They say death is the enemy, but that’s only the start of the problem, and the situation is constantly changing.

Everyone says to “Follow the Science.”

But how many folks actually read the studies and how many folks just wait for it to be summed up for them?

We all know the actual answer to that is not good.

I’m writing this to get into the nitty-gritty of the science itself… I will give commentary… but separate from … you know what? You’ll see.

Let’s just do it live…

This article is meant to be a “fluid document.”

That means adjustments and corrections will be made as experts and researchers speak up to help me keep this information correct.

If that makes you afraid to share it… too bad, do it anyway.

You may want to check up on it for updates, I’ll link future parts at the bottom… and most importantly?

Find something that you can prove is wrong?
Please, speak up in the comments…

But I assure you, in the interim, the point will not be lost.

My priority is relating COVID in a context that anyone can understand because how we communicate this is critical to achieving our safety.

And most of how we as a society understand COVID is wrong.

It needs to be made simpler, in terms everyone can comprehend.

And there’s nothing simple about these subjects.

I’ll cover the most important things first… but this is constantly changing… and then work my way around to building a greater understanding of the risk created by COVID and how well our response is managing that risk.
(Spoilers… It’s not great.)

Including a breakdown of our current national strategy to combat it.

I’m a strategist before all things and if you’re reading this, you likely agree that our strategy for COVID might need… some adjusting.

Jen Psaki, White House press secretary to Joe Biden, tests positive for Covid

It currently looks something like this…

Developing a new strategy, or even deciding if one is needed, always starts in the same place…

An agreed-upon understanding of what we are even doing.

We have to start from where we are, which means understanding how we got here… which includes the mistakes that were made.

And everyone is “losing their minds” trying to figure out what we should do next and we can’t do that if we can’t agree on our mistakes.

We need to do this while embracing the correct mitigation measures.

That means, we have to understand the subjects involved and some are very complicated but we can’t let that detract us from finding real solutions.

Effective strategies after all are based on risk by priority.

We cannot create an effective strategy if we do not first identify risks and prioritize them by levels of danger… I’ll do my best to make those clear.

Most importantly… I will let the scientists and doctors do the talking.

Part 1 alone will be enough to take action to protect yourself.

And I will also address a number of Conspiracy theories…

Most of them are total BS, a few are based on outdated science.
(If you add one to the comments, I will debunk it in later parts.)

While other, vastly more important, issues have gone unnoticed.

Part 2, will get more specific on how we protect kids and ourselves in communal settings…. air quality, ventilation, masks.

For right now, here is a chart created by an Australian group…

I’d like to point out, it’s all those things AND masks… to mitigate COVID.

Part 2 only needs to exist because of the poor policy decisions we’ve collectively made and continue to make that put us all at risk.

A sick child means a sick family and that means sick coworkers and then that means their kids are sick… and the cycle continues endlessly.

We have to do EVERYTHING we can to mitigate and stop transmission.

Here is a simple design for a box filter.

Even a basic air filter is very effective at filtering COVID.

Real-world data show that filters clean COVID-causing virus from air

There is a lot more of this in Part 2.

I’ll have it out as fast as possible, but, first, it must be said…

All of these mitigation efforts work because…

COVID IS AIRBORNE.

COVID is still not recognized as Airborne in many parts of the world and we’re really going to hammer how this works into folks' brains before COVID gets their brains completely.

(Yes, COVID gets in your brain and everyone is downplaying the significance.)
(And yeah, when I said “losing their minds” I didn’t mean psychologically.)

One more time… COVID IS AIRBORNE!

Should we still wear masks all the time?

Even in our memes?

Yes, overwhelmingly… YES!

And surgical masks are good enough for memes, but not for real life.

SURGICAL MASKS DO NOT EFFECTIVELY STOP COVID’S SPREAD.

I promise… other studies have better thumbnails than this one…

ACP Journals

Really great… very simple test… very controlled environment…

So, when I say upgrade your masks it should be something like this…

If you want to get a good concept of how much virus you exhale when you breathe… Well, there’s a study for that.

Breath-, air- and surface-borne SARS-CoV-2 in hospitals

So, that’s 1400 RNA copies a minute… that’s enough to infect 14 people a minute… AND THAT WAS PRE-DELTA.

Honestly, it’s probably enough to infect a lot more than I think.

So, assume viral shedding is at least twice that now.

Oh, and it keeps going… we really underestimate how gross we actually are.

I don’t know about you, but that seems like a lot.

Were going to start doing things a little differently.

If you’ve already noticed, I have a slightly different way of approaching data management and communication… I’m going to use headlines from existing articles as component pieces to larger arguments…

If something is really specific, I’ll cut a screenshot.

You’re welcome to follow every source, but you shouldn’t need to.

We are going to approach subjects that WILL make you uncomfortable.

You will doubt my credentials and you will doubt my references.

But Denial is just the second stage of managing grief.

So, that’s good, at least that means you are on your way.

Here is a handy chart to help keep track of your emotional progress.

You may want to take a reference photo to refer quickly to later.

If you at any point catch yourself glaring at any particular part of this and begin to get overwhelmed with doubt… that’s the grief process starting.

(Well, technically, again, that’s phase 2 and just like COVID, the Grief process can start without you realizing it…)

It is only through that final stage of “Acceptance” where we “finally find the way forward” and we must… We must do what is necessary.

And that means getting out of our ‘comfort zone’ to beat this invader.

The priority right now is staying within the realm of “technically accurate.”

Also, known as the “best” kind of accurate.

And while some of this will make you feel uncomfortable, I will do my best to provide enough sources to a subject that makes a subject understood as real.

For example…

(Also I love ellipsis because this moment calls for dramatic pauses, prepare.)
(I’m sure you’ve noticed.)

COVID IS REAL, AND IT HAS NOT RELENTED IN ITS FIGHT AGAINST US!
We must not relent in our fight against it…

This invader has brought unfathomable challenges, we are doing our best to combat them in a meaningful way to protect ourselves and each other.

Quickly though, I need to say “Thank you.”

I want to take a moment to thank everyone who got vaccinated, talked to their friends about getting vaccinated, and tried to make their community safer.

And I especially want to thank anyone who stayed masked this whole time.

You did the right thing, and you should be proud of your efforts.

Masks are still the best way to stop transmission… and it’s time to upgrade.

You saw the chart, now here’s an article.

Why We Need to Upgrade Our Face Masks-and Where to Get Them

The other form of stopping transmission looks like this, I don’t suggest it.

And… oh, yeah, this is real.

There’s even a video if you follow the link at the bottom.

We need to agree on viable solutions before we are back here again.

And I would be a lot more open to an anti-vaxxer, or someone who appears as one if I were confident they were wearing high-quality masks all year.

If you, the reader, think you have encountered an anti-vaxxer but aren’t sure… just ask them what kind of mask they’ve been wearing.

There will be an increase in mask-wearing individuals who are unhappy that what makes the vaccine “effective” is vastly different than the public’s demands for effectiveness.

And while we will dive into that, the simple fact remains true…

If the anti-lockdown crowd and the anti-mask crowd were put in a Ven Diagram… they would be a circle.

But if they want softer lockdowns, which are inevitably coming, then mask-wearing is the only way to make it over faster.

High-Quality masks are still the most powerful tool we have for stopping transmission…

As long as it’s worn properly.

And you know who are really great at wearing masks?

The Japanese.

I’m going to be ready to brush up on my ‘nihon go’ after this because it’ll be the only safe place to live if we don’t get this together.

Hajememashite, watashi no nama wa Don desu… Dozo yoroshiko.
(still got it!)

That’s the power of upgrading masks in one graph.

And that’s not New Zealand's 100 cases… that’s 20,000 a day.

That’s a significant full-stop… that’s what coordination can accomplish.

So, don’t say it’s impossible to stop COVID.

They literally “Mount Fuji’d” it.

Now, I’m not saying there is a connection…
But I am saying we should definitely call turning around a COVID spike in a set amount of days compared to the rise…

“Pulling a Fuji.”

Is the Secret to Japan's Virus Success Right in Front of Its Face? (Published 2020)

It really shouldn't surprise anyone that the country that has the masks the most tied into its culture is handling outbreaks, well… the best.

How Japan's mask culture may have saved lives during coronavirus | DW | 19.10.2020

Not a single country has turned their cases around on a spike as well as Japan did… But why did their numbers spike so hard?

There is a simple answer.

Let’s just say they started their vaccination program in the middle of February… and their outbreaks started in August…

Japan starts COVID vaccination program | DW | 17.02.2021

And they used mainly Pfizer shots…

That’s 5.5 months exactly… and no one warned them about its limits.
(we all get that’s a thing, right?)

Do you think Japan would have done things differently had they known? You’re damn right they would have.

It sure doesn’t look like anyone warned them.

And that my friends… is what we call a “problem.”

Because this didn't just happen to Japan.

More on this later.

Some might call their behavior “compliance”… I call it empathy.

When used properly together, masks and our new vaccines both become even more powerful lifesaving tools, and though I’m going to explain that our method of using the new RNA tech was not … the best…

None of that should detract from that now is THE BEST time to get the shot.

And if you are more than 5 months past your second shot… you need to be preparing to get a booster… or change your behavior.

Eligibility for boosters is pretty vague… So, most should be eligible.

The CDC updated its website on October 25th…
(well after the first draft of this was released.)

And suddenly everything is in the context of “risk.”
(I’m sure that’s just a coincidence.)

But there you have it… The link is below if you want more information.

The booster’s work… The data doesn’t lie.

But the data not lying… means that you don’t always get “good” news.

They just don’t last as long as some would like.

This is nothing like the three shots that are required for Polio.

CDC says some immunocompromised people can get fourth COVID shot

And that timetable is not limited to the immunocompromised, we have data from other countries showing its more widespread.

Israel preparing for possible fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose - The Boston Globe

They did their third shots in July… so it's about three months.

When I say “I don’t think we used these properly”… this is what I mean.

But, if you are being forced into an environment around people, especially if you have to share air… do not let this detract from the safety net it creates.

We simply need to understand the full danger so we can assess our risk.

At the very least, getting vaccinated now protects you, mostly, while we figure out a new plan… that would be using them “effectively.”

This is better than nothing but is only needed because of our terrible policy.

And NOTHING here removes the need to wear a mask.

Here is the science on how the Pfizer booster works…

Preliminary Analysis of Safety and Immunogenicity of a SARS-CoV-2 Variant Vaccine Booster

We will be talking more about this later and it is crucial to understand how problematic the timeline of events is in regards to preventing this is.

All of these affect the equation differently, each with its own set of variables… From your immune system’s capabilities, the vaccine's efficacy, and the virus’s ability to Mutate.

They all affect our risk differently.

That’s because of the law of conservation of energy.

All of those transfer energy in different ways… For example…

Your body creates those immune cells consequently your system has limits.

Or… the virus needs your energy to make more of itself…

That’s just it transferring energy from you into something for it.

All of these need to be taken into consideration when assessing risk.

If you are concerned about Moderna’s or J&J’s approval, it‘s coming.
(Upon update, these are now approved and you should get them.)

The FDA authorizes Moderna and J&J COVID vaccine boosters

There are studies coming out saying that crossing RNA vaccines also creates a very strong Immune response. They are calling it “hybrid immunity.”

But that’s not quite the whole story there.

How COVID-19 hybrid immunity could be a potential pandemic game-changer

It’s important to note that in the future, you may not be considered “fully vaccinated” by US standards without a booster.

To be completely honest, it's an immaterial concept and is completely unquantified in any terms that creates safety or even mitigates risk.

Are You 'Fully Vaccinated' Without A Booster? CDC Says Yes-For Now

You are “fully vaccinated” right now… but the immunity window is completely closed for the first round of vaccinations earlier this year…

We can say the words “fully vaccinated” as much as we want and at no point will saying it make anyone safer.

So, it’ll be interesting to see how this goes.

But the other thing that is interesting happening here is the attempt to rebrand “hybrid immunity”… There is the old definition and a new one.

The difference is significant.

It doesn’t really matter which one we use moving forward, but it is extremely important to note the difference when it comes to the specifics of the strategy and the risk associated with our present situation.

I’ll explain in a moment.

The EMA, European Medicines Agency, just gave permission for boosters for children over 12 there…

Which is a huge step considering their numbers.

Moderna (MRNA) Gets EMA Authorization for SpikeVax Third Dose

Their numbers are Bad.

How bad?

Well, you know how we consider the cases in the US bad…?

Those are cases per 100k so this is a ‘per capita’ example.

The strategy they are using for schools is simply horrifying, I’ll explain in great detail later in this part…

But what do you need to know right now?

They told students who were exposed to COVID that they didn’t have to Quarantine if they could pass a rapid test.

Seriously…

How students are able to stay in school despite classmates testing positive

That’s an article about a few American schools adopting the UK system.

I’ll dig deep into the process, bad science involved, and how dangerous it is.

It should be said, those sick kids equate to sick parents, as I said earlier.

But let’s quickly check in on them and see how that’s going…

Then this happened. A full policy reversal.

Isolate if you have Covid symptoms but negative PCR, says local health official

So, let’s not act like anyone really knows what they are doing.

Let’s drop those numbers against everyone else.

And it’s true that this turned out to be lab failure with 40k tests and schools use rapid tests… Where do you think those people got sick?

Because they didn’t quarantine or stop kids from being exposed.

And let’s not act like kids aren’t the driving force of infections.

And keep in mind… getting them vaccinated does not stop this infection rate.

It only makes them asymptomatic…

So, the cases disappear but the long-term damage is still there, and the risk of sudden death from future mutations is still there.

So, this plan is a form of “eugenics” because the immunocompromised are at extreme risk and will likely die if this plan is implemented worldwide.

Not only that, this does not stop variants in any meaningful way.

Belgium is having similar data coming in which explains their numbers rising.

SARS-CoV-2 infected kids, adults at Belgian school equally, study suggests

This study is brand new so they probably haven’t attempted to adapt.

On a side note, cases going up probably has something to do with lowering mask restrictions a few weeks ago as well.

Mask requirement in schools relaxed in Wallonia and Flanders, not Brussels

But that study had some interesting data…

So, this if the plan requires a child showing symptoms…

That’s 4x more problematic than it is with adults, which is already exceptionally problematic…

Over 80% of people with coronavirus didn't have key symptoms, UK study finds

By that measure, we're only catching a tiny fraction of the sick kids.

And then you also have to consider…

There is no clear timetable for when a COVID infection emerges.
You could pass a Rapid Test in the AM and be shedding virus by lunch.

Everyone is guessing and they are not using the best tools available.

There is also this startling data coming out of the UK.

In the graph above, we can see a direct increase across all age groups among those who were vaccinated first. That’s Vaccine Immunity waning.

As noted by Dr. Ku… the ‘immunity window’ is closing for the first wave of vaccinated…

160 days is what most studies say before the RNA vaccines are undetectable.

While that doesn’t necessarily mean that’s the end of the positive immune benefits, the created immune response does have a short half-life… And the vaccine alone does not create COVID antibodies or we wouldn’t need to discuss continuous boosters.

That means a major increase in risk.

They are mostly in the 40–70 age group who would most likely get their news from more “official sources.”

… the same telling them the vaccine makes them safe alone.

But it is especially spiking in the 40–49 bracket… coincidentally the age group most likely to be on Facebook saying how getting the vaccine will allow us all to return to normal life… (With this many dead, that’s not possible.)

Next, it will happen to the groups who got vaccinated after them…

And so and so on, even those who get vaccinated right now will have a short but lifesaving immunity window… Being strategic is a good move.

And not because the vaccine isn’t safe, it is well within the safe margins of any vaccine on our normal regiment. It’s just that no one has been forthcoming about its limitations… And the information out there is confusing.

If you still have an issue then you have an issue with what is considered a “Safe margin of death” related to a new medicine… Which we all should be talking about… All medicines are “safe” in the same way that immunity means you are “immune.” It’s more of a window than an absolute.

This is a real issue and should be discussed openly by the public.

Medicines being “Safe” means a certain amount of mortality in even the best situations and I could write whole books on that alone.

Plenty of people already have.

But first, remember this gem?

It's official: Vaccinated people don't spread COVID-19

This wasn’t even the start of the misinformation, it was just particularly bad.

BTW, I can’t decide if this is the worst or best April Fool’s Prank Ever.

Yeah, that happened on April 1st.

Folks who digest our “Trusted” forms of media are getting the most mixed messages on what they should be doing, and that is increasing our risk.

If it increases their risk, then it increases everyone’s risk.

There are bad takes like these from CNBC, which has really not aged well.

That’s total rubbish to anyone who follows COVID closely…

But to folks who don’t understand science, sounds extremely promising.

And then this recently is very confusing about the risk of our situation.

Get the candy bowl ready. Dr. Fauci says Halloween is a go this year

When other publications portray that SAME interview differently.

Fauci: US must not 'prematurely declare victory' over Covid

Regardless if you agree with any of this specifically…

The confusion is leading to an increase in cases among a specific age group that is the most vulnerable to this type of misinformation.

They are also among the most vulnerable to die because many cannot or will not get their booster or are confused about the protection it offers.

And because they don’t understand their risk, they won’t modify their behavior… they won’t treat their symptoms… and that puts them at incredible risk…

Also, when the media is declaring it over every few days…

Is a booster even needed?… Yes… yes, it is.

But they might not think it is, and then not change their behavior.

We can see the direct effect of the media’s campaign to declare victory is causing an increase in cases… and is probably to explain for this…

Trying to make sense of COVID's mysterious 2-month cycle

The two-month COVID cycle is not a mystery…

The media declares it over, mask-wearing goes down, then cases go up…
It’s not magic but it is a lot of confusion.

For example, California has done exceptionally well but these articles don’t tell the full story.

Why California Has One of the Lowest Covid-19 Rates in the Nation

They put it on Vaccines completely, and even though they did help to significantly cut our death and hospitalization rate… that’s true…

And that’s amazing…

If nothing else to give our Healthcare workers a moment to breathe.
(Though it didn't really work out that way.)

They alone are not mitigating our risk enough and the simple truth is that we, I’m here in California, never really stopped wearing masks.

Poll: Northeast States, California Lead The Country In Mask-Wearing

Even the homeless regularly wear masks here.

This confusion over which mitigation methods are effective only leads to more infections and more Long Haulers.

A new study has just come out that says…

Here is the full study…

Our families cannot afford this confusion because some, and maybe all, of the damage caused by COVID that creates Long Haulers…

May be permanent.

That does not mean their situation is hopeless and I know a lot of them are starting to feel that way. There are a number of treatments for a variety of things and the rest of us nonLong Haulers are going to have to do everything we can to increase their quality of life.

It’s our responsibility as a society to protect the most vulnerable.

It's clear that we need to talk about a number of extremely serious and complicated priorities.

Let’s start at the beginning.

The pregnant are especially at risk from COVID.

Vaccinating the pregnant is paramount in our fight.

No matter what I say about the RNA tech or how we used them…
The pregnant MUST get vaccinated.

COVID can get through the Placenta Blood Barrier and into the Placenta. That’s your baby’s house… Nobody wants COVID there.

Placental barrier against COVID-19

It could damage your natural ability to make said “houses” in the future.

The potential damage is significant, we have no idea what ramifications might come from this long term.

“Neonates” means newborn baby.

What is intervillositis? So, glad you asked… You won’t be though.

It causes miscarriages and can repeat in subsequent pregnancies.

I’m not certain COVID causes the same kind of recurring damage but we should assume it does because this is literally our whole species at risk.

Species… reproduction is kinda key to our whole “existing” thing.

And COVID is making our “existing” an issue.

Ohio Reports More Deaths Than Births In 2020; Experts Cite Pandemic

We simply do now know if this damage will become a new form of Long-Hauler Syndrome that we won’t discover for years… or what to make of this.

We have to think about this as how it affects the whole… not just how it affects the individual… We, as a species, depend on our other members to be healthy AND happy for society to function… not just ourselves.
(#M4A)

BTW, Microphages are basically your immune system fighting off invaders.
They also cause inflammation caused by a familiar molecule in our body…

“Cytokines” … were going to talk a bunch about those later.

Intervillositis was considered “rare” when that article was written in 2017.

COVID changed that… and Delta changed everything again.

Delta Variant Is 'More Transmissible Than Ebola', And Vaccinated People May Also Be Highly Contagious - Health Policy Watch

And now it looks like we have two different AY variants of concern.
(Upon update… we now have a few AY variants of concern)
(AY update in the next release)

But one, in particular, is drawing a ton of attention.

AY.4.2 Delta variant: What we know so far

The UK just released its report on AY4.2 which is running rampant in at least 33 countries… It’s not good… A few countries are saying it has high vaccine resistance, but I’m not sure how that coincides with waning immunity.

Both are carrying higher transmission risk than Delta and while there is testing showing that the vaccines are just as effective against them… and that can be true.

That does not mean you are any safer considering what “effective” means in this case.

Also, these tests often do not account for the difference in real-world transmission, you really have to look at how the data is gathered…

The increase in real-world transmission appears to be the primary difference between all of these variants.

A higher infection potential means higher viral load and this means a more likely chance of death…

Whether vaccinated or not…. Especially if not.

Saying these variants are “not more deadly” is a technicality that isn’t really accurate in the sense of how COVID kills.

COVID is more like a swarm than folks visualize.

Being vaccinated gives you a better shot, but if you get a high enough viral load it doesn’t matter and these variants make that possible.

What is Viral Load?

And even while carrying the name “Delta,” COVID has continued to become more infectious through any of its 40+ tracked variants.

Allowing these to roam freely and not properly stopping transmission has created space for these new subvariants to evolve…

And we don’t know what’s next.

But we have a pretty good idea.

Here is another way of looking at it.

So, that’s 50% more transmissible, the add on 40–60% more transmissible… that means … carry the one…

It’s really really bad.

AY is doing that again, in multiple parts of the world at once.

Everyone is talking about AY4.2 and we got A.30 gaining ground.

The spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 variant A.30 is heavily mutated and evades vaccine-induced antibodies with high efficiency - Cellular & Molecular Immunology

And at any point, they can all infect one cell and reassort together into some superbug that wipes us out… or worse, crossover with a virus that has a better understanding of our body.

Just another reason we have to stop transmission.

Still don’t believe me that you and your baby are at risk?

The study shows how COVID is still detectable in/on the Placenta even after the patient has passed a nasal COVID test…. not some rapid test failure.

And rapid tests fail… both directions. Lots on that later.
(Use two different tests from two different production lots if you can)

So, in this case, the baby either didn’t get infected or beat it, either way, the virus was still detectable in multiple places.

I could see the COVID antibodies passing to the baby without the baby getting infected too, but only when you are vaccinated. Which I will show you.

So, the risk is incredibly high for the unvaccinated and pregnant.

That means it is very likely that the pregnant will have a harder time fighting off the virus because of its ability to get into the placenta cells…

And not leave.

It’s like a bad houseguest but less What about Bob and more Hand that rocks the Cradle… And that works because we are basically inviting C19 inside.

And into our most sacred spaces…

What are Trophoblasts? Let’s just say… they matter, a lot.

Normally, a cell is eventually destroyed by COVID either by bursting it or by melting it into another cell… Yes, I said “melting”… but not in the uterus.

I should probably explain the “melting”… it’s not my term.

It happens during this cellular process… That’s a video you can watch on Twitter. If someone wants to make me a gif of it, I will upload it here.

It’s a startling process.

This is also part of the method it uses to reproduce.

Here is a gif of his video so you can see it in action.

This isn’t even the scariest video we have of this.

You can go to Twitter for a larger video of it.

It’s the equivalent of COVID “eating” a cell… but this person explains it as…

“Melting” … which I dunno, sounds kind of worse.

It’s probably smart to look at the Spike Protein as the first stage of digestion.

Viral Syncytia is a process other viruses use including HIV.

Structures and Mechanisms of Viral Membrane Fusion Proteins: Multiple Variations on a Common Theme

We really need to reframe our perception of how this invader operates and once you do, you will do anything to stop from getting infected…

It is not cool, or fun, or a good idea.

It’s literally using your cells to reproduce…

It enters your cells, uses them as a skin suit, uses your own cell’s mechanism to get your other cells to trust it, and then it melts into them like The Blob making one giant skin suit that it basically has sex in (they don’t actually have sex but you need the visual because they can combine RNA in a process called recombination… which the outcome of is very sex-like) until they can’t find a new cell to melt into and the cell bursts, leaving an untold amount of new, possibly mutated, virus to find new ACE2 receptors and repeat the process…
(Technically it's called “replication”, but with all the recombination going on… I think calling it “reproduction” should be acceptable.)

This is just one reason why stopping transmission is CRUCIAL.

When it says “infects” it doesn’t just touch it and the cell changes… it enters the cell and destroys it from the inside.

The severity of illness is determined by each virus’s ability to enter new cells and COVID can do it in half the process of influenza.

But it has a weakness…

This is a virus, like all viruses, that cannot exist for any lengthy amount of time without a host that it uses to replicate…

That means no host… and the virus simply cannot survive.

The other reason to not be a host to it?

Because it can easily overwhelm your immune system.

It’s the “Buffalo Bill” of viruses… I could make a number of “skin suit” Silence of the Lambs references if that wasn’t horrifying enough but I respect Anthony Hopkins too much to pull him into this negatively.

Regardless, the representation is accurate.

This is simply not a process we should allow to happen… at all.

It is not our friend, we cannot live with COVID.

And especially when it comes to our reproductive cells…

The cells don’t burst in the Uterus… which is very bad.
Bottom line, COVID can get into your Uterus cells and they can’t get out.

This generally happens because ACE2 receptors, the ones that COVID uses like a ‘doorknob’, are found in the Placenta as well and not just there.

The ACE2 receptors COVID uses like a doorknob are found all over …

…very important parts of your body.

COVID can cause a form of long hauler disease in ANY of those organs.

It does it by melting the cells to replicate.

Or another way to say it is…

“Making your cells into a giant skin suit for a COVID donkey show… except the Donkey is actually three COVID in a donkey suit.”
Whichever you prefer…

Here is another chart. It shows how similar COVID can be to an hACE2 so that it tricks your body.

But no mention of reproductive organs or epidermal.

I need everyone to understand that our collective understanding of the hACE2 and its receptor that COVID uses, is not agreed upon science… yet.

But we understand enough of its basic functions to discuss the risk here.

Let me show you a third, placenta-specific source…

But the horrors don’t stop there.

Make no mistake… your Baby can be born with COVID.

I’m actually not trying to shock you here, the reality is shocking enough.

This child survived, but who knows the changes it created or what the future holds? I hope they’re well, and the article says they’re thriving.

These are not patients or test samples, these are real people with lives.

First American Baby Born With COVID-19 Now Thriving

However, there is a reason we only have a few stories to rely on…

The virus has progressed significantly.

This data is “pre-Delta”, a phrase you should familiarize yourself with.

Not only has the Virus’s progression made it more deadly to children…

This is the percentage of children's deaths 5–14 of total deaths.

If you look at that chart and are anything but shocked, you need a serious psychological examination for being a sociopath… this is not normal.

And when people say kids are not that affected by COVID.

… actually, read how totally stupid this next statement sounds.

… “might not be as severely affected”… might not… that’s current.

And from the freaking MAYO CLINIC! After almost 2 years of this.
This is the best they can offer.

THIS MAYO CLINIC…

If these are the folks we are depending on then we are so screwed.

REAL TALK! Children are not less affected by COVID…

Studies show that children even pass COVID more efficiently.

I showed you a brand new study from Belgium… but obviously, there is no way we have data from last year warning us of this.

Because if we did… surely, we wouldn’t ha…

THIS IS FROM LAST YEAR.

New Evidence Suggests Young Children Spread Covid-19 More Efficiently Than Adults

Here are the cited studies…

Published July 20th, 2020… So, not very new…
(This thumbnail is awful, sorry.)

Abuse Notice

And July 29th, 2020 on this one…

Contact tracing during Phase I of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Province of Trento, Italy: key findings and recommendations

They can even become long haulers too… even babies.

The fact that we are arguing over whether kids should get vaccinated for COVID is further than we should be in this discussion…

Because schools shouldn't be open at all.

Especially when I explain how we got here…
(BTW kids will need to be vaccinated, so, just slow down there)

But first, this terrible news…

The new frontier: Israeli hospitals contend with 'long COVID' in children

According to Israel the risk there has been around 11%.

11% of Israeli kids who got virus now suffer from 'long COVID' - study

Other countries are starting to sound the alarm on Long COVID.

We are already way too late.

Health secretary concerned over rising long Covid numbers

They say to assume it’s higher because kids are not the best at telling you their symptoms and again…

The data is already ancient by “COVID standards.”

Bits I wrote at the start of this, six weeks ago… feel like they were written last year by comparison to how fast things have shifted.

And things appear to be escalating even more quickly.

Six-month-old baby critical due to post-Covid symptoms

That baby needed an ECMO (Extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation) machine to stay alive, also known as a “heart-lung” machine.

It cleans your blood and puts new oxygen in it.

Good luck even finding one of those in America, but they will be to 2021 what the ventilator was to 2020… in constant shortage.

And don’t think this isn’t affecting Americans… it is.

COVID-19 cases in Idaho children have 'skyrocketed.' That could affect hospitals, care

And as the quality of care shrinks from full PICU’s, babies might not survive.

PICU’s getting overwhelmed is much worse than normal ICUs.

Not getting vaxxed is risking doubling our death rate for no particular reason.

And it’s possible that your lost child won’t be tracked at all. Please, get it.

The data is incomplete, but what we have is startling.

This is just Louisiana.

6 Pregnant Women, 10 Fetuses Have Died From COVID During Louisiana's Fourth Surge

You’re welcome to do it knowing it WON’T END THE PANDEMIC ALONE.

But it will protect both of your lives.

Pregnant people urged to get vaccinated amid abysmal US inoculation rates

Life is already cruel enough, please… at least by your fourth month for maximum efficacy. I am not a doctor but I can at least do basic math.

1 month between shots… 146 days peak immunity window.

4 month, first shot, 5th month, 2nd shot… 146-day window puts you through until 10.5 months which gives your baby a month and a half, or longer if you use Moderna, of peak immunity.

More on that 146 immunity window in a moment.
(yeah, you read that right, even shorter than the 160 days)

First, two more important questions need to be answered…

Yes, you still need to wear a mask even after vaccination.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get vaccinated as well.

And yes, the antibodies created do pass from Mother to Child.

Pregnant Women Who Receive COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines Pass Antibodies to Their Babies

If you think I’ve stepped too far out of my “strategic” lane by saying any of this.

This article agrees that it’s very strong when taken in your third trimester.

Also, vaccine-created antibodies pass in breastmilk, which is amazing.
This is hopeful news for a few reasons.

Breast milk of vaccinated mothers contains COVID-19 antibodies, study shows

Based on all my reading on how the RNA vaccines work… it's best to look at them as ‘genetic immunity steroids’… I’ll present a more technical approach later and yes, steroids are used medicinally so don’t make this weird.

It boosts the production of a number of different parts of your immune system. These are all naturally occurring processes that are revved up or are “primed.” So, this is like speeding up your ability to challenge invaders.

COVID interrupts the natural process that triggers an immune response by tricking your interferons, which then don’t alarm your B cells.

B cells are already really slow and can take up to 4 days to react.

This is why attempting immunity via natural infection is very risky.

So, the vaccine supplements this to start the process.

And that passes in utero.

That’s not to say that there still isn’t incredible risk, there is incredible risk.

But the risk is from getting COVID at all… not from the shots themselves.

But before we move on…

There is one other thing that needs to be addressed…

The comments of someone’s Doctor warning her not to get vaccinated is actually based on a bit of science that is no longer relevant but is worth mentioning if nothing else to avoid further confusion.

We need to be able to effectively shut this argument down, but positively.

We all really need to focus our arguments from a helpful place instead of a frustrating place… this is probably pointless to bring up… but be nice?

When the vaccines first rolled out my Wife’s doctor told her to wait.

Why? Because the Pregnant were not involved in the initial testing.

Pregnant People Haven't Been Part Of Vaccine Trials. Should They Get The Vaccine?

And… there were issues with people’s menstrual cycles being thrown off post-vaccine… and it wasn’t a small number, 30k in the UK alone.

If you are a person experiencing these symptoms, feel free to speak up.

It’s okay, you are not alone.

COVID-19 vaccine's impact on menstrual cycles needs to be investigated after 30,000 women report changes, says top scientist

But adequate testing has been done, and my understanding is that all of them, or at least the “vast majority” returned to normal.

I’m not going to lie, I’m a little disappointed with myself for citing a doctor named “Dr. Male” about issues affecting primarily women.

But it’s what I had.

By not talking about it we allow conspiracy theorists to fill that void.

Anti-vaxxers are targeting pregnant women with misinformation that can lead to tragedy, experts warn

I assume there may be some outliers, but…

Don’t risk your life based on old data… and that is going to be true about a number of things we address throughout this larger piece.

The benefits of these vaccines greatly outweigh the risks.

And I will address the risk later in this article, which does exist, but life comes with risks and in this case, the gain outweighs the dangers.

People have even spoken about having a surge of energy after getting it…

I assumed it was primarily an anecdotal psychological experience, and then my own Mother got the shot and she spoke of her positive experience.

I got the COVID-19 vaccine, and I feel great

Now it’s easy to misunderstand how this vaccine functions…

As many have.

The RNA vaccine doesn’t exactly pass through the blood barrier or show up in breast milk, it creates an increase in naturally occurring immune cells and those are detected in higher volumes. There is no spike protein in this process.

And a Spike protein isn’t really a “spike” either…

This is basically like short cutting the event that identifies an invader.

More on the S protein later. This protein is especially bad for your brain.
(It has the same makeup as what is believed to cause Alzheimer’s.)

But the good news?

This means the antibodies passed in breast milk are extremely beneficial.

This is interesting because if this is true a person who is lactating could freeze their milk that is high in antibodies and hypothetically use it to treat babies who have immune issues or infections because the immunity boost is not limited to helping you with COVID, your whole body is ready to fight.

And we need to do more right now, look no further than…

The pictures of kids on ventilators are simply heartbreaking.

Toddler on ventilator fights for his life as COVID takes toll on U.S. children

The problem is though… there is no part of the current vaccination process where this was avoidable without changing our behavior.

It will be YEARS before we vaccinate ANYONE under five for C19.

And if the current vaccines do not stop parents from spreading COVID…

That means a simple fact is true…

Even while vaccinated there is an incredibly high risk from COVID.

Everyone still needs to be masking…

and this is why that’s happening.

This is kind of a big oversight…

This is a quote from one of the doctors who worked on the Moderna Vaccine…

The second one, at the bottom…

So, while the COVID vaccine WILL PROTECT YOUR BABY IN UTERO…

It doesn’t do a whole lot to protect your kids after that.

And it does even less to protect your brain.

I thought I was going to have a hard time getting folks to believe me.

Then after almost a month of writing, this article broke in the news on the 11th of October.

Finally, a semi-major US publication talking about COVID’s effect on your brain, and it's extremely bad… Vaccinated or not.

Here's what Bay Area doctors say about how COVID affects the brain

The vaccine does not protect your brain in any meaningful way.

This article focuses more on the Long Term effects on our brain rather than the vaccine's ability to protect it… but that’s why I’m writing this.

We have to wear masks more than ever before.

And I’m sure you’d love to read that article… if only you had an SF chronicle subscription… btw, this material should be free to the public.

This is peak ‘the information that will keep you safe is for the rich.’

Actually, there already has been substantial testing on all of this…
…it's not hidden behind a paywall.

Here is the meat, or soy-based protein, of it…

COVID uses your nose as its primary entry point, and when the vaccine was developed they had not studied mucus-based immunity. They were under the assumption that your upper respiratory tract was protected already.
(I’m going to explain all the details in my next release.)
(That’s not a cop-out, it's a lot, and this article is too long.)

This is exceptionally not correct.

Even worse, they did not even test it because the process was so rushed.

BTW did you know that your Mucus system is the single largest piece of your immune system… and the other major place it is in is your intestines?

The other place that COVID attacks first?
And they just missed it.

Then after they missed it, no one went back to fix it because everyone is just hoping this blows over and they don’t have to admit it happened.

I think that’s why they were openly praying that COVID would become less tenacious… But COVID just keeps getting worse.

I’m deadly serious, I will show you everything.

COVID is likely infecting our whole body through our mucosal system.

And we know basically nothing about it.

Olfactory transmucosal SARS-CoV-2 invasion as a port of central nervous system entry in individuals with COVID-19 - Nature Neuroscience

This is my basic finding… started as a hypothesis but now it is proven by using the data from folks much smarter than any of us.

COVID infections start in your nose, moves up your olfactory nerve, and directly into your brain. The brain and our immune system work slowly together and that gives the virus space and time to do untold damage.

And from there, it's literally traversing our entire body via our mucosal tracts.

And having brunch in the portions of our brain that control our autonomic functions… That’s likely why the vaccinated are dying so fast.

Hospitalizations are down, but deaths are up.

Our vaccine-only response, a vaccine that is designed to only protect our lower respiratory tract, when the virus is using our upper tract and entering our brains without resistance is a disaster of untold proportions.

I’ll explain in great detail how this was overlooked…

But we have a bit of an emergency on our hands here.

This article is from LAST YEAR…. So, it's not like this is new info.

Coronavirus can enter the BRAIN via the nose

See those red dots? That’s COVID under an electron microscope.

What’s worse is that it appears the White house plan was to use the vaccines to create what is known as the original “Hybrid Immunity.”

When you find out what it is, you will understand why they are trying to rebrand it… because this is such a monumental fuck up that a lot of powerful people want it to go away.

But COVID is not going away, not without a coordinated effort from all of us.

And we can’t do that without knowing the truth.

When we all agree on what is happening that becomes the now, and that is a gift we give each other which is why it is called the “present.”

The original meaning of “Hybrid Immunity” is simply “Natural Immunity” aided by these vaccines, that don’t protect our brains in any significant way from a virus that “melts” our cells.

Through all of Sept, there have been an overwhelming amount of articles trying to “muddy the water” on this particular issue… I’ve really watched it develop over the month of writing this piece.

Hybrid Immunity is not an official phrase, so they are trying to make it overly complicated then the public won’t get upset.

The two muddied talking points are…

1. Hybrid Immunity is when you mix vaccines…
   This should be called “crossover immunity.”
2. Hybrid Immunity is when you get vaccinated AFTER you get infected.
   Which probably should still be part of the recovery regiment.

But really…

1. The real Hybrid Immunity was getting infected AFTER being vaccinated.

And we can prove it based on the White house’s timeline, their relationship with Pfizer, and the chemical effect the vaccine has on our bodies.

The strategy was simple…

They wrote this plan for Alpha… Get enough people vaccinated, everyone takes off their mask, and then boom… minor infection and a lasting antibody response for COVID specifically… but they wrote that before we knew the damage it did to our brains, and before Delta became more transmissible.

And they didn’t change course.

Even right now they are pushing this agenda in Australia where they just started their vaccination window.

That means that all of this is happening at the direction of Pfizer…

And their “Hybrid Immunity” campaign has already started.

Why vaccinated Australians should WANT to get Covid after lockdown

This is precisely the same plan that they are trying to scrub out of the history books in America…

Remember this?

There is no technical difference between “hybrid immunity” and “natural immunity” other than the vaccine made your symptoms less dramatic but not the damage to your brain… or many other parts of your body.

Some might say this is actually the most significant damage it does.

And still, this won’t work because you cannot gain natural immunity to COVID for longer than a few months…

While it ravages your Immune System and makes it harder to fight the next infection… and attacks our reproductive organs making it harder for us to continue … reproducing… yes, even the fun parts.

Plus, this is likely one of the MAJOR causes of Long-Hauler Syndrome…

The main symptom is “Brain Fog.”

Why do you get Fog in a video game? Because there isn't enough MEMORY.

COVID literally melts your Brain while it eats it.

And it doesn’t stop there.

Getting vaccinated will save your life, but it won’t protect you alone.

This is one of two reasons we have to mask, the other being general transmission…

But protecting your brain should be a higher priority.

And as the ‘immunity window’ closes your risk also increases.

Keep in mind, this happens separately of possible variants that might mutate to have a better vaccine escape capability…. A few exist already.

But masks fail, so the vaccine is like a failsafe we badly need for the pregnant… And even though it won’t protect your brain…

It WILL protect your baby in utero.

And just for an extra measure…

There is new data that just came out… A study of the entire country of Scotland for vaccine efficacy.

Before you get excited, this does not test anything other than death and hospitalization… risk of Long-Hauler is still the same.

Though this study does not approach that concept at all.

Characteristics and risk of COVID-19-related death in fully vaccinated people in Scotland

but this is a GIANT STUDY… and overwhelmingly makes a few things clear.

The vaccinated are safer from death than the unvaccinated… much.

And the vaccine itself is safe… there were no deaths in the Moderna group, and 236 deaths in the others… that’s .007% of the whole country.

This was peak immunity… so they will protect you… enough.

Now, I don’t know how well they considered behavior, which is still the greatest driving force… But either way, the vaccines are VERY effective at preventing death and hospitalization if you are in your immunity window.

That’s enough to protect your pregnancy.

But that’s not really the underlying point here…

The real underlying point here is …

Whether the vaccine is safe or effective is not the issue.

Wearing Masks will always be the long-term solution.

From that same study…

So, this means unvaccinated children are certainly not safe from us unless we are regularly masking, and then even while vaccinated that immunity window is short and the risk of becoming a long hauler is still the same.

It’s not just about not dying, it’s not just about stopping COVID …

It’s about protecting ourselves and each other, and not just our lives… but our quality of life too.

Our masks are a helmet for our breathing and right now we are crashing over and over again with no protection.

And we’ve been doing it for months…

… Just letting an intracellular parasite make lunch out of ourselves and our next generation… What’s wrong with us?

This is not okay.

In 2020, they asked us to sacrifice our past, via our grandparents, to the economy.

In 2021, they are asking us to sacrifice our future, via our children.

I wonder what they will ask us to sacrifice to the economy in 2022?

• This is the end, for now… More is coming.

You can follow Don @ TheWordOfDon on Twitter

If you like the article give it a share, if you hate the article leave a comment on why I’m wrong. I have a lot more on the way… a lot more.

*I will be editing this document as the situation changes.*

Progressives are being told by Biden to decrease the $3.5T budget number to get the last two Senators on board because getting part of what you want is better than nothing at all…

And throughout history, there are many moments where 50% of something is better than 0% of everything.

However, this is not one of them.

The bill started out at $7T and was cut in half to $3.5T…

This is like asking for a dollar but accepting you can only get 50 cents.

As expected, Bernie was pragmatic from the start.

But, saying that they need to cut that further is like saying they only get 30 cents but were still going to call it a dollar…

Not to mention, that would make both bills just another corporate handout.

This argument is being made, in a very coordinated fashion, for them to accept these potential cuts… as if they are still in the minority group.

But the truth is that Progressives are no longer the minority group in Congress. They are now the majority group.

And that Majority will continue to grow.

So… I was thinking about this $3.5T number and you know what?

Progressives do need to rethink it.

$3.5T is now too low.

Progressives in Congress should come back to the table with a 4.5+T proposal that includes extending UI and moving up the Medicare Expansion start to next year… and whatever else I’m missing.

Then every struggling American in the country will make sure that EVERYONE votes the way we need them to.

That’s it, that’s the whole article.

It’s time to flex… and the best way to do that is to demand more.

And we can pass both of these bills at a later date, neither one has an immediate effect on the general public like the previous bills.

But if they did, they would pass a lot more easily in this environment.

We can get it done.

Because when we step together we can make politicians do anything.

**You can follow Don @ https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon **

Apologies to Rep. Jayapal for not being featured in the featured photo, she has been an absolute rockstar throughout this process and none of this would have been possible without her. She deserves a lot of recognition.

Let’s make sure she gets it.

We’re going to ‘reconcile’ the Progressive Agenda, mittens off.

In this article, I’m going to outline not just the next few weeks, but what the next few YEARS of actions for the grassroots could look like.

That could leave us with two to four years safely mapped out.

Which can and will shift.
It’s a “fluid” concept.
We can’t be too rigid.

The goal with these articles is not only to try to keep you informed, create a document that shows each step, and present a general strategy, both long and short… I want to show how to turn your action into effective change.

And I cannot express it more clearly when I say it all comes down to attitude.

It’s true.

And attitude is the difference between ordeal and adventure.

Things are undeniably tough right now and folks depend on our attitude.

Our activism becomes the light at the end of this very dark tunnel.

We can sit here and stroke each other’s egos all night and sure it feels great but what’s the point? We are here to build community but the focus of that community has to be a unified goal, with a long-term “map” that allows us to focus action and keep out bad actors.

That is what made us strong in 2016 and in 2016 we took our movement all the way to the convention with every imaginable situation created or manipulated to further block us.

Some say it wasn’t effective.

Now when I look around and survey 2021, I don’t see DWS. I don’t see Hillary Clinton… Sure, they pop-up, but since 2016, I can’t help but notice…

We’re still here and they are not exerting influence.

To the folks who say the Progressive Movement has not been successful…

I think they have forgotten who we are fighting against…

It’s the Corporations, stupid… and the neoliberals that represent them.

We’re wresting control of the levers of power from corrupt politicians.

The same ones who are trying to use Austerity for C19 relief, right now.

I have said in earlier phases that I did NOT expect Biden to be some beacon of clarity and leadership… But I’ll be honest, we started off and are headed in a much better place than I thought we would by this point.

At the same time, we have Republicans dropping like flies as they decide not to run for reelection… Which could possibly show that some are ready for conviction in Trump’s 2nd impeachment trial… Possibly.

There will be an impeachment focused article in a few days.

Senate votes trial constitutional; Six Republicans vote 'yes'

But more than likely they are being cowards and are avoiding having to deal with their responsibility for Trump as they look to face constituents.

While Manchin, our 50th vote, is getting nailed at home by groups who want to replace him for holding up or various processes.

Progressive group that helped elect AOC targets Joe Manchin, Kyrsten Sinema for replacement

This is no small task, considering he’s won statewide races for 20 years…

But still, the good news continues to roll in as Bernie takes over his role as the Senate Budget Committee Chair which puts him in charge of the Senate Budget reconciliation process.

This grants him ONE budget-focused bill, sans filibuster each year, and because we didn’t use one last year…

Bernie gets two this year.

Of course, he does.

Bernie Sanders meme encapsulates paradox of hero for young Americans

So, the threat of Primaries has to be real to get the support we need.

Because it's ‘Go Time.’

Now, before I start explaining the Reconciliation process…
I need to bring up a major issue.

Right now, the Neoliberals are not happy.
They simply don’t want Dems in control of all the levers of power.

Podcast: Liberal Wonks Are Trying To Blow It, Explained

Some are intentionally bungling the COVID relief to lose your support.

They are trying to trigger a response of… “well, we should just let Dems lose.”

If you follow my earlier writing I explain that when we kept Pelosi in as Speaker, elected Biden, and then won the Senate… we would have the best accountability to force through the Progressive Agenda. Yes, the same one they claim to support when they are running for office.

So far, that has turned out to be mostly true.

If we allowed any impediment then it would negate our real opportunity… Because of course, they aren’t going to give us what we need… Of course, they are going to blow this. Of course, they are going to back out of the $2000 promise and say “you just weren't listening.”

Dem Senator Warns: If the Party Wants to Lose Georgia, Break the Promise Made in the Runoff

Because that’s what Corporate Dems do…
We're just removing their excuses to hide behind.

I mean, just look at how some of them handled Bernie simply sitting there.

When it comes to gaslighting, they can’t seem to help themselves.

San Fran Teacher Blasted for Saying Bernie Meme Showed 'Privilege'

And to be honest, I'm counting on it… because the goal here is…

To get folks to vote differently in the primaries.
- Vote totals are lower
- If they are in Blue districts, they are less expensive

We have to shine a light on what is happening and we will never get a greater opportunity to put their failures on display than during a pandemic.

-Plus, we have a year and a half to organize.

Worst case scenario, they simply do what we want. That’s not so bad.

But that means as this heats up, we are going to see a dump truck of propaganda…

“All hope is lost…”
“We can’t do this…”
“Dems have screwed us again…”

And, yes, Dem leadership will probably screw us again…

If they were doing it all perfectly we wouldn't be trying to replace them.

So, we can’t fall for it… We have to keep up grassroots pressure.

Progressive Dems don’t need to cede power to hold them accountable.

Because that’s what primaries are for.

Do they want to lose their primaries? Then be my guest and use austerity.

And even then, I don’t think going along with what we want simply because they fear primaries in ’22 is enough to stop us from going full throttle.

I have no interest in removing the fear that they might be primaried by simply letting them pass a single reconciliation bill, especially when we have more non-budgetary issues to pass, many more.

I expect more of them… the more they give us now the better chance they have of not having or maybe surviving their primary, and they are coming.

Because that’s how it’s going to be from now on, Corporate Democrats are going to see primary challenges until they reform or give up.

We win either way.

Now, in earlier Phases, I explained that we were going to need to find ways to reach 60 votes to pass legislation and that is still true until at least ’22.
Assuming no Dems die in states where Republican controls appointments.

Because that’s what happened in 2009 with the ACA, just a bit of history.

This is because the filibuster allows for a minority of members to hold up legislation and why there is a constant ‘bipartisan’ discussion.

Opinion | Democrats are faced with a choice. Protect the filibuster or protect democracy.

It all comes down to how the Senate is allowed to limit debate.

Normally debate cannot be limited unless the threshold of 60 is hit. So, the filibuster is essentially automatic in our current situation.

This is routinely used to stop civil rights acts, progressive legislation, and generally anything the oligarchy or racists don’t want to happen.

But this works both ways and getting rid of it is a complicated discussion.

Generally speaking, it should go… I still want to wait to see how the next election goes… Because removing it and losing power would be horrible.

It’s not really in my hands either way.

Budget reconciliation essentially exists to bypass that roadblock.

But only once in a calendar year.

Budget Reconciliation: The Basics

Now, I’m not a big fan of using phrases like “4D chess” but this was quite the maneuver on the part of Chairman Sanders, very impressive.

Because of how the Committee did business last year, Bernie gets TWO HIS FIRST YEAR.

That means in Biden’s first term we get four more of these, assuming we hold on to the Senate and House.

That’s five total.

That’s four more chances to implement aspects of the Progressive Agenda as long as they follow a few budgetary rules… and they are arbitrary.

And it’ll be this way for as many years as Bernie can hold out for.

HOWEVER…

If you have 60 votes in the Senate you can bypass that rule that limits it to budgetary matters and put whatever you want in it… If the parliamentarian agrees then it's a green light and you have a lot of freedom. ‘Budget neutral’ is a loose concept.

Folks are going to argue about this but the Republicans used it even more flippantly and Bernie has made very sarcastic comments about it.

Introduction to Budget "Reconciliation" | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Of course, when it comes to what goes in these and the grassroots, Bernie has the final say and we have to accept what it looks like. REAL talk.

But that’s okay.

For the last few years, we have all doubted Bernie's reasons for dropping out, or endorsing, or some other term that gets whipped into a frenzy screaming things like “sell-out”…

But I can say fairly accurately that he was holding out for this…

Now that we have a clearer picture of what that means, I can certainly find it in my heart to forgive and move on to the important work that we now have the opportunity to do.

Now, all of this is fantastic.

But we also have deadlines.

Because of UI benefits…

The bill must be signed by March 14th.

So, keep that in mind as negotiations continue, there is a rush.

We have less than two weeks to get the bill back to the Senate.

Before I get into what the next few years look like…

It’s important to understand how these bills are made.

First the mommy bill and the daddy bill… Actually, it is kinda like that.

I’m going to do my best to explain this but I’m still learning.

First, the House and the Senate each draft a resolution that accepts the process. The Senate has an amendment process that’s informally called a “votearama” where they vote on hundreds of amendments that qualify what can go in the bill or not…

It was DAYS not hours.

The Strategy is that if even one Senator leaves, has a health issue, anything, then the minority can wreck the bill since there’s no proxy voting.

It’s a cheap move.

But once this is done, the Senate votes and it moves to the House.

Now all this really means is this gives the House clearance from the Senate that they can draft legislation based on the rules set out by the Senate.

While the House is writing the bill, Senate can handle Impeachment.

Democrats Unveil First Draft Of $1,400 Stimulus Checks Bill

The House also has a Budgetary process like this but apparently, there is no process to limit debate, which is the basis of the Senate process that makes it unique. So, logistically that’s why it starts in the Senate.

As soon as it moves to the House everyone should be slamming the phones and demanding from the Ways and Means or whatever committee is next that you want certain things added to the bill.

Still working out the committee process and our reps should be directing us.

At the same time, we have to make sure that over in the Senate we can keep our Dem Senators who are secretly R’s in line because though we have 51 votes … we really only have 48 automatically, and that can be dicey.

Because whatever goes from the House still has to pass the Senate.

They can pass it back and forth and each makes changes. It's a slow process and we simply will not hit our deadline for mid-March…

AOC just ripped this stimulus check compromise to shreds

But we get two of these bills this year.

I assume, if everyone is smart, we’re going to do the 2nd one when the UI benefits are set to expire after this round of relief right now.

And if we get even smarter we can get better at manipulating the process.

Originally the UI benefits were planned through Sept…

Except the Chairman of the Ways and Means is trying to cut a month off of those benefits so that it would be ending August 31st…

Rep. Richard Neal, @RepRichardNeal. “Serving the 1st District of Massachusetts in the US House of Representatives, with 87 cities & towns in western & central MA. Chairman of @WaysMeansCmte.”

Oh, and btw… You may not know this but last February, they tried to pass Jayapal’s Medicare for All bill and it died in the Ways and Means.

Ways and Means Committee Chair Doesn't Want Medicare for All Hearing to Mention "Medicare for All"

Any of this starting to sound like a call to action?

The same ghoul who killed M4A and stopped the process for the floor vote all the FTV activists were pushing for but last July is trying to cut a month off our UI benefits right now…

He is a problem, possibly “the” problem.

Deconstructed: What's the Path Forward for Medicare for All?

I mean, jokes on him… that just means we have a 2nd reconciliation bill sooner and give the Corporate Lobbyists, who cannot lobby right now, less time to come up with a response to what’s happening.

But if we can get the 60 votes to end debate then we can get M4A now.

Because we have the same M4A bill hitting the floor later this month.

So, it breaks down like this.

1 reconciliation bill a year…
2 this year.

1st one now, 2nd one to re-up UI benefits… I assume.

That’s when we could get retroactive and recurring payments, plus Emergency Medicare Expansion, assuming we can’t get 60 votes.

THAT MEANS WE GET TWO CHANCES FOR MEDICARE EXPANSION.

Pretty much any of the larger line items that will take time to build support for can be planned somewhere along with this timeline, always to re-up UI. In the meantime, we can rally Republicans for Conviction on the Impeachment and roll that right over into 60 votes as fast as possible.

If we can’t get the 10 Republican votes, we have one card left to play.
I’ll explain it in great detail in a future Phase when it is relevant.

Right now though… once you are done calling Representative Neal to give him a piece of your mind… we should still be doing local races.

Local races now prepare candidates for Congressional races in ’24 & ‘26.

We need to continue winning Congressional seats & primarying Neoliberals.

But the Senate is the game.

In ’22, win five seats to replace votes we can’t count on…

In ’24, win five more Senate seats to have 60.

20 R seats are up in ‘22

But only 10 R’s up in ‘24

We’re going to make sacrifices on these seats because we need bodies, we simply do not have the progressive talent ready for the Senate. We can make them but not enough exist right now… They just simply don’t.

But if we take local races seriously now, and develop our talent then we don’t have to make those sacrifices later… and I’m going to point to this paragraph in 2022 when folks don’t like a particular candidate.

Because if we get seven more senate seats we have 67 and can do anything, but 60 will do.

And then we don’t have to make sacrifices at all.

But right now, if we are going to reconcile the Progressive Agenda it means we are still going to have to make certain sacrifices. But that doesn’t mean we sacrifice on policy and many if not all of the sacrifices will have to do with the concept of time…

For example…

EPIC is a proposal for a temporary Medicare Expansion… and we have to push to make them permanent, I assume the name will be different.

It is a backup plan.

By choosing what we sacrifice now we can control any fallout from whatever we fall short on … it is always better to get a program with a broader stroke at the start but for a temporary amount of time, then we have to prove it works.

How hard could that be?

Still very hard.

Biden makes inroads with progressives

But if we control our negotiated sacrifice by choosing it an advance then we don’t risk having a water-downed policy that gets nitpicked to death and it makes the process much quicker at the same time.

The longer we drag out the actual bill crafting the more opportunity consultants and lobbyists have to come in and break down the process, but at the same time, we can also drag out a fight to apply our own pressure.

That is what we sacrifice… not the policy itself but a time limit for how long the program is going to last… We then have to replace enough members of Congress to ensure we can pass legislation to make it permanent.

Because like it or not that’s going to be the game now.

All of our efforts are going to have to extend in this manner…

Build a temporary expansion by altering an existing program via budget reconciliation then target and replace anyone how stands in the way.

Anyone.

As long as we can convince Biden…

Then we can do it with 50 votes, but 60 would free it up more.

We will have to make sacrifices but by doing this way we can ensure that the sacrifice is logistics not policy, that’s the trick to making it work.

And it only works if you have a mass movement of folks ready to party.

Because there is no party like a Bernie party and it's going down in the Senate Budget Committee.

The Chairman has spoken, this is the way.

Bernie is in the driver’s seat.

And we are the gas that makes the engine GO.

Let me explain...

Some politicians get their power from big donors and such…

But now there is a new breed of politicians that operates like Bernie Sanders has for many years… and they get their power from the people.

And I don’t mean “Corporations are people too” people.

His materials literally say “People-powered” on them…
What did you think it meant?

Our power comes in creating a mass movement and then using it in creative ways. As long as it is non-violent there is no limit to what can be done.

But it needs a lot of people, not half, not some… all.

And when I say creatively… I mean it.

Successful activism is an art form.

"Go Out And Make Me Do It"

There is a story Obama told during his election about how FDR told civil rights activists that “he liked their plan, now go out and make me do it.”

This paints a rosy picture of politicians working with activists in a pleasant manner as if folks want to do the right thing but “the public.”

Of course, this story turned out to be total horseshit.
Shock.

The real story behind "make him do it" | Represent Consumers

There’s no actual record of FDR saying that though they did meet with him and he seemed supportive, it was only the fear of a race riot… this doesn’t mean they were afraid Black people were going to riot, it means that white people would start murdering protesters to push them back, which ultimately caused FDR to step in to protect them and move things forward.

They forced his hand but while the methods they used were peaceful, they worked for slightly different reasons than history teaches us.

This all bottles down into what this means for you.

It doesn’t take a smart person to realize that the media is not your friend.

There are a ton of poor renditions of stories that mislead you in a direction that will make you take action which will ultimately be ineffective.

Independent media does it too, so that’s not a silver bullet.

You have to learn to know the difference between what ‘feels true’ and what ‘is true’ because politics is all about manipulating you away from your power with your own feelings.

It feels true… but is it?

A good example recently is the folks tricking the movement into removing the power we grant to AOC and Bernie when we support them in their actions. They can’t do it without our support.

If they can get us to not support them then they can remove their committee seats and silence them without fear, basically remove their power.

There is no fear of reprisal without your support.

They are only safe in Congress when we keep them safe.

So, let’s try to cut through some BS and lay it out how it actually is.

That means you can start creating real change with US.
And it starts with the first of five reconciliation bills.

And contacting your representatives… Get creative and feel free to look back to suggestions made in earlier phases… Picket lines make good media.

Take up one or more of these issues and push on it until it’s done.
And recruit, recruit, recruit… The solution is always “organize.”

Let’s start with the two thousand dollar question…

When it comes to the problem with the $2000, oh wait sorry *checks notes*, the $1400 checks are that everyone said…

“$2000 check out the door.”

Not a $1400 check.

They were pretty clear.

Now, I always knew what they meant, but everyone else didn’t.

And considering it already falls dramatically short of the retro payments that we need, it is absolutely wild that Dems would throw a fuss over $600.

If 100% of America were eligible, that’s still only $210 Billion.

And still, less than we lost when everyone was distracted by FTV.

That price tag was $252 Billion… Being distracted is expensive.

Democrats propose leaving out high earners from stimulus checks and trimming jobless benefits

Dems in the Ways and Means Committee, where the bill has been the last few days, are trying to reduce the folks who can get it based on ‘19 taxes.

Hey, so a few things…

#1) If they change the eligibility then their argument that the $600 is the first part of the $2k is no longer valid…

(Which btw is a wildly stupid argument for an incoming president to make when you switch party control.)

#2) This is NOT actual PANDEMIC RELIEF…

Because they are using 2019 tax data…

The aid proposed by Biden, IS SIMPLY NOT PANDEMIC AID.

This is relief for being poor BEFORE the Pandemic.

It does zero for folks who lost their job during the Pandemic.

As a matter of fact, none of this has been actual Pandemic aid with the exception of the UI benefits… and they are incredibly challenging to get.

Technically, if the $1400 is finishing off Trump, giggity, and the UI benefits are only going to $400 then Biden is only offering $100 in unique support.

And that’s before we bring up AGAIN, that if this check has different eligibility rules then they are different things. That’s not debatable.

The laziness in this austerity is probably what makes me the angriest.

See, what the Neoliberals are doing is a very annoying maneuver. In addition to distracting us with wild arguments so that we don’t talk about putting things in the bill that will actually help America recover, the lower they knock us down on relief, the smaller relief we will eventually accept.

It is absurd that some Democrats think we should tell a worker making $52,000 a year that they are "too rich" and cannot get the full $2000 benefit we promised. It makes no sense to me, nor do I think it makes sense to the American people. pic.twitter.com/aksYr44pI7

For example…

First, they cut the payment down from $2000 to $1400.

And act like it’s normal now.

Then when they have to do more assistance, whether it be retroactive or for future payments, the new number will be $1400 instead of $2000.

They just made precisely the same move with the Enhanced UI benefits.

It was $600 but they took it away and now everyone is thrilled to get $400 when we should be talking about going up to $750 per week.

It is a bait and switch.

Susan is right.

Susan Sarandon accuses President Joe Biden of 'pulling a bait and switch' around stimulus payments

When the simple truth is we have recent empirical evidence that if we don’t spend more money now then we will stall our recovery just like we did in 2009 and frankly, the Republicans will do it without blinking.

'Inhumane': As CBO Warns Employment Won't Recover Until 2024, GOP Offers Mere 3-Month Extension of Jobless Aid

Republican’s only chance of getting reelected is to use whatever power they have to tank our response and recovery and make it look like Biden’s fault.

And, the Neoliberal’s aren’t doing themselves any favors either.

We basically have both sides trying to tank the recovery while families die.

'Era of small government is over': Democrats bulk up Covid package with more cash relief

This is a bait and switch but slightly different context, more of a co-opt.

They only initiated this $3k a year program so that they could say they are doing “monthly cash payments” without doing the ones we actually need.

IT’S JUST ANOTHER SMOKESCREEN.
I’ll be talking a lot about these in future phases.

The article reads like a love letter to austerity, I am not a fan.

They are co-opting the language from what we want to stop the promotion of what we need.

It’sa classic Neoliberal move and why Dems lose.

It's almost like they are trying to.

Historically, before US, every single Democrat in Congress was a total scumbag.

Which by the way, if that one looks familiar…

IT’S BECAUSE IT’S THE SAME CHAIR of Ways and Means…

It’s the same damn guy… again, and again, and again.

Priamarying him should be at the top of our list for 2022.

Looking at you, Massachusettes.

The system needed to distribute aid is not complicated.

We should be providing checks to 100% of Americans with an opt-out feature and since the Relief has been in the form of a tax rebate, we already have the system in place to collect it back from the highest earners when they file 2021 taxes in 2022.

Means-testing means folks who need aid won’t get it.

Keep the previous limits in place but for taxes that we file next year…
And pick up the check later.

We should also extend the relief to the undocumented as well.

It’s not like COVID just skips over these folks.
They are the hardest-hit communities.

This is a humanitarian crisis of never-before-seen proportions.

At this rate, we might as well start fighting for $50k per person

That’s $2k for two years… One year behind, and one year to go…

We did not just get a majority in both houses and the presidency for them to throw us scraps like this. We have to threaten primaries to move them.

Let’s be totally clear… THEY CAN DO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING but we could lose that ability if one senator dies. This has 2009 written all over it.

It feels like American Politicians have confused Emergency Relief with making up for being shitty before the Pandemic

All of the solutions being offered, do NOTHING for the actual pandemic.

It’s all based on pre-pandemic data or only pays out AFTER the pandemic.

This issue has been brought up but never in the context that this would technically mean it is not Pandemic Relief.

This is the worst, it's like watching them try to resolve their guilt.
But it’s still the wrong one.

After dealing with this, I find it amazing that anyone would turn their backs on Bernie… He has said again and again that he is with US…

So we have to stand with him and have his back! Even when we disagree.

Sanders Has a "Room Full of Lawyers" Working to Ensure $15 Wage Bill Survives

And that means a sudden and dramatic fight for Minimum Wage.
But this also has some familiar problems.

Sanders defuses late-night fight over $15 minimum wage

I did not anticipate pushing for a minimum wage increase right now.

And believe it or not, I have some issues with how it is being proposed… albeit I have not read the actual language in the bill other than this meme.

There is no question that it needs to be raised…

But because this is an emergency, I think we need to reimagine how we raise it…

We have never done anything but raise it in the future, but raising it next year, or the year after does nothing for now.

Now, it looks like the wage increase has made it on the bill so I am going to use this space to propose a shift in how we imagine the change itself.

This will be a hypothetical experiment in policy.

So, there is still doubt as to whether Manchin will let it pass at all…

But what did he agree to?

He said he would accept $11 an hour… so let’s do that right now.

As in implement it immediately, two years ahead of the current plan.

It was poorly negotiated on his end and his complaint was that it would be hard for businesses to compensate, Bernie can work with the House and alter the PPP loan program to cover the extra pay.

The system is basically already set up to pay for workers' wages, so what’s the difference between paying for all or just paying for a part?

Plus the CBO has already said that increasing the wage has a net gain because of payroll tax increases…

It basically would be the start of the stimulus aspect of the recovery process that Bernie discussed for the second bill.

We already subsidize these workers via government assistance… Which we are also talking about providing in a more cost-effective manner…

Also, if the cost of living in, say, West Virginia is lower but the wage is the same then it will attract better workers to their state and enhance the state by creating a net gain from payroll taxes with the Fed picking up the tab.

We could still add a progressive wage increase on top of that but if we are going to talk about the future, we should be setting up a $25 minimum wage for eight years from now… not, $15 in five years…

That’s behind the existing plan in some states.

Minimum wage in California increasing to $14 an hour on Jan. 1

But either way, if we raised it immediately with PPP loans we could allow for a steeper increase in a shorter amount of time.

If we can get the Wage increase now, great… fine.
I want to be clear, that I support it and will back Bernie all the way.

I know that proposing these kinds of commitments and big thinking is ‘a bridge too far’ as they say, especially on such short notice and that’s assuming I’m even right and it’s possible.

You simply can’t get hung up on these ideas.

But, we need to dream big and still speak up.

And we’d all probably like to see Congress spend their time negotiating emergency aid instead of negotiating future aid.

That’s actually my grief with this entire process.

I’m pleased to see they got it successfully inserted into the bill and I hope it does pass but we need greater assistance right now.

With the exception of the Enhanced UI, none of this is direct Pandemic aid.

And there is still the Tax burden on UI benefits… which is going to cripple millions of families when taxes are due.

Having the government tax emergency aid is the equivalent of charging your child part of their allowance, that you give them, so they can live in your house…

In any other case, that would be illegal.

If an employer did it, it would be punishable.

So, why do we accept it when our government does it?

On top of that, the debate in the house is missing a few things.

1. Making UI a form of non-taxable assistance, even if only for a few years.
2. Making sure checks are the full $2000 TO EVERYONE with an opt-out system and a since payment is a tax rebate, the system is already in place to collect that money in next year's tax season. It’s only $700 Billion.
3. Making sure enhanced UI is the full $600 and expand who can get them. Stop shrinking the number, folks should be getting more money not less.
4. Emergency Medicare Expansion, start that conversation and let it fail so that it can make it into the second one this year more easily.
5. Penalizing states who aren’t handing out UI benefits.

California is claiming that they can’t get PUA UI reaccepted by the system for at least another month, so they have that money sitting in an account …

Collecting interest.

And that is why folks cannot get access to UI money.

We need to penalize states in some way for not distributing aid and if in June, the pandemic is still raging which I expect, then we are going to have to ‘bridge too far’ a serious talk with Congress about creating a new federal system for distributing aid, that would be in the form of a UBI.

Nancy Pelosi: Guaranteed income during coronavirus crisis is "worthy of attention"

But none of this removes the immediate need for an eviction freeze.

A US-wide eviction ban could have prevented thousands of Covid deaths

Sheriffs are pushing through evictions because they make hundreds of thousands of dollars in overtime every year when they are serving them.

And that’s primarily what is driving the evictions during the Pandemic.

It’s easy to blame the landlord but they were never interested in the greater good, look no further than rental prices to confirm my point.

The truth is that landlords can’t do anything without enforcement.

AOC & Bowman urge HUD, the Treasury for emergency rent reform - Bronx Times

And as long as the Sheriffs can make giant overtime checks the issue will continue driving…folks right out of their homes. The Sheriff that led my eviction made an absolutely absurd amount in overtime in 2018…

Of course, he wants to kick folks out of their homes.

Because that’s their capitalism.

This is precisely what the Repubs tried to use as a gotcha in the relief bill.

Because Bernie and Dems voted for police funding in the Relief bill.

The Republicans put up an amendment for extra funding for the police.

It was passed with unanimous consent.

I watched it and it was a ‘gotcha amendment’ from Republicans that really didn’t do that much. The Dems used it to claim the bill is now bipartisan.

It was one of a small handful of things to go through from the Republicans.

It’s important to say defund the police is about redistributing local funds.
If we want to talk about Abolishing the Police, that’s different.

So, though this does technically create money for Police during COVID it is not money that is being over prioritized on a fixed budget so that the community services suffer. I would have liked to see an amendment for community spending on that note… and it's possible that areas that have redistributed funds to social workers may be able to use it there.

While this is slightly different, I admit it’s super nuanced. But that’s why it’s a Republican ‘gotcha’. This is as close as I will come to making excuses.

New Bill Seeks To Reduce Police Violence Against People With Mental Illness

We do need to address police funding though in EVERY AREA.

In most situations, police are soaking up more resources than they should… and Police Unions are granting unlimited enforcement power.

We’ve created a system where it’s in their best interests to murder folks that represent the failure of that type of spending.

If this person with mental health issues represents the failure in them getting extra pay via overtime… then why wouldn’t they take out the problem & get a vacation?

Horrifying as what I just said may seem…

That’s how we’ve set up the system and it’s wrong.

Who needs their budget to go to mental health experts when they want all that money? That person represents the failure in local spending. And police unions give them the power to handle the issue.

Clearly, we can see why. More overtime pay.

We must continue to demand the end to ‘qualified immunity’ and force Police Enforcement to take on liability insurance, as well as ending the overtime practices that tax our communities to the brink.

Actually, maybe that’s our trade-off, we keep the insurance companies in business when they move from medical insurance to insuring police.

I’d take that trade. I don't like insurance companies…
But I want them involved with our Healthcare less.

How Police Unions Enable and Conceal Abuses of Power

Now we’ve made a lot of demands during these phases and the Biden administration has already delivered on some big ones.

If you are complaining about the made-up things Biden is doing then you are in the way of the actual things that we are trying to gain traction on.

Ending US support of the war in Yemen…

Biden ending US support for Saudi-led offensive in Yemen

This is a huge first step.

We still need to deliver aid to starving folks not just there but in other countries where they are dying of man-made starvation.

We asked for an enforceable mask mandate … and they delivered.

The CDC Just Made This a Federal Crime, as of Tonight | News Break

Biden’s C19 plan still needs a ton of work but this is such a huge step as well.

Puerto Rico aid is such a distant problem that I didn’t even think about it.

Biden to Free Up Billions in Delayed Puerto Rico Storm Aid

I’m disappointed with myself I missed it, but we should all be disappointed with our country for not providing aid to another part of our country.

We asked Schumer to show some dominance… and it finally happened.

Schumer, McConnell reach deal on Senate organizing resolution

We asked for coordination with the Whitehouse.

Though, no one asked for that haircut description.

Joe Biden's Administration Is Starting To Look Like A Mullet

Not to say Biden’s Whitehouse is without issue.

I wouldn’t need to write these if they had it under control.

Some would argue I don’t need to write them at all but if you agree with that then what the heck are you doing sinking time into reading this?

I can’t tell what type of desperation Biden’s rush to reopen schools represents. I used to think it was simply protecting capitalism but then I noticed that us not teaching folks how to be parents for fifty years has really backfired.

CDC could lay out school reopening requirements this week, Biden says

SPOILERS: IT’S NOT GOING TO WORK.

Biden's Plan for Reopening Schools Faces Challenges

Then there is the matter of the rush for more oil drilling, I heard through the grapevine that Bill McKibben, the famous environmentalist, made a statement about it not being that bad, but I did not read it directly.

That is not a qualified quote.
*UPDATE*

The Biden Administration's Landmark Day in the Fight for the Climate

I’d still like to see more, if not all, of our public lands protected from drilling.

Biden Admin Issues New Drilling Permits and More

The new hold on drilling on public lands comes with a lot of caveats.
Too many.

Speaking of “too many” this brings us to the issue known as...

The “kids in cages” & let’s start by making them not in cages.

The public needs to know that children are being cared for in better facilities than the cages we saw a few years ago. Some are still in there and the conditions have been horrifying. As of last week, “there were approximately 4,730 children in Office of Refugee Resettlement care.”

Children who break laws they don’t understand shouldn’t be treated like criminals… It’s really as simple as that. They are children.

Biden administration prepares to open overflow facility for migrant children

The public needs to know that the barbaric practices are being stopped and everything is being done to reunite these children with their families.

And make them as comfortable as possible in the process.

Even if Trump did it, this is America’s fault.

Biden rescinds Trump's "zero-tolerance" policy that enabled family separation

Okay… that’s a start… now we won’t turn every family into a horror movie.

But we still have the last horror show to deal with.

'A moral and national shame': Biden to launch taskforce to reunite families separated at border

This problem just keeps going and going… we don’t know where their parents are at all…

I cannot express in words what a complete and total failure this is.

Biden's effort to reunite Trump-era separated families is trickiest immigration challenge

We should convict Trump on this alone.

But, wait there’s more.

Hundreds deported under Biden, including witness to massacre

You got that right… we stopped deportations but ICE found a loophole.

Federal Appeals Court to Allow U.S. Deportations of Unaccompanied Children

I wrote in an earlier Phase about the traction with ICE would allow us to defund and replant resources in other agencies and then this happened.

A Whistleblower Alleges A Top Trump Official Signed A Last-Minute Agreement With ICE's Union That Could Hamstring Biden's Immigration Policies

No, I’ve changed my mind.

ICE and its leaders are beyond reform, the only solution is to abolish it and develop a new border control agency.

Despite what some among us will say, we still need border control. I’m not against open borders, but I do not believe that is where we are now.

I, along with 11 members of the CBC, just sent a letter to @AliMayorkas demanding DHS stop all mass deportations & return those wrongfully deported like Paul Pierrilus. We can't sit by while ICE blatantly ignores @POTUS' order & continues to deport planes full of Black people. pic.twitter.com/CsBXVbYkYf

Instead of simplifying our government and putting many arms of enforcement under one umbrella, we should probably spread this power over multiple agencies.

It’s too much power for one group to be able to detain, hold, and deport one person.

That is a system without checks and balances and that power corrupts.

ABOLISH ICE is really the only thing worth saying about it.

I’ve gone full circle on this strategy but that’s just double-checking your work.

You can’t talk about strategy on Earth right now without discussing the damage COVID is doing to every facet of life on the planet.

And yet so many folks are moving along with their lives in total denial of the reality of what is happening.

Worst of all, many of them are our elected representatives.

Vaccine distribution has been a mess and I don’t need to link articles to make that point but it has been effective at lowering our numbers right now and that’s good. But it should be said that our numbers are going down for the same reason Trump’s improved last year, they stopped testing.

Biden's Covid-19 Plan: More Gear, Funding, Testing, Data and Face Masks

You read that right.

They switched all of our big testing facilities to vaccinations facilities.

So, no more testings…

This sample shows what I’m saying…

The confirmed cases are going way down but the deaths are not matching the scale.

If we are going to use vaccinations then we have to continue testing at the same rate that we were before we vaccinate.

How else do we know if it is even working? When they die?

It really goes to show that some complaints about Trump were just politics because the Dems were ready to use the same tricky moves as soon as possible to essentially falsify that things were improving.

This is such an incredible mistake.

What the Chaos in Hospitals Is Doing to Doctors - The Atlantic

We think that hospital workers are getting a break but nothing has changed.

Maybe this represents a drop in new cases and the deaths are from old cases as they can be on a ventilator for a very long time?

But then we got this coming up.

The Brazil Variant Is Exposing the World's Vulnerability

And what’s even harder to cope with is…
We’ve known this was coming the whole time.

They are playing politics with a virus that is ravaging our planet.

Extraordinary Patient Offers Surprising Clues To Origins Of Coronavirus Variants

We already had a patient who had the virus for 150 days, he had an immune-compromised system but he had universal healthcare, so they did their best to keep him alive but they were ultimately unsuccessful.

And that single virus mutated into all the versions we are seeing now.

Because that’s how fast the virus mutates.
This is really scary stuff.

Immunocompromised 45 year old suffered from #COVID19 for 155 days before he died. The virus was changing very quickly inside the man's body-it acquired a big cluster of >20 mutations-resembled the same ones seen in #B117 & #B1351. (NPR audio Part 1 of 2)🧵https://t.co/7kWiBZ1xGk pic.twitter.com/ZJ7AExB78Y

Now we're seeing these outbreaks go unmanaged in other countries because folks think the Vaccine is the end of the virus, it's a pause button.

And it should be buying our Health workers some time…

But, it’s not.

What to do for this is not a mystery. We have to enforce very difficult lockdowns.

I’ll say it again…

THE SOLUTION IS NOT A MYSTERY.

It is heartbreaking watching folks die who simply did not need to.

We should have a Pandemic plan in place for exactly this.

And we don’t… we have actually no significant plan.

If Obama left a plan and Trump just didn't use it, why hasn’t Biden used that?

It’s all smoke and mirrors.

Nothing to do with the bodies, no one way to keep folks safe.

It’s pretty much a clusterfuck of epic proportions…
With only ONE SOLUTION.

And it is very popular.

65% of Americans Support Monthly $2,000 Coronavirus Relief Payments

We have to pay folks to stay home and do it through the summer.

We already know what's going to happen if we don’t.

The vaccines do not kill the virus, so you can still carry it.
Then comes along an immunocompromised person or two.
Then the virus will mutate until it kills them.
This will include mutating to beat whatever we put in front of it.

Then we won’t be ready & it will spread.

It only takes one person to make this start up again.

We have to follow New Zealand or India’s lead.

The Mystery Of India's Plummeting COVID-19 Cases

But that’s just not going to happen, because Congress has been elected to protect investments instead of their constituents.

New Zealand has already shown us that no matter what they do, as soon as they open their borders there’s a peeing section in the swimming pool.

And even a member of Congress dying may not change their minds.

1st Member Of Congress, Texas Rep. Ron Wright, Dies Following COVID-19 Diagnosis

Sure, he was an anti-masker and borderline Q anon but they all got the vaccine, though I am not 100% positive that he did.

But even with all the safeguards possible, it is still killing folks and the vast majority of Congress only seems to be interested in is protecting money.

Pandemic Profiteering By the Numbers

And looking at those numbers we can see why they would feel that way.

I don’t agree with it, but I get it. They are simply wrong.

OUTBREAK OF #B1351 VARIANT IN AUSTRIA 🇦🇹-B1351 🇿🇦 variant now identified in 293 cases in western Austria state of Tyrol-at least 140 active cases. Germany🇩🇪 is considering closing the border to Tyrol. Austria govt has issued urgent travel warning. #COVID19https://t.co/87oqfd8XJ8

We really need to prepare ourselves for what is coming.

The variants that make short work of the vaccines are already becoming dominant, the AstraZeneca shot has already been banned in a few places for no longer being effective.

It could be corporate politics but it didn’t seem like it with it happening in multiples countries at once.

This is going to get really bad really fast.

I’ve been saying that since late December of 2019 and I've been right so far.

The worst part of all of this is that big business is so desperate not to put society on hold that they paint anyone with a basic understanding of the science as some kind of conspiracy theorist.

Experts are trying to break it down more simply every day.

New clinical trials raise fears the coronavirus is learning how to resist vaccines

As a number of experts and the makers of the vaccine have said, the problem with the Vaccine is you can still carry the virus and we don’t know for how long… eventually if the virus can replicate at all, it will mutate into the version that can beat the vaccine or possibly something worst.

Again vaccinating is still a necessary precaution because we have chosen this method and folks should get vaccinated if they can, it is safe.

But, I thought I was being paranoid when I thought we were opening Pandora’s box with this treatment that essentially turns your body into a Petri dish for the Virus.

Not to say it won’t save your life… We just don’t know what comes after that.

We have now seen the same evolution separate from each other in so many places that it is simply an undeniable factor.

That also means the active Virus can mutate into one of these new variants at any point.

I had said that the fatality rate would be about 5% of those infected… and that number starts to stack when we have new variations that require different immunity.

We are there now… right now.

It’s so much like the normal seasonal flu but much, much deadlier.

Now the new variants replicate faster and infect you more easily, which means its opportunity to mutate is compounding at an exponential rate.

And that’s not just a thing the scientist says in a movie, it is very bad.

Please wear a mask even when you think you don’t need one.

Now it’s the law.

If there ever were a true test of our resolves as progressives to do the right thing it is now during the 100-year pandemic and doing our best to stop it.

Paying people to stay home is still the only viable solution.

I know it’s hard to have a good attitude about any of this but we have to because Trump left quite a mess with COVID, it’s a lot to clean up.

But cleaning up after Trump is A LOT more than just COVID.

A lot more.
A lot, a lot more.

No commentary necessary on these issues.

• Biden's Secretary of Defense Is Moving to Purge the Military of White Supremacists
• Democrats push to roll back some business tax cuts in stimulus talks.
• Biden's Justice Department to ask nearly all Trump-era U.S. attorneys to resign
• House Democrats renew probe into Trump administration's pandemic response
• No Longer 'Asleep at the Wheel:' Air Force to Roll Out New Electronic Warfare Strategy
• Defense Secretary Austin cleans house at Pentagon over Trump appointments - TheGrio
• Biden Wants to Shut Down Credit Bureaus - What Would That Mean for You?

This was on my list for items to be standardized waaaayyyy down the line… Standardization and regulation here would radically change folks lives.

When they introduced the ‘social credit’ in China and folks were shocked, all I could think about was how we already use a system similar to that.

And for years it has been used against folks to keep them part of the ‘struggling class’ that we’ve mislabeled as the ‘working class.’

Debt forgiveness is the equivalent of a ‘reverse stimulus.’

Now, I don’t have any college debt but I support its removal.

Here’s where the deal stands.

• Biden Administration Weighs Forgiving Student Debt by Executive Action
• Democrats' $50,000 student loan forgiveness plan would make 36 million borrowers debt-free
• Democrats Plan $50,000 Of Student Loan Cancellation By Executive Order

Seems like Elizabeth Warren is trying to get back in folks' good graces.
I say, let her try… and keep trying … until it’s done.

I suspect that if we stay on top of this one then we might actually get it.

Then we have these things on the horizon.

Marcia Fudge will be confirmed soon, then we will have an election date.

Nina Turner has fundraising lead in early numbers released for upcoming 11th District race

We have to maintain Climate Change as our PRIMARY ISSUE.

This is why we do all of this, it all leads to the levers that control our planet.

350.org: A global campaign to confront the climate crisis

Just found this article as I was wrapping up my final edit…
New to me but three days old.

AOC and Bernie Sanders Push Joe Biden to Declare a Climate Emergency

And enjoying our planet is a lot more fun with legal weed.

Democratic Senate Leaders Announce Steps To Federally Legalize Marijuana In 2021 | Marijuana Moment

It’s not enough to make weed legal, we need to free folks from jail, and expunge their records… return their voting rights…
Get them back into society.

They will never get their lives back but we should figure out a reparations type system for those who have been unfairly imprisoned for Marijuana.

Speaking of inhumane imprisonment.

It's time to start having a serious talk about dropping charges in America against Julian Assange.

Holding him at this point is simply barbaric.

Civil-Liberties Groups Ask Biden Justice Dept. to Drop Julian Assange Case

No one even likes Hillary Clinton… we won, she lost… stop this BS.

Free Assange and I’m sure we won’t have any more issues with him.

As a matter of fact, we should be putting into place whistleblower protections for all of the whistleblowers who are barbarically imprisoned.

If they were right then they should be protected.

I really don’t want to have to make a list, but I will make one.
Just do it.

This goes for everything, we live in a society where folks only do the right thing when they are forced to… and the public must have that available.

Or there can be no justice.

What happened to ‘Justice for all’?

WTF are we even pledging to at that point?

Neera Tanden's unremorseful bullying should disqualify her from Biden's cabinet | Arwa Mahdawi

I know this is going to come out too late to influence her hearing…

Buuuuutttt….. Do not confirm Neera Tanden.

This has been an agenda item since phase 1.

There is no reason to put Neera Tanden in charge of anything related to the WH. If the negative reinforcement I use momentarily can be considered bullying, even momentarily… We don’t need another Twitter Captain.

Her behavior should be without question… unacceptable.

“If you can’t manage your temper, you shouldn’t be managing budgets.”

Neera Tanden: Sorry for Tweets. Will That Satisfy Bernie?

Last couple of items…

We need to start talking about packing the courts, Dem’s refused an amendment to limit that on procedural grounds but I saw the twinkle in their eye… the number I see is 15 to restore balance to the court.

And stop the march to war with Iran. Find a peaceful solution.

If Biden really cares about the theory of bipartisanship, find it with Iran.

Maybe we don’t blow things up for a little bit?

Now, that’s the attitude.

Trump’s Impeachment will be in its own piece as Phase 5.
The history of DemExit is coming up in later phase 4.
I will be creating a simpler format of bullet points for action.

I’m sure other issues have fallen between the cracks.

Let me know what I missed in the comments.

You can follow Don on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

Phase 1 & 2 → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9
Phase 3 → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD
Phase 3.5 → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR
Phase 4 → https://bit.ly/38NStz1
Phase 4.1 → https://bit.ly/38TxYAO
Phase 4.2 → https://bit.ly/2NJicR9

**THIS WAS ORIGINALLY PRINTED ON FB MAR.20.2016**
https://www.facebook.com/notes/don-ford/we-must-keep-moving-forward/10205925062793555

The opposition is tricking us into preying on other Berners…

They are exploiting these combining factors.

Some Boomers are uncomfortable with the Bernie or Bust attitude.

Millennials are uncomfortable with how close the Boomer argument is to the active mitigation argument that is heard from people trying to slow down the revolution.

There has been a lot of name-callings and that can only mean one thing.

We have been betraying the message of Love that got us this far, many have been guilty of it.

His message has never changed.

Let’s all move forward and fix our problems at once by getting back to that idea….

Our message is Love our goal is Unification…

So, here are two ideas that resolve both problems, LET’S STOP BEING MEAN TO EACH OTHER AND LET’S ALL GO ALL IN ON BERNIE UNTIL AT LEAST THE CONVENTION… YOU SHOULD GO LONGER BECAUSE THE REVOLUTION HAS JUST BEGUN!

Let’s CELEBRATE what a diverse group of people support our candidate, but…

ANYONE UNWILLING TO DO THOSE TWO THINGS ARE BEING AGITATORS.

THE FIRST RULE OF BERNIE CLUB IS…

We all share one goal and we have to police ourselves but calling each other troll isn’t working… either we are agitating or we are participating… What are you doing?

Agitators are on both sides, the ones on our side are more dangerous than the ones on the oppositions, but they don’t know it. They are being manipulated by others who support their fears… This group of fear supporters are not Bernie supporters.

DO NOT FALL FOR IT.

THERE ARE PLENTY OF ISSUES WE NEED SUPPORTERS ATTACKING BUT EACH OTHER IS NOT ON THAT LIST. IF THEY ARE ATTACKING BERNERS SHUT IT DOWN.

BERNER’S SHOULDN’T BEHAVE THAT WAY AND THEN WE DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT WHO IS WHO.

We knew this was going to be hard, this is the narrowest point, we grow from here.

I have a dream that this could be true one day.

WE ARE TEAM BERNIE, SO LET’S GET OUR TEAM ORGANIZED AND FOCUS OUR EFFORTS A DIRECTION THAT WILL HELP US…!

Phonebanking, facebanking, footbanking, focusing on Bernie’s message with people who don’t know about him and embolden those that do with fresh information.

Do it with a smile and focus on what interests them, the goal is to drive them to seek more information or to get directly registered, so don’t worry about convincing everyone.

WE ARE TAKING BACK OUR COUNTRY, THIS IS A PARTY, A CELEBRATION… Let's HAVE FUN WITH IT. WE DO THIS AND EVERYONE WILL WANT AN INVITE.

Also, if you are going to protest a candidate make it the one we are running against now.

There has been some debate as to the authenticity of myself and my message, here is me giving a speech on Sat to a large group of volunteers who were afraid to phonebank…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3APN3Kg5F8&feature=youtu.be

Let’s get to work.

PHONEBANKING

https://go.berniesanders.com/page/content/phonebank

FACEBANKING

https://www.reddit.com/r/SandersForPresident/comments/48y4ls/how_to_facebank_most_effectively/

VOLUNTEERING

https://go.berniesanders.com/page/content/volunteer-hub/?source=fb160309

DONATE

https://go.berniesanders.com/page/content/splash

When I was working on a collaborative writing project, I would say, the quality of a writer is not measured in their ability to have good ideas but in their ability to let go of the bad ones.

Honestly, I would say that to comfort struggling collaborators…

But that could be true of anything and it is never more true than when dealing with leadership because the truth is… every leader is going to get it wrong from time to time… it’s what we do when we realize we were wrong that counts and for some its a matter of if we can even realize it.

But what does it mean to be a ‘leader’?

After years of cartoons and Marvel movies, folks think of characters like Captain American who tell the team what to do and that manifests in the real world as the person who holds the megaphone or leads the rally.

I’ve seen folks try to kill each other to be the one that holds that megaphone.

And I'm over here like… “you know you can just buy one too, right?”

The point is that leadership isn’t defined by who or what you lead but by how you lead. This may seem like semantics but I’ve seen so many folks try to lead and fail because they forget that the first thing they lead is themselves.

Most folks think it starts with a discussion about how many followers they have, and others think it starts with how you speak about things…

But it starts with how you think about things because that defines your approach… and your approach can be anything if you have an endgame but for the sake of this article the approach is about being positive.

Does that mean you sacrifice your moral obligations?

No, of course not… Actually you can safely assume I won’t ask that. Maybe in person but not in these articles.

This is about setting an example, be the leader that you want to see.

It is so critical, especially during COVID, as a leader in this movement, which I can assume that if you are reading this then that’s who you are, that you keep a positive attitude and reflect that in how you speak and type.

If folks are going to call themselves ‘progressives’ or ‘leftists’ or wtf ever it is now then they have to keep in mind the goal is basically to end suffering and encourage both individual and group growth, extrapolate that as you wish.

So, we have to encourage that with our words, actions, and policy.

That is what it means to be a leader… you start there and it can be anything.

Because I got some more good news… it’s working.

Joe Manchin Was Hit With Tough Ad Back Home After Going Wobbly on $2,000 Checks

Some old acquaintances of mine took the same idea from Phase 1 & 2, which is about creating pressure to influence change, and really ran with it.

Corbin, Saikat, and Zack did some good work here. I’ve had issues with two out of three of them in the past but that’s almost water under the bridge when they lay out a clear plan and put their money where their mouth is.

And we know they got that money. #poke

This is a good example of how applying pressure works even faster when you get creative with how you do it and this is still relatively simple.

Any of you could recreate it and use it to leverage your Senator… Start looking into local radio buys now.

I’ll probably breakdown the process more specifically in a later article.

What it all comes down to is these events where politicians ‘change their minds’ don’t happen organically, they are manufactured and I cannot stress enough the importance of taking initiative.

They made a commercial, put it on the radio, and it got folks’ attention… and that was enough to get Manchin to change course.

It’s that simple.

Imagine what would happen if we all did this?

This is why I brought up the importance of staying positive because this all ties together… as things do.

We have to keep hope alive to make this all work and that starts with how we think about ourselves and immediately relays into how we communicate.

The more positive we are, the greater hope we maintain…

Because…

Hope is the fuel for inspiration.

Inspiration triggers initiative.

Taking initiative creates change.

Without hope, inspiration, and taking initiative there will be no change.

And in these dark times, your community needs you to be the activist leaders and fulfill the obligation to negotiate their demands into law with the politicians as part of our social contract in the direct action triangle.

Direct action is a process that involves organizing within a network of…
Community
Activism
& Government

The Community works together to support each other and itself.
The Activists step up to create answers and make demands for the community.
And Politicians legislate those demands into laws.

The Class of 2020

Choose words that inspire change and create new leaders.

I’m far from perfect, inevitably someone is going to pull up tweets of me railing on someone I lost my patience with, and honestly…

That’s okay… and not just when I do it, barring prejudice based tropes.

We all make mistakes and it’s what we do when we realize it that matters.

And even Politicians who make mistakes can legislate our demands into law.

We have to be understanding that they make mistakes, just like us.

A good example of that being fulfilled is another demand to cross off our list.

AOC says FEMA is preparing to cover $2 billion in COVID-19 funeral costs across the US: 'We finally got it done'

It’s not shiny, and it is sad… but it is necessary.

Congresswoman Cortez continues to surprise me, I hope to sort out our issues one day but until then she serves as a beacon for progressives in Congress.

Repeating her and others' successes is a matter of staying positive and…

… !!! WTF, ARE THOSE MITTENS!?!?!?!

Scowling Bernie Sanders happy his mittened meme may raise millions for charity

I don’t think I’ve seen anything ever be as pervasive as the mittens memes the last week… it is everywhere! Even in some places that it shouldn’t be…

I’ve seen every movie star, folks who slandered Bernie, vocal conservatives, even Amazon made one…

That Amazon one really made me and others stop for just a second in bewilderment.

Folks’ natural reaction to the meme's misuses has been borderline outrage, but I think everyone is missing a real opportunity.

Most Progressives think that because Biden is President that Bernie’s agenda was off the table forever but as he takes on the Chairmanship of the Senate Budget Committee he stands to introduce whatever he wants however he wants…

With one limitation…

Will he have your support and will you help build more of it?

I guess that’s two actually but you get the point.

Will Bernie Sanders Have the Last Laugh?

Even the conservative press is saying that Bernie could have the laugh last … btw, do not endorse the article, but it makes a broader point which is Budget Reconciliation is on the table for the Progressive Agenda.

And look at Bernie right now, he turned his mittens meme into physical dollars for groups in Vermont. That’s real money.

This is a perfect example of creating reactive change that I wrote about in previous phases.

He didn’t plan the situation, but when the moment arose he stepped up and used it to prioritize support for groups that do direct action.

That’s leadership.

He didn't plan to have a good idea, he made the most of a bad one someone else gave him. How we react can be more important than our planned action.

Bernie Sanders' mittens, memes help raise $1.8 million for charity

And I’ll tell you what…

Folks are missing a real opportunity with this meme.

Bernie is proposing a bold agenda for COVID recovery…
And were going to need all the help we can get.

Don’t loath or repel the folks who share the meme but didn’t support him in the primary… use it to build support for his agenda right now.

Plus, when it comes to liberals, they want Biden to look good after Trump, and Bernie’s proposals might be the only way to make that happen.

Bernie Sanders: Here's How To Get Student Loan Cancellation And $2,000 Stimulus Checks Without Republicans

And if you’re looking for BOLD you can count on Bernie Sanders.

Coming strong out of the gates, maybe a little too strong but we can all see Bernie rallying the troops, we should answer his call.

In an earlier Phase, I explained how we envision our future should be bold because it can be anything, and Bernie did as Bernie does, he set the tone.

Go big, or die trying.

He presented a plan that as the Senate Budget Committee Chair he was willing to use the Budget Reconciliation process to push through a radical, as in for everyone, relief agenda that was nothing short of bold.

In line with that thinking, Democrats should use Budget Reconciliation to show dominance in the Senate and the Republicans will come to the table right away or they will get nothing for four years.

And with the nature of 20 Republicans being up for reelection, the time is now to make more bold moves or Progressives will have to make them for them.

Portman to Retire in Ohio, Expanding 2022 Battle for Senate

Excuse me… ahem, 19 up for reelection … as they drop like flies.

We started at 22… so that’s quite a change already and it's still January.

We can do a lot of damage in the next 18 months.

Trust me when I say that I am excited about the opportunity.

Bernie very openly stated that history says, if Democrats don’t use this opportunity then Democrats will lose in the midterms.

Bernie Sanders warns Democrats they'll get decimated in midterms unless they deliver big

I’m going to do something I won’t do a lot in these articles…

Disagree with Senator Sanders.

Because I don’t think Bernie is entirely correct on this one, not to say that they won’t lose elections and that his statement isn’t historically accurate but never have we had a movement as we have now that has successfully unseated incumbents.

Not in 40 years, maybe more.

Democrats won’t lose in Nov…

Well, maybe Manchin if I have my way, but…

The Establishment will lose their primaries if they don’t heed the Senator’s advice.

I have said before that Neoliberal Democrats sometimes would prefer not to win, there is simply more money in it and less work but the same lobbying influence.

So, if that were true then there would be no incentive to listen to Bernie.

Democrats rule Washington. 5 reasons they may not be able to hang on.

Losing enough seats to be out of power is in their better interests because that way they can hide their fake populism behind ‘roadblocking Republicans’.

That’s why it's more important than ever that we wipe these folks out in Primaries… Then we can safely hold our majority if they refuse to take action.

And wipe out their legacy at the same time.

Everyone in Politics is replaceable, it has existed before us and it will most likely exist after us but what we do with this time is what matters.

Can you be grateful when there is much to be ungrateful about?

If we can’t be grateful for the good things that are happening then we don’t give Biden and his team any incentive to acquiesce to our demands.

If we can differentiate between rewarding them for good things and punishing them for bad things then we will get more good things.

New administrations are like dogs, you have to train them.

Just hold on to that outrage, I have a point, new admins are fresh and new…

Folks will say that they will do whatever they want which is partially true. Sure, if left to their own devices they will pee on the furniture… Just look at Trump in the Whitehouse…

Seems forever ago already.

However, teams are made of people and people have triggers, there is no avoiding it… when you reward positive behavior you will get it back.

And just to be clear, people are NOT dogs and that was not my implication, individually they deserve to be respected but when you put them in a group then ‘pack mentality’ quickly takes over, it is simply inevitable.

And that makes it predictable.

When you don’t reward the good behavior at all then it doesn’t give you any power to change the things you are unhappy with…

Because you haven’t established the initial context that creates boundaries.

And, right now, there is a lot to be unhappy about but we must create change.

We cannot surrender to the fear that it’s impossible and let the existential dread we all feel become a self-fulfilling prophecy of inaction that makes all of those ney sayers right…

Because they aren’t right, yet.

Of course, we won't get it all…

If we win even ONE fight we would have lost otherwise then it was worth it, it only takes one.

So, let’s dig in… it makes it all a lot easier to cope with if you see it all as one big pie with many pieces. Eventually, each of us can handle our own piece then the movement can successfully navigate the pie.

And who doesn’t like pie?

When I asked folks to volunteer for Biden for the general, it wasn’t because I thought he would be some bastion of guidance or otherwise lead us in a manner that didn't include multiple levels of austerity…

I did it because I knew that they would try to use austerity and there is no way to effectively deal with the two crises we are faced with, the COVID Pandemic and the economic crisis that is affecting every aspect of our lives, with anything remotely close to austerity.

Neoliberal Democrats have never had the Whitehouse with modern social media and there was a time when I believed they wanted to lose because they knew it wouldn't survive the exposure it offers either.

So, we forced them to win… either they govern effectively or this is how we get folks to vote differently in the primaries.

I wanted this to be different, I wanted Bernie, but they’ve put us in a corner.

And real leaders aren't crafted, they are cornered.

How Biden's First Executive Actions Fall Short Of Addressing Two Serious Ongoing Crises - Blavity

It is impossible to discuss anything without speaking to the threat millions of families are under as they face eviction at a time when rents should be frozen.

We do have a temporary eviction freeze but it extends to few renters and the state’s and county’s individual protections go much further but even then they have limits… and they aren’t much.

California proposal would extend eviction rule through June

This is a new plan that California is putting forward but it still gives the landlord the choice to not accept the 80% offer and does basically nothing unless Landlords want to suddenly act in the public’s best interest but anyone who has seen rental prices knows that they don’t care about the public.

Without extreme federal intervention, more evictions are coming.

I cannot express in words how humiliating and embarrassing the eviction process can be, I was personally served with an eviction five months ago in the county with the strongest restrictions and they still came with no clear warning to remove us from our home after telling us not to move.

I wanted folks to understand what it’s like so I livestreamed it, you can watch it here → https://bit.ly/3c8QVSd

No one should have to go through that, during a Pandemic or anytime.

It’s simply inhumane.

Even with all that, I’m a lucky one because I had family to go to and I don’t have any major health issues that require constant medical care… The millions of families who have lost their jobs aren’t so lucky.

Millions of people are suffering with no hope in sight.

The solutions aren’t impossible, our politicians simply lack the courage.

With Pandemic as National Emergency, Biden Could Enact Medicare for All by Executive Action-But Will He?

We are going to have to get clever.

Most are familiar with the ‘Carrot and Horse’ analogy…

By dangling the carrot in front of the horse you move the cart.

The ‘Carrot’ is not something you naturally have, it must be crafted.

But just like Dogs, and why I used this metaphor earlier, not to be offensive … administration years are longer than normal years.

So, what is just a single year to you is ten in administration years…

So, if you spend an entire year dismissing them it feels like ten to them.

Would you respond well to someone who has been rude to you for ten years?

We have to try a more nuanced approach… and quickly craft a carrot before that first year gets away from us and the clock is ticking.

Because if we don’t do something different then we will only get austerity.

Here are a few examples…

Under Biden, You Could Get a 'Stimulus Check' For Health Insurance

Now, technically this first one would hypothetically be considered a further subsidy to keep the ACA functional but this is essentially throwing money away… I call this ‘spending dollars to save pennies.’

It is an ineffective way to distribute aid.

But is still vastly better than this monstrosity.

Democrats working on legislation to provide $3,000 payments per child amid pandemic

I have a hard time even taking this seriously as it is, however, there is a foundation here for something that could be brilliant.

We have a giant baby boom coming and we need to prepare resources to ensure those children are the next generation of Americans prepared to take on the new and residual challenges we face right now.

But this is a far cry from what we need…. far, far, far cry…

Lots of crying.

But even as we cry, you can peek through the tears and can see some good things are, in fact, happening.

We have to put some of these in the “win” column… and then push for more.

• 'There is so much to do': Biden launches ambitious agenda for first 100 days
• Biden signs first executive actions as president

• Biden unveils proposal to reopen the economy, slams Trump's 'one-point plan'
• Joe Biden Is Aiming To End The Federal Use Of Private Prisons
• Biden reverses Trump's ban on transgender people in US military

Now all of this seems great but the reality is that none of this is really progress except the pipelines and the prison ban which has so many caveats, technically its a good thing but it certainly doesn't do what is being advertised, in most cases, this is simply resetting but not even to zero.

This chart on the left perfectly describes what I’m attempting to say, though compared to Trump it seems better, we’re not even back to the levels before Obama left office.

Folks are going to say all kinds of absurd things about ‘patience’ and ‘100 days’ to slow progress but we just watched a President force through a hateful agenda using any means necessary.

When they were pushed back by the courts it was often because of their infringement on human rights not whether the method of their passing was legal, though that did happen as well…

Trump really was a mess.

But we can both say that Trump was bad and that Biden is also trying to use Austerity with half measures to protect investments.

We can say all of that and still say that this is a good thing too…

Biden directs Treasury, IRS to find 8M who haven't claimed stimulus

Yes, technically, it is still a half measure as well but this is an example of working within the constraints of the Executive Order.

We’re going to need to see a lot more of these.

If Biden wants to be remembered as a populist then he’s going to have to do a lot more to prove that he’s here to protect people and not corporations that have been incorrectly classified as people.

Come talk to me when a corporation serves a jail sentence.

And though he did sign a few more executive orders the problems start to overwhelm them, even for someone who’s advocating positivity.

Biden Pledged To Sign Executive Order About Separated Migrant Children On Day One. He Still Hasn't.

Though, technically, since we have seen some traction in that direction but not an answer to the ‘kids in cages’ problem, but this will at least stop future kids being taken in future situations. That’s something worth rewarding.

DOJ Rescinds 'Zero Tolerance' Immigration Rule Used For Family Separation

But we have to immediately move on to the next step in that process.

Like many of the solutions so far, this will stop future bleeding but still does nothing yet for the wound that’s still bleeding, all over the border.

It’s so important to understand where each of these issues stands because if you don’t speak from a constantly evolving position then you are not going to convince the folks that they need to take your side and the fight.

You simply will not activate them.

Activists are the only ones that can point to the bleeding.

Either the politicians respond or we replace them with someone who will.

But they simply won’t respond to us if we don’t point both the good and the bad.

Because we’re already seeing an alarming pattern beginning to emerge.

Biden promised to forgive student debt, but don't expect relief anytime soon

It’s not just disappointment surrounding promises that were made the last few months, which stretch from student debt to the full $2000 relief check.

There is a pro-war, pro-occupation agenda coming to fruition and we have to push as hard as possible to make known their proposed course before we take it, if we even can.

In a way, we’re lucky that the 9/11 for Biden’s presidency (fingers crossed) will be the rioting at the capital and thought it will trigger a fight over public surveillance.. which btw clearly the patriot act doesn't work, we should get rid of that … it at least means we are not on a fast track to war in other countries.

I assure you that the moment there is an opportunity they will find any excuse to drop bombs in some desert where innocent civilians will get killed.

That same blind attack is hurting folks here at home.

Insulin should be free.

Trump is so bad that they forgot he did at least one good thing.

And this melting shitberg flows right into the COVID plan.

As excited as I am to have a president that has a plan that actually includes testing… it’s not really appropriate for 2021.

You can read the entire plan here → https://bit.ly/3qSnuYC

I desperately wanted Trump to adopt something just like this last year, but now after all this time it hasn’t improved or changed as the damage the virus is doing has only increased.

It’s Trump’s plan with masks and testing… It’s still so basic that it's really not that different and I find that extremely discomforting.

Speaking of not that different…

Biden's Plans To Reopen Schools In His First 100 Days

I cannot stress enough how dangerous reopening schools early is.

This is simply about protecting investment and has zero to do with kids.

If the kids are at home then so are parents, less gas is being used, less space is being rented, more UI benefits paid out, and fewer returns on investments.

The most shocking thing is that this is seen as a problem that needs fixing by our politicians when we need to be paying folks to stay home.

Any plan that focuses on reopening physical school before the Pandemic is under control WILL KILL FOLKS. There are no if’s about it.

Largest COVID-19 contact tracing study to date finds children key to spread, evidence of superspreaders

The only acceptable plan is to start with…

• Invest into making online learning more accessible.
• Remove federal testing.
• Help get folks online that can’t.
• Make broadband a utility, wireless expansion.
• Hire mental health workers for student depression.
• Collaborate with teachers on new ways to teach digitally.
• Only restart physical school when Teachers Unions say it is safe.
• Reimagine our schooling for the next century, it could use an update.

Articles like these are real, but putting whole families at risk is unacceptable.

Surge of Student Suicides Pushes Las Vegas Schools to Reopen

There should be a lot of very serious talk about organizing a general strike around teachers if they are forced to go back to in-person teaching in those 100 days if the pandemic is not under control… I don’t see how it could be.

Our future depends on US thinking outside the box.

When dealing with situations like shutdowns on this scale, there is a real opportunity to reshape our future and make the necessary changes that would put America back into a competitive spot in world markets.

At the moment our inability to create more scientists, doctors, and other technical science positions is the difference between simply recovering and prospering, this is not a problem that can be solved quickly.

We need to get real smart, real fast because things look like they could be getting far worse before they get better.

It’s not that we just can’t stop the Pandemic, it's actually picking up speed.

None of these article’s headlines require my commentary.

• U.K. COVID variant appears to be more deadly than original, prime minister says
• Denmark is sequencing all coronavirus samples and has an alarming view of the U.K. variant
• Here's How Fast the U.K. COVID-19 Variant is Spreading in the U.S.
• U.S. eyeing UK COVID-19 variant but S.Africa one more concerning -NIH's Collins

And this is why Biden said this…

Biden says nothing can change the trajectory of the Covid pandemic over the next several months

But again, for all his failures… it is still a vast improvement over the batshit nutterino we got from the Republicans. We can both be unhappy with Biden for some things, happy about others, and still think we are better off with the Republicans out of power…. because it’s true.

You have to take your wins where you can if nothing else for your mental sanity and if you ever doubt it, just remember that this article exists.

Birx: Someone was delivering a 'parallel set of data' on coronavirus to Trump

The more you think about that the angrier it will make you.

How many people died because of that fake data?

And we still have plenty of Republican politicians who are in power that propose equally disjointed and ineffective plans as Trump.

GOP lawmaker says he'd OK $1,400 stimulus checks for people who receive COVID-19 vaccine

There simply is not enough vaccine for this to work and even if there were it would be prohibitive on multiple levels. Republicans are particularly out of touch in regards to any sense of humanity, empathy, or basic arithmetic.

Primaries are going to happen fast and some are already happening.

Local races, city council and such, are great warm-ups for races that run in the next few years… Remember a big part of this isn’t just getting folks into office, but keeping them there too. So, running for higher office can kick you out of your current seat if the elections overlap and you lose.

But if you are in a local race and want to go for a Federal or State seat, your risk is low as long as your districts overlap, everything can be used to build up your presence in your district.

It’s so important right now that we find the nuance to both accept our wins and take our losses … in many situations, there can be no solution for many issues as folks are hard to replace or move to new positions, but in politics, that’s not true.

This is why we have primaries and we have a full year and a half to educate the public about solutions available to them including replacing these MFers with an activist presence who will work with the community to negotiate solutions…. because never was there a time where we need it more.

Now let’s not act like we don’t at least have some politicians who want to look like they are helping… Not her in the picture, the other ones.

Nancy Pelosi says House Democrats will be 'completely ready' to pass Biden's stimulus package during the first week of February

‘Look like they are helping’? Isn’t that not what we want…?

That’s true but we can’t control almost anything after it’s done but before it is finished there is unlimited possibilities as to what a policy can be.

The truth is that the public at large is to blame for not achieving this sooner.

This is why we need to come together more than ever to create momentum.

Yes, there are a million distractions and we don’t educate folks on the process well enough anymore in school…

However….

The outcome is no different… and the solution hasn’t changed.

The reality of the process is far too complicated for the average person to follow and consequently, only lobbyists massage the process from start to finish because they are paid to follow through with every step.

In order to achieve the gains we seek, the general public has to understand this process, as well as the lobbyists, do because right now, no one can lobby.

We have a moment to play a game of catch up and get the public involved in the day to day minutia that establishes if we all survive or not.

Luckily where we start is very straightforward.

The House should be focused on the next Relief bill…

While the Senate should be focused on the Impeachment Trial…

US House delivers article of impeachment against Donald Trump to Senate

Expect it to drag out longer than the last time.

Republicans are especially good at dragging their feet.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell proposes delay of Trump impeachment trial

I cannot express in words what a pain McConnell is and will be through this, I suggest maintaining pressure on him and Manchin the entire time and it will make everything easier down the road and that means saving lives.

John Roberts refused to preside over Trump's second impeachment trial: Schumer

Normally the Chief Justice oversees the trial but he wants nothing to do with it, and I’m unsure how to interpret that other than the death threats and attacks other judges faced last year were really intense.

So, instead of the president pro tempore of the United States Senate which is usually the longest-serving member of the majority party, Patrick Leahy from Vermont, will oversee the trial.

Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy to preside over Trump's second impeachment trial

What could go wrong?

Sen. Patrick Leahy Taken to Hospital for Evaluation

So, that’s the FIRST DAY.

And the actual trial won’t start until February 9th…

I still hope Rudy will give us all the joy of being part of the defense…

But until then we get this clown show to deal with.

Susan Collins and Tim Kaine are working to convince colleagues to censure Trump instead of ban from office: report

It seems like their goal is a potentially unenforceable censure that MIGHT prevent him front holding office.

This seems like a way to just not use our time to build power and convict Trump… Also, two Senators high on our list to replace.

Kaine, Collins' censure resolution seeks to bar Trump from holding office again

But what I do know is that Republicans have so little leverage that they have restored to wild ideas like these… they keep this up and they are going to get primaried by their own side. Which means someone even crazier.

Senate Republican threatens impeachments of past Democratic presidents

This is the equivalent of digging up a body to convict it of a crime…

Actually, let’s not give them any ideas.

What we do have though is a little bit of a ‘turtle and the hair’ moment.

Senior Republicans quietly lobbying for Trump's conviction in impeachment trial, reports say

Senate Repubs would be crazy not to convict Trump.

If he starts a new party then he risks splitting the Republican vote… which sounds great to me but I’d rather convict Trump.

The Republicans are already falling apart and if we can make gains in the ’22 elections with the 20… er, 19 Republicans up for reelection in the Senate then it is all but assured that we can both beat the Republicans in ‘22 AND convict Trump.

Ensuring he can’t run again is the only way they can stop him from starting his own party and the only way to do that is to convict him for his crimes.

The obscure constitutional provision hanging over Trump's post-presidency

I’m confident we can convict him simply because of this…

The Trump Administration Will Not Have a Signature China Collection Featured in the White House

This may seem petty or insignificant but this is an important part of the Presidency from a historical perspective. He probably heard the word “China” and panicked until the project was shut down, but believe it or not, this has historical significance… If he had done this and Melania had written her own thank you letters then conviction might be a different story.

It’s amazing how the littlest things are actually the tipping point with major issues, countries have fallen for less.

But this behavior speaks to an overall pattern of decision making that once out of power, he won’t have enough friends for folks to have compassion or sympathy for him…

And why should they?

Like usual, Rand Paul wanted to take that concept and put it to a test.

Most Senate Republicans join Rand Paul effort to dismiss Trump's 2nd impeachment trial

5 Republicans joined Democrats to kill Sen. Rand Paul’s push for dismissal.

• Susan Collins • Lisa Murkowski • Mitt Romney • Ben Sasse • Pat Toomey

It’s not 17, but it’s a start.

The press was trying to spin it as having less support than it does in an effort to kill public support. They want more Trump, because its good press dollars.

This was a preliminary vote and Dems didn't need Republicans at all, so though they are trying to spin as bad for a conviction, I see it the other way.

It’s just the start.

Holding them accountable doesn't stop there…

Pelosi weighs charges that GOP members gave 'aid and comfort' to rioters

Even though the House is passing the orange football to the Senate they are still weighing how to handle those that aided the rioters.

This is really not something to go to sleep on, if we forget about this these traitors will get off with no punishment.

When old folks run our government they needed to have daily reminders set to take their pills, why would prosecuting seditioners be any different?

Keep pushing on this and while you do you can still support both Cori Bush’s Bill to investigate and hold them accountable as well as Jamal Bowan’s COUP act to investigate capital police for their various issues… various is being kind.

Jamal Bowan’s Investigation of Capital Police -> https://bit.ly/39w0Cr7
Cori Bush’s Bill to potentially remove members-> https://bit.ly/3oJGOXu

We should both be pushing to hold these clowns accountable but we should also be pushing back on increased security measures at the capital, once the risk has returned to normal, that might prevent protesting.

We already have the resources but they simply were not used effectively, or at all.

We cannot let the same establishment that introduced the failed Patriot act to continue down that ineffective and overly restrictive path.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib on why she's rallying progressives to fight back against calls for sweeping new government surveillance powers after the Capitol attack

I just want to stop everything and take a second to talk about Rashida.

I've been friends with her for three years on Facebook, since right before she was elected… and that’s not a brag, I have a point… I mean IT IS a brag but that’s not the point… She not only has a really cute puppy… but…

We see AOC and now Cori gets tons of fan fair… and they deserve it… I’ve been friends with them on FB that long too #MoreBrags, the point is that for all the fanfare the other fantastic Congresswoman gets, Rashida, deserves just as much and sometimes even more.

We talk a lot about who to run for POTUS in the next round and again AOC’s name comes up, but as far as I can tell she is in line to be Speaker if we continue to replace incumbents with activist progressives. So, her moving around doesn’t make any sense nor does going for the Senate seat.

But Rashida is high on my list, if not the entire list, of folks that we should be taking a serious consideration over running for POTUS one day.

“Impeach the Motherfucker” is easily the boldest first move for anyone, let alone a member of congress. She understands people, how to connect, how to canvas, and I am constantly humbled by her activism and determination.

Don’t tell her I said this, but I made significant adjustments to my canvassing strategies after watching her teams win in ’18.

Really amazing stuff.

And we're going to need ‘more amazing’ to deal with this horseshit.

Democrats may have regained the Senate, but McConnell is blocking them from taking up Biden's agenda

Now, this all brings us back to talk about the filibuster…which does not exist in the constitution and is considered a racist tool by many folks who have taken the time to study how it has been used.

• The next big climate PR campaign: abolish the filibuster
• The Senate Filibuster Is Another Monument to White Supremacy

If nothing else it can be used to stall pretty much anything.

Killing the filibuster is about whether we think we can gain ten more seats, use budget reconciliation, and never lose control of the Senate again.

So, can we win ten seats in ‘22? … Maybe… and its a BIG maybe.

If Trump starts a new party and rips the Republicans in half? …

Probably.

We can still use Budget Reconciliation AND WE SHOULD but it still has limitations… We can test those but that’s risky business…

Even removing the filibuster is a risky move because we rely on it when we are in the minority… so it asks the real question…

Can Progressive dig in, make this happen, ignite nonvoters, and wipe out Republicans…? Move forward the Progressive Agenda as the dominant decision-making process for policy?

Because we have a REAL opportunity right now that we may not see again in our lifetimes.

But it only works if we can make electing activists part of the modern-day zeitgeist…. We do need more AOCs and Rashida's and Coris…

But they don’t look like them, they look like you.

And if we don’t step up then we have to deal with this.

• McConnell Threatens Senate Agreement Over Filibuster
• War Over Filibuster, a Famed Stalling Tactic, Stops the Senate From the Start
• Payback time: Schumer smacks down McConnell's ultimatum and makes it clear who's in charge

While it’s nice that Schumer is showing some backbone finally, just like Bernie, he also, believe it or not, get’s his power from the people.

And, no, this is not some long game to shill for Schumer.

The thing about taking corporate money is that you can get elected but it doesn't come with the power to change things.

That’s why so many politicians are jealous of Bernie, it's not the money or the policy or the memes…

Okay, maybe the memes.

It’s that he has you.

His power comes from folks like you stepping up and being leaders, starting initiatives, taking action, running for office.

And if everyone does that, then we can safely kill the filibuster.

If everyone wants to be lazy assholes and do nothing then we have to keep this clearly racist institution in place…

So, what’s it going to be?

We can’t say that you want to fight white supremacy and then be offered to remove one of the biggest racist obstacles that is slowing progress?

Folks CANNOT complain that progress is impossible if they are going to leave us out in the cold when opportunities for reactive change present themselves.

That’s the whole point of all of this, right?

That’s what we can learn from the Bernie meme or, at least, what Bernie did.

Having a positive attitude allows you to be advantageous when the opportunity presents itself…

The third jar, … vial… whatever it is, perfectly represents the movement as it stands.

It can neither decide if it wants to do something positive or negative because it is too busy complaining about the contents of the glass… that’s what it is.

But the reality of the POTUS cycle just ending and Congress being locked in means…

It is what is, and as much as we can talk about changing it … if we want to create change, we have to be clever and figure out how to make it all work as it is while we move to change it.

Because we have a big problem to manage and it’s about relief.

Georgia voters feel 'betrayed' over $2,000 relief checks

Yikes.

Okay, the check was always supposed to be $1400, but they didn’t manage their messaging properly and are therefore responsible for the full number.

This whole situation is absolutely bonkers.

Not adding the $600 to the $1400 to make it a full $2000 is the difference between Democrats risking the House in 22 and certainly getting pummeled in primaries by progressives… It’ll probably happen either way.

However, if we don’t get folks the full 2k and the $600 Enhanced UI as well as legislation to force states to actually hand out the money, then we are risking setting back our recovery, not just months but years… possibly even a decade.

Not to mention, only Bernie is talking about the tax payment UI recipients are facing… Just when we need our government's help the most they are going to ask for that money back.

That’s before we talk about the outrage of PUA recipients being forced to repay UI benefits when they didn’t understand how to validate their income. This is just more argument for a permanent UBI.

THIS IS ALL JUST AUSTERITY.

COVID might be killing us now but Austerity will be to blame when it kills our future, we know the solution but we lack politicians with the courage, willpower, and empathy to get it done.

The Democrats must pass a full $2000 relief bill as fast as possible.

And it needs to happen in the House.

Now here is your strategic issue in all this…

The solution is actually simple but has a lot of moving parts.

The bill gets written in the Senate as Biden intends… if we can get the full $2000 and the $600 enhanced UI added in the House then this is a lot easier.

Biden wants to get bipartisan support on the relief bill, which is unlikely, but he wants to try…

Fine.

We have to get these elements added in the House or else if the Senate gets the House bill and makes the changes then it has to go back to the House for approval for the changes, then they can make whatever changes then it goes back to the Senate… then assuming it passes, it goes to POTUS.

It’s a lot easier if we get them added in the House.

The House adds it, Senate passes it, Biden signs it.

Trying to pass a bill back and forth through the Senate while impeachment is happening would be a mistake… We could do it, but not well.

Biden says he is open to negotiating the proposed $1,400 COVID stimulus checks

The good news is that Biden says he’s open to negotiations on the checks…

But many fear a statement like this from Biden means that he’s going to make it smaller instead of larger and I think that concern is fair.

They mismanaged their messaging during the Georgia runoff and are accountable to the larger amount, if they stick with the $1400 or go lower then no amount of positivity will be able to protect his legacy.

Or the Democrats who let him do it.

And now is not the time to let things all apart, we have so much to do.

Never has the Progressive Agenda been so obtainable in that our government supports it as a philosophy to approach policy.

It starts with these battles right in front of US.

Democrats introduce bill to raise minimum wage to $15 by 2025

As far as I understand it there are two of these… one is from Biden and it is to raise the minimum wage for federal workers by 2025 and the second, is from Congress and is to establish a Federal $15 minimum wage.

This is a good time to raise the minimum wage.

Corporations are seeing unprecedented profits and since stocks have not been affected by the pandemic, it is safe to argue that we can safely increase wages.

With the nature of PPP loans and how small businesses are being propped up by the Fed, it would simply be a matter of using that process to subsidize the additional wages to establish the increase with maximum haste and increase wages right now.

The pieces are all there to make it happen, maybe even with budget reconciliation because it's an adaptation of an existing program.

Waiting until 2025 does nothing to help us right now…

It is simply not a solution for an Emergency of this scale.

Now we can both say that and recognize it will help folks in the future, by simply prioritizing that we are finally moving the pendulum toward the Progressive Agenda we can maintain a positive outlook.

And now we need to push harder.

Remember, the Progressive Agenda is an idea, not an actual thing.

So, use that freedom to help folks. It is an approach that includes stopping suffering and fostering individual and group growth.

And there is a lot of suffering going on.

Over 3 dozen Democrats lawmakers urge Biden to commute the sentences of all remaining federal death row inmates

Not only is it cruel, but the death penalty is also an ineffective way to distribute punishment. This is not a method that allows those that are incarcerated to do anything to resolve or protect anything we cherish in our society.

Yes, folks should pay for what they have done, but we are better off using them as a deterrent to stop future murders than by trying to make the problem disappear. It also disproportionately affects people of color.

So, it’s a class issue, as well.

I won’t dive too deep into this but there are better ways to achieve justice.

Bowser renews call for vote on DC statehood under Biden

DC is not the only territory that should achieve statehood.

Puerto Rico is right up there, they recently voted to become a state, again.

Puerto Rico officials hopeful of progress on statehood

There are four other territories and then we are capped out…

That means 56 is our limit, so, why not have 52?

And then there’s this… student loans… are they really forever?

Student loan forgiveness may come with a tax bomb. How lawmakers might fix it

The vast majority of the money being loaned is from federally backed loans.

My understanding is that most of this can be done by Executive Order.

The corps are just middlemen in the same way insurance is in the way of medical care. All we're really talking about is cutting out ‘middle man profit.’

It’s the same thing across the board for almost all progressive policy.

Also, when we make the point that way it simplifies very complex activism into a few simple ideas that folks will get, and that is after all the biggest requirement to all of this, folks have to understand it on a massive scale.

It’s our job as leaders to organize our communication and figure out how to explain it to folks in the simples format possible.

It helps when you have Killer Mike as the face of your project.

Ben Cohen and his delicious ice cream are helping launch a campaign to end qualified immunity which is desperately needed. We won’t get changes from police until they are forced to carry liability insurance and can be held accountable for the lives that are lost while they are on the job…

Which is just a polite way to say “stop murdering people.”

Democrat calls on Biden to fire Trump's Postal Service board, save the institution

Postal Service is still a mess… not even sure where to start with that one.

That’s on my list of just general outrage and one of the few times I will just yell “fix it” at. It seems simple but as the Post Office doesn’t have elections and THERE IS NO REASON WE SHOULD EVER HAVE THIS ISSUE…

I’m not familiar with the process to unfcuk the post office.

But I'm pretty sure that we need to prosecute Louis DeJoy for just being generally terrible and, essentially, being scrooge by ruining so many folks’ holidays.

Not the biggest comparative concern to folk starving in Yemen, but still, this guy broke the law. Don’t worry we will get to Yemen.

If you are in any of those states and aren’t part of an anti ‘right to work’ organization then you are missing an opportunity to do real good.

It’s a simple idea, it empowers unions and workers… it’s an all-around win.

If you say you support socialism and bringing up the working class then this seems like a no-brainer, get out there and start pushing.

Home - IBM Policy

This article from IBM is here because it really speaks to the idea that groups are proposing a ton of ideas and though we might normally throw a corporation under the bus even they are trying to influence policy differently.

Also, I wanted to post something to prove I do not always know everything, the policy proposed in that article is actually over my head…

But the next thing is something I know a lot about.

Lots of folks are talking about how the left should align with the Right.

And if I have learned one thing from politics, it’s this…

If you are standing on the side with the Nazis, then you are on the wrong side.

These folks are bonkers and shouldn't be taken seriously.

Republicans Are Mad Joe Biden Isn't Uniting The Nation Around The GOP Agenda

And I cannot, in words, establish how batshit the idea is.

The answer is… no… hard no. NO.

Moving on and wrapping this up.

And it's a rough transition from Nazis to the DNC.

DNC elected a new board…Well, ‘elected’ is a kind word.

Though there was technically an election, it was basically an appointment…

They changed the rules to force it through…

Guess they heard you when folks said we should ‘force the vote.’

And it already has some serious baggage.

The DNC's New Finance Chair Embodies Everything the Left Hates About the Democratic Establishment

My biggest issue and we did recently elect some Progressives to the DNC, is that there is zero grassroots representation on that list, and, of course, folk are going to say that they are ALL Grassroot organizer's ‘at heart.’

But that doesn’t amount to what we need at all.

I don’t see how these folks can BOTH do their job of daily governing AND their job of daily making sure the party runs.

This seems like the best way to lose as many seats as possible in ‘22.

That’s the usual DNC leadership, in a nutshell, all wannabe prestige but little substance. But don’t think it can’t change… it can and it will.

Take Bernie’s advice in all this.

Budget Chair Sanders Dares GOP to Criticize Him for Using Reconciliation to 'Protect Ordinary People, Not Just the Rich'

Dare them to criticize you for wanting to get real relief, real representation, and a real DNC that represents the people, not corporate donors.

I’ll go into great detail about how to take over the DNC in future articles but this one has gone on long enough.

The real focus though is it’s possible but not if we go it alone.

And we’re going to have to work together because we have decisions like this being made by politicians who are afraid of being recalled.

In huge step, California governor lifts stay-at-home orders across the state

Right now this is based on numbers going down which they are but that’s happening because money for federal testing dried up and switched to vaccine rollout… Newsom is also facing a recall that has pulled a million signatures or so they claim.

He has basically given up trying to control the outbreaks and with ICUs at 0% the time is now to stay home, wear a mask, and push for survival checks.

AND STOP THE FAMINE IN YEMEN!

I’ll have more on this, but it needs an immediate shift to get food aid to starving refugees. I don’t understand the situation as well as I should but it seems simple enough…

Folks are suffering and we have to find a way to end their suffering without bombs.

Hopefully, we can.

Because our future deserves it and so does theirs.

But it can only happen if you step up…

And be the leader that you’ve been waiting for.

You can follow Don on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

Phase 1 & 2 → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9
Phase 3 → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD
Phase 3.5 → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR
Phase 4 → https://bit.ly/38NStz1
Phase 4.1 → https://bit.ly/38TxYAO

It’s the name of the strategy to recover from COVID

Greetings and Welcome.

This is Phase 4.1 of the “Future Worth Fighting For” strategy.

It was developed to be the Grassroots ‘inside-outside’ strategy that has Bernie and the Squad as the ‘Inside’ and we the ‘grassroots’ are on the outside.

We build power for them to legislate our demands into law by uniting our communities in support of actions that improve the quality of life of those that need it most…

It’s all about something I call the ‘Direct-Action Triangle.’

Direct action is a process that involves organizing within a network of…
Community
Activism
& Government

The Community works together to support each other and itself.
The Activists step up to create answers and make demands for the community.
And Politicians legislate those demands into laws.

This creates your ‘Direct Action Network’ of folks who work toward like-minded goals…

When you break up that power you essentially gerrymander yourself.
And we can’t have that.

If you have been here since Phase 3 then you are already aware of the part of the strategy known as “GET REAL EPIC”… based around C19 recovery.

For the new folks, it means…

General
Emergency
Tactics

“GET” is a series of measures and alterations to the Progressive Agenda to adapt to the immediate needs the COVID crisis has created.

Retroactive
Emergency
Assitance
Legislation

“REAL” is a place to stick every piece of retroactive legislation, from the $2k a month to the start of the pandemic, assisting with burials, anything …

The bill co-sponsored by Markey, Sanders, and Vice President-Elect Harris for $2k a month retroactively is the ‘nexus point’ between Relief and Stimulus.

Without it, we will never achieve consumer confidence and the longer they wait to initiate it, the longer our recovery takes, and the greater risk to America of continuing to damage its place on the world stage.

We should also be fighting for retroactive enhanced UI, as well, for the missing months since it ran out.

But I digress…

Emergency
Pandemic
Insurance
Care

“EPIC” is a plan to pass “emergency expansion of Medicare” and secure a temporary “single-payer option”. It will quickly gain popularity… likely resulting in permanent adoption. M4A is only a simple step away.

Because American needs to GET REAL EPIC to stop the damage & recover from the Pandemic… I know it's a bit of a dad joke but it’s memorable.

Bernie has already picked it up… Biden will ultimately choose the name.

Except for the word “insurance”, it means exactly what it says.

But until Biden confirms a name, IF we get there, then there is nothing to fight over. So, let’s not get hung up on that just yet…

In Phase 3, I explain in great detail how it would work so that it would have no connection to the Insurance market here → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD

But we're not here to talk about our past…

We’re here to talk about our future.

Phase 4 has been about incorporating the impeachment process into our strategy to get greater relief for America, convict Donald Trump, put the US on a path toward recovery, and initiate the Progressive Agenda.

But after talking to Progressives on Twitter for the last few weeks, I can’t help but notice that as much as Neoliberals are unironically trying to use Austerity to resolve the crisis and risk prolonging it… I can’t help but notice that Progressives are not taking the Pandemic seriously either.

New coronavirus variants could cause more reinfections, require updated vaccines

The effect it is having on our communities is devastating and clearly, even those we depend on to pull us out of this are still offering piecemeal plans which won’t solve but a few problems facing most Americans.

Some of these ‘solutions’ actually risk creating new problems.

We are now on the edge of an entirely different health crisis as bodies begin to pile up beyond what we can legally cremate… Folks need to understand the scoop of this crisis. It’s LA right now, but soon it will be the entire country.

In Los Angeles, ambulances circle for hours and ICUs are full - STAT

We have to be willing to adjust our strategy to resolve the Pandemic first and foremost… that means when politicians like Bernie and Nina start talking about “Emergency Single Payer” and possibly using the word ‘insurance’ to make it sound like a Biden Proposal… this is what it takes to save lives.

The moment is already happening and if YOU ALL show your support for the program then we will get it done. Even if we can get the vote down to 50 votes through reconciliation we still have several Neoliberals to sneak this past.

And the simple fact is that a temporary program will be started with a broader stroke than a permanent one which will most likely be nitpicked to death.

But even with the Neoliberals, there are two ‘relief’ proposals in motion for different purposes… Yes, neither goes far enough, but this is just the 1st negotiation & don’t worry, this isn’t some ‘love letter’ to the establishment.

No matter what happens, the proposed UI extension only goes until Sept… and the Pandemic shows no signs of abatement. We will be here again, there will be more bills, and this relief process is only getting started.

At least now, we have a more specific timeline… and we need to fill in the space in-between these events with more legislation.

Be prepared to rinse and repeat to the next step.

Before we start weighing the Pros and Cons of Biden’s Proposal while discussing where we apply pressure, the COVID relief bills are a little different than normal legislation.

They are ‘omnibus’ style bills, so they can have tons of stuff in them.

They can also use Budget Reconciliation to get down to 50 votes in the Senate, which Bernie just sent out an email saying he is willing to do,

and this…

In addition to that, even though Biden has made his proposal, it still has to go through the House and Senate where it will see changes… whether it is an improvement or it makes it worse is entirely up to what we do right now.

We can get the full $2k and $600 UI … IF we don’t immediately surrender.

But most importantly… these bills WILL PASS.

So, this is the time to reach for the sky… we will land on the moon.

President-elect Joe Biden unveils $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan; includes $1,400 stimulus checks and $15 minimum wage

Let start at the important place…

Biden’s 1st pass at his relief bill is hot garbage.

Though there are some good things about it.

Let’s start at the top…

Nothing can happen until Biden takes office so anyone telling you they aren't doing enough already is trying to trick you, it is functionally impossible to have done anything yet…

But that also means none of this is set in stone either.

Never forget, that all rules are made up… just figure out how to change it.

So, when discussing if we can ‘push Biden left’ we have to discuss what he plans to do on his first day in office…

Sure there is a ton of hyperbole but let’s look at what he’s saying.

Executive Orders Biden will sign on his first day in office…

•Rejoin the Paris climate accord
•End the travel ban on Muslim countries
•Halt evictions and student loan payments during the COVID pandemic
•Issue a mask mandate on all federal property

He also has ‘indicated’ that he will close down the Keystone XL pipeline, which was honestly already heading that direction but he could have easily breathed new life into the project if that was what he wanted…

Biden indicates plans to cancel Keystone XL pipeline permit on first day in office, sources confirm | CBC News

This has also been promised since actually releasing this article originally…

Biden readies sweeping rollback of Trump-era abortion crackdown

In addition to that, there is talk of him alleviating the stress and burden of millions of Undocumented folks who should have the same rights as any other citizen. They often pay more taxes and see fewer social services for their larger contribution.

When we talk about ‘abolish ICE’ as a concept… that was because under Trump ICE was misused in an abusive and sadistic manner. ICE needed to be ‘abolished’ because the way it was used was inhumane.

You may have heard some frustration over AOC removing it from her website… Well, even though the problem is not necessarily solved, we have moved in a direction where the resources can be redistributed and be managed in a way that prevents the agency from operating in that manner.

Though I am not in direct personal communication with AOC, I can tell you precisely what her intention was because I’m the person who told her to pick up ICE as an issue… and it was because of the above-mentioned reasons.

The solution starts with stopping deportations and fixing our broken immigration process, not policy points on websites.

I did the process with my wife… Do you think the relief bill is hot garbage?

… hah.

Biden is proposing a quick solution, right in vein with an Emergency Medicare Access Program, then we can sort out the new process later but we can end the human suffering immediately.

So, removing it from your Platform seems almost necessary.

Biden aims to legalize millions of immigrants as a priority

**UPDATE**
Biden has since released more of this plan…

Biden to propose 8-year citizenship path for immigrants

It isn’t perfect, but it does fix a lot of things right away.

Yes, we should be talking about the kids in cages immediately.
Yes, we cannot go to sleep on handling ICE as a program.
Yes, Obama deported a ton of folks…

But right now… and I know folks don’t want to say it,

THIS IS Biden moving left.

Say what you want about the party, but Biden is going to be President.

And we might as well do everything we can to make the most of the situation. If we take our hands off the wheel on this one then he will get the lobbyists back in his ear and before you know it these promises disappear.

We have to maintain accountability so this isn’t just lip service.

We have to make sure that he actually does the things he promises.

Which to be honest we're already having trust issues…

The $2000 check situation is such a debacle.

Before I even start on the broken promises and tricky language that moved us to a $1400 relief payment instead of the full $2000, I can’t help but point out that folks should be a lot madder about this…

We need to both be very upset about this and stay within the realm of tangible goals still… While there is a lot of traction on many things including raising the minimum wage to $15… even though it needs to go higher in many places… There is still a lot of room to be upset about this.

Because this is a Relief package for the damage the Virus has done…

Though it feels more like it's actually to remedy the damage the inaction of our government has created, technically Biden isn’t actually offering us anything.

He’s just finishing off Trump’s last relief bill, this is not a unique process.

The only unique relief Biden is offering is a $100 increase in enhanced UI.

And still below the $600 that was moderately successful last time.

Biden plan would up extra unemployment benefit to $400

Normally I’m the one telling folks that they are ‘overreacting’…

But in this case, it's the opposite.

Folks are mad about the $600 but really he’s offering you nothing.

He’s already seeing pushback from Senators who want to see reelection.

'We're going to pull out all the stops:' A top Senate Democrat says he'll fight to include a $600 federal unemployment benefit in Biden's stimulus plan

So, just to be clear, Biden is not giving you any new relief.

He is following through with Trump’s relief when he asked for the full $2k.

There is still time to change this IF we act now.

There is no question that Biden’s plan is out of touch.

Though technically it is an improvement, that doesn’t mean that he deserves a pat on the back… it means the activists, who work so hard and keep pushing despite the suffering that so many are experiencing right now, deserve one.

Probably several.

Americans need direct assistance, where our currency is distributed directly to the people in a bottom-up method. We can’t rely on Tax Credits at the end of the year to pay for ‘childcare’… we need to pay folks to stay home right now!

Biden's new stimulus plan features family benefits that include an annual credit of up to $3,600

Trickle-down economics in any format does not meet the needs of the EMERGENCY CRISIS that is rocking our nation.

This is not some ploy to trick America into doing something that will hurt them, the Progressive Agenda is quite literally the only thing that’s going to save lives, get America back on its feet again, and rebuild our place on the world stage.

Because the Progressive Agenda is not an actual thing… it is a fluid concept of awareness in our policy that halts human suffering and fosters growth.

We create Proactive change when we can…

And Reactive change when we can’t.

Here’s Bernie’s statement on Biden’s Bill…

Some might read this and say “Bernie is selling us out!!”

But, Bernie is ‘playing ball’… This allows him to create ‘Reactive Change.’

See, when they put Joe in the basement for all that time they created a vacuum around him… and since the consultants are trying to play puppet master, this left space for the Senate Budget Committee Chairman to slide into that empty space with an incoming President who really likes people.

Bernie is playing a hand that he has waited a long time to play.
I say we trust that he knows what he’s doing.
And then there is this…

So, in times like these, I have to point US back to Phase 1 & 2

It’s a cycle that you can repeat over and over …

The game is always about making contact with Representatives, even during COVID, even right after an attempted insurrection… we just need to tread lightly as we find new ways to protest and make our voices heard.

If you want more rebellious tips then you can look to Vermin Supreme for guidance → https://bit.ly/3o2Hruh … while you might disagree with his wardrobe choices, Vermin is a brilliant protester and de-escalator.

If you look at this situation and are unhappy with it then there is a narrow window for you to act and still change it. Even if you decide you want to be part of it later then your help will be greatly appreciated.

But it comes down to being aware of which Senators are going to be in opposition and preparing protests for actions to gain public attention, specifically from their voters.

Just because you are out of state doesn’t mean you can’t help.

Digital organizing is all about simply telling folks what is possible.

I suggest switching endgame protesting from civil disobedience, which could easily be manipulated into a right-wing attack and put the protest process at risk… to picket line style events because a National Strike is finally viable.

So, yes… it really feels like Biden, and everyone else, lied about the $2000 but it’s not official yet and while it goes through the Senate it can be improved.

The way to look at it is like this, the Economy is basically collapsing unless it is artificially propped up. The working class has a lot of power to make Biden’s plan for recovery work or not. It won’t change too much in the lives of folks on the ground but a sustained National Strike would make Stocks dive.

And that is our short term, immediate leverage.

This will only work for the next two years.

Either Biden puts up relief bills that directly meet the needs or the working class must freeze everything… because Democrats control everything, they have no excuse.

When I said that Neoliberals would have nothing to hide behind… That also means the working class has incredible power… IF they unite.

Plus if Biden acquiescences constantly he can go down as a populist.

I’ve said for a long time that a National Strike wouldn't work due to the polarization of our country meaning a sustained replacement workforce was always in the waiting and ultimately it would only benefit the side that sat the strikeout due to ‘right to work’ and other anti-worker laws.

But because of the recent DC riots and about half of the Republican party getting called out as Nazis combined with the nature of COVID, the opportunity to start gathering folks at in-state Senate offices in picket line-like protests, where they can be socially distanced, visible, and outside, is more relevant than ever.

Because your long-term leverage is still using the various state offices to coordinate protests into a statewide organization if you don’t already have one then find and finance a candidate to run against them.

2022 is not that far away and will be here before you blink twice.

24 Senators, 20 Republicans & 14 Democrats, are up for reelection.

It is the single greatest chance to influence the process moving forward.

We need to organize these protests, make clear demands, and expect our legislators to turn them into law… and stop Neera from being confirmed.

Many folks are going to be defeatist and say the politicians, Bernie and the Squad are not really on our side, essentially trying to convince you that they are not in your ‘Direct Action Network.’

But we’ve never had this many active progressives in Congress EVER…
Not even close.

Bernie’s been a one-man show longer than many of US have been alive.

It’s only in the past few years that even sitting Congress members to be ‘brave’ enough to step out and fight for the Progressive causes that they run on.

And we also have an unusual opportunity…

Fact check: Congress expelled 14 members in 1861 for supporting the Confederacy

We need to do something not done in a century and censure or expel seditious members of Congress… for being involved “in a conspiracy against the peace and union of the United States Government” just like was done in 1865…

America has plenty of law to lean on to handle these situations

We can also support both Jamal Bowman’s COUP Act to investigate the capitol police’s role in the attack, which isn’t disputed at this moment.

And Cori Bush’s Bill to investigate and potentially remove members of Congress who supported or incited the Riot in DC.

Jamal Bowan’s Investigation of Capital Police -> https://bit.ly/39w0Cr7
Cori Bush’s Bill to potentially remove members-> https://bit.ly/3oJGOXu

It is simply undeniable that we are dealing with an actual Nazi problem.

Even if the riot in DC were only 10% actual Nazis, though I think it was much higher this is just for sake of argument, then the rest of the group makes enough excuses, creates enough space, however you want to put it to let that 10% of actual Nazis do whatever they want…

And that is just as bad.

That includes the groups bankrolling the politicians in their direct action network because they are part of their ‘community’.

• The Slush Fund Bankrolling The Insurrectionist GOP
• 'Deep pockets' funded the movements behind the storming of the US Capitol: report

And the truth is … we’ve barely scratched the surface.

There are years of recovery ahead of US.

The biggest reason we need to gain control of this moment is that we need to build enough power to take on the Defense Industry and its waste.

Every single thing from Single-Payer Healthcare to the Green New Deal goes directly through dealing with the waste of the Defense Industry.

There is no method to remove the Military and its spending completely, if you support MMT as a concept than you know this is actually a critical form of currency distribution before we get into concepts of National Defense.

But it should be about Defense, not blowing up folks in other countries just so we can buy more bombs from companies that now belong to China.

True story.

We have to grow our power to cut military spending and folk like AOC are primed in Congress to take them on… but going straight at them would be a mistake… these corps are very powerful and very well funded.

With our money.

Ocasio-Cortez slams military spending: We must 'reprioritize what we want to accomplish as a nation'

If your goal is “Getting money out of politics” then it requires a lot more than just cutting spending to Politicians directly, but cutting off the extreme corporate wealth earned through Government contracts as well…

Which by any other name would be called a ‘handout.’

When we finally introduce a working Single-Payer System that doesn't just get folks desperately needed Health care, it also cuts off the excessive profits that can be turned right back around into buying Politicians.

Right now, because of the seditious behavior, those Corps and many others have cut off PAC contributions to the politicians who voted against accepting the Election results… this is a moment we should jump on…

Democrats seize on GOP donor fallout

If we don’t jump on this then Neoliberal Democrats will just try to get the money for themselves instead, but we want it out of politics entirely.

Support these companies in their decision where ever they are doing market testing, make them think it will earn them public support by withdrawing their support from dirty politicians and we’ll see their funding dwindle to zero.

Americans are already split on whether this is a good idea, if the tide goes in favor of them making contributions then it will tip that way

If we act, it could tip the way we want…

Americans split over companies halting donations to lawmakers who objected to Electoral College: poll

If your primary activism is ‘getting money out of politics’ then I can’t think of a clearer opportunity than this.

We have to seize this moment and do whatever we can to make it seem, hopefully honestly, that them not contributing via PACs is better for business.

We have to use their own business models against them.

I know it sounds like I’m promoting capitalism, but capitalism is a tool that can be used to manipulate these corporations into supporting the progressive agenda… Their market testing is everywhere, look for it and you will find it.

We get so used to screaming and cussing into them that you could just as easily use it to be kind and support their decisions instead of disagreeing.

You’ll find that has the power to move the bar much faster than negativity, so use it when the opportunity presents itself, this is one of those moments.

We start by pulling this money out and then give them nowhere to spend it.

Then they will need less, which means fewer bombs being lobbied to be used, and fewer folks dying just because some clowns in American want to get a smaller boat to put inside their larger one.

Yes, this sounds like ‘incremental change’ but all change is incremental when you do it every day… the increments are single days…

Accept nothing less.

So, let’s stay positive…

Because we still have a lot to look forward to.

Some relief is coming in the form of payment directly to your landlord or utilities… so, make sure if you have debt to either that you sign up.

Generally speaking, a Rent Freeze or Forgiveness is the correct answer and though this is technically an austerity version of what we need, we should get the relief to whoever we can regardless of the form it comes in.

Federal rent relief is coming. Here's what to expect in California

And we still go this coming, the gift that keeps on giving…

Rudy Giuliani said he is working on Trump's defense for the impeachment trial and that he's open to the president himself testifying, ABC News report says

We should be asking the hard questions…

Like, why has no one taken away Rudy’s Cell Phone yet?

Does he not have Grandchildren who can stop this?

Do they think it's funny too? So many questions…

I’m sure with him running Trump’s defense the impeachment trial will go off without any hijinks. /s

UPDATE: Rudy has since been removed from the legal team citing that he may be pulled as a witness which means Trump won’t pay him.

Like he’s going to suddenly start caring about “the rules of legal ethics” now.

You can follow Don on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

Phase 1 & 2 → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9
Phase 3 → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD
Phase 3.5 → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR
Phase 4 → https://bit.ly/38NStz1

This is just relief, stimulus is an entirely different story.

Before we get started and talk about the events of the last week and how it has affected our strategy moving forward, I cannot stress enough the importance of relabeling everything we are doing in these phases as…

“Relief.”

The proposed solutions are simply not large enough to qualify as “stimulus” as America has dug quite the economic hole that we still have to get out of.

Republicans will try to say that the Relief was enough Stimulus… and the time it takes to overcome that hurdle will only slow our recovery.

I’ll come back and to this but it would be impossible to move forward with a long-term strategy after the events the last week without adjusting.

In many ways, this horrible situation makes Progressives footing MUCH stronger as we dig in and push for the change we want to see.

Because it’s no longer just the change we want, but now more than ever America NEEDS it if we are going to recover.

We have all talked about achieving the Progressive Agenda because we thought it would create a more equitable future for everyone but now because of how the Pandemic has pushed America to the edge of collapse, the situation is no longer just a “want.”

Now the crisis demands it.

I had some words about how what we do as Progressives when we put pressure on our electeds, a time-honored tradition, is vastly different than what we saw in DC. If you are reading this, I’m confident you agree. You can read those remarks here → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR

I also explain the situation with the recent Florida Dem Chair race and the many levels of corruption present in it… but I barely dented the surface.

But right now let's discuss the Riot in DC because that’s what it was…

A coordinated riot, with what appears to be people on the inside moving barriers and generally assisting them… which also makes it a coordinated coup attempt, so by no means am I excusing or sympathizing with them.

But the outcome was no greater than a riot even if it is still treason.

They terrorized not just the folks in the building but the whole country and they must be held accountable. So, it is critical we support Jamal Bowmans Bill, the COUP Act, to investigate the DC Police and Capitol Police to hold accountable those responsible for the failures in security.

This is only ONE step toward accountability.

Another step?

Donald Trump must be held accountable as well.

Even though his term is almost up the reasoning is simple…

Precedent.

That’s a direct quote from Bernie Sanders. We cannot let Donald Trump attempt to lead a rebellion against the country as he sits in our highest office after he failed at being President even worse than he normally fails at his businesses.

Ilhan Omar has drafted articles of Impeachment and Pelosi has given Pence a timetable to invoke the 25th https://bit.ly/35zksR5 or on Wednesday, the House of Representatives will introduce these Articles or a version of them and Impeach Trump for the 2nd time.

*Edit* Pence has said he will not invoke the 25th, Impeachment on Wed.

Pelosi outlines House's efforts to impeach Trump or remove him via 25th Amendment this week

Then the plan is to put the whole thing on hold for Biden’s first 100 days and switch focus to Biden’s first Relief Bill…

I’m sorry, what?

I’m sure when you read that, assuming you hadn’t already, that makes you say to yourself “what the ever-living f*$% are these people thinking?”

There is actually some pretty solid logic to this and I’ll do my best to explain it.

Plus, as an added bonus we can use it like loaded dice to catch all the ‘quasi-progressive fascist enablers’ who are showing their faces after hiding out in and trying to direct the movement for actual years or should I say… misdirect.

I find it especially ironic that they are calling it the “Great unmasking” because that’s precisely what we are going to do, but with Nazis.

Okay, back to putting it on hold… and even if they can get the Senate to move forward quickly then we can still do an “abridged” version of the strategy.

Let me start by saying… we simply do not have the 2/3’s votes to convict.

McConnell seems ready, but that doesn’t mean we have the votes yet.

And I know you’re thinking, “Then how can we do Impeachment at all?”

Well, Biden’s first relief bill is actually the key to it, so putting everything on hold to build power there a good place to start…

You don’t need to fear putting things like this on hold as long as you have a clear path of action to move from one line item to the next, precisely as we have done in the other phases of this process.

In order to move the Bill through its Senate phases, there will be a 60 vote requirement at some point … and Democrats only have 50. There’s talk about using reconciliation to skip that but future ones will still require it.

Now that Bernie Sanders has been officially confirmed as Senate Budget Committee Chairman, this gives us even more reason to push harder than ever and opens more than a few doors, this is a big hurdle.

He says he’s prepared to push the envelope on Budget Reconciliation, but assume we’re still going to need to whip 10 or more republican Votes to make sure we are consistently crossing that finish line while at the same time keeping the Manchin Democrats from falling out of position.

When it comes to Impeachment, it is based on a 2/3s vote of those present so the number can be lower, so as long as they maintain quorum it’s enough.

But this means we need to kick some Seditious Republicans out… This is why we need to support Cori Bush’s bill to not seat the seditious members of Congress which there is legal precedent for on many levels.

There is also a push to remove a few Senators.

With support from the Speaker, it could move with enough pushing.

Pelosi Quietly Thanks Democrats Pushing to Expel Members of Congress

This takes us back to Phase 1 & 2 which was about different methods of protesting your Senators and building protests at their various in-state offices while trying to build media engagement for your events.

Again, I want to be very specific… this is ‘bird-dogging’ at most, not ‘terrorizing’. Avoid that language altogether or you will get clumped together with Right-Wing Radicals and Terrorists.

We already need to make sure that this doesn’t lead to increases in public security around the Capitol or a new version of the Patriot Act, which BTW obviously doesn’t work, making it easier for Corporate Politicians to hide from the People they represent… They have to at least make sure the folks they represent feel heard, this doesn’t require violence, just consistency.

Senators have multiple offices throughout the state, so in theory, if you organize a protest at each physical office and use them each as a local recruitment tool for each area… you could hypothetically organize that into a statewide progressive coordinated committee for your future candidate to challenge that seat and hopefully put someone into office.

The Senate is the ‘nut’ that progressives need to crack in 2022.

You can read Phase 1 & 2 surmised here → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9

You can follow the links in that article to the original FB posts where I explain more of these theories in greater depth.

Don’t forget… 34 Senators … 20 Republican and 14 Democrat are up for reelection and the only thing they are actually afraid of is a well organized, well funded, and well-liked challenger.

That means there was never a more opportune moment to put real pressure on the Senate and many of those Republicans are in vulnerable seats.

So… to tighten it up… and organize.

We are going to build the power to convict Trump by building power to influence the Senate when we put pressure on both Democrats and Republicans for relief bills.

McConnell has signaled that he is ready to convict Trump but that doesn’t mean that we can trust he has the votes…

McConnell believes impeachment push will help rid Trump from the GOP, but has not said if he will vote to convict

And why would we start trusting him now?

I believe we only get one more shot to do this correctly.

If you care about Medicare For All, or Cancelling Student Debt, or literally any part of the Progressive Agenda then it goes straight through Impeaching Trump, building power while negotiating Biden’s first relief bill, and then convicting Trump once he is out of office and out of power.

Today is Tuesday, January 12th, 2021.

1 day until we impeach Trump, again.
8 days until Biden is sworn in.
63 Days until Biden’s relief bill is due and it is now being drafted.
101 Days until proposed Senate trial for Trump.

Which makes that date… April 22, 2021.

Now there is a certain Sublime song that feels awfully specific for this moment that we are holding him accountable for a riot on the East Coast on the 29th anniversary of a very famous riot on the West Coast.

Someone is going to point out that technically the LA riots occurred from April 27th-May 4th, 1992… which if anything to me is a goal date to have this thing wrapped up by. But one could also argue that the ‘100 days’ starts when Biden is sworn in which would be April 30th but I think that’s pushing the date too far and we need to make it closer not further away.

Always round down not up when it comes to dates for these events.

Because if we continue to build power in the same way we have the last month then we could easily have the process wrapped up very fast and then promptly move on to the NEXT inevitable relief bill. I’m sure someone with more experience with the process can explain the projected impeachment timeline far better than I can and we will adjust as necessary.

As of this moment, Trump’s Impeachment will represent Phase 5 and the 2nd relief bill will represent Phase 6… Hopefully, we can get this freight train really moving over these next few weeks and we are capable enough to manage phase 5 and 6 at the same time.

If we can, then it will make all of this much faster.

I have said many times, ALL change is incremental when you work on it every day, but we can control the speed of the increments. With a solid strategy and a plan of action that compliments it then anything is possible.

And before you say “still sounds impossible”, we have never been here before, quite like this… let’s make the most of this opportunity.

Now, we’re going to get back to what actually should be in Biden’s 1st and 2nd relief bill in a moment but I want to take a minor step to the side to discuss what’s happening here.

To the untrained eye, it may appear that I am simply making this up as I go along, and I would be lying if I didn’t say that is partially true. But what is actually happening is I’m adjusting a larger strategy that focused on four main ideas… Relief, Restructure, Rebuild, and Restart…

The first half focusing on relief and the last two to focus on stimulus, with many stages… but I wrote this plan early on in the Pandemic… before the protests… and before the almost civil war… it would be irresponsible of me not to reach out to those I have worked with thus far and adjust the strategy to fit the changing present that we experience together.

We’re calling this process “Reactive Change” which is what you do when you don’t necessarily have control of the direction of the process… when you are in power or can somehow steer, you can create “Proactive Change” which is how progressives would prefer it. It’s just not that way right now.

But we have to use a balance of both actions to drive this through at any point possible, I relate it to the child’s book “Give a Mouse a Cookie.” If they give us ANYTHING which they absolutely have to because of the crisis then we can drive it all the way through to completing the progressive agenda.

If you would prefer a different metaphor, we have to be like water which finds any hole in the barrier and shapes a larger hole until the barrier falls.

At this point, if you are still reading, then you are asking yourself...

“I’m not elected, no one hired me, I don’t even have a title. How can I change any of this?” … or something to that effect.

It’s all about something I call the ‘direct-action triangle.’

Direct action is a process that involves organizing within,
Community
Activism
& Government

Together to create change and there are many roles to play.

Each of them is different and can be uniquely tuned to your preferences.

The community works together to support each other and itself. The Activists step up to create answers and make demands for whatever problems the community runs into… and politicians legislate those demands into laws.

And help the Community… it’s a big circle, or a triangle…whatever.

Point is, this is why there is a TON of pushback against the squad and other progressive members of Congress, even Bernie, as being a “sell-out.”

But elected like Bernie and AOC are awesome because they do all three…

That’s what it means to be a progressive politician, not these purity tests.

And that means they are always watching the grassroots.

Over the years, I have told many outlandish sounding stories about getting Bernie or other electeds to pick up new ideas and run with them… I know that folks don’t necessarily believe me until they see this…

This is from today… Regardless of if they use the name, this is the REAL EPIC strategy in motion. Biden will ultimately decide the name… IF we get it.

Any way you spin it, this is Bernie saying “Yes” to Phase 3.

Right now more than a few major for-profit groups are struggling and we cannot have our relief payments goto Healthcare that the government is already paying for… the time is now, more than ever, to push through a program that can help Americans immediately using existing infrastructure without involving the insurance industry who will only slow it down.

We can worry about that infrastructure AFTER we are getting folks help.

But I also want to point out that I only officially released the strategy nine days ago. Which really speaks to the power of the grassroots.

I am one person with a stack of ideas that a lot of folks worked on.

And though I wrote the strategy months ago and have been lightly promoting the basics of it on Facebook the whole time, it was only viable in the last few days… and in that time, I alone have promoted it broadly.

Now, imagine what we could do if we all worked together?

But, the reason it works is that just like how Neoliberals chase the Money around… electeds like Bernie and the Squad get their power from the people in the same way and that means they chase the grassroots around…

Basically, they get their power from you.

You knocking on doors, making phone calls, texting but in the right places.

The words that always got Bernie to pick it up an idea, where every other group has failed are a few simple words …

“This is what the grassroots are doing…”

But it's not something you say, it’s something you do.

If we create power on the ground for an idea that is also a method to help them build power inside on top of what we have already created in our push to ‘fight for someone we don’t know’ or ‘improve the quality of life of someone you will never meet’ then they will always take it up.

If those sound familiar the first one is Bernie’s 2020 slogan and the second one was my 2018 slogan…

Since folks have asked, I am not going to use this piece to discuss the merit of other plans that have been going around, but I will… in great detail … and have in posts on Twitter, but that’s not what this moment is for.

But I will say this… our most valuable resource is a volunteer’s time.

It is sacred.

And wasting it is sacrilege for an organizer, so when I see folks turning each other against their own self-interests, it is very upsetting.

I do not doubt that if you believe that we had the power to come together and ‘force the vote’ as it was proposed, then we definitely had the power to get the full $2000 relief … all that stood in our way was the turtle.

So, while I won’t speak to the merit of it, I will mention the consequences.

That miscalculation, that moment of not recognizing your power to really help folks… cost the American people $252 Billion in aid.

Roughly 180 Million eligible times $1400 each… $252,000,000,000.

Our actions, how we use our time, are worth more right now than ever and we cannot squander this opportunity fighting with each other.

Not when we need to be fighting with literal Nazis.

This is why this plan is built to help us in another entirely different way…

We have fascist sympathizers in our midst, and folks are starting to notice that there is a problem.

Many of these fascist simps who have been coming up in conversations are the same who have taken part in smear campaigns against me and are verbatim using the same smears against Progressives on Twitter right now.

What they are doing is using the perception of left-leaning politics to pull you further Right but the majority of their social media are RW fascists.

That’s why they have to say all these “moderate” talking points about fascists, but if we already don’t like moderates for Corporations then I really, really don’t like moderates for Nazis… we had a war to settle this.

But by integrating Impeaching Trump into our strategy and dragging out the process then there is no way that they can stay hidden the entire time. All of their social media is split between the right-wingers who support them and the left-wingers they manipulate.

It will not survive the 100 days of either silence or tearing down the vast majority of their social media and losing followers along the way.

They have been doing a great deal more damage than folks realize for a lot longer than folks realize, so think about what I’m saying because it's a perfect trap we can organize publicly to hold them to who they really are.

I’ll explain in further detail their network, how it started, who started it, and why they are a major voice for DemExit, I’m sure it’s making sense.

But right now the fight has gotten more complicated, so let’s stay focused.

We have action to take and it starts Wednesday with Impeaching Trump.

Bills to Support:
Ilhan Omar’s Articles of Impeachment -> https://bit.ly/2LtdK87
Jamal Bowan’s Investigation of Capital Police -> https://bit.ly/39w0Cr7
Cori Bush’s Bill not seat seditious members -> https://bit.ly/3oJGOXu

I believe the last two still need cosponsors in the Senate as well.

In addition to that, we need to PUSH on Biden right now for greater relief.

That means a one time $2K relief payment while we push for retroactive in the 2nd relief bill… if we can create enough pressure to convict Trump in 100 days then we can certainly create enough pressure to get the retroactive $2k and for the rest of the pandemic, which is showing no signs of abating.

Also, the most recent Relief bill was still based on 2019 income and many who needed help could not access it, this needs to be fixed.

In addition to that, we have to release citizens getting UI from the tax liability associated with the current setup. Folks who are already struggling cannot afford the tax payment coming in a few months. It doesn’t make any sense to me for the Government to grant us assistance just to ask for some of it back when we need it the most and they should be giving us more.

I go into great detail on the retroactive $2000 bill in all three active stages.

The retroactive payment is the cornerstone of our recovery and the nexus point between Relief and Stimulus… The economy will never recover until we undo the damage done by the last year and the next coming months. That means not just giving folks some money, but actually refilling their saving that they lost or we will never develop consumer confidence again and we could be faced with a long depression.

That would drag our recovery from one year to five or more…

The system needs to be artificially lifted and that includes emergency pandemic medical access, and discussing how we transfer and combine the enhanced UI system distributed by states and the federal stimulus into a semi-permanent UBI that is distributed federally.

At the end of the day, this is just altering the form of ‘currency distribution’ that America uses for its Currency, going through the Corporations in a ‘trickle-down’ manner will only stall the process to a state beyond repair.

You can read up on phase 3 here → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD

I dive into the REAL EPIC strategy and how we can use that to both, fight for more retroactive action, and emergency single-payer.

Though these are more likely to end up in the 2nd or 3rd relief package, if we can build up enough strength to get Trump convicted then we can certainly get these accomplished before this summer.

Since I wrote my first draft, it is now looking possible for EPIC, whether by name or not, because it is more than just a name it is a strategic theory to pass Single-Payer, to actually make it into the 1st relief package.

So now is the moment.

The timetable for the 2nd relief package will be determined by the length of the UI extension that is being granted in the 1st. The third will be the same.

So, Biden’s relief bill checklist, just some, not all… will add to
$2k single payment + continue pushing for retroactive, expect it in 2nd
Extend UI +full $600, we should be talking about that increasing
Money for C19 Testing
Money for States
Investment in Vaccine distribution
$10k in student loan debt forgiveness
Assistance for low-income families with computers for online schooling

Things that we aren’t talking about that we should.
Rent and Mortgage Freeze
Emergency Single-Payer
Making UI benefits non-taxable
A lot more student loan forgiveness
Helping folks with COVID burial costs
General Debt Assistance
Stop Utility shutoffs
Make Broadband a utility
Permanent UBI without losing social services

And that is before we talk about how each and every one of these programs or systems need an overhaul or possibly a complete reboot.

We have a ton of work to do but now at least we know precisely what timetable we have to do it in.

Up to this point, I avoided talking about party politics because this strategy is for anyone who stands against Fascists and wants our country to recover.

And I mean anyone…

Phase 4 will have a few articles for each stage as events shift the layout of the field… in addition to discussing a method to transition the UI system into a permanent UBI system, I’m also going to prepare a lengthy history on the DemExit vs DemEnter fight, how it started, who started, who promotes it, and what they did, which honestly… if you all knew what happened through each step then I guarantee you’d feel a lot differently about it all.

The leader of one of these groups was a long time member of my National Strategy Chat and was aware of the intended final outcome of my planning… takeover the Democrats and trick the Republicans into ripping themselves in half, watering down their vote.

The goal has always been “to turn the ‘thermostat’ of the earth down.”

Now, no one anticipated the Republicans doing it this quickly but now you might have a better understanding of why these folks who are being discovered to now be fascist sympathizers attacked me…

I’ll explain it all in even greater detail in future articles as it becomes relevant, but let’s not forget, right now, we still need to create enough pressure that Biden will be forced to choose a more progressive cabinet and DNC picks.

We still have Neera Tanden to stop from being confirmed and several other unprofessional neoliberals who need not be in the Whitehouse.

I do want to leave you with this small bit of inner-party information though…

They say that when a Democrat wins the Whitehouse that the rule is that the President chooses the DNC Chairperson… however… technically…

There is no rule stating that this is a fact, it is simply a courtesy.

So, hypothetically, we could create major reform simply by demanding that Biden allow an open Chair’s race, and guess what? We’ve won more DNC seats than we lost the first round in ’17 and at least we could find out who is who.

We wouldn’t even have to change the rules, just change folks' mindsets.

And that is after all, what we are here to do…

Plus if we pull all of this off and we change the makeup of the Senate in ‘22… let Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie do his road trip with Biden to show him how the working class lives… let him earn some trust…

Then, some folks might not be happy about it, but Berniecrats might get this…

What issues from the last few years would you like to hear about in my next strategy piece?

What did I miss that should be in Biden’s relief bill?

Now is the time to collaborate.

Phase 4 is going to be kinda long, so we have some time to get to each other.

You can follow Don on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

Here are the phases so far…
Phase 1 & 2 → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9
Phase 3 → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD
Phase 3.5 → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR
Phase 4 → https://bit.ly/38NStz1

And we haven't much time at all.

Let me start by saying this is not the REAL Strategy… This is just a tribute…

Since Mid December, we have been driving an Inside-Outside Strategy with Bernie Sanders in the Senate and US, the people, building support for him on the outside, taking our protests to the streets when necessary.

But I can’t take one step further without mentioning what we all have been watching in shock and horror as the right-wing followers were duped into becoming Domestic Terrorists and Seditioners, regardless of their intention the consequences will be fierce.

It is important to distinguish between what we do and what we saw at the capital. Protesting is a critical part of America. Making our Politicians ‘uncomfortable’ is a critical part of America.

But what we saw was not ‘uncomfortable’ that was terrorizing.

And it proves, once again, that what we say online has real-world ramifications. As any online activist will tell you, we have all been faced with folks saying that what you do online does not count… and the right-wing has proven if nothing else, that the statement is not true if it culminates in real-world action.

Don’t mistake that as simping for them, it’s just what we witnessed.

That action doesn’t have to be violent, and shouldn't.

It can just as easily be about mutual aid…

You will do more damage to the enemy by feeding a friend and making them an ally than you ever will by throwing a brick at their windows.

Now it's really important to distinguish all this…

Because what I am about to explain to you is going to make you VERY angry.

Florida

Why is it always Florida?

On Sat, the 9th, Florida’s State Central Committee is going to gather on a Zoom call and they are primed to repeat all of the mistakes that just lost them their ‘Purple State’ status when they vote for State Party Chair for the next four years.

You are probably asking yourself, “why does any of that matter?”

Since the 2000 debacle, Florida has been considered the most important state in electoral politics, whoever wins Florida wins the Whitehouse. So tons and tons of money has gone through the state, and much of it has been wasted.

As you all know, when a state has ‘Purple’ status that means it can flip either to Republicans or Democrats and that means a ton of money comes into the state from both sides… It is a giant money vacuum.

And though most Berniecrats and leftists will balk at this idea, these funds make up a large part of the state’s economy, of course, they have Disney and other huge entities, but politics is a multi-100 Million dollar industry…

Democrats spent $100 Million there just to lose the state narrowly.

Trump won Florida, but Democrats claim they spent $100 million there to distract Trump from the Midwest

This is incredibly important to each state’s leadership, each in a slightly different way.

When Iowa was in contention during the ’20 primary, it was only because of pressure from the State Central Committee, who elects the Chair, that he might be risking the State’s ‘First in the Nation’ status which represents a large portion of their economy that forced him to step down.

Iowa Caucuses' Problems Cost State Party Chair His Job

Florida is about to run into the same problem except it already did it.

Florida isn’t about to lose its ‘Purple’ status, it lost it this year.

It is a Red state.

After close loss after close loss, it is undeniable that Florida has lost this critical status and must redeem itself to continue getting support from the rest of the country, or the money is simply better spent in other places like GA.

Especially when we have 34 Senators to challenge for reelection in 2022… 22 Republican and 12 Democrat. That’s 33% of the Senate up for grabs.

But why is it always so close? Once or twice, okay… but every time? You have to be very good to be this bad.

In ’16, I was the only campaign staff for Rocky De La Fuente’s burnout of a Senate campaign in Florida… he was running for Senate to build name recognition to run for President and he had his wallet open.

Him running in every state for Senate? That was a joke I made when he finally admitted he was running for Senate in Florida only for name notoriety…

Didn't expect him to take it so literally.

So, for a few weeks, shortly after being the California lead for the Bernie Grassroots family and while still doing the Bernie Delegate Strategy, I was in charge of finding folks for Rocky to give money to so he could build support.

This gave me an insider perspective that few will ever experience but the most striking things I learned were… they’ll run Progs against Incumbents just for fundraising AND the quote “Fundraising is good when Dems are losing.”

If it makes your blood boil, it should, it still pisses me off.

I could tell something was up but I still couldn't quite put my finger on it.

Then the Chair’s race in ’17 had some dirty tactics pulled to install Florida rich guy, Stephen Bittel because a few folks thought it was the best path forward, the party was broke and he had money…so that was the lure.

Later that year, Bittle would be removed because of workplace impropriety

Florida Democratic Party chief resigns after accusations of workplace impropriety

But what had actually happened is that a few weeks earlier I had gotten a call from someone in the leadership who was furious, they had just learned Florida is holding $700k in debt over redistricting from when it was broke in the early 2000s… they are currently only paying off the interest.

Basically, they had learned, the Florida State Party has only existed for two reasons, as a pass-through for large contributions and to pay off the interest from that debt. Just like a student loan, the principle is not coming down.

And of course, the Billionaire did not want to pay the debt, he wanted to refinance because rates were really good at the time.

Yeah, not so much.

They had him out in a week like it was an episode of House of Cards.

He was always a rich creep, he was elevated because they thought he would pay off the debt or keep paying the interest… and if he didn’t then *boom*.

And they did.

Shortly after that, Terri Rizzo was brought it because she could “bring the lawyer money back to the party”… that may not be a precise quote but we spoke many times in Florida and the DNC meetings after she was elected.

But really it was because she wouldn’t rock the boat.

So, moving on to ’18 when I was the North Florida Pod Director’s Personal Consultant. I was working for a candidate in CD 4 trying to move the bar in a red district, which we did but not as much as I’d have liked, and I was in the North Florida Pod office every day. I stayed at her house while she was at her boyfriend's… but every day for weeks I sat with her or around her through every call and meeting, especially the ones at night… all night.

And I can tell you from first-hand experience the dysfunction is entirely intentional.

First off, not only did they conference call everyone to death… A pain I’m sure many of you have experienced, but they also bottlenecked all of our field plans through the party offices and had them printed in Orlando. They planned to have the field come the day of GOTV and we’d just run with fresh packets… except we had someone in Orlando working them and they brought up our packets early so we got to run a sample.

Have you ever seen a canvasser cry? I have because this field made them cry.

Missing houses, addresses not in turf, folks who were long gone… less than a third of the address were good knocks and some of them were hard Republicans, the last folks Democrats want to talk to on election day.

This felt like intentional sabotage, I made the team rewrite all the field and we won Jacksonville for the first time in 20 or so years…

Unfortunately, there are simply not enough voters in Jacksonville to offset the damage done in Miami and Tampa, and we narrowly lost the state. I was looking for the other RFD’s and region leaders but this was around the time that smear letter was being delivered to OR, I admit I got distracted.

But why does this happen?

Well, it comes down to the State Party Chair who hires the Executive Director who then goes on to hire the Coordinated Campaign Manager. Maybe that’s not precisely correct, but it’s the general idea.

Now, this happened when supposed Democrats were running things and my understanding is that the Coordinated Campaign Manager in ’20 was an actual Republican as if there were no Democrats to hire…

What good is spending $100 Million if we are just going to let the Republicans decide how we spend it?

Can’t we spend that money more effectively?

If you want to talk about the parties being corrupt and them working together to screw all of US then this is a fair example… I believe deeply that the Party must be transformed because of EXACTLY these reasons.

We are pissing away the money to fix Flint, feed hungry children, or just about anything that you can dream of… to Republicans who control these parties in secret. When you leave the party and look away… this is what happens.

Not all State Parties are like this, but it used to be a lot more before Berniecrats started pushing back.

And even if you turn your back on the problem, it is still a problem.

That $100 Million will be wasted again if everyone does nothing, but it will be more next time…

So, right now, Saturday the 9th at 12 pm est, the Florida State Party is primed to do it all over again.

As of last night, the Party Chair’s race is down to three people.

• Manny Diaz, former lawyer for Elian Gonzalaz and former Mayor of Miami as an Independent but in Miami his record of union-busting reads like a Republican. He’s endorsed by Billionaires Bloomberg and Jorge Perez.
• Ione Townsend, County Chair of Hillsborough, works closely with Labor Unions and is one of the higher fundraising counties in the state.
• Cynthia Chestnut, a living legend in Florida Politics, the current chair of Alachua County. She is the reason black history is taught at all in Florida.

I think it’s pretty clear at this point who we are here to talk about.

On Thursday night the smaller candidates dropped out of the race and endorsed Cynthia… but this is how the Establishment plays the shell game.

First, they will endorse Cynthia to keep Ione, a Hillary delegate from 2016 but endorsed by the Statewide Berniecrat group, from gathering more steam, then on the second ballot, they will all fall in line behind Manny when Cynthia is knocked off.

Now, I could be wrong, because I was just told that Andrew Gillum is making calls for Cynthia but the whip count I have seen shows a split vote with Cynthia pulling the smallest number which means she would be out on the first round.

So, all the folks who just endorsed her may have just actually endorsed Manny but for tricky multiple ballot purposes, it appears as they have endorsed the legend that Mrs. Chestnut represents.

The rule on inner-party elections is that the establishment will ALWAYS coalesce on the second ballot to keep things from changing.

I’m sure the issue here is becoming quite apparent…

If they make that move then they will elect Diaz on the second ballot.

They will at least try to elect Diaz because they think that will grant them access to his money and friends with money… but when he finds out about the debt he is going to do the same thing Bittel tried to do and have it refinanced… and then we repeat the cycle over and over again.

The problem with these rich guys and why they make perfect marks for the folks holding the Party, essentially, hostage… is that they all have lived a life without impropriety, they have the money so everyone nods and smiles at their bad behavior, and they don’t even know what they’re doing can get them in trouble, they should… but they don’t.

Then we will back here in 9 months, just like in 2017, electing another Chair to wait another 3 years for the party to try to do something again… and in that time they will have lost two Senates and the Governor’s race, again.

Except when he predictably leaves the party in shame we have another rich donor who doesn’t want to contribute anymore… Like them or not, I’d rather their money go to the Democratic party and be wasted indirectly than being used directly against us by the Republicans.

And even if it does work out and he does pay it or does refinance or it's not even a thing and I’ve made it all up… then he is still going to hire the wrong Executive Director, and consequently, the wrong Coordinated Campaign Manager. Prioritize the wrong vendors, and generally not lead the party in a manner that helps Democrats win.

The opposition file on Manny for all the Union busting and general corruption is 118 pages, it’s a book.

Several negative articles have already hit the press, there is a lot to say.

I’ve heard rumors that Nikki Fried and Anna Eskamani are considering challenging these statewide seats, no confirmation if or on which seats…

If they’re serious about taking that on then having a coordinated campaign manager who will actually make sure they win is critical and that means they need to make sure that the State Party Chair doing the hiring can …

A) Win elections as Democrats

B) Handle the debt outright

C) And not hire past Coordinated Campaign Managers or ED’s

The only way to get Florida clear of this and back on its feet is to pay off the debt outright… I’m sure there are greater financial issues but $700k by political terms is just not that much…

Biden blew through $100M just to lose the state.

Mark Hanisee, Ione’s Executive Director, is confident that by working with Unions the state can raise the money to pay off the debt swiftly so that it doesn’t inhibit statewide races that are coming up in one and a half years.

But no one even knows about the problem to pay it off because that’s the most profitable version of it and they took out Bittel so quickly that everyone in Florida who does know is afraid to speak out about it.

Whatever it is, it holds Florida’s Democratic Politics in paralysis.

I hope that if Ione is knocked out in the first round that, everyone backs Chestnut over Manny… but being as Ione has the stronger election record more recently and the stronger fundraising apparatus she seems like the better choice.

But there is a little bit of a problem, someone has been running around telling an unkind story incorrectly in a manner that I am very uncomfortable with.

Someone I considered a dear friend is slandering Ione because of the remarks of a candidate who was upset that she wasn’t given more money.

My understanding is that she was the third or fourth choice for an empty race in a deep red district, it was never going to be a win. She approached Ione for more money, as the county can fundraise a considerable amount, and Ione didn’t want to put more investment into the race because other races needed it as a tipping point to win and it wouldn't move the numbers significantly.

Naturally and somewhat reasonably she was upset by this, but someone from Wed Hodges’ campaign, a dear friend of mine, has been spinning the story in a particularly horrible way.

Because the candidate is black, he is making it a racist issue.

I told him to stop a few days ago as it was damaging our relationship then I started to talk to folks all over the state to hear horror story after horror story that made me question if I wanted to associate with him anymore.

And now all I keep hearing is that if Manny Diaz is elected it will be because of his smear getting in everyone’s head.

I cannot stress enough the poor form in this maneuver, you just don’t do this.

For me this is quite personal as I was smeared relentlessly for many years, I’m sure that even right now someone else is preparing another slander campaign against me, that seems to be the way of things.

But even from a close friend, someone I called a brother, I find this behavior to be unacceptable and it is potentially locking the entire country into a dangerous future over what appears to be petty differences.

But I hope that right now, we can pull the mask of this BS and show the movement what we are really fighting.

There is a narrow window, where if enough folks get this article out and push for something different, MAYBE it will affect the election… it is worth trying.

And we can always try to hold them accountable on the backend.

But right now, someone has to at least try to make a positive change.

If all this makes you mad, good.

This is what happens when you ignore the problems of the Party and think that you can “suffocate” it by not being involved when the consultants would prefer nothing more than if it were literally just them controlling the massive budget with no accountability, they have rackets set up like this all over…

When you take over, it’s yours… all of it.

And in this case, that includes the debt.

I hope that Florida elects Ione as the next chair and with the help of Mark she can work with labor unions to bring back what made Florida strong.

Because they are going to have to Make Florida Blue Again…

And I know Florida can’t do it with the Billionaires and I know Florida can’t do it with the old establishment even if she is a legend that we should praise regardless… we have very recent history to support the theory that it will create the same repetitive cycle and the whole country loses.

Plus, it’s an extra ‘middle finger’ to the current staff of the FDP when you propose a ‘union-buster’ for State Party Chair right after the staff voted to Unionize with the Electrician’s Union… we need to preserve that growth.

They have endorsed Ione as well…

And this isn’t just a ‘Florida thing’, it affects all of US.

But it will have the greatest effect on the local industry and people who depend on that political money for survival.

In a time of recovery, that won’t help.

If you really care about ‘sticking it the establishment’ then don’t let them get away with it… show up, have your voice heard. All you is need more folks.

The inner-party elections will continue constantly in every state,

Will you be ready?

Because like it or not, they decide our future.

And right now we are letting them play games with our lives.

If you would like to catch up on the Progressive Pandemic Response Plan you can check out my last article here → https://bit.ly/3bndLFe

It’s part of a larger strategy called “A Future Worth Fighting For” and includes a multistep process to help Americans have hope again that our country can be the leader in the world it was once again.

You can follow Don at Twitter @ https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

I can’t make it more clear how proud I am of all the activists who stepped up to fight for relief from our failed government… We produce our own sovereign currency and the Pandemic has proven without a doubt that the poverty we experience is, in fact, manufactured for no other reason than to create haves and have nots.

If you want to catch up on phase 1 & 2 in the Facebook posts that started this, they’re included as part of my last article here → https://bit.ly/387tV3r

Basically, progressives who backed Bernie have been following the strategy we first used to push through the $600 enhanced UI earlier last year to drive Senators to take action now and things are starting to get intense.

Our Elected Officials are accountable to us and we’ve lost touch with some of the “old ways” that kept people like McConnell from being who he’s been through the last year. An incredible amount of our future hinges on what happens in Georgia in a few days, so please, if you have time… donate it.

After the moderate success of the first relief bill, we fell asleep and Congress was prepared to give us nothing… and did for several months…

UI benefits even dried up.

So, as the debate seemed like it was winding down we lit a fire, broke free from some shiny distractions, and started making contacts to build power and back Bernie in the Senate … we quickly went from no money to $600, though paltry, a win at this stage, and $300 enhanced UI which is not only a Bernie program but could easily be turned into permanent UBI.

But right now we are not here to discuss our past wins, though I do want to make it clear what is possible if we effectively use our “inside/outside” strategy opportunity. Activists rarely get an opportunity like this.

Right now session is starting back up in the House and the Senate. This means that if Georgia flips we are entering a Democratic-controlled everything and Biden’s first relief bill is due in ten weeks, remember the UI extension included PUA and that means zero UI for millions of Americans when it runs out. That’s going to happen really fast.

Now I don’t want you to think that just because Democrats control everything that suddenly means faeries will drop from the sky and meet all of our demands… not at all… Actually, it’s the opposite…

I expect them to fight tooth and nail at every stop.

But with no McConnell or Trump to hide behind then we can finally have full accountability on the Democrats to either give us progressive policy that is absolutely crucial to the recovery or they give Democrats a reason to vote differently in primaries… and that’s what this has all been about.

Now we can go after their legacies and they have nothing left to hide behind.

You are going to quickly find that very old politicians care a whole lot about how they are going to be remembered by history, by applying pressure here we are going to save lives and possibly create the largest recruitment drive Progressives have ever seen…

You can check out my other posts to get the breakdown of how to do the instate office protests that allows you to build statewide organizations and start building up Senate challengers at the end of this article… But remember, 34 Senators, 22 Republicans, and 12 Democrats are up for reelection in 2022 and Progressive Democrats have not yet put anyone into a Senate seat… Senate campaigns take a ton of money with even more sweat equity.

Let’s be honest about that and get it going.
If you don’t have trust in electoral politics anymore, then don’t worry the plan involves a ton of protesting, as creatively as possible short of violence…

In addition to all this, on January 2nd the House progressives fought for and got a PayGo exemption for Pandemic and Climate-related relief bills.

This is a big deal because it paves the way not only for things like the Green New Deal but also for what we are going to do next…

The Pandemic has been handled horrendously and the suffering has no clear end in sight. Folks who have already been left in shambles by the Pandemic cannot be forgotten, we can’t simply take care of only the “new problems.” We have to handle the damage done last year to recover now.

It's not just about helping moving forward, it's about picking up the pieces.

The first retroactive bill at the top of everyone’s list is the $2k retroactive payments from the start of the pandemic cosponsored by Markey, Sanders, and Vice-President Elect Kamala Harris. This bill is currently still hosted on her website. If that doesn’t make it comparable to a campaign promise then I don’t know what it is… if she wants to ever be elected President, not saying I want that but if she does, then she and her K-hive had better make sure that gets this through.

You can view it here → https://bit.ly/2X2GneE

But it shouldn’t stop with just that single bill.

We need a catch-all for retroactive actions that can be simply said, is easy to remember, accurately describes the program, and look good on a protest sign.

Retroactive

Emergency

Assitance

Legislation

or REAL….

We need our government to get REAL about the Pandemic and our recovery.

It can be anything, if it is Pandemic related or recovery-focused then we just got Congressional clearance to put it up without asking who pays for it.

It becomes almost a ‘COVID reparations’ and opens the door to actual reparations as folks better understand America's debts to its people.

Now the next one is a little more touchy because it relates to Single Payer.

I was already convinced that we had to start making the argument to use a new pandemic-focused name for the policy but because of the shift in the PayGo exemption, the reasoning is greater than ever to make a change.

Don’t balk at the name immediately, let me explain before you’re triggered… It is exactly like something you like a lot but with a name you don’t.

Emergency

Pandemic

Insurance

Care

EPIC…

Yes, this uses some ‘Obama era language’, but Biden is going to be President and it is a lot harder for him to say no to a program that sounds like an extension of the Obama era than it is the major policy plank of his opponent in the primary… The Public Option even is just an empty shell, you can simply drop Medicare for All’s policies in it like it’s an empty box.

Bernie is the “Amendment King”… I doubt he cares who gets the credit.

But right now, this would be a program created in the same method as the UI system being used to administer assistance via PUA, by granting access to the Medicare Network but as a “temporary” program means Congress will initiate the program with a broader stroke and less nitpicking. There is no connection to the loathed Insurance market and it would be accessed without age or means-testing… because those extra steps would simply intervene in the nature of the emergency assistance required.

Plus, there is an existing precedent to set up the system this way.

Folks bouncing around the healthcare system as they are forced to quarantine, lose their job, or lost a family member who had family coverage … really the horror just goes on and on, are going to need help with stability in unstable times. Them being afraid to seek medical care or pilling on new medical debt is going to be extremely detrimental to our recovery and cause more pain in addition to the now unavoidable pain we are already experiencing from the catastrophe that is this virus.

We need everyone affected by COVID, and that’s absolutely everyone at this point, to understand that they can seek medical care without fear of bankrupting themselves or not being treated for lack of insurance. We have to stop the debt being created now, minimize treatable non-COVID deaths in addition to stopping COVID, and possibly improve on Medicare just a little bit to provide mental healthcare which is a tentpole for Republicans as the isolation is continuously required.

Not to mention, this will keep folks out of our overwhelmed emergency rooms by treating illness before it is an emergency, cutting our COVID cases too.

The bottom line? This will help stop the spread of COVID.

And just in case you can’t read between the lines here, it’s basically an M4A Trojan Horse but with just enough difference to maintain enough deniability to still push it through and educate in the process. When Republicans finally inevitably complain that it is a Trojan Horse then we can point out how Bernie’s policy is actually much better because it solves the existing Medicare issues. Then we are that much closer to the public wanting to fix them as the dialogue grows.

Using every opportunity to educate is still our biggest factor to consider.

In that line of thought, Folks say that a huge margin of folks support Medicare for All and they cite a particular Fox News Poll, but the Poll actually asked if voters supported “government-run healthcare.” I assume they used inflammatory language thinking it would turn folks off but it backfired.

Medicare for All isn’t just a specific type of policy, it's a series of goalposts.

But the idea from the Poll and our policy are technically different things.

The end goal with all of this is to create an effective single-payer system and that would include needing to fold all the existing government programs into a single one as a method to cut costs and redundancy… the Pandemic creates an undeniably effective pathway for immediate action along this line of thinking, plus its the morally correct thing to do.

As far as I can tell, based on his approach to both the Democratic Party and healthcare, Bernie is following the rules of thermodynamics that state that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed… and this is what the transformation beginning would look like from where we are now.

This means we fight to keep it and improve on it until it looks like the policy outlined in Bernie’s Medicare for All policy plank. It’s an excellent policy even for folks who hate Bernie, they just need to read it.

This is not a diversion of policy, only of tactics.

Right now millions of people have lost their healthcare but at the same time, they are conditioned to want “insurance” and assurance is what we should give them that they can keep their insurance even if they lost it, so it’s in the name but it's “in name only.”

Doing This actually has a few benefits beyond just assuring folks and creating stability by keeping the phrasing within their conditioning, this also makes the insurance market think they might get their hands on it later… So, they should let it go as a temporary program now and possibly even help fight to extend it once they shift their profits.

I call this “Balloon-Payment” theory… they are putting off dealing with it today to deal with a bigger problem later… Most of these really problematic folks are money managers or investment bankers and they will ALWAYS take the balloon payment because in investments you quickly hand it off before the large payment is due to someone else but that mentality doesn’t work in politics because it doesn’t go away and it requires upkeep.

We can use that to our advantage.

This is precisely how we got the Super Delegate Reform done and the Delegates just voted at the convention for only two things, Joe Biden (bleh), and keeping the Super Delegate Reform in place… though it should be said it can be reopened in 2022 and that fight continues.

But most importantly, right now, time is of the essence.

Once these folks get their jobs with healthcare tied to it back then the window for a national push on this scale is closed. The Neoliberals and austerity pushers understand the timetable so they are trying to stall us until they can get the Pandemic under control and their investments protected…

Because their investments are all they care about.

The short version of this is if it works then we get healthcare while we fight for healthcare and our retroactive needs met… These are technically still largely undefined but that’s the point… It's a “fluid” strategy that has already had many hands on it, I expect there to be more… maybe even yours.

So, instead of forcing a single vote that may or may not happen, but certainly won’t pass, we can force a less threatening but equally valuable vote and attach it to a relief bill which is almost certainly going to pass in the immediate future, and if they won’t then we have the fuel to turn the lockstep Democrats against them.

Plus, Biden won’t veto single-payer if it starts like this as part of a larger relief package… if he does then he just looks like Trump does right now.

As a temporary program, it will happen more quickly immediately, more folks will get access, and there is a greater opportunity to make a better program more quickly long-term. Not to mention, if millions of folks suddenly have access to this network more doctors and providers will start accepting it, bringing the overall prices of Healthcare down as well.

For the budget-hawks, this is the most cost-effective way to administer care.
For the Trumpers, it’s built on Trump’s Executive Order to pay for the uninsured at Medicare prices…

And for the folks pushing FTV… You get to say that it was your drive for healthcare that opened the door to have this conversation…

And you know what, it would be true because it did.

Thank you, your work matters.

I cannot underscore the importance enough of understanding that everyone has a different role to play in the movement and we need all of them working together to reach the critical mass where the politicians will do a damn thing!

I hope we can come together because based on how Biden’s people plan to continue to try to use austerity to piecemeal our recovery, I assume we will be dealing with Relief packages all year. The only way to solve the problem is to institute the Progressive Agenda. It looks like we will get the opportunity but it will be piece by piece, bit by bit for the next eighteen months or more.

And at the end of it, either we get the progressive policy that is needed to get American and its people back on their feet, or they get well funded primary challengers with voters wanting to vote differently in the primary.

At this point, it's not even a better world we are fighting for, it's just one where everyone has the chance to survive.

Folks are simply not surviving to see the future…

And we deserve a future worth fighting for.

**Phase 4 has gone live — > https://bit.ly/3nI0yJH**

*EDIT

I have since added to this acronym… GET is General Emergency Tactics.

So we need to ‘GET REAL EPIC’ about the Pandemic.

You can follow Don Ford on Twitter for updates. https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon

You can also see the first strategy for Medicare For All before Bernie wrote his policy here… → https://bit.ly/2X32VMr

It’s come a long way since 2017 but the overall idea hasn't changed much.

Here are the phases so far…
Phase 1 & 2 → https://bit.ly/35z5Dh9
Phase 3 → https://bit.ly/38BWwhD
Phase 3.5 → https://bit.ly/3nBX0bR
Phase 4 → https://bit.ly/38NStz1

Over the last few days, I’m sure you heard the noise over a new relief bill.

First, we get nothing, then we have $600 and Trump suddenly demands $2000 per person and blows up the whole deal… or did he?

Trump did eventually sign the bill but Democrats immediately called what may or may not be a bluff. After months of frustration, the Dems finally have a path to action on a larger relief payment and they jumped on it…

But what does that mean for you?

Are you just a spectator in a game played by politicians in DC who have already shown us that they don’t give a damn?

Absolutely not.

This is a moment where we have to create a lot of public pressure very fast.

Bernie Sanders says that today he will freeze the Senate when they vote to overturn Trump’s Veto on the Defense Budget until they get a clean vote on the additional $1400, we say $2000 not to confuse anyone on the Senate floor.

He can hold the Senate business until the 1st.

What we do in that time will determine if we will push this through in this Senate session or if we are going to have to wait for Georgia’s runoffs.

Which BTW… if you are not making calls or dropping texts for Georgia, please consider doing so… And if you are volunteering, please add links to the comments. So far, 27% of registered voters have voted already, and things are looking strong for the Senate flipping control.

If the Senate flips then Biden, Pelosi, and the rest of the Democrats can’t hide behind the Republicans and they will be forced to vote and act the way they claim they would if the Republicans were not in the way.

But right now, let’s stay focused.

Relief Bills…

First off, the pressure we create rolls directly over into the pressure for Biden’s first relief bill… the UI Benefits were only extended for scant eleven weeks, and only ten after Trump lingered to sign, which means we will need a new bill almost immediately.

The push for that start right now, and we could cash out an extra $1400 for every American if we push hard enough in the next 24–48 hours.

Second… This is entirely separate from both the push for $2k Monthly payments and retroactive payments to the beginning of the Pandemic.

Depending on who you ask they can be different things but we should always direct folks to the bill put up by Markey, Sanders, and Harris that covers both.

It is currently up on the Vice-President Elects Website, this should be a slam dunk to get on Biden’s first bill should Dems retake the Senate.

Here is the link…

https://www.harris.senate.gov/news/press-releases/harris-sanders-markey-introduce-bill-to-provide-monthly-2000-payments-during-the-covid-19-crisis-

But even if we win in Georgia, then we still need 10 Republicans who will cross over to give us 60 votes and with 22 Senate Republicans up for election in ’22, it give us a unique opportunity IF we play our cards correctly.

We can’t wait to start building that pressure and each extra step they try to create to stall the process gives us an opportunity to twist the dagger a little more… until they give us what we want.

The next year is going to be an incremental process, there is no way around it. The Neoliberals are going to try to use austerity and it simply will not work.

We have to be prepared to make consistent demands that continuously gain us ground as the reality of the pandemic becomes more grave.

In the end, this has to be more about saving lives than it is advancing our agenda, though the two can, and should, be one and the same.

So, how do we create pressure and where do we put it?

The answer is surprisingly simple, so simple in fact that folks have to be reminded of it…

You have to make contact… have your voice heard, however you can.

Do literally anything except sit and wait for something to happen.

That means right now, today!

Everyone has a different role to play in this, but if you are still unsure that means first you start by making calls to the Senate offices in DC.

You can find a full list of their offices here …

Full list of Senator’s DC Phone contacts.

You can find the original FB post here…

Log into Facebook

Never done it before or don’t know what to say?

Just speak from the heart, don't be timid, and by the time you get through the list, you will have it worked out… But don’t worry because many of them have their phones turned to voicemail at this point…

So, then we move on to the next phase.

Direct in-person protest.

The Protest is one of the few things that we are still allowed to do during the Pandemic and please… do it as safely as possible, but we cannot let the politicians hide behind the very Pandemic we are seeking solutions from.

So, hear me out… The Protest will be the Concerts of 2021.

And it starts right here.

You can find a full list of the in-state offices here …

Full list of Senator’s in-state offices.

Now, this is where things can get really interesting because there is unlimited potential for organizing that can come from this.

For example, if you notice there are offices all over each state.

That means if you get a protest started at each office, you can link them together to form a statewide organization and begin creating the necessary infrastructure for a candidate to challenge your current Senator…

24 Senators, 22 Republicans, and 12 Democrats are up for reelection.

If you wanted to send a message, ’22 is your chance and it starts right now with these actions in the Senate today and backing Bernie on his move.

A proper inside/outside strategy works when you have someone like Bernie Sanders willing to step up and freeze the process to speak for the people… in that time, it’s our job to build power for his demands.

That’s how that strategy functions and we have a rare opportunity when a US Senator wants to take the risk and create space for activists to work.

Will you answer the call… or will you remain a spectator?

You can do standard signs… whatever non-violent protest you think is necessary to make the message clear… anything that will gain visibility.

If you can stay outside, it is safer there, and greater visibility.

If you can’t travel, support those who can. Anything goes a long way right now.

Sadly, Republican Senators will never listen, not until we are making their lives as uncomfortable as they are making ours… and the protests have to grow progressively more active until it becomes a well-funded challenger running against them with the people’s support.

That’s the only thing they fear.

Start at McConnell’s offices until he allows a vote and then hit every Republican who speaks out against it first… the more calls in one place the better… and don’t be afraid to fax.

Ron Johnson in Wisconsin voted against the $1200 Amendment, we can expect him to be a problem again… he is also up for reelection this year with a Democrat holding the other seat, he is extremely vulnerable.

Start with those two and then broaden your scope as each Republican Senator does anything that stands in opposition until they just let it go “this time”… and that’s all we need to build.

The phase of protesting after this involves protesting their homes and I definitely saw some addresses flying around claiming to be McConnell’s home address… so it’s already happening.

Demands start with forcing the vote in the Senate, then a “Yes” vote on the bill, then a push straight through with non-stop pressure until we make clear what we want in the next one…

And it's going to be Emergency Single-Payer.

We don’t have a lot of time, so go get ‘em.

I'll be back with more updates and strategy, but the big thought on hand is what are the needs/demands from Biden’s first relief bill and how can we make that happen? Anything you do now will make that easier later.

You can follow me on Twitter @ https://twitter.com/TheWordofDon