During this troublesome and scary time, I would like to thank the many medical personnel, law enforcement, firefighters and other essential services like grocery store and pharmaceutical clerks, city and county staff and the media who are working long hours to keep the rest of us safe.
Thank you,
Chair,
Fresno County Democratic Party
Andy Hansen-Smith
With many Republicans at the national and local levels spreading misinformation, confusion and outright lies about the Covid virus, Valley Democrats are doing everything they can to help our communities.
First-term Rep. TJ Cox has used his social media presence to dispense health information. As a further step, Cox hosted a tele-town hall with a Valley emergency room doctor, answering questions from the public. Cox has joined other Democratic lawmakers in the House pushing for a more competent government response to the medical crisis and the millions of Americans left without jobs or with shuttered businesses. Cox has placed a special focus on advocating for the immigrant residents of our state, an often vulnerable population that needs protection now more than ever.
Rep. Jim Costa has closed his office as a safety measure but assures his constituents that “staff are taking calls and responding to e-mails. My office is a resource for anyone who needs help.” Veteran lawmaker Costa joined other Democrats to approve the three recent Covid-related House bills. These bills provide a framework for aid to millions of Americans. Costa is particularly proud of the infusion of monetary help for small businesses and agriculture. However, Costa was clear that though this action was much needed, he was not entirely satisfied with either bill and that more still needs to be done. Costa has stated that he is working closely with Governor Newsom to ensure that the state government’s response links up to local needs.
Assembly Member Joaqin Arambula, a former emergency room physician, has been working to provide regular updates on social media sourcing reliable healthcare experts, as well as advocating for all the health professionals who are on the front lines during this crisis. Arambula has donated $50,000 of his election campaign fund to local organizations providing services to those affected by the virus and shelter-in-place. He has called what he is doing not a choice but a “moral obligation.”
On the Fresno City Council, Esmeralda Soria led an effort to put forth an emergency act creating a fund of $750,000 to issue as 0% loans to local small businesses that have been crippled by the virus fallout. Twenty percent of the fund is for businesses with five or fewer employees. The act also had the interesting provision of allowing bars to reopen for curbside pickup under certain limitations, creating a surprising new market of craft cocktails to go.
All this stands in contrast to Republicans such as Fresno City Council Member Garry Bredefield who called the stay at home measures an “over-reaction,” saying the United States should instead follow South Korea’s example of extreme testing and surveillance to keep the plague from catching hold. Health experts say the United States already has missed the early window where such measures could work. Bredefeld has since used his position on the council to allow sporting goods stores to be reclassified as essential businesses so they could resume selling guns and ammunition.
The U.S. Census is under way. You can complete your response online, by phone or by mail. This task is not only a civic duty but also crucial to shaping the way our government operates for the next decade.
The Census questionnaire should have been received by most households, but the national emergency threatens to produce an undercount. As Democrats, we care deeply about Census participation and we want to make sure every Californian is counted. Information gathered from the Census determines how billions of federal dollars are spent on programs such as Medicare, school lunches, housing assistance, veterans’ programs and roads. It also determines how many Congressional members we get to represent us.
Years before Covid appeared on the map, Republicans already were eyeing this day warily. Trump’s attempt to force a citizenship question onto the Census was designed to reduce the number of respondents and preserve the artificial importance of sparsely populated Republican strongholds. Now the pandemic threatens to unexpectedly help them in that task.
However, you can help! Participate in virtual phone banks to remind residents in Fresno County to participate in the 2020 Census. You can make these important calls while you shelter in place and help flatten the curve.
The script includes both English and Spanish versions, plus a Census FAQ sheet. If you are bilingual English-Spanish, please know you are doubly needed for this effort. But you don’t need to know Spanish to participate.
You will be joining hundreds of volunteers all over the state making calls to Californians as we get closer to the Census period.
This virtual phone bank is organized by the California Democratic Party’s 2020 Coordinated Campaign. Thank you for pitching in! We hope you do this often and regularly in the weeks ahead.
Although we are not able to engage in person during shelter-in-place, there are many activities that we can be doing to support our community from the comfort of our homes. The California Democratic Party’s Coordinated Campaign is organizing and supporting such activities. Contact the Coordinated Campaign today at [email protected].
Even as we hear on the news about democratic primaries in other states being postponed, there is one date that is not changing. The nationwide election this November will decide not only the next President of the United States, state and federal representatives, but also city council races (for every incorporated city in the county except Fresno and Clovis), school boards and special districts throughout Fresno County.
All these positions, great and small, are important but some offices do not have strong Democratic candidates yet declared. If you have any interest in running or know someone who is contemplating seeking office, please contact the Fresno County Democratic Party so that we can discuss how to assist them in that effort.
As a reminder, next month was to be the Fresno County Democratic Party’s 10th annual fund-raiser dinner, this year celebrating the past 100 years of the women’s rights movement. However, in accordance with the California shelter-in-place order, the dinner will be postponed.
The event will still happen, with all the sponsorship and advertising opportunities intact, however, we cannot yet say when that will be. Planning anything to take place in the next few months will be difficult due to this extraordinary and unprecedented public health crisis.
As part of our effort to protect the health of our employees and volunteers, as well as the community, the Fresno County Democratic Party HQ will be closed for the foreseeable future. As with all things regarding the virus, new information is being assessed each day, and as soon as we have decided on a date to reopen the doors we will let you know.
However, just because the office is temporarily closed does not mean we are gone. Reach out to us online or through social media. While the country hunkers down into the isolation of voluntary quarantine and social distancing, it is important to remember that all your fellow Democrats are still out there working to make this country better, even if you can’t give them a hug right now.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Paid for by the Fresno County Democratic Central Committee. FEC ID # C00518605, FPPC ID # 743910. 1033 U Street, Fresno, CA 93721. Not authorized by any candidate or committee.
