Remove Nunes from the House Intelligence Committee

The petition to House Speaker Paul Ryan and House Republican leadership reads: "The independence of Rep. Devin Nunes as chair of the House Intelligence Committee is compromised. You must immediately remove him from the Committee, and help ensure an independent and transparent investigation of all credible allegations concerning the relationship between Donald Trump and the Russian government." Add your name:

One of Donald Trump’s most loyal congressional lapdogs – House Intelligence Committee (the Committee) Chair Rep. Devin Nunes – is doing everything in his power to undermine both the congressional investigation and the parallel FBI investigation into Trump’s Russia ties. On Monday night, House Republicans voted to release the so-called Nunes memo – a blatant attempt to smear Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who is overseeing the Mueller investigation. Democrats who have seen the memo, including Rep Adam Schiff, ranking member on the Committee, report that the so-called memo is really just Republican talking points making unsubstantiated claims to undermine the credibility of the FBI’s investigation.1 The FBI even issued an unprecedented statement publicly rebuking Nunes's conspiracy-fueled “memo” and expressing “grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo’s accuracy.2" Thanks to the progressive movement's activism, Nunes supposedly stepped aside last year from running the House Russia investigation after sharing classified intelligence directly with the press and the White House. However, he is still the Committee's chair and has been working to subvert its work in order to protect Donald Trump.3 If Paul Ryan really believes his own words that Congress is responsible for holding the executive branch accountable,4 he must now remove Nunes from the Committee. Tell Paul Ryan and the rest of House Republican leadership: Immediately remove Rep. Nunes from the House Intelligence Committee. Click here to sign the petition. It is clear that Trump and his cronies want the baseless Nunes “memo” released, even though members of his own party will not vouch for its accuracy, because it helps build their narrative that the Mueller investigation is a witch-hunt with Trump as its target.5 We now know that Trump reportedly demanded that Mueller be fired last summer, and the only reason Mueller is still on the job is because White House counsel stood up to Trump.6 It seems now that in lieu of outright firing, Trump and his lapdogs are doing everything they can to erode the public’s faith in the investigation and undermine Mueller’s independence. Devin Nunes was a member of the Trump transition team, and his independence has been suspect for more than a year. But his latest actions go far and above stalling his committee’s investigation: He is now actively using his access to classified information to interfere in a separate independent investigation. Nunes’ conspiracy theory-laden “memo” attracted major attention in part because thousands of Russian bots engaged on Twitter calling for the memo to be released.7 In any other era, the claims the memo supposedly makes would be laughable. Reportedly, it attacks the Rod Rosenstein, the Republican who is supervising Robert Mueller, because he signed off on a warrant to spy on Trump associate Carter Page, based on credible reports that Page had been collaborating with Russian spies.8 The idea that the FBI wouldn’t investigate him is ludicrous, but by dressing up fringe right-wing conspiracy theories as a “memo,” Nunes is making these absurd attacks mainstream – with the ultimate goal of discrediting Rosenstein and eroding public faith in the independent FBI investigation. Tell Paul Ryan and the rest of House Republican leadership: Immediately remove Rep. Nunes from the House Intelligence Committee. Click here to sign the petition. When Republicans voted to release the memo, they voted against even allowing the minority report authored by Rep. Adam Schiff, which points out the flaws in Nunes’ narrative, to be released to members outside the Committee.9 They also refused to allow the Department of Justice to review the memo for accuracy or redact anything that might jeopardize the investigation.10 What’s more, without redaction, the public release of the so-called memo could jeopardize not only the effectiveness, but even the safety of the FBI and other law enforcement officials.11 Republicans in Congress might hope they can obfuscate and redirect our attention, but if we make it clear we are paying attention and demand that they put the integrity of our democracy first, we can build pressure on them to act. Demand that House Republican leaders immediately remove Rep. Nunes from the House Intelligence Committee. Click the link below to sign the petition. https://act.credoaction.com/sign/Nunes_russia?t=8&akid=27080%2E3130208%2EPmL70A - Kaili Lambe CREDO Action Add your name: Nicholas Fandos, “House Republicans Vote to Release Secret Memo on Russia Inquiry,” The New York Times, Jan. 29, 2018. Ben Mathis-Lilley, "FBI Issues Statement Denouncing House Republican Russia Memo That Trump Has Promised to Release," Slate, Jan. 31, 2018. Zach Beauchamp, “The real reason the Nunes memo matters," Vox, Jan. 30, 2018. Phil Mattingly et al., “Ryan: Nunes memo should be released, members should separate memo from Mueller,” CNN, Jan. 30, 2018. Quinta Jurecic and Benjamin Wittes, “How Many of Devin Nunes’s GOP Colleagues on the Intelligence Committee Will Stand Up for the Accuracy of His Memo? Hint: Not Many," Lawfare, Jan. 23, 2018. Kristen Welker and Phil Helsel “Trump wanted to fire Mueller in June but backed down when White House counsel threatened to quit," NBC News, Jan. 26, 2018. Ryan Sit, “Trump Caught on Hot Mic Saying he will ‘100 percent’ Release Nunes Memo, despite Justice Department Objections,” Newsweek, Jan. 31, 2018. David Leonhardt, “The Nunes Conspiracy,” The New York Times, Jan. 30, 2018. Jeremy Herb and Manu Raju, "House Intel Committee votes to release Nunes memo on FBI,” CNN, Jan. 30, 2018. Steve Benen, “Trump, Justice Department at odds over dubious ‘Nunes memo,'” MSNBC, Jan. 29, 2018. Adam Goldman and Nicholas Fandos, "F.B.I. and Justice Dept. Brace for Possible Release of Secret Memo,” The New York Times, Jan. 30, 2018.

Tell Congress: No legal immunity for the gun industry

Who is responsible?

Tell Congress: “Repeal immunity for the gun industry by passing the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act.” Add your name:

The recent mass shooting in Las Vegas was a tragic reminder that we are never going to address the epidemic of gun violence in our country without breaking the gun lobby’s control of Congress. Fortunately, three Democrats – Sens. Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Adam Schiff – have introduced the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act, which would revoke the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), the law that gives the gun industry legal immunity for negligence that leads to gun-related violence and death.1 We need to put massive pressure on the NRA’s Republican lapdogs and make it impossible for them to ignore this bill. Tell Congress: Repeal immunity for the gun industry by passing the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act. Click here to sign the petition. Gun manufacturers and gun dealers are the only industries in America that are protected from lawsuits when their products lead to violence and death.2 That’s not by accident. The NRA pushed its lackeys in Congress to pass the PLCAA in 2005. The Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act would repeal the PLCAA and allow victims of gun violence to hold gun manufacturers and dealers accountable when their negligence leads to death. The PLCAA is an appalling example of an industry using its money and lobbying power to subvert our judicial system. The courts should decide when and how companies are held accountable when their products lead to harm, and that process should be available to everyone. It isn’t the job of Congress to decide who’s allowed to pursue justice in our courts – especially if it’s driven by a political desire to reward gun lobbyists with deep pockets. The one-sided gift to the gun industry would never have passed if Congress was not deeply in the pockets of the NRA. Can you demand that our elected officials prioritize their constituents over the gun lobby and repeal the PLCAA now? Tell Congress: Repeal immunity for the gun industry by passing the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act. Click here to sign the petition. Recently we, along with progressive allies, delivered more than 1 million petition signatures to key Republican leaders demanding that Congress act on gun control. It is clear that the National Rifle Association is feeling the pressure. Its leaders just made a calculated, cynical nod to gun control by suggesting that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms should review the legality of bump stocks, which allowed the perpetrator of the Las Vegas massacre to use his semi-automatic weapons like automatic ones.3 It is a craven attempt to help their tarnished image and distract from the massive public demand that Congress finally act. We cannot let them get away with it. It is time to put relentless pressure on Congress to break its blind allegiance to the gun lobby. We must demand that our elected representatives repeal the PLCAA and restore gun victims’ access to our justice system so that the gun industry can be held accountable when their negligence leads to violence and death in our communities. Tell Congress to reverse this terrible mistake and spend its time reducing gun violence instead of handing the gun industry special privileges. Click the link below to sign the petition: https://act.credoaction.com/sign/gun_accountability?t=8&akid=25568%2E3130208%2EJ7I2_D - Heidi Hess, Senior Campaign Manager CREDO Action from Working Assets Add your name: References: 1. Russell Blair, "As Promised, Connecticut Democrats Introduce Gun Control Bills," Hartford Courant, Oct. 5, 2017. 2. Center for American Progress, "Immunizing the Gun Industry," Jan. 15, 2016. 3. Addie Baird, "How the NRA and the far-right are quietly mobilizing to kill gun safety reform after Vegas," ThinkProgress, Oct. 5, 2017