#CripTheVote Live Tweet Of The December 2019 Democratic Debate

#CripTheVote Live Tweets Stats Update

Here are updated #CripTheVote chat statistics showing participation and impact numbers for the six Democratic Presidential debates so far. We are using a service called Keyhole https://keyhole.co/ to track this. If you are into numbers and statistics, read ahead!

Note:

“Tweets” includes the number of original tweets, retweets, and replies.
“Users” is the number of people who participated over the measured span of time.
“Engagement” is the number of times people either retweeted or replied to tweets.
"Tweet Impressions" is a total tally of all the times the Tweet has been seen.

This Timeline graph shows #CripTheVote tweet volumes over the course of the December 19, 2019 Democratic Presidential Primary Debate.

Graphic showing a line graph for #CripTheVote historical data for 12/19/19. On the x-axis are hours in one day, the y-axis the number posts: 5,652 posts, 2,406 users, 29,640 engagement, 27,361,410 tweet impressions. The peak was at about 10 pm Eastern.

And here are some charts covering the last four debate live tweets. Since the first two debates were two nights, we came up with daily tweet averages for comparison with the single night third and fourth debates.

Tweets

June Debate: 1,569 per day average
July Debate: 2,761 per day average
September Debate: 2,996
October Debate: 3,807
November Debate: 2,353
December Debate: 5,652

Users

June Debate: 575 per day average
July Debate: 1,196 per day average
September Debate: 1,123
October Debate: 1,597
November Debate: 1,000
December Debate: 2,406

Engagement

June Debate: 1,618 per day average
July Debate: 11,915 per day average
September Debate: 10,691
October Debate: 13,730
November Debate: 8,126
December Debate: 29,640

Tweet Impressions

June Debate: 7,507,804 per day average
July Debate: 13,029,603 per day average
September Debate: 16,351,225
October Debate: 19,946,895
November Debate: 16,129,595
December Debate:

We will keep collecting data from upcoming live tweets and chats. Check back here at the #CripTheVote Blog.

#CripTheVote Live Tweet of the November 2019 Democratic Primary Debate

2020 #CripTheVote Candidate Chats

2020 #CripTheVote Candidate Chats

With the 2020 Presidential election fast approaching, the co-partners of #CripTheVote, Andrew Pulrang, Gregg Beratan, and Alice Wong, invite candidates from any party to join us in a Twitter chat about disability policy and issues. We are offering to host individual chats for each interested candidate in 2020. Below is an outline of the chat format including questions and time at the end for engagement with community members. Please note: Our advocacy is nonpartisan and any chats with candidates are not official endorsements.

If you’re interested, email us: cripthevote@gmail.com

Check out this recap from our last Twitter chat: https://wakelet.com/wake/8fe0236d-328f-45b1-99fd-58412b1e52d9

For more: http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/

#CripTheVote Candidate Chat format for each individual candidate (60-75 minutes):

Introduction and reminders on how to participate 

Q1: Tell us about your engagement with the disability community so far and examples of your campaign’s access and inclusion? 

Q2: What are some of the main things you learned from the disability community and how did it influence your overall vision of what you want to do if elected?  

Q3: Please share your policies and proposals that are focused on people with disabilities and how you developed them.  

Q4: How are disabled people involved in your campaign whether it’s staff, volunteers, advisors, or consultants? How will this continue in your administration if elected?

Q5: Is there anything else you’d like to share with us about disability issues?

Q6: Do you have any questions you’d like to ask the disability community?

[Remaining 15-20 minutes open for questions from chat participants to the candidate]

Wrap-up and thank you. 

#CripTheVote Stats ... Four Debates In

Here are updated #CripTheVote chat statistics showing participation and impact numbers for the four debates so far. We are using a service called Keyhole to track this. If you are into numbers and statistics, read ahead!

Note:

“Tweets” includes the number of original tweets, retweets, and replies.
“Users” is the number of people who participated over the measured span of time.
“Engagement” is the number of times people either retweeted or replied to tweets.

This Timeline graph shows #CripTheVote tweet volumes over the course of the October 15, 2019 Fourth Democratic Presidential Primary Debate. It shows a very large and steep increase in participation and a matching drop-off in participation over the course of the debate.

And here are some charts covering the last four debate live tweets. Since the first two debates were two nights, we came up with daily tweet averages for comparison with the single night third and fourth debates.

Tweets

June Debate: 1,569 per day average
July Debate: 2,761 per day average
September Debate: 2,996
October Debate: 3,807

Users

June Debate: 575 per day average
July Debate: 1,196 per day average
September Debate: 1,123
October Debate:  1,597

Engagement

June Debate: 1,618 per day average
July Debate: 11,915 per day average
September Debate: 10,691
October Debate: 13,730

Tweet Impressions

June Debate: 7,507,804 per day average
July Debate: 13,029,603 per day average
September Debate: 16,351,225
October Debate: 19,946,895

We will keep collecting data from upcoming live tweets and chats. Check back here at the #CripTheVote Blog.

#CripTheVote Live Tweet of the October 2019 Democratic Primary Debate

Q&A with Amanda Siebe

Below is a Q&A with Amanda Siebe, a disabled candidate running for US House of Representatives in Oregon’s 1st District. For more, check out her website: https://siebe2020.com/

Tell us a little about yourself!

My name is Amanda Siebe. I was raised in Beaverton, Oregon where I attended Raleigh Hills Elementary, Whitford Middle School, then Jesuit High School. After high school, I moved to Monmouth, Oregon and attended Western Oregon University. I originally studied International Relations, Spanish, but was forced to switch to Sociology when Western dropped its International Relations major. My studies were primarily focused around Immigration between Latin America and the United States and grassroots organizing.

In 2008, my son Keagan was 9 months old and I went through one of the scariest experiences of my life. Keagan started to choke on a piece of finger-food. Even though I had been certified in First Aid and CPR since I was 12 years old, I still had a difficult time dislodging the food and getting my son to breathe again. I was lucky that I had that training because we had just moved into a new house and I had no way to call 9-1-1 for help. It was after that experience that I decided to make the career change I’d been contemplating for years. I decided to become a paramedic and firefighter. It seemed like the best way I could serve my community.

By 2010, I had my EMT-Basic and the only thing I lacked to start the paramedic program I wanted to attend was the $10,000 in tuition. I was working as a restaurant manager in Mill Valley, California to earn it when I fell at work. What should have been a simple injury and 6 weeks of recovery turned into full-body Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (also known as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome) because my employer placed more value on their profits than they did on my health and functionality.

I’ve spent the last 7 years fighting for treatment, benefits, and recognition for my community. I’ve seen what injured workers and patients are faced to go through just to get our basic rights and how little our elected officials care about the 1 in 5 voters who live with disability. So, I decided to run for office to give patients and injured workers the representation we desperately need. 

Why did you decide to run for US House of Representatives? 

I always wanted to be in politics, but I was raised in a family that believed the closest a woman should come to politics was as a politician's wife. There always seemed to be a reason why I wouldn’t, or couldn’t, get elected. Wrong education. Wrong family line. Wrong socio-economic standing. I was just wrong. 

Until 2018, when suddenly, I wasn’t.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar showed me anything was possible. Suddenly, my background, poverty, lack of ivy-league education, and wheelchair no longer held me back. Instead, they pushed me forward.

I realized there are so many who, like me, feel underserved and underrepresented in The People’s House. 1 in 5 voters nationwide are disabled and over half of them are women, yet we have no disabled women in the US House. It’s time we change that and have a representative who is ready to stand up for the disabled community and patients to fight for the change we need to see.

What are some of the issues facing your district and state overall?

The major issues affecting my community are the same issues affecting all communities. Those issues are the environment, healthcare, immigration, and justice reform.

I’m proud to come from a progressive, green district that recognizes the climate crisis, which is quickly starting to endanger our life, safety, national and economic security, and future. But, as a planet, we are running out of time. If we have any hope of living a healthy and secure life, then we need to be able to breathe clean air, drink clean water, eat healthy, fresh, environmentally sustainable food, just to name a few of the radical changes we need to make, which is why I support the Green New Deal. Every year we put this policy off is another year of additional human-impacted climate change we must counteract. If we don’t make the changes we need, then we’ll continue to see people getting sick, suffering, and dying, which brings me to the next issue: healthcare.

While people are quick to point out that no one escapes life without paying taxes and dying, they forget that all people also get sick and injured. Especially with the increased rate of toxic chemicals being dumped in our waterways and seeping into our groundwater. We all get sick. Our bodies all break down. It’s time we start treating healthcare as the fundamental human right it is. We need to have guaranteed healthcare that covers all conditions, all medications, all treatments, and all people. No patient should have to spend the valuable time and energy they have left fighting with insurance companies and government agencies for the care, treatment, and benefits that should be guaranteed. We have patients, right now, suffering as they fight for care and treatment, going bankrupt due to sickness or injury, and being forced to divorce their spouse just for government benefits to survive financially. It’s no wonder so many end up homeless when people suddenly go from earning a living wage to being forced to survive for the rest of their life on less than $900/month. It’s wrong and people deserve so much better.

Our government is not just torturing and killing patients, they are also doing it to immigrants and asylum seekers down on the southern border. Our government is, once again, running a modern-day version of the Japanese Internment Camps. What was once seen as a stain on our nation’s history, has been reinstated and revamped down on our southern border. So far, at least 7 innocent children have lost their lives. Children and families are being kept in a cage without blankets and are forced to sleep on the cold, hard concrete floor. Individuals are not provided with basic necessities and supplies for health, hygiene, and wellness. We still have children who have not been reunited with their families. There are infants and toddlers who are forced to represent themselves in immigration court. What we are doing and how we are treating people is wrong. No matter the legal status, we are all human and we all have rights and freedoms. We all deserve a life of dignity and respect.

Those rights and dignities must also be extended to the ever expanding percentage of our population who are incarcerated and used as slave labor. We need to stop the poverty to prison pipeline that has trapped so many minorities and poor people. We need to ratify the 13th amendment and put an end to the last legal form of slavery. We also need a bill of rights to ensure all incarcerated people have basic human rights, including the right to a minimum wage, adequate healthcare, not to be put in solitary confinement, pay reasonable prices in the commissary, communicate with their family, and more. We need to start charging legal fines and fees on an income-based sliding scale. A $200 fine is much different to a person who lives on $800/month than it is to someone who earns $10,000/month. It’s time to level the playing field, including ending the cash-bail system, the system of justice that pressures innocent people into accepting plea deals, and policies and laws that allow police officers to break the law without repercussion and accountability.

These are the issues that unite us all and the issues I plan on fighting for them with the determination and priority they deserve.

How does your activism in a number of social justice issues tie in with political participation and your decision to run for office?

Personally, I believe every politician should have a background in activism because you learn so much as an activist. Not only do activists hear the stories that are often left out of the mainstream media and the political conversation, but we understand how hard it is to make change happen in this current political climate and what’s at stake. A majority of the representatives that we have in office were businessmen, CEO’s, legacy politicians, and those who are independently wealthy. Not only do they not understand what it’s like to have no power and no voice, but they don’t understand what it’s like to have to fight tooth and nail for what they need just to survive. I understand what it’s like to have to fight for everything you have. I know first hand how hard it is for those who don’t have wealth and power. We need to elect people who are willing to fight the status quo to get the people the rights and benefits we all deserve. Nothing is going to change when we keep electing people who aren’t willing to do things like establish term limits for all elected officials, reduce the annual salary for members of Congress and the president, and get publicly funded elections. Until those things happen, people are going to continue to be left out of the conversation. I think my activist heart and background would put me in a unique position as a member of Congress. I will always do what’s right over what’s personally profitable.

What are some issues central to your platform that you’d like to share with us?

The issue I believe is affecting the largest number of people across our country yet isn’t being discussed at all is the pain management crisis. We have millions of patients suffering from chronic and debilitating pain who cannot get access to the opiate pain management they need to function and maintain quality of life. Opiates are still the most effective means of controlling debilitating pain yet patients are being denied this life-saving medication because people are obtaining the medication illegally. No matter how much media and politicians want to say otherwise, less than 1% of chronic pain patients become addicted to their medications and those who do become addicted had problems with addiction prior to their onset of chronic pain. Our government is trying to solve addiction by a straight reduction in the number of opiates being prescribed. This is resulting in millions of legitimate pain patients being forcibly tapered from their opiate pain management and given nothing to replace it. They are being driven to the bottle, the street, or suicide as means of pain management while others are dying from stroke or heart attack as a result of their severe untreated pain. We are leaving patients to die. Those doctors who are continuing to treat their patients’ pain are risking the DEA, FDA, and CDC legally prosecuting them or ruining their careers and threatening their license to practice medicine. We are denying doctors the ability to practice medicine as they see fit and adhere to the hippocratic oath leaving patients to suffer and die. At the same time, insurance companies are profiting by denying patients these life-saving medications and politicians are scoring political points by appearing ‘tough on addiction’. We need to elect politicians who will stand up for the innocent victims being slaughtered for the sake of private profits, greed, and political points. Who will stand up and demand public hearings on this issue, make public how patients have been impacted, and hold accountable those who knowingly put patients with debilitating pain lives in jeopardy for the sake of profit and politics. 

Patients and the disabled are the most underrepresented communities in our country--and not just politically, but in the media as well. It’s time we did more in this country to humanize the disabled and sick.

How is the campaign going so far and what have you learned while reaching out to voters and the public?

I’m thrilled by how well everything is going! I know I’m facing an uphill battle, but considering I started this campaign on my own while trying to survive on $735/month, I’d say we’re doing pretty darn good. Suzanne Bonamici is not only a 4 term incumbent, but she personally has $6,000,000 that she could sink into this campaign. At the same time, she still takes money from big companies, lobbyists, and Super PACs, so it’s intimidating knowing the resources she can muster. The thing that I’ve been most excited to see is how many people believe like I do and are ready for change. We need representatives who do more than just deal with an issue when it crosses their desk. We need someone who will actually go out and fight for change.

Have you encountered and barriers or challenges as a disabled candidate?

Being a disabled candidate has presented some major problems that other candidates don’t have to deal with. For example, door knocking is incredibly hard when you’re in a wheelchair and a majority of homes have stairs leading up to them. Or when you live in a big district but you barely have enough money to make rent, let alone own a car to drive around to all the different parts of the district. Shaking hands, too, is incredibly difficult with my condition since my skin and body are so sensitive. People have a tendency to squeeze my hand tightly or touch my exposed skin, which feels like my skin is being peeled off, and it makes it hard--and kind of scary--to meet a lot of new people who don’t understand disability. It’s hard finding a balance between being accessible, protecting my body, and overcoming the PTSD I have from being touched. Finances are probably the biggest challenge, though. I refuse to accept money from companies, lobbyists, and Super PACs so we’re relying 100% on small donations, volunteer work, and grassroots organizing. It makes running a campaign a challenge when the $10 I may need to donate for printer paper or something else can be the difference between paying a bill or not.

How are you paying for the cost of your campaign?

Through small donations and volunteer work. We’ve been very lucky, so far, that so many wonderful people have chipped in. It’s been enough to get us up and going, get my name on the ballot, and start to spread the word. Hopefully, as we pick up traction, we’ll get enough donations and endorsements that we’ll be able to launch an effective campaign.

What do you bring to public service that is different from the other candidates running for this seat?

I’ve lived on government programs and I understand the implication of budget cuts and the effects they have on the programs that people depend on to survive. I understand the importance of the issues that the majority of families face. Issues like, what do I do when my food stamps don’t last all month? What happens when my child gets sick and I don’t have money for the co-pay? How am I going to pay for my child’s college education? Is this water going to poison my family? How am I going to get fresh fruits and vegetables? How do I make ends meet? These are the questions that keep families up at night. They are the questions that keep me up at night. I understand how much these questions control our everyday lives and it gives me the unique ability to be able to put the focus and priority on these issues that they deserve. So many other candidates and politicians are in this for their personal wealth and fame, but I’m doing this to give my community the platform to finally get the change we so desperately need.

Why is civic and political participation important, especially for disabled people?

Right now in this country, patients with a history of physical and sexual abuse are having that abuse used against them to deny them treatment, pain management, and care. They are told their medical condition is a psychosomatic result of previous trauma and should be treated with therapy, not a medical condition.

A patient’s weight and race are being used as a reason to take a medical complaint less seriously and use it to deny patients care and treatment often resulting in unnecessary suffering and death.

Patients living with chronic and debilitating pain are being denied life-saving opiate pain management, and as a result, are being forced to the bottle the streets and suicide as means of pain management.

Caregivers hours provided by Medicaid and Medicare to increase patient independence and functionality are being cut drastically, reducing a patient’s quality of life.

Family caregivers are forced to work addition jobs apart from caring for their sick and injured family member or risk condemning their families to a life of poverty.

The Americans with Disabilities Act, while a huge step for those with disabilities, has not been updated since 1994. There are still cities in the United States where it’s incredibly hard to get around in a wheelchair or with a disability. The act has not been updated to match technological advancements leaving much of the accessibility equipment out of reach of those who need it most.

The average Social Security Disability (SSDI) payment is $880/month leaving a majority of disabled Americans living well below the poverty level with no hope of improvement. It’s no wonder 40% of the 554,000 homeless individuals in the US are disabled when our government pays starvation wages as a living benefit. It’s time to make Social Security and Social Security Disability a living wage and cut our homelessness rate by over half.

The same private insurance companies that have ruined our healthcare system for private profit have also ruined our workers compensation system resulting in injured works being denied care and benefits for the sake of private profits and greed.

Even though there are already 2 disabled men in the US House of Representatives, neither of them are fighting for these changes or talking about these issues. It’s time to change that. That’s why I’m running for the US House and I encourage other patients to do the same. We’ve been systematically left out of the conversation for way too long. When politicians discuss the disabled, the only members of our community they’re talking about are the elderly and disabled vets. While both of those groups are incredibly important and valued members of our community, it’s so much bigger and more diverse than that. We need representatives who understand that. Who understands what it means to have to go on to Social Security Disability at a young age. The more people we get into office and the more we leverage the power of our united vote, then the more rights and benefits we’ll get. There are some major changes that our community needs and the only way we’re going to get them is if we come together and leverage that power. That’s why movements like #CripTheVote and #PainPatientsVote are so important.

What is your advice to disabled people who are interested in running for office?

Do it!! We need as many people speaking up for our community as we can. It’s going to take all of us working together to get the change we need. Find a good team to help you and don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. Our disabilities make us unique and special. We have a story to tell and a cause to fight for. Be true to yourself and don’t compromise who you are or what you stand for in any way.

Is there anything you’d like to share with me about your campaign?

Any help people can give would go a long way to helping the campaign. Everything from a like or share on Facebook or Twitter, volunteering to help out with phone calls and organizing, or even making a donation will go a long way. Anyone interested in helping, it would make a huge difference! Email campaign@Siebe2020.com if you’re interested in joining the fight!

Website: siebe2020.com

About

Amanda Siebe and her service dog, Dobby.

Amanda Siebe was raised in Beaverton, OR where she lived with her parents and three siblings. She attended Jesuit High School in Portland, OR and was a recipient of the President's Award for Community Service. After high school, Amanda attended Western Oregon University (WOU) where she studied International Relations, Spanish, and Sociology, focusing on Community Organizing and Immigration. In 2009, Amanda was awarded WOU’s Saul Alinsky Community Organizing Award for her work with the Monmouth-Independence Tenants Union. Amanda volunteered for the Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts, and was a volunteer EMT at Polk County Fire District No. 1. In 2012, Amanda was diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), also known as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), following a work-related injury. Since her diagnosis, she has become a relentless advocate for chronic pain, patients, and disability rights.

Amanda has dedicated her life to improving her community and tries to teach her son, Keagan, to do the same. Since high school, she has been marching for police reform, immigrant rights, LGBTQ rights, government reform, women’s rights, and more. In 2016, she traveled to Standing Rock to stand with the Water Protectors against the Dakota Access Pipeline. In her free time, Amanda tutors and mentors local kids from ages 10 to 18, helping with homework, and teaching them to be better and demand more from our government. For her, there’s no battle too big or fight too hard to take on. Now, she's determined to take the fight for equality and justice to Congress.

Recent writing by Andrew Pulrang on the 2020 election, ADA & disability

Here is a collection of some recent work by #CripTheVote co-partner Andrew Pulrang which provides some useful information on disability policy and issues for the upcoming 2020 Presidential election.

"5 Disability Lessons Everyone Can Learn From The December Democratic Debate." Forbes, December 21, 2019.

"Why Is Accessibility Still A Problem? What Can We Do About It?" Forbes, November 21, 2019.

"For People With Disabilities, Asking For Help Carries Hidden Costs." Forbes, November 12, 2019.

"5 Things Disabled People are Looking for in Healthcare Plans as the 2020 Elections Approach." Rooted In Rights, November 7, 2019.

"How To Make Workplaces More Welcoming For Employees With Disabilities." Forbes, November 4, 2019.

“The ADA’s “Vague” Definition Of Disability Is A Feature, Not A Bug.” Forbes, October 14, 2019.

“A Fresh Look At An Old New Law: The Americans With Disabilities Act.” Forbes, October 7, 2019.

“2020 Campaign - September 2019 Recap.” Center for Disability Rights, September 16, 2019

“Shopping for the Best Presidential Candidate? Here’s a List to Help.” Rooted In Rights, September 10, 2019.

“I’m an Adult With a Disability: Here’s Why I’m Optimistic About Kids With Disabilities Today.” Parents Magazine, August 20, 2019.

“Why Should Disabled People Register and Vote?" Center for Disability Rights Blog, July 12, 2019.

“5 Easy Ways To Include Disability In Debates.” Center for Disability Rights Blog, July 2, 2019.

“Here’s Some Free Advice for Presidential Candidates on How to Talk About Disability.” Rooted in Rights, June 25, 2019.

#CripTheVote Debate Bingo!

BINGO!

Who doesn't need a little fun while watching and live-Tweeting the Democratic primary debates? Here is a bingo card you can use for debates during the 2020 Presidential election. How often will disability issues be mentioned or discussed? Feel free to make your own as well & share online!

December 2019 update: We now have 3 cards you can choose from!

Graphic with a white background the reads, #CripTheVote Debate BINGO. Below is a grid of three rows of six columns. Top row, left to right: Mention of disabled family member, Americans w/ Disabilities Act, Housing, Mental Health, Civil Rights, Chronic Pain. Middle row,  left to right: Ableist Slurs, Medicaid, Infrastructure, Disability, Paid Family Leave, Climate Change. Last row, left to right: “Dignity” of Work, Social Security, Labor & Workers’ Rights, Voting Rights, Taxes, Institutions

Graphic with a white background the reads, #CripTheVote Debate BINGO. Below is a grid of three rows of six columns. Top row, left to right: “Special Needs,” Americans w/ Disabilities Act, Medical Marijuana, Mental Health, Chronic Pain, Special Education. Middle row,  left to right: Ableist Slurs, Medicaid, Long Term Services & Supports, Disability, Family Caregivers, Climate Change. Last row, left to right: “Dignity” of Work, Social Security, Inequality & Poverty, School to Prison Pipeline, Single Payer Healthcare, Institutions

Graphic with a white background the reads, #CripTheVote Debate BINGO. Below is a grid of three rows of six columns. Top row, left to right: Special Needs, Americans w/ Disabilities Act, Opioid Crisis, Mental Health, Seniors, Red Flag Gun Control Laws. Middle row,  left to right: Ableist Slurs, Medicaid, Long Term Services & Supports, Disability, Family Caregivers, Accessibility. Last row, left to right: Conflating Violence & Disability, Social Security, Prescription Costs, Safety Net, Subminimum Wages, Affordable Care Act

October 14, 2019 Twitter Chat: Voting and Caucus Accessibility

10/13/19 Twitter Chat: Voting and Caucus Accessibility

Graphic with a white background and text: "#CripTheVote Twitter Chat, October 13, 2019, Voting and Caucus Accessibility, 4 pm Pacific, 5 pm Mountain, 6 pm Central, 7 pm Eastern, Co-host: Disability Rights Iowa @D_R_Iowa" on the left is a black bird icon for Twitter, on the right is an illustration of hands raised in the air in black and gray.

#CripTheVote Chat

Voting and Caucus Accessibility

October 13, 2019

4 pm Pacific, 5 pm Mountain, 6 pm Central, 7 pm Eastern

Join the co-partners of #CripTheVote, Andrew Pulrang, Gregg Beratan, and Alice Wong in a Twitter chat with guest host Disability Rights Iowa about voting and caucus accessibility. We’ll look ahead at the 2020 Presidential election and the access issues facing people with disabilities when voting and participating in caucuses. Please note: the conversation will not focus solely on Iowa, all are welcome.

Additional Links

DNC approves Iowa's plan to hold 'satellite' caucuses in nursing homes, college campuses and more in 2020, Des Moines Register, September 20, 2019.

How Exactly Do The Iowa Caucuses Work? NPR

Voting Support and Advocacy for Iowans with Disabilities, Disability Rights Iowa

Disability Rights Iowa Caucus Access Petition

Achieving Accessibility for Election Websites and Sample Ballots: A Toolkit for Disability Advocates, National Council on Independent Living

Including People with Disabilities in Your Political Campaign: A Guide for Campaign Staff, National Council on Independent Living

How Voters with Disabilities Are Blocked from the Ballot Box, Pew Research

Resources for Voters with Disabilities, U.S. Election Assistance Commission

Voting, National Disability Rights Network

How to Participate

Follow @GreggBeratan @AndrewPulrang @DisVisibility and @D_R_Iowa. When it’s time for the chat, search #CripTheVote on Twitter for the series of live tweets under the ‘Latest’ tab for the full conversation. 

If you don’t use Twitter, you can follow along in real time here: http://twubs.com/CripTheVote

If you might be overwhelmed by the amount of tweets and only want to see the chat’s questions so you can respond to them, check @DisVisibility’s account. The questions will be Tweeted 5-6 minutes apart. 

Another way to participate in the chat is to use this app that allows you to pause the chat if the Tweets are coming at you too fast: http://www.tchat.io/

Here is a link for people who are new to Twitter on starting an account and how to use it: https://help.twitter.com/en/new-user-faq

Here’s an article about how to participate in a Twitter chat: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/how-to-participate-in-a-twitter-chat/546805/

Check out this captioned ASL explanation of how to participate in a chat by @behearddc https://www.facebook.com/HEARDDC/videos/1181213075257528/

Introductory Tweets and Chat Questions

Welcome to the #CripTheVote chat on voting and caucus accessibility with guest host  @D_R_Iowa. Remember to use the #CripTheVote hashtag when you tweet. If you respond to a question such as Q1, your tweet should follow this format: “A1 [your message] #CripTheVote”

Q1: How accessible is voting for you as a person with a disability? Please share any recent and past experiences and what worked or didn’t work for you. #CripTheVote

Q2: With #Election2020 coming up, what are your concerns in your local community and state on voter access for people with disabilities? Feel free to share any resources or orgs that have helpful information #CripTheVote

Q3 Beyond access issues, what are some other systemic barriers to voter participation that the disability community faces, especially for multiply marginalized disabled people? #CripTheVote

A caucus is a political party gathering in which party members choose candidates for an election. While caucuses are less common than primary elections, some states, such as Iowa, still conduct caucuses as part of the presidential nominating process.  https://ballotpedia.org/Caucus

Q4 What is your understanding of caucuses and how they work? If you live in a state which holds a caucus, are there any major issues you’ve observed with them? #CripTheVote

Q5: Critics of caucuses say they are undemocratic and inaccessible for many people, including people with disabilities. What are some ways they can become more inclusive and accessible for all? #CaucusAccess #CripTheVote

One attempt to increase #CaucusAccess is to allow people to participate by phone which was rejected by the Democratic National Committee in Nevada & Iowa this past August #CripTheVote https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dnc-recommends-rejecting-iowa-and-nevada-virtual-caucus-over-security-concerns_n_5d697161e4b01108044ead80 

Iowa Democrats are now planning satellite caucuses at various locations such as nursing homes and college campuses #CaucusAccess #CripTheVote https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2019/09/20/dnc-approves-iowa-caucuses-satellite-location-plan-2020-democrats-democratic-party/2387347001/

Q6: How do concerns about #ElectionSecurity intersect with voter access & inclusion? #CripTheVote

Q7: How can we advocate for both secure and accessible ways to participate in caucuses and voting next year and in future elections? #CripTheVote

Q8: Is there anything you’d like to ask our co-host @D_R_Iowa about their #CaucusAccess advocacy, voting rights, & the significance of Iowa in #Election2020? #CripTheVote

This concludes our #CripTheVote chat on voting and caucus accessibility. Many thanks to our co-host @D_R_Iowa and please keep the conversation going! A recap of this chat will be up shortly. For more: http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/

#CripTheVote Stats ... Wow

To get a clearer sense of the size and volume of #CripTheVote activity on peak days, we have started collecting tweet data during debate live tweets and scheduled chats. We are using a service called Keyhole. So if you are into numbers and statistics, read ahead!

Note:

“Tweets” includes the number of original tweets, retweets, and replies.
“Users” is the number of people who participated over the measured span of time.
“Engagement” is the number of times people either retweeted or replied to tweets.

This Timeline graph shows #CripTheVote tweet volumes over the course of September 12, 2019, the day of the Third Democratic Presidential Primary Debate. It shows two major spikes in activity during the course of the 3 hour debate ... an early spike above 600 tweets, followed by a moderate drop-off, and a second spike over 1,000 tweets. followed by a drop off at and after the end of the debate.

And are some charts covering the last three debate live tweets. Since the first two debates were two nights, we came up with daily tweet averages for comparison with the single night Third Debate.

Tweets

First Debate: 1,569 per day average
Second Debate: 2,761 per day average
Third Debate: 2,996

Users

First Debate: 575 per day average
Second Debate: 1,196 per day average
Third Debate: 1,123

Engagement

First Debate: 1,618 per day average
Second Debate: 11,915 per day average
Third Debate: 10,691

Tweet Impressions

First Debate: 7,507,804 per day average
Second Debate: 13,029,603 per day average
Third Debate: 16,351,225

We will keep collecting data from upcoming live tweets and chats. Check back here at the #CripTheVote Blog.

Third Democratic Presidential Primary Debate Live Tweet Recap - September 12, 2019

Live Tweet: Third Democratic Debate - September 12, 2019

Join #CripTheVote in live tweeting the next Democratic Presidential Debate, Thursday, September 12, 2019 from 8 PM to 11 PM Eastern, on ABC and Univision, with hosts:

Jorge Ramos
@jorgeramosnews

George Stephanopoulos
@GStephanopoulos

David Muir
@DavidMuir

Linsey Davis
@LinseyDavis

Also, help us suggest disability questions and topics by using this online form from the American Association of People with Disabilities @AAPD:

Click here to submit questions

Deadline to submit questions is Monday, September 9, 2019.

Crowdsourcing Disability Policy on 2020 Presidential Candidate Websites

In our ongoing effort to make the 2020 Presidential Election campaign a little easier for disabled voters to follow, we are asking #CripTheVote participants for help. We want to present and maintain an easily referenced collection of links directly to disability-relevant sections on candidate websites.

@4WheelWorkOut has complied an extensive list already and offered it to get us started. We have added the remaining candidates with links to their website home pages, and will add more disability-specific links from their websites as we identify them.

If you want to help, pick a candidate, visit their website, and send links to disability-related pages to: cripthevote@gmail.com.

DEMOCRATS

Joe Biden: No specific platform. However, he does mention:

• Affordable Care Act

Cory Booker:

• Equality for People with Disabilities

John Delaney: No specific platform. However, he does mention:

• Mental Health
• Healthcare
• Opioids
• Prescriptions

Tulsi Gabbard: No specific platform. However, she does mention:

• Healthcare for All

Kamala Harris:

• Medicare for All 
• Kamala’s Commitment to Full Inclusion and Civil Rights for People with Disabilities

Amy Klobuchar: No specific platform. However, she does mention:

• Healthcare (including Addiction/Mental Health)

Bernie Sanders:

• Fight for Disability Rights
• Healthcare for All

Elizabeth Warren: No specific platform. However, she does mention:

• Opioid Crisis

Marianne Williamson:

• Disability Justice

Andrew Yang: No specific platform. However, he does mention:

• Medicare for All
• Opioids
• Autism

Michael Bennet: 

http://michaelbennet.com

Steve Bullock:

http://www.stevebullock.com

Pete Buttigieg:

https://www.peteforamerica.com

Julian Castro:

https://www.julianforthefuture.com

Wayne Messam:

https://wayneforusa.com

Joe Sestak:

https://www.joesestak.com

Tom Steyer:

http://www.tomstyer.com

REPUBLICANS

Mark Sanford

https://www.marksanford.com

Donald Trump:

https://www.donaldjtrump.com

Joe Walsh

http://www.joewalsh.org

Bill Weld:

https://www.weld2020.org/

Live Tweet: Second Democratic Debate, Night Two - July 31, 2019

Live Tweet: Second Democratic Debate, Night One - July 30, 2019

Candidate Tweets on the ADA Anniversary

Live Tweet: First Democratic Presidential Debate, June 26 & 27, 2019

May 19, 2019 #CripTheVote Chat: Medicaid Work Requirements

5/19/19 Twitter Chat: Medicaid Work Requirements

Aqua blue graphic with text: “#CripTheVote Twitter Chat, Medicaid Work Requirements, May 19, 2019, 4 pm Pacific, 5 pm Mountain, 6 pm Central, 7 pm Eastern, http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/“ On the left is a black Twitter bird icon, on the right is the illustration of a first aid kit.

Join the co-partners of #CripTheVote, Andrew Pulrang, Gregg Beratan, and Alice Wong in a Twitter chat about Medicaid work requirements and how they impact the disability community on May 19, 2019, 7 pm Eastern. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation:

On January 11, 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a State Medicaid Director Letter providing new guidance for Section 1115 waiver proposals that would impose work requirements (referred to as community engagement) in Medicaid as a condition of eligibility….As of mid-January 2018, eight states (AR, AZ, IN, KS, ME, NH, UT, and WI) have pending waiver requests at CMS that would require work as a condition of eligibility for expansion adults and/or traditional populations …

On March 27, 2019 a federal judge blocked the state of Kentucky from implementing work requirements and the state of Arkansas from continuing its program: “More than 18,000 Arkansas enrollees have lost Medicaid coverage since the state began the mandate last summer” (source: Kaiser Health News).

Additional Links

Alker, Joan. (May 1, 2019). Why is Florida’s Medicaid Work Reporting Proposal the Harshest in the Country for Kids and Families? Center for Children and Families, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute.

(March 14, 2019). Taking Away Medicaid for Not Meeting Work Requirements Harms People with Disabilities. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Work Requirement Waivers: Approved and Pending as of April 18, 2019. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Ku, Leighton and Erin Brantley. (May 9, 2019). New Hampshire’s Medicaid Work Requirements Could Cause More Than 15,000 to Lose Coverage. The Commonwealth Fund. 

Galewitz, Phil. (March 27, 2019). Federal Judge Again Blocks Medicaid Work Requirements. Kaiser Health News.

Hickey, John. (April 5, 2019). Medicaid work requirements part of the attempt to dismantle Obamacare. Berkeley News.

Kean, Natalie. (November 2018). Medicaid Work Requirements: The Impact on Family Caregivers and Older Adults. Justice in Aging.

Musumeci, MaryBeth and Chelsea Rice. (April 2, 2019). Ask KFF: MaryBeth Musumeci Answers 3 Questions on Kentucky, Arkansas Medicaid Work and Reporting Requirement Cases. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Ollove, Michael. (April 30, 2019). Medicaid Work Requirements Hit Roadblocks. Pew Trusts. 

Rudowitz, Robin, Musumeci, MaryBeth and Cornelia Hall. (March 25, 2019). February State Data for Medicaid Work Requirements in Arkansas. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Solomon, Judith. (January 10, 2019). Medicaid Work Requirements Can’t Be Fixed. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

How to Participate

Follow @GreggBeratan @AndrewPulrang @DisVisibility. When it’s time for the chat, search #CripTheVote on Twitter for the series of live tweets under the ‘Latest’ tab for the full conversation. 

If you don’t use Twitter, you can follow along in real time here: http://twubs.com/CripTheVote

If you might be overwhelmed by the amount of tweets and only want to see the chat’s questions so you can respond to them, check @DisVisibility’s account. The questions will be Tweeted 5-6 minutes apart. 

Another way to participate in the chat is to use this app that allows you to pause the chat if the Tweets are coming at you too fast: http://www.tchat.io/

Here is a link for people who are new to Twitter on starting an account and how to use it: https://help.twitter.com/en/new-user-faq

Here’s an article about how to participate in a Twitter chat: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/how-to-participate-in-a-twitter-chat/546805/

Check out this captioned ASL explanation of how to participate in a chat by @behearddc https://www.facebook.com/HEARDDC/videos/1181213075257528/

Introductory Tweets and Chat Questions

Welcome to the #CripTheVote chat on #Medicaid work requirements. Remember to use the #CripTheVote hashtag when you tweet. If you respond to a question such as Q1, your tweet should follow this format: “A1 [your message] #CripTheVote”

Last year @CMSgov allowed states to apply for waivers that would require employment as a condition of eligibility for #Medicaid. Here is a link to a table that lists states with pending waivers, approved waivers & implemented programs  https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/medicaid-waiver-tracker-approved-and-pending-section-1115-waivers-by-state/#Table2 #CripTheVote

On March 27, 2019 a federal judge blocked the state of Kentucky from implementing work requirements and the state of Arkansas from continuing its program: https://khn.org/news/federal-judge-again-blocks-medicaid-work-requirements/ #CripTheVote

Q1: Since 2018, what have you learned about #Medicaid work requirements and how they impact people with disabilities and chronic illnesses? #CripTheVote

Q2: States such as AZ, AK, IN, KY, MI, NH, OH, UT, WI have waivers approved that are either implemented or not implemented. If you are from one of those states, what have you seen in your local community? For everyone, what are your concerns in general? #CripTheVote

Q3 What is motive behind states and the federal government to have these work requirements? How will work requirements affect Medicaid expansion in some states? #CripTheVote

Q4 What are some of the main misconceptions about work, disability, and people who use #Medicaid? #CripTheVote

Work requirements can involve a set # of hours worked or hours spent looking for work, frequent documentation & more frequent redetermination of eligibility. 18k Arkansas enrollees lost Medicaid coverage since the work requirements last year https://khn.org/news/federal-judge-again-blocks-medicaid-work-requirements/

#CripTheVote

Q5: What is the potential and actual harm of Medicaid work requirements on disabled people, even with programs that have exemptions for “medically frail” people, caregivers, and others? https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/taking-away-medicaid-for-not-meeting-work-requirements-harms-people-with #CripTheVote

Q6: What are the consequences on families and communities when large numbers of people are no longer eligible for #Medicaid, may have to wait months & fill out lots of paperwork to re-enroll? How might this worsen health and prevent people from finding work? #CripTheVote

Q7: How can we push back against decisions by @CMSGov & the current Administration that are anti-poor and ableist? What can we do at the local level to prevent other states from instituting #Medicaid work requirements? #CripTheVote

Q8: Looking ahead to the 2020 election, how do #Medicaid work requirements figure into the larger debate on healthcare as a human right and political issue? https://news.berkeley.edu/2019/04/05/medicaid-work-requirements-part-of-the-attempt-to-dismantle-obamacare/ #CripTheVote

This concludes our #CripTheVote chat on #Medicaid work requirements. Keep the conversation going! A recap of this chat will be up shortly and check out our blog for the latest: http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/