Polk County Democratic Party Weekly Digest: August 14 - August 20, 2023
Track the Biden Administration's campaign promises
All Vote By Mail requests expired after the 2022 General Election! Click here to register now.
Please check your registration as another 100k voters were purged from the Vote By Mail list!!!!
August is Make-A-Will Month, have you prepared your legacy? Click HERE for a free resource from MoveOn to protect your future on your terms!
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Governor DeSantis Removes 2nd Elected Official From Office As Fascist Reign Continues and Brags About It to Iowa Voters
State Attorney Monique Worrell was removed from office, click here for the full story.
PART 2: State Attorney Worrell's Chief of Staff Fired At Home While on FMLA By Armed Investigators and Orange County Sheriff's Deputies Unauthorized to Handle Matter
Click HERE for Full Story
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SOCIAL SECURITY TURNS 88!!!
On August 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law. 88 years later, Republicans continue to attack this program, bringing back plans to gut Social Security and steal the benefits that nearly five million Floridians have earned in their lifetime, and rely on in retirement.
DID YOU KNOW?...
- Nearly 5 million seniors — or almost a quarter of the state’s population — rely on Social Security in Florida.
- Florida has one of the highest percentages of residents over the age of 65 in the entire country, second only to Maine. Of a total population of over 21.7 million, more than 4.6 million were aged 65 and above—about 21.3 percent of all Floridians, according to the Census Bureau's 2020 population estimates.
- Retirees in Florida live with higher inflation rates than the rest of the country, recording 9% inflation in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach — and benefits are not keeping up with the cost of living in the state.
- President Biden has vowed to protect Social Security while MAGA Republicans running for the highest office in the country are campaigning on gutting it for the five million seniors who rely on it in Florida.
- Ron DeSantis has made Florida the most unaffordable state in the country. With the highest inflation rates in the nation and rising cost of living, the people of Florida deserve a secure retirement and access to benefits that they depend on to survive.
- Ron DeSantis has a long record of calling to end Social Security as we know it. While Ron was in Congress, he consistently voted for cuts to one of the most popular governmental programs in American history, calling to raise the retirement age and privatize the program.
- Semafor: “During his time in Congress, meanwhile, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis voted for a series of budget resolutions crafted by the conservative Republican Study Committee that would have voucherized Medicare for new beneficiaries, slowed Social Security cost of living increases, and raised the retirement age for both programs.”
- CNN: “A CNN KFile review of comments from DeSantis’ 2012 congressional campaign found he repeatedly said he supported plans to replace Medicare with a system in which the government paid for partial costs of private plans or a traditional Medicare plan. In one interview with a local newspaper, DeSantis said he supported ‘the same thing’ for Social Security, citing the need for ‘market forces’ to restructure the program.”
- Washington Post: “‘I support what Ryan is trying to do in terms of reforming entitlements,’ DeSantis said in a 2012 newspaper questionnaire. ‘It’s not a voucher, it’s premium support.’
- Donald Trump admitted Social Security could be on the chopping block if he gets another term and proposed gutting the program every single year he was in office.
- Before walking back plans to put Social Security on the chopping block, Rick Scott spent years pushing to phase out Social Security, proposing a ‘sunset provision’ that would end the program within five years.
- Marco Rubio has spent his career working to cut Social Security and reduce the retirement benefits that Floridians have spent their entire lives contributing to. For decades, Rubio has called for raising the retirement age, supported Rick Scott’s proposal to sunset Social Security, and proposed plans that would reduce benefits by forcing parents to pay for family leave with their own Social Security.
Source: Florida Democratic Party Toolkit
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Looking for ways to support those devastated by the fires in Maui? Here is a list of resources that will directly impact the recovery process in meaningful ways!
Maui Fire Relief Fund: Donations go directly to the Maui United Way.
Salvation Army Hawaii: Provides resources and food for those evacuating.
GoFundMe: GoFundMe has a list of verified Maui Wildfires Relief Fundraisers. Be wary of donating to any others.
Maui Humane Society: Animals need places to stay if you’re nearby, or you can donate money to help feed and shelter them.
Maui Food Bank: Accepting food and monetary donations to help feed people in Maui.
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OUT AND ABOUT IN POLK COUNTY
COME OUT AND JOIN US ON AUGUST 19th FOR GOOD DEMOCRATIC FELLOWSHIP AND LET'S MEET NEW FACES!
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ELECTIONS ARE HAPPENING EVERYWHERE IN POLK COUNTY- ARE YOU READY TO RUN?
To see who has filed to run in local/municipal races, click this link to be taken to the Polk County Supervision of Elections candidate page. This list is updated regularly.
To see who has filed to run in state elections, click this link to be taken to the Florida Division of Elections candidate page. This list is also updated regularly.
If you are interested in running for office and need more information please reach out to the DEC with any questions/requests. We must contest every seat to enact the positive change we desperately need in Polk County and beyond!
The next Campaign and Candidate Recruitment Committee Meeting is Wednesday, August 23rd at 3
pm. Please let John Hill know if you would like to attend at vicechair2@polkdemocrats.net
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Polk County elections for constitutional officers will be partisan races as instructed by the State Attorney General's office. Neil Combee (photo below) argued stridently for the change. He can now spew hateful, discriminatory language openly as a Republican in his race for Property Appraiser. Click HERE for full story.
Group of Lakeland citizens calling themselves Christians protest family friendly drag event hosted by beloved community leader Momma Ashley Rose in Lakeland and ask city to revoke organization's lease. Click HERE for full story.
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VOTER REGISTRATION TRAINING EVERY MONTH!
Sign up to learn how we’re providing registration information now, what the new rules are, and best practices for finding our target voters. Held via Zoom each month on the 3rd Wednesday at 1 PM.
Sign up on Mobilize: https://www.mobilize.us/polkcountydec/event/452722/
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BALLOT 2024
Help us get these amendments onto the Ballot this year. Distribute them amongst your friends, family and communities. Knowledge is POWER!
PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS FOR THE NOVEMBER 2024 BALLOT
Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion
Text: No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.
Sponsor:
Floridians Protecting Freedom, Inc.
Post Office Box 4068
Sarasota, FL 34230
(305) 647-2666
Petition available at: https://floridiansprotectingfreedom.com/
Right to Clean and Healthy Waters Amendment
Text: This amendment creates a fundamental right to clean and healthy waters. The amendment may be used to sue State executive agencies for harm or threatened harm to Florida’s waters, which include aquatic ecosystems. This amendment defines terms, identifies affected constitutional provisions in Article IV governing the executive branch, provides for civil action enforcement, allows attorney’s and expert witness fees to prevailing plaintiffs, and provides equitable remedies including restoration of waters.
Sponsor:
Florida Right To CleanWater
13300 South Cleveland Avenue
Suite 56
Fort Myers, FL 33907
(239) 898-2044
Petition: Available at:
FloridaRighttoCleanWater.org
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Civic Activities around the Area
August 14th- August 20th, 2023
Winter Haven City Commission
Monday, August 14th, 6pm
Lake Wales City Commission
Tuesday, August 15th, 6pm
Haines City Commission
Thursday, August 17th, 7pm
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Democratic Party of Polk County, Club & Caucus Links
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If you would like to know more about a caucus or club which does not have a hyperlink, please email PolkCountyDemocrats@gmail.com
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Paid Political Advertisement for the Democratic Party of Polk County
6039 Cypress Gardens, PMB 328, Winter Haven, FL 33884
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