Report back from DiFI meeting:
As many folks have seen, a group of SolSun folks had a meeting with Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s Chief of Staff last Thursday (it was supposed to be with the Sen herself, but she cancelled all Thurs appointments due to a medical issue with her knee replacement). We met with Sean, the COS, and Abby, the East Bay field rep, for about an hour and a half. It was a positive, informative, and really engaging meeting. So much was discussed, but wanted to report back some key takeaways. Would’ve done it sooner, but, well, LIFE. Please note that the following DO NOT reflect our opinions, and we are not representing or defending DiFi’s stances on anything—we’re just offering takeaways from the meeting.
-First: We have zero reason to believe that the meeting was cancelled to avoid us or give us the slip. We didn’t ask for the meeting—the invite came from the Senator, and we were not the only people who were cancelled on. We’re not bitter, and don’t feel burned. Moving on.
-We presented the staff with several copies of a packet that @Mer Rainwater and I put together, that included research and question formulation done by @Lyndsey Schlax, Mer, @Pamela Harris, @Leslie Van Every, @Jennye Garibaldi, @Sahar Azi, and @Fyza Parviz. In it we addressed the Senator, and laid out 5 well-researched Priority Questions: 1) Trump/Russia/Conflicts of Interest; 2) Immigration/Deportations/ ICE/Muslim Ban; 3) Gorsuch + SCOTUS; 4) Sessions/DOJ/Civil Rights/Diverse Staffing in Field Offices; 5) How SolSun can be most effective in mobilizing for the resistance AND in supporting DiFi on PROGRESSIVE policies that we support. We also included almost all of the questions that people emailed us (excluded some that we duplicates of the 5 questions). We asked that we receive answers from DiFi herself on the questions, but wanted to hear from him as well.
-Much of the meeting was spent going over these questions with staff. On Russia we discussed bipartisan efforts, and GOP Senators that DiFi is ‘working on’ (Grassley’s name came up numerous times, as did Graham, McCain, Sasse, and Horner). DiFi is esp concerned about the China trademark situation as it pertains to the Emoluments Clause, and is working on something related to that which is supposed to be announced this week. He did share info that he asked us not to publicize yet, so we'll follow up when that is made public.
-IMHO the most powerful moment of the meeting was when SolSun steering comm member Sahar Azi and Cupertino host Fyza Parviz addressed immigration. Sahar spoke of her experience as an Iranian immigrant whose parents are currently in Iran; she focused, though, on the economic impact of immigrants on California’s economy, specifically agriculture and food production. Fyza followed up with her own experience as an immigrant from Pakistan who came on a Visa to study engineering in Silicon Valley, and who now works in tech and is deep in the process of citizenship. She cited statistics (at one point Sean asked her to stop and repeat stats, and wrote them down furiously in his notebook). Then, we presented a stack of over 100 handwritten letters from the middle school students of Oakland host Kris Bradburn, who teaches at a public school in San Lorenzo, CA. These heartbreaking letters come from mostly Latino and Black students, and directly address the fears of deportation, police brutality, ICE, and more. We all had tears in our eyes. Staff was VERY moved by the letters; they will be redacting the names and scanning the letters for DiFi. Sean stated that personal accounts like these are very valuable for DiFi, as she can use them on the Floor, and in communications with GOP members.
-Gorsuch: DiFi will not say if she will filibuster or not. Per Sean, and per her entire political history: This is NOT an indication that she is undecided, but how she strategizes. She does not want to show her hand too soon, because she is working closely with GOP Senators. [Again, we are relaying info here, please don’t attack if you disagree!] Gorsuch hearing is set for March 20th. DiFi has a team of 12 attorneys vetting Gorsuch extensively. **Sean notes: If any attorneys or legal experts want to aid in this effort and offer their insight on his record and past cases, the office is very open to hearing from you.** We discussed pros + cons of filibuster, how it would set precedent, and what would happen if (GODDESS FORBID) something happened to RBG, etc.
-Sessions/DOJ: Discussed how DiFi and the Sen. Jud. Comm. can help protect civil rights. Sean reiterated DiFi’s distrust + Disapproval of Sessions, said she is focused on doing all she can to ensure civil rights. Discussed status of DOJ investigations into police depts that were ongoing under AG Lynch, as well as reports that came out on Chicago PD, Ferguson PD, etc. DiFi “committed” to ensuring that those all play out/are followed up on. Inquired about/discussed lack of diverse staffing in DiFi’s office, let them know we see this as a priority. Were assured this is “important”, just hired new Latino Chief of Staff, etc. Followed up on this point via email afterwards, too.
-Other takeaways: Keep an eye on Trump’s budget, which is coming soon
-Personal stories MATTER. Whether it’s ACA, immigration, business owners OR workers talking about how 45’s economic policies are actually bad for business—personal stories have BIG impact.
-Noted that the office is available for any Californians who need help/suport navigating federal agencies, urged constituents to contact the office for that.
-Noted recent progress that HAS been made, citing the recent 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling upholding Maryland’s assault weapons ban as a small but notable victory.
-Note that we did NOT talk about 2018, or DiFi's future runs—there are strict rules about not talking about campaigns or campaigning in Senate offices. This was a question many of you had, but not one that can be discussed in-office
-Finally, we talked for a while about how Indivisible Guide and the resistance is impacting the office. Sean shared that his job has basically changed completely—he used to spend 80% of his time outside the office, traveling across CA. Now he is inside, meeting with people like us, many IG groups, etc. (As we noted in a pervious post, Sean was supposed to be on a helicopter tour of the Oroville Dam w/ Sen. Kamala Harris, but cancelled to fill in for DiFi at Thursday's meetings). Sees this as a good thing, very impactful. Assures us that, for THEIR OFFICES, all communications matter–emails “count” as much as phonecalls, etc. He reiterated that this DIFFERS based on your MoC. This is their policy only, he cannot speak for all offices. Most calls/emails they got were around DeVos--says they were SWAMPED. Close 2nd was Sessions. Again, this DOES matter and has big impact on how she presents issues in DC.
When asked how DiFi herself feels about it all, he says she is heartened and pleased—but also says “Let’s see where they’re at in July.” SO: LET’S MAKE SURE WE ARE ALL HERE IN JULY, OK?!
Others who were in the meeting, please weigh in! We talked about so much and I'm sure I'm forgetting things—thanks!
My personal takeaway is that the folks in DC definitely are paying attention to the noise we are making. While the busy signals, seemingly indifferent shrugs, and avoidance of constituents might feel infuriating, take heart. The response you are seeing is evidence that what we are doing is working.
As always, there is a lot to Yopp! about in your daily calls. My personal latest is the confirmation of Wilbur Ross as Commerce Secretary...for which Feinstein voted Yea. But given the above, I'm going to put out another more general Yopp!
As always, there is a lot to Yopp! about in your daily calls. My personal latest is the confirmation of Wilbur Ross as Commerce Secretary...for which Feinstein voted Yea. But given the above, I'm going to put out another more general Yopp!
Here ya go:
1. Wrap your mind around the idea that this will be a long battle. Perseverance is key.
2. Start thinking about ways to reach across the divide to Tr*mp voters. We're going to need them eventually and continuing to give into the divisions plays right into the hand of the GOP.
3. Keep up the daily pressure, but pace yourself with how much energy you put into various CTAs. We need to hold the front line and strategically attack.
I'll send out an easy Yopp! for tomorrow that will just be a simple call in.
Very good synopsis of your meeting. Sounds like it went very well. Glad the letters from students were well-accepted and might be used in the future. Garret
ReplyDelete