“When you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have to speak up. You have to say something; you have to do something.” – John Lewis
Post-Impeachment - Channel Anger Into Thanks
As we take a deep breath and step away from last week's Impeachment process and its shameful but not surprising conclusion, we have good reason to celebrate and thank the House prosecutors who did such an honorable job of presenting their case.
In addition, consider writing the Republican Senators who voted to convict. In the current political climate this was a courageous decision. While they are no doubt taking heat from critical constituents and colleagues, they deserve to hear from those of us who appreciate their willingness to put the Constitution and the rule of law ahead of politics: Republican Sens. Richard Burr (NC), Bill Cassidy (LA), Susan Collins (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Mitt Romney (UT), Ben Sasse (NE), and Pat Toomey (PA).
Get Up to Speed on the FL Legislature
Numerous bills are speeding through the committee process in Tallahassee that deserve our attention now. To learn how to stay up to date & take action
Join this week's Mandarin Indivisible Zoom - Tuesday, Feb 16 at 7 pm as Ida Eskamani offers an in-depth look at the Desantis Anti-Protesting bill. Click here for details & to RSVP.
Catch up on last week's BAM meeting - a great overview of important issues & how to weigh in.
Visit BAM's newly-updated Get Involved page for more information and ways to stay up to date on committee work. The majority of bills never make it to a vote. Support or opposition while measures are still in committee is one of our most effective tools.
Oppose Senate Bill 90 - Undercutting VBM
Tomorrow from noon to 3, the Senate Ethics & Elections committee will consider SB 90 - a measure to limit the duration of vote-by-mail (VBM) requests to only elections within the calendar year of the request. Current law allows one request to extend through the second calendar year of a regularly scheduled general election.
This is clearly a voter suppression measure - now that Democratic VBM has exceeded Republicans' previously robust use of this convenience. The proposed change would put new administrative roadblocks in front of all voters who want or need to vote this way, and significantly increase the time, effort and taxpayer expense for Supervisors of Elections to re-register VBM voters annually.
If you think the Legislature should be expanding opportunities to vote rather than limiting them, write the members of the committee TODAY and let them know.
More Events This Week
If Climate Change is a priority for you, don't miss this week's Beaches Democratic Club Zoom. Dr. Todd Sack will discuss how to add climate change to our local politics & our lives, and offer updates on the resiliency work of the Jacksonville City Council recent local polling on climate change. Join via Zoom on Tuesday, Feb 16, at 7 pm. Meeting ID: 931 841 0679
Local Gun Control activists Moms Demand Action are holding a Power Happy Hour Phonebank Thursday, Feb 18. "Pour your beverage of choice while we make calls TOGETHER to recruit volunteers for FL's Virtual Advocacy Day on March 15th