I am feeling really hopeful this week about our chances to take our country back in 2020.
Its going to take a lot of hard work, but I really think we are up to it.
Why am I feeling so optimistic? These 10 reasons:
1. Democrats are doing amazing things
Have you heard the narrative about the do-nothing Democrats? Its f-ing bullshit. Stupid right-wing/Russian talking points. The democrats have been amazing.
Here is a list of just SOME of the things the democrats have done JUST THIS WEEK:
Democrats Want to Revive a Ban on Assault Weapons
Twenty-five years ago, Democratic support for an assault weapons ban was a major reason the party lost control of the House. Now top Democrats want to revive the fight.
On both the presidential campaign trail and Capitol Hill, leading Democrats are either calling to reinstate the ban or are pressing for a new one. The 1994 ban barred Americans from buying certain military-style firearms and high-capacity magazines for a decade, until Republicans let it expire in 2004.
House panel expected to return early from recess to vote on gun bills
A House panel with jurisdiction over firearms is expected to return early from the six-week congressional recess to consider additional gun-control measures in hopes of upping pressure on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to act.
House panel issues subpoena to compel testimony from 8chan owner
The House Homeland Security Committee issued a subpoena to force the owner of fringe online message board 8chan, which has been linked to mass shootings, to testify at a deposition next month on any efforts his platform has made to combat racist and violent content.
Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and the committee's ranking Republican, Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama, demanded owner Jim Watkins appear before the panel on Sept. 5.
House panel subpoenas Corey Lewandowski amid possible Senate run
The House Judiciary Committee announced Thursday that it had served former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski with a subpoena to testify before Congress next month.
The committee also issued a subpoena to former White House deputy chief of staff for policy Rick Dearborn. By an NBC News count, the committee has issued seven subpoenas so far this year.
In a statement, House Judiciary Chair Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said his committee was summoning the two former Trump aides to testify publicly on Sept. 17. The committee had voted to authorize the subpoenas in July.
Top Dem calls on foreign govts to stop using his hotels, businesses
The head of the House Foreign Affairs committee is directing the panel's staffers to warn foreign governments not to patronize President Donald Trump's businesses.
Rep. Eliot Engel — one of about 200 lawmakers who sued Trump in 2017 charging he's violating the Constitution's Foreign Emoluments Clause by making money from foreign governments while in office — issued the memo to the panel's Democratic staffers on Monday.
"When meeting with officials from a foreign government, please inform them that by providing any form of payment or benefit to a Trump-owned property their government is facilitating the president’s apparent violation of the Foreign Emoluments Clause,” Engel said.
Stacey Abrams launches national expansion of voting rights group
Before a convention hall packed with left-leaning union members, Stacey Abrams unveiled a plan Tuesday to expand her Georgia-based voting rights group across the nation by training staffers in 20 competitive states to protect against threats of voter suppression.
The program, Fair Fight 2020, is a multimillion-dollar effort to set up “voter protection” programs in a group of mostly battleground states. Abrams told the cheering audience that she will use her “very, very loud voice” through next year to promote the venture.
I love her so much I have to give you this quote too:
Pelosi knocks 'Moscow Mitch' for blocking gun, election interference bills
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday slammed "Moscow Mitch" — a derisive nickname for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — for blocking bills aimed at preventing gun violence and foreign election interference.
"We all want to invest in building our democracy and saving it from any enemies foreign and domestic, so we've sent our legislation to the Senate," Pelosi said at an Illinois Democrats’ “Democrat Day” event in Springfield. "'Moscow Mitch' says that he is the 'Grim Reaper" ... that he's going to bury all this legislation. Well, we have news for him. All this legislation is alive and well in the general public."
Democrats have been ramping up pressure on McConnell to take up gun control legislation in the wake of recent mass shootings.
2. Our Candidate For President are Pretty Amazing
Some people are concerned that we have too many candidates for President and will be too divided to win. I say: hogwash! That might be the case if these candidates were going after one another every day but luckily they know that all we want is someone to beat Trump, so they are spending 99% of their energy proving they could do that and coming up with great ideas for America.
Meanwhile, Trump doesn’t know who to attack, while they all gang up on him.
And these great ideas will mean that our eventual candidate will have the riches of all this thinking. That is always what happens: Obama took many of the ideas that had worked for Hillary in 2008 and Hillary took them from Bernie in 2012. That is GOOD not bad. We want our candidates to grown and learn from one another.
And this batch is pure gold! Just look at what they have come up with in the last few days alone!
White nationalists could have firearms taken under red flag law proposed by Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris on Wednesday said if elected president she will press Congress to pass a red flag law that would allow law enforcement officials to temporarily seize the firearms of white nationalists that may be on the verge of carrying out a hate crime.
The Democratic presidential candidate's proposal calls for the creation of “domestic terrorism prevention orders” that would give law enforcement and family members of suspected white nationalists or domestic terrorists the ability to petition a federal court to temporarily restrict a person’s access to guns if the person exhibits clear evidence of being a danger.
Cory Booker Releases Plan To Combat White Supremacist Violence
Sen. Cory Booker has announced a new plan to combat hate crimes, extremism and white supremacist violence, just weeks after three deadly mass shootings.
The Democratic presidential candidate’s plan, released Thursday, said that, as president, he would work to improve federal and local policies regarding white supremacist violence, make it easier for victims to report crimes and for communities to access resources, and address online platforms that spread hate and violence.
O'Rourke calls for mandatory gun buyback, licensing
Beto O’Rourke called Friday for gun licensing and a mandatory buyback program for assault weapons, expanding on a controversial gun control platform he advanced in his return to the presidential campaign the previous day.
Part of a proposal to address gun violence and white nationalism, O’Rourke said that, if enacted, anyone who failed to forfeit a banned assault weapon would be fined.
The mandatory buyback proposal goes further than most Democrats in the 2020 presidential field, though Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has suggested she supports such a program.
Democrat Elizabeth Warren floats plan to empower Native Americans
U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren on Friday unveiled her latest policy plan, which aims to empower Native American tribes through land protection and law enforcement reforms and boost financial support for chronically underfunded health and education programs.
3. Trump is a Moron
This one is a constant. Please, please don’t fall for the “political genius” BS about trump. He is a one trick pony. He knows how to get attention and play to the culture wars with hatred and fear (I guess that is two tricks — the two worst, most pathetic tricks ever).
As far as everything else goes — he is an idiot.
And that idiocy will help us beat him.
What Trump doesn’t understand about culture war politics
Will the United States, a country that has endured for centuries and survived a brutal civil war, now be torn asunder by the terrifying specter of paper straws? The president of the United States is brave enough to test whether it can.
As everyone knows, President Trump believes that he can win reelection only by dividing Americans, particularly on racial lines. And perhaps not surprisingly for someone who spends hours every day glued to Fox News while tweeting, Trump sees our never-ending culture war as a key element of a successful strategy. And in this version of the culture war, no battle is too small-time to fight
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Today, “owning the libs” has become the primary organizing principle of a certain portion of the Republican base, the ones who spend their evenings getting mad with Sean and Tucker and Laura, then go on social media to swim in the rushing bloodstream of hate and conspiracy theorizing. No policy issue is as important to them as whether they believe they have ruined a liberal’s day. It just happens that the president is one of them.
The trouble with basing your campaign strategy on what excites those people is that they’re already really excited; anyone who would pay the Trump campaign $15 for 10 straws was almost surely already going to vote. And “To hell with the environment, ha!” is not actually a popular position to take.
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What Trump doesn’t seem to understand is that his relentless focus on pleasing his base also mobilizes the opposition against him. We saw it in 2018, when he was sure that fear-mongering about an invasion of immigrant caravans would ensure victory in the midterm elections, and instead Democrats won big amid huge turnout. His campaign can sell all the plastic straws it wants, but it probably won’t be enough to change the dynamics actually driving this election.
‘Corey is a political hack’: Lewandowski Senate bid hits backlash in N.H.
Tensions over Lewandowski are spilling into the open, with the state GOP establishment in near open revolt over the Trump loyalist’s prospective campaign. Some are voicing concerns about his personal baggage, pointing to everything from his March 2016 physical run-in with then-Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields to his messy property dispute with a neighbor.
And with the party waging an already uphill effort to unseat two-term Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Carney and others in the swing state worry that he would do little to help the party expand its base beyond the group of voters that Trump is already expected to attract.
Senior members of the Trump political team adamantly disagree. They argue that Lewandowski — one of the president’s staunchest and most visible defenders — would amp up conservative energy and reinvigorate the coalition of blue-collar voters that powered Trump’s decisive 2016 primary win the state.
Trump, banking on strong economy to win reelection, frets over a possible downturn
administration officials acknowledge that they have not planned for a possible recession.
Trump is banking on a strong economy to win a second term in 2020
Trump has a somewhat conspiratorial view, telling some confidants that he distrusts statistics he sees reported in the news media and that he suspects many economists and other forecasters are presenting biased data to thwart his reelection
Democratic pollster Peter Hart said Trump could be at heightened risk because survey data show some voters overlook opposition to Trump’s leadership style and support him largely because of the strong economy.
“This president is so polarizing and off-putting to so many voters that he is dependent upon the good economic numbers to sustain his style,” Hart said. “When you start to hit an economic downturn, there’s no personal element that sustains him.”
Did Trump and Israel get played by Omar and Tlaib? Some conservatives think so.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) tweeted that they were effectively giving Omar and Tlaib what they wanted.
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro said it was “a PR mistake for Israel to hand this kind of club to them.”
Townhall’s Guy Benson agreed that Israel is within its rights to prevent the congresswomen from visiting — which Israel did by citing a law against encouraging boycotts — but said, “blocking the pair is a shortsighted and unwise move in terms of optics and narrative control.”
The benefit here seems to be in motivating Republicans, who hold sharply negative views of both women, but despite some high-profile rows, Trump doesn’t seem to have turned the congresswomen into pariahs with the broader electorate, by any means.
Trump will have plenty of chances to elevate these congresswomen ahead of the 2020 election — in part because, like Trump, they seem plenty happy to stir the pot. But he often can’t help himself when given the chance to provoke and stoke culture wars.
Israel was prepared to admit the women before he reportedly began raising a fuss this weekend. And it’s completely plausible that Trump pushed it into a counterproductive decision here.
4. Poll Numbers Offer Reasons for Hope
Fox News poll shows Trump losing to Biden, Warren, Sanders and Harris
A Fox News poll released Thursday showed President Trump losing head-to-head matchups against four of the top Democratic presidential primary contenders.
The poll found Trump with 39 percent support among registered voters in head-to-head matchups against Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Kamala Harris(D-Calif.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). The poll found Sanders beating Trump with 48 percent, Warren winning over Trump with 45 percent and Harris winning with 46 percent support
Cook Political Report moves Susan Collins Senate race to 'toss up'
The Cook Political Report shifted its forecast of the Maine Senate election from "lean Republican" to "toss-up" on Friday, signaling a tight reelection race for Sen. Susan Collins (R).
Collins won her last reelection bid in 2014 by more than 30 points but is expected to face a much tighter race this time around, with the leader of the state's House of Representatives, Sara Gideon (D), announcing she would challenge the four-term senator.
this one isn’t a poll, but…. isn’t it kind of???
5. More Rats are Starting to Abandon Ship
Fourth member resigns from NRA board in a sign of further upheaval
Julie Golob, a professional sport shooter and a strong public advocate for gun rights, announced Monday she was resigning from the National Rifle Association board before the end of her three-year term.
She is the fourth member in the past two weeks to leave the board of the NRA in a sign of further upheaval within the nation’s most powerful gun rights group.
Mark Sanford says he’s ‘growing ever closer’ to launching a GOP primary challenge against Trump
Former congressman Mark Sanford said Friday that he is “growing ever closer” to mounting a Republican primary challenge against President Trump following a visit this week to New Hampshire.
Sanford, a former South Carolina governor who represented the state’s 1st Congressional District in the House until earlier this year, said he found “a lot of folks who were open and receptive” to a White House bid during his visit to the nation’s first presidential primary state.
“At this point I am growing ever closer in that direction,” Sanford said during an interview on CNN, adding that he has “a couple more T’s to cross and I’s to dot.”
If Sanford enters the race, he will join former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld (R) in challenging Trump for the GOP nod.
that is great news! I think there is very little doubt, that unless thing REALLY change in the next few months, trump will get the nod from his party. But just having challengers means he has someone ELSE to fight before he gets to us. And historically speaking, no incumbent has ever won when they were weak enough to have a challenger from their own party — let alone two!!!
6. Blue States Continue to Pull us Forward
Blue states can make things better for the actual people living there, can take on Trump, and can show the country what Democrats can do with power. And Blue states are KILLING IT in the age of Trump!!
Illinois Governor Signs Bill Mandating Public Schools Teach LGBTQ History
Starting next year, Illinois public schools will be required by law to include LGBTQ history in their curriculums.
On Friday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed House Bill 246, which mandates that the subject be taught as of July 1, 2020.
The measure is being praised as a “life-saving law” that has placed the state “on the right side of history.”
Oregon Governor Supports Making Trump Release Tax Returns To Get On Primary Ballot
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) said she would easily sign a law requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns if they want to appear on the state’s primary ballot in 2020, a direct challenge to President Donald Trump’s yearslong effort to keep his financial dealings hidden from the public.
“Oh yeah, totally,” Brown said in a recent sit-down with HuffPost. “We have to hold our elected officials accountable. I think this is just one way of doing it.”
New Mexico Refused To Give ICE Employment Records, Won’t Let Trump ‘Destroy Families’
New Mexico denied U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement requests for the state’s employment records, including records on residents receiving unemployment benefits, the state’s workforce director said.
The workforce system ICE wanted to access includes the names, addresses and financial information of practically every working and unemployed person in the state, Bill McCamley, secretary of the Department of Workforce Solutions, told HuffPost.
“This governor is not going to participate in the Trump administration’s efforts to destroy families,” McCamley added.
7. Texas is Looking Mighty Purple
Yes, winning Texas in 2020 is a long shot (but never say never) BUT having another place that trump has to defend AND having more sources for new Houses seats = GREAT NEWS!!!
Texas Republicans brace for 2020 drubbing
'Republicans need to be very concerned,' says a GOP member of the state's congressional delegation of next year's elections.
As bad as it’s been for Texas Republicans lately, some members of the party are warning that 2020 could be even worse.
The rash of recent House GOP retirements is just the latest sign of a state party in distress: In last year’s midterms, Democrats flipped a pair of longtime GOP districts, a Democrat came within striking distance of a Senate seat, and more than 50 elected Republican judges lost their jobs. Democrats also gained ground in state legislative races.
Changing demographics and a suburban revolt against President Donald Trump have turned Texas from a conservative bedrock to a major political battleground, especially for House seats. Formerly safe congressional Republicans are facing competitive races for the first time in their careers — a potential harbinger of Republicans’ future in the state if they don’t adapt quickly.
“If the Republican Party in Texas doesn’t start looking like Texas, there won’t be a Republican Party in Texas,” retiring Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas), who represents a key swing district, told POLITICO. Texas’ Latinos are on pace to become the largest population group in the state by 2022.
House Democrats’ offensive strategy in 2020 runs through Texas
Once a party has reclaimed the majority in the House during a midterm year, history shows they typically keep it during the next presidential cycle. This could prove true in 2020, especially given the fact that President Donald Trump was a driver of the huge Democratic turnout in the 2018 midterms. Trump will quite literally be on the ballot in 2020, which could give Democrats another boost in legislative chambers.
But Democrats don’t just want to keep their House majority — they are looking at expanding it in more than 30 districts across the US. They’re playing aggressively in Texas after flipping two House seats there in 2018, and with a rash of Republican retirements — including the only black House Republican who narrowly hung on to his seat in 2018, Rep. Will Hurd — Democrats may finally have an opportunity to realize their dream of a blue Texas, or at least a bluer one.
“The DCCC started this cycle by going on offense, and the reality for vulnerable Washington Republicans of defending their deeply unpopular health care repeal agenda is setting in for Republican incumbents from Kenny Marchant to Will Hurd to Pete Olson,” DCCC chairwoman Rep. Cheri Bustos (IL) told Vox in a statement.
8. We Have Great Candidates All Over
I’ve got just one example here, but we have amazing candidates running EVERYWHERE. The democratic party has an embarrassment of riches of great, smart people. Who wants to run as Republican? Honestly, racists and assholes.
9. There are still A LOT of investigations going on
Just one example. This is a new one I didn’t even know about!
INVESTIGATING TRUMP FAMILY SELF-DEALING, THE D.C. ATTORNEY GENERAL HAS SUBPOENAED DOCUMENTS FROM MELANIA’S FORMER RIGHT-HAND WOMAN
Last month, Wolkoff received a subpoena from the Washington, D.C., attorney general’s office, requesting documents related to President Trump’s inauguration, which Wolkoff had a heavy hand in planning. The $107 million event has been under investigation for months, including by federal prosecutors in New York and New Jersey, for profligate spending and questions about foreign donations. The latest subpoena appears to be probing potential self-dealing by the Trump Organization and members of the president’s family, according to two people familiar with the investigation.
Wolkoff complied with the request, according to these sources, by the July 26 deadline, which asked her to turn over records involving the inaugural event, the president’s family and associates, and expenditures by the inaugural committee that could shine a light on whether the nonprofit group provided private benefits to the Trump Organization. The attorney general appears to be particularly interested in payments being made through the inaugural committee to Trump-owned businesses, and whether there was a fair bidding process for contractors.
10. The Courts Hand us Some Important Victories
We don’t win all the battles in court, but we win a lot. Like this one.
Appeals Court Rules Detained Migrant Children Should Get Soap, Sleep, Clean Water
A federal appeals court in California ruled that migrant children detained by U.S. immigration authorities must be provided with edible food, clean water, and basic hygiene items such as soap and toothbrushes, in accordance with a decades-old court order.
The ruling by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a Trump administration challenge of a lower court decision finding that the government failed to offer detained minors safe and sanitary conditions as required by the 1997 Flores settlement.
And honestly, if you ever start to wonder if fighting this hard is worth it or if you are really on the right side of history remember that they are literally arguing AGAINST giving children edible food, clean water, and soap. What the ever-loving fuck kind of monsters are they?!?!
That is it for today. A lot right?!
Keep faith. Keep hope. Keep fighting.
I remain so lucky and so proud to be in this with you ❤️ ✊ ❤️