Democracy Happy Hour – June 12, 2024

Democracy Happy Hour, June 12, 2024 - Meeting Recordings:

• Speaker View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/uDThNpdf16pFJX-9MpkzBwCrgr_4FIZI95HYgz1Nt4zZZZp52EruNUk-Dd85rtrpPRpYx93lDj-lGsGL.DeTa1p4PCchRcmpu
• Gallery View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/V3olZPgiX1Bb0TU6GVJXkKidKekm0N8xjcWliHgAE9aGMyh6N2CRJdG2gulrt5GfTG3vHJk6_0vd9tDV.2Uuu28P9uNc0AeYC
• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/4_kDD2VVI129uSoaZ8Ayk5r7K_ITp2b3_suTPYiRs0xqQbIOM36A-EI2Jvdz7T0voc-Uxsa2rxbEm2A.k2iyG_rF5acKjxlO

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:

• June 19 - Unite for Democracy: Democracy is US! with Peggy O'Neal
• June 26 & July 3 - CANCELED - No Democracy Happy Hours - Cindy is on vacation.  
• July 10 - U.S. Supreme Court Top Rulings & Recap of the 2023/2024 Session
• July 17 - 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

ACTIONS & EVENTS:

• FREE Concert: 9th Star Spangled Spectacular in Seattle at Benaroya Hall – July 3^rd @ 7:30 pm - https://www.seattlesymphony.org/en/benaroyahall/bh-calendar/2023-2024/24spangled
• Why Do You Vote? - https://www.whydoyou.vote/
  • Coffee Chats – Tuesdays at 9 am PT/12 pm ET - https://www.whydoyou.vote/events
• Kent for Districts – Ballot initiative in Kent, WA to create districts – They are looking for volunteers to help get this on the November ballot. - https://www.kentfordistricts.com/
• Power the Polls - https://www.powerthepolls.org/  

Citizens United Overreach: Corporate Boards’ Political Spending Links:

Center for American Progress - https://www.americanprogress.org/

REPORT: Citizens United Gave Corporations, But Not Their Boards, the Authority To Spend in Candidate Elections - https://www.americanprogress.org/article/citizens-united-gave-corporations-but-not-their-boards-the-authority-to-spend-in-candidate-elections/

Citizens United Overreach: New CAP Report Reveals Legal Risk in For-Profit Corporate Boards’ Political Spending - https://www.americanprogress.org/events/citizens-united-overreach-new-cap-report-reveals-legal-risk-in-for-profit-corporate-boards-political-spending/

VIDEO Presentation: Citizens United Overreach: Revealing Legal Risk in For-Profit Corporate Boards’ Political Spending - Citizens United Overreach: Revealing Legal Risk in For-Profit Corporate Boards’ Political Spending

A Democrat, Siding With the G.O.P., Is Removing Limits on Political Cash at ‘Breathtaking’ Speed - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/10/us/politics/fec-deadlock-deregulation.html

Democracy in the News Links:

Trump meets with N.Y. probation officer over video - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/06/10/trump-interview-probation-officer-hush-money/

Georgia appeals court pauses lower-court proceedings in Trump election case - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/06/05/georgia-appeals-court-pauses-lower-court-proceedings-trump-election-case

Judge Strikes One Element From Trump Indictment in Documents Case - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/10/us/politics/trump-documents-charges-cannon.html

Trump ally Steve Bannon must surrender to prison by July 1 to start contempt sentence, judge says - https://apnews.com/article/steve-bannon-contempt-jan-6-committee-prison-2da50bcf2f8ff8f3e01ef4bf2b1b845e?

Trump calls for Jan. 6 committee members to be indicted - https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4708462-trump-jan-6-committee-members-indicted-bannon/

Election certification disputes in a handful of states spark concerns over 2024 presidential contest - https://apnews.com/article/election-2024-voting-results-certification-trump-09bb9d1fdc11b495b7c50687e5576997

Republicans slowly rev up poll monitoring operation ahead of election, but questions remain about its scope - https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/republicans-poll-monitoring-operation-rcna154763

Election workers worry that federal threats task force isn’t enough to keep them safe - https://ncnewsline.com/2024/06/08/election-workers-worry-that-federal-threats-task-force-isnt-enough-to-keep-them-safe/

House Republicans Want to Slash Election Funding in New Budget - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/house-republicans-want-to-slash-election-funding-in-new-budget/

1 in 10 eligible U.S. voters say they can’t easily show proof of their citizenship - https://www.npr.org/2024/06/11/nx-s1-4991903/voter-registration-proof-of-citizenship-requirement

Calls for hand-counted votes underline mistrust in election process - https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2024/06/07/election-hand-count-conspiracy-theories/1531717695168/

New voter registration rules threaten hefty fines, criminal penalties for groups - https://stateline.org/2024/06/07/new-voter-registration-rules-threaten-hefty-fines-criminal-penalties-for-groups/

Republicans sue to purge at least 500,000 people from Arizona’s voter rolls - https://azmirror.com/briefs/republicans-sue-to-purge-at-least-500000-people-from-arizonas-voter-rolls/

Arkansas nonprofit sues election officials over new voter registration signature rule - https://arkansasadvocate.com/2024/06/06/arkansas-nonprofit-sues-election-officials-over-new-voter-registration-signature-rule/

Colorado governor signs bill that would prevent voter-adopted statewide ranked choice voting from taking effect - https://coloradosun.com/2024/06/06/ranked-choice-voting-bill-colorado-signed/

Approved bills will affect Louisiana elections, change absentee voting, registration drives - https://wgno.com/news/politics/louisiana-politics/approved-bills-will-affect-louisiana-elections-change-absentee-voting-registration-drives/

Maine Republicans to collect signatures at polls for voter ID, repeal of national popular vote law - https://www.pressherald.com/2024/06/10/maine-republicans-to-collect-signatures-at-polls-for-voter-id-repeal-of-national-popular-vote-law/

Republicans say mail ballots arriving after Election Day in Nevada should be illegal - https://www.npr.org/2024/06/06/nx-s1-4973736/mail-ballot-return-lawsuits-nevada

Ohio releases list of 159,000 inactive voters to be purged ahead of the November election. Here’s how to check if you’re on it. - https://www.cleveland.com/news/2024/06/ohio-releases-list-of-159000-inactive-voters-to-be-purged-ahead-of-the-november-election-heres-how-to-check-if-youre-on-it.html

Hand-count ballot measures unsuccessful in 3 South Dakota counties - https://listen.sdpb.org/politics/2024-06-05/hand-count-ballot-measures-unsuccessful-in-3-south-dakota-counties

Washington judge denies GOP attempt to keep financial impact of initiatives off November ballots - https://apnews.com/article/ballots-fiscal-disclosure-gop-initiatives-washington-3699c3b257fbae93524932531990e099

Wyoming Secretary of State Seeks to Eliminate Ballot Drop Boxes - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/wyoming-secretary-of-state-seeks-to-eliminate-ballot-drop-boxes/

6 major Supreme Court rulings to watch for in June - https://www.deseret.com/politics/2024/05/31/supreme-court-rulings-expected-in-june/

Alito and his wife are captured in audio recordings talking about abortion leak, flag controversy - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/10/alito-wife-supreme-court-recordings-00162610

Supreme Court Ethics Controversies: Alito’s Remarks On Secret Recordings Draw Concern - https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2024/06/11/supreme-court-ethics-controversies-alitos-remarks-on-secret-recording-draw-concern/

Far-right fossil fuel company allies pressure US supreme court to shield firms in unprecedented campaign - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jun/09/fossil-fuel-allies-pressuring-supreme-court

Nonprofit connected to Leonard Leo sent millions to his firm - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/07/nonprofit-leonard-leo-00162364

Republicans pitch tax cuts for corporations, the wealthy in 2025 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/06/09/biden-trump-taxes-election

$800,000 wire transfer from billionaire donor to US Chamber raises curtain on dark money - https://thehill.com/lobbying/4702908-us-chamber-800k-hank-meijer-supermarket-mogul-peter-meijer/

A Democrat, Siding With the G.O.P., Is Removing Limits on Political Cash at ‘Breathtaking’ Speed - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/10/us/politics/fec-deadlock-deregulation.html

Secretive court system has awarded over $100bn public money to corporations, finds new analysis - https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/jun/06/investors-awarded-billions-of-dollars-for-losses-related-to-climate-laws-analysis-finds

Sarbanes, Neguse, Clarke and Pingree Reintroduce Government by the People Act to Counter Big Money Influence in Politics - https://sarbanes.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/sarbanes-neguse-clarke-and-pingree-reintroduce-government-people-act

Project 2025 is a threat to democracy - https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/project-2025-is-a-threat-to-democracy

Trump loyalist pushes ‘post-Constitutional’ vision for second term - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/06/08/russ-vought-trump-second-term-radical-constitutional/

House Democrats step up to try to stop Project 2025 plans for a Trump White House - https://apnews.com/article/project-2025-trump-biden-election-congress-6899a1167a4522b1c8be371f7abe7ee9

The Mass Psychology of Trumpism - https://newlinesmag.com/argument/the-mass-psychology-of-trumpism/

Uncle Sam Needs You ... to Be a Poll Worker for This Year's Election - https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/06/10/uncle-sam-needs-you-be-poll-worker-years-election.html

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/