Tell Governor Newsom: Trump's Administrative Coup Threatens Our Health and Safety
Call your Governor.
Call Script
#1 Call the Governor
Call him and leave a version of the message below with his office!
#2 Email the Governor
On the left, under topic, select “OTHER” last on the list
Select “Leave a comment” and Click Next
On the next page click “Con” or leave blank and then leave a comment. You can use your own words or personalize the template below. In your comment:
Condemn the transphobic comments made on the podcast
Demand that the governor issue an apology, retract his statements, meet with trans athletes and their families, and recommit himself to supporting LGBTQ+ rights in California
Note that the number of comments received is more important than the wording you choose
RE: Demand for Apology and Policy Reversal to Ensure Equitable, Safe Trans Youth & Adult Participation in Sports
Dear Governor Newsom,
I am writing [as a parent/constituent/other] to condemn the transphobic comments you made on your recent podcast about the participation of trans girls and women in sports. Just a few months ago you promised that California would be a safe haven for trans kids and called for a special session of the legislature to ensure those protections and others.
And yet here we are, listening to you agree with a hate merchant that keeping children from playing sports is a matter of “fairness”. The only truly fair thing to do is speak up and defend California education law, which protects the right of all young athletes to participate in teams that align with their gender identity. I am asking you, a one-time leader on LGBTQ rights, to not back down now, when we need you most. If you are truly concerned with fairness, think of the children whose rights you are denying. You are giving voice to a deeply hurtful form of discrimination against trans kids who simply want to be themselves. [optional: add personal example]
Because you are such a long-time ally and leader, your words have power. They have for decades brought comfort and inspiration to LGBTQ+ communities. People are looking to California to set the standard for equality and inclusion. But today, you have caused our communities harm. If you do not act swiftly to rectify this, you will have done permanent damage to our communities, and your own legacy.
I demand that you take these actions:
Issue an immediate and full apology,
Meet with trans athletes and their families, and
Publicly commit to a full policy reversal, and commit to upholding Education Code section 221.5, which ensures full and equitable participation in sports for all California kids, regardless of identity.
Especially as trans youth are under assault by the federal government that seeks to erase their identities, your words and actions mean more than ever. We are counting on you.
Background
On Monday, wannabe-king Trump issued an unconstitutional decree through his Office of Management and Budget (OMB) halting a wide swath of federal non-defense funding for an indefinite period. This is an assertion of illegal powers to seize money that Congress has already legally directed to be spent for health, safety, education, research, housing, disaster relief, small business loans, and a wide range of other public needs.
While his edict impounds all spending immediately, its language makes clear his ultimate partisan political targets and extreme right-wing ideological purposes are:
“The use of federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars ... including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal."
Under our Constitutional system of checks and balances, we are supposed to have three co-equal branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial. The foundation stone of congressional authority is its power to grant or withhold funding—the “power of the purse.” If King Trump's unilateral assertion of power to impound congressionally authorized funds stands, it will be an administrative coup allowing him to overrule Congress at his whim.
Russ Vought, Trump's nominee to head the OMB, wrote an entire chapter of the infamous Project 2025 that called for pausing, reviewing, curtailing and eliminating grants that are seen as advancing liberal agendas, like environmental stewardship and LGBTQ+ equality.
It is clear that the impact of Trump's diktat is going to vary by class. First because of what programs will be eliminated or reduced; and second because affluent people and their well-funded institutions and organizations have access to lawyers and lobbyists, have elected officials on speed-dial, and have insider deal-makers and Trump-whisperers to shield them from impact. Individuals and groups who are not in the upper strata of wealth and power will not be so protected. At the end of the day, the burden of these cuts are going to fall on poor and working people, leaving the billionaire class fatter, happier, and richer.
Late yesterday, a judge temporarily halted implementation of Trump's administrative coup. But with a highly-partisan Supreme Court majority committed to the MAGA agenda, we cannot rely on the judiciary alone to defend our freedom and our Constitution. Only we can preserve democracy. It's up to us to fight back and resist with actions such as:
Demand that our federal legislators overturn this funding suspension and ensure that our government works for us, not the billionaires who want to take our freedoms, endanger our families, and control our futures. In particular, until this decree is revoked, tell our two senators to:
Refuse all Unanimous Consent requests (Unanimous Consent is where the Senate simply agrees to do something without making each senator vote on it)
Oppose all Cloture votes (the votes that advance legislation out of debate to a vote)
Oppose all Trump nominees
Request a Quorum Call at every possible opportunity (which puts sand in the gears of Congressional business)
Thank Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta for immediately joining other states in suing to halt the OMB decree.
Urge our media sources to cover this story courageously and accurately:
It's not "possibly illegal" — it's "patently illegal."
It's not "temporary" — it's "indefinite."
It's not just a memo — it's an administrative coup.
Talk to friends and family about this issue even if they voted for or voiced support for Trump. They may agree with some of his promises, but do they really want a King and government of the billionaires, by the lobbyists, for the obscenely wealthy?
If you are (or might be) impacted by the freeze: Share your story. Go to social media and share a video or a post talking about how Trump’s seizing of funds impacts you. It’ll be the stories of harm that generate backlash to Trump’s overreach. Consider tagging your elected officials and sharing with Indivisible.
References
OMB Memo (PDF format):
Trump’s Spending Freeze Sows Confusion and Fear. NY Times 1/28 (No paywall).
Trump move to pause federal loans and grants rooted in Project 2025, Guardian 1/28
National Indivisible's call for senatorial action and Trump’s Dictatorial Power Grab, Indivisible. 1/28