they called me a "loser"

I have a few updates for you as we head into the fall, but I wanted to start by responding to a recent press release that called me one of 2017's "Losers" and a member of the "Coalition of the Radical Left."

The American Conservative Union (a rightwing group based in Virginia) scored my votes on legislation and criticized me for supporting bills to promote gun safety, protect Planned Parenthood funding, roll back the failed War on Drugs, and defend our immigrant population.

You gotta have a thick skin in politics, but I stand behind all of those votes. As I head into the coming election, please consider a donation to help this "loser" get re-elected:

http://davidmoon.us/donate/

After all, I'm much more interested in the fact that the Sierra Club just gave me an early endorsement for my votes to combat climate change in Maryland. Likewise, the League of Conservation Voters rated my environmental voting record 100% three years in a row.

Below you can read about a few projects I worked on this summer and fall.

Best wishes,

Delegate David Moon

david@davidmoon.org

P.S. I'm currently filling out my legislative agenda for the 2018 session, so feel free to share any thoughts. I'll be tackling a number of topics, including getting rid of special tax breaks for country clubs in Montgomery County.

URGING GOVERNOR HOGAN NOT TO IMPLEMENT TRUMP'S COAL POLLUTION STANDARDS IN MARYLAND - Last week I organized sixty-two of my House & Senate colleagues to urge Larry Hogan not to implement the Trump administration's weakened water pollution standards in Maryland. The Seventh State blog covered our efforts and noted:

"Trump’s effort to weaken clear water protections from coal are coming home to Maryland. At issue are three coal-fired power plants that would dump toxic waste into the Chesapeake Bay. Under President Obama’s proposed rules, the plants would have had to make improvements to better protect the environment to renew their permits. Trump has ended those protections. Will Hogan go with Trump or the Bay on this one?"

We're still waiting to see how this plays out. You can read our letter to Hogan [ HERE ].

BANNING "BUMP-FIRE" STOCKS FOR GUNS IN MARYLAND - After the horrific mass shooting in Las Vegas, I'm introducing legislation to ban the sale of so-called "bump-fire" stocks in Maryland. As Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence notes:

"Maryland State Senator Bill Ferguson and Delegate David Moon plan to introduce legislation that would ban the sale of bump-fire stocks and any accessory that is designed to accelerate the rate of fire of a semiautomatic firearm during Maryland’s 2018 legislative session if Congress fails to act by January 2018. Bump-fire stocks and other devices can turn semi-automatic weapons into firearms that can discharge at a rate of 400 to 800 rounds per minute. A bump-fire device was used to retrofit semi-automatic weapons used in the Las Vegas massacre that killed 59 and injured another 500."

Read more about this effort [ HERE ].

PRESERVING THE ROLE OF VOTERS IN THE RACE FOR GOVERNOR - Maryland's gubernatorial race is beginning to heat up, and to avoid what happened in past elections, I've organized Democratic politicians from around the state to give voters a role in the upcoming primary. The Washington Post covered my efforts: "A state lawmaker from Montgomery County is urging his fellow Democrats not to endorse any 2018 gubernatorial candidates until next winter, hoping to avoid perceptions of an anointed favorite in what is expected to be a crowded primary...."

"Moon said his petition is partly inspired by Maryland’s 2002 and 2014 gubernatorial races, the only two won by Republicans in the past 50 years. Both times, elected Democrats in the state coalesced around candidates who had served as lieutenant governor but did not generate strong enthusiasm for voters.... He is asking Democrats to withhold endorsements until after the Feb. 27 filing deadline and at least one debate, and to sign a pledge saying early endorsements 'may create a primary among insiders that reduces voter input and unnecessarily keeps potential candidates out of the race....'"

POST-CHARLOTTSVILLE PUSH TO REMOVE DIVISIVE SYMBOLS IN MARYLAND - After the violent KKK & Neo-Nazi rally in Charlottsville, Virginia, Maryland leaders have been working to remove divisive symbols in our state. While I normally prioritize working on more substantive issues, we are clearly in the midst of a national debate about racism and xenophobia and I think it's important for political leaders to push back against the wave of extremism we're witnessing.

As a result, I've joined with members of Maryland's legislative Asian Caucus to call for Maryland to eliminate it's current state song. Our ridiculous Confederate song is basically unusable, as it calls the North "scum" and refers to Abraham Lincoln as a "despot." You can read our letter on this topic [ HERE ].

FIGHTING DONALD TRUMP'S REJECTION OF CLIMATE CHANGE GOALS - After Donald Trump decided to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement to combat climate change, I joined with over 550 legislators from around the nation to condemn the action. As part of the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, we signed a letter to Trump that you can read [ HERE ].

SPEAKING OUT AGAINST MILITARY ESCALATION WITH NORTH KOREA - As a Korean American elected official, I felt compelled to speak out against Donald Trump's recent escalation of nuclear tensions with North Korea and to instead use diplomacy to resolve the standoff. A group of elected Korean Americans from around the nation joined together to push Trump on this issue. You can read about our efforts [ HERE ].

PROTECTING IMMIGRANT KIDS FROM TRUMP'S XENOPHOBIA - Donald Trump is threatening to end President Obama's "DACA" program, which allows children who were brought into the United States to stay here. I joined with political leaders from around the nation to call on Congress to pass legislation to stop this anti-immigrant madness:

"Since June 2012, nearly 800,000 of these young people who came to the United States as children have come forward, passed background checks, and received permission to live and work in America. With DACA, they have advanced their education, started small businesses, and more fully established themselves as integral members of our society. Ending DACA means all of these young people would be at risk of deportation and separation from their families and our communities; this would be senselessly cruel. Ending DACA and removing hundreds of thousands of young men and women from our workforce also would cost the country an estimated $460.3 billion in lost Gross Domestic Product over a decade and tens of billions more in lost contributions to Medicare and Social Security, and force businesses to incur $3.4 billion in turnover costs."

Read more about our efforts [ HERE ].