Democracy Happy Hour – April 3, 2024

Democracy Happy Hour, April 3, 2024 - Meeting Recordings:

• Speaker View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/YIcGm6JOgPUe0gZOQg152OrWKwQeBZjJfkqJCPQNqGyOEmq1QDJ9uh4eSW9LIGB39RRYKpUwV-zmk1BX.leR4wGcM3kFwiESR

• Gallery View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/trHM0xAkDIZRrTaT0ERnE5pGBAiAC8dfLWdGvcUiiqGWlSOZE-aGFyDi3awN_YzSwhvtYtoXiBEEGiuo._6wnsgaMx-Bbpey5

• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/tKjuDeAmm7A_HW8bGNYZFbvmBfpJ8jxgOI7VE9ufFCH2gTGQqIzT86E9nMLv_Wl_d3tOJ5_QyNDf88KK.k3tlJT_ZQZlOskjv

FDF Links:

• Fix Democracy First - https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/

• Donate to Fix Democracy First Education Fund to support our civic education and engagement work @ https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/donate/fdfef

• Join our board(s)! We are looking for people to join our Fix Democracy First and Fix Democracy First Education Fund boards.some text
  • Fix Democracy First (501c4): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdtDKKTBsOo7X_nk-7POVUTpJ-K1vfP-U_zHQrW1Ke7JNfvug/viewform
  • Fix Democracy First Education Fund (501c3): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfXiaGJJ0bVqV5eqW2irfLHWrU0n8iwVIsDwDjtrTP36mEj5g/viewform

Democracy Happy Hour Upcoming Topics/Schedule:

• Apr 10 - The Democracy Group: Giving a Voice to the Democracy Community with Brandon Stover
• Apr 17 – Uniting in Support of our Constitutional Democracy with Alyssa Newlon, Team Democracy
• Apr 24 - Building Women's Political Power through Democracy Reform with Alissa Bombardier Shaw, RepresentWomen
• May 1 - Creating Local Democracy Hubs to Strengthen Communities with Vinay Orekondy, Coalition Director at Rank the Vote
• May 8 - The Authoritarian Playbook for 2025 with Elise Wirkus, Protect Democracy
• May 15 – SPECIAL EVENT: How to Steal a Presidential Election with Lawrence Lessig

ACTIONS & EVENTS:

• Washington's New Legislative Maps—How Did We Get Here? Where Do We Go Next? Virtual Event – Sponsored by the League of Women Voters of WA - https://lwvwa.org/The-Evergreen-Voter/13336179some text
  • April 10, 2024 @ 6:30-8:00 PM - https://lwvwa.org/event-5665785
  • April 13, 2024 @ 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM - https://lwvwa.org/event-5667167

• John Lewis: Good Trouble Online Screening Event – Sponsored by Meaningful Movies Project & Fix Democracy First – April 28^th @ 4 pm PT/7 pm ET - Register @ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/john-lewis-good-trouble-online-screening-event-tickets-864265149327

• Power the Polls - https://www.powerthepolls.org/

• Support the Building Civic Bridges Actsome text
  • https://resolutionaries.org/advocacy-bcba/#/2/
  • https://kilmer.house.gov/imo/media/doc/building_civic_bridges_act.pdf

• Teachers Advancing Civic Learning (TACL) – https://civxnow.org/our-work/tacl/some text
  • Sign up @ https://www.congressweb.com/signup/?id=AE4C45D3-ADF3-451E-19442D42806D333B

• High School Video Contest 2023-2024 with League of Women Voters of WA - https://lwvwapsacontest.wpcomstaging.com/

• Why Do You Vote? - https://www.whydoyou.vote/

• Respect Voters - https://www.respectvoters.org/

Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center Links:

Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center:

·      General website: https://www.rcvresources.org

·      Subscribe to mailing list: https://www.rcvresources.org/subscribe

·      RCV Maps Reports: https://www.rcvresources.org/state-assessments

·      General Reports: https://www.rcvresources.org/reports

·      Protect the Win Project: https://www.rcvresources.org/the-implementation-project

Democracy in the News Links:

Trump’s Defense Team Argues First Amendment Prohibits Georgia Charges - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/28/us/trump-georgia-hearing.html

Trump ramps up attacks on judges, sparking concerns as criminal trial nears - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/04/01/trump-judges-attacks-trials

Trump Asks Trial Judge to Step Aside, Aiming Again at His Daughter - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/02/nyregion/trump-trial-judge-daughter.html

‘It’s clearly strategic’: Why Trump kept attacking judges’ families - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/02/trump-attacks-judges-families-gag-order-00150080

Judge recommends conservative lawyer John Eastman be disbarred in California - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/03/27/eastman-california-bar-ruling/

Trump special counsel fires back at Cannon order that could disrupt case - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/04/03/trump-documents-case-cannon-jack-smith/

Judge’s inaction in Trump classified documents case dashes July trial hopes - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/02/judge-delay-schedule-trump-classified-documents-case

Donald Trump has posted a $175 million bond to avert asset seizure as he appeals NY fraud penalty - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/04/01/donald-trump-civil-fraud-trial/3b7b239a-f087-11ee-a4c9-88e569a98b58_story.html

Judges, witnesses, prosecutors increasingly warn of threats to democracy in 2024 elections as Jan. 6 prosecutions continue - https://www.cbsnews.com/news/judges-witnesses-jan-6-cases-warn-threats-to-democracy-2024-elections/

RNC plan for 2020 denialist to head ‘election integrity’ unit raises alarms - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/01/republican-election-integrity-denier

Hostility and Abuse Threaten to Undermine Gains in Representative Democracy - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/hostility-and-abuse-threaten-undermine-gains-representative-democracy

Threats against politicians are prevalent. The FEC wants to let campaigns pay for security. - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/27/fec-regulation-security-costs-00149218

Election disinformation takes a big leap with AI being used to deceive worldwide - https://apnews.com/article/artificial-intelligence-elections-disinformation-chatgpt-bc283e7426402f0b4baa7df280a4c3fd

Fretting About Election-Year Deep Fakes, States Roll Out New Rules for A.I. Content - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/26/us/politics/election-year-deep-fakes-ai-rules.html

Why there's a long-standing voter registration gap for Latinos and Asian Americans - https://www.npr.org/2024/04/02/1238751749/voter-registration-gap-racial

Can Multiracial Democracy Survive? - https://horizonsproject.us/can-multiracial-democracy-survive/

Alabama Civil Rights Groups Scramble to Fight Back Against New Voting Law - https://boltsmag.org/alabama-law-absentee-voting-law/

DC Judge Tosses Lawsuit Against Open Primaries, Ranked Choice Voting Ballot Measure - https://ivn.us/posts/dc-judge-tosses-lawsuit-against-open-primaries-ranked-choice-voting-ballot-measure

A federal trial is underway for Florida’s controversial voter registration law - https://news.wfsu.org/state-news/2024-04-01/a-federal-trial-is-underway-for-floridas-controversial-voter-registration-law

Federal Judges uphold Florida map, but raise questions on whether race motivated Gov. DeSantis - https://floridapolitics.com/archives/667151-federal-judges-uphold-florida-map-but-raise-questions-on-whether-race-motivated-gov-desantis/

Florida top court allows for near-total abortion ban; says voters can decide issue in November - https://www.reuters.com/world/us/florida-top-court-lets-abortion-rights-ballot-measure-go-voters-2024-04-01/

Revealed: the election deniers relentlessly hounding Georgia officials - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/29/georgia-election-deniers-trump-2020-election

Federal appeals judges skeptical of Republican challenge to Illinois’ vote-by-mail law - https://chicago.suntimes.com/elections/2024/03/28/u-s-seventh-circuit-appeals-court-republican-challenge-illinois-vote-by-mail-law

Ranked Choice Voting for Presidential Elections Passes in Maine - https://ca.movies.yahoo.com/movies/ranked-choice-voting-presidential-elections-211235370.html?guccounter=1

Secretary of state moves to dismiss GOP lawsuit trying to limit mail-in absentee ballots - https://mississippitoday.org/2024/03/27/republican-absentee-lawsuit-mississippi-secretary-michael-watson-libertarian/

Minnesota Voters Alliance says new law improperly restored voting rights to felons - https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-voters-alliance-says-new-law-improperly-restored-voting-rights-to-felons/600355505

Montana Supreme Court strikes down voting restrictions - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/27/montana-supreme-court-voting-laws/

Court rejects claim challenging North Carolina map for diluting Black vote - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/03/28/north-carolina-voting-map-rejected/

Fight over Gerrymandering in Ohio Continues - https://columbusunderground.com/fight-over-gerrymandering-in-ohio-continues-ocj1/

Undated Pennsylvania mail-in ballots should not be counted, appeals court rules - https://penncapital-star.com/justice-the-courts/undated-pennsylvania-mail-in-ballots-should-not-be-counted-appeals-court-rules/

South Carolina latest state to use congressional map deemed illegal - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/28/south-carolina-redistricting-2024-election/

Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Revive Washington State Voting Map Said to Hurt Hispanics - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/02/us/politics/supreme-court-washington-state-voting-map.html

As campaigning revs up, WA laws aim to detect cyber attacks and protect election workers - https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/campaigning-revs-wa-laws-aim-detect-cyber-attacks-and-protect-election-workers

Gov. Tony Evers signs bills strengthening protections for judges - https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2024/03/27/gov-tony-evers-signs-bills-strengthening-protections-for-judges/73122028007/

WISCONSIN VOTERS SET TO DECIDE ON REPUBLICAN-BACKED BALLOT MEASURES AIMED TO RESTRICT VOTING RIGHTS - https://www.milwaukeeindependent.com/newswire/wisconsin-voters-set-decide-republican-backed-ballot-measures-aimed-restrict-voting-rights/

How the Right Is Taking Over State Courts With Judicial Gerrymandering - https://theintercept.com/2024/04/02/state-courts-judicial-gerrymandering-voting/

Biden raises $25 million in ‘historic’ fundraiser with Obama, Clinton - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/28/biden-obama-clinton-fundraiser-new-york

Democratic committees are out fundraising GOP committees this election cycle - https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2024/03/democratic-committees-are-out-fundraising-gop-committees-this-election-cycle

Biden has more money from fundraising, Trump has more small donor support - https://san.com/cc/biden-has-more-money-from-fundraising-trump-has-more-small-donor-support

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation: U.S. House Dissolves Office of Diversity and Inclusion; More Black Women in Office Is the Real ‘American Dream’ - https://msmagazine.com/2024/03/29/black-women-politics-diversity-equity-inclusion-congress/

Fair Representation Act - H.R.7740 - To establish the use of ranked choice voting in elections for Senators and Representatives in Congress, to require each State with more than one Representative to establish multi-member congressional districts, to require States to conduct congressional redistricting according to nonpartisan criteria, and for other purposes. - https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/7740

GOOD NEWS Websites:

Politics & Government Good News - https://www.goodgoodgood.co/impact/democracy

Good News Network - https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/

Sunny Skyz - https://www.sunnyskyz.com/good-news

ABC Good News - https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/good-news

Daily Good - https://www.dailygood.org/

The Happy News - https://thehappynewspaper.com/