Democracy Happy Hour - May 07, 2025

Fix Democracy First hosts a weekly Democracy Happy Hour on Wednesdays @ 5-6:30pm PT. Grab a drink and join us and learn about the latest democracy efforts, challenges, solutions, as well upcoming events and actions.

This is a recurring event. You only have to register once. Register here.

Healthy Democracy Ecosystem Map    

With Carolyn Lukensmeyer

• Speaker View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/6vV1Z6ofy5D8DPHLs8iiCaIH4V9bmz2Tb6CfnpVgSNKhf_RJiLNWmgfw7oaLSPYQtA9yQMtEuskCLBLG.DaA-t7mSEDVitztg

• Gallery View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/244g1-k9ZuLbJunwjgK0VBcIeGzViJAjcNTYULAAe7JS-QYcBJElt0QY2DAlx86Bi1sUoJSEqDEMrGU_.uknC-zP_SMfOpHyA

• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):              https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/HYtolDDxFdCV-MjQPhXfWiRiQYWLvGo-RsQBnWw9AbftlkLEgLE35n8LRAnS4LQKCCCR0TRL1m9M9Bh9.QEW98h2eSwAHs8gH

• Closed Caption file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/5kPTZVzSAqpA8Eo27oSObKIEMCa146ZcbogOkz7O7-lWX-d42NVv9Ive8qIBih5qJn_-FQbD7vNfg_zm.cv69G-ORNNwYoPaN

Meeting resources

Healthy Democracy Ecosystem Map - https://www.nationalcivicleague.org/2024-healthy-democracy/

• About- https://www.nationalcivicleague.org/2024-health-democracy-about/
• Connect- https://www.nationalcivicleague.org/2024-healthy-democracy-contact/
• Help Build the Map – Add your organization: https://airtable.com/appDSPvxtcNz580qK/pagodDKF31S9TV9ut/form

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

• May 14 - CANCELED - No Democracy Happy Hour this week (Cindy will be in Phoenix for the American Democracy Summit).
• May 21 - Increasing Civic Youth Engagement with Jeannemarie Halleck
• May 28 - CANCELED - No Democracy Happy Hour this week (Cindy will be attending a WA State Democracy Summit.)
• Jun 4 - Ranked-Choice Voting: How the Votes are Counted and Why It Leads to More Democratic Outcomes with Damien Burke, OpaVote
• Jun 11 - Hit Refresh on the U.S. Constitution: A Revolutionary Roadmap for Fulfilling on the Promise of Democracy with the author Paul Zeitz

Actions and events

Actions

• 5 Calls - https://5calls.org/
• How You Can Protect Democracy - 29 concrete actions you can take right now to protect democracy - https://protectdemocracy.org/how-to-protect-democracy
• Join a local Indivisible group - https://indivisible.org/groups
• Join Braver Angels - https://braverangels.org/get-involved/#become-member
• Paths to Understanding - The Potluck Project – https://pathstounderstanding.org/get-involved/potluck
• Protect Public Media Funding - https://protectmypublicmedia.org/
• Share Your Democracy Story, Declaration for American Democracy  -  https://dfadcoalition.org/story
• Stop the SAVE Act (emails) -  https://win.newmode.net/declarationforamericandemocracycoalition/stopthesaveact
• Tell your Senators to oppose the SAVE Act - https://www.lwv.org/take-action/tell-your-members-congress-oppose-save-act
• The Freedom Writers Collaborative - https://freedomwriterscollaborative.org/
• The People's Hub for Grassroots Democracy Organzing - https://www.usgrassroots.org

Events

• 50501 - https://www.fiftyfifty.one – Next National Day of Action
• No Kings National Day of Action – June 14^th - https://www.nokings.org/
• Rise For Freedom Trainings - https://rise4freedom.org/
• We’re Worth Fighting & Other Events with Election Response Center - https://www.mobilize.us/electionresponsecenter/?utm_source=fixdemocracyfirst
• Meet the change leaders: Carolyn Lukensmeyer - https://thefulcrum.us/bridging-common-ground/carolyn-lukensmeyer
• America 250 - https://america250.org

Democracy in the News

Resources

• All of the Trump Administration’s Major Moves in the First xx Days - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/us/trump-agenda-2025.html
• Democracy 2025 – Democracy 2025 is the strategic hub to protect people and their rights should the Trump-Vance administration seek to unlawfully strip away freedoms and prosperity. -  https://www.democracy2025.org/
• How You Can Protect Democracy - 29 concrete actions you can take right now to protect democracy - https://protectdemocracy.org/how-to-protect-democracy
• Outside money, inside influence: How national donors shaped the 2024 congressional elections - https://www.opensecrets.org/news/reports/outside-money-inside-influence
• The People's Hub For Grassroots Democracy Organizing  - https://www.usgrassroots.org/
• Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/us/trump-administration-lawsuits.html
• Trump Administration Highlights - https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/03/18/us/trump-president-news
• What has Trump done today? - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2025/trump-administration-actions

April 2025

April 30

• Arizona GOP passes ‘impossible’ voting bill requiring 4,000 new polling locations - https://azmirror.com/2025/04/30/arizona-gop-passes-impossible-voting-bill-requiring-4000-new-polling-locations/
• D.C. and 24 states sue over Trump cuts to AmeriCorps. Here’s what to know. - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/04/30/americorps-cuts-trump-lawsuit-doge/

May 2025

May 01

• Arizona Joins Montana and 20-State Coalition in Ninth Circuit Appeal Supporting Idaho's Voter ID Law - https://hoodline.com/2025/05/arizona-joins-montana-and-20-state-coalition-in-ninth-circuit-appeal-supporting-idaho-s-voter-id-law/
• Colorado lawmakers approve voting rights bill, despite pushback from local officials - https://www.cpr.org/2025/05/01/colorado-voting-right-act-passes/
• DOGE refers dozens of voter fraud cases to DOJ - https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5276489-musk-doge-voter-fraud/
• Hundreds of WA attorneys retake oath to uphold the Constitution - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/200-wa-attorneys-retake-oath-to-uphold-the-constitution
• Judge rules Trump’s use of wartime act for deportations is illegal - https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/05/01/trump-texas-alien-enemies-act-block
• Justice department civil rights division loses 70% of lawyers under Trump - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/01/civil-rights-division-doj-trump
• Miller highlights Trump priority: The war against ‘cancerous, woke culture’ - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/01/trump-stephen-miller-immigration-transgender-diversity
• New congressional district gives voice to Black voters in Alabama - https://www.npr.org/2025/05/01/nx-s1-5345820/alabama-black-voters-new-second-congressional-district
• Seattle City Council to consider changing ethics code for votes - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-city-council-to-consider-changing-ethics-code-for-votes/
• The Justice Department ended a decades-old school desegregation order. Others are expected to fall - https://apnews.com/article/school-segregation-order-civil-rights-justice-department-7fc5e2e4ef8e9ad4a283f563c042ae7c
• Trump’s agenda faces courtroom setbacks as Justice Department lawyers struggle to win over judges - https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-judges-immigration-executive-order-5522245bc2140579d39a0a825b6db7af

May 02

• A Double Win For Voters in Pennsylvania - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/a-double-win-for-voters-in-pennsylvania/
• Americans see more overreach from the president than from judges, an AP-NORC poll finds - https://apnews.com/article/trump-poll-presidential-power-executive-authority-d580838bfa4c88cbeadc204b7ddd184f
• Florida GOP lawmakers create new hurdles for citizens' initiative process - https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/florida-gop-lawmakers-create-new-hurdles-citizens-initiative-121410290
• GOP balks at approving even a fraction of Musk’s DOGE cuts - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/02/musk-doge-cuts-congress-budget
• Here’s what Trump’s budget proposal cuts by agency - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2025/trump-budget-proposal-cuts
• Photo identification will be required for West Virginia voters after latest bill signed into law - https://therealwv.com/2025/05/02/photo-identification-will-be-required-for-west-virginia-voters-after-latest-bill-signed-into-law/
• Trump administration plans major downsizing at U.S. spy agencies - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/05/02/cia-layoffs-trump-administration
• Trump Asks Supreme Court to Let DOGE View Social Security Data - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/us/supreme-court-doge-social-security.html
• Trump order targeting law firm Perkins Coie is unconstitutional, judge rules - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/02/trump-perkins-coie-unconstitutional
• Trump Proposes Slashing Domestic Spending to the Lowest Level of the Modern Era - https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/05/02/us/trump-budget-2026
• Trump Signs Executive Order Seeking to End Federal Funding for NPR and PBS - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/us/politics/trump-funding-npr-pbs.html

May 03

• Colorado House passes immigrant protections as Trump administration sues over ‘sanctuary’ laws - https://coloradonewsline.com/2025/05/03/colorado-immigrant-protection-bill-as-justice-department-sues-state/
• Justice Department will switch its focus on voting and prioritize Trump’s elections order, memo says - https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-voting-rights-elections-fraud-0717d58a10daa11b3957d277a7ca8e0e

May 04

• Justice Department lawyers face skeptical judges upset by ‘shoddy work’ - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/04/trump-policies-lawyers-court-judges-unimpressed
• Trump says he ‘doesn’t rule out’ using military force to control Greenland - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/04/trump-greenland-denmark-military-force
• Trump Says ‘I Don’t Know’ When Asked About Due Process and Upholding Constitution - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/04/us/politics/trump-meet-the-press-interview-due-process.html
• Trump’s early agenda dismantles Civil Rights Act, advances Project 2025, activists say - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/05/04/trump-100-days-civil-rights-protections-setback/83331594007/

May 05

• Door knocks and DNA tests: How the Trump administration plans to keep tabs on 450,000 migrant kids - https://apnews.com/article/trump-migrant-children-immigration-sponsors-border-7a5004c88260a57ea194631a13e5941e
• Federal judge rules for Riggs in Supreme Court voter case - https://ncnewsline.com/2025/05/05/federal-judge-rules-for-riggs-in-supreme-court-voter-case/
• Former Judges Condemn Trump Administration’s Arrest of Wisconsin Judge - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/05/us/judges-trump-arrest-wisconsin-judge.html
• Report spotlights lobbying by White House chief’s former clients - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/05/lobbying-white-house-wiles/
• Republicans Persist In Newest Voter Suppression Fad Despite Evidence That It Hurts Their Constituents Too - https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/voter-restriction-noncitizen-voting-trump-republican
• Texas lawmakers moving to greatly increase control of state universities - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/05/05/texas-universities-legislature-state-control
• Trump Administration Live Updates: President Denies Posting Image of Himself as the Pope - https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/05/05/us/trump-news
• Trump administration offers to pay $1,000 to migrants who ‘self-deport’ - https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/05/05/trump-immigrant-deportation-payments-stipend
• Trump Sons’ Deals on Three Continents Directly Benefit the President - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/05/us/politics/eric-donald-jr-trump-family-deals.html

May 06

• Kansas Sued Over Law That Rejects Ballots Through No Fault of Voters - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/kansas-sued-over-law-that-rejects-ballots-through-no-fault-of-voters/
• Supreme Court lets Trump ban transgender troops while case continues - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/06/transgender-troops-ban-supreme-court-trump
• Trump administration asks judge to toss suit restricting access to abortion medication - https://apnews.com/article/abortion-medication-mifepristone-e5a89a12e98fc4c529d487daba81606a
• Trump Orders DOJ to ‘Secure the Release’ of Convicted Election Denier Tina Peters - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/trump-orders-doj-to-secure-the-release-of-convicted-election-denier-tina-peters/
• Wyoming updating election rules to incorporate new proof of residency and citizenship requirements - https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/politics-government/2025-05-06/wyoming-updating-election-rules-to-incorporate-new-proof-of-residency-and-citizenship-requirements

May 07

• DOGE aims to pool federal data, putting personal information at risk - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/05/07/doge-government-data-immigration-social-security
• Republican concedes long-unsettled North Carolina court election to Democratic incumbent - https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-supreme-court-election-appeal-b227a456e5ca04bc42bf6075af46028c

Good News Websites

• ABC Good News - https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/good-news
• Daily Good - https://www.dailygood.org/
• Democracy's Good News - https://www.democracygroup.org/topics/democracys-good-news
• Good News Network - https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/
• Politics & Government Good News - https://www.goodgoodgood.co/impact/democracy
• Sunny Skyz - https://www.sunnyskyz.com/good-news
• The Happy News - https://thehappynewspaper.com/

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