Democracy Happy Hour - April 09, 2025

Fix Democracy First hosts a weekly Democracy Happy Hour on Wednesdays @ 5-6:30pm PT. Grab a drink and join us and learn about the latest democracy efforts, challenges, solutions, as well upcoming events and actions.

This is a recurring event. You only have to register once.

Leaving MAGA  

With Rich Logis

• Speaker View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/nGBYjyhxwj94SYBPJnqCMf3iy2YVEr3th8u7clRSVM4yMaTVHdisDz1d5ueROky4Olf1Epo_T_FHzgPj.EtKRaebujKETKlzn

• Gallery View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/BDSD3ic5LTs4fOywg8OUeuh_-TESQt8LUm21uY6C40SObnC1accWLbc19wFtdgeH6MR-uH-zxcS6SjBH.0wQ-scMpwOCvaUH_

• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/LQXoj6EqO6LdWz43nyugyA9l-JymqPbcgYpuE05kZ3CJk0CdYxYSYrrF6iIk_-W0p0fh0wDTYiJ6EXc.nlBqr6Z5lrVAWCAE

• Closed Caption file (will download directly to your computer): https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/Ysbt-Rkict2d5cCyNiLft-zB8W7tozgh1FTVlVeUw7lAooXz6A0E-r5UQr1i81Ky5pzyy9dIc2-oXIp6.YthzE5B-jcPw3k_X

Meeting resources

Leaving MAGA - https://leavingmaga.org

• Donate: https://leavingmaga.org/donate/
• YouTube Channel
  https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX_rWdQSOcZMZjdaSQUkgFlegPNmGSdRk&si=b9qs_k5Y6GArDJOZ
• Leaving MAGA's Guide On How To Talk to Friends and Family in MAGA
  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Vrela7UXXeeaT6KAwN0QzNdSwgGdCyR2O9XCuJN6WdA/edit?usp=share_link
• My MAGA Odyssey By Rich Logis  https://leavingmaga.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/E-book-Leaving-MAGA.pdf
• Leaving MAGA/Meidas Touch (Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQYXzutwwUc&list=PLX_rWdQSOcZMZjdaSQUkgFlegPNmGSdRk&index=19

FDF Links

• Fix Democracy First - https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/
• Donate to Fix Democracy First here: https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/donate

Democracy Happy Hour Upcoming Topics/Schedule

• Apr 23 - Election Methods Used for Proportional Representation with Chris Mason
• Apr 30 - Stories Change Power: The Nine Rights Framework with Piper Hendricks
• May 7 - Healthy Democracy Ecosystem Map with Carolyn Lukensmeyer
• May 14 - CANCELED - No Democracy Happy Hour this week (Cindy will be in Phoenix for the American Democracy Summit).

Actions and events

Actions

• 5 Calls - https://5calls.org/
• 50 50 1 - https://www.fiftyfifty.one
• How You Can Protect Democracy - 29 concrete actions you can take right now to protect democracy - https://protectdemocracy.org/how-to-protect-democracy
• Join a local Indivisible group - https://indivisible.org/groups
• Join Braver Angels - https://braverangels.org/get-involved/#become-member
• Paths to Understanding - The Potluck Project – https://pathstounderstanding.org/get-involved/potluck
• Protect Public Media Funding - https://protectmypublicmedia.org/
• Seattle Democracy Voucher Program Levy Renewal
  • Join People Powered Elections Seattle for Governance Committee Vote on April 10th @ 2 pm - https://secure.everyaction.com/RYSCP7UpTkCw8QdzGyLYMA2
  • Join People Powered Elections Seattle for Council Vote on April 22nd @ 2 pm - https://secure.everyaction.com/f4h8tRpWz0SABcol7DqGrA2
  • Tell the Seattle City Council: Let Voters Decide on Democracy Vouchers! - https://secure.everyaction.com/2XR0Ijpa30-GVxtlTUFIKw2
• Share Your Democracy Story, Declaration for American Democracy  -  https://dfadcoalition.org/story
• Stop the SAVE Act (emails) -  https://win.newmode.net/declarationforamericandemocracycoalition/stopthesaveact
• Tell your members of Congress to oppose the SAVE Act - https://www.lwv.org/take-action/tell-your-members-congress-oppose-save-act

Events

• We’re Worth Fighting & Other Events with Election Response Center - https://www.mobilize.us/electionresponsecenter/?utm_source=fixdemocracyfirst

Democracy in the News

Resources

• All of the Trump Administration’s Major Moves in the First xx Days - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/us/trump-agenda-2025.html
• Democracy 2025 – Democracy 2025 is the strategic hub to protect people and their rights should the Trump-Vance administration seek to unlawfully strip away freedoms and prosperity. -  https://www.democracy2025.org/
• How Washington state is suing Trump in his second term - https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2025/02/18/lawsuits-washington-state-trump-musk
• Report: How Does Gen Z Really Feel about Democracy? - https://circle.tufts.edu/report-genz-attitudes-democracy
• The People's Hub For Grassroots Democracy Organizing  - https://www.usgrassroots.org/
• Trump Administration Highlights - https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/03/18/us/trump-president-news
• What has Trump done today? - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2025/trump-administration-actions

April 2025

April 01

• Citizenship-verification voting bill clears its first House committee stop - https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/04/01/citizenship-verification-voting-bill-clears-its-first-house-committee-stop/

April 03

• 19 states sue over Trump's voting executive order, arguing it's unconstitutional - https://www.npr.org/2025/04/03/nx-s1-5351751/voting-executive-order-lawsuit
• Florida House passes bill tightening rules for ballot petition drives on amendments - https://www.staugustine.com/story/news/local/state/2025/04/03/house-citizens-petitions-bill/82794119007/
• Georgia Senate passes bill that will change state's election laws. What to know about HB 397 -https://www.savannahnow.com/story/news/2025/04/03/georgia-elections-could-drastically-change-thanks-to-hb-397/82789353007/
• How Trump’s trillions in new tariffs could affect America — and you - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/03/trump-tariffs-affect-countries-economy
• K-12 schools must sign certification against DEI to receive federal money, administration says - https://apnews.com/article/dei-trump-school-discrimination-federal-funding-7d1025753b9bd924711ace4069fca399

April 04

• Over 500 law firms sign brief backing Perkins Coie suit against Trump - https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/500-law-firms-sign-brief-backing-perkins-coie/story?id=120499725
• Proposed 2026 ballot initiative in California would require voter ID - https://spectrumnews1.com/ca/southern-california/politics/2025/04/04/effort-underway-in-california-to-require--voter-id-
• Ruling says more than 60,000 N.C. voters must prove eligibility in court race - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/04/north-carolina-court-race-voter-eligibility/
• Supreme Court allows Trump to halt millions in teacher training grants - https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/04/supreme-court-allows-trump-to-halt-millions-in-teacher-training-grants/
• Voting Rights Act Returns to the Supreme Court - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/voting-rights-act-returns-supreme-court
• Washington and Oregon sue over Trump elections order, saying mail voters could be disenfranchised - https://apnews.com/article/trump-elections-executive-order-oregon-washington-ff9a9cb29a8d886752437e56734df8b4

April 05

• ‘Hands Off!’ protesters across US rally against President Donald Trump and Elon Musk - https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/05/us/hands-off-protests-trump-musk/index.html
• Mass Protests Across the Country Show Resistance to Trump - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/05/us/politics/anti-trump-protests-hands-off.html
• Obama calls on citizens, colleges and law firms to resist Trump agenda - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/05/obama-trump-universities-intimidation
• The White House Frames the Past by Erasing Parts of It - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/05/technology/trump-history-websites.html

April 06

• Doge’s attack on social security causing ‘complete, utter chaos’, staff says - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/06/musk-doge-social-security
• Trump says he’s not backing down on tariffs, calls them ‘medicine’ as markets reel - https://apnews.com/article/trump-tariffs-recession-financial-markets-negotiations-retaliation-860760cdc1aa2cc58853c9aab987e36d
• Trump’s election order would add barriers for military voters - https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/06/politics/trump-election-order-military-voters/index.html
• Will Extreme Spending and Partisanship Undermine Trust in State Supreme Courts? - https://www.propublica.org/article/wisconsin-supreme-court-musk-crawford-schimel-partisanship-elections

April 07

• Appeals court restores DOGE access to sensitive information at US agencies - https://apnews.com/article/doge-access-appeals-court-ruling-e78bb07eaf81411274db566309cbccbf
• Democrats launch new ‘war room’ to counter Trump and Republicans - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/07/democrats-influencers-social-media-outreach
• N.C. Supreme Court Halts Voter Eligibility Review in Contested Judicial Race - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/07/us/politics/north-carolina-supreme-court-election-ballots.html
• Supreme Court lifts hold on Venezuelan deportations to El Salvador for now - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/07/supreme-court-venezuela-gang-alien-enemies-act

April 08

• China says it will ‘fight to the end’ after Trump threatens to impose still more tariffs - https://apnews.com/article/china-us-tariffs-trade-trump-b5010acb08114304d8c36267b47eda13
• IRS chief to quit over deal to share data with immigration authorities - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/08/irs-dhs-tax-data-immigrants
• In Trump Cases, Supreme Court Retreats From Confrontation - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/us/supreme-court-trump-confrontation.html
• Judge Rejects California’s Attempt to Block City’s Voter ID Law - https://myvalleynews.com/blog/2025/04/08/judge-rejects-californias-attempt-to-block-citys-voter-id-law/
• Lawmakers pass ban on approval, ranked-choice voting in North Dakota - https://www.inforum.com/news/north-dakota/lawmakers-pass-ban-on-approval-ranked-choice-voting-in-north-dakota
• Pronouns in Bio? You May Not Get a Response From the White House. - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/business/media/white-house-journalists-pronouns.html
• Senate sends vote center study, student ID voting ban, income tax cuts to governor - https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/04/08/senate-sends-vote-center-study-student-id-voting-ban-income-tax-cuts-to-governor/
• Supreme Court halts order to rehire probationary workers fired by Trump - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/08/supreme-court-halts-rehiring-probationary-federal-workers/
• Supreme Court lets Trump remove independent regulators, for now - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/08/supreme-court-halts-rehiring-probationary-federal-workers/
• Tariff Live Updates: Markets Soar After Trump Backs Down on Tariffs - https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/04/08/business/trump-tariffs-stock-market?nl=breaking-news&regi_id=109840226&segment_id=195639
• White House Must Allow The Associated Press Full Access to Trump, Judge Rules - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/us/politics/trump-ap-oval-office-access.html

April 09

• Congress seeks potential vote on SAVE Act this week - https://www.msnbc.com/way-too-early/watch/congress-seeks-potential-vote-on-save-act-this-week-236904005826
• Many lawyers who argue for Trump at Supreme Court are heading for the exit - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/09/trump-solicitor-general-office-lawyers-departures
• Trade war escalations spark bond sell-off as companies worry about economy - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/09/tariffs-stocks-bonds-markets
• US sees surge in bills seeking criminal punishments for protected speech - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/09/anti-protest-bills-trump

Good News Websites

• ABC Good News - https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/good-news
• Daily Good - https://www.dailygood.org/
• Democracy's Good News - https://www.democracygroup.org/topics/democracys-good-news
• Good News Network - https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/
• Politics & Government Good News - https://www.goodgoodgood.co/impact/democracy
• Sunny Skyz - https://www.sunnyskyz.com/good-news
• The Happy News - https://thehappynewspaper.com/

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