Democracy Happy Hour – November 29, 2023

Democracy Happy Hour, Nov 29, 2023 - Meeting Recordings:

• Speaker View Recording:  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/7GjqSNCwXdj78uzJUy4sk8GeDdZydUWfu58p5HGTyfAlC9jdywTkvrVCKOamoKekFEXzxc2SC9m1JVfq.KH6SLF8JvgA5xeaC
• Gallery View Recording: https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/0D0clC0SKs5qgd-m5NcvYTp_CC-fC4tPlkj3NkcmLCnBJYCrwp-GrqgywNNkDCuvdCGXi8E0pC17TFyu.UU116Z8owESMRuG3
• Chat file (will download directly to your computer):  https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/sdownload/bwDlVFZf3nfAJiODiPMFfZdA0JzADvK3NA-V2GjsywupSTiy4HHipRrw-CtLdW5d43jCyfFsQRD9gVlR.DUAksWh065bXFfLJ

FDF Links:

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

Democracy Happy Hour Upcoming Topics/Schedule:

• Dec 6 - The Future of Public Banking in Washington and Beyond with Marco Rosaire Rossi, Washingtonians For Public Banking
• Dec 13 - Universal Voting with 100% Democracy
• Dec 20, 27 & Jan 3 - CANCELED - No Democracy Happy Hours - Happy Holidays!

ACTIONS & EVENTS:

• LWVWA & FDF Events:
• Action Workshop, Dec 2, 2023 - https://lwvwa.org/event-5468098?CalendarViewType=1&SelectedDate=11/29/2023
• Speak Up School on Jan 6, 2024 - https://lwvwa.org/event-5476547?CalendarViewType=1&SelectedDate=12/29/2023
• Democracy Lobby Week, Jan 22-26, 2024 - https://lwvwa.org/event-5475122?CalendarViewType=1&SelectedDate=1/29/2024
• Electoral Justice in Yakima County, December 9^th @ 1-3 pm – Learn about how our electoral system erects barriers to political representation for communities of color. Register @ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/electoral-justice-in-yakima-county-tickets-761493877687
• FairVote WA Ranked Choice Voting Lobby Day – Jan 17, 2024 - https://www.mobilize.us/fairvotewa/event/589773/
• CivXNow Educator Advocacy Program Sign Up – Looking for current & retired educators - https://www.congressweb.com/signup/?id=AE4C45D3-ADF3-451E-19442D42806D333B

The Path to Full Voting Rights Restoration Links:

• Free the Vote - https://www.freethevotewa.org/
• Voting Rights Restoration - https://advancementproject.org/campaigns/voting-rights-restoration/
• Voting Rights Restoration - https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/ensure-every-american-can-vote/voting-rights-restoration
• Voting Rights Restoration in Washington State - https://www.aclu-wa.org/docs/voting-rights-restoration-washington-state-0
• RESTORING VOTING RIGHTS FOR EVERY AMERICAN - https://standupamerica.com/fight/voting-rights-restoration/
• Restore Your Vote: Felony Rights Restoration - https://campaignlegal.org/cases-actions/restore-your-vote-felony-rights-restoration
• FELONY DISENFRANCHISEMENT LAWS (MAP) - https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/felony-disenfranchisement-laws-map

Democracy in the News Links

Georgia prosecutor in Trump election case proposes Aug. 5 trial date - https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/11/17/trump-georgia-trial-date/

Colorado judge rules Trump ‘engaged in an insurrection’ — but can still run for president - https://www.politico.com/news/2023/11/17/colorado-judge-rules-trump-engaged-in-insurrection-but-can-still-run-for-president-00127909

Donald Trump is set to return to the witness stand in his civil fraud trial - https://apnews.com/article/trump-fraud-lawsuit-trial-new-york-18273bb1bab14eb90593cebebe1f960c

Trump hints at expanded role for the military within the US. A legacy law gives him few guardrails - https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/trump-hints-at-expanded-role-for-the-military-within-the-us-a-legacy-law-gives-him-few-guardrails

Voter frustration could be key to turnout in 2024, experts say - https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4315788-voter-frustration-could-be-key-to-turnout-in-2024-experts-say/

How election officials are planning to avoid a repeat of 2020’s slow vote count - https://www.politico.com/news/2023/11/26/2024-election-vote-count-mail-ballots-00128529

Understanding democratic decline in the United States - https://www.brookings.edu/articles/understanding-democratic-decline-in-the-united-states/

5 redistricting cases that will impact the 2024 elections - https://www.newsnationnow.com/politics/five-redistricting-cases-that-will-impact-the-2024-elections/

Why Newsom and California lawmakers want the state Supreme Court to remove a 2024 ballot proposition - https://www.capradio.org/articles/2023/11/20/why-newsom-and-california-lawmakers-want-the-state-supreme-court-to-remove-a-2024-ballot-proposition/

2024 ballot measure would make Colorado’s primaries open, enact ranked-choice voting for general elections - https://coloradosun.com/2023/11/20/2024-ballot-measure-ranked-choice-voting/

Georgia lawmakers back at Capitol to redraw political maps to comply with Voting Rights Act - https://georgiarecorder.com/2023/11/29/georgia-lawmakers-back-at-capitol-to-redraw-political-maps-to-comply-with-voting-rights-act/

Whitmer signs bills to expand voting rights in Michigan - https://gandernewsroom.com/2023/11/15/whitmer-signs-bills-to-expand-voting-rights-in-michigan/

Missouri advocates say new voter ID law is intended to suppress turnout — and it's working - https://www.kcur.org/politics-elections-and-government/2023-11-21/missouri-advocates-say-new-voter-id-law-is-intended-to-suppress-turnout-and-its-working

THE ID DIVIDE: HOW BARRIERS TO ID IMPACT DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES AND AFFECT EVERYONE - https://www.mapresearch.org/id-documents-report

Nevada Group Launches Effort To Create Independent Redistricting Commission - https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/nevada-group-launches-effort-to-create-independent-redistricting-commission/

New Mexico Supreme Court will not overturn Republican’s redistricting appeal - https://www.lcsun-news.com/story/news/politics/elections/2023/11/27/new-mexico-supreme-court-will-not-take-up-gop-redistricting-appeal/71719939007/

New York Court of Appeals hears arguments on redrawing House map - https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/capital-region/politics/2023/11/15/court-of-appeals-hears-arguments-on-redrawing-ny-house-map

Black voters sue to strike down NC Senate map, saying it's racially gerrymandered - https://www.wral.com/story/black-voters-sue-to-strike-down-nc-senate-map-saying-it-s-racially-gerrymandered/21160027/

NAACP, state lawmakers jostle over voter ID trial date as 2024 election looms closer - https://www.wral.com/story/naacp-state-lawmakers-jostle-over-voter-id-trial-date-as-2024-election-looms-closer/21159957/

Judge finds Voting Rights Act violation in North Dakota redistricting for two tribes - https://apnews.com/article/north-dakota-redistricting-lawsuit-spirit-lake-turtle-mountain-tribes-0faa6dc38763267d42af1b6c2ab301c0

Ohio Supreme Court dismisses redistricting challenge, leaving Statehouse maps in place - https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/11/28/ohio-supreme-court-dismisses-redistricting-challenge-leaving-statehouse-maps-in-place/

Proposed redistricting constitutional amendment moves forward - https://www.thecentersquare.com/ohio/article_cdec886e-8d4e-11ee-9f0f-b31dd3296463.html

Federal Judge Rules Undated Mail-In Ballots in Pennsylvania Must Be Counted - https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/21/us/politics/pennsylvania-mail-ballots-ruling.html

Tennessee Senate redistricting map thrown out by court, but dissenting opinion opens the door for an appeal - https://wpln.org/post/tennessee-senate-redistricting-map-thrown-out-by-court-but-dissenting-opinion-opens-the-door-for-an-appeal/

Voter turnout hits modern low in WA - https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/voter-turnout-hits-modern-low-in-wa

Wisconsin supreme court appears poised to strike down legislative maps and end Republican dominance - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/nov/21/wisconsin-supreme-court-redistricting-lawsuit

Appeals court decision could limit enforcement of Voting Rights Act - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/11/20/voting-rights-act-lawsuit

Voting Rights Act ruling sets up likely Supreme Court showdown - https://thehill.com/newsletters/4319788-court-delivers-blow-to-voting-rights-act/

The Newest Attack on the Voting Rights Act - https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/newest-attack-voting-rights-act

How the Voting Rights Act, Newly Challenged, Has Long Been Under Attack - https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/21/us/politics/voting-rights-act-history.html

Supreme Court says Florida can’t enforce anti-drag law - https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/16/politics/supreme-court-rules-against-florida-anti-drag-law/index.html

Supreme Court books hearing in Chevron doctrine showdown - https://www.eenews.net/articles/supreme-court-books-hearing-in-chevron-doctrine-showdown/

Rep. George Santos won’t seek reelection after a scathing ethics report cites evidence of lawbreaking - https://apnews.com/article/ethics-congress-santos-5ebffe514d8779fbc16a77fa1ab5e0df

IN THE MATTER OF ALLEGATIONS RELATING TO REPRESENTATIVE GEORGE SANTOS - https://ethics.house.gov/sites/ethics.house.gov/files/documents/Committee%20Report_52.pdf

George Santos faces new motion to expel him from Congress - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/11/17/george-santos-motion-expel

George Santos predicts he’ll be expelled from Congress in upcoming vote - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/11/27/george-santos-expel-congress

Major Trump donors who soured on him after 2020 and Jan. 6 now insist he's their best choice - https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/major-trump-donors-soured-after-2020-jan-6/story?id=104951161

Koch network endorses Nikki Haley for president as it looks to stop Trump - https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2023/11/28/koch-network-haley-president

Donations to GOP drop as worries mount about the party’s finances - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/11/27/republican-party-finances-election

These companies are the top lobbying spenders in 2023 - https://finbold.com/these-companies-are-the-top-lobbying-spenders-in-2023/

World’s richest 1% pollute more than the poorest two-thirds, Oxfam says - https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/11/20/rich-polluters-carbon-emissions-oxfam-report

How Seattle's democracy vouchers are working - https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/11/20/democracy-vouchers-money-funding-political-candidates

The hidden biases at play in the U.S. Senate - https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2023/us-senate-bias-white-rural-voters

Many voters say Congress is broken. Could proportional representation fix it? - https://www.npr.org/2023/11/18/1194448925/congress-proportional-representation-explainer

The Voter Choice Act reintroduced in the Senate - https://thefulcrum.us/the-voter-choice-act-reintroduced-in-the-senate

Facebook, Instagram will allow political ads that claim the 2020 election was stolen - https://www.cnn.com/business/tech/meta-political-ads-2020-election-lies/index.html

Formerly incarcerated lawmaker reflects on breaking down barriers after prison - https://www-pbs-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.pbs.org/newshour/amp/show/formerly-incarcerated-lawmaker-reflects-on-breaking-down-barriers-after-prison

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/