January, 24 2017, 01:45pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Brian Stewart, MoveOn.org, press@moveon.org, 319-936-3901
Stacey Mink, Working Families Party, smink@workingfamilies.org, 410-790-9913
Kathy Mulady, People’s Action, k.mulady@peoplesaction.org, 206-992-8787
10,000+ Join #ResistTrumpTuesday Protests in 200+ Actions Nationwide to Oppose Trump's #SwampCabinet and Resist Trump's Agenda
More than 10,000 activists and concerned people are holding more than 200 #ResistTrumpTuesday peaceful rallies outside in-district Congressional offices nationwide today, urging Senators to Stop Trump's #SwampCabinet.
NATIONWIDE
More than 10,000 activists and concerned people are holding more than 200 #ResistTrumpTuesday peaceful rallies outside in-district Congressional offices nationwide today, urging Senators to Stop Trump's #SwampCabinet.
The rallies were planned by activists with MoveOn.org, the Working Families Party, and People's Action to urge the Senate to delay Cabinet confirmations until Americans can learn more about each nominee and the real threat they pose. Activists also held rallies outside offices of House members and corporations to protect the Affordable Care Act and other issues.
*** See photos and videos from the #SwampCabinet rallies here: #SwampCabinet ***
At these rallies at U.S. Senate local district offices, activists delivered a clear message that Trump's Swamp Cabinet of billionaires, racists, and climate-change deniers are unacceptable choices to lead important federal agencies and is not what Americans want or need.
Activists urged Democrats to use every tool in their toolbox to delay and stop these dangerous nominees, including praising all of the Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for voting against Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson, who has well-documented ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, marking the first time a nominee for Secretary of State doesn't have support from both parties in decades.
At Republican offices, activists conveyed the need to oppose these nominees -- marred by conflicts of interest, potential ethics violations, and extremism -- or else prove that the promise to "drain the swamp" was a lie.
"Millions of people marched against Trump on day one of his administration. Senators who wish to be seen as leaders had better do everything they can to block Trump's dangerous nominees," said Nelini Stamp, membership director of the Working Families Party, which originated the #ResistTrumpTuesdays actions. "People are going to keep showing up to demand their lawmakers stand up to Trump and his agenda."
"From the women's march to Resist Trump Tuesdays, something big is brewing that is only going to grow," said George Goehl, co-director of People's Action. "The Trump agenda is not normal and we will not let it be normalized. His actions out of the gate against women, working people, and the planet demonstrate that he is the extreme, dangerous, and should be challenged at every single turn."
"Most Americans didn't vote for Trump, but nearly all of us will suffer under his administration," said Seong-Ah Cho, who joined the People's Lobby event in Chicago on Tuesday. "It's on us to use this crisis, and all our fear and anger, to come together in a powerful movement that will not only resist Trump's agenda, but also fight for our progressive future."
" Donald Trump riled up crowds claiming he'd 'drain the swamp' in Washington," said MoveOn.org Organizing Director Victoria Kaplan. "But so far his politics have only furthered a culture of corruption, and nowhere is that clearer than in the greed and hate embodied by the nominees to his Swamp Cabinet. No wonder the Republicans are rushing them through and hoping the American people don't get a good look at these nominees, who have built their own power and wealth at the expense of the rest of us."
Here are just three of the #SwampCabinet nominees activists are opposing:
- Jeff Sessions, attorney general nominee, known for long hostility toward racial equality, voting rights, and criminal justice.
- Rex Tillerson, secretary of state nominee, a billionaire oil tycoon and longtime head of Exxon Mobil who has stymied action on climate change, and recipient of the Order of Friendship from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Tom Price, secretary of Health and Human Services nominee, a leading opponent of Obamacare who is under fire for trading hundreds of thousands of dollars in shares of health industry stock while pushing legislation that would benefit those stocks and himself.
The rallies build on more than 500 recent community organizing meetings across the country, where more than 13,000 members of MoveOn.org, Working Families Party, People's Action, and other allies joined with neighbors to plan how to fight for progressive values at every level of government and defend our communities from the Trump administration. On Sunday, more than 24,000 people joined an emergency call with MoveOn.org, Indivisible, and the Working Families Party on how to organize locally and effectively to stiffen Democratic spines and weaken pro-Trump Republican resolve, in order to defend our communities and our democracy.
MoveOn is where millions mobilize for a better society--one where everyone can thrive. Whether it's supporting a candidate, passing legislation, or changing our culture, MoveOn members are committed to an inclusive and progressive future. We envision a world marked by equality, sustainability, justice, and love. And we mobilize together to achieve it.
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"Not a 'Joke.' It's Fascism": Trump Says He Wouldn't Mind Journalists Getting Shot
The Republican nominee also said during the same rally in Pennsylvania that he "shouldn't have left" the White House after losing the 2020 election.
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During a rally on the final Sunday before the presidential election, Republican nominee Donald Trump told an audience gathered in the battleground state of Pennsylvania that he wouldn't mind if a gunman shot through the group of reporters covering the event.
After discussing the protective glass surrounding him, the former president said a would-be assassin "would have to shoot through the fake news" to get to him.
"I don't mind that so much," Trump said, drawing laughter and applause from his supporters. "I don't mind."
Watch:
Trump says he doesn't mind if someone shoots the press.
He repeatedly encourages violence against anyone who challenges his narrative.
That's what a dictator does — and Trump's Supreme Court gave him immunity to do whatever he wants if re-elected.
Votepic.twitter.com/W0dUWro2g9
— Melanie D'Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) November 3, 2024
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"It's not a joke," Sharlet wrote. "It's fascism."
Trump has long reveled in attacking members of the press, vilifying them as "the enemy of the people" and directing the ire of his supporters in their direction. Kash Patel, a Trump confidant who's expected to get a senior national security post if the former president wins Tuesday's election, suggested earlier this year that a second Trump administration would go after "the people in the media" with criminal or civil charges, underscoring the threat the Republican nominee poses to press freedom.
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The Atlantic's Helen Lewis noted Sunday that "journalists are only some of the many 'enemies from within' whom Trump has name-checked at his rallies and on his favored social network, Truth Social."
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He has suggested that Mark Zuckerberg should face "life in prison" if Facebook's moderation policies penalize right-wingers. He has suggested using the National Guard or the military against "radical-left lunatics" who disrupt the election. He believes people who criticize the Supreme Court "should be put in jail." A recent post on Truth Social stated that if he wins on Tuesday, Trump would hunt down "lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials" who had engaged in what he called "rampant Cheating and Skullduggery." Just last week, he fantasized in public about his Republican critic Liz Cheney facing gunfire, and he previously promoted a post calling for her to face a "televised military tribunal" for treason. In all, NPRfound more than 100 examples of Trump threatening to prosecute or persecute his opponents. One of his recent targets was this magazine.
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Political observers expressed shock Saturday evening as the Des Moines Register released its final poll before Election Day showing Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris leading Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump by three points.
Harris was supported by 47% of respondents compared to 44% who backed Trump.
The newspaper's poll, conducted by pollster J. Ann Selzer, is widely regarded as the "gold standard" survey of voters in the state and has been recognized as "predicting" numerous election results in Iowa and giving a potential preview of how candidates could fare in other Midwestern states with similar demographics.
Progressive advocates cautioned against placing too much faith in a single poll—even a widely respected one—and urged Harris supporters to continue canvassing, phone-banking, and taking action to defeat Trump and the far-right MAGA movement.
But the unexpected result in a state that hasn't been considered a swing state in this election, and was widely assumed to be a Trump-supporting state, led political observers to look closely at the poll, which showed significant shifts toward Harris among women.
Women aged 65 and older supported Harris over Trump, 63% to 28%, in the poll. Women who identify as political independents also backed her, 57% to 29%.
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Daniel Nichanian, editor-in-chief and founder of the digital magazine Bolts, said the result could preview losses for state Supreme Court justices who have upheld abortion bans in a number of states, including Iowa.
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