to speak your mind, while remaining within your comfort zone. No confrontation, no stage fright, not even the discomfort of making small talk with strangers. Just drop rocks as you walk the dog, go shopping, or as a fun activity with your friends, and they will convey your message for you. Let’s check into these and keep up with their work here.
- RESCUING FOLKS FROM MEDICAL DEBT WITH THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN
The road to government funding remains uncertain, but once again the latest version of the deal includes rescinding unspent COVID relief funds. That means local and state governments are running out of time to put American Rescue Plan money to work wiping out medical debt. In December, St. Paul, Minnesota joined communities from Washington D.C. to Pittsburgh to New Orleans to Columbus to Cook County to Connecticut to partner with RIP Medical Debt on this effort – benefiting 43,000 people in their city alone. Let’s contact our local and state elected officials and encourage them to use remaining ARP funds to relieve medical debt burdens in our areas while they still can, and consider a donation to RIP Medical Debt to help them buy and retire debt for pennies on the dollar ourselves if we are able.
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
- ME – JOIN THE NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE INTERSTATE COMPACT
State legislators in Maine are considering a bill (LD 1578/HP 1023) that would bring Maine into the interstate compact to elect the U.S. president by popular vote. This effort would give our state’s electoral votes to the popular vote winner once enough states agree to do so that we could guarantee the popular vote winner an Electoral College majority – effectively sidelining the Electoral College without a constitutional amendment. Let’s contact our legislators and Governor Mills and let them know we support this legislation. We can also help counteract recent letters to the editor opposing this plan by writing an LTE of our own sharing our support – find tips and contact info for multiple media outlets here, here, here and here.
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