Democracy Happy Hour - September 17, 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. Register here.

National Popular Vote

With Dr. John Koza, board chair

• Speaker View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/i4hhmVWx-pWNwi0M0vdJSl-1RcR2z6AXWkRY_Rea4qkhiHb5C7s4_wf_GuE2yhCT8ACAKvnSITead0YY.I2k_VAADFBzYxxB8

• Gallery View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/3DJ3CIJOvLOj_Fb8_-bynGjHZ-cH9WFtuchw06dveNjdyH5BiouTn1Tlj6F1S3nJSPTtdVOnggKp31S9.9WZgA_lWr3s10TjY

• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/LCHPL4ntO4BELCcaMvzXNbrvoncjzrrO70k8-jquUWGCWCaGggkBRaYu_PbnOtlxrBdUwJSakDOtZpFd.nLFXZ5hFgeLnEvzY

• Closed Caption file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/qY-jfrJU9OgCkLUun58BtWzSYgUedk3Ypg_kWLZ7OXKlXwRfDN4QWyxzbETSg0TMaEOK95vUll1Kli1j.4aEeUk63R4lavd0d

Meeting resources

National Popular Vote - https://www.nationalpopularvote.com/

NPV - Introduction: What It Is - Why It's Needed - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMkQvyq47Vk

Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote - https://www.nationalpopularvote.com/written-explanation

Volunteer - https://www.nationalpopularvote.com/volunteer

Donate - https://www.nationalpopularvote.com/donate

Every Vote Equal: A State-Based Plan for Electing the President by National Popular Vote - https://www.every-vote-equal.com/

FDF Links

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

Fix Democracy First is looking for new board members! If interested, please apply to one or both of our boards. If you have any questions, please respond to this email.

• Fix Democracy First Education Fund (501c3) Board Application: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfXiaGJJ0bVqV5eqW2irfLHWrU0n8iwVIsDwDjtrTP36mEj5g/viewform
• Fix Democracy First (501c4) Board Application: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdtDKKTBsOo7X_nk-7POVUTpJ-K1vfP-U_zHQrW1Ke7JNfvug/viewform

Democracy Happy Hour Upcoming Topics/Schedule

• Sept 24– Impeach Trump. Again. Campaign with John Bonifaz, Co-Founder & President of Free Speech for People
• Oct 1 –  with Jim Rough & Zachary Weaver, The Wise Democracy Project: A rebirth of “We the People” Center for Wise DemocracyDemocracy in a Box
• Oct 8 – NO Democracy Happy Hour this week (Cindy has jury duty.)
• Oct 15 – with Tom Moore, Senior Fellow for Democracy Policy, Center for American ProgressThe New Strategy That Will Undo Citizens United

Actions and events

Actions

• Impeach Trump. Again. https://www.impeachtrumpagain.org/.  Sign the Petition: https://www.impeachtrumpagain.org/#action
• NO KINGS National Day of Action, Saturday, October 18^th - https://www.nokings.org/?SQF_SOURCE=fixdemocracyfirst
• Stand Up for Justice! Petition - https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stand-up-for-justice/
• The Oath Challenge - https://veteransforallvoters.org/oath

Events

• Stand Up for Democracy! Fix Democracy First Awards Dinner & Celebration - Seattle – Oct 25^th@ 5 pm – Get your tickets here: https://fixdemocracyfirst.salsalabs.org/awards-dinner-2025

Democracy in the News

Resources

• The Anti-Corruption Tracker: Mapping the Erosion of Oversight and Accountability - https://www.justsecurity.org/117267/anti-corruption-tracker/
• 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/
• H.R.5106 - Restore Trust in Congress Act - https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5106
• Open Secrets – Gun data - https://www.opensecrets.org/news/issues/guns?emci=6e06da8c-548e-f011-b484-6045bdeb7413&emdi=1ce163ff-1f8f-f011-b484-6045bdeb7413&ceid=14012889
• State of Emergency - Democracy, Civil Rights & Progress Under Attack  - https://stateofblackamerica.org/sites/default/files/2025-07/NUL-SOBA-Executive%20Summary-2025-web%20%281%29%20%281%29.pdf
• The future of voting rights - https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/08/the-future-of-voting-rights/
• The People's Hub For Grassroots Democracy Organizing  - https://www.usgrassroots.org/
• Timeline: Tracking the Trump Justice Department’s Anti-Voting Shift - https://www.democracydocket.com/timeline-tracking-the-trump-justice-departments-anti-voting-shift/
• Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/us/trump-administration-lawsuits.html

September 2025

September 05

• Congressional Stock Trading and the STOCK Act - https://campaignlegal.org/update/congressional-stock-trading-and-stock-act

September 09

• New Report: Attacks On Direct Democracy Doubled in 2025 - https://thefairnessproject.org/blog/2025/09/09/new-report-attacks-on-direct-democracy-doubled-in-2025/

September 10

• 33 million voters have been run through a Trump administration citizenship check - https://www.npr.org/2025/09/10/nx-s1-5477367/save-election-citizenship-data-trump
• House GOP advances bills to remove elected D.C. AG, overhaul justice policies - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/09/10/house-republicans-crime-home-rule/
• Justices’ Emergency Orders for Trump Sow Cracks in Judiciary - https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/supreme-court-emergency-orders-for-trump-sow-cracks-in-judiciary
• Missouri voters and lawmakers clash over who should be able to initiate constitutional amendments - https://apnews.com/article/ballot-initiatives-missouri-voters-ec41ae45ab3f5159d171996d4ec91577
• Trump’s Economic Agenda Hinges on the Supreme Court’s Tariff Ruling - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/10/us/politics/trump-tariffs-supreme-court.html
• Trump’s emergency order for DC is set to expire, but House moves to place new limits on the city - https://apnews.com/article/trump-washington-dc-intervention-crime-cc4d04f4c1051118d2f449448b173c7d

September 11

• Hundreds of thousands of Arizonans at risk of losing full voting rights - https://coppercourier.com/2025/09/11/arizonans-risk-losing-voting-rights/
• SC can give voter data to Trump administration, state Supreme Court says - https://scdailygazette.com/2025/09/11/sc-can-give-voter-data-to-trump-administration-supreme-court-says/
• Trump Administration Sharing Voter Data Across Agencies, DHS Confirms - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/trump-administration-sharing-voter-data-across-agencies-dhs-confirms/

September 12

• Missouri lawmakers pass gerrymandered congressional map, initiative petition limits - https://missouriindependent.com/2025/09/12/gerrymandered-congressional-map-initiative-petitions-limits-sent-to-missouri-governor/
• Missouri residents sue to strike down GOP’s gerrymandered congressional map - https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article312070971.html

September 13

• Appeals court upholds Florida law barring noncitizens from gathering voter petitions - https://www.keysnews.com/ap/state/appeals-court-upholds-florida-law-barring-noncitizens-from-gathering-voter-petitions/article_fbe573c7-cd42-5f93-aebb-8559ac63a75a.html
• Pentagon plan envisions 1,000 troops for Louisiana policing mission - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/09/13/trump-national-guard-louisiana/
• Republicans are trying to raise the bar for voters to amend their state constitutions - https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/republicans-are-trying-raise-bar-voters-amend-state-constitutions-rcna230717
• The California redistricting measure cites Texas, highlighting the partisan stakes - https://www.npr.org/2025/09/13/nx-s1-5527103/california-redistricting-ballot-measure-language-texas

September 14

• After Missouri, what state is next? A redistricting race started by Trump continues - https://www.npr.org/2025/09/14/nx-s1-5538407/after-missouri-what-state-is-next-a-redistricting-race-started-by-trump-continues
• Trump’s unpredictable Guard deployments send big-city mayors scrambling - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/09/14/trump-national-guard-memphis-losangeles/

September 15

• Appeals court rules felony offenders can’t be prosecuted for voting unlawfully by mistake - https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-voting-lawsuit-crime-punishments-866dd6c531cf322f7afc1bd273cdb48c
• Arkansas groups to kick off town hall tour to promote ballot measure - https://arkansasadvocate.com/briefs/arkansas-civic-groups-to-kick-off-town-hall-tour-to-promote-ballot-initiatives/
• Battle over Arizona’s election manual expands to citizenship checks, early voting, hand counts - https://www.votebeat.org/arizona/2025/09/15/republicans-challenge-secretary-of-state-adrian-fontes-election-procedures-manual/
• Fossil Fuel Industry Donors See Major Returns in Trump’s Policies - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/fossil-fuel-industry-donors-see-major-returns-trumps-policies
• Major Supreme Court Cases from the 2025–26 Term - https://www.britannica.com/topic/Major-Supreme-Court-Cases-from-the-2025-26-Term
• Missourians Could Block the GOP Gerrymander With a Referendum Vote - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/missourians-could-block-the-gop-gerrymander-with-a-referendum-vote/
• Ranked choice voting protects military and overseas voters - https://fairvote.org/report/ranked-choice-voting-protects-military-and-overseas-voters/
• Schwarzenegger urges Californians to oppose Newsom’s redistricting plan - https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/15/politics/arnold-schwarzenegger-california-redistricting
• The Corporate Power Reset That Makes Citizens United Irrelevant - https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-corporate-power-reset-that-makes-citizens-united-irrelevant/
• Trump deploys National Guard to Memphis, calling it a ‘replica’ of his crackdown on Washington - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-deploys-national-guard-to-memphis-calling-it-a-replica-of-his-crackdown-on-washington
• Trump threatens to take over DC police again over immigration enforcement - https://apnews.com/article/trump-dc-washington-law-enforcement-1b5c79e8fc7211349651959bce908ab0
• Undoing Citizens United and Reining In Super PACs - https://www.americanprogress.org/article/undoing-citizens-united-and-reining-in-super-pacs/

September 16

• 60 violations in 50 days: Inside ICE’s giant tent facility at Ft. Bliss - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/09/16/ice-detention-center-immigration-violations
• Bondi Prompts Broad Backlash After Saying She’ll Target ‘Hate Speech’ - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/us/politics/pam-bondi-hate-speech-charlie-kirk.html
• Georgia Supreme Court declines to let Fulton County DA Fani Willis return to Trump election interference case - https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/16/politics/fani-willis-georgia-supreme-court
• In Big Win for Voters, Utah Supreme Court Upholds Block on Gerrymandered Congressional Map - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/in-big-win-for-voters-utah-supreme-court-upholds-block-on-gerrymandered-congressional-map/
• Justice Department says it’s suing Oregon and Maine as it seeks voter data in multiple states - https://apnews.com/article/justice-department-voter-rolls-lawsuit-oregon-maine-53e2b03d9bd89750fe684d97c0d74511
• Trump files $15B defamation lawsuit against The New York Times - https://apnews.com/article/trump-lawsuit-new-york-times-b2a615192ebe2dcec859eb883368dfbb
• Trump Invokes Kirk’s Killing in Justifying Measures to Silence Opponents - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/us/politics/trump-kirk-free-speech-hate-speech-left.html
• Trump’s call to end mail-in voting creates a dilemma for GOP candidates who benefit from it - https://apnews.com/article/arizona-trump-mail-voting-nevada-battleground-elections-db29ea13f6c777d98e541bc2900b43b9
• Trump's Dept. of Justice requests Washington state's voter registration data - https://abc6onyourside.com/news/nation-world/dept-of-justice-requests-states-voter-registration-data

September 17

• Trump redistricting push threatens minority representation. Black voters worry about its impact - https://apnews.com/article/trump-redistricting-fight-naacp-65dd3035e7e4b4347a9be9e01d5158d8

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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