11-11-24 Newsletter

 

Millions of Americans share our dismay about the presidential election. Many are already organizing to resist. Remember, we are not a minority: Less than a third of eligible voters voted for Trump. Fortunately, Oregonians elected strong pro-democracy state leaders. We have the wisdom and experience to continue to defend our democracy, even while we care for ourselves and others. We encourage you to read the valuable viewpoints in this newsletter. Hooray for everyone who did something to support good candidates and important issues in this election - with conversations, postcards and letters to voters, donations, volunteering, and, of course, with our votes.  Please come to our conversation at WineKraft tomorrow. We are sturdy people, just like the folks in "Shanghaied in Astoria" remind us every summer. We will find a way through the challenges ahead.  -- INCO Leadership Team INCO postcarders celebrated 8 months of writing postcards to voters with a potluck dinner at WineKraft on October 29. Cheers to everyone who wrote to voters! HOORAY FOR INCO AND DOING SOMETHING! Hi Cheryl and Laurie, I just wanted to write and say thank you for all you and the other "INCO Elves" have done over the last many months to bring this election to a positive result!   I can't convey enough how much it meant to me to be able to "Do Something!" as the Obamas have said. I felt quite desperate, anxious, and lost before getting involved with INCO! I jumped in later than I would have liked, and wasn't able to make regular appearances as often as I would have liked but am so happy I was able to become involved.   It is so reassuring to know that so many others felt the same need to be able to "Do Something!"   It was also such a relief to come to WineKraft and feel safe - for lack of a better word.  I hadn't realized how important that was to me and I rather hate that we've reached such division - where talking openly in public about politics could be so stressful. I'm sorry to have missed the shindig yesterday but didn't want to miss the chance to say thank you to you and everyone else who worked so hard to organize and carry out this venture!  Kudos to you and the other elves who deserve recognition.  Many, many thanks to you all!! Cheers! Marian GOOD NEWS LOST IN THE GLOOM • Voters protect abortion rights in seven states • Voters in three red states guarantee paid sick leave; two boost minimum wage • Three states vote to protect public school funding  •  Florida voters reject school board politicization  •  Voters elect first transgender member of Congress; send two Black women to the Senate  -- Details in Popular Information, November 7, 2024 NUMBERS: "IT WAS A CLOSE RACE" "That means that 93 million eligible voters did not vote—a number that exceeds Trump's final tally in the popular vote by a substantial margin.  ".... Let’s set aside the math and get to the point: Less than a third of eligible voters voted for Donald Trump.  ".... Yes, we lost, but not by a historic, earth-shaking margin. It was a close race. The notion that 2%+ win by Trump means that we are assigned to a minority status in America is suspect (at least) and wrong (in my view). Whatever the answer, we are not potted plants, we are not sheep, and we are not helpless. We represent (at least) fifty percent of the American people. Let’s act like it! -- Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition, November 8, 2024 CREATING A COALITION "Or maybe the truth is that democracy is always a close-run thing, always in contention. If so, then we too must—as people in other failing democracies have learned to do—find new ways to champion wobbling institutions and threatened ideas." - - David Frum, The Atlantic, November 8, 2024 SHORING UP THE GUARDRAILS "Trump’s election and the strong chance he will have unified congressional control by Republicans is a convulsive event, for all the reasons you know. The American people voted for him knowing that he plans to govern as an authoritarian. We prepared for this possible outcome, and have started to mobilize: Our scenario planning exercises this spring gamed out how Trump might carry out his authoritarian agenda. We’ve reactivated this cross-partisan network, including governors and military leaders, to organize immediate moves.  We will seize any opportunities available during the lame duck period — a meaningful chance to shore up guardrails before the next administration is installed.  We are lending our deep expertise on the Insurrection Act, Alien Enemies Act, and other outdated, overbroad emergency powers statutes to help states, activists, and the public understand what can be done to resist mass deportation.  We are getting ready for what we know will be an assault on voting rights from the new Justice Department and Trump’s congressional followers — including an expected push for a national voter suppression law. And — to answer a question many of you have asked — we are taking steps to insulate our institution and staff from outside attacks — prioritizing legal, physical, and cyber protections. We’re advising allies on how to do the same. And we appreciate the concern." -- The Brennan Center for Justice, November 7, 2024 TWO PROMISES "Well, the enemy most likely to thwart Trump in his second term might be one who isn’t on his list: himself. The seeds of Trump’s downfall may reside in two promises he made to win this election: the mass deportation of immigrants and the elimination of inflation." -- Andy Borowitz, "What Happens Next?", November 9, 2024.  Borowitz connects Nixon, Reagan, Trump, election victories, and history for an encouraging point of view. Jon Stewart provides a few minutes of common sense and good cheer about what we know today about our political future.  "BE READY TO TURN THE CHANGE" "Thirty five years ago today, the Berlin Wall did not fall.  "Thirty five years ago today, some people made history, amidst other people making history, thanks to some prior cooperation, and some good thinking about what freedom means. "We cannot change the world all at once.  But we can change the way we think.  We can clear away the clichés and make ourselves more lively.  We can work together and then, when other things are in motion, be ready to turn the change in the right direction." -- Timothy Snyder, "The Berlin Wall Never Fell," November 9, 2024 "DON'T BE SEDUCED" "The fiction that Democrats “abandoned” the working class is designed to set Democrats against one another. It is beginning to gain traction because gullible media is willingly spreading the lie. Don’t be seduced by the fiction. Democrats must remain loyal to their roots of social justice and dignity for all. It is the right thing to do. It is the only thing to do. Political victory without justice for all would be hollow and bitter. We are better than that. ".... just because Trump says he will do something does not mean he will be able to do so. Part of his performance schtick is to keep us frightened by bluffing. Don’t fall for that gambit. While we should take Trump's threats seriously, do not grant him imaginary superpowers he does not possess."  -- Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition, November 9, 2024 A NEW LANDSCAPE "Kamala Harris and Tim Walz ran a great campaign.  You could count the number of “mistakes,” in quotes, they made on one hand.  They appealed to the better nature of the American people.  "....Campaigns for president as we have known them are over.  All the technical stuff, the expertise of the so-called political professionals, didn’t matter. ... Our loss is nobody’s fault. Trump’s win was not even his personal accomplishment. We are living in an entirely new landscape, not just in our politics, but in ourselves."  -- Lucian Truscott IV INCO recommends Truscott's insightful election assessment.  LET TRUMP BE TRUMP "Do not expend political capital trying to protect voters from Trump. "Americans listened to everything Trump said over the last two years. ... A majority of voters affirmatively chose those policies. "So let Trump implement them." -- Read the rest of Jonathan V. Last's article in The Bulwark, November 8, 2024 This might have a paywall.  PROJECT 2025: THE GOP'S ANTI-DEMOCRACY BLUEPRINT LEARN MORE ABOUT PROJECT 2025 • "What Project 2025 means for you." It's terrific graphic, suitable for printing as a flyer. • A long list of major features of Project 2025, from Robert Hubbell in his Today's Edition newsletter •  FROM INDIVISIBLE:  - Project 2025 Explained -- An in-depth analysis of the MAGA playbook - 25 Things to Know About Project 2025 -- A quick list of 25 extreme things MAGA Republicans have planned with Project 2025 - Talking About Project 2025 -- Key messaging strategies for educating voters about Project 2025 and ensuring they understand the stakes • The 920-page Project 2025 document is here. Find a topic that interests you in the Project 2025  table of contents.   INCO INSIGHTS "Building for the future is a difficult thing to do; we cannot hope to complete the work in one generation; all the more reason to begin at once." -- Rene Cassin, Nobel Peace Price,  1968 Indivisible defends democracy by opposing authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption. Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com.  Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. Encourage others to sign up for the INCO newsletter here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly. We're on Facebook, too. INCO Weekly Newsletter  •  November 11 , 2024 Website Email Facebook Copyright © 2024 INDIVISIBLE North Coast Oregon, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website or signed up at a community group meeting. Our mailing address is: *|766 Lexington Avenue, Astoria, OR 97103:HTML|* Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.