May 13, 2025
Hello Indivisibles!
President Trump sure likes to sign Executive Orders (over 140 of them in his first hundred days, just like a King would) but EOs do not have the force of law and can easily be rescinded by the next president, assuming we have a democratic one. In the meantime, there’s only one bill Trump is dying to sign: yet another tax cut for the very rich. He is on a mission to strip working families of $1.5 trillion in Medicaid, SNAP, and other essential programs—all to pay for more than $4.5 trillion in tax breaks for the super-rich, especially his techbros in Silicon Valley. Trump calls it his “one big beautiful bill.”
His problem is that a good chunk of his congressional party, the elected representatives in both the House and Senate who won’t lift a finger to confront Trump’s clearly unconstitutional and illegal activities, cannot agree about who to inflict the most pain on to make sure the budget bill (which includes his huge tax cut for the rich) does not increase the federal deficit. But this isn’t a budget. It’s an attack on everyday Americans.
And they know how deeply unpopular it is—that’s why they’re using the budget reconciliation process, a fast-track maneuver to bypass normal debate and accountability, to jam it through with just 51 votes in the Senate.
Until this drama is concluded in the next few weeks, it’s incumbent on all democrats to call out the Republicans in Congress to stop playing politics just so that the rich can get richer. The best way to do that is to apply massive public pressure on our elected representatives to pass a budget that protects the lives and livelihoods of all Montanans, not just give yet more money to the very rich.
As we’ve highlighted in our most recent newsletters, we want to keep the pressure on Republicans who are steadfast in trying to slash health care, food assistance, and other programs that everyday Americans rely on to survive. But before you contact our delegation, here are a few facts about the targeted programs in Montana to bolster your case:
- Nearly 300,000 Montanans are on Medicaid. That’s 26% of ALL Montanans!
- These funding cuts would cut potentially $2.32 BILLION in funding for Montana (Congressional Republicans want our legislature to pick up the tab—fat chance of that!);
- Medicaid expansion in the state has created over 5,000 jobs and over $500 Million per year in new healthcare spending;
- Over 65,000 children in Montana Schools—44% of all Montana students—receive free or reduced price meals through the National School Lunch Program, now on the chopping block;
- Over 81,000 Montanans receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits—7% of all Montanans;
- 63% of SNAP recipients are families with children, where the average monthly benefit is approximately $510;
- For Montana, this would be a total cut of nearly $170 Million in SNAP benefits;
- Lots of hospitals and nursing homes in rural Montana will be forced to close or curtail essential services because their patients can’t afford to pay new out-of-pocket charges for health care;
- With these cuts, we will see healthcare costs for ALL Montanans skyrocket; and
- The most vulnerable Montanans will DIE as a result of not having access to the healthcare they need!
This is a simple story: Republicans want to rob everyday Americans to fund billionaires’ private jets and mega-yachts. They want to gut Medicaid and SNAP so Elon Musk and his billionaire buddies can pile up more money than they can ever spend.
But they’re scared—because they know the public is against them.
That’s why they’re hiding behind reconciliation. That’s why they’re rushing. And that’s why our pressure can stop them cold.
Take Action Now!
1. CALL NOW: Tell Senators Daines and Sheehy You Won’t Pay the Price So Billionaires Can Cash In. Tell Senators Daines and Sheehy (make 2 calls!) that you’re outraged they’re slashing access to health care and taking food off of people’s tables in order to give massive tax breaks to billionaires like Elon Musk.
2. CALL NOW: Tell Representative Downing Hands Off Our Healthcare, Our Food, and Our Futures. Demand that Representative Downing stop enabling these brazen MAGA power plays and pass a responsible budget.
3. CALL NOW: Ask 2 or 3 friends to do the same! Your voice alone can’t move our representatives, but when you multiply your voice, and they multiply their voices, we’ll make a roar heard across Montana that cannot be ignored: Stop The One Big Beautiful Bill!
Also, contact us by reply email if you want to help spread the word about this campaign. With your help, this can be our top priority for the rest of May, guided by this Stop the Cuts Toolkit. Or join the mass call this Thursday (5/15) at 6 PM MDT to find out how you can help dial up the pressure and stop them from taking away our health care. Better yet, sign up to Fight Back With Friends, an Indivisible tool to help you text your circle of friends about the Republican tax scam.
P. S. The Big Beautiful Bill Is Hanging by a Thread by David Dayen in The American Prospect is the best, if a bit wonky, overview of this ugly sausage-making process.
A Great Read for this Week
In their op-ed How Will We Know When We Have Lost Our Democracy?, the authors of How Democracies Die and experts in authoritarianism argue that America is indeed descending into an authoritarian state, but this descent is not inevitable or irreversible. For those of us organizing and trying to convince others to organize, here’s a key quote that we should internalize:
“So far, the most energetic opposition has come not from civic leaders but from everyday citizens, showing up at congressional town hall meetings or participating in Hands Off rallies across the country. Our leaders must follow their example.”
That’s us—that’s all of us! If you have called on your reps or senators to fight back harder; if you’ve attended a town hall; if you were one of 3.5 million who showed up for Hands Off; or if you are planning to show up for No Kings Day on June 14—you are doing what needs to be done. This is what building a pro-democracy movement at a time of competitive authoritarianism looks like.
One Last Thing (Again)
Last week we invited you to help determine the strategic direction of Indivisible Helena through the summer, BUT WE FORGOT TO INCLUDE THE LINK (DOH!). While we will help organize the next big rally (which was supported by 1/3 of the respondents to date), there are plenty of other ways we can intervene in the fight to protect our democracy from the autocratic takeover by Trump and his billionaire bullies. To help us make your action and energy most productive, and reflective of our community’s priorities, please complete our survey. Thank you for all you do, and are willing to do, to make our future free.
Spread the Good News!
Do you have friends, co-workers, and family who want to join Indivisible’s resistance in Helena? Feel free to forward this email to them. Or better yet ask them to sign up: all they need to do is go to indivisiblehelena.org. Then we’ll remain in touch through this newsletter.
Solidarity 🌹
Indivisible Helena