If you are not “in the fight” to defeat the GOP, now is the time. Join us.

Yesterday, most Americans were sickened by the GOP passage of the utterly heartless American Health Care Act, or TrumpCare, on a 217-213 vote in the House.

But don’t try seeing your doctor to care for your queasiness, since this bill:

• Takes health care coverage away from 24 million Americans
• Raises premiums as much as seven times over current costs
• Allows insurance companies to limit payments for catastrophic illnesses, meaning Americans who have employer-based health plans would pay WAY more out of pocket if they got sick
• Guts $880 billion from Medicaid, hurting older Americans, kids with special needs, and working families
• Defunds Planned Parenthood

Got a preexisting condition?  Sorry, you are now out of luck.  And here’s a partial list of those conditions under TrumpCare:

AIDS/HIV, acid reflux, acne, ADD, addiction, Alzheimer’s/dementia, anemia, aneurysm, angioplasty, anorexia, anxiety, arrhythmia, arthritis, asthma, atrial fibrillation, autism, bariatric surgery, basal cell carcinoma, bipolar disorder, blood clot, breast cancer, bulimia, bypass surgery, celiac disease, cerebral aneurysm, cerebral embolism, cerebral palsy, cerebral thrombosis, cervical cancer, colon cancer, colon polyps, congestive heart failure, COPD, Crohn’s disease, cystic fibrosis, DMD, depression, diabetes, disabilities, Down syndrome, eating disorder, enlarged prostate, epilepsy, glaucoma, gout, heart disease, heart murmur, heartburn, hemophilia, hepatitis C, herpes, high cholesterol, hypertension, hysterectomy, kidney disease, kidney stones, kidney transplant, leukemia, lung cancer, lupus, lymphoma, mental health issues, migraines, MS, muscular dystrophy, narcolepsy, nasal polyps, obesity, OCD, organ transplant, osteoporosis, pacemaker, panic disorder, paralysis, paraplegia, Parkinson’s disease, pregnancy, restless leg syndrome, schizophrenia, seasonal affective disorder, seizures, sickle cell disease, skin cancer, sleep apnea, sleep disorders, stent, stroke, thyroid issues, tooth disease, tuberculosis, and ulcers.

Just to name a few. And chances are, you or someone you know has dealt with something (or multiple things) on this list.

Quite simply, this vote is a betrayal of the 3 million Washingtonians who have pre-existing conditions and are counting on quality health care to literally keep them alive.

In Washington State, GOP members of Congress Dave Reichert, Jamie Herrera Beutler, Dan Newhouse, and especially Cathy McMorris Rodgers must be defeated in 2018.

But that takes hard work and resources NOW, in 2017, to:

• Gather the precise data we need to target voter turnout to win — this is a long and detail oriented effort
• Educate voters on the REAL positions of their GOP members of Congress — this means multiple conversations with real people, not TV ads or flyers
• Build the volunteer infrastructure needed to make sure people vote — to do this we need to hire staff to help organize and support the thousands of volunteers we need

In 2017 we have three SIGNIFICANT State Senate races that will have HUGE impacts on our ability in Washington State to protect heath care for Washingtonians and ultimately block the impacts of TrumpCare if it passes. These races are:

#1 – Manka Dhingra in the 45th LD

The Republicans have vowed to raise $5 million for the Republican in this race, a record setting amount. The GOP candidate, Jinyoung Englund, is a hardcore conservative who opposes the ACA and was a staffer for Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Jeb Bush, and even Paul Ryan. We must win this seat and Manka is the perfect candidate to do it, but the Republicans are all-in and we need to match them.

#2 – Michelle Rylands in the 31st LD

This race in rural South King County is in the middle of Reichert’s congressional district and competing (and winning!) here is essential to building the infrastructure to beat Reichert in 2018. The GOP incumbent, Phil Fortunato, is an anti-Obamacare extremist who’s entirely unfit for office, while Michelle Rylands is a PTA leader and union member who will fight hard to make sure people have the health care they need.

#3 – Karen Hardy in the 7th LD

This is our chance to campaign in the heart of McMorris Rodgers’ district. We build our party in Eastern Washington by campaigning hard in these rural areas, where many people do have major health care needs and will see major impacts if TrumpCare passes into law. Karen is a long-time activist for health care and she’s the right person to lead the charge against the Republican Shelly Short – another former McMorris Rodgers staffer.

We’ve recruited 3 great women to run in the special elections this year — now they need your time and support.

The Resistance is our year-round fundraising program to raise dedicated dollars for the field organizing efforts we need to win in these districts and more. If you sign up to make a small monthly contribution, we can make the sustained and year-round investments in organizing and party building it’ll take to win across the state. All of the money raised by monthly contributions through the Resistance will be invested directly into field organizing efforts.

Click here to join the Resistance and help us win these races!

The fight to stop TrumpCare – and retake Congress by beating Reichert, Herrera Beutler, Newhouse, and McMorris Rodgers – will be a long one, and it’s far from over. Your sustained support is CRITICAL to being able to organize and win in these districts across the state. Click here to join us!

And if you want to volunteer immediately for our state legislative candidates in the 2017 elections, here are the links to sign up:

Click here to volunteer for – Manka Dhingra in the 45th LD

Click here to volunteer for Michelle Rylands in the 31st LD

Click here to volunteer for Karen Hardy in the 7th LD

Remember, we can stand strong together and RESIST! This fight is far from over and I know that together, we can defend the values that we hold dear.

Thanks,

Tina Podlodowski