Democracy Happy Hour – July 10, 2024

Democracy Happy Hour, July 10, 2024 - Meeting Recordings:

• Speaker View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/md59uAzssXjXrmrXUM2FD7WCjNFPulNWoL7mesCGemWSuU65gFQJV1ul9tnKqheIzjed7muEHDIEMbxO.AO04E4MRkW4zjATJ
• Gallery View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/hvL7e_ANVn7ccoOPcnIpcBng6foTOVS_dAr0W8-yn3KbNmnVLMXurai5oP1Pt6yynYb1_qGNlp7M7h5I.xdBcPNPxKb6qRn3j
• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/TXzoWKiJeGHS_Hqlo6Lw7JMv6SlOBN-Hktb3KIl6S9pqutlp8oufVjFbF1468NSqwDgjweY8xEbJabKu.oliZhDwjdEfDEEzf

FDF Links:

• Fix Democracy First - https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/
• Donate to Fix Democracy First here: https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/donate

Democracy Happy Hour Upcoming Topics/Schedule:

• July 17 @ 5 pm PT– SPECIAL Democracy Happy Hour EVENT: John Lewis National Day of Commemoration & Action
• July 24 - Civic Language Perceptions Project: How Civic Language Unites, Divides, & Motivates American Voters with Amy McIsaac, PACE
• July 31 - Saving Democracy: A User's Manual for Every American with David Pepper
• Aug 7 - Project 2025: The Far Right's Plan for Authoritarian Rule with Peter Montgomery, People for the American Way Right Wing Watch
• Aug 14 - Better Together America: Supporting State & Local Democracy Roundtables & Hubs with Jacob Bornstein
• Aug 21 - The American Schism in 2024 with Seth Radwell
• Aug 28 - Making Democracy Count: How Mathematics Improves Voting, Electoral Maps, and Representation with Ismar Volić

ACTIONS & EVENTS:

• SPECIAL Democracy Happy Hour EVENT: John Lewis National Day of Commemoration and Action – July 17^th @ 5 pm PT/8 pm ET - https://www.mobilize.us/john-lewis-actions/event/629882/
• EVENT: Our Shared Republic: The Case for Proportional Representation in the House of Representatives with Drew Penrose - Book Talk – July 18^th @ 5 pm PT/8 pm ET – https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIlc-ChrDgiGtdc6TcEGV_t_o7mTRYKa0Z-#/registration
• EVENT: Fix Democracy First Democracy in the Park Picnic – August 24^th @ 12 pm PT – Magnolia Park in Seattle - https://fixdemocracyfirst.salsalabs.org/democracy-in-the-park-seattle
• ACTION: Power the Polls - https://www.powerthepolls.org/
• ACTION: Why Do You Vote? Campaign ! - https://www.whydoyou.vote/some text
  • Coffee Chats – Tuesdays at 9 am PT/12 pm ET - https://www.whydoyou.vote/events

U.S. Supreme Court Top Rulings for the 2023-2024 Session Links:

The U.S. Supreme Court website - https://www.supremecourt.gov/

Supreme Court cases, October term 2023-2024 - https://ballotpedia.org/Supreme_Court_cases,_October_term_2023-2024

Oyez - 2023-2024 Term - https://www.oyez.org/cases/2023

The major Supreme Court rulings of 2024 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/supreme-court-cases-abortion-trump-guns

Top 10 Supreme Court rulings of the 2023-24 term - https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-07-01/supreme-court-biggest-rulings

The Major Supreme Court Decisions in 2024 - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/05/09/us/supreme-court-major-cases-2024.html

Highlights from Supreme Court term: Rulings on Trump, regulation, abortion, guns and homelessness - https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-donald-trump-opinions-guns-homelessness-5d49f74d8b523f250f91512b46e1ac22

The Supreme Court had a momentous term — even without all the Trump rulings - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/07/04/2024-supreme-court-decisions-00166571

6 big takeaways from this historic Supreme Court term - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/6-big-takeaways-from-this-historic-supreme-court-term

As Trump dominated the docket, divided Supreme Court moved boldly to the right - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/02/supreme-court-2024-conservative-power-trump

Supreme Court ethics remain at center stage after hard-right rulings - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/06/supreme-court-ethics-public-trust/

What to know about presidential immunity after the Supreme Court ruling - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/02/what-is-presidential-immunity-trump-supreme-court/

Supreme Court just made it harder for federal agencies to regulate in sweeping ruling - https://www.npr.org/2024/06/10/nx-s1-4998861/supreme-court-chevron-doctrine

Corporate lobbyists eye new lawsuits after Supreme Court limits federal power - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/06/30/chevron-supreme-court-corporate-lobbying/

Supreme Court Weakens Safeguards Against State Public Corruption - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/supreme-court-weakens-safeguards-against-state-public-corruption

Supreme Court cases, October term 2024-2025 - https://ballotpedia.org/Supreme_Court_cases,_October_term_2024-2025

Oyez - 2024-2025 Term - https://www.oyez.org/cases/2024

Democracy in the News Links:

US supreme court rules Trump has ‘absolute immunity’ for official acts - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2024/jul/01/supreme-court-decision-trump-immunity-ruling

Supreme Court rules ex-presidents have broad immunity, dimming chance of a pre-election Trump trial - https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-capitol-riot-immunity-2dc0d1c2368d404adc0054151490f542

What is an ‘official’ act, and how will a judge interpret Trump’s immunity? - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/07/02/official-act-trump-immunity-trial-judge

Supreme Court’s Trump immunity ruling poses risk for democracy, experts say - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/01/supreme-court-immunity-trump-democracy

Justice Dept. plans to pursue Trump cases past Election Day, even if he wins - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/07/02/justice-dept-trump-prosecute-after-election

Schumer: Democrats will try to remove immunity from Trump Jan. 6 acts - https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2024/07/08/congress/schumer-trump-immunity-senate-democrats-january-6-scotus-00166879

5 takeaways from the first Trump-Biden 2024 debate - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/06/27/presidential-debate-takeaways/

Hill Democrats remain divided on Biden, with one senator fearing Trump ‘landslide’ - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/09/congressional-democrats-biden-house-senate/

Read Biden’s letter telling Democratic lawmakers he won’t drop out of 2024 race - https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/07/08/joe-biden-letter

Democrats still stumble on how to ‘pass the torch’ to younger leaders - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/06/29/democrats-leadership-youth

Trump’s sentencing in N.Y. hush money case postponed until September - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/02/trump-sentencing-delay-supreme-court-ruling

Trump Moves to Overturn Manhattan Conviction, Citing Immunity Decision - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/01/nyregion/trump-sentence-hush-money.html

Giuliani disbarred in N.Y. over false statements about 2020 election - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/02/giuliani-disbarred-new-york

A conservative leading the pro-Trump Project 2025 suggests there will be a new American Revolution - https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/a-conservative-leading-the-pro-trump-project-2025-suggests-there-will-be-a-new-american-revolution

Democrats focus attacks on right-wing Project 2025 pushed by Trump allies - https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/07/08/project-2025-trump-election

The RNC’s 2024 Platform Escalates Attack on Voting Rights - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/the-rncs-2024-platform-escalates-attack-on-voting-rights

GOP jump-starts 2024 election challenges with Trump-inspired lawsuits - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/10/republican-trump-election-voting-lawsuits

GOP recruits poll monitors from suburban areas to monitor the vote in Democratic cities - https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/gop-poll-monitors-suburbs-democratic-cities-rcna159059

US House to vote on bill to require proof of citizenship to vote despite no evidence of non-citizen ballots - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/10/us-house-save-act-citizenship-proof-voting

More states consider voter ID laws amid conflicting research on their impact - https://southdakotasearchlight.com/2024/07/02/more-states-consider-voter-id-laws-amid-conflicting-research-on-their-impact/

Organizers Say Abortion Access Is Headed to the Ballot in 3 More States - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/05/us/politics/abortion-rights-ballot-measures.html

Arizona Voter Suppression Laws To Remain Blocked - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/federal-court-strikes-down-provisions-of-arizona-voter-suppression-laws/

Fontes says GOP lawsuit to purge at least 500,000 AZ voters should be tossed from court - https://azmirror.com/briefs/fontes-says-gop-lawsuit-to-purge-at-least-500000-az-voters-should-be-tossed-from-court/

Signatures submitted for Arizona initiative that would eliminate partisan primaries, possibly enact ranked-choice voting - https://news.ballotpedia.org/2024/07/08/signatures-submitted-for-arizona-initiative-that-would-eliminate-partisan-primaries-possibly-enact-ranked-choice-voting/

Arkansas election officials debate voting machines vs. hand-counted paper ballots - https://arkansasadvocate.com/2024/06/28/arkansas-election-officials-debate-voting-machines-vs-hand-counted-paper-ballots/

A Florida Law Has Nearly Killed Campus Voter Registration Drives - https://www.insidehighered.com/news/government/politics-elections/2024/07/08/florida-voter-registration-law-has-major-impact

New Georgia Law Spurs Bogus Challenges to Voter Eligibility - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/new-georgia-law-spurs-bogus-challenges-voter-eligibility

In Georgia, conservatives seek to have voters removed from rolls without official challenges - https://apnews.com/article/georgia-voter-removal-software-eagleai-266ead9198da7d54421798e8a1577d26

Idaho governor announces executive order to tighten up voter registration rules - https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4763107-idaho-executive-order-voter-registration-rules/

Open Primaries Initiative supporters to deliver verified signatures to Secretary of State - https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/politics-government/2024-07-01/idaho-open-primaries-secretary-state-elections

Kentucky’s process for purging voter rolls challenged in federal court - https://kentuckylantern.com/2024/07/02/kentuckys-process-for-purging-voter-rolls-challenged-in-federal-court/

Federal judges order Mississippi Legislature to create more Black districts, may prompt 2024 elections - https://mississippitoday.org/2024/07/03/mississippi-redistricting-federal-court-black-voting-dilution-legislature-new-election/

Mississippi erases some restrictions on absentee voting help for people with disabilities - https://apnews.com/article/mississippi-absentee-voting-assistance-91fd88656424f431aa636b8c19dbc8ae

Sununu signs bill requiring accessible voting machines in every town - https://newhampshirebulletin.com/2024/07/08/sununu-signs-bill-requiring-accessible-voting-machines-in-every-town/

NC constitutional amendments: Legislature approves citizen-only voting, rejects repeal of Jim Crow literacy test law - https://www.wral.com/story/nc-constitutional-amendments-legislature-approves-citizen-only-voting-rejects-repeal-of-jim-crow-literacy-test-law/21500789/

Federal Panel Dismisses Challenge to Ohio’s Congressional Map - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/6th-circuit-reopens-litigation-over-ohios-congressional-map/

Ohio group backing citizen redistricting to submit 731K signatures for November ballot - https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/politics/2024/06/28/2024-election-ohio-redistricting-reform-november-ballot-signatures/74216613007/

PAY RAISE: Election poll worker pay doubles in recruitment effort - https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/pay-raise-election-poll-worker-pay-doubles-in-recruitment-effort

This House race reflects how the Supreme Court has narrowed options for Black voters - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/09/gerrymandering-black-voters-supreme-court/

Tennessee Proof of Citizenship Letters Spark Alarm, Confusion Among Naturalized Citizens - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/tennessee-proof-of-citizenship-letters-spark-alarm-confusion-among-naturalized-citizens/

Skeptical about election security? Come have a look behind the scenes - https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/skeptical-about-election-security-come-have-a-look-behind-the-scenes

Wisconsin Supreme Court Says Ballot Drop Boxes Can Again Be Used - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/05/us/wisconsin-supreme-court-absentee-ballots.html

GOP lawmakers in Wisconsin appeal ruling allowing disabled people to obtain ballots electronically - https://apnews.com/article/disabled-voters-wisconsin-electronic-ballots-appeal-republicans-79b7bfbfcbb0c290b16f46948a4fd1e9

Democratic lawmakers seek criminal investigation of Justice Thomas - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/07/09/clarence-thomas-special-counsel-ethics-gifts-travel/

Ocasio-Cortez Introduces Articles of Impeachment Against Justice Thomas and Justice Alito - https://ocasio-cortez.house.gov/media/press-releases/ocasio-cortez-introduces-articles-impeachment-against-justice-thomas-and

Biden, Trump campaigns both report millions in donations after debate - https://www.marketwatch.com/story/biden-trump-campaigns-both-raise-millions-after-debate-aafb2990?mod=hp_minor_pos25

‘No one is picking up the phone’: Joe Biden’s fundraising confronts new hurdles after debate - https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/08/joe-biden-fundraising-debate.html

DOJ celebrates 60th anniversary of Civil Rights Act - https://thehill.com/homenews/4763091-doj-60th-anniversary-civil-rights-act/

Young voters have growing power, but broken politics leave them ‘fatalistic,’ studies find - https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/young-voters-have-growing-power-broken-politics-leave-them-fatalistic-studies-find

Can a civics teacher persuade her students to believe in democracy? - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2024/young-voters-election-2024-democracy

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/