TAKE ACTION

RESIST

In addition to being illegal and ill-conceived, this war is extremely costly. The air campaign is estimated to cost almost $1billion per day of taxpayer dollars, and a combined air-ground campaign will be even more expensive.  As the conflict drags on, the administration will inevitably need to turn to Congress to request additional funding to support continuation of military action.  Democrats in Congress must be prepared to say no, to vote against any bill to appropriate more funds to continue the war effort despite plaintive appeals that “we must support our troops.”  The best way to support our military is to end this engagement in Iran as quickly as possible.

Take action: Contact our Representative Carbajal and our Senators Padilla and Schiff.  Thank them for voting in support of the War Powers resolution to stop Trump’s war and urge them to continue to make every effort to curb this war by invoking congressional war powers and refusing additional funding for military action in Iran.

2. Rein in ICE

Trump’s abrupt firing of Kristi Noem as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security was welcome news, but it should not be taken as a sign that Trump’s mass deportation campaign is abating.  Steven Miller and other architects of the campaign are still in control, and raids by lawless ICE agents continue in Minnesota and across the country.  Trump’s decision to replace Noem as DHS Secretary with Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin demonstrates that nothing has really changed; Mullin’s only qualifications for the position are unwavering loyalty to Trump and support for his current policies.

Funding for DHS is still being withheld as Republicans in the Senate refuse to negotiate an appropriations bill that incorporates Democratic demands for reasonable restrictions on the operations of ICE and Border Patrol. Senate Democrats must stand united in refusing any new funding for ICE and USBP.

Take action: Contact our Senators Padilla and Schiff and remind them that they must hold the line on funding for DHS. Urge them to vote against confirmation of an unqualified nominee for Secretary of Homeland Security.

ASSIST

ICE Out of 805

3. Protect Our Immigrant Community

Immigrant families in Santa Barbara continue to live in fear of random, unannounced raids by federal agents from ICE and Border Patrol. In response to the February 20 confrontation with ICE on the streets in downtown Santa Barbara, Primitiva Hernandez, Executive Director of 805UndocuFund wrote:

Bearing witness is not a crime. Observers have the legal right to monitor law enforcement activity. Transparency is not a threat… The real harm in our community is not rapid responders, not observers, not neighbors documenting activity—it is state-sponsored violence, intimidation, and the normalization of excessive force…

We are a county that values ALL residents. Our immigrant neighbors are workers, parents, elders, students, and leaders. We are human beings who deserve to live in communities where we are respected, protected, and able to feel safe…This moment requires more than outrage. It requires organized community power.

To read more about Santa Barbara’s Rapid Response operations, see this recent article from the Independent.  And this profile of 18-year-old Cesar Vasquez in The Guardian highlights the realities of living under the threats of ICE.

Take action: You can become part of the community safety infrastructure by

• Calling the Rapid Response Hotline – (805) 870-8855 and texting “ALERT” to receive updates
• Attending training to learn how to safely observe and document enforcement activity and how to join the volunteer Rapid Response network. The next training session in Santa Barbara is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24, 6:00-7:30pm at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church (227 N. Nopal St.)
• Support 805 UndocuFund by donating here

4. Support State Legislation to Prohibit Local and State Law Enforcement from Assisting ICE

The ACLU recently released Deputized for Disaster, which details the impact of the Trump administration’s insidious expansion of the federal 287(g) program that authorizes local law enforcement to act as immigration agents and support to ICE in its mass deportation and detention efforts. Such operations violate California’s existing state laws. SB 1105, the protect California Rights Act, has been introduced to further strengthen these protections by:

• Prohibiting local and state law enforcement from assisting federal agents in operations that involve racial or identity profiling, criminalization of speech, or use of unauthorized weapons of war against Californians. 
• Prohibiting federal law enforcement from acting beyond their federal jurisdiction to stop and arrest Californians, except during times of emergency and with the Governor’s approval

Take action: Contact our State Senator Limón and urge her to support passage of SB 1105 as quickly as possible.

Santa Barbara County

5. Increase Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors Control Over Management of our Jails

Santa Barbara County is facing a serious budget crisis which has drawn attention to chronic overspending by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s office. In light of the impending budget shortfalls, an earlier decision by the County Board of Supervisors to approve $460 million toward expanding the North County branch jail by adding two more housing units (384 more beds) is being called into question. The League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara is circulating a petition to call on the Board to reconsider the planned expansion. They propose reducing the project to just one housing unit of 256 beds and deferring or canceling other jail expansion, for an anticipated savings of $140 million. This reduction would be fiscally smarter and more humane than the planned expansion.

In addition, our Assemblyman Gregg Hart has introduced AB 2257 to the California State Assembly, which would provide the Board of Supervisors with the opportunity to gain greater control over management of our jails by appointing a department of corrections and rehabilitation. The bill would improve accounting and administration by restoring the ability of counties to appoint an official other than the sheriff to operate the jail system.

Take action: Read and sign the LWVSB petition here.  Contact Assemblyman Hart to let him know that you support his County Jail Accountability bill.

2026 Elections

6. Postcard with Commit to Democracy

Commit to Democracy is continuing its postcard campaign to help Virginia pass its Vote Yes initiative.  Modeled on California’s Prop 50, Vote Yes is a temporary redistricting measure that will be put before VA voters on April 21.  The campaign is catchy and has a preprinted message, making it easy to complete. CTD is asking that volunteers sign up for 50 or more postcards for this campaign.

CTD is also mounting a register to vote campaign for CA 48, a district that we are aiming to flip to Democrat in November.

Take action: Sign up to order postcards here. Note that there is now a new location available in Goleta for picking up your orders.

Save the Date!

End Citizens United

There will be a special event to meet with End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller and former Montana Governor Steve Bullock, and learn about their work to protect voting rights, hold special interests accountable, and restore power to the people. The event is free to attend but an RSVP is required.

When: Tuesday, March 31, 4:30-6:00pm
Where: Soho Restaurant and Music Club (1221 State St., Suite 205, Santa Barbara). No-host bar and appetizers available.

CALL YOUR REPS DAILY!

Senator Adam Schiff Washington, DC: (202) 224-3841; San Francisco: (415) 393-0707; Los Angeles: (310) 914-7300; San Diego: (619) 231-9712; Fresno: (559) 485-7430; Email

Senator Alex Padilla Washington, DC: (202) 224-3553; Sacramento: (916) 448-2787; Fresno: (559) 497-5109; Los Angeles: (310) 231-4494; San Francisco: (415) 981-9369; San Diego: (619) 239-3884; FAX: (202) 224-2200 Email

Congressman Salud Carbajal Santa Barbara/Santa Maria: (805) 730-1710; San Luis Obispo: (805) 546-8348; Washington, DC: (202) 225-3601; Email

CALIFORNIA Senator Monique Limón (D), CA State Senate, District 19 Sacramento: (916) 651-4019; Santa Barbara: (805) 965-0862; Oxnard: (805) 988-1940 Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D), CA State Assembly, District 37 Sacramento: (916) 319-2037; Santa Barbara: (805) 564-1649 Program your representative’s local AND DC phone numbers into your phone. Republicans outnumber Democrats in calling 4-1, and 11-1 on hot button issues. If you are still grappling with how Obama’s administration were not able to get anything done, this is how they did it. We MUST constantly call and continually exert pressure. If you can’t manage daily, pick a day, mark it recurring on your calendar, and call weekly.

DAILY CALLS:

• Call your senators about an issue of concern EVERY DAY.
• Always provide your ZIP CODE,
• Call about ONE subject only, per call.
• Call once per day, or multiple times per day with one ask for each call.
• Leave a message if you can’t speak to a person.
• If you can’t get through, try again later.

Failing that, DO send an email, one ask per email. Both Schiff’s and Padilla’s offices have said they tally emails as well as phone calls.

CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS

It is helpful for our Representatives to hear a large outpouring of support from his constituents. Our Representatives become bolder when they hear from a lot of us. To see what is happening on the floor throughout each day, bookmark the Office of the Clerk. This site also has a live video stream of floor proceedings, and guides about how the legislative process works. It’s an amazing resource. Govtrack is a website that makes it easy to track certain legislation, you may sign up for alerts. It also can help you find your representative. Their twitter account @govtrack posts all the legislation as it passes, live. congress.gov is an incredibly useful resource, which has every position on every bill.

DAILY ACTIONS

Resistbot (text your number to automatically write your Member of Congress) 5 Calls (provides numbers and scripts for issues)

OTHER  ORGANIZATIONS

MoveOn.org ACLU – American Civil Liberties Union