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Time to call your rep:
Tell them NO to yet another Republican backdoor maneuver to maim and bleed out Social Security!
<<Today, the Republican leadership of the House Budget Committee announced that they will hold a markup on the so-called “Fiscal Commission Act of 2023” [on Thursday, 1/18/24, at 10 AM EDT]. “This commission is a poison pill designed to slash Social Security and Medicare behind closed doors. The White House has accurately stated that such a commission is a ‘death panel for Medicare and Social Security.’
House Republicans are rushing to advance the commission so that they can jam it through as a condition of keeping the government funded. Democratic leadership should respond that our earned benefits are non-negotiable, and that they will not accept a commission under any circumstances. Instead, any legislation on Social Security should go through regular order so that Congress can debate it in the sunlight.”>>
Call your rep on 1/18 — senators too if you have time — and say NO to the Fiscal Commission Act or ANY attempt to water down Social Security! UPDATE: Sadly, the House Budget Committee voted to advance the FCA proposal.
It may sound benign and even helpful on the surface. It’s not. If we don’t keep fighting to save and improve Social Security, Republicans and some conservative Dems will continue trying to water it down. Why is the retirement age 67? Why are we taxed on Social Security income? Thank Ronald Reagan, along with otherwise well-intentioned Dems who were suckered by conservative arguments.
Doesn’t SS need to be stabilized and better funded? Yes. But that can be done without hurting the 99%. CBS explains it well here. This is what all of us who want a stronger social safety net — and not yet more $$ siphoned to the top .1% — need to fight for.
To join the fight, visit https://socialsecurityworks.org, sign up, and take action with them!
House Republicans Are Advancing a Poison Pill Commission Designed to Slash Social Security
A little-noticed scheme hatched in the late stages of the Trump presidency has consumer advocates and universal healthcare proponents warning about a creeping attempt to further privatize Medicare — an effort the Biden administration is being urged to stop in its tracks
If they can move more than half of Americans off traditional Medicare and onto these corporate plans, it’ll provide the political cover to kill off Medicare altogether. They’re nearly there now
“The Biden administration should immediately kill this toxic legacy of the former president.”
—Jake Johnson, Sr. Editor, Common Dreams
In a related story, despite progressive Democrats’ efforts in Congress, most people aren’t aware: Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare. Insurance companies under Advantage plans are seeking profits (unlike single-payer systems) and can deny coverage
Read more at CommonDreams.org — click here
PREVIOUS ACTIONS, FYI — Some of what we’ve been up to
Nov. 7, 2023 elections
Not so much here in L.A., but big things are happening in VA and OH, with women’s reproductive rights and democratic freedoms at stake! You can make a difference. Our GOTV partners the Grassroots Dems HQ are calling voters between now and the close of polls.
Click below to join the efforts!
It’s hard to change laws strengthening California’s campaign finance, disclosure, and lobbyist laws. But we’re trying.
Sen. Ben Allen’s SB 681 will make it easier to make crucial amendments to Political Reform Act bills that strengthen disclosure and campaign finance laws
while ensuring the public has time to weigh in on amendments before their final votes.
Can you please sign the petition to ask YOUR legislators to support SB 681?
http://www.yesfairelections.org/petition/sb681.php?refcode=PaliDems
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If you sign, with your address, it’ll go to your assemblymember. Most of us have Jacqui Irwin, and the more people she sees supporting it, the more it will get her inclined towards supporting this bill
Cool campaign to defund Fox News
Pay for cable or satellite? You’re subsidizing Fox News whether you watch or not. Your provider pays a subscriber fee to carry Fox News. That cost is passed directly on to YOU.
Every network charges a small fee per subscriber; the one for Fox News is extraordinarily high. A typical household pays Fox News almost $2 per month—about $20 per year—via their provider, regardless of whether they actually watch the channel.
In 2021, a wave of big contracts between Fox News and TV providers for subscriber fees are set to expire. These contracts make up about 65% of Fox News’ subscriber fee revenue. If we want to stop paying the Fox News “tax,” now is the time to act.
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Along similar lines:
Here’s a different, novel effort to defund Fox and other right-wing outlets by denying them ad revenues
Looks like this new org has had a few successes — you can help them have more!
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From our friends at Consumer Watchdog, always fighting the good fight — right in the neighborhood (Santa Monica)
Los Angeles, CA—The true cost to the public of California’s oil and gas production and combustion is estimated to reach $10 trillion by 2045, a new report released today by Consumer Watchdog finds. Californians will be paying more than $400 billion annually in public costs caused by fossil fuels between now and 2045 when the state aims to be carbon neutral
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Here’s CW’s own Take Action page:
https://consumerwatchdog.org/takeaction
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More friends of PPDC: California Clean Money Campaign
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And let’s not forget to move the ball forward on single-payer healthcare:
Health Care for All – California believes that every resident of California should be guaranteed affordable, comprehensive, high quality health care. A single-payer financing system has succeeded in countries throughout the developed world
Multiple findings illustrate that people in these countries have better health and enjoy a lifestyle free of anxiety and worry about how to pay for a health crisis. All of this is accomplished at a lower cost to the people and businesses
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Physicians for a National Health Program
The answer to our health care crisis is clear. We propose a publicly financed, non-profit single-payer national health program that would fully cover medical care for all Americans
https://pnhp.org
Physicians for a National Health Program
Physicians for a National Health Program