John – Welcome back to another edition of BNC Insider, your weekly recap of everything that’s happening in the world of Brand New Congress.

In this issue:

Upcoming primaries
The IRA - What it means for our movement
Victory in Vermont!
Jamaal under attack
Ways to take action

Get ready to dive in.

A graphic depicting buttons that say “Vote” with the caption “Upcoming Elections”

We’re down to 85 days until the 2022 Midterm elections, and the final BNC primaries are just over a week away.

Polls open in New York and Florida in:

Five BNC candidates, including three of our elected incumbents, will be on the ballot next week.

In addition to reelecting AOC, Jamaal Bowman, and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, BNC is aiming to send Melanie D’Arrigo and Brittany Ramos DeBarros to Congress to join them!

You can help turn out the vote for all of these candidates by checking out the volunteer opportunities under Take Action below.

A graphic depicting the U.S. Capitol Building with the caption “Happening on the Hill”

The big news out of Washington this week was the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, which every BNC representative voted for.

The IRA is a significant piece of climate legislation and the first legislative blow against Big Pharma in recent memory.

Among the key provisions of the bill are 9 million new jobs for clean energy, a projected 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and giving Medicare more power to negotiate drug prices – beginning with a $35 cap on insulin, which will provide immediate financial relief to insulin-dependent seniors.

While the bill is lacking in many, many ways, and the climate investments still fall far short of what we need, the IRA is nonetheless a victory for the progressive movement.

It was our movement’s demand for a Green New Deal that made this bill even remotely possible.

BNC’s work in 2016 laid out the policy framework for the Green New Deal. That same year we recruited AOC to run for Congress, who became the first BNC elected representative in 2018.

Just over one month after taking office in 2019, AOC introduced the Green New Deal resolution to Congress and forever changed the debate on climate policy on The Hill.

Screenshot of a headline from Business Insider which reads “More than 80% of Americans support almost all of the key ideas in Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal.” Included is a photo of AOC standing in front of the Capitol building, surrounded by other lawmakers. She is standing at a lectern with microphones and a sign announcing the Green New Deal.

As our friends from the Sunrise Movement said:

“Without the movement for a GND, there would not be an IRA. Five years ago, most people would not believe that Congress would deliver a climate and jobs plan— but we did. That belief, and ordinary people coming together to organize against all odds created this moment.”

Sunrise Movement

A photo of BNC Rep. AOC joining a climate action sit-in at Pelosi’s office in November 2018, before she was sworn in to Congress the following year.

The IRA is a victory, but it is just the beginning. We’ve proven that we can make Congress listen and deliver on bold climate action.

But we will not stop until we win the fight for the Green New Deal.

You can join that fight by signing up for a monthly sustaining donation to Brand New Congress to help us elect more climate champions starting this November.

A graphic depicting a woman checking her phone with the caption “BNC News”

Victory in Vermont

Last week, BNC’s Becca Balint resoundingly won her primary in Vermont for the open at-large U.S. House seat.

A graphic featuring a photo of BNC candidate Becca Balint, with short dark hair, wearing a gray blazer over a white shirt. In the background is a faded image of the U.S. Capitol building. The caption reads: Congratulations Primary Winner Becca Balint, Vermont AL 2022

In a safe blue seat like Vermont, Becca is basically assured to win this race in November. That means BNC just queued up another bold and proven progressive fighter to join our caucus in Congress next year!

When she’s sworn in, Becca will make history both as the first woman and the first openly gay woman elected to Congress from Vermont.

Help us celebrate Becca’s historic victory by splitting a contribution between BNC and her campaign right now!

Jamaal Under Attack

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, whom BNC helped elect in 2020 by defeating a 32-year incumbent, is facing a tough primary challenge next week in his first reelection bid.

But one of Jamaal’s opponents has been circulating a racist mailer with a photo that substantially darkens Jamaal’s skin tone.

This gif shows the contrast between the original photo and the photo used on the mailer circulated by Democrat Vedat Gashi:

An animated gif showing the comparison between the original photo of Jamaal and the darkened photo used by his opponent on a mailer

Using darkened photos of Black candidates is a favorite tactic of Republican campaigns, and it is unfortunately often effective.

But Republicans are not the only ones guilty of this dirty trick. Cori Bush faced a similar attack in her 2020 campaign when her Democratic incumbent circulated a mailer with a substantially darkened photo and a series of smears against her character.

The BNC community had Cori’s back in 2020 when she was under attack, and we need to do the same for Jamaal. Will you rush a split contribution between Brand New Congress and Jamaal’s campaign right now?

A graphic featuring a faded photo of Cori Bush wearing a “Bans Off Our Bodies” t-shirt at a protest with the caption “TAKE ACTION”

Last chance: Add your name to stand Up for Abortion Rights

Voters in Kansas recently rejected, by an overwhelming margin, a measure to incorporate an extreme abortion ban into the state constitution. So abortion in Kansas remains safe – for now.

But last week the Idaho state supreme court also upheld a radical new law set to take effect on August 25th. This extreme bill is modeled after the Texas “bounty hunter” law that allows private citizens – even the family members of rapists – to sue any abortion provider up to four years after the procedure.

It is clear that we cannot leave this matter up to the states to decide on an individual level. We need federal protections for abortion NOW.

BNC has joined a large grassroots coalition calling on the Senate to abolish the filibuster and codify Roe NOW, and there’s still time to add your name.

A total of 17 states have abortion bans in place or passed and pending implementation. More are on the way. Soon abortion may be outlawed in more than half of U.S. states unless the Senate acts IMMEDIATELY.

A graphic depicting a map of the United States indicating states where abortion bans are in effect, pending implementation soon, or potentially at risk. The data comes from the New York Times as of August 6, 2022. The states currently with full abortion bans in place include: Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin. The states currently with partial (gestational bans) in place include Georgia, Florida, Ohio, South Carolina, and Utah. The states where full bans have been passed and are pending implementation of the new law include Idaho, Indiana and Tennessee. The states where abortion rights are currently at risk of being revoked by the courts or lawmakers include: Iowa, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Over 36,000 people have signed this petition organized by a collective or progressive organizations and candidates, demanding that the Senate take action. Will you add your name now to protect abortion rights?

ADD YOUR NAME

Volunteer

With only one week to go until our final primaries of 2022, five BNC candidates need your help for the final push.

→ Volunteer for Melanie D’Arrigo
→ Volunteer for Brittany Ramos DeBarros
→ Volunteer for AOC
→ Volunteer for Jamaal Bowman
→ Volunteer for Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick

Or volunteer with Brand New Congress to support ALL of our candidates!

Volunteer with BNC

Thanks for reading our BNC Insider! 💜 Watch for this update every Monday to stay on top of what’s happening in the world of BNC.

Until next week,

The entire team at Brand New Congress

P.S. If you appreciate this content, please consider signing up for a monthly recurring contribution to sustain our work.

Since 2016 BNC has led the way in advancing popular policies like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal. We invest EARLY to help grassroots candidates succeed. We recruited and elected AOC in 2018 and Cori Bush in 2020 alongside Jamaal Bowman and Rashida Tliab. And we have our first win of 2022: Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick won her primary by FIVE votes thanks to BNC.

We have elections from now until November, and our candidates are counting on your support. Pitch in today and join us as we take over Congress and return power to the people.

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