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Conservatives,
Before we jump in, I just wanted to make sure you saw yesterday's "No Police, No Peace" billboard rollout. Many of you have already reached out to say that you’ve seen them. If you get a chance, take a picture of the billboards and share on social media with the hashtag #StandWithPolice (and flag for your regional coordinator). See all billboard locations here. On last night’s strategy call, we were joined by special guest Chris Rufo, who is a Visiting Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, and the director of the Center on Wealth & Poverty at the Discovery Institute. He shared what Sentinels need to know about critical race theory. You can follow Chris Rufo on Twitter at: @realchrisrufo. Heritage Action Vice President Garrett Bess also updated us on what to expect from Congress the next few weeks. Messaging Bills: Congress is back in session for the first time since July. Over the next few weeks, they will largely be voting on “messaging bills.” This week Congress will vote on bills themed on diversity, including the Strength in Diversity Act of 2020 (H.R. 2639), Equity and Inclusion Enforcement Act of 2019 (H.R. 2574), and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.R. 2694). While some bills are legitimate attempts to legislate, others are designed to serve a “messaging” goal. Messaging bills do a couple of different things. They either address a broad theme designed to highlight a campaign issue, highlight an issue that drives a wedge among one of the political parties, or helps the re-election efforts of a specific member of Congress who sponsored the bill. Bills To Watch: There are two bills coming up for vote in the House next week that Sentinels should be watching. Marijuana Decriminalization: Currently the use, sale or distribution of marijuana is illegal under federal law. The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act (HR 3884) would decriminalize the use, distribution and manufacturing of marijuana. While it technically does not make marijuana legal, it would take away criminal penalties for distribution—implicitly legalizing the drug. While Democrats are not bold enough to fully legalize marijuana, they do want to tax it. The bill would make way for them to tax a technically illegal activity. It also demands the courts vacate sentences for those currently serving prison sentences under existing federal law, and release them from prison. Regardless of someone’s view of how to approach marijuana laws, this bill is a terrible way to make policy. Sentinels should urge their members of Congress to oppose this bill. Government Funding: Funding for the federal government will expire on October 1st. While Sentinel pressure has helped sideline bad deals on coronavirus legislation over the summer, there may be a push to attach coronavirus spending to upcoming must-pass legislation. Democrats are putting pressure on Speaker Pelosi. They are hoping either to pass stand-alone bills on single-issues like extending the additional $600/week in unemployment insurance, and state bailouts, or to vote on some kind of package deal. We will be further developing our strategy this week. We are expecting a vote on government funding to happen next week. Watch for an action alert either later this week, or early next week. Critical Race Theory: There is a direct line from Critical Race Theory (CRT) to the violence we see on the streets today. It’s no exaggeration to say the philosophical underpinning of the Black Lives Matter institutions are rooted in CRT. We are seeing the philosophy move from academia into the streets with disastrous consequences. CRT argues that we must deconstruct institutions to achieve equity or equality. It focuses on tribal identities and equity between groups, rather than individuals. It sees power as distributed based on color of skin, gender, and sexual orientation -- rather than someone’s standing as an individual. Intersectionality is a term to capture the idea that there is a formula for determining someone’s identity. If you view a person as a collection of identity traits, it requires a formula for determining whether they are the oppressor or oppressed. While CRT trainings, in theory, are to create social justice, in reality they endorse segregation. White individuals do one training, while black individuals are separated into another training. Chris exposed one such training in Seattle. It was also discovered that several federal agencies were conducting critical race theory trainings. Once President Trump was made aware, agencies were directed to halt trainings. CRT is divisive and seeks to undermine the institutional foundations of the United States. Here are how Sentinels can fight back in their communities. 1. Understand CRT and how to refute it. Here are some resources for additional reading:
Fighting for America means holding our education institutions accountable. The first step in accountability is getting someone on the record. Start by finding out what textbooks your school is using to teach history. Ask a local family, teacher, school board member, or—if necessary—make an open records request. Establish what curriculum is being taught in your community, and whether or not it promotes damaging ideologies like critical race theory and the 1619 project. Then, hold your elected officials accountable. >> Share your findings with Heritage Action at https://heritageaction.com/ Janae Stracke Grassroots Director Heritage Action P.S. Don’t forget to join us for tomorrow’s #StandWithPolice Tweetfest from 1 pm – 3 pm ET! (If you don’t have Twitter, then share on Facebook or Instagram) |
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