To: Interested Parties
From: Shasti Conrad, Chair, Washington State Democrats
Date: March 19, 2025
Good morning,
Big Picture
I have great empathy for my colleagues in red states who must feel like all they can do is catalogue the many outrages and crises caused by the Trump-Musk administration. Here in our Washington, we still have to grapple with these offenses, but we also can point to the great work that’s being done in our state by Democratic champions who are going above and beyond to keep this great state in good working order. Democrats in Washington state are wracking up accomplishments on housing affordability, public safety, and leading the charge in the courts to protect birthright citizenship, restore gender affirming care for young people, and block the gutting of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, protect research funding, provide oversight and accountability of DOGE, keep trans people in the military, block a federal funding freeze, as well as many others. While Republicans in D.C. tear apart entire communities and global norms, we can tell an authentic story of putting forward solutions to the problems people face every day.
This is further proof that what our state and nation need is more Washington state and less Washington, D.C. While the Republican trifecta in D.C. is focused on culture wars and dismantling the earned entitlements of our seniors and most vulnerable while the economy craters, Washington Democrats have put forward a vision of accountable government that uplifts our economy and communities at the same time.
Call to Action
- Hold Reps Newhouse and Baumgartner accountable
- Elect More Democrats to the U.S. House
- There’s a Special Election for 2 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives in Florida. We have the opportunity to use a low turnout election to cut into MAGA Mike Johnson’s majority, but we need everyone’s help. Write postcards, make phone calls, and more to help push the Democrats over the top in this April 1 election (no fooling!). Learn more on how to help Josh Weil and Gay Valimont here.
- Phonebank from home on Sundays to recruit volunteers and turn out voters in FL-01, FL-06, and NY-21. Democrats are only three seats away from a House majority. It’s a longshot, but in special elections the electorate looks a LOT different – help us win these seats here!
- Stop Elon Musk from Buying Wisconsin’s Supreme Court Seat
- Donate to Susan Crawford!
- Watch Video [Indivisible]
- Find ways you can help: write letters, make calls, make your own event
- Protect Trans Passport Access
- Submit comments to the U.S. Department of State on anti-trans changes to passport applications (e.g., no “X” gender marker). Make your voice heard!
- Learn more
- Submit Comments
Write Congress: Stop the Destruction of the Dept. of Education
Send email via form [NEA]
Protect the U.S. Department of Education: Stop Trump’s War on Children Send email via form [Network for Public Education Action]
- Rally, Protest, and Gather
- TODAY: Medicaid Saves Lives Rally (Issaquah) – Join Rep. Kim Schrier from Noon to 1PM at the Value Village Parking Lot. 5526 E. Lake Sammamish Pkwy, Issaquah, WA 98029
- TODAY: Medicaid Saves Lives Rally (Vancouver) – Deliver postcards to Rep. Glusenkamp-Perez’s Vancouver Office with Medicaid stories and thank her for voting against the Republican House Budget. Noon to 1PM.
- TODAY: Protect Us… No Cuts to Medicaid (Yakima) – March to Rep. Newhouse’s Yakima Office to leave photos or mementos of loved ones who rely on Medicaid. Noon to 1PM. 222 E. Yakima Ave. Yakima, WA 98901 (parking in the Olive Garden Parking Lot).
- TODAY: Protest Rep. Baumgartener’s Fundraiser – Rally and hold signs 3:30PM-4:30PM at German Hall. Organized by Indivisible. 25 Third Avenue, Spokane, WA.
- Thursday 3/20: The Resistance Lab – Join Rep. Pramila Jayapal for The Resistance Lab in Belltown, Seattle from 5PM-7PM. Sign up for details here.
- Saturday 3/22: Pancakes & Progress – Join Lewis County Democrats in Chehalis from 9AM to Noon for a pancake breakfast and share your ideas for Lewis County’s future. Purchase tickets here.
- Tuesday 3/25: Help us pack the Seattle Federal Courthouse at 10AM as oral arguments are heard in the lawsuit seeking to overturn Trump’s Trans Military Ban.
- Every Thursday – Seattle Indivisible hosts their Issue Advocacy Meetings every Thursday from 5PM-6PM. Sign up here
- Send us details on rallies and protests in your communities
- Email details to [email protected]
- Donate
If you would like to see less Washington D.C. and more Washington state in your community, please DONATE to The Real Washington Fund – our rapid response account to counter MAGA’s chaos with real organizing, real solutions, and real results. We can’t do the work of holding Republicans accountable without your support.
- Follow us on social media
Follow us on social media for up-to-the-minute updates and actions that can benefit your communities:
More Washington, Less Washington, D.C.
Earlier this month, we laid out some of the glaring contrasts between what’s going on in Trump-controlled Washington, D.C. against the progress we are fighting for here in Washington state. Here are some more data points showing the progress that is possible with Democratic majorities juxtaposed with the cruel and dangerous policies espoused by national Republicans (our local Republicans would love to do these things too, they just don’t have enough support to make them happen):
Public Safety
D.C.: Trump’s crackdown on “sanctuary cities” will curtail funds for criminal justice programs and harm morale among local police departments. Even the Fraternal Order of Police, which backed all of Trump’s campaigns, has come out against this cruel policy stance. As Trump politicizes the Department of Justice and erodes the rule of law, he is bending our justice system to become a political weapon to be used against his perceived enemies. The purge of DOJ and FBI officials is just the beginning of a cascading effort to install loyalists and target political opponents. The chilling arrest and detention of activist Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder who was not served a warrant for his arrest, is further evidence of the shredding of our constitutional rights before our eyes.
State: Democrats in Washington believe that everyone has a right to feel safe in their community and are making good on campaign promises to fund $100 million for police hiring and providing flexibility to cities to fund public safety expenses. Governor Ferguson has vowed to veto any budget that does not include funding for police hiring, providing strong support to ensure our communities have the resources necessary to keep residents safe. House Democrats in Olympia have also passed a bill requiring a new state permit to purchase guns while lawmakers in the senate passed legislation expanding the number of places where it’s illegal to carry guns and other weapons. Guns are the leading cause of death for young people and these measures will help us curtail the gun violence occurring throughout our state.
Environment
D.C.: EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin made “a major deregulatory move” that means U.S. policy will no longer consider greenhouse gases a threat to public health and human welfare. This science-betraying decision means that automobiles may become LESS fuel efficient, wastewater in coal plants will become more toxic, loosens restrictions on mercury and toxic air standards, and ends the mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. On top of that, Trump’s EPA is narrowing the scope of which waters fall under the purview of the Clean Water Act, basically giving polluters carte blanche to foul waterways and risking public health and safety. Further, the EPA also canceled $20 billion in climate grants and clean energy programs. These programs were designed to offer low-cost loans to businesses and developers for things like installing solar panels and making homes more energy efficient. The Trump EPA also intends to eliminate offices that are responsible for addressing the disproportionately high levels of pollution facing poor communities. Through EPA Administrator Zeldin’s other actions, it would appear they are trying to remove that disparity by increasing pollution for everyone else at the same time.
State: In Washington state, however, we have environmental champions like Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove. His first act as commissioner was to pause the sale of certain mature forests on state lands that provide crucial environmental benefits like cleaning our air and water and capturing carbon pollution from the atmosphere. Our state leads the world in sustainable forestry and Commissioner Upthegrove is helping us continue to blaze a trail that balances community and environmental needs in a healthier way. This year, our state senate passed legislation that would overhaul how Washington’s recycling system works, shifting costs towards the producers of wasteful packaging and away from consumers. This legislation would allow Washingtonians to not only recycle more types of items, but also pay less and in some cases, nothing at all, for the service. Washington’s carbon market is also continuing to benefit our state as polluters must pay more, funding investments in green energy infrastructure and community resilience programs.
Public Health
D.C.: Trump’s wholesale disruption of USAID programs means that hundreds of thousands of sick people with tuberculosis around the world can no longer find tests or pharmaceuticals – making them more likely to die and continue the spread of the disease. Trump’s nomination of pseudo-science grifter Dr. Oz to be Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Administrator is a betrayal of Americans who rely on these programs to access lifesaving care. Dr. Mehmet Oz doesn’t believe uninsured Americans have a right to healthcare and he has railed against the Affordable Care Act which ensures that the one-in-four Washingtonians with a pre-existing condition can access health insurance.
State: Meanwhile in our state, senate Democrats passed legislation that would exempt medical debt from appearing on credit reports. This crucial bill would make a difference in the lives of everyone who has gone into debt for medical reasons, ensuring that their access to credit for other necessities like buying a home, opening a business, or applying for a credit card is not harmed because at some point they got sick. Our senate also passed legislation that protects the privacy and mental health of young people using social media, acknowledging the potential harms that social media has for youth. Not to be outdone, our house members also passed legislation that will expand mental health coverage for all Washingtonians.
Education
D.C.: Trump’s unqualified pick to lead the Department of Education, billionaire and former pro wrestling promoter Linda McMahon, is slashing 1,400 employees from the department, supercharging worries about the impact on America’s 7.5 million special education students. Without these federal workers, parents will have no recourse if their children’s special needs are not being met by school districts.
State: Washington senate Democrats passed legislation that will pump $2 billion dollars into our state’s 295 school districts over the next four years. This legislation particularly singles our special education as a component of the basic education that our state has a constitutional duty to fund. Our senators also agreed to send an additional $200 million to school districts to cover materials, supplies, and operating costs – ensuring that our educators have what they need to meet the needs of individual students.
Storybanking – Send Us Your Stories
This week, we’re featuring Justin Gill, an urgent care nurse practitioner from Everett. Justin has an urgent message about the need for lifesaving programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act. When Trump officials take down websites with basic care guidance for diseases spreading in our communities, it hurts patients. Click the image above or go here to hear Justin tell it in his own words. Thank you for sharing your story, Justin!
Are you a federal employee who received an email saying you could be offered a buyout or that you were terminated without notice? Do you work at a research institution or non-governmental organization and have had your federal funding yanked away? Was someone in your family denied gender-affirming healthcare? We need your stories.
The best way to persuade people about the horrible impacts of Trump’s chaos is to share real stories from real people in their communities. If you are interested in sharing your story of the direct impacts of Trump 2.0 on your life, please send an email to [email protected] that includes your name, contact information, which Washington community you reside in, the story you would like to share, and permission to share your story with the public.
Our Communications team will be in touch within a few business days after you have reached out to help collect your story.
Senator Cantwell and Murray have also asked for help finding stories like these. Please be sure to note that you want your story told and be as detailed as possible. You can share your stories with our U.S. Senators here:
In the News
The Seattle Times: Gov. Ferguson is treating failing ferry system like the crisis it is
The Chronicle: Glusenkamp Perez, colleagues urge U.S. Forest Service to reinstate fired employees
The Seattle Times: Trump administration takes aim at bike lanes, other WA projects
The Seattle Times: WA Parents’ Bill of Rights advances out of House after heated debate
CBS News: Weather officials warn additional NOAA job cuts could put ‘communities in harms way’
Axios: Hoh Rain Forest could reopen in May with new road repair plan
Axios: These states could suffer the most without FEMA
For more information or to get involved, please contact Shasti Conrad at [email protected].
