This week, we’re preparing for a potential Trump Shutdown and looking ahead to
a historic show of resistance on October 18! But first, let Ezra catch you up
on the federal funding fight and what it means to our pro-democracy movement.

Hey folks,

This is a big week for the defiance. We’re going to find out if
congressional Dems are ready to fight back as a unified force.

I hope the answer is yes, but I’d urge against treating this as just a
political entertainment event. This isn’t a gameshow -- it’s a
participatory sport. It will turn out better for all of us if more of us
get off the sidelines and into the game. Let me give you the state of
play.

The campaign to build a unified opposition in congress: For nearly 11
months, we’ve been advocating for a unified opposition party that
aggressively, creatively, defiantly opposes Trump’s regime. I’m
progressive, but this isn’t about progressives versus centrists or
conservatives. It’s about [ [link removed] ]fighting back versus [ [link removed] ]rolling over and
playing dead.

On that front, the Democratic Party in Congress has not exactly covered
itself in glory. Yes, we’ve had real leadership moments from the likes of
Maxwell Frost, Chris Murphy, Chris Van Hollen, Jamie Raskin, AOC, Bernie,
Ilhan Omar, and others. But these have been notable exceptions to
congressional leadership that has, at best, engaged in performative
opposition while repeatedly declining to use its leverage and power to
constrain the regime.

What we can learn from the last surrender: Without demands, we lose. I
won’t belabor the disappointing votes, tactical blunders, “strongly”
worded letters, baffling calls for “bipartisanship,” and limp poll-tested
speeches of this year. Instead, I’ll focus on one piece of recent history
that’s relevant and instructive for this week: the Senate Dems surrender
to the Republican funding bill in March.

Back then, Republicans were daring Democrats to oppose their funding bill.
House Dems refused to surrender their leverage, but Schumer failed to ever
state his demands. Then, he surprised the House Dems, members of his own
caucus, and much of the broader pro-democracy ecosystem with an 11th hour
unilateral surrender.

Trump and the congressional GOP celebrated. Schumer received massive
blowback, including 92% of Indivisible leaders voting in favor of a call
for him to step down from leadership. [ [link removed] ]Democratic Party approval hit a
30-year low -- far lower than Trump or congressional GOP implementing an
historically unpopular and fascist agenda.

This time could be different because we’ve got our demands. Trump’s
illegal and unconstitutional power-grabbing is even more brazen now. The
regime is occupying American cities, bullying media institutions and
universities into submission, shutting down congressionally-mandated
agencies, terrorizing immigrant communities with a secret police force,
cracking down on political opponents, and flagrantly violating
international law while burning bridges globally.

And now we have a new Republican funding bill. Again, House Democrats have
voted almost unanimously against it. Again, it passed the House with
Republican votes. And again, it falls to Senate Democrats to hold the line
and force Republicans to the table.

But this time, after we spent weeks [ [link removed] ]urging Dem leadership to actually
state their demands… they actually [ [link removed] ]stated their demands!

 1. Restore Medicaid and protect the Affordable Care Act.
 2. Close the budget loopholes Trump is using to fund authoritarian
terror-tactics at the expense of schools, healthcare, public media,
and other vital services that families need.

Is this everything I’d want? Not at all. But are these substantial demands
that Trump and congressional Republicans hate? Yes! And would this
represent a serious use of leverage by the congressional Democrats against
the regime? Also yes!

Politics is the art of the possible. It is possible -- not guaranteed, but
possible -- to unify congressional Democrats around these demands in this
moment. We should have a different set of demands for a different moment.
But for now, these are the demands of the opposition, and we should back
up these demands.

Dems are showing a little backbone. Our job is to stiffen it. Our goal is
not a shutdown -- it’s building an opposition party that uses its leverage
to reduce human harm and slow the march toward authoritarianism. Whether
Republicans drive us into a shutdown or not, our success depends on
Democrats holding strong rather than simply surrendering again.

Republicans will not change course if they think they can just roll over
Dems again. And Dems will not stay strong unless they feel like they have
the support to do so. This is a week when your calls, your visits to
congressional offices, and your level of vocal support really matter.

Dems need to know we have their back -- and they need to know that
millions of people will be out in the streets for [ [link removed] ]No Kings on October
18 to cheer them on or hold them accountable.

We can win this fight, and if we do, it will be a team effort. That
victory depends in part on strong leadership of Schumer and Jeffries, in
part on the intestinal fortitude of individual Dem Members of Congress,
and in part on our own work to stiffen the spines they have recently
discovered exist.

So please [ [link removed] ]check out our shutdown toolkit, read on to the weekly action
items below, and [ [link removed] ]join Indivisible and our partners for an all-hands
call on responding to the Trump Shutdown.

In solidarity,
Ezra Levin
Co-Executive Director, Indivisible

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Your weekly to-dos

 1. [ [link removed] ]Join our rapid response call this Wednesday at 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm
PT to prepare for a potential Trump Shutdown. If Republicans force a
shutdown, we’ll need to act fast to hold them accountable, so we plan
to convene with national partners to lay out a strong grassroots
response. Join us, and read more on the funding fight below.

 3. [ [link removed] ]Call your GOP senators to demand a bipartisan spending deal -- and
remind them they’ll own a TRUMP SHUTDOWN!  Republicans refuse to even
consider funding bills that don’t include MAGA healthcare cuts. Let’s
get loud to show our resolve and remind the GOP it’s on them to keep
the government open.
 4. [ [link removed] ]Volunteer for a virtual phonebank to help Dems win big in Virginia
this fall. We’re making 1,000,000 calls to voters to help VA Democrats
build a vital defense against Trump’s authoritarian overreach -- a
Democratic trifecta in his own backyard! All you need is your phone
and a computer. [ [link removed] ]Join a live phonebank training here.
 5. [ [link removed] ]Find a No Kings protest near you on October 18. With nearly 2,000
events already on the map, we’re on pace to make October 18 our
biggest day of action yet -- and it couldn’t come at a more important
moment. Pick a protest to join, and help us make No Kings historic!
 6. [ [link removed] ]Sign up for a powerful discussion about how teachers defend truth,
combat disinformation, and protect democracy. Be part of American
Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten’s virtual chat on
the importance of educators in the fight for democracy at her talk
Frontline in the Fight: Why Fascists Fear Teachers.
 7. [ [link removed] ]Join a special shutdown showdown edition of “What’s the Plan?”
this Thursday. As they do each week, our co-founders Leah and Ezra
will go live at 3pm ET this Thursday to break down the news and answer
your questions directly! This week, they plan to hone in on the
federal funding fight.

P.S. When elected leaders, corporations, or other institutions yield to
fascism without a fight, Indivisible is there to demand courage and hold
them accountable. Our events, organizing, and historic days of action are
vital to this movement, and your support makes it all possible. [ [link removed] ]If you
can, please chip in to help hold the line against Trump authoritarianism.

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Gear up for a potential Trump Shutdown

With just over one day until government funding runs dry, Donald Trump is
actively hampering efforts to avoid a federal shutdown on his watch:

* Last Tuesday, Trump [ [link removed] ]backed out of a meeting with Democratic
leaders, instead choosing to attack and demonize them before
flip-flopping to an 11th hour meeting today.
* Last Friday, Trump carelessly downplayed the harm his federal shutdown
would cause, saying “If it has to shut down, it’ll have to shut down.”
* Finally, Trump officials followed up with a crude retort to the
Democrats working to save people’s healthcare: “[ [link removed] ]go f%#% yourself!”

Here’s what is clear: If a federal shutdown starts tomorrow night, Donald
Trump and Republicans are squarely to blame. They're holding healthcare
hostage and destroying congressional norms -- all to jack up healthcare
prices and hand Trump even more unchecked power.

Our goals in response are twofold: Ensuring Republicans pay a political
price if they shut the government down, and pushing Senate Democrats to
hold the line!

[ [link removed] ]Check out our funding fight toolkit to find all the ways we can hold
Republicans accountable and keep Democrats fighting as we near a crucial
shutdown deadline.

[ [link removed] ]Get started >>

Want to call Republicans out in person? We’re working with Public Citizen, WFP,
MoveOn, Fair Share America, and activists nationwide to make sure Republicans
feel the heat and our neighbors know the truth. [ [link removed] ]Join our movement call about
organizing a nationwide response this Wednesday, October 1!

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Spread contagious courage with One Million Rising

Indivisible launched [ [link removed] ]the One Million Rising initiative this summer to
train a million people in the practice of peaceful non-cooperation. That
program concludes next Wednesday, October 8, with the fourth and final
installment* of our training series -- leading directly into a NEW stage
of our fight!

For previous One Million Rising participants, this call offers key updates
on the work we’re doing together through Signs of Solidarity and the
Ground Avelo campaign before diving into new ways to plug in. And for
first-time attendees, it's an opportunity to join our efforts at an
exciting turning point!

[ [link removed] ]Digital flier for the One Million Rising call on Wednesday, October 8 --
Click to register for this event

[ [link removed] ]Register now to join One Million Rising on Wednesday, October 8, for
exciting updates and new opportunities to defy the Trump takeover in your
community.

*This call welcomes everyone, regardless of past involvement in One Million
Rising or other campaigns. If you couldn’t make our previous calls (or just want
a refresher), you can [ [link removed] ]click here to watch previous One Million Rising
training sessions.

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IndivisiWIN of the week

Even after ABC/Disney felt the power of our boycott and reinstated Jimmy
Kimmel, Indivisibles remained focused and strong in the fight for free
speech! Indivisible TX24 organized a “Signs of Fascism” silent protest at
Nexstar HQ, demanding that the broadcast giant air Kimmel’s show on the
ABC affiliates still preempting him.

Sinclair and Nexstar have since announced that [ [link removed] ]Kimmel is being put
back on ABC stations nationwide.

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