Hi Eddie—I just wanted to make sure that you saw Victoria's email.
Dear MoveOn member,
This weekend, Americans in dozens of major cities showed up at airports to protect the rights of and demand respect for refugees, Muslims, and other immigrants. MoveOn members were among the thousands that rallied, calling for #NoBanNoWalls.
But it's not just what's been taking place in the last few days. Every day we've been inspired by acts of resistance and people organizing for change. Last Tuesday, more than 15,000 MoveOn members and allies gathered at 200 events across the country to send a clear message to Democrats and Republicans alike: Stop Donald Trump's #SwampCabinet of bigots and billionaires.
The office building in Springfield, Massachusetts, where Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey have their offices, had never before had such a big crowd. Staff at Senator Ted Cruz's office in Texas called the police to disperse the crowd. And New Yorkers flooded the entire block around Senators Chuck Schumer's and Kirsten Gillibrand's office building, with hundreds standing in the driving rain for an hour.
Each day brings a new wave of gut-wrenching developments—a ban on refugees and many Muslim immigrants, preparations to reopen CIA "dark sites" that had been used for torture, a push for both the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines, the authorization of a border wall, gag orders on scientists at federal agencies, and attacks on the press.1,2,3,4,5,6
That's why we're committed to organizing public protests and taking action in the weeks and months ahead—to let Republicans know that they'll be held accountable and to put Democrats on notice that they need to stand up and resist.
This is a moment of overwhelming grassroots energy. 60,000 people joined the first emergency conference call we organized with the Working Families Party and People's Action to plan upcoming resistance actions, when we had budgeted for just 1,000 people—but we weren't going to turn anyone away. Now, we have to raise money to support this growing movement with more calls, more organizing, more actions, and more investment. Which is why I'm writing with a personal request:
Can you chip in $3 to help MoveOn build the resistance to Trump in the weeks and months ahead?
Yes, I'll chip in to help grow the resistance.
We know that members of Congress hear us. Last week, Democrats voted in unison against Rex Tillerson's nomination for secretary of state in committee and successfully delayed the confirmation of Jeff Sessions for attorney general.7,8 Multiple Democratic members of Congress showed up at the airport protests. And we're seeing impact on policy as well: Republicans have missed their own deadline for a plan to take health care away from tens of millions of Americans, because pressure from their voters is helping drive deeper the fracture points between them.9 But we all know this won't be enough. And too many Democrats in Congress are still treating this like business as usual.10
We need sustained action on an unprecedented scale to stop the Trump Republican agenda, pressure Democrats to stand strong, defend frontline communities, rebuild progressive power, and keep our constitutional democracy intact.
Here's some of what that looks like:
- Fueling the pushback against the shocking Muslim ban and refugee freeze. MoveOn members have distributed tens of thousands of signs saying, "No Muslim Ban / No Border Wall / Our Communities Stand Tall." Now we're joining up with peaceful, legal protests at airports and community gathering spaces around the country.
- Helping to organize #ResistTrumpTuesdays, as we did this week and will continue to do with our allies at the Working Families Party, People's Action, and other partners.
- Flooding congressional phone lines. MoveOn members made more than 15,000 calls to defend health care this past week. MoveOn members and our partners filled up the voicemails and overwhelmed the offices of both Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake.11
- Confronting elected officials at public events. Recently, one Republican congressman literally slipped out of an event early, through a back door, to avoid coming face to face with passionate constituents who were begging him not to take away their health care.12 On Thursday, as Trump met with Republicans in Philadelphia to plot the overthrow of health care as we know it, thousands of people protested outside. We have a plan to similarly turn up the heat on key members of Congress during the upcoming February recess.
- Turning out in force in Washington, D.C., and around the country, so the media and public know and see that the majority will not be silent. We stood shoulder to shoulder with millions during the Women's March, and we stood with Michael Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Cher, and a host of civic and grassroots leaders in New York on the eve of the inauguration. MoveOn members also joined emergency rallies following news of Trump's executive actions on pipelines and deportations.
- Cutting through the Trump administration's lies using our own megaphone of social media, breakthrough videos, and community meetings, and by defending the free press that's under attack by this administration.
- And so much more.
More than 60,000 MoveOn members and allies joined our first emergency conference call. Nearly 30,000 joined our second call last night, and we're preparing for another round of national actions this Tuesday (that's tomorrow!). But it's going to take significant resources to allow us to escalate our work. Will you chip in $3 today?
Yes, I'll chip in to help resist Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress.
Thanks for all you do.
–Victoria, Katie, Justin, Chris, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "Trump's Order Blocks Immigrants at Airports, Stoking Fear Around Globe," The New York Times, January 28, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/7888?t=4&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
2. "Trump Is Reportedly Considering Reopening CIA "Black Site" Prisons," Mother Jones, January 25, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7889?t=6&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
3. "Donald Trump and the Order of the Pipelines," The Atlantic, January 25, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/7890?t=8&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
4. "How Republicans came to support Trump's wall," CNN, January 28, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7891?t=10&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
5. "Trump is at war with science and knowledge, and that should terrify you," Los Angeles Times, January 26, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7892?t=12&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
6. "On Day Two, Trump prayed, met the CIA and attacked the press," CNN, January 21, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7893?t=14&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
7. "Senate committee approves Tillerson for secretary of state," CNN, January 23, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7894?t=16&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
8. "Democrats delay vote on Sessions nomination," The Hill, January 24, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7895?t=18&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
9. "First Health Care Repeal Deadline Missed by Congress," Roll Call, January 27, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7896?t=20&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
10. "The Resistance Is On the March. It’s Time For Senate Democrats To Catch Up," MoveOn.org, January 30, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/7928?t=22&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
11. "Trying to get a message to Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake? Good luck," The Arizona Republic, January 24, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7814?t=24&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
12. "GOP Congressman Leaves Meeting Early After Constituents Want to Talk Obamacare Repeal," Time, January 15, 2017
http://act.moveon.org/go/7819?t=26&akid=177249.10220574.8I90bH
Want to support our work? The MoveOn community will work every moment, day by day and year by year, to resist Trump's agenda, contain the damage, defeat hate with love, and begin the process of swinging the nation's pendulum back toward sanity, decency, and the kind of future that we must never give up on. And to do it we need your support, now more than ever. Will you stand with us?
Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.
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