(Please let us know if you feel these Action Items emails are clouding things with too much explanation, or if you’d like any other changes to the way I’ve been doing this.)  

Action Items to choose from (or do all of them: your choice!) Scroll down to the matching number of your option: 

1. Support the right of our troops to disobey illegal orders 
2. Stop the buildup to war with Venezuela 
3. Quit Spotify until they quit broadcasting ICE recruitment ads 
4. Two Maine-specific anti-ICE Actions 

Reminder: When you call vs when you email via our reps’ websites (best way to contact them in writing), don’t forget to begin with: “Hi, my name is [name] and I’m a constituent calling from [zip code]. That is important, because if they don’t know you’re actually a constituent, your opinion will be ignored. 

Contact info: 

Angus King             
DC: (202) 224-5344
Augusta: (207) 622-8292 

Susan Collins         
DC: (202) 224-2523 
Augusta: (207) 622-8414
Bangor: (207) 945-0417

Chellie Pingree      
DC: (202) 225-6116
Portland: (207) 774-5019  
Waterville: (207) 873-5713  

Jared Golden         
DC: (202) 225-6306 
Bangor: (207) 249-7400
Caribou: (207) 492-6009 
Lewiston: (207) 241-6767

Find your State Representative: 
By name: Here
By district: Here

(Please note that for those of you receiving this email who are not represented by Senators or House members in our district, I have to leave it up to you to find the contact info for your own representatives.)

Actions 

Actions 

1) Support the right of our troops to disobey illegal orders:  

         Defiance.org is a fairly new organization co-founded by Miles Taylor, ex-DHS Chief of Staff during the first Trump administration and the author of the 2018 New York Times op-ed titled, “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration,” which he wrote under the name “Anonymous” (in 2020, while campaigning against Trump’s reelection, he revealed that he was “Anonymous.” 

        Defiance.org, in partnership with WhistleblowerAid.org, has launched Phase One of what it planned to be an ongoing effort to help members of our military obey lawful orders, recognize manifestly illegal ones, and know where to turn to understand the difference.  This campaign includes: 

• Geo-targeted public service announcements, online and via social media 
• Billboards near key U.S. military installations 
• Information about confidential, independent support available through Whistleblower Aid, a trusted nonprofit that offers legal intake and case support for servicemembers and government officials 
• A volunteer-driven push to distribute information in military communities nationwide 

We can help with that last part. Defiance.org has: 

• Downloadable posters that we can distribute in our communities and/or near military hubs – Bases, Recruitment Centers, MEPs, ROTC Units, National Guard + Reserve Centers, etc. (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DO2ah0f4c_DoxQ4FnVhcX3L4ecvJCfR3/view) 
• Downloadable wallet cards you can keep on you to share with military members when you cross paths (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K60TWTsKfVu2-8YM1ZAo-WXB4qOVrXoa/view)  
• A downloadable you can use to post about the campaign on social media (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K0pkOcrHd5SjdNv7Pp-KFazZh80ovRXB/view) 

2)  Stop the buildup to war with Venezuela: 

     Trump seems bound and determined to start a war between the U.S. and Venezuela. And it’s not about drugs, since Venezuela is not the origin of most of the drugs that are smuggled into our country. It’s about two things: distraction (from Trump’s incredibly low approval numbers and all the illegal things he’s been doing that people are starting to wake up to, not to mention the Epstein files—yes, let’s not forget those or let up on the pressure to make sure everything gets released) and oil. Trump is claiming that Venezuela stole oil from the U.S. What actually happened was that, after multiple foreign oil companies, including those from the U.S., moved in on and built up Venezuela’s oil industry, Venezuela nationalized its oil industry, taking control of the oil it produced. The assets taken back belonged to the oil companies, not the U.S. government. And that was almost 20 years ago. Old story and never since seen as crucial to the U.S. oil industry. Which brings us back around to: distraction. 

     The United States has no right to unilaterally shoot boats out of the water without legal justification. We have not declared war against Venezuela, nor is there justification for that, either. But Trump and wannabe soldier Pete Hegseth are itching to start a war, and they have to be stopped. Americans don’t want another years-long land war…or any other kind of war. 

     So far, bipartisan legislative attempts to prevent unauthorized war or military action with Venezuela have been voted down by Republicans in both houses of Congress. We need our congresspeople to step up and keep pushing for legislation that will put Congress back in the driver’s seat, where it belongs, when it comes to war efforts. Contact Senators King and Collins and House Rep. Golden to urge them to sponsor and/or support new bills to prevent any military action or attempted regime change in Venezuela unless authorized by Congress, as directed by the Constitution. 

3) Quit Spotify until they quit broadcasting ICE recruitment ads:  
    If you love Spotify Wrapped, please consider not posting as long as Spotify is still airing ICE recruitment ads. Instead, consider sharing posts about the campaign to boycott Spotify until these ads stop. https://app.sosha.ai/toolkit/spotify-wrapped-ice-trump-01aa 
 

4) Two Maine-specific anti-ICE Actions:

• Activate Maine has a toolkit to help us fight ICE in Maine: https://www.activatemaine.com/icetoolkit (Please note that they haven’t yet updated their website to delete the part about asking Governor Mills to allow LD 1971 to become law: She has already announced that she will not veto this bill in January, which means that it will become law.) 
• Get involved with the Maine ICE watch hotline: 
       Just as they say, “If you see something, say something,” follow this directive: “If you see ICE, report ICE.” According to News Center Maine, the ICE watch hotline “…functions like a community dispatch system. When someone calls in to report a possible ICE sighting, trained volunteers answer the phone. If the report involves a live ICE presence, two additional volunteers—called verifiers—are dispatched to the scene to confirm the sighting. Once verified, the information is quickly relayed through trusted networks to inform immigrant communities across the state.” The goal is to verify and monitor immigration enforcement activity and provide support resources such as legal assistance, immigrant support services, and community resources. No data from these calls is collected or stored, and all calls are encrypted for security. 
        If you see evidence of ICE activity, call 207-544-9989 (hours of operation: Monday – Friday, 6am – 9am and 5pm – 9pm). 

          You can also look into fighting ICE in Maine here: https://linktr.ee/noice4me 

Yours in Civic Action, 

Bold Coast Civic Alliance