Democracy Happy Hour - August 3, 2022

Democracy Happy Hour, August 3, 2022 - Meeting Recordings & Chat File:

• Speaker View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/22tvds6NT4eD1kkeTMY9bl_gr_J2a11bDeRyrenVqZZ8Nh1EWtAdnZiw9l2H4Zo7G4RxPQcHzLGOqTpY.v2eGcaIo9gVUcQHD
• Gallery View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/FtxPMTUY2BJwUgjAUrO1VoIaP3rzgcm8aDZtr4XIhKbESkDtJuCiZotvF7dxSG1uRCs4uDf3KAxsrEau.Gznp9D2Yv07irdeT
• Chat (Link will download a text file to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/UN1HEjfFbfAx67PaBo0PzvDNB2QMi_To7_Z-wbSniVBv-O91MDoUOs2lIbcuitJnqOT-GGXcKHqFcQPf.rNxIxjkAf2pCW7zp

Actions, Events & Misc. Links:

• Fix Democracy First links:
• DONATE to Fix Democracy First or Fix Democracy First Education Fund @ https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/donate
• YO VOTE! (Youth Organizers for Voter Outreach, Teaching & Engagement) - https://www.yo-vote.org
• WON (Women in Office Now) – https://www.fixdemocracyfirst.org/won
• Upcoming Democracy Happy Hour Topics:
• Aug 10 & 17 – CANCELED: NO Democracy Happy Hours – Cindy on vacation
• Aug 24 – Are We Coming Closer to Civil War?
• Aug 31 – Youth Involvement to Strengthen Democracy
• ACTIONS:
• Ranked Choice Voting in Washington State:
• Seattle - https://fairvotewa.org/
• Clark County – https://fairvotewa.org/ClarkCoCampaign/
• San Juan County – https://fairvotewa.org/SJCOcampaign/
• FVWA - Why Ranked-Choice Voting Works - https://www.mobilize.us/fairvotewa/event/434070/
• Ranked-Choice Voting WA Monday Funday Phone Bank -https://www.mobilize.us/fairvotewa/event/444167/
• Ranked-Choice Voting vs Approval Voting - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g1cE2au5bG1tfjrlIxxswCC_yBHqz7pb/view
• Electoral Count Act:
• Talking points" in support of Electoral Count Act Reform (ECRA) - Attached
• Business for America has a support letter and link to send it to senators at: https://www.bfa.us/electoral-count-reform-act.
• The 11-page dense legal testimony by NYU Professor Pildes on Independent State Legislature Theory can be found at: https://docs.house.gov/meetings/HA/HA08/20220727/115040/HHRG-117-HA08-Wstate-PildesR-20220727.pdf
• 
  
• Election Protection - Stopping Voter Suppression - https://protectthevote.net/?partner=fixdemocracy
• Pass a Local Resolution in Response to the January 6 Hearings- https://www.democracyresolutions.org
• Protect Our Democracy TAKE ACTION page - https://www.rightwinginsurrection.org/action-center/take-action-activists
• DISCLOSE ACT:
• Call Your Senator to Support the DISCLOSE Act - https://act.newmode.net/action/declaration-american-democracy-coalition/call-your-senator-support-disclose-act
• Write a Letter about the DISCLOSE Act! - https://act.newmode.net/action/declaration-american-democracy-coalition/write-letter-about-disclose-act

Primary Elections Updates Links:

• 2022 State Primary Election Dates and Filing Deadlines - https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/2022-state-primary-election-dates-and-filing-deadlines.aspx
• Takeaways from primaries in Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Arizona - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/03/takeaways-primaries-kansas-arizona/
• Kansans resoundingly reject amendment aimed at restricting abortion rights - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/08/02/kansas-abortion-referendum/
• Several election deniers backed by Trump prevail in hotly contested primaries - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/02/primaries-arizona-michigan-missouri-washington/
• In 4 Swing States, G.O.P. Election Deniers Could Oversee Voting -  https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/03/us/politics/gop-election-deniers-trump-arizona-michigan.html
• Key Washington primary 2022 election results - https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation-politics/key-washington-primary-2022-election-results/
• WA Republicans who voted to impeach survive Trump supporter backlash - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/wa-congressional-election-results-herrera-beutler-newhouse-lead-schrier-heads-to-general-election/
• WA August 2, 2022 Primary Results - https://results.vote.wa.gov/results/20220802/
• WA Federal - All Results - https://results.vote.wa.gov/results/20220802/federal-all.html
• WA State Executive - All Results - https://results.vote.wa.gov/results/20220802/stateexecutive-all.html
• WA  Legislative - All Results - https://results.vote.wa.gov/results/20220802/legislative-all.html
• WA Voter County Results & Turnout - https://results.vote.wa.gov/results/20220802/turnout.html

Democracy in the News Links:

Merrick Garland calls Justice Department’s Jan. 6 probe the ‘most wide-ranging investigation in its history’ - https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/merrick-garland-not-rule-prosecuting-trump-jan-6-rcna40092

DOJ has reached out to more former White House officials, ex-Trump official says - https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/27/politics/alyssa-farah-griffin-doj-january-6-cnntv/index.html

Ex-White House counsel subpoenaed by federal grand jury investigating Jan. 6 attack - https://abcnews.go.com/US/white-house-counsel-subpoenaed-federal-grand-jury-investigating/story?id=87845397

Trump DOJ official cooperating with Justice Department's criminal Jan. 6 probe - https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/28/politics/klukowski-justice/index.html

Former Deputy White House counsel subpoenaed in January 6 probe - https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/03/politics/philbin-subpoena/index.html

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson cooperating with DOJ's Jan. 6 probe, say sources - https://abcnews.go.com/US/cassidy-hutchinson/story?id=87485719

First Capitol Rioter to Face Trial Gets 7 Years, Longest Sentence So Far - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/01/us/politics/guy-reffitt-jan-6-sentence.html

Jan. 6 text messages wiped from phones of key Trump Pentagon officials - https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/02/politics/defense-department-missing-january-6-texts/index.html

Jan. 6 texts missing for Trump Homeland Security’s Wolf and Cuccinelli - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/07/28/homeland-security-texts-jan6/

Homeland Security watchdog halted plan to recover Secret Service texts, records show - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/07/29/homeland-inspector-general-texts/

Meadows burned papers after meeting with Scott Perry, Jan. 6 panel told - https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/26/meadows-burned-papers-meeting-scott-perry-00035411

Jan. 6 committee interviews Mnuchin as probe expands into Trump Cabinet: Sources - https://abcnews.go.com/US/jan-committee-deepens-probe-trump-cabinet-sources/story?id=87547851&cid=social_twitter_abcn

Arizona Officials Warned Fake Electors Plan Could ‘Appear Treasonous’ - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/02/us/politics/arizona-trump-fake-electors.html

The Fake Electors Scheme, Explained - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/27/us/politics/fake-electors-explained-trump-jan-6.html?referringSource=articleShare

Trump’s Lawyers Are Preparing Legal Defenses Against Criminal Charges - https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-lawyers-planning-for-charges-1390669/

2020 Election Deniers Organize to Challenge Votes in 2022 - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/2020-election-deniers-organize-challenge-votes-2022

Recordings Reveal What's Really Going On in Cleta Mitchell’s Election Integrity Network - https://documented.net/investigations/recordings-reveal-whats-really-going-on-cleta-mitchell-election-integrity-network

RNC links up with ‘Stop the Steal’ advocates to train poll workers - https://www.politico.com/news/2022/08/02/rnc-stop-the-steal-advocates-poll-workers-00049109

House Republicans reveal election legislation likely to be a priority in a GOP majority - https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3576652-house-republicans-reveal-election-legislation-likely-to-be-a-priority-in-a-gop-majority/

American Confidence in Elections Act - https://steil.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/steil.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/Section-by-Section%20GOP%20Election%20Bill.pdf

Understanding the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022 - https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/22122740/protect-democracy-ecra-explainer.pdf

Opinion - The Electoral Count Act must be fixed. A new proposal doesn’t go far enough. - https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/01/electoral-count-reform-act-suggested-changes/

Trump Just Told Us His Master Plan - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/07/trumps-america-first-speech-revealed-a-plan-for-power/670963/

RNC warning to Trump: If you run for president, we stop paying your legal bills, says official - https://abcnews.go.com/US/rnc-warning-trump-run-president-stop-paying-legal/story?id=87486985

Republicans' next big play is to 'scare the hell out of Washington' by rewriting the Constitution. And they're willing to play the long game to win. - https://www.businessinsider.com/constitutional-convention-conservatives-republicans-constitution-supreme-court-2022-7

US faces new era of political violence as threats against lawmakers rise - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jul/31/us-political-violence-threats-against-lawmakers

FBI lacks full picture of reported threats to election officials, congressional testimony says - https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/02/politics/election-threats-workers/index.html

Bipartisan group asks DOJ to further protect election workers - https://thefulcrum.us/protecting-election-workers

The inevitable end to claims of rampant voter fraud: None is found - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/02/elections-voter-fraud-claims-arizona/

Attorney general finds one dead voter in investigation of 282 cases - https://arizona.votebeat.org/2022/8/1/23287880/attorney-general-brnovich-dead-voter-investigation-cyber-ninjas

Judge: Wisconsin probe found ‘absolutely no’ election fraud - https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-wisconsin-lawsuits-presidential-16d90c311d35d28b9b5a4024e6fb880c

New USPS election division will oversee mail-in ballots - https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-united-states-presidential-election-2020-294f320df8a6ff9451888ae2778b1a06

Patterns in the Introduction and Passage of Restrictive Voting Bills are Best Explained by Race - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/patterns-introduction-and-passage-restrictive-voting-bills-are-best

A new Georgia voting law reduced ballot drop box access in places that used them most - https://www.npr.org/2022/07/27/1112487312/georgia-voting-law-ballot-drop-box-access

Kansas secretary of state refuses to provide provisional ballot records despite court ruling - https://kansasreflector.com/2022/08/01/kansas-secretary-of-state-refuses-to-provide-provisional-ballot-records-despite-court-ruling/

Disenfranchised no more, ‘Second Chance voters’ can register and cast ballots — for now - https://ncpolicywatch.com/2022/07/29/disenfranchised-no-more-second-chance-voters-can-register-and-cast-ballots-for-now/

Pennsylvania's mail-in voting law is upheld by the state's Supreme Court - https://www.npr.org/2022/08/02/1099806224/pennsylvania-act-77-supreme-court-decision-mail-in-voting-lawsuit

WA auditors feel tangled in the election integrity debate - https://crosscut.com/politics/2022/07/wa-auditors-feel-tangled-election-integrity-debate

After residents commit voter fraud to make a point, Racine sheriff seeks to end online ballot requests instead of an investigation - https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/07/28/racine-sheriff-blames-elections-website-after-absentee-ballot-plot-donald-trump-robin-vos/10178217002/

Supreme Court officially transmits its judgment overturning Roe v. Wade, clearing the way for state restrictions - https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/26/politics/abortion-supreme-court/index.html

Justice Dept. Sues Idaho Over Its Abortion Restrictions - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/02/us/politics/biden-abortion-idaho-lawsuit.html

Clerics sue over Florida abortion law, say it violates religious freedom - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/08/01/florida-abortion-law-religion-desantis/

Biden to sign executive order to protect travel for abortion - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/biden-to-sign-executive-order-to-protect-travel-for-abortion/

Michigan Supreme Court Rules LGBTQ+ Workers Protected Under Civil Rights Law - https://www.them.us/story/michigan-supreme-court-lgbtq-workers-decision

Supreme Court's landmark guns ruling prompts race to test Second Amendment's limits - https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/08/01/supreme-court-guns-second-amendment-bans-carry/10151275002/?gnt-cfr=1

Supreme Court certifies ruling ending Trump border policy - https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-mexico-immigration-alejandro-mayorkas-government-and-politics-642d82b25f8e44b0942a41c39d5e5e81

How the Supreme Court ‘shadow docket’ shaped climate doctrine - https://www.eenews.net/articles/how-the-supreme-court-shadow-docket-shaped-climate-doctrine/

The Supreme Court Is Gutting the Regulatory State. Let's Look at Our Other Options. - https://inthesetimes.com/article/supreme-court-regulatory-state-environmental-protection-agency-climate-change?mc_cid=bcfe2233a8&mc_eid=a517768d50

How Six States Could Overturn the 2024 Election - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/07/moore-harper-scotus-independent-state-legislature-election-power/670992/

House bill would push Supreme Court justices into senior status after 18-year terms - https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/house-bill-would-push-supreme-court-justices-into-senior-status-after-18-year-terms

Koch network pressures Sens. Manchin, Sinema to oppose $739 billion tax-and-spending bill - https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/01/koch-network-pressures-sens-manchin-sinema-to-oppose-739-billion-tax-and-spending-bill.html

Dark Money Pouring Into Secretary of State Races Featuring 'Big Lie' Candidates - https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/08/01/dark-money-pouring-secretary-state-races-featuring-big-lie-candidates

See the ads Democrats are funding to boost far-right Republicans - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2022/democrat-ad-spending-republican-trump/

Financing of Races for Offices that Oversee Elections: August 2022 - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/financing-races-offices-oversee-elections-august-2022

Liberal PAC launches $23 million effort to turn out suburban women - https://www.politico.com/news/2022/07/27/family-friendly-pac-23-million-suburban-women-00048048

Campaign finance watchdog alleges WinRed processed billions in political contributions without disclosing operating expenses - https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2022/07/campaign-finance-watchdog-alleges-winred-processed-billions-in-political-contributions-without-disclosing-operating-expenses/

Federal lobbying spending is on track to set a new record in 2022 - https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2022/08/federal-lobbying-spending-on-track-to-set-new-record-in-2022

The "Share Buyback" Rape of American Business - https://hartmannreport.com/p/the-share-buyback-rape-of-american

Blitz of PAC money aims to defeat Trump-backed challengers to Herrera Beutler, Newhouse - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/blitz-of-pac-money-aims-to-defeat-trump-backed-challengers-to-herrera-beutler-newhouse/

This is where big money is flowing and ads are attacking in the battle for control of WA’s Legislature - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/this-is-where-big-money-is-flowing-and-ads-are-attacking-in-the-battle-for-control-of-was-legislature/

Opinion - Don’t let dark money grow unchecked - https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/dont-let-government-keep-you-in-the-dark/

Former Republicans and Democrats form new third U.S. political party - https://www.reuters.com/world/us/exclusive-former-republicans-democrats-form-new-third-us-political-party-2022-07-27/

Opinion - Most third parties have failed. Here’s why ours won’t. - https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/07/27/forward-party-new-centrist-third/

Ranked Choice Voting and Women's Representation - https://infogram.com/rcv-dashboard-1h8n6m3kne7qz4x

Misinformation is eroding the public’s confidence in democracy - https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2022/07/26/misinformation-is-eroding-the-publics-confidence-in-democracy/

YES, SOCIAL MEDIA REALLY IS UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/07/social-media-harm-facebook-meta-response/670975/

Information Gaps and Misinformation in the 2022 Elections - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/information-gaps-and-misinformation-2022-elections

More Perfect – Sustainable Democracy - https://www.joinmoreperfect.us/goals#g3

Organizing for collective impact: Transforming American democracy together - https://thefulcrum.us/big-picture/Leveraging-big-ideas/collective-impact

Issue One – Swamp Stories Podcast - https://www.swampstories.org/subscribe