Yes, apparently the President pulled back the ICE invasion in the Bay Area last week – but that was probably because someone said “Oh hey there’s a vote happening in California in about a week, maybe we shouldn’t go after Californians right now?” The optics of thugs attacking our people and kidnapping them from the streets would, I’m sure, have increased turnout even more in favor of Prop 50. So it’s just a matter of time. ICE is almost certainly going to be back in San Francisco soon. _From the American Civil Liberties Union:_ > ## The message: > > **President Trump has deployed thousands of military troops to American cities – and is threatening to do it again – in an egregious abuse of power.** > > Earlier this year, he responded to protests against his cruel mass deportation campaign by deploying federalized National Guard troops, federal agents, and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles. Then, he manufactured an emergency to temporarily seize control of Washington, D.C.’s police department while deploying D.C. National Guard troops and troops from several other states to patrol the city. His threats against other American cities have only escalated as well, including his deployment of armed federal agents and military troops to Memphis and Portland. > > Make no mistake: President Trump’s power grab is meant to create fear in major American cities. But no matter what he claims or what uniforms they wear, federal agents and military troops are bound by the Constitution, and must uphold our rights to peaceful assembly, freedom of speech, due process, and safeguards against unlawful searches and seizures. > > And regardless of whether the president cites false crime statistics, villainizes immigrants, or claims peaceful protest is insurrection, sending armed federal agents and military troops into our communities is unjustified and dangerous. **Tell Congress: Military troops do not belong on our streets.** Go to this ACLU webpage for instructions on how to add your voice.

This suggestion courtesy of Indivisible Sonoma County: > # Fight Back Better > > _No Democrat should agree to fund a government that is filling concentration camps_ > > By Tom Benthin > > I got an email from Congressperson Mike Thompson a little while ago. He was writing about the shutdown (and, of course, to raise money). In his email, he said, “Democrats are ready to work on a bipartisan solution to reopen the government while lowering healthcare costs.” Mike’s a good foot soldier and I’m sure that’s just what Hakeem Jeffries, the minority leader, wanted him to say. That’s the Democrats’ strategy: hold out for restoring ACA and Medicare benefits that Trump has taken away, then we’ve got a deal. > > Another way of saying it is, we’re OK with funding the war that you’ve declared on our fellow citizens, as long as you give us back the health care subsidies you took away. We’ll sign off on the midnight assaults on apartment buildings, with naked children zip-tied in the streets. You can have money for the abductions, for sending troops into our cities to attack our citizens, for the masked thugs beating, gassing, and murdering us. Just as long as we can make a deal. > > It’s great that Democrats have discovered, at long last, the guts to say “no”. They absolutely shouldn’t be funding this regime. But not only because of its attack on healthcare. By standing firm, they’ve taken a first step and have even thrown the Republicans off their game, which is great. But they need to do more, and now. They need to demand an end to the war Trump has declared on blue cities and states. Until he stops, no money for his regime. > > And Dems, for God’s sake, please stop using the word “bipartisan”. People are going to get the idea that you stand ready to work with fascists to dismantle our country. If that’s what you intend, at least call it “collaboration”. > > Let’s make some calls. > > _**Pleasecall your members of Congress **and say:_ > > _I’m asking the [Congressmember / Senator] to vote**NO** on extending government funding unless the regime stops its war on Americans. He must refuse to greenlight their assault on America._

I know, I know… There are many reasons for complaints and there has been a lack of leadership. BUT! Check it out! Our California senators did something good! They voted AGAINST a bill covering the military which included specific and harmful anti-trans legislation. The bill is part of the negotiations process on the budget shutdown. It has traditionally been considered politically risky to vote against military spending, Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla both did, with 18 other Democrats. This news is shared courtesy of Erin in the Morning, who is an amazing resource and advocate for trans rights. Please consider contacting these two senators to THANK THEM for standing up for LGBTQ rights! We need to encourage them in taking progressive action too and not just complain. Senator Alex Padilla Phone: (202) 224-3553 or (415) 981-9369 Senator Adam Schiff Phone: (202) 224-3841

This was suggested by Indivisible Sonoma County recently: The federal Election Assistance Commission is soliciting comments to increase the documentation requirements to register to vote. This petition was submitted by a conservative group trying to influence election policy by restricting the ability of eligible citizens from registering to vote, effectively taking away their voting privileges. **Comments are open until October 8th so please take action now!** Go here which is the website for federal regulations and submit a comment against this – here is an example, feel free to make it your own: ##### _**NO, we DON’T want to make it harder for Americans to vote! I’m against requiring citizens to submit a passport, birth certificate, or other citizenship documents to register to vote! Only half of American citizens have a passport and 69 million American citizens don’t have a birth certificate with their current legal name on it, most of them women who changed their names when they got married. Changing the existing regulations to manage voter registration would result in disenfranchisement of many eligible voters and is un-American.**_

A new presidential policy, NPSM-7, allows nearly any liberal or progressive individual or group to be labeled as “domestic terrorists” and be investigated and prosecuted. Hadn’t heard of it? **We need to change that.** Ken Klippenstein, an independent journalist committed to honest and informed reporting to the public on national security, is talking about an issue that mainstream media is not even mentioning: An order that the president signed at the end of September authorizing the military and the IRS to identify, label, and investigate individuals and groups that are “anti-American”, “anti-Christian”, or anti-capitalist.” This came in the form of a National Security Presidential Memorandum, or NSPM. This one is called NSPM-7, and it’s important. Read Ken’s analysis of it on his Substack. Ken ends that piece with this sentence: > Maybe, someday, eventually, Congress will take notice of the most important change in the expansion of government power since the PATRIOT Act. Ah, so this is where HumDem can come in! Let’s ask our Senators and Representatives to pay attention to this and to fight it! An NPSM is not law, but it has authority over governmental agencies in the absence of law. If Congress were to enact legislation, or tie funding approval to changing this, then that could counteract it. Most important seems to be simply raising public awareness of it – and let our politicians know that we’re paying attention. Here’s a script for phone calls – please call Senators Schiff and Padilla, and Representative Huffman on this dangerous presidential action. “I am reaching out as your constituent, asking you to take action to fight back against more dangerous policy being implemented by this administration to wage war on the American people. Under the pretense of ‘national security’, NSPM-7 allows this administration to target any individual or group that does not agree with the president’s views and label them ‘anti-American’ and subject them to prosecution — before they have taken any action or broken any laws. This has been called ‘pre-crime’ and it is absolutely chilling. I am calling to ask you to fight against this dangerous over-reach by the government. Please use your position and your power to talk about this, educate the public, write press releases, share this at your Town Halls. This is not being covered by the media, and the people of the United States need to know about this. And of course I am asking you to please also write and pass laws that will overturn this, so that at least there are tools that citizens and groups can use to protect themselves if they are targeted from this horrible policy. Please stand up to this administration.”

A new presidential policy, NPSM-7, allows nearly any liberal or progressive individual or group to be labeled as “domestic terrorists” and be investigated and prosecuted. Hadn’t heard of it? **We need to change that.** Ken Klippenstein, an independent journalist committed to honest and informed reporting to the public on national security, is talking about an issue that mainstream media is not even mentioning: An order that the president signed at the end of September authorizing the military and the IRS to identify, label, and investigate individuals and groups that are “anti-American”, “anti-Christian”, or anti-capitalist.” This came in the form of a National Security Presidential Memorandum, or NSPM. This one is called NSPM-7, and it’s important. Read Ken’s analysis of it on his Substack. Ken ends that piece with this sentence: > Maybe, someday, eventually, Congress will take notice of the most important change in the expansion of government power since the PATRIOT Act. Ah, so this is where HumDem can come in! Let’s ask our Senators and Representatives to pay attention to this and to fight it! An NPSM is not law, but it has authority over governmental agencies in the absence of law. If Congress were to enact legislation, or tie funding approval to changing this, then that could counteract it. Most important seems to be simply raising public awareness of it – and let our politicians know that we’re paying attention. Here’s a script for phone calls – please call Senators Schiff and Padilla, and Representative Huffman on this dangerous presidential action. “I am reaching out as your constituent, asking you to take action to fight back against more dangerous policy being implemented by this administration to wage war on the American people. Under the pretense of ‘national security’, NSPM-7 allows this administration to target any individual or group that does not agree with the president’s views and label them ‘anti-American’ and subject them to prosecution — before they have taken any action or broken any laws. This has been called ‘pre-crime’ and it is absolutely chilling. I am calling to ask you to fight against this dangerous over-reach by the government. Please use your position and your power to talk about this, educate the public, write press releases, share this at your Town Halls. This is not being covered by the media, and the people of the United States need to know about this. And of course I am asking you to please also write and pass laws that will overturn this, so that at least there are tools that citizens and groups can use to protect themselves if they are targeted from this horrible policy. Please stand up to this administration.”

A new presidential policy, NPSM-7, allows nearly any liberal or progressive individual or group to be labeled as “domestic terrorists” and be investigated and prosecuted. Hadn’t heard of it? **We need to change that.** Ken Klippenstein, an independent journalist committed to honest and informed reporting to the public on national security, is talking about an issue that mainstream media is not even mentioning: An order that the president signed at the end of September authorizing the military and the IRS to identify, label, and investigate individuals and groups that are “anti-American”, “anti-Christian”, or anti-capitalist.” This came in the form of a National Security Presidential Memorandum, or NSPM. This one is called NSPM-7, and it’s important. Read Ken’s analysis of it on his Substack. Ken ends that piece with this sentence: > Maybe, someday, eventually, Congress will take notice of the most important change in the expansion of government power since the PATRIOT Act. Ah, so this is where HumDem can come in! Let’s ask our Senators and Representatives to pay attention to this and to fight it! An NPSM is not law, but it has authority over governmental agencies in the absence of law. If Congress were to enact legislation, or tie funding approval to changing this, then that could counteract it. Most important seems to be simply raising public awareness of it – and let our politicians know that we’re paying attention. Here’s a script for phone calls – please call Senators Schiff and Padilla, and Representative Huffman on this dangerous presidential action. “I am reaching out as your constituent, asking you to take action to fight back against more dangerous policy being implemented by this administration to wage war on the American people. Under the pretense of ‘national security’, NSPM-7 allows this administration to target any individual or group that does not agree with the president’s views and label them ‘anti-American’ and subject them to prosecution — before they have taken any action or broken any laws. This has been called ‘pre-crime’ and it is absolutely chilling. I am calling to ask you to fight against this dangerous over-reach by the government. Please use your position and your power to talk about this, educate the public, write press releases, share this at your Town Halls. This is not being covered by the media, and the people of the United States need to know about this. And of course I am asking you to please also write and pass laws that will overturn this, so that at least there are tools that citizens and groups can use to protect themselves if they are targeted from this horrible policy. Please stand up to this administration.”

Facts, data, and science are under attack. The current governmental shutdown involves many issues that matter to us all. Here is one you may be less familiar with: The budget proposed by the White House drastically cuts funding to the National Institutes for Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF) , and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). These critical arms of the federal government provide a necessary infrastructure of science-based research to other institutions including colleges and universities, and they benefit all of us as members of the public, not just here in the U.S. but across the world. Here are the missions of these organizations, per their websites: * “NSF is an independent federal agency that supports science and engineering in all 50 states and U.S. territories” * “The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the nation’s medical research agency—making important discoveries that improve health and save lives.” * “CDC serves the American public—individuals, families, and communities—who rely on accurate data, health guidance, and preventive measures.” You may recall earlier this year when the administration “paused” all funding to the NSF and NIH; this ended up being temporary, due to the public outcry. The “pause” was lifted, and at the time, funding was restored. However, they are trying again to defund the sciences in the current budget proposal that is now stalled in Congress. **Take action against the regime by emailing our politicians in Washington, D.C.** Here are the contact instructions, and below is a sample message to send – feel free to edit to make it your own! * **U.S. Senator Alex Padilla:** Submit your message through this web contact form * **U.S. Senator Adam Schiff:** Submit your message through this web contact form * **U.S. Representative Jared Huffman** : Submit your message through this web contact form ### SAMPLE MESSAGE BELOW Dear ______________________, I live in ___________________, zip code ______________, and I vote. I am writing as a constituent deeply concerned for the future of the sciences, specifically around the threat to funding at the NIH, CDC, and NSF. As we saw with the OMB freeze on funding earlier this year, these critical agencies that promote science and research are vulnerable — including vital studies on cancer, Alzheimer’s, mental health, infectious diseases and pandemic preparedness, and STEM education for the next generation. These budget cuts would have severe repercussions on the scientific community and the advancement of research. I urgently request that Congress stand up for science and all of us citizens who depend on it, by refusing to approve a budget with such backwards policy priorities. Please fight to ensure the highest level of funding in these appropriations discussions. Do not allow conspiracy-minded politicians who manufacture panic with false claims about autism and vaccines jeopardize the future of scientific research. We need to stand up for the values of our country, including progress through science and education. Please use the power of your vote to do so during these budget processes.

One of the many harms done by the awful budget bill passed by the Republicans earlier this year was to take away the federal government subsidies that made health insurance affordable for hundreds of thousands of Californians. As part of the current budget negotiations in Washington, the Democrats are trying to get those federal subsidies restored. Without those subsidies, not only will thousands of Californians lose their insurance completely because it will become too expensive, but in addition, health insurance costs will go up for all of us, because fewer healthy people will be paying into the insurance pool. Health insurance only works across society when there is a mix of healthy and less healthy people under coverage. Healthier people are more likely to cancel their insurance if their premiums go too high, which means the cost of heathcare is spread across a smaller pool of people, and everyone’s premiums go up. Canceling these subsidies has both direct impacts on those with fewer financial resources, and indirect impacts on everyone. If you support the current Democratic effort to fight back on restoring these critical benefits that have been in place for years, please call your U.S. Senators! > Hello, [Senator or Representative’s name]! My name is [name], and I live in [city name]. I’m calling you to communicate how important it is to me that health care subsidies under the Affordable Care Act be restored, to protect lower income and working class people from exorbitant price increases in their health insurance premiums. Please fight back against the Republican Party’s cruel policies that are burdening our citizens who can least afford it with higher and higher prices for essential health care. Call Senators Padilla and Schiff and Representative Huffman today!

If there’s a choice of helping the environment or damaging it, you know he’ll choose to damage it 100% of the time. He’s against solar, he’s against wind power, but he actively sought bribes from the oil industry before the election and has done everything he can to help them pump more carbon into the atmosphere. His latest attack on our planet is his plan to destroy our wilderness areas. To Trump, trees only exist to make profit for lumber companies, and the ground only exists to make money for the oil and mining industries. The federal government currently has a comment period open for the public to provide input on the new plan to get rid of roadless areas in our National Forests. Please take the time to leave your own comment on their website. https://www.regulations.gov/search?filter=FS-2025-0001 Trump to rescind ‘Roadless Rule’ protecting 58 million acres of forest land – NPR

Seeing what’s already arrived in the mail from the well funded opposition, it’s going to be very important to get the word out about Prop. 50, which is Gov. Newsom’s redistricting response to what Trump asked Texas to do. Republicans know in a fair election, they’re going to lose too many seats in the midterms, so they’re doing what they can ahead of the election to make sure everything is tilted even more in their favor. Prop. 50 simply says that California is going to bring a knife to the knife fight started by Texas. We can’t afford to keep playing by the nice rules when the Republicans have been shredding the rules left and right. Here’s a chance to call voters in California to educate them on why approving Prop. 50 is so important. https://www.mobilize.us/activateamerica/event/834617/

## The Issue Federal government funding runs out on September 30 — setting up a massive monthlong sprint to pass a budget and avert a government shutdown. But unlike the recent reconciliation showdown, when Republicans rammed their Big Ugly Bill through with a bare majority, the GOP needs to earn Democrats’ votes to pass a funding bill this time. That means Democrats have significant power to shape government funding and stop Trump’s cuts and chaos! Lawmakers on both sides need to hear our expectations early and often, and to make sure they do, we’re going to ask that you call your senators in just a moment. But first, let’s make what we’re asking crystal clear: TELL DEMOCRATS: We need courage, not cowardice! You must call on Leader Schumer to FIGHT LIKE HELL and lead a unified Democratic front. Before the Schumer Surrender in March, your senator(s) and most other Democrats were willing to do whatever it took to block Trump’s far-right funding plan — but Schumer and nine weak-willed Dems gave in and divided the party. This time, Schumer must say early, often, and loudly that Democrats WILL NOT SURRENDER ONE VOTE for a budget that funds Trump’s chaos or locks in his healthcare cuts. We need you to contact Senate Democrats so they can publicly call on Schumer to make this pledge. Call your Democratic senators now! Ask them to demand that Chuck Schumer publicly commit to actually fighting this time. ## Who to Contact ## Who to Call or Email Alex Padilla, Senator Telephone: 202-224-3553 Email: https://www.padilla.senate.gov/contact/contact-form Adam Schiff, Senator Telephone: 202-224-3841 Email: https://www.schiff.senate.gov/contact Jared Huffman, House Representative Telephone: 202-225-5161, 415-258-9657 Email: https://huffman.house.gov/contact/email-me ## The Script My name is ______ and I’m calling from ________. With the federal government funding running out on September 30th, it is vitally important that Democrats present a unified force against the Republican agenda that is supporting Trump’s fascist regime. I urge [Senator Padilla | Senator Schiff | Congressman Huffman] to vote agains any budget that does not restore the vital public services stripped in the last bill such as Medicaid and Stamp. Further, [Senator Padilla | Senator Schiff | Congressman Huffman] should lobby their Democratic colleagues to pressure Senator Schumer to not back down this time. With all the damage our government is doing right now, it would cause less damage to shut it down completely, than to give into the Republicans again. Schumer must come out now with no ambiguity and state that the Democrats will be unified in their opposition.

Target sales are down 21% and that’s forced their CEO to resign!

By Sherrilyn Ifill > “The truth is that things are going to get very bad.” This was the opening line from my November 4th essay, “The Truth.” It didn’t take any particular insight to see this even just a week after Donald Trump’s reelection as President. My hope was to encourage us to stiffen our resolve and prepare ourselves for the worst. Sadly, as bad as this moment is, I do not think we are yet at the worst. And so, it seems important to take stock of this moment and think through how we go forward. Her article is an inspiring look at where we’re at and where we’re heading. Read the whole article

The Texas House Democrats are denying quorum to stop the Trump takeover of Texas and block his attempt to rig the 2026 midterm elections. But Trump isn’t stopping in Texas. He’s targeting Missouri, Ohio, Florida, and every state he can twist to help him steal Congress next year. States like California and New York are starting to fight back. Let’s be clear: this fight started in Texas, but it doesn’t end there. This isn’t just about redistricting or one state’s politics. It’s about the future of our democracy. Trump is terrified of the American people. He knows he can’t win on his ideas, so he’s trying to take Congress by hook or by crook--and he’s doing it by silencing the voices of communities of color. We’re not going to let that happen. That’s why we’re organizing a National Day of Action, on Saturday, August 16, to fight back against the Trump takeover of our country. Texas will lead with an anchor rally at the Capitol in Austin. Across the country, we’re asking people to show up at their state houses, city halls, or community spaces and make it clear -- we see what Trump is doing, and we won’t stand for it. **Please note:** A core principle behind our Fight the Trump Takeover actions is a commitment to nonviolence in all we do. We expect all participants to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values.

## The Issue Gerrymandering is one of the ways that Republicans have managed to stay in power, even though a majority of American’s find their politics distasteful. Republicans have never been shy about playing dirty and have long been in favor of drawing political districts with lots of squiggly lines (gerrymandering) to carve out majority power when in reality they are the minority. Now, since they have figured out that Trump’s policies are so hated by average Americans, they know it’s going to be a blood bath for them in the mid-terms next year. So have they decided to change their policies to actually represent what American’s want? Of course not, these are Republicans we’re talking about. Instead they are doubling down, taking redistricting to even further extremes. So extreme, that in Texas, where they are trying to gain another 5 Republican seats in the House, the Democratic state house members have fled the state so that the Texas legislature doesn’t have a quorum. California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has threatened that if Texas approves their new gerrymandered map, he will hold a special election to put California’s redistricting back in hands of the legislature so that California can make up what Texas is taking away. Currently, California’s districts are determined by a special non-partisan committee, and redistricting is only supposed to be done every ten years after a new census has been taken. Texas is jumping the gun by 5 years and they’ve even admitted they’re not redistricting to be fair. Having a non-partisan committee draw the maps used to be the right way to do it. It’s something that California voters approved of because the legislatures were getting absolutely silly drawing districts borders. But the mid-term election is the only thing that is going to save our democracy, and therefore it is vitally important that California fights fire with fire. For too long, Democrats have played by the rules while Republicans cheat and tear our democracy apart. Please contact Governor Newsom, State Senator McGuire, and Assemblymember Rodgers and tell them you support having a special election to put the power to redistrict back in the hands of our Democratic controlled legislature. Watch Brian Tyler Cohen’s take on this issue. ## Who to Contact ### Governor Gavin Newsom 1021 O Street, Suite 9000 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 445-2841 ### California State Senator Mike McGuire SACRAMENTO 1021 O Street, Suite 8518 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 651-4002 EUREKA 1036 5th Street, Suite D Eureka, CA 95501 Phone: (707) 445-6508 ### California State Assemblymember Chris Rodgers SACRAMENTO State Capitol P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0002 Phone: (916) 319-2002 EUREKA 1036 5th Street, Suite D Eureka, CA 95501 Tel: (707) 445-7014 ## The Script My name is ______ and I live in ________, CA. I am calling/emailing today because I am tired of seeing our country’s democracy being lost because Republicans don’t play by the rules. It is past time to write sternly worded letters. We need to act, and act now! One thing California can do in the wake of Texas and other red states stating that they are going to gerrymander their states is to let California do the same. Our state is the most powerful state in the union. We need to use that power to save the United States of America.

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