Things You Can Do This Week

Tips for making phone calls to your Electeds

Remember to use the 5Calls App. Go to wherever you get your apps, find 5Calls, and download it. Here’s more info about 5Calls:

• Sometimes the materials listed in the calls section of IGGR’s weekly report will be the same or similar to what 5Calls suggests. Sometimes it will be other issues that also seem important.

• The 5Calls App gives a well summarized outline about the issue in question and a script you can use when calling senators and representatives.

• Best of all, the App provides a link to your senators’ and representative’s phone numbers so you don’t have to dial them.

• You can make multiple calls about the issues that concern you or you can summarize your concerns and list them in your call. Representative Scholten’s staff has expressed a preference for one call listing multiple issues.

• Whichever way you decide to call, always give your name and street address so the staff will know you are a constituent. Unfortunately, senators and representatives only want to hear from constituents, which seems counter intuitive when the issues in question are national but they want to get reelected, so they only want to hear from constituents.

Reliable and trustworthy sources of information can be found by visiting the websites for the Library of Congress, Congress.gov, and Senate.gov. The Bridge is an online newspaper about Michigan issues which is also a good source.

• The Senate will be in recess beginning August 10, returning on September 11

• The House will be in Recess beginning July 27 returning August 28

If you can take the time, read Congress Has A Lot On Its Agenda and a Short Window of Time (estimated read time: eight minutes). It provides a good overview of what the major issues before recesses in both Houses. Another good summary of the news and what we might want to call our Senators and Representatives about before the recess is the On Politics: What Did I Miss?

The most important call to make before both Houses recess is to oppose the Budget Reconciliation Bill which is presently in the House Budget Committee and includes the provisions of the voter suppression bill, the SAVE Act. The Reconciliation Bill would bypass the 60 vote rule in the Senate to pass the legislation, meaning the Republicans could pass it even if all of the Democratic Senators voted against it.

Remember to look at and use the 5 Calls app that lists suggested calls to the US House of Representatives and Senate. If you do not have the app, take a look at it to see if it provides you with a good resource in addition to IGGR’s newsletter.

1) Call Your Senators

Senator Gary Peters: (202) 224-6221 

Senator Elyse Slotkin: (202) 224-4822 

• • Thank you for voting NO on the motion to proceed to the $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act.

  • Oppose the budget reconciliation bill that is being called Reconciliation 3.0. The Bill is still in the House Budget Committee, but oppose any efforts to pass it when and if it reaches the Senate. Reconciliation 3.0 includes $73 billion for defense, $12 billion for agriculture aid, and $12 billion for a fund to support the Trump backed voting restrictions plan. US Intensifies Strikes on Iran & GOP LeadersFace Frustrations, Time Pressure On $95 Billion Reconciliation Package. (Note: Reconciliation 3.0 does not require the 60 vote threshold, meaning Republicans could pass it even if all the Senate Democrats voted against it.)

  • Vote NO on to confirm Trump former personal lawyer and current toady Todd Blanche as U.S. Attorney General.

  • Oppose The KIDS ACT, HR 7757 which would decrease the privacy of all internet users in the name of protecting children. The KIDS Act Would Require Age Checks to get On Line

  • Vote NO on the CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633), a bill disguised as “crypto regulation” but which actually serves the billionaires and bad actors at the center of today’s crypto chaos.

2) Call Your Representative

Be sure to give them your home address so they know you are a constituent. Scholten’s staff has indicated that one call succinctly listing the multiple issues that concern you is preferable to multiple calls addressing one issue for each call.

Representative Scholten: (202) 225-3831

Representative Moolenaar (202) 225-3561

• Very disappointed that you voted NO on House Amendment 235 to eliminate $3.3 billion in U.S. aid to Israel. Nearly half of House Democrats vote to cut off aid to Israel as public opinion shifts

• Oppose the budget reconciliation bill that is being called Reconciliation 3.0. The Bill is still in the House Budget Committee, but oppose any efforts to pass it when and if it reaches the Senate. Reconciliation 3.0 includes $73 billion for defense, $12 billion for agriculture aid, and $12 billion for a fund to support the Trump backed voting restrictions plan. GOP LeadersFace Frustrations, Time Pressure On $95 Billion Reconciliation Package.

• Oppose the ongoing war with Iran. US Intensifies Strikes on Iran.

3) Call Your State of Michigan Electeds 

(contact information here)

• • Ask both your state Representatives and Senators to support legislation to limit corporate and dark money in elections and government. Michigan Lawmakers Introduce Bills to Limit Corporate Money in State Politics.

  • Ask your Representative, Senator, and Governor Whitmer (517.335.7858 or email) to require careful examination of further development of data centers to ensure the infrastructure can handle the development. Gov. Whitmer Launches Michigan Affordability and Responsible Growth Action Plan, Calls on Data Center Companies to Sign Pledge

  • Ask your Representative and Senator to support legislation to protect mental health patients from abuse and neglect. Legislation Announced With Goal of Improving Protections for Michigan’s Mental Health Patients

Get Out the Vote Opportunities 

IGGR is creating a Get Out the Vote team. Please join us as we work to save Democracy! It’s up to us to take back our country and voting -- and encouraging others to vote -- is the way to do that. You can volunteer here. We will have car pools available, details to follow.

Neighbor 2 Neighbor (N2N) is Indivisible’s relational organizing tool that focuses on building real relationships, not just transactional conversations. The first 2026 N2N campaign is focused on offering ICE preparedness resources, ensuring that our neighbors have the information they need to stay safe and informed. Connecting with your neighbors now for this action will make it easier for future GOTV actions. You don’t need to be an expert; you just need to show up. Sign up here. And if you’re feeling nervous, bring a friend! Seriously, it makes it way more fun.

Not sure where to start? Check out this quick read from the Indivisible team: How We’re Going to Defeat MAGA, 10 Doors at a Time

Freedom Summer: The organizers of “All Roads Lead to the South” are calling for action on voting rights all summer long.

Help Ensure Voter Registrations are Active and Voters are Prepared. This is the time to be working on voter registration and to help make sure that registered voters have active registrations and know what they will need at the polls to cast their ballots for 2026. The Trump administration is working hard to intimidate voters, to purge voter rolls, and to suppress the vote. Share this website with EVERYONE you know, in every state across the US so they can verify they are registered to vote:

• Vote.org offers a one-stop shop to double-check one’s registration status; if a citizen is not registered, they can sign up in minutes online through the site.

Share this video about changes in the USPS postmarking policy with everyone you know to make sure their votes are counted.

Voter Registration Opportunities with The League of Women Voters of the Greater Grand Rapids Area. The LWVGGRA is working with area high schools, apartment complexes, and community organizations to provide voter registration and education events. They continue to add additional voter registration events as they are scheduled. Please take a moment to review the current list here and sign up to volunteer. Keep this link and check back periodically. Additional events are being added as requests come in.

Be part of the WAVE. If you have used WAVE (We All Vote Everytime) in the past, this is exciting news for you. They have initiated a “Bring Them Back Campaign.” In Michigan, 640,000 people voted in 2020 but did not vote in 2024. In 2024, the average Michigan voter was roughly 66% likely to participate. However, Voters on the Permanent Absentee Voter list turned out 97% of the time. So let’s get them signed up!

You can read more about WAVE’s “Bring Them Back” program here. You can review the various ways you can access the WAVE program here.

Sign up for Postcards to Voters, a group of American volunteers who write postcards to targeted voters in the hope of increasing Democratic turnout in close, key elections across the country. This is something you can do from the comfort of your own home, whenever you have a moment.

Write letters for Vote Forward. Vote Forward is a broad-based national effort to encourage voter turnout by participating by sending millions of letters to potential voters in underserved communities in key states. The majority of their letter writing campaigns are nonpartisan, focusing on mobilizing potential voters in historically marginalized communities—such as people of color, women, and young voters. This is another thing you can do from the comfort of your own home, whenever you have a moment.

The Election Protection Corps is a grassroots network of volunteers located in Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina, and Ohio dedicated to protecting the right to vote before, during, and after the 2026 election. When federal protections are removed, defending democracy becomes a community effort.

Sign the pledge today to commit to joining the Election Protection Corps. By signing up now, you’ll receive strategic updates via email and text, training opportunities, and critical calls to action during key election protection moments in your state. Join the Election Protection Corps