Indivisibles

We’ve made incredible progress in the fight to impeach Donald Trump, thanks in large part to activists like you and the amazing work you did while Congress was on recess. Around the country, Indivisibles and coalition partners led 270+ rallies, marches, and town hall events (and counting) to drive members of Congress to support impeachment.

This is how we win, folks.

As opportunities come to move this issue forward, our movement continues to answer the call (90,000 calls to voters in key Senate districts this weekend alone), drive this Congress forward (144 town halls so far), thank those who are taking the lead (shoutout to the 228 reps are now in support of impeachment), and make sure we’re asking Republicans the hard questions (lol check out this video we made of R’s fumbling through talking points). And in case you missed it, check out our joint coalition statement on all your hard work! 

Now that Congress is back, it's critical that we maintain pressure. So we’re excited to announce our national call-in day on Thursday, October 17. We’re asking everyone to reach out to their members of Congress and demand they support this process. So keep your eyes peeled for more info.

Also -- this is unrelated but great proof that calls work -- we just had some major wins with Democrats working hard to lower prescription drugs with the House Resolution 3 (H.R. 3). But we can do a whole lot more (<- check out our notes on how to grow H.R. 3 even more). We’ve seen some progress on this bill since it was circulated in the summer, but the fact remains that it still has a long way to go before it reaches the floor. It's going to move fast, so it's critical we put pressure on our Representatives to improve the bill.

And now for your weekly to-dos:

 Your 5 weekly to-dos 

1. Sign up to make some calls connecting voters to Senators to demand a complete and fair impeachment trial. We've identified 13 Senators who our political and policy experts believe we can sway -- and now we're asking you to call voters in their states and ask those voters to turn up the pressure on their elected officials. Join our hubdialer program today and help us make 11 million calls for impeachment! 
2. Tell your member of Congress to support improvements to the Democrats’ prescription drug price bill. House Democratic leadership released H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019, on September 19, 2019. But there are still numerous provisions of the bill that should be strengthened before it reaches the floor. As clinical as this conversation sounds, at its heart, it’s about making sure that a little girl in Nebraska can take an epi-pen on her school field trip, that we’re prioritizing her life over a mega corporation’s profits. H.R. 3 can ensure we’re doing that, but only if we push Democrats to fighter harder for this issue.
3. Debates are tonight!!! Opt-in to our exclusive Indivisible Debate Focus Group by texting DEBATES to 977-79. We want to capture the Indivisible movement’s take on the debates tonight -- which means we’ll need an exclusive focus group that we’ll text right after the debate ends (11pm ET / 8pm PT). Also follow along with our Debate Watch Guide!
4. Register for the National Activist Call on Nov 7 at 8 PM ET. We’re going to cover the latest updates on the impeachment inquiry in the House, recap the Defund Hate week of action from September, and give you the latest on the Indivisible book -- so make sure to tune in!

 2020 Update 

It’s debate night (again!) tonight, Democratic Presidential contenders are gathering in Westerville, Ohio to talk directly to voters about their vision for the country. As impeachment news continues to unfold, we’re looking for candidates to talk about their post-Trump plans to govern and how they plan to beat Trumpism using a grassroots, people-powered campaign:

• While Trump’s corruption takes center stage, candidates push anti-corruption plans. Both Senator Warren and Vice President Biden released far-ranging plans to reform campaign finance this week. In their plans, Warren and Biden joined Senator Sanders in restricting candidate super PACs and fighting corporate influence in the Democratic National Convention. Sanders also released a plan to fight corporate corruption this week, underscoring that the frontrunners in this race are prioritizing anti-corruption as a winning issue. Check out the plans and compare ahead of tonight’s debate!

• Expect some friction between Mayor Pete and progressives. The South Bend mayor has been more critical of progressive priorities than usual this week, taking aim at small-dollar donations as “pocket change,” deriding Beto O’Rourke’s gun buyback plan as “confiscation,” and running ads against Medicare for All. Expect those criticisms to surface tonight, and read up on why Medicare for All is an essential step forward in our issue one-pager. (BTW -- we depend on that “pocket change” to keep the lights on -- small dollar donations are our biggest single source of support!)
  

• Follow along with our debate watch guide and issue pages! With a twelve-candidate debate stage, it can be overwhelming to follow along with what’s happening. That’s why we have our Indivisible debate watch guide so you can see who’s on stage and grade their performance issue-by-issue. Be sure to let us know you’re watching by tweeting @IndivisibleTeam or using the hashtag #IndivisiDebate on Twitter!

 Find an IndivisiEvent near you 

 We Are Indivisible: A Blueprint for Democracy After Trump 

Every week we’re sharing key excerpts from the book with our movement. Last week, we left off with some of our (Leah and Ezra’s) reactions to the election in 2016. In this section, we’ll share some reactions from the people who’ve become Indivisible Group Leaders…

A sense of shock, horror, pain, shame, and loss were being felt in homes of future Indivisible leaders around the country. For Ivonne Wallace Fuentes of Roanoke, Virginia, it “seemed like reality had just broken in half in a really important way.” In San Antonio, Texas, Trish Florence was “gobsmacked” on election night. Her two children are autistic, and when she told them the following morning, they both broke down in tears. At school, bullies chanted “Trump! Trump! Trump!” at her older son.

 In Arizona, Gabriella Cazares-Kelly and April Ignacio of the Tohono O’odham Nation were deeply concerned: the Tohono O’odham lands straddled the border, and with Trump’s election, the threat that a wall would divide their community was suddenly imminent. Joyce Vansean of New Orleans “spent a lot of time crying and a lot of time trying to come to terms with what my country had just done.” 

Those who moved quickly from grief to action found that they had company: in Tampa, Florida, a devastated Christine Hanna created a Facebook group for Tampa-area women the day after the election. By evening, she had a thousand members of what would eventually become Indivisible Action Tampa Bay.

To Be Continued… 

Don’t forget to pre-order your book and join the Indivisible Book Pre-Order Contest! Y’all can win an exclusive swag bag and a 30-minute conversation with Leah or Ezra -- all you have to do is pre-order, take a photo of the receipt, and tag us on Twitter or Instagram with #IndivisiBookClub.

 Support the Movement 

This week, we’re launching a massive digital ad campaign to pressure key Republican Senators on impeachment.

It’s the Senate’s job to hold a fair and transparent impeachment trial. But the GOP has shown us they’re not interested in fairness -- they want to give Trump a pass for all his crimes. That’s why we’re spending almost $300,000 for targeted ads in key states across the country. 

We’ve identified 13 key Senators who need to hear the message about Trump’s crimes, and our ads will help build intense constituent pressure to uphold their oath to protect the Constitution and commit to a fair and transparent trial in the Senate. Together with all the other work we’re doing on impeachment, this ad campaign can make a huge difference.

But we don’t take money from campaigns, parties, or corporations, which means we rely on people like you to fund these efforts. Can you pitch in $10 today to fund our ads, pressure Senators to put democracy first, and support all our crucial work?

 IndivisWin of the Week 

This weekend, more and more Indivisibles wrapped up the fall recess by doing everything from impeachment rallies to registering new voters! Want to see your crew spotlighted? Tag @IndivisibleTeam on twitter!

We’ve got a big week ahead of us, and we know that Indivisibles won’t be taking the foot off the gas anytime soon. Impeachment, endorsements, debates, prescription drugs… it’s a lot to think about, but we can move all these issues forward by buckling down and teaming up to get the job done. We’re so glad to have you in the fight with us. 

In solidarity,
Indivisible Team

P.S. We Are Indivisible: A Blueprint for Democracy After Trump comes out on November 5. We can’t wait for you to read it! It’s a story about the movement that you built -- and next steps for the future. Realtalk: We need to sell 5,000 copies to make The New York Times bestseller list (which gets the word out and grows the movement). All pre-orders go towards that first week’s sales totals and gets us closer to making that list. You can pre-order your copy from IndieBound here.