February 11, 2025
What are they doing about Musk, work stopped at the CFPB, hospitals comply in advance with transphobia, and more
Contact all members of Congress:
By phone: (202) 224-3121
By email: Congress.gov
By US mail: Representatives / Senators
By fax: Representatives / Senators
By Resistbot: Resist.bot
Contact White House or other federal agencies:
If you have questions, comments, and especially submissions for actions, please email us at roganslisttips@gmail.com!
MUSK MUST BE STOPPED
Elon Musk is making the most out of buying himself a president. He’s taken control of key federal systems, attempted to personally purge civil servants, dismantled whole agencies, threatened to cut off payments to government contractors, and has personal data for every American in his grasp. In the process he has broken countless laws, physically blocked members of Congress from doing oversight, had the Justice Department threaten his critics and demanded the removal of any judge who dares oppose him. His power grab is a marriage of authoritarianism and oligarchy like nothing we’ve seen before. It is a crisis that demands action. Let’s call our members of Congress today with one simple question: “what are you doing to stop Elon Musk?” If they don’t have an answer, let’s push them to use procedural hardball in both the Senate and the House and put to work their leverage with the upcoming government funding deadline to force action.
OLIGARCHS HAVE STOPPED WORK AT AMERICA’S CONSUMER WATCHDOG
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is America’s consumer watchdog, going after financial industry abuses, predatory lenders, corporate fraud and scams. They also get cash back for folks who’ve been ripped off. Since it was founded, the Bureau has returned $21 billion to ordinary Americans. Under Biden-appointed director Rohit Chopra, CFPB took on everyone from Wells Fargo to Walmart to CashApp, protecting us from the power of big banks and Big Tech and passing rules against junk fees, excessive bank overdraft fees and medical debt on credit reports. This has naturally made the bureau a number one target for big banks and billionaires – including Marc Andreesen, Mark Zuckerberg, and Musk, who promised to “delete it.” Under Trump the oligarchs of course getting their way. Trump fired Chopra, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shut down most CFPB operations “pending a review” and now new acting director and Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought has expanded the stop work order, shut down headquarters for the week and said the CFPB will not be taking its next draw of funding. Musk’s DOGE henchmen have also reportedly gained access to crucial CFPB systems. This is yet another egregious power grab by the wealthy and already powerful, and anyone who is truly on the side of regular Americans needs to fight back. Let’s contact our senators and tell them the kneecapping of the CFPB also demands freezing the Senate, and they should be engaging in blanket opposition, quorum calls, objecting to unanimous consent and holds on nominees until these civil servants are allowed to get back to work for the American people. We should further request that they make a point of publicizing the CFPB’s successes and naming the corporate crooks who will benefit from them being neutered. We can find call scripts and email language here.
PROTECT HEALTH CARE FROM RFK JR
Our health care is under attack from multiple directions. With the federal spending freeze, many health clinics and non-profit health organizations are facing closure. The funding freeze also negatively impacts Medicaid, with Republicans angling for further cuts to Medicaid that would risk tens of millions of Americans losing insurance. Medical research funding is being gutted. Abortion clinics are being made vulnerable to harassment with Trump limiting enforcement of laws aimed at preventing it. Health care for veterans is in danger. Gender-affirming care is facing bans. The White House is expected to attempt to fire thousands of federal health care workers this coming week, It’s head-spinning and hard to take in. So what can we focus on? This week, one thing we can do is push hard on RFK Jr’s confirmation vote, which would have dire implications for public health. Let’s encourage our senators to vote against his nomination. We can find a call script here, a coalition letter from 87 different organizations with more language we can use here, and a Resistbot message here – or we can just send SIGN PVRXBI to 50409.
HOSPITALS MUST NOT OBEY IN ADVANCE WITH TRANS DISCRIMINATION
Trump and the GOP are attempting to brutalize and destroy the trans community, permitting and encouraging discrimination against them and making it impossible for them to get health care. Among their most devastating assaults is Trump’s executive order restricting gender-affirming care for trans kids and young adults – and threatening to strip federal funds from medical institutions that provide care like puberty blockers and hormone therapy, which would be devastating for many hospitals. Multiple LGBTQ+ organizations, families, providers, and Democratic state attorneys general have sued to block this order. Not all hospitals are waiting for it to be litigated, with multiple institutions suspending care, canceling appointments or pausing the beginning of treatment – complying without a fight. This has sparked widespread protests. Let’s add our voices to theirs. Let’s contact hospitals in our community and the American Hospital Association and encourage them not to obey in advance and to stand up for their patients and kids in need. We use language from and add our names to these petitions to NYU Langone and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. We can also thank our state AGs if they have taken part in the lawsuits, and consider a donation to fund harm reduction toolkits with a year of medical supplies for do-it-yourself hormone replacement therapy here.
TAKE THE SOLIDARITY PLEDGE WITH IMMIGRANTS
The Trump Administration is still in the early days of its push to ramp up the deportation machine, but they are taking multiple steps to expand their forces and their detention camps. The Action Lab, CASA, United We Dream, and Make the Road are coming together to seek 10,000 people who will commit to put themselves on the line in strategic actions to stop mass deportation in what they’re calling the solidarity pledge. We can learn more and sign the pledge here. Then we can sign up to get plugged into the movement with calls TOMORROW at 5PM Eastern or Saturday at noon here. (We can connect with immigration groups in our community as well here.)
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
MI - OPPOSE MANDATED COMPLIANCE WITH ICE
Last Thursday, Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall introduced a resolution targeting "sanctuary" policies. The resolution, HR 19, would require appropriations to be withheld from cities or counties that "subvert immigration enforcement" or refuse to comply with federal immigration law, and would require each municipality to submit any policies related to immigration enforcement, along with their intent to work with federal authorities. While the resolution uses vague language, Hall has noted that it is intended to punish what he refers to as "sanctuary jurisdictions." Let's read through Michigan Immigration Rights Center's analysis of the resolution, then let's join them inAttending a hearing at 10:30am TODAY with the House Committee on Government Operations at Room 307, Anderson House Office Building, 124 N Capitol Ave, Lansing, MI 48933
Submitting testimony if we cannot attend to Keith Feldpausch, Committee Clerk at 517-373-1260 or kfeldpausch@house.mi.gov
Contacting our state representative and telling them that we want them to oppose HR 19 because it weaponizes funding to harm our local communities
KEEPING AN EYE ON…
Phonebank and postcard to hold our majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court… Amazon union organizing phonebanks Wednesday through Friday… Don’t cross the picket line at Colorado supermarkets… Senate Judiciary Committee to vote on Patel Thursday, Gabbard and Kennedy floor votes expected this week… Los Angeles wildfires contained, need for relief remains… keep distributing Know Your Rights cards…
Is the House Speaker’s name TOM HALL or MATT HALL? Finding both used. Confusing.