Each day brings fresh outrage courtesy of the Trump regime. This presents a challenge. It can be difficult to know where to start. Is the impact of our actions diluted if we take on too many issues at once? Is egregious misconduct given a pass when we try to prioritize and single out one or two or three most pressing issues of the moment?
The smear campaign against Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D–MN) strikes a special chord. It was ugly and vile from the outset, and it gets uglier and more vile by the tweet. I was happy to hear several individuals speak up on behalf of Ilhan Omar at today's Indivisible Tuesday meeting with representatives from the Portland office of Senator Jeff Merkley.
Omar does nothing to change my favorable impression of her in a recent appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. At the end of the interview, Colbert mentioned the advice that new members of Congress should go slow, backbench it, don't make waves until they learn the ropes. Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Rashida Tlaib are typically singled out when this advice is offered. Perhaps it is coincidence that they are outspoken women, people of color, and in the case of Omar and Tlaib, Muslims. Omar's response was that women have been told to go slow and not be seen and not be heard for many years. "We are not there to be quiet," she said. "We are not there to be invisible. We are there to follow the lead of people like Congressman John Lewis and make good trouble."
Today Indivisible Oregon asked Senator Merkley to call for Stephen Miller's immediate resignation, support House committee subpoenas of Miller, and work to pass laws to stop DHS’s illegal and cruel policies, especially the REUNITE Act and Families Not Facilities Act. One of our number mentioned that a friend from Rhode Island recently told her that we have the best senators. She will get no argument from me.
One Small Thing PDX has a nifty legislative task force that has gathered information and offers recommendations on bills proposed during the 2019 session of the Oregon State Legislature. This excellent resource is available on the group's website.
Let's make good trouble.
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Keep the faith.