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Hi, all, and happy Thursday.

What a 24 hours. I’m now on nineteen active Signal chats. All of them are exploding today—my head feels like the inside of a pinball machine. There is absolute chaos in Minneapolis, we’re seeing new ICE raids in Maine, Congress is currently having a major battle over ICE funding, and Jack Smith has been providing damning testimony against Trump all morning.

That, of course, is just the tip of the iceberg.

Today’s one of those days that I feel fortunate to not have to summarize the day’s news for you, like or do. I literally don’t know how they accomplish it.

I am, however, here to give you actions to take so the news doesn’t only feel like it’s happening to you, but also because of you.

So that’s what I will provide.

Deep breaths, folks. We’re in the thick of the storm now. Let’s pull our proverbial coats up around our necks, put our heads down, and keep walking. There is no other choice, and, in the midst of all this mayhem, I still believe we’re going to win.

Trump is weak. He’s despised. He’s a laughingstock. His cabinet members are, too. Don’t get me wrong—they’re all dangerous as hell. But they’re also a broken down, low-on-gas clown car; we must emphasize that fact constantly. Remember, Trump supporters want a “strong Daddy.” As they see Trump weakening they’ll begin to question their allegiance to him. We don’t need them to become liberals—they never will. We need them to walk away from Trump. Because the minute they do Republican lawmakers will start to walk away from him, too.

Making him appear as the weakling that he is will speed that process.

Focussing on his corruption by reposting the New York Time’s damning report from this week on how rich he’s getting in office will help, too. (That’s a gift link.)

Anyway. We’ve got a lot of work to do today, so let’s get to it.

Let’s talk about this DHS funding bill: ICE is going to remain funded with a 75B dollar slush fund regardless of what Democrats do today. It’s complicated and there’s a lot to unpack but essentially we are aiming for harm reduction here, not abolition.

How’s the harm reduction going? It’s a mixed bag. For one thing, Democrats submitted an amendment that would simply prevent ICE or DHS from detaining or deporting American citizens. It was the one amendment Republicans accepted. Late last night Stephen Miller insisted it be stripped from the bill. That is insane.

Dems did manage to claw back a bunch of funding for good stuff in these bills, as well as a few—although not enough—concessions on ICE. They also got the language on gender affirming care stripped out. We don’t want to lose these things. Blocking this bill might risk our losing them.

On the other hand it seems untenable to ask Dems to vote for a bill that gives ICE anything at a moment when they’re abducting children, gassing babies, and now entering public school grounds.

I don’t know what the answer is. I’ve looked around and most left-leaning orgs are pushing for a no vote, so that’s what I’m suggesting here. But make no mistake, there are no perfect solutions when we’re in the minority.

Y’all, we are dealing with lawless, arrogant, and openly racist thugs. In the face of that we are doing all we can. It’s a terrible situation and likely to get worse before it gets better. But we will get through this. Let’s stand together, keep making noise, keep caring for each other, and keep pushing Congress—especially Republicans—to pick up the tools they have and put some guardrails on these monstrous human beings.

I love you, folks.

This is hard.

Let’s keep going.

Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling to ask that the Senator push to defund ICE by opposing any DHS appropriations bill that maintains ICE funding and supporting legislation that claws back the $75 billion ICE slush fund created by H.R. 1 last year. This lawless agency is violently attacking and killing immigrants and citizens around the country and must be defunded and dissolved for good. 1

Also, I hear that Trump and Stephen Miller stripped a provision from this bill that would have protected US citizens from detention and deportation. What are we doing, here? This is blatantly unconstitutional, as is ICE’s memo saying they can break into people’s houses without a judicial warrant. Congress is supposed to protect and uphold the Constitution. Do something!

Donald Trump presents a clear and present danger to the American people. He needs to be impeached and removed. This is not normal and it’s not OK. Thanks.

Call Your House Rep (find yours here) 📲

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

I’m calling to ask that the Congressmember to push to defund ICE by opposing H.R. 7147, the DHS appropriations bill, and by supporting legislation that claws back the $75 billion ICE slush fund created by H.R. 1 last year. This lawless agency is violently attacking and killing immigrants and citizens around the country and must be defunded and dissolved for good. I’m disgusted and horrified by it.

Donald Trump presents a clear and present danger to the American people. He needs to be impeached and removed. This is not normal and its not OK. Thanks.

Extra Credit ✅

HELP IN MINNEAPOLIS!

[From reader Garret:]

This linktree (compiled by an incredible group of activist neighbors/community builders in Southwest Minneapolis) is really next level in giving out of towners and locals alike so many clear options for how to plug in.

I’ve been organizing a collective show of love/support from across the country and the world for Minneapolis activists (not as an alternative to material support, but as an addition). If any of your readers would be interested, all they need to do is fill out this easy form with a message of love for Minneapolis activists and I’ll get it in the hands of organizers there.

Here are some examples of messages already submitted.

Get Smart! 📚

For those of us whose hearts are breaking over and over again by what’s going on in our country: The single most important thing we can do this year is elect a Democratic U.S. House and Senate on November 3.

That’s why, on Tuesday, February 10, Movement Voter Project is having a national briefing to hear from on-the-ground leaders — from Alaska to New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District — about their plans to bring about the biggest Blue Wave possible this year.

Here’s the link to register- if you can’t join live, they’ll send you the recording.

Give 💰!

Join Focus For Democracy to hear about a bold midterm strategy that could put the Senate in play.

Wednesday, January 28, at 5 PM Pacific/8 PM Eastern

Learn about the surprising races that could determine control of the Senate and what we can do to maximize our chances of victory.

Hear how early investments in inexpensive, high-leverage races can give our network an edge in flipping the Senate in 2026.

You do not need to donate to attend. These briefings are always really interesting and their recommendations are generally great.

Get in the Streets! 🪧

REMINDER for those in Minnesota, labor unions, community leaders and faith groups have called for a general strike across the state tomorrow to protest the Trump administration and to mourn Renee Good. You can find more here.

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

[To: all 3 reps] [H/T ] [Text SIGN PZGRYQ 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 immediate congressional action to enforce the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a bipartisan law enacted to ensure transparency, accountability, and justice for survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.The Act required the Department of Justice to release all unclassified records relating to Jeffrey Epstein within 30 days of enactment. That deadline passed more than a month ago. According to the Department of Justice’s own representations, only a small fraction of responsive materials has been made public, and required reporting to Congress explaining redactions and withholdings has not been completed.More troubling still, in recent court filings, the Department of Justice has taken the position that the Act lacks an enforceable mechanism and therefore cannot be compelled by a court. In effect, DOJ argues that although Congress passed the law and the President signed it, no judge may require compliance, appoint an independent monitor, or meaningfully review whether the Department is acting in good faith.

[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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