Americans for Democratic Action
Fighting for progress and resisting reaction since 1947
ADA: Updates (via Facebook)
The corporate tax rate was 34% under Reagan, and remained at 35% for decades before Trump slashed it to 21% in one fell swoop. In 2018 after Trump’s tax cut, corporations paid an effective rate of just 7.8%.![]()
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@POTUS is right to raise the corporate tax rate to 28%.![]()
www.politico.com/news/2021/03/22/corporate-tax-rate-plunged-gop-overhaul-477485
We recognize that an ADA liberal is highly unlikely to be elected in Louisiana’s 3rd Congressional District. However, we still want to shine a spotlight on its Member of Congress, Clay Higgins, because we believe he is a founding member of the GOP whacko caucus and a prime example of why ADA’s work to expand liberal representation in the House of Representatives is so very essential.![]()
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Clay Higgins won a run-off election in 2016 and, in the years since, has amassed a lifetime ADA Voting Record of 0%! He is an ardent supporter of the Keystone XL pipeline and has been vocal in his opposition to the Biden clean air and energy proposals. He opposes implementation of the Paris Accords’ ban on oil and gas exploration. And, like his fellow Republicans, opposed the COVID relief package even while extolling some of its benefits.![]()
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But, it is opposition to sensible gun control laws and the reasoning behind that opposition that truly make him stand out. Even though the vast majority of Americans support more reasonable gun control laws, Congressman Higgins turns to the Bible to suggest that such laws are not needed and would not prevent gun-related violence because murder is in the Bible. To justify that view, he cites Cain’s killing of Abel, To quote the Congressman, “…laws designed to restrict Second Amendment rights and freedoms are about a veil to conceal the violence of man born since Adam, firstborn son of Adam killed his brother, in a violent rage. I’m rather certain he did not use a firearm. The Second Amendment protections that we have as American citizens not shall be infringed. Remember these words, and that they are born of a nation that recognized our service to our Lord.” ![]()
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With all due respect to the Congressman, we suggest he make his way past Genesis further into the Bible to the 10 Commandments, specifically the 6th which states, “Thou shalt not murder.” And, then, if it isn’t too taxing for him, we suggest a review of the U.S. Constitution and the separation of Church and State.![]()
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We promise you, Americans for Democratic Action will do everything in our power to minimize the impact of Congressman Higgins and his ilk by expanding the number of sensible, liberal Members of the House of Representatives. These people need to be marginalized. We sincerely hope you will join us in this effort. act.myngp.com/Forms/-5067392906210312192
President Biden’s American Jobs Plan creates jobs, expands critical homecare services, and finally addresses the nation’s crumbling roads, bridges, and schools. 🏗🚄👷♂️![]()
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This is exactly what millions of families across the country need. Let’s get it done! #AmericanJobsPlan
MORE THAN 80 GROUPS PLEDGE SUPPORT OF BIDEN’S BOLD & EQUITABLE BUILD BACK BETTER INVESTMENT & TAX AGENDA. americansfortaxfairness.org/issue/80-groups-pledge-support-bidens-bold-equitable-build-back-bette...
March for $15! Today ADA lead a coalition in Iowa to march on the Waterloo and Cedar Rapids offices of Republican Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, Senator Chuck Grassley, and Senator Joni Ernst demanding support for the Raise the Wage Act! ![]()
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463,000 working class Iowans need this raise, because right now many of them struggle too hard to get by.![]()
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ADA went live on the KWWL 5 o'clock news in Iowa tonight and held these Republicans accountable for standing in the way of the raise Americans desperately need.![]()
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You can support the valuable organizing ADA is doing in places like Iowa with your donation today. ![]()
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adaction.org/donate/one-time-contribution-to-ada/
If you are looking for the definition of a swing district, look no further than Iowa’s 1st Congressional District. ADA is very familiar with Iowa’s 1st because it happens to be home to long time ADA organizer Chris Schwartz who has been working in the district and around the state on behalf of ADA since 2006. In that time ADA has played a major role in twice flipping the district. First, after Republican Congressman Jim Nussle mounted a failed bid for Governor of Iowa, we were able to help elect progressive Congressman Bruce Braley. Braley held that seat until unsuccessfully running for U.S Senate in 2014. His seat would be taken by Tea Party Republican Rod Blum. ADA worked hard for four years to replace Blum and did so in 2018 when we helped elect Abby Finkenauer, the 2nd youngest women to ever serve in Congress. In 2020, boosted by Trump on the ballot, Finkenauer lost her seat to Republican Congresswoman Ashley Hinson whose victory was fueled by the popularity of Trump in Iowa’s more rural communities.![]()
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Hinson, a former anchorperson for KCRG, Eastern Iowa’s ABC affiliate, first served in the Iowa House of Representatives after being elected in 2016. Her tenure in the Iowa legislature includes voting with the Republicans to take away and block local increases to the minimum wage, limit absentee voting, and pass a voter ID bill.![]()
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During the course of the election, she ran two simultaneous campaigns. One campaign presented her as a reasonable bi-partisan problem solver who was ready to work with anyone in the service of Iowa. The other was a divisive, ugly ad campaign about socialism, communist China, and riots in the streets. For the record, there were no mass riots in the streets of Iowa’s 1st Congressional district during the summer of 2020. Nonetheless, her fearmongering was enough to scare Iowa’s rural voters.![]()
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During her first few months in Congress, it is the divisive, fearmongering Hinson that has been on display. She is rapidly gaining a reputation for talking out of both sides of her mouth. As she condemns the violent insurrection that took place on January 6th, she continues to perpetuate the big lie that casts doubt on the integrity of the 2020 election. Despite saying over and over that she is an ally to LGBTQ people, she voted against the Equality Act. She, like many other Republicans, is now trying to take credit for the many popular ways the American Rescue Plan helps Iowa families even though she voted no on the bill. She has even called raising the minimum wage divisive, despite the fact that it would raise the incomes of 463,000 workers, about 30% of the Iowa’s workforce. ![]()
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Iowa’s 1st CD is a mixture of medium sized cities, a few micropolitan areas, and rural communities. It is home to Iowa’s 2nd largest city Cedar Rapids, and Iowa’s most diverse city Waterloo. It is also home to Dubuque, an old labor town that had long been a Democratic stronghold but in 2016 Dubuque County turned red for the first time since the 1960’s. The Mississippi Valley counties in Eastern Iowa account for some of the largest Obama to Trump swing counties in the nation. ![]()
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Like many other midwestern communities, the politics of Iowa’s first Congressional District are shaped by the lingering effects of NAFTA that took away good paying blue collar jobs, Also in play are issues of race and racism, once great public schools that are now suffering after years of underfunding, climate change and historic flooding, increasingly corporatized farming that squeezes family farmers out, and a crumbling infrastructure.![]()
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ADA will continue to lead efforts to ensure progressive representation in Congress and an agenda that brings along all of Eastern Iowa’s working families. In fact we will be at Congresswoman Hinson’s Waterloo and Cedar Rapids offices on Monday, March 29th challenging her opposition to raising the minimum wage. Please join us in holding Hinson’s feet to the fire and, ultimately, replacing her with a liberal candidate who will truly serve the people of Iowa’s 1st Congressional District. ![]()
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Follow the ADA Spotlight on the 2022 Midterm Elections page to stay updated on ADA's electoral activity. Thank you, once again, for your on-going support. Time and again, it has been the margin of victory. act.myngp.com/Forms/-6868832757158510592
This is beyond disgusting. Congress must pass the For the People Act and the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act by any means necessary, and now!
www.washingtonpost.com
Republicans said the measure necessary to shore up confidence in the state’s elections. Critics countered it will lead to longer lines, partisan control of elections and more difficult procedures for voters trying to cast their ballots by mail. We now have a new definition of chutzpah. With an ADA lifetime voting record of 1.6%, Wisconsin GOP Senator Ron Johnson would already be at the top of our list of those up for election in 2022 that need to be replaced. It is safe to say, however, that in the wake of the January 6th insurrection at the Capitol, he has fallen off the rails totally.![]()
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The state that elected Scott Walker as Governor also elected Ron Johnson in 2010 and re-elected him in 2016, both times defeating former Democratic Senator Russ Feingold. But, Walker is gone and we have high hopes that a similar fate awaits Senator Johnson.![]()
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Johnson is a staunch ally of President Trump and, like Trump, supports wild conspiracy theories. He rejects the science behind climate change, has voted several times to repeal the Affordable Care Act and pushes fringe theories about Covid-19. And, that’s only the tip of the iceberg.![]()
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It is, however, in the aftermath of January 6, that he outrageously bent the truth to the advantage of his dangerous theories about what happened and fanning the flames of racism. He has suggested, obviously without proof, that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was behind the riots. To what end we are not sure and surely he saw videos of those calling for her execution and ransacking her office. Really?!!! Presumably, these were the left wing “fake” Trump supporters that the FBI couldn’t find. ![]()
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Then, to add insult to injury, Senator Johnson piled on saying he “never felt threatened” by the mob storming the seat of our government because, “I knew those are people that love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law, so, I wasn’t concerned.” We don’t know what planet Senator Johnson is on but those respecters of law enforcement were violent people who destroyed property and set up a situation where several people (including a law enforcement officer and some of their own) died. That is not our definition of patriotism no matter what he says. He added that had those people been from the Black Lives Matter movement or antifa, “I might have been a little concerned.”![]()
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Now, he claims his statements weren’t racist and he is being misunderstood. He claims the “left” is out to pillory him and wants nothing more than to silence him. In short, he is playing the victim. This has to be the ultimate definition of chutzpah and we will call it what it is. ![]()
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No matter what his ultimate plans are, this ill-informed, dangerous Senator needs to be replaced and this race will be at the top of our list for attention as the 2022 elections heat up. We hope you will join us in this effort and make Senator Johnson’s statement accurate: He needs to be silent.![]()
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Follow the ADA Spotlight on the 2022 Midterm Elections page to stay updated on ADA's electoral activity. Thank you, once again, for your on-going support. Time and again, it has been the margin of victory. act.myngp.com/Forms/4516267100834103296
The United States is home to a diverse and vibrant Asian American community. We must all do our part, through actions big and small to stand-up to a rising tide of hatred and violence against our Asian American community.
The steady drum beat of bigotry and otherism has deadly consequences. The politicians engaged in it, whether directly or for political expediency, need to step aside or be ousted. ADA looks forward to working with you to make sure it happens.
Asian Americans see shooting as a culmination of a year of racism
www.washingtonpost.com
Fear gripped the Asian American and Pacific Islander community after the Georgia shooting. In case you missed it, we've lost another liberal champion. Former ADA National Chairperson Joe Duffey. Take a look at the excellent article in the NY Times below.
Joseph D. Duffey, 88, Dies; Apostle of Liberalism and Humanities
www.nytimes.com
His 1970 Senate race in Connecticut energized antiwar progressives. He later served two presidents and headed universities in Massachusetts and Washington.ADA: What You Should Know
ADA Vote 2022
Visit ADA's 2022 Election Resources Page.
ADA Mourns the Passing of Joe Duffey, former ADA National Chairperson
Joe was a champion of liberal causes and a loyal ADA member throughout. Take a look at the articles in the NY Times and Washington Post on his passing. RIP Joe.
Expel Rep. Boebert (R-CO)
In light of reports that Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO) on January 6 directed domestic terrorists to the location of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and on January 12 forced her way past security and onto the floor of the House of Representatives while carrying a gun, Americans for Democratic Action calls upon the House Ethics Committee to immediately convene an inquiry into her actions with the possibility of expelling her from the House of Representatives.
ADA Convention sets agenda
January 15-17, 2021 ADA activists from around the country gathered via Zoom to share ideas, hear from experts, and set ADA's agenda for progress.
Congrats to President-elect Biden and VP-elect Harris!
PDF HERE November 7. 2020 President-elect Joseph Biden Vice President-elect Kamala Harris Biden Transition Congratulations, President-elect Joe Biden and Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris. Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) was proud to endorse your campaign and...
The American Commentator
Through feature articles, essays, interviews, personal remembrances, and reviews, we seek to promote a stimulating dialogue about liberal ideas and ideals among ADA members and friends.
ADA Awards Gala Video
Enjoy the video and please make a donation to ADA's work to #DitchMitch and #DumpTrump. You can also Text ADA2020 to 202-796-2201.
ADA Voting Record
ADA's Latest Voting Record is online now.
Covid-19 Resources
Check out updates, information, and actions related to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic.
ADA Fireside Chats
ADA is doing weekly Fireside Chats on different topics. Join us at 8pm eastern. CLICK HERE TO WATCH LIVE or on ADA's Facebook Page HERE. View last week's ADA Fireside Chat HERE.
ADA Time Machine
Check out this interesting exchange between Daniel Patrick Moynihan and John Kenneth Galbraith about ADA Membership. https://adaction.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ADAGalbraithMoynihan1970.pdf
Check back from time to time to see other ADA History.
How has Congressional partisanship evolved?
A researcher in London has used ADA Voting Records over the past 70 years to create a tool that shows all sorts of interactive information on partisanship trends. Check out the tool HERE.