Dear MoveOn member,
Mitch McConnell just admitted in a closed door meeting with fellow Republicans that he doesn't have the votes to block witnesses from testifying in Donald Trump's Senate impeachment trial.1
A savvy Senate leader like McConnell would NEVER admit that he doesn't have the votes—unless he was absolutely desperate to put pressure on undecided senators.
This is clear proof that our pressure on Republican senators is working.
Just a few days ago, there wasn't a single TV ad on the air supporting impeachment. Now, thanks to an unbelievable flood of donations from MoveOn members, we're on the air in the home states of Senators Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and Lamar Alexander—three of the most likely Republicans to flip to our side.
And now, McConnell is sweating bullets that he doesn't have the votes. That's NOT a coincidence.
Now that we're on the air with TV ads, we need to match that with a major ratcheting up of pressure from real people as the vote nears. Will you chip in $3 to help turn up the heat?
Republicans know that if the public gets to hear directly from eyewitnesses under oath, it'll be a disaster. One top McConnell advisor said it would be like "the Hindenburg" if John Bolton and others testify.2
We know why they're so scared. The only way they can sell Trump's acquittal to the public is with a sham trial with no witnesses and no real examination of the evidence.
So here's our plan:
- Impeachment protests: In Washington, D.C., and the states of the seven most important undecided senators, we're organizing protests to make sure they feel the heat from their constituents. To make these big and visible, we need to pay for everything that goes into pulling off events like these, from hiring organizers, to funding media outreach, to printing signs, to paying for permits where they are needed.
- "Bird-dogging" undecided senators: We saw during the Brett Kavanaugh hearing that one of the most effective ways of turning up the heat on senators is to confront them directly in public. Remember the activist confronting Jeff Flake in the elevator? It's a tactic called "bird-dogging"—just like a hunting dog chases birds out of hiding, we'll stop senators from hiding behind closed doors by challenging them in public spaces.
- Lighting up the phones in Washington, D.C.: Senate staffers keep careful track of how many calls come in on each side of an issue. The polls say that he public overwhelmingly supports requiring witnesses, but unless they're getting phone calls from their own constituents, senators will assume that this isn't an issue that voters actually care that much about.
Republicans want us to believe that the outcome of the impeachment debate is set in stone and that nothing in the trial really matters. But they're bluffing. They know that if the full truth comes out, all bets are off. One way or another, Trump WILL be held accountable, unless they can bury the truth.
The big Senate vote on witnesses is expected THIS Friday, so we need to keep up the pressure. Will you chip in $3?
Thanks for all you do.
–David, Ann, Schuyler, Isbah, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "McConnell Says GOP Doesn't Have Votes to Block Impeachment Witnesses," The Wall Street Journal, January 29, 2020
https://act.moveon.org/go/116156?t=4&akid=255868%2E10220574%2EyEcPMz
2. "Republicans fear Bolton domino effect: 'More Witnesses = Hindenburg'," The New York Times, January 29, 2020
https://act.moveon.org/go/116157?t=6&akid=255868%2E10220574%2EyEcPMz
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Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.
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