Focused Agenda
Focused Read, excerpts in 4-5 minutes
(Or more, dependent on how deep you want to go into bills ...)
Bookmark it, for future retweeting!
"House Democrats have passed nearly 400 bills. Trump and Republicans are ignoring them.
There’s a pervasive sense of legislative paralysis gripping Capitol Hill. And it’s been there long before the impeachment inquiry began.
For months, President Donald Trump has fired off tweet missives accusing House Democrats of “getting nothing done in Congress,” and being consumed with impeachment.
Trump may want to look to the Republican-controlled Senate instead.
Democrats in the House have been passing bills at a rapid clip; as of November 15, the House has passed nearly 400 bills, not including resolutions.
But the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee estimates 80 percent of those bill have hit a snag in the Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is prioritizing confirming judges over passing bills.
Congress has passed just 70 bills into law this year.
... Ten of those 70 bills this year have been renaming federal post offices or Veterans Affairs facilities, and many others are related to appropriations or extending programs ...
This has led to House Democrats decrying McConnell’s so-called “legislative graveyard,” a moniker the Senate majority leader has proudly adopted.
McConnell calls himself the “grim reaper” of Democratic legislation he derides as socialist, but
many of the bills that never see the Senate floor are bipartisan issues, like a universal background check bill, net neutrality, and reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act.
“From raising the minimum wage to ensuring equal pay, we have passed legislation to raise wages.
And we have passed legislation to protect and expand health coverage and bring down prescription drug prices,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said in a statement to Vox.
“We continue to urge Senator McConnell to take up our bills, many of which are bipartisan.”
McConnell is focused on transforming the federal judiciary instead... And he has refused to bring Democratic bills to the Senate floor in part to protect vulnerable Republican senators from having to take tough votes that could divide the GOP ahead of the 2020 election. ... "
... Trump is accusing Democrats of doing nothing as he refuses to work with them
... Trump isn’t the only one with a perception that very little is happening in Congress. Congress’s approval rating is a dismal 24 percent, with 72 percent disapproval, according to Gallup.
During the Republican-controlled Congress in 2017 and 2018, the two major legislative accomplishments of McConnell, Trump, and House Speaker Paul Ryan were a massive GOP tax cut and a bipartisan criminal justice reform bill in 2018.
The very end of Ryan’s time as speaker also saw Trump drive a government shutdown that continued into Pelosi’s tenure in 2019.
... As we near the end of the year, much of the media focus will continue to be on impeachment.
House Democrats will also be focused on a vote on a major bill to lower prescription drug costs (something Trump has said is a priority for him), the Voting Rights Advancement Act, and the National Defense Authorization Act.
(Emphasis is mine.)
Just because impeachment is the main story in Washington doesn’t mean policy work isn’t happening.
It just means it isn’t getting talked about as much...
Given the Senate could soon be consumed by an impeachment trial, the remaining weeks of 2019 could be the final opportunity for lawmakers in the upper chamber to advance legislation.
However, there are no signals that Republican Senate leaders will seize that opportunity.
Here’s a list of major bills the House has passed since January
House Democrats have passed a wide range of bills since they came to power in January, ranging from a sweeping anti-corruption and pro-democracy reform known as H.R.1, to bills to save net neutrality, pass universal background checks for guns, and reenter the United States into the Paris climate accords.
They have also put a large emphasis on health care, a defining issue of the 2018 election after Trump and Senate Republicans attempted to pass a bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.
Democrats have focused on bills to lower prescription drug costs, protect preexisting conditions, and condemning the Trump administration’s legal battle to strike down the ACA in the courts.
...Much of this agenda is sitting in the Senate.
There have been a few things House Democrats and Senate Republicans have agreed on: disaster relief aid, reopening the government after the shutdown, the resolution to end US involvement in the Yemen war, a bill to protect public lands, and a resolution disapproving of Trump’s use of emergency powers.
But on major policy issues — like health care and infrastructure, or even bipartisan ones like net neutrality, the Equal Pay Act, or even a simple reauthorization of the longstanding Violence Against Women Act —
Democrats’ bills are continuing to languish in the Senate.
House Democrats are expecting to take up House Resolution 3, a major health care bill to lower the cost of prescription drugs, before the Christmas break.
Although we’re not going to list all 400 bills for brevity’s sake, here’s a list of major bills and resolutions the House has passed so far.
Health care
House Resolution 259 — Medicaid Extenders Act of 2019
H.R. 1520, the Purple Book Continuity Act (bill aimed at lowering the cost of prescription drugs)
H.R. 1503, the Orange Book Transparency Act of 2019 (bill aimed at lowering the cost of prescription drugs)
Civil rights
H.R. 1 — For the People Act of 2019
H.R. 5 — Equality Act
H.R. 6 — American Dream and Promise Act
H.R. 7 — Paycheck Fairness Act
H.R. 124 — Expressing opposition to banning service in the Armed Forces by openly transgender individuals
Gun control
H.R. 1112 — Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2019
Environment
H.R. 9 — Climate Action Now Act
H.R. 1331 — Local Water Protection Act
S. 47 — National Resources Management Act
H.R. 2578 — National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2019
H.R. 205, 1146, 1941 — Banning Offshore Drilling on Atlantic, Pacific, Eastern Gulf and ANWR Coasts
Military/foreign affairs
H.R. 840 — Veterans’ Access to Child Care Act
H.J. Res. 37 — Directing the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Republic of Yemen that have not been authorized by Congress
S.J. Res. 7 — To direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Republic of Yemen that have not been authorized by Congress
H.R. 31 — Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019
H.J. Res. 30 — Disapproving the President’s proposal to take an action relating to the application of certain sanctions with respect to the Russian Federation
H.R. 4695 — Protect Against Conflict by Turkey Act
H.R. 676 — NATO Support Act
H.R. 549 — Venezuela TPS Act
Mueller report
H. Con. Res. 24 — Expressing the sense of Congress that the report of Special Counsel Mueller should be made available to the public and to Congress
Other major legislation
H.R. 1585 — Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019
H.R. 987 — Raise the Wage Act
H.R. 1500 — Consumers First Act
H.R. 1994 — SECURE Act/Gold Star Family Tax Relief Act
H.R. 2722 — Securing America’s Federal Elections (SAFE) Act
H.R. 4617 — Stopping Harmful Interference in Elections for a Lasting Democracy (SHIELD) Act
H.R. 1644 — Save the Internet Act of 2019
H.R. 2157 — Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019
H.R. 397 — Rehabilitation for Multiemployer Pensions Act (The Butch Lewis Act)
H.R. 2513 — The Corporate Transparency Act
H.R. 269 — Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2019
H.R. 251 — Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Program Extension Act
S.24 — Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019
H.R. 430 — TANF Extension Act of 2019
Concurring in the Senate Amendments to HR 251 — Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standard Program Extension Act
H.R. 790 — Federal Civilian Workforce Pay Raise Fairness Act of 2019
HJ Res. 46 — Relating to a national emergency declared by the President on February 15, 2019
H Res. 183 — Condemning anti-Semitism as hateful expressions of intolerance that are contradictory to the values and aspirations that define the people of the United States and condemning anti-Muslim discrimination and bigotry against minorities as hateful expressions of intolerance that are contrary to the values and aspirations of the United States, as amended
H Res. 194 — Rule Providing for Consideration of H.R. 1644 and H.R. 2021
H.R. 2480 — Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act
H.R. 375 — To amend the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 to reaffirm the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for Indian Tribes (also known as the “Carcieri Fix”)
( Courtesy of "VOX" )
Focused Thought in 30 seconds
Save it, for future retweeting!
Retweet it, to amplify Rosie The Riveter's message!
Focused Action shared in 30 seconds
(Part I)
(Part II)
You can retweet the Tweet here
Check out "The People For Kamala Harris on Facebook" for next steps!
Focused Point of Interest in 2 minutes
NEW: At the People For Kamala Harris group on Facebook we are adapting to our candidate for the Democratic Party 2020 Presidential Nomination's decision to suspend her campaign and we are still in it with here...
We have concluded that as strong supporters of her progressive agenda and of her ability to defend our democracy against an unchecked Russian attack on our elections (2016 and 2020) as a sitting Senator on the Senate Intelligence and Judiciary Committees we are going to continue to support her #ForThePeople agenda and her committee work (committee work particularly relevant to defending our democracy from within and from without).
As events continue to unfold in real time, we will be informing of and advocating for her key policy proposals in the Senate and, at some point, for those proposals to be incorporated in a progressive 2020 Democratic Party Platform so they might continue to survive and to thrive for the benefit of the American People.
It will be a Kamala focused group continuing to advance her agenda in the spirit of the question her mom used to ask her when she was not happy with what she perceived to be an injustice:
“Kamala, what are you going to do about it?”
It seems to a logical question for Kamala supporters to ask and to answer for our selves: If we are not happy with the shift recent shift in Kamala's status, what are we going to do about it?
We can start by recognizing she continues to be primarily a Senator for California but, congressional legislation, whether it originates in the House or in the Senate goes through a congressional process and to a president's desk for signing and is implemented across all of our states.
Further, as all Democrats voices are welcome by the Democratic National Committee we can also advocate for her key proposals to be considered for inclusion in the Democratic Party 2020 Platform.
It's a process!
You can check out our group here
In the meantime, you can read more about her voting record and her legislation on her senatorial website here (under the “about” section) here: https://www.harris.senate.gov/; you can follow here on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/SenatorKamalaHarris/; and you can follow here on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/SenKamalaHarris
( You can also follow The People For Kamala Harris Twitter feed here: https://twitter.com/PeopleHarris )
###
Consider what some of our best Democratic Party Leadership has had to say!
Focused Monthly Inspiration
( #itsNovember2020Now )
.
.
.
Just my random thought this week!
My Democratic Party biased thought for the week
MORE, if you want them!: See blogger's choice of sources/resources
↓↓↓↓↓↓
→ Some of my favorite Direct sources & resources for Democrats:
* ( My personal favored and most informative follows are also shared here, below, with the understanding that readers will always apply their own critical thinking to any information provided anywhere by anyone. #StrongerTogether does not share sources of information lightly but -- no one is perfect! -- so always #DistrustAndVerify -- even if it's me. I am using a "star" rating that is strictly based on my situational experience with the work of the media personality specifically in relation to issues of interest to me. )
Democratic Party Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, representative of The People at home & abroad while the President of the United States is MIA...
There is no better way to get your information than to #Go2TheSource
You can find the Speaker's website here
You can find the Speaker's Twitter feed here
You can find the Speaker's Facebook Page here
The Democratic Party Website
Also, NOT exactly a Democratic Party specific source under a GOP majority but a good place to hear and to watch speeches & hearings directly, i.e. #Go2TheSource C-SPAN
+
→ Some of my favorite, most active organizations:
Michelle Obama's initiative ...
"Who We Are
When We All Vote is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization that is on a mission to increase participation in every election and close the race and age voting gap by changing the culture around voting, harnessing grassroots energy, and through strategic partnerships to reach every American.
Launched in 2018 by co-chairs Michelle Obama, Tom Hanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Janelle Monae, Chris Paul, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw, When We All Vote is changing the culture around voting using a data-driven and multifaceted approach to increase participation in elections.
In the months directly before the 2018 midterm elections, When We All Vote organized 2,500 local voter registration events across the country, engaged 200 million Americans online about the significance of voting, and texted nearly four million voters the resources to register and get out to vote.
And we’re just getting started. We’re helping bring even more people into the voting process because when we all vote, we all do better. ... "
"Mission: National Security Action is dedicated to advancing American global leadership and opposing the reckless policies of the Trump administration that endanger our national security and undermine U.S. strength in the world. ... "
You can learn more here
(Full disclosure, I am a member!)
"Women are already the majority. Now Let's build a Supermajority.
Women are on the cusp of becoming the most powerful force in America. But to fundamentally transform this country, we need to work together. That’s where Supermajority comes in.
LET’S GET ORGANIZED
We’re building an inclusive, national membership of women who are connected, empowered, and taking action—from increasing their level of civic engagement and advocacy to voting in record numbers.
"Meet the people behind the politicians.
You can email your two Senators and your Representative in Congress in one email here
"Postcards to Voters are friendly, handwritten reminders from volunteers to targeted voters giving Democrats a winning edge in close, key races coast to coast.
What started on March 11, 2017 with sharing 5 addresses apiece to 5 volunteers on Facebook...
Now, we consist of over 20,000+ volunteers in every state (including Alaska and Hawaii) who have written close to 3 million postcards to voters in over 100+ key, close elections."
You can find Postcards to Voters here
Town Hall Project empowers constituents across the country to have face-to-face conversations with their elected representatives. We are campaign veterans and first time volunteers. We come from a diversity of backgrounds and live across the country. We share progressive values and believe strongly in civic engagement. We research every district and state for public events with members of Congress. Then we share our findings to promote participation in the democratic process.
This movement is diverse, open source, and powered by citizens. We are proud to be a part of it.
You can find Town Hall Project here
" Born from conversations between Governor Howard Dean and Secretary Hillary Clinton in the aftermath of the 2016 election, Onward Together was established to lend support to leaders — particularly young leaders — kicking off projects and founding new organizations to fight for our shared progressive values." here
Organizing for America and the Democratic National Redistricting Committee have merged in "All On The Line":
"Barack Obama Throws All His Weight Behind ‘Issue Of Singular Importance’
" Since #StandOnEveryCorner has grown, it’s become a stand by all of us to protect our democracy from corruption and treason...A stand not at your State Capitol, but in your own backyard. Not once every few months, but as often as you can here "
→ Fact checking organizations courtesy of the Society of Professional Journalists
in alphabetical order...
→ Some of my favorite, most informative
follows on Twitter include:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ US Intelligence | Author | Navy Senior Chief | NBC/MSNBC
⭐⭐⭐ Federal Government Operations | Vanity Fair | Newsweek | MSNBC Contributor | Author
⭐⭐⭐⭐ NBC News' chief foreign correspondent
⭐⭐ Foreign correspondent for @MSNBC and @NBCNews based in London
→ Some of my favorite, highly credible media -- at the moment:
→ Some of my favorite Talking Heads -- at the moment -- and their Twitter handles:
→ Some of my favorite media panelists -- at the moment -- and their Twitter handles:
✅✅✅✅✅ Wendy Sherman Director, Harvard Center for Public Leadership and Professor of Practice, Kennedy School Senior Counselor
Albright Stonebridge Group; Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs
✅✅✅ Jonathan Lemire White House reporter for AP; Political analyst for MSNBC & @NBCNews
✅✅✅✅ Joan Walsh national affairs correspondent for The Nation; CNN political contributor
✅✅✅ Heidi Przybyla USA TODAY Senior Political Reporter
✅✅✅✅ Jennifer Rubin Conservative blogger at @ WashingtonPost's Right Turn,MSNBC contributor
Intel community. @ NBCNews/@ MSNBC contributor
✅✅✅✅ Betsy WoodruffSwan Daily Beast reporter, federal law enforcement.
→ Some of my favorite legal analysts in the context of Putin attacked America to install Trump investigations, primarily seen on MSNBC:
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Katie Phang
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Glenn Kirschner
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Mimi Roacha
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Midwin Charles
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Glenn Kirschner
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Mimi Roacha
🗒️ 🗒️ 🗒️ Midwin Charles
→ Some of my favorite Democrat Party Leaders to follow on Twitter, not in elected office but proving knowledge & experience are positives & not negatives are:
Former First Lady Michelle Obama
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Former Labor Secretary/Today's DNC Chair Tom Perez
Note: I rarely get involved in primary races -- outside of those in my own area and unless there is a glaring reason that can not be ignored, I support Democratic Party nominees in general elections. I don't support bashing Democrats.
→ PARTY Informational
(Full disclosure, I am a life-long, registered Democrat!)
"To Whom It May Concern: By authority of the Democratic National Committee, the National Convention of the Democratic Party is hereby scheduled to convene on July 13-16, 2020 in TBD at an hour to be announced, to select nominees for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States of America, to adopt and promulgate a platform and to take such other actions with respect to such other matters as the Convention may deem advisable. ... "
"PREAMBLE We, the Democrats of the United States of America, united in common purpose, hereby rededicate ourselves to the principles which have historically sustained our Party. Recognizing that the vitality of the Nation's political institutions has been the foundation of its enduring strength, we acknowledge that a political party which wishes to lead must listen to those it would lead, a party which asks for the people's trust must prove that it trusts the people and a party which hopes to call forth the best the Nation can achieve must embody the best of the Nation's heritage and traditions. What we seek for our Nation, we hope for all people: individual freedom in the framework of a just society, political freedom in the framework of meaningful participation by all citizens. Bound by the United States Constitution, aware that a party must be responsive to be worthy of responsibility, we pledge ourselves to open, honest endeavor and to the conduct of public affairs in a manner worthy of a society of free people. Under God, and for these ends and upon these principles, we do establish and adopt this Charter of the Democratic Party of the United States of America."
What is the CPD? The Commission on Presidential Debates (the “CPD”) is a private, nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization. As a 501(c)(3) organization, it is eligible under federal law so serve as a debate sponsor. The CPD's primary mission is to ensure, for the benefit of the American electorate, that general election debates are held every four years between and among the leading candidates for the offices of President and Vice President of the United State. The CPD is an independent organization. It is not controlled by any political party or outside organization and it does not endorse, support, or oppose political candidates for parties. It receives no funding from the government or any political party, political actions committee or candidate. The CPD has sponsored general election presidential debates in every election since 1988. Although its plans for 2020 are in the developmental stage, it looks forward to bringing high quality, educational debates to the electorate in 2020 ...
You can read more here
.
.
.
(Linked) "...is our 2016 platform...a declaration of how we plan to move America forward. Democrats believe that cooperation is better than conflict, unity is better than division, empowerment is better than resentment, and bridges are better than walls.
It’s a simple but powerful idea: We are stronger together."
Owned, Created and Curated by Gail Mountain, this blog curates is often gently edits and/or excerpts select material for quick reading, with occasional personal commentary in the form of the written word and/or in the form of emphasis noted. Network For #StrongerTogether ! is not affiliated with The Democratic Party. in any capacity. This is an independent blog and the hope is you will, at a glance, learn more about the Party and you will, with a click or two, also take action on its behalf as it is provided!
( * As a privately owned blog, I reserve the right to edit or remove inappropriate comments such as hate, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, anti-Semitism, spam, advertising or personal/abusive attacks on other users.)
A long time Democratic Party activist, Gail Mountain is a former community organizer, journalist & personal planning coach with a focus on single moms working toward careers able to support them & their families, while working toward changing the systems that once served them through leadership training. She is a former Affordable Health Care for America Act advocate (2009!); a Hillary supporter who volunteered as a Grassroots Tweeter for Hillary, a Women's Outreach for Hillary member; an OFA Truth Team member; & a DNC Factivist member...currently a media influencer, digital activist/strategist, blogger and head of curation, editor and co-Founder of The People for Kamala Harris; an editor for Progress for Democrats on Facebook; a member of a closed group supporting Speaker Pelosi & her agenda, a member of Supermajority and a volunteer for Kamala Harris for the 2020 Democratic Party Nomination for President of the United States.
You can follow her Blog
at https://networkstrongertogether.blogspot.com & you can follow her on Twitter at GKMTNtwits
( find her on Twitter
*** Sometimes life gets in the way, and it has for me right now, delaying the release of my updated ebook but "How to Influence Media in Real Time!"is coming soon and in time to begin your conversation with media as we head into serious primary season.
What's in the book?:
( My updated ebook, "How to Influence Media in Real Time," will be ready soon. It will include updated examples of the conversations I have with some of my “media friends” and some updated indications that media can hear us! If you have left a donation toward my effort to help Democrats win in 2020, I will send you an updated copy as soon as it is ready. New donors who leaves a name and an email on my GoFundMe Page will get one as soon as it is ready to go! Thanking you in advance for your interest. I hope you will join me in helping media be the best they can be -- by being a media influencer, too, in your own way and at your own pace. )
*
See the League of Women Voters website:
*
...for Networking for Democrats today!
g. (Unapologetic Democrat)
✊ Resisting "Fake News"
No comments:
Post a Comment