October 3, 2023

House speakership, passport backlogs, government shutdowns, and more!

*** ANNOUNCEMENT: SUBMITTING YOUR ACTIONS TO ROGAN’S LIST ***

We’ve had a number of the Rogan’s List family (now 12,000 strong!) send in action items in the last few weeks - and some really important ones at that! So we’re setting up a “tip line” you all can use if you have ideas or submissions for us: roganslisttips@gmail.com. Please don’t hesitate to email and pass on your suggestions, we look forward to hearing from you!

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:

• usa.gov/federal-agencies

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• KEVIN MCCARTHY’S FUTURE DEPENDS ON DEMOCRATS
  MAGA extremist and accused child sex trafficker Matt Gaetz has filed a motion to vacate the chair to attempt to remove Kevin McCarthy from the Speakership in the wake of McCarthy putting a clean continuing resolution to fund the government on the House floor. There’s intense maneuvering ahead of us, but one thing is clear: McCarthy’s fate will depend on what House Democrats decide to do, giving them leverage they can use to produce political and policy wins. For those of us in blue districts, let’s reach out to our members of Congress and urge them to use their power to the fullest and extract as many concessions as they possibly can however they vote.

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• SUPPORT LEGISLATION TO ADDRESS PASSPORT BACKLOGS

  The Passport Act (H.R. 5233) would streamline passport backlogs by assuring that people are notified a year before their passports expire and improving State Department passport processing operations. This should be an easy bi-partisan fix, so let’s tell our MoCs to support it and get it through Congress.

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• HELP BUILD A PRO-ENVIRONMENT ELECTORATE

  The Environmental Voter Project has added weekend and evening opportunities for volunteers to encourage people who care about environmental issues but vote infrequently to become consistent voters. Let’s visit EVP’s “get involved” webpage and sign up to phone bank and/or canvass in key elections around the country. Let’s also take the pledge to be consistent voters and always prioritize the environment.

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• ENDING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS FOR GOOD
  Republicans holding the basic functions of our government hostage has become commonplace, and while we’ve avoided a government shutdown so far this year, we won’t always be so lucky. There’s a growing chorus of voices to disarm this particular weapon for good. Until 1980, federal agencies mostly kept operating as usual when appropriations lapsed. Then President Carter’s Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti authored a series of legal opinions that the government didn’t have the authority to continue running during a funding gap. There have been multiple  proposals the last few years to bring an end to the shutdown era – automatically continuing appropriations two weeks at a time if government funding isn’t finalized and requiring Congress to remain in session and take no votes other than on appropriations bills until it’s fixed. Let’s reach out to our members of Congress and urge them to look at these proposals, and ask our lawmakers and our candidates to commit to taking action to changing the law to stop shutdowns.

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• POSTCARDING FOR VIRGINIA

  From a reader:  So, the Virginia election is a BIG one! Early Voting is already underway. At stake is control of the ENTIRE Virginia state legislature.  State legislatures are SO important. Democrats must flip 4 seats blue in the Virginia House of Delegates (Virginia state assembly) to retake control of the VA House of Delegates. Democrats must hold their current Democratic MAJORITY in the Virginia state Senate.  If we want to make sure that personal freedoms & democracy survive in the Commonwealth of Virginia (and the USA) help elect Virginia Democrats up & down ballot! Let’s write postcards to voters with Postcards 4VA. 

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• ON A LIGHTER NOTE: WHO KNEW?

  Secretary of State Anthony Blinken performs Muddy Waters. Let’s watch.

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STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS

• MOST - PROTECT FOSTER CHILDREN FROM STATE CONFISCATION OF THEIR MONEY

  Back in 2021, a joint Marshal Project / NPR report revealed that, throughout the country, “government agencies take money owed to foster children with disabilities or a deceased parent…and most kids never know it’s gone.” When these children age-out of foster care at age 18, the confiscation of these federal Social Security disability and survivor benefits deprives them of a financial safety net that would keep them out of poverty and help them pay for college, housing, and transportation. A new report by the Disability Law Center indicates that a handful of states and municipalities (Arizona, California, New Mexico, Maryland, Hawaii, Nebraska, Illinois, Connecticut, D.C, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, New York City, Texas, Minnesota) are addressing this in one way or another, but the vast majority continue with this unconscionable practice. Let’s tell our governor and state legislators that we want laws passed in our state that will (1) end the practice of taking children’s benefits by state or local governments; and (2) instead conserve those funds for their transition to adult life and financial independence.

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