Fellow Conservative,
Before we launch into this week’s update and review what we’ve accomplished together this past year, we want to take a moment and wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
We know this holiday season will look different than most, but we’re hopeful that the new year will bring new opportunities and flourishing for this wonderful country of ours.
As we begin 2021, Heritage Action will continue to do great work with your support.
We’ll begin the year with the Senate runoff election in Georgia, and we’re working through the holidays to be sure Georgia voters are prepared on January 5th.
>>> Jessica Anderson joined Laura Ingraham <[link removed]> this week to discuss the Left’s tactics in Georgia - watch here <[link removed]>. <<<
As grassroots leaders and activists, you are the backbone of this organization and we will continue to stand with you to fight for conservative policy here in Washington and throughout the country.
Georgia On My Mind
It is up to Conservatives to prevent the Left’s socialist agenda from taking hold in America.
You see, if the Left succeeds in Georgia, they won’t stop there! They’ll pack the Supreme Court, pass the radical Green New Deal, increase taxes, and defund our nation’s police departments.
In fact, just this past week the Left has tried to persuade Georgians to vote by flying in California celebrities and offering giveaways and gimmicks for new voters <[link removed]>.
At Heritage Action, we know that it is our duty to ensure that the conservative agenda wins on January 5th. We can stop the Left’s radical takeover of our country.
That’s why Heritage Action has hundreds of conservative activists on the ground in Georgia getting out the vote.
Our goal is to make 1,000,000 phone calls, send 500,000 GOTV texts, and knock on 500,000 doors to mobilize Georgians to vote for their conservative values.
We need your help. See how you can help support the conservative cause by checking out our Georgia toolkit: heritageaction.com/toolkit/georgia-resources <[link removed]>
Trillion Dollar Omnibus Bill
Last week, Congress passed a “continuing resolution” — or a one-week extension of government funding. That CR expired at 11:59 pm last night so Congress issued another short-term CR to allow time for continued negotiations.
Congressional leaders are working through the weekend on a spending deal—a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill that would run through the end of the fiscal year (October 2021).
Generally, omnibus bills are bad news. They make it easy to fit a lot of bad things into a large bill. For instance, current negotiations reportedly include a surprise medical billing proposal. Heritage Action Vice President Garrett Bess explains why that is an issue <[link removed]>:
“...An omnibus bill or COVID package is not the place for a surprise billing proposal. While surprise billing is a serious issue that impacts the health and finances of millions of Americans, it should be handled separately to allow a full and transparent debate. Congress should be targeting funding toward the health impact of COVID, reopening American society, and helping Americans get back to work, not passing unrelated policies."
While the bill is far from perfect, Heritage Action has successfully fought against wastefully giving hundreds of billions in bailout money to state governments. Many of you might recall helping put together this video <[link removed]> earlier in the year to oppose state bailouts.
Washington has noticed and it's likely that bailouts won't be in the final deal reached (but that’s not a given). This week, The New York Times gave you credit for stopping state bailouts <[link removed]>.
But the work is not over!
Conservatives should not wait for a spending bill to be introduced before contacting their members of Congress. Once a bill is introduced, the deal is done, and it becomes a lot harder to change the outcome.
Call your Senator and Congressman <[link removed]> and ask them to:
- OPPOSE reauthorizing the extra $300/week in federal unemployment benefits. This rewards governors <[link removed]> who have taken unscientific approaches to fighting the pandemic and shut down their states.
- SUPPORT liability protections for businesses. We should protect businesses that took reasonable precautions and opened during the pandemic from frivolous lawsuits.
- LEAVE surprise billing out of any omnibus or COVID relief bill. It should be handled separately <[link removed]>.
As always, thank you for fighting for this country. Here is to a brighter and more prosperous 2021!
Jessica and the Heritage Action team
P.S. – Keep scrolling for a reminder of all we accomplished together in 2020:
Project 2020 - Swing Voter Outreach — In January, we began Project 2020 <[link removed]>, a months-long door knocking and voter registration campaign designed to engage with swing voters in the battleground states of Iowa, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. We contacted over 2,000,000 households, knocked on 400,000+ doors, and sent over 1,000,000 GOTV texts to make sure voters cast their ballots.
Open America — Throughout the pandemic and everything else that happened this year, we never took our eyes off the ball and stood against bad legislation. We successfully opposed state bailouts, fought against perverse federal unemployment payments that incentivized individuals to remain unemployed, and have staved off wasteful spending. Heritage Action also led a grassroots petition <[link removed]> with over 100,000 signatures urging governors to “Open America.”
#ProudAmerican — In the lead up to Independence Day, we encouraged people to share why they are a #ProudAmerican to counter the rampant anti-American sentiment coming from the Left. The heartwarming posts on the hashtag reached over 60 million Americans on social media.
Fight for America — In August, Heritage Action and The Heritage Foundation announced Fight For America, a campaign to stand up for our American values and institutions in the face of the Left’s extremism. We launched the campaign at a town hall event <[link removed]> with Vice President Mike Pence, where he took a stand and affirmed to law enforcement officers and business owners in attendance that the Trump Administration will always back the blue.
Police Pledge — To encourage elected officials to Fight for America and back the police, we launched our Police Pledge <[link removed]> to oppose any bill, resolution, or movement to “Defund the Police.” To date, the police pledge has garnered over 224,000 signatures including 535 elected officials and candidates.
Pro-Police Billboards — In September, we continued to call for the support of law enforcement by placing seven pro-police billboards <[link removed]> in New York City’s Times Square, Atlanta, and Dallas – cities where the “Defund the Police” movement was beginning to take hold. The message was simple: “No Police, No Peace.” In the four weeks the billboards were up, they were viewed directly over 15 million times and received more than double that through online and TV coverage.
Confirm Amy — When a Supreme Court vacancy opened, Heritage Action immediately went to work helping connect Americans to their Senators encouraging them to swiftly confirm a conservative nominee before the election. Together, we drove 55,000+ calls to Senate offices in support of Justice Amy Coney Barrett and Sentinels organized more than 23 rallies around the country with the same message: “Confirm Amy!” We are so happy to have a Justice Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court.
Voter Outreach in Georgia — We’re still going strong and the work isn’t done. We’re knocking doors, making calls, and sending texts to voters, and we aren’t letting up one bit until the January 5th election is over!
Join the fight to advance the conservative agenda.
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