By now we’ve all seen plenty of articles and special reports about the new House Speaker, Mike Johnson. Up until recently, nobody seemed to know much about him.
Now we do.
MAGA Mike’s as extreme as they come. He’s spent his life proudly fighting against same-sex marriage and for criminalizing abortion. He was called the “most important architect” for the electoral college objections. He voted against certifying the 2020 election.
And he’s the perfect example of how by not running and supporting nominees in every district – even in the roughest, toughest districts in the reddest states – we’re allowing people like him to coast to the highest levels of power without facing a real election.
Johnson brags on his website that he “was elected to the state legislature twice without opposition.” (Why he boasts that he wins elections that are forfeited is beyond me. But that’s beside the point.)
Then he ran for Congress. And there he didn’t face much opposition either.
In 2018, his opponent had $15k.
In 2020, his opponent had less than $30k.
In 2022, he didn’t have an opponent at all.
The election was officially “cancelled,” and Johnson won by default.
Mike Johnson is the poster child of the current generation of GOP leaders and members who face no accountability because they face no meaningful opposition. All of their incentives encourage them to keep being extreme.
And so here we are.
The man who is just a few heartbeats away from the presidency is a radical Christian nationalist – but he’s flown under the radar for so long because we’ve given him runway to do so.
Does that sound harsh? I don’t mean it to be.
But imagine what would have happened had Mike Johnson been meaningfully contested at every step of his political career. Would he have been such an unknown? Would his radical, extreme positions have been more out in the open? Would his fellow Republicans have voted for him for speaker if they had been able to see in a quick Google search what has taken the mainstream press a few weeks to dig up?
Maybe. Maybe not.
We’ll never know.
And that’s the problem.
See, there are thousands of Mike Johnsons in state legislatures all over the country. They’re in Idaho, and Utah, Montana and Missouri. They’re in Indiana, and North Dakota, and West Virginia.
They’re in the states that Democrats don’t invest in because they’re not “flippable.” But that doesn’t mean they don’t matter.
They’re the training grounds for folks like Mike Johnson.
If we want to make headway, we have to fight everywhere.
And we have to stop giving them an open runway.
Let’s get to work.
Actions for the Week of November 1, 2023
Thursday: A Conversation About School Vouchers with Jess Piper and Josh Cowan
Republican legislators across the country have been pushing school vouchers – which defund public schools while siphoning money toward religious schools. The fight for public education is being waged in statehouses across the country. So join rural firebrand, former teacher, and former candidate for Missouri state house Jessica Piper for a lively conversation with professor of education (and school voucher expert) Josh Cowan Thursday, November 2 at 6pm central. Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAlcOmgqTgrGtd0l2T6BnwA9E8JKigO3Q1x#/registration
Ohio: Special Election Night Watch Party With Special Guests – Including Cong. Jamie Raskin!
Abortion is on the ballot in Ohio, and voting is already underway. Issue 1 would amend Ohio’s constitution to guarantee the right to make reproductive healthcare decisions, including abortion. The last day of voting is Tuesday, November 7.
So on Tuesday night at 7:30 eastern, we’ll be gathering virtually to watch the election results come in! We had a similar election night watch party in August, with special guest appearances by Nancy Pelosi, Jaime Harrison, and Gavin Newsom.
We already have confirmation that Congressman Jamie Raskin will be joining us – and I hope you will, too! Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0kc-qvqDwrHta4vk-BlV4v2x3yENOwKBlt
(Blue Ohio, the host of the event, is devoted to supporting Democratic state legislative nominees. (https://blueohio.org/) Our 1,000+ members donate monthly, with the funds going first to those nominees that have raised the least. By 2024, our community will be one of the largest Democratic donors in Ohio. Right now, there’s a 100% match of all monthly, annual, and one-time donations – so by joining the Blue Ohio community now you’re doubling your impact. Join here.)
Ohio Phonebanks and Text Banks:
It’s all hands on deck to turn out voters in Ohio. Join Ohio Progressive Action Leaders for a phone bank on Monday, November 6. From OPAL:
Direct voter conversations are the proven most effective form of voter engagement! Join us for a fun and rewarding volunteer experience. We will be doing a training at the start of each phone bank for new volunteers so no prior experience is needed!
We must pass Issue 1 to prevent Ohioans from being subject to an extreme six week abortion ban. Help us get out the vote!
Register: https://www.mobilize.us/mobilize/event/587168/
There are many, many additional phone and text banks for Issue 1 – please head over to https://ohioansunitedforreproductiverights.win/events/ to see what works best for your schedule. This really is all hands on deck!
The Dam May Be Breaking:
Senator Tuberville’s Senate hold has now held up a whopping 375 promotions. Over the weekend, a top officer in the Marine Corps had a heart attack, and obviously the situation in Gaza requires consistent leadership. So it’s interesting that a few Republican senators (Dan Sullivan (Alaska), Joni Ernst (Iowa) Todd C. Young (Ind.) and Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.)) confronted Tuberville on the floor of the Senate. (!!)
Sullivan even said:
“The key is you put a hold on someone who typically has some kind of control over the issue you’re trying to fix. Why are we putting holds on war heroes?”
Indeed, Senator. Indeed.
Patience is wearing thin, it seems – so it’s a good time to call your Republican Senators and tell them that you respect what Sullivan, Ernst, Young and Graham did by confronting Tuberville and you’re wondering why your senator isn’t doing the same.
Of course, if your senator is one of the ones who called Tuberville out on the floor, please call them with some kind words.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/11/01/tuberville-military-promotion-hold/
Freedom Over Fascism Briefing
| Research Collaborative is hosting a Movement Briefing on Thursday, November 9th at 3PM ET. They will share an overview of where we are after Election Day 2023 and as we head into 2024. They’ll also present research into how we effectively define our opposition in order to make the stakes and need for action clear. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__bscuYWbSL-EJjX40ljQvw#/registration |
WHEW! GO TEAM!
P.S.: Why don’t you make someone’s day and send this pep talk to a friend or two? I bet they need it.
If you’d like to sign up to get this pep talk and action list in your in-box each week, you can do that here. Welcome, friend!
P.P.S.: If you want to help support this work you can do so via Patreon at
https://www.patreon.com/smalldeedsdone or via paypal at https://www.paypal.me/smalldeeds
My deepest gratitude in advance.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for writing. I read and respond to every email! We’re in this together. Don’t you forget it.
Small Deeds Done 