Take Three Actions Now:Call the White House and Urge Biden to Get Senators on Board Now for Filibuster Reform and Protecting the Freedom to Vote!  Breaking news: the White House finally opened its comment line!! So let’s flex our Olympia Indivisible muscles and tell him that he needs to be urging Democratic Senators NOW to make filibuster reform and passage of voting rights legislation their top priority. Action 1: Call the White House at 202-456-1111 Tues-Thurs, 8am-12pm. Script: Hello, my name is ________, I live in __________, my zip code is _______ and I voted for you in 2020. President Biden, I want you to wield your power NOW to let Senators know that failing to reform the filibuster and protect voting rights enables Republicans to cheat their way to power for the next ten years. Use your bully pulpit, reach out to Senators and urge them to make filibuster reform and passage of S.1 their number one priority when they return from recess. Tell Our Representatives to Speak Up Now in Support of Filibuster Reform and Passing Voting Rights Protections Speaker Pelosi has a revised John Lewis Voting Rights Bill ready to go when Congress returns. We must pass it along with the For The People Act. We can still push back against the GOP war on democracy if we act now. Action 2: Call our Senators and Representative Strickland right now and make your voice heard.
Or, if you prefer, send a letter to the editor at The Olympian, the Nisqually Valley News (Yelm, Centralia), Mason County Journal, or your local newspaper. Suggested Script (or LTE): Whatever our politics, we all want fair elections that give all voters a say in decisions such as health care, taxes, jobs, and a sustainable future. But right now, Republican state legislatures across the nation are suppressing the freedom to vote and giving themselves power to overturn elections if they don’t like the results. Poll after poll shows that American voters--both Republicans and Democrats--support passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights bill and the For the People Act, bills which provide nationwide voting protections for federal elections. Right now, GOP Senators are using the filibuster to kill these bills. 40 Senators representing a small share of the population should not get to block widely popular legislation. Senators Murray and Cantwell, Representative Strickland, we need you to publicly speak up right now in support of ending or reforming the filibuster to get these vital bills passed, and to make their passage your #1 priority after the August recess. Support a Regional Home Fund Tax to Support Low-income Housing Let the Thurston County Board of Commissioners know you would approve of a home fund tax to support low-income housing. County staff are preparing plans specifying how a regional home fund would be used. We need to let the regional authorities know we support the idea. At this time, we do not know what the tax would cost, only that it would raise about $4.5 million to $5 million per year. The county does not want to move forward without support from the cities, so we are asking the cities to send a formal letter of support to the county. Read more in the 8/15/2021 Olympian article: Are you ready to pay a tax in Thurston County to support low-income housing? Action 3: Send email letters to the Olympia City Council, the Tumwater City Council, the Lacey City Council, Yelm Mayor and the Board of County Commissioners asking them to (action)
Your message will have more impact if all messages are not the same. If you can, please modify the script to add your own words and talking points from the background information below. Affordable Housing can:
Script: Dear City Council Members and Thurston Commissioners, I’m writing to let you know that I support a Regional Home Fund Tax to support low-income housing and am asking the Thurston Cities to send a formal letter of support to the Thurston Board of County Commissioners. <<<<Add your talking points here>>>> Sincerely, [NAME] from [CITY],[ZIP] Supporting Our Candidates OI’s Lacey Residents - Hear How Robin Vazquez, Running for Lacey City Council, Stands on Affordable Housing. People need places to live and access to affordable housing: “As a current Lacey Planning Commissioner, I’ve supported code changes that balance the interests of business, the environment, and residents. We need to increase our supply of housing. People want to live in Lacey, and we need to make sure there’s a place for everyone that they can afford.” Have you scheduled these events? SHOW UP! Saturday, August 28! WASHINGTON Statewide Stand Up for Voting Rights! Since January, 48 states have introduced 389 bills that amount to shameful, outright voter suppression, and many have already become law. These laws suppress voting methods that enrich our democracy and lead to high turnout. March On for Voting Rights will call on the Senate to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the For the People Act on Saturday, August 28th, when millions join the March On for Voting Rights in D.C., Phoenix, Atlanta, Houston, Miami and more than 40 other cities across the country to make their voices heard. We will also call for the Senate to remove the filibuster as a roadblock to critical voting rights legislation. Aug 28, 2021 12:00 PM in Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Fix Democracy First, WA Indivisible Network & League of Women Voters of WA for a statewide virtual non-partisan event to stand up for voting rights! We will have speakers and music including: • MC - Rebecca M. Davis • Music from Cameron Lavi-Jones & band members from King Youngblood • Music from Songs for Good • Senator Rebecca Saldaña – WA LD 37 • Senator Mona Das – WA LD 47 • Senator David Frockt – WA LD 46 • Representative Mia Gregerson – WA LD 33 • Former WA Representative Jesse Wineberry • Julie Wise – King County Elections Director • Crystal Langhorne – Director of Community Relations, Seattle Storm & two-time WNBA champion • Paul Benz – Co-director of Faith Action Network • Plus Special Video Messages from Martin Luther King, III & Reverend Terrance McKinley REGISTER HERE to attend. Town Hall with Representative Marilyn Strickland, Friday, September 10, 2021 at 10am Join Olympia Indivisible, Indivisible Tacoma and WIN in welcoming Washington’s freshman Congresswoman, Rep. Marilyn Strickland. Learn how Washington’s first African American Congresswoman (and first Korean American Congresswoman) sees her first half year in office, what her priorities are, and what she sees ahead for both Washingtons. REGISTER: https://bit.ly/Strickland_TownHall |
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