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2019 Year in Review

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2019 Year in Review 2019 Year in Review was tumultuous and challenging, dominated right to go to court to hold corporations accountable for 2019by an out-of-control president who by year’s wrongdoing. end was impeached, but also marked by hard-won victo- ries and the continued growth of a nationwide progres- On the legal front, we continued to challenge the Trump sive grassroots movement. administration’s illegal policies and regulatory rollbacks. In a suit filed on behalf of three landowners in south Texas In the face of a lawless administration, Public Citizen and a Texas environmental group, we were the first orga- worked with allies to organize actions nationwide at nization in the nation to sue over Trump’s declaration of key moments. Our goals were to protect from political a national emergency at the southern border. interference those investigators probing Russian med- dling in the 2016 election, then to support lawmakers In another case, we intervened in an industry challenge as they moved to impeach President Donald Trump for to a minimum-wage law and helped to preserve $123 mil- abuse of power and obstruction of justice. We turned out lion in additional wages for farmworkers. hundreds of thousands of people in hundreds of events around the country. Our litigation also brought to light government informa- tion describing the appalling conditions in an infamous Highlighting the Trump administration’s corruption, Alabama detention center. Public Citizen and allies pushed successfully for U.S. House of Representatives passage of the For the People We sued the administration to protect Obama-era fuel Act (H.R. 1), a package of democracy reforms unprece- economy standards; sued to protect workers at pork pro- dented in scope. cessing plants from a new rule eliminating speed limits on processing lines; and took the administration to court And we won critical improvements to the revised North over the rollback of a rule requiring certain businesses to American Free Trade Agreement deal that Trump signed provide data on workplace injury and illness. in 2018. The final deal eliminated the Big Pharma give- aways and strengthened labor and environmental terms And of course we continued our work to protect consum- and their enforcement. ers. We launched a campaign to bolster digital privacy and waged a fight against Facebook’s proposed crypto- With tens of millions still lacking health insurance, we currency, known as Libra. We successfully intervened in ramped up our Medicare for All campaign, waging an regulatory cases to promote transparency and fight unfair aggressive communications strategy to counter indus- electric utility rate hikes. And we successfully pushed for try lies about the policy and a grassroots campaign to a ban on certain dangerous surgical mesh products for the mobilize support. For the first time ever, House leader- transvaginal repair of pelvic organ prolapse. ship took Medicare for All seriously enough to hold four hearings on it. To combat climate change, we participated in the intro- duction of legislation to develop national protections for We also were instrumental in strengthening House- workers exposed to high heat — a way not only to protect passed legislation that would curb drug prices. workers but also to illustrate the real impacts of climate change. Throughout the year, we urged reporters to cover We had other successes in the House: After months of climate change as a crisis. And our Texas office made a prodding from us and other groups, Congress allocated big impact on climate and environmental policy in 2019. $425 million to secure elections. And we attained a mile- stone when the House passed a bill to prohibit forced And that’s just a sampling. The following pages outline arbitration clauses, which require people to give up their in detail this work and much more. PUBLIC CITIZEN NEWS JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020 5 DEMOCRACY rom calling for the impeachment of President Donald Trump to making the case for the sweeping legislative package Fknown as H.R. 1 to organizing actions nationwide to demand secure elections, 2019 was a banner year for advancing bold solutions and holding accountable a president and a White House intent on obstructing justice. BUILDING IMPEACHMENT MOMENTUM March 8, they passed the For the People Act (H.R. 1), the most sweeping pro-democracy STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY From the moment Trump set foot in and anti-corruption legislation of the past office, it was obvious that he saw no duty 50 years. ◊ In June, the country took a major step to- to uphold our constitutional values. By ward fixing our broken democracy as New The measure — which includes ethics Hampshire became the 20th state to sup- putting his daily, flagrant corruption and and campaign finance reforms, policies to port a constitutional amendment to over- abuses of power in the open for all to see, slow the revolving door between public ser- turn the U.S. Supreme Court’s disastrous he has flaunted his disdain for the foun- vice and business, and electoral reforms to Citizens United decision. For seven years, dational principles of our democracy. The Public Citizen has led an energized coali- ensure that every eligible voter can cast a tion to pass 82 local resolutions in New Constitution has a remedy for a presi- vote free from barriers — would enable law- Hampshire in support of an amendment, dent who betrays the country in this way: makers and policymakers to work for and which would prohibit corporations from impeachment. Revelations in October of protect the people, not superrich donors. spending money in elections. Nineteen oth- Trump’s efforts to interfere in the 2020 Public Citizen spearheaded the coalition er states, Washington, D.C., and more than presidential election by extorting Ukraine 800 municipalities – bolstered by more than pushing for the policy — an unprecedented 5 million petition signatures – have called into investigating a political opponent gal- alliance, called the Declaration for American for a constitutional amendment to overturn vanized progressives to call for just that. Democracy, of more than 130 democracy, Citizens United. Public Citizen helped lead the mobiliza- environmental, good government, civil ◊ Pushed by a broad coalition of organiza- tion of more than 200,000 people as part of rights and other organizations. tions, including Public Citizen, the New York more than 600 “Nobody Is Above the Law” Later in March, Public Citizen and other Legislature passed a raft of major election pro-impeachment actions that took place coalition representatives joined U.S. Sen. reforms in January – including early voting in all 50 states and the District of Columbia and pre-registration for 16- and 17-year- Tom Udall (D-N.M.) for the introduction of olds. Lawmakers also approved same-day on Dec. 17, the night before the U.S. House the For the People Act in the U.S. Senate. registration and no-excuse absentee bal- of Representatives made the historic deci- The bill was quickly co-sponsored by every lots, subject to voter approval. sion to impeach Trump. Activists and oth- Democratic senator. ers gathered in front of the district offices of ◊ Activists with Public Citizen and more than Public Citizen and the coalition are mobi- 30 state and national groups in dozens of House members and U.S. senators to call on lizing people across the country to move the cities nationwide organized evening vigils lawmakers to uphold the Constitution and bill in the Senate in 2021. on Aug. 6 to mark the 54th anniversary of their oaths of office by supporting Trump’s the signing of the Voting Rights Act. Public impeachment. (See story on page 1.) Citizen spearheaded the effort and urged SECURING ELECTIONS Congress to restore access to the ballot. This mobilization was part of a larger Voting systems in states remain vulnerable The 1965 law improved voting rights and grassroots effort that launched in October to internal and external hackers who might voter turnout for black, brown, Native and and included nationwide actions and town do everything from change names and Asian Americans, but the Supreme Court halls during the November congressional gutted the law in its 2013 Shelby decision. addresses in voter registration databases recess to amplify calls for an impeachment to change votes cast, thereby manipulating ◊ Along with its partners in the “Trump Is Not inquiry and Trump’s removal from office. outcomes. In 2019, Public Citizen pressed Above the Law” coalition, Public Citizen Public Citizen played a key role through- amplified the findings of Special Counsel Congress to fund election security ade- out; we spearheaded a media campaign in Robert Mueller’s report on the Russian ef- quately and pass comprehensive election support of impeachment, strategized with forts to interfere in the 2016 election. We security reforms. To ensure the integrity lawmakers and lobbied for impeachment. mobilized 300 demonstrations nationwide of the 2020 elections, Public Citizen called to rally for the report’s release. Once it was Riding the crest of activist energy, on the public, we convened a virtual Mueller Book on Congress to send states $600 million in Club to encourage more people to read the morning of the House vote, representatives election security grants. report and help participants in the nation- from Public Citizen and some of the nation’s But Congress moved slowly, so on Sept. wide reading group understand the nuanc- largest grassroots groups, veterans groups, 17, we organized a national day of action at es of the document. Book club videos have constitutional organizations, national secu- garnered more than 600,000 views. more than 40 locations across the country rity voices and other organizations rallied to urge senators to give states the money ◊ When it comes to dealing with the “revolv- at the U.S.
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