#4: We Will Not Be Mere Observers

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We are all faced with the challenge of how not to be “just an observer” in this increasingly bizarre time. As always, the first step in being deliberate and effective in our engagement is sorting out what is going on and fully understanding the greatest threats to the republic for which we stand and the most compelling political opportunities. We need to seize upon those opportunities and not be distracted. For some, even in the midst of the manipulations and misrepresentations that are the daily fare of the Trump assumption of the Presidency, modest redemptive acts by the President-elect can be possible.

But for me, even if a single appointment or action emerges that seems sensible, my rejection of this man as president will be untouched. There is nothing he can or will do to be fit to be president. This is because to him the lie doesn’t matter at all. To all of us, whether you praise a dictator or dismiss a foreign nation’s interference in the election goes to the heart of our freedom as Americans. To him, it is a daily game in which the facts and even the aims are inconsequential, giving way always to what seems to be his unparalleled incuriosity and narcissism.

Through all of this we will prevail, together. What we have going for us is that we will not let ourselves be mere observers of the events of the next four years. The quality and intensity of our collective actions will carry the day.

The first enormous victory is less than two years away! As discussed later in this fourth missive, there is disagreement about whether we can get the 24 seats to take back the House in 2018. I think it is self-evident that we can, and of course we must. There are steps we can begin to take right now.

In the meantime, battlegrounds will be chosen. Almost all of the major Presidential cabinet appointments will be approved in the next couple of months, some only after the requisite set of warnings are issued to the nominee and assurances received by the Senate. Concentrated action will move to hearings about Russian hacking and the elections, which Senators McCain, Graham and others will use with some effectiveness to push back against Trump softness on Russia. Trump and the Congress will pass a showy repeal of the Affordable Care Act, granting themselves time to figure out how to preserve its most popular provisions, such as coverage of pre-existing conditions. It will become apparent early on that they have no way to reconcile the disputes among Republicans in the House. Ultimately, Speaker Ryan will appeal to Congressional Democrats for votes to get a new health care law passed that the Senate can agree to and that includes major provisions of the current law.

Here are three new steps we can all take now.

1) Learn What Indivisible Has to Say on How to Play Defense
	Fortunately, a group of former Congressional staff members has put together a 26-page primer on how to influence members of Congress. As someone who worked on Capitol Hill for several years, I can attest to this overall approach and to the clarity of their ideas and message. This is the best material so far on ways to help make certain that Congress prevents Trump from doing his worst. As you read the Indivisible report please pay special attention to their description of how the members of Congress are thinking about you, your views and their role in Congress. Even the member whose views are the furthest from your own is likely to be making an effort to show his or her district that he or she is responding to their needs and that of the country. To this day, with an awful partisan divide and with rational discourse on some issues not invited by the majority, one can find oneself appreciating the quality of a Congressional committee hearing, or a “markup” of a bill in committee. Your goal is to take advantage of the way the member of Congress thinks about her or his effectiveness as a public servant. As the creators of Indivisible point out, even members from safe seats are worried about primaries from within their own parties, or they have otherwise found a reason to pay some attention to the collective voice of concerned voters. The report emphasizes your connection with your representatives through their town halls, their other public meetings, through visits with them and their staff at their in-district offices, and through mass calling campaigns. It is astute on how to organize and deliver a message. It falls short a bit only in its aggressive use of the Tea Party and their activities in 2009 as a prime lesson. We need to remember and account for the antipathy of liberals and progressive to being herded! But, the intensity of effort will certainly be there, born out of the present unacceptable situation.
2) Develop an Obsession with Winning the House of Representatives on November 6, 2018
	Donald Trump’s favorability rating on the day of the election was 38%. There are any number of political analysts who believe he will never achieve a favorability rating as high as 40% during his period as President. A not inconsiderable number predict constant political warfare between him and Republican members of Congress, starting with disputes over the hacking and his coziness with Russia. Given these factors, why would we believe he will be a colossal political force two years from now, when the parties of even successful presidents almost always suffer a mid-term loss? It is true that the redistricting carried out by mostly Republican state legislatures after the 2010 census causes us extra problems. For instance, in 2014, Republicans captured 52% of the votes for members of Congress, but won 57% of the seats. In 2012, Democrats got more than half the votes and captured only 201 of the 435 seats. Of course, only some of this is due to modest or even egregious gerrymandering. Some of it is due to heavy Democratic concentrations in some urban areas, which no amount of creative map-drawing can spread out. Even with these obstacles, we can take back the House. We need to take back just 24 seats to go from the present 241-194 to a razor thin 218-217, which we have done twice in the post-war era. Why is this possible? Because Trump and Ryan will make the more vulnerable Republicans “walk the plank” to provide necessary votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act and support tax “reform” that comforts the comfortable. There are 14 congressional districts that Hillary Clinton carried that have Republican members of Congress and at least a score more that are trending in the Democratic direction because of changing demographics. We will say more in our next missive. You can learn more by using this Daily Kos article to see which nearby Republican member of Congress is sitting in a district that does not want President Obama’s accomplishments unraveled. Boosted by the Indivisible report, make it a point to follow that member’s actions from this point forward. It will not be too long before candidate recruitment begins and before the recognition that we can take back the House of Representatives gains greater momentum.
3) Remember Your Charitable Contributions
	At this point, under new leadership, our country is infirm. From previous missives, we remember that we are all trying to include charitable giving to advance its health, to shore up those organizations that are battling the Trump agenda or providing essential services that the United States may abandon. This could include such entities that are playing defense as the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Southern Poverty Law Center and Planned Parenthood. My favorite goes to the heart of the matter---- boosting registration of Latino voters in Texas, Colorado, Nevada, California, New Mexico and Arizona through the Mi Familia Voter Education Fund.

As has been the case since November 8, we could make the mistake of looking away. We told ourselves when we heard the news that this would not and will not stand. We recognize the need for focused, collective action, and we will not exempt ourselves from this challenge. And we will succeed.

Best regards,

David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington

#3: Making the Most Careful Choices

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Please sign our petition on change.org to urge Donald Trump to start working on his taxes now so that he will be ready to pay on April 15. Send the petition on to your friends. And, if you are interested in giving this effort an extra boost, use the "Promote this petition" link to send $25 or $50 to change.org so they can get the word out.

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Dear Friend,

One of the most unusual things about this post-election period is that there are major choices to be made every single day about how to engage. Because Donald Trump’s tweets, cabinet appointments, and recent foreign policy positions are so disheartening and dangerous, the varying approaches you could use to defend the republic are growing, even exponentially. What standard can we use to sort things out?

I don’t think there is much danger that at this point, we will start falling by the wayside, figuring that things will be okay, not when the President-elect insists that he is smart enough to not need regular intelligence briefings. Of all Donald Trump’s flaws, and there are many, the greatest danger to all of us may be his lack of curiosity, his disinterest in learning new things, his erstwhile selection and parroting of information (however fanciful or inaccurate) that supports the view he already held.

In the context of the turmoil which will persist and our dismay which will linger, the question becomes how we make choices. How can we pick the most consequential actions, so we will turn ourselves into activists who will not rest unless we block Trump’s worst intentions and until we revel in this being over on November 3, 2020?
There isn’t going to be a universal standard for how to sort out where to focus our most intensive efforts. My own sorting device is to avoid initiatives that seem doomed from the outset, like changing the vote of the Electoral College, since so many of the electors are legally bound. You might feel differently about that. My interest in Trump’s income tax payments comes from a feeling that 1) the pressure from multiple fronts will grow between now and April and 2) he is destined to act in a way that is disfavored by a broad cross section of the electorate. I think this is a negative that will stay with him. If anything it will get worse.
 
My priority setting standards on what all of us can do involve questions like: Could the proposed approach have any chance of success? Is it fair? Does it avoid a level of snarkiness or self-righteousness that is tempting but self-defeating? In terms of trying to influence the votes of citizens or lawmakers, is the message accurate and well-articulated? Is it being delivered to the right people, and is the timing right? If the approach includes supporting a specific organizing group or a non-profit, will they be able to sustain their effort? What is their track record?

Helping our Collective Impact Grow

In addition to these missives being emailed to you all, they are posted on Facebook and are collected on my blog. It would be a great honor to me if you could send me two or three names of people who would like to regularly receive these ideas, as many of you have already done. We will build on approaches we have already offered (archived on the blog), including:

• How to contact a member of the U.S. House of Representatives or U.S. Senate so your views will have a life beyond hitting their phone call tally sheet. (November 30)
• How to identify which Trump supporting members of Congress will be most vulnerable in the fall of 2018, including some that may surprise you. (November 30)
• How to watch whether Democrats do a better job of framing and presenting their economic message, with a little progress already on this front. (November 16) 

Here are three more things we can all do right now:

1) Combat Ongoing Voter Suppression Efforts
	Many of us are aware that gerrymandering by state legislatures after the 2010 elections makes the task of taking back the House of Representatives even harder. If Republican controlled legislatures can engineer it, they will concentrate Democratic voters in as few districts as possible.  For instance, there are nearly as many Democratic voters as Republicans in North Carolina, and the Congressional delegation has 10 Republicans and 3 Democrats. Even more pernicious is voter suppression. 2016 brought the lowest presidential election turnout in Wisconsin in 20 years. The primary tool for decreasing the vote was a Voter ID law, with the state Department of Motor Vehicles dragging its feet in issuing ID’s to those without driver’s licenses, and the related drop in voting totaling 41,000 in Milwaukee alone. At this point the primary battle over voter suppression is in the courts, though state legislatures must be watched too after many go back into session in January. Advocates for voting justice should support the impressive legal efforts of the American Civil Liberties Union in several states, and nationally should support the very thorough and principled actions of the voting rights program of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University. The Brennan Center is an excellent resource on what is happening in the courts.
2) Fight Where the Greatest Dangers Will Emerge
	It is certainly possible that Trump will never secure positive approval ratings during the entire period of his presidency. However, the damage that can be wrought even by an unpopular, under-supported President can be huge. Hence our attention is naturally drawn to global destabilization, given the dangers of Twitter diplomacy. It is good to remember that in some areas defenses are easier to mount, as will be evidenced in the bi-partisan hearings on Russia and hacking. Surprisingly, this is also true of tax policy. When the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee start working on tax “reform”, they will not begin their efforts with the frame of Trump’s proposal. Of course, that doesn’t mean the resultant law will meaningfully address wealth disparities. We are in the greatest immediate trouble in the area of environmental policy, because so many of our recent gains were secured by executive orders from President Obama in the face of Congressional abdication of responsibility. The President-elect nominated Scott Pruitt as head of the Environmental Protection Agency as the first step in rescinding and reversing these executive orders. There have been 35 executive orders on energy, climate change, and the environment, and President Obama issued a new one last week on oil drilling and wilderness protection in Alaska. Here the battle will be multi-pronged. We know that Ivanka Trump does not want her father to walk away from the Paris accord. I expect that he won’t formally walk away, but that he will  do multiple, continued, insidious destructive things. So you will want to pick and support your favorite national environmental advocate. I like the litigation-oriented Natural Resources Defense Council. But don’t stop there. There are very considerable actions that can be taken at the regional, state and local level. If you live in a state that recognizes the existence of climate change, find out what state government is being asked to do that it isn’t presently doing, who is asking them to do it and contact your own state legislators. For example, in Washington State the excellent driving force is Climate Solutions. And, don’t stop there either. Almost every member of Congress speaks of the wondrousness of our environment when they are campaigning. When Congressional environmental committee memberships are settled in January, I will provide the names and personal numbers of these members’ key environmental policy staff members, and I will urge you to do some intensive, individual contact work.
3) Advance a Robust Free Press
	It turns out that a pizza parlor in DC is not the headquarters of a Democratic sex ring! It was just selling pizza, as they informed the man who showed up with a shotgun. We have a long, long way to go in battling made up news, and we can start by subscribing to publications where news is researched and covered and written. This from my very wise friend Hilary Hilscher: "As a former journalist, and one who still believes there are such things as true facts as opposed to twitter blather, I think supporting the “Fourth Estate”, i.e., a robust, honest free press is one extremely important step we can take. With the probable-incoming President dissing all of the foundations of our democracy, we simply HAVE to have intelligent, ethical reporting if we are to continue as a viable country." So please consider adding this to your list of to-dos: Support original sources of news rather than just using internet aggregators! This means subscribing or contributing to solid news sources such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Guardian, National Public Radio, or go straight to indie groups. Consider subscribing to local news outlets: The Seattle Times, one of the last family-owned regional newspapers, and like all newspapers, is struggling to find its financial footing in the digital age. Know the editorial outlook of your media: The New Yorker and Atlantic are definitely progressive in outlook, but offer some of the most in-depth, thoughtful analysis available. ALSO, use every opportunity to challenge fake or hate-talk outlets like Fox and Breitbart.

Thank you all again for participating in this venture. With each missive, our “audience” continues to grow. Could you stay with us, ACT whenever you can, and pass this all on to your friends.

David Harrison
Bainbridge Island,  Washington

#2: Jettison the Depression, Get Up and Move Forward

Dear Friends,

I wrote to you two weeks ago regarding paths forward after the disheartening Presidential election. At the time, I called for relentlessness in taking the action steps necessary so we can revel 2 years from now during the mid-term elections and leap for joy on election day in 2020. These are not idle dreams.

I received a huge response to my expressed beliefs that it is time to jettison the depression and get up and move forward. Given the number of people who seconded my thoughts and sent them on to others, I have decided to offer specific action steps every two weeks in email and blog form with links posted to Facebook, because we are far more likely to succeed if across American people are taking ownership of this challenge. As before, if this isn't your idea of a good time you can delete my missive, or ask me to remove your name. If it is, please check out the blog, forward the email, and/or follow me on Facebook. For those who did some forwarding last time, I would be glad to add names directly to my list if that is appropriate and you send those names on to me.

My feeling now is eagerness. The early start for the President-elect (I am forcing myself to input those words!) has not been encouraging. This week we received the bizarre claim of millions of illegal votes. There will always be something, unfortunately.

Certainly, we are hoping that some actions will go well, or that they go not as badly as we feared.  But let's not lull ourselves, because some things are going to rend the republic for which we stand. The point for all of us going forward is that this about a playbook (action steps), not just a scorecard that reveals what others have done. If we limit ourselves to following in the media how some less unacceptable appointee is faring, we miss the point. This is about what we are going to do, week after week.  Please don't lose your resoluteness as the rest of your life presents itself.

Here are four things you can do right now:

Petition Donald Trump to Pay His Taxes
	As those of you that are most closely watching the situation know, there is a check we can send or a petition we can sign every day. Let's sort these things out carefully. Let's pick initiatives that have a chance of catching on, that are not unduly snarky, and which will matter if they do catch on. We have a nomination. Ask Donald Trump to pay federal income taxes. We started a petition that makes this request and have posted it on change.org. It reads: " Dear President-Elect Trump, April 15 is not too far away. We respectfully request that you plan to pay federal income taxes by that day, like tens of millions of Americans of all political viewpoints. We believe this is an essential and fundamental duty of all citizens. Thank you." We think this is worthy of your signing and promoting. Just click on the link above. There is no record of any President failing to contribute to our collective aims in the time since the tax was established in 1913. We believe it a core duty for anyone who seeks to be a governmental leader, but we have no confidence that Donald Trump agrees with that. We think a groundswell of citizen interest in this will cause him to either to do the right thing or to be exposed in not doing the right thing. Please pass it on.
1) Take Your First Steps in a Two Year Project: Win Back the House
	I am guessing that you do not necessarily know who the most vulnerable Trump-supporting Republican member of Congress is in your vicinity. Time to become an active student on what could emerge so you and your friends can play a role. As Obama supporters will painfully remember, there is a history of the President's party jettisoning support during mid-term elections, resulting in the mammoth loss of 63 seats! by Democrats in 2010 and another 14 in 2014. The count is now 241-194, so the Democrats would need to gain 24 seats in 2018 to take back the House. This is less outlandish that it seems because Democrats took back 30 seats in 2006. It is impeded by redistricting shenanigans, but it is still possible. Of course, it all depends on how the new Administration is doing at the time, but it is not a huge stretch to think the wind will be at the back of candidates who want to brake Trump's worse excesses. The thing to do is start to research and eventually own a race near you, or a race which you otherwise identify with. Potential candidates are thinking about this now. If you wait until too late you can be without a viable candidate in a district which might otherwise be in play. For instance, in Washington's state's 8th District three weeks ago Republican Dave Reichert defeated Tony Ventrella 60-40%. In 2012, Barack Obama got more votes than Mitt Romney in this same Congressional district, which may reveal an opening as Reichert's party forces him to help unravel Obama's accomplishments. As they emerge, I will send you some links to 2016 results to help you further analyze what might be possible. Here's a first look at 43 key races from across the country. You can look at your own's state's races by googling your Secretary of State's site.
2) Give the Gift That Keeps On Giving
	In my previous letter, I noted that there are organizations that can receive charitable donations in any end of the year giving you are inclined to do, and which are working on issues that will be critical between now and the next election. The Mi Familia Vota Education Fund will receive your tax deductible donations to continue to register Latino voters in six key states. A lot of us are concerned that racist and anti-immigrant actions are or will be in their ascendancy. If you are looking for an organization that is a skilled and fierce combatant of these actions, there are not any more skilled or more fierce than the Southern Poverty Law Center.
3) Show Senators That You Care About What They Do
	There will be more to do on this as specific policy battles emerge, but the national epicenter for fighting over tax policy and climate change and Medicare and countless other matters will be the Senate. It is time to think about what you can do on that front. First, there are 48 Senators that caucus with the Democrats, but remember that issue by issue some of those Senators are in play. Democratic Senators like Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Jon Tester of Montana and Claire McCaskill of Missouri will be under tremendous pressure to support elements of Trump's emerging agenda that you yourself might not favor. Republican Senators like John McCain and Jeff Flake of Arizona, Susan Collins of Maine and Ben Sasse of Nebraska did not support Trump's election but will be pressured to provide support. Two things. Start watching Charles Schumer of New York, the new minority leader. Even though he was a poor spokesman for them, Democratic Senators kept Harry Reid because he attended to the mechanics of legislation and to their individual requests. Charles Schumer has his faults, but he will articulate the agenda of Senate Democrats much better than Harry Reid did, starting now. Read more here. Here's a project. Select a Senator in the balance, Democrat or Republican, who may be one of the seven I named above. Rather than resigning yourself to being one of thousands of people on their answering machine, go on their website, look at the assignments of their legislative assistants (who along with committee staff help them with legislation.) Pick the assistant whose assignments match up with one of your strong interests, and call that assistant instead. You may not get through, but the well-stated message you leave on their voice mail will keep you from just blending in to the office-wide tabulation.

Keep going. Collective actions don't emerge magically. They are built upon the individual ongoing concerted principled thoughtful actions of people like you.

Thanks
David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington

#1: A Path Forward After the Election...

Dear Friends,

Those of us who thought it unthinkable that Donald Trump could be president of the country we have loved are having a hard time. On day seven of my own personal mourning I have resolved to push away the sorrow and anger and to channel it into purpose and resolve. I have decided to be all about the resurgence we can create together, the steps we can take to shield people from harm, and the ways that we can be a part of a victorious political movement 2 and 4 years from now.

If we start now, we can earn our new President. I plan to glory in the election of November 6, 2020.

We need relentlessness in our actions to parry any unacceptable Presidential steps and to restore liberty and justice in the future. If we let our focus dissipate, we will pay. It seems clear that a lot of us are ready to provide the energy that is needed.

We also need to pick our action steps wisely. Here, humbly are five specific steps Cindy and I plan to take right now. I hope you will do the same and that you will spread the word. If you are willing to hear about new steps now and again until we win this back, let me know and I will send you ideas. Slowly and surely, we and others will secure a newer and better world.

1) Respond to the Greatest New Fear: Support Immigrant Rights
	The campaign promises of the winner have terrified immigrants across the country. An Eastern Washington elementary teacher reported Wednesday morning that three of her students came to school sobbing, expecting immediate deportation. The safety pin effort is a great way to publicly fight back against fear and show support. But, we must go further and be at the front lines with the splendid network of nonprofit immigrant advocacy programs around the country, whose assistance ranges from food, counseling and job assistance to legal representation. These are the places that terrified immigrants are most likely to go and the organizations most intent on generating a valuable zone of protection. Find the program nearest to you, learn what they need right now, and play a role in helping them get it. In our case, it is the small but very good Kitsap Immigrant Assistance Center. On organizing and policy advocacy in Washington State, a great choice is One America.
2) Pick Your First 2018 Candidate or Opponent
	I am sorry, but the 2018 House and Senate elections should be on all of our radar screens earlier than you think you can bear it. The less good news is that there will be fewer vulnerable Republicans running for the Senate in 2018 than there were this time, but Trump's performance may well be so awful that there will be inroads to be made, especially in the House and perhaps in the Senate. The first mid-term election is always difficult for an incumbent party, as it was for the Democrats in 2010 after Barack Obama was elected in 2008. There are 48 Democratic Senators now who can block Trump's worst excesses, which is a good number in a chamber where 40 votes count. The best chances for a Senate seat pickup in 2018 will be defeating Dean Heller in Nevada. who has been lukewarm on Trump but who will be under tremendous pressure to support his agenda. The best way to now to attend to opportunity to pick up this seat is to support the organization most active in securing Latino registration in Nevada, as well as in Colorado, California, Florida, Arizona and Texas, which of course are all key 2020 presidential election states. The Mi Familia Vota Education Fund can accept charitable donations. You can give your family voter registration for Christmas.
3) Learn Something New About Job Generation
	The Comey announcement 10 days before the election may have changed the ultimate outcome by itself, changing votes of women theretofore focused on Trump misogyny. But there were plenty of self inflicted wounds by Democrats. Leading among Democratic weaknesses is articulating what to do about the lack of growth or decline of "family wage" jobs for high school graduates. This issue is what in part drives the carbon impact-denying extraction-promoting Republicans. The Democratic response has been uneven, because their proposed advanced training for the jobs of the future works better for people aged 25 rather than people aged 50. One approach here is for Democrats to better understand and embrace the rebuild America agenda (which generates good construction jobs) while vowing to never use the word "infrastructure", which I swear has never generated as single vote in a swing state. We should all look for the pressure points on this issue. Here's the basic need around which better Democratic ideas must be developed.
4) Revel in the Emergence of the New Democratic Generation
	Unless Michelle Obama!!!! stands for office, the Democratic nominee in 2020 will be someone all new, and will not be Elizabeth Warren or Joe Biden or Tim Kaine. We need to start thinking about these new people and consider our very own selves a part of the nomination process. Go see these people if they come to your state. Research dynamic New Jersey senator Cory Booker, or workhorse New York senator Kristin Gillibrand or former San Antonio mayor Julian Castro. Or think about Michelle Obama again... Cory Booker once saved a woman from a burning building. Of course you know that once Laura Ingraham gets hold of that burning building news, the story will be that Cory Booker actually started the fire, tripped the woman, and ripped out the phones so that the fire department couldn't be called.
5) Make Your Carbon Pledge
	President Trump will have less power or more power depending on the area of public policy. For instance, John McCain, Lindsay Graham and other national security Republicans will work with Democrats to block Trump's impulses on NATO. Trump's tax plan will have less traction than whatever Paul Ryan and House Republicans want as their initial proposal. But Trump has the ability through executive order and executive action to deflate America's fragile role in carbon reduction. Other than federal courts blocking executive orders that overreach, it is difficult to say where the line of defense on climate change is at the federal level. At the state and local and personal level, one part of the line of defense is you. If Trump's actions end up making carbon emissions 10% higher than they would have been, it's time for each of us to figure out how to decrease our carbon impact by at least that same level. So here's your assessment tool.

I will send more in a few weeks for those who would like to hear. If you find this of interest, please feel free to forward it to your friends. If you would prefer not to receive future messages like these, please reply back to me. At this point, we may feel that the greatest danger is that we won't be able to stop thinking about the results of Tuesday, November 8, because the outcome is so far from what we want for ourselves and our country. Over time, the greatest danger is the opposite, that all the battles and wins and losses will take their toll on us, and we will let ourselves turn away from the greatest challenge we face. Let's stay focused and intentional and forward thinking and not let that happen.

David Harrison
Bainbridge Island, Washington