​I've been thinking about how to describe who we are as we act in opposition to Trump/Musk and work for a better world. 

What we've seen as normal politics for many years are gone for good.

We're not in a shooting war, but we've been told we are an "enemy within"

Trump's thuggery with President Zelensky today made it all the more clear. Might makes right.

None of us are safe. 

Above is a picture of two books I've read recently about brave dissidents in repressive countries. 

Patriot by Alexei Navalny and I Have No Enemies about Liu Xiaobo are strong accounts of the fight from freedom in Russia and in China. 

Both Navalny and Xiaobo were killed by their governments. 

The books describe bravery, doubts, routine life, victory, fear and hopes of the two men. They are worth reading. 

What term well-describes active political opponents of Trump/Musk here in the United States? 

Voter? Citizen? Dissident? Patriot? Protestor? A word we don't yet associate with this fight? Terms that come from our specific identities? 

I find that seeing things with new eyes and adapting to the new terms of the struggle ahead, is helpful for my effectiveness as part of the fight & in helping adjust for my mental well-being to the fact this all will be a years-long fact of our lives. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​​

I'll be participating in the economic blackout tomorrow, Friday, 2/28.

​From Axios:

"The Feb. 28 economic blackout is an initiative by The People's Union USA, which describes itself as a "grassroots movement dedicated to economic resistance, government accountability, and corporate reform. The group says it has no political affiliation but is rather focused on uniting Americans against corporate greed. The movement was founded by John Schwarz, who describes his movement as raising awareness about the ways the "system is rigged" against everyday Americans." 

Here is the website for People's Union USA. It lists the things they are seeking. 

Here is a short bio of the founder John Schwarz as he would like you to see him. You can assess what you think. 

It feels like the 50501 effort--Decentralized and executed on the ground by rank & file folks rather than by elected officials or well-known non-profits. Here is my report on the 50501 protest in Houston on President's Day.

We can be part of these movements, see how they play out and proceed as we see most hopeful and effective. 

Here is what the organizers propose you do tomorrow:

WHAT NOT TO DO:
Do not make any purchases
Do not shop online, or in-store
No Amazon, No Walmart, No Best Buy
Nowhere!
Do not spend money on:
Fast Food
Gas
Major Retailers
Do not use Credit or Debit Cards for non essential spending

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Only buy essentials of absolutely necessary 
(Food, Medicine, Emergency Supplies)
If you must spend, ONLY support small, local businesses

Most people don't know who the organizers are. Awareness has been spread through word of mouth and social media. It's seen as an anti-Trump/Musk action. I'm all for it. I don't know if it will make an economic impact. I hope it does. What's most important is that many people take part & that it is known that many people took part. Each action we do in solidarity, builds our strength as we move towards Trump's open defiance of courts and attacks on civil liberties. We must be able to rely on each other in the difficult days ahead.

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​​

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Above you see a sign on display at today's Week 420 of the John Cornyn Houston Office Protest.

The John Cornyn Houston Office Protest is each Tuesday, 11:30-1, 5300 Memorial Dr.

Towards the end of the protest today, a police officer parked his car, came over and said the sign was too big. Members of the Cornyn Protest team asked the officer what ordinance was being violated. He said he would find it. As he looked for the relevant code, we took our end of protest picture and went on our way. You see our weekly photo below.

We've been at the corner of Memorial & Detering for over 8 years now and have been watched by many officers over that time. We are no trouble. 

At the very bottom of this post, you see a picture of this very same sign displayed at the 50501 protest at City Hall on President's Day. That sign was out in the open for at least 2 hours and there were very many police officers around. No officer said anything about the sign. 

Our team reminded the officer that it is Republicans and the right who attacked police on January 6th and who now bash federal law enforcement all the time. 

I'm making a point not to give the officer's name & am not showing his face. The issue is not at core the officer. Clearly crime is at a low level if this task was able to be attended to today. This reflects the fine work of our police. 

When Trump defies the courts and emergency powers are declared, much of our politics will move to the streets or to however things proceed. How will Houston police respond? Will our municipal elected officials be on the right side of the police line? How will dissent be treated in Houston? Will law enforcement and elected officials have a clear sense of where the problem is coming from?

There is no problem coming from the John Cornyn Houston Office Protest. 

​I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​

Congressmember Lizzie Fletcher held a telephone town hall this evening. I listened and took notes. Here is a map of Rep. Fletcher's district which includes portions of Houston, Harris County and Fort Bend County. 

(Here are Houston Democracy Project reports on recent town halls held by Congressmembers Al Green and Wesley Hunt.)

Here are notes & observations about the call:

​* A staffer from Rep. Fletcher's office said there were 1300 people on the call as of 7:10. 

* Rep. Fletcher said that as of yesterday, they had 550 questions from voters for the call. She said she had read them all. 

* She said she would address in the call what is going on in "Congress, courts and communities." 

* She said she was a member of the Democratic House rapid response task force. Joining the call was Rep. Joe Neguse of Colorado who is Chair of that task force. This task force also tracks litigation about Trump/Musk. Rep. Neguse spoke for a few minutes and went on his way. 

* Rep. Fletcher says many questions she has received are about what people can do at home. I'm writing a blog post on that topic I'll have posted soon.

* The first called-in question was from a woman who said she had a partner in a clinical trial at MD Anderson that was operating currently only because of a court order. The Congresswoman said she had co-written a "strongly-worded letter" about cuts that involve important medical and health issues. She must be getting a lot of calls for more action, because she made a defensive-sounding comment saying she knows people may think such a letter is not enough.

In response to this call, Rep. Fletcher said it's important that people share real life stories of being impacted by Trump/Musk cuts, talk to friends and family about these stories and to keep contacting her & Cruz and Cornyn as well. 

​* Linda C. asked "How the heck does Elon Musk get into every level of government?" Rep. Fletcher's reply was pretty much because Trump lets him and no Congressional Republican will challenge him. 

* Rep. Fletcher sure did sound exasperated as she spoke. She said: "A lot of people expected more guardrails for Elon Musk." 

* Connie said her Congressperson is the odious Morgan Luttrell, that she can't reach his office and would like to know how to connect with Republicans. Rep. Fletcher said keep trying. 

​* Cheryl asked since the Supreme Court has given Donald Trump immunity, how can we rely on the courts?

There was no firm reply to this because what can you say? The most likely answer is massive protest or a general strike or whatever it will be. Rep. Fletcher said it was a different world being in Congress from when she was a lawyer because you don't have to adhere to any real standards of evidence and truth. She said that Congressional Republicans are "cheering this on" and won't assert the powers of Congress.

My impression: 

Rep. Fletcher is trying hard and I believed her assertions that her office listens to callers and reads e-mails. She is an institutionalist and the institutions are being trashed. The failure to follow any real process and procedure throws her for a loop. She has no firm sense how to proceed other than to show up everyday and try. Just like all of us. I just hope if/when we reach the point where it's clear that we'll be need to be on the streets, that Rep. Fletcher will be on the right side of the police line or whatever it is the moment will require. 

​I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​

​At the end of the February 12th Houston City Council Agenda session, Councilmember Edward Pollard talked about a virtual know your rights video town hall he held on February 11th. The focus was immigration rights and concerns. CM Pollard said the Facebook Live presentation had 2000 views and he was impressed by all the interest. His remarks are at the 3 hour 36 minute point of the video.

Above you see Mr. Pollard remarking on all the viewers. 

Councilmember Pollard should read the Houston Democracy Project Blog. This past October, I wrote about the successful virtual town hall held by Councilmembers Joaquin Martinez, Sallie Alcorn, Mario Castillo and Letitia Plummer about the need for more revenue in the City of Houston. They had a good audience and a good discussion. 

(During that October meeting, Ms. Alcorn used the term "federal partnerships" as an important source of city revenue. I made a comment in reply saying that after the election, we might not have a federal partner. This regretfully now seems to be the case. The Houston Democracy Project recently called for the removal of hard-right Republican Twila Carter as Chair of Council's Resilience Committee. This committee addresses climate change and storm recovery. Why should somebody representing a party denying climate change & looking to trash FEMA and the National Weather Service chair that committee?)

Last month Councilmember Martinez also held a know your rights town hall. His was in person. Elected officials can address any subject they want. They can do so using any forum or platform that works. My Texas State Rep. Ann Johnson this week made a short Facebook video about what is going on in Washington. She didn't say she was not a Congressperson and all this was not her problem. She addressed the concerns people are having. 

Beyond the fact elected officials can address anything at any level of government, they also all swore an oath to the Constitution. With the Constitution under assault, what is going on with Trump/Musk is very much a topic for Houston City Council. 

The ten Houston City Council Democrats could hold a joint town hall on the current crisis of democracy and about the racist and cruel attacks from Trump/Musk. They could talk about how Trump/Musk are going to trash the economy.

If all ten don't want to do that, then whatever combination would like to would work. In addition to Pollard, Martinez, Alcorn, Plummer and Castillo, the other five Council Democrats are Tarsha Jackson, Carolyn Evans-Shabazz, Tiffany Thomas, Abbie Kamin and Martha Castex-Tatum. Ms. Castex-Tatum is Mayor Pro-Tem which makes her the #2 official in the city. 

Business as usual has not worked. The systems we've been asked to trust all our lives don't keep us safe. Beyond using innovative ways to communicate with Houstonians, Houston City Council Democrats may well at some point soon have to decide what side of the police line to stand on. These elected officials are no safer than of the rest of us. 

Councilmember Pollard had an awakening when he saw the utility and power of reaching people in a different way. Let the awakenings and realizations continue for all of us as we fight for our freedom. For each of us as rank & file Houstonians, let's realize that we must demand that our elected officials-including at the municipal level-show up for us no matter the challenges and dangers ahead. 

(Public comment time at Houston City Council is each Tuesday at 2 PM. Here is how you can speak at Council and here is how to contact your councilmember.  The earlier before the session you sign up, the higher up on the speaker's list you'll be. The agenda session to conduct Council business is each Wednesday at 9 AM. The agenda is posted in advance. Council can be watched live on HTV Houston Television and is available at any time on the HTV feed on Facebook.)

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​

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​There was a protest today at a Tesla dealership in Houston at Gessner and Westheimer. 

Above you see a picture of the protest taken by Houstonian and political strategist Colby Wright. Colby also helped rustle up some of the crowd. The protest was initiated by the good and impactful folks at Indivisible Katy Hubble. Six folks at the dealership were core members of the weekly John Cornyn Houston Office Protest. (I was not present.) 

A picture of the protest was tweeted out by reporter Gage Goulding at Channel 2. It also made the Rachel Maddow show as you see in the photo below. 

It's not enough to tell people just to wait for the next election in 20 months. Who knows what will be left to defend in 20 months, or if we will be politically and legally able to fully contest the election. Musk/Trump are moving fast to dismantle the country and our rights.

It's essential we act forcefully and with unity to protect and defend ourselves. Who knows what forms our action will take or what will be required of us.

We won't find out the right way forward by doing nothing or by waiting for direction from others. 

Thank you to these patriots who took visible and meaningful action today. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​

​Yesterday I went to a town hall meeting for my Congressman Wesley Hunt. Rep. Hunt is very far to the right and I regret he is my Congressperson. Here is a map of his district.

Above you see a picture from the meeting. 

The town hall was held at Sam Houston Racetrack. I went to the track with my father often as a kid. In Rhode Island we'd go to Narragansett Park & in Cincinnati we'd go to River Downs I'd read and walk around. I always liked the apathy and downtrodden feeling of racetracks. It was restful.

It was jarring to experience all that negative energy from Rep. Hunt in an environment I'd always found calming. 

Here are some notes & observations:

* Rep. Hunt said he was the first member of Congress to support Trump for 2024.

* He expressed a small measure of concern about all the executive orders Trump is making & suggested that Congress would at some point have to "reclaim" its powers. He did not say when that would be. 

* There were maybe 150 people in attendance. Or more. Or less. I don't know. There should have been 5000 Democrats and democracy-loving Texans there. Rep. Hunt and his Republican colleagues are trashing the country and trashing our futures. 

* Rep. Hunt was adamant he would not support any more money for Ukraine. A Ukrainian woman asked him a question about that and implored him to support Ukraine. Rep. Hunt talked about how Russia was in fact weak and whatever it was he went on to say. The upshot was that Trump is a mastermind and respected by all. 

* A woman told Rep. Hunt she was a small businessperson and had made good use of loans from the Small Business Administration after our many natural disasters. She said FEMA had done good work and she valued the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Rep. Hunt heard her comments and did not offer a full reply.

Trump/Musk are going after FEMA and NOAA. 

After they said they'd taken the last question for the meeting, I said loudly like 8 times "What about the lady who asked about FEMA and NOAA?" I said it enough times and loud enough to where Rep. Hunt addressed the woman again. She asked about the SBA again, but not FEMA and NOAA. I said to myself--"Come on lady, I got it so where you could get him on the record. But nope." 

Hunt said he supported the SBA. He said nothing about FEMA and NOAA even though we are here in Houston and Harris County where there are many big storms and long heat waves.

* I'm going to write a post about this soon, but I want to make sure everyone knows the invocation for the meeting was given by Republican Houston City Councilmember Julian Ramirez. He said we should bless and be thankful for "President Donald J. Trump." Houston City Council is a partisan body. Don't let anybody tell you it is not. 

* Rep. Hunt served in Iraq. He said yesterday--"I looked the enemy in the eye and eliminated him." My dad was a corporal in the Korean War. I asked him once a long time ago if he'd killed anyone and he said he believed he had. The idea that dad would boast about killing anyone would be crazy. The only comment I ever heard him say about the Korean and Chinese troops he encountered was that they were "unlucky bastards" like himself stuck in a war. 

I found Rep. Hunt's comment distasteful and I was glad to be away from him when the meeting ended. 

* I went to a Congressman Al Green public meeting last week. That meeting was a lot better than this one.

We'll keep fighting no matter what is on the way. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​

​The John Cornyn Houston Office Protest had a good team of 36 yesterday for Week 419. 

We are going to stay the course and show up no matter the aggression of the right. 

We meet each Tuesday, 11:30-1, 5300 Memorial Dr.  We are friendly and have extra signs. Or you can bring any sign you like. 

We are facing the loss of our freedom-or the hope of an America that more fully lives up to its creed-at the hands of authoritarians. Voting matters. But it will not be enough.

We are going to have to show up for ourselves & not yield any space or anything at all to the aggression of the right. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​

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​I attended the 50501 protest at Houston City Hall today. Above you see a picture from the protest. 

Here are some observations: 

* I'd estimate there were about 500 people. 

* There were no elected officials. This was on one hand frustrating, but on the other hand a useful reminder that we must show up for ourselves. There were no traditional or well-known advocacy groups. It was whoever showed up. That's fine by me. A strong definition of solidarity is whoever shows up. 

50501 seems--so far--organic and grassroots. There were no formal speakers. Anyone could speak for a brief time. There were a number of 50501 protests today across the country. 

We'll see how long this movement retains this openness & how it evolves as this situation worsens. 

* There were a lot of police. They were fine. Just always remember that at bottom line they are not your friend.

* The most out-front organizer was Kristina Pham. I'd not met her before. She did a strong job. She has stepped up as a good citizen to take up leadership at a difficult time. If she continues with this work, she should be paid by the national 50501 organizers. 

* There was decent press coverage. Here is the Houston Chronicle. I saw a photographer with the Houston Landing, but the story is not up as I wrote this. There were TV cameras. 

* There is a lot of trouble ahead and we are going to have to show up. Hopefully today at Houston City Hall was a step along the way to what will be needed for the fight. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​

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​​​Yesterday I attended a speech given by Houston-area Congressman Al Green. Above you see a picture Rep. Green offering his remarks.  

He had a good crowd of maybe 100-Maybe more. 

Here are some things he said: 

1. He said we are "devolving" as a society.

2. He called the elected officials who take orders from billionaires "pluto-puppets."

3. He said that he always stands for the Pledge of Allegiance. But that if you did not want to stand, he would protect your right to do so. I can go with that. 

4. He encouraged people to march and protest. But said he would withdraw his support of people who "broke things"or were violent. 

5. He said if we lose the rights that many Americans have gained since the Civil Rights-era, that the lives of those who died for those rights would be "sacrificed." 

6. He said Trump deportation efforts were about going after all non-white people. He called these efforts "nouveau ethnic cleansing."

7. He said: "We are this close to dictatorship." 

8. He said Trump's refusal to obey court orders is grounds for impeachment. Here is a speech Congressman Green made on the floor of the House making this point.

9. There was very heavy security, 

I appreciated that Congressman Green spoke directly about what is going on without holding back his words, and told people to go and protest. He said he would move for impeachment. He didn't tell us to just wait for the next election and place all our faith in elected officials. 

It's a mistake to place a lot of faith in elected officials. I went to see Rep. Green because I figured he'd lay out the facts & empower people rather than tell them to defer to him. 

We don't have any obligation to just sit around and watch these people dismantle the nation and torch our futures. Every Democratic elected official needs to be sounding the alarm all the time. And each of us needs to fight. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for the Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​