Summary of our virtual meeting Thursday, May 9, 2024

What We Talked About

REPUBLICAN REDUX of 2020 : The Washington Post reports: “Top Republicans, led by former president Donald Trump, are refusing to commit to accept November’s election results with six months until voters head to the polls, raising concerns that the country could see a repeat of the violent aftermath of Trump’s loss four years ago.”  Sound familiar? Of course it does because they pulled this in 2020. It didn’t work then, and we’re going to do all we can to ensure it won’t work in 2024.  Read the entire article that Warren sent in here

The question then becomes: what are we going to do with that? As we’re holding space that Biden wins  in a blue tsunami of votes, we may be tempted to think it doesn’t matter. Then again, it’s good to be prepared. We talked about this topic needing to become part of the national conversation. Let’s start watching for references to this voter suppression technique  in the media we follow and send the links to grassrootsofdemocracy@gmail.com   Let’s see what traction we can get. Your vote WILL matter.

MAIL-IN VOTING CHALLENGES: Democracy Docket is reporting that “The Trump campaign is challenging Nevada’s mail-in ballot receipt deadline in its first election lawsuit of the year with the help of the Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Nevada Republican Party…This lawsuit seeking to invalidate mail-in ballots that are timely cast and received after Election Day is the latest in a slew of anti-voting lawsuits Republicans are filing in the leadup to the 2024 presidential election. Though this is the first anti-voting lawsuit filed this year by Trump’s presidential campaign, the RNC has already filed five other active lawsuits targeting the right to vote across six states...Currently, for the Nov. 5 election, mail-in ballots that are postmarked by Election Day will be counted if they are received on or before 5 p.m. on Nov. 9, 2024. If a ballot’s postmarked date cannot be determined, it will be counted if received on or before Nov. 8, 2024. The lawsuit alleges that counting ballots received after Election Day “dilutes” votes and “disproportionately harms Republican candidates and voters.” 

Read the full story here.

NEW YORK STANDING DEMOCRACY STRONG - A New York court has once again rejected a Republican challenge to the state’s universal early mail-in voting law, which permits all voters to vote by mail during the early voting period. The court’s rejection of the case is a huge victory for New York voters as the law will remain in place for the state’s 2024 elections.

   Today, in a unanimous decision, a state appellate court affirmed a lower court’s previous decision to dismiss a GOP-backed lawsuit to the New York Early Mail Voter Act. Read more about it here.

OTHER PUSHBACKS ON CASES IN MICHIGAN, NEVADA, AND MISSISSIPPI: The Democratic National Committee is pushing back against anti-voting claims in at least four lawsuits brought by the Republican National Committee against election officials.

    In amicus briefs submitted in four cases — two in Michigan, one in Nevada and another in Mississippi — the Democratic National Committee (DNC) slammed what it described as a concerted campaign from national Republicans to impede the elections process ahead of 2024 by filing lawsuits filled with false claims.   Read about these efforts here

HELPING DADDY:  NBC News is reporting that Barron Trump, the Loser’s 18-year old son who graduates from high school next week, “was picked by the Republican Party of Florida on Wednesday night as one of the state’s at-large delegates to the Republican National Convention. These delegates “vote” on the party’s candidate at the convention to make it official. …Other delegates voted in  include Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr.’s fiancée; Michael Boulous, Tiffany Trump’s husband; former state Attorney General Pam Bondi, a longtime Trump ally who has run pro-Trump super PACs; longtime Trump adviser Sergio Gor; former Disney Marvel Entertainment Chairman Ike Perlmutter, a prominent Trump donor; and a series of state-level Republican politicians who took the risk of endorsing Trump over DeSantis.“ Read more

   The Republican Convention is July 15-18 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

FIGHT CONTINUES FOR NATIONAL POPULAR VOTE
Kathleen and Warren updated us on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC) which, according to Wikipedia, “ is an agreement among a group of U.S. states and the District of Columbia to award all their electoral votes to whichever presidential ticket wins the overall popular vote in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The compact is designed to ensure that the candidate who receives the most votes nationwide is elected president, and it would come into effect only when it would guarantee that outcome.

    Introduced in 2006, as of April 2024 it has been adopted by seventeen states and the District of Columbia. These jurisdictions have 209 electoral votes, which is 39% of the Electoral College and 77% of the 270 votes needed to give the compact legal force.”  We’re continuing to monitor this.

SPREADING THE MESSAGE: Terri came across this new website that has some good information to help us with conversations about the November election. “Dems Make Life Better”, demsmakelifebetter.org  Meaningful Conversations Guide - tips to answer what they say

How Dems Make Life Better

  Plus a line of products that turn average citizens into walking, talking billboards for Democrats. In a Dems Make Life Better t-shirt, you can spread positive messaging about Dems everywhere you go!

WE’RE TAKING BACK OUR DEMOCRACY! Speaking of spreading the message, it’s time to share Annette’s Jan6 song far and wide. It’s titled: We Won’t Be Backing Down Use this link, or send people to our website where it’s also linked at the top of the page: https://www.grassrootsofdemocracy.com/

   It’s not about the money or fame. It’s about our country and retaining our democracy. Send it to the national media, send it to your local radio stations, to the National and local Democratic National Committees, send it to the Biden-Harris campaign, heck send it to the Loser!

WE’RE NOT ALONE - Wondering how many pro-democracy organizations are out there? We were too, as was the Grassroots Collaboration Project (GCP). And they took action! The GCP has created the Grassroots Directory that currently lists 195 organizations (including Grassroots of Democracy!). More are expected to be added.

   The GCP arose out of a June 2023 report produced by volunteer leaders of grassroots groups across the country –Survey Report: The Experience of Grassroots Leaders Working with the Democratic Party. 

The group seeks to improve the capacity and effectiveness of networking among organizations in the pro-democracy grassroots world, especially groups run by volunteer leaders.  

ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE TO HELP US STAY STRONG: Annette shared this video from spiritual teacher and author Carolyn Myss. She’s talking about the archetypes of the Pessimist and Vampire and how they can zap our energy. We’ve all run across these people: the pessimist is the complainer. When someone invests their energy in complaining, they must get that energy from somewhere else (you?). The vampire energy weakens you, and sucks the life out of you. Hear how you can combat these people in this video.

Update on Gun Safety Laws…

Following the passage of a Tennessee law allowing teachers to carry guns, Republican and Democratic members of the Knox County school board are in agreement: no armed teachers. Both sides have submitted their own versions of nonbinding resolutions outlining their positions, although they arrived there through different thinking. Ultimately, the decision lies with the local superintendent. [Knoxville News Sentinel]

Six months after the deadliest mass shooting in Maine’s history, Just-In-Time Recreation — the bowling alley where eight of the 18 victims were killed — reopened its doors. Owner Justin Juray, who owns the establishment with his wife, Samantha, was initially adamant about keeping the alley closed. But that changed after Lewiston residents rallied behind the couple. [Associated Press]

Another source to stay up-to-date: Arizona’s Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence  

 Please Join Us For Our Work Session on Saturday

430-6P ET / 130-3P PT EVERY SATURDAY Join us for a work session consisting of three 25-minute sprints. The Zoom call information is sent to this Grassroots of Democracy group so watch for the email. If you didn’t receive it, email grassrootsofdemocracy@gmail.com

Actions You Can Take Right Now to Make a Difference

NEW POSTCARD CAMPAIGNS FOR NEVADA AND MONTANA: Activate America has 16 different postcard campaigns going right now. Won’t you please join one?

   Montana and Nevada  primary elections are just around the corner, and Activate America volunteers are writing postcards into both states to get out the vote!   Sign up HERE.  

They’re focusing on boosting turnout for Democratic Senators Jacky Rosen and Jon Tester. Both are in “toss up” Senate elections that will determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.  

   NOTE: Montana postcards must be mailed by May 25th, and Nevada postcards must be mailed by June 1st. The preferred timing for both is ASAP, as mail ballots are going out and early voting will start soon.       Interested?    Request your lists today.

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Upcoming Events

Wed, May 15 at 8p ET: Persuasion to Power: Using Words that Win   This is a great opportunity to learn from one of the best sources of education on messaging. So you’ve decided to take on the challenge of persuasion, and you’ve started practicing the conversational approaches that will get you there. But when it comes to specific issues and hot-button topics, how should you talk about them? Join messaging expert Anat Shenker-Osorio to learn about the principles of "Mobisuasion": the art of persuasion + mobilization and ongoing work of Words That Win.   Register here

Wed, May 22 at 2p ET: Fact-checking in the AI Age - a free webinar sponsored by AARP.

Discover how artificial intelligence plays a role in misinformation and gain tips on how to spot and debunk false info in the digital age.

   About the Event:  What is misinformation? How can we spot it and avoid it? How has the emergence of artificial intelligence technology complicated how we evaluate information?

   In this webinar, hosted by Senior Planet and the News Literacy Project, we’ll explore trends in misinformation and identify types of misleading and inaccurate information, whether AI- or human-generated. We’ll also discuss the fundamentals of fact-checking, including how to debunk false images and videos.

   Dan Evon, the News Literacy Project’s senior manager of education design, will lead this one-hour session. Dan writes for the organization’s RumorGuard™ platform, which uses examples of viral misinformation to teach news literacy skills and identify and track misinformation tropes.

   How to Join: Sign in to your AARP.org account or create an account to register for events. AARP membership is not required. You will receive an email with the Zoom link before class.

THANKS FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS TO SAVE DEMOCRACY
TOGETHER, WE'VE GOT THIS!