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GNR for Friday, September 19, 2025: Standing up to Bullies [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-09-19
Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
When a bully threatens you, he’s trying to make you feel afraid.
But you know what? Bullies can feel fear too.
I never thought of myself as a fighter.
But sometimes I have to do it anyway.
This is what Jess Craven at Chop Wood, Carry Water says — her Tuesday email this week, because yes, today is Friday:
Hi, all, and happy Tuesday! Jeez. Feels like a Friday already, doesn’t it? Actually, the last eight months have been as exhausting as an endless string of Fridays. And yet, here you all are, still. Corporations, universities, tech bros, law firms and others are bending the knee. But not you. You keep showing up with courage, heart, and defiance. It’s truly inspiring. “But,” you may say, “I don’t feel courageous. I feel afraid.” Ah! So do I, sometimes. But what matters is not how we feel. What matters is what we do. And what I see you DOING is showing up for your country day after day after day. THAT is what makes you courageous.
And, with the constant attacks, maybe I am a little braver. Or just exhausted by feeling scared and deciding not to do it anymore.
For me, at least, my feelings follow my actions, and not the other way around. I understand that it may not be true for everyone.
So, keep it up, everyone! Keep standing up to those bullies. And come on in and see what the other good people are doing.
Regular Scheduled Programming
No one here is naïve; we are aware of the many who are fighting to destroy our country. Some of us expected it: the cheating, the lying, and the chaos. But we are here to read the efforts and the positive results of those (including us and our fellow gnus) who are working so hard to save our country and the planet from those very bad people. We are furious with them for what they are doing and we are letting them know.
Remember:
💜Although they lie all the time, reality matters. And our goals — based on reality — are more popular.
💙 They want us to be demoralized. The best way to keep up your spirits is to fight. So, take the time to recharge your batteries, make sure to protect yourself, your family and your friends, but find ways to contribute to the well-being of our country and our world.
🗽 Reports on Resisters 🗽
Maine SOS responds to DOJ lawsuit by telling them to go jump in the “Gulf of Maine” Matt Cohen Democracy Docket
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D) Wednesday fired back against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which is suing both her state and Oregon in an attempt to obtain private voter registration data. “We stand by the integrity of Maine election officials at both the state and local level,” Bellows said in an exclusive interview with Democracy Docket. “Maine ranks consistently at the top of the nation in voter turnout because our voters have confidence in the strength of our systems. DOJ is targeting Maine and Oregon for political reasons. We won’t back down.” ✂️ “I say it again today: Go jump in the Gulf of Maine,” Bellows continued, echoing comments from when DOJ first asked for the records at issue. “It is unprecedented for the Department of Justice to expect that they can get the sensitive personal voter data of every voter in the country.”
More from Jess Craven, Chop Wood, Carry Water
I was on a call with Rep. Jason Crow this morning and he told us what he and his fellow servicemembers said to new troops when they were going into combat: “Of course you’re afraid. If you don’t feel fear right now, you’re either dumb or crazy.” He reminded us that we can feel fear in this deeply stressful moment—we’d be crazy not to—but keep fighting anyway. He pointed out, too, that sometimes fear is useful—it is there, after all, to help keep us safe. It’s only when it becomes crippling, or makes us back down from a fight we can win, that it outlives its usefulness. So yeah, it’s a scary moment. But I’ve decided to keep my fear in its proper place and stay in this fight. I’m grateful that so many of you have as well. Never forget: we’re on the side of right, of justice, of love, of fairness, of equity, of the rule of law, and of community. It’s the only choice to make, and, in the long run, we’ll be so glad we chose well.
The fed delivered a highly anticipated cut to interest rates on Wednesday:
x ✍🏻 UK/EU Market Opening (18 Sep, Thu 2025) Good morning everyone! The Federal Reserve delivered a widely anticipated 25 basis point rate cut overnight, ... 👉🏻 Read:
https://t.me/tmarketradar/3181 ➖ Not A Financial Advice! DYOR #Finance #Market #Forex #Trading #SP500 #Gold #Bitcoin — Tolga's Market Radar (@tlgoa.bsky.social) 2025-09-18T06:35:03.042154+00:00
But, according to this poster, there’s still resistance:
x Donald Trumps Mann in der Federal Reserve erreicht in seiner ersten Sitzung wenig: Der Leitzins wird nur minimal gesenkt. Der US-Präsident wird weiter alles daran setzen, sich die Notenbank gefügig zu machen. — DER SPIEGEL (@spiegel.de) 2025-09-18T06:45:07Z
As it’s in German I will translate: Donald Trump’s man in the Federal Reserve achieved little in his initial meeting: the leading interest rate was lowered only minimally.
💣 Republicans: Party of Crimes, Chaos and Cowardice 💣
Kash Patel was questioned by the House — and some really interesting information was brought forward — where are the photos? Substack, Legal AF
FBI Director Patel was just expertly cross examined into perjuring himself by Rep Jamie Raskin, who had him lie to Congress that he can't release the Epstein files because of non-existent court orders. And Legal AF and its video interviews made it into the Hearing Room on the big screen , as Rep. Lieu used Court of History's interview of journalist Michael Wolff to rip Patel apart about the Epstein files and to ask "where are the photos" of the victims that Michael said he saw when he was in Epstein's apartment for interviews. Popok ties it all together on his hot take.
Here’s the video:
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In case you don’t want to watch, the main takeaways for me were: Legal AF is rather proud because a video of an interview they had with Michael Wolff was played. Wolff was interviewing Epstein for a potential biography, and Epstein showed him photos of the felon with girls who may have been underage — and another with the felon’s crotch being stained in a suggestive place.
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The GOP in Congress is failing their constituents (but you knew that):
x Ordinary folks are hurting, and the GOP still wants to make healthcare a lot more expensive. Vote them out, America! — George Takei (@georgetakei.bsky.social) 2025-09-17T18:05:44.428Z
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The felon is down in the polls, but not enough. Cult mentality, lots of lies and corporate media still propping him up — as well as racism and ignorance and inertia. We have work to do!
x Things are worse for him because they are worse for us all. And he’s not hit bottom because neither have we. — George Takei (@georgetakei.bsky.social) 2025-09-17T22:58:06.330Z
🚚 💙 Democrats Deliver 💙 🚚
No longer just braying donkeys, but kicking asses!
Governor Pritzker stands up to the felon, and the felon does the usual TACO Marc Elias in Democracy Docket
Like most bullies, Trump surrounds himself with weak sycophants. He values incompetence and loyalty over expertise and original thought. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is a fool. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Attorney General Pam Bondi compete for the title of most obsequious. FBI Director Kash Patel wears the permanent expression of a small child lost in a shopping mall searching for his mother. Since taking office, Trump has picked fights with people and institutions he assumed would back down or compromise. He attacked large law firms, and quickly discovered that many who marketed themselves as fierce advocates were all too willing to become his lapdogs. But when four firms stood their ground and beat him in court, he abandoned his efforts to compromise the legal profession further. ✂️ Trump repeatedly directed threats at the Windy City throughout August and early September, even posting on social media that “Chicago is about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR.” Most leaders confronting Trump have tried to extend partial olive branches to appear reasonable and willing to compromise. Pritzker took a very different approach: he denounced Trump’s efforts outright. For example, in late August, when Trump suggested deploying troops to Chicago, Pritzker responded: “There is no emergency in Chicago that calls for armed military intervention. What President Trump is doing is unprecedented and unwarranted. It is illegal. It is unconstitutional. And it is un-American. This is not about fighting crime. This is about the President and his complicit lackey, Stephen Miller, searching for ways to circumvent our democracy, militarize our cities, and end elections.” ✂️ When Trump suggested the military would assist policing, Pritzker called it “armed military intervention.” When Trump claimed it was routine, Pritzker called it “illegal,” “unconstitutional” and “un-American.” Most importantly, when Trump claimed it was about safety, Pritzker made clear it was about dictatorship. We all know what happened next: Trump retreated. Instead of Chicago, he landed on sending troops to Memphis — a city in a Republican-led state.
I highly recommend that everyone read the entire thing.
Sometimes we just have to get louder:
Well done, Governor Evers!
x Here in Wisconsin, we will continue to follow the science to ensure Wisconsinites have access to the healthcare they need when and where they need it. That includes safe, effective vaccines. www.wpr.org/news/tony-ev... — Governor Tony Evers (@govevers.wisconsin.gov) 2025-09-19T00:31:43.026Z
This is good news:
x 🚨BREAKING: Utah Supreme Court REJECTS Republican legislatures’ motion to continue using existing congressional map. Lawmakers must present a new, fair map by Sept. 25. www.democracydocket.com/cases/utah-c... — Marc Elias (@marcelias.bsky.social) 2025-09-16T00:50:20.919Z
Dem wins special election (note this was not an overperformance, but Melissa Hortman was very popular):
x BREAKING: Democrat Xp Lee wins the Minnesota House special election to fill the seat of Melissa Hortman, who was assassinated in June. — The Associated Press (@apnews.com) 2025-09-17T01:45:38Z
💜 Unity? 💜
In Southern Colorado, rural communities are working together to protect immigrants from ICE Ilana Newman, Reasons to Be Cheerful, originally in Daily Yonder
… Among these incidents was an arrest on August 18 in Aztec, New Mexico, a small town bordering Southwest Colorado. Jorge Martin Ortiz-Rosalez was arrested in his own car in front of his wife and daughters. Their windows were smashed-in by law enforcement, even as Ortiz-Rosalez yelled that his children were in the car. No arrest warrant was served, according to a Durango Herald article. In response to increased ICE presence in the region, local groups have been holding Know Your Rights trainings to educate both immigrants and allies about what to do if federal law enforcement is present. Garcia Waddell held one such training in Cortez, Colorado in mid-August with a group of around 40, mostly white, retirement-age community members who showed up to protect their neighbors. ✂️ In rural communities like Cortez, Latino residents have a lot of economic power and their absence will have ripple effects. “Restaurants would be closed. Hotels would not have staff,” said Clark about the economic impact of losing Latino residents. According to census data, around 3,200 Hispanic identifying people live in Montezuma County, about 12 percent of the population. Stump said that many residents who are afraid of ICE agents don’t want to leave the house, even to go to Walmart. To help mitigate this risk she runs errands for them.
There’s lots more in the article.
Lankford: ‘Just believing differently than some other American is not illegal’
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said Sunday “just believing differently than some other American is not illegal” in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s death. “I’m a conservative Republican. I have Democratic friends that think very differently, vote very differently, but they’re still my friend on it. So, just having that ideology, just believing differently than some other American is not illegal, that’s America,” Lankford told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.” ✂️
And Senator Tillis, liberated by deciding not to run for office again, has also spoken:
📥 Actions You Can Take 📤
Tax-exempt organization complaint referrals. 13909. You can fill this out for the NRA and lots of other organizations. How about if some of us white folk go into some of the MAGA churches and video record what they’re saying?
Voting rights. This may be the biggest issue threatening our democracy right now. Besides contacting your representatives at the state and federal level to do the right thing (depending on who they are),you can support and contact these organizations:
ACLU — American Civil Liberties Union
Democracy Docket — founded by Marc Elias, so important in fighting the challenges after the last election.
Fair Fight — founded by Stacey Abrams
🌱Grass roots. Join with local communities to make a difference. It could be your local Dems. It could be your school board or your library. Reach out to people. We all need each other these days.
🏃 Run for something. If you want to run for something, but have no idea what to do, these people will help you. They also like money and volunteers to help those people who are running, so even if you’re not in a position to stand for office, you can help.
👎 Defund the seditionists. This is a list with companies that sometimes have donated to the seditionists. The list is long. You will recognize many of the corporations, and you probably have a relationship with some — either you are a customer, a shareholder, or maybe even an employee. Contact them and compliment or complain, but let them know you are watching. Forward it to others.
🐍 Schadenfreude 😈
Bill Pulte accused Fed Gov Lisa Cook of mortgage fraud. His dad and stepmom did what she was accused of (she didn’t). Now his parents are getting charged Marisa Taylor, Chris Prentice and Mike Colias Reuters
BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Michigan, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Close relatives of the federal official who has accused a Federal Reserve governor of improperly claiming primary residence on two properties have declared the same status on two homes in two different states, public records show. Mark and Julie Pulte, the father and stepmother of Bill Pulte, President Donald Trump’s appointee as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, since 2020 have claimed so-called “homestead exemptions” for residences in wealthy neighborhoods in both Michigan and Florida, according to the records. The exemption is meant to give a discount to homeowners on taxes for properties they use as their primary residence. Local tax officials in both states told Reuters that claiming more than one home as a primary residence isn’t generally allowed in their jurisdictions and could be punishable by fines or back taxes. After Reuters contacted tax officials in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, to inquire about the dual claims, Darrin Kraatz, director of assessing, on Thursday said the township “as of today” would revoke the exemption on the Pultes’ residence there. According to public real estate records, and a resident at the Michigan house on Thursday evening, the home was rented out by the Pultes this year, a move that also violates rules for the exemption. “Revised tax bills will be issued to the Pultes, including all applicable penalty and interest,” Kraatz said by email. He didn’t respond to a follow-up question about the value of any payment now due and Reuters couldn’t determine a precise figure for previous tax payments they have made.
And Pulte is not the only one! The felon’s Treasury Secretary, who really ought to have known better:
x (Bloomberg) - US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once agreed to occupy two different houses as his “principal residence” at the same time, mortgage documents show — the same kind of contradictory pledges that .. Trump has been using to try to oust .. Lisa Cook. www.bloomberg.com/news/article... — Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla.bsky.social) 2025-09-17T11:56:10.612Z
I always enjoy what Sulu posts or reposts:
x My, my, my. How the tone has changed. — George Takei (@georgetakei.bsky.social) 2025-09-14T01:06:01.818Z And there’s this. Some of the farmers seem to be noticing: x There’s only one person he cares about. — George Takei (@georgetakei.bsky.social) 2025-09-17T19:04:01.035Z
📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️
First, I want to honor Lawrence O’Donnell, who knows not to chase the shiny new thing and who reports on the things the felon wants us to ignore. So he has not reported on the idiotic accusations regarding the left being responsible for the murder of Charlie Kirk, and he did not focus on the yanking of Jimmy Kimmel’s show.
Second, I want to honor some reporters at the New York Times. Yeah, I know we all have mixed feelings about that publication, but they do have the resources to make a difference and sometimes they do. This involved real investigative journalism. The authors are Eric Lipton, David Yaffe-Bellany, Bradley Hope, Tripp Mickle and Paul Mozur.
x "In May, Witkoff’s son announced Tahnoon’s investment firms would deposit $2b into World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency start-up founded by the Witkoffs & Trumps. Weeks later, the WH agreed to allow UAE access to the world’s most advanced & scarce chips, a crucial tool in race to dominate AI." — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-09-16T23:52:51.740Z
Note that when this story was coming out, the felon sued the NYT for 15 billion, but attacked other reporters.
An honorable mention this week for the parents of Tyler Robinson, who turned him in. It must have been hard to turn in a son — but no more than an honorable mention, because with the photos out, Tyler Robinson would have been found out very soon anyway. Note I have heard reports it was the dad, but also reports it was the mom, and neither deserves a lot of respect, because they raised and armed a murderer. But at least they turned him in.
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️
This week we celebrate Victor, who was both loving and brave.
I don’t have Victor’s last name. As he’s a kid, I’m not going to look it up. And, as there are so many shootings, this one took place in August at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minnesota. Here’s more background on the story: Debra Worley, KNOE
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter — armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol — approached the side of the church and shot dozens of rounds through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass at the Annunciation Catholic School just before 8:30 a.m. Police believe the shooter then killed himself. “It was like right beside me. I was like two seats away from the stained-glass windows, so they were like the shots were like right next to me,” said 10-year-old Weston Halsne. At first, the fifth grader said he thought he had just heard something, but started to run when he heard the gunshots again. “The first one, I was like, ‘What is that?’ I thought it was just something, and then when I heard it again, I just ran on the pew, and then I covered my head. My friend Victor, like saved me though, because he laid on top of me, but he got hit,” Weston said.
CNN also spoke with Endre Guntner, a 13 year old who also saved lives during this shooting.
📎 Odds & Ends 📎
Do you ever wonder why it’s always two weeks? Why the felon always promises health plan/ peace in Ukraine / whatever in two weeks? Here’s Michael Cohen on the murder of Charlie Kirk and the outrage — he predicts Kirk will not become a martyr:
But give it two weeks. I’ve heard Trump say it a thousand times in the backrooms of power: “Let’s see what happens in two weeks.” He wasn’t wrong. Outrage has a shelf life in America. The mass shootings keep coming, the scandals keep multiplying, the news cycle spins so fast we barely remember what we were mad about yesterday. Kirk’s death will not defy that cycle.
DoorDash for good — expiring food delivered to those in need Andy Corbley Good News Network
In the late 20-teens, a sort of DoorDash service for good began rescuing donated food in Pittsburgh that was nearing its expiration and diverting to other recipients who could use it. Connecting with hundreds of local businesses, and with the help of an app they designed, 412 Food Rescue had created the largest volunteer-led food transport network in a single urban region by 2019. 25,000 volunteer drivers used a DoorDash-like app called Food Rescue Hero to find donations of food that was perhaps not saleable for aesthetic reasons, or was nearing its sell-by date, or had arrived as part of a shipping or ordering mistake. Collecting it all, the volunteers brought it back to the organization’s Good Food Project kitchen in Millvale, Pittsburgh. ✂️ Fast forward to 2025, and their impact has become truly remarkable. At the close of 2024, they had expanded to include partners in Illinois, Arkansas, California, New York, Colorado, North Dakota, and Texas, who together rescued tens of millions of pounds of food that prevented an estimated 102 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions, which Food Rescue Hero estimates would be the same impact as removing 4,043 cars from the roads for an entire year.
Australia targets 62 to 70 percent emissions cut Rod McGuirk Associated Press
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia on Thursday set a new target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by between 62% and 70% below 2005 levels by 2035. The new target adds to Australia’s ambition of a 43% cut by the end of this decade and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, leader of the center-left Labor Party, will take his government’s 2035 target to the United Nations General Assembly next week. Under the Paris climate agreement signed a decade ago, nations must increase their emissions reduction targets every five years.
Singapore puts its solar power farm over its biggest reservoir Andy Corbley, Good News Network
How do you decarbonize a city state? With so little space, so many demands on power, and so many citizens, generating any meaningful electricity from renewable energy is a major challenge for urban planners. But over its history, the planners of Singapore have shown themselves to be nothing if not resourceful, and so maybe it’s no surprise they’re set to begin construction on an 86-megawatt solar farm. The surprise though comes from where they’ve built it—on top of the country’s largest reservoir—forming a floating solar farm that will join two others already present on two other reservoirs.
🐦 I do a lot of other writing. Newest offerings: Messing with the Myths — two books so far in this series, and great fun if you’ve got kids/grandkids with a passion for mythology. Older offerings: the Crow Nickels (chronicles), about crows who want to save birdkind from extinction (Hunters of the Feather). Mysteries based on Jane Austen’s novels, such as The Meryton Murders. Others based on history and Greek mythology, e.g., Jocasta: The Mother-Wife of Oedipus. All titles also available through Kindle Unlimited. Want to support me but not interested in my books? Buy one and give to a friend or donate to a library.
💙 What You Can Do to Rescue Democracy 💙
It turns out that participation in democracy is not just an every-four-years event but requires active participation, like, whenever you can find time.
I know it’s tough to see the path forward. And I can’t guarantee that there is a path forward. But people who are smarter and braver than I have seen ways to move ahead.
Their (the fascists’) plans really are dark, but many of them are also dumb, in the sense that they don’t make sense. So many of them cannot succeed.
Here are some quick hits.
Stay involved. Yeah, that’s tough. I want to look away too, but by taking simple actions you can make a difference. Keep contacting your representatives, both in DC and at home.
Support causes that will fight. Send money if you can. Also, spread their news with clicks and conversation.
Slow them down. Oppose and block at every turn.
Make tRump unpopular. Doing this weakens him. And it should not be that difficult. The GOP made a lot out of Biden is old and eggs cost too much. Well, tRump is older than Biden was at the beginning of his term and tRump has no policies that are going to bring down inflation. And a host of other problems, like he’s a convicted felon.
Divide the GOP from each other. They are a coalition based on contradictory promises, so there’s plenty to work with.
Keep telling the truth and showing love.
Make sure to pace yourselves in this marathon and to practice self-care.
Current projects (dm me if you have more!):
We need just 3 seats to take back the House. GoodNewsRoundup (a.k.a. Goodie or Madam Mayor) has put together a page for donations via ActBlue. Note you can opt out of emails.
bilboteach has another fundraiser: Win the Majority 2026 – and here you can also opt out of all those fundraising emails.
Look in the comments for Progressive Muse’s report on Postcards to Voters
And Timothy Snyder’s On Tyranny Lessons:
(1) Do Not Obey in Advance; (2) Defend Institutions; (3) Beware the One-Party System; (4) Take Responsibility for the Face of the World; (5) Remember Professional Ethics; (6) Be Wary of Paramilitaries; (7) Be Reflective if You Must Own a Gun; (8) Stand Out (this means, speak up, even when others do not); (9) Be Kind to Our Language; (10) Believe in Truth; (11) Investigate; (12) Make Eye Contact and Small Talk; (13) Practice Corporeal Politics; (14) Establish a Private Life; (15) Contribute to Good Causes; (16) Learn from Peers in Other Countries; (17) Listen for Dangerous Words; (18) Be Calm When the Unthinkable Arrives; (19) Be a Patriot; (20) Be as Courageous as You Can.
🌻
💙 President Joseph R. Biden: “Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we all are created equal and the harsh ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, demonization have long torn us apart. The battle is perennial, and victory is never assured.”
💙 Sir Winston Churchill: When you’re going through hell, keep going.
🌹 🌹 🌹
TRUTH MATTERS. LOVE MATTERS.
[END]
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