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Hi, all, and happy Friday.

It’s also the day that the Epstein files were supposed to be released.

It seems clear, however, that they won’t be, at least in their entirety. This is a heartbreaker, not just for the victims who’ve been working so hard to achieve transparency, but for all of us who’ve worked so hard to ensure this release.

It’s also a clear violation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

But most of all it’s another reminder that this administration doesn’t care about the law, and it doesn’t care about helping survivors. We’ve known these things forever, but each new example of this fact still stings, enrages, and depresses.

But we won’t wallow in those feelings for too long. Because the victims—and we—deserve better. Americans are united in wanting transparency on this issue; we will just have to keep working until we get it.

Meanwhile Trump has already added his name to the Kennedy Center’s facade. It took all of a day for him to do so after the board voted to allow it—even though this wasn’t the board’s decision to make. He’s quick to get things done, isn’t he? When those things benefit him?

Trump and his administration are also creeping closer to invading Venezuela. And issuing more destructive rules to hurt children. And shutting down the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado over a grudge with Governor Polis. They’re a destructive force the likes of which we have never seen in American politics—and that’s saying something.

Look. I know it’s hard to watch the worst people in the world act with what appears to be impunity. The best antidote, for me, is to keep taking action, keep looking for people to help (I’ve got a GREAT option for you below), and keep surrounding myself with people who care about democracy, the rule of law, and civility as much as I do. Trump’s administration is every bit as ugly inside as it is outside (see the Vanity Fair photos). We know it, and so do they. But one other thing we know—that they do not—is that kind of ugliness, greed, and cruelty is inherently weak; it cannot sustain itself. It is, quite literally, self-destructive.

More importantly, it will be defeated—because we will defeat it.

And when we do, Trump’s legacy will be systematically and fully dismantled. We will take all of this pent up grief and rage and work together, with a singleness of purpose never before seen, to remove his name from every building, tear down his ballroom, reverse his Executive Orders, try cabinet members who’ve broken the law, charge ICE agents with crimes, restore climate action, pass stronger protections for LGBTQ+ people, give Dreamers a path to citizenship, pass comprehensive immigration reform, pass Medicare For All, reunite separated families, pass vigorous voting rights legislation, expand the Supreme Court, strengthen our alliances, fix our trade policy, rebuild our CDC, re-fund US AID, strengthen the EPA and FEMA, expand Social Security, tax the hell out of billionaires and corporations, break up monopolies, restore civic trust, re-center morality in our politics…and more.

These are not just pipe dreams. They are achievable. Will they be difficult to accomplish? Some yes, some no. But they are all doable if we have the will. So let’s have it. We will rebuild this country out of the ashes Trump leaves behind. In fact, we will use those ashes to fertilize the growth of a new United States—one that he and his rich donors will hate, but that the majority of us will love and thrive in.

Right now the fire still burns, and it’s excruciating.

But Trump is running out of fuel. The flames are already diminishing. Soon there will be only cinders.

Then the rebuild will begin.

Not only will we erase any trace of Trump or MAGA from our national landscape, but we will create the diametric opposite of it and ensure that it’s built to last.

Don’t quit before the miracle, folks.

Now let’s get to work.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.

I’m furious about Trump’s attempt to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. We all know he’s doing it to get Governor Polis to transfer Tina Peters to federal prison so he can pardon her. It’s grotesque. NCAR is one of the world’s leading Earth science research institutions—without it we will be endangered in ways too numerous to list. I’m glad that Senators Bennet and Hickenlooper are blocking the Senate funding package until this money is restored, and I’d like the Senator to support them in every way s/he can. The Senate is a powerful body. Please act like one and rein our crooked president in.

Also, if the DOJ doesn’t release the entirety of the Epstein files today please take all legal measures to ensure that they comply with the law. And I mean play hardball. This is a coverup and it can’t be tolerated. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.

I’m furious about Trump’s attempt to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. We all know he’s doing it to get Governor Polis to transfer Tina Peters to federal prison so he can pardon her. It’s grotesque. NCAR is one of the world’s leading Earth science research institutions—without it we will be endangered in ways too numerous to list. Please ask the Congressmember to do everything s/he can to get this funding restored. Thank you.

Extra Credit ✅

Let’s write to DNC Chair Ken Martin and urge him to reverse his decision to not release the DNC’s 2024 autopsy report. It’s a stunningly bad decision that will hurt us badly in the long term.

His email address is MartinK@dnc.org

Sample letter:

Chair Martin,

I’m writing as a Democratic voter and volunteer to respectfully ask you to reverse your decision to not release the DNC 2024 autopsy report. How are Democrats going to learn from our mistakes if we don’t have any concept of their depth and breadth? Showing fearlessness, transparency, and a willingness to admit where we’ve gone wrong is how we win voters back! Continuing to retreat from accountability is how we ensure that we keep losing them.

Thanks.

Feel free to copy and use, but better if you write your own. I sent mine!

Get Smart! 📚

Y’all I got my hands on a report about Buy Now Pay Later companies and their connection to the Trump admin and it is INSANE. Every bit of it is just gross.

I made a video about it but if you don’t want to watch it that’s fine—still read the report!

Video is here.

Report is below. If you can’t open it here’s a linked version but it’s not as pretty. This is stuff we need to know, and need to share.

Buy Now, Pay Later Pitch Doc234KB ∙ PDF fileDownload Download

Give 💰!

My lovely friend Lindsay from Still We Rise lives in Portland and just learned of an immigrant family there who has been living in fear of ICE raids. They haven’t left their home in two months. Not for school. Not for errands. Not to see friends. Their middle and high school–aged kids are homeschooling, not because they want to, but because going outside feels unsafe.

I’m making this family our so-called Angel Tree this year. Yes, there are tens of thousands of families like theirs, but theirs is a family we know about and can reach.

Because they can’t safely leave their home, we asked them one simple question: What would help? What would bring you a little joy? With some gentle nudging they shared a wish list with us, and my hope is to clear it and deliver a true Christmas miracle for this family.

Right now, fear has shrunk their world down to four walls. Together, we can help open it back up, even just a little. We can remind them they matter. That they are seen. That they deserve joy, safety, and dignity.

If you’ve been looking for a way to make a real difference this season this is it.Let’s wrap this family in love. Let’s show up for them. Let’s make their Christmas one filled with relief, warmth, and hope.

The wish list is here. It’s on Amazon. I boycott them, but even I will violate that boycott at times like this. There’s really no other way to do this where their address can remain anonymous.

Hope some of you can help.

Get in the Streets! 🪧

National Day Laborer’s Network is asking us to consider “adopting a corner” to help undocumented day laborers.

They’re asking that we go to our local Home Depot, where immigrant day laborers are at extreme risk of harassment and arrest. Choose a location convenient to you, where day laborers gather and commit to showing up regularly. Be present. Be consistent. Build relationships and offer protection. Remember: Solo el pueblo salva al pueblo. Only the people save the people. That has always been true—and never more than now. We can and should be standing together in the face of injustice—peacefully, powerfully, with love and care. We don’t need to feed their violence, we need to build community.

Interested in getting involved in your local community? Please CLICK HERE to register to get connected with other people in your area.

Win Races! 🗳

The DNC has a new newsletter out called This Week in Organizing. It’s great—it features trainings, election recaps, phonebanks…I really hope you’ll all subscribe! It only comes out once a week so not too much spam.

Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻

[To: all 3 reps] [H/T the amazing ] [Text SIGN PPAUEZ to 50409, or to @Resistbot on Apple Messages, Messenger, Instagram, or Telegram]

(Note that for the most effective RESISTBOT it’s best to personalize this text. More about how to do this here. But if you’re short on time just send it as is using the above code.)

I am writing to urge Congress to immediately intervene to stop the reported attempt to rename the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as the “Trump-Kennedy Center.”Federal law is unambiguous. The building “shall be designated as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,” and Congress established it as the sole national memorial to President John F. Kennedy within Washington, D.C. and its environs. Nothing in the authorizing statutes grants the Board of Trustees authority to rename or rebrand this national memorial. Only an act of Congress can change a designation set in federal law.Joe Kennedy III, President Kennedy’s grandnephew and a former member of Congress, has publicly stated that the Kennedy Center “can no sooner be renamed than the Lincoln Memorial,” regardless of claims made by the White House or the Board. That assessment aligns with the plain text of the statute and longstanding constitutional principles regarding congressional authority over federal memorials.Serious procedural concerns further undermine the legitimacy of this action. Despite public claims of a “unanimous” vote, at least one ex-officio board member—Representative Joyce Beatty—has stated she was muted during the meeting and prevented from voicing opposition. This raises grave questions about transparency, due process, and whether the Board acted in bad faith to evade legal scrutiny.Allowing politically aligned appointees to unilaterally alter a congressionally established national memorial would set a dangerous precedent. It would invite future administrations to rewrite history, law, and public institutions by fiat rather than through democratic processes.I urge you to act immediately to:• Publicly affirm that only Congress has the authority to rename the Kennedy Center• Initiate oversight hearings into the Board’s actions and claims• Require a legal review by congressional counsel or GAO• Prohibit the use of federal funds for any unauthorized signage, branding, or contracts• Pass clarifying legislation reaffirming the Kennedy Center’s statutory name, if necessaryThis is not about partisanship. It is about the rule of law, separation of powers, and protecting a national memorial created by Congress.

OK, you did it again! You’re helping to save democracy! You’re amazing.

Talk soon.

Jess

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Chop Wood, Carry Water 12/19