Four years ago today, then-President Donald Trump instigated a violent attack on our nation’s capitol…and then got away with it scot-free. Our leaders failed at every level to hold him accountable for his actions:
- Senator Mitch McConnell could have encouraged Senate Republicans to convict Trump during his second impeachment, barring him from the Presidency.
- Attorney General Merrick Garland could have prioritized holding Trump accountable for his actions.
- The Supreme Court could have simply not intervened, inventing entirely new standards of Presidential immunity in the process.
- President Joe Biden could have announced he would not run for reelection in 2023, setting the stage for a Democratic primary that could have erased the anti-incumbent sentiment that sunk Harris’s campaign.
So where does that leave us? Our leaders have demonstrated to us that they cannot and will not save us on their own. We’re going to have to push them every step of the way: No support for Trump’s agenda. No support for Trump’s cabinet.
And no support for the House Republican Clown Caucus’s looming budget crisis. Barack Obama spent eight years trying to fix George W. Bush’s economic disasters. Joe Biden spent four years digging our economy out of the ditch that Donald Trump drove us into. And now Trump will get the credit for the economic miracle that Biden and congressional Democrats pulled off after Covid receded and rising inflation has swept every incumbent western government from power.
Today’s action: No bailout for the Clown Caucus
This article from Talking Points Memo is a great overview of the budget and debt ceiling fight that Republicans have willed into existence on themselves, thanks in no small part to Co-President-Elect Elon Musk:
Because Republicans will start next year in control of both chambers of Congress and the White House, there are no hostages to take except themselves. Couple that with their initial 217-215 margin in the House — barely a vote to spare — and there’s plenty of opportunity for inflicting Republican-on-Republican pain…After Elon Musk blew up the House’s spending bill, Trump demanded the House work into its next version some kind of debt ceiling suspension. That bill didn’t pass, leaving Trump railing against Republicans who have built opposing debt ceiling increases into their personal brand, like Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX).
Call your Representative:
- Rep. Pramila Jayapal: 202-225-3106
- Rep. Adam Smith: 202-225-8901
Call both Senators:
- Maria Cantwell: 202-224-3441 or http://www.cantwell.senate.gov/contact/email/form
- Patty Murray: 202-224-2621 or http://www.murray.senate.gov/write-to-patty/
Sample script:
Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP]. I am calling to tell [Rep/Senator] not to help out Mike Johnson and his Republican Clown Caucus in their budget and debt ceiling fight. Democrats need to stop bailing out Republicans from problems of their own making, unless Johnson is willing to propose a clean continuing resolution to fund the government in exchange for ending the debt ceiling.
