Tell your Members of Congress: Block Last Minute MAGA Legislation

Call BOTH of your Senators.

Call ONE of the Representatives. Note: only one of these Congressmembers represents you. Find out which one here.

Call Script

My name is __________. I am a constituent, and my zip code is _______. I am a member of Indivisible SF.

Senate (Padilla & Schiff)

At this crucial moment in history, I ask that you prevent the MAGA regime from jamming through any portion of their agenda in this lame duck session before the new Democratic majority takes over in January. In particular I urge you to:

1. Firmly oppose all judicial and administration confirmations. 

2. Enact only a short term budget Continuing Resolution that does not extend past the end of February and oppose any new Reconciliation bill.

3. Block the BAAJA 'permitting bill until it can be redrafted by Democratic majorities.

4. Block the NDAA defense bill until it is redrafted by Democratic majorities. 

I urge you to replace Senator Schumer as majority leader with someone who will actually fight rather than appease and accommodate. The process of choosing party leadership must be more open, transparent, and democratic, and the party leaders you vote for should represent the full range of the Blue Wave coalition that delivered victory in the midterms. 

House (Pelosi & Mullin)

At this crucial moment in history, I ask that you do everything you can to prevent the MAGA regime from jamming through any portion of their agenda in this lame duck session before the new Democratic majority takes over. In particular I urge you to:

1. Enact only a short term budget Continuing Resolution that  does not extend past the end of February and oppose any new Reconciliation bill. 

2. If the BAAJA "permitting bill" is brought up, oppose it by every means you can until it can be redrafted by Democratic majorities. 

3. Renew the effort to impeach Hegseth

Make the process of choosing party leadership more open, transparent, and democratic. The party leaders you vote for should represent the full range of the Blue Wave coalition that delivered victory in the midterms.

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Background

Before the new Democratic majority takes office in January, the current GOP-majority Congress holds a 'lame duck' session until mid-December (or possibly later). MAGA will try to use the last days of their majorities to jam through as much of their agenda as they can. We must urge our current Democratic members of Congress (MoC) to do everything in their power to block them. 

As of now, the key issues for both the Senate and the House are:

• Budget. Congress failed this year to enact the federal budget. So to keep the government open and avoid a partial shutdown, they passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) that continues spending as specified by the previous (Republican) budget. MAGA will try to pass a new, long CR extending their old budget as far into next year as they can get away with. We need Democrats to fight for a short CR extending no farther than the end of February. MAGA may also try to ram through a new Reconciliation Bill loaded with poison pills and vile policies. Democrats must prevent this at all costs. 

• Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA) also known as the 'permitting bill.' This mendaciously misnamed bill has little to do with either affordability or jobs. The huge 400+ page bill does contain some good provisions regarding renewable energy (though whether they can survive the MAGA king's executive actions and orders is unclear). But at the same time it undercuts the Clean Water, Endangered Species, National Environmental Policy (NEPA), and historic preservation acts, in ways that kneecap the legal power of local communities and native tribes to slow down and block the forced imposition of datacenters, pipelines, coal facilities, etc. We must demand that Democrats block this bill and then use Democratic majorities in the new Congress to write a new permitting bill. 

It could have been blocked last Monday in the Senate by a filibuster, but 22 Democrats including Schumer voted to deny a filibuster and take up the bill (both Schiff and Padilla voted in favor of the filibuster). Now we will have to fight over its content and then a final vote during the remaining weeks of the lame duck session. Thank you Chuck Schumer. 

The key issues for the Senate only are:

• Judges & officials. The MAGA regime hopes to ram through confirmation of 16 to 22 new judges before the lame duck session ends and an unknown number of executive appointments. Our Democratic senators must do everything they can to prevent that. 

• NDAA. The House has already passed their MAGA version of the $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Democrats used a filibuster to stall it in the Senate. But if Republicans can get some version of it passed during the lame duck session it could become law if the Republican-controlled House rubber-stamps it. It's possible that the leaders of the Senate and House Armed Services Committee may craft a joint bill behind closed doors that they try to ram through both chambers without hearings or testimony in December. Some Democrats support this bill; we must convince them to oppose it.

The House bill currently before the Senate calls for a huge increase in defense spending raising it to 63% of all federal discretionary spending (leaving just 37% for everything else). It also integrates military aid and cooperation with Israel into the Pentagon budget in ways that circumvent congressional oversight, limitations, and reporting. This would create a new special relationship that no other nation has, not even the United Kingdom. With the approval of Netanyau, Trump recently announced he was ending some military aid to Israel. What he didn't mention is that if this provision passes, Israel won't need 'aid' because they've been made a 'partner' with the Pentagon. 

Indivisible is calling for Democrats to elect bold new leadership through an open and transparent process. And to choose leaders who represent the full range of the Blue Wave coalition that delivered victory in the midterms. In particular, Indivisible is urging Democrats to replace Schumer as Senate party leader and majority leader. 

The House:

(Note that in the lame duck session, Pelosi continues to be our representative because Wiener does not take office until January.)

Renew the effort to impeach Hegseth.

Both Mullin and Wiener will have a vote in the House leadership choice. Indivisible is calling for Democrats to elect bold new leadership through an open and transparent process, and to choose leaders who represent the full range of the Blue Wave coalition that delivered victory in the midterms. 

References

Lame duck session. 

Freedom Caucus lays out legislative priorities for lame-duck session, Politico 11/9

Congress returns to leadership fights, shutdown deadline after GOP losses, The Hill 11/8

Judges

Trump Judges Most Likely to Be Confirmed Before New Senate Takes Over, Newsweek, 11/6

BAAJA

Major bill to cut red tape for energy projects clears Senate hurdle. Washington Examiner. 11/9

Resources Opposing the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA). FoE. 

Senate advances sweeping energy legislation in first major action since midterm elections, AP 11/9

NDAA

Primer: The National Defense Authorization Act Is Endangering the United States. Center for Renewing America. 6/18/26

Letter Calling on Defense Committees to Oppose FY27 Pentagon Budget Request, Public Citizen. 6/1/26

Hegseth

Massie files articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, NPR 11/9

Note that yesterday the House refused to impeach Hegseth on a straight party-line vote (except that Massie (R-KY) voted to impeach). 

Schumer

Tell Democrats: NO Schumer Coronation, Indivisible. 

“The reason poverty exists in the wealthiest country on earth is not because we can't feed the poor,
it's because we can't satisfy the rich." --James Talarico (D-TX) 2026..