Trump and his ICE gestapo, lying to the American people about the illegality of their mass deportation activities, continue to run roughshod over the Constitution, the rule of law, and the right to due process the courts insist they obey—sending noncitizens and citizens to El Salvador gulogs to be tortured and even killed, improperly detaining and deporting families seeking asylum, plucking foreign students and faculty off the streets and trying to deport them because Trump dislikes their opinions, and using underhanded, illegal methods to convince noncitizens to self-deport.

While the Trump administration has not yet implemented the dangerous Insurrection Act, we must prepare for this eventuality by constructing a detailed response to prevent fear tactics from dividing us and by being ready to demand our MOCs immediately challenge this abuse of power.

Trump and the MAGA Republicans continue their fascist power grab: ruling by the bullies, for the billionaires. Their reconciliation bill will give massive tax cuts to billionaires, further bloat the military, and pay for more kidnappings and deportations.  To fund it, they intend to deprive Americans of the basic necessities we need to prosper. Their bill slashes food and health programs, causing thousands of preventable deaths. Meanwhile they continue to kidnap our neighbors and send them to gulags in El Salvador. This is not the America we want to live in. Our Members of Congress must use all legislative and performative tools available to whip up popular resistance to its many atrocities and prevent its passage.

Trump and his MAGA Congressional allies have used unproven charges of systemic anti-Semitism and “illegal protests” on campus to stifle dissent and try to turn universities into the ideological arm of their authoritarian state-in-the-making. The administration’s unlawful, unprecedented misuse of federal funding and civil rights enforcement authority to undermine academic freedom and free speech on university campuses must be challenged. Congress cannot allow these pernicious attacks to continue.

By terrorizing lawyers who represent clients or causes Trump dislikes, he’s threatening to undermine our entire legal system and our personal right to zealous representation by the attorney of our choice which is protected by the First, Fifth and Sixth Amendments. There can be no independent legal profession if fear of retribution makes lawyers too afraid to represent clients in claims against the federal government or the ruling party. More importantly, there can be no democracy where lawyers are punished and lambasted simply for representing clients opposed to this cruel administration.

Despite Trump’s claim to support peace negotiations,  he’s sided with Putin’s unprovoked war against Ukraine, which has destroyed vast areas of the country and caused the deaths of at least 46,000 soldiers and 12,000 civilians—spewing out Moscow’s propaganda, cutting military aid to Ukraine, calling Zelensky a dictator, and alienating our NATO allies who steadfastly support Ukraine’s survival. Congress must strongly reiterate its opposition to Putin’s ruthless expansionism and support  for Ukraine’s defense of its sovereignty.

Donald Trump is drunk on power and unleashing economic chaos on the US and the world. His illegal use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose shifting tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China, based on a fabricated national emergency, must be blocked, and Congress must reassert its power over trade policy.

Political parties court your vote; authoritarian regimes prevent you from voting altogether. With Trump’s unconstitutional Executive Order and the SAVE Act, the MAGA regime’s rewriting the voting eligibility rules to silence the voices of veterans, seniors, students, working families, and communities of color because they don’t want us to have a say in decisions affecting our lives. We cannot let this happen.

Two weeks ago, Schumer’s Democratic Caucus had the chance, by playing procedural hardball, to signal their opposition to Trump/Musk’s usurpation of Congress’ spending power and possibly to slow their radical anti-government agenda. Instead, they facilitated, rather than opposed, Project 2025’s and Trump/Musk’s plans to dismantle, loot, and privatize the federal government.

We need leaders who understand the emergency we’re in, are willing to engage with the realities of the present and can match the fervor of the ordinary Americans rising up to defend our communities, our constitution, our democracy, and our way of life—and the first step down this path is finding new leaders.

 Our MoCs in both chambers need to hear every day that Schumer must go. During these calls, let’s also thank our Democratic Representatives for courageously rejecting the MAGA playbook and urge them to keep fighting to protect us.

On Tuesday, we learned that National Security Advisor Waltz had set up a group chat over Signal, a commercial messaging app not approved for national security use, that somehow included a reporter without security clearance, during which he, DOD Secretary Hegseth, V-P Vance, and other Cabinet members casually discussed secret war plans to attack the Houthis in Yemen on March 15. 

 As your constituent, I demand that you call for Pete Hegseth’s and Michael Waltz’s immediate resignation. Their actions have put our country and our armed forces at risk and immediate accountability is needed. If they refuse to resign, you must call for their impeachment. Since Congress is a coequal branch of government, you must also demand Congressional oversight hearings—investigating what other operations they may have exposed, what servicemembers they may have endangered, and what records they may have destroyed.

No matter our race, gender or background, we want our kids to have the freedom to learn and become whatever they desire. By destroying the Department of Education, Trump is doing the bidding of the billionaires who bought his way to power. When we remain united, we can defeat them.

The Trump administration’s use of antisemitism claims to punish Columbia University students and the University itself—a re-packaging of McCarthyism—is a test case to determine how hard it will be to create a fascist, Christian nationalist state. To stop this authoritarian takeover, we must expose Trump’s real motivation—to strictly control speech, protest, and higher education. We cannot let this happen.

On Friday, 10 Senate Democrats, led by Minority Leader Schumer, Minority Whip Durbin, Chief Deputy Whip Schatz, and Sen Gillibrand, the DSCC Chair, banded together with 6 other spineless colleagues to support passage of a 6-month continuing resolution (CR) allowing Musk and Trump to close down even more of our government for the remainder of the fiscal year. In doing so, they not only abandoned the people they swore to represent, but they probably gave up Democrats’ only chance to push back against the damage Trump and Musk are causing—since Republicans will likely include the debt-limit increase in the budget reconciliation bill  that’s filibuster-proof. Republicans now know they can get what they want without concessions, making the next bill even worse. Because these leaders are clearly out of touch with what the American people want and need, they must be replaced immediately.

Thank you for standing with the American people, but I also need you to demand new leadership that will mold Senate Democrats into a true opposition force. 

On Tuesday the House voted 217-213 to approve Trump’s version of funding the government through the end of September. Unlike previous continuing resolutions, this bill is not “clean” because it decreases nondefense spending by $13 billion and adds $6 billion for immigration enforcement and defense. More importantly, rather than slowing down or eliminating Trump and Musk’s assault on federal programs and agencies, it gives them even more leeway to shutoff and repurpose federal funding as they see fit. It also gives Trump unchecked trade war powers.

This disgraceful continuing resolution will be up for a vote in the Senate shortly, and I am calling on my Senators to work tirelessly to ensure that the Senate successfully filibusters it. Democrats must stand firm, using their leverage to hold out for a government funding deal that includes ironclad protections to stop Trump and Musk from hijacking federal spending.