From Into Action. Download and share here.
Hi, all, and happy Tuesday.
What a weird time to be celebrating the holidays, isn’t it—at least if you’re paying attention to politics? We go from gift shopping to fuming about more oil tankers being blockaded, from decorating cookies to reading Epstein documents, from delighting in sing-along Messiahs to raging over Trump’s “golden fleet.”
And so it goes.
Let’s be frank. It’s difficult to unequivocally enjoy anything right now. And we are the relatively lucky ones. For millions of immigrants living peacefully in our country this holiday season holds only fear, bitterness, and sorrow. Millions of other US residents and citizens are putting themselves in debt to buy gifts. Millions of others are worrying about next year’s healthcare bills.
Yet, as we’ve said before many times, joy and sorrow must find a way to co-exist. For me the surest way to accomplish this is to ensure that I’m taking vigorous action as often as I am able to. When I know I’m doing what I can in the face of such criminality and injustice I can allow myself to take short breaks without too much guilt. In fact I must. Respite, which is defined as “an interval of rest or relief,” is as important to our fight as is engaging in battles. For no fighter can continue on the battlefield indefinitely without breaks.
So let’s make today’s calls and take today’s actions—they’re oh so very important—and then see if we can’t get a bit of respite for ourselves, shall we?
We’re going to get through this, all. Happy holidays.
Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲 and Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
I’m deeply disturbed by the new Epstein documents released last night by the Justice Department. They include horrific allegations against Trump, including allegations of child rape, and evidence that there were at least ten known traffickers involved in Epstein’s circle.
A few things must happen now.
First, Kash Patel stated under oath that there were no other traffickers. He had seen these same files. He must, at the very least, be impeached or forced to resign. Again, he knowingly lied under oath. He has to go.
Pam Bondi broke the law by not releasing the full files on the date required. She also continues to run cover for Trump and his accomplices. She needs to be impeached, removed, and ultimately charged.
And Donald Trump needs to be impeached and removed at once. There is too much here to ignore. His involvement with serial sexual offender Jeffrey Epstein, the many horrifying accusations leveled against him, and his ongoing efforts to suppress this investigation are disqualifying and very likely criminal. Congress must impeach now. Thank you.
Extra Credit #1 ✅
[From —I highly recommend reading her whole post]
Last week, the Trump administration made headlines by pledging to ban gender-affirming care for transgender youth through a rulemaking process—sidestepping Congress and the legislative process entirely. The proposed rule, RIN 0938-AV87, would bar any hospital system that participates in Medicaid or Medicare from offering gender-affirming care to transgender youth, regardless of whether that care is paid for with federal funds or privately. If enacted, it would represent the most sweeping executive overreach yet by the administration in its campaign against transgender people, and appears to be advancing precisely because similar measures—though passed by the U.S. House—face steep odds in the Senate.
[The rule must first go through a 60-day public comment period.] Every comment forces the administration to justify its actions on the record, slowing the process and strengthening the case against it in court. The strongest comments are specific, grounded in facts or lived experience, make good arguments, and make clear the real harm this rule would cause.
The window to act is now. Over the next 60 days, this rule can still be challenged, delayed, and fought—if people show up and refuse to let it move forward quietly.
You can leave a public comment here. Note that public comments are just that—public—and so take steps to protect your anonymity if it is something that matters to you.
Extra Credit #2! ✅✅
More addresses for CBS!
My friends at the East Area Progressive Democrats gave me more good email addresses for CBS executives, so if you still have a copy of whatever letter you sent yesterday, please send it to them, too!
Tom Cibrowski: President & executive editor, CBS News. CibrowskiT@cbsnews.com
Stacey Benson: CFO of CBS News. BensonS@cbsnews.com
Ross Dagan: CBS exec. VP & head of news operations. DaganR@cbsnews.com
Messaging! Messaging! Messaging! 📣
While December is known as the season of giving, Trump has been raking in presents all year—from an invented “peace prize” from FIFA to a luxury jet to be used as Air Force One from the Qatari government.
But Trump doesn’t only receive—he has doled out pardons and favorable enforcement actions for his political supporters and the and corporate interests donating to his campaign, inauguration, or funds to build a ballroom where he will be able to lavish other billionaires.
This American Bridge report contains a thorough list of the biggest gifts Trump has received as well as his biggest pardons and what he got in return. It’s upsetting reading, but the source links make it a really handy document for messaging to family and friends.
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[To: all 3 reps] [H/T ] [Text SIGN PUHSFT 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.)
This week, President Donald J. Trump announced plans for a new “Trump class” of battleships—part of a so-called “Golden Fleet.” The proposal is militarily unserious, strategically obsolete, and almost certainly unfunded. But its true purpose appears less about national defense than political distraction.Battleships were rendered obsolete decades ago. The U.S. Navy stopped building them after World War II, and the last American battleship was decommissioned in 1992. Modern naval warfare relies on submarines, aircraft carriers, distributed missile platforms, cyber capabilities, and allied integration—not slow, missile-vulnerable behemoths designed to look impressive on screen. Even defense experts have openly stated that this proposal is “exactly what we don’t need.”What makes this announcement especially alarming is its timing.At the same press appearance announcing the “Golden Fleet,” President Trump openly complained that Americans were still talking about the Epstein files. He lamented that Republicans were “very angry” about the continued release of information and images connected to Jeffrey Epstein, framing the outrage not around the crimes themselves, but around reputational harm to powerful figures.This is not coincidence. It is diversion.
[The rest of the letter is here.]
OK, you did it again! You’re helping to save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk soon.
Jess
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