Welcome to The Gov Hub Newsletter by Girl and the Gov®. This weekly pop of politics is designed to share action items, resources, and quick links to civic engagement tools and topics to inboxes far and wide.

Editor’s Note: The week’s edition has stories and more below the fold [where gmail clips it]. Keep scrolling for the whole 411.

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The Action Items

ACTION 1:

The Ask: Tell your student debt story. Participate in Cancel Student Debt’s Voices storytelling campaign to advocate for the cancelation of student debt.

The Action: Share your student debt story here.

The Background: The Student Debt Crisis Center has put out a call for student debt story submissions. The organization, which fights for policy change around student debt, uses personal stories to advocate for change and shift the public narrative by connecting the personal to policy. Think of it as a type of testimony giving, sans sitting in front of a Congressional hearing yourself.

ACTION 2:

The Ask: Tell The EPA to set strong limits on climate pollution from trucks.

The Action: Submit this pre-written comment to the EPA via Moms Clean Air Force. If you’re not a parent, just remove/revise the copy that references you as a parent

The Background: The Biden-Harris Administration has proposed strong pollution standards to trucks and cars with the goal of accelerating the transition to a ‘clean transportation future.’ According to a release from the EPA, the new federal vehicle emissions standards would greatly improve air quality for communities from sea to shining sea, and include these standards per vehicle type. The heavy-duty truck proposed standards alone have the power to make a huge difference in air quality, with the proposal is “projected to avoid 1.8 billion tons of CO2 through 2055, equivalent to eliminating all greenhouse gas emissions from the entire current U.S. transportation sector for an entire year.” Tell the EPA yes-way, to clean air and these new rules.

ACTION ITEM #3:

The Ask: Tell your [state] representatives not to ban books.

The Action: Hit send on this pre-written note to your state representatives via Every Library.

The Background: Book bans are on the rise. So much so that PEN America’s Index of School Book Bans lists 1,477 instances of individual books banned, affecting 874 unique titles so far across the '22-23 school year. The data also shows that disproportionately, these book bans continue to target stories by and about people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals, with 30% of titles banned in the last 6 months being about race, racism, or feature characters of color, and 26% of unique titles banned have LGBTQ+ characters or themes. Most recently, these undemocratic censorship bans have gone from school boards to now state legislatures, with many taking up legislation that remove books from school shelves and libraries, and penalize teachers and librarians that make these books available. These bans are setting dangerous limitations on free speech and need to be stopped. Telling your state rep no on book bans is a part of that process.

New On Girl and the Gov, The Podcast

The Missouri legislature has kept itself in the headlines more than Scandoval has recently, and that’s saying something. Unfortunately, the reasons are just as shady – from defunding public education, threats to library funding, bills on banning gender affirming care, and so much more. In this episode, they gals get into it with Missouri State Representative Deb Lavender, who paints the picture of Missouri politics as a whole and walks listeners through many of the nuances behind the headlines. The gals talk education – specifically the model of funding that’s used in the state (hint: it’s horrendous). The gals talk budgets – who signs off on them, what a surplus means, and why Republicans refuse to spend taxpayer dollars on taxpayers. The gals talk about teacher shortages. Loads of tangents, loads of nitty gritty details you need to know. Find all the tea on Apple Podcasts, Spotify Podcasts, and YouTube [You’ve subscribed already, right?? Rumor has it, all the cool kids doin’ it]. Peep it here:

Playing political catch up? Tap into last week’s Top Stories episode here. A teaser for the road:

@girlandthegov

We also go over the politics and race predictions too dont worry go listen #georgesantos #electionwatch #2024

As per the vibes, this week’s Top Stories episode includes takes on Tucker, Don Lemon, SCOTUS arguments, Mifi access, and more drops tomorrow. Stay tuned.

And while you have your fave audio app open, please help get the pod into more [air]pods by leaving the show a rate and review. Speaking of reviews, this one had us howling.

PREVIEW: Wednesday’s episode is like going to brunch with your political friends and hearing them spill the tea. The interview is with fellow podcasters and politicos, Daniella Gibbs Léger and Colin Seeberger, co-hosts of The Tent Podcast – yes, the podcast we went on a few weeks ago and told you to add to your regular rotation. The convo touches on CAP Action, think tanks, how media and think tanks work together, takes on orange man, and more.

BEFORE YOU SCROLL: If you’ve been thinking about starting a podcast and don’t know where to start, the Girl and the Gov® team can help with that. Offering three tiers of podcast consulting for every step of the way, #GATG can help get yours off the ground. Book a discovery call with the team to chitchat about the possibilities.

Pro Podcast Tip: Download your episodes. By downloading your episodes, you’re able to listen to fave shows on the go. No wi-fi? No problem. Bad service? Same story.

Bookmark It

Don’t lose the link, bookmark it, and revisit and reload.

CALIFORNIA CLIMATE ACTION: This new resource from the state of California is a one-stop-shop for connecting residents with money-saving state and local programs that bolster a sustainable future. The site has an easy to navigate interface and lets residents search for programs by type. What’s also a win is how the details are shared per program, including the 411 on how a particular action helps to fight climate change. CA resident? Bookmark it.

RSVP, YES PLEASE

Add to calendar, add to calendar, and again, add to calendar with these politically and civically charged events. RSVP, register, and rockin’ roll on over to these must-attends.

Train to #ProtectTheVote in Texas

About: Local elections are happening across Texas on May 6, 2023. Poll monitors, which help voters with questions and any legal resources needed at the polls, are needed. The volunteer role that helps protect elections and voters requires training. The training can be conducted via 866 Our Vote, a nonpartisan organization.

When & Where: Trainings are virtual. Three slots are on the calendar: April 26, 2023, 6:00-7:30pm CDT; May 3, 2023, 6:00-7:30pm CDT; May 5, 2023, 12:00-1:30pm CDT.

RSVP: Sign up for one of the trainings, here.

Making Congress Work in a Divided Nation

About: It’s a different type of movie premiere – it’s the premiere of a recorded conversation from the Brennan Center featuring former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), political correspondent Daniel Strauss, and Dr. Maya Kornberg, Brennan Center Elections and Government Program research fellow and author of Inside Congressional Committees: Function and Dysfunction in the Legislative Process. The chit-chat, moderated by Precision Strategies partner Mike Spahn, is all about how partisanship stalemates progress in Congress and what existing tools can be used to buck it. The central tool that’s expected to be highlighted in this convo are Congressional committees, an apparently under utilized and underrated tool. As a warm up, this convo on how committees work fits the bill - pun intended.

When & Where: The event is virtual and will be held on April 26, 2023 from 1:00-2:00pm EST.

RSVP: Sign yourself up here for the free event.

A Conversation with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg

About: NYC Councilmember Erik Bottcher is hosting a virtual forum conversation with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. The conversation will be Q&A style and attendees are able to submit questions to be asked once we register/RSVP.

When & Where: The event is virtual [on Zoom] and will be held on April 26, 2023; 5:30-6:30pm EST.

RSVP: Register your RSVP here.

Back On Our BILLsh*t

New bills, new BILLsh*t. We’re always keeping an eye out for the bills that make us go YAY and the ones that make us scream NAY. A few recent bills of note that floated our boat:

• New York state bill S426AA is designed to create a task force to investigate the disproportionately high number of missing Black, indigenous, and other women and girls of color in the state, and is sponsored by Assemblymember Karines Reyes. If passed, the legislation would create a nine-person state panel that would focus on addressing a long history of a lack of care and concern for missing and murdered BIPOC girls and women. It would also look to develop policies that would better protect BIPOC girls and women. According to reporting by Gothamist, in NYS, “despite representing less than 15% of minors, Black youth made up the majority of missing children, with Black girls over 13 comprising the largest group of disappearance” in 2020.

• On the opposite coast, in Washington state, Governor Inslee signed into law SB5198. The bill expands the rights of residents of manufactured home communities, who often pay rent to a landlord [lease the land that their home is located on]. The bill specifically gives residents more rights in the context of when a landlord wants to sell the property the community/homes are located on. Now, landlords will have to provide a two year notice of sale [there are some exceptions] and provide an opportunity for the community to purchase the land from the seller.

• The state of Washington also has a few other reasons to brag, and it’s due to bills that support abortion and gender affirming care in the state. A quick look at a few of ‘em:

  • SB5768 safeguards access to mifepristone/medication abortion.

  • SB5242 eliminates out of pocket costs for patients seeking abortion care in the state.

  • HB1469 shields patients and providers of abortion and gender affirming care from retribution by other states.

• At the federal level, Senator Tammy Baldwin signed on to support the Keep Our Promise to America’s Children and Teachers (PACT) Act. The bill is bicameral [introduced in both the house and senate], according to a release on the legislation, would “put Congress on a fiscally responsible path to fully fund the assistance program that helps the country’s highest need schools, Title I, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) on a mandatory basis.” Overall, the bill would look to fully and adequately fund Title I and IDEA, satisfying the $30.6 billion funding gap reported in 2020-2021 alone as reported by the National Education Association. 

…and a bill that need to get the boot:

• In reaction to Jim Crow-style moves by Mississippi Governor and welfare scammer, Tate Reeves, the NAACP is suing over the legislature’s approval of HB1020, which creates a separate, unelected court over parts of Jackson. As AP reported, “The court will have the same power as municipal courts, which handle misdemeanor cases, traffic violations and initial appearances for some criminal charges. The new law says people convicted in the Capitol Complex Improvement District Court may be put in a state prison rather than in a city or county jail.” To take it from bad to worse, the judge of the new court is not required to live in Jackson and will be appointed by the Mississippi Supreme Court chief justice. For context, the current chief justice is a conservative white man. Also for context, Jackson, Mississippi is 83% Black and is a Democratic city. PS this story is covered in this week’s Top Stories episode of Girl and the Gov, The Podcast, which drops tomorrow. Double PS – a reminder that Mississippi’s Governor’s office is on the ballot this year and the Democrat running is this guy.

Pro Tip: Make your life easier, add your reps’ office number to your contacts. And for good measure, make sure you’re registered to vote.

Read All About It

Some with spice, some that are nice, and some that are a roll of the dice, these stories share a slice of [political] life from coast to coast. Take a read:

• Is that a district outline or is that abstract art? That’s what we often find ourselves saying when looking at district maps, including the new New York State Assembly maps that were just approved by the Independent Redistricting Commission. This artful geographic display made its way to the state leg and then to Governor Hochul who signed it into being to be used for the 2024 assembly races.

• In anti-democracy moves, the Florida State House Affairs Committee advanced a resolution that would raise the threshold to pass a constitutional amendment from 60% to 66.76%. Dealing with decimals and direct democracy, the new threshold vastly increases the difficulty for Florida voters to make changes to the state’s constitution. For ref, voters have had success with using ballot measures to dictate things like the raising minimum wage in the state, and the GOP isn’t about that life. What’ll happen next with HJR 129? Find out.

• Tucker Carlson and lead propagandist at Fox Fake News Network has left the network. In a media move that had us all gasping at the news, comes a week after Fox settled a defamation suit with Dominion Voting Systems for a whopping $787.5 million over the network spouting election lies 24/7, 365. Where will the conspiracy theorist passion-ista and fear-mongering GOP sweetheart go from here? Esquire’s Jack Holmes, who refers to Carlson as an overgrown frat sophomore [we all know a few of these] took a few guesses.

• What’s a day in the life of a Nashville Metro Councilmember like? Nashville Scene gets the low down on the job with Councilmember Sandra Sepulveda, who reps District 30 and is the first Latina to serve on the council. She walks readers through what the role is like, balancing the role with a day job, and what it’s like to represent 19,000 people.

Subscribe while you scroll, sign up for The Gov Hub Newsletter here if you’re not already on the list.

Save & Sends

Sometimes you have to save it, sometimes you have to send it, and sometimes you have to do both when it comes to a social media post. And that is very much the case with this roundup, which will be finding their way right into your group chat.

• Spotted: Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson made an epic visit to the White House to advocate for gun safety legislation and issues impacting constituents. If we could like this post a million times we would.

• Senator Schumer said he ain’t going anywhere with Ted [Cruz] while blind reacting to comedian Matt Friend’s political impersonations, and we have to say, we’re on board too. We’re also on board with Matt’s orange man impersonation - spot on.

• Despite our initial thought that this was an SNL skit on the Bud Light bonanza of bullshit, this is a real video put out by Sarah Huckabee Sanders, sharing ‘real woman of politics.’ And to think we’ve said on the pod that the GOP is good at marketing…

• On the comedy meets politics front, Jordan Klepper at the Daily Show shares the strangest comment he’s received while doing his ‘man on the street’ style interviews over the years. The answer reminds us of Sweet & Sour candy, except it’s more like “first it’s funny, then it’s scary.”

• If you don’t already know feminist clothing brand, Love, Al - now you do [apologies to your bank account in advance]. And since you’re here – get in the know on what we requested to be a weekly series, where the brand’s founder, Allie, outlines which states + products she gets the most orders in per a given week. TBH, it’s a really interesting way to get a pulse on how a state’s residents are feeling about particular issues [think: the behind the scenes of voting with one’s dollar].

@loveal_co

Replying to @girlandthegov #greenscreen big thanks to this weeks top 3💓

• Ever wonder, what’s the vibe check on DeSantis in Florida? This Florida resident shares the pulse she gets from parents at the bar. First scream, then follow Devon Murphy-Anderson and get in the know on how to organize and activate in Florida.

• Meghan Trainor had possibly the worst take on teachers of all time and this about sums it up. On the note of teachers who dedicate their lives to raising us despite terrible pay and little support, have you told your legislator to pass the American Teacher Act yet? If not, send ‘em this note now.

• This commentary on Boomers on Facebook is an instant ROFL. It also has us wondering if these podcasters manifested Tucker Carlson going off the air…only a theory.

• Schumer is getting a lot of airtime in today’s newsletter – okay, he’s being mentioned twice, but still. This mention is because he’s announced that he will call for a Senate vote on the Equal Rights Amendment. Naturally, the ERA Coalition is keeping tabs.

POLITICAL JOB BOARD

MICHIGAN | SUPREME COURT JUSTICE KYRA BOLDEN: From the office of Girl and the Gov, The Podcast alum, Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Bolden is looking to add to the team. Specifically, the office is looking to hire a judicial assistant to help with an array of operational and administrative duties. Interested candidates can learn more about what the role entrails and apply here.

OHIO | ABORTION FUND OH OHIO: The Abortion Fund of Ohio is on the search for its next Executive Director. According to the nonprofit, the org’s interim ED is moving over to manage their Legal Access Program full-time, and thus a new ED is needed to take the reins. The role is full-time and full details can be found here, along with the application details.

ELECTION SZN

The following have said put me in coach for….

Candidate Watch ‘23

• PA State Representative Sara Innamorato is running for Allegheny County Executive. Learn more about her campaign here.

Candidate Watch ‘24

• Emily Beach is running for San Mateo County Supervisor. Learn more about her campaign here, and hear her POV on abortion access on Girl and the Gov, The Podcast.

• Emily Busch is running for Congress in Michigan’s 10th District. Learn more about her campaign here.

• Kipp Mueller has put his hat in the ring for California’s 23rd District State Senate Seat. Learn more about his campaign here.

Candidate Watch ‘26:

• California Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis is running for governor. Learn more about her campaign here

On The Calendar

• Ohio’s Cuyahoga County has local elections this year, with a May 2, 2023 primary right around the corner. Candidates, muni issues, and more can be learned about via this one-sheeter.

• Philly is counting down the days until the mayoral primary on May 16, 2023. Get prepped with this voter guide.

The Gov Club

Focused on political networking and community amongst civically engaged besties, The Gov Club provides members access to free virtual networking events, 1v1s, and connect with one another. The Gov Club has also made moves from its old Slack channel home to the Geneva platform to make connecting with one another easy as pie. Sign up for the Gov Club, here.

Comms Corner

Step into the Political Podcasting Game

Thinking about dipping a toe into podcasting? Already have a podcast but not sure how to take it to the next level? Girl and the Gov® can help bring it from daydream to reality. The company’s podcast consulting service is designed to assist political organizations, thought leaders, and elected officials launch podcasts unique to their expertise and target audience. The service is built to be comprehensive in nature, and covers everything from structural design to best practices to graphics, and launch strategy. The offering menu includes an option for every step of the way, all which start with a Discovery Call:

• BYOP, Build Your Own Podcast: Girl and the Gov®’s Build Your Own Podcast service is designed to bring podcasts from the ideation phase to launch. This is built for clients who’ve determined that they are going to start a podcast and need help navigating how to do it.

• The Brainstorm Sesh: Girl and the Gov®’s Brainstorm Sesh service is designed to walk potential podcasters through their mood board of ideas and help them determine what next steps they want to take – to take the step into podcasting or to keep thinking on big ideas. This is for clients considering podcasting but have not launched a podcast yet.

• Podcast Audits: Girl and the Gov®’s Podcast Audit service provides a comprehensive review of the client’s existing show with the goal of identifying areas of improvement. This is for clients with existing podcasts at any stage.

Book a Discovery Call today.

Social Media, From Zero to Hero

Think it’s time for a social media audit? Girl and the Gov® can help with that. Get up to speed on what needs to stay, and what needs to go on your social media accounts for it to go from zero to hero. Book a Discovery Call to learn more about Girl and the Gov®’s Social Media Audits.

#VIRAL, The Newsletter

Skip the meeting, make it an email – subscribe to Girl and the Gov®’s paid newsletter, #VIRAL, dedicated to providing the 411 on the social media trends, tricks and tips, and how-to’s for politicos is hitting inboxes with a splash, weekly. A sample of the newsletter, which we dub ‘social media consulting to your inbox,’ can be viewed here, and you can subscribe here.

Other tings of note on the comms front:

For pitches, PR, partnerships, and collaborations, and more, send all details to [email protected].