niftywriter

niftywriter https://www.dailykos.com/user/niftywriter/rss/index.xml News Community Action Copyright 2005 - Steal what you want Thu, 27 May 2021 19:07:02 +0000 Thu, 27 May 2021 19:07:02 +0000 Daily Kos rss@dailykos.com (Daily Kos) Daily Kos rss@dailykos.com (Daily Kos) May 26 GNR - Flower Supermoon Eclipse Edition https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/5/26/2031769/-May-26-GNR-Flower-Supermoon-Eclipse-Edition <p>Good Day, Gnusies and I have an urgent message for the earliest gnubirds: If you’re joining the herd during the nighttime hours or before dawn wherever you live, STOP READING RIGHT NOW and race to the nearest window to gaze at the FLOWER SUPERMOON ECLIPSE! Lucky gnusies in far western North America, Pacific Islanders, much of eastern Asia and Oceania residents should all have a great view of this eclipse happening RIGHT NOW! GO WATCH! The GNR will still be here after you’ve seen this magnificent astronomical phenomenon. So go and report back to tell us all about it in the comments, you lucky duck!</p> <p><a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/Watch_the_Skies/2021/05/21/mays-full-moon-comes-with-supermoon-eclipse/?utm_source=TWITTER&utm_medium=NASAArmstrong&utm_campaign=NASASocial&linkId=119532304" target="_blank">May’s Full Moon Comes with Supermoon Eclipse</a>, NASAblogs, May 21, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Blood moon, Super moon, Lunar eclipse" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/634768/large/Blood_Moon_Kauai_8.jpg?1548061841" title="Blood moon, Super moon, Lunar eclipse"> <figcaption>I don’t like the phrase “blood moon”, so I’m going to<br> call it the PINK FLOWER MOON </figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The Moon will be located on Earth’s opposite side from the Sun and fully illuminated May 26, 2021, at 6:13 a.m. CDT. This Full Moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Flower Moon because this was the time of year when spring flowers appeared in abundance.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Compared to other Full Moons in 2021, the Flower Moon will have the nearest approach to Earth, making it appear as the closet and largest Full Moon of the year. This is what is commonly referred to as a “supermoon”. Yet, it’s not just bringing brightness and size. May’s supermoon is also bringing a “super power” to change its color, and the color is red! ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The total eclipse phase will be visible near moonset in the western United States and Canada, all of Mexico, most of Central America and Ecuador, western Peru, and southern Chile and Argentina. The eclipse can be seen in its entirety in eastern Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, including Hawaii. Unlike a solar eclipse, you won’t need special glasses to view this lunar eclipse, just go outside and keep your head to the sky!</span></p> </blockquote> <p>The rest of us (those for whom the sun has already risen) can listen to some good music and imagine the wondrous sight — or even watch it live <a href="https://youtu.be/V0mQN-HJako" target="_blank">here on the PBS</a> watch feed.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Z6UCLtYLLF0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Z6UCLtYLLF0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p><strong>And now, the news:</strong></p> <h3>⚖️ Justice ⚖️</h3> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-trump-investigations-business-government-and-politics-80592eae7ba9ca508a3161e085a0fec6" target="_blank">New grand jury seated for next stage of Trump investigation</a>, Michael R Sisak, AP News Service, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">NEW YORK (AP) — New York prosecutors have convened a special grand jury to consider evidence in a criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump’s business dealings, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The development signals that the Manhattan district attorney’s office was moving toward seeking charges as a result of its two-year investigation, which included a lengthy legal battle to obtain Trump’s tax records. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">The investigation includes scrutiny of Trump’s relationship with his lenders; a land donation he made to qualify for an income tax deduction; and tax write-offs his company claimed on millions of dollars in consulting fees it paid.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The new grand jury could eventually be asked to consider returning indictments. While working on that case, it also will be hearing other matters. The Post reported that the grand jury will meet three days a week for six months.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">In recent months, Vance hired former mafia prosecutor Mark Pomerantz to help run the investigation and has been interviewing witnesses, including Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The convening of the grand jury is a significant step by prosecutors. It also reminds me of these statements by Sen McConnell shortly after the second impeachment trial:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;“He didn&amp;#39;t get away with anything yet. We have a criminal justice system in this country.” &lt;a href="https://t.co/BT9beeobdM"&gt;https://t.co/BT9beeobdM&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1397335735561166849?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 25, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The convening of the grand jury is a significant step by prosecutors. It also reminds me of these statements by Sen McConnell shortly after the second impeachment trial:<br><br>“He didn't get away with anything yet. We have a criminal justice system in this country.” <a href="https://t.co/BT9beeobdM">https://t.co/BT9beeobdM</a></p>— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) <a href="https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1397335735561166849?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 25, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Here’s an excerpt from the original WAPO article:</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The move indicates that District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr.’s investigation of the former president and his business has reached an advanced stage after more than two years. It suggests, too, that Vance believes he has found evidence of a crime — if not by Trump then by someone potentially close to him or by his company. ✂️</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p><span>Rebecca Roiphe, a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan who is now a professor at New York Law School, said that such investigations are always formally overseen by grand juries. In the early stages, prosecutors may just use a grand jury’s power just to subpoena documents without offering charges for consideration.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Roiphe said the recent step of seating a long-term panel shows that Vance’s investigation has progressed to the point that prosecutors will visit the grand jury, bring them evidence and witnesses, and potentially ask them to contemplate charges. They were unlikely to take that step without believing they had evidence to show there was probable cause to believe someone committed a crime, she said.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“The prosecutors are convinced they have a case. That’s at least how I read it,” Roiphe added.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-throw-weisselberg-under-bus/" target="_blank">'They got the mother lode': Former prosecutor says new grand jury has everything on Trump</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>"The grand jury's going to get everything and that's true," said Litman. "We know that the — that was the inception of the case, but then, they got the mother lode. They got the tax returns, going back and forth to the Supreme Court twice to get them. So, that takes all kinds of transactions of this sort and forms the basis for possibly multiple counts where people surmise and it stands to reason that it's a similar kind of hanky-panky, changing the way you valuate same properties, one for tax to make it look low, one for loans to make it look high, that's fraud on both entities."</p> <p>"I think what is happening, likely, is a plethora of transactions like that, like that core one with Stormy Daniels, which we are learning is sort of the Trump way of doing business, the general MO, and also including [Trump Organization CFO Allen] Weisselberg," added Litman.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Rudy Colludy Too</h4> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/new-filing-accidentally-reveals-scope-of-giuliani-sdny-probe" target="_blank">New Filing Accidentally Reveals Apparent Scope Of Giuliani SDNY Probe</a>, Josh Kovensky, TPM, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Prosecutors with the Southern District of New York have seized the email accounts of two former Ukrainian officials, ex-prosecutor general Yuriy Lutsenko and tax service chief Roman Nasirov. They also seized the iPhone and iPad of Alexander Levin, a Ukrainian businessman who put two associates of Giuliani’s in touch with a powerful Ukrainian oligarch.</p> <p>In a filing, Joseph Bondy, an attorney for Lev Parnas, accidentally revealed statements he had made under seal by blackening lines in the court document while leaving it possible for them to be copied and pasted to another file, CNN first<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/eorden/status/1397225359460929542">reported</a>. ✂️</p> <p>Bondy has argued that Parnas is a victim of selective prosecution by the Trump DOJ, and named a list of people who he believed would appear in evidence gathered from the seizures.</p> <p>Those include, beyond Giuliani and Victoria Toensing, “the former President, former Attorney General William P. Barr, high-level members of the Justice Department, Presidential impeachment attorneys Jay Sekulow, Jane Raskin and others, Senator Lindsey Graham, Congressman Devin Nunes and others.”</p> </blockquote> <p>More detail here: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/feds-may-have-been-tracking-giuliani-for-a-month-botched-redaction-suggests" target="_blank">Feds May Have Been Tracking Giuliani For A Month, Botched Redaction Suggests</a>, TPM, May 25, 2021.</p> <h4>Kristen Clarke confirmed to lead Civil Rights division at DOJ</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/25/us/politics/kristen-clarke-justice-dept-civil-rights-division.html" target="_blank">Kristen Clarke is the first Senate-confirmed woman of color to lead the Justice Dept.’s civil rights division</a>. Katie Benner, New York Times, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 22: Kristen Clarke, President of the National Lawyers' Committee For Civil Rights Under Law, testifies during a Senate Rules Committee hearing concerning preparedness for the 2020 election in the Russell Senate Office Building on July 22, 2020 in Washington, DC. The 2020 election will be held amidst the coronavirus pandemic on November 3, 2020. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/935550/large/GettyImages-1227736351.jpg?1617981316" title="WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 22: Kristen Clarke, President of the National Lawyers' Committee For Civil Rights Under Law, testifies during a Senate Rules Committee hearing concerning preparedness for the 2020 election in the Russell Senate Office Building on July 22, 2020 in Washington, DC. The 2020 election will be held amidst the coronavirus pandemic on November 3, 2020. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Kristen Clarke, newly confirmed head of<br> DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Ms. Clarke was ceremonially sworn in shortly before 7 p.m. in a brief ceremony at the Justice Department. Ms. Clarke’s mother, Pansy Clarke, held the Bible as Vice President Kamala Harris administered the oath of office.</p> <p>Ms. Clarke’s confirmation comes at a time when the Biden administration has vowed to revitalize the division as part of its promise to combat systemic racism, hate crimes and restrictive voter laws. ✂️</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The daughter of Jamaican immigrants who rose from a Brooklyn housing project to earn degrees from Harvard and Columbia Law School, Ms. Clarke is best known as a leading advocate for voting rights protections. Her expertise will make her a key player in the administration’s effort to push back on laws that could restrict access to the ballot box.</p> <p>During her confirmation hearing, Ms. Clarke, 46, said that she would use all of the tools at her disposal, including the Voting Rights Act, the National Voter Registration Act and the Uniformed and Overseas Absentee Citizens Voting Act, to ensure that eligible Americans continued to have the right to vote.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=baNVsZcbRXE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/baNVsZcbRXE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Health News</h3> </div> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/05/25/1000171685/half-of-all-u-s-adults-will-be-fully-vaccinated-against-covid-19-as-of-tuesday" target="_blank">Half Of All U.S. Adults Are Now Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19</a>, Bill Chappell, NPR, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The U.S. COVID-19 vaccination program has gone from zero to 50% in less than six months.✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">Nearly 130 million people age 18 and older have completed their vaccine regimens since the first doses were administered to the public in December, the<span> </span><a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a><span> </span>says. Another 70 million vaccine doses are currently in the distribution pipeline, according to the agency.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Vaccinations have risen sharply in children 12 years and older, weeks after<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/05/10/993591902/hold-fda-oks-pfizer-covid-19-vaccine-for-12-15-age-group">the Food and Drug Administration said</a><span> </span>that cohort is eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech. Nearly 5 million adolescents have received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the<span> </span><a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccination-demographic">CDC's latest data</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The U.S. is pushing to add millions more people to the ranks of the vaccinated. President Biden said this month that his new goal is to administer at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/04/993537622/biden-sets-new-goal-for-at-least-70-of-adults-to-be-vaccinated-by-july-4">70% of U.S. adults</a><span> </span>by the Fourth of July.</p> </blockquote> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/05/25/coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/" target="_blank">Moderna says its vaccine triggers immune response in teenagers, will seek FDA approval</a>, Washington Post (no paywall for covid coverage), May 25, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Biotechnology company Moderna announced Tuesday that its two-shot coronavirus vaccine produced the same immune response in teenagers as adults, and it plans to submit the data to U.S. regulators in early June.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>If authorized, the vaccine would become the second available for adolescents as young as 12.<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/05/10/coronavirus-vaccine-for-kids/?itid=lk_inline_manual_5">Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine</a><span> </span>was authorized for that age group earlier this month. ✂️</p> <ul> <li><span>Daily coronavirus cases<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/national/coronavirus-us-cases-deaths/?itid=sn_coronavirus_1/" target="_blank">continued to trend down</a><span> </span>in the United States, dropping about 23 percent over the past week. The rolling average for new daily cases was about 25,000, the lowest since last June.</span></li> </ul> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/25/1000145305/not-yet-vaccinated-united-is-offering-free-flights-for-a-year-if-you-get-the-sho" target="_blank">United Holds Drawings For Free Flights For Those Who Get The Shot</a>, Joe Hernandez, NPR, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Krispy Kreme is giving away a complimentary glazed doughnut to anyone who flashes their vaccine card.<span> </span><a href="https://www.maine.gov/covid19/vaccines/getoutdoors">Maine</a><span> </span>is furnishing L.L.Bean gift certificates and free fishing and hunting licenses to residents who get the shot.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Now, United Airlines has become the latest entity to offer an incentive to get more of its customers inoculated against the coronavirus: the chance to win free flights for a year. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">To enter<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly/travel/your-shot-to-fly-sweepstakes.html">United's contest</a><span style="text-align:start">, travelers who are part of the airline's MileagePlus program must enter a photo of their vaccine card online by June 22. United will choose five winners to receive a year of free flights - 26 round-trip tickets - in any class for themselves and one traveling companion. Another 30 flyers will be chosen to win one round-trip flight for two.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>There’s helpful info at this link, about case numbers and trends in your county, how to handle masks with reopening and other useful stuff: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-risk-map.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">A Guide for Covid-19 Risk in Your County</a>, New York Times, updated regularly.</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/covid-19-infections-exceedingly-rare-full-vaccination-cdc/story?id=77898840&cid=clicksource_4380645_1_heads_hero_live_twopack_hed" target="_blank">COVID-19 infections are exceedingly rare after full vaccination: CDC</a>, Dr Deepak Ramanathan, ABC, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The United States reached a major milestone this week, with the White House reporting that over<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/half-us-adults-now-fully-vaccinated-covid-19/story?id=77860393" target="_blank">half of all adults in the U.S. are now fully vaccinated</a><span> </span>against<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus" target="_blank">COVID-19</a>.</p> <p>This announcement came on the same day as a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that breakthrough COVID-19 infections are exceedingly rare in<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/fully-vaccinated-americans-return-life-masks-cdc/story?id=77665771" target="_blank">fully vaccinated people</a>. ✂️</p> <p>The new CDC report shows that such breakthrough infections may occur in just 0.01% of all fully vaccinated people.</p> <p>Vaccines are highly effective at preventing infection, but none are 100% protective. Even when these rare breakthroughs happen, the<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/vaccinations" target="_blank">vaccines</a><span> </span>are still overwhelmingly effective at protecting people from being hospitalized or dying.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nUkBi_8K92o" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nUkBi_8K92o" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Democrats in Array, Hooray!</h3> <p>(We have Nanny Ogg to thank for “Dems in Array, hooray!” seen in Monday night’s Shade: Maru added “Democrats in Array, Yay!” which I will also be stealing. ☺️)</p> <h4>😎President Joe “Cool” Biden 😎</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/joe-biden-ousts-donald-trump-appointees-behind-neoclassical-architecture-order-from-arts-council?ref=home" target="_blank">Biden Ousts Neoclassical-Loving Trump Appointees From Arts Council,</a> Blake Montgomery, Daily Beast, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that he would appoint four new commissioners to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, ousting committee members appointed by former President Donald Trump. Earlier in the day, the White House had sent letters to the serving commissioners asking them to submit their resignations. The Commission of Fine Arts approves design and architecture of proposed federal buildings in Washington, D.C. Trump’s commissioners had been involved in drafting a controversial executive order that would have mandated that all new federal buildings be built in a neoclassical style, incensing architects and artists across the country. Among Biden’s nominees are the architect of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, a partner from the firm that designed the Barack Obama Presidential Center, and a Howard University architecture professor.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Senate Majority Leader Schumer</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/force-vote-january-6-commission/">Senate Democrats will force a vote on Jan. 6 Commission this week</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said that there will be a vote on the Jan. 6 Commission despite huge opposition from Republican counterpart Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY). ✂️</p> <p>Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) came out in support of the commission Tuesday afternoon. Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) also said that he would support the commission as it is written. ✂️</p> <p><span>If all Democrats support the bill, the two Republicans will ensure its passage. If Republicans on McConnell's side decide to do a voice filibuster it would put the GOP in the position of justifying the Jan. 6 attacks in public.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>The Majority Leader knows that the Rs are between a rock and a hard place on this commission, and he is not letting up the pressure. <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/05/24/gops-shifting-arguments-against-jan-6-commission/" target="_blank">The GOP’s shifting arguments against a Jan. 6 commission</a>, Aaron Blake, Washington Post, May 24, 2021.</span></p> <h4>Gotta love Colorado Senator Hickenlooper</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/hickenlooper-for-the-people-act/">Colorado Senator breaks out his banjo to do his own 'School of Rock' video about voting rights bill</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Ernest and folksy Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper whipped out his banjo to create his own endorsement of the voting rights bill known as the "For the People Act."</p> <p>Using the tune from the legendary "School House Rock" song "I'm Just a Bill," Hickenlooper explains in the song that the bill gives people the ability to own their democracy instead of corporate political action committees (PAC).</p> <p>""There's a bill here in the Senate and it's called the People's Act. It gives Power to the voters and not the corporate PACs. Now this bill will make it easy for voters to have their say," he sang. "So, let's make elections fairer and pass S.1 today!"</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We’ve got to pass the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ForThePeopleAct&lt;/a&gt; 🪕 &lt;a href="https://t.co/SNiLEw1I3x"&gt;pic.twitter.com/SNiLEw1I3x&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Senator John Hickenlooper (@SenatorHick) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorHick/status/1397379455530815491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 26, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We’ve got to pass the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForThePeopleAct</a> 🪕 <a href="https://t.co/SNiLEw1I3x">pic.twitter.com/SNiLEw1I3x</a></p>— Senator John Hickenlooper (@SenatorHick) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorHick/status/1397379455530815491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 26, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Illinois Supreme Court Districts</h4> <p>There are going to be accusations of gerrymandering from the Rs (which is rich and, as usual, projection) about this, but the truth is that those SC districts had gotten quite unbalanced over the past 60 years, and we were in danger of the same terrible issue that the nation as a whole suffers from: minority rule by Rs due to very low populations in so -called “red” areas having far greater representation per capita than large populations in cities and densely populated states. Currently, Illinois’ five Supreme Court districts allot 3 judges to the Cook County (Chicago) district 1, and one judge each to the other four districts into which the rest of the state’s counties are assigned. Districts 1 and 2 have twice as many people as the other 3 districts combined (and 2 and 3 have twice the population of 4and 5 combined). These population disparities mean the old districts are no longer fairly or representatively drawn. It doesn’t look like there’s an appetite for expanding the court (to allot another judge or two to districts 1 and 2 more in line with their far greater populations, for example), so the idea is to redraw the districts to spread the population more equitably amongst the 4 districts that each are entitled to one judge. </p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/25/22453487/democrats-redistricting-remap-new-boundaries-state-supreme-court-districts-kilbride" target="_blank">Democrats unveil proposed new boundaries for state Supreme Court districts, pledging ‘equal representation’</a>, Rachel Hinton, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1oWmkKvADbW2eEoI0TwFA-LNuOcgbls2A&ll=41.33894766977388%2C-88.52493635156253&z=6" target="_blank">This map</a> is about equal representation in the state’s most important court,” state Rep. Lisa Hernandez, D-Cicero, chair of the House Redistricting Committee, said in a statement. “As we strive for all to be equal before the law, we must ensure we all have an equal voice in choosing those who uphold it.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The boundaries for the Illinois Supreme Court districts haven’t been redrawn since 1963 — though Republicans attempted to change the lines in 1997 with their Judicial Redistricting Act before it was ruled unconstitutional.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Under the Democrats’ newly proposed maps, the number of residents in the Supreme Court’s Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth districts will be “substantially equalized to better reflect the population and demographic shifts that have occurred in the state of Illinois over the course of the last sixty years,” according to a news release on the proposed judicial boundaries.</p> </blockquote> <p>Sure, Democrats have picked a time when their majority on the high court is in jeopardy, and the Rs will squawk about it, but a lot of Democratic supporters would say it’s about time D’s played hard ball/what’s good for the goose, etc. The thing is, though, even though the timing is politically expedient for Dems, the reality is that redrawing these lines IS fairer and ought to have been done some time ago. It’s in the IL Constitution, for pete’s sake! </p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <p>The 1970 constitution requires the state to be divided into five Supreme Court districts. Cook County forms a single district and is allocated three seats, while the rest of the state is divided into four districts, each with its own seat. It is the Cook County allocation that has helped keep the Democratic majority on the high court.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>The four districts outside of Cook County are supposed to be compact, keep counties whole and be of “substantially equal” population. The population requirement has not been met for several decades with the Chicago suburban 2nd District holding a population of more than 3.1 million people compared with two Downstate districts with populations of less than 1.3 million. (<a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/politics/ct-illinois-supreme-court-redistricting-20210525-5bdeyxbx3ffs7j3bllrkzuku7a-story.html" target="_blank">Chicago Tribune</a>)</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Democrats didn’t bother about these districts before because it didn’t seem urgent. The Supreme Court balance had been reflecting the general political leanings of the majority (Democratic), but the shocking loss of a SC justice in a retention vote last year (after a huge campaign by Rs — who never seem to underestimate the importance of controlling the courts) woke everyone up with a start. They may be doing the long delayed right thing for the “wrong” reasons, but it is still the right thing to do.  So that is good news.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=vNjXioocY4E" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vNjXioocY4E" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Republicans in Disarray!  </h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;If you think the NRCC has a bit of turmoil…may I introduce to you the Republican Attorneys General Association:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;-Exec Dir resigns once Jan 6 involvement becomes public&lt;br&gt;-GOP AGs promote staffer involved in Jan 6 to be new ED&lt;br&gt;-Chair resigns&lt;br&gt;-Finance Dir resigns&lt;br&gt;-Ops Dir resigns &lt;a href="https://t.co/JKxHSLhINi"&gt;https://t.co/JKxHSLhINi&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/umdeal1GSq"&gt;pic.twitter.com/umdeal1GSq&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brandon Richards (@BrandonRichards) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BrandonRichards/status/1396816633658810370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 24, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>If you think the NRCC has a bit of turmoil…may I introduce to you the Republican Attorneys General Association:<br><br>-Exec Dir resigns once Jan 6 involvement becomes public<br>-GOP AGs promote staffer involved in Jan 6 to be new ED<br>-Chair resigns<br>-Finance Dir resigns<br>-Ops Dir resigns <a href="https://t.co/JKxHSLhINi">https://t.co/JKxHSLhINi</a> <a href="https://t.co/umdeal1GSq">pic.twitter.com/umdeal1GSq</a></p>— Brandon Richards (@BrandonRichards) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrandonRichards/status/1396816633658810370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 24, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/nevada-gop-proud-boys/2021/05/25/c0b5fe7e-bcd0-11eb-b26e-53663e6be6ff_story.html" target="_blank">Nevada GOP thrown into turmoil after avowed Proud Boys member said he participated in censure vote of state official</a>, Michael Scherer, Washington Post, May 25, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>The leaders of the Nevada Republican Party are facing an internal revolt after an avowed Proud Boys member said he was invited with friends to attend a state party meeting last month and cast the deciding votes in the censure of a state official who concluded that the 2020 election in the state was not tainted by fraud.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p>In the past week, the Nevada Senate GOP caucus and the chairmen of the two largest Republican county organizations have called for an audit of an April state party vote to uncover who cast ballots as seated party members and proxies for a resolution against Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske (R).</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>The Republican state chairman, Michael McDonald, a close ally of former president Donald Trump, has so far declined to release those details, other Republican officials said.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>“We need to find out who attended, who paid for them to attend, and what impact they had on this censuring of Barbara,” state Sen. Carrie Buck (R) said in an interview. If the claims of the self-described Proud Boys member are true, she said, “of course the current leadership of the state [party] should resign.”</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>We now pause AS Rs “Land the plane” For their Base</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Hh_shsRfXqk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Hh_shsRfXqk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>Somehow this foolish skit struck me as an apt metaphor for the GQP.</p> <h4>tit for tat</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/25/1000129271/marjorie-taylor-greenes-holocaust-remarks-blasted-by-republicans-leaders" target="_blank">Kevin McCarthy Leads House GOP In Blasting Marjorie Taylor Greene's Holocaust Remarks</a>, Barbara Sprunt, NPR, May 25, 2021. </p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Nearly four months after condemning Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/03/960575854/gop-discord-once-again-has-trump-at-its-center">comments on antisemitic conspiracy theories</a>, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is once again rejecting the Georgia Republican's rhetoric — this time over her equating of COVID-19 safety measures with the treatment of Jews during the Holocaust.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The remarks by the freshman Republican congresswoman — and criticism of them — come against the backdrop of antisemitic incidents across the United States in apparent response to the recent fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip that saw a large number of civilian casualties. Those domestic incidents have been condemned across the political spectrum, though GOP lawmakers and some moderate Democrats have chastised progressives for, in their view, being insufficiently critical of the incidents.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In a<span> </span><a href="https://republicanleader.house.gov/leader-mccarthy-condemns-comparisons-to-the-holocaust/">statement</a><span> </span>Tuesday, McCarthy said Greene's "intentional decision to compare the horrors of the Holocaust with wearing masks is appalling."</p> </blockquote> <p>In that statement, McCarthy of course swipes at Democrats in the usual infantile R playbook of <em>I know you are so what am I?, </em>accusing Speaker Pelosi of not quashing anti-semitism among Democrats — Nancy was having none of that and shot back (see below) with a withering statement of her own. Democrats are not taking this despicable gaslighting sitting down anymore. Yay Nancy Pelosi! The proof will be evident in the next few days as Speaker Pelosi’s words will be proven true by McCarthy’s actions. The American people who value truth will take note.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">A statement from Pelosi's office pushed back against that allegation, saying the California Democrat "has spoken out for decades against antisemitism and antisemitic attacks."</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Leader McCarthy waited days to even issue a statement in response to one of his Members demeaning the Holocaust, and he clearly intends to continue to welcome Marjorie Taylor Greene in the GOP and shield her from any real consequence or accountability for her antisemitism," the statement said. "Leader McCarthy's silence has spoken volumes about his allegiance to the most extreme elements of the GOP Conference."</p> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, mad Marj just cannot leave well enough alone. She just has to lash out. It is ugly and disgusting, but it’s also evidence of the way the self-destructive pressure is increasing within the Republican party.</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-2653105249/">Marjorie Taylor Greene quickly deletes obscene Twitter attack on 'feckless' Kevin McCarthy</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) </span>on Tuesday quickly deleted a tweet she promoted from one of her supporters that called Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)<span> </span>a "moron" and a "feckless c**t."</p> <p>As flagged by the Washington Post's Aaron Blake, Greene promoted a tweet by right-wing Twitter account @ASimplePatriot on Tuesday that used obscene language to attack McCarthy over his criticism of Greene's latest comparison of public health advocates to Nazis. ✂️</p> <p><span>Within six minutes of posting the tweet, however, it was subsequently deleted.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/arizona-forensic-audit-2653105315/">Arizona audit loses tech company that was leading hand recount</a>, Travis Gettys, Raw Story, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>An information technology company has backed out of running the hand recount of ballots in the infamous Arizona election audit.</p> <p>The contract with Pennsylvania-based Wake TSI ended as scheduled on May 14, the original completion date for the hand count of ballots cast in Maricopa County, and the company chose not to renew its contract,<span> </span><a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2021/05/25/cyber-ninjas-subcontractor-strattech-solutions-takes-over-arizona-election-audit-hand-count/7429980002/" target="_blank">reported AZCentral</a>.</p> <p>"They were done," said Randy Pullen, an audit spokesperson and former state GOP chair. "They didn't want to come back."</p> </blockquote> <p>They are devouring each other <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/oan-newsmax/">OAN launches weekend-long assault to convince viewers Newsmax is a 'left-leaning organization'</a>, Raw Story, May 23, 2021.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ZeZm7KQJT1o" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ZeZm7KQJT1o" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Good Democratic Governance</h3> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/05/25/colonial-hack-pipeline-dhs-cybersecurity/" target="_blank">DHS to issue first cybersecurity regulations for pipelines after Colonial hack</a>, Ellen Nakashima and Lori Aratani, Washington Post, May 25, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>The Transportation Security Administration, a DHS unit, will issue a security directive this week requiring pipeline companies to report cyber incidents to federal authorities, senior DHS officials said. It will follow up in coming weeks with a more robust set of mandatory rules for how pipeline companies must safeguard their systems against cyberattacks and the steps they should take if they are hacked, the officials said. The agency has offered only voluntary guidelines in the past.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The ransomware attack that led Colonial Pipeline to shutter its pipeline for 11 days this month prompted gasoline<strong><span> </span></strong>shortages and panic buying in the southeastern United States, including in the nation’s capital. Had it gone on much longer, it could have affected airlines, mass transit and chemical refineries that rely on diesel fuel. Colonial’s chief executive has said<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/05/19/colonial-pipeline-ransom-joseph-blunt/?itid=lk_inline_manual_5" target="_blank">the company paid</a><span> </span>$4.4 million to foreign hackers to release its systems. ✂️</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“The Biden administration is taking further action to better secure our nation’s critical infrastructure,” DHS spokeswoman Sarah Peck said in a statement. “TSA, in close collaboration with [the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency], is coordinating with companies in the pipeline sector to ensure they are taking all necessary steps to increase their resilience to cyber threats and secure their systems.”</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>☺️ 🌱 Good Environmental News 🌱 ☺️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/25/1000210550/biden-administration-strikes-deal-to-bring-offshore-wind-to-california" target="_blank">Biden Administration Strikes Deal To Bring Offshore Wind To California</a>, Lauren Sommer, NPR, May 25, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The Biden Administration plans to open the California coast to offshore wind development, ending a long-running stalemate with the Department of Defense that has been the biggest barrier to building wind power along the Pacific Coast.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The move adds momentum to the administration's goal of reaching 100% carbon-free electricity by 2035, coming just weeks after the<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/995852356/biden-administration-approves-first-major-offshore-wind-energy-project">country's first large-scale offshore wind farm was approved</a><span> </span>off the coast of New England. Today, the country has just a handful of offshore wind turbines in the Atlantic Ocean, with around a dozen wind farms being developed in federal waters off the East Coast.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"It's an announcement that will set the stage for the long term development of clean energy and the growth of a brand new made-in-America industry," says National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy. "Now we're thinking big and thinking bold."</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️Pure Biden, worth reading: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/05/biden-trump-republicans/618943/" target="_blank">What Biden Didn’t Realize About His Presidency</a>, Edward-Isaac Dovere, The Atlantic, May 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/are-government-benefits-contributing-to-worker-shortages" target="_blank">Are Government Benefits Contributing to Worker Shortages?</a> Sheelah Kolhatkar, New Yorker, May 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Not zero, but no worse than usual concerns: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/05/25/997467734/childrens-risk-of-serious-illness-from-covid-19-is-as-low-as-it-is-for-the-flu" target="_blank">Children's Risk Of Serious Illness From COVID-19 Is As Low As It Is For The Flu</a>, Richard Harris, NPR, May 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/stephen-miller-immigration-nationalism/" target="_blank">How to Fight White Supremacy by Inverting Stephen Miller’s Playbook</a>, Jean Guerrero, The Nation, May 24, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/25/999791624/what-george-floyds-death-has-done-for-americans-ability-to-feel-empathy" target="_blank">10 Questions About Empathy In America, A Year After George Floyd's Death</a>, Bill Chappell, NPR, May 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Cool article about the psychology of color: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/24/style/sneaker-color-psychology.html?action=click&module=Editors%20Picks&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">The Secret Psychology of Sneaker Colors</a>, Mark C O’Flaherty, New York Times, May 24, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/mojo-wire/2021/05/new-data-uk-pfizer-astrazeneca-highly-effective-variants/" target="_blank">Good News! New Data Confirms Pfizer Vaccine Is Highly Effective Against Two Variants</a>, Fernanda Echavarri, MotherJones, May 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ “All of it, Katie”: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/what-did-paul-manafort-lie-to-robert-mueller-about-exactly-what-you-thought" target="_blank">What Did Paul Manafort Lie To Robert Mueller About? Exactly What You Thought</a>. Evan Hurst, Wonkette, May 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Hard truth and solid strategy: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/democrats-republicans-abortion/" target="_blank">Democrats Must Take Charge of the Debate About Abortion</a>, Ilyse Hogue and Ellie Langford, The Nation, May 25, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>CALL YOUR SENATORS and let them know that voting rights are at the top of your agenda!</strong></li> <li> <p>Most important: DON'T LOSE HOPE.  This is a giant and important fight for us but, win or lose, we keep fighting and voting and organizing and spreading truth and light.  We never give up.</p> </li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me and CG for another week! I just want to add a little note about the gloom and doom stories going around lately — we are all impatient to see justice done, to see progress made, to see the worst that Rs can do stopped in its tracks. When things don’t happen quickly, some people start crying that it will never happen. The reality is that we have had astounding successes already since the new administration got started (0-50% vaccinated since January 20! Think of that!!) American Rescue Plan, competent people confirmed in positions that are so important. We’ve come a long way and the repair work has gone better than expected, if we are honest. There were moments over the past four years when many of us feared it would take a decade or more to undo the damage — if we even could undo it. But things are rapidly improving with good, competent governance.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_E6734.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/949898/large/IMG_E6734.jpeg?1621798850" title="IMG_E6734.jpeg"> <figcaption>Sorry fellas, this ball is mine!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Every time you see a story or a g&d diary moaning about the horrible things the conservatives are doing, remind yourself that we knew that would happen. How could it not? They have held power for decades and they will NOT give it up without a fight. We have to keep reminding ourselves that this was <em>expected</em> and not allow ourselves to fall on the fainting couch every time there’s another deplorable outburst. We’ve got to be grimly determined and keep our eyes on the prize, which will be getting through this portal as arhpdx so beautifully described it yesterday. They’re going to claw and grab and try to drag us backward, and we have to be ready for that! We won’t win every skirmish, but if we stay focused, pace ourselves and not give in to panic monging, we will get to a much better place.</p> <p>So, build your strength and your hope and your confidence. We truly are the majority, we outnumber them and their extremism is merely the outward manifestation of their desperation. They are losing this culture war and they know it. Our leadership must take a measured approach to bringing justice while the corrupt still wield so much power in states, lest they do even more damage to the country and to vulnerable people. We will get there, slowly, steadily and surely.</p> <p>Take care of yourself and those you love. You are needed as we build the country back again, better than it’s ever been. Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors each day if you can. Pay attention to stuff like today’s Supermoon eclipse. It really does help us keep our perspective when we look outwards at the wonders of nature.</p> <p>So, until next week… be well and Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <p>I’ll resist the temptation to play you out with my usual fave, DeBussy’s <em>Clair de lune</em> and instead present you with Beethoven. Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=4Tr0otuiQuU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4Tr0otuiQuU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>OK, I lied. I can’t resist — once I saw this, I had to post it:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=i1qQOGCyRbY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/i1qQOGCyRbY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Covid Democrats Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden News Politics POTUS Progress Recommended _2031769 Wed, 26 May 2021 11:00:05 +0000 Wednesday Good News RoundUp - May 19 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/5/19/2030241/-Wednesday-Good-News-RoundUp-May-19 <p>Good Day, Gnusies — Happy Wednesday!</p> <p>I had a less than relaxing Tuesday (nothing serious, just home repair vexation) and that, coupled with the news from Gaza and the SCOTUS/Roe story had me feeling so downcast that I didn’t know if I could manage to write the GNR. Reading NNNE’s GNR yesterday helped lift my spirits just enough, though, that even as the plumber was banging away on the pipes and setting off the fire alarm with his blow torch, I made up my mind to just buckle down to work knowing that writing the GNR never fails to restore my hope and spirits.</p> <p>I decided to return to my roots for some comfort (Great Big Sea is like comfort food, except it is comfort music 😁) while I made myself shut off the scaremongering and the awful news cycling round and round and just go through my usual sources one at a time until I had gathered some good news. I knew it was all out there, as it has been every single day since Joe Biden won the election. Some days, I just need a little boost to get past the gloom and doom brigade. Because there is always bad news happening somewhere in this crazy old world. But, there is always good news, too, and on balance the world is a better place today than it has ever been before in human history. Amazing, but true.</p> <p>Anyway, it worked! Almost immediately I found stories that reminded me how far we’ve come in just over 100 days and how much farther we can go. We’ve got a wonderful President who is quietly (and sometimes not so quietly) getting stuff done. We’ve got a Democratic federal government which is energized and emboldened thanks to the strong and unexpectedly progressive leadership of our smilin’ Joe.</p> <p>I’m just about to turn in and the work of gathering good news, plus the infectious joy of the music has restored my good spirits. I’m going to share some of that music along with the good news and maybe it will make you smile, too. [“She’s goin’ up” is a Newfoundland phrase for a ‘raise the roof’ energy / joyous party). It’s fun to imagine all of us gnusies there! </p> <p>Come on in! Hang your jacket on the door; there’s always room for one more!</p> <h3>🎶 🎻 Music for Community 🎶🎻</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=bBBDCwZECLQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/bBBDCwZECLQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h2>And now the news:</h2> <h3><span>$ Good Tax Cut News for Average Americans $</span></h3> <p><strong>Our Joe really is <em>very</em> good at this!</strong></p> <p>President Joe Biden has zero f*cks left to give for Rs who have made it plain in every possible way that they will not take one step toward meeting Democrats half way in anything, ever. They are uninterested in governing — have not been interested in governing or making American life better for 40 years — and Joe is smart enough, experienced enough and out of patience enough to just go ahead and get as much done as he can while he has the power to do so. And what is more, Joe’s experience and smarts are really shining through in how he is handling both timing and <em>the messaging</em> — something many of us have despaired of Democrats ever learning how to do well.  Judging by remarks being made by other top Democrats lately, our leadership (and rank and file Democrats) are encouraged to have an unapologetic spokesperson for average Americans in the White House and leading the party, and it seems to me that their messaging is improving, too (see other stories in today’s GNR for examples) .</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/05/18/biden-welcomes-fight-over-tax-cuts/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/05/18/biden-welcomes-fight-over-tax-cuts/" target="_blank">Joe Biden is turning the debate about tax cuts on its head</a>, Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, May 18, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="giphy.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/907030/large/giphy.gif?1610876141" title="giphy.gif"> <figcaption>Joe Cool has the experience, the intelligence and the empathy to beat the Rs at their own game.</figcaption> </figure> <p>President Biden, who is seeking to increase taxes on corporations and the super-rich, is not about to let Republicans claim the mantle of tax cuts. He<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/05/17/joe-biden-live-updates/#link-6KZ57GDV2BHJ5JWAGJDEYC4JVA?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">said on Monday</a>: “I’m announcing today that on July 15th and the 15th of every month thereafter, throughout the year, you will get deposited in your bank account, half of your tax cut, at least two $250 per child each month, a direct deposit into your account.”</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p>In essence, Biden is sending Americans a tax cut every month, thanks to a critical part of his<span> </span><a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/fact-sheet-the-american-rescue-plan-will-deliver-immediate-economic-relief-to-families" target="_blank">American Rescue Plan</a><span> </span>that will expire at the end of the year unless Congress approves its extension. That money becomes part of a family’s budget and will cut child poverty in half.<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/monthly-child-tax-credit-payments-start-hitting-bank-accounts-july-n1267535" target="_blank">Thirty-nine million</a><span> </span>families — about 90 percent of all families with kids — will receive the money.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>Biden’s pitch is simple: “This tax cut sends a clear and powerful message to American workers, working families with children: Help is here,” he said during his Monday remarks. The policy is ingenious, as it will send a monthly reminder to families of the Democrats’ largesse. Should Republicans refuse to approve the provision of the infrastructure bill to extend the credit for four years, they will effectively be taking the money out of families’ monthly budgets. The ads write themselves: Republicans take away your money to help raise your kids! Those 39 million families will feel the difference each and every month. (And if Biden gets the four-year extension, it becomes a critical issue in 2024, when voters will decide whether they want to elect someone who would take away their monthly tax credit the following year.)</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>We can help Democrats with this messaging by reminding our neighbors and co-workers as often as possible that <strong><em>the child tax credit is a <u>tax cut</u></em></strong> <strong><em>for American families</em></strong>. </p> <h3>🎶🌤 Music to celebrate President Joe 🌤🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=OyzC25sry7Y" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/OyzC25sry7Y" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>🌱 Good News for the Environment, Good News for the Economy $</h4> <p>These next two stories have both economic and environmental implications!</p> <p><strong>First, </strong><a href="https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/ford-f-150-lightning-biden-ev-plan/" target="_blank">Ford F-150 Lightning stars as Biden sells his EV plan for America</a>, Sean Szymkowski, cnet.com, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>Rachel Maddow covered this terrific story last night, making sure to air video of our own legit Joe Cool taking the EV Ford F-150 Lightning through its paces and interviewing the lead engineer on the EV truck project, Linda Zhang. It was a great segment, dovetailing two important stories we’ve been thinking about lately: the urgent climate crisis and the valuable contributions that immigrants make to this country. This new truck looks really impressive so far (we won’t get the <a href="https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/ford-f-150-lightning-electric-pickup-truck-reveal/" target="_blank">full introduction</a> until tomorrow; 9:30pm ET), and the President’s visit to Michigan Tuesday gave us a sneak peek. Hopefully, I can post video of Rachel’s segment here (if MSNBC gets it put up in time) before I finish this GNR. Meanwhile, enjoy President Joe (Cool) Biden!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;President Biden test drives F-150 Lightning: "This sucker&amp;#39;s quick!" &lt;a href="https://t.co/BoVG04Ro9M"&gt;pic.twitter.com/BoVG04Ro9M&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— CSPAN (@cspan) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1394733645903040517?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>President Biden test drives F-150 Lightning: "This sucker's quick!" <a href="https://t.co/BoVG04Ro9M">pic.twitter.com/BoVG04Ro9M</a></p>— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1394733645903040517?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Second</strong>, a revival of the push to make public transit free:</p> <p>Kansas City, MO started the most recent ball rolling on this issue, by offering fair-free public transportation in 2019. The pandemic highlighted the importance of essential workers, who also are among the lowest paid in society and the Black Lives Matter movement has shone a spotlight on racial disparities in every aspect of life, some of which could be mitigated by “connecting people with jobs and economic opportunity” through free public transit. Finally, if public transportation was free (and upgraded to cover more needs, more routes, etc), some of the impediments to reducing vehicular traffic would be removed. We could speed up the environmental benefit by encouraging more ridership (and fewer personal cars used for commutes) by extending pandemic experiments with street closures (which were allowed to facilitate outdoor dining so restaurants could keep doing business). Changing city downtowns making them more walking/biking/dining friendly has been well-received in many circles and if continued, refined and made easily accessible via public transport, it might also encourage public transit ridership along with a more permanent shift in the way people use public spaces. Lots to dream about, and a few cities are taking a serious look at it!</p> <p>Fair use prevents me from quoting much of this excellent and interesting article. Note: There’s a sort of 3-D graphics effect in the article at the link which some readers might find annoying (I find them annoying), but others may find it enhances the article:</p> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/interactive/2021/public-transportation-free-fare-future/?itid=hp-top-table-main-0430b" target="_blank">After showing its worth during pandemic, momentum builds for free or reduced-fare transit</a>, Washington Post, May 17, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Travelers and commuters arrive at the Chicago Transit Authority's Rosemont station and head towards shuttle busses after a train derailment shut down the CTA's O'Hare International Airport station on March 24, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois. " src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/766280/large/CTA.jpg?1581631110" title="Travelers and commuters arrive at the Chicago Transit Authority's Rosemont station and head towards shuttle busses after a train derailment shut down the CTA's O'Hare International Airport station on March 24, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois. "> <figcaption>Imagine if city transit (and eventually rural public transit connections to cities) was free. It could really be a game changer, both socially (toward more equality) and environmentally.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Transit supporters say a convergence of social justice, economic and environmental issues is giving momentum to fare-free transit.</p> <p>Six in 10 adults view climate change as a major threat to the well-being of the United States, up from 44 percent in 2009, according to the<span> </span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/10/06/how-important-is-climate-change-to-voters-in-the-2020-election/">Pew Research Center</a>. Getting people to abandon their cars would require an attractive alternative, transit advocates say.</p> <p>They also cite a more favorable political climate.</p> <p>As part of a $2 trillion infrastructure package, the transit-friendly Biden administration is pledging $85 billion over eight years to modernize public transit and bring more bus and rail service to underserved communities. It comes after Congress approved $75 billion for public transit in three stimulus packages. ✂️</p> <p><span>What the pandemic has pointed out, said David Genoa, director of transit advisory services for LTK Engineering Services, a global consulting and engineering firm, was “transit is really important in the fabric of our community to get people to work, to get people to health care, to get people to jobs and also an important part of economic development.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>and speaking of the climate crisis…</h4> <p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-international-energy-agency-issues-a-milestone-statement-about-fossil-fuels" target="_blank">The International Energy Agency Issues a Landmark Statement About Fossil Fuels</a>, Bill McKibben, The New Yorker, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="earth.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/938629/large/earth.png?1618774190" title="earth.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The statement on Tuesday from the I.E.A. is a recommendation. It reads,<span> </span></span><strong>“There is no need for investment in new fossil fuel supply in our net zero pathway.</strong><span><span> </span>Beyond projects already committed as of 2021, there are no new oil and gas fields approved for development in our pathway, and no new coal mines or mine extensions are required.” That emphasis is in the original—in fact, in the<span> </span></span><a>new report</a><span><span> </span>that sentence is in headline-size type, as well it should be. It says that, after two hundred and fifty years, in the view of the I.E.A., the time has come to stop exploring for oil, gas, and coal. No rational plan for getting to 1.5 degrees (or anywhere near it) can deal with any new supply. Instead, the “the focus for oil and gas producers switches entirely to output—and emissions reductions—from the operation of existing assets.” That is, we obviously can’t stop burning fossil fuel tomorrow, but we have to be headed decisively in that direction—which means stopping the development of new fields and draining what we must from existing fields to hold us over until we’ve built enough solar panels and wind turbines. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>But now governments and corporations, pushed by civil society—and, perhaps, by a recognition of our climate plight—are suddenly committing to net-zero targets. Virtually all the big banks, for instance, have made this pledge. And now the I.E.A. has told them what it means. If they’re serious about it, they don’t just have to lend money to people who want to set up solar panels. (Clearly, they have to do that. “Policies need to be designed,” the report says, “to send market signals that unlock new business models and mobilise private spending, especially in emerging economies.”) Just as important, they must now stop doing what they’ve long been doing, which is<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/money-is-the-oxygen-on-which-the-fire-of-global-warming-burns">pumping trillions of dollars</a><span><span> </span>into fossil fuels. No new pipelines. No new liquefied-natural-gas projects on the Gulf Coast. No “gas led recovery” in Australia. No TMX pipeline from Canada’s tar sands. None of it.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶🎵 Music For A More Optimistic World 🎵🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=wHJYlI3roiA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wHJYlI3roiA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>💉 Health 💉</h3> <p>As the pandemic worsened last year, lots of people were musing hopefully that one potential silver lining that could come out of that vast dark cloud was that society’s understanding of what is essential work — and work in general — might be forced to undergo revision. It seems that something like that is starting to happen as the country slowly emerges from lockdown and the economy heats back up. It’s a bumpy road — and as NNNE showed us yesterday, plenty of Rs are going to try their damnedest to force people back to unhealthy, unsustainable, poorly paid labor — but it seems that our collective brush with existential danger may have swept in new ideas about work and the courage to try for change:</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-health-business-434fc29d69d9422b487a4f9c6eaa4249" target="_blank">Changed by pandemic, many workers won’t return to old jobs</a>, AP, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">There’s a wild card in the push to return to post-pandemic life: Many workers don’t want to go back to the jobs they once had.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Layoffs and lockdowns, combined with enhanced unemployment benefits and stimulus checks, gave many Americans the time and the financial cushion to rethink their careers. Their former employers are hiring again — and some, like Uber and McDonald’s,<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-coronavirus-pandemic-business-5eb1432c117e217fea65bfaa138002e9">are offering higher pay</a><span> </span>— but workers remain hesitant.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In March, U.S. job openings rose 8% to a record 8.1 million, but overall hiring rose less than 4%,<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-coronavirus-pandemic-business-5eb1432c117e217fea65bfaa138002e9">according to government data</a>. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">Some workers say the pandemic helped them prioritize their mental and physical health.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Off to a Good start vaccinating 12-15 yr olds</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/18/cdc-says-600000-kids-aged-12-to-15-have-received-covid-shots-in-last-week-.html" target="_blank">CDC says 600,000 kids ages 12 to 15 have received Covid vaccine shots in last week</a>, Rick Mendez, CNBC, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">More than half a million 12- to 15-year-olds have received a Covid-19 vaccine so far — less than a week since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/12/pfizer-covid-vaccine-cdc-panel-endorses-for-use-in-kids-12-to-15.html">cleared it for public distribution</a>, Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">On Wednesday, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/12/pfizer-covid-vaccine-cdc-panel-endorses-for-use-in-kids-12-to-15.html">endorsed the use</a><span> </span>of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/PFE" target="_blank">Pfizer</a><span> </span>Covid-19 vaccine for adolescents ages 12 to 15. Pfizer previously said that studies showed its vaccine<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/31/covid-vaccine-pfizer-says-shot-is-100percent-effective-in-kids-ages-12-to-15.html">is 100% effective</a><span> </span>in kids ages 12 to 15. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">President Joe Biden has a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/04/covid-vaccines-biden-wants-70percent-with-at-least-1-shot-by-july-4.html">goal</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>of vaccinating 70% of adult Americans by July 4. Vaccinating adolescents will bring us closer to having 70% to 85% of the total population vaccinated, which experts say is needed to achieve herd immunity. About 80% of seniors have received at least one dose. Children make up 20% of the U.S. population.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Do we even need “herd immunity”</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/05/18/997461471/its-time-for-americas-fixation-with-herd-immunity-to-end-scientists-say" target="_blank">It's Time For America's Fixation On Herd Immunity To End</a>, Scientists Say, Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Farm worker Monica Mateo receives a dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a vaccination site organized by the United Farm Workers (UFW), Kern Medical, the Kern County Latino Covid-19 Task Force inside Reuther Hall at Forty Acres on March 13, 2021 in Delano, California. - Central Valley farm workers were administered the vaccines free of charge, regardless of insurance or immigration status. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/944062/large/GettyImages-1231697945.jpg?1620328524" title="Farm worker Monica Mateo receives a dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a vaccination site organized by the United Farm Workers (UFW), Kern Medical, the Kern County Latino Covid-19 Task Force inside Reuther Hall at Forty Acres on March 13, 2021 in Delano, California. - Central Valley farm workers were administered the vaccines free of charge, regardless of insurance or immigration status. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Bottom line: Get yer bleepin’ vaccine!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The end of this pandemic sometimes gets boiled down to two words: herd immunity. But now, as an academic debate swirls over when or even if America can get to a high enough percentage of people with immunity to reach that goal,<strong><span> </span></strong>some scientists say it's time for the public to stop worrying about it.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"I think we're focusing too much of our time, our effort, on quibbling over a number," says<span> </span><a href="http://www.bio.utexas.edu/research/meyers/LaurenM/index.html">Lauren Ancel Meyers</a>, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin and head of the university's COVID-19 Modeling Consortium. Instead, Meyers and others say the public should follow one simple piece of advice: Get vaccinated. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">"Our vaccine campaigns rarely reach the level that we actually have herd immunity to the flu," Mordecai points out. "And yet most years we're able to avoid major pandemics of the flu." A combination of immunity through vaccination and prior infection provides a high enough level of protection that the hospitals are never overwhelmed, she says. Even though the coronavirus is a far more serious disease, "that's the kind of thing that could happen with COVID-19."</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖️ Justice ⚖️</h3> </div> </div> <p>Big news yesterday in the justice arena as Democrats shine:</p> <h4>NY Attorney General Letitia James</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/18/politics/new-york-attorney-general-trump-organization-criminal-probe/index.html" target="_blank">New York attorney general adds 'criminal capacity' to probe of Trump Organization</a>, Sonia Moghe and Kara Scannell, CNN, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="New York State Attorney General Letitia James holds a press conference at the Office of the Attorney General in New York March 28, 2019. - James announced the filing of the nations most extensive lawsuit against the manufacturers, Sackler Family, and distributors of opioids for their role in the opioid epidemic . (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP) (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/745660/large/GettyImages-1133269295.jpg?1575996062" title="New York State Attorney General Letitia James holds a press conference at the Office of the Attorney General in New York March 28, 2019. - James announced the filing of the nations most extensive lawsuit against the manufacturers, Sackler Family, and distributors of opioids for their role in the opioid epidemic . (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP) (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> The attorney general office's investigation into the Trump Organization, which has been<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/03/politics/tish-letitia-james-james-trump-investigations" target="_blank">underway since 2019</a>, will also continue as an ongoing civil probe, but the office recently informed Trump Organization officials of the criminal component.</div> <div></div> <div>"We have informed the Trump Organization that our investigation into the organization is no longer purely civil in nature. We are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity, along with the Manhattan DA," James' spokesman Fabien Levy told CNN. "We have no additional comment." ✂️</div> <div></div> <div> <div>James' office is working with Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance's Office, whose wide-sweeping probe into the Trump Organization has looked into whether the company misled lenders and insurance companies about the value of properties and whether it paid the appropriate taxes.</div> <ul> </ul> <div> <div>Vance's office is examining millions of pages of documents that include Trump's tax returns. <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;A long time coming, but it has come. &lt;a href="https://t.co/ExVor3xAp1"&gt;https://t.co/ExVor3xAp1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/neal_katyal/status/1394839408407465986?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>A long time coming, but it has come. <a href="https://t.co/ExVor3xAp1">https://t.co/ExVor3xAp1</a></p>— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) <a href="https://twitter.com/neal_katyal/status/1394839408407465986?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Best guess is the DA sticks with the straightforward financial charges against Trump that are already being pursued: tax fraud. mortgagee fraud, money laundering, etc. And the NY AG brings the sweeping conspiracy type charges against Trump and his family, plus Weisselberg.&lt;/p&gt;— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PalmerReport/status/1394854710935445506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Best guess is the DA sticks with the straightforward financial charges against Trump that are already being pursued: tax fraud. mortgagee fraud, money laundering, etc. And the NY AG brings the sweeping conspiracy type charges against Trump and his family, plus Weisselberg.</p>— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/PalmerReport/status/1394854710935445506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>President Joe Biden</h4> <p>This is a big deal that flies under the radar. Unequal access to legal advice and assistance is one of the factors that helps entrench and deepen social inequities.</p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/biden-champions-legal-aid-in-latest-raft-of-justice-reforms/" target="_blank">Biden Champions Legal Aid in Latest Raft of Justice Reforms</a>, Kaila Philo, Courthouse News, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (CN) — Tallying up some the challenges that low-income people have historically faced while trying to get a fair trial, President Joe Biden signed a memo late Tuesday to expand access to civil legal aid and public defenders.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“According to a 2017 study by the Legal Services Corportation, low-income Americans receive inadequate or no professional legal assistance with regard to over 80 percent of the civil legal problems they face in a given year,” the memo states. “At the same time, in the criminal legal system, those who cannot afford private counsel often receive a lower-quality defense because public defender caseloads are overburdened.” ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Biden’s memo instructs the attorney general to expand access-to-justice initiatives, particularly criminal indigent defense, civil legal aid and pro bono legal services. After 120 days, the attorney general must submit a report to the president describing his plan, staffing, budget requirements, and a timeline for any reorganization.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi </h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-hate-crimes-crime-health-coronavirus-pandemic-9ef2348f808da4c510bf4b393b6f2ad3" target="_blank">Congress OKs bill to fight hate crimes vs. Asian Americans</a>, Brian Slodysko, AP, May 17, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 07: U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speak to members of the press after a meeting with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows at the U.S. Capitol August 7, 2020 in Washington, DC. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were unable to reach a deal on a new relief package to help people weather the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/881904/large/GettyImages-1264558005.jpg?1605064113" title="WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 07: U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speak to members of the press after a meeting with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows at the U.S. Capitol August 7, 2020 in Washington, DC. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were unable to reach a deal on a new relief package to help people weather the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>2020 photo of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and<br> Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The bill, which the House passed on a 364-62 vote, will expedite the review of hate crimes at the Justice Department and make grants available to help local law enforcement agencies improve their investigation, identification and reporting of incidents driven by bias, which often go underreported. It previously passed the Senate 94-1 in April after lawmakers reached a compromise. (President) Biden has said he will sign it. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">To many Asian Americans, the pandemic has invigorated deep-seated biases that in some cases date back to the Chinese Exclusion Act of more than a century ago. President Donald Trump repeatedly referred to the virus, which emerged in Wuhan, China, as the “China Virus” or the “Kung Flu.” And as cases of the illness began to rise in the U.S., so too did the attacks, with thousands of violent incidents reported in the past year. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Speaking earlier in the day, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said passage of the bill sends a “powerful message of solidarity” to those who have suffered discrimination during the pandemic.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Discrimination against Asian Americans is, sadly, not a new phenomenon in our nation’s history, but the pandemic brought old biases and prejudices back to the foreground,” the New York Democrat said. “The Senate can be proud it took the lead.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer</h4> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mitch-mcconnell-kevin-mccarthy-january-6_n_60a415ace4b03e1dd38fbc20" target="_blank">Chuck Schumer Dares GOP To Oppose Bill Forming Capitol Riot Commission</a>, Igor Bobic and Arthur Delaney, HuffPost, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 06: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks to the press at the U.S. Capitol on March 06, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Senate passed the latest COVID-19 relief bill by 50 to 49 on a party-line vote, after an all-night session. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/925045/large/GettyImages-1305679142.jpg?1615221919" title="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 06: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks to the press at the U.S. Capitol on March 06, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Senate passed the latest COVID-19 relief bill by 50 to 49 on a party-line vote, after an all-night session. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) vowed Tuesday to hold a vote on legislation forming a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, daring <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/republican-party">Republicans</a> to oppose an effort that has bipartisan support in both houses of Congress.</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>“Republicans can let their constituents know, are they on the side of truth [or] want to cover up for the insurrectionists and for Donald Trump?” Schumer asked at a weekly press conference. ✂️</span></p> <div> <p><span>Schumer’s pledge to move forward with a vote on a Jan. 6 commission puts Republicans in a difficult position. If the GOP decides to filibuster the commission, it would be their first use of the filibuster in this Congress, handing Democrats a talking point in their efforts to eliminate the chamber’s long-standing supermajority requirement. </span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>But allowing the commission to proceed carries risks for the GOP as well. For one, it would almost certainly anger Trump, who continues to lie about the 2020 election and hold the party hostage by doling out critical endorsements in primaries for the midterm elections next year.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <h3>🎶🌦🌈 Music for Silver Linings 🌈🌦🎶</h3> <p>Before there was Frozen, there was this song from Great Big Sea to remind us to hang on to our perspective, be mindful of the blessings even as we do battle with the curses. The Arts are gradually opening up again: give yourself the gift of taking something in if you can do it, or view/listen/experience online.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nFgAXoEyCdE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nFgAXoEyCdE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🎭🎨 Arts & Culture 🎨🎭</h3> <h4>Music</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/entertainment-and-culture/2021/5/18/22442241/lollapalooza-returns-grant-park-july-29-august-1-music-festival-coronavirus" target="_blank">Lollapalooza returns to Grant Park</a>, Fran Spielman, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="abc7.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/948085/large/abc7.jpg?1621370788" title="abc7.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Lollapalooza, Chicago’s premier music extravaganza, will make a triumphant return to Grant Park at “full capacity” from July 29 through Aug. 1, the mayor’s office confirmed Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">One week after Variety reported Lolla’s return, Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s office confirmed it with no restrictions.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The lineup of entertainers will be released at 10 a.m. Wednesday. Tickets will go on sale two hours later at<span> </span><a href="http://www.lollapalooza.com/">www.lollapalooza.com</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Full COVID-19 vaccination or negative COVID-19 test results will be required to attend Lollapalooza 2021. For patrons who are not fully vaccinated, a negative COVID-19 test result must be obtained within 24 hours of attending Lollapalooza each day, officials said.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Theater</h4> <p>I like this story because the show sounds really interesting, highlighting the little-known experiences of a community of Irish immigrants and African American people:</p> <p>‘<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/18/22441954/paradise-square-musical-chicago-james-nederlander-five-points-broadway-larry-kirwan-moises-kaufman" target="_blank">Paradise Square,’ a Broadway-bound musical, set to open in Chicago in November</a>, Darel Jevens, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Chicago’s job of presenting new musicals on their way to Broadway — halted last year by the pandemic — is set to resume in November with a show about a key moment in the history of Irish Americans and African Americans.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Paradise Square,” set at a saloon in the Lower Manhattan slum of Five Points in 1863, will run at the James M. Nederlander Theatre Nov. 2-Dec. 5, producers announced Tuesday. It focuses on the shared lives of African Americans — some free born, some fleeing slavery — and freshly arrived Irish immigrants in that New York neighborhood.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="download.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/948095/large/download.jpg?1621372484" title="download.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>New York City’s Broadway is also set to open in the fall: <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/5/22421513/broadway-ticket-sales-fall-reopening-covid-pandemic-theaters" target="_blank">Broadway theaters ready imminent ticket sales for a fall reopening.</a></p> <h4>Art</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/17/22440568/sistine-chapel-exhibition-michelangelo-masterpiece-exhibit-oakbrook-center-immersive-experience" target="_blank">Sistine Chapel exhibition brings heavenly Michelangelo masterpiece down to Earth</a>, Miriam Di Nunzio, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 17, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">“Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” opens Wednesday in Oakbrook Center, bringing with it massive, life-sized reproductions of 33 frescoes in the iconic ceiling, the most famous being the nine scenes from the Bible’s book of Genesis, painted by the Italian artist over a four-year period in the early 16th century through a commission by Pope Julius II. Also on display will be life-sized reproductions of Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgment,” a separate, five-year fresco project, which covers the entire altar wall of the chapel and was begun some 25 years after the ceiling was completed.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Copy_of_Sistine_Chapel_Exhibition_10.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/948091/large/Copy_of_Sistine_Chapel_Exhibition_10.jpg?1621371779" title="Copy_of_Sistine_Chapel_Exhibition_10.jpg"> <figcaption>Take all the photos you want at this exhibition!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Before you can say “just another art exhibit,” it’s important to note the frescoes in the Sistine Chapel exhibition were crafted via special technology — hi-res prints on special fabric — to recreate the look and texture of a fresco, according to Martin Biallas, the founder and CEO of Special Entertainment Events (SEE), which created and is producing the traveling exhibition. Every brushstroke is visible, giving added depth and breadth to the scope of the paintings, he said. The exhibit puts into perspective the enormous proportions of each of the figures in the frescoes, which make them clearly discernible to Vatican visitors 44 feet below. It is a vastly different experience from the<span> </span><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/2/3/22261329/immersive-van-gogh-exhibit-chicago-visual-arts-germania-building">Immersive Van Gogh exhibit</a>, currently on display in Chicago, Biallas stressed.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“The Van Gogh exhibit is images projected onto a screen. Our exhibit features life-sized [floor-to-ceiling] re-creations of the frescoes, making them almost look like we peeled the frescoes off the ceiling walls and are now taking them on a worldwide tour,” he said. ✂️</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>😡🤯🙃 Republicans in Disarray 🙃🤯😡</h3> <h4>Some Big-Name Rs are breaking out of the T cult</h4> </div> </div> <p>The line, led by Liz Cheney (R-WY), of Republicans who are breaking out of the cult of trumpism now includes Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Larry Hogan (R-MD), Alyssa Farah (R- Former WH advisor), Stephen Richer (R-AZ Maricopa county recorder) as well as the long list of never-trumper Rs:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/arizona-ballot-audit/">Pushback to Trump from within his own party slowly grows louder as his 'unhinged' rantings lead to a bizarre scene</a>, Jon Skolnik, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Republican Party is finding itself increasingly fractured as more members of the GOP disavow Donald Trump despite concerns within the party that it<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/05/07/lindsey-graham-says-gop-cant-grow-without-trump-leading/" target="_blank"><u>cannot survive without him</u></a><span>. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>Maryland GOP Gov. Larry Hogan echoed Kinzinger on Sunday when he<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2021/05/16/governor-larry-hogan-trump-toxic-sot-sotu-vpx.cnn" target="_blank"><u>said</u></a><span><span> </span>during a CNN "State of the Union" interview that Cheney's ouster was "kind of doubling down on failure." ✂️</span></p> <p><span>Trump has also seen some defection from his inner circle. On Sunday, Trump's former White House adviser, Alyssa Farah,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.msnbc.com/mehdi-on-msnbc/watch/trump-s-fmr-wh-communications-director-won-t-support-a-2024-presidential-run-112078405644" target="_blank"><u>indicated</u></a><span><span> </span>that she would not support him in his potential 2024 presidential bid, signaling an allegiance with Cheney. ✂️</span></p> <p>Maricopa county recorder Stephen Richer immediately demurred Trump's claim (that the election was stolen/ AZ voter database was “DELETED”) as "unhinged."</p> <p>"I'm literally looking at our voter registration database on my other screen," he<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/stephen_richer/status/1393662268542386178" target="_blank"><u>tweeted</u></a>. "Right now. We can't indulge these insane lies any longer. As a party. As a state. As a country. This is as readily falsifiable as 2+2=5."</p> </blockquote> <p>More from Arizona Republicans: <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/maricopa-county-2020-audit/2021/05/17/28292932-b74a-11eb-a6b1-81296da0339b_story.html" target="_blank">‘Our democracy is imperiled’: Maricopa County officials decry 2020 recount as a sham and call on Arizona Republicans to end the process</a>, Rosalind S Helderman, Washington Post, May 17, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs removes her face mask as she addresses the members of Arizona's Electoral College prior to them casting their votes Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/944624/large/AP20349649056197.jpg?1620427796" title="Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs removes her face mask as she addresses the members of Arizona's Electoral College prior to them casting their votes Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)"> <figcaption>AZ Secretary of State, Katie Hobbs said of the trumped up “audit”: “This seems like such a farce.” </figcaption> </figure> <p>“It is time to make a choice to defend the Constitution and the Republic,” they wrote. “We stand united together to defend the Constitution and the Republic in our opposition to the Big Lie. We ask everyone to join us in standing for the truth,” they added, using a term that refers to the false claim that the election was stolen. ✂️</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p><span>The pushback by Maricopa County officials amounts to their most vehement protest yet of the recount, which began in late April and is being conducted in Phoenix by a private Florida-based company, Cyber Ninjas, whose chief executive<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/arizona-recount-cyber-ninjas/2021/04/16/b3cbbf08-996e-11eb-962b-78c1d8228819_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_13">has previously echoed</a><span><span> </span>Trump’s false allegations that fraud tainted the 2020 election.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Jointly, the county officials agreed that they would refuse to attend a meeting that had been called Tuesday by Fann<strong><span> </span></strong>to discuss<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/arizona-recount-gop/2021/05/14/330bc808-b4c7-11eb-a980-a60af976ed44_story.html?itid=ap_rosalinds.%20helderman&itid=lk_inline_manual_14">what she had termed<span> </span></a>“serious issues” with the vote that Cyber Ninjas claims to have identified.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“I will not be responding to any more requests from this sham process. Finish your audit and be ready to defend what you’re finding in a court of law,” Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jack Sellers (R) said at the public meeting.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><span><a href="https://floridapolitics.com/archives/430298-rick-scott-continues-to-plead-with-donald-trump-to-stay-out-of-senate-primaries/" target="_blank">Rick Scott continues to plead with Donald Trump to stay out of Senate primaries</a>, A G Gancarski, Florida Politics, May 18, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span>U.S. Sen.<span> </span></span><strong>Rick Scott</strong><span><span> </span>continues to express hope that former President<span> </span></span><strong>Donald Trump</strong><span><span> </span>won’t engage against Senate incumbents in 2022.</span>✂️</p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span>“What I’ve suggested to him is to let the citizens of that state pick their primary winner,” Scott said. “And then help those that win that he believes in.” ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify">Scott also said then he advised Trump to stay out of open primaries and not work against incumbents like Sen.<span> </span><strong>John Thune</strong> of South Dakota.</p> <p style="text-align:justify">“What I have asked is, I would like him in open primaries not to be involved,” Scott said, noting his own “very tough primary in 2010” as a reason the Senator has “elected to stay out of primaries.”</p> <p style="text-align:justify">“I’ve suggested that he support the incumbents, all the incumbents,” Scott said, before admitting it may have done no good.</p> </blockquote> <p>LOL, you’ve got a sick, bloated, pathetic, cornered tiger by the tail, Scotty, and it isn’t going to work out well for you if you think you can reason with him. You’d be far better off joining the stampede for the exit off the t**** train.</p> <h3>🎶🏃‍♂️🏃🏻‍♂️Music for Rs Running Away 🏃🏻‍♂️🏃‍♂️🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=8UMV36zYs58" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8UMV36zYs58" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Republicans in Disarray Part 2</h4> <p>They are in such disarray, I needed another section!</p> <h4>Looks Like Rs are turning on Kevin McCarthy, too</h4> <p>With a bit of luck, as this next story develops, it should end up in the “Consequences” section before too long:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/what-does-kevin-mccarthy-know/">Liz Cheney knows something dangerous about Kevin McCarthy and Jan. 6: ex-Congressman</a>, Sarah Burris, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="fingers-crossed.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/811071/large/fingers-crossed.jpg?1590779766" title="fingers-crossed.jpg"> <figcaption>Got our fingers crossed for you, Kevin!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) said that Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is never going to be the Speaker, former Republican Rep. David Jolly (FL) explained on MSNBC Tuesday.</p> <p>According to Jolly, the reason that McCarthy and other Republicans want to block any Jan. 6 Commission is that it might out their involvement or coordination.</p> <p>"Now Kevin does not want it to go forward it's because we know the focus will be on the culpability of Republican behavior, not just Donald Trump's behavior but Republican behavior going into Jan. 6th," Jolly explained. "The luscious irony in all of this is just as Kevin's handling of the Benghazi commission, some would argue derailed his ascension to the speakership. When he went on Fox News and said this was all about taking down Hillary Clinton, it wasn't about Benghazi. Just as that derailed his speakership, a Jan. 6th Commission could derail it at the speakership as well. It could focus on what he knows about the events. When Liz Cheney says he should testify, it's not just because she wants to get to the truth. She's said that McCarthy won't be Speaker. Which tells me that Liz Cheney knows that Kevin McCarthy knows something that is so damming it would undo his ascension to the speakership should he go under oath before a Jan. 6th Commission."</p> </blockquote> <h4>And…</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/republicans-blocking-jan-6-commission-lame/">'Many Republicans' think excuses for resisting the Jan. 6 Commission are 'incredibly lame'</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>"Sure, there are some Republicans who can toe the line and say that they will oppose it because it doesn't allow for an investigation into all political violence. But many in the party are finding that excuse incredibly lame," Punchbowl reported.</p> <p>House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) came out against the commission<span> </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/kevin-mccarthy-wrote-jan-6-rules-he-hates/" target="_blank">that he actually helped write the rules for</a>. It was a weird moment for Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), who said that he couldn't figure out why McCarthy would come out against his own rules.</p> <p>Republican leadership is concerned that dozens of rank-and-file members of their caucus intend to support the commission along with Rep. John Katko (R-NY). ✂️</p> <p><span>To make matters worse, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that Republicans are "willing to listen to Democrats" for what the commission would do and why it's needed. Whether or not McConnell ever agrees to anything, he's making McCarthy look unreasonable right now.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Plus this…</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/january-6-commission-republican-dodge/">Internet joins Rick Wilson in ignoring McCarthy and demanding investigation into Republicans involved in 1/6</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.  (Sarah was really on top of this story yesterday!):</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) said on Monday that the reason her colleagues are afraid of the Jan. 6 Commission is that it could reveal that some GOP lawmakers were involved. Former Republican Rick Wilson noted that it's the exact reason that Democrats should move forward with investigating those officials suspected of helping attackers of the U.S. Capitol.</span></p> <p><span>(click on the blue bird to read the thread, if interested)</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;1/ Of *course* Qevin McCarthy opposes a bipartisan January 6th Commission. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;If the Democrats have the stones to pull it off -- an open question, TBH -- it will make Benghazi look like a sewing circle.&lt;/p&gt;— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/status/1394644803556626432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>1/ Of *course* Qevin McCarthy opposes a bipartisan January 6th Commission. <br><br>If the Democrats have the stones to pull it off -- an open question, TBH -- it will make Benghazi look like a sewing circle.</p>— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/status/1394644803556626432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Twitter is not the real world, of course, just a corner where people who live and breathe politics gather. But the point is well-taken (albeit with WIlson’s signature contempt for Democrats — never forget, he is a Republican after all), and there was a lot of support expressed for Democrats to move quickly and decisively on this commission. With Joe “zero f*cks left for Rs” Biden leading them, I am hopeful that they will. And then there will be no hiding Rs culpability.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Apropos of nothing ...&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;"Terry McAuliffe will be the next Governor of Virginia, it won&amp;#39;t be close, and the only distinction that matters is whether you have the race Safe like me or just very, very Likely."&lt;a href="https://t.co/E706u40JX8"&gt;https://t.co/E706u40JX8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Evan Scrimshaw (@EScrimshaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/EScrimshaw/status/1394918696100012032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Apropos of nothing ...<br><br>"Terry McAuliffe will be the next Governor of Virginia, it won't be close, and the only distinction that matters is whether you have the race Safe like me or just very, very Likely."<a href="https://t.co/E706u40JX8">https://t.co/E706u40JX8</a></p>— Evan Scrimshaw (@EScrimshaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/EScrimshaw/status/1394918696100012032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>😬🥵😫 Consequences 😫🥵😬</h3> <h4>They didn’t send their “best” people</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/daniel-warmus/">Chatty Capitol rioter gets busted after bragging about his crimes to his dentist</a>, Ray Hartmann, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Whoopsies.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/911431/large/Whoopsies.gif?1611880342" title="Whoopsies.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Daniel Warmus was arrested today by the FBI with the help of an anonymous tip from someone who overheard him at a dentist office sharing stories and a video from his day in the U.S. Capitol on January 6.</p> <p>Warmus, from Alden NY, was heard by the tipster telling of how he smoked a marijuana cigarette inside the Capitol, the FBI criminal complaint states. The tipster said "that he/she overheard Warmus talking about his experience" which included having refused a police officer's instructions to leave the building." ✂️</p> <p><span>From that, agents began surveillance of Warmus at his home and at the business he runs -- Worm-A-Fix Automotive Inc. -- in Orchard Park, NY. From that agents say they were able to match photos of Warmus' and his passport and driver's license pictures with videos and footage taken inside the Capitol.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/coolest-thing-capitol-attacker-shoves-cop-down-stairs/">'Coolest thing I've ever done in my life': Rioter who bragged about pushing female cop down Capitol stairs arrested in Florida</a>, Ray Hartmann, Raw Story, May 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="expression-words-design-oops-illustration-162212955.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/866270/large/expression-words-design-oops-illustration-162212955.jpg?1602133742" title="expression-words-design-oops-illustration-162212955.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Daniel Paul Gray of Florida was charged today<span> </span><a href="https://www.scribd.com/document/508392943/Criminal-complaint-against-Daniel-Gray#fullscreen&from_embed" target="_blank">with multiple crimes of violence against police officers</a><span> </span>at the January 6 Capitol riot. Supporting photographic evidence is a video made by Gray that spells out the goal of "pushing police out the back of the Capitol."</p> <p>Gray is accused of having altercations with multiple police which one in which he caused a female police officer to fall down the western rotunda stairs "and become visibly injured." ✂️</p> <p>Gray faces a longer list of charges than most of the 450 Capitol riot suspects. In addition to the standard charges of unlawful and violent entry, disorderly conduct and disrupting government proceedings, Gray is also charged on multiple counts of physical violence, including attacks on a person "while engaged in the performance of official duties."</p> <p>You can read the FBI arrest complaint<span> </span><a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/press-release/file/1395251/download" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Out of sight…</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump Enthusiasts Are Lowering the Temperature: Poll data shows that Republicans who have been seeing themselves as Trump loyalists have not turned against the former president, but their enthusiasm for him has waned (&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CharlieCookDC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@CharlieCookDC&lt;/a&gt;) &lt;a href="https://t.co/mBFbYH5V6I"&gt;https://t.co/mBFbYH5V6I&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Opinion Today (@OpinionToday) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/OpinionToday/status/1394926652010819590?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump Enthusiasts Are Lowering the Temperature: Poll data shows that Republicans who have been seeing themselves as Trump loyalists have not turned against the former president, but their enthusiasm for him has waned (<a href="https://twitter.com/CharlieCookDC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CharlieCookDC</a>) <a href="https://t.co/mBFbYH5V6I">https://t.co/mBFbYH5V6I</a></p>— Opinion Today (@OpinionToday) <a href="https://twitter.com/OpinionToday/status/1394926652010819590?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>🎶😄 Consequence Free Music 😄🎶</h3> <p>(Music for the lighter side 😉 Definitely do not want criminals to go consequence free)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=uGp9bnDm0n0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/uGp9bnDm0n0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p> ⚡️Helpful life hacks: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/14/996939779/a-behavioral-scientists-advice-for-changing-your-life" target="_blank">A Behavioral Scientist's Advice For Changing Your Life</a>, Elise Hu, NPR, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Preschool makes a difference, another good reason to get Biden’s plan done: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2021/05/18/997501946/the-case-for-universal-pre-k-just-got-stronger" target="_blank">The Case For Universal Pre-K Just Got Stronger</a>, Greg Rosalsky, NPR, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️This educator will warm your heart: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/18/997520451/comic-how-a-teacher-tackled-pandemic-fears-for-his-students-with-disabilities" target="_blank">COMIC: How A Teacher Tackled Pandemic Fears For His Students With Disabilities</a>, La Johnson, NPR, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Fascinating research and a bit of hope (the “solution” they propose is jiust what Joe Biden does best! <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/05/18/this-is-your-brain-on-partisan-politics-new-scientific-study-reveals-key-cause-behind-polarization/" target="_blank">This is your brain on partisan politics: New scientific study reveals key cause behind polarization</a>, Matthew Rozsa, Salon, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️I’m on board! Congress? <a href="https://www.vox.com/22432338/joe-biden-tax-plan" target="_blank">Seriously, just tax the rich</a>, Emily Stewart, Vox, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Good explanation of the vexing Joe Manchin problem: <a href="https://www.vox.com/22440928/joe-manchin-lisa-murkowski-voting-rights-act-senate-republicans-bipartisan-filibuster" target="_blank">Joe Manchin says he needs Republicans to support voting rights. He found one.</a> Ian Milhiser, Vox, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Or, you know, here’s another approach: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-democrats-can-force-joe-manchin-and-kyrsten-sinema-to-put-up-or-shut-up?ref=home?ref=home" target="_blank">How Dems Can Force Manchin and Sinema to Put Up or Shut Up</a>, Max Burns, Daily Beast, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/05/18/time-for-the-cover-up-theres-only-one-reason-why-republicans-oppose-a-bipartisan-jan-6-commission/" target="_blank">Time for the cover-up: There's only one reason why Republicans oppose a bipartisan Jan. 6 commission</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Here’s the antidote for the Politico pandering on this subject: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/05/biden-decided-run-president-excerpt/618877/" target="_blank">The Inside Story of Joe Biden’s Most Fateful Decision</a>, Edward-Isaac Dovere, The Atlantic, May 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Can’t decide if this was reassuring or depressing 😅: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/05/24/burnout-modern-affliction-or-human-condition" target="_blank">Burnout: Modern Affliction or Human Condition?</a> Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, May 17, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>CALL YOUR SENATORS and let them know that voting rights are at the top of your agenda!</strong></li> <li> <p>Most important: DON'T LOSE HOPE.  This is a giant and important fight for us but, win or lose, we keep fighting and voting and organizing and spreading truth and light.  We never give up.</p> </li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another week! I hope my introduction conveyed the message I was trying to send: occasionally we all get down about the relentless news cycle that sensationalizes the bad news and minimizes (or worse, mischaracterizes!) the good news. It’s a natural feeling and though it sure isn’t pleasant, like all feelings it will pass. We are human, not positivity machines. Bad news should make us feel bad and good news likewise can make us feel good. </p> <p>The onslaught of the worst “bleeds and leads” news can throw our ability to bounce back off kilter, especially in the midst of the trauma of a pandemic on the heels of the worst administration nightmare in memory. There’s a lot of complex PTSD being experienced by individuals and probably on a societal scale. So, be mindful of what you and everyone you know has endured and absorbed over the past several years and cut yourself (and others) some slack, while doing what you can to find your balance again.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7873.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/948186/large/IMG_7873.jpg?1621404012" title="IMG_7873.jpg"> <figcaption>Silly Mama put me in this sweater she is making for one of my human brothers. She says I can illustrate a point. I told her I am a big dog but I am not THAT big! < sigh > (Curlygirl gets it!)</figcaption> </figure> <p>You can help yourself regain your balance by limiting your exposure to “gloom and doomers” — people who cannot seem to break out of a negative spin/bad news cycle, which causes them to mentally turn even good news into bad news. We are well aware of the dangers we face, and we also know that the people who wish to destroy our democracy may be powerful, but they are not all-powerful. They are not more powerful than we, the majority, are when we are united and hopeful and fighting for truth, democracy and the real American dream: for a better country — a better world — for ourselves and future generations.</p> <p>You can also help yourself by eating nutritious food, getting enough rest (it’s OK if it’s hard to sleep some nights; do whatever helps you to rest your body and mind and don’t worry about rigid notions about what is “proper” rest), and try to get outdoors each day if possible to breathe some outside air, see the sky and maybe some trees, flowers or birds. These simple self-care actions can lift up your spirits and give you the strength to carry on the work that we all, collectively, must do on behalf of the country, our fellow Americans and future generations.</p> <p>It’s been a long road but already we are in so much better a place than we were 1 year, 2 years, 4 years ago. Think of that! And as Smilin’ Joe says, together, we will build this country back — better!</p> <p>I’m so glad to be on this journey with all of you!</p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nO3qILwdkBo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nO3qILwdkBo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Economy Environment EVTrucks GoodNews Goodnewsroundup GreatBigSea JoeBiden Justice Music Politics POTUS46 PresidentBiden Recommended _2030241 Wed, 19 May 2021 11:00:03 +0000 WAYWO - Adventures in Knitting an Icelandic Sweater in the Round https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/5/16/2029755/-WAYWO-Adventures-in-Knitting-an-Icelandic-Sweater-in-the-Round <h3>🧶😊 Backstory 😊 🧶</h3> <p>Years ago, when I was a young mother with three small children, I found that just about every hat that could be found in a store was too big, too small or just an awkward/poor fit for my kids’ heads. I remembered the cute stretchy knitted hats with buttoned chin straps that children wore when I was a child — hand knit by our mothers or grandmothers — and I wanted to find some for my kids. Of course I had no luck, so I decided to figure out how to make them myself.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="0393jessnsmaplebush.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947546/large/0393jessnsmaplebush.jpg?1621205979" title="0393jessnsmaplebush.jpg"> <figcaption>Here is one of the hats I describe in the diary.</figcaption> </figure> <p>I dug up a children’s knitting book that I had put by some years before and taught myself to knit so that I could make the things I remembered my mother, grandmother and aunts knitting. (Yes, they had all tried to teach me when I was a girl, but I could not seem to get the knack back then. It was not as easy as they had made it look! haha And, it turns out I have a learning disability that made it even harder). But as an adult (with the book, which is how I learn best it turns out) I gradually managed to produce hats, mittens and a few sweaters for my daughters and son (very simple cable patterns working with one color of yarn), along with several layette sets for friends’ and family babies. </p> <p>Shortly before my twins were born, I had just finished a project which was a big leap forward for me; a sweater jacket for my 3 year old son — also my first attempt at fair isle stranded color work. It was a smart little jacket with an Iceland - inspired pattern, in grey, white and royal blue. I was really proud of that sweater and he wore it a lot! I was eager to knit similar sweaters for the girls. My plan was to knit all of the children Icelandic style sweaters after the babies arrived and life settled into a routine.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-left"><img alt="sweater.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947550/large/sweater.jpeg?1621206563" title="sweater.jpeg"> <figcaption>Unfortunately this blurry photo is the only one I could find of the first colorwork sweater I ever knitted. He wore it a lot but sadly I did not take many photos of him in it!</figcaption> </figure> <p>My twins arrived very early but thankfully in relatively good health. Between time spent at NICU and back at home getting back into a routine, I put my knitting aside with every intention of taking it up again when life settled back down. Oh, the best laid plans! 🤣 — I didn’t touch a set of needles again for nearly 25 years!</p> <p>So, here I am 25 years later and at last I am going to attempt to fulfill that dream of knitting Icelandic style sweaters for all of my (now grown!) children in time for next winter. That is 5 sweaters in just over 6 months. Seems like a doable goal! 🤪Sure, I’m a slow, decidedly inexpert knitter, but what I lack in expertise, I more than make up in enthusiasm!</p> <p>So, here we go! There are two sweaters already nearly complete, but I was relearning skills on both of them and also the sizing is a bit off for my kids (I will have to adjust sleeve length from the pattern every time, which is all new to me, too). I will donate the practice sweaters. The sizing will work for most people, I think. Just not long enough for my tall, long-limbed offspring.</p> <p><strong>The first sweater:</strong> I had to do a lot of learning on the first one after 25 years hiatus. In fact, I knitted a toddler’s sweater in a two color snowflake pattern before starting these adult sized sweaters to re-learn basic stitches, tension, color work and seaming, as well as setting in a zipper. That sweater (pictured below) took me more than a month to complete, due to pulling the pieces out numerous times to correct errors. It was knit flat, back, two front sides, sleeves and collar all separately knitted then sewn together. The pockets were also knitted separately and sewn onto the front pieces. I knit sleeves and pockets side by side on 14-inch needles to ensure that I made them exactly mirror images of each other.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="IMG_7631.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947420/large/IMG_7631.jpg?1621190143" title="IMG_7631.jpg"> <figcaption>My first project after 25 years’ hiatus; don’t look too closely at those terrible seams! But it was a good smaller project to refresh a multitude of skills.</figcaption> </figure> <p>I actually started and pulled apart the first adult lopi sweater at least twice, too — once when I had gotten all the way up to the armpits! But the sizing wasn’t working out properly (way too big!), even though I checked my tension and adjusted needle sizes. My lack of experience meant I had to keep trying and correcting and learning as I went along. I decided to use that sweater as a learning model and played around with needles and sizing a fair bit, while taking notes to follow later.</p> <p>Eventually I finished it (except for sewing up the seams) and I was mostly pleased with it, but am pretty sure the sleeves are too short for the son I originally chose those colors and pattern for. The reason being, when I got up to the armpits the second time, I thought the sweater was now going to be <em>too small</em> for him. But I had pulled it out so many times by then, I was afraid the yarn was going to be stretched beyond saving if I pulled it out anymore, so I knitted the sleeves a little shorter, intending to keep the sweater for myself and knit him a new one . Surprise! In the end, the body turned out the correct size for a man, but now I had shorter sleeves and not enough yarn left to reknit the sleeves, so I’ve given up on that sweater for my family, although it will fit an average built man quite well, I think (that is one of the sweaters I will donate). I learned a lot and think I can adjust the pattern for my own (long-armed!) family now. So back to the drawing board!</p> <h4>Here is sweater #1 in progress: </h4> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7654.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947413/large/IMG_7654.jpg?1621188781" title="IMG_7654.jpg"> <figcaption>For the ribbed waistband (and the ribbed wrist bands on the sleeves), I used a tubular 1x1 rib cast on, following directions in <a href="https://bookshop.org/books/cast-on-bind-off-54-step-by-step-methods/9781603427241">this book</a>, and watching these videos: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daebO9c5qDo">Suzanne Bryan</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfdPx7tl-cs&t=282s">Roxanne Richardson</a>.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>The tubular cast on was a revelation to me, as I had not yet learned it when I was knitting 25+ years ago. However, in this new internet age, I was able to access information resources that I had no idea existed until I started googling questions. I came across the tubular cast on videos while googling how to use DPNs, and was so amazed and impressed that I instantly decided to pull out the started project and begin again with a tubular cast on edge.</p> <p>The <strong>tubular cast on edge</strong> is basically 4 rows of double knitting beginning with a crochet cast on of provisional stitches using waste yarn. The 4 rows of double knitting, results in two finished rows that roll over with an smooth, soft, super stretchy finish that makes it look like the knitting doesn’t have a cast on edge. Sort of like the illusion of an infinity pool. It just rolls right over to the inside of the garment and you can’t see where it begins or ends. It’s beautiful!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7659.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947412/large/IMG_7659.jpg?1621188781" title="IMG_7659.jpg"> <figcaption>Loved how this pattern looked knitted up!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7660.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947415/large/IMG_7660.jpg?1621188782" title="IMG_7660.jpg"> <figcaption>So far, so good. It seemed like the size would be slim but big enough, at this point.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>Uh-oh...</h4> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="63699693258__A1C2B6DD-B6A9-47DD-BBD3-42F81C45167A.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947432/large/63699693258__A1C2B6DD-B6A9-47DD-BBD3-42F81C45167A.jpg?1621192227" title="63699693258__A1C2B6DD-B6A9-47DD-BBD3-42F81C45167A.jpg"> <figcaption>I got up to the armpits (no picture, sorry) and realized the sweater was ENORMOUS!<br> My son and a friend could fit inside! So I unraveled the whole thing (trying not to cry<br> the whole time) and started all over, using these balls I made from the unraveled<br> work, and the next size down in the pattern.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="63751825613__3AB1F1E0-4772-47D1-81C7-C26776B7458C.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947414/large/63751825613__3AB1F1E0-4772-47D1-81C7-C26776B7458C.jpg?1621188781" title="63751825613__3AB1F1E0-4772-47D1-81C7-C26776B7458C.jpg"> <figcaption>When it came time to do the sleeves. I was stumped. I’d only ever knitted sleeves flat, <br> and my efforts using DPNs were a total failure. I consulted the masters of YouTube again, tried several other suggestions (magic loop, two circular needles) with slow progress. <br> Then, HOORAY! I found a blog where the writer said bluntly — “I always knit sleeves flat no matter if the pattern calls for knitting them in the round, and then sew the seams”.<br> I decided to do that, too.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="63804757698__F3E370BF-48AC-4E04-98EE-2FD0CA1729A9.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947418/large/63804757698__F3E370BF-48AC-4E04-98EE-2FD0CA1729A9.jpg?1621188782" title="63804757698__F3E370BF-48AC-4E04-98EE-2FD0CA1729A9.jpg"> <figcaption>Body and sleeves before joining. The body was knitted in the round on a 32 inch circular needle and the sleeves were knitted flat, at the same time, on a large circular needle.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>Unfortunately, I didn’t take any more photos of this sweater in progress, but here is the almost finished product:</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7700.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/945398/large/IMG_7700.jpg?1620615480" title="IMG_7700.jpg"> <figcaption>Underarm seams still need to be sewn, but the body is all closed in a seamless round. I used a tubular bind off for the neck that matches the 1x1 tubular rib I used at the waist and wrists.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>Sweater #2</h4> <p>After finishing the size M blue/grey sweater using Icelandic Alafosslopi wool, I had no more lopi wool, so I decided to use a US yarn called Lamb’s Pride. This yarn is a mix of wool and mohair and has a similar warmth and bulkiness profile to Alafosslopi, without the itchiness that some people find with lopi (not me, I quite like lopi, but people with sensitive skin might prefer something like Lamb’s Pride or even a softer yarn).</p> <p>Once again, I had to learn through trial and error. even though this yarn was described as being an ideal substitute for lopi wool, I soon realized that it actually knits up a bit smaller than lopi. Lopi seems to stretch out a bit as you knit, whereas the Lamb’s Pride does not. Also the appearance of the stitches with Lamb’s Pride is just beautiful in uniformity and texture. I really like it.</p> <p>BUT! Using my notes from what I learned with the blue sweater about sizing (and not yet having learned that the Lamb’s Pride is not an exact substitute for the Alafosslopi), I began the brown sweater in a size M. Once again, I got up to the armpits before I realized YIKES! SIZING ISN’T AS I EXPECTED! It was much smaller than the blue size M in lopi. So, once again, I unraveled half a sweater and started again in Size L, but because I was uneasy about going up an entire size, I split the difference and used slightly smaller needles than I had with the blue one (yes, I had copious notes, and I had gone UP a needle size on the blue one due to my tight knitting tension — but don’t worry I had all the notes 😁). I hoped the larger size using slightly smaller needle size would come out just right. Haha So much trial and error! 😂 I must enjoy it because I do it A LOT!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7692.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947429/large/IMG_7692.jpg?1621192224" title="IMG_7692.jpg"> <figcaption>The brown sweater reminded me straight away of chocolate cake with mocha icing. <br> This photo shows the lovely tubular cast on edge.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7711.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947437/large/IMG_7711.jpg?1621192224" title="IMG_7711.jpg"> <figcaption>Behold the lovely even texture that this Lamb’s Pride yarn creates. </figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7789.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947431/large/IMG_7789.jpg?1621192224" title="IMG_7789.jpg"> <figcaption>Once again, I knitted the sleeves flat on one big circular needle, and then joined the flat needles to the tube body, with the plan to sew underarm sleeves at the end of the project.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7826.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947440/large/IMG_7826.jpg?1621192298" title="IMG_7826.jpg"> <figcaption>By the way, here is what Fair Isle stranded colorwork looks like on the underside. It’s just as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside, in my opinion! </figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7799.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947433/large/IMG_7799.jpg?1621192224" title="IMG_7799.jpg"> <figcaption>Nearing the finish line...</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7868.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947436/large/IMG_7868.jpg?1621192224" title="IMG_7868.jpg"> <figcaption>Almost all knitted (just need to finish that last row of the tubular bind off (which I did not have time to complete before running up against today’s writing deadline), and then sew the arm seams.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7867.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947438/large/IMG_7867.jpg?1621192225" title="IMG_7867.jpg"> <figcaption>Here it is laid flat (not yet blocked — but just look at the beautiful even, flat stitching that is already achieved with this yarn. I am planning to make the rest of the sweaters in this yarn!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>In conclusion:</h4> <p>This project has been so much fun so far! I like learning new things and this project is going to teach me a lot of new things! 😅 I’m going to use a few different patterns so that not all of the sweaters look the same. Looking forward to the next one!</p> <p>Thank you for reading and here is your bonus photo of Curlygirl modeling the blue Alafosslopi sweater (sleeves still not seamed, haha!):</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="large.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/947441/large/large.jpg?1621192323" title="large.jpg"> <figcaption>     Um…. really, Mama? 😏😁😄</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) crafting FairIsleColorWork FairIsleTechnique IcelandicSweaters Knitting WAYWO Whatareyouworkingon _2029755 Sun, 16 May 2021 23:00:13 +0000 An Eventful Day Ahead - May 12 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/5/12/2029598/-An-Eventful-Day-Ahead-May-12-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies! I don’t usually write my introduction until just before I finish the diary (which explains some of them, haha) but today I want to get this out there before I forget, so here’s the introduction!</p> <p>One way to eliminate the gloom/doom cycle from your life (besides the GNR, which you read every day, right? 😃), is to make your local newspaper a daily habit.</p> <p>For about the price of a Starbucks each day (and less, in many places), a local newspaper could be delivered to your doorstep in time for your morning cuppa (which, come on, use a french press and spend the $ you save supporting journalism!). A newspaper is full of stuff you just can’t get from the endless cycle of 2-3 overhyped “stories” on cable news, nor from even the network nightly hard news telecasts. </p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="WorldNewspapersBlackcoffeemug.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/877246/large/WorldNewspapersBlackcoffeemug.jpg?1604269583" title="WorldNewspapersBlackcoffeemug.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Newspapers have world news, national news and local news. You will read about what’s going on in the Middle East, but also what’s going on in the east end of your own town, county or state. They have birth and death notices, human interest stories, culture, arts, history and food. Stories about local festivals, local businesses, special events, proud native sons and daughters. </p> <p>You read the paper and you feel like you know your community a little better. There’s time and space to go more in depth into stories, and yet for all the extra words, newspapers are less jarring than TV or twitter. And bonus! Usually there are also puzzles, comics and a horoscope! Newspapers are fun and informative!</p> <p>And if you subscribe to the print edition (provided your area still has one — I hope your area still has one!), then you not only can support local journalism, but also support a job for the delivery person.</p> <p>So, here’s my main point:</p> <p>PLEASE BUY YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER!</p> <p>It will be good for YOU as well as your community. If you don’t have a local paper anymore, consider picking one or two from other cities and towns and subscribe to them online. Your $10-$20 spent for an online subscription can help keep a good paper afloat. And that’s really important.</p> <p>Now, on to the Good News Roundup! (but first, by special request...)</p> <h3>🎶🎵 Music for arhpdx 🎶 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=D-7vSmTxAno" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/D-7vSmTxAno" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🗽Democratic Governance is Good for Democracy 🗽</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We&amp;#39;re moving forward on the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ForThePeopleAct&lt;/a&gt; to&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Nullify voter suppression laws&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Protect voting&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Automatically register American voters when they get a driver’s license&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Guarantee 15 continuous days early voting&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;End partisan gerrymandering&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Bring transparency to campaign finance &lt;a href="https://t.co/LBwk8nQvYq"&gt;pic.twitter.com/LBwk8nQvYq&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/1392174855961862144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We're moving forward on the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForThePeopleAct</a> to<br><br>Nullify voter suppression laws<br><br>Protect voting<br><br>Automatically register American voters when they get a driver’s license<br><br>Guarantee 15 continuous days early voting<br><br>End partisan gerrymandering<br><br>Bring transparency to campaign finance <a href="https://t.co/LBwk8nQvYq">pic.twitter.com/LBwk8nQvYq</a></p>— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/1392174855961862144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Citizens should not be required to opt-in to their fundamental right to vote. We do not have to opt-in to other rights, such as free speech or due process. The right to vote should be no different. That&amp;#39;s one of many reasons why we need to pass the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ForThePeopleAct&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;— Senator Alex Padilla (@SenAlexPadilla) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenAlexPadilla/status/1392155437185839105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Citizens should not be required to opt-in to their fundamental right to vote. We do not have to opt-in to other rights, such as free speech or due process. The right to vote should be no different. That's one of many reasons why we need to pass the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForThePeopleAct?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForThePeopleAct</a>.</p>— Senator Alex Padilla (@SenAlexPadilla) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenAlexPadilla/status/1392155437185839105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Thank Goodness Republicans are not just evil, but incompetent too!</h4> <p>Poor planning and sloppy wording (IOW: incompetence) means that Republican attempts to exclude anyone they don’t like from benefiting from last years’ Covid relief package mostly fail. When cruel intentions are thwarted due to poor evil plan execution, that’s a win for everyone!</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/us/politics/undocumented-students-pandemic-aid.html" target="_blank">The White House will allow undocumented college students access to emergency pandemic aid</a>. Katie Rogers, New York Times, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Biden administration said early Tuesday that it would issue a regulation allowing undocumented students access to some of the $36 billion in emergency stimulus aid flowing to colleges, a split from a Trump-era decision to bar those students — even among the federally protected ones known as Dreamers — from accessing earlier rounds of funding. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>The decision is a 180-degree pivot from attempts made by Trump administration officials to block most immigrant students from accessing aid. Last June, Betsy DeVos, the education secretary for Donald J. Trump, issued an<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/06/17/2020-12965/eligibility-of-students-at-institutions-of-higher-education-for-funds-under-the-coronavirus-aid" target="_blank">emergency rule</a><span><span> </span>that barred international and undocumented students — including tens of thousands of so-called Dreamers protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program —<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/coronavirus-funds-colleges-dreamers.html">from accessing an earlier round of more than $6 billion in emergency relief funds</a><span>. That decision was quickly<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/06/12/devos-rule-formally-limits-emergency-student-aid-grants" target="_blank">met by legal challenges</a><span>. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>On Monday evening, a spokeswoman with the Education Department, who was not authorized to publicly detail the planning, said that the administration had the authority to disperse funds to undocumented students through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund established as part of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act that former President Trump signed in March of last year, and that Congress had “not drawn sharp lines around who is a student” when determining who could receive money from that fund.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌱 Democratic Governance is Good News for the Environment 🌱</h3> <h4>Here’s an idea, how about we call it the green new deal? 😁</h4> <p>Please do go to the NPR link for that story about the CCC — there is way more about the history and amazing accomplishments of the original CCC that really made me feel excited and hopeful about President Biden’s revival of the idea as a way to tackle several problems head on — with the global climate crisis at the center.</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/993976948/reaching-back-to-the-new-deal-biden-proposes-a-civilian-climate-corps" target="_blank">Reaching Back To The New Deal, Biden Proposes A Civilian Climate Corps</a>, Nathan Rott and Scott Detrow, NPR, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">It's a tough time to be a young person. COVID-19 has<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/16/986927761/dispatches-from-quarantine-how-young-people-are-documenting-history">robbed many of them</a><span> </span>of experiences and plans. Their unemployment rate<span> </span><a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/217448/seasonally-adjusted-monthly-youth-unemployment-rate-in-the-us/">remains high</a>. College enrollment<a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/02/983726230/colleges-get-creative-to-reach-students-after-enrollment-plummets-due-to-covid-1"><span> </span>is down</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">To address those concerns and bolster the country's preparedness for a warming world, President Biden wants to retool and relaunch one of the country's most celebrated government programs: the Civilian Conservation Corps. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">A part of Biden's American Jobs Plan calls for $10 billion to launch a new large-scale 21st century CCC to combat<span> </span></span><em>the<span> </span></em><span style="text-align:start">21st century problem. The Civilian Climate Corps, as it would be called, would employ thousands of young people to address the threat of climate change, strengthen the country's natural defenses and maintain its ailing public lands. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Biden is the most unapologetic, big-government Democratic president in decades. It's a stance supported by an array of circumstances: the enormity of the pandemic; former President Donald Trump's embrace of big spending projects and deficit-funded tax cuts; and a progressive shift within the Democratic Party.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>We knew Deb Haaland was Going to be great</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/05/11/interior-department-approves-first-large-scale-offshore-wind-farm-us/" target="_blank">Interior Department approves first large-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S.</a>, Joshua Partlow, Washington Post, May 11, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>The Biden administration on Tuesday approved the first large-scale offshore wind farm in the United States, a project that envisions building 62 turbines off Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts and creating enough electricity to power 400,000 homes.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Vineyard Wind is the first of several massive offshore wind-farm proposals that could put more than 3,000 wind turbines in the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to North Carolina. The Biden administration has committed to processing the other 13 projects under federal review by 2025 in an attempt to meet the administration’s ambitious goal of producing 30,000 megawatts of electricity from offshore wind by 2030, powering some 10 million homes. ✂️</p> <p><span>“I believe that a clean-energy future is within our grasp in the United States,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a conference call Tuesday, describing the approval of Vineyard Wind as “a significant milestone in our efforts to build a clean and more equitable energy future while addressing the climate emergency.”</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>💉 Democratic Governance is Good for Healthcare 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/aca-healthcare-gov-enrollment-1-million-covid_n_6099e922e4b03e1dd3802286" target="_blank">More Than 1 Million Have Signed Up For Coverage At HealthCare.Gov This Year</a>, Jonathan Cohn, HuffPost, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>HealthCare.gov</span><span>, the federally run online marketplace for people buying insurance on their own, exists because of the </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/affordable-care-act" target="_blank">Affordable Care Act</a><span>. In a prepared statement announcing the 1 million figure on Tuesday morning, Biden hailed the news as more proof that the health care law, also known as Obamacare, has become a “lifeline” during the coronavirus pandemic. ✂️</span></p> <div> <p>The Affordable Care Act is working better these days and reaching more people because it has both a president who wants it to succeed and a Congress eager to reinforce the program through legislation. ✂️</p> <p><span>But Biden did more than simply give people extra time to enroll. He also worked with Democrats in Congress to craft and then enact the </span><a href="https://www.kff.org/health-reform/issue-brief/how-the-american-rescue-plan-act-affects-subsidies-for-marketplace-shoppers-and-people-who-are-uninsured/" target="_blank">American Rescue Plan</a><span>. That law, which Biden signed in March, substantially increased the financial assistance to people buying coverage at </span><span>HealthCare.gov</span><span>.</span></p> <p><span>The law also made the assistance more widely available by eliminating a rule limiting it to people with incomes of less than four times the </span><a href="https://aspe.hhs.gov/2021-poverty-guidelines" target="_blank">poverty line</a><span>. That works out to about $106,000 a year for a family of four.</span></p> </div> <div></div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/22423098/covid-19-vaccine-coronavirus-protection-herd-immunity" target="_blank">Got the vaccine? Experts say you can relax about your Covid-19 risk now. Really.</a> German Lopez, Vox, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">They were nearly unanimous in their response: They’re no longer worried much, if at all, about their personal risk of getting Covid-19. Several spoke of going into restaurants and movie theaters now that they’re vaccinated, socializing with friends and family, and having older relatives visit for extended periods.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I’m not particularly worried about getting ill myself,” Tara Smith, an epidemiologist at Kent State University, told me. “I know that if I do somehow end up infected, my chances of developing serious symptoms are low.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Instead, experts said they mostly remain cautious to protect others who aren’t yet vaccinated. The vaccines are extremely effective — dramatically cutting the risk of any symptoms, and driving the risk of hospitalization and death to nearly zero. There’s<span> </span><a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/22291959/covid-vaccines-transmission-protect-spread-virus-moderna-pfizer">some</a><span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/p0329-COVID-19-Vaccines.html">evidence</a><span> </span>that these vaccines also reduce the risk of transmission, but we’re still learning how much they prevent someone who is vaccinated from infecting another person. When experts are still taking precautions, it’s this concern for others that primarily drives them.</p> <p style="text-align:start">But, over time, they see even those concerns for others becoming less necessary, too.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: President Biden announces on call with governors that Uber and Lyft will offer free rides to and from vaccination sites from May 24th to July 4th.&lt;/p&gt;— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/status/1392168426228039680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEWS: President Biden announces on call with governors that Uber and Lyft will offer free rides to and from vaccination sites from May 24th to July 4th.</p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/status/1392168426228039680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/donuts-drop-offs-beyond-incentives-are-growing-to-get-shots-in-arms/" target="_blank">Donuts, Drop-Offs & Beyond: Incentives Are Growing to Get Shots in Arms</a>, Samantha Hawkins, Courthouse News, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">“We recognize in our country that zip code is still a stronger predictor of health than genetic code,” Nunez-Smith said. “So we anchor in location and place to make sure we are getting those resources to the hardest-hit and highest-risk communities.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Nunez-Smith said that the administration is setting up direct allocation to community health centers, and about 70% of vaccinations at the community health centers have been administered to people of color.</p> <p style="text-align:start">New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said the state has worked hard to make sure that their distribution was equity-focused through the use of data, walk-ins, pop-ups and mobile clinics. The state also set aside 25% of its vaccines at the very beginning to ensure equity-driven vaccine access.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Now, 70% of adults in all 23 sovereign nations in the state will be fully vaccinated before the July 4 goal.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶🎵 Music For Vaccinated People 🎵🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=yfsmmk93H3I" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yfsmmk93H3I" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Democratic Governance is Good for Families</h3> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/22421462/american-families-plan-to-expand-paid-leave-joe-biden-richard-neal" target="_blank">How Biden could expand paid family leave to more Americans</a>, Gregory Svirnovskiy, Vox, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">President Joe Biden recently unveiled his<span> </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/28/fact-sheet-the-american-families-plan/">American Families Plan</a>, a $1.8 trillion proposal that, among other things, would provide 12 weeks of paid leave to workers caring for new children or a sick family member. Perhaps as important, the proposal could also fundamentally change how the US government defines “family.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The current law of the land is the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), from 1993, which requires large employers to allow workers to take leave for qualified family or medical reasons, but does not require that employees be paid during the time off. And not everyone can take advantage of it. When it comes to unpaid leave, the federal government’s current definition of who counts as family is tied pretty closely to the idea of a nuclear one: married partners and children under the age of 18. That leaves out a massive percentage of the population;<span> </span><a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbtq-rights/news/2021/02/16/495680/making-case-chosen-family-paid-family-medical-leave-policies/">just 18.4 percent of Americans live in traditional nuclear-family households</a>. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The American Families Plan currently does not explicitly include chosen and extended family in its paid leave protections, but it does say access will be expanded. As Sherry Leiwant and Jared Make, the leaders of A Better Balance, a paid family leave and reduced-cost child care programs advocacy group, told Vox, it will be up to groups like theirs to push lawmakers to ensure inclusivity in the congressional version of the plan. Any bill that extends who can take leave to care for loved ones could have massive implications; reframing how the federal government conceives of family could help level the economic playing field. Rep. Richard Neal’s (D-MA) Building an Economy for Families Act, a far more detailed paid leave plan introduced at the end of April, is another example.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/newsom-calls-for-record-12-billion-to-combat-homelessness-in-california/" target="_blank">Newsom Calls for Record $12 Billion to Combat Homelessness in California</a>, Nick Cahill, Courthouse News, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Under the plan, to be included in the governor’s overreaching revised budget proposal due on Friday, California would spend $8.75 billion to “unlock” 46,000 housing units. The money essentially builds on two projects implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic in which the state reimburses local agencies for securing temporary motel rooms or converting vacant property into affordable housing.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Coined Project Roomkey and Homekey, Newsom’s office says the emergency plans provided shelter to 36,000 Californians and created 6,000 permanent housing units during the pandemic.  ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">Broken down broadly among California’s estimated unhoused population of 161,000, the package amounts to over $74,000 per homeless resident. Newsom said the $12 billion would be spent over two years and could eventually provide over 300,000 people with either shelter or rent stability.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Unlike past approaches, Newsom says his new proposal will be laden with benchmarks and metrics for cities to meet. He promised a more aggressive approach going forward in terms of building housing and combatting homelessness.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“As governor, I actually want to get something done. I don’t want to talk about this for a decade,” Newsom continued.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW LA TIMES/UC BERKELEY POLL: The campaign to recall &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GavinNewsom?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GavinNewsom&lt;/a&gt; has failed to gain momentum in recent months and only anemic support has surfaced for &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Caitlyn_Jenner?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Caitlyn_Jenner&lt;/a&gt; while other Republican candidates struggle for backing &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/philwillon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@philwillon&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/XSlvArLKJY"&gt;https://t.co/XSlvArLKJY&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Mark Z. Barabak (@markzbarabak) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/markzbarabak/status/1392106282224537603?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW LA TIMES/UC BERKELEY POLL: The campaign to recall <a href="https://twitter.com/GavinNewsom?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GavinNewsom</a> has failed to gain momentum in recent months and only anemic support has surfaced for <a href="https://twitter.com/Caitlyn_Jenner?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Caitlyn_Jenner</a> while other Republican candidates struggle for backing <a href="https://twitter.com/philwillon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@philwillon</a> <a href="https://t.co/XSlvArLKJY">https://t.co/XSlvArLKJY</a></p>— Mark Z. Barabak (@markzbarabak) <a href="https://twitter.com/markzbarabak/status/1392106282224537603?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>Republicans in Disarray</h3> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/liz-cheney-republicans/">'The tent is about to collapse': CNN's Erin Burnett details warnings from inside GOP about Cheney ouster</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, May 10, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="GOP's "Big" Tent - Cranky old wealthy white guys only need apply" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/871867/large/gops-big-tent.jpg?1603226917" title="GOP's "Big" Tent - Cranky old wealthy white guys only need apply"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>"In an irony, McCarthy writing to his Republican colleagues tonight," wrote Burnett. "I quote him: 'We are a big tent party and unlike the left, we embrace free thought and debate.' Let's talk about this. McCarthy is kicking out Cheney for having a different opinion. He says it is for a big tent party that embraces free thought and debate. Liz Cheney says the election was free and fair and Trump is responsible for what happened on January 6th. These are facts, and as a point of fact, once upon a time, Cheney and McCarthy agreed on facts on the crucial points of January 6th."</p> <p>"The president bears responsibility on the January 6th insurrection," said McCarthy in an<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/trump-impeachment-effort-live-updates/2021/01/13/956452691/gop-leader-mccarthy-trump-bears-responsibility-for-violence-wont-vote-to-impeach" target="_blank">older clip</a>. ✂️</p> <p><span>"Because of all that tonight, some in the GOP are warning the tent is about to collapse," continued Burnett. "Republican Senator Mitt Romney tweeting today, quote, "Expelling Liz Cheney from leadership won't gain the GOP one additional voter, but it will cost us quite a few." Pretty simple words of wisdom, right? ... Then there's Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who like Cheney voted to impeach Trump, saying that Cheney is being pushed out for one reason only: a refusal to lie like Trump and McCarthy are doing."</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Cheney will almost certainly be Ousted Today</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rep-liz-cheney-on-eve-of-expected-ouster-i-wont-stop-talking-about-trumps-lies?ref=scroll" target="_blank">Rep. Liz Cheney on Eve of Expected Ouster: I Won’t Stop Talking About Trump’s Lies</a>, Blake Montgomery, Daily Beast, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Cheney faces a near-certain ouster from congressional leadership on Wednesday, in which she serves as conference chair. She cast the stripping of her post as an inflection point for the Republican Party, which on the whole remains loyal to the twice-impeached president, who has repeatedly claimed that the 2020 vote was rife with fraud, despite no evidence ever emerging to support this claim, and several courts throwing out lawsuits making such allegations.</p> <p>“Remaining silent and ignoring the lie emboldens the liar,” Cheney continued. “I will not participate in that. I will not sit back and watch in silence while others lead our party down a path that abandons the rule of law and joins the former president’s crusade to undermine our democracy. Our election was not stolen, and America has not failed.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>100 Prominent Republicans Ready to Form a New Party</h4> <p>Perhaps Liz Cheney’s headline-getting, futile speech last night (attended by only one of her fellow House Republicans (Ken Buck, R-CO) was more about the future than the past. Her unwavering denunciation of the big lie has been pointed to as principled leadership by many pols. Perhaps, she will lead a future (<em>not GOP)</em> conservative party:</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/rationals-vs-radicals-anti-trump-republicans-threaten-third-party-2021-05-11/" target="_blank">‘Rationals’ vs. ‘radicals’: Anti-Trump Republicans threaten third party</a>, Tim Reid, Reuters, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="whigs.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/254068/large/whigs.jpg?1463871425" title="whigs.jpg"> <figcaption>With any luck, the Rs will be like the whigs...</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Over 100 former Republican officials will sign a letter on Thursday declaring that if the Republican Party does not break with former President Donald Trump and change course, they will back the creation of a third party.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The letter, headlined: "A Call For American Renewal," is an exploratory move toward forming a breakaway party, two of its organizers said. The group is dismayed by what it says is a modern Republican Party driven by its allegiance to Trump, who continues to falsely claim the 2020 election was stolen from him. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">House Republicans are expected<span> </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/top-house-republican-says-he-will-back-stefanik-not-trump-critic-cheney-2021-05-09" target="_blank">on Wednesday</a><span> </span>to oust Representative Liz Cheney from her No. 3 party leadership position within the chamber, because of her refusal to embrace Trump's election claims and her move to back Trump's second impeachment after the Capitol riot.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The letter signatories, who include former ambassadors, governors, congressional members and Cabinet secretaries, want the Republican Party to return to "principled" leadership and reject division and conspiracy theories, or face a new party dedicated to fighting for Republicans such as Cheney and against fearmongering and lies.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Please Proceed</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-gops-suicide-squad-isnt-going-to-stop-with-liz-cheney?ref=home" target="_blank">The GOP’s Suicide Squad Isn’t Going to Stop With Liz Cheney</a>, Matt Lewis, Daily Beast, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="clown-car.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/431169/large/clown-car.jpg?1501597201" title="clown-car.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>“A Republican Party that does not have room for a principled conservative like Liz Cheney does not have room for many of us,”<span> </span><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/if-republicans-purge-liz-cheney-theyre-purging-many-us-voters-along-her-opinion-1589731">writes Jonathan Frank</a>, a former Republican congressional aide. “In scheming to overthrow her, House Republicans are sending a clear message that support for the former President’s policies is not enough. Meeting the new and ever-changing definition of a true Republican requires one to accept and parrot Trump’s every claim, the truth and the rule of law notwithstanding.”</p> <p>Indeed, it’s symbolic that Trumpists seek to purge such legacy names like Cheney and Romney. They are symbolic of the larger purge of millions of Americans who once proudly supported that Republican Party.</p> <p>Experience has taught us that logic rarely explains our behavior, and that cults sometimes commit mass suicide. The big GOP circus tent is shrinking down to the size of a clown car. And Republican leaders are evicting anyone who’s not willing to drive it over a cliff.</p> </blockquote> <p>👁Keep one eye on the House tomorrow after the ouster vote. Word is that Rep Adam Kinzinger may make an announcement (potentially regarding forming a new party), if Cheney is indeed booted out of House leadership).</p> <h3>🎵🎶 Music for Clown Cars 🎶🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=xdd5pn1xs7M" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xdd5pn1xs7M" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖️ Justice ⚖️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/995835333/in-ahmaud-arberys-name-georgia-repeals-citizens-arrest-law" target="_blank">In Ahmaud Arbery's Name, Georgia Repeals Citizen's Arrest Law</a>, Emma Hurt, Npr, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">About a year after the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery became national news, and nearly 15 months after he was shot while jogging down a Brunswick street, Georgia has repealed the vague law that is being used to defend the men in jail for his murder. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The vague law, which allowed any citizen to "arrest" another if a crime is committed "within his immediate knowledge," has been replaced with<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/59726">specific language</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>to provide for citizen detainment in very specific circumstances, to include shopkeepers who witness shoplifters and restaurant owners and employees who witness "dine and dash" customers. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">This is the second Georgia law to change in a bipartisan manner in the wake of Arbery's death. The General Assembly<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wabe.org/georgias-kemp-signs-hate-crimes-law-after-outcry-over-death/">passed</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>a stalled hate crimes statute last summer in Arbery's name.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>NRA stunt to avoid NY AG James Fails</h4> <p>The Texas judge described details about the NRA that came out during the trial “cringeworthy”, and although he dismissed the case without prejudice (meaning the NRA could file for bankruptcy again), he also said that due to the shocking way the first bankruptcy was filed without following proper decision train procedures, a trustee would need to be appointed to “oversee its affairs” if they seek CHapter 11 bankruptcy again. Do we think the NRA wants an independent trustee in charge of overseeing them and potentially having access to all their secrets? I bet the answer is “No”, so the judge may have effectively shut down any further legal shenanigans.</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-bankruptcy-judge-rejects-nra-bid-reorganize-texas-2021-05-11/" target="_blank">U.S. judge tosses NRA bankruptcy bid, letting New York seek dissolution</a>, Maria Chutchian and Jonathan Stempel, Reuters, May 11, 2021. </p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="nra11.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/752325/large/nra11.jpg?1577743795" title="nra11.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">A federal judge in Dallas ruled on Tuesday that the National Rifle Association cannot use bankruptcy to reorganize in gun-friendly Texas, a serious blow to the gun rights group's effort to avoid a lawsuit in New York seeking its dissolution.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Harlin Hale said the NRA did not file for Chapter 11 in good faith, but instead filed to avoid oversight by New York Attorney General Letitia James and gain an "unfair litigation advantage" over her. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">"Excluding so many people from the process of deciding to file for bankruptcy, including the vast majority of the board of directors, the chief financial officer and the general counsel, is nothing less than shocking," Hale wrote. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Hale's dismissal is without prejudice, meaning the NRA can file for bankruptcy again, but the judge said management issues could require appointing a trustee to oversee its affairs if it sought Chapter 11 again.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/matt-gaetz-greenberg-plea-deal/">DOJ would never have offered a plea deal to pal of Matt Gaetz without info on the congressman: ex-prosecutor</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Tuesday, it was reported that a former intern-turned-girlfriend of Gaetz's and his former wingman were both interviewed by investigators. Speaking to MSNBC's Joy Reid on Tuesday, former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner explained that this wouldn't happen if they didn't already have proof.</p> <p>"This has the feel — when I heard the reporting about how the investigators are now going to a former girlfriend/Capitol Hill intern of Matt Gaetz, here's what that feels like to me: they have gotten everything they could get out of Joel Greenberg," he explained. "And it's really important to understand that the prosecutors never would have made a plea offer, a plea deal to Greenberg that, as you said, will be expiring this Saturday. So, he's got to let the court know what he's going to do. They never would have made him that plea offer unless they had debriefed him, interviewed him, investigated what he had to say about the criminal activity of others and they were able to corroborate it and potentially use it against other targets like Matt Gaetz."</p> <p>he went on to say that it should be clear what happens in the Greenberg case, but that to him it feels like they're approaching other witnesses involving Gaetz about incriminating information that prosecutors got from Greenberg.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/995836924/2-men-charged-with-assaulting-police-in-capitol-riot-ordered-jailed-pending-tria" target="_blank" title="">2 Men Charged With Assaulting Police In Capitol Riot Ordered Jailed Pending Trial</a>, Ryan Lucas, NPR, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Hogan ordered Khater and Tanios to remain in custody pending trial after finding that they pose a danger to the community. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">At Tuesday's hearing, Judge Hogan ticked through the events at issue in the case. Hogan said the timeline and evidence supports the conclusion that Tanios and Khater timed their use of the chemical spray "to coincide with the other rioters' efforts to forcibly remove the bike rack barriers preventing the rioters from moving closer to the Capitol building."</p> <p style="text-align:start">"In other words," Hogan said, "they played a role in the ultimate breach in the attack on the Capitol."</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/09/965472049/the-capitol-siege-the-arrested-and-their-stories">More than 350 people have been charged</a><span> </span>so far in connection with the Capitol riot, and prosecutors have said at least 100 more could still face charges.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;IN COURT IN 15 MINUTES: Jonathan Munafo of Orlando, Fl. He&amp;#39;s accused of grabbing police riot shield &amp;amp; punching Capitol officer twice in the head on Jan 6.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Feds say they got their tip about Munafo in APRIL. The FBI tip line is still blowing up &lt;a href="https://t.co/XrY80NjrcM"&gt;pic.twitter.com/XrY80NjrcM&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1392174853583691784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>IN COURT IN 15 MINUTES: Jonathan Munafo of Orlando, Fl. He's accused of grabbing police riot shield & punching Capitol officer twice in the head on Jan 6.<br><br>Feds say they got their tip about Munafo in APRIL. The FBI tip line is still blowing up <a href="https://t.co/XrY80NjrcM">pic.twitter.com/XrY80NjrcM</a></p>— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1392174853583691784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-students-for-trump-founder-sentenced-20210511-ftba7yvdvzdi3oiblutg7pb7sa-story.html" target="_blank">Students for Trump founder John Lambert sentenced to 13 months for posing as lawyer</a>, Stephen Rex Brown, NY Daily News, May 10, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>A judge slammed the founder of Students for Trump as a “cold blooded fraudster” before sentencing him to 13 months in prison for posing as a lawyer.</span>✂️</p> <div> <div> <p>The baby-faced scammer from Tennessee admitted to running the racket from 2016 to 2018, which targeting people who had little or no experience seeking legal advice. Lambert earned at least $46,654 through legal advice he was totally unqualified to give. ✂️</p> </div> </div> <div> <p><span>Lambert grabbed headlines during the 2016 presidential campaign for the group he founded with classmate Ryan Fournier at Campbell University in Buies Creek, N.C., in 2015. Their Students for Trump group ran a Twitter account featuring photos of bikini-clad women and pics of themselves at political events. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>Lambert’s attorney, Gary Peters, said he was disappointed with the sentence. He added that Lambert no longer supported Trump.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>And remember: </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump faces 29 lawsuits and 3 criminal investigations that we know about. Tax returns reside at the Manhattan DA. His former attorney is cooperating. Another attorney had home/office raided. His inner circle ponders its next move. Nobody wants to flip first, but once one does ...&lt;/p&gt;— Duty To Warn 🔉 (@duty2warn) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/duty2warn/status/1392157138084974596?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump faces 29 lawsuits and 3 criminal investigations that we know about. Tax returns reside at the Manhattan DA. His former attorney is cooperating. Another attorney had home/office raided. His inner circle ponders its next move. Nobody wants to flip first, but once one does ...</p>— Duty To Warn 🔉 (@duty2warn) <a href="https://twitter.com/duty2warn/status/1392157138084974596?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/charges-against-trump/">Manhattan DA is signaling 'a good likelihood of a charge' coming against Trump: Preet Bharara</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>In an interview with Slate legal columnist Dhalia Lithwick, former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara claimed he is not privy to inside information into the multiple investigations launched against Donald Trump but that he does see "signals" from Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. that something is coming down the pike -- and<span> </span></span><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/05/preet-bharara-donald-trump-criminal-charges-rudy-giuliani-accountability.html" target="_blank">it is not good for the former president</a><span>. ✂️</span></p> <p>"The one that we know about most directly and most prominently is the one you mentioned, the Manhattan district attorney's investigation into Trump's finances and business dealings," the attorney replied. "I don't know because I've not been in the grand jury, I've not interviewed the witnesses. Cy Vance doesn't call me up and tell me stuff, but there is some signaling going on."</p> <p>"Cy Vance is not running for reelection. Vance is, as they say, a lame duck. As a lame duck, he's done certain things, including hiring an outside forensic accounting firm, which is not super unusual but it's not that common. He's done something else that is less common, which is hire an outside lawyer, Mark Pomerantz, who's a very distinguished, well-respected lawyer in New York," he elaborated. "I'm not going to put too much weight on it, but it seems like the kind of move you make when you believe that there's going to be a charge or there's a good likelihood of a charge, because it's a pretty public thing to do."</p> </blockquote> <p>Oh and this, too 👀</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump ordered McGahn to fire Mueller, he refused &amp;amp; Trump ordered him to write a memo saying it hadn&amp;#39;t happened. It&amp;#39;s one of the clearest cases of obstruction of justice in the Mueller Report. I testified about it in House Judic Comm if you need a refresher &lt;a href="https://t.co/2q9amAhsbe"&gt;https://t.co/2q9amAhsbe&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/ATJKOBpcXG"&gt;https://t.co/ATJKOBpcXG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoyceWhiteVance/status/1392276385578864641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 12, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump ordered McGahn to fire Mueller, he refused & Trump ordered him to write a memo saying it hadn't happened. It's one of the clearest cases of obstruction of justice in the Mueller Report. I testified about it in House Judic Comm if you need a refresher <a href="https://t.co/2q9amAhsbe">https://t.co/2q9amAhsbe</a> <a href="https://t.co/ATJKOBpcXG">https://t.co/ATJKOBpcXG</a></p>— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoyceWhiteVance/status/1392276385578864641?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 12, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>🎶 🎵 Music For Individuals 1, 2, 3... 🎵 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=z4PKzz81m5c" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/z4PKzz81m5c">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🔭 Perspective 🔭</h3> <p>As hard as it is to look past the vicious racism, sexism and authoritarianism of conservatives, we <em>can</em> find common ground, albeit with somewhat different goals. Gotta start somewhere!</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/11/995440428/why-support-for-refugees-is-higher-than-you-might-think-in-parts-of-trump-countr" target="_blank">Why Support For Refugees Is Higher Than You Might Think In Parts Of 'Trump Country'</a>, Kirk Siegler, NPR, May 11, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Idaho, Nebraska and North Dakota often<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/12/06/just-10-states-resettled-more-than-half-of-recent-refugees-to-u-s/">ranked at the top of the nation</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in per-capita refugee resettlement, before Trump dramatically reduced the annual caps in his<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2017/09/27/554046980/trump-administration-to-drop-refugee-cap-to-45-000-lowest-in-years">first year in office</a><span style="text-align:start">. These states also have some of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation and many employers are pointing to worsening labor shortages.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">For Pete Amador in Boise, this isn't just an economic crisis, however. It's also a humanitarian one. He hasn't liked the dramatic cuts in refugee resettlement. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">While demographics are changing, Idaho is still about<span> </span><a href="https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/ID">82% white</a>. When Amador first started hiring refugees a decade ago, there was skepticism among some of his clients. But that slowly evolved toward acceptance.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"In home care, we're dealing with elderly people who grew up in a different time with a different understanding, and we need to show a lot of patience and respect for that," Amador says. "It's been somewhat of a challenge, but also an honor to help be a part of them transition their way of thinking."</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;First, an 8-year-old homeless boy named Tani won the NYS chess championship.&lt;br&gt;Now, at 10, he just became the 28th-youngest person ever to become a chess master in the U.S.&lt;br&gt;The story we needed, by ⁦&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NickKristof?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@NickKristof&lt;/a&gt;⁩. &lt;a href="https://t.co/J10O7b3REA"&gt;https://t.co/J10O7b3REA&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Cliff Levy (@cliffordlevy) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/cliffordlevy/status/1391114838676578306?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 8, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>First, an 8-year-old homeless boy named Tani won the NYS chess championship.<br>Now, at 10, he just became the 28th-youngest person ever to become a chess master in the U.S.<br>The story we needed, by ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/NickKristof?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NickKristof</a>⁩. <a href="https://t.co/J10O7b3REA">https://t.co/J10O7b3REA</a></p>— Cliff Levy (@cliffordlevy) <a href="https://twitter.com/cliffordlevy/status/1391114838676578306?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/08/opinion/sunday/homeless-chess-champion-tani-adewumi.html?referringSource=articleShare" target="_blank" title="">Remember the Homeless Chess Champion? The Boy Is Now a Chess Master</a>. Nicholas Kristof, New York Times, May 8, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>I wrote a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/16/opinion/sunday/chess-champion-8-year-old-homeless-refugee-.html">couple</a><span><span> </span>of<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/23/opinion/sunday/homeless-chess-champion-tani.html">columns</a><span><span> </span>about Tani at that time, and readers responded by donating more than $250,000 to a GoFundMe campaign for Tani’s family, along with a year of free housing. It was heartwarming to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.pscp.tv/w/1ypKdvVDpmvJW" target="_blank">see Tani running around</a><span><span> </span>the family’s new apartment, but I wondered: Is this kid really that good?</span></p> <p>It turns out he is. This month, as a fifth grader, Tani cruised through an in-person tournament in Connecticut open to advanced players of all ages and won every game. He emerged with a chess rating of 2223,<span> </span><a href="https://new.uschess.org/news/tani-adewumi-national-master-age-10" target="_blank" title="">making him a national master</a>.</p> <p>At 10 years 7 months and 28 days, Tani became the 28th-youngest person ever to become a chess master in the United States, according to John Hartmann of U.S. Chess. Tani had one of the fastest rises, for he began playing chess only at the relatively late age of 7. And he’s aiming higher.</p> <p>“I want to be the youngest grandmaster,” he told me. “I want to have it when I’m 11 or 12.” The youngest person ever to become a grandmaster,<span> </span><a href="https://www.chess.com/article/view/youngest-chess-grandmasters" target="_blank">Sergey Karjakin</a>, achieved that honor at 12 years 7 months.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ NPR is 50 years old! <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/world-cafe/2021/05/03/992097225/nprs-50-favorite-songs-of-1971?utm_source=npr_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20210508&utm_term=5371646&utm_campaign=music&utm_id=36260643&orgid=286&utm_att1=" target="_blank">NPR's 50 Favorite Songs Of 1971</a></p> <p>⚡️ Post-pandemic (🤞) well-being: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/well/mind/pandemic-coronavirus-wellness-challenge.html?action=click&module=Editors%20Picks&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Need a Reset? The End of Pandemic Life Can Be a Fresh Start</a>. Tara Parker-Pope, New York Times, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Also, it’s <em>normal</em> to feel conflicted about resuming “normal” life, <em>Emma Green*</em>: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/uncomfortable-life-after-covid-19-vaccine_l_6088532de4b0b9042d8b2fc4" target="_blank">Why It Feels So Uncomfortable To Resume Your Life After Your Vaccine</a>, Julia Ries, HuffPost, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️LOL Get yer Wonkette here! <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/joe-biden-most-popular-joe-biden-in-history-of-joe-bidens" target="_blank">Joe Biden Most Popular Joe Biden In History Of Joe Bidens</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Demographics are complicated, man: <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/05/10/texas-population-boom-benefits-politics/" target="_blank">Texas’s population boom should be a boon to Democrats. But Republicans are reaping the gains</a>. Arelis R Hernandez and Griff Witte, Washington Post, May 11, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️Quick Overview with helpful illustration: </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/senate-seats-2022-midterm-elections-aa166e09-65e9-49be-a1f4-428c36a8dad0.html" target="_blank">By the numbers: Senate seats to watch in 2022</a>, Alayna Treene, Axios, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Longer read: beautifully written. It isn’t “good news” but it’s important to understand issues to resolve them: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/06/confederate-lost-cause-myth/618711/" target="_blank">Why Confederate Lies Live On</a>, Clint Smith, The Atlantic, May 10, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Courage: <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/buzzfeednews/this-19-year-old-activist-stood-up-to-russian-soldiers" target="_blank">19-Year-Old Olga Misik Defied Putin’s Soldiers. Here Is Her Brave Statement.</a> BuzzFeed News, May 10, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Useful information! <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/11/how-to-store-literally-every-dang-fruit-and-vegetable_partner/" target="_blank">How to store literally every dang fruit and vegetable</a>, Rebecca Firkser, Salon, February 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Bracing, funny, great read! <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/surviving-pandemic-motherhood-a-case-study-in-zero-fucks" target="_blank">Surviving Pandemic Motherhood: A Case Study in Zero Fucks</a>, Nayyera Haq, Daily Beast, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Not that there’s anything wrong with them! <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/scaachikoul/crocs-are-ugly" target="_blank">Why Are Crocs A Thing Again?</a> Scaachi Koul, BuzzFeed, May 11, 2021.</p> <p>* Emma Green penned the snotty screed I linked in last week’s GNR, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/05/liberals-covid-19-science-denial-lockdown/618780/" target="_blank">The Liberals Who Can’t Quit Lockdown</a>. Sorry about that. </p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another week. Remember, Gnusies, these terrible people are terrible but they are not all-powerful. We are the majority and even people who used to ignore politics are not as apt to ignore it these days. People who voted R without giving it much thought before are now giving it a lot of thought.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7797.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/945913/large/IMG_7797.jpg?1620793934" title="IMG_7797.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>We will probably have to endure the expiring ructions of the now totally devolved Republican fascist party — this is existential for them, so it’s hardly surprising that they may try anything to stay in power. That’s unsettling, but remember: they can try but we will prevent them from succeeding. </p> <p>You need to be as strong as you can be to ride out the sturm and drang of right wing extremism being routed. They won’t go quietly, but they’ll go. Get some rest, enjoy the respite of all the good news, the receding pandemic, the coming summer — and try not to let the sensational clickbait that passes for “news” drive you to distraction. Read your local newspaper. Get outdoors every day if you can. Eat nutritious food. Take care of yourself and those you love.</p> <p>I’m glad to be living through these eventful times with all of you!</p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=cH2PH0auTUU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cH2PH0auTUU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) ChuckSchumer Congress ForThePeopleAct GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden LizCheney Politics Recommended _2029598 Wed, 12 May 2021 11:00:04 +0000 Joe's 2nd Hundred Days Will Be Even Better! - Wednesday Good News RoundUp https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/5/5/2028034/-Joe-s-2nd-Hundred-Days-Will-Be-Even-Better-Wednesday-Good-News-RoundUp <p>Greetings, Gnusies and Happy Wednesday! Joe Biden’s second 100 days are well underway and the brisk pace of progress continues unabated.</p> <p>Follow the news these days and we see item after item being tackled from the long list of concerns, worries and outright disasters caused by the previous administration: covid-19 vaccinations, pandemic relief, climate crisis, immigration, infrastructure, judicial appointments, voting rights, tax reform and lots more. Joe, Kamala, Nancy, Chuck and all of our competent Democratic representatives, senators and Biden administration hit the ground running in January, fully prepared not just to repair the damage wrought by 4 horrific years, but to right the ship of state that has been slowly sinking under cruel Republican policies for decades.</p> <p>Over the next weeks and months, we can expect to see a lot more of this: progress and the enthusiastic and unapologetic championing of working Americans.  We must keep working hard to help Democrats maintain their majorities in the House and Senate, and when the gloom and doomers start whining about how much <em>could</em> go wrong, we must remind ourselves and each other how very much more is going well — and how well our past hard work paid off!</p> <p>Considering the astounding pace of activity (not to mention the successes!) of his first 100 days, I am hopeful that there will be a great deal accomplished in the second 100 days as well. There is so much to get done, and I am thankful that our Smilin’ Joe and VP Harris (along with their amazing team of competent staffers, cabinet and administration leaders) hit the ground running on January 20. They are well positioned to accomplish great things!</p> <h3>Joe Biden’s American Dream</h3> <p class="AlignCenter"><em><span>“The President is looking to correct a capitalist economy that has gone askew, and reclaim a lost vision of shared prosperity.”</span></em></p> <p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/joe-bidens-great-economic-rebalancing" target="_blank">Biden’s Great Economic Rebalancing</a>, John Cassidy, New Yorker, May 3, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>According to some commentators, President<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/tag/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a><span><span> </span>is turning out to be a quiet revolutionary. After he laid out his<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/bidens-speech-offers-an-alternate-reality-for-democrats-to-love-after-four-years-of-trumpian-fantasy" title="">sweeping agenda</a><span><span> </span>to a joint session of Congress last week,<span> </span></span><a>reports</a><span><span> </span>described it as an epoch-shifting effort to reset the terms of American political economy, much as Ronald Reagan did in the nineteen-eighties (albeit in the opposite direction). Delivering the Republican rebuttal, Senator Tim Scott, of South Carolina, dismissed Biden’s ideas as a “liberal wish list of big-government waste.” For his part, Biden claimed that his American Jobs Plan, which calls for increased federal spending on transportation, green energy, and scientific research and development, would create “millions of good-paying jobs, jobs Americans can raise a family on.” Biden’s American Families Plan, he said, would provide affordable child care to low-to-middle income families, and also up to twelve weeks of paid medical leave, two years of free community college, and expanded child tax credits that would put seventy-two hundred dollars per year “directly into the pockets” of families with two children. ✂️</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="US President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of Congress as US Vice President Kamala Harris and US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi listen at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on April 28, 2021. (Photo by JIM WATSON / POOL / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/943573/large/GettyImages-1232585434.jpg?1620154726" title="US President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of Congress as US Vice President Kamala Harris and US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi listen at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on April 28, 2021. (Photo by JIM WATSON / POOL / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>On Friday afternoon, I spoke with Bernstein and asked him about the Administration’s economic agenda, the reactions it has engendered, and whether Biden is a revolutionary or a rebalancer. “The President, in his speech, said that America is on the move again,” Bernstein said. “That resonates with me more than big revolutionary talk—in the sense of keeping our heads down and trying to craft, legislate, and implement a policy agenda that meets the moment. The President has been very clear that that agenda isn’t small—it doesn’t nibble at the edges. In many respects, it is fundamental, and the depths of the investments are historic.” But Bernstein preferred to characterize this as rebalancing rather than as revolution, especially in areas “where things have grown unacceptably unequal, racial equity has been deeply insufficient, and where critical investments in public goods and human capital have gone wanting for decades.” ✂️</span></p> <p><span>It bears reëmphasizing that, in some parts of his agenda, Biden goes well beyond history. His plan to combat climate change falls into this category. So do his proposals for universal child-support payments, guaranteed paid leave, affordable day care and elder care, free community college, and his efforts to tackle long-standing racial inequities. In assessing the over-all cost, it’s important to look past the headline figure—a seemingly staggering four trillion dollars—which applies to the entire cost over ten years. On an annual basis, implementing both Biden’s jobs plan and his family plan would cost about four hundred and ten billion dollars. That’s equivalent to roughly 1.9 per cent of G.D.P., which currently stands at $22.05 trillion, according to the<span> </span></span><a>Commerce Department</a><span>. Permanently increasing annual federal spending by less than two per cent of G.D.P. would represent a break with recent economic history, to be sure, but it would hardly be unprecedented. Chances are that Congress will trim Biden’s ambitions, anyway.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>American Jobs and Family Plans would create fairer tax system</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-former-irs-commissioners-bidens-proposal-would-create-a-fairer-tax-system/2021/05/04/c4ee8346-acfc-11eb-ab4c-986555a1c511_story.html" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-former-irs-commissioners-bidens-proposal-would-create-a-fairer-tax-system/2021/05/04/c4ee8346-acfc-11eb-ab4c-986555a1c511_story.html" target="_blank">Five former IRS commissioners: Biden’s proposal would create a fairer tax system,  </a></span>Lawrence B. Gibbs, Fred T. Goldberg, Margaret M. Richardson, Charles O. Rossotti and John Koskinen, Washington Post, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="taxes.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/673465/large/taxes.jpg?1557270910" title="taxes.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Between a decreased budget and increased responsibilities, something had to give. Unfortunately, that something has been taxpayer service. The National Taxpayer Advocate<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/ARC20_MSP_02_Telephone.pdf">recently reported</a><span><span> </span>that just 24 percent of calls to the IRS are answered; at the onset of the covid-19 crisis, the IRS was unable to answer taxpayer questions for months. There has also been a substantial decline in enforcement scrutiny of high-earners and large corporations with complex returns: Audit rates for millionaires have fallen<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/irs-audits-of-millionaires-plunged-72-in-8-years#:~:text=Fewer%20than%20two%20out%20of,according%20to%20a%20new%20report.">more than 70 percent</a><span><span> </span>since 2011; audits of large corporations<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/irs-has-scaled-back-auditing-largest-american-companies-report-says-878165">decreased</a><span><span> </span>from essentially 100 percent a decade ago to less than 50 percent, according to the most recent IRS estimates. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>President Biden’s<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.investopedia.com/explaining-biden-s-tax-plan-5080766">proposal</a><span><span> </span>would restore our tax administration system to make it far fairer and more effective. This would benefit everyone who pays their taxes. It would produce a great deal of revenue by reducing the enormous gap between taxes legally owed and taxes actually paid — much of it through increased voluntary compliance. And it would improve taxpayers’ interactions with the IRS. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>The Treasury career staff estimates that the administration’s tax compliance initiatives would raise<span> </span></span><a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0150">$700 billion</a><span><span> </span>in revenue over a decade. Some believe the revenue potential is substantially larger — two of us have conservatively estimated the possibility of<span> </span></span><a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-tax-report/make-tax-system-fairer-easier-for-taxpayers-while-collecting-1-4-trillion-owed-but-not-paid">raising twice as much: $1.4 trillion</a><span><span> </span>through investments such as those Biden has proposed. The significant revenue at stake is a byproduct of the magnitude of the tax gap, which costs the country and honest taxpayers 3 percent of gross domestic product annually in taxes that are owed but unpaid. Uncollected taxes today equal the total taxes paid by the lower 90 percent of individual taxpayers. The scope of the tax compliance problem means that comprehensive proposals to address it would reap substantial benefits.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💉 Health News  💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/health/pfizer-vaccine-children-approval.html" target="_blank">Pfizer says it will seek clearance in September for its vaccine to be used in children aged 2 to 11</a>. Emily Anthes, New York Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Pfizer expects to apply to the Food and Drug Administration in September for emergency authorization to administer its coronavirus vaccine to children between the ages of 2 and 11, the company told Wall Street analysts and reporters on Tuesday during its quarterly earnings call.</p> <p>The company said it also plans to apply this month for full approval of the vaccine for use in people from ages 16 to 85. And it said it expected to have clinical trial data on the safety of its vaccine in pregnant women by early August.</p> <p>By early next week, the F.D.A. is<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/03/us/politics/coronavirus-vaccine-teenagers.html">expected to issue</a><span> </span>an emergency use authorization allowing the vaccine to be used in children 12 to 15 years old, a major step ahead in the U.S. fight against Covid. ✂️</p> <p><span>Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said at a news conference on Tuesday that she did not want to get ahead of the F.D.A., but that the administration was preparing to “make that accessible to additional, younger populations.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-government-and-politics-d6ee06383f123a4ef0941847200757df" target="_blank">Biden aims to vaccinate 70% of American adults by July 4</a>, Zeke Miller and Jonathan Lemire, AP, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Biden’s goal equates to delivering at least the first shot to 181 million adults and fully vaccinating 160 million. It’s a tacit acknowledgment of the declining interest in shots.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Already more than 56% of American adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and nearly 105 million are fully vaccinated. The U.S. is currently administering first doses at a rate of about 965,000 per day — half the rate of three weeks ago, but almost twice as fast as needed to meet Biden’s target.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I’d like to get it 100%, but I think realistically we can get to that place between now and July Fourth,” Biden said of his new goal. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">“The light at the end of the tunnel is actually growing brighter and brighter,” Biden said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Biden’s speech comes as the White House announced a shift away from a strict allocation of vaccines by state population. The administration says that when states decline to take all the vaccine they have been allocated, that surplus will shift to states still awaiting doses to meet demand.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Most recent vaccination figures are higher than in previous story 👇</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-administers-2478-mln-doses-covid-19-vaccines-cdc-2021-05-04/" target="_blank">U.S. administers 247.8 mln doses of COVID-19 vaccines - CDC</a>, Reuters, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The United States has administered 247,769,049 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Tuesday morning and distributed 318,474,035 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Those figures are up from the 246,780,203 vaccine doses the CDC said had gone into arms by Monday out of 312,509,575 doses delivered.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The agency said 147,894,671 people had received at least one dose while 106,168,588 people are fully vaccinated as of Tuesday.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/22400322/vaccines-herd-immunity-coronavirus-israel" target="_blank">The logic of Biden’s new July 4 vaccination goal</a>, German Lopez, Vox, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong><span style="text-align:start">Biden’s new goal acknowledges how close America is to potentially getting Covid-19 under control.</span></strong></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled a new Covid-19 vaccine goal: 70 percent of US adults getting at least one shot by July 4. With this, the Biden administration expects the country will be able to move much closer to the pre-pandemic normal than it has over the past year. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">As Fauci has said, we still don’t know with certainty what the herd immunity threshold is. Some experts said it could be as low as 60 percent. But Israel’s data suggests that we could get our lives much closer to normal without worrying about the risk of deadly infection — at much less than 80 to 90 percent vaccination rates. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The best news for Americans: This is very much possible. Already, more than 40 percent of the population has gotten at least one dose, and more than 30 percent are fully vaccinated, based on<span> </span></span><a href="https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#vaccinations">federal data</a><span style="text-align:start">. At current vaccination rates, the US could hit 60 percent partial vaccination as soon as this month or June, and 60 percent full vaccination in June or July — all within three months. Already, daily new Covid-19 cases in the US have dropped by<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-cases.html">about 26 percent</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in the last two weeks.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/leahrosenbaum/2021/05/04/these-companies-are-working-on-covid-vaccines-that-could-stop-the-next-pandemic/?sh=4629b59774c5" target="_blank">These Companies Are Working On Covid Vaccines That Could Stop The Next Pandemic</a>, Leah Rosenbaum, Forbes, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>VBI is now leading a new contingent of companies: smaller biotechs that are focused on creating a pan-coronavirus vaccine that can be effective against all variants of Covid-19, as well as coronaviruses that might have pandemic potential in the future. This is a contrast to the “vanguard 5,” whose next-generation vaccines are currently more geared towards booster shots and specific new variants. In March VBI entered a $33 million partnership with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, also known as CEPI, to develop a pan-coronavirus vaccine that can protect against new Covid-19 variants and other coronaviruses. Clinical trials will start in the second half of this year.</p> <p>Half a dozen other companies are charting the same course, hoping to be the winner in this second Covid-19 vaccine race. A vaccine that could protect against all variants of Covid-19 could quickly replace the current vaccines, some of which have shown diminished efficacy against variants first discovered in South Africa and Brazil. But the real prize would be a vaccine that could protect against all betacoronaviruses, the family of viruses that also birthed SARS, MERS and varieties of the common cold. “We’ve seen coronaviruses mutate to be humanly transmissible about every 9 years,” Baxter says. “We need to figure out just how wide we can make those goalposts to cover any novel or mutant strain.” ✂️</p> <p><span>In other words, instead of looking for the exact spike protein that signals a specific coronavirus infection in the body, VBI wants to teach the immune system to be on the lookout for<span> </span></span><em>any</em><span><span> </span>similar spike protein. “Instead of having a very targeted approach, we’re trying to broaden it,” Anderson says. “There’s ample data out there that says the virus will find a way to mutate,” he continues, and the company also plans to catch it in the event it tries to disguise itself. So far it looks like their approach might work — in animal testing, the company immunized animals with their pan-coronavirus vaccine and looked to see if these antibodies would recognize a betacoronavirus that they hadn’t seen before. Its researchers  chose human coronavirus OC43, the cause of many common colds. Were the new antibodies able to identify it as an infection? “The answer was yes,” says Anderson.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖️ Justice  ⚖️</h3> <h4>It’s Mueller Time Again</h4> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/doj-trump-obstruction-memo-bill-barr_n_6091b603e4b05af50dc8c9a4" target="_blank">Judge Orders Justice Dept. To Release Trump Obstruction Memo</a>, Eric Tucker, AP via HuffPost, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has ordered the release of a legal memorandum the Trump-era Justice Department prepared for then-Attorney General William Barr before he announced his conclusion that </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a><span> had not obstructed justice during the Russia investigation. ✂️</span></p> <p><span>But U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the Justice Department had obscured “the true purpose of the memorandum” when it withheld the document. She said the memo from the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel contained “strategic, as opposed to legal advice” and that both the writers and the recipients already had a shared understanding as to what the prosecutorial decision would be. She said this meant it was not — as the department had maintained — “predecisional.” ✂️</span></p> <div> <p>In her order, Jackson noted that the memo prepared for Barr and a letter to Congress that describes the special counsel’s report are “being written by the very same people at the very same time.</p> </div> <div> <p>“The emails show not only that the authors and the recipients of the memorandum are working hand in hand to craft the advice that is supposedly being delivered by OLC, but that the letter to Congress is the priority, and it is getting completed first,” the judge wrote.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Barr memo saying not to charge Trump must be released, judge says - CNNPolitics &lt;a href="https://t.co/0cMB8FcUdA"&gt;https://t.co/0cMB8FcUdA&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Acosta/status/1389719253205635078?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Barr memo saying not to charge Trump must be released, judge says - CNNPolitics <a href="https://t.co/0cMB8FcUdA">https://t.co/0cMB8FcUdA</a></p>— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) <a href="https://twitter.com/Acosta/status/1389719253205635078?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/bill-barr-lied-under-oath/">New ruling involving Bill Barr proved that he also lied under oath to Congress</a>, Sarah Burris, Raw Story, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>If former Attorney General Bill Barr lied in court, then it stands to reason that his testimony to Congress was also a lie, noted Center for American Progress communications VP Jesse Lee, citing a<span> </span><em>New York Times</em><span> </span>report.</p> <p>Barr was outed by federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson for lying to her, to the court, and to the American people about the process for investigating and considering whether or not President Donald Trump would be prosecuted for obstruction of justice.</p> <p>"At issue is how Mr. Barr handled the end of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/mueller-investigation" target="_blank">Mueller investigation</a><span> </span>and the release of its findings to the public,"<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/us/politics/barr-trump-obstruction-russia-inquiry.html" target="_blank"><span> </span>the New York Times reported Tuesday</a>. "In March 2019, the office of the special counsel overseeing the inquiry, Robert S. Mueller III,<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/22/us/politics/mueller-report.html" target="_blank">delivered its report to the Justice Department</a>. In a highly unusual decision,<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/23/us/politics/trump-mueller-obstruction.html" target="_blank">Mr. Mueller declined to make a determination</a><span> </span>about whether Mr. Trump had illegally obstructed justice."</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Here was where Barr lied to Congress on the issue NYT is reporting about tonight &lt;a href="https://t.co/DNgx8z0zh9"&gt;https://t.co/DNgx8z0zh9&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/xhUwiXaDKh"&gt;https://t.co/xhUwiXaDKh&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jesse Lee (@JesseCharlesLee) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JesseCharlesLee/status/1389752539806158851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 5, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Here was where Barr lied to Congress on the issue NYT is reporting about tonight <a href="https://t.co/DNgx8z0zh9">https://t.co/DNgx8z0zh9</a> <a href="https://t.co/xhUwiXaDKh">https://t.co/xhUwiXaDKh</a></p>— Jesse Lee (@JesseCharlesLee) <a href="https://twitter.com/JesseCharlesLee/status/1389752539806158851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 5, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Justice is coming for Insurrectionists</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Man accused of carrying Confederate flag into US Capitol on Jan. 6 might be among the first to fold.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Plea negotiations are underway, per hearing underway in DC federal court &lt;a href="https://t.co/zYuX7BNjnl"&gt;pic.twitter.com/zYuX7BNjnl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1389583934749650953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Man accused of carrying Confederate flag into US Capitol on Jan. 6 might be among the first to fold.<br><br>Plea negotiations are underway, per hearing underway in DC federal court <a href="https://t.co/zYuX7BNjnl">pic.twitter.com/zYuX7BNjnl</a></p>— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1389583934749650953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p>And Justice is coming for Nazis, too</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/neo-nazi-leader-atomwaffen-sentenced-swatting-fcfe384a-320b-41bd-a9ba-b4691cca374a.html" target="_blank">Ex-leader of neo-Nazi group sentenced to over 3 years for "swatting" attacks</a>, Rebecca Falconer, Axios, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>A former leader of the neo-Nazi Atomwaffen Division group was sentenced to 41 months in prison on Tuesday for his role in "swatting" attacks against "at least" 134 targets — including journalists, a historically Black church and a former Cabinet member.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:<span> </span></strong>John Cameron Denton, 27, of Montgomery, Texas, was involved in the swatting, calling emergency services to make bogus bomb reports and false reports of other acts of violence, from October 2018 to February 2019.</p> <p><strong>What they're saying:<span> </span></strong><span>"The fear and anxiety you created in all these victims . . . will remain in their memory for far too long. All for you and this group to get your jollies off? It’s incomprehensible," U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady said at Denton's sentencing, per the WashPost.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Giuliani Case</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/rudy-giuliani-investigation-evidence-special-master/2021/05/04/8c85bc68-ad33-11eb-acd3-24b44a57093a_story.html" target="_blank">Giuliani evidence should be reviewed by an outside lawyer, Justice Dept. says</a>, Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, May 4, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>In a letter unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors in Manhattan asked U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken to appoint what’s known as a special master to examine evidence taken late last month from the former New York mayor’s home and office. They cited the Cohen case as a past example when such an appointment helped to show that Trump’s lawyer was treated fairly. ✂️</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Citing a legal conclusion reached by the judge in Cohen’s case, prosecutors said a filter review inside the Justice Department would be fair, but in such a high-profile case like Giuliani’s it was important to provide not just fairness, but “the perception of fairness.”</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>In Cohen’s case, a respected former federal judge was appointed special master, and after the evidence was reviewed and turned over to the investigative team, Cohen decided to<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trumps-longtime-lawyer-michael-cohen-is-in-plea-discussions-with-federal-prosecutors-according-to-a-person-familiar-with-the-matter/2018/08/21/5fbd7f34-8510-11e8-8553-a3ce89036c78_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_14">plead guilty</a><span> </span>and was<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/michael-cohen-scheduled-to-be-sentenced-for-crimes-committed-while-working-for-trump/2018/12/11/57226ff2-fcbf-11e8-83c0-b06139e540e5_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_14">sent to prison</a>.</p> <p><span>The letter unsealed Tuesday also states that after the searches were executed April 28, “specialists with the FBI have begun to extract materials from the seized devices, but the review of those materials has not begun.”</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelCohen212?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MichaelCohen212&lt;/a&gt; says anyone in Trump’s orbit who is on the other side of &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@RudyGiuliani&lt;/a&gt;’s texts and emails is “probably s**ting a brick right now” after the FBI confiscated Rudy’s devices. &lt;a href="https://t.co/M3hzwJ5o94"&gt;pic.twitter.com/M3hzwJ5o94&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— MeidasTouch.com (@MeidasTouch) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/1389620496044466176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelCohen212?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MichaelCohen212</a> says anyone in Trump’s orbit who is on the other side of <a href="https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RudyGiuliani</a>’s texts and emails is “probably s**ting a brick right now” after the FBI confiscated Rudy’s devices. <a href="https://t.co/M3hzwJ5o94">pic.twitter.com/M3hzwJ5o94</a></p>— MeidasTouch.com (@MeidasTouch) <a href="https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/1389620496044466176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Bail Reform Activism</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-us-news-d352cdc911178929325ac2324030eddd" target="_blank">National bail fund to expand in the Deep South</a>, Aaron Morrison, AP, May 3, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Get-out-of-jail-card-Bail-Reform.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/909206/large/Get-out-of-jail-card-Bail-Reform.jpg?1611336572" title="Get-out-of-jail-card-Bail-Reform.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">The project expansion includes opening offices in Mississippi, Florida, South Carolina and Alabama this year, which doubles its reach in the region through partnerships with local organizations. The bail fund will work in concert with advocacy campaigns to ultimately end the imposition of cash bail, Steinberg said. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The national Bail Project, which helps low-income defendants get out of jail by bailing them out as their criminal cases progress through the courts, was<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/035e5de456af47d9b669adf64ab91128">founded three years ago</a>, following a successful 10-year campaign led by Steinberg and the Bronx Defenders in New York City.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Data collected over that 10-year period show that 95% of people helped by the project returned to court for every appearance. It also showed that, when people could get out of jail, the majority were ultimately not convicted of a crime.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Since its launch in 2018, The Bail Project said it has paid $41 million to bail out more than 15,500 people in more than 24 cities. That prevented more than 100,000 days of incarceration, and reduced the collateral consequences such as loss of jobs, housing and child custody.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Biden Administration cognizant of separated families’ trauma; works to reunite them</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/05/04/migrant-family-separation-reunification-border/" target="_blank">Massive family reunification effort starts with a mother and son at the border</a>, Kevin Sieff, Washington Post, May 4, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>They’re one of four families to be reunited this week as part of what government officials and immigration lawyers describe as a trial balloon — a test to find the most effective ways to return parents to their children without reviving the trauma they experienced when they were separated. And so it was with some reservation that the lawyers working on their case told Ortíz that the process would involve her returning to the same border crossing where she had been separated from her son. ✂️</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“We are reuniting the first group of families, many more will follow, and we recognize the importance of providing these families with the stability and resources they need to heal,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told reporters Sunday.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>A small group of lawyers and advocates, including Donohoe, made arrangements for about three dozen parents, among the first group slated to return. The challenges were many. The passport process in Guatemala, for example, proved painstaking. Some parents had limited cellphone access and could be reached only once a week. Others had developed a deep mistrust of the United States after their separations and worried that parts of the reunification program might be a scam.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Another group of advocates was charged with finding hundreds of separated parents who have not been located since their deportations.<span> </span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-mexico-border-biden-families-separation-fa9c179146c708840b1002eb4f534c30" target="_blank">US begins reuniting some families separated at Mexico border</a>, Elliot Spagat, AP News, May 3, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Biden administration said Monday that four<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-us-news-ap-top-news-az-state-wire-ca-state-wire-c654e652a4674cf19304a4a4ff599feb">families that were separated at the Mexico border</a><span> </span>during Donald Trump’s presidency will be reunited in the United States this week in what Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas calls “just the beginning” of a broader effort.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Parents will return to the United States on humanitarian parole while authorities consider other longer-term forms of legal status, said Michelle Brane, executive director of the administration’s Family Reunification Task Force. The children are already in the U.S. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">The reunifications begin as the Biden administration confronts the third major increase in unaccompanied children arriving at the border in seven years. It has made major strides moving children from grossly overcrowded Border Patrol facilities to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shelters, which are more suited to longer-term stays until children are placed with sponsors in the United States, typically parents or close relatives.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The average stay for an unaccompanied child in Border Patrol custody has plummeted to about 20 hours, below the legal limit of 72 hours and down from 133 hours in late March, Mayorkas said. There are 677 unaccompanied children in Border Patrol custody, down from more than 5,700 in late March.</p> </blockquote> <h3>Republicans in Disarray</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/us/politics/liz-cheney-trump-republicans.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=Politics" target="_blank">House Republicans Have Had Enough of Liz Cheney’s Truth-Telling</a>, Nicholas Fandos and Catie Edmondson, New York Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="let-them-fight.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/480719/large/let-them-fight.jpg?1512520252" title="let-them-fight.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The first time defenders of Donald J. Trump came for Representative Liz Cheney, for the offense of having<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/republicans-impeaching-donald-trump.html">voted to impeach him</a>, fellow Republicans closed ranks to save her leadership post, with Representative Kevin McCarthy boasting that their “big tent” party had enough room for both the former president and a stalwart critic.</p> <p>Evidently, not anymore.</p> <p>What began as a battle over the party’s future after the violent end to the Trump presidency has collapsed into a one-sided pile-on by Team Trump, with critics like Ms. Cheney, the scion of a storied Republican family and the lone woman in her party’s House leadership, ostracized or moving toward the exits.</p> <p>The latest test for Ms. Cheney could come as soon as next week, when a growing group of Republicans is planning a fresh bid to dethrone her, with Mr. McCarthy’s blessing. Many of her colleagues are now so confident that it will succeed that they are openly discussing who will replace Ms. Cheney.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;So far the surface interpretation of Cheney is that she&amp;#39;s purging herself from the caucus deliberately and wants to be 100% clear why and force the caucus on record. Whatever happens with Trump next, nobody gets to write in their memoirs later they didn&amp;#39;t know what was going on.&lt;/p&gt;— Benjy Sarlin (@BenjySarlin) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BenjySarlin/status/1389619909169225735?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>So far the surface interpretation of Cheney is that she's purging herself from the caucus deliberately and wants to be 100% clear why and force the caucus on record. Whatever happens with Trump next, nobody gets to write in their memoirs later they didn't know what was going on.</p>— Benjy Sarlin (@BenjySarlin) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenjySarlin/status/1389619909169225735?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/5/3/22406391/hr1-poll-for-the-people-act" target="_blank">Republicans feared Democrats’ voting protections bill polls well. A new poll says they’re right.</a> Andrew Prokup, Vox, May 3, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 17: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (C) (D-NY), U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (R) (D-OR) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) (D-MN) announce the introduction of S.1., the â€˜For the Peopleâ€™ Act, outside the U.S. Capitol March 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. The â€œFor the People Actâ€ aims to make it simpler for eligible Americans to vote in elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/928068/large/GettyImages-1307602688.jpg?1616082716" title="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 17: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (C) (D-NY), U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (R) (D-OR) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) (D-MN) announce the introduction of S.1., the â€˜For the Peopleâ€™ Act, outside the U.S. Capitol March 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. The â€œFor the People Actâ€ aims to make it simpler for eligible Americans to vote in elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A new<span> </span><a href="https://www.filesforprogress.org/datasets/2021/4/dfp-vox-hr-1.pdf">Data for Progress poll</a><span> </span>conducted as part of a partnership with Vox backs up that assessment. The poll surveyed 1,138 likely voters nationally between April 16 and April 19, and it finds that much of what the 800-page bill claims to do is overwhelmingly popular.</p> <p style="text-align:start">More than 80 percent of respondents said they supported preventing foreign interference in elections, limiting the influence of money in politics, and modernizing election infrastructure to increase election security. More than 60 percent of respondents supported requiring nonpartisan redistricting commissions, a 15-day early voting period for all federal elections, same-day registration for all eligible voters, automatic voter registration for all eligible voters, and giving every voter the option to vote by mail.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Meanwhile, OOPSIE Doodle!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/florida-republicans-so-mad-at-florida-republicans-for-making-it-harder-for-florida-republicans-to-vote" target="_blank">Florida Republicans So Mad At Florida Republicans For Making It Harder For Florida Republicans To Vote</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">We have an amusing update for you on the story<span> </span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/florida-voter-suppression-law-not-quite-as-awful-as-georgias-so-hooray" target="_blank">Wonkette told you</a><span> </span>of the new Florida voter suppression bill Wonkette told you about the other day. In its effort to out-Georgia Georgia, to really Florida Man up the voting process, Florida passed a bill that was very, very tough on mail-in voting, we guess because Donald Trump says mail-in voting is bad, even though that's how he and his wife vote. It also changes the rules to make people request absentee ballots every two years, instead of every four years, which could make things extra fun for Florida voters who might not be aware the rules have changed.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis is<span> </span><em>hellbent</em><span> </span>on signing this bill.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Ready for the punchline? We hope you're sitting in your laughing chair, because the<span> </span><em>Washington Post</em><span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/florida-republicans-mail-voting/2021/05/02/4c133920-a9bf-11eb-8c1a-56f0cb4ff3b5_story.html" target="_blank">reported yesterday</a><span> </span>that Florida Republicans have realized that in their efforts to keep Black people and other likely Democrats from voting, they accidentally have passed a bill that might suppress the hell out of<span> </span><em>their</em><span> </span>voters.</p> <p style="text-align:start">DERP.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And Their Old Pals in Business May be Heading for the Exits</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-voting-restrictions-microsoft-hp/" target="_blank">Companies call out efforts to restrict voting in Texas</a>, Kate Gibson, CBS, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ForThePeople.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/929728/large/ForThePeople.jpg?1616437085" title="ForThePeople.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Corporations including HP, Levi Strauss, Microsoft and Patagonia are expressing concern about proposed changes to voting rules in Texas, where the Republican-controlled legislature is backing bills that would make it harder for some residents to cast ballots.  </p> <p>"We stand together, as a nonpartisan coalition, calling on elected leaders in Texas to support reforms that make democracy more accessible and oppose any changes that would restrict eligible voters' access to the ballot," the companies and other groups <a href="https://www.fairelectionstexas.org/fair-elections-texas-letter.pdf" target="_blank">stated</a> in a letter released Tuesday by Fair Elections Texas, a recently formed group that includes former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk.</p> <p>Signed by more than 50 entities, including a number of Texas chambers of commerce, the missive urged business and civic leaders to "call upon lawmakers to uphold our ever elusive core democratic principle: equality."</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/gop-megadonor-slams-josh-hawley/">GOP megadonor warns Josh Hawley: You are going to 'marginalize' yourself with your extremism</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Dollar-Sign.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/634219/large/Dollar-Sign.jpg?1547939461" title="Dollar-Sign.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On CNN Tuesday, Dan Eberhardt, a wealthy Republican megadonor, warned Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) that his refusal to apologize for his role in the invasion of the U.S. Capitol is a dead-end for his political career.</p> <p>"So, Dan, you know, you supported, of course, Senator Josh Hawley in the past," said anchor Erin Burnett. "But you were disappointed in him after January 6th. Today you say he doesn't regret his actions on that day. And he's raised $3 million in the first three months of this year. A lot of money. And Marjorie Taylor Greene raising about the same amount as well. What do you make of that, and are you going to continue to support Hawley?"</p> <p>"Well, I'm not ready to denounce Hawley, but I'm really looking for other people to support," said Eberhardt. "I think that this idea that the people that run to the furthest right in the party are the ones that reap the financial rewards of the next fundraising quarter is really, you know, a cause for concern and something that's going to lead to the Republican Party being marginalized in the medium term."</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/opinion/infrastructure-biden-wall-street.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">The Side of Wall Street That Matters Most Is Begging for Infrastructure</a>, Daniel Alpert, New York Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="wall-street-bull-02.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/933014/large/wall-street-bull-02.jpg?1617314902" title="wall-street-bull-02.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Although political rancor can make it hard to detect, the smartest money on Wall Street is practically begging for a major infrastructure investment from Congress, one even larger and more sustained than what President Biden is proposing.</p> <p>Yes, the chief executives of some big financial institutions, like JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon, have begun<span> </span><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2021/01/15/billionaire-jamie-dimon-worries-federal-spending-could-trigger-high-inflation-urges-businesses-to-help-government-curb-inequality/?sh=3f55d334121d" target="_blank">hand-wringing</a><span> </span>about inflation risks stemming from more government spending — particularly if much of it ends up financed with debt, which could be more likely than the White House may wish to admit. But the financial markets themselves are sanguine.</p> <p>Just look at the mechanics: Demand for interest-bearing Treasury bonds — safe assets that are issued whenever the government creates more debt — remains very high, meaning that interest rates are near historic lows and inflation expectations are mild. For now, there’s no hint of the currency debasement feared by inflation hawks.</p> <p>As my colleague at Cornell University Paul McCulley, formerly the chief economist at<span> </span><a href="https://www.pimco.com/en-us/" target="_blank">Pimco</a>, has<span> </span><a href="https://www.pimco.com/en-us/" target="_blank">put it</a>, “Wall Street is screaming at the fiscal authorities to spill red ink.” In responding to this call, Congress might do well to limit bean-counting over the bill’s each and every revenue stream and instead go much further in beefing up the Biden plan’s “buy American” provisions.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌏 International News 🌍</h3> <p>The global zeitgeist, which for too many recent years seemed to be veering sharply toward authoritarianism, now seems to be tracking leftward, back toward liberal democracy.</p> <h4>Israel</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-israel-religion-government-and-politics-a21c738633a196bb4149fe3054ee75b3" target="_blank">Netanyahu misses deadline, political future in question</a>, Josef Federman,AP, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Benjamin Netanyahu faces corruption charges in Israel." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/723736/large/BenjaminNetanyahu.jpg?1570023020" title="Benjamin Netanyahu faces corruption charges in Israel."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The deadline closed a four-week window granted to Netanyahu by Israel’s figurehead president. The matter now bounces back to President Reuven Rivlin, who announced just after midnight that he would contact on Wednesday the 13 parties with seats in parliament to discuss “the continuation of the process of forming a government.” ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Netanyahu had struggled to secure a parliamentary majority since March 23 — when elections ended in deadlock for the fourth consecutive time in the past two years. Despite repeated meetings with many of his rivals and unprecedented outreach to the leader of a small Islamist Arab party, Netanyahu was unable to close a deal. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">Looming over Netanyahu has been his corruption trial. Netanyahu has been charged with fraud, breach of trust and bribery in a series of scandals. The trial has moved into the witness phase, with embarrassing testimony accusing him of trading favors with a powerful media mogul. Netanyahu denies the charges. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">Netanyahu has also suffered a series of embarrassing — and uncharacteristic — defeats in parliament. On Tuesday, Likud failed to push ahead a proposal calling for direct election of the prime minister. Opponents had panned the measure as a desperate attempt by Netanyahu to find a new way to hold on to power.</p> </blockquote> <h4>India</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2021/5/4/22412743/india-west-bengal-results-2021-bjp-modi-tmc-banerjee" target="_blank">India’s ruling party just lost a key election. It’s worrying that they even stood a chance</a>. Zach Beauchamp, Vox, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">In local elections held in five states, the BJP lost the biggest prize: control of the Legislative Assembly in West Bengal. The defeat came amid gathering signs of trouble for Modi’s quest to dominate India — the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/4/24/22400986/india-coronavirus-surge-hospitals-deaths">world’s worst Covid-19 outbreak</a><span style="text-align:start">, attributable in no small part to government policy, foremost among them. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Pre-election<span> </span><a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/west-bengal-2021-where-the-national-hegemon-is-a-local-rebel-101618295020691.html">reporting</a><span> </span>suggested the BJP had a real shot at defeating incumbent Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her left-wing Trinamool Congress party (TMC). The national party poured resources into the fight; Modi held a number of large campaign rallies in the state, while<span> </span><a href="https://www.livemint.com/opinion/columns/the-way-these-state-polls-were-held-should-leave-us-in-dismay-11619981513357.html">India’s Election Commission</a><span> </span>tilted the rules of the contest in its favor, scheduling the vote in a way that<span> </span><a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/kolkata/has-eci-decided-bengal-poll-schedule-on-modi-shahs-advice-asks-mamata-banerjee-7206349/">facilitated BJP campaigning and turnout in BJP strongholds</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Yet results released on Sunday showed that Modi‘s gambit had fallen short: The current count shows the TMC holding a supermajority in West Bengal’s parliament, around 213 seats out of 294. The BJP, which<span> </span><a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/assembly-elections/bengal-tamil-nadu-kerala-assam-py-elections-2021-exit-polls-results-live-updates/liveblog/82310513.cms">some exit polls</a><span> </span>suggested would win outright, will hold fewer than 80. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Together, these two events suggest an opening for the fractured Indian opposition. West Bengal shows that Modi can be beaten even when he stacks the deck in his favor; the government’s failures on the outbreak shift the public’s focus away from Modi’s messaging and toward a concrete policy where Modi has failed.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>✶✶✶✶ My Local Good News  ✶✶✶✶</h3> <p>Thanks to Origami Oracle for reminding me of this song!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=euJ22UqLD5Y" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/euJ22UqLD5Y" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Illinois covid rate dropping</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/coronavirus/2021/5/4/22419194/chicago-coronavirus-travel-order-indiana-illinois-covid-vaccine-cases-deaths-reopen-pritzker-may-4" target="_blank">I</a><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/coronavirus/2021/5/4/22419194/chicago-coronavirus-travel-order-indiana-illinois-covid-vaccine-cases-deaths-reopen-pritzker-may-4" target="_blank">llinois positivity rate hits lowest point in a month as Pritzker says he’s ‘optimistic’ for summer reopening</a>, Mitchell Armentrout, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Illinois’ average COVID-19 infection rate fell to its lowest level in over a month Tuesday as Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Mayor Lori Lightfoot teased a potential full reopening for the city and state this summer.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,211 new coronavirus cases diagnosed among the latest 57,483 tests to lower the average statewide positivity rate to 3.3%, suggesting the virus is spreading at its slowest pace since March 31.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Back then, the state was on the upswing of a month-long spike in cases that threw off Pritzker’s reopening plan, peaking with a 4.4% average positivity rate logged April 12.</p> <p style="text-align:start">That figure has been falling steadily ever since, a net decrease of 25% in a little over three weeks. COVID-19 hospitalizations have eased back down over that period, too, ramping up reopening talks.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I&amp;#39;m excited to announce the return of the beloved &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ChiAutoShow?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@ChiAutoShow&lt;/a&gt;. With strong public health protocols in place, it will be the first large convention in Illinois since the onset of the pandemic, setting the stage for the safe return of events in the months to come. &lt;a href="https://t.co/Yxbsdbwa7M"&gt;pic.twitter.com/Yxbsdbwa7M&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker/status/1389602131175514120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I'm excited to announce the return of the beloved <a href="https://twitter.com/ChiAutoShow?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ChiAutoShow</a>. With strong public health protocols in place, it will be the first large convention in Illinois since the onset of the pandemic, setting the stage for the safe return of events in the months to come. <a href="https://t.co/Yxbsdbwa7M">pic.twitter.com/Yxbsdbwa7M</a></p>— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker/status/1389602131175514120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Let there be (more) music!</h4> <p>Live concerts coming back in Chicago — and they are kicking off this series with Aaron Copland’s <em>Fanfare for the Common Man</em>, which seems like a great choice to me. </p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/4/22416308/chicago-symphony-orchestra-return-in-person-concerts-symphony-center-classical-music" target="_blank">CSO plans to resume in-person concerts May 27 at Symphony Center</a>, Miriam Di Nunzio, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The sounds of in-person classical music are returning to Symphony Center.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association on Tuesday announced the first CSO concert performances with live audiences in attendance at Orchestra Hall (220 S. Michigan) since the pandemic shutdown of all performing arts venues in March 2020.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The series of concerts, programmed in conjunction with maestro Riccardo Muti, will take place May 27-June 13 “and feature music for brass and percussion, string ensembles and orchestra,” Tuesday’s announcement said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The concerts will be presented with adherence to current state and city COVID-19 guidelines for public events, including reduced-capacity audiences, mandatory face masks for audience and staff, hand-sanitizing stations, and an HVAC fresh air system that meets current standards.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/mojo-wire/2021/05/new-polls-it-turns-out-americans-like-a-normal-boring-president/" target="_blank">New Polls: It Turns Out Americans Like a Normal, Boring President</a>, Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Mother Jones, May 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ All is explained: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2021/05/04/993150513/104-days-of-bidenonomics" target="_blank">104 Days Of Bidenonomics</a>, Greg Rosalsky, NPR, May 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Details from tax story above: <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/explaining-biden-s-tax-plan-5080766" target="_blank">Biden's Tax Plan: What's Enacted, What's Proposed</a>, Michelle P Scott, Investopedia, April 29, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/03/us/politics/immigration-infrastructure-budget-reconciliation.html" target="_blank">Schumer Readies Plan B to Push Immigration Changes Unilaterally</a>, Luke Broadwater, New York Times, May 3, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2021/05/facebook-oversight-board-donald-trump-ban.html" target="_blank">The Facebook Oversight Board Will Soon Rule on the Trump Ban. Here Are the Possible Outcomes</a>. Justin Hendrix, Slate, May 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/05/india-covid-modi-election-west-bengal.html" target="_blank">Are Indian Voters Finally Turning on Narendra Modi?</a> Nitish Pahwa, Slate, May 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Huh. Interesting perspective: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/05/china-paper-dragon/618778/" target="_blank">China Is a Paper Dragon</a>, David Frum, The Atlantic, May 3, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2021/5/4/22419646/republican-party-american-racism-slavery-jim-crow-jesse-jackson" target="_blank">The false Republican mantra: ‘America is not a racist country’, Jesse Jackson</a>, Chicago Sun✶Times, May 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryancbrooks/joe-biden-systemic-racism-100-days?ref=bfnsplash" target="_blank">In His First 100 Days, Biden Called Out The Country’s Deeply Embedded Racism. Eradicating It Will Be Harder</a>. Ryan Brooks, BuzzFeed, May 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Irritating title, but decent article: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/05/liberals-covid-19-science-denial-lockdown/618780/" target="_blank">The Liberals Who Can’t Quit Lockdown</a>, Emma Green, The Atlantic, May 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Cool science! <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/05/10/persuading-the-body-to-regenerate-its-limbs" target="_blank">Persuading the Body to Regenerate Its Limbs</a>, Matthew Hutson, New Yorker, May 3, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/06/estebanico-first-africans-america/618714/" target="_blank">Black America’s Neglected Origin Stories</a>, Annette Gordon-Reed, The Atlantic, May 4, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Gnusies, I haven’t even got to the end of my usual list of news sources, and I can see at least half a dozen other good news items, but it is approaching the wee hours and I must stop here.  I know you all will bring more good news in the comments!</p> <p>I say this every week and it’s because I really want you to take it to heart. PLEASE take good care of yourself and those you love. You are needed by your country and by your fellow humans, and we want you fit and well and able to enjoy the fruits of your labors when we get the country back on a good track again. So, eat nutritious food, get some rest and seriously, try to spend a little time outdoors every day if you can.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="CGbirthday2021.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/943668/large/CGbirthday2021.jpg?1620191017" title="CGbirthday2021.jpg"> <figcaption>Here is my birthday picture! I am now 7 years old!</figcaption> </figure> <p>I nearly skipped the long walk I usually take with Curlygirly yesterday because it was dreary and drizzly out. I thought I’d just take her around the block and then get back inside. But once we were outside, the light mist and the soft cool air was actually quite refreshing and I decided to do a proper walk after all. I am glad I did, because we saw crews at two different businesses removing the boards from their windows. It was such an encouraging sight. People are tentatively starting to feel that everything just might turn out OK after all. You can feel it in the air — the rising optimism, the excitement to have fun again this summer, the sense that the country is not so much going back to normal, but is going to be better than before.</p> <p>Before I go, let me apologise for hardly any music today — I mean it when I say I spent the past several hours feverishly collecting this news and still there’s more and I had no time to gather music! Luckily, Origani Oracle had provided the Blues Brother piece and here I am going to send you off with a nice long collection of Debussy, with an added bonus of beautiful Impressionist art! I’ve been playing it in the background for the past hour and whenever I glance at the YouTube window, I catch a glimpse of a different glorious painting. I hope you enjoy it!</p> <p>That’s it from me for another week. Thanks for reading!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=9uKVI6_Fm4g" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/9uKVI6_Fm4g" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanFamiliesPlan AmericanJobsPlan AmericanRescuePlan Covidvaccine Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden POTUS Recommended _2028034 Wed, 05 May 2021 11:00:04 +0000 Joe's Speech Tonight Will Make History - April 28 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/4/28/2027924/-Joe-s-Speech-Tonight-Will-Make-History-April-28-Good-News-Roundup <div> <p>Good Day, Gnusies! Today is going to be a significant day with President Joe giving his first major <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/biden-s-speech-congress-when-watch-biden-s-first-address-n1265395" target="_blank">speech</a> before both houses of Congress tonight (A SOTU by any other name, is still a SOTU 🌹). I hope everyone is cueing up some quality TV time for tonight at 9ET (8CT; 7MT; 6PT). I’m looking forward to it! </p> <p>I’ve been having some unexpected “downer” days lately and Monday was a doozy. The kind of day when it just seems like too much trouble to get out of your own way. Even with all the good news happening, I was feeling depressed by the continued ugliness of the reactionary forces arrayed against love, justice and progress. So, imagine my delight on Tuesday morning upon reading <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/4/27/2027059/-Good-News-Roundup-for-Tuesday-April-27-2021#comment_80816969" target="_blank">arhpdx’s introduction</a> addressing EXACTLY the kind of malaise I (and apparently a lot of other people!) had been feeling!</p> <p>This little exchange in yesterday’s comments seemed to have flown right out of my brain — I guess it truly is a thing that is being experienced widely: </p> <blockquote> <div> <p>chloris creator<br> Apr 27, 2021 at 07:29:03 AM<br> Also, arh, thanks for the words about the psychological difficulties so many of us are going through after these really difficult years. Sometimes it’s as if “I know things are better” without “I feel things are better.”  It is hard to combat.</p> <p>arhpdx <br> Apr 27, 2021 at 07:35:04 AM<br> Thanks, cc, I think that’s a perfect way of stating the problem. That problem of coordinating what we “know” and what we “feel” (brain vs. heart) tends to crop up a lot. And it’s always hard to overcome. In this case, I think what it boils down to is that we were so brutalized by the four years of The Former Guy that we’re having a really hard time feeling that the horror is actually over.</p> <p>chloris creator<br> Apr 27, 2021 at 08:06:59 AM<br> That’s because part of me is not sure the horror is actually over. I know many on our side are working hard to clean things up, but we have the white supremacists and the anti-vaxxers and the climate deniers and the gun lovers and those who are just plain cruel. Also, I know we (collectively) let our guard down before, so I am afraid it will happen again.</p> <p>And I am not sure this comment belongs here, because it’s not gnusy enough.</p> <p>arhpdx <br> Apr 27, 2021 at 08:10:43 AM<br> I hear you, cc, and BTW, any comment from a Gnusie belongs here by definition. We don’t always have to be upbeat, though our main goal is to try to find the sunny side.</p> <p>Seraph4377<br> Apr 27, 2021 at 09:02:45 AM<br> Yeah.  I know what you mean.  Considering that our victory was immediately followed by: 1) an attempt at coup through the legal system; 2) an attempt at a literal coup; 3) Republicans trying to block and sabotage all the good we’re trying to do, including things that are necessary to save hundreds of thousands of lives; 4) Republicans trying to lock in minority rule and make sure no one but them ever wins again; 5) People who are theoretically on our side helping them; and 6) that’s not even getting into the ongoing natural disaster and its effects, it feels like we can never rest or feel safe or trust nearly half the population again.</p> <p>WolverineForTJatAW<br> Apr 27, 2021 at 09:09:06 AM<br> Agree entirely.</p> <p>Mokurai<br> Apr 27, 2021 at 08:50:38 AM<br> <em>We have been brutalized by nearly all of recorded history, except for the strand of people trying to do better against all odds. And <strong>here we are ready to extend that to the entire world, ending dire poverty and oppression and dread diseases and stupid civil wars, sometimes slowly and steadily, and sometimes in great leaps.</strong></em></p> <p>Hans Rosling devoted most of his career to explaining why things are better than you think, as in his book Factfulness and on the family Web site Gapminder.</p> <p>We have tested thousands of people and they were systematically wrong about all this.</p> <p>Upgrade your worldview</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Knowing that what we are feeling is something that many other people around us (and around the world) are feeling is both reassuring and encouraging. While no one is naïve, it is encouraging to realize that our sense of reaching — <em>yearning</em> — toward a better, more just, world is likely a growing part of the zeitgeist, too. </p> <p>I think tonight’s speech is going to be a BFD — President Joe is going to lay the groundwork for a reimagined partnership between government and the people they represent. Chances are, parts of this speech tonight will be quoted in the years ahead just like FDRs, Kennedy’s and Lincoln’s. </p> <p>OK! First: music, and then on with the good news!</p> <h3>🎵 🎶 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=_ZditPOzJnM" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/_ZditPOzJnM" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Smiling Joe & Democrats Continue to Bring the Good News</h3> <p>Things to watch for tonight:</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/biden-joint-address-history-harris-pelosi-5d40ca1d-56df-47e4-bf44-fa671dbdbd34.html" target="_blank" title="">How Biden's speech will make history</a>, Kadia Goba, Axios, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>President Biden's address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday will be noteworthy not because of the COVID-restricted audience but because he'll stand before two women in the House Chamber.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:</strong><span> </span>The joint address is not a State of the Union speech, though it will have the usual trappings: an announcement of the president's arrival, and clapping as he walks down the aisle. Almost everything else will be different.</p> <ul> <li>There are 535 members of Congress and usually 1,600 people in the chamber. On Wednesday, the number will be capped at 200 — and no guests allowed. ✂️</li> <li></li> <li><strong>The biggest visible visual difference will be apparent</strong><span> </span>when the president steps up to the podium. Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will be seated in the two chairs behind him.</li> <li>It will be a first for the nation: the No. 1 and No. 2 people in the line of presidential succession are both women.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/tax-reform-business-government-and-politics-4dc42aa3ef397d16725dc5cd16089d7d" target="_blank" title="">Biden to propose free preschool, as speech details emerge</a>, Lisa Mascaro and Josh Boak, AP News, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will call for free preschool for all three- and four-year-old children, a $200 billion investment to be rolled out as part of his sweeping American Families Plan being unveiled Wednesday in an address to Congress.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The administration said the historic investment would benefit 5 million children and save the average family $13,000. It calls for providing federal funds to help the states offer preschool, with teachers and other employees earning $15 an hour. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start">The new details are part of Biden’s $1 trillion-plus package, an ambitious next phase of his massive infrastructure investment program, this one focused on so-called human infrastructure — child care, health care, education and other core aspects of the household architecture that undergird everyday life for countless Americans.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Together with Biden’s<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-technology-coronavirus-pandemic-pittsburgh-jen-psaki-8865ffc8f5ad3142155a5bd3c3a3e6d3">American Jobs Plan, a $2.3 trillion infrastructure investment</a><span> </span>to be funded by a corporate tax hike, they add up a whopping $4 trillion effort to fulfill his campaign vow to Build Back Better. The American Families Plan would be paid for by hiking taxes on the wealthiest 1% of Americans, in keeping with the president’s vow not to raise taxes on those making less than $400,000 a year.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/4/27/22404275/biden-congress-address-state-of-the-union-policing-infrastructure-wednesday" target="_blank">What to expect from Joe Biden’s first address to Congress</a>, Gregory Svirnovskly, Vox, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The White House envisioned the American Rescue Plan as the first step in the federal response to the pandemic — it was seen as a tool to stop short-term economic damage and pave the way for a return to normal life. The actual recovery was meant to be taken care of by future plans, the first of which Biden unveiled in early April: the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/31/22357179/biden-two-trillion-infrastructure-jobs-plan-explained">American Jobs Plan</a><span style="text-align:start">. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Biden can be expected to make a pitch for this plan Wednesday night, and will also<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/26/politics/american-family-plan-state-of-play/index.html">detail the proposal’s counterpart</a><span style="text-align:start">, the American Families Plan. It’s a $1.8 trillion proposal focused on “human infrastructure” that would provide child care funding, universal prekindergarten programming, tuition-free community colleges, and paid family leave, along with extending the child tax credit and the earned income tax credit. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The Biden administration is attempting to reclassify social welfare programs like medical leave and universal education access as a type of human infrastructure. He’ll hit on both of those points in his speech Wednesday as he attempts to drum up support from moderate Republicans in Congress and from Democrats who are wary of proposals veering from the political center.</span></p> <p><strong>Biden will also address the problems with policing</strong></p> <p><strong>Above all, Biden wants to unify the country</strong></p> </blockquote> <h4>First 100 Days</h4> <p>You can’t flip open a newspaper or click on an internet news site without finding one or more opinion pieces grading Joe Biden on his first 100 days. Here’s a sampling:</p> <p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/04/joe-biden-first-100-days.html" target="_blank" title="">Joe Biden’s First 100 Days Reshaped America</a>, Jonathan Chait, New Yorker Magazine, April 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>During the first hundred days of Joe Biden’s presidency, it has dawned on Republicans that the man their standard-bearer<span> </span></span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/06/trump-nicknames-sleep-joe-corrupt-joe-bully-campaign-losing.html" title="">once mocked as “Sleepy Joe”</a><span><span> </span>is a formidable adversary. And the quality that has made him so effective up to this point is, well, his sleepiness. “I think Biden is a disaster for the country, and his ideas are an atrocity. But he’s boring. He’s just boring,” complained alt-media personality Dan Bongino. This frustration is not confined to the party’s entertainment wing. “It’s always harder to fight against a nice person because usually people will sort of give him the benefit of the doubt,” grumbled Senator John Cornyn. At a recent speech to donors, Donald Trump was reduced to mocking his successor as<span> </span></span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/04/trump-reprises-election-grievances-attacks-mcconnell.html" title="">“Saintly Joe Biden,”</a><span><span> </span>perhaps the feeblest moment in his decades-long career of schoolyard taunts.</span></p> <p><span>It’s not that Saintly Joe invented the prototype of a president who acts politely. ✂️</span>Treating everybody with unfailing courtesy is (or was) standard advice for any aspiring politician.</p> <p><span>Biden’s advantage is that he’s not just nice; he’s also tedious. He is relentlessly enacting an ambitious domestic agenda — signing legislation that could cut child poverty by more than half, expanding Obamacare, and injecting the economy with a stimulus more than twice the size of what Obama’s Congress passed in 2009 — while arousing hardly any controversy. There’s nothing in Biden’s vanilla-ice-cream bromides for<span> </span></span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/03/biden-speech-coronavirus-what-did-republicans-say-tucker-carlson.html" title="">his critics to hook on to</a><span>. Republicans can’t stop Biden because he is boring them to death.  </span></p> <div style="text-align:center"> <div></div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/trumps-first-100-days-were-sheer-craziness-bidens-are-sheer-competence/" target="_blank" title=""><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/trumps-first-100-days-were-sheer-craziness-bidens-are-sheer-competence/" target="_blank" title="">Trump’s first 100 days were sheer craziness. Biden’s are sheer competence</a>. Max Boot, Washington Post, April 27, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>When it comes to evaluating his first 100 days, Joe Biden has an unbeatable advantage: He is not Donald Trump. Simply by not inciting his supporters to attack the Capitol and not telling them to take hydroxychloroquine, President Biden looks infinitely better than his predecessor. There is, of course, much to be said in Biden’s favor beyond the obvious fact that he is the anti-Trump. But after the traumas of the past four years, I still marvel at the night-and-day differences. Even looking only at Trump’s first 100 days — and not what followed in the next 1,361 days — the comparison is lopsidedly, preposterously tilted in Biden’s favor.</span></p> <p><em>Biden has been scandal-free</em><span>.</span></p> <p><em>Biden has picked well-qualified appointees who know what they are doing.</em></p> <p><em>Biden is making real progress on the biggest issues facing America — the unemployment rate is declining while the number of vaccinations is skyrocketing.<span> </span></em><span>Oh, and the stock market has gone up<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2021/04/26/bidens-100-day-stock-market-performance-is-the-hottest-going-back-to-the-1950s.html" target="_blank">more than twice as fast</a><span><span> </span>as it did under Trump, despite GOP predictions of doom.</span></p> <p><em>Biden is reasserting America’s international leadership</em><span>.</span></p> <p><em>Biden is turning down the temperature on our politics.</em></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/24/opinions/bidens-first-100-days-zelizer/index.html" target="_blank" title="">What Biden's first 100 days might tell us about the rest of his presidency</a>, Julian Zelizer, CNN, April 24, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 21: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the COVID-19 response and the state of vaccinations at the South Court Auditorium of Eisenhower Executive Office Building on April 21, 2021 in Washington, DC. As of today, President Biden said the United States has distributed 200 million shots of the COVID-19 vaccine. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/941453/large/GettyImages-1313693940.jpg?1619549136" title="WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 21: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the COVID-19 response and the state of vaccinations at the South Court Auditorium of Eisenhower Executive Office Building on April 21, 2021 in Washington, DC. As of today, President Biden said the United States has distributed 200 million shots of the COVID-19 vaccine. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Biden made his mark with the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9 trillion package offering a sweeping combination of relief, stimulus and longer-term assistance. The legislation provided aid to state and local governments, direct checks for American families, an expanded child tax credit, assistance to small businesses and homeowners, expanded unemployment compensation and more. In our era of polarized politics, and with a Republican Party hell-bent on obstruction, Biden used the budget reconciliation process to sidestep the chances of a filibuster, and the bill was passed on party lines. Unlike the New Deal programs, much of the relief is short-term assistance. But the American Rescue Plan is impressive in its breadth and it remains a substantial piece of legislation.</span></p> <div>And Biden isn't stopping with this legislation. He has already started work on the American Jobs Plan, a sweeping infrastructure package that would inject $2 trillion into the foundation of our economy. The legislation would fund traditional infrastructure programs like bridges and roads, while improving broadband service, drinking water and the electric grid. Biden has also promised to fight climate change through electric vehicles and cleaner energy sources, while promoting racial equality. The Senate parliamentarian has ruled that Democrats can use the reconciliation process at least one more time, which could potentially pave the way for the bill's passage. ✂️</div> <div><span>President Biden has also put himself on the map in his use of<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2021/politics/biden-executive-orders/" target="_blank">executive power</a><span>. He has moved at a fervid pace to undo some of the key decisions from the Trump years. He reentered the Paris Climate Agreement, established a White House Gender Policy Council and revoked executive orders that limited immigration and justified separating families at the border.</span></div> </blockquote> <h4>Looks like Another good hire</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-biden-cabinet-houston-elections-a7439b490ba1e1c992a49aab1059a80c?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=AP&utm_campaign=SocialFlow" target="_blank" title="">Houston-area sheriff is named to lead immigration agency</a>, Juan A. Lozano and Elliot Spagat, AP News, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">HOUSTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Tuesday nominated the sheriff of one of the nation’s most populous counties to lead the agency that deports people in the country illegally, picking a seasoned law enforcement official who sharply criticized Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, whose jurisdiction includes the Houston metropolitan area, was nominated director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an agency that has been without a Senate-confirmed leader since 2017.</p> <p style="text-align:start">After his election in 2016, Gonzalez fulfilled a campaign promise to withdraw Harris County from a federal partnership that authorizes sheriff’s deputies to enforce immigration laws, ending an agreement that had been in place since 2008.<span> </span><a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-21-186" target="_blank">Such agreements</a><span> </span>grew from 35 to to 150 during Trump’s presidency, with many of those additions in Texas and Florida. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“I do not support ICE raids that threaten to deport millions of undocumented immigrants, the vast majority of whom do not represent a threat to the U.S.,” he wrote on Facebook in July 2019. “The focus should always be on clear & immediate safety threats. Not others who are not threats.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Related:</h4> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/hamedaleaziz/ice-arrests-courthouses-immigrants" target="_blank" title="">ICE Will No Longer Arrest Immigrants At Courthouses Unless There’s A Public Safety Threat</a>, Hamed Aleaziz, BuzzFeedNews, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>On Tuesday, the Biden administration will issue a policy that sharply limits the immigrants whom ICE officers can arrest at courthouses after years of criticism of the practice, according to government officials and documents. The policy also applies to US Customs and Border Protection officials as well.</p> <p>“Ensuring that individuals have access to the courts advances the fair administration of justice, promotes safety for crime victims, and helps to guarantee equal protection under the law,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “The expansion of civil immigration arrests at courthouses during the prior administration had a chilling effect on individuals’ willingness to come to court or work cooperatively with law enforcement. Today’s guidance is the latest step in our efforts to focus our civil immigration enforcement resources on threats to homeland security and public safety.”</p> <p><span>The policy will allow ICE officers to make civil immigration arrests in or near a courthouse only when it involves a national security matter, a risk of imminent death or harm to anyone, or a hot pursuit involving a public safety threat. Officers may also make an arrest at a courthouse if it appears evidence in a criminal case will be imminently destroyed, and they may request to make an arrest of a public safety threat if there is no safe alternative and they get approval from agency leaders.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>“I want to do it, now make me do it” </h4> <p>Could Handsome Joe be channeling FDR? If so, Democrats are picking up what Joe is laying down:</p> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/joewalsh/2021/04/27/dozens-of-senate-democrats-urge-biden-to-boost-refugee-admissions-this-year/?sh=420b0a1e6c3b" target="_blank">Dozens Of Senate Democrats Urge Biden To Boost Refugee Admissions This Year</a>, Joe Walsh, Forbes, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>This fiscal year’s ceiling for refugee admissions currently stands at 15,000, the lowest number in decades, but Biden has pledged to increase that number by next month.</p> </div> <div> <p>In an<span> </span><a href="https://www.durbin.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Letter%20to%20Biden%20re%20refugee%20PD%20FINAL%20V8.pdf" target="_blank">open letter</a><span> </span>Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and 32 other Democratic senators pressured Biden to more than quadruple this year’s refugee ceiling to 62,500, a level Biden proposed two months ago but the White House admitted this month “seems unlikely” due to logistical challenges.</p> </div> <div> <p>The senators also called on Biden to set next fiscal year’s ceiling at 125,000, fulfilling a<span> </span><a href="https://joebiden.com/immigration/" target="_blank">campaign promise</a><span> </span>to boost refugee admissions to their<span> </span><a href="https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/us-annual-refugee-resettlement-ceilings-and-number-refugees-admitted-united" target="_blank">highest level</a><span> </span>since the 1990s.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Congressman champions Parental Leave</h4> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/04/biden-paid-leave-congress-pandemic/618697/" target="_blank" title="">The First Congressman to Take Parental Leave Is Ready to Fight for It</a>, Edward-Isaac Dovere, The Atlantic, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="ColinAllred_Baby.jpg" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/643795/large/ColinAllred_Baby.jpg?1550170442" title="ColinAllred_Baby.jpg"> <figcaption>Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX)</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The representative from Texas was the first member of Congress to take paternity leave, in 2019, when his first son was born. He’s now the second member of Congress to take paternity leave: His second son was born at the end of March.</span></p> <p><span>At least, Allred was the first member of Congress to admit that he was taking paternity leave. Others may have snuck in a few days here and there, but if they did, they weren’t gone for long. Congress does not maintain a human-resources file. And like much of the rest of America, Congress doesn’t have an official paid-leave policy. When Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois gave birth to her second daughter, in 2018, she was told that if she took official leave, that could lead to her being stripped of some of her parliamentary rights in the chamber. Allred took two weeks with his first son and is taking a month with his second. He gives his staff three months of leave; every member of Congress is the CEO and HR director of their own office.</span></p> <p><span>Allred isn’t the stereotype of a paid-leave advocate. His background will confuse people who think of paid leave as a “women’s issue” or one for bleeding-heart liberals and dreamy ideologues. He’s a 38-year-old former NFL player, a Black man who flipped a Republican district in 2018, held on to it in 2020, and is now waiting to see how Texas legislators gerrymander it ahead of next year’s midterms. He sees leave as a bipartisan issue, and backs up that belief with action: He was one of just a handful of Democrats who attended a paid-leave summit hosted by Ivanka Trump in December 2019, six days before he voted to impeach her father.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 🎶🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=qgO7BqAeeYk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qgO7BqAeeYk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖️ Legal Matters ⚖️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-dragged-closer-to-testifying-in-protesters-suit-accusing-his-guards-of-assault?ref=home" target="_blank">Trump Dragged Closer to Testifying in Protesters’ Suit Accusing His Guards of Assault</a>, Kate Briquelet, Daily Beast, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Former President Donald Trump is one step closer to testifying in a New York lawsuit filed by a group of protesters who claim his bodyguards assaulted them in 2015. ✂️</span></p> <p>While president, Trump had tried to quash a subpoena that would force him to testify at the civil trial in the Bronx and sit for a videotaped deposition beforehand. In 2019, his lawyers appealed a judge’s order denying his request.</p> <p>On Tuesday, the state’s Appellate Division dismissed Trump’s appeal as moot. ✂️</p> <p>Benjamin N. Dictor, an attorney for the protesters, said: “We are pleased with the Appellate Division’s decision and look forward to presenting Mr. Trump’s testimony at trial, as would be expected from any adverse party in litigation.”</p> <p>Lawyers for Trump could not be reached for comment</p> </blockquote> <h3>👀</h3> <p>Things may be heating up around DJTjr:</p> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/04/in-sworn-testimony-in-inauguration-scandal-case-donald-trump-jr-made-apparently-false-statements/" target="_blank">In Sworn Testimony in Inauguration Scandal Case, Donald Trump Jr. Made Apparently False Statements</a>, David Corn, Mother Jones, April 27, 2021,</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">On February 11, Donald Trump Jr. sat in front of his computer for a video deposition. He swore to tell the truth. But documents and a video obtained by<span> </span><em>Mother Jones—</em>and recent legal filings—indicate that his testimony on key points was not accurate. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">In his sworn testimony, Trump Jr. sidestepped the issue of whether this event was held for him and his siblings. And when he was asked if he had been “involved” in any inauguration events “like dinners, lunches, concerts,” he answered, “Not to my recollection. No.” Yet Racine’s filing places Trump Jr. in a key role related to the party that is at the center of the case against Trump’s inauguration committee and the Trump Organization. </span>✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Trump Jr.’s testimony in Congress during the Trump-Russia investigation in September 2017 also raised questions about his trustworthiness. He<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/democratic-senator-says-don-jr-may-have-lied-congressional-testimony-n877531">told</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>the Senate Judiciary Committee that he was not “aware” of any overseas governments other than Russia offering or providing assistance to the Trump camp in 2016. Yet eight months later, the </span><em>New York Times</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/19/us/politics/trump-jr-saudi-uae-nader-prince-zamel.html">revealed</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>that during the 2016 campaign Trump Jr. had a meeting with George Nader, an emissary for the rulers of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates; Joel Zamel, an Israeli expert in social media manipulation; and Erik Prince, the infamous private security contractor and Trump backer. (Nader is now<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/george-nader-sentenced-to-10-years-in-prison-for-child-sex-charges/2020/06/26/d8b2c2e4-b6f7-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html" title="">serving</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>a 10-year sentence<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/man-pleads-guilty-child-exploitation-crimes" title="">on child sex trafficking and pornography charges</a><span style="text-align:start">.) “The meeting,” the newspaper reported, “was convened primarily to offer help to the Trump team.” After the<span> </span></span><em>Times </em><span style="text-align:start">story appeared, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.)<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/democratic-senator-says-don-jr-may-have-lied-congressional-testimony-n877531">declared</a><span style="text-align:start">, he was “</span><a href="https://twitter.com/chriscoons/status/1000017290170073088?lang=en" title="">deeply concerned</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>that…Donald Trump Jr. provided false testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>LOL, Assh*le</h4> <p>Read the last sentence in the quoted excerpt — just for good measure!</p> <p><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/crime/man-in-viral-video-who-said-he-couldnt-be-arrested-for-racist-and-threatening-tirade-has-been-arrested-for-racist-and-threatening-tirade/" target="_blank" title="">Man in Viral Video Who Said He Couldn’t Be Arrested For Racist and Threatening Tirade Has Been Arrested For Racist and Threatening Tirade</a>, Michael Luciano, Mediaite, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Police in Ohio have arrested a man who was captured in a now viral video delivering a racist and threatening diatribe against Black motorist working for Door Dash as her two-year-old daughter was in the car with her.<span> </span><strong>James Rhodes</strong><span> </span>of Stow, Ohio has been charged with aggravated menacing and ethnic intimidation,<span> </span><strong>David Begnaud</strong><span> </span>of CBS News<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/DavidBegnaud/status/1387131436239659010" title="">reports</a>. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">During a separate exchange with Rhodes, onlookers can be heard telling him to stop saying racist things. In response, he throws up his hands and<span> </span></span><a href="https://streamable.com/fvehqk">asks</a><span style="text-align:start">, “What are they, gonna come arrest me?” ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">CBS’ Begnaud reports that Wyndham Ridge Apartments, where Rhodes lives, has initiated the process of evicting him.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💵 Economic Justice 💵</h3> <p>For decades, Republicans have succeeded in shifting the economic burden for keeping the lights on in the USA onto the backs of middle and working class Americans. Now at long last, that may begin to change:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/27/business/economy/biden-american-families-plan.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank" title="">Biden Seeks $80 Billion to Beef Up I.R.S. Audits of High-Earners</a>, Jim Tankersley and Allen Rappeport, New York Times, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON — President Biden, looking to pay for his ambitious economic agenda and shift more of the nation’s tax burden to the wealthy, will propose giving the Internal Revenue Service an extra $80 billion and more authority over the next 10 years to help crack down on tax evasion by high-earners and large corporations.</p> <p>The additional money and enforcement power will accompany new disclosure requirements for people who own businesses that are not organized as corporations — like many law firms and real estate partnerships — and for other high-earners who could be hiding income from the government. Mr. Biden’s goal is to raise hundreds of billions of dollars to pay for child care, education and other programs while making it harder for high-earning Americans to evade or avoid taxes. ✂️</p> <p><span>Empowering the I.R.S. is one of several proposals that Mr. Biden will unveil when he addresses a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. His administration will portray that effort — coupled with new taxes it is proposing on corporations<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/22/business/economy/biden-taxes.html">and the rich</a><span><span> </span>— as a way to level the tax playing field between typical American workers and very high-earners who employ sophisticated efforts to minimize or avoid taxation.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>It’s So sensible it just might work!</h4> <p><a href="https://slate.com/business/2021/04/irs-joe-biden-audit-taxes-rich-people.html" target="_blank">Audit the Rich</a>, Jordan Weissmann, Slate, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The president<span> </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-to-seek-80-billion-to-bolster-irs-tax-enforcement-11619539465">plans to propose<span> </span></a>$80 billion in additional new funding over a decade for the resource-starved agency in order to beef up enforcement against tax cheats. Averaged annually, it would be a two-thirds increase over its current budget of just under $12 billion. The administration believes this massive infusion of cash will help the IRS collect an extra $780 billion over a decade that would otherwise go missing. That money would be used to help finance the administration’s new package of family and antipoverty proposals, which it will unveil on Wednesday and is expected to cost<span> </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/prescription-drug-price-cuts-set-to-be-left-out-of-white-house-proposal-11619467953?mod=article_inline">around $1.8 trillion</a>.</p> <p>It’s a sensible, long-overdue move that could help fund badly needed social spending while bringing a modicum of fairness back to American’s run-down tax-enforcement system. The IRS has been gutted by years of budget cuts, largely thanks to Republicans who<span> </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2017-11-20/gop-surrenders-cherished-irs-scandal-at-last">peddled a fiction</a><span> </span>that it had harassed conservative nonprofits, which reduced its<span> </span><a href="https://www.irs.gov/statistics/irs-budget-and-workforce" title="">workforce by 22 percent</a><span> </span>between 2010 and 2019 and left it with its lowest number of<span> </span><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/how-the-irs-was-gutted">revenue agents since the 1950s</a>. As a result, the agency’s audit rate<span> </span><a href="https://slate.com/business/2020/01/irs-audits-revenue-declining.html">has plunged</a><span> </span>by around half. With its depleted, shoestring budget, the agency has shied away from scrutinizing the tax returns of<span> </span><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/irs-audit-rate-lowest-in-at-least-a-decade/">wealthy Americans</a>—from 2012 to 2020 the number of millionaires audited<span> </span><a href="https://trac.syr.edu/tracirs/highlights/current/millionairesG.html">fell by 72 percent</a>—and devoted resources to<span> </span><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/how-the-irs-was-gutted">chasing after</a><span> </span>poorer and working-class households that make mistakes filing for the Earned Income Tax Credit, both due to pressure from Republicans and because it’s easier than dealing with millionaires who can hire lawyers.</p> <p><span>As the IRS has withered, the the country has allowed massive amounts of revenue to slip through its fingers each year. <em><strong>Earlier this month, IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said that the country was allowing<span> </span></strong></em></span><em><strong><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/business/irs-tax-gap.html" title="">$1 trillion in taxes</a><span><span> </span>to go uncollected every year,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-13/tax-cheats-are-costing-u-s-1-trillion-a-year-irs-estimates?sref=C3P1bRLC">much larger</a></strong></em><span><em><strong><span> </span>than the last official estimate of $441 billion a year on average form 2011 to 2013.</strong></em> “We do get outgunned,” he told lawmakers at a Senate finance committee hearing. The agency is struggling with new challenges, like the proliferation of cryptocurrency, as well as old ones, like offshore evasion.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🐘 Glimmers of Sanity in the MAGAverse 🐘</h3> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/covid-19-vaccine-doctors-gop_n_6088493fe4b0ccb91c2a9901" target="_blank">GOP Lawmakers Release Surprisingly Great COVID-19 Vaccine Ad,</a> Igor Bobic, HuffPost, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WWG1WGA-tRumpCult.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/926834/large/WWG1WGA-tRumpCult.gif?1615700515" title="WWG1WGA-tRumpCult.gif"> <figcaption>Maybe some of them can still be saved from themselves.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Republican members of Congress who also happen to be medical professionals released a video on Tuesday encouraging people to get COVID-19 vaccinations ― an important public health message meant to counter vaccine hesitancy among their constituents.</p> </div> <div> <p>The video, organized by the 18-member GOP “Doctors’ Caucus,” stresses the safety of COVID-19 vaccines and the U.S. government’s “rigorous and transparent” process of overseeing their development.</p> </div> <div> <p>“The FDA did not skip any steps,” Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), an anesthesiologist and caucus co-chair, assures about COVID-19 vaccines in the ad.</p> </div> <div> <p>“The only way to protect ourselves and your loved ones ― and to end the government’s restrictions on our freedoms ― is to take action and get the vaccine,” Rep. Greg Murphy (N.C.) added in the video, tailoring his pitch specifically to conservatives who opposed coronavirus lockdowns and other public health measures amid the pandemic.</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span>A crack in the MAGA media dam? <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/new-york-post-kamala-harris-correction-migrant-book/2021/04/27/ec297ac6-a769-11eb-bca5-048b2759a489_story.html" target="_blank">A New York Post story about Kamala Harris triggered conservative outrage. Almost all of it was wrong. Now the reporter has resigned.</a> Paul Farhi, Washington Post, April 27, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p>A longtime New York Post reporter said she has resigned after being “ordered” to write a false story that claimed undocumented minors were being welcomed to the United States with copies of a children’s book written by Vice President Harris.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>“The Kamala Harris story — an incorrect story I was ordered to write and which I failed to push back hard enough against — was my breaking point,”<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/Italiano_Laura/status/1387165113443098629">Laura Italiano tweeted</a><span> </span>Tuesday afternoon, several hours after her viral article about the books had been deleted from the Post’s website and replaced with corrected versions.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <p>Italiano, who has written for the Post since the 1990s, according to news archives, could not be immediately reached for comment.</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🩺 💉 Health News 🩺 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/cdc-mask-wearing-guidance-d373775ddcf237764c19ff9428b59634" target="_blank">CDC says many Americans can now go outside without a mask</a>, Mike Stobbe, AP News, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Masked lion in front of the Art Institute of Chicago by photographer Brian Rich at the Chicago Sun Times" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/826064/large/maskedlion.jpg?1593508975" title="Masked lion in front of the Art Institute of Chicago by photographer Brian Rich at the Chicago Sun Times"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">NEW YORK (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased its guidelines Tuesday on the wearing of masks outdoors, saying fully vaccinated Americans don’t need to cover their faces anymore unless they are in a big crowd of strangers.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And those who are unvaccinated can go outside without masks in some situations, too.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The new guidance represents another carefully calibrated step on<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-health-joe-biden-business-government-and-politics-3d38206bc38f012b9598154b59d27d1f">the road back to normal</a><span> </span>from the coronavirus outbreak that has killed over 570,000 people in U.S. ✂️</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The change comes as more than half of U.S. adults — or about 140 million people — have received at least one dose of<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/how-long-covid-19-vaccine-protection-last-49340b077e271a750ad804128dbb5f53">vaccine</a><span style="text-align:start">, and more than a third have been fully vaccinated. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“It’s the return of freedom,” Saag said. “It’s the return of us being able to do normal activities again. We’re not there yet, but we’re on the exit ramp. And that’s a beautiful thing.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/22384169/face-masks-cdc-guidelines-covid-19-vaccine-outdoors-mandates-indoors-kids" target="_blank">3 reasons most public masking is still important — even if you’re vaccinated</a>, Katherine Harmon Courage, Voz News, April 27, 2021.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;1. New CDC guidance for outdoor masking in the USA, in the context of growing population-level immunity due to mass &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#COVID19&lt;/a&gt; vaccination.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Helpful graphic &amp;amp; makes sense.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Outdoor COVID transmission is rare but not 0% (esp for unvaccinated folks)...mask if you can&amp;#39;t distance. &lt;a href="https://t.co/6BVnlwMCzn"&gt;https://t.co/6BVnlwMCzn&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Isaac Bogoch (@BogochIsaac) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BogochIsaac/status/1387085480706064389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 27, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>1. New CDC guidance for outdoor masking in the USA, in the context of growing population-level immunity due to mass <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19</a> vaccination.<br><br>Helpful graphic & makes sense.<br><br>Outdoor COVID transmission is rare but not 0% (esp for unvaccinated folks)...mask if you can't distance. <a href="https://t.co/6BVnlwMCzn">https://t.co/6BVnlwMCzn</a></p>— Isaac Bogoch (@BogochIsaac) <a href="https://twitter.com/BogochIsaac/status/1387085480706064389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>People are weird, man 😄</h4> <p><em><span style="text-align:start">"This is the first vaccine in history where anyone has ever complained about<span> </span></span><em>not</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>having symptoms,"</span></em></p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/04/27/990992425/you-dont-have-to-suffer-to-benefit-from-covid-vaccination-but-some-prefer-it" target="_blank">You Don't Have To Suffer To Benefit From COVID Vaccination — But Some Prefer It</a>, Arthur Allen, NPR News, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="THORNTON, CO - MARCH 06: Adams 12 Five Star Schools District RN Tiffany Karschamroon draws a dose from a vial of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, the newest vaccine approved by the U.S. FDA for emergency use, at an event put on by the Thornton Fire Department on March 6, 2021 in Thornton, Colorado. Colorado entered COVID-19 vaccination Phase 1B.3 on Friday, allowing essential grocery and agriculture workers, people over the age of 60 and people with two or more high-risk conditions to receive a vaccine. (Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/932979/large/GettyImages-1231560614.jpg?1617306314" title="THORNTON, CO - MARCH 06: Adams 12 Five Star Schools District RN Tiffany Karschamroon draws a dose from a vial of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, the newest vaccine approved by the U.S. FDA for emergency use, at an event put on by the Thornton Fire Department on March 6, 2021 in Thornton, Colorado. Colorado entered COVID-19 vaccination Phase 1B.3 on Friday, allowing essential grocery and agriculture workers, people over the age of 60 and people with two or more high-risk conditions to receive a vaccine. (Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Roughly half of those vaccinated with the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines,<span> </span><a href="https://khn.org/morning-breakout/covid-vaccines-safe-in-pregnancy-women-report-more-side-effects/" title="">and in particular women</a>, experience unpleasantness — from hot, sore arms to chills, headache, fever and exhaustion. Some boast about the symptoms. They often welcome them.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Suspicion about what was in the shots grew in the mind of Patricia Mandatori, an Argentine immigrant in Los Angeles, when she hardly felt the needle going in after her first dose of the Moderna vaccine at a March appointment.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A day later, though, with satisfaction she says it "felt like a truck hit me. When I started to feel rotten I says, 'Yay, I got the vaccination.' I was happy. I felt relieved."</p> <p style="text-align:start">While the symptoms show your immune system is responding to the vaccine in a way that will protect against disease, evidence from clinical trials showed that people with few or no symptoms were also protected. Don't feel bad if you don't feel bad, the experts say.</p> </blockquote> <h3>My Local Good News (Chicago,Illinois)</h3> <h4>Revival of the Arts in Chicago!</h4> <p><strong>Opera</strong> is one of my musical loves — and our world-class opera house, the Lyric Opera, has been sorely missed during the pandemic. This week, the Lyric is back with an astonishingly innovative new production:</p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/entertainment-and-culture/2021/4/27/22405922/lyric-opera-twilight-gods-wagner-drive-through-underground-garage-ring-cycle-millennium-lakeside" target="_blank">Lyric Opera’s ‘Twilight: Gods’ delivers a sensational drive-through Wagner — in an underground garage</a>, Kyle MacMillan, Chicago Sun-Times, April 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Twilight Gods, Lyric Opera production in Lake Front garage." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/941524/large/Twilight_Gods_c._Kyle_Flubacker_008.0copy.jpg?1619572647" title="Twilight Gods, Lyric Opera production in Lake Front garage."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Audiences experience this work from their cars, nine vehicles at a time (126 total per night) snaking through a blue-lit, maze-like path in the Millennium Lakeside Parking Garage with the help of dozens of guides along the way. They stop at six stations, where scenes from the original opera and added narrative are presented in segments that last 10 minutes or so. ✂️</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Along the way are some startling sights, none more unexpected and other-worldly than what looks like an acre-wide expanse of 2,880 candles with 15 students of the Joffrey Academy of Dance shifting spotlights as they dance to a jazzy arrangement of Siegfried’s funeral music from “Götterdämmerung.” It is all part of the character’s funeral procession, which audience members take part in as they follow his hearse. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Nothing, though, tops mezzo-soprano Catherine Martin’s haunting aria as Waltraute, daughter of the great god, Wotan, as she laments the failing faculties of her father and tries to convince an unseen Brünnhilde to help him by returning the ring that is at the center of Wagner’s story.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Her performance is heightened by the strange and compelling intimacy of the dimly lit setting – just nine carloads of listeners (instead of potentially more than 3,000 in the Lyric Opera House) sharing this fleeting, communal moment.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Visual Art</strong>. We’ve also got the gorgeous new immersive <a href="https://www.vangoghchicago.com/" target="_blank">Van Gogh exhibition</a> at the Lighthouse ArtSpace at Germania Club happening right now and through the fall. </p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="5fdff087ee09c.image.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/941525/large/5fdff087ee09c.image.jpg?1619573004" title="5fdff087ee09c.image.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>Feeling Optimistic About Chicago’s Future</h4> <p>Yes, we just lost a congressional seat due to — perhaps (if the census was accurate?) — out-migration. The conventional wisdom is that people are leaving Illinois in greater numbers than are coming in. Reasons given by talking heads vary from “high taxes” to “long winters” to “high crime”. Well, as Mokurai mentioned yesterday, there has always been a lot of bad stuff going on — everywhere — and in the overall scheme of things, life is actually better now than at nearly any other period in human history.</p> <p>Chicago is a beautiful city full of interesting people, with a lot of challenges (just like any large city, and of course made even more challenging by decades of unfettered capitalism) and it feels like we are about to experience a renaissance. I’m not the only person who senses this. You can feel it in the air when you walk around the streets of Chicago. During the lockdown, our city was hard at work using the time to do infrastructure works while traffic was so sparse. Apartment buildings, businesses and even the empty hotels (!) continued to keep their sidewalks tidy and their little green spaces tended and planted with seasonal flowers. The message was clear — <em>this pandemic will end</em> and when it does, the City of Broad Shoulders will be ready!</p> <p>Anyway, this opinion piece in yesterday’s paper made me smile (the writer could be coming from anywhere) : <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/4/26/22403884/why-i-cant-wait-to-move-from-california-to-chicago" target="_blank">Why I can’t wait to move... to Chicago</a>, Mark Cosin, Chicago Sun-Times, April 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Chicago " src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/913676/large/Chicago.jpeg?1612407702" title="Chicago "> <figcaption>Yeah, Chicago is beautiful! </figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">It’s a tale we’d almost risk over-telling if it weren’t so incredible. Decimated in 1871, Chicago would aggressively charge into the future, remaking itself into a global icon that would literally host the world at a fair two decades later. Imagining myself as part of yet another rebuild — a “second” Second City? — is something too irresistible to ignore. ✂️</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The future is objectively bright. The city and state are set to benefit from both a major COVID-19 relief bill and a potential<span> </span><a href="https://news.wttw.com/2021/04/05/chicago-transportation-agencies-angle-piece-biden-infrastructure-spending-pie">infrastructure cash influx</a><span> </span>to bolster Chicago as a<span> </span><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/4/9/22374066/amtrak-chicago-infrastructure-plan-illinois-president-biden-editorial">transit hub</a>. Chicagoland is still rated as a “Top Metro” for corporate investment (last year saw 327 business expansions and relocations according to<span> </span><a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/chicago-named-top-corporate-metro-eight-years-in-a-row-301236907.html">Site Selection Magazine</a>). Startups in the Chicago area offer a return-on-investment that far outpaces national averages per a<span> </span><a href="https://www.builtinchicago.org/2020/12/11/p33-report-chicago-startups-investment-roi">recent report</a>. And Chicago continues to have one of the largest and most<span> </span><a href="http://www.worldbusinesschicago.com/economy/">diversified economies in the world</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">This is not to paper over the heavy lift for citizens and city leaders. There’s a reason a poll showed that<span> </span><a href="https://abc7chicago.com/the-chicago-index-is-on-right-track-survey-civic-survery/10495510/">73% of residents</a><span> </span>think the city’s on the wrong track. Even its greatest boosters know Chicago has deep systemic problems that threaten to derail a robust recovery. The road ahead is not for the weak-willed. Luckily, if there’s something that Chicagoans are famous for — a virtue extolled by legendary writers in prose and poetry — it is hard work.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It’s a city that turns its back on pessimism. The city I know is not going into the future with misplaced idealism, but with bullish confidence in itself and its people.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶🎵🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=8GD63RuQduc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8GD63RuQduc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/world-hates-america-little-bit-less-than-six-months-ago-thanks-joe-biden" target="_blank">World Hates America Little Bit Less Than Six Months Ago, Thanks Joe Biden! </a>Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/27/991061868/democrats-outline-care-infrastructure-plan-with-paid-leave-and-child-care" target="_blank">Democrats Outline 'Care Infrastructure' Plan, With Paid Leave And Child Care</a>, Kelsey Snell, NPR News, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/27/988822340/bidens-1st-100-days-a-look-by-the-numbers" target="_blank">Biden's 1st 100 Days: A Look By The Numbers</a>, Jason Breslow, NOR News, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/just-because-republicans-engages-skullduggery-doesnt-mean-they-are-helping-themselves/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/just-because-republicans-engages-skullduggery-doesnt-mean-they-are-helping-themselves/" target="_blank">The lesson from the census: The GOP may have shot itself in the foot</a>, Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, April 27, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ LOL: </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/joe-biden-rich/">Biden admin has a message for Democrats -- 'Eating the rich is popular — so act like it': report</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.vox.com/22405898/joe-biden-irs-funding" target="_blank">The White House can raise taxes on the wealthy without touching the tax code at all</a>, Emiily Stewart, Vox, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Meat beer, anyone? <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/conservatives-serve-up-scary-dish-nothingburgers/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/27/conservatives-serve-up-scary-dish-nothingburgers/" target="_blank">Conservatives serve up a scary dish of nothingburgers</a>, Molly Roberts, Washington Post, April 27, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Too bad, so sad: </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/27/opinion/republican-party-joe-biden.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">The Republican Party Is Failing in Too Many Ways</a>, Peter Suderman, New York Times (guest columnist), April 27, 2021.</p> <p><span>⚡️More details on the Apple/Facebook story from last week: </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/26/technology/mark-zuckerberg-tim-cook-facebook-apple.html?name=styln-business-live&region=TOP_BANNER&block=storyline_menu_recirc&action=click&pgtype=Article&variant=1_Show&is_new=false" target="_blank">Breaking Point: How Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook Became Foes</a>, Mike Isaac and Jack Nicas, New York Times, April 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️This guy...ew: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/all-of-the-things-that-matt-gaetz-most-definitely-did-not-exchange-for-sex" target="_blank">All Of The Things That Matt Gaetz Most Definitely Did NOT Exchange For Sex</a>, Josh Kovensky, TPM Muckraker, April 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-highs-and-lows-of-the-pandemic-oscars" target="_blank">The Highs and Lows of the Pandemic Oscars</a>, Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, April 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-lessons-of-the-johnson-and-johnson-vaccine-saga" target="_blank">The Lessons of the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Saga</a>, Amy Davidson-Sorkin, The New Yorker, April 25, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️When idealogues are elevated to power: <a href="https://www.vox.com/22404001/supreme-court-cancel-culture-americans-for-prosperity-bonta-california-alito-thomas-gorsuch" target="_blank">The Supreme Court’s conservatives are quaking over cancel culture</a>, Ian Milhiser, Vox, April 27, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/04/lewandowski-linked-lobby-shop-is-the-latest-trump-aligned-firm-to-fall/" target="_blank">Lewandowski-Linked Lobby Shop Is the Latest Trump-Aligned Firm to Fall</a>, Dan Friedman, MotherJones, April 27, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me this week. I hope everyone has a very nice hump day and get in your provisions early so you can settle in and enjoy President Joe’s big speech tonight!</p> <p>The Curlygirly and I remind you to take good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors every day, if you can.</p> <p>There is progressive energy in the air and of course the bad guys are not going to give up without a big fight. We have the majority, we have the momentum and we have love, truth and a desire for justice on our side. We will bend the arc of the moral universe more towards justice, and we will need all our energy to do it. We are going to make this country and this world a better place.</p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies! I am so honored to be in your company!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="Black poodle dog sits politely by a display of pansies and wind chimes." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/941581/large/IMG_7759.jpg?1619590817" title="Black poodle dog sits politely by a display of pansies and wind chimes."> <figcaption>Mama could not decide on closing music, so you get a BIG picture of me today!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanFamiliesPlan AmericanJobsPlan AmericanRescuePlan Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden POTUS Recommended SOTU _2027924 Wed, 28 Apr 2021 11:00:17 +0000 Grief, Relief and the Long Road to Justice - Wednesday Good News RoundUp https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/4/21/2026751/-Grief-Relief-and-the-Long-Road-to-Justice-Wednesday-Good-News-RoundUp <p>Good Day, Gnusies. The verdict in the trial of George Floyd’s murderer pushed everything else out of my mind yesterday evening, so this roundup may be a bit untidy. I know you all understand and probably had some of the same feelings. It was surreal walking in Chicago yesterday afternoon as we awaited the verdict. I couldn’t really tell if stores were even open, due to the eerie atmosphere — and that so many were boarded up. The streets were strangely quiet, people walking along staring at their phones, waiting. CG and I walked past a black woman who had pulled her car over and was sitting there crying. I was afraid to look at my phone to find out if they were tears of relief or renewed grief. We kept walking longer than normally, putting off the moment when we would have to hear the verdict. </p> <p>I had left my TV on when I left to walk Curlygirly — that added to the weird vibe, too, because I do not normally have the TV on during the day (or most nights either, tbh) and never just leave it on. But today was different.</p> <p><strong>George Floyd’s family</strong> and our own POTUS and VPOTUS spoke eloquently on the subject of the verdict and the long road to justice, so I’m going to go straight to them and then on to other news:</p> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/george-floyd-family-verdict/2021/04/20/3610bc68-a219-11eb-a7ee-949c574a09ac_story.html" target="_blank" title="">‘Today, we are able to breathe again’: Floyd’s family members celebrate verdict, vow to fight on for racial justice</a>, </span>Toluse Olorunnipa and Robert Samuels, Washington Post, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>For the family of<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/national/george-floyd-america/systemic-racism/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">George Floyd</a>, the murder conviction of the former police officer who killed him was a confirmation of something they knew but feared the justice system might never validate: that their loved one's life mattered.</p> </div> <div> <p>“Today, we are able to breathe again,” one of Floyd’s younger brothers, Philonise, said during a news conference in Minneapolis after the verdict was released. “Justice for George means freedom for all.”</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>After Derek Chauvin, who killed Floyd with a prolonged knee to the neck last year, was<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/04/20/derek-chauvin-trial-verdict/#link-PWLRRZ5BLVFEZPLMTHF5XELLEM?itid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_5">convicted of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter,</a><span> </span>Floyd’s family members hugged one another tightly and shed tears of joy.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>President Biden’s Remarks (Video and transcript)</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/joe-biden-derek-chauvin-guilt/">Joe Biden on Chauvin guilt: 'Murder in the full light of day that ripped the blinders off of systemic racism'</a>, Sarah Burris, Raw Story, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>President Joe Biden addressed the nation after the guilty verdict of Derek Chauvin, sending blessings to George Floyd and his family. But more than that, Biden called for this to be the beginning of the systemic change to put an end to police brutality in America.</span></p> <p><span>“Today, a jury in Minnesota found former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all counts in the murder of George Floyd last May.</span><br> <span>It was a murder in the full light of day, and it ripped the blinders off for the whole world to see the systemic racism the Vice President just referred to -- the systemic racism that is a stain our nation's soul; the knee on the neck of justice for Black Americans; the profound fear and trauma, the pain, the exhaustion that Black and brown Americans experience every single day.</span><br> <span>The murder of George Floyd launched a summer of protest we hadn't seen since the Civil Rights era in the '60s -- protests that unified people of every race and generation in peace and with purpose to say, "Enough. Enough. Enough of the senseless killings."</span></p> </blockquote> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/darnella-frazier-george-floyd-trial/2021/04/20/9e261cc6-a1e2-11eb-a774-7b47ceb36ee8_story.html" target="_blank">By bearing witness — and hitting ‘record’ — 17-year-old Darnella Frazier may have changed the world</a>, Margaret Sullivan, Washington Post, April 20, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>After so many previous instances in which police officers were acquitted of what looked to many people like murder, this time was different. And it was different, in some significant portion, because of a teenager’s sense of right and wrong. ✄</span></p> <p><span>That video clip, now seen millions of times around the world, was a powerful, irrefutable act of bearing witness. ✄</span></p> <p><span>In conversation with ABC’s David Muir last week, Hostin called it “the strongest piece of evidence I have ever seen in a case against a police officer.” ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Your quick thinking and bravery under immense pressure has made the world safer and more just,” Hill said. Like the others, Hill added: “Thank you.”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Again, Frazier was quiet but centered when she spoke: “I never would imagine out of my whole 17 years of living that this will be me,” she said. “It’s just a lot to take in, but I couldn’t say thank you enough.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/04/derek-chauvin-verdict-power-of-bystanders-hope.html" target="_blank">This Verdict Was About the Power of Bystanders</a>, Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There is something profound that brought about this verdict and that thing may be new and worth celebrating: This was a lesson in the power of bystanders. Not just the bystanders who stood by and<span> </span></span><em>filmed the police</em><span><span> </span>as the travesty was unfolding and not just the bystanders who implored the police to stop, or the bystanders who improbably and amazingly called the cops on the cops. This verdict was also the result of the police officers who stepped in to testify against their own. What was astounding, watching the Chauvin trial play out, wasn’t just the fact that people who had every reason to bolt at the scene stood their ground and bore witness. What was astounding, watching this trial, were the cops who could have faded back and held their tongues who decided instead to speak truth not merely to power, but to their own best interests.</span></p> <p><span>Perhaps as important as all that is the fact that millions and millions of Americans saw the video of George Floyd’s death. People who could have reacted by turning away, or persuading themselves it didn’t matter, who also chose to bear witness, and then chose to stand up, to march, to learn. For the people who witnessed the actual truth of things and decided that the time for silence was over, this too, is a lesson in the transformational power of bystanders. In an age in which celebrity and individualism seems to count for everything, this verdict stands perhaps for the possibility that crowds of millions may count for more.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=g088O0UeKQE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/g088O0UeKQE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🇺🇸🗽 Joe and His Team Continue to Save the Country 🗽🇺🇸</h3> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/bidens-next-big-plan-could-blow-up-one-gops-biggest-lies/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/bidens-next-big-plan-could-blow-up-one-gops-biggest-lies/" target="_blank">Biden’s next big plan could blow up one of the GOP’s worst lies</a>, Greg Sargent, Washington Post, April 20, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>We shouldn’t let it be forgotten that Donald Trump ran for reelection on a monstrous lie. If Joe Biden won, then-President Trump<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-economic-club-new-york-recovery-jobs/" target="_blank">told us</a><span>, the mentally declining Biden would fall captive to his party’s rabid socialist left flank, which would immediately drive the country into a depression. ✄</span></p> <p><span>In short, Republicans have repurposed the lie that Democrats are captive to leftist ideas that are fundamentally radical and destructive. Yet they are proving overwhelmingly popular. Large majorities<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/15/biden-jobs-plan-polling-popular/?itid=lk_inline_manual_17">approve of the infrastructure proposals</a><span><span> </span>and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2021/04/15/biden-nears-100-day-mark-with-strong-approval-positive-rating-for-vaccine-rollout/">approve of the covid rescue package</a><span>. <strong>If these are radical leftist ideas, then</strong> <strong>big majorities of Americans approve of radical leftist ideas</strong>. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>What’s more, Democrats no longer fear that bold progressive policies will attract grumbling about undermining economic “confidence” from either deficit scolds or Wall Street “job creators.”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Biden’s economic advisers evidently believe that if you build a better economy, confidence will take care of itself,” Krugman notes, adding that “all indications are that we’re heading for an economic boom,” which means “Biden’s policies might get even more popular.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Democrats Ready to Boldly Build Back Better</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/19/opinion/biden-democratic-party.html" target="_blank">What’s the Secret of Biden’s Success?</a> Paul Krugman, New York Times, April 19, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Biden, then, benefits from having a nonthreatening persona and an opposition that has forgotten how to make persuasive policy arguments. But the popularity of Bidenomics also reflects the effectiveness of a party that is far more comfortable in its own skin than it was a dozen years ago. ✄</span></p> <p>Now the deference is gone. Wall Street clearly has a lot less influence this time around; Biden’s economic advisers evidently believe that if you build a better economy, confidence will take care of itself. The obsession with bipartisanship is also gone, replaced with a realistic appreciation of Republican bad faith, which has also made the new administration uninterested in G.O.P. talking points.</p> <p>And the old diffidence has evaporated. Biden isn’t just going big, he’s going obvious, with highly visible policies rather than behavioral nudges. Furthermore, these forthright policies involve doing popular things. For example, voters have consistently told pollsters that corporations pay<span> </span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/1714/taxes.aspx" target="_blank">too little in taxes</a>; Biden’s team, buoyed by the Trump tax cut’s<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/09/opinion/trump-corporate-tax-reform.html">failure</a>, is willing to give the public what it wants.</p> <p><span>So Biden’s 2021 isn’t playing anything like Obama’s 2009, and Republicans don’t seem to know what hit them.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Imagine that! A Real Infrastructure Week</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/biden-cabinet-calls-on-senate-to-loosen-grip-spend-big-on-infrastructure/" target="_blank" title="">Biden Cabinet Calls on Senate to Loosen Grip, Spend Big on Infrastructure</a>, Brandi Buchman, Courthouse News Service, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Struggling to resolve racial tensions in South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg exclusively shared with NPR his "Douglass Plan," named for the famed abolitionist." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/861931/large/2019-07-10-petebuttigieg-shuang-01-cdbb2d507b90c1efe37f2a1e0f71363c24483af5.jpg?1601312399" title="Struggling to resolve racial tensions in South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg exclusively shared with NPR his "Douglass Plan," named for the famed abolitionist."> <figcaption>Getting down to INFRASTRUCTURE business!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (CN) — Looking to pry open the congressional purse, a quartet of President Joe Biden’s senior cabinet officials came to the Senate on Tuesday in support of a $2 trillion infrastructure plan that faces fierce headwinds on Capitol Hill.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The pitch is not completely controversial. There is bipartisan agreement in Washington that the nation’s infrastructure — typically understood to mean its roads, highways, waterways and bridges — are in disrepair and have gone neglected to varying degrees for some time, often at great cost, and regardless of which administration occupies the Oval Office. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The department heads said Tuesday that infrastructure effectively encompasses all that is essential, from child care to oversight of the national manufacturing supply chain to regulations for the water pipes to affordable housing.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And after years of havoc on the economy wreaked by climate change — in 2017 Hurricane Harvey cost $125 billion in damages alone — Secretary Buttigieg told lawmakers not to scorn the plan’s climate-based initiatives as liberal fever dreams.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Biden Administration Takes Steps to Secure the Grid</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-technology-business-government-and-politics-669f8ae9bb78ff5f5c93cfcb58ae0dfa" target="_blank">US takes steps to protect electric system from cyberattacks</a>, Eric Tucker, AP News, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is taking steps to protect<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/c8d531ec05e0403a90e9d3ec0b8f83c2">the country’s electric system</a><span> </span>from cyberattacks through a new 100-day initiative combining federal government agencies and the private industry.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The initiative, announced Tuesday by the Energy Department, encourages owners and operators of power plants and electric utilities to improve their capabilities for identifying cyber threats to their networks. It includes concrete milestones for them to put into use technologies so they can spot and respond to intrusions in real time.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The department is also soliciting input from electric utilities, energy companies, government agencies and others for recommendations about how to safeguard the energy system supply chain.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Biden is even saving the whales!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Biden administration finalized a rule that will conserve approximately 118,000 square nautical miles of the Pacific Ocean as protected habitat for the humpback whale. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MatthewCRenda?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MatthewCRenda&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/SjYMv1y6rJ"&gt;https://t.co/SjYMv1y6rJ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Courthouse News (@CourthouseNews) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CourthouseNews/status/1384651682395480064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 20, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Biden administration finalized a rule that will conserve approximately 118,000 square nautical miles of the Pacific Ocean as protected habitat for the humpback whale. <a href="https://twitter.com/MatthewCRenda?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MatthewCRenda</a> <a href="https://t.co/SjYMv1y6rJ">https://t.co/SjYMv1y6rJ</a></p>— Courthouse News (@CourthouseNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/CourthouseNews/status/1384651682395480064?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Competent Congressional Democrats, too </h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-senate-panel-consider-biden-postal-board-nominees-april-22-2021-04-15/" target="_blank" title="">U.S. Senate Panel to Consider Biden Postal Board Nominees April 22</a>, David Shepardson, Reuters, April 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="United States Postal Service collection boxes." class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/887682/large/IMG_5511crop.jpg?1606406475" title="United States Postal Service collection boxes."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Biden nominated Anton Hajjar, former general counsel of the American Postal Workers Union; Amber McReynolds, CEO of the National Vote at Home Institute, a non-partisan non-profit dedicated to expanding vote-by-mail systems and former elections official in Denver; and Ron Stroman, a former deputy postmaster general. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Representative Carolyn Maloney, who chairs the committee overseeing USPS, has circulated draft legislation that would eliminate a requirement USPS pre-fund retiree health benefits. It also would require postal employees to enroll in government-retiree health plan Medicare.</p> <p style="text-align:start">USPS reported net losses of $86.7 billion since 2007. One reason is 2006 legislation mandating it pre-fund more than $120 billion in retiree health care and pension liabilities, a requirement labor unions have called an unfair burden not shared by other businesses.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Dems Call for Increasing SSI Benefits</h4> <p>And they have the support of 77% of Americans!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: A coalition of House &amp;amp; Senate Democrats—led by &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenSherrodBrown?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SenSherrodBrown&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JamaalBowmanNY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@JamaalBowmanNY&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenWarren?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SenWarren&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenSanders?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SenSanders&lt;/a&gt; w/&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RonWyden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@RonWyden&lt;/a&gt;—have teamed up to call on &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@POTUS&lt;/a&gt; to include long-overdue updates to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) in the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AmericanFamilyPlan?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#AmericanFamilyPlan&lt;/a&gt; 👇 &lt;a href="https://t.co/t02VzN7dJ0"&gt;pic.twitter.com/t02VzN7dJ0&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Rebecca Vallas (@rebeccavallas) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rebeccavallas/status/1384269123249573899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: A coalition of House & Senate Democrats—led by <a href="https://twitter.com/SenSherrodBrown?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenSherrodBrown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JamaalBowmanNY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamaalBowmanNY</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SenWarren?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenWarren</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SenSanders?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenSanders</a> w/<a href="https://twitter.com/RonWyden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RonWyden</a>—have teamed up to call on <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> to include long-overdue updates to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AmericanFamilyPlan?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AmericanFamilyPlan</a> 👇 <a href="https://t.co/t02VzN7dJ0">pic.twitter.com/t02VzN7dJ0</a></p>— Rebecca Vallas (@rebeccavallas) <a href="https://twitter.com/rebeccavallas/status/1384269123249573899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;3) eliminate the archaic “in-kind support and maintenance” rule that slashes benefits by a third if folks get help from loved ones&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;4) end SSI’s marriage penalty so marriage equality extends to disabled people&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;5) updating SSI&amp;#39;s income disregards, which haven’t changed since 1974&lt;/p&gt;— Rebecca Vallas (@rebeccavallas) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rebeccavallas/status/1384270171150315532?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>3) eliminate the archaic “in-kind support and maintenance” rule that slashes benefits by a third if folks get help from loved ones<br><br>4) end SSI’s marriage penalty so marriage equality extends to disabled people<br><br>5) updating SSI's income disregards, which haven’t changed since 1974</p>— Rebecca Vallas (@rebeccavallas) <a href="https://twitter.com/rebeccavallas/status/1384270171150315532?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>💚 🌱It’s Getting Easier Being Green! 💚 🌱</h3> <p>It’s getting harder and harder for the GQP to keep pushing fossil fuels on us while denying the reality of global climate change. I mean, the industries they were propping up are now saying, “lol, nevermind — we want a habitable world in which to spend our ill-gotten riches!”</p> <p>But whatever their motivations, this is good news for the planet:</p> <p><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-20/the-shipping-industry-wants-to-be-taxed-for-its-carbon-emissions?srnd=premium" target="_blank">The Shipping Industry Wants to Be Taxed for Its Carbon Emissions</a>, Jack Wittels, Bloomberg, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">It’s rare for an industry powered by fossil fuels to call for a tax on its own carbon emissions. Yet the shipping sector is doing just that.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="shut-up-and-take-my-money.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/684703/large/shut-up-and-take-my-money.jpg?1560209601" title="shut-up-and-take-my-money.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Several trade groups, representing more than 90% of the world’s merchant fleet, have submitted a proposal to shipping’s United Nations regulator calling for it to prioritize a carbon tax for the industry, the International Chamber of Shipping said Wednesday. While it’s unlikely any levy will be imposed immediately, the call highlights the growing pressure shipping is under to decarbonize from customers and politicians alike.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The<span> </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/0262465Z:LN">International Maritime Organization</a><span> </span>approved new<span> </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-17/shipping-watchdog-sets-rules-to-curb-industry-s-carbon-intensity" target="_blank">emissions rules</a><span> </span>in November, but the trade groups say these won’t be enough to hit the UN body’s 2050 climate targets -- which include a halving of annual greenhouse gas emissions versus 2008 levels. Instead, talks on a market-based-measure that would put a price on pollution should start “as soon as possible and before 2023,” the groups say.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Miners See the Writing on the Wall, too</h4> <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/miners-union-backs-shift-from-coal-in-exchange-for-jobs/600047760/" target="_blank">Miners' union backs shift from coal in exchange for jobs</a>, </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Wow. The United Mine Workers of America are coming out in favor of a just transition program.&lt;a href="https://t.co/dsMJx9ozpT"&gt;https://t.co/dsMJx9ozpT&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jonah Furman (@JonahFurman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JonahFurman/status/1384170017177018370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Wow. The United Mine Workers of America are coming out in favor of a just transition program.<a href="https://t.co/dsMJx9ozpT">https://t.co/dsMJx9ozpT</a></p>— Jonah Furman (@JonahFurman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonahFurman/status/1384170017177018370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is a big deal — maybe even a Green New Deal &lt;a href="https://t.co/XdOOZf7XNs"&gt;https://t.co/XdOOZf7XNs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/1384465131338412037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 20, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is a big deal — maybe even a Green New Deal <a href="https://t.co/XdOOZf7XNs">https://t.co/XdOOZf7XNs</a></p>— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) <a href="https://twitter.com/paulkrugman/status/1384465131338412037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Speaking of Green New Deals</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/ahead-bidens-climate-summit-lawmakers-relaunch-green-new-deal-2021-04-20/" target="_blank">Ahead of Biden’s climate summit, lawmakers relaunch ‘Green New Deal’</a>, Makini Brice, Reuters, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The plan calls for 100 percent of power demand to be met from zero-emission energy sources like wind and solar, modernizing transportation infrastructure, cutting carbon emissions from the manufacturing and agricultural sectors, making buildings and homes more energy efficient and increasing land preservation.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It also aims to create an economic safety net for communities affected by climate change and the shift away from fossil fuel use, including through guarantees of healthcare, jobs and job training. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Separately, Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, on Monday introduced their Green New Deal for Public Housing Act.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The bill would modernize the country's 950,000 housing units to make buildings more energy efficient. It would also require jobs created under the initiative to meet certain labor standards and allow for the creation of more public housing units.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><em><span style="text-align:start">“All of the rhetoric, promises, plans, and budgeting cannot obscure the shameful reality of this crisis — that year after year, there are more homeless Angelenos, and year after year, more homeless Angelenos die on the streets,” Carter wrote.</span></em></p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-lawsuits-los-angeles-government-and-politics-eric-garcetti-264c165639d193c1d0cfca760db35c53" target="_blank">Judge orders LA to offer shelter for homeless on Skid Row</a>, Christopher Weber. AP News, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">LOS ANGELES (AP) — A federal judge overseeing a sweeping lawsuit about homelessness in Los Angeles on Tuesday ordered the city and county to find shelter for all unhoused residents of Skid Row within 180 days and audit any spending related to the out-of-control crisis of people living on the streets. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The judge’s order was released a day after Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti vowed to spend nearly $1 billion in the coming year to get people off the streets. Carter on Tuesday ordered “that $1 billion, as represented by Mayor Garcetti, will be placed in escrow,” with a spending plan “accounted for and reported to the Court within seven days.”</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">In addition, Carter ordered the city auditor to examine all public money spent in recent years to combat homelessness, including funds from a 2016 bond measure approved by voters to create 10,000 housing units over a decade.</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Your reminder that Congress has already changed the size of the Supreme Court seven times before.&lt;br&gt;This is not radical. If we’re going to save our democracy, it’s essential. Expand the court.&lt;/p&gt;— Paul Cogan (@PaulCogan) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PaulCogan/status/1384206245272317957?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Your reminder that Congress has already changed the size of the Supreme Court seven times before.<br>This is not radical. If we’re going to save our democracy, it’s essential. Expand the court.</p>— Paul Cogan (@PaulCogan) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulCogan/status/1384206245272317957?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Update on CA Beach Resort Reparations story</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/la-county-votes-to-initiate-return-of-beach-property-to-black-family/" target="_blank">LA County Votes to Initiate Return of Beach Property to Black Family</a>, Martin Macias Jr, Courthouse News Service, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">LOS ANGELES (CN) — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to initiate the return of oceanfront property to the descendants of a Black couple who operated a popular resort that stood on the Southern California shore a century ago. ✄ </span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The five-member, all-female board voted unanimously to direct county staff to develop a timeline and exact steps for transferring the property to the Bruce’s descendants.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A third-party trustee could eventually oversee the ownership claims process and the eventual transfer of property, according to the motion, which did not provide an expected completion date.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“While we cannot change the past, we can act now in the present to right this historic wrong by returning the land that was unjustly taken from the Bruce family so that the descendants of Charles and Willa Bruce have the opportunity to participate in the American Dream that their great-grandparents sought out a century ago,” the motion said.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=LNLEQU1zLuc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LNLEQU1zLuc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Chicagoland News</h3> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2021/4/20/22394524/affordable-requirements-ordinance-sails-through-committee-mayor-lightfoot-housing" target="_blank">Lightfoot’s massive rewrite of affordable housing ordinance sails through committee</a>, Fran Spielman, Chicago Sun-Times, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The 14-to-3 vote by the City Council’s Housing Committee sets the stage for final action at the City Council meeting Wednesday. That would allow Lightfoot to deliver on her campaign promise to raise the bar for developers receiving city subsidies, city land or a zoning change. ✄ </span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The existing ordinance requires developers to make 10% to 20% of the units they build or renovate affordable or pay hefty fees in lieu of building on-site units.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The new ordinance would raise the bar to 20%, but only downtown, in neighborhoods facing displacement of low-income residents or with “low current levels” of affordable housing.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Developers would still be able to pay their way out of the requirement to build affordable units, but those fees could cover only 50% of the units, instead of 75%.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/coronavirus/2021/4/20/22393868/illinois-chicago-coronavirus-vaccine-cases-deaths-positivity-pritzker-lightfoot-covid-19-april-20" target="_blank">Illinois coronavirus positivity rate falls back below 4%: ‘Things are looking up a little bit’</a>, Mitchell Armentrout, Chicago Sun-Times, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The numbers have now trended in the right direction for eight straight days, including in Chicago, where the regional positivity rate has inched down to 5.5% after more than a month of troubling increases.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Things are looking up a little bit,” Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said during an online Q&A. “Just over the last three to four days, we’ve seen stabilization or just a little decline. … That’s exactly what we want to see.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Meanwhile, more than 3.4 million residents are fully vaccinated — almost 27% of the population.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The state reported 81,963 shots were doled out Monday, though that’s likely an undercount “due to a technical issue” with doses administered through Walgreens, officials said. More than half of all state residents have gotten at least one vaccine dose so far.</p> </blockquote> <h3>Health News</h3> <h4>More good news about covid-19 vaccines</h4> <p>The new variants of the coronavirus have raised </p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/covid-19-variants-vaccines_l_607d86ace4b058846f274868" target="_blank">COVID-19 Variants: Here's How The Vaccines Still Protect You</a>, Julia Ries, HuffPost, April 19, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The immune system is very complex, and in addition to antibodies, there’s a whole other aspect, known as the cell-mediated immune response, that’s just as important, if not more. This part helps create something called T-cells, which are crucial to preventing infections. The COVID-19 vaccines don’t just generate antibodies; they also prompt your immune system to produce T-cells.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><span>“T-cells are the main line of defense against the virus,” said<span> </span></span><a href="https://profiles.ucsf.edu/monica.gandhi" target="_blank"><span>Monica Gandhi</span></a><span>, an infectious disease specialist with UCSF. T-cells can identify many different parts of the coronavirus (some studies say up to<span> </span></span><a href="https://academic.oup.com/ofid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/ofid/ofab143/6189113" target="_blank" title=""><span>52</span></a><span><span> </span>parts) and get rid of any cells that are carrying the virus. The cell-mediated immune response can also help our systems<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-310773/v1" target="_blank" title=""><span>produce new antibodies</span></a><span><span> </span>if need be. Mutations or not, T-cells will still be able to detect the virus and jump into action. “Your immune response is very complex, very robust, and very in-breadth against multiple parts of the virus,” Gandhi said.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">From the looks of it, even if antibody levels wane over time, T-cells are probably going to keep us protected against variants for a while, especially when it comes to severe disease, according to Gandhi.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/covid-19-vaccines-are-an-extraordinary-success-story-media-should-tell-it-that-way/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/covid-19-vaccines-are-an-extraordinary-success-story-media-should-tell-it-that-way/" target="_blank" title="">The covid-19 vaccines are an extraordinary success story. The media should tell it that way.</a> Leana S Wen, Washington Post, April 20, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>By themselves, the numbers sound concerning. But let’s take a closer look. An infection rate of 5,800 infections out of 77 million fully vaccinated people is less than 0.008 percent — a remarkably low rate. Compare this with 68,000 daily new infections in the United States — which, over a 30-day period, is nearly 100 times higher than the infection rate for those vaccinated. Put another way: A<span> </span></span><em>total<span> </span></em><span>of 5,800 infections among the inoculated is orders of magnitude better than 68,000 infections<span> </span></span><em>per day</em><span><span> </span>in the general population.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Furthermore, the CDC<span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/health-departments/breakthrough-cases.html" target="_blank">reported</a><span> </span>that nearly 30 percent of breakthrough infections were asymptomatic. Just 7 percent resulted in hospitalization, and 1 percent of those infected died. This is particularly stunning considering that the initial groups inoculated included the most medically frail; 80 percent of those over 65, who constituted<span> </span><a href="https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/what-share-of-people-who-have-died-of-covid-19-are-65-and-older-and-how-does-it-vary-by-state/" target="_blank" title="">80 percent of earlier deaths</a>, have now received one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Even including this group most at risk for adverse outcomes from covid-19, there were only 74 deaths<span> </span><em>total<span> </span></em>among the fully vaccinated, compared with an average of more than<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/national/coronavirus-us-cases-deaths/?itid=hp_pandemic%20test&itid=lk_inline_manual_11" target="_blank">700 deaths<span> </span><em>daily</em><span> </span>overall</a>. ✄</p> <p><span>A headline like this one in the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/373/bmj.n1000">British Medical Journal</a><span><span> </span>is a much better descriptor: “U.S. reports low rate of new infections in people already vaccinated.” Another helpful framing appeared in<span> </span></span><a href="https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/548440-cdc-5800-breakthrough-covid-19-cases-documented-among-millions-who-are">this article</a><span><span> </span>from the Hill: “Hospitalizations have occurred in 0.0005 percent of all full vaccinations and deaths in almost 0.0001 percent.”</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍 </h3> <h4>Maybe Bibi will finally begone</h4> <p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/netanyahu-on-trial-and-trying-to-form-a-government-is-promoting-his-own-big-lie" target="_blank">Netanyahu—on Trial and Trying to Form a Government—Is Promoting His Own Big Lie</a>, Bernard Avishai, The New Yorker, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Netanyahu’s tone of desperation was understandable. Every week that passes without his forming a coalition emboldens his opponents and makes the lie seem more stale. And he’s not alone on the field. The anti-Netanyahu bloc, composed of an array of right, center, and left parties, has fifty-one seats—just one less than Netanyahu’s. This bloc is secular in outlook, ranging from bourgeois liberal to social democratic, and all the constituent parties, right and left, are led by people who abhor either Netanyahu’s politics or his character. But the real problem for Netanyahu is in the parties that have yet to commit. He needs nine more seats for a majority. The hard-right leader of the Yamina Party, Naftali Bennett, is refusing to pledge his seven seats to either bloc. The same is true of the leaders of the Arab-Israeli parties, who, between them, control ten seats. For very different reasons, Netanyahu needs both Bennett and one particular Arab faction—the rural-Islamist party, Ra’am—to think that he is as popular as ever in Likud precincts. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Which returns us to the Big Lie. To keep Bennett, especially, in tow, Netanyahu needs to prove that failing to stand with him would mean courting discredit with future supporters. Here, the comparison with Trump is inarguable. With the Knesset so evenly split, moreover, Netanyahu needs to deter new defections from among the leaders of his own party. The former Likud Education Minister, Gideon Saar, ran against Netanyahu, in March, and gained a disappointing six seats. Presumably, this is a caution to others, which the lie reinforces. (Netanyahu<span> </span></span><a>said</a><span><span> </span>that Saar would be taken back into the Likud; Saar responded that you open your arms “in order to strangle someone.”)</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;All but impossible for Netanyahu to form a government. Arab MKs help anti-Netanyahu parties win control of key Knesset committees &lt;a href="https://t.co/9trBKjE56a"&gt;https://t.co/9trBKjE56a&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Frida Ghitis (@FridaGhitis) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FridaGhitis/status/1384485750595592205?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 20, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>All but impossible for Netanyahu to form a government. Arab MKs help anti-Netanyahu parties win control of key Knesset committees <a href="https://t.co/9trBKjE56a">https://t.co/9trBKjE56a</a></p>— Frida Ghitis (@FridaGhitis) <a href="https://twitter.com/FridaGhitis/status/1384485750595592205?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>😲😬 Meanwhile, From the Consequences File 😫 😖</h3> <p>GQP: When we said “keep out of politics” we didn’t mean keep the $$ out! Oops!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Corporate money really dried up for the 147 election objectors.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Exhibit A:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GOPLeader?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GOPLeader&lt;/a&gt; received two PAC contributions worth a combined $2,800 this quarter.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;During the same quarter last cycle, he received 78 contributions worth $314K.&lt;a href="https://t.co/kKwhCm9vYY"&gt;https://t.co/kKwhCm9vYY&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/I3RqVelBac"&gt;pic.twitter.com/I3RqVelBac&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Will Ragland (@citizenwillis) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/citizenwillis/status/1384171139077795851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Corporate money really dried up for the 147 election objectors.<br><br>Exhibit A:<br><br>.<a href="https://twitter.com/GOPLeader?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GOPLeader</a> received two PAC contributions worth a combined $2,800 this quarter.<br><br>During the same quarter last cycle, he received 78 contributions worth $314K.<a href="https://t.co/kKwhCm9vYY">https://t.co/kKwhCm9vYY</a> <a href="https://t.co/I3RqVelBac">pic.twitter.com/I3RqVelBac</a></p>— Will Ragland (@citizenwillis) <a href="https://twitter.com/citizenwillis/status/1384171139077795851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/gop-sheds-college-educated-voters-142900773.html?ncid=twitter_yahoonewst_sjwumo1bpf4" target="_blank">GOP sheds college-educated voters</a>, Dante Chinni, Yahoo News, April 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>But another trend in politics suggests that what we are seeing might be more than a somewhat typical election-related bump for Democrats. Data from the Pew Research Center show that, increasingly, different people are populating the two major political parties — with Republicans and Democrats moving in sharply different directions among college-educated voters. ✄ </span></p> <p>In 2018, voters with a bachelor's degree cast ballots at a much higher rate than other parts of the electorate, according to data from the U.S. Census. Their 64-percent voting rate was 12 points higher than those with some college and 25 points higher than those whose highest level of educational attainment is a high school diploma.</p> <p>As Republicans shed college-educated voters, the party could find a new challenge that compounds the Democratic edge in affiliation. Even if the affiliation numbers bounce back this time, the different people in the GOP might make it more difficult for the party to get big turnout numbers in 2022. Midterm elections in particular are often about which party can excite and turn out their voters.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/michael-timbrook-arrested/">MAGA rioter who vowed 'no remorse or shame' for his actions arrested by feds</a>, Brad Reid, Raw Story, April 20, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>A Trump-loving rioter who vowed to have "no remorse" for his decision to storm the United States Capitol building was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday morning.</p> <p>According to the<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/USAO_MDTN/status/1384538303966363654" target="_blank">U.S Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Tennessee</a>, 56-year-old Tennessee resident Michael Timbrook was arrested on charges related to the infamous January 6th Trump-incited riots that left five people dead.</p> <p><a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/defendants/timbrook-michael" target="_blank">The Department of Justice's website states</a><span> </span>Timbrook has so far been charged with "knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority" and "violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds."</p> </blockquote> <h4>FaceBook ComeUppance? A play in 3 Acts</h4> <p>I don’t know much about tech, but this sounds pretty interesting (can’t wait to read the discussion about this in the comments! I’m talking to you, tljdk, 88Keys, Wolverine and all the clever tech- gnusies):</p> <p><strong>Act 1. (last week)</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Pro tip: if you own an iOS device, next week is likely to bring you the most significant improvement in digital privacy in the history of the internet. And it will kneecap Facebook. 🍿&lt;/p&gt;— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1383248029067538437?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 17, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Pro tip: if you own an iOS device, next week is likely to bring you the most significant improvement in digital privacy in the history of the internet. And it will kneecap Facebook. 🍿</p>— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) <a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1383248029067538437?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 17, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Act 2. </strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Facebook has embedded code inside of millions of apps which links an individual’s app usage/location back to their profile to microtarget ads and content. The link leverages an ID called IDFA. Once iOS 14.5 is pushed out, you’ll have to consent to this happening. Make sense?&lt;/p&gt;— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1383249686136451074?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 17, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Facebook has embedded code inside of millions of apps which links an individual’s app usage/location back to their profile to microtarget ads and content. The link leverages an ID called IDFA. Once iOS 14.5 is pushed out, you’ll have to consent to this happening. Make sense?</p>— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) <a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1383249686136451074?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 17, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Act 3. (Yesterday after Apple Announcements)</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;For the internet old-timers, I challenge you to share a better industry checkmate in the last thirty years. Tim Cook just murdered Mark Zuckerberg. &lt;a href="https://t.co/24VluVcwCe"&gt;https://t.co/24VluVcwCe&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1384693037952028677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 21, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>For the internet old-timers, I challenge you to share a better industry checkmate in the last thirty years. Tim Cook just murdered Mark Zuckerberg. <a href="https://t.co/24VluVcwCe">https://t.co/24VluVcwCe</a></p>— Jason Kint (@jason_kint) <a href="https://twitter.com/jason_kint/status/1384693037952028677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ I picked this Wonkette for the INFRASTRUCTURRR!! <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/live-there-is-also-too-an-infrastructure-week-hearing-in-the-senate-today" target="_blank">LIVE: There Is Also Too An Infrastructure Week Hearing In The Senate!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Bonus Wonkette! <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/republicans-cower-in-fear-brutally-bullied-by-tiny-octogenarian-congresswoman" target="_blank">Republicans Cower In Fear Of Tiny Octogenarian Congresswoman, Maxine Waters, A Very Bad Lady</a>, Liz Dye, Wonkette, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Relax, everyone’s in the same pickle: <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/michaelblackmon/the-pandemic-has-made-summer-body-pressure-even-worse" target="_blank">The Pandemic Has Made “Summer Body” Pressure Even Worse</a>, Michael Blackmon, BuzzFeedNews, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Listen (podcast) or read (transcript): <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/20/podcasts/ezra-klein-podcast-judson-brewer-transcript.html" target="_blank">That Anxiety You’re Feeling? It’s a Habit You Can Unlearn</a>, Ezra Klein, New York Times, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/postscript/remembering-walter-mondale" target="_blank">Remembering Walter Mondale</a>, Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, April 19, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/04/20/republican-attacks-on-maxine-waters-prove-the-gop-is-committed-to-a-politics-of-white-whining/" target="_blank">Republican attacks on Maxine Waters prove the GOP is committed to a politics of white whining</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/chauvin-verdict-justice/" target="_blank">The Chauvin Verdict Represents an Absolute Minimum of Justice</a>, Elie Mystal, The Nation, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://apnews.com/article/george-floyd-profile-66163bbd94239afa16d706bd6479c613" target="_blank">For George Floyd, a complicated life and consequential death</a>, Luis Andres Henao, Nomann Merchant, Juan Lozano and Adam Geller, AP News, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yeah, we know: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/republican-party-is-beyond-salvation-even-without-trump/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/20/republican-party-is-beyond-salvation-even-without-trump/" target="_blank">The Republican Party is beyond salvation — even without Trump</a>, Max Boot, Washington Post, April 20, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/free-market/">Here's why Republicans are suddenly panicked by the free market they used to love</a>, Magdi Semrau, ALternet via Raw Story, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-the-rich-mask-their-greed-with-ostentatious-philanthropy?ref=home" target="_blank">How the Rich Mask Their Greed With Ostentatious Philanthropy</a>, Lewis Beale, Daily Beast, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Corruption, all the way down: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/kobach-we-build-the-wall-dhs-cbp" target="_blank">REVEALED: How Trump’s DHS Cozied Up To The Allegedly Fraudulent We Build The Wall Gambit</a>, Tierney Sneed, TPM, April 20 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Thoughtful, long(ish) read about our environmental crises: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2021/04/dark-side-houseplant-boom-nature-empathy/618638/" target="_blank">The Dark Side of the Houseplant Boom</a>, Megan Garber, The Atlantic, April 20, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Necessary explainer: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/04/anglo-saxon-what-you-say-when-whites-only-too-inclusive/618646/" target="_blank">‘Anglo-Saxon’ Is What You Say When ‘Whites Only’ Is Too Inclusive</a>, Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, April 20, 2021.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another week. It’s been like a month since last weekend, hasn’t it?</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7724.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/939540/large/IMG_7724.jpg?1618986605" title="IMG_7724.jpg"> <figcaption>Mama and I found a box of flowers!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Curlygirl and I want to wish you a peaceful rest of the week. Take care of yourself and those you love. Remember you are valued and important. Be kind to yourself, eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to spend some time outdoors every day if you can. Being out in nature truly restores the human spirit. If you’re lucky enough to be surrounded by trees and green spaces, I hope you can walk or sit there for awhile every day. Even in the city, though, you can look up at the sky and watch the clouds against a blue sky, or the grey overcast sky rippling in the wind. You might catch a glimpse of the brighter stars some evenings between the buildings. Or a dandelion poking up between the cracks in a sidewalk. We get the occasional bird on the windowsill, twenty floors up in an apartment building! Look around and let the natural world recenter you as a human being on a planet full of interesting and beautiful flora and fauna, magnificent geology and glorious seas and sky.</p> <p>I’m closing today with music which speaks to me of this day’s complicated emotions. “Bittersweet” doesn’t describe it, because there is no pleasure mixed with the sadness, just relief. I’ve tried to put it into words but I just can’t tonight, so hopefully the music will express something of the pain, relief and hope for justice that today stirred up for so many people.</p> <p>Thanks for reading and Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=pL0bxewHbjo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pL0bxewHbjo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) GeorgeFloyd Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Infrastructure Politics Recommended _2026751 Wed, 21 Apr 2021 11:00:12 +0000 Update: DC statehood advances! -Joe Biden is Really Good At This - Wednesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/4/14/2025694/-Joe-Biden-is-Really-Good-At-This-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Update: Great news! The DC Statehood bill has passed out of committee with a vote of 25-19! On to the House floor next week!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: The &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DCStatehood?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#DCStatehood&lt;/a&gt; bill passes out of committee with a vote of 25 to 19. Onward to the House floor next week! &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;It&amp;#39;s time to end this historical wrong and bring full and equal rights to the 712,000 residents of D.C.!&lt;/p&gt;— ACLU of the District of Columbia (@ACLU_DC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU_DC/status/1382404967227604999?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: The <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DCStatehood?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DCStatehood</a> bill passes out of committee with a vote of 25 to 19. Onward to the House floor next week! <br><br>It's time to end this historical wrong and bring full and equal rights to the 712,000 residents of D.C.!</p>— ACLU of the District of Columbia (@ACLU_DC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU_DC/status/1382404967227604999?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Good Day, Gnusies!</p> <p>I had a plan to write a <s>long and probably boring</s> terrific and energizing introduction this morning, but LUCKY FOR YOU! 😃 here’s something much better!</p> <p>In honor of Poetry Month, I would like to gift you with this delightful haiku written yesterday by our own gnusie sweetthesound! Thank you for allowing me to share this today, sweet! 💙</p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p class="AlignCenter"><span>Damp almond petals </span><br> <span>Fly from my car as I drive</span><br> <span>Springtime confetti!</span></p> <p class="AlignCenter"><span>(Composed by sweetthesound)</span></p> <p class="AlignCenter is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=a0hFZPvanMs" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/a0hFZPvanMs" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p><strong>NOTE:</strong>  Gnusie Tampaedski enlightened me with the following comment. (the general consensus was keep the music, but clarify the provenance): </p> <blockquote> <p>It isn’t Chopin (still a very nice piece).  I was tipped off that it started in 4/4 time, odd for a “waltz”.  Chopin was VERY rigorous in his naming of pieces.  It was not a waltz unless it was in ¾ time entirely.</p> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariage_d%27amour" target="_blank">en.wikipedia.org/...</a></p> </blockquote> <h3>Democrats In Array (You love to see it)</h3> <h4>Politics</h4> <p>Joe Biden is <em>really good</em> at politics: </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I knew this was coming that week. It’s the week he hits 100 days (Friday). Good planning.&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Long (@andrewlong166) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/andrewlong166/status/1382126855420006401?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I knew this was coming that week. It’s the week he hits 100 days (Friday). Good planning.</p>— Andrew Long (@andrewlong166) <a href="https://twitter.com/andrewlong166/status/1382126855420006401?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/04/13/biden-accepts-pelosi-invitation-to-address-joint-session-of-congress-on-april-28/?sh=6b1410586028" target="_blank">Biden Accepts Pelosi Invitation To Address Joint Session Of Congress On April 28</a>, Andrew Solender, Forbes, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>“The President has accepted the invitation of the Speaker of the House to address a Joint Session of Congress on April 28, the night before his 100th day in office,” the White House said in a statement.</p> </div> <div> <p>Pelosi, in a<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1382122403040538629?s=20" target="_blank">letter</a>, asked Biden to share his “vision” for “addressing the challenges and opportunities of this historic moment.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>LOL Sauce for the goose, etc</h4> <p>Joe Biden has got the Rs number...and he is calling it!</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/biden-using-trump-playbook/">Biden administration using Trump playbook on the GOP and there is nothing they can do about it: report</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>According to a report from Punchbowl News, President Joe Biden's administration is taking a page out of Donald Trump's playbook and filling high-ranking spots in the government with officials who have a history of opposing positions taken by his predecessor in much the same way Trump appointed critics of former President Barack Obama.</p> <p>Seeking to undo the damage done during the Trump years, the report notes that Democrats now hold the upper hand with control of the Senate, making it difficult if not impossible for Republicans to block the nominees.</p> <p>As Punchbowl reports, "If you want to be nominated by President Joe Biden<strong>,</strong><span> </span>it doesn't hurt to have been a vocal critic of<strong><span> </span></strong>Donald Trump or his policies. And even better if you wrote an op-ed in the New York Times bashing Trump," before adding, ".... the overall point here is that Biden is truly pushing the envelope when it comes to his sub-Cabinet picks. The Biden White House has made very clear it'll be aggressive in its personnel choices, and in fact may be looking for a partisan fight on some of these picks as a way to put pressure on Senate GOP moderates. As long as the White House can keep Senate Democrats in line, it doesn't matter what Republicans say or do."</p> </blockquote> <h4>Biden Administration working hard on that infrastructure plan</h4> <p>From <a href="https://punchbowl.news/" target="_blank">Punchbowl News</a> (which, btw, is odd/difficult to use as a source but they seem to really get the inside scoop). This is from their morning newsletter:</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left"><strong>Here are some numbers<span> </span></strong>we got from the administration:</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong><span>→<span> </span></span>Leg affairs has made 139 calls</strong><span> </span>to lawmakers, chiefs of staff and staff directors. Of those calls, 99 went to House offices, including 35 GOP offices. They’ve made 40 calls to Senate offices, 25 Democratic and 15 GOP.</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong><span>→</span><span> </span>Cabinet secretaries</strong><span> </span>have made 27 calls to lawmakers -- including 7 Republicans.</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong><span>→</span><span> </span>There have been 26 committee staff briefings,</strong><span> </span>and nine lawmaker briefings. Committees that have been briefed include: House Transportation, Senate Commerce, Senate Ag, House Financial Services, Senate ENR, HELP, House Ed and Labor, Senate EPW, Senate Approps, House Science, House Energy and Commerce, House Approps and House Veterans Affairs.</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong><span>→<span> </span></span>Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg,<span> </span></strong>officials from USDA, Commerce, DPC and NEC have all held meetings.</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong>Here’s what the administration told us:<span> </span></strong>“The President has laid out his vision for rebuilding our infrastructure and creating jobs, and is sitting down with leaders from both parties to chart a way forward because inaction isn’t an option. President Biden, the jobs cabinet, and his team are making a good faith effort to work with Republicans -- including with continuous engagement at the Member and staff level -- and it’s our sincere hope that our outreach will be reciprocated.”</p> <p style="text-align:left"><strong>“Good faith effort” says a lot here.</strong><span> </span>The administration is trying to show that it is indeed interested in talking to Republicans. But, in addition, it's a tried and true move for the White House to want to try to lay any failure to build consensus at their opponent's feet. More broadly, this outreach with some constituencies could be key down the line. If lawmakers and aides feel bought into the process, it could pay dividends for the administration later on.</p> </blockquote> <p>Also from the Punchbowl newsletter: <em><strong>“<span style="text-align:left">A number of Biden’s picks have been “firsts” -- the first Native American to serve in the Cabinet, the first woman Treasury secretary, the first Black Defense secretary, the first openly gay Senate confirmed Cabinet officer, the first Latino and immigrant to head Homeland Security, the first woman to head the U.S. intelligence services and the first transgender nominee confirmed by the Senate. And just yesterday, Biden nominated the first woman to be secretary of the Army.”</span></strong></em></p> <p><span style="text-align:left">😃 Add another first to that list:</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/13/986612530/biden-to-make-historic-census-director-pick-with-latinx-statistician-rob-santos" target="_blank">Biden To Make Historic Census Director Pick With Latinx Statistician Rob Santos</a>, Hansi Lo Wang, NPR News, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">If confirmed by the Senate, Santos, who is Latinx, would be the first permanent director of color for the federal government's largest statistical agency, which is in charge of major surveys and the once-a-decade head count used for distributing political representation and funding around the United States.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The White House announced Santos as Biden's intended nominee in a<span> </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/13/president-biden-announces-his-intent-to-nominate-robert-santos-for-director-of-the-u-s-census-bureau/">statement released on Tuesday</a>. Depending on the timing of a confirmation, Santos could finish the term left open by former Director Steven Dillingham that is ending this year. Dillingham was the Trump-appointed director who<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/01/18/957302276/trumps-census-director-to-quit-after-trying-to-rush-out-indefensible-report">quit in January</a><span> </span>after whistleblowers filed complaints about Dillingham's role in trying to rush out an incomplete data report on noncitizens. Santos could be reappointed after the end of a first term,<span> </span><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/13/21">according to federal law</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">"If confirmed, I will support the Bureau and its staff in its mission to provide quality population and economic data to the nation," Santos said. "The principles of transparency, scientific independence, and integrity will be key in allowing the Census Bureau to thrive and innovate over the coming decade."</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Congressional Democrats</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is a big deal. The IRS didn&amp;#39;t just commit to July 1st, they also committed to monthly. The wording of the bill couldn&amp;#39;t actually say monthly but the intent was monthly and the IRS made some noise about monthly being a pain for them. Well, looks like monthly is IRS-approved. &lt;a href="https://t.co/L9s4JxUv3X"&gt;https://t.co/L9s4JxUv3X&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Scott Santens 🧢🏄‍♂️ (@scottsantens) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/scottsantens/status/1382021629870505988?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is a big deal. The IRS didn't just commit to July 1st, they also committed to monthly. The wording of the bill couldn't actually say monthly but the intent was monthly and the IRS made some noise about monthly being a pain for them. Well, looks like monthly is IRS-approved. <a href="https://t.co/L9s4JxUv3X">https://t.co/L9s4JxUv3X</a></p>— Scott Santens 🧢🏄‍♂️ (@scottsantens) <a href="https://twitter.com/scottsantens/status/1382021629870505988?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>With Democratic majority in the Senate, House Dems will send them back the PFAS Act for clean water:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/bill-targeting-toxic-chemicals-reintroduced-in-house/" target="_blank">Bill Targeting Toxic Chemicals Reintroduced in House</a>, Jack Rodgers, Courthouse News, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 13: Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) speaks at a news conference held by Save the US EPA September 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. Activists are speaking out against cutbacks at the EPA instituted by the Trump administration.(Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/496894/large/GettyImages-846516838.jpg?1516294904" title="WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 13: Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) speaks at a news conference held by Save the US EPA September 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. Activists are speaking out against cutbacks at the EPA instituted by the Trump administration.(Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI)</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Last January, amid the first impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump, the House<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/house-passes-pfas-chemicals-bill-to-push-water-standards/" target="_self">passed</a><span> </span>the PFAS Act of 2019, which directed federal agencies to work at reducing groundwater levels of those chemicals after studying them for a year. At a hearing the previous fall, Michael Hickney of Hoosick Falls, New York,<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/congress-hears-concerned-testimony-about-repeal-of-clean-water-rules/" target="_self">told</a><span> </span>congressional lawmakers the chemicals had contributed to the illnesses and eventual deaths of several members of his community, including his own father.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The bill didn’t make it through the Senate, which was then controlled by Republicans, and had to be reintroduced in the new Congress.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The 2019 bill’s sponsor, Michigan Democrat Debbie Dingell, said during a virtual news conference Tuesday the new bill being introduced was identical to the one the House passed last year, with lawmakers wanting to build on strong bipartisan support they received for the last package. Now dubbed the PFAS Action Act, the bill would call on the EPA to set enforceable standards for maximum PFAS contaminant levels for drinking water.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>I’m thankful every single day that Georgia voted Democratic on January 5!</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/georgia-healthcare/">Georgia Dems are trying to reverse a radical Republican health care policy</a>, Sarah Okeson, DCReport@RawStory, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="MARIETTA, GA - NOVEMBER 15: Democratic U.S. Senate candidates Jon Ossoff (R) and Raphael Warnock (L) of Georgia hold a rally on November 15, 2020 in Marietta, Georgia. Ossoff and Warnock face incumbent U.S. Sens. David Purdue (R-GA) and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) respectively in a January 5 runoff election. (Photo by Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/908453/large/GettyImages-1229636014.jpg?1611186620" title="MARIETTA, GA - NOVEMBER 15: Democratic U.S. Senate candidates Jon Ossoff (R) and Raphael Warnock (L) of Georgia hold a rally on November 15, 2020 in Marietta, Georgia. Ossoff and Warnock face incumbent U.S. Sens. David Purdue (R-GA) and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) respectively in a January 5 runoff election. (Photo by Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>They’ve got your back, Georgia!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Democrats in Georgia's congressional delegation are asking the Biden administration to<span> </span><a href="https://www.warnock.senate.gov/press-releases/medicaid-waiver-letter-senator-reverend-warnock-and-georgia-delegation-letter-to-secretary-xavier-becerra/" target="_blank">undo</a><span> </span>a Team Trump move to make it<span> </span><a href="https://www.dcreport.org/2020/11/11/republicans-are-still-gunning-for-obamacare/" target="_blank">more difficult</a><span> </span>for Georgians to buy health insurance during the Covid pandemic.</p> <p>Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock and six of the state's 14 House members asked health Secretary Xavier Becerra to cancel the federal approval of a plan pushed by Radical Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to cut off access in 2023 to<span> </span><a href="http://healthcare.gov/" target="_blank">HealthCare.gov</a>. The Georgia plan also imposes work or other requirements to get Medicaid coverage.</p> <p>"Withdrawing approval for this demonstration is essential to ending the far-reaching efforts your predecessors made to block hundreds of thousands of low-income Georgians from accessing health insurance," the senators wrote in a letter also signed by Georgia's Democratic representatives.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music For Democrats 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Pxs3jGy9k9w" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Pxs3jGy9k9w" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💰 We Have Powerful Allies 💰</h3> <h4>Democracy is Better For Business</h4> <p>As Arhpdx pointed out yesterday, corporations are backing away from Republicans out of self-interest — which is really good news for social justice. When underwriting racist and oligarchist agendas is no longer seen by corporations as in their best interest, that tells us that the winds of change have indeed blown away outdated notions of a “silent (white, racist) majority” as a customer base that must be appeased and catered to for a business to survive. </p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-corporate-america-is-declaring-independence-from-the-gop/2021/04/11/a472bf90-9af2-11eb-8005-bffc3a39f6d3_story.html" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-corporate-america-is-declaring-independence-from-the-gop/2021/04/11/a472bf90-9af2-11eb-8005-bffc3a39f6d3_story.html" target="_blank">Why corporate America is declaring independence from the GOP</a>, Michelle Norris, Washington Post, April 11, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JULY 31: A general view of signage from the MLB to support the Black Lives Matter movement during an Opening Day game between the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics at T-Mobile Park on July 31, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/872526/large/GettyImages-1263079576.jpg?1603392435" title="SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JULY 31: A general view of signage from the MLB to support the Black Lives Matter movement during an Opening Day game between the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics at T-Mobile Park on July 31, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>After Georgia lawmakers passed a law that disproportionately<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/georgia-voting-restrictions/2021/03/25/91009e72-8da1-11eb-9423-04079921c915_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_13">limits ballot access</a><span><span> </span>for people of color based on false claims of voter fraud, Delta Air Lines and Coca-Cola at first tried to skirt the issue and then finally<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/03/31/georgia-voting-law-companies/?itid=lk_inline_manual_13">cried foul</a><span>. Major League Baseball<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/04/02/mlb-move-all-star-game-atlanta-voting-law/?itid=lk_inline_manual_13">moved the summer All-Star Game</a><span><span> </span>out of Georgia in protest. And almost 200 companies — including HP, Salesforce and Under Armour —<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/04/02/companies-against-state-voter-restrictions/?itid=lk_inline_manual_13">signed a statement</a><span><span> </span>that denounced similar efforts underway to limit ballot access in other states.</span></p> <p><span>These steps hit the GOP where it must have caused some pain. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/04/07/mitch-mcconnell-georgia-citizens-united/?itid=lk_inline_manual_14">warned corporate America</a><span><span> </span>to stay out of politics but quickly backtracked to clarify that he was “not talking about political contributions.” That was a reminder that Republicans who accuse corporations of trying to stay on the right side of the woke police fail to understand that there are much larger forces at work.</span></p> <p><span>Part of what is going on here is that corporations are protecting their bottom lines as America steams toward the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/02/06/trump-immigration-plan-could-keep-whites-in-u-s-majority-for-up-to-five-more-years/?itid=lk_inline_manual_16">majority-minority</a><span><span> </span>tipping point sometime around 2047. The<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.html">Census Bureau projects</a><span><span> </span>that the U.S. population will increase by about 24 percent by 2060; adults and their children who are not White will likely account for most of that growth. That multiculti future has already arrived for America’s youngest citizens; White children are now a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.html">minority of Americans under the age of 17</a><span>.</span></p> <p><span>Any company interested in cultivating the multihued, multiethnic, cross-marrying, immigrant consumer of the future would have to think hard about continuing to move in lockstep with a Republican Party that is determined to time-travel back to the 1950s, when white supremacy was thought to be permanent.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The leaders of three-dozen major Michigan companies, including General Motors and Ford, announced Tuesday their opposition to any Republican-sponsored election bills in Michigan and other states that would make it harder to vote, reduce voter participation &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MILEG?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#MILEG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Eggert (@DavidEggert00) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00/status/1381919715195547648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The leaders of three-dozen major Michigan companies, including General Motors and Ford, announced Tuesday their opposition to any Republican-sponsored election bills in Michigan and other states that would make it harder to vote, reduce voter participation <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MILEG?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MILEG</a></p>— David Eggert (@DavidEggert00) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidEggert00/status/1381919715195547648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Big Law Firms Are On the side of Democracy, too</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/12/business/corporate-leaders-voting-laws.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Defying Republicans, Big Companies Keep the Focus on Voting Rights</a>, David Gelles and Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times, April 12, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Also on the call was Brad Karp, the chairman of the law firm Paul Weiss. On Monday, Mr. Karp said he had organized the coalition of law firms, which also include Skadden; Cravath, Swaine & Moore; and Wachtell Lipton.</p> <p>“It puts legislators on notice that if there are laws that are unconstitutional or illegal they will face pushback from the legal community,” said Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice, a New York think tank that is working with the coalition. “This is beyond the pale. You’re hearing that from the business community, and you’re hearing it from the legal community.” ✄</p> <p><span>“All these C.E.O.s came together days after McConnell admonished corporations to stay out of politics,” said Tom Rogers, founder of CNBC, who attended the Zoom meeting. “In convening, they were saying as a group that they were not going to be intimidated into not voicing their views on their issues.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>It’s possible that Moscow Mitch and his merry band of <s>thieves</s> Republicans have finally overplayed their hand. Just as the Republican refusal to combat the pandemic made it plain last year to doctors and other well-heeled citizens that even their relative wealth will not insulate them from Republican treachery, so now the captains of industry and hedge funds are discovering that they, too, were living with an illusory sense of protection from the fallout of the Republican misgovernance that they have enabled for decades. Maybe it was the pandemic, or perhaps it was the insurrection, but it appears that the scales are finally falling from the eyes of the corporate class, and they have begun to realise that their fortunes rise and fall with the country’s, and even relative wealth will be of little use to them if there isn’t a strong, healthy, safe USA in which to enjoy their good fortune.</p> <h3>💉 Health News 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/04/13/986647390/u-k-coronavirus-strain-does-not-lead-to-more-severe-illness-and-death-study-find" target="_blank">U.K. Coronavirus Strain Does Not Lead To More Severe Illness And Death</a>, Study Finds, Jaclyn Diaz, NPR News, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">People infected with the U.K. variant of the coronavirus didn't experience more severe symptoms and weren't more likely to die from this particular strain, according to a new study of hospitalized patients published Monday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The strain, called the B.1.1.7 variant, remains more contagious than original strains of the virus however, according to<span> </span><a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(21)00170-5/fulltext#seccestitle10">the study</a><span> </span>in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Scientists sequenced samples from 341 patients and found 58 percent were positive for the B.1.1.7 variant. The other 42 percent were infected with a different strain, according to the study. Researchers compared the severity of symptoms between the two groups and found those with the B.1.1.7 strain were not particularly worse off than those with other virus variants.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Joe is working towards vaccinated herd immunity</h4> <p>I think I mentioned this story a couple of weeks ago (definitely linked Willie’s recording of <em>I’ll Be Seeing You</em>), but it bears repeating due to persistent concern about the numbers of vaccine refusers:</p> <p><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/white-house-teams-with-groups-on-vaccine-hesitancy-campaign-it-hopes-will-sway-conservatives-11616472063" target="_blank">White House Teams With Groups on Vaccine-Hesitancy Campaign to Sway Conservatives</a>, Stephanie Armour and Sabrina Siddiqui, Wall Street Journal, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">WASHINGTON—The Biden administration is enlisting the help of groups including the Christian Broadcasting Network Inc. and Nascar to encourage more people to get the Covid-19 vaccine, particularly members of communities that have been the most skeptical.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The administration aims to use such organizations to help persuade conservatives, one of the demographic groups that polls show have significant reluctance to get the coronavirus vaccine.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The Ad Council, a nonprofit that produces public-service announcements, and the Covid Collaborative, a coalition of leaders in education, health and economics, announced a campaign Tuesday that will run during time donated by media across TV and digital media platforms.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Biden is set to appear alongside the Obamas, Charles Barkley, Shaq, Faith Hill, Jennifer Lopez, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Anthony Fauci in an NBC special meant to "to inform and encourage those who have vaccination concerns" on Sunday night.&lt;/p&gt;— Kevin Liptak (@Kevinliptakcnn) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Kevinliptakcnn/status/1381970583668264960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Biden is set to appear alongside the Obamas, Charles Barkley, Shaq, Faith Hill, Jennifer Lopez, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Anthony Fauci in an NBC special meant to "to inform and encourage those who have vaccination concerns" on Sunday night.</p>— Kevin Liptak (@Kevinliptakcnn) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kevinliptakcnn/status/1381970583668264960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>SPeaking of the vaccines</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-moderna/moderna-says-protection-from-its-covid-19-vaccine-still-strong-six-months-on-idUSKBN2C02TL" target="_blank">Moderna says protection from its COVID-19 vaccine still strong six months on</a>, Michael Erman, Reuters, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">NEW YORK (Reuters) - Moderna Inc said on Tuesday that its COVID-19 vaccine still showed strong protection against the illness six months after people received their second shot, with efficacy of more than 90 percent against all cases of COVID-19 and more than 95 percent against severe COVID-19.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The vaccine maker, which will be updating investors on the progress of its vaccines at an event on Wednesday, said the six-month follow-up of its original late-stage study of the vaccine showed that vaccine efficacy remained consistent with its previous updates.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The company has also started testing new versions of the vaccine that target a concerning new variant of the coronavirus, which was first identified in South Africa and is known as B.1.351.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Update on the blood clot issue with J&J vaccine</h4> <p>This New York Times article has a lot of information about this rare blood clot problem that has caused some concern about the J&J and AstraZeneca vaccines. I’m quoting a little of it here, and the bottom line from the reporting is that there will be a pause on use of the J&J vaccine in many places (including CVS and Walgreens) while the possibility of a link between the vaccine and this rare clotting/platelet disorder is scrutinized, but most people are quite safe and the benefit of the vaccine still outweighs the risk:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/health/blood-clots-johnson-vaccine.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">How Worried Should You Be About the J&J Vaccine and Blood Clots?</a> Denise Grady and Carl Zimmer, New York Times, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Fewer than one in a million J&J vaccinations are now under investigation. If there is indeed a risk of blood clots from the vaccine — which has yet to be determined — that risk is extremely low. The risk of getting Covid-19 in the United States is far higher.</p> <p>The F.D.A.<span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s0413-JJ-vaccine.html" target="_blank">recommends</a><span> </span>that people who have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine within the past three weeks should contact their doctors if they experience severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath. People should not be concerned about mild headaches and flu-like symptoms in the first few days after vaccination. Those are common, harmless side effects brought on by the immune system’s production of a defense against the coronavirus. ✄</p> <p><span>The F.D.A. has not found any similar cases in people who have received the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Keep it in Perspective</h4> <p>This article discusses (and puts into perspective) the current concerns that have been hyped in the media, so please do read it. I’ll just quote the important conclusions here:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/be-very-very-skeptical-of-these-bad-news-vaccine-reports-on-variants-post-vaccination-infections?ref=home" target="_blank">Be Very, Very Skeptical of These ‘Bad News’ Vaccine Reports</a>, David Axe, Daily Beast, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Historically, a vaccine is considered highly effective if it blocks infection in 60 or 70 percent of people. The three COVID vaccines that have emergency approval from the FDA are all around 90 percent effective, making them<span> </span></span><em>way<span> </span></em><span>better than normal. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The science is clear. After a certain critical mass of inoculations—70 or 80 percent or so— Americans can safely get back to normal, confident that the majority of people are protected most of the time and the virus has no easy paths for rapidly spreading and mutating. “Herd immunity,” we call it. ✄</span></p> <p>What’s more, the vaccines offer layers of protection. The jabs are even better at preventing serious illness and death than they are at preventing infection. Even if the novel-coronavirus gets lucky and punches through your vaccine-induced antibodies, those same antibodies mean that the resulting infection is likely to be way less severe than it would be if you’re unvaccinated.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Musical Break 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Zv2R2B-jbvo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Zv2R2B-jbvo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>International News</h3> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-us-troop-withdrawal-afghanistan/2021/04/13/918c3cae-9beb-11eb-8a83-3bc1fa69c2e8_story.html" target="_blank">Biden will withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, 2021</a>, Missy Ryan and Karen DeYoung, Washington Post, April 13, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The decision highlights the trade-offs the Biden administration is willing to make to shift the U.S. global focus away from the counterinsurgency campaigns that dominated the post-9/11 world to current priorities, including<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/china-is-ramping-up-nuclear-and-missile-forces-to-rival-us-pentagon-says/2020/09/01/00c4dca4-ec95-11ea-a21a-0fbbe90cfd8c_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_14">increasing military competition with China</a>.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>In addition to major domestic challenges, “the reality is that the United States has big strategic interests in the world,” the person said, “like nonproliferation, like an increasingly aggressive and assertive Russia, like North Korea and Iran, whose nuclear programs pose a threat to the United States,” as well as China. “The main threats to the American homeland are actually from other places: from Africa, from parts of the Middle East — Syria and Yemen.” ✄</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Biden administration officials say the United States intends to remain closely involved in the peace process and will continue to provide humanitarian aid and assistance to the Afghan government and security forces, which remains almost totally dependent on foreign support.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“What we won’t do is use our troops as a bargaining chip in that process,” the person familiar with the plans said.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>Justice</h3> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/hank-aaron-atlanta-school-confederate-general-rename-e6547362-eb45-4048-9967-bb6b15626964.html" target="_blank">Atlanta school named after Klan leader to be changed in honor of Hank Aaron</a>, Rebecca Falconer, Axios, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>An Atlanta, Georgia, high school bearing the name of the first Ku Klux Klan grand wizard will be renamed in honor of the late baseball great Hank Aaron, the<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta-news/atlanta-school-honoring-confederate-general-renamed-for-hank-aaron/ZFT5DBFFRNCSFGNGEMAANFYF7Q/" target="_blank">Atlanta Journal-Constitution</a><span> </span>first reported Tuesday.</p> <p><strong>Details:</strong><span> </span>The city's school board voted unanimously Monday to rename Forrest Hill Academy the Hank Aaron New Beginnings Academy after the Major League Baseball Hall of Famer, who broke racial barriers and in 1974 smashed Babe Ruth's longstanding career home run record. ✄</p> <p><strong>The big picture:<span> </span></strong><span>The renaming of the school is part of a wider push against slavery and Confederate symbols across the U.S., with<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.axios.com/confederate-symbols-removed-floyd-death-splc-fbe7d332-8680-4d30-8f7d-3d598a47151b.html" target="_self">dozens removed</a><span>, relocated or renamed last year after<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.axios.com/politics-policy/black-lives-matter-movement/?page=13" target="_self">anti-racism protests</a><span><span> </span>erupted over<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.axios.com/minneapolis-police-protesters-george-floyd-death-bd7e3b61-1c4d-4493-bd8b-dd07c2603eb2.html" target="_self">George Floyd's death</a><span>.</span></p> <ul> </ul> </blockquote> <p>There is little “good” in this news story that continues to develop in Minnesota, but I think it is worth noting that this resignation points to another tiny shift towards justice in policing. The usual power structures that protect killer cops was disrupted when Brooklyn Center’s city council removed the City Manager who talked about “due process” for the officer (ignoring the lack of same for Daunte) and gave jurisdiction over police personnel to the Mayor — who had called for the officer to be fired:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/minnesota-officer-killed-daunte-wright-resigns_n_60750008e4b0fcee71a131fe" target="_blank">Minnesota Officer Who Killed Daunte Wright Resigns</a>, Sanjana Karanth, HuffPost, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="SEATTLE, WA - APRIL 12: A display of candles and flowers spells the name of Daunte Wright at a protest over his death on April 12, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. Wright, a Black man whose car was stopped in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on Sunday reportedly for an expired registration, and not far from where George Floyd was killed during an arrest in Minneapolis last May, was shot and killed by an officer who police say mistook her service revolver for a Taser. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/936808/large/GettyImages-1232278349.jpg?1618322994" title="SEATTLE, WA - APRIL 12: A display of candles and flowers spells the name of Daunte Wright at a protest over his death on April 12, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. Wright, a Black man whose car was stopped in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on Sunday reportedly for an expired registration, and not far from where George Floyd was killed during an arrest in Minneapolis last May, was shot and killed by an officer who police say mistook her service revolver for a Taser. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter offered her resignation Tuesday in a letter to city officials, two days after pulling out her gun and fatally shooting Wright, who is Black, <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/daunte-wright-police-shooting-minneapolis_n_6073da60c5b634fd4380f3f3" target="_blank">when she claims she meant to take out her Taser</a>. Potter was immediately put on administrative leave after the incident, pending an investigation.</p> </div> <div> <p><span>Potter’s resignation comes after Brooklyn Center’s city council voted Monday </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/city-manager-fired-minnesota-police-shooting-daunte-wright_n_6074ecffe4b02375ab4284b5?1v8" target="_blank">to fire City Manager Curt Boganey</a><span> — who was in charge of police personnel — and put Mayor Mike Elliott’s office in charge of the police department. ✄</span></p> <p><span>At a press conference on Monday, Boganey said that Potter, then unidentified, will get “due process with respect to discipline.” At that same press conference, Elliott said that he fully supports relieving the officer of her duties.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>The Police Chief also resigned</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/4/13/22381887/white-minnesota-cop-who-fatally-shot-black-motorist-resigns-police-chief-quits" target="_blank">Cop, police chief resign 2 days after Black motorist’s death</a>, Mohamed Ibrahim and Mike Householder, AP via Chicago Sun-Times, April 13, 2021.</p> <h3>Good News From Illinois</h3> <h4>Chicago extends workers’ pandemic protections to vaccination</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2021/4/13/22382020/coronavirus-chicago-vaccination-business-employers-protect-employees-time-off-shots-retaliation" target="_blank">Aldermen move to protect workers who take time off for COVID-19 vaccination</a>, Fran Spielman, Chicago Sun-Times, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="500px-Flag_of_Chicago_Illinois.svg.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/879845/large/500px-Flag_of_Chicago_Illinois.svg.png?1604720768" title="500px-Flag_of_Chicago_Illinois.svg.png"> <figcaption>City of Chicago flag — isn’t it pretty!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Chicago employees who take time off to get the coronavirus vaccine would be shielded from all forms of retaliation and compensated for the time it takes, under a mayoral protection plan advanced Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">During the early days of the pandemic, the City Council moved to protect employees from retaliation for absences tied to the coronavirus.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The earlier anti-retaliation ordinance prevented employers from firing, suspending, transferring or reducing the pay of workers who stay home because they have COVID-19 symptoms, have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for the virus, or their business is deemed nonessential by statewide stay-at-home order.</p> <p style="text-align:start">On Tuesday, the City Council’s Workforce Development Committee broadened the protective umbrella to include the vaccination process.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Aldermen unanimously endorsed Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s plan to prohibit employers from penalizing their employees in any way for taking time off to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Our fabulous Art Institute gets historic new leadership</h4> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/entertainment-and-culture/2021/4/13/22382400/new-art-institute-board-chairperson-believed-to-be-first-black-woman-leader-major-u-s-museum-board" target="_blank">Denise Gardner named Art Institute board chair; believed to be 1st Black woman leader on major U.S. museum board</a>, Mary Chappell, CHicago Sun-Times, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Masked lion in front of the Art Institute of Chicago by photographer Brian Rich at the Chicago Sun Times" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/826064/large/maskedlion.jpg?1593508975" title="Masked lion in front of the Art Institute of Chicago by photographer Brian Rich at the Chicago Sun Times"> <figcaption>Art Institute of Chicago</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Gardner, 66, will be the first Black person and first woman chairperson of the governing body for the museum and the School of the Art Institute. She’s thought to be the country’s first Black woman chairperson of a major museum board, though she said she wishes there was better evidence to confirm that. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">An art collector, Gardner said she has many favorite pieces of art in the museum, but one of her favorites is the Two Disciples at the Tomb by Henry Ossawa Tanner, acquired by the Art Institute in 1906. She said she thinks about it each Easter.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I just think about what it must have been like — [Tanner] was the descendant of slaves — to paint this massive masterpiece that the museum purchased in 1906,” Gardner said. “They never take it down; it’s there every day.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Coming out of the pandemic, Gardner said, “It’s a time for innovation, renewal and thinking intentionally about making progress.” She said it’s heartening that the museum has begun to liven again.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Gardner said her other priorities in this role include working on diversity, inclusion, equity and access.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music from Chicago 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=cWkXmx-0phc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cWkXmx-0phc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Meanwhile, from the Consequences File</h3> <h4>“I’m a representative, not a monk!” (Eww!)</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/us/politics/joel-greenberg-matt-gaetz.html" target="_blank">Indicted Gaetz Associate Is Said to Be Cooperating With Justice Dept.</a>, Michael S Schmidt and Katie Benner, New York Times, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Chance_go_to_jail.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/921953/large/Chance_go_to_jail.jpg?1614445789" title="Chance_go_to_jail.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>A former local official in Florida indicted in the Justice Department investigation that is also focused on Representative Matt Gaetz has been providing investigators with information since last year about an array of topics, including Mr. Gaetz’s activities, according to two people briefed on the matter. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Mr. Greenberg began speaking with investigators once he realized that the government had overwhelming evidence against him and that his only path to leniency lay in cooperation, the people said. He has met several times with investigators to try to establish his trustworthiness, though the range of criminal charges against him — including fraud — could undermine his credibility as a witness. ✄</span></p> <p>Cooperators are expected to be fully forthcoming about their own and others’ criminality. If prosecutors conclude that they have lied, cooperating witnesses are likely to receive no deal and could even increase their own culpability. Those who cooperate earlier in investigations typically receive the best deals from the government because their help is seen as more critical to developing leverage against other defendants.</p> <p>Mr. Greenberg faces a mandatory minimum of at least 12 years in prison: 10 years on the sex trafficking count and two on a charge of identity theft.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;In addition to Matt Gaetz and Florida Republican Joel Greenberg, there’s at least one other unnamed Republican official involved in this sex trafficking ring. This is a scandal with boundaries that are still growing. And it’s not going to stop with Matt Gaetz.&lt;/p&gt;— Candour99 (@Candour99) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Candour99/status/1382122645907513346?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>In addition to Matt Gaetz and Florida Republican Joel Greenberg, there’s at least one other unnamed Republican official involved in this sex trafficking ring. This is a scandal with boundaries that are still growing. And it’s not going to stop with Matt Gaetz.</p>— Candour99 (@Candour99) <a href="https://twitter.com/Candour99/status/1382122645907513346?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>👀 Why so skittish, FLorida Rs? 👀</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/marco-rubio-matt-gaetz-scandals/">Marco Rubio slammed by CNN's Gloria Borger for dodging questions about Gaetz scandal</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>Read the linked article below in full to compare and contrast the reactions of Florida Rs to more principled Rs elsewhere:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-florida-marco-rubio-crime-c45aa4195c41f271705a824d784f5b58" target="_blank">Florida GOP senators: Too soon to weigh in on Gaetz’s future</a>, Alan Fram, AP News, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">“Sure, and I don’t think anyone’s saying they’re not,” Rubio said Tuesday when a reporter suggested the allegations are serious. “And he’s pretty firm in his denial, so we’ll have to wait and see how it plays out.” Rubio said he’s not spoken with Gaetz since news of the investigation emerged late last month.</p> <p style="text-align:start">On Monday, Scott said Gaetz faces “pretty serious allegations” but didn’t say what should happen to him. “I think we’ve got to get all the facts,” Scott said. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Gaetz <strong>and other Florida Republicans</strong> and political allies are being examined as part of a broad public corruption inquiry by federal investigators that began months ago, people familiar with the probe have said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Did nazi this coming</h4> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/04/13/former-trump-official-sebastian-gorka-banned-from-youtube-over-election-conspiracy-theories/" target="_blank">Former Trump official Sebastian Gorka banned from YouTube over election conspiracy theories</a>, Zachary Petrizzo, Salon, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="BERLIN, GERMANY - SEPTEMBER 27: A young woman with a smartphone walks past a billboard advertisement for YouTube on September 27, 2019 in Berlin, Germany. YouTube has evolved as the world's largest platform for sharing video clips. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/932419/large/GettyImages-1178148369.jpg?1617143611" title="BERLIN, GERMANY - SEPTEMBER 27: A young woman with a smartphone walks past a billboard advertisement for YouTube on September 27, 2019 in Berlin, Germany. YouTube has evolved as the world's largest platform for sharing video clips. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Former Trump White House senior adviser turned right-wing radio host <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/04/01/why-hasnt-biden-fired-sebastian-gorka-from-trump-appointed-education-post/" target="_blank">Sebastian Gorka</a><span> </span>was permanently booted off of<span> </span><a href="https://www.salon.com/topic/youtube" target="_blank">YouTube</a><span> </span>over the weekend after receiving his third strike on the platform in 90 days for touting unhinged election conspiracy theories.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Gorka's channel was suspended for misleading users on the platform by pushing the baseless claim that the 2020 election was plagued with widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election. Salon found the infamous Trump flack, formerly accused of wearing <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/sebastian-gorka-made-nazi-linked-vitezi-rend-proud-wearing-its-n742851" target="_blank">Hungarian pro-Nazi regalia</a>, was pushing voter fraud claims as recently as last week in a video entitled: "Can We Stop the Next Steal?"</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">YouTube spokesperson Ivy Choi told Salon on Monday afternoon that Gorka's channel, where he has live-streamed his "America First" Salem radio show, was terminated over "repeated violations" to the company's "presidential election integrity policy"</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Gutfeld “Comedy” show yanked?</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/greg-gutfelds-fox-news-preemepted/">Greg Gutfeld's Fox News 'comedy' show mocked for being preempted after being on for 'half a Scaramucci'</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Greg Gutfeld's new Fox News show was expanded briefly to weeknights but<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1382170316621877251" target="_blank">according to reporter Aaron Rupar,</a><span><span> </span>it disappeared Tuesday night. In Anthony Scaramucci time, that's just half a "Scaramucci," he remarked. ✄</span></p> <p>"As for those late-night shows we're supposed to compete against: Why bother? Who do they offend?" Gutfeld asked in the opening monologue of the first episode. Since then, reviews have come in from traditional media outlets<span> </span><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2021/04/13/fox-news-channels-gutfeld-falls-short-comedic-talk-show/7156579002/" target="_blank">questioning the hypocrisy at those it pokes fun</a>.</p> <p>It's unclear if Gutfeld's show is on an unexpected hiatus or if Kudlow had some breaking economic news that needed to be addressed at 11 p.m. EST on Tuesday night. Either way, Gutfeld was nowhere to be found.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Only half a Scaramucci after its debut, Gutfeld! is abruptly preempted&lt;/p&gt;— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1382170316621877251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Only half a Scaramucci after its debut, Gutfeld! is abruptly preempted</p>— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1382170316621877251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Watch what they do, not what they say</h4> <p>John Boehner is doing the rounds trying to hawk his book trashing all the people who frankly deserve trashing. He’s a wily old fart, have to grant him that. He knows that saying stuff that people didn’t expect a former Republican speaker to say (and peppered with salty language for extra temptation) will sell books. He’s always been great at reading the room. Don’t fall for that glib wine-soaked, cigarette smoking “regular guy” charm — John Boehner is a (Trump-voting) Republican, through and through. </p> <p><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/nicolle-wallace-goes-off-on-boehner-the-republican-party-cannot-be-fixed-with-people-like-him-still-voting-for-trump-in-2020/" target="_blank">Nicolle Wallace Goes Off on Boehner: ‘The Republican Party Cannot Be Fixed’ With People Like Him Still Voting for Trump in 2020</a>, Josh Feldman, Mediaite, April 13, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="boehner.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/703313/large/boehner.jpg?1564835581" title="boehner.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">MSNBC’s<span> </span><strong>Nicolle Wallace</strong><span> </span>said Tuesday she’s not really impressed by<span> </span><strong>John Boehner</strong><span> </span>going after<span> </span><strong>Donald Trump</strong>, given the former Speaker’s admission that despite everything he voted for the Republican nominee in 2020.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Boehner has been very outspoken in his book and in multiple interviews trashing Trump, especially over the Capitol riots, but he said<span> </span><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/trump/john-boehner-amid-gop-doom-tour-i-voted-for-trump-in-2020/">that he voted for Trump for re-election</a>, citing his policies and court appointments.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Wallace also noted<span> </span><strong>Nikki Haley’s</strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/election-2024/nikki-haley-who-said-trump-let-us-down-and-we-cant-let-that-ever-happen-again-after-riots-says-she-would-support-him-in-2024/">comments saying</a><span> </span>she would support Trump in 2024, months after she condemned him over the Capitol riots.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 </h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=egDjDDI5aLI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/egDjDDI5aLI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/important-update-on-mypillow-guys-new-mycompanies-that-will-destroy-all-yourcompanies" target="_blank">Important True Update On MyPillow Guy's New MyCompanies That Will DESTROY All YourCompanies!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Excellent long(er) read: <a href="https://time.com/5954170/partisanship-how-to-reunite-america/" target="_blank">Eight in Ten Americans are Concerned About Partisanship. Here's How 'The Unum Test' Can Reunite America</a>,  John Avlon , Mickey Edwards , Maya Macguineas and Jonathan Haidt, Time, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Some G&D, some solutions: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/biden-judges-trump/" target="_blank">Can Biden Fix the Courts That Trump Broke?</a> Elie Mystal, The Nation, April 7, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ An excellent, concise breakdown of reactionary rw racism: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/13/tucker-carlsons-defense-his-replacement-rant-gives-away-game/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/04/13/tucker-carlsons-defense-his-replacement-rant-gives-away-game/" target="_blank">Tucker Carlson’s defense of his ‘replacement’ rant gives away the game</a>, Greg Sargent, Washington Post, April 13, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Please, proceed! </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/04/republicans-are-making-four-key-mistakes/618575/" target="_blank">Republicans Are Making 4 Key Mistakes, David</a> Frum, The Atlantic, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/charles-booker-rand-paul-senate-kentucky_n_6075929ce4b02375ab43c7a6" target="_blank">Progressive Charles Booker Takes First Step Toward Challenging Rand Paul Next Year</a>, Travis Waldron, HuffPost, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Important reminder: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-union-battle-at-amazon-is-far-from-over" target="_blank">The Union Battle at Amazon Is Far from Over</a>, Alec MacGillis, The New Yorker, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ 45’s mini-me right down to the concealer: <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/04/matt-gaetzs-donald-trump-media" target="_blank">“PEOPLE MISCHARACTERIZE MY PERSONAL LIFE”: MATT GAETZ’S LOVE AFFAIR WITH THE PUBLIC EYE COMES CRASHING DOWN, FOR NOW</a>, Abigail Tracy, Vanity Fair, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/08/974858326/comfort-decorating-is-all-about-making-your-home-a-sanctuary" target="_blank">'Comfort Decorating' Is All About Making Your Home A Sanctuary</a>, Vanessa Romo and Audrey Nguyen, NPR, April 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/halliebateman/habits-for-building-better-friendships?ref=bfnsplash" target="_blank">8 Simple Habits For Building Better Friendships</a>, Hallie Bateman, BuzzFeed, April 13, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another Wednesday. I know I haven’t put down all of the good news, so I’m counting on all of you to bring the rest into the comments!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7716.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/936988/large/IMG_7716.jpg?1618383176" title="IMG_7716.jpg"> <figcaption>Sooooooo tired! But still running in dreamland!</figcaption> </figure> <p>The work of “keeping our republic” (🎩 Ben Franklin) is never-ending. We are emerging from a very dark period at long last, and we must keep working hard to defeat those who would gladly trade democracy for power and money. Remember that America is a majority liberal country even though our politics have not reflected that fact. We have begun the extremely difficult work of righting the wrongs of the past, and to bring our governance more in line with the will of the people. It will be challenging, because those who have held all the power for so long will not give it up willingly. They will fight tooth and nail, down and dirty, to retain control over this country, our government and our resources. </p> <p>So, take good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors every day if you can. You’ll need your strength for the work AND for the celebrating!</p> <p>The work continues, and we will make progress because we are the majority, we are wide awake now and we are determined. There will be setbacks, and there will be successes. We will ride it out together. Together, we will build a better world.</p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies! I sure am glad I get to share these exciting times with you!</p> <h3>🎵 Music for April 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=fCsNg6XB3dg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/fCsNg6XB3dg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) CleanWater Community Democrats Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Infrastructure JoeBiden POTUS Recommended _2025694 Wed, 14 Apr 2021 11:00:07 +0000 Wednesday Good News Roundup! https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/4/7/2024573/-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies — Happy Wednesday!  I’’m running late tonight so let’s get straight to the news!</p> <h3>💙💗News About Our Big-Hearted POTUS 💗💙</h3> <h4>Joe Has the Peoples’ Back</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/covid-funerals-assistance/2021/04/06/d7d1db20-9659-11eb-b28d-bfa7bb5cb2a5_story.html" target="_blank">Biden administration to launch massive funeral assistance program for covid victims</a>, Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan, Washington Post, April 6, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>The Biden administration next week will launch a funeral assistance program that will provide up to $9,000 to cover the burial costs of each American who died of covid-19 — the largest program of its type ever offered by the federal government.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The program is open to families regardless of their income, as long as they show documentation and have not already received similar benefits through another program.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Because the number of people who will be eligible is not known, neither is the program’s ultimate cost — but it will easily be several billion dollars. <strong>FEMA is setting up a dedicated toll-free hotline — 1-844-684-6333 — and a call center to answer questions about the program and take applications starting Monday, April 12</strong>.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Although we cannot change what has happened, we affirm our commitment to help with funeral and burial expenses that many families did not anticipate,” acting FEMA administrator Bob Fenton said in a statement.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Ignore the annoying title (“spending spree” 😏), there’s a lot of good truth being spoken here: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/have-the-democrats-begun-a-new-era-of-big-government" target="_blank">The Meaning of the Democrats’ Spending Spree</a>, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Nearly a year after he pulled out a surprisingly decisive victory in the South Carolina primary, Biden has extinguished any fears that he would prioritize bipartisanship over the historic and multiplying needs of the public. The nearly two-trillion-dollar American Rescue Plan Act is, indisputably, one of the largest domestic-spending bills in U.S. history. (Consider that, from 1965 to 1968, during Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, the federal government<span> </span><a>increased aid to the poor</a><span> </span>by roughly six billion dollars—about forty-six billion dollars in 2021.) Biden’s<span> </span><a>bill includes</a><span> </span>the much discussed fourteen-hundred-dollar stimulus payments to individuals and three hundred dollars in supplemental weekly unemployment benefits. But it also includes tens of billions of dollars to help streamline vaccine-distribution efforts—which have been marred by infrastructural breakdowns and the same racial inequities that fostered the spread of<span> </span><em>covid</em>-19 in Black communities—and more than thirty billion dollars in rental and homeowner assistance. It makes hundreds of billions of dollars available to state and local governments, after the Trump Administration starved the states of federal money in an attempt to coerce them to abandon public-health measures that were interfering with the economy but intended to preserve human life. And, after years of humiliating racist neglect of Puerto Rico and other U.S.-controlled territories, the bill grants them over three hundred million dollars in rental assistance.</p> <p>There are important changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit program, including raising the maximum credit to childless adults from roughly five hundred and thirty dollars to fifteen hundred dollars. But it is the modifications to the Child Tax Credit that have earned the A.R.P.<span> </span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-bidens-washington/is-biden-really-the-second-coming-of-fdr-and-lbj">comparisons to</a><span> </span>Roosevelt’s New Deal or Johnson’s Great Society. The<span> </span><a>adjustments include</a><span> </span>raising the Child Tax Credit from two thousand dollars per child to three thousand per child age six and above, and thirty-six hundred dollars per child under six. Previously, the credit counterintuitively<span> </span><a>excluded the poorest families</a>, who were disqualified because they were experiencing unemployment or simply because their wages were too low. The measure will expand fully refundable tax benefits to twenty-seven million children, helping to dramatically reduce child poverty in the U.S., and cutting Black and Latinx child poverty by an estimated fifty-two and forty-five per cent, respectively. Most important, the legislation allows the credit to be paid out in monthly cash installments instead of in a single payment at the end of the year. In doing so, it brings the U.S. in line with<span> </span><a>peer countries</a><span> </span>that provide an “allowance” for families with children, and opens the door to<span> </span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/joe-bidens-stimulus-plan-contains-an-experiment-in-universal-basic-income">guaranteed income</a><span> </span>from the federal government.</p> </blockquote> <h4>The People are With Joe </h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/73-of-us-voters-including-57-percent-of-republicans-back-bidens-2-25-trillion-infrastructure-plan-poll2-47/">73 percent of US voters—including 57 percent of Republicans—back Biden's $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan</a>, Common Dreams, Raw Story, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>A new poll released Tuesday shows that a large, bipartisan majority of voters in the United States supports President Joe Biden's proposal to spend $2.25 trillion over eight years to upgrade the nation's physical and social infrastructure.</p> <p>The<span> </span><a href="https://www.filesforprogress.org/datasets/2021/4/dfp-iia-go-big-toplines.pdf" target="_blank">survey</a><span> </span>(pdf), conducted by Invest in America and Data for Progress, found that voters support Biden's<span> </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/03/31/fact-sheet-the-american-jobs-plan/" target="_blank">American Job Plan</a><span> </span>by a 52 point margin, with 73% of all voters in favor and only 21% opposed. ✄</p> <p>According to the poll, more than 60% of voters back every key provision of the plan, including investments in physical infrastructure, clean energy, manufacturing, housing, and the care economy.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW POLL with &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/InvestNowUSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@InvestNowUSA&lt;/a&gt;: An overwhelming 73% of national likely voters — including 57% of Republicans — support President Biden&amp;#39;s American Jobs Plan. Our poll also found that every major aspect of Biden&amp;#39;s plan earns significant support with voters.&lt;a href="https://t.co/FVD8B8s2Yt"&gt;https://t.co/FVD8B8s2Yt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Data for Progress (@DataProgress) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DataProgress/status/1379524958322368517?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 6, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW POLL with <a href="https://twitter.com/InvestNowUSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@InvestNowUSA</a>: An overwhelming 73% of national likely voters — including 57% of Republicans — support President Biden's American Jobs Plan. Our poll also found that every major aspect of Biden's plan earns significant support with voters.<a href="https://t.co/FVD8B8s2Yt">https://t.co/FVD8B8s2Yt</a></p>— Data for Progress (@DataProgress) <a href="https://twitter.com/DataProgress/status/1379524958322368517?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Even Corporations are with Biden</h4> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/jeff-bezos-amazon-corporate-tax-rate-1f42bfd1-8eff-4b35-88bd-47d6d687cc5b.html" target="_blank">Jeff Bezos says Amazon supports raising corporate tax rate</a>, Orion Rummler, Axios, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on Tuesday publicly backed using long-term corporate tax hikes to support President Biden's<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/biden-propose-taxes-pay-2-trillion-infrastructure-4f740929-7b83-477d-8c8f-479bac329c39.html" target="_self">$2 trillion infrastructure plan</a>.</p> <p><strong>The big picture:<span> </span></strong>Amazon, one of the world's most valuable companies, was<span> </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-amazon-taxes/biden-singles-out-amazon-for-not-paying-federal-taxes-idUSKBN2BN3LL" target="_blank">singled out by Biden</a><span> </span>in a recent speech for<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/amazon-zero-federal-income-tax-d59ffb19-cbfd-4367-9a88-32cb6ebd2687.html" target="_self">not paying federal income tax for several years</a><span> </span>prior to 2019.</p> <p><strong>What he's saying:<span> </span></strong>"Both Democrats and Republicans have supported infrastructure in the past, and it's the right time to work together to make this happen," Bezos<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/amazonnews/status/1379525549559853062" target="_blank">said in a statement</a>.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Joe’s Team Rocks, too</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2021/04/06/janet-yellen-calls-for-a-global-minimum-tax-on-companies-could-it-happen" target="_blank">Janet Yellen calls for a global minimum tax on companies. Could it happen?</a> the Economist, April 6, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>CORPORATE TAXATION is one of the thorniest issues in international economic policy. Janet Yellen, President Joe Biden’s treasury secretary, and a former head of the Federal Reserve, is duly weighing in. On April 5th she grabbed the attention of the occupants of corner offices worldwide with a speech to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. The headline was a call for countries to agree on a global minimum tax rate for large companies.</p> <p>Such a levy, Ms Yellen said, would help “make sure the global economy thrives based on a more level playing field”, and would help end a “30-year race to the bottom”. Though the idea of a minimum tax raises hackles in tax havens in the Caribbean, parts of Europe and farther afield, many other big economies will welcome America’s renewed commitment to multilateralism on tax after the prickly unilateralism of the Trump years.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/04/you-need-water-to-live-pete-buttigieg-explains-infrastructure-to-republicans/" target="_blank">“You Need Water to Live”: Pete Buttigieg Explains Infrastructure to Republicans</a>, Becca Andrews, MotherJones, April 4, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Struggling to resolve racial tensions in South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg exclusively shared with NPR his "Douglass Plan," named for the famed abolitionist." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/861931/large/2019-07-10-petebuttigieg-shuang-01-cdbb2d507b90c1efe37f2a1e0f71363c24483af5.jpg?1601312399" title="Struggling to resolve racial tensions in South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg exclusively shared with NPR his "Douglass Plan," named for the famed abolitionist."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">To help explain the concept, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg made the rounds on the Sunday political shows. “There’s a lot more than roads and bridges that are part of infrastructure,”<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1378721086590828552">he told</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>George Stephanopoulos, who had asked him about the widely repeated Republican talking point that “only about 5 percent” of President Joe Biden’s new infrastructure proposal “goes for traditional roads and bridges.”</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">“I heard the governor of South Dakota recently saying, ‘This isn’t infrastructure—it’s got money for pipes,'” Buttigieg said. “Well, we believe that pipes are infrastructure, because you need water to live, and too many families now live with the threat of lead poisoning.”</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Clean water for Americans! What a concept! He went on to note that broadband internet also counts as infrastructure, particularly in rural areas—makes sense, in the age of school and work via Zoom—as do electric vehicle charging stations.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Composer’s Birthday Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=IUES9mYneQE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/IUES9mYneQE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>More Infrastructure News </h3> <h4>🚅 Passenger Rail Service! 🚄</h4> <p>🎵 YOO-HOO! 🎵 <strong>msirt</strong>! This is your cue for another train picture!! </p> <p>Expanded and improved passenger rail service has been a fond dream of mine for decades. It may finally become a reality, thanks to our Joe and the Democratic Infrastructure plan!</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/06/984464351/as-biden-pushes-major-rail-investments-rail-amtraks-2035-map-has-people-talking" target="_blank">As Biden Pushes Major Rail Investments, Amtrak's 2035 Map Has People Talking</a>, Laurel Wamsley, NPR News, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure package has two provisions involving passenger rail: $85 billion to modernize public transit (commuter rail, buses, stations, etc.) and $80 billion to improve and expand the nation's passenger and freight rail network.✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">But the idea isn't just nice family trips — it's to use improved rail infrastructure and service to alleviate problems such as traffic and air pollution as well as improve access to jobs. Transportation is the<span> </span><a href="https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions">largest source</a><span> </span>of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The proposed transformation would mean some 30 new routes, and more trips on 20 existing ones. It projects 20 million more people served than the 32 million that rode Amtrak in the 2019 fiscal year.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It shows an array of potential new service lines: new rail connecting all of Texas' biggest cities and new connections across the Midwest, including between Cincinnati, Columbus, Ohio, and Cleveland. In the Southeast, new routes would<strong><span> </span></strong>stretch from Atlanta to Chattanooga and Nashville, Tenn., Savannah, Ga., and Montgomery, Ala.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="TRN_Amtrak_Plan_Map.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934873/large/TRN_Amtrak_Plan_Map.jpg?1617754355" title="TRN_Amtrak_Plan_Map.jpg"> <figcaption>Amtrak’s vision of a 2035 map.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍</h3> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/us-closer-to-rejoining-iran-nuclear-deal-as-talks-resume/" target="_blank">US Closer to Rejoining Iran Nuclear Deal as Talks Resume</a>, Cain Burdeau, Courthouse News, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Top U.S. diplomats re-engaged with Tehran on Tuesday in indirect talks to save the Iran nuclear deal, an agreement that former U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally put on life-support nearly three years earlier.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Coordinated by the European Union, the summit in Vienna returns negotiators to the city where the historic deal formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, was signed in 2015. Though the talks today did not put American and Iranian diplomats in the same room, the hope is that they will bring about direct parley between Washington and Tehran and a thaw in relations. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Biden’s new approach has earned accolades in Tehran.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“We find this position realistic and promising. It could be the start of correcting the bad process that had taken diplomacy to a dead end,” said Ali Rabiei, the Iranian government spokesman, on the eve of Tuesday’s talks.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/maga-riot-lawsuit-against-trump-keeps-getting-bigger?ref=home" target="_blank">MAGA Riot Lawsuit Against Trump Keeps Getting Bigger</a>, Asawin Suebsaeng and Adam Rawnsley, Daily Beast, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>A federal lawsuit alleging that<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-isnt-coming-to-matt-gaetzs-rescue-for-now">former President Donald Trump</a>, his<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rudy-giuliani-says-theres-only-5050-chance-i-worked-with-a-russian-spy-to-dig-dirt-on-bidens">lawyer</a>, and far-right extremists at the U.S. Capitol conspired to deprive Americans of their civil rights by disrupting the count of Joe Biden’s electoral college victory with the Jan. 6 riot is expanding this week.</p> <p>Lawyers for the<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-naacp-lawsuit-against-trump-is-delayed-after-some-guy-named-ricky-took-the-paperwork">NAACP</a>, which brought the suit early this year on behalf of Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), are set to file an amended complaint on Wednesday adding 10 new plaintiffs, two people familiar with the matter saie. The new plaintiffs will include other members of Congress, and the amended complaint is said to include additional information about the deadly Jan. 6 riot in Washington, D.C., which then-President Trump and his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani are accused of inciting, the sources added. ✄</p> <div> <div> <p>All of the suits are part of a growing parade of criminal investigations and lawsuits filed on a variety of matters that have dogged Trump, his family, his business empire, and his close associates in the months following the conclusion of his presidency. In recent weeks, the ex-president has privately griped that his enemies are going to be probing and “<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-frets-foes-will-be-suing-me-for-the-rest-of-my-life">suing me for the rest of my life</a>.”</p> </div> </div> <div> <div style="text-align:center"> <div> <div> <div></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/capitol-riots-jon-schaffer-plea-deal-talks-oath-keepers" target="_blank">Prosecutors Are Nearing A Cooperation Deal With A Man Accused Of Using Bear Spray Against Capitol Police</a>, Zoe Tillman, Jessica Garrison and Ken Bensinger, BuzzFeed News, April 5, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Federal prosecutors are in “advanced plea negotiations” with an alleged Capitol rioter with Oath Keeper ties in exchange for his cooperation with the ongoing investigation of the Jan. 6 Capitol insurgency, a new filing in federal court revealed Monday. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The government had previously shared in public court filings and hearings that it is<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/capitol-riots-plea-deals-insurrection-cases" target="_blank">extending plea offers</a><span><span> </span>to some of the more than 350 people charged to date with participating in the Capitol insurrection. But prosecutors have been nonspecific about the timelines and terms of those plea negotiations and in this filing said its negotiations with Schaffer were “the first and most advanced” involving “any of the over 300 Capitol Riot defendants.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>Schaffer hasn’t been indicted by a federal grand jury and Baset wrote that keeping Schaffer’s case in its current position would help move along the plea talks. If plea talks failed, Baset added in a footnote, “the government is in a position to rapidly obtain an indictment” against him.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music for Meditation 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=4JLWSdRvGwY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4JLWSdRvGwY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💉 Health News 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/04/06/984486776/scientists-race-to-develop-next-generation-of-covid-vaccines" target="_blank">Scientists Race To Develop Next Generation Of COVID Vaccines</a>,  Joe Palca, NPR News, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The COVID-19 vaccine that Vaxart is developing is similar to Johnson & Johnson's in that it uses a harmless virus to deliver instructions to cells to make proteins that will prompt an immune response to the coronavirus.</p> <p style="text-align:start">But instead of putting the delivery virus in a liquid, Vaxart freeze-dries it, turning into a powder that can be formulated into a pill that can be stored at room temperature.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Another vaccine that could be self-administered is a nasal spray vaccine… </p> <p style="text-align:start">an intranasal vaccine induces two kinds of immunity, Lund says. You still get the systemic protection, she says, "but you will also get immunity directly at the site where you put that vaccine."</p> <p style="text-align:start">That makes it harder for the coronavirus to sneak in through the nose.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Researchers also are testing whether the tablet and nasal spray could be a single dose.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Vaccine Information</h4> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/04/05/inflammation-fever-what-to-expect-after-your-second-covid-19-vaccine-shot/" target="_blank">Inflammation? Fever? What to expect after your second COVID-19 vaccine shot</a>, Nicole Karlis, Salon, April 6, 2021,</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Indeed, while it is certainly possible to experience side effects after dose one, there's a higher frequency of side effects after the second dose, according to<span> </span><a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/144434/download">clinical trial data</a><span> </span>for <a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/144245/download">both vaccines</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The vaccines that require two shots are the two from <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/11/17/moderna-pfizer-coronavirus-vaccines-difference-mrna-refrigeration/" target="_blank">Pfizer and Moderna,</a> which are both approved in the United States and are both made using messenger RNA, or mRNA. This <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2020/10/26/mrna-vaccines-face-their-first-test-in-the-fight-against-covid-19-how-do-they-work/">mRNA</a> technology delivers the genetic code of one of the virus's proteins to one's cells. The immune system learns recognize the spike protein on the SARS-2 coronavirus and develop antibodies to fight it. While both vaccines use the same technology, there are a few differences between the two.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>Some people have wondered, "if I'm not having any side effects is the vaccine working?"</strong></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">You can't make that kind of a claim. In general, when you do have those side effects it is the result of your immune system but the absence of those side effects doesn't mean that you're not getting a take, or we call say "the vaccine is not taking." We can't really say that some people have no symptoms at all with the vaccine and they have a perfectly appropriate response to it, immunologically.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>😲😖 Meanwhile, From The Unexpected Consequences File 😖😲</h3> <h4>Wait, the presidency was supposed to be the ultimate grift! Oops!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-divestment-mistake/">'Monumental miscalculation': Trump cost himself a fortune by refusing to divest when he became president</a>, Brad Reed, Raw Story, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Even though<span> </span><a href="http://rawstory.com/donald-trump-lawsuits/" target="_blank">former President Donald Trump</a><span> </span>tried to<span> </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2019/10/trump-chief-of-staff-announces-g7-will-be-held-at-trumps-golf-course/" target="_blank">enrich himself at taxpayers' expense</a><span> </span>during his tenure with frequent trips to his own golf clubs, those apparently weren't enough to make up for the massive losses he incurred during his four years in the White House.</p> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2021/04/06/donald-trump-tumbles-nearly-300-spots-in-billionaire-ranks/" target="_blank">Forbes reports</a><span> </span>that Trump made a "monumental miscalculation" when he refused to take ethicists' advice by divesting his assets upon assuming the presidency in 2017.</p> <p>"From the time he entered the White House in January 2017 to his departure a few months ago, Donald Trump's fortune fell by nearly a third, from $3.5 billion to $2.4 billion," Forbes writes. "If he had sold everything on Day 1, paid the maximum capital-gains taxes on the sales, then put the proceeds into a conflict-free fund tracking the S&P 500, Trump would have ended his presidency an estimated $1.6 billion richer than he is today."</p> </blockquote> <h4>PervyGaetz asked for a Pre-emptive pardon, but nothing to see here, no sir! </h4> <p>First reported in NYT, but this link is not behind a paywall:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/matt-gaetz-pardon-trump-sexual-allegations_n_606d004dc5b6865cd29584cb" target="_blank">Matt Gaetz Reportedly Sought Blanket Pardon From Trump In Final Days Of Administration</a>, Nick Visser, HuffPost, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>Rep. <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/topic/matt-gaetz">Matt Gaetz</a> (R-Fla.) reportedly asked former President <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank">Donald Trump</a> for a blanket, pre-emptive pardon during the final days of Trump’s administration, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/us/politics/matt-gaetz-trump-pardon.html?smid=tw-share">reported Tuesday.</a></p> </div> <div> <p>Gaetz is under investigation for alleged sex trafficking and reportedly having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl. The congressman, a staunch ally and vocal defender of Trump, has also faced criticism <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2021/04/01/politics/matt-gaetz-photos-women/index.html">amid allegations</a> last week that he had shown colleagues photos of naked women he claimed to have slept with.</p> <p><span>The Times hadn’t determined if the White House or Gaetz knew about the investigation prior to Gaetz’s request (the lawmaker had publicly called for </span><a href="https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/527513-gaetz-trump-should-pardon-everyone-including-himself-to-quench">broad pardons for Trump allies</a><span>, warning of “bloodlust” from the left). The publication added, however, that some Trump allies have wondered if Gaetz’s public calls were an attempt to mask his own political vulnerabilities.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/matt-gaetz-said-his-travel-records-would-exonerate-him-they-dont?ref=scroll" target="_blank">Matt Gaetz Said His ‘Travel Records’ Would Exonerate Him. Not So Fast</a>, Roger Sollenberger, Daily Beast, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>“The spending surrounding the Gaetz campaign simply doesn’t say what he wants it to say,” Jordan Libowitz, communications director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a campaign-finance watchdog, told The Daily Beast. “One, the reports don’t offer specific information; and two, it’s not clear whether he’s even saying that his campaign filings will exonerate him. If he’s paying out of pocket, we won’t know the answers without a subpoena.”</p> <p>As Gaetz knows, his campaign filings don’t have any sort of information that would prove he never participated in a sex ring or paid for the travel of an underage minor. What his filings do show, though, is that Gaetz had a close relationship with Joel Greenberg—the Seminole County tax collector indicted on sex-trafficking charges.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Hold up, MAGAs are not supposed to be the ones being conned! Oops!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/campaign-finance-experts-stunned-by-trump-camps-reported-money-bomb-2021-4" target="_blank">'A complete rip-off': Campaign-finance experts puzzled and stunned by Trump camp's reported 'money-bomb' ploy</a>, Grace Panetta, Insider, April 6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">"Groups do this all the time in a nontoxic way, and, of course, Trump, being Trump, did this 72 million times in the wrong direction, and it started to look like fraud," Beth Rotman, the national director of money in politics and ethics at the advocacy group Common Cause, told Insider.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The payments, according to The Times, essentially functioned as an "interest-free loan" from Trump's donors to his campaign, which faced upheaval and financial turmoil in the months leading up to the November 3 election. Eventually, tens of millions of donations were refunded over the course of 2020, with WinRed pocketing the transaction fees, The Times said. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:left"><span style="text-align:left">The Trump campaign's recurring-donation ploy both perplexed and shocked even the most seasoned campaign-finance professionals interviewed by Insider.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music For Unexpected Consequences 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=X7SvBtJuh3Y" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/X7SvBtJuh3Y" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Good Riddance: <a href="https://slate.com/business/2021/04/biden-infrastructure-jobs-families-spending-reagan.html" target="_blank">Biden’s Huge New Bill Leaves Reaganomics on the Ash Heap of History</a>, Mary Harris, Slate, April 6, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Exquisite — check out this visual delight: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/04/02/arts/design/shah-jahan-chitarman.html?referringSource=articleShare" target="_blank">What a Tiny Masterpiece Reveals About Power and Beauty</a>, Jason Farago, New York Times, April 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ lollerforks: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/04/01/983397422/the-viral-tiktok-video-that-explains-vaccine-science-and-makes-you-laugh" target="_blank">The Viral TikTok That Explains Vaccine Science — And Makes You Laugh</a>, Joe Palca, NPR, April 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/habits-covid-good-bad-how/2021/04/03/5a229796-93c0-11eb-a74e-1f4cf89fd948_story.html" target="_blank">Pandemic habits: How to hang on to the good ones and get rid of the bad</a>, Sunny Fitzgerald, Washington Post, April 5, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Interesting, long(ish) read: </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/05/how-will-we-remember-covid-19-pandemic/618397/" target="_blank">You Won’t Remember the Pandemic the Way You Think You Will</a>, Melissa Fay Greene, The Atlantic, April 6, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/04/does-wealth-rob-brain-compassion/618496/" target="_blank">Research Proves It: There’s No Such Thing as Noblesse Oblige</a>, Michael Mechanic, The Atlantic, April 4, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ More detail on that parliamentarian decision: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-filibusters-legislation-medicare-dbafad47575fd2f7e77eb6bc1f72e1d6" target="_blank">Senate gives Biden a big tool to work around GOP filibuster</a>, Lisa Mascaro, AP News, April 6, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <em>Slightly</em> g&d demsdisarray-ish, but worth reading: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/04/hr-1-record-democratic-panics-about-elections/618512/" target="_blank">Democrats Are Short on Votes and Long on Irony</a>, David A Graham, The Atlantic, April 6, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/07/politics/donald-trump-republican-politics-joe-biden/index.html" target="_blank">GOP's Trump obsession is giving Biden an opening</a>, Stephen Collinson and Maeve Reston, CNN, April 6. 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/04/taxpayer-dollars-the-origins-of-austeritys-racist-catchphrase/" target="_blank">“Taxpayer Dollars”: The Origins of Austerity’s Racist Catchphrase</a>, Camille Walsh, MotherJones, April 5, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/the-best-of-the-oscar-nominated-documentary-shorts" target="_blank">The Best of the Oscar-Nominated Documentary Shorts</a>, Richard Brody, The New Yorker, April 6, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/934937/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617770619" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me and the Curlygirl for another Wednesday. Take good care of yourself and those you love, Gnusies. We still have a lot of work to do, so pace yourself. Take a break when you need it, eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors each day.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="Two cats sleeping curled up together with paws draped over each other" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/750468/large/IMG_5393.JPG?1577164666" title="Two cats sleeping curled up together with paws draped over each other"> <figcaption>Curlygirl says, “ Today, Mama is giving you my favorite picture of two rescue cats; a bonded pair who even now at age 8 sleep like this all the time.”</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h3>🎵 Music for Your Wednesday 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=KYlHiACHGiU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/KYlHiACHGiU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanJobsPlan GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Music POTUS Recommended _2024573 Wed, 07 Apr 2021 11:00:16 +0000 Watch Our Good-Hearted POTUS Get Stuff DONE! Wednesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/3/31/2023627/-Watch-Our-Good-Hearted-POTUS-Get-Stuff-DONE-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies and Happy Wednesday!  Let’s get straight to the news:</p> <h2>President Joe Biden</h2> <h4>Biden tapped Warren protegés to go after monopolies </h4> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/food/2021/03/president-bidens-trust-monopoly-tech-big-ag/" target="_blank">President Biden’s Trustbusters Aren’t Just Experts on Tech. They Know About Big Ag</a>. Tom Philpott, Mother Jones, March 29, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="ElzabethWarren2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/924179/large/ElzabethWarren2.jpg?1615008773" title="ElzabethWarren2.jpg"> <figcaption>Sen. Elizabeth Warren</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">After he tapped antitrust stalwarts Lina Khan to the Federal Trade Commission and Tim Wu to the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/nec/"><span>National Economic Council,</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>media accounts focused on a possible crackdown of the giant companies that dominate the internet. “Biden taps another Big Tech trustbuster,”<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2021/03/09/scoop-biden-taps-another-big-tech-trustbuster-492042"><span>declared</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span></span><em>Politico Playbook</em><span style="text-align:start">. “Biden Is Assembling a Big Tech Antitrust All-Star Team,”<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wired.com/story/lina-khan-ftc-antitrust-biden-administration/"><span>echoed</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span></span><em>Wired.<span> </span></em><span style="text-align:start">And for good reason. Khan, a legal scholar most recently at Columbia University, made headlines in 2017 with her blistering </span><a href="https://www.yalelawjournal.org/note/amazons-antitrust-paradox"><span>paper</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>“Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox,” an exposé of the everything store’s monopolistic behavior and the assault on the the antitrust establishment that has allowed it to flourish. She also served as counsel for the House Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law</span><strong> </strong><span style="text-align:start">and co-authored its<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2020/10/20/the-house-antitrust-report-is-a-major-step-toward-reining-in-big-tech/"><span>landmark</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>2020<span> </span></span><a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/uploadedfiles/competition_in_digital_markets.pdf"><span>report</span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>teasing out Big Tech’s anti-competitive tendencies. Wu, author of the 2018 book<span> </span></span><a href="https://globalreports.columbia.edu/books/the-curse-of-bigness/"><span><em>The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Gilded Age</em></span></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>and also a Columbia Law School professor, is most famous for coining the phrase “</span><a href="https://scholarship.law.columbia.edu/faculty_scholarship/1281/"><span>net neutrality</span></a><span style="text-align:start">” and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wired.com/story/tim-wu-explains-why-facebook-broken-up/">calling</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>for<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqkau41MFvI">Facebook</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>to be<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/12/opinion/facebook-antitrust.html">broken</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>up.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">But their hirings should make agribusiness titans quake, too. Biden’s appointments might now be famous for wanting to break up big tech. But both have aimed their antitrust chops at farm country, too, says Joe Maxwell, executive director of </span><a href="http://www.farmaction.us/"><span>Family Farm Action</span></a><span style="text-align:start">, a non-profit that fights corporate control of agriculture. “Those are tremendous choices,” Maxwell said of Wu and Kahn. “They signal a seriousness about antitrust within the Biden administration that was not indicated in his campaign.” </span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Governed by a <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/about-ftc/commissioners"><span>five-member panel</span></a><span> </span>that will soon include Khan, the FTC<span> </span><a href="https://www.ftc.gov/about-ftc/what-we-do"><span>operates</span></a><span> </span>a bit like an FBI for antitrust, with the power to launch investigations and lawsuits against companies suspected of violating antitrust law. </span></p> </blockquote> <h2>⚖ Justice ⚖</h2> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-diverse-judicial-nominees-ffaa97a62da5922017f4d624f5bf25b2" target="_blank">Biden announces diverse first slate of judicial nominees</a>, Darlene Superville and Jessica Gresko, AP News, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Judge Ketanji Jackson Brown, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, during a panel discussion titled &quot;A Conversation on Judging - Then and Now.&quot; The event, also featuring Senior Judge Paul Friedman, was organized by the Historical Society of the District of Columbia Circuit and the Society&#39;s Law Clerk Initiative, and was moderated by Miguel Estrada, of Gibson Dunn &amp; Crutcher. February 25, 2015. Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/THE NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/741548/large/JudgeKetanjiBrownJackson.jpg?1574720275" title="Judge Ketanji Jackson Brown, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, during a panel discussion titled &quot;A Conversation on Judging - Then and Now.&quot; The event, also featuring Senior Judge Paul Friedman, was organized by the Historical Society of the District of Columbia Circuit and the Society&#39;s Law Clerk Initiative, and was moderated by Miguel Estrada, of Gibson Dunn &amp; Crutcher. February 25, 2015. Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/THE NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL."> <figcaption>U.S. District Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Biden’s group includes candidates who, if confirmed by the U.S. Senate, would be the first Muslim federal judge in U.S. history, the first Asian American Pacific Islander woman to serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and the first woman of color to serve as a federal judge for the District of Maryland.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Three of the picks are Black women who were nominated to the federal courts of appeals, a pathway to the Supreme Court. The most prominent of the three is U.S. District Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, whom Biden says he will nominate to the seat left vacant on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit by<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/merrick-garland-confirmed-us-attorney-general-47319bb0337f4d7344d0cffaead37374">Judge Merrick Garland’s departure to become Attorney General</a><span style="text-align:start">. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">“This trailblazing slate of nominees draws from the very best and brightest minds of the American legal profession,” Biden said in a statement. “Each is deeply qualified and prepared to deliver justice faithfully under our Constitution and impartially to the American people — and together they represent the broad diversity of background, experience, and perspective that makes our nation strong.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>And here’s some excellent analysis of Biden’s bold strategy</h4> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/biden-judges-nominations-federalist-society-tactics.html" target="_blank">Biden Borrowed the Federalist Society’s Tactics. Good</a>. Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 25: U.S. President Joe Biden answers questions during the first news conference of his presidency in the East Room of the White House on March 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. On the 64th day of his administration, Biden, 78, faced questions about the coronavirus pandemic, immigration, gun control and other subjects. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/931480/large/GettyImages-1309114753.jpg?1616859828" title="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 25: U.S. President Joe Biden answers questions during the first news conference of his presidency in the East Room of the White House on March 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. On the 64th day of his administration, Biden, 78, faced questions about the coronavirus pandemic, immigration, gun control and other subjects. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>In one important way, the names on Joe Biden’s first list are a striking rebuke to the hackneyed claims from conservative legal activists that they simply couldn’t scare up a woman or person of color in their quest to seat more than 220 federal jurists over the past four years, and<span> </span></span><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/07/trump-female-judges-all-the-lame-excuses-conservatives-are-making-to-explain-the-presidents-overwhelmingly-male-nominees.html">that such people were judicial unicorns and remarkably difficult to come by</a><span>. (Already the<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/WeDemandJustice/status/1376857972320710658">deeply capable Brown Jackson</a><span><span> </span>is being singled<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/EdWhelanEPPC/status/1376875656466866176">out by some in that same movement for having a “middling reputation.”)</a><span><span> </span>The three Black nominees for appeals courts seats and four Asian American and Pacific Islanders on this list reflect the reality that women, people of color, and young lawyers of diverse professional backgrounds are ready and willing to serve in the highest echelons of the judiciary if the party in power values their service.</span></p> <p>But also, credit where it is due: It’s amply clear that Biden’s judge-picking machine has learned some important lessons from the Federalist Society’s stranglehold on judicial selection. The game has now changed for both sides. For one thing, Biden moved very quickly on judges and announced a big slate; both moves that served George W. Bush when<span> </span><a href="https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/05/20010509-3.html">he named a big tranche of 11 judicial nominees in a ceremony in May of 2001</a>. With this new list, Biden outpaces his predecessors. By this point in their first terms, Barack Obama had made a single judicial nomination, and Donald Trump had named two. But Biden is also flooding the field in a way that is closer to a Republican move on the courts, than that of Obama or Bill Clinton.</p> <p><span>Biden has also downgraded the role of the American Bar Association, the massive federal legal institution that describes itself as the largest voluntary association of lawyers in the world in rating judicial nominees as qualified or not. This is a move that both the<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=93753&page=1">George W. Bush</a><span><span> </span>and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/31/us/politics/white-house-american-bar-association-judges.html">Trump administrations had already taken</a><span>. For progressive critics of the rating system, doing away with the approximately monthlong ABA pre-review opens the door for more diverse nominees, because most of the “not qualified” ratings went to women or people of color. But sidelining the ABA<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/02/joe-biden-judge-picks-federal-courts-supreme-court">arguably deemphasizes backgrounds in the corporate law pipeline</a><span><span> </span>and thus also opens the gates for lawyers with backgrounds as civil rights attorneys and public defenders to be fully considered. These<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/30/us/politics/biden-judges.html">candidates sometimes got tangled up in the Obama judicial vetting process</a><span>,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/05/us/politics/biden-american-bar-association-judges.html">frustrating those pushing for more minority candidates</a><span>. While the<span> </span></span><a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/biden-wont-give-aba-advance-role-in-vetting-judicial-nominees">ABA is understandably frustrated at this demotion</a><span>, it’s a Fed Soc play if ever there was one (again, it was Bush and Trump who first did this, so for Biden, reinstating it would only add time and hurt Democratic nominees).</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Biden’s Picks Are the cream of the crop!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/first-openly-transgender-top-u-s-official-is-set-to-tackle-inequity/" target="_blank">First Openly Transgender Top U.S. Official is Set to Tackle Inequity</a>, Amy Maxmen, Nidhi Subbaraman, Nature, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Rachel Levine, nominee for Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies before a confirmation hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee in Washington, DC, on February 25, 2021. (Photo by TOM BRENNER / POOL / AFP) (Photo by TOM BRENNER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/930603/large/GettyImages-1231375868.jpg?1616690848" title="Rachel Levine, nominee for Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies before a confirmation hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee in Washington, DC, on February 25, 2021. (Photo by TOM BRENNER / POOL / AFP) (Photo by TOM BRENNER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">“COVID-19 has shown us the tip of the iceberg of the lack of health equity,” Levine told </span><em>Nature</em><span style="text-align:start"> last September, while still head of Pennsylvania’s health department. “Socio-economic status, food security, affordable housing, access to childcare and health care, systemic racism and discrimination” all contribute to disparities in the effects of COVID-19 and other diseases, she said.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Health officials and community groups who worked with Levine during her six years at the Pennsylvania Department of Health say she sought to correct disparities in how COVID-19 and other health issues affect various groups, by considering their root causes.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“She thought about rural Pennsylvanians, LGBTQ, disabled people, incarcerated citizens,” says David Saunders, director of the department’s Office of Health Equity. “She understands the problems that people are dealing with because she listens.”</p> </blockquote> <p>We are so lucky to have President Joe Biden at this point in our history.</p> <h2><span>🗽 Congress 🗽</span></h2> <p>The New York Times has a lengthy article explaining the For the People Act, but in case you’ve already exceeded your number of free articles this month, here’s the Cole’s notes:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/30/us/politics/voting-rights-law.html?action=click&algo=bandit-all-surfaces-engagement-time-cutoff&block=trending_recirc&fellback=false&imp_id=909960212&impression_id=27410a11-91a4-11eb-a20f-cd755261d162&index=1&pgtype=Article&region=footer&req_id=146358461&surface=most-popular-story&variant=4_bandit-all-surfaces-engagement-time-cutoff" target="_blank">Here’s How Democrats’ Sweeping Voting Rights Law Would Work</a>, Michael Wines, New York Times, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The bill, clocking in at 818 pages, includes a laundry list of Democratic priorities like expanded ballot access, tighter controls on political money and support for District of Columbia statehood. It had no chance of becoming law when Republicans controlled the Senate and the White House.</p> <p>But with Democrats in power, the wish list has become a potentially historic law and the most pervasive overhaul of federal election rules in recent memory. Republicans have assailed it as a Democratic effort to rig the political system in their favor, even as some privately acknowledge that the bill’s broad aims are overwhelmingly popular, even among conservatives.</p> <p>Here is a summary of some of the central elements of the measure:</p> <p>-The bill would set a national floor for ballot access.</p> <p>-The measure makes it much easier to register to vote.</p> <p>-It would defang many voting restrictions imposed by Republicans.</p> <p>-Partisan gerrymandering would end.</p> <p>-Political contributions would be reined in.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/29/22356453/chuck-schumer-budget-reconciliation-filibuster" target="_blank">Democrats’ new plan for passing more bills with 51 votes, explained</a>, Li Zhou and Ella Nilson, Vox, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 17: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (C) (D-NY), U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (R) (D-OR) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) (D-MN) announce the introduction of S.1., the â€˜For the Peopleâ€™ Act, outside the U.S. Capitol March 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. The â€œFor the People Actâ€ aims to make it simpler for eligible Americans to vote in elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/928068/large/GettyImages-1307602688.jpg?1616082716" title="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 17: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (C) (D-NY), U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (R) (D-OR) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) (D-MN) announce the introduction of S.1., the â€˜For the Peopleâ€™ Act, outside the U.S. Capitol March 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. The â€œFor the People Actâ€ aims to make it simpler for eligible Americans to vote in elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Budget reconciliation was always going to be a key tool that Senate Democrats relied on in a 50-50 Senate: By using the 2021 fiscal year bill to pass landmark coronavirus relief, they’ve already been able to advance legislation that’s far more generous than what a compromise bill with Republicans would have looked like. When it comes to Democrats’ next priority — infrastructure — and the expansive plans they’ve laid out thus far, Democrats could well do the same.</p> <p style="text-align:start">If they were able to get a third attempt at budget reconciliation, that would mean that Democrats — if they remain united — could push through even more of their priorities with little need for concessions to the GOP, though many bills like voting rights and gun control probably can’t pass through the reconciliation process.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.vox.com/22242476/senate-filibuster-budget-reconciliation-process">As Vox’s Dylan Scott has previously explained</a>, each budget resolution is able to set up three bills, though lawmakers usually pass them as one large package, meaning they effectively get one shot at using this tool every fiscal year:</p> <blockquote> <p>The budget resolution can, in theory, set up three separate reconciliation bills: one for taxes, one for spending, and one for the federal debt limit. However, in practice, most reconciliation bills have combined taxes and spending into a single piece of legislation. That’s the reason that, historically, the Senate has usually been limited to passing only one budget reconciliation bill in a given fiscal year.</p> </blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">By making their case, Democrats are hoping to eke out what would basically be two budget reconciliation bills for fiscal year 2021 instead of just one. At this point, they’ve yet to elaborate on what exactly this third reconciliation bill would cover.</p> </blockquote> <h2>💪 Power to the People 💪</h2> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-georgia-voting/georgia-sued-for-third-time-over-voting-restrictions-as-delta-coke-face-boycott-calls-idUSKBN2BM2ET" target="_blank">Georgia sued for third time over voting restrictions as Delta, Coke face boycott calls</a>, Joseph Ax, Reuters, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Civil rights groups intensified their legal fight against Georgia’s new voting restrictions with a third federal lawsuit, while Atlanta-based corporations Delta Air Lines Inc and Coca-Cola Co continued to face boycott calls from activists who say they need to do more to oppose the law. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">“This law is voter suppression, plain and simple, and aimed at making it harder for Black and brown and other historically disenfranchised communities to have a voice in our democracy,” said Sophia Lakin of the American Civil Liberties Union.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The ACLU, the Southern Poverty Law Center and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed the latest lawsuit on behalf of several grassroots groups. They included the Sixth District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), which takes in more than 500 churches in Georgia, and the historically Black sorority Delta Sigma Theta.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>The Bad Guys are worried; They see people power coming</h4> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/03/30/charles-koch-among-several-gop-donors-worried-the-republican-war-on-voting-will-backfire-report/" target="_blank">Charles Koch among several GOP donors worried the Republican war on voting will backfire: report</a>, Jon Skolnik, Salon, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The GOP's war on voting, while raging on in red states across the country, remains incredibly unpopular — and Republican megadonors are reportedly growing nervous.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Republican operatives are making a strategic pivot in their efforts to combat the For the People Act or H.R. 1, dismissing the notion of a broad messaging campaign to instead exert pressure on Congress to kill the bill, according to a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/inside-the-koch-backed-effort-to-block-the-largest-election-reform-bill-in-half-a-century"><span><u><span>private call</span></u></span></a><span><span> </span>obtained by<span> </span></span><span>The New Yorker.</span> In the call, a policy adviser to Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and several prominent right-wing advocacy groups expressed distress over the broad public support behind H.R. 1, the Democratic-backed ethics and voting overhaul that proponents claim will enshrine the electoral system in unprecedented transparency and accountability. ✄</p> <p><span>On the call, Kyle McKenzie, the research director for Stand Together, a Koch-backed advocacy group, reportedly aired out concerns over the broad-based conservative support for H.R. 1. "There's a large, very large, chunk of conservatives who are supportive of these types of efforts," he warned. According to public opinion testing conducted by Stand Together, he noted, attempting to "engage with the other side" –– or combating the idea that the bill "stops billionaires from buying elections" –– is a losing battle. The only way to defeat it, he concluded, is by GOP obstructionism.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Regarding the obstructionism strategy — just thought I’d remind you real quick that a poll that hpg brought us in the last week shows that Americans’ approval of Congress has ticked up sharply since it came under full Democratic control. Highest approval since 2013. GQP obstructionism isn’t likely to endear them to the voters. Just sayin’</p> <h2>📈💵Economic News 📈💵</h2> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/2021/03/29/biden-to-initiate-additional-student-loan-relief-this-week---but-borrowers-demand-full-cancellation/?sh=76604f1b4ef0" target="_blank">Biden To Initiate Additional Student Loan Relief This Week — But Borrowers Demand Full Cancellation</a>, Adam S Minsky, Forbes, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Today, the U.S. Department of Administration announced that it would be easing burdensome bureaucratic requirements for student loan borrowers who have had their student loans forgiven due to a medical disability. The Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Discharge program allows student loan borrowers who are unable to maintain substantial, gainful employment due to a medical impairment to get their student loans forgiven. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The Biden administration announced today that the Department of Education would be waiving the paperwork requirements during the so-called post-discharge monitoring period for the TPD Discharge program for the duration of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The change will be retroactive to March of 2020, when the pandemic emergency was first declared. Student loan borrowers who have had their disability discharges reversed (and their<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.forbes.com/advisor/loans/best-private-student-loans/" target="_self">student loans</a><span><span> </span>reinstated) due to failure to send in the required paperwork during their post-discharge monitoring period will be eligible to have their loans re-discharged. A total of approximately 230,000 student loan borrowers will be impacted, including 41,000 borrowers who had their discharges reversed. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The Biden administration is also reportedly planning to announce additional student loan relief this week: an expansion of emergency student loan protections to potentially cover additional student loans. Currently, collections on defaulted federal student loans has been suspended under the CARES Act, which President Biden extended to September 30, 2021. However, only government-held federal student loans are subject to the collections suspension. Collections activities may continue against student loan borrowers who have defaulted federal student loans that are not held by the government, such as Family Federal Education Loan (FFEL) program loans held by guaranty agencies, and federal Perkins loans held by schools. An expansion of the collections moratorium to these other types of federal loans could benefit borrowers who are experiencing wage garnishment and other collections activity, but relief may be limited only to borrowers in default. The White House has not yet released any formal details.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Big Amazon Union Vote Results Should be Known This Week</h4> <p>The argument from Amazon (and other corporations) that “workers can win adequate compensation and conditions by dealing with management directly” is patently false, as 40 years of wage stagnation and worsening employment conditions/ diminished or eliminated benefits sadly attest. The vote in Alabama may not be successful for unionizing due to a variety of factors (Amazon’s ferocious campaign against it and the culture of anti-unionism in the south being two biggies), but the fact that it is happening is important. It may spark more efforts to organize workers so that they can more effectively fight for better treatment all over the country. Corporations want workers isolated and unable to fight the corporate machinery. Unions change that which is why Amazon, Walmart and others fight so hard to prevent them from organizing.</p> <p>The count should be completed this week. Keep an eye out. But whatever the result, this was a step forward for workers in the USA.</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/amazon-union-vote-alabama-747ea42198655bfbca000c2e0665c3ae" target="_blank">‘Lighting a fuse’: Amazon vote may spark more union pushes</a>, Joseph Pisani and Bill Barrow, AP News, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">What happens inside a warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, could have major implications not just for the country’s second-largest employer but the labor movement at large. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“This is lighting a fuse, which I believe is going to spark an explosion of union organizing across the country, regardless of the results,” says RWDSU president Stuart Appelbaum. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Advocates say a victory would signal a shift in the narrative about unions, helping refute the typical arguments from companies, including Amazon, that workers can win adequate compensation and conditions by dealing with management directly.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“It is because of unions that we have a five-day work week. It is because of unions that we have safer conditions in our places of work. It is because of unions that we have benefits,” says Rep. Terri Sewell, whose congressional district includes the Amazon facility. “Workers should have the right to choose whether they organize or not.”</p> </blockquote> <h2>💉 Health 💉</h2> <h4>mRNA Covid Vaccine appears to prevent infection spread</h4> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/a-big-big-deal-2" target="_blank">A Big, Big Deal,</a> Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, March 29, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Corbett started working on a vaccine to protect people from coronavirus disease. Recognizing that the virus was similar to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus, Corbett's team utilized previous knowledge of optimal coronavirus S proteins to tackle the novel coronavirus. Based on her previous research, Corbett's team, in collaboration with investigators at UT Austin, transplanted stabilizing mutations from SARS-CoV S protein into SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. She was part of the NIH team who helped solve the cryogenic electron microscopy (CryoEM) structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Her prior research suggested that messenger RNA (mRNA) encoding S protein could be used to excite the immune response to produce protective antibodies against coronavirus disease 2019. To manufacture and test the COVID-19 vaccine, Corbett's team partnered with Moderna. -Wikipedia.org" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/893184/large/DrKizzmekiaCorbett.jpg?1607782450" title="At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Corbett started working on a vaccine to protect people from coronavirus disease. Recognizing that the virus was similar to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus, Corbett's team utilized previous knowledge of optimal coronavirus S proteins to tackle the novel coronavirus. Based on her previous research, Corbett's team, in collaboration with investigators at UT Austin, transplanted stabilizing mutations from SARS-CoV S protein into SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. She was part of the NIH team who helped solve the cryogenic electron microscopy (CryoEM) structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Her prior research suggested that messenger RNA (mRNA) encoding S protein could be used to excite the immune response to produce protective antibodies against coronavirus disease 2019. To manufacture and test the COVID-19 vaccine, Corbett's team partnered with Moderna. -Wikipedia.org"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>As we’ve discussed in various contexts over recent months, a big, big question is whether mRNA vaccines prevent COVID infection itself or the just illness that the virus causes. If the vaccine keeps you from getting a severe case of the disease or dying that is obviously a huge benefit. But the initial efficacy studies could not rule out one possibility: that vaccinated individuals were still getting infected and that the vaccine was pushing their cases into the asymptomatic category. That may not be a huge difference for individuals. But it’s all the difference in the world in terms of stopping the on-going spread of the disease through the population. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The study followed 4,000 health care and other essential workers who got the vaccine starting in December. They tracked these individuals in 8 cities. The participants ranged from the unvaccinated, to people who had gotten just one shot, to people who were fully vaccinated (two weeks after their second shot). Rather than wait for participants to be diagnosed as they got ill or by happenstance, they tested everyone weekly. The results were dramatic. The unvaccinated group had 161 cases; the one shot group had 16 cases and the fully vaccinated group had 3 cases. ✄</span></p> <p><span>This seems like the kind of study that has limitations that prevent the results from being truly definitive. But the results are clear enough that it seems highly likely that people who get vaccinated have very high protection (around 90% efficacy) against any infection at all. With enough people vaccinated that should mean we can not only prevent serious disease but break the chain of transmission. If enough people get vaccinated.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Current Pandemic Situation</h4> <p>The Atlantic is making all of its Covid-19 coverage available to the public with no paywall:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/fourth-surge-variant-vaccine/618463/" target="_blank">The Fourth Surge Is Upon Us. This Time, It’s Different</a>. Zeynep Tufekci, The Atlantic, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>We appear to be entering our fourth surge.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Jen Hayden getting the COVID-19 vaccine" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/927794/large/JenHaydenVaccine.jpg?1616007394" title="Jen Hayden getting the COVID-19 vaccine"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The good news is that this one is different. We now have an unparalleled supply of astonishingly efficacious vaccines being administered at an incredible clip. If we act quickly, this surge<span> </span><em>could</em><span> </span>be merely a blip for the United States. But if we move too slowly, more people will become infected by this terrible new variant, which is acutely dangerous to those who are not yet vaccinated.</p> <p>The United States has an advantage that countries such as Canada, France, Germany, and Italy, who are also experiencing surges from this variant, don’t. The Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines work very well against this variant, and the U.S. has been using them to vaccinate more than 3 million people a day. That’s more than 4 percent of our vaccine-eligible population every three days. An astonishing 73 percent of people over 65, and 36 percent of all eligible adults in the country, have already received<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/aslavitt46/status/1375857212489404424">at least one dose</a>. More than 50 million people are now considered<span> </span><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-03-29/cdc-15-of-us-population-fully-vaccinated-against-coronavirus">fully vaccinated</a>, having received either their booster dose or the “one and done” Johnson & Johnson shot. Many states have already opened up vaccination to anyone over 16, and everyone eligible is expected to have a chance to get at least a first dose no later than May. ✄</p> <p><span>It’s pretty clear that large numbers of people in the U.S. already are, or will soon be, protected from COVID-19’s more severe outcomes, such as death and hospitalization, which the vaccines reduce so close to zero that clinical trials have reported hardly any such cases. And it gets better: Yesterday, the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7013e3.htm?s_cid=mm7013e3_w">CDC released real-life data<span> </span></a><span>showing that, just two weeks after even a<span> </span></span><em>single</em><span><span> </span>dose, the two mRNA vaccines were 80 percent effective in preventing infection. The effectiveness rose to 90 percent after the second, booster dose. People in the study were routinely tested regardless of whether they had symptoms, so we know that vaccines prevented not just symptomatic illness—the vaccine-efficacy rate reported in the trials—but<span> </span></span><em>any infection</em><span>. People who are not infected by a virus cannot transmit it at all, and even people who have a breakthrough case despite vaccination have been shown to have lower viral loads compared with unvaccinated people, and so are likely much less contagious.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Public Service Announcement (unofficial)</h4> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2021/03/27/keep-your-vaccination-card-safe---youre-going-to-need-it/?sh=34f42d4a648b" target="_blank">Keep Your Covid-19 Vaccination Card Safe — You’re Going To Need It</a>, Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, Forbes, March 27, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>If you are among the 48 million Americans who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, the only proof that you have received your Covid shots is typically your paper vaccination record card with the CDC logo in the upper corner.</span> ✄</p> <p>All Covid-19 vaccination providers are required to report data within 72 hours in their state’s immunization system, so there should be a back-up record of your vaccination status there. The CDC has a list of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/iis/contacts-locate-records.html#state" target="_blank">Immunization Information System (IIS) in each state</a>, which is where to start if you need a replacement card and either can’t remember where you were vaccinated or have difficulty contacting the facility.</p> <p>-Make a photocopy of your vaccination card.</p> <p><span>-</span>Take a photo of your CDC vaccination record card.</p> <p>-Ask for a digital backup of your vaccination card.</p> </blockquote> <h4>A Glimmer of Hope for treating Brain Tumors</h4> <p>Brain tumors —  and in particular gliomas like glioblastoma multiforme (the brain cancer that took the lives of Sen Ted Kennedy, Sen John McCain and my own beloved Dad) — are among the most relentlessly untreatable of cancers. Chemo is useless because it can’t cross the blood brain barrier. Radiation has limited use as a way to reduce tumor size to buy time. Debulking surgery is about the only option that buys a patient a few more precious months. But, you know, brain surgery has to be survived first. So, when I saw this popular diary on DK front page the other day I knew I needed to put it in the health section today. Many will already have seen it, but it bears repeating because it is astoundingly hopeful good news:</p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/3/28/2023353/-Vaccine-stops-brain-tumor-growth-in-humans-We-re-beginning-to-exploit-the-Achilles-heel-of-cancer" target="_blank">Vaccine stops tumor growth in humans</a>, skralyx, Daily Kos, March 28, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>As we learn more and more about cancer, we begin to find characteristics of cancer cells that betray their identity in a way we can attack.  One example: Many types of cancer cells have a specific mutation in a protein called IDH1 that normal cells don’t have.  The mutation in that protein changes its structure enough that you can induce antibodies to go after it but leave the normal protein — and hence normal cells — alone.</p> <p>Researchers based in Heidelberg, Germany, led by Michael Platten, have<span> </span><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03363-z" target="_blank"><u><strong>done just that</strong></u></a>, as they reported March 24 in<span> </span><em>Nature</em>.  They developed a brain cancer vaccine, and the first real tests in humans show that brain tumors are being infiltrated by T cells programmed to go after this protein, and in most cases the progression of the disease<span> </span><a href="https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/brain-cancer-vaccine-stops-tumor-growth-first-human-trial/" target="_blank"><u><strong>is being halted</strong></u></a>.</p> <p>We may just be on to something here, folks.</p> </blockquote> <h2>📌 Legal Matters 📌</h2> <p>Looks like Dominion really means business. Here’s hoping they succeed beyond their wildest dreams! </p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/dominion-builds-legal-behemoth-to-drain-trumpland-of-billions?ref=home" target="_blank">Dominion Builds Legal Behemoth to Drain Trumpland of Billions</a>, Adam Rawnsley, Lachlan Cartwright and Asawin Suebsaeng, Daily Beast, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Clare Locke—the legal firm spearheading Dominion’s lawsuits against Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and pillow magnate Mike Lindell—recently brought in seven attorneys from the Texas-based firm of Susman Godfrey, which has experience litigating against the so-called “Kraken” suits filed by one-time Trump attorneys<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumpworld-declares-war-on-fool-trumpist-lawyer-lin-wood">Lin Wood</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/even-for-the-trumpist-conspiracy-peddler-sidney-powell-this-was-weird-as-shit">Sidney Powell</a>.</p> <p>“There are great synergies between the work that the Susman team had done on the 2020 election and the defamation cases we were pursuing for Dominion,” Tom Clare, from the notoriously<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/60-minutes-boss-hired-law-firm-over-metoo-story">aggressive law firm Clare Locke</a>, told The Daily Beast.</p> <p>“As those discussions unfolded we also discovered the two firms have a great cultural similarity in having a ready for trial approach to litigation,” he added. “I think it's going to be a very effective team.”</p> <p>Dominion expanding its legal team is the latest effort to punish leading players in the months-long propaganda push to trash the company and baselessly assail the results of the 2020 U.S. presidential contest.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Don’t Forget Fox Got Sued, Too!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/22352213/dominion-fox-news-1-6-billion-tucker-carlson-lou-dobbs-maria-bartiromo-defamation-first-amendment" target="_blank">Why the defamation lawsuits against Fox News could seriously hurt the company</a>, Ian Milhiser, Vox, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="FOX-News-LIES.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/927340/large/FOX-News-LIES.jpg?1615846797" title="FOX-News-LIES.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Fox’s decision to broadcast these lies could prove very expensive for the conservative media company. On Friday, Dominion filed a<span> </span><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/20527881/dominion-v-fox-news-complaint.pdf">$1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox</a>, and this lawsuit mirrors a<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/04/business/media/smartmatic-fox-news-lawsuit.html">similar $2.7 billion case brought by Smartmatic</a>. To put those numbers in perspective, the Fox Corporation is<span> </span><a href="https://www.forbes.com/companies/fox/?sh=23b2fa5e3a1e">valued at about $23 billion</a>. So the two voting companies are seeking nearly one-fifth of Fox’s total valuation. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Overall, Dominion’s “current projections show lost profits of over $600 million over the next eight years”; the company also claims that “the viral disinformation campaign has irreparably damaged Dominion and destroyed the enterprise value of a business that was worth potentially more than $1 billion.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">It remains to be seen whether these catastrophic losses actually play out, but Dominion’s suggestion that the smear campaign against it could have ruined the company is, at the very least, plausible. Even fully rational election officials, who are completely aware that the lies about Dominion are in fact lies, may be reluctant to deal with the legions of Republican voters who could rise up in anger if a state or local government signs a contract with Dominion.</p> <p style="text-align:start">So Fox, in other words, could be in for a world of hurt.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Speaking of Fox, the CEO has left the country</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/30/982713877/fox-corp-ceo-lachlan-murdoch-heads-to-australia-as-fox-news-struggles" target="_blank">Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch Heads To Australia As Fox News Faces Headwinds</a>, David Folkenflik, NPR News, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="luckovich-ratsaway.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902741/large/luckovich-ratsaway.jpg?1610102704" title="luckovich-ratsaway.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Lachlan Murdoch, the Fox Corp. CEO and executive chairman, has departed Los Angeles and returned to Australia with his wife and children, according to three people with ties to the Murdoch family.</p> <p style="text-align:start">His move comes at a time when the company's most profitable property is confronting daunting challenges: Fox News currently faces two new defamation lawsuits from election machine and software companies seeking combined damages of $4.3 billion.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Fulton County GA means business, too!</h4> <p>Also from the Daily Beast: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-unlikely-team-hunting-team-donald-trump-in-georgia?ref=home" target="_blank">The Unlikely Team of Prosecutors Hunting Trump in Georgia</a>, Jose Pagliary, Daily Beast, March 28, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Fulton-County-DA-Fani-Willis1.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/901409/large/Fulton-County-DA-Fani-Willis1.jpg?1609800523" title="Fulton-County-DA-Fani-Willis1.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>A sheriff’s deputy who went to law school but remained a cop for another two decades. A prosecutor best known for tackling juvenile offenders. And the guy who literally wrote the book on racketeering cases against mafia goons.</p> <p>This is the team Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is assembling to investigate Donald Trump—to go after his advisers and their attempts to manipulate election results in Georgia.</p> <p><span>In interviews with Willis, her staff, five former members of the team, and several people who interacted with them, The Daily Beast has learned there are now two grand juries underway in Fulton County, and jurors in these secret proceedings will soon be asked to issue subpoenas demanding documents and recordings related to the Trump investigation.</span></p> <p><span>It’s practically unheard of for a regional prosecutor to target a former U.S. president. But this is Donald Trump. Manhattan’s district attorney and New York State’s attorney general have active investigations. And so does the DA of Fulton County, Georgia. The case in Georgia may be the strongest; there’s a trove of evidence—documents, phone calls, witnesses—that Trump personally interfered with and pressured elections officials in Atlanta as they recounted votes.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-grand-jury-subpoenas_n_6062ba0bc5b6531eed07f124" target="_blank">Trump Facing ‘Criminal Exposure’: Ex-DOJ Official Says Subpoenas Likely Next</a>, Ed Mazza, HuffPost, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>“He certainly is looking at criminal exposure,” former acting Solicitor General <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/topic/neal-katyal" target="_blank">Neal Katyal</a> told Melber. “Donald Trump is the only president to have more open grand juries than election wins.”</p> </div> <div> <p>Katyal called the grand juries “a very serious prosecutorial step.” And the next step may be even more significant.</p> </div> <div> <p>“It looks like, according to the news reports, that they’re on the verge of using their inquisitive powers to subpoena ― that is, get documents ― from the president,” he explained.</p> </div> <div> <p>Katyal said there were still questions as to why two grand juries were involved instead of just one.</p> </div> <div> <p>“But if you’re Donald Trump right now, it’s not looking good,” he said.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h2>😲😖 From the Unexpected Consequences File 😖😲</h2> <h4>Oops! Suppose you threw a social media platform and nobody came?</h4> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2021/03/30/more-than-half-of-registered-voters-wouldnt-use-trumps-social-media-platform-poll-suggests/?sh=7d98b8643ad3" target="_blank">More Than Half Of Registered Voters Wouldn’t Use Trump’s Social Media Platform, Poll Suggests</a>, Carlie Porterfield, Forbes, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>More than half of registered voters indicated in a poll they would not sign up for a social media platform sponsored by President Donald Trump, after his former campaign advisor Jason Miller said last week Trump planned to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2021/03/21/trump-to-return-to-social-media-on-his-own-platform-within-three-months-senior-advisor-says/?sh=612066c735dd" target="_self">launch his own platform</a><span><span> </span>after being banned by Twitter, Facebook and others over his role in the Capitol Hill attack in January.</span></p> <div> <p>In a<span> </span><a href="https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/545597-poll-one-third-would-join-a-trump-backed-social-media-platform" target="_blank">Hill-HarrisX poll</a><span> </span>released Tuesday, 54% of respondents said they would not use such a platform, while 30% said they would sign up and 16% said they were unsure.</p> </div> <div> <p>Republicans were far more likely to say they would sign up for a<span> </span><a href="https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/545597-poll-one-third-would-join-a-trump-backed-social-media-platform" target="_blank">Trump-backed social media platform</a><span> </span>— 54% of Republicans said they would use it, while 78% of Democrats and 58% of independent voters said they would not.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Oops! Matt Gaetz caught being “fatherly” to a teenager again!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2021/03/30/gop-rep-matt-gaetz-reportedly-under-investigation-over-relationship-with-17-year-old-girl/?sh=2dac828923f4" target="_blank">GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz Reportedly Under Investigation Over Relationship With 17-Year-Old Girl</a>, Rachel Sandler, Forbes, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="MrYuckPoison.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/495802/large/MrYuckPoison.jpg?1516044949" title="MrYuckPoison.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The Justice Department is reportedly investigating whether Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fl.) had a sexual relationship with 17-year-old girl and paid her to travel with him across state lines, which could violate sex trafficking laws, the<span> </span></span><em>New York Times<span> </span></em><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/30/us/politics/matt-gaetz-sex-trafficking-investigation.html" target="_blank">reported</a><span>, citing three people briefed on the matter.</span></p> <p><span>The probe into Gaetz is part of a larger investigation into one of his political allies, a Tax Collector in Seminole County named Joel Greenberg, according to the<span> </span></span><em>New York Times,</em><span><span> </span>who was indicted on sex trafficking charges last year.</span></p> <div> <p>Democratic Rep. Ted Liu<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1377033542215999490" target="_blank">called</a><span> </span>on Gaetz to be removed from the House Judiciary Committee until the investigation is completed because “he should not be sitting on a Congressional Committee with oversight over the DOJ while the Department is investigating him.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Bonus: Matty’s definitely not panicking</h4> <p>He also tried to rope Tucker into the web of his guilt. Rs in disarray; everyone panic and CYA!</p> <p><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/matt-gaetz-claims-to-tucker-carlson-ex-doj-employee-demanded-25-million-in-exchange-for-making-sex-trafficking-allegations-go-away/" target="_blank">Matt Gaetz Shocks Tucker Carlson With Wild Interview, Names Ex-DOJ Official He Claims Demanded Millions to Make Sex Allegations ‘Go Away’</a>, Josh Feldman, Mediaite, March 30, 2021.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Why would Rep Matt Gaetz go on national TV and volunteer a new derogatory allegation about himself that hadn’t appeared in the press articles? &lt;a href="https://t.co/yA9pSgRwEU"&gt;https://t.co/yA9pSgRwEU&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1377072540938432515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 31, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Why would Rep Matt Gaetz go on national TV and volunteer a new derogatory allegation about himself that hadn’t appeared in the press articles? <a href="https://t.co/yA9pSgRwEU">https://t.co/yA9pSgRwEU</a></p>— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) <a href="https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1377072540938432515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Oops! Mobster Cooked His Own Goose!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/30/982654972/italian-mob-fugitive-caught-in-caribbean-after-posting-cooking-videos-online" target="_blank">Italian Mob Fugitive Caught In Caribbean After Posting Cooking Videos Online</a>, Rachel Treisman, NPR, March 30, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Chance_go_to_jail.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/921953/large/Chance_go_to_jail.jpg?1614445789" title="Chance_go_to_jail.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">An Italian organized crime suspect was caught in the Caribbean after police tracked him down through cooking videos he had uploaded online in which he managed to hide his face but not his distinctive tattoos. </p> <p style="text-align:start">Biart, 53, had been living in the Dominican Republic town of Boca Chica for five years, where he kept a low profile and posted cooking videos to a YouTube channel started with his wife, Italian authorities said in a statement reported by<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/italian-mafia-fugitive-caught-dominican-republic-after-posting-youtube-cooking-n1262435">NBC News</a>. They said his "love for Italian cuisine" made the arrest possible. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Citing the "unique and urgent threat" posed by the "spread of mafia-type crime," Interpol recently created a three-year initiative that unites law enforcement in several countries to "combat the 'Ndrangheta." Authorities said they have already made a number of<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/INTERPOL_HQ/status/1376836860396339202?s=20">major arrests</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>since launching the project last year.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The trial (of 355 defendants), which began in January, is expected to involve more than 900 witnesses and last more than two years.</p> </blockquote> <h2>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h2> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/koch-a-holes-alarmed-to-learn-billionaires-buying-elections-not-actually-popular-with-anyone" target="_blank">Koch A-Holes CAN'T BELIEVE Americans *Against* 'Billionaires Secretly Buying Elections'! </a>Evan Hurst, Wonkette, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/30/biden-is-facing-roosevelt-moment/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/30/biden-is-facing-roosevelt-moment/" target="_blank">Biden is facing a Roosevelt moment</a>, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Washington Post, March 30, 2021.</span></p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/joel-greenberg-matt-gaetz-scandals/">Maddow walks through bonkers scandal of Florida Republican that led to Matt Gaetz sex trafficking investigation</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Helpful! <a href="https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/coronavirus/heres-what-you-can-and-cannot-do-once-youre-fully-vaccinated/2473629/" target="_blank">Here's What You Can and Cannot Do Once You're Fully Vaccinated</a>,  NBC Chicago, MArch 29, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yes! YAY! <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/30/981265716/are-you-ready-to-rock-music-festivals-prepare-for-a-2021-comeback" target="_blank">Are You Ready To Rock? Music Festivals Prepare For A 2021 Comeback</a>, Andrew Limbong, NPR, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/entertainment-and-culture/2021/3/29/22355640/laundry-guy-series-discovery-plus-hgtv-patric-richardson-stain-fighter-lifestyles" target="_blank">‘Laundry Guy’ shares his tips: vodka yes, cold water no</a>, Miriam Di nunzio, Chicago, Sun-Times, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ A great idea (overdue, IMO): <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/fran-spielman-show/2021/3/30/22358668/cta-metra-pace-urged-test-reduced-fares-lure-back-riders-lost-during-pandemic-marysue-barrett" target="_blank">CTA, Metra and Pace urged to test sharply reduced fares or no fares to lure back riders lost during pandemic</a>, Fran Spielman, Chicago Sun-Times, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Wow!: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/30/982258972/not-heading-to-paris-this-summer-the-louvre-has-digitized-482-000-artworks" target="_blank">Not Heading To Paris This Summer? The Louvre Has Digitized 482,000 Artworks</a>, Neda Ulaby, NPR, March 30, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.axios.com/arizona-navajo-code-talkers-wwii-2a1ebfb0-b25e-4726-98a4-ddff5159dd3e.html" target="_blank">Arizona declares state holiday to honor Navajo code talkers</a>, Russell Contreras, Axios, March 30, 2021.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/932366/large/2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif?1617129783" title="2fdd2e945e2c21a898c4538b2bcfb8bf441653d4b260e82525806d8552151a98.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="IMG_7688.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/930242/large/IMG_7688.jpg?1616566573" title="IMG_7688.jpg"> <figcaption>It’s been a long day.<br> Can we go to sleep now?</figcaption> </figure> <p>That’s it from me for another week. Sorry no music today — I had to rush this one, sadly. I’ll bring lots of great music back next week though! </p> <p>Remember, this work will take time and patience and oh so much dedication. I am so glad to be a part of this group of progressive, compassionate gnusies!</p> <p>Look after yourselves and those you love. You are needed so much! Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors every day, even for a few minutes, for a breath of fresh air and some nature. Even if you’re in a city like me, look up at the sky for a few moments. It really does help revive the spirits!</p> <p>Have a good day, Gnusies!</p> <h2>Happy Wednesday!</h2> <p>(OK,OK- One musical selection! 😊)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=2Dl4Gteq_Ik" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2Dl4Gteq_Ik" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanRescuePlan GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden JudicialNominees Politics POTUS Recommended _2023627 Wed, 31 Mar 2021 11:00:02 +0000 Joe Biden Will Be a Transformational President - Wednesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/3/24/2022453/-Joe-Biden-Will-Be-a-Transformational-President-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies! Welcome to the Wednesday GNR — and we sure could use some of that GN this week, huh?  Lucky for us (and thanks to all of our hard work!), we now have a sane, compassionate President and a sane, compassionate Democratic-led congress, so the good news will increase and help to alleviate some of the distress that so many are enduring.</p> <p>Reading the GNRs and comments in the days between my last effort and today, I had a little revelation. </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="It will be nice to have a president who laughs again." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/865290/large/JoeBidensmiling.jpg?1601967805" title="It will be nice to have a president who laughs again."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Joe Biden is like an anti-trump. Joe has brains and experience, where the former guy had imbecility and ignorance. Joe has empathy and compassion, where the previous WH tenant had neither. Joe has nothing to prove, no post-presidency career to protect and zero f*cks left to give for duplicitous Rs, whereas the former guy was obsessed with appearing “great”, fears what’s coming in his post WH years and very much gives a f*ck about his legal exposure. </p> <p>In every way that we suffered under the previous administration, Joe Biden is working to reverse those policies and alleviate suffering. Before, Rs rode roughshod over D’s and Dem POTUS’s were hamstrung trying to work across the aisle with people who laughed at the concept. President Joe Biden is open to R participation, but he is getting things done with or without them.</p> <p>Joe Biden is going to be a transformational president and a great one at that. And the reason why is even simpler than his long list of qualifications, experience, intelligence and basic decency. The reason (I believe) is that Joe, like the former guy, will not be constrained by the usual concerns that limit the boldness of a president. But unlike the former guy, Joe’s motivation and inspiration is to do good, and as much of it as he possibly can, during his time in office. He’s the anti-trump. If not for the disaster that the previous occupant visited upon this country, I doubt Joe Biden would even have run this time, but the situation cried out for just exactly a guy with his skillset (and yes, his white guy acceptability, a fact not lost on him). I think he has come to the presidency on a sacred mission.</p> <p>I have a hunch that Joe Biden is going for the biggest, boldest and most progressive agenda this country has seen since FDR. In fact, I think he will exceed FDR’s achievements because Joe is not going to allow marginalized groups of Americans to be excluded from the benefits of his administration’s transformational policies. And Joe will achieve it because he has zero f*cks to give for R gaslighting; zero concern about how what he does today will affect his future career — I’m sure Joe intends to retire from public life after his presidency and leave an amazing legacy for the American people behind him. He has already done so much in his life! Joe has nothing to prove to anyone and has every incentive to go for as much as he can accomplish, fearlessly. </p> <p>As we have seen, that is exactly what he seems to be doing. Joe Biden is an affable, likeable, decent fellow, but he is no fool. He knows exactly what he’s up against and holds no illusions. You don’t survive and flourish in public life for 40 years without being very perceptive and people smart. Anything we can think of to worry about will not be news to Joe or his team. He is prepared. They are prepared. It won’t be easy, but he and they are ready for the work of a lifetime.</p> <p>Let’s take a look at some good news!</p> <h3>✔️💪 Joe and the Dems are Getting Stuff Done 💪✔️</h3> <p>Here’s the strategy — and it’s a good one!</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/23/what-joe-bidens-next-victory-looks-like/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/23/what-joe-bidens-next-victory-looks-like/" target="_blank">What Joe Biden’s next victory looks like</a>, Paul Waldman, Washington Post, March 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="democratsccleaningupmesses.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/872573/large/democratsccleaningupmesses.jpg?1603396060" title="democratsccleaningupmesses.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>This is the Democrats’ basic plan: Propose something ambitious with benefits spread throughout the public, meant to achieve ends even Republicans say they want. Invite the opposition to help, and listen to their ideas. But rather than chasing them for months, make visible but finite efforts to negotiate with them, while assuming that in the end they won’t support the bill. <strong>Do whatever is necessary to pass it, then take all the credit. </strong>(bolding nifty’s)</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>While the administration is still formulating this legislation,<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/03/22/infrastructure-biden-drug-reform/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9">so far it appears to have two parts</a>. First would be an infrastructure bill spending hundreds of billions of dollars on roads, bridges, waterways, the electric grid, schools, broadband and various climate-related initiatives, including retrofitting buildings and building electric charging stations.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Next would be people-focused priorities, including universal pre-K, free community college, health insurance affordability, and making permanent the expanded child allowance included in the ARP. Biden has referred to these priorities as the “caregiving economy.” ✄</p> <p><span>And as the ARP revealed, if Biden signs an infrastructure bill that passed with no Republican votes, the public won’t punish him for it. People say they like “bipartisanship” in the abstract, but give them something they want (like big fat stimulus checks or pothole-free roads) and they don’t care how many members of each party voted for it.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>President Biden wants gun control</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;JUST IN: Pres. Biden: "I don&amp;#39;t need to wait another minute, let alone an hour...to urge my colleagues in the House and Senate to act" on gun reform measures. &lt;a href="https://t.co/QoQX0IQjcU"&gt;https://t.co/QoQX0IQjcU&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/GpOaRKKOFW"&gt;pic.twitter.com/GpOaRKKOFW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1374408575192199169?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 23, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>JUST IN: Pres. Biden: "I don't need to wait another minute, let alone an hour...to urge my colleagues in the House and Senate to act" on gun reform measures. <a href="https://t.co/QoQX0IQjcU">https://t.co/QoQX0IQjcU</a> <a href="https://t.co/GpOaRKKOFW">pic.twitter.com/GpOaRKKOFW</a></p>— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1374408575192199169?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 23, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/23/us/biden-columbus-ohio-stimulus.html" target="_blank">Biden urges action on Gun Control after 2 mass shootings in less than a week</a>, Glenn Thrush, New York Times, March 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>Mr. Biden has had a long, and at times<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/23/us/biden-gun-control.html">frustrating, history of pushing gun control proposals</a>. He was tasked with coming up with a legislative package of gun control measures by President Barack Obama after the<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/15/nyregion/shooting-reported-at-connecticut-elementary-school.html">Sandy Hook killings of 2012</a><span> </span>but the effort resulted in no significant legislative action, and Mr. Obama was forced to enact a handful of relatively modest reform through executive actions.</p> <p>Mr. Biden had not made gun control a legislative priority during the first weeks of his presidency, but his tone on Wednesday seemed to signal a shift.</p> <p>He called on the Senate to quickly pass two House bills, passed earlier this year and first introduced after the 2018<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-respond-shooting-parkland-florida-high-school-n848101" target="_blank">mass shooting</a><span> </span>at a Parkland, Fla., high school, that extend background checks to private sellers and extend the time limit to conduct checks on purchasers.</p> </blockquote> <h4>With President Biden, we may actually get an infrastructure week (year, decade)!</h4> <p>One of the things mentioned in the “roads and bridges” segment of the plan is RAILROADS and I’m excited because you know how CG and I want high speed or light rail crisscrossing the country! Fingers crossed that this can get done! Go Dems!</p> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-could-be-in-bidens-massive-infrastructure-bill-2021-3" target="_blank">Here’s what could be in Biden's massive infrastructure bill, from free community college to upgraded roads and bridges</a>, Ayelet Sheffey and Joseph Zeballos-Roig, Insider, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">According to documents obtained by the Times, the proposed infrastructure plan would focus first on infrastructure improvements such as upgrading roads and bridges. The second bill would direct spending on other segments of the economy, such as education and childcare.</p> <p style="text-align:left">"The point is not to put in all this effort just to get where we where pre-<span> </span><span><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-a-recession">recession</a></span><span> </span>or pre-pandemic, that's not what other countries are doing," Ryan Fitzpatrick, director of the climate and energy program at Third Way, a center-left group, said in an interview. "This is to make sure the US has a competitive economy. We can't rest on our laurels."</p> <p style="text-align:left"><span style="text-align:left">Many of the plan's details, including its funding, remain in flux. White House officials are weighing tax increases on large corporations and the wealthiest Americans to finance at least some portions of the package. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday the administration is "considering a range of potential options" for upcoming spending plans.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Huh, looks like Doktor Zoom and I were on the same wavelength with the Infrastructure time talk:</p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/give-joe-biden-an-infrastructure-week-and-hell-build-back-better-for-decades" target="_blank">Give Joe Biden An Infrastructure Week And He'll Build Back Better For Decades</a>, Doktor Zoom, Wonkette, March 23, 2021.</p> <h3>🎵 Music for a New Blue Day 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=8fmCwPLi954" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8fmCwPLi954">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>💉 Good Health News 💉</h3> <h4>Affordable Care Act </h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/biden-lengthens-affordable-care-act-insurance-sign-ups-until-mid-august/2021/03/23/ac8bb0ac-8bf6-11eb-9423-04079921c915_story.html" target="_blank">Biden lengthens Affordable Care Act insurance sign-ups until mid-August</a>, Amy Goldstein and Seung Min Kim, Washington Post, March 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>President Biden announced Tuesday that the federal insurance marketplace will remain open for consumers to buy Affordable Care Act health plans through mid-August, doubling the length of an unprecedented extra enrollment period that launched last month.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Speaking at a cancer hospital and research institute at Ohio State University, Biden made the announcement as part of a recognition of the ACA’s 11th anniversary. The sprawling health-care law has helped more than 20 million Americans gain coverage through marketplace health plans and Medicaid, and it has altered many other aspects of the U.S. health-care system, even as it has remained a target of vehement Republican opposition.</p> <p><span>The lengthening of the special enrollment time reflects Biden’s determination to use the 2010 health-care law as a fulcrum to expand the number of Americans who have access to affordable insurance and, as a result, to care.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/03/22/us/biden-news-today/eleven-years-after-its-signing-the-affordable-care-act-is-drawing-hundreds-of-thousands-of-enrollments" target="_blank">Obamacare Draws 200,000 New Enrollments as Deep-Red States Eye Medicaid Expansion</a>,  Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York Times, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>More than 200,000 Americans signed up for health insurance under the law during the first two weeks of an open enrollment period created by President Biden — a sign that those who lost insurance during the pandemic remain in desperate need of coverage, according to federal officials and health policy experts.</p> <p>And a provision in the president’s $1.9 trillion stimulus law to make Medicaid expansion more fiscally appealing has convinced deep-red Alabama and Wyoming to consider expanding the program to residents whose incomes are too high to qualify now but too low to afford private health plans. ✄</p> <p>Expanding access to health care has been a core issue for Mr. Biden, both when he was vice president and during his campaign for the White House. A week after he took office,<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/28/us/politics/biden-health-insurance.html">he ordered</a><span> </span>the law’s insurance marketplaces to reopen for three months, from February to May 15, to help people struggling to find coverage.</p> <p>In previous years, only those who had “qualifying life events,” including job losses, were eligible to sign up outside of the traditional fall enrollment period, and the current surge in enrollment is more than<span> </span><a href="https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/2021-marketplace-special-enrollment-period-report" target="_blank">double the number of people</a><span> </span>who signed up during the same two-week periods in 2019 and 2020.</p> </blockquote> <h4>More Vaccines on the way!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-johnson-johnson-va/jj-plant-authorization-clears-way-for-big-boost-in-u-s-covid-19-shots-idUSKBN2BF2MA" target="_blank">J&J plant authorization clears way for big boost in U.S. COVID-19 shots</a>, Michael Erman and Carl O’Donnell, Reuters, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">A large plant being used to manufacture Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine was cleared by U.S. regulators on Tuesday, setting the stage for the weekly U.S. supply to surge more then 20 percent.</p> <p style="text-align:start">About 27 million COVID-19 vaccine doses will be allocated to U.S. states and other localities this week, including 4 million from J&J, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. That is the largest allocation yet, up from 22 million last week. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">J&J’s shipments had slowed considerably since the first week of the month, but the new authorization will enable it to ship out millions of doses.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Potential covid treatments coming in pill form!</h4> <p>In an interview last week (I am sorry, I don’t recall where, so no link), Dr Fauci mentioned that another important tool to fight the coronavirus would be if we had oral medicines that people could take, instead of needing to be transfused via IV, in the event that they become infected. Well, it looks like we’ve got something in the pipeline!</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-pfizer-antiviral/pfizer-begins-early-stage-study-of-oral-covid-19-drug-idUSKBN2BF22P" target="_blank">Pfizer begins early-stage study of oral COVID-19 drug</a>, Reuters staff, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Pfizer’s candidate, named PF-07321332, is a protease inhibitor that prevents the virus from replicating in cells.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Protease inhibitors have been effective at treating other viral pathogens such as HIV and hepatitis C virus, both on their own and in combination with other antivirals, the company said. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“Together, the two (oral and intravenous candidates) have the potential to create an end-to-end treatment paradigm that complements vaccination in cases where disease still occurs,” Pfizer’s Chief Medical Officer Mikael Dolsten said in a statement.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/senate-murthy-surgeon-general-d6984b51-b9cb-413c-a5b8-a5ee0f0090eb.html" target="_blank">Senate Confirms Vivek Murthy as surgeon general</a>, Axios, March 23, 2021. (some of the links that Axios put in this article are misdirected. The AP link goes to a February story about another confirmation).</p> <blockquote> <p>The Senate voted 57-43 on Tuesday to confirm Vivek Murthy as surgeon general.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:<span> </span></strong>His appointment will allow him to reprise a role he previously held. Murthy served as surgeon general under the Obama administration but was<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-gets-rid-of-surgeon-general-1513301769-84a12bb8-7496-414b-a6f6-485cbdab4eba.html" target="_self">dismissed</a><span> </span>in 2017, a year before the end of his term, by the Trump administration.</p> <p><strong>The big picture:</strong><span> </span>Murthy is a member of the Biden administration's COVID-19<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/biden-to-announce-covid-19-task-force-monday-23b353bd-863b-4e0f-bb64-c6da4a5758b2.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic&utm_content=1100&fbclid=IwAR10sRcFX2cKDmYhuLGe1NbBR3ZE59MuZmLATVZsmjDg1cZeuVrP_9hkGAo" target="_self">task force</a>, which is working to combat the spread of the pandemic.</p> <ul> <li>As surgeon general he has vowed to bring attention to public health issues that have worsened during the pandemic, namely "the opioid epidemic, mental illness and racial and geographic health inequities," according to<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-technology-biden-cabinet-michigan-jennifer-granholm-15acadc1a86559e3a8a7e1d026a0732f" target="_blank">AP</a>.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-lower-high-blood-pressure-with-exercise-2021-3" target="_blank">The best exercises to lower your blood pressure, even without medication</a>, Gabby Landsverk, Insider, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">Working out can be as good or better than taking medication to improve your blood pressure, particularly if you choose the right kind of exercise, evidence suggests.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Specific types of workouts could benefit different groups of people based on their blood pressure, according to recommendations published March 23 in the<span> </span><a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/eurjpc/zwaa141">European Journal of Preventative Cardiology.</a> </p> <p style="text-align:left">For high blood pressure, do aerobic exercise like walking, running, or cycling.</p> <p style="text-align:left">For blood pressure in the high-normal range, try moves such as squats, push-ups, and lifting weights.</p> <p style="text-align:left">To maintain normal blood pressure, do planks, yoga, and wall sits.</p> <p style="text-align:left">(check out the full article for details)</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music to Inspire You to Exercise 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ILWSp0m9G2U" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ILWSp0m9G2U" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🌱 Good News for the Environment 🌱</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/23/climate/biden-infrastructure-stimulus-climate-change.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Biden’s Recovery Plan Bets Big on Clean Energy</a>, Lisa Friedman and Jim Tankersley, New York Times, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Aides are set to brief Mr. Biden this week on<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/22/business/biden-infrastructure-spending.html">plans to invest between $3 trillion and $4 trillion in spending and tax credits</a><span> </span>on a wide range of efforts meant to bolster the economy. The money is currently planned to be split between two packages, starting with an infrastructure bill that is rooted in the effort to halt the emissions of planet-warming carbon dioxide. Administration officials stress that the details remain in flux.</p> <p>But as currently constructed, accelerating a clean energy transformation underpins nearly every part of the plan, people familiar with it said. It includes building electric power lines that can deliver more renewable energy, building electric vehicle charging stations, capping oil and gas wells to reduce emissions and reclaiming abandoned coal mines. There is money to build a million new affordable, energy-efficient housing units and to make existing structures more energy efficient. Hundreds of billions of dollars would go toward “high-growth industries of the future,” such as advanced battery manufacturing.</p> <p>The underlying message — that the next step of America’s economic recovery is fundamentally tied to countering the climate crisis — represents a major pivot in the way Democrats make the case for tackling global warming. No longer merely an environmental imperative like saving the polar bears, or a side element of a stimulus package like it was under the Obama administration, climate change has become the centerpiece.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Helpful Weather Forecasting Upgrade</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/weather-f85588be45d28c8e4093c040b6f0c809" target="_blank">US weather model upgraded to better forecast extreme<span> </span>events</a>, Seth Borenstein, AP News, March 22, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The National Weather Service has turbocharged its lagging forecast model to better predict extreme weather events such as hurricanes, blizzards and downpours, as well as day-to-day weather.</p> <p style="text-align:start">By including much higher layers of the atmosphere, increased factoring of ocean waves and other improvements, the weather service’s update to its Global Forecast System is trying to catch up with a European weather model that many experts consider superior.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Tests for the past two years show the upgrade,<span> </span><a href="https://www.noaa.gov/media-release/noaa-upgrades-flagship-us-global-weather-model" target="_blank">which kicked in Monday,</a><span> </span>forecast heavy rains and snowfall 15% better five days out and improved hurricane and tropical storm tracks by more than 10%, better pinpointing storm formation five to seven days in advance.</p> </blockquote> <h3>😊 Good News from Illinois <strong>😊</strong></h3> <p><strong>H</strong>ere are the follow up stories to two stories I wrote about in previous GNRs. Success in both!:</p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/3/23/22346596/illinois-cannabis-equity-commission-state-contracts-diversity-black-caucus-jb-pritzker" target="_blank">Pritzker to sign bills creating cannabis equity commission, increasing diversity in state contracts</a>, Rachel Hinton, Chicago Sun-Times, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Gov. J.B. Pritzker will sign into law a cap on payday loan rates and a measure aimed at increasing diversity in the state’s contracting process Tuesday, two pieces of legislation crafted and shepherded through the General Assembly by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus in January. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">SB1792 amends the Farmer Equity Act and creates a cannabis equity commission to ensure the equity goals the state set as part of its legalization of cannabis are met and caps at 36% the annual percentage rate for payday loans, small consumer loans and title-secured loans under the Predatory Loan Prevention Act. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">SB1608 increases the state’s goal for contracts awarded to businesses owned by minorities, women or people with disabilities from 20% to 30% and mandates the state’s Department of Central Management Services to establish “committed diversity aspirational goals for state contracts” and “concerted outreach efforts to businesses owned by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Follow Up on the evanston reparations story</h4> <p>Here’s the excellent video on the developing story I posted a few months ago: <a href="https://youtu.be/8bucYsb03qE" target="_blank">How a City in Illinois Made History with Reparations</a></p> <p>Near the end of that video, Ald. Robin Rue Simmons says there has to be an action plan. Well, on Monday the Evanston City Council approved a plan, with a pathway to expansion in the future:</p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/3/22/22345860/evanston-passes-first-in-nation-reparations" target="_blank">Evanston passes first-in-nation reparations</a>, Mitch Dudek and Fran Spielman, Chicago Sun-Times, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The Evanston City Council on Monday approved a first-in-the-nation reparations plan that’s been put forth as a blueprint for other municipalities, including Chicago, to use in efforts to make amends for historical wrongs against Black residents.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In an 8-1 vote, the council approved a plan to distribute $400,000 to Black residents with ties to the city’s Black community between 1919 and 1969. Eligible applicants will also include residents who suffered from housing discrimination due to the city’s policies after 1969.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Under the plan, the money can be used to help buy a home, pay a mortgage or for home improvements.</span>✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Iva Carruthers, whose father was a Tuskegee Airman, grew up in Evanston and saw firsthand the results of redlining and other discriminatory policies that negatively affected Black families and are the basis of the reparations plan that passed Monday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“The wisdom of the ages says that a journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step. I’m so very proud to be an Evanstonian ... I’m confident that my foreparents and the many elders who raised me and paved the way for me are rejoicing because this is a move forward for the nation and the world,” she said.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music for Illinois 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Lpvwgqjg_eI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Lpvwgqjg_eI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>😎 Just Plain COOL News 😎</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-dayton-planets-mars-ohio-bce8b9d5743153028f225ab6c7b3f4fb" target="_blank">Part of Wright brothers’ 1st airplane on NASA’s Mars chopper</a>, Marcia Dunn, AP News, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">NASA’s experimental Martian helicopter holds a small swatch of fabric from the 1903 Wright Flyer, the space agency revealed Tuesday. The helicopter, named Ingenuity, hitched a ride to the red planet with the Perseverance rover, arriving last month.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Ingenuity will attempt the first powered, controlled flight on another planet no sooner than April 8. It will mark a “Wright brothers’ moment,” noted Bobby Braun, director for planetary science at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The swatch made the 300 million-mile journey to Mars with the blessing of the Wright brothers’ great-grandniece and great-grandnephew, said park curator Steve Lucht.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Wilbur and Orville Wright would be pleased to know that a little piece of their 1903 Wright Flyer I, the machine that launched the Space Age by barely one quarter of a mile, is going to soar into history again on Mars!” Amanda Wright Lane and Stephen Wright said in a statement provided by the park.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Member Intends to transform church grift into social good</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/mormon-church-accused-of-misusing-billions-in-member-tithes/" target="_blank">Mormon Church Accused of Misusing Billions In Member Tithes</a>, Martin Macias Jr, Courthouse News, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Huntsman says the church told members their monetary contributions would fund missionary work, temple renovations, education programs, member indoctrination and other efforts.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Instead, the church corporation “lined its own pockets” with an estimated $1.5 billion of members’ donations and diverted the funds to commercial real estate projects such as the construction of a shopping mall in Salt Lake City, Utah, according to the complaint. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Huntsman seeks recovery of millions of dollars in donations he claims were fraudulently obtained and diverted by the church.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“He will then use the recovered funds to benefit organizations and communities whose members have been marginalized by the church’s teachings and doctrines, including by donating to charities supporting LGBTQ, African-American, and women’s rights,” Huntsman says in his complaint. “Unlike the LDS Corporation, Mr. Huntsman is confident that these charities will actually use his donations for their intended purposes.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Human resilience is a wonder</h4> <p>Check out this article for some great ideas on how to improve your own life satisfaction and resilience:</p> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/world-happiness-report-united-states/2021/03/22/6343edac-8b28-11eb-9423-04079921c915_story.html" target="_blank">World Happiness Report is out, with a surprising picture of global resilience</a>, Ryan Bacic, Washington Post, March 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="bluebird_of_happiness_with_blossoms.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/586491/large/bluebird_of_happiness_with_blossoms.jpg?1536436944" title="bluebird_of_happiness_with_blossoms.jpg"> <figcaption>I looked up “happiness” in the DK library and could not resist this bluebird!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>In a conclusion that even surprised its editors,<span> </span></span><a href="https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2021/happiness-trust-and-deaths-under-covid-19/">the 2021 World Happiness Report</a><span><span> </span>found that, amid global hardship, self-reported life satisfaction across 95 countries on average remained steady in 2020 from the previous year. The United States saw the same trend — despite societal tumult that yielded a national drop in positive emotions and a rise in negative ones. The country fell one spot, to 19th, in the annual rankings of the report, which was released Saturday. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“We have the most massive changes in social behavior we’ve ever seen in our lifetimes happen during this pandemic,” said Lyubomirsky, author of books such as<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014312451X?ie=UTF8&tag=thewaspos09-20&camp=1789&linkCode=xm2&creativeASIN=014312451X">“The Myths of Happiness”</a><span><span> </span>and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0143114956?ie=UTF8&tag=thewaspos09-20&camp=1789&linkCode=xm2&creativeASIN=0143114956">“The How of Happiness.”</a><span><span> </span>“And so I would have expected much, much bigger declines in well-being. And we do not see that.”</span></p> <p><span>It’s not so much that people are doing precisely as well as they were before, experts explain, as that many have adapted to their new situations in ways that might have roughly evened out their well-being. “One of the quotes we use is ‘You aren’t traveling the world, but you’re more likely to have met your neighbors this year,’ ” said<span> </span></span><a href="https://economics.ubc.ca/faculty-and-staff/john-helliwell/">John Helliwell</a><span>, another editor of the report and a professor emeritus of economics at the University of British Columbia.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🏇 Good News in the World of Sports 🏇</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/college-football-football-georgia-health-coronavirus-pandemic-19f4e119a681b70da12730c835eed2d5" target="_blank">The Latest: Preakness to run in front of 10,000 fans in May</a>, AP News, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The Preakness will be run in front of a limited capacity of 10,000 fans at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on May 15.</p> <p>Organizers of the second jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown announced the decision Tuesday. Churchill Downs has said it expects the Kentucky Derby to be run in front of roughly 40-50% of capacity May 1 in Louisville. Typically, the Preakness draws over 100,000 spectators.</p> </blockquote> <p>Also from AP (same link): </p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Thirteen sports leagues have teamed with Willie Nelson on a<span> </span><a href="https://youtu.be/tUZziJSaKhQ" target="_blank">PSA</a><span> </span>encouraging people to get the latest information on COVID-19 vaccinations.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Joining with the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative as part of its vaccine education program, the NFL, NHL, MLB, PGA Tour, MLS, NASCAR, NBA, WNBA, American Horse Council, Athletes Unlimited, NWSL, US Open Tennis Championships and WWE participated. The PSA highlights iconic moments in sport accompanied by a new recording of “I’ll Be Seeing You” performed by Grammy Award-winner Nelson.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“In the song, I sing ‘I’ll be seeing you in all the old familiar places,’ and that’s exactly what I hope these PSAs will help do; help get Americans informed about the vaccines and one step closer to the people and moments we miss,” Nelson said. “I’m happy to be part of this new campaign with the Ad Council, COVID Collaborative and these sports organizations to empower millions more to get the answers they need and feel confident in getting vaccinated, like I did.”</p> </blockquote> <p>Willie Nelson is like Dolly Parton to me — another person who has used his fame for social good. In honor, here is our next musical selection!</p> <h3>🎵 Thanks to Willie Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=-kEv4YKj_-0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-kEv4YKj_-0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>😖 From the Unexpected Consequences File 😖</h3> <p>I’m replacing my old “Schadenfreude File” with this one. Enjoy!</p> <h4>Oops! Barr didn’t mean to target THESE guys!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/bill-barr-sedition-memo-oath-keepers/">Bill Barr is the reason some Capitol attackers could be charged with sedition: Mueller prosecutor</a>, Sarah Burris, Raw Story, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>"I think that's where Merrick Garland will be key in keeping politics out of that equation," Weissmann explained. "The second issue that you raise, though, is one that has to do with civil liberties. Just to be clear, those are concerns whether you're doing foreign terrorism or domestic terrorism, they're still issues that we dealt with, for instance, at the FBI, to make sure that we were adhering to the Fourth Amendment as it applies to overseas. Obviously, there are issues as we domestically. But remember, the DOJ will be looking at is conduct, not speech. It will be important to have leaders who are serious and responsible like Garland and Lisa Monaco to make sure people stay on the straight and narrow, but it is very important to prosecutor domestic terrorism matters, regardless of whether it's happening on the right or the left."</p> <p>But it was his final point that he called "somewhat ironic."</p> <p><em><strong>"The sedition memo that came out in September of 2020 was penned by the Barr Department of Justice in connection with the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the summer, but now you're seeing discussion of the sedition statute with a very different group trying to do very different things."</strong></em></p> </blockquote> <h4>Oops! Powell didn’t mean the kraken was real!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/sidney-powell-defamation/">Sidney Powell is ‘in a whole lot of trouble’ after her latest legal maneuver: attorney</a>, Travis Gettys, Raw Story, March 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>A former lawyer for Donald Trump is trying to wriggle out of a massive defamation suit by arguing that no reasonable person could believe her claims of election fraud -- but one legal expert told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that defense was dead on arrival. ✄</span></p> <p>"There is no one who has more contempt for their own supporters than the leaders of the MAGA world," he added. "We've seen this before. Steve Bannon's 'Build The Wall' charity that he allegedly stole from, the effort to raise $200 million for the former president's legal fund to fight the election, when much of that money was diverted elsewhere, to even just the policy of taking away your own supporters' health care insurance in exchange for a promise that something bigger and better will come in two years, or two weeks."</p> <p>Aronberg said the response exposed the weakness of Powell's defense.</p> <p>"We've also learned that when it comes to election lies, the best truth serum is a multi-billion-dollar defamation lawsuit," he said, "and if this is the best defense that Sidney Powell can come up with, I think she's in a whole lot of trouble, and to borrow a phrase from Donald Trump, I think the ultimate civil judgment against her will be huge -- Y-U-G-E."</p> </blockquote> <h4>Oops! MAGAworld migrating to parler wasn’t supposed to go like this!</h4> <p>Bah ha ha! Utter chaos over at Parler — the no-holds barred insurrectionist meetup place/ social network — and interesting facts about its financing are coming to light in court! (the former guy’s megadonor pal Rebekah Mercer is behind it and the shady financial arrangements will hopefully interest the courts):</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/23/980341703/ex-ceo-sues-parler-over-arrogant-theft-claims-site-was-hijacked" target="_blank">Ex-CEO Sues Parler Over 'Arrogant Theft,' Claims Site Was 'Hijacked'</a>, Bobby Allyn, NPR News, March 23, 2021. </p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The lawsuit adds to the troubles that the conservative social media site has had since the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, which pro-Trump rioters had discussed on Parler. Shortly after the violence, Amazon Web Services refused to continue hosting Parler, and the site went dark. It has since come back online but is not yet fully functional.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Matze lost his job after quarreling with Rebekah Mercer, the conservative megadonor who bankrolled Parler. He says Mercer resisted developing policies to crack down on posts about the QAnon conspiracy theory, neo-Nazism, violence and domestic terrorism. Mercer is named as a defendant in the suit.</p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Mercer's stake in Parler initially was listed under a holding company called NDMASCENDANT LLC. That was done to keep her investment secret, according to the suit.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The suit for the first time sheds light on the unusual financing of Parler. </span></p> <p style="text-align:start">For instance, the suit says the funding Mercer provided was characterized as a loan that Parler would have to repay eventually.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"The very same dollars that were the supposed 60% equity stake were also being claimed as debt," it alleges.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Honorable Mention goes to: Oops! Inciting a riot wasn’t supposed to tank the fam biz!</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2021/03/23/trump-hotels-virtuoso-travel-agency/?itid=hp-more-top-stories" target="_blank">Trump hotels have been dropped by a major luxury travel agency network</a>, Hannah Sampson and David Fahrenthold, Washington Post, March 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="The International Trump Hotel is seen in Washington, DC, on January 24, 2019. (Photo by EVA HAMBACH / AFP) (Photo credit should read EVA HAMBACH/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/737257/large/GettyImages-1088010530.jpg?1573493322" title="The International Trump Hotel is seen in Washington, DC, on January 24, 2019. (Photo by EVA HAMBACH / AFP) (Photo credit should read EVA HAMBACH/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Virtuoso, a global network of luxury travel agencies, no longer considers Trump Hotels a preferred partner. The Texas-based company, which includes 20,000 luxury travel advisers, said the change was effective March 8; it applies to the six Trump hotels that were considered partners. ✄</p> <p><span>“It’s a big deal because Virtuoso is very well-respected in the industry,” Harteveldt said. “It serves a very elite base of customers and its actions are often studied by others. With Virtuoso doing this, some travel agencies that may have been debating whether or not to do it could decide well, if Virtuoso has done this, we too will end our professional relationship with the Trump hotels.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>Since Jan. 6 — when former president Donald Trump encouraged a mob of his supporters that later attacked the U.S. Capitol — a number of Trump’s former business partners and clients have<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-company-backlash-riot/2021/01/12/40cb91fc-5514-11eb-a931-5b162d0d033d_story.html" target="_blank">cut ties<span> </span></a><span>with his company. These have included lenders, bankers, insurers, lawyers and the PGA of America, which canceled a major golf tournament planned at one of Trump’s courses.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music for Consequences 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=80-tmgZC2A8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/80-tmgZC2A8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette, now with shiny new polling! <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/even-republicans-mostly-fine-with-lgbtq-people-now-so-pass-the-damn-equality-act" target="_blank">Even Republicans Mostly Fine With LGBTQ People Now, So PASS THE DAMN EQUALITY ACT</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/23/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-bernie-sanders.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage&showTranscript=1" target="_blank">An Unusually Optimistic Conversation With Bernie Sanders</a>, Ezra Klein, New York Times (also podcast), March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/garland-is-the-last-best-chance-to-uncover-trumps-role-on-january-6th" target="_blank">Garland Is the Last, Best Chance to Uncover Trump’s Role on January 6th</a>, David Rohde, The New Yorker, March 21, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/china-is-convinced-america-is-in-decline-biden-has-a-chance-to-change-that/2021/03/22/675c4cfc-8b48-11eb-a730-1b4ed9656258_story.html" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/china-is-convinced-america-is-in-decline-biden-has-a-chance-to-change-that/2021/03/22/675c4cfc-8b48-11eb-a730-1b4ed9656258_story.html" target="_blank">China is convinced America is in decline. Biden has a chance to change that.</a> David Ignatius, Washington Post, March 22, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/if-bidens-senile-like-they-say-then-whys-he-running-circles-around-the-right?ref=home" target="_blank"> </a></span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/if-bidens-senile-like-they-say-then-whys-he-running-circles-around-the-right?ref=home" target="_blank">If Biden’s Senile Like They Say, Then Why’s He Running Circles Around the Right?</a>, Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/prime/child-tax-credit-poor-families-american-rescue-plan/sharetoken/7SWLEKTwJ93B" target="_blank"> </a><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/prime/child-tax-credit-poor-families-american-rescue-plan/sharetoken/7SWLEKTwJ93B" target="_blank">The New Child Tax Credit Is A Sea Change In How America Treats Her Poor</a>, Kate Riga, Talking Points Memo, March 22, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Spoiler: Biden values getting sh*t done: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/03/what-joe-biden-really-learned-senate/618367/" target="_blank">Biden Just Showed Us What He Really Values</a>, David A Graham, The Atlantic, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/taking-action-can-cure-your-climate-grief/" target="_blank">Taking Action Can Cure Your Climate Grief</a>, Ellen Airhart, Scientific American, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Thoughtful informative article: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/why-biden-slow-judges.html" target="_blank">There’s a Reason Biden Has Been Slow to Install Judges</a>, Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/03/republican-plan-electoral-college/618362/" target="_blank">The Republican Electoral College Contradiction</a>, Russell Berman, The Atlantic, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Eye-opening history here: <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2021/3/22/22345129/diversity-americas-strength-hateful-reaction-weakness-jesse-jackson" target="_blank">Our diversity is truly America’s strength, and the hateful reaction to it America’s weakness</a>, Jesse Jackson, Chicago Sun-Times, March 22, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/ted-cruz-hr1-voting-rights/" target="_blank">On Voting Rights, Ted Cruz Tells the Truth for Once</a>, Joan Walsh, The Nation, March 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ A difficult but necessary read: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/03/23/the-evil-within-us-how-christian-fascist-ideology-led-to-the-atlanta-killings/" target="_blank">The evil within us: How Christian fascist ideology led to the Atlanta killings</a>, Chris Hedges, Salon, March 23, 2021.</p> <div> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with<span> </span><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website:<span> </span><span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="IMG_7550.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/930243/large/IMG_7550.jpg?1616566571" title="IMG_7550.jpg"> <figcaption>Is it bedtime yet?</figcaption> </figure> <p>That’s it from me for another week. I struggled a bit to express the hopeful message I wanted to convey today, but hopefully the good news itself will do that better than I could anyway.</p> <p>Miss Curlygirl is wondering if I am ever going to bed, so she can go to her favorite bed, too. I’d better get moving. Before I go though, let me encourage you to take very good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors every day. I type this out every week, not a copy pasta! Because it is so important that we all stay strong and healthy as we can be to continue the good work that must be done.</p> <p>A better world is coming. I am so hopeful about the future and proud of our part in the effort to get us there! Thanks, gnusies!</p> <h2>         Happy Wednesday!</h2> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=VOLy6JxEDLw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/VOLy6JxEDLw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AffordableCareAct ARP Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Infrastructure JoeBiden Politics POTUS46 Recommended _2022453 Wed, 24 Mar 2021 11:00:03 +0000 Wednesday Good News RoundUp - No Malarkey Edition: March 17, 2021 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/3/17/2020371/-Wednesday-Good-News-RoundUp-No-Malarkey-Edition-March-17-2021 <h3 class="AlignCenter">🍀 Good Day, Gnusies and Happy St. Patrick’s Day! 🍀</h3> <p>Life is getting better every day now that we have our champion President Joe Biden in the White House and a Democratically led Congress. The American Rescue Plan is the law — the child tax credit, the expanded healthcare access, the aid for states and cities and towns… all of the economy boosting, human thriving, beneficial beauty of it: Now LAW! — and our POTUS and his administration are just getting started. Buckle up! For once, the ride is not going to be scary — it’s going to be exhilarating!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="blue standard poodle plays in the snow" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/927665/large/IMG_7586.jpg?1615961469" title="blue standard poodle plays in the snow"> <figcaption>Our snow is all gone now,<br> but here’s one more picture of me playing in it!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Yes, we know that the bad actors remain and the challenges are serious. The reality is that there is no magical wand anyone can wave to brush aside the bad and sweep in the good. But events have a way of gaining momentum, and momentum can start a transformational wave. Let’s help build that momentum. You’ll find info on how to help build it below.</p> <p>I had “one of those days” yesterday, so I’m going to be a little less organized than I’d like, as I’m starting the GNR later than I usually do. Nevertheless, as is becoming <em>normal</em> (don’tcha love it?), there’s more good news than I have the time to fully gather. Too much to roundup in just in the space of a day! WHat a wonderful “problem”! I’m going to put in the highlights here in the GNR and then you know what happens next: all the gnus in gnuville gather in the comments bringing more good news. We’ll get it all covered, together!</p> <p>Let’s start with some timely music!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It just wouldn&amp;#39;t be Saint Patrick&amp;#39;s Day if I didn&amp;#39;t share this moment from The Muppet Show&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Hope you all have a lovely (and safe) holiday! 🍀🍻 &lt;a href="https://t.co/gIkP8FRHQs"&gt;pic.twitter.com/gIkP8FRHQs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Muppet History (@HistoryMuppet) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HistoryMuppet/status/1372034960928821250?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 17, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It just wouldn't be Saint Patrick's Day if I didn't share this moment from The Muppet Show<br><br>Hope you all have a lovely (and safe) holiday! 🍀🍻 <a href="https://t.co/gIkP8FRHQs">pic.twitter.com/gIkP8FRHQs</a></p>— Muppet History (@HistoryMuppet) <a href="https://twitter.com/HistoryMuppet/status/1372034960928821250?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⚖ Good News in Justice ⚖</h3> <p>Yet another Biden hire, Janet Yellen,  is proving to be exactly who we needed. This story kind of crosses over into Economic good news, but I’m putting it here because for me at least, the justness of this proposed course of action is paramount:</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-treasury-tax/yellens-latest-hire-shows-u-s-treasury-serious-about-tax-fraud-crackdown-idUSKBN2B82JO" target="_blank">Yellen's latest hire shows U.S. Treasury serious about tax fraud crackdown</a>, David Lawder, Reuters, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury on Tuesday named Natasha Sarin, a Wharton School economist and protégé of former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, to a key microeconomics policy post, where she will strengthen the Biden administration’s efforts to boost tax revenue. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">“The sheer magnitude of the tax gap suggests that there is substantial revenue raising potential from shrinking it through well-targeted enforcement measures,” they wrote. With “feasible” changes in policy, the IRS could aspire to shrink this by 15%, they wrote, generating an additional $1.1 trillion in revenue over a decade.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">In an October 2020 opinion piece in the New York Times, Sarin said the wealthy, including former President Donald Trump, were not paying their fair share because the Internal Revenue Service has been deprived of resources in a “partisan attack” by Republicans that has “gutted” the agency.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>It’s going to all come out eventually, and the good news is that there are loads of people working on getting to the bottom of all the criminality underpinning the former guy’s election, “administration” , and the GQP that backed him 100%.</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/16/977958302/intelligence-report-russia-tried-to-help-trump-in-2020-election" target="_blank">Intelligence Report: Russia Tried To Help Trump In 2020 Election</a>, Greg Myre, NPR News, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://int.nyt.com/data/documenttools/2021-intelligence-community-election-interference-assessment/abd0346ebdd93e1e/full.pdf">A new report</a><span> </span>by the U.S. intelligence community on Tuesday says Russia sought to help former President Donald Trump in last year's presidential election. But the document also emphasized there was no indication Russia or any other country attempted to alter actual votes.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized "influence operations aimed at denigrating President Biden's candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process and exacerbating socio-political divisions in the U.S," says the report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The unclassified document is the most comprehensive look the intelligence community has released regarding foreign efforts to meddle in the 2020 election.</p> <p style="text-align:start">[You can read the 15 page report at the NPR <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/16/977958302/intelligence-report-russia-tried-to-help-trump-in-2020-election" target="_blank">link</a>)</p> </blockquote> <h4>Northam Executive Action Clears Way For Voting Rights Restoration</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/16/978009022/virginia-governor-clears-path-for-ex-convicts-to-regain-voting-rights" target="_blank" title="">Virginia Governor Clears Path For Ex-Convicts To Regain Voting Rights</a>, Vanessa Romo, NPR News, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam announced an executive action on Tuesday that allows tens of thousands of felons to recover their voting and other civil rights upon release from prison.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The move applies immediately to an estimated 69,000 Virginians who have completed their sentences, including ex-convicts who remain on supervision. And it comes as the state prepares for gubernatorial and legislative elections on June 8.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Too many of our laws were written during a time of open racism and discrimination, and they still bear the traces of inequity," said Northam said in a<span> </span><a href="https://www.governor.virginia.gov/newsroom/all-releases/2021/march/headline-893864-en.html">statement</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"We are a Commonwealth that believes in moving forward, not being tied down by the mistakes of our past. If we want people to return to our communities and participate in society, we must welcome them back fully—and this policy does just that," he added.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🍀 Musical Break 🍀</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=DOw3w-00Jqw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/DOw3w-00Jqw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>📈 💰 Economic Good News 💰📈</h3> <p>The American Rescue Act was a huge and much-needed start on the path to increasing economic opportunities and equality. Improving and expanding (and enforcing) anti-trust law would be another huge step in the right direction, and naturally Democrats are working on that!</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/publishing-health-coronavirus-pandemic-book-publishing-airlines-383681c569b18262df1d95baf65484a4" target="_blank">Battling bigness: Congress eyes action against monopolies</a>, Marcy Gordon, AP News, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) called on her colleagues to hold consideration of a new Supreme Court nominee until after the election and to consider the impact the nomination will have on people’s lives." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/861610/large/ScreenShot2020-09-27at10.23.09AM.png?1601227599" title="Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) called on her colleagues to hold consideration of a new Supreme Court nominee until after the election and to consider the impact the nomination will have on people’s lives."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">The four biggest airlines control about 65% of U.S. passenger traffic, five giant healthcare insurers control an estimated 45% of the market, pharmaceuticals are dominated by three major companies, the top four banks control about 44% of the market, the so-called Big Five book publishers control some 80% of the U.S. book market, and Google alone accounts for about 90% of web searches worldwide. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Congress, federal regulators and states had already been putting Big Tech companies under intense scrutiny for nearly two years and even suing some for antitrust. Now with Democrats in the majority in Congress and President Joe Biden seemingly prepared to act on an anti-monopoly agenda, the focus is widening to the rest of corporate America.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Critics say the corporate concentration is quickening, limiting consumers’ choices, raising prices and eroding service.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., has put forward expansive legislation to overhaul antitrust law. It would make it harder for dominant companies to win regulators’ approval of mergers and stretch the government’s authority over competition in other ways. Klobuchar, who heads the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on competition policy, has launched a broad examination by the panel of monopoly concerns.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2021/03/16/biden-will-push-for-tax-hikes-for-big-companies-and-high-earners-economic-aide-says/?sh=24ec940b38db" target="_blank">Biden Will Push For Tax Hikes For Big Companies And High Earners</a>, Economic Aide Says, Sarah Hansen, Forbes, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 12: U.S. President Joe Biden (L) speaks as Vice President Kamala Harris (R) listens during an event on the American Rescue Plan in the Rose Garden of the White House on March 12, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act into law that will send aid to millions of Americans struggling from the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/926643/large/GettyImages-1306729402.jpg?1615658859" title="WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 12: U.S. President Joe Biden (L) speaks as Vice President Kamala Harris (R) listens during an event on the American Rescue Plan in the Rose Garden of the White House on March 12, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act into law that will send aid to millions of Americans struggling from the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>President Joe Biden wants higher taxes for big corporations and high earners to “support investments in the U.S. economy” as well as tax relief to ensure that low-income and middle-class families “are not paying more than their fair share,” a top White House economic aide said Tuesday.</p> <div> <p>During an<span> </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-16/biden-wants-higher-corporate-tax-relief-for-110-000-families?srnd=premium" target="_blank">interview</a><span> </span>on Bloomberg TV, National Economic Council deputy director Bharat Ramamurti said the president’s tax plan will involve raising taxes on large, multinational corporations and making tax changes that will incentivize domestic rather than foreign investment.</p> </div> <div> <p>It will also involve higher taxes on “extremely wealthy” individuals making more than $400,000 per year, he said, specifically mentioning those individuals who have profited during the pandemic.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Child Tax Credit to do what Democrats intend it to do</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/low-income-families-benefit-most-213027636.html?ncid=twitter_yahoonewst_sjwumo1bpf4" target="_blank">Low-income families to benefit most from child tax credit, experts say</a>, Daniella SIlva, Yahoo News, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="<strong>Examples of a family drawing assessment: </strong>A drawing from a child scored with minimal indicators of family dysfunction (top), and one from a child scored with elevated levels of family dysfunction (bottom)." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/926332/large/family-drawing-examples-together_wide-8fa9f2cc0ca9deab62ead4d72595c60c5446eb7d.jpg?1615586514" title="<strong>Examples of a family drawing assessment: </strong>A drawing from a child scored with minimal indicators of family dysfunction (top), and one from a child scored with elevated levels of family dysfunction (bottom)."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The expanded federal child tax credit included in President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion relief package will be a significant benefit for many American families, especially low-income earners and those living in poverty, experts said.</p> <p>The credit raises the maximum annual benefit level for many families to $3,600 per child under age 6 and to $3,000 per child ages 6 to 17, from $2,000 per child under 17. It will provide most parents with a monthly allowance, instead of a lump sum during tax season, creating a guaranteed income for families with children.</p> <p>“Low-income families suffer from income volatility,” said Elaine Maag, the principal research associate at the Urban Institute. “Delivering the credit in advance is trying to take the edge off those income fluctuations, which should help families meet their needs.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Illinois State Rep is working to increase cannabis equity</h4> <p>Illinois legalized marijuana and the industry immediately became white-dominated (like most other lucrative ventures) with not a single new cannabis dispensary with a person of color as majority owner. A state rep is about to try to fix that: <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/cannabis/2021/3/16/22334666/cannabis-equity-illinois-licensing-pot-shop-lashawn-ford-lottery-dispensary-apply" target="_blank">‘An important day for cannabis equity in Illinois:’ New bill aims to address flawed licensing rollout</a>, add 115 pot shop permits, Tom Shuba, Chicago Sun Times, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="yes-we-cannabis-marijuana_u-L-F59PF90.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/905234/large/yes-we-cannabis-marijuana_u-L-F59PF90.jpg?1610516522" title="yes-we-cannabis-marijuana_u-L-F59PF90.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">State Rep. La Shawn Ford joined a group of minority cannabis applicants Tuesday to announce plans for legislation that would address the state’s problematic marijuana licensing rollout and create up to 115 new pot shop permits in a move that could vastly expand Illinois’ weed market.</p> <p style="text-align:start">During a news conference outside Nature’s Care dispensary in West Town, the Chicago Democrat framed the forthcoming bill as the next step in ensuring Illinois meets its lofty goal of creating equity in the white-dominated cannabis industry. But he acknowledged that work won’t be complete until “Black and brown people start making money.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">A draft of Ford’s legislation would most notably create 110 licenses to sell recreational weed that would be doled out over the course of two proposed lottery drawings — which would be held after the state’s long-delayed lottery for 75 outstanding adult-use dispensary permits. The draft bill would also require the state to issue five licenses to sell medical marijuana that would be issued through another lottery.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Those licenses would all be prioritized to qualifying social equity applicants, a designation created in the original law that legalized recreational cannabis. But Ford’s proposal also revises the qualifications for earning social equity status to more specifically target people of color and those living in areas disproportionately harmed by the drug war.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🗽 Congress 🗽</h3> <p>As if we didn’t notice that he’s already had a Do-Nothing Senate for years (except for confirming judges, of course), Mitch McConnell is threatening increasingly bonkers stuff as he senses his power to intimidate Democrats is slipping away. Don’t let the doom and gloomers rattle you — yes, Moscow Mitch is dangerous and unprincipled as are all the Republicans, but they don’t have magical powers <em>and</em> Democrats have got their number:</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/mcconnell-filibuster-senate-republicans" target="_blank">McConnell Threatens To Grind Senate To Halt If Dems Don’t Let Him Keep Power To Grind Senate To Halt</a>, Kate Riga, Talking Points Memo, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Niet_moscow_mitch.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/756001/large/Niet_moscow_mitch.jpg?1578874801" title="Niet_moscow_mitch.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>“I want our colleagues to imagine a world where every single task, every one of them, requires a physical quorum, which, by the way, the Vice President does not count in determining a quorum,” he said.</span></p> <p><span>Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) shrugged off the threat.</span></p> <p><span>“He has already done that,” he told reporters of McConnell’s threat to grind the chamber to a halt. “He’s proven he can do it and they’ll do it again, I assume.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>In McConnell’s hypothetical, apparently, Republicans have seized a few more seats in the Senate so as to stop Democrats from using those same procedural rules against them. </span></p> <p><span>“Trading this for the ability to actually pass bills like voting rights seems like an easy call,” Adam Jentleson, a former Harry Reid staffer and current anti-filibuster activist, wrote on Twitter. “If McConnell’s tactics become truly onerous, Dems can always pass further reforms to end obstruction. McConnell’s goal is to make government fail, Dems’ goal should be to make it work.”</span></p> <p><span>McConnell’s tone seems to be escalating apace with Democratic inching towards filibuster reform.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Yeah, that “escalating tone” is called rising panic.</p> <p>Evan Hurst, as usual, has some sharpish commentary on this at Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/mitch-mcconnell-says-gop-gonna-be-real-dicks-if-dems-kill-filibuster-for-first-time-ever" target="_blank">Mitch McConnell Says GOP Gonna Be REAL DICKS If Dems Kill Filibuster, FOR FIRST TIME EVER</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="AtFirstIWasAfraidSquirrel.jfif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/782488/large/AtFirstIWasAfraidSquirrel.jfif?1585098319" title="AtFirstIWasAfraidSquirrel.jfif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Also, if<span> </span><em>this</em><span> </span>is going to cause a 100-car pile-up in the Senate, then what exactly was the Senate under McConnell's leadership, as the House passed wonderful bills, all of which McConnell left in a 100-car pile-up<span> </span><em>on his desk</em>, because he was too busy stacking the courts with Hunters? 😳</p> <p style="text-align:start">All this freakout seems to be<span> </span><em>very closely related<span> </span></em>to the Democratic congressional majority's desire to pass HR 1. You remember which one is HR 1? We'll tell you which one HR 1 is, because you remember which one HR 1 is? Well, we're about to tell you which one it is.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/3/22309123/house-democrats-pass-voting-rights-bill-hr1" target="_blank">HR 1</a><span> </span>— S 1 in the Senate, AKA the "For The People" Act<span> </span>… </p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">It's kind of a dream bill for all Americans who believe in free and fair elections. Likewise, it is an absolute nightmare for the GOP, which has been showing us for decades really, but REALLY LOUDLY SHOW-AND-TELLING US LATELY, that it does not believe in democracy when people who are not conservative white men don't win...</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><em>This</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>is the bill the GOP is terrified the Democrats will find a way to get through the Senate, and oh boy they are terrified.<span> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🍀 Music for Smilin’ Joe 🍀</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=TcGmLu27OlI" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TcGmLu27OlI">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>President Biden Supports Filibuster Reform</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/16/22335133/president-joe-biden-talking-filibuster-reform-senate-joe-manchin-george-stephanopoulos" target="_blank">President Biden’s plan for a “talking filibuster,”</a> briefly explained, Ian Millhiser, Vox, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TODAY.com https://www.today.com/news/joe-biden-i-m-not-closing-door-presidential-run-2020-t118721" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/908509/large/joe-biden-today-interview-tease-002-171113_dbad914a1a86e2fac5ad0189cf2008cd.jpg?1611197201" title="TODAY.com https://www.today.com/news/joe-biden-i-m-not-closing-door-presidential-run-2020-t118721"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The president came out in favor of filibuster reform in an<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-supports-reforming-senate-filibuster-abc-news-exclusive/story?id=76499156">interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos</a>. After Stephanopoulos asked Biden if he’ll have to “choose between preserving the filibuster and advancing your agenda,” the president initially answered “yes.” But he then clarified that he’s inclined to support a middle ground between eliminating the filibuster outright and preserving existing rules, which allows the Republican minority to block most legislation<span> </span><a href="https://www.vox.com/22260164/filibuster-senate-fix-reform-joe-manchin-kyrsten-sinema-cloture-mitch-mcconnell">unless 60 senators agree that a bill should pass</a>. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">(article discusses several proposed reforms — see <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/16/22335133/president-joe-biden-talking-filibuster-reform-senate-joe-manchin-george-stephanopoulos" target="_blank">link</a>)</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">It’s an open question whether Manchin — or Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), another Democrat who has resisted eliminating the filibuster — would support such a change. But Merkley’s new proposal suggests that senators who hope to pass a robust legislative agenda through the Senate are thinking about smart ways to preserve the filibuster in some form without letting it be a bar to legislating.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">And Biden’s recent remarks indicate that he has joined the growing Democratic consensus in favor of reform.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌎 International Good News 🌍</h3> <p>For the record, Uber fought against having to do this with everything they had, but to no avail. Now that they’ve been forced to treat their employees better than medieval serfs, just watch. It will be good for business and they’ll be bragging about it. But the important thing is that this ruling will have an impact on rights for other workers in insecure gig economy jobs, too. That’s good news! </p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/minimum-wage-europe-cb15b4aff66c3838ef9470192c9fcefd" target="_blank">Uber to give UK drivers minimum wage, pension, holiday pay</a>, Kelvin Chan, AP News, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Uberlogo.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/893037/large/Uberlogo.jpg?1607737337" title="Uberlogo.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">LONDON (AP) — Uber is giving its U.K. drivers the minimum wage, pensions and holiday pay, following a recent court ruling that said they should be classified as workers and entitled to such benefits.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The ride hailing giant’s announcement Tuesday comes after it lost an appeal last month at the U.K. Supreme Court following a yearslong court battle. The court’s decision holds wider implications for the country’s gig economy.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Uber said it’s extending the benefits immediately to its more than 70,000 drivers in the U.K. Drivers will earn at least the minimum wage, which currently stands at 8.72 pounds ($12.12), after accepting a trip request and expenses, and will still be able to earn more.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌱 Environmental Good News 🌱</h3> <p>Another story that could be filed under at least two catagories (“Arts” and “Environment” ...wait THREE catagories, because also “International” 😅). I LOVE this story about architects who eschew tearing stuff down to replace with big glass buildings. Instead, they emphasize reusing older buildings, re-imagining them as better living spaces. Oh, and I want one of those winter gardens! I wish my apartment had one!</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/16/976893511/2021-pritzker-prize-goes-to-french-architects-who-work-with-kindness" target="_blank" title="">2021 Pritzker Prize Goes To French Architects Who 'Work With Kindness'</a>, Neda Ulaby, NPR, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="anne-lacaton-and-jean-philippe-vassal_photo-courtesy-of-laurent-chalet_custom-b819d7a0f1b020833a4e07b08592b90fc1317b9d-s500-c85.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/927663/large/anne-lacaton-and-jean-philippe-vassal_photo-courtesy-of-laurent-chalet_custom-b819d7a0f1b020833a4e07b08592b90fc1317b9d-s500-c85.jpg?1615958172" title="anne-lacaton-and-jean-philippe-vassal_photo-courtesy-of-laurent-chalet_custom-b819d7a0f1b020833a4e07b08592b90fc1317b9d-s500-c85.jpg"> <figcaption>The Pritzker jury citation says that Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal "have shown that architecture can have a great impact on our communities and contribute to the awareness that we are not alone."<br> Laurent Chalet</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The two apply a credo: "Never demolish, never remove or replace, always add, transform, and reuse!" to their work on old urban buildings. That includes dilapidated public housing (or "social housing" as it is known in France). Designs by Lacaton and Vassal have focused on replenishing low-income housing complexes, aesthetically and functionally, while respecting — rather than displacing — the tenants who live there.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Buildings are beautiful when people feel well in them," Lacaton explained<span> </span><a href="https://archleague.org/article/lacaton-vassal-lecture/">in a 2017 lecture at the Architectural League of New York</a>. "When the light inside is beautiful and the air is pleasant. When the exchange with the outside seems easy and gentle, and when uses and sensations are unexpected. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Their approach means never tearing down buildings to implement their own grand visions. When Lacaton and Vassal were asked to redesign a particularly large and hideous<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.lacatonvassal.com/index.php?idp=80">public housing bloc in Bordeaux in 2017,<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">the residents told them they did not want to move, even temporarily, but they wanted bigger units. The solution, devised with fellow architects Frédéric Druot and Christophe Hutin, was to encase the building in large outdoor terraces, adding sliding glass doors to each unit, and remaking the exterior from drab concrete to something gleaming, modern and alive. Suddenly, everyone had roomy outdoor space, some of which was enclosed to be used during the winter as "winter gardens."</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵🎨 Good News in the Arts 🎨🎵</h3> <p>This marvelous concert series in Highland Park, IL (just north of Chicago) is truly a treasure. I’m so glad to see signs of life in the performance arts again!</p> <p><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/3/16/22334230/ravinia-reopening-concerts-return-summer-2021-music-pandemic-highland-park-cso" target="_blank">Ravinia announces return of concerts this summer</a>, Miriam Di Nunzio, Chicago Sun Times, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="12th-Night-dog-victrola-shakespeare-music-pinterest.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/896400/large/12th-Night-dog-victrola-shakespeare-music-pinterest.jpg?1608489533" title="12th-Night-dog-victrola-shakespeare-music-pinterest.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Festival organizers noted that all concerts will take place in the pavilion with reduced seating capacity to adhere to state and local health official guidelines amid the pandemic. All seating will incorporate reserve-in-advance ticketing and social distancing in the pavilion, lawn and dining facilities. In addition the number of artists on stage will be reduced, to allow for social distancing between performers, Tuesday’s announcement stated.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Conductor Marin Alsop will lead seven concerts by the CSO in her first season as Ravinia’s chief conductor and curator. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Ravinia<span> </span></span><a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2020/5/1/21243419/ravinia-cancels-2020-season-coronavirus-pandemic-highland-park-music-covid-19">canceled its entire 2020 season</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>due to COVID-19 pandemic and closed the park for the first time in its history since the Great Depression. It remains the oldest outdoor musical festival in the country.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>Just Plain Good News</h3> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/biden-administration-promotes-eugene-vindman-after-trump-minions-try-to-end-his-career" target="_blank">Biden Promotes Eugene Vindman After Trump Sh*tbirds Tried To Bury Him</a>, Liz Dye, Wonkette, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/03/15/yevgeny-vindman-promotion-post-trump-476038" target="_blank">Politico</a>, which broke the story of Vindman's promotion, reports that the Army "conducted an investigation and found the evaluations to not be objective ... leading to the evaluations being deleted and never making it into the official records for the promotions board to consider" according to two sources. (Lordy, it's like Purim and Passover rolled into one.)</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Vindman_Brothers_Escort-Trump.PNG" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/870203/large/Vindman_Brothers_Escort-Trump.PNG?1602879720" title="Vindman_Brothers_Escort-Trump.PNG"> <figcaption>(Sorry about the out of date caption. This was the only photo of both Vindman brothers in DK library) Alex (L) and Yevgeny (Eugene) Vindman.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">So Vindman's name was on a list of promotions headed to the Senate for approval. Unfortunately, the honor comes too late for his brother, who retired from the military last summer after Sen. Tammy Duckworth<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/07/06/887925771/sen-duckworth-to-hold-up-military-promotions-unless-vindman-is-treated-fairly" target="_blank">threatened</a><span> </span>to hold up all promotions above lieutenant colonel if Secretary of Defense Mark Esper wouldn't assure her in writing that the White House hadn't intervened to keep Alex Vindman, a Purple Heart recipient with shrapnel in his body from an IED attack in Iraq, off the list — an assurance she never got.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"I am deeply grateful for the trust and confidence the U.S. Army and Judge Advocate Generals Corps have placed in me with selection to promotion to Colonel," Vindman said in a<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MarkSZaidEsq/status/1371885743333867525?s=20" target="_blank">statement<span> </span></a>released through his lawyer Mark Zaid. "They stood their ground despite intense pressure during the last Administration. I look forward to continuing my service to the U.S. Army and the Nation in positions of increasing responsibility."</p> <p style="text-align:start">Because here right matters. Eventually.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🍀 Music for Hopes and Dreams 🍀</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=HwoRy_0uTWc" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/HwoRy_0uTWc">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>😜 Good Schadengiddy* News 😜</h3> <p>(This word, coined by NotNowNotEver, our every other Tuesday writer, shall henceforth be my Go-To word for stories about the former guy and his shady associates).</p> <h4>Trouble in trumpworld</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Atlanta-area district attorney investigating Donald Trump is beefing up her office with a new evidence expert. Michael Carlson, known as an expert in the rules of evidence, is slated to join the Fulton County District Attorney&amp;#39;s Office in the coming weeks. &lt;a href="https://t.co/uwpd8MMrmt"&gt;https://t.co/uwpd8MMrmt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ShimonPro/status/1371963234484432899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 16, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Atlanta-area district attorney investigating Donald Trump is beefing up her office with a new evidence expert. Michael Carlson, known as an expert in the rules of evidence, is slated to join the Fulton County District Attorney's Office in the coming weeks. <a href="https://t.co/uwpd8MMrmt">https://t.co/uwpd8MMrmt</a></p>— Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShimonPro/status/1371963234484432899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-dominion/" title="">Trump insiders turn on each other over ‘Dominion dossier’ as defamation lawsuits loom</a>, Brad Reed, Raw Story, March 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="rats-fleeing-a-sinking-ship.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/518043/large/rats-fleeing-a-sinking-ship.jpg?1520946772" title="rats-fleeing-a-sinking-ship.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Someone on<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-failed/" target="_blank">former President Donald Trump's</a><span><span> </span>legal team created a "dossier" filled with false allegations leveled at Dominion Voting Systems, and now former Trump officials are pointing fingers at one another to avoid culpability as<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/dominion-voting-systems-slaps-rudy-giuliani-with-massive-1-3-billion-defamation-lawsuit/" target="_blank">the company shells out defamation lawsuits against them</a><span>.</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/did-the-trump-white-house-create-a-batshit-report-on-dominion-voting" target="_blank" title="">The Daily Beast reports</a><span> </span>that the dossier was handed out to state legislators last December to give them talking points about how Dominion supposedly stole the election on behalf of President Joe Biden.</p> <p>Although the dossier's author is listed on its cover sheet as Trump campaign legal volunteer Katherine Friess, she's now insisting she had nothing to do with it, and she's pinning the blame on former Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro for distributing the report.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW: House committee asks Biden admin to provide financial records on the Trump Hotel in DC. &lt;br&gt;The hotel is a tenant in a federal bldg, so it gives this data to the federal govt. But the Trump admin had refused to hand that data over.&lt;a href="https://t.co/gjaj3qzHDY"&gt;https://t.co/gjaj3qzHDY&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Fahrenthold (@Fahrenthold) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Fahrenthold/status/1371951881073917953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 16, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW: House committee asks Biden admin to provide financial records on the Trump Hotel in DC. <br>The hotel is a tenant in a federal bldg, so it gives this data to the federal govt. But the Trump admin had refused to hand that data over.<a href="https://t.co/gjaj3qzHDY">https://t.co/gjaj3qzHDY</a></p>— David Fahrenthold (@Fahrenthold) <a href="https://twitter.com/Fahrenthold/status/1371951881073917953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>sweet justice</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/judge-rips-arizona-gop-groundless-121644101.html" target="_blank">Judge rips Arizona GOP for 'groundless' lawsuit challenging Biden's win, orders it to pay legal fees</a>, Maria Polletta, USA Today via Yahoo, March 16, 2021. </p> <blockquote> <p>Calling its lawsuit challenging 2020 election procedures "groundless" and "disingenuous," a judge has ordered the Arizona Republican Party – and its lawyers – to pay the state thousands of dollars in legal fees.</p> <p>In his ruling, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge John Hannah contended the GOP's team acted in "bad faith" when it questioned the process for auditing voting machines and sought to delay certification of election results last November.</p> <p>Instead of living up to the "privileged position in the electoral process" afforded to it by state law, Hannah said, the party sought to undermine Arizonans' confidence in election results.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>First thing I’m doing in today’s Lightning RoundUp is reposting the NPR Best Books concierge page with tools, blurbs, book covers, and everything you need to enjoy a little reading during your newfound relaxation time now that we have a sane new POTUS with a Democratic Congress and you no longer live in existential fear every waking minute. PHEW!!</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://apps.npr.org/best-books/#view=covers&year=2020" target="_blank" title="">NPR’s Best Books of 2020</a> (includes tabs for Best Books of 2013-2019 as well!)</p> <p>⚡️ These great little dogs are everywhere in my neighborhood! <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/french-bulldogs-battle-labradors-for-top-dog-status-in-us/" title="">French bulldogs battle labradors for top dog status in US</a>, Agence France-Presse, March 16, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <span><a href="https://parade.com/1007652/kelseypelzer/irish-blessings/" target="_blank">We Have the 140 Best Irish Blessings and Favorite Irish Sayings for St. Patrick's Day</a>, Kelsey Pelzer, Parade, March 16, 2021.</span></p> <p>⚡️ I don’t write ‘em, I only report ‘em: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/st-patrick-not-irish-dueled-with-druids-refused-to-suck-a-mans-breast?ref=home" target="_blank" title="">St. Patrick: Not Irish, Dueled With Druids, Refused to ‘Suck a Man’s Breast’</a>, Lisa Bitel, Daily Beast, March 16, 2012.</p> <p>⚡️ If you like the GBBO show, you’ll enjoy this! <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-the-bake-off-application-is-really-like" target="_blank" title="">'Great British Baking Show' contestants reveal what it's like applying to and getting chosen for the series</a>, Kirstie Renae, Insider, March 16, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/03/biden-chose-prosperity-over-vengeance/618279/" target="_blank" title="">Biden Chooses Prosperity Over Vengeance</a>, Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, March 15, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/16/opinions/literature-politics-the-south-eubanks/index.html" target="_blank">This is what will finally transform the South</a>, W. Ralph Eubanks, CNN Opinion, March 16, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/mcconnell-s-scorched-earth-senate-filibuster-threat-needs-be-tested-ncna1261231" target="_blank">McConnell's 'scorched-earth' Senate filibuster threat needs to be tested for democracy's sake</a>, Lee Drutman, NBC THINK, March 16, 2021.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it!</p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>Write to voters around the country with <a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a>. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h4>Here’s how to contact Congress:</h4> </div> <p><span>U.S. House of Representatives:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-225-3121<br> * Website: <span> </span><a href="http://www.house.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.house.gov/</a> </span></p> <p><span>U.S. Senate:</span><span>* Telephone:  202-224-3121<br> * Website: <span> </span><a href="http://www.senate.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.senate.gov/</a></span></p> <p><strong>Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:</strong><br> <a href="http://www.house.gov/writerep/">Contact your Representative</a><br> <a href="http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm">Contact your Senator</a></p> <h3>💚 RoundUp WindDown 💚</h3> <p>As always, I encourage you to take good care of yourselves and those you love. Eat some nutritious food, get some rest and if you can, get outdoors each day. Nature and fresh air restores body and spirit.</p> <p>I’m racing to the finish line now, gnusies, so I’ll leave it here now and wish you all a good day.</p> <p>Here’s some beautiful music by Irish composer John Field to ease you into your Wednesday.</p> <h3>🍀 Irish Classical Music 🍀</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=MPFv7FyuSlI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/MPFv7FyuSlI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanRescuePlan Congress Democrats Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Music Recommended St.PatricksDay _2020371 Wed, 17 Mar 2021 11:00:14 +0000 Go Ahead, Wear That Bleeding Heart on Your Sleeve -Wednesday GNR https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/3/10/2019789/-Go-Ahead-Wear-That-Bleeding-Heart-on-Your-Sleeve-Wednesday-GNR <p>Good day, Gnusies! Happy Wednesday! <span> </span>The American Rescue Plan Act will probably be passed today and Democrats are proud that it will be the biggest anti-poverty measure in generations.</p> <blockquote> <p>“<span>“This legislation represents the boldest action taken on behalf of the American people since the Great Depression,” House Democratic Caucus Vice Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said Tuesday.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>We bleeding heart liberals elected a congress that will make life better for millions of people, and about 70% of the country (both libs and cons) are solidly behind that. Doesn’t that just make you wanna slap that big beautiful bleeding liberal heart of yours on your sleeve with pride? 😊💗</p> <p>[As I am writing this on Tuesday night, I am having big problems with saving my material and getting this draft properly formatted. I am not sure if it is my internet or DailyKos. As soon as I am able, I am going to schedule this draft to publish on time, even if it is unfinished. That way, if I lose the ability to post completely, it will be ready to go live anyway. So, if this GNR seems choppy and unfinished, you know what happened! (if it gets finished but this paragraph remains just know I forgot to take it out; my bad! lol I seem to have a touch of the giddy, without the schaden*, at the moment!)]</p> <p>On with the Good News RoundUp!</p> <p>This Randy Rainbow parody song is hot off the presses and I <em>literally</em> LOLed until tears were spurting out of my eyeballs at the beginning part. (😂 ← me, watching Randy Rainbow last night) The other parts are pretty great, too! Let’s start off our Tuesday GNR with a make- your- sides- hurt- LOL- funny song!</p> <h3>🎵 Opening Notes 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=XQTuFudB028" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/XQTuFudB028" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🗽 Good News in Politics 🗽</h3> <p>Just a touch of schadenfreude here — it couldn’t happen to a odder fellow, after all!</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-mcconnell/between-trump-and-a-hard-place-senates-mcconnell-faces-bipartisan-unpopularity-poll-idUSKBN2B12LS" target="_blank">Between Trump and a hard place: Senate's McConnell faces bipartisan unpopularity - poll</a>, Reuters Staff, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks to reporters following the weekly policy lunches on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/917469/large/mitchmcconnell-1500x1000.jpg?1613329101" title="Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks to reporters following the weekly policy lunches on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The 79-year-old Senate Republican leader, long known as the “Grim Reaper” for killing off numerous Democratic initiatives, ranked dead last among fellow Republicans in an Ipsos poll conducted for Reuters.</p> <p style="text-align:start">All told, 57% of Americans expressed an unfavorable view of McConnell, including 29% who had a “very” unfavorable view of the Kentucky Republican. That included 49% of Republicans and 67% of Democrats, who were among 1,005 U.S. adults polled online March 3-4.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Let’s Make ‘em work hard in 2022</h4> <p><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2021-03-09/bad-news-wave-of-gop-retirements-signals-battles-ahead" target="_blank">Wave of Retirements Signals Battles Ahead for Republicans</a>, AP via U.S.News, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>Missouri's Roy Blunt on Monday became the fifth Republican senator to announce he will not seek reelection, a retirement wave that portends an ugly campaign season next year and gives Democrats fresh hope in preserving their razor-thin Senate majority.</p> </div> <div> <p>History suggests Republicans are still well-positioned to reclaim at least one chamber of Congress next year. But officials in both parties agree that the surge of GOP departures will make the Republicans' challenge more difficult in the Senate.✄</p> </div> <div> <div> <p>The 71-year-old Blunt's exit is a reminder of how the nation's politics have shifted since the rise of Donald Trump. Blunt and his retiring GOP colleagues from Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Alabama represent an old guard who fought for conservative policies but sometimes resisted the deeply personal attacks and uneven governance that dominated the Trump era.</p> </div> <div> <p>Their departures will leave a void likely to be filled by a new generation of Republicans more willing to embrace Trumpism — or by Democrats.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Voting Turnout is Important But It Isn’t Everything</h4> <p>Read this story with some caution, because we do have evidence that better turnout is better for Democrats on balance, but it is also important to understand that there were fundamental issues that probably doomed the former guy’s 2020 ambitions, thankfully.</p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/07/politics/voter-turnout-analysis/index.html" target="_blank">How Republicans misunderstand the 2020 turnout story</a>, Harry Enten, CNN, March 7, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Numerous Republican state legislatures are</span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/27/us/republican-voter-suppression.html" target="_blank"><span> </span>trying to pass new voter restriction legislation</a><span><span> </span>(e.g. limiting absentee and early voting). Meanwhile, Democrats in Congress are<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/03/politics/house-democrats-hr1-vote/index.html" target="_blank">trying to pass laws</a><span><span> </span>that expand access to the ballot box. ✄</span></p> <p><span>But we should be clear: high turnout had little to do with why Trump ended up being a one-term president. Trump lost because he was an unusually unpopular president, and he likely would have been defeated if turnout looked like it did in 2016. ✄</span></p> <div>Elections that took place before the coronavirus pandemic ever took hold suggested Trump's Republican Party was in deep trouble. His party lost a lot of ground relative to 2016 in lower turnout special elections during the 2017 and 2018 period. Even in the special elections of 2019, which were weaker for Democrats, the Democrats were still outperforming their 2016 baseline.</div> <ul> </ul> <div> <div>These elections on the whole didn't have anywhere near the level of mail voting (a frequent punching bag for Trump) that the 2020 election did. In fact, new research from Stanford University suggests the expansion of mail voting<span> </span><a href="https://siepr.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/publications/21-011.pdf" target="_blank">had little to do</a><span> </span>with the higher turnout or with results in 2020.</div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Speaking of...</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CraigHickman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@CraigHickman&lt;/a&gt; just won his special election for Maine’s SD-14, a district Trump won! Craig is the first openly gay Black person to be elected to the Maine Senate! &lt;a href="https://t.co/blVIEsmqcf"&gt;pic.twitter.com/blVIEsmqcf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (@DLCC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DLCC/status/1369466365988507649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 10, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: <a href="https://twitter.com/CraigHickman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CraigHickman</a> just won his special election for Maine’s SD-14, a district Trump won! Craig is the first openly gay Black person to be elected to the Maine Senate! <a href="https://t.co/blVIEsmqcf">pic.twitter.com/blVIEsmqcf</a></p>— Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (@DLCC) <a href="https://twitter.com/DLCC/status/1369466365988507649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 10, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>💪 Good News in Workers’ Rights 💪</h3> <p>This headline is deceptive; this ain’t Mitch McConnell’s graveyard Senate anymore. Chances are “slim” only if the current rules re the filibuster remain unchanged. Rumour has it those rules may be revised. Also, five House Republicans joined with the Democratic majority in voting for the bill, so the assumption that there is no room for persuasion may be incorrect.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/us/politics/house-labor-rights-bill.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">House Passes Labor Rights Expansion, but Senate Chances Are Slim</a>, Nicholas Fandos, New York Times, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON — House Democrats on Tuesday approved the most significant expansion of labor rights since the New Deal, advancing legislation that would neutralize right-to-work laws in 27 states and bolster workers’ ability to organize after years of eroding clout.</p> <p>The bill —<span> </span><a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/842" target="_blank">the Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO, Act</a><span> </span>— would amend decades-old labor law to shield workers seeking to form a union from retribution or firing, strengthen the government’s power to punish employers who violate workers’ rights and outlaw mandatory meetings that employers often use to try to quash an organizing drive. ✄</p> <p><span>Democrats, led by President Biden, have embraced the bill as a centerpiece of their pandemic-era agenda. Longtime allies of organized labor, they believe that strengthening unions will provide both a powerful answer to festering economic and racial inequality and a means of wooing back white working-class voters who abandoned the party for former President Donald J. Trump.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>📈  Good News in Economics  📈</h3> <p><a href="https://slate.com/business/2021/03/biden-covid-bill-american-rescue-act-fdr-new-deal.html" target="_blank">Biden’s COVID Bill Is His First Step Toward an FDR-Style Presidency</a>, Jordan Weissmann, Slate, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Well before winning the White House, Biden had begun to murmur about his desire for an<span> </span></span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/joe-biden-presidential-plans.html">FDR-size presidency</a><span>, sensing that, just like the Great Depression, the coronavirus crisis not only demanded a massive government response but created an opportunity to build a different and more fair economy in its wake. In late October, he traveled to Warm Springs, Georgia—the town where Roosevelt famously convalesced from polio—</span><a href="https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/joe-biden-campaign-speech-transcript-warm-springs-ga-october-27">for a speech</a><span><span> </span>in which he adorned himself in the great New Dealer’s legacy and promised to follow his leadership example. As the election drew nearer, now–Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer<span> </span></span><a href="https://the.ink/p/schumer">told</a><span><span> </span>an interviewer that the moment demanded a “Rooseveltian” response. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Schumer explained the thinking behind that massive number<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=780778139314073&ref=watch_permalink">during a Senate floor speech</a><span><span> </span>in late January. “The dangers of undershooting our response are far greater than overshooting it,” he said. “We should have learned the lesson, from 2008 and 2009, when Congress was too timid and constrained in its response to the global financial crisis and it took years—years—for the economy to get out of recession. We must not repeat that same mistake today.”</span></p> <p><span>The American Rescue Plan Act, on which the House will vote for the final time on Wednesday, is now all but certainly headed for Biden’s desk after passing the Senate largely intact on Saturday. It is, by almost any measure, a landmark achievement—</span><a href="https://truthandcons.substack.com/p/a-big-fing-deal">a big fuckin’ deal</a><span>, as our president once said—that, at minimum, should put to rest any concern that the party will reprise the same error that marred its response to the housing bust and financial crisis. But more than that, it suggests that despite the Democrats’ razor-thin majorities in Congress, their hopes for an FDR-style administration may not be entirely far-fetched.</span></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="56Y.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/838939/large/56Y.gif?1596293359" title="56Y.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 I 💙 POTUS Musical Break 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=F2Iv8EkqEsk" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/F2Iv8EkqEsk">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>FACT: The Economy Does Better During Democratic Government</h4> <p>We’ve all seen the charts and the articles showing that <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-economy-and-the-stock-market-tends-to-do-better-under-democrats-11611158787" target="_blank">Democratic governance is better for the country by every economic measure </a>(not to mention social, constitutional and every other measure, too), and here is a new report predicting that Joe Biden and the Democratic majority in the 117th Congress are preparing to meet (and possibly exceed) previous Democratic accomplishments:</p> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahhansen/2021/03/09/us-economy-will-recover-twice-as-fast-thanks-to-19-trillion-stimulus-and-quick-vaccine-rollout/?sh=4ba155624e98" target="_blank">U.S. Economy Will Recover Twice As Fast Thanks To $1.9 Trillion Stimulus And Quick Vaccine Rollout</a>, Sarah Hansen, Forbes, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Just one year after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, the rapid pace of vaccinations and massive scale of fiscal stimulus spending will push the American economy to recover twice as fast as expected, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.oecd.org/economic-outlook/" target="_blank">said Tuesday</a><span>.</span> ✄</p> <div> <p>The Paris-based policy organization expects U.S. GDP to grow 6.5% in 2021—more than double its December forecast of 3.2%.</p> </div> <div> <p>That growth in the United States is expected to spill over to other countries, especially key U.S. trading partners like China, Mexico, and Canada, but not every country will rebound that quickly.</p> </div> <div> <p>The organization noted that the recovery depends on the combination of effective vaccination programs and government spending.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>American Rescue Plan Act Expected to Pass Today </h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/03/09/biden-stimulus-house-passage/" target="_blank">Biden $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill nears finish line in Congress</a>, Erica Werner, Washington Post, March 9, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><span>The House is poised to approve a sweeping $1.9 trillion<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span><span> </span>relief bill Wednesday and send it to President Biden to sign, a major early legislative victory for the new president and the Democrats who control Congress. ✄</span></p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Democrats touted the breadth of the legislation, which they have begun to frame not just as a bill to attack the coronavirus pandemic and economic downturn but as a generational anti-poverty measure. ✄</p> <p><span>Not a single Republican in the House or Senate has voted in favor of the legislation, a notable outcome for Biden’s first legislative venture given his campaign themes of unity and bipartisanship. But congressional Democrats argue it is bipartisan anyway, pointing to support from GOP mayors and other elected officials outside of Washington.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>I simply must quote one more small section from that WaPo article, because bless you Nancy Pelosi! You have shepherded the country through yet another life-changing bill <em>and</em> you’ve given me the perfect set up for the next musical selection!</p> <p><em>“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) convened her leadership team for a news conference Tuesday afternoon to take a victory lap on the legislation even before its passage.</em></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><em>“I’m so excited I just can’t hide it,” Pelosi said.”</em></p> <h3>🎵 Music in honor of Speaker Nancy Pelosi 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Yz6hTuK9yBo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Yz6hTuK9yBo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Good News in Justice ⚖</h3> <p><strong>Merrick Garland is expected to be confirmed as AG today</strong></p> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/merrick-garland-attorney-general-confirmation/2021/03/08/c4cb96e6-7df5-11eb-a976-c028a4215c78_story.html" target="_blank">Biden’s Justice Dept. already has split from Trump. Merrick Garland will go even further</a>. Matt Zapotosky, Washington Post, March 9, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Judge Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama's choice to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court meets with Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., on Capitol Hill, on Thursday, April 28, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/265807/large/5_1_2016_congress-supreme-court-28201.jpg?1466535176" title="Judge Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama's choice to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court meets with Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., on Capitol Hill, on Thursday, April 28, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>For nearly two months, the Justice Department has quietly rolled back several Trump-era policies and shifted positions in civil cases, moves that officials see as relatively noncontroversial returns to previous ways of doing business.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Now, with federal appeals court judge Merrick Garland set to take over as attorney general, the thornier work begins. ✄<span>                                                                                      </span></p> </div> <p><span>Garland said at his confirmation hearing that<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/merrick-garland-confirmation-hearing/2021/02/21/b4725878-7474-11eb-9537-496158cc5fd9_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9">his first briefing would focus on the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol</a><span><span> </span>and the criminal cases that have emanated from it. Prosecutors have charged more than 300 people in connection with the mayhem, authorities have said, and have been working their way up from those who entered to building to those who might have planned or orchestrated the violence that day. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Garland also will have to take on supervision of two politically sensitive cases:<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/john-durham-has-a-stellar-reputation-for-investigating-corruption-some-fear-his-work-for-barr-could-tarnish-it/2019/12/15/c68aa568-1d10-11ea-8d58-5ac3600967a1_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_20">special counsel John Durham’s investigation</a><span><span> </span>into the FBI’s 2016 probe of Trump’s presidential campaign, and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/hunter-biden-under-federal-investigation/2020/12/09/3b7361be-3a64-11eb-9276-ae0ca72729be_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_20">Delaware U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss’s investigation into Hunter Biden, the president’s son, for possible tax crimes</a><span>. At his confirmation hearing, Garland notably declined to offer a firm guarantee that he would allow either matter to reach its conclusion because he had not yet been briefed on the cases, although he said he saw no reason to believe he would shut them down.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>The Former Guy’s Troubles Deepen in Georgia</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/donalld-trump-racketeering-georgia-investigation/">Maddow details how expert racketeering prosecutors could nail Trump in Georgia election criminal investigation</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The immediate former president of the United States is facing several investigations and possible criminal charges. But in Georgia, prosecutors revealed Tuesday that the expert prosecutors involved in the criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump's conversations with officials he tried to get to change the election results in the state.</p> <p>Over the weekend, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis revealed that she would be looking at whether the RICO laws would apply to Trump in this case. She then brought in Atlanta lawyer John Floyd, who not only wrote a book on RICO cases, but has prosecuted the top ones in Georgia for the past two decades.</p> <p>"Floyd's appointment signals that racketeering could feature prominently in the investigation,"<span> </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-georgia-racketeering-exc/exclusive-georgia-prosecutor-probing-trump-taps-leading-racketeering-attorney-idUSKBN2AY0L0" target="_blank">said Reuters</a>. "It's an area of law where Willis has extensive experience - including a high-profile Atlanta case where she won racketeering convictions of 11 public educators for a scheme to cheat on standardized tests."</p> </blockquote> <h4>Trouble in Illinois, too 😮</h4> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/03/manhattan-prosecutor-expands-trump-investigation-to-include-mysterious-chicago-loan/" target="_blank">Manhattan Prosecutor Expands Trump Investigation to Include Mysterious Chicago Loan</a>, Russ Choma, MotherJones, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trump Tower in Chicago getting hit by three lighting strikes simultaneously in the early morning of Oct. 22, 2020." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/872761/large/Ek6oxuSX0AAmRem.jpg?1603426763" title="Trump Tower in Chicago getting hit by three lighting strikes simultaneously in the early morning of Oct. 22, 2020."> <figcaption>Stormy weather approaching for the former guy!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">On Monday night, CNN<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/08/politics/trump-chicago-subpoena/index.html">reported</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>that the investigation is also looking at the circumstances surrounding a loan that Trump took out in 2006 to help finance the construction of his hotel and condominium tower in downtown Chicago. Trump borrowed more than $600 million from German financial giant Deutsche Bank, and then took a second, smaller loan of $130 million from private equity firm Fortress Capital. When the 2008 financial crisis hit, and it became clear that Trump would be unable to make all of his payments to Deutsche Bank, Trump and the German bank fell into a bitter legal battle. The fight eventually was resolved several years later when Trump paid off part of the loan and then refinanced the rest with a separate division of the German bank that caters specifically to wealthy clients. But the Fortress loan simply seemed to disappear from public records with few clues as to how it was settled.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">In turns out that in 2012, Trump resolved his outstanding debt with Fortress by paying them less than half of what they were owed—the amount had ballooned to as much as $150 million. It’s not uncommon for a lender like Fortress to agree to take much less than what they are owed if they believe they have little chance of recovering the full amount, or if going through the legal fight wouldn’t be worth the time, trouble, or expense. Trump never directly addressed the loan in public comments, but in several instances he implied that he hadn’t paid off the loan at a discount. Instead, he suggested that he had bought the loan from Fortress at a discount. While a seemingly small difference, it would have enormous tax implications for Trump. From</span><em><span> </span>Mother Jones</em><span style="text-align:start">‘ 2019<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/09/donald-trump-has-never-explained-a-mysterious-50-million-chicago-unit-acquisition-loan-is-it-evidence-of-tax-fraud/">article</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>on the loan:</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Sad Music for the Former Guy 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=-rYjfciwWGk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-rYjfciwWGk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>SCOTUS </h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/9/22321784/supreme-court-immigration-trump-biden-homeland-security-new-york-dismiss" target="_blank">A Supreme Court showdown over Trump’s immigration policies ends with a whimper</a>, Ian Milhiser, Vox, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 28: The U.S. Supreme Court stands on September 28, 2020 in Washington, DC. This week Seventh U.S. Circuit Court Judge Amy Coney Barrett, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court, will begin meeting with Senators as she seeks to be confirmed before the presidential election. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/913875/large/GettyImages-1228772901.jpg?1612460408" title="WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 28: The U.S. Supreme Court stands on September 28, 2020 in Washington, DC. This week Seventh U.S. Circuit Court Judge Amy Coney Barrett, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court, will begin meeting with Senators as she seeks to be confirmed before the presidential election. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">On Tuesday, all of the parties to<span> </span><em>Department of Homeland Security v. New York,<span> </span></em>a lawsuit challenging a Trump-era policy targeting low-income immigrants,<span> </span><a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/20/20-449/171281/20210309101553454_20-0449%20-%20DHS%20v%20New%20York%20Dismissal%20Stipulation.pdf">asked the Supreme Court to dismiss that case</a>. The Court<span> </span><a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?filename=/docket/docketfiles/html/public/20-449.html">swiftly granted that request</a>, removing from consideration one of the most contentious cases that the justices planned to hear this year.</p> <p style="text-align:start">This is the<span> </span><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/2/3/22264190/supreme-court-immigration-border-wall-remain-in-mexico-trump-biden-sierra-club-innovation-law-lab">third time in just over a month</a><span> </span>that a major immigration case went up in smoke. In early February, the Court granted requests to remove two cases —<span> </span><a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/pekoske-v-innovation-law-lab/"><em>Mayorkas v. Innovation Law Lab</em></a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/biden-v-sierra-club-3/"><em>Biden v. Sierra Club</em></a><em><span> </span>—<span> </span></em>from its argument calendar. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The Court’s decision to dismiss the<span> </span></span><em>New York<span> </span></em><span style="text-align:start">case is not particularly surprising — it would be extraordinary for any court to hear a case that all parties agree should be dismissed — but it is likely to be an important victory for immigrants. Although several lower courts ruled against the public charge rule, the Supreme Court<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/1/27/21080072/public-charge-rule-benefits-immigrant-supreme-court">temporarily reinstated that rule in early 2020</a><span style="text-align:start">, voting 5-4 along party lines. And that was before the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s replacement with Justice Amy Coney Barrett moved the Court further to the right.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>ETTD</h4> <p>There have been hundreds of arrests and charges related to the Capitol attack, and this is one of the notables directly linking the insurrection to the trump White House. I want to direct everyone’s attention to the fact that the FBI and other law enforcement/intelligence organizations have taken the domestic terrorism threat very seriously. Just like us, thousands of people in positions to do something concrete (such as lay charges, arrest and prosecute criminals) are as determined as we are to stop that madness and protect our democracy.</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-capitol-klein/trump-aide-who-stormed-the-capitol-broke-an-oath-to-protect-america-judge-says-idUSKBN2B12P4" target="_blank">Trump aide who stormed the Capitol broke an 'oath to protect America,' judge says</a>, Jan Wolfe, Reuters, March 9, 2021</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A man appointed to the U.S. State Department during the Trump administration will remain in jail while he awaits trial on charges that he took part in the deadly storming of the U.S. Capitol and assaulted police officers, a judge said on Tuesday.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui in Washington said during a court hearing that he was denying a request by Federico “Freddie” Klein, 42, for pretrial release.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The judge said Klein’s status as a government employee at the time of the Jan. 6 attack was troubling and suggested he would pose a danger to the public if released.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Faruqui said Klein “swore an oath to protect America” but instead “switched sides” and joined forces with domestic enemies during the attack on the Capitol, which left five people dead.</p> </blockquote> <h3>💉 Good News in Health  💉</h3> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/03/09/coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/" target="_blank">Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine neutralizes Brazil variant in lab study</a>, </span>Erin Cunningham, Derek Hawkins and Reis Thebault, Washington Post, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine appears to be highly effective against a more-contagious variant first discovered in Brazil, according to a<span> </span><a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2102017" target="_blank">new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine</a>, raising hopes that ongoing vaccination efforts will help curb its spread.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"></div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The study was conducted by scientists with the vaccine manufacturers — U.S. firm Pfizer and German partner BioNTech — and researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. Researchers used the vaccines on viruses engineered to carry the mutations found in the Brazil strain, known as P.1, not the actual variant.</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>A marathon is 26.2 miles, right? This means we’re close to the finish line, right?  😥 😷😅</strong></p> </div> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/09/975263049/in-the-24th-mile-of-a-marathon-fauci-and-collins-reflect-on-their-pandemic-year" target="_blank">In The '24th Mile' Of A Marathon, Fauci And Collins Reflect On Their Pandemic Year</a>, Mary Louise Kelly, NPR News, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>People are desperate for some glimmer of normal life.</strong></p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>Fauci:</strong><span> </span>I am sympathetic with that feeling. And we're in constant discussion with the CDC. They have a large group of experienced epidemiologists who are trying to make these decisions based on a combination of real data, which they collect in real time every day with modeling studies, as well as a good dose of what we refer to as real-time common sense. These guidelines that came out are not the final guidelines at all, and in pretty quick succession, I believe you're going to be seeing updating of these guidelines.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>Collins:</strong><span> </span>This is, after all, one of those circumstances, though, so you don't want to make mistakes, just as we're beginning to see a way forward here. We have been on a marathon since this all started a year ago. And you know, when you're running a marathon, you don't want to stop at the 24th mile. You want to be sure you finish well. I think that's kind of the picture we have right now. Everybody is incredibly frustrated and tired of all of this, we just have to stick it out here for a few more weeks and months to make sure that we get to that finish line in a way that saves the maximum number of lives.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><em><strong>So patience, I hate to say it, is still needed</strong></em>, But I think give us the summer, the early fall, this is going to be a very different country, in a very good way. And we will all be able to sort of look at that and say, "We got through it together." And boy, am I ready for that.</p> </blockquote> <p>One of my local papers, apparently feeling even more impatient, says we are on mile 25! I think this story is behind the paywall, but if you can see it, there’s a decent summary of what we’ve learned over the past year.</p> <p><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-prem-coronavirus-pandemic-one-year-things-we-learned-20210309-kj7dhgujxvdebohv76uqd56vam-story.html" target="_blank">The power of mRNA, the threat of mutations and the difficulty of the last mile — things we’ve learned about COVID-19 at the year mark</a>, Hal Dardick, CHicago Tribune, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <p>When COVID-19 was<span> </span><a href="https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/11/who-declares-the-coronavirus-outbreak-a-pandemic/" target="_blank">declared a pandemic</a><span> </span>on March 11, 2020, even some of the most informed people knew little about coronaviruses — and far less about SARS-CoV-2, the new coronavirus that was upending the world as we knew it.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>But a prolonged global threat to commerce, lifestyles and millions of human lives has a way of focusing minds. Just six months into the pandemic,<span> </span><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-coronavirus-things-we-have-learned-about-covid-20200910-7omc6p4a2bf6pee2ymkyok6hvi-story.html" target="_blank">there was much we all learned</a>, as scientists across the world turned their focus to<strong><span> </span></strong>the disease and shared their discoveries. People started tossing around terms such as airborne particles, social distancing and superspreaders.</p> <div> <div> <p>That was just the beginning. Since then, we’ve learned a great deal more. Some of that new knowledge inspires hope, even as other emerging facts continued to fuel apprehension amid growing pandemic fatigue.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>Many public health experts believe the light at the end of the tunnel is real, if the world remains vigilant about taking precautions, tracking cases and getting vaccines into arms. But even those optimists concede they are worried about the virus’s evolution and the possibility it will “learn” to evade the immune responses already triggered by infection or inoculation.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music to Be Patient By 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=QP-vO6jwnxI" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QP-vO6jwnxI">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Good News In Media </h3> <p>Media slowly starting to cover the former guy as he deserves to be covered:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/09/975341543/no-more-money-for-rinos-how-trumps-fight-with-the-gop-is-all-about-control" target="_blank">'No More Money For RINOs': How Trump's Fight With The GOP Is All About Control</a>, Domenico Montanaro, NPR News, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="let-them-fight.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/480719/large/let-them-fight.jpg?1512520252" title="let-them-fight.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The tension between the RNC and outside political groups is not a new one, but Trump's singular popularity with rank-and-file voters presents a unique danger to the party's ability to raise money, if Trump isn't on board. Both major parties have come to increasingly rely on small donors, because of the ease of donating online, and this episode shows the grip Trump retains on them and that he's willing to use that leverage when it suits him.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"It shouldn't be surprising to anyone," said Doug Heye, who was communications director at the RNC at the beginning of the Obama presidency and is no fan of Trump. "We've known that Trump's loyalty is to himself — not only first and foremost, but only. We've seen that play out any time anyone has said anything critical."</p> <p style="text-align:start">Heye added, "Ronna McDaniel basically dropped her maiden name for the guy. She's been fiercely loyal to Trump, always defended him, never been critical, and this is the thanks you get. It says to me — Trump doesn't give points, he only takes them away one at a time."</p> </blockquote> <h4>Piers Morgan Ousted from ITV</h4> <p>“Quits”  😉 😂 (sorry, having another schadengiddy* moment)</p> <p><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/what-to-watch/ct-ent-piers-morgan-quit-good-morning-britain-20210309-4f2oyhkx2zcctmhub37kiti3pe-story.html" target="_blank">Piers Morgan quits ‘Good Morning Britain’ following Meghan Markle comments</a>, Manori Ravindran, Chicago Tribune, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">The U.K. broadcaster confirmed in a statement on Tuesday evening local time that “following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain. ITV has accepted this decision and has nothing further to add.” ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">His shock departure from the popular morning program comes less than an hour after an </span><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/what-to-watch/ct-ent-piers-morgan-meghan-markle-investigation-20210309-t66oxdiiqzgvdfaci7pqngyhva-story.html#nt=pf-double%20chain~spot-2-entertain~recommender~automated~latest-in-entertainment~T66OXDIIQZGVDFACI7PQNGYHVA~3~6~4~4~art%20no">investigation was launched by British media regulator Ofcom</a><span style="text-align:start"> into his comments on Monday’s edition of the show. Morgan said he didn’t believe Meghan Markle’s revelations about her mental ill health, which she made during her and Prince Harry’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, which was broadcast in the U.S. on Sunday evening. ✄</span></p> <div> <div> <p>Ofcom launched an investigation on Tuesday after more than 41,000 people wrote in to complain about Morgan’s behavior.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>Earlier in the day, on Tuesday’s edition of the program, Morgan stormed off set while “Good Morning Britain” was being broadcast live, following an altercation with weatherman Alex Beresford, who called Morgan’s behaviour “diabolical.” The host then left, uttering, “Sorry. You can trash me, mate, but not on my own show. See you later.”</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>*  🎩 to NotNowNotEver for coining the word  “schadengiddy”. Thanks, NNNE!</p> <h3>Good News For the Environment</h3> <p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoinegara/2021/03/09/billionaire-chris-hohn-explains-why-increased-disclosure-will-force-companies-to-cut-their-carbon-emissions/?sh=3a08ad6152e5" target="_blank">Billionaire Chris Hohn Explains Why Increased Disclosure Will Force Companies To Cut Their Carbon Emissions</a>, Antoine Gara, Forbes, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Billionaire Christopher Hohn" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/925452/large/960x0.jpg?1615338645" title="Billionaire Christopher Hohn"> <figcaption>Billionaire activist Christopher Hohn</figcaption> </figure> <p><em>Companies are responsible for at least 35% of global emissions, but only a small fraction disclose their emissions or have a climate transition action plan specifying short-term targets and actions. The Say on Climate AGM resolution requires (1) annual disclosure of emissions and of a plan to manage those emissions and (2) an annual advisory vote on the plan and performance relative to plan. It works because it is a reasonable request by shareholders which can garner widespread support, whilst requiring companies to commit to concrete actions that will deliver the transition to net-zero. The information disclosed provides clear, transparent evidence to enable engagement with the board and justify voting by investors for those companies that fail to take effective action to reduce their emissions. ✄</em></p> <p><em>All plans need to contain short, medium and long-term targets which are aligned with the Paris Agreement. We also need a robust independent grading of those plans, and of performance relative to plans. Alongside this, we need independent auditing of company performance in reducing emissions. Say on Climate recommends reporting of emissions which is consistent with Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) – it does not compete with TCFD. Absolute emissions and emissions intensity should be used as a clear and simple metric to grade performance. Whilst investors may not find it obvious how to evaluate all plans ex ante, it will be straightforward to evaluate them ex post based on performance. Critically, CEO compensation must to be tied to plan performance. ✄</em></p> <p><em>It is critical that all investors now work together to combine the power of annual disclosure of actual emissions and a plan to manage those emissions with an AGM vote. In the words of Mark Carney, the co-founder of TCFD and former governor of the Bank of England and Bank of Canada, a Say on Climate “would establish a critical link between responsibility, accountability and sustainability”. A shareholder Say on Climate must now become a market, regulatory and social norm.</em></p> </blockquote> <h4>Bezos gives more details on his Billion $ earth Fund</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22321861/jeff-bezos-climate-earth-fund-andrew-steel-amazon" target="_blank">Jeff Bezos will spend $1 billion a year to fight climate change</a>, Theodore Schleifer, Vox, March 9, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CMNDOAeHAK6/?utm_source=ig_embed">Bezos said on Tuesda</a>y that Andrew Steer, who for eight years has been the head of the World Resources Institute (WRI), will be the inaugural CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund. In November, Bezos and his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez, awarded $100 million to the World Resources Institute<span> </span><a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/11/16/21569469/jeff-bezos-earth-fund-climate-change-philanthropy-grants">as part of the initial wave of grants</a>; by March, Bezos had plucked WRI’s CEO to lead his own organization.</p> <p>“The Earth Fund will invest in scientists, NGOs, activists, and the private sector to help drive new technologies, investments, policy change and behavior,”<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSteerWRI/status/1369317237807546372">Steer wrote</a><span> </span>on Twitter. “We will emphasize social justice, as climate change disproportionately hurts poor and marginalized communities.”</p> <p><span>$1 billion a year would drastically increase US philanthropists’ commitment: In 2019, the last year on record,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2020/10/14/climate-change-philanthropy/">foundations gave $1.6 billion altogether</a><span>. Given the stakes of the climate crisis, Bezos may feel he needs to move quickly — Steer called the next 10 years a<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSteerWRI/status/1369317967209631745?s=20">“decisive decade.”</a></p> </blockquote> <h4>Dogs Helping the environment</h4> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2021/03/how-this-regal-canine-could-help-save-the-mongolian-steppe/" target="_blank">How This Regal Canine Could Help Save the Mongolian Steppe</a>, Shoshi Parks, MotherJones, March 8, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Bankhar dog on Mongolian steppe" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/925475/large/images.jpg?1615348767" title="Bankhar dog on Mongolian steppe"> <figcaption>Bankhar dog </figcaption> </figure> <p><strong><strong>On the<span> </span><a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/things-to-do/mongolia">Mongolian</a><span> </span>steppe,<span> </span></strong></strong>there are predators, there are prey, and there are the bankhar. These large, powerful dogs weigh up to 125 pounds, with shaggy, thick coats that give them a bear-like appearance. For 15,000 years, bankhar dogs have been the guardians of the steppe. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Now, an ambitious project aims to return bankhar dogs to their traditional role as livestock guardians. It’s an endeavor that may also give the Mongolian steppe, and its rich cultural traditions, a chance to thrive again. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Since the 1990s, herders without bankhar dogs have resorted to less effective tactics, such as scarecrows, lights, and guns, to keep their livestock safe. It’s a losing battle: Even with these defenses, wolves and other skilled predators can kill more than half a dozen animals a night, taking a chunk of a family’s annual income with them.</p> <p style="text-align:start">With a bankhar, everything is different. Humans, livestock, and the environment benefit. When herds become less attractive prey, there is a reduction in conflict between humans and wild animals. Less likely to be shot, predator populations stabilize, which in turn balances the steppe’s ecosystem—and may even protect species such as the critically endangered saiga antelope. Meanwhile, with livestock protected and losses minimized, a herder derives the same revenue from a smaller herd. And with fewer livestock on the landscape, the steppe recovers faster from grazing and trampling.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music For Our Wonderful World 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ddLd0QRf7Vg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ddLd0QRf7Vg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Pretty good roundup of the bill: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/03/09/974841565/heres-whats-in-the-american-rescue-plan-as-it-heads-toward-final-passage" target="_blank">Here's What's In The American Rescue Plan As It Heads Toward Final Passage</a>, Barbara Sprunt, NPR News, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/who-else-is-covid-relief-bill-helping-black-farmers-finally" target="_blank">Who Else Is COVID Relief Bill Helping? Black Farmers, Finally!</a> Doktor Zoom, Wonkette, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Essential work: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/helms-amendment-repeal-abortion-rights_n_6047d31dc5b65bed87d6bf65" target="_blank">Congresswomen Renew Push To Repeal ‘Racist’ Anti-Abortion Helms Amendment</a>, Alanna Vagianos, HuffPost, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Future OH senator hopefully: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rep-tim-ryan-erupts-at-republicans-tells-them-to-stop-talking-about-dr-seuss-and-start-working-with-us?ref=home" target="_blank">Rep. Tim Ryan Erupts at Republicans: ‘Stop Talking About Dr. Seuss and Start Working With Us!’</a>, Justin Baragona, Daily Beast, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Yeah, what <em>does</em> happen next?  <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/life-after-covid-19-vaccination" target="_blank">Life After Vaccination</a>, Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.axios.com/tennessee-kkk-leader-monument-state-capitol-6cf6d57f-b5fd-46c8-a1af-8ba54bd50129.html" target="_blank">Tennessee to remove monument of KKK leader from state Capitol</a>, Rebecca Falconer, Axios, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Pretty good analysis: <span><a href="https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/whats-behind-right-wing-medias-curious-lack-interest-19-trillion" target="_blank">What’s behind right-wing media’s curious lack of interest in $1.9 trillion</a>, Matt Gertz, MediaMatters, March 9, 2021.</span></p> <p>⚡️Good, long(ish) read (warning, annoying flashing graphics behind title): <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/04/the-internet-doesnt-have-to-be-awful/618079/" target="_blank">How to Put Out Democracy’s Dumpster Fire</a>, Anne Applebaum and Peter Pomerantsev, the Atlantic, March 8, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Another good long(ish) read: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/15/what-is-happening-to-the-republicans" target="_blank">What Is Happening to the Republicans?</a> Jelani Cobb, the New Yorker, March 15 issue.</p> <p>⚡️ Cartoon: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/seuss-tucker-carlson/" target="_blank">The Cat in the Tinfoil Hat</a>, Tom Tomorrow, the Nation, March 9, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Helpful! <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/business/coronavirus-stimulus-check-calculator/" target="_blank">Calculate how much you would get from the $1,400 (or more) coronavirus checks</a>, Ashlyn Still and Leslie Shapiro, Washington Post, March 6, 2021.</span></p> <h3>💗Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better 💗</h3> <p>Put your beautiful bleeding heart into it! </p> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>So far so good with the diary technical issues. Fingers crossed it all goes off like clockwork at 6AM ET!</p> <p>I’m feeling really happy and hopeful these days as I watch how President Joe is moving quickly and smartly to get progressive priorities addressed. There is so much to be glad about right now, and so much more to work toward. I intend to start now for 2022, so we are ready to defend our majorities in the House and Senate (and hopefully increase them!).</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7649.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/925476/large/IMG_7649.jpg?1615348779" title="IMG_7649.jpg"> <figcaption>Listen to Mama! Take care — You are important!</figcaption> </figure> <p>I hope you’ll allow yourself to feel a little relief and a glimmer of joy at the pace and breadth and depth of the work that Joe and the Democrats are doing. Yes, there’s a ton of work ahead of us, and a load of repairs that need to happen. But it’s amazing how quickly things can snowball in the right direction when a few blue snowflakes get together and start rolling together. Let’s get rolling, Gnusies!</p> <p>As always, I encourage you to reserve some energy every day to take the very best care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest, and try to take some exercise outdoors every day if you can. As Kos <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/1/23/2011159/-Wellness-for-Activists-If-you-do-just-one-thing-for-yourself-let-it-be-this" target="_blank">points out</a>, a daily walk or two can work wonders for our physical and mental health. Curlygirly and I can vouch for the truth of that! 🐩😎</p> <p>My music is all over the place today and no classical music! 😱 But that’s just the way it is today and we know that pr0gressivist will provide something beautiful after WIneRev tells us whose birthday it is today! </p> <p>So, dear Gnusies, I am signing off and wishing you a very happy Wednesday!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Sc2BK09eKhk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Sc2BK09eKhk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Note:  Edited to add a paragraph in ETTD section.</p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanRescuePlan Congress Democrats Economy Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Justice Music Politics Recommended _2019789 Wed, 10 Mar 2021 12:00:05 +0000 Spring is Coming and Biden is Bringing the Sunshine - Wednesday Good News RoundUp https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/3/3/2018976/-Spring-is-Coming-and-Biden-is-Bringing-the-Sunshine-Wednesday-Good-News-RoundUp <p>Good Day, Gnusies! </p> <p>There’s such a lot of good news again this morning, I can’t wait to share it.  As you read, notice just how many people in so many arenas of life are working hard to build a better world! Yes, Republicans will kick and scream and sabotage and fight progress every step of the way, and Joe, Kamala and the entire Democratic leadership is ready for them. Even FDR — to whom Joe is already being compared in some circles — had <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/democrats-are-learning-fast-why-being-in-power-can-suck?ref=author" target="_blank">a struggle</a> to get most of his agenda to rescue America implemented, and he didn’t succeed in everything. Looking back, we sometimes forget what it must have been like at the time. It is never easy to make progress. And yet we are going to make progress. We are strong and growing stronger. The momentum is with progressives and Democrats are not going to waste it!</p> <p>Before I bring you all the good news I could find last night, here is a beautiful video and new song from Pink, recorded with her daughter, Willow. I think it captures a lot of what so many of us are feeling right now — the hope and the optimism as we are finally beginning to see the rays of sunshine breaking through the gloom of despair and anxiety we’ve been enduring for so long. And I bet this darling little girl, sweetly, joyfully singing, full of promise and hope for the future, will warm your heart like she did mine. </p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies! Here comes the sunshine!</p> <h3>🎵 Musical Opener 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=vGZhMIXH62M" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vGZhMIXH62M" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>President Joe Biden Continues to Make Us Proud</h3> <p>As Michael Tomasky said in <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/bidens-revolution-is-doing-what-obama-and-clinton-did-not?ref=author" target="_blank">his column last week</a>, President Joe Biden’s first 30 days has been “staggeringly good”, and he will continue to show us why he is the man for this moment in history. </p> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/03/it-hasnt-happened-in-my-lifetime-a-labor-historian-on-bidens-pro-union-push/" target="_blank">“It Hasn’t Happened in My Lifetime”: A Labor Historian on Biden’s Pro-Union Push</a>, Noah Lanard, Mother Jones, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">There were early signs President Joe Biden would try to make good on his<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/01/biden-promises-to-be-the-most-pro-union-president-and-rep.html">pledge</a><span> </span>to be “the most pro-union president you’ve ever seen.” On the first day of his presidency he<span> </span><a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/biden-moves-to-oust-top-labor-board-attorney-robb">fired</a><span> </span>Peter Robb, the anti-labor general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board appointed by Donald Trump. One day later, Biden<span> </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/employment-nlrb/one-day-after-firing-the-nlrbs-general-counsel-biden-sacks-his-deputy-idUSL1N2JX067">fired</a><span> </span>Robb’s Trump-era deputy.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The pro-union shift has now become far more public. On Sunday, Biden delivered a video message in support of unionization and against the tactics companies use to stop it. The video comes as thousands of Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, are facing intense pressure from management as they<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/02/02/amazon-union-warehouse-workers/">vote</a><span> </span>on whether to unionize. Biden didn’t explicitly tell Bessemer workers to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. But it was hard to see the video posted to his official Twitter account as anything less than an endorsement.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Labor historians quickly weighed in to say it was the most pro-union message they’d ever seen from a sitting president.Labor historians quickly weighed in to say it was the most pro-union message they’d ever seen from a sitting president.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Workers in Alabama – and all across America – are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace. It’s a vitally important choice – one that should be made without intimidation or threats by employers.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Every worker should have a free and fair choice to join a union. &lt;a href="https://t.co/2lzbyyii1g"&gt;pic.twitter.com/2lzbyyii1g&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— President Biden (@POTUS) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1366191901196644354?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 1, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Workers in Alabama – and all across America – are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace. It’s a vitally important choice – one that should be made without intimidation or threats by employers.<br><br>Every worker should have a free and fair choice to join a union. <a href="https://t.co/2lzbyyii1g">pic.twitter.com/2lzbyyii1g</a></p>— President Biden (@POTUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1366191901196644354?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/senate-democrats-sort-final-details-virus-relief-bill-fd7993f15fb6db230547cd385005ddf8" target="_blank">Biden urges Senate Dems to rally behind $1.9T virus bill</a>, Alan Fram, AP News, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden urged Senate Democrats on Tuesday to rally behind a $1.9 trillion COVID-relief bill and stood by his proposed $1,400 payments to individuals, even as some party moderates sought to dial back parts of the package.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“He said we need to pass this bill and pass it soon. That’s what the American people sent us here to do, and we have to get America the help it needs,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters, describing a 20-minute conference call Biden had with Democratic senators.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The president’s cry for unity came as Democrats, with no votes to spare in a 50-50 Senate, sorted through lingering divisions over the emerging bill. Those included moderates’ efforts to focus spending more narrowly on those hardest hit by the deadly pandemic and resulting economic contraction.</p> </blockquote> <h3>Good News From the U.S. Senate</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/senate-democrats-sort-final-details-virus-relief-bill-fd7993f15fb6db230547cd385005ddf8" target="_blank">Senate Dems sorting final details of $1.9T virus relief bill</a>, Alan Fram, AP News, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 22: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an announcement related to small businesses at the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building February 22, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden announced changes to the Paycheck Protection Program aimed at helping small and minority-owned business to qualify for federal loans due to the economic impact that has been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/921133/large/GettyImages-1303527823.jpg?1614274134" title="WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 22: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an announcement related to small businesses at the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building February 22, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden announced changes to the Paycheck Protection Program aimed at helping small and minority-owned business to qualify for federal loans due to the economic impact that has been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats sorted through lingering disagreements over emergency jobless benefits and other issues Tuesday and prepared to commence Senate debate on a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan that would deliver a major victory to President Joe Biden.</p> <p style="text-align:start">With Democrats having no margin for error in the evenly split 50-50 Senate, Biden was expected to urge them on by conference call. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he planned to bring the sweeping bill to the floor as early as Wednesday, teeing up first votes on a bill aimed at energizing the nation’s battle against the pandemic and its wounded economy. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The legislation would provide $1,400 payments to individuals plus hundreds of billions of dollars for schools and colleges, COVID-19 vaccines and testing, mass transit systems, renters and small businesses.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It also has money for child care, tax breaks for families with children and assistance for states willing to expand Medicaid coverage for low-income residents.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/democratic-senators-coronavirus-relief-package-automatic-stabilizers_n_603dc896c5b617a7e410475f" target="_blank">Democrats Push Biden To Avoid Major Mistake Of Last Economic Recovery</a>, Kevin Robillard, HuffPost, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>Ten <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/democratic-party" target="_blank">Democratic</a> senators are pushing President <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/joe-biden" target="_blank">Joe Biden</a> to make direct payments and the extension of boosted unemployment insurance benefits automatic until the economy fully recovers from the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/feature/coronavirus" target="_blank">coronavirus</a> pandemic, aiming to take the fate of the recovery out of the hand of politicians and avoiding a key mistake of the Democratic plan to recover from the financial collapse of 2008.</p> </div> <div> <p>Led by Sen. <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/ron-wyden" target="_blank">Ron Wyden</a> (D-Ore.), the senators are pushing Biden and the rest of the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/democratic-party">Democratic Party</a> to include what are called “automatic stabilizers” in his Build Back Better plan, which is expected to be written this spring and summer and aims to jump-start the economic recovery. The stabilizers would automatically extend enhanced unemployment benefits and issue direct payments to American families until key economic indicators ― say, GDP growth, the unemployment rate or job growth ― reach predetermined levels. ✄</p> <p><span>The 10 senators who signed the letter include the chairs of three major committees: Wyden, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee; Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who leads the Budget Committee; and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), the chair of the Senate Banking Committee. Other signatories include five veteran progressives ― Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin ― alongside newly installed Sen. Alex Padilla of California and the more moderate Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-commerce/u-s-senate-confirms-raimondo-to-head-commerce-department-idUSKCN2AU2GH" target="_blank">U.S. Senate confirms Raimondo to head Commerce Department</a>, David Shepardson, Reuters, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate voted 84-15 on Tuesday to confirm Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo to head the U.S. Commerce Department, the agency that repeatedly sparred with China during the prior administration.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Raimondo, a Democrat tapped by President Joe Biden, will oversee the Commerce Department and its bureaus, which have about 46,000 employees.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The department includes the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, U.S. Census, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service and the Foreign Commercial Service. It also helps negotiate trade agreements and enforces laws on trade and national security.</span></p> </blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Her approach will be far better than former secretary Ross’s: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/president-biden-takes-office/2021/03/02/962856664/bidens-commerce-secretary-gina-raimondo-confirmed-by-senate" target="_blank">Biden's Commerce Secretary, Gina Raimondo, Confirmed By Senate</a>, Hansi Lo Wang, NPR News, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 13: Governor of Rhode Island Gina Raimondo speaks onstage during Fortune&#39;s Most Powerful Women Summit - Day 2 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on October 13, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fortune/Time Inc)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902515/large/GettyImages-492468810.jpg?1610049649" title="WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 13: Governor of Rhode Island Gina Raimondo speaks onstage during Fortune&#39;s Most Powerful Women Summit - Day 2 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on October 13, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fortune/Time Inc)"> <figcaption>Gov. Gina Raimondo, D-RI (our next Commerce Secretary)</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">During the confirmation process, Raimondo emphasized the need for the department to address how the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the economy and underscored structural inequities facing people of color and families with lower incomes.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">"In this time of overlapping crises, the Commerce Department must be a partner to businesses and their workers to help them innovate and grow," Raimondo said during the January confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Among Raimondo's most urgent agenda items in the coming weeks is overseeing the processing and release of the first results of the 2020 census, which are now more than two months overdue because of delays stemming from COVID-19 and<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/09/18/911960963/how-trump-officials-cut-the-2020-census-short-amid-the-pandemic">last-minute schedule changes by the Trump administration</a>.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/01/business/elizabeth-warren-wealth-tax.html" target="_blank">Warren Revives Wealth Tax, Citing Pandemic Inequalities</a>, Jim Tankersley, New York Times, March 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="190624-elizabeth-warren-se-401p_1453ef252997cc9eef2c85bce356f1a7.fit-760w.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/835644/large/190624-elizabeth-warren-se-401p_1453ef252997cc9eef2c85bce356f1a7.fit-760w.jpg?1595562818" title="190624-elizabeth-warren-se-401p_1453ef252997cc9eef2c85bce356f1a7.fit-760w.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Ms. Warren’s wealth tax would apply a 2 percent tax to individual net worth — including the value of stocks, houses, boats and anything else a person owns, after subtracting out any debts — above $50 million. It would add an additional 1 percent surcharge for net worth above $1 billion. It is co-sponsored in the House by two Democratic representatives, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who leads the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, a moderate. ✄</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/29/business/economy/economy-politics-survey.html">Polls have consistently shown</a><span><span> </span>Ms. Warren’s proposal winning the support of more than three in five Americans, including a majority of Republican voters.</span></p> <p><span>“A wealth tax is popular among voters on both sides for good reason: because they understand the system is rigged to benefit the wealthy and large corporations,” Ms. Warren said. “As Congress develops additional plans to help our economy, the wealth tax should be at the top of the list to help pay for these plans because of the huge amounts of revenue it would generate.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>Ms. Warren estimated her initial proposal during the 2020 campaign would raise $2.75 trillion over a decade, which she proposed spending on education and child care, based on estimates from the University of California, Berkeley economists<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/21/us/politics/the-liberal-economists-behind-the-wealth-tax-debate.html">Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman</a><span>.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>For a ton of useful information about this (longer than the usual Raw Story blurb), here is more:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/bank/to-help-fund-recovery-and-redress-inequality-elizabeth-warren-unveils-wealth-tax-on-ultra-millionaires-and-billionaires/">To help fund COVID recovery and redress inequality, Elizabeth Warren unveils wealth tax on 'ultra-millionaires' and billionaires</a></p> <h3>🎵 Music for Millionaires 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=q_4CgHT95-E" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/q_4CgHT95-E">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Dems in the House No Slouches Either!</h3> <p style="text-align:start"><span><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/2021/03/02/sweeping-climate-bill-aims-for-zero-carbon-emissions-by-2050/" target="_blank">Sweeping climate bill aims for zero carbon emissions by 2050</a>, Benjamin J Hulac, RollCall, March 2, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Picture1.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/887516/large/Picture1.jpg?1606334883" title="Picture1.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">High-ranking House Democrats unveiled legislation Tuesday to zero out domestic greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, including deep cuts in the next decade, a deadline that has support from the world’s leading climate scientists.</p> <p>The draft bill would set a U.S. goal to reduce greenhouse emissions by at least 50 percent, from 2005 levels, by 2030. It would also set a national goal to “achieve net-zero” emissions by mid-century and direct heads of federal agencies to come up with plans for how to meet those targets by 2050.</p> <p>“We have to act decisively,” Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, told reporters. “The time for small marginal change is long past. If we don’t take meaningful nationwide action now our children will inherit an economy and a world beyond their capacity to repair.”</p> <p>Reps. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., and Bobby L. Rush, D-Ill., the chairmen of the panel’s subcommittees on the environment and energy respectively, said there would be hearings on the bill. While the committee members said they aim to move the bill through the committee process and gain Republican support, they did not rule out using the budget reconciliation process to advance it.</p> </blockquote> <h2>👀 ‼️</h2> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING -- &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/OversightDems?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@OversightDems&lt;/a&gt; reissue subpoena for Trump&amp;#39;s financial/tax records! &lt;a href="https://t.co/9Hrc4ATIPJ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/9Hrc4ATIPJ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kurt Bardella (@kurtbardella) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kurtbardella/status/1366997904087539714?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 3, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING -- <a href="https://twitter.com/OversightDems?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OversightDems</a> reissue subpoena for Trump's financial/tax records! <a href="https://t.co/9Hrc4ATIPJ">pic.twitter.com/9Hrc4ATIPJ</a></p>— Kurt Bardella (@kurtbardella) <a href="https://twitter.com/kurtbardella/status/1366997904087539714?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>And some bicameral Democratic work</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/puerto-rico-statehood-bill/" target="_blank">Democratic lawmakers introduce new proposal for Puerto Rico statehood</a>, Olivia Wilcon, CBS, MArch 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ricardo-dominguez-b0n-Qg2oF0w-unsplash.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/877718/large/ricardo-dominguez-b0n-Qg2oF0w-unsplash.jpg?1604348834" title="ricardo-dominguez-b0n-Qg2oF0w-unsplash.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday tried to lay the groundwork for Puerto Rico to become a state, introducing a bill that would set up a vote for residents to decide on statehood and the election of its own senators and representatives.</p> <p>The bill, introduced by Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Representative Darren Soto of Florida, has the backing of Puerto Rican Governor Pedro Pierluisi and Delegate Jenniffer González-Colón, the island's resident commissioner. Its supporters argue that the federal government doesn't treat Puerto Rican citizens equally, something statehood would help rectify.</p> <p>Soto says the bill has about 50 co-sponsors. At a news conference Tuesday, he pointed to the hardships the island has endured, including the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria in 2017, and he argued residents deserve the same representation as all Americans.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>Fulton DA’s investigation into Trump heads to grand jury, Christian Boone and Tamar Hallerman, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Fotolia-Scales-of-Justice-1050x600.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/560926/large/Fotolia-Scales-of-Justice-1050x600.jpg?1530529816" title="Fotolia-Scales-of-Justice-1050x600.jpg"> <figcaption>She’s coming for you, Donny.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Fulton County prosecutors are expected to appear before a grand jury this week seeking subpoenas for documents and witnesses related to their<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/fultons-da-opens-criminal-investigation-into-trump-demand-to-overturn-election/YWJPS4B4BREHDLHQCZYDDWBVIA/" target="_blank">investigation of former President Donald Trump</a><span> </span>and some of his top associates for possible election fraud, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has learned.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Legal experts are split as to whether there’s a strong case to be made, but most agree Trump’s efforts to overturn Georgia’s election results merit greater scrutiny. Fani Willis, Fulton’s new district attorney, has said she’s prepared to follow the evidence wherever it leads. ✄</p> <p><span style="text-align:start">She indicated she’s investigating several state crimes, including solicitation of election fraud, making false statements to state and local governmental bodies, conspiracy, racketeering, violation of oath of office and involvement in violence or threats related to the election’s administration.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/fbi-chris-wray-testify-capitol-riot-9a5539af34b15338bb5c4923907eeb67" target="_blank">FBI chief calls Jan. 6 ‘domestic terrorism,’ defends intel</a>, Eric Tucker and Mary Clare Jalonick, AP News. March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="2 Mar 2021 to Senate Judiciary Cmte., Wray didn’t read an FBI Norfolk SIR telling of threat for attack on Congress until “days” after Jan. 6" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/922990/large/2021-03-02WraytellsignoranceofNorfolkSIR.jpg?1614714802" title="2 Mar 2021 to Senate Judiciary Cmte., Wray didn’t read an FBI Norfolk SIR telling of threat for attack on Congress until “days” after Jan. 6"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Chris Wray condemned the January riot at the U.S. Capitol as “domestic terrorism” Tuesday as he defended the bureau’s handling of intelligence indicating the prospect for violence. He told lawmakers the information was properly shared with other law enforcement agencies even though it was raw and unverified.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Wray’s comments before Congress, in a rare public appearance since the deadly Capitol attack two months ago, was the FBI’s most vigorous defense against the suggestion that it had not adequately communicated the distinct possibility of violence as lawmakers certified the results of the presidential election. He also described in stark terms the threat from domestic violent extremists and said that, contrary to some Republicans, there is no evidence that anti-Trump groups were involved in the riot. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">In characterizing the events of Jan. 6 as an act of domestic terrorism, Wray highlighted the FBI’s growing concern about an increase in extremist violence in the U.S., including from militia groups, white supremacists and anarchists. The threat they pose is being treated with the same urgency as that from international terror groups like the Islamic State or al-Qaida.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>More from Christopher Wray: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/prime/wray-hints-feds-are-looking-to-charge-people-who-simply-trespassed-on-capitol-grounds" target="_blank">Wray Hints Feds Are Looking To Charge People Who Simply Trespassed On Capitol Grounds</a> , Matt Shuham, TPM, March 2, 2021.</p> <h4>✔️ Voting Rights ✔️</h4> <p>Liberals are rightly concerned about the SCOTUS case currently being argued which could jeopardize voting rights and yet the case may have some surprises for us:</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/hardcore-gop-position-for-defanging-vra-falls-apart-under-scotus-questioning" target="_blank">Hardcore GOP Position For Defanging VRA Falls Apart Under SCOTUS Questioning</a>, Tierney Sneed, Talking Points Memo, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>But the oral arguments produced another seeming loser. Michael Carvin, the high-profile Republican lawyer who was representing the state GOP in the hearing. Carvin backtracked on the sweeping arguments in the GOP’s briefs, prompting skepticism from the court’s left and right wing alike. ✄</p> <p><span>Coney Barrett’s harsh exchange with Carvin suggested that there were not five votes on the court for the state GOP’s original position that put election regulations out of reach for the results test of the VRA. The potential that the Court would take the state GOP’s suggestion and say that the “results test” did not cover election regulations was the absolute doomsday scenario for federal voting rights enforcement. There were plenty other ways, however, that the conservatives flirted with limiting the scope of that provision. ✄</span></p> <p>How Carvin wavered on his even more hostile take on the VRA was not the only surprising moment from the hearing. He was surprisingly candid when he was asked by Justice Coney Barrett why the GOP should be allowed to be in the case in the first place. (Its opponents have argued that striking down the measures does not inflict the kind of harm to the GOP that would allow it to defend the measures in court.)</p> <p>Carvin justified the GOP presence in the case by saying that blocking the policies put Republicans at a “disadvantage” because it would help more people to vote, and those people would lean Democratic.</p> </blockquote> <p>More here: <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/3/2/22309326/supreme-court-voting-rights-act-brnovich-democratic-national-committee-carvin-brett-kavanuagh" target="_blank">The Voting Rights Act had a surprisingly good day at the Supreme Court</a>, Iam Milhiser, Vox News, March 2, 2021.</p> <h4>Meanwhile in Georgia</h4> <p>Quick story here from Georgia (🎩 hat tip to hpg who posted about this in the Evening Shade last night, thanks!): don’t succumb to gloom and dooming about the GQPer machinations to suppress the vote. Our Democrats are outnumbered, but still going to fight like hell! Never forget that we are NOT helpless in the face of Republican fuckery!</p> <p>Also, in case you still had any lingering doubt about whether Stacey Abrams is the GOAT for voting rights...</p> <p><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/politics-blog/the-jolt-georgia-democrats-play-hardball-to-derail-gop-voting-restrictions/ZW7HWMSWPRALFHPGHDRDSJTOEU/" target="_blank">The Jolt: Georgia Democrats play hardball to derail GOP voting restrictions</a>, Greg Bluestein and Tia Mitchell, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams speaks to supporters at an election night party in the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta, Nov. 6, 2018. Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp was ahead of Abrams, who was seeking to become the first black woman to lead a state, and early Wednesday morning Abrams suggested the race might go to a runoff. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/866066/large/stacey-abrams-exit-interview.jpg?1602109669" title="Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams speaks to supporters at an election night party in the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta, Nov. 6, 2018. Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp was ahead of Abrams, who was seeking to become the first black woman to lead a state, and early Wednesday morning Abrams suggested the race might go to a runoff. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times)"> <figcaption>Hopefully, Georgia’s next Governor, Stacey Abrams.</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Georgia Democrats and their allies are behind an extraordinary campaign at the Capitol and in the public square to derail the new Republican-backed voting restrictions moving through the statehouse.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The pressure is mounting as Georgia House lawmakers prepare to vote Monday on a measure that would require ID for absentee voting, curb the use of ballot drop boxes <span style="text-align:start">and restrict weekend early voting hours.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Ads financed by Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight Action group<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/politics-blog/abrams-group-launches-seven-figure-ad-campaign-targeting-georgia-gop-voting-measures/SDAAN73FZRHCTBYATKUAWFAJLY/">began bombarding</a><span> </span>the airwaves last week with dire warnings that the new restrictions on mail-in ballots will hurt Republicans as much as Democrats.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>If you’re able and so inclined, you can support Fair Fight Action <a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.</strong> </p> <h3>🎵 Music Time! 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=diwuu_r6GJE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/diwuu_r6GJE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>International News</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-russia-sanctions-navalny-poisoning-0e3a655e6a60b2f95be0f241b21ff4fc" target="_blank">US sanctions Russian officials over nerve-agent attack</a>, Ellen Knickmeyer, AP News, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The Biden administration sanctioned seven mid- and senior-level Russian officials on Tuesday, along with more than a dozen businesses and other entities, over<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/c7a5c4e5ff2ce454a0a99400e8016005">a nearly fatal nerve-agent attack</a><span> </span>on<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/alexei-navalny-russia-explained-88c97b51172dbc0cff13f4d9e17b1f2a">opposition leader Alexei Navalny</a><span> </span>and his subsequent jailing.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The measures, emphasizing the use of the Russian nerve agent as a banned chemical weapon, marked the Biden administration’s first sanctions against associates of President Vladimir Putin. The Russian leader was an intimate and favorite of President Donald Trump even amid covert Russian hacking and social media campaigns aimed at destabilizing the U.S. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Tuesday’s step “was not meant to be a silver bullet or an end date to what has been a difficult relationship with Russia,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “We expect the relationship to continue to be a challenge. We’re prepared for that.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>Good Health News</h3> <h4>💉 Covid Vaccine News 💉</h4> <p>Go, Joe, Go! A weary nation thanks you!</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/merck-help-make-johnson-johnson-vaccine-9ca6f1f4c502b095531926a53abe7262" target="_blank">Biden vows enough vaccine for all US adults by end of May</a>, Zeke Miller, Linda A Johnson and Jonathan Lemire, AP News, March 2,, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Tuesday that the U.S. expects to take delivery of enough coronavirus vaccines for all adults by the end of May, two months earlier than anticipated, as his administration announced that drugmaker Merck & Co. will help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved shot.</p> <p style="text-align:start">With the bolstered supply, Biden also announced he would be using the powers of the federal government to direct all states to prioritize vaccinating teachers, and said the federal government would provide the doses directly through its pharmacy program. He challenged states to administer at least one dose of the vaccine to all educators by the end of March as part of his administration’s efforts to reopen more schools across the nation.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“We’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May,” said Biden, who likened the partnership between the two drug companies to the spirit of national cooperation during World War II.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Here are the details on that Merck/J&J cooperative effort:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/03/02/972873395/merck-will-help-manufacture-johnson-johnsons-covid-19-vaccine" target="_blank">Merck Will Help Manufacture Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 Vaccine</a>, Sydney Lupkin, NPR News, March 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Pharmaceutical giant Merck will help manufacture Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced, calling it "an unprecedented historic step," considering that the two companies are normally competitors.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Merck will produce the drug substance at the heart of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine as well as work on filling vaccine vials and getting them ready for distribution.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"The U.S. government will facilitate this partnership in several key ways, including invoking the Defense Production Act to equip two Merck facilities to the standards necessary to safety manufacture the vaccine and asking the Department of Defense to provide daily logistical support to strengthen Johnson & Johnson's efforts," Psaki said during Tuesday afternoon's press briefing.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Exciting development in Alzheimer’s research</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/new-drug-prevents-buildup-of-the-amyloid-plaques-responsible-for-alzheimers/" target="_blank">New Drug Prevents Buildup of Brain Plaques Responsible for Alzheimer’s</a>, Dustin Manduffie, Courthouse News, March 2, 2021</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Researchers unveiled new evidence that a novel Alzheimer’s drug could prove effective in treating patients with early signs of the disease – though less so in its later stages.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A team from the<span> </span><a href="https://medschool.ucsd.edu/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">University of California San Diego School of Medicine</a> and<span> </span><a href="https://www.massgeneral.org/" target="_blank">Massachusetts General Hospital</a> published a study Tuesday in the<span> </span><a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/emb_releases/2021-03/rup-pdf022321.php" target="_blank">Journal of Experimental Medicine</a> demonstrating the drug’s effectiveness in monkeys, rodents and birds, which could pave the way to human trials.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Researchers believe the new drug will be most effective in patients with early signs of Alzheimer’s and in those who are genetically predisposed to getting the disease. They warn that it’s less likely to benefit individuals who are already symptomatic because the drug helps prevent amyloid plaque from forming but doesn’t reverse damage that has already been done.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Great News from Texas!</h4> <p>More evidence of just how much energy and determination and people power we have on the side of equality, humanity and equality:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/abortion-planned-parenthood-texas/" target="_blank">Planned Parenthood Returns to Rural Texas</a>, By Kaysie Ellingson, Sophie Novack and The Texas Observer, The Nation. March 2, 2021.</p> <p>This is a long and deeply reported article, but hopefully I can give you the good news highlights in a few paragraphs:</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Planned Parenthood Texas Votes volunteers" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/806588/large/PlannedParenthoodTexasVotes.png?1589823879" title="Planned Parenthood Texas Votes volunteers"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Access to reproductive health care is limited statewide, but<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/midwife-west-texas/">especially in vast, mostly rural West Texas</a><span>. Lubbock, a city of around 260,000 that also serves as a medical hub for<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/driving-my-life-away/">people in surrounding counties</a><span>, has largely been without dedicated family planning providers in recent years. For the 15 percent of residents who are uninsured, options for affordable reproductive health care are even more scarce after years of budget cuts by elected officials. Few publicly funded family planning clinics remain in the region. There are just three providers in the 41 counties that comprise the Panhandle and South Plains regions that are part of the federally funded Title X family planning program. The two federally qualified health centers in Lubbock, which provide a range of primary care services, sometimes have weeks-long waits for appointments. After the Lubbock center closed in 2013, there were no Planned Parenthood facilities left in the western half of the state. And for the last seven years, Lubbock residents seeking an abortion have had to travel<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-most-cities-more-than-100-miles-from-abortion-clinic/">at least 300 miles</a><span><span> </span>one-way to the closest provider in Fort Worth, one of the longest distances from any city in the country. ✄</span></p> <p><span>In 2018, Planned Parenthood announced plans to open two clinics in West Texas, citing a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/labor-away-womens-health-rural-texas/">dearth of services in the region</a><span>. Barred from state funding streams, the organization launched a $16 million fundraising campaign for the expansion, with private donations going toward running the health centers and helping to subsidize care for uninsured patients, says Sarah Wheat, chief external affairs officer for Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas. In October of 2018, Planned Parenthood<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texasmonthly.com/politics/return-planned-parenthood-el-paso/">returned to El Paso</a><span>, which had been the largest city in the country without a clinic after the last one closed in 2009. Last July, Planned Parenthood announced that it would open a Lubbock clinic, though the location and timing were not released for security reasons. But after “monitoring” the old clinic location, local anti-abortion activists identified the new address and shared it, along with photos, in a mass e-mail through the statewide anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life in mid-October. Planned Parenthood opened its doors just a few days later.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 🎵🎵🎵🎵🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=5CeRWTdYFY8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5CeRWTdYFY8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️Yer Wonkette:  <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/manhattan-da-getting-closer-and-closer-to-trump-like-common-shark-in-jaws" target="_blank">Manhattan DA Getting Closer And Closer To Trump, Like Chompy 'Jaws' Shark!</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, March 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Perspective; FDR, Johnson and Joe Biden: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/democrats-are-learning-fast-why-being-in-power-can-suck?ref=author" target="_blank">Democrats Are Learning Fast Why Being in Power Can Suck</a>, Michael Tomasky, The Daily Beast, March 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Kitzinger appears to be in the wrong party — great read! <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/02/man-who-refused-bow/618156/" target="_blank">The Man Who Refused to Bow</a>, Peter Wehner, The Atlantic, March 2, 2021</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/01/28/960901166/how-is-the-covid-19-vaccination-campaign-going-in-your-state" target="_blank">How Is The COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign Going In Your State?</a>, Pien Huang and Audrey Carlsen, NPR News, March 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ YAY Dolly is vaccinated! <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/dolly-parton-covid-19-vaccine-helped-fund-million/story?id=76210980&cid=clicksource_4380645_15_hero_headlines_bsq_hed" target="_blank">Dolly Parton gets COVID-19 vaccine she helped fund with her $1 million donation,</a> Cillea Houghton, ABC, March 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ COOL history and science! <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/03/02/972607811/reading-a-letter-thats-been-sealed-for-more-than-300-years-without-opening-it" target="_blank">Reading A Letter That's Been Sealed For More Than 300 Years — Without Opening It</a>, Nell GreenfieldBoyce, NPR, March 2, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Fascinating article on the history of “pink” and “blue” toys! <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/03/02/toys-are-ditching-genders-same-reason-they-first-took-them/" target="_blank">Toys are ditching genders for the same reason they first took them on</a>, Paul Ringel, Washington Post, March 2, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Oops! Hope <em>you know who</em> doesn’t hear about this, Alex! </span><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/news/leaked-video-shows-alex-jones-railing-against-trump-god-im-fcking-sick-of-him/" target="_blank">Leaked Video Shows Alex Jones Railing Against Trump: ‘God, I’m F*cking Sick of Him’</a>, Reed Richardson, Mediaite, March 2, 2021.</p> <h3>Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better</h3> <p>Democratic litigation hero,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a><span> </span>was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website,<span> </span><a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>We’ve been through a lot and there’s still plenty of struggle ahead. But, Gnusies, the path looks a whole lot brighter. we will have to work as hard as we possibly can to ensure that Democrats hold on to the House and Senate in 2022 so that we can continue to have good government working to make the country stronger, better and more equitable.</p> <p>The sunlight is also visible at the end of the long, dark pandemic tunnel. We’ve got a shot at a fairly normal summer and fall this year, with vaccines and Democratic leadership to get them into peoples’ arms.</p> <p>I encourage everyone to use this time of remaining pandemic social distancing to rest and recharge as much as you can. There’s a lot of work ahead of us — mostly the good, satisfying kind of work — and we will need to be at our best to keep it up.</p> <p>Eat nutritious food, get some rest and try to get outdoors for a few minutes each day if you can. Being out in nature is the ideal, but even in the city we can look up at the sky and watch the clouds puff by. It will refresh your spirit.</p> <p>Thanks to all of you for coming to Gnuville and reading each day. Happy Wednesday!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7609.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/923013/large/IMG_7609.jpg?1614717602" title="IMG_7609.jpg"> <figcaption>Today’s GNR was brought to you by Ducky and the Border Collies.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nU9viEhRMQQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nU9viEhRMQQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanRescuePlan Covidvaccine Economy GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Justice Music Politics Recommended VotingRights _2018976 Wed, 03 Mar 2021 12:00:14 +0000 Wednesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/2/24/2017664/-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies! </p> <p>I have a simple reminder for everyone this morning: Republicans (and their backers) are not all-powerful (in fact, they are unraveling) and if we keep our eyes on the prize(s) we seek for humanity, we will succeed!</p> <p>There’s so much good news, in so many different areas, that I’d better get right to it. </p> <h3>🗽 Good News from Congress 🗽</h3> <p>Please proceed! <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/02/23/how-republicans-are-about-sabotage-themselves-covid-relief/" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/02/23/how-republicans-are-about-sabotage-themselves-covid-relief/" target="_blank">How Republicans are about to sabotage themselves on covid relief</a>, Paul Waldman, Washington Post, February 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>One of the most important and misunderstood facts about the politics of legislation is that the public is largely indifferent to the process of governing. But like every rule, there are exceptions. Every once in a while, a fight over legislation or rule-making can produce enough real-world effects that the public can’t help but notice. They can even properly apportion credit and blame.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Democrats are about to have an opportunity to produce just such an outcome, on what could be the one major piece of legislation they pass this year. They will likely soon pass a massive covid relief bill — and it’s possible that not a single Republican will support it.</p> </div> <div> <p>Should that occur, Democrats can and should make Republicans pay a heavy price.</p> <p><span>It won’t happen on its own. But that bill is already enormously popular, and if Democrats work at it, it could become a symbol of everything about this era in our politics. Republicans are going to allow them to frame it as a story of Democratic problem-solving and Republican betrayal.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Senate Confirmations Progress</h4> <p><strong>Linda Thomas-Greenfield confirmed!</strong></p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/linda-thomas-greenfield-confirmed-2ebb93df845e455c7200df76cf6998fd" target="_blank" title="">Senate confirms Biden’s choice for UN ambassador</a>, Matthew Lee, AP News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Linda Thomas-Greenfield" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/920583/large/800.jpg?1614106899" title="Linda Thomas-Greenfield"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate confirmed President Joe Biden’s choice to lead U.S. diplomacy at the United Nations on Tuesday. The vote for Linda Thomas-Greenfield reflected a divide between the Biden administration’s determination to re-engage with the world body and former President Donald Trump’s diplomacy that often left the U.S. isolated internationally.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Senators voted 78-20 to confirm Thomas-Greenfield to the post, which will be a Cabinet-level position. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">At her hearing, she recalled going to a segregated high school and then to Louisiana State University “as a consequence of a lawsuit.” She said she was “not the norm” among the Ivy League graduates who also joined the Foreign Service in 1982.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“And yet, I had an extraordinary 35-year career, that culminated as the assistant secretary of state of African affairs,” Thomas-Greenfield said. “To me, that represents the progress, and promise, of America.”</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Deb Haaland is holding her own:</strong></p> <p>I cannot wait for Deb Haaland to become Secretary of the Interior. Rs are doing what you’d expect, and Dems are standing up for her. She also has at least one surprising ally! The Republican from Alaska, Sen. Young:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/deb-haaland-confirmation-hearing-day-1-biden-interior_n_603542d3c5b673b19b6ba74a" target="_blank">Rep. Deb Haaland Fends Off Republican Attacks At Contentious Confirmation Hearing</a>, Chris D’Angelo, HuffPost, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Haaland is by all standards a qualified choice to lead Interior, an agency of some 70,000 employees that manages 500 million acres of federal land — roughly one-fifth of the U.S. The agency is in charge of the 63 national parks, the Bureau of Indian Education, and upholding the government’s trust and treaty obligations to tribal nations. She is currently a member of the House Committee on Natural Resources and chairs its subcommittee with oversight of the Interior Department, and is co-chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus. </span></p> <div> <p><span>Democratic and Republican House colleagues have said Haaland has a </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/deb-haaland-native-american-interior-secretary-joe-biden_n_5fb8234ac5b62517bdbd5d50"><span>strong record of working across the aisle</span></a><span>; in 2019, she introduced 13 bipartisan-cosponsored bills, which was more than any House freshman. She maintains a </span><a href="https://scorecard.lcv.org/moc/debra-haaland"><span>98% lifetime score</span></a><span> from the League of Conservation Voters. </span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>Haaland, an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna who made history in 2018 as one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress, has broad support among elected tribal leaders, intertribal organizations, and green and progressive groups. Last week, nearly 500 organizations signed onto a </span><a href="https://www.wilderness.org/sites/default/files/media/file/Haaland%20Community%20Support%20Letter.pdf"><span>letter</span></a><span> to Senate leadership calling for Haaland’s speedy confirmation.</span></p> <p><span>Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), who introduced Haaland to the committee and urged senators to vote for her confirmation, highlighted her bipartisan record. He praised Haaland as a friend who has reached across the aisle, and said that while he and others might not always agree with her, they can count on her to listen and hear their concerns.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>They know they can’t stop it, but still notable:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/mcconnell-backs-merrick-garland-attorney-general-aa832f96-6caa-4842-ab0f-b7e9bfc09ea3.html" target="_blank" title="">Mitch McConnell backs Merrick Garland for attorney general</a>, Rebecca Falconer, Axios, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/23/mcconnell-merrick-garland-attorney-general-471177" target="_blank">told Politico</a><span> </span>Tuesday that he plans to support Judge Merrick Garland's<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/merrick-garland-attorney-general-hearing-statement-ba6d4d1b-b393-45ce-af7a-588687834d51.html" target="_self">nomination for attorney general</a>.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:<span> </span></strong>McConnell blocked Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016, a move he called the "<a href="https://www.axios.com/mcconnell-blocking-garland-most-consequential-thing-ive-ever-done--fe901fd4-fa74-42ac-b495-ded20d9fd992.html" target="_self">most consequential thing</a><span> </span>I've ever done." ✄</p> <p><strong>The big picture:<span> </span></strong>McConnell is the latest key Republican to indicate support for Garland in this role. Others to back Garland after previously blocking his path to the Supreme Court include Sens.<span> </span><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/540140-mcconnell-backs-garland-for-attorney-general" target="_blank">Lindsey Graham</a><span> </span>(R-S.C.) and<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/SenThomTillis/status/1364287300088311811" target="_blank">Thom Tillis</a><span> </span>(R-N.C.).</p> <ul> <li>The vote for Garland's nomination is due take place in the Senate Judiciary Committee March 1.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <p><strong>Congressional Republicans Suspected in Capitol Attack</strong></p> <p>👀 <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/capitol-riot-2650701427/" title="">FBI investigating phone records of lawmakers on day of Capitol insurrection: report</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, February 22, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The report states, "In the hours and days after the Capitol riot, the FBI relied in some cases on emergency orders that do not require court authorization in order to quickly secure actual communications from people who were identified at the crime scene. Investigators have also relied on data 'dumps' from cellphone towers in the area to provide a map of who was there, allowing them to trace call records — but not content — from the phones."</p> <p><span>Some members of Congress --<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/lauren-boebert-2650013539/" target="_self">including Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO)</a><span><span> </span>-- have been accused of giving tours of the Capitol building on the day before Donald Trump addressed a "Stop the Steal" rally that culminated with the assault on Congress as the Senate sought to certify the Electoral College votes making Joe Biden the 46th president of the United States.</span></p> <p>While the report does not specify which lawmakers are being scrutinized, it does reveal that "The data is also being used to map links between suspects, which include members of Congress."</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music for Soon-to-Be Indicted People 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=i9QEAtcz3o8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/i9QEAtcz3o8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>📌 Good News From States </h3> <h4>New York</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-jr-is-being-examined-by-new-york-prosecutors-in-trump-business-probe?ref=home" target="_blank">NY Prosecutors Are Looking at Don Jr. in Trump Biz Probe</a>, Asawin Suebsaeng and Lachlan Cartwright, Daily Beast, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>For months, some of Donald Trump’s top advisers have assured him that he has virtually nothing to fear from the Manhattan district attorney’s tax investigation, which they view as merely “fishing” for information. But investigators with the D.A.'s office have been expanding their criminal probe into Trump’s business empire, asking questions and grilling witnesses—as recently as in the past few days—not only about Trump but particularly about his eldest son, Don Jr., and Allen Weisselberg, one of the former president’s most trusted officers, The Daily Beast has learned. ✄</span></p> <p>Ironically,<span> </span><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/ivanka-donald-trump-jr-close-to-being-charged-felony-fraud">years ago</a>, Vance had been accused of bungling a criminal probe against both Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump for allegedly misleading potential purchasers of their Trump SoHo condos.</p> <p>But this week, the Trump crew suffered a major blow, when news broke that the U.S. Supreme Court had finally<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumps-judges-let-him-down-now-hes-in-truly-deep-sht">cleared the way for</a><span> </span>the Manhattan D.A. to see Trump’s long-concealed tax returns and other financial records for a wide-ranging fraud probe. In response to the order, Vance released just one three-word statement: “The work continues.”  </p> </blockquote> <h4>Illinois Gets rid of cash bail</h4> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/02/illinois-criminal-justice-reform-law-eliminates-cash-bail-first-state.html" target="_blank">New Illinois Law Makes It the First State to Eliminate Cash Bail</a>, Elliot Hannon, Slate, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Illinois<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/gov-j-b-pritzker-signs-sweeping-illinois-criminal-justice-overhaul-including-eliminating-cash-bail/article_b096b6a7-05b8-5e82-9549-0fa73fcdd396.html">became</a><span><span> </span>the first state to eliminate cash bail entirely when the state’s Democratic governor, J.B. Pritzker, signed into law Monday the Illinois Pre-Trial Fairness Act, which includes a host of criminal justice reforms. In addition to discontinuing the cash bail system, the new law mandates body cameras for police officers and redefines law enforcement’s rules for use-of-force. The new legislation, pushed by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus and passed by the state house last month, prohibits the use of cash payments in return for pretrial release because of its negative impact on communities of color. Instead of basing bail decisions on the ability to pay, bail will now be determined by judges and their discretion about a defendant’s threat to the community if allowed to go free before trial.</span></p> <p><span>The practice of demanding cash bail has long been<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/22/970378490/illinois-becomes-first-state-to-eliminate-cash-bail">considered</a><span><span> </span>a “poor people’s tax” by advocates of criminal justice reform because those without the resources to post bail can languish in cells for weeks or months awaiting trial. The unequal access to bail is corrosive, transforming even an unjustified or mistaken arrest into an extended jail term for the poor, while creating incentives to strike plea deals to avoid extended pretrial incarceration that can have a lasting impact for an individual.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>California</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-internet-california-idUSKBN2AO00U?taid=6035d8a7093c480001e4b1ba&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">California to enforce net neutrality after judge rejects challenge by internet providers</a>, David Shepardson, Reuters, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">California should soon implement its landmark net neutrality law under a judge’s ruling on Tuesday, nearly three years after the state legislature enacted the measure, the state attorney general’s office said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">U.S. Judge John Mendez for the Eastern District of California said in an oral ruling he would not block the law from taking effect as four telecom and broadband industry groups sought, his office confirmed. California’s 2018 law barred internet service providers from blocking or throttling traffic, or offering paid fast lanes.</p> <p style="text-align:start">California Attorney General Xavier Becerra applauded the decision. “The ability of an internet service provider to block, slow down or speed up content based on a user’s ability to pay for service degrades the very idea of a competitive marketplace and the open transfer of information at the core of our increasingly digital and connected world,” he said.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Great News From Georgia</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/perdue-wont-run-for-senate-in-midterm-after-all/" target="_blank">Perdue Won’t Run for Senate in Midterm After All</a>, Daniel Jackson, Courthouse News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">(CN) — A week after David Perdue announced he would explore running against Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock in the 2022 midterm elections, the former Republican senator from Georgia said Tuesday he will stay out of the race.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“This is a personal decision, not a political one,” Perdue said in a<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/Perduesenate/status/1364236032275861504" target="_blank">statement</a>. “I am confident that whoever wins the Republican primary next year will defeat the Democrat candidate in the general election for this seat, and I will do everything I can to make that happen.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Perdue, who<span> </span><a href="https://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/forms/S4GA11285/1499961" target="_blank">filed</a><span> </span>a statement of candidacy with the Federal Elections Commission on Feb. 15, helped fuel early talk about him running in the midterm elections.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And more good news from Georgia</h4> <p>This guy — Raffensperger — even though he is a truly conservative Republican, I just can’t dislike him too much. He seems to have sincere principles! Mind you, let’s not go overboard: he is still A-OK with limiting mail-in voting. But he gets points for refusing to go along with the big election lie in the face of a lot of pressure, so he gets kudos for that and this:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/georgia-election-denies-gop-suppression/">Georgia election chief refuses to back 'reactionary' GOP voter suppression bills</a>, Matthew CHapman, Raw Story, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>On Tuesday, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — a conservative Republican — criticized the voter suppression bills making their way through the state legislature, refusing to give his seal of approval to any currently being debated.</span></p> <p><span>"At the end of the day, many of these bills are reactionary to a three-month disinformation campaign that could have been prevented," said Raffensperger's office in a statement.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Some Accountability in Texas At Last</h4> <p>Not enough accountability and not the politicians who really need to be held accountable, but it is something to start:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/23/board-leaders-of-texas-grid-operator-resign-after-outages-471202" target="_blank">Top board leaders resign after deadly Texas power outages</a>, AP via Politico, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>AUSTIN, Texas — Top board leaders of Texas’ embattled power grid operator said Tuesday they will resign following outrage over more than 4 million customers losing electricity last week during a deadly winter storm, including many whose frigid homes lacked heat for days in subfreezing temperatures.</p> <p>The resignations are the first since the crisis began in Texas, and calls for wider firings remain in the aftermath of one of the worst power outages in U.S. history.</p> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>All of the four board directors who are stepping down, including Chairwoman Sally Talberg, live outside of Texas, which only intensified criticism of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. The resignations are effective Wednesday — a day before Texas lawmakers are expected to sharply question grid managers and energy officials about the failures during hearings at the state Capitol.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>A fifth board member also resigned, and a candidate for a director position who also does not live in Texas withdrew his name.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>💰 Good Economic News 💰</h3> <p>Goodness knows we could use some good economic news!</p> <p>I think a sober, cautious Fed chairman is probably a good thing. Especially one whose concern centers on struggling Americans.</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/feds-economy-recovery-incomplete-d27f01cba34178de391f411cd1fbcc4d" target="_blank">Fed’s Powell: Recovery incomplete, high inflation unlikely</a>, Christopher Rugaber and Martin Crutsinger, AP News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 29: In this screengrab taken from the Federal Reserve website, Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell issues the Federal Open Market Committee statement on April 29, 2020 in Washington, DC. Powell said the Federal Reserve will continue to use its lending powers â€œforcefully, proactively and aggressively, until weâ€™re confident that we are solidly on the road to recoveryâ€ from the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Federal Reserve via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/804477/large/GettyImages-1211292517.jpg?1589400273" title="WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 29: In this screengrab taken from the Federal Reserve website, Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell issues the Federal Open Market Committee statement on April 29, 2020 in Washington, DC. Powell said the Federal Reserve will continue to use its lending powers â€œforcefully, proactively and aggressively, until weâ€™re confident that we are solidly on the road to recoveryâ€ from the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Federal Reserve via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell underscored the U.S. economy’s ongoing weakness Tuesday in remarks that suggested that the Fed sees no need to alter its ultra-low interest rate policies anytime soon. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Most economists say they think the Fed’s continued low rates, further government financial aid and progress in combating the viral pandemic could create a mini-economic boom as soon as this summer. Powell acknowledged the potential for a healthier economy. But he stressed the personal hardships caused by the pandemic, especially for unemployed Americans.</span> ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Powell’s focus on the economy’s challenges reflects his reluctance to send any signal that the Fed is considering pulling back on its efforts to boost economic growth and hiring. The Fed cut its benchmark short-term interest rate to nearly zero last March in response to the pandemic recession. It is also purchasing $120 billion a month in bonds in an effort to hold down longer-term rates. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The economy may improve rapidly later this year, Powell said, “but the job is not done yet, the job is not done.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>California </h4> <p>“<em>California’s stimulus package builds on aid already issued by the federal government and includes direct payments to families regardless of immigration status and billions for businesses, courts and universities.”</em></p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/newsom-inks-business-relief-600-payments-for-low-wage-workers/" target="_blank">Newsom Inks Business Relief, $600 Payments for Low-Wage Workers</a>, Nick Cahill, Courthouse News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) –– California will divvy out nearly $10 billion to millions of low-income workers and struggling small businesses under a state-sponsored pandemic relief plan signed Tuesday by Governor Gavin Newsom.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Coined the “Golden State Stimulus,” the package includes $600 direct payments for some taxpayers and up to $2 billion in grants and tax breaks for businesses. Tuesday’s signing ceremony comes less than a week after the<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/newsom-and-lawmakers-agree-on-600-stimulus-checks-for-low-wage-workers/" target="_blank">package was introduced</a><span> </span>and one day after lawmakers<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/covid-aid/" target="_blank">rushed approval</a><span> </span>of the state’s version of the stimulus relief packages passed previously by Congress.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Acknowledging the swift rulemaking process, Newsom complimented lawmakers for approving the sweeping package six-bill package in bipartisan fashion.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🏥 💉 Good Health News 💉🏥</h3> <h4>Great vaccine news!:</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/02/23/vaccine-distribution-pfizer-moderna/" target="_blank">Vaccine makers Pfizer and Moderna pledge massive boost to U.S. supply after sluggish rollout</a>, Isaac Stanley-Becker and Christopher Rowland, Washington Post, February 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A nurse holds a phial of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Guy's Hospital in London, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, as the U.K. health authorities rolled out a national mass vaccination program. U.K. regulators said Wednesday Dec. 9, 2020, that people who have a â€œsignificant historyâ€™â€™ of allergic reactions shouldnâ€™t receive the new Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine while they investigate two adverse reactions that occurred on the first day of the countryâ€™s mass vaccination program. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/917087/large/vaccine.jpg?1613236246" title="A nurse holds a phial of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Guy's Hospital in London, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, as the U.K. health authorities rolled out a national mass vaccination program. U.K. regulators said Wednesday Dec. 9, 2020, that people who have a â€œsignificant historyâ€™â€™ of allergic reactions shouldnâ€™t receive the new Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine while they investigate two adverse reactions that occurred on the first day of the countryâ€™s mass vaccination program. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Drug companies<span> </span><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/hearing-on-pathway-to-protection-expanding-availability-of-covid-19">told lawmakers<span> </span></a>Tuesday that they project a major increase in vaccine deliveries that will result in 140 million more doses over the next five weeks, saying they have solved manufacturing challenges and are in a position to overcome scarcity that has hampered the nation’s fight against the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_3" target="_blank">coronavirus</a>. ✄</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>But achieving a surge on that scale remains daunting. Pfizer and Moderna, the companies with the only authorized vaccines so far, will need to increase their combined deliveries to date of 75 million doses to reach their promised target of 220 million shots by March 31.</p> </div> <div> <p>That’s a goal of 28 million doses each week on average, far greater than their performance so far. The Biden administration told governors Tuesday that doses allotted to states would grow from 13.5 million to 14.5 million per week, and it also directed 2.1 million doses to pharmacies, according to people who participated in a weekly White House call and spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the conversation.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Competent People are On the Way</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-biden-cabinet-coronavirus-pandemic-hispanics-california-3f3fbd24de4a57f324397d0d5b438cc8" target="_blank">HHS nominee says pandemic comes first but agenda is broader</a>, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, AP News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ag-becerra-official.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/803995/large/ag-becerra-official.jpg?1589256862" title="ag-becerra-official.jpg"> <figcaption>Xavier Becerra, HHS Secretary nominee</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-xavier-becerra-harvard-bc89947ff5ad8d21bc272743607d01fa">pick for health secretary</a>, Xavier Becerra, told senators Tuesday that tackling the coronavirus pandemic will be his first priority if confirmed, but he also pledged to work to expand health insurance coverage, curb prescription drug costs and reduce racial and ethnic disparities in medical care.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“The COVID pandemic has killed 500,000 Americans,” Becerra told the Senate health committee. “To meet this moment, we need strong federal leadership.” A former congressman from the Los Angeles area, he currently serves as California’s attorney general. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">On health insurance, he pledged to work to expand the Obama-era Affordable Care Act, although in the past he’s supported a government-run health care system.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Californian faces two days of contentious hearings. Republicans are portraying Becerra as unfit, but Democrats are unfazed, accusing the GOP of playing politics despite<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic">the coronavirus pandemic</a>.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Music For People Who Care About People 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=fPlQ6EtArSc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/fPlQ6EtArSc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>An Optimistic Peep into the Future</h4> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/pandemic-daily-life-normal-summer-fall/618108/" target="_blank">The Most Likely Timeline for Life to Return to Normal</a>, Joe Pinsker, The Atlantic, February 22, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The end of the coronavirus pandemic is<span> </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/11/vaccines-end-covid-19-pandemic-sight/617141/">on the horizon</a><span> </span>at last, but the timeline for actually getting there feels like it shifts daily, with updates about viral variants, vaccine logistics, and other important variables seeming to push back the finish line or scoot it forward. When will we be able to finally live our lives again?</p> <p>Pandemics are hard to predict accurately, but we have enough information to make some confident guesses. A useful way to think about what’s ahead is to go season by season. In short: Life this spring will not be substantially different from the past year; summer could, miraculously, be close to normal; and next fall and winter could bring either continued improvement or a moderate backslide, followed by a near-certain return to something like pre-pandemic life.</p> <p><span>Here, in more detail, is what Americans can expect daily life to look like for the next four(-ish) seasons.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌱 Good Environmental News 🌱</h3> <h4>Really cool recycling</h4> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/23/plastic-trash-can-now-be-recycled-into-ultra-strong-graphene_partner/" target="_blank">Plastic trash can now be recycled into ultra-strong graphene</a>, Juliette Strasser, Salon, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Currently, there are a few plastic recycling techniques that are widely used, with differing results. For example, plastic bags are a huge contributor to the plastic waste stream – </span><a href="http://www.wmnorthwest.com/guidelines/plasticvspaper.htm" target="_blank">Waste Management</a><span style="text-align:start">, a trash collection company, estimates that over one billion plastic bags are used each year in the US alone. Even more shockingly, each plastic bag is used for, on average, less than one hour. Currently, the most common way to </span><a href="https://www.plasticfilmrecycling.org/recycling-bags-and-wraps/plastic-film-education-individuals/happens-recycled-materials/" target="_blank">recycle plastic bags</a><span style="text-align:start"> is by compressing them into composite lumber or small pellets, which can be used for building materials . While this is an excellent way to reuse single-use plastic, this plastic still is not biodegradable. </span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">In contrast, the "flash Joule heating" method turns plastic into graphene, which is highly recyclable and very stable. </span><a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/321/5887/385.abstract" target="_blank">Graphene </a><span style="text-align:start">itself is incredibly strong and stretchy – 200 times stronger than steel. Graphene is a single layer form of graphite, a naturally occurring carbon-based mineral that is commonly found as pencil lead. Typically, graphite is mined and then </span><a href="https://www.americanscientist.org/article/mass-producing-graphene" target="_blank">mechanically processed</a><span style="text-align:start"> in order to separate its layers, forming graphene. However, obtaining graphite can be expensive. By directly generating graphene from plastic waste, it is possible to reduce its production cost. Importantly, a reduced production cost can lead to broad implementation of graphene use outside of academic research – with lower production costs, graphene can be added to </span><a href="https://www.universalmatter.com/concrete/" target="_blank">concrete</a><span style="text-align:start">, </span><a href="https://www.universalmatter.com/tire-and-rubber/" target="_blank">rubber</a><span style="text-align:start">, or </span><a href="https://www.universalmatter.com/asphalt/" target="_blank">asphalt </a><span style="text-align:start">to improve strength and performance. Innovations like this will likely make graphene much more widely available for commercial use.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And here is the best follow-up story ever! Wheeee!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=kJIdnwrOT1E" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/kJIdnwrOT1E">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍</h3> <h4>America is back, World!</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-russia-sanctions-solarwinds-hacks/2021/02/23/b77039d6-71fa-11eb-85fa-e0ccb3660358_story.html" target="_blank">Biden administration preparing to sanction Russia for SolarWinds hacks and the poisoning of an opposition leader</a>, Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, February 23, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>The administration is casting the SolarWinds operation, which hacked government agencies and private companies, as “indiscriminate” and potentially “disruptive.” That would allow officials to claim that the Russian hacking was not equivalent to the kind of espionage the U.S. also conducts, and to sanction those responsible for the operation.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Officials also are developing defensive measures aimed at making it harder for Russia and other sophisticated adversaries to compromise federal and private sector networks, said the officials, several of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. ✄</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p><span>But the aim of the various measures, officials said, is to convey a broader message that the Kremlin for years has used cyber tools to carry out an array of actions hostile to the interests of the United States and its allies: interfering in elections,<span> </span></span><span>targeting<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_9" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span><span> </span>vaccine research and creating a permissive atmosphere for criminal hackers who, among other things, have run ransomware botnets that have disrupted American public health facilities.</span></p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>🇺🇸 🇨🇦 BFFs 4EVER! 🇨🇦 🇺🇸</h4> <p>Oh, Canada! I am delighted to announce that yesterday, President Biden honored Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Canada) with the first international diplomatic conference of his presidency. With the Biden White House’s usual competence, the staff have managed to produce a virtual meeting with a sense of the decorum and importance of these meetings between countries:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/23/970375260/biden-welcomes-canadas-trudeau-virtually-to-white-house-for-1st-meeting" target="_blank">Biden Welcomes Canada's Trudeau (Virtually) To White House For 1st Meeting</a>, Ayesha Rascoe, NPR News, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Friday, Feb. 5, 2021. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/918072/large/TrudeauatnewsconferenceinOttawa.jpg?1613504224" title="Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Friday, Feb. 5, 2021. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)"> <figcaption>PM Justin Trudeau (Canada)</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">President Biden plans to welcome Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and a delegation of Canadian officials to the White House on Tuesday – a virtual session due to COVID-19 constraints that will try to recreate some of the ceremonial flourishes of an in-person visit to Washington.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Biden and Trudeau plan to discuss the public health and economic crises caused by the pandemic, as well as shared goals on addressing climate change, addressing racism and discrimination, and other issues, a senior U.S. administration official told reporters ahead of the meeting.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The meeting will start as it would if they were sitting down together in the Oval Office, the official said. Biden and Trudeau will deliver brief remarks to reporters as they begin their meeting with Vice President Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and national security adviser Jake Sullivan, and their Canadian counterparts.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-canada-meeting/biden-trudeau-pledge-to-counter-china-climate-change-in-warm-first-meeting-idUSKBN2AN0U6" target="_blank">Biden, Trudeau pledge to counter China, climate change, in warm first 'meeting'</a>, Alexandra Alper and David Ljunggren, Reuters, February 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">“The United States has no closer friend, no closer friend than Canada,” Biden told Trudeau via an electronic video link with the Canadian leader and top aides. “That’s why you were my first call as president (and) my first bilateral meeting,” he said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">After talking for about two hours, the two leaders emerged and said they planned to work closely together to beat the COVID-19 pandemic and combat climate change, with a goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Trudeau also thanked Biden for reiterating U.S. support for the release of two Canadians held by China, Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig. “Human beings are not bartering chips,” Biden said. “We’re going to work together until we get their safe return.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Musical Break in honor of Canada 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=IRZ8Sx-vdMU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/IRZ8Sx-vdMU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Feed your soul: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/mlb-coronavirus-pandemic-dbdea7e9f317e47f7211c3a0c892070e" target="_blank" title="">What kindness brought to folks featured in ‘One Good Thing’</a>, AP News, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/adam-kinzinger-glad-yall-know-what-garbage-asses-his-cousins-are-now" target="_blank">Rep. </a><a>A</a><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/adam-kinzinger-glad-yall-know-what-garbage-asses-his-cousins-are-now" target="_blank">dam Kinzinger Glad Y'all Know What Garbage-Asses His Cousins Are Now</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Great story about Obama and Springsteen: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/23/obama-springsteen-podcast-renegates-review-spotify-manhood/" target="_blank">At its heart, Obama and Springsteen's podcast is redefining the toxic masculinity upheld by Trump</a>, Ashlie D Stevens, Salon, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/23/opinion/republican-voter-suppression.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">How to Not Be at the Mercy of a Trumpified G.O.P.</a>, Jamelle Bouie, New York Times, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Last chance, GQP: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/23/senate-republicans-too-weak-to-convict-trump-should-pray-new-york-prosecutors-lock-him-up/" target="_blank">Senate Republicans, too weak to convict Trump, should pray New York prosecutors lock him up</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Fun speculation: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/orange-is-the-new-orange-trump-just-might-go-to-jail?ref=home" target="_blank">Orange Is the New Orange: Trump Just Might Go to Jail</a>, Daily Beast, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yep, still nuts: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mypillow-ceo-mike-lindell-dominion-lawsuit-losing-money-2021-2" target="_blank" title="">MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell says he's losing $65 million over election-fraud claims and it proves he's not pushing conspiracy theories for the money</a>, Jacob Shamsian, Insider, February 22, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Meanwhile: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/dominion-ceo-mypillow-defamation-lawsuit-not-the-last" target="_blank">Dominion CEO: Lawsuits Like One Against MyPillow Guy Is ‘Definitely Not The Last’</a>, Summer Concepcion, Talking Points Memo, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ This sounds pretty cool! <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hillary-clinton-mystery-novel-louise-penny_n_60353935c5b673b19b6b99b1" target="_blank">Hillary Clinton Co-Writing Mystery Novel With Louise Penny</a>, Hilel Italie (AP News), HuffPost, February 23, 20201</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/02/23/965400736/it-was-like-magic-iraqis-visit-babylon-and-other-heritage-sites-for-1st-time" target="_blank">'It Was Like Magic': Iraqis Visit Babylon And Other Heritage Sites For 1st Time</a>, Alice Fordham, NPR News, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ LOL: <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/watch-hot-mic-on-senate-floor-picks-up-mitt-romney-telling-kyrsten-sinema-shes-breaking-the-internet-with-dangerous-creature-shirt/" target="_blank">WATCH: Hot Mic on Senate Floor Picks Up Mitt Romney Telling Kyrsten Sinema She’s ‘Breaking the Internet’ With ‘Dangerous Creature’ Shirt</a>, Josh Feldman, Mediaite, February 23, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Mixed news but Tish James is great: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/economy/amazon-bezos-tish-james/" target="_blank">As Pandemic Profits Put Bezos on Track for Trillionaire Status, Tish James Asks: At What Cost?</a> John Nichols, The Nation, February 23, 2021.</p> <h3>Here’s How You Can Help Build Our Democracy Back Better</h3> <p>Democratic litigation hero, <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias?s=20" target="_blank">Marc Elias</a> was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website, <a href="https://www.democracydocket.com/" target="_blank">Democracy Docket</a>. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!</p> <p>🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩</p> <p><em>The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting.  They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</em></p> <p><em>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong></em><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> </ul> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another week. I hope everyone is holding up as we continue to process what we have been through over the past 5 years and what we still have to work through as we move into a better future under a Biden administration. It’s been something else, hasn’t it? </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Black poodle dog wearing bright red collar, playing in the white snow." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/918008/large/IMG_7559.jpg?1613487839" title="Black poodle dog wearing bright red collar, playing in the white snow."> <figcaption>I love the snow!</figcaption> </figure> <p>I am proud of us and proud of what we have achieved so far. Let’s keep the work going and see just how much more we can achieve together!</p> <p>Remember to look after yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get some rest, get outdoors each day if you can. It’s important for all of us to care for ourselves — that’s how we keep up the strength to care for each other.</p> <p>We are having milder, fine weather this week in Chicago, so the snow is melting and it really feels like you can smell spring in the air. I like winter, but it has felt like one long winter for so long that I can’t wait for spring. </p> <p>I think this spring is going to be the start of a much better era. Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <p>In honor of Handel’s birthday yesterday, let’s finish up with 8 delightful little pieces for violin and cello. I heard these yesterday on classical radio and was delighted to find them on YouTube. Enjoy!:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=eWLQGJh0kko" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/eWLQGJh0kko" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Edited to fix some subtitles that failed to migrate over with the draft. NW</p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Covidvaccine CurlyGirl Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden NewYork Politics Recommended _2017664 Wed, 24 Feb 2021 12:00:27 +0000 Undaunted: Dems are Getting Things Done - Tuesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/2/16/2015849/-Undaunted-Dems-are-Getting-Things-Done-Tuesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies! I’m sitting in for arhpdx who lost power yesterday due to the storm system most of us have been contending with for the past 24-36 hours. How are you doing? I hope everyone is keeping warm! Let’s get to the good news — that oughta warm us all up!</p> <p>First, some music!  I can barely see the buildings across the street out my window due to the blowing snow, so, let’s start with a snowy song!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=AG0PG0O5Jcs" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/AG0PG0O5Jcs" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💪 Dems Get Sh*t Done! 💪</h3> <p>Yesterday, Jessiestaf pointed out that now that the Impeachment trial is over, we no longer need to have saturation coverage obsessed with DJT. And here is CNN to underline that fact and point to all the great stuff that our excellent POTUS Joe has been working on and will be moving ahead with <em>aggressively</em> now:</p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/15/politics/donald-trump-president-joe-biden-coronavirus-congress-stimulus/index.html" target="_blank">The end of Trump's trial lifts an oppressive cloud from Washington</a>, Stephen Collinson, CNN, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 25: U.S. President Joe Biden stands with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on January 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed an executive order repealing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/915849/large/GettyImages-1230786174.jpg?1612898492" title="WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 25: U.S. President Joe Biden stands with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on January 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed an executive order repealing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The new President is already moving aggressively to fill the post-Trump vacuum. He forcibly pushed his $1.9 trillion Covid-relief plan on Monday morning in a statement marking the reopening of open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act.</p> <div>The legislation "will ramp up testing, tracing, and our national vaccination program," Biden said, adding that it would also "take big steps to lower health costs and expand access to care for all Americans, including those who have lost their jobs." ✄</div> <div></div> <div><span>The end of the impeachment trial means that for the first time since he became president last month, Biden will be able to bring the power of his office to bear, as he steps up his effort to win swift passage of his relief plan with a 50-50 Senate that Democrats control because of Vice President Kamala Harris' ability to break ties. The President will begin trips out of Washington this week — a rite of a new administration so far trimmed by Covid-19. On Friday, Biden will seek to restore US global leadership in another departure from the Trump administration, by taking part in<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/14/politics/biden-g7-summit-virtual-covid-19/index.html" target="_blank">a virtual meeting of G7 leaders</a><span><span> </span>to discuss the pandemic.</span></div> </blockquote> <h4>Biden, Hill Democrats plan to unveil immigration reform bill this week</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/joe-biden/biden-hill-democrats-plan-unveil-immigration-reform-bill-week-n1257960" target="_blank">Biden, Hill Democrats plan to unveil immigration reform bill this week</a>, By Geoff Bennett, Julia Ainsley and Jacob Soboroff, NBC News, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>The Biden administration and Hill Democrats are expected later this week to release an immigration reform bill, multiple sources familiar with the planning tell NBC News.</p> <p>The legislative text of the “U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021” will reflect the immigration priorities that President Joe Biden<span> </span><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/20/fact-sheet-president-biden-sends-immigration-bill-to-congress-as-part-of-his-commitment-to-modernize-our-immigration-system/__;!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!-cGTw31b3i6CJNI8PCSIg3xKfJM8qBFcXBBcE0lqzu5ukW42mMc4FHSNBRUJoM23gShCBQFeKHzHZe8$" title="">unveiled on his first day in office</a>. His proposal includes an earned pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants, expands the refugee resettlement program and deploys more technology to the Southern border. There are additional protections that are being considered in the legislation, such as asylum processing in home countries for minors, expanded benefits for DREAMers and ending the public charge rule. ✄</p> <p><span>“This plan is not only about fixing our broken immigration system, but building a better one that reunites families, brings the undocumented community out of the shadows and on a path to citizenship, stands up for human rights, addresses root causes of migration, and includes a smart border security strategy,” (Sen. Menendez D-NJ) said in a statement.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Dems roll back cruel Republican medicaid policy</h4> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/biden-administration-end-trump-era-medicaid-work-requirements" target="_blank" title="">Biden Admin Quietly Rolls Back Trump-Era Medicaid Work Requirements</a>, Summer Concepcion, Talking Points Memo, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>According to the<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/12/upshot/biden-medicaid-reversing-trump.html?smid=tw-upshotnyt&smtyp=cur">New York Times</a><span> </span>on Friday, health officials notified states with approved work requirements that the Biden administration will withdraw the approvals. Additionally, the Biden administration removed a Trump-era online guidance document encouraging states to implement new work requirement plans.</p> <p>Although President Biden signed an executive order requesting a review of the Trump-era Medicaid work requirements in the first week of his presidency, Friday’s policy changes were made made without a public announcement.</p> </blockquote> <h4>and by the way… </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Hey, everyone. &lt;a href="https://t.co/VmUNESiecW"&gt;https://t.co/VmUNESiecW&lt;/a&gt; is open today for enrollment. If you do not have health insurance, please sign up and spread the word.&lt;/p&gt;— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ValerieJarrett/status/1361371629599752197?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 15, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hey, everyone. <a href="https://t.co/VmUNESiecW">https://t.co/VmUNESiecW</a> is open today for enrollment. If you do not have health insurance, please sign up and spread the word.</p>— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) <a href="https://twitter.com/ValerieJarrett/status/1361371629599752197?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Speaker announces independent commission Into Capitol Attack</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-capitol-siege-acquittals-impeachments-trump-impeachment-7ebcbaedd6985537dec0c3918cbf06d9" target="_blank">Pelosi says independent commission will examine Capitol riot</a>, Hope Yen, AP News, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (R), Democrat of California, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, hold a press briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2020. - Schumer warned his Republican colleagues Thursday that they were "poisoning" the country's democracy by continuing to refuse to acknowledge Joe Biden's presidential election victory last week. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/911329/large/GettyImages-1229592131.jpg?1611857754" title="US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (R), Democrat of California, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, hold a press briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2020. - Schumer warned his Republican colleagues Thursday that they were "poisoning" the country's democracy by continuing to refuse to acknowledge Joe Biden's presidential election victory last week. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Monday that Congress will establish an independent, Sept. 11-style commission to look into the deadly insurrection that took place at the U.S. Capitol.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Pelosi said the commission will “investigate and report on the facts and causes relating to the January 6, 2021, domestic terrorist attack upon the United States Capitol Complex … and relating to the interference with the peaceful transfer of power.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Investigations into the riot were already planned, with Senate hearings scheduled later this month in the Senate Rules Committee. Pelosi, D-Calif., asked retired Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré to lead an immediate review of the Capitol’s security process.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In her letter Monday, Pelosi said, “It is clear from his findings and from the impeachment trial that we must get to the truth of how this happened.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Stuff Democrats in COngress Were already doing</h4> <p>This is the foundation of everything we hope to achieve as progressives, so let’s support our Democrats in Congress so that we can get this done:</p> <p><a href="https://theintercept.com/2021/02/14/democracy-voting-campaign-finance-hr1/" target="_blank">THE “FOR THE PEOPLE ACT” WOULD MAKE THE U.S. A DEMOCRACY</a>, Jon Schwarz, The Intercept, February 14, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><u>SINCE THE 117TH</u><span> </span>Congress was convened on January 3,<span> </span><a href="https://www.congress.gov/search?searchResultViewType=expanded&q=%7b%22source%22:%22legislation%22,%22congress%22:%22117%22%7d">over 2,000 bills</a><span> </span>have been introduced in the House and Senate. But the very first legislation proposed by the Democratic Party majorities in both chambers — making it both<span> </span><a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1/text">H.R.1</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.democrats.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/SIMPLE-SECTION-BY-SECTION_S.-1%20Final.pdf">S.1</a><span> </span>— is the “For the People Act” of 2021.</p> <p style="text-align:start">This is appropriate, because the For the People Act is plausibly the most important legislation considered by Congress in decades. It would change the basic structure of U.S. politics, making it far more small-d democratic. The bill makes illegal essentially all of the anti-enfranchisement tactics perfected by the right over the past decades. It then creates a new infrastructure to permanently bolster the influence of regular people.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The bill’s provisions largely fall into three categories: First, it makes it far easier to vote, both by eliminating barriers and enhancing basic outreach to citizens. Second, it makes everyone’s vote count more equally, especially by reducing gerrymandering. Third, it hugely amplifies the power of small political donors, allowing them to match and possibly swamp the power of big money.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Here are some ways you can help our Dems get stuff done</h4> <p>🎩 With many thanks to Goody, I am borrowing her list of actions we can take to support Dems in Congress to get HR 1/ S1 passed:</p> <p>The only way Rs can win is by keeping people from voting so they are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.</p> <p>How do we do that?  <strong>Fight voter suppression!</strong><span> </span>  </p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> <li>In other words...</li> </ul> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=qEwMaeN2x-c" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qEwMaeN2x-c" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>😨 Meanwhile, Things Not Going So Well in MAGAworld 😨</h3> <h4>Wall street wolves wanna dump trump</h4> <p><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/print/wall-street-journal-editorial-board-tries-to-end-trumps-political-career-in-searing-op-ed-capitol-attack-will-mar-his-legacy-for-all-time/" target="_blank"><em>Wall Street Journal</em><span> </span>Editorial Board Tries to End Trump’s Political Career in Searing Op-Ed: Capitol Attack ‘Will Mar His Legacy for All Time’</a>, Leia Idliby, Mediaite, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-non-vindication-11613342554" target="_blank">In their column<span> </span></a><em>Trump’s Non-Vindication,<span> </span></em>the editorial board maintained that on Jan. 6, “Mr. Trump’s behavior was inexcusable and will mar his legacy for all time.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Noting that although Sen.<span> </span><strong>Mitch </strong><strong>McConnell </strong>(R-KY) was “lacerating in his criticism” of the former president, the Senate Minority Leader ultimately voted to acquit Trump, as he insisted impeaching a citizen had no “limiting principle.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The column went on to argue that Trump is not the sole person responsible for the Jan. 6 Capitol attack — noting that some have questioned D.C.’s lack of security. The board concluded, nevertheless, that Trump should be entirely blamed for “refusing for hours to ask his supporters to stand down.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>No honor among thieves (or terrorists)</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/fbi-informant-panic-is-ruining-friendships-all-over-the-far-right-proud-boys-and-america-firsters" target="_blank">FBI Informant Panic Is Ruining Friendships All Over the Far Right</a>, Will Sommer and Kelli Weill, Daily Beast, February 14, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Dont_Panic.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/877384/large/Dont_Panic.gif?1604295170" title="Dont_Panic.gif"> <figcaption>J/K, pro-fascists; go ahead and panic!</figcaption> </figure> <p>As<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/oath-keepers-jessica-watkins-planned-to-deploy-armed-force-to-capitol-riot-prosecutors-allege">federal authorities crack down on the far right</a><span> </span>after the<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/during-impeachment-trial-even-trumps-senate-wingmen-are-shocked-by-capitol-riot-videos">Jan. 6 Capitol riot</a>, the movement’s leaders have found new sources of suspicion: each other.</p> <p>In the Trumpist “<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/president-trump-fans-out-on-far-right-columnist-michelle-malkin-in-saturday-morning-tweet-storm">America First</a>” movement and the far-right paramilitary group the<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-post-election-proud-boys-meltdown-is-here-and-its-ugly">Proud Boys</a>, alliances are fracturing as extremists brand each other as potential informants. Now racist live-streamers are accusing their former comrades of attempting to turn over followers to law enforcement, while Proud Boys chapters are splintering from the national organization over similar fears. ✄</p> <p><span>Proud Boys chapters in three U.S. states—including four local chapters in Indiana—now claim to have broken with the national organization over Tarrio’s work as a federal informant. (Tarrio did not return a request for comment.) ✄</span></p> <p>The Capitol riots have been followed by still more rifts internationally.</p> <p>Anti-fascist activists in Manitoba, Canada, also claim their province’s Proud Boys chapter has dissolved.<span> </span><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-proud-boys-facist-free-treaty-one-1.5872253">The CBC reported that,</a><span> </span>while the chapter had been largely inactive for the past year, the group was confirmed dead this month, when the Canadian government designated Proud Boys as a terrorist organization.</p> </blockquote> <h4>The fault lines are widening for GQP</h4> <p><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/politics/poll-record-high-63-of-republicans-think-a-third-party-is-needed/" target="_blank">POLL: Record High 63% of Republicans Think a Third Party is Needed</a>, Ken Meyer, Mediaite, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="FracturedBase.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/406971/large/FracturedBase.jpg?1496100819" title="FracturedBase.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Gallup has released<span> </span></span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/329639/support-third-political-party-high-point.aspx">a collection of polling data</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>they gathered in late January, which finds that only 33 percent of adults think that the Republican and Democratic parties adequately represent the country. By contrast, 62 percent of respondents think that a third part is necessary, a 5 percent increase from when Gallup asked the same question in September. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The findings seem especially applicable to Republicans since Gallup found that conservatives are now almost as likely as independents to say the country needs a new party. Forty percent of Republicans called for a third party back in September; but now, the support has surged into the 63 to 70 percent range. By comparison, 70 percent of independents want a third party, as do 46 percent of Democrats.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Gallup poll comes after<span> </span><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/news/poll-7-in-10-republicans-would-consider-joining-a-new-party-started-by-trump/">multiple recent studies</a><span> </span>established that most Republicans are still loyal to former president<span> </span><strong>Donald Trump</strong>. CBS and Hill-HarrisX found that between 60 to 70 percent of Republicans would consider leaving the GOP and getting behind Trump if he were to create his own political party.</p> </blockquote> <h4>‼️👀‼️</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;New &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/QuinnipiacPoll?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@QuinnipiacPoll&lt;/a&gt; captures the squeeze on GOP. Vast majority of its voters (75%) want big future role for Trump. But 21% don&amp;#39;t want a big role for him; 24-28% of Rs blame him for the riot. If even a minority of those uneasy Rs drift away from a Trump-led GOP, it&amp;#39;s catastrophic&lt;/p&gt;— Ronald Brownstein (@RonBrownstein) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RonBrownstein/status/1361407332584812546?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 15, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>New <a href="https://twitter.com/QuinnipiacPoll?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@QuinnipiacPoll</a> captures the squeeze on GOP. Vast majority of its voters (75%) want big future role for Trump. But 21% don't want a big role for him; 24-28% of Rs blame him for the riot. If even a minority of those uneasy Rs drift away from a Trump-led GOP, it's catastrophic</p>— Ronald Brownstein (@RonBrownstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/RonBrownstein/status/1361407332584812546?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Qpublicans in Disarray — <em>and how</em>!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/republicans-celebrate-presidents-day-by-kicking-the-sh-t-out-of-each-other-again" target="_blank">Republicans Celebrate Presidents Day By Kicking The Sh*t Out Of Each Other. Again.</a> Liz Dye, Wonkette, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="newrepubimagefightingincongress.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/746127/large/newrepubimagefightingincongress.jpeg?1576104105" title="newrepubimagefightingincongress.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Last week, the Wyoming Republican Party voted to<span> </span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/if-liz-cheneys-not-down-with-trumps-mob-insurrection-why-is-she-even-a-republican" target="_blank">censure Liz Cheney</a><span> </span>for her vote to impeach former President Trump, and yesterday the Louisiana, North Carolina, and Nebraska parties moved to do the same to Senators Bill Cassidy, Richard Burr, and Ben Sasse.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"I voted to convict former President Trump because he is guilty. That's what the facts demand," Cassidy<span> </span><a href="https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/opinion/article_67fa0a74-6ee1-11eb-8bd4-6bda88cda171.html" target="_blank">wrote</a><span> </span>in the<span> </span><em>Baton Rouge Advocate</em>. "I have no illusions that this is a popular decision. I made this decision because Americans should not be fed lies about 'massive election fraud.' Police should not be left to the mercy of a mob. Mobs should not be inflamed to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power."</p> <p style="text-align:start">Nonetheless, within hours of casting his vote, the Louisiana GOP<span> </span><a href="https://www.lagop.com/post/official-the-lagop-executive-committee-votes-to-censure-senator-bill-cassidy" target="_blank">voted unanimously</a><span> </span>to censure him. Yes, that would be the same party that<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-09-24-mn-315-story.html" target="_blank">refused to censure</a><span> </span>former KKK grand wizard David Duke in 1989 when he was a state rep. Only the best people!</p> </blockquote> <h4>SD Gov. Noem abusing public trust? Say it isn’t so! 😱😒</h4> <p>These entitled jerks think they can get away with anything and it is time for the people to start pushing back hard. And we are! Here is an excellent investigative report from Raw Story — and they made Noem’s spokesman defend it. SD state legislators are showing interest and concern, too. Here’s hoping that will be part of a trend.</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/kristi-noem-2650536372/">Exclusive: GOP governor Kristi Noem, potential Trump successor, used state aircraft for tens of thousands of dollars in political travel</a>, Daniel Newhauser, Raw Story, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="2021-GOP-ImmoralCompass-Projection-v2-fr-fx.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/916837/large/2021-GOP-ImmoralCompass-Projection-v2-fr-fx.png?1613175469" title="2021-GOP-ImmoralCompass-Projection-v2-fr-fx.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Newly unearthed flight logs show South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem used a state airplane to travel to right wing political events around the country, a revelation that has state lawmakers questioning whether she violated a state law forbidding political and personal use of the aircraft.</span></p> <p><span>The flight logs, published for the first time in this report, raise questions about the propriety of tens of thousands of dollars' worth of taxpayer-funded flights to out-of-state events hosted by groups such as the National Rifle Association, Turning Point USA, and an organization affiliated with the late GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson, South Dakota politicians and experts told Raw Story.</span></p> <p><span>Also in question is whether Noem wasted taxpayer money by having the state airplane pick her up for official business when she was living at her family home in Castlewood, rather than in the governor's residence in Pierre, the state's capital where the airplane is kept. In one case, the airplane picked her up from her daughter's wedding in the far west part of the state.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Never Forget we are the majority</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Senators voting to impeach represent 61.6% of Americans (202 million)&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Senators voting to acquit represent 38.2% of Americans (125 million) &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Via &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/atausanovitch?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@atausanovitch&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/NXtVIAbwuO"&gt;pic.twitter.com/NXtVIAbwuO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AriBerman/status/1360704888704016387?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 13, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Senators voting to impeach represent 61.6% of Americans (202 million)<br><br>Senators voting to acquit represent 38.2% of Americans (125 million) <br><br>Via <a href="https://twitter.com/atausanovitch?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@atausanovitch</a> <a href="https://t.co/NXtVIAbwuO">pic.twitter.com/NXtVIAbwuO</a></p>— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) <a href="https://twitter.com/AriBerman/status/1360704888704016387?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 13, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>💗🐩 Not my curlygirl, but here are poodles in the snow 🐩💗</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=cUcu2ipUMxM" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cUcu2ipUMxM" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💉 Good Vaccine News 💉 </h3> <p>There is lots of good news about our race to contain and tame the coronavirus pandemic. First two promising stories about the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine which is the one that doesn’t need supercold storage to remain viable. </p> <p><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/02/13/kids-covid-vaccine-test-oxford/" target="_blank">Oxford-AstraZeneca begins a vaccine trial for children. It’s the youngest group yet to be tested.</a> Kim Bellware, Washington Post, February 14, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>Oxford University announced Friday it started testing its<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span> </span>vaccine in children as young as 6 in a move that expands coronavirus vaccine trials to the youngest age group yet.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The Oxford trial will include 300 child volunteers ages 6 to 17, with 240 of them receiving the vaccine co-developed with drugmaker AstraZeneca; the remaining participants will receive a control meningitis vaccine that has been proved safe in children but is expected to mimic side effects of a covid-19 shot, the university said in a statement.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Before the Oxford-AstraZeneca trial, testing had not included children younger than 12. Three other companies — Pfizer, Moderna and Janssen — have announced plans to start trials for younger children this spring.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/world-health-organization-astrazeneca-authorization-5fa10f91-c1a6-4f39-9535-825308bc3866.html" target="_blank">WHO authorizes AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use</a>, Oriana Gonzalez, Axios, February 15, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong>Why it matters:<span> </span></strong><span>WHO's authorization "should trigger the delivery of hundreds of millions of doses to countries that have signed up for the U.N.-backed COVAX effort, which aims to deliver vaccines to the world’s most vulnerable,"<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-latin-america-coronavirus-pandemic-united-nations-3270b68714c77cf4b292ad25a147323f" target="_blank">AP writes</a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Due to their "easy storage requirement," the agency found them to be suitable for low- and middle-income nations ✄</span></p> <p><strong>What they're saying:<span> </span></strong><span>"Countries with no access to vaccines to date will finally be able to start vaccinating their health workers and populations at risk, contributing to the COVAX Facility’s goal of equitable vaccine distribution," said Mariângela Simão, WHO assistant-director general for Access to Medicines and Health Products.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Vaccination Pace accelerating:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;CDC reports nearly 4.5 million doses administered over the last two days. Each day was a single day record on its own. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;This is major progress. &lt;a href="https://t.co/QIDdUjrw5o"&gt;https://t.co/QIDdUjrw5o&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tim Fullerton (@TimFullerton) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TimFullerton/status/1361031758091849731?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>CDC reports nearly 4.5 million doses administered over the last two days. Each day was a single day record on its own. <br><br>This is major progress. <a href="https://t.co/QIDdUjrw5o">https://t.co/QIDdUjrw5o</a></p>— Tim Fullerton (@TimFullerton) <a href="https://twitter.com/TimFullerton/status/1361031758091849731?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Feeling crummy with 2nd dose is normal. Here’s why</h4> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/02/second-vaccine-side-effects/617892/" target="_blank">The Second COVID-19 Shot Is a Rude Reawakening for Immune Cells</a>, Katherine J Wu, The Atlantic, February 2, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="antibodylevels.JPG" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/831817/large/antibodylevels.JPG?1594753609" title="antibodylevels.JPG"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Side effects are a natural part of the vaccination process, as my colleague<span> </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/12/what-expect-when-you-get-covid-19-vaccine/617428/">Sarah Zhang has written</a>. Not everyone will experience them. But the two COVID-19 vaccines cleared for emergency use in the United States, made by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, already have reputations for raising the hackles of the immune system: In<span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/info-by-product/moderna/reactogenicity.html">both companies’</a><span> </span><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/info-by-product/pfizer/reactogenicity.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fvaccines%2Fcovid-19%2Finfo-by-manufacturer%2Fpfizer%2Freactogenicity.html">clinical trials</a>, at least a third of the volunteers ended up with symptoms such as headaches and fatigue; fevers like my husband’s were less common.</p> <p>Dose No. 2 is more likely to pack a punch—in large part because the effects of the second shot build iteratively on the first. My husband, who’s a neurologist at Yale New Haven Hospital, is one of many who had a worse experience with his second shot than his first.</p> <p>But much like any other learning process, in this one repetition is key. When hit with the second injection, the immune system recognizes the onslaught, and starts to take it even more seriously. The body’s encore act, uncomfortable though it might be, is evidence that the immune system is solidifying its defenses against the virus.</p> <p>“By the second vaccine, it’s already amped up and ready to go,” Jasmine Marcelin, an infectious-disease physician at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told me. Fortunately, side effects resolve quickly, whereas COVID-19 can bring on debilitating, months-long symptoms and has killed more than 2 million people.</p> </blockquote> <p>FYI, The Atlantic is putting all its Covid-19 articles and information up free for the public — it’s not behind a paywall. Here is another excellent article by Katherine Wu:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/02/antibody-evolution/618004/" target="_blank">The Body Is Far From Helpless Against Coronavirus Variants</a>, Katherine C Wu, The Atlantic, February 12, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Innate and adaptive immune system. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0072580/" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/554507/large/innate_and_adaptive_immunity.jpg?1529264120" title="Innate and adaptive immune system. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0072580/"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The immune system is comprehensive, capable of dueling with just about every microbe it meets. It’s archival, ace at memorizing the details of its victories and defeats.<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/covid-19-immunity-is-the-pandemics-central-mystery/614956/">It might be complicated</a><span>, but it is also, simply put, cool as hell.</span></p> <p>Now, a year into a pandemic, our immune systems face a new challenge. The coronavirus has picked up mutations that boost its ability to hop from human to human and thwart some of the antibodies that have reliably conquered it before. The protection offered by vaccines appears riddled with holes. Viruses evolve fast—faster than humans ever could. If the pandemic is a race, the coronavirus seems, at times, on the verge of lapping us.</p> <p>But the immune system is not doomed to be discombobulated by a never-ending barrage of shape-shifting variants. For every trick the virus plays, the immune system arguably has an equally impressive one. Vaccines remain an essential ally, armoring the body before it encounters the virus. And although the variants have opened up gaps in that chain mail, the pliancy built into our bodies can at least buy time to repair them.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Musical Break — Vaccine Version 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=JGb5IweiYG8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/JGb5IweiYG8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Progressives Fighting to Get Dark Money Out of Politics</h3> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-obscure-alaska-case-could-end-super-pacs-reshape-democracy-2021-2?utmSource=twitter&utmContent=referral&utmTerm=topbar&referrer=twitter" target="_blank">An obscure Alaska court case could end super PACs and reshape our democracy</a>, John Bonifaz, Ben Clements and Ron Fein, Business Insider, February 14, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>-The Alaska Supreme Court could upend the big money systems that have come to fund US elections.<br> -The case argues that super PACs corrupt our systems of government by making politicians far too dependent on a small number of super-wealthy donors.<br> -Following a ruling in the Alaska Supreme Court, the question could go to the US Supreme Court. ✄  </p> <p>A favorable Supreme Court decision would impact the entire nation. For federal elections, Congress doesn't even need to pass new legislation: there's already a law on the books limiting contributions to independent political groups to $5,000 per year. (That's a lot of money, but it's much less than the multi-million dollar checks that megadonors write to super PACs right now.) After a Supreme Court victory, that law could be put back into effect with no further action from Congress. Other states or cities could revive old laws or pass new ones. We could finally put an end to the threat of super PACs in our elections.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️  </h3> <p>⚡️ Help is on the way: <strong><a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/economy/article249188125.html" target="_blank">You may be eligible for more COVID stimulus money. Here’s how to get it</a></strong>, David Lightman, McClatchyNews, February 14, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ I can’t resist a Valentine themed article, beautifully written 💗: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/02/falling-in-love-wont-make-you-happy/617989/" target="_blank">The Type of Love That Makes People Happiest</a>, Arthur C Brooks, The Atlantic, February 11, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Ignore the clickbait title, this is an excellent book list about more than relationships! <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ariannarebolini/anti-valentines-break-up-books-about-being-single" target="_blank">13 Books That Prove You Don't Need A Relationship To Be Happy</a>, Ariana Rebolini, BuzzFeedNews, February 14, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Succinct, superb article: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/13/opinion/race-economy-inequality-civil-rights.html?smid=tw-share" target="_blank">The Way Out of America’s Zero-Sum Thinking on Race and Wealth</a>, Heather C McGhee, The New York Times, February 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Biden is a uniter after all! <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/local-republicans-support-biden-covid-relief-plan/2021/02/14/9791d4ba-6d65-11eb-9ed1-73d434b5147f_story.html" target="_blank">Biden is winning Republican support for his $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan. Just not in Washington.</a> Griff Witte, Washington Post, February 14, 2021.</span></p> <p>⚡️ We sure hope so! <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-criminal-investigation-2650530309/">Trump fears he'll be hit with criminal charges for inciting insurrection: report</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, February 14, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Oh look! Here’s a list, <em>so far</em>: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-criminal-civil-investigations_n_602a9397c5b680717ee98725" target="_blank">Here Are The Criminal, Civil Investigations Trump Faces After Senate Acquittal</a>, Hayley Miller, HuffPost, February 15, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ This will happen: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/history-will-find-trump-guilty" target="_blank">History Will Find Trump Guilty</a>, David Remnick, The New Yorker, February 13, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Investigative reporting on root of covid CTs: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/conspiracy-theories-iran-only-on-ap-media-misinformation-bfca6d5b236a29d61c4dd38702495ffe" target="_blank">The superspreaders behind top Covid-19 conspiracy theories</a>, David Klepper, Farnoush Amiri and Beatrice Dupuy, AP News, February 15, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ JUST IN: Quite a turnaround from the “axis of evil” guy, but it’s a good read about the danger of minority rule: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/02/america-must-become-democracy/618028/" target="_blank">The Founders Were Wrong About Democracy</a>, David Frum, The Atlantic, February 16, 2021.</p> <h4>BONUS Just For Yousies, Gnusies!</h4> <p>💗 Here’s a belated Valentine’s present from me to you, dear gnusies! 💗 ENJOY!  <a href="http://radio.garden/" target="_blank">World Radio Garden</a></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is the COOLEST. A Google Earth-type representation of the planet. Every green dot is a radio station. Click any dot to listen in. It’s like cultural teleportation. You could spend hours with this thing… &lt;a href="https://t.co/rdEHUUfgvk"&gt;https://t.co/rdEHUUfgvk&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/VJgyzVClJD"&gt;pic.twitter.com/VJgyzVClJD&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Pogue (@Pogue) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Pogue/status/1361010771430412292?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 14, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is the COOLEST. A Google Earth-type representation of the planet. Every green dot is a radio station. Click any dot to listen in. It’s like cultural teleportation. You could spend hours with this thing… <a href="https://t.co/rdEHUUfgvk">https://t.co/rdEHUUfgvk</a> <a href="https://t.co/VJgyzVClJD">pic.twitter.com/VJgyzVClJD</a></p>— David Pogue (@Pogue) <a href="https://twitter.com/Pogue/status/1361010771430412292?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>It’s pretty snowy here in Chicago and I understand nearly all of the country is experiencing challenging weather with this system. I hope everyone has power and a way to keep warm.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7469.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/910903/large/IMG_7469.jpg?1611725606" title="IMG_7469.jpg"> <figcaption>Curlygirl photo! Not taken during the current storm.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Today is Pancake Day — one of the best days of the year when I was a child. The tradition in my community was to have pancakes for supper (along with whatever protein and vegetables or fruits a family enjoys). The pancakes would randomly contain coins, a ring and a button. Our mothers would sterilize a few dimes, nickels and pennies plus one quarter and the ring and button in a dish of boiling water, then drop them one by one lightly into the pancakes on the pan, spooning a bit of batter over to conceal them.  The person who got the ring would be first married; the button signaled bachelorhood and the quarter meant riches. The dimes and nickels and pennies were bounty we collected for the next trip to our corner store. When I was young, you could get loose candies like peppermint nobs or ju-jubes 3 for a penny; a chocolate bar for a nickel and a bottle of pop for a dime. So the pancake night money haul was pretty exciting! 😊</p> <p>Happy Mardi Gras, Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day, Everyone! </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=0wAMr3V5lN4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/0wAMr3V5lN4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) AmericanRescueAct Covid-19 Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden KamalaHarris POTUS46 Recommended Vaccine _2015849 Tue, 16 Feb 2021 12:00:02 +0000 Good News RoundUp for Groundhog Day https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/2/2/2013285/-Good-News-RoundUp-for-Groundhog-Day <p>Good Day, Gnusies and Happy Groundhog Day! Funnily enough, the theme of today’s GNR is the opposite of the famous movie. Instead of doing the same thing yet again (falling for Republican bait and switch/ futilely trying to appeal to Republicans’ nonexistent duty for the greater good), Democrats are approaching governance with a whole new attitude. They know there is a great need AND a great deal of public support for nearly everything Democrats want to do for the country. THey know what Republicans are and they know what they may need to do to get the American people the help they need and the good government they deserve. </p> <p>I think the magic ingredient in this stressful moment is that we not only have unified Democratic government but we also have leadership which has signaled clearly and stalwartly that it will back up and support Congress with whatever they need to do to get things done. Joe’s blazing <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/1/30/2012680/-Joe-Biden-Will-End-Up-Being-the-Best-American-President-in-American-History-Boom-Saturday-s-GNR" target="_blank">first week</a> was a loud and clear message that big bold action is going to be the hallmark of this administration. I think Joe is going to embolden Democrats in both houses, by example and by showing them that he will have their backs. This is an amazing moment full of hope and promise for the country.</p> <p>We’ve got unity all right. Dems are in array! Let’s celebrate with an opening song!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=AsO8R8u0MYk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/AsO8R8u0MYk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🇺🇸💪 Democrats In Array 💪 🇺🇸 </h3> <p>Chuck and Nancy intend to get Covid relief done — and done big — and they know that President Joe Biden has their backs:</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/budget-reconciliation-covid-relief-pass-gop-support/story?id=75585069&cid=clicksource_4380645_5_heads_hero_live_hero_hed" target="_blank" title="">Budget reconciliation: How COVID relief could pass without GOP support</a>, Meredith Deliso and Trish Turner, ABC News, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>As President<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/joe-biden" target="_blank">Joe Biden</a><span> </span>attempts to pass his $1.9 trillion<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-signals-support-senate-democrats-moving-covid-relief/story?id=75569476" target="_blank">COVID-19 relief proposal</a><span> </span>with Republican support, Senate Democrats are working to<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/bidens-covid-relief-package-presents-1st-test-deal/story?id=75428871" target="_blank">move ahead without</a><span> </span>the GOP using an obscure, but powerful, procedural tool known as reconciliation.</p> <p>Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Monday that they have filed a joint budget resolution --<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/passing-coronavirus-relief-important-bipartisanship-sen-bernie-sanders/story?id=75583108" target="_blank">the first step to potentially</a><span> </span>enacting a budget reconciliation bill.</p> <p><span>"It makes no sense to pinch pennies when so many Americans are suffering," Schumer said in floor remarks Monday. "The risk of doing too little is far greater than the risk of doing too much." ✄</span></p> <p>"We hope they join us this week. If they don't, we're moving forward on our own," Schumer said Saturday on MSNBC's "Politics Nation."</p> <p>Schumer's remarks echo ones Biden made the day before. When asked by reporters as he left the White House Friday if he supported passing<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span> </span>relief through reconciliation, the president said, "I support passing COVID relief with support from Republicans if we can get it. But COVID relief has to pass. There's no ifs, ands or buts."</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/01/senate-republicans-covid-relief-464327" target="_blank">Biden doesn’t buy GOP’s Covid pitch</a>, Burgess Everett, Politico, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 25: U.S. President Joe Biden stands after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on January 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed an executive order repealing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/910656/large/GettyImages-1230786266.jpg?1611675937" title="WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 25: U.S. President Joe Biden stands after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on January 25, 2021 in Washington, DC. President Biden signed an executive order repealing the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>In the two-hour meeting, the GOP senators presented their $618 billion counterproposal to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, and the president described his own $1.9 trillion plan to the senators. They agreed to keep talking, although senators conceded their discussions were just beginning. ✄</p> <p><span>Shortly before the meeting, Democratic leaders announced they would begin a process that would allow passage of Biden's coronavirus stimulus plan without GOP votes, a sign that Democrats have little confidence that a suitable deal can be struck with Republicans. Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), a centrist, said succinctly of the GOP’s plan: “The package has to be bigger than that.”</span></p> <p>“This needs to be big enough to get the job done. If we’re having to come back time and time again, I just don’t think that’s good for the economy or for certainty,” Tester said at the Capitol.</p> <p>Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced they would continue setting up budget reconciliation this week, which would evade the Senate’s 60-vote requirement. They will pass a budget this week instructing committees to write a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which includes items like raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour and giving $400 in additional weekly unemployment assistance through September.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/white-house-reaffirms-1400-dollar-relief-payments_n_601881b0c5b6aa4bad36b008" target="_blank" title="">White House Reaffirms Commitment To $1,400 Relief Payments</a>, Daniel Marans, HuffPost, February 1, 2021.  (This article goes on to bellyache and try to drum up some “Dems in disarray” energy, but ignore that; the bottom line is in the lede):</p> <blockquote> <div> <p><span>The White House reiterated its commitment to delivering $1,400 relief checks to the vast majority of American households, following </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-01/biden-s-promised-1-400-checks-are-even-dividing-the-white-house?srnd=premium&sref=KhY5gfAd"><span>a report</span></a><span> detailing disagreement over the dollar amount and eligibility requirements among senior aides to President <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/joe-biden" target="_blank">Joe Biden</a>.</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>“The president’s proposal is to finish the job on $2,000 checks by delivering 1,400 additional dollars in direct relief to American families,” a White House spokesperson told HuffPost. The payments would be part of a $1.9 trillion <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/topic/covid-19" target="_blank">COVID-19</a> relief package.</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>Congress in late December approved $600 checks, thwarting the push by progressives for $2,000 payments to help Americans alleviate the economic impact of the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/feature/coronavirus" target="_blank">coronavirus pandemic</a>.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>And the American people have Chuck and Nancy’s backs, too:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/2/1/22254869/senate-budget-reconciliation-covid-relief" target="_blank">Americans want Covid-19 relief done fast — even if it takes budget reconciliation</a>, Li Zhou, Vox, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (R), Democrat of California, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, hold a press briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2020. - Schumer warned his Republican colleagues Thursday that they were "poisoning" the country's democracy by continuing to refuse to acknowledge Joe Biden's presidential election victory last week. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/911329/large/GettyImages-1229592131.jpg?1611857754" title="US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (R), Democrat of California, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, hold a press briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2020. - Schumer warned his Republican colleagues Thursday that they were "poisoning" the country's democracy by continuing to refuse to acknowledge Joe Biden's presidential election victory last week. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">According to a<span> </span><a href="https://www.filesforprogress.org/datasets/2021/1/dfp_vox_congressional_negotiations.pdf">new poll from Vox and Data for Progress</a>, a majority of likely voters — 64 percent — would back more coronavirus relief, even if it means approving it via budget reconciliation, rather than the standard process for advancing most bills. Typically, most bills need 60 votes in the Senate in order to pass, but a budget resolution would only need 51 — and Democrats would be able to include several Covid-19 priorities in such a measure. (In the poll, we didn’t use the specific term “budget reconciliation,” but asked people if they’d support a bill passing with 51 votes as a budget measure, versus the standard 60 votes that are usually needed.)</p> <p style="text-align:start">Support for taking this route appears largely driven by people’s interest in seeing more Covid-19 relief sooner rather than later: Sixty-three percent of people would like to see this coronavirus aid pass as soon as possible, including 72 percent of Democrats, 59 percent of independents, and 56 percent of Republicans.<span> </span><a href="https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2021/1/7/voters-think-it-is-time-to-end-the-filibuster">A previous DFP poll</a><span> </span>also found that 55 percent of people would favor a change in Senate rules if it meant coronavirus relief could pass more quickly.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Most relief provisions garner overwhelming backing in the poll as well, even if they would be passed via nonstandard procedure that requires just 51 votes. Seventy-nine percent of people would support approving $1,400 stimulus checks and 77 percent feel the same about funding to help schools reopen. Other efforts including an eviction moratorium, as well as increased funding for vaccines and testing, also had a majority of people’s support.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Bottom Line</h4> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/paulmcleod/coronavirus-aid-biden-republicans?ref=bfnsplash" target="_blank">Republicans Are Optimistic About A Bipartisan COVID Aid Deal, While Democrats Plan To Pass A Bill With Or Without Them</a>, Paul McLeod, BuzzFeed News, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="US President Joe Biden speaks to the press as he departs the White House in Washington, DC, on January 29, 2021. - Biden travels to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/911902/large/GettyImages-1230857394.jpg?1611962756" title="US President Joe Biden speaks to the press as he departs the White House in Washington, DC, on January 29, 2021. - Biden travels to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Biden is pushing a $1.9 trillion COVID relief package that includes $1,400 checks for most Americans, as well as an additional $400 per week in federal unemployment benefits through September 2021.</p> <p>The Republican group is meanwhile proposing an approximately $600 billion package that includes $1,000 checks for a smaller number of people, plus an additional $300 per week in unemployment benefits until the end of June. ✄</p> <p>The White House put out a statement late Monday describing the meeting as productive but also threatening to go it alone without Republicans unless they agree to substantially more aid. “[Biden] will not slow down work on this urgent crisis response, and will not settle for a package that fails to meet the moment,” the statement said.</p> <p>Biden needs 10 Republican senators on board for any bill to pass the Senate through normal methods. But congressional Democrats on Monday started a special process known as budget reconciliation that would allow just the simple Democratic majority in the Senate to pass a bill. The catch is that there is only one budget reconciliation chance for each year, and it only applies to budget items.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ujNeHIo7oTE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ujNeHIo7oTE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-conspiracy-theories-shootings-las-vegas-mass-shooting-steny-hoyer-d0622c86db9d67dff60a5d9511801795" target="_blank">House Democrats mount effort to punish Georgia Rep. Greene</a>, Brian Slodysko, AP News, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats are mounting an effort to formally rebuke Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a newly elected Georgia Republican with a history of making racist remarks, embracing conspiracy theories and endorsing violence directed at Democrats.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Democrats have teed up action Wednesday to send a resolution to the House floor that would strip Greene of assignments on the House education and budget committees, if House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., doesn’t do so first.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“It is my hope and expectation that Republicans will do the right thing and hold Rep. Greene accountable, and we will not need to consider this resolution,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. “But we are prepared to do so if necessary.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🐘 🚨 Republicans in Disarray 🚨🐘</h3> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/gop-civil-war/">GOP infighting escalates -- one week before Trump's impeachment trial</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Republican Party continues to wage an ugly public fight for the future of the party.</span></p> <p><span>On Monday, the Associated Press<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-conspiracy-theories-shootings-las-vegas-mass-shooting-steny-hoyer-d0622c86db9d67dff60a5d9511801795" target="_blank">reported</a><span>, "Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell denounced newly elected Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Monday, calling the far-right Georgia Republican's embrace of conspiracy theories and 'loony lies' a 'cancer for the Republican Party.'"</span></p> <p><span>Greene angrily lashed out on Twitter. "The real cancer for the Republican Party is weak Republicans who only know how to lose gracefully. This is why we are losing our country," she<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1356403160751943680" target="_blank">wrote</a><span>.</span></p> <p><span>Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) shot back at Greene on Twitter.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Eye roll emoji, followed by “price is right” fail sound. &lt;a href="https://t.co/sjgft1YGv4"&gt;https://t.co/sjgft1YGv4&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Adam Kinzinger (@RepKinzinger) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RepKinzinger/status/1356409595388973056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;February 2, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Eye roll emoji, followed by “price is right” fail sound. <a href="https://t.co/sjgft1YGv4">https://t.co/sjgft1YGv4</a></p>— Adam Kinzinger (@RepKinzinger) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepKinzinger/status/1356409595388973056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 2, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Oh, and speaking of Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), it’s kind of funny, in a way: the mad hat tea partier attacking the even more batty MAGAhatter</strong>.  <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/01/31/gop-rep-kinzinger-start-new-pac-challenge-partys-trump-supporters/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wp_main" target="_blank">GOP Rep. Kinzinger starts PAC to challenge party’s embrace of Trump</a>, Paul Kane and Amy B.Wang, Washington Post, January 31, 2021.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), one of 10 Republicans<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/impeachment-republican-congressional-supporters/2021/01/13/72b790ca-55ec-11eb-a817-e5e7f8a406d6_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">to vote to impeach</a><span> </span>Donald Trump earlier this month, has launched a new political action committee that is designed to become a financial engine to challenge the former president’s wing of the GOP caucus and stand up against a leadership team still aligned with him.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Kinzinger, 42, a former star of the 2010 tea party class, said the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol served as a final breaking point for the direction of the Republican Party, providing a stark divide between those who want to continue a path toward autocracy and those who want to return to traditional conservative values.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="let-them-fight.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/480719/large/let-them-fight.jpg?1512520252" title="let-them-fight.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Moscow Mitch is, as we all know, full of it. But the fact that he is doing this dance of being an assh*le one minute and trying to pretend he has principles the next,  shows just how rattled he is. </p> <p><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/536850-mcconnell-says-taylor-greene-a-cancer-to-gop-country?rnd=1612224945" target="_blank">McConnell says Taylor Greene's embrace of conspiracy theories a 'cancer' to GOP, country,</a> Juliegrace Brufke and Scott Wong, The Hill, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="catdontmakemegocute.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/837333/large/catdontmakemegocute.jpg?1595906394" title="catdontmakemegocute.jpg"> <figcaption>I refuse to post pix of either subject of this article.<br> Here, have a cute kitten!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Senate Minority Leader<span> </span><span><a href="https://thehill.com/people/mitch-mcconnell">Mitch McConnell</a></span><span> </span>(R-Ky.) on Monday blasted Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s embrace of “loony lies and conspiracy theories” as a “cancer for the Republican Party.”</p> <p>“Somebody who’s suggested that perhaps no airplane hit the Pentagon on 9/11, that horrifying school shootings were pre-staged, and that the Clintons crashed JFK Jr.’s airplane is not living in reality,” McConnell said in a statement first shared with The Hill. “This has nothing to do with the challenges facing American families or the robust debates on substance that can strengthen our party.”</p> <p>McConnell didn't mention Greene by name in his three-sentence statement, but his rare, scathing remarks about a freshman GOP lawmaker from the other chamber suggests he recognizes the potential damage her violent rhetoric and bizarre conspiracy theories could inflict on congressional Republicans as they try to take back both the House and Senate in next year’s midterms.</p> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, even some Republican governors want a big Covid relief bill, which is helpful to Americans if uncomfortable for Congressional Rs and conservative Ds (cough cough JoeManchinKirstenSinema):</p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/republican-governor-of-west-virginia-defies-democratic-senator-to-call-for-big-covid-relief" target="_blank">GOP West Virginia Gov Defies Joe Manchin, Calls For BIG HUGE Covid Relief</a>, Robin Pennacchia, Wonkette, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">COVID-19 relief is extremely,<span> </span><em>extremely</em><span> </span>popular. Not only do Americans want<span> </span><em>this</em><span> </span>relief package,<span> </span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/01/19/most-americans-say-another-round-of-covid-19-economic-relief-will-be-needed/" target="_blank">79 percent of us</a><span> </span>do not think it will be enough and think we will need another, subsequent, relief package after this one. This includes 56 percent of people who identify as<span> </span><em>conservative Republicans</em>. It is, perhaps, one of the least controversial issues in the history of America.</p> <p style="text-align:start">One of the people currently encouraging a "go big or go home" approach is Jim Justice, the<span> </span><em>Republican</em><span> </span>Governor of West Virginia — a state that, to the surprise of experts, ended up doing<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/we-crushed-it-how-did-west-virginia-become-national-leader-n1256276" target="_blank">a really great job with vaccine distribution</a>. This puts him at odds with the state's Democratic Senator, Joe Manchin, who has fiercely opposed the COVID-19 relief package in hopes it could be replaced with something less helpful to people. It sure is a topsy turvy world that we live in.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Justice — who was actually a Democrat from 2015 to 2017 and switched parties out of love for Donald Trump — has been<span> </span><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/536771-west-virginia-governor-urges-congress-to-go-big-on-covid-19-relief?rl=1" target="_blank">making the rounds</a><span> </span>and making it known that he believes we need to go big and get people taken care of.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/01/trump-campaign-autopsy-paints-damning-picture-of-defeat-464636" target="_blank">Trump pollster's campaign autopsy paints damning picture of defeat</a>, Alex Isenstadt, Politico, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Former President Donald Trump has blamed the election results on unfounded claims of fraud and malfeasance. But at the top levels of his campaign, a detailed autopsy report that circulated among his political aides paints a far different — and more critical — portrait of what led to his defeat.</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000177-6046-de2d-a57f-7a6e8c950000" target="_blank">The post-mortem</a>, a copy of which was obtained by POLITICO, says the former president suffered from voter perception that he wasn’t honest or trustworthy and that he was crushed by disapproval of his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. And while Trump spread baseless accusations of ballot-stuffing in heavily Black cities, the report notes that he was done in by hemorrhaging support from white voters. ✄</p> <p><span>The report zeroes in on an array of demographics where Trump suffered decisive reversals in 2020, including among white seniors, the same group that helped to propel him to the White House. The autopsy says that Trump saw the “greatest erosion with white voters, particularly white men,” and that he “lost ground with almost every age group.” In the five states that flipped to Biden, Trump’s biggest drop-off was among voters aged 18-29 and 65 and older. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Trump’s personal behavior, the autopsy makes clear, contributed to his defeat. </span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎵 Groovy Tuesday Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ADtnUC_ctNk" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ADtnUC_ctNk">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>You just can’t make this up! </h4> <p>This next story isn’t good news on its face, but it points to two things that are good news. 1. Clearly, Republicans understand very well the real danger they have encouraged and unleashed and 2. they are panicking about it.</p> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/01/republican-lawmakers-want-to-use-campaign-funds-to-protect-themselves--from-their-own-voters/" target="_blank">Republican lawmakers want to use campaign funds to protect themselves — <strong>from their own voters</strong></a>, Roger Sollenberger, Salon, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Both of the national political committees dedicated to electing Republicans to Congress have asked the Federal Election Commission to allow lawmakers to use campaign donations to hire bodyguards, citing heightened fears related to the Jan. 6 insurrection and its aftermath — an attack overwhelmingly carried out by Republican voters.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In a<span> </span><a href="https://www.fec.gov/files/legal/aos/2021-03/202103_R1.pdf" target="_blank">letter</a><span> </span>sent last week, attorneys for the National Republican Senatorial Committee and National Republican Congressional Committee requested guidance on whether regulations on campaign spending cover "personal security personnel" to protect members of Congress and their families from "threatened harm."</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">While the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol chiefly targeted Democratic leaders, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed fears for their safety. Last week, more than 30 members<span> </span></span><a href="https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20465929-final-mra-member-security-letter" target="_blank">asked</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>House leadership to grant broader use of taxpayer-funded allowances to hire security in their local district offices.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Again, you can’t make up stuff this ridiculous! <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/01/us/capitol-rioters-non-voters-invs/index.html" target="_blank">They stormed the Capitol to overturn the results of an election they didn't vote in</a>, Blake Ellis and Melanie Hicken, CNN, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>They were there to "Stop the Steal" and to keep the President they revered in office, yet records show that some of the rioters who stormed the US Capitol <strong>did not vote in the very election they were protesting</strong>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Many involved in the insurrection professed to be motivated by patriotism, falsely declaring that Trump was the rightful winner of the election. Yet at least eight of the people who are now facing criminal charges for their involvement in the events at the Capitol did not vote in the November 2020 presidential election, according to an analysis of voting records from the states where protestors were arrested and those states where public records show they have lived. They came from states around the country and ranged in age from 21 to 65.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💉 Kicking Covid to the Curb 💉</h3> <p>🎩 Up from the comments — thanks 2thanks! 🎩</p> <h4>Vaccine news is better than many people realize.</h4> <blockquote> <p>The news about the vaccines continues to be excellent — and the public discussion of it continues to be<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/18/briefing/donald-trump-pardon-phil-spector-coronavirus-deaths.html?te=1&nl=the-morning&emc=edit_nn_20210201">more negative than the facts warrant</a>.</p> <p>Here’s the key fact:<strong><span> </span>All five vaccines with public results have eliminated Covid-19 deaths.</strong><span> </span>They have also drastically reduced hospitalizations. “They’re all good trial results,” Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University, told me. “It’s great news.”</p> <p>Many people are instead focusing on relatively minor differences among the vaccine results and wrongly assuming that those differences mean that some vaccines won’t prevent serious illnesses. It’s still too early to be sure, because a few of the vaccine makers have released only a small amount of data. But the available data is very encouraging — including about the vaccines’ effect on the virus’s variants.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong><a href="https://messaging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/template/oakv2?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20210201&instance_id=26625&nl=the-morning&productCode=NN&regi_id=78881208&segment_id=50744&te=1&uri=nyt%3A%2F%2Fnewsletter%2Fbbb05a80-af7c-5037-b53f-35ed99b5d44b&user_id=5f4bb0b58a12b1579619d3ab4b90e352" target="_blank" title="">[New York Times — NOT behind paywall]</a></strong></p> <h4><strong>Vaccine enabled Herd Immunity within months is possible</strong></h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/live-updates/coronavirus/?id=75606765&cid=clicksource_4380645_7_three_posts_card_hed" target="_blank" title="">COVID-19 live updates: Moderna president hopeful for herd immunity by mid-year</a>, Morgan Winsor, Erin Schumaker, and Ivan Pereira,</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Dr. Stephen Hoge, president of American biotechnolgy company Moderna, said he's hopeful that vaccines can help the U.S. population achieve herd immunity against the novel coronavirus by mid-year.</span><br> <span>"It really depends what you think herd immunity needs to be. But if you assume 50 to 70% of the population, then we're working hard ourselves and the other manufacturers to make sure that's a possibility really in the late spring, early summer," Hoge told ABC News chief anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview Monday on "Good Morning America."</span><br> <span>"It's ultimately going to depend upon the delivery of those vaccines, and so that's something that the states and the health care providers in this country are ultimately leading the way on as well as Americans deciding they want to receive that vaccine," he added. But we're optimistic that by the middle of the year, we'll be able to achieve those sorts of numbers."</span></p> </blockquote> <p>We need a cheaper test that doesn’t require a smart phone, but this is a start:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/02/01/962828149/u-s-cuts-231-million-deal-to-provide-15-minute-covid-19-at-home-tests" target="_blank">U.S. Cuts $231 Million Deal To Provide 15-Minute COVID-19 At-Home Tests</a>, Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR News, February 1, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">The Food and Drug Administration gave<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/12/15/946692950/fda-authorizes-first-home-coronavirus-test-that-doesnt-require-a-prescription">emergency authorization to Ellume's rapid test</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in December, after it showed 96% accuracy in a U.S. clinical study. Those trials included both adults and children of ages 2 years and older. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The test uses a relatively short nasal swab to collect a sample. The sample is put into a digital analyzer linked to a smartphone app. In December, the company told NPR that the test would be available for about $30. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The Biden administration is trying to bolster testing efforts in the U.S., the worst-hit country in the world, as new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus threaten to make it even more difficult to bring the pandemic under control.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The U.S. average daily testing rate now stands at 550 per 100,000 people, according to a seven-day moving average<span> </span><a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/testing/international-comparison">computed by Johns Hopkins University</a>. That rate compares well with those of a number of smaller countries, but it sharply lags the U.K. — another nation hit hard by the pandemic — which has been testing an average of 986 people per 100,000.</p> </blockquote> <h3>(More) Trouble For Ex-Occupant</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;EXCL: The Scottish Parliament will this week stage a debate - and vote - on whether ministers should pursue an Unexplained Wealth Order to investigate the source of financing for Donald Trump’s Scottish resorts. My &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TheScotsman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@TheScotsman&lt;/a&gt; story.&lt;a href="https://t.co/aPwwsNkt8w"&gt;https://t.co/aPwwsNkt8w&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MartynMcL/status/1356001051527282700?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 31, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>EXCL: The Scottish Parliament will this week stage a debate - and vote - on whether ministers should pursue an Unexplained Wealth Order to investigate the source of financing for Donald Trump’s Scottish resorts. My <a href="https://twitter.com/TheScotsman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheScotsman</a> story.<a href="https://t.co/aPwwsNkt8w">https://t.co/aPwwsNkt8w</a></p>— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) <a href="https://twitter.com/MartynMcL/status/1356001051527282700?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🌱 Environmental News 🌱</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2021/02/01/joe-biden-and-the-climate-crisis-what-a-difference-two-weeks-makes/" target="_blank">Joe Biden and the climate crisis: What a difference two weeks makes</a>, Carl Pope, February 1, 2021,</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Earth.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902904/large/Earth.png?1610134344" title="Earth.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Just 10 days after the Biden administration took over, in alignment with the new president's overall blitz strategy, a flabbergasting phalanx of U.S. climate policies have been turned smartly on their heels and are marching toward the future. President Biden has returned the nation to the Paris Agreement, required truth-telling in government reporting, enforced a regulation that government purchases must feed U.S. supply chains rather than imports, terminated the massive giveaway of taxpayer property to coal, oil and gas extractors, restored the integrity of federal climate science, frozen a horde of horrible Trump environmental rollbacks, and even launched a New Deal-style Civilian Climate Corps. All that is already in the rear-view mirror as Biden's team moves on to the deeper work of a clean-energy, decarbonized and more inclusive economy.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Most Americans, who fear climate chaos, embrace clean energy opportunity and welcome American innovation and leadership, should be celebrating — and are. But hold your breath: The good news runs even deeper than this. The striking emphasis that the new administration has given to its "whole government" climate strategy; the repeatedly-noted climate depth of his Cabinet and sub-Cabinet appointees at the Treasury (Janet Yellen), the State Department (John Kerry), economic policy (Brian Deese), the Energy Department (Jennifer Granholm), the Department of Transportation (Pete Buttigieg), and the Department of the Interior (Deb Haaland); along with the breadth of new climate initiatives are only a part of the new administration's commitment to climate progress.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">This shock-and -awe launch also reflects an external reality: The Trump administration's dogged march into the past had departed from any semblance of where America was headed. The first wave of climate progress under Biden is almost all "low-hanging fruit," "no regrets" and "we can all unite on this," because Trump's legacy was starkly at war with economic and marketplace reality, not just climate science.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Where the heck did Groundhog Day come from, anyway? I’m glad you asked! 😃</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=7-Nl4JFDLOU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7-Nl4JFDLOU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/why-biden-should-tell-these-republicans-offering-a-covid-relief-deal-to-stuff-it?ref=home" target="_blank">Why Biden Should Tell These Republicans Offering a COVID Relief Deal to Stuff It</a>, Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast, February 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ A really good explainer about health system monopolization: <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2021/2/1/22250286/joe-biden-health-care-plan-hospital-monopolies" target="_blank">What Biden should do if he’s serious about bringing down US health care costs</a>, Dylan Scott, Vox, February 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Best and worst list: <a href="https://slate.com/culture/2021/01/presidential-pets-best-ever-ranked.html" target="_blank">All the Presidents’ Pets</a>, Matthew Dessem, Slate, January 31. 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/if-the-gop-is-to-rise-from-the-ashes-it-has-to-burn-first/2021/02/01/bcc82e24-64c2-11eb-8468-21bc48f07fe5_story.html" target="_blank"><span>Opinion:<span> </span></span></a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/if-the-gop-is-to-rise-from-the-ashes-it-has-to-burn-first/2021/02/01/bcc82e24-64c2-11eb-8468-21bc48f07fe5_story.html" target="_blank">If the GOP is to rise from the ashes, it has to burn first</a>, Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, February 1, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ </span><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/02/senate-impeachment-trials-donald-trump-capitol-riot-responsibility.html" target="_blank">Why Impeachment Is Still Worth the Trouble</a>, Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, February 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ We must face up to this: <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/01/31/christian-nationalism-josh-hawley-ted-cruz-capitol-attack-column/4292193001/" target="_blank">Christian nationalism is a threat, and not just from Capitol attackers invoking Jesus</a>, Rachel S. Mikva, USA Today, January 31, 2021.</p> <p><span>⚡️ You probably heard about this NYT story. Here it is: </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/31/us/trump-election-lie.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">77 Days: Trump’s Campaign to Subvert the Election</a>, Jim Rutenberg, Jo Becker, Eric Lipton, Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Martin, Matthew Rosenberg and Michael S. Schmidt, New York Times, January 31, 2021. </p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-census-falls-apart-apportionment" target="_blank">How Trump’s Four-Year Crusade To Rig The Census Fell Apart</a>, Tierney Sneed, Talking Points Memo, February 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️Title is misleading. This article doesn’t deny reality, but does provide data to encourage optimism: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/02/other-side-catastrophe/617865/" target="_blank">Inevitable Planetary Doom Has Been Exaggerated</a>, Emma Marris, The Atlantic, February 1, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ariannarebolini/virtual-book-events-jia-tolentino-david-duchovny" target="_blank">Here Are Some Great Virtual Book Events Happening This Week: Feb. 1–7</a>, Arianna Rebolini, BuzzFeed News, February 1, 2021.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Borrowed directly from Goody’s Saturday GNR — thanks Goody! 🎩</p> <p>Are you looking for a new focus now that we have good people in charge?  <strong>Fighting voter suppression might be for you!</strong><span> </span>  Nothing is as important!</p> <p><strong>What can you do?</strong></p> <ul> <li>Contact your local representative NOW to encourage them to pass the For the People Act.  <a href="https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5950/c/10065/p/dia/action4/common/public/?action_KEY=14034&_gl=1*vjd5hn*_ga*ODk5MDQ0OTguMTYxMTkzMzQ0Ng..*_ga_DDCEP0D6KM*MTYxMTkzMzQ0NS4xLjEuMTYxMTkzNDEyMi4w&_ga=2.171487200.1387862167.1611933446-89904498.1611933446" target="_blank"><strong>This link makes it easy to do!</strong></a></li> <li>The ACLU plays a key role in filing lawsuits that often stop voter suppression.  Get<span> </span><a href="https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><strong>involved with them at this link.  </strong></a></li> <li>The League of Women Voters<strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">work year-round to combat voter suppression through advocacy, grassroots organizing, legal action and public education.<span> </span></span> <strong><a href="https://www.lwv.org/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression" target="_blank"><span> </span>You can get involved with them at this link</a></strong></li> <li>Volunteer with Black Votes Matter<a href="https://blackvotersmatterfund.org/take-action/" target="_blank"><span> </span><strong>at this link</strong></a>.   They have on the ground work in 10 states and people from other states can write postcards, phone bank, fundraise, and text.</li> <li>Spread The Vote works to get voters IDs before voting begins.  <strong><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/volunteer" target="_blank">You can volunteer with them at this link.  </a></strong></li> <li><strong>Finally, when it comes time to pass HR1 (the new voting rights act) the Democrats will have to end the filibuster to do it.<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/01/democrats-biggest-decision-nuking-filibuster/617854/" target="_blank"><span> </span>It will not pass without that</a>.  10 Republicans will not vote for it.  So, when the time comes, you will need to call, call, call and call your Senators to push them to do this. If you live in Arizona, Montana, or West Virginia, you may want to put in for some vacation time to really devote yourself to it.  It will be the only option.  Get ready!</strong></li> <li>Also, check out comments for helpful tips from Gnusies, especially Progressive Muse who keeps us updated on <a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a> campaigns.</li> </ul> <h3>⛄️ ❄️ RoundUp WindDown ❄️ ⛄️</h3> <p>That’s it from me for another week, Gnusies. There’s PLENTY more good news out there and I am going to rely on all of you to put it all in the comments!</p> <p>In the meantime, I just want to remind you all that we’ve been through an awful few years, and a horrific last year. Now that we have a capable and good president in the White House, we can breathe a little easier. Some of us may find that after holding together OK through all these long years, NOW we’re finding it hard to relax and let ourselves feel a little joy that we saved our country. </p> <p>They say that during the London Blitz, people were stoic and calm, but AFTER the blitz is when people had nightmares and experienced all the anxiety they could not let themselves dwell upon during the crisis. We are going through something similar, I think. We’ve been through hell (and it is not over yet!) and now that we can see the glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel — and we know that a good and caring man is now President — well, for some of us, that might open the floodgates for a lot of mixed emotions.</p> <p>That’s OK! It’s actually healthy and normal, even though it’s painful and disconcerting!</p> <p>It’s OK to sit with feelings of sadness or anger or relief or fear (yes, still fear because the pandemic is still with us and we are still dealing with nutcase Republicans! so of course a bit of fear is perfectly natural!).  These emotions don’t have to blindside us — let’s just expect them and also understand that emotions pass. There’s a lot to process and it’s important to include looking after our mental health in the work we are all doing to continue to rebuild the country. We all deserve to be healthy and whole again just in time to enjoy our improved health care, economy and environment!</p> <p>Take good care of yourself and those you love. Get enough rest, eat nutritious food and do try to get outdoors at least for a few minutes each day. Fresh air and a bit of nature has been scientifically PROVEN to improve our health and well being. Look after yourself so you can keep looking after your country.</p> <p>We’ve been saving the world, Gnusies, and I am proud of us!</p> <h3>📷 Your Curlygirly Cameo 📷</h3> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_7499.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/912972/large/IMG_7499.jpg?1612232923" title="IMG_7499.jpg"> <figcaption>Can you see my orange ball? I can see my ball!! I NEVER take my eyes off it!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h3>🎵 Closing Tuesday Music 🎵</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=5xvb9Udzc6M" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5xvb9Udzc6M" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) covidrelief Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Recommended Reconciliation Tuesday _2013285 Tue, 02 Feb 2021 12:00:08 +0000 Good News Roundup - Wednesday, January 27 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/1/27/2011808/-Good-News-Roundup-Wednesday-January-27 <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Good Day, Gnusies. Lots of good news again today, and plenty more to come today and every day this week. President Joe Biden plans to roll out initiatives on several subjects of urgent interest to us all <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/president-biden-plans-sign-executive-181012245.html" target="_blank">every day this week</a>. </p> <p>Let’s start with some music and then jump right in!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=maw0hxUhVjA" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/maw0hxUhVjA" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Handsome Joe is not bidin’ his time!</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/president-biden-plans-sign-executive-181012245.html" target="_blank">President Biden plans to sign executive orders each day this week that will address issues from racial inequity to climate change, report says</a>, Amanda Krause, Yahoo News, January 24, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <ul> <li> <p>Joe Biden is expected to sign additional executive orders every day this week.</p> </li> <li> <p>According to a memo obtained by The Hill, the President will first address American workers and racial equity.</p> </li> <li> <p>He'll then focus on climate change, health care, and immigration, as reported by the publication.</p> </li> </ul> <p><a href="https://www.insider.com/category/joe-biden?utm_source=yahoo.com&utm_medium=referral" target="_blank">President Joe Biden</a><span> </span>hit the ground running after being sworn into office on Wednesday, and he's not slowing down.</p> </blockquote> <p>Joe’s first full week of progressive action and reassuring competence ought to put to rest at last any concerns that he is “naive” about what we are up against:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/arms-deal-us-russia-ddd710fa6886f3888c412579d14b2ca9" target="_blank">Biden, in first call with Putin, presses on Navalny, treaty</a>, Jonathan Lemire and Matthew Lee, AP News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden had his first call with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, raising concerns about the arrest of opposition figure Alexei Navalny while pressing the Russian president on his nation’s involvement in a massive cyberespionage campaign and bounties on American troops in Afghanistan, two senior administration officials said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Biden has looked to establish a sharp break from the warm rhetoric often displayed toward Putin by his predecessor, Donald Trump. But the new president also looked to preserve room for diplomacy, telling the Russian leader that the two nations should finalize a five-year extension of an arms control treaty before it expires early next month, according to the officials, who were familiar with the call but not authorized to discuss it publicly.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Unlike his immediate predecessors, Biden has not held out hope for a “reset” in relations with Russia but has instead indicated he wants to manage differences with the former Cold War foe without necessarily resolving them or improving ties. And, with a heavy domestic agenda and looming decisions needed on Iran and China, a direct confrontation with Russia is not something he seeks.</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;"The president has ordered the intelligence community to compile a comprehensive assessment of the nature of this threat and its challenge ...so we are taking it quite seriously," Domestic Policy Director Rice says in response to @CecillaVega on combating white nationalism. &lt;a href="https://t.co/SsjIEe80b7"&gt;pic.twitter.com/SsjIEe80b7&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1354130291045117953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 26, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>"The president has ordered the intelligence community to compile a comprehensive assessment of the nature of this threat and its challenge ...so we are taking it quite seriously," Domestic Policy Director Rice says in response to @CecillaVega on combating white nationalism. <a href="https://t.co/SsjIEe80b7">pic.twitter.com/SsjIEe80b7</a></p>— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1354130291045117953?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/justice-department-to-end-federal-contracts-with-private-prisons?ref=home" target="_blank">Justice Department to End Federal Contracts With Private Prisons</a>, Scott Bixby, Daily Beast, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Included in a raft of executive orders designed to address systemic racism in the housing and criminal justice systems that Biden intends to sign on Tuesday afternoon is an order ending the Department of Justice’s use of private prisons. Such facilities, operated across the country, are<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/dollar800-million-in-taxpayer-money-went-to-private-prisons-where-migrants-work-for-pennies">a billion-dollar industry</a><span>, paid for with taxpayer money and often plagued by dehumanizing conditions for inmates, minimal training of personnel, and work conditions that former detainees liken to slave labor.</span></p> <p>“Mass incarceration imposes significant costs on our society and community, while private prisons profiteer off federal prisoners and have been found by the Department of Justice’s own inspector general to be less safe and secure,” a senior administration official told reporters on a briefing ahead of the announcement of the executive orders’ contents, calling the policy a “first step in his broader criminal justice agenda.”</p> <p>“President Biden is committed to reducing mass incarceration while making our communities safer,” the official said. “That starts with ending the federal government’s reliance on private prisons.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Limits on transfer of military equipment too: &lt;a href="https://t.co/2UAwWKQLag"&gt;https://t.co/2UAwWKQLag&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Arielle Zionts (@Ajzionts) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Ajzionts/status/1354136513425141769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 26, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Limits on transfer of military equipment too: <a href="https://t.co/2UAwWKQLag">https://t.co/2UAwWKQLag</a></p>— Arielle Zionts (@Ajzionts) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ajzionts/status/1354136513425141769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/biden-justice-department-officially-rescinds-trump-zero-tolerance-migrant-family-n1255762" target="_blank">Biden Justice Department officially rescinds Trump 'zero tolerance' migrant family separation policy</a>, Julia Ainsley and Jacob Sobaroff, NBC News, January @6, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON — In a letter to all U.S. Attorneys on Tuesday, President Joe<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/biden-immigration-bill-would-provide-more-protections-child-migrants-n1255167" target="_blank">Biden</a>'s Acting Attorney General Monty Wilkinson officially rescinded the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" program, which previously resulted in the separation of over 3,000 migrant families, according to a copy of the letter obtained by NBC News.</p> <p>The move, though largely symbolic, officially removes the policy from the Justice Department's guidance to federal prosecutors and instructs prosecutors to use discretion when prosecuting<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/biden-s-key-immigration-policies-face-uphill-battle-n1247292" target="_blank">misdemeanor border offenses</a>. ✄</p> <p><span>Wilkinson's memo is titled "Rescinding the Zero-Tolerance Policy for Offenses Under 8 USC 1235," refers to the section of the criminal code for misdemeanor offenses for crossing the border without proper documentation. Though immigrants can still be deported if they do not have documents or protections to stay in the United States, they are not typically charged in federal court and thus separated from their children.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-boost-coronavirus-vaccine-supply-5cb7cad19bb77313123042e5594e8a27" target="_blank">Biden administration to boost vaccine supply amid shortages</a>, Jonathan Drew and Zeke Miller, AP News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Covid 19 corona virus vaccine vial bottles for intramuscular injections on medical pharmaceutical industry background. Coronavirus cure manufacture, flu treatment drug pharmacy production concept." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902520/large/CovidVaccinePhoto2.jpg?1610049890" title="Covid 19 corona virus vaccine vial bottles for intramuscular injections on medical pharmaceutical industry background. Coronavirus cure manufacture, flu treatment drug pharmacy production concept."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The Biden administration is boosting purchases of coronavirus vaccines to deliver enough to protect 300 million Americans by the end of the summer, as it surges deliveries to states for the next three weeks following complaints of shortages and inconsistent supplies.</p> <p style="text-align:start">President Joe Biden announced the surge in deliveries to states Tuesday, along with the news that the federal government is purchasing an additional 100 million doses each of the two approved coronavirus vaccines. With existing purchases, the White House expects to be able to deliver enough of the two-dose regimens to states to vaccinate 300 million people.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“This is enough vaccine to vaccinate 300 million Americans by end of summer, early fall,” Biden said, calling the push to increase supply a “wartime effort.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The purchases from drugmakers Pfizer and Moderna come as the Biden administration is trying to ramp up vaccine production and states’ capacities to inject them into arms. Even more vaccine could be available if federal scientists approve a single-dose shot from Johnson & Johnson, which is expected to seek emergency authorization in the coming weeks.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/23/business/vaccines-microsoft-amazon-starbucks.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Help With Vaccination Push Comes From Unexpected Businesses</a>, Gillian Friedman and Lauren Hirsch, New York Times, January 23, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/01/21/business/us-economy-coronavirus/amazon-offers-to-help-president-biden-with-the-coronavirus-vaccine-rollout">Amazon</a><span><span> </span>wrote to President Biden on Thursday offering to assist with communication and technology. Microsoft is opening up its largely empty office campus as a vaccination center as part of a broader partnership with the State of Washington. Starbucks is assigning workers from its operations and analytics departments to help design vaccination sites, donating the labor to the same state while continuing to pay employees.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/senate-confirms-antony-blinken-biden-s-secretary-state-n1255696" target="_blank">Senate confirms Antony Blinken as Biden's secretary of state</a>, Abigail Williams, NBC News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="NATO Logo" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/328254/large/nato.JPG?1479263878" title="NATO Logo"> <figcaption>Blinken will work to repair our relationships with allies.</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Blinken has served Biden in various roles for over two decades, including as a staff member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Many of the senators who voted to support Blinken's nomination had also confirmed him for the No. 2 position at the State Department in the Obama administration, where he also served as deputy national security adviser. ✄</span></p> <p>Blinken has pledged to re-engage U.S. allies, rebuild global alliances and lead from a position of “humility and confidence,” as the U.S. reels from its own domestic turmoil and the twin health and economic crises stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. He has also promised to revitalize a State Department weakened by years of attrition and low morale.</p> <p>“American leadership still matters," Blinken said in his Senate confirmation hearing last week. "The reality is, the world, simply does not organize itself. When we're not engaged, when we're not leading, then one of two things is likely to happen: Either some other country tries to take our place, but not in a way that's likely to advance our interests and values, or maybe just as bad, no one does and then you have chaos. Either way, that does not serve the American people.”</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/biden-administration-plans-speed-effort-put-harriet-tubman/story?id=75490001&cid=clicksource_4380645_10_film_strip_icymi_hed" target="_blank">Biden administration plans to 'speed up' effort to put Harriet Tubman on $20 bill</a>, Katie Kindelan, abc News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>President Joe Biden's administration announced Monday it plans to revitalize the effort to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/democrats-protest-delay-harriet-tubman-20-bill-congress-63991394" target="_blank">put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill</a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Psaki noted the U.S. Treasury Department -- led in the<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/biden-administration" target="_blank">Biden administration</a><span><span> </span>by a woman,<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/senate-confirms-janet-yellen-treasury-secretary-making-1st-75478360" target="_blank">Janet Yellen</a><span>, for the first time in history -- has already picked back up the effort to put Tubman -- an<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/floridas-dixie-highways-renamed-honor-harriet-tubman-69099474" target="_blank">African American woman celebrated for her work</a><span><span> </span>freeing enslaved people during the Civil War -- on new $20 bills, an effort that was delayed under former President<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/donald-trump" target="_blank">Donald Trump</a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Trump's treasury secretary, Steve Mnuchin,<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/treasury-secretary-mnuchin-plans-put-harriet-tubman-20/story?id=63206762" target="_blank">told lawmakers in 2019</a><span><span> </span>that he wasn't planning on putting Tubman on the $20 bill in 2020 and that a redesign of the currency would not be issued until 2028.</span></p> <p><span>Just a few days after that hearing, House Democrats<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/democrats-protest-delay-harriet-tubman-20-bill-congress-63991394" target="_blank" title="">protested on the steps of the Treasury Department</a><span>, rallying for a congressional measure that would require $20 bills to include an image of Tubman.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Twenty-dollar bill going from Andrew Jackson to Harriet Tubman — one symbol of difference between Trump and Biden. Proposed new design below: &lt;a href="https://t.co/e6xaukiSJJ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/e6xaukiSJJ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1353775377328570371?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 25, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Twenty-dollar bill going from Andrew Jackson to Harriet Tubman — one symbol of difference between Trump and Biden. Proposed new design below: <a href="https://t.co/e6xaukiSJJ">pic.twitter.com/e6xaukiSJJ</a></p>— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1353775377328570371?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎩 Thanks, Progressive Muse 😊</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=-bgikOGb0rw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-bgikOGb0rw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💙 Democrats Are Great 💙</h3> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/look-shiny-normal-thing-joe-biden-gonna-reopen-obamacare-signups-because-emergency" target="_blank">Look! Shiny Normal Thing! Joe Biden Gonna Reopen Obamacare Signups, Because Emergency</a>, Doktor Zoom, Wonkette, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Joe Biden plans to reopen the Affordable Care Act's insurance marketplaces later this week, so people who lost their insurance due to the coronavirus pandemic can get covered again, the<span> </span><em>Washington Post</em><span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/biden-to-reopen-aca-insurance-marketplaces-as-pandemic-has-cost-millions-of-american-their-coverage/2021/01/25/ccfc2402-5e74-11eb-9061-07abcc1f9229_story.html" target="_blank">reports</a>. In addition to an executive order reopening the exchanges, Biden will also start undoing some of the changes the previous administration authorized that made Medicaid harder for people to get, according to unnamed insiders. The federal exchanges are likely to reopen quickly and then stay open for several months.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Normally, signups for individual plans through the federal Obamacare exchange are only available during the fall open enrollment period. People can also apply to enroll at other times during the year if they lose their insurance after losing a job, but they have to have paperwork proving that's the case, and many people just plain don't know that's an option. So the Biden administration will also advertise that the exchanges are open, reversing yet another of the prior president's<a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trump-axing-obamacare-ads-could-leave-1-1-million-more-without-insurance-see-failing" target="_blank"><span> </span>attacks on Obamacare.</a></p> <p style="text-align:start">Imagine that, taking steps to get healthcare to people during a pandemic!</p> </blockquote> <h4>Democrats fight for $15 Minimum Wage</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;INBOX: Democrats, backed by Schumer and Pelosi, set to introduce a bill that would raise the minimum wage to $15 over the course of 5 years.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;"Thereafter, the federal minimum wage would be indexed to median wage growth." &lt;a href="https://t.co/kKxC85BUbf"&gt;pic.twitter.com/kKxC85BUbf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1354093731851415555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 26, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>INBOX: Democrats, backed by Schumer and Pelosi, set to introduce a bill that would raise the minimum wage to $15 over the course of 5 years.<br><br>"Thereafter, the federal minimum wage would be indexed to median wage growth." <a href="https://t.co/kKxC85BUbf">pic.twitter.com/kKxC85BUbf</a></p>— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1354093731851415555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Virginia Continues to Rock the Benefits of Being Blue </h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virgina-death-penalty/2021/01/23/5d51d21a-5c02-11eb-b8bd-ee36b1cd18bf_story.html" target="_blank">Virginia moves toward banning capital punishment, in a shift for prolific death penalty state</a>, Laura Vozzella and Gregory S Schneider, Washington Post, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON - JULY 01: Scott Langley of Boston, Massachusetts, holds a banner during a vigil against the death penalty in front of the U.S. Supreme Court July 1, 2008 in Washington, DC. The Abolitionist Action Committee and the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty held the vigil to abolish the death penalty to mark the 1972 and 1976 Supreme Court rulings suspending the death penalty and later allowing executions to resume. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/291003/large/GettyImages-81789020.jpg?1471977471" title="WASHINGTON - JULY 01: Scott Langley of Boston, Massachusetts, holds a banner during a vigil against the death penalty in front of the U.S. Supreme Court July 1, 2008 in Washington, DC. The Abolitionist Action Committee and the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty held the vigil to abolish the death penalty to mark the 1972 and 1976 Supreme Court rulings suspending the death penalty and later allowing executions to resume. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Virginia,<span> </span>a<strong><span> </span></strong>state that has executed more prisoners than any other<span> </span>in the country, appears poised to eliminate the death penalty — a seismic shift for the state legislature, which just five years ago looked to the electric chair and secret pharmaceutical deals to keep the ultimate punishment alive.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The former capital of the Confederacy would become the first Southern state to abolish capital punishment if a bill on track to pass the Senate gets out of the House and over to the desk of Gov. Ralph Northam (D), who has promised to sign it.</p> </div> <div> <p>A ban in Virginia could help sweep in change across the South, according to experts who say racial disparities in the death penalty’s application have roots in the region’s history of slavery and Jim Crow segregation.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>ERA At Last?</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Since America’s founding, women have been left out of the Constitution–intentionally. Today, we are still paid less for our work &amp;amp; disproportionately suffer the burden of the COVID pandemic. With &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@POTUS&lt;/a&gt; Biden &amp;amp; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/VP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@VP&lt;/a&gt; Harris at the helm, this is the year that we ratify the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ERANow?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ERANow&lt;/a&gt;! &lt;a href="https://t.co/4AUVFFrz5n"&gt;pic.twitter.com/4AUVFFrz5n&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jackie Speier (@RepSpeier) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RepSpeier/status/1352331621668679681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 21, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Since America’s founding, women have been left out of the Constitution–intentionally. Today, we are still paid less for our work & disproportionately suffer the burden of the COVID pandemic. With <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> Biden & <a href="https://twitter.com/VP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VP</a> Harris at the helm, this is the year that we ratify the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ERANow?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ERANow</a>! <a href="https://t.co/4AUVFFrz5n">pic.twitter.com/4AUVFFrz5n</a></p>— Jackie Speier (@RepSpeier) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepSpeier/status/1352331621668679681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Democrats Will Restore DOJ</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/doj-identified-400-suspects-charged-135-capitol-riot/story?id=75497113&cid=clicksource_4380645_6_three_posts_card_hed" target="_blank">DOJ has identified 400 suspects, charged 135 in Capitol riot</a>. Alexander Mallin and Luke Barr, abc News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Acting Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin said Tuesday that<span> </span><a href="https://www.hulu.com/series/24-hours-assault-on-the-capitol-46663918-924b-41a0-a2ac-e60d8097de9b?cmp=14661&utm_campaign=OO_ABCNews_Editorial_Editorial_24Hours_PostLaunch&utm_medium=Editorial&utm_source=OO_ABCNews" target="_blank">they have identified 400 suspects</a><span> </span>and have arrested 135 to date in connection with the<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/acting-capitol-police-chief-apologizes-agency-prepared-jan/story?id=75494629" target="_blank">attack on the U.S. Capitol</a>.</p> <p>Sherwin also said that list of suspects is "growing by the hour," but cautioned they might not have probable cause at this moment to charge all 400. ✄</p> <p><span>The DOJ is still trying to "build towards" charges of seditious conspiracy and pointed to the Thomas Caldwell OathKeeper case because "it shows a militia group's actively involved in planning and breaching the Capitol," according to Sherwin.</span></p> <p><span>He said the public could see possible sedition charges "bear fruit very soon" and that there could be an uptick in assaults against police officer cases. At a previous press conference, Sherwin said the DOJ established a task force to investigate possible sedition charges.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Democrats can confirm judges too, y’all</h4> <p>Looks like there are 62 vacancies to fill already!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;A bunch of federal judges have announced they&amp;#39;re taking senior status or retiring in the week since Biden took office, more names added to the AO&amp;#39;s list online (highlighted names in both images + Hollander) &lt;a href="https://t.co/0PxVUXd99q"&gt;pic.twitter.com/0PxVUXd99q&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ZoeTillman/status/1354111920543068160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 26, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>A bunch of federal judges have announced they're taking senior status or retiring in the week since Biden took office, more names added to the AO's list online (highlighted names in both images + Hollander) <a href="https://t.co/0PxVUXd99q">pic.twitter.com/0PxVUXd99q</a></p>— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZoeTillman/status/1354111920543068160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 😊Some <em>Let’s Just Be Happy</em> Music 😊🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=a5Za8pKGT2E" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/a5Za8pKGT2E">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>💥 🚨Republicans in DIsarray! 🚨💥</h3> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/mitch-mcconnell-burn-it-down/">The 'Republican Party is imploding before our very eyes': Analyst says McConnell is digging his own grave</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>(Alex Wagner) explained that while the country is facing a slate of challenges, "we're dealing with a Republican Party that's imploding before our very eyes. We talk about the fact that Mitch McConnell be is trying to weaponize an organizing resolution. Everybody should take a moment and absorb that. This is the organizing resolution is a pro forma piece of Senate parliamentary procedure. Mitch McConnell tried to weaponize it. That, to me, indicates the Republican Party will leave no stone unturned in terms of the levers of power. If they could weaponize the Senate gym, they would. Anything that there is, they will try to use as a lever of power because they understand they are dealing with an administration and a Democratic Party that is emboldened, that is scared for the future of the country and that is willing to do a lot of really big things to save what I think they see as the country on a precipice."</p> <p>Wagner didn't say it but public opinion alone is working against the GOP. President Joe Biden enjoys a 66 percent job approval according to Gallup, while former President Donald Trump left office with the lowest polling of his presidency at 34 percent.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/26/politics/retirements-republicans-2022/index.html" target="_blank">Retirements shake up 2022 map as Republican senators eye exits</a>, Alex Rogers, Manu Raju and Ted Barrett, CNN, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 01: U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) speaks to members of the media at the Capitol December 1, 2017 in Washington, DC. Senate GOPs indicate that they have enough votes to pass the tax reform bill. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/484758/large/GettyImages-883870290.jpg?1513367731" title="WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 01: U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) speaks to members of the media at the Capitol December 1, 2017 in Washington, DC. Senate GOPs indicate that they have enough votes to pass the tax reform bill. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH)</figcaption> </figure> <p>Senate GOP leaders are bracing for more retirements within their ranks, as a handful of senior Republicans decline to commit to running again -- following four tumultuous years in the Trump era and facing a polarized political climate ahead.</p> </div> <div>Three Republican senators have already decided to retire in 2022, including Ohio Sen. Rob Portman,<span> </span><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2021/01/25/politics/rob-portman-not-running-reelection-ohio-senate-race/index.html" target="_blank">whose announcement on Monday<span> </span></a>stunned his colleagues and ignited an all-out scramble in both parties to line up candidates to fill the crucial seat.</div> <div>But in interviews with CNN, several other GOP senators sidestepped questions about their political futures or made clear they were truly undecided about running again, including Sens. John Thune of South Dakota, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Richard Shelby of Alabama.</div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rudy-cashed-in-on-the-big-lie-from-donald-trump-and-now-the-bill-may-finally-be-coming-due?ref=home" target="_blank">Rudy Cashed In on ‘The Big Lie’ From Donald Trump, and Now the Bill May Finally Be Coming Due</a>, Molly Jong-Fast, Daily Beast, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>Monday, Jan. 25, just might be remembered as the beginning of the end for wild right-wing disinformation—the day that Trumpists finally started paying a price for spreading lies that they knew to be lies.</p> <p>And not just any price, but<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/dominion-voting-systems-sues-giuliani-for-dollar1-billion-in-damages-over-baseless-election-fraud-claims"><span> </span>1.3 billion-with-a-b dollars</a>. That’s what Dominion Voting Systems is demanding in a defamation lawsuit (<a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/20463213/1-25-21-dominion-v-giuliani-complaint.pdf">PDF</a>) against Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, for his alleged role in spreading “the Big Lie” about election theft.</p> <p>I’m sure that Rudy, who says that<span> </span><a href="https://www.mediamatters.org/rudy-giuliani/rudy-giuliani-im-crazy-guy-i-really-am-im-just-really-crazy">he’s a crazy guy</a><span> </span>and that he’ll be countersuing since the suit by America’s second largest voting equipment maker is just “another act of intimidation by the hate-filled left-wing to wipe out and censor the exercise of free speech, as well as the ability of lawyers to defend their clients vigorously,” has that kind of money lying around. After all, he was paid so handsomely by the Trump campaign.<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/after-all-that-donald-trump-told-aides-not-to-pay-rudy-giuliani-for-his-legal-services-wapo">Just kidding!</a></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Dominion lawyers shopping for yachts. &lt;a href="https://t.co/7ZQ5mb5LMl"&gt;https://t.co/7ZQ5mb5LMl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Schooley (@Rschooley) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Rschooley/status/1354259595967905799?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 27, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Dominion lawyers shopping for yachts. <a href="https://t.co/7ZQ5mb5LMl">https://t.co/7ZQ5mb5LMl</a></p>— Schooley (@Rschooley) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rschooley/status/1354259595967905799?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p>What a maroon. 👀 </p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>SPeaking of Rudy</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/26/youtube-donald-trump-suspension-rudy-giuliani-462878" target="_blank">YouTube extends Trump suspension, slaps new restrictions on Giuliani</a>, Cristiano Lima, Politico, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="youtube-3157978_1920%281%29.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/572547/large/youtube-3157978_1920%281%29.jpg?1533125920" title="youtube-3157978_1920%281%29.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Video sharing giant YouTube extended its suspension of former President Donald Trump’s channel indefinitely on Tuesday and restricted Trump adviser Rudy Giuliani’s ability to make money off the platform. ✄ </p> <p><span>YouTube initially said it was giving Trump<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/12/youtube-suspends-donald-trump-458667" target="_blank">his first of three strikes before it would permanently ban him from the site</a><span><span> </span>under its content policies, suspending him for a minimum of one week. It extended that suspension last Tuesday for at least another week. But the company offered no timetable for the latest extension, making his suspension effectively indefinite. ✄</span></p> <p><span>YouTube separately said it will temporarily bar Giuliani from participating in a program that allows him to make money off his channel due to repeated violations of its policies against making false claims about widespread voter fraud in the 2020 elections, according to a spokesperson. Giuliani can reapply for the program after 30 days if the issues with his account have been resolved, the spokesperson said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Can’t Make This Sh*t Up</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/mike-pence-homeless-couch-surfing/">Mike Pence is 'homeless' and bouncing between couches of Indiana politicians: report</a>, Matthew CHapman, Raw Story, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>On Tuesday,<span> </span></span><em>Business Insider</em><span><span> </span></span><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mike-pence-home-residence-after-vice-president-indiana-2021-1" target="_blank">reported</a><span><span> </span>that former Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen do not have a permanent residence since leaving the vice president's mansion — and though Republicans close to the couple aren't exactly sure of their current living arrangements, they believe the former second couple is "couch-surfing" at the residences of various Indiana officials.</span></p> <p><span>"According to one source, the Pences are staying at the dolled-up cabin nearby that the Indiana governor uses as a retreat. If so, they'd need permission to spend the night from Pence's former lieutenant governor, who now serves as governor, Eric Holcomb," reported Tom LoBianco. "Two Republicans close to the Pences said they heard that the former second couple was staying at Pence's brother's place in Columbus. The one thing everyone is certain of is that when the Pences moved out of the vice president's residence at the US Naval Observatory in Washington, they had nowhere to go. The former second couple doesn't actually own a house."</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Fox ratings falling</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is the death knell for the GOP: viewers are turning off Fox News - it has moved from #1 to #3. The party cannot survive without propaganda. &lt;a href="https://t.co/3rqgR9x07Q"&gt;https://t.co/3rqgR9x07Q&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Amy Siskind 🏳️‍🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_Siskind/status/1354242381785264129?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 27, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is the death knell for the GOP: viewers are turning off Fox News - it has moved from #1 to #3. The party cannot survive without propaganda. <a href="https://t.co/3rqgR9x07Q">https://t.co/3rqgR9x07Q</a></p>— Amy Siskind 🏳️‍🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) <a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_Siskind/status/1354242381785264129?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Republican Theme Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=k3LYJd1WjWo" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/k3LYJd1WjWo">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🌎 Environmental News 🌍</h3> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/states-local-officials-30-2030-conservation-biden-administration_n_600f41c0c5b634dc373790be" target="_blank">State And Local Leaders Push Biden To Protect 30% Of U.S. Land, Waters By 2030</a>, Chris D’Angelo, HuffPost, January 26, 2021,</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="polinators6.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/835088/large/polinators6.jpg?1595445403" title="polinators6.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>An open letter to the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/topic/biden-administration" target="_blank">administration</a> from 450 officials representing 43 states comes as Biden’s team works to </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-executive-order-environment_n_600854afc5b6efae62fdb971"><span>dismantle</span></a><span> former President <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank">Donald Trump</a>’s legacy of rolling back environmental regulations and weakening protections for federal lands and wildlife. Biden also made a campaign promise to establish the 30% by 2030 target, which is in line with the United Nations’ </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/united-nations-draft-biodiversity-framework_n_5e1c8ecbc5b6da971d19f17d"><span>plan</span></a><span> for protecting biodiversity, and the president is expected to issue an executive order on it any day now. ✄</span></p> <div> <p><span>“Our nation is at a pivotal moment,” the letter said. “We cannot continue down the current path and watch as our nation’s land, water, and biodiversity disappears. Instead, we pledge to confront America’s nature crisis and pursue a national goal of 30x30. Together, we can and must protect nature for generations to come.”</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>The letter, organized by the left-leaning League of Conservation Voters, includes six specific actions that the signatories say should accompany the 30 by 30 goal, including upholding Native American tribal sovereignty and supporting local and private landowner conservation efforts. </span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/zero-emissions-economy-blackrock-ceos/" target="_blank">BlackRock tells CEOs to prepare for a zero-emissions economy</a>, Irina Ivanova, CBS News, January 26, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Illustration of the globe with the Americas, Africa, and western Europe in shades on light green and the oceans in aqua, with words in white, THE GREATEST THREAT TO OUR PLANET IS THE BELIEF THAT SOMEONE ELSE WILL SAVE IT." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902663/large/Screenshot_2021-01-07GreatestThreattoOurPlanetShirts.png?1610077277" title="Illustration of the globe with the Americas, Africa, and western Europe in shades on light green and the oceans in aqua, with words in white, THE GREATEST THREAT TO OUR PLANET IS THE BELIEF THAT SOMEONE ELSE WILL SAVE IT."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>"There is no company whose business model won't be profoundly affected by the transition to a net zero economy – one that emits no more carbon dioxide than it removes from the atmosphere by 2050, the scientifically-established threshold necessary to keep global warming well below 2ºC," Fink wrote in his annual<span> </span><a href="https://www.blackrock.com/corporate/investor-relations/larry-fink-ceo-letter" target="_blank">letter</a><span> </span>to CEOs on Tuesday.</p> <p>BlackRock last year made waves when it said it would put environmental sustainability at the center of its investment strategy, including divesting from fossil-fuel producers. The move by Blackrock, with a portfolio over $7 trillion, effectively pressures other finance firms to increase their own climate commitments, according to environmental advocates.</p> <p><span>"The signal is becoming undeniable to the boardroom that mainstream finance truly regards climate risk as financial risk, and it is their business to create and disclose credible transition plans," said Ben Ratner, senior director of EDF+Business, a partnership between the Environmental Defense Fund and businesses pledging to decarbonize.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Let these corps know you frown on them supporting Rs: <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/1/26/2011680/-Hit-Them-Where-It-REALLY-Hurts" target="_blank">Hit Them Where It REALLY Hurts</a>, Seraph4377, DailyKos, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ You hope to see it: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trump-idiots-so-unemployable-they-might-have-to-work-for-trump" target="_blank">Trump Idiots So Unemployable They Might Have To Work For Trump</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/gop-dumpster-fire/">Rachel Maddow: The GOP is a complete dumpster fire and Democrats are just trying to govern</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Excellent, practical article: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/01/how-joe-biden-can-reverse-republican-attacks-on-democracy/" target="_blank">How Joe Biden Can Reverse Republican Attacks on Democracy</a>, Ari Berman, MotherJones, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ “Everything you need to know about budget reconciliation”:<a href="https://slate.com/business/2021/01/budget-reconciliation-senate-everything-you-need-to-know.html" target="_blank">How Democrats Plan to Get Stuff Done Without Eliminating the Filibuster</a>, Jordan Weissmann, Slate, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yup: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/01/the-senate-has-used-the-filibuster-to-block-civil-rights-bills-for-decades-thats-another-reason-for-dems-to-ditch-it/" target="_blank">The Senate Has Used the Filibuster to Block Civil Rights Bills for Decades. That’s Another Reason for Dems to Ditch It</a>. Kara Voght, MotherJones, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Love to see it: <a href="https://www.axios.com/gop-senate-election-scenarios-823c2957-17b8-46ed-b439-88ad707cf87b.html" target="_blank">One take on the GOP's 2022 "nightmare scenario"</a>, Glen Johnson, Axios, January 26, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/francesco-boldizzoni-foretelling-end-capitalism/">How Will Capitalism End?</a> Daniel Luban, the Nation, January 26, 2021.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That will do for now — but hang on to your hats, because there will be plenty more good news where that came from! (And “where that came from” is from Joe Biden’s White House and our Democratic Congress and State Houses). </p> <p>Look for Joe’s remarks and actions to address climate change today. I think he is going to tackle healthcare tomorrow.  </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7471.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/910901/large/IMG_7471.jpg?1611725603" title="IMG_7471.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The Senate Impeachment trial has commenced and although Republicans will be as obstructive and complicit as ever, I am proud of our Democratic leadership for not giving insurrection a pass. WHat the Rs do is irrelevant. Democrats will present the case to the American people and that is important.</p> <p>We had snow here in Chicagoland yesterday and still have some sprinkling about today. Curlygirl loves snow. L.😍.V.E.S. it! She zooms around like Pressley in it, but I never manage to snap a good action picture. Lucky for me, my phone takes a half decent still photo and Curlygirly is a great little model who will stand politely (or sit) until I get the shot I want.</p> <p>I heard on the classical radio station I listen to that today is Mozart’s birthday, so I am going to close with another Hallelujah/Alleluia. This one from W A Mozart and the inimitable Kathleen Battle.</p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=2hyqPjkFEvA" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2hyqPjkFEvA" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Blinken Community Democrats Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup HealthCare JoeBiden Mozart PresidentBiden Recommended _2011808 Wed, 27 Jan 2021 12:00:21 +0000 "Out of the Mountain of Despair, the Stone of Hope" - Good News Roundup: Tuesday, January 19. https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/1/19/1776346/--Out-of-the-Mountain-of-Despair-the-Stone-of-Hope-Good-News-Roundup-Tuesday-January-19 <p>At long, long last, Gnusies, the last full day of the worst administration in American history is here and it is my honor to be writing the GNR. There is so much good news that I have had some trouble sifting through and getting it organized. What a wonderful problem to have!</p> <p>Today’s GNR title comes from a speech by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and it seems so fitting for this moment — for our joy on this last day of the maladministration is not light and easy; it is instead like a solid stone dragged out of a mountain of troubles. We can make this moment — this hard-won victory of the true silent majority — the cornerstone for a better world.  The joy is here, inside every one of us, but it may not be the ebullient, laughing kind of joy we may have been expecting. There has been — and continues to be — too much tragedy for many people to be able to feel unfettered joy.</p> <p>And yet, it is there. I imagine it’s the faintly flickering spark of hope for the future that persists in <em>we the people</em> who love truth and who love justice. We’ve been through hell and we have kept going. Now, we rest briefly and then we start building back better.</p> <p>For starters, the best news is that we are about to have a president who isn’t driven by his own ego but rather who actually takes the principle of service to country seriously, reverently and sincerely.</p> <p>Here’s how our next President spent MLK Day, the Monday before his inauguration. Pay attention (with quiet joy) to where and upon whom our incoming president focuses his attention. Not on himself, but on others:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Pool report: The motorcade arrived at Philabundance, Philly&amp;#39;s largest hunger relief organization. Biden, who is wearing a mask along with his trademark aviators, is sporting a green Philabundance ball cap. He is placing canned goods, two at a time, in each food box.&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1351208987572764677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Pool report: The motorcade arrived at Philabundance, Philly's largest hunger relief organization. Biden, who is wearing a mask along with his trademark aviators, is sporting a green Philabundance ball cap. He is placing canned goods, two at a time, in each food box.</p>— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1351208987572764677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>and Tonight:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This Tuesday, January 19 we are bringing Americans together to honor the lives lost to COVID-19.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Light a candle in your window for our nationwide moment of remembrance.&lt;a href="https://t.co/B8aQfJyJJl"&gt;https://t.co/B8aQfJyJJl&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/MTLxOb3VQA"&gt;pic.twitter.com/MTLxOb3VQA&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Biden Inaugural Committee (@BidenInaugural) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BidenInaugural/status/1350533283659083786?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 16, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This Tuesday, January 19 we are bringing Americans together to honor the lives lost to COVID-19.<br><br>Light a candle in your window for our nationwide moment of remembrance.<a href="https://t.co/B8aQfJyJJl">https://t.co/B8aQfJyJJl</a> <a href="https://t.co/MTLxOb3VQA">pic.twitter.com/MTLxOb3VQA</a></p>— Biden Inaugural Committee (@BidenInaugural) <a href="https://twitter.com/BidenInaugural/status/1350533283659083786?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Help is on the way, America.</strong> We are about to have a competent, compassionate, intelligent and organized POTUS:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Absolute must-read; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@JoeBiden&lt;/a&gt;&amp;#39;s letter to Eric Lander and his fellow scientists posing five essential questions about science and the future of the nation. &lt;a href="https://t.co/oWJEvsSjvA"&gt;https://t.co/oWJEvsSjvA&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;— Anne-Marie Slaughter (@SlaughterAM) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SlaughterAM/status/1351258129120579585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Absolute must-read; <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a>'s letter to Eric Lander and his fellow scientists posing five essential questions about science and the future of the nation. <a href="https://t.co/oWJEvsSjvA">https://t.co/oWJEvsSjvA</a>.</p>— Anne-Marie Slaughter (@SlaughterAM) <a href="https://twitter.com/SlaughterAM/status/1351258129120579585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Music for This Moment 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ci-6Au1Gnrs" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ci-6Au1Gnrs" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💥 ImPOTUS Imploding 💥</h3> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/off-the-rails-episodes-cf6da824-83ac-45a6-a33c-ed8b00094e39.html" target="_blank">Off the rails: Behind Trump's post-election meltdown</a>, Jonathan Swan and Zachary Bazu, Axios, ongoing series.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. This Axios special series takes you inside the collapse of a president.</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-election-premeditated-lie-ebaf4a1f-46bf-4c37-ba0d-3ed5536ef537.html" target="_self">Episode 1: A premeditated lie lit the fire</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-lawyers-biden-election-victory-debf79bc-750b-457b-a736-789b501d62a7.html" target="_self">Episode 2: Barbarians at the Oval</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-off-the-rails-descent-into-madness-fd169833-9052-473d-87f5-7a1a4ffffb8f.html" target="_self">Episode 3: Descent into madness</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-barr-relationship-off-the-rails-b33b3788-e7e9-47fa-84c5-3a0016559eb5.html" target="_self">Episode 4: Trump turns on Barr</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/off-the-rails-trump-cia-kash-patel-6c5ea317-43e9-48da-993f-5c7ab823c4c1.html" target="_self">Episode 5: The secret CIA plan</a></p> </blockquote> <p>Here are some details from today’s episode:</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/off-the-rails-trump-cia-kash-patel-6c5ea317-43e9-48da-993f-5c7ab823c4c1.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic&utm_content=1100" target="_blank">Episode 5: The secret CIA plan</a>, Jonathan Swan, Axios, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/427927/large/Trump_toddler_tantrum.png?1500873984" title="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>In his final weeks in office,</strong><span> </span>after losing the election to Joe Biden, President Donald Trump embarked on a vengeful exit strategy that included a hasty and ill-thought-out plan to jam up CIA Director Gina Haspel by firing her top deputy and replacing him with a protege of Republican Congressman Devin Nunes.</p> <p>The plan stunned national security officials and almost blew up the leadership of the world's most powerful spy agency. Only a series of coincidences — and last minute interventions from Vice President Mike Pence and White House counsel Pat Cipollone — stopped it.</p> <p><strong>The ploy to rattle Haspel</strong><span> </span>and perhaps intentionally trigger her resignation unfolded in a lurching and incompetent way, like a bad Monty Python skit, on one chaotic day in early December.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/18/twitters-trump-ban-is-even-more-important-than-you-thought/" target="_blank">Twitter’s Trump ban is even more important than you thought</a>, Paul Waldman, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="twitter-ban-speech.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/907281/large/twitter-ban-speech.png?1610941531" title="twitter-ban-speech.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>When he’s not president, Trump will have means of speaking to the public — he can call in to “Fox & Friends,” for instance — but he won’t be surrounded by reporters waiting to write down his every word, so he’ll have to work harder to get the attention of the press. Without Twitter, he won’t be able to speak to his people on an hourly basis, maintaining that affinity and crowding out the other Republicans who might compete for their affection.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>He could go to some upstart conservative social media platform, like Gab or Parler (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/01/13/amazon-parler-takedown/?itid=lk_inline_manual_27">if it gets restored</a>). But those don’t have the mainstream legitimacy he craves, and reporters aren’t on them, so their reach is much more limited.</p> <p><span>That means that when new events occur, Trump won’t be able to make himself the core of the story. He won’t be able to constantly remind Republicans that they need to fear him. While many of his supporters will remain loyal, others will drift away, not turning against him but just no longer thinking about him every day.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>This guy really is great:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="und" dir="ltr"&gt;💪🏽❤️ &lt;a href="https://t.co/LNzD3yF5e4"&gt;https://t.co/LNzD3yF5e4&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Matthew Cooke (@thematthewcooke) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/thematthewcooke/status/1216196057480060930?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>💪🏽❤️ <a href="https://t.co/LNzD3yF5e4">https://t.co/LNzD3yF5e4</a></p>— Matthew Cooke (@thematthewcooke) <a href="https://twitter.com/thematthewcooke/status/1216196057480060930?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🐘🚨Republicans in DIsarray 🚨🐘 </h3> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/16/us/politics/republicans-trump-leadership.html" target="_blank">Post Trump, Republicans Are Headed for a Bitter Internal Showdown</a>, Alexander Burns and Jonathan Martin, New York Times, January 16, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>As President Trump prepares to leave office with his party in <strong>disarray</strong>, Republican leaders including Senator Mitch McConnell are maneuvering to thwart his grip on the G.O.P. in future elections, while forces aligned with Mr. Trump are looking to punish Republican lawmakers and governors who have broken with him. ✄</span></p> <p>The friction is already escalating in several key swing states in the aftermath of Mr. Trump’s incitement of the mob that attacked the Capitol last week. They include Arizona, where Trump-aligned activists are seeking to censure the Republican governor they deem insufficiently loyal to the president, and Georgia, where a hard-right faction wants to defeat the current governor in a primary election.</p> <p>In Washington, Republicans are particularly concerned about a handful of extreme-right House members who could run for Senate in swing states, potentially tarnishing the party in some of the most politically important areas of the country. Mr. McConnell’s political lieutenants envision a large-scale campaign to block such candidates from winning primaries in crucial states.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/18/trump-couldnt-have-incited-sedition-without-help-fox-news/" target="_blank">Trump couldn’t have incited sedition without the help of Fox News</a>, Max Boot, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>James and Kathryn Murdoch, part of the family that controls Fox News,<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/15/media/james-murdoch-election-disinformation/index.html" target="_blank">just called on</a><span> </span>“media property owners” to stop propagating “lies” that “have unleashed insidious and uncontrollable forces.” If James’s brother, Lachlan (co-chairman of News Corp and chief executive of Fox Corporation), and father, Rupert (executive chairman of News Corp and co-chairman of Fox Corporation), won’t listen, <strong>then<span> </span><a href="https://broadbandnow.com/Cable-Providers" target="_blank">large cable companies</a><span> </span>such as Comcast and Charter Spectrum, which carry Fox News and provide much of its revenue in the form of<span> </span><a href="https://unfoxmycablebox.com/" target="_blank">user fees</a>, need to step in and kick Fox News off.</strong> And if smaller competitors such as One America News and Newsmax continue to incite viewers, they, too, should be booted off.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>But while we should expect better behavior from media executives, we shouldn’t count on it. CNN (where I’m a global affairs analyst) notes that the United Kingdom doesn’t have its own version of Fox News, because it has a government regulator that metes out hefty fines to broadcasters that violate minimal standards of impartiality and accuracy. The United States hasn’t had that since the Federal Communications Commission stopped enforcing the “fairness” doctrine in the 1980s. As president, Biden needs to reinvigorate the FCC. Or else the terrorism we saw on Jan. 6 may be only the beginning, rather than the end, of the plot against America. </p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Pelosi writes the Pentagon seeking to block Ellis from NSA job. The Defense Department is unlikely to be deterred from swearing Ellis in Tuesday, but may give Biden cover to move him out of the job later in the week. &lt;a href="https://t.co/ulzaDrWEvH"&gt;https://t.co/ulzaDrWEvH&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Julian E. Barnes (@julianbarnes) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/julianbarnes/status/1351260101278097408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Pelosi writes the Pentagon seeking to block Ellis from NSA job. The Defense Department is unlikely to be deterred from swearing Ellis in Tuesday, but may give Biden cover to move him out of the job later in the week. <a href="https://t.co/ulzaDrWEvH">https://t.co/ulzaDrWEvH</a></p>— Julian E. Barnes (@julianbarnes) <a href="https://twitter.com/julianbarnes/status/1351260101278097408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Good News Re Fascist Enablers:</h4> <p>Guess we will find out today, but 👀:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;President Trump is unlikely to issue pre-emptive pardons to his children &amp;amp; other close associates, despite weeks of internal battles among WH aides, sources tell me &amp;amp; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Santucci?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@santucci&lt;/a&gt;. At this point Trump also isn’t expected to attempt a self pardon.&lt;/p&gt;— Katherine Faulders (@KFaulders) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KFaulders/status/1351284910040952835?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>President Trump is unlikely to issue pre-emptive pardons to his children & other close associates, despite weeks of internal battles among WH aides, sources tell me & <a href="https://twitter.com/Santucci?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@santucci</a>. At this point Trump also isn’t expected to attempt a self pardon.</p>— Katherine Faulders (@KFaulders) <a href="https://twitter.com/KFaulders/status/1351284910040952835?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/embattled-census-bureau-director-steven-dillingham-resigns/2021/01/18/63c8d1aa-59bb-11eb-a976-bad6431e03e2_story.html" target="_blank">Embattled Census Bureau director Steven Dillingham resigns</a>, Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/2020-census-trump-undocumented-apportionment/2021/01/12/3b4c7388-5549-11eb-a817-e5e7f8a406d6_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_4">Reports last week<span> </span></a>from bureau whistleblowers said political appointees were pressuring staff there to release data by Jan. 15, regardless of its accuracy. Those reports prompted calls from civil rights groups and Democratic lawmakers for him to resign.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“That the Census Director would push expert, career staff to ignore quality standards to achieve an unlawful policy for an outgoing president is appalling,” said Wade Henderson, the interim president and chief executive of the Leadership Conference, and one of those calling for his resignation.</p> <p><span>Dillingham was appointed director two years ago as the bureau was embroiled in lawsuits over the Trump administration’s push to add a question about citizenship to the 2020 Census, an effort that was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court. His appointment had been set to last until the end of this year.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>And Senator Brian Schatz is calling for adjustments to the problematic 2020 Census:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW: Sen. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/brianschatz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@brianschatz&lt;/a&gt; (D-Hawaii) asks Biden to prioritize "fixing" census by:&lt;br&gt;-enacting deadline extensions&lt;br&gt;-rescinding Trump&amp;#39;s exec order on citizenship data &amp;amp; apportionment memo&lt;br&gt;- creating commission to review 1st results before delivering to Congress&lt;a href="https://t.co/ztlmhcmXDM"&gt;https://t.co/ztlmhcmXDM&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/ENDm7RMjzB"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ENDm7RMjzB&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Hansi Lo Wang (@hansilowang) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hansilowang/status/1351298942894563330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW: Sen. <a href="https://twitter.com/brianschatz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@brianschatz</a> (D-Hawaii) asks Biden to prioritize "fixing" census by:<br>-enacting deadline extensions<br>-rescinding Trump's exec order on citizenship data & apportionment memo<br>- creating commission to review 1st results before delivering to Congress<a href="https://t.co/ztlmhcmXDM">https://t.co/ztlmhcmXDM</a> <a href="https://t.co/ENDm7RMjzB">pic.twitter.com/ENDm7RMjzB</a></p>— Hansi Lo Wang (@hansilowang) <a href="https://twitter.com/hansilowang/status/1351298942894563330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Musical Interlude 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=qc2hQUTlOn4" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qc2hQUTlOn4">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3><span>😀 What is going on in Georgia?! 😀</span></h3> <p>It’s looking more and more like the elections — and Georgia flipping blue in both the presidential and the Senate elections — was much more than a hard fought squeaker. <strong><em>Something is happening in Georgia — something really good!</em></strong> The shift isn’t just in voters, it’s happening in a lot of important places. Including within Republican circles in Georgia, as they appear to be acknowledging the reality that Georgia is, in fact, a blue state that was only kept artificially “red” through voter suppression.</p> <p><span>If someone already posted this and I missed it, please accept my apologies! Hopefully it is well worth a repeat, or if you haven’t seen the two great news stories out of Georgia last week, get a load of this!:</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.wsbtv.com/news/politics/lawmakers-introduce-measure-replace-confederate-statue-us-capitol-with-statue-john-lewis/3535I32YRBBFVA4WDZNREVSWXY/" target="_blank">Lawmakers introduce measure to replace Confederate statue at U.S. Capitol with statue of John Lewis</a>, WSBTV Atlanta (staff), January 14, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Georgia lawmakers have introduced a bi-partisan measure to replace a statue of a Confederate leader and white supremacist in the National Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol with a statue of the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Georgia currently has two designated monuments to represent Georgia at the U.S. Capitol. One is of Georgia surgeon Crawford Long.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The other is a likeness of Alexander Stephens, who was the Vice President of the Confederate States during the Civil War.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Gosh, that’s too bad</h4> <p><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/trump-leaves-behind-a-georgia-gop-mired-in-conflict/2HUUKDQRRBAHNECLRDNIPESHDE/" target="_blank">Trump leaves behind a Georgia GOP mired in conflict</a>, Greg Bluestein, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The competing forces started to crystallize over the past week as a socially distanced legislative session opened under a heavily guarded Gold Dome, with establishment figures trying to sideline some of the leaders of the pro-Trump movement.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, Georgia’s No. 2 politician,<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/politics-blog/the-jolt-election-deniers-in-state-senate-stripped-of-chairmanships/KAWCPO4DDBAKLHIMQS3PJ2JKXM/">punished three fellow</a><span> </span>Republicans, demoting them from influential committee posts after they led efforts to invalidate the state’s election and promoted sham conspiracy theories.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And Kemp appealed during his annual State of the State address to put 2020 in the rearview and set aside the “ridiculous and harmful conspiracies” — a not so subtle message to those in the GOP who entered the year on a mission to “assign blame, settle old scores, and relive and relitigate 2020.”</p> </blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <h3>🌍 Brief International News Break 🌎</h3> <p>Israeli study brings more good vaccine news: </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Israel serostudy: 98% have sterilizing immunity after second Pfizer shot; they cannot infect others. &lt;a href="https://t.co/9vT5OD02xq"&gt;https://t.co/9vT5OD02xq&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kerpen/status/1351255308048470016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Israel serostudy: 98% have sterilizing immunity after second Pfizer shot; they cannot infect others. <a href="https://t.co/9vT5OD02xq">https://t.co/9vT5OD02xq</a></p>— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) <a href="https://twitter.com/kerpen/status/1351255308048470016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p>Bad news for Putin is good news for the world (much respect to Navalny — keep him in your thoughts):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: ⁦&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/navalny?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@navalny&lt;/a&gt;⁩ urges Russians to &amp;#39;take to the streets&amp;#39;. Protests scheduled for January 23rd. This is Putin’s worst nightmare coming to fruition. &lt;a href="https://t.co/Qdzv0aYZNP"&gt;https://t.co/Qdzv0aYZNP&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Bill Browder (@Billbrowder) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Billbrowder/status/1351231273814077442?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/navalny?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@navalny</a>⁩ urges Russians to 'take to the streets'. Protests scheduled for January 23rd. This is Putin’s worst nightmare coming to fruition. <a href="https://t.co/Qdzv0aYZNP">https://t.co/Qdzv0aYZNP</a></p>— Bill Browder (@Billbrowder) <a href="https://twitter.com/Billbrowder/status/1351231273814077442?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>💙 🇺🇸😊 The Biden-Harris Inauguration 😊🇺🇸💙</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The National Mall looks stunning in advance of Joe Biden’s inauguration. The nearly 200,000 state and territory flags are a celebration of the nation’s diversity. &lt;a href="https://t.co/7YSdTJ3AXy"&gt;pic.twitter.com/7YSdTJ3AXy&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— MeidasTouch.com (@MeidasTouch) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/1351411036406988801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The National Mall looks stunning in advance of Joe Biden’s inauguration. The nearly 200,000 state and territory flags are a celebration of the nation’s diversity. <a href="https://t.co/7YSdTJ3AXy">pic.twitter.com/7YSdTJ3AXy</a></p>— MeidasTouch.com (@MeidasTouch) <a href="https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/1351411036406988801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/01/18/daily-202-joe-biden-prepares-an-inaugural-address-that-calls-unity-amid-low-expectations-high-tensions/" target="_blank">Joe Biden prepares an inaugural address that calls for unity amid low expectations and high tensions</a>, James Hohmann, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="JoeBideninauguration.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/900144/large/JoeBideninauguration.jpg?1609514155" title="JoeBideninauguration.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>“What you’ll hear from President-elect Biden on Wednesday will be a reflection of a lot of what you heard from him on the campaign trail, which is that he believes we can bring this country together,” incoming White House communications director Kate Bedingfield said on Sunday. “He believes that we have to bring this country together and that a unified America is the only way that we're going to be able to tackle the massive crises that we’re grappling with. … This will be a moment where President-elect Biden will really work to try to turn the page on the divisiveness and the hatred over the last four years and really lay out a positive, optimistic vision for the country.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>“America United” is the official theme of the inaugural, and Biden’s Lincolnesque call for Americans to heed their better angels has become even more resonant in the two months since he defeated Trump. “The theme of the inauguration is about a determined democracy,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), the co-chair of the inauguration organizing committee. “We picked the theme before all of this happened, and it’s even more meaningful now.”  ✄</span></p> <p><span>Bedingfield argued that the election offered a mandate for both parties to work together. “I think that’s what Americans all across the country want,” she said on ABC’s “This Week.” “They want a government that once again is focused on doing the right thing by them and helping them in their day-to-day lives. Eighty-one million Americans voted for President-elect Biden, in part, because he was laying out a vision for this country that gets us to a place where we can work together.” </span></p> </blockquote> <h4>The Music will be Great!</h4> <p><a href="https://variety.com/2021/music/news/biden-harris-inaugural-playlist-songs-streaming-1234886600/" target="_blank">Biden-Harris Team Releases 46-Song Inaugural Playlist, Ranging From Steely Dan to SZA</a>, Chris Willman, Variety, January 15, 2021.</p> <p>Along with Lady Gaga, Jon Bon Jovi, Jennifer Lopez, Bruce Springsteen, John Legend, Foo Fighters and others, there will be a special group reunion for the occasion:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/new-radicals-reunion-biden-inauguration-parade-1115838/" target="_blank">New Radicals to Reunite for First Time in 22 Years for Biden Inauguration Parade</a>, Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, January 17, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>“If there’s one thing on Earth that would possibly make us get the band together, if only for a day, it is the hope that our song could be even the tiniest beacon of light in such a dark time,” frontman Gregg Alexander said in a statement.</p> <p>“America knows in its heart that things will get bright again with a new administration and a real plan for vaccines on the way. That’s the message of the song… this world is gonna pull through.”</p> <p>The hit also has a deep connection with the Biden family: In Joe Biden’s 2017 autobiography, <em>Promise Me, Dad</em>, he wrote that “You Get What You Give” became the family’s rallying “theme song” for son Beau Biden during his battle with cancer.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=DL7-CKirWZE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/DL7-CKirWZE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>No orange baby to spoil the day!</h4> <p>He is small and petty to the bitter end. But, honestly? I think it is GOOD NEWS that the 45s will not be present to spoil Joe Biden’s inauguration: </p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/18/politics/trump-biden-inauguration-snub/index.html" target="_blank">Trumps' snub of Bidens historic in its magnitude</a>, Kate Bennett, CNN, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div>Instead of a president and first lady, the Bidens will be greeted by the White House chief usher Timothy Harleth, according to a source familiar with the day's events and planning. Harleth, a 2017 Trump hire from the Trump International Hotel in Washington, will likely not stay on in the Biden administration, the source said, noting the role of chief usher in all probability will be filled by someone more familiar with the incoming president and first lady.</div> <div>The afternoon of Inauguration Day, then-President Biden will participate in a ceremonial wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery, joined by former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. It is during these hours the bulk of the Bidens' personal effects will be moved into the White House and unpacked, according to another source with knowledge of executive residence practices.</div> <div><span>By that time, all Trump paraphernalia will be gone, and a thorough top-to-bottom cleaning of the entire White House campus will have been completed.<span> </span></span><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2021/01/12/politics/trump-bidens-white-house-move/index.html" target="_blank">Deeper cleaning protocols were arranged</a><span><span> </span>via the White House with outside contractors, on top of regular cleaning done by staff, including specialized attention to rugs, carpets, curtains and surfaces, to tackle any possibility of lingering germs, of the Covid-19 sort or otherwise.</span> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Given that the Trumps are snubbing the Bidens, why not have the Obamas and Bushes and Clintons perform the traditional White House welcome? They will be in town. It would be bipartisan. And it would uphold the important symbolic ritual of a president welcoming his successor.&lt;/p&gt;— Helen 0️⃣2️⃣ Kennedy (@HelenKennedy) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HelenKennedy/status/1351284674665046018?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Given that the Trumps are snubbing the Bidens, why not have the Obamas and Bushes and Clintons perform the traditional White House welcome? They will be in town. It would be bipartisan. And it would uphold the important symbolic ritual of a president welcoming his successor.</p>— Helen 0️⃣2️⃣ Kennedy (@HelenKennedy) <a href="https://twitter.com/HelenKennedy/status/1351284674665046018?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p>Love this idea! Although it is probably not possible due to the security concerns forced upon the Inauguration thanks to RW extremists, a tableau like this would also show (as the tweeter points out downthread) that “Trump is stepping out of the circle of ex-Presidents of his own accord.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <h4>Watch for this tonight!</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-inauguration-joe-biden-politics-race-and-ethnicity-cultures-04ea3ee8058db2abb91f8ef811f9b0fb" target="_blank">Inaugural event to celebrate resiliency of Black Americans</a>, Kat Stafford, AP News, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="kamala-harris.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/907495/large/kamala-harris.jpg?1611005221" title="kamala-harris.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">The resiliency, culture and heroism of Black Americans and the African diaspora will be the central theme of a virtual event Tuesday that will celebrate the nation’s diversity on the eve of President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is slated to speak at the event, “We Are One,” which will also honor the historic nature of her being the first Black and South Asian woman to become U.S. vice president. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Tony Allen, CEO of the inaugural committee, said the programming will “honor acts of resilience, heroism, and commitment to unity” from Black, Latino, Asian American and Pacific Islander communities “as the coalitions that make up our nation come together to celebrate a new chapter in our history.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Reassurance about a real concern</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/armed-national-guardsman-duty-dc-vetted-fbi-amid/story?id=75322313&cid=clicksource_4380645_8_three_posts_card_hed" target="_blank">All armed National Guardsman on duty in DC vetted by FBI amid inauguration threats</a>, Luis Martinez, ABC News, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Members of the National Guard rest in the Capitol Visitors Center on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, January 13, 2021, ahead of an expected House vote impeaching US President Donald Trump. - The Democrat-controlled US House of Representatives on Wednesday opened debate on a historic second impeachment of President Donald Trump over his supporters' attack of the Capitol that left five dead.Lawmakers in the lower chamber are expected to vote for impeachment around 3:00 pm (2000 GMT) -- marking the formal opening of proceedings against Trump. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/905319/large/GettyImages-1230565568.jpg?1610559278" title="Members of the National Guard rest in the Capitol Visitors Center on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, January 13, 2021, ahead of an expected House vote impeaching US President Donald Trump. - The Democrat-controlled US House of Representatives on Wednesday opened debate on a historic second impeachment of President Donald Trump over his supporters' attack of the Capitol that left five dead.Lawmakers in the lower chamber are expected to vote for impeachment around 3:00 pm (2000 GMT) -- marking the formal opening of proceedings against Trump. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>“If there’s any indication that any of our soldiers or airmen are expressing things that are extremist views, it’s either handed over to law enforcement or dealt with the chain of command immediately,” Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, the chief of the National Guard Bureau, said in a statement.</p> <p>The civilian in charge of the Department of the Army said the vetting of guardsmen is continuous.</p> <p>"We're continually going through the process, and taking second, third looks at every one of the individuals assigned to this operation," Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy told the Associated Press on Sunday. ✄</p> <p><span>"There is no place for extremism in the military and we will investigate each report individually and take appropriate action," according to a National Guard statement.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Historical perspective: Tense Inaugural is not unprecedented</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/18/lincoln-came-presidency-treacherous-time-too-his-inauguration-can-give-us-hope/" target="_blank">Lincoln came to the presidency at a treacherous time, too. His inauguration can give us hope</a>. Ted Widmer, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="lincoln.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/902267/large/lincoln.jpg?1610021300" title="lincoln.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Lincoln’s 6 a.m. arrival in D.C. astonished a city that had wondered whether he would even survive the journey. He stepped off the back of the train with a knot of regular commuters, dressed not in disguise, as was reported, but in a short coat, hat and muffler. On the morning of his inauguration, local papers reported the possibility that “an attempt would be made to shoot Mr. Lincoln while delivering his inaugural.” Federal troops lined the streets. Across the river, in Alexandria, it was business as usual, with human beings being<span> </span><a href="https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85025007/1861-03-04/ed-1/seq-1/" target="_blank">bought and sold</a><span> </span>“at liberal prices.”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The inaugural parade was delayed by the outgoing president, who was signing pardons and bills that would protect friends in a powerful industry (guano extraction). Buchanan then arrived in his carriage to pick up the president-elect. Given a choice between a closed top and an open one, Lincoln chose the latter, so all could see him. The inaugural came off without a hitch, including Lincoln’s plea that Americans remain “friends, not enemies.” The final sentence included a plea often repeated since — that we listen to our better angels.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Such openness offered a powerful new reason to believe in politics in 1861. Even Americans who disagreed with Lincoln’s policies found his old-fashioned work ethic refreshing. Not only did he maintain the integrity of the United States, but also he did so while issuing annual messages, practicing fiscal transparency, investing in infrastructure and education, welcoming immigrants, and planning for the long-term future.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Experience <u>Matters</u>- <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/27/1986109/-Joe-Biden-is-a-strong-man-without-any-toxic-masculinity-Day-100-of-100-days-of-loving-Joe-Biden" target="_blank">Joe is every bit as great as</a> <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/27/1986109/-Joe-Biden-is-a-strong-man-without-any-toxic-masculinity-Day-100-of-100-days-of-loving-Joe-Biden" target="_blank" title="">goody told us</a></h4> <p>Here in Good News Roundup, we have been assuring our readers for months that Joe Biden’s experience and wisdom would turn out to be tremendous assets. We promised that Joe and his team were anticipating the malign actions of the Republicans and their horrible leader, and were ready for them. Not just ready, but far ahead of the keystone kops korps — months before the election, Joe and his team were quietly preparing to stand up a government if/when they won in November. Now on the eve of his inauguration, the truth of those assertions is celebrated:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/biden-s-team-transition-many-months-making-n1254570" target="_blank">For Biden's team, a transition many months in the making</a>, Mike Memoli, NBC News, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>It was November when the word "ascertainment"<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/live-blog/2020-11-13-trump-biden-transition-n1247607/ncrd1247740#blogHeader" target="_blank">entered the political lexicon</a><span><span> </span>as the bureaucratic barrier for Joe Biden's ability to formally begin his transition. But the word had been a front-of-center concern for months for his under-the-radar planning team, so much so that in late June its executive director, Yohannes Abraham, emailed an outside expert requesting a full briefing about the potential ramifications — and began developing a game plan for how the Biden team could move ahead without it. </span></p> <p>The ascertainment question, which wasn't until three weeks after Election Day, was just one of<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/biden-s-transition-challenges-grow-day-n1249339" target="_blank">several potential barriers</a><span> </span>Biden's team had to consider. Members referred to them as the "extraordinary challenges" — largely, but not exclusively, Trump-related headaches that would have to be addressed if the already-daunting task of standing up an administration in just 11 weeks would have any chance of success.</p> <p>But<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/biden-accuses-trump-political-appointees-obstructing-transition-process-n1252447" target="_blank">against those odds</a>, when Biden takes the oath in two days, he will have an administration with more key positions filled than some of his recent predecessors had and a policy process ready to tackle the multiple challenges he will face. ✄</p> <p><span>"This is the most productive transition from a personnel perspective in history, despite the late start and the challenges associated with the outgoing president," Marchick said, crediting Abraham, in particular. "The degree of difficulty of any transition is very high. But this transition had the highest. You have the various crises — economic, health — and then you layer on top of that the political uncertainty with Trump."</span></p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Warren ally for CFPB</h4> <p>Rohit Chopra is an ally of Elizabeth Warren 😊:</p> </div> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;President-elect Joe Biden will nominate Rohit Chopra to be the next director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau &lt;a href="https://t.co/jgVXwuimUF"&gt;https://t.co/jgVXwuimUF&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— POLITICO (@politico) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/politico/status/1350974165503848456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>President-elect Joe Biden will nominate Rohit Chopra to be the next director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau <a href="https://t.co/jgVXwuimUF">https://t.co/jgVXwuimUF</a></p>— POLITICO (@politico) <a href="https://twitter.com/politico/status/1350974165503848456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Janet Yellen for Treasury</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/18/us/politics/janet-yellen-treasury.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Yellen Readies Big Changes for Treasury</a>, Allen Rappeport, New York Times, January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p>Janet L. Yellen, President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s nominee for Treasury Secretary, will tell lawmakers at her confirmation hearing on Tuesday that the United States needs a robust set of fiscal stimulus measures to get the pandemic-stricken economy back on track and that now is not the time to worry about the nation’s mounting debt burden.✄</p> <p>“Neither the President-elect, nor I, propose this relief package without an appreciation for the country’s debt burden. But right now, with interest rates at historic lows, the smartest thing we can do is act big,” Ms. Yellen will say, according to a copy of her opening remarks, which were reviewed by The New York Times. ✄</p> <p><span>In recent weeks, Ms. Yellen and Wally Adeyemo, Mr. Biden’s nominee for Treasury’s deputy secretary, have been on a virtual listening tour of industry groups across Washington. According to people who participated in those sessions, the two have emphasized the need to create “equitable growth,” using the tools of the Treasury Department to combat climate change and rebuild regulatory institutions like the F.S.O.C.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 It’s a New Dawn, It’s a New Day 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=BNMKGYiJpvg" title="" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BNMKGYiJpvg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>😒 Law and Order 😒</h3> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/oath-keeper-three-percenter-arrests/2021/01/17/27e726f2-5847-11eb-a08b-f1381ef3d207_story.html" target="_blank" title="">FBI moves on alleged members of extremist groups Oath Keepers, Three Percenters</a>, Devlin Barrett and Spencer S Hsu, Washington Post. January 18, 2021.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>A heavy-metal guitarist, the alleged leader of a Colorado paramilitary training group and two self-styled militia members from Ohio have been charged with taking part in the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/capitol-rally-organizers-before-riots/2021/01/16/c5b40250-552d-11eb-a931-5b162d0d033d_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_1">riot at the Capitol</a><span><span> </span>last week, as the FBI ratchets up its investigation into the role extremist groups played in storming the building. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The Oath Keepers, the Three Percenters, and the Proud Boys, a male-chauvinist group with ties to white nationalism, have drawn particular attention from FBI agents investigating the attack on Congress, as they work to determine whether those groups organized or directed the violence to block certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory. Officials have said the Proud Boys in particular are an important focus of the FBI investigation. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Federal investigators are also accelerating efforts to determine whether the assault was planned and led by groups of people — rather than an impulsive outburst of violence — particularly because some of the men shown on video laying siege to the building were equipped with handheld radios and headsets and at times appeared to work in unison on particular objectives, investigators said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Colorado, Come Get Yer Girl</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Dozens of Colorado elected officials have written to U.S. House leaders requesting an investigation into Republican Lauren Boebert.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;"There is deep concern about her actions leading up to and during the protests that turned into a violent and deadly mob." &lt;a href="https://t.co/QFzykKhfKc"&gt;https://t.co/QFzykKhfKc&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1350563478617141253?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 16, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Dozens of Colorado elected officials have written to U.S. House leaders requesting an investigation into Republican Lauren Boebert.<br><br>"There is deep concern about her actions leading up to and during the protests that turned into a violent and deadly mob." <a href="https://t.co/QFzykKhfKc">https://t.co/QFzykKhfKc</a></p>— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1350563478617141253?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h4>NYS AG not alone in demanding NRA pay</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: A major donor to &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NRA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@NRA&lt;/a&gt; is poised to challenge key aspects of the gun group’s bankruptcy filing, in an attempt to hold executives accountable for allegedly having defrauded their members of millions of dollars to support their own lavish lifestyles &lt;a href="https://t.co/HjwkBln37n"&gt;https://t.co/HjwkBln37n&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/igorvolsky/status/1350554142188691459?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 16, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: A major donor to <a href="https://twitter.com/NRA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NRA</a> is poised to challenge key aspects of the gun group’s bankruptcy filing, in an attempt to hold executives accountable for allegedly having defrauded their members of millions of dollars to support their own lavish lifestyles <a href="https://t.co/HjwkBln37n">https://t.co/HjwkBln37n</a></p>— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) <a href="https://twitter.com/igorvolsky/status/1350554142188691459?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>😮 A Schadenfreude Play in Three Acts 😮</h3> <h4>Act i</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW - Dominion sends a legal letter to Mike Lindell, the latest in a series to people like Powell and Giuliani over their false claims about the machines &lt;a href="https://t.co/brg1Iwf4ED"&gt;https://t.co/brg1Iwf4ED&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1351263757104721923?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW - Dominion sends a legal letter to Mike Lindell, the latest in a series to people like Powell and Giuliani over their false claims about the machines <a href="https://t.co/brg1Iwf4ED">https://t.co/brg1Iwf4ED</a></p>— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) <a href="https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1351263757104721923?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Act ii</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I&amp;#39;m not going to comment on Mr. Pillow&amp;#39;s legal strategy, but as Dumb Guy Phrasings go it&amp;#39;s hard to top "100% evidence." &lt;a href="https://t.co/1cYZNSE862"&gt;https://t.co/1cYZNSE862&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Roth (@david_j_roth) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/david_j_roth/status/1351316101150502912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 18, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I'm not going to comment on Mr. Pillow's legal strategy, but as Dumb Guy Phrasings go it's hard to top "100% evidence." <a href="https://t.co/1cYZNSE862">https://t.co/1cYZNSE862</a></p>— David Roth (@david_j_roth) <a href="https://twitter.com/david_j_roth/status/1351316101150502912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Act iii</h4> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;CONFIRMED: &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BedBathBeyond?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@BedBathBeyond&lt;/a&gt; has dropped MyPillow in light of the CEO, Mike Lindell, playing a part in the insurrection last week. &lt;a href="https://t.co/3LJ8rnSPOO"&gt;https://t.co/3LJ8rnSPOO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Sleeping Giants (@slpng_giants) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/slpng_giants/status/1351361506491854853?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>CONFIRMED: <a href="https://twitter.com/BedBathBeyond?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BedBathBeyond</a> has dropped MyPillow in light of the CEO, Mike Lindell, playing a part in the insurrection last week. <a href="https://t.co/3LJ8rnSPOO">https://t.co/3LJ8rnSPOO</a></p>— Sleeping Giants (@slpng_giants) <a href="https://twitter.com/slpng_giants/status/1351361506491854853?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;oh no &lt;a href="https://t.co/99OPL5IYhu"&gt;https://t.co/99OPL5IYhu&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FPWellman/status/1351383605977767939?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>oh no <a href="https://t.co/99OPL5IYhu">https://t.co/99OPL5IYhu</a></p>— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) <a href="https://twitter.com/FPWellman/status/1351383605977767939?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Bonus-Epilogue</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Free market does not like anti-US insurrections. &lt;a href="https://t.co/9v2q39IGkC"&gt;https://t.co/9v2q39IGkC&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Rothschild (@DavMicRot) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DavMicRot/status/1351380419984420865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;January 19, 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Free market does not like anti-US insurrections. <a href="https://t.co/9v2q39IGkC">https://t.co/9v2q39IGkC</a></p>— David Rothschild (@DavMicRot) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavMicRot/status/1351380419984420865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2021</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Pillowtalk 🎶 </h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=NA2X1040_gY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NA2X1040_gY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Too long a list to adequately quote — read it! <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/president-biden-first-100-days-actions/" target="_blank">What Joe Biden has promised to do on "Day One" and in his first 100 days as president</a>, Bo Erickson, CBS News, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Very good news for women’s rights: <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/biden-readies-sweeping-rollback-trump-era-abortion-crackdown-n1254552" target="_blank">Biden readies sweeping rollback of Trump-era abortion crackdown</a>, Chloe Atkins, NBC News, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yes, please! <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/get-ready-for-reality-grounded-white-house-press-briefings/2021/01/18/43eb1d3c-58eb-11eb-8bcf-3877871c819d_story.html" target="_blank">Get ready for reality-grounded White House press briefings</a>, Karen Tumulty, Washington Post, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.11alive.com/article/news/history/mlk-quotes-to-remember/85-f3b29005-e696-4fef-b2e9-c26f229406cd" target="_blank">Famous Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes</a>, 11Alive staff, 11Alive.com, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️<span><a href="https://www.pressherald.com/2021/01/15/bill-nemitz-long-in-the-making-a-moment-of-truth-for-susan-collins/" target="_blank">Bill Nemitz: Long in the making, a moment of truth for Susan Collins</a>, Bill Nemitz, The Portland Press Herald, January 15, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️Go Joe!: </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/donald-trump-2650018068/">Trump tried to lift COVID restrictions — but Biden transition shut it down</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, January 18, 2021.</p> <p><span>⚡️ Looking ahead: </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/18/opinion/biden-covid-19-plan.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">Biden’s Covid-19 Plan Is Maddeningly Obvious</a>, Ezra Klein, New York Times, January 18, 2021.</p> <p><span>⚡️ </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/01/18/957322501/3-questions-and-the-emerging-answers-about-covid-19-vaccine-protection" target="_blank">3 Questions And The Emerging Answers About COVID-19 Vaccine Protection</a>, Richard Harris, NPR News, January 18, 2021.</p> <p><span>⚡️ <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/2984f010-3496-4859-875d-deb23edcd2ba" target="_blank">How Covid-19 rebooted retirement</a>, Claer Barrett, Financial Times, January 14, 2021.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Not quite accurate (it already was): </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-remade-the-gop-into-the-doomed-party-of-white-identity?ref=home" target="_blank">Trump Remade the GOP Into the Doomed Party of White Identity</a>, Matt Lewis, Daily Beast, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trumpland-grifters-grease-the-skids-for-pardon-dump" target="_blank">Nothing Grifty About Trump's Coming Pardon-Palooza, No He'd Never!</a>, Liz Dye, Wonkette, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Go for it, Donny: <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/01/18/trump-self-pardon-impossible-column/6630712002/" target="_blank">The self-pardon trap that may catch our rogue President Trump</a>, Philip Allen Lacovara, Jeffrey Abramson, and Dennis Aftergut, USA Today, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ He’s a witness: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/01/giuliani-not-representing-trump-impeachment-trial.html" target="_blank">Giuliani Won’t Represent Trump at Impeachment Trial After All</a>, Daniel Politi, Slate, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️He’s STILL after a parade! (this f*cker!): <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-leaving/" target="_blank">Pentagon confirms it will not hold traditional farewell ceremony for Trump as president vies for military-style parade: reports</a>, Daniel Villarreal, Raw Story, January 18, 2021.</p> <p>⚡️ Smart kid! <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/18/us/snowmobile-missing-south-cariboo-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">A missing teen snowmobiler built a snow cave to survive until rescuers arrived</a>, CNN, January 18, 2021.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Well, Gnusies, I am actually forcing myself to stop here because this roundup has already gotten so long I am afraid it will be too long! There is more good news out there — whole categories of good news I just couldn’t squeeze into this already long roundup (good vaccine news, good polling news, more good justice news and insurrection arrest news. Seriously, there is a TON of good news right now!) — but which I know my co-writers will cover through the week and commenters will include in the Best Comment Section on the Internet™.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="blue-black poodle dog lying on hardwood floor looking off to the right." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/907690/large/IMG_7455.jpg?1611037706" title="blue-black poodle dog lying on hardwood floor looking off to the right."> <figcaption>Mama says rest a little, let ourselves feel the relief and joy.</figcaption> </figure> <p>I almost cannot believe that the worst of our long national nightmare is about to come to an end. Tomorrow at noon, we will be rid of the worst “president” in the nation’s history. But the work is far from over. We have learned how very fragile democracy can be and how vigilant we must be to protect it. The work to restore and strengthen civil rights, reduce income inequality and build a better future for all Americans won’t end tomorrow. In a way, it will just be beginning. Conservatives have played a long game to entrench white male Christian supremacy and they came so close to complete domination — they won’t give up the power they have without a fight.</p> <p>So, for today and tomorrow, let’s rest and allow ourselves to feel the relief and joy that the very worst of times may be behind us. And then let’s get back to the job of being fully participating citizens in the oldest constitutional democratic republic on earth. It’s a fine, strong experiment in self-government. It’s human to stumble and fall down, but we also have the strength and resilience to get back up again. With Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and their excellent, experienced team to lead us, I believe we are stepping into a new era of human progress. We did this, together. </p> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies! </h2> </div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=LRP8d7hhpoQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="315" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LRP8d7hhpoQ" data-width="560">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Covidvaccine Gnusies Gnuville GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Inauguration JoeBiden Justice KamalaHarris Recommended _1776346 Tue, 19 Jan 2021 12:00:24 +0000 Good News Roundup - A Twelfth Night Miracle? https://www.dailykos.com/story/2021/1/5/2005421/-Good-News-Roundup-A-Twelfth-Night-Miracle <p>I feel like I was meant to write this GNR today. I’ve seen the Georgia runoffs referred to as “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/black-voters-georgia-runoff/2021/01/01/3ae4c802-4b92-11eb-a9f4-0e668b9772ba_story.html" target="_blank"><strong>twin</strong> runoff elections</a>” for the two Senate seats a bunch of times. I’ve read about the hope and need for an electoral “miracle” — twin victories for Dems? <em>In Georgia? That would take a miracle </em>‼️ When I looked at the GA runoff date and then at my writing schedule and saw that indeed January 5th WAS to be my regular Tuesday GNR day, I knew the stars were aligning.  I am just the person to bring the Good News Roundup this morning because I know that highly unlikely “miracles” <em>can</em> happen. </p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Georgia georgiarunoffs Gnusies Gnuville GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Miracles Recommended vivaldi Winter _2005421 Tue, 05 Jan 2021 12:00:08 +0000 Last full moon of 2020 and 21 Days to President Biden! GoodNewsRoundup for Wednesday, December 30 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/12/30/1999598/-Last-full-moon-of-2020-and-21-Days-to-President-Biden-GoodNewsRoundup-for-Wednesday-December-30 <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!  Just 21 days til we have a new President! And there is just one day left in this most terrible of years — good riddance, 2020!</p> <p>The miserable Pretender is <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/29/politics/donald-trump-mar-a-lago-renovations/index.html" target="_blank">sulking</a> in Palm Beach while members of his party abandon him one by one. The Biden transition continues apace — yes, they are being obstructed and no it won’t stop Joe and Kamala from pressing forward. This is where Joe’s experience will come in handy so much! Our new President-elect and VP-elect have got this, Gnusies. It isn’t easy, but they knew what to expect and were ready. I am thankful that we elected two people to the highest offices in the land who care about us and our country.</p> <p>We have a vaccine, and although of course the current administration is incompetently effing up the rollout, the incoming Biden administration is already preparing, so things will start to improve very quickly. Joe plans to deliver <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/08/politics/biden-100-million-vaccines-100-days/index.html" target="_blank">100 million vaccinations in 100 days</a>. That’s a big commitment and I have <em>no doubt</em> that he will fulfill it. Meanwhile, as trump and his accomplices rant and rage ineffectually, the transition will happen. In 21 days, Joseph R Biden will be inaugurated and the worst days will be behind us, at last. We will have huge challenges ahead, but the worst thing of all — the fascist psychopath in the White House — will be gone. That’s the best news of all.</p> <p>Before we get to the good news, let’s kick off today’s GNR with some appropriate music — because things ARE getting better!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=xC7w9N69eZg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xC7w9N69eZg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💉 Health News 💉 </h3> <p>Concern about Covid-19 has naturally been dominating health news all year, but before the pandemic there was another major concern that has not gone away: antibiotic resistant bacteria. Back in the late 1980s, doctors and medical researchers first started to seriously be concerned about growing numbers of bacterial strains that were resistant to nearly all of our available antibiotics. In the last decade this problem has become serious enough that the WHO declared this resistance to available drugs to be one of the top threats to global public health.</p> <p>But now we have good news! There is a potential new class of antibiotic drugs which may be effective!</p> <p><a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201223125759.htm" target="_blank">New class of antibiotics active against a wide range of bacteria</a>, Science Daily, December 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Wistar Institute scientists have discovered a new class of compounds that uniquely combine direct antibiotic killing of pan drug-resistant bacterial pathogens with a simultaneous rapid immune response for combatting antimicrobial resistance (AMR). These finding were published today in<span> </span><em>Nature</em>.</p> <div> <p>The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared AMR as one of the top 10 global public health threats against humanity. It is estimated that by 2050, antibiotic-resistant infections could claim 10 million lives each year and impose a cumulative $100 trillion burden on the global economy. The list of bacteria that are becoming resistant to treatment with all available antibiotic options is growing and few new drugs are in the pipeline, creating a pressing need for new classes of antibiotics to prevent public health crises.</p> <p>"We took a creative, double-pronged strategy to develop new molecules that can kill difficult-to-treat infections while enhancing the natural host immune response," said Farokh Dotiwala, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., assistant professor in the Vaccine & Immunotherapy Center and lead author of the effort to identify a new generation of antimicrobials named dual-acting immuno-antibiotics (DAIAs).</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>And More Good Research News</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/health-stories-missed-2020-093042581.html" target="_blank">From Ebola to Alzheimer's disease: Here are scientific feats overshadowed by Covid in 2020</a>, Erika Edwards, Yahoo News, December 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>One health story dominated headlines for virtually all of 2020: the coronavirus pandemic.</p> <p>But while Covid-19 did slow down medical research in other areas, the science didn't stop. Researchers rolled out new ways to cope with common diseases, and even a treatment for another feared virus.</p> <p>Here are the accomplishments that may have flown under the public's radar in 2020.</p> <p>(click <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/health-stories-missed-2020-093042581.html" target="_blank">link</a> for the details)</p> </blockquote> <h4>Another vaccine approved in UK</h4> <p>This is the one that is cheaper, easier to store and mass produce!</p> <p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/health-55280671" target="_blank">Covid-19: Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine approved for use in UK</a>, James Gallagher, BBC News, December 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>It marks a major turning point and will lead to a massive expansion in the UK's immunisation campaign, which is aimed at getting life back to normal.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The UK has ordered 100 million doses from the manufacturer AstraZeneca - enough to vaccinate 50 million people. ✄</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>But the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine will lead to a significant increase in vaccination as it is cheap and easy to mass produce.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Crucially it can be stored in a standard fridge - unlike the Pfizer-BioNTech jab which needs ultra cold storage at -70C - so it will be far easier to get the Oxford vaccine to care homes and GP surgeries.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div> <ul> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Proud of My Guv, JB Pritzker (D-Illinois)</h4> <p>JB Pritzker flies under the radar nationally. He hasn’t had much cable TV coverage, but under his leadership Illinois is holding its own through the case surge, with a measured and determined response to the pandemic. In the spring, it was JB who secretly flew PPE supplies in dark of night for our healthcare workers, thwarting the evil R feds who had been confiscating other states’ supplies. He arranged in advance to <a href="https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/first-shipment-of-coronavirus-vaccine-arrives-in-illinois-pritzker-says/2394263/" target="_blank">take delivery of Covid-19 vaccines</a> so that once the approval came, Illinois could immediately put its vaccination plan into action. And now, JB has quietly gotten vaccine distribution out there to front line workers — making Illinois an island of better response in a sea of vaccination disfunction caused by the incompetent federal administration. I am proud of my governor! (see below: I don’t mean this as a slam against Gov Cuomo — I could not seem to imbed this tweet without the preceding tweet — sorry, NYgnusies! I think Gov Cuomo has been pretty great, too!):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;As a comparison, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GovPritzker&lt;/a&gt; and the State of Illinois are doing an awesome job of distributing nearly everything we&amp;#39;ve received! &lt;a href="https://t.co/8Z0WUHxboO"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8Z0WUHxboO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Craig Garthwaite (@C_Garthwaite) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/C_Garthwaite/status/1343658013417156610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>As a comparison, <a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GovPritzker</a> and the State of Illinois are doing an awesome job of distributing nearly everything we've received! <a href="https://t.co/8Z0WUHxboO">pic.twitter.com/8Z0WUHxboO</a></p>— Craig Garthwaite (@C_Garthwaite) <a href="https://twitter.com/C_Garthwaite/status/1343658013417156610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Our President-Elect is preparing to Hit the Ground Running</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/29/biden-coronavirus-response-coordinators-451996" target="_blank">Biden picks 3 coordinators for Covid-19 response</a>, Dan Diamond, Politico, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>President-elect Joe Biden is expanding his White House Covid-19 Response team, tapping three senior officials to coordinate vaccine, testing and supply chain strategy in an announcement first shared with POLITICO.</p> <p>The officials are set to play a major role in Biden's response to the worsening pandemic, which the president-elect has made his top priority ahead of taking office. Nearly 20 million Americans have been diagnosed with Covid-19, and more than 336,000 have died with the virus. Biden's team has repeatedly criticized the Trump administration for not doing more to speed shots, tests and supplies in recent weeks. ✄</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="US President-elect Joe Biden speaks on the latest unemployment figures at The Queen in Wilmington, Delaware on December 4, 2020. - US President-elect Joe Biden said that Americans face a "grim" employment picture and will need immediate help to get through the coming months as Covid-19 cases surge. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/890286/large/GettyImages-1229945733.jpg?1607116608" title="US President-elect Joe Biden speaks on the latest unemployment figures at The Queen in Wilmington, Delaware on December 4, 2020. - US President-elect Joe Biden said that Americans face a "grim" employment picture and will need immediate help to get through the coming months as Covid-19 cases surge. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption>President-elect Joseph R Biden</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Additionally, Biden picked Tim Manning, who served as deputy administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for all eight years of the Obama-Biden administration, to be the nation's new Covid-19 supply coordinator. Manning currently advises the Pacific Disaster Center, which is overseen by the University of Hawaii, and is on faculty at Georgetown University. State officials and public health advocates have criticized the Trump administration for shortages of protective equipment, tests and other supplies during this year's Covid-19 response, and Biden advisers said that Manning will be empowered to head off future challenges.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-coronavirus--surge-speech/2020/12/29/47134920-49d3-11eb-a9f4-0e668b9772ba_story.html" target="_blank">Biden calls Trump pandemic effort a ‘travesty’ and vows extensive federal response to coronavirus</a>, John Wagner, Amy B Wang and Chelsea Janes, Washington Post, December 29, 2020.</p> <h4>SPeaking of under the radar...</h4> <p><a href="https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/12/29/the-new-surprise-billing-law-is-an-imperfect-win/" target="_blank">The New Surprise Billing Law Is an Imperfect Win</a>, Daniel Block, Washington Monthly, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="Medical-Bills-2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/412822/large/Medical-Bills-2.jpg?1497387346" title="Medical-Bills-2.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>After nearly two years of fighting, false starts, and near misses, Congress has finally banned health care’s most obviously exploitative practice. Starting in 2022, it will be illegal for doctors and hospitals to send surprise bills: charges to insured patients from out-of-network providers that the patient could not choose, like anesthesiologists and emergency room physicians. Congressman Frank Pallone Jr., the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/surprise-medical-bill-stimulus-package/2020/12/21/51cffdae-43a2-11eb-a277-49a6d1f9dff1_story.html" target="_blank">told</a><span><span> </span>the<span> </span></span><em>Washington Post<span> </span></em><span>that the law is “the biggest victory for consumers since the Affordable Care Act.” It is “now up to the provider and the insurance to figure this out,” he said. “It’s not the consumers’ problem.” ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:left">Patient advocates are happy the bill passed. But its design tempers their enthusiasm. “I don’t think this is a terrible approach,” Jen Taylor, the senior director of federal relations for Families USA, told me. “It just leaves room for certain folks to figure out how to bill more.” She worried that, over time, the legislation won’t fully hold costs down. Much like in New York, the excess charges would simply be socialized among the broader patient population.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Other analysts are more optimistic. “The legislation would still likely reduce premiums by a small amount,” Loren Adler, a health policy expert at the Brookings Institute, told me. He pointed out that part of what makes surprise bills so destructive is that they skew the balance of power away from consumers and their insurers and toward providers in cost negotiations. Surprise bills, he told me, “piss enrollees off so much, piss patients off so much, that they then complain to their insurer or employer, who are then willing to pay even more.” That ill-gotten leverage will soon dissipate.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 How Can We Miss You If You Won’t Go? 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=_QybcBH6rSw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/_QybcBH6rSw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>👎 Final Days of 45 — and 21 Days to a New, Better America! 🗽</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/12/29/the-final-desperation-of-our-psychopath-in-chief-how-bad-will-it-get/" target="_blank">The final, desperate days of our psychopath in chief: How bad will it get?</a>, Alan D. Blotcky, Salon, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Trump is on a collision course with self-destruction. He is the Titanic and everyone around him is beginning to jump ship. Former Attorney General Bill Barr has jumped ship. Evangelist Pat Robertson has jumped ship. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has jumped ship. Even Vice President Mike Pence has one foot in the water. It is just a matter of time before Trump wakes up in an empty room of silence and gold toilets. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Democracy will prevail. Trump will be gone on Jan. 20. He will not attend Joe Biden's inauguration because he cannot tolerate the embarrassment of his loss. He cannot even fake humility and kindness for an hour or two for the good of the country. He will slither away through the back door of the White House, all the while proclaiming victory and affirming his exalted status as the best president ever. After all, he has to maintain his "idealized self" of indispensable greatness.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Historians will be extremely unkind to Trump. He will be seared by presidential scholars. He will deserve all their harshness and condemnation. He will likely be remembered as the worst president in U.S. history. His legacy will be one of incompetence, cruelty and corruption. If he thinks he is humiliated now, wait until his supporters wake up and finally reject him for being such a failed, miserable and treasonous leader.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I will not consent to a vote on the bad defense bill - which should stay vetoed - unless the Senate votes on $2k &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/covid?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#covid&lt;/a&gt; relief for working people&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1344005218141417496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 29, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I will not consent to a vote on the bad defense bill - which should stay vetoed - unless the Senate votes on $2k <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/covid?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#covid</a> relief for working people</p>— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1344005218141417496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 29, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>(speaking of Rs jumping ship… Hawley is awful and no doubt has an ulterior motive, but he actually joined forces with Bernie — again! lol)</p> </blockquote> <p>And if you’re still worried that they will pull off some sort of stunt on January 6:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/12/29/sorry-president-trump-january-6-is-not-an-election-do-over/" target="_blank">Sorry, President Trump. January 6 is not an election do-over.</a> Edward B Foley, Washington Post, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Never mind that Trump has no evidence to support his assertion that massive fraud is what caused Joe Biden to win the popular vote in enough states for an electoral college victory. The critical point is this: Even if there were such proof, the Jan. 6 session is not the place to present it.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The Constitution and the Electoral Count Act of 1887 intended the Jan. 6 session to address a narrow question: Are the electoral votes received by Congress ones cast by electors the states appointed?</p> </div> <div> <p>This limited inquiry requires Congress simply to authenticate the documents. Remember, these rules were formulated in the 19th century, when there was a realistic risk of counterfeit papers pretending to be official. Thus, the 1887 act<span> </span><a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/3/6">requires</a><span> </span>a state’s governor to affix “the seal of the State” to the certificate confirming the appointment of electors. ✄</p> <p><span>This is the opposite of Trump allies’ feverish imaginings about using the session as an opportunity for congressional fact-finding on whether fraud or error tainted the tally of the state’s popular vote.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Democrats and allies are working hard to hold Republicans’ feet to the fire on the NDAA <em>and</em> covid disaster aid, and it’s driving the pResident mad(der):</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-donald-trump-media-social-media-elections-1f623a6e996dd56fdc238eb02b2d4f24" target="_blank">Trump lashes out at GOP after override vote on defense bill</a>, Matthew Daly, AP News, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., wants a vote as soon as Wednesday, but Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders objected to moving ahead until McConnell allows a vote on a Trump-backed plan to increase COVID-19 relief payments to $2,000.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Let me be clear: If Sen. McConnell doesn’t agree to an up or down vote to provide the working people of our country a $2,000 direct payment, Congress will not be going home for New Year’s Eve,″ said Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats. “Let’s do our job.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said after the House vote that lawmakers have done their part to ensure the NDAA becomes law “despite the president’s dangerous sabotage efforts.″</p> <p style="text-align:start">Trump’s “reckless veto would have denied our service members hazard-duty pay,″ removed key protections for global peace and security and ”undermined our nation’s values and work to combat racism, by blocking overwhelmingly bipartisan action to rename military bases,″ Pelosi said.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Not A Moment Too Soon</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/29/first-stimulus-checks-sent-tuesday-452209" target="_blank">First stimulus checks could hit bank accounts tonight</a>, Bernie Becker, Politico, December 29, 2020</p> <blockquote> <p>Americans could start receiving the latest round of economic stimulus payments Congress recently approved in a matter of hours, according to the Treasury Department and the IRS, despite continued wrangling over the ultimate size of the payments.</p> <p>The agencies said direct deposits for the latest round of rebates, which max out at $600 per person, could start landing in people’s bank accounts Tuesday night and will continue being sent out into next week. The government will start sending paper checks on Wednesday.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice News ⚖</h3> <p>Justice news we have been waiting for:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trump-tax-returns-new-york-investigation/2020/12/29/11c43a38-43c8-11eb-b0e4-0f182923a025_story.html" target="_blank">N.Y. prosecutor hires forensic accounting experts as Trump criminal probe escalates</a>, Shayna Jacobs and Jonathan O’Connell, Washington Post, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="NEW YORK, NY - MAY 13: The Statue of Liberty is viewed from the rooftop of the new Statue of Liberty Museum, May 13, 2019 on Liberty Island in New York City. The new museum that celebrates the history and legacy of the Statue of Liberty will open on May 16. The museum is part of a $100 million beautification project for Liberty Island, funded by the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/886750/large/GettyImages-1143750055.jpg?1606163055" title="NEW YORK, NY - MAY 13: The Statue of Liberty is viewed from the rooftop of the new Statue of Liberty Museum, May 13, 2019 on Liberty Island in New York City. The new museum that celebrates the history and legacy of the Statue of Liberty will open on May 16. The museum is part of a $100 million beautification project for Liberty Island, funded by the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>NEW YORK — The Manhattan District Attorney's Office has retained forensic accounting specialists to aid its criminal investigation of President Trump and his business operations, as prosecutors ramp up their scrutiny of his company's real estate transactions, according to people familiar with the matter.</p> </div> <div> <p>District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. opened the investigation in 2018 to examine alleged hush-money payments made to two women who, during Trump’s first presidential campaign, claimed to have had affairs with him years earlier. The probe has since expanded, and now includes the Trump Organization's activities more broadly, said the people familiar with the matter. Vance’s office has suggested in court filings that bank, tax and insurance fraud are areas of exploration.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Vance has contracted with FTI Consulting to look for anomalies among a variety of property deals, and to advise the district attorney on whether the president’s company manipulated the value of certain assets to obtain favorable interest rates and tax breaks, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity because the matter remains highly sensitive. The probe is believed to encompass transactions spanning several years.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-plans-police-reform/2020/12/22/d4812c9c-3bcc-11eb-98c4-25dc9f4987e8_story.html" target="_blank">Under Biden, the Justice Department will again police the police</a>, Robert Klemko, Washington Post, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Justice Department under President Barack Obama<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-releases-investigative-findings-east-haven-connecticut-police-department">described the discriminatory pattern</a><span><span> </span>of traffic stops and a host of other practices by the East Haven Police Department as unconstitutional policing. Court-negotiated changes came alongside charges for four officers, each of whom did prison time.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="DOJ.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/657536/large/DOJ.png?1553467085" title="DOJ.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The five-year path to completion had the effect of reversing a long legacy of discrimination and vaulting the department into the ranks of the most progressive in Connecticut, local activists, advocates, officers and early opponents of the department said.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>But using consent decrees as<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/the-trump-administration-abandoned-obama-era-police-reform-efforts-now-critics-want-them-restored/2020/06/01/4615bc1c-a413-11ea-b473-04905b1af82b_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_11">an instrument to restructure police departments was largely abandoned by the Trump administration</a>, which broadly rolled back civil rights efforts by the Justice Department. The Obama administration opened 25 “pattern or practice” investigations of police departments compared to one under Trump.</p> <p><span>In January, the department is expected to resume policing the police as President-elect Joe Biden has said he intends to make civil rights a major focus of his administration. It comes at a moment when scrutiny of American policing has never been higher.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>illinois</h4> <p>Evanston, IL: <span style="text-align:start">A Chicago suburb has committed itself to ending “structural racism and achieve racial equity” by tapping into Illinois’s newly legalized cannabis industry. Lawmakers in Evanston, Illinois, overwhelmingly approved a measure in November that will use recreational cannabis tax revenue to fund reparations for the city’s black residents. The resolution takes effect January 1, 2021. </span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">With Evanston, Illinois leading the way, Asheville NC and Chicago have also passed similar resolutions. Likewise, the state of California has committed to formulating a plan for reparations.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=8bucYsb03qE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8bucYsb03qE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>D.C.</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/dc-circuit-revives-bid-by-democrats-to-get-trump-hotel-lease-records/" target="_blank">DC Circuit Revives Bid by Democrats to Get Trump Hotel Lease Records</a>, Brad Kutner, Courthouse News Service, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Judges Or Auctioneer Gavel On The Dollar Cash Background, Top View, Close-Up. Concept For Corruption, Bankruptcy, Bail, Crime, Bribing, Fraud, Auction Bidding, Fines" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/848713/large/iStock-522800826.jpg?1598475543" title="Judges Or Auctioneer Gavel On The Dollar Cash Background, Top View, Close-Up. Concept For Corruption, Bankruptcy, Bail, Crime, Bribing, Fraud, Auction Bidding, Fines"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A federal appeals court has sided with more than a dozen members of Congress in their attempt to get their hands on details about the Trump Organization’s lease on the luxury hotel located in the capital’s historic Old Post Office building.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In an<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/dc-cir-gsa.pdf" target="_blank">opinion</a><span> </span>released Tuesday morning, the D.C. Circuit held that the lawmakers have standing to pursue their case against the head of the General Services Administration.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In a<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/democrats-sue-agency-access-trump-dc-hotel-lease-records/" target="_blank">complaint filed</a><span> </span>in Washington federal court in 2017, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee claimed President Trump has refused to divest his ownership interest in his namesake Washington hotel “even though the lease explicitly prohibits any ‘elected official of the government of the United States’ from taking or sharing in any benefit that ‘may arise’ from the lease.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The president is a partner in Trump Old Post Office LLC, with his daughter Ivanka and sons Donald Jr. and Eric.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Georgia</h4> <p>Awesome seems to run in Stacy Abrams’s family!</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/judge-blocks-conservative-groups-residency-challenges-to-4000-georgia-voters" target="_blank">Judge Blocks Conservative Group’s Residency Challenges To 4,000 Georgia Voters</a>, AP via Talking Points Memo, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>COLUMBUS, Ga. (AP) — A federal judge ordered local election officials in Georgia to allow voting by more than 4,000 people whose eligibility was being challenged ahead of next week’s runoff elections for the U.S. Senate.</p> <p>U.S. District Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner blocked election boards in Ben Hill County and Muscogee County, which includes Columbus, from forcing large numbers of voters to prove their residency before casting ballots in the runoffs. The judge ruled that denying so many voters access to the ballot so close to an election would likely violate the National Voter Registration Act. ✄</p> <p><span>Challenges against roughly 4,000 voters in Muscogee County and more than 150 voters in Ben Hill County were part of an effort by the Texas-based conservative group True The Vote to coordinate challenges statewide under a Georgia law that allows any registered voter to challenge the eligibility of any other voter within the same county. ✄</span></p> <p>It’s up to local election boards to determine whether the challenges have merit. Several, including in Fulton and Cobb counties in metro Atlanta, have rejected them.</p> </blockquote> <h4>pennsylvania</h4> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/david-freed-trump-us-attorney-voter-fraud_n_5feb73ddc5b64e442106f1bc" target="_blank">Federal Prosecutor Who Helped Fuel Trump’s Bogus Voter Fraud Narrative To Resign</a>, Ryan J Reilly, HuffPost, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>A top federal prosecutor who issued a bizarre statement during the 2020 campaign that helped fuel <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>’s baseless claims of mass voter fraud has announced his impending resignation.</p> </div> <div> <p>U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania David J. Freed, who was appointed by Trump in 2017, said Tuesday that he will resign his office at midnight on Jan. 1, just 19 days before <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a> is sworn into office as the 46th president of the United States. ✄</p> <p><span>Freed’s unusual conduct came under </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/24/us/politics/pennsylvania-mail-in-voter-fraud-investigation.html" target="_blank">intense scrutiny</a><span> from Justice Department veterans who noted it was “</span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/pennsylvania-discarded-ballots/2020/09/24/c99a3580-feaf-11ea-b555-4d71a9254f4b_story.html" target="_blank">wildly improper</a><span>” for a federal prosecutor to be making public declarations about investigations that could be used as a political cudgel and help undermine confidence in the electoral process.</span></p> </div> <div></div> </blockquote> <h4>Kentucky</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/breonna-taylor-officers-fired/">Two more officers involved in Breonna Taylor's death receive termination notice: report</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>On Tuesday,<span> </span></span><em>The New York Times</em><span><span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/29/us/louisville-officer-fired-jaynes-breonna-taylor.html" target="_blank">reported</a><span><span> </span>that two more Louisville police officers involved in the killing of Breonna Taylor during a botched no-knock warrant execution had received notice of termination — nine months after the incident.</span></p> <p><span>"Lawyers for Detective Myles Cosgrove, who was one of the officers who shot Ms. Taylor, and Detective Joshua Jaynes, who prepared the search warrant for the raid, said their clients had received letters of termination in connection with the March 13 operation," reported Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs. "Jessica Green, head of the City Council's public safety committee, said additional disciplinary actions were likely as the interim police chief, Yvette Gentry, prepares to leave the department and make way for a new chief, who has not been named."</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Music Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=wEBlaMOmKV4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wEBlaMOmKV4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>😊 Other Stuff For Which to be Thankful 😊</h3> <p>Here is a list of 50 good things from 2020. Yes, you heard that right — <strong><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/29/951067540/50-wonderful-things-from-2020" target="_blank">50 Wonderful Things From 2020</a> </strong>(Linda Holmes, NPR, December 29, 2020).</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="phrasescs.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/856362/large/phrasescs.jpg?1600108569" title="phrasescs.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">I've been making annual lists of<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2010/12/21/132230699/50-wonderful-things-from-2010">50 Wonderful Things since 2010</a>. And I have to admit, I was not sure I was up to it this year. It's been a hard one and a lonely one, even though I had the blessings of dear friends, a job I could do remotely, and a dog who apparently never gets tired of me. As I point out every year, this is not the actual best things of the year, or it would be full of doctors and nurses and activists and delivery drivers and so forth. It would be the family and friends who held me up and checked on me and had a cocktail with me on Zoom. This list is instead some<span> </span><em>favorite</em><span> </span>things, things that brought happiness or enlightenment or that stunned feeling of recognition that someone's art sees something in you.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It was a weird year, culturally. There was a lot of Netflix; more than usual, because of all the things they picked up. There was very little reading or new music for me, because I found myself so restless that it was hard to settle down and simply read or listen. I thought about just skipping the idea that I could ever combine the word "wonderful" with the four digits "2020."</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">But while this list is an act of curation and an effort to boost what I loved every year, it's also my biggest annual fountain of gratitude. And I've never been more grateful for the people who kept going, and for the people whose work arrived at the right moment, and for the things that made me feel human and seen. And much of that was art and entertainment. Arts organizations, the film and television industries, live performance spaces, artists and the people they work with — all have had extraordinarily difficult times this year; all will need our support to recover. Meanwhile, what the heck — let's be grateful. (click through on the link above to read her list 😊)</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Science is Cool!</h4> <p>For those who enjoy cool science and nature stories, here is a great list from Scientific American: <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/from-rapping-robots-to-glowing-frogs-our-favorite-fun-stories-of-2020/" target="_blank">From Rapping Robots to Glowing Frogs: Our Favorite Fun Stories of 2020</a>, Scientific American, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">To say it has been a tough year would be a gross understatement, and reading the news—even on a science-focused Web site—can be a little depressing.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">But while<span> </span><em>Scientific American</em><span> </span>has been providing in-depth coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, devastating natural disasters and the presidential election’s implications for science, we have also shared stories that show how the fun side of science still thrives. Here, we’ve gathered some of our favorites from the year, from the truly amazing to the downright weird and quirky. We hope you enjoy them and come back for more coverage of cutting-edge science in 2021.</p> <p style="text-align:center">FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!</p> <p style="text-align:start">Acorn woodpeckers fiercely defend territories of granary trees stuffed with supplies, and when a vacancy opens up, rival teams swoop in to fight for it. Biologists enjoy watching such fierce spectacles, but<span> </span><a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/vicious-woodpecker-battles-draw-an-avian-audience/">they’re not the only ones</a>—other acorn woodpeckers quickly learn of the fights, and they fly in from kilometers away to watch the action.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(more at the <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/from-rapping-robots-to-glowing-frogs-our-favorite-fun-stories-of-2020/" target="_blank">link</a>)</p> </blockquote> <h4>But wait, there’s more!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.livescience.com/science-records-broken-in-2020.html" target="_blank">10 science records broken in 2020</a>, Yasemin Sapakoglu, Live Science, December 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>This year was filled with record-breaking scientific discoveries. Some earned the title of "oldest," including the 7 billion-year-old stardust found to be the oldest material on our planet and a 31,000-year-old burial that held the remains of the oldest-ever found identical twins. Others earned the title of "longest," including a bird that traveled for 11 days straight from Alaska to New Zealand and a lightning bolt that stretched for more than 440 miles (700 kilometers).</p> <p>Here are 10 times science broke records in 2020.</p> <h2>Longest bird flight</h2> <p>A loud, long-beaked, rust-colored bird broke the world record for longest nonstop flight this fall. On Sept. 16, a male bar-tailed godwit (<em>Limosa lapponica</em>) known as "4BBRW'' set off from southwest Alaska and flew for 11 days straight to New Zealand, traveling a distance of about 7,581 miles (12,200 km), taking rounding errors  into consideration. The previous record was held by a female bar-tailed godwit that flew around 7,145 miles (11,500 km) over nine days in 2007. Bar-tailed godwits are known to be impressive flyers, but 4BBRW's journey — prolonged by easterly winds — was extra impressive.</p> <p>(More at the <a href="https://www.livescience.com/science-records-broken-in-2020.html" target="_blank">link</a>)</p> </blockquote> <h3>Harry, Meghan and STACY ABRAMS!</h3> <p>This was a surprisingly beautiful listening experience. Much like evening programming on CBC in Canada which I fondly remember. Many lovely guests (including Stacy Abrams!) tell a story of 2020 and it is just so nice. The audio is in the link:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meghan-markle-prince-harry-archie-podcast_n_5fe9e6ecc5b64e4421053316" target="_blank">Archie Makes A Surprise Guest Appearance On Meghan Markle & Prince Harry’s First Podcast</a>, Carly Ledbetter, HuffPost, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 27: Prince Harry and actress Meghan Markle during an official photocall to announce their engagement at The Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace on November 27, 2017 in London, England. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been a couple officially since November 2016 and are due to marry in Spring 2018. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/488781/large/121117-markle-christmas-lead_0.jpg?1514312214" title="LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 27: Prince Harry and actress Meghan Markle during an official photocall to announce their engagement at The Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace on November 27, 2017 in London, England. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been a couple officially since November 2016 and are due to marry in Spring 2018. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>The Duke and Duchess of Sussex</figcaption> </figure> <p>“We’re glad you’re here. As we all know, it’s been a <em>year</em>,” Harry says in the beginning of the episode. “And we really want to honor the compassion and kindness that has helped so many people get through it.”</p> </div> <div> <p>“And, at the same time, to honor those who have experienced uncertainty and unthinkable loss,” Meghan adds. “Our thoughts have been with you, especially during this holiday season.”</p> </div> <div> <p>For the special holiday episode, the duke explained that the couple asked some of their friends ― and people they admire ― to document their thoughts on what they’ve learned this year and what they’re hopeful for going into 2021.</p> <div> <p>Special guests include climate and food activist Christina Adane, tennis pro Naomi Osaka, professor and podcast host Brené Brown, Loveland Foundation founder Rachel Cargle, Deepak Chopra, novelist Matt Haig, poet and mental health campaigner Hussain Manawer, George the Poet, and actor and director Tyler Perry.</p> </div> <div> <p>Stacey Abrams, who Meghan <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meghan-markle-gloria-steinem-voting_n_5f4667c5c5b64f17e136ef75" target="_blank">mentioned speaking to</a> over the summer, stops by to chat, along with José Andrés, whose World Central Kitchen <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-20/meghan-markle-and-prince-harry-announce-partnership-with-world-central-kitchen" target="_blank">recently partnered</a> with the couple’s Archewell Foundation. Sir Elton John and James Corden, longtime friends of the couple, also pop by.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3><span>🎶 Can’t Ever Have Too Much Ray Charles 🎶</span></h3> <p>(I’ve posted this song at LEAST once before, but what the hell — it’s one of my favorite songs and it is definitely appropriate right now!)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=F2ZhVSWk9XI" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/F2ZhVSWk9XI">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🍑 Georgia On My Mind 🍑</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/blog/meet-press-blog-latest-news-analysis-data-driving-political-discussion-n988541/ncrd1252492#blogHeader" target="_blank">Georgia breaks runoff turnout record for Senate races</a>, Julia Jester, NBC, December 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/886304/large/gotv_georgia_00.png?1606052386" title="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Georgians have already broken the state's runoff turnout record in the dual Senate runoffs that will decide control of the U.S. Senate, new numbers show Tuesday, a mark reached about a week before the day of the election.</p> <p>More than 2.3 million voters have cast their ballots, with more than 800,000 voting absentee by mail and 1.5 million voting early, in person, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s office. The previous runoff turnout record was set in 2008, when Georgians cast 2.137 million total ballots in the entire election.  </p> <p>More than 78,000 Georgians who did not vote in the general election have already voted in the runoff race, according to the analysis of early vote data by the Democratic political data firm TargetSmart. Tom Bonier, TargetSmart's CEO<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/tbonier/status/1343656801443721219" target="_blank">said Monday</a><span> </span>that a majority of those voters were voters of color, with African-Americans making up a strong portion.</p> </blockquote> <h4>you can help flip the senate!</h4> <p>Gnusie M247 says: <span>We can<span> </span></span><strong>create more good news</strong><span><span> </span>for ourselves by helping Democrats in Georgia win the January 5 runoffs and flip the entire US Senate blue! If you are interested to join this effort, please check out<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/12/24/2003871/-Ho-ho-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-over-Christmas-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank"><strong>Ho ho how we are going to win the GA runoffs over Christmas — a (nearly) complete guide</strong></a><span>.</span></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/uh-oh-the-wall-street-journal-hates-trump-now-too" target="_blank">Uh Oh, The Wall Street Journal Hates Trump Now Too!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ WIsh him luck! <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/loser-trump-wants-to-drag-the-republican-party-down-with-him?ref=scroll" target="_blank">Loser Trump Wants to Drag the Republican Party Down With Him</a>, Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Here’s hoping!: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/28/opinion/reagan-economy-covid.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">2020 Was the Year Reaganism Died</a>, Paul Krugman, New York Times, December 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️GOPs biggest trickle-down lie, debunked: <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/trump-republicans-prefer-covid-tax-cuts-hikes-our-research-proves-ncna1252242" target="_blank">Trump and Republicans prefer Covid tax cuts to hikes. Our research proves they're wrong.</a> David Hope and Julian Limberg, NBC News, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/trump-and-section-230-what-know" target="_blank">Trump and Section 230: What to Know</a>, Anshu Siripurapu, Council on Foreign Relations, December 2, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Helpful:  <a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-count-electoral-college-vote-5605532631a251ac8f902d1d1ca55428" target="_blank">EXPLAINER: How Congress will count Electoral College votes</a>, Mary Clare Jalonick, AP News, December 15, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Too bad, so sad: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/trump-supporters-2649687652/">Trump supporters seethe after hotel cancels their reservations ahead of January 6th protest</a>, Brad Reed, Raw Story, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Keep calm and carry on: <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-u-k-coronavirus-mutation-is-worrying-but-not-terrifying/" target="_blank">The U.K. Coronavirus Mutation Is Worrying but Not Terrifying</a>, Sara Reardon, Scientific American, December 24, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ I made some of this! How about you? 😄: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/2020-food-trends_l_5fd288a7c5b66a7584134ca0" target="_blank">A Chronological List Of 2020’s Most Unforgettable Food Trends</a>, Su-Jit Lin, HuffPost, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/the-trumperdammerung-is-a-fitting-end-to-2020" target="_blank">The Trümperdämmerung Is a Fitting End to 2020</a>, Susan B Glasser, New Yorker, December 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Let’s do this: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-next-big-challenge-trump-proofing-the-presidency" target="_blank">The Next Big Challenge: Trump-Proofing the Presidency</a>, John Cassidy, New Yorker, December 29, 2020.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Black poodle dog wearing a red collar and leash sits on snow covered bridge with trees and a lake in the background." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/756154/large/dulcieQVmediumsize.jpg?1578946486" title="Black poodle dog wearing a red collar and leash sits on snow covered bridge with trees and a lake in the background."> <figcaption>There’s a bright shiny New Year ahead for us, let’s GO!</figcaption> </figure> <p>On Christmas Day, chloris wrote movingly about the rebirth of optimism, thanks to Joe Biden’s sunny approach to life. Joe is not naive, nor is he insulated from the suffering that so many have felt — he has experienced profound personal pain and loss — and yet he is optimistic! This is the miracle of Joe Biden, and perhaps it is why Americans have turned to him in record numbers this year. Joe gives us hope and the stirrings of idealism we thought had been crushed beyond repair. Joe makes us believe that maybe we can be optimistic again, too! </p> <p>Chloris creator finished her introduction by giving thanks for all of you — all the Gnus in Gnuville as WineRev would say. The funny thing is I have had this next song queued up since just after the election because I knew I would need to finish out this terrible year by giving thanks for the people who helped me make it through. You all helped me, we helped each other, and ultimately, the ripples of loving, determined effort from a thousand groups of people like us helping each other led to victory in the 2020 election. And now a New Year full of hope and promise is almost here.</p> <p>So thank you. From the bottom of my heart. Thanks to every Gnu down in Gnuville, the tall and the small, You’ve made 2020 bearable, many thanks to you all.</p> <p class="AlignCenter">“I can’t believe</p> <p class="AlignCenter">this year you got me through</p> <p class="AlignCenter">the least I can do</p> <p class="AlignCenter">is thank you.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=D1IeDyG-pgM" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/D1IeDyG-pgM">YouTube Video</a></div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">❄️🌕Happy New Year, dear Gnusies! See you in 2021!🌕❄️</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) covidrelief Covidvaccine Georgia Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Hope JoeBiden Justice NDAA President-electBiden Recommended VP-electKamalaHarris _1999598 Wed, 30 Dec 2020 12:00:11 +0000 Post-Solstice GoodNewsRoundup, December 22 - 29 Days! https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/12/22/1997372/-Post-Solstice-GoodNewsRoundup-December-22-29-Days <p>Good Day, Gnusies! The December Solstice is now behind us which means that daylight will increase again every day until June. It feels like a metaphor, a turning point in our national fortunes. And last night’s great conjunction seemed to underline the feeling that there has been a significant shift in the zeitgeist. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Great Conjunction. Jupiter and it&amp;#39;s 4 largest moons (550 million miles away) and Saturn (1 billion miles away). Telescope image from Melbourne, Australia by Sajal Chakravorty &lt;a href="https://t.co/q5971CTD4A"&gt;pic.twitter.com/q5971CTD4A&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tom Kierein (@TomKierein) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TomKierein/status/1341185203968962561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Great Conjunction. Jupiter and it's 4 largest moons (550 million miles away) and Saturn (1 billion miles away). Telescope image from Melbourne, Australia by Sajal Chakravorty <a href="https://t.co/q5971CTD4A">pic.twitter.com/q5971CTD4A</a></p>— Tom Kierein (@TomKierein) <a href="https://twitter.com/TomKierein/status/1341185203968962561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Trump and his enablers are at the point in this interval where they are simply throwing darts at the wall, hoping something will hit their target. But they are inept and desperate and foolish. Their schemes will not work. It will continue to be unpleasant, as hard as they can make it, but on January 20, 2021 — 29 days from now — Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be sworn in as our 46th president and VP. </p> <p>Yes, we are still in the midst of a worldwide pandemic and yes we definitely need to continue to social distance, avoid large gatherings, wear a mask and practice excellent hand hygiene. We will avoid travel and probably miss our usual holiday rituals — at least any of them that involve getting together with other people who don’t live with us. That stinks. And yet, the people who keep braying on about “canceling Christmas” have it all wrong.  </p> <p>The winter holidays are not just about parties or sharing big meals together or ripping open presents in a big noisy family gathering. </p> <p>It’s about love.</p> <p>And the way we show each other love in a pandemic is by giving up all that ‘in-person’ stuff this year so that we may enjoy many more years ahead with our loved ones, and with others in our communities.</p> <p>We can do this! and I don’t know about you, but it gives this holiday season special meaning to me. At any rate, it will be memorable!</p> <p>Nearly every day in the comments, WineRev greets all the “gnus in Gnuville” and every time I read it, I think of the Whos in Whoville in the Grinch. Do you, too? Hooray, ‘tis the season and I can put this in today’s GNR as a music selection!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=hqOOUJFv1n0" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hqOOUJFv1n0">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><strong>Let’s read some good news!</strong></p> <h3>💵 💉 The Coronavirus Relief Bill 💉💵</h3> <p>Finally! Although it is only a part of the eventual assistance a Biden administration will try to provide for millions of Americans thrown out of work and dealing with unprecedented economic and health crises through no fault of their own:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/21/948862052/house-passes-900-billion-coronavirus-relief-bill-ending-months-long-stalemate" target="_blank">Congress Passes $900 Billion Coronavirus Relief Bill, Ending Months-Long Stalemate</a>, Dierdre Walsh, NPR News, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 07: U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speak to members of the press after a meeting with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows at the U.S. Capitol August 7, 2020 in Washington, DC. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were unable to reach a deal on a new relief package to help people weather the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/881904/large/GettyImages-1264558005.jpg?1605064113" title="WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 07: U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speak to members of the press after a meeting with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows at the U.S. Capitol August 7, 2020 in Washington, DC. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were unable to reach a deal on a new relief package to help people weather the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The Senate acted swiftly Monday night, in a 91-7 vote, to approve more than $900 billion for coronavirus assistance, shortly after the House of Representatives passed the package. The aid comes after months of partisan sniping over what elements should be in a relief measure that virtually all lawmakers on Capitol Hill argued was long overdue.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The</span><a href="https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20433223-covid-19-relief-bill"><span> </span>5,593 page</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>legislation extends economic assistance as millions of Americans struggle to make ends meet as cases of COVID-19 are surging across the country. It includes another round of direct stimulus checks — this time for $600 per adult who are in certain income thresholds, and the same amount for children. It provides an extension of enhanced unemployment insurance benefits for up to $300 per week and lengthens the maximum number of weeks. The package includes $25 billion in rental assistance and extends a ban on evictions that was scheduled to expire at the end of January. To address the increasing number of those with food insecurity, $13 billion was added to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who was the lead negotiator for congressional Democrats defended the package, which was half of what she had been holding out for over several months, saying "we want to do more." She pledged that the compromise represented "a first step" and more would be coming after President-elect Joe Biden took office.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Here’s a pretty good roundup of what is in the deal — in addition to the highly publicised direct payments and small business assistance, there is also money for rental assistance, public transportation, public schools and broadband internet:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/21/948744901/here-is-whats-in-congress-covid-19-relief-package" target="_blank">Here Is What's In Congress' COVID-19 Relief Package</a>, Brian Naylor, NPR News, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>Speaking of transportation aid — and my high hopes for new passenger rail service as part of a Biden administration infrastructure plan — here’s one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite holiday movies. They are in the club car on a train from Miami to Vermont! I hope we will have that again (only built back BETTER, using green energy and making it really affordable for regular people to use):</p> <h3>🎶 ⛄️ ❄️ ⛄️ 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=yMTd1X9c6kg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yMTd1X9c6kg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Republicans in DIsarray</h3> <p>William Barr is a terrible man and I hope he will face appropriate consequences for his terrible actions covering up criminal behavior for Republican administrations. However, his news conference yesterday was important and good news for justice as he has apparently abandoned the trumptanic. He told the truth about Russia being responsible for the recent (and possibly ongoing) cyberattack and he shot down the administration’s gambit to get a special counsel to investigate its enemies. This remarkable turnabout for Barr signals that not only is he not going down with the trump ship, but also that the trumpists are losing their grip on their top sycophants. That’s great news for democracy and Democrats:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/william-barr-hunter-biden-election-047487650cd50f5a874c406aad214ce7" target="_blank">Barr undercuts Trump on election and Hunter Biden inquiries</a>, Michael Balsamo, AP News, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr used his final public appearance to undercut President Donald Trump on multiple fronts Monday, saying he saw no reason to appoint a special counsel to look into the president’s claims about the 2020 election or to name one for the tax investigation of President-elect Joe Biden’s son.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In the course of breaking with Trump on matters that have been consuming the president, Barr also reinforced the belief of federal officials that Russia was behind a massive hack of U.S. government agencies, not China as Trump had suggested. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">A special counsel would make it more difficult for the incoming attorney general and president to close investigations begun under Trump. Doing so could lend a false legitimacy to baseless claims, particularly to the throngs of Trump supporters who believe the election was stolen because he keeps wrongly claiming it was.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Barr’s statements Monday may make it easier for the acting attorney general who takes over, Jeffrey Rosen, to resist pressure from the White House to make such appointments.</p> </blockquote> <h4>When you’ve lost Pat Robertson…</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/televangelist-pat-robertson-says-its-time-for-trump-to-accept-bidens-win-and-move-on/2020/12/21/83143262-43df-11eb-a277-49a6d1f9dff1_story.html" target="_blank">Televangelist Pat Robertson says it’s time for Trump to accept Biden’s win and ‘move on’</a>, Felicia Sonmez and Sarah Pulliam Bailey, Washington Post, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Televangelist Pat Robertson, one of President Trump’s staunchest backers, on Monday described Trump as “very erratic,” called on him to accept that President-elect Joe Biden won and said the Republican should not consider running again in 2024.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The comments marked a sharp turnaround for Robertson, who recently voiced support for Trump’s false claims of widespread voter fraud and declared before the election that God had told him Trump was going to win. ✄</p> <p><span>Robertson said that Trump has “done a marvelous job for the economy, but at the same time he is very erratic, and he’s fired people and he’s fought people and he’s insulted people and he keeps going down the line.”“And so, it’s a mixed bag,” he said. “And I think it would be well to say, ‘You’ve had your day and it’s time to move on.’ ”</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>It is an utter madhouse there: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-assembles-a-ragtag-crew-of-conspiracy-minded-allies-in-flailing-bid-to-reverse-election-loss/2020/12/21/d7674cd2-43b2-11eb-b0e4-0f182923a025_story.html" target="_blank">Trump assembles a ragtag crew of conspiracy-minded allies in flailing bid to reverse election loss</a>, Washington Post, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>With his baseless claims of widespread voter fraud rejected by dozens of judges and GOP leaders, President Trump has turned to a ragtag group of conspiracy theorists, media-hungry lawyers and other political misfits in a desperate attempt to hold on to power after his election loss. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Aides said Trump has been searching frantically for pathways to reverse his loss — sidelining officials who try to level with him about it and embracing those claiming to have a solution. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“He is grasping at straws,” one senior administration official said. “If you come in and tell him he lost, and that it’s over, he doesn’t want to hear from you. He is looking for people to tell him what he wants to hear.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>By the way, are you noticing how different the news stories are being written lately? “Baseless claims”, “Trumps false claims”, and so forth? Looks like the mainstream media is finally starting to report more accurately and dropping the soft pedal and the both sidesism. Good.</p> <h3>📰 Good Media News 📰</h3> <h4>This is one way to fight RW Media</h4> <p>Right wingnut media never does the right thing willingly, but it looks like the threat of a huge (and obviously winnable) lawsuit finally succeeded where ethics and morality failed. Fox, Newsmax broadcast corrections to their false stories about voting systems companies.</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/newsmax-smartmatic-fox-news_n_5fe108e8c5b60d416344f057" target="_blank" title="">Newsmax And Pro-Trump Media Walk Back Voting Conspiracies After Legal Threat</a>, Nick Robins-Early, HuffPost, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>In a nearly two-minute statement that is being read on all Newsmax shows, the channel is essentially walking back its own groundless claims that electronic voting system companies Smartmatic and Dominion were involved in some kind of nefarious attempt to steal the election. ✄</span></p> <p><span>On Friday, top-rated Fox Business host <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fox-news-lou-dobbs-smartmatic-lawsuit-threat_n_5fdec28cc5b60f828856e401?ffc" target="_blank" title="">Lou Dobbs ran a pretaped segment</a> with election security expert Eddie Perez debunking various claims related to Smartmatic and Dominion. Fox News host Jeanine Pirro’s show </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/dec/20/fox-news-retracts-voting-machine-fraud-claim-smartmatic"><span>aired the same clip</span></a><span> on Saturday, featuring Perez stating he has seen no evidence of any election fraud related to Smartmatic. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The clarifications on Newsmax and Fox are an abrupt turnaround after weeks of promoting conspiracies related to the integrity of the election as far-right media sought to suggest the election </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-election-oan-newsmax-far-right_n_5fb7ed5ec5b625a2ae66dcb9?nos"><span>was never decided</span></a><span> and that Trump could still win. To preserve this delusion, many outlets grasped for convoluted conspiracy theories to present the falsehood that there was widespread election fraud ― often with the help of Trump advisers as guests. Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer, appeared on multiple Fox shows to air conspiracies about Dominion and Smartmatic following the vote.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Better Late than never</h4> <p>It was certainly a long time coming — and sadly a rare thing — but kudos to the Kansas City Star for this unstinting acknowledgement of past racist coverage. There can be no true reconciliation without acknowledging the harm that was done and the KCStar is leading the way on this, to their credit.</p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/21/us/kansas-city-star-apology-racism-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">One of the Midwest's most influential newspapers apologizes for decades of racist coverage</a>, Leah Asmelash, CNN, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="apology.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/325351/large/apology.jpg?1478772582" title="apology.jpg"> <figcaption>I think the Kansas City Star has made a good start.</figcaption> </figure> <p>The Kansas City Star has apologized for what it's calling decades of "robb(ing) an entire community of opportunity, dignity, justice and recognition."</p> </div> <div>The Star, one of the most influential news sources in the region,<span> </span><a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article247928045.html" target="_blank">says it has</a><span> </span>"disenfranchised, ignored and scorned generations of Black Kansas Citians" for the last 140 years.</div> <div>"It reinforced Jim Crow laws and redlining," wrote Mike Fannin, president and editor of the Star, in a column apologizing for the coverage by the paper on Sunday. "Decade after early decade it robbed an entire community of opportunity, dignity, justice and recognition."</div> <div><strong>The Star is now apologizing for its actions, and has published the first part of six-part package examining the Star's coverage of Kansas City.</strong></div> </blockquote> <h4>Maybe Newspapers Can Survive the internet after all</h4> <p>Great news from the Washington Post. They are hiring and expanding!</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/washington-post-to-expand-newsroom-staff-add-foreign-hubs/">Washington Post to expand newsroom staff, add foreign hubs</a>, Agence France-Presse via RawStory, December 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="newspapers" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/618553/large/newspaper-1595773_1280.jpg?1543883856" title="newspapers"> <figcaption>Back to basics? Here’s hoping!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The Washington Post announced plans on Monday to expand its newsroom staff to over 1,000 and add breaking news hubs in Europe and Asia to create a bigger global footprint. ✄</span></p> <p>The Post, which said in 2018 it had become profitable but which does not release financial data, plans to create breaking-news hubs in Europe and Asia for more robust 24-hour news coverage.</p> <p><span>"The Post intends to ensure that its readers everywhere can rely on a full, timely news report at any hour, including rich, multi-faceted coverage during the critical early-morning window in North America," a statement said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Stay Hopeful Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=L1nQpoAvTSg" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/L1nQpoAvTSg">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🍑 Georgia Runoff 🍑</h3> <p>WOW, the turnout! 👀 ‼️</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Updating this thread with corrected numbers (we were comparing GE day 15 with runoff day 16, now fixed):&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Runoff early vote turnout is at 93% of general election turnout at this same point. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Black turnout is at 97.3% of general election turnout at this same point in the cycle. &lt;a href="https://t.co/z5SIEzEUJC"&gt;https://t.co/z5SIEzEUJC&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tom Bonier (@tbonier) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tbonier/status/1341101539268714503?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 21, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Updating this thread with corrected numbers (we were comparing GE day 15 with runoff day 16, now fixed):<br><br>Runoff early vote turnout is at 93% of general election turnout at this same point. <br><br>Black turnout is at 97.3% of general election turnout at this same point in the cycle. <a href="https://t.co/z5SIEzEUJC">https://t.co/z5SIEzEUJC</a></p>— Tom Bonier (@tbonier) <a href="https://twitter.com/tbonier/status/1341101539268714503?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>WAYS YOU CAN HELP:</h4> <p>Once again, I am going to borrow the list of action opportunities from 2thanks. Thanks, 2thanks!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7353.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/896868/large/IMG_7353.jpg?1608609764" title="IMG_7353.jpg"> <figcaption>My precious grandpup says Happy Holidays!</figcaption> </figure> <p><strong>We have 2 Senate runoffs to win in Georgia:  </strong></p> <p>If you are in Georgia or know someone who lives, resides, or cribs there (hint): <strong>The Georgia runoff is Jan. 5. </strong><strong> Early in-person voting starts Dec. 14. </strong></p> <p><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/21/1996436/-This-is-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank" title="">This is how we are going to win the GA runoffs - a (nearly) complete guide</a> </strong>by Kosack M247.</p> <ul> <li><span>A great way to help GOTV (get out the vote) and fight voter suppression in Georgia is to contribute to Stacey Abrams’<span> </span></span><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/new-georgia-project-1" target="_blank">New Georgia Project<span> </span></a><span>now, in time to have an impact before the registration deadline Dec. 7</span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://warnockforgeorgia.com/?fbclid=IwAR29wPnSTZUiLao-xLqq0dtBb9Brg7F0Y3LdF_E5iSPKX87fxuWrC7lhuyk" target="_blank">Donate to Reverend Raphael Warnock</a>   </strong><span> </span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://electjon.com/?fbclid=IwAR1l-2Dj4GgxDpjSi4OD6nY_woZGdC74--S4aijamsmcAGidHFtHB946r_M" target="_blank">Donate to Jon Ossoff</a> </strong></li> <li><strong><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/elv?fbclid=IwAR2eXZQho3vMK7OTgLiITUA30HjW0knqdk1FLAaJrCBrZPTKWAAS0BQeYk4" target="_blank">Donate to Every Last Vote</a>.</strong><span> </span> </li> <li>You can donate to all of them.  </li> <li>Text JOIN to (484) 275-2229 to join <a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters’s</a> efforts.</li> </ul> <p>😃🍑😂 Check out this funny ad: </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Hey GA, what&amp;#39;s YOUR Superpower?! &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gapol&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GAsen?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#GAsen&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gavotes?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gavotes&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gavotesearly?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gavotesearly&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/garunoff?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#garunoff&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/rrMeyjxxRq"&gt;pic.twitter.com/rrMeyjxxRq&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Mark Kendall (@kendallcomedy) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kendallcomedy/status/1338831176761405440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 15, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hey GA, what's YOUR Superpower?! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gapol</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GAsen?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GAsen</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gavotes?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gavotes</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gavotesearly?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gavotesearly</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/garunoff?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#garunoff</a> <a href="https://t.co/rrMeyjxxRq">pic.twitter.com/rrMeyjxxRq</a></p>— Mark Kendall (@kendallcomedy) <a href="https://twitter.com/kendallcomedy/status/1338831176761405440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 15, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎄 Loving Chicago Holiday Spirit 🎄</h3> <p><a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/heidi-stevens/ct-heidi-stevens-walnut-room-tradition-9-siblings-neighbor-1216-20201216-ckfsrhlaejdbdcmpragpbm6hre-story.html" target="_blank">Column: For 59 years, she’s treated a family of 9 siblings to dinner at the Walnut Room. This year, they brought the Walnut Room to her.</a> Heidi Stevens, Chicago Tribune, December 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <p>Monday night should have been Rose Haddad’s annual dinner next to the giant Christmas tree inside the Walnut Room, a tradition she’s upheld for more than 80 years.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>Haddad, 92, used to visit the elegant confines with her mom when she was a girl. (“We didn’t have dinner most of the time,” she told me. “Just visited the tree.”) And when she was an adult, living in a two-flat in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood, she introduced the upstairs neighbor children to her beloved tradition. ✄</p> <div> <div> <p>Then 2020 happened. The Walnut Room is open through Jan. 3 for tree viewing and takeout, but that wasn’t much of a draw for the group. Haddad, who lives with her younger brother, Joe, isn’t leaving her Far North Side house for anything other than doctor’s appointments, taking care to avoid exposure to COVID-19.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>So Monday night, the Watts children brought the Walnut Room to her.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🎄 Loving Florida Holiday Spirit 🎄</h3> <p><a href="https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/2020/12/16/publix-donates-13-million-pounds-of-food-to-curb-food-bank-shortages/" target="_blank">Publix donates 1.3 million pounds of food to curb food bank shortages</a>, Sara DiNatale, Tampa Bay Times, December 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Publix is donating another 1.3 million pounds of groceries to Florida food banks facing unprecedented demands, driven by the pandemic.</p> <p>Publix first started donating food and milk in April, when the pandemic created a surge in need across the state. The new six-week program will bring pasta, canned goods, cereal and potatoes to the state’s six largest food banks, including Feeding Tampa Bay. ✄</p> <p><span>“When we heard from food banks that they were facing a critical food shortage, we knew that, as a food retailer, we had another opportunity to help,” Publix CEO Todd Jones said in a statement. “With 90 years of relationships and expertise, we are able to mobilize quickly — sourcing, purchasing and transporting what these food banks need most — and bring hope and nourishment this holiday season.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎄 Loving Dogs Holiday Spirit 🎄</h3> <p>This next video isn’t specifically about these holiday weeks, but the spirit of love (and humor) is all through this wonderful interview. Treat yourself to it!</p> <p><em>“ Strangely, through all of this, I have been quite optimistic about the future of mankind. Because it generally trends upwards — it’s going through a bit of a trough at the moment — but generally <strong>there are enough good people to sort things out in the end</strong>… try and be more optimistic, be more labrador, and we could all learn a thing or two from that.”</em></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Scx6e7pdceg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Scx6e7pdceg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Couldn’t agree more: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/so-long-2020-we-wont-miss-you/2020/12/21/206fd466-43b9-11eb-a277-49a6d1f9dff1_story.html" target="_blank">So long, 2020. We won’t miss you.</a> Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/12/heres-the-team-tasked-with-carrying-out-bidens-incredibly-ambitious-climate-plans/" target="_blank">Here’s the Team Tasked With Carrying Out Biden’s Incredibly Ambitious Climate Plans</a>, Rebecca Leber, Mother Jones, December 19, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ “Snowcialism” lol: <a href="https://slate.com/business/2020/12/merry-christmas-heres-a-check.html" target="_blank">Just Do the Checks Every Christmas</a>, Jordan Weissmann, Slate, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ About time! <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/elections/religious-voters/">Secular ‘values voters’ are becoming an electoral force in the US – just look closely at 2020’s results</a>, The Conversation via RAw Story, December 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ “Deprive them of the attention they seek”: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/we-no-longer-need-to-engage-with-trumps-die-hard-supporters/617449/?utm_term=2020-12-21T11%3A30%3A12&utm_medium=social&utm_content=edit-promo&utm_campaign=the-atlantic&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Engaging With Trump’s Die-Hard Supporters Isn’t Productive</a>, Tom Nichols, the Atlantic, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Flip the script: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/12/instead-of-a-crisis-can-biden-treat-an-immigration-wave-as-an-opportunity/" target="_blank">Instead of a Crisis, Can Biden Treat an Immigration Surge as an Opportunity? </a>Isabela Dias, Mother Jones, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/bank/trickle-down-economics-wrong/">Trickle-down economics is a cruel hoax. Here's the practical alternative Biden must adopt</a>, Robert Reich, Raw Story, December 21, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Older article which explains it all: <span><a href="https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/corporate-america-invented-religious-right-conservative-roosevelt-princeton-117030" target="_blank">How Corporate America Invented Christian America</a>, Kevin M Kruse, Politico Magazine, April 16, 2015.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ And another, to brush up on economic inequality as we enter a new era: <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/74436/the-mystery-the-free-lunch" target="_blank">The Mystery of the Free Lunch</a>, Michael Kinsley, the New Republic, May 22, 1981.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Justice is coming: </span><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/clyburn-subpoena-covid-investigation-hhs-cdc" target="_blank">Clyburn Issues Subpoenas To Force HHS, CDC To Comply With COVID Investigation</a>, Kate Riga, Talking Points Memo, December 21, 2020.</p> <p><span>⚡️A fancifully-written but satisfying read: </span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/caterpillars-commonwealth/617451/" target="_blank">Trump’s Enablers Will Meet Their Shakespearean Ends</a>, Eliot A Cohen, the Atlantic, December 21, 2020.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black poodle dog lying down in front of a large spruce Christmas tree festooned with red ribbon" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/896883/large/xmastree.jpg?1608613367" title="black poodle dog lying down in front of a large spruce Christmas tree festooned with red ribbon"> <figcaption>Curlygirl, 2019.</figcaption> </figure> <p>That will do from me for another week. I hope all the gnus down in Gnuville are healthy and as happy as we can be in these trying times. The end of the worst is in sight, though the work will always continue.</p> <p>Please take good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest and try to get outdoors every day for at least a few moments. There is real benefit to fresh air and soaking up a bit of nature, even just the sky above a city street.</p> <p>Since so many people slow down at this time of year to celebrate various winter holidays, I hope everyone will be able to take a little break from worry about the “What ifs” , too.  While this is a terrible time for the country, democracy is holding, patriots are everywhere fighting to keep it strong, and together we — the majority — will continue to fight for a better future for everyone. </p> <p>I wish everyone a very happy winter holiday season. May your days be full of comfort and joy. May peace and justice increase. </p> <h3>🎶 A Final Seasonal WIsh 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=tyKFpUs3Tjo" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/tyKFpUs3Tjo">YouTube Video</a></div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Everyone!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) ChristmasWeek Community CoronavirusReliefBill GoodNews Goodnewsroundup HappyHolidays Music Recommended WinterSolstice yule _1997372 Tue, 22 Dec 2020 12:00:18 +0000 It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Biden - Good News Roundup, December 8 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/12/8/2000569/-It-s-Beginning-to-Look-a-Lot-Like-Biden-Good-News-Roundup-December-8 <p>Good day, gnusies! Just 43 days to go and President-elect Joe Biden will become our President! Meanwhile, we have a pandemic to overcome and stress to reduce. Let’s start with some musical humor and then on to the good news!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=NYFpugeUso8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NYFpugeUso8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⧞ The Never-Ending Election? ⧞</h3> <p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/safe-harbor-deadline-trump.html" target="_blank">Tuesday’s ‘Safe Harbor’ Deadline Should End Trump’s Failed Coup</a>, Ed Kilgore, New York Magazine, December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>From a political perspective, Donald Trump’s claim that he won the 2020 presidential election will probably never die. But the extremely slim viability of his legal challenges to Joe Biden’s win, which<span> </span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/11/giuliani-trump-legal-team-melt-down-in-insane-presser.html">descended into farce</a><span> </span>some time ago, will all but vanish on December 8, when the “Safe Harbor” deadline for certification of state results should cut off any further efforts to steal the election.</p> <p>This deadline, created by the notoriously confusing Electoral Vote Act of 1877 (itself a reaction to the<span> </span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/09/the-last-time-a-contested-election-tore-the-country-apart.html">contested Hayes-Tilden election of 1876</a>), essentially prohibits any challenge in Congress to state electors certified by that date, set at six days before the Electoral College virtually “meets” to cast votes for the next president. While it has never been fully tested, a state certification of results and electors existing at the time of this deadline should also be very difficult to question in state or federal courts.</p> <p><span>Presently, 47 states plus the District of Columbia have<span> </span></span><a href="https://pyxis.nymag.com/v1/imgs/618/d43/306905d763d61fd67b117fd784470a63e0-giuliani.jpg">already certified</a><span><span> </span>their results and their electors (all but Hawaii, Missouri, and New Jersey, none of whose results are in any doubt at all). That includes all the states in which Trump’s legal team has been trying to contest their leader’s defeat. So Joe Biden has locked down 288 electoral votes, 18 more than he needs.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Here’s a little more on this subject: <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/what-safe-harbor-day-why-it-s-bad-news-trump-n1250205" target="_blank">What 'safe harbor day' is and why it's bad news for Trump</a>, Pete WIlliams, NBC News, December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON — States that haven't yet certified their votes for president or that face<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-s-election-fight-includes-over-30-lawsuits-it-s-n1248289" target="_blank">legal challenges</a><span> </span>are rushing to resolve any remaining disputes by Tuesday, known as<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-s-base-about-what-happens-if-there-s-no-n1237783" target="_blank">safe harbor day</a>.</p> <p>Under federal law, Congress must count the<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-elections/president-results" target="_blank">electoral votes</a><span> </span>from states that act by Dec. 8 to choose their presidential electors — the people who meet next week in each state to cast the actual votes for president — and to resolve any remaining<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-campaign-presses-legal-challenges-count-continues-swing-states-n1246593" target="_blank"><span> </span>legal disputes</a><span> </span>over their choices. ✄</p> <p>Federal court cases remain active in Pennsylvania, but the general view among election law specialists is that the mere filing of a federal lawsuit wouldn't block a state's achieving safe harbor status, unless a judge had required the state to take steps that would delay its choice of electors.</p> <p>"Assuming that the pending federal court litigation does not give the plaintiffs any of the remedies they are seeking, these federal cases should not affect safe harbor status, even if they go past Tuesday," said Edward Foley, an election law expert at Moritz College of Law at Ohio State University.</p> </blockquote> <h4>LOL...Biden wins..again!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Donald Trump is the first impeached President to lose the popular vote twice AND to lose Georgia 3 times in the same year. &lt;a href="https://t.co/04W1Lf1ucn"&gt;https://t.co/04W1Lf1ucn&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JohnFugelsang/status/1336068240968183810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Donald Trump is the first impeached President to lose the popular vote twice AND to lose Georgia 3 times in the same year. <a href="https://t.co/04W1Lf1ucn">https://t.co/04W1Lf1ucn</a></p>— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnFugelsang/status/1336068240968183810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>Justice</h3> <h4>DACA is back!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/12/04/texas-daca-dreamers-undocumented-immigrant-protections/?utm_campaign=trib-social&utm_content=1607127781&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Some undocumented immigrants should again be allowed to apply for DACA protections, federal judge rules</a>, Julián Aguilar, Texas Tribune, December 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) demonstrators stand outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on June 15, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/846579/large/GettyImages-1220208008.jpg?1598029190" title="Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) demonstrators stand outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on June 15, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left">EL PASO — Tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants in Texas could be eligible for protections offered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program after a federal judge ordered Friday the program must revert to its 2017 status.</p> <p style="text-align:left">U.S. District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis ordered that the Department of Homeland Security must post a public notice stating the department will again process applications for the program for potential first-time enrollees. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:left"><span>"Thousands of young people who should have been eligible for deportation protection and work authorization have been waiting for over three years to access this life-changing program and live with peace of mind in the country they call home," Todd Schulte, the president of FWD.us said in a statement. "It is well past time for DHS to finally follow the repeated judicial orders and begin to accept these applications."</span></p> </blockquote> <p>“You can say I’m a DREAMER,                                                                                                                          But I’m not the only one...”</p> <p>John Lennon (9 October 1940 — 8 December 1980)</p> <h3>🎶 Musical Inspiration 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=rAn-AWXtHv0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rAn-AWXtHv0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Forget winter...Justice is coming</h4> <p>Just the start:</p> <p><a href="https://www.citizensforethics.org/news/press-releases/peter-navarro-hatch-act-violation/" target="_blank">Peter Navarro referred for disciplinary action for Hatch Act violations</a>, citizens for ethics (CREW), December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span><strong>Washington—</strong>The Office of Special Counsel has recommended that disciplinary action be taken against Peter Navarro for repeatedly violating the Hatch Act, following complaints from CREW. OSC found that Navarro, an Assistant to the President and Director of the Office for Trade and Manufacturing Policy, violated the Hatch Act on multiple occasions when he engaged in political activity in his official capacity.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>According to the finding, Navarro “committed these violations after having received training on the Hatch Act and, for most of the violations, while knowing that OSC was investigating him for engaging in the same prohibited political activity.”</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>“In an administration full of people illegally using their government positions to influence an election, Navarro has been one of the worst,” CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder said. “We thank OSC for their thorough investigation and finding of Navarro’s repeated wrongdoing.”</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;US Office of Special Counsel report concludes Peter Navarro, assistant to the president, on several occasions violated the Hatch Act by using his official authority to interfere with the result of 2020 election. &lt;a href="https://t.co/DzrXViwAPb"&gt;https://t.co/DzrXViwAPb&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Hugo Lowell (@hugolowell) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hugolowell/status/1336022332784209922?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>US Office of Special Counsel report concludes Peter Navarro, assistant to the president, on several occasions violated the Hatch Act by using his official authority to interfere with the result of 2020 election. <a href="https://t.co/DzrXViwAPb">https://t.co/DzrXViwAPb</a></p>— Hugo Lowell (@hugolowell) <a href="https://twitter.com/hugolowell/status/1336022332784209922?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Another traitor statue removed</h4> <p>This good news was brought to you thanks to the efforts of a black VMI graduate and the first black superintendent of the school:</p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/vmi-begins-12-step-racist-recovery-removes-stonewall-jackson-statue" target="_blank">Virginia Military Institute Begins 12-Step Racist Recovery, Removes Stonewall Jackson Statue</a>, Stephen Robinson, Wonkette, December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) has taken the first step in its thousand-mile journey to correct a shameful history of systemic racism. Monday, the public military college began work on removing the statue of noted white supremacist traitor Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, a general on the losing side of the Civil War.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Stonewall Jackson statue was cancelled after the<span> </span><em><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/at-vmi-black-cadets-endure-lynching-threats-klan-memories-and-confederacy-veneration/2020/10/17/3bf53cec-0671-11eb-859b-f9c27abe638d_story.html" target="_blank">Washington Post</a><span> </span></em>published a story in October detailing the school's gross and pervasive "atmosphere of hostility and cultural insensitivity. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The<span> </span></span><em>Post</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>expose led to the much-deserved<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/10/26/927877491/virginia-military-institute-superintendent-steps-down-amid-allegations-of-racism" target="_blank">quit-firing of VMI's superintendent,<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">retired Army Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III, who had resisted removing monuments honoring racists even after the renewed debate following George Floyd's murder. (Selective) history must be preserved! ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">After Peay was given the heave-ho, VMI brought on retired US Army Major General Cedric Wins as interim superintendent. Wins is the first Black person to serve in the role. He's also less enthralled with old “Stonewall."</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>😖 We live in the dumbest reality 😖</h4> <p>Totally bonkers. So embarrassing. What a maroon. The good news is that all of this is being revealed and covered by the press.</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-pardons-white-house-19ab0914-1dcf-42b9-92f4-69cbaa5efb03.html" target="_blank">Scoop: Trump plots mass pardons, even to people not asking</a>, Jonathan Swan, Axios, December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Eagle menaces Donald Trump; Trump cringes." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/283471/large/trump-eagle.gif?1470367319" title="Eagle menaces Donald Trump; Trump cringes."> <figcaption>This picture has nothing to do with this story. <br> I just like it.</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>President Trump isn't just accepting pardon requests but blindly discussing them "like Christmas gifts" to people who haven't even asked, sources with direct knowledge of the conversations told Axios. ✄</span></p> <p><strong>Trump has also interrupted conversations to spontaneously suggest</strong><span> </span>that he add the person he's speaking with to his pardon list, these sources said.</p> <ul> <li>The offers haven't always been welcome.</li> <li>One source felt awkward because the president was clearly trying to be helpful but the adviser didn't believe they had committed any crimes.</li> <li>The adviser also believed being on the list could hurt their public persona.</li> <li>The White House declined to comment.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <h3>🌠🌙 Look Up At the December Sky! 🌙 🌠</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/12/04/astronomers-just-created-an-awe-inspiring-3d-map-of-the-milky-way--and-updated-the-universes-atlas/" target="_blank">Astronomers just created an awe-inspiring 3D map of the Milky Way — and updated the universe's atlas</a>, Matthew Rozsa, Salon, December 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="The Milky Way" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/506378/large/Milky_Way.jpg?1518305819" title="The Milky Way"> <figcaption>Milky Way — Home sweet universal home.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">For millennia, human philosophers have waged spirited debates over what precisely is our place in the universe. Now, we may have finally figured out just where we stand — geographically speaking, at least.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The first survey of the whole southern sky ever was completed by the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), a radio telescope created and run by Australia's national science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). The survey managed to map out roughly 3 million galaxies over the course of 300 hours, including around 1 million that had never been seen before,<span> </span><a href="https://scitechdaily.com/new-atlas-of-the-universe-created-includes-a-million-galaxies-weve-never-seen-before/" target="_blank">according to SciTechDaily</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Since only 12 percent of the human population lives in the Southern Hemisphere, the southern sky is often ignored, culturally and in astronomy: few know the southern constellations, and the northern ones are hegemonic in song and in culture. However, by virtue of less air pollution, the southern sky is brighter; also, the black hole at the center of our galaxy is visible only from the southern hemisphere.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://lifehacker.com/theres-a-lot-going-on-in-space-this-month-1845807595" target="_blank">There's a Lot Going On in Space This Month</a>, Sam Blum, lifehacker, December 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="The Geminid meteor shower of December 13-14, 2020" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/888081/large/astro01.JPG?1606513272" title="The Geminid meteor shower of December 13-14, 2020"> <figcaption>Great Conjunction, Geminid showers to rival Perseids, December Solstice AND an eclipse!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p><span style="text-align:start">This year has taken most of the good things away from us. We’ve been forced indoors, secluded from friends, family and the routine comforts of life. With existence reduced to a monotonous slog, you may have trouble finding things to get excited about—but nature can always help change that. Take the month of December, which is absolutely brimming with celestial events that will turn the sky into a playground for serious astronomers and amateur stargazers alike...</span></p> </blockquote> <p>This seems like a good place to reprise one of my favorite groovy 70’s songs —</p> <h3>🎶 Here Comes the Age of Aquarius! (thank the stars!) 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ILSr9BbhoJQ" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ILSr9BbhoJQ">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🎅🏿 Neighborhood Solidarity 🎅🏿</h3> <p>Sure, it appears that there’s an unnerving number of people out there who voted for Republicans because they are racist AF, but <em>most</em> people are still better than that! Check out this story from Arkansas:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2020/12/03/black-santa-solidarity/" target="_blank">A family got a racist note after putting up a Black Santa. Soon, neighbors began displaying their own Black Santas.</a> Sydney Page, Washington Post, December 3, 2020.</p> <p>(sorry the excerpt is choppy — the article was not written in a way that easily allowed for coherent summarizing clips)</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="download.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/891669/large/download.jpg?1607396809" title="download.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>That changed Nov. 23, when Kennedy, 33, checked his mailbox and was stunned to find an anonymous, racist letter attacking the seven-foot Black Santa on his lawn. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Then something magical happened.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>As more neighbors heard about the letter, they rallied in solidarity with the Kennedys. Slowly but surely, Black Santas began popping up, one by one, on the lawns of Lakewood. ✄</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>People have also asked to send donations, and Kennedy has redirected all requests to the<span> </span><a href="https://www.rmhcarkansas.org/">Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkansas</a>.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h3><sup>cute!</sup> From the Department of Very Small Things <sub>cute!</sub></h3> <p>BeeD brings us VERY LARGE THINGS, so I thought I’d flip that and bring you some very small — and adorably cute! — things!</p> <p>It is also a story about some very good nature news!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Two miniscule pygmy possums and other tiny creatures endemic to Australia&amp;#39;s Kangaroo Island have been documented for the first time since wild bushfires destroyed their habitats last year &lt;a href="https://t.co/q70iqgkzCD"&gt;pic.twitter.com/q70iqgkzCD&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Reuters (@Reuters) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1336028957125316609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Two miniscule pygmy possums and other tiny creatures endemic to Australia's Kangaroo Island have been documented for the first time since wild bushfires destroyed their habitats last year <a href="https://t.co/q70iqgkzCD">pic.twitter.com/q70iqgkzCD</a></p>— Reuters (@Reuters) <a href="https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1336028957125316609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.vox.com/21755028/democrats-ossoff-warnock-georgia-runoffs-explained" target="_blank">Everything that needs to go right for Democrats to win the Georgia runoffs, explained</a>, Ella Nilsen, Vox, December 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️This schadenfreude is necessary: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rubbing-trumps-face-in-his-loss-isnt-just-funits-important?ref=home" target="_blank">Rubbing Trump’s Face in His Loss Isn’t Just Fun—It’s Important</a>, Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast, December 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.dcreport.org/2020/12/07/why-biden-needs-to-throw-the-book-at-trump/" target="_blank">Why Biden Needs To Throw The Book At Trump</a>, James R. Merikangas and Bandy X. Lee, DCReport, December 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Donald is falling apart: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trump-whines-away-the-last-act-of-his-awful-presidency" target="_blank">Trump Whines Away Last Act Of His Awful Presidency</a>, Stephen Robinson, Wonkette, December 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Reality check and cautious optimism: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/moral-imperative-get-vaccination-done-quickly/617310/" target="_blank">The Month the Pandemic Started to End</a>, Juliette Kayyem, the Atlantic, December 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Did you know there’re THIRTEEN drug companies in late stage clinical trials? I did not! <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/12/14/countdown-to-a-coronavirus-vaccine" target="_blank">Countdown to a Coronavirus Vaccine</a>, Carolyn Kormann, the New Yorker, December 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ In depth article about research/public health: <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/12/moderna-covid-19-vaccine-design.html" target="_blank">We Had the Vaccine the Whole Time</a>, David Wallace-Wells, New York Magazine, December 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ It will be up to the people to press for this: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/congress-covid-commission-biden/" target="_blank">Create a Coronavirus Commission With Sharp Teeth</a>, Mike Davis, the Nation, December 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Here’s a handy guide that helps you assess risk of various activities:<a href="https://www.vox.com/21551583/covid-winter-holidays-travel-gathering-kids-volunteer" target="_blank">You can survive winter and not spread Covid-19. Here’s how.</a> Katherine Harmon Courage, Vox, December 7, 2020.</p> <h4>🍑 Georgia Runoff 🍑</h4> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/12/runoff-elections-in-georgia-are-disasters-for-democrats-heres-why-this-time-is-different/" target="_blank" title="">Runoff Elections in Georgia Are Disasters for Democrats. Here’s Why This Time Is Different.</a> Ari Berman, Mother Jones, December 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/886304/large/gotv_georgia_00.png?1606052386" title="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">But in the November 2020 election, democracy, improbably, worked in Georgia. The state saw its<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2020/11/08/georgia-swing-state-democrats/?arc404=true">highest turnout</a><span> </span>in 40 years. Democrats have believed for some time that a<span> </span><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ADcfRsKjPArby9cAzI2hblWVEOJPEYaj/view">rapidly diversifying electorate</a><span> </span>would allow them to be competitive in Georgia, but repeated voter suppression efforts had kept that electorate from fully forming. Now, two years of determined<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/08/stacey-abrams-believers-georgia-blue-434985">organizing against voter suppression<span> </span></a>created the conditions for Joe Biden to carry the state by just under 12,000 votes, making him the first Democratic presidential candidate in 28 years to win Georgia.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“There were still long lines, there were still problems with absentee balloting,” says Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of the voting rights group Fair Fight Action and Abrams’ campaign manager in 2018. “But the collective work on litigation, advocacy, voter education, voter suppression mitigation that we and so many allies did really ensured that there was a multi-ethnic, multi-racial coalition that could come out to support Joe Biden.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">That electorate—along with the organizing that spurred it—is now giving Democrats hope that Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff can win runoff elections for the US Senate on January 5, races that would have seemed almost unwinnable in past years.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Ways you can help:</h4> <p>Once again, I am going to borrow the list of action opportunities from 2thanks. Thanks, 2thanks!</p> <p><strong>We have 2 Senate runoffs to win in Georgia:  </strong></p> <p>If you are in Georgia or know someone who lives, resides, or cribs there (hint):<span> </span><span><strong>The Georgia runoff is Jan. 5. Click here to request an<span> </span><a href="https://ballotrequest.sos.ga.gov/" target="_blank">absentee ballot</a></strong><strong>. Early in-person voting starts Dec. 14. And<span> </span></strong><strong><a href="https://registertovote.sos.ga.gov/GAOLVR/welcome.do#no-back-button" target="_blank">REGISTER TO VOTE</a></strong><strong><span> </span>here by Dec. 7.</strong></span></p> <ul> <li> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7319.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/891722/large/IMG_7319.jpg?1607410754" title="IMG_7319.jpg"> <figcaption>All I want for Xmas is my two GA Senators!</figcaption> </figure> <strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/21/1996436/-This-is-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank">This is how we are going to win the GA runoffs - a (nearly) complete guide</a> </strong>by Kosack M247.</li> <li>And yesterday’s offering by M247:<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/28/1998708/-Georgia-Energize-the-Base-MONEYBOMB" target="_blank">Georgia: Energize the Base MONEYBOMB</a></strong><span>.</span></li> <li><span>A great way to help GOTV (get out the vote) and fight voter suppression in Georgia is to contribute to Stacey Abrams’<span> </span></span><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/new-georgia-project-1" target="_blank">New Georgia Project<span> </span></a><span>now, in time to have an impact before the registration deadline Dec. 7</span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://warnockforgeorgia.com/?fbclid=IwAR29wPnSTZUiLao-xLqq0dtBb9Brg7F0Y3LdF_E5iSPKX87fxuWrC7lhuyk" target="_blank">Donate to Reverend Raphael Warnock</a>   </strong><span> </span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://electjon.com/?fbclid=IwAR1l-2Dj4GgxDpjSi4OD6nY_woZGdC74--S4aijamsmcAGidHFtHB946r_M" target="_blank">Donate to Jon Ossoff</a> </strong></li> <li><strong><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/elv?fbclid=IwAR2eXZQho3vMK7OTgLiITUA30HjW0knqdk1FLAaJrCBrZPTKWAAS0BQeYk4" target="_blank">Donate to Every Last Vote</a>.</strong><span> </span> </li> <li>You can donate to all of them.  </li> <li>Write<strong><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank"><span> </span>letters through Vote Forward<span> </span></a></strong>or<strong><span> </span><a href="https://postcardstoswingstates.com/" target="_blank">Postcards to Swing State Voters</a></strong>.</li> <li>Text JOIN to (484) 275-2229 to join Postcards to Voters’s efforts.</li> <li>On Daily Kos: <ul> <li><span style="text-align:start"><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/2/4/1832194/-I-Have-Some-Ideas-If-You-re-Interested-Hope-You-ll-Take-a-Look" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a></strong>:<span> </span></span>Great ideas.<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052/history" target="_blank">Many diaries</a></strong>.</li> <li><span style="text-align:start"><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Mrmuni12/history" target="_blank">Mrmuni12</a></strong>: Popular comments in Roundups as well as<span> </span><strong><span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Mrmuni12/history" target="_blank">diaries</a></span></strong>.</span></li> <li>The<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Black%20Kos/history" target="_blank">Black Kos Community</a><span> </span></strong>posts diaries on Tuesdays and Fridays at 5 p.m. ET.<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Black%20Kos/history" target="_blank">Diaries here</a>. This white guy is very, very grateful to the Editors and commenters of The Porch!</li> <li>How to find Kosacks near you: The<span> </span><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dogged" target="_blank">persistent<span> </span></a>mettle fatigue regularly updates:<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/7/17/1961398/--x1f4be-New-DK-Groups-11-Kentucky-Mask-Making-Racism-Environment-and-DK-s-Open-Threads-Grps" target="_blank">Where the Daily Kos Groups Are: Links to Daily Kos’s 280+ Local, In-Real-Life, Political, and </a></strong></li> <li><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/7/17/1961398/--x1f4be-New-DK-Groups-11-Kentucky-Mask-Making-Racism-Environment-and-DK-s-Open-Threads-Grps" target="_blank">Geographic Groups, Organized by State and Beyond, 2011-202</a></strong><span> </span></li> </ul> </li> </ul> <h3><span>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</span></h3> <p><span>That’s all nifty wrote for another week, gnusies!  As always, I encourage you to look after yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest (sleep if possible, but any rest is preferable to none) and try to get outdoors every day if you can. We are approaching the final days of this maladministration AND we are living through a pandemic. Talk about historic times. It’s exhausting! </span></p> <p><span>Be kind to yourself. Be gentle with others. </span></p> <p>I opened today’s GNR with a spoof of a Christmas song and I am closing with a serious and beautiful song that captures my hopes at the end of this terrible year. It doesn’t have to be a Christmas wish — it’s a human wish. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=tyKFpUs3Tjo" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/tyKFpUs3Tjo">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</h2> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election GeorgiaRunoff GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Justice Recommended _2000569 Tue, 08 Dec 2020 12:00:03 +0000 Let it Go, Donny - Good News Roundup, Wednesday, December 2 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/12/2/1999309/-Let-it-Go-Donny-Good-News-Roundup-Wednesday-December-2 <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies! No commentary today, let’s get straight to the good news!</p> <p><strong>First, a reminder that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris WON, bigly and decisively:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Breaking: Biden/Harris just became the first presidential ticket in U.S. history to surpass 81 million votes.&lt;/p&gt;— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Redistrict/status/1333905560899555330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Breaking: Biden/Harris just became the first presidential ticket in U.S. history to surpass 81 million votes.</p>— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) <a href="https://twitter.com/Redistrict/status/1333905560899555330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>Weird Happenings Point to Pub Panic</h3> <p><strong>First this story,</strong></p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/white-house-vetting-pardon-requests-push-trump-preemptively/story?id=74482289" target="_blank">White House vetting pardon requests as some push Trump to preemptively pardon family</a>, John Santucci, Katherine Faulders, and Olivia Rubin, abc News, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>White House sources, who describe the talks as preliminary and fluid, say the push for preemptive pardons began early this year around the time of the president's impeachment trial. At that time, the informal conversations -- described by sources as a "series of hypotheticals" -- focused specifically on whether the president could pardon himself. But in recent weeks the idea of preemptive pardons has returned to the Trump orbit, this time including allies and members of his family.</span></p> <p>But sources say Trump has not to this point embraced the idea of preemptive pardons, with some aides concerned that a preemptive pardon could be seen as an admission of guilt of some kind.</p> <p>The conversations surrounding preemptive pardons have also included Trump allies like the president's personal attorney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/charges-giuliani-associates-parnas-fruman/story?id=73072053" target="_blank">former associates have been charged</a><span> </span>by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Then this:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-elections-william-barr-b1f1488796c9a98c4b1a9061a6c7f49d" target="_blank">Barr: No evidence of fraud that’d change election outcome</a>, Michael Balsamo, AP News, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday the Justice Department has not uncovered evidence of widespread voter fraud that would change the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.</p> <p style="text-align:start">His comments come despite President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that the election was stolen, and his refusal to concede his loss to President-Elect Joe Biden.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In an interview with The Associated Press, Barr said U.S. attorneys and FBI agents have been working to follow up specific complaints and information they’ve received, but they’ve uncovered no evidence that would change the outcome of the election.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Allies of Pres Trump have knives out for AG Barr who told the AP the DOJ has not uncovered voting fraud at a scale that could have affected the results of the election.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;One source tells me Barr&amp;#39;s AP interview is a "complete betrayal" and says Barr has been "a total failure."&lt;/p&gt;— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/status/1333869572940816389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Allies of Pres Trump have knives out for AG Barr who told the AP the DOJ has not uncovered voting fraud at a scale that could have affected the results of the election.<br><br>One source tells me Barr's AP interview is a "complete betrayal" and says Barr has been "a total failure."</p>— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/status/1333869572940816389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Barr turned up at the White House for a previously unannounced meeting (but which the WH claimed afterwards HAD been on the schedule — yeah, sure!). Possibly to get reamed for the announcement above OR possibly to give the WH a heads up about...</p> <p><strong>And by the end of the afternoon, this:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/01/politics/presidential-pardon-justice-department/index.html" target="_blank">Justice Department investigating potential presidential pardon bribery scheme, court records reveal</a>, Katelyn Polantz, CNN, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>At the end of this summer, a filter team, used to make sure prosecutors don't receive tainted evidence that should have been kept from them because it was privileged, had more than 50 digital devices including iPhones, iPads, laptops, thumb drives and computer drives after investigators raided the unidentified offices.</span></p> <p><span>Prosecutors told the court they wanted permission to the filter team's holdings. The prosecutors believed the devices revealed emails that showed allegedly criminal activity, including a "secret lobbying scheme" and a bribery conspiracy that offered "a substantial political contribution in exchange for a presidential pardon or reprieve of sentence" for a convicted defendant whose name is redacted, according to the redacted documents. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The grand jury investigation also appears to relate to unnamed people acting as unregistered "lobbyists to senior White House officials" as they sought to secure a pardon and use an intermediary to send a bribe, the unsealed court records say.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING from CNN: &amp;nbsp;&lt;br&gt;“The Justice Department is investigating a potential crime related to funneling money to the White House in exchange for a presidential pardon, according to a court record unsealed on Tuesday by the chief judge of the DC District Court.”&lt;/p&gt;— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JohnJHarwood/status/1333909947042701316?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING from CNN:  <br>“The Justice Department is investigating a potential crime related to funneling money to the White House in exchange for a presidential pardon, according to a court record unsealed on Tuesday by the chief judge of the DC District Court.”</p>— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnJHarwood/status/1333909947042701316?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>👀 Comment from lawyer who worked with Special Counsel Robert Mueller on the Russia Investigation:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;3. the decision by Chief Judge Howell to issue her opinion today could make it much harder for Trump to issue wholesale pardons to the likes of Giuliani, Broidy, et al, which could constitute evidence of the pardon-for-money scheme being successful.&lt;br&gt;2/2&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Weissmann (@AWeissmann_) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AWeissmann_/status/1333932279257772034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 2, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>3. the decision by Chief Judge Howell to issue her opinion today could make it much harder for Trump to issue wholesale pardons to the likes of Giuliani, Broidy, et al, which could constitute evidence of the pardon-for-money scheme being successful.<br>2/2</p>— Andrew Weissmann (@AWeissmann_) <a href="https://twitter.com/AWeissmann_/status/1333932279257772034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And this: </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Pardon-palooza for past federal crimes. &lt;br&gt;But State liability can still bite them in the derriere. And you cannot pardon for future crimes: good luck figuring out what to report on your upcoming tax returns! &lt;a href="https://t.co/uz5sRMrjJA"&gt;https://t.co/uz5sRMrjJA&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Weissmann (@AWeissmann_) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AWeissmann_/status/1333956924627415041?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 2, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Pardon-palooza for past federal crimes. <br>But State liability can still bite them in the derriere. And you cannot pardon for future crimes: good luck figuring out what to report on your upcoming tax returns! <a href="https://t.co/uz5sRMrjJA">https://t.co/uz5sRMrjJA</a></p>— Andrew Weissmann (@AWeissmann_) <a href="https://twitter.com/AWeissmann_/status/1333956924627415041?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>So, basically, they are in a panic. Couldn’t happen to a more deserving mob.</p> <h3>Can This Guy Be DIsBarred Now?</h3> <p>Speaking of Special Counsels, there was a flurry of concern also yesterday about William Barr’s appointment of Durham now to be a Special Counsel continuing their <s>witch hunt</s> investigation into the roots of the Russia investigation. Everything these crooks do is cause for concern, of course, but it’s also important to temper the concern with the fact that these people are NOT omnipotent. Here’s an article that went up last night on the subject:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/12/bill-barr-may-have-made-a-key-mistake-in-appointing-secret-special-counsel-to-investigate-joe-biden/" target="_blank">Bill Barr may have made a key mistake in appointing secret special counsel to investigate Joe Biden</a>, Cody Fenwick, Alternet, December 1, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p>As many pointed out, there seems to be a big problem with Barr’s decision to set Durham up as a special counsel: The regulations don’t seem to allow it:</p> <blockquote> <p>An individual named as Special Counsel shall be a lawyer with a reputation for integrity and impartial decisionmaking, and with appropriate experience to ensure both that the investigation will be conducted ably, expeditiously and thoroughly, and that investigative and prosecutorial decisions will be supported by an informed understanding of the criminal law and Department of Justice policies. The Special Counsel<span> </span><strong>shall be selected from outside the United States Government</strong><strong>.<span> </span></strong>[emphasis added]</p> </blockquote> <p><span>Durham was already working within the government when he was appointed, apparently making him ineligible for the position Barr wants him to hold. It’s not clear how or if this mistake could be used against Durham, though it’s possible any target of his investigation could claim he’s unauthorized to act in the role. And this mistake could potentially be exploited by a future attorney general if they sought to remove Durham from the position.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>And the fun perspective from Wonkette:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/bill-barr-just-saying-donald-trump-dead-to-him-now" target="_blank">Bill Barr Just Saying Donald Trump Dead To Him Now</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Poor Donald Trump has been doing his conspiracizing (it's like Jazzercise, but dumber) lately about how his appointed FBI Director Chris Wray AND MAYBE EVEN THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT, which is led by fascist pigfuck Bill Barr, are failing to help him steal the election from Joe Biden the way he likes. He<span> </span><em>whiiiiiiiined</em><span> </span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/lets-review-trumps-thanksgiving-weekend-temper-tantrums" target="_blank">to Fox News's Maria Bartiromo</a><span> </span>this weekend that maybe his own FBI and DOJ are literally doing a conspiracy to steal the election from him. "This is total fraud, and how the FBI and Department of Justice — I don't know," he<span> </span><a href="https://factba.se/transcript/donald-trump-interview-fox-news-sunday-morning-futures-maria-bartiromo-november-29-2020" target="_blank">said.</a><span> </span>"Maybe they are involved," he said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Well it sounds like they are, and maybe Trump needs to get on Twitter and return Bill Barr to the broken rest stop condom dispenser he found him in, because Bill Barr has<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-elections-william-barr-b1f1488796c9a98c4b1a9061a6c7f49d?utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_medium=AP" target="_blank">announced</a><span> </span>to the Associated Press that Trump is totally dead to him and he was never the REAL Roy Cohn, despite how he tricked Trump into thinking that.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Obviously, those weren't Barr's exact words. His exact words were WORSE:</p> <blockquote>Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday the Justice Department has not uncovered evidence of widespread voter fraud that would change the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. [...]<br> <br> In an interview with The Associated Press, Barr said U.S. attorneys and FBI agents have been working to follow up specific complaints and information they've received, but they've uncovered no evidence that would change the outcome of the election.<br> <br> "To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have affected a different outcome in the election," Barr told the AP.</blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>The truth is Republicans are in disarray.</strong> These moves, far from being powerful, are in fact desperate measures to try to protect themselves from righteous investigation/prosecution when the new administration and AG take over on January 20, 2021.</p> <p>Speaking of the inauguration, here’s the least surprising news ever (you knew this already, didn’t you?). What an utter loser:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is somehow the least surprising news of 2020—and also probably a huge relief to Biden and the other former presidents who would attend an inauguration: &lt;a href="https://t.co/U5wsBouad7"&gt;https://t.co/U5wsBouad7&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Garrett M. Graff (@vermontgmg) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/vermontgmg/status/1333908272420712448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is somehow the least surprising news of 2020—and also probably a huge relief to Biden and the other former presidents who would attend an inauguration: <a href="https://t.co/U5wsBouad7">https://t.co/U5wsBouad7</a></p>— Garrett M. Graff (@vermontgmg) <a href="https://twitter.com/vermontgmg/status/1333908272420712448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>More Signs of Republicans in Disarray</h3> <p>More and more Republicans are pushing back against the rantings and ravings of the election loser. This Georgia SOS official (perhaps emboldened by his boss’s principled stand), breathed fire on Monday. This guy is <em>pissed</em>!:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;"It has all gone too far," Georgia election official &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GabrielSterling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GabrielSterling&lt;/a&gt; said while addressing threats against election workers. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;"Mr. President, you have not condemned this language or these actions. Senators, you have not condemned this language or these actions." &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gapol&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/AF86Iy1RJT"&gt;pic.twitter.com/AF86Iy1RJT&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— GPB News (@gpbnews) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/gpbnews/status/1333886597264240640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>"It has all gone too far," Georgia election official <a href="https://twitter.com/GabrielSterling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GabrielSterling</a> said while addressing threats against election workers. <br><br>"Mr. President, you have not condemned this language or these actions. Senators, you have not condemned this language or these actions." <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gapol</a> <a href="https://t.co/AF86Iy1RJT">pic.twitter.com/AF86Iy1RJT</a></p>— GPB News (@gpbnews) <a href="https://twitter.com/gpbnews/status/1333886597264240640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>And signs of a nascent rebellion within the R senate? Maybe, we will see. These Rs have noodly spines, we know. But then again, personal ambition and political expediency are the only known spine-stiffeners for Republicans and so a few of them may just possibly work across the aisle for their own good (definitely not for the people):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MittRomney?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MittRomney&lt;/a&gt;: "I happen to be a deficit hawk. I don&amp;#39;t like borrowing money. I don&amp;#39;t like spending money we don&amp;#39;t have. But the time to borrow money—maybe the only time to borrow money—is when there&amp;#39;s a crisis. And this is a crisis. We want to help people at this particular time."&lt;/p&gt;— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1333801201402482688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/MittRomney?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MittRomney</a>: "I happen to be a deficit hawk. I don't like borrowing money. I don't like spending money we don't have. But the time to borrow money—maybe the only time to borrow money—is when there's a crisis. And this is a crisis. We want to help people at this particular time."</p>— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) <a href="https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1333801201402482688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>And</strong> some former employees of this sordid administration, who have been purged for insufficient loyalty, are not going to take the abuse lying down:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/fired-cybersecurity-chief-hints-legal-action-after-trump-campaign-lawyer-n1249505" target="_blank">Fired cybersecurity chief hints at legal action after Trump campaign lawyer said he should be shot</a>, Rebecca Shabad, NBC News, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <div>WASHINGTON — Christopher Krebs, who was<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/trump-fires-head-u-s-election-cybersecurity-after-he-debunked-n1248063" target="_blank">recently fired by President Donald Trump</a><span> </span>as the head of the federal government's election cybersecurity efforts, suggested Tuesday that he might take legal action against one of Trump’s lawyers who said that Krebs should be shot.</div> </div> </div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>In an interview on NBC’s “TODAY” show, host Savannah Guthrie asked Krebs how concerned he is about the comments made by Trump campaign lawyer Joe diGenova on Monday in which he said Krebs “is a class A moron. He should be drawn and quartered. Taken out at dawn and shot.”</p> <p>“It's certainly more dangerous language, more dangerous behavior," Krebs responded. "And the way I look at it is that we are a nation of laws, and I plan to take advantage of those laws. I've got an exceptional team of lawyers that win in court, and I think they're probably going to be busy.”</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>Meanwhile, he continues to be a loser in court:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/01/judge-blocks-trump-visa-immigration-rule-442086" target="_blank">Federal judge blocks Trump curbs on high-skilled worker visa program</a>, Rebecca Rainey, Politico, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A federal judge in California on Tuesday slapped down the Trump administration's latest effort to limit legal immigration, vacating new restrictions on H-1B high-skilled foreign worker visas that were expected to affect a third of applications to the program.</p> <p>U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White<span> </span><a href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/f/?id=00000176-211a-d27b-a5f6-f11a83ff0000" target="_blank">found that the administration<span> </span></a>didn't take enough time to consider the changes or seek public comment on the rules, which would have made it harder for businesses to obtain high-skilled foreign employees and would raise the wages H-1B workers must be paid. ✄</p> <p><span>In October, the same judge blocked the Trump administration's full ban on H-1B and other foreign worker visas, but that ruling only applied to companies represented by the business groups that sued, which included NAM, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Retail Federation and TechNet.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;A federal judge struck down new rules that would have made it tougher for foreign workers, particularly new international graduates of U.S. colleges, to qualify for an H-1B visa and significantly more expensive for companies to sponsor them &lt;a href="https://t.co/mI7pVjgHDg"&gt;https://t.co/mI7pVjgHDg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Michelle Hackman (@MHackman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MHackman/status/1333956758683996161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 2, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>A federal judge struck down new rules that would have made it tougher for foreign workers, particularly new international graduates of U.S. colleges, to qualify for an H-1B visa and significantly more expensive for companies to sponsor them <a href="https://t.co/mI7pVjgHDg">https://t.co/mI7pVjgHDg</a></p>— Michelle Hackman (@MHackman) <a href="https://twitter.com/MHackman/status/1333956758683996161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>Women Will Make History in the Biden Administration</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/biden-s-all-female-white-house-communications-team-proves-old-ncna1249452" target="_blank">Biden's all-female White House communications team proves the old boys' club has to go</a>, Jodi Enda, NBC Think, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>It's ironic and perhaps fitting that it took<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/s-lot-candles-biden-turns-78-will-be-oldest-u-n1248348" target="_blank">President-elect Joe Biden, the oldest man<span> </span></a>to win the White House, to open the gates of power to women in a truly significant way.<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/vice-president-elect-kamala-harris-shattered-glass-ceiling-all-women-ncna1246493">He started, of course, with Kamala Harris</a>, who will be the first woman to serve as vice president. Thankfully, he didn't stop there.</p> <p>Biden also has nominated women for<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/antony-blinken-secretary-of-state-biden-06a33397de673043360ba6b5fd78af8a" target="_blank">top national security</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/yellen-brings-long-history-policymaking-bipartisan-support-treasury-n1248684" target="_blank">economic positions</a>, and he is expected to continue placing women and people of color in prominent jobs throughout his administration.</p> <p><span>In a particularly stunning move, he and Harris have chosen an<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/biden-harris-announce-all-female-communications-team-n1249293">all-female slate to lead their communications team</a><span>, ensuring that — for the first time in history — women have the chance to weigh in on every important White House decision. Women will be advising the president and speaking for him. On a daily basis, they will represent the administration to the world. Theirs will be the voices of the administration. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Biden has selected people who are highly accomplished and superbly qualified to serve in his Cabinet and on his White House staff. In choosing them, he has demonstrated what women and people of color have known all along: There are plenty of top-notch people in every demographic group for even the most high-level jobs. You just have to see them and open the barricades that have blocked them from serving.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Treasury Department must be an institution that wakes up every morning thinking about the American people. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Your jobs, your paychecks. Your struggles, your hopes. Your dignity. And your limitless potential. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We will work to restore that public trust and promise. &lt;a href="https://t.co/ubxrE0sIc6"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ubxrE0sIc6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Janet Yellen (@JanetYellen) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JanetYellen/status/1333913622339207168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;December 1, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Treasury Department must be an institution that wakes up every morning thinking about the American people. <br><br>Your jobs, your paychecks. Your struggles, your hopes. Your dignity. And your limitless potential. <br><br>We will work to restore that public trust and promise. <a href="https://t.co/ubxrE0sIc6">pic.twitter.com/ubxrE0sIc6</a></p>— Janet Yellen (@JanetYellen) <a href="https://twitter.com/JanetYellen/status/1333913622339207168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>Good News — FCC</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/12/01/fcc-chairman-ajit-pai-foe-of-net-neutrality-resigns-his-post-early/" target="_blank">FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, foe of net neutrality, resigns his post early</a>, Matthew Rozsa, Salon, December 1, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Ajit Pai, the former Verizon in-house lawyer whom President Donald Trump appointed to lead the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), announced on Monday that he is stepping down, ending a controversial tenure most conspicuously marred by his opposition to net neutrality.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/30/fcc-chairman-ajit-pai-will-step-down-on-january-20.html" target="_blank">Pai's announcement</a><span> </span>has potentially huge ramifications for the FCC. The agency, which regulates communications including broadband internet access, has five commissioners and can have no more than three commissioners from one party at any point in time. By stepping down now instead of waiting for his term as chairman to expire in June, Pai is making it possible for President-elect Joe Biden to appoint his own chairman upon taking office as well as fill another vacant seat. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">When Pai leaves on Jan. 20 (the same day that Trump's presidency ends), the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.fcc.gov/about/leadership" target="_blank">agency</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>will be left with Republican Commissioner Brendan Carr and Democratic Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks. Republican Commissioner Michael O'Rielly was initially nominated to serve another term, but Trump revoked his nomination after O'Reilly questioned the president's attempt to target social media companies through revising Section 230. Trump's replacement nominee, Nathan Simington, is unlikely to receive a Senate vote before Biden takes office. At that time, Biden can revoke Simington's nomination and fill up the two remaining seats, including the chairmanship.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/welcome-to-melanias-final-christmas-hellhouse-of-spooky-frights" target="_blank" title="">Welcome To Melania's Final Christmas Hellhouse Of Spooky Frights!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Cool tool for your winter reading! Browse just like at a book store:  <a href="https://apps.npr.org/best-books/#view=covers&year=2020" target="_blank">NPR’s Book Concierge, NPR</a> , December 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ History helps with perspective! <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/politics/abnormal-transitions-of-power-timeline/" target="_blank">Laws and customs guide presidential transitions — but some go off the rails anyway</a>, Bonnie Berkowitz, Washington Post, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-loses-support-over-false-election-fraud-claims-6e8640fa-f328-4525-896c-74190e9cdfa2.html" target="_blank">The walls close in on Trump</a>, Margaret Talev, Kadia Goba, Axios, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ You hate to see it: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-maga-coalition-rallying-behind-trumps-post-election-mischief-is-already-cracking?ref=author" target="_blank">The MAGA Coalition Rallying Behind Trump’s Post-Election Mischief Is Already Cracking</a>, Will Sommer, Daily Beast, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ It will be tough, but not impossible: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/georgia-senate-democrats/" target="_blank">Can Democrats Really Win Georgia’s 2 Senate Seats?</a> Joan Walsh, the Nation, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ More swampiness uncovered: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/12/while-kelly-loeffler-opposed-new-covid-aid-her-husbands-firm-sought-to-profit-off-the-pandemic/" target="_blank">While Kelly Loeffler Opposed New COVID Aid, Her Husband’s Firm Sought to Profit Off the Pandemic</a>, David Corn, MotherJones, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Days late and a dollar short: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/12/republican-officials-who-have-gone-against-trump-barr-ducey-kemp.html" target="_blank">More and More Republican Officials Are Standing Up to Trump and His Effort to Overturn the Election</a>, Richard L Hasen, Slate, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Still don’t trust these guys, but here, have a laugh: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/12/rick-wilson-and-george-conway-hilariously-ridicule-the-gops-attempt-to-save-georgias-senate-seats-as-trump-implodes/" target="_blank" title="">Rick Wilson and George Conway hilariously ridicule the GOP’s attempt to save Georgia’s Senate seats as Trump implodes</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, December 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Good. Now do Gym Jordan: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/12/ex-penn-state-president-graham-spaniers-conviction-is-reinstated-by-a-federal-appeals-court/" target="_blank">Ex-Penn State President Graham Spanier's conviction is reinstated by a federal appeals court</a>, The Philadelphia Enquirer, December 1, 2020.</p> <h3>Georgia Senate Runoff</h3> <p>Even though trump and his inner circle are in a panic, the Republican voters in Georgia are not. They see through all the “rigged” talk and they <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/12/01/dont-be-fooled-trumps-conspiracy-theories-wont-discourage-georgia-republicans/" target="_blank">will not be fooled</a>. So, Democrats will have to work as hard as we can to GOTV once again. The Rs will be at the polls in droves, and so must Ds.</p> <p>I’m borrowing 2thanks’s roundup of election links — thanks 2thanks!</p> <p><strong>We have 2 Senate runoffs to win in Georgia:  </strong></p> <p>If you are in Georgia or know someone who lives, resides, or cribs there (hint): <span><strong>The Georgia runoff is Jan. 5. Click here to request an<span> </span><a href="https://ballotrequest.sos.ga.gov/" target="_blank">absentee ballot</a></strong><strong>. Early in-person voting starts Dec. 14. And<span> </span></strong><strong><a href="https://registertovote.sos.ga.gov/GAOLVR/welcome.do#no-back-button" target="_blank">REGISTER TO VOTE</a></strong><strong><span> </span>here by Dec. 7.</strong></span></p> <ul> <li><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/21/1996436/-This-is-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank">This is how we are going to win the GA runoffs - a (nearly) complete guide</a> </strong>by Kosack M247.</li> <li>And yesterday’s offering by M247: <strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/28/1998708/-Georgia-Energize-the-Base-MONEYBOMB" target="_blank">Georgia: Energize the Base MONEYBOMB</a></strong><span>.</span></li> <li><span>A great way to help GOTV (get out the vote) and fight voter suppression in Georgia is to contribute to Stacey Abrams’<span> </span></span><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/new-georgia-project-1" target="_blank">New Georgia Project<span> </span></a><span>now, in time to have an impact before the registration deadline Dec. 7</span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://warnockforgeorgia.com/?fbclid=IwAR29wPnSTZUiLao-xLqq0dtBb9Brg7F0Y3LdF_E5iSPKX87fxuWrC7lhuyk" target="_blank">Donate to Reverend Raphael Warnock</a>   </strong><span> </span></li> <li><strong><a href="https://electjon.com/?fbclid=IwAR1l-2Dj4GgxDpjSi4OD6nY_woZGdC74--S4aijamsmcAGidHFtHB946r_M" target="_blank">Donate to Jon Ossoff</a> </strong></li> <li><strong><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/elv?fbclid=IwAR2eXZQho3vMK7OTgLiITUA30HjW0knqdk1FLAaJrCBrZPTKWAAS0BQeYk4" target="_blank">Donate to Every Last Vote</a>.</strong><span> </span> </li> <li>You can donate to all of them.  </li> <li>Write<strong><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank"> letters through Vote Forward<span> </span></a></strong>or<strong><span> </span><a href="https://postcardstoswingstates.com/" target="_blank">Postcards to Swing State Voters</a></strong>.</li> <li>Text JOIN to (484) 275-2229 to join Postcards to Voters’s efforts.</li> <li>On Daily Kos: <ul> <li><span style="text-align:start"><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/2/4/1832194/-I-Have-Some-Ideas-If-You-re-Interested-Hope-You-ll-Take-a-Look" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a></strong>:<span> </span></span>Great ideas.<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052/history" target="_blank">Many diaries</a></strong>.</li> <li><span style="text-align:start"><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Mrmuni12/history" target="_blank">Mrmuni12</a></strong>: Popular comments in Roundups as well as<span> </span><strong><span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Mrmuni12/history" target="_blank">diaries</a></span></strong>.</span></li> <li>The<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Black%20Kos/history" target="_blank" title="">Black Kos Community</a><span> </span></strong>posts diaries on Tuesdays and Fridays at 5 p.m. ET.<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Black%20Kos/history" target="_blank">Diaries here</a>. This white guy is very, very grateful to the Editors and commenters of The Porch!</li> <li>How to find Kosacks near you: The<span> </span><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dogged" target="_blank">persistent<span> </span></a>mettle fatigue regularly updates:<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/7/17/1961398/--x1f4be-New-DK-Groups-11-Kentucky-Mask-Making-Racism-Environment-and-DK-s-Open-Threads-Grps" target="_blank" title="">Where the Daily Kos Groups Are: Links to Daily Kos’s 280+ Local, In-Real-Life, Political, and Geographic Groups, Organized by State and Beyond, 2011-202</a></strong><span> </span></li> </ul> </li> </ul> <h4>ETA: Great news from Georgia!! Here is what stonykill reported this morning:</h4> <blockquote> <div> <div> <p>Got word from my friend in Athens, Ga., last night that Deborah Gonzalez won the runoff race for District Attorney. Quoting a University of Georgia professor, my friend relayed that “Gonzalez ran on an explicitly progressive criminal justice reform, anti-death penalty platform. This circuit is where Gov. Brian Kemp lives (and votes). He tried to prevent this election and she fought him in court. And won!”</p> <p>So, more good news from Georgia. On to January. Per my friend, at least in the Athens area, “Our voter turnout was high. People are still very motivated.”</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>💙 RoundUp WIndDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it for me for this week — I ran short of time, hence you are spared my usual rambling! 😅</p> <p>We are almost there, but still have a way to go. And we have to go there in a pandemic! So, try to get enough rest, eat nutritious food, check in on loved ones and try to get outdoors every day if you are able. Fresh air and a bit of nature — even just the sky above — can work wonders on our mood and our sense of perspective. </p> <p>Happy Wednesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="black poodle with orange ball in mouth, trots proudly across dog park in late evening sunshine" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/889377/large/IMG_3929.jpg?1606893181" title="black poodle with orange ball in mouth, trots proudly across dog park in late evening sunshine"> <figcaption>I keep my eye on the ball, and that’s why I usually catch it!</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>P.S. This young lady cracked me up! Maybe she will make you smile, too!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Owkg7TqzvZA" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Owkg7TqzvZA" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Georgia Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden President-electBiden PubsInAPanic Recommended RepublicansInDisarray _1999309 Wed, 02 Dec 2020 12:00:09 +0000 Good News Roundup - November 24, 2020 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/11/24/1996431/-Good-News-Roundup-November-24-2020 <p>Good day, Gnusies and Happy Thanksgiving week. There’s plenty to be thankful for this week.</p> <p>By now, most of you know that yesterday evening the GSA finally acknowledged that Joe Biden is the President-Elect, authorizing the commencement of the official transition. I still want to include this newclip, though, because it is utterly blunt and truthful <em>— </em>no both sidesing here and no gussying up of the “failure”, “baseless claims of fraud” and blatant “efforts to subvert the vote”:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/michigan-consider-certifying-joe-biden-4ee6fbfd69f9a2a4daf9be449c6fe31d" target="_blank">Feds agree to help Biden transition after more Trump defeats</a>, Zeke Miller, David Eggert and Colleen Long, AP News, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="President-Elect Biden national address 2020-11-10" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/883493/large/2020-11-10JoeBidenPEnewsweekphoto.jpg?1605392984" title="President-Elect Biden national address 2020-11-10"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — After weeks of fraught delay, the federal government recognized President-elect Joe Biden as the “apparent winner” of the Nov. 3 election on Monday and gave the green light for cooperation on a transition of power. The move came after President Donald Trump suffered yet more legal and procedural defeats in his seemingly futile effort to overturn the election with baseless claims of fraud.</p> <p style="text-align:start">General Services Administrator Emily Murphy cleared the way for Biden to coordinate with federal agencies ahead of his Jan. 20 inauguration after Trump’s efforts to subvert the vote failed across multiple battleground states.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Trump, who has still refused to concede the election — and may never — followed up with a tweet that he was directing his team to cooperate on the transition. The president had grown increasingly frustrated with the flailing tactics of his legal team.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Murphy, explaining her decision, cited “recent developments involving legal challenges and certifications of election results.”</p> </blockquote> <p>Or maybe you’d like to see the bald truth in the actual headline? Coming right up:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/gsa-biden-transition-begin_n_5fbc406ac5b6e4b1ea452d95" target="_blank">Trump Stooge Finally Folds — Biden Transition Cleared</a>, HuffPost, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>Also, a timely reminder that this is how the story always goes, so DO NOT PANIC:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Remember, in every horror movie the monster always gets back up one last time and is like RAAAAR and then someone has to beat him with a brick or put a pitchfork through his face or some shit.&lt;/p&gt;— Chuck Wendig (@ChuckWendig) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ChuckWendig/status/1331034122236604423?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 24, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Remember, in every horror movie the monster always gets back up one last time and is like RAAAAR and then someone has to beat him with a brick or put a pitchfork through his face or some shit.</p>— Chuck Wendig (@ChuckWendig) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChuckWendig/status/1331034122236604423?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 24, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Handsome Joe’s transition team website is now a DOT GOV website, so stop your worrying now!</p> <p><a href="http://%20%20%20https://buildbackbetter.gov/" target="_blank">BUILD BACK BETTER DOT GOV!</a>  ← Check it out! 😍</p> <h3>🎶 Music Time! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=uWXUWepSak4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/uWXUWepSak4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>And if you STILL can’t stop worrying, or if you’ve seen panic porn about SCOTUS eventually handing the presidency over:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I think it&amp;#39;s ... extremely unlikely.&lt;/p&gt;— Justin Levitt (@_justinlevitt_) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/_justinlevitt_/status/1330950784532373504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I think it's ... extremely unlikely.</p>— Justin Levitt (@_justinlevitt_) <a href="https://twitter.com/_justinlevitt_/status/1330950784532373504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Heather Cox Richardson — <a href="https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/november-22-2020?r=3d4nz&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&utm_source=copy" target="_blank">November 22, 2020</a></p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">That the only way Movement Conservatives have managed to stay in power is to game the system through gerrymandering and voter suppression, hatred, and now the intimidation of people like me says to me that even they know they are in danger of losing control of the country. As a friend of mine says, a dying mule kicks the hardest.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Backers and Enablers Abandoning the sinking Ship</h4> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/blackstone-ceo-stephen-schwarzman-trump-biden-61c711ba-1127-4c03-a815-2162317e5066.html?utm_campaign=organic&utm_medium=socialshare&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Scoop: Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman says Trump lost</a>, Hans Nichols and Jonathan Swan, Axios, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>It's over. That's what<strong><span> </span></strong>Blackstone chairman, CEO and co-founder Steve Schwarzman — one of President Trump's most loyal allies — and other top Republicans are signaling to the defeated president, 16 days after Joe Biden clinched the win.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters</strong>: It’s all theatrics now. Even if Trump doesn't move on fast, you can. It is safe to ignore the fearful Republicans who insist the process is legit and plausible, because they tell us privately it is not.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Scoop - Blackstone CEO and top Trump ally Stephen Schwarzman says Biden won, time to move on .. most meaningful signal so far from Trump’s inner circle. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HansNichols?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@HansNichols&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/OQtCKLfpAl"&gt;https://t.co/OQtCKLfpAl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jonathanvswan/status/1330847603215527941?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Scoop - Blackstone CEO and top Trump ally Stephen Schwarzman says Biden won, time to move on .. most meaningful signal so far from Trump’s inner circle. <a href="https://twitter.com/HansNichols?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HansNichols</a> <a href="https://t.co/OQtCKLfpAl">https://t.co/OQtCKLfpAl</a></p>— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) <a href="https://twitter.com/jonathanvswan/status/1330847603215527941?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>We know they’re going and they know they’re going:</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/secret-service-members-asked-protecting-president-trump-full/story?id=74364989&cid=clicksource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_twopack_hed" target="_blank">Secret Service members asked about protecting soon-to-be-former president Trump full time in Florida: Sources</a>, ABC News, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>As states begin to certify election results that seal a victory for President-elect Joe Biden, even though Donald Trump hasn't conceded there is one clear sign his post-presidency life is taking shape: Secret Service agents in the president's detail are being asked whether they're interested in transferring to Palm Beach, Florida, sources have told ABC News.</p> <p>The Secret Service's Miami field office also has begun looking at physical reinforcements to Mar-a-Largo, the president's club to which he refers as "the winter White House," the sources added. These moves are considered unofficial as Trump has yet to concede to Biden. ✄</p> <p><span>Renovations to living quarters expected to be occupied by Trump and first lady Melania Trump are underway, ahead of when they'll be living there full time after the Jan. 20 inauguration, sources familiar with the planning told ABC News.</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Just to recap:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;No state has missed its certification deadline.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;No court has come within a light-year of blocking a state from certifying.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;No state legislature is actually moving toward trying to certify its own slate of electors.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Electoral College votes on Dec. 14.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Bye, Don.&lt;/p&gt;— Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/steve_vladeck/status/1330993374908833793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Just to recap:<br><br>No state has missed its certification deadline.<br><br>No court has come within a light-year of blocking a state from certifying.<br><br>No state legislature is actually moving toward trying to certify its own slate of electors.<br><br>Electoral College votes on Dec. 14.<br><br>Bye, Don.</p>— Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) <a href="https://twitter.com/steve_vladeck/status/1330993374908833793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🔜 Biden Transition</h3> <p>And here is what we have to look forward to in 2021 — an administration that is competent, serious and working for the greater good. Hopefully, if we can win the Georgia senate runoff elections, we will also have a government that is controlled by the party that will work to ensure there is competent, serious work done for the greater good.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/us/politics/biden-nominees.html" target="_blank">Biden Will Nominate First Woman to Lead Intelligence, First Latino to Run Homeland Security</a>, Michael Crowley, New York Times, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>At an event in Wilmington, Del., Mr. Biden will announce plans to nominate Alejandro Mayorkas to be his secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, his transition office said, and Avril Haines to be his director of national intelligence. He intends to name Mr. Kerry as a special presidential envoy on climate. The transition office also confirmed<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/22/us/politics/biden-antony-blinken-secretary-of-state.html">reports</a><span> </span>on Sunday night that Mr. Biden will nominate Antony J. Blinken to be secretary of state and Jake Sullivan as national security adviser.</p> <p>Mr. Biden will also nominate Linda Thomas-Greenfield to be ambassador to the United Nations and restore the job to cabinet-level status, giving Ms. Thomas-Greenfield, an African-American woman, a seat on his National Security Council. Mr. Kerry will also be given a seat on the council, although his job is not a cabinet position and does not require Senate confirmation.</p> <p>The emerging team reunites a group of former senior officials from the Obama administration, most of whom worked closely together at the State Department and the White House and in several cases have close ties to Mr. Biden dating back years. They are well known to foreign diplomats around the world and share a belief in the core principles of the Democratic foreign policy establishment — international cooperation, strong U.S. alliances and leadership but a wariness of foreign interventions after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is quickly becoming a formidable team that will reestablish America’s role in the world. &lt;a href="https://t.co/6mCLk8JObQ"&gt;https://t.co/6mCLk8JObQ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Mark Hertling (@MarkHertling) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MarkHertling/status/1330923478434914304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is quickly becoming a formidable team that will reestablish America’s role in the world. <a href="https://t.co/6mCLk8JObQ">https://t.co/6mCLk8JObQ</a></p>— Mark Hertling (@MarkHertling) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkHertling/status/1330923478434914304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/11/john-kerrys-appointment-as-climate-envoy-shows-the-world-were-back-in-the-game/" target="_blank">John Kerry’s Appointment as Climate Envoy Shows the World We’re Back in the Game</a>, Rebecca Leber, MotherJones, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Former Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to a small crowd in Rock Hill on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/811013/large/image2.jpg?1590776630" title="Former Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to a small crowd in Rock Hill on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">President-elect Joe Biden couldn’t have sent a stronger message to the world with his announcement Monday that John Kerry will be the special presidential envoy for climate. By appointing a former secretary of state whose signature achievements included brokering a<span> </span><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2015/12/breaking-news-paris-climate-agreement/">climate change accord with China</a><span> </span>and personally negotiating the Paris climate agreement, it’s clear the United States is back on the world stage after four years of chaotic isolationism under President Donald Trump.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In this position, Kerry will represent US interests on the international stage. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton originally envisioned the special envoy position to represent the State Department in meetings with foreign officials, but with this high-profile appointment, Biden has given the role a major boost from its original conception. Rather than report to the secretary of state, Kerry will directly represent the president and sit on the powerful National Security Council.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Alden Meyer, an independent strategist with more than 30 years in international climate policy likened Kerry’s appointment as a “super-ambassador” position. “This is another signal to the world that the US is back when it comes to multilateral engagement and cooperation,” Meyer says, “and clearly a signal that climate is a geopolitical issue of the top order for the new administration.” Biden already has plans to nominate a high-level domestic counterpart to Kerry who will be instrumental in implementing the candidate’s campaign promises to transition from fossil fuels at home.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Imagine a Non-Grifter in Treasury!</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-elections-coronavirus-pandemic-financial-markets-2019389a2de0d269588160862cfcc43f" target="_blank">AP source: Biden taps ex-Fed chair Yellen to lead treasury</a>, Christopher Rugaber and Michael Balsamo, AP News, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden has chosen former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen to serve as treasury secretary, a pivotal role in which she would help shape and direct his economic policies at a perilous time, according to a person familiar with the transition plans.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Yellen, who is widely admired in the financial world, would be the first woman to lead the Treasury Department in a line stretching back to Alexander Hamilton in 1789. Her nomination was confirmed to The Associated Press by a person who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss Biden’s plans. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">A path-breaking figure in the male-dominated economics field, Yellen, 74, was also the first woman to serve as Fed chair, from 2014 to 2018. She later became<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-virus-outbreak-paul-volcker-delaware-wilmington-aa8c76661dc0beb640158e49316c5eaf">an adviser</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>to Biden’s presidential campaign in an unusual departure for a former Fed leader that thrust her into the political arena.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>And about that Georgia Runoff</h4> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/886304/large/gotv_georgia_00.png?1606052386" title="Get Out The Vote For The Georgia Runoff"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Here is a great diary from GNR commenter M247 on ways to help out Georgia Dems:</p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/21/1996436/-This-is-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank">This is how we are going to win the Georgia runoffs — a (nearly) complete guide</a></p> <p>Go read it, share it, rec, tip and use it! There are tons of links in there for you to follow Georgia Dems lead, donate, participate and generally act like helpful Dem neighbors!</p> <h4>Meanwhile…</h4> <p>Republicans in disarray, again:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/georgia-recount-runoff/" target="_blank">Trump Is Blowing Up the Georgia GOP—and It Couldn’t Happen at a Better Time</a>, Joan Walsh, the Nation, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Never underestimate the capacity of Republicans to put aside differences and “come home” just before an election, but right now I’d say Donald Trump’s insults and demands that Georgia Republicans somehow overturn Joe Biden’s stunning if narrow win there—after they certified it on Friday—</span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/a-gop-civil-war-rattles-georgia-republicans-at-inconvenient-time/KTI47IWGSNEI7E7K5KQUBT4JDE/">is inflicting genuine damage</a><span><span> </span>to the campaigns of GOP Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The weekend saw wild demonstrations by Trump supporters against Governor Brian Kemp and Raffensperger—and implicitly against Perdue and Loeffler, who are increasingly perceived by hard-core Trumpists as not doing enough to aid Trump.<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/11/21/watch-live-hundreds-of-activists-gather-for-stop-the-steal-rally-in-georgia/">On Saturday in Atlanta</a><span>, hundreds gathered for a “Stop the Steal” rally where a man in a MAGA cap called Kemp and Raffensperger “traitors” and added, “Any Republican who allows this to happen is complicit and we will finish you!” (I’m sure he meant electorally, though he did put on a camouflage sweatshirt adorned with an elephant, and someone in the crowd shouted, “Death to tyrants!”) He added, “We will do whatever it takes to completely destroy the Republican Party.”</span></p> <p><span>On Saturday,<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1330248268656357376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1330248268656357376%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newsweek.com%2Fgeorgia-trump-supporters-destroy-gop-boycott-senate-runoffs-1549245">Trump tweeted support for the rally</a><span>, while his Georgia attorney, L. Lin Wood,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.mediaite.com/politics/pro-trump-attorney-calls-on-republicans-to-withhold-votes-in-georgia-runoffs-that-will-decide-senate/">urged state Republicans to boycott the Senate runoff</a><span>. “Want to get @SenLoeffler & @sendavidperdue out of their basements to demand that action must be taken to fix steal of the 11/3 GA election?” Wood asked on Twitter. “Threaten to withhold your votes & money. Demand that they represent you.” That wasn’t quite as bad as<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/ByronYork/status/1330534125997088768/photo/1">Trump attorney Sidney Powell’s claim</a><span><span> </span>that Kemp and Raffensperger had been paid off by Dominion Voting Systems Corporation, the manufacturer of the state’s voting machines, to throw the race to Biden. (On Sunday Trump’s team belatedly cut ties with the loony Powell; no such word about Lin Wood.)</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Musical Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=10rgnISnUwg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/10rgnISnUwg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💉 Good Public Health News 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-science-idUSKBN2832O5?taid=5fbc29eb6dc962000115abb2&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">AstraZeneca vaccine can be up to 90% effective; COVID-19 reinfection unlikely for at least six months</a>, Nancy Lapid, Reuters, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">An interim analysis of late-stage trials of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine finds it prevented 70% of COVID-19 cases with no confirmed serious adverse effects, the company announced on Monday. In 8,895 participants who got two full doses, the efficacy was 62%. But due to a dosing error that proved to be a happy accident, among 2,741 volunteers who got a half dose followed by a full dose, efficacy rose to 90%. Pfizer and Moderna reported that their vaccines were about 95% effective at preventing illness. But <strong>AstraZeneca's vaccine is cheaper, easier to make, and can be stored at normal refrigerator temperatures</strong>. Investment analysts at SVB Leerink said Astra's vaccine was unlikely to gain U.S. approval because safety data so far are inadequate and the trial design did not meet U.S. requirements for representation of high-risk groups such as the elderly and minorities. AstraZeneca said it plans to seek approval to modify its U.S. study to get more data on the smaller initial dose. Eventually, all three vaccines could prove comparable. "My suspicion is that by the time we are a year down the line, we'll be using all three vaccines with about 90% protection," said immunologist Danny Altmann of Imperial College London. (</span><a href="https://reut.rs/2J5n4Oi">reut.rs/2J5n4Oi</a><span style="text-align:start">;<span> </span></span><a href="https://bit.ly/33bK8C2">bit.ly/33bK8C2</a><span style="text-align:start">)</span></p> </blockquote> <p>If you’re concerned about children, since the current trials are using adult participants:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We’ll soon advance towards “step down” studies to adolescents and if those go well show no safety flares or signals, younger kids &lt;a href="https://t.co/uTSkK2qoy9"&gt;https://t.co/uTSkK2qoy9&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Prof Peter Hotez MD PhD (@PeterHotez) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PeterHotez/status/1331027886866894850?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 24, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We’ll soon advance towards “step down” studies to adolescents and if those go well show no safety flares or signals, younger kids <a href="https://t.co/uTSkK2qoy9">https://t.co/uTSkK2qoy9</a></p>— Prof Peter Hotez MD PhD (@PeterHotez) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeterHotez/status/1331027886866894850?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 24, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>You probably heard about that huge, superspreader wedding in NYC. Well, the city of New York has put some bite with the bark about that idiocy:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/new-york-city-will-fine-brooklyn-synagogue-dollar15000-for-hosting-thousands-at-maskless-wedding-de-blasio-says" target="_blank">New York City Will Fine Brooklyn Synagogue $15,000 for Hosting Thousands at Maskless Wedding</a>, Blake Montgomery, Daily Beast, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday that the city would fine a Brooklyn ultra-Orthodox synagogue $15,000 for a maskless wedding that drew a crowd of thousands in defiance of COVID-19 restrictions. The Yetev Lev temple in Williamsburg planned and hosted the Nov. 8 wedding of the head rabbi’s grandson in complete secrecy. News of the event broke over the weekend when t</span><a href="https://nypost.com/2020/11/21/secret-plans-helped-synagogue-pull-off-massive-maskless-wedding/">he<em><span> </span>New York Post</em></a><span><span> </span>published footage of thousands of men in traditional black hats singing and dancing shoulder-to-shoulder without face coverings. New York City’s coronavirus regulations prohibit large indoor gatherings. De Blasio said, “There is going to be a summons for $15,000 immediately for that site. And there could be additional consequences quite soon, as well. That’s just not acceptable.” The city is in the midst of an alarming surge of coronavirus cases, much like the United States at large. The announcement of the fine comes the same day as New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state’s health officer attempted to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/hasidic-community-plans-another-big-wedding-in-kiryas-joel-in-defiance-of-covid-19-rules">quash a similar massive wedding in Kiryas Joel</a><span>, an ultra-Orthodox community in upstate New York.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Also, it turns out that mask mandates are GOOD for business! Who knew? (All sensible people like us, that’s who):</p> <p><a href="https://www.sltrib.com/news/2020/11/23/statewide-mask-mandates/" target="_blank">Statewide mask mandates help shoppers feel safe and spend more</a>, Utah study shows, Tony Semerad, Salt Lake Tribune, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="MedMask-ThmbsUp-Resize2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/885649/large/MedMask-ThmbsUp-Resize2.jpg?1605925638" title="MedMask-ThmbsUp-Resize2.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left !important">Mandatory mask-wearing is proven to lower the incidence of COVID-19 infections, save lives and boost commercial activity, a new Utah study says.</p> </div> <div> <p style="text-align:left !important">Researchers with the University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business examined thousands of state and county mask orders across the country and found that coronavirus cases fell after mask requirements were put in place.</p> </div> <div> <p style="text-align:left !important"><a href="https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/marriner-wpmedia/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/SeegertGaulinYangNavarroSanchez2020-web.pdf" target="_blank">The study,<span> </span></a>by researchers at the school’s<span> </span><a href="https://marriner.eccles.utah.edu/" target="_blank">Marriner S. Eccles Institute for Economics and Quantitative Analysis</a>, also indicates that low case counts and mask mandates significantly raised consumer confidence, upping the amount people spend and the number of places these shoppers visit.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🌱 Environmental News🌱</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-lawsuits-environment-california-gavin-newsom-f30458eb13b6ff967d05b12c178621e8" target="_blank">GM flips to California’s side in pollution fight with Trump</a>, Tom Krisher, AP News, November 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is switching sides in the legal fight against California’s right to set its own clean-air standards, abandoning the Trump administration as the president’s term nears its close.</p> <p style="text-align:start">CEO Mary Barra said in a letter Monday to environmental groups that GM will no longer support the Trump administration in its defense against a lawsuit over its efforts against California’s standards. And GM is urging other automakers to do the same. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">In her letter, Barra wrote that the company agrees with Biden’s plan to expand electric vehicle use. Last week, GM said it is testing a new battery chemistry that will bring down electric vehicle costs to those of gas-powered vehicles within five years.</p> </blockquote> <p>And lo and behold! It turns out that environmentally-friendly policies not only don’t hurt the stock market, they help it!</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">The news,<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/gm-recalls-7m-vehicles-globally-277b41b68a4c92eec5c2578808b5c26a">coupled with GM announcing it was recalling 7 million vehicles</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>and avoiding a drawn-out legal fight, helped to push the automaker’s shares up 4% Monday to close at $44.77. Earlier in the day, the stock hit $45.16, its highest level in more than two years.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW: Pres.-elect Biden calls GM&amp;#39;s decision to no longer support the Trump administration in efforts to end California’s right to set its clean-air standards "encouraging news for our economy, our planet, and the long-term success of American autoworkers." &lt;a href="https://t.co/AWqLEnztum"&gt;https://t.co/AWqLEnztum&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/cIYzLREjLH"&gt;pic.twitter.com/cIYzLREjLH&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1331005684406751232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW: Pres.-elect Biden calls GM's decision to no longer support the Trump administration in efforts to end California’s right to set its clean-air standards "encouraging news for our economy, our planet, and the long-term success of American autoworkers." <a href="https://t.co/AWqLEnztum">https://t.co/AWqLEnztum</a> <a href="https://t.co/cIYzLREjLH">pic.twitter.com/cIYzLREjLH</a></p>— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1331005684406751232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🍁🍂 Happy Thanksgiving Week! 🍂🍁</h3> <p>Are you all set for turkey day? If not, I’ve got you!!</p> <p><strong>Turkey:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=zURCV71ckRo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/zURCV71ckRo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p><strong>SIde Dishes:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Oevm5O9q7BU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Oevm5O9q7BU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p><strong>and Pumpkin Pie!:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=JZ5VJNJNfSQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/JZ5VJNJNfSQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️It’s not too late to do the right thing: <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/daozers/cancel-thanksgiving?utm_source=dynamic&utm_campaign=bfsharetwitter" target="_blank">For The Love Of God, Please Cancel Your Thanksgiving Plans</a>, Dao Nguyen, Jonah Peretti and Jessica Probus, BussFeedNews, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Catchy title, substantive article): <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2020/11/financial-incentives-mask-wearing-vaccine-covid.html" target="_blank">Pay Americans to Wear Masks</a>, Joshua Barocas and Gregg Gonsalves, SLate, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/11/biden-executive-action-climate/" target="_blank">7 Ways Biden Can Fight Climate Change Without Any Help from Congress</a>, Rebecca Leber, MotherJones, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ R’s think they own faith; they don’t: <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/23/opinions/reverend-warnock-religious-left-graves-fitzsimmons/index.html" target="_blank">Why the GOP is so rattled by Rev. Warnock's faith-based Georgia Senate campaign</a>, Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons, CNN Opinion, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Bernstein named names, but so what? <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-gops-secretly-mad-senators-club-is-impressively-pathetic/" target="_blank">The GOP’s Secretly Mad Senators Club Is Impressively Pathetic</a>, Erin Gloria-Ryan, Daily Beast, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️”<span>Venture out of your bubble, Trump supporters, and try to understand how most of America thinks.”:</span> <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/want-to-understand-biden-voters-heres-your-reading-list/2020/11/23/1b5f07a0-2dbe-11eb-bae0-50bb17126614_story.html" target="_blank">Want to understand Biden voters? Here’s your reading list</a>. Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.niskanencenter.org/unified-or-divided-government-it-wont-matter-as-much-as-you-think-for-biden-and-the-democrats/" target="_blank">Unified or divided government? It won’t matter as much as you think for Biden and the Democrats</a>, James M Curry, Frances E Less, Niskanen Center, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Details: <a href="https://presidentialtransition.org/publications/after-ascertainment-whats-next-for-the-biden-harris-transition-team/" target="_blank">After Ascertainment: What’s Next for the Biden-Harris Transition Team</a>, Center for Presidential Transition, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Heather Cox Richardson recaps <a href="https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/november-23-2020?r=3d4nz&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&utm_source=copy" target="_blank">November 23, 2020</a>.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/11/19/why-were-polls-wrong-ignore-calls/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wp_opinions&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">The dirty little secret pollsters need to own up to</a>, David Hill, Washington Post, November 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Writer wrestles with covid/society: <a href="https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/how-stay-thankful-when-covid-fills-holidays-guilt-anger-grief-n1248582?cid=sm_npd_ms_tw_ma" target="_blank">How to stay thankful when Covid fills the holidays with guilt, anger, and grief</a>, Hayes Brown, MSNBC, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Catch up on your reading while quarantining! <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/23/books/review/best-books.html" target="_blank">The 10 Best Books of 2020</a>, New York Times, November 23, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/listen-to-this-very-smrt-trump-lawyer-georgia-do-not-vote-for-the-republicans-for-senate" target="_blank">Listen To This Very SMRT Trump Lawyer, Georgia! Do Not Vote For The Republicans For Senate!</a> Rebecca Schoenkopf, Wonkette, November 23, 2020.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WIndDown 💙</h3> <p>Wait, what’s this you say? No “Helpful Links” section this Tuesday? Well, allow me to direct your attention once more to that Georgia runoff section above and M247’s excellent  — and (nearly) complete! — guide to <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/21/1996436/-This-is-how-we-are-going-to-win-the-GA-runoffs-a-nearly-complete-guide" target="_blank">how we can win that election on January 5</a>.</p> <p>It’s also OK to take a breath, think about all that we accomplished this fall, and celebrate it. In spite of a pandemic, massive voter suppression, economic collapse and all sorts of other worries, both personal and public, we got out the vote and we won. Today, Joe Biden is our President-Elect. Kamala Harris is our Vice President-Elect. A roster of capable, experienced and decent public servants are about to take over the helms of our government departments and right the ship of state. We did this, gnusies. Along with 80 million of our fellow sane citizens,</p> <h2 class="AlignCenter">WE DID IT!</h2> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=CILIBlQ2D0Q" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/CILIBlQ2D0Q" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Politics President-elect presidentialtransition Recommended _1996431 Tue, 24 Nov 2020 12:00:05 +0000 Keep Calm and Carry On - Good News Roundup, November 10, 2020. https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/11/10/1992793/-Keep-Calm-and-Carry-On-Good-News-Roundup-November-10-2020 <p><strong>Good Day, Gnusies! Lots of good news and lots to say today! Let’s go!</strong></p> <p><strong>First</strong>, let’s try to put into perspective the news last night about Bill Barr resurfacing to scare the bejesus out of everyone with his <strong>long</strong>-<strong>expected</strong> abuse of office to mess with the election. Barr grabbed all the headlines by “authorizing” prosecutors to investigate the voter fraud lies being put forward by the trump campaign and assorted Republican toadies and sycophants. It turns out this will likely be (yet another) tempest in a teapot from the bully brigade, and a great disappointment <span>for “Donald Trump’s dwindling band of loyalists at the White House”:</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/team-trump-shts-on-barrs-bogus-voter-fraud-crusade?ref=home" target="_blank">Team Trump Shits on Barr’s Bogus Voter Fraud Crusade</a>, Asawin Suebsaeng, Erin Banco, Spencer Ackerman, William Bredderman, Sam Stein, Daily Beast, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Dead-End-Sign-X-W14-1.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/462280/large/Dead-End-Sign-X-W14-1.gif?1508364780" title="Dead-End-Sign-X-W14-1.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On Monday, Attorney General Bill Barr “<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/william-barr-directs-department-of-justice-to-investigate-unfounded-allegations-of-voting-irregularities">authorized</a>” Justice officials to investigate allegations of voter irregularities. But his memo doing so practically admitted there was little-to-no evidence for any such election fraud. The document warned that “specious, speculative, fanciful or far-fetched claims should not be a basis for initiating federal inquiries” and that “nothing here should be taken as any indication that the Department has concluded that voting irregularities have impacted the outcome of any election.”</p> <p>The memo sparked a new wave of criticism that the president and his allies were willing to sacrifice the country’s democratic foundation in the pursuit of power. Even those steps weren’t enough to satisfy Team Trump, however. Shortly after Barr’s declaration broke, officials close to the president and working on his reelection effort said they thought the memo could give the president and Rudy Giuliani another element to incorporate into their messaging war against the results of the free and fair election, but that it wouldn’t prove to be the legal game changer that they needed.</p> <p>“This is not what some of us wanted. This is not what I wanted,” said a senior official on the Trump reelection effort, following the news of the DOJ memo. “This will give the president [and others] something to play with for a while, but until Bill Barr actually puts up or shuts up, we’re still where we [have been].”</p> </blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Their goal in pulling these dangerous stunts is to create fear, chaos and confusion, so it behooves all of us to remain calm and clear-eyed about the realities on the side of saving democracy. Chief among them is the reality that Donald Trump, Bill Barr et al are NOT all-powerful. They cannot will their desires into existence just by saying stuff or announcing stuff or tweeting stuff or “authorizing” stuff. They need evidence, not just wild accusations. They need lots of people to go along with their schemes (supposing there even is an actual scheme fleshed out), and they don’t have the necessary numbers. While it’s undeniable that there <em><strong>are</strong></em> an unnerving number of true believers in Republican authoritarianism, the fact remains that patriotic Americans are the majority. Millions more of us voted for Joe Biden, support democracy and reject fascism. Even amongst their own ranks, there are lots of people who may like what the MAGA movement does, but destroying democracy is a bridge too far even for them:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/09/business/jones-day-trump-election-lawsuits.html" target="_blank">Growing Discomfort at Law Firms Representing Trump in Election Lawsuits</a>, Jessica Silver-Greenberg, Rachel Abrams and David Enrich, New York Times, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Some senior lawyers at Jones Day, one of the country’s largest law firms, are worried that it is advancing arguments that lack evidence and may be helping Mr. Trump and his allies undermine the integrity of American elections, according to interviews with nine partners and associates, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect their jobs.</p> <p>At another large firm, Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, based in Columbus, Ohio, lawyers have held internal meetings to voice similar concerns about their firm’s election-related work for Mr. Trump and the Republican Party, according to people at the firm. At least one lawyer quit in protest.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Let&amp;#39;s be clear - this is about disruption, disinformation, and sowing chaos. Trump is furious, demanding all "his" lawyers take action. They have no evidence so they&amp;#39;ll push the PR. Doesn&amp;#39;t change the result.&lt;/p&gt;— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/vanitaguptaCR/status/1325966462150995968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 10, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Let's be clear - this is about disruption, disinformation, and sowing chaos. Trump is furious, demanding all "his" lawyers take action. They have no evidence so they'll push the PR. Doesn't change the result.</p>— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) <a href="https://twitter.com/vanitaguptaCR/status/1325966462150995968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 10, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>And</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/live-blog/2020-11-09-biden-trump-2020-election-n1247064/ncrd1247156#liveBlogHeader" target="_blank">30 former GOP members of Congress call on Trump to accept Biden's victory</a>, Alex Seitz-Wald, NBC News, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="rats1.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/870333/large/rats1.jpg?1602895251" title="rats1.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Thirty former Republican members of Congress, many of whom previously endorsed Joe Biden, called on President Donald Trump on Monday to accept the results of the election and stop promoting baseless allegations of voter fraud.</p> <p>"As former Republican members of Congress who swore an oath to the Constitution, we believe the statements by President Trump alleging fraud in the election are efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the election and are unacceptable," the group wrote in an open letter.</p> <p>"Every vote should be counted and the final outcome accepted by the participants because public confidence in the outcome of our elections is a bedrock of our democracy," the group added. "Going forward it is our hope the nation will, regardless of party or persuasion, recognize that President-elect Joe Biden has won this election."</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>We now pause for a word from the Pennsylvania AG:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;(NOT) BREAKING:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The Trump campaign’s latest filing is another attempt to throw out legal votes — my team and I were already prepared for this.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;😴 Sleep tight. We will protect the laws of our Commonwealth and the will of the people.&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Shapiro (@JoshShapiroPA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoshShapiroPA/status/1325974338269548544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 10, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>(NOT) BREAKING:<br><br>The Trump campaign’s latest filing is another attempt to throw out legal votes — my team and I were already prepared for this.<br><br>😴 Sleep tight. We will protect the laws of our Commonwealth and the will of the people.</p>— Josh Shapiro (@JoshShapiroPA) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshShapiroPA/status/1325974338269548544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 10, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Second</strong>, a lot of people in the gloom and doom squad seem to think that Joe Biden and Democrats might be blind-sided by Republican tricks, ruthless thirst for power and duplicity. As Joe would say, “Come on, man!”. This is where that long career in government comes in real handy. There’s nothing Republicans can do that will surprise Joe Biden. He was there when they obstructed President Obama, remember? He is not going to be fooled, not going to be naive. When we hear our friends worrying about “nice Joe Biden” possibly being outfoxed by Moscow Mitch and company, remind them that empathy and compassion are strengths, not weaknesses and maybe they need to stop thinking like Republicans. </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="tumblr_n4ft75L0vI1rkaedco1_500.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/881578/large/tumblr_n4ft75L0vI1rkaedco1_500.jpg?1604985389" title="tumblr_n4ft75L0vI1rkaedco1_500.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Joe is hugely experienced, tough as nails, really damn smart, has a plan for everything Republicans might try to throw at him AND he has built a team who will fight hard for him and for us. Remember the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-biden/biden-pulls-together-hundreds-of-lawyers-as-a-bulwark-against-election-trickery-idUSKBN24305H" target="_blank">thousands of lawyers and volunteers</a> that Joe Biden gathered back in early summer to be ready for the very things Bill Barr et al are now threatening to pull?  Yeah, that was real and they are <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/525241-biden-transition-team-to-mull-legal-action-over-agencys-transition-delays" target="_blank">ready for anything</a>.</p> <p>You can bet your bottom dollar that Joe Biden did not leave it to the last minute to see if he would win or not. He takes public service and governing seriously. <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/transition-veterans-aim-give-president-elect-biden-quick-start-governing-n1247071" target="_blank">He has been building his administration for months</a>, in order to be prepared to hit the ground running right from the moment he is inaugurated. Joe understands at <em>least</em> as well as the gloom and doomers what is at stake right now, and with his experience in government he knows just what to do, who to recruit, and how things work. So he will be able to lead his administration into a swift transition, even in these perilous, pandemic times.</p> <p>Yesterday, buglady99 posted this video and it is so good I want to share it. This guy mentions the organizing Joe Biden was doing last summer to get teams in place to be ready to begin state department/foreign affairs work immediately. You can rest assured there are teams in place for every other government department, too. </p> </div> <p>Thanks buglady99! This is short, smart and makes it easy to understand how well Joe Biden is prepared:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=U9OklK9JBmA" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/U9OklK9JBmA" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Joe is prepared</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-president-decisions-trump/2020/11/09/2279627c-22a8-11eb-8672-c281c7a2c96e_story.html" target="_blank">Biden behaves as the incoming president, even as Trump balks at giving up power</a>, Annie Linskey and Sean Sullivan, Washington Post, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Biden began taking calls from foreign leaders, speaking Monday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. He also was weighing whom to appoint to top White House positions, with several of his longtime advisers expected to take senior roles. And he turned his attention to the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_4" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span>, dispatching a key aide to brief Senate Democrats this week and making a strong pitch to Americans of every ideology to follow public health recommendations.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>The President-elect takes the pandemic seriously</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-coronavirus-wear-mask-vaccine-d7e64d8b270ed3bf8daf58f01775d627" target="_blank">Biden targets virus as his White House transition begins</a>, Will Weissert, Philip Marcelo and Aamer Madhani, AP News, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The advisory board that Biden announced on Monday includes doctors and scientists who have served in previous administrations, many of them experts in public health, vaccines and infectious disease.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It will be led by former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler and Yale University public health care expert Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Biden pledged during the campaign to make testing free and widely available, to hire thousands of health workers to help implement contact-tracing programs and to instruct the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide clear, expert advice.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><em><span style="text-align:start">(Nifty note: President-elect Biden also promised that when an approved vaccine becomes available, he will ensure that it is distributed fairly and for free).</span></em></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Musical PSA 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=loaUecCcKKo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/loaUecCcKKo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>😰 Election 😰</h3> <h4>Transition</h4> <p>Sure enough, as I mentioned in the opening remarks, Joe Biden and his team have already anticipated the Republican shenanigans. Certainly, President Biden will immediately extend a hand of cooperation across the floor but he will take action without delay if Senate Rs prove obstructive:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/11/biden-team-making-plans-to-blow-through-any-mcconnell-roadblocks-report/" target="_blank">Biden team making plans to blow through any McConnell ‘roadblocks’: report</a>, Sarah Toce, Raw Story, November 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>President-elect Joe Biden is already in the process of working with his transition team to overhaul executive orders placed during his predecessor’s time in office, according to<span> </span></span><em><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-first-executive-orders-measures/2020/11/07/9fb9c1d0-210b-11eb-b532-05c751cd5dc2_story.html" target="_blank">The Washington Post</a>.<span> </span></em><span>Among the immediately planned adjustments:<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/11/07/biden-covid-pandemic-plan/?itid=lk_inline_manual_8" target="_blank">setting up a coronavirus task force</a><span><span> </span>in recognition of the coronavirus global pandemic. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“There has also been a recognition of those around him [Biden] that he may have to lean more on executive actions than he had once hoped. He can reorient various federal agencies and regulations, and he can adopt a different posture on the world stage,”<span> </span><em>The Washington Post</em><span> </span>reported Sunday.</p> <p><span>“The policy team, the transition policy teams, are focusing now very much on executive power,” said a Biden ally who has been in touch with his team who, like others interviewed for this story, spoke to<span> </span></span><em>The Washington Post<span> </span></em><span>on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. “I expect that to be freely used in a Biden administration at this point, if the Senate becomes a roadblock.”</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Details of Biden administration plans can be found at this WAPO link, though I used the Raw Story summary link above which is not paywalled: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-first-executive-orders-measures/2020/11/07/9fb9c1d0-210b-11eb-b532-05c751cd5dc2_story.html" target="_blank">Biden plans immediate flurry of executive orders to reverse Trump policies</a>, Matt Viser, Seung Min Kim and Annie Linskey, Washington Post, November 7, 2020.</p> <p>A lot of people are worried that the Senate is still going to be controlled by Republicans. That actually remains to be seen! There will be two Georgia runoff elections and a couple of other Senate races (AK and NC) are undecided as this is being written. But whatever the case may be, simply having Joe Biden in the White House will instantly improve our situation because he will appoint a new and better cabinet!  As poster SottoVoce reminded us in Goodie’s “I’m not going anywhere” diary:</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-11-04at8.10.21PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/878792/large/ScreenShot2020-11-04at8.10.21PM.png?1604542502" title="ScreenShot2020-11-04at8.10.21PM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><strong>And More Good Election News:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/hey-some-democrats-we-like-won-their-races-last-night" target="_blank">Hey, Some Democrats We Like Won Their Races Last Night! Hooray!</a>, Stephen Robinson, Wonkette, November 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">First things first, the Squad endured. House Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar all won reelection, despite serving as rightwing bogeywomen for the past two years. Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley's seats might've been relatively safe but Tlaib and Omar were less so.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">There was a brief scare last night when it seemed like badass freshman Rep. Lauren Underwood might lose, but she's holding on<span> </span></span><a href="https://abc7chicago.com/politics/underwood-oberweis-locked-in-neck-and-neck-race/7621261/" target="_blank">to a narrow lead</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in Illinois' 14th District. Over in Kansas' Third District, Rep. Sharice Davids decisively held off<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.ap.org/media-center/understanding-the-election" target="_blank">her Republican challenger.</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>I'd already bragged about<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/lets-join-ayanna-pressley-in-dancing-trumps-ass-out-of-office" target="_blank">Lucy McBath's anticipated win</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in Georgia's Sixth, but I'll do so again. It's official! She defeated<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.ap.org/media-center/understanding-the-election" target="_blank">Republican Karen Handel<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">by an even larger margin than last time. Huzzah!</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">In other cool news,<span> </span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/r/entryeditor/New%20Mexico%20became%20the%20first%20state%20to%20elect%20all%20women%20of%20color%20to%20its%20House%20delegation%20with%20the%20three%20women%20announced%20as%20winning%20their%20districts%20by%20early%20Wednesday%20morning." target="_self">New Mexico became</a><span> </span>the first state to elect all women of color to its House delegation. That's awesome, even if one of the winners from last night is a Republican, Yvette Herrell, who beat Democratic incumbent Rep. Xochitl Torres Small from the state's Second Congressional District.</p> <p style="text-align:start">New York Democrats Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones<span> </span><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/addybaird/ritchie-torres-mondaire-jones-first-gay-black-congress" target="_blank">both made history<span> </span></a>last night as the first openly gay Black men elected to Congress. Torres defeated homophobic jerk Rubén Diaz Sr. in June's Democratic primary.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;A Native American dances in the street along with other individuals in Albuquerque NM &lt;a href="https://t.co/LeN7m9Ig89"&gt;pic.twitter.com/LeN7m9Ig89&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Sharon Chischilly (@Schischillyy) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Schischillyy/status/1325239287978233857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>A Native American dances in the street along with other individuals in Albuquerque NM <a href="https://t.co/LeN7m9Ig89">pic.twitter.com/LeN7m9Ig89</a></p>— Sharon Chischilly (@Schischillyy) <a href="https://twitter.com/Schischillyy/status/1325239287978233857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <div><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/cori-bush-becomes-missouri-s-first-black-congresswoman-n1246397?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_blk" target="_blank">Cori Bush becomes Missouri's first Black congresswoman</a>, NBC News, November 4, 2020.</div> <blockquote> <div> <p><a href="https://variety.com/t/cori-bush/">Cori Bush</a><span> </span>has been elected to Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, making her the first Black Congresswoman in the history of Missouri.</p> <p>At the time the race was<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-elections/missouri-house-results" target="_blank">called by NBC News</a>, Bush — a Democrat — was leading Republican candidate Anthony Rogers with 78.9 percent of the vote. Missouri’s 1st district includes St. Louis and usually leans blue. ✄</p> <p><span>Bush’s platform includes Medicare for all, $15 federal minimum wage and the previously mentioned criminal justice reform. Bush continued on Twitter detailing what this win means for her and many more. “I will be the first woman to represent Missouri’s First District in its 173 year history. We have seen a 74 percent increase in women voters here since 2016. Representation matters. A system that works for everyone matters,” Bush wrote.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Ballot Measures ⚖</h3> <p>There were other things on the ballot this year than just who the next president should be. State ballot initiatives are a way for the people to directly make legislative decisions. Here is one such ballot measure that is HUGE news for justice and humanity:</p> <p><span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-elections-oregon-01edca37c776c9ea8bfd4afdd7a7a33e">Oregon leads the way in decriminalizing hard drugs</a></span><span>, Andrew Selsky, AP News, November 4, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>SALEM, Ore. (AP) — In a first in the nation, Oregon has rejected charging drug users with criminal offenses, with voters passing a ballot measure that decriminalizes possession of heroin, methamphetamine, LSD, oxycodone and other hard drugs.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Today’s victory is a landmark declaration that the time has come to stop criminalizing people for drug use,” said Kassandra Frederique, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, which was behind the measure. “Measure 110 is arguably the biggest blow to the war on drugs to date.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The measure completely changes how Oregon’s justice system treats those who are found with personal-use amounts of the hard drugs.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/notable-ballot-measures-voters-approved-rejected/story?id=73981166" target="_blank">These are the notable ballot measures that voters approved or rejected,</a> Julia Jacobo, ABC News, November 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>-Colorado voters struck down<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/coloradans-voting-abortion-ban-proposition-115/story?id=73767759" target="_blank">Proposition 115</a><span>, a measure that sought to ban abortions after 22 weeks of pregnancy. Abortions in Colorado will continue to be legal at any time during a woman’s pregnancy.</span></p> <p><span>-Five states have<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/marijuana-legalization-measures-pass-states/story?id=74008722%20https://abcnews.go.com/US/coloradans-voting-abortion-ban-proposition-115/story?id=73767759" target="_blank">legalized marijuana</a><span><span> </span>for both recreational and medical use.</span></p> <p>-Florida voters have approved a<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-constitutions-florida-orlando-minimum-wage-13ad5fc3c22f8a25cdc791ff18e947b1" target="_blank">ballot initiative</a><span> </span>to raise the minimum wage to $15. The current minimum wage of $8.56 will be raised to $15 over the next six years.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Virginia says No More Rigged REDistricting</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/virginia-voters-decide-no-more-rigged-redistricting/2020/11/04/85cf70d6-1d3b-11eb-90dd-abd0f7086a91_story.html" target="_blank">Virginia voters decide unambiguously: No more rigged redistricting</a>, Editorial Board, Washington Post, November 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>ACTUAL VOTE-RIGGING — not the made-up variety conjured by President Trump — has been the norm in too many states for too long, having taken place once a decade under the anodyne-sounding rubric of congressional and legislative redistricting. On Tuesday, voters in Virginia said: Enough. ✄</span></p> <p><span>By a</span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-redistricting-amendment-results/2020/11/02/5d1ef242-19f8-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_6"><span> </span>lopsided margin</a><span>, Virginians approved a constitutional amendment to establish a bipartisan redistricting commission that will remove from back rooms the decennial process of drawing maps for congressional and state legislative elections, and shift it into the public realm. That alone will improve the odds that voters can choose their elected representatives rather than the other way around.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><a href="https://www.legalreader.com/chicago-judge-trump-administrations-anti-immigrant-public-charge-rule/" target="_blank">Chicago Judge Strikes Down Trump Administration’s Aggressively Anti-Immigrant Public Charge Rule</a>, Ryan J. Farrick, Legal Reader, November 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="LadyJustice.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/871504/large/LadyJustice.jpg?1603141551" title="LadyJustice.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The Associated Press reports that U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman struck down the rule on Monday, saying it violates the Administrative Procedure Act. Under the APA, federal agencies must remain accountable to the public by outlining detailed processes and explanations for proposed regulations. ✄</p> <p>The so-called “public charge” rule has attracted extensive criticism and may be considered among the Trump administration’s most aggressive anti-immigration measures to date. While U.S. law has long allowed citizenship and immigration officials to deny residency and other benefits to migrants who pose a “burden” to American taxpayers,<span> </span><a href="https://www.legalreader.com/trump-administrations-public-charge-rule-will-make-it-harder-for-immigrants-to-get-green-cards/">President Trump sought to expand the definition of what, exactly, constitutes a burden.</a> ✄</p> <p><span>“As we all continue to be impacted by COVID-19, it is vital that no one is fearful of accessing health care,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said in a statement. “The court’s decision to block enforcement of the Public Charge Rule re-opens doors for immigrants to access vital services like health care.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>☮ Pretty Groovy! ☮</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/11/04/931377532/rigorous-study-backs-a-psychedelic-treatment-for-major-depression" target="_blank">Rigorous Study Backs A Psychedelic Treatment For Major Depression</a>, Jon Hamilton, NPR Health, November 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="220px-Psilocybe_semilanceata_6514.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/881628/large/220px-Psilocybe_semilanceata_6514.jpg?1605012084" title="220px-Psilocybe_semilanceata_6514.jpg"> <figcaption>Psilocybe semilanceata, commonly known as the liberty cap</figcaption> </figure> <p>The substance that makes some mushrooms "magic" also appears to help people with major depressive disorder.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A study of 27 people found that a treatment featuring the hallucinogen<span> </span><a href="https://www.dea.gov/factsheets/psilocybin">psilocybin</a><span> </span>worked better than the usual antidepressant medications, a team<span> </span><a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2772630">reported</a><span> </span>Wednesday in the journal<span> </span><em>JAMA Psychiatry.</em></p> <p style="text-align:start">"The effect was more than four times greater," says<span> </span><a href="https://csw.osu.edu/about/faculty-staff/faculty-directory/davis-alan/">Alan Davis</a>, an author of the study and a faculty member at both Johns Hopkins University and Ohio State University.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The study comes after<span> </span><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215036616300657">earlier research</a><span> </span>offered hints that psilocybin might work against depression and after a study by researchers at Johns Hopkins<span> </span><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5367557/">found</a><span> </span>that it could ease depression and anxiety in patients who had life-threatening cancer.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>And L👀K! Oregon is leading the way with this, too! (And DC!)</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/oregon-voters-approve-initiative-to-legalize-psilocybin-mushroom-therapy/" target="_blank">Oregon Voters Approve Initiative To Legalize Psilocybin Mushroom Therapy</a>, Ky;e Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, November 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Oregon voters have approved a first-in-the-nation ballot initiative to legalize the use of psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic purposes, according to a projection from the Associated Press.</span></p> <p>Under the measure, adults will be able to<span> </span><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/oregon-voters-will-decide-on-legalizing-psilocybin-therapy-in-november-state-announces/" target="_blank">access the psychedelic in a medically supervised environment</a>. There aren’t any limitations on the types of conditions that would make a patient eligible for the treatment.</p> <p>Currently, there are no such policies in place anywhere else in the U.S., though the victory for reformers does come amid a growing national movement to decriminalize a wide range of entheogenic substances, including ayahuasca and ibogaine.<span> </span><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/oakland-officials-decriminalize-psychedelics-and-say-theyll-work-to-legalize-sales-next/" target="_blank">Oakland</a>,<span> </span><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/santa-cruz-city-council-approves-psychedelics-decriminalization-measure/" target="_blank">Santa Cruz</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/city-council-unanimously-votes-to-decriminalize-psychedelics-in-ann-arbor-michigan/" target="_blank">Ann Arbor</a><span> </span>have made laws against plant- and fungi-derived psychedelics among their cities’ lowest enforcement priorities.</p> <p>Meanwhile,<span> </span><a href="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/washington-d-c-voters-approve-psychedelics-decriminalization-in-nations-capital-campaign-announces/" target="_blank">Washington, D.C. voters also approved a ballot initiative</a><span> </span>to enact that same policy change in the nation’s capital on Tuesday.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Groovy Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=NvlW4bEjB5A" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NvlW4bEjB5A">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>😱 Republicans in Disarray 😱</h3> <p><strong>R on R Infighting Breaks out in GA:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/09/loeffler-perdue-georgia-secretary-state-resign-435484" target="_blank">Loeffler, Perdue call on Georgia's Republican secretary of state to resign</a>, Marianne Levine and James Arkin, Politico, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A crude portrayal of a fight on the floor of Congress between Vermont Representative Matthew Lyon and Roger Griswold of Connecticut. The row was originally prompted by an insulting reference to Lyon on Griswold's part. The interior of Congress Hall is shown, with the Speaker Jonathan Dayton and Clerk Jonathan W. Condy (both seated), Chaplain Ashbel Green (in profile on the left), and several others looking on, as Griswold, armed with a cane, kicks Lyon, who grasps the former's arm and raises a pair of fireplace tongs to strike him. " src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/397022/large/1200px-Lyon-griswold-brawl.jpg?1493923987" title="A crude portrayal of a fight on the floor of Congress between Vermont Representative Matthew Lyon and Roger Griswold of Connecticut. The row was originally prompted by an insulting reference to Lyon on Griswold's part. The interior of Congress Hall is shown, with the Speaker Jonathan Dayton and Clerk Jonathan W. Condy (both seated), Chaplain Ashbel Green (in profile on the left), and several others looking on, as Griswold, armed with a cane, kicks Lyon, who grasps the former's arm and raises a pair of fireplace tongs to strike him. "> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue of Georgia called on the state’s GOP secretary of state to resign on Monday, citing “failures” in the election process but not providing any specific evidence to support their claims. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span>responded in a statement Monday saying he would not resign, and defended his office's handling of the election. He said the election was a "resounding success" from an administration perspective. He highlighted his office's briefings and updates to argue that they had conducted the process with transparency. ✄</span></p> <p>He also took a shot at Perdue and Loeffler for their criticism: "As a Republican, I am concerned about Republicans keeping the U.S. Senate. I recommend that Senators Loeffler and Perdue start focusing on that."</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;When you think of the factors conducive to Ossoff and Warnock winning the runoffs, a Republican Party at war with itself is high up the list. &lt;a href="https://t.co/YnZGW5Arel"&gt;https://t.co/YnZGW5Arel&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/matthewamiller/status/1325914725759275012?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 9, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>When you think of the factors conducive to Ossoff and Warnock winning the runoffs, a Republican Party at war with itself is high up the list. <a href="https://t.co/YnZGW5Arel">https://t.co/YnZGW5Arel</a></p>— Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) <a href="https://twitter.com/matthewamiller/status/1325914725759275012?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 9, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/georgia-election-official-says-unlikely-enough-unqualified-voters-to-change-result?ref=home" target="_blank">Georgia GOP Goes Full ‘Lord of the Flies’,</a> Hunter Woodall, the Daily Beast, November 9, 2020.</p> <p><strong>Esper trying to do some cleanup</strong>, salvage his reputation (it probably won’t work):</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/11/09/espers-exit-interview-is-stark-revisionist-warning-about-trumps-lame-duck/" target="_blank">Esper’s exit interview is a stark — but revisionist — warning about Trump as a lame duck</a>, Aaron Blake, Washington Post, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Chant_LOSER_Simpsons.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/876450/large/Chant_LOSER_Simpsons.gif?1604106586" title="Chant_LOSER_Simpsons.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>“My frustration is I sit here and say, ‘Hm, 18 Cabinet members. Who’s pushed back more than anybody?’ Name another Cabinet secretary that’s pushed back,” he said. “Have you seen me on a stage saying, ‘Under the exceptional leadership of blah-blah-blah, we have blah-blah-blah-blah?' ”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The answer is an unequivocal yes — to the extent where it was used by the Trump reelection campaign.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>On multiple occasions, Esper appeared onstage and on Trump’s (then-) favorite cable news station, Fox News, to praise his leadership in ways that, even at the time, were criticized as being obsequious.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“I’d like to thank President Trump for his bold leadership and support to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces,” Esper said while standing next to Trump at a late March news conference in Norfolk, in front of a naval ship brought to help with the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_22" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span> </span>pandemic. “This is an unprecedented time for our nation, and your leadership is uniting the American people to defeat this virus.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>In another sign that Republicans across the country know that Donald is done</strong>, Utah Gov. Herbert lays out some new Covid rules. Luckily for Utah residents, he doesn’t have to pretend the pandemic is no big deal anymore, because trump lost the election and will be gone on January 20. Also, Herbert may have found his spine — and <em>some concern</em> for the people whose wellbeing he is supposed to be working to protect —  now that the election is over and he won’t be governor anymore after the new (R) Utah governor is sworn in (yes, Republicans really are that terrible):</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/utah-gov-gary-herbert-declares-state-emergency-madates/story?id=74105758" target="_blank">Utah Gov. Gary Herbert declares state of emergency, mandates masks to fight COVID</a>, Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="bearsearsutahsunrise.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/874811/large/bearsearsutahsunrise.jpg?1603797475" title="bearsearsutahsunrise.jpg"> <figcaption>Beautiful Utah (Bears Ears National Park)</figcaption> </figure> <p>Faced with more than 2,000 new daily<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/utah-gov-gary-herbert-declares-state-emergency-madates/abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus">COVID-19 cases</a><span> </span>in his state and hospitals at capacity, Utah's outgoing Gov. Gary Herbert has declared a state of emergency and issued a mandate for all residents to wear masks in public until further notice. ✄</p> <p><span>"Masks do not negatively affect our economy, and wearing them is the easiest way to slow the spread of the virus," said Herbert, who did not seek reelection after serving two terms and will leave office Jan. 4. ✄</span></p> <p><span>In an analysis of all 50 states in July, ABC News concluded that 28, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, had issued statewide mask mandates. Since then, that list has added Ohio, Arkansas, Minnesota, Indiana, Wisconsin, Vermont and now Utah.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>👀 Even the unofficial cable media arm of the Republican party is starting to distance itself:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2020/11/09/fox-news-kayleigh-mcenany-cut-away-fraud/" target="_blank">Fox News cuts away from Kayleigh McEnany news conference after she alleges vote fraud with no evidence</a>, By Elahe Izadi and Sarah Ellison, Washington Post, November 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Fox News - We were fake news before it was cool - Middle Age Riot 2017" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/873037/large/foxnews.png?1603487773" title="Fox News - We were fake news before it was cool - Middle Age Riot 2017"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Fox News cut away from White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s remarks at a news conference Monday evening because she claimed without evidence that Democrats were inviting fraud and illegal voting. ✄</span></p> <p><span>From the Fox News studio, anchor Neil Cavuto cut in to end Fox’s broadcast of the video feed from the Republican National Committee headquarters. “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he said. “I just think we have to be very clear that she’s charging the other side as welcoming fraud and welcoming illegal voting. Unless she has more details to back that up, I can’t in good countenance continue showing you this.”</span></p> <p><span>He continued: “I want to make sure that maybe they do have something to back that up, but that’s an explosive charge to make, that the other side is effectively rigging and cheating. If she does bring proof of that, of course we’ll take you back. So far she has started saying right at the outset — welcoming fraud, welcoming illegal voting. Not so fast.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/fired-guy-fires-guy" target="_blank">Fired Guy Fires Guy</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Clear-eyed, hopeful, longer read: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/11/16/the-biden-era-begins" target="_blank">The Biden Era Begins</a>, David Remnick, the New Yorker, November 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 👀: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/the-long-love-affair-between-fox-news-and-trump-may-be-over-heres-how-it-ended-last-week/2020/11/09/f4dddb5e-2095-11eb-90dd-abd0f7086a91_story.html" target="_blank">The long love affair between Fox News and Trump may be over. Here’s how it all soured last week.</a> Sarah Ellison and Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/11/09/932190347/bidens-first-100-days-here-s-what-to-expect" target="_blank">Biden's First 100 Days: Here's What To Expect</a>, Elena Moore, NPR News, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/early-look-who-might-be-biden-s-inner-circle-white-n1246794" target="_blank">An early look at who might be in Biden's inner circle in the White House</a>, Mike Memoli, Carol E. Lee and Kristen Welker, NBC News, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/11/09/its-time-recognize-forgotten-americans-who-helped-elect-joe-biden/" target="_blank">It’s time to recognize the forgotten Americans who helped elect Joe Biden</a>, Katrina Phillips, Washington Post, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Cool interview! <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/11/08/reversing-the-southern-strategy-even-small-victories-are-a-sign-of-huge-progress/" target="_blank">Reversing the Southern Strategy: Even small victories are a sign of huge progress</a>, Paul Rosenberg, Salon, November 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Oldie but good article: <a href="https://prospect.org/day-one-agenda/using-presidential-power-executive-authority/" target="_blank">The Day One Agenda: <span style="text-align:left">The Next Administration: Using Presidential Power for Good</span></a>, David Dayen, The American Prospect, September 23, 2019.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-donald-trump-campaigns-pennsylvania-michigan-861506f10960504bcdc7e854705c8ef1" target="_blank">Trump faces long odds in challenging state vote counts</a>, Maryclaire Dale, AP News, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/president-trump-lost-too-many-republicans-keep-pretending-he-didnt/2020/11/09/01ff8684-22c6-11eb-952e-0c475972cfc0_story.html" target="_blank">President Trump lost. Too many Republicans keep pretending he didn’t</a>. Washington Post Editorial Board, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Info on the Covid vaccine story: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/11/09/933006651/pfizer-says-experimental-covid-19-vaccine-is-more-than-90-effective" target="_blank">Pfizer Says Experimental COVID-19 Vaccine Is More Than 90% Effective</a>, Joe Palca, NPR News, November 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ A different perspective: <a href="https://www.upworthy.com/in-big-picture-a-slim-biden-win-may-be-the-best-possible-outcome-for-america">In the big picture, a slim Biden win may actually be the best possible outcome for America</a>, Annie Reneau, BuzzFeed News, November 4, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Gaming the Endgame: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/11/09/why-trump-cant-afford-to-lose" target="_blank">Why Trump Can’t Afford to Lose</a>, Jane Mayer, the New Yorker, November 1, 2020.</p> <h3>💙 Self-Care 💙</h3> <p>So, probably the next several weeks will be NO FUN AT ALL, but you know what? The past 4 years have been no fun either. We will hang in there for the time it takes to beat off the Republican shenanigans and get Joe Biden inaugurated. Meanwhile, most of us are pretty drained. Here’s some help:</p> <h4>You’re totally normal!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/11/04/931496597/election-got-you-stressed-youre-not-alone-here-s-5-ways-to-deal-with-it" target="_blank">Election Got You Stressed? You're Not Alone — Here's 5 Ways To Deal With It</a>, Reese Oxner, NPR Health, November 4, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="self-care-you-are-important.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/238197/large/self-care-you-are-important.jpg?1460580854" title="self-care-you-are-important.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">An American Psychological Association<span> </span><a href="https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2020/10/election-stress">poll</a><span> </span>showed that more than two-thirds of adults are finding the 2020 election to be a significant source of stress. This includes 76% of Democrats and 67% of Republicans.</p> <p style="text-align:start">That's because we're dealing with a sense of "chronic uncertainty," said Judson Brewer, director of research and innovation at the Mindfulness Center at Brown University.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The tension from the pandemic coupled with that from an unresolved election can create high levels of anxiety, he said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(click the link to get the 5 ways to take care of yourself — all doable!)</p> </blockquote> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>You all <em>know</em> what I am going to say now and … NO I AM NOT! I am going to say something different!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6990.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/862189/large/IMG_6990.jpg?1601361318" title="IMG_6990.jpg"> <figcaption>Momma says it’s OK to rest. I like resting! Zzzzzz</figcaption> </figure> <p>Republicans will probably make the transition unnecessarily difficult, so this is going to be an emotionally and possibly physically trying intermission between the election and the inauguration. Emotionally, for obvious reasons (they won’t go quietly, but they will go) and physically because of all. the. stress. It’s OK to take a little time to rest this week if you need to. And then come back, we need you. 💙</p> <p>It may be hard to eat properly. It may be nearly impossible to sleep — or it may be hard to stop sleeping. We’ve been going through hell and we are not quite out of it yet, but you remember what Winston Churchill said about that — KEEP GOING!</p> <p>We are going to get through this — together. We are going to have President Biden and all the wonderful, experienced, competent staff this country deserves. We are going to get the pandemic under control. We are going to save and even improve the economy (and by “improve” I mean make it work better for everyone). We are going to finally work on infrastructure. We are going to improve affordable healthcare.</p> <p>We are going to recover from this nightmare and we are going to help each other keep going until we are all the way through it.</p> <p>OK, yes I am going to say it: take good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest and try to get outdoors every day if you can - just to look at trees and the earth and to ground yourself in the natural world. </p> <p>Remain calm, be resolute and hopeful. Better days are just ahead!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Lmj7bIQ84FY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Lmj7bIQ84FY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Pandemic President-electBiden Recommended Transition _1992793 Tue, 10 Nov 2020 12:00:04 +0000 Where Were You When You Heard the News? Tell Us! https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/11/8/1994087/-Where-Were-You-When-You-Heard-the-News-Tell-Us <p>Just now, I was reading the comments in today’s <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/8/1994000/-Biden-Abided-Trump-crumped-We-Did-It-WhoWonTheWeek-Poll-Sunday-Good-News" target="_blank" title="">Good News Roundup</a>, and I noticed that several people were telling their stories of how/when/where they heard the news that the Presidential election had been called, at long last, in favor of Joe Biden.</p> <p>And I thought, I’ve got a story too! And then I thought, wow, I bet everyone has a story and maybe it’s the kind of story that none of us will ever forget. It was that kind of moment.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="IMG_7234.jpg" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/880798/large/IMG_7234.jpg?1604860334" title="IMG_7234.jpg"> <figcaption>Happy President-Elect Day!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Here’s my story:  I had just finished reading Goodie’s <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/11/7/1993344/-Take-a-Moment-to-Enjoy-This-Saturday-s-Good-News" target="_blank" title="">Saturday Good News Roundup</a> and —  thus fortified to live another day of waiting with relatively good cheer — I shut my computer and went into the bathroom to prepare a long overdue bath for the Curlygirl (my beloved standard poodle for any non-gnusies who don’t already know her! 😍🐩).  Laid out the towels, dog shampoo, ear cleaner, got out the hi powered dryer and generally puttered away. Meanwhile a sound drifting in from the open windows in the bedroom began to slowly pierce my concentration on the task.</p> <p>Eventually I stopped and listened, then I went to look out the windows in my living room, where even without windows open, I could hear a general din of shouting and horns honking. I live in downtown Chicago so, to be honest, my first thought was, “Oh no. Please don’t let this be something bad.”  A lot of us have been living with some constant, low-level anxiety from being so frequently targeted for abuse by the pResident.</p> <p>But then I heard the sound of cowbells and clanging of metal objects on balcony railings and I knew — I KNEW — it was good news. I raced into my kitchen to grab a pot and then out to my balcony and oh! the cacophony, the glorious noise! Had Pennsylvania been called, I wondered? Was that bg enough news for this reaction or — dared I hope? — was it even bigger good news? I hadn’t even read or seen the news but I knew it was good news! My city had erupted in joy!</p> <p>I took out my phone to record the beautiful racket for a few seconds before trying to bring up twitter to see what exactly the news had said, but at that moment a young woman’s voice sailed out from one of the apartment balconies around me, “JOE BIDEEEEEEEENNNNNN!!” and the shouts, if possible, grew even louder, the bells ringing and metal banging and horn-honking increased to a sustained crescendo that lasted at least ten minutes.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Liked on &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/YouTube?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@YouTube&lt;/a&gt;: Celebrations break out across Chicago upon news of Biden&amp;#39;s election &lt;a href="https://t.co/uZvh7eXB9N"&gt;https://t.co/uZvh7eXB9N&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brandon (@CoolBalla15) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CoolBalla15/status/1325442032547074055?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Liked on <a href="https://twitter.com/YouTube?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@YouTube</a>: Celebrations break out across Chicago upon news of Biden's election <a href="https://t.co/uZvh7eXB9N">https://t.co/uZvh7eXB9N</a></p>— Brandon (@CoolBalla15) <a href="https://twitter.com/CoolBalla15/status/1325442032547074055?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Even after that sustained crescendo had receded, the shouts of joy and honking of horns carried on with ebbs and flows for literally the rest of the day. I know this because:</p> <p>I stopped preparing the bath and grabbed Curlygirl’s leash and we headed out into the street to take in the spectacle of spontaneous joy on the streets around us. I was afraid if I stopped to bathe her first (which takes hours) we would miss it. (I shouldn’t have worried!) So off we went, and made our way closer to the lakeshore and Michigan Ave, where it was glorious, joyous pandemonium. Cars were driving up the avenue honking horns, flying flags and shouting. People (mostly masked) crowded the sidewalks, laughing, dancing and waving to the cars and each other. </p> <p>After about an hour of drinking this in, Curlygirl and I went back home to get her bath done. Now more than ever, I wanted her to be freshly groomed so I could take her picture on what I will forever remember as President-Elect Day. The bath took, as usual, several hours, during which to my surprise the joyful noise outside did not appear to diminish!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;“What’s next? GEORGIA’S NEXT.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Chicago is getting ready for the January 5th’s senate runoffs during a Biden victory celebration. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Election2020?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Election2020&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/eb5NZ1eCOv"&gt;pic.twitter.com/eb5NZ1eCOv&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Connor Bishop (@WonderWab) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/WonderWab/status/1325130032658993153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;November 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>“What’s next? GEORGIA’S NEXT.”<br><br>Chicago is getting ready for the January 5th’s senate runoffs during a Biden victory celebration. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Election2020?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Election2020</a> <a href="https://t.co/eb5NZ1eCOv">pic.twitter.com/eb5NZ1eCOv</a></p>— Connor Bishop (@WonderWab) <a href="https://twitter.com/WonderWab/status/1325130032658993153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Hours later, freshly groomed Curlygirl and I returned to the streets and marveled that not only had the celebration not ended, nor even waned — it had GROWN!</p> <p>As the evening approached, Chicago’s streets continued to fill with happy, relieved people eager to celebrate the wonderful news that we have President-Elect, Joe Biden and VP-Elect Kamala Harris. Dancing, honking horns, music playing on street corners, laughter and so much relief and joy.</p> <p>Life is better already. I will never forget yesterday nor that moment of realization as the joyful noise drifting up to my window from the streets of Chicago told me the good news.</p> <h2 class="AlignCenter">What is your President-Elect Day story? </h2> <p>Thanks to 2thanks for the putting this into the GNR comments today — it is the perfect song!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=CdvITn5cAVc" title="" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CdvITn5cAVc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Chicago DanicingInTheStreets GoodNews JoeBiden KamalaHarris President-ElectDay _1994087 Sun, 08 Nov 2020 18:39:55 +0000 May the Blue Moon bring a Great Blue Wave to America! - Tuesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/10/27/1973103/-May-the-Blue-Moon-bring-a-Great-Blue-Wave-to-America-Tuesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies and Happy Tuesday — one week exactly to Election Day! This October is a blue moon month — the blue moon will be on Hallowe’en night — and I just feel like that is a lucky sign for Democrats! :-D So I changed my GNR picture just for this week. 🌚</p> <p>I had a thing planned to write today to encourage everyone as we enter the home stretch after these 4 long years, but Curlygirl is feeling poorly so between boiling rice with chicken and running outside with her just about every hour of the past 24, I kind of lost that thread.</p> <p><em><strong>Lucky for me</strong></em> (and all of you!), WolverineForTJatAW had my back! Here is her comment from Saturday which I repost with permission. Take it away, Wolvie!</p> <blockquote> <p>We’re good, y’all.  Take a deep breath, and keep doing all you’re doing.</p> <p>THIS IS NOT 2016!  Remember all that is happyning (fortunate typo!) now that was not happening in 2016.</p> <p>Happynings:</p> <p> MANY groups organizing citizen writers to encourage voters to VOTE (and, in some cases, VOTE BLUE).  PostcardsToVoters.org, for instance, did not exist in 2016.</p> <p> Pro athletes working together to help make it possible for people to VOTE (wearing VOTE tshirts on tv?)  (thank you, LeBron)</p> <p> Commercials on TV encouraging everyone to VOTE and telling people where to get info about how to vote in their state</p> <p> A major social-media business encouraging everyone to get registered, so they can VOTE (thank you, TikTok, SnapChat, Instacart)</p> <p> Former actors putting their money on the line to make sure more people are able to vote.  (Thank you, Ahnold)</p> <p> Media stars gathering to help encourage people to vote (cast of Star Treks, cast of Supernatural, cast of Princess Bride)</p> <p> Coursera (platform for free online college classes) telling people to vote.</p> <p> Video from Snoop Dog about the importance of voting, and about dropping your ballot in a drop box.  "Drop it like it's hot."</p> <p> Pro sports arenas used as safe places for a LOT of people to vote and still stay distanced.</p> <p> Mailers telling people how to vote.</p> <p> 780 retired generals, admirals, senior noncommissioned officers, ambassadors and senior national security officials sign historic letter urging Americans to vote @JoeBiden.</p> <p> Lots of big-name republicans publicly announcing they will vote for Joe Biden.</p> <p> Indivisible, helping us all learn how to fight back.</p> <p> Stacey Abrams and Fair Fight (and other groups of citizens here and there), working against vote suppression.</p> <p> Beto, being a big force behind phone-banking in Texas</p> <p> Other Democratic presidential candidates out stumping for Joe and Kamala (Elizabeth, Bernie [to some degree?], Mayor Pete)</p> <p> The media is at least somewhat less bothsider than it was in 2016.</p> <p> A lot of states are allowing universal absentee (and/or early) voting, which did not allow it in 2016.  The easier and more convenient it is to vote, the more people will vote.  The more people vote, the better for Team Blue.</p> <p> COVID-19 and *that thing*'s disastrous handling of the pandemic are *not* working in its favor!</p> <p> Progressive Muse brought this to Thursday (10/22)'s Good News: Victory is Near (a pep talk for Democrats from someone in the Lincoln Project).  https://thebulwark.com/victory-is-near/</p> <p> WeTheAction.org/2020 is signing up volunteer lawyers to make sure people can vote, and that the votes will be counted</p> <p> Companies telling their customers to vote for Biden (Expensify)</p> <p> Lincoln Project, et al, putting up new ads every day.</p> <p> Sarah Cooper.  :-)</p> </blockquote> <p>And the only thing I will add to Wolverine’s excellent comment — plus the only thing I will add about the SCOTUS travesty that happened in DC last night — is this:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I&amp;#39;m seeing a ridiculous amount of fatalism tonight. That shit is harmful – and it makes no sense. We&amp;#39;ve known for weeks this would happen. We&amp;#39;re up ten points. The court can&amp;#39;t overrule a margin that large. If we turn out, we win. PERIOD. Stop fretting and get up and fight!&lt;/p&gt;— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PalmerReport/status/1320948939449868288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 27, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I'm seeing a ridiculous amount of fatalism tonight. That shit is harmful – and it makes no sense. We've known for weeks this would happen. We're up ten points. The court can't overrule a margin that large. If we turn out, we win. PERIOD. Stop fretting and get up and fight!</p>— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/PalmerReport/status/1320948939449868288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 27, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>OK, let’s keep going!! </p> <h3>🎶 🎃 Opening Music for Hallowe’en Week 🎃 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Filming bats upside down looks like a goth nightclub 😂 &lt;a href="https://t.co/JSj7kc9RK9"&gt;pic.twitter.com/JSj7kc9RK9&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Animals Being Jerks (@MeanAnimals) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MeanAnimals/status/1298335589348122626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 25, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Filming bats upside down looks like a goth nightclub 😂 <a href="https://t.co/JSj7kc9RK9">pic.twitter.com/JSj7kc9RK9</a></p>— Animals Being Jerks (@MeanAnimals) <a href="https://twitter.com/MeanAnimals/status/1298335589348122626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🇺🇸 State of the States 🇺🇸</h3> <h4>ALabama</h4> <p>Doug Jones may not be able to hold on to his seat in this deep red state, but even Alabama is showing a lot of early voting enthusiasm, which is surprising in a state where the outcome is considered a foregone conclusion, so that is good news for democracy.</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-alabama-local-elections-elections-voting-2020-858036c7c6b7c69ec5d355f18299e352" target="_blank">More than 200,000 Alabama absentee votes already cast</a>, Kim Chandler, AP News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A record 200,000 Alabamians have already voted in the November election amid an early voting push and pandemic rules that made it easier to vote by absentee ballot.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill said Monday that 271,318 absentee ballots have been requested, and a 206,552 of those ballots have been returned. The previous record was 89,000, he said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Alabama does not technically have early voting, but people can cast<span> </span><a href="https://www.sos.alabama.gov/alabama-votes/voter/absentee-voting" target="_blank">absentee ballots</a><span> </span>by mailing them in or filling them out at local elections offices. Normally, to vote absentee, people must swear that they are out of town or ill or working during polling hours. But this year, Merrill has said this year people can vote by absentee ballot if they are concerned about the risk of COVID-19 at the polls.</p> </blockquote> <h4>colorado</h4> <p>Great news from Colorado! A big snow has really put a damper on the wildfires there:</p> <p><a href="https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/2020/10/26/colorado-east-troublesome-fire-cameron-peak-fire-wildfire-update-monday/6038218002/" target="_blank">What we know Monday: Cameron Peak Fire, East Troublesome Fire calmed by 1-2 feet of snow</a>, Miles Blumhardt, the Coloradoan, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Election_2020_John_Hickenlooper_679971.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/837463/large/Election_2020_John_Hickenlooper_679971.jpg?1595954013" title="Election_2020_John_Hickenlooper_679971.jpg"> <figcaption> US Senate candidate John Hickenlooper<br> (pictured for no particular reason 😀🌊)</figcaption> </figure> <p>Sunday's strong snowstorm that consistently delivered 1 to 2 feet of snow over much of the Cameron Peak and East Troublesome fires might not be a knockout punch, but it certainly was a gut punch that fended off the aggressive fires.</p> <p>The East Troublesome Fire that rapidly burned through Rocky Mountain National Park from the park's gateway communities of Grand Lake to Estes Park on Saturday was greatly tamed Sunday. In fact, so much snow fell that firefighters were pulled off the lines as the snow made for unsafe travel conditions. ✄</p> <p><span>"It may be quite a few days before we see fire activity on the ground,'' Paul Delmerico, Cameron Peak Fire operations section chief, said during Sunday's video update. The Cameron Peak Fire incident command team is also handling the Thompson Zone of the East Troublesome Fire, which is the portion of the fire that spotted in Rocky Mountain National Park and threatened Estes Park. </span></p> </blockquote> <h4>georgia</h4> <p>Joe Biden is campaigning in Georgia today! He is <em>going for it</em>  for himself AND to boost the candidacies of Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both making strong showings in Georgia’s two Senate races:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-trump-georgia-campaign/2020/10/26/87059922-179f-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html" target="_blank">Can Biden pull off a win in Georgia?</a> Sean Sullivan and Toluse Olorunnipa, Washington Post, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock speak while handing out campaign signs on Saturday, October 3, 2020 in Lithonia, Georgia. (Photo: Itoro N. Umontuen/The Atlanta Voice)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/871634/large/photos-1024x860.jpg?1603163019" title="Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock speak while handing out campaign signs on Saturday, October 3, 2020 in Lithonia, Georgia. (Photo: Itoro N. Umontuen/The Atlanta Voice)"> <figcaption>US Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Biden’s visit will include a speech in Warm Springs, where Franklin D. Roosevelt’s private retreat was located. His remarks, which aides billed as a major piece of his closing argument, are expected to urge national unity in a country confronting difficult challenges. Later, he will host a drive-in rally in Atlanta.</span></p> <p><span>“[Biden] understands the vitality of the Sun Belt and the importance of not just winning this election, but setting the table for success for the Senate and for the country,” said former gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams, whose near miss in the 2018 governor's race made her a Democratic star. She added, “Georgia has been ground zero for many of these conversations.” ✄</span></p> <p>An<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/ajc-poll-shows-deadlocked-races-for-president-senate-seats-in-georgia/4MTSM6V3CFALJFQCYWF3X2TAHA/">Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll</a><span> </span>released Monday illustrated how close the state has become, with Biden winning 47 percent of likely voters and Trump taking 46 percent. Sen. David Perdue (R) is running about even with his challenger Ossoff (D), and Democrat Raphael Warnock is leading in the special Senate election, which is expected to go to a runoff.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Turnout in Georgia so far suggests a Democratic advantage, although strategists from both parties caution that Republicans could make up that ground on Election Day, when polls show most Republicans will vote. As of Monday, more than 2.7 million Georgians had<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/10/15/georgia-voting-lines/?itid=lk_inline_manual_15">cast ballots either in person</a><span> </span>or by mail, according to data from the Georgia secretary of state — well above the total early vote in 2016, with a week still to go.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 🌊 Blue Moon Musical Break 🌊 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=21scyhRP_IU" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/21scyhRP_IU" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Mississippi</h4> <p>Maybe Democrat Mike Espy won’t be able to flip a MS Senate seat blue this year, but dang he is closer than any Democrat since forever. He was the first black congressman from Mississippi since Reconstruction and should he manage to defeat CIndy Hyde-Smith, he would be the first black Senator from Mississippi since Reconstruction, too.</p> <p>I like Mike — I hope he wins!</p> <p><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2020/10/24/senate-mike-espy-gains-new-attention-race-against-cindy-hyde-smith/3630085001/" target="_blank">Mike Espy’s Senate race in Mississippi is getting a fresh look from Democrats, including Barack Obama. Here’s why</a>, Phillip M. Bailey and Luke Ramseth, USA Today, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Mike-Espy-victory-rally-5136_AP_web_t670.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/871851/large/Mike-Espy-victory-rally-5136_AP_web_t670.jpg?1603224268" title="Mike-Espy-victory-rally-5136_AP_web_t670.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, for instance, <a href="https://yallpolitics.com/2020/08/05/sabatos-crystal-ball-mississippi-senate-race-remains-safe-republican/" target="_blank">rated the contest "safe Republican"</a><span> </span>in August but<span> </span><a href="https://centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/articles/with-just-weeks-to-go-trump-is-not-making-up-ground/" target="_blank">shifted it to "likely Republican"</a><span> </span>in October. ✄</p> <p><span>Yet if Espy were to win, it would be an upset of historic proportions. While some southern states such as Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia have turned bluer, Mississippi has been rock-solid Republican for decades. President Donald Trump carried it by 18 points in 2016 and the GOP controls the state legislature. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Polls showing at least an eight-point cushion for Hyde-Smith had tightened by late August, with one reporting a five-point gap and another showing a dead heat. One pollster noted in August that Espy was "in a very competitive position," adding Hyde-Smith is a surprisingly polarizing figure among many voters in the Republican state. </span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-mississippi-elections-voting-2020-voting-fe4f5dfb95e37ee8dea94d70c2ead5f6" target="_blank">Mississippi absentee voting continues to increase</a>, AP News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Secretary of State Michael Watson said nearly 170,000 absentee ballots had been requested and about 142,600 of those had been completed and returned by Sunday. That compares to 103,000 total absentee ballots that were cast in the state during the 2016 election, the last time a presidential race was on the ballot. This year’s absentee numbers surpassed the 2016 numbers a week ago.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Mississippi is one of five states without no-excuses early voting.<span> </span><a href="https://www.sos.ms.gov/content/documents/elections/VoterInformationGuide.pdf" target="_blank">Absentee voting</a><span> </span>in Mississippi is available to anyone who is 65 or older or who has a temporary or permanent disability. It is also available to people who have to work on Election Day when polls are open or to people who will be out of town on Election Day, including college students.</p> </blockquote> <h4>nevada, arizona, florida and pennsylvania</h4> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/laid-off-workers-campaign-against-trump_n_5f91d7acc5b695a32fb18d9f" target="_blank">They Lost Their Jobs In The Pandemic. Now Defeating Trump Is Full-Time Work.</a> Dave Jamieson, Huffington Post, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Unite Here says it has turned more than 1,000 of its members into canvassers in four swing states: Nevada, Arizona, Florida and Pennsylvania. Like Meniano, many are immigrants and other people of color who feel threatened by Trump’s racism and hardline policies. They also face a </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/long-term-unemployment-pandemic-emergency-benefits_n_5f89d0bfc5b62dbe71c270ce" target="_blank">long and painful spell of joblessness</a><span> due to a pandemic that the Trump administration has grossly mismanaged. Roughly three out of four of the union’s members are still out of work.</span></p> <div> <p><span>Even though the union is dealing with its </span><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/inside-the-union-where-coronavirus-puts-98--of-members-out-of-work" target="_blank"><span>own financial struggles</span></a><span>, Unite Here President D. Taylor said the program is its largest canvassing operation to date, and donations from other labor groups and nonprofits have made it possible. Although the union declined to name funders, one source is former presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg, who recently gave $1 million to the union’s canvassing efforts in Florida.</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>That kind of money has helped pay cash-strapped members while they pour their energy and frustration into political action. With less than two weeks to go before Election Day, they are focusing their efforts on driving up turnout in Democratic strongholds within battleground states.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Nevada: &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Biden voters. Latinos. On horseback. In style.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;This is my America... &lt;a href="https://t.co/8ri9Ur7SyH"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8ri9Ur7SyH&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RexChapman/status/1320433230160535560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 25, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Nevada: <br><br>Biden voters. Latinos. On horseback. In style.<br><br>This is my America... <a href="https://t.co/8ri9Ur7SyH">pic.twitter.com/8ri9Ur7SyH</a></p>— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) <a href="https://twitter.com/RexChapman/status/1320433230160535560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 25, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>South Carolina</h4> <p><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/jaime-harrison-endorsed-oldest-newspaper-south-carolina-polls-show-him-leading-lindsey-graham-1542178" target="_blank">Jaime Harrison Endorsed By Oldest Newspaper in South Carolina as Polls Show Him Leading Lindsey Graham</a>, Emily Czachor, Newsweek, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="NORTH CHARLESTON, SC - OCTOBER 17: Democratic Senate candidate Jaime Harrison addresses supporters during a drive-in rally on October 17, 2020 in North Charleston, South Carolina. Harrison is running against incumbent Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). (Photo by Cameron Pollack/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/871493/large/GettyImages-1229133918.jpg?1603139338" title="NORTH CHARLESTON, SC - OCTOBER 17: Democratic Senate candidate Jaime Harrison addresses supporters during a drive-in rally on October 17, 2020 in North Charleston, South Carolina. Harrison is running against incumbent Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). (Photo by Cameron Pollack/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Jaime Harrison, the Democratic congressional nominee challenging South Carolina Senator<span> </span><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/topic/lindsey-graham">Lindsey Graham</a><span> </span>in the upcoming general election, confirmed his campaign received an official endorsement from<span> </span><em>The State</em><span> </span>on Monday morning.</p> <p><em>The State<span> </span></em>is a daily newspaper based in Columbia, South Carolina's capital city. Initially established in 1891, it is the state's oldest newspaper and it's second-largest by circulation after the<span> </span><em>Post and Courier</em>.</p> <p>"We started as a 17-point underdog. Today, I'm honored to accept the endorsement of the oldest newspaper in South Carolina, @thestate. Change is coming, folks," Harrison<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/harrisonjaime/status/1320734549375131650?s=20" target="_blank">wrote on Twitter</a><span> </span>alongside a link to<span> </span><em>The State</em>'s endorsement, written by members of its editorial board and published earlier on Monday.</p> <p>(Nifty note: the State endorsement is behind a paywall, sorry I could not link)</p> </blockquote> <h4>Texas</h4> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/2020-elections/2020/10/voter-suppression-efforts-could-be-backfiring-on-republicans/" target="_blank">Voter Suppression Efforts Could Be Backfiring on Republicans</a>, Ari Berman, Mother Jones, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TexasBlue.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/874318/large/TexasBlue.jpg?1603655658" title="TexasBlue.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">In the last week of September, Chris Hollins, the county clerk of Harris County, Texas, sent out mail ballots to voters in the Houston area who had requested them and set up 12 locations where voters concerned about delays with the US Postal Service could drop their ballots off. Then, on October 1, just as voters had started to return their mail ballots, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott issued an emergency declaration limiting mail ballot drop-off sites to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/01/politics/texas-governor-drop-off-locations-ballots/index.html">one per county</a><span style="text-align:start">. The move</span><strong> </strong><span style="text-align:start">appeared designed specifically to make<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/Abbott-mail-ballot-drop-off-harris-county-election-15612991.php">voting harder in Harris County</a><span style="text-align:start">, the largest county in the state, which has 2.4 million registered voters and a larger landmass than Rhode Island. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Yet when early voting began in Texas on October 13, Abbott’s plan to limit Democratic participation appeared to backfire<strong>,</strong> as voters in Harris County, where voters of color make up a majority and where Hillary Clinton won by 12 points in 2016,<span> </span><a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/columnists/grieder/article/Grieder-Harris-County-voters-defy-GOP-efforts-to-15654562.php">surged to the polls</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The numbers in Harris County have been astonishing. A record 128,000 people voted on the first day of early voting, up from 68,000 in 2016 and a higher turnout than the entire state of Georgia on the same day. Turnout has barely dropped since then. On Friday, Harris County surpassed<span> </span><a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Harris-County-poised-to-reach-1-million-ballots-15670012.php?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=HC_AfternoonReport&utm_term=news&utm_content=headlines&sid=5f9077b45d65d34e57073eb8">1 million early votes</a>, exceeding its total from 2016 with a week of early voting still left, and nearly equaling the 1.3 million people who voted overall in 2016.</p> </blockquote> <p>And more from Texas:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/its-bananas-msnbcs-john-heilemann-says-republicans-are-freaking-out-over-texas/" target="_blank">‘It’s bananas!’ MSNBC’s John Heilemann says Republicans are ‘freaking out’ over Texas</a>, Travis Gettys, Raw Story, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>MSNBC’s John Heilemann said Republicans are “freaking out” over the staggering turnout in early voting this month — which could cost them both the White House and the Senate. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“It’s bananas,” Heilemann said. “You know, all the statistics we have seen, and there have been some staggering statistics in terms of the early vote. The total now is right around 55 million, 56 million votes that are already in the bank, which is itself also bananas.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>“The moment that John Cornyn turned against Donald Trump and came out and distanced himself from Trump, something he had not done in four years, it’s like a canary in the coal mine,” Heilemann said. “Like an electrocuted eagle in the coal mine, howling, and that’s John Cornyn saying, ‘I could lose this race,’ and a world where Cornyn can lose in Texas is a world where you could have a plausible conversation about the Democratic landslide, 1980s-style landslide in the Senate and a giant win for Joe Biden. I think everyone understands that Texas is fully in play.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 🌊 Democratic Musical Break 🌊 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=P2n7SE5fvtI" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/P2n7SE5fvtI">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Election News</h3> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/10/26/could-trump-end-up-going-quietly-here-are-5-ways-that-might-happen/" target="_blank">Could Trump end up going quietly? Here are 5 ways that might happen.</a> Greg Sargent, Washington Post, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>We<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/31/trump-just-told-us-how-mail-delays-could-help-him-corrupt-election/?itid=lk_inline_manual_5" target="_blank">already know</a><span> </span>Trump<span> </span><em>hopes</em><span> </span>to prematurely declare himself winner while invalidating millions of mail ballots, which could unleash a sustained post-election struggle.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>But if you squint, you can discern various scenarios in which Trump ends up going quietly — or relatively so. Presuming for now that Joe Biden wins, here are five such possibilities:</p> <p><strong>Biden wins by a landslide.</strong></p> <p><strong>Biden wins Florida on election night.</strong></p> <p><strong>Biden wins Arizona and runs strong (enough) in the Rust Belt.</strong></p> <p><strong>Vote-by-mail goes well for Biden in Pennsylvania.</strong></p> <p><strong>Fox News behaves responsibly.</strong></p> <p><span>But there are ways this could end with a relative whimper (and a barrage of ALL CAPS tweets) as opposed to something far worse. And there’s one way to make these scenarios more likely: Vote in enormous enough numbers to make them happen.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>L👀K at this!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/harvard-just-released-a-poll-that-should-give-trumps-campaign-heartburn/" target="_blank">Harvard just released a poll that should give Trump’s campaign heartburn</a>, Brad Reed, Raw Story, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>One of the wildcards in the 2020 presidential election will be turnout among young voters — and<span> </span><a href="https://iop.harvard.edu/youth-poll/harvard-youth-poll" target="_blank">one poll released by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School shows</a><span> </span>that President Donald Trump has reason to worry.</p> <p>The poll has found “historic interest in the upcoming election” among voters between the ages of 18 and 29, as 63 percent of these voters say they will “definitely” be voting this year, up from just 47 percent who said the same at this time in 2016.</p> <p><span>What’s more, the poll found that these voters are going overwhelmingly for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who leads Trump by 63 percent to 25 percent among the voters most likely to go to the polls.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Young voters seem energized. &lt;a href="https://t.co/MS4yDno5jS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/MS4yDno5jS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brian McBride (@BrianDMcBride) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BrianDMcBride/status/1319788990162210816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Young voters seem energized. <a href="https://t.co/MS4yDno5jS">pic.twitter.com/MS4yDno5jS</a></p>— Brian McBride (@BrianDMcBride) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianDMcBride/status/1319788990162210816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-hates-biden-s-stretch-run-strategy-biden-loves-trump-n1244808" target="_blank">Trump hates Biden's stretch-run strategy. Biden loves Trump's.</a> Jonathan Allen, NBC News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="BRISTOL, PA - OCTOBER 24: Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden takes off his face mask to speak during a drive-in campaign rally at Bucks County Community College on October 24, 2020 in Bristol, Pennsylvania. Biden is making two campaign stops in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Saturday. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/874742/large/GettyImages-1229265068.jpg?1603765373" title="BRISTOL, PA - OCTOBER 24: Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden takes off his face mask to speak during a drive-in campaign rally at Bucks County Community College on October 24, 2020 in Bristol, Pennsylvania. Biden is making two campaign stops in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Saturday. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>As the president ramps up his barnstorming tour between now and next Tuesday's election, Biden's markedly lighter schedule looks like that of an incumbent congressman who has no opponent. The Democratic nominee took Monday off entirely, while Trump held rallies across Pennsylvania — in Allentown, Lancaster and Martinsburg.</p> <p>If Trump wins, Biden will surely face recriminations from within his party for sitting on a lead. But Republicans seem more eager than Democrats to get Biden out on the trail, an indication that his<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2015/02/with-four-corners-offense-dean-smith-changed-basketball" target="_blank">four-corners</a><span> </span>strategy is perceived by both parties as a smart tack. ✄</p> <p><span>"The more that Trump talks, the more votes he loses," the Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis said. "He is going to be the first president to have talked himself out of office."</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, if you are concerned about unrest on Election Day, rest assured that preparations are in hand to be ready for anything. Choppy quote here to try to get a bit of everything — go read it though. Our local and national defences are standing ready to defend our election:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/10/26/926703808/how-police-national-guard-and-the-military-are-preparing-for-election-day-tensio" target="_blank">How Police, National Guard And Military Are Preparing For Election Day Tensions</a>, Tom Bowman and Martin Kaste, NPR News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Poll workers are usually the first line of defense in case of disputes between voters, though they may be backed up by private security guards. Some local election authorities say they'll be adding guards, and Washington state's King County says it will post guards to ballot drop boxes that in other years have been unattended. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">National Guard soldiers around the nation will take part in security operations for the election — but only for cybersecurity, assisting state officials by trying to prevent foreign governments and others from interfering with the vote. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">But Guard soldiers will come to the aid of the states as poll workers — dressed in civilian clothes — and performing the usual duties, setting up tables and handing out ballots.  ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">"This is not the first time that someone has suggested there might be a contested election," Milley told NPR's<span> </span></span><em>Morning Edition</em><span style="text-align:start">. "And if there is, it'll be handled appropriately by the courts and by the U.S. Congress. There's no role for the U.S. military in determining the outcome of a U.S. election. Zero. There is no role there."</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/10/26/927340197/election-stress-getting-to-you-4-ways-to-keep-calm" target="_blank">Election Stress Getting To You? 4 Ways To Keep Calm</a>, Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Uncertainty really gets to us, says<span> </span><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynnbufkaphd/">Lynn Bufka</a>, a psychologist with the APA. "What causes stress and uncertainty is when things feel out of our control, when they seem like we don't know what's going to happen," she says.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A good way to cope with all the unknowns is to start by managing our expectations, says Bufka. And then focus on the big picture. Here's how.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>1. Prepare mentally for delayed results</strong></p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>2. Double down on stress-reducing habits</strong></p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>3. Replace scrolling with something nourishing</strong></p> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>4. Look for signs of hope</strong></p> </blockquote> <h3>💙 Pluto Has Ideas! 💙</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=M_Cg_RjFMlE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/M_Cg_RjFMlE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3><strong>🐀 R</strong>epublicans <strong>A</strong>bandoning <strong>T</strong>rump <strong>S</strong>hip 🐀</h3> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/26/employees-leaving-hhs-432115" target="_blank">‘A mass exodus’: HHS staffers jumping ship amid pandemic, fears of Trump loss</a>, Dan Diamond, Politico, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trump_Rats_Revenge.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/491587/large/Trump_Rats_Revenge.jpg?1515033956" title="Trump_Rats_Revenge.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>At least 27 political appointees have exited the embattled Health and Human Services department since the start of the Covid-19 crisis in February, according to a POLITICO review, and senior leaders are bracing for dozens more officials to depart swiftly if President Donald Trump loses re-election. ✄</span></p> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>"There will be a mass exodus should the election go the other way" against Trump, predicted a senior department official, warning that some of the 100-plus political appointees who remain at the health department are preparing to compete for a dwindling pool of jobs across Washington.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>"I've personally seen people working on their resumes inside the office," the senior official added. "It's no secret."</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-appointee-resigns-executive-order-civil-servants" target="_blank">Trump Appointee Resigns Over Executive Order Stripping Civil Servants Protections</a>, Summer Concepcion, Talking Points Memo, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>President Trump’s recent executive order removing protections for career federal employees deemed disloyal has triggered the resignation of one of his administration’s appointees, who had led a commission that looks at how salaries differ between the public and private sector, the Washington Post<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-civil-servants-resign/2020/10/26/69d05a22-17a4-11eb-82db-60b15c874105_story.html">reported on Monday</a>.</p> <p>In his letter of resignation from the Federal Salary Council issued Sunday, Ronald Sanders decried the executive order that could impact tens of thousands or more employees in policy roles across the government.</p> <p>Sander wrote that Trump’s executive order “is nothing more than a smoke screen for what is clearly an attempt to require the political loyalty of those who advise the President, or failing that, to enable their removal with little if any due process,” according to the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-civil-servants-resign/2020/10/26/69d05a22-17a4-11eb-82db-60b15c874105_story.html">Washington Post</a>.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>There <strong>is</strong> a way to fight back...and you know it begins with GOTV:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;THREAD ON TODAY&amp;#39;S SUPREME COURT SHAM&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Make no mistake, today&amp;#39;s confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett is an unprincipled sham that deeply delegitimizes the Supreme Court. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Its real-world impact on rights &amp;amp; core issues will be felt for years&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;BUT....there is a way to fight back...&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;1/ &lt;a href="https://t.co/oEcHhngZJL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/oEcHhngZJL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Pepper (@DavidPepper) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DavidPepper/status/1320833696619003904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 26, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>THREAD ON TODAY'S SUPREME COURT SHAM<br><br>Make no mistake, today's confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett is an unprincipled sham that deeply delegitimizes the Supreme Court. <br><br>Its real-world impact on rights & core issues will be felt for years<br><br>BUT....there is a way to fight back...<br><br>1/ <a href="https://t.co/oEcHhngZJL">pic.twitter.com/oEcHhngZJL</a></p>— David Pepper (@DavidPepper) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidPepper/status/1320833696619003904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Republican fuckery with the courts at all levels is the subject of many a progressive nightmare, and “thanks” to the horrors of this past 4 years, I think we will see a decidedly different approach to government by Democrats if we take the Senate as well as the White House.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/gop-bets-democrats-won-t-expand-supreme-court-progressives-say-n1244721" target="_blank">GOP bets Democrats won't expand Supreme Court. Progressives say: Call their bluff.</a> Sahil Kapur, NBC News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>WASHINGTON — When<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/senate-votes-advance-amy-coney-barrett-nomination-ahead-final-confirmation-n1244699" target="_blank">Senate Republicans voted</a><span> </span>on a rainy Sunday to put Amy Coney Barrett on a glide path to a lifetime<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court" target="_blank">Supreme Court</a><span> </span>appointment one week before Election Day, they were making a bet that Democrats wouldn't<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/now/video/can-a-president-add-more-justices-to-the-supreme-court-94440005590" target="_blank">retaliate and erase conservative gains</a>.</p> <p>“A lot of what we’ve done over the last four years will be undone, sooner or later, by the next election,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Sunday after the 51-48 procedural vote against Democratic objections. “But they won’t be able to do much about this for a long time to come.” ✄</p> <p><span>“McConnell is clearly betting against the Democrats mustering the resolve to ever alter the structure of the court,” Brian Fallon, a former aide to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who now runs the courts-focused group Demand Justice, told NBC News.</span></p> <p><span>“Given how far the movement to add seats has already come in just two years, and how likely it is for this 6-3 court to produce rulings threatening progressive priorities, I think it's an unwise bet,” he said.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And if you’re still losing sleep over this SCOTUS packing by Republicans, know that Democrats are not out of options. Here, read the whole thing:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/10/26/amy-coney-barrett-confirmation-court-packing-jursidiction-stripping-432566" target="_blank">The Other Tool Democrats Have to Rein in the Supreme Court</a>, Kia Rahnama, Politico, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>But there might be another way to block a hard, sudden swing to the right on the Supreme Court. Legal theorists largely agree that the Constitution actually allows Congress to restrict the Supreme Court’s authority to hear cases on a specific subject matter, such as abortion. Lawmakers have tried to use this power by passing legislation declaring certain topics off-limits for the court, but they have failed to rally the necessary majorities to pass those bills. Now, with what some see as a nakedly political play by Republicans to shape the ideology of the court, the American public and lawmakers might be more open to such a strategy, which might be a more palatable option to Americans for safeguarding precedent on issues like abortion. ✄</span></p> <p><a href="https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/article/article-iii" target="_blank">Article III of the U.S. Constitution</a><span><span> </span>lays out not only the structure of the Supreme Court but what cases the court has the authority to decide—in other words, the court’s “jurisdiction.” The Constitution also separates the court’s jurisdiction into two distinct categories. For some rare cases that are highly-sensitive to national interest, such as cases involving U.S. diplomats or disputes among the states, the parties involved can take the dispute directly to the Supreme Court, skipping all lower courts and benefiting from what is called the court’s “original jurisdiction.” For everything else, the Supreme Court is actually not given the power to decide the case on its own, but instead is granted only the power to review a lower’s court’s decision. This is what is referred to as the court’s “appellate review” jurisdiction.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/26/court-stops-hud-rule-discrimination-432592" target="_blank">Court stops launch of HUD rule that makes it harder to prove discrimination</a>, Katy O’Donnell, Politico, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction to stop the Department of Housing and Urban Development from implementing a rule that would have made it harder to bring discrimination claims under the Fair Housing Act.</p> <p><a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/10/09/2020-21634/huds-implementation-of-the-fair-housing-acts-disparate-impact-standard-correction" target="_blank">The rule</a>, set to take effect Monday, would have required plaintiffs to meet a higher threshold to prove unintentional discrimination, known as disparate impact. The new rule — an update to the agency’s 2013 disparate impact rule —<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/31/hud-prove-housing-discrimination-1629826" target="_blank">would also have given defendants more leeway</a><span> </span>to rebut the claims.</p> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>“These significant alterations, which run the risk of effectively neutering disparate impact liability under the Fair Housing Act, appear inadequately justified,” wrote Judge Mark Mastroianni of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts<span> </span><a href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/f/?id=00000175-66af-de22-a37d-7fff21020000" target="_blank">in an opinion filed Sunday</a>.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/10/26/927796521/waukegan-ill-officer-who-killed-black-man-has-been-fired-city-to-release-video" target="_blank">Waukegan, Ill., Officer Who Killed Black Man Has Been Fired; City To Release Video</a>, Brakkton Booker, NPR News, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">A police officer who shot and killed a young Black man and injured the man's girlfriend during a traffic stop last week in Waukegan, Ill., has been fired. City officials are expected to release police video of the encounter, which could come as soon as this week. ✄ </span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Cunningham said the release will take place after the Stinnette and Williams families review the footage.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Lake County, Ill. State's Attorney Michael Nerheim, who also attended the vigil,<span> </span><a href="https://content.govdelivery.com/bulletins/gd/ILLAKE-2a788a3">said in a statement Friday</a><span> </span>that he had contacted the U.S. Department of Justice two days earlier "to request they review the circumstances surrounding this incident.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2020/10/25/transitional-housing-program-los-angeles/" target="_blank">Transitional Housing Program In LA Gives Formerly Homeless Angelenos A Home</a>, CBSLAstaff, CBS News, October 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">Hoping to take matters into their own hands, a group of unhoused Angelenos illegally started occupying vacant homes owned by CalTrans in El Sereno.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The move led to the creation of the group,<span> </span><a href="https://reclaimingourhomes.org/" target="_blank">Reclaiming Our Homes</a>, which looks to create safe housing during the coronavirus pandemic.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The organization partnered with the city of Los Angeles to legalize the initiative they started, allowing 15 people who were once homeless to now have a roof over their heads.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Recipients of these homes are either elderly residents or families, who fell on hard times, exacerbated by the pandemic.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Musical Inspiration 🎶</h3> <p>Thanks to pioneer111 for bringing this to the GNR comments section on October 18. A beautiful rendition of We Shall Overcome:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=S6FN0EmK87c" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/S6FN0EmK87c">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>😱 Pubs in Panic 😱</h3> <p>Gee, that’s too bad: “Everyone is in a panic about election night,” said one current Fox News staffer.</p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-covid-infection-sends-election-coverage-plans-into-chaos?ref=home" target="_blank">Fox News COVID Infection Sends Election Plans Into ‘Chaos’,</a> Maxwell Tani, Justin Baragona, Diana Falzone, Noah Shachtman, the Daily Beast, October 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Fox News - We were fake news before it was cool - Middle Age Riot 2017" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/873037/large/foxnews.png?1603487773" title="Fox News - We were fake news before it was cool - Middle Age Riot 2017"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On Sunday,<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/10/25/world/covid-19-coronavirus-updates#the-fox-news-president-and-several-anchors-were-advised-to-quarantine-after-possible-virus-exposure"><em>The New York Times</em><span> </span>reported</a><span> </span>that top Fox News executives and talent will quarantine and get tested after flying on a network-chartered flight from Nashville to New York—following Thursday night’s presidential debate—with a staffer who later tested positive for the coronavirus. Passengers included network president Jay Wallace and on-air political hosts and analysts like Bret Baier, Martha MacCallum, Dana Perino, and Juan Williams. (A Fox News spokesperson would not confirm the<span> </span><em>Times</em><span> </span>story or the exposure, citing employee confidentiality.)</p> <p>All four of those stars were expected to play key in-studio roles for Fox’s election-night coverage. But now it’s unclear how the network plans to proceed with its top talent potentially unable to gather in the same room.</p> <p>“I believe it will put election night-plans into chaos,” another current Fox staffer told The Daily Beast under condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. “It will be like starting from scratch... It’s not good for anyone.” The employee added: “It’s insane that there’s a possibility the anchors will have to host the biggest night of 2020 from their homes.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/not-even-putin-buying-bs-hunter-biden-email-rumors-he-probably-helped-start" target="_blank">Not Even Putin Buying BS Hunter Biden Email Rumors He Probably Helped Start</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, October 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Some states will exceed their total 2016 vote turnout this week: <a href="https://electproject.github.io/Early-Vote-2020G/Early_Vote_Analysis_10_25.html" target="_blank">Early Voting Continues at a Record Pace</a>, Michael McDonald, US Elections Project.</p> <p>⚡️ “The party of Lincoln had a good run, then came Mr. Trump”: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/24/opinion/sunday/trump-republican-party.html?smid=tw-share" target="_blank">R.I.P., G.O.P</a>., Editorial Board, New York Times, October 24, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Keep it up, Dems!<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/26/democrats-crushing-house-republicans-ads-432577" target="_blank"> 'It's daunting': Democrats crushing House Republicans on the airwaves</a>, Ally Mutnick, Politico, October 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yes, play hardball: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/court-barrett-senate-trump/2020/10/25/d9eed9c0-16bc-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html" target="_blank">Trump’s conservative imprint on the federal judiciary gives Democrats a playbook — if they win</a>, Seung Min Kim, Washington Post, October 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Never forget who they all are: <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/amp/2020/10/anonymous-republican-donald-trump.html?__twitter_impression=true" target="_blank">Enablement: The tortured self-justification on one very powerful anonymous Trump-loathing Republican</a>, Olivia Nuzzi, The New Yorker, October 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Understanding complicity: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/07/trumps-collaborators/612250/" target="_blank">History Will Judge the Complicit</a>, Anne Applebaum, the Atlantic, July/August 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Cool moon story! <a href="https://apnews.com/article/astronomy-moon-349b42556e36b99fd6a87295b34e39cf" target="_blank">Moon holds more water in more places than ever thought</a>, Marcia Dunn, AP News, October 26, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <p>Note: Postcards to Voters and Vote Forward campaigns winding up this week, but I am keeping the links in because even after the election, there will be runoff elections and special elections. Let’s keep the blue wave rolling after 2020!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms, this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a><span> </span>writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <p>Mattrek’s<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o179iu11d8UKf2muk0jOJaVLsdxmnT9Yv7KDGJos6Y0/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything</a><span> </span>master list of links for state races, national, volunteer opportunities, work from home and much more!</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/plan-your-vote-state-by-state-guide-voting-by-mail-early-in-person-voting-election/index.html" target="_blank">Plan Your Vote</a>, NBC News site answers some common questions with an easy to navigate map.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Time for me to wind this GNR up for another week. </p> <p>Gnusies, I can’t believe it, but by the next time I am your GNR writer again, the election will be over! We still have to get through the next seven days and finish strong! “We shall not flag, nor fail” — we will vote and get everyone we know to vote. We will offer rides, volunteer to work elections, help people to vote, donate, write, text and phone voters. Let’s leave it all on the field, Gnusies, like thousands of other Americans out there who are also working their hearts out for their country.</p> <p>We’ve got this, and we are going to take back our country!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Black poodle sits in front of seasonal display of orange pumpkins, greenery and orange/yellow leaves" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/865809/large/IMG_7026.jpg?1602049749" title="Black poodle sits in front of seasonal display of orange pumpkins, greenery and orange/yellow leaves"> <figcaption>Happy Hallowe’en, Everybody!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Curlygirly would like to remind you that your health and emotional well-being are very important and even with such important work ahead of us, you must not neglect them. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest, try to get outdoors every day if you can, and find ways to connect with people you care about and who care about you. </p> <p>Today reminds me of all those summer road trips my kids and I took. The journeys were often quite long and everyone knew it would be, so the atmosphere was remarkably cheerful for hour upon hour of driving. But somehow, every single trip, that last hour, when we knew we were finally so close to our destination, was often the very hardest. Suddenly the fatigue and restlessness was felt and we had all we could do to keep our composure until we arrived. </p> <p>But one year one of my littlest ones, about age 7, piped up with a remark that made everyone laugh and groan — and every trip since we have trotted it out in that last hour to tide us over until we got there. He said, “Hey everyone, just imagine if we were still only leaving our driveway!”</p> <p>We’ve come so very far, and it is always hardest to make it those last few miles. Imagine if it was still December 2016! Well, it <em>isn’t</em> 2016, as Wolvie pointed out at the top. We’ve made it this far and we are going to make it all the way, finishing strong!   We are going to do it — because we are stronger together!</p> <p>The moon influences the tides and full moons bring higher tides with bigger waves. May this upcoming full Blue Moon bring the biggest, bluest tidal wave this country has ever seen! 🌊</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ntDnwBiORu8" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ntDnwBiORu8">YouTube Video</a></div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election2020 Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup GOTV JoeBiden KamalaHarris Politics Recommended StateoftheStates Voting _1973103 Tue, 27 Oct 2020 11:00:03 +0000 "We shall not flag, nor fail. We shall go on to the End." - October 13 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/10/13/1986000/--We-shall-not-flag-nor-fail-We-shall-go-on-to-the-End-October-13-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies. I’m here to help you shake off the sham “hearing” blues and remind you that we are going to win this election! We are just three weeks away from November 3 and it’s likely to be a bumpy ride. We will need all our strength and a laser-focus on our goal (GOTV!) but we can do this. We have the majority, and people are eager to vote. </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_7045.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/865808/large/IMG_7045.jpg?1602049749" title="IMG_7045.jpg"> <figcaption>You’re ready — like me! — laser-focused on that ball!<br> That lady has my ball and I intend to get it back.<br> I won’t be distracted and neither should you! </figcaption> </figure> <p>No one is taking anything for granted. Not one of us holds any illusions about Republicans’ pretended reverence for democracy or the rule of law.  In the words of David Frum (Republican/ former speechwriter for George W Bush — “axis of evil” coiner): “If conservatives become convinced that they can not win democratically, they will not abandon conservatism. They will reject democracy.” And sure enough, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/10/republicans-are-suddenly-afraid-democracy/616685/" target="_blank">here they are doing that</a>.</p> <p>So, we won’t be taken by surprise by their shenanigans, stunts and suppression. As chloris creator says every Friday, we are not naïve. We’ve got their number and although every blow to voting rights hurts, we will not flag or fail in our effort to GOTV and to do everything in our power to overcome these anti-democratic fascistic machinations. </p> <p>If you’re worried because of 2016 PTSD, I totally get that — and remember that this is not 2016 and so much has changed. After the Women’s March millions of women saw that they were not alone with their shock and grief and the “resistance” movement really began to take off. We have millions of people engaged in politics this year; Indivisible, Postcards to Voters, so many highly effective organizations to GOTV did not even exist in 2016 — but now they do! — along with an energized and determined Democratic team and an energized and determined Democratic electorate. We also have millions more registered voters. Especially young Americans!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=iO6OvHxD_m8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/iO6OvHxD_m8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>Things are different this year and even with increasingly egregious behavior by Republicans, I like our chances. Let’s just keep our eyes on that prize (broken record alert! 😄)! </p> <p>Let’s start with a sampling of good news from states:</p> <h4>Alaska</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: Win for voters in Alaska! The state’s Supreme Court affirmed a preliminary injunction ELIMINATING the unconstitutional ballot witness requirement for voters.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We’ll keep fighting coast to coast to protect voters from being disenfranchised amid the pandemic. &lt;a href="https://t.co/msAM5gHfZT"&gt;pic.twitter.com/msAM5gHfZT&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kristen Clarke 866-OUR-VOTE (@KristenClarkeJD) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KristenClarkeJD/status/1315816659815477248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: Win for voters in Alaska! The state’s Supreme Court affirmed a preliminary injunction ELIMINATING the unconstitutional ballot witness requirement for voters.<br><br>We’ll keep fighting coast to coast to protect voters from being disenfranchised amid the pandemic. <a href="https://t.co/msAM5gHfZT">pic.twitter.com/msAM5gHfZT</a></p>— Kristen Clarke 866-OUR-VOTE (@KristenClarkeJD) <a href="https://twitter.com/KristenClarkeJD/status/1315816659815477248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And, the murmurings are growing louder that Alaska could be a big surprise on election night, both for the Presidential election and the Senate! (I heard it first here in GNR’s <em>Best Comment Section on the Internet™</em> from one of our commenters — months ago! — and I am sorry I did not jot down your name at the time whoever you are but you pegged this exciting possible pickup early!) and <a href="https://t.co/DLBzBvque1" target="_blank">Kos</a> has also taken note.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;starting to hear from enough Dems that Alaska Senate race may be a sleeper worth paying attention to &lt;a href="https://t.co/ABzMQsX5Jn"&gt;https://t.co/ABzMQsX5Jn&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Eric Schultz (@EricSchultz) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/EricSchultz/status/1315760318488940544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>starting to hear from enough Dems that Alaska Senate race may be a sleeper worth paying attention to <a href="https://t.co/ABzMQsX5Jn">https://t.co/ABzMQsX5Jn</a></p>— Eric Schultz (@EricSchultz) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricSchultz/status/1315760318488940544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>georgia</h4> <p>Sounds like people in Georgia are determined and undeterred by the voter suppression tactics! Go Georgia!</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/early-voting-begins-georgia-long-lines-high-turnout-n1242995" target="_blank">Early voting begins in Georgia with long lines, high turnout</a>, Dareh Gregorian, Matteo Moschella and Jane C. Timm, NBC News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Kathleen Campbell, 31, was at her polling place, Atlanta's High Museum of Art, around 8:10 a.m. ET. It took more than 2 hours to work her way to the front of the line, she said, speaking to NBC News by phone around 11 a.m. as she was about to be allowed in to cast her ballot.</p> <p>"I have voted before, always in person and I’ve never waited this long which I’m hoping is actually a good sign for this year’s election turnout," Campbell said. "I’m feeling really optimistic at how seriously people are going to take this election."</p> <p>"Everyone is patiently waiting to get to the polls inside and I don’t think I’ve seen one person without a mask on," she added.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Night has fallen, but voting lines continue in Marietta, Georgia. The &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/WCKitchen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@WCKitchen&lt;/a&gt; team just finished serving dinner. They met someone walking out who arrived at 8am — he waited 12 hours to vote today. We must do better! Until then, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChefsForThePolls?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ChefsForThePolls&lt;/a&gt; will try to keep everyone fed. &lt;a href="https://t.co/RcnG8BFSWW"&gt;pic.twitter.com/RcnG8BFSWW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Nate Mook (@natemook) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/natemook/status/1315812578669584384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Night has fallen, but voting lines continue in Marietta, Georgia. The <a href="https://twitter.com/WCKitchen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WCKitchen</a> team just finished serving dinner. They met someone walking out who arrived at 8am — he waited 12 hours to vote today. We must do better! Until then, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChefsForThePolls?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ChefsForThePolls</a> will try to keep everyone fed. <a href="https://t.co/RcnG8BFSWW">pic.twitter.com/RcnG8BFSWW</a></p>— Nate Mook (@natemook) <a href="https://twitter.com/natemook/status/1315812578669584384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Idaho</h4> <p>Joe Biden <a href="https://www.khq.com/news/biden-endorses-idahos-paulette-jordan-for-u-s-senate/article_6f103e42-09b4-11eb-887b-f3deed3af690.html" target="_blank">endorsed </a>Paulette Jordan for Senate in Idaho, which isn’t a huge surprise. But in deep red Idaho, a major newspaper endorsement for a Democrat IS a surprise!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Paulette Jordan secures big endorsement! Idaho is ready for leadership. Please chip in &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/electpaulette?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@electpaulette&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/vdED0TvTLl"&gt;https://t.co/vdED0TvTLl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tessa (@TessaDanielle3) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TessaDanielle3/status/1312905519959470080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Paulette Jordan secures big endorsement! Idaho is ready for leadership. Please chip in <a href="https://twitter.com/electpaulette?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@electpaulette</a> <a href="https://t.co/vdED0TvTLl">https://t.co/vdED0TvTLl</a></p>— Tessa (@TessaDanielle3) <a href="https://twitter.com/TessaDanielle3/status/1312905519959470080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Her campaign is a real longshot, but if Paulette Jordan were to win, she would be the first indigenous woman in the US Senate. </p> <p><a href="https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/nation-world/national/article246340200.html" target="_blank">World’s longest fossilized human footprints found at national park</a>, researchers say, Maddie Capron, Idaho Statesman, October 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>“These ancient footprints, found on a playa at White Sands in 2018, show what researchers believe to be a female or a young male walking for almost a mile, with a toddler’s footprints periodically showing up alongside,” the National Park Service said in a Friday news release. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">In these tracks, researchers found the footprints of a sloth and a mammoth that crossed their path. The footprints show the sloth was aware of the humans and caught the scent. The mammoth tracks cross the human footprints without any hesitation because the animal probably did not notice the humans, researchers said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I am so pleased to highlight this wonderful story that crosses millennia,” White Sands National Park’s Superintendent Marie Sauter said in the news release. “Seeing a child’s footprints thousands of years old reminds us why taking care of these special places is so important.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Kansas</h4> <p>Kansas is a long shot — Democrats have not won a Senate seat there <em>since 1932 — </em>and yet Barbara Bollier is giving the Rs a real run for their money, literally! She’s a doctor and a former R state senator who chose to cross the aisle and join the light side. Kansas is in play, gnusies!</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://apnews.com/article/senate-elections-kansas-elections-campaigns-topeka-dc75f8b8726d4b7ede21b12df9ac94cd" target="_blank">Kansas Democrat says she raised nearly $13.5M for Senate bid</a>, John Hanna, AP News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-06-01at5.00.37PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/812556/large/ScreenShot2020-06-01at5.00.37PM.png?1591056046" title="ScreenShot2020-06-01at5.00.37PM.png"> <figcaption>We sure could use a woman doctor in the Senate!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Democrat Barbara Bollier said Monday that she raised nearly $13.5 million in three months for her U.S. Senate campaign, a record for Kansas that brought her total fundraising to more than $20 million in an unexpectedly tough race for Republicans in a conservative state.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Bollier also said <strong>she had nearly 365,000 donors from July 1 through Sept. 30 </strong>and began October with nearly $7.6 million in cash for the final weeks of her tight contest against Republican Roger Marshall. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Bollier is a Kansas City-area state senator who was a lifelong Republican before she switched parties at the end of 2018. Her fundraising has buoyed Democrats’ hopes of an unexpected pickup in Kansas, where Republicans have won every Senate race since 1932.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Here is a really good in-depth article on the state of politics in Kansas (not just the Senate race) right now: <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/10/12/21503061/kansas-senate-race-bollier-marshall" target="_blank">A former Republican could win the Kansas Senate race for the Democrats</a>, Ella Nilsen and Dylan Scott, Vox, October 12, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=2pb7sh-GuHE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2pb7sh-GuHE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>Kentucky</h4> <p>That debate between Amy McGrath and Mitch McConnell was painful — and the general consensus is that McConnell phoned it in — but he also managed to be uniquely insulting, to the public in general and McGrath personally. He actually <a href="https://t.co/7VheQ1p9nG" target="_blank">laughed</a> when confronted with his refusal to work on pandemic relief for Americans. Hopefully, Kentucky voters will take note.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="und" dir="ltr"&gt;👀 &lt;a href="https://t.co/twDEKLeEG5"&gt;pic.twitter.com/twDEKLeEG5&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Team Amy McGrath (@TeamAmyMcGrath) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TeamAmyMcGrath/status/1315810685297790976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>👀 <a href="https://t.co/twDEKLeEG5">pic.twitter.com/twDEKLeEG5</a></p>— Team Amy McGrath (@TeamAmyMcGrath) <a href="https://twitter.com/TeamAmyMcGrath/status/1315810685297790976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>He tried to demean Amy McGrath by saying all she ever talks about is that she is a marine, a mom and he (McConnell) has been in Washington too long. (some twitter wits suggested that Mitch just gave Amy her campaign slogan — and someone on her team obviously had the exact same thought):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I&amp;#39;m a Marine AND I&amp;#39;m a mom.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;And yes, Mitch, you&amp;#39;ve been there too long. &lt;a href="https://t.co/8ZSKFyvkXN"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8ZSKFyvkXN&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Amy McGrath (@AmyMcGrathKY) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AmyMcGrathKY/status/1315802637695176711?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I'm a Marine AND I'm a mom.<br><br>And yes, Mitch, you've been there too long. <a href="https://t.co/8ZSKFyvkXN">pic.twitter.com/8ZSKFyvkXN</a></p>— Amy McGrath (@AmyMcGrathKY) <a href="https://twitter.com/AmyMcGrathKY/status/1315802637695176711?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Probably McGrath won’t be able to overcome KY red voters to defeat McConnell, but she has certainly drawn a lot of attention and given old Mitch a run for his money — literally costing Republicans $$ — which is good for Democrats. </p> <h4>Michigan</h4> <p>Two BIG stories from Michigan this week. I am starting with a story that has just caused me to send a donation directly to Sen. Gary Peters’ campaign. It took GUTS and love and truth-telling for Gary Peters to share this story and to openly support a woman’s right to choose. My admiration for this low-key senator just went through the roof. Here, check it out for yourself:</p> <p><a href="https://www.elle.com/culture/career-politics/a34339956/senator-gary-peters-abortion/" target="_blank">Senator Gary Peters Shares His Abortion Story</a>, Laura Bassett, Elle Magazine, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) in 2018" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/711544/large/1024px-Gary_Peters_official_photo_115th_congress.jpg?1566834748" title="Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) in 2018"> <figcaption>Thank you, Sen. Peters.</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Peters decided to share the story at this moment because the right to make such decisions as a family, free of politics, has never been more at stake. He is alarmed by the threat President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, poses to women’s reproductive rights. The very conservative nominee once signed</span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/01/amy-coney-barrett-supreme-court-roe-v-wade"><u><span> </span>her name onto a newspaper ad</u></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>calling</span><em><span> </span>Roe v. Wade</em><span style="text-align:start">, the landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion, “barbaric.” If Republicans successfully confirm her to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat, she could reverse legal abortion in America or significantly curtail it. “It’s important for folks who are willing to tell these stories to tell them, especially now,” Peters says. “The new Supreme Court nominee could make a decision that will have major ramifications for reproductive health for women for decades to come. This is a pivotal moment for reproductive freedom.” ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Peters' stance on the issue couldn’t be more different from that of his Republican challenger, John James, who supports overturning Roe and has referred to abortion as “genocide.” James openly opposes abortion in nearly all circumstances, including cases of rape and incest, and he<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2020/10/06/ad-james-abortion-views-takes-things-out-context-fact-check/5896263002/"><u>won’t say whether he supports</u></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>allowing the procedure to save the life of the mother. National anti-abortion groups have<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.sba-list.org/newsroom/press-releases/sba-list-candidate-fund-endorses-john-james-us-senate-mi"><u>endorsed James</u></a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>and poured money into his Senate campaign.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">But abortion rights activists hope that Peters sharing his story will help put a human face on the sensitive and historically politicized issue, and in doing so, help them in the fight to protect Ginsburg’s legacy. "Senator Peters’s family is an example of countless stories across our nation of the injustice and harm that occurs when we allow politicians who know nothing about our lives to make decisions about our pregnancies,” said Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL. “In breaking the silence, he not only gives voice to what's at stake, but he reminds us of our common humanity and quest for dignity and compassion when we fight for reproductive freedom for everybody.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>If you want someone with the quiet courage of Gary Peters in the Senate, donate <a href="https://petersformichigan.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/whitmer-signs-clean-slate-michigan-allowing-automatic-felony-expungement" target="_blank">Whitmer signs Clean Slate Michigan, allowing automatic felony expungement</a>, Riley Beggin, Bridge Michigan, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Hundreds of thousands more Michiganders will become eligible to have their criminal records wiped clean under legislation signed into law by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Research indicates the package will have a sweeping impact on people who often struggle to get better jobs, higher wages and secure housing as they carry a criminal record despite years of good behavior. </span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>“For too long, criminal charges have created barriers to employment, barriers to housing and others for hundreds of thousands of Michiganders. These bipartisan bills are going to be a game-changer,” Whitmer said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Montana</h4> <p><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/kagan-montana-mailing-ballots-to-all-voters" target="_blank">Justice Kagan blocks effort to stop Montana from mailing ballots to all voters</a>, Morgan Phillips, FoxNews, October 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="UNITED STATES - SEPTEMBER 19: Montana Gov. Steve Bullock attends a town hall at the American Federation of Teachers in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, September 19, 2019. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845119/large/aft091_091919.jpg?1597689976" title="UNITED STATES - SEPTEMBER 19: Montana Gov. Steve Bullock attends a town hall at the American Federation of Teachers in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, September 19, 2019. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)"> <figcaption>Bullock is not putting up with any bull</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan denied a request from Republicans to stop<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/us/us-regions/west/montana" target="_blank">Montana</a><span><span> </span>Gov. Steve Bullock’s (D) plan to mail ballots to all registered voters. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The GOP-dominated Legislature banned mail-in ballots for general elections, instead allowing only by-request, no-excuse-required “absentee ballots” and in-person voting compatible with Phase 2 safety restrictions in the governor’s COVID-19 reopening plan.</span></p> <p>But Bullock argued an emergency declaration connected to the coronavirus pandemic allows him to suspend that state law.</p> <p>Bullock gave counties wide latitude regarding mailed ballots. Counties with approved plans began sending them to all registered voters in those counties on Oct. 9.</p> </blockquote> <p>You’ve got to smile at this guy cheekily ripping off the viral tiktok by the <a href="https://t.co/LFC6LnKhMc" target="_blank">Idaho guy</a>...good one, Mike Cooney! And good luck! I think Montana has had enough of Greg Gianforte and Republicans <a href="https://missoulian.com/news/local/endorsement-hastened-missoulian-editors-resignation/article_13b00f93-ac44-5bce-bf97-14c410759d9d.html" target="_blank">generally</a>.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;montana dreams &lt;a href="https://t.co/JSpvY3aYsp"&gt;pic.twitter.com/JSpvY3aYsp&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Mike Cooney (@CooneyforMT) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CooneyforMT/status/1313293670343348226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>montana dreams <a href="https://t.co/JSpvY3aYsp">pic.twitter.com/JSpvY3aYsp</a></p>— Mike Cooney (@CooneyforMT) <a href="https://twitter.com/CooneyforMT/status/1313293670343348226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Because I had this album, in the original vinyl, this simply must to be our musical break:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=O5ugW4-BstE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/O5ugW4-BstE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>New Jersey</h4> <p>A special section for stonykill —  New Jersey! (NOTE: first tweet was posted yesterday — TODAY is in fact the registration deadline in NJ):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Our voter registration deadline here in New Jersey is tomorrow, October 13th. We need your voice to be heard in this crucial election. You can register online here: &lt;a href="https://t.co/NVT5wDaNS3"&gt;https://t.co/NVT5wDaNS3&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CoryBooker/status/1315792033366323200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Our voter registration deadline here in New Jersey is tomorrow, October 13th. We need your voice to be heard in this crucial election. You can register online here: <a href="https://t.co/NVT5wDaNS3">https://t.co/NVT5wDaNS3</a></p>— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) <a href="https://twitter.com/CoryBooker/status/1315792033366323200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>👉 <a href="https://www.phillyvoice.com/2020-election-guide-new-jersey-mail-in-ballots-polling-locations-results-trump-biden/" target="_blank">2020 Election Guide: Everything you need to know to vote in New Jersey</a>, Michael Tanenbaum, Philly Voice, October 5, 2020.</p> <p>And NJ joins other states saying No to Republican voter suppression nonsense:</p> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/judges-reject-trump-claims-mail-voter-fraud" target="_blank">Judges Aren’t Buying Trump’s Claims Of Widespread Voter Fraud</a>, Zoe Tillman, BuzzFeed News, October 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>In New Jersey, state lawmakers approved a plan this year to send all registered voters a mail-in ballot and adopted other measures aimed at supporting the expansion of mail-in voting. The Trump campaign sued and asked for an injunction blocking provisions that would allow election officials to begin counting mailed ballots 10 days before Election Day and to accept ballots without a clear postmark up to two days after Nov. 3.</p> <p>On Oct. 6, US District Judge Michael Shipp<span> </span><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7222829/10-6-20-Trump-for-President-v-Way-Opinion.pdf" target="_blank">denied the campaign’s request</a>. Shipp noted that there were, in fact, real allegations of voter fraud in New Jersey during the May primary, including that someone had stolen ballots from mailboxes and that ballots were bundled and sent from a single location. But the judge pointed out in a footnote that the evidence of past voter fraud presented by Trump’s campaign didn’t relate to issues with ballots received without a postmark, or mail-in ballots counted before Election Day.</p> <p>“Plaintiffs offer no instances of voter fraud resulting from ballots cast after Election Day, or any reason to suspect that a fraudulent ballot or a ballot cast after Election Day is more likely to lack a postmark,” Shipp wrote.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Ohio</h4> <p>Joe is making this push because he knows: Ohio can swing to Democrats!</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-virus-outbreak-joe-biden-donald-trump-campaigns-b8da4761537dd566ba88bff61ae9674f" target="_blank">Biden makes big push in Ohio, once seen as long shot for him</a>, Bill Barrow and Will Weissert, AP News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">CINCINNATI (AP) — Joe Biden made two campaign stops Monday in Ohio, attempting to expand the battleground map and keep President Donald Trump on the defensive in a state long thought to be out of reach for Democrats after Trump’s wide margin of victory there four years ago.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Democratic presidential nominee stressed an economic message and touted his own record while casting Trump as having abandoned working-class voters who helped him win Rust Belt states that put him in the White House in 2016. The president’s reelection campaign countered that few expected Trump to win Ohio so comfortably four years ago and that he would repeat a similar upset on Election Day. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Congresswoman Marcia Fudge said early and absentee voting numbers are already high in her district that includes Cleveland, a strong city for Democrats.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I am seeing numbers that I can only dream of,” Fudge said.</p> </blockquote> <h4>pennsylvania</h4> <p>Like everywhere else, Pennsylvania women have had enough and are voting for Biden:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/he-added-fuel-to-the-flames-of-hatred-pennsylvania-women-who-voted-for-trump-are-fed-up-and-ready-to-fire-him/" target="_blank">‘He added fuel to the flames of hatred’: Pennsylvania women who voted for Trump are fed up — and ready to fire him</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>“It is not just outside the city where suburban women were questioning their support for Donald Trump. It’s also even out here in Westmoreland County, rural Pennsylvania, considered Trump country,” said Bolduan, revealing her interview with Joan Smeltzer and Julie Brady, a pair of sisters who voted for Trump and now believe they “did a disservice by voting for this guy,” and that the last straw was “the way he handled coronavirus, he did not create the virus but he lefts us in the dark guessed what’s going on. That was not fair.” They added that in in the George Floyd protests, “he added fuel to flames of hatred.”</span></p> <p><span>“The women we spoke to don’t speak for every woman voter in Pennsylvania,” said Bolduan, but “what they have to say and why shows the uphill battle that Trump is facing in the battleground state. Trump is trailing Joe Biden by 23 points among women in Pennsylvania.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>South Carolina</h4> <p>‼️ Jaime Harrison is tied with Lindsey Graham in SOUTH CAROLINA and Jaime just broke a record for money raised in a Senate campaign in the history of senate campaigns. It’s not some big old superpac funded by a couple of billionaires — Jaime Harrison has inspired thousands of regular Americans to contribute to his effort to unseat Lindsey Graham and that energy, passion and thousands of people is really good news for democracy. 😊</p> <p>Lindsey is begging for money again (and oh the burn from Joshua Zeitz at the end!):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;“They’re trying to silence us all by swamping us with money.” 😅😅😅 No, we’re just trying to beat you. This isn’t cancel culture. This is just a case of a lot of people really wanting Lindsey Graham to not be a senator. And, as someone said, money is speech. &lt;a href="https://t.co/5tlglZPKc6"&gt;https://t.co/5tlglZPKc6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Joshua Zeitz (@JoshuaMZeitz) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoshuaMZeitz/status/1315837046708154368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>“They’re trying to silence us all by swamping us with money.” 😅😅😅 No, we’re just trying to beat you. This isn’t cancel culture. This is just a case of a lot of people really wanting Lindsey Graham to not be a senator. And, as someone said, money is speech. <a href="https://t.co/5tlglZPKc6">https://t.co/5tlglZPKc6</a></p>— Joshua Zeitz (@JoshuaMZeitz) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshuaMZeitz/status/1315837046708154368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Virginia</h4> <p>Like New Jersey, today, October 13 is the last day to register:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;🗳️ Are you registered to &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/vote?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#vote&lt;/a&gt; in the November 3 general election?&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;🗓️ Tomorrow, October 13 is the LAST DAY to register in Virginia!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;📱 Go to &lt;a href="https://t.co/fhp5mGWfsx"&gt;https://t.co/fhp5mGWfsx&lt;/a&gt; to register or update your voter registration information.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;❗️Remind your friends and loves ones to register too.&lt;/p&gt;— Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GovernorVA/status/1315714957745348608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>🗳️ Are you registered to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/vote?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#vote</a> in the November 3 general election?<br><br>🗓️ Tomorrow, October 13 is the LAST DAY to register in Virginia!<br><br>📱 Go to <a href="https://t.co/fhp5mGWfsx">https://t.co/fhp5mGWfsx</a> to register or update your voter registration information.<br><br>❗️Remind your friends and loves ones to register too.</p>— Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovernorVA/status/1315714957745348608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Wisconsin</h4> <p>Good news for sensible Wisconsin residents: </p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/judge-strikes-attempt-stop-mask-mandate-cases-continue/story?id=73571079&cid=clicksource_4380645_11_heads_posts_card_hed" target="_blank">Judge strikes down attempt to stop mask mandate as cases continue to rise in Wisconsin</a>, Ivan Pereira, ABC news, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers answered reporters questions at the State Capitol in Madison, Wisc., Thursday, March 21, 2019, after a Dane County judge has blocked the lame duck laws that Republicans passed in December to limit the power of the governor and attorney general. (Steve Apps/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/656795/large/AP_19080730912246.jpg?1553269158" title="Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers answered reporters questions at the State Capitol in Madison, Wisc., Thursday, March 21, 2019, after a Dane County judge has blocked the lame duck laws that Republicans passed in December to limit the power of the governor and attorney general. (Steve Apps/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>St. Croix County Judge R. Michael Waterman ruled against the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) legal firm, which sued Evers contending that he overstepped his authority by issuing consecutive executive orders that required all residents to wear a mask outside their homes.</span></p> <p>Waterman ruled that the law gives the governor "broad discretion to act whenever conditions in the state constitute a public health emergency."</p> <p><span>"Nothing in the statute prohibits the governor from declaring successive states of emergency. Instead, the statute allows a declaration 'if the governor determines that a public health emergency exists,'" he wrote in his decision.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Democrats all around the country are working ceaselessly to protect people and improve their lives. Let’s GOTV and elect as many as we can up and down the ballot.</p> <h3>🎶 Musical Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=3kuMLAkILKM" title="" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3kuMLAkILKM" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🚨 🐘 Pubs In Panic 🐘🚨</h3> <p>‘<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/12/senate-republicans-financial-freak-out-428863" target="_blank" title="">Green tsunami’: Inside Senate Republicans’ financial freak-out</a>, James Arkin and Elena Schneider, Politico, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A money bomb: A sphere of $20 bills with a face of Thomas Jefferson clearly visible and with a lit rope fuse attached to the top. The ignited fuse tip on a surface glows. The bomb is about to explode. " src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845857/large/moneybomb.jpg?1597873555" title="A money bomb: A sphere of $20 bills with a face of Thomas Jefferson clearly visible and with a lit rope fuse attached to the top. The ignited fuse tip on a surface glows. The bomb is about to explode. "> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Six months later, the green tsunami is here. And it’s threatening to wipe out the Republican Senate majority.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>The online fundraising edge that Democrats have enjoyed for years has mushroomed into an overpowering force, with small-dollar donors smashing “donate” buttons over the last three months to process their disgust for President Donald Trump, fury with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and grief for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.<strong><span> </span></strong>Propelled by the wave of money, Democrats have suddenly expanded the Senate battlefield to a dozen competitive races, burying long-contested states like Iowa and Maine in TV ads while also overwhelming Republican opponents in states like Alaska, Kansas and South Carolina that are suddenly tightening.</p> <p>Where most of the top Democratic Senate candidates two years ago raised $4 million to $7 million in the third quarter of 2018, their contenders this year are multiplying those totals. Colorado’s John Hickenlooper raised $22 million, more than six times what his presidential campaign raised before he dropped out of that race in 2019. Iowa’s Theresa Greenfield and North Carolina’s Cal Cunningham each cleared $28 million.</p> <p>And on Sunday, South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison announced a record $57 million third-quarter haul for his race against GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham, where the most favorable public polling for Graham in the last month has shown him leading by a single point. Altogether, the money has given Democrats a TV spending edge in 12 of the 13 most expensive Senate races.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>💪🐴 Dems are Determined 🐴 💪</h3> <p>You have to 💙 Sen. Whitehouse. He is highly intelligent, witty — one of the best questioners at hearings — resolutely “for the people” and he doesn’t mince words here:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoyAnnReid?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@joyannreid&lt;/a&gt;: Is there a plan in place if they manage to take away our health care?&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenWhitehouse?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@senwhitehouse&lt;/a&gt;: "If they do, then we will make damn sure that we restore it bigger and stronger."&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheReidOut?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#TheReidOut&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/oNCKhM42PQ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/oNCKhM42PQ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— The ReidOut (@thereidout) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/thereidout/status/1315802285780369409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/JoyAnnReid?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joyannreid</a>: Is there a plan in place if they manage to take away our health care?<a href="https://twitter.com/SenWhitehouse?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@senwhitehouse</a>: "If they do, then we will make damn sure that we restore it bigger and stronger."<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheReidOut?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheReidOut</a> <a href="https://t.co/oNCKhM42PQ">pic.twitter.com/oNCKhM42PQ</a></p>— The ReidOut (@thereidout) <a href="https://twitter.com/thereidout/status/1315802285780369409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⁉️ From the ORLY Department ⁉️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/stephaniemlee/doctors-question-trump-negative-covid-test" target="_blank">Doctors Are Questioning Trump’s COVID-19 Test After His Physician Said He Tested Negative</a>, Stephanie M Lee, BuzzFeed News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="coronavirus-covid-19-illustation-cdc-medical-illustrator-dan-higgins_dezeen_2364_col_3.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/863464/large/coronavirus-covid-19-illustation-cdc-medical-illustrator-dan-higgins_dezeen_2364_col_3.jpg?1601615001" title="coronavirus-covid-19-illustation-cdc-medical-illustrator-dan-higgins_dezeen_2364_col_3.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Trump “has tested NEGATIVE, on consecutive days, using the Abbott BinaxNOW antigen card,” Conley wrote, referring to an antigen test made by the company Abbott Laboratories that can detect a SARS-CoV-2 infection in under 15 minutes. ✄</span></p> <p>But other doctors noted that the CDC does not recommend using antigen tests to clear sick patients from isolating.</p> <p>“That’s not the purpose of the test,” Megan Ranney, an emergency physician and researcher at Brown University, told BuzzFeed News. “They’re selectively reporting testing to somehow make the case he’s not infectious.”</p> <p>Doctors told BuzzFeed News they did not have enough information to know whether the president was or was not infectious as of Monday night, when he traveled on Air Force One and spoke to supporters at his rally — but they said that he should take precautions either way.</p> </blockquote> <p>It took a potentially deadly infectious disease to make it happen, but <strong><em>finally</em></strong> some media outlets are threatening to pull their reporters from White House pool:</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/12/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-journalists.html" target="_blank">As Trump Flouts Safety Protocols, News Outlets Balk at Close Coverage</a>, Michael M Grynbaum, New York Times, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post are among the major outlets that have declined to assign reporters to travel with Mr. Trump as he returns to the trail this week, saying they do not have assurance that basic precautions will be taken to protect reporters’ health. ✄</p> <p><span>Journalists say they are being asked to choose between their responsibility to cover major events and ensuring the health of themselves and their families. News organizations have long insisted that meticulous daily coverage of the nation’s leader is a public service that is important for the historical record. ✄</span></p> <p><span>It is also typically a coveted assignment. But this week, at least seven major news outlets declined to accept one of the available press seats on Mr. Trump’s plane, according to people familiar with internal planning discussions. Publications including<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/07/business/media/buzzfeed-white-house-coronavirus.html">BuzzFeed News</a><span>, The Los Angeles Times, Politico and Hearst Newspapers have declined pool slots in recent days.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>In other news re the pandemic:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/fauci-i-m-not-going-anywhere-n1243056" target="_blank">Fauci: I'm not going anywhere</a>, Dareh Gregorian, NBC News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="496a64d7-1f4b-455b-8bff-beef2a3889be-Fauci-time.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/868528/large/496a64d7-1f4b-455b-8bff-beef2a3889be-Fauci-time.jpeg?1602512053" title="496a64d7-1f4b-455b-8bff-beef2a3889be-Fauci-time.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday he plans to stay in his post during the next president's term — no matter who the president is. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Fauci has<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/22-days-election-day-pandemic-shows-no-sign-slowing-u-n1242974" target="_blank">intensified his criticism</a><span><span> </span>of the White House's response to the coronavirus crisis in the wake of President Donald Trump's positive test for Covid-19. The normally diplomatic Fauci issued a statement Sunday<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/fauci-rips-new-trump-campaign-ad-says-it-uses-his-n1242889?cid=eml_mrd_20201012&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Morning%20Rundown%20Oct%2012%2C%202020" target="_blank">blasting the Trump campaign</a><span><span> </span>for featuring him in an ad. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Asked Monday by Smith whether he had put up with too much,</span><a href="https://twitter.com/thenewsoncnbc/status/1315794890471735296" target="_blank"><span> </span>Fauci said</a><span>: "Obviously, there are a lot of things that are going on that you would prefer did not happen, like the ad which put me in a political context. ... That's not helpful, but I'm certainly not going to give up.</span></p> <p><span>"This is too important a problem," he said. "I've devoted my entire professional life to fighting infectious diseases. This is an outbreak of historic proportions, the likes of which we have not seen in 102 years. There's no chance that I'm going to give up on this and walk away from it, no matter what happens."</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And Chris Wallace Again</p> <p>Maybe being deliberately and recklessly exposed to coronavirus at the “debate” he moderated has woken Chris Wallace up:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/chris-wallace-slams-fox-news-pundit-for-whitewashing-barretts-future-obamacare-vote/" target="_blank">Chris Wallace slams Fox News pundit for whitewashing Barrett’s future Obamacare vote</a>, David Edwards, Raw Story, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>“Jonathan, if I may,” Wallace interrupted. “The point I’m simply making is this, that’s what the court did. You’re predicting how judges, including one who’s not even on the court yet are going to vote. I’m just saying, you don’t know.”</span></p> <p>“No!” Turley objected.</p> <p>“You don’t know what’s going to happen,” Wallace said. “And I don’t know what’s going to happen. But the fact is, for Democrats to talk about the cases of these individual people and to say that their lives might be at stake is not an irrational leap. That’s the case that’s being heard by the court.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>⭐️ From the Awesome File ⭐️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/over-500-lgbtq-candidates-appear-november-ballots-shattering-records-n1242961" target="_blank">Over 500 LGBTQ candidates to appear on November ballots, shattering records</a>, Julie Moreau, NBC News, October 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="rainbow-flag-original-gay-pride-flag-colors-prints.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/853382/large/rainbow-flag-original-gay-pride-flag-colors-prints.jpg?1599504368" title="rainbow-flag-original-gay-pride-flag-colors-prints.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>“A historic number of openly LGBTQ people are running for office this year and we have the opportunity to elect an unprecedented number on Election Day,” former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, said in a statement. “While LGBTQ candidates are significantly more diverse than U.S. candidates overall, we must continue to break down the barriers LGBTQ people of color, women and trans people face when considering a run for office. Our government must reflect the diversity of America.”</span></p> <p><span>At least 1,006 openly LGBTQ people ran or are still running for office this election cycle, up from 716 in the 2018 midterms, according to Victory’s<span> </span></span><a href="https://victoryfund.org/outonthetrail/">Out on the Trail</a><span><span> </span>report. Of these candidates, 574 will appear on the general election ballot in November, up from 432 in 2018, representing a 33 percent increase. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Alabama is the only state this cycle that has no openly LGBTQ person running for office at any level, according to the report. At present, State Rep. Neil Rafferty is the only openly LGBTQ person in office in Alabama.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Important longer read: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/media/2020/10/the-chaos-is-the-point/?keycode=7AHPR13%7CPAHPR13" target="_blank">This Is How Authoritarians Get Defeated</a>, Monika Bauerlein, MotherJones, October 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/republicans-are-trying-to-make-court-expansion-a-mortal-sin-dont-let-them/2020/10/12/7e746e5a-0cb4-11eb-8a35-237ef1eb2ef7_story.html" target="_blank">Republicans are trying to make court expansion a mortal sin. Don’t let them.</a> Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, October 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Keep it up, Dems!: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/democrats-hijack-republicans-sham-amy-coney-barrett-supreme-court-confirmation-hearing?ref=scroll" target="_blank">Democrats Hijack Republicans’ Sham Coney Barrett Hearing</a>, Jay Michaelson, Daily Beast, October 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ “Yes, even in Texas”: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/10/climate-change-could-tip-the-scales-in-these-6-toss-up-house-races/" target="_blank">Climate Change Could Tip the Scales in These 6 Toss-Up House Races</a>, Jesse Nichols, Teresa Chin and Joseph Winters, MotherJones, October 12, 2020.</p> </div> <p>⚡️ “And...he can’t”: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-world-prays-that-he-can-shut-up-for-supreme-court-nominee-amy-coney-barrett-week?ref=home" target="_blank">Trump World Prays He Can Shut Up for Amy Coney Barrett Week</a>, Lachlan Markay<br> Asawin Suebsaeng and Sam Stein, October 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Don’t forget the House: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/gop-leader-kevin-mccarthy-could-be-in-trouble-as-house-republicans-face-steep-losses-in-november-report/" target="_blank">GOP leader Kevin McCarthy could be in trouble as House Republicans face steep losses in November: report</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, October 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Wonkette take: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/house-republicans-about-to-get-their-asses-beat-biden-style" target="_blank">House Republicans About To Get Their Asses Beat Biden-Style</a>, Stephen Robinson, Wonkette, October 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Don’t Miss This 👀: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/interview-stephen-skowronek/" target="_blank">What History Tells Us About Trump’s Implosion and Biden’s Opportunity</a>, Richard Kreitner, the Nation, October 12, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a><span> </span>writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <p>Mattrek’s<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o179iu11d8UKf2muk0jOJaVLsdxmnT9Yv7KDGJos6Y0/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything</a><span> </span>master list of links for state races, national, volunteer opportunities, work from home and much more!</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/plan-your-vote-state-by-state-guide-voting-by-mail-early-in-person-voting-election/index.html" target="_blank">Plan Your Vote</a>, NBC News site answers some common questions with an easy to navigate map.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>I quoted WInston Churchill in today’s title to remind myself and you that this last few weeks may be the hardest of all. We don’t know what other ugly tricks the Republicans and their plague-infected leader will try in the closing days of this campaign. We may be tested severely (hard to believe that’s possible after these trying years since January 2017, but still) and we will have to rise to the occasion and save our country.</p> <p>Be sure to take good care of yourself and those who rely on you for care and love. Eat nutritious food. Make a routine to get enough rest. Get outdoors every day if possible to refresh your spirit. Come and read the GNR each day and join in the community of hope and hard work that is going to GOTV like it’s never been got out before! </p> <p>That’s it from me for another Tuesday. I may be latish joining in comments as it is late as I am winding this GNR down and I don’t bounce back after a late night as quickly as I used to! 😅 You know what to do, Gnusies!  </p> <p>Happy Tuesday, Everyone!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=V7vWUm-RilE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/V7vWUm-RilE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election2020 Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Recommended States _1986000 Tue, 13 Oct 2020 11:00:16 +0000 27 Days To Go and Pubs in a Panic - Wednesday Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/10/7/1974559/-27-Days-To-Go-and-Pubs-in-a-Panic-Wednesday-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good day, Gnusies! It’s me, Nifty, sitting in for karij this week. 😊</p> <p>So, phew!  Donald continues to decompensate as he faces almost certain defeat, the intensity and speed of his psychological collapse increased by sickness and possibly steroids. Yet, with or without Covid, Donald would be spiralling toward this inevitable denouement because the essential facts (his disordered mind, myriad cognitive and moral deficiencies, his colossal incompetence and his petty vindictiveness have led to incalculable human losses and a terrible, worsening economic meltdown — for starters) were already present before the Covid diagnosis. Last night’s incoherent, frenzied tweetstorm was just a sign that the malignant narcissist is even more unhinged due to illness and possibly the influence of medications, but he was going to get here eventually anyway. November 3 is speeding toward him and there is no escape from what he must surely know is the end of his illegitimate occupation of the people’s house, and all the protections which he took from that position. He is a cornered rat, and we all know how cornered rats behave.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="IMG_7049.jpg" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/865810/large/IMG_7049.jpg?1602049747" title="IMG_7049.jpg"> <figcaption>Watch out for those ricochets!<br> It’s no problem ‘cause I keep my eye on the ball!</figcaption> </figure> <p>We aren’t going to escape these final months of the trump nightmare without enduring the caterwauling and ructions of this vicious, awful man’s desperate attempts to cheat and claw his way out of this trap of his own making. It may temporarily get a lot worse before we are finally freed from the trauma of the last 3 ½ years, and we will get through this just as we have gotten through the rest. Together, strong and resilient. Lifting each other up when our neighbors feel like they just cannot take it one more day. I’d like to say it will all go away tomorrow — like a miracle, even — but we all know that’s not how it works.</p> <p>Some of us haven’t made it to this point, and most of us have. We’ve been through hell and there’s no turning back now. As Churchill famously said, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” We can do this. We have held on and we have built a huge, powerful wave of determined voters who <em>will not be prevented</em> from making their voices heard and their votes count.</p> <p>Today, for something a little different, I’m going to do a “state of the states” kind of roundup to show anyone whose faith is flagging that the American spirit is really strong out there and <em><strong>we have got this!  </strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Keep your eyes on that prize, Gnusies, and GOTV. We WILL save the country!</strong></em></p> <p>To get you started, here; have a 2020 Gettysburg address from Joe Biden:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;“It cannot be that here and now in 2020 we will allow the government of the people, by the people and for the people to perish on this earth. No, it cannot and it must not...We will vote, no matter how many obstacles are thrown in our way.” - &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@JoeBiden&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/K_JeanPierre/status/1313589596907663361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>“It cannot be that here and now in 2020 we will allow the government of the people, by the people and for the people to perish on this earth. No, it cannot and it must not...We will vote, no matter how many obstacles are thrown in our way.” - <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a></p>— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) <a href="https://twitter.com/K_JeanPierre/status/1313589596907663361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🇺🇸 Be Inspired by our next POTUS 🇺🇸 </h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=zz0Ay13elzc" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/zz0Ay13elzc">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3></h3> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;“US District Judge John Bates has ordered the Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice to ‘not hold further meetings, sessions, or hearings, or conduct any official business’ or … &lt;a href="https://t.co/xnwJ58iatY"&gt;https://t.co/xnwJ58iatY&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Hal Marshall (@HalMarshall2309) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HalMarshall2309/status/1312218238311428099?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>“US District Judge John Bates has ordered the Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice to ‘not hold further meetings, sessions, or hearings, or conduct any official business’ or … <a href="https://t.co/xnwJ58iatY">https://t.co/xnwJ58iatY</a></p>— Hal Marshall (@HalMarshall2309) <a href="https://twitter.com/HalMarshall2309/status/1312218238311428099?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🇺🇸 The State of the States — Voter Edition 🇺🇸</h3> <p>Let’s do a roundup of states and see how voting is going so far😊! </p> <h4>arizona</h4> <p>Early voting begins in Arizona today! And even if you’re not registered yet, you still have time! Get yourself registered and get yourself a plan to vote! 😀</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEW: Arizona Federal District Court has extended the voter registration deadline. READ: &lt;a href="https://t.co/zKnnuQh8C4"&gt;https://t.co/zKnnuQh8C4&lt;/a&gt;. The AZSOS "shall direct the County Recorders to accept all voter registrations received by 5 p.m. on October 23, 2020 and process them" for the general election.&lt;/p&gt;— Arizona Election Law (@azelectionlaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/azelectionlaw/status/1313321303726850048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEW: Arizona Federal District Court has extended the voter registration deadline. READ: <a href="https://t.co/zKnnuQh8C4">https://t.co/zKnnuQh8C4</a>. The AZSOS "shall direct the County Recorders to accept all voter registrations received by 5 p.m. on October 23, 2020 and process them" for the general election.</p>— Arizona Election Law (@azelectionlaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/azelectionlaw/status/1313321303726850048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>California</h4> <p><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide" target="_blank">Your guide to the 2020 election in California</a>, Los Angeles Times, October, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The general election isn’t until Nov. 3, but Californians’<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-10-04/california-ballots-mailed-voters-2020-presidential-election">ballots are already in the mail</a>. Check out our<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#2">voting checklist</a><span> </span>to make sure you are all set. Learn more about the 12<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#3">propositions on California’s ballot</a>. See the local issues on the local ballot<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#4">in Los Angeles County</a>. Find out where President Trump and Joe Biden stand on the issues and get the<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#5">latest news</a><span> </span>on the presidential race. Check out which races will determine<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#8">control of the U.S. Senate</a>. And consider these<span> </span><a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/2020-california-election-voter-guide#10">recommendations from the Los Angeles Times editorial board</a>.</p> <p>Read on for more. This page will be updated with more information.</p> </blockquote> <p>PLUS! A handy snapshot of ALLLLLLL the ballot dropbox locations in LA (thanks to karij and karij’s friend!). GO, California!! Get those ballots into those many dropboxes!</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="LosAngelesCountyvoting.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/865751/large/LosAngelesCountyvoting.png?1602036639" title="LosAngelesCountyvoting.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>Florida</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2020/10/06/florida-extends-voter-registration-deadline-after-website-failure-1321509?nname=playbook-pm&nid=0000015a-dd3e-d536-a37b-dd7fd8af0000&nrid=0000014e-f109-dd93-ad7f-f90d0def0000&nlid=964328" target="_blank">Florida extends voter registration deadline after website failure</a>, Gary Fineout, Politico, October 6, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <p>TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida extended the deadline for voter registration after the state’s online portal crashed under the weight of heavy traffic hours before the Oct. 5 deadline.</p> <p>Registration will be open for an additional seven hours, from noon to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Secretary of State Laurel Lee said in a written statement. ✄</p> <p><span>Florida’s decision to extend its voter registration comes a day after a federal judge extended the Monday registration deadline in Arizona until Oct. 23, saying that the coronavirus pandemic had curtailed efforts to register voters face-to-face and that many people in the state lacked access to the internet.</span> </p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="und" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/gtDDA3pCNV"&gt;https://t.co/gtDDA3pCNV&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/hcYMT9UUCa"&gt;pic.twitter.com/hcYMT9UUCa&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kevin Cate (@KevinCate) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KevinCate/status/1313534840386588675?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://t.co/gtDDA3pCNV">https://t.co/gtDDA3pCNV</a> <a href="https://t.co/hcYMT9UUCa">pic.twitter.com/hcYMT9UUCa</a></p>— Kevin Cate (@KevinCate) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinCate/status/1313534840386588675?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Musical Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=TI8RZhhoBM0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TI8RZhhoBM0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Georgia</h4> <p>If you’ve been concerned about voter suppression shenanigans — especially those wonky voting machines — then this story is for you:</p> <p><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/judge-orders-emergency-paper-backups-of-voting-records-in-georgia/ZCOJUT7BIRB6JPWMXUEA4TFZDU/" target="_blank">Judge orders emergency paper backups of voter records in Georgia</a>, Mark Niesse, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>A federal judge on Monday required<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/judge-might-order-paper-voter-lists-for-georgias-election/JW4BDUBGWFDB7CS63EZ3OOG3QA/" target="_blank">paper backups</a><span> </span>of voter registration and absentee voting information at every Georgia polling place, a safeguard to allow voters to continue casting ballots if<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/election-fiasco-reveals-flaws-with-georgia-new-voting-system/FoZjtLGPYccOrHzXHiPbDL/" target="_blank">computers fail</a><span> </span>on Election Day.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg ordered election officials to prepare paper copies of records showing who is registered to vote and whether they’ve already voted before Nov. 3, either by absentee ballot or during in-person early voting.</p> <p>The ruling could help prevent<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-election-problems-blasted-november-election-looms/m7JraAaY5E4hsHc4mFvLHI/" target="_blank">long lines<span> </span></a>if poll workers struggle with the state’s new voter check-in tablets, called Poll Pads, as they did during the state’s June 9 primary, Totenberg wrote. Some voters<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/politics/extreme-voting-lines-expose-where-georgia-primary-failed/YQUMSTEBVFAY7CR7UQOQEHSVLI/" target="_blank">waited for hours</a><span> </span>because of a combination of high turnout, poll closures, social distancing, absentee ballot problems and difficulties operating voting equipment.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Iowa</h4> <p>Iowa started early voting yesterday!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It begins: Iowans lined up, heading in to vote at the Polk County Auditor’s office as early voting officially kicks off in Iowa &lt;a href="https://t.co/oTbkcVXKOR"&gt;pic.twitter.com/oTbkcVXKOR&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Iowa Starting Line (@IAStartingLine) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IAStartingLine/status/1313103327375261697?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It begins: Iowans lined up, heading in to vote at the Polk County Auditor’s office as early voting officially kicks off in Iowa <a href="https://t.co/oTbkcVXKOR">pic.twitter.com/oTbkcVXKOR</a></p>— Iowa Starting Line (@IAStartingLine) <a href="https://twitter.com/IAStartingLine/status/1313103327375261697?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And last week a victory for voting rights in Iowa, too!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;More on our victory today in Iowa.&lt;a href="https://t.co/c08zJDJaL1"&gt;https://t.co/c08zJDJaL1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1313258971323658240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>More on our victory today in Iowa.<a href="https://t.co/c08zJDJaL1">https://t.co/c08zJDJaL1</a></p>— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1313258971323658240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Michigan</h4> <p>If you’re worried about a repeat of 2016, you should know that all 3 of the swing states that unexpectedly “flipped” to Donald have tossed out their formerly Republican governors. Early voting has been underway in Michigan since September 24 and the newly-elected Democratic AG and Governor are keeping a close eye on it:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/voter-suppression-michigan/" target="_blank">Voter Suppression Is a Crime</a>, John Nichols, The Nation, October 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Deliberate efforts to suppress the vote in battleground states were not taken seriously enough in 2016. Only after the damage was done did law enforcement officials<span> </span><a href="https://time.com/5572927/mueller-report-elections-fixes/">begin to pay proper attention</a><span> </span>to the outright lies and crude calculations that were employed in attempts to derail democracy in Detroit and other urban centers.</p> <p>Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is not about to let it happen again in 2020.</p> <p>Nessel’s throwing the book at those who attempt to undermine voting rights in the run-up to this year’s presidential election. Her aggressive approach should serve as a model for attorneys general and local prosecutors nationwide. ✄</p> <p>“Any effort to interfere with, intimidate or intentionally mislead Michigan voters will be met with swift and severe consequences,” the attorney general said. “This effort specifically targeted minority voters in an attempt to deter them from voting in the November election. We’re all well aware of the frustrations caused by the millions of nuisance robocalls flooding our cell phones and landlines each day, but this particular message poses grave consequences for our democracy and the principles upon which it was built. Michigan voters are entitled to a full, free and fair election in November and my office will not hesitate to pursue those who jeopardize that.”</p> </blockquote> <p>Elections sure do have consequences! </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BREAKING&lt;/a&gt;: Michigan Governor Whitmer will sign a bill to let election clerks in cities/townships of at least 25K people start processing absentee ballots a day before the Nov. 3 election.&lt;/p&gt;— Adam Bass (@AdamBassWCCS) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AdamBassWCCS/status/1313526534301528066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BREAKING</a>: Michigan Governor Whitmer will sign a bill to let election clerks in cities/townships of at least 25K people start processing absentee ballots a day before the Nov. 3 election.</p>— Adam Bass (@AdamBassWCCS) <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamBassWCCS/status/1313526534301528066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Ohio</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;VIDEO: here is the scene 10 minutes after early vote opened in Cincinnati. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;By 11 am, the breakdown in voting? 752 Dems vs 87 Reps. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Our early vote program is working, but help us keep it going by giving here: &lt;a href="https://t.co/C4vjHrkssG"&gt;https://t.co/C4vjHrkssG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Then please RT &lt;a href="https://t.co/uX49Ur2qye"&gt;pic.twitter.com/uX49Ur2qye&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Pepper (@DavidPepper) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DavidPepper/status/1313527627060252672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>VIDEO: here is the scene 10 minutes after early vote opened in Cincinnati. <br><br>By 11 am, the breakdown in voting? 752 Dems vs 87 Reps. <br><br>Our early vote program is working, but help us keep it going by giving here: <a href="https://t.co/C4vjHrkssG">https://t.co/C4vjHrkssG</a><br><br>Then please RT <a href="https://t.co/uX49Ur2qye">pic.twitter.com/uX49Ur2qye</a></p>— David Pepper (@DavidPepper) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidPepper/status/1313527627060252672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Ohio SoS Frank LaRose has tried SO hard to deprive Ohioans of convenient dropboxes to assist pandemic-safer voting. Now a third court has rejected his blatant voter suppression tactic:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Judge Polster: “All 3 courts to have considered the matter have rejected the Sec’s interpretation of [Ohio law].”&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FrankLaRose?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@FrankLaRose&lt;/a&gt; you’ve wasted 5 mos fighting agst what we’ve said all along - OH law doesn’t block us from having more drop boxes.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;County BOEs: start putting them up. &lt;a href="https://t.co/rCx4lHFiG2"&gt;https://t.co/rCx4lHFiG2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Katy Shanahan (@KatyAShanahan) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KatyAShanahan/status/1313590240989380608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Judge Polster: “All 3 courts to have considered the matter have rejected the Sec’s interpretation of [Ohio law].”<a href="https://twitter.com/FrankLaRose?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FrankLaRose</a> you’ve wasted 5 mos fighting agst what we’ve said all along - OH law doesn’t block us from having more drop boxes.<br><br>County BOEs: start putting them up. <a href="https://t.co/rCx4lHFiG2">https://t.co/rCx4lHFiG2</a></p>— Katy Shanahan (@KatyAShanahan) <a href="https://twitter.com/KatyAShanahan/status/1313590240989380608?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>NNNE featured this excellent song in last night’s <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/6/1984118/-The-Masque-of-the-Redhat-Death-Redux-Evening-Shade-Tuesday" target="_blank">Evening Shade</a> and it is perfect for today’s GNR state of the states voting theme:</p> <h3>🎶 The People Are Voting! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ilk1RX-tElI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ilk1RX-tElI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Pennsylvania</h4> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/pat-tooney-senate-retire-republican-e54fb9cb-0723-4e36-8aae-22ff7799b56a.html?utm_campaign=organic&utm_medium=socialshare&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey to retire in 2022</a>, Orion Rummier, Axios, October 5, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) announced Monday that he will not run for re-election in 2022.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:<span> </span></strong>Pennsylvania is a key swing state that the<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/poll-biden-battle-pennsylvania-trump-election-2020-0225050a-db43-46c9-9bc7-b782b4874fe6.html" target="_self">Biden</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-campaign-pennsylvania-c59661ce-fb7e-4c96-b423-0af1ca11231d.html" target="_self">Trump campaigns</a><span> </span>are jockeying hard to win in November — although Trump won Pennsylvania by less than 1 percentage point four years ago. Toomey also said he will not run for governor in 2022, which leaves two open races in the state.</p> <p><strong>What he's saying:<span> </span></strong>"As I say, I've got two years left. And my intention is to work as hard as I possibly can," Toomey said at a press conference.</p> </blockquote> <p>Tee-hee! 😄</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;If you&amp;#39;re voting by mail in &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pennsylvania?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Pennsylvania&lt;/a&gt;, the health of your mail-in ballot is at stake! Don&amp;#39;t let it get caught "naked." Watch this video to make sure your vote counts. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DoctorsForBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@DoctorsForBiden&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@JoeBiden&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/g62CUdFuI3"&gt;pic.twitter.com/g62CUdFuI3&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Katherine Twynam Hamilton (@KTHamiltonMD) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KTHamiltonMD/status/1312753612859346944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 4, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>If you're voting by mail in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pennsylvania?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pennsylvania</a>, the health of your mail-in ballot is at stake! Don't let it get caught "naked." Watch this video to make sure your vote counts. <a href="https://twitter.com/DoctorsForBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DoctorsForBiden</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a> <a href="https://t.co/g62CUdFuI3">pic.twitter.com/g62CUdFuI3</a></p>— Katherine Twynam Hamilton (@KTHamiltonMD) <a href="https://twitter.com/KTHamiltonMD/status/1312753612859346944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Texas</h4> <p>As Beto O’Rourke said on the ReidOut last night, Texas Pubs are in a panic. They know that their only hold on power has been through voter suppression (which explains the doubling down this election, including Gov. Abbott unilaterally ordering removal of all but one ballot dropbox in each county). But, as absentee voting opens in the Lone Star state, people are saying <em>Hell no, you won’t stop me voting</em>. So, they lined up in cars around the block to begin dropping off their ballots to the only drop off ballot box in Harris County. IN spite of the line, reporters on the scene say that the line moved quite briskly.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We’re seeing some wraparound action, but overall the line to drop of absentee ballots in Harris County is moving quickly. Thanks to Gov. Abbott’s proclamation this is now the only drop-off site in the county of more than 4.7 million. I’m live on &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MSNBC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MSNBC&lt;/a&gt; w/ the latest all day. &lt;a href="https://t.co/n2mauqq20A"&gt;pic.twitter.com/n2mauqq20A&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Priscilla Thompson (@PriscillaWT) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PriscillaWT/status/1313516228611313664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We’re seeing some wraparound action, but overall the line to drop of absentee ballots in Harris County is moving quickly. Thanks to Gov. Abbott’s proclamation this is now the only drop-off site in the county of more than 4.7 million. I’m live on <a href="https://twitter.com/MSNBC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MSNBC</a> w/ the latest all day. <a href="https://t.co/n2mauqq20A">pic.twitter.com/n2mauqq20A</a></p>— Priscilla Thompson (@PriscillaWT) <a href="https://twitter.com/PriscillaWT/status/1313516228611313664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Houston Chronicle editorial board calling for the resignation of long-indicted Republican AG Ken Paxton:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="ht" dir="ltr"&gt;Editorial: Resign, Ken Paxton &lt;a href="https://t.co/FpvgSisDlJ"&gt;https://t.co/FpvgSisDlJ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Houston Chronicle (@HoustonChron) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonChron/status/1313258128285331458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Editorial: Resign, Ken Paxton <a href="https://t.co/FpvgSisDlJ">https://t.co/FpvgSisDlJ</a></p>— Houston Chronicle (@HoustonChron) <a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonChron/status/1313258128285331458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Some Final Words About the Election</h4> <p>One of Donald’s deranged tweetstorms last night was directed at the FBI, CIA and assorted other national security entities (whom he hates because they have the goods on him, of course) and it was probably this unusual public service announcement released yesterday that brought the storm on:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The right to vote in a free and fair election is one of the foundations of American democracy. The leaders of the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FBI?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#FBI&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CISAgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@CISAgov&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NCSCgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@NCSCgov&lt;/a&gt;, and &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NSAGov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@NSAgov&lt;/a&gt; want you to know how their organizations work together to protect your voice—no matter how you cast your vote. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Protect2020?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Protect2020&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/TaJBhWYwqL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/TaJBhWYwqL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— FBI (@FBI) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FBI/status/1313494766387105794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The right to vote in a free and fair election is one of the foundations of American democracy. The leaders of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FBI?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FBI</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/CISAgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CISAgov</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/NCSCgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NCSCgov</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/NSAGov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NSAgov</a> want you to know how their organizations work together to protect your voice—no matter how you cast your vote. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Protect2020?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Protect2020</a> <a href="https://t.co/TaJBhWYwqL">pic.twitter.com/TaJBhWYwqL</a></p>— FBI (@FBI) <a href="https://twitter.com/FBI/status/1313494766387105794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Occasionally Politico is worth reading lol</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/10/06/four-notes-election-reporter-notebook-426599" target="_blank">4 Funny Feelings About 2020</a>, Tim Alberta, Politico, October 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Winking speckled white-gray owl." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/640222/large/f2XvJ0PW-4276974247jpg-1210-680.jpg?1549299376" title="Winking speckled white-gray owl."> <figcaption>That’s right, Wise women will defeat Donald!</figcaption> </figure> <h3>4. Trump might lose women voters by numbers we’ve never imagined.</h3> <p>Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The president has a problem with female voters. Yes, this has been observed by every pollster, every political professional, in both parties over the past four years. Trump has been briefed on it—time and again—by his team, who warned him that the 2018 Democratic wave could repeat itself without a course correction. But what we’re seeing now, in polling conducted by both parties, <em><strong>isn’t a wave. It isn’t even a tsunami. It’s something we don’t have a name for, because we’ve never seen anything like it.</strong></em> The president’s standing with women voters of every race, every educational background, every socioeconomic stratum, has fallen off. But when it comes to the white, college-educated women who made up a sizable chunk of Trump’s base—he won 44 percent of them against Hillary Clinton—his numbers have collapsed entirely. ✄</p> <p><span>This isn’t just a problem for Trump in purple states. Last week, I heard from one of the smartest Republicans alive, a longtime party operator who lives in a state Trump carried by double digits. He told me the polling he was seeing there was something out of a nightmare; these were numbers he never expected to see in his lifetime. The only thing more dizzying than that? I had another conversation, with another dependable red-state Republican,<span> </span></span><em>the very next day</em><span>, and heard<span> </span></span><em>the very same thing</em><span>. Both of these men were sounding the alarm, alerting me that Trump could actually lose their states, and would at the very least drag down a number of down-ballot Republicans, because women have turned on the GOP at a historic clip. Trump lost women by 13 points to Clinton, according to exit polls, and Republicans have long worried that the figure could climb into the high teens. There is now genuine worry that the margin could explode north of 20 points—the biggest gender gap in modern election history.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>(Oh, did I mention there will be a (socially distant) <a href="https://womensmarch.com/" target="_blank">WOMEN’S MARCH</a> on OCTOBER 17!! Click the link to find out the one nearest to you!)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=qRrQDGZSgH4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qRrQDGZSgH4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💲The Economy Will Also Sink Them💲</h3> <p>We already know that Donald has been losing bigly to Joe Biden on just about every possible issue concerning Americans today. Yet, for some unfathomable reason, a stubborn slight majority of the people continued to think that somehow Donald is stronger on the economy. Well, no more. Today’s unbelievably cruel (not to mention foolhardy) decision to instruct Mnuchen and company to stop negotiating with Nancy Pelosi on a relief package Americans so desperately need to get through the grossly mismanaged coronavirus recession has stripped away that last tattered fig leaf over Donald’s grotesque incompetence.</p> <p>Yes, it’s terrible that Donald confirmed what we all knew he would do — fail again, this time clearly on the economy (in defiance of the appeals of the Fed, the US Chamber of Commerce and every American). Don’t despair, though. When we vote in huge blue tsunami numbers to elect Joe, Kamala and a long list of Democratic senators and House representatives — then Joe won’t need to wait until January to start helping:</p> <p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/10/biden-can-stimulate-the-covid-19-economy-right-after-he-wins.html" target="_blank">Biden Can Stimulate the Economy Right After He Wins — No Waiting for January</a>, Josh Barro, New York Magazine-Intelligencer, October 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Fed uses a practice called “forward guidance”: it makes statements about what it will do in the future in order to influence the economy today. If and when Democrats win the election — if they take the presidency and both houses of Congress, which<span> </span></span><a href="https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-election-forecast/senate/">appears to be the most likely outcome</a><span><span> </span>— they won’t have an immediate ability to enact legislation, but they can immediately start making commitments about what legislation they<span> </span></span><em>will</em><span><span> </span>pass, and those commitments can start helping the economy right away by giving economic actors clarity about what resources will be available to them come winter.</span></p> <p>The biggest missing piece from the CARES Act was truly extensive aid to state and local governments to address the budget shortfalls they face from plummeting tax revenues and added COVID-related expenses. To a large extent, those governments have postponed hard decisions about how to close budget gaps, instead borrowing money and drawing on their rainy day funds, waiting with the expectation that federal aid will eventually make them whole. If Democrats commit in November to a size and structure for an aid package they will plan to pass in January and February, that will give many of these governments the confidence they need in order to continue postponing layoffs and deep budget cuts. ✄</p> <p><span>Commitments from Biden, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer about aid to households and businesses can also help the economy by helping people to plan. It would give them the confidence that they can spend and not worry about running out of money next year, and show businesses in particular that they have good reason to hang on and stay open because help is on the way. </span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌊🚢 Everyone is Abandoning the Trumptanic 🌊🚢</h3> <h4>When you’ve lost the CHamber of COmmerce</h4> <p>Republicans and the Chamber of Commerce go together like potatoes and gravy — and the CoC is not pleased with the Groper gravy train:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/USChamber?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@USChamber&lt;/a&gt; of Commerce on the end of COVID talks: "Washington’s failure to enact additional COVID relief will be felt on Main Streets and at kitchen tables across the United States." &lt;a href="https://t.co/AA20cWztTK"&gt;pic.twitter.com/AA20cWztTK&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/scottwongDC/status/1313598468318015491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/USChamber?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USChamber</a> of Commerce on the end of COVID talks: "Washington’s failure to enact additional COVID relief will be felt on Main Streets and at kitchen tables across the United States." <a href="https://t.co/AA20cWztTK">pic.twitter.com/AA20cWztTK</a></p>— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/scottwongDC/status/1313598468318015491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/ceos-blast-trump-for-his-sudden-halt-of-negotiations-over-stimulus-and-issue-dire-warning/" target="_blank">CEOs blast Trump for his ‘sudden halt of negotiations’ over COVID stimulus — and issue dire warning</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, October 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The political organization representing CEOs at some of America’s top companies warned the decision by President Donald Trump to suspend stimulus negotiations will “worsen and prolong” the financial crisis facing America. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“We are deeply troubled by the sudden halt of negotiations,” the Business Roundtable said in a statement released on Tuesday, as reported by<span> </span></span><em>Washington Post</em><span><span> </span>economics correspondent Heather Long.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>From the TLTL Department</h4> <p>It’s much too little, far too late, obviously, and only now that the threat of backlash from Pubs and their “base” is slight (only 27 days to election), while the threat of just consequences in 2021 for their enabling of malign parties is much higher. They see the writing on the wall and are scrambling to try to cover their own asses. It’s still good news to be rid of that garbage on social media and this is a sign that even Zuckerberg et al believe the Pubs are going to be routed in the election:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/facebook-bans-qanon-across-its-platforms-n1242339?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma" target="_blank">Facebook bans QAnon across its platforms</a>, Ben Collins and Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, October 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Facebook said the change is an update on the policy it created in August that initially only removed accounts related to the QAnon conspiracy theory that discussed violence, which resulted in the termination of 1,500 pages, groups and profiles.</p> <p>A company spokesperson said the enforcement, which started Tuesday, will “bring to parity what we’ve been doing on other pieces of policy with regard to militarized social movements,” such as militia and terror groups that repeatedly call for violence.</p> <p>“Starting today, we will remove Facebook Pages, Groups and Instagram accounts for representing QAnon. We’re starting to enforce this updated policy today and are removing content accordingly, but this work will take time and will continue in the coming days and weeks,” Facebook wrote in a press release. “Our Dangerous Organizations Operations team will continue to enforce this policy and proactively detect content for removal instead of relying on user reports.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🐍 Meanwhile, From the Schadenfreude File 🐍</h3> <h4>Sweet justice</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/mccloskeys-indicted-grand-jury-adds-charges-of-tampering-with-evidence/article_892b9ba4-0807-11eb-8750-b3b2937f7e0b.html?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot" target="_blank">McCloskeys indicted, grand jury adds charges of tampering with evidence</a>, Lauren Trager, CBS KMOV4, October 6, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Mark and Patricia McCloskey emerged from their St. Louis mansion with guns after protesters walked onto their private street. The couple, who were criminally charged for the incident, made their case in their opening night speech of the Republican National Convention, saying that they had a “God-given right” to defend themselves and their property." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/853464/large/McCloskeys.jpg?1599514464" title="Mark and Patricia McCloskey emerged from their St. Louis mansion with guns after protesters walked onto their private street. The couple, who were criminally charged for the incident, made their case in their opening night speech of the Republican National Convention, saying that they had a “God-given right” to defend themselves and their property."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- A grand jury indicted Mark and Patricia McCloskey Tuesday on charges of exhibiting guns at protesters in a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/st-louis-couple-seen-pointing-guns-at-protestors/article_afbb1b2c-b98e-11ea-ba7e-b3452007bfc8.html" target="_blank">June incident in their neighborhood</a><span><span> </span>and added a charge of tampering with evidence for both members of the couple. ✄</span></p> <p>Mark and Patricia McCloskey had previously been charged with felony counts of exhibiting weapons--for pointing guns at protestors outside their central west end home. They have long maintained they were protecting themselves and their property from people hurling threats.</p> <p>The grand jury also added a count for each of them: of tampering. This, News 4 learned, stems from the pistol held by Patricia McCloskey and later turned over to police by attorney Al Watkins.</p> <div> <div> <div style="text-align:center !important"> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div style="text-align:left"> <div></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>worms turning, rats etc</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It’s almost as if they think their association with Trump and his cult-like party won’t wear well over time... &lt;a href="https://t.co/tdsrhJP3cP"&gt;https://t.co/tdsrhJP3cP&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brian Beutler (@brianbeutler) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/brianbeutler/status/1313529031967625216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It’s almost as if they think their association with Trump and his cult-like party won’t wear well over time... <a href="https://t.co/tdsrhJP3cP">https://t.co/tdsrhJP3cP</a></p>— Brian Beutler (@brianbeutler) <a href="https://twitter.com/brianbeutler/status/1313529031967625216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Helpful: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-voting-2020-archive-elections-voting-fraud-and-irregularities-61aeb9a46f24be0e28a9e2fe4d6c897b" target="_blank">Voter beware:</a> <a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-voting-2020-archive-elections-voting-fraud-and-irregularities-61aeb9a46f24be0e28a9e2fe4d6c897b" target="_blank">US tells public how to avoid election mischief</a>, Eric Tucker and Ben Fox, AP News, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ A citizen’s guide to defending democracy: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/10/a-citizens-guide-to-defending-the-election/616574/" target="_blank">The Election Is in Danger. Prepare Now.</a> Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ NPR finally out of Fs: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/10/06/920785708/cutting-edge-covid-19-care-for-trump-not-available-for-regular-folks" target="_blank">Cutting-Edge COVID-19 Care For Trump, Not Available For Regular Folks,</a> Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR News, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 👀‼️: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/10/the-stars-may-be-aligned-for-trump-to-be-prosecuted/" target="_blank">The stars may be aligned for Trump to be prosecuted</a>, Joshua Holland, Raw Story, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ On the terrible — suicidal — price of toxic masculinity: <a href="https://the.ink/p/the-illness-he-is" target="_blank">The illness he is</a>, Anand Giridharadas, The Ink, October 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ No surprises, and interesting timing: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/06/us/politics/homeland-security-white-supremacists-russia.html" target="_blank" title="">Delayed Homeland Security Report Warns of ‘Lethal’ White Supremacy</a>, Zolan Kanno-Youngs, New York Times, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Economy, Donny: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/10/06/trump-blows-up-stimulus-talks-with-them-perhaps-his-chances-reelection/" target="_blank" title="">Trump blows up stimulus talks, and with them perhaps his chances of reelection</a>, Catherine Rampell, Washington Post, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ The hope of a DEM sweep is what stopped the selloff! Finally recognition of which party is really best for the economy: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/06/trumps-move-to-end-stimulus-talks-baffles-wall-street-and-washington.html?__source=androidappshare" target="_blank">Trump’s ‘illogical’ move to end stimulus talks baffles Wall Street and Washington</a>, CNBC.</p> <p>⚡️ Yep: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/coronavirus-updates/2020/10/trump-coronavirus-failure-vip-treatment/" target="_blank" title="">Donald Trump Wants You to Think His COVID Diagnosis Is Evidence of His “Leadership.” It’s Evidence of His Failure</a>. Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Mother Jones, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Tonight! <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/heres-how-kamala-harris-will-expose-mike-pences-american-hellscape?ref=home" target="_blank" title="">Here’s How Kamala Harris Will Expose Mike Pence’s American Hellscape</a>, Sergio Gonzales, Daily Beast, October 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Of course: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/10/trump-coronavirus-cover-up-greed.html" target="_blank">Trump’s Coronavirus Cover-Up Was All About Greed</a>, William Saletan, Slate, October 6, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a><span> </span>writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <p>Mattrek’s<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o179iu11d8UKf2muk0jOJaVLsdxmnT9Yv7KDGJos6Y0/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything</a><span> </span>master list of links for state races, national, volunteer opportunities, work from home and much more!</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/plan-your-vote-state-by-state-guide-voting-by-mail-early-in-person-voting-election/index.html" target="_blank">Plan Your Vote</a>, NBC News site answers some common questions with an easy to navigate map.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>OK, Gnusies, someone is trying to tell me to wrap this up, she needs her late night outing and then her bed. You know what to do:  Get enough rest (I know it’s hard and the nightmares are awful, but do your best); eat nutritious food (just get some into you, your body needs fuel to GOTV in the final stretch) and try to spend some time outdoors in nature if you can manage it at all. Fresh air and a few trees can really restore you.</p> <p>Above all, remember that no matter what they throw at us, this country has seen it all before. Maybe not all at once, and maybe (in the case of the malignant narcissist) not at the top of our own government in quite this terrible way — but we’ve seen all of this before: the voter suppression, the extremism, the hate. Maybe this time we will beat it back for good. Let’s try to do that shall we? </p> <p class="AlignCenter"><strong>GOTV! GOTV! 27 days to Election Day! GOTV! GOTV!</strong></p> <p>I’m so proud and glad to be fighting this fight with all of you! Happy Wednesday!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nt3Ggo1CE3g" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nt3Ggo1CE3g" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) 27Days Election2020 GoodNews Goodnewsroundup GOTV Politics Recommended States Vote _1974559 Wed, 07 Oct 2020 11:00:08 +0000 Wave after wave of Good News For America (Bad News for Republicans) - GNR September 29 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/9/29/1979697/-Wave-after-wave-of-Good-News-For-America-Bad-News-for-Republicans-GNR-September-29 <p>Good day, Gnusies! Happy Tuesday/Debate Day! There has been so much news that I have been hard-pressed to get it all gathered, so please excuse the extra reliance on tweet quotes today. I won’t waste your time editorializing — let’s get straight to the good news!</p> <h3>📫 Democrats Fight for the USPS 📫</h3> <h4>Democratic Attorneys General are so important!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We just secured an injunction blocking the Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USPS?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#USPS&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We will continue to do everything in our power to ensure every eligible voter can cast a ballot in November, period. &lt;a href="https://t.co/BsMbaNYcJG"&gt;https://t.co/BsMbaNYcJG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NewYorkStateAG/status/1310390556770656259?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We just secured an injunction blocking the Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USPS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USPS</a>.<br><br>We will continue to do everything in our power to ensure every eligible voter can cast a ballot in November, period. <a href="https://t.co/BsMbaNYcJG">https://t.co/BsMbaNYcJG</a></p>— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) <a href="https://twitter.com/NewYorkStateAG/status/1310390556770656259?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>And North Carolina AG</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;🚨🚨BREAKING: Big win in our case against the Postmaster General. The Court ordered the Postal Service to reverse many damaging changes that slowed mail delivery. I will keep fighting to protect your right to vote.&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Stein (@JoshStein_) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoshStein_/status/1310602398478540802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>🚨🚨BREAKING: Big win in our case against the Postmaster General. The Court ordered the Postal Service to reverse many damaging changes that slowed mail delivery. I will keep fighting to protect your right to vote.</p>— Josh Stein (@JoshStein_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshStein_/status/1310602398478540802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>😜 🐍 tHe BEst PeOpLe 🐍 😜</h3> <p>It’s all coming out now — expect a blizzard of bad news for trumpistas as we prepare for the blue wave American voters will bring to Washington DC.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;So it looks like the October surprise is the entire solar system around Trump imploding, of its own naturally occurring consequences&lt;/p&gt;— Xeni Jardin (@xeni) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/xeni/status/1310619122477146112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>So it looks like the October surprise is the entire solar system around Trump imploding, of its own naturally occurring consequences</p>— Xeni Jardin (@xeni) <a href="https://twitter.com/xeni/status/1310619122477146112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Oops! 👀</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/robert-redfield-overheard-trashing-trumps-new-favorite-covid-19-adviser-scott-atlas?via=twitter_page" target="_blank">Reporter Overhears CDC Director Redfield Trashing Trump’s New Favorite COVID-19 Adviser</a>, Jamie Ross, the Daily Beast, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Always check who you’re sitting next to before you start loudly talking smack on the phone. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, has been overheard by a reporter as he laid into President Donald Trump’s new favorite COVID-19 adviser. The embarrassing incident happened as Redfield took a call on a commercial flight within earshot of an NBC News reporter. The doctor was reportedly discussing Scott Atlas—a controversial addition to the task force whose views are so dubious that<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/even-foxs-hard-news-shows-dont-want-to-book-trumps-favorite-new-covid-adviser-scott-atlas">he’s been shunned</a><span><span> </span>by some Fox News shows. Redfield was heard saying: “Everything he says is false.” Redfield later confirmed he was speaking about Atlas, who has previously questioned the usefulness of masks and pushed a deadly “herd immunity” strategy.</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="AlignCenter"> — — -The space below is so vexing, I could not even write inside it!- — — </p> <blockquote> <div> <div></div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Darth Death Star</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: UK’s Channel 4 has obtained a huge data leak from Trump’s 2016 campaign. The leak reveals personal data of almost 200 million voters used by Trump’s campaign, which manipulated algorithms to deter millions of Black Americans from voting. &lt;a href="https://t.co/eT7ssKFiQC"&gt;pic.twitter.com/eT7ssKFiQC&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ava DuVernay (@ava) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ava/status/1310597300918444032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: UK’s Channel 4 has obtained a huge data leak from Trump’s 2016 campaign. The leak reveals personal data of almost 200 million voters used by Trump’s campaign, which manipulated algorithms to deter millions of Black Americans from voting. <a href="https://t.co/eT7ssKFiQC">pic.twitter.com/eT7ssKFiQC</a></p>— Ava DuVernay (@ava) <a href="https://twitter.com/ava/status/1310597300918444032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Watch the <a href="https://youtu.be/KIf5ELaOjOk" target="_blank">Channel 4 News (UK) exposé</a>.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>'Brad Parscale, a political newbie who created a database nicknamed “Project Alamo,” headed Trump’s digital operation and also used information from Cambridge Analytica and the Republican National Committee. Facebook helped disseminate its messages'</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>And...👀 </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RepSpeier?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@RepSpeier&lt;/a&gt; asked the question. Parscale responded with a false statement that tonight’s &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Channel4News?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Channel4News&lt;/a&gt; exposé will clearly and unambiguously reveal.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeterringDemocracy?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#DeterringDemocracy&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/zY5dfAnH12"&gt;pic.twitter.com/zY5dfAnH12&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Carroll 🦅 (@profcarroll) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/profcarroll/status/1310614270758055936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/RepSpeier?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepSpeier</a> asked the question. Parscale responded with a false statement that tonight’s <a href="https://twitter.com/Channel4News?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Channel4News</a> exposé will clearly and unambiguously reveal.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeterringDemocracy?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DeterringDemocracy</a> <a href="https://t.co/zY5dfAnH12">pic.twitter.com/zY5dfAnH12</a></p>— David Carroll 🦅 (@profcarroll) <a href="https://twitter.com/profcarroll/status/1310614270758055936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>‼️👀‼️</h4> <p><strong>Looks like no “Durham Report” October surprise:</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Breaking news: NO John durham interim report. No indictments before election - Bartiromo sources. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SundayFutures?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SundayFutures&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FoxNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@FoxNews&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MorningsMaria?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MorningsMaria&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/FoxBusiness?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@FoxBusiness&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Maria Bartiromo (@MariaBartiromo) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MariaBartiromo/status/1310221953110888449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 27, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Breaking news: NO John durham interim report. No indictments before election - Bartiromo sources. <a href="https://twitter.com/SundayFutures?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SundayFutures</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/FoxNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FoxNews</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/MorningsMaria?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MorningsMaria</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/FoxBusiness?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FoxBusiness</a></p>— Maria Bartiromo (@MariaBartiromo) <a href="https://twitter.com/MariaBartiromo/status/1310221953110888449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4> all in one convenient package-thanks CREW!:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;There are many reasons to impeach AG Bill Barr. Here are all of them: &lt;a href="https://t.co/KaXUF5djXt"&gt;https://t.co/KaXUF5djXt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CREWcrew/status/1310383790477529088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>There are many reasons to impeach AG Bill Barr. Here are all of them: <a href="https://t.co/KaXUF5djXt">https://t.co/KaXUF5djXt</a></p>— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) <a href="https://twitter.com/CREWcrew/status/1310383790477529088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>‘While Facebook “pretends” to create an oversight board’ — FIFY NBC</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/facebook-real-oversight-board-n1240958" target="_blank">While Facebook works to create an oversight board</a>, industry experts formed their own, Olivia Solon, NBC News, September 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A group of about 25 experts from academia, civil rights, politics and journalism announced Friday that they have formed a group to analyze and critique Facebook's content moderation decisions, policies and other platform issues in the run-up to the presidential election and beyond.</p> <p>The group, which calls itself the Real Facebook Oversight Board, plans to hold its first meeting via Facebook Live on Oct. 1. It will be hosted by Recode founder Kara Swisher, a New York Times contributing opinion writer.</p> <p>Facebook is still working on creating its own oversight board, first described in April 2018 by CEO Mark Zuckerberg as an independent "Supreme Court" for content moderation decisions. Facebook's board won't launch in time to make any decisions during the presidential race. Its panel of 20 experts is scheduled to start reviewing cases in October, but it will have up to 90 days to make decisions.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🏆 The REAL Best People 🏆</h3> <p><strong>Our Democrats are on top of the latest news</strong>:</p> <h4>Speaker Nancy Pelosi</h4> <p>S<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/speaker-pelosi-says-trump-s-taxes-reveal-national-security-issue-n1241255" target="_blank" title="">peaker Pelosi says Trump's taxes reveal 'national security' issue</a>, Adam Edelman, NBC News, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on July 31, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Oliver Contreras/SIPA USA)(Sipa via AP Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/838504/large/AP_20213546206046.jpg?1596210199" title="Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill on July 31, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Oliver Contreras/SIPA USA)(Sipa via AP Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday called a report that President Donald Trump has more than $300 million in<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-lashes-out-new-york-times-report-alleging-years-tax-n1241220">loans coming due in the next few years</a><span><span> </span>a “national security issue” and argued it raises questions about whether foreign nations or individuals could have “leverage” over the president. ✄</span></p> <p>“This president appears to have over $400 million in debt. To whom? Different countries? What is the leverage they have? So for me, this is a national security question,” Pelosi said.</p> <p>“We take an oath to protect and defend. This president is commander in chief. He has exposure to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, to whom? The public has a right to know,” she continued.</p> </blockquote> <p>Also...👀</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SpeakerPelosi&lt;/a&gt; on MSNBC says Mnuchin is observing Yom Kippur today but says it&amp;#39;sk"very possible" the two sides could come together on Covid relief. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Mnuchin "has to come back [to the table] with much more money to get the job done."&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We could see a new Dem covid bill this wk&lt;/p&gt;— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/scottwongDC/status/1310618882395320323?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SpeakerPelosi</a> on MSNBC says Mnuchin is observing Yom Kippur today but says it'sk"very possible" the two sides could come together on Covid relief. <br><br>Mnuchin "has to come back [to the table] with much more money to get the job done."<br><br>We could see a new Dem covid bill this wk</p>— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/scottwongDC/status/1310618882395320323?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>And here is the bill (Nancy delivers!):</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/09/28/917955887/house-democrats-introduce-scaled-back-coronavirus-aid-package" target="_blank" title="">House Democrats Introduce Scaled-Back Coronavirus Aid Package</a>, Kelsey Snell, NPR News, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">The legislation addresses many of Democrats' top priorities, like additional money for testing and drug development, additional unemployment benefits and small business loans, that were included in the $3.4 trillion bill that passed the House in May. Some of the reduced cost comes from scaling back the duration of the benefits in order to come closer to compromise with Republicans. ✄ </span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">The legislation would revive the expired $600 additional weekly federal unemployment benefit through January and lift caps on how long people can file for unemployment.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Democrats also included another round of direct payments of $1,200 per person and $500 per dependent, money to refresh the popular Paycheck Protection Program with new money for small business loans, additional money for food security programs and $436 billion in relief for states, local governments, tribes and territories.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Well, well. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;As I bang away at the dark-money operation infiltrating our courts and grasping at the RBG vacancy, here’s a fascinating document dump. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Caught in the act! &lt;a href="https://t.co/tkrc5fbBJ5"&gt;https://t.co/tkrc5fbBJ5&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SenWhitehouse/status/1310256637005840384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 27, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Well, well. <br><br>As I bang away at the dark-money operation infiltrating our courts and grasping at the RBG vacancy, here’s a fascinating document dump. <br><br>Caught in the act! <a href="https://t.co/tkrc5fbBJ5">https://t.co/tkrc5fbBJ5</a></p>— Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenWhitehouse/status/1310256637005840384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Sen. Elizabeth Warren</h4> <p>Sure hope President Biden puts <strong>Elizabeth Warren</strong> in the cabinet to continue her work on consumer protection and economic inequality!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is about more than one man&amp;#39;s personal tax scams. Donald Trump is a liar, a cheater, and a crooked businessman, yes. But he&amp;#39;s also taking advantage of a broken, corrupt, and unequal system that’s built for people like him to do what he did.&lt;/p&gt;— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ewarren/status/1310369811466268674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is about more than one man's personal tax scams. Donald Trump is a liar, a cheater, and a crooked businessman, yes. But he's also taking advantage of a broken, corrupt, and unequal system that’s built for people like him to do what he did.</p>— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) <a href="https://twitter.com/ewarren/status/1310369811466268674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Musical Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=k03dsRUVbcQ" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/k03dsRUVbcQ">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>📰 Trump Tax Scandal Deepens 📰</h3> <p>Last night, the NYT published a follow-up story to Sunday’s blockbuster financial records story:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/28/us/donald-trump-taxes-apprentice.html" target="_blank">How reality-TV fame handed Trump a $427 million lifeline</a>, Mike McIntyre, Russ Buettner and Susanne Craig, New York Times, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>From the back seat of a stretch limousine heading to meet the first contestants for his new TV show “The Apprentice,” Donald J. Trump bragged that he was a billionaire who had overcome financial hardship.</p> <p>“I used my brain, I used my negotiating skills and I worked it all out,” he told viewers. “Now, my company is bigger than it ever was and stronger than it ever was.”</p> <p><em><strong>It was all a hoax. </strong></em></p> <p><span>Months after that inaugural episode in January 2004, Mr. Trump filed his individual tax return reporting $89.9 million in net losses from his core businesses for the prior year. The red ink spilled from everywhere, even as American television audiences saw him as a savvy business mogul with the Midas touch.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Whew... Turns out ⁦&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@realDonaldTrump&lt;/a&gt;⁩ earned more actual money pitching McDonald’s new $1 “Big N’ Tasty” burger than as a real estate developer. &lt;a href="https://t.co/be7fM9P1nW"&gt;https://t.co/be7fM9P1nW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoyAnnReid/status/1310761462483296260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 29, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Whew... Turns out ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>⁩ earned more actual money pitching McDonald’s new $1 “Big N’ Tasty” burger than as a real estate developer. <a href="https://t.co/be7fM9P1nW">https://t.co/be7fM9P1nW</a></p>— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoyAnnReid/status/1310761462483296260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 29, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Meanwhile, the fallout from Sunday’s blockbuster reporting continued all day today, with every network leading its evening news programs with it.</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/28/trumps-taxes-show-why-he-is-desperate-stay-office/" target="_blank">Trump’s taxes show why he is desperate to stay in office</a>, Max Boot, Washington Post, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The latest Times story neatly complements a<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-schemes-fred-trump.html" target="_blank">previous Times scoop in 2018</a><span><span> </span>which showed that, far from being a self-made man, young Trump received $413 million from his father — and squandered it in a series of failed deals. The new article picks up the story, showing that Trump received another windfall from “The Apprentice” and related deals — and then promptly squandered that, too. By July, the newspaper reports, the supposed billionaire had no more than $873,000 in securities left to sell. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The Times reports that Trump is on the hook for $421 million in debt, much of which is coming due soon. As former FBI agent Josh Campbell<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/joshscampbell/status/1310344763611045888" target="_blank">points out</a><span>, that much debt “disqualifies most people from obtaining a government security clearance,” because the U.S. government “views this as a vulnerability and a point of leverage for foreign adversaries seeking access to classified information.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>The Times has done an impressive job of getting the truth out, and now it is up to the voters to decide whether they want to reelect a flimflam man. The Times account makes clear that Trump is desperate to stay in office in no small part because he needs to profit from the presidency — and to avoid the risk of prosecution for tax fraud and other possible crimes.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Excellent thread explainer (click on the blue bird to read thread):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Some clear implications from the Trump Tax story:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;- He blew through other people’s money. His dad’s. Then Mark Burnett’s. Plus loans. &lt;br&gt;- he starts blowing through the most money in 2011, when the known sources disappear. &lt;br&gt;- He had a new source of funds. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;1/&lt;/p&gt;— Adam Davidson (@adamdavidson) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/adamdavidson/status/1310556203748032512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Some clear implications from the Trump Tax story:<br><br>- He blew through other people’s money. His dad’s. Then Mark Burnett’s. Plus loans. <br>- he starts blowing through the most money in 2011, when the known sources disappear. <br>- He had a new source of funds. <br><br>1/</p>— Adam Davidson (@adamdavidson) <a href="https://twitter.com/adamdavidson/status/1310556203748032512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-tax-records-show-duplicity-s-devastating-his-campaign-n1241228" target="_blank">Trump tax records show duplicity. That's devastating for his campaign.</a> Jonathan Allen, NBC News, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="New York Times 9/27/202 article on Trump's taxes" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/861740/large/NYT.JPG?1601260665" title="New York Times 9/27/202 article on Trump's taxes"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump told the tax man he was the country's biggest loser, according to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-lashes-out-new-york-times-report-alleging-years-tax-n1241220" target="_blank">Internal Revenue Service filings</a><span><span> </span>obtained by The New York Times, and that will make it harder for him to win re-election.</span></p> <p>The tax payment numbers are empirical evidence of his long history of<span> </span><a href="https://www.today.com/video/trump-tax-returns-raise-questions-about-his-business-expertise-analyst-says-92693061753" target="_blank">duplicity on his business record</a>. They show that most of his ventures, save for branding himself as a big-swinging CEO, have been abject failures.</p> <p>That evidence comes on the heels of Trump's<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/morning-briefing/trump-admits-he-downplayed-covid-19-threat-west-coast-wildfires-n1239735" target="_blank">acknowledgment that he played down the threat of the coronavirus,</a><span> </span>which has claimed more than 200,000 American lives and millions of jobs, and the possibility that he paid less than he owed in taxes gives lift to the charge that he<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/trump-often-sees-american-landscape-losers-suckers-n1239304" target="_blank">doesn't understand the concept of sacrifice</a>.</p> <p>Now, on the eve of the first presidential debate, Trump must choose: tell the American public that his tax filings were bogus or admit that he isn't the heavy-hitting CEO he says is. His attempt so far — to write the report off as "fake news" — is unlikely to carry weight with the most critical voters.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And that’s not all...</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/28/politics/ivanka-trump-donald-trump-tacves/index.html" target="_blank">Don't miss the Ivanka Trump bombshell buried in the Times tax story</a>, Chris Cillizza, CNN, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="0DC7C716-CE8E-4502-B478-2BA412DE55E3.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834799/large/0DC7C716-CE8E-4502-B478-2BA412DE55E3.png?1595378024" title="0DC7C716-CE8E-4502-B478-2BA412DE55E3.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> 1) In at least two deals -- hotels in Hawaii and Vancouver, Ivanka Trump appears to have double-dipped -- serving as both a project manager in her official capacity as a senior staffer for her father's company and as a "consultant" to those same projects.</div> <div>2) In those deals, Ivanka Trump's apparent categorization as a "consultant" allowed her father to write off three-quarters of a million dollars. (The IRS allows "consulting fees" to be written off as business expenses.) ✄</div> <div> <div>But it appears as though the Times may only have found the tip of the iceberg here.</div> <div>Why? Because of the $26 million that Trump wrote off as "consulting fees" between 2010 and 2018, none is allocated to any specific person or entity. (The Times figured out the $747,622 payment by matching an amount paid in Trump's tax returns to the same sum reported by Ivanka Trump on her financial disclosure forms filed when she went to work in the White House in 2017.) <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Which is not legal. &lt;a href="https://t.co/gkOgjs2KJO"&gt;https://t.co/gkOgjs2KJO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Janet Johnson (@JJohnsonLaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JJohnsonLaw/status/1310657528406175744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Which is not legal. <a href="https://t.co/gkOgjs2KJO">https://t.co/gkOgjs2KJO</a></p>— Janet Johnson (@JJohnsonLaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/JJohnsonLaw/status/1310657528406175744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4><span>👀 You love to See It 👀</span></h4> <p>pResident Flopsweat:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/28/trump-defense-tax-scandal-422512" target="_blank">Trump tries new line of defense amid tax scandal</a>, Quint Forgey, Politico, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>President Donald Trump on Monday tried out a new line of defense amid fallout from a damaging report on his financial history — arguing he was “entitled” to take advantage of various tax loopholes and insisting he was mired in “very little debt.”</p> <p>The latest explanation from the president, outlined in a series of morning tweets, marked his second attempt at defusing a<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html" target="_blank">New York Times exposé</a><span> </span>published Sunday, which reported that Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes in both 2016 and 2017.</p> <p><span>“The Fake News Media, just like Election time 2016, is bringing up my Taxes & all sorts of other nonsense with illegally obtained information & only bad intent. I paid many millions of dollars in taxes but was entitled, like everyone else, to depreciation & tax credits,” Trump<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1310587468731879431?s=20" target="_blank">wrote</a><span>.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>‘<a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/09/hes-screwed-ex-fbi-agent-says-trump-is-invoking-the-5th-amendment-by-not-releasing-his-taxes/" target="_blank">He’s screwed’: Ex-FBI agent says Trump is invoking the 5th Amendment by not releasing his taxes,</a> Bob Brigham, Raw Story, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>“But I’m here to tell you, Nicolle, that if this applicant named Donald J. Trump were presented to the FBI to work in the cafeteria of the Hoover Building at 10th and Pennsylvania Ave, it would be disqualified for the financial mess that this reflects, for far less than what this reflects. Hundreds of millions of dollars coming due on a personal hook for the president,” he explained. “The judgment alone is questionable, that he would put his name personally and be liable for that.”</span></p> <p>Figliuzzi concluded, “he’s screwed.”</p> <p>“He’s essentially invoking his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination when he won’t release his tax returns publicly. He doesn’t want us to see what’s there, not only because it’s embarrassing, but because it may be evidence of a crime,” Figliuzzi explained.</p> </blockquote> <h4>meanwhile, Across the pond</h4> <p>Patriots in the UK are as disturbed by their version of MAGA (Brexit) as we the people are here. And, like us, they are working hard to uncover the truth:</p> <p><a href="https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/question-how-donald-trumps-scottish-resorts-are-financed-just-became-even-more-urgent-2985977" target="_blank">The question of how Donald Trump’s Scottish resorts are financed just became even more urgent</a>, Martyn McLaughlin, The Scotsman, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Police offficers stand guard at Trump Turnberry, the luxury golf resort of US President Donald Trump, in Turnberry, southwest of Glasgow, Scotland on July 14, 2018, during the private part of his four-day UK visit. - US President Donald Trump wraps up a four-day visit to Britain, dominated by his blasting of Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit strategy, by spending the weekend in Scotland. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/721469/large/GettyImages-998481948.jpg?1569450673" title="Police offficers stand guard at Trump Turnberry, the luxury golf resort of US President Donald Trump, in Turnberry, southwest of Glasgow, Scotland on July 14, 2018, during the private part of his four-day UK visit. - US President Donald Trump wraps up a four-day visit to Britain, dominated by his blasting of Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit strategy, by spending the weekend in Scotland. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Turnberry</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left">In other ways, however, the news of Mr Trump’s meagre tax exposure merely brings the US up to speed with what has long been evident in Scotland. If anything, the overarching legacy of the<span> </span><em>New York Times</em><span> </span>exposé will be to lend even greater urgency to questions surrounding the Trump Organisation’s finances.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p style="text-align:left">21 October marks the fifteenth anniversary of the incorporation of Mr Trump’s first Scottish company, set up to facilitate the development of his inaugural Scottish course. In the decade-and-a-half since, he has acquired Turnberry, one of the world’s showpiece golf resorts, and tried - with varying success - to expand the footprint of his Scottish firms by pursuing large-scale<span> </span><a href="https://www.scotsman.com/regions/aberdeen-and-north-east/trump-organisations-ps150m-aberdeenshire-village-approved-1406680">house building projects</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://www.scotsman.com/news/uk-news/revealed-trump-plans-build-new-world-class-coastal-retreat-scotland-2910997">retirement-style enclaves</a>, or<span> </span><a href="https://www.scotsman.com/news/uk-news/donald-trumps-luxury-helicopter-charter-plans-fail-take-1407373">luxury helicopter charter services which later floundered</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:left"><span style="text-align:left">One thread has remained constant; in that entire time, not a single one of Mr Trump’s companies has paid a penny in corporation tax to authorities in the UK. The reason? Not a single one has ever turned a profit.</span></p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div></div> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"></div> </blockquote> <h4>Food for thought</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;A &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrumpTaxReturns?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#TrumpTaxReturns&lt;/a&gt; mystery: &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;when they left the retirement announcement that would give Donald Trump a Supreme Court pick, what did the heavily indebted president say to his banker’s father, outgoing Justice Kennedy, to stop him in his tracks? 🤔 &lt;a href="https://t.co/ZyCHPyE2QZ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ZyCHPyE2QZ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Christine Pelosi (@sfpelosi) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/sfpelosi/status/1310553903541313536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>A <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TrumpTaxReturns?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TrumpTaxReturns</a> mystery: <br><br>when they left the retirement announcement that would give Donald Trump a Supreme Court pick, what did the heavily indebted president say to his banker’s father, outgoing Justice Kennedy, to stop him in his tracks? 🤔 <a href="https://t.co/ZyCHPyE2QZ">pic.twitter.com/ZyCHPyE2QZ</a></p>— Christine Pelosi (@sfpelosi) <a href="https://twitter.com/sfpelosi/status/1310553903541313536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;THREAD: Body Language Analysis No. 4351: Donald Trump Stops Anthony Kennedy in His Tracks • &lt;a href="https://t.co/o5CCjODzBY"&gt;https://t.co/o5CCjODzBY&lt;/a&gt; • &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Nonverbal?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Nonverbal&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EmotionalIntelligence?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#EmotionalIntelligence&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DonaldTrump?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#DonaldTrump&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BrettKavanuagh?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BrettKavanuagh&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AnthonyKennedy?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#AnthonyKennedy&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BodyLanguage?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BodyLanguage&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BodyLanguageExpert?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BodyLanguageExpert&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SCOTUS?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#SCOTUS&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TakenAback?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#TakenAback&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StoppedInHIsTracks?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#StoppedInHIsTracks&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Dr. Jack Brown (@DrGJackBrown) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DrGJackBrown/status/1051222018497032193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;October 13, 2018&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>THREAD: Body Language Analysis No. 4351: Donald Trump Stops Anthony Kennedy in His Tracks • <a href="https://t.co/o5CCjODzBY">https://t.co/o5CCjODzBY</a> • <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Nonverbal?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Nonverbal</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EmotionalIntelligence?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EmotionalIntelligence</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DonaldTrump?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DonaldTrump</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BrettKavanuagh?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BrettKavanuagh</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AnthonyKennedy?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AnthonyKennedy</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BodyLanguage?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BodyLanguage</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BodyLanguageExpert?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BodyLanguageExpert</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SCOTUS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SCOTUS</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TakenAback?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TakenAback</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StoppedInHIsTracks?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StoppedInHIsTracks</a></p>— Dr. Jack Brown (@DrGJackBrown) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrGJackBrown/status/1051222018497032193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2018</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=QzU3LuqsKAg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QzU3LuqsKAg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>☑️ Election ☑️</h3> <p>Thanks to John in Denver for the link to <a href="https://electproject.github.io/Early-Vote-2020G/index.html" target="_blank">U.S. Elections Project</a> which gives a breakdown of the first week of US early voting. The American people are rising up like lions to repudiate this illegitimate president and his roster of sycophantic enablers. The world is about to see the American spirit come roaring back onto the world stage and people everywhere will see that villainy cannot easily vanquish a 200+ year old democratic Republic.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong><span>Nearly a million voters this far in advance of an election has never occurred in any American election. Period.</span></strong></p> </blockquote> <h4>Voting by mail</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts-voting-fraud-claims-republicans/2020/09/28/ceff1184-fda2-11ea-b555-4d71a9254f4b_story.html" target="_blank" title="">Courts view GOP fraud claims skeptically as Democrats score key legal victories over mail voting</a>, Elise Vieback, Washington Post, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="gavel.jpg" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/770262/large/gavel.jpg?1582570714" title="gavel.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Now, with just weeks to go before the Nov. 3 election, voting rights advocates and Democrats have advanced on key fronts in the legal war,<strong><span> </span></strong>scoring victories that make mail voting easier, ensure votes cast by mail are counted and protect the wide distribution of mail ballots in some states.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>A review by The Washington Post of nearly 90 state and federal voting lawsuits found that judges have been broadly skeptical as Republicans use claims of voter fraud to argue against such changes, declining to endorse the GOP’s arguments or dismissing them as they examined limits on mail voting. In no case did a judge back President Trump’s view — refuted by experts — that fraud is a problem significant enough to sway a presidential election. ✄</p> <p><span>An unprecedented</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span>198 million Americans — at least 84 percent of voters</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span>— are<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/politics/vote-by-mail-states/?itid=ap_katerabinowitz&itid=lk_inline_manual_45">eligible to cast mail ballots during the general election</a><span>, thanks to state policy changes. Eleven states have chosen to send voters applications for mail ballots because of the pandemic, while four states and D.C. plan to send actual ballots over criticism from Republicans. Before this year, five states already ran universal mail elections.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Pennsylvania</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/28/us/politics/supreme-court-pennsylvania-poll.html" target="_blank">Supreme Court Vacancy Hasn’t Boosted Trump in Pennsylvania, Poll Shows</a>, Trip Gabriel and Isabella Grullón Paz, New York Times, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="NYT/Siena College Poll" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/862082/large/ScreenShot2020-09-28at7.17.39PM.png?1601338690" title="NYT/Siena College Poll"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>President Trump’s aggressive drive to add a conservative justice to the Supreme Court before Election Day has not helped him in Pennsylvania, a state crucial to his re-election, where more voters prefer Joseph R. Biden Jr. to fill the vacant seat, according to a poll by New York Times and Siena College released on Monday. ✄</span></p> <p>Alan Lee, 66, a retired pastor who counsels homeless men in Philadelphia, said he has “historically been pro-life” and voted Republican, but he now favors Mr. Biden because the president, he said, is a “demagogue” and Republican leaders have abandoned their principles.</p> <p><span>“You’d think I’d be glad to hear that he nominated a judge who is pro-life,” Mr. Lee said. “But I think what we need more than anything else is someone who is broadly pro-life, not just worried about the unborn, but about the living.”</span></p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Georgia</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: Georgia court REJECTS effort to purge 14,000 voters from Fulton County rolls before election.&lt;/p&gt;— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1310618557961691138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: Georgia court REJECTS effort to purge 14,000 voters from Fulton County rolls before election.</p>— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1310618557961691138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>North Carolina </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Danforest?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@DanForest&lt;/a&gt; declined to debate &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RoyCooperNC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@RoyCooperNC&lt;/a&gt; on WRAL. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Forest now refuses to answer these questions for our Voter Guide. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ncpol?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#ncpol&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/Xu3nYWeqja"&gt;https://t.co/Xu3nYWeqja&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/4DUpa5hVlZ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/4DUpa5hVlZ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Andy Specht (@AndySpecht) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AndySpecht/status/1310683589298868227?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>.<a href="https://twitter.com/Danforest?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DanForest</a> declined to debate <a href="https://twitter.com/RoyCooperNC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RoyCooperNC</a> on WRAL. <br><br>Forest now refuses to answer these questions for our Voter Guide. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ncpol?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ncpol</a> <a href="https://t.co/Xu3nYWeqja">https://t.co/Xu3nYWeqja</a> <a href="https://t.co/4DUpa5hVlZ">pic.twitter.com/4DUpa5hVlZ</a></p>— Andy Specht (@AndySpecht) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndySpecht/status/1310683589298868227?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Alaska</h4> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/alaskas-us-senate-surprisingly-close-because-alaska-doesnt-do-predictable" target="_blank" title="">Alaska's US Senate Surprisingly Close, Because Alaska Doesn't Do Predictable</a>, Doktor Zoom, Wonkette, September 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="Campaign photo of independent candidate for Senate in Alaska Al Gross. " class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/829565/large/66035588_856953634661233_3698428417696333824_n.png?1594309559" title="Campaign photo of independent candidate for Senate in Alaska Al Gross. "> <figcaption>Support Al if you can!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">But even when it's not being filmed in Washington state, Alaska can be politically weird. It has America's highest percentage of voters registered as independent or no party affiliation (</span><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/2020/09/24/can-firing-up-the-partisan-base-backfire-in-alaska/" target="_blank">58 percent!</a><span style="text-align:start">), and in 2010 reelected Lisa Murkowski<span> </span></span><a href="http://wonkette.com/422192/alaskan-gop-death-match-murkowski-vs-miller" target="_blank" title="">as a write-in candidate</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>when the official Republican primary went to a wackaloon tea partier. And then there's freakin' Sara Palin, who<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/is-sarah-palin-trying-to-be-artsy-now" target="_blank">just won't go away.</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>So it shouldn't be much of a surprise that in 2020, two</span><a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/8/18/21372052/alaska-senate-house-races-2020-sullivan-young" target="_blank" title=""><span> </span>independents are putting up serious challenges</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>to the state's sole congressional representative, Don Young (R), and to first-term US Senator Dan Sullivan (R), aka the answer to the trivia question, "Who's the other senator from Alaska, again?" In a<span> </span></span><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ir0a6eAHT04YSudrwp2AT-SC71wvmCqe/view" target="_blank" title="">PPP poll</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>earlier this month, Sullivan was actually tied with<span> </span></span><a href="https://dralgrossak.com/" target="_blank">Al Gross,</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>the independent candidate running against him. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Gross has announce that if he wins, <strong>he'll caucus with Senate Dems</strong>, but will remain an independent, emphasizing that he likes hunting and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/al-gross-dan-sullivan-alaska-senate-race_n_5f623629c5b68d1b09cae5d2" target="_blank">supports the Second Amendment</a><span style="text-align:start">, although (like a majority of NRA members, even) he wants universal background checks. Similarly, on energy policy, Gross<span> </span></span><a href="https://dralgrossak.com/prescriptions/climate-change/" target="_blank">recognizes<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">the reality of climate change, which is already having extreme effects on Alaska and the Arctic. Gross calls for rapidly developing sustainable energy resources, but stops short of endorsing the Green New Deal. Like most red-state Dems and Dem-adjacents, he lists healthcare at the<span> </span></span><a href="https://dralgrossak.com/prescriptions/" target="_blank">top of his issues page</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>(he calls his platform "prescriptions," get it?) , and<span> </span></span><a href="https://dralgrossak.com/prescriptions/health-care" target="_blank">wants a public option</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>for people to buy into Medicare, and calls for the<span> </span></span><a href="https://dralgrossak.com/prescriptions/reproductive-rights" target="_blank">protections of Roe v Wade to be enacted</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in law.</span></p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Looking good, Al!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;New poll from Independent Alaska, a super PAC supporting independent Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Al Gross has Gross just 1% behind incumbent GOP U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan. 4% MOE&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Gross is running w/ Democratic Party&amp;#39;s nomination.&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AKsen?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#AKsen&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AKleg?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#AKleg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/VsH9BSLFVl"&gt;pic.twitter.com/VsH9BSLFVl&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Nat Herz (@Nat_Herz) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Nat_Herz/status/1310661243410104320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>New poll from Independent Alaska, a super PAC supporting independent Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Al Gross has Gross just 1% behind incumbent GOP U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan. 4% MOE<br><br>Gross is running w/ Democratic Party's nomination.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AKsen?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AKsen</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AKleg?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AKleg</a> <a href="https://t.co/VsH9BSLFVl">pic.twitter.com/VsH9BSLFVl</a></p>— Nat Herz (@Nat_Herz) <a href="https://twitter.com/Nat_Herz/status/1310661243410104320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Looks like 45’s campaign is in deeper $ trouble</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Trump campaign is again canceling TV ad schedules that had been booked in Iowa (9/29-10/5)&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The Trump campaign is also again canceling TV ad schedules that had been booked in Ohio for 9/29-10/5&lt;/p&gt;— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/notcapnamerica/status/1310674825522933774?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Trump campaign is again canceling TV ad schedules that had been booked in Iowa (9/29-10/5)<br><br>The Trump campaign is also again canceling TV ad schedules that had been booked in Ohio for 9/29-10/5</p>— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) <a href="https://twitter.com/notcapnamerica/status/1310674825522933774?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Final Word on Managing Expectations</h4> <p>There has been some concern that if a result isn’t determined quickly on Election night, that somehow doom would ensue. But, it turns out that a solid majority of Americans <em>do not expect</em> the final result to be known on November 3. It turns out that people understand that there is a pandemic, that there will be a much higher volume of absentee voting and other differences this year from past elections and they correctly expect that these differences will probably mean that it may take a few days to know the final results.</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/28/presidential-election-night-winner-poll-422679" target="_blank" title="">Poll: Two-thirds of voters don’t expect to know Biden-Trump winner on election night</a>, Zach Montellaro, Politico, September 28, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p>Most voters believe they’ll have to wait past election night to find out whether President Donald Trump or Joe Biden has won the 2020 race, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll.</p> <p>The poll found that just 20 percent of voters said that they believed the winner of the presidential election will be called on election night, while 66 percent said they expect it to happen sometime later. A plurality of voters said they think the election will be resolved within a week: 19 percent believe it will be the next day (like the 2004 contest between President George W. Bush and John Kerry), and 26 percent believe it will be between two and seven days after the polls close.</p> <p><span>The results suggest that warnings about ballot-counting delays from election administrators and voting rights advocates are breaking through to the broader public. The coronavirus pandemic is producing a sharp uptick in voting by mail — many times the previous mail voting rates in some states, according to polling and ballot request data. And counting mail ballots can be a more time-consuming process than counting Election Day votes cast at a polling place.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>It doesn’t matter what POTUS* says, people get it and we’ve got this!</p> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <h4>Change is in the air:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: Additionally, County Attorney Jason Nassour faces same charge records show.&lt;/p&gt;— Tony Plohetski (@tplohetski) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tplohetski/status/1310621425758343173?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: Additionally, County Attorney Jason Nassour faces same charge records show.</p>— Tony Plohetski (@tplohetski) <a href="https://twitter.com/tplohetski/status/1310621425758343173?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Breonna Taylor</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It essentially accuses Cameron of hiding behind grand jury secrecy requirements while misleading the public about evidence the grand jury actually saw. It asks the court to release the record in the interest of justice, transparency, and accountability.&lt;a href="https://t.co/CRhBHVDbE0"&gt;https://t.co/CRhBHVDbE0&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Radley Balko (@radleybalko) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/radleybalko/status/1310725296954499073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It essentially accuses Cameron of hiding behind grand jury secrecy requirements while misleading the public about evidence the grand jury actually saw. It asks the court to release the record in the interest of justice, transparency, and accountability.<a href="https://t.co/CRhBHVDbE0">https://t.co/CRhBHVDbE0</a></p>— Radley Balko (@radleybalko) <a href="https://twitter.com/radleybalko/status/1310725296954499073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Update: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/breonna-taylor-grand-jury-recording-release_n_5f7293ebc5b6f622a0c376ef" target="_blank">Kentucky AG Will Release Breonna Taylor Grand Jury Details After Juror Calls For Transparency</a>, Nick Visser, HuffPost, September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>The Kentucky attorney general said Monday he would release the recording of the grand jury proceedings in the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/topic/breonna-taylor" target="_blank">Breonna Taylor</a> case after a juror sued for the records to be made public and asked that grand jurors be allowed to speak freely on the matter so the “truth may prevail.”</p> </div> <div> <p>The unnamed juror filed a motion after the grand jury last week <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/louisville-breonna-taylor-cop-charged-wanton-endangerment_n_5ede928dc5b6ee33e177973b">declined to charge any of the police officers</a> involved in the March 13 killing of Taylor, a 26-year-old Black EMT who was shot in her home in Louisville during a botched narcotics investigation. One officer, Detective Brett Hankison, was dismissed from the force and was charged with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment related to shots fired that entered other apartments. ✄</p> <p><span>“The full story and absolute truth of how this matter was handled from beginning to end is now an issue of great public interest and has become a large part of the discussion of public trust throughout the country,” Kevin Glogower, the attorney for the juror, wrote in the filing.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Michael Flynn</h4> <p>For everything Barr and company try to do to destroy justice, our side is fighting back!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It&amp;#39;s strangely fascinating to me how people like this can not help themselves by going too far.&lt;/p&gt;— Elizabeth de la Vega (@Delavegalaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Delavegalaw/status/1310728966274252801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It's strangely fascinating to me how people like this can not help themselves by going too far.</p>— Elizabeth de la Vega (@Delavegalaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/Delavegalaw/status/1310728966274252801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>Bits N’ Pieces</h3> <h4>Marie Yovanovitch honored</h4> <p><a href="https://pen.org/press-release/pen-america-to-award-2020-pen-benenson-courage-award-to-marie-yovanovitch/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-pug" target="_blank">PEN AMERICA TO AWARD 2020 PEN/BENENSON COURAGE AWARD TO MARIE YOVANOVITCH</a>, Pen America (writing org), September 28, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: Former U.S. AmbassadorÂ Marie Yovanovitch speaks during a ceremony awarding her theÂ Trainor Award for "Excellence in the Conduct of Diplomacy" at Georgetown University on February 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. Yovanovitch made her first public appearance since testifying before Congress in the impeachment proceedings to accept the 2020 Trainor Award from the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, an honor previously presented to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, then-U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and then-United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/766422/large/GettyImages-1205843729.jpg?1581652358" title="WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: Former U.S. AmbassadorÂ Marie Yovanovitch speaks during a ceremony awarding her theÂ Trainor Award for "Excellence in the Conduct of Diplomacy" at Georgetown University on February 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. Yovanovitch made her first public appearance since testifying before Congress in the impeachment proceedings to accept the 2020 Trainor Award from the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, an honor previously presented to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, then-U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and then-United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>(New York, NY) — The free expression and literary organization PEN America today announced<span> </span><a href="https://pen.org/2020-pen-america-courage-award-marie-yovanovitch/"><strong>Marie Yovanovitch will receive its 2020 PEN/Benenson Courage Award</strong></a>, and that its 2020<span> </span><a href="https://pen.org/literary-gala/2020-pen-gala/">gala and awards ceremony</a><span> </span>will take place as a fully virtual, global event for Members and supporters on December 8.</p> <p>A career foreign service officer and three-time ambassador, Yovanovitch served the U.S. with distinction throughout her tenure but was the target of a White House smear campaign that led to her abrupt dismissal as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine in 2019. Though under intense pressure from a vindictive White House, Yovanovitch publicly testified to expose the corrupt machinations of Ukrainian officials and those at the highest levels of the U.S. government seeking her ouster.</p> <p>“At a time when, for government officials, standing on principle can spell an end to a professional career, Ambassador Yovanovitch did not flinch or falter,” said<span> </span><a href="https://pen.org/user/suzanne-nossel/">Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America</a>. “The Trump White House uses attacks and reprisals against its critics as a preferred policy tool. Masha sacrificed her career to stand up to such retaliation and spoke out even when it meant ending her remarkably distinguished career in public service. Today, she carries forward the spirit of that work, continuing to defend free expression in the U.S. and abroad. She is a powerful exemplar of the kind of courage this award is meant to honor.”</p> </blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <h4>Yamiche Alcindor honored</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Every day, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Yamiche&lt;/a&gt; carries on &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GwenIfill?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#GwenIfill&lt;/a&gt;&amp;#39;s legacy of leadership, mentorship, and challenging expectations of how women of color should report. We&amp;#39;re thrilled to honor this incredible, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fiercewomanjourno?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#fiercewomanjourno&lt;/a&gt; with our 2020 Gwen Ifill Award. &lt;a href="https://t.co/BzwiT1iYIC"&gt;https://t.co/BzwiT1iYIC&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/Jsq5FBKLdL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/Jsq5FBKLdL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— IWMF (@IWMF) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/IWMF/status/1310583776095985665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Every day, <a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Yamiche</a> carries on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GwenIfill?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GwenIfill</a>'s legacy of leadership, mentorship, and challenging expectations of how women of color should report. We're thrilled to honor this incredible, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fiercewomanjourno?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#fiercewomanjourno</a> with our 2020 Gwen Ifill Award. <a href="https://t.co/BzwiT1iYIC">https://t.co/BzwiT1iYIC</a> <a href="https://t.co/Jsq5FBKLdL">pic.twitter.com/Jsq5FBKLdL</a></p>— IWMF (@IWMF) <a href="https://twitter.com/IWMF/status/1310583776095985665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Illinois Nature Good News</h4> <p><a href="https://fpdcc.com/good-news-in-2020-unexpected-rare-plants-returning-to-recently-restored-forest-preserves/" target="_blank">Good News in 2020: Unexpected, Rare Plants Returning to Recently Restored Forest Preserves</a></p> <blockquote> <p><span>Ecologists at the Forest Preserves of Cook County have gotten a surprise this year: More than a dozen species of native plants have been identified at locations in the preserves where they haven’t been seen for decades—in some cases, where they have been seen by Forest Preserves ecologists for the first time. Through restoration efforts by the Forest Preserves and volunteers, sites across Cook County are recovering their natural diversity. ✄</span></p> <p>In the Palos region—located in southwest Cook County—many plants that conservationists mark as rare and important have expanded where they’re now growing due to restoration work, including cardinal flower (<em>Lobelia cardinalis</em>), an important food source for hummingbirds; spikenard (<em>Aralia racemosa</em>); squirrel corn (<em>Dicentra canadensis</em>); twinleaf (<em>Jeffersonia diphylla</em>); and fire pink (<em>Silene virginica</em>).</p> <p>“When plant species like twinleaf and squirrel corn return, it has a ripple effect on the ecosystem. Native ants are specially attracted to the fatty deposits found on the seeds of these two plants. The ants collect the seeds and bring them back to their nests as food. In doing so, they’re also helping disperse the seeds,” explains Kristin Pink, regional ecologist with the Forest Preserves. “This is a relationship between plants and animals that has formed over thousands of years of evolution.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>😊 Pluto Living University Break — The HiSTory of Tuesday 😊</h4> </div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=FFJSHpp4pyo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FFJSHpp4pyo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️Debate prep for tonight: <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-tuesdays-presidential-debate-184105996.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw&tsrc=twtr&guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly90LmNvLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAABZsoI33bXfeUyfyAz1Y4ypIyg_s8J6AL8UOTI4yKTKeKz-g6m-vKxThjwKHKLmWaPlm25GqukU6YhO6OvVY4JiPZleADyjTga1q6R-3b29BOjzvXRcRDT5VDLNc4kY4KaYJfacJliQ4eJOEg_8Jf4pYV56v3SiAFjvvJ9bhJRs_" target="_blank">What you need to know about Tuesday's presidential debate</a>, Brittany Shepherd, Yahoo News, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-biden-debate-taxes/2020/09/28/eba273dc-0197-11eb-b7ed-141dd88560ea_story.html" target="_blank">Report on Trump’s tax avoidance shakes up presidential race ahead of Tuesday night’s debate</a>, Toluse Olorunnipa and Sean Sullivan, Washington Post, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ WAPO Editorial Board endorses Biden: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/28/editorial-board-endorsement-joe-biden/?arc404=true" target="_blank">Joe Biden for president</a>, Washington Post, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/09/why-donald-trumps-tax-returns-matter/" target="_blank">Why Donald Trump’s Tax Returns Matter</a>, David Corn, Mother Jones, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Depends on your perspective: <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/28/trump-tax-troubles-elections-422780" target="_blank">Trump’s tax troubles couldn’t have come at a worse time</a>, Natasha Korecki and Nancy Cook, Politico, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ “Smoking gun”: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/carl-bernstein-trump-grifter-presidency_n_5f728576c5b6117cd10342cf" target="_blank">Carl Bernstein: Trump Has Created ‘First Grifter Presidency’ In America’s History</a>, Josephine Harvey, HuffPost, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Pulling no punches anymore: <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/28/media/fox-news-anchors-news-division/index.html" target="_blank">Analysis: Analysis: How Fox News' so-called 'straight news' division spins negative news for Trump</a>, Oliver Darcy, CNN, September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ “<span style="text-align:start">The super-whites sound invulnerable, but they’re not”.</span>: <a href="https://stoehr.substack.com/p/do-not-appease-the-super-whites?r=5msd&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Do not appease the super-whites</a>, John Stoehr, Editorial Board (blog), September 28, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ We need to face this: <a href="https://religiondispatches.org/why-the-media-and-democrats-should-reject-the-christian-rights-pearl-clutching-and-address-problematic-religious-views/" target="_blank">Why The Media and Democrats Should Reject the Religious Right’s Pearl-Clutching and Address Problematic Religious Views</a>, Chrissy Stroop, Religion DIspatches, September 25, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a><span> </span>writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <p>Mattrek’s<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o179iu11d8UKf2muk0jOJaVLsdxmnT9Yv7KDGJos6Y0/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything</a><span> </span>master list of links for state races, national, volunteer opportunities, work from home and much more!</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/plan-your-vote-state-by-state-guide-voting-by-mail-early-in-person-voting-election/index.html" target="_blank">Plan Your Vote</a>, NBC News site answers some common questions with an easy to navigate map.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Just 35 days left until Election Day. They are likely to be increasingly intense days, so pace yourself. We all need to take care of ourselves, eat nutritious food, get enough rest and try to spend some time outdoors around nature each day if at all possible. Even a potted plant and an open window will do in a pinch. </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="blue poodle leaps with mouth open to catch orange ball" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/862190/large/IMG_6891.jpg?1601361613" title="blue poodle leaps with mouth open to catch orange ball"> <figcaption>See my eyes? See the prize? I keep my eyes on the prize<br> and that’s how I catch it!</figcaption> </figure> <p>The important thing is to pace yourself now that we are finally getting down to the final weeks of this election season. The sheer volume of news coming out might threaten to overwhelm us — we have to be ready for it and stay the course. Eyes on the prize people! This is it! The last few weeks of the long effort to oust trump and all of his toadies. Donate if you can, volunteer if you are able, write, drive, VOTE and get everyone you know to make a plan to vote, too!</p> <p>As things get more hectic over the next few weeks, I want to say right now how thankful I am to have found the Good News Roundups (thank you again, Mayor Goody!) and this wonderful community of strong, hopeful liberals. Together we are going to not only make it to the finish line, but blow through it on a wave so big and so blue that it will go down in history as one of the most significant wave elections in US history.</p> <p>We are on our way to a much better tomorrow, Gnusies, and I am so glad to be heading there with all of you!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=D_tcZAqQUAg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/D_tcZAqQUAg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election2020 EyesonthePrize Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden NancyPelosi Recommended _1979697 Tue, 29 Sep 2020 11:00:12 +0000 49 Days! - September 15 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/9/15/1977149/-49-Days-September-15-Good-News-Roundup <h2 class="AlignCenter">49 days.</h2> <p>Good day, Gnusies — we are getting there! Now fewer than 50 days to Election Day!</p> <p>I’ll get right to the news after a few words of encouragement from Rachel:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;If you are feeling overwhelmed by the news and by the state of things and how everything feels so bad in so many ways all at once, do not judge yourself for having those feelings. What it means is that you&amp;#39;re awake and cognizant of the real world right now. Take care of yourself. &lt;a href="https://t.co/8ImwXdnIVL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8ImwXdnIVL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MaddowBlog/status/1304619222652383234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>If you are feeling overwhelmed by the news and by the state of things and how everything feels so bad in so many ways all at once, do not judge yourself for having those feelings. What it means is that you're awake and cognizant of the real world right now. Take care of yourself. <a href="https://t.co/8ImwXdnIVL">pic.twitter.com/8ImwXdnIVL</a></p>— Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaddowBlog/status/1304619222652383234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⚖ Justice and Law ⚖</h3> <p>Michael Bloomberg is not the only super-wealthy person who is underwriting huge Democratic efforts. Progressive Susan Sandler is putting her money where it <em>matters</em>, too:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/14/us/politics/Susan-Sandler-donation-racial-justice.html" target="_blank">Progressive Donor Susan Sandler to Give $200 Million to Racial Justice Groups</a>, Astead W. Hernon, New York Times, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="MS253-injustice-anywhere-is-a-threat-to-justice-everywhere-small-bumper-sticker.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/728101/large/MS253-injustice-anywhere-is-a-threat-to-justice-everywhere-small-bumper-sticker.jpg?1571143959" title="MS253-injustice-anywhere-is-a-threat-to-justice-everywhere-small-bumper-sticker.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Ms. Sandler, who learned she had a rare form of brain cancer four years ago, unveiled the effort in a<span> </span><a href="https://medium.com/@susansandlerfund/my-cancer-milestone-and-my-philanthropic-legacy-a338d03bfc94" target="_blank">lengthy post on Medium</a><span> </span>published on Monday morning. In the post, which was shared with The New York Times before publication, Ms. Sandler said her investments would be made through a new organization, the Susan Sandler Fund, aimed at combating systemic racism and building civic power. Ms. Sandler characterized the effort as a shift in her political priorities and giving philosophy.</p> <p>“I have come to believe that, rather than trying to use persuasive papers and reports to attempt to change the minds of those who are making decisions, the more effective way to transform societal priorities and public policies is to change the climate and environment in which decisions are made,” Ms. Sandler writes. “When our government, corporate, and other societal institutions are responsive to — and, frankly, fearful of — the people who most bear the brunt of inequality and injustice, then better priorities, practices, and policies follow.” ✄</p> <p><span>“In ways big and small, each of us can establish a legacy,” Ms. Sandler writes. “I’m grateful that I’ve been given the time since my cancer diagnosis to establish mine. I urge each of you not to wait to work on establishing yours.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Roger Stone Again</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/justice-department-internal-watchdog-investigating-roger-stone-s-sentencing-say-n1240033" target="_blank">Justice Department internal watchdog is investigating Roger Stone's sentencing</a>, say sources, Julia Ainsley and Ken Dilanian, NBC News, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General has begun investigating the circumstances surrounding the sentencing recommendation for<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/roger-stone-drops-fight-be-proclaimed-innocent-n1237102" target="_blank">Roger Stone,</a><span> </span>a longtime friend of President Donald Trump, according to two sources familiar with the matter.</p> <p>The investigation is focused on events in February, according to the two sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity, when prosecutors for Stone have said they were told to seek a lighter sentence for Stone than they had previously considered.</p> <p>Attorney General William Barr ultimately intervened to override the prosecutors' recommendation of seven to nine years and ask for a lighter sentence. All four prosecutors quit the case as a result.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Seth Rich’s parents suing Fox</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-stars-sean-hannity-lou-dobbs-to-be-deposed-in-case-of-murdered-dnc-operative-seth-rich?ref=home" target="_blank">Sean Hannity, Lou Dobbs to Be Deposed in Seth Rich Case</a>, Will Sommer, Daily Beast, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Fox News star<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-encouraged-sean-hannity-to-go-after-the-new-york-times-for-its-coronavirus-coverage" title="">Sean Hannity<span> </span></a>was once his network’s most prominent booster of<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rudy-giuliani-jumps-in-on-the-seth-rich-conspiracy-bandwagon">conspiracy theories</a><span> </span>about<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/right-wing-activists-discussed-wiretapping-seth-richs-family-three-people-in-the-room-say">murdered Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich</a>, only stopping the rumor-mongering after Rich’s grieving parents<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/were-seth-richs-parents-stop-politicizing-our-sons-murder/2017/05/23/164cf4dc-3fee-11e7-9869-bac8b446820a_story.html">publicly begged him</a><span> </span>to knock it off.</p> <p>Now, Hannity will have to answer questions, under oath, about Fox’s coverage of Rich’s death. Hannity, along with Fox Business host Lou Dobbs and a host of Fox staffers, is set to be deposed in late October over the network’s debunked reporting on Rich, which falsely claimed that he had leaked thousands of Democratic emails to WikiLeaks—a leak, they suggested, that led to his politically-motivated murder.</p> <div> <div> <div><span>The depositions have been scheduled as part of an emotional distress and tortious interference lawsuit that Rich’s parents, Joel and Mary Rich, filed against Fox, Fox News reporter Malia Zimmerman, and wealthy conservative and former Fox News guest Ed Butowsky. The deposition schedule was revealed in a Thursday court filing made by the Rich family.</span></div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Another peep below the “Tip of the iceberg”</h4> <p>Last week, <em>the Atlantic’</em>s Jeffrey Goldberg said that his blockbuster reporting about Trump calling soldiers “suckers” and “losers” was just the tip of the ice berg. Last night a new story was published — an interview with Alexander Vindman:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/09/alexander-vindman-trump-putin-useful-idiot/616341/" target="_blank">Alexander Vindman: Trump Is Putin’s ‘Useful Idiot’</a>, Jeffrey Goldberg, the Atlantic, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>“President Trump should be considered to be a useful idiot and a fellow traveler, which makes him an unwitting agent of Putin,” he says.<span> </span><em>Useful idiot</em><span> </span>is a term commonly used to describe dupes of authoritarian regimes;<span> </span><em>fellow traveler</em>, in Vindman’s description, is a person who shares Putin’s loathing for democratic norms.</p> <p>But do you think Russia is blackmailing Trump? “They may or may not have dirt on him, but they don’t have to use it,” he says. “They have more effective and less risky ways to employ him. He has aspirations to be the kind of leader that Putin is, and so he admires him. He likes authoritarian strongmen who act with impunity, without checks and balances. So he’ll try to please Putin.”</p> <p>Vindman continues, “In the Army we call this ‘free chicken,’ something you don’t have to work for—it just comes to you. This is what the Russians have in Trump: free chicken.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;My latest for &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/dailypenn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@dailypenn&lt;/a&gt; on the news that &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AVindman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@AVindman&lt;/a&gt; will be a visiting scholar at Perry World House.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Vindman’s new position at Trump&amp;#39;s alma mater is the latest step in his transformation from a little-known govt official to an anti-Trump nat sec figure.&lt;a href="https://t.co/aLIwVZikvH"&gt;https://t.co/aLIwVZikvH&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/maxpcohen/status/1305340103481581568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 14, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>My latest for <a href="https://twitter.com/dailypenn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dailypenn</a> on the news that <a href="https://twitter.com/AVindman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AVindman</a> will be a visiting scholar at Perry World House.<br><br>Vindman’s new position at Trump's alma mater is the latest step in his transformation from a little-known govt official to an anti-Trump nat sec figure.<a href="https://t.co/aLIwVZikvH">https://t.co/aLIwVZikvH</a></p>— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) <a href="https://twitter.com/maxpcohen/status/1305340103481581568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 14, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌊 Election News 🌊</h3> <h4>The Senate is Definitely in Play</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/21403958/most-competitive-senate-races-2020" target="_blank">The ways Democrats could retake the Senate majority, explained</a>, Ella Nilson, Vox, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">A<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/5/18306339/senate-democrats-2020-election-map">once-narrow Senate map</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>has dramatically expanded for Democrats</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">this year, and</span><strong><span> </span></strong><span style="text-align:start">Republicans have few options to expand their majority. Though some things have improved for the GOP since the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, they are still saddled with a controversial incumbent president at the top of their ticket and a turbulent and uncertain political climate. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Democrats need to win back at least three seats to reclaim the Senate majority, but they are also defending Sen. Doug Jones in deep-red Alabama, where Trump has a<span> </span><a href="https://morningconsult.com/tracking-trump-2/"><strong>28-point net approval rating</strong></a>. If Jones loses, that means Democrats need to win four seats and the White House (where their party’s vice president could vote to break ties in the Senate), or net five seats without the White House advantage.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Overall, Senate Republicans are<span> </span><a href="https://cookpolitical.com/ratings/senate-race-ratings"><strong>defending more turf</strong></a>: 23 seats (mostly in red states), compared to the 12 Senate Democrats who are up for reelection. Before the coronavirus hit, four states looked highly competitive for Democrats: Colorado, Arizona, Maine, and North Carolina. Now several more seats are in play for Democrats — including Montana, Iowa, and Georgia, and Democratic candidates have even put other reach states like South Carolina in play. Republicans, meanwhile, are going on offense in just two states: Alabama and Michigan.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(quote above is merely the introduction — follow the link for analysis of specific states’ senate races).</p> </blockquote> <h4>Registered Republicans are fleeing the party </h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/11/trump-might-want-stop-fighting-culture-wars-hes-losing/" target="_blank">Trump might want to stop fighting the culture wars. He’s losing.</a> Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, September 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>When it comes to serenity in the suburbs and elsewhere, polls show that he trails Democratic nominee Joe Biden. In a<span> </span></span><a href="https://morningconsult.com/2020/09/02/public-safety-biden-trump-polling/">Morning Consult-Politico</a><span><span> </span>survey, Biden leads 47 percent to 39 percent on who voters trust when it comes to public safety. Fifty percent of likely voters in a recent<span> </span></span><a href="https://poll.qu.edu/national/release-detail?ReleaseID=3671" target="_blank">Quinnipiac poll<span> </span></a><span>said Trump made them feel less safe, 10 percentage points higher than said the same of Biden. Last week’s<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/abc-Trump-Biden-protest">ABC News-Ipsos poll</a><span><span> </span>found 55 percent think Trump is making civil unrest worse, while only 13 percent said he is calming the situation. Biden’s<span> </span></span><a href="https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/president-general/wisconsin/" target="_blank">polling in Wisconsin</a><span>, where recent police clashes and the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/26/us/kenosha-wisconsin-wednesday-shooting/index.html" target="_blank">killing of two protesters</a><span><span> </span>followed the police shooting of Jacob Blake, remains strong. Chalk up a win for Biden, then, on the “law and order” issue. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>In short, Trump’s racist, anti-immigrant outlook and his hostility toward police reforms and activism for racial justice reflect a majority of<span> </span><em>Republicans<span> </span></em>by many measures. <strong>However, as voters overall flee the Republican Party (which is<span> </span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/315734/party-preferences-swung-sharply-toward-democrats.aspx" target="_blank">down 8 percent in affiliation</a><span> </span>this year alone, while Democrats have gained 5 percent) and the country becomes more diverse, Trump’s nationalist party has become more isolated from the majority of Americans</strong>.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>In comparison to Trump, the majority of Americans are far more inclusive, more open-minded about the tenacity of racism and more supportive of athletes playing a role in social change. Culture wars might be Trump’s favorite ploy, but he is playing a losing hand.</p> <figure class="image-captioned"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <span><img alt="ScreenShot2020-09-14at10.18.40AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/856247/large/ScreenShot2020-09-14at10.18.40AM.png?1600096968" title="ScreenShot2020-09-14at10.18.40AM.png"><span></span></span> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> </blockquote> <h4>The Media is not playing along as much this cycle</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2020/09/14/were-seeing-lot-less-trumps-rallies-tv-news-2020/" target="_blank">We’re seeing a lot less of Trump’s rallies on TV news in 2020</a>, Jeremy Barr and Elahe Izade, Washington Post, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="kittyyawning.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/846260/large/kittyyawning.gif?1597967650" title="kittyyawning.gif"> <figcaption>Those ego-fests are boring!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Compared with coverage of Trump’s rallies during the 2016 election cycle, the major broadcast and cable news networks have been far less likely to go live with him on the stump.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The one holdout has typically been Fox News, though the president’s favorite channel has lately been prone to cut in and out through parts of the speech that meander or conflict with its high-rated prime-time pundits.</p> </div> <div> <p>But when the president spoke at the Xtreme Manufacturing facility on Sunday, even Fox didn’t broadcast it. None of the major networks did. Not even C-SPAN, which historically broadcasts his rallies as something of a public service for viewers.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Pubs are panicky about Absentee voting (AKA Vote By Mail)</h4> <p>...and not for the reasons their leader is shouting about. </p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-republican-absentee-voting_n_5f5f87abc5b68d1b09c5ac12" target="_blank">Despite Trump Fearmongering, Republicans Push Absentee Voting In Mailers, Robocalls</a>, Amanda Terkel, HuffPost, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Closeup of a Vote by Mail envelope, official balloting material - business reply mail, USPS first class mail." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845244/large/iStock-1220248922-DarylannElmi.jpg?1597714562" title="Closeup of a Vote by Mail envelope, official balloting material - business reply mail, USPS first class mail."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Not surprisingly, since Trump ramped up his tirade against voting by mail this summer, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/08/11/only-1-in-5-republicans-say-theyre-likely-vote-by-mail/" target="_blank">polls</a> have started to show that Republicans are less likely to vote by mail than Democrats.</p> </div> <div> <p>In Pennsylvania, when local Republican leaders tried to encourage mail-in voting, they received <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-election-pennsylva/in-pennsylvania-signs-that-trumps-attacks-on-mail-voting-could-backfire-idUSKBN22R1FL" target="_blank">intense pushback from Trump supporters</a>.</p> </div> <div> <p>That shift is a problem for the GOP during a time when people may be reluctant to vote in person because of the coronavirus pandemic. And it’s been a particular headache in places like Florida, where the Republican Party has <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/news/health/2020/05/28/vote-by-mail-helps-florida-republicans-so-why-is-trump-bashing-it/" target="_blank">traditionally had a strong vote-by-mail program</a> and uses it to turn out its supporters. ✄                            </p> </div> <p><span>“Donald Trump and his allies have spent months spreading debunked lies about voting by mail, so it’s a bit hypocritical — but hardly surprising — to hear them changing their tune as they fall further and further behind Democrats in absentee ballot requests,” said Biden campaign spokesman Michael Gwin. “The reality is that Trump’s wild and inaccurate claims about voting by mail have only served to depress Republican enthusiasm for voting, even as our campaign and its massive grassroots organization continue to drive record levels of enthusiasm among Democrats for early voting.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Joe Knows and is prepared</h4> <p>What’s that you say?  “Sure, but what good is all of that when they intend to steal the electionnnnnn….???”. 😱 Yes, it’s a concern and don’t let the doomsdaying get you down.  The dirty tricks have not gone unnoticed by the campaigns. Joe Biden and his team have GOT this, my friends. Look, read this:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/14/us/politics/biden-voting.html" target="_blank">Biden’s Legal Preparations</a>, Giovanni Russonello, New York Times, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <ul> <li> <p><strong>With 50 days to go until Election Day</strong><span>, Joe Biden’s campaign is<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/14/us/politics/biden-legal-challenges-trump.html">making preparations for a drawn-out legal battle</a><span><span> </span>over the November election, as wrangling over mail voting escalates and President Trump refuses to promise that he will accept the official results if he is not victorious.</span></p> </li> <li> <p>In building what amounts to a legal war room that will be on call throughout the final days of the campaign and beyond, the Biden team has enlisted two former solicitors general and hundreds of other lawyers, our<span> </span><strong><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/shane-goldmacher">Shane Goldmacher</a></strong><span> </span>reports. The campaign has described the team as an election protection program unlike any before.</p> </li> <li> <p>The former solicitors general are leading a new “special litigation” unit, while a major Washington law firm is spearheading efforts to fight state-level restrictions to ballot access and to wage battles over rules on how votes will be counted. Eric Holder, the attorney general under President Barack Obama, is helping coordinate the efforts of various legal groups fighting court battles across the country.</p> </li> </ul> </blockquote> <p>And read more here: <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-campaign-expands-legal-team-preparation-voting-fight/story?id=73000195&cid=clicksource_4380645_1_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed" target="_blank">Biden campaign expands legal team in preparation for voting fight in November</a>, John Verhovek, ABC News, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>"For months, the Biden for President campaign has been quietly building a massive election protection program--the largest in presidential campaign history," a Biden campaign adviser said of the new legal expansion. He added that the program involves integrated legal, communications and political strategies to ensure that jurisdictions are properly prepared to handle the challenges that come with holding safe in-person voting and also to combat misinformation about voting via mail.</span></p> <p>The Biden campaign also said that the legal team will focus on an "aggressive" response to activity they view as voter suppression and will also include robust programs for identifying and countering foreign interference and misinformation from foreign or domestic sources.</p> <p>The new operation announced on Monday will be helmed by Dana Remus, the Biden campaign's general counsel, and Bob Bauer, a former White House Counsel who joined the campaign over the summer and was involved in the vetting process for Biden's vice presidential selection.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Music Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=TI8RZhhoBM0" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TI8RZhhoBM0">YouTube Video</a></div> <h4>and smart people are working in states </h4> <p>There are people working hard to push back against election shenanigans besides Joe Biden and his team. In Wisconsin, an anxiously awaited decision was handed down today. Much to the relief of many voters in the badger state, the election will not be thrown into chaos because of yet another third party gambit. Even one of the conservative justices on the WI Supreme Court agreed that the appeal should be denied :</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/wisconsin-court-green-party/2020/09/14/cc0fd7fc-f685-11ea-be57-d00bb9bc632d_story.html" target="_blank">Wisconsin Supreme Court rules Green Party presidential ticket is ineligible for state ballot</a>, Amy Gardner, Washington Post, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Monday that the Green Party presidential ticket is ineligible to appear on the state ballot, a relief for state and local election officials who feared an addition at this late date would upend election preparations. ✄</span></p> <p><span>A reversal of that decision would have triggered a scramble across the state among election officials, who would have had to order new ballots — and find the money to pay for them — while facing imminent state and federal deadlines to send them to voters.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>In its 4-to-3 ruling, with one conservative, Brian Hagedorn, voting with the majority, the court said that upending the election was one reason it denied the Green Party’s appeal.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Even if we would ultimately determine that the petitioners’ claims are meritorious, given their delay in asserting their rights, we would be unable to provide meaningful relief without completely upsetting the election,” the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/green-party-loses-bid-to-compete-for-president-in-wisconsin/03814ec0-8a24-45e2-bc33-fafb3b2808c7/?itid=lk_inline_manual_17">opinion states</a>.</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://signorile.substack.com/p/beto-orourke-on-turning-texas-blue?r=bydn&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Beto O'Rourke on turning Texas blue in 2020</a>, Michelangelo Signorile, The Signorile Report, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Beto O'Rourke speaks during the general session at the Texas Democratic Convention Friday, June 22, 2018, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Richard W. Rodriguez)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/849419/large/0822_orourke-1000x727.jpg?1598637887" title="Beto O'Rourke speaks during the general session at the Texas Democratic Convention Friday, June 22, 2018, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Richard W. Rodriguez)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Beto O’Rourke is on a mission to turn Texas blue this year, and he spoke with me on my<span> </span><a href="https://www.siriusxm.com/siriusxmprogress">SiriusXM show</a><span> </span>about the work he and his group,<span> </span><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/">Powered by People</a><span> </span>are doing to make that happen at every level of government. Some in the political class have said it’s a stretch — that Texas will eventually turn blue but might not do so this year — but then again, those same people didn’t think O’Rourke’s surge in 2018 was probable either.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The former Texas Democratic congressman came within three points of<a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/txsen-ted-cruz-and-beto-orourke/"><span> </span>beating the odious Senator Ted Cruz<span> </span></a>in 2018, and created a movement across Texas, bringing along races down ballot that were part of the blue wave — in the U.S. House and in the Texas Legislature — and laying the groundwork for 2020. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Now, Joe Biden is running even with Donald Trump in several polls,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/14/biden-texas-campaign-staff-president-election/">as Biden staffs up</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in the state. More GOP-controlled House seats across Texas are endangered, as are GOP state legislators. And Air Force veteran and educator M.J. Hegar has a shot at taking down Cornyn,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2020/07/22/new-poll-shows-mj-hegar-within-single-digits-of-john-cornyn-and-biden-a-nose-ahead-of-trump/">coming within single digits in polls</a><span style="text-align:start">. Even O’Rourke to me he was surprised at how quickly Cornyn has seen his approval tank and is facing a strong challenge.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>✈️ MAGA Air Farce ✈️</h3> <p>You just couldn’t make stuff this stupid up — and no doubt actual American troops (especially air force and navy pilots) will recognize this sloppy slippage of the mask immediately. Perhaps we will soon see even lower approval numbers for 45 in military polls:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/14/trump-ad-asks-people-to-support-the-troops-but-it-uses-a-picture-of-russian-jets-414883" target="_blank">Trump ad asks people to support the troops. But it uses a picture of Russian jets.</a> Daniel Lippman and Bryan Bender, Politico, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>A digital ad released by a fundraising arm of the Trump campaign on Sept. 11 calling on people to “support our troops” uses a stock photo of Russian-made fighter jets and weapons. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“That’s definitely a MiG-29,” said Pierre Sprey, who helped design both the F-16 and A-10 planes for the U.S. Air Force. “I’m glad to see it’s supporting our troops.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies in Moscow, confirmed that the planes are Russian MiG-29s, and also said the soldier on the far right in the ad carries an AK-74 assault rifle.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Once could be a mistake. Twice might be incompetence. Three times feels like his operation is being run from Moscow. &lt;a href="https://t.co/vXWDA0DtQS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/vXWDA0DtQS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Schooley (@Rschooley) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Rschooley/status/1305756021273444353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 15, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Once could be a mistake. Twice might be incompetence. Three times feels like his operation is being run from Moscow. <a href="https://t.co/vXWDA0DtQS">pic.twitter.com/vXWDA0DtQS</a></p>— Schooley (@Rschooley) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rschooley/status/1305756021273444353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>💉 Coronavirus Update 💉</h3> <p><a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/coronavirus/article245665350.html" target="_blank">Army COVID-19 vaccine may produce a side benefit: Cure for the common cold</a>, Tara Copp and Michael Wilner, McClatchey News, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A vaccine is a biological preparation that provide" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/854467/large/Lab-MeyerMeyer-iStock-1205972800.jpg?1599760173" title="A vaccine is a biological preparation that provide"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">“Most children, by age two or three, have been infected with one of these common cold coronaviruses,” Modjarrad said. “I don’t think people are really focused on trying to prevent the common cold, but that is, I think, an important side benefit of what we are trying to do,” he told McClatchy in an interview.</p> <p style="text-align:start">While the Walter Reed vaccine candidate is currently focused on COVID-19, the lab has structured the vaccine to be able to target different<strong><span> </span></strong>types of coronavirus. Once they have “proof of concept” that the vaccine is safe and effective, Modjarrad said, the Army lab will decide whether to pivot their efforts to creating the “pan-coronavirus” vaccine that would help prevent the common cold and other potential novel coronaviruses.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Modjarrad said that they are currently testing their vaccine in monkeys, and depending on the results, will enter into human trials toward the end of the year.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/democrats-cdc-alex-azar-covid-reports-7e6227c4-22df-4d3e-9858-72ed1e19e7c1.html" target="_blank">Democrats to probe Trump appointees who allegedly interfered with CDC reports</a>, Axios, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>House Democrats are launching an investigation into how Trump's political appointees pressured officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention "to block the publication of accurate scientific reports" on COVID-19, according to a<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000174-8d12-d809-a9f5-ef163a360000" target="_blank">letter first obtained</a><span> </span>by Politico.</p> <p><strong>Details:<span> </span></strong>Citing<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/trump-health-interfered-cdc-covid-19-reports-7a759119-bb02-45a9-8ab4-c4ed7720f2d0.html" target="_self">previous reporting</a><span> </span>that Trump aides "openly complained" that the CDC's reports would undermine the president's positive message, Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) and the other Democratic members of the subcommittee on the coronavirus wrote to HHS Secretary Alex Azar and CDC director Robert Redfield to request "transcribed interviews and documents."</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌍 Cool Science News 🌎</h3> <p>Move over, Mars! Venus is holding a ticket in the “life out there” contest!</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/09/14/venus-life-evidence/" target="_blank">Scientists spot potential sign of life in Venus atmosphere</a>, Marisa Iati and Joel Achenbach, Washington Post, September 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>An international team of astronomers has detected a rare molecule in the atmosphere of Venus that could be produced by living organisms, according to<span> </span><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-020-1174-4" target="_blank">a study</a><span> </span>published Monday. The discovery instantly puts the brightest planet in the night sky back into the conversation about where to search for extraterrestrial life.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The researchers made clear this is not a direct detection of life on Venus. But the astronomical observations confirmed the highly intriguing presence of<span> </span><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2015/" target="_blank">the chemical phosphine</a><span> </span>near the top of the acidic clouds that blanket the planet.</p> </div> <div> <p>Phosphine is a simple molecule produced on Earth by bacteria and through industrial processes. As a result, it is on the list of molecules — oxygen being another — considered by scientists to be potential “biosignatures” of life on Earth-sized planets whose atmospheres can be viewed through telescopes.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/can-somebody-please-find-trump-idiot-michael-caputos-pacifier" target="_blank">Can Somebody Please Find Trump Idiot Michael Caputo's Pacifier?</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, September 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 2021 WIshlist: <a href="https://www.vox.com/21336225/voting-rights-senate-electoral-college-gerrymandering-supreme-court" target="_blank">11 ways to fix America’s fundamentally broken democracy</a>, Ian Millhiser, Vox, September 14,2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Good news: <a href="https://apnews.com/35d8e713852237ca78e36aca01d3e21f" target="_blank" title="">Russian opposition leader Navalny able to leave hospital bed</a>, Geir Moulson, AP News, September 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Info about Mail in Voting by state: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/09/14/909338758/map-mail-in-voting-rules-by-state" target="_blank">Map: Mail-In Voting Rules By State</a>, Benjamin Swasey, NPR News, September 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Environmentally sane ideas: <span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/voraciously/wp/2020/09/14/all-my-takeout-has-delivered-a-mountain-of-trash-so-i-asked-experts-how-to-minimize-it/?itid=hp_pandemic-guide-box" target="_blank">All my takeout has delivered a mountain of trash. So I asked experts how to minimize it.</a> Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, September 14, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Joe Biden hitting hard: </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-blasts-climate-arsonist-trump-speech-west-fires/story?id=73000218" target="_blank">Biden blasts 'climate arsonist' Trump in speech about West Coast fires</a>, John Verhovek and Molly Nagel, ABC News, September 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Enlightening interview: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/09/14/cnns-brian-stelter-fox-news-is-bigger-than-trump--if-he-fights-the-network-hell-lose/" target="_blank">CNN's Brian Stelter: Fox News "is bigger than Trump" — if he fights the network, he'll lose</a>, Dean Obeidallah, Salon, September 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Fair: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ronna-mcdaniels-joe-biden-coronavirus_n_5f5e9b5ec5b62874bc1ea3d8" target="_blank">RNC Chair Ridiculed For Criticizing Joe Biden’s Coronavirus Response</a>, Josephine Harvey, HuffPost, September 13, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank" title="">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/user/Yosef%2052" target="_blank">Yosef 52</a> writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries<span> </span><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank" title="">here</a>.</p> <p>Mattrek’s <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o179iu11d8UKf2muk0jOJaVLsdxmnT9Yv7KDGJos6Y0/edit#gid=0" target="_blank" title="">Flip Everything</a> master list of links for state races, national, volunteer opportunities, work from home and much more!</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank" title="">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/specials/plan-your-vote-state-by-state-guide-voting-by-mail-early-in-person-voting-election/index.html" target="_blank">Plan Your Vote</a>, NBC News site answers some common questions with an easy to navigate map.</p> <h3>💙 Roundup WindDown 💙</h3> <p>As Rachel said above, things are bad and we will persist to make them better. It’s been a helluva few years and many of us are digging deep to get through the election, so it’s more important than ever to take care of ourselves and those we love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest and get outside every day if you can.</p> <p>Try to give scant attention to the torrent of sensational stories in the news every day. The answer to every single problem right now is to elect Democrats up and down the ballot, starting with Joe and Kamala and on down to local dogcatcher. Let’s keep our eyes on that prize, make the gigantic blue wave happen, and then we will have sane leadership to put out the fires the Republicans have started all over the country (and the world!).</p> <p>This is hard. And it is going to be so worth it! I have faith in we, the people!</p> <p>Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=cl5bsdjpHdk" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cl5bsdjpHdk" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Coronavirus Election2020 Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Law Newsies Recommended vindman _1977149 Tue, 15 Sep 2020 11:00:11 +0000 Good News Roundup - September 9 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/9/9/1974387/-Good-News-Roundup-September-9 <p>Good Day, Good Newsies! Surprise! I am sitting in for Karij today! </p> <p>How about that TRMS interview with Michael Cohen last night, huh? I guess I’ll go on record here and say I just don’t know about Michael. Seems like the old “Mr. Trump” fascination is still flickering inside of him. That interview left me wondering — and not just about the awkward (and unconvincing) cleanup of the Falwell business. I guess time will tell, but I’m not going to count on any help from Michael Cohen.</p> <p>Luckily, we don’t need help from criminals to get rid of the criminal squatting in the White House. We are going to oust this illegitimate “president” ourselves. With the help of thousands of patriots working on investigations and putting together cases, we may even eventually prosecute the rest of his “associates” who committed crimes. </p> <p>Even though all the talk yesterday was about one Michael, I’m going to open this GNR with music from another Michael — Michael Bublé — who is celebrating a birthday today! Although he is best known for singing covers of beautiful standards, here is a song Michael wrote himself with a sentiment I expect we will all be feeling on November 4th!</p> <h3>🎶 Opening Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=IE4xK9iUJEI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/IE4xK9iUJEI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>📫 Postal Service 📫 </h3> <p>Hooray for Gov. Bullock!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;🚨 🚨&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BREAKING&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GovernorBullock?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GovernorBullock&lt;/a&gt; suing USPS and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, saying the USPS didn&amp;#39;t follow required procedures to make policy changes. He appears to be the first governor to make such a move, after multiple attorneys general filed suit in Aug. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mtnews?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#mtnews&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USPS?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#USPS&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/QQ5CgtrGod"&gt;pic.twitter.com/QQ5CgtrGod&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Maritsa Georgiou (@MaritsaNBCMT) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MaritsaNBCMT/status/1303441629190254592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>🚨 🚨<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BREAKING</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/GovernorBullock?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GovernorBullock</a> suing USPS and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, saying the USPS didn't follow required procedures to make policy changes. He appears to be the first governor to make such a move, after multiple attorneys general filed suit in Aug. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mtnews?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#mtnews</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USPS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USPS</a> <a href="https://t.co/QQ5CgtrGod">pic.twitter.com/QQ5CgtrGod</a></p>— Maritsa Georgiou (@MaritsaNBCMT) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaritsaNBCMT/status/1303441629190254592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>DeJoy is in trouble. This is of course a felony:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/louis-dejoy-campaign-contributions/2020/09/06/1187bc2c-e3fe-11ea-8181-606e603bb1c4_story.html?hpid=hp_no-name_dejoy-1230p%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank" title="">Louis DeJoy’s rise as GOP fundraiser was powered by contributions from company workers who were later reimbursed, former employees say</a>, Aaron C Davis, et al, Washington Post, September 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Five people who worked for DeJoy’s former business, New Breed Logistics, say they were urged by DeJoy’s aides or by the chief executive himself to write checks and attend fundraisers at his 15,000-square-foot gated mansion beside a Greensboro, N.C., country club. There, events for Republicans running for the White House and Congress routinely fetched $100,000 or more apiece.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Two other employees familiar with New Breed’s financial and payroll systems said DeJoy would instruct that bonus payments to staffers be boosted to help defray the cost of their contributions, an arrangement that would be unlawful.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Louis was a national fundraiser for the Republican Party. He asked employees for money. We gave him the money, and then he reciprocated by giving us big bonuses,” said David Young, DeJoy’s longtime director of human resources, who had access to payroll records at New Breed from the late 1990s to 2013 and is now retired. “When we got our bonuses, let’s just say they were bigger, they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;What is alleged here -- "straw" donations -- is not a minor violation. Many people have faced prison for this. Get ready for a thread. &lt;a href="https://t.co/eUU7G0bYfG"&gt;https://t.co/eUU7G0bYfG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Karen Tumulty (@ktumulty) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ktumulty/status/1302656806959939585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>What is alleged here -- "straw" donations -- is not a minor violation. Many people have faced prison for this. Get ready for a thread. <a href="https://t.co/eUU7G0bYfG">https://t.co/eUU7G0bYfG</a></p>— Karen Tumulty (@ktumulty) <a href="https://twitter.com/ktumulty/status/1302656806959939585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>And it looks like debus may be about to back up over DeJoy:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;More from Rep. Cooper:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;"During the hearing, I asked DeJoy: &amp;#39;Is your backup plan to be pardoned like Roger Stone?&amp;#39; That seems out of the question now with Trump trying to distance himself."&lt;/p&gt;— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GeoffRBennett/status/1303432217104977920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>More from Rep. Cooper:<br><br>"During the hearing, I asked DeJoy: 'Is your backup plan to be pardoned like Roger Stone?' That seems out of the question now with Trump trying to distance himself."</p>— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) <a href="https://twitter.com/GeoffRBennett/status/1303432217104977920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Everything is interconnected</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/02/veterans-money-postal-service-407790" target="_blank" title="">Why veterans want money for the Postal Service</a>, Eleanor Mueller, Politico, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="df3156dc-bbb6-44f6-aaf6-f2d15da27cde-AP_Election_2020_Postal_Service.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/853806/large/df3156dc-bbb6-44f6-aaf6-f2d15da27cde-AP_Election_2020_Postal_Service.jpg?1599595479" title="df3156dc-bbb6-44f6-aaf6-f2d15da27cde-AP_Election_2020_Postal_Service.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The shrinking U.S. Postal Service payroll is imperiling a go-to career for military veterans, who have long relied on the agency for well-paid and secure jobs in public service.</p> <p>Driven by years of financial strain and accelerated by operational changes imposed by newly installed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, the agency has steadily reduced pay, intensified workloads and shifted toward temporary workers, resulting in<span> </span><a href="https://www.uspsoig.gov/document/effectiveness-postal-service%E2%80%99s-efforts-reduce-non-career-employee-turnover" target="_blank" title="">a higher turnover</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/employees-since-1926.pdf" target="_blank">a steadily declining workforce</a><span> </span>at one of the nation’s largest employers of vets. ✄</p> <p>“We’re promoting these jobs for veterans as these stable, good jobs to make sure our disabled veterans have gainful employment because they served their country, and now we’re trying to underfund it, cut the programs, cut the way hiring processes are,” said Will Attig, executive director of AFL-CIO’s United Veterans Council. “Now, when a veteran comes home, they get hired as a temporary worker.”</p> <p>“That’s kind of, in my opinion, pretty disrespectful.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>We’ve got good, smart people in our corner</h3> <h4>Smart lawyers</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: 9th Circuit DENIES last ditch effort to block our victory over GOP dirty tricks in Montana ballot case.&lt;a href="https://t.co/7fMrQLfWYb"&gt;https://t.co/7fMrQLfWYb&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1303419524864147460?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: 9th Circuit DENIES last ditch effort to block our victory over GOP dirty tricks in Montana ballot case.<a href="https://t.co/7fMrQLfWYb">https://t.co/7fMrQLfWYb</a></p>— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1303419524864147460?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;⁦&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MarkMeadows?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MarkMeadows&lt;/a&gt;:⁩ “I can tell you, it’s real easy for Peter Strzok to go on 60 Minutes when he doesn’t have to raise his right hand and tell the truth.”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Strzok testified under oath for hours. Your boss refused to do so and just tweets lies instead.&lt;br&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/yiJtHUl4BQ"&gt;https://t.co/yiJtHUl4BQ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Daniel Goldman (@danielsgoldman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/danielsgoldman/status/1303355720772005896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/MarkMeadows?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MarkMeadows</a>:⁩ “I can tell you, it’s real easy for Peter Strzok to go on 60 Minutes when he doesn’t have to raise his right hand and tell the truth.”<br><br>Strzok testified under oath for hours. Your boss refused to do so and just tweets lies instead.<br> <a href="https://t.co/yiJtHUl4BQ">https://t.co/yiJtHUl4BQ</a></p>— Daniel Goldman (@danielsgoldman) <a href="https://twitter.com/danielsgoldman/status/1303355720772005896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>And Defiance Like This Is Significant</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/09/08/facebook-employee-quit-racism/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-low_facebookresign-1210pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank" title="">Another Facebook worker quits in disgust, saying the company ‘is on the wrong side of history’</a>, Craig Timberg and Elizabeth Dwoskin</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="unlike-button-facebook-008.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/836851/large/unlike-button-facebook-008.jpg?1595805232" title="unlike-button-facebook-008.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Facebook software engineer Ashok Chandwaney has watched with growing unease as the platform has become a haven for hate. On Tuesday morning, it came time to take a stand.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“I’m quitting because I can no longer stomach contributing to an organization that is profiting off hate in the US and globally,” Chandwaney wrote<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/resignation-letter-from-facebook-engineer/0538edee-7487-4822-956a-e880c2024324/?itid=lk_inline_manual_3" target="_blank" title="">in a letter posted on Facebook’s internal employee network</a><span> </span>shortly after 8 a.m. Pacific time. The nearly 1,300-word document was detailed, bristling with links to bolster its claims and scathing in its conclusions. ✄</p> <p><span>Tuesday’s resignation made Chandwaney the latest Facebook employee to quit amid rising discontent within a company that, just a few years ago, was considered an ideal employer — exciting, deep-pocketed and, as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg frequently said, animated by the seemingly benevolent mission of connecting the world together. Worker frustration with Facebook’s policies on hate and racist speech has risen as protests against racial injustice have swept the country, with<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/05/facebook-zuckerberg-trump/?itid=lk_inline_manual_8" target="_blank" title="">thousands of employees demanding</a><span><span> </span>that Zuckerberg, who controls a majority of Facebook’s voting shares, change his stances.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Defiance like this, more please</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;WATCH: President Trump told Reuters reporter Jeff Mason to take off his mask at a White House press conference, saying he was "very muffled." Mason refused and said he would just speak louder &lt;a href="https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp"&gt;https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/MfrsjkXaeL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/MfrsjkXaeL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— CBS News (@CBSNews) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/1303037143326097408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>WATCH: President Trump told Reuters reporter Jeff Mason to take off his mask at a White House press conference, saying he was "very muffled." Mason refused and said he would just speak louder <a href="https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp">https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp</a> <a href="https://t.co/MfrsjkXaeL">pic.twitter.com/MfrsjkXaeL</a></p>— CBS News (@CBSNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/1303037143326097408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>even More Defiant, Brave, Fierce People</h4> <p>It makes me angry that people have been denied the comfort of stress-free voting by mail, but I am humbled by the bravery and determination of the people in this article:</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/older-americans-committed-voting-person-covid/story?id=72429492&cid=clicksource_4380645_1_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed" target="_blank" title="">Some older Americans committed to voting in person despite COVID</a>, Karma Allen, ABC News, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Vote2.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/847915/large/Vote2.png?1598281622" title="Vote2.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Many states have broadened absentee voting rules to make the service available to all voters, representing a first for any presidential election in states like Michigan, experts said. That is in addition to the states already offering no-excuse absentee voting and the handful that have fully mail-in systems.</p> <p>But while the share of Americans casting votes by mail has risen in recent presidential election cycles, it remains relatively low overall, and there’s wide variation across the country when it comes to the percentage of voters who have used this method, according to Pew. ✄</p> <p><span>"Senior citizens are known to vote and they are dependable voters. Our immediate ancestors died so that we could vote," she said. "They were lynched and attacked by dogs, so there are many people who have said they're planning to vote in person because they don't know what to expect from this president, who is doing things that are unprecedented."</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Music for Good, Smart People 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=pk-8O5YP1XA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pk-8O5YP1XA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>✔️ Election ✔️</h3> <p>Last week, Old Navy made news because of their announcement that they will pay the day’s wages to any employees who want to work on the November 3 election. Now here is more to the story of companies encouraging civic engagement and voter turnout:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/companies-paying-employees-skip-work-election-day_n_5f52a289c5b6946f3eb1adaa" target="_blank" title="">Here’s Why Major Companies Are Paying Employees To Skip Work On Election Day</a>, Chris Iovenko, HuffPost, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="votebidennov03.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/852762/large/votebidennov03.jpg?1599359066" title="votebidennov03.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The U.S. is </span><a href="http://www.cultureready.org/blog/voting-around-world" target="_blank"><span>one of the few</span></a><span> democracies in the world where Election Day is not on a weekend or recognized as a federal holiday. Instead, Americans are required to vote on a Tuesday in November, which forces many to choose between exercising their right to vote or earning a day’s pay. The fact that Election Day occurs during a workday disenfranchises many low-wage workers, working parents and others who might not be able to leave work, miss out on paid hours, or find child care in order to cast their ballots.</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>Add coronavirus into the equation and 2020 is likely to be one of the most daunting elections in history to effectively participate in.  </span></p> <div> <p><span>To clear the path to the polls this November — and to </span><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/countries-voting-mandatory-united-states_n_5ed1301ec5b6658234cf8796?ncid=newsltushpmgnewworld" target="_blank" title=""><span>bump the country’s abysmal voter turnout rates</span></a><span> — hundreds of companies including Coca-Cola, Nike, PayPal and Uber are offering employees a paid day off (or other benefits) to encourage voting. ✄</span></p> </div> <div> <p><span>Along with executives at Patagonia and Levi Strauss & Co., PayPal’s Paasche was one of the organizers of a corporate campaign called </span><a href="https://www.maketimetovote.org/" target="_blank"><span>Time to Vote</span></a><span>, launched ahead of the 2018 midterm elections. Now with over 700 member companies — all offering some form of encouragement for their more than 6 million employees to participate in the upcoming election — the non-partisan effort is raising awareness around the importance of elections and citizen participation.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/09/north-carolina-felon-disenfranchisement.html" target="_blank" title="">North Carolina Court Wipes Out Voting Restrictions Designed to “Secure White Supremacy”</a>, Mark Joseph Stern, Slate, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="north-carolina.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/753986/large/north-carolina.png?1578296789" title="north-carolina.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On Friday, a North Carolina court dramatically expanded the number of voters eligible to participate in the 2020 election. The state may not disenfranchise citizens who owe fines, fees, and other debts from a felony conviction, the Wake County Superior Court<span> </span><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7202707/19-CVS-15941-Order-on-Plt-MSJ.pdf" title="">ruled</a><span> </span>on Friday. And while the court limited its<span> </span><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7202706/19-CVS-15941-Order-on-Plt-MPI.pdf">order</a><span> </span>to those affected by wealth-based voter suppression, its reasoning portends a broader ruling in the near future that could restore voting rights to 70,000 more North Carolinians on probation or parole.</p> <p>Many felon disenfranchisement rules, including North Carolina’s, are<span> </span><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/6887555/Expert-Report-of-Orville-Vernon-Burton-Reenfranch.pdf" title="">rooted in overt white supremacy</a>. After Reconstruction, racist Democrats in the state sought to revoke Black citizens’ suffrage. They accomplished this task, in part, through vague criminal laws that stripped convicted felons of their civil rights—then enforced these laws disproportionately against Black people. North Carolina’s current statute is rooted in an 1877 law spearheaded by a representative who later presided over the lynching of three Black men. At the time, Democrats argued that felon disenfranchisement was necessary to stop “the honest vote of a white man” from being “off-set by the vote of some negro.” Its purpose, alongside other Jim Crow measures like the literacy test, was to “secure white supremacy.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>💰 Republican Corruption 💰</h3> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-falwell-legacy-insight/how-jerry-falwell-jr-mixed-his-personal-finances-with-his-universitys-idUSKBN25V27L" target="_blank" title="">How Jerry Falwell Jr. mixed his personal finances with his university's</a>, Aram Roston, Joshua Schneyer, Reuters, September 5, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">In 2001, property records show, Falwell set up a private company while he was a lawyer for Liberty, used it to buy an undeveloped tract of land from the school, and then developed a strip mall on the plot. The company sold the property five years later at a significant premium.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In 2005, property records show, Falwell again acted as a private businessman when a university nonprofit affiliate and a company he operated joined together to sell land to a third company - controlled by Falwell’s real estate partner.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And in 2012, in a project Falwell launched as Liberty’s president, the university spent more than $2 million to build a tunnel that links the campus to another shopping plaza near campus. Falwell is a part owner of that shopping plaza. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The tax-exempt Liberty relies on hundreds of millions of dollars in Pell grants and government-backed student loans. Liberty students received $618 million in federal taxpayer loans and aid in a single year, according to a 2018 audit report.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/09/anthony-scaramucci-demands-to-know-what-happened-to-200-million-the-republican-party-funneled-to-trump/" target="_blank" title="">Anthony Scaramucci demands to know what happened to $200 million the Republican Party funneled to Trump</a>, Sarah K Burris, Raw Story, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>“I think the real question, though, is, what happened to the $200 million-plus that went into the LLC?” he asked. “I’m asking Ronna Romney McDaniel where is the money? It’s sort of a joke at this point. We know they’re grifting off the campaign. The president will never write a personal check into that campaign, and we know that they spend gajillions of dollars in his hotels to fortify him. It’s a sickening thing, Chuck. I don’t like it at all. I haven’t written a lot of checks since 2016 as a result of this. They have really exposed the dark side of this sort of fundraising.”</p> <p>Scaramucci seems to be referencing the buckets of money that the Republican Party has given to Trump’s properties over the past four years. It adds to questions about international leaders, corporations and other influencers giving money to Trump’s properties to garner favor with the U.S. president.</p> <p><span>Trump has spent $60 million on legal defense and $11 million for a Superbowl ad earlier in the year. Trump has blamed the coronavirus, saying that he has had to buy more ads to fight “fake news” about the virus, which is false as evidenced by the fact that none of Trump’s commercials are have addressed the virus.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/09/08/sheldon-adelson-is-buying-the-u-s-ambassadors-residence-in-israel/" target="_blank" title="">Sheldon Adelson is Buying the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence in Israel</a>, Martin Longman, Washington Monthly, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">The linkage of official acts and political fundraising is called bribery, and the August 8 phone call between Trump and Adelson has been referred to the FBI by Democrats:</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">Adelson’s support for Trump in 2016 was at least partially the result of his promise to move the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and to end the Iran nuclear deal.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Adelson is one of the richest people in the United States and is also the owner of the pro-Netanyahu “Israel Hayom” newspaper in Israel.</p> <p style="text-align:left">In a letter to<span> </span><a href="https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/israel-mentioned-in-newly-released-roger-stone-fbi-documents-1.8809884" target="_blank">FBI</a> Director Christopher Wray, Democratic lawmakers Ted Lieu and Kathleen Rice asked to investigate the phone call, suggesting that it could have been a criminal act.</p> <p style="text-align:left">The representatives<span> </span><a href="http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7032822-Letter-from-Reps-Lieu-and-Rice-to-FBI-on-Trump.html?embed=true&responsive=false&sidebar=false" target="_blank">s</a><a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7032822-Letter-from-Reps-Lieu-and-Rice-to-FBI-on-Trump.html?embed=true&responsive=false&sidebar=false" target="_blank">ent a letter to the intelligence agency</a><span> </span>on Monday alleging that “a crime may have occurred” during the conversation, because linking of legislative action to donor funds would be illegal.</p> </blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">It will be difficult to prove an illegal quid pro quo, but it’s highly unusual to see a private citizen so enmeshed in a major foreign policy change. Adelson just made the most expensive real estate purchase in Israeli history just so our ambassador can keep his kids in their preferred high school and underscore the Trump commitment to keeping the American embassy in Jerusalem.  It may not be illegal, but it’s certainly not normal.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;"Some people familiar with the expenses noted that Mr. Parscale had a car and driver, an unusual expense for a campaign manager." &lt;a href="https://t.co/osQfMLmh4Q"&gt;https://t.co/osQfMLmh4Q&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jacqueline Alemany (@JaxAlemany) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JaxAlemany/status/1303149519996096513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>"Some people familiar with the expenses noted that Mr. Parscale had a car and driver, an unusual expense for a campaign manager." <a href="https://t.co/osQfMLmh4Q">https://t.co/osQfMLmh4Q</a></p>— Jacqueline Alemany (@JaxAlemany) <a href="https://twitter.com/JaxAlemany/status/1303149519996096513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>💉 Pandemic 💉</h3> <p>Scientists are beginning to get their arms around Covid-19 treatment, and that is very good news!</p> <p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/science/medical-dispatch/the-state-of-the-fight-against-covid-19?utm_source=nl&utm_brand=tny&utm_mailing=TNY_Daily_090820&utm_campaign=aud-dev&utm_medium=email&bxid=5f0b3008d6e6651c432b2185&cndid=61608177&hasha=4298dca2ff1de88c9a8a83ff1ddaaf8f&hashb=7eac0581131ebdcbe7cd99d22e3d56fe0dac3ba4&hashc=3c22f2dacfb0f6d0e97bbc38e1bbbbdc02f33c74f1142f0b390fb906d1b60665&esrc=AUTO_PRINT&utm_term=TNY_Daily" target="_blank" title="">The State of the Fight Against COVID-19</a>, Dhruv Khullar, the New Yorker, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Last week, the Centers for Disease Control sent a letter to state governments telling them to prepare for the possible distribution of a coronavirus vaccine this fall; it described the progress of “Vaccine A” and “Vaccine B”—almost certainly the vaccines being developed by Pfizer and Moderna, respectively. Though these vaccines are promising, there is no guarantee that they will be cure-alls. “Unless you have a perfect vaccine, which very few are, you’ll always have people who end up getting sick,” Fauci said. “With or without a vaccine, we’re going to need other treatments.”</p> <p>We could get lucky. But we need to be prepared for the possibility that, in the absence of a single-shot cure, it will be the tuberculosis model—incremental, simultaneous progress on multiple fronts—that gets us through the coronavirus pandemic. It’s a good thing, then, that vaccine research programs aren’t the only ones progressing at unprecedented speed. <strong>Three kinds of therapies currently in development—antiviral drugs, antibodies, and immunomodulators—may be ready soon. Alone or in combination with a vaccine, they could help us turn the tide.</strong></p> <p>There are lots of ways to fight back against<span> </span><em>sars</em>-CoV-2 and<span> </span><em>covid</em>-19, the disease it causes. We can limit the virus’s spread in the population at large; we can also build barriers against infection for at-risk people, such as caregivers or essential workers, in particular. We can devise therapies that prevent the newly infected from getting worse, and we can create interventions that target the sickest and give them a fighting chance. By surrounding the virus in this way, we can make it less contagious and lethal, changing the character of the pandemic.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Thank goodness For smart policy by Navajo leaders:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;1 new case, 7,154 recoveries, and no recent deaths related to COVID-19 &lt;a href="https://t.co/QRhxSjy4cw"&gt;pic.twitter.com/QRhxSjy4cw&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez (@NNPrezNez) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NNPrezNez/status/1303163050606772224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>1 new case, 7,154 recoveries, and no recent deaths related to COVID-19 <a href="https://t.co/QRhxSjy4cw">pic.twitter.com/QRhxSjy4cw</a></p>— Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez (@NNPrezNez) <a href="https://twitter.com/NNPrezNez/status/1303163050606772224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>For What it’s worth</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/09/08/910671322/9-drugmakers-sign-safety-pledge-in-race-to-develop-covid-19-vaccine" target="_blank" title="">9 Drugmakers Sign Safety Pledge In Rush To Develop Coronavirus Vaccine</a>, Bill Chappell, NPR News, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Nine drug companies pledged Tuesday that they will not submit vaccine candidates for FDA review until their safety and efficacy is shown in large clinical trials. The move is intended to bolster public confidence amid the rush to make a COVID-19 vaccine widely available, and counter fears of political pressure to have a vaccine before the November presidential election.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The CEOs of AstraZeneca, Moderna and Pfizer are among those who signed the pledge to follow "high ethical standards and sound scientific principles." All three companies are conducting large studies of potential vaccines for the disease that has killed nearly 200,000 people in the U.S. and nearly 900,000 worldwide. The other biopharmaceutical companies are Johnson & Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Novavax, BioNTech and Sanofi. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Many top U.S. health officials, including infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, have repeatedly said they hope that a coronavirus vaccine could be ready for distribution by early next year.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Bottom line:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Don’t let political noise distract you from the scientific facts.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Wearing a mask WILL protect you and your loved ones.&lt;/p&gt;— House Democrats (@HouseDemocrats) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HouseDemocrats/status/1303411547599974406?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Don’t let political noise distract you from the scientific facts.<br><br>Wearing a mask WILL protect you and your loved ones.</p>— House Democrats (@HouseDemocrats) <a href="https://twitter.com/HouseDemocrats/status/1303411547599974406?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/05/politics/trump-administration-2020-census/index.html" target="_blank" title="">Judge orders Trump administration to stop 'winding down' 2020 Census field work</a>, Gregory Wallace, CNN, September 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>A federal judge on Saturday ordered the Trump administration to temporarily stop "winding down or altering any Census field operations." The order applies nationwide.✄</p> </div> <div>Judge Lucy Koh, who sits in California, noted in the temporary restraining order the concern from the groups suing the government "that each day that the Census does not conduct its field operations to reach and count hard to reach populations increases the inaccuracy of the Census count and thus increases their irreparable harm."</div> <div> <div>The Census Bureau sent a message to its field operations leadership late Saturday informing them of the order from the federal judge to continue Census field work.</div> <div> <div>"The Census Bureau and the Commerce Department are obligated to comply with the Court's Order and are taking immediate steps to do so," the message sent to the field leadership staff read. "Enumeration will continue."</div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>👀 <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/trump-judge-kills-devos-plan-to-funnel-covid-relief-to-private-schools/" target="_blank" title="">Trump Judge Kills DeVos Plan to Funnel Covid Relief to Private Schools</a>, Megan Mineiro, COurthouse News, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich was not the first to block private schools from accessing the $13 billion earmarked for K-12 education in the CARES Act. Going further than the judges who<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/judge-temporarily-blocks-devos-from-diverting-pandemic-aid-to-private-schools/" target="_blank">temporarily blocked</a> the policy, however, Friedrich ruled against Education Secretary Betsey DeVos at summary judgment late Friday, saying her rule was void because it violated the unambiguous mandate of the <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/objection-shut-down-as-house-passes-2-trillion-virus-bill/" target="_blank" title="">CARES Act</a> to disburse the money with a focus on low-income students. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Reaching a<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Donato-preliminary-injunction.pdf" target="_blank">similar conclusion</a><span> </span>last month in Michigan, U.S. District Judge James Donato railed against what he called “‘interpretive jiggery-pokery’ in the extreme.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Friedrich meanwhile said Congress could have adopted the equal-funding formula developed by DeVos if it wanted, but instead opted to hand out the relief according to the formula found in Title I.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“In enacting the education funding provisions of the CARES Act, Congress spoke with a clear voice,” Friedrich wrote.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Remember Epstein?</h4> <p><a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article245566925.html" target="_blank" title="">Records of billionaire hedge fund manager, wife subpoenaed in ongoing Jeffrey Epstein probe</a>, Kevin G Hall, Miami Herald, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span>The attorney general of the U.S. Virgin Islands has issued subpoenas for testimony from several former financial and business associates of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, court documents made public Tuesday show. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The subpoena for Dubin asked for all documents and recordings of his communications with Epstein, Epstein entities and Epstein’s alleged madam Ghislaine Maxwell.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Subpoenas were issued to banks and to Broadview Networks, a telephone and internet services company that helped wire Epstein property in the Virgin Islands. Atelier 4, a logistics company in Long Island that specializes in the transport of valuable art for museums and galleries, was also subpoenaed.</p> </blockquote> <p>More here: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-08/virgin-islands-intends-to-subpoena-dubin-in-its-epstein-lawsuit" target="_blank" title="">Virgin Islands Intends to Subpoena Dubin in Epstein Lawsuit</a>, Jim Wyss and Katherine Burton, Bloomberg News, September 8, 2020.</p> <h4>And remember Assange?</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Assange lawyer Jennifer Robinson tells RN Breakfast she will testify personally that Assange was offered a pardon by the Trump administration if he agreed to state that Russia was not involved in document leaks.&lt;/p&gt;— Annabel Crabb (@annabelcrabb) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/annabelcrabb/status/1303066827958878208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;September 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Assange lawyer Jennifer Robinson tells RN Breakfast she will testify personally that Assange was offered a pardon by the Trump administration if he agreed to state that Russia was not involved in document leaks.</p>— Annabel Crabb (@annabelcrabb) <a href="https://twitter.com/annabelcrabb/status/1303066827958878208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>💕 Happy Gorilla News! 💕</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/36dbbfca227b7f3163e5c2029571ed25" target="_blank" title="">Tiny critically endangered gorilla baby born in New Orleans</a>, Janet McConnaughey, AP News, September 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="tumaniandbaby.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/853913/large/tumaniandbaby.jpg?1599611978" title="tumaniandbaby.jpg"> <figcaption>13 Year-old western lowland gorilla, Tumani and her newborn baby.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Keepers don’t yet know the sex of the critically endangered western lowland gorilla born Friday to 13-year-old Tumani and father Okpara,<span> </span><a href="https://audubonnatureinstitute.org/" target="_blank" title="">Audubon Zoo</a><span> </span>spokeswoman Katie Smith said in an email.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“Tumani is demonstrating excellent mothering behaviors and the entire troop is doing exceptionally well,” Smith said. She said keepers first saw the baby during their morning check Friday. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Native to central Africa, western lowland gorillas were declared<span> </span></span><a href="http://gorillassp.org/About-the-SSP" target="_blank" title="">critically endangered</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>in 2007 because of habitat loss as well as deaths caused by the Ebola virus and hunters who killed them illegally for their meat.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Happy Birthday, Baby Gorilla! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=P3ZsRl7u53c" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/P3ZsRl7u53c" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/hot-new-peter-strzok-text-says-trump-totally-f-ing-compromised-by-russia" target="_blank" title="">HOT NEW PETER STRZOK TEXT Says Trump Totally F-ing Compromised By Russia</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Wonderful, hopeful essay: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/10/the-next-reconstruction/615475/" target="_blank">For the First Time, America May Have an Anti-Racist Majority</a>, Adam Serwer, the Atlantic, October 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Indeed: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/09/everyone-knows-its-true/616138/" target="_blank" title="">Everyone Knows It’s True</a>, David Frum. the Atlantic, September 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ This guy pulls no punches: <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/08/opinions/trump-worst-president-ever-opinion-dantonio/index.html" target="_blank" title="">Trump may reach a new milestone by Election Day</a>, Michael D’Antonio, CNN, September 9, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Just desserts: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/09/maine-turned-on-susan-collins.html" target="_blank" title="">How Maine Turned on Susan Collins</a>, Christina Cauterucci, Slate, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Good. Plain talk: <span><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2020/09/08/newsom-no-patience-for-climate-deniers-amid-historic-heat-fires-1316014" target="_blank">Newsom: 'No patience for climate change deniers' amid historic wildfires</a>, Colby Bermel, Politico, September 8, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ That Barrstard: </span><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/09/mary-trump-among-those-demanding-congress-impeach-attorney-general-bill-barr/" target="_blank" title="">Mary Trump among those demanding Congress impeach Attorney General Bill Barr</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ It’s awful, but not new: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/09/14/our-long-forgotten-history-of-election-related-violence" target="_blank">Our Long, Forgotten History of Election-Related Violence</a>, Jelani Cobb, the NewYorker, September 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Decent article on how the people will stop fascism: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/trump-coup-elections-gop/" target="_blank">Is Trump Planning a Coup d’État?</a> Sasha Abramsky, the Nation, September 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 👀: <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/09/trump-campaign-cash-crunch" target="_blank" title="">REPORT: THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN IS SPENDING MONEY LIKE A GUY WHO BANKRUPTED A CASINO (AND FIVE OTHER BUSINESSES)</a>, Bess Levin, Vanity Fair, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Well, duh: <a href="https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/09/08/why-no-one-should-ever-trust-trump-with-their-money/#.X1gGxIofEOM.twitter" target="_blank">Why No One Should Ever Trust Trump With Their Money</a>, Nancy LeTourneau, Washington Monthly, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Double duh: <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/veterans-advocate-says-trump-has-no-integrity-no-honor-1530404" target="_blank">Veterans Advocate Says Trump Has 'No Integrity' and 'No Honor'</a>, Jason Lemon, Newsweek, September 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ To tide you over until NNNE’s book report: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/michael-cohen-book-reveals-how-hannity-ailes-and-pecker-all-groveled-for-trumps-love?ref=home" target="_blank" title="">Michael Cohen’s Book: Hannity, Ailes, and Pecker All Groveled for Trump’s Love</a>, Lloyd Grove, Maxwell Tani, Daily Beast, September 8, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank" title="">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Write on!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank" title="">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank" title="">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank" title="">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank" title="">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank" title="">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <p>Yosef 52 writes diaries packed with information to help GOTV. List of Yosef 52’s diaries <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/9/7/1975574/-Monday-Good-News-Roundup#comment_78490152" target="_blank">here</a>.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Time for me to wind down this roundup and get some shut-eye. Curlygirl has already gone to bed!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Maine_Atlantic-puffins_USFWS2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/769688/large/Maine_Atlantic-puffins_USFWS2.jpg?1582424773" title="Maine_Atlantic-puffins_USFWS2.jpg"> <figcaption>Happy Birthday to my puffin-loving friend!</figcaption> </figure> <p>We are nearing the end of this long nightmare, Gnusies, and it’s vital that we stay strong, stay focused and keep working hard to GOTV. </p> <p>And to stay strong and focused, be sure to look after yourself and those you love. Get enough rest, eat nutritious food and try to get outdoors every day. Keeping to a routine of self-care can help to keep you grounded through the demanding couple of months ahead.</p> <p>It will be hard work but it will be so worth it! We can toss out the grifter in our White House and the Republican enablers who really brought us to this sorry pass. Keep your eyes on that prize!</p> <p>Thanks for reading and thanks for being here. I am so glad to be in this effort with all of you!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Cs5vUfddkT8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="315" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Cs5vUfddkT8" data-width="560">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Election2020 GoodNews Goodnewsroundup GOTV Justice PostalService Recommended Voting _1974387 Wed, 09 Sep 2020 11:00:06 +0000 Fear Never Builds The Future, But Hope Does - Tuesday GNR https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/9/1/1972173/-Fear-Never-Builds-The-Future-But-Hope-Does-Tuesday-GNR <p>Good Day, Newsies. It’s a new month and we are now just over two months to Election Day. A lot will happen between now and November 3 and quite a bit of it is likely to be unpleasant. We are getting down to the wire and — as we have known from the beginning — now that the end is nearing, this unfit, mentally unstable, vicious man and his coterie of co-conspirators will do everything they can to hang on to power. You know it, so be ready and do all you can to prepare emotionally so that you can keep your eyes on the prize and keep working your heart out to GOTV and defeat this monster and all his enablers up and down the ballot.</p> <p class="AlignCenter"><strong>“Fear never builds the future, but hope does.”  Joe Biden, August 31, 2020.</strong></p> <p>Our most dangerous opponent over the coming weeks will be fear: fear of the unknown, of course, and also the fear that will be evoked in us quite naturally when dumpy and his minions commit worse and worse outrages. The purpose of spreading fear is to cow us and dissuade us from voting. So gird your loins and screw up your courage — we need to hold fast and keep each other strong. The reason they are doing everything they can to prevent people from voting or to persuade people that the vote will not be fair/safe/counted is because <strong><em>it is still the thing that will defeat them!</em></strong>  They know it and are desperate to prevent turnout. In particular, paper ballots will be undeniable. But if you live in a place where machine voting/touch screen or whatever is your only option, then vote on the damn thing anyway and do not be dissuaded!</p> <p>There are tens of thousands of people working on the elections who want it to go well. They want to feel proud of a fair and well-managed election, so have faith that there is <em>at least</em> as much energy going into making the voting secure and accessible as there is working against that goal. And you are one of the millions of Americans who will support the first group. We are stronger together and together we will follow through with this election — no matter what. Check your voter registration, and then check it again in the days leading up to your planned voting day. Vote early if you can do so, by mail as soon as possible if you have that option. Vote —  however you can, as early and safely as you can, accompanied by as many family and friends as you can gather. GOTV!</p> <p>Try to limit your time watching cable news, reading social media and inadvertently soaking in the panic and the trolling and the disinformation. You know this shit is happening, and there’s no better way to inoculate yourself from it than by limiting your exposure. Instead, get busy in whatever way you work best — writing postcards, phone banking, texting to voters, organizing your neighborhood and/or getting your family and friends to commit to voting. As Teri Kanefield points out in her blog, the antidote to the very understandable despair that we all experience from time to time throughout this nightmare is doing something about it. We don’t need to be experts to make a difference in our democracy — just willing to use whatever skills we have and whatever time we can spare and do whatever we can. As someone very wise once said, Nobody can do everything, but everybody can do something. Find your something and get to work! You will feel stronger and more hopeful! And that kind of hopeful strength makes good things happen!</p> <p><a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/the-antidote-to-despair/" target="_blank">THE ANTIDOTE TO DESPAIR</a>, Teri Kanefield, August 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="4abc639e0c0969a5091504070708e119.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/788941/large/4abc639e0c0969a5091504070708e119.jpg?1586314235" title="4abc639e0c0969a5091504070708e119.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left">Yale Professor Timothy Snyder offers insight about despair. He says: “shock is pre-helpless.” First we’re shocked. Then paralyzed with helplessness. This generally happens when people think: “This is entirely new! Nothing like this has ever happened.” If it’s never before happened, we see no way out.</p> <p style="text-align:left">But we’ve been here before, and we’ve gotten out before. If you think we have never been here before, imagine being African American in the year 1850. Or a woman. Or both. Yeah, it’s been worse for a lot of people.</p> <p style="text-align:left">To make a lasting change, we all need to own our democracy and take constructive steps to strengthen the institutions that are currently being battered by the human wrecking ball in the White House and the major political party supporting him.</p> <p style="text-align:left">(<em>follow the link and read on for excellent PRACTICAL and doable suggestions to get busy and take constructive steps using your talents and skills to save our democracy</em>)</p> </blockquote> <h4>The Antidote to darkness is light, truth and decency</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=vQoc5VewVCs" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vQoc5VewVCs" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>(See comments for the highlights of his text — thanks to hpg!)</p> <p>And now for some news!</p> <h3>⓷ 3 Must-Win Demographics 45 Might Not Win ⓷</h3> <h4>1: A huge development — donny is losing the support of active-duty Military</h4> <p><a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/08/31/as-trumps-popularity-slips-in-latest-military-times-poll-more-troops-say-theyll-vote-for-biden/" target="_blank">Trump’s popularity slips in latest Military Times poll — and more troops say they’ll vote for Biden</a>, Leo Shane lll, Military Times, August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.14.07AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850622/large/ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.14.07AM.png?1598890487" title="ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.14.07AM.png"> <figcaption>July/August 2020 poll of active-duty military troops.</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The latest<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2019/12/17/half-of-active-duty-service-members-are-unhappy-with-trump-new-military-times-poll-shows/" target="_blank">Military Times poll</a><span><span> </span>shows a continued decline in active-duty service members’ views of<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/08/27/trump-vows-to-continue-military-rebuild-halt-endless-wars-in-convention-finale/" target="_blank">President Donald Trump</a><span><span> </span>and a slight but significant preference for<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/08/20/biden-vows-to-restore-leadership-respect-as-commander-in-chief-in-convention-finale/" target="_blank">former Vice President Joe Biden</a><span><span> </span>in the upcoming November election among troops surveyed.</span>✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">In the latest results — based on 1,018 active-duty troops surveyed in late July and early August — nearly half of respondents (49.9 percent) had an unfavorable view of the president, compared to about 38 percent who had a favorable view. Questions in the poll had a margin of error of up to 2 percent.   Among all survey participants, 42 percent said they “strongly” disapprove of Trump’s time in office. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>“It’s fair to say that Trump is not as popular as Republican nominees have been in the past among this group,” said Peter Feaver, a White House adviser to former President George W. Bush who now works as a political science professor at Duke University. “The bottom line is that in 2020, Trump can’t be claiming to have overwhelming support in the military.”</span></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.16.32AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850624/large/ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.16.32AM.png?1598890625" title="ScreenShot2020-08-31at11.16.32AM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>2: Donny is losing support in the conservative Midwest</h4> <p>WIneRev pointed to this excellent article in yesterday’s comments (thanks WIneRev!) and it suggests that not all is going to be smooth sailing for Donny and the Pubs in the Midwest, either. (DK diarist dewtx wrote about it from the perspective of one Iowa-raised farmboy, and his point of view adds great context <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/8/30/1973539/-A-view-from-the-heart-of-corn-country-Art-Cullen-of-the-Storm-Lake-Times-says-Trump-should-beware?utm_campaign=trending" target="_blank">here</a>): </p> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/aug/29/trump-must-win-the-midwest-but-out-here-his-breezy-reelection-gambit-falls-flat" target="_blank">Trump must win the Midwest. But out here his breezy reelection gambit falls flat</a>, Art Cullen, the Guardian, August 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Damaged grain bins on Aug. 11 in Luther, Iowa. (Daniel Acker/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/848472/large/imrs1.php?1598407022" title="Damaged grain bins on Aug. 11 in Luther, Iowa. (Daniel Acker/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>It’s shouting distance of Labor Day, when people normally start fixing on the elections. Labor is restless. John Deere laid off Davenport and Waterloo workers last fall and this spring. Deere reported strong profits last week as a result, despite slumping sales from the Trump Trade Wars. There’s the disconnect between the stock market and Main Street – the Dow rises while enhanced unemployment benefits expire.</p> <p>Atop all this – a pandemic, a climate crisis inspiring a mega-drought and derecho, rotten farm prices and incompetent government – another unarmed black man was shot, this time in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Not so far from Minneapolis, where George Floyd became a household name. Now it’s Jacob Blake, whose mother Julia Jackson pleaded for prayer and healing on national TV, for her son, for the police, for this nation. The Bucks and Brewers refused to play. ✄</p> <p><span>Farmers are anxious. Latinos are afraid. Unemployed machinists are frustrated. That prized demographic, suburban women in Urbandale next to Des Moines, are encouraging the school board to sue the governor over her in-person school orders.</span></p> <p>They said their older folks who never saw a reason before have finally found one. Even some of those farmers are wondering about Trump as they dig into a harvest so meager that wraps up as they vote. An ill wind blows for incumbents.</p> </blockquote> <h4>3: EVen Evangelical women are cooling towards Donny</h4> <p><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2020/08/25/billy-graham-evangelicals-support-donald-trump-hypocrisy-column/5625617002/" target="_blank">I'm Billy Graham's granddaughter. Evangelical support for Donald Trump insults his legacy.</a> Jerushah Duford, USA Today, August 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Trump has gone so far as to brag about his<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/29/trump-housing-policy-low-income-suburbs-386414" target="_blank">plans</a><span>,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-briefing-keeping-american-communities-safe-takedown-key-ms-13-criminal-leaders/" target="_blank">accomplishments<span> </span></a><span>and unholy actions toward the marginalized communities I saw<span> </span></span><a href="https://billygrahamlibrary.org/gang-members-who-came-to-christ/" target="_blank">my grandfather love and serve</a><span>. I now see, through the silence of church leaders, that these communities are no longer valued by individuals claiming to uphold the values my grandfather taught.✄</span></p> <p><span>At a recent large family event, I was pulled aside by many female family members thanking me for speaking out against an administration with which they, too, had been uncomfortable. With tears in their eyes, they used a hushed tone, out of fear that they were alone or at risk of undeserved retribution.✄ </span></p> <p><span>I chose to listen to my spirit to speak out. Not because doing so feels comfortable, but because it feels like the right way to leverage the voice God has empowered me with. Now I am asking all of you who feel as I do, to embrace your inner tug, and allow it to lead you to use the power of your God-given voice and not allow Trump to lead this country for another four years. </span></p> </blockquote> <p>And these two Georgia voters — still lukewarm on Joe, but waking up to the reality of the donald: <a href="https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/514407-we-are-evangelical-christians-not-voting-for-donald-trump-this-time" target="_blank">We are evangelical Christians not voting for Donald Trump this time</a>, Ryan Hurlburt and Katharine Hurlburt, The Hill, August 31, 2020.</p> <h3>🎶 A Musical Break 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Vzyn60Zns-E" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Vzyn60Zns-E" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💲 It’s Still the Economy, Smarty! 💲</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Worst. Jobs. President. EVER. &lt;a href="https://t.co/RPoyPqrb0L"&gt;pic.twitter.com/RPoyPqrb0L&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— CAP Action (@CAPAction) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/CAPAction/status/1298243734388187137?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 25, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Worst. Jobs. President. EVER. <a href="https://t.co/RPoyPqrb0L">pic.twitter.com/RPoyPqrb0L</a></p>— CAP Action (@CAPAction) <a href="https://twitter.com/CAPAction/status/1298243734388187137?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And even the usually right-leaning, Pub-friendly U.S. Chamber of Commerce is having serious second thoughts about trumpism:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/27/chamber-of-commerce-turmoil-402837" target="_blank">Turmoil consumes Chamber of Commerce as it backs Democrats</a>, Alex Isenstadt, Politico, August 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt=""It's simple, really. Just figure out what the honorable thing to do is â€“ and make it look like we did it."" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/780040/large/business-commerce-public_relations-doing_the_right_thing-perspective-fake_news-honor-mban5231_low.jpg?1584700039" title=""It's simple, really. Just figure out what the honorable thing to do is â€“ and make it look like we did it.""> <figcaption>Or in this case...the smarter thing to do.</figcaption> </figure> <p>The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is poised to endorse nearly two dozen freshmen House Democrats for reelection, triggering a revolt within the right-leaning organization and drawing fierce pushback from the group’s powerful GOP donors.</p> <p>The decision represents a sharp departure for the traditionally conservative Chamber, which has spent over $100 million backing Republican candidates during the past decade, and it threatens to further complicate the party’s prospects in the November election while driving a split in the business community. ✄</p> <p><span>The clash also provides a window into a growing rift in the business community over its place in the Donald Trump-dominated Republican Party, which has at times embraced policies the corporate world opposes. While the Chamber has almost exclusively endorsed Republicans over the past decade, it has collided with the president over everything from tariffs to immigration.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🌍 And It’s About Climate Change 🌎</h3> <p>NEW POLLING: A DEBATE OVER FRACKING AND CLIMATE BOOSTS JOE BIDEN IN PENNSYLVANIA, Global Strategy Group, August 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <ul> <li><strong>Pennsylvania voters believe that climate change is a serious problem and look unkindly at lawmakers who oppose action:</strong><span> </span>an overwhelming majority of voters in the state think climate change is a serious problem (83%) with a plurality saying it is very serious (46%). Pennsylvania voters also do not look kindly upon elected officials who disagree: voters are strongly unfavorable to both lawmakers who deny that climate change is a threat (21% favorable / 70% unfavorable) and lawmakers who oppose strong action to combat climate change (25% favorable / 58% unfavorable).</li> </ul> <ul> <li><strong>Voters in the state also strongly support pro-climate policies,</strong><span> </span>including “the U.S. government taking bold action to combat climate change” (73% support / 20% oppose), plans to move the U.S. to 100% clean electricity by 2035 (74% / 17%) and a 100% clean energy economy by 2050 (73% / 20%), and investing $2 trillion over the next four years to build clean energy infrastructure (71% / 21%).</li> </ul> <ul> <li><strong>Pennsylvania voters’ support for bold action on climate translates to the ballot box:</strong><span> </span>voters would vote for a Democrat who supports taking bold action on climate over a Republican who does not by 19 points – outpacing the standard generic ballot (+7) by 12 points. Democrats gain ground on this exercise in both the Philadelphia market (+8 points net gain) and in the Pittsburgh market (+12 points net gain). <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;4/ Biden starts out +8 (50-42), but after hearing both pro and con messaging about fracking his lead grows to +12 (53-41), and it expands even more to +15 (55-40) after further pro/con messaging on climate change. Biden&amp;#39;s favorability also grows, as does voter intensity.&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Dorner (@JoshDorner) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoshDorner/status/1300472762734182403?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 31, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>4/ Biden starts out +8 (50-42), but after hearing both pro and con messaging about fracking his lead grows to +12 (53-41), and it expands even more to +15 (55-40) after further pro/con messaging on climate change. Biden's favorability also grows, as does voter intensity.</p>— Josh Dorner (@JoshDorner) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshDorner/status/1300472762734182403?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 31, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </li> </ul> </blockquote> <h3>More Good Election News</h3> <p><a href="https://abc7chicago.com/6396777/?ex_cid=TA_WLS_TW&taid=5f4d6e3846b85b0001d056f2&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Companies across the US pledge to give workers time off to vote</a>, ABC News, August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Vote2.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/847915/large/Vote2.png?1598281622" title="Vote2.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Starbucks said Thursday it will give its 200,000 U.S. employees flexibility on Election Day, encouraging them to plan ahead with managers and schedule time to vote or volunteer at polling places. The Starbucks app will also help customers learn how to register to vote, the company said.</span>                                                                                         <br> <span>Walmart says it will give its 1.5 million U.S. workers up to three hours paid time off to vote. Apple is giving workers four hours off. Coca-Cola, Twitter, Cisco and Uber are giving employees the day off.</span></p> <p><span>The idea isn't entirely new. General Motors, Ford and FiatChrysler have given employees the day off to vote since 1999, when they agreed to the change in a contract with the United Auto Workers union. Patagonia gave its workers the day off starting in 2016.But this year, the idea is gaining steam. Six hundred companies, including Lyft, Airbnb and Paramount, have signed on to<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.electionday.org/" target="_blank">ElectionDay.org</a><span>, which asks companies to give employees time off to vote or distribute information on voting, including how to obtain main-in ballots. It is not clear how many of those 600 are allowing time off versus distributing voting information.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Walmart says it will give its 1.5 million U.S. workers up to three hours paid time off to vote. Apple is giving workers four hours off. Coca-Cola, Twitter, Cisco and Uber are giving employees the day off.&lt;a href="https://t.co/Uu6E2lryQs"&gt;https://t.co/Uu6E2lryQs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1299338445634977797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 28, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Walmart says it will give its 1.5 million U.S. workers up to three hours paid time off to vote. Apple is giving workers four hours off. Coca-Cola, Twitter, Cisco and Uber are giving employees the day off.<a href="https://t.co/Uu6E2lryQs">https://t.co/Uu6E2lryQs</a></p>— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1299338445634977797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 28, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>🍑 This is Just Peachy, Georgia! 🍑</h4> <p><a href="https://www.gpb.org/news/2020/08/31/judge-extends-georgias-absentee-ballot-deadline-for-november-election" target="_blank">Judge Extends Georgia's Absentee Ballot Deadline For November Election</a>, Stephen Fowler, GPB (NPR/PBS), August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A federal judge has ruled Georgia elections officials must count absentee ballots postmarked by Election Day and received by 7 p.m. on Nov. 6, 2020, potentially allowing thousands more votes to count in an election likely to shatter turnout records.</p> <p>Judge Eleanor Ross ruled Monday that "extending the deadline would ensure that voters who receive their ballots shortly before Election Day are able to mail their ballots without fear that their vote will not count" in her 70-page order.</p> <p>Currently, Georgia voters can request an absentee ballot as late as the Friday before the election, creating a narrow window for voters to return an absentee ballot through the mail in time for the current 7 p.m. Election Day deadline.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: A federal judge has extended Georgia&amp;#39;s absentee ballot deadline, ruling that any absentee ballot POSTMARKED by election day counts if it is RECEIVED by 7 p.m. three days after the election. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#gapol&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Story to come.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Full order: &lt;a href="https://t.co/bpGFPogfnE"&gt;https://t.co/bpGFPogfnE&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/j2dWoWZ3ut"&gt;pic.twitter.com/j2dWoWZ3ut&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— stephen fowler (@stphnfwlr) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/stphnfwlr/status/1300515650746675207?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 31, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: A federal judge has extended Georgia's absentee ballot deadline, ruling that any absentee ballot POSTMARKED by election day counts if it is RECEIVED by 7 p.m. three days after the election. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gapol?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gapol</a> <br><br>Story to come.<br><br>Full order: <a href="https://t.co/bpGFPogfnE">https://t.co/bpGFPogfnE</a> <a href="https://t.co/j2dWoWZ3ut">pic.twitter.com/j2dWoWZ3ut</a></p>— stephen fowler (@stphnfwlr) <a href="https://twitter.com/stphnfwlr/status/1300515650746675207?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 31, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Musical Break in Honor of Georgia 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=TbCELe_m9vQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TbCELe_m9vQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <h4>Shoulda Taken that plea Deal, Mike</h4> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/31/politics/michael-flynn-court-case/index.html" target="_blank">Appeals court denies Michael Flynn and Justice Department's effort to end his case</a>, Katelyn Polantz, CNN News, August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>A federal appeals court<span> </span><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2020/08/31/politics/read-flynn-appeals-ruling/index.html" target="_blank">ruled Monday<span> </span></a>against Michael Flynn and the Justice Department in their request to quickly shut down his criminal case.</p> </div> <div>The 8-2 decision restores power to a judge to question the Justice Department's moves in the politically divisive case, when Attorney General William Barr dropped charges against President Donald Trump's former national security adviser earlier this year despite twice pleading guilty to lying under oath to lying to the FBI.</div> <div>Flynn had fought District Judge Emmet Sullivan's decision to ask a third-party lawyer to argue against the Justice Department's dismissal in the case, and his plans to hold a hearing, which has not yet happened. <p>(Reminder ->)</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-08-31at6.53.06PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850814/large/ScreenShot2020-08-31at6.53.06PM.png?1598918014" title="ScreenShot2020-08-31at6.53.06PM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>SHoulda Mailed Those DOcs, DeJoy</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/31/oversight-panel-subpoena-dejoy-406100" target="_blank">Oversight panel set to subpoena DeJoy amid clash over Postal Service</a>, Kyle Cheney, Politico, August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 25: U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) speaks as House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) listens during a news conference on District of Columbia statehood June 25, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The House is scheduled to vote on the District of Columbia statehood bill tomorrow. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845370/large/GettyImages-1252491459.jpg?1597762658" title="WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 25: U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) speaks as House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) listens during a news conference on District of Columbia statehood June 25, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The House is scheduled to vote on the District of Columbia statehood bill tomorrow. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)<br> Chairwoman, House Oversight Committee</figcaption> </figure> <p>The House Oversight Committee is preparing to issue a<span> </span><a href="https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/documents/Subpoena%20Schedule%20for%20Postal%20Service.pdf" target="_blank">subpoena</a><span> </span>for Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, accusing him of ignoring the panel’s demand for documents related to Postal Service mail delays and contacts with White House officials or the Trump campaign.</p> <p>Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) indicated Monday that DeJoy had refused to comply with a request for documents she issued during his testimony to the committee last week, when she first made her subpoena threat. ✄</p> <p>“The subpoena clarifies a number of previous requests based on information obtained to date in order to ensure that it captures all documents within the requested categories, and it also makes clear as a legal matter that the production of these documents is mandatory,” Maloney said.</p> <p>The committee is also issuing a<span> </span><a href="https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/documents/2020-08-31.CBM%20to%20USPS%20Board%20of%20Governors%20re%20USPS.pdf" target="_blank">document request</a><span> </span>to USPS board chairman Robert Duncan about materials it says Duncan is withholding by citing a Justice Department legal opinion. Maloney intends to issue a subpoena for those documents as well if Duncan doesn’t comply, according to committee aides.</p> </blockquote> <h4>WIth friends like trumps...</h4> <p>This woman is going to be Rachel Maddow’s Interview tonight on TRMS:</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/its-taken-over-my-life-ex-melania-friend-working-with-prosecutors-on-inauguration-probe" target="_blank">‘It’s Taken Over My Life’: Ex-Melania Friend Working With Prosecutors On Inauguration Probe</a>, Cristina Cabrera, Talking Points Memo, August 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former close friend to first lady Melania Trump, claimed on Monday that she is working with three prosecutors in their investigations into the Trump inaugural committee.</p> <p>“I’m working with three different prosecutors, and it’s taken over my life,” she told<span> </span><a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/melanias-friend-trump-family-tainted-deceit-deception-72681296" target="_blank">ABC News</a><span> </span>in a pre-taped interview.</p> <p>Those would be the U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, along with the attorneys general in New Jersey and Washington, D.C.</p> <p>Winston Wolkoff was an adviser to the inaugural committee, which spent a jaw-dropping $104 million on the event after raising more than $107 million. Her ABC News interview is part of her media tour to promote her tell-all book, “Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>It’s About Time</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/bill-decriminalize-marijuana-federal-level-house-vote-month/story?id=72714766&cid=social_twitter_abcn" target="_blank">Bill to decriminalize marijuana at federal level up for House vote next month</a>, Meredith Deliso, ABC News, August 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="American marijuana and United States cannabis symbol with the USA flag on rustic wood with leaves as a border in a 3D illustration style." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/657594/large/American_Flag.jpg?1553476561" title="American marijuana and United States cannabis symbol with the USA flag on rustic wood with leaves as a border in a 3D illustration style."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>A landmark<span> </span><a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/3884" target="_blank">bill</a><span> </span>that would decriminalize<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/marijuana" target="_blank">marijuana</a><span> </span>use at the federal level is up for vote soon.</p> <p>The U.S. House of Representatives is<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/house-judiciary-passes-bill-legalize-marijuana-federal-level/story?id=67174950" target="_blank">set to vote on the legislation</a><span> </span>in September, according to an email sent out on Friday by Majority Whip James Clyburn. Politico<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/natsfert/status/1299378927530508288" target="_blank">first reported</a><span> </span>on the pending vote.</p> <p>The "Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2019" -- also called the MORE Act -- would officially remove cannabis from the list of federally controlled substances. It would also expunge federal marijuana convictions and arrests, and approve the allocation of resources for communities affected by the war on drugs, according to the bill's text.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Thankfully</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;New: A DC federal judge granted a prelim. injunction blocking a Trump admin. policy that delegated authority to Customs and Border Protection agents to do credible fear interviews for asylum seekers — judge found it likely violates US immigration law &lt;a href="https://t.co/hKMHMPYnxw"&gt;https://t.co/hKMHMPYnxw&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/VblRpj59F4"&gt;pic.twitter.com/VblRpj59F4&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ZoeTillman/status/1300431407945314310?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 31, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>New: A DC federal judge granted a prelim. injunction blocking a Trump admin. policy that delegated authority to Customs and Border Protection agents to do credible fear interviews for asylum seekers — judge found it likely violates US immigration law <a href="https://t.co/hKMHMPYnxw">https://t.co/hKMHMPYnxw</a> <a href="https://t.co/VblRpj59F4">pic.twitter.com/VblRpj59F4</a></p>— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZoeTillman/status/1300431407945314310?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 31, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Music For This Moment 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=L7TN0hyONjw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/L7TN0hyONjw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/joe-biden-just-ended-donald-trumps-campaign" target="_blank">Joe Biden Helpfully Reminds Donald Trump Who's President, What Day It Is, Which One Is 'Camel'</a>, Stephen Robinson, Wonkette, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Everything you need to know! <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a>, Molly Olmstead and Mark Joseph Stern, Slate, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Let’s go! <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/democrats-elections-statehouses/" target="_blank">Democrats Are Winning Their Fight for the States</a>, Joan Walsh, The Nation, September 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Ooh! Let’s hope so! <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/08/31/ohio-republicans-are-embroiled-scandal-could-they-lose-election-trump/?hpid=hp_save-opinions-float-right-4-0_opinion-card-g-right%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">Ohio Republicans are embroiled in scandal. Could they lose the election for Trump?</a> Gary Abernathy, Washington Post, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Read about amazing Dem women! <a href="https://www.elle.com/culture/career-politics/g33807764/women-candidates-flip-senate-blue-2020/?utm_campaign=socialflowTWELM&utm_medium=social-media&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">A Guide To All The Women Who Could Help Flip The Senate Blue In 2020</a>, Madison Feller, Elle Magazine, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Thanks to Ice Blue for this excellent article: <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/07/15/1004950/how-to-talk-to-conspiracy-theorists-and-still-be-kind/?utm_medium=tr_social&utm_campaign=site_visitor.unpaid.engagement&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1598658909" target="_blank">How to talk to conspiracy theorists—and still be kind</a>, Tanya Basu, MIT Technology Review, July 15, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ University of Illinois! <span><a href="https://fortune.com/2020/08/29/covid-testing-university-of-illinois-saliva-test-coronavirus-students-twice-weekly/" target="_blank">One university may have the best COVID testing operation in the U.S.—and tests students twice a week</a>, Lee Clifford, Fortune, August 29, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️Well, well, well: </span><a href="https://apnews.com/0220ed28de3376c7f70f013bdb4bdfc1" target="_blank">Liberty announces investigation into Falwell’s tenure</a>, Sarah Rankin and Elana Schor, AP News, August 31, 2020.</p> <p><span>⚡️ A righteous indictment: </span><a href="https://thebulwark.com/america-first-is-a-lie/?utm_source=afternoon-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=The+Bulwark+Newsletter&utm_campaign=194ba7f30d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_08_31_10_24&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f4bd64ac2e-194ba7f30d-81082998" target="_blank">“America First” is a Lie</a>, Brian Stewart, The Bulwark, August 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ It’s not strategy, it’s pathology: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/31/donald-trumps-hunger-for-violence-isnt-just-about-politics--its-fuel-for-his-bloated-ego/" target="_blank">Donald Trump's hunger for violence isn't just about politics — it's fuel for his bloated ego</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Another psychology perspective: <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/why-are-dems-nervous-because-theyre-dems" target="_blank">Why Are Dems Nervous? Because They’re Dems.</a> Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, August 31, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ There is “transformational potential” in this moment: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/media/2020/08/nba-strike-black-culture/" target="_blank">The NBA Wildcat Strike Is How a Revolution Starts</a>, Lester Spence, August 29, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Remember: Good people are everywhere 😍:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Guy’s security camera catches kid tearing it up on his driveway almost every day, so he decides to do something about it. &lt;a href="https://t.co/ZDVb7zLgZo"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ZDVb7zLgZo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MikeSington/status/1299074699385663488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 27, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Guy’s security camera catches kid tearing it up on his driveway almost every day, so he decides to do something about it. <a href="https://t.co/ZDVb7zLgZo">pic.twitter.com/ZDVb7zLgZo</a></p>— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeSington/status/1299074699385663488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 27, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6945.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850829/large/IMG_6945.jpg?1598920876" title="IMG_6945.jpg"> <figcaption>Ramping up the writing to voters effort!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October), this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a><span> </span>— Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE! (h/t to Slideman)</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/08/2020-voting-guide.html" target="_blank">The Best Way to Vote in Every State</a> </p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me for this week!  Curlygirl has been asleep on the floor for the past hour and just got up and put herself to bed. LOL That’s my cue to wrap up my tapping and typing and go to bed myself.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black poodle lies sleeping on floor between two chairs" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/850914/large/IMG_6940.jpg?1598941474" title="black poodle lies sleeping on floor between two chairs"> <figcaption>Too...much...tapping...too...much….typing...Zzzzzz!</figcaption> </figure> <p>It’s always an honor to write these GNRs and I hope they are as helpful to you to read as they are to me to write!</p> <p>As always, I encourage you to take good care of yourself and those you love. Try to limit exposure to gloom and doom, “news” and disinformation. Eat nutritious food, try to get enough rest and try to get outdoors every day for a little while if you can. </p> <p>Above all, try to do something every day to further the goal of electing Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and Democrats up and down the ballot in November. </p> <p>There is a new day coming and we are going to make that beautiful, hopeful dawn happen. In November, we will be able to rest after we watch the great Democratic blue wave wash over the country. I am so glad I am working on this great American project with all of you!</p> <p>To close today’s GNR (until the best comment section on the internet™ commences!), here’s a little Jupiter positivity for you. Go forth and save your country!</p> <h3> 🎶 Yes, “I Vow to Thee, My Country” 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Nz0b4STz1lo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Nz0b4STz1lo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Election GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Hope JoeBiden MilitaryTimes Politics Recommended _1972173 Tue, 01 Sep 2020 11:00:04 +0000 It's Joe Time! - Good News Roundup, August 18 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/8/18/1968515/-It-s-Joe-Time-Good-News-Roundup-August-18 <p>Good day, Newsies! No opening remarks today because I am racing to finish so I can watch the Democratic National Convention! </p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="IMG_6890.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845306/large/IMG_6890.jpg?1597730079" title="IMG_6890.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>There’s a lot going on, and it’s going to get more tense as we approach Election Day, so just remember what the Curlygirl always says — keep your eyes on the <s>ball</s> prize!</p> <h3>📫 Democrats Defend the USPS 📫</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/17/judiciary-democrats-call-on-fbi-to-launch-criminal-probe-into-postmaster-general-louis-dejoy/" target="_blank">Judiciary Democrats call on FBI to launch criminal probe into Postmaster General Louis DeJoy</a>, Igor Derysh, Salon, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Two Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee on Monday called for the FBI to launch a criminal inquiry into Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Board of Governors over operational changes which have<span> </span><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/07/15/disturbing-memo-reveals-trumps-usps-chief-has-slowed-delivery-amid-calls-to-expand-voting-by-mail/">slowed mail delivery</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Reps. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., and Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who serve on the Judiciary subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, which has oversight over the FBI, called for the bureau to look into whether DeJoy and USPS leaders "committed any crimes" related to recent moves at the agency which <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/12/mail-sorting-equipment-being-removed-from-post-offices-leaving-mail-to-pile-up-union-leader/">led to a mail slowdown</a>. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The lawmakers cited two laws: one which imposes fines and prison time for anyone who "knowingly and willfully obstructs or retards the passage of mail" and another which imposes criminal penalties on government employees using their official authority "for the purpose of interfering with, or affecting" an election.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I hope the Postmaster General comes prepared. I know I will. &lt;a href="https://t.co/Lan1in5UmH"&gt;https://t.co/Lan1in5UmH&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RepKatiePorter/status/1295418478506237954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I hope the Postmaster General comes prepared. I know I will. <a href="https://t.co/Lan1in5UmH">https://t.co/Lan1in5UmH</a></p>— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepKatiePorter/status/1295418478506237954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Read my letter to Members here: &lt;a href="https://t.co/FcVJRo2nTm"&gt;https://t.co/FcVJRo2nTm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi/status/1295148340322226178?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Read my letter to Members here: <a href="https://t.co/FcVJRo2nTm">https://t.co/FcVJRo2nTm</a></p>— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi/status/1295148340322226178?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Dem USPS bill, which will come out of committee tomorrow, will both seek to block operational changes to USPS, and include the $25bn Dems were initially seeking to address USPS financial issues&lt;/p&gt;— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Phil_Mattingly/status/1295389082760228865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Dem USPS bill, which will come out of committee tomorrow, will both seek to block operational changes to USPS, and include the $25bn Dems were initially seeking to address USPS financial issues</p>— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) <a href="https://twitter.com/Phil_Mattingly/status/1295389082760228865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Senate Dems Are On It too</h4> <p>Schumer et al putting pressure on the USPS board of governors:</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-post-office-congress/senate-democrats-urge-u-s-postal-board-to-reverse-service-changes-idUSKCN25D1ZW" target="_blank">Senate Democrats urge U.S. Postal Board to reverse service changes</a>, David Shepardson, Reuters, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Democrats on Monday urged the U.S. Postal Service board of governors to reverse a series of changes adopted by the new postmaster general that they say have led to mail service delays.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Senators Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, Gary Peters, Bernie Sanders, Ron Wyden, Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith asked the board to act immediately saying Postmaster General Louis DeJoy ordered cuts to hours at some post offices, denied overtime to mail clerks and carriers, and required carriers leave some mail behind at post offices. A spokesman for the Postal Service did not immediately comment.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And States too</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/state-officials-rush-to-shore-up-confidence-in-nov-3-election-as-voters-express-new-fears-about-mail-voting/2020/08/16/3d511144-df23-11ea-b205-ff838e15a9a6_story.html?wpmk=1&wpisrc=al_news__alert-politics--alert-national&utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wp_news_alert_revere&location=alert&pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.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.PekKXDzPdxulMYgxae4bl6M2_6ePBjx3CPoAbsXChKQ" target="_blank">State officials rush to shore up confidence in Nov. 3 election as voters express new fears about mail voting</a>, Amy Gardner and Seung Min Kim, Washington Post, August 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="FARMINGDALE, NY - APRIL 12: A general view of United States Postal Service trucks on April 12, 2020 in Farmingdale, New York. The USPS requested $75B in government assistance on April 9 to help recover from a large drop in mail volume. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791342/large/GettyImages-1218433068.jpg?1586799725" title="FARMINGDALE, NY - APRIL 12: A general view of United States Postal Service trucks on April 12, 2020 in Farmingdale, New York. The USPS requested $75B in government assistance on April 9 to help recover from a large drop in mail volume. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Thousands of voters have called government offices in recent days to ask whether it is still safe to mail their ballots, according to officials across the country. Attorneys general from at least six states are huddling to discuss possible lawsuits against the administration to block it from reducing mail service between now and the election, several told The Washington Post. State leaders are scrambling to see whether they can change rules to give voters more options, and Democrats are planning a massive public education campaign to shore up trust in the vote and the Postal Service.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>And House Democrats on Sunday announced plans for an emergency hearing on mail delays later this month. ✄</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The race to action comes amid escalating worries that even if the president does not succeed in blocking mail voting, he has created a dangerous crisis of confidence that could jeopardize whether Americans view the eventual outcome as legitimate.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“He has succeeded enough that everybody is working overtime to clean up the mess,” said Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a nonpartisan voting rights group.</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>📫 You can help the USPS 📫</h4> <p>Here’s a comprehensive article, with loads of helpful links to save you time and searching, on how you can help our USPS and our election:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thecut.com/2020/08/how-to-help-the-usps-amid-trump-funding-blocks-and-covid-19.html" target="_blank">What You Can Do About Trump’s Attack on the U.S. Postal Service</a>, Claire Lampen, the Cut, August 14, 2020.</p> <p>(There is a TON of useful information and ideas in this ^^article, even though Aug 14 is already slightly out of date —  it only mentions the first scheduled hearing with DeJoy which was set for Sept. 19.  Of course, now the hearing is scheduled for August 24 AND our Democratic-led House is convening on Saturday August 22 to vote on legislation to save and protect the Postal Service.)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=74FvxjiIIfo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/74FvxjiIIfo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🚨 🐘 Pubs in Panic 🐘 🚨</h3> <p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/donald-trump-reelection-campaign-2020.html" target="_blank">The Most Tremendous Reelection Campaign in American History Ever: Inside the chaotic, desperate, last-minute Trump 2020 reboot.</a> Olivia Nuzzi, the New Yorker, August 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/822195/large/TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg?1592784872" title="TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>This was Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. I was looking for the ground game. Have you heard about it? The campaign says it’s the greatest ground game to ever exist, that while you don’t see enthusiasm for the president reflected in the rigged polls, you do see it when you talk to his real supporters where they live in Real America. In fact, they talk about surveys of enthusiasm not just as though they are more reliable than real polls but as though they<span> </span><em>are</em><span> </span>the polls — as though the traditional kind simply don’t exist, or matter. I drove across the country last month, and I saw only two signs for Joe Biden the entire way. Is this meaningful? The Trump campaign is hoping that it is. In Pennsylvania, they’re making calls and knocking on doors — a million a week — powered by more than 1.4 million volunteers. Pennsylvania is uniquely important. Rural voters won the state for Trump by less than one percentage point in the last election. This time, Trump is behind Biden by a lot. To close the gap, the campaign says it’s hosting dozens of events here — more than in any other state. But good luck finding them.</p> <p>It was 7 p.m. on July 23, and Team Trump had scheduled a training session for campaign volunteers in the area. Before I arrived, I had worried about my exposure to the virus. I imagined a scene that was part local political-party headquarters and part anti-quarantine protest. I imagined a lot of Trump supporters, maskless and seated close together, breathing heavily on a reporter leaning in to record their comments. But the office was quiet. I walked through the arch of books by right-wing personalities (Bill O’Reilly, Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh) and past the portraits (George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan) and maps of Pennsylvania voting precincts. I didn’t see anyone there.</p> <p>In a blue room in the back, beneath an American flag with the words MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN printed in block letters inside the white stripes, a woman sat alone at the end of a conference table. She wasn’t participating in the volunteer training. She was the volunteer training. There just weren’t any volunteers.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Donny’s Sweating and Projecting</h4> <p><a href="https://apps.npr.org/liveblogs/20200817-dnc/#trump-calls-kasich-major-loser-33" target="_blank">Trump Calls Kasich ‘Major Loser’ Ahead Of<span> </span><span>DNC</span><span> </span>Speech</a>, Roberta Rampton, NPR News, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="John-kasich-3.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834636/large/John-kasich-3.jpg?1595349805" title="John-kasich-3.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Ohio’s former Republican Gov. John Kasich, a fierce critic of President Trump who is a featured speaker in Monday night’s lineup for the Democratic National Convention, drew fire from the president ahead of his<span> </span>remarks.</p> <p>Trump told reporters traveling with him on Air Force One that Kasich “was a loser as a Republican and he’ll be a loser as a Democrat. Major loser as a<span> </span>Republican.” ✄</p> <p><span>Kasich<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/08/17/903152227/at-democrats-convention-gops-kasich-to-say-its-ok-to-cross-the-aisle">told NPR’s Steve Inskeep</a><span><span> </span>earlier on Monday that he is reaching out to moderate Republicans who might be willing to support Joe Biden. “What I’m trying to do is, essentially, to tell people that, you know — the party doesn’t have to be your master. You can feel free to cross the aisle and vote for somebody else,” Kasich</span><span> </span><span>said.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>The shot across the bow</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;That a handful of former GOP electeds are willing to speak at a Dem convention is no small thing, even if the names aren&amp;#39;t terribly surprising. But the bigger reveal may be that three *sitting* GOP senators are publicly declining to support an incumbent prez of their own party&lt;/p&gt;— Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jmartNYT/status/1295383705603788801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>That a handful of former GOP electeds are willing to speak at a Dem convention is no small thing, even if the names aren't terribly surprising. But the bigger reveal may be that three *sitting* GOP senators are publicly declining to support an incumbent prez of their own party</p>— Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) <a href="https://twitter.com/jmartNYT/status/1295383705603788801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Donny’s Former DHS COS Supports Biden</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/at-homeland-security-i-saw-firsthand-how-dangerous-trump-is-for-america/2020/08/17/f10bb92e-e0a3-11ea-b69b-64f7b0477ed4_story.html" target="_blank">At Homeland Security, I saw firsthand how dangerous Trump is for America</a>, Miles Taylor, Washington Post opinion, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="dhs.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/533793/large/dhs.jpeg?1524142216" title="dhs.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The president has tried to turn DHS, the nation’s largest law enforcement agency, into a tool used for his political benefit. He insisted on a near-total focus on issues that he said were central to his reelection — in particular building a wall on the U.S. border with Mexico. Though he was often talked out of bad ideas at the last moment, the president would make obviously partisan requests of DHS, including when he told us to close the California-Mexico border during a March 28, 2019,<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-ordered-part-border-closed-administration-pushed-back/story?id=62260303">Oval Office meeting</a><span> </span>— it would be better for him politically, he said, than closing long stretches of the Texas or Arizona border — or to “dump” illegal immigrants in Democratic-leaning sanctuary cities and states to overload their authorities, as he insisted several times.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Trump’s indiscipline was also a constant source of frustration. One day in February 2019, when congressional leaders were waiting for an answer from the White House on a pending deal<span> </span><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47218630">to avoid</a><span> </span>a second government shutdown, the president demanded a DHS phone briefing to discuss the color of the wall. He was particularly interested in the merits of using spray paint and how the steel structure should be coated. Episodes like this occurred almost weekly. ✄</p> <p><span>It is more than a little ironic that Trump is campaigning for a second term as a law-and-order president. His first term has been dangerously chaotic. Four more years of this are unthinkable.</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Terrified of a second Trump term. But not enough to hide in a bunker. &lt;a href="https://t.co/Q6ojOAWbzb"&gt;https://t.co/Q6ojOAWbzb&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Miles Taylor (@MilesTaylorUSA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MilesTaylorUSA/status/1295440940061143040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Terrified of a second Trump term. But not enough to hide in a bunker. <a href="https://t.co/Q6ojOAWbzb">https://t.co/Q6ojOAWbzb</a></p>— Miles Taylor (@MilesTaylorUSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/MilesTaylorUSA/status/1295440940061143040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Rs Are A Mess!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/policy-and-politics/2020/8/17/21368234/trump-republicans-covid-19-2020-democrats-senate-relief-stimulus-polls" target="_blank">Why Republicans are failing to govern</a>, Ezra Klein, Vox, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="GOP Elephant: "We're not happy until you're not happy." They aren't going to believe how not happy the rest of us are." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/800279/large/nothappy.jpg?1588451025"> <figcaption>This is about the size of it.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Politically, the Republican Party’s current approach is so self-sabotaging that I figured I must be missing something. Someone must have a plan, a theory, an alternative. Chaos is Trump’s brand, but surely McConnell won’t walk passively back into the minority. And so I began asking Republican Hill staffers and policy experts for correction. What wasn’t I seeing? What was the GOP’s policy theory right now? What do Republicans actually<span> </span><em>want</em>?</p> <p style="text-align:start">I posed these questions to Tea Party conservatives, populist reformers, and old-line Reaganites. The answer, in every case, was the same. Different Republican senators have different ideas, but across the party as a whole, there is no plan. The Republican Party has no policy theory for how to contain the coronavirus, nor for how to drive the economy back to full employment. And there is no plan to come up with a plan, nor anyone with both the interest and authority to do so. The Republican Party is broken as a policymaking institution, and it has been for some time.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I don’t think you’re missing anything,” said a top Republican Senate staffer. “You have a whole bunch of people in the Senate posturing for 2024 rather than governing for the crisis we’re in.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">“There hasn’t been a coherent GOP policy on anything for almost five years now,” a senior aide to a conservative Senate Republican told me. “Other than judges, I don’t think you can point to any united policy priorities.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Oh. Well, then.</p> </blockquote> <p>So, perhaps we can not fret <em>too much</em> about schemes like this:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Wherein the Senator from Wisconsin—like the late Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin—tries to weaponize his committee.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Here&amp;#39;s Johnson&amp;#39;s move on opening day of other party&amp;#39;s national convention.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;His tweet thread is weak tea.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Fellow GOP senators going down with him for this?? &lt;a href="https://t.co/0YantCpNcO"&gt;https://t.co/0YantCpNcO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rgoodlaw/status/1295451845482229761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Wherein the Senator from Wisconsin—like the late Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin—tries to weaponize his committee.<br><br>Here's Johnson's move on opening day of other party's national convention.<br><br>His tweet thread is weak tea.<br><br>Fellow GOP senators going down with him for this?? <a href="https://t.co/0YantCpNcO">https://t.co/0YantCpNcO</a></p>— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/rgoodlaw/status/1295451845482229761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And RonJohn’s skullduggery is not going unanswered by Democrats:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Leader Schumer: "It is disappointing that Chairman Ron Johnson would rather spend time pushing Russian propaganda instead of holding a hearing on the damaging operational changes at the Postal Service ... The Senate must also hold Postmaster General DeJoy accountable."&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1295493120591908864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Leader Schumer: "It is disappointing that Chairman Ron Johnson would rather spend time pushing Russian propaganda instead of holding a hearing on the damaging operational changes at the Postal Service ... The Senate must also hold Postmaster General DeJoy accountable."</p>— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1295493120591908864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🌊 ☑️ Election News ☑️ 🌊</h3> <h4>Possible Election 2020 Surprises?</h4> <p>Our own WIneRev remarked yesterday that he predicts a surprise on election night from either Alaska or Utah, and next is a good news story which supports that prediction!</p> <p><a href="https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2020/08/15/latter-day-saints-laud/" target="_blank">Latter-day Saints laud Joe Biden at national event, say he reflects their values better than Trump</a>, Lee Davidson, Salt Lake Tribune, August 15, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="utah-mormons-trump.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/628245/large/utah-mormons-trump.jpg?1546468550" title="utah-mormons-trump.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left !important">Dr. Robert Taber, co-chairman of LDS Democrats, said Democrats in the church will likely hear “a lot this election from supporters of the Republican president about tradition and how that means we, as Latter-day Saints, must support him,” as most members have voted Republican for decades.</p> </div> <div> <p style="text-align:left !important">But he said church tradition also includes those members who flooded the airport in Salt Lake City a few years ago to protest Trump’s ban on immigration from Muslim countries, and more recently members who marched for “school safety, fairness for women, and Black lives.” He said it also includes former Arizona GOP Sen. Jeff Flake, who announced he will vote for Biden. ✄</p> </div> <div> <p style="text-align:left !important"><span>(Atlanta attorney Bryndis) Roberts said the election “gives us the chance to move forward on women’s rights, pay equality and reasonable day care for working parents. It gives us the right to move forward for good, decent, affordable housing for all and to adjust an inhumane immigration system where we no longer keep children in cages.”</span></p> <p style="text-align:left !important"><span>“Immigration and refugees align greatly with what our church has focused their efforts on,” said LDS Democrats-Idaho Chairman Jordan Morales.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Good News For Voting Rights in Missouri</h4> <p>Curbside KC is helping voters figure out how to vote early, vote absentee and they are helping with one of the biggest impediments to absentee voting in MO — the requirement for a notary signature on an absentee ballot. They’ve simplified the process with clear instructions at the link embedded in the quote below. Here is a link to the podcast discussing the initiative:</p> <p><a href="https://www.kcur.org/podcast/up-to-date/2020-08-14/for-kansas-city-voters-finding-a-notary-to-validate-mail-in-ballots-just-got-easier" target="_blank">For Kansas City Voters, Finding A Notary To Validate Mail-In Ballots Just Got Easier</a>, NPR in Kansas CIty, (podcast), August 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Missouri requires that most mail-in ballots be notarized before being returned to local election boards via United States Postal Service. To help ease that process,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.curbsidenotary.org/" target="_blank">Curbside KC</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>is partnering with local coffee shops and restaurants to make notaries more accessible to voters.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>And Good News in Kentucky</h4> <p>Surprising support for voting rights from a Republican secretary of state (even if he does sound a little bit “poor me” about it, I’ll take it):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I&amp;#39;ve taken immense heat for my decisions on how to make our elections safe and successful, but notice no one is arguing I&amp;#39;ve made these decisions in my own or anyone else&amp;#39;s political interests. Show me the door in 2023 but until then I&amp;#39;ll act on my knowledge and my conscience.&lt;/p&gt;— Secretary Adams (@Adams4SecState) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Adams4SecState/status/1295392549859921922?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I've taken immense heat for my decisions on how to make our elections safe and successful, but notice no one is arguing I've made these decisions in my own or anyone else's political interests. Show me the door in 2023 but until then I'll act on my knowledge and my conscience.</p>— Secretary Adams (@Adams4SecState) <a href="https://twitter.com/Adams4SecState/status/1295392549859921922?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>More good news in Missouri: the state legislature had drafted a new ballot initiative hoping to gut the very redistricting reforms that voters had approved in Nov. 2018 and the wording was...ahem...”misleading”, to say the least. The way they wrote the measure summarizing SJR38, it sounds like further reforms — when in fact, it’s all a load of bull meant to hoodwink MO voters into OKing the repeal of the very redistricting reforms they just approved in 2018! The judge ruled in favor of the petitioners (MO citizens) and she didn’t mince words:</p> <blockquote> <p>“Stated succinctly...the legislature’s summary fails to inform voters that adopting SJR38 would eliminate the legislative redistricting rules Missourians overwhelmingly adopted just two years ago to combat political gerrymandering and replace them with a redistricting process similar in substance to the one they just voted to abandon. The legislature’s summary instead seeks to entice voters to adopt the measure by misleadingly overstating a modest $5 reduction in allowable lobbyist gifts and a $100 reduction to Senate campaign contribution limits. Where, as here, the legislature seeks to override the recent, clearly expressed will of Missouri voters on a matter as important as redistricting, the law requires that voters be plainly informed what they are being asked to consider.” (full 10 page opinion at link below)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trial court in Missouri finds the ballot description for GOP efforts to gut Missouri redistricting reforms is misleading to voters and orders it rewritten. Order here: &lt;a href="https://t.co/FnOEuxZLex"&gt;https://t.co/FnOEuxZLex&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fairmaps?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#fairmaps&lt;/a&gt; 1/&lt;/p&gt;— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/mcpli/status/1295389289736556545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trial court in Missouri finds the ballot description for GOP efforts to gut Missouri redistricting reforms is misleading to voters and orders it rewritten. Order here: <a href="https://t.co/FnOEuxZLex">https://t.co/FnOEuxZLex</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fairmaps?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#fairmaps</a> 1/</p>— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) <a href="https://twitter.com/mcpli/status/1295389289736556545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>Nifty note: The judge also ordered new wording to be used which clearly states the purpose of the ballot measure and eliminates the obfuscation. Check it out, it is beautiful!</strong></p> </blockquote> <h4>meanwhile, in michigan</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Breaking it down a bit further: &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;2 of 13 of the Michigan commissioners will be Black (both are Democratic members). In addition, one of the non-major party members is Asian. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;5 of 13 commissioners will come from Metro Detroit. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fairmaps?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#fairmaps&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/mcpli/status/1295442236918964225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 17, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Breaking it down a bit further: <br><br>2 of 13 of the Michigan commissioners will be Black (both are Democratic members). In addition, one of the non-major party members is Asian. <br><br>5 of 13 commissioners will come from Metro Detroit. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/fairmaps?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#fairmaps</a></p>— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) <a href="https://twitter.com/mcpli/status/1295442236918964225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>And in Illinois</h4> <p>My governor ain’t playing  <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/08/11/illinois-coronavirus-assaulting-worker-enforcing-face-masks-felony/3342856001/" target="_blank">It's now a felony in Illinois to assault a retail worker who is enforcing face mask rules</a>, Grace Hauck, USA Today, August 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/588438/large/C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg?1536881693" title="C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Assaulting a worker who is enforcing face mask policies can now be prosecuted as aggravated battery in Illinois – a felony charge.</p> <p>Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a law Friday that expands the definition of aggravated battery to include attacks against a retail worker who is conveying public health guidance, such as requiring patrons to wear face coverings or promoting social distancing.</p> <p>"It's clear there is still an even greater need to get people to wear masks – especially to protect front line workers, whether they’re at the front of a store asking you to put on your mask or whether they’re responding to 911 calls to save those in distress," Pritzker said in a statement.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Social Justice</h4> <p>The tide for justice in all forms is steadily rising, and even the last desperate outrageous behavior of the old white guard cannot stop it. Check out these kids; they have found their power:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/high-schoolers-across-the-country-are-banding-together-to-demand-their-schools-teach-more-black-history-and-read-more-black-authors/2020/08/15/a42e6d12-dbef-11ea-809e-b8be57ba616e_story.html?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">High school students are demanding schools teach more Black history, include more Black authors</a>, Hannah Natanson, Washington Post, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Students have advocated for curriculum reform before in American history. But this moment is unique in several ways: For one thing, it’s taking place in the midst of a pandemic that has plunged the nation into crisis. Still, the shifting of human interaction online has actually played into students’ hands — more adept at social media than adults, teens are making canny use of sites such as Facebook and Instagram to plan reforms, put pressure on school officials and draw inspiration from other activists.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>This effort is also being led by a younger cohort than previous pushes, many of which took place on college campuses. But what’s most striking, historians said, is the scope of the movement — while past advocacy focused on a particular high school or district, today groups of students are popping up everywhere.<span> </span>Although no one is tracking exact numbers,<span> </span><a href="https://www.diversifyournarrative.com/meet-our-board">#DiversifyOurNarrative</a>, a California-based initiative that helps students push for curriculum reform by offering them email templates and suggestions for anti-racist texts, said it has signed up more than 3,500 students in 250 U.S. school districts since its founding in June.</p> <p><span>“It’s this sort of, how to put it, national constellation,” said George Mason University assistant professor Mark Helmsing, who teaches a class on education reform.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Late-breaking social justice Good News</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/52715601e10bfd01f48b8aa10cf22925" target="_blank">Trump rule on transgender health blocked at the 11th hour</a>, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, AP News, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="© REUTERS/Joshua Roberts Supporters of gay marriage hold rainbow-colored flags as they rally in front of the Supreme Court in Washington" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/395966/large/LGBTQ_win_BBAACB9.jpg?1493681927" title="© REUTERS/Joshua Roberts Supporters of gay marriage hold rainbow-colored flags as they rally in front of the Supreme Court in Washington"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge blocked the Trump administration on Monday from enforcing a new regulation that would roll back health care protections for transgender people.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Finalized days after the Supreme Court barred sex discrimination against LGBT individuals on the job, the regulation from the federal Department of Health and Human Services was to have taken effect Tuesday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Monday’s preliminary injunction from U.S. District Court Judge Frederic Block in Brooklyn bars the administration from enforcing the regulation until the case can be heard in court and decided. Block indicated he thought the Trump administration’s so-called transgender rule is invalid in light of the Supreme Court ruling in June on a case involving similar issues in the context of job discrimination.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=KExE6wL_GFM" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/KExE6wL_GFM">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>💪 🐎 Dems Are in Array 🐎 💪</h3> <p>The Democratic National Convention — the “unconventional convention” — began last night and so far I am quite liking this format! I know traditionalists will be missing the views of a crowded stadium and all the signs and noise and long pauses between speakers or musical performances, but I warmed right up to this zoom-style convention as soon as I saw those 50+ young people dressed in red, white and blue singing the national anthem. From that point on, I was hooked. :-) But the most anticipated thing about the evening was Michelle Obama’s speech.</p> <p><a href="https://apps.npr.org/liveblogs/20200817-dnc/share/i-know-joe-michelle-obama-24.html" target="_blank">Michelle Obama Calls Biden ‘A Profoundly Decent Man’ In Prerecorded<span> </span>Address</a>, NPR, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="In this image from video, former first lady Michelle Obama speaks during the first night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 17, 2020. (Democratic National Convention via AP)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/845278/large/AP_20231104902828.jpg?1597720214" title="In this image from video, former first lady Michelle Obama speaks during the first night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 17, 2020. (Democratic National Convention via AP)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Former first lady Michelle Obama is set to highlight Joe Biden’s background and character in her speech<span> </span>tonight.</p> <p>“I know Joe. He is a profoundly decent man guided by faith,” Obama says in a prerecorded video excerpt released by the Democratic National<span> </span>Committee.</p> <p>“He was a terrific vice president. He knows what it takes to rescue an economy, beat back a pandemic and lead our country. And he listens. He will tell the truth and trust science. He will make smart plans and manage a good team. And he will govern as someone who’s lived a life that the rest of us can recognize,” the former first lady<span> </span>adds.</p> </blockquote> <p>Update: OK, that speech was amazing. Here is an article on it and the speech video is embedded in the article:</p> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/2020-elections/2020/08/michelle-obamas-speech-was-the-heart-and-soul-of-the-dncs-opening-night/" target="_blank">Michelle Obama’s Speech Was the Heart and Soul of the DNC’s Opening Night</a>, Becca Andrews, Mother Jones, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="Throw-Shade_Building.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/467823/large/Throw-Shade_Building.gif?1509631249" title="Throw-Shade_Building.gif"> <figcaption>Donny’s an incompetent loser-<br> “it is what it is.”</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">When it came to discussing President Donald Trump’s tenure outright, she got straight to the point. “Donald Trump is the wrong president for our country,” Obama said steadily. “He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">She was also unwavering in her support for her husband’s former vice president. “Now, Joe is not perfect, and he’d be the first to tell you that,” she said. “But there is no perfect candidate, no perfect president. And his ability to learn and grow—we find in that the kind of humility and maturity that so many of us yearn for right now. Because Joe Biden has served this nation his entire life without ever losing sight of who he is; but more than that, he has never lost sight of who we are, all of us.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">She continued: “If you take one thing from my words tonight, it is this: if you think things cannot possibly get worse, trust me, they can; and they will if we don’t make a change in this election. If we have any hope of ending this chaos, we have got to vote for Joe Biden like our lives depend on it.”</p> </div> </blockquote> <h3>☀️ Ray of Sunshine ☀️</h3> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/da33621dda015449b44a4762e743cb6b" target="_blank">National Zoo awaits birth of pandemic panda cub</a>, Ashraf Khalil, AP News, August 17, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="panda.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/795962/large/panda.jpg?1587665289" title="panda.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Zookeepers at Washington’s National Zoo are on furry black-and-white baby watch after concluding that venerable giant panda matriarch Mei Ziang is pregnant and could give birth this week. It’s a welcome bit of good news amid a pandemic that kept the zoo shuttered for months. ✄ </span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Although so-called “phantom pregnancies” are common with pandas and other large bears, Baker-Masson said an ultrasound scan revealed a “really strong-looking, fantastic fetus” that could be delivered this week.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The zoo posted a video from the ultrasound on Instagram. “Keep your paws crossed!” the zoo posted, reporting that the fetus was “kicking and swimming in the amniotic fluid.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The announcement of the pregnancy has already touched off a fresh round of panda-mania for one of the zoo’s feature attractions. Viewership on<span> </span><a href="https://nationalzoo.si.edu/webcams/panda-cam" target="_blank">the zoo’s panda-cam</a><span> </span>has increased 800%.</p> </blockquote> <h4>You Knew It Was Gonna Happen</h4> <p>John Kasich at a crossroad (or two diverging paths? idk, whatever, it was a pretty heavy-handed visual metaphor) ... was just too memeworthy:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content="&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;when I have to decide between laundry and vacuuming &lt;a href="https://t.co/8XTjN3oOYX"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8XTjN3oOYX&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Olivia Paschal (@oliviacpaschal) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/oliviacpaschal/status/1295545765729902593?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 18, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;"><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>when I have to decide between laundry and vacuuming <a href="https://t.co/8XTjN3oOYX">pic.twitter.com/8XTjN3oOYX</a></p>— Olivia Paschal (@oliviacpaschal) <a href="https://twitter.com/oliviacpaschal/status/1295545765729902593?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 18, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Poll perspective: <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/8/17/21372012/trump-biden-cnn-poll-dnc" target="_blank">CNN has Trump nipping at Biden’s heels. ABC has Biden cruising. The truth is in the middle.</a> Aaron Rupar, Vox, August 17, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/17/people-are-taking-trumps-usps-cheating-seriously--and-we-have-impeachment-to-thank/" target="_blank" title="">People are taking Trump's USPS cheating seriously — and we have impeachment to thank</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, August 17, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Terrific piece on the history and importance of the USPS: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-communications/we-cant-afford-to-lose-the-postal-service?utm_campaign=falcon&utm_brand=tny&utm_social-type=owned&mbid=social_twitter&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social" target="_blank">We Can’t Afford to Lose the Postal Service</a>, Casey Cep, the New Yorker, May 2, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Also not new, but helpful: <a href="https://ips-dc.org/how-congress-manufactured-a-postal-crisis-and-how-to-fix-it/" target="_blank">How Congress Manufactured a Postal Crisis — And How to Fix it</a>, Sarah Anderson, Scott Klinger, Brian Wakamo, Institute for Policy Studies, July 15, 2019.</p> <p>⚡️ Good explainer (but infuriating): <a href="https://www.dcreport.org/2020/06/01/inside-the-radical-republican-war-on-the-post-office/" target="_blank">The Post Office: Inside The Radical Republican War</a>, Erik Sherman, DC Report, August 17, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Great historical perspective: <span><a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/158921/socialism-american-pence-biden-sanders-2020-election" target="_blank">Socialism Is as American as Apple Pie</a>, Bruce Bartlett, New Republic, August 17, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ Food for thought: </span><a href="https://thebulwark.com/unplug-from-the-matrix/" target="_blank">Unplug from the Matrix</a>, Greg Hurwitz and Marshall Herskovitz, the Bulwark, August 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Thoughtful, validating piece: <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-life-you-thought-you-were-going-to-have-is-gone/" target="_blank">The life you thought you were going to have is gone</a>, Lori Fox, Globe and Mail, August 14, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved from home:</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834437/large/IMG_6799.jpg?1595291728" title="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers"> <figcaption>Postcards to Voters!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank" title="">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://map.betoorourke.com/" target="_blank">Powered By People</a> — Beto O’Rourke’s virtual phone bank center for flipping Texas BLUE!</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— Vote.org  — This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Gotta rush to watch the convention!</p> <p>Let’s soak up the positivity and the hope for a better future, Gnusies, and then let’s get to work! I’m so glad to be doing this work with all of you!</p> <p>Happy Tuesday!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=a8nbCcTUkHQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/a8nbCcTUkHQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) bidenharris DNC Election2020 GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden KamalaHarris PostalService Recommended UnconventionalConvention UnitedStatesPostalService _1968515 Tue, 18 Aug 2020 11:00:04 +0000 We Are Confident, Not Complacent - Good News Roundup, August 4, 2020 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/8/4/1963723/-We-Are-Confident-Not-Complacent-Good-News-Roundup-August-4-2020 <h3>Good day, Newsies! 🎈🎂 Happy Birthday, President Barack Obama! 🎂🎈</h3> <p>It’s August already and for once I am pleased to see the weeks flying by. Soon, this nightmare is going to end and we will be celebrating a huge blue wave in November. I know there is a lot of concern about “complacency” and over-confidence among Democrats — but while those concerns are understandable, they are misplaced. NOBODY is going to be complacent this year. We have been through hell and we are not going to rest until we’ve vanquished the devil and all of his minions.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/606832/large/Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg?1541179406" title="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>We can have confidence because all indications point to a landslide Democratic victory in November. We will work our hearts out to GOTV and make sure those votes get counted. And we could very possibly win all three branches of government. There may be some big surprises, too (such as formerly “red” states turning blue). The complex PTSD we are all suffering from makes it almost impossible to trust the evidence that supports us being confident, but it is there in abundance. Lots of news below will give you some highlights just from the past couple of days. And you will find some excellent articles on this theme in the Lightning Roundup which I put there because they are too good to merely excerpt 2-3 paragraphs.</p> <p>It is true that trump is going to behave horribly over the next few months. It is true that he may succeed in doing some awful things. It is also true that he will blurt out whatever is top of his mind every day — and he will throw out ridiculous threats and outrageous claims to powers he does not have. The media will glom on to these insane pronouncements as if trump has superpowers — as if by merely saying some crazy thing, he can make it happen.</p> <p>But history has proven to us by now that most of what comes out of trump’s mouth is pure bullsh*t. He doesn’t think things through, he has no strategy, no evil plan. He is humiliated and angry at Tik-Tok, so he threatens to “ban” it. He doesn’t have the power to ban media in a free country with a 1st Amendment. He is fearful of losing the election so he threatens to interfere with elections in various states; but he has no power to control elections. That power is constitutionally assigned to the states to administrate as they see fit. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump is tougher on China for allowing TikTok to be used to mock him than on Russia for arming the Taliban to kill US soldiers&lt;/p&gt;— (((DeanObeidallah))) (@DeanObeidallah) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DeanObeidallah/status/1290333425862402048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump is tougher on China for allowing TikTok to be used to mock him than on Russia for arming the Taliban to kill US soldiers</p>Ã¢Â€Â” (((DeanObeidallah))) (@DeanObeidallah) <a href="https://twitter.com/DeanObeidallah/status/1290333425862402048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Think of the history: the threats, the chaos, the media panics — and most of it came to nought because he cannot actually do the shit he blurts out wanting to do. Certainly, a president has a lot of power and we all know he can do plenty of damage with the powers he does have, but the strange and lucky thing about a narcissist like trump is that he has no strategic ability, no forethought or foresight. He is a creature driven by primitive emotions — rage, envy, fear. And everything he does is a reaction to those feelings — a lashing out against whatever or whomever arouses those feelings in him, or makes him feel threatened. And the things that threaten him are petty and ridiculous in many ways. A slight to that ego — perhaps the suggestion that he is less than he thinks he is — will take up his entire attention.</p> <p>What we need to remember is that as scary as it is to have this madman in control of our government, <em>he is not in control of himself</em>. His behavior is erratic and impulsive and self-destructive because he cannot help himself. And by extension, that means he is not really in control of the government either because he simply does not have the self-discipline or the capability to do so. His enablers, the Republican party, are doing all the real dirty work while using trump as a rubber stamp when they can. But they cannot control him any more than he can control himself. He is going to self-destruct and he is going to bring them down in the process.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="black poodle leaps toward flying ball, with smaller black dog close behind." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/839976/large/eyeonball.jpg?1596522890" title="black poodle leaps toward flying ball, with smaller black dog close behind."> <figcaption>Keep your eyes on the prize, like me!</figcaption> </figure> <p>We know we are in for a horrible few months. It is unavoidable with a pathologically disordered personality in the office of the president surrounded by an evil cabal of greedy enablers. However, we can at least keep in mind that he is not an evil genius, not even a stable genius, and all his flailing around will be like a bull in a china shop — he may cause a lot of damage (already has done) but it is incoherent and undisciplined and he is not all-powerful. And his unstoppably reactionary flailing will disrupt and eventually destroy the plans of those connivers around him who do have discipline.</p> <p>Meanwhile, on the side of the people are: Millions and millions of <em>the people</em>! And thousands of experts in many fields who are working ceaselessly to get us through these final months. We are, after all, the ones we have been waiting for and we are the ones who will save the country. We the people — collectively — will rescue each other and the country.</p> <p>Let’s remember that humans are human — there will be mistakes and snags and there always are. Let’s not allow the madman in the WH to make us mad, too. Angry yes, but not <em>mad</em> lol. We need to keep our wits about us and stay focused on the goal. They’ll throw everything they can at us to try to distract us from the goal — so our job is to keep our eyes on that prize! No matter what!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I expect this election to be more chaotic than usual. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;But then, it might not be. States and voter rights groups are preparing. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;GA, to take one example, now has dropoff places for absentee ballots. The populated areas are working to accommodate people going to polls.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;11/&lt;/p&gt;— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1289242062395564033?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 31, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I expect this election to be more chaotic than usual. <br><br>But then, it might not be. States and voter rights groups are preparing. <br><br>GA, to take one example, now has dropoff places for absentee ballots. The populated areas are working to accommodate people going to polls.<br><br>11/</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) <a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1289242062395564033?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 31, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>As Tea Pain says, don’t waste energy on fear — just expect trump & company to pull all sorts of corrupt and criminal and threatening shit — just expect hell from devils. And keep on going.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;There&amp;#39;s no need to fear. He&amp;#39;s 100% gonna do it.&lt;a href="https://t.co/ix6a0yU8Cv"&gt;https://t.co/ix6a0yU8Cv&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TeaPainUSA/status/1290313936940806147?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>There's no need to fear. He's 100% gonna do it.<a href="https://t.co/ix6a0yU8Cv">https://t.co/ix6a0yU8Cv</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/TeaPainUSA/status/1290313936940806147?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>We’ve got an election to win and a country to save. Keep your eyes on the prize and don’t ever give up.</p> <h3>🎶 Opening Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=O1-4u9W-bns" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/O1-4u9W-bns" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>☑️ Election News ☑️</h3> <h4>Analysis, Ratings, Maps and Other Stuff</h4> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/08/03/897202359/2020-electoral-map-ratings-trump-slides-biden-advantage-expands-over-270-votes" target="_blank">2020 Electoral Map Ratings: Trump Slides, Biden Advantage Expands Over 270 Votes</a>, Domenico Montanaro, NPR News, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">It's hard to believe that the hole President Trump dug for himself could get deeper, but it has.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A record and widening majority of Americans disapprove of the job he's doing when it comes to handling the coronavirus pandemic; he gets poor scores on race relations; he's seen a<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/07/26/895228366/trumps-trying-to-appeal-to-real-housewives-and-white-suburbs-but-they-re-declini">suburban erosion<span> </span></a>despite efforts to<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/07/22/893899254/down-in-the-polls-trump-pitches-fear-they-want-to-destroy-our-suburbs">win over suburban voters with fear</a>; and all that has led to a worsened outlook for Trump against Democrat Joe Biden in the presidential election.</p> <p style="text-align:start">As a result, in the past month and a half, the latest NPR analysis of the Electoral College has several states shifting in Biden's favor, and he now has a 297-170 advantage over Trump with exactly three months to go until Election Day.</p> </blockquote> <p>I think so too → <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/8/1/1965682/-A-Democratic-wave-pickup-of-10-Senate-seats-is-a-real-possibility?utm_campaign=trending" target="_blank">A Democratic wave pickup of 10 Senate seats is a real possibility.</a> kos, August 1, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I’m proud to endorse this diverse and hopeful collection of thoughtful, empathetic, and highly qualified Democrats. If you’re in one of their districts or states, make sure you vote for them this fall. And if you can, vote early—by mail or in person. &lt;a href="https://t.co/PSm3Rf3wkF"&gt;https://t.co/PSm3Rf3wkF&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/7RXrJriBz8"&gt;pic.twitter.com/7RXrJriBz8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1290301921673134082?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>IÃ¢Â€Â™m proud to endorse this diverse and hopeful collection of thoughtful, empathetic, and highly qualified Democrats. If youÃ¢Â€Â™re in one of their districts or states, make sure you vote for them this fall. And if you can, vote earlyÃ¢Â€Â”by mail or in person. <a href="https://t.co/PSm3Rf3wkF">https://t.co/PSm3Rf3wkF</a> <a href="https://t.co/7RXrJriBz8">pic.twitter.com/7RXrJriBz8</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Barack Obama (@BarackObama) <a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1290301921673134082?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Nevada Passes Legislation to make voting easier and safer</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/nevada-lawmakers-mailing-voters-ballots-trump-slams-move-72146935?cid=clicksource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_headlines_hed" target="_blank">Nevada to mail all voters ballots; Trump promises lawsuit,</a> Sam Metz, ABC News, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="10195707_web1_sisolak.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/535718/large/10195707_web1_sisolak.jpg?1524632612" title="10195707_web1_sisolak.jpg"> <figcaption>I like this guy’s friendly face!<br> Good job, Gov. Sisolak and Nevada legislature!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak signed legislation Monday to mail all of the state's active voters ballots ahead of the November<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/Elections" target="_blank">election</a>, a move being criticized by President Donald Trump, who promised a lawsuit to block the action. ✄</p> <p>Nevada joins seven states that plan to automatically send voters mail ballots amid the coronavirus pandemic, including California and Vermont, which moved earlier this summer to adopt automatic mail ballot policies.</p> <p>The plan drew criticism from Trump after making its way through the Legislature over the weekend. The president has long claimed that mail ballots would compromise the integrity of the election, but the consensus among experts is that all forms of voter fraud are rare. ✄</p> <p>Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid applauded the lawmakers' decision and called Trump's opposition desperate.</p> <p>“He’s lying about our state leaders and threatening a bogus lawsuit simply because Democrats made it easier for people to vote," Reid said in a statement.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Minnesota court throws out the witness requirement for Absentee ballots:</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: In big victory for voting rights, Minnesota court ORDERS for November 2020 Election:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;1. Ballots postmarked by Election Day must be counted. &lt;br&gt;2. Witness signature requirement is invalid.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Victory for Democracy and another defeat for &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GOP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@GOP&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;a href="https://t.co/38vWoYgRtL"&gt;https://t.co/38vWoYgRtL&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/SZZzyjuQC6"&gt;pic.twitter.com/SZZzyjuQC6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1290419851186647045?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: In big victory for voting rights, Minnesota court ORDERS for November 2020 Election:<br><br>1. Ballots postmarked by Election Day must be counted. <br>2. Witness signature requirement is invalid.<br><br>Victory for Democracy and another defeat for <a href="https://twitter.com/GOP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GOP</a>.<a href="https://t.co/38vWoYgRtL">https://t.co/38vWoYgRtL</a> <a href="https://t.co/SZZzyjuQC6">pic.twitter.com/SZZzyjuQC6</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1290419851186647045?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>*pResident’s own actions bolstered court decision</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Minnesota court uses &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@realDonaldTrump&lt;/a&gt; tweet to reject his lawyer&amp;#39;s efforts to block our voting rights lawsuit.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;There are times I feel bad for his lawyers, and then I remember that they agreed to represent Trump. &lt;a href="https://t.co/HTSttVTi5E"&gt;pic.twitter.com/HTSttVTi5E&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1290442954079862790?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 4, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Minnesota court uses <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a> tweet to reject his lawyer's efforts to block our voting rights lawsuit.<br><br>There are times I feel bad for his lawyers, and then I remember that they agreed to represent Trump. <a href="https://t.co/HTSttVTi5E">pic.twitter.com/HTSttVTi5E</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) <a href="https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1290442954079862790?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 4, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>the attack on mail voting is backfiring in other ways too</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/republicans-race-to-promote-mail-voting-as-trumps-attacks-discourage-his-own-supporters-from-embracing-the-practice/2020/08/03/9dd1d988-d1d9-11ea-9038-af089b63ac21_story.html" target="_blank">As Trump leans into attacks on mail voting, GOP officials confront signs of Republican turnout crisis</a>, Amy Gardner and Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791299/large/GettyImages-1058146940.jpg?1586796140" title="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>President Trump’s unfounded attacks on mail balloting are discouraging his own supporters from embracing the practice, according to polls and Republican leaders across the country, prompting growing alarm that one of the central strategies of his campaign is threatening GOP prospects in November. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Glen Bolger, a pollster with the Republican firm Public Opinion Strategies, said that in one swing state he declined to identify, only 15 percent of voters planning to cast ballots by mail were Trump supporters. “Republicans are skeptical about voting by mail, and that’s a problem up and down the ballot,” he said. ✄</span></p> <p><span>“Please don’t confuse North Carolina’s absentee system with other states’ all-mail elections,” read the message from party chairman. “NCGOP and JoCo GOP agrees with the President that our current absentee ballot request system is safe and secure.”</span></p> <p><span>“Why is the GOP sending this out,” wrote another, adding: “You know damn well that we are arguing against this, and here it is our own damn party sending this horse dung out?!!! Whoever is in charge of this should be fired. I am going to the polls, Don’t send me one.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>More here: <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/03/trumps-assault-on-mail-voting-threatens-his-reelection-bid-390949" target="_blank">Trump’s assault on mail voting threatens his reelection bid</a>, Christopher Cadelago and Zach Montellaro, Politico, August 3, 2020.</p> <h4>Citizen Groups Demand Postmaster general be Investigated</h4> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/03/watchdogs-demand-investigation-into-voter-suppression-tactics-by-trump-donor-running-usps/" target="_blank">Watchdogs demand investigation into “voter suppression tactics” by Trump donor running USPS</a>, Igor Derysh, Salon, August 3, 2020.</p> <h4>Helpful Info to check out now, so you’re prepared</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;If you are worried about mailing in time (and you should be) here is a state by state list of how soon a ballot has to arrive. &lt;a href="https://t.co/REiniZ7CWe"&gt;https://t.co/REiniZ7CWe&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/EoI609DWdk"&gt;https://t.co/EoI609DWdk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Dirk Schwenk (Esq, gddmit) (@DirkSchwenk) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DirkSchwenk/status/1290257856671825923?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>If you are worried about mailing in time (and you should be) here is a state by state list of how soon a ballot has to arrive. <a href="https://t.co/REiniZ7CWe">https://t.co/REiniZ7CWe</a> <a href="https://t.co/EoI609DWdk">https://t.co/EoI609DWdk</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Dirk Schwenk (Esq, gddmit) (@DirkSchwenk) <a href="https://twitter.com/DirkSchwenk/status/1290257856671825923?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mail-in-ballot-voting-avoid-rejection/" target="_blank">Why some mail-in ballots are rejected and how to make sure your vote counts</a>, Caitlin Huey-Burns and Adam Brewster, CBS News, August 3, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=inXC_lab-34" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/inXC_lab-34" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>Yesterday’s big news came from New York. Looks like DA Cyrus Vance is pushing hard on serious trump cases. This news was revealed because trump’s lawyers were trying <em>again</em> to defy the SCOTUS ruling that he must turn over his taxes and financial records.</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/08/court-filings-suggest-trump-is-being-investigated-for-fraud-report/" target="_blank">Court filings suggest Trump is being investigated for fraud: report</a>, Sarah K. Burris, Raw Story, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>New court filings in New York seem to indicate that President Donald Trump may be under investigation for fraud.</p> <p>According to the<span> </span><em>New York Times</em>, the documents sought by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/03/nyregion/donald-trump-taxes-cyrus-vance.html" target="_blank">indicate a “significantly broader inquiry</a><span> </span>than the prosecutors have acknowledged in the past.”</p> <p>The filings argue that Trump should be forced to comply with subpoenas demanding eight years of his personal and corporate tax returns due to “undisputed” reports about the president’s business practices.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Manhattan DA&amp;#39;s office told a federal court today that it&amp;#39;s seeking President Trump&amp;#39;s financial records as it investigates "public allegations of possible criminal activity at ... New York-County based Trump Organization dating back over a decade." &lt;a href="https://t.co/WaO6mxBHjn"&gt;pic.twitter.com/WaO6mxBHjn&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brad Heath (@bradheath) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/bradheath/status/1290328815827394562?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Manhattan DA's office told a federal court today that it's seeking President Trump's financial records as it investigates "public allegations of possible criminal activity at ... New York-County based Trump Organization dating back over a decade." <a href="https://t.co/WaO6mxBHjn">pic.twitter.com/WaO6mxBHjn</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Brad Heath (@bradheath) <a href="https://twitter.com/bradheath/status/1290328815827394562?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>More here with no paywall: <a href="https://apnews.com/ffdad3a4983088224245dbf761c6d113" target="_blank">Prosecutor seeking Trump’s taxes cites probe of his business</a>, Larry Neumeister, AP News, August 3, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) says it would be a “double standard” to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before 2021 &amp;amp; “would not support it.”&lt;/p&gt;— Alex Bolton (@alexanderbolton) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/alexanderbolton/status/1290248244682018816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) says it would be a Ã¢Â€Âœdouble standardÃ¢Â€Â to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before 2021 & Ã¢Â€Âœwould not support it.Ã¢Â€Â</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Alex Bolton (@alexanderbolton) <a href="https://twitter.com/alexanderbolton/status/1290248244682018816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Justice is coming for dead-eyed Jared, too</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/02/business/kushner-deutsche-trump-rosemary-vrablic.html?referringSource=articleShare" target="_blank">Deutsche Bank Opens Review Into Personal Banker to Trump and Kushner</a>, Jesse Drucker and David Enrich, New York Times, August 2, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The Kushner family has been a client of Ms. Vrablic’s since before she joined Deutsche Bank. In 2011, Mr. Kushner brought Ms. Vrablic to meet his father-in-law. At the time, most mainstream banks<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/18/business/trump-deutsche-bank.html">refused to do business</a><span> </span>with Mr. Trump because of his history of defaults and bankruptcies.</p> <p>“I introduced him to this woman Rosemary,” Mr. Kushner said in closed-door<span> </span><a href="https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/jk25.pdf" target="_blank">testimony</a><span> </span>to the House Intelligence Committee in 2017. “She is one of the biggest private wealth bankers, probably in the world. Amazing banker, amazing woman. Very smart banker. And she banked my family for a long time.” </p> <p><span>Ms. Vrablic and her superiors soon agreed to take Mr. Trump on as a client, even though he had defaulted on a loan from the bank three years earlier. In 2012, Deutsche Bank lent Mr. Trump a total of about $175 million for his newly acquired Doral golf resort outside Miami and for his Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Ms. Vrablic was thrust into the spotlight when Mr. Trump<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/24/business/dealbook/donald-trump-relationship-bankers.html">boasted to The Times</a><span><span> </span>in 2016 about his strong relationship with Deutsche Bank — and inflated Ms. Vrablic’s role at the bank. “Why don’t you call the head of Deutsche Bank? Her name is Rosemary Vrablic,” he said in the interview. “She is the boss.”</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is the start of the Great Unraveling. Trump and Kushner will go down with Vrablic and Deutschebank. A den of thieves.&lt;a href="https://t.co/XdRnfsJ9E2"&gt;https://t.co/XdRnfsJ9E2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tribelaw/status/1290385474683576320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is the start of the Great Unraveling. Trump and Kushner will go down with Vrablic and Deutschebank. A den of thieves.<a href="https://t.co/XdRnfsJ9E2">https://t.co/XdRnfsJ9E2</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) <a href="https://twitter.com/tribelaw/status/1290385474683576320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Re: the EO trying to kick out foreign students </h4> <p>Court dismisses DHS appeal hoping to overturn injunction:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is a big, big win against the administration’s efforts to cut legal immigration. You might not have been following, but on the “impact to attention” ratio, this was a huge score. &lt;a href="https://t.co/J0ybHkOGO7"&gt;https://t.co/J0ybHkOGO7&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Todd Schulte (@TheToddSchulte) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TheToddSchulte/status/1290411029856485376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is a big, big win against the administrationÃ¢Â€Â™s efforts to cut legal immigration. You might not have been following, but on the Ã¢Â€Âœimpact to attentionÃ¢Â€Â ratio, this was a huge score. <a href="https://t.co/J0ybHkOGO7">https://t.co/J0ybHkOGO7</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Todd Schulte (@TheToddSchulte) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheToddSchulte/status/1290411029856485376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>This case could reveal trump ties to Russian mob</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Today, we filed our response to the government&amp;#39;s motion for summary judgment (dismissal). &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We have narrowed our challenges to privacy withholdings (&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FOIA?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#FOIA&lt;/a&gt; Exemptions 6, 7C, and 7D). &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;I&amp;#39;ve uploaded our response to my website: &lt;a href="https://t.co/PbIU6taNUc"&gt;https://t.co/PbIU6taNUc&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;3/&lt;/p&gt;— Seth Hettena (@seth_hettena) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/seth_hettena/status/1290370732556394496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Today, we filed our response to the government's motion for summary judgment (dismissal). <br><br>We have narrowed our challenges to privacy withholdings (<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FOIA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FOIA</a> Exemptions 6, 7C, and 7D). <br><br>I've uploaded our response to my website: <a href="https://t.co/PbIU6taNUc">https://t.co/PbIU6taNUc</a><br><br>3/</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Seth Hettena (@seth_hettena) <a href="https://twitter.com/seth_hettena/status/1290370732556394496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>🎶 Music in honor of the Jupiter/Saturn/Moon skyshow on Aug 1 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=7Xf-Lesrkuc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7Xf-Lesrkuc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Democrats Being Great</h3> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/03/homeland-security-intel-oversight-391076" target="_blank">Democrats to introduce legislation to tighten DHS intel oversight</a>, Betsy Woodruff Swan, Politico, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="The seal of the Department of Homeland Security is seen at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Washington, DC, February 25, 2015. AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/583015/large/GettyImages-464382252.jpg?1535571992" title="The seal of the Department of Homeland Security is seen at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Washington, DC, February 25, 2015. AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On Tuesday, Reps. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and Max Rose (D-N.Y.) will introduce legislation mandating reviews of I&A intelligence products by the Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, they announced. The legislation will also mandate that CRCL train top I&A officials on civil rights and civil liberties, according to the release announcing their plans. Thompson chairs the House Committee on Homeland Security, and Rose chairs its subcommittee on intelligence and counterterrorism.</p> <p>“We can no longer assume that the right thing is going to happen, that this office will no longer be politicized and won’t do things that, quite frankly, infringe on people’s constitutional rights,” Rose told POLITICO. “And so we have to mandate it.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Rep. Adam Schiff not letting DHS hijinks in Portland slide</h4> <p>Letter in link:</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/dhs-portland-protest-adam-schiff-5091d20c-b6e4-4dd5-8173-13f820993efc.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic&utm_content=1100" target="_blank">Schiff announces probe into DHS intelligence activities in Portland</a>, Orion Rummier, Axios, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The House Intelligence Committee will investigate the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis over reports that officials have targeted protesters and journalists in Portland and other cities, chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.)<span> </span><a href="https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1036" target="_blank">announced</a><span> </span>Monday.</p> <p><strong>Driving the news:<span> </span></strong>DHS reassigned its top intelligence official, acting Undersecretary Brian Murphy, after his office analyzed communications between Portland protesters and supplied law enforcement with lists of journalists that had published leaked agency documents, the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/dhs-official-whose-office-compiled-intelligence-reports-on-journalists-and-protesters-has-been-removed-from-his-job/2020/08/01/f01247be-d3ff-11ea-8d32-1ebf4e9d8e0d_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-low_dhsmurphy-11am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">Washington Post first reported</a>.</p> <p><strong>What they're saying:<span> </span></strong>"Let me be clear: reporting regarding the monitoring of peaceful protesters, creating and disseminating intelligence reports about journalists and protesters, and potential exploitation of electronic devices is deeply troubling," Schiff wrote in a letter to acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf on Monday.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Pompous zealot facing scrutiny</h4> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/03/mike-pompeo-aides-subpoena-house-foreign-affairs-committee-390921" target="_blank">House committee subpoenas 4 top Pompeo aides</a>, Kyle Cheney, Politico, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 30: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo testifies for a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on July 30, 2020 to discuss the Trump administration's FY 2021 budget request for the State Department. (Photo by Greg Nash - Pool/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/838239/large/GettyImages-1227840257.jpg?1596131055" title="WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 30: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo testifies for a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on July 30, 2020 to discuss the Trump administration's FY 2021 budget request for the State Department. (Photo by Greg Nash - Pool/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The subpoenas are an escalation in the committee's confrontation with the State Department, which has resisted repeated oversight attempts by the committee since Democrats' impeachment investigation last year.</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>"The Administration continues to cover up the real reasons for Mr. Linick’s firing by stonewalling the Committees’ investigation and refusing to engage in good faith," Engel, House Oversight Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a joint statement. "That stonewalling has made today’s subpoenas necessary." </p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <p><span>Bulatao is seen by Democrats as a linchpin in their investigation,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/10/pompeo-confidant-emerges-as-enforcer-in-fight-over-watchdogs-firing-311466" target="_blank">an enforcer of sorts</a><span><span> </span>for Pompeo who Linick said attempted to bully him into shying away from sensitive investigations about Pompeo's use of taxpayer resources and stewardship of an arms sale to Saudi Arabia. The other aides, Democrats say, were aware of the circumstances of Linick's departure or of the two investigations that he said raised questions about Pompeo's actions. Linick testified to the House Foreign Affairs and House Oversight and Government Reform committees last month, leading the panels to request interviews with Bulatao and the other aides.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3><span>🔥 Ex-Republican Speaks Out 🔥</span></h3> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/08/racism-republican-party-stuart-stevens/" target="_blank">The Republican Party Is Racist and Soulless. Just Ask This Veteran GOP Strategist</a>. David Corn, Mother Jones, Sept/Oct 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong>“It was all a lie”</strong></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WEST ALLIS, WI - NOVEMBER 02: Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (C) sits backstage with advisor Stuart Stevens (L) and personal aide Garrett Jackson (R) before a campaign rally at the Wisconsin Products Pavilion at State Fair Park on November 2, 2012 in West Allis, Wisconsin. With less than one week to go before election day, Mitt Romney is campaigning in Wisconsin and Ohio. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/300902/large/GettyImages-155265880.jpg?1474176698" title="WEST ALLIS, WI - NOVEMBER 02: Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (C) sits backstage with advisor Stuart Stevens (L) and personal aide Garrett Jackson (R) before a campaign rally at the Wisconsin Products Pavilion at State Fair Park on November 2, 2012 in West Allis, Wisconsin. With less than one week to go before election day, Mitt Romney is campaigning in Wisconsin and Ohio. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>GOP strategist Stuart Stevens (with Mitt Romney)</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">This was a stunning indictment coming from a longtime political consultant who had toiled on five Republican presidential campaigns and numerous Senate and gubernatorial races. “The Republican Party has been a cartel,” Stevens said excitedly. “And no one asks a cartel, ‘What’s your ideological purpose?’ You don’t ask OPEC, ‘What’s your ideology?’ You don’t ask a drug gang, ‘What’s your program?’ The Republicans exist for the pursuit of power for no purpose.”</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">He huffed that the Republican Party had not merely drifted away from its core positions, as sometimes occurs with political parties: “Fair trade, balanced budgets, character, family values, standing up to foreign adversaries like Russia—we’re all against that now. You have to ask, ‘Does someone abandon deeply held beliefs in three or four years?’ No. It means you didn’t ever hold them.” He added: “I feel like a guy who was working for Bernie Madoff.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Stevens, an erudite fellow who is also a novelist and a travel writer, has become an emblematic ex-Republican. He once believed in GOP ideals and ideas. Now he saw it all as a huge con. His new book is a confession and cri de coeur. The first line is blunt: “I have no one to blame but myself.” In these pages, Stevens self-flagellates, calling himself a “fool” for his decades of believing—and lying to himself—that the Republican Party was based on “a core set of values.” Acknowledging his role, Stevens writes, “So yes, blame me. Blame me when you look around and see a dysfunctional political system and a Republican Party that has gone insane.” The book offers one overarching prescription for the GOP: “Burn it to the ground and start over.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Blueberry Moon Music 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Vz3_xyVdERw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Vz3_xyVdERw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Pubs in Panic</h3> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/08/white-house-suddenly-orders-mandatory-19-testing-for-presidential-staff/" target="_blank">White House suddenly orders ‘mandatory’ COVID-19 testing for presidential staff</a>, David Edwards, Raw Story, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>White House employees will now be subject to mandatory testing for COVID-19, an official said on Monday.</p> <p>In a statement to CNN’s Jim Acosta, the unnamed White House official said that staffers working near President Donald Trump would be forced to undergo randomized testing.</p> <p>“As part of our ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the entire White House Complex, randomized testing of Executive Office of the President staff, which has been ongoing for several months, will become mandatory rather than voluntary,” the official said.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://americanindependent.com/donald-trump-campaign-ads-fox-news-washington-dc-virginia-maryland-2020-election/" target="_blank">Trump campaign sets 'money on fire' with ads in states he can't win</a>, Emily SInger, American Independent, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/427927/large/Trump_toddler_tantrum.png?1500873984" title="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The Trump campaign on Monday purchased $38,000 on ads just on Fox News in Washington, D.C., that will run from Monday through Aug. 16,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MediumBuying/status/1290343476434001920">according</a><span> </span>to Medium Buying, which tracks political ad buys.</p> <p>That follows an earlier<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MediumBuying/status/1286011582124888066">$38,000 buy</a><span> </span>in the same market for ads that ran from July 23 to July 28.</p> <p>The likely audience for Trump campaign ads in such a reliably Democratic area is Donald Trump himself.</p> <p>The campaign first started employing this tactic to mollify its candidate in<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-camp-runs-ads-on-dc-cable-to-ease-boss-anxieties-and-buck-up-congressional-republicans?ref=home">late May</a>, when it<span> </span><a href="https://americanindependent.com/donald-trump-campaign-ads-poll-numbers-2020-election-washington-dc-virginia-maryland/">spent $400,000</a><span> </span>to run ads on cable news networks in the Washington, D.C., media market as Trump began to worry about his reelection chances.</p> <p>It has spent at least $476,000 on such ads.</p> </blockquote> <h4>PuBs fail trying to Recall Gov. Whitmer (D-MI)</h4> <p><a href="https://mcfn.org/node/7398/campaign-to-recall-whitmer-is-in-flames-amid-allegations-of-embezzlement" target="_blank">Campaign To Recall Whitmer Is In Flames Amid Allegations Of Embezzlement</a>, Simon D. Schuster, mcfn.com, AUgust 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">With all the drama of a soap opera, the first approved recall ballot petition effort against the Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has canceled its signature collection amid allegations that the founder, Chad Baase, used the committee’s funds for personal use.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Committee To Recall Governor Gretchen Whitmer has fractured in recent days as organizers cut ties with Baase, who they said had become unreliable and acting suspiciously.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Baase, who is also running as a Republican for the 62nd Michigan House district, has flatly denied most allegations — except that money is missing.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Congress’s stupidest member is stupid</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/gop-rep-louie-gohmerts-daughter-062650785.html" target="_blank">GOP Rep. Louie Gohmert's daughter publicly chides him for ignoring 'medical experts,' getting COVID-19</a>, Peter Weber, Yahoo, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Rep. Louie Gohmert's (R-Texas) daughter Caroline is disappointed her father "ignored medical expertise" and didn't wear a mask, and now has COVID-19,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/my-father-ignored-medical-expertise-and-now-he-has-covid-rep-louie-gohmerts-daughter-says/" target="_blank">she said</a><span><span> </span>in a brief statement Sunday night. "This has been a heartbreaking battle [because] I love my dad and don't want him to die. Please please listen to medical experts. It's not worth following a president who has no remorse for leading his followers to an early grave."</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💀 ETTD 💀</h3> <p>Literally everyone could see this coming:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/after-months-of-favor-birx-raises-trumps-ire-with-grim-coronavirus-assessment/2020/08/03/5df72f16-d5a8-11ea-9c3b-dfc394c03988_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_virusbirx-827pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">After months of favor, Birx raises Trump’s ire with grim coronavirus assessment</a>, Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey and Yasmeen Abutaleb, Washington Post, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="birx.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/839822/large/birx.jpg?1596479113" title="birx.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Birx — who built a career leading public health efforts against HIV/AIDS — quickly garnered Trump’s favor earlier this year for publicly championing the administration’s coronavirus response, becoming a prominent figure both inside and outside the White House.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>But she soon lost support within swaths of the scientific and medical community for seeming to minimize the virus and to enable Trump’s overly rosy view of the pandemic. This past weekend, Birx lost the backing of the nation’s top Democrat, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), who<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook-pm/2020/07/31/behind-the-scenes-pelosi-trashes-birx-489948">privately called Birx “the worst”</a><span> </span>and publicly said she had no confidence in her.</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>And finally on Monday morning, Birx appeared to lose ground with perhaps her most important constituency, Trump himself, who dismissed her as “pathetic.”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics,” Trump<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1290282508303716352" target="_self">wrote in a tweet</a>. “In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!”</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🌍 World News 🌎</h3> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/eu-in-first-ever-cyber-sanctions-hits-russian-intelligence/" target="_blank">EU, in First-Ever Cyber Sanctions, Hits Russian Intelligence</a>, AP via Courthouse News, July 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The European Union on Thursday slapped sanctions on six people and three organizations, including Russia’s military intelligence agency, accusing them of responsibility for several cyberattacks that threatened EU interests.</p> <p style="text-align:start">EU headquarters said in a statement that those targeted include people considered to be involved in the 2017 “WannaCry” ransomware attack, the “NotPetya” strike that notably caused havoc in Ukraine, and the “Operation Cloud Hopper” hacking campaign.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The sanctions are the first that the EU has ever imposed for cyberattacks.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Israelis protest corrupt Netanyahu</h4> <p>The winds of change appear to be global; in Siberia, in the USA, in Europe and now in Israel. People are rising up, protesting corruption and demanding justice:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/02/thousands-demonstrate-against-netanyahu-as-israel-protests-gain-strength" target="_blank">Thousands demonstrate against Netanyahu as Israel protests gain strength</a>, Oliver Holmes, the Guardian, August 2, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets outside Benjamin Netanyahu’s house over the weekend in what appeared to be the largest protest to date calling for the embattled Israeli prime minister to resign.</p> <p>Rallies on Saturday night and into the early hours of Sunday morning were held in Jerusalem, home to the official residence of the 70-year-old leader, as well as his beach house in central<span> </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/israel">Israel</a>, near Tel Aviv, and at dozens of road intersections across the country.</p> <p>Throughout the summer,<span> </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/25/netanyahu-faces-israelis-anger-as-virus-surges-and-unemployment-rises">Israelis have<span> </span></a><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/25/netanyahu-faces-israelis-anger-as-virus-surges-and-unemployment-rises">packed roads and squares</a><span> </span>calling for Netanyahu to resign, protesting against his government’s handling of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/17/israel-returns-to-partial-lockdown-with-immediate-weekend-shutdown">country’s coronavirus crisis</a><span> </span>and charges of alleged corruption.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Israelis are standing up against Netanyahu’s illiberal government by the thousands. We love to see it. &lt;a href="https://t.co/SdwlC0kxbF"&gt;https://t.co/SdwlC0kxbF&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— T&amp;#39;ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights (@truahrabbis) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/truahrabbis/status/1290391348902846465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;August 3, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Israelis are standing up against NetanyahuÃ¢Â€Â™s illiberal government by the thousands. We love to see it. <a href="https://t.co/SdwlC0kxbF">https://t.co/SdwlC0kxbF</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights (@truahrabbis) <a href="https://twitter.com/truahrabbis/status/1290391348902846465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 3, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/anti-kremlin-protests-khabarovsk-russia-24-days/" target="_blank">Anti-Kremlin protests continue in Russia's far east for 24 consecutive days</a>, Alexandra Odynova, CBS News, August 3, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Thousands of people took to the streets in Russia's far eastern city of Khabarovsk for the 24th consecutive day on Monday, continuing a rare spate of ongoing anti-Kremlin demonstrations in the region sparked by the arrest of a local politician.</p> <p>Sergei Furgal, who defeated an unpopular incumbent for governor from Russian President' Vladimir Putin's ruling party in 2018, was arrested last month on charges relating to murders from 2004 and 2005 and transported to a jail in Moscow. Putin then appointed an acting governor, Mikhail Degtyaryov, who had no connection to the region.</p> <p>While Furgal's arrest was seen by many as politically motivated, Degtyaryov's appointment, which wasn't welcomed locally, pushed the demonstrations in a more anti-Kremlin direction.</p> <p><span>Chants of "Russia without Putin," "We are power here," and "Give us Furgal back" were heard at the protest on Saturday that drew some 10,000 people despite pouring rain, according to local media. Official estimates put the crowd at roughly 3,500.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Star Music Time! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=hT_nvWreIhg" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hT_nvWreIhg">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ He’s full of it, about everything, always: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-failed-promises_n_5f287a9bc5b68fbfc886bc05" target="_blank">Trump’s ‘Full And Complete’ Health Plan Promise Joins A Long List Of Unkept Vows</a>, S.V. Date, HuffPost, August 3, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yes, people are on to trump: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/08/03/how-trumps-corruption-may-doom-any-attempt-an-october-surprise/" target="_blank">How Trump’s corruption may doom any attempt at an ‘October surprise’</a>, Greg Sargent, Washington Post, August 3, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Max Boot has had it: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/08/03/trump-promises-respect-our-military-his-hypocrisy-is-sickening/" target="_blank">Trump promises to ‘Respect our Military!’ His hypocrisy is sickening.</a> Max Boot, Washington Post, August 3, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/08/02/donald-trump-is-doomed-and-he-knows-it-but-will-he-go-out-with-a-whimper-or-a-bang/" target="_blank">Donald Trump is doomed, and he knows it: But will he go out with a whimper or a bang?</a> Andrew O’ Hehir, Salon, August 2, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://theappeal.org/politicalreport/guide-elections-august-4-to-8/" target="_blank">NINE ELECTIONS THIS WEEK COULD UPEND CRIMINAL JUSTICE NATIONWIDE</a>, Daniel Nichanian, the Appeal, August 3, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/joe-bidens-big-tent-strategy-seems-to-be-working" target="_blank">Biden’s Big-Tent Strategy Seems to Be Working</a>, John Cassidy, the New Yorker, August 1, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://gen.medium.com/all-your-most-paranoid-transfer-of-power-questions-answered-5db70d32373" target="_blank">All Your Most Paranoid Transfer of Power Questions, Answered</a>, Ben Jacobs, gen.medium.com, July 24, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/24/stop-fretting-about-trump-do-something-about-it-right-now/" target="_blank">Stop fretting about Trump and do something about it. Right now.</a>, Dana Milbank, Washington Post, July 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/barack-obamas-eulogy-john-lewis-signals-pivotal-day/story?id=72092596" target="_blank">Barack Obama's eulogy for John Lewis signals pivotal day in 2020 election: OPINION</a>, Matthew Dowd, ABC News, July 30, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Updated daily! <a href="https://www.270towin.com/content/princeton-election-consortium-2020-electoral-maps" target="_blank">2020 Electoral Maps from Princeton Election Consortium</a>, 270 to Win.</p> <p>⚡️ Also frequently updated: <a href="https://projects.economist.com/us-2020-forecast/president" target="_blank">Forecasting the US elections</a>, The Economist, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p>Check out this amazing spreadsheet: <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YHqXc27ir5ciG1csQejuc_JywvNXz1wzpCPpV3zW0uM/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything!</a><span> </span>by Mattrek</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834437/large/IMG_6799.jpg?1595291728" title="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers"> <figcaption>Postcards to Voters!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>⭐️ And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>It’s getting late, so I’m going to stop here. </p> <p>I’ve had this song in a GNR before, and it feels like a good time to post it again. </p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">My voice feels tiny and im sure so does yours</span><span style="text-align:start"> </span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Put us all together we’ll make a mighty roar</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 We are resilient! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=tx17RvPMaQ8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/tx17RvPMaQ8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Newsies!</h3> <p>(post edited to move around a picture and insert a tweet)</p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Election Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Politics Recommended _1963723 Tue, 04 Aug 2020 11:00:12 +0000 We, The People, Will End This Nightmare - July 21 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/7/21/1961477/-We-The-People-Will-End-This-Nightmare-July-21-Good-News-Roundup <p>Another day of roller coaster emotions with wave after wave of news, both hopeful and hideous. It can be hard to keep anxiety and depression at bay, especially since some days it feels like things just get worse and worse. We’ve been through hell, and we have more hell coming, and we will keep on going. I am here to tell you with utter certainty: this nightmare <em><strong>will</strong></em> end. We, the people, will end it.</p> <p>The pandemic <strong>will</strong> end. By this time next year we will be past the worst of it. Wear a mask.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6396.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834436/large/IMG_6396.jpg?1595291728" title="IMG_6396.jpg"> <figcaption>Yeah, babygirl, we all feel like that some days!<br> See Mama’s pandemic journal?<br> Yep, that’s a dumpster fire 2020 sticker!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Trump <strong>will</strong> be gone. We will defeat him in November and he will leave the White House, willingly or unwillingly. Do not be pushed into panic mode by dire predictions of him somehow refusing to leave and then — what? simply being allowed to stay? No, when Joe Biden becomes the president-elect, the transition begins and on inauguration day the Secret Service, whose mission is to serve the President, will escort trump out of the White House if he has not vacated the premises voluntarily up to then.</p> <p>The economy <strong>will</strong> recover. Jobs will come back because companies want to survive and thrive. Stores and restaurants will reopen, and the economy will recover. People want to work, play, do stuff, explore, learn, raise families, and so on. As bad as all of this is, human beings will not simply stop being human. We will adapt, certainly, and hopefully make some good changes, but demand for all the stuff we think will be gone forever will return and we will rebuild and restore society.</p> <p>But some things will be different. And that may be a good thing.</p> <p>As hard as this year has been, maybe it is better for humanity that we can’t go back to the way it was before. Before the pandemic, things were not great for a lot of people and have only gotten much harder since. The pandemic has been a nightmare, but as in other historical disasters, it has also revealed the rot in our systems that we must clean out. It has ripped the illusions about our American dream, our myths of meritocracy, and our insane acceptance of property rights over human rights, the worth of a human being measured as “human capital”, and ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’ only available to the very few for a very high price.</p> <p>What an opportunity not only for renewal but to build something so much better! And lucky for us, our candidate Joe Biden is poised to do just that WITH a team that “<a href="https://theweek.com/speedreads/926625/joe-biden-tells-msnbcs-joy-reid-hes-already-vetted-4-vp-candidates-narrow-list-soon" target="_blank">will look like America</a>” and who will work to rebuild the economy and the country FOR Americans. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We were beaten, we were tear-gassed. I thought I was going to die on this bridge. But somehow and some way, God almighty helped me here. We cannot give up now. We cannot give in. We must keep the faith, keep our eyes on the prize. &lt;a href="https://t.co/eOw9uMYAAL"&gt;pic.twitter.com/eOw9uMYAAL&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/repjohnlewis/status/1234277472776183810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 2, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We were beaten, we were tear-gassed. I thought I was going to die on this bridge. But somehow and some way, God almighty helped me here. We cannot give up now. We cannot give in. We must keep the faith, keep our eyes on the prize. <a href="https://t.co/eOw9uMYAAL">pic.twitter.com/eOw9uMYAAL</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) <a href="https://twitter.com/repjohnlewis/status/1234277472776183810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 2, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍</h3> <h4>💉 Vaccine News 💉</h4> <p>It’s still early days, but this news is promising — and incidentally, it also cuts into the popular worry that trump will spring a vaccine as an “October surprise”. It won’t be much of a surprise when the effort to find a vaccine is being widely reported. At least three trial vaccines have produced positive results in stage 2 (first smaller group human trials) of testing:</p> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-oxford-vaccine/first-human-trial-of-oxford-coronavirus-vaccine-shows-promise-idUSKCN24L1MP" target="_blank">First human trial of Oxford coronavirus vaccine shows promise</a>, Alistair Smout, Reuters, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Nurses working with the WHO (World Health Organization) administer the Ebola vaccine to a local doctor at the town all of Mbandaka on May 21, 2018 during the launch of the Ebola vaccination campaign. - The death toll in an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rose to 26 on May 21, 2018, after a person died in the northwest city of Mbandaka, the government said, as it began vaccinating first responders against the dreaded disease. (Photo by Junior D. KANNAH / AFP) (Photo credit should read JUNIOR D. KANNAH/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/754612/large/GettyImages-961020312.jpg?1578507266" title="Nurses working with the WHO (World Health Organization) administer the Ebola vaccine to a local doctor at the town all of Mbandaka on May 21, 2018 during the launch of the Ebola vaccination campaign. - The death toll in an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) rose to 26 on May 21, 2018, after a person died in the northwest city of Mbandaka, the government said, as it began vaccinating first responders against the dreaded disease. (Photo by Junior D. KANNAH / AFP) (Photo credit should read JUNIOR D. KANNAH/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">More than 150 possible vaccines are in various stages of development, and U.S. drugmaker Pfizer and China’s CanSino Biologics <strong>also</strong> reported positive responses for their candidates on Monday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The vaccine from AstraZeneca and Britain’s University of Oxford prompted no serious side effects and elicited antibody and T-cell immune responses, according to trial results published in The Lancet medical journal, with the strongest response seen in people who received two doses. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">AstraZeneca has signed agreements with governments around the world to supply the vaccine should it prove effective and gain regulatory approval. It has said it will not seek to profit from the vaccine during the pandemic.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>The next stage will be much larger human trials — involving thousands of trial participants and placebo control groups. While these large clinical trials usually take months or even years, there is a lot of pressure, obviously, to speed things up. They may be able to ascertain the efficacy of the vaccines for producing antibodies reliably across large populations within a few months if all goes well. Longevity of protective effects will be harder to judge in such a short time frame. Still, it is very good news! </p> <h4>EU Celebrates Historic Agreement</h4> <p>Sanity and international cooperation still exists — and the EU has pulled together in this crisis in a show of solidarity and economic support for their population. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;For once the word historic isn&amp;#39;t misplaced. The deal on common borrowing is a huge symbolic + practical step for Europe. Shows the EU can take bold decisions when a) in a crisis b) France + Germany work closely together c) their leaders (Macron + Merkel) mobilise others smartly &lt;a href="https://t.co/3D6PB5XPRg"&gt;https://t.co/3D6PB5XPRg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Sophie Pedder (@PedderSophie) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PedderSophie/status/1285464667662569472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 21, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>For once the word historic isn't misplaced. The deal on common borrowing is a huge symbolic + practical step for Europe. Shows the EU can take bold decisions when a) in a crisis b) France + Germany work closely together c) their leaders (Macron + Merkel) mobilise others smartly <a href="https://t.co/3D6PB5XPRg">https://t.co/3D6PB5XPRg</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Sophie Pedder (@PedderSophie) <a href="https://twitter.com/PedderSophie/status/1285464667662569472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 21, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/eu-leaders-reach-deal-on-covid-19-recovery-fund-after-marathon-summit-1.4309613" target="_blank" title="">EU leaders reach deal on Covid-19 recovery fund after marathon summit</a>, Naomi O’Leary, The Irish Times, July 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The 27 member states of the European Union this morning signed off on a €1.8 trillion package to fund the next seven years of spending and inject funds into struggling economies to help them weather the devastation of the<span> </span><a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/coronavirus">Coronavirus</a><span> </span>pandemic.</p> <p>The summit was one of the longest ever, and leaders negotiated through the night once again on Monday before announcing a deal had been reached at 5.30am on Tuesday.</p> <p>“It has been a very challenging number of days negotiating this package but it has been worthwhile. The solidarity displayed throughout this summit is something that I think will stand Europe in good stead into the future,” Taoiseach Micheál Martin said after the deal was clinched.</p> </blockquote> <h3>2020 Election Campaign 2020</h3> <p>When I first heard this over the weekend, I was immeasurably reassured. Talk about comforting news! <strong>Joe Biden is already receiving security briefings.</strong> He will be ready to hit the ground running as soon as he is sworn in, and of course with years of experience in government, foreign affairs, justice and the economy, Joe will know how to find the best people to run all the moving parts of government to get us back on track. </p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/biden-citing-intel-briefings-says-russia-again-working-interfere-election-n1234271" target="_blank">Biden, citing briefings, says Russia again working to interfere with the election</a>, Mike Memoli and Ken Dilanian, NBC News, July 18, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Typically, a presidential nominee begins receiving more comprehensive classified security briefings from U.S. intelligence officials closer to their nominating conventions. The Biden campaign, the official said, received a briefing about foreign interference that was also offered to the Trump campaign and to both national party committees.</p> <p>U.S. officials said that Bill Evanina, the top counter intelligence official at the Director of National Intelligence, has been leading the election security briefings of the presidential campaigns. Former Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken, a longtime Biden aide, continues to be his lead foreign policy adviser.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Dumpy’s scare tactics failing bigly</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/trumps-attempts-to-scare-white-voters-away-from-joe-biden-is-blowing-up-in-his-face-nbc-analyst/" target="_blank">Trump’s attempt to scare white voters away from Joe Biden is blowing up in his face: NBC analyst</a>, Tom Boggioni, Raw Story, July 19, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>“The evidence that we’ve seen is that white suburban voters are leaving him, that they’re not scared of black and brown voters, that they’re not scared of integrated neighborhoods, that they’re scared of Donald Trump’s presidency,” he elaborated. “We’ve seen that in the mid-term elections where they went away from Republicans, and we’ve seen that in the polling that we’re watching.”</p> <p>“I don’t think his message of racism is helping him with white suburban voters, at least not from a marginal perspective,” he continued. “They are peeling away from him in the suburbs and so I think rather than sticking with him for the racism, and this comes from interviews and it comes from polling, his approval ratings on the handling of race issues are terrible.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Some Polling Thoughts</h4> <p>Regular Gnusies know that I’m not a huge fan of polling, but solid trends are good news and hpg brings the solid good news trend in comments every day (thanks hpg!). Yesterday, they included a series of poll results on character and readiness and I’m just including this one general temperament measurement here to make a point that is sometimes overlooked: even though trump’s “approval” remains stubbornly close to 40%, to everyone’s disbelief, consider that the number below (and on every other measurement of leadership fitness) shows that <em>even among his supporters</em>, trump is deemed less suited to the presidency than Joe Biden.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Who do you think has the better personality and temperament to serve as president?&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Biden 59% (+26)&lt;br&gt;Trump 33%&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ABC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@ABC&lt;/a&gt;/&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/washingtonpost?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@washingtonpost&lt;/a&gt; 7/12-15&lt;a href="https://t.co/BIqKVksFhN"&gt;https://t.co/BIqKVksFhN&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Politics_Polls/status/1285012176969830400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Who do you think has the better personality and temperament to serve as president?<br><br>Biden 59% (+26)<br>Trump 33%<a href="https://twitter.com/ABC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ABC</a>/<a href="https://twitter.com/washingtonpost?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@washingtonpost</a> 7/12-15<a href="https://t.co/BIqKVksFhN">https://t.co/BIqKVksFhN</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) <a href="https://twitter.com/Politics_Polls/status/1285012176969830400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>So much of the Pub strategy against America has been psychological that cognitive dissonance seems like the inevitable, undefeatable result. </p> <p>But it is not undefeatable. The pandemic has had several unplanned effects that its mismanagers possibly did not expect. One: human beings prefer to survive, so the Rs drive to force people back into magachurches to continue mainlining faux “community” and divisive indoctrination has been derailed by their own supporters who prefer to stay alive, thank you very much. And like all cults, the maintenance of the delusions and blind following of leadership depends upon isolating the followers from reality, in this case through constant church attendance and church driven community activities. </p> <p>Two, while many of the religious voting bloc that the Pubs have cultivated for decades are true believers in white christian power as a divine right, a significant portion of church attendees are there because joining a magachurch in much of the country has become the only way to have social connection and support. That’s not accidental. Social community is a strong human need and when every non-sectarian avenue for getting it is gradually choked out as funding is drained away to “faith-based initiatives”, then even people who are not fervent religionists must turn to the local megachurch for some community. </p> <p>But they are not all fanatics and without the constant church attendance to bolster compliance, the social attendees are likely to start to notice the disconnect. So they still say they “support” trump, because their community does, but they also recognise his lack of fitness in every way for the job. Being away from the pressure of church might break the spell for some, and we might see that gap between support and recognition of trump’s unfitness narrow. Something to watch for, though obviously not to count on. We don’t need those people, anyway — we already outnumber them <em>plus</em> the fanatics. It is just an interesting observation and a sign that even that right wing “base” is not as rock solid as has always been assumed.</p> <h4>Comparisons with 2016 are unhelpful and incorrect, so let’s stop that </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Flashback To ABC/WaPost National Poll July 2016:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Clinton 47% (+4)&lt;br&gt;Trump 43% &lt;a href="https://t.co/cJZDtVRD5m"&gt;https://t.co/cJZDtVRD5m&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PpollingNumbers/status/1284726296761729025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Flashback To ABC/WaPost National Poll July 2016:<br><br>Clinton 47% (+4)<br>Trump 43% <a href="https://t.co/cJZDtVRD5m">https://t.co/cJZDtVRD5m</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) <a href="https://twitter.com/PpollingNumbers/status/1284726296761729025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Some final remarks on polling from our own Jeremy Moses:</h4> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-07-20at10.22.17AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834438/large/ScreenShot2020-07-20at10.22.17AM.png?1595291728" title="ScreenShot2020-07-20at10.22.17AM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <h3>🌊🐎 Yay, Dems Are in Array 🐎🌊</h3> <h4>Chuck it to ’em SenMin leader!</h4> <p>Schumer intends to use any leverage he has to force Senate Rs to pass better legislation for Americans in this crisis:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Schumer is urging his fellow Senate Democrats to remain united against the GOP’s recovery proposal.&lt;br&gt;This letter foreshadows the likelihood that Senate Democrats will eventually block the emerging Senate GOP plan in a bid to move a proposal closer to their liking. &lt;a href="https://t.co/iTmX3k3Ana"&gt;pic.twitter.com/iTmX3k3Ana&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Manu Raju (@mkraju) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1285183585755049985?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Schumer is urging his fellow Senate Democrats to remain united against the GOPÃ¢Â€Â™s recovery proposal.<br>This letter foreshadows the likelihood that Senate Democrats will eventually block the emerging Senate GOP plan in a bid to move a proposal closer to their liking. <a href="https://t.co/iTmX3k3Ana">pic.twitter.com/iTmX3k3Ana</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Manu Raju (@mkraju) <a href="https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1285183585755049985?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Democrats are keeping pressure on trump appointed postmaster not to eff up mail service:</h4> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-postoffice-idUSKCN24L2R4?taid=5f164d4cc3d9480001c44cdb&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">House Democrats press U.S. Postal Service on plans to delay mail</a>, Reuters, July 20. 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="usps.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/527351/large/usps.jpg?1522710905" title="usps.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Senior Democrats on a House of Representatives oversight committee wrote to the new postmaster general on Monday to press him on reports the service was prepared to delay mail delivery if needed to cut costs, a move that could affect mail-in ballot results. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">“While these changes in a normal year would be drastic, in a presidential election year when many states are relying heavily on absentee mail-in ballots, increases in mail delivery timing would impair the ability of ballots to be received and counted in a timely manner — an unacceptable outcome for a free and fair election,” wrote Representative Carolyn Maloney, chair of a government operations subcommittee of the Committee on Oversight and Reform.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The letter was also signed by Representative Gerald Connolly, chair of a national security subcommittee, and Representatives Stephen Lynch and Brenda Lawrence.</p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Democrats Insist on Oversight and Answers</h4> <p>Rep. Adam Schiff notifies public of foreign interference and puts FBI on the spot to provide a briefing:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We&amp;#39;re gravely concerned Congress appears to be the target of a foreign interference campaign that seeks to launder &amp;amp; amplify disinformation.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We&amp;#39;re urging the FBI to provide all Members a defensive counterintelligence briefing before August.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Americans decide American elections. &lt;a href="https://t.co/UuNT9AZ093"&gt;pic.twitter.com/UuNT9AZ093&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff/status/1285274130280075264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We're gravely concerned Congress appears to be the target of a foreign interference campaign that seeks to launder & amplify disinformation.<br><br>We're urging the FBI to provide all Members a defensive counterintelligence briefing before August.<br><br>Americans decide American elections. <a href="https://t.co/UuNT9AZ093">pic.twitter.com/UuNT9AZ093</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff/status/1285274130280075264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Dems Demand Answers Re Brown Shirts</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Three House committee chairs are demanding that internal Trump admin watchdogs immediately investigate whether the Justice Dept. and Dept. of Homeland Security have "abused emergency authorities to justify the use of force" against peaceful protesters.&lt;a href="https://t.co/U6fR9InS3K"&gt;https://t.co/U6fR9InS3K&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1285190217582776326?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Three House committee chairs are demanding that internal Trump admin watchdogs immediately investigate whether the Justice Dept. and Dept. of Homeland Security have "abused emergency authorities to justify the use of force" against peaceful protesters.<a href="https://t.co/U6fR9InS3K">https://t.co/U6fR9InS3K</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1285190217582776326?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🚨🐘 Pubs in Panic 🐘🚨</h3> <p>Next time anxiety starts to make you feel like Pubs are all-powerful and cannot be beaten, think about all the evidence we have that they are in a panic! They are going down, perhaps for a long long time (and deservedly so!) and they know it. Yes, they will scramble and try to do whatever they can — by hook or by crook, definitely, we are not naive — but they are NOT confident and not all-powerful. We, the people, are going to beat them like a drum. And then drum them out of power for a long time.</p> <p>🚨 Emergency meeting: Unscheduled. Likely not just about the long-awaited Senate bill to bolster the economy in this crisis, but about literally the GOP recovery — from trump! </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;McConnell arriving at the WH this morning for a meeting with Trump, McCarthy, Meadows and Mnuchin on the Senate GOP recovery plan. The meeting was not listed on Trump’s schedule put out by the WH. Pic via &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/abdallahcnn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@abdallahcnn&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/np9KHGb3nj"&gt;pic.twitter.com/np9KHGb3nj&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Manu Raju (@mkraju) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1285215449177874433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>McConnell arriving at the WH this morning for a meeting with Trump, McCarthy, Meadows and Mnuchin on the Senate GOP recovery plan. The meeting was not listed on TrumpÃ¢Â€Â™s schedule put out by the WH. Pic via <a href="https://twitter.com/abdallahcnn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@abdallahcnn</a> <a href="https://t.co/np9KHGb3nj">pic.twitter.com/np9KHGb3nj</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Manu Raju (@mkraju) <a href="https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1285215449177874433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>There Actually are many fine people on our side</h4> <p>It takes courage to blow the whistle in the State Department, especially having seen the retaliation that Pompeo is capable of — but we, the people, are everywhere and we have courage! Well done, whistleblowers! (And a big shoutout to citizen watchdog groups, like <a href="https://www.americanoversight.org/" target="_blank">American Oversight</a>, who sue to gain access to documents like this!)</p> <p><a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/white-house/article244328882.html" target="_blank">Pompeo whistleblower complaint reveals ongoing inquiry over ‘questionable activities’</a>, Michael Wilner and Brian Lowry, McClatchy News, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Secretary of State Mike Pompeo testifies during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, about the Trump administration's policies on Iran, Iraq and the use of force. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/772586/large/AP_20059506109300.jpg?1583122409" title="Secretary of State Mike Pompeo testifies during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Feb. 28, 2020, about the Trump administration's policies on Iran, Iraq and the use of force. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)"> <figcaption>Pompous, theocratic, dominionist.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A whistleblower complaint from a State Department employee<strong><span> </span></strong>about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s conduct, made public for the first time through a lawsuit and obtained by McClatchy, reveals that eyewitnesses made repeated attempts to inform executive leadership and legal advisers about his “questionable activities.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The whistleblower said they had additional evidence to back up their allegations against Pompeo, according to a redacted complaint to the State Department inspector general’s hotline. The complainant said concerned parties were “blocked” from reporting the activity to the department’s Office of Legal Affairs. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The State Department redacted large portions of the four-page document<strong><span> </span></strong>— including names, dates and specific details of the questionable conduct —<strong><span> </span></strong>that it shared with American Oversight, a watchdog group that sued the department for whistleblower complaints regarding Pompeo’s conduct.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Justifying many of those redactions, the State Department said that the information was the subject of an ongoing investigation – <strong><em>confirming for the first time that at least one inquiry into the secretary continues after President Donald Trump fired the department’s longtime inspector general, Steve Linick, at Pompeo’s request</em></strong>.</p> </blockquote> <h4>LOL Such disarray 😆</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/19/us/politics/republicans-contradict-trump-coronavirus.html" target="_blank">As Trump Ignores Virus Crisis, Republicans Start to Break Ranks</a>, Alexander Burns, Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman, New York Times, July 19, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Bush - Handled it; Obama - Handled it; Obama - Handled it; tRump - It's a hoax... It;ll go away ... Just live with it, ok?" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834402/large/LiveWithItMark717.jpg?1595284595" title="Bush - Handled it; Obama - Handled it; Obama - Handled it; tRump - It's a hoax... It;ll go away ... Just live with it, ok?"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>President Trump’s<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/18/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-response-failure-leadership.html">failure to contain</a><span><span> </span>the coronavirus outbreak and his refusal to promote clear public-health guidelines have left many senior Republicans despairing that he will ever play a constructive role in addressing the crisis, with some concluding they must work around Mr. Trump and ignore or even contradict his pronouncements. ✄</span></p> <p><span>A handful of Republican lawmakers in the Senate have privately pressed the administration to bring back health briefings led by figures like Dr. Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx, who regularly updated the public during the spring until Mr. Trump upstaged them<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/26/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-briefings-analyzed.html">with his own briefing-room monologues</a><span>. And in his home state of Kentucky last week, Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, broke with Mr. Trump on nearly every major issue related to the virus. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Amid mounting alarm in a huge portion of the country, Mr. Trump has at times appeared to inhabit a different universe, incorrectly predicting the outbreak would quickly dissipate and falsely claiming the spread of the virus was simply a function of increased testing. With his impatient demands and decrees, Mr. Trump has disrupted efforts to mitigate the crisis while effectively sidelining himself from participating in those efforts.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>This is just embarrassing</h4> <p>Jacksonville has regrets, so many regrets:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams says he can’t pull off security at the Republican convention because the plans aren’t clear, funding is a challenge, time is running short &amp;amp; he can’t get enough officers to help out. &lt;a href="https://t.co/liIkiHbq2q"&gt;https://t.co/liIkiHbq2q&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1285274452608131073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEWS: Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams says he canÃ¢Â€Â™t pull off security at the Republican convention because the plans arenÃ¢Â€Â™t clear, funding is a challenge, time is running short & he canÃ¢Â€Â™t get enough officers to help out. <a href="https://t.co/liIkiHbq2q">https://t.co/liIkiHbq2q</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarcACaputo/status/1285274452608131073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>And (Ayn)Rand Paul trying to distance himself from brown shirters:</h4> <p>lol Your naked self-interest is showing, Randy. No one’s buying it.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We cannot give up liberty for security. Local law enforcement can and should be handling these situations in our cities but there is no place for federal troops or unidentified federal agents rounding people up at will. &lt;a href="https://t.co/vkSHmlOzDW"&gt;https://t.co/vkSHmlOzDW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1285270380127629315?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We cannot give up liberty for security. Local law enforcement can and should be handling these situations in our cities but there is no place for federal troops or unidentified federal agents rounding people up at will. <a href="https://t.co/vkSHmlOzDW">https://t.co/vkSHmlOzDW</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) <a href="https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/1285270380127629315?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Pubs Panicky Pushback plan — “No True Republican”*</h4> <p>OMG, the last, pathetic stand of a losing conservative, the “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_Scotsman" target="_blank">no true Scotsman</a>” fallacy:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Yes to immigration reform; no on xenophobia. Real Republicans back immigration. &lt;a href="https://t.co/W0lIpdBlqu"&gt;https://t.co/W0lIpdBlqu&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Charles K. Djou (@Djou4Hawaii) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Djou4Hawaii/status/1285181527899471874?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Yes to immigration reform; no on xenophobia. Real Republicans back immigration. <a href="https://t.co/W0lIpdBlqu">https://t.co/W0lIpdBlqu</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Charles K. Djou (@Djou4Hawaii) <a href="https://twitter.com/Djou4Hawaii/status/1285181527899471874?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>*(See also “No true Christian”. 😉)</p> <h3>Meanwhile, From the Schadenfreude File, This Assh*le</h3> <p>Looks like the golden boy effed up — again — and Pub strategists are getting really fed up:</p> <h4>Whoops, Jared Fumbles Again</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/trump-campaign-fails-digital-outreach-test-leaving-jared-kushner-scrambling-to-clean-up/" target="_blank">Trump campaign fails digital outreach test — leaving Jared Kushner scrambling to clean up</a>, Travis Gettys, Raw Story, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="jared1.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/810175/large/jared1.jpg?1590620045" title="jared1.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>A test run of President Donald Trump’s crucial voter-contact programs failed, leaving Jared Kushner scrambling to clean up.</p> <p>The campaign rolled out a test of its text messaging program July 4 by sending out more than 1 million patriotic-themed messages as part of its donor outreach and voter turnout strategy, but anti-spam monitors knocked the operation offline,<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/20/trump-massive-texting-program-suspended-372302" target="_blank">reported Politico</a>. ✄</p> <p><span>“A campaign’s email and text messaging list are some of the most important assets they have in 2020,” said Eric Wilson, a Republican digital strategist. “[It was] really very concerning to see that such a significant issue happened and to see that it wasn’t resolved in a timely manner.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>And these assh*les</h4> <p><a href="https://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/charges-filed-against-mccloskeys-st-louis-couple-who-pointed-guns-toward-protesters#stream/0" target="_blank">Charges Filed Against McCloskeys, St. Louis Couple Who Pointed Guns Toward Protesters</a>, Christine Byers, NPR (St. Louis Public Radio), July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-06-29at7.54.25AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/825756/large/ScreenShot2020-06-29at7.54.25AM.png?1593442717" title="ScreenShot2020-06-29at7.54.25AM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the Central West End couple who confronted protesters June 28 with a rifle and a gun in Mayor Lyda Krewson’s neighborhood, have been charged with unlawful use of a weapon/flourishing.</p> <p>The unlawful use of a weapon charge is a Class D felony and could result in one to four years in prison as well as fines up to $5,000. Gardner's office will be issuing a summons for the couple to appear in court. ✄</p> <p>“The decision to issue charges was made after a thorough investigation with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department,” Gardner said. “I am open to recommending the McCloskeys participate in one of my office’s diversion programs that are designed to reduce unnecessary involvement with the courts. I believe this would serve as a fair resolution to this matter.</p> <p>“We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation will not be tolerated,” Gardner added.</p> </blockquote> <h4>This Assh*le Too</h4> <p>The Covid-19 crisis in Florida is awful, but there is some good news. Even R-sympathetic Politico is publishing stories revealing the incompetence of Florida’s failing *governor, Ron DeSantis. Yet another indicator that the tide has changed in preparation for the blue tsunami:</p> <p><span><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2020/07/20/hecklers-gaffes-dog-desantis-as-coronavirus-rages-in-florida-1302399" target="_blank">Hecklers, gaffes dog DeSantis as coronavirus rages in Florida</a>, Matt Dixon, Politico, July 20, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks holding his facemask during a press conference to address the rise of coronavirus cases in the state, at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, on July 13, 2020. - Virus epicenter Florida saw 12,624 new cases on July 12 -- the second highest daily count recorded by any state, after its own record of 15,300 new COVID-19 cases a day earlier. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP) (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/832109/large/GettyImages-1226996528.jpg?1594845631" title="Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks holding his facemask during a press conference to address the rise of coronavirus cases in the state, at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, on July 13, 2020. - Virus epicenter Florida saw 12,624 new cases on July 12 -- the second highest daily count recorded by any state, after its own record of 15,300 new COVID-19 cases a day earlier. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP) (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Throughout the pandemic, DeSantis has traveled the state holding televised press briefings to highlight numbers that put his administration's response in a favorable light. The events have been marked by a confident DeSantis focusing on the positives and lashing out at those who bring up the negatives.</p> <p>But as Florida has turned into a global coronavirus hotspot, the near-daily briefings have turned the Republican governor, one of President Donald Trump’s biggest allies, into a national punchline. Unlike New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat who successfully used his coronavirus spotlight to elevate his profile and dispatch with critics, DeSantis keeps finding new ways to embarrass himself.</p> <p>The gaffes and worsening news have fed a national perception that Florida is consumed in chaos and leaderless as the virus rips unchecked through a must-win state for Trump less than four months from Election Day.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <h4>SCOTUS</h4> <p>We need to slow the panic roll about senate Pubs possibly confirming another Supreme Court Justice before 2021. Yes, it is an understandable concern, since we are all so worried about RBG. And in total honesty, I feel guilty as hell that she has had to hold on through these awful years instead of enjoying a well-earned retirement having passed her seat to a Hillary-nominated new liberal Justice. So I am not belittling the concern here — it is valid. And it is also putting the cart a bit before the horse. Here’s why:</p> <p>1. RBG is determined to continue and feels up to the task, despite her recent health news:</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:left">“I have often said I would remain a member of the court as long as I can do the job full steam,” Ginsburg said in a written statement. “I remain fully able to do that.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>2. At least one Pub senator is not on board with rushing another SCOTUS nominee hearing under these circumstances.</p> <p>Yes, we know Moscow Mitch — he who laughs at his own hypocrisy — would confirm a trump appointee weeks before the election and we know that some senators would support that. But not all. One has gone on record — Chuck Grassley (R-IA) — and chances are there is at least one other (Romney- R-UT) who would not confirm such a pick, unless trump wins in November. There may very well be others, given the unrest in Pub ranks recently. And we are going to ensure that trump does NOT win in November, right Newsies? We and about 75 million of our best friends!</p> <p><span><a href="https://globegazette.com/grassley-ernst-split-on-how-to-proceed-if-supreme-court-vacation-occurs-before-election/article_a9c48639-f150-5057-a715-60807199cfd0.html" target="_blank">Grassley, Ernst split on how to proceed if Supreme Court vacancy occurs before election</a>, James Q. Lynch, Globe Gazette (Iowa), July 17, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <div> <p>Sen. Chuck Grassley, then the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, incurred the wrath of liberals in 2016 when he put President Barack Obama’s nomination of Judge Merrick Garland on hold until after the presidential election.</p> </div> <div> <p>“If I were chairman of the committee and this vacancy occurred, I would not have a hearing on it because that’s what I promised the people in 2016,” Grassley told reporters Friday morning. ✄</p> <p><span style="text-align:left">“That’ll be up to (Lindsey Graham) because he’s chairman now, but I would have to tell him that I wouldn’t have a hearing,” Grassley said. Even if Graham would hold a hearing on a Trump nominee this year, there’s no guarantee it would come to the floor before the election, Grassley added.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Connecticut Pubs slapped down trying to restrict vote by mail</h4> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/connecticut-judge-refuses-to-block-mailing-of-absentee-ballots/" target="_blank">Connecticut Judge Refuses to Block Mailing of Absentee Ballots</a>, Christine Stuart, Courthouse News, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Four Republicans running for Congress chose the wrong venue to challenge Connecticut’s mailing of absentee ballots to all eligible voters, the chief of the state Supreme Court<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ct-absentee-order.pdf" target="_blank">ruled</a><span> </span>Monday.</p> <p style="text-align:start">While the candidates styled their<span> </span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ct-absentee-comp.pdf" target="_blank">complaint</a><span> </span>as an original jurisdiction proceeding in the state Supreme Court, counsel for the state emphasized in a motion to dismiss that the law permitting such challenges “applies only to elections, not primaries.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Attorney General William Tong said during the hour-long hearing Monday that Republicans have “sued the wrong defendant, under the wrong statue, in the wrong court.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">He said the candidates should have sued the governor, but they didn’t because they knew they would not succeed.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“When all of humanity is confronting a fast-moving and raging respiratory virus … the governor has the authority under 28-9b1 to modify any, any statute to keep us safe,” Tong said.</p> </blockquote> <h4><span>Brown Shirts</span></h4> <p><span>In the section on our great Democrats, you’ll recall several congressional committees have taken steps to rein in the trump-barr brownshirt patrols. Democratic mayors around the country are also standing up to the wannabe fascists, including Keisha Lance Bottoms (Atlanta) and Lori Lightfoot (Chicago). </span></p> <p><span>Below, Barbara McQuade explains the legal problems for these vigilantes. It won’t give the bump of support trump&co are hoping for from frightened white people in suburbs and gentrified urban neighborhoods— because just like in the Washington DC Bible photo-op, having unidentified paramilitary forces attacking protesting citizens is the <em>opposite</em> of protecting the people, much less “law and order”. And people see that.</span></p> <p><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/07/trumps-military-tactics-in-portland-will-likely-backfire.html" target="_blank">Why Trump’s Military Tactics in Portland Will Likely Backfire</a>, Barbara McQuade, New York Magazine, July 18, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>In this instance, can federal agents intervene in enforcing the law on the streets of Portland despite opposition from local leaders? Probably. If the agents were from agencies that target violent crime, such as the FBI or ATF, there would be no issue regarding arrests for assaulting federal officers with rocks or using fireworks as weapons. But the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/17/us/portland-protests.html">participating agencies</a><span><span> </span>are all part of the Department of Homeland Security, including Customs and Border Protection and Federal Protective Services. FPS has jurisdiction to protect federal property and to make arrests for federal offenses committed there. The other DHS agencies appear to be deployed in support of the FPS mission. Even CBP may arrest individuals who commit crimes on federal property. But reports of federal agents patrolling the streets and picking up protesters who are not committing customs or immigration offenses may reach beyond their jurisdiction. In addition, as the New York<span> </span></span><em>Times</em><span><span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/18/us/portland-protests.html">reported Saturday</a><span>, an internal DHS memo warned on Thursday that the federal agents operating in Portland did not have the specialized training or equipment to deal with mass demonstrations or riot control.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💪🏿💪🏾💪🏼 Regular People Being Awesome 💪🏼💪🏾💪🏿</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Portland protesters have a free BBQ stand. Sounds like the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/riotribs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@riotribs&lt;/a&gt; crew has been especially looking out for the homeless population in the vicinity &lt;a href="https://t.co/Qz3Zk0f1NY"&gt;https://t.co/Qz3Zk0f1NY&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David Burbach (@dburbach) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/dburbach/status/1284910705762881536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Portland protesters have a free BBQ stand. Sounds like the <a href="https://twitter.com/riotribs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@riotribs</a> crew has been especially looking out for the homeless population in the vicinity <a href="https://t.co/Qz3Zk0f1NY">https://t.co/Qz3Zk0f1NY</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” David Burbach (@dburbach) <a href="https://twitter.com/dburbach/status/1284910705762881536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Women will end this </h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;This is THE WAY.&lt;br&gt;Women only. Grandmothers, moms with strollers, naked goddesses.&lt;br&gt;Be intentional Portland! You were targeted for a reason, so stay off donald, Barr, &amp;amp; Kushner’s game board.&lt;br&gt;Men need to stay back &amp;amp; provide medical support &amp;amp; camera documentation.&lt;br&gt;Women will end this. &lt;a href="https://t.co/zVfGK2Pzlx"&gt;https://t.co/zVfGK2Pzlx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Lincoln&amp;#39;s Bible (@LincolnsBible) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/LincolnsBible/status/1284925209103876096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>This is THE WAY.<br>Women only. Grandmothers, moms with strollers, naked goddesses.<br>Be intentional Portland! You were targeted for a reason, so stay off donald, Barr, & KushnerÃ¢Â€Â™s game board.<br>Men need to stay back & provide medical support & camera documentation.<br>Women will end this. <a href="https://t.co/zVfGK2Pzlx">https://t.co/zVfGK2Pzlx</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Lincoln's Bible (@LincolnsBible) <a href="https://twitter.com/LincolnsBible/status/1284925209103876096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>People Power!</h4> <p>We, the people, can and will hold those in power accountable:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/07/20/893232710/florida-teachers-sue-to-block-school-coronavirus-reopening-mandate?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates" target="_blank">Florida Teachers Sue To Block School Coronavirus Reopening Mandate</a>, Greg Allen, NPR News, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Teachers in Florida are suing the state to block an emergency order requiring schools to open next month with in-person instruction. They say, with the surge of coronavirus cases, the order violates a provision in the Florida Constitution requiring the state to ensure schools are operated safely.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The emergency order, issued this month by Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, says all school districts "must open brick and mortar schools at least five days a week for all students." The order says the final decision on whether to reopen schools rests with local superintendents and school boards. But it suggests funding may depend on it. The districts that submit reopening plans approved by the state will receive full funding.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In a lawsuit filed in Miami, the Florida Education Association, joined by teachers and parents, says the Department of Education order defies recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on reopening schools safely. Besides Corcoran, the lawsuit also names the Florida Board of Education, Gov. Ron DeSantis and Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez as defendants.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/20/strike-for-black-lives/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-low_walkout-1015am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">Thousands of U.S. workers walk out in ‘Strike for Black Lives’</a>, Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, July 20, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black-lives-matter-license-plates.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/827382/large/black-lives-matter-license-plates.jpg?1593804621" title="black-lives-matter-license-plates.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Tens of thousands of workers nationwide walked off the job Monday in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, hoping to draw closer scrutiny to the income inequality and systemic racism that organizers say have become more entrenched during the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span> </span>pandemic.</p> </div> <div> <p>The “Strike for Black Lives,” as leaders have dubbed the campaign, featured workers from a broad range of industries. Members of the Service Employees International Union, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, American Federation of Teachers and dozens of other labor and political groups took part. ✄</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><span>Organizers did not have exact figures on how many people walked off the job, but said around 1,500 janitors in San Francisco struck together. Close to 6,000 nurses from 85 nursing homes in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut picketed outside their workplaces. Overall, demonstrations took place in 200 cities.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>This is just cool — enjoy!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Herders in Lapland are spraying their reindeer with reflective paint to help drivers see them in the dark &lt;br&gt;(&lt;a href="https://t.co/9qYZVSAS7f"&gt;https://t.co/9qYZVSAS7f&lt;/a&gt;) &lt;a href="https://t.co/YhQK5OzDVR"&gt;pic.twitter.com/YhQK5OzDVR&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Diane Doniol-Valcroze (@ddoniolvalcroze) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ddoniolvalcroze/status/1284932068078575617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Herders in Lapland are spraying their reindeer with reflective paint to help drivers see them in the dark <br>(<a href="https://t.co/9qYZVSAS7f">https://t.co/9qYZVSAS7f</a>) <a href="https://t.co/YhQK5OzDVR">pic.twitter.com/YhQK5OzDVR</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Diane Doniol-Valcroze (@ddoniolvalcroze) <a href="https://twitter.com/ddoniolvalcroze/status/1284932068078575617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/biden-and-pelosi-kindly-inform-trump-his-ass-will-be-leaving-white-house-january-20-one-way-or-another" target="_blank">Biden And Pelosi Kindly Inform Trump His Ass Will Be Leaving White House January 20, One Way Or Another!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ LOL It’s funny ‘cause it’s true: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/trump-is-only-embracing-masks-out-of-terror-of-his-crashing-poll-numbers-nyts-maggie-haberman/" target="_blank">Trump is only embracing masks out of terror of his crashing poll numbers: NYT’s Maggie Haberman</a>, Matthew Chapman, Raw Story, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Always a good list of things to do to be an active citizen: <a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/things-to-do/" target="_blank">Things to Do</a>, Teri Kanefield, terikanefieldblog</p> <p>⚡️ Joe on climate change: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/07/three-unexpected-ways-joe-biden-plans-to-tackle-climate-change/" target="_blank">Three Unexpected Ways Joe Biden Plans to Tackle Climate Change</a>, Zoya Teirstein, Mother Jones, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Beautiful tribute: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-essential-and-enduring-strength-of-john-lewis" target="_blank">The Essential and Enduring Strength of John Lewis</a>, Jelani Cobb, the New Yorker, July 19, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Covid-summer TV: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/netflix-exposes-trumps-shady-mob-ties-in-fear-city-new-york-vs-the-mafia?ref=home" target="_blank">Netflix Exposes Trump’s Shady Mob Ties in ‘Fear City: New York vs. The Mafia’</a>, Nick Schager, Daily Beast, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Coming September 1: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/unfit-trumps-mental-fitness-examined-by-health-professionals-in-new-doc-to-be-released-before-election/" target="_blank">UNFIT: Trump’s mental fitness examined by health professionals in new doc to be released before election</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 👀: <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/michael-cohen-sues-bill-barr-says-he-was-jailed-to-stop-book-about-trump?ref=home" target="_blank">Michael Cohen Sues AG Bill Barr, Says He Was Jailed to Stop Tell-All About Trump</a>, Tracy Conner, Daily Beast, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ LOL: <a href="https://secondnexus.com/donald-trump-campaign-texts-desperate" target="_blank">Trump's Campaign Keeps Sending Texts Begging for Money and Even His Own Supporters Are Lashing Out</a>, Evan Brechtel, Second Nexus, July 15, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ 65%: <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/poll-most-support-expansion-of-absentee-voting-during-pandemic/" target="_blank">Poll: Most Support Expansion of Absentee Voting During Pandemic</a>, James Palmer, Courthouse News, July 20, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Is it satire?:<a href="https://alfranken.com/read/trump-losing-support-among-older-racists" target="_blank">Trump Losing Support Among Older Racists</a>, Al Franken, alfranken.com, July 18, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/goodtrouble?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#goodtrouble&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/repjohnlewis/status/1011991303599607808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 27, 2018&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/goodtrouble?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#goodtrouble</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) <a href="https://twitter.com/repjohnlewis/status/1011991303599607808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 27, 2018</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p>Check out this amazing spreadsheet: <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YHqXc27ir5ciG1csQejuc_JywvNXz1wzpCPpV3zW0uM/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything!</a><span> </span>by Mattrek</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/834437/large/IMG_6799.jpg?1595291728" title="A selection of postcards, written in colorful inks, is arranged with flag pen, stamps and owl stickers"> <figcaption>Writing for Angie Nixon in FL District 14!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it from me this week, my friends. There’s more good news out there but I’ve run out of time. But I bet all of you can fill up <strong><em>the best comment section on the internet</em></strong> ™ with lots more!</p> <p>Take good care of yourselves. We have a lot of work ahead of us and probably a few very trying months, too. Better days are ahead and we can finally see the faint glow of light at the end of this long dark tunnel — as one of my children used to say at the end of a very long trip, “imagine if we were just starting out!”.</p> <p>We have endured 3+ years of hell and it is going to end soon. We, the people will end it. </p> <p>Rest, refuel and get to work, Gnusies! Our country needs us!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;🎶 ✊1000s singing “We Shall Overcome” in &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Portland?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Portland&lt;/a&gt; tonight. Not the images Trump’s propaganda machine wants. Federal goons are there to make sure FoxNews gets images of clashes, so Trump can push disinformation painting Biden &amp;amp; Dems as violent anarchists &lt;a href="https://t.co/8QqfufPacN"&gt;pic.twitter.com/8QqfufPacN&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Paula Chertok🗽 (@PaulaChertok) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PaulaChertok/status/1285464709848641538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 21, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Ã°ÂŸÂŽÂ¶ Ã¢ÂœÂŠ1000s singing Ã¢Â€ÂœWe Shall OvercomeÃ¢Â€Â in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Portland?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Portland</a> tonight. Not the images TrumpÃ¢Â€Â™s propaganda machine wants. Federal goons are there to make sure FoxNews gets images of clashes, so Trump can push disinformation painting Biden & Dems as violent anarchists <a href="https://t.co/8QqfufPacN">pic.twitter.com/8QqfufPacN</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Paula ChertokÃ°ÂŸÂ—Â½ (@PaulaChertok) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulaChertok/status/1285464709848641538?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 21, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) BlackLivesMatter Election GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Justice Polling Portland Protests Recommended _1961477 Tue, 21 Jul 2020 11:00:07 +0000 On the Trumptanic, Pubs in a Panic! - July 17 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/7/17/1955960/-On-the-Trumptanic-Pubs-in-a-Panic-July-17-Good-News-Roundup <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Good Day, Newsies! I’m sitting in for chloris creator today.</p> <p>Lots happened this week, and although there was the usual roller coaster through a trumpian hellscape, there was plenty of good news he and his minions tried to distract us from with their shenanigans. </p> <p>Let’s take a look!</p> <h3>Election News</h3> <p>Every sensible human being knows that an indoor, in-person convention is a stupid idea right now. Indeed, several Republican congresspeople are <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/us/politics/florida-virus-republican-convention.html" target="_blank">skipping t</a>he RNC because they know it is insane to go! The UNF faculty are <a href="https://unfspinnaker.com/85281/latest-stories/unf-faculty-create-petition-to-ban-any-rnc-activity-from-campuses/" target="_blank">attempting</a> to have any RNC convention-related activities banned from their campus, too. So, realizing that even if they can force Jacksonville to let them hold the <s>coronafest</s> convention as originally planned hardly anyone is going to come, the RNC is now announcing that they intend to “limit attendance” (as if attendance was not already drastically self-limiting) — hahaha. Sure Ronna.</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/274b721052b8a679484e3ac8c0e06155" target="_blank">Trump’s grand GOP convention plans shrink as virus surges</a>, Zeke Miller, AP News, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/822195/large/TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg?1592784872" title="TrumpTulsaRallyShrinking.jpg"> <figcaption>LOL, suppose you threw a rally and nobody came?<br> Oops! Already did that!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">President Donald Trump’s plans for a grand convention keep shrinking.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Republican National Committee announced Thursday that it is sharply restricting attendance on three of the four nights of<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/79a9c3b999f908fffb218bc0c8afd69d">its convention</a><span> </span>in Jacksonville, Florida, next month.</p> <p style="text-align:start">As the GOP looks for ways to move forward while<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/798f9aab3bb2e5fbf733413a99476d7c">coronavirus cases are spiking in the state,<span> </span></a>party leader Ronna McDaniel said in a letter to RNC members that only the roughly 2,500 regular delegates to the convention would be permitted to attend the first three nights. Delegates, their guests and alternate delegates would be allowed for the final night, Aug. 27, when Trump is set to deliver his acceptance speech.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Pubs in a Panic</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/16/three-more-signs-republicans-are-trouble/?hpid=hp_save-opinions-float-right-4-0_opinion-card-d-right%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">Three more signs Republicans are in trouble</a>, Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p><strong>First</strong>, for all of Trump’s support among Republicans (not 94 percent<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/06/05/trump-says-he-has-all-time-record-approval-among-republicans-he-ranks-sixth/?itid=lk_inline_manual_4" target="_blank" title="">as he claims</a>, but<span> </span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/203198/presidential-approval-ratings-donald-trump.aspx" target="_blank">generally</a><span> </span>in the high 80s), there is stunning evidence of what we suspected was underway in 2018. It is not so much that Republicans are abandoning Trump but that voters are abandoning the Republican Party, and now adding to the anti-Trump vote.<span> (</span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/315734/party-preferences-swung-sharply-toward-democrats.aspx" target="_blank">Gallup reports</a>:) ✄</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="Trumptanic and blue wave." class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/569765/large/Trumptanic_and_blue_wave.jpg?1532486291" title="Trumptanic and blue wave."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span><strong>Second</strong>, without directly challenging Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is abandoning Trump’s stances emphatically and quickly. Over the past few weeks, he has become a poster-boy for mask-wearing,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mcconnell-says-there-should-be-no-stigma-to-wearing-face-masks-during-coronavirus-pandemic/2020/06/29/9f69861a-ba37-11ea-80b9-40ece9a701dc_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_8" target="_blank" title="">bemoaning</a><span><span> </span>those who have politicized the issue. He is also caving on the next stimulus bill. As House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/16/coronavirus-stimulus-nancy-pelosi-discusses-next-relief-bill.html" target="_blank">gleefully put it</a><span><span> </span>at her weekly news conference on Thursday, “First it was going to be no bill. Then it was going to be some little bill. Then it was going to be $1.3 [trillion]. That’s not enough." She radiated confidence: She will get the Senate’s agreement on state and local funding, Pelosi said. She also noted that McConnell knows how to read the polls and that he listens to his members. The momentum is with Democrats, and he better hop on board — quickly.</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"><span><strong>Third</strong>, Republicans are panicking over money, as well they should. The<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-alarmed-by-democratic-senate-hopefuls-fundraising-haul-11594904669" target="_blank">Wall Street Journal reports</a><span>: “Democratic candidates in the 11 most competitive Senate races collectively raised $67.3 million in the second quarter of the year, $20.5 million more than their Republican counterparts, according to fundraising reports filed Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission. The total includes two Republicans who gave almost $6.5 million to their own campaigns.” At least one Republican operative is living in the real world, telling the Journal, “We’re scared to death by what we see.”</span></div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>People Want Democratic Policies</h4> <p>We knew it! <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/07/16/exclusive-poll-shows-gun-safety-messages-swing-voters-to-democrats-as-worries-rise-amid-pandemic/" target="_blank" title="">Exclusive: Poll shows gun safety messages swing voters to Democrats as worries rise amid pandemic</a>, Igor Derysh, Salon, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">A massive survey of 13 battleground states found that gun safety-themed messages were among the most impactful in swinging voters to presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden amid the coronavirus pandemic.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="everytown.png" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/238226/large/everytown.png?1460583120" title="everytown.png"> <figcaption>People have had enough. Gun safety resonates.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Campaign messaging on the impact of the coronavirus on the country's gun violence crisis was the second most effective in shifting support to Biden, closely behind Democratic messaging on taxes,<span> </span><a href="https://everytown.org/documents/2020/07/everytown-guns-covid-messaging.pdf/" title="">according to a poll of 16,500 voters in battleground states</a> such as Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin. The poll, which was conducted by Civis Analytics on behalf of the advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety, was exclusively shared with Salon.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">The poll showed that linking gun safety to the pandemic was nearly as effective in moving voters to Biden as Democrats' "gold standards" messages on core issues like health care and Medicare, Social Security and taxes. The findings show that voters are highly focused on gun safety in the context of the health crisis, which could serve as a road map for other Democrats in state and local races.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, Democrats have succeeded in yanking the overton window to the left in other ways no one expected, though for reasons (trump crises) most of us never wanted to see:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/16/how-joe-biden-is-moving-left-while-still-being-seen-moderate/?hpid=hp_save-opinions-float-right-4-0_opinion-card-f-right%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">How Joe Biden is moving left while still being seen as a moderate</a>, Paul Waldman, Washington Post, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="joepic.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/831134/large/joepic.jpeg?1594586547" title="joepic.jpeg"> <figcaption>Joe’s policy platform is the most progressive since FDR and yet he is still seen as “moderate”. That’s an overton window shift!</figcaption> </figure> <p>When Sen. Bernie Sanders<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/RonaldKlain/status/1281049672677756930">said</a><span> </span>recently that if Joe Biden implements his policy agenda, the presumptive Democratic nominee could be "the most progressive president since<span> </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/franklin-d-roosevelt/" target="_blank">FDR</a>,” he was probably right. In fact, something extraordinary is happening: Biden is getting more progressive in substance, yet it has done nothing to change his image as a moderate.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The Trump campaign is utterly flummoxed by this state of affairs; in reality, they long ago gave up trying to claim that Biden is some kind of extremist, and now can only<span> </span><a href="https://factba.se/transcript/donald-trump-speech-kag-rally-tulsa-oklahoma-june-20-2020" target="_blank">shout</a><span> </span>that he’ll be a "puppet of the radical left.” But that doesn’t seem to be convincing anyone either. ✄</p> <p><span>There’s a kind of shift we expect from presidential candidates: In the primaries they appeal to their party with pledges of ideological fealty, then when the nomination is secured, during the general election, they head back to the center. Biden, however, is doing the opposite, in substance if not in rhetoric.</span></p> <p><span>That’s not to say that people on the left shouldn’t be wary; they should. And I should stress that, in nearly every case, Biden is simply becoming more ambitious in pursuing goals he already held. He wanted to <strong>expand health coverage, attack inequality and address climate change</strong>; now, he’s saying he’ll be more aggressive in doing so.</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>And L👀k at Alabama</h4> <p>A few of our regular commenters have consistently said DO NOT COUNT DOUG JONES OUT, and you know something? I think they may be right! So-called “red-state” Democrats are bringing their A-game to this election and none so well as Alabama Democrats this week!</p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/alabama-dems-showing-rest-of-us-how-to-throw-the-f-ck-down" target="_blank">Alabama Dems Show Rest Of Us How To THROW THE F*CK DOWN</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">This year as we've watched Senate races, we've kept in mind that Alabama Democratic Senator Doug Jones is<span> </span><em>probably</em><span> </span>going to lose, and we are<span> </span><em>probably</em><span> </span>going to have to accept that. After all, while Alabama<span> </span><em>did</em><span> </span>elect a Democratic senator, which shows it can be done, his opponent was credibly accused of<span> </span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/alabama-gop-senate-candidate-roy-moore-only-molested-one-little-girl-allegedly" target="_blank">preying on kids</a><span> </span>as young as 14.</p> <p style="text-align:start">So ... SHRUGGIE.</p> <p style="text-align:start">But former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville beat Jeff Sessions for the GOP nomination, and if the Alabama Democrats have anything to say about it, that's as close to the endzone as he's getting. Y'all, they were ready for this. And from what we're hearing, Tuberville is<span> </span><em>exactly</em><span> </span>who they wanted to run against.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(Here’s just one sample of the “LOL-itude” Alabama Dems are bringing to this fight)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;You, scared of your own shadow: “Can an incumbent Democratic Senator win a red state?”&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Us, ready to storm hell with a super-soaker: “Tuberville couldn’t score a TD for 2 weeks with 4 first rounders on his offense. He also lost to Vanderbilt.” &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneAlabama?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#OneAlabama&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/JsPkNu4uAe"&gt;https://t.co/JsPkNu4uAe&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Alabama Democrats (@aldemocrats) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/aldemocrats/status/1283259093499740160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 15, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>You, scared of your own shadow: Ã¢Â€ÂœCan an incumbent Democratic Senator win a red state?Ã¢Â€Â<br><br>Us, ready to storm hell with a super-soaker: Ã¢Â€ÂœTuberville couldnÃ¢Â€Â™t score a TD for 2 weeks with 4 first rounders on his offense. He also lost to Vanderbilt.Ã¢Â€Â <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneAlabama?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneAlabama</a> <a href="https://t.co/JsPkNu4uAe">https://t.co/JsPkNu4uAe</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Alabama Democrats (@aldemocrats) <a href="https://twitter.com/aldemocrats/status/1283259093499740160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Just a reminder that there really is no such thing as “red” states and “blue” states. Remember this more representative map of the voting patterns from the last presidential election, and try to keep it in mind when considering what could be possible with fair elections (and hopefully some day no more electoral college giving outsized influence to a few people on a lot of empty land:</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="Dasymetric-Dot-Density-w.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/570600/large/Dasymetric-Dot-Density-w.jpg?1532704925" title="Dasymetric-Dot-Density-w.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <h3>🎶 “Red” States to RNC with 💜 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=cTpvirQ-hPA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cTpvirQ-hPA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🇺🇸 And More Good News From States 🇺🇸</h3> <p>It’s probably too little, too late for these R governors, if they hope to untether themselves from the trumpsized millstone around their necks, but this is good news for the people in these states:</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/republican-governors-break-trump-amid-growing-calls-mask/story?id=71818051&cid=clicksource_4380645_14_post_hero_bsq_hed" target="_blank">Republican governors break from Trump amid growing calls for mask mandates</a>, Libby Cathey, ABC News, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Thursday became the latest Republican governor to issue an executive order mandating residents wear face coverings in public, following the lead of GOP governors in Alabama and West Virginia, desperate to contain a record-breaking surge in<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus" target="_blank">COVID-19</a><span><span> </span>cases and hospitalizations. ✄</span></p> <p>Hutchinson gave in after long resisting a statewide stay-at-home order, as Arkansas sees record-breaking number of new infections.</p> <p>"The number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths are numbers that speak for themselves and indicate that we need to do more," Hutchinson said in a press conference in Little Rock. "I want everybody to understand that this is a mandate. It does carry consequences," he said about violating the order, punishable by a fine of up to $500. ✄</p> <p>In Texas, where cases are surging, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in April similarly blocked municipalities from imposing fines for breaking masks mandates. In a reversal, he's urging more Texans to wear masks but has also stopped short of imposing a statewide mandate.</p> <p>Republican Sen.<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/marco-rubio" target="_blank">Marco Rubio</a><span> </span>of the hard-hit state of Florida -- where Gov. Ron DeSantis has come under fire for recent comments downplaying the virus -- has also weighed in on Twitter, where he dons a mask in his profile picture, saying, "why not do it?"</p> </blockquote> <h4>Georgia</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/3db1db2c24ad60d215733cb7820892d5" target="_blank">Defiance grows as Georgia governor blocks local mask rules</a>, Jeff Amy and Ben Nadler, AP News, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Mayors in Atlanta and other Georgia cities deepened their defiance of Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday, saying they want their requirements for people to wear masks in public to remain in place, even after the Republican governor explicitly forbade cities and counties from mandating face coverings.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Officials in at least 15 Georgia cities and counties, including Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, had ordered masks during<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak">the coronavirus pandemic</a>, and many are venting outrage at Kemp swatting down their efforts.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“The mayor’s order remains in effect, as science and data will continue to drive the city’s decisions,” Bottoms spokesperson Michael Smith wrote in a text. “Masks save lives.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“I have been in regular communication with mayors in several other Georgia cities with mask requirements, and we wish for our local requirements to remain in place,” Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz wrote in an email to The Associated Press. “We strongly believe this is within our authority.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;MORE BREAKING NEWS: We just won our case challenging Georgia&amp;#39;s 6 week abortion ban! &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The ban was in clear violation of &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoevWade?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#RoevWade&lt;/a&gt; and nearly a half century of Supreme Court precedent. Today, the rule of law prevailed once again, and abortion remains legal in all 50 states.&lt;/p&gt;— Center for Reproductive Rights (@ReproRights) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ReproRights/status/1282742664581001219?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>MORE BREAKING NEWS: We just won our case challenging Georgia's 6 week abortion ban! <br><br>The ban was in clear violation of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoevWade?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoevWade</a> and nearly a half century of Supreme Court precedent. Today, the rule of law prevailed once again, and abortion remains legal in all 50 states.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Center for Reproductive Rights (@ReproRights) <a href="https://twitter.com/ReproRights/status/1282742664581001219?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Maryland</h4> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/hogan-condemns-attacks-on-fauci-as-trump-admins-biggest-mistake-in-covid-response" target="_blank">Hogan Condemns Attacks On Fauci As Trump Admin’s ‘Biggest Mistake’ In COVID Response</a>, Zoe Richards, TPM, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said Thursday that the White House’s efforts to discredit Dr. Anthony Fauci, who has emerged as a critical scientific voice on the Coronavirus Task Force, was probably “one of the biggest mistakes they’ve made.” </span></p> <p><span>In an<span> </span><a href="https://www.msnbc.com/andrea-mitchell-reports/watch/gov-hogan-one-of-trump-s-biggest-mistakes-on-the-pandemic-was-not-listening-to-the-experts-87817285601">interview</a><span> </span>with MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, Hogan condemned what he called an “attack” and a “campaign” waged against the top infectious diseases expert by the White House as one of the biggest blunders that the Trump administration has made in its ongoing mishandling of the pandemic. </span></p> <p><span>Hogan defended Fauci, who he said “has been the most respected most trusted voice and the guy we’re getting the most honest information from throughout this entire crisis.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Virginia</h4> <p>(Insert your regularly scheduled reminder that ELECTIONS MATTER here):</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/virginia-worker-protection-coronavirus_n_5f10a73fc5b6cec246c02f1f" target="_blank">Virginia Enacts First-Of-Its-Kind Regulation To Protect Workers From Coronavirus</a>, Dave Jamieson, Huff Post, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="northam-ralph-virginia-governor-candidate.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/453565/large/northam-ralph-virginia-governor-candidate.jpg?1506446590" title="northam-ralph-virginia-governor-candidate.jpg"> <figcaption>Gov. Ralph Northam (D-VA) also happens to be a medical doctor. Lucky for Virginians, they get a double win!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Virginia leaders approved a new set of rules Wednesday that employers throughout the state must follow to protect workers during the pandemic ― a step Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam said he was taking because the federal government has done so little to keep workplaces safe from the coronavirus.</p> </div> <div> <p>The Virginia <a href="https://www.governor.virginia.gov/newsroom/all-releases/2020/july/headline-859234-en.html" target="_blank">regulation</a> requires that employers follow social-distancing guidelines and provide masks to workers who deal with customers. In workplaces where it isn’t possible to spread out, employers will have to provide hand sanitizer or access to sinks, and regularly clean work surfaces.</p> </div> <div> <p>Employers must notify workers within 24 hours when a coworker has tested positive for COVID-19. Anyone believed to have the virus must stay off the job for at least 10 days, or until they’ve tested negative two times. And workplaces in higher-risk fields must develop infectious-disease response plans if they haven’t already.</p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>New York</h4> <p><span><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2020/07/16/city-plans-child-care-for-100-000-kids-when-schools-partially-reopen-1301436" target="_blank">NYC plans child care for 100,000 kids when schools partially reopen</a>, Erin Durkin, Politico, July 16, 2020.</span></p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="The skyline of downtown Manhattan, including the Freedom Tower, is seen in this aerial photograph over New York City, September 13, 2016. / AFP / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/553113/large/GettyImages-604521056.jpg?1529001350" title="The skyline of downtown Manhattan, including the Freedom Tower, is seen in this aerial photograph over New York City, September 13, 2016. / AFP / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>New York’s public schools plan to offer a mix of in-person classes and remote learning when a new school year starts — with students going to school one to three days a week, in order to cut the number of people in buildings and prevent the spread of the coronavirus.</span></p> <p>That’s expected to create a major crunch for working parents with no one to watch their kids on the days they’re not in school.</p> <p>The mayor rolled out plans to expand city-sponsored child care programs so 100,000 children from preschool through eighth grade will have a place to go on their off days. There are 1.1 million students in the city’s public school system, the largest in the nation. ✄</p> <p>City officials are currently scouring for space that will include community centers and libraries converted into child care centers.<span> </span><a href="http://www.nycsca.org/Real-Estate/Overview/sites" target="_blank">Private landlords are also encouraged to pitch their space</a><span> </span>to the city for either school or child care.</p> <p>“We’ve got a little under two months until school begins. We’ve got a lot to do, and nothing like this has ever been attempted on this timeframe,” de Blasio said. “But we’re going to find a way to do this, and hopefully much more.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Texas</h4> <p>In yesterday’s GNR, oldhippiedude brought us so much good news from Texas — it is thrilling to think that Texas really is in play! The best news of all was the huge increase in Democratic voter turnout for the primary this week. Texans have joined other “red” state Democrats turning out in droves all over the country to vote for change and a better America. </p> <p><a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/07/16/texas-coronavirus-greg-abbott-pac/" target="_blank">Spurred by Gov. Greg Abbott's coronavirus handling, Democratic strategists launch PAC to defeat him in 2022</a>, Patrick Svitek, Texas Tribune, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="bluetexasdream.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/831763/large/bluetexasdream.png?1594743061" title="bluetexasdream.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left">Hoping to harness the opposition to Gov.<span> </span><a href="https://www.texastribune.org/directory/greg-abbott/">Greg Abbott</a>'s handling of the coronavirus, several Texas Democratic strategists are launching a new political group to defeat him in 2022.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Their group, the<span> </span><a href="http://www.beatabbott.com/">Beat Abbott PAC</a>, will raise money that will ultimately go to the Democratic nominee against Abbott in 2022, when he is up for a third term. Along the way, the political action committee aims to build a small-dollar donor list that can help Democrats in the next election cycle and "hold Abbott accountable for his failure on COVID," according to an announcement first shared with The Texas Tribune. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:left"><span>“We’re done listening to a Governor willing to let people die in order to maintain his good graces with the likes of Donald Trump and the right-wing of the Republican party,” Malitz, the PAC's treasurer, said in a statement. “People in this state deserve better than a corrupt talking head who looks out only for himself and the one-percent. It’s time to beat him.”</span></p> <p class="is-empty-p" style="text-align:left"></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 “Red” States To RNC With 💙 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=5n1mfhFBYdg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5n1mfhFBYdg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-vance/trump-cannot-be-allowed-to-kill-criminal-probe-with-delays-new-york-prosecutor-warns-idUSKCN24H2HL" target="_blank">Trump cannot be allowed to kill criminal probe with delays, New York prosecutor warns</a>, Jonathan Strempel and Karen Freifeld, Reuters, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">A New York prosecutor on Thursday warned against allowing U.S. President Donald Trump to run out the clock on the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal probe into Trump.</span> ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The case concerns an August 2019 subpoena to Trump’s accounting firm Mazars USA for eight years of personal and corporate tax returns, related to Vance’s criminal probe into Trump and his Trump Organization.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Dunne told U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero there are looming deadlines to prosecute cases because of statutes of limitations, and more delays could give Trump the “absolute temporary immunity” the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Marrero approved a jointly negotiated schedule giving Trump until July 27 to file papers formally opposing the subpoena and its scope. Vance won’t enforce the subpoena through then. The hearing was held via teleconference.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Economic Justice</h4> <p><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/billionaires-taxes-coronavirus/a-54154485" target="_blank">'Tax us more': Millionaires urge governments to raise taxes to fund coronavirus aid,</a> </p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Photo of Abigail Disney, 2011 on self-authored article" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/599206/large/abigail-disney_%281%29.jpg?1539382611" title="Photo of Abigail Disney, 2011 on self-authored article"> <figcaption>Abigail DIsney and a bunch of her wealthy friends are trying to do their part for economic justice.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A group of 83 millionaires from seven different countries called for<span> </span><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/us-billionaires-call-for-new-wealth-tax-to-fight-climate-change/a-49339995">higher taxes on the rich</a><span> </span>to help fund the world's<span> </span><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/austrias-kurz-lays-out-conditions-for-eu-coronavirus-recovery-deal/a-54143432">recovery from the coronavirus pandemic</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In<span> </span><a href="https://www.millionairesforhumanity.com/" target="_blank">an open letter shared Monday</a>, the signatories wrote that problems caused and revealed by COVID-19 "can't be solved with charity, no matter how generous." ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The<span> </span><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/coronavirus-recovery-europe/a-54087230">means to rebuild</a><span> </span>the world's health systems, schools, and security can only be obtained through "a permanent tax increase on the wealthiest people on the planet, people like us," the letter said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Millions of people will lose their jobs as businesses close, some permanently," the millionaires warned. "Government leaders<span> </span><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-merkel-vows-to-spearhead-coronavirus-recovery-efforts/a-53979687">must take the responsibility</a><span> </span>for raising the funds we need and spending them fairly."</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/lenders-oppose-federal-effort-to-weaken-housing-discrimination-rule-11594667932?mod=e2tw" target="_blank">Lenders Oppose Federal Effort to Weaken Housing-Discrimination Rule</a>, Andrew Ackerman, Wall Street Journal, July 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:left">Banks and mortgage lenders are urging the Trump administration to scrap a plan to water down an Obama-era regulation aimed at combating discrimination in housing, saying it is inappropriate amid the national reckoning on race.</p> <p style="text-align:left">Bank of America Corp. and Quicken Loans Inc. in recent days came out against the initiative, which would make it harder to pursue housing-discrimination cases by raising the burden of proof needed to bring a claim. Lenders were generally supportive of the changes when they were floated last year.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍 </h3> <h4>UK</h4> <p>Eventually, we will know what happened here and elsewhere. Although this report will probably be fairly opaque, the pressure to get to the truth is growing. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Story here: &lt;a href="https://t.co/nJFI6MLDtU"&gt;https://t.co/nJFI6MLDtU&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Paul Waugh (@paulwaugh) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/paulwaugh/status/1283715278765948929?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;July 16, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Story here: <a href="https://t.co/nJFI6MLDtU">https://t.co/nJFI6MLDtU</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Paul Waugh (@paulwaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/paulwaugh/status/1283715278765948929?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 16, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Russia</h4> <p>This week in Russia…a popular (if problematic) governor’s arrest has set off big protests. </p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/russia-s-far-east-rare-anti-putin-protests-gain-momentum-n1233866" target="_blank">In Russia's far east, rare anti-Putin protests gain momentum</a>, Matthew Bodner, NBC News, July 16, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="800px-Khabarovsk_in_Russia.svg_1_.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/397653/large/800px-Khabarovsk_in_Russia.svg_1_.png?1494058618" title="800px-Khabarovsk_in_Russia.svg_1_.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>An unlikely protest movement has become the first major challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin after he<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/vladimir-putin-headed-victory-reform-vote-could-keep-him-power-n1232688" target="_blank">secured his political future in a contentious vote this month</a><span> </span>— and it may spell more trouble in the days ahead.</p> <p>Residents of Khabarovsk, a large city near Russia's border with China, have been up in arms for days protesting the arrest of their governor on 15-year-old murder charges. ✄</p> <p>"This was a governor that was honestly elected by the people, which is unusual in Russia," she said. "He was in power for just two years, but he did a lot for the people: He fixed the region's budget, repaired the roads, gave schoolchildren free breakfast. And he was removed on unfair charges. There are so many injustices in the far east, and this was the last straw."</p> <p>And so, on Saturday, 30,000 people took to the streets of Khabarovsk to demand his release. Protests have continued every day since. Demonstrators have held banners saying "Free Sergei Furgal," while others have called on Putin to resign.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 People are Rising Up for Justice 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=lwgr_IMeEgA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/lwgr_IMeEgA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🔥 Meanwhile, From the Schadenfreude File, This Assh*le… 🔥</h3> <p>I haven’t posted schadenfreude for awhile, mostly because in these awful times I find it really hard to laugh at anyone’s misfortune, even those who so richly deserve it! However, today I am bringing back the Schadenfreude File because these assh*les were so deserving of comeuppance…</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/parscale-demoted-as-trumps-dismal-poll-numbers-continue-to-sink" target="_blank">Parscale Demoted As Trump’s Dismal Poll Numbers Continue To Sink</a>, Cristina Cabrera, TPM, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="LEXINGTON, KY - NOVEMBER 04: Brad Parscale, campaign manager for U.S. President Donald Trump, gestures to the crowd at a campaign rally for the president on November 4, 2019 in Lexington, Kentucky. The president was visiting Kentucky the day before Election Day in support of Republican Gov. Matt Bevin. (Photo by Bryan Woolston/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/735425/large/GettyImages-1180015395.jpg?1573058589" title="LEXINGTON, KY - NOVEMBER 04: Brad Parscale, campaign manager for U.S. President Donald Trump, gestures to the crowd at a campaign rally for the president on November 4, 2019 in Lexington, Kentucky. The president was visiting Kentucky the day before Election Day in support of Republican Gov. Matt Bevin. (Photo by Bryan Woolston/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Here’s our honorary assh*le flashing the white power hand signal at a rally in support of Matt Bevin in KY last November. Keepin’ it blatant, eh Brad? Looks like that WP appeal didn’t fly with KY voters!</figcaption> </figure> <p>President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday night that his campaign manager, Brad Parscale, would be replaced by deputy campaign manager Bill Stepien.</p> <p>“I am pleased to announce that Bill Stepien has been promoted to the role of Trump Campaign Manager,” Trump tweeted. “Brad Parscale, who has been with me for a very long time and has led our tremendous digital and data strategies, will remain in that role, while being a Senior Advisor to the campaign.”</p> <p>Trump claimed a second win “should be a lot easier” because “our poll numbers are rising fast.”</p> <p>In fact, the campaign shake-up comes as Trump’s anemic approval ratings<span> </span><a href="https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/" target="_blank">sink ever lower</a><span> </span>as a result of his feeble response to COVID-19 and his bombastic response to the recent anti-police brutality protests. Consequently, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has been<span> </span><a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/us/general_election_trump_vs_biden-6247.html" target="_blank">crushing</a><span> </span>Trump in the polls ahead of the November elections.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And this assh*le…</h4> <p>It’s so rare for an assh*le to get the justice they deserve, and even rarer for there to be both instantaneous consequences AND measured, appropriate legal consequences in due course. This story has it all:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/07/man-spits-on-grocery-store-worker-who-asked-him-to-wear-a-mask-and-immediately-gets-hit-in-the-face-police/" target="_blank" title="">Man spits on grocery store worker who asked him to wear a mask — and immediately gets hit in the face: police</a>, Brad Reed, Raw Story via <a href="https://www.univision.com/local/puerto-rico-wlii/turista-agrede-a-empleado-y-lo-escupe-tras-no-querer-utilizar-mascarilla-en-supermercado-de-rincon" target="_blank">Univision</a>, July 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-xl align-right"><img alt="aa52203ae723f55b790259c46ef8fb2e.png" class="width-xl" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/832596/large/aa52203ae723f55b790259c46ef8fb2e.png?1594961574" title="aa52203ae723f55b790259c46ef8fb2e.png"> <figcaption>Or spit...</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>When an employee asked the man to put (the mask around his neck) on, police say the man became aggressive and spat on him — after which he got hit in the face by a security guard.</span></p> <p><span>In a phone camera video recorded by Drew in the aftermath of the incident, the American tourist shows that he has a mouthful of blood after getting hit, and he warns employees that police would be coming to arrest the man who hit him.</span></p> <p><span>“The cops are coming right now to get this piece of sh*t arrested!” he said while pointing at the employee...However, according to<span> </span></span><em>Univision</em><span>, Drew was arrested and is due to report to the Aguadilla Court at “a later date.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>💐 Let’s Honor Truth 💐</h3> <p>Chloris Creator has a section honoring a truth-teller in her regular Friday GNRs and since I am subbing for her today, I would like to carry on that excellent tradition.</p> <p>Let’s honor Mary Trump, who has bravely spoken out about her uncle, *president trump. Here is an excerpt from her interview with Rachel Maddow last night:</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Mary Trump" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/826816/large/MaryTrump.JPG?1593670036" title="Mary Trump"> <figcaption>Mary L. Trump</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:left">"I can't say that there was a last straw because there had been so many straws," the president's niece said. "But certainly the horrors at the border — you know, the separating of children from their parents; the torture, the kidnapping, and the incarceration of them in cages, was unthinkable, unbearable, and when an opportunity presented itself to me to do something, I needed to take a leap." ✄</p> <p style="text-align:left">Mary Trump said she's prepared to deal with the fallout of revealing her family's dirty business.</p> <p style="text-align:left">"I'm not scared," she said. I'm taking appropriate precautions, certainly, because I'm not deluded about potential scenarios. He is in a position of great power. I know my family to be quite vindictive, and Donald has a rather passionate following."</p> <p style="text-align:left">"Whatever the consequences are, I'm prepared to deal with them the best I can," she added.</p> </blockquote> <p>Her book, <span><a href="https://bookshop.org/books/too-much-and-never-enough-how-my-family-created-the-world-s-most-dangerous-man/9781982141462" target="_blank">Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man</a> broke a record for publisher Simon & Schuster selling more than 950,000 copies on its first day of release. I think our own NNNE may have helped with that, thanks to his <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/7/14/1960750/-Evening-Shade-Mary-Mary-Quite-Contrary-Mary-Trump-s-Book-Reviewed-Part-One" target="_blank">book reports</a>! </span></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette (go read it right now for the Bible quotes!): <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/everybody-hurts-sometimes-even-brad-parscales-neckbeard" target="_blank">Everybody Hurts Sometimes. Even Brad Parscale's Neckbeard :(</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Some great ideas here: <a href="https://www.alternet.org/2020/07/recruiting-poll-workers-is-key-to-thwart-trumps-attacks-on-our-voting-ssstems/" target="_blank">Recruiting poll workers is key to thwarting Trump’s attacks on our voting systems</a>, Steven Rosenfeld, Alternet?Independent Media Institute, July 11, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ What a pathetic loser: T<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/team-trump-frantically-plots-new-ways-to-make-him-feel-good-about-himself?ref=scroll" target="_blank">eam Trump Frantically Plots New Ways to Make Him Feel Good About Himself</a>, Asawin Suebsaeng, Daily Beast, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-myths.html" target="_blank">14 Coronavirus myths busted by science</a>, Rachael Rettner, LiveScience, July 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Here’s what works (attention meat plants): <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/07/16/890752881/this-citys-coronavirus-safety-measures-could-become-best-practices?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates" target="_blank">This City's Coronavirus Safety Measures Could Become Best Practices</a>, Nadine Sebai, NPR News, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-donald-trump-meets-match-anthony-fauci-analysis/story?id=71822115&cid=clicksource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_hero_hed" target="_blank">President Donald Trump meets his match in Anthony Fauci: ANALYSIS</a>, Jordyn Phelps and Ben Gittleson, ABC News, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-twitter-cyber-congress/senate-republican-asks-twitter-for-urgent-briefing-on-hacking-incident-idUSKCN24H2YZ" target="_blank">Senate Republican asks Twitter for urgent briefing on hacking incident</a>, David Shepardson, Reuters, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ FBI eyes are on it: <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-justice-twitter-hack/fbi-says-it-is-investigating-hack-of-high-profile-twitter-accounts-idUSKCN24H32P" target="_blank">FBI says it is investigating hack of high-profile Twitter accounts</a>, Sarah N Lynch, Reuters, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ghislaine-maxwell-virginia-roberts-giuffre-jeffrey-epstein-squeal-names/" target="_blank">Ghislaine Maxwell could "squeal" on "very well-known names," Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre says</a>, CBS News, July 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Longer very interesting read: <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/7/16/21325814/boycott-goya-pandemic-workers-rights" target="_blank">Boycotts show us what matters to Americans</a>, Terry Nguyen, Vox, July 16, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p>Check out this amazing spreadsheet: <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YHqXc27ir5ciG1csQejuc_JywvNXz1wzpCPpV3zW0uM/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">Flip Everything!</a> by Mattrek</p> <p><strong><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></strong></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black poodle carrying ball in her mouth calmly outpaces two pursuing dogs." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/832564/large/curlygirl.jpg?1594952384" title="black poodle carrying ball in her mouth calmly outpaces two pursuing dogs."> <figcaption>Mama says play nicely and I do, but this ball is mine.<br> I know what belongs to me and I intend to keep it!<br> Later, boys!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>That’s it for this Friday, Newsies. There’s much more good news to be found and I recommend the comments section for plenty of it! No doubt <strong>hpg</strong> will be by with the latest polls and <strong>WIneRev</strong> will bring us a history lesson and maybe <strong>Mrmuni12</strong> will also provide a GNR Annex! <strong>Wolverine</strong> will raise our flag and <strong>Slideman</strong> will post another great comment. Maybe <strong>silverfoxcruiser</strong> will share a quote and <strong>pr0gressivist</strong> will bring some classical music. <strong>tljdk</strong> will raise a glass from the Siam desk and <strong>RunawayRose</strong> can always be relied upon to bring us good local news!. These are only a few of the wonderful regular contributers who make the GNR comments section the best on the internet (hat tip to <strong>arhpdx</strong>). Won’t you join us and share your good news today?</p> <p>Take good care of yourselves and those you love. If we stay strong and keep working, we will build a better tomorrow. I am proud to be a part of this community!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=jalrTsJXtwE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jalrTsJXtwE">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Campaign Democrats Election GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Politics Recommended RNC _1955960 Fri, 17 Jul 2020 11:00:04 +0000 With Hearts Like Lions, We Will Save The Country - June 23 GNR https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/6/23/1952078/-With-Hearts-Like-Lions-We-Will-Save-The-Country-June-23-GNR <p>Good day, Gnusies! I’ll get straight to the point. If I see one more tweet, post or story telling us we should be “terrified”, I am going to </p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="exploding-head-1451642402.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/652846/large/exploding-head-1451642402.jpg?1552312140" title="exploding-head-1451642402.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>For crying out loud, we <em>know</em> that demented donny is a loose cannon with far too much power and we know that things are likely to get very tense between now and November. We know this! There is nothing to be gained by running around with hair on fire being terrified and yelling at other people that if they are not terrified they are not paying attention. Everyone knows the dangers we face!</p> <p>FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD AND PRECIOUS, <em><strong>KNOCK IT OFF!!! </strong></em>Tell others to knock it off, too. It’s not helpful and by giving in to panic — or worse, being a panic-monger — progressives are weakening each other. It’s got to stop. </p> <p>Yes, scary stuff may yet happen — and then again, haven’t we been through a ton of really scary shit already? And worse than that — Are there not children still in cages? Are there not Black people still being brutalized by our so-called law and order? Is there not egregious wealth inequality and people still struggling to provide food, housing and healthcare for their families? </p> <p>We need to get a very firm grip on our emotions — and it’s hard because just about everyone is exhausted and traumatized by nearly 4 years of unremitting horror. I don’t mean it’s not OK to share our legitimate fears in comments, but we have to get ahold of ourselves, prepare to weather the storms of the next few months and face into it with steadfast determination. Because it is up to us to save ourselves — to rescue the children, stand by our Black neighbors, insist on a better, more just and equal world for everyone. <strong>And we <em>CAN</em> do it</strong>. As someone very wise once said, YES WE CAN!</p> <p>The first step is realizing that trump is not all-powerful. He is a weak, sniveling, whiner and bully. His supporters include some mad people and some violent people — but these people have always been out there. So, now we face that threat openly and maybe we can defeat it once and for all. Don’s criminal backers are of course even more scary, and yet they are few in number compared to the millions of us — both here in the USA and around the world (billions, in fact) and if we keep our wits about us we can defeat them, too.</p> <p>If you don’t already read Teri Kanefield, I highly recommend her blog or twitter. She has a terrific way of breaking down the complex into simple language that really hones in on the point. So I will defer to her to finish this intro:</p> <p>The illegitimate *president is not invincible. It’s time to stop even giving that idea any attention at all.</p> <p><a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/trumps-greatest-con/" target="_blank">Trump’s Greatest Con</a>, Teri Kanefield, Musing About Law, Books and Politics, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:left"><strong>Here’s how the invincibility con works:</strong> First, Trump does outrageous and shocking things. He politicizes the DOJ. He openly violates laws. The rule-breaking stokes his base. They think: “Our team will win!” Trump woke up his bored audience in Tulsa when he said, “dumb son of a bitch.”</span></p> <p style="text-align:left">They want a rule breaker because they want to own the libs and win. The rule-breaking creates panic meltdown in the opposition. With hair on fire, they ask questions like:</p> <figure> <p>(From<span> </span><a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/faq/" target="_blank">my FAQs</a>) ← (gloom and doom “terrified” questions, can’t link in GNR)</p> <p>Trump supporters see the panic and think, “Wow! Trump is all-powerful!”</p> <p>GOP leaders see the panic and think “I’d better stay in line! I need to be on the winning side!”</p> <p>Trump critics also have a strong reaction. They say: ‘They’re down in the polls but they seem confident, so they must know they’ve got this in the bag.”</p> <p>It’s easy to panic when dealing with cheaters, but our panic helps Trump by feeding into the “he’s all powerful” narrative. (I’ve often felt frustrated by fear-mongering on the left, which increases the panic.) So rule-breaking accomplishes three things for Trump:</p> <p>It stokes his base, and</p> <p>it panics the opposition, which</p> <p>creates a myth of invincibility.</p> <p><em><strong>People totally forget that the GOP lost the midterms by 8 points and have sunk further since then. </strong></em></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Oh, for goodness sake.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;They couldn&amp;#39;t even manage a rally in Tulsa.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The only thing Trump knows how to do is manipulate people, which he does regularly. &lt;a href="https://t.co/XJe1EOGKGs"&gt;https://t.co/XJe1EOGKGs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1275100072598859776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Oh, for goodness sake.<br><br>They couldn't even manage a rally in Tulsa.<br><br>The only thing Trump knows how to do is manipulate people, which he does regularly. <a href="https://t.co/XJe1EOGKGs">https://t.co/XJe1EOGKGs</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) <a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1275100072598859776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </figure> </blockquote> <p>So Gnusies, one of our jobs is to encourage other progressives to stop doing the Pubs work for them! For pete’s sake, stop fellow Democrats from feeding into that self-destructive cycle, if you can! And if you can’t, then don’t participate in that self-defeating behavior. Walk/scroll away and do something useful, like write 5 more postcards, make more calls, or do whatever suits your skillset to GOTV! It is the prize. Keep your eyes on it!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=M4TfFTmITLo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/M4TfFTmITLo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><strong>And now, here’s the news:</strong></p> <h3>💪🏿🏈 The Kids Are All Right 🏀💪🏿</h3> <p>Young people are starting to decline to be used in the evangelical school-to-voting-booth pipeline: <a href="https://www.aseaofred.com/tayvion-land-and-keitrel-clark-have-entered-the-transfer-portal/" target="_blank">TAYVION LAND AND KEI’TREL CLARK HAVE ENTERED THE TRANSFER PORTAL</a>, Jon Manson, ASOR Football, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Land and Clark are both rising sophomores who were part of Coach Freeze’s first recruiting class at Liberty. Land is the highest rated recruit in school history, joining the program as a 4-star rated prospect. He played in 11 games as a true freshman last season, including starter at nickel, and finished with 23 tackles.</span></p> <p>Clark developed into a starter at corner as a true freshman in 2019. He played in all 13 games, recording 38 tackles, 3 TFLs, 1 sack, 6 PBUs, and 1 blocked kick.</p> <p>Both were expected to start in 2020.</p> <p><a href="https://www.aseaofred.com/asia-todd-enters-transfer-portal/">Their decision comes on the heels of Liberty women’s basketball player Asia Todd who transferred, also citing racial insensitivities. </a></p> </blockquote> <p>Ruth Graham’s article in Slate last week revealed that Black faculty are also leaving AND that the “university” is having trouble recruiting minority students, even with scholarship offers:</p> <p> <a href="https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/06/liberty-university-black-students-faculty.html" target="_blank">“I Suppressed So Much of My Humanity in Being Here” What it’s like to be Black at Liberty University</a>, Ruth Graham, Slate, June 16, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt='Picture of trump in a sunshine halo towering over a Liberty University building, with the following written "Liberty University supports the One True God." ' src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/742401/large/trump18.jpg?1575003922" title='Picture of trump in a sunshine halo towering over a Liberty University building, with the following written "Liberty University supports the One True God." '> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>In Starchia’s resignation letter, which he quoted to Slate, he wrote, “I cannot submit myself under [Falwell Jr.’s] leadership at this current time as a black employee of the university.” In response, he said, Falwell Jr. and multiple upper-level administrators called him directly to ask him to reconsider; Falwell Jr. “encouraged and pushed” him, in Starchia’s words, to read Falwell Jr.’s apology tweets. Starchia said he would think it over but ultimately decided he had to leave. “I suppressed so much of my humanity as a black and queer man in being here,” he wrote to me. He remembered being called an “Oreo” to his face, being introduced as “the black friend,” and being asked during Black History Month why there’s no White History Month. “I want to be hopeful, but until the university recognizes their past history with racism, apologizes for it, and enacts significant policy implementation from the board level,” he wrote to me, “I do not foresee any changes for students or staff.”</span></p> <p><span>At least two other black employees at Liberty have resigned publicly since Falwell Jr. tweeted the racist image. Keyvon Scott, an online admissions counselor, resigned June 8. “I cannot in good faith encourage people to attend a school with racially insensitive leadership and culture,” he<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/scott_keyvon/status/1270008699235549184">tweeted</a><span>. “It is a poor reflection of what Jesus Christ requires of us.” Christopher House, an online instructor teaching a course on intercultural communications,<span> </span></span><a href="https://religionnews.com/2020/05/29/liberty-professor-resigns-after-falwells-governor-blackface-tweet/">resigned</a><span><span> </span>from Liberty the day after Falwell Jr.’s tweet. A friend who is a Liberty graduate sent him the tweet in a text message, he said, and he decided immediately to leave his part-time teaching job at the school. “In that moment it was as if my ancestors rose up within me and I knew I need to resign,” he told me. “It was an automatic deal breaker.” House said he has not received any communication from anyone at the school since he stepped down. In the video posted by Whitehead, Falwell responded dismissively to a question about House, at first saying he had not heard about the resignation and then correctly noting that House “teaches two courses.”</span></p> <p><span>There are indications that the turmoil may affect Liberty’s ability to recruit and retain minority students, too. Star basketball player Asia Todd, a sophomore, announced on Thursday that she is planning to transfer out of the school. “Due to the racial insensitivities shown within the leadership and culture, it simply does not align with my moral compass or personal convictions,” she<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/hoopersgalore_/status/1270903314381713410?s=21">said in a video posted to Twitter</a><span>. “Therefore, I had to do what I felt was best within my heart and stand up for what is right.” <strong>A source with connections to the Liberty athletic community told me that several high school football players in Georgia declined scholarships to Liberty in early June because of Falwell’s racial insensitivity. 👀</strong></span></p> </blockquote> <p>While in Mississippi...</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Mississippi State&amp;#39;s star running back. &lt;a href="https://t.co/fGVSr00G1j"&gt;https://t.co/fGVSr00G1j&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/RossDellenger/status/1275133346759262208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Mississippi State's star running back. <a href="https://t.co/fGVSr00G1j">https://t.co/fGVSr00G1j</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) <a href="https://twitter.com/RossDellenger/status/1275133346759262208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Wow. Things are changing, y’all. &lt;a href="https://t.co/y4AVUXqAKF"&gt;https://t.co/y4AVUXqAKF&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Exum (@ExumAM) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ExumAM/status/1273768750949548032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Wow. Things are changing, yÃ¢Â€Â™all. <a href="https://t.co/y4AVUXqAKF">https://t.co/y4AVUXqAKF</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Andrew Exum (@ExumAM) <a href="https://twitter.com/ExumAM/status/1273768750949548032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>and...Nascar? 😮</h4> <p>And who would ever have pegged NASCAR as a champion for Black Lives Matter? Or NASCAR banning the confederate flag? Almost unbelievable, but it is true! NASCAR was urged to ban the treason flag by Bubba Wallace, driver of car 43 (Richard Petty Motorsports) who is Black, and they agreed to do it. When racist confederates were outraged and flew the flags anyway around and above the venue, NASCAR <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/noose-found-bubba-wallace-s-garage-stall-nascar-says-n1231683" target="_blank">pushed back</a> stalwartly.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA - JUNE 14: Bubba Wallace, driver of the #43 World Wide Technology Chevrolet, stands on the grid prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14, 2020 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/822344/large/GettyImages-1249634756.jpg?1592829467" title="HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA - JUNE 14: Bubba Wallace, driver of the #43 World Wide Technology Chevrolet, stands on the grid prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14, 2020 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>This month, NASCAR, a bedrock of Southern culture,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nascar-bans-confederate-flags-its-events-n1229506" target="_blank">banned the Confederate flag<span> </span></a><span>from all of its events. The stunning action was taken in the wake of George Floyd's death, which has sparked worldwide<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/george-floyd-death" target="_blank">protests against police brutality and systemic racism</a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>NASCAR's move to ban the Confederate symbol has not been embraced by all fans. Earlier in the day, a plane flying over the track dragged a Confederate flag and the message: "Defund NASCAR."</span></p> <p>The aerial protest was taking a jab at Black Lives Matter supporters who want cities to divert money from police departments and into other social programs that could prevent crime.</p> <p>Afterward, NASCAR Executive Vice President Steve O'Donnell called the person who paid for the stunt a "jackass."</p> <p>O'Donnell<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/odsteve/status/1274751071039209472" target="_blank">tweeted<span> </span></a>a picture of a white and a Black hand shaking.</p> <p>"You won't see a photo of a jackass flying a flag over the track here...but you will see this...Hope EVERYONE enjoys the race today," O'Donnell wrote.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Hope Bubba wins it tomorrow.&lt;/p&gt;— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DaleJr/status/1274925802099019776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Hope Bubba wins it tomorrow.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/DaleJr/status/1274925802099019776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Those remarks and that pushback was included in a story about a noose being left in Bubba Wallace’s garage stall at Talladega race track. Nascar also responded to that ugly threat with full-throated support for Wallace and launched an investigation to find the perpetrators (which has since also been referred to the <a href="https://arizonasports.com/story/2309919/fbi-investigating-noose-left-in-stall-of-nascars-bubba-wallace/" target="_blank">FBI and the US Attorney’s</a> office). Before Monday’s race, we also learned that 82 -year old Richard Petty and his fellow drivers planned to surround and support Bubba Wallace before the race: <a href="https://popculture.com/sports/news/nascar-drivers-planning-stand-around-bubba-wallace-car-national-anthem-geico-500/" target="_blank">NASCAR Drivers Reportedly Planning to Stand Around Bubba Wallace's Car for National Anthem Ahead of Geico 500</a>, Brian Jones, PopCulture, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="200609211055-bubba-wallace-nascar-black-lives-matter-car-exlarge-169.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/816819/large/200609211055-bubba-wallace-nascar-black-lives-matter-car-exlarge-169.jpg?1591842466" title="200609211055-bubba-wallace-nascar-black-lives-matter-car-exlarge-169.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>NASCAR drivers are going to stand with<span> </span><a href="https://popculture.com/category/bubba-wallace/">Bubba Wallace</a><span> </span>before the start of the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on Monday. According to<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/DustinAlbino/status/1275110393359134720?s=20" target="_self">motorsports reporter Dustin Albino</a>, all the drivers are planning to support Wallace by "pushing [his car] to the front of the grid in unison." Everyone will then stand around the car at the start of the national anthem. This comes one day after a<span> </span><a href="https://popculture.com/sports/news/nascar-investigating-noose-left-bubba-wallace-garage-during-geico-500-talladega/" target="_self">noose was found</a><span> </span>at Wallace's garage at Talladega Speedway. Fellow<span> </span><a href="https://popculture.com/category/nascar/">NASCAR</a><span> </span>driver Matt DiBenedetto announced on Twitter NASCAR has something special planned pre-race, but didn't mention anything about Wallace's car.</p> <p>NASCAR released a statement on the situation on Sunday night and already started an investigation. "Late this afternoon, NASCAR was made aware that a noose was found in the garage stall of the 43 team. We are angry and outraged, and cannot state strongly enough how seriously we take this heinous act," NASCAR stated. "We have launched an immediate investigation, and will do everything we can to identify the person(s) responsible and eliminate them from the sport." Wallace didn't see the noose but went to social media to<span> </span><a href="https://popculture.com/sports/news/nascar-bubba-wallace-speaks-noose-left-garage-talladega-speedway/" target="_self">express his disappointment</a><span> </span>that something like this happened.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: NASCAR industry sources tell me Richard Petty will attend today’s race at Talladega, to stand in solidarity w &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BubbaWallace?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@BubbaWallace&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br&gt;Petty, 82, has not attended a race since COVID-19 halt.&lt;br&gt;Sources told me Petty commented: “The most impt thing for me right now is hugging my driver.”&lt;/p&gt;— Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MartySmithESPN/status/1275074716856803335?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>NEWS: NASCAR industry sources tell me Richard Petty will attend todayÃ¢Â€Â™s race at Talladega, to stand in solidarity w <a href="https://twitter.com/BubbaWallace?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BubbaWallace</a>.<br>Petty, 82, has not attended a race since COVID-19 halt.<br>Sources told me Petty commented: Ã¢Â€ÂœThe most impt thing for me right now is hugging my driver.Ã¢Â€Â</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/MartySmithESPN/status/1275074716856803335?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Too many of the people standing up bravely to racism are people of color. I hope we will see more and more white people standing up, too. The times they are a-changing, people, and it is a beautiful thing.</p> <p>ETA Here it is:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;No words &lt;a href="https://t.co/ZorYccEjFo"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ZorYccEjFo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Steve O&amp;#39;Donnell (@odsteve) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/odsteve/status/1275137783477219329?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>No words <a href="https://t.co/ZorYccEjFo">pic.twitter.com/ZorYccEjFo</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Steve O'Donnell (@odsteve) <a href="https://twitter.com/odsteve/status/1275137783477219329?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>To quote Joyce White Vance’s tweet last night:</p> <p class="AlignCenter"><em><strong>“America is full of surprises. We are capable of transformation.”</strong></em></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=i-kHleNYIDc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/i-kHleNYIDc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h4>Magachurch power in decline?</h4> <p>It was always about power for the magachurch movement, not Christian <em>agape. </em>The co-opting of Christian identity, the lobbying for more and more control at local levels, so that people were herded into magachurch communities as their former community resources were eliminated or taken over by the evangelicals — all of it was a means to an end: to secure a psychologically captivated and reliable voting block to ensure Republican dominance in American politics (with similar movements in other countries — oh and by the way, who financed the magachurches?). With the election of trump, mainly thanks to conservative Christians, that ugly truth has been laid bare, thank goodness.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I think most Christians would agree that Satan is an important part of Christian history, but if you put up a bunch of statues of him in your church, people might start to make assumptions about who you worship and what ideals you glorify 🤷🏻‍♂️&lt;/p&gt;— Andy Ryan (@AndyBoyStory) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/AndyBoyStory/status/1272935773780750337?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 16, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I think most Christians would agree that Satan is an important part of Christian history, but if you put up a bunch of statues of him in your church, people might start to make assumptions about who you worship and what ideals you glorify Ã°ÂŸÂ¤Â·Ã°ÂŸÂÂ»Ã¢Â€ÂÃ¢Â™Â‚Ã¯Â¸Â</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Andy Ryan (@AndyBoyStory) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndyBoyStory/status/1272935773780750337?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 16, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>The powerseekers behind the magachurch movement (and Christian dominionism/evangelicism) cannot control every one of their followers (though not from lack of trying). And it turns out that many people who were drawn into the evangelical movement were motivated by sincere Christian belief and principles, rather than for seeking theocratic power like the movement’s leaders. How inconvenient for the ambitions of leadership! SInce the conservative Christian movement had succeeded in becoming the only game in town in many (especially rural) places, if one wanted community and fellowship, they had little choice but to join the local magachurch for their social and spiritual needs. But that doesn’t mean they all hold the extremist views the leadership hoped to inculcate in them.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;It&amp;#39;s obviously hard to pinpoint what specific events drive public opinion, because the protests were dominating the news coverage the last week of May. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;But, that Trump picture in front of St. John&amp;#39;s happened the day before the last tracking poll. &lt;a href="https://t.co/4f4VYgAfgw"&gt;pic.twitter.com/4f4VYgAfgw&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Ryan Burge 📊 (@ryanburge) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ryanburge/status/1275137223730528257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>It's obviously hard to pinpoint what specific events drive public opinion, because the protests were dominating the news coverage the last week of May. <br><br>But, that Trump picture in front of St. John's happened the day before the last tracking poll. <a href="https://t.co/4f4VYgAfgw">pic.twitter.com/4f4VYgAfgw</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Ryan Burge Ã°ÂŸÂ“ÂŠ (@ryanburge) <a href="https://twitter.com/ryanburge/status/1275137223730528257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/21/trump-allies-see-threat-biden-evangelical-support-330780" target="_blank">Trump allies see a mounting threat: Biden’s rising evangelical support</a>, Gabby Orr, Politico, June 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Biden, a lifelong Catholic, has performed better in recent polling among white evangelicals — and other religious groups — than Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton did in 2016, and is widely perceived as more religious than the current White House occupant. A Pew Research study<span> </span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/03/25/most-americans-dont-see-trump-as-religious/" target="_blank">conducted</a><span> </span>earlier this year showed that a majority of U.S. adults (63 percent) think Trump is “not at all” or “not too religious,” versus 55 percent who said they believed Biden is somewhat or very religious.</p> <p>Many conservative evangelical leaders have argued that Biden’s positions on cultural issues — like abortion, judges and religious freedom — are disqualifying. Still, anxiety is growing inside Trump’s orbit about the former vice president’s ability to peel off Christian voters who supported him in 2016, including the 81 percent of white evangelicals he carried, according to eight administration officials, White House allies and people involved with the Trump campaign.</p> <p>Such an outcome could deal a fatal blow to the president’s reelection, which largely hinges on expanding his support with religious voters to compensate for enthusiasm gaps elsewhere.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Saturday’s great Speech — Rev. Dr. William Barber ii</h4> <p>Perhaps the time is just right for a different, better Christian message for all people of good will who want a better world for everyone:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/barber-trump-tulsa-speech/" target="_blank">A Tale of Two Speeches</a>, Robert L. Borosage, The Nation, June 22, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="CLEVELAND, OH - JULY 11: Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, speaks to members of the press before marching to the Republican National Convention headquarters to deliver the 'Higher Ground Moral Declaration' on July 11, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. The declaration calls on presumptive 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and political candidates of both parties to embrace a 'higher moral ground agenda'. (Photo by Angelo Merendino/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/298810/large/GettyImages-546240026.jpg?1473709493" title="CLEVELAND, OH - JULY 11: Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, speaks to members of the press before marching to the Republican National Convention headquarters to deliver the 'Higher Ground Moral Declaration' on July 11, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. The declaration calls on presumptive 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and political candidates of both parties to embrace a 'higher moral ground agenda'. (Photo by Angelo Merendino/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Barber, a visionary man of the cloth in the tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., is the realist. He depicts an America scarred by a “long train of abuses,” in which 140 million poor and low-income people suffer in the midst of unprecedented wealth. This is a choice, he argues, that “things don’t have to be kept the way they are.” This reality is not the product of “a single individual or a single political party alone.” It comes from a “culture cultivated since the death of Dr. King or longer.”</p> <p>The Poor People’s Campaign released a detailed budget and platform to address “systematic racism, poverty, ecological devastation and the false moral narrative.” Barber takes time to detail vital reforms—from universal child care to the Green New Deal, from baby bonds to the right to health care—and sensible priorities that could free up the resources to pay for them. We don’t want to go “back to normal,” Barber argues. “Normal in America got George Floyd…murdered.” It would be a mistake to “demand too little” at this time.</p> <p>Instead of division, Barber calls for a politics of “moral fusion,” for people to come together in a nonviolent movement. Poor and low-income people, he argues, can move the nation. In 2016, 23 million did not vote. It is time, he argues to “rise up.”</p> <p>Yes, Barber notes, America has a long history of dividing people, but when people come together, they can change the course. Love, he asserts, is still greater than hate. Truth is still greater than lies.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=6l6vqPUM_FE" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/6l6vqPUM_FE">YouTube Video</a></div> <h2>🔥🔥🔥</h2> <p>This interview conducted by Brianna Keilar of CNN is pure 🔥. She did not let the trump lackey off with his sneering deflections; she was ready! <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/cnn-anchor-brianna-keilar-corners-trump-campaign-spox-tim-murtaugh-are-dead-americans-funny-to-you?ref=home" target="_blank">CNN Anchor Corners Trump Campaign Spox: Are Dead Americans ‘Funny to You?’</a>, Justin Baragona, Daily Beast, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>“You can ask it 100 different ways,” Murtaugh retorted, causing the CNN host to fire back: “And you won’t answer it.”</p> <p>The Trump flack would go on to repeat his talking points about the president making a factual point about increased testing resulting in more confirmed cases, leaving Keilar with the final word.</p> <p>“You are aware that hospitalization numbers disprove what you are saying,” she proclaimed. “That testing does not solely account for the numbers we’re seeing, including in Florida, a state you just held up as a model when it certainly is not.”</p> <p>“It is not funny that Americans are dying, she concluded as a stone-faced Murtaugh stood silent. “It’s not funny that they’re unemployed. Tim Murtaugh, thank you for coming on.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump campaign spox Tim Murtaugh: Trump&amp;#39;s hitting the campaign trail while Dems are telling Biden to stay in the basement.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;CNN anchor Brianna Keilar: "I’m surprised you bring it up. Because there’s only one person who sought refuge in a basement recently." &lt;a href="https://t.co/pYrmKdMioN"&gt;pic.twitter.com/pYrmKdMioN&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/justinbaragona/status/1275136574070632448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump campaign spox Tim Murtaugh: Trump's hitting the campaign trail while Dems are telling Biden to stay in the basement.<br><br>CNN anchor Brianna Keilar: "IÃ¢Â€Â™m surprised you bring it up. Because thereÃ¢Â€Â™s only one person who sought refuge in a basement recently." <a href="https://t.co/pYrmKdMioN">pic.twitter.com/pYrmKdMioN</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) <a href="https://twitter.com/justinbaragona/status/1275136574070632448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h3>💐 Congratulations, Dr. Obama! 💐</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;CONGRATULATIONS....DR. Michelle Obama. Since her husband has been out of office, and her children out of the house, Mrs. Obama decided to complete her PHD in law. The most educated 1st lady ever, is a Black Queen! ✊🏾RESPECT✊🏾 &lt;a href="https://t.co/HXviQWFLfd"&gt;pic.twitter.com/HXviQWFLfd&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Lisa Bethel-Young (@LisaBethelYoun1) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/LisaBethelYoun1/status/1274426858273210370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>CONGRATULATIONS....DR. Michelle Obama. Since her husband has been out of office, and her children out of the house, Mrs. Obama decided to complete her PHD in law. The most educated 1st lady ever, is a Black Queen! Ã¢ÂœÂŠÃ°ÂŸÂÂ¾RESPECTÃ¢ÂœÂŠÃ°ÂŸÂÂ¾ <a href="https://t.co/HXviQWFLfd">pic.twitter.com/HXviQWFLfd</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Lisa Bethel-Young (@LisaBethelYoun1) <a href="https://twitter.com/LisaBethelYoun1/status/1274426858273210370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🇺🇸 Democrats are Great 🇺🇸</h3> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/rep-nadler-preparing-subpoena-attorney-general-william-barr-testimony-n1231823" target="_blank">Rep. Nadler preparing to subpoena Attorney General William Barr for testimony</a>, Haley Talbot and Leigh Ann Caldwell, NBC News, June 22, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: House Judiciary Committee to subpoena Attorney General Barr, use DOJ budget as leverage to encourage appearance &lt;a href="https://t.co/kCsbJkARlc"&gt;pic.twitter.com/kCsbJkARlc&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MaddowBlog/status/1275241265911693313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: House Judiciary Committee to subpoena Attorney General Barr, use DOJ budget as leverage to encourage appearance <a href="https://t.co/kCsbJkARlc">pic.twitter.com/kCsbJkARlc</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaddowBlog/status/1275241265911693313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Texas Democrats are great!</h4> <p>Texas Democrats have not given up on getting everyone in Texas the right to vote absentee/by mail. They have asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the case, and if SCOTUS does, and if it upholds the district court’s decision, then that could have ramifications for several other states as well:</p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/supreme-court-democrats-texas-absentee-voting" target="_blank">Texas Dems Turn To SCOTUS In Push To Expand Absentee Voting</a>, Tierney Sneed, TPM, June 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="Flag_of_Texas.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/813706/large/Flag_of_Texas.png?1591283463" title="Flag_of_Texas.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Texas’ Democratic Party on Tuesday asked for the Supreme Court to intervene in the federal case it has brought against Texas’ restrictions on absentee voting. Democrats argue that Texas’ current regime — which allows any voter 65 or older to vote absentee, but restricts the practice for voters younger than that unless they meet certain requirements — is a violation on the Constitution’s 26th Amendment, which bars age-based voter discrimination.</p> <p>A federal district court judge agreed with the Dems’ arguments, but that decision was formally put on hold earlier this month by the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit.</p> <p>Texas Democrats are now asking for the Supreme Court to either immediately reinstate the trial judge’s decision expanding absentee voting or to hear the case on the merits as soon as possible, even before the appeals court hands down its final judgement.</p> <p><em><span>Around eight states have age-based absentee restrictions similar to Texas’ on their books, according to Dunn, but many of them have expanded absentee voting due to the pandemic. Louisiana and Mississippi have similar age restrictions on absentee voting, and have not yet said how they will handle pandemic voting in November.</span></em></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>Rep. Al Green (D-TX)</strong> plans to introduce legislation to create a Dept. of Reconciliation, which could be a start on repairing the damage wrought by 400 years of institutional and systemic racism: <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/revelers-and-protesters-gather-in-dc-to-celebrate-the-day-the-last-slaves-were-freed/" target="_blank">Revelers and Protesters Gather in DC to Celebrate the Day the Last Slaves Were Freed</a>, Brandi Buchman and Jack Rodgers, Courthouse News, June 19, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 8: Rep. Al Green (D-TX) is arrested by U.S. Capitol Police after blocking First Street NW in front of the U.S. Capitol with fellow supporters of immigration reform, on October 8, 2013 in Washington, DC. Last week, House Democrats introduced their own immigration reform bill. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/696640/large/GettyImages-183657840.jpg?1563216180" title="WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 8: Rep. Al Green (D-TX) is arrested by U.S. Capitol Police after blocking First Street NW in front of the U.S. Capitol with fellow supporters of immigration reform, on October 8, 2013 in Washington, DC. Last week, House Democrats introduced their own immigration reform bill. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Democratic resolve. Democratic hero.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">“I do believe that what started as a moment of action … the Black Live Matter actions that took place, has become a movement,” Green said, noting that it has reached into “corporate personalities” and resulted in an about face from the NFL.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“It is so pervasive now that it has taken on the proverbial life of its own. It’s growing exponentially,” he said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">For the lawmaker, the next step is to execute some of the demands laid out by Black Lives Matter and “augment” it with a federal watchdog. </p> <p style="text-align:start">“The movement can go on and we can’t say how long but if we can get a Department of Reconciliation, it will promote the continuation of the movement,” Green said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The<span> </span><a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-resolution/992/text?r=1&s=1">proposed</a><span> </span>cabinet level-department would be staffed with a secretary just like other federal agencies such as the Department or Education or the Department of Defense. Under the proposed legislation, which has 22 cosponsors, the Reconciliation Department would be funded through 10% of the Defense Department’s overall budget.</p> <p style="text-align:start">In that office, Green noted, a strategy could be developed to “eliminate racism and invidious discrimination” and by funding it this way, it’s less likely to be “starved to death.”</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Reconciliation. &lt;br&gt;Human rights and dignity. &lt;br&gt;Transformative change. &lt;br&gt;Freedom, liberty, equity. &lt;br&gt;Joy. Empowerment. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The arc of the moral universe is indeed long. And there are those applying the above to bend it toward real justice. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;More inside by me &amp;amp; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JackRodgersCNS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@JackRodgersCNS&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/ps4bDbp5oI"&gt;https://t.co/ps4bDbp5oI&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/lac5j0SdUS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/lac5j0SdUS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brandi Buchman (@BBuchman_CNS) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BBuchman_CNS/status/1274304565425422336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Reconciliation. <br>Human rights and dignity. <br>Transformative change. <br>Freedom, liberty, equity. <br>Joy. Empowerment. <br><br>The arc of the moral universe is indeed long. And there are those applying the above to bend it toward real justice. <br><br>More inside by me & <a href="https://twitter.com/JackRodgersCNS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JackRodgersCNS</a> <a href="https://t.co/ps4bDbp5oI">https://t.co/ps4bDbp5oI</a> <a href="https://t.co/lac5j0SdUS">pic.twitter.com/lac5j0SdUS</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Brandi Buchman (@BBuchman_CNS) <a href="https://twitter.com/BBuchman_CNS/status/1274304565425422336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Illinois Dems are great!</h4> <blockquote> <p>In a Wednesday press conference, Gov. JB Pritzker announced the ban on evictions is being extended until July 31.</p> <p>Pritzker said one in three people missed their rent or mortgage payments last month due to financial losses from COVID-19. This prompted him to allocate $900 million in relief funds with help from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.</p> <p>A third of this money will go toward two housing relief programs: the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Program and the Emergency Mortgage Assistance (EMA) Program.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;According to Gov. Pritzker, one in three people missed their rent or mortgage payments last month due to financial losses from COVID-19.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;(Photo: Getty Images)&lt;a href="https://t.co/mNo1pVzMXU"&gt;https://t.co/mNo1pVzMXU&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— WICS ABC 20 (@wics_abc20) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/wics_abc20/status/1273775000718319617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 19, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>According to Gov. Pritzker, one in three people missed their rent or mortgage payments last month due to financial losses from COVID-19.<br><br>(Photo: Getty Images)<a href="https://t.co/mNo1pVzMXU">https://t.co/mNo1pVzMXU</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” WICS ABC 20 (@wics_abc20) <a href="https://twitter.com/wics_abc20/status/1273775000718319617?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 19, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>Maryland Dems are great!</h4> <p><a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/columnists/dan-rodricks/bs-md-rodricks-0619-20200618-re2obahhbzbddojazrkf65gdoq-story.html" target="_blank">How a West Baltimore nursing home has zero COVID-19 infections</a><span> </span>, Dan Rodricks, Baltimore Sun, June 18, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Masks were dispensed to all the residents. Community meals were eliminated, and residents ate in their rooms. Employees were provided food so they would not have to go out for lunch or dinner. Rooms with one television and two residents got a second TV to help meet social distancing.</span></p> <div> <div> <p>The nursing home hired an extra activities coordinator to visit with residents, coach them through daily exercises, play board games with them or take them for walks. This was particularly important because, says DeWitt, up to half of his residents have no relatives who visit them, and he was concerned they would feel even more isolated during the pandemic.</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>DeWitt and his staff did all this before seeing directives from government agencies. “We didn’t wait for guidance from the Centers for Disease Control or from the Maryland Department of Health or from Baltimore City,” he says. “We did what we thought was prudent at the very beginning of the pandemic.”</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Down Ballot and State Races MATTER!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;We are done with “Shoot First,” or “Stand Your Ground.” You can defend yourself all day long, but if you want to chase down a 17-year-old boy with a bag of Skittles in his hand &amp;amp; murder him, you’ll have no ground to stand on. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Dropped today — bill number coming soon! &lt;a href="https://t.co/xiTwe37ZGv"&gt;pic.twitter.com/xiTwe37ZGv&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Bee Nguyen 🐝 (@BeeForGeorgia) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BeeForGeorgia/status/1272586588401303558?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 15, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>We are done with Ã¢Â€ÂœShoot First,Ã¢Â€Â or Ã¢Â€ÂœStand Your Ground.Ã¢Â€Â You can defend yourself all day long, but if you want to chase down a 17-year-old boy with a bag of Skittles in his hand & murder him, youÃ¢Â€Â™ll have no ground to stand on. <br><br>Dropped today Ã¢Â€Â” bill number coming soon! <a href="https://t.co/xiTwe37ZGv">pic.twitter.com/xiTwe37ZGv</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Bee Nguyen Ã°ÂŸÂÂ (@BeeForGeorgia) <a href="https://twitter.com/BeeForGeorgia/status/1272586588401303558?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=3wxyN3z9PL4" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/3wxyN3z9PL4">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🐘‼️ Pubs in a Panic ‼️🐘</h3> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/06/gop-strategists-go-on-profane-rants-about-trumps-campaign-as-they-panic-about-2020-wipeout/" target="_blank">GOP strategists go on profane rants about Trump’s campaign as they panic about 2020 ‘wipeout’</a></p> <blockquote> <p><span>All the strategists interviewed by<span> </span></span><em>Vice</em><span><span> </span>said that they’ve been seeing Trump’s approval numbers plunge in states across the country, which they warned would lead to a massive defeat this fall unless things started changing drastically.</span></p> <p><span>“The environment really sucks for us right now,” one strategist working on GOP congressional races said. “We’ve got a worldwide pandemic, the economy is slipping and now we have a race war tacked on. If the election were held today, we’d be talking about a wipeout. We’d be in landslide territory.”</span></p> <p>“Trump has to get his sh*t together and his campaign has to get their sh*t together, or it’s going to be really problematic,” they said. “It would be catastrophic.”</p> <p>And another GOP strategist feared that, as bad as the environment is now, it’s possible that it will get worse for the president in the coming months.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/06/after-tulsa-parscale-and-kushner-on-trumps-hit-list" target="_blank">“BRAD REALLY S--T THE BED SATURDAY NIGHT”: AFTER TULSA CATASTROPHE, PARSCALE—AND KUSHNER—IS AT THE TOP OF TRUMP’S HIT LIST</a>, Gabriel Sherman, Vanity Fair, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="tulsa.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/821887/large/tulsa.png?1592738504" title="tulsa.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The blame game has shifted into high gear. Trump insiders told me Trump was presented with five options of where to hold his rally. “The president chose Tulsa,” a source said. Sources also told me that if Parscale is forced out, he likely won’t be the only casualty of the rally fiasco. Trump is debating revoking his son-in-law<span> </span><strong>Jared Kushner</strong>’s control over the campaign, sources said. As I previously reported, Trump has been frustrated with Kushner’s oversight of the campaign in light of polling that consistently shows Trump losing to<span> </span><strong>Joe Biden.</strong><span> </span>Another source of friction has been campaign spending and reports Trump has gotten that Parscale is making millions of dollars. “Did Jared allow this?” Trump asked advisers recently, according to a source. (Kushner declined to comment.)</p> <p style="text-align:start">One way to measure Kushner’s diminished influence will be found in whom Trump would choose to replace Parscale. Top candidates include 2016 veterans Miller,<span> </span><strong>David Bossie,</strong><span> </span>and<span> </span><strong>Corey Lewandowski,</strong><span> </span>all of whom Kushner successfully kept on the outer fringe of Trumpworld. “We can’t allow Jared’s stupid disagreements to get in the way,” Trump recently told advisers, according to a source briefed on the conversation. Other Trump insiders are skeptical that Lewandowski would be put in charge of such a vast operation. “Corey was great when it was just Trump and an airplane. But let’s face it, he couldn’t manage a 7-Eleven,” a person close to Trump said. “The serious operation will be run by serious people.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Tulsa debacle takes on added resonance given that a return to rallies is central to Trump’s reelection strategy. With COVID cases spiking across Trump country, it’s unlikely that Trump will be able to pack an arena anytime soon. Deprived of the oxygen his legions of fans provide, Trump is struggling to fight political wars on multiple fronts. He’s also lost the attack line that Biden is too old for the job. <strong>“There is something off about Trump,” a West Wing official told a top Republican a few days after Trump shakily descended the ramp at West Point. “He doesn’t have the stamina.”</strong></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/for-now-donald-trump-and-william-barr-are-losing-their-way?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=onsite-share&utm_brand=the-new-yorker&utm_social-type=earned" target="_blank">For Now, Donald Trump and William Barr Are Losing Their Way</a>, David Rohde, The New Yorker, June 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>In a sign of how quickly Trump and Barr’s political standing is shifting, one of Trump’s most fawning backers in the Senate, Lindsey Graham, indicated on Saturday that he would not support the nomination of Clayton, who has no experience as a prosecutor. Graham is locked in a tight reëlection race with Jaime Harrison, the<span> </span></span><a>Democratic challenger</a><span>, in South Carolina. After other Senate Republicans declined to support Clayton, Barr agreed to appoint Berman’s deputy, Audrey Strauss, as an interim U.S. Attorney, following standard practice. Former federal prosecutors in New York said that Strauss, like Berman, would defy pressure to quash politically embarrassing investigations. “None of the office’s work will be compromised,” Samidh Guha, a former assistant U.S. attorney in the office,<span> </span></span><a>told the Washington<span> </span><em>Post</em></a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p>Meanwhile, Trump’s handling of the pandemic, the concurrent recession, and the nationwide protests over the police killing of<span> </span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/tag/george-floyd">George Floyd</a><span> </span>have, for now, driven his poll numbers down. Bolton, the former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and other former senior Administration officials have publicly declared Trump a danger to American democracy. Barr, for his part, continues to double-down on<span> </span><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/william-barr-trumps-law-and-order-enabler">enabling and defending Trump</a>. Last Monday, Barr<span> </span><a>dismissed</a><span> </span>Bolton’s claim that the President intervenes in criminal cases to aid autocrats and allies. Five days later, Barr tried to remove Berman. On Sunday, Barr again defended Trump in a<span> </span><a>Fox News interview</a>, warned of mob rule, and said that mail-in voting “opens the floodgates to fraud.” On Monday morning, Trump tweeted a link to Barr’s interview and then<span> </span><a>exaggerated</a><span> </span>his claim, falsely stating that foreign governments are printing millions of fake mail-in ballots, and that the November vote is already “FIXED.”</p> <p>The Justice Department official told me that the Attorney General is defending the Presidency, not merely this particular President, and that Barr is taking the actions because he feels they are right, not because of pressure from Trump. The official added that Barr has no regrets and intends to serve through the November election, noting that “Bill Barr is his own man. He would not say something that he doesn’t believe.” <em><strong>Who finds Bill Barr convincing? Increasingly, not the judges, not the prosecutors, and not, if one believes the polls, the American public.</strong></em></p> </blockquote> <p>And Barr may really be skating on thin ice with CJ John Roberts: <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/06/supreme-court-bill-barr-unstoppable.html" target="_blank">The Supreme Court May Be Tired of Bill Barr</a>, Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="SCOTUS_John-Roberts_Tom-Williams.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/820404/large/SCOTUS_John-Roberts_Tom-Williams.jpg?1592494632" title="SCOTUS_John-Roberts_Tom-Williams.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The endless end of term will reveal the extent of Roberts’ disdain for a DOJ that wants the court to do the unpopular work of allowing LGBTQ discrimination, gutting DACA, and punishing sanctuary cities, all as DOJ lawyers turn in shoddy work and indefensible analysis. Roberts was already bored of such conduct in last year’s census cases. It remains to be seen whether he will sign off on the extreme work product behind the president’s financial records claims.</span></p> <p><span>For those who were sorely disappointed by<span> </span></span><a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/01/john-roberts-moment-of-truth-trump-impeachment-trial.html">Roberts’ refusal to use the Senate impeachment trial to slap back at Trump and Trumpism</a><span>, that ask was, at least in my view, always too public and too dramatic of a man who doesn’t want to be in the limelight any more than necessary. John Roberts was never one to go<span> </span></span><em>mano a mano</em><span><span> </span>against the president. But just as Barr seems to be happy to dismantle the rule of law brick by brick, in the dark of night, over years, the chief justice may be prepared to thwart him, case by case, brick by brick, in narrow opinions that draw little attention in the moment but land a body blow in the aggregate. Right now, Barr appears to be unstoppable simply because he is determined to use the power and prestige of the Justice Department to fight Trump’s most trivial and demeaning personal battles. But as lawyers inside the DOJ and throughout the country give voice to their concerns, they may have an ally on the inside who hates the corrosion of justice and law as much as they do. It’s easy to characterize Barr as unstoppable simply because no amount of public outrage seems to stop him. But at some point, Barr will possibly go too far for John Roberts, and that may be the beginning of the end—and it may have already begun.<span> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <p>Here’s a headline that frankly made my blood run cold. It says a lot about trump and the Pubs that a headline like this instantly made me think they meant targeting women as scapegoats, victims, etc. However, they only mean focusing on women as a voting bloc. And it looks like it hasn’t been going well...because trump simply cannot stop himself from effing up.</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-trump-slumps-his-campaign-fixes-on-a-target-women/2020/06/22/8bed7cda-af1b-11ea-8758-bfd1d045525a_story.html" target="_blank">As Trump slumps, his campaign fixes on a target: Women</a>, Michael Scherer and Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, June 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>At the core of the erosion is a dramatic abandonment of Trump by key demographic groups. The</span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/07/why-did-democrats-win-house-one-word-women/?itid=lk_inline_manual_10"><span> </span>rebellion by college-educated women<span> </span></a><span>against the president in 2018, which gave Democrats control of the U.S. House via victories in the suburbs, has begun to register more deeply in recent months among non-college-educated and older women. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Just 4½ months from the election, an already historic partisan gender gap appears to be solidifying, with Biden enjoying a 23-point lead over Trump among female voters, up from the 14-point edge for Hillary Clinton in 2016, according to a Washington Post average of current national polls, 2016 exit polling and a Pew survey of confirmed voters.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Trump still has an advantage among white non-college-educated women, winning them by 14 points, compared with college-educated women, whom Biden wins by 28 points. But both groups have moved in the Democrats’ direction since 2016, by 11 points among those without college degrees and 12 points among those with degrees.</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>And what is this even about? Utter chaos, as usual, in the conservative ranks:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Navarro says the U.S.-China trade deal is dead. Larry Kudlow says no, it isn’t. Trump tweets that the deal is intact 20 minutes later. Meanwhile, Mnuchin says Trump is considering decoupling the U.S. and Chinese economies. What is happening?&lt;/p&gt;— Daniel DePetris (@DanDePetris) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DanDePetris/status/1275255480848433161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Navarro says the U.S.-China trade deal is dead. Larry Kudlow says no, it isnÃ¢Â€Â™t. Trump tweets that the deal is intact 20 minutes later. Meanwhile, Mnuchin says Trump is considering decoupling the U.S. and Chinese economies. What is happening?</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Daniel DePetris (@DanDePetris) <a href="https://twitter.com/DanDePetris/status/1275255480848433161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Plus! While we are waiting for the SCOTUS decisions on trump’s taxes and financial information, don’t forget that there are other cases in federal courts upon which numerous trump associates are anxiously waiting (cough Alan Dershowitz cough)!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;In case you were wondering why the Dershbag was tweeting today, a federal judge may rule on unsealing documents that could describe involvement in crimes of other prominent figures besides Epstein. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;If his name comes up, let me just say: Couldn&amp;#39;t happen to a Dersher bag.&lt;/p&gt;— Dean Gloster (@deangloster) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/deangloster/status/1275350197355180034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>In case you were wondering why the Dershbag was tweeting today, a federal judge may rule on unsealing documents that could describe involvement in crimes of other prominent figures besides Epstein. <br><br>If his name comes up, let me just say: Couldn't happen to a Dersher bag.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Dean Gloster (@deangloster) <a href="https://twitter.com/deangloster/status/1275350197355180034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=i9QEAtcz3o8" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/i9QEAtcz3o8" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>✔️ Primary Elections ✔️</h3> <p>Today is Primary day in Kentucky and New York. Both states allow early and absentee (mail) voting. </p> <p>There have been some alarmed headlines about the reduced number of polling places in that state from 3700 to 200. Difficult, yes and it’s not going to stop determined Americans from voting (who were also given good guidance by their Dem governor). We know the Rs are going to pull every stunt they can as they are desperately trying to hang on to power. But we are the majority and we will come out in such numbers that even their voter suppression tactics will not be able to overcome the wave. The Primaries are a dress rehearsal for November. In many states, improvements will be in place. In others, Rs will double sown to try to prevent us from voting. It won’t stop us.</p> <p>Meanwhile, if you’re seeing people monging panics about this, here’s some calming perspective from an actual expert in Kentucky:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;KENTUCKY PRIMARY ELECTION THREAD:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;There have been so many national "takes" about the "debacle" that will surely occur on Tuesday in KY. How about we use real numbers and real facts: a thread 1/&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Douglas (@JoshuaADouglas) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JoshuaADouglas/status/1274881770203144194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 22, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>KENTUCKY PRIMARY ELECTION THREAD:<br><br>There have been so many national "takes" about the "debacle" that will surely occur on Tuesday in KY. How about we use real numbers and real facts: a thread 1/</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Josh Douglas (@JoshuaADouglas) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshuaADouglas/status/1274881770203144194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>📈 Ignore the Polls! (Except the good ones!) 📉</h4> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="&#x27;Sorry, sir, but we don&#x27;t have a category for that.&#x27;" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/221996/large/nuisances-poll.jpg?1457574823" title="'Sorry, sir, but we don't have a category for that.'"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Polls must be taken with a big scoop of salt — because they are only as good as flawed human pollsters can measure: at best, a brief snapshot in time of human reactions to carefully worded questions meant to elicit evidence for a trend in public opinion. A cleverly worded question could get an “approves of trump” response from a liberal! Seriously. It’s not that they don’t tell us anything, but bear in mind that part of the work of polling is to help shape public opinion as much as to measure it. (This is why campaigns have their own “internal polling” by which they hope to measure public opinion more accurately than the “public” polls are designed to do). </p> <p>Still, the polling business has an interest in providing at least some useful information so they can hold the interest of the public (and of course keep the public willing to participate in polls!), so it’s OK to feel encouraged by “good” polls, and it’s understandable to feel a little let down by “bad” ones. Let’s try to temper our enthusiasm (or disappointment) by remembering that polls can be designed to be tools used (often by media) to ensure a <em>horse race</em> narrative, which means they will of course “narrow” as the election draws near, they will show ups and downs for each party after a particularly good or bad week for one or the other to help them bounce back and keep the horse race going. That’s how pollsters stay in business and grow their businesses.</p> <p>The <strong><em>only</em></strong> poll that matters is the one on November 3rd. GOTMFV.</p> <p>OK, having said all that — check out this poll! 😜 It’s very nice to see Biden polling well above 50%. Go ahead and enjoy it (responsibly 😉)! (Click on the <a href="https://mcusercontent.com/ca678077bc522bd7bd74bacbf/files/96f8852b-a896-41ba-82b0-1bd5e9aa064a/HHP_June20_pdf.pdf" target="_blank">link</a> to read all the stuff they polled — it’s interesting).</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;National GE:&lt;br&gt;Biden 56% (+12)&lt;br&gt;Trump 44%&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Harvard?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Harvard&lt;/a&gt;-&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HarrisPoll?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@HarrisPoll&lt;/a&gt; 6/17-18&lt;a href="https://t.co/TPJ0SgtZH6"&gt;https://t.co/TPJ0SgtZH6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Politics_Polls/status/1275217520685965315?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 23, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>National GE:<br>Biden 56% (+12)<br>Trump 44%<a href="https://twitter.com/Harvard?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Harvard</a>-<a href="https://twitter.com/HarrisPoll?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HarrisPoll</a> 6/17-18<a href="https://t.co/TPJ0SgtZH6">https://t.co/TPJ0SgtZH6</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) <a href="https://twitter.com/Politics_Polls/status/1275217520685965315?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/mopey-loser-moping-about-losing-election-four-months-in-advance" target="_blank">Mopey Loser Moping About Losing Election Four Months In Advance</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Bonus Wonkette! <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/happy-monday-john-bolton-is-in-a-heap-of-sh-t" target="_blank">Blessed Day! John Bolton Is In A Heap Of Sh*t</a>. Liz Dye, Wonkette, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Helpful: <a href="https://www.vox.com/21296067/coronavirus-trump-tulsa-oklahoma-rally-superspreaders-superspreading-bars-restaurants" target="_blank">How superspreading is fueling the pandemic — and how we can stop it</a>, Katherine Harmon Courage, Vox, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Interesting longer read: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/06/29/what-fiona-hill-learned-in-the-white-house?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=onsite-share&utm_brand=the-new-yorker&utm_social-type=earned" target="_blank">What Fiona Hill Learned in the White House</a>, Adam Entous, The New Yorker, June 22, 2020. “We’re doing this to ourselves now. The Russians don’t have to do a thing.”</p> <p>⚡️ 🔥 <a href="https://time.com/5857466/geoffrey-berman-william-barr/" target="_blank">Americans Need to Know the Truth About William Barr's Friday Night Massacre. We Can't Afford to Wait</a>, Joyce White Vance, Time, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️😀 <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/22/some-wins-trump-can-extract-his-tulsa-rally/" target="_blank">Some wins Trump can extract from his Tulsa rally</a>, Alexandra Petri, Washington Post (humor), June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Couldn’t happen to 2 more deserving fellas: <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/william-barr-berman-trump/" target="_blank">As Bill Barr Flails, Trump Is Losing His Roy Cohn</a>, Joan Walsh, The Nation, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ The Lincoln Project, explained: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/06/22/george-conway-backed-lincoln-project-hopes-to-make-trumps-worst-nightmare-come-true/" target="_blank">George Conway-backed Lincoln Project hopes to make Trump's "worst nightmare" come true</a>, Roger Sollenberger, Salon, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.axios.com/senate-2020-black-candidates-congress-0dfae0f2-5b11-47ca-8839-783c8533fb80.html" target="_blank">Black Senate candidates could make history in 2020</a>, Alexi McCammond, Axios, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <span><a href="https://www.rollcall.com/2020/06/22/6-things-to-watch-in-tuesdays-primaries-7/" target="_blank">6 things to watch in Tuesday’s primaries</a>, Bridget Bowman, et al, RollCall, June 22, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️ A positive collective experience! </span><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/black-lives-matter-protests-are-running-much-more-anger-opinion-1511982" target="_blank">The Black Lives Matter Protests Are Running on Much More Than Anger | Opinion</a>, Joan Cook, Newsweek, June 19, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Popular mystery department: <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/6/22/21298912/firework-complaints-northeastern-cities" target="_blank">Why it feels like there are a lot more fireworks this year</a>, Matthew Yglesias, Vox, June 22, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Important background for coming SCOTUS decisions: <a href="https://www.axios.com/john-roberts-supreme-court-abortion-trump-taxes-375c1d44-9c05-416d-a17f-f2e7e48d89d5.html" target="_blank">The right v. John Roberts</a>, Sam Baker, Axios, June 21, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6270.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/822735/large/IMG_6270.jpg?1592897852" title="IMG_6270.jpg"> <figcaption>Don’t you think it’s too hot to cook, brother?<br> I think it is too hot to cook!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>There’s been a lot going on, Gnusies, and it’s important to keep our eyes on the prize. We must pour all our available time and energy into GOTV efforts.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="IMG_6393.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/822747/large/IMG_6393.jpg?1592908370" title="IMG_6393.jpg"> <figcaption>Zzzzzzzzzz!</figcaption> </figure> <p>It’s also important to look after yourself and your loved ones. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest and try to spend some time outdoors each day, if you are able. When you need to take a break, take a break. The rest of us will carry on and then when you come back someone else can take a break. Together, we will get through these last months of the nightmare and we will save our country.</p> <p>I’m rushing to beat the deadline now, and the Curlygirl is sound asleep here on the floor as dawn is stealing across the city. Happy Tuesday, Newsies — let’s see what the day has in store for us!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=2nGKqH26xlg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2nGKqH26xlg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">💙 Happy Tuesday, Gnusies! 💙</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) barr Election GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Kentucky NASCAR NewYork Politics Polls primaryday Recommended _1952078 Tue, 23 Jun 2020 11:00:04 +0000 "We Are Seeing the Turning of the Tide"- Good News Roundup, Tuesday, June 9 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/6/9/1842517/--We-Are-Seeing-the-Turning-of-the-Tide-Good-News-Roundup-Tuesday-June-9 <p><span>The ground is shifting. The change in the zeitgeist is palpable. It presages the blue tsunami that is coming, like the smell of water and earth in the air before a huge thunderstorm. Sorry for the mixed metaphors, but just one natural image doesn’t seem like enough for this moment in time. <em>Everything is about to change.</em> It’s going to be a scary, wild ride and we will need all of our courage and strength and determination and persistence. But this is it, Gnusies — possibly the best opportunity for real reform, real justice, real progress in our entire history is almost within our reach and we can grasp it as long as we do not lose our nerve.</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="wael-ghonim-the-power-of-the-people-is-much-quote-on-storemypic-08a87.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/713708/large/wael-ghonim-the-power-of-the-people-is-much-quote-on-storemypic-08a87.png?1567352892" title="wael-ghonim-the-power-of-the-people-is-much-quote-on-storemypic-08a87.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The Republicans are corrupt to the core, and they are afraid of us — <em>afraid</em> of the American people they pretend to “serve”. The impulse to “dominate” with brutal force is an impulse borne out of fear and in a way it was a gift for us that Tom Cotton exposed the truth so baldly for everyone to see. They won’t give up power without a vicious fight — because it is more than mere elections to them. Their very lives and freedom are on the line, because many of them will go to prison. Ironic, isn’t it? The Republican obsession with “freedom” maybe has a double meaning.</span></p> <p><span>So, be prepared. Do not live in fear. Whatever else we have to face this year, we will face it — together. We are the majority and we will win back the country. Just stay focused, keep working hard at GOTV and speak encouragingly to others. We need to keep each other’s spirits up as the intensity builds, and we will see each other through it to the other side. </span></p> <p class="AlignCenter"><strong><span>Be assured that millions of people began to realize what is possible in the last week. </span></strong></p> <p class="AlignCenter"><strong><span>That’s the change you sense in the zeitgeist. It’s the power of the people.</span></strong></p> <p><span>There’s a ton of good news; I could not even get it all gathered up because I am literally running out of time (it’s 2:40 AM right now as I am typing these words and everything below is all I am going to be able to put in today’s GNR). But there’s more good news out there, so please add anything you find in the comments. And I especially want to read your local good news!</span></p> <h3>🎶 Some Music to Start Us Off 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=3ZPusIeehQo" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/3ZPusIeehQo" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>The Ground is Shifting Under Bunker Boy</h3> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/06/08/gen-wesley-clark-on-trump-and-the-protests-we-are-seeing-the-turning-of-the-tide/" target="_blank">Gen. Wesley Clark on Trump and the protests: "We are seeing the turning of the tide"</a>, Chauncey Devega, Salon, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span>What's at stake in the 2020 election is America's future in the world and the United States Constitution.</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="American Flag" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/801637/large/DSC_3589.NEF.jpg1of1.jpg?1588736091" title="American Flag"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span>America's future in the world depends on alliances. It depends on the economy. It's dependent on our educational system, our health care system, and other social institutions. And President Trump has taken all those institutions in the wrong direction. But worse than that, he's worked to undermine the professionalism of the American civil service. Donald Trump has politicized the courts. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>What I hope we will see on Election Day is that the American people will be able to turn the ship of state around a little bit, a few degrees. Let's bring the country back to where there is more emphasis on community and less emphasis on selfish individualism. We're in this together. Ordinary people should have more access to the fruits of American society.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>If the United States is going to be a great country in the 21st century — and remain as a great country — we've got to live up to our values. It's about "We the people." It's about equal rights. It's about treating people fairly and uniformly without regard to the color of their skin.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span><strong>What we are seeing emerging now in the United States is the turning of the tide.</strong> And I think we are moving into an era in the United States when we can go forward with greater respect for each other and greater appreciation for the value of diversity, the value of community and the importance of the public welfare as opposed to just the private welfare.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Governors are not playing</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Fascinating, Govs of New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Delaware turned down administration requests for Nat Guard troops to patrol DC. VA said now after consulting with DC’s Mayor who confirmed that the city govt was not making any such request. &lt;a href="https://t.co/zuRtNjNbM7"&gt;https://t.co/zuRtNjNbM7&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/joshtpm/status/1268755606485286913?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Fascinating, Govs of New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Delaware turned down administration requests for Nat Guard troops to patrol DC. VA said now after consulting with DCÃ¢Â€Â™s Mayor who confirmed that the city govt was not making any such request. <a href="https://t.co/zuRtNjNbM7">https://t.co/zuRtNjNbM7</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshtpm/status/1268755606485286913?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/06/how-regime-change-happens/612739/" target="_blank">The Trump Regime Is Beginning to Topple</a>, Franklin Foer, the Atlantic, June 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Sharp posited that revolutionaries should focus first on the regime’s softest underbelly: the media, the business elites, and the police. The allegiance of individuals in the outer circle of power is thin and rooted in fear. By standing strong in the face of armed suppression, protesters can supply examples of courage that inspire functionaries to stop carrying out orders, or as Sharp put it, to “withhold cooperation.” Each instance of resistance provides the model for further resistance. As the isolation of the dictators grows—as the inner circles of power join the outer circle in withholding cooperation—the regime crumbles.</p> <p>This is essentially what transpired in Ukraine in 2014. When the country’s president backed away from plans to join the European Union, a crowd amassed in Kyiv’s central square, the Maidan. The throngs initially had no avowed intention or realistic hope of overthrowing the kleptocratic president, Viktor Yanukovych. But instead of letting the demonstrators shout themselves hoarse in the thick of subfreezing winter, Yanukovych set about violently confronting them. This tactic backfired horribly. A movement with limited aims became a full-blown revolution. Oligarchs quietly slunk away from a leader they had long subsidized. Lackeys who had faithfully served the regime resigned, for fear of attracting the public’s ire. In the bitter end, Yanukovych found himself isolated, alone with his own family and his Russian advisers, destined for exile.</p> <p><span>It is astonishing how events in the U.S., despite all the obvious imperfections of the analogy, have traced the early phases of this history. This is observable in the images of the crowds on successive nights, as Trump’s violent suppression of the protests in Lafayette Square has only caused their ranks to swell. And it’s possible to see how elites, in the course of just a few days, have begun to withhold cooperation, starting with the outer circles of power and quickly turning inward.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Speaking of circles of power...</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Lots of news gold in this &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jmartNYT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@jmartNYT&lt;/a&gt; piece on the Republican bigwigs either not supporting Trump or declining to say who they’ll vote for. It’s not just a few names, but a veritable fraternity, including several who served in Trump’s Cabinet. &lt;a href="https://t.co/PcNFBBvz5M"&gt;https://t.co/PcNFBBvz5M&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PhilipRucker/status/1269457266887086080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Lots of news gold in this <a href="https://twitter.com/jmartNYT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jmartNYT</a> piece on the Republican bigwigs either not supporting Trump or declining to say who theyÃ¢Â€Â™ll vote for. ItÃ¢Â€Â™s not just a few names, but a veritable fraternity, including several who served in TrumpÃ¢Â€Â™s Cabinet. <a href="https://t.co/PcNFBBvz5M">https://t.co/PcNFBBvz5M</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) <a href="https://twitter.com/PhilipRucker/status/1269457266887086080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/06/06/we-are-witnessing-the-birth-of-a-movement--and-the-downfall-of-a-president/" target="_blank">We are witnessing the birth of a movement — and the downfall of a president</a>, Lucian K. Truscott lll, Salon, June 6, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Large Black Lives Matters street mural" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/814102/large/ScreenShot2020-06-05at9.56.23AM.png?1591369011" title="Large Black Lives Matters street mural"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span>But sometimes they are large enough and powerful enough and righteous enough to bend the arc of history. We are in such a moment. There has been a turning. A protest against the murder of a black man by police in Minneapolis has become a movement. Demonstrations, which began almost two weeks ago, are ongoing. They are huge. They are nationwide. They are peaceful. They show no signs of stopping.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>Among the extraordinary things about this moment is the fact that every single person who has taken to the streets to demonstrate is risking his or her life. People who only days ago were huddled inside their homes, afraid of a virus that has taken in excess of 110,000 lives in this country, are putting on their face masks and gathering by the tens or even hundreds of thousands, unafraid of the virus or the forces arrayed on the streets against them. They are protesting the death of a man who should not have had to die, and they are protesting the man who seemingly gave permission for him to be murdered by the intolerance and racism he has openly promoted for more than four years. </span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span>If we had any doubts that our fellow citizens would turn out to vote in November because they would be afraid of the virus or intimidated by attempts to block their votes, we have our answer. More people will turn out to vote, not less, and this has Trump very, very worried.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Speaking of the Resident 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=2VBevEYELQ0" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2VBevEYELQ0">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Lots of Signs of Positive Change</h3> <p>Check out this thread of “massive gains” we’ve made:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Much of my work focuses on warning about authoritarianism and growing fascism, but we need to recognize reasons for hope.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We&amp;#39;re not out of the woods yet, but we should acknowledge some massive gains while keeping an eye on persistent threats.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;1/&lt;a href="https://t.co/CLrRhPEHxM"&gt;https://t.co/CLrRhPEHxM&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JYSexton/status/1269668826687381506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Much of my work focuses on warning about authoritarianism and growing fascism, but we need to recognize reasons for hope.<br><br>We're not out of the woods yet, but we should acknowledge some massive gains while keeping an eye on persistent threats.<br><br>1/<a href="https://t.co/CLrRhPEHxM">https://t.co/CLrRhPEHxM</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) <a href="https://twitter.com/JYSexton/status/1269668826687381506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/06/07/there-is-still-an-active-pandemic-and-economic-crisis-trump-is-failing-to-address-either-2/" target="_blank">There’s Still a Pandemic and Economic Crisis. Trump Is Making Both Worse.</a>, David Atkins, Washington Monthly, June 7, 2020. (bolding mine):</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The president’s sole concern is for his electoral and personal fortune. The coronavirus was an inconvenience to be wished away and obscured rather than confronted. The economic fallout from his mishandling of the pandemic was to be blamed on governors, and hand-waived with a one-time stimulus so long as the stock market held value and the economy reopened regardless of safety or good scientific advice. When the protests over police violence and murder of George Floyd arrived, Trump saw only the potential to<span> </span></span><a href="https://washingtonmonthly.com/2020/06/06/trump-thought-brutalizing-protesters-would-save-him-he-was-wrong/">shore up</a><span><span> </span>his poll numbers by rehashing the Nixon playbook. He was already bored with the pandemic and ready to move on, anyway. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:left">There is a unifying social justice aspect to all of this, too. Trump’s misreading of the national mood regarding white supremacy, the value of black lives and disenchantment with police brutality has been well-documented in the last few days–even as he has become singularly obsessed with those issues. But the pandemic’s particular lethality to communities of color–and disproportionate economic impact on them–is the result of the same structural racism that led to the necessity of the Black Lives Matter movement. <strong>The decent majority of Americans have taken notice and lost patience, and Trump’s approval rating has<span> </span><a href="https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/501379-poll-trump-approval-falls-amid-civil-unrest" target="_blank">fallen</a><span> </span>accordingly.</strong></p> <p style="text-align:left">Joe Biden may not the most charismatic or transformative nominee in American history. But a country dealing with multiple simultaneous historic events deserves a president at least minimally committed to doing the job. We don’t have one right now, and the unwillingness of Republicans in Congress to remove their categorically unfit, corrupted and disinterested president means that we won’t have one until the voters finally get a chance to weigh in this November.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And speaking of the pandemic…</h4> <p>...A little piece of really good news. We still need to practice pandemic precautions (masks, handwashing, avoiding crowds, etc), but the spectre of large numbers of asymptomatic superspreaders has been largely exorcised:</p> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/who-coronavirus-asymptomatic-patients-08d84e31-1846-44d8-8fe1-2343ff850764.html" target="_blank">WHO: Data suggests it's "very rare" for coronavirus to spread through asymptomatics</a>, Marisa Fernandez, Axios, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Contact tracing data from around the globe suggests that while there are instances of asymptomatic coronavirus patients transmitting the virus to others, they are not "a main driver" of new infections, World Health Organization officials said at a<span> </span><a>press conference</a><span> </span>Monday.</p> <p><strong>Why it matters:</strong><span> </span>Evidence early on suggested that person-to-person transmission among people who didn't experience symptoms could lead to outbreaks that would be difficult to control. Young people and healthy people who did not experience symptoms were also suspected to be potential carriers to more vulnerable populations. ✄</p> <p><strong>Between the lines:</strong><span> </span>Don't treat these statements as a permission to treat a lack of symptoms as a "get out of social distancing" free card.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Infected people</strong><span> </span>can be contagious well before experiencing symptoms.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <h3>Yes, Things Have Changed</h3> <p>Some people say that things haven’t changed one bit since the 1960’s (or even earlier) and although systemic racism is indeed still going strong (and has been resurgent in the decades since the Republican “southern strategy” was put into effect after the passage of the Civil Rights Act), the truth is that <em>some</em> things <em>have</em> changed. And are continuing to change at an accelerated rate. One change is that progressives — especially young progressives — are standing side by side with people of color to protest racism in this country in ever-growing numbers. That’s significant change and the reality it brings to politics and law enforcement is that protests cannot be put down with the level of violence that we saw in the 1950’s and 60’s. The people won’t stand for that anymore. That’s the truth. Progressive people are the majority and if you ever needed proof of that, recognise that no matter how politicians talk about a mythical conservative “silent majority” or “real America”, their behavior shows that they know that “REAL” America is progressive and will not stand for overt racism anymore — nor , increasingly (thankfully!) will it continue to tolerate covert, systemic racism either.</p> <p><a href="https://www.witf.org/2020/06/08/marchers-are-full-of-hope-civil-rights-leaders-see-progress-in-todays-movement/" target="_blank">‘Marchers are full of hope’: Civil rights leaders see progress in today’s movement</a>, Steve Innskeep/NPR, witf.org, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>To some who remember the civil rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s, the moment feels familiar. They’ve compared the demonstrations that have spread since video emerged of a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes to the <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2020/06/03/869138222/1968-2020-a-tale-of-two-uprisings">nationwide riots of 1968</a>, which followed the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.</p> <p>Yet having seen too much, both found hopeful signs in recent days: the number of white people who marched with people of color; the political power that people of color wield today; and even the conduct of police. While the recent demonstrations have featured numerous conflicts with police, Jackson noted that their tactics would have been far more deadly in 1968.</p> <p>The marches today “are hopeful signs,” says Jackson. “The marchers are full of hope. They believe something can happen. On the move, we’re not going backwards.”</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/08/army-reverses-course-will-consider-renaming-bases-named-for-confederate-leaders-307594" target="_blank">Army reverses course, will consider renaming bases named for Confederate leaders</a>, Lara Seligman, Politico, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy is now "open" to renaming the service's 10 bases and facilities that are named after Confederate leaders, an Army official told POLITICO, in a reversal of his previous position.</p> <p>"The Secretary of the Army is open to a bipartisan discussion on the topic," said Army spokesperson Col. Sunset Belinsky Monday. ✄</p> <p><span>the service has faced renewed pressure in recent weeks to rename some of its best-known installations, including Fort Bragg, N.C., and Fort Benning, Ga., after a New York Times editorial<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/23/opinion/sunday/army-base-names-confederacy-racism.html" target="_blank">accused the military of "celebrating White supremacists."</a></p> </blockquote> <p>And if you didn’t click through to this article on Saturday when Goody quoted from it, give it a look now. There’s been a real shift in the atmosphere and even our most serious cultural critics are sensing that this light wind of progressive change is picking up speed:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/6/5/21279530/ta-nehisi-coates-ezra-klein-show-george-floyd-police-brutality-trump-biden" target="_blank">Why Ta-Nehisi Coates is hopeful</a>, Ezra Klein, Vox, June 5, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">I really don’t know how this plays out, but I think we are very much in an unprecedented moment with direct analogs to other periods. The Democratic Party is so different demographically. It’s completely different than it was even 25 years ago.</p> <p style="text-align:start">I was one of these people who felt that what would happen is the Republican Party would almost cynically make room for other people under the umbrella of whiteness, as this country has done at other moments in history. And that’s not what has happened. On the contrary, under Trump, they’ve just doubled down on the race and made it more clear that it is a white party.</p> <p style="text-align:start">What that means is that a Democrat Party is very different. I don’t think Stacey Abrams, getting as close as she did, is really imaginable 25 years ago. You just see what the Democratic Party is today. I mean, you have an old white guy who was basically dependent on the black vote. That’s a very different thing, even within a Democratic primary, than it would have been 25 years ago.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;First they tried to make you afraid of the riots and looting. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Then they called you Antifa. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Then they tried Martial law. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Then they LOST the narrative. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Now they’re debating &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DefundingThePolice?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#DefundingThePolice&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We’re going to f*cking win&lt;/p&gt;— Benjamin Dixon (@BenjaminPDixon) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BenjaminPDixon/status/1269626037505318914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 7, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>First they tried to make you afraid of the riots and looting. <br><br>Then they called you Antifa. <br><br>Then they tried Martial law. <br><br>Then they LOST the narrative. <br><br>Now theyÃ¢Â€Â™re debating <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DefundingThePolice?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DefundingThePolice</a>. <br><br>WeÃ¢Â€Â™re going to f*cking win</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Benjamin Dixon (@BenjaminPDixon) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenjaminPDixon/status/1269626037505318914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>🎶 Musical Inspiration 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=UG-KNy1MRTc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/UG-KNy1MRTc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>I apologise if this was already covered (I just can’t remember) and it bears repeating as it is a big deal:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: The North Carolina Supreme Court just ruled the repeal of the Racial Justice Act — which allowed proof of racial bias to be considered in death penalty cases — unconstitutional.&lt;/p&gt;— ACLU (@ACLU) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU/status/1268944895697395717?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 5, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: The North Carolina Supreme Court just ruled the repeal of the Racial Justice Act Ã¢Â€Â” which allowed proof of racial bias to be considered in death penalty cases Ã¢Â€Â” unconstitutional.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” ACLU (@ACLU) <a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU/status/1268944895697395717?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 5, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>The tweet is kind of confusing with that subordinate clause awkwardly in there splitting up the important part. The gist is that the <em><strong>Republicans attempted to repeal the Racial Justice Act in NC and the NC supreme court ruled that unconstitutional</strong></em>. The Racial Justice Act stands! Talk about good news for justice!</p> <h4>Epstein is gone but not forgotten</h4> <p>If you were concerned that with Jeffrey Epstein’s death last year the trail of crimes has been raked over, well it appears that in fact the investigation has continued!</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/prosecutors-formally-request-talk-prince-andrew-epstein-investigation-n1227146" target="_blank" title="">Prosecutors formally request to talk with Prince Andrew in Epstein investigation</a>, Tom Winter, NBC News, June 7, 2020.</p> <p>Andrew <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-royals-andrew-epstein-idUSKBN23F1U2?taid=5ede84d4412e96000189fac9&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">continues to try</a> to weasel out of this, but it looks like New York is staying on this case. ( 👀 Acting U.S. Attorney Berman, by the way, was appointed by Jeff Sessions in 2018, and this is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Berman#United_States_Attorney_(2018%E2%80%93present)" target="_blank">not the first time</a> he has taken action that does not seem to be helpful to the resident. Maybe he’s another reason why trump hates Sessions 👀) :</p> <blockquote> <p>Federal prosecutors in New York have formally requested through the British government to speak with<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/prince-andrew-steps-away-public-duties-over-epstein-ties-n1087066" target="_blank">Prince Andrew</a><span> </span>as part of their ongoing criminal investigation into<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/jeffrey-epstein-found-dead-nyc-jail-n1041081" target="_blank">Jeffrey Epstein</a>'s history of sexual abuse, according to a person familiar with the matter.</p> <p>The request made by Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty is similar to a subpoena in this case for Prince Andrew's testimony. ✄</p> <p><span>Following Epstein's death, prosecutors vowed to continue the investigation of his alleged sex trafficking ring. The case brought renewed attention to several high-profile people in Epstein's orbit, including Andrew.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Update: Yep, sure enough, late Monday, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman publicly chastised the Duke:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theweek.com/speedreads/918868/prosecutor-shoots-down-prince-andrews-claim-offered-assistance-epstein-probe">Prosecutor shoots down Prince Andrew's claim he offered assistance in Epstein probe</a>, The Week, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;SDNY lays into Prince Andrew: &lt;a href="https://t.co/1mxrB5yUOM"&gt;pic.twitter.com/1mxrB5yUOM&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Betsy Woodruff Swan (@woodruffbets) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/woodruffbets/status/1270069650584408070?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>SDNY lays into Prince Andrew: <a href="https://t.co/1mxrB5yUOM">pic.twitter.com/1mxrB5yUOM</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Betsy Woodruff Swan (@woodruffbets) <a href="https://twitter.com/woodruffbets/status/1270069650584408070?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>No Holds Barr’d</h4> <p>And in continuing chaos moves in Barr’s DOJ, the government is proceeding with prosecution of Michael Flynn’s <em>co-conspirator</em>, even though they are trying to get the case against Flynn dismissed! This is like if two men committed an armed robbery — and plenty of evidence of both of them holding the guns, taking the money, etc. — but then the DA files to have the case of the one who aditted to the crime and already pleaded guilty dismissed, while continuing to prosecute his partner! It’s ridiculous. It makes no sense in one way, but in another way it <em>could</em> suggest that patriots in the DOJ continue to work for justice and are somehow able to continue with this prosecution as a way to pressure Barr and the DOJ in the Flynn case. Certainly, Flynn’s new lawyer, Sidney Powell, is not happy. As Rachel would say, watch this space:</p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/07/criminal-case-rafiekian-flynn-partner-306881" target="_blank">Feds press criminal case against Flynn partner</a>, Josh Gerstein, Politico, June 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>Prosecutors seeking to revive the convictions of Flynn’s former colleague, Bijan Rafiekian, filed a brief with a federal appeals court Sunday.</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000172-91eb-dd0c-ab73-ffef7a9f0000" target="_blank">The filing</a><span><span> </span>makes several mentions of Flynn’s integral role in the work that led to the two foreign-agent-related felony charges against Rafiekian and maintains the government’s position that Flynn was a co-conspirator in his business partner’s crimes — a curious stance as the government seeks to drop the criminal case it brought against Flynn more than two years ago. ✄</span></p> <p><span>When the Justice Department submitted its unusual request last month to dismiss the case against Flynn, it was entirely silent on his Turkey-related admissions. Another federal appeals court, the D.C. Circuit, is set to hear arguments Friday on whether Flynn is entitled to have the case dismissed immediately or a judge can entertain arguments that Flynn’s guilty plea in the case should not be disturbed.</span></p> <p>Flynn’s lead attorney, Sidney Powell, blasted the government’s decision to keep prosecuting Rafiekian, a former Trump transition team adviser. Asked by POLITICO about the move, she replied by email: “Wrongful and wasteful use of scarce taxpayer resources.”</p> </blockquote> <p>And the Judicial Branch continues to be the firewall against the neo-fscism:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Wow! Judge: “If a store’s windows must be broken to prevent a protestor’s facial bones from being broken or eye being permanently damaged, that is more than a fair trade. If a building must be graffiti-ed to prevent the suppression of free speech, that is a fair trade.” &lt;a href="https://t.co/Q6QkPTServ"&gt;https://t.co/Q6QkPTServ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Marshall Zelinger (@Marshall9News) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Marshall9News/status/1269123116917121025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 6, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Wow! Judge: Ã¢Â€ÂœIf a storeÃ¢Â€Â™s windows must be broken to prevent a protestorÃ¢Â€Â™s facial bones from being broken or eye being permanently damaged, that is more than a fair trade. If a building must be graffiti-ed to prevent the suppression of free speech, that is a fair trade.Ã¢Â€Â <a href="https://t.co/Q6QkPTServ">https://t.co/Q6QkPTServ</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Marshall Zelinger (@Marshall9News) <a href="https://twitter.com/Marshall9News/status/1269123116917121025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>Republicans in DIsarray</h3> <p><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/06/with-bad-poll-numbers-trump-is-thinking-of-replacing-kushner" target="_blank">“HE’S GOING TO BROOM KUSHNER AND PARSCALE”: “MALIGNANTLY CRAZY” ABOUT BAD POLL NUMBERS, TRUMP IS THINKING OF REPLACING HIS SON-IN-LAW</a>, Gabriel Sherman, Vanity Fair, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="babytrump.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/812527/large/babytrump.jpg?1591049266" title="babytrump.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">In<span> </span></span><strong>Donald Trump</strong><span style="text-align:start">’s West Wing, being a member of the Trump family has historically been the ultimate job security. But that truism is being stress-tested after a run of polls consistently show Trump losing to<span> </span></span><strong>Joe Biden</strong><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>at this stage of the race—a<span> </span></span><a>CNN poll</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>this morning has him down 14 points. According to a source close to the White House, Trump has mulled taking oversight of the campaign away from his son-in-law<span> </span></span><strong>Jared Kushner.</strong><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>“Trump is malignantly crazy about the bad poll numbers,” a former West Wing official said. “He’s going to broom Kushner and<span> </span></span><strong>[Brad] Parscale</strong><span style="text-align:start">—the numbers are not getting better,” a Republican close to the campaign said. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Over the weekend, Trump called around to New York friends and outside advisers in hopes they would validate Trump’s belief that the polls are wrong. “He’s asking people to agree with him that the polls are biased. But no one is telling him what he wants to hear,” said a Republican briefed on the calls. Republicans know how bad things are, but the party still believes sticking with Trump is the best bet for holding the Senate. Last week,<span> </span><strong>Mitch McConnell</strong><span> </span>told Republican senators that they couldn’t abandon Trump, according to a source. McConnell reminded Republicans that former New Hampshire senator<span> </span><strong>Kelly Ayotte</strong><span> </span>lost her 2016 reelection bid after<span> </span><a>breaking</a><span> </span>with Trump over the<span> </span><em>Access Hollywood</em><span> </span>video.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(Through a spokesperson, McConnell denied making the comment.) ← lol 😆</p> </blockquote> <h4>“You are losing. bigly”</h4> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/democrats-stop-worrying-about-losing-focus-on-how-youre-likely-to-win/2020/06/08/244771d6-a9b6-11ea-9063-e69bd6520940_story.html" target="_blank">Democrats, stop worrying about losing. Focus on how you’re likely to win.</a> Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>If you’re a president running for reelection, and<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/poll-80-percent-voters-say-things-are-out-control-u-n1226276">8 out of 10 voters</a><span> </span>believe “things in the country are out of control,” you are losing. Bigly.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trumptanic and blue wave." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/569765/large/Trumptanic_and_blue_wave.jpg?1532486291" title="Trumptanic and blue wave."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The question now is how much uglier and more divisive President Trump’s campaign will become as his desperation mounts — and how many of Trump’s Republican enablers choose to go down with what is beginning to look like the Titanic. The band that gets hired for the GOP convention, wherever it eventually takes place, might want to start practicing “Nearer My God to Thee.” ✄</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Some of the protests against police violence have been turned into voter-registration drives; all of them should be. If young people can be motivated to turn out to vote the way they have come out to march, Trump and the Republicans — who can’t bring themselves to utter the phrase “social justice,” much less act on it — will be toast.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Even more important, perhaps, is ensuring the right to vote. This is a battle that Democrats must fight at every level — defending the right to cast mail-in ballots, ensuring there are enough safe polling places for same-day voting, using the federal courts to ensure that state-level and local efforts to suppress voters fail.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>So long, southern strategy symbols</h4> <p>Republicans’ “southern strategy” — or at least its props — seems to be finally going down down down and it’s about damn time:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/06/08/872659015/protests-are-bringing-down-confederate-monuments-around-the-south" target="_blank">Protests Are Bringing Down Confederate Monuments Around The South</a>, Debbie Elliott, NPR News, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Earlier, two of Alabama's largest cities – Birmingham and Mobile – took down Confederate monuments that were focal points for civil unrest. Violating a state law intended to protect such memorials, Birmingham dismantled a massive obelisk dedicated to Confederate soldiers and sailors in a downtown park. Mobile took down a statue of a Confederate naval officer that had been vandalized. Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MayorStimpson/status/1268898795594690565?s=20">said<span> </span></a>on Twitter the move was not an attempt to rewrite history but intended to remove "a potential distraction" to focus on the future of the Gulf coast city.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="robert-e-lee.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/813612/large/robert-e-lee.jpg?1591270425" title="robert-e-lee.jpg"> <figcaption>Good riddance.</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">In Virginia, the state has<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/06/04/869519175/massive-robert-e-lee-statue-in-richmond-va-will-be-removed">started work to remove</a><span> </span>a huge statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond, the state capital. And city leaders say they want to take down another four Confederate memorials along Monument Ave. A slave auction block was removed from downtown Fredericksburg, Va. </p> <p style="text-align:start">Pressure is also mounting in Mississippi over the state flag. Adopted in 1894, the design incorporates the Confederate battle flag – a red background with a blue X lined with white stars. In 2001, Mississippi voted to keep it. Now Republican Gov. Tate Reeves says it's not up to elected leaders to change it.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"It should be the people who make that decision not some backroom deal by a bunch of politicians in Jackson," Reeves said Monday when pressed by reporters whether he thought the flag was an accurate representation of modern-day <strong><em>Mississippi, a state with a 38% African-American population</em></strong>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(nifty: why isn’t MS a blue state again? oh yeah. And this is why we fight)</p> </blockquote> <p>And → <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/live-updates-protests-for-racial-justice/2020/06/08/872235873/protesters-topple-british-slave-trader-statue-during-anti-racism-demonstration?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogsliveupdatesprotestsforracialjustice" target="_blank">Protesters Topple British Slave Trader Statue During Anti-Racism Demonstration</a>.</p> <h4>omg, he’s just pathetic</h4> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-camp-runs-ads-on-dc-cable-to-ease-boss-anxieties-and-buck-up-congressional-republicans?ref=home" target="_blank">Trump Camp Runs Ads on D.C. Cable to Ease the Boss’ Anxieties and Buck Up Congressional GOPers</a>, Lachlan Markay and Asawin Suebsaeng, the Daily Beast, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="trump_babysitters.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/740292/large/trump_babysitters.jpg?1574435930" title="trump_babysitters.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>In recent weeks, Trump has grown visibly distraught at his prospects for re-election, with recent polling showing his standing in the race declining dramatically in the wake of a sustained coronavirus outbreak and resulting recession, and as demonstrators flood major cities to protest the police killing of an unarmed black man in Minneapolis last month. Things have gotten so bad that after<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/08/politics/cnn-poll-trump-biden-chaotic-week/index.html">CNN came out with a survey</a><span> </span>on Monday showing Trump trailing Biden by 14 points, Trump’s campaign’s pollster crafted a memo—subsequently posted to the president’s Twitter account—accusing presidential pollsters of a deliberate effort to “counter the enthusiasm of Trump voters.”</p> <p>With Trump stuck in that milieu of anxiety, his re-election team is hoping that the ads may put him at ease that his formidable political machine is hard at work defending him and attacking his enemies. Trump is a voracious consumer of cable news, and—the thinking goes—is likely to see the spots pop up between segments of his favorite shows.</p> <p>These sources also said the campaign is hoping to counter-program recent ads by critics that have driven the president to public outbursts. The ads in question were the work of the Lincoln Project, a<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/inside-the-financial-workings-of-the-nevertrump-pac-driving-trump-crazy">super PAC</a><span> </span>run by a group of dissident conservatives, and elicited furious<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-george-conway-moved-into-donald-trumps-head">reactions from the president’s Twitter feed</a>. The Lincoln Project aired a recent, hard-hitting ad called “Mourning in America” on Fox News in the D.C. media market with the explicit goal of getting the president’s attention.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Steve Schmidt pulling no punches</h4> <p>‘<a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/06/the-ss-trump-is-floundering-and-republicans-may-jump-off-the-ship-like-fleeing-rats-steve-schmidt/" target="_blank">The SS Trump is foundering’ — and Republicans may ‘jump off the ship like fleeing rats’</a>: Steve Schmidt, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, June 8, 2020</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="luckovich-SSTrumptanic.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/737480/large/luckovich-SSTrumptanic.gif?1573561443" title="luckovich-SSTrumptanic.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>“Well, the way that the campaigns are looking at this now is they’re looking at the average of all of the polls. So you’re looking at an 8%, 9% lead for [Joe] Biden by the average, but you’re looking at decimation inside Trump’s internal numbers on all of the questions of leadership, on decency, on being up to and fit for the job of being president,” he replied. ✄</span></p> <p>“Now, when you look at the state polls and you look at the trajectory of some of the Senate races, if you’re a Republican, you’re starting to tremble. These numbers are very, very ominous at this hour,” he noted.</p> <p>“And so you could see in the coming months more and more of these Republicans starting to jump off the ship like fleeing rats. But, you know, at the end they’ve lashed their masts to the S.S. Tump, and the S.S. Trump is foundering in heavy seas — that’s what the poll number says,” he concluded.</p> <p>(<a href="https://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/fmr-gop-strategist-biden-is-acting-like-a-president-is-supposed-to-in-a-time-of-great-crisis-84723781556" target="_blank">Watch</a> the whole thing!)</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Musical Dedication to Republicans 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=EEewjtq5434" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/EEewjtq5434" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>We Have Great Democratic Leadership</h3> <p>I have got to start this section with Washington DC’s amazing kickass mayor, Muriel E. Bowser. This is non-negotiable because this woman rocks. READ THIS! 😃:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/muriel-bowser-trump-mural/2020/06/08/db2dcb2a-a8f3-11ea-94d2-d7bc43b26bf9_story.html" target="_blank">From bland bureaucrat to anti-Trump fame: Mayor Bowser’s transformation</a>, Paul Schwartzman and Fenit Nirappil, Washington Post, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 6: Muriel Bowser, mayor of the District of Columbia, speaks to reporters at Trump Tower, December 6, 2016 in New York City. President-elect Donald Trump and his transition team are in the process of filling cabinet and other high level positions for the new administration. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/348948/large/GettyImages-628051818.jpg?1484190717" title="NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 6: Muriel Bowser, mayor of the District of Columbia, speaks to reporters at Trump Tower, December 6, 2016 in New York City. President-elect Donald Trump and his transition team are in the process of filling cabinet and other high level positions for the new administration. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>In a city famous for political bombast, Bowser is known as a cautious leader who expresses herself in the forgettable words of a government bureaucrat. Now, in the span of a week, she has turned into a fresh voice of the resistance, buffeted by Trump’s threat of a federal takeover and his use of racist language to criticize street protests over the death of George Floyd in police custody.</span></p> <p><span>The mayor’s most dramatic stroke —</span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/bowser-black-lives-matter-street/2020/06/05/eb44ff4a-a733-11ea-bb20-ebf0921f3bbd_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_8"><span> </span>deploying city workers to paint<span> </span></a><span>“Black Lives Matter” in huge yellow letters along two blocks leading to the White House — drew<span> </span></span><span>widespread<span> </span></span><span>acclaim, including from (LeBron) James, who wrote, “BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!! TOGETHER we shall prevail!!”<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1268965667048321024?s=20">to his 46 million Twitter followers.</a> ✄</p> <p><span>But none of Bowser’s predecessors have pushed back as forcefully as she did by renaming 16th Street “Black Lives Matter Plaza” after Trump referred to demonstrators as thugs, threatened to have them shot and unleash dogs on them, and called for a military-style crackdown on city streets. In interviews and on social media, the mayor has called the president’s rhetoric “gross” and tweeted that he “hides behind his fence afraid/alone.”</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Our speaker leads</h4> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/2df9d32e313c79f0989774b16e1959b6?utm_source=nextdraft&utm_medium=email" target="_blank">Democrats unveil police reform overhaul, kneel at Capitol</a>, Lisa Mascaro, AP News, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="pelositakesaknee.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/815975/large/pelositakesaknee.jpg?1591675188" title="pelositakesaknee.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">The Justice in Policing Act would limit legal protections for police, create a national database of excessive-force incidents and ban police choke holds, among other changes, according to an early draft. It is the<span> </span></span><a href="https://apnews.com/992d6b5760dc91b05c62fda7156b5761">most ambitious change<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">to law enforcement sought by Congress in years. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The legislation would seek to provide greater oversight and transparency of police behavior in several ways. For one, it would grant subpoena power to the Justice Department to conduct “pattern and practice” investigations of potential misconduct and help states conduct independent investigations. It would ban racial profiling and boost requirements for police body cameras.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And it would create a “National Police Misconduct Registry,” a database to try to prevent officers from transferring from one department to another with past misconduct undetected, the draft said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">A long-sought<span> </span><a href="https://apnews.com/badc9a91929fd05de0942cde13ca320b">federal anti-lynching bill<span> </span></a>stalled in Congress is included in the package.</p> </blockquote> <h3>Elections</h3> <p><a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/6/8/21284096/presidential-election-polls-biden-lead" target="_blank">Joe Biden has a really big lead in the polls</a>, Matthew Yglesias, Vox, June8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="INDIANOLA, IOWA - SEPTEMBER 15: (R - L) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, and U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin arrive at the 36th Annual Harkin Steak Fry on September 15, 2013 in Indianola, Iowa. Sen. Harkin's Democratic fundraiser is one of the largest in Iowa each year. (Photo by Steve Pope/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/812955/large/190815-joe-biden-julian-castro-ew-1220p_8503647946a106e63d3ca32841b2748f.jpg?1591123948" title="INDIANOLA, IOWA - SEPTEMBER 15: (R - L) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, and U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin arrive at the 36th Annual Harkin Steak Fry on September 15, 2013 in Indianola, Iowa. Sen. Harkin's Democratic fundraiser is one of the largest in Iowa each year. (Photo by Steve Pope/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A Monday morning CNN poll<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/08/politics/cnn-poll-trump-biden-chaotic-week/index.html">showed Joe Biden with a staggering 14-point lead over President Trump</a><span> </span>as the electorate’s stated level of concern with “race relations” soars and the former vice president is seen as much better equipped to handle the issue.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Winning the popular vote by such a large margin would likely mean Democrats overperformed in battleground states and in places like Georgia, Iowa, and Texas that<span> </span><a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/5/18/21243174/most-competitive-senate-races-2020">would put the Senate clearly in play</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">And while the CNN poll is just one poll, and something of an outlier at that, there is now a very clear trend in national polling — Biden was winning<span> </span><em>before</em><span> </span>the outbreak of massive national protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death, and that lead has gotten bigger.</p> </blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;That basically gives us a full &amp;#39;wave&amp;#39; of the major national polls for the first time since 3/15-4/15, and Biden&amp;#39;s lead has grown by an average of 4 points since then &lt;a href="https://t.co/PV2MTuXKSy"&gt;pic.twitter.com/PV2MTuXKSy&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Nate_Cohn/status/1269935859303841793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;June 8, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>That basically gives us a full 'wave' of the major national polls for the first time since 3/15-4/15, and Biden's lead has grown by an average of 4 points since then <a href="https://t.co/PV2MTuXKSy">pic.twitter.com/PV2MTuXKSy</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) <a href="https://twitter.com/Nate_Cohn/status/1269935859303841793?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 8, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/georgia-absentee-voting-surge" target="_blank">Georgia Sees <strong>At Least 2,500%</strong> Increase In Absentee Voting</a>, Tierney Sneed, TPM, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Georgia is the latest state to see a major surge in absentee voting in the midst of the pandemic.</p> <p>Ahead of its primary Tuesday, elections officials by Sunday had received 943,000 ballots — a 2,500 percent increase from the 2016 presidential primary,<span> </span><a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/absentee-voting-georgia-embraced-equally-voters-both-parties/QwabnU3akBNQOdd1qNu4xN/">the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.</a></p> <p>Of the 1.2 million who have already voted (a number that includes in-person early voting, which ended Friday), there was close to an even split between Democrats and Republicans, according to the AJC report.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Primary</h4> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="EZ8dg7AXYAMIf4c.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/816003/large/EZ8dg7AXYAMIf4c.jpg?1591686689" title="EZ8dg7AXYAMIf4c.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Today is Georgia’s primary election day. Here is what you need to know to vote in Georgia today: <a href="https://www.11alive.com/article/news/politics/elections/june-9-2020-georgia-primary-election-guide/85-afc7ed29-c7ca-4a45-9082-d67b859095b9" target="_blank">Georgia's Primary Election Guide for June 9, 2020</a>, 11Alive.com</p> <p>Lines are expected, even with record early and absentee voting. But, since people waited up to 6 hours to vote early already — like their fellow citizens in Wisconsin and other states did before them — I’m pretty sure Georgians are going to stick it out and cast their ballots.</p> <p>And if you want to give yourself a lift now and then, here is a particularly optimistic election forecast site, with updates and analysis every day!: <a href="https://www.electoral-vote.com/" target="_blank">ElectoralVote</a> Check out the page: <a href="https://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2020/Pres/tipping_point.html" target="_blank">“Tipping Point State”</a></p> <h2>🎶 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 🎶</h2> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=SQXqkiKXiHc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/SQXqkiKXiHc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>👀Trouble in the Social Spiderweb 👀</h3> <p>The winds of change are blowing through everything, everywhere. People are sensing it, waking up and speaking out:</p> <p><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/facebook-mark-zuckerberg-open-letter-moderators-black-lives-matter-george-floyd-protests-1509404" target="_blank">Zuckerburg Backlash over Trump Post Continues as Facebook Moderators Say 'Our Screens Are Being Flooded with Hate Speech'</a>, Jason Murdock, Newsweek, June 8, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="zuckerberg-facebook-hearing-e1523653772551.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/570325/large/zuckerberg-facebook-hearing-e1523653772551.jpg?1532625829" title="zuckerberg-facebook-hearing-e1523653772551.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>A group of current and former Facebook content moderators has criticized CEO Mark<span> </span><span><span><span>Zuckerberg</span></span></span><span>'s decision not to remove a controversial post by President Donald Trump, as pressure mounts on the founder to review the platform's policies.</span></span></p> <p>An<span> </span><a href="https://medium.com/@fbcontentmods/this-is-a-message-of-solidarity-from-a-group-of-current-and-former-content-moderators-at-facebook-6af1b3b2a020" target="_blank">open letter</a><span><span> </span>from the group, uploaded online today, expresses solidarity with protesters taking to the streets following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25. Former police officer Derek Chauvin has been charged with unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Floyd's death sparked global Black Lives Matter protests and civil unrest.</span></p> <p>On May 29, after overnight protests in Minneapolis, Trump put out a message on social media that appeared to incite violence with the phrase "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." Criticism over the decision not to remove or place a warning on Trump's Facebook post grew after Twitter flagged the same words for "glorifying violence," hiding it from public view. Many Facebook employees tweeted complaints. Some resigned from their positions.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trump-healing-america-with-race-speech-best-trump-idea-since-bleach" target="_blank">Trump Healing America With Race Speech Best Trump Idea Since 'Bleach</a>', Evan Hurst, Wonkette, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ This stuff isn’t going uninvestigated: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2020/06/08/timeline-trump-church-photo-op/?arc404=true" target="_blank">The crackdown before Trump’s photo op</a>, Dalton Bennett, Sarah Cahlan, Aaron C. Davis and Joyce Lee, Washington Post, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Hennepin County (where George was murdered), of course: <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/08/opinions/where-the-george-floyd-case-must-be-tried-honig/index.html" target="_blank">Where the George Floyd case must be tried</a>, Elie Honig, CNN, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Despite the bs “noob” dig, it’s a decent article: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/06/08/how-and-why-black-lives-matter-harnessed-a-nations-anger-toward-donald-trump/" target="_blank">How and why Black Lives Matter harnessed a nation's anger toward Donald Trump</a>, Amanda Marcotte, Salon, June 8, 2020. </p> <p>⚡️Military needs to be reworked, too: <span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-disturbing-appeal-of-boogaloo-violence-to-military-men?ref=home" target="_blank">The Disturbing Appeal of Boogaloo Violence to Military Men</a>, Kelly Weill, the Daily Beast, June 8, 2020.</span></p> <p><span>⚡️Hopeful signs, it’s possible: </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/08/this-could-be-turning-point-fight-against-racism-america-abroad/" target="_blank">This could be a turning point in the fight against racism — in America and abroad</a>, Frida Ghitis, Washington Post, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Ya think? <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-wh-potential-speech-race-unity" target="_blank">Pretty Much No One Thinks It’s A Good Idea For Trump To Give A Speech On Racism And Unity</a>, Zoe Richards, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Forewarned is forearmed: <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/08/trump-china-immigration-crime-campaign-307742" target="_blank">Trump’s emerging turnaround strategy: Focus on voters’ fears about crime, immigration and China</a>, Nancy Cook, Politico, June 8, 2020.</p> <p><span>⚡️</span><a href="https://apnews.com/fe71828fb6c97178315d79987f04711b" target="_blank">AP PHOTOS: Huge crowds worldwide in name of racial justice</a>, AP, June 8, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.themuckrake.com/main/weak" target="_blank">The Weakest Strongman: As America Rages, Donald Trump Goes Dark</a>, Jared Yates Sexton, The Muckraker, June1, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation! </strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6301.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/816004/large/IMG_6301.jpg?1591686708" title="IMG_6301.jpg"> <figcaption>Mama said, “Hop in the car, we’re going for a ride to juice the battery”<br> I don’t know what that means, but yay for a car ride!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the<span> </span><a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a><span> </span>(millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information (<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Well, my friends, the Curlygirly is flopped out by my chair probably wondering why I am keeping her from her cozy bed. Time to call it a night.</p> <p>Remember to look after yourself and those you love. Get enough rest, eat nutritious food and try to get outdoors every day if you can. The end of this nightmare is in sight, and we need to pace ourselves for the months between now and November, as they are likely to be full of ups and downs. We can handle anything that they throw at us, though, because we have each other. We are the majority and we are on the right side of history. We will work with persistence and courage and we will win in November.</p> <p>I am so thankful for all of you! </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=wEBlaMOmKV4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wEBlaMOmKV4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h2 class="AlignCenter">Happy Tuesday, Newsies!</h2> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election2020 Georgia Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup JoeBiden Polls Primary2020 Recommended _1842517 Tue, 09 Jun 2020 11:00:24 +0000 We Can Bring That Big Blue Landslide!: May 26 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/5/26/1944873/-We-Can-Bring-That-Big-Blue-Landslide-May-26-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good Day, Gnusies! </p> <p>I was scrolling back through Cook’s <a href="https://cookpolitical.com/index.php/" target="_blank">political ratings</a> and did you know that between February 5 and today, at least 5 Republican senators have seen their rating slide to a more vulnerable position? It’s true. In Steve Daines’ case, his seat went from solid R and jumped <em>two</em> ratings levels to merely lean R (thanks to Montana governor Steve Bullock’s challenge for the seat). In a shocking development, Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) have slid from solid R to likely R.</p> <p>For the House, in February Cook’s had 19 D seats rated as “tossup” (ie. vulnerable). By late April, that number of “toss-ups” had shrunk to 16, while R “toss-ups” had increased from 5 to 6. Best of all, 3 seats currently held by R’s are considered solid or likely pickups for Democrats, while zero D seats are likely, solid or even “lean” Republican. In other words, Democrats may even expand their House majority in November.</p> <p>In the electoral college, Democrats have 232 EC votes in the solid, likely and lean D states, meaning Biden only needs 39 further EC votes, which can be picked up in a variety of ways by winning just some of the 6 toss-up states or potentially one of the 2 lean R states and a toss-up state. Texas is rated as lean R! Not “solid”, not even “likely” , just “lean” Republican. And Texas <em>alone</em> has 38 electoral college votes. </p> <p>These are significant changes and they are a signal that the ground is seriously shifting all across the country. There may not be any truly “solid” R places anymore, especially if people can vote by mail in the autumn. Republicans know this, which is why they are fighting vote-by-mail so ferociously. </p> <p>I encourage everyone to <a href="https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2017/01/138465/how-to-call-senator" target="_blank">call their representatives and senators</a> to demand Vote by Mail for the 2020 election. If we can GOTV — and in this year of pandemic, vote by mail will be the safest way — then I am convinced that Joe Biden and Democrats up and down the ticket will win in a landslide. The number to call is 202-224-3121. Call now. Operators are standing by! </p> <h3>🎶 Here’s To That Big Blue Landslide 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=KiWMBGdyE3E" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/KiWMBGdyE3E" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>🇺🇸 Good News from States 🇺🇸</h3> <h4>Illinois</h4> <p>JB Pritzker doesn’t get the national coverage of governors Cuomo (NY), Newsom (CA), and Beshear (KY), but I am mighty proud of my governor. He seems to genuinely want to improve peoples’ lives and I want to share the good things he is doing for the people of Illinois.</p> <p>Last week, Gov. Pritzker announced free online, skills-based training programs for unemployed people in Illinois. The program aims to help people thrown out of work by the coronavirus pandemic obtain new job skills from real universities and colleges and to provide ways for job-seekers to connect with potential employers.</p> <p><a href="https://www.galesburg.com/news/20200514/pritzker-announces-new-job-training-programs" target="_blank">Pritzker announces new job training programs</a>, Rebecca Anzel of Capitol News illinois, galesburg.com, May 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/588438/large/C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg?1536881693" title="C201711-312-JB-Pritzker-3bfb8348.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Beginning in June and lasting through the end of the year, 3,800 courses and 400 specializations will be offered by over 160 universities through the online learning platform Coursera, Gov. JB Pritzker said Thursday. Formal certification programs will also be available. ✄</span></p> <p><span>A “one-stop shop” dedicated to connecting unemployed residents with jobs is now available at<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.galesburg.com/news/20200514/illinois.gov/gethired" target="_blank">illinois.gov/gethired</a><span>. The governor said it is a “hub” for those looking to participate in online career fairs, for example.</span></p> <p>“The financial stability and success of our residents are key to getting Illinois’ economy back on its feet,” Pritzker said. “Illinois won’t be restored until our workers and families have the opportunities and resources they need to build and fill in their lives, and I won’t rest until we see that mission through.”</p> <p>He added his administration is encouraging employers to use the resource to post jobs.</p> </blockquote> <p><em><strong>Vote by mail will be expanded in Illinois!</strong></em></p> <p>Illinois already had fairly easy ability to vote by mail/absentee vote. You could request an absentee ballot for any reason, but you still had to fill out an online application for your ballot (and this year you had to wait until August 8 to request the ballot — I checked early in the lockdown). This new law makes it so much easier because now the vote-by-mail ballots will automatically be sent to anyone who voted in the past two years and to anyone who has recently registered to vote, too. FYI Illinois has automatic voter registration already, too — so in other words, if you change address at the DMV or get a new license after the March 17 primary, you are automatically registered to vote and you will get the ballot in the mail. Talk about making voting easier! Every state needs this. </p> <p><a href="https://abc7chicago.com/voting-illinois-mail-in-vote-by/6205072/" target="_blank">Illinois vote by mail bill passes Senate, heads to Governor JB Pritkzer for signature</a>, ABC News, May 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WLS) -- The Illinois Senate passed a bill expanding vote by mail for the 2020 election Friday.</span><br> <span>The bill will automatically send an application for a vote-by-mail ballot to any person who has voted in the past two years, in the 2018 general election, the 2019 consolidated election or the 2020 primary election. Anyone who registered to vote after the 2020 primary will also receive an application for a vote-by-mail ballot.</span><br> <span>The bill also declares Election Day, November 3, 2020, a state holiday.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>California</h4> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/federal-court-backs-california-gov-gavin-newsoms-orders/story?id=70856597&cid=clicksource_4380645_4_three_posts_card_hed" target="_blank">Federal court backs California Gov. Gavin Newsom's orders keeping churches closed</a>, Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A federal appeals court has backed California Gov. Gavin Newsom's stay-at-home order banning in-church services to blunt the<span> </span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/federal-court-backs-california-gov-gavin-newsoms-orders/abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus">spread of coronavirus</a>, rejecting an argument from clerics that the governor is treading on their First Amendment right to free exercise of their religious beliefs.</p> <p>The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a split 2-1 ruling denying the request for a temporary restraining order against Newsom's in-church service ban filed this month by the South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, California. ✄</p> <p><span>In its ruling in the California case, the federal appellate judges who sided with Newsom found the state's action of shuttering houses of worship due to a health emergency does not "infringe upon or restrict practices because of their religious motivation" and does not "in a selective manner impose burdens only on conduct motivated by religious belief." ✄</span></p> <p><span>In reaching its decision, the judges noted that late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson once wrote that if a court "does not temper its doctrinaire logic with a little practical wisdom, it will convert the constitutional Bill of Rights into a suicide pact."</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>North carolina</h4> <p><a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/article242924676.html" target="_blank">Expand Vote-By-Mail for 2020 says a bipartisan group of NC lawmakers</a>, Will Doran, McClatchey News, May 22, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="vote-by-mail.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/792173/large/vote-by-mail.png?1586971170" title="vote-by-mail.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Usually, Harrison said, fewer than 5% of North Carolina voters choose to vote by mail — but for 2020, “they’re expecting a surge of up to 40%.” ✄</span></p> <p>People who vote by mail now have to find two people to serve as witnesses while they vote. But the bill filed Friday would drop that requirement to just one witness.</p> <div>Voters are currently not allowed to request absentee ballots by email or fax, but this bill would lift those restrictions.</div> <p style="text-align:start">It would also create a new tracking system, akin to what some retailers or pizza delivery companies have, to let voters ensure that their ballots make it through the mail and to the board of elections. And if there are problems with a ballot, the bill would create a new requirement for the state to notify the voter and let them fix it.</p> </blockquote> <h4>south carolina (!)</h4> <p>I’m editing this diary to insert this very good news:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;VICTORY: All South Carolina voters will now have access to vote by mail and won’t need a witness to sign their ballot during the COVID-19 pandemic.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;No one should have to choose between their health and their vote.&lt;/p&gt;— ACLU (@ACLU) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU/status/1264956000089636864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 25, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>VICTORY: All South Carolina voters will now have access to vote by mail and wonÃ¢Â€Â™t need a witness to sign their ballot during the COVID-19 pandemic.<br><br>No one should have to choose between their health and their vote.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” ACLU (@ACLU) <a href="https://twitter.com/ACLU/status/1264956000089636864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 25, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Florida</h4> <p>Jessiestaf reported this important story yesterday. I am repeating it to add a little background on the huge significance of it for voting rights, which is why (naturally) Republicans are fighting tooth and nail to stop people who have already paid their debt to society (in prison) from having their right to vote restored. Here’s the main story:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/judge-rules-against-florida-felons-paying-fines-vote-n1214091" target="_blank">Judge rules against Florida on felons paying fines to vote</a>, AP News via NBC, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Florida law requiring felons to pay legal fees as part of their sentences before regaining the vote is unconstitutional for those unable to pay, or unable to find out how much they owe, a federal judge ruled Sunday.</p> <p>The 125-page ruling was issued by U.S. District Court Judge Robert Hinkle in Tallahassee. It involves a state law to implement a 2016 ballot measure approved by voters to automatically restore the right to vote for many felons who have completed their sentence. The Republican-led Legislature stipulated that fines and legal fees must be paid as part of the sentence, in addition to serving any prison time. ✄</p> <p><span>The judge called the Florida rules a “pay to vote” system that are unconstitutional when applied to felons “who are otherwise eligible to vote but are genuinely unable to pay the required amount.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And here’s the crucial background:</p> <p>65% of Florida voters approved a <em>constitutional amendment</em> (!) to restore these voting rights. This is something a huge majority of the people want and consider right and just:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal-judge-guts-florida-law-requiring-felons-to-pay-fines-before-they-can-vote/2020/05/24/a7f553ba-9c3a-11ea-a2b3-5c3f2d1586df_story.html" target="_blank">Federal judge guts Florida law requiring felons to pay fines before they can vote</a>, Amy Gardner, Washington Post, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Amendment 4 passed with 65 percent of the vote in November 2018, attracting support from across the political spectrum, including from the ACLU, the League of Women Voters, groups backed by the<span> </span><span>libertarian<span> </span></span>Koch network and the Christian Coalition.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>The nonprofit Florida Rights Restoration Coalition estimated that as many 1.5 million felons previously barred from voting would be able to do so<span><span> </span>in this crucial battleground state</span>.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Those expectations shriveled in the intervening two years, however, as a result of Senate Bill 7066’s requirements that fines, fees and restitution be paid first. Today, advocates estimate that fewer than 50,000 felons have registered.</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>And, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/05/24/861776313/federal-judge-rules-florida-law-restricting-voting-rights-for-felons-unconstitut" target="_blank">from NPR</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Hinkle's ruling could dramatically expand the rolls in a battleground state that President Trump narrowly won in 2016 by less than 115,000 votes.<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/fla-expert-report.pdf">One analysis</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>by Daniel Smith, a professor of political science at the University of Florida, found that more than 774,000 Florida citizens who have fulfilled the terms of their felony convictions have outstanding legal financial obligations.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">"Today's decision is a landmark victory for hundreds of thousands of voters who want their voices to be heard," said Paul Smith, vice president of the Campaign Legal Center, one of the groups that challenged the law. "This is a watershed moment in election law. States can no longer deny people access to the ballot box based on unpaid court costs and fees, nor can they condition rights restoration on restitution and fines that a person cannot afford to pay."</p> <p style="text-align:start">The governor's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the state is expected to appeal the decision.</p> </blockquote> <p>So, yes it is true that Republicans will definitely appeal — they have no other path to power except to suppress the vote, after all — but the momentum on this is definitely progressing toward greater justice and better access to the franchise. In the courts, in activism across the political spectrum (take another look at the variety of groups that backed Amendment 4 👀 ‼️), and finally at the ballot box — the proof is overwhelming that this is what the people want, so there is solid democratic and legal groundwork to make it happen. It’s great news!</p> <h4>Maryland</h4> <p>Here is an op-ed I am including because it mentions a bit of good news I had missed that is worth sharing: Maryland (Gov. Larry Hogan-R) is sending out ballots to every registered voter in the state by mail, due to the pandemic. Another state doing the right thing — and this one led by a Republican. Excellent news!</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/05/24/americans-want-vote-they-want-be-able-do-it-by-mail/" target="_blank">Americans want to vote, and they want to be able to do it by mail</a>, Donna F. Edwards, Washington Post, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>I did not request the ballot. It was sent to me courtesy of Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), who decided after postponing the primary election because of the pandemic that every registered voter would receive a ballot in the mail. Filling in the ballot was quick and easy, the instructions were clear and I did it in my pajamas over a cup of coffee. When I finished, I sealed the postage-paid envelope and signed a statement saying I understood that if I violated the state elections law, I would face a $1,000 fine, two years in prison or both. ✄</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798817/large/GettyImages-1058146940.jpg?1588195075" title="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Here’s a fact for the president: More than one-quarter of voters cast their ballots by </span><span>mail in the 2018 election, and that number is likely to increase in the novel<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?itid=lk_inline_manual_12" target="_blank">coronavirus</a><span><span> </span>era. As evidence, the April primary in Wisconsin, in the midst of the pandemic, saw the<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/04/15/wisconsin-primary-had-extraordinarily-high-voter-turnout/?itid=lk_inline_manual_12" target="_blank">voter turnout among the highest in 40 years, with more than 70 percent of votes</a><span><span> </span>coming from absentee ballots. Another fact: A recent</span><a href="https://www.people-press.org/2020/04/28/two-thirds-of-americans-expect-presidential-election-will-be-disrupted-by-covid-19/" target="_blank"><span> </span>survey</a><span><span> </span>by Pew Research Center found that 70 percent of Americans believe that anyone who wants to vote by mail should be allowed to do so.</span></p> <p><span>Simply put, Americans want to be able to vote by mail in November. Voters may be afraid of coronavirus, but they are not afraid to vote by mail. We should be making it easier and not more difficult. Contrary to Trump’s assertions, voting by mail neither increases voter fraud nor gives Democrats an unfair advantage. It is one of the least partisan,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/elections/articles/2020-05-21/voting-by-mail-had-been-on-the-rise-before-coronavirus" target="_blank">most popular activities</a><span><span> </span>in our democracy. As to Democrats’ fears, this is not a partisan issue.<span> </span></span><a href="http://www.andrewbenjaminhall.com/Thompson_et_al_VBM.pdf" target="_blank">Research</a><span><span> </span>by the Democracy and Polarization Lab at Stanford University found that voting by mail does not increase party share or turnout by party and only increases overall turnout “modestly," although that last finding may change with the looming pandemic.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>New York</h4> <p>Good news for some families amid the grief of losing a loved one to covid-19. This feels just and right:</p> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/andrew-cuomo-new-york-governor-coronavirus-update-briefing-watch-live-stream-today-2020-05-25/" target="_blank">Cuomo says public employees who died from COVID-19 will get line-of-duty death benefits</a>, Caroline Linton, CBS News, May 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday that public employees who worked on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic and died from<span> </span><span><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/feature/coronavirus/" target="_blank">COVID-19</a></span><span> </span>will receive the death benefits that are normally reserved for people who die in the line of duty. "I want to make sure we repay them — and not just by saying thank you and running nice television commercials," Cuomo said.</p> <p>Cuomo said full death benefits will be allocated to the families of any state worker who was a frontline worker. He listed transit workers, emergency responders and public healthcare workers as examples. "The people who showed up," he said. ✄</p> <p><a href="http://www.wcb.ny.gov/content/main/forms/C500_1.pdf" target="_blank">Death benefits in the state of New York</a><span><span> </span>for workers who die in the line of duty include paying a portion of funeral costs and up to 66% of that person's salary is rewarded to a spouse until remarriage or if the person had children. The money will come from local or state pension funds, Cuomo said.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/05/24/861704517/cuomo-says-new-york-is-now-decidedly-in-the-reopening-phase?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates" target="_blank">Cuomo Says New York Is Now 'Decidedly In The Reopening Phase'</a>, Hannah Hageman, NPR News, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Cuomo-Covid-NHos_051920_092e2acKarenRubin.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/807360/large/Cuomo-Covid-NHos_051920_092e2acKarenRubin.jpg?1589993838" title="Cuomo-Covid-NHos_051920_092e2acKarenRubin.jpg"> <figcaption>The guv is gonna beat ‘rona’s as*!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">New York is "decidedly in the reopening phase," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday, as the state hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic gave sports leagues, campgrounds and veterinarian offices the green light to start up again, with modifications. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The overall downward trend in New York COVID-19 related deaths stands in stark contrast to<a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/26/845199791/new-yorks-daily-covid-19-deaths-below-400-for-first-time-in-april"><span> </span>numbers from March and April,</a><span> </span>when the coronavirus pandemic was raging across the state. To date, New York has recorded<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/16/816707182/map-tracking-the-spread-of-the-coronavirus-in-the-u-s">nearly 360,000 cases and more than 28,000 deaths</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Cuomo's remarks followed his signing of an order Friday<a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/05/24/861630500/new-yorks-memorial-day-crowds-are-sparse-despite-lifted-restrictions"><span> </span>permitting state beaches to open for Memorial Day weekend</a><span> </span>at 50% capacity but with social distancing and other safety precautions in place.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Let’s Turn This Country Kind of Blue 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=FEPFH-gz3wE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/FEPFH-gz3wE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>✝ Church Leaders Rejecting Calls To “Open” Churches ✝</h3> <p>I’m not a brave person. I have been a bystander on a few occasions in my life, sometimes too frightened to speak up, and more often too slow to catch on to the significance of what was going on around me to even realise that I should or could object. Yesterday I was in a situation that allowed me to dip a toe in the stream of public activism (besides marching with others, which I have done with women, BLM and other groups in my city — it’s a little easier when one can blend in with the support of a crowd). The curlygirl and I walked uptown for a good long exercise session and wound up in Chicago’s “Cathedral District” which is a nice treezy neighborhood. I quite like Chicago’s new Cardinal, Blase Cupich (he eschewed the gold coast palace that previous Chicago prelates enjoyed, instead taking a few rooms in the modest rectory at Holy Name cathedral, plus he pisses off the right wingers, which this girl raised in the hopefulness of Vatican ll Catholicism appreciates).</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6251.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/809320/large/IMG_6251.jpg?1590433611" title="IMG_6251.jpg"> <figcaption>I forgot to take an “after” picture, but this was it. <br> This secularist supports Cardinal Cupich 100%.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Anyway, in front of the Cathedral was a very good billboard posted in the spirit of love, community and common-sense (thanks, Cardinal Cupich). But, slapped over the lovely sign was a stupid handout demanding “open our churches”! Well, I rolled my eyes at first, but it slowly dawned on me that this was not just a stupid, but mostly benign, poster; it was a harmful, anti-social, hateful message (pretending that somehow “secularists” were behind the quarantine, as if the pandemic was nothing but a salvo in the heathens’ war on religion 👀). And I stood there a moment wondering if this was one of those times when I could be either a bystander or I could take action. I could be caught on video. Someone could be watching me right at that moment. And maybe it wouldn’t really make a difference to just leave it there. But on the other hand, this stupidity — this hateful, anti-social message — ought not to stand unopposed. Sure, someone used their free speech to post it, and I determined to use MY free speech to say “nope, get that misguided nonsense off there”. These people have a spokesperson in the biggest bully pulpit in the land. Their message has already enjoyed far too much dissemination. Eff that.</p> <p>So, I ripped the flyer down. And threw it in the trash. Where it belonged. </p> <p>Rev. Dr. J Barber ll is a well-known leader for social justice and, as expected, he has led in this crisis, too:</p> <p><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-churches-reopening_n_5ec81eddc5b6ccbb305f7ecf" target="_blank">Trump’s Push To Open Churches Contradicts Jesus’ Teaching To Love Neighbors, Clergy Say</a>, Carol Kuruvilla, Huffington Post, May 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.40.20PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/809319/large/ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.40.20PM.png?1590433610" title="ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.40.20PM.png"> <figcaption>Thank you, as ever, for your incredible leadership, <br> Rev. Dr. William Barber.</figcaption> </figure> <p>Several faith leaders are speaking out against <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>’s <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-orders-governors-reopen-houses-of-worship_n_5ec805a7c5b6d58115252efc" target="_blank">demand that governors allow churches to reopen</a> while the country still battles the <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/coronavirus" target="_blank">coronavirus pandemic</a>.</p> </div> <div> <p>According to the activist Rev. William Barber, Trump’s push contradicts a <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+12%3A30-31&version=NIV" target="_blank">fundamental tenet</a> of the president’s Christian faith ― to love your neighbor as yourself.</p> </div> <div> <p>“It’s a violation of loving your neighbor as yourself to do something that you know could put your neighbor in harm’s way,” Barber told HuffPost on Friday. “That’s a fundamental violation.”</p> <div> <p>Barber pointed to <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+58%3A1-8&version=NIV" target="_blank">scripture</a> <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+23%3A23-24&version=NIV" target="_blank">verses</a> that lash out at people who cling to religious customs while mistreating the poor, immigrants and other marginalized people.</p> </div> <div> <p>“Those who will worship and go through religious ceremony, but don’t care for justice and lifting up the poor and fighting for what is right, the Bible calls it hypocrisy, the very thing that God does not like,” Barber said.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.41.06PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/809318/large/ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.41.06PM.png?1590433610" title="ScreenShot2020-05-25at1.41.06PM.png"> <figcaption> Amen, Father Tim.</figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🌍 World News 🌎</h3> <p>High drama in Israel this week as Benjamin Netanyahu finally faces legal consequences for his crimes. He whined dramatically from the courthouse steps, pretending to be a victim as all narcissistic criminals do, but it appears that the judges will not be moved by the performance:</p> <p><strong>“The Israeli prime minister may play the victim of a media lynching, but the judges aren't buying it.”</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/israeli-prime-minister-benjamin-netanyahus-trial-begins-amid-chants-and-bombast?ref=wrap" target="_blank">Bibi Netanyahu’s Trial Begins Amid Chants and Bombast</a>, Noga Tarnopolsky, The Daily Beast, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>JERUSALEM—Four years of police investigations, judicial deliberations, stunning leaks, broken promises from politicians, and assaults against Israeli institutions culminated Sunday in a never-before-seen spectacle: the sitting prime minister of Israel standing before a panel of judges who will decide his fate.</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="bibi-2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/191776/large/bibi-2.jpg?1453986796" title="bibi-2.jpg"> <figcaption>Day of Reckoning at long last? Here’s hoping.</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/keyword/benjamin-netanyahu">Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu</a><span>, along with three fellow defendants, is accused of fraud, bribery, and breach of trust in three separate cases involving his alleged efforts to control various aspects of Israeli media. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Chief Judge Rivka Friedman-Feldman did not give up any reaction, if she had one, but her very presence as Fettman began to address the court was a powerful reminder that Netanyahu, despite his best attempts, is now a defendant in case number 64010.<span> </span></span><span> The no-nonsense chief judge sentenced former prime minister Ehud Olmert to jail in 2015 on lesser charges than those Netanyahu faces today. ✄</span></p> <p><span>In the judge’s terse promise to issue a reply to his demands quickly it was evident that for Netanyahu, who has not had to answer to anyone for the length of his 12 years as prime minister of Israel, and for the country, something new has begun.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>Regular People Being Excellent To Each Other</h3> <p>These seems like a really cool thing to do, particularly for older kids!</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/05/24/857982067/what-i-learned-from-writing-letters-to-strangers-across-america" target="_blank">What I Learned From Writing Letters To Strangers Across America</a>, Elise Hu, NPR News, May 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="Penpalletters.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/681725/large/Penpalletters.jpg?1559401550" title="Penpalletters.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">A week into California's stay-at-home order, when our now-familiar mix of anxious, lonely and restless feelings were still brand new, I craved connection. But not the kind available from a screen. Inside my wallet I found 10 stamps leftover from the holidays, and I put out a tweet: "Today I am going to write letters to send through the post ... [Direct message] me your snail mail address if you want a random letter. But heads up I only have 10 stamps & they are of Santa."</p> <p style="text-align:start">On the first day, I wrote to strangers in Arizona, California, Missouri, New York, Texas and Washington. The next day, I wrote to an 11-year-old who was born in Plano, Texas, where I grew up. I wrote to a USPS letter carrier from Minnesota who requested a letter for himself. The 10 stamps ran out quickly, so I restocked. By the time I was finished sending an analog paper letter to anyone who requested one, I'd written 50 letters to addresses in every state except for Alaska and the Dakotas.</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">When they requested letters, people mentioned little bits about themselves: That they live in my old stomping grounds (Austin and St. Louis). They mentioned their kids or their pets. They mentioned listening to NPR when I<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/npr-extra/2018/08/01/634626480/newsroom-moves-for-nprs-elise-hu-and-anthony-kuhn">broadcasted from Seoul</a><span style="text-align:start">. They mostly asked if it was too late to request a letter. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Our lives are upended, uncontrollable and contained by the walls of our homes. So when I wrote, I asked folks what their experience of this cocooning felt like. Were they scared and uncertain, like me? How did they fill their days? Find joy? I asked many people what they learned about themselves during this difficult period.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.teenvogue.com/story/connecting-incarcerated-parents-photo-patch" target="_blank">Connecting With Incarcerated Parents Is Easier With Photo Patch, an App Developed By a Teen</a>, Vikki Law, TeenVogue, May 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Jay Jay’s and her father’s struggles are shared by millions across the country. In the U.S.,<span> </span><a>5.1 million children have had a parent in jail or prison</a>. Many parents are incarcerated<span> </span><a>hundreds of miles from home</a>, making visits infrequent, if not impossible. Now, father and daughter have created a program — and an app — to help bridge those distances.</p> <div></div> <p style="text-align:start">The program is sorely needed at this moment, when the coronavirus pandemic has widened the disconnect even further. To curb possible exposure, prisons and jails have<span> </span><a>canceled in-person visits</a>. These cancellations leave many families with no choice but to rely on phone calls and video visits, which can cost as much as<span> </span><a>$4.80 for 20 minutes</a><span> </span>and, in jails,<span> </span><a>as much as $24</a>. A handful of states are<span> </span><a>offering a limited number of free phone calls</a>; some also offer a<span> </span><a>limited number</a><span> </span>of<span> </span><a>free video calls</a>. But for many, a few calls and an occasional video visit is not enough to maintain a bond.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/crayola-launches-colors-world-skin-tone-inspired-crayon-70784548?fbclid=IwAR2V3laA2MS5orRtt38SWDRPDHb9UPcxDpFQQHcq0--3gyp0X8XMv7pYa90&cid=social_twitter_abcn" target="_blank">Crayola launches 'Colors of the World' skin tone-inspired crayon colors</a>, GoodMorning America, May 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="crayola-06-as-ht-200520_hpEmbed_10x13_1600.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/807999/large/crayola-06-as-ht-200520_hpEmbed_10x13_1600.jpg?1590129967" title="crayola-06-as-ht-200520_hpEmbed_10x13_1600.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>Thanks to Crayola, children of many different backgrounds can have access to crayons that are reflective of their own skin tone.</span></p> <p><span>The handicraft company announced its "Colors of the World" line featuring 24 new crayon colors representing 40 global skin tones.</span></p> <p><span>In partnership with CEO of MOB Beauty Victor Casale, the shades were carefully crafted to go from extra light to deepest while incorporating rose, almond and golden undertones. ✄</span></p> <p><span>"Inclusivity should be accessible for all ages and a discussion about diversity should be encouraged in order to foster a sense of belonging," Casale told "GMA." "Whether at home or in a classroom this collection gives children a greater opportunity to accurately represent themselves through creativity and self-expression."</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.heart.co.uk/lifestyle/dad-videos-kids-advice-rob-kenney/" target="_blank">Dad who grew up without a father goes viral with helpful videos for kids who need advice</a>, heart.com.uk, May 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>If you were wondering what to binge watch next, look no further than Rob Kenney’s YouTube channel.</p> <p>The dad of two, from Chicago, has become an internet sensation after starting ‘Dad, How Do I?’ series made up of helpful advice for children.</p> <p>When he was just 14, Rob’s dad abandoned him and his siblings, so he had to move in with one of his older brothers. ✄</p> <p>The sweet videos cover practical topics like checking the oil and tire pressure in your car, how to fix a running toilet and how to unclog a drain.</p> <p>If you’ve got a big interview coming up, Rob has also got advice on shaving your face, tying a tie and ironing a dress shirt.</p> <p>In a recent chat with Shattered, the dad-of-two said he wanted to leave a legacy, particularly for those who struggle with an absent parent.</p> </blockquote> <p>Dad, How Do I? (“If that thing blows out, you’ll be in a world of hurt” (such a Dad thing to say! lol)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=0KDMdYww4VE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/0KDMdYww4VE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>Honorable mention for <a href="https://youtu.be/TATblk1LUQI" target="_blank">How to tie a tie</a>. (for the added “classy little touch” — this guy is solid gold).</p> <p><strong>Organ Donation</strong></p> <p>I’m a big proponent of making organ donation “opt-out”, instead of our current “opt-in” in most (all?) states for organ donation. So this story makes good sense to me:</p> <p><a href="https://www.heart.co.uk/lifestyle/every-adult-england-organ-donor/" target="_blank">Every adult in England is now automatically an organ donor by law</a>, heart.co.uk, May 21, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>A new law has come in this week which sees every adult in England automatically made organ donors.</p> <p>‘Max and Keira's Law' has now introduced an 'opt-out' system in the UK, which means consent is presumed for all adults aged 18 and over, unless they state otherwise or are in an excluded group.</p> <p>Previously, people would have had to ‘opt in’ to be able to donate organs.</p> <p>The monumental change was brought about after campaigning by young boy Max Johnson, who received a new heart from nine-year-old Keira Ball after she sadly died in a car crash.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 It Is Still A Wonderful World Because of Beautiful People🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=_PWSFD7QWvc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/_PWSFD7QWvc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>Lightning Roundup</h3> <p>⚡️ Show me state, shows up: <span><a href="https://www.stltoday.com/opinion/editorial/editorial-if-the-pandemic-preparedness-cupboard-was-bare-it-was-trumps-doing/article_bd1bb8d6-7477-590d-af72-ae4e305de601.html" target="_blank">Editorial: If the pandemic-preparedness cupboard was bare, it was Trump's doing</a>, Editorial Board, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, May 25, 2020. (non-paywall recap <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/president-roasted-for-a-lie-of-colossal-trumpian-proportions-by-st-louis-newspaper/" target="_blank">here</a>)</span></p> <p>⚡️ Kickass liberals <em>will</em> save the world: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/05/yellow-finch-mountain-valley-pipeline-appalachia/" target="_blank">How a “Bunch of Badass Queer Anarchists” Are Teaming Up With Locals to Block a Pipeline Through Appalachia</a>, Mason Adams, Mother Jones, May 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/memorial-day-offers-array-of-contrasts-as-biden-and-trump-salute-war-dead-with-and-without-masks/2020/05/25/f559ab44-9e9f-11ea-9590-1858a893bd59_story.html" target="_blank">Memorial Day offers array of contrasts as Biden and Trump salute war dead, with and without masks</a>, Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Quelle surprise, another impotent populist!: <a href="https://apnews.com/7a7e8a0d3c524986412245ec9a23fad0" target="_blank">In Bolsonaro’s Brazil, everyone else is to blame for virus</a>, David Biller, AP News, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Will the pandemic spark <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_destruction" target="_blank">creative destruction</a>?: <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/coronavirus-economic-change-1.5581084" target="_blank">COVID-19 may be the catalyst — not the cause — of a painful but useful economic transformation</a>, Don Pittis, CBC Business News, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ The truth, it burns 🔥: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/donald-trump-the-most-unmanly-president/612031/" target="_blank">Donald Trump, the Most Unmanly President</a>, Tom Nichols, the Atlantic, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Fascinating analysis, worth the read: <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/trump-s-coronavirus-lies-propaganda-suggest-america-needs-its-own-ncna1212991" target="_blank"><span>Nina Khrushcheva: </span>Trump's coronavirus lies and propaganda suggest America needs its own 'perestroika'</a>, NBC News/THINK, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://apnews.com/7be2152625e17d236e84b258cb8896fd" target="_blank">WHO to temporarily stop study of malaria drug</a>, Associated Press, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://apnews.com/c8cbde71a897f070c96c4f326bf2357b" target="_blank">Pandemic a boon for the bicycle as thousands snap them up</a>, Olga R. Rodriguez, AP News, May 24, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Interesting, and complicated, effect of pandemic: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/05/25/860944234/pandemic-disrupts-illegal-drug-trade-upending-both-product-and-profits" target="_blank">Pandemic Disrupts Illegal Drug Trade, Upending Both Product And Profits</a>, Brian Mann, NPR News, May 25, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ LOL Steve Carell: T<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/05/23/space-force-netflix-steve-carell-274951" target="_blank">he Netflix Show The Pentagon Can’t Stop Talking About</a>, Bryan Bender, Politico, May 23, 2020. (It’s “Space Force”)</p> <p>⚡️ Worth watching (and reading): <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/leonardo-dicaprios-big-middle-finger-to-the-confederacy?ref=home" target="_blank">Leonardo DiCaprio’s Big Middle Finger to the Confederacy</a>, Nick Schager, May 25, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation! </strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://joebiden.com/take-action/" target="_blank">Joe Biden’s Action Website</a></p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6234.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/809417/large/IMG_6234.jpg?1590452504" title="IMG_6234.jpg"> <figcaption>Mama said “Sit, stay!” so she could take a picture of me<br> in front of the Blue Chicago bar. OK Mama! CHEESE!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— whether organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms — or working toward the <a href="https://votefwd.org/bigsend" target="_blank">BIG SEND</a> (millions of letters to voters arriving in mailboxes in late October),this is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information(<strong>check your registration!</strong>):</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WIndDown 💙</h3> <p>As I write this on Monday afternoon, I am far ahead of my normal GNR schedule. Normal for me is to tinker with it over several days and then put on a burst all day Monday (with breaks to walk the curlygirly, obviously 😃🐩). But the main event is Monday night overnight into Tuesday, usually, because I work best at night when traffic and humans are far less active. This week, however, I am hoping to finish early so that I can watch the first night of the mini-series about <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/leonardo-dicaprios-big-middle-finger-to-the-confederacy?ref=scroll" target="_blank">Ulysses S. Grant</a>, on the History Channel. It’s rare for me to be able to overcome daytime distractions enough to do this, but thanks to the white noise of my old a/c and the strength of my desire to watch this show, I am making progress! I’ve included a link to the backstory above, but it sounds like a great series. If any Gnusies are watching it, please mention in the comments!</p> <p>(Update: I did watch it and it is good! Can’t wait for part two tomorrow)</p> <p>I hope everyone is taking good care of yourselves and keeping in touch with those you love. Eat nutritious food, try to get enough rest, find something to make you laugh each day and if you can, get outdoors every day. It’s OK to be outdoors (keeping physical distance and wearing a mask, of course) and the fresh air and hopefully sunshine is really good for you. We are going to not just get through this nightmare, but we are going to come out the other side roaring like victorious liberal lions. So, keep up your strength!</p> <p>I’m so glad to be a part of this beautiful herd! Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=WDaWo7R2YXY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/WDaWo7R2YXY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><strong>Crystal Blue Persuasion</strong></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>Look over yonder</span><br> <span>What do you see?</span><br> <span>The sun is a'rising</span><br> <span>Most definitely</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>A new day is coming, ooh, ooh</span><br> <span>People are changing</span><br> <span>Ain't it beautiful, ooh, ooh</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>Crystal blue persuasion</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>Better get ready to see the light</span> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/808677/large/Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE.gif?1590273693" title="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <br> <span>Love, love is the answer, ooh, ooh</span><br> <span>And that's all right</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>So don't you give up now, ooh, ooh</span><br> <span>So easy to find</span><br> <span>Just look to your soul</span><br> <span>And open your mind</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>Crystal blue persuasion, mmm, mmm</span><br> <span>It's a new vibration</span><br> <span>Crystal blue persuasion</span><br> <span>Crystal, blue persuasion</span></div> <div style="text-align:left"></div> <div style="text-align:left"><span>Maybe tomorrow</span><br> <span>When he looks down</span><br> <span>On every green field, ooh, ooh</span><br> <span>And every town</span><br> <span>All of his children</span><br> <span>And every nation</span><br> <span>They'll be peace and good brotherhood</span></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Election2020 Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Recommended VoteByMail _1944873 Tue, 26 May 2020 11:00:14 +0000 Justin Amash Not Running https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/5/16/1945527/-Justin-Amash-Not-Running <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;After much reflection, I’ve concluded that circumstances don’t lend themselves to my success as a candidate for president this year, and therefore I will not be a candidate.&lt;/p&gt;— Justin Amash (@justinamash) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/justinamash/status/1261714484479041537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 16, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>After much reflection, IÃ¢Â€Â™ve concluded that circumstances donÃ¢Â€Â™t lend themselves to my success as a candidate for president this year, and therefore I will not be a candidate.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Justin Amash (@justinamash) <a href="https://twitter.com/justinamash/status/1261714484479041537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Amash Recommended _1945527 Sat, 16 May 2020 18:03:39 +0000 Roar, Liberal Lions, Roar! Roar Your Bleeding Hearts Out! Tuesday's Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/5/12/1944441/-Roar-Liberal-Lions-Roar-Roar-Your-Bleeding-Hearts-Out-Tuesday-s-Good-News-Roundup <p>Happy Tuesday, Gnusies. Writing today’s GNR was an unexpected challenge, to say the least. I’ve had annoying technical problems which gobbled up most of the evening when I should have been writing. I think the fire I was planning to bring to it might have got a little out of control there or something! 🔥</p> <p>Unfortunately with losing a couple of hours of writing time, I am now scrambling to get the good news out so my editorializing is not going to be as polished as I had hoped to make it. Sorry! </p> <p>Here’s the deal: Dumpy and his enablers do NOT have the level of support that they want us to think they have. Most of it is bots and astroturf. Yes, there’s <em>money</em> backing them, but not the hordes of voters they want us to believe they have. Yes, they’ve got that core “base” but it’s not 45%. And it’s not enough to win this election, even with gerrymandering and voter suppression. Just as it wasn’t enough in 2018. Democrats are the favorites to win in 2020 and we need to start acting like it!</p> <p>Republicans (and their backers) know they are going to lose everything in November and so they are pulling out all the stops to distract and upset us to try to prevent us from organizing and getting out the vote. Everything they do — the so-called “owning the libs” — it’s a ploy! To make us angry or afraid. To weaken us and terrify us. Because THEY are weak and terrified. And their only way to survive this election is if we are even more afraid and fail to organize effectively to win. </p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="tenor.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/695918/large/tenor.gif?1563032389" title="tenor.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>We must come to grips with this psychological operation and understand that the only way we can be defeated in November is if we fall for the scam and <em>defeat ourselves</em>. Dumpy is a bullshitter. He is a constant liar and his technique is to lie so brazenly that regular people figure he must be telling the truth because no one could lie so much or so openly. If it sounds crazy, don’t accept that it’s true, understand that it is bullshit! Part of the PTSD around 2016 was the stunned shock everyone felt at the realization that half of their fellow citizens had voted for that man. But it was a lie — nearly half of our fellow citizens didn’t vote <em>at all! </em>That was stupid beyond belief, but it is not the same as half the country being MAGAts. And the shock was that part of us KNEW it wasn’t true, but yet here was the apparent proof. It made us look at the country differently, falsely. It made us doubt reality. Talk about gaslighting. It caused millions to literally experience PTSD. </p> <p>Dumpy’s natural narcissistic defense also happens to be the method behind the current political psychological campaign. The Republicans are in deep trouble. Dumpy is in deep trouble. Their backers and their hangers on and their mob paymasters and all the rest of the despicable criminal cabal are in deep trouble. So what do they do? They bullshit — just like Dumpy has done all his life. They pretend they have hordes of supporters — while they pay astroturfers to go around stirring up trouble (and the cable infotainment channels dutifully give them plenty of coverage). They pay for data collection and target voters with a blizzard of ads, creating an impression of wide support and popularity. Likewise, they pretend to have large followings on social media — but the bulk of those are bots.</p> <p>Republicans and their backers stoke division to cause fear because fear confuses and paralyzes. Every day a new “story” excites everyone and the word “terrifying” is used constantly. STOP being “terrified” by these bastards! Some of the stories are planted and some are genuine and all are amplified by regular people (who are understandably upset), by bots and by shit-disturbers. That’s how this kind of psychological manipulation works. It is group psychology and it works, <em>if people let it work</em>. It takes effort to break out of the spell, but we can do it. All those people we think just aren’t “getting it” — media, for instance — they do! Most of us can see the truth, yet we doubt it — because the cacophony of fear-mongering riles us up and the gaslighting makes us doubt reality.</p> <p>Then, a general alarm rises and people begin to feel anxiety bordering on panic. “It’s hopeless!”, they wail. “The bad guys are too evil, too powerful, too numerous! It’s the end of life as we know it!”, they cry. “Democracy is doomed, the American experiment is failing, civil war is imminent!”, they sob. And while some of the fears that are stoked are legitimate (gun-toting terrorists, criminals in the executive branch), what use is a response of petrified panic? What good is it to weep and wail and spread even more fear? Will crying and warning and cowering stop the violent fringe from doing whatever they will do? No, it will embolden them. Like it or not, we are stuck with this problem right now and crying about it won’t help or protect us. We will have to confront it and I believe when we face it head on, the danger will be diminished. Much of that swaggering gun-fondling bravado is bullshit, too. An atmosphere of fear makes them feel more powerful. Take that atmosphere away and most of the bravado will deflate.</p> <p>Learning from 2016, we need to hold on to the knowledge that most of what we are hearing is meant to shock and frighten us. We are meant to fear that the Republicans and the Russians and the Barrstards of the world hold all the cards, have 45% MAGAts behind them and the country is going to hell in a handbasket. It is all in illusion. Like the wizard of Oz behind that green curtain, this is a failing, crooked group doomed to electoral defeat in November unless they can convince people to either not vote or to vote with the apparent “winners” (which, as Teri Kanefield points out below, is the authoritarian tendency). So they create a fantasy of being that party of winners — of being too powerful to defeat — but it’s a lie. They also try to dissuade us from voting by convincing us our votes won’t matter — by sowing doubt about the election process.</p> <p>Our job is to stop falling for the lies. And to stop devouring messages of fear and panic. We’ve got to get a firm grasp on reality here and never let go of it. We already know the Rs will not go down without a fight — a vicious, unethical and possibly illegal fight — and we will need to be strong and focused and never ever lose sight of reality. This is the fight of our lives, of our era, and we are up to the challenge. We see the weak, fading party for what it is and recognize that if we stay strong and we GOTV, <em><strong>we will win in November</strong></em>. We will win in a landslide — White House, Senate and House. I’m not kidding, we can win 6, 8 maybe more Senate seats. Increase our House majority, win the White House by 10%. </p> <p>People want better — yes, even in so-called “red” states. People <strong>are</strong> better, no matter how the Republican party has tried to pit us against one another. An enormous, cleansing blue tsunami is very possible. In fact, once we snap out of it and stop being pulled in to the Republican/Russian psychology game, it is not only possible but probable. And it is time to spread THAT truth far and wide, loudly and with conviction. SHOUT it and change the atmosphere. That’s how group psychology works. We’ve been letting the bad guys control it for too long. Let’s change the zeitgeist.</p> <p>Check out Teri Kanefield’s thread on this, it is much better written and clearer (I chose to embed midway because I wanted to highlight the bit about how panic is counter-productive):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;16/ Panicked tweets like that one keep people from remembering that the GOP have not only been steadily losing elections, they&amp;#39;re losing support. &lt;a href="https://t.co/pSw4KhQnn9"&gt;https://t.co/pSw4KhQnn9&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;It (1) advances a narrative that helps Trump and (2) moves people out of the world of facts into myth.&lt;/p&gt;— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1259597036078288898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 10, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>16/ Panicked tweets like that one keep people from remembering that the GOP have not only been steadily losing elections, they're losing support. <a href="https://t.co/pSw4KhQnn9">https://t.co/pSw4KhQnn9</a><br><br>It (1) advances a narrative that helps Trump and (2) moves people out of the world of facts into myth.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) <a href="https://twitter.com/Teri_Kanefield/status/1259597036078288898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Our own WIneRev sketches out our future — and Gnusies, my GNR today is merely tapping gently into the zeitgeist, leaning in with the doppler, laying it on the pulse of humanity to record the distant but swiftly growing <strong>roar</strong> of righteous anger that is rushing like a wave, ahead of the justice that will flow down like a thundering river… these are exciting, promising times. Yes we have to work hard and never let up but there is a better future coming and we have to be brave and fight for it.</p> <p><strong><em>WineRev: “</em></strong><em>If this IS a re-aligning election, then at the Presidential level you’ll see a landslide for Biden (10 point margin, minimum) with all of the tossup states going Blue. But the real thunder will be down ballot. You’ll see the Senate change hands, and not by some lousy 51-49 thing but with surprises and upsets all night long across the country (as in, the Maine, South Carolina and 2 Georgia seats for openers, all the way to a late-night, far West timezone surprise coming out of Alaska.) Despite many gerrymanders the Dems will INCREASE their seats in the House.</em></p> <p><em>If its a re-alignment, you will see Democratic ‘trifectas” at the state level, and legislative chamber flips everywhere. Even in rock-ribbed GOP states you’ll see reduced majorities and hairbreadth wins and losses. This means that the maps used for 2022 and the rest of the decade will be far more neutral/anti-gerrymander, which will again INCREASE the number of Democratic House seats, both in Congress and at the state lege level.</em></p> <p><em>THEN, starting January 21st, with the filibuster dead!, repeal the 2017 tax cut and the three GOP ones before that too, all in one bill, under the slogan, “Back to Reagan!” Pass all 400 House bills from this session that McConnell has stacked up in his broom closet, along with Elizabeth Warren’s entire platform (which conveniently is already in legislative language form on several points.)</em></p> <p><em>AND, take Machiavelli to heart:</em></p> <p><em>“A ruler has the necessity of inflicting pains and the opportunity of granting boons upon his people. He should inflict all the pains immediately, but the boons he should grant little by little, to great applause. That way the pain will fade in memory but the boons will continue to be noted and appreciated.” (Not a quote, but my paraphrase.)</em></p> <p><em>Shalom.”</em></p> <h4>sensible americans are the majority — by a huge margin</h4> <p>If half of the country were rabid MAGAts, then surely half the country would be clamoring to do the pretender’s bidding, right? But no, that’s not the case at all (see the smart xkcd cartoon below which is reliably sourced). And the reason why is that it is not true that half the country is MAGA. That is a mirage, smoke and mirrors — a fiction made possible by voter apathy, bolstered by bots and trolls on social media and given “legitimacy” by dark money astroturfed “protests” in real life — and all magnified by a complicit corporate infotainment industry who are in the business of profit, not the news. </p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="coronavirus_polling.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/803843/large/coronavirus_polling.png?1589227110" title="coronavirus_polling.png"> <figcaption>From <a href="https://xkcd.com/2305/">XKC</a>D, with poll sourcing help from Ariel Edwards-Levy (<a href="https://xkcd.com/2305/sources/">list</a>)</figcaption> </figure> </div> <h4>In Case you need a reminder that people are good:</h4> <p>Whenever you start to believe that the bad in people is more prevalent than the good — maybe even the default mode of human beings — consider stories like this:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months" target="_blank">The real Lord of the Flies: what happened when six boys were shipwrecked for 15 months</a>, Rutger Bregman, The Guardian, May 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>I first read<span> </span></span><em>Lord of the Flies<span> </span></em><span>as a teenager. I remember feeling disillusioned afterwards, but not for a second did I think to doubt Golding’s view of human nature. That didn’t happen until years later when I began delving into the author’s life. I learned what an unhappy individual he had been: an alcoholic, prone to depression; a man who beat his kids. “I have always understood the Nazis,” Golding confessed, “because I am of that sort by nature.” And it was “partly out of that sad self-knowledge” that he wrote<span> </span></span><em>Lord of the Flies</em><span>. ✄</span></p> <p>The kids agreed to work in teams of two, drawing up a strict roster for garden, kitchen and guard duty. Sometimes they quarreled, but whenever that happened they solved it by imposing a time-out. Their days began and ended with song and prayer. Kolo fashioned a makeshift guitar from a piece of driftwood, half a coconut shell and six steel wires salvaged from their wrecked boat – an instrument Peter has kept all these years – and played it to help lift their spirits. And their spirits needed lifting. All summer long it hardly rained, driving the boys frantic with thirst. They tried constructing a raft in order to leave the island, but it fell apart in the crashing surf.</p> <p>Worst of all, Stephen slipped one day, fell off a cliff and broke his leg. The other boys picked their way down after him and then helped him back up to the top. They set his leg using sticks and leaves. “Don’t worry,” Sione joked. “We’ll do your work, while you lie there like King Taufa‘ahau Tupou himself!”</p> </blockquote> <p>I am not religious anymore, but I know many Gnusies are, and this is an insightful thread that might renew your faith in the potential power of left-wing, social justice theology to counteract cruel right- wing theology:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;4. …The left in general—and the Religious Left in particular, although folks disagree on that term—is POWERFUL when its disparate elements (who often have differing positions/agendas) amass around common cause.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The Religious Left has done this many times—including recently.&lt;/p&gt;— Jack Jenkins (@jackmjenkins) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jackmjenkins/status/1259099477123698688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 9, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>4. Ã¢Â€Â¦The left in generalÃ¢Â€Â”and the Religious Left in particular, although folks disagree on that termÃ¢Â€Â”is POWERFUL when its disparate elements (who often have differing positions/agendas) amass around common cause.<br><br>The Religious Left has done this many timesÃ¢Â€Â”including recently.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Jack Jenkins (@jackmjenkins) <a href="https://twitter.com/jackmjenkins/status/1259099477123698688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 9, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>One final word on this psychology business:</h4> <p>Remember, kids, always be skeptical of breathless reports of “scary, uncontrollable forces” that just might be arrayed against us. They are usually much smaller, much weaker than they pretend to be or are even nonexistent.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Ancient Alien Theorists: That rock is too big for people to move. MuST Be AliENs!!!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Archaeologists: Have you tried, because we tried and it wasn&amp;#39;t that bad! &lt;a href="https://t.co/XJehQO89p4"&gt;pic.twitter.com/XJehQO89p4&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— David S. Anderson (@DSAArchaeology) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DSAArchaeology/status/1258935168657743874?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 9, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Ancient Alien Theorists: That rock is too big for people to move. MuST Be AliENs!!!<br><br>Archaeologists: Have you tried, because we tried and it wasn't that bad! <a href="https://t.co/XJehQO89p4">pic.twitter.com/XJehQO89p4</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” David S. Anderson (@DSAArchaeology) <a href="https://twitter.com/DSAArchaeology/status/1258935168657743874?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 9, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Shout It, This Country is Going Blue! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=Ye7FKc1JQe4" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Ye7FKc1JQe4">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3> ⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p>Today will be an important day on a couple of fronts. Most important will be the SCOTUS arguments re: the subpoenas congress issued for Dumpy’s financial records. This is one of the reasons why he was having the meltdown on Sunday.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;For those looking to follow tomorrow’s two &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SCOTUS?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#SCOTUS&lt;/a&gt; arguments re: subpoenas for &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@realDonaldTrump&lt;/a&gt;’s personal financial records, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TomGoldsteinSB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@TomGoldsteinSB&lt;/a&gt; and I will be live-blogging for &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/SCOTUSblog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@SCOTUSblog&lt;/a&gt; alongside &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/cspan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@cspan&lt;/a&gt;’s feed—starting at 9:45 EDT at the following link:&lt;a href="https://t.co/mpSIvQ8VZw"&gt;https://t.co/mpSIvQ8VZw&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/steve_vladeck/status/1259947511839588352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>For those looking to follow tomorrowÃ¢Â€Â™s two <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SCOTUS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SCOTUS</a> arguments re: subpoenas for <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>Ã¢Â€Â™s personal financial records, <a href="https://twitter.com/TomGoldsteinSB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TomGoldsteinSB</a> and I will be live-blogging for <a href="https://twitter.com/SCOTUSblog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SCOTUSblog</a> alongside <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cspan</a>Ã¢Â€Â™s feedÃ¢Â€Â”starting at 9:45 EDT at the following link:<a href="https://t.co/mpSIvQ8VZw">https://t.co/mpSIvQ8VZw</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) <a href="https://twitter.com/steve_vladeck/status/1259947511839588352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>From Tim O’Brien, author of <u>TrumpNation,</u> who was sued (unsuccessfully) by Dumpy:</p> <p><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-05-11/supreme-court-should-end-trump-s-tax-return-opacity" target="_blank">I've Seen Trump's Tax Returns and You Should, Too.</a> Timothy O’Brien, Bloomberg News, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Deutsche-Bank-AG1.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/758738/large/Deutsche-Bank-AG1.jpg?1579655342" title="Deutsche-Bank-AG1.jpg"> <figcaption>The only bank that would do business with DT after 1994. <br> Who secured those loans? How were they structured?</figcaption> </figure> <p>Deutsche Bank AG, one of the firms Trump’s lawyers are trying to stifle in their arguments before the Supreme Court, also turned over documents in my case — including its own assessment of Trump’s wealth that pegged his<span> </span><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-03-19/trump-has-some-stories-to-tell-about-deutsche-bank?sref=j7ZGQf5H" target="_blank">fortune at<span> </span><span>$788 million</span></a><span> </span>in 2004, well below the<span> </span><span>$3 billion</span><span> </span>he told them he had at the time. Deutsche is the only major global bank to have continued doing business with Trump since the early 1990s and is conversant with his financial comings and goings since then.</p> <p>Mazars USA is Trump’s outside accounting firm. Trump’s lawyers will argue before the Supreme Court that it too shouldn’t comply with subpoena requests for documents. Mazars, which boasts a history ProPublica recently described as “<a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/meet-the-shadowy-accountants-who-do-trumps-taxes-and-help-him-seem-richer-than-he-is" target="_blank">colorful</a>,” turned over documents in my litigation with Trump as well (through a predecessor company with which Mazars later merged). That trove included a financial statement Trump routinely used to substantiate his claims to fabulous wealth. The document, it turned out, was drafted without regard for standard accounting practices or other factors that might have diminished the future president’s claims.</p> <p>If all of this information from Trump’s taxes, bankers and accountants was good enough for me over a decade ago, it’s certainly good enough for Congress and the Manhattan district attorney today. It’s also good enough for the American people. If we’ve learned one thing from the Trump presidency it’s that it’s no longer enough to rely on tradition when it comes to the Oval Office and financial transparency. Financial transparency should be a requirement for all presidents going forward — and the Supreme Court would do well to help pave the way.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Never obey in advance. Never buy into the narrative that Trump always wins. If Trump thought he was going to win these cases at SCOTUS, he wouldn’t have tried to delay them endlessly. The jig is up.&lt;/p&gt;— Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1259822136966905857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Never obey in advance. Never buy into the narrative that Trump always wins. If Trump thought he was going to win these cases at SCOTUS, he wouldnÃ¢Â€Â™t have tried to delay them endlessly. The jig is up.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) <a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1259822136966905857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <h4>We can pay attention to more than one important thing at a time, so let’s do that!</h4> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Listen live to SCOTUS oral argument in the cases to get Trump’s tax and financial records from Deutsche Bank and Mazars, *TOMORROW* (May 12) at 10:00 am eastern.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Note that the traitorous US Senate scheduled Fauci to testify at the exact same time. Don’t fall for the distraction.&lt;/p&gt;— Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1259807667129921536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 11, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Listen live to SCOTUS oral argument in the cases to get TrumpÃ¢Â€Â™s tax and financial records from Deutsche Bank and Mazars, *TOMORROW* (May 12) at 10:00 am eastern.<br><br>Note that the traitorous US Senate scheduled Fauci to testify at the exact same time. DonÃ¢Â€Â™t fall for the distraction.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) <a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1259807667129921536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/secrecy-trump-s-taxes-financial-records-line-supreme-court-arguments-n1203951" target="_blank">Secrecy of Trump's taxes, financial records on the line in Supreme Court arguments</a>, Pete Williams, NBC News, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>In one of the most closely watched disputes of the court's term, the cases will test the justices' independence and could yield major rulings on the power of Congress to demand documents from a sitting president — or the<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-wages-coast-coast-legal-battle-keep-tax-returns-hidden-n1069981" target="_blank">authority of a president to refuse</a>.</p> <p>The court will hear the two separate cases by<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-makes-history-oral-arguments-phone-it-s-business-n1199446" target="_blank">telephone conference call</a><span> </span>with each justice taking a turn to ask questions, a process that began May 4 and for the most part has worked smoothly, despite a<span> </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/justice-can-t-be-muted-flushing-sound-heard-supreme-court-n1201346" target="_blank">toilet flushing</a><span> </span>faux pas. It has, however, tamed the normal back and forth of oral argument, and the questioning has been less aggressive. Live audio of the argument will be available on C-SPAN.</p> <p>Whichever way the court rules, the decisions — there will be one for each case — will be a blockbuster. The rulings will probably be released by late next month.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And Always remember:</h4> <p>Barr is corrupt, but NOT the careerists in the DOJ. There are thousands of us in the DOJ and in other branches of the civil service. Can’t say it any better than Glenn Kirschner:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Barr is corrupt &amp;amp; is a cancer that can’t help but spread. However, he has NOT corrupted the vast majority of the 115,000 DOJ employees who are hard at work for the American people. Stay strong and push back on Barr’s corruption creep, all day every day. Stand up. Speak out. &lt;a href="https://t.co/RfaRF9RJWZ"&gt;https://t.co/RfaRF9RJWZ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Glenn Kirschner (@glennkirschner2) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/glennkirschner2/status/1259087044221034496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 9, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Barr is corrupt & is a cancer that canÃ¢Â€Â™t help but spread. However, he has NOT corrupted the vast majority of the 115,000 DOJ employees who are hard at work for the American people. Stay strong and push back on BarrÃ¢Â€Â™s corruption creep, all day every day. Stand up. Speak out. <a href="https://t.co/RfaRF9RJWZ">https://t.co/RfaRF9RJWZ</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Glenn Kirschner (@glennkirschner2) <a href="https://twitter.com/glennkirschner2/status/1259087044221034496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 9, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p><strong>Twisting the truth is what Bill Barr does...though not for much longer:</strong></p> <p>Welp! There goes the rationale underpinning the motion to drop the case against Flynn!</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/10/opinion/bill-barr-michael-flynn.html?smid=tw-share" target="_blank">Bill Barr Twisted My Words in Dropping the Flynn Case. Here’s the Truth.</a> Mary B. McCord, New York Times, May 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>At the direction of Attorney General Bill Barr, the Justice Department last week moved to dismiss a false-statements charge against Michael Flynn, President Trump’s former national security adviser. The reason<span> </span><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.191592/gov.uscourts.dcd.191592.198.0_6.pdf" target="_blank">stated</a><span> </span>was that the continued prosecution “would not serve the interests of justice.”</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>The motion was signed by Timothy Shea, a longtime trusted adviser of Mr. Barr and, since January, the acting U.S. attorney in Washington. In attempting to support its argument, the motion cites more than 25 times the F.B.I.’s report of an interview with me in July 2017, two months after I left a decades-long career at the department (under administrations of both parties) that culminated in my role as the acting assistant attorney general for national security. ✄</p> <p><span>But the report of my interview is no support for Mr. Barr’s dismissal of the Flynn case. It does not suggest that the F.B.I. had no counterintelligence reason for investigating Mr. Flynn. It does not suggest that the F.B.I.’s interview of Mr. Flynn — which led to the false-statements charge — was unlawful or unjustified. It does not support that Mr. Flynn’s false statements were not material. And it does not support the Justice Department’s assertion that the continued prosecution of the case against Mr. Flynn, who pleaded guilty to knowingly making material false statements to the FBI, “would not serve the interests of justice.”</span></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>And So…</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/2-000-former-doj-fbi-officials-call-barr-resign-over-n1204601" target="_blank">2,000 former DOJ, FBI officials call on Barr to resign over Michael Flynn case</a>, Pete Williams, NBC News, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Nearly 2,000 former Justice Department and FBI officials on Monday<span> </span><a href="https://medium.com/@dojalumni/doj-alumni-statement-on-flynn-case-7c38a9a945b9" target="_blank">signed an open letter</a><span> </span>strongly critical of Attorney General William Barr's decision to abandon the prosecution of Michael Flynn, calling the action "extraordinarily rare, if not unprecedented."</p> <p>If anyone else who is not a friend of the president "were to lie to federal investigators in the course of a properly predicated counterintelligence investigation, and admit we did so under oath, we could be prosecuted," the letter said.</p> <p>The letter calls on Barr to resign and encourages Congress to formally censure Barr over "his repeated assaults on the rule of law in doing the President’s personal bidding rather than acting in the public interest."</p> </blockquote> <h4>Yer Wonkette, DIsBarr Edition</h4> <p>Usually, I drop yer Wonkette in the Lightning Roundup, but this one was too good for that:</p> <p><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/everybody-hates-bill-barr-and-his-stupid-face" target="_blank">Everybody Hates Bill Barr And His Stupid Sh*t-Mouthed Face</a>, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">These former officials — did we mention it is TWO THOUSAND of them? — close by encouraging<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/michael-flynn-so-scared-of-the-judge-and-it-is-hilarious" target="_blank">Judge Emmet Sullivan,</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>who just<span> </span></span><em>adores</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>Michael Flynn and his<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.wonkette.com/we-will-have-whatever-mike-flynn-lawyer-sidney-powell-is-snorting" target="_blank">batshit Fox News emoji warcrime lawyer,</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>to actually hold an evidentiary hearing on DOJ's bullshit FLYNN TOTALLY EXONERATED!11! filing, and if it turns out to be as bullshit as it obviously is, deny their motion and sentence the motherfucker…</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">They note that they called for the fucker to resign<span> </span><em>last time</em>, and that he should still do so. Moreover, they are calling on Congress to hold Barr accountable for his "abuses of power."</p> <p style="text-align:start">It is a good letter. Read it.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(there’s LOTS more in the full link)</p> </blockquote> <h3>✔️ How You Like Your Election Chances, Republicans? ✔️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/10/politics/trump-reelection-economy-unemployment/index.html" target="_blank">The strong economy didn't make Trump, but coronavirus collapse could break him</a>, John Harwood, CNN, May 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p>The last time an incumbent president lost reelection --<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2012/12/14/us/george-h-w-bush---fast-facts/index.html" target="_blank">George H.W. Bush</a>, in 1992 -- an "it's the economy, stupid" campaign theme took him down. Unemployment then was hovering around 7.5%.</p> </div> <div>In the calamitous spring of 2020, that sounds like a long-lost boomtime. The Labor Department last week<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/08/economy/april-jobs-report-2020-coronavirus/index.html" target="_blank">reported unemployment at 14.7%, with 20 million jobs lost in April</a>. Administration economists warn US output may plummet at a 40% annual rate in the second quarter.</div> <div>Those staggering measures of economic suffering do not guarantee that<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/election/2020/candidate/trump" target="_blank">President Donald Trump</a><span> </span>will meet the same one-term fate as Bush, who lost to Bill Clinton. But they underscore the uphill fight Trump faces, and explain his abrupt shift from coronavirus containment to economic reopening.</div> </blockquote> <h4>And Democrats are taking the lead:</h4> <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/house-democrats-coronavirus-relief-proposal-fbb11534-f828-41e0-a1a7-6922e6c916d4.html" target="_blank">Inside House Democrats' whopping $1.2 trillion+ coronavirus relief proposal</a>, Alayna Treene, Axios, May 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong>Details:<span> </span></strong>The legislation, which is still being drafted and is subject to change, is expected to include:</p> <ul> <li>Roughly $1 trillion for<span> </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-states-economy-295ac091-9dc2-4852-be67-d070ec268d8c.html" target="_self">state and local governments</a>. They want to split this money into separate revenue streams to ensure each community can access it.</li> <li>More money for hospitals and COVID-19 testing.</li> <li>Roughly $25 billion to keep the U.S. Postal Service afloat.</li> <li>Expanded nutritional benefits, Medicaid funding and unemployment insurance.</li> <li>Another round of direct payments to Americans.</li> </ul> </blockquote> <h4>The truth is Democrats are in a strong Position that is getting stronger</h4> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/5/11/1944074/-Morning-Digest-Flipping-the-Senate-is-within-reach-as-three-key-race-ratings-shift-toward-Democrats" target="_blank">M</a><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/5/11/1944074/-Morning-Digest-Flipping-the-Senate-is-within-reach-as-three-key-race-ratings-shift-toward-Democrats" target="_blank">orning DIgest: Flipping the Senate is within reach as three key race ratings shift towards Democrats</a>, Daily Kos Elections, DKos Staff, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span> </span><strong><span>Race Ratings</span></strong>: As the battle for control of the Senate grows more competitive, Daily Kos Elections is moving a<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kHpGnR2VSAie2HYcF4R0-hv2Cc0EpdQ8Kkck51Hh2lk/edit#gid=2071079593">trio of contests</a><span> </span>in the Democrats’ direction, though all three Republican incumbents very much remain in the fight. Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst’s race moves from<span> </span><strong><span>Likely to Lean Republican</span></strong>, while Maine Sen. Susan Collins' and North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis’ seats have gone from<span> </span><strong><span>Lean Republican to Tossup</span></strong>.</p> <p>With these changes,<span> </span><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kHpGnR2VSAie2HYcF4R0-hv2Cc0EpdQ8Kkck51Hh2lk/edit#gid=2071079593">we now rate three Republican-held seats as Tossups</a><span> </span>(the two above plus Arizona) and one as Lean Democratic (Colorado). If Democrats can sweep these races and retake the White House, they'll win back control of the Senate even in the likely event that Alabama Sen. Doug Jones loses his bid for re-election.</p> </blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start"><a href="https://fenton.egnyte.com/dl/2biIpycdrr/" target="_blank">Trump trails Biden across the six states, four of which he won in 2016</a>. Hart Research Polls, April 2020.</span></p> <h4><span style="text-align:start">And Republicans are, as usual, in disarray</span></h4> <p><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/05/trump-eyes-campaign-shake-up" target="_blank">“Trump’s Feeling Is, ‘Why Are We Losing Everywhere?’”: With Advisers Feuding and Numbers Plummeting, Trump Eyes Campaign Shake-up</a>, Gabriel Sherman, Vanity Fair, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">With the coronavirus death toll surpassing 80,000 and the unemployment rate at Great Depression-era levels, there is a growing consensus among senior Republicans that<span> </span><strong>Donald Trump</strong>’s reelection is slipping away. Recent internal polls show Trump trailing<span> </span><strong>Joe Biden</strong><span> </span>in six swing states, a data point that augurs a landslide loss in November. “The swing state polls are horrific,” a prominent Republican briefed on the numbers told me. The White House’s COVID-19 outbreak is only the latest headline that reinforces the narrative that Trump can’t get control of the pandemic. “This is what should worry the campaign: Biden is in his basement and he’s beating Trump,” a former West Wing staffer told me. “If I were Biden, the lesson I would learn is: Shut the fuck up and let Trump go out there and destroy himself.”</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-right"><img alt="trump_baby.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/636399/large/trump_baby.jpg?1548444800" title="trump_baby.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Seeking to change the trajectory of the race, Trump is now discussing a shake-up to his campaign leadership, three sources close to the White House told me. Two sources said Trump has told people he wants to install 2016 campaign manager<span> </span><strong>Corey Lewandowski</strong><span> </span>in a senior role. “Trump’s feeling is, ‘why are we losing everywhere?’ The president is sick of it,” another former West Wing official said. According to a source, Lewandowski has told Trump that the RNC doesn’t grasp how dire the polls are. “Corey thinks the GOP isn’t solid on fundamentals. He says the campaign and the party spend time sending out press releases bragging about how well they’re doing,” the former official said. (<strong>Tim Murtaugh,</strong><span> </span>communications director for the Trump campaign, said in an email, “literally none of this is true.”)</p> <p style="text-align:start">Trump’s interest in Lewandowski has sparked conflict with<span> </span><strong>Jared Kushner,</strong><span> </span>two sources said. “There’s a battle over personnel,” a former West Wing official said. Kushner is strongly opposed to Lewandowski joining the campaign, sources said. Kushner led the effort to force out Lewandowski in 2016, and has since successfully kept Lewandowski on the outer edge of Trump’s orbit. According to two sources, Kushner is trying to recruit<span> </span><strong>Mike Pence</strong>’s former chief of staff<span> </span><strong>Nick Ayers</strong><span> </span>to take a senior campaign role. In 2018, Kushner recruited Ayers to replace<span> </span><strong>John Kelly</strong><span> </span>as Trump’s chief of staff. Ayers turned down the offer, and sources said he has no interest in joining the Trump campaign. One person close to Ayers told me he’s aligning himself with<span> </span><strong>Nikki Haley</strong><span> </span>to lead her potential 2024 campaign. “He views Haley as the right train to be on,” the source said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(Ayers did not respond to a request for comment.) ← 👀 lol</p> </blockquote> <h4>I can’t stop saying this:</h4> <p>Drum it into your mind until you know this as surely as you know your own name: you are not alone, we are the majority — by a lot — and we have legions of patriots working hard to save this country in the face of unprecedented betrayal. We will have their backs, we will stand up and speak out through volunteering, supporting GOTV initiatives, writing postcards and letters to voters and standing ready to stand up, speak out and save our country. No superhero is coming to save us, and that is OK. We live in reality, not in fantasyland and we are going to save ourselves. Then we are going to elect a president who will take swift action to begin to repair the damage caused by the Republicans again — and he will be aided by the Democratic congress we will also elect!</p> <p><span style="text-align:start"><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/joe-biden-presidential-plans.html" target="_blank">Biden Is Planning an FDR-Size Presidency</a>, </span> Gabriel Debenedetti, New York Magazine, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">But in the space of just a few months, COVID-19 and the disastrous White House response appeared to have dramatically widened<span> </span><a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/joe-bidens-plan-to-look-presidential-in-coronavirus-crisis.html">Biden’s pathway to the presidency</a>, making the matter of moderation and electability seem, at least for the time being, almost moot. They also changed his perception of what the country would need from a president in January 2021 — after not just four years of Trump but almost a full year of death and suffering. The pandemic is breaking the country much more deeply than the Great Recession did, Biden believes, and will require a much bigger response. No miraculous rebound is coming in the next six months.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Joe-Biden-696x464.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/803305/large/Joe-Biden-696x464.jpg?1589083025" title="Joe-Biden-696x464.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Biden will presumably spend that time developing a detailed map of what will be necessary come Inauguration Day. Long before the pandemic, he described a range of actions he’d take on day one, from rejoining the Paris climate agreement to signing executive orders on ethics, and he cited other matters, like passing the Equality Act for LGBTQ protections, as top priorities. Already his recovery ambitions have grown to include plans that would flex the muscles of big government harder than any program in recent history. To date, the federal government has spent more than $2 trillion on the coronavirus stimulus — nearly three times what it approved in 2009. Biden wants more spending. “A hell of a lot bigger,” he’s said, “whatever it takes.” He has argued that, even if you’re inclined to worry about the deficit, massive public investment is the only thing capable of growing the economy enough “so the deficit doesn’t eat you alive.” He has talked about funding immense green enterprises and larger backstop proposals from cities and states and sending more relief checks to families. He has urged immediate increases in virus and serology testing, proposing the implementation of a Pandemic Testing Board in the style of FDR’s War Production Board and has called for investments in an “Apollo-like moonshot” for a vaccine and treatment. And he floated both the creation of a 100,000-plus worker Public Health Jobs Corps and the doubling of the number of OSHA investigators to protect employees amid the pandemic. If he were president now, he said in March, he would demand paid emergency sick leave for anyone in need and mandate that no one would have to pay for coronavirus testing or treatment. As the crisis deepened, he said he would forgive federal student-loan debt — $10,000 per person, minimum — and add $200 a month to Social Security checks. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“I think it’s probably the biggest challenge in modern history, quite frankly. I think it may not dwarf but eclipse what FDR faced,” Biden told CNN’s Chris Cuomo last month. “The blinders have been taken off because of this COVID crisis,” he said to a group of 68 donors who gathered on Zoom for a fundraiser a few weeks later. “I think people are realizing, ‘<strong>My Lord, look at what is possible,</strong>’ looking at the institutional changes we can make, without us becoming a ‘socialist country’ or any of that malarkey.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>(Reprising this for <strong>tljdk</strong> who enjoyed it a lot last time I posted it!)</p> <p><u><strong>Roar</strong></u></p> <p>I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath<br> Scared to rock the boat and make a mess<br> So I sit quietly<br> Agree politely</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="36cf1558e7d42fd69fce629b493d0edf.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/726524/large/36cf1558e7d42fd69fce629b493d0edf.jpg?1570756660" title="36cf1558e7d42fd69fce629b493d0edf.jpg"> <figcaption>Here’s the lion picture that speaks to me. I am the mother of five, grandmother of one (so far!) and I am going to fight for my children and my grandchildren’s future! You’re gonna hear me ROAR!!!!</figcaption> </figure> <p> <br> I guess that I forgot I had a choice<br> I let you push me past the breaking point<br> I stood for nothing<br> So I fell for everything</p> <p> <br> You held me down but I got up<br> Already brushing off the dust<br> You hear my voice, you hear that sound<br> Like thunder, gonna shake the ground<br> <br> You held me down but I got up<br> Get ready ’cause I’ve had enough<br> I see it all, I see it now<br> <br> I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter<br> Dancing through the fire<br> ‘Cause I am a champion<br> And you’re gonna hear me roar<br> <br> Louder, louder than a lion<br> ‘Cause I am a champion<br> And you’re gonna hear me roar<br> You’re gonna hear me roar</p> <h3>🎶 Musical Roar 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=CevxZvSJLk8" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/CevxZvSJLk8">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>Meanwhile, from the schadenfreude file...</h3> <p><a href="https://coloradosun.com/2020/05/11/cc-coffee-castle-rock-closed/" target="_blank">Health department orders closure of Castle Rock restaurant that packed in Mother’s Day crowd despite coronavirus</a>, The Colorado Sun via AP, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The Tri-County Health Department has ordered the closure of a Castle Rock restaurant that opened on Mother’s Day to in-person dining in defiance of Colorado rules banning in-person dining.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Gov. Jared Polis’ administration has also s<a href="https://coloradosun.com/2020/05/11/jared-polis-colorado-coronavirus-briefing-may11/">uspended the restaurant’s license indefinitely</a>. ✄</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt='warning sign reading "oops!"' src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/724347/large/oops.JPG?1570166828" title='warning sign reading "oops!"'> <figcaption>Bit of a miscalculation there!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“It is disheartening that this restaurant has chosen to move ahead of the public orders and not even consider implementing best practices to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Dr. John M. Douglas, executive director of Tri-County Health Department, said in a written statement. “It is not fair to the rest of the community and other business owners that are following Safer at Home and doing their part. We sincerely hope that C&C will choose to cooperate with the rules under which they are allowed to operate so we can lift this closure order.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p><strong>The Mayo Clinic and that group of CEOs in Iowa maybe were caught by surprise, but people are wising up now and are saying NO:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-visit-to-pennsylvania-factory-that-produces-ppe-materials-was-scuttled-after-plant-officials-expressed-concerns-about-health-risks/2020/05/11/10aa97ec-917a-11ea-9e23-6914ee410a5f_story.html" target="_blank">Trump visit to Pennsylvania factory that produces PPE materials was scuttled after plant officials expressed concerns about health risks</a>, Carol D. Leonnig, Washington Post, May 11, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="trump-virus3.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/802713/large/trump-virus3.jpg?1588972234" title="trump-virus3.jpg"> <figcaption>Braskem factory says, No, thanks!</figcaption> </figure> <p>President Trump was pushing to get out in the public eye in recent weeks and tout his leadership during the pandemic, and White House staff thought they had hit on the ideal event: a presidential visit to thank the Pennsylvania factory workers who had recently taken herculean steps to ramp up U.S. supplies of protective equipment.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Workers had received national attention after<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/23/factory-masks-coronavirus-ppe/?tid=lk_inline_manual_3&itid=lk_inline_manual_3"><span> </span>dozens of them lived for 28 days inside their factory</a><span> </span>so they could ensure they were virus-free and their production was not contaminated or disrupted by illness.</p> </div> <div> <p>White House officials pressed to hold an event at the Braskem factory, initially scheduled for last Friday. But after extensive back and forth, factory officials ultimately asked to postpone, worried that a visit from Trump could jeopardize both the safety of the workers and the plant’s ability to produce special material for masks and other medical gear, according to two people familiar with the decision and documents reviewed by The Post.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://pagesix.com/2020/05/10/rosie-odonnell-is-helping-michael-cohen-write-trump-tell-all/" target="_blank">Rosie O’Donnell is helping Michael Cohen write ‘spicy’ Trump tell-all</a>, Lee Brown, Page Six, May 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p" style="text-align:start"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Rosie O'Donnell as Steve bannon" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/364165/large/Rosie_as_bannon.jpg?1486695717" title="Rosie O'Donnell as Steve bannon"> <figcaption>lol Rosie (as Bannon)</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://pagesix.com/tag/rosie-odonnell/">Rosie O’Donnell</a><span> </span>has confirmed she is helping former nemesis<span> </span><a href="https://pagesix.com/tag/michael-cohen/">Michael Cohen</a><span> </span>write a “spicy” tell-all about his years working for President Trump, as<span> </span><a href="https://pagesix.com/2020/03/02/rosie-odonnell-is-helping-michael-cohen-with-tell-all-book-on-trump/?_ga=2.61929899.643265996.1589058768-365903078.1573489856">previously revealed by Page Six</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">O’Donnell<span> </span><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/rosie-odonnell-reveals-shes-helping-michael-cohen-with-his-spicy-trump-tell-all-book" target="_blank">told the Daily Beast</a><span> </span>that she visited the then-jailed lawyer in prison for six hours and agreed to help with his memoir, an unlikely partnership<span> </span><a href="https://pagesix.com/2020/03/03/how-rosie-odonnells-unlikely-friendship-with-michael-cohen-blossomed/?_ga=2.136748471.643265996.1589058768-365903078.1573489856">Page Six first revealed</a><span> </span>at the beginning of March.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“It’s pretty spicy,” she promised of the book.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“He’s in the midst of writing it, and is nearly done writing it, and hopes that it’ll be out before the election,” she told the site.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 From Michael to Donny 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=CdqoNKCCt7A" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/CdqoNKCCt7A">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3></h3> <h3>⚡️Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> <div>⚡️ 👀: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/05/11/republicans-have-already-decided-trump-is-going-lose/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Republicans have already decided Trump is going to lose</a>, Paul Waldman, Washington Post, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️And this is why they’ll lose: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-biden-donald-trump-attack-ad-coronavirus_n_5eba4eb4c5b68f80c04c78b8" target="_blank">Joe Biden Attack Ad Nails What Donald Trump ‘Doesn’t Understand’ About Coronavirus Pandemic</a>, Lee Moran, Huffpost, May 11, 2020. </div> <div>⚡️We already have a (flawed) roadmap, which we can make better: <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fdr-and-the-recreation-of-america/" target="_blank">FDR and the recreation of America</a>, CBS News, May 10, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️ Good question: <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/10/opinions/why-dont-editorial-boards-call-for-trump-to-resign-lockhart/index.html" target="_blank">Why aren't editorial boards screaming: Trump has to go?</a> Joe Lockhart, CNN, May 10, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/this-is-trumps-greatest-failure-of-the-pandemic/2020/05/11/29f22f7c-93ae-11ea-82b4-c8db161ff6e5_story.html" target="_blank">This is Trump’s greatest failure of the pandemic</a>, Editorial Board, Washington Post, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️ Smart planning: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/05/11/854278047/democrats-developing-contingency-plans-for-remote-convention?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates" target="_blank">Democrats Developing Contingency Plans For Remote Convention</a>, Asma Khalid, NPR News, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️Real help:<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/doctors-without-borders-navajo-nation-coronavirus/" target="_blank"> </a><span><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/doctors-without-borders-navajo-nation-coronavirus/" target="_blank">Doctors Without Borders dispatches team to the Navajo Nation</a>, Christina Capatides, CBS News, May 11, 2020.</span></div> <div><span>⚡️Big baby: </span><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/live-blog/liveblog-trump-scheduled-to-hold-press-briefing-at-4-pm-et" target="_blank">Trump Abruptly Ends Press Conference As Reporter Challenges Him On ‘Ask China’ Retort</a>, Matt Shuham, TPM, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️ORly? 👀: <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/twitter-label-disputed-covid-19-tweets_n_5eb9c8d2c5b67cab4e0dd1c1" target="_blank">Twitter Will Now Alert People When COVID-19 Tweets Are Misleading</a>, Amanda Seitz, AP via Huffpost, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️Take note: <a href="https://pressrun.media/p/small-reopen-protests-still-grab?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo4NTkxNzM3LCJwb3N0X2lkIjo0NDgxNDEsIl8iOiJrVnRkSiIsImlhdCI6MTU4OTE5NTkyOSwiZXhwIjoxNTg5MTk5NTI5LCJpc3MiOiJwdWItMzMxOCIsInN1YiI6InBvc3QtcmVhY3Rpb24ifQ.Ry2SOiElGg4lolvzPsC57FbZVxquROv3BU-cjUdvslk" target="_blank">Small "reopen" protests grab media attention — remember when huge anti-war rallies got ignored?</a> Eric Boehlert, PressRun, May 11, 2020.</div> <div>⚡️Rachel says it out loud: <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/trump-is-visibly-struggling-rachel-maddow-says-somethings-wrong-with-the-president/" target="_blank">Trump is ‘visibly struggling’: Rachel Maddow says ‘something’s wrong’ with the president</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, May 11, 2020. </div> <div>⚡️It’s special election day in CA and dumpy is panicking (again): <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/trump-demands-these-votes-must-not-count-after-california-opens-poll-site-in-heavily-black-area/" target="_blank">Trump demands ‘these votes must not count’ after California opens poll site in heavily Black area</a>, Igor Derysh, Salon via RawStory, May 12, 2020.</div> <div> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_6182.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/804024/large/IMG_6182.jpg?1589269808" title="IMG_6182.jpg"> <figcaption>I’m ready to shout about the great blue wave, are you?</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— currently organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms! This is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> </div> <div> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <div>This week, we are celebrating three years of Good News Roundups. Happy Anniversary to all of us Gnusies! We’ve cheered each other up, comforted each other, and encouraged each other for three long years. Now we are in the home stretch of the illegitimate pResident, and new challenges are in front of us. We will get through those together, too.</div> <div></div> <div>I’d like to say thanks to Goody, the original GoodNewsRoundup whose wonderful, surprising and encouraging posts brought me here in the summer of 2017. And thank you to Wee Mama who originated the Good News group. Many thanks as well to 2thanks, who keeps everyone organized and in touch, and to all the GNR writers who each bring their own voices and specialities to their Good News diaries. What a community! How thankful I am to be a part of it!</div> <div></div> <div>I wish I had a great recipe for booze pie (NNNE has been bringing them to his Evening Shades), but maybe this chocolate cake recipe will be worthy of the occasion!</div> <div><a href="https://addapinch.com/the-best-chocolate-cake-recipe-ever/#wprm-recipe-container-31552" target="_blank">The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe (Ever!)</a></div> <div></div> <div>Enjoy the cake and then — back to work! We have an election to win and a country to rebuild — better than before!</div> <div></div> <div>Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</div> </div> <h3>🎶 So Good, Here’s an Encore 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=TkU1ob_lHCw" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TkU1ob_lHCw" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) BlueWave Community Gnusies GoodGnus GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Recommended Resistance _1944441 Tue, 12 May 2020 11:00:12 +0000 Keep Calm and Carry On - April 28 Good News Roundup https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/4/28/1938504/-Keep-Calm-and-Carry-On-April-28-Good-News-Roundup <p>Good day, Gnusies! We are in the thick of probably one of the worst years any of us have ever experienced and still we have music, humor, friendship and hope. And good news, too! At the bookstore a few weeks before the shutdown started, I noticed how many WW2 era books were out — histories yes, but also novels. Dozens of novels set during the war. Also tv shows. And I thought (at the time) well, things are bad but at least they are not <em>that</em> bad!</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="93721522_1616084618541054_5826787409550901248_o.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798206/large/93721522_1616084618541054_5826787409550901248_o.jpg?1588057382" title="93721522_1616084618541054_5826787409550901248_o.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>And, well, now a couple of months into a pandemic, with the same benighted “leader” and even more challenging months stretching out ahead of us, I am not so sure if the comparison is so far off. We are living through a time that is like the 1918 pandemic and the Great Depression smushed together. And with the ever present threat of geopolitical conflict hanging over our heads, not to mention civil unrest. It’s pretty daunting. </p> <p>And I think of how anxious people must have been in WW2 or during the Depression and also how they endured it and eventually rebuilt. </p> <p>It is human nature to feel anxious as world events seem to be spinning out of control. And it is also human nature to survive and avoid catastrophe if at all possible. Not only us, but people all over the world want to survive and thrive. That’s a basic truth that we ought not to forget. So, on a basic human level, we are allied with billions all over the world who want to survive and thrive, and who do not want war or economic disaster.</p> <p>Remembering that fact is one step toward recapturing confidence that we can get through this awful time together (but apart! 😅) and with hard work and determination, we will not only survive this but thrive after, as we repair and rebuild and make things better.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-left"><img alt="Keep-Calm-and-Carry-On-Navy-Blue.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/638380/large/Keep-Calm-and-Carry-On-Navy-Blue.jpg?1548878276" title="Keep-Calm-and-Carry-On-Navy-Blue.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Goody posts a picture with some words of wisdom that I love (found it! pictured above). It pinpoints exactly why I am so hopeful and even excited about the future, even when I am anxious and sad about what we are going through right now. There will be no going back to the way things were before. The curtain has been completely ripped away to reveal that none of the cruelties we have been living with were “fiscally necessary” and the people who really are essential are often the lowest paid ones (which must change). People see the lies that kept us quiet as inequality grew and more and more was taken from the public purse to line private interests’ pockets. We won’t be going back to that like before. There will be changes, just as life and society changed after the Depression and WW2.</p> <p>There is another way that we can take inspiration from people who lived through WW2. Their leadership encouraged them to carry on with as much good cheer as possible, have courage, show faith in one another and be prepared to make sacrifices in the effort to secure a better, safer world. We don’t have that leadership today in the White House, but we have it among ourselves. People have reserves of strength they never knew they had, and it is times like these which tap those reserves. This movement is strong and we are millions strong. Together, we will ride out this “war” we are enduring and we will prevail.</p> <p>Let’s start off with a musical offering from the WW2 era (and which, in this time of isolation, really seems to have dual meaning).</p> <p>Here’s <a href="https://youtu.be/dTWy9jim7Mw" target="_blank">another version</a> (recent, ensemble) of the classic song below, but I prefer the original:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=8Nzy1cfnKh4" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8Nzy1cfnKh4" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>👾 Dumpy is Decompensating 👾</h3> <p>Dumpy has been experiencing stress and pressure in the extreme (nearly all caused by or exacerbated by his own actions) — in addition to repeated narcissistic injuries (ie, blows to his ego) also a result of his own actions and peoples’ reactions to them— and he is now showing signs of decompensating.</p> <p>When a person with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) like Drumpf is stressed, they begin to lose the ability to mimic “normal” behavior and their masks slip a little to reveal the disordered individual underneath the fake persona. If the stressors are severe and if the pressure becomes unrelenting (commonly a string of failures in work or personal life) the NPD individual might begin the psychological breakdown called “decompensation”. Decompensation means that due to stress, the NPD person can not keep up his usual defenses (ie. the tricks he uses to “compensate” for his deficiencies: alternate reality; lying to himself and others, etc) to calm himself. With the false self-image crumbling, he is unable to hide the personality disturbance and instability. </p> <p><a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/mcenany-trump-no-press-briefing-insists-not-cutting-back-appearances" target="_blank">A Total Mess: WH Suddenly Backpedals And Decides Trump Will Hold Briefing After All</a>, Cristina Cabrera, TPM, April 27, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p>After President Donald Trump declined to hold any coronavirus press briefings over the weekend, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during a Fox News interview on Monday morning that Trump also would not be holding a briefing later in the day.</p> <p>Then in a sudden whiplash, McEnany announced several hours later that Trump would do a briefing on Monday evening after all.</p> <p>“UPDATE: The White House has additional testing guidance and other announcements about safely opening up America again,” the press secretary<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec/status/1254821664967348224">tweeted</a>. “President @realDonaldTrump will brief the nation during a press conference this evening.” ✄</p> <p><span>Shortly before the press secretary made the announcement, Trump fired off several tweets ranting about the<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1254767509460234243">“hostile Lamestream Media”</a><span><span> </span>being<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1254769296280031232">“THE ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE”</a><span><span> </span>on Monday morning.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>Coverage like the story below — honest coverage of real things the Pretender has done and real words he has uttered — are helping push the narcissist-in-chief toward emotional collapse.</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/26/us/politics/trump-disinfectant.html#click=https://t.co/aHeFITmWQ0" target="_blank">Trump’s Disinfectant Remark Raises a Question About the ‘Very Stable Genius’</a>, Matt Flegenheimer, New York Times, April 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TrumpDisinfectiousSolutionToCoronavirus.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/797563/large/TrumpDisinfectiousSolutionToCoronavirus.jpg?1587922351" title="TrumpDisinfectiousSolutionToCoronavirus.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>No modern American politician can match Mr. Trump’s record of<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/fact-checks">false</a><span><span> </span>or<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/11/02/us/politics/trump-twitter-presidency.html">illogical</a><span><span> </span>statements, which has invited questions about his intelligence. Insinuations and gaffes have trailed former President George W. Bush, former Vice President Dan Quayle and<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/elections/joe-biden.html">Joseph R. Biden Jr.</a><span>, now the presumptive Democratic nominee, among many others. But Mr. Trump’s stark pronouncement — on live television, amid a grave public health crisis, and leaving little room for interpretation — was at once in a class of its own and wholly consistent with a reputation for carelessness in speech. ✄</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Carlos Curbelo, a Republican former Florida congressman who clashed at times with Mr. Trump and did not vote for him, said the president’s comments on disinfectants were likely to resonate precisely because he was running a race premised largely on Mr. Biden’s mental capacity.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“Given Joe Biden’s gaffes and mistakes, I think the Trump campaign had a strong narrative there,” he said. “At the very least, that advantage was completely erased.”</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>Mr. Curbelo said a friend had suggested recently that Mr. Trump’s toxic virus idea was “the craziest thing he ever said.”</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>“I said, ‘I don’t know,’” Mr. Curbelo recalled. “‘Maybe. I’d have to look back and check.’”</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>And this: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/coronavirus-updates/2020/04/trump-disinfectant-injection-hoax-tweets/" target="_blank">The Latest Injection of Trump Tweets Won’t Cure His Embarrassment</a>, Dave Gilson, Mother Jones, April 26, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">As Americans continued to roll their eyes at his comments about<span> </span><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/coronavirus-updates/2020/04/trump-coronavirus-disinfectant-bleach-heat-light/">injecting disinfectant to kill the coronavirus</a>, President Donald Trump mainlined a fresh dose of misinformation and grievance into his Twitter stream yesterday.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TrumTantrum.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/686861/large/TrumTantrum.gif?1560740363" title="TrumTantrum.gif"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">First, he continued to try to relitigate his widely mocked press briefing on last Thursday, claiming his widely mocked suggestions were not directed at Dr. Deborah Birx, the response coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force, but William Bryan, the Department of Homeland Security undersecretary for science and technology. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Next, Trump suggested that he’d soured on press briefings because the media “refuses to report the truth of facts accurately.” (By the way, the quotes in the previous paragraph are verbatim from<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-vice-president-pence-members-coronavirus-task-force-press-briefing-31/">the White House website</a><span style="text-align:start">.) Nearly a month ago, he’d bragged that his daily briefings had made him<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1244320570315018240">“a ratings hit.”</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>Now Republicans are worried that his briefings are<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/25/us/politics/trump-election-briefings.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage">hurting them politically</a><span style="text-align:start">; one senator told the<span> </span></span><em>New York Times</em><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>“the nightly sessions were so painful he could not bear watching any longer.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And never forget how much legal jeopardy Dumpy is in. He hoped to pack the SCOTUS to be his last line of defense in case he could not fend off congress, the federal justice department or state justice departments with his usual feints, fixers and now Barr. However, a surprise order from the SCOTUS on Monday has possibly dire implications for Dumpy — maybe now that they are securely ensconced on SCOTUS, his handpicked top court fixers are not inclined to step in to protect him:</p> <p><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/04/scotus-trump-taxes-financial-records-order/" target="_blank" title="">The Supreme Court Just Issued an Unexpected Order in the Trump Taxes Case</a>, Russ Choma, Mother Jones, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">On Monday, the Supreme Court issued a new ruling, asking that all of the parties in the case submit new arguments on the issue of “the political question doctrine or related justiciability principles”—a fancy way to say the Court wants to know whether this is a real legal question or just a political bickering match that doesn’t deserve a Supreme Court decision. It was an odd request, and not one that had been widely expected—and it’s not clear exactly how it would play out. The Court may well determine that it is not a political question and that it can go on to address the president’s appeal. But if the court does decide to step back—and among the early reactions to the latest ruling, some have suggested that the Court is looking for</span><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/27/supreme-court-suggests-it-is-seeking-a-way-out-of-trump-financial-records-cases.html"><span> </span>a way out</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>of having to answer the question—it might not be great for Trump.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">For starters, Trump is the one arguing that the Supreme Court step in to help him. If it backs away from this case, it means the Court is refusing to interfere with the Congressional subpoenas. Also, the banks being targeted by congressional investigators have indicated they will comply with legal subpoenas; a spokesman for Deutsche Bank reaffirmed Monday that “we remain committed to cooperating with authorized investigations.” </span></p> </blockquote> <p>I think you can reliably expect that if SCOTUS declines to rule on his case (leaving in place the lower court ruling enforcing the subpoenas), the pResident will lash out against the justices and in particular against the two that he ensconced therein, for failing to protect him. That could be something to behold.</p> <p>For a quick review of the cases coming up regarding Dumpy’s finances, here is a helpful thread (click on the blue bird):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The House Case&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The House is seeking Trump’s tax returns from the company that does Trump and his businesses’ tax returns (Mazars). They also are seeking his bank records from Deutsche Bank, which was the only bank willing to lend Trump money in the decade before 2016.&lt;/p&gt;— Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1250763892776742912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 16, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The House Case<br><br>The House is seeking TrumpÃ¢Â€Â™s tax returns from the company that does Trump and his businessesÃ¢Â€Â™ tax returns (Mazars). They also are seeking his bank records from Deutsche Bank, which was the only bank willing to lend Trump money in the decade before 2016.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Uncle Blazer (@blakesmustache) <a href="https://twitter.com/blakesmustache/status/1250763892776742912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 16, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4><span>Should We worry As Dumpy Decompensates? </span></h4> <p>Some people worry a lot about Dumpy somehow masterminding some sort of machiavellian coup over all of us, congress and the entire country if he is backed into a corner. I think it’s important to balance these understandable fears with knowledge of this man’s remarkable intellectual limitations and his utterly predictable behavior. He is not capable of strategy nor is he able to rally allies to his side. He is incapable of behaving in any coherent way to help himself, because of his severe personality disorder.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-left"><img alt="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/606832/large/Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg?1541179406" title="Democratic-Blue-Wave-Tsunami-Eagle_VOTE_DET.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The only reason he has not been ousted yet is because he is being propped up by the egregiously corrupt Greedy Obstructionist Plutocrats who thought they could use him indefinitely to bring about the theocratic autocracy they long for. But now they, too, are getting uneasy and they, too, have much to lose as this house of cards comes tumbling down. PLUS they are, in turn, propped up by Putin and the Russian oligarchs (as is the liar-in-chief). But the Russians, <em>also</em>, are in deep doo-doo and are scrambling as their economy tanks due to Putin’s miscalculation in the oil market and now covid-19 is ravaging Russia’s people, too. It’s a mess and although it will get messier (be strong and carry on!), we are going to emerge from this with an opportunity to rebuild this country better than ever, and hopefully the rest of the world will likewise have a chance to reset. </p> <p>Remember: no one is superhuman. These are all dirty rotten crooked bad news boors. But they are still only human. They cannot wield magic and somehow supernaturally vanquish us. It’s important to remember that when, in our darkest moments, it seems that they hold all the power and can somehow manage to win every battle. They don’t, and they won’t. We are the majority. <em><strong>People who want justice are the majority</strong></em>. We will defeat them at the polls in a vast blue tsunami and then we will hit the ground running to repair the damage they’ve done.</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/04/tv-cameras-are-oxygen-to-donald-trump-cnns-john-harwood-reveals-why-the-president-flip-flopped-on-briefings/" target="_blank">‘TV cameras are oxygen to Donald Trump’: CNN’s John Harwood reveals why the president flip-flopped on briefings</a>, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>“Of course he can’t stay away, TV cameras are oxygen to Donald Trump,” Harwood said.</p> <p>“He was chastened by what happened last Thursday when he made that crazy statement about disinfectants and injecting them into the body and light and all that sort of stuff. He was made a figure of mockery, he walked out on Friday without taking questions and didn’t appear at briefings over the weekend,” he explained. “But Donald Trump’s ego is such that he thinks he can talk himself out of these situations and so he was out there again today, having said he wasn’t going to be.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 We Know Drumpf 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=nbaSh8i5eyE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nbaSh8i5eyE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p>Late Addition: For a historical perspective, check out FrankDiPrima’s diary on the Jon Meacham interview with Brian Williams last night:</p> <p><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/27/1940964/-Presidential-Historian-Jon-Meacham-Nails-It-Trump-Admin-Is-a-Mad-Disfunctional-Kingship?utm_campaign=recent" target="_blank" title="">Presidential Historian jon Meacham Nails It: Trump Admin is a “Mad, Disfunctional Kingship”</a></p> <blockquote> <p><span>... in every chapter, the burden of Meacham’s argument is that our nation has risen above forces of intolerance before (though they keep returning) and has overcome crises as bad as Trump.</span></p> <p>In its analytical section on the foul, lying, slanderous Senator Joe McCarthy,<span> </span><strong>The Soul of America</strong><span> </span>argues that what really did McCarthy in was overexposure. As I personally well remember, there was a 24 hour news cycle then, as now, but back then it was mainly the daily morning papers and the network evening news (this was pre-Huntley-Brikley and pre-Crokite). Generally, both these media — morning newspapers and evening news — had deadlines, and they were both at about 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.</p> <p>McCarthy would put out something outrageously slanderous just in time for the deadline, saying he was going to investigate it or him or her. The reporters never got to ask what happened to the previous day’s slander because by the next day McCarthy was making up something entirely different. That is what Trump does; when things get bad enough, he changes the narrative by saying or doing something worse. Meacham believed, and even quotes McCarthy’s (and later Trump’s) vile ex-lawyer, Roy Cohn, as saying that the public just got sick of McCarthy from over-exposure. The Army-McCarthy hearings were the culmination of that over-exposure, not the sole cause.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🐘 Republicans in DIsarray 🐘<span> </span></h3> <p>Click through on the link to read this article about the chaotic back and forth between the tRump campaign and the NRSC (Republican Senate campaign org). Republicans are in <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/27/1940859/-Republicans-in-disarray-Not-everyone-agrees-with-McConnell-s-desire-for-their-states-to-go-bankrupt?utm_campaign=trending" target="_blank" title="">disarray</a>. They tried to distance themselves — and advised their candidates to do so — which drew the Dumpian ire and then they bowed and scraped and fell in line (at least outwardly). Meanwhile, Parscale and company insist that the Pretender “<span>enjoys unprecedented support among Republican voters” which may be true but it may not be equally true that “everyone on the ballot in November will want to tap into that enthusiasm”, since diehard Republican voter support is not enough to actually win the election — and these guys want to win. Good luck with walking that plank, boys!:</span></p> <p><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/27/trump-campaign-china-strategy-memo-213958" target="_blank">Trump campaign lashes out over 'Don't defend Trump' memo</a>, Alex Isenstadt, Politico, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trumptanic and blue wave." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/569765/large/Trumptanic_and_blue_wave.jpg?1532486291" title="Trumptanic and blue wave."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>On Monday — just days after POLITICO<span> </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/24/gop-memo-anti-china-coronavirus-207244" target="_blank">first reported</a><span> </span>the existence of the memo — Trump political adviser Justin Clark told NRSC executive director Kevin McLaughlin that any Republican candidate who followed the memo’s advice shouldn’t expect the active support of the reelection campaign and risked losing the support of Republican voters.</p> <div> <div> <div> <div> <div> <p>McLaughlin responded by saying he agreed with the Trump campaign’s position and, according to two people familiar with the conversation, clarified that the committee wasn’t advising candidates to not defend Trump over his response. ✄</p> <p>The memo urged GOP Senate candidates to stay relentlessly on message with attacks against China, where the coronavirus originated, when pressed about the pandemic on the campaign trail. When asked about Trump’s response to the pandemic, the document advised candidates to pivot to an attack on the authoritarian country rather than offer an explicit defense of Trump’s response.</p> <p>But the Trump team didn’t take kindly to the guidance…</p> <p><span>“Candidates will listen to the bad advice in this memo at their own peril,” he added. “President Trump enjoys unprecedented support among Republican voters and everyone on the ballot in November will want to tap into that enthusiasm. The president’s campaign, the RNC, and the NRSC are firmly on the same page here.”</span></p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Kansas Republicans in Panic Mode, too</h4> <p>Kansas Republicans are petrified that if Kris Kobach wins the primary, they will lose the Senate seat to Democrat state Sen Bollier. Concerned that having several candidates running in the primary would split the vote and allow Kobach to win, they tried to get two of them to drop out. </p> <p><a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article242232001.html" target="_blank">Kansas GOP chair asks Wagle and Lindstrom to drop out of Senate race for good of party</a>, Brian Lowry, Kansas City Star, April 23, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="270px-Kansas_Democratic_Party_logo.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/787057/large/270px-Kansas_Democratic_Party_logo.png?1585957337" title="270px-Kansas_Democratic_Party_logo.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">In nearly identical April 23 letters to<span> </span><a href="https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article240476916.html" target="_blank">Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle<span> </span></a>and former<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article232021292.html" target="_blank"><span> </span>Johnson County Commissioner Dave Lindstrom,</a><span> </span>Kuckelman cited poor<strong><span> </span></strong>fundraising and polling data to argue that the candidates lack a viable path to the<span> </span><a href="https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article239871268.html" target="_blank">Republican nomination to replace retiring GOP Sen. Pat Roberts.</a></p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/6876500/Letter-to-Mr-Lindstrom.pdf" target="_blank">Kuckelman told the candidates</a><span> </span>that continuing their campaigns will endanger the party’s ability to hold the seat in November after eight decades of dominance in Senate races. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Golden said the decision to ask the candidates to drop out was partly motivated by Bollier’s strong fundraising. The Johnson County<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article242025641.html" target="_blank">Democrat, who left the Republican party in late 2018, raised nearly $2.4 million during<span> </span></a><span style="text-align:start">the first three months of 2020, a record for candidates of either party in the GOP-leaning state.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🇺🇸 Democratic Governors Filling the Leadership Vacuum 🇺🇸</h3> <p>Once again, Dumpy and his sycophants have punted to the states — because they are incompetent — and that’s only good news because we are better off having states in charge than this incompetent trainwreck of a maladminstration controlling all of this:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-issues-coronavirus-testing-guidance-that-leaves-states-in-charge/2020/04/27/c465cc9c-88a2-11ea-8ac1-bfb250876b7a_story.html" target="_blank">White House issues coronavirus testing guidance that leaves states in charge</a>, Mike DeBonis, Chris Mooney and Juliet Ellperin, Washington Post, April 27, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="EWTOO6lXgAAnbZC.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798213/large/EWTOO6lXgAAnbZC.jpg?1588061105" title="EWTOO6lXgAAnbZC.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Pressure mounted Monday on the White House and Congress to develop a national strategy to test Americans for exposure to the novel<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?tid=lk_inline_manual_1&itid=lk_inline_manual_1" target="_blank">coronavirus</a>, as health and economic experts said the current patchwork of testing efforts is insufficient to allow the economy to reopen safely.</p> </div> <div> <p>State governors, congressional leaders and public health officials have pressed for a robust testing plan from the federal government, insisting that frequent and widespread testing is crucial to ending the stay-at-home orders that have idled businesses across much of the country.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>President Trump responded Monday by announcing what the White House called a “blueprint” for increasing testing capacity. But it leaves the onus on states to develop their own plans and rapid-response programs. A White House document said the federal role would include “strategic direction and technical assistance,” as well as the ability to “align laboratory testing supplies and capacity with existing and anticipated laboratory needs.”</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p><strong>Gov. Whitmer in Michigan</strong> is blunt about the reality of federal dereliction of duty, as she rises to meet the challenge:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/27/we-really-are-our-own-here-fight-against-coronavirus-says-michigan-governor/" target="_blank">We really are on our own here’ in fight against coronavirus</a>, says Michigan governor, Jonathan Capehart, Washington Post, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.) is among the many governors trying to balance her state’s economic well-being and its public health. After instituting one of the strictest stay-at-home orders in the country, she relaxed some of the restrictions but<span> </span><a href="https://www.mlive.com/public-interest/2020/04/michigan-gov-gretchen-whitmer-to-extend-stay-at-home-order-through-may-15-but-relax-certain-restrictions.html">extended</a><span> </span>the order through May 15. But Whitmer isn’t being reckless.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 8: Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan Democratic gubernatorial nominee, speaks with people after a Democrat Unity Rally at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel August 8, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Whitmer will face off against Republican gubernatorial nominee Bill Schuette in November. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/796035/large/GettyImages-1013331866.jpg?1587673072" title="DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 8: Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan Democratic gubernatorial nominee, speaks with people after a Democrat Unity Rally at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel August 8, 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Whitmer will face off against Republican gubernatorial nominee Bill Schuette in November. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>“I took actions to keep people safe, and they’re more restrictive than other states, but I thought that it was absolutely essential,” Whitmer told me during an<span> </span><a href="https://link.chtbl.com/eoarYSKF">interview</a><span> </span>for my podcast<span> </span><a href="https://link.chtbl.com/CapehartPodcast">“Cape Up”</a><span> </span>the day before her announcement. “After a few weeks of the stay-at-home posture, we have seen our trajectory really start to flatten. We’ve saved lives.” When we spoke last Thursday, she pointed out that Michigan had the<span> </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2020/apr/27/coronavirus-map-of-the-us-latest-cases-state-by-state" target="_blank">third-highest</a><span> </span>covid-19<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/22/us/coronavirus-death-rates.html" target="_blank"><span> </span>death</a><span> </span>count in the nation. ✄</p> <p><span>Whitmer’s decisive actions and the ire it earned from Trump and his supporters now has her name bandied about as a possible vice presidential candidate with former vice president Joe Biden, who said his running mate would be a woman. The latest Fox News<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fox-news-poll-april-18-21-2020-michigan">poll</a><span><span> </span>of the Michigan electorate shows that a Biden-Whitmer ticket would beat Trump by six percentage points. Unlike other potential contenders, such as<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/04/stacey-abrams-biden-vice-president/610441/">Stacey Abrams</a><span><span> </span>of Georgia, the first-term governor and long-time Great Lakes State politician wouldn’t take the bait.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>As we move ahead in dealing with the threat of the corona virus, we all understand that we cannot lock down society indefinitely. The way forward to restarting life outside of our homes is not yet clear, and Democratic governors will lead the way there, too, with thoughtful plans. In <strong>New York, Gov. Cuomo</strong> today announced the plan for a phased-in, gradual reopening:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/0fd887b9dfc910b244ca532c0008f8ca" target="_blank">As NY COVID-19 deaths drop, Cuomo outlines regional restarts</a>, Marina Villeneuve, Karen Matthews and Michael Hill, AP News, April 27, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Gov. Andrew Cuomo outlined how stay-at-home restrictions could be eased for parts of the state. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that city-run health clinics will soon use a testing procedure that lets people collect samples themselves at a health care worker’s direction. The city also will close 40 miles of streets to cars next month to give pedestrians more room to move outside.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Regional officials aiming to re-open their economies next month should make sure testing is up to speed and that there are enough local hospital beds available, Cuomo said.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The governor outlined re-opening guidelines as statewide hospitalization rates and deaths continue to decline from peaks earlier this month. The 337 deaths recorded statewide Sunday was the lowest daily tally this month and down from a high of 799 on April 8. More than 17,000 people have died in New York since the start of the outbreak.</p> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, Gov. Cuomo is also addressing the appalling waste of farm products while food banks face unprecedented demand:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-farm-bureau-cuomo-milk-dairy-farmers-dumping-20200427-vv4ywhu3bbfhjam3jevtagur3u-story.html" target="_blank">N.Y. farmers cheer Cuomo plan to send excess milk to food banks</a>, Denis Slattery, New York Daily News, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="ALBANY, NY - JANUARY 08: New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo gives fourth State of the State address on January 8, 2014 in Albany, New York. Among other issues touched on at the afternoon speech in the state's capital was the legalization of medical marijuana, and New York's continued economic recovery. Cuomo has been discussed as a possible Democratic candidate for the 2016 presidential race. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/542327/large/cuomo.jpg?1526331376" title="ALBANY, NY - JANUARY 08: New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo gives fourth State of the State address on January 8, 2014 in Albany, New York. Among other issues touched on at the afternoon speech in the state's capital was the legalization of medical marijuana, and New York's continued economic recovery. Cuomo has been discussed as a possible Democratic candidate for the 2016 presidential race. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The governor is connecting overburdened food banks with New York farmers who have been forced to dump excess products as the coronavirus outbreak has dampened demand for dairy. ✄</span></p> <div> <div> <p>The COVID-19 crisis has wreaked havoc on the economy and left thousands of state residents out of work, which has increased demand on food banks. At the same time, the shuttering of schools and restaurants to help stem the spread of the deadly virus has led upstate dairy farmers to toss surplus milk, cheese and yogurt.✄</p> </div> </div> <div> <div> <p>The state will work with farmers to purchase products and send them to food banks while upstate-based companies such as Chobani and Cabot Cheese have agreed to distribute their excess products to food banks and those in need, the governor said.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Thank You, Dem Governors 🎶</h3> <p>Sadly, Bill Withers passed away in early April of heart disease. I’d like to honor him by playing this live version of him performing one of his beautiful songs. </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=f7P8wusL1Z0" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/f7P8wusL1Z0" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Justice ⚖</h3> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/04/27/846750295/supreme-court-to-government-pay-obamacare-insurers" target="_blank">Supreme Court To Government: Pay Obamacare Insurers</a>, Nina Totenberg, NPR News, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">The U.S. Supreme Court has told the federal government that it has to pay $12 billion to insurance companies, money that was promised in the Affordable Care Act as part of the start-up costs of Obamacare in the first three years of its existence.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The law, as enacted, promised to limit profits and losses for insurance companies in the first three years of the Obamacare program. Some companies made more money than allowed by the formula, and had to pay some back to the government, and other companies lost money and were owed money by the government under the formula.</p> <p style="text-align:start">But in 2014, the first year that the ACA's plan was in place, the Republican-controlled Congress reneged on the promise to appropriate money for the companies that had lost money. It did the same for the next two years as well, adding to appropriation bills a rider that barred the government from fulfilling the promise in the statute. After President Trump was elected, his administration supported the GOP-led refusal to pay.</p> </blockquote> <p>In 6-3 decision, <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/supreme-court-gun-rights-case_n_5ea6eb53c5b6a30004e59f35" target="_blank">Supreme Court Throws Out Gun Rights Case</a>, Mark Sherman, AP News, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="gun-control-1422577_960_720.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/271588/large/gun-control-1422577_960_720.jpg?1467946708" title="gun-control-1422577_960_720.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The justices threw out a challenge from gun rights groups. It ruled that the city’s move to ease restrictions on taking licensed, locked and unloaded guns outside the city limits, coupled with a change in state law to prevent New York from reviving the ban, left the court with nothing to decide. The court asked a lower court to consider whether the city’s new rules still pose problems for gun owners.</p> </div> <div> <p>The anti-climactic end to the Supreme Court case is a disappointment to gun rights advocates and relief to gun control groups who thought a conservative Supreme Court majority fortified by two appointees of <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, might use the case to expand on landmark decisions from a decade ago that established a right to keep a gun at home for self-defense.</p> <p><span>Gorsuch joined Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas in dissenting from the dismissal. Kavanaugh wrote a brief concurring opinion in which he agreed with the result, but also said the court should take up another guns case soon.</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <h4>☁️ From the Silver Linings Department ☁️</h4> <p>Still, maybe Gorsuch won’t be totally bad after all. I mean, yes, he’s bad (see above decision, plus I am pretty sure that given the chance he would vote to overturn Roe)), but maybe not TOTALLY bad. If we are stuck with him, I’m going to look for the silver lining:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Justice Alito’s dissent argues that the old rule of non-unanimous juries should be kept because overruling it would mean that states have to retry people who were convicted in violation of the Constitution. Gorsuch responds: “The [dissent’s] worries outstrip the facts.”&lt;/p&gt;— Sister Helen Prejean (@helenprejean) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/helenprejean/status/1252343616879525895?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Justice AlitoÃ¢Â€Â™s dissent argues that the old rule of non-unanimous juries should be kept because overruling it would mean that states have to retry people who were convicted in violation of the Constitution. Gorsuch responds: Ã¢Â€ÂœThe [dissentÃ¢Â€Â™s] worries outstrip the facts.Ã¢Â€Â</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Sister Helen Prejean (@helenprejean) <a href="https://twitter.com/helenprejean/status/1252343616879525895?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>Here is an excerpt in his own words (Justice Gorsuch wrote the decision for the majority):</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="EWEw2rkWoAI-Eyb.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/795993/large/EWEw2rkWoAI-Eyb.jpg?1587667966" title="EWEw2rkWoAI-Eyb.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>And in good news for JUSTICE writ large, Justice Sotomayor reminded everyone that we have yet to “grapple” with the history of racial bigotry in the justice system (now that’s an understatement, Sister Prejean, but glad to see it!).</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Second, Justice Sotomayor pointed out that it was important for the Court to address the racist origins of non-unanimous jury laws precisely because states have never truly grappled with this history of racial bigotry.&lt;/p&gt;— Sister Helen Prejean (@helenprejean) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/helenprejean/status/1252337592273522689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 20, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Second, Justice Sotomayor pointed out that it was important for the Court to address the racist origins of non-unanimous jury laws precisely because states have never truly grappled with this history of racial bigotry.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Sister Helen Prejean (@helenprejean) <a href="https://twitter.com/helenprejean/status/1252337592273522689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>💲Business News 💲</h3> <p>I saw this story and then I ordered some pictures books for my grandbaby! Bonus: it looks like their standard shipping is via USPS. 😊</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/24/little-book-sellers-that-could-how-coalition-indie-stores-managed-take-slice-amazon-business/" target="_blank">The little book sellers that could: How indie stores managed to take a slice of Amazon business</a>, Sindya N. Bhanoo, Washington Post, April 24, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p>In January, before life in America was upended by the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?arc404=true&tid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target="_blank">coronavirus</a>, a start-up called<span> </span><a href="https://bookshop.org/">Bookshop.org</a><span> </span>launched a beta site to sell books online. Its goal was simple: to slice off a sliver of Amazon’s giant share of book sales and push it toward indie bookstores, which have long struggled to maintain footing in the business.</p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="cat_asleep_on_piles_of_books.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/586480/large/cat_asleep_on_piles_of_books.jpg?1536436557" title="cat_asleep_on_piles_of_books.jpg"> <figcaption>My dream business, including the black cat!<br> And a curlygirly dog, too, of course!</figcaption> </figure> <p>In its first month, Bookshop brought in about $50,000 in revenue, and distributed a modest $10,000 to member bookstores. That number changed radically in March, when hundreds of bookstores shuttered their physical doors and signed up with Bookshop. Total sales are at about $4.5 million, with more than $870,000 of that going to stores, said Andy Hunter, Bookshop’s founder. ✄</p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>These businesses may not beat Amazon at its own game, but with some creativity and customer goodwill, they might survive the crisis and come out with some much-needed upgrades. (Amazon chief executive and founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post).</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“We don’t have to beat Amazon. We don’t even have to come anywhere close to Amazon,” said Hunter, who has other jobs as the publisher of a small press called<span> </span><a href="https://catapult.co/">Catapult</a><span> </span>and the book website<span> </span><a href="https://lithub.com/">Literary Hub</a>. “My goal is to get just 1 percent of Amazon’s sales.”</p> </div> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🌎 International News 🌍</h3> <p><strong>New Zealand</strong> is beginning a phased exit from lockdown, thanks to a strategy that has successfully flattened the curve of covid-19 cases in the country.</p> <p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52436658" target="_blank">Coronavirus: New Zealand claims no community cases as lockdown eases</a>, BBC News, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div></div> </div> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - MARCH 16: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to the media on March 16, 2019 in Wellington, New Zealand. At least 49 people are confirmed dead, with more than 40 people injured following attacks on two mosques in Christchurch on Friday afternoon. 41 of the victims were killed at Al Noor Mosque on Deans Avenue and seven died at Linwood mosque. Another victim died later in Christchurch hospital. Three people are in custody over the mass shootings. An Australian man has been charged with murder and will appear in court today. (Photo by Mark Tantrum/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/654596/large/GettyImages-1136043270.jpg?1552742090" title="WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - MARCH 16: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to the media on March 16, 2019 in Wellington, New Zealand. At least 49 people are confirmed dead, with more than 40 people injured following attacks on two mosques in Christchurch on Friday afternoon. 41 of the victims were killed at Al Noor Mosque on Deans Avenue and seven died at Linwood mosque. Another victim died later in Christchurch hospital. Three people are in custody over the mass shootings. An Australian man has been charged with murder and will appear in court today. (Photo by Mark Tantrum/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">With new cases in single figures for several days - one on Sunday - Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the virus was "currently" eliminated.</p> <p style="text-align:start">But officials have warned against complacency, saying it does not mean a total end to new coronavirus cases.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The news came hours before New Zealand moved out of its toughest level of social restrictions. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">"We are opening up the economy, but we're not opening up people's social lives," Ms Ardern said at the daily government briefing.</p> <p style="text-align:start">New Zealand has reported fewer than 1,500 confirmed or probable cases of coronavirus and 19 deaths.</p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <p>Meanwhile, lucky lucky <strong>Belgians</strong> are being urged to eat more fries — for the good of the country! Yes, it is their duty as patriots to eat more fries! Lucky ducks!</p> <p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52439934" target="_blank">Coronavirus: Belgians urged to eat more chips by lockdown-hit potato growers</a>, BBC News, April 27, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Fries.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/220366/large/Fries.jpg?1457305221" title="Fries.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Belgians are well known for loving chips (frites), often with a big dollop of mayonnaise, but hard-up farmers now want them to eat chips twice a week.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Romain Cools of the potato growers' union Belgapom presented it as a matter of survival, as a major export sector fears ruin in the coronavirus crisis.</p> <p style="text-align:start">About 750,000 tonnes of potatoes are piled up in Belgian warehouses, as the lockdown has sent orders plummeting.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Let's all eat chips twice a week, instead of just once," Mr Cools urged.</p> <p style="text-align:start">(nifty: YES PLEASE!! 😜)</p> </blockquote> <h3>💐 Regular People Being Excellent To Each Other 💐</h3> <figure class="image-captioned align-left"><img alt="IMG_6118.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798047/large/IMG_6118.jpg?1588021112" title="IMG_6118.jpg"> <figcaption>If you’re a Chicago local, how about giving this business some love?<br> Their current phone number is on the website <a href="https://www.lasalleflowers.com/">LaSalle Flower Shop</a></figcaption> </figure> <h4>Chicago Florist Brightening Peoples’ Day</h4> <p>Here’s my local news contribution for today!</p> <p>In the Near North Side neighborhood of Chicago there is a longtime flower shop (closed right now, obviously, but still doing online and curbside business), <strong>LaSalle Flower Shop</strong>. By their front door they’ve set up a small table and a box with a sign saying “Take one for you and a friend”.</p> <p>Inside the box was potpourri (which is a lovely scented product made from the petals of flowers). According to a person at the shop, everything is so hard for everyone right now that the shop wanted to give a little something to the community to brighten peoples’ day. The box was empty by the time they were finishing up for the day at 2:00, but they expect to have more on offer tomorrow.</p> <p>I called them to find out more about this and I learned from Margot, who was working in the office still, that they’ve been doing this for awhile and they plan to continue as long as they can. Indeed, <strong>LaSalle Flowers is also planning to deliver flowers to nurses at local hospitals next week for Nurse’s Day. (Wednesday, May 6)</strong>. I asked if this was something they are doing on their own or have they done a fundraiser or perhaps have a sponsor? No sponsor, Margot said. It is just something the shop wants to do to support our nurses.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="IMG_6120.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798046/large/IMG_6120.jpg?1588021112" title="IMG_6120.jpg"> <figcaption>LaSalle Flowers’ iconic vintage sign on the corner of<br> LaSalle and Superior streets, Chicago.</figcaption> </figure> <p>They are also working on something special to do for Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day is, of course, one of the biggest days of the year for florists but this flower shop also wants to give back this year, even as business is so curtailed due to the pandemic. I was so delighted by this story that I decided I had to share it with you all today. If you happen to be local in Chicago or know someone in Chicago you’d like to send flowers to, I encourage you to consider sending some business their way.</p> <p>Thanks to Margot and David and everyone at <a href="https://www.lasalleflowers.com/" target="_blank">LaSalle Flower Shop</a> for being excellent to your neighbors!</p> <p>Thanks to buglady99 for this next lovely story:</p> <h4>Florida Keys Couple Making a Difference</h4> <p><a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/florida-keys/article242272611.html" target="_blank">They wanted to help Key West locals hurt by the COVID-19 crisis, so they dug deep</a>, Gwen Filosa, Miami Herald, April 25, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-sm align-left"><img alt="smiling-face-with-heart-shaped-eyes_1f60d.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/703935/large/smiling-face-with-heart-shaped-eyes_1f60d.png?1564967793" title="smiling-face-with-heart-shaped-eyes_1f60d.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Scott and Sonja Miller wanted to help people in Key West who are among the hardest hit by the economic fallout<span> </span><a href="https://www.flkeysnews.com/news/local/article242258906.html" target="_self">from the COVID-19 pandemic</a>.</p> <p style="text-align:start">So the couple on Friday paid the May rent for<span> </span><a href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/Garrison+Bight+Mooring+Field/@24.5687832,-81.7920424,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x88d1b6b03d870b4d:0xc7df92595ac9c484!8m2!3d24.5723739!4d-81.7882658" target="_self">52 residents</a><span> </span>who call the ocean home.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“We’re blessed to have the resources to do it,” Scott Miller said on Friday. “More importantly, we did it to hopefully inspire others to do so.” ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I have a job, I have lots of work,” said Miller, 60, a civil engineer who relocated his firm from Arkansas to Key West about a year ago.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“But this whole town effectively is shut down,” he said. “A lot of people need some help. Why not share? It’s one of the reasons we moved here, that’s the beauty of this place.”</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Pluto Sending All Her Lovin’ 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=yoAa_3r5qTI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/yoAa_3r5qTI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/26/1940545/-Salon-writer-Congressional-Candidate-Makes-Powerful-Case-for-Expanding-SCOTUS" target="_blank">Salon writer/Congressional Candidate Makes Powerful Case for Expanding SCOTUS</a>, MrMuni12, April 26, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/lets-check-on-president-bleach-the-pain-away-and-see-how-hes-doing" target="_blank">Let's Check On President Bleach-The-Pain-Away And See How He's Feeling!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Ideas article: <a href="https://bostonreview.net/politics/gregg-gonsalves-amy-kapczynski-new-politics-care" target="_blank">The New Politics of Care</a>, Gregg Gonsalves and Amy Kapczynski, Boston Review, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Uh-oh! Sen. <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/sen-richard-burr-is-not-just-a-friend-to-the-health-care-industry-hes-also-a-stockholder" target="_blank">Richard Burr Is Not Just a Friend to the Health Care Industry. He’s Also a Stockholder.</a> Robert Faturechi and Derek Willis, ProPublica, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ ! <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/27/846223674/conservative-new-yorkers-trust-cuomo-over-trump-on-state-reopening-poll-finds?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=nprblogscoronavirusliveupdates" target="_blank">Conservative New Yorkers Trust Cuomo Over Trump On State Reopening, Poll Finds</a>, Lynsey Jeffery, NPR News, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zoetillman/native-tribes-lawsuit-coronavirus-relief-money-corporations" target="_blank">A Judge Sided With Native American Tribes Challenging How The Trump Administration Is Handling Coronavirus Relief Money</a>, Zoe Tillman, Buzzfeed News, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/venessawong/restaurants-reopening-coronavirus" target="_blank">Georgia, Tennessee, And Alaska Want Restaurants To Reopen — McDonald’s, Chick-Fil-A, And Dunkin’ Are Saying Not So Fast.</a> Venessa Wong, Buzzfeed News, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <span><a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/157154/enduring-delusion-chastened-trump" target="_blank">The Enduring Delusion of a Chastened Trump</a>, David Roth, April 3, 2020.</span></p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2020/04/27/michelle-obama-netflix-documentary-becoming/" target="_blank">Michelle Obama will be the focus of the upcoming Netflix documentary ‘Becoming’</a>, Sonia Rao, Washington Post, April 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/space-telescope-director-says-best-is-yet-to-come-for-hubble/" target="_blank">Space Telescope Director Says Best Is Yet to Come for Hubble</a>, Lee Billings, Scientific American, April, 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yes, there’s video: <a href="https://www.upworthy.com/coronavirus-zoom-personalities">Guy imitates every type of Zoom user perfectly - no one is excluded</a>, Annie Reneau, Upworthy, April 23, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black poodle sits in front of Chicago PSA board" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/798201/large/IMG_6067.jpg?1588053601" title="black poodle sits in front of Chicago PSA board"> <figcaption>Mama told me to sit nicely by this sign. So I did!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— currently organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms! This is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💙 RoundUp WIndDown 💙</h3> <p>Time for the curlygirly and me to get some shuteye, so it’s time to wish everyone a good day. Remember to look after yourself and those you love. We are in this for the long haul and the roller coaster is likely to continue right up to and even after the election, so you need to keep up your strength. Eat nutritious food, get your rest and, if you can safely do so, try to get some time outdoors every day to replenish your spirit. We’ve got a lot of work to do and we will prevail. </p> <p>♒︎ Just for fun, I’m going to close with a reprise of a song I used last year in a GNR. I remember when I was a girl, this song from the musical “Hair” was popular and I always wondered what does the age of Aquarius even mean? Thinking of it recently, I googled it and it turns out that the 5th Dimension was a bit premature. In astrology, it turns out that the Age of Aquarius is only now dawning and in fact will begin this year — in December — after a tumultuous and extremely trying astrological year. Well, we already know it’s been and will be a difficult year, but it is really cool to learn that on the day of the December solstice the new age of Aquarius will officially begin, and with it (allegedly!) a new era:</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-md align-right"><img alt="world-peace.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/764652/large/world-peace.jpg?1581187170" title="world-peace.jpg"> <figcaption>One can hope!</figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The<span> </span></span><strong>20-year cycle of Jupiter and Saturn</strong><span><span> </span>is one of the most important markers representing a new rise of structure, new leadership, and new systems, on a personal and social level; it sets the tone for the “new order” we will all respond to. This cycle occurs in signs of the same element three consecutive times, then changes to the following element, and then reverts to the previous element one last time...</span><strong>From 2020, this conjunction will occur in similar sequence in Air signs for the next 200 years.</strong></p> <p>The new conjunction will take place<span> </span><strong>at the solstice on December 21, 2020,</strong><span> </span>at the beginning degree of Aquarius and in a new sequence of elements (air), so we can anticipate that the combination of the conjunction, in a new Air cycle, on the Solstice point will seed a new dawn, a new paradigm for humanity to unfold. It symbolizes a breakthrough to “another side,” a shift of consciousness. The sign of Aquarius flavoring this cycle hints at the need to come up with new solutions and elevate global consciousness. While the earlier earth cycle drew attention to practical and financial matters, the Aquarius cycle will ideally bring a stronger focus on culture, AI, scientific and technological progress, and global emancipation.</p> <p>from <a href="https://www.mauricefernandez.com/the-saturn-pluto-conjunction-and-the-transits-for-the-year-2020/" target="_blank">Evolutionary Astrology with Maurice Fernandez</a></p> </blockquote> <p>So, there you have it! In addition to all of our hard work and resilience throughout these awful 4 years, we now have the stars aligning to bring us a better world! 😊 (It will mostly be us, though)</p> <p><strong>Happy Tuesday, Gnusies!</strong></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ILSr9BbhoJQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ILSr9BbhoJQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) BlueTsunami BlueWave Chicago Community cuomo GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice localgoodnews Pluto Recommended whitmer _1938504 Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:00:03 +0000 Lion-hearted Liberals Come Roaring Back - Good News Roundup, April 14 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/4/14/1935663/-Lion-hearted-Liberals-Come-Roaring-Back-Good-News-Roundup-April-14 <p>Good day, Gnusies! Can you feel it? Can you feel the subtle shift in the zeitgeist? Amid fear and isolation, there is courage and the calls for justice are growing louder. We are in difficult times, but have confidence! These difficult times have clarified the truth for many people who were coasting before and now what seemed to be impossible is turning out to be possible. The price is terrible, and because of that terrible price — so much unnecessary loss of life — we must work even harder, fight even harder, stay the course to ensure that reforms happen so that we never go back to the old “normal” which was terrible in a different way. We have a chance to create a new and better normal and Democrats are going to grab it.</p> <p>There’s so much good news today that I’m just going to plunge right in so grab a beverage and … let’s go!</p> <h3>WIsconsin! You Go, Girl!</h3> <p>Words can’t describe the pride and joy as the results in WIsconsin’s April 7 election came in at last yesterday evening. By hook and by crook, Republicans tried every voter suppression trick in their toolbox (and revealed for all time that the rotten Republican fix is in all the way up to the SCOTUS), and still they could not defeat the power of the people! The headline below says it all:</p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/conservative-slant-of-wisconsin-high-court-erodes-with-liberal-judges-election-win/" target="_blank">Wisconsin Voters Overcome Pandemic to Knock Conservative Off High Court</a>, Joe Kelly, Courthouse News, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Dane County Circuit Court Judge Jill Karofsky announced her win over Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly just before 7:00 p.m. With<span> </span><a href="https://elections.wi.gov/node/6847">60% of precincts reporting</a>, Karofsky had 53% of the vote to Kelly’s 47%.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Karofsky’s consequential upset narrows the conservative majority on the Badger State’s highest court from 5-2 to 4-3.</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-04-13at7.10.04PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791556/large/ScreenShot2020-04-13at7.10.04PM.png?1586826200" title="ScreenShot2020-04-13at7.10.04PM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </blockquote> <p>Judge Karofsky’s election was one of the campaigns that <a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a> wrote for! It makes a difference — write on, PTV!</p> <p>I have to post this tweet because his last sentence made me smile. No wonder Dumpy had a(nother) meltdown:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump, in a tweet, even endorsed this loser judge, whose colleagues on the Wisconsin Supreme Court tried to help steal the election for him.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Trump should be very afraid of Wisconsin.&lt;/p&gt;— Michelangelo Signorile, subscribe to my newsletter (@MSignorile) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MSignorile/status/1249865720734846976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump, in a tweet, even endorsed this loser judge, whose colleagues on the Wisconsin Supreme Court tried to help steal the election for him.<br><br>Trump should be very afraid of Wisconsin.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Michelangelo Signorile, subscribe to my newsletter (@MSignorile) <a href="https://twitter.com/MSignorile/status/1249865720734846976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><strong>“Trump should be very afraid of Wisconsin”</strong> — yep. Even after years of gerrymandering, gerryrigging, boatloads of cash from Kochs, interference from Russia and all manner of experimentation on and manipulation of the people of Wisconsin — the Genocidal Oligarchic Plunderers (thanks, NNNE, for the <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/11/13/1899086/-GNR-U-Presents-Snark-O-the-Day-Who-ll-Plead-the-Fifth-Episode" target="_blank">acronym generator</a>!) still could not keep the spirit of democracy down. Well done, Wisconsin. You are heroes!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Wisconsin GOP scored an own goal in last Tuesday&amp;#39;s voter suppression efforts. Turnout in deep blue Milwaukee is up nearly 20% v 2018 and 2016, vote shares in key swing counties are around 5-10 percentage points more liberal and all but 3 counties have shifted to the left. &lt;a href="https://t.co/jz63B2Uea2"&gt;https://t.co/jz63B2Uea2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— G. Elliott Morris (@gelliottmorris) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/gelliottmorris/status/1249855909360275456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 14, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The Wisconsin GOP scored an own goal in last Tuesday's voter suppression efforts. Turnout in deep blue Milwaukee is up nearly 20% v 2018 and 2016, vote shares in key swing counties are around 5-10 percentage points more liberal and all but 3 counties have shifted to the left. <a href="https://t.co/jz63B2Uea2">https://t.co/jz63B2Uea2</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” G. Elliott Morris (@gelliottmorris) <a href="https://twitter.com/gelliottmorris/status/1249855909360275456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>Bye-bye bad judges</h4> <p>And in Milwaukee County, two judges appointed by former R governor Scott Walker (← the worst) were <a href="https://www.wisn.com/app/april-2020-milwaukee-county-election-results/32041836" target="_blank">defeated by huge margins</a> — 19 points and over 40 points! You tried to steal another election and Badgers were not playing last week, Republicans. By the way, if you want the full election results, that link back there ← has ‘em all.</p> <p>Haha, and oh I just love this endearing tweet by Katie Rosenberg — her first as mayor-elect of Wausau, WI (which I guess she wasn’t expecting to win!):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;HOLY BALLS&lt;/p&gt;— Katie Rosenberg (@katierosenberg) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/katierosenberg/status/1249817824689881090?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>HOLY BALLS</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Katie Rosenberg (@katierosenberg) <a href="https://twitter.com/katierosenberg/status/1249817824689881090?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🎶 Sometimes Mondays are All Right! 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=qnKKlf_FGwg" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qnKKlf_FGwg" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>Pressure is building for safe, fair elections including Vote by Mail</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BREAKING: &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/civilrightsorg?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@civilrightsorg&lt;/a&gt; and 150+ groups are urging Congress to pass additional measures that would fully fund &amp;amp; direct states/counties to administer 2020 elections in a safe, fair &amp;amp; accessible manner – including vote-by mail, expanded early voting, and viable in-person options. &lt;a href="https://t.co/JPP9djXyb2"&gt;pic.twitter.com/JPP9djXyb2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/vanitaguptaCR/status/1249803168696991744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>BREAKING: <a href="https://twitter.com/civilrightsorg?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@civilrightsorg</a> and 150+ groups are urging Congress to pass additional measures that would fully fund & direct states/counties to administer 2020 elections in a safe, fair & accessible manner Ã¢Â€Â“ including vote-by mail, expanded early voting, and viable in-person options. <a href="https://t.co/JPP9djXyb2">pic.twitter.com/JPP9djXyb2</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) <a href="https://twitter.com/vanitaguptaCR/status/1249803168696991744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-poll-idUSKBN21P3G0" target="_blank">Most Americans, unlike Trump, want mail-in ballots for November if coronavirus threatens: Reuters/Ipsos poll</a>, Chris Kahn, Reuters, April 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791299/large/GettyImages-1058146940.jpg?1586796140" title="PROVO, UT - November 6: A employee at the Utah County Election office puts mail in ballots into a container to register the vote in the midterm elections on November 6, 2018 in Provo, Utah. Utah early voting has been the highest ever in Utah's midterm elections. One of the main proportions on the ballot in Utah is whether Utah will legalize medical marijuana. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">Most Americans, including a majority of Republicans, want the government to require mail-in ballots for the Nov. 3 presidential election if the coronavirus outbreak still threatens the public this autumn, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start"> the poll conducted on Monday and Tuesday found that 72% of all U.S. adults, including 79% of Democrats and 65% of Republicans, supported a requirement for mail-in ballots as a way to protect voters in case of a continued spread of the respiratory disease later this year. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">In response, Democratic House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called for Congress to approve as much as $4 billion to help states expand their ability to conduct voting by mail.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>✔️ Oh, how elections matter! ✔️</h3> <p>Now that Virginians have turfed out the Republican majority in their state legislature and elected Democrats, progress has been sweeping into that state. Last week, Gov. Ralph Northam signed several bills into law addressing gun violence, voting rights, women’s rights and LGBTQ discrimination. Oh, and he also signed the Clean Economy Act, making Virginia the first southern state to set a standard for 100% clean energy. Go Virginia!!</p> <p><a href="https://www.governor.virginia.gov/newsroom/all-releases/2020/april/headline-856016-en.html" target="_blank">Governor Northam Signs Historic Gun Safety Legislation into Law</a>, Gov. of VA press release, April 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><strong>RICHMOND</strong>—Governor Ralph Northam today announced he has signed several landmark gun violence prevention measures into law, including legislation to enact an Extreme Risk Protective Order, require background checks on all gun sales, mandate reporting of lost and stolen firearms, prevent children from accessing firearms, and reinstate Virginia’s successful one-handgun-a-month policy.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“We lose too many Virginians to gun violence, and it is past time we took bold, meaningful action to make our communities safer,”<span> </span><strong>said Governor Northam</strong>. “I was proud to work with legislators and advocates on these measures, and I am proud to sign them into law. These commonsense laws will save lives.”</p> </blockquote> <p>Stephen Wolf, DK staffer and politics writer, covers it really well in the diary linked in the tweet below. I’m putting the tweet in here because the graphics and short version is visually pleasing and covers the bases! </p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Northam also signed laws to:&lt;br&gt;1—Make Election Day a state holiday&lt;br&gt;2—Extend E-Day poll closing from 7pm to 8pm&lt;br&gt;3—Require all votes be cast with voter-verifiable paper trails&lt;br&gt;4—Count absentee ballots if they&amp;#39;re postmarked by E-Day.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Background on what&amp;#39;s left: &lt;a href="https://t.co/tTHOgvyy5V"&gt;https://t.co/tTHOgvyy5V&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/1gzHSrnITd"&gt;https://t.co/1gzHSrnITd&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Stephen Wolf (@PoliticsWolf) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/PoliticsWolf/status/1249040640500838401?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 11, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Northam also signed laws to:<br>1Ã¢Â€Â”Make Election Day a state holiday<br>2Ã¢Â€Â”Extend E-Day poll closing from 7pm to 8pm<br>3Ã¢Â€Â”Require all votes be cast with voter-verifiable paper trails<br>4Ã¢Â€Â”Count absentee ballots if they're postmarked by E-Day.<br><br>Background on what's left: <a href="https://t.co/tTHOgvyy5V">https://t.co/tTHOgvyy5V</a> <a href="https://t.co/1gzHSrnITd">https://t.co/1gzHSrnITd</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Stephen Wolf (@PoliticsWolf) <a href="https://twitter.com/PoliticsWolf/status/1249040640500838401?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/13/us/virginia-democrats-new-laws.html" target="_blank">Virginia’s New Laws on L.G.B.T. Protections, Guns and Marijuana Reflect a Shift in Power</a>, Neil Vigdor, The New York Times, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Virginia Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam, Democratic candidate for governor, delivers remarks before introducing former U.S. President Barack Obama to speak at a rally with supporters in Richmond, Virginia, U.S. October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC15BBE6BE50" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/525073/large/RTS1H9DW-1024x683.jpg?1522195390" title="Virginia Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam, Democratic candidate for governor, delivers remarks before introducing former U.S. President Barack Obama to speak at a rally with supporters in Richmond, Virginia, U.S. October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC15BBE6BE50"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>On Saturday, Mr. Northam announced that Virginia had become the first state in the South to include language in its anti-discrimination housing and employment laws that protects people on the basis of their sexual orientation. The law, known as a the Virginia Values Act, goes into effect on July 1.</span></p> <p><span>“This legislation sends a strong, clear message — Virginia is a place where all people are welcome to live, work, visit, and raise a family,” Mr. Northam said in a statement. “We are building an inclusive Commonwealth where there is opportunity for everyone, and everyone is treated fairly. No longer will LGBTQ Virginians have to fear being fired, evicted, or denied service in public places because of who they are.”</span></p> <p><span>Next, Mr. Northam announced on Easter that he had signed a series of changes to the state’s criminal justice laws that included decriminalizing the simple possession of marijuana, a measure that takes effect on July 1. Mr. Northam proposed a $25 civil penalty for simple marijuana possession, sealing conviction records and prohibiting employers from asking about a past conviction, which still require legislative approval.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>I can’t find a link right now to this (seems it wasn’t a priority for many reporters), but Northam also did away with the odious ultrasound requirement and 24-hour waiting period before a woman can have an abortion.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Behold the additional benefits of &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Everytown?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Everytown&lt;/a&gt;/&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MomsDemand?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MomsDemand&lt;/a&gt; outspending and out-working the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/NRA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@NRA&lt;/a&gt; to flip both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly. Our $2.5M investment - along with volunteers’ tens of thousands of calls and 100,000+ door knocks - transformed the state. &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/valeg?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#valeg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/7WJ9UNuGmW"&gt;pic.twitter.com/7WJ9UNuGmW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/shannonrwatts/status/1249429853180276736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 12, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Behold the additional benefits of <a href="https://twitter.com/Everytown?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Everytown</a>/<a href="https://twitter.com/MomsDemand?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MomsDemand</a> outspending and out-working the <a href="https://twitter.com/NRA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NRA</a> to flip both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly. Our $2.5M investment - along with volunteersÃ¢Â€Â™ tens of thousands of calls and 100,000+ door knocks - transformed the state. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/valeg?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#valeg</a> <a href="https://t.co/7WJ9UNuGmW">pic.twitter.com/7WJ9UNuGmW</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) <a href="https://twitter.com/shannonrwatts/status/1249429853180276736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 12, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h3>🇺🇸 United They Stand 🇺🇸</h3> <p>We don’t have a president, but we do have leadership! Governors on the east and west coasts have joined forces to tackle the pandemic crisis, and naturally 9/10 of them are Democrats:</p> <p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/governors-form-groups-to-explore-lifting-virus-restrictions-trump-says-he-alone-will-decide/2020/04/13/f04a401e-7d84-11ea-a3ee-13e1ae0a3571_story.html" target="_blank">Governors form groups to explore lifting virus restrictions; Trump says he alone will decide</a>, Tim Craig and Brady Dennis, Washington Post, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="CuomoCorona" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/782254/large/CuomoCorona?1585068634" title="CuomoCorona"> <figcaption>Gov. Andrew Cuomo, (D-NY)</figcaption> </figure> <p>Earlier in the day, Cuomo was joined via phone by governors from New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island as they formed a pact to coordinate on an eventual end to their states’ restrictions. Later, Cuomo announced that Massachusetts, led by Gov. Charlie Baker (R), was joining the group.</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>“Everyone is very anxious to get out of the house, get to work and get the economy moving. Everyone agrees with that, but the art form here is going to be doing that smartly, doing that productively, and doing that in a coordinated way,” Cuomo said.✄</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>On the West Coast, the governors of California, Oregon and Washington also<span> </span><a href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/04/13/california-oregon-washington-announce-western-states-pact/">announced a pact</a><span> </span>to work together to tamp down the ongoing outbreak and carefully restart the economy in their states.</p> <p><span>“Covid-19 doesn’t follow state or national boundaries,” the three governors said in a statement. “It will take every level of government, working together, and a full picture of what’s happening on the ground.”</span></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>→ Here is my weekly reminder that there are lots of good people — liberals! — in so-called “red states”, too! Good for Nebraska!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Spotted on my block in Brooklyn: ‘Midwest Medical Transport’ ambulance from Nebraska. Thank you &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MidWMedical?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MidWMedical&lt;/a&gt; ❤️❤️❤️ &lt;a href="https://t.co/vbTnhbSLF0"&gt;pic.twitter.com/vbTnhbSLF0&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— jasper nathaniel (@thewordsof_JDN) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/thewordsof_JDN/status/1249532237814665216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Spotted on my block in Brooklyn: Ã¢Â€Â˜Midwest Medical TransportÃ¢Â€Â™ ambulance from Nebraska. Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/MidWMedical?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MidWMedical</a> Ã¢ÂÂ¤Ã¯Â¸ÂÃ¢ÂÂ¤Ã¯Â¸ÂÃ¢ÂÂ¤Ã¯Â¸Â <a href="https://t.co/vbTnhbSLF0">pic.twitter.com/vbTnhbSLF0</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” jasper nathaniel (@thewordsof_JDN) <a href="https://twitter.com/thewordsof_JDN/status/1249532237814665216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>And my midwestern governor has been fantastic, too. By the way, go read the longer interview with JB in the Lightning RoundUp (bolded). Really good stuff. These Dem governors are rocking it — because they really do care about people. I’m hopeful that JB will organize something with Tony Evers, Gretchen Whitmer and any other midwestern/Great Lakes governors who might be interested in forming a third coast alliance. </p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/pritzker-thanks-california-governor-newsom-after-illinois-receives-100-ventilators/2252070/" target="_blank" title="">Pritzker Thanks California Governor Newsom After Illinois Receives 100 Ventilators</a>, NBC News Chicago, April 7, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Illinois Democratic candidate for Governor J.B. Pritzker speaks during his primary election night victory as his Lieutenant Governor pick Juliana Stratton, left, looks on March 20, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Pritzker won the democratic primary against challengers Chris Kennedy and Daniel Bliss in the governor's race. (Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/752556/large/GovIL.jpg?1577825008" title="Illinois Democratic candidate for Governor J.B. Pritzker speaks during his primary election night victory as his Lieutenant Governor pick Juliana Stratton, left, looks on March 20, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Pritzker won the democratic primary against challengers Chris Kennedy and Daniel Bliss in the governor's race. (Photo by Joshua Lott/Getty Images)"> <figcaption>Gov. J B Pritzker (D-IL) and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton </figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">llinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is publicly thanking California Governor Gavin Newsom after 100 ventilators were delivered to the state of Illinois this week.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“It’s truly incredible to work with elected officials across the nation who are providing real leadership,” Pritzker said in a series of tweets thanking Newsom.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The ventilators arrived in Illinois as the state moves toward what it believes will be its peak in coronavirus cases. More than 13,000 Illinois residents have contracted the virus and 380 have died, but officials believe that the peak in virus cases could be reached within the next 10-to-14 days.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 A Song For Our Democratic Governors 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=NIuyDWzctgY" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NIuyDWzctgY" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>👏 Maybe the media has finally had enough 👏</h3> <p>What a show at the White House yesterday, eh? Once again, women reporters led the way by asking important questions. The pretender could not control his rage and threw a tantrum. And wonder of wonders, for once reporters have told the unvarnished truth about what happened! To have more media acknowledging how deeply problematic this behavior is has been long overdue, but it is very good news that it is finally happening. No more normalizing with bullsh*t headlines like “President and reporters trade barbs at WH briefing”! The CNN chyron was stunning. And this article from the Guardian likewise did not mince words:</p> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/13/trump-coronavirus-meltdown-media-authority?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=edit_2221&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1586829958" target="_blank">Wounded by media scrutiny, Trump turned a briefing into a presidential tantrum</a>, David Smith, The Guardian, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/427927/large/Trump_toddler_tantrum.png?1500873984" title="Trump_toddler_tantrum.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>A toddler threw a self-pitying tantrum on live television on Monday night. Unfortunately he was 73 years old, wearing a long red tie and running the world’s most powerful country.</p> <p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/donaldtrump">Donald Trump</a>, starved of campaign rallies, Mar-a-Lago weekends and golf, and goaded by a bombshell newspaper report, couldn’t take it any more. Years of accreted grievance and resentment towards the media came gushing out in a torrent. He ranted, he raved, he melted down and he blew up the internet with one of the most jaw-dropping performances of his presidency. ✄</p> <p><span>With more than 23,000 American lives lost in such circumstances, some presidents might now be considering resignation. Not Trump. He arrived in the west wing briefing room determined to tell the world, or at least his base, that he was not to blame. Instead it was a new and bloody phase of his war against “enemy of the people” – the media. Families grieving loved ones lost to the virus were in for cold comfort here. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The thin-skinned president lashed out at reporters, swiped at Democrat Joe Biden and refused to accept that he had put a foot wrong. “So the story in the New York Times is a total fake, it’s a fake newspaper and they write fake stories. And someday, hopefully in five years when I’m not here, those papers are all going out of business because nobody’s going to read them,” Trump said.</span></p> </div> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-04-13at9.20.04PM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791572/large/ScreenShot2020-04-13at9.20.04PM.png?1586830839" title="ScreenShot2020-04-13at9.20.04PM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> </div> </div> </blockquote> <h4>Plus, Chris Wallace Makes the Case for Joe Biden:</h4> <p>LOL, he probably didn’t mean to do it, but this sounds almost like an endorsement! Most Americans <em>like</em> and <em>want</em> that stuff, Chris!</p> <p><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/chris-wallace-trump-coronavirus-2020-biden-sanders" target="_blank">Chris Wallace: Trump has no chance at re-election if voters believe he handled coronavirus poorly</a>, Victor Garcia, Fox News, April 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>"He's for a public option, not Medicare-for-all, but a public option," Wallace added. "That wasn't something that Barack Obama supported in 2012. Health care for illegal immigrants, that wasn't something that Barack Obama supported in 2012. Decriminalizing people coming across the border [illegally], same for Obama ... Biden is a lot closer to Bernie Sanders than he is to where Barack Obama was just four years ago."</p> <p>Wallace also predicted that the November election would double as a referendum on President Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, saying: "If people come to the conclusion, a majority of Americans, that he has handled the health issue and the economic issue poorly, I don't think he has any chance to win."</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚖ Oh, speaking of that meltdown…unexpected SCOTUS news! ⚖</h3> <p>Perhaps in addition to being angry at Dr. Fauci and at all the governors who have gone ahead and gone around the White House to lead their states in a crisis, and possibly a preview of the Wisconsin election results, and of course the constant reminders of his monumental failures in falling polls, etc… there might be one other factor that upset the traitor in chief. The Supreme Court is going to hear cases after all! Including the cases he was hoping would not be heard until after the election, if at all. This news flew under the radar a little bit because most people are rightly concerned about the pandemic. But it is very important and scary to one Donald Drumpf:</p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/politics/supreme-court-cases-teleconference/index.html" target="_blank">Supreme Court to hear cases on Trump's financial docs, religious freedom and Electoral College via telephone</a>, Ariane de Vogue, CNN, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Gavel, the Constitution and scales of justice." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/767374/large/gettyimages-183870887-612x612.jpg?1581883262" title="Gavel, the Constitution and scales of justice."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The Supreme Court will hear major cases on President Donald Trump's financial documents, religious freedom and the Electoral College via telephone next month and make oral arguments available for live audio broadcast in an unprecedented move. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Oral arguments will be heard on May 4-6 and May 11-13, but the specific dates for each case are yet to be determined, the court said. ✄</span></p> <div>The cases involving Trump's financial documents involve whether the US House of Representatives and a New York prosecutor can subpoena the President's longtime accounting firm and banks for his records, two monumental disputes concerning separation of powers and<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/13/politics/supreme-court-trump-impeachment-taxes-separation-of-powers/index.html" target="_blank">Trump's broad claims of immunity</a>.</div> <div>The Electoral College case involves<span> </span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/02/politics/faithless-electors-supreme-court/index.html" target="_blank">so-called faithless electors</a><span> </span>who voted or attempted to vote for candidates other than the ones who won their states -- Trump or Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton -- in the 2016 election.</div> </blockquote> <p>It’s true that the SCOTUS is controlled by conservatives who, until now at least, have been happy to let Dumpy blunder along destroying the country, but now that he is failing so spectacularly and his election is imperiled beyond even their ability to <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/04/wisconsin-election-dissents.html" target="_blank">intercede on his behalf</a>, maybe they won’t protect him any more. Maybe they will find plenty of excuses in the actual law to get rid of a pResident who may no longer be of any use to them. Maybe that’s what Dumpy fears, anyway. </p> <h4>And Remember This Guy?</h4> <p>Remember the brutish Republican Greg Gianforte who assaulted a reporter and yet somehow still won his election? Well, it looks like he may be in some hot water:</p> <p><a href="https://themontanapost.com/blog/2020/04/10/fox-campaign-accuses-greg-gianforte-of-insider-trading-and-profiteering-on-covid-19/" target="_blank">Fox Campaign Accuses Greg Gianforte of “Insider Trading” and Profiteering on COVID-19</a>, Don Pogreba, The Montana Post, April 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Yesterday, the campaign for Montana Attorney General Tim Fox accused Greg Gianforte, our current US House Representative and his rival for the GOP nomination for governor, of financing his campaign by insider trading capitalizing on COVID-19.</p> <p>In an e-mail from campaign manager Jack Cutter, the Fox campaign laid into Gianforte:</p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="041020_1407_FoxCampaign1.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/790338/large/041020_1407_FoxCampaign1.png?1586586282" title="041020_1407_FoxCampaign1.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>It’s an incredible claim, no doubt based on the research that shows Gianforte, rather than putting his investments into a blind trust as promised, has invested<span> </span><a href="https://themontanapost.com/blog/2020/03/26/greg-gianforte-invested-hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars-in-companies-hoping-to-cash-in-on-the-coronavirus-pandemic/">hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past three months</a><span> </span>in companies hoping to profit from COVID-19, including the<span> </span><a href="https://themontanapost.com/blog/2020/04/09/greg-gianforte-invests-in-hydroxychloroquine-maker-during-covid-19-pandemic/">French manufacturer of Hydroxychloroquine</a>.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Special Request For Dumpy and Gronk 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=J9gKyRmic20" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/J9gKyRmic20">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>📬 The USPS Needs Help and the US People Are Delivering 📬</h3> <p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/lamvo/save-us-postal-service-coronavirus-twitter" target="_blank">People Are Buying Stamps And Praising Mail Carriers After The US Postal Service Said It Needs A Coronavirus Bailout</a>, Lam Thuy Vo, Buzzfeed News, April 12, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="576674-Z0.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791165/large/576674-Z0.jpg?1586743329" title="576674-Z0.jpg"> <figcaption>The USPS offers many beautiful stamp designs for all seasons and special occasions as well as honoring great Americans.</figcaption> </figure> <p>#USPostalService and #saveUSPS were tweeted thousands of times after the<span> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/11/post-office-bailout-trump/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter" target="_blank">Washington Post reported</a><span> </span>Saturday that President Trump was personally blocking potential emergency funding. According to the Post, Trump threatened to veto a version of the recently passed stimulus package that included a $13 billion bailout for the US Postal Service and instead extended the agency a $10 billion loan. The USPS has been financially troubled for decades, but a drop in its main funding source — first-class and marketing mail — due to the coronavirus pandemic has only worsened its economic outlook.</p> <p>"We now estimate that the COVID-19 pandemic will increase the Postal Service’s net operating loss by more than $22 billion dollars over the next eighteen months, and by over $54 billion dollars over the longer term, threatening our ability to operate," postmaster general Megan Brennan<span> </span><a href="https://about.usps.com/newsroom/statements/041020-pmg-statement-on-usps-stimulus-needs.htm" target="_blank">said</a><span> </span>in a statement on Friday.</p> <p>Rep. Gerry Connolly, a Democrat who has led the push to provide USPS with aid, has also said Trump personally blocked potential funding plans.</p> <p>"Every single one of us will feel the impact if the #USPostalService disappears, @realDonaldTrump," Connolly<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/GerryConnolly/status/1249384904024109061" target="_blank">tweeted</a><span> </span>on Sunday. "The American people want to #SaveTheUSPS. Whether we can is up to you."</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://store.usps.com/store/home" target="_blank">Support the USPS!</a> </p> <p>Even if we all buy stamps, though, we need the USPS to have a more reliable, more permanent solution to its current woes, brought on by Republican skullduggery <a href="https://thinkprogress.org/a-manufactured-crisis-congress-can-let-the-post-office-save-itself-without-mass-layoffs-or-service-4da965b2bc63/" target="_blank">in 2006</a> and exacerbated by the pandemic. Call your congress critters and tell ‘em you want support for the US Postal Service written into the next crisis response bill!</p> <p><strong>Capital Hill switchboard:</strong> <strong>(202) 224-3121</strong> You will be asked what state and zip you live in and then you’ll be routed to the congressperson of your choice (either Rep. or either of your state senators — or all three!).</p> <p>I’m delighted to report that when I ordered new stamps on Sunday night, I received a notification that due to high volume of orders, my order might not ship for 2-3 days. I am thrilled that lots of other people are doing this, too. The stamps are beautiful and we all need at least a few! Please join in!</p> <p>That link again to the USPS: <a href="https://store.usps.com/store/home" target="_blank">Stamps and </a>Supplies</p> <h3>☀︎ Crisis as Changemaker? ☀︎</h3> <p>Here are a few hopeful items that might put a silver lining on this wretched coronavirus business:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/upshot/coronavirus-future-work-america.html?referringSource=articleShare" target="_blank">Could the Pandemic Wind Up Fixing What’s Broken About Work in America?</a>, Claire Cain Miller, The New York Times, April 10, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt=" SARS-CoV-2—also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus that causes COVID-19—isolated from a patient in the U.S. Virus particles are shown emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. The spikes on the outer edge of the virus particles give coronaviruses their name, crown-like." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/770151/large/SARS-CoV-2_49534865371.jpg?1582534316" title=" SARS-CoV-2—also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus that causes COVID-19—isolated from a patient in the U.S. Virus particles are shown emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. The spikes on the outer edge of the virus particles give coronaviruses their name, crown-like."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>The United States is distinctive among rich countries in its lack of worker protections like nationwide paid sick leave, paid family leave and universal health insurance, and in its<span> </span><a href="https://www.oecd.org/els/emp/collective-bargaining.htm" target="_blank">minimal labor union membership</a>. For both high and low earners, many employers expect workers to be on call around the clock. Companies are typically beholden to<span> </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/20/business/dealbook/business-roundtable-corporate-responsibility.html">shareholders first</a>, above employees, customers and communities.</p> <p>But the coronavirus pandemic has shown the flaw in that logic: <strong>Worker well-being is the foundation for everything else. </strong>(emphasis mine)</p> <p>Already, Congress has given some workers paid sick and family leave for the first time. Companies have started to offer paid leave, subsidized child care and flexible work schedules. Millions of Americans are working from home — which could reset workplace practices even when they return. People are recognizing the importance of many jobs that have long been undervalued, like janitors, child care providers, teachers, health aides, delivery people and grocery store workers. ✄</p> <p>The policy changes that have already happened in response to the virus have come very quickly. They have illuminated how relatively easy it would be for workers to have these rights — employers or policymakers would just have to say so. It may be hard for them to take back benefits, analysts said, even those they’ve said are temporary.</p> <p>“Once you make it clear that these things are within your capacity to do, people’s baseline expectations change,” said Mr. Wyman, the historian. “That was true of the New Deal, the Great Society, Obamacare. We can do a lot more than we think we can. Crises are a useful reminder, useful in a tragic kind of way, of what we can do if we wanted to, if we had the will to do it.”</p> </blockquote> <p>And even ambitious young Republicans are sensing the change in the air as Heather Cox Richardson pointed out last Thursday. (Letters from an American, April 9, 2020). ⬇️</p> <blockquote> <p><span>But for all this news, the thing that jumped out at me today was an op-ed published last night in the <em>Washington Post</em> by Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri. In it, Hawley calls for Congress to invest in America by covering 80% of wages for US workers, offering bonuses for rehiring workers, strengthening supply chains at home, and cracking down on Wall Street profiteering. He wants anti-trust enforcement and corporate transparency rules. <em><strong>This op-ed reads to me like Hawley thinks the radical anti-government fever that took over the Republican Party in the last generation is going to break under Trump, and Hawley is betting that a political future, even for a Republican senator, depends on embracing government activism</strong></em>.</span></p> <p><span>That is news indeed.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Plus, surprising words from boris johnson</h4> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="COVID-19_Boris-Johnson_Queen.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/790954/large/COVID-19_Boris-Johnson_Queen.jpg?1586704520" title="COVID-19_Boris-Johnson_Queen.jpg"> <figcaption>HAHA, JK!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Conservatives in the UK have been gunning for the national healthcare in that country with the same determination that conservatives here in the USA have gone after public education, workers’ unions and the USPS. In other words, British conservatives want to make life as hard for their people as Republicans do over here. Most UK residents very much like their universal healthcare, thank you very much, and yet it is being starved of resources by successive conservative governments (Yes, people in other countries also have been tricked into voting against their best interests by having their own xenophobia used against them- oops). Once again, though, the pandemic has produced one possible silver lining in an otherwise horrible, wretched crisis: Boris Johnson — just out of hospital where he needed intensive care for covid-19 — gave a speech yesterday that may signal that he has had an epiphany, a change of heart or at least has had to pause to consider some of the awful things he has supported in the past (like xenophobia, anti-immigration, Brexit, and US-style privatization of healthcare). Time will tell if his gratitude brings lasting change (don’t hold your breath), but it was an interesting speech:</p> <p><a href="https://apnews.com/f7b3273f7e6b8cc8c16e02770deaa6f9" target="_blank">British PM’s praise for health service could boost its cause</a>, Danica Kirka, AP News, April 13, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Johnson’s statement could mean the NHS has a powerful new advocate as it seeks to reverse a decade of austerity that has left Britain’s doctors and nurses struggling to treat the flood of coronavirus patients with inadequate supplies of protective gear. At least 19 NHS workers have died in the outbreak.</p> <p style="text-align:start">It also was notable for Johnson’s unabashed praise of two immigrants. He has staked his career on Brexit, a cause closely bound up with the desire of many in Britain to control immigration, and his words could mean a change in his government’s tone.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“I will never, ever be able to repay you and I will never stop thanking you,” added Johnson, who spent three nights in intensive care at St. Thomas’ Hospital.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Johnson called the NHS “unconquerable” and “the beating heart of this country” after seeing its response to the outbreak first-hand. He lauded the courage of everyone from doctors to cooks.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 This One’s For You, Boris 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=wwXtPu-iA4Q" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wwXtPu-iA4Q">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🐆 Good News For An Endangered Species 🐆</h3> <p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52238591" target="_blank">Endangered clouded leopard kittens born at US zoo</a>, BBC News, April 9, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="_111744366_17cl.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/790723/large/_111744366_17cl.jpg?1586644269" title="_111744366_17cl.jpg"> <figcaption>OMG Look at those little tongues!! Too Cute!</figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Special measures are being taken at the Miami Zoo to protect two highly endangered clouded leopard cubs that are vulnerable to catching coronavirus.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The cubs - one male and one female - were born on 11 February but have since been secluded in their den to allow time to bond with their mother.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Last month, a tiger at another US zoo tested positive for coronavirus.</p> <p style="text-align:start">The Miami zoo says staff are wearing gloves and masks and disinfecting their shoes when they handle the leopards.</p> <p style="text-align:start">During their examination and vaccinations on Tuesday, the newborns were confirmed by zookeepers to be "developing well".</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Both offspring appear to be thriving and the mother continues to be attentive and nursing them on a regular basis," Zoo Miami said in a statement.</p> </blockquote> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️</h3> <p>⚡️ He has the experience to put together a team who can do it: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/biden-will-inherit-post-pandemic-world/609853/" target="_blank">If Biden Wins, He’ll Have to Put the World Back Together</a>, Thomas Wright and Kurt M. Campbell, The Atlantic, April 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Yer Wonkette: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/trump-hereby-declares-he-is-boss-of-when-us-american-states-will-re-open-lol-stupid-idiot" target="_blank">Trump HEREBY DECLARES He Is Boss Of Telling US American States When To Re-Open</a>, LOL Stupid Idiot, Evan Hurst, Wonkette, April 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Re-upping this article Goody quoted on Saturday; well worth reading: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/07/what-coronavirus-can-teach-us-about-hope-rebecca-solnit?fbclid=IwAR2E0UtHb43buctzR5lrsTbjXLDNS33ML5TKN1vJHIMSx9Kltmg0qEXNRQM" target="_blank">'The impossible has already happened': what coronavirus can teach us about hope</a>, Rebecca Solnit, The Guardian, April 7, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️<a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/04/11/donald-trump-has-tested-positive--for-the-bullst-virus/" target="_blank">Donald Trump has tested positive — for the bulls**t virus,</a> Lucian K. Truscotte, lV, Salon, April 11, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ ICYMI (Bombshell article): <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/11/us/politics/coronavirus-trump-response.html" target="_blank">He Could Have Seen What Was Coming: Behind Trump’s Failure on the Virus</a>, Eric Lipton, et al, New York Times, April 11, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ The incorrigible loser: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-pandemic-briefing-focus-himself/2020/04/13/1dc94992-7dd8-11ea-9040-68981f488eed_story.html" target="_blank">The Me President: Trump uses pandemic briefing to focus on himself</a>, Ashley Parker, WAPO, April 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️Jane Mayer is a national treasure; well-sourced and well-written: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/04/20/how-mitch-mcconnell-became-trumps-enabler-in-chief" target="_blank">How Mitch McConnell Became Trump’s Enabler-in-Chief</a>, Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, April 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️OK, sure, for some of us: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/10/coronavirus-good-news-upside-blessings-covid-positive?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=edit_2221&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1586588112" target="_blank">Coronavirus good news: we have many blessings to count</a>, Mark Rice-Oxley, The Guardian, April 10, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Most people are D-deficient anyway, so this won’t hurt and might help: <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/4/988/htm" target="_blank">Evidence that Vitamin D Supplementation Could Reduce Risk of Influenza and COVID-19 Infections and Deaths</a>. William B Grant et al, MDPI.com, March 12, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <strong>A very personal look behind the scenes (we’ve got great Democratic governors, folks)</strong>: <a href="https://www.npr.org/local/309/2020/04/13/833306196/for-j-b-pritzker-a-governor-on-war-footing-there-s-no-end-of-the-day" target="_blank">For JB Pritzker, A Governor On War Footing, 'There's No End Of The Day'</a>, Dave McKinney, NPR News, April 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://adams.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-alma-adams-sen-kamala-harris-introduce-black-maternal-health-week" target="_blank">Rep. Alma Adams & Sen. Kamala Harris Introduce Black Maternal Health Week Resolution</a>, US Congress press release, April 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/what-can-we-do-part-i/" target="_blank">WHAT CAN WE DO? PART I</a>, Teri Kanefield, Musing About Law, Books and Politics, April 6, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ <a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/what-we-can-do-part-ii/" target="_blank">WHAT WE CAN DO, PART II: BE AN INSTITUTIONALIST</a>, Teri Kanefield, Musing About Law, Books and Politics, April 11, 2020.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=e06iWT9vSlI" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/e06iWT9vSlI" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>We’ve got lots of work to do, Gnusies, and I’m so energized to be doing that work with all of you and all of our fellow progressives out across the country!</p> <p>More than ever, it is vital that you take good care of yourself and those you love. Eat nutritious food, get enough rest and try to get some fresh air or time with nature each day. We’ve got mountains before us, but we have already scaled the foothills and we are ready to move those mountains, just like our countrymen and women did in WIsconsin last week. Keep up your strength, take short breaks and then get back to it! You’ve got a world to save!</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="IMG_5984.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/791600/large/IMG_5984.jpg?1586839288" title="IMG_5984.jpg"> <figcaption>Mama takes me out to see the spring flowers!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— currently organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms! This is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=BPPSu0vaNWA" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BPPSu0vaNWA" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3 class="AlignCenter"> 🌷 Happy Tuesday, Newsies! 🌷</h3> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) ChangeisComing Community GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Pandemic Recommended VoteByMail VotingRights Wisconsinelection _1935663 Tue, 14 Apr 2020 11:00:10 +0000 "Just keep up the faith" - Good News Roundup - March 31 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/3/31/1931702/--Just-keep-up-the-faith-Good-News-Roundup-March-31 <p>I have to level with you all. I was so angry earlier (you know why, same as ever), I could hardly write. In my native parlance, I was “spitting tacks”. And yet... there is still good news. Like the story about the 30 year old machinist in Madison, WI who spoke directly to his fellow Americans and said, <strong>“Just keep up the faith”</strong> as he finished another 12 hour shift making ventilators — which he has been doing without a day off since February. The more I write up the good news, the stronger and more determined I feel. We’ve got people like <em>him</em> pulling for this country!</p> <p>Newsies, we are going to beat those bast*rds in November and we are going to prosecute them in 2021. We are going to use this anger to fuel us and we are going to finally bring this country back on the track that was so briefly, haltingly begun in the 20th century. In the 1930’s, the 1960’s in such fits and starts. We will go beyond those efforts — which still were tinged with so much racism and sexism — and we will make this country great at long last! How’s that for irony?</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="The Elephant in the Room" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/233008/large/elephant_living_room_2.jpg?1459647111" title="The Elephant in the Room"> <figcaption>All right, let’s talk about the elephant in the room — covid-19</figcaption> </figure> <p>Now this covid-19 business is shaking everyone up. Me too. I started self-isolating nearly 3 weeks ago, because my immune system is still not back to normal after last year’s cancer treatment, and at times I have really had to tamp down some anxiety. I am sure you can all relate as every one of us has reasons to be concerned and people to be concerned about. For perspective, though, I remind myself of the odds. Yes, it’s possible that I might get sick and even die in this pandemic. More frightening for me is the chance that someone I love could get sick. But the odds are that won’t happen. Although it’s likely that a high per centage of the population will contract covid-19, up to 90% of those infected are expected to experience mild to moderate illness while less than 5% are expected to become critically ill and even fewer to die. </p> <p>Of course that number of casualties is still horrific and I wish this wasn’t happening at all. But when anxiety threatened to overwhelm me one day I recalled those odds and I realised that those odds are better than my odds are to survive the cancer I have been fighting! And I am feeling pretty dang good about my chances of beating the cancer. Odds are a bit of a crap shoot, but I still feel better with that perspective and maybe it will help some of you, too. Not to say we should all be like Jeff Bridges in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearless_(1993_film)" target="_blank">Fearless</a>, mind. I’m practicing strict physical distancing, staying home except to walk the curlygirl and doing all the handwashing and disinfecting that’s been recommended.</p> <p><strong>Oh and here’s a tip for everyone! Wash your face, too! morning, mid day and night and <em>apply some moisturizer</em> (you too, men!). Keeping your face clean and <u>moisturized</u> will help it not to itch! That makes keeping your hands away easier. </strong></p> <p>Now, on to the news!</p> <h3>😌 Reports of the End of Civilization are Greatly Exaggerated 😌</h3> <p>Check out this amazing thread about the myth of disaster-caused collapse of civilization. It is well-sourced and sound. This crisis — and even the disaster which is the Dumpy administration — will not lead to civil war, social collapse or any of the other things with which malicious disinformation campaigns bombard us. Read this for a reassuring perspective:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Please remember: The idea that when disaster strikes people panic and social order collapses is very popular. It is also a myth. A huge research literature shows disaster makes people *more* pro-social. They cooperate. They support each other. They&amp;#39;re better than ever. 1/x&lt;/p&gt;— Dan Gardner (@dgardner) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/dgardner/status/1243144205167362048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 26, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Please remember: The idea that when disaster strikes people panic and social order collapses is very popular. It is also a myth. A huge research literature shows disaster makes people *more* pro-social. They cooperate. They support each other. They're better than ever. 1/x</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Dan Gardner (@dgardner) <a href="https://twitter.com/dgardner/status/1243144205167362048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 26, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p><span style="text-align:left">For a contemporaneous example of exactly this phenomena of pro-social behavior even in the face of fearful uncertainty about the coronavirus, look at what is happening right now at sea. A Holland America cruise ship, the <em>Zaandam</em>, has had an outbreak of covid-19, including four deaths and over a hundred passengers and crew positive for the virus. With a global pandemic, the usual assistance from nearby ports is not forthcoming as countries are overwhelmed, so the cruise line dispatched another of its ships — the <em>Rotterdam</em> — to assist its sister ship. The <em>Rotterdam</em> will take on healthy passengers — following strict pandemic precautions — and supply the <em>Zaandam</em> with provisions, fresh medical supplies and relief healthcare staff. <em>Rotterdam</em> crew were naturally concerned about the risks to themselves and here is what their captain told them:</span></p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:left">"We are mariners, and we consider this our duty and our obligation, and so in the tradition, we are proceeding with helping our sister ship the Zaandam," the captain of the Rotterdam said in the leaked audio. "Our guests and our fellow crew members on board need us. There are no easy choices here. In order to protect the Zaandam guests and crew members, we need to move guests to the Rotterdam." </span></p> </blockquote> <p>That’s pro-social behavior and we can find examples of it happening every day — from our healthcare workers, to grocery workers, to delivery people, to the people who keep our towns and cities functioning. It’s going to be a rough road, but we are traveling it together.</p> <h3>🎶 Musical Smile 🎶</h3> <p>The way these twin brothers interact, full of confidence, fun and joy, reminds me so much of my own twin boys at that age! And what talent! Enjoy! (I hope someone speaks Italian and can put in the comments what the boys say!)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=c_q-Cr4h5yY" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/c_q-Cr4h5yY">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>😷 Fighting the Coronavirus 😷</h3> <p>These decontamination systems were given an expedited FDA approval Sunday night:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/30/823803831/technology-to-clean-and-reuse-ppe-is-being-deployed-to-hotspot-hospitals" target="_blank">Technology To Clean And Reuse PPE Is Being Deployed To Hotspot Hospitals</a>, Paige Pfleger, NPR News, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="PPEMN.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/783642/large/PPEMN.jpg?1585333305" title="PPEMN.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">"We're looking at the Battelle Critical Care Decontamination System that we've developed to be able to decontaminate PPE for health care workers on the front-line," says Will Richter, a researcher at the Columbus, Ohio-based company.</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:start">Hospitals around the country are starting to run low on personal protective equipment such as masks, gloves and goggles. The looming shortage puts health care workers in danger as they treat the influx of COVID-19 patients.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">The Critical Care Decontamination System is the first of its kind, capable of cleaning up to 80,000 pieces of PPE (personal protective equipment) at a time.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Battelle's system was designed to be modular so it can be easily shipped and scaled up — the more units in one area, the more rapidly they will be able to clean mass amounts of PPE and return them to where they're needed.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-27/abbott-launches-5-minute-covid-19-test-for-use-almost-anywhere" target="_blank">Abbott Launches 5-Minute Virus Test for Use Almost Anywhere</a>, Michelle Fay Cortez, Bloomberg News, March 27, 2020.</p> <p>This has already been reported in earlier GNRs but since it is also local news for me and it is so important in the current crisis, I am going to repeat it here. In case anyone missed an important point in this news — there are <em>already</em> 18,000 of the Abbott testing units out in the medical field (already in use for other types of testing) and this new coronavirus test can use the very familiar and popular equipment already in service:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>The medical-device maker plans to supply 50,000 tests a day starting April 1, said John Frels, vice president of research and development at Abbott Diagnostics. The molecular test looks for fragments of the coronavirus genome, which can quickly be detected when present at high levels. A thorough search to definitively rule out an infection can take<span> </span></span><span>up to</span><span><span> </span>13 minutes, he said. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The technology builds on Illinois-based Abbott’s ID Now platform, the most common point-of-care test currently available in the U.S., with more than 18,000 units spread across the country. It is widely used to detect influenza, strep throat and respiratory syncytial virus, a common bug that causes cold-like symptoms. ✄</span></p> <p><span>The equipment can be set up almost anywhere, but the company is working with its customers and the Trump administration to ensure the first cartridges used to perform the tests are sent to where they are most needed. They are targeting hospital emergency rooms, urgent-care clinics and doctors’ offices.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Some Good News Re Health Insurance</h4> <p>Until we fix our healthcare, we are still stuck with insurance. Here is great news for anyone who has one of these insurance providers:</p> <p><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/30/824075753/good-news-with-caveats-some-insurers-waive-costs-to-patients-for-covid-19-treatm" target="_blank">Some Insurers Waive Patients' Share Of Costs For COVID-19 Treatment</a>, Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR News, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Three major health insurance providers have now pledged to shield patients from high medical bills if they need treatment for COVID-19. Insurers<span> </span><a href="https://www.cigna.com/newsroom/news-releases/2020/cigna-waives-customer-cost-sharing-for-covid-19-treatment-and-deploys-clinical-teams-to-increase-virtual-care-capacity">Cigna</a><span> </span>and<span> </span><a href="https://humana.gcs-web.com/news-releases/news-release-details/humana-waive-medical-costs-related-coronavirus-treatment">Humana</a><span> </span>announced Monday that they would waive consumer costs associated with COVID-19 treatment. Last week, CVS Health<span> </span><a href="https://www.cvshealth.com/newsroom/press-releases/cvs-health-announces-cost-sharing-and-co-pay-waivers-covid-19-related-treatment-aetna">announced a more limited change — that Aetna</a><span> </span>would waive<span> </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/29/823438983/what-is-the-cost-of-covid-19-treatment">costs to patients for hospital admissions</a><span> </span>related to the coronavirus.</p> <p style="text-align:start">These announcements are a "big deal" says Sabrina Corlette, co-director of the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. She notes that, on average, people's deductibles for health policies in the U.S. run<span> </span><a href="https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2020/what-are-state-officials-doing-make-private-health-insurance-work-better-consumers-during">between $1,800 and $6,500</a>. "That's — for most families — a lot more cash than they have sitting in their bank account," she says. "So that's really scary."</p> <p style="text-align:start">All three insurers have now pledged to waive the patient's portion of a medical bill — what's called a patient's "<a href="https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/cost-sharing/">cost sharing</a>." That means, if your plan qualifies, you won't have to pay your full<span> </span><a href="https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/deductible/">deductible</a><span> </span>before insurance will take over, or have to pay the usual fixed amount for a medical service or treatment (the<span> </span><a href="https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/co-payment/">copayment</a>), or a percentage of the total bill (<a href="https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/co-insurance/">coinsurance</a>).</p> <p style="text-align:start">These insurers have also pledged to waive costs to patients for coronavirus testing and telemedicine visits related to COVID-19 and its symptoms.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Masks — To wear or not to wear?</h4> <p>If you, like me, have been a bit concerned about the conflicting advice about wearing masks (like <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/cdc-considering-recommending-general-public-wear-face-coverings-in-public/2020/03/30/6a3e495c-7280-11ea-87da-77a8136c1a6d_story.html" target="_blank">this story</a> claiming that the CDC would soon be recommending universal mask-wearing), the World Health Organization (WHO) came out early Tuesday reiterating its advice not to wear masks unless you are sick or looking after someone who is sick. This is a great relief to me and probably other people who don’t own any masks or a sewing machine and we all know it would be impossible to find any (and even if we could find them, obviously we would be donating them to hospital workers!):</p> <p><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/world/coronavirus-who-masks-recommendation-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">WHO stands by recommendation to not wear masks if you are not sick or not caring for someone who is sick</a>, Jacqueline Howard, CNN, March 31, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Public domain image, logo of the World Health Organization (WHO), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:World_Health_Organization_Logo.svg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/783550/large/World_Health_Organization_Logo.jpeg?1585321557" title="Public domain image, logo of the World Health Organization (WHO), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:World_Health_Organization_Logo.svg"> <figcaption>WHO — trusted global health authority since 1948</figcaption> </figure> "There is no specific evidence to suggest that the wearing of masks by the mass population has any potential benefit. In fact, there's some evidence to suggest the opposite in the misuse of wearing a mask properly or fitting it properly," Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO health emergencies program,<span> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1244637360706342917" target="_blank">said at a media briefing</a><span> </span>in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday.</div> <div></div> <div>"There also is the issue that we have a massive global shortage," Ryan said about masks and other medical supplies. "Right now the people most at risk from this virus are frontline health workers who are exposed to the virus every second of every day. The thought of them not having masks is horrific."</div> </blockquote> <h3>Locking Down Will Save Lives AND The Economy</h3> <p style="text-align:start">Dumpy’s impulsive and idiotic announcements have caused a lot of unnecessary angst over whether we should save peoples’ lives or save the economy — as if that were a binary choice. It turns out that it is not at all such a stark and cold-blooded situation at all, and we have historical data to back this up. This article appeared under “Opinion” in the WAPO, but it is well-sourced with studies and historical data:</p> <p style="text-align:start"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/saving-lives-in-the-pandemic-will-also-save-the-economy-in-the-long-run/2020/03/30/dffc211c-72c3-11ea-a9bd-9f8b593300d0_story.html" target="_blank">Saving lives in the pandemic will also save the economy in the long run</a>, Catherine Rampell, Washington Post Opinion, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start"><span>In a recent University of Chicago IGM Economic Experts Panel<span> </span></span><a href="http://www.igmchicago.org/surveys/policy-for-the-covid-19-crisis/">survey</a><span>, 80 percent agreed that “Abandoning severe lockdowns at a time when the likelihood of a resurgence in infections remains high will lead to greater total economic damage than sustaining the lockdowns to eliminate the resurgence risk.” Not a single economist surveyed disagreed with the statement; remaining respondents instead said they were “uncertain.”</span></p> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>A bipartisan group of high-profile economists and former economic policymakers likewise signed onto a recent<span> </span><a href="https://economicstrategygroup.org/resource/economic-strategy-group-statement-covid19/">letter</a><span> </span>reading in part: “Saving lives and saving the economy are not in conflict right now; we will hasten the return to robust economic activity by taking steps to stem the spread of the virus and save lives.”</p> </div> <div style="text-align:start"> <p>These conclusions are informed by both theoretical models and historical data.</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>My governor (who rocks) is getting ahead of any landlords planning to be ignorant bigoted assh*les:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;To landlords who lease to medical professionals:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;In other states, we&amp;#39;ve seen news stories about nurses being thrown out of apartments or denied leases out of fear of exposure.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;We haven&amp;#39;t yet specifically seen that here, but let me be clear, it will not be tolerated in Illinois.&lt;/p&gt;— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker/status/1244632998181572609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 30, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>To landlords who lease to medical professionals:<br><br>In other states, we've seen news stories about nurses being thrown out of apartments or denied leases out of fear of exposure.<br><br>We haven't yet specifically seen that here, but let me be clear, it will not be tolerated in Illinois.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovPritzker/status/1244632998181572609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4>d*mn virus doing what seemed impossible: spurring labor to fight for itself again</h4> <p>This is a complicated story. The workers who walked off were a small number led by Chris Smalls, who raised the alarm after sending a worker with covid-19 symptoms home. The walkout was not well-attended (which kind of dampens the labor good news aspect of this, BUT ->), and yet Amazon was clearly shook by it. Their statement tried to minimize the walkout while simultaneously praising their workers AND upping wages, overtime and sick leave. This is very good news because as awful as this coronavirus crisis is, one very good thing it is doing is revealing just who the real makers and doers are in our society. And that is very, very scary for the corner office class!</p> <p><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Business/people-afraid-amazon-warehouse-workers-york-walk-off/story?id=69871849&cid=clicksource_4380645_2_takeover_2_headlines_hed" target="_blank">Amazon warehouse workers in New York walk off the job; Instacart and Whole Foods employees to follow</a>, Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, March 30, 2020. </p> <blockquote> <p><span>A group of workers at an<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/amazon" target="_blank">Amazon</a><span><span> </span>warehouse in<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/alerts/new-york" target="_blank">New York</a><span><span> </span>City walked off the job and went on strike Monday afternoon, demanding the company shut down and thoroughly clean the sprawling facility after they say multiple employees there have tested positive for the<span> </span></span><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Business/people-afraid-amazon-warehouse-workers-york-walk-off/abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus">novel coronavirus</a><span>. ✄</span></p> <p><span>"We’re trying to get the building closed down and sanitized. That’s all we’re asking for," Smalls said. ✄</span></p> <p><span>"Of the 5,000 employees at our Staten Island site, 15 people -- less than a half a precent of associates -- participated in today's demonstration," Amazon's statement reads. "Our employees are heroes fighting for their communities and helping people get critical items they need in this crisis. ✄</span></p> <p>Amazon employees working in the grocery and delivery services have been classified as essential workers by government officials across the country.</p> <p>The company says it's upping hourly wages from $17.50 to $23 to workers at the Staten Island warehouse and paying double overtime to those who show up to work. The company is also offering extended leave to full-time employees who prefer to stay home during the crisis.</p> </blockquote> <h4>And people are beginning to explore their power in other ways, too:</h4> <p>'<a href="https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/v748py/we-were-out-of-options-chicago-tenants-are-refusing-to-pay-april-rent?utm_campaign=sharebutton" target="_blank">We Were Out of Options': Chicago Tenants Are Refusing to Pay April Rent</a>, Taylor Moore, Vice.com, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Illinois is one of many states that has temporarily<span> </span></span><a href="https://www2.illinois.gov/IISNews/21288-Gov._Pritzker_Stay_at_Home_Order.pdf" target="_blank">suspended</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>evictions. But landlords are still asking for their money, which for most tenants is due on Wednesday, the first of the month. And some renters are preparing to refuse: As of Sunday evening, 32 tenants across 13 buildings have called on their landlord,<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.macapartments.com/market/Chicago" target="_blank">Mac Properties</a><span style="text-align:start">. Otherwise, residents of the newly formed Mac Tenants United will go on<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/1095119727520048/" target="_blank">strike</a><span style="text-align:start">, withholding April rent payments on Wednesday, the first of the month. ✄</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">Mac is one of the biggest landlords in Hyde Park, a diverse, professional-class neighborhood on the South Side that’s home to the University of Chicago. Mac owns 32 properties in the area, housing everyone from students and professors to the elderly and young families in both mid-range and luxury accomodations.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Notably, Mac is owned by the private realty group Antheus Capital, which<span> </span><a href="https://www.hpherald.com/news/tenants-ask-mac-properties-to-cancel-april-rents-threaten-rent/article_8dee3d0a-6892-11ea-9e8f-d3163c106da0.html" target="_blank">profits off of gentrification</a><span> </span>in areas like Hyde Park, which is surrounded by poorer and historically discriminated-against Black neighborhoods. “We have been able to take advantage of early stage gentrification trends to acquire assets at significant discounts and reposition them to command above-market rents and long-term rental growth,” its<span> </span><a href="https://antheuscapital.com/Overview.html" target="_blank">website</a><span> </span>reads.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌱 Take a Break in Nature 🌱</h3> <p>Last week, <strong>snowball2015</strong> posted this snippet of very local good news and they inspired me to put a musical segment in today’s roundup. Quoting the lyrics from Handel’s opera Xerxes where King Xerxes waxes poetic about his beloved plane tree, I wanted to talk a bit about renewing the planet and how if we make a little effort, we can bring things like bee populations back — perhaps more quickly than we can imagine. </p> <div class="align-center"> <figure class="image-captioned"><img alt="ScreenShot2020-03-28at10.36.08AM.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/785516/large/ScreenShot2020-03-28at10.36.08AM.png?1585644434" title="ScreenShot2020-03-28at10.36.08AM.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> </div> <p>THEN, buglady99 posted this today and I was blown away. You will be too! It is such an exciting followup to the Great Green Wall story we have all read about here in GNR and in Mokurai’s sustainable planet diaries. And the bonus is that it dovetails beautifully with my music and poem because this is also about precious trees that give so much back to their ecosystems!</p> <p>This is ongoing good news and down in the Lightning RoundUp, you will find the other video that buglady99 posted yesterday, which is a longer viewing but so worth it. Just as jessiestaf reported yesterday the ozone layer is recovering thanks to global efforts begun 30 years ago, so we can renew the planet, renew deforested land and in the process solve many other problems facing humanity. Talk about good news!!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=4xls7K_xFBQ" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4xls7K_xFBQ">YouTube Video</a></div> <p><strong><em>King Xerxes’s Paean to the Plane Tree</em></strong></p> <p>Tender and beautiful fronds<br> of my beloved plane tree,<br> let Fate smile upon you.<br> May thunder, lightning, and storms<br> never disturb your dear peace,<br> nor may you by blowing winds be profaned.</p> <p>Never was a shade<br> of any plant<br> dearer and more lovely,<br> or more sweet.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=6O-j0NDsOoA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/6O-j0NDsOoA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>🏭🏥 Ordinary Folks Being Extraordinary 🏥🏭</h3> <p>Machinists making ventilators, transit workers keeping public transportation running, nurses holding down the front lines, and thousands of support workers are keeping hospitals, city public works, groceries and many other essential services operating in this crisis. They are literally holding the country together right now — regular, ordinary, amazing, extraordinary <strong><em>we, the people</em></strong>. Most of them never dreamed that one day they would be called to perform such vital service to their communities, and they are stepping up:</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/workers-unions-ventilators-coronavirus/" target="_blank">‘<strong>Just Keep Up the Faith</strong>’: Workers Are Stepping Up to Beat the Coronavirus</a>, John Nichols, the Nation, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span>(The prospect of the country running out of ventilators) has given Smedal and his fellow members of International Association of Machinists (IAM) union Local 1406 in Madison, Wisconsin, a sense of mission. “The term ‘this is a wartime situation’ has definitely flown around our plant quite a bit,” explains the 30-year-old, who has been pulling 12-hour shifts since February, without a day off. “We are not going to shut our doors. When everybody else is out there really stressing out about what’s going to happen in the future, we can’t really dwell on that—because we got to get this stuff done. We’ve got to show up every day, and get as many of these machines out to the people all over the world.”</span></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A heart made of flowers on the sidewalk in Portland, OR" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/782429/large/IMG_4509.jpg?1585089855" title="A heart made of flowers on the sidewalk in Portland, OR"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>The machinists union and the AFL-CIO have circulated a brief video of Smedal as part of an effort to highlight the role union workers have played in addressing the coronavirus outbreak. Looking into the camera,<span> </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/AFLCIO/status/1242452445986525190">he tells an anxious America</a><span>, “Just keep up the faith. I know that my coworkers, we’re going to show up every day and we’re going to get out as many as we can.” ✄</span></p> <p><span>The battle to get ahead of the coronavirus curve is so serious, and so demanding, that the list of working-class heroes grows with each passing day. Nurses and doctors are on the front lines. With them stand respiratory therapists, technicians, assistants, janitors, cooks, and all the other workers who are keeping hospitals going amid the overwhelming challenge that we are asking them to take on. The Senate’s “phase three” response to the pandemic<span> </span></span><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/489382-senate-white-house-reach-deal-on-massive-stimulus-package">includes $100 billion</a><span><span> </span>in funding for hospitals. That aid is critical. But there’s more, much more, to be done.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>GE workers demand to build ventilators</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-coronavirus-ge-workers-walk-out-demand-company-make-ventilators-20200330-byojakiezrcppdhbam7mbbgwr4-story.html" target="_blank">General Electric workers stage protest, demand company start producing ventilators</a>, David Matthews, New York Daily News, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="A picture taken on September 17, 2019 shows the logo of US giant General Electric, in Belfort, eastern France,. - About a hundred employees of General Electric in Belfort accompanied on September 17, 2019 the transport of a gas turbine from the site to show their expertise and emphasize that they do not intend to block the production. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP) (Photo credit should read SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images)" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/725448/large/GettyImages-1168792269.jpg?1570461908" title="A picture taken on September 17, 2019 shows the logo of US giant General Electric, in Belfort, eastern France,. - About a hundred employees of General Electric in Belfort accompanied on September 17, 2019 the transport of a gas turbine from the site to show their expertise and emphasize that they do not intend to block the production. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP) (Photo credit should read SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images)"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span>General Electric factory workers<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/y3mjxg/general-electric-workers-walk-off-the-job-demand-to-make-ventilators" target="_blank">protested</a><span><span> </span>Monday while demanding the company start manufacturing ventilators at its idle jet engine factories.</span></p> <p><span>Workers at an aviation factory in Lynn, Mass., as well as union members at GE’s Boston headquarters participated in the protest, according to Motherboard.</span></p> <p><span>GE recently announced it would lay off nearly 2,600 aviation workers and 50% of its maintenance workers in order to save money despite Congress recently passing a multi-trillion dollar corporate bailout that includes nearly $100 billion in relief and assistance for the aviation industry and defense contractors, like General Electric. ✄</span></p> <p><span>Union members believe that since GE’s Healthcare Division is already a large producer of ventilators, other idle factories could be quickly converted to produce the life-saving devices.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>Support for independent booksellers</h4> <p><a href="https://www.kgw.com/article/news/powells-books-rehires-over-100-employees-after-surge-of-online-orders/283-8bc0c8b1-df0a-47ed-be23-d379a9f65f93" target="_blank">Powell's Books rehires over 100 employees after surge of online orders</a>, KGW8 Portland, OR, March 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="TibetBooks.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/777840/large/TibetBooks.jpeg?1584223305" title="TibetBooks.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">Powell's Books announced on Friday that over 100 employees were working again to fulfill online orders from Powells.com.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Powell's CEO Emily Powell said in a community message "Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for your incredible and unwavering support. Your kind words, messages of encouragement, ideas for perseverance, and orders for books have taken our breath away."</p> <p style="text-align:start">Powell said that orders may be slow as they take the necessary precautions to keep everyone healthy.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Powell's also said that while they don't know what the future holds, they will keep fulfilling orders and keep their booksellers employed and on health insurance.</p> </blockquote> <h4><span>Good cop, good doc</span></h4> <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-trooper-s-roadside-gesture-during-traffic-stop-brings-doctor-to-tears/569200342/" target="_blank">Minnesota trooper's roadside gesture during traffic stop brings doctor to tears</a>, Paul Walsh, StarTribune, March 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="AAzlemr2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/784792/large/AAzlemr2.jpg?1585504581" title="AAzlemr2.jpg"> <figcaption>Photo apparently comes from Dr. Janjua’s Facebook post.</figcaption> </figure> <p>A state trooper pulled over a doctor for speeding on an east-central Minnesota interstate, told her she should know better and sent her on her way grateful for receiving only a warning and not a ticket.</p> <p>The trooper also gave her a fistful of coveted N95 medical masks that were issued for his protection from the deadly and relentless coronavirus that has swept the globe.</p> <p>"I burst into tears," Dr. Sarosh Ashraf Janjua, a Boston native and cardiologist, wrote in a detailed Facebook account of the traffic stop on March 21 along Interstate 35 in North Branch as she traveled from work in Duluth for time off in Minneapolis. "I think he teared up a little as well before wishing me well and walking away." ✄</p> <p><strong><span>"This complete stranger, who owed me nothing and is more on the front lines than I am, shared his precious masks with me, without my even asking," she wrote. "The veil of civilization may be thin, but not all that lies behind it is savage. We are going to be OK."</span></strong></p> </blockquote> <h4>And how about this Republican sheriff in Florida, eh?</h4> <p><a href="https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/river-at-tampa-bay-church-arrest-warrant-hillsborough-county-pastor-rodney-howard-brown/67-16b7919e-3cad-45e6-b0d2-c1c14725e976" target="_blank">Pastor arrested, accused of violating 'safer-at-home' order by holding Sunday services</a>, Chelsea Tatham and Eric Glasser, WTSP News Miami, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:start">Hillsborough County<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/10TampaBay/videos/212489703409176/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARDFirQpqEGZLGmu9excd3tSn6ME3d6J9o2ySJUjtNOGfYkM_gjVinqOHFiZPWijHNsHovpuzXtIC65k9E67wumY3EFXlXGwJm5qJ0Ml-jEVCoHlgBqo-h4aI62TwHyfrO8rSIo4YzRud1QEvzUQwoecDbrxK5CNPaFtGIR2iaGIqwZMktiyEalclT3MVnASq5B1GKrY30uMBMlzQNoxxzNEuJ3NAWv5ZlsnBDl8IQCXK9g5ylqGPS6O8DNS4KdUa5_rxrX05HHRZUjE_7E9PW2wgRNGC_VQTIV2wxZVRczwJJXqVcCDq6w9PJjdDaEg2v1iP4_H7Hh8o4f18e-S60MOoRhGgB3hR2U&__tn__=-R">Sheriff Chad Chronister said</a><span style="text-align:start"><span> </span>the River at Tampa Bay Church violated the county's order related to large gatherings and social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic. A live stream from the church on Sunday showed the building packed with worshippers.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">When Chronister saw images from a crowded Sunday service at the church posted online, he was furious.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“We received an anonymous tip that Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne refused a request to temporarily stop holding large gatherings at his church,” he said. “And instead, he was encouraging his large congregation to meet at his church.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Hours later, the sheriff along with Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren, filed a pair of charges against Howard-Browne, including unlawful assembly.</p> <p style="text-align:start">Chronister said it was a "reckless disregard for public safety."</p> </blockquote> <p>I decided to do a little digging to find out more about this sheriff to understand how he came to do this sensible thing, being a Republican and all. It turns out that his story is pretty interesting but my eyes bugged and my jaw hit the floor when I came across this little tidbit from February (looks like Sheriff Chronister didn’t catch that wink and nod from his “non-political” supporter, Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne — whoops!):</p> <blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.tampabay.com/news/hillsborough/2020/02/19/hillsborough-sheriff-chad-chronister-finally-files-for-re-election/" target="_blank">Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister finally files for re-election</a>, William March, Tampa Bay Times, February 19, 2020.</p> <p><span>He’s not ignoring Republicans. The River at Tampa Bay Church, a large evangelical church with ties to the Hillsborough County Republican Party, honored Chronister with a Sheriff Appreciation Day last month, billed as non-political support for law enforcement.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>⭐️ Stars Step Up Too ⭐️</h3> <p><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/reading-rainbow-host-levar-burton-coronavirus-reading-time-livestream-folks-diversion-1494877" target="_blank">'READING RAINBOW' HOST LEVAR BURTON WANTS TO HOST A CORONAVIRUS READING TIME LIVESTREAM FOR 'FOLKS WHO COULD USE SOME DIVERSION'</a>, Aristos Georgiou, Newsweek, March 29, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Entry to the children's area in the downtown Kansas City, Missouri, public library. The stairs look like books lying on their sides, and the walls look like the spines of books on a bookshelf." src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/672227/large/P1410487.jpg?1556932295" title="Entry to the children's area in the downtown Kansas City, Missouri, public library. The stairs look like books lying on their sides, and the walls look like the spines of books on a bookshelf."> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p><span style="text-align:start">"In order to avoid legal complications, I've gone down the rabbit hole searching through volumes of short stories in the public domain for appropriate content for families and have come up empty," he wrote.</span></p> <p style="text-align:start">However, several social media users stepped in to help, either by granting Burton permission to read out their works or providing him with other useful resources.</p> <p style="text-align:start">For example, English short fiction writer Neil Gaiman wrote on Twitter, "You have my blanket permission for any of my stories Levar."</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">Meanwhile, HarperCollins said that online readings of the publisher's Children's Books titles will be permitted until May 31.</span></p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/john-krasinksi-s-some-good-news-show-inspires-people-share-n1172021" target="_blank">John Krasinski's 'Some Good News' show inspires people to share uplifting stories</a>, Gwen Aviles, NBC, March 30, 2020. (Here’s the link to <a href="https://youtu.be/F5pgG1M_h_U" target="_blank">Some Good News</a>.)</p> <blockquote> <p>Amid a deluge of updates regarding how the global pandemic is disrupting daily life, the "Jack Ryan" actor asked his Twitter followers Wednesday to share some positive stories that "made you feel good this week or just made you smile." He then compiled some of the thousands of responses in a video, posted to YouTube Sunday.</p> <p>"For years now, I've been wondering, why is there not a news show dedicated entirely to good news?" Krasinski, dressed as a news anchor, said. "Well, desperately seeking my fix somewhere else, I reached out to all of you this week, asking — nay, begging — for some good news. And boy, did you deliver." ✄</p> <p><span>In honor of the 15th anniversary of NBC's "The Office," Krasinski invited his former co-star Steve Carell on "Some Good News." The two shared some of their favorite memories of the show, which included the "Dinner Party" and "Fun Run" episodes. While Krasinski acknowledged that some fans have been "hoping for a reunion," he said he hopes the cast will be able to connect in person "as people, just to say hi" after the coronavirus pandemic ends.</span></p> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 What the world needs now is...LOVE 🎶</h3> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=QagzdvzzHBQ" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QagzdvzzHBQ" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>⚖ Justice News ⚖</h3> <h4>still mueller time</h4> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/03/doj-turns-over-full-mueller-report-to-judge-who-will-rule-on-lifting-william-barrs-redactions/" target="_blank">DOJ turns over full Mueller report to judge who will rule on lifting William Barr’s redactions</a>, David Edwards, Raw Story, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>The Department of Justice on Monday turned over an unredacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report on the Russia investigation to a federal judge.</p> <p>U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton of the District of Columbia has pledge to conduct an independent review of the redactions after he<span> </span><a href="https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2020/03/05/federal-judge-questions-william-barrs-credibility-in-rollout-of-mueller-report/?cmp=share_twitter" target="_blank">questioned the impartiality of Attorney General William Barr</a>.</p> <p><span>“The court has grave concerns about the objectivity of the process that preceded the public release of the redacted version of the Mueller Report and its impacts on the department’s subsequent justifications that its redactions of the Mueller Report are authorized by the FOIA,” Walton wrote in a ruling earlier this month.</span></p> </blockquote> <h4>abortion ban blocked</h4> <p>Several Republican-controlled states have predictably used the coronavirus crisis to try to ban abortion, among them Texas, Iowa, Ohio and Oklahoma. A ruling Monday in Texas has thankfully upheld a woman’s right to reproductive freedom:</p> <p><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/texas-blasts-lawsuit-over-ban-on-abortions-during-outbreak/" target="_blank">Federal Judge Blocks Texas Ban on Abortions During Outbreak</a>, David Lee, Courthouse News, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Planned Parenthood saved me banner graphic" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/346895/large/PPSavedMe_lg.png?1483727906" title="Planned Parenthood saved me banner graphic"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p style="text-align:start">AUSTIN, Texas (CN) – A federal judge on Monday blocked Texas’ temporary halt of abortions to conserve personal protective equipment and hospital beds for the Covid-19 pandemic patient surge, calling it a violation of abortion patients’ due process rights.</p> <p style="text-align:start">U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel in Austin, a George W. Bush appointee,<span> </span><a href="http://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/texas-abortion-ruling.pdf">granted</a><span> </span>Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas’ request for a temporary restraining order against Governor Greg Abbott’s March 21 executive order, concluding abortion patients would “suffer serious and irreparable harm” without it. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start"><span style="text-align:start">“This court will not speculate on whether the Supreme Court included a silent ‘except-in-a-national-emergency-clause’ in its previous writings on the issue,” the judge wrote. “Only the Supreme Court may restrict the breadth of its rulings. The court will not predict what the Supreme Court will do if this case reaches that court. For now, the state defendants, and perhaps the others, agree that the executive order bans all pre-fetal-viability abortions. That is inconsistent with Supreme Court precedent.”</span></p> </blockquote> <p>(Update: More good news: Ohio has also been stopped from using the pandemic to ban abortion. <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/federal-judges-block-coronavirus-abortion-bans.html" target="_blank">Federal Judges Block Texas and Ohio Coronavirus Abortion Bans</a>, Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, March 30, 2020.)</p> <p>(Update 2: And now Alabama has been stopped as well! <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/politics/texas-order-abortion-block-coronavirus/index.html" target="_blank">Federal judges in 3 states block orders limiting abortion access over coronavirus</a>, Caroline Kelly, CNN, March 30, 2020.</p> <h4>Insider trading investigation</h4> <p>I’ll leave this here with little comment — except to say it looks like the GOP has it in for Richard Burr. </p> <p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-justice-department-investigates-lawmakers-who-dumped-stock-cnn-2020-3" target="_blank">The Justice Department is reportedly investigating actions by US lawmakers who dumped stocks before the market plunged over coronavirus fears</a>, Sonam Sheth, Business Insider, March 30, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><span style="text-align:left">The investigation is still in its early stages, and the report said the DOJ is working with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the matter. As part of the probe, the FBI has reached out to North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr, who dumped up to $1.72 million in stocks before the market tanked. ✄</span></p> <p><span style="text-align:left">Burr is the chairman of the powerful Senate Intelligence Committee, which has access to the federal government's most classified and sensitive information. According to Reuters, Burr's committee was getting daily briefings on the threat of the coronavirus around the time he dumped his stock. But a source familiar with the matter told CNN his committee did not get a briefing the week he sold his stocks.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>When we take back control of the Senate and White House next January, we will investigate <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/sen-kelly-loeffler-dumped-millions-in-stock-after-coronavirus-briefing" target="_blank">Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA)</a> and all the rest of the Republican grifters and criminals, too.</p> <h3>⛅️ We Will Rebuild A Better World After This Crisis ⛅️</h3> <p>We are living through a turbulent time — one which history will record as hugely important and pivotal. There is not one corner of human life that will not be impacted by this crisis, and the cascading effects will be phenomenal. Economy, employment, healthcare, housing, environment — everything is going to feel the impact. It will not be an easy time and yet I am excited at the potential for positive change. The crisis has ripped the flimsy veil off our bloated and bubbly first world image and revealed the complicated and challenging reality underneath. Since the crisis is forcing us to do what even the deepening horror of the past 3 years could not, there will be a chance to start fresh having been forced to essentially shut everything down and reset.</p> <p>No one can deny anymore that we are all interconnected and interdependent. No one can doubt the value of manufacturing workers, healthcare workers, street and sanitation workers, grocery and food supply chain workers. These are the people who actually keep the country running and without whom we could not continue as a functioning society.</p> <p>No one can continue to argue in good faith that our “health system” is working for anyone (not even the rich!) as the for-profit, <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/j/jit.asp" target="_blank">just in time</a> business model — not just our consumer supply chains but even for medicine — is failing in the face of a long-predicted pandemic. Maybe cutting costs and offshoring our manufacturing is <em>not</em> the smartest approach nor the highest priority we should have as a country. Maybe it makes sense to trim profits a bit and keep some manufacturing capacity stateside as part of a plan for any future global crisis?</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Trump is a moment of clarity. He embodies and make transparent so many of America&amp;#39;s worst and most dangerous flaws.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;He&amp;#39;s like a Rosetta Stone that helps translates our history and reveals the truth of what American myth has hidden. We have to seek that truth.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;20/&lt;/p&gt;— Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JYSexton/status/1244289470393987072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 29, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Trump is a moment of clarity. He embodies and make transparent so many of America's worst and most dangerous flaws.<br><br>He's like a Rosetta Stone that helps translates our history and reveals the truth of what American myth has hidden. We have to seek that truth.<br><br>20/</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) <a href="https://twitter.com/JYSexton/status/1244289470393987072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>The peoples’ view of the world — how it works, who is important and what our own work is worth — is going to undergo a profound shift and nothing will ever be the same again. For many of us, that shift began years ago and intensified after Dumpy was elected. For others, the light only began to dawn with the election of Dumpy. As Jared Yates Sexton writes in the tweet above, the election of the malignant mango-faced monster clarified the reality for many — and the coronavirus has ripped away the last tattered remnants of collective delusion.</p> <figure class="image-captioned width-lg align-right"><img alt="Blue-Wave_Slow-Mo_1_.gif" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/597639/large/Blue-Wave_Slow-Mo_1_.gif?1538969782" title="Blue-Wave_Slow-Mo_1_.gif"> <figcaption>It’s coming! Get ready to ride it and GOTV!</figcaption> </figure> <p>Yes, I know the MAGAts will continue to delude themselves, will continue to support Dumpy and Rs and continue to hate so hard that they will hurt themselves in order to hurt “others” worse. These people will always be with us. They have always been a part of the human population. But they are a minority. 30-35% at most. We are the majority — progressive love and truth-loving people who want the best for all Americans. This crisis will mobilize us like never before (and that’s saying something after 2018!). We will crawl over glass and through fire to vote in November and after November we will be demanding progress. Progressives in “red state” America will be doing the same, you can count on it! We may see some surprising results in November, and I am confident that we will see a big blue wave.</p> <p>(As always, remember that even in so-called “red” states, 30-49% of those populations are progressive, Democratic voters! Not only are we the majority in the country, but even in the most regressive states, there are an impressive number of Democrats.)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=iuHVHC48nYA" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/iuHVHC48nYA">YouTube Video</a></div> <h3>⚡️ Lightning RoundUp <strong>⚡️</strong></h3> <p>⚡️ Excellent diary (thanks Mrmuni12): <a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/3/29/1932324/-Accept-That-Everything-You-Understand-About-the-World-Will-Fundamentally-Change" target="_blank">Accept that Everything You Understand About the World Will Fundamentally Change</a>, bonddad, DailyKos, March 29, 2020.</p> <p><strong>⚡️ </strong>We need to get a grip on this reality in order to fight effectively for democracy: <a href="https://terikanefield-blog.com/no-the-entire-gop-is-not-being-blackmailed/" target="_blank">NO, THE ENTIRE GOP IS NOT BEING BLACKMAILED</a>, Teri Kanefield, blog, March 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ These people must be prevented from holding positions of influence in the public sphere: <a href="https://conversationalist.org/2020/03/27/authoritarian-christians-are-deliberately-undermining-the-public-health-response-to-coronavirus/" target="_blank">Authoritarian Christians are deliberately undermining the public health response to coronavirus</a>, Chrissy Stroop, the Conversationalist, March 27, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ My city: doing physical distancing right! <a href="https://www.npr.org/local/309/2020/03/27/822531756/p-h-o-t-o-s-this-is-what-chicago-looks-like-without-people-everywhere" target="_blank">PHOTOS: This Is What Chicago Looks Like Without People Everywhere</a>, NPR News, March 30, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ For your quarantine movie night 🎥: <a href="https://www.upworthy.com/5-movies-for-different-coronavirus-moods" target="_blank">5 perfect movies for addressing big moods people are feeling during the outbreak</a>, John SIngh, Upworthy.com, March 30, 2020.</p> <p><strong>⚡️ </strong>This video will restore your hope and faith in humanity (thanks buglady99): <a href="https://youtu.be/IDgDWbQtlKI" target="_blank">Regreening the Planet with John D. Liu</a> P.S. John Liu is from Nashville TN! A reminder that there are lots of progressives in “red” states and it’s time to throw away that divisive us/them shorthand once and for all.</p> <p>⚡️ More quarantine fun: <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cooped-up-at-home-help-scientists-spot-penguins-from-space-or-seek-out-galaxies/" target="_blank">Cooped Up at Home? Help Scientists Spot Penguins from Space or Seek Out Galaxies</a>, Meghan Bartels, Space.com via Scientific American, March 30, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ But wait! There’s more quarantine fun! <a href="https://www.mommynearest.com/article/20-indoor-activities-to-keep-kids-busy-during-the-coronavirus-crisis" target="_blank">20 Indoor Activities to Keep Kids Busy During the Coronavirus Crisis</a>, MommyNearest, March 11, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Late addition, thanks Andrew Cockburn!: <a href="https://www.bakadesuyo.com/2020/03/pandemic/" target="_blank">This is the Most Fun Way to Make Your Life Awesome (Pandemic Edition)</a></p> <h4>PSA: Fill out your census forms!</h4> <p>Tomorrow is April 1. If you haven’t already gone online to fill out your census form, do it today!</p> <p>(Thanks to WineRev for pointing to these hilarious Quarantine Kitchen videos!)</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=sPGrvymxFnk" data-frameborder="0" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/sPGrvymxFnk">YouTube Video</a></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="23070d47334edc85b76e8c92fa258062.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/784869/large/23070d47334edc85b76e8c92fa258062.jpg?1585513664" title="23070d47334edc85b76e8c92fa258062.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p><strong>Good News: You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</strong></p> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— currently organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms! This is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at<span> </span><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities.</span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span><span> </span>so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over.</span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our<span> </span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>,<span> </span><a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one.</span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together.</span></p> </blockquote> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>💚 RoundUp WindDown 💙</h3> <p>Around this time last year, I invited everyone to mention a bit of good news from their own community. With so much going on around us — and so much cause for anxiety — it is more than a mere nicety to share local good news. Rather, it is proof that goodness is all around us, good people who share our values are everywhere. It’s important to be reminded of this fact every day, if possible, because there are terrible people out there who are working hard to convince us that we are outnumbered by vicious racists. It isn’t true. There are some out there, but they are not nearly as numerous as the campaigns of disinformation might lead us to believe. The truth doesn’t matter if the malign campaign can succeed psychologically. They will damage us as if it were true, if they can make us believe it. So we must fight back against such psychological warfare and one way to do that is to remind ourselves every day of the truth about our communities.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="black poodle dog kissing her owner" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/785509/large/IMG_5929.jpg?1585638917"> <figcaption>Together we will get through these challenging times!<br> In truth and love, Nifty and Curlygirly</figcaption> </figure> <p>We must amplify and share the reality that every single day in every single community around the country — and around the world — decent human beings are doing good, decent things. This is what will save us; there are MORE people who are not in thrall to authoritarianism than who are. And this majority will survive the pandemic and then we will make the world a bit better. Dr. Janjua (the doc in the cop story above) crystalizes this simple truth: <span><strong><em>"I have to say, illogical as it may seem," she said, "I have also worried a little less about my parents since I met Trooper Schwartz. I know there are good people like him everywhere."</em></strong> . </span></p> <p><span>I’m going to start a thread under the welcome comment today (early posters, please give me a couple of minutes this morning to get it posted before commenting, thank you!). I would like to invite you to drop a piece of local good news as replies to my comment starting the thread. I promise you there is good news every day in your community and the few minutes it takes you to search for it will restore your faith in humanity. When you share it with the rest of us, you help paint a portrait of the truth about our human community, and that will restore all of us. </span></p> <blockquote> <p><span>”The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.” <em>Winston Churchill</em></span></p> </blockquote> <p><span>There are thousands of Trooper Schwartzes and there are thousands of Dr Janjuas and there are millions of other good, decent pro-society human beings all around us. Together we are going to survive the pandemic and then we are going to beat back authoritarianism and bring in a better, more humane society that will work better for all the people.</span></p> <p><span>Let’s finish up with the original artists’ rendition of the song the two delightful boys in Italy performed for us. It could be a cautionary tale for a few oligarchs we know… 😉… and to all of us: Viva La Vida!</span></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=dvgZkm1xWPE" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/dvgZkm1xWPE" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Coronavirus Covid-19 GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice localgoodnews Love Politics Recommended Truth _1931702 Tue, 31 Mar 2020 11:00:04 +0000 Physical Distance and Social Connection: Good News Roundup - Top o' the Mornin' Edition https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/3/17/1927484/-Physical-Distance-and-Social-Connection-Good-News-Roundup-Top-o-the-Mornin-Edition <h2 class="AlignCenter">🍀 Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Gnusies! 🍀</h2> <p>What a year this week has been so far, huh? </p> <p>I cannot tell you a lie, I had a struggle to get this GNR up and rolling yesterday. There is so much horrendous news right now, it’s almost impossible to absorb. My state is shutting down bit by bit (thanks for your leadership, Gov. Pritzker) and people are outwardly calm but still clearing the grocery shelves of oddly specific items. I hear this from my daughter. I am self-isolating due to low white blood cell count (still recovering from cancer treatment) and tbh all I wanted to do yesterday was snuggle with the curlygirly. I was desultorily surfing the web when I came across this:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;My great grandparents had to leave everything they knew and come to America with nothing, I can Netflix and &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlattenTheCurve?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#FlattenTheCurve&lt;/a&gt; for a couple weeks.&lt;/p&gt;— Molly Jong-Fast🏡 (@MollyJongFast) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MollyJongFast/status/1239701758303178754?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 16, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>My great grandparents had to leave everything they knew and come to America with nothing, I can Netflix and <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlattenTheCurve?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlattenTheCurve</a> for a couple weeks.</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Molly Jong-FastÃ°ÂŸÂÂ¡ (@MollyJongFast) <a href="https://twitter.com/MollyJongFast/status/1239701758303178754?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p>Well, shit. Molly is right and lying around in a funk is not helping anyone or anything! So, I decided to look around to see how people who are self-isolated can usefully spend the enforced downtime. And for those who are going to be working at regular jobs from home, or caring for children and/or elders, some of these suggestions might be helpful for whenever you are able to eke out some down time.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Sweet-faced blue poodle dog wearing a green boy rests her head on someone" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/778817/large/IMG_5858.jpg?1584430312"> <figcaption>(sigh) Mama and I are stuck inside and I am bored!</figcaption> </figure> <p>The number one thing to do is — if you can manage it at all — stay home as much as possible. If you are of working age, and can work from home, hooray! Do it! If you have a job that must be done at a work site, then practice physical distance with your co-workers, clients, etc. Wash your hands frequently and avoid touching your face and make it a point to go straight home after work. No restaurants, pubs or gyms, sorry. It stinks, but it’s important. I understand that walks in fresh air (while keeping physical distance from other people — so not walking on a crowded downtown street) such as a walk in a park or in a quiet neighborhood is OK and will definitely boost your spirits.</p> <p>The curlygirl and I have taken a walk each day since I started curtailing my activities and I keep to the quieter streets, avoid the park and try to get a mile or two in. Normally we would walk closer to 4 miles per day and spend a half hour at the dog park having a brisk fetch session, but that is out for at least another couple of weeks. The dog park is small and often crowded. This will be super hard on my girl, as she has a stupendous prey drive which she needs to express through fetch. We are making it up by playing a little in the hallway outside my apartment. </p> <p>Anyway, I am grateful because I have a place to live and I have water, food and entertainment, plus books. I know how lucky I am. And I am thankful that Democrats in congress are working hard to pass a bill to provide relief to millions of Americans who are going to be hit hard by this crisis. </p> <p>Meanwhile, everyone is going to feel the weight of the anxiety and weariness of enduring such leaderless chaos. Our mental health is as important as our physical health, so I’m going to open with some expert advice on how to manage the situation and in particular if you have to self-isolate. Then, I found a bunch of good news about free and very cool things to do! After we sort all of that out, I’ve got other newsy good news for you, so grab a beverage and settle in. 😊</p> <p><a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2020/03/15/coronavirus-stay-home-hel-america-save-lives-column/5054241002/" target="_blank">The best thing everyday Americans can do to fight coronavirus? #StayHome, save lives</a>, 16 National Health Care Leaders, USA Today, March 15, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p><strong>STAY AT HOME</strong><span> as much as possible. It may be in your community now or it may be soon. Until you hear otherwise from health care officials, even if you have no symptoms. That means avoiding play dates, sleepovers, bars, restaurants, parties or houses of worship. Avoid all crowds.’</span></p> <p><strong>What can you do instead?</strong></p> <p>You can still take walks outside, shop for essentials and enjoy your online community of friends.</p> <p>Stay connected in other ways. Check in on your loved ones and friends frequently.</p> <p>Keep informed about what is happening in your neighborhood.</p> <p>Give to people in need in your community: supplies for food pantries, financial donations, personal hygiene items.</p> <p>Buy online gift certificates to your favorite local stores and restaurants — and use them when this is over.</p> <p>Be a neat freak. Keep everything as clean as possible.</p> <p>Wash your hands. Early, often, thoroughly.</p> <p>If you’re going to spread anything, spread help, compassion and humor.</p> <p>Above all, do not panic. Remember: Like all outbreaks, this too will eventually end.</p> <p>If you’ve been infected and recovered already, you are highly likely to be immune. If so, you can serve your community in public spaces where others can’t.</p> </blockquote> <h4>Maintaining Mental health</h4> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/coronavirus-required-quarantines-social-distancing-aren-t-easy-when-you-ncna1157336" target="_blank">The coronavirus-required quarantines and social distancing aren't easy when you live alone</a>, F. DIane Barth, NBC Opinion/Think, March 15, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>In their book "<a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.amazon.co.uk/Connected-Surprising-Power-Social-Networks/dp/0316036145__;!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!8nDJ6dtP_YI-pHUhGVdhIUWrHj913OYZSzDkNxJ0AeCcgFSq52BoLlKql0IMYKn2bnmQ%24" target="_blank">Connected: The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives</a>," scientists Nicholas A. Christakis and James H. Fowler share research about the power of social connections to affect how we feel, think and act. When we’re forced to be away from the important — albeit perhaps unrecognized — social interactions at work, it’s crucial to find other ways to fill the need for connection.</p> <p>For example, though it's all but gone out of fashion, talking to other people, whether on the telephone or via video conferencing, can both fill in for normal social interactions and break the cycle of focusing on the bad news, while using the same technology that connects you to colleagues and work.</p> <p>Further, you can use the need for social distancing as an opportunity to reach out to people you have wanted to get to know better, either socially and/or for business. Many people are going to be in the same boat as you, looking for positive ways to connect to people while limiting physical contact; you can look into newly virtual classes, online movie- or television-watching parties or,<span> </span><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/9334291/italy-coronavirus-flash-mob__;!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!8nDJ6dtP_YI-pHUhGVdhIUWrHj913OYZSzDkNxJ0AeCcgFSq52BoLlKql0IMYKyDYv5v%24" target="_blank">like the Italians</a>, try to<span> </span><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/videos/quarantined-italy-neighbours-sing-in-siena-streets/__;!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!8nDJ6dtP_YI-pHUhGVdhIUWrHj913OYZSzDkNxJ0AeCcgFSq52BoLlKql0IMYHFAbovt%24" target="_blank">organize or participate in a "Sound Flashmob"</a><span> </span>of music lovers.</p> <p>Similarly,<span> </span><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/exercising-to-relax__;!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!4P2rYuPjlX-fs3vqDRH8DeQljZQeRH8o37RY-VDnqXKWsKLd2Pajbgx62Sq7Nbwum-rh%24">research</a><span> </span>has shown that exercise is effective in lowering stress, in part because it both lowers stress hormones and raises the<span> </span><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.webmd.com/depression/guide/exercise-depression*1__;Iw!!PIZeeW5wscynRQ!4P2rYuPjlX-fs3vqDRH8DeQljZQeRH8o37RY-VDnqXKWsKLd2Pajbgx62Sq7NUqpu5dQ%24">endorphins or “feel good” chemicals</a><span> </span>in your body. And, it has also long been a way of connecting. A client, for instance, told me that she was staying away from her yoga studio, but that she desperately missed the few minutes of social contact before and after class. She decided to solve the problem by doing online yoga with a buddy. “We’re at our own homes, but we open up the app and start the class at the same time; and then we talk for a few minutes when it’s over, just like we would do when we were at a class.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>Catch up on some glorious opera (did you see this, pr0gressivist?)</h4> <p>I adore these Met HD performances and have seen several in local theaters over the years. You don’t just see the opera (and like a movie with different camera angles and close ups, so you can really see everything) but also backstage as they get the sets ready and interviews with the performers and conductors and others, too! It’s really fun and interesting even if you’re not a big fan (yet! 😏). It sounds like they are going to show many (all ?) from the archive in a nightly series! See them <a href="https://www.metopera.org/" target="_blank">here</a>! </p> <p>Last night’s performance was <em>Carmen</em> (I’ve included a sizzling clip below) and it will continue to be available until 3:30 ET today. I took my (then teenaged) boys to see this Carmen in HD in 2010 and believe it or not, I actually had a moment or two wondering if it was too steamy for their impressionable eyes! 😂 Tonight, the performance being streamed will be <em>La Boheme</em>, which is also outstanding.</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;General Manager Peter Gelb announced today that in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the cancellation of performances, the Met will offer a nightly series of free web streams that will bring opera to audiences while the house is dark—beginning March 16 at 7:30PM ET. &lt;a href="https://t.co/M6QkDSelON"&gt;pic.twitter.com/M6QkDSelON&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Metropolitan Opera (@MetOpera) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MetOpera/status/1238607921069600769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 13, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>General Manager Peter Gelb announced today that in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the cancellation of performances, the Met will offer a nightly series of free web streams that will bring opera to audiences while the house is darkÃ¢Â€Â”beginning March 16 at 7:30PM ET. <a href="https://t.co/M6QkDSelON">pic.twitter.com/M6QkDSelON</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Metropolitan Opera (@MetOpera) <a href="https://twitter.com/MetOpera/status/1238607921069600769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <h4>Take a FREE Ivy League college course! <u>Really</u>!</h4> <p>This is so cool! And it’s not limited to just during the current crisis! </p> <p><a href="https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/ivy-league-free-online-courses-a0d7ae675869/" target="_blank">Here are 450 Ivy League courses you can take online right now for free</a>, Dhawal Shah, freecodecamp.org, January 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">These Ivy League schools are also highly selective and extremely hard to get into. But the good news is that all these universities now offer free online courses across multiple<span> </span><a href="https://www.classcentral.com/">online course</a><span> </span>platforms.</p> <p style="text-align:start">So far, they’ve created over 500 courses, of which around 450 are still active.<span> </span><a href="https://www.classcentral.com/">Class Central</a><span> </span>has made a collection of all these, which you can explore below. I’ve split these courses into the following categories:</p> <ul> <li>Computer Science</li> <li>Data Science</li> <li>Programming</li> <li>Humanities</li> <li>Business</li> <li>Art & Design</li> <li>Science</li> <li>Social Sciences</li> <li>Health & Medicine</li> <li>Engineering</li> <li>Mathematics</li> <li>Education & Teaching</li> <li>and Personal Development</li> </ul> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 Date Night Opera 🎶</h3> <p>Speaking of the Met HD shows. Check out this little number from their 2010 series. If you thought opera was maybe stuffy or — gasp! — unrelatable, this <em>Carmen</em> might make you think twice!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=K2snTkaD64U" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/K2snTkaD64U">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3>A Global Effort to Fight the Pandemic</h3> <p>There’s some good news about the effort to fight the new coronavirus:</p> <h4>🇺🇸 Seattle WA, USA 🇺🇸</h4> <p><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/us-begins-first-human-trial-coronavirus-vaccine-192501652.html" target="_blank">US begins first human trial of coronavirus vaccine</a>, Issam Ahmed, AFP via Yahoo News, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="outbreak-coronavirus-world-480x236px.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/777741/large/outbreak-coronavirus-world-480x236px.jpg?1584216844" title="outbreak-coronavirus-world-480x236px.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Washington (AFP) - The first human trial to evaluate a candidate vaccine against the new coronavirus has begun in Seattle, US health officials said Monday, raising hopes in the global fight against the disease.</p> <p>But it may be another year to 18 months before it becomes available, once it has passed more trial phases to prove it works and is safe.</p> <p>The vaccine is called mRNA-1273 and was developed by US National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists and collaborators at biotechnology company Moderna, which is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.</p> <p>"The open-label trial will enroll 45 healthy adult volunteers ages 18 to 55 years over approximately 6 weeks," the NIH said. "The first participant received the investigational vaccine today."</p> </blockquote> <h4>🇮🇹 Italy 🇮🇹</h4> <p>In other very good news, the emergency is forcing people to think outside the box because as always necessity is the mother of invention. (I can’t help myself, sorry. It was a twofer!) In this case, shortages of valves for ventilators in Italy necessitated a search for new solutions — particularly as the manufacturer refused to produce more and threatened the hospital if they tried to get them elsewhere! — and resourceful people came up with one. Not only do they have a working valve ready to test, but they designed and produced it within 6 hours <em>and</em> at a fraction of the cost of the old ones! Check out this poorly-translated article:</p> <p><a href="https://it.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-manca-la-valvola-per-uno-strumento-di-rianimazione-e-noi-la-stampiamo-in-3d-accade-nellospedale-di-chiari-brescia/" target="_blank">Coronavirus, a valve for resuscitators is missing in Brescia: engineers and physicists print it in 3D in six hours</a>, Andrea Sparachiari, Business Insider (Italy), March 14, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <p>«<span> </span><em>He and his collaborators went to the hospital in Chiari yesterday morning</em><span> </span>(Friday, ed)<span> </span><em>and after<span> </span><strong>asking the manufacturer for the 3D files</strong><span> </span>to print them and having<span> </span><strong>received a negative remarry</strong><span> </span>- indeed they also received<span> </span><strong>threats of complaint</strong><span> </span>for patent infringement - the piece was<span> </span><strong>measured, dimensioned, redesigned, then 3D printed</strong><span> </span>with three techniques (FDM, SLS; SLA).<span> </span>At this moment<span> </span><strong>the valve is in the testing phase.<span> </span>They are all very optimistic</strong><span> </span>and hope to give good news within the day ...</em><span> </span>», Temporelli explains to Business Insider Italia.</p> <p>From when Temporelli received the call from the reporter to when the piece was ready,<span> </span><strong>just over six hours</strong><span> </span>had passed<span> </span><strong>.<span> </span></strong>A science fiction thing in an Italy blocked by quarantine.</p> <p>«<span> </span><em>Of course we are now in the testing phase</em><span> </span>», underlines Temporelli, «<span> </span><em>and surely it is<span> </span><strong>an uncertified piece, but we had no alternative!<span> </span></strong>The emergency was buffered thanks to technology and on Monday we will know if the new valve works perfectly ".<span> </span>The</em><span> </span>oreover, he adds,<span> </span><em>"the<span> </span><strong>cost of the part is about 1 euro, compared to the original that costs $ 10,000,</strong><span> </span>which is still not available</em><span> </span>."</p> <p>To make it even more extraordinary, the fact that<span> </span><strong>if the new valve proves to be fully functional, given the impossibility of finding the spare part on the market, «<span> </span><em>we could spread the file in the network of labs around Italy</em></strong><em><span> </span>and solve any problems similar that are imposing themselves in other hospitals</em><span> </span>», Temporelli says.</p> </blockquote> <p>Another silver lining that may come out of this crisis is that there will be another opportunity to realign our priorities as a society, not only about providing health care for everyone as a basic human right, but also regarding allowing medical care and the manufacturing of medically necessary products to be treated like any other consumer product, ie. as a for profit “business”.</p> <p>The underpinning argument of “free markets” presumes that there is freedom on both sides of the supply and demand equation: freedom of suppliers to set prices and/or limit supply to exert pressure to benefit themselves and freedom of consumers to take demand elsewhere (competition/”free” market) or simply withhold demand to exert pressure to benefit themselves. This is, of course, a flawed theory when it comes to several basic needs of humans, and medical care is one. People can’t withhold demand for medical care or shop around when they land in an ER with acute Covid-19. Health care is in no way a “free market” scenario and this pandemic will make that crystal clear to the conservative holdouts. Hopefully, this crisis will spark a wave of improvements across the board. I am hopeful.</p> <div class="table-wrapper"> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td valign="top"> <h3>💵 Economic Good News 💵</h3> <p>Believe it or not, there is some good news even in the midst of this economic shitshow. Utility companies around the country are not going to shut off utilities like electricity, gas and water for failure to pay during the ongoing crisis. Several credit cards, cell phone and internet providers are likewise offering customers some breaks:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/corporate-america-steps-help-missed-payments-late-fees-disconnections-n1161076" target="_blank">Corporate America steps up to help with missed payments, late fees and disconnections</a>, Leticia Miranda, NBC News, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Lightbulb-Shot.jpeg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/396586/large/Lightbulb-Shot.jpeg?1493833969" title="Lightbulb-Shot.jpeg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>More than 100 municipal water and utility companies across 34 states said they won't shut off water service for late payments in response to the coronavirus outbreak, according to data collected by Food & Water Action, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C.</p> <div></div> <p>Utility companies from Duke Energy in North Carolina to regional utility companies in California have all suspended shut-offs for nonpayment as the virus continues to disrupt daily life. New York's Con Edison said it will forgo shut-offs "involving customers having payment difficulties" as the state faces "the enormous challenges presented by the coronavirus."</p> </blockquote> <p>Locally, our natural gas provider, Nicor, is also stepping up:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nicorgas.com/company/press-room/nicor-gas-provides-energy-assistance-resources.html" target="_blank">Nicor Gas Provides Energy Assistance Resources</a>, March 14, 2020:</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">In recognition that the evolving landscape surrounding the new coronavirus (COVID-19) may cause financial hardship for its customers impacted by employment changes or business slowdown, Nicor Gas voluntarily has suspended service disconnections for non-payment, effective immediately for both residential and commercial customers through May 1.</p> <p style="text-align:start">“As our communities face increasing challenges caused by the fallout of COVID-19, we know they will need our support,” said Melvin D. Williams, president of Nicor Gas. “We’re going to do our part by ensuring that every family and company in our community has the fuel they need to continue heating their homes, cooking their food, taking warm showers and running their businesses.”</p> <p style="text-align:start">Nicor Gas also wants to remind customers of energy assistance options available to support those impacted by the COVID-19 emergency. </p> </blockquote> <p>And weirdly enough, there will be some new jobs to offset some of the lost ones:</p> <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-says-it-will-hire-100000-people-to-deal-with-coronavirus-induced-online-shopping/" target="_blank">Amazon to hire 100,000 people to handle coronavirus-induced online shopping</a>, CBS News, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>Amazon is looking to hire 100,000 people across the U.S. to keep up with a crush of online orders as the<span> </span><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/coronavirus" target="_blank">coronavirus spreads</a><span> </span>and keeps more people at home, shopping online.</p> <p>The online retailer said it will also temporarily raise pay by $2 an hour through the end of April for hourly employees, who work at its warehouses, delivery centers and Whole Foods grocery stores. Hourly workers in the United Kingdom and other European countries will get a similar raise.</p> </blockquote> <h3>🌍 Other World News 🌎</h3> <p><strong>Israel: Good-bye Bibi, hello Benny?</strong> As the Knesset considered three bills targeting Benjamin Netanyahu today, secret meetings between Likud and Blue and White resulted in Benny Gantz receiving official invitation to form the new Israeli government, <em>not Bibi</em>. This is bad news for Netanyahu and good news for those who want to see him prosecuted for his crimes and corruption. It’s not a done deal, as Gantz must still succeed in forming a government and of course there are other corrupt people in the government allied with Bibi, but the meetings Monday are a very hopeful sign! </p> <p><a href="https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Gantz-arrives-at-Presidents-House-to-receive-mandate-to-form-govt-621147" target="_blank">Secret Likud, Blue and White meeting raises unity hopes</a>, Gil Hoffman, Jerusalem Post, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <div style="text-align:start"> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Flag_of_Israel.png" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/694246/large/Flag_of_Israel.png?1562625529" title="Flag_of_Israel.png"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> Negotiations between Likud and Blue and White on a national-unity government began in earnest on Monday with a secret meeting that raised optimism an agreement between the two sides could be reached to end the political stalemate.</div> <div style="text-align:start"></div> <div style="text-align:start">The meeting took place in the morning before Blue and White leader Benny Gantz officially received the mandate to form a government from President Reuven Rivlin at the President's Residence in Jerusalem. That the meeting was not publicized and there were no briefings afterward was seen as a sign of progress. ✄</div> <div style="text-align:start"></div> <div style="text-align:start"> <div style="text-align:start">In accepting the mandate, Gantz vowed that within a few days he would "do everything to form a patriotic national government that would be as broad as possible – in a matter of days, as few days as possible." He said the government would serve people who voted for Blue and White, people who voted for Likud and people who voted for every other party, both Right and Left."</div> <div style="text-align:start"></div> <div style="text-align:start">Gantz promised to "protect the interests of the people of Judea and Samaria, along with the interests of Israel’s Arab citizens, of the people of Israel’s social and geographic periphery and the people of central Israel."</div> </div> </blockquote> <h3>🎶 More Carmen? Yah, sure! 😉 🎶</h3> <p>I first heard this about 30 years ago and it still cracks me up! Enjoy!</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=U-bzuWXvd-I" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/U-bzuWXvd-I">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <h3> 👺 Narcissist’s Gonna Narc 👺</h3> <p>As the pressure increases, and his utter failure in every way becomes increasingly discussed in public, Dumpy the malignant narcissist is not going to react well. As I wrote last year, people with Narcissistic Personality Disorder do not care about <em>any</em> other people and as hard as it is for most people to believe, that includes his own relatives including his children. Jared Kushner’s appeal to Dumpy was simply that he saw him as a fellow con artist. However, as the re-election prospects dim, Dumpy will never accept responsibility for his own failures; he will seek scapegoats. First it was various administration sycophants and now it is Jared. Mark my words, he will throw even his own kids, including Ivanka, under the bus. Funny thing is, he might need to watch out, because a few of them (ahem JK and IT) seem to be as psychopathic as Dumpy, just without the pathetic narcissistic need for approval and adulation. In other words, one or two of them might throw <em>him</em> under the bus.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Jared-Kushner_Dead-Shark-Eyes_2.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/737760/large/Jared-Kushner_Dead-Shark-Eyes_2.jpg?1573622358" title="Jared-Kushner_Dead-Shark-Eyes_2.jpg"> <figcaption>This creep isn’t any better than Dumpy. <br> That’s probably why Dumpy “trusted” him for so long.</figcaption> </figure> <p>None of that is good, but there is good news in here if you think about it. Dumpy raging at Jared means that the inner circle is beginning to wobble. Most Narcissists have self-sabotaged well before they reach Dumpy’s age, but in certain circumstances (enormous privilege and unearned wealth to bail him out of his constant failures), they can avoid it for longer. Ultimately, though, a malignant narcissist destroys everyone around him because he not only does not care one iota for any other living being, but his disorder makes him incapable to resisting his various pathological behaviors, even if to do so would be to his benefit. </p> <p>The wheels are coming off the trump train and that is good news:</p> <p><a href="https://www.rawstory.com/2020/03/trump-is-livid-at-jared-kushner-over-the-inept-and-flat-footed-coronavirus-response-report/" target="_blank">Trump is livid at Jared Kushner over the ‘inept and flat-footed’ coronavirus response</a>: report, Bob Brigham, Raw Story, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p>President Donald Trump has lost faith in his son-and-law and senior advisor, according to a<span> </span><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/03/trump-awakens-to-the-covid-19-danger" target="_blank">bombshell new report</a><span> </span>by Gabriel Sherman in<span> </span><em>Vanity Fair</em>.</p> <p>“With the markets in free fall despite emergency action by the Fed over the weekend, Trump is waking up to the reality that’s been clear to everyone: Coronavirus poses a once-in-a-hundred-years threat to the country,”<span> </span><em>Vanity Fair</em><span> </span>reported. “As Trump processes the stakes facing the country—and his presidency—he’s also lashing out at advisers, whom he blames for the White House’s inept and flat-footed response. Sources say a principal target of his anger is Jared Kushner.”</p> </blockquote> <h4>I think I know why 45 Finally Woke up to the covid-19 reality</h4> <p>Yes, you know what’s coming. Naturally, he only changed his tune when the outbreak affected him personally:</p> <p><a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/03/16/trumps-mar-a-lago-club-closed-for-deep-cleaning-after-coronavirus-cases-confirmed-among-visitors/" target="_blank">Trump's Mar-a-Lago club closed for deep cleaning after coronavirus cases confirmed among visitors</a>, Matthew Rozsa, Salon, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's Florida resort, closed for a deep cleaning Monday after multiple cases of coronavirus were confirmed among individuals who recently visited the Palm Beach club.</p> <p style="text-align:start">With the exception of its beach club, the entire "Winter White House" closed <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/16/politics/mar-a-lago-deep-clean-coronavirus/index.html">so the cleaning could be performed</a>, according to CNN. The extreme measure was taken after a number of people who visited the president's club tested positive for COVID-19, including the press secretary for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil's chargé d'affaires in Washington and one of the 900 people who attended a Trump Victory fundraiser brunch March 8. The president gave a speech and participated in a photo line with roughly 70 to 100 people during that event.</p> </blockquote> <h3>💚 Regular People Being Great 💚</h3> <p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51915723" target="_blank">Coronavirus: Kind Canadians start 'caremongering' trend</a>, Tom Gerken, BBC, March 16, 2020.</p> <blockquote> <p style="text-align:start">Just a few days ago, the word "caremongering" did not exist. Yet just three days later what started as a way to help vulnerable people in Toronto has turned into a movement spreading fast across Canada.</p> <p style="text-align:start">More than 35 Facebook groups have been set up in 72 hours to serve communities in places including Ottawa, Halifax and Annapolis County in Nova Scotia, with more than 30,000 members between them. ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">The first "caremongering" group was set up by Mita Hans with the help of Valentina Harper and others. Valentina explained the meaning behind the name.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"Scaremongering is a big problem," she tells the BBC. "We wanted to switch that around and get people to connect on a positive level, to connect with each other.</p> <p style="text-align:start">"It's spread the opposite of panic in people, brought out community and camaraderie, and allowed us to tackle the needs of those who are at-risk all the time - now more than ever." ✄</p> <p style="text-align:start">Paul Viennau, who joined the caremongering group in Halifax, said that the help he received through the trend felt "like a hug".</p> <p style="text-align:start">"There's a lot of negative things about social media," he tells the BBC. "It's a place that can make you feel isolated normally. This is an opportunity to people to reach out and help each other.</p> </blockquote> <p>And I am so glad this went viral. This guy gets it — and we all need to remember who really keeps our communities running:</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;I’m a garbageman, I can’t work from home and my job is an essential city service that must get done. It’s a tough job, from getting up pre-dawn to the physical toll it takes on my body to the monotonous nature of the job, at times it’s hard to keep on going.&lt;br&gt;Thread 1/3&lt;/p&gt;— Jester D (@JustMeTurtle) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JustMeTurtle/status/1238682500085338112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 14, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>IÃ¢Â€Â™m a garbageman, I canÃ¢Â€Â™t work from home and my job is an essential city service that must get done. ItÃ¢Â€Â™s a tough job, from getting up pre-dawn to the physical toll it takes on my body to the monotonous nature of the job, at times itÃ¢Â€Â™s hard to keep on going.<br>Thread 1/3</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Jester D (@JustMeTurtle) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustMeTurtle/status/1238682500085338112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Us garbagemen are gonna keep collecting the garbage, doctors and nurses are gonna keep doctoring and nurse-ering. It’s gonna be ok, we’re gonna make it be ok. I love my city. I love my country. I love my planet Earth. Be good to each other and we’ll get through this. 💕&lt;/p&gt;— Jester D (@JustMeTurtle) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/JustMeTurtle/status/1238682510579478528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 14, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Us garbagemen are gonna keep collecting the garbage, doctors and nurses are gonna keep doctoring and nurse-ering. ItÃ¢Â€Â™s gonna be ok, weÃ¢Â€Â™re gonna make it be ok. I love my city. I love my country. I love my planet Earth. Be good to each other and weÃ¢Â€Â™ll get through this. Ã°ÂŸÂ’Â•</p>Ã¢Â€Â” Jester D (@JustMeTurtle) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustMeTurtle/status/1238682510579478528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h3>⚡️ Lightning Roundup ⚡️</h3> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </div> <p>⚡️ Yer weekly: <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/wonkette-recommendations-for-stay-the-f-ck-at-home-starting-with-stay-the-f-ck-at-home" target="_blank">Wonkette Recommendations For STAY THE F*CK AT HOME, Starting With STAY THE F*CK AT HOME!</a> Evan Hurst, Wonkette, March 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Mail-In ballots: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/16/heres-how-guarantee-coronavirus-wont-disrupt-our-elections/" target="_blank">Here’s how to guarantee coronavirus won’t disrupt our elections</a>, Amy Klobachar and Ron Wyden, Washington Post Opinion, March 16, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Reupping this from Goody’s Saturday GNR: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/peter-wehner-trump-presidency-over/607969/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share&fbclid=IwAR2vzBf6OUPPH8JpPR79qoWXKtMwKnLAIcckBw2C0eu2A2XJ5byN1VdW_QE" target="_blank">The Trump Presidency Is Over</a>, Peter Wehner, The Atlantic, March 13, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Truly helpful tips here: <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/15/815549926/8-tips-to-make-working-from-home-work-for-you" target="_blank">8 Tips To Make Working From Home</a>, Work For You, Yuki Noguchi, NPR, March 15, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Also helpful: <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/14/811609026/the-new-coronavirus-can-live-on-surfaces-for-2-3-days-heres-how-to-clean-them" target="_blank">The New Coronavirus Can Live On Surfaces For 2-3 Days — Here's How To Clean Them</a>, Allison Aubrey, NPR, March 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Useful, easy to understand explainer: <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/world/corona-simulator/?itid=hp_hp-top-table-main_virus-simulator520pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans" target="_blank">Why outbreaks like coronavirus spread exponentially, and how to “flatten the curve”</a>, Harry Stevens, Washington Post, March 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Humans are resilient and fun! <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/15/814540484/no-touch-greetings-take-off-people-are-getting-creative-about-saying-hi" target="_blank">No-Touch Greetings Take Off: People Are Getting Creative About Saying 'Hi'</a>, Allison Aubrey, NPR, March 15, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️H/T to jessiestaf; this is savage and true: <a href="https://www.salon.com/2020/03/14/we-need-to-quarantine-donald-trump-hes-confused-ignorant-and-afraid/" target="_blank">We need to quarantine Donald Trump: He's confused, ignorant and afraid</a>, Lucian K. Truscott lV, Salon, March 14, 2020.</p> <p>⚡️ Sober but necessary look at how we got here: <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/what-coronavirus-pandemic-says-about-society/" target="_blank">Panic, Pandemic, and the Body Politic</a>, Laurie Penny, Wired <em>Ideas</em>, March 14, 2020.</p> <h3>🔗 Helpful Links 🔗</h3> <p>Here’s a bunch of links to help you stay involved at home:</p> <p><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/" target="_blank">Act Blue</a><span> </span>— fundraising for Democratic candidates in one easy site.</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="letterstovoters.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/601475/large/letterstovoters.jpg?1539959529" title="letterstovoters.jpg"> <figcaption>Letters to voters!</figcaption> </figure> <p><a href="https://votefwd.org/" target="_blank">Vote Forward</a><span> </span>— currently organizing an effort to encourage voter registration, including providing addressees with voter registration forms! This is one of several “do it at home” projects through which many of us can really make a difference. Voter to voter initiatives have a track record of increasing voter turnout. The Vote Forward letter system is ideal for those who want to contribute but can’t write too much. The letter templates are provided and all you do is put in a line or two of your own and make sure the letters get to the voters on your list!</p> <p><a href="https://postcardstovoters.org/" target="_blank">Postcards to Voters</a><span> </span>— Our own gnusie, Progressive Muse posts most days with information about PtV and updates on current campaigns and progress. This is the ideal “do it at home” contribution especially suited to those who enjoy getting a little creative and connecting with fellow voters around the country.</p> <p><a href="https://fairfight.com/" target="_blank">Fair Fight</a><span> </span>— Stacey Abrams’ initiative which has already made a difference in several elections! Find out how you can help out at this link.</p> <p><a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a><span> </span>— wonderful organization which works hard to help eligible voters obtain valid ID so they can register and vote.</p> <p>From Kat at <a href="https://www.spreadthevote.org/" target="_blank">Spread the Vote</a>:</p> <blockquote> <p><span>There are a few ways you can help from home (please stay home!!!!!):</span></p> <ol> <li><span>Buy an item or two from our <a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a963974578&e=72dd1b360f"><span>AMAZON WISH LIST</span></a>. These items are going to our partners on the ground (shelters, food banks, etc.) who are still serving our clients and communities. </span></li> <li><span><a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=a0aff54672&e=72dd1b360f"><span>Donate to Spread The Vote</span></a></span><span> so that we can keep working today and, most importantly, have the funds we need to hit the ground running when this crisis is over. </span></li> <li><span>If you live in one of our <a href="https://spreadthevote.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=dee9b9360cc56dafec6b74883&id=37f5fe3e9b&e=72dd1b360f"><span>12 states</span></a>, <a href="mailto:jennifer@spreadthevote.org?subject=I%20want%20to%20volunteer!%20"><span>sign up to volunteer</span></a>! We’ll be hosting regular training sessions and we’re moving up our bi-annual Volunteer Virtual Summit so that everyone is ready to go on day one. </span></li> <li><span>If you don’t live in one of our states, follow us at @spreadthevoteus on all of the social media channels and help spread the word about how this pandemic is affecting the most vulnerable people in the country.</span></li> </ol> <p><span>I can’t thank you enough for always standing by us and I really really beg you to please stay home, #flattenthecurve, and watch as much Netflix as humanly possible. We will get through this together. </span></p> </blockquote> <p>You can still help save the world in self-isolation!</p> <p>And finally, for one-stop all-purpose voter information:</p> <p><a href="https://www.vote.org/" target="_blank">Everything you need to know to vote</a><span> </span>— This site covers everything any eligible voter needs to know, from how to register, how to check that you are still registered, how to obtain an absentee ballot and what to do if your right to vote is challenged or you are stopped from voting.</p> <h3>🎶 That’s Why They Called Him the King of the High C’s 🎶</h3> <p>I leave you with this exuberant and joyous performance by Luciano Pavarotti singing Ah! Mes Amis (<em>from</em> La Fille du Régiment, G. Donizetti):</p> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content">x</div> <div class="dk-editor-embed embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9 center-block"> <div class="remove-embed-content"><a class="new_iframe_placeholder" href="#">x</a></div> <a class="iframe_placeholder youtube dk-embed" href="//youtube.com/watch?v=ASXYB_TQjpc" data-frameborder="0" data-height="281" data-src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ASXYB_TQjpc" data-width="500">YouTube Video</a></div> </div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <h4 class="AlignCenter">🍀 Happy Tuesday and Happy St. Patrick’s Day, mes amis! 🍀</h4> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Coronavirus Covid-19 GoodNews Goodnewsroundup MentalHealth Opera Recommended Self-Isolation _1927484 Tue, 17 Mar 2020 11:00:20 +0000 Steve Bullock Poised to Run for Senate! https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/3/4/1924351/-Steve-Bullock-Poised-to-Run-for-Senate <p class="is-empty-p"></p> <div class="dk-editor-embed center-block" data-twitter-content='&lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;&lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;HUGE NEWS: Steve Bullock (D) poised to run for the SENATE in Montana, a state that would otherwise be completely off the table. The implications of his decision to run cannot be overstated-- and may very well signal the end of McConnell&amp;#39;s reign.&lt;a href="https://t.co/q6pCaoSr7T"&gt;https://t.co/q6pCaoSr7T&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/briantylercohen/status/1235307291806703618?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;March 4, 2020&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;'><div class="remove-embed-content">x</div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>HUGE NEWS: Steve Bullock (D) poised to run for the SENATE in Montana, a state that would otherwise be completely off the table. The implications of his decision to run cannot be overstated-- and may very well signal the end of McConnell's reign.<a href="https://t.co/q6pCaoSr7T">https://t.co/q6pCaoSr7T</a></p>Ã¢Â€Â” Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) <a href="https://twitter.com/briantylercohen/status/1235307291806703618?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2020</a></blockquote></div> <p class="is-empty-p"></p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Election2020 SteveBullock _1924351 Wed, 04 Mar 2020 20:55:44 +0000 We may not be lions, but it falls to us to give the lion's roar- Good News Roundup, Sunday Edition ☀ https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/3/1/1921760/-We-may-not-be-lions-but-it-falls-to-us-to-give-the-lion-s-roar-Good-News-Roundup-Sunday-Edition <p>Good Day, Good Newsies! Happy Sunday! Hang on to your hats because there’s a ton of good news to savor this March 1. Plus! A roundup of this week’s roundups. But wait, there’s more! Surprising science! Music! Inspiring videos and quotations. Grab your beverages and let’s jump in!</p> <p><em><strong>“I was not the lion, but it fell to me to give the lion's roar.”</strong></em> attributed to Winston Churchill</p> <figure class="image-captioned align-right"><img alt="Roaring-lion-beautiful-images-desktop-fullscreen-wallpapers.jpg" src="https://images.dailykos.com/images/195750/large/Roaring-lion-beautiful-images-desktop-fullscreen-wallpapers.jpg?1454020020" title="Roaring-lion-beautiful-images-desktop-fullscreen-wallpapers.jpg"> <figcaption></figcaption> </figure> <p>Goody featured Winston Churchill in Saturday’s Good News Roundup and wow, you know I think there are few people in history who managed to use language more powerfully to inspire people in difficult times. Goody’s roundup was so effective yesterday — both her writing AND the Churchill quotes were balm to this slightly weary heart — that I’ve decided to continue that bracing, invigorating theme today. On this first day of March, I felt that paraphrasing the above quote (attributed to Churchill) was an appropriate way to title this GNR.</p> <p>Whether March is coming in like a lion or a lamb where you live, I think politically, socially and economically there’s no doubt it’s stormy out there. The thing is, though, the forces arrayed against justice and progress are incompetent. Even the wealthy and powerful oligarchs — though intimidating — are incompetent because they just don’t get it. Their business model of government is a failure, their belief that all people operate selfishly like they do is mistaken, their confidence that they can control millions of people with their BS smoke and mirrors inflation of their actual support through bot armies and social media amplification is utterly and totally going down to defeat this year. <em>We are on to them.</em> We are on to the con.</p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) Community Coronavirus COVID19 EnvironementalNews Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup lions March Music Recommended _1921760 Sun, 01 Mar 2020 12:00:05 +0000 E Pluribus Unum and United We Will Stand - Good News Roundup for February 18 https://www.dailykos.com/story/2020/2/18/1917953/-E-Pluribus-Unum-and-United-We-Will-Stand-Good-News-Roundup-for-February-18 <p>Good Morning!</p> <p>You may have noticed how amped up the “We’re doomed!” messaging has become lately and I am here to tell you: don’t get sucked into it! Yes, there is serious stuff going on, but there is also an all-out psychological war of hopelessness going on that seeks to rob us of the ability to fight back. Do not let disinformation and panic-mongering defeat you!</p> <p>Searching for the good news is exhausting right now, not because there is so little out there, but because it is obscured by the piles of BS that are being dumped with increasing volume and urgency. Every news outlet one opens is plastered with horrific headlines, seemingly written to create maximum anxiety. It’s partly because media is largely owned by plutocrats who support Republicans, but there is also the spillover effect of relentless disinformation, agitation and psychological warfare saturating social media from which even honest journalists are not immune. None of us are.</p> rss@dailykos.com (niftywriter) barr Bezos Community Corruption Environment giuliani Gnusies GoodNews Goodnewsroundup Justice Recommended _1917953 Tue, 18 Feb 2020 12:00:14 +0000