Common Defense

The largest grassroots Veteran community. Fighting for a country that works for ALL of us. We organize. We vote. We win. Join us →

[Common Defense @commondefense]

Veterans did not stop being workers when they took off the uniform.

Many went back to work at the VA. Those are union jobs, and the people in them are losing the right to bargain.

Labor rights are a Veteran issue.

#LaborDay #UnionStrong

[Christopher Hooks @cd_hooks]

This is the Arizona desert

[Jamie Dupree @jamiedupree]

Here is the updated House legislative calendar for the second half of 2026 - showing four weeks of work in four months from July-October. (That's a peculiar way to use your House majority!)

[Congressman Chris Deluzio @RepDeluzio]

All we need is 1 more Republican to join us in supporting my fellow veterans getting the FULL benefits we’ve earned.

[Meredith Lee Hill @meredithllee]

🚨NEWS - House GOP leaders are planning to announce this am the final two weeks of the pre-election session are canceled.

That means members are set to depart no later than Sept. 17 and not return until mid-November.

House would come back during the weeks of the 21st and 28th if the Senate moves the GOP reconciliation pkg.

@politico text subscribers got it first

[Brian Allen @allenanalysis]

BREAKING: House Republicans are canceling the final two weeks of September and plan to stop voting after September 14, leaving Washington until after the midterms.

The timing? Thomas Massie’s bipartisan push to force action on millions of unreleased Epstein files is gaining signatures.

They were elected to govern, not run from accountability.

Stay in Washington. Release the files.

[Common Defense @commondefense]

Hey @RepGusBilirakis, time to do the right thing.

[House Veterans' Affairs Democrats @VetAffairsDems]

We are 1️⃣ signature away from the 218 threshold for the Major Richard Star Act Discharge Petition. Many have said this isn't viable, but it's clear this is THE path forward. RM @RepMarkTakano urges Republican colleagues to join us and get this bill to the House Floor for a vote.

[Common Defense @commondefense]

Hegseth doesn't have a press corps. He has a payroll.

Three retired colonels defending him online held Pentagon email addresses. Over a million followers. Nobody was told.

Full article: https://t.co/kWGqM6Jo7d

[Chris Deluzio @ChrisForPA]

Donald Trump - the Commander in Chief - should not be SURPRISED when his resigning Army Secretary tells him about what a mess the Pentagon is under Hegseth.

One of many reasons to fire Pete Hegseth.

[Team Talarico @TeamTalaricoHQ]

NEW AD: Why is Ken Paxton refusing to debate James Talarico?

Because his billionaire handlers won't let their favorite puppet answer questions in public.

Go ahead, @KenPaxtonTX. Prove us wrong. 🐓

[Andy Kim @AndyKimNJ]

Reminder that Hung Cao once said the military needs "alpha males and alpha females who are going to rip out their own guts, eat them, and ask for seconds."

This is not a serious person who should be leading our servicemembers, especially during a war.

[Common Defense @commondefense]

https://t.co/JmPF33Y1rJ

[Common Defense @commondefense]

https://t.co/JmPF33Y1rJ

[Common Defense @commondefense]

A provision in this year's NDAA would make US-Israel weapons co-production permanent law. The oversight language was stripped out.

Sept 9, 7pm ET. Seth Binder and Lydia El-Sayegh break down Section 219 and what advocates can still do.

Registration in the reply. 🧵

[William Lawrence @WeWill2026]

In TWO DAYS, we knocked over 7,000 doors 💪

We had an incredible weekend of action powered by 100+ volunteers! 

We knocked 100k during the primary. Now, we’re going to double it and do it again: WE WILL knock 200k doors by Nov. 3 with YOUR help.

[Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 @cmclymer]

Trump has already lost the War in Iran. It's been lost for a few months now. The Pentagon knows it. Congress knows it. The Trump admin knows it. Everyone in D.C. knows it. Few are saying it out loud because they fear him. But the war has already been lost.

[James Talarico @jamestalarico]

Flock cameras have no place in Texas. 

They can piece together an exact map of your behavior — the places you went and how long you were there.

Flock calls this “pattern-of-life” mapping. Texans call it something else: government overreach.

[Team Talarico @TeamTalaricoHQ]

Some of Ken Paxton's scandals so far:

—Offered an admitted child molester one day in jail after he repeatedly raped a young boy
—Impeached by his own party on 20 counts of corruption, bribery, abuse of public trust, and obstruction of justice
—Owns at least 15 homes across the nation worth $9 million, despite a government salary of $153k
—Accepted $77,000 from men who allegedly sexually assaulted women, exposed themselves to children, and appear in the Epstein Files
—Spent July 4th, 2026, and America's 250th birthday in London
—Fled to Utah during Texas's deadly 2021 winter storms, which killed 246 people, a disaster in which Paxton was "responsible for overseeing key aspects of the state's response"
—Only Texas official to be impeached by his own party in nearly 50 years
—Net worth increased 7,000% since taking office
—Failed to disclose he secretly purchased real estate worth millions in Hawaii, Florida, and Utah, a direct violation of Texas ethics rules
—Accepted $448,000 from data center industry executives and PACs
—Bankrolled by the family who attempted to buy Jeffrey Epstein's "Lolita Express" private jet, and the family who bought Epstein's Zorro Ranch
—Said the Uvalde shooting, in which 21 children and teachers were murdered, was part of a "plan" by "God"
—Owns a $1.6 million luxury home in Oklahoma with a private chef, masseuse, and housekeeping
—Voted against a Texas program that spent billions on cancer research
—Allegedly committed voter fraud using a false address in 6 different elections
—Protected a laboratory that tortured and killed over 400 puppies
—Charged with felony securities fraud shortly after taking office over allegations he misled investors, resulting in additional SEC charges
—Fled his own home to avoid being served with a subpoena
—Illegally appointed attorney to conduct weaponized investigation
—Reported to the FBI by his own top deputies, who alleged he was abusing his office to benefit a close friend and donor
—Currently charges families an average of $750/night to stay at his luxury Oklahoma home
—Terminated the four senior deputies who reported his misconduct to law enforcement
—Used taxpayer funds as attorney general to benefit a friend
—Took a luxury vacation to Iceland after being exposed for releasing a child molester
—Has a secretive personal fortune of $100,000 to $1 million every 18 months from a hospital cellphone tower
—Owns a $750,000 luxury home in Florida, advertised as a place to live "a true Florida lifestyle"
—Celebrated forcing women out of Texas for life-saving reproductive care
—Offered a plea deal to a child sex abuser that failed to register him as a sex offender in Texas, letting him back on the streets
—Conducted a sham investigation of his own whistleblower complaints
—Owns four luxury homes and land in Utah worth over $2 million
—Wasted taxpayer money in an effort to delay his own trial
—Staff attempted to obstruct his Texas House investigation by reportedly threatening witnesses
—Cost Texans over $6.6 million in his court judgment for retaliating against whistleblowers
—His own lawyer refused to endorse him, and endorsed James Talarico instead

[Center on Conscience & War @CCW4COs]

War is back on. Our hotline is open (877) NO-2-WARS

[Acyn @Acyn]

Kamlager-Dove on Speaker Johnson: I know he’s got to get ready for this gaslighting convention that they have next week in Dallas. I’m just going to ask Grindr to make sure you are at capacity because Republicans are coming to a town near you.