RFS feel-good update (3/24): It's not rocket science - it's strategy

If we play dead, we'll be dead.

Hi all -

First, I wanted to say thank you to the folks who reached out after seeing my latest piece — ICYMI, I published an op-ed in the Daily Beast, making the case to Democrats to fight back — explaining that in order to tank Trump’s approval rating, we need to draw attention to the horrible shit he’s doing, and the way to get attention right now is through conflict. We have to generate conflict! This is not rocket science. It’s just strategy.

Early Thursday morning, I joined CNN’s Audie Cornish for a few minutes to chat about it — then in the evening, I joined Chris Hayes on MSNBC to explain: There are people fighting back. We’re still averaging around 500 new people signing up to run for office each day — an unbelievable pace.

We’re ready to help them all. Tomorrow night we’re hosting our latest candidate intro call — if you want to learn more about what Run for Something does, this is a great one to join.

This work has never been more important. We’re going to keep bringing new leadership into the party and our democracy and make sure they have everything they need to succeed. Your support makes that possible.

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In RFS community updates:

• Dauphin County Commissioner (PA) Justin Douglas is speaking out about ICE detaining five Bhutanese Nepali members of the community.

• A big win for gun safety in Alabama, led by Rep. Phillip Ensler: Both chambers have now passed a ban on devices that convert semi-automatic weapons into machine guns.

• This is a fun new ad from one of our current candidates, Anthony Tordillos, who’s running for San Jose City Council.

  

• NY Assemblymember Alex Bores has a masters degree in computer science, worked for four years at Palantir (before quitting due to concerns about the company’s work with ICE), and now represents Manhattan’s east side in the state assembly — he’s exactly who we want leading on legislation to help regulate AI, something he intimately understands.

• This is a fascinating convo with Washtenaw County Sheriff Alyshia Dyer on the change she’s brought to her job just a few months in.

• IA Sen. Matt Blake, who flipped a seat red to blue in 2024, explained at a town hall: “They were worried about people in bathrooms and worried about people in sports, so what does housing and access to financing have to do with sports?" Blake asked. "Nothing!" a crowd member yelled in response.”

• The PA House passed Rep. La’Tasha D. Mayes’ bill prohibiting discrimination based on hair or hairstyles.

• Also in PA: Rep. Jennifer O’Mara is leading on legislation to close the gender pay gap in the state by prohibiting employers from paying workers less due to gender, race, or ethnicity, and barring prospective employers from using an applicant’s pay history to set their wages.

• This is a great overview of LA City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado’s first 100 days in office — including her work to bring more street lights to her district, her community outreach efforts, and how folks on the ground are feeling so far.

• CO Sen. Lindsey Daugherty is one of the lead sponsors of legislation to ensure abortion access for people getting health care through the state — an effort that could save the state half a million dollars a year, if not more.

• NYC Councilmember Amanda Farias makes the case for the Bronx leading the path forward toward a greener city.

• IL Rep. Nabeela Syed is introducing legislation to ban move-in fees — an expense that can keep renters from moving into new places.

• Emma Curtis, the first trans person serving on Lexington’s city council, is speaking out against the state’s conversion therapy bill.

• NY Sen. Jeremy Cooney is advocating for a new program that would give $10,000 grants to help with closing costs for first-time homebuyers.

• US Rep. Yassamin Ansari wrote a powerful letter on why another travel ban would hurt families like hers.

• Orange County Legislator Genesis Ramos in NY is leading a task force to tackle the housing crisis, bringing together public and private agencies along with developers to pull every possible lever to lower costs.

In our regular bench-watch…

• Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee officially announced his campaign for Congress.

• MI Sen. Mallory McMorrow in Vanity Fair:
  
  “What I try to do is share my lived experience in a way that allows people to share theirs and step into my space. And that is where I recognized that I have a lot of power. People want to see themselves in our elected leaders. I think this is a moment in time where the federal level is wildly out of step with most Americans, because most Americans aren’t 70 years old and above and independently wealthy. They are young parents trying to make it work and trying to pay bills and trying to buy a house. We need more of that, and I’m happy to do that if it gives people the space to participate because they see somebody like them.”

• San Diego Councilmember Marni von Wilpert has announced her campaign for CA state senate against the GOP’s minority leader — she was the first Democrat elected to represent her district on the city council in decades and has done incredible work on ghost guns and taxpayer advocacy in particular.

• If she wins, Brianna Titone would be the first trans person elected to a statewide executive office — even in the face of incredible anti-trans rhetoric from the White House, she’s not backing down.

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Some related reading & listening

• We talked with the Christian Science Monitor about the wave of people stepping up to run for office.

• You can also read about federal workers running for office in Bloomberg.

• I joined USA Today’s “The Excerpt” to talk about how the Democratic Party moves forward from here. You can listen or watch wherever you get your podcasts.

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Thanks for making all this possible. Much more to come!

- Amanda