Dear OSTPDX,
WHAT A WEEK! On the heels of our exciting wins on Election Day (and that Blue Wave keeps rolling in), we activated on 24 hours’ notice to protest the illegal appointment of Matt Whitaker as Acting Attorney General. Thousands gathered throughout Oregon to support the Mueller investigation and the Rule of Law.
Back to those Midterms: Although we had a few disappointing results (the defeats of Jamie McLeod-Skinner and Carolyn Long locally and Beto O’Rourke nationally), OVER. ALL. WE. ROCKED.
In Oregon:
·We re-elected Kate Brown and elected a Democratic legislative super-majority! ·We upset Measure 101 proponent Julie Parrish and elected Rachel Prusak! ·We ran the table on ALL the ballot measures, defeating Measures 103-106 and approving the measures for affordable housing, clean energy, and campaign finance reform! ·OSTPDX supported the winning campaign in 15 of the 19 races where we took a position (and the Chrissy Reitz election is still too close to call)!
Nationally:
·Democrats regained control of the House by flipping 32 Congressional seats and may flip up to 40 once all the votes are counted! ·Most Democratic Senate seats in Trump states were successfully defended (WV, MT, OH, PA, WI – the FL race is too close to call) and Democrats flipped AZ and NV! ·Several Republican “poster boy” candidates were defeated: o Scott Walker (Governor – WI) o Kris Kobach (Governor – KS) o Dana Rohrabacher (Congress – CA) o Karen Handel (Congress – GA, flipping the seat formerly held by Rs — Tom Price and Newt Gingrich — for decades) ·Democrats made big gains in the states: o Flipped 7 governorships o Defended 7 governorships o Gained full control of 6 state governments o Gained partial control of 4 state legislatures o Flipped 367 state legislative seats ·“Gun sense” candidates, opposing the NRA agenda, made significant gains at the Congressional, state, and local levels.
You won’t want to miss our next monthly meeting tomorrow (see Announcements below), where our speakers Jim Moore, David Sarasohn, and Liz Kaufman will examine what the elections mean for us nationally and at the state and local levels. We’ll start to think about what we can accomplish in Oregon with the Blue Super-majority we’ll have in 2019.
On a personal note, this will be my last “Announcements, Activities, and Articles” newsletter as we will transition back to a bi-monthly publication put out by Sara McKinney. Sara took on the lion’s share of the work in the run-up to the midterms, when we sent out the newsletters on a weekly basis. Doing the newsletter been a blast for me, and Sara will continue to keep everyone informed. (THANK YOU, SARA!)
See what happens when we RESIST?!
Mary Chaffin
Check out our website – www.onesmallthingpdx.org – like our Facebook page — https://www.facebook.com/One-Small-Thing-150519055702228/ — follow our Twitter account — @onepdx – and follow me on Twitter — @mary_chaffin.
OSTPDX Election Results – LOOK AT WHAT WE DID!
OSTPDX took a position in 19 races. In supporting (or opposing) candidates and ballot measures, we canvassed, phone banked, held events, wrote post cards, letters to the editor and OpEd articles, fundraised, and worked behind the scenes to support campaigns. We had outstanding success, keeping Kate Brown in office, winning every ballot measure, a city council and a judicial race, and flipping a number of key legislative seats, leading to a Democratic super-majority:
· Kate Brown, Democrat for Oregon Governor – WON! · Jamie McLeod-Skinner, Democrat for OR-2 — defeated · Carolyn Long, Democrat for WA-3 — defeated · Robert Wagner, Democrat incumbent for OR S-19 – WON! · Charles Gallia, Democrat for OR S-20 — defeated · Rachel Prusak, Democrat for H-37 – WON! · Chrissy Reitz, Democrat for S-26 – too close to call – Chrissy is 333 votes behind · Tiffiny Mitchell, Democrat for H-32 – WON! · Anna Williams, Democrat for H-52 – WON! · Ben Souede for Multnomah Circuit Court, position 30 – WON! · Ulanda Watkins for Clackamas County Circuit Court, position 9 – WON! · Joanne Hardesty for Portland City Council – WON! · Measure 102 for constitutional amendment for affordable housing – APPROVED! · Measure 26-199 for affordable housing in the Metro region – APPROVED! · Measure 26-201 for Portland Clean Energy Initiative – APPROVED! · Measure 103 for constitutional amendment to ban tax on groceries and create loophole for grocery chains – DEFEATED! · Measure 104 for constitutional amendment requiring 3/5 vote to raise revenue) – DEFEATED! · Measure 105 for repeal of state sanctuary laws – DEFEATED! · Measure 106 for constitutional amendment banning public funding for abortion) – DEFEATED!
Thanks to our wonderful Midterms Task Force members, who researched these races and served as Point Persons for these campaigns. Our work benefitted not only OSTPDX members and the campaigns we supported but was also shared widely through social media and flyers and relied upon by other activist groups.
Announcements
Next OSTPDX Meeting will be TOMORROW, November 13 — “Midterms Wrap Up –What We Learned, Where We Are Going, and How Do We Keep a Grassroots Movement Growing”
Dr. Jim Moore, political commentator on OPB and professor of Political Science at Pacific University, David Sarasohn, columnist with the Oregonian and now a freelance writer and political commentator, and Liz Kaufman, political consultant and named in 2015 by Ballotpedia as top influencer of Oregon politics, will present their take-aways from one of the most important elections of our lifetimes.
The doors open at 6:45 p.m. at the SUBUD CENTER, 3185 NE Regents Drive.
Please stay after the meeting to mingle and ask further questions of the speakers over beer or sparkling water and snacks.
Listen Learn Lead on Sunday, November 18
Lagunitas Community Room 237 NE Broadway, Portland, Oregon 97232
We had great success in the midterms, but there is still so much work to be done and we need to STAY ENGAGED to keep this momentum going to get ourselves into a good position before 2020!
Join us for an inspiring night featuring short presentations to recharge and motivate you in preparation for the next phase of engagement.
Come at 6pm to enjoy free pizza and to purchase $5 beer and cider. Comedian Andie Main will start the program at 6:30.
Speakers include: -Congressman Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) -Courtenay Hameister (former host of Live Wire and author of “Okay Fine Whatever”) -Kalpana Krishnamurthy (National Field and Policy Director of Forward Together) -Elisa Camahort Page (author of “Road Map for Revolutionaries: Resistance, Activism, and Advocacy for All”) -Rabbi Debra Kolodny -Valdez Bravo (Vice Chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon)
Admission is FREE, but registration at the following link is required: https://form.jotform.com/82786768696181
Teens are welcome, but please note that the comedy routine at the beginning might contain inappropriate language.
Activities — Local
#ResistTrumpTuesday – November 13 From Indivisible Oregon
In the courtyard of Sen Wyden’s office 911 NE 11th Ave. Portland, OR 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Peaceful Mobilization Plan *If* Mueller or Rosenstein Is Fired
WE’VE ALREADY HAD TO DO THIS ONCE – THIS PAST WEEK. WE MAY HAVE TO DO IT AGAIN!
Nationwide Plan: http://TrumpIsNotAboveTheLaw.org/ Portland Plan: https://www.facebook.com/notes/indivisible-oregon/contingency-plan-in-the-event-of-mueller-firing/1388546547925260/
Be Ready!
Activities – National
Jeff Sessions’ forced resignation/firing as Attorney General has created a Constitutional crisis. Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker has argued against the Mueller investigation and is now overseeing it. The Mueller investigation is now defenseless. Mueller must complete his work. Congress must act now to pass legislation that protects Mueller. We must stop Trump from destroying our Constitution and the Rule of Law.
We must call AND email AND text/Resistbot our Members of Congress EVERY DAY until Whitaker recuses himself and legislation to protect Mueller is passed.
Call EVERY DAY Email EVERY DAY Text/Resistbot (50409) EVERY DAY
SAMPLE SCRIPT FOR SENATORS WYDEN AND MERKLEY AND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE:
“My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code]. America faces a Constitutional crisis – the Mueller investigation is defenseless. Congress must ACT NOW and pass legislation to protect Mueller. Trump is not above the law. Thank you.”
Articles
Thoughts on how the Democratic House should prioritize oversight https://wapo.st/2T9416e
A look at the agenda in the Democratic House https://nyti.ms/2qJf48V
A few examples of Trump’s callous behavior this past week – his statements on the California fires, failing to join world leaders in commemorating the 100thanniversary of the Armistice, not visiting Arlington Cemetery https://bit.ly/2zIDHqC https://wapo.st/2FhrX4n http://elitedai.ly/2qFT3Ic
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