Insurrection Act, nuclear energy safety, environmental vote, and more!
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:
- FIX THE INSURRECTION ACT – BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE
Donald Trump has made it repeatedly clear that in his second term, he plans to abuse the Insurrection Act to put the U.S. military in the streets in predominantly Democratic cities. This terrifying move would not be reviewable by the courts and is subject to few restraints. Given his coup co-conspirators’ suggestions that the Insurrection Act be put to work in their effort to seize power, his repeated threats to use it against protesters for racial justice, and his demonstrated contempt for the rule of law and democracy, the risk of authoritarianism inherent to this plan is clear. While the politics are challenging and Trump’s willingness to ignore boundaries on his power raises the degree of difficulty, there are changes we can make to the Insurrection Act to put obstacles in his or any other president’s way – as experts have argued, this is something that should win support from both parties. Experts at the Brennan Center have proposed to Congress multiple reforms, including restoring judicial oversight and setting time limits on the use of troops unless an extension is explicitly approved by Congress, limiting the circumstances in which the Insurrection Act may be invoked, and forbidding its use to impose martial law or suspend habeas corpus. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) has pushed the CIVIL Act (S 3902 in 2020), which also requires the President consult with Congress before deploying troops and get joint certification from the Secretary of Defense and the Attorney General. Let’s reach out to our members of Congress and urge them to take up this or similar reform proposals as soon as possible. We can do so via ResistBot by texting SIGN PRHFET to 50409 or hitting the sign petition button here. - TURN PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT INTO CONSISTENT VOTERS—AND WIN IN 2024The Environmental Voter Project (EVP) has a robust program of phone-calling, postcarding, and door-knocking to get people who care about the environment but don’t typically vote to go to the polls and cast their ballots. To get this work done, EVP needs volunteers—and offers training so anyone can learn how to help. Let’s check out EVP’s many volunteer opportunities and sign up to help.
- SMART POLITICAL DONATINGLast month, Swing Left, an organization whose goal is empowering volunteers and donors across the country to help elect Democrats, chose a 12-state strategy for the 2024 election. On Tuesday, February 6, Swing Left held a virtual workshop featuring Jessica Craven, of Chop Wood Carry Water, who spoke about strategic donations, how to get the biggest bang for our buck in the most important election year of our lives, and common mistakes left-leaning donors make. If we were not able to catch that, we can watch the recorded event here and access the accompanying document here.
- SPEAK OUT ABOUT NUCLEAR ENERGY SAFETYLast week the House passed the Atomic Energy Advancement Act on a bipartisan vote of 365-36. All the dissenting votes were from progressive-leaning Democrats, who seem to be the only ones who are concerned about repetition of the disasters of Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. According to an editorial from the Union for Concerned Scientists, this bill “includes a provision compelling the NRC to “not unnecessarily limit” several measures, including “the potential of nuclear energy to improve the general welfare,” in effect, enabling the NRC “to allow promotional considerations to override decisions based on nuclear safety and security.” The bill now needs to be reconciled with the Senate, which has its own nuclear energy bill. Let’s find out our MoCs’ positions on these bills and demand that safety considerations remain front and center, and make sure to ask tough questions on how we can remain safe from the inherent dangers of increased reliance on nuclear power.
- STATE ELECTIONS MATTER—A LOTOn reproductive rights, voting rights, gun safety, and the environment, state legislatures, governors, secretaries of state, and attorneys general have an impact on all of these issues—and more. Sister District Project makes it possible for all of us to help elect Democrats in swing states. In 2024, Sister District is targeting Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Nevada, and is expanding into Minnesota and New Hampshire. Let’s read about their 2024 strategy, and let’s sign up to help.
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
- MOST – SUPPORT LEGISLATION THAT BANS UTILITIES FROM CHARGING CUSTOMERS FOR LOBBYING COSTSConnecticut recently became the third state, after Colorado and Maine, to pass legislation that prevents utility companies from passing their lobbying costs onto customers. According to the Energy and Policy Institute, 10 additional states are looking at similar legislation or regulatory procedures. Let’s check out this chart and see if our state is one of them, and then let’s tell our state legislators to either initiate a bill or work to pass what has already been proposed. (h/t Chop Wood Carry Water)