May 20th – Content to Amplify
Trump is stealing money from us to give to Jan. 6 insurrectionists, MAGA is tying to control the outcome of our elections, voters are still showing up, local organizing is fighting fascism
TL/DR; Amplify these narratives (content below):
Trump is stealing from us to give $1.776 billion dollars to January 6 insurrectionists.
While Trump and MAGA desperately try to control elections, Americans are still turning out in primaries.
Local organizing against fascist infrastructure is strong and winning.
Upcoming Calls to Action
TODAY: Day of Action to End Family Detention and shut down Dilley
All Roads Lead to the South
Americans can barely pay rent. We’re wracked with medical and student debt. We can’t even fill up our cars with gas because of Trump’s failed Iran war. And frankly, Trump’s approval rankings are tanking because of it. So what does Trump do? He sets up a $1.7 billion dollar slush fund – to be clear, OUR taxpayer dollars – to give money to….[checks notes]…January 6 insurrectionists? The only possible reaction to this level of corruption is “What the actual f*ck?”
This is really the cherry on top of an infuriating couple of weeks, where we’ve witnessed Trump and MAGA Confederates sprint to rig election maps and block Black political power in the South so they can control the outcome of our elections. In Kentucky, MAGA voters did Trump’s bidding and defeated Rep. Massie – basically the only Republican who has been willing to demand accountability for the Epstein class – cementing their status as the Pedophile Protector Party.
But despite MAGA’s depravity, we’re still showing up. We’re turning out to the primaries to exercise our freedom to vote. And importantly, all across the country, we’re finding ways to reject and dismantle the infrastructure of fascism – whether data centers or ICE concentration camps or mass surveillance contracts. That’s something to lift up and celebrate – and we all need that right now.
TOP THREE THINGS TO AMPLIFY
1. Trump is stealing from us to give $1.776 billion dollars to January 6 insurrectionists.
Trump is using the presidency to enrich himself, his billionaire buddies, and those loyal to him. All while Americans struggle. We already knew this, but the latest stunningly egregious example dropped this week: a $1.776 billion slush fund designed to pay the MAGA rioters that stormed the Capitol on January 6. This is a true WTF moment. And in a new settlement with the Justice Department, the IRS can never audit him or his corrupt nepo kids or businesses. Remember, corruption performs well online, and it was key in ousting authoritarian leader Orbán in Hungary. So let’s call this bullshit out for what it is: peak Trump corruption.
Trump receives $1.7B slush fund to compensate his allies
Trump regime forever bans IRS from auditing the taxes of Trump, his family members, and companies
Senator Ruben Gallego blasts Trump’s new fund for J6 insurrectionists
There’s no money for child care or health care, but there is money to pay the January 6th insurrectionists
Everyone should apply to the slush fund citing various victimization options to jam it up
2. While Trump and MAGA desperately try to control elections, Americans are still turning out in primaries.
Confederate states are still pushing Jim Crow 2.0. Here’s the latest. Early Wednesday, MAGA Confederates in South Carolina passed a new congressional map to eliminate the state’s only Democratic seat, currently held by Black Representative James Clyburn; the map now heads to the Senate. Georgia’s Governor Kemp called a Jim Crow special session to rig election maps for 2028, coming up on June 17. And in Mississippi, the governor expects state legislators to redraw four congressional districts before the 2027 elections. Amidst it all, voters are still turning out in numbers to assert their freedom to vote. Democrats are rejecting establishment and corporate candidates. Meanwhile, the GOP is really living up to its Guardians of Pedophiles reputation. MAGA Kentucky voters followed Trump’s demands to unseat Rep. Thomas Massie, the only Republican demanding accountability and answers on Epstein. In the words of Ro Khanna, “He lost because he had the guts to take on the Epstein class.”
Trump voters just voted Massie out
Republicans and AIPAC spent a record $35 million to unseat Thomas Massie, the only Republican demanding answers on Epstein
Trump endorses impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton in Texas Senate race
Chris Rabb wins primary in PA-3, defeating the establishment and AIPAC dark money
Mississippi activists protest MAGA attacks on Black voting power
Mississippi’s long war on Black political power
3. Local organizing against fascist infrastructure is strong and winning.
From small town halls to street protests to city council meetings, there is a highly local, grassroots movement to dismantle the infrastructure of fascism rising up across the country, and we’re winning. It’s beautiful to see, it’s the hope we desperately need, and it’s proof that our communities are bigger than fascism.
Denver City Council voted unanimously to temporarily halt the development of future data centers inside the city
Ohio group collects 25,000 signatures for a constitutional amendment banning data centers
Americans’ negative attitudes towards AI is increasing rapidly
Young people are rejecting AI
Multiple college commencement speakers are booed after mentioning AI
Students boo graduation ceremony after AI tool misses some graduates’ names
Democrat releases new ad about AI price gouging
New York federal judge bans ICE arrests at Manhattan immigration courts
Minnesota charges an ICE officer in a nonfatal shooting during Trump’s immigration crackdown
Senate Dems pass a War Powers Resolution to curtail Trump’s war in Iran
BONUS: Just watch this because it’s something you need to hear.
Being progressive communicators is really hard in 2026. The emotional load can sometimes feel too heavy to carry. This video from Robert Arnold is for all of us. It made me tear up a little bit this morning but I think it’s something we all need to hear.
Robert Arnold: “When you feel like the tide is too large or too small, hold the light anyway”
MORE CONTENT + CLIPS
Stories of Defiance
(showcase the movement to fight back from everyday people to institutions to build social proof)
Sticker at gas pump says “Price includes Epstein files distraction surcharge”
NAACP launches “Out of Bounds” campaign, a national call for Black athletes, families, fans, alumni, and consumers to withhold athletic and financial support from public universities in states attacking Black voting representation
Hayley Williams performs in front of an image of TN Rep. Justin Jones holding a burning Confederate flag
NBA star Victor Wembanyama speaks out against Trump’s ICE
Actor Sebastian Stan says Trump is no laughing matter and that “we’re in a bad place”
Ken Burns’ speech against Trump from 2022 is going viral again
Trump’s Hollywood star grafittied with “pedo” and “fuck ICE”
Minnesota becomes first state to ban prediction markets
St. Charles, Missouri bans data centers
ICE & Military Escalations
(show the reality of fascism and widespread impact on communities)
Memphis has active ICE operation and community members are targeted for publicizing the operation
The FBI wants to buy nationwide access to license plate readers
Number of Flock cameras expanded rapidly in the last two years
Fascism + Corruption
(showcase corruption and rising fascism in U.S. government)
AG Todd Blanche avoids answering whether he would pardon anyone named in the Epstein files
9 accounts made $2.4 million betting on the Iran War, pointing to alleged insider trading
GOP candidate who opposes LGBTQ+ rights allegedly had relations with men on Grindr
Who is getting rich off of ICE warehouse deals
Personal Impacts
(showcase the real world day-to-day impacts on everyday people)
[CW: Gun violence] Two teenage gunmen opened fire outside Islamic center of San Diego on May 18, killing three in what’s being investigated as a hate crime
NYC Mayor Mamdani calls out Reagan: “No one should have to work all the time and still not be able to afford to feed their family”
Americans are struggling under “Trump first”
Thank you, Jiggy! 👏🏼