Republican party

Been a minute

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Hey friends, been a minute since my last post. Just want to assure that 1) we’re not done fighting; 2) we’ve been busy, even if we haven’t posted; and 3) There’s more coming soon. Lightening round recap: We blocked the doors to the EPA to demand climate justice with the poor people’s campaign on June  18 I stalked the halls of Congress to demand Republican members #FirePruitt – and then they did! Two weeks later Pruitt Resigned What the what!?! I locked myself to a 20 foot tall bamboo tower for 7 hours to #CrackFERCopen and demand reforms at the Federal Energy regulatory Commission (thanks to the more than 10,000 of you who signed in support!) Later that same week, one of the Republican Commissioners Robert Powelson, announced he is resigning in August – setting up a deadlocked FERC over climate and gas pipelines, exactly what we were trying to accomplish with our action. There’s been a ton of other news, most of it bad: Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court,Brett Kavanaugh, is a radical, anti- woman, anti-LGBTQ, racist and  …

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Pruitt’s trying to over up this cancer-causing chemical report

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Last week, hundreds of 198 supporters joined more than 300,000 petition signers and 100 environmental and social justice organizations in calling on Congress to fire EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. But today, he still has a job. What’s more, just today Pruitt abused his power (again) to bodily remove a reporter from a meeting on toxic chemicals. I’ve said it before, but ANY other EPA administrator would have been fired already. But Trump won’t do it. And so far, it seems like it’s going to take more pressure to get Congress to act. So here’s what you can do to help: Don’t normalize this latest scandal with your silence. Share the news on social media using the links below, or forward this to friends on email. Share on Facebook. Share on Twitter. Chip in to support our ongoing work on this campaign. Last week more than 100 of us participated in petition deliveries from coast to coast. But Congress hasn’t responded to our demands. We need your support to keep planning escalating actions and protests that compel them to #FirePruitt. The …

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National Dream Act Day of Action Feb 7

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You probably remember, less than a month ago, when all but 16 hard-line Dream Heroes in the Senate (not-coincidentally some of our most reliable votes on climate change) voted to re-open the government. They did so based on a promise from Mitch McConell and Donald Trump allow a vote to protect Dreamers before February 8. This week, the bill for that bad bet comes due. Tomorrow is the 8th and no vote on the Dream act has been scheduled. The Government runs out of money, again, this Friday and we’ve made no progress. Today hundreds of young Dreamers from across the country have traveled to D.C. to demand that Congress pass a clean Dream Act. Click here to check out the live feed of their actions on capitol hill, and then call 478-488-8059 so United We Dream can patch you through to Congress. Tell them to pass a CLEAN Dream Act and protect immigrant youth without harming their families. As we explained last time, this Dream Act vote is a critical litmus test  for climate change. It’s also clear that we can’t trust most of the “deals” …

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Trump’s first SOTU

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Donald Trump gives his first official State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 30, at 9pm Eastern | 6pm Pacific. Even if you hate the guy (and you should), somebody needs to listed to make sure he doesn’t announce any stupid new ideas (like drilling for oil on the moon, or requiring every citizen to genuflect and donate $5 every time the pass an Exxon station). Our team will be listening in (and providing live color-commentary via twitter). And you can tune in with us! RSVP here and/or come back just before the speech starts Tuesday night and we’ll host a live stream of the speech, with running commentary from our team and a range of climate journalists, activists Climate Justice Warriors and more.  Live Blog State of the Union hate Watching party Trouble viewing the RSVP/Iframe? Click Here What to watch for: the Pre Game. Here’s some links and hot-takes before the big speech to give you an idea what to listen for. The Washington Posts pre-speech “what to listen for” isn’t bad The NPR politics podcast is a …

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Democrats cave on Dreamers, here’s why it’s bad for the climate.

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Yesterday Chuck Schumer led Senate Democrats to abandon their bargaining position and re-open the government. For their vote, those Democrats got absolutely zero protections for Dreamers and only a verbal contract (worth the paper it’s printed on) that he’d allow a vote to protect Dreamers before February 8. Let’s be clear: Schumer made a BAD deal. Voters, especially young people and independents, already blamed Trump and the Republicans for the shutdown. And as we explained in our last post, huge majorities of people favor action on DACA (just like they do on climate). Also, as we explained last time, this was a critical litmus test vote for climate change. If we can’t trust Democrats and a handful of Republicans who ​say​ they back a wildly popular policy — in this case protecting nearly 800,000 young people from deportation, but the parallel​ to climate action are clear — ​to stand up and vote that way when given a chance, then we just can’t trust them. And unfortunately that mushy middle where most politicians live has collapsed again. All but 16 hard-line …

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Shut. It. Down. Dream Act Now.

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There’s a principle in direct action called “shutting things down to open them up.” The basic idea is that since we know “power concedes nothing without a demand,” sometimes you have to shut something down in order to open up a conversation about the moral harm it creates. This week, there’s a critical opportunity to demand Congress take action – or else shut down the whole government. And we need your help: Click here to host or join a #NoDreamNoDeal rally near you this week. OR Click here or call 202-224-3121 and tell your Senators and Representative not to vote for ANY spending bill UNLESS it includes a clean Dream Act (the free click to call tool is sponsored by our allies at United We Dream). Congress has until Friday to pass a spending bill that will keep the government open — including the rogue deportation department called ICE — and we’re working in solidarity with a team that is demanding they say #NoDreamNoDeal and include a clean Dream Act. Anything less is a vote to fund the deportation of hundreds …

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Darkest hour

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Happy winter solstice – if happy is what you want to call it. It’s been another rough week. Earlier this week the Republicans rammed through a disastrous tax bill that will (among many other bad things) give special tax breaks to pipeline builders, Arctic drillers, and other assorted fossil fueled ne’er do-wells. As I write this, they’re voting through a short term spending bill without doing anything about the DREAMers – who are at risk of being deported every week Congress refuses to act. All week long brave young people have risked arrest and deportation just to demand Congress vote on the issue. They shut down the Cafeteria today, in solidarity with seven other activists who went on hunger strike in jail. And still, Congress lacks the courage to protect people, not polluters.   One other wrinkle to this week’s tax bill that you might not haver heard about: The #GOPTaxScam effectively eliminates the tax deductibility of charitable donations, removing the incentive for most people to donate to groups like us. I know that a lot of you will still donate because you …

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Two pipelines a week

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Last week the Army Corps of Engineers gave preliminary approval to the Bayou Bridge Pipeline (BBP). A few days earlier, the Virginia Water Control Board (VaWCB) voted 4-3 to approve the fracked gas Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), but required a final review of several environmental studies. That second one is actually considered a partial victory, since the week before the VaWCB had voted to approve the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) — another, shorter, fracked gas pipeline — with no such condition. This not to mention the FCC ripping apart #NetNeutrality and the Republican Congress poised to ram through a tax bill that will steal our healthcare, deport our neighbors and drop a depth charge on the middle class from a luxury yacht. So, yeah, the last week wasn’t great. But here’s the thing, in moments of crisis this climate justice movement rises to the occasion in ways that never fail to startle and inspire me. So, short version – Can you chip in to support what we’re doing? Even $1.98 helps a lot, and there’s a ton of other (including non-monetary) stuff …

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Call now to stop the Dirty Tax Bill

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You’ve probably heard about the Republican Tax Bill being debated in the Senate this week. There is a lot to DIS-like in the bill — from the way it raises taxes on the middle class to give tax breaks to the super-rich and corporations;1 to the way it’s being rushed through with no hearings or due-process;2 to the fact that it undercuts renewable energy, opens new land to oil and gas drilling and threatens our climate.3 It’s a seriously dirty, dangerous, and ugly piece of work. And it’s about to get a final vote in the Senate. Mitch McConnell says he has the votes to pass the bill.4 But it’s incredibly close. So close that the Vice President is standing by to break a tie if even ONE Senator changes his or her mind. Can you make a quick call to tell your Senators to vote no? Click here for the number and some help on what to say. There’s still a chance to stop this bill today. And that’s why we should all call now. But even if they DO vote to …

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Take on the 17 Banks that finance Tar Sands Pipelines

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*Editor’s note* I kept looking for a break in the Trump news to send this email, instead, I emailed out an earlier version of it 20 minutes before a special prosecutor was appointed. *sigh*If you’re still looking for a way to respond directly — by calling for impeachment,  an independent investigation, or a lick of sanity — then follow the links and know that we all say Amen. If you’ve had enough Trump news for a moment, and are looking for something else to do that really makes a difference, read on. ~Drew The Global Movement to Divest is Working. Earlier this month in New York and around the world, we saw the power of the Global Divestment Mobilization. Activists rallied in Sweden at the home of the Nobel Peace Prize, at over a dozen Chase Bank branch locations in Seattle, and on the terrace inside of Trump Tower in New York.1 Each action was unique, but they all carried the same basic demand: to have our neighbors, our elected leaders, and our institutions divest from the very fossil fuel …

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