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DEBT LIMIT DEAL NOT IDEAL
This is not the deal we were hoping for. We didn't want a deal at all. But, given the fact that the GOP has not been able to cobble together a budget plan, this debt limit deal takes the budget process off the table. We most likely were not going to get much better than this through what would have been a long, ugly, drawn-out process. This also takes any other debt limit debacle off the table until after the 2024 election. It also allows us to not default next week. In addition, it appears that far-right conservatives dislike this plan even more than liberals. Both Jay Kuo and Josh Marshall lay it out straight. Let’s let our MoCs know that we realize that we are not in the best of all possible worlds right now and we are not at all happy with some of the details in this plan, but we’d rather get to the business of working on positive change than dealing with the fallout of a default.
JUSTICE FOR ADERRIEN MURRY
Last weekend, an 11-year old boy named Aderrien Murry was shot in the chest by a police officer from Indianola, Mississippi after he called 911 over a domestic disturbance at his home. He suffered serious injuries but was released from the hospital Wednesday. The officer has been placed on paid leave and the incident is under investigation. Body camera footage exists, but has not been released, and Aderrien’s family is demanding they be fired and charged. Let’s make sure local officials know we want to see transparency and justice done for Aderrien, including the officer held accountable to the full extent of the law. We can reach Indianola Police Chief Ronald Sampson at 662-887-1811; Indianola Mayor Ken Featherstone at 662-887-1825 or mayor@indianolams.gov; the district attorney for the Fourth Circuit W. Dewayne Richardson at 662-887-4306 or generalinfo@msdeltada.com; and state attorney general Lynn Fitch’s office at this link.
PROTECT COMMUNITIES FROM GREEDY RAILROAD CORPORATIONS
To save costs and increase profits, railroad companies have been running freight trains as long as three miles, blocking rural and urban intersections at unpredictable times and preventing first responders from reaching emergencies. This has caused deaths, delayed school buses for hours, prevented people from getting to their urgently needed medical appointments, resulted in lost wages as people arrived late to work, and just generally restricted freedom of movement. Let’s send a link to this Washington Post article and this ProPublica/InvestigateTV story, to our members of congress and tell them to fix this.
JUSTICE FOR SINZAE REED
A Columbus grand jury recently chose not to indict Krieg Butler, a 36-year-old white man, for fatally shooting a 13-year-old black teenager named Sinzae Reed after Butler claimed “self-defense.” Reed was unarmed. While Butler will face charges of tampering with evidence and improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, Sinzae’s family has said Ohio’s Stand Your Ground Law is standing in the way of them truly holding him accountable for stealing a teenage boy’s life. Let’s support the family and tell the Justice Department we agree this case should be examined for possible federal charges, and if we live in a “Stand Your Ground” state let’s urge our state lawmakers to repeal or at least roll back these laws to stop killers from getting away with it.
NO SPECIAL SHIELDS FOR THE GUN INDUSTRY
Families of the Uvalde shooting victims are suing to get justice, including the store that sold the teenage killer an assault weapon and the gun maker. But like many before them, they are facing the obstacle of special liability protections Congress has extended to the gun industry: the Protection of Legal Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA). Gun safety activists are working to clear the way for these lawsuits at the state level, with Colorado recently joining California, New York, Delaware and New Jersey in rolling back legal shields for gun manufacturers and dealers on the state level. Let’s check out the status of gun industry protection in our states and call on our legislators to work on opening the courthouse door if they haven’t already. We can also contact our members of Congress and urge them to support legislation to repeal the PLCAA.
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
TX - PAXTON IMPEACHMENT: STATES
The Republican-led statehouse did a brave thing in voting to move forward 20 articles of impeachment for Republican Texas attorney general Ken Paxton relating mostly to abusing power to help one of his campaign donors. Not surprisingly, Trump, Senator Ted Cruz, and Paxton himself threatened legislators with political consequences if they voted to impeach him. Now the impeachment trial heads to the Texas State Senate. If we live in Texas and our legislator voted for impeachment, let’s thank them for following the law, especially if our legislator is a Republican. Let’s also tell our State Senators that we expect a fair and impartial trial, with a decision based on the evidence, not on party politics and not in response to outside threats. We should also demand that AG Paxton’s wife, who is a Texas State Senator, needs to recuse herself from the proceedings.