MBDC Members protest with their PEN!

John and Susan Lovell McLaughlin responded to article:

Mountain News 3/12/2025        Executive Decisions: The Trump Administration By Karen Zhou

Dear Editor,

       Thank you so much for Karen Zhou’s March 6th essential piece on President Trump’s executive orders.  Those fifteen different communiques, varied as they are (or were…some have been ruled illegal, unconstitutional, or withdrawn), reflect the aim, purpose, and state of mind of the current administration and its supporters and inner circle.

        Hopeful that others may also write to you on a particular ex.decision or governmental action step, we strongly support and request that the Mountain News might include a weekly piece on Mr. Trump’s administrations’s positions, (just the facts).  In doing so, your readers who purchase the Mountain News might receive clear and honest information, not opinion per se, such as recently published by Ms. Zhou, and be induced to send opinion letters, as well!

The two primary issues we’d like to respond to, are the following:

1. “MASSIVE LAYOFFS AND TAKEBACKS AS PART OF RESTRUCTURING:

Rhetoric: laying off or firing federal workers will save the government costs from salaries.

        Facts:

        a. Even if 100,000 federal employees were terminated, the total federal savings would be .01%, one hundredth of one percent, (extremely small) of the U.S. budget.  This percentage would be an insignificant amount compared to, for example, 13% for the Dept. of Defense, or 1% for the Dept. of Education.

        b. In eliminating federal employees through the United States Civil Service rules, such reductions are required to be “for cause” (poor performance or conduct), even though many individuals recently evaluated by their supervisors as “excellent” have been terminated, e.g.

National Park Service, scientists at NIH, and experienced employees at USAID, (the State Department).

2. SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION DOWNSIZING:

    Rhetoric: The Social Security Administration initially announced plans to reduce its work force by 7,000 employees, and decrease the number of regional offices from ten(10) to four(4). This reduction appears to be part of the broader effort to cut expenses for the government.

    Facts:

    a. Included in this reduction, there are several hundred technology employees who operate the comprehensive computer system that maintains all SSA records.  The work that these federal employees do ensures that monthly checks are sent electronically to the approximately *73,000,000 persons (seventy three million) who are legally eligible for such benefits.

     b. For those who are receiving earned benefits, including seniors and disabled citizens, an initial attempt from the Trump administration was made to eliminate telephone support services. This attempt was recently retracted due to strong negative responses from the public.  This particular service is necessary for those persons with either no internet or because of disability to utilize electronic systems other than the telephone.It appears that we need to continue as citizens to put pressure on the administration for these essential and valuable systems to enable financial support. *40% of U.S. citizens who receive Social Security are totally financially dependent on these benefits. You can check this statistic at * www.ssa.gov.

Respectfully,

John D. McLaughlin and Susan Lovell McLaughlin

POSTCARDS to TRUMP

MBDC Protested with Postcards to Trump!

On March 15th, mail Donald Trump a postcard that publicly expresses our opposition to him. We, in vast numbers, from all corners of the world, will overwhelm the man with his unpopularity and failure. We will show the media and the politicians what standing with him — and against us — means. And most importantly, we will bury the White House post office in pink slips, all informing Donnie that he’s fired. Each of us — every protester from every march, each congress calling citizen, every boycotter, volunteer, donor, and petition signer — if each of us writes even a single postcard and we put them all in the mail on the same day, March 15th, well: you do the math. No alternative fact or Russian translation will explain away our record-breaking, officially-verifiable, warehouse-filling flood of fury. Hank Aaron currently holds the record for fan mail, having received 900,000 pieces in a year. We’re setting a new record: over a million pieces in a day, with not a single nice thing to say. So sharpen your wit, unsheathe your writing implements, and see if your sincerest ill-wishes can pierce Donald’s famously thin skin. Prepare for March 15th, 2025, a day hereafter to be known as #TheIdesOfTrump Write one postcard. Write a dozen! Take a picture and post it on social media tagged with #TheIdesOfTrump ! Spread the word! Everyone on Earth should let Donnie know how he’s doing. They can’t build a wall high enough to stop the mail. March 15th, mail your messages to: President (for now) Donald J. Trump The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500

Mountain Bears Democratic Club dressed rockin the BLUE and danced the night away. The Crestline Chamber of Commerce with Corks & Hops hosted an amazing night with amazing decor, bands that made you feel like you were in Louisiana ……and a sexy saxophone to top it off! The wine and beer tasting kept the spirits high…literally.

A great success for sure…and even more fun with fellow MBDC members to share it with.

No Kings! No Kings! No Kings! We chanted in Unity with 50501 in Riverside.

The first #50501 protests were a decentralized rapid response to the anti-democratic and illegal actions of the Trump administration and its plutocratic allies. The idea—50 protests in 50 states on 1 day—was born on r/50501 and spread rapidly on social media.

In just days, grassroots organizers—without any budget, centralized structure, or official backing—pulled off over 80 peaceful protests in all 50 states. Twelve days later, tens of thousands of Americans declared “No Kings Day” and protested once more.

The protests were covered by every major media outlet, showing the world that the American working class will not sit idly by as plutocrats rip apart their democratic institutions and civil liberties while undermining the rule of law.

Dec 13, 2024 outside J Obernolte’s office in Hesperia .

Members from four Democratic Clubs plus an organization defending immigration rights in the High Desert participated.

There were 25-30 people listening to 4 speakers, one of whom is Mountain Bear member, Larry Zamora.