January 6, 2023
House Speaker debacle, COVID, upcoming asylum bill, and more!
Contact all members of Congress:
By phone: (202) 224-3121
By email: democracy.io
By US mail: Representatives / Senators
By fax: Representatives / Senators
By Resistbot: Resist.bot
Contact White House or other federal agencies:
HOUSE SPEAKER DEBACLE:
After three days and eleven rounds of voting for a new Speaker of the House, no one has yet garnered enough votes to win the spot. The closest person at this point is House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. Despite his numerous attempts and questionable concessions to pro-Trump Republicans, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, former House Minority Leader, has not been able to secure the position. Perhaps it is time for the Democrats to reach out to centrist Republican representatives who are interested in keeping the government working, to put Jeffries over the top. He only needs six additional votes. Let’s tell our reps that this bipartisan effort might be the ticket to getting back to the work of government.
RISING SPREAD OF NEW COVID VARIANT:
The COVID variant XBB.1.5 is spreading quickly in the United States and has become the dominant strain rapidly: https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/04/new-covid-strain-xbb-00076320 White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha: “advised people to get their bivalent booster, to test before attending large gatherings or before meeting with elderly or immunocompromised people and to wear a high-quality mask in crowded indoor spaces.” Let’s protect ourselves and those in our community with these common-sense measures.
SAY NO TO REPUBLICAN EFFORTS TO ELIMINATE ASYLUM:
If the Republicans ever elect a speaker, one of the first House bills up for consideration is the so-called “Border Safety and Security Act,” a bill that would in effect shut down the asylum process, as it would require DHS to suspend or detain anyone who did not have valid entry documents. https://rollcall.com/2022/12/08/house-gop-details-border-security-initiatives-for-next-congress/. Not only does this go against American values, a recent poll conducted by Hart research shows that the majority of Americans support the right to claim asylum. Please let’s tell our representative to vote NO on this heinous bill.
WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT:
Yesterday's South Carolina Supreme Court decision striking down their state's six-week abortion ban is a powerful reminder of how much the state courts matter for our constitutional rights. We have an opportunity to secure control of another state supreme court in just three months in Wisconsin. Let's sign up to volunteer with the Wisconsin Democrats and do what we can to win a swing seat.
ROUSE FOR VIRGINIA STATE SENATE:
With Virginia Democratic State Senator Joe Morrissey indicating he'll keep an "open mind" to further restrictions on abortion rights, the stakes of this Tuesday's special election are higher than ever. If Aaron Rouse loses, this one forced birther Democrat could join with the Republican caucus to pass new bans. Let's show up to phonebank for him over GOTV weekend and help him win.
Please list six centrist Republican representatives-elect.