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The extreme policy recommendations of Project 2025 provide a preview of the catastrophic consequences of a second Trump administration. The recommendations appear in a   920-page book ,   Mandate for Leadership ,   published in the spring of 2023 . Project 2025 was   led by the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation . The   director and an associate director of Project  2025 were former Trump administration officials, and   many other former Trump alumni took part in the book’s drafting .   When work on Project 2025 began in 2022 , Trump said,   “[t]hey’re going to lay the groundwork and detail plans for exactly what our movement will do.” After criticism of Project 2025 began to circulate,   Trump claimed  ignorance. Project 2025 was shuttered and its leader resigned. But it had already   completed its work . Its comprehensive recommendations are ready for implementation if Trump returns to office. The recommendations are only one part of Project 2025. Equally disturbing is its   database of 10,000 Trump supporters  who are interested in government jobs.   Project 2025 has vetted them for their fealty to Trump   and has given them video training on its goals.   The plan is for Trump to reclassify thousands of federal jobs as political rather than civil-service positions, so he can remove the current employees and replace them with his loyalists . From the very outset of a second administration, by using this army of loyalists, Trump could begin to adopt Project 2025’s recommendations. The   scope of Project 2025 is unprecedented . It contains hundreds of recommendations on everything from child labor ( allow minors to hold hazardous jobs  (p. 595)) to the language the government should use in official documents ( eliminate any reference to “climate change” in all government statements and publications  (training video “ Hidden Meanings ”)). Underlying these recommendations are a few basic principles. Slash the powers of the executive branch and   concentrate its surviving authority in the office of the President . For example, Project 2025 recommends either stripping away the law-enforcement powers of the Federal Trade Commission, an independent agency that enforces antitrust and consumer-protection laws, or eliminating it altogether (pp. 872-73). It suggests transferring any remaining FTC authority to the Department of Justice (p. 872). At the same time, through the removal of civil-service protection for Justice employees, Project 2025 would bring the Justice Department directly under the control of the White House. Diminish or eliminate the ability of the federal government to devise and enforce safety standards.   Project 2025   recommends new restrictions both large and small on the government’s ability to   protect the public from various dangers. For example,   it would gut  the Biden Administration’s work to reduce toxic “forever chemicals” called PFAs in drinking water by, among other things, “revisit[ing] the designation of PFAs as ‘hazardous substances’” (p. 431).       Reorient governmental activities to benefit private commercial interests . For example, Project 2025 recommends that the National Weather Service   cease providing free weather reports but continue to gather weather data  for use by companies that sell weather forecasts (p. 675).    Empower the federal government to interfere in individuals’ private lives .  Project 2025’s recommendations cover the gamut of culture-war issues. One of the most consequential is its recommendation that the   FDA withdraw the long-standing approval of abortion medications, which as the Project notes, are now used in over half of the abortions performed in the U.S.  (pp. 457-58). This would make an abortion far more difficult to obtain for many, even in states where abortion remains legal. Slash legal immigration . Project 2025 recommends deep cuts in legal immigration. One recommended mechanism is to   eliminate  Temporary Protected Status  (p. 145), which allows immigrants to stay in the U.S. if the Secretary of Homeland Security   deems their home country unsafe for them . About   850,000 American residents  have TPS ,   including some Afghan citizens  who worked with U.S. forces during our military presence in their country and were evacuated by the U.S. upon the return of the Taliban. The end of TPS would   subject everyone with TPS status to the risk of deportation . These are among the things a second Trump administration would try to do. You can help prevent it from happening. Work to elect Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, and the full slate of Democratic candidates to federal, state, and local offices. Note: The Project 2025 publication appears in several different formats on the web. The page numbers given here are those at the bottom of the page cited in Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Saturday, May 11, 2024 CONTACT: communications@arlingtondemocrats.org Zuraya Tapia-Hadley and Kathleen Clark Emerge as Winners of School Board Endorsement, Move on to November General Election Ballot ARLINGTON, VA – Today, the Arlington Democrats announced that they are officially endorsing Zuraya Tapia-Hadley and Kathleen Clark for the Arlington County School Board. Throughout late April and May, Arlington Democrats held in-person and online voting opportunities to select two of the four candidates running to fill two vacancies on the School Board. Any registered Arlington voter was able to participate in the committee’s endorsement vote after pledging they are a Democrat and supporting all endorsed candidates in the next General Election. The May 2024 School Board Endorsement Vote was Arlington Democrats’ first-ever implementation of a commercial online voting platform. Tapia-Hadley won Round 1 of the Democratic School Board Endorsement vote with 44.41% of the overall vote. She received 862 votes. Clark also won in Round 1 with 39.57% of the vote. She received 768 votes. To win outright, a candidate needed to receive more than 33% of the vote, or more than 647 votes to pass the threshold. “I am so grateful to the voters of Arlington County who supported me and all who came out to vote. I'm particularly grateful for my team and my family as integral to this moment,” said Zuraya Tapia-Hadley. “As an APS parent, I appreciate the significance of this endorsement and look forward to continuing to advocate for students and educators as the centerpiece of our system. I'm thrilled for the opportunity to continue the campaign with fellow Democrats and expand our Democratic base as we work towards a Blue victory this November.” “Thank you to everyone who volunteered, contributed, showed up, spoke up, voted, and participated,” said Kathleen Clark. “I am honored to be chosen by the Dems after having so many heart to heart conversations with new people, and I will continue to have those conversations so that I can amplify the community's voice on the School Board.” “Arlington Democrats are thrilled to announce our endorsement of Zuraya Tapia-Hadley and Kathleen Clark for the School Board,” said Arlington Democrats Chair Steve Baker. “We’ll work until November to organize, mobilize, and turn out voters to elect these candidates along with the rest of the Democratic ticket on the November ballot. Democrats will continue standing up to Glenn Youngkin’s culture wars in our schools, and ensure our students have access to a quality education.” To learn more about the platforms of each of the endorsed candidates, please visit Zuraya Tapia-Hadley’s website at zurayatapia4schoolboard.org and Kathleen Clark’s website at kathleenforarlingtonschoolboard.org. ###

This November, every seat in the Virginia legislature is up for election, and as a result, so is the future of abortion access in Virginia and across the South. Virginia honors abortion rights in most instances, only imposing strict limitations in the third trimester of pregnancy at about 26 weeks. The razor-thin majority Democrats hold in the state Senate has prevented Governor Youngkin and Republican legislators from sharply restricting access to reproductive medical care, as every other state in the South has now done. We must retake the House of Delegates and bolster our majority in the Senate if we are to keep Republicans from eroding Virginia’s abortion rights. You can help take back the House of Delegates and strengthen our Senate majority by donating time and money to Democratic candidates around the state. Volunteer for the Arlington Democrats’ affiliate Beyond Arlington and find out where you can be most effective. During the last legislative session, Governor Youngkin proposed banning abortions after 15 weeks, with very few exceptions. Under his proposal, a physician who performed a banned abortion would have faced 2-10 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. The proposal failed only because Democratic legislators remained united in opposition. Youngkin supported this legislation because it appeared it might pass the legislature as then constituted. He personally favors a much stricter ban and has promised that if Republicans take control of the legislature, he will seek one. He believes life begins at conception and has said “Any bill that comes to my desk I will sign happily and gleefully in order to protect life.” Several Republican candidates for the legislature have avoided the subject of abortion in their speeches and campaign literature but have admitted in more informal settings that they support extreme restrictions or even a total ban. Among them are a candidate in a purple House district that includes parts of Prince WIlliam County and a Senate candidate from a purple Senate district in Fredericksburg. People who seek an abortion typically need support—financial, child care resources, healthcare, or otherwise—despite anti-abortion advocates attempting to shame abortion patients as irresponsible or worse. In fact, sixty percent of abortions are obtained by a parent with at least one child already; many seek an abortion so as not to jeopardize the quality of care they can provide to the children they already have. Seventy-five percent of those obtaining an abortion live below or close to the poverty line. They lack the resources to provide good care and in some cases even provide adequate food for a child. Abortion access remains popular in Virginia by wide margins, with some polls indicating up to 86% support for abortion being legal in at least some cases. Polls also indicate that it is easier to condemn strangers than acquaintances, showing opposition to abortion as lower among those who know someone who has had an abortion. About two-thirds of Americans believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases; the percentage rises to 78% among people who have a “close friend” who has had an abortion. Republican attempts to limit when it is legal to have an abortion can have cruel consequences. Some serious fetal abnormalities are not, and cannot be, discovered until late in a pregnancy. Bans on late-stage abortions can require a mother to suffer the emotional and physical strain of carrying to term a fetus that cannot survive. Gov. Youngkin opposes abortion even in these tragic situations. After Dobbs, he twice tried to get the Virginia legislature to cease funding abortions for low-income patients who learn that their fetus suffers from an “incapacitating” condition. Some Republicans, including Gov. Youngkin, imply that their anti-abortion legislation is humane because it contains exceptions for cases of rape or incest or a life-threatening pregnancy. In fact, these exceptions often fail to achieve their ostensible purpose. Doctors facing a loss of their medical license or even imprisonment often refuse to provide care when there is any uncertainty about whether an exception applies. For example, the only evidence that incest has occurred may be the statements of a pregnant child, and a doctor may be unwilling to stake his or her freedom on the accuracy of the story. Often the legislation is vague, and few doctors are willing to risk their futures on the hope that a prosecutor will later agree that its terms were met in a particular instance. And despite the existence of exceptions, patients may face delays or even denials of life-saving medical care, such as treatment for cancer or sepsis, that could later be judged to have violated the law. One common problem is that a patient may be desperately ill and getting worse, but not yet on the verge of death within the arguable meaning of a statute that permits an abortion only to preserve the life of the patient. In these cases, many doctors and hospitals wait until the patient is extremely sick before providing care. Anti-abortion legislators also seek to ban medication abortions, which constitute over half of abortions in the first 15 weeks. Medication abortions are induced by a two-pill regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol. Obtaining these medications is inexpensive, convenient, and in Virginia does not require a trip to a doctor or medical facility. Medication abortions have been an escape valve for many since the Dobbs decision, particularly because it is not possible for others to tell the difference between a natural miscarriage and one induced via pill. The future availability of medication abortions is threatened by litigation about the validity of agency actions permitting the procedure. These cases are currently proceeding in the lower courts but will ultimately be decided by the same Court that overruled Roe v. Wade. Even if medication abortions remain available as a matter of federal law, states can ban the procedure within their borders. Currently 14 states do. The then-Democratic Virginia legislature voted to expand access to medication abortions via mail in 2020, but the procedure could be on the chopping block in Virginia if Republicans take control. By eliminating the procedure used in over half of abortions within the first 15 weeks, the usefulness of a 15-week period would be sharply diminished for many patients. Help protect reproductive rights in Virginia. Volunteer with Beyond Arlington today to secure Democratic control of the Virginia legislature.

Like Republicans across the country, Governor Youngkin has moved to suppress voting in Virginia. One of his particular targets has been former felons. The administration has shrouded its actions in secrecy, so their full extent is unknown. It’s estimated that 6% of the voting-age population in Virginia is prohibited from voting because of a felony record. Some states, particularly in the South, traditionally limited the ability of ex-felons to vote even after they had completed their sentence, but in recent years the trend has been to readmit these people to the voting rolls. A 2018 study found that over 60% of adults favor the restoration of voting rights to former felons who have completed their sentences. Virginia is one of only three states that still automatically disfranchises people convicted of a felony, but it also empowers the governor to restore those rights once the subjects have been released from prison. Democratic Governor Northam, who served immediately before Youngkin, regularized and streamlined the restoration process. Under his administration, any former felon who petitioned to vote after completing his or her sentence automatically qualified for restoration of rights. Governor Youngkin initially continued that policy. Sometime after May 2022, however, acting in secret, he ended the automatic award of eligibility and began to consider each case individually. The administration did not disclose that it had changed rights restoration until confronted with a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the Virginia NAACP. The NAACP and the ACLU, among others, are now pursuing litigation about the Youngkin administration’s policy. The administration has not publicly revealed what standards it now applies when deciding whose rights to restore. When it denies a petition, it does not state a reason but simply invites applicants to reapply in a year. The Virginia NAACP has asserted that the information the administration seeks from petitioners is “likely to include voting history.” Nor has the administration stated why it made the change to state policy. It may be relevant that in one study, ex-felons were more likely to be Democrats or Independents than Republicans, although Republican ex-felons were more likely than others to vote. The administration has also been secretive about over 1,000 petitions for voting rights restoration that it currently considers “incomplete.” The administration has not informed those petitioners what is missing from their petitions. Robert Barnette, President of the Virginia NAACP, says that this issue disproportionately affects voters of color and “cannot be allowed to continue.” An additional problem is a software error installed by the administration that has improperly purged from the voting rolls some ex-felons who served their time, then petitioned for and were granted the restoration of their rights. According to the administration, the software program misread reports of parole violations as a commission of additional felonies that deprived subjects of their rights a second time. The program then improperly purged those alleged parole violators from the rolls. In an official report released this September, the administration said it removed 17,368 voters from the rolls in this process. The administration did not reveal that any removals were improper until late September 2023, when reporting by a public radio station confirmed the existence of a disfranchised Arlington voter. As recently as October 2023, the administration admitted only to improper removal of fewer than 300 voters. Then, a week before the Nov. 7 election, the administration suddenly admitted that the Department of Elections had improperly purged over ten times as many voters -- almost 3,400 eligible, registered voters. The administration claimed that all but about 100 of the voters were re-added to the rolls before Election Day. The entire episode is shrouded in secrecy. The gap between the administration’s initial disclosure and its most recent admission and the large number of voters purged by the flawed software supports skepticism of the administration’s story. Both of Virginia’s senators and its six Democratic Congressional Representatives have called for an investigation by the Department of Justice. Voting rights are at the heart of our democracy. The Youngkin administration’s reprehensible efforts to restrict those rights should be fully exposed and stopped.

Medicare Advantage is NOT Medicare. Medicare Advantage is not Medicare. It is a low-cost FOR-PROFIT private-sector alternative that often denies care that would have otherwise been covered by traditional Medicare. More than 30 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans which, unlike traditional Medicare, typically require prior authorization that can delay or even deny medically necessary care and restrict beneficiaries to certain doctors within their network. The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, which was the catalyst for the surge in Medicare Advantage participation, was a Republican led effort to subtly privatize Medicare, one step at a time. It’s estimated that 6% of the voting-age population in Virginia is prohibited from voting because of a felony record. Some states, particularly in the South, traditionally limited the ability of ex-felons to vote even after they had completed their sentence, but in recent years the trend has been to readmit these people to the voting rolls. A 2018 study found that over 60% of adults favor the restoration of voting rights to former felons who have completed their sentences. Virginia is one of only three states that still automatically disfranchises people convicted of a felony, but it also empowers the governor to restore those rights once the subjects have been released from prison. Democratic Governor Northam, who served immediately before Youngkin, regularized and streamlined the restoration process. Under his administration, any former felon who petitioned to vote after completing his or her sentence automatically qualified for restoration of rights. Governor Youngkin initially continued that policy. Sometime after May 2022, however, acting in secret, he ended the automatic award of eligibility and began to consider each case individually. The administration did not disclose that it had changed rights restoration until confronted with a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the Virginia NAACP. The NAACP and the ACLU, among others, are now pursuing litigation about the Youngkin administration’s policy. The administration has not publicly revealed what standards it now applies when deciding whose rights to restore. When it denies a petition, it does not state a reason but simply invites applicants to reapply in a year. The Virginia NAACP has asserted that the information the administration seeks from petitioners is “likely to include voting history.” Nor has the administration stated why it made the change to state policy. It may be relevant that in one study, ex-felons were more likely to be Democrats or Independents than Republicans, although Republican ex-felons were more likely than others to vote. The administration has also been secretive about over 1,000 petitions for voting rights restoration that it currently considers “incomplete.” The administration has not informed those petitioners what is missing from their petitions. Robert Barnette, President of the Virginia NAACP, says that this issue disproportionately affects voters of color and “cannot be allowed to continue.” An additional problem is a software error installed by the administration that has improperly purged from the voting rolls some ex-felons who served their time, then petitioned for and were granted the restoration of their rights. According to the administration, the software program misread reports of parole violations as a commission of additional felonies that deprived subjects of their rights a second time. The program then improperly purged those alleged parole violators from the rolls. In an official report released this September, the administration said it removed 17,368 voters from the rolls in this process. The administration did not reveal that any removals were improper until late September 2023, when reporting by a public radio station confirmed the existence of a disfranchised Arlington voter. As recently as October 2023, the administration admitted only to improper removal of fewer than 300 voters. Then, a week before the Nov. 7 election, the administration suddenly admitted that the Department of Elections had improperly purged over ten times as many voters -- almost 3,400 eligible, registered voters. The administration claimed that all but about 100 of the voters were re-added to the rolls before Election Day. The entire episode is shrouded in secrecy. The gap between the administration’s initial disclosure and its most recent admission and the large number of voters purged by the flawed software supports skepticism of the administration’s story. Both of Virginia’s senators and its six Democratic Congressional Representatives have called for an investigation by the Department of Justice. Voting rights are at the heart of our democracy. The Youngkin administration’s reprehensible efforts to restrict those rights should be fully exposed and stopped.

In June of this year, Arlington County became the first locality in the commonwealth to conduct a state-run election using Ranked Choice Voting. The implementation of this new kind of ballot - designed to give voters a more thorough say in who represents them AND to select candidates that more accurately reflect the voters - was smooth and effective. Plus, over 84% of voters saw one of their top 3 choices secure a nomination! On December 19, the Board voted unanimously to use RCV for future County Board primaries - let's thank them for continuing to lead the way on RCV in VA. Click here to send your thanks to the County Board.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 8, 2023 Press Contact: Paul Ruiz, Communications Chair, communications@arldemsold.local Arlington Democrats Call for Elected Leadership at 2024 Reorganization Meeting Arlington, VA – The Arlington Democrats will hold a precinct captain caucus and leadership election (“reorganization meeting”) on January 3, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. at Dr. Charles R. Drew Elementary School, 3500 S. 23rd Street, Arlington, VA. The Democratic Party of Virginia requires local committees like the Arlington Democrats to reorganize every two years. This means that the Arlington Democrats must hold a “Reorganization Meeting” where the officers of the Arlington Democrats will be elected to two-year terms. Immediately before the commencement of the meeting, the Arlington Democrats will hold a caucus at which precinct captains for all 54 voting precincts in Arlington will be elected to two-year terms. All registered voters in Arlington who are Democrats are eligible to vote in the leadership election. Voters must sign up by Monday, December 18, 2023. To sign up, please visit the Arlington Democrats website at www.arldemsold.local/reorganization. Individuals interested in running for an elected officer or precinct captain position must file a filing form with the Arlington Democrats by 7:00 p.m. on Friday, December 1, 2023. Filing forms can be found on the Arlington Democrats website. The following elected positions are up for election: Chair, Deputy Chair, Precinct Operations Chair, Voter Support Chair, Finance Chair, Communications Chair, Volunteer Coordinator, Secretary, Treasurer, Press and Public Relations Chair, Outreach and Visibility Chair, Sergeant-at-Arms, Parliamentarian, Inclusion & Equity Chair. The responsibilities for each elected position can be found in the Arlington Democrats bylaws. The public may watch the meeting proceedings remotely via the Arlington Dems YouTube channel. A copy of the reorganization rules can be found here. ###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 7, 2023 Press Contact: Paul Ruiz, Communications Chair, communications@arldemsold.local Arlington Democrats Sweep Local Elections, Help Win Democratic Victories in General Assembly From Loudoun and Prince William to Henrico, Arlington Democrats Mobilized Voters to Deliver Democratic Victories in the Virginia House of Delegates & Senate ARLINGTON, VA – The Arlington County Democratic Committee (“Arlington Democrats”) mobilized over a thousand volunteers to deliver key election victories in Arlington and throughout the Commonwealth. Arlington Democrats celebrated a complete sweep of all 13 races in Arlington County. Below is a full list of all Arlington elections won by Democrats: State Senator Barbara Favola, District 40 State Senator Adam Ebbin, District 39 Delegate Patrick Hope, District 1 Delegate-Elect Adele McClure, District 2 Delegate Alfonso Lopez, District 3 County Board Member-Elect Maureen Coffey County Board Member-Elect Susan Cunnigham School Board Member-Elect Miranda Turner Commonwealth Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti Sheriff-Elect Jose Quiroz Clerk of Court Paul Ferguson Commissioner of Revenue-Elect Kim Klingler Treasurer Carla de la Pava “I love Arlington so much and, as a member of the County Board, I’ll fight for progressive policies that lift everyone up and contribute to the smart growth of our community,” said Arlington County Board Member-Elect Maureen Coffey. “I’m grateful to all of the Arlington voters who placed their trust in me, and I look forward to getting to work on their behalf to ensure Arlington continues to be the best place to live and raise a family.” “I am so grateful to neighbors across Arlington who shared their stories, hopes, and concerns during the campaign,” said Arlington County Board Member-Elect Susan Cunningham. “I am ready to hit the ground running, putting my executive experience and common-sense leadership to work for all of Arlington. Together we will get housing and planning right, reconnect our community, and ensure a responsive and efficient government.” Locally, Arlington Democrats delivered 70,000 mailers and mobilized 675 volunteers on Election Day in polling locations across the county. Beyond Arlington Helps Secure Statewide Democratic Wins “Volunteers from Arlington Democrats traveled across the Commonwealth to safeguard Virginia’s abortion protections,” said Arlington Democrats Chair Steve Baker. “Governor Youngkin has been working to pass an abortion ban. If Republicans had won a trifecta, he would have succeeded. Arlington Democrats are proud to stand with the majority of Virginians in opposing restrictions on reproductive rights.” Arlington Democrats engaged in over 40 days of canvassing, made thousands of phone calls, and sent over 18,000 postcards to voters across the Commonwealth to ensure victories in the House of Delegates and keep the State Senate. Below is a list of all Virginia legislative elections that Beyond Arlington volunteers helped win or remain competitive for Democrats: State Senator Monty Mason, District 24 State Senator-Elect Joel Griffin, District 27 State Senator-Elect Danica Roem, District 30 State Senator-Elect Russet Perry, District 31 Delegate-Elect Josh Thomas, District 21 Delegate-Elect Marty Martinez, District 29 Delegate-Elect Josh Cole, District 65 “Grassroots organizing works,” Beyond Arlington Chair Kip Malinosky said. “Democrats win when we’re talking about issues that matter: abortion rights, voting rights, and gun safety. I’m proud that we played a role in helping Democrats win across the state.” ###

RESOLUTION BY THE ARLINGTON COUNTY DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE Whereas ready access to a wide range of books is essential for developing and maintaining an informed mind and is crucial for preserving intellectual freedom in the United States; Whereas attempts to censor or remove library materials in the United States rose by 20% during the first eight months of this year, as compared to the first eight months of last year; Whereas book banning efforts are now targeted not only at schools, but also at public libraries, where they inhibit access by anyone to the removed or censored books; Whereas only 30% of the challenges to books in schools are initiated by parents of children with access to the books in question, and 70% of the challenges are initiated by people seeking to limit access to books by other people’s children; Whereas the range of books sought to be banned has steadily expanded from books that contain any sensitive material, to books that simply have an LGBTQ character, to books about race, and in recent years even to folk tales, which are accused of promoting witchcraft; also books deemed to encourage children to avoid their household chores have been banned; Whereas the current campaign to ban books, unlike most past efforts, is supported by national advocacy groups with substantial resources and targets many, not just a few, books; Whereas many book removals from schools occur behind the scenes, outside of established review procedures, and go unreported, and in the current volatile climate some librarians are choosing simply not to acquire books that may cause controversy, and thus the full scope of ongoing censorship is not always apparent; Whereas the Arlington Public Library has chosen to maintain a wide selection of books so that readers can learn about people, events, and other topics that previously were utterly unknown to them, as well as learning more about people, events, and other topics that are not new but about which their understanding was limited; Whereas the Director of the Arlington Public Library has announced that during the upcoming Banned Books Week, October 1-7, the Arlington Public Library will declare its libraries to be Book Sanctuaries, meaning that they contain a diverse selection of books and promote and hold discussions of books by diverse authors; now, therefore, be it Resolved, that the Arlington County Democratic Committee hereby supports the upcoming declaration by the Arlington Public Library that its libraries are Book Sanctuaries and the participation in Banned Books Week by public libraries in Arlington and throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia; and Resolved further, that the Arlington County Democratic Committee hereby commends the Director of the Arlington Public Library for her leadership on these issues; and Resolved further, that the Arlington County Democratic Committee hereby applauds the ongoing efforts of the Arlington Public Library to maintain a wide selection of books and other materials in order to continue to meet the needs of the people of Arlington County. Passed and Approved on the 5th day of October, 2023.

As Virginia students head back to school, many face restrictive new rules adopted by the Youngkin administration in the past year. In districts following the new policies, transgender students will have significantly curtailed rights. In some districts, students will lose access to books previously available in their libraries. If Republicans win control of the Virginia legislature this fall, many more culture-war rules will be in place before the next academic year. Eliminating rights of transgender students. In the past, the state Department of Education permitted transgender students to use school facilities and participate in school programs that matched their gender identity. It also required schools and teachers to use the names and pronouns that students requested, without securing parental approval. Governor Youngkin’s Department of Education eliminated these rights in Model Policies it adopted this July. The new Policies require students to use school facilities and, unless parents request otherwise in writing, names that are consistent with their sex as assigned at birth. Under Youngkin’s Policies, students have no voice in decisions about their identity at school. The Youngkin administration describes its policies as protecting the rights of parents against government encroachment, but students’ wishes are ignored. They have no rights. The ability to choose names and use facilities consistent with their gender choice are deeply important to transgender students. Suicide attempts among transgender youth are roughly 4 times higher than among American youth as a whole. Conversely, one study found suicide attempts among transgender students who could choose their names and pronouns were 65% lower than among transgender students who lacked those rights. Suicide attempts among transgender teens are also reduced when their school environment is safe and their self-image is accepted. Youngkin’s anti-trans policies, if widely followed, will inflict real suffering on the state’s transgender youth. The administration’s authority to enforce its Policies is unclear. Some school districts have refused to comply. The Virginia Attorney General has announced that compliance is required, but there is no enforcement mechanism. What is clear is that Republicans in Virginia want to deprive transgender students of any autonomy over their school identity, and if Republicans take control of the state legislature after this fall’s elections, they will be in a position to clarify state law and achieve that goal. Book banning. In the past year, Virginia enacted a law requiring parental consent before a student encounters sexually explicit material in class or in completing assignments. The statute is worded vaguely, and some Virginia school districts are relying on it to justify removing books from their school libraries altogether. One superintendent in favor of the bans has complained that many books currently in school libraries have not been adequately vetted, implying that libraries should be closed until they review their books. Nationwide, book-banning in schools has become a feature of the culture wars. From mid-2021 to mid-2022, over 2,500 bans were imposed, resulting in the removal of over 1,600 different titles. When books are removed from school libraries, they are no longer available even to students whose parents consent to their use. The rights of parents are not protected, as Republicans supporting book-banning claim, but rather are altogether denied. As one reporter said, “[t[he issue went from people thinking their children shouldn’t read certain books to trying to stop other people’s children from reading certain books.” Should the Republicans capture the Virginia legislature this fall, the number of books banned in Virginia schools and the number of Virginia students whose access to books is constricted are likely to rise substantially. Distorting history. Over half of the books banned from school libraries nationwide in the last few years dealt with racism or racial history. These bans are part of the larger culture-war effort to rewrite the nation’s history, limiting references in U.S. history classes to slavery and racial discrimination and removing accounts of accomplished and historically important Black figures. The most extreme example of this campaign is the new curriculum adopted in Florida, which includes the preposterous and offensive claim that in some cases slavery was actually helpful to Black people. Youngkin has aggressively promoted the sanitization of our racial history. His first executive order upon taking office prohibited Virginia schools from teaching “inherently divisive concepts,” by which he appeared to mean any discussion that might cast prior racial practices in an unfavorable light. Virginia Republicans suspended plans to broaden the executive order through new legislation when they realized that Democrats in the state Senate would block it, but if the Republicans retake control of the Senate and retain control of the House of Delegates this fall such legislation is likely to pass. Students in Virginia schools would be subjected to an incomplete and sharply distorted account of our history. What can you do to help protect students and their educational interests in Virginia? Plan to devote as much time as possible during the upcoming campaign season to help elect Democrats throughout the state. Write postcards in support of progressive candidates. Phone bank or knock on doors. Check the Arlington Democrats’ website to learn about a wide variety of other volunteer opportunities. Don’t let Virginia become Florida.

The world is sweltering. July 2023 was the hottest month on record worldwide. Phoenix endured 31 days in a row of temperatures over 110º F. Europe has warmed more quickly than the rest of the world in recent decades, and in late July places in eastern Spain, southern Italy, and Greece also saw temperatures over 110º. In the Middle East, at the Persian Gulf International Airport in Iran, the temperature reached 152º on a day in mid-July. This is at the limits of what human beings can tolerate. It’s not just the air – the seas are heating up, too. On July 31, the average temperature of the sea surface worldwide reached its highest level ever. Parts of a major glacier in Greenland are melting much faster than expected. The amount of sea ice in Antarctica has shrunk to the lowest on record for two consecutive summers. Sea level rise resulting from climate change will eventually force migration of many of the forty percent of the world’s population who live within 65 miles of a coastline. Tampa and Miami are among the cities worldwide with the most assets vulnerable to rising waters. On land wildfires are more numerous and more intense. On July 17, Washington, D.C.’s air quality was ranked third worst among the cities in the world because of smoke from huge forest fires thousands of miles away in western Canada. In early August, historic and deadly wildfires swept through parts of the Hawaiian Islands, driven in part by drought and hurricane-force winds fostered by climate change. President Biden has recognized that climate change is an existential threat to human life. His Inflation Reduction Act has been called the most consequential environmental legislation in U.S. history. Among other goals it is intended to speed adoption of clean energy in the United States, both by modernizing existing energy infrastructure and by jump-starting innovation in new clean-energy technology. President Obama’s administration adopted regulations to increase the fuel efficiency of cars and light trucks, the first significant tightening of those standards in decades. On his first day in office, President Biden directed that the U.S. rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement, from which Trump had withdrawn. In part because of policies implemented by Democrats, in the first months of 2023 the U.S. for the first time produced more of its energy from renewable wind and solar processes than from burning coal. Republicans prefer not to talk about climate change. While most Republicans now acknowledge that the world is getting warmer, they continue to support use of environmentally destructive fossil fuels while opposing corrective climate measures. They lie about the extent of climate change: Trump has frequently said that the sea level is rising by 1/8 of an inch every 300 years, while in fact it has risen 8-9 inches since 1880. They have made snide remarks about climate statistics, but do not address the problem those numbers illustrate. Not one Republican Senator or Congressperson voted for the Inflation Reduction Act, although many are now touting its job-creation benefits. As for Republicans’ future plans, a conservative think tank has prepared a comprehensive proposal for a second Trump administration. It would block expansion of the electrical grid for wind- and solar-generated power, slash funding for the Environmental Protection Agency and pro-environment offices within the Department of Energy, and transfer authority over some environmental regulation from the federal government to more conservative state officials. In office, Republicans have dismantled climate-friendly initiatives developed by earlier, Democratic administrations. Gov. Youngkin nominated Trump’s director of the EPA to head Virginia’s Department of Natural Resources. When Democrats in the state Senate blocked the nomination, Youngkin created a new state office and put the former coal lobbyist in charge. There he has assisted the governor’s efforts to withdraw Virginia from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which has successfully established incentives for large power generators to reduce their emissions. Virginia had joined the Initiative under Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. Similarly, Trump rolled back the vehicle fuel-efficiency standards that had been adopted under President Obama. If we are to save the planet we must put people in charge of the government who are serious about halting climate change. Every seat in both houses of the Virginia Legislature is up before the voters this November. Currently Democrats are in control in the state Senate, but by a razor-thin margin. If they lose, there will be no constraint left on our anti-environment governor. Knock on doors, make telephone calls, and write postcards in support of Democratic candidates throughout Virginia. Join Beyond Arlington, which is dedicated to this work. We must win both houses of Virginia’s legislature this fall.