Good morning fellow Democrats. Yes, it is Monday again. What is the topic of the week? Or should I say, topic of the hour. Would it be taking control of all the personal information at the Treasury Department and the real possibility of exposing your banking information to hackers and foreign entities. Would it be the dismantling of USAID and the harm it is doing to US farmers and meat producers, (who do you think produces and is paid for that food sent offshore) not to mention AIDS and Ebola victims overseas. Could it be the destruction of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the agency that protects consumers from banking and credit card abuse. Maybe it would be Pam Bondi, the newly minted Attorney General, who has stated that the Justice Department will essentially stop prosecuting white collar crime. Whatever we choose to discuss on Monday, it will have happened sometime last week and it may be considered old news! That is basically because they are throwing crap at us in volume and with speed to confound and confuse us.
We will discuss the disgusting things the Trump Administration is doing. Plenty of their decisions have been misogynistic and racist in nature, even though their response is just denial. For now, I think our best chance of real pushback is Trump’s gift that just keeps on giving, Elon Musk! You can present to anyone, friend or foe, without any partisan action at all, that Musk was not voted on for anything, does not have a security clearance, has obvious conflicts of interest, and has not passed Congressional muster, and neither has anyone in his ‘squad’. The question should be, do you really think this person should have access to your personal identification, banking and health records? What could possibly go wrong? They have not proven any fraud or waste, they have just taken a wrecking ball to essential services. You may not get an answer, just a hubba bubba. But when confronted with the idea that their personal information may be exposed to bad guys, at least you made them think. It’s not much, but it hits back, and it doesn’t use the word Trump.
Maybe we should look at ways to be more positive. There are things we can do to help Democrats. The first one I have for you is an email from Thomas O’Brian of Lancaster County. They think they have a State Senate Seat that can be flipped. Below is his email to me asking for help. Click on the link to volunteer. Maybe we can help them do that!
Dear fellow county chairs,
We’re writing today to ask for your help. As you may know, we have a critical State Senate election here in the 36th district in northern Lancaster County, on March 25. Our candidate is James Andrew Malone, who currently serves as the Mayor of East Petersburg.
We believe there is a path to flip this seat, but it will take us turning out a whole lot of Democrats in the district, and we only have 7 weeks to do it. Governor Shapiro did narrowly win this district in 2022. We’ve been in contact with the team that recently flipped a State Senate seat in Iowa, and we believe we have a game plan that works. To implement it, we need to contact a lot of voters in a short amount of time.
We’re asking specifically if you can share with your committees and volunteers and ask folks to take a phone banking or in person canvassing shift. Many people are worried right now, and this is a way to turn that worry into action. Here are the Mobilize links for phone banking, canvassing, and other volunteer opportunities.
https://www.mobilize.us/lancastercountydems/
We appreciate your support.
Sincerely,
Tom O’Brien, Chair 717-575-5180
The second thing happening this week is our first discussion group meeting at 7pm Wednesday, Feb 12. This first session will be led by Patrick Fleckenstein. The topic will be the effects of billionaires in government. There will be a presentation by Pat followed by a Q&A and a discussion session. This is intended to be informative and educational and should provide fodder for contacting elected officials and LTE. It seems a little old school, but the more we push back in a positive way, the better it is. This is not group letter construction but information to produce individual content. We could all learn more. Another way to push is for us to flood the capital switchboard with calls. Our individual voices will not be heard but pressure will be applied.
Third and maybe the most important is our petition signing and meet the Judges event at the office, March 2nd, from 1-2:30pm. Need I remind everyone how important judges are. We failed to elect Hillary Clinton in 2016, and the Supreme Court we have is the result of that failure. Please come support these judicial candidates and the retention candidates. This is more important than you may realize. The future of individual rights in Pennsylvania is on the line.
One last item. There are several seats up this cycle at the county level, boro councils, school boards, and township supervisors. Candidates for local positions are as important as State and Federal positions. Local jobs is how we build a bench for the future. If you lose, so what. We must let them know we are here.
Participate, Donate, Vote.
John Huot, JeffDems Chair
Donations Needed and Accepted
The Jefferson County Democratic Committee (JeffDems) is funded primarily through local donations. We rely on the generosity of local Democrats to enable all our initiatives, including our year-round Office/HQ which functions as “JeffDems Central.” Please start a monthly recurring donation to JeffDems, large or small, using the ActBlue link below, or of course, one-time donation checks are welcome! Contribute so that your County Committee can do more on your behalf. Thank you!
“Jefferson County Democratic Committee”
c/o Steve Larchuk, Treasurer
PO Box 266
Punxsutawney, PA 15767
or use ActBlue I just gave to Jefferson County Democratic Committee.(PA)!
CALENDAR
*January and into 2025: Continuing need for volunteer time
– Office hours will continue through December and into the new year. Post election hours are to be determined. It is important that we remain active and have a presence in the community.
*February 12 and 15: Office Hours Resume
– 2-5-2025 4-7pm and 2-8-2925 12-3pm
*February 12: Discussion Group 7pm
-The effects of billionaires on our Government
*March 2: Petition Signing and Judge Meet and Greet
– In the office 1pm – 2:30pm State-wide Court Justices will be present to meet and discuss why it is important to retain them. There will be petitions to sign
