{via @politico}

If you thought things can’t get any worse, you can count on 2020 to throw another wrench into the works. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman in history to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, died in Washington, from complications from cancer, at the age 87.

When I heard the news on Friday, a “F*CK” slipped out of my mouth and prompted Jon to look up and over from the couch, alarmed because I don’t usually throw the F-bomb around casually. But this seemed like the only appropriate response.

Losing Ruth Bader Ginsburg just 46 days away from the presidential election is bad news bears and it hit me in the gut. 

I don’t get too emotional when public figures die, after all,  I don’t know them personally, but damn, we needed RBG for just another few months. I know she was hoping and holding on to be around at least until election day. And damn, did she fight for us all, literally up until her very last day. 

The fact that days before her death, she dictated to her granddaughter that her “most fervent wish is that [she] will not be replaced until a new president is installed” tells you all you need to know about her. She knew how precarious the situation at the Supreme Court would become if she didn’t make it, that her death would have profound consequences for the court and the country.

And count on Mitch McConnell to have full hypocrisy on display a mere few hours after learning of RBG’s passing, vowing that he’d fill her empty seat on the Supreme Court ASAP. As you might recall, he was the one who didn’t allow for Antonin Scalia‘s seat to be filled during the remaining 11 months of the Obama administration. God, everything just seems so broken right now.

But to be honest, we were pinning a lot of hope on a single woman, when it’s really been up to us all along. 

Please vote in November! Tomorrow, Tuesday, September 22nd, 2020 is National Voter Registration Day! Make sure you double-check that you’re registered. If not, register! Make a voting plan. Vote early by requesting an absentee ballot. Encourage others to vote early.

Support Senate candidates in swing states by donating to the Get Mitch or Die Trying Fund (which will support the Democrats in the top Senate races in 10+ states) so we can flip the Senate. Vote Save America has raised more than 20 Million in the last 48 hours alone. It’s more important than ever that the Democrats take control back.

Rest in power, RBG, and thanks for everything. 

Also: what else you got, 2020?

{Photo by John Moore.}

Do you feel exhausted? I feel exhausted.

Not from the long days at the office, the early wake-up calls on gym day, or the weekends that fly by way too fast for my liking, but rather all the news – bad news – lately.

It’s not enough that Trump decides to meet with Kim Jong Un (and brags about it, although at this point, he hasn’t exactly accomplished anything), or that he makes up news (no, Germany’s crime rate is not up because of migrants), but now we’re separating kids – babies! – from their mothers and fathers on the Southern border. Under the Trump administration’s zero tolerance policy, we’re ripping families apart that cross the border to seek asylum. (FYI: there is no other legal way to seek asylum other than being physically present in the United States.)  What the eff is wrong with this administration?

I am sorry. I don’t have kids, I can’t possibly know what it’s like to be separated from my own flesh and blood, but I do have a functioning moral compass and it screams that “this is wrong on so many levels”. Can you imagine your baby being ripped out of your arms and taken away?

I was a very shy, very attached child and I can only imagine what it would have done to me to be forcibly removed from the arms of my parents. It would have been extraordinarily traumatic.

It IS traumatic for the thousands of children that have been taken away from their families. And the most cruel thing is the misleading and uncertainty both the children and parents are subjected to. Not knowing when – or if – you’ll be reunited with your family will do a number on you. Inevitably.

Dan Pfeiffer, former Senior Strategy and Communications adviser to President Obama and host of the podcast “Pod Save America”, said  “sad tweets are the new thoughts and prayers”. I couldn’t agree more. He was referring to members of Congress (mostly GOP), who continue to send sad tweets but aren’t doing anything to keep ‘check and balances’ on the Trump administration.

SAD TWEETS ARE NOT CHECKS OR BALANCES https://t.co/lPyDK379EH

— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) June 10, 2018

THIS would be (one of) the (many) time(s) to speak up and not be complacent in this madness.

I feel (angry and sad and anxious and) helpless on so many levels, but there is stuff we can do and I hope you will join me.

WHAT WE CAN DO:

1. CONTACT YOUR CONGRESS MEMBERS.

If you need to find out who your senators and representatives are, and how to contact them, find the information here.

You can call – use the script below – or you can also use Resist.bot (I’ve been using it for multiple actions in the past. It’s super-convenient and takes less than 5 minutes.).

Hi, my name is [YOUR NAME] and my zip code is [YOUR ZIP]. I’m urging the Senator/Representative [NAME] to denounce Trump’s family separation policy and use all of Congress’ authority to stop it immediately. This is very important to me, and I will be keeping it in mind when I vote in November. Thank you.

2. DONATE MONEY.  

This really is an easy thing you can do, if you have some spare change, that will go a long way and there are many, many places to which you can donate. J and I have gotten into the habit of frequently donating to the ACLU.

More specifically to the immigration issue you can support The Florence Project, an Arizona organization that offers free legal services to families in immigration custody, RAICES, is the largest immigration nonprofit in Texas offering free and low-cost legal services to immigrant children and families, and the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project. A ‘catch-all’ is ActBlue, which divides your contribution evenly between 14 organizations (including the ACLU and some others that were mentioned above) and works to protect migrant children from being separated from their families at the border.

3. PROTEST.

Families Belong Together is coordinating protests around the country. To find marches near you, search your zip code here. Indivisible is a great resource with local chapters as well.

4. VOLUNTEER.

If you speak Spanish, Mam, Q’eqchi’ or K’iche’ and have paralegal experience, the Texas Civil Rights Project, The Florence Project and RAICES are looking for volunteers. You can also get involved locally. Look up immigration-related organizations near you by entering your zip code and see if they are looking for volunteers.

5. MAKE IT HARDER FOR ICE* AND ORR** to disrupt these families by hitting the companies they contract with. 

Sleeping Giants has been on the trail of these companies and a friend of a friend has created a spreadsheet of all the companies that are contracting with ICE or involved in some way. Email addresses, twitter handles and scripts are included for each, making your job of copying & pasting easy! This list will be updated when possible, so check back for new entrants, too. (Via my friend Nilsa.)

6. VOTE.

If you’re not registered to vote, register TODAY. Primaries, midterms, elections 2020 – make sure your voice is heard. Now, especially NOW, is not the time to be complacent.

No matter what your politics are, separating families is inhumane and simply unacceptable. Please don’t look away but stand up to this nonsense.