Hello Democrats!

One Year Into Biden’s Presidency - President Biden and Vice President Harris took office one year ago this Thursday amid several crises and promised to move quickly to deliver results for working families. That’s just what they’ve done.

In just one year, Democrats have:

• Got Shots in Arms & Saved Lives: The President set up a historic vaccination program that resulted in more than 200 million Americans getting fully vaccinated this year – almost 75% of all adults. Millions of teenagers and children are now vaccinated, and tens of millions of Americans are getting booster shots. The President closed the racial equity gap in COVID vaccinations among adults. And, about 96% of schools have re-opened their buildings and welcomed students back to learn in their classrooms. All these steps have and continue to save countless lives. 

• Got People Back to Work: President Biden has spurred the fastest economic growth in decades and added 6.4 million jobs - the most ever recorded in one year. Weekly unemployment claims are at their lowest level since 1969. Economic growth is the strongest it’s been in two generations – and for the first time in 20 years, the U.S. economy has grown faster than China’s.

• Passed Laws to Create Jobs & Rebuild Crumbling Infrastructure: President Biden got the American Rescue Plan and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed -- the most impactful legislative agenda ever for a first-year president. The American Rescue Plan led to what experts estimate will be the lowest child poverty rate on record. The unemployment rate is down to 3.9% – two years faster than projected. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will create jobs, provide clean drinking water, upgrade our roads, airports, and rail, and is a critical, first step towards a clean energy future.

In spite of unprecedented crises and opposition from Republicans, the President and Congressional Democrats got an enormous amount done for the American people during the historic first year of the Biden Administration.

Some facts on the record firsts of Biden’s Presidency so far:

• Jobs: President Biden’s first year was the greatest year of job creation in American history, with more than 6 million jobs created.

• Unemployment Rate: The unemployment rate dropped from 6.2% when Biden took office to 3.9% – the biggest single year drop in American history.

• Unemployment Claims: The average number of Americans filing for unemployment every week has been at its lowest level since 1969. When the President took office, over 18 million were receiving unemployment benefits; today only 2 million are — also the biggest single year drop in history.

• Economic Legislation Passed: Most significant economic impact of any first-year president.

• Child Poverty: Experts estimate the US reached its lowest child poverty rate ever in 2021.

• Expanded Access to Health Care: Nearly five million Americans have newly gained health insurance coverage.

• Reduced Hunger: The number of households reporting that they sometimes or often did not have enough to eat dropped by 32%.

• Judges Confirmed: More judges confirmed to lower federal courts than any president since President Kennedy.

• Judges That Reflect Our Nation: More Black women appointed to the US Court of Appeals than any president -- even over 8 years -- in history.

• Cabinet: First majority non-white Cabinet in history, with most women in the Cabinet, including first female Treasury Secretary, first LGBTQ+ and Native American Cabinet officials, and first female Director of National Intelligence.

• Climate Investments: Largest investments ever in climate resilience, the power grid, and electric vehicle chargers.

• Clean Water: Largest investment and national, bipartisan plan to get safe and clean drinking water to all Americans.

• Cleaner Cars: Strongest vehicle emissions standards ever, saving drivers money at the pump and reducing pollution.

• Wind: First-ever approvals of large-scale, offshore wind projects.

• Personnel: Most diverse Administration in history – most women, people of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+, first-generation American, and first-generation college graduates.

We all know there’s a lot left to be done. But we also need to celebrate the huge accomplishments we’ve achieved so far! We need to make sure that voters know what Democrats have delivered going into the midterm elections. Please help spread these accomplishments to your friends, networks, and social media. Don’t let people around you gripe about how “Biden isn’t doing anything” - if you hear or see folks saying that, let them know the truth! The first year of Biden’s presidency delivered major progressive policy, and I’m confident that we’ll see more action and even more progressive wins in his second year. 

The Truth About the Board of Health - You might have heard about the right-wing conspiracies surrounding Washington’s Board of Health that led conservative protesters to rally at the Board’s meeting and to even make threats to some of its members. Apparently, some extreme conservatives were claiming that the Board was going to kidnap unvaccinated people and lock them up in quarantine. I’m sure none of you will be surprised to find out that this was completely untrue - yet another example of COVID misinformation raised by Republicans. 

What’s interesting is that a UW expert at the Center for an Informed Public talked with MyNorthwest news about how this wasn’t just naturally spread, but was intentionally and strategically amplified by actual Republican candidates, including several running for Congress: 

University of Washington’s Dr. Kate Starbird — an expert on misinformation and the co-founder of the Center for an Informed Public — spoke to CNN this week to describe the mechanics of a process she says is designed to instill fear and panic with claims that are then “strategically amplified.”

“I think people are afraid because they’ve been stirred up to be afraid, and these kinds of things can take root,” She detailed. “Then people — cable news hosts and others — are opportunistically amplifying these things to feed their financial models,” she detailed.

The claims related to the Washington State Board of Health were widely circulated around social media, and later received signal boosts from Republican Congressional candidates Joe Kent, Jesse Jensen, and Doug Basler, among others. But as it turns out, the Board of Health meeting in question wasn’t about COVID-19 at all. Rather, it was to discuss edits to outdated language in state laws originally written to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

That’s part of what Starbird says has been a common tactic in past years.

“This is something we’ve seen over and over again, and we know that conspiracy theories and rumors are often built off of old building blocks,” she detailed, citing past unproven conspiracy theories about FEMA planning to use major disasters as an impetus to imprison people in camps.

One of the Republicans spreading these conspiracies was Jesse Jensen, running against Rep. Kim Schrier in the 8th Congressional District. As the Seattle Times reported:

Jesse Jensen, a Republican challenging U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Sammamish, in the 8th Congressional District, fired off a press release condemning the health board’s “Gestapo tactics to come into your home and detain you and your family.”

Jensen wants very badly for voters to think of him as a “moderate” so he can win in this swing district, but here he is sending out a press release with completely false misinformation comparing the Board of Health to the Nazi Gestapo? This is completely unacceptable. 

The problem with misinformation and conspiracy in the Republican Party is that it’s not just at their fringes. This is not just an issue with a few on the far-right; this is a central theme of their entire party at this point. Lying to spread fear and confusion among the base has been a part of the conservative strategy for decades, of course, but the degree to which it’s been taken over the mainstream of their party is now unprecedented. We Democrats MUST take a stand for truth and not let this go unchallenged. We must fight and win. 

Voting Rights and the Filibuster - Like all of you, I was disappointed that the Senate vote to change filibuster rules and allow a fair, up-or-down vote on the Freedom to Vote: John R Lewis Act failed, 48 to 52. Voting rights is so important - it is one of those issues where it is better to fight and lose than not fight at all. That’s whyI’m glad that the issue was brought to the floor, even though it did not get enough votes. I thank our Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell for pushing to get this vote as far as it did. 

First, like all of you, I’m angry at the conservative Democrats Manchin (WV) and Sinema (AZ) for joining Republicans on this vote on the filibuster rules. But Manchin and Sinema are not the only two people who voted the wrong way on this. Let’s not forget that every single Republican in the Senate voted against this, too. As Jonathan Weisman put it in the New York Times:

The remarkable vitriol being trained by Democratic activists on two members of their own party has largely given Republicans a pass for blocking the bill and standing by new state laws designed to limit access to the ballot box and empower partisan actors to administer elections and count votes.

To win in 2022, Democrats must reconstitute the anti-Trump majority who delivered the House, Senate, and White House two years ago. The best way to do that is to remind people of the crisis that originally sparked us into action has not receded. It has grown. We have to make this election a choice between Democrats and MAGA Republicans. We can’t do that if we keep the spotlight on Manchin and Sinema, no matter how much they frustrate us.

Second, this just makes it all the more important that we elect good people to our election administration positions across Washington. That means retaining our new Democratic Secretary of State Steve Hobbs and supporting folks for county auditor positions who will run our elections fairly and freely. Republicans across the country are running candidates for election jobs who might help support a coup like Donald Trump attempted in 2020. We can’t let them win – here or anywhere. We have to beat their attempts to pass anti-voting bills in state legislatures. Protecting the right to vote starts at the local and state level, and I’m committed to doing our part here in Washington. 

Blue Washington Special Offer - Our organizers are working hard around the clock to ensure that every single Democrat statewide turns out to vote this November, but they need your help. Our Coordinated Campaign needs to hire more organizers and we are currently facing a $3M budget gap. We truly cannot do this without you, which is why I wanted to remind you about joining our recurring donor programBlue Washington. By becoming a recurring donor, you will be supporting every single Democratic candidate in our state, driving progressive voter turnout, and ensuring we maintain our blue majority! 

OurBlue Washington program specifically helps us build our organizing team and fund the resources they need to fight voter suppression and turn out every single Democrat. The more resources we have, the more we can accomplish!

What better way to watch President Biden’s updates at his State of the Union this year than with a cup of Joe! So get your coffee in style with our new mug! Those who sign up with a donation of at least $10 monthly will receive this limited edition “Organizing Works” coffee mug with a message to remind us why Democrats win: 

Sign up todayby clicking below! The earlier we can start organizing, the more we will be able to accomplish. Will you invest in a more progressive future for Washington?

COVID Tests - If you haven’t yet, sign up to get four free COVID tests from the federal government through USPS here! https://www.covidtests.gov Or, you can call 800-232-0233 or TTY 888-720-7489 to order them over the phone. In addition to the federal option, the state of Washington is also sending out free tests through https://sayyeshometest.org Both are super convenient to sign up, so let’s get these tests out to everyone ASAP!

And last, but not least, next Saturday, January 29th, is our state committee meeting! Our state committee members will be working on issues like resolutions, the state convention, and more - folks can watch on our Youtube stream here!

Thanks for reading and for your support as always.

With gratitude, 

Tina Podlodowski