Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 23, 2021 at 1:11 PM

do everything we possibly can to find a way around the filibuster

Support Public Citizen Two weeks to go. See my earlier note (copied below in case you missed it) for more about why August 6 — just two weeks from today — is such a pivotal moment in the fight to preserve our democracy. And, if you can, please donate right now — anything you chip in today will…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 22, 2021 at 7:43 PM

could it be you?

Support Public Citizen Saving democracy is not optional. We HAVE to do it. That’s why Public Citizen is in full-on campaign mode to advance the For the People Act. But time is not on our side. See my earlier message, copied below, for more about this make-or-break moment for democracy. I k…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 22, 2021 at 2:52 PM

a momentous day for voting rights

Support Public Citizen I am so grateful for — and inspired by — the response from Public Citizen supporters all across America to my note yesterday about our work to pass the For the People Act. I’ve copied that email below in case you missed it. Please give it a quick look if you haven’t alread…

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  Robert · [email protected]

July 21, 2021 at 6:27 PM

the shortest email ever?

Support Public Citizen My thanks to everyone who took a few minutes to read — and respond to — my note this morning. I know it’s not the shortest email ever, but please give it a quick look if you haven’t already (it’s copied below in case you missed it). - Robert ****** August 6 is a mome…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 21, 2021 at 12:36 PM

two weeks to save this democracy

Support Public Citizen August 6 is a momentous date for voting rights. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law on August 6, 1965. For nearly half a century, that landmark legislation — which Congress strengthened multiple times on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis — …

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 19, 2021 at 6:27 PM

Billionaire Astronaut Reentry Fee

At 9:00 a.m. EDT tomorrow, July 20, Jeff Bezos — founder of Amazon and richest person on Earth, with a net worth of $202 billion as estimated by Forbes’ “Real-Time Billionaires List” — will launch himself into space. (A quick pause to say that if there are so many billionaires whose fortunes ar…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 16, 2021 at 7:20 PM

even more than the Pentagon got from Trump

$753 billion. That’s how much the Biden administration has requested from Congress to fund the military in the coming year. For comparison, that’s almost three times the budget for the entire state of California (and no state budgets more than The Golden State year after year). Or — looking…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 15, 2021 at 6:20 PM

the existential threat to our democracy

Hear me clearly. There’s an unfolding assault taking place in America today — an attempt to suppress and subvert the right to vote in fair and free elections. An assault on democracy. An assault on liberty. An assault on who we are — who we are as Americans. ... We’re facing the most significa…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 14, 2021 at 2:37 PM

the most significant test of our democracy since the Civil War

Hear me clearly. There’s an unfolding assault taking place in America today — an attempt to suppress and subvert the right to vote in fair and free elections. An assault on democracy. An assault on liberty. An assault on who we are — who we are as Americans. ... We’re facing the most significa…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 13, 2021 at 7:11 PM

yes, Mitch McConnell really does think you're *that* stupid

“I’m perplexed by the reluctance of some to get vaccinated, totally perplexed.” That’s what Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said last week. Perplexed, huh? Could it have anything to do with Republican politicians all across America who lined up to join Donald Trump in downplaying the se…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 12, 2021 at 8:06 PM

do you know the answer?

Let’s play Jeopardy! Category: Voter Suppression for $600. Clue: Don’t mess with this state, where it is harder to vote than anywhere else in America. Response: What is Texas? That’s right, the Lone Star State by many estimates makes it harder for its citizens to exercise their righ…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 10, 2021 at 7:19 PM

President Biden takes a swing at Big Business

Joe Biden just took the most significant action any president has taken in generations to confront the menace of corporate monopolies. In an executive order yesterday, President Biden tasked agencies throughout his administration with helping to level the playing field for consumers, workers, a…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 9, 2021 at 6:20 PM

Big Pharma's big phraud

For decades, Big Pharma has insisted that its outrageous price gouging is necessary to cover the costs of research and development. Never mind that much of the research and development behind new drugs is done at public universities and government agencies that are supported by American taxpaye…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 8, 2021 at 8:18 PM

a really bad FDA decision

Support Public Citizen 29 days ago, I emailed you about Public Citizen’s emergency response to the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of a new Alzheimer’s treatment called aducanumab. We demanded that the FDA revoke its approval because there is nowhere near enough evidence that aducanumab …

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 7, 2021 at 6:44 PM

did Mitch McConnell accidentally tell the truth?

Senator Mitch McConnell gave a rambling speech to a small audience at a university in Kentucky yesterday. He noted that the Bluegrass State is getting $4 billion thanks to the American Rescue Plan. That’s the landmark coronavirus relief package passed earlier this year — without a single Repu…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 3, 2021 at 3:08 PM

definitely not being sarcastic

$201.8 billion. That’s where Forbes pegs the net worth of Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos as of 5:00 p.m. Friday. Bezos is actually worth $7.1 billion more than the gross domestic product of Iowa — the entire state of Iowa — for 2019. (You know that old saying: “Worth more than all the corn…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 2, 2021 at 5:39 PM

Supreme Court OKs racist voting restrictions

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the green light to racist voting restrictions even as Republican legislators are seeking to undermine voting rights throughout America. Here’s what went down: Arizona’s Republican-dominated Legislature and its Trumpist governor recently enacted laws that…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

July 1, 2021 at 12:08 AM

even if I had a vat of honey

Support Public Citizen There’s no way to sugarcoat this: Unless we see a serious uptick in online donations in the few hours left before TONIGHT’S MIDNIGHT DEADLINE, we will head into the second half of 2021 without all the resources we need to power the critical work you and Public Citizen are …

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  Robert · [email protected]

June 30, 2021 at 8:50 PM

cake and pie in the park?

Support Public Citizen This is the situation: We need 131 people to donate before midnight to lock in the full $25,000 in dollar-for-dollar matching funds. Maybe that sounds like a piece of cake. Easy as pie. A walk in the park. But this is where things always stall out. We get this clos…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 30, 2021 at 5:32 PM

the thing I've been telling you about

Support Public Citizen Tonight’s midnight deadline is coming up fast. And we are still $6,859 short of earning the full $25,000 in dollar-for-dollar matching funds I’ve been telling you about (see my earlier note, copied below in case you missed it). Please donate to Public Citizen right now i…

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  Robert · [email protected]

June 30, 2021 at 1:52 PM

attacked by Trump mob

Support Public Citizen It’s great to know there are so many Public Citizen supporters ready to stand with us when we are attacked by neo-fascists and fanatical Trumpists. See my note from yesterday (copied below in case you missed) for a few examples of the kind of hate directed at the work we’r…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 29, 2021 at 11:41 PM

update on three of our most critical campaigns

Support Public Citizen You and Public Citizen are doing so much essential work together. I wanted to update you on where things stand with three of our most critical campaigns. STRENGTHENING OUR DEMOCRACY Last week, every Republican in the United States Senate — every single one — voted agai…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 29, 2021 at 7:15 PM

hate mail

Support Public Citizen We get a lot of hate mail at Public Citizen. Here’s just a sampling of recent comments (with expletives edited): You are disgusting pathetic traitors who hate America. Get rid of scum like you who did nothing to earn your place in this country! Should have guessed you’…

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  Robert · [email protected]

June 29, 2021 at 2:36 PM

my job

Support Public Citizen My thanks to everyone who responded to my note yesterday (copied below in case you missed it). We still have quite a ways to go to earn the full $25,000 in dollar-for-dollar matching funds. And tomorrow’s midnight deadline is really closing in. If you can, please donate…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 28, 2021 at 9:25 PM

bad news

Support Public Citizen So far, 2021 has had more than its share of bad news: In a brazen bid to remain in office despite losing an election, Donald Trump engineered his Big Lie that the 2020 election was “rigged” and “stolen” — and he came alarmingly close to succeeding. On January 6, Trump ad…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 28, 2021 at 3:11 PM

only a fraction of what we are doing

Support Public Citizen You and Public Citizen are doing so much essential work together. I wanted to update you on where things stand with three of our most critical campaigns. STRENGTHENING OUR DEMOCRACY Last week, every Republican in the United States Senate — every single one — voted agai…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 26, 2021 at 6:18 PM

suing Georgia for racist voter suppression

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it is suing Georgia over racist and illegal voting restrictions recently signed into law by that state’s Trumpist Governor, Brian Kemp. Specifically, as noted by Attorney General Merrick Garland, “Georgia’s election laws were enacted with…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 25, 2021 at 6:58 PM

states' rights

This is not a short note. Please read through to the end. And please take action. Let’s start with some quick history: The 15th Amendment — which was intended to prohibit racial discrimination in voting — was ratified in 1870. But after Reconstruction, blatantly racist voting laws throughou…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 24, 2021 at 10:46 PM

tune in to our Gala now!

Public Citizen’s FREE, online Gala starts in just a few minutes, at 7:00 p.m. EDT. Tune in now! I’ll share Public Citizen’s plan for winning passage of the For the People Act despite Tuesday’s flagrantly partisan Republican filibuster of the landmark legislation to defend our democracy. We’…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 24, 2021 at 5:14 PM

dress code for tonight's event

Public Citizen’s annual gala is TONIGHT at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). This year’s gala is an online, “virtual” event — which means you can wear whatever you want! And it’s free! All you need to do is RSVP. I’ll share Public Citizen’s plan for winning passage of the For the People Act despite Tuesda…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 23, 2021 at 7:02 PM

let's have some fun, and let's get to work

Public Citizen’s annual gala is tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). This year’s gala is an online, “virtual” event. And it’s free! All you need to do is RSVP. I’ll share Public Citizen’s plan for winning passage of the For the People Act despite yesterday’s flagrantly partisan Republican filibus…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 23, 2021 at 2:56 PM

no intention of letting democracy be smothered on our watch

Support Public Citizen Late yesterday, the U.S. Senate completed its first full vote on the For the People Act. This vote was whether or not to defeat a Republican filibuster and simply begin debate on the desperately needed legislation — it was not the final vote to pass the bill. Yet every R…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 22, 2021 at 11:18 PM

every Republican senator just voted against democracy itself

Support Public Citizen Moments ago, the U.S. Senate completed its first full vote on the For the People Act. This vote was whether or not to defeat a Republican filibuster and simply begin debate on the desperately needed legislation — it was not the final vote to pass the bill. Yet every Repu…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 22, 2021 at 1:11 PM

contact your senators *before* today's vote

The U.S. Senate is voting TODAY whether to begin debate on the landmark For the People Act. The For the People Act includes critical measures to protect voting rights, end partisan gerrymandering, and stop billionaires from buying elections along with other reforms to strengthen our democracy. …

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 21, 2021 at 6:02 PM

Senate vote on For the People Act

Tomorrow, the U.S. Senate is expected to hold its first full vote on the landmark For the People Act. Urge your senators to protect voting rights, end partisan gerrymandering, and stop billionaires from buying elections by supporting the For the People Act when the Senate votes. Add your name…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 19, 2021 at 7:16 PM

Juneteenth

Some quick history: Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. It said that all enslaved people in Confederate states were to be freed as of January 1, 1863. But it was not until over two years later that Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered on Apri…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 18, 2021 at 6:27 PM

just expand Medicare already

After yesterday’s Supreme Court decision NOT to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare), even Ted Cruz seems to have given up. Senator Cruz complained about the decision, but he did not call for repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Neither did extremists like Senator Josh Hawley (you…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 16, 2021 at 5:56 PM

insurrection is good for business?

After murderous adherents of Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6 with the express intention of overturning the 2020 election, many corporations announced changes to their political spending. Some companies pledged to stop — though perhaps only temporarily — contributing to Republ…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 15, 2021 at 2:41 PM

a direct challenge

Support Public Citizen A longtime Public Citizen benefactor has challenged us to bring in 50 new Sustainers TODAY. Sustainers are people who take their support of Public Citizen to the next level by setting up a recurring donation every month. Here’s the deal: Become a Sustainer by making yo…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 14, 2021 at 5:00 PM

actual member of Congress actually suggests altering Earth's orbit to solve climate change

Climate change is real. Human activity — namely, our dependence on fossil fuels — is largely responsible for it. And if we don’t take immediate steps to stop it, our continuation as a species could be in peril. But — rather than doing everything in their considerable power to help move us awa…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 11, 2021 at 2:52 PM

Mitch McConnell goes full Jim Crow

Perhaps democracy seems like a given. After all, it has been the system (a flawed system, a work in progress, to be sure) here in the United States for over 200 years. But ours is the only democracy in the world today to have survived for that long, which is barely more than a blip in the ove…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 10, 2021 at 6:58 PM

you're invited

Here’s something you already know: It’s been a rough year, but things are looking up. Here’s something you may not be aware of: Public Citizen’s annual gala is coming up in just two weeks — on Thursday, June 24, at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). What do they have to do with each other? For one thing,…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 9, 2021 at 6:20 PM

FDA's credibility ruined with approval of ineffective Alzheimer's treatment

On Monday, the Food and Drug Administration approved a new medication for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. But — as Public Citizen has noted — there is nowhere near enough evidence that the drug, aducanumab, is effective. In fact, geriatric experts and the FDA’s own independent advisory …

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 8, 2021 at 5:14 PM

waging war against the very foundation of our democracy

All eyes are on Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Over the weekend, Senator Manchin published an op-ed citing a dedication to “bipartisan compromise” for his refusal to support the For the People Act (H.R.1/S.1) — a commonsense and popular bill in Congress to protect voting rights and stren…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 7, 2021 at 7:37 PM

Joe Manchin and the fate of our democracy

All eyes are on Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Over the weekend, Senator Manchin published an op-ed citing a dedication to “bipartisan compromise” for his refusal to support the For the People Act (H.R.1/S.1) — a commonsense and popular bill in Congress to protect voting rights and stren…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 6, 2021 at 8:22 PM

Trump resumes rallies

Yesterday, Donald Trump held a massive rally in North Carolina. All indications are that Trump intends to resume these grotesque events — both to bask in the adoration of his enthralled MAGA masses as well as to incite their entrenched prejudices and hatreds. Here are just a few things Trump …

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  Robert · [email protected]

June 3, 2021 at 6:16 PM

one other thing

One other thing, in case you missed my note yesterday (copied below): The Trumpist governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, is threatening to defund the State Legislature in a juvenile act of retaliation after Democrats fought back when Republicans tried to pass a racist, anti-democratic voter suppressi…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

June 2, 2021 at 6:12 PM

what happened in Texas

Did you hear about what just happened in Texas? This past Sunday, Democrats in the Texas Legislature took a stand to defend democracy from Trumpist Republicans. All across America, Republican governors and state legislatures are, in essence, carrying out a slow-motion coup d’etat engineered t…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

May 29, 2021 at 3:22 PM

the filibuster actually impedes bipartisanship

On January 6, violent insurrectionists laid siege to the United States Capitol in an attempt to overturn the presidential election. The racist, militant mob was out for blood. And not just that of Democrats. Had they found Vice President Mike Pence, they may well have assassinated him. Bu…

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  Public Citizen · [email protected]

May 28, 2021 at 3:12 PM

eating itself alive

Support Public Citizen Donald Trump has retreated to Mar-a-Lago and is banished from Facebook and Twitter. The Republican Party seems to be eating itself alive. Here in the U.S., we are at long last getting a handle on the COVID-19 crisis. The Biden administration is advancing some progressi…

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