Democracy Happy Hour - October 30, 2024

Topic:: Combating Polarization & Extremism with Ryan Nakade, Ruminant Resolutions&CURE-PNW

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.

Meeting Recordings

• Speaker View: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/53A1lkSNWb2BKIG6GZ8ps15qIRVEiRfedBCpr82OYTq3OKHQ8hRVE_QPboZEC1jAV5FXW9FN9IQ7DB7p.NYlkYQioBeyz_HdQ

• Gallery View: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/M3QkS5ZuI2oFU-gh4YhOC5FC-Oh7HbBgma35g9i_NY23hjbJA5bWvlJPGokM-vJkvZhEZIo0EBW65Exu.ORh1MycXWvkGJXwm
• Chat file (will download directly to your computer): https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/_LzNB7I3an07CnUEr4_T6efls1PMl7TwxbQVrHRCBkpfQwwR1-b71qqM2uf-g4XF0b10RdakngAUfeRB.lnY7bQ7_dShV0-aD

• Closed Caption file (will download directly to your computer): https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/1Afgip6NcUWt7vpfFMGKu-pGWgAOIbNjKN76AZpSxpkTj1YZjHmHMRZHJ9nEYfmfJ11t1T9gM0rDwmiT.fkfbFz58GnbMiiPz

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

• Nov 06 - Election Updates & Open Discussion - Where do we go from here?
• Nov 13 - Center For Wise Democracy with Jim Rough
• Nov 20 - Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality with author Renee DiResta
• Nov 27 - NO Democracy Happy Hour this week - CANCELED for Thanksgiving

Upcoming actions and events

• Join Election Protection - https://protectthevote.net/?source=fixdemocracyfirst
• Multi-Member Districts Education Presentation – LWV of WA Project – November 9^th @ 10 am PT/1 pm ET - https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0pd-2ppjwoHdQNtgK-wnxesL0ToEq9RmLp#/registration
• Power the Polls - https://www.powerthepolls.org/fixdemocracyfirst
• SPECIAL EVENT: Fix Democracy First Get Together for Democracy in Seattle – December 7^th @ 4-7 pm - https://bit.ly/get-together-for-democracy
• Why Do You Vote?  https://www.whydoyou.vote/
  • • Coffee Chats – Tuesdays at 9 am PT/12 pm ET
      https://www.whydoyou.vote/events

Combating Polarization & Extremism  

With Ryan Nakade, CURE: PNW

CURE: PNW - https://www.cure-pnw.org/

• Community Voices NW Helpline - 541-583-0073
• Contact Form - https://www.cure-pnw.org/contact
• Partners - https://www.cure-pnw.org/partners

Divided We Fall: Georgia State Researchers on the Factors Driving Polarization and Extremism in America -- and What It Would Take to Set the Country on a Different Course - https://news.gsu.edu/research-magazine/divided-we-fall

Polarization, Democracy, and Political Violence in the United States: What the Research Says - https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2023/09/polarization-democracy-and-political-violence-in-the-united-states-what-the-research-says

Polarization, extremism, and proportional representation - https://protectdemocracy.org/work/polarization-extremism-and-proportional-representation/

Preventing extreme polarization of political attitudes - https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2102139118

Proportional Representation Could Reduce the Risk of Political Violence in the U.S. - https://www.justsecurity.org/103876/proportional-representation-political-violence/

Ruminant Resolutions - https://www.ruminantresolutions.com/

The Polarization & Extremism Research & Innovation Lab (PERIL) - https://www.american.edu/spa/peril/

Democracy in the News

Resources

• 2024 Ballot Measures That Could Impact State Courts - https://statecourtreport.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/2024-ballot-measures-could-impact-state-courts
• Dark Money from Shadow Parties Is Booming in Congressional Elections - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/dark-money-shadow-parties-booming-congressional-elections
• Deceive, Disrupt, Deny - https://protectdemocracy.org/election-subversion-guide/

October

October 8

• SCOTUS Preserves Campaign Finance Transparency for San Francisco Voters - https://campaignlegal.org/update/scotus-preserves-campaign-finance-transparency-san-francisco-voters

October 18

• Judge Releases Redacted Trove of Evidence in Trump Election Case - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/18/us/politics/trump-election-case-evidence.html

October 20

• Musk promises a daily $1 million lottery in questionable pro-Trump effort - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/10/20/musk-petition-million-dollars/

October 22

• Behind CNN’s investigation on deceptive political fundraising that costs elderly donors their retirement savings - https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2024/10/22/politics/election-fundraising-donors-what-matters
• Georgia Supreme Court declines to reinstate Trump-allied board’s election rules - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/10/22/georgia-supreme-court-declines-reinstate-trump-allied-boards-election-rules/
• Judge Orders Giuliani to Forfeit Millions in Assets to Election Workers He Defamed - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/22/us/politics/giuliani-defamation-forfeit-assets.html
• Michigan judge rejects Republican bid to block overseas voters - https://www.reuters.com/legal/judge-rejects-republican-move-restrict-overseas-voting-michigan-2024-10-22/
• Russia and Iran may fuel violent post-election protests in the US, intelligence officials warn - https://apnews.com/article/election-trump-harris-violent-protests-jan-6-025832e5e391539d87d49ba76a7cddea
• The Many Links Between Project 2025 and Trump’s World - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/10/22/us/politics/project-2025-trump-heritage-foundation.html

October 23

• Election officials are fighting a tsunami of voting conspiracy theories - https://apnews.com/article/election-2024-conspiracy-theories-misinformation-trump-musk-0e5a84b1d9e6cd63cd8ca22ee9900387
• Georgia’s Republican secretary of state finds just 20 noncitizens registered to vote out of 8.2 million - https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/23/politics/georgia-raffensperger-noncitizens-registered/index.html
• Justice Department Warns Musk That His $1 Million Giveaway Might Be Illegal - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/23/us/politics/elon-musk-department-of-justice-giveaway.html
• Local news sources are still drying up, but there’s growth in digital sites in metro areas - https://apnews.com/article/newspapers-closing-jobs-lost-digital-fa82ebfdefdde058a1cbfaea1a59fb69
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court Allows Provisional Votes After Mail Ballot Rejections - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/23/us/politics/pennsylvania-provisional-votes.html

October 24

• Fontes challenges Pinal County’s election violations in state Supreme Court - https://azcapitoltimes.com/news/2024/10/24/fontes-challenges-pinal-countys-election-violations-in-state-supreme-court/
• Most Republican states have made voting harder since 2020. Our research shows how successful they’ve been - https://theconversation.com/most-republican-states-have-made-voting-harder-since-2020-our-research-shows-how-successful-theyve-been-240667
• Most U.S. counties have little to no local news sources - https://www.axios.com/2024/10/24/most-us-counties-have-little-to-no-local-news-sources
• Project 2025 will ‘upend’ the lives of Black Americans, new report shows - https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/24/project-2025-black-americans
• Trump challenges special counsel Jack Smith appointment in Jan. 6 case - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/10/24/trump-challenges-jack-smith-appointment/

October 25

• Mississippi’s Absentee Ballot Measure Violates Federal Law, Appeals Court Rules - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/us/mississippi-absentee-ballot-law.html
• Musk resumes $1M giveaways to swing state voters - https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4953094-musk-resumes-1m-giveaways-to-swing-state-voters/
• Trump is unusually dependent on outside money — meaning Elon Musk - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/10/25/trump-is-unusually-dependent-outside-money-meaning-elon-musk/
• Washington Post Says It Will Stop Endorsing Presidential Candidates - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/25/business/media/washington-post-presidential-endorsement.html

October 26

• The new dark money: How influencers get paid big bucks to court your vote - https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/10/26/social-media-influencers-election-money-campaigns/

October 27

• Supreme Court ignites wave of lawsuits against federal regulations - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/10/27/supreme-court-lawsuits-federal-regulations

October 28

• A new Supreme Court case could change the result of the presidential election - https://www.vox.com/scotus/380170/supreme-court-pennsylvania-election-republican-genser
• A once-in-a-generation change’: Oregon’s biggest city prepares for monumental overhaul of government - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/28/portland-oregon-government-overhaul
• At Trump’s request, judge delays immunity filing in Jan. 6 prosecution - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/10/28/trump-jan-6-immunity-filing-delayed/
• Ballot drop box fires under investigation in Oregon, Washington after hundreds of ballots destroyed - https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/28/us/ballot-box-fires-oregon-washington/index.html
• Behind the Curtain: The big media era is over - https://www.axios.com/2024/10/28/election-news-media-trump-harris
• GOP’s aggressive court strategy sets the stage to cast doubt on the 2024 results - https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/28/politics/gop-election-lawsuits-trump-litigation/index.html
• Inside the Movement Behind Trump’s Election Lies - https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/10/28/us/politics/inside-the-movement-behind-trumps-election-lies.html
• L.A. Times, Washington Post see subscription cancellations over not endorsing in presidential race - https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-10-28/non-endorsement-post-la-times-cancellations
• Nevada Can Count Late Mail-In Ballots in Court Loss for GOP - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-10-28/republicans-lose-fight-over-late-arriving-mail-ballots-in-nevada
• US voters concerned about post-election violence and efforts to overturn the results: AP-NORC poll - https://apnews.com/article/ap-poll-democracy-elections-results-violence-3016f595faea0dfc81c487e856aafb04

October 29

• About 475 damaged ballots retrieved from burned drop box in Washington state, auditor says - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/about-475-damaged-ballots-retrieved-from-burned-wa-drop-box-auditor-says/
• America’s largest newspaper chain, including USA Today, won’t endorse in 2024 presidential race - https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/29/media/usa-today-gannett-newspapers-endorsement-president/index.html
• Follow the money: The surprisingly legal way billionaires are shaping the 2024 election - https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2024/10/29/election-fec-campaigns-donors-2024-billionaires
• Hell yes! The Seattle Times edit board endorses Harris for president - https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/hell-yes-the-seattle-times-edit-board-endorses-harris-for-president
• Nebraska uses a unique method to find election workers: It drafts them - https://apnews.com/article/election-poll-workers-drafted-nebraska-6135bf36db31b30137976fb049bacb90

October 30

• Majority of swing-state voters say they fear violence if Trump loses - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/10/30/voters-fear-violence-trump-loss/
• Supreme Court Allows Virginia to Purge Possibly Ineligible Voters for Now - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/30/us/supreme-court-virginia-purge-voter-registration.html

Good News Websites

• ABC Good News - https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/good-news
• Daily Good - https://www.dailygood.org/
• 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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