Paramus, NJ Visibility Brigade’s sign this week
Hi, all, and happy Thursday,
So yeah. A lot happened yesterday:
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The airspace above El Paso was shut down and everyone decided that either aliens had landed or we were going to start bombing Mexico. Fortunately neither was the case—the Trump administration seems to have just engaged in another colossal cock-up. According to Forbes “The notice stemmed from disagreements between the FAA and Pentagon officials, which mistook a party balloon for a cartel drone and shot it down.” Huh? Anyway, the airspace has been reopened.
The Epstein survivors also held a press conference—one at which I was honored to be present. They spoke with enormous grace and dignity about their trials thus far, and how much they hoped Pam Bondi would do her job, commit to releasing all the files, and get busy investigating people in the Epstein files.
They were to be gravely disappointed. Just after that Bondi was questioned at a House Oversight Committee hearing and flagrantly lied, deflected, and behaved like an out-of-touch lunatic. She is engaging in a coverup of historic proportions. She will be held accountable.
In other news, House Republicans passed the SAVE America Act. It’s a bummer, but I still hold it has virtually no chance in the Senate unless Thune abolishes the filibuster. The chances that he will are vanishingly slim. We’ll make a lot of noise about it to our Senators nevertheless; better safe than sorry.
ICE, of course, continues to wreak havoc everywhere. (Apparently, though, they are leaving Minnesota! I’ll believe it when I see it but if true, it’s HUGE.)
Meanwhile I spent the day yesterday in a convening of content creators, hearing from all kinds of wonderful folks—among them Don Lemon, who spoke about his experience being targeted by the Trump administration, and Senators Warren, Ossoff, Smith, Booker, and Blunt-Rochester (she was a delight). We also had a session on Senate rules with a high-level staffer who spoke for 45 minutes about the arcane ways of the “deliberative body.” It was fascinating.
My favorite session of the day, though, was with Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. She is an absolute badass and so is her whole team—if you’re not aware of the work Democracy Forward does defending democracy in the courts I highly recommend checking it out. Hearing from Perryman reassured me that our side is not only successfully defending ourselves from the Trump admin’s attacks, but preparing to go on the offense in a big way. It was beyond heartening.
I’m going to see if I can get Skye to come speak to us on a Substack Live. You’d feel so much better about everything— almost—once you heard about the work DF has done so far, as well as how they plan to protect our elections in November. It’s great stuff.
To tie a bow around all I’ve just written: Trump and MAGA are descending further into cruelty, chaos, corruption, and cover-ups while our side is getting stronger, more organized, more strategic, more courageous, and more bold. I like what I’m seeing!
Does that mean we’re out of the woods? Not at all! There are (proverbial) trees on all sides! It is still dark. It is still cold. We are still miles from civilization with no map.
But it’s becoming more and more clear that we have the tools not just to survive, or to get out—but to thrive, to make sure there are consequences for all that’s happening, and to ensure that we never, ever end up here again.
On that note let’s get to work.
Call Your Senators (find yours here) 📲
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
First, I’m glad ICE is leaving Minnesota but Congress still needs to use the power of the purse to stop ICE and CBP’s violence and abuse. We want real accountability through strong enforceable standards enacted into law. Until then there must be no DHS funding and no Continuing Resolution. Also we need to get children out of detention. What ICE is doing to kids in these concentration camps is absolutely horrifying.
Second, I’m very upset that the House passed the SAVE America Act yesterday. This is a viciously anti-democratic bill that will suppress votes from both parties—especially those of people of color and married women. The Senator must vote no. Thank you.
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 support articles of impeachment to remove Pam Bondi as Attorney General. She is engaging in a cover-up of child sex traffickers’ crimes, she lied under oath yesterday, she’s weaponizing the justice department, and she’s making a mockery of the rule of law. She even refused to apologize to Epstein’s victims for releasing their un-redacted data. She’s a disgrace. She cannot be trusted to lead our Department of Justice. Impeach her now. Thanks.
Get Smart—TODAY! 📚
Reminder that there’s a mass call tonight, Feb 12, at 7pm ET: Lessons from Minnesota on Fighting Authoritarianism.
Organizers, community members, and Reps. Ilhan Omar and Pramila Jayapal will share practical lessons we can take from the ongoing resistance in the Twin Cities as we all work to protect our own communities.
Messaging! Messaging! Messaging! 📣
After doing a bunch of focus groups, some top messaging organizations put together this information sheet detailing how best to talk about Republicans’ attacks on our elections—specifically the SAVE Act and all of its antecedents. There’s stuff in it I didn’t know, and I’ll be adjusting the way I speak because of it. Highly recommend you check it out!
Give 💰!
Walk the Walk USA —2026 Midterms Kickoff
Join the national, all-volunteer team at Walk the Walk USA TONIGHT for their 2026 Zoom kickoff. Walk the Walk USA recommends strategic grassroots initiatives that utilize the most effective voter engagement tactics, supporting the most impactful voters in the most competitive geographic “pressure points” in the country. They’ll be sharing evidence-backed recommendations for how to have outsized impact with limited political dollars. In a nutshell, they support voters rather than candidates.
TONIGHT! Thursday, February 12, 5:30pm PT / 8:30pm ET: Register in advance here.
Grab your Wallet! 💳
Resist and Unsubscribe, Scott Galloway’s Big Tech boycott campaign, is really picking up steam! It’s now been covered in NPR, USA Today, the Daily Beast, and many other media outlets.
He explained how—and why—it can work in this interview.
Read more here, and please consider joining this effort!
Win Races! 🗳
Pennsylvania’s Democratic Majority Is on the Line.
On February 24, there are two special elections for PA House Districts 22 (Lehigh County) and 42 (Allegheny County). Both seats were held by Democrats. Lose either one and we lose our one-seat majority — and with it, control of the agenda on voting rights, reproductive freedom, and gun safety. If you’re in these districts, vote. If you’re not, share this with your Pennsylvania contacts. The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is February 17.
Not sure about all the choices on your ballot? Worried about picking the wrong candidate in a race you haven’t been following? BlueVoterGuide.org shows you what’s on your ballot with endorsements from trusted, pro-democracy organizations — so you can make quick, informed choices even in races where you’ve never heard of the candidates. It’s free, and millions of users say it helped them vote in races they would have otherwise skipped. Bookmark it now for every election this year.
Chop Wood, Save the Planet 🔥
Great news! The Environmental Voter Project will be targeting 3.4 million low propensity climate voters across 21 states in 2026!
They’ve identified huge numbers of potential voters in some crucially important districts and states. If climate matters to you, please take a moment to watch and share their in-depth briefing on where volunteers and donors can have the biggest impact in 2026. I love EVP—they are data backed, determined, and great at what they do!
Video: flooding the polls with climate voters in 2026
Resistbot Letter (new to Resistbot? Go here! And then here.) 💻
[To: your Senators ] [letter cribbed from this] [Text SIGN PMFKHY 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.)
Democratic Senators Schumer and Wyden have introduced legislation called the “Stop Presidential Embezzlement Act” that would prevent Trump from continuing to get rich off the presidency by suing the government. I expect the Senator to co-sponsor it.
At a time when so many American families are struggling to get by, it’s a shameful abuse of office for Trump to pocket billions of taxpayer dollars by suing the IRS. The only reason he’s talking about donating this money is because even he realizes what he’s doing is indefensible with the public, and given that he’s a lifelong cheat and conman, there’s no reason to trust he’d follow through with the donation. Congress needs to shut this down.
The Stop Presidential Embezzlement Act would impose a 100% tax on any settlement a president, vice president, cabinet member, or member of Congress receives from the government as a result of a lawsuit filed while in office. It’s only right.
Please support and pass this bill. Thanks.
OK, you did it again! You’re helping to save democracy! You’re amazing.
Talk soon.
Jess
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