You can make a difference
Moving forward
Trump’s win has created “renewed interest in progressive activism. Since Election Day thousands of Americans have newly joined the loose coalition of online and in-person groups aimed at challenging Trump’s policies in court and in Congress, according to several of the organizers.
While plenty of Democrats are tired, frustrated and tuning out the news, the coalition of anti-Trump resistance groups that were hastily put together in 2016 and 2017 already have the infrastructure in place to continue the fight… Ezra Levin, co-founder of the progressive non-profit organization Indivisible, told USA TODAY that 11,000 people showed up to an election result debriefing call Indivisible held the day after the election and more than 40,000 were on a call announcing a new version of the Indivisible Guide a week later, numbers he hasn’t seen since 2017.” (USA Today)
Join us on Wed., Dec. 4, at 6pm at the Merrillville Library as we move forward–with discussion and plans for action. We’ll gather to hear updates, discuss, and plan actions we can take now and moving forward. We’ll use the new Indivisible Guide to help direct us, but we need your input too. Please read through the guide at https://indivisible.org/ for their insights and to help you decide on actions we can take that will be most effective. We will win and we’re starting now. Please register here–and bring a friend!
The House voted again on H.R. 9495 — the nonprofit killer bill — and unfortunately, it passed. But that’s not the end of the story.
Your calls were important.
The goal here was not to stop a Republican-backed bill from getting through a Republican-controlled House. It was to unite Democrats against the bill to decrease the chance of it getting tacked onto some must-pass piece of legislation that’d make it extraordinarily hard to stop in the Senate.
And thanks to your calls, Democratic opposition to this bill was overwhelming. Last week, 52 Democrats voted YES. This time, only 15 did.
34 Democratic reps changed their minds and voted NO this time. Why? Because of your calls.
So now, what’s next?
First off, if your representative voted no, please thank them (you can check here). (Find your representative here) Here in the 1st District, Congressman Mrvan changed his vote to no and we need to thank him–https://mrvan.house.gov/contact and/or (202) 225-2461. We all made lots of calls to him–and he listened.
And finally, we’ll keep you updated on the fight in the Senate. Democrats still control the chamber, so there’s NO reason this should end up on the president’s desk. The only fear remains that it could be included in must-pass legislation and Democrats will hold their nose and vote for it — but we’re gonna fight to stop that from happening.
Thank you again for making these calls. We’ve rarely seen so many members of Congress turn around so quickly on a piece of legislation. That’s the power of grassroots activism, and it’s power we’re going to need to wield often in the months and years ahead.
Call Your Senators (find yours here)
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
I know HR 9495 passed in the House yesterday, and I’m very disappointed about it. I’m hearing that Senator Schumer won’t bring it up in the Senate this session, which I’m glad about, but I worry it could get put into a must-pass bill before the end of the year. I oppose this bill strongly—it would give Donald Trump unlimited power to shut down nonprofits he doesn’t like—and I want the Senator to vocally oppose it. Please ask him/her to make a statement saying that s/he will vote against any package that contains it this session, and that they will be a staunch opponent going forward. Thanks.
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is ______.
First, the White House just sent Congress a $98.4 billion bill to help the Southeast recover from recent storm damage. I want Congress to pass it quickly.
Second, I know that Congress will soon be passing a stopgap funding package. I’m asking that it not cut funding to the IRS. The recent IRS funding increase has paid for itself many times over. We’ve seen over $1.3 billion in back taxes recovered from wealthy tax dodgers; the average wait times for taxpayer-assistance calls reduced dramatically, and Direct File saving taxpayers millions of dollars. These things matter. Please keep the IRS funded. Thanks. [H/T]
Call Your House Rep (find yours here)
Hi, I’m a constituent calling from [zip]. My name is _______.
First, I urge the Congressmember to keep pushing the House Ethics Committee to release the full results of their investigation into former representative Matt Gaetz. The allegations against him go to the heart of his fitness for any role in public service. Even though Gaetz has dropped out as a nominee for Attorney General, we still deserve transparency and accountability.
PASS THE ERA NOW! Contact President Biden and Congress and demand this now!
President Biden can stop Project 2025 from rolling back women’s rights, reproductive rights, and LGBTQ rights by publishing the fully ratified Equal Rights Amendment in the US Constitution before he leaves office. Please reach out to President Biden and your Congresspersons daily, and ask your friends to do so as well.
Email: https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/share/
Phone: 202-456-1111 (Tuesday through Thursday only)
Text: (302) 404-0880 (You will get a reply back that you need to enroll, then you can write whenever you want)
Social media: @ POTUS
President Biden, please instruct the US Archivist to certify and publish the ERA in the Constitution before you leave office. It’s an easy way to protect women and LGBTQIA+ people from Project 2025 and the Trump agenda. Thanks.
You can also sign this petition saying more or less the same from the League of Women Voters.
Someone on Bluesky posted a link to this great google doc, which lists organizations in every state that will help immigrants being targeted by Trump’s deportation policies. It will be updated continuously. Consider bookmarking and sharing it so that those looking for help can use it as a resource.
This column about Trump’s mass deportation plan by Maribel Hastings from America’s Voice is worth a read. It ran in several Spanish-language media outlets earlier this week. It gives you a good sense of the history, the potential for what’s coming, and the folks who are planning to execute it. None of it is pleasant to contemplate, but all of it must be understood in order for us to be prepared.
You can do your part to stop the spread of election disinformation this holiday season – one conversation at a time.
Election lies can spread easily and confuse voters in our communities. Misinformation and disinformation are rampant – especially with the rise of social media.
That’s why Common Cause wants to help you have more productive and impactful conversations with friends and family as the holidays approach.
Join them on December 5 at 7PM Central Time for their Talking to Friends and Family training, where they will empower members to build community resilience to election misinformation.
Register here.
Calls to action are from Chop Wood, Carry Water by Jessica Craven. You can subscribe here.
If you live in Illinois, or have a democratic senator, email them asap to insist they approve federal judges during this lame duck session while democrats still have senate control. Indivisible has an easy to use form to do just that: https://act.indivisible.org/sign/tell-your-senators-fill-every-judicial-vacancy-now
We are on BlueSky, an increasingly popular social media platform–with rules and guardrails and is similar to the old Twitter. If you’re not on it and want to join, just download the app, Bluesky Social. After you download it, follow their prompts to create an account. Then search for us–IndivisibleNWI and follow us.
Congress
House Republicans locked in their majority and top leadership positions for the looming 119th Congress, as the conference readies its slim majority to legislate under full GOP control of Washington. GOP lawmakers unanimously nominated Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to retain the gavel, sending his candidacy to the House floor for a full vote in January.” (The Hill)
On Capitol Hill, incoming Senate Majority Leader, Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), sought to quell any doubts among the GOP that he can’t work with Trump in the hours before his colleagues narrowly voted for him to lead them, insisting there was “no daylight” between him and the president-elect.
“This Republican team is united. We are one team, we are excited to reclaim the majority and get to work with our colleagues in the House to enact President Trump’s agenda,” Thune told reporters after the closed-door election on Wednesday. “We have a mandate from the American people — a mandate not only to clean up the mess left by the Biden-Harris-Schumer agenda, but also to deliver on President Trump’s priorities.” (The Hill)
Legislation & Nominations
In the first week back after the election, both the House and the Senate got a little work done. These are the same legislators that were serving before the election since newly elected legislators don’t take office until January 3 at noon, when the 119th Congress begins.
House
Passed 219 – 184 (This bill “would give the incoming Trump administration new power to muzzle, punish, and effectively shut down tax-exempt organizations without transparency or appropriate due process. This misguided piece of legislation would impact a wide range of tax-exempt organizations, including nonprofits, universities, and even news outlets.” ACLU) All Indiana representatives voted yea except Reps Mrvan and Carson who voted nay. View the vote.
- H.R. 82: Social Security Fairness Act of 2023, which would repeal the government pension offset and windfall elimination provisions, passed 327-175. It goes to the Senate next. If the Senate doesn’t act by January 3, 2025, the bill will die. But given that it garnered enough House support to both get a discharge petition and pass, it will likely be reintroduced in the next Congress. All Indiana representatives voted yea except Reps Baird and Spartz who voted nay. View the vote.
- H.R. 8446: Critical Mineral Consistency Act of 2024, which would combine the Department of Energy list of critical minerals with that of the US Geological Survey (thus, according to Politico, benefiting copper mining interests), passed 245-155. All Indiana representatives votes yea except Rep Carson who voted nay and Mrvan who did not vote. View the vote.
- H.R. 7409: HEATS Act, which would allow entities drilling for geothermal energy to skip federal permitting if the US government holds less than a 50% interest in the sub-surface area being drilled, passed 225-181. All Indiana representatives voted yea except Reps Mrvan and Carson who voted nay.
- HR 1449 CLEAN Act “H.R. 1449 amends the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to promote geothermal energy development. The bill requires annual lease sales for geothermal energy, replacing the previous two-year cycle, and mandates replacement sales if scheduled lease sales are canceled or delayed. It also requires the inclusion of all eligible land nominated for development. Additionally, the bill establishes deadlines for the review and decision of geothermal drilling permits to streamline the application process.” (Issue Voter) Passed 244-171 with all Indiana representatives voting yea except Rep Carson who voted nay.
Senate
- On the Nomination PN923: David Huitema, of Maryland, to be Director of the Office of Government Ethics for a term of five years the vote was 50-46 on party lines. You can get more detail on the vote from Government Executive.
Several noncontroversial bills passed in both chambers, and judges were confirmed in the Senate. This page shows the outcome of all recorded votes on the Senate floor and House floor: https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes. It does not include votes in committee.
To find and contact your Members of Congress: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials
In other news
A straight forward list of cabinet nominees so far: CBS News.
Sexual assault or abuse or rape allegations and/or other controversies surround at least four of Trump’s remaining picks—RFK Jr. for HHS Secretary, Linda McMahon for Education Secretary, Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary, and Tulsi Gabbard for Director of National Intelligence. (U.S. News and World Report)
“On the surface, President-elect Donald Trump’s transition is ahead of schedule, with intended nominees for almost all Cabinet posts already announced. But, because of a paperwork problem, Trump’s team is behind when it comes to the nitty-gritty of taking over the controls of power. They are missing out on access to agencies and national security briefings meant to help the incoming administration hit the ground running.
Now nearly three weeks after the election, the Trump transition has failed to sign at least three required formal agreements, memoranda of understanding, with the Biden administration. Under law, two of these documents were supposed to have been signed by Oct. 1.” (NPR)
“As controversy continues to cloud some of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks, his team has an ominous warning for Republicans who don’t fall in line behind his nominees.
ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl reports that one senior Trump adviser said the message to lawmakers is, “If you are on the wrong side of the vote, you’re buying yourself a primary.”” (ABC)
Indiana
“A charity. A school corporation. A public health department. An economic development group. A private business. A national refugee workforce nonprofit.
These six entities across three Indiana cities were targeted by the Indiana Attorney General’s Office for an investigation into “coordinated efforts … to bring large numbers of migrants to Indiana communities,” according to an office press release.” (Indiana Capital Chronicle)
“A two-year task force on Wednesday released broad suggestions for property and income tax changes, but left the specifics to business tax recommendations… Democrats assailed the recommendations as not providing enough relief to Hoosier taxpayers, and for giving “handouts” to businesses” (Indiana Capital Chronicle)
