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Category: Politics

  • California Voters Approve Democratic-drawn Congressional Map as National Redistricting Battle Spreads

    California Voters Approve Democratic-drawn Congressional Map as National Redistricting Battle Spreads

    California voters have approved a new congressional map drawn by state Democrats on November 4. This gives the party the chance to gain up to five House seats in the 2026 midterm elections and counter Republican redistricting efforts in other states. The approval of the ballot measure, known as Proposition 50 or the Election Rigging Response Act, allows California Democrats to temporarily circumvent the independent commission that typically controls the redistricting process and enact a more partisan map. The green light from voters will help Democrats limit, but not eliminate, the political disadvantage they face in the 2026 elections after Republicans in several states, most notably Texas, redrew maps this year to boost their party.

    In Texas, the Republicans hope to gain an additional five House seats under new district lines. Republicans in Missouri and North Carolina have passed maps designed to net the party a new seat in each state. A mandatory redraw in Ohio could also benefit Republicans. President Donald Trump has continued to push Republican-led states like Indiana and Kansas to help shore up the party’s narrow House majority. While some Democratic governors and lawmakers are trying to redraw their maps as well, they face additional legal and procedural hurdles that are present in red states because many of them ceded the power to redistrict in recent years to independent or bipartisan commissions.

    California Governor Gavin Newsom pushed hard for the Democrats’ redistricting plan, accusing Trump and Republicans of “rigging” the midterm elections with their unusual decision to redraw congressional maps for explicit partisan gain outside the regular decennial cycle linked to the census. The flurry of ads blanketing the state in support of the measure underscored that point. “Donald Trump is out of control, imposing illegal tariffs that hurt our economy and denying disaster aid to California families. Now he’s attempting an unprecedented power grab to steal congressional seats and rig the 2026 election. But we can stop him,” a narrator says in one of the major ads from a group supporting a yes vote on Prop 50. “Prop 50, the Election Rigging Response Act, thwarts Trump’s scheme. Prop 50 levels the playing field in the midterms and gives voters the power to check Trump.” There has been almost $100 million in contributions and ad spending in the race, according to campaign finance reports and data from AdImpact, a political ad tracker.

    Declaring victory on November 4, California Governor Gavin Newsom framed the result as part of a strong night for Democrats across the board and a blow to President Donald Trump. “What a night for the Democratic Party, a party that’s in its ascendency, a party that’s on its toes, no longer on its heels. From coast to coast, from sea to shining sea,” Newsom said. “We’re proud here in California to be part of this narrative this evening. We’re proud of the work that the people of California did tonight to send a powerful message to a historic president. Donald Trump is an historic president; he is the most historically unpopular president in modern history.”

    While Republicans began saber-rattling and promised to go toe-to-toe with the Democratic efforts, the energy and spending for the campaign to defeat the ballot initiative fizzled down the stretch. The two sides were in rough parity on spending on the airwaves in the first month after the election was announced, $16 million to $17 million on either side. Then the yes side spent $63 million on ads in the final six weeks, compared with less than $16 million from the no side. The intensity of the no side’s spending waned in the final weeks, but it had prominent backers, including former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican. “California voters established an independent commission led by citizens to stop rigged elections. Prop 50 cancels this historic reform, putting the politicians back in charge,” the narrator says in an ad featuring Schwarzenegger calling on voters to cast no votes to “protect” democracy.

    California already sends 43 Democrats and nine Republicans to Congress, but multiple nonpartisan analyses of the new maps show that the new lines could allow Democrats to flip as many as five seats by making it harder for Republican Congressmen Doug LaMalfa, Darrell Issa, Ken Calvert, Kevin Kiley, and David Valadao to win re-election. The outcome is far from certain, and most of those Republican lawmakers have won tough races before, but redrawing the lines to add more Democratic voters in their districts will make it tough sledding next fall, especially because the party in power typically faces political headwinds in the midterms.

  • Zohran Mamdani Wins New York City Mayoral Election

    Zohran Mamdani Wins New York City Mayoral Election

    Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York on November 4, capping a stunning ascent for the 34-year-old, Democratic Socialist-aligned state lawmaker who promised to transform city government to restore power to the working class and fight back against a hostile Trump administration. In a victory for the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, Mamdani defeated former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. With his commanding win, Mamdani will etch his place in history as the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage, and the first born in Africa. He will also become New York’s youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on January 1, 2026. “The conventional wisdom would tell you that I am far from the perfect candidate. I am young, despite my best efforts to grow older. I am Muslim. I am a democratic socialist. And most damning of all, I refuse to apologize for any of this,” Mamdani declared to a roaring crowd at his victory party. He cast his win as a boon for blue-collar workers struggling to get by. “New York, tonight you have delivered a mandate for change,” he said, vowing to “wake up each morning with a singular purpose: To make this city better for you than it was the day before.”

    More than 2 million New Yorkers cast ballots in the contest, the largest turnout in a mayoral race since the 1969 Mayoral Election, which pitted incumbent Liberal Republican John Lindsay against Democrat Mario Procaccino and Conservative Party candidate John Marchi. With roughly 90% of the votes counted, Mamdani held an approximately 9 percentage point lead over Andrew Cuomo. His unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party. He has already faced scrutiny from national Republicans, including President Donald Trump, who have eagerly cast him as a threat and the face the Democratic Party. Trump has repeatedly threatened to cut federal funding to the city and even take it over if Mamdani won.

    Zohran Mamdani’s grassroots campaign centered on affordability, and his charisma spoiled former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s attempted political comeback. The former governor, who resigned four years ago following allegations of sexual harassment that he continues to deny, was dogged by his past throughout the race and was criticized for running a negative campaign. Mamdani will also have to deal with President Donald Trump, who not only threatened retribution against the city but also suggested he might try to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won. Mamdani was born in Uganda, where he spent his early childhood, but was raised in New York City and became a US citizen in 2018. In his speech, Mamdani addressed Trump head on. “New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants and as of tonight, led by an immigrant,” he said, adding that, “If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him.” President Trump appeared to acknowledge Mamdani’s challenges, posting “…AND SO IT BEGINS!” on his Truth Social site.

    Zohran Mamdani began his campaign as a relatively obscure state lawmaker, little known even within New York City. Going into the Democratic primary, Andrew Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed federal corruption case. But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos, and populist economic platform energized voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name recognition grew. Mamdani trounced Cuomo in the primary by about 13 points.

    Andrew Cuomo then relaunched his campaign as an independent candidate for the general election, vowing to hit the streets with a more energetic approach. However, much of his campaign continued to focus on attacking opponents. In the race’s final stretch, he claimed Zohran Mamdani’s election would make Jews feel unsafe. Meanwhile, supporters packed Mamdani’s rallies, and he held whimsical events, including a scavenger hunt and a community soccer tournament. Cuomo also juxtaposed his deep experience in government with Mamdani’s less than five years in the state Legislature. But the former governor also faced his own political baggage, as his opponents dredged up the sexual harassment allegations that led to his resignation, as well as his decisions during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, also had his moments, mostly in the form of funny quips on the debate stage, but had difficulty gaining traction as a Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic city. He conceded the race about a half hour after the polls closed, wishing Zohran Mamdani “good luck because if he does well, we do well.” But he also issued a warning: “If you try to implement socialism, if you try to render our police weak and impotent, if you forsake the people’s public safety, we will become the mayor-elect and his supporters’ worst enemies.”

  • Mikie Sherrill Wins New Jersey Governor’s Race in Decisive Victory Over Jack Ciattarelli

    Mikie Sherrill Wins New Jersey Governor’s Race in Decisive Victory Over Jack Ciattarelli

    Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic candidate for governor of New Jersey, catapulted to victory on November 4 on the strength of her opposition to President Dona;d Trump after a hard-fought race against Jack Ciattarelli, a Republican whose energetic campaign could not outrun national politics in a liberal-leaning state. Congresswoman Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot and federal prosecutor, will become New Jersey’s 57th governor and its second female leader. She was leading Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker running his third race for governor, by a resounding 13 points with more than 95 percent of the vote counted, according to a tally by The Associated Press.

    “Good government doesn’t just manage problems, it solves them,” Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill told supporters gathered in East Brunswick for a victory party. “I know not everyone voted for me,” she added, “but I’m working for everyone — every single one of you.” She said Jack Ciattarelli called her soon after the results were announced, and she recognized him for “stepping up.” Ciattarelli, in a brief concession speech, told his supporters that “life is not always fair.” “Nobody is more disappointed than I am in the result,” he said. “It is my hope that Mikie Sherrill has heard us, in terms of what needs to be done to make New Jersey that place where everybody wants to be to achieve their dreams again.” The race was largely defined by President Donald Trump, who made surprising inroads last November in New Jersey and who had endorsed Jack Ciattarelli. But in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans by roughly 850,000 voters, the alliance always carried risk.

    Senator Cory Booker predicted that Mike Sherrill’s win would ripple far beyond New Jersey. “The whole nation will see,” said Booker, the state’s senior senator, “that we can’t stop the momentum.” Governor-elect Sherrill will now have to at least coexist with the president, who has shown a willingness to punish his foes. That was an argument President Donald Trump raised in the final weeks of the campaign, in a telephone rally he held for Jack Ciattarelli. “He’s got a friend in the White House,” the President said during the call, “where she certainly doesn’t.”

    Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill has pledged to freeze the state’s high electricity costs by declaring a state of emergency on her first day in office in January. She plans to get cellphones out of classrooms and hire more mental health counselors for schools. Using data gathered through a new “social media addiction observatory,” she has said, her administration will take on digital platforms that use algorithms to lure in children and teenagers.

    In the 2021 campaign, Jack Ciattarelli lost by three points to Governor Phil Murphy, a Democrat barred by term limits from running for re-election. He tried hard during this race to capitalize on the stunning gains President Donald Trump made in Black and Latino communities, campaigning aggressively in churches and at cultural events. Ciattarelli develped a reputation as a moderate Republican during his time on the Somerset County board of Freeholders (2007-2011) and in the New Jersey General Assembly (2012-2018), and until this campaign he had kept President Trump at arm’s length. But after the president’s stronger-than-expected showing last year in some of New Jersey’s most diverse communities, Ciattarelli pivoted, embracing the president and some of his policies, even giving Trump an “A” grade in the final debate.

    Jack Ciattarelli’a platform was focused heavily on pocketbook issues like taxes and energy costs. But Ciattarelli also leaned into issues popular with the far-right flank of the party, including publicly funded school vouchers, opposition to transgender rights, vaccine skepticism and the deportation of migrants. On the stump and in ads, Mikie Sherrill’s campaign regularly reminded voters of Ciattarelli’s cozy relationship with President Donald Trump. Then, last month, President Donald Trump said he was terminating funding for the construction of a $16 billion train tunnel considered vital to the country and to New Jersey’s 200,000 commuters, handing the Sherrill campaign an unexpected gift. “With less than 19 days until this election, the president’s punched him in the face like this. That’s pretty telling,” Sherrill said the next day, highlighting the ephemeral value of Ciattarelli’s partnership with a mercurial president. It also gave her a way to change the subject from a controversy centered on why she had been barred from participating in her 1994 graduation ceremony at the US Naval Academy. She has said that she could not participate because she had failed to “turn in” classmates caught up in a cheating scandal. But polls began to narrow as Ciattarelli publicly challenged that explanation and sought to undermine her credibility, denting a central pillar of her campaign: that nine years in the Navy had prepared her to lead the state.

    Polls proved largely inaccurate. Most showed Mikie Sherrill leading throughout the race, but few had her winning by a double-digit margin. Only New Jersey and Virginia hold races for governor the year after a presidential contest, and the results are considered bellwethers heading into next year’s pivotal midterm elections, which will determine party control of Congress. In Virginia, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger beat her Republican opponent, Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, by 15 points; Spanberger will be the first woman to serve as governor of the state.

    Ken Martin, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee who came to New Jersey repeatedly during the campaign, said victories in both states represent “the beginning of our Democratic resurgence” and proved that voters are “tired of watching the G.O.P. turn our beloved country into a playground for billionaires.” “Tonight isn’t only a warning sign to Republicans,” he said in a statement, “it’s an affirmation of the vision that Democrats have presented to voters in New Jersey and across the country.”

    New Jersey’s race was always seen as far more competitive. And Mikie Sherrill’s campaign had become a cause célèbre for Democrat-aligned national groups, which committed roughly $25 million to help her win. An array of prominent Democratic leaders also traveled to New Jersey to campaign with Sherrill in the final weeks of the race. On November 1, an appearance by former President Barack Obama drew thousands of party faithful to a large gymnasium at a community college in Newark. He energized the crowd by warning, as Sherrill has, about the threat posed by President Donald Trump. “We’ve got a commander in chief who has fired decorated military officers because he thinks they might be more loyal to the Constitution than they are to him,” Obama said. “He’s deployed the National Guard in American cities and claimed to be stopping crime waves that don’t actually exist,” he added. “We’ve got masked ICE agents pulling up in unmarked vans and grabbing people off the streets.” “Don’t boo,” Obama said repeatedly as the crowd roared. “Go vote.”

    More than 3.1 million New Jersey voters cast ballots, 500,000 more than in 2021. Jack Ciattarelli’s level of support this year actually exceeded his performance in 2021 by more than 100,000 votes, but he still fell short as far more voters beat a path to the polls. “I’m not retiring to Florida. We fight for another day,” Ciattarelli said to loud cheers. “You’ll find me right here on the streets of Central Jersey, or maybe at one of my favorite places on the beach in Surf City.”

    The contest was the most competitive race for governor of New Jersey since 2009, when Chris Christie, a Republican, unseated the incumbent governor, Jon Corzine, a wealthy Democrat. It was also extraordinarily expensive. Mikie Sherrill and Jack Ciattarelli won their party’s nominations after spirited primaries. The state’s Election Law Enforcement Commission reported last week that spending by the two candidates and groups supporting their candidacies had already exceeded $82 million. In winning, Sherrill bucked a six-decade historical trend. Not since 1961 had either party held onto the governor’s office for three consecutive terms.

  • Federal Judge Blocks Trump Administration’s National Guard Deployments to Portland

    Federal Judge Blocks Trump Administration’s National Guard Deployments to Portland

    A federal judge in Oregon has halted the Trump administration’s efforts to deploy federalized National Guard members from California and other states to Portland, Oregon. In a rare late Sunday night virtual hearing on October 5, 2025, US District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, granted a temporary restraining order requested by the state of California to prevent the deployment of up to 300 California National Guard members to Portland. This ruling followed Immergut’s decision the previous day to block President Donald Trump’s attempt to deploy Oregon National Guard troops in the city.

    California Governor Gavin Newsom announced plans to sue the Trump administration after it deployed federalized National Guard troops—called into service by the president—to Oregon. In a statement, Newsom condemned the move, saying, “This is a breathtaking abuse of the law and power. The Trump Administration is unapologetically attacking the rule of law itself and putting into action their dangerous words—ignoring court orders and treating judges, even those appointed by the President himself, as political opponents.”

    California Attorney General Rob Bonta praised Immergut’s ruling, suggesting the administration’s attempt to deploy California troops was a direct response to the judge’s earlier order blocking the federalization of Oregon’s National Guard. “The Trump Administration’s flagrant disregard for the courts was on full display when it sought to circumvent Judge Immergut’s order by redeploying troops from Los Angeles to Portland,” Bonta said. “This disrespect for the rule of law cannot stand—and I’m glad the court agreed.”

    Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, a Democrat, confirmed that some California National Guard troops arrived in Oregon on the night of October 4, with more expected on OCtober 6. She strongly opposed the deployment, stating, “The facts haven’t changed. There is no need for military intervention in Oregon. There is no insurrection in Portland. No threat to national security. Oregon is our home, not a military target. Oregonians exercising their freedom of speech against unlawful actions by the Trump Administration should do so peacefully.”

    In an op-ed published Sunday in The Oregonian, Portland Police Chief Bob Day addressed the situation, noting that “national portrayals” of Portland overstated the city’s issues. “There is no ignoring that we are facing an extraordinary time in our city’s history, with the deployment of both federal law enforcement and the Oregon National Guard,” Day wrote. He emphasized that Portland police employ a “layered approach” to managing public order, avoiding tactics like tactical gear lineups that could escalate crowd behavior.

    On the same day, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in a memo that up to 400 Texas National Guard members would be federalized for deployment to Chicago and Portland for up to 60 days, with the possibility of an extension. The memo, included in a court filing by the Oregon attorney general’s office, cited President Trump’s determination on October 4, 2025, that “violent incidents, as well as the credible threat of continued violence,” were impeding federal law enforcement in Illinois, Oregon, and other locations.

    Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, supported the deployment, stating on X, “I fully authorized the President to call up 400 members of the Texas National Guard to ensure safety for federal officials. You can either fully enforce protection for federal employees or get out of the way and let Texas Guard do it. No Guard can match the training, skill, and expertise of the Texas National Guard.”

    Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, condemned the move, calling it “Trump’s Invasion.” He noted that no federal officials had coordinated with him regarding the deployment and criticized the involvement of another state’s military. “It started with federal agents, it will soon include deploying federalized members of the Illinois National Guard against our wishes, and it will now involve sending in another state’s military troops,” Pritzker said. Both Pritzker and Kotek urged Abbott to withdraw his support for the deployment.

    The White House defended the deployment, with spokesperson Abigail Jackson stating, “President Trump exercised his lawful authority to protect federal assets and personnel in Portland following violent riots and attacks on law enforcement.” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell added that California National Guard members were reassigned from Los Angeles to Portland “to support U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal personnel performing official duties, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property.”

    In response to Immergut’s ruling blocking the activation of 200 Oregon National Guard troops until at least October 18, the Trump administration filed a motion with the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that the judge “impermissibly second-guessed” Trump’s military judgments. The motion cited a nearly 200-year-old Supreme Court precedent, asserting that such decisions are the president’s prerogative, not that of a governor or federal court.

    Judge Immergut’s rulings underscored a “longstanding and foundational tradition of resistance to government overreach, especially in the form of military intrusion into civil affairs.” Oregon’s Governor Kotek reiterated, “There is no insurrection in Portland. No threat to national security. No fires, no bombs, no fatalities due to civil unrest. The only threat we face is to our democracy—and it is being led by President Donald Trump.”

    The controversy extends beyond Portland. Last month, a federal judge in Los Angeles ruled that the deployment of National Guard troops and Marines was illegal, and officials in Washington, D.C., also sued to block similar deployments. Trump has threatened to deploy troops and federal law enforcement to other cities, including Baltimore and New Orleans, escalating tensions with Democratic governors and mayors.

    Pritzker, in a CNN interview on Sunday, criticized the federal presence in Chicago, stating, “They are the ones that are making it a war zone. They need to get out of Chicago if they’re not going to focus on the worst of the worst, which is what the president said they were going to do.” He and other Democratic leaders have also condemned Trump’s suggestion to senior military officials that “dangerous cities” be used as “training grounds” for the National Guard.

    The deployment of federalized National Guard troops has sparked widespread debate about the balance between federal authority and state autonomy, as well as the appropriate use of military forces in domestic civil matters. As legal battles continue, the situation remains a flashpoint in the ongoing clash between the Trump administration and Democratic state leaders.

  • Trump Administration Cuts Nearly $8 Billion in Clean Energy Projects in States that Voted for Kamala Harris

    Trump Administration Cuts Nearly $8 Billion in Clean Energy Projects in States that Voted for Kamala Harris

    The Trump administration on October 2 terminated $7.6 billion in grants funding 223 clean energy projects across 16 states, all of which supported former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. The decision, announced by the Energy Department, follows a review deeming the projects misaligned with national energy needs or economically unviable. The cuts, affecting initiatives like battery plants, hydrogen technology, electric grid upgrades, and carbon-capture efforts, have sparked accusations of political retaliation amid an ongoing government shutdown.

    The Energy Department’s review targeted funding from the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and other bureaus. While specific project details were not disclosed, the cancellations include up to $1.2 billion for California’s hydrogen hub, the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES), and $1 billion for a Pacific Northwest hydrogen project. Notably, hydrogen projects in Texas, West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania were spared. The 16 affected states are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. Each of these states voted for Harris in 2024, and their US Senators opposed a Republican short-term funding bill to avert the government shutdown.

    White House Budget Director Russell Vought announced the cuts on social media, framing them as eliminating funding for the “Left’s climate agenda.” President Donald Trump, in an interview with One America News, suggested the cuts target Democratic priorities, stating, “I’m allowed to cut things that never should have been approved in the first place.” The administration has also rescinded $13 billion in clean energy funding from the 2022 climate law, citing unspent allocations.

    Democrats and environmental groups have condemned the move. California Governor Gavin Newsom highlighted that ARCHES had secured $10 billion in private investment and supported over 200,000 jobs, calling the cut a threat to economic growth. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) labeled the decision “vindictive” and “shortsighted,” arguing it undermines US energy leadership. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA.) accused the administration of using American livelihoods as “pawns in some sort of sick political game.” Environmental organizations echoed these concerns. Jackie Wong of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) called the cuts a blow to innovative technology and clean energy jobs. Conrad Schneider of the Clean Air Task Force warned that the cancellations weaken U.S. competitiveness in global energy markets.

    Energy Secretary Chris Wright defended the cancellations, emphasizing they were business decisions to protect taxpayer dollars and prioritize affordable, reliable energy. He denied political motivations, stating, “These decisions are made on whether it’s a good use of the taxpayer money or not.” Wright noted that projects in both Republican and Democratic states, including hydrogen initiatives in West Virginia, Texas, and Louisiana, are under review, with further cancellations expected. Award recipients have 30 days to appeal.

    The cuts align with the Trump administration’s broader rollback of climate programs, including vehicle emission and greenhouse gas regulations. The Energy Department’s review began after President Donald Trump’s 2024 election victory, with over a quarter of the rescinded grants awarded between Election Day and Inauguration Day under the Biden administration. The cancellations are part of a $7 billion hydrogen fuel program initiated by President Joe Biden to combat climate change.

    As the government shutdown continues, the debate over these cuts underscores tensions between fiscal priorities and clean energy innovation, with significant implications for jobs, energy costs, and US leadership in emerging technologies.

  • Government Shutdown Begins

    Government Shutdown Begins

    On October 1, the US federal government shut down, marking the first such closure since 2019. The shutdown, triggered by a contentious spending dispute between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats, has disrupted federal services and furloughed many federal workers. The current shutdown echoes a 35-day closure in 2018/2019, when President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats clashed over funding for a southern border wall. The central issue behind this most recent government shutdown is the Democrats’ insistence that President Trump agree to extend expiring health care subsidies and reverse Medicaid cuts included in his signature tax cut and domestic policy law passed earlier in 2025. These health care provisions, particularly the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies set to expire by year’s end, are critical to millions of Americans’ access to affordable insurance.

    The deadlock became inevitable on the night of September 30, when Senate Democrats blocked a Republican proposal to extend federal funding through November 21. In a 55-to-45 vote, the Republican plan failed to secure the 60 votes needed for passage. In retaliation, Republicans blocked a Democratic counterproposal that would have extended funding through October and allocated over $1 trillion for health care programs, by a vote of 47 to 53. The failure of both proposals led White House budget director Russell T. Vought to instruct federal agencies to implement “orderly shutdown” plans.

    The shutdown reflects deep partisan divisions, with both sides digging in. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) accused Democrats of bowing to their “far-left base” and forcing a confrontation with the president, claiming that their actions would harm the American public. Thune emphasized that Senate Republicans would hold daily votes to pressure Democrats into supporting government funding extensions. Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), remain steadfast, arguing that the expiration of ACA subsidies and Medicaid cuts could lead to a health care crisis. Schumer warned that without action, Americans could face monthly health insurance cost increases of $400 to $600. He urged President Donald Trump and Republicans to prioritize health care solutions, noting that public opinion polls favor Democrats on this issue. The Congressional Budget Office projects that allowing ACA tax credits to lapse could result in four million Americans losing coverage starting in 2026, with an additional 20 million facing higher costs and 10 million becoming uninsured by 2034.

    President Donald Trump has taken a combative stance, framing the shutdown as an opportunity to target Democratic priorities. In public statements, he suggested that a shutdown could allow him to eliminate federal programs favored by Democrats and lay off federal workers aligned with the party. “A lot of good can come down from shutdowns,” Trump remarked, signaling his intent to use the closure to advance his political agenda.

    While most Democrats have united behind Schumer’s strategy, a few broke ranks to support the Republican funding plan, including Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), John Fetterman (D-PA) (arguably the Democratic Senator most aligned with the MAGA movement on a majority of public policy issues), and Angus King (I-ME). On the Republican side, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) was the sole dissenter against his party’s proposal. These defections highlight the complexity of the negotiations, as some lawmakers face pressure from constituents or upcoming re-elections.

    Democrats argue that their focus on health care resonates with voters, particularly after backlash from liberal activists in March when some Senate Democrats supported a stopgap funding bill. This time, Democrats are leveraging the health care issue to challenge Trump and Republicans, daring them to reject popular programs like ACA subsidies. Republicans, however, have accused Democrats of holding government funding “hostage” to secure health care concessions. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has expressed willingness to negotiate on extending ACA tax credits separately, but insists that such discussions should occur while the government remains operational.

    The shutdown has also amplified partisan rhetoric. On September 29, President Donald Trump met with congressional leaders but later posted an AI-generated video mocking Democratic leaders, including Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer. The video, which featured offensive caricatures and fabricated quotes, falsely attributed statements to Chuck Schumer claiming Democrats aimed to provide free health care to undocumented immigrants to secure their votes, a debunked conspiracy theory. In response, Jeffries posted a photo of Trump with Jeffrey Epstein, captioning it “This is real” and condemning bigotry. Such exchanges underscore the toxic atmosphere surrounding the shutdown, with both sides using social media to inflame tensions. Republicans have continued to push misleading narratives, including claims that Democrats are prioritizing health care for unauthorized immigrants over government funding, further polarizing the debate.

    The immediate consequences of the shutdown include the suspension of non-essential federal services and the furlough of thousands of federal workers. Essential services, such as Social Security payments and national defense operations, will continue, but many agencies will face disruptions, affecting everything from national parks to regulatory oversight.

    As the standoff continues, the political fallout will likely shape the narrative heading into the 2026 midterm elections. Both parties are betting on their ability to sway public opinion, with Democrats banking on health care’s broad appeal and Republicans framing Democrats as obstructionists. For now, the American public awaits a resolution while grappling with the real-world impacts of a government in gridlock.

  • UN Sanctions Reimposed on Iran Amid Nuclear Deal Tensions

    UN Sanctions Reimposed on Iran Amid Nuclear Deal Tensions

    The United Nations has reinstated comprehensive economic and military sanctions on Iran, a significant development a decade after their initial suspension under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). This decision stems from accusations by the UK, France, and Germany, collectively referred to as the E3, that Iran has engaged in “persistent nuclear escalation” and failed to comply with its international obligations. The E3 invoked the JCPOA’s “snapback” mechanism last month, providing Iran a 30-day period to address concerns regarding its nuclear activities. That deadline lapsed on September 27, prompting the immediate reinstatement of sanctions.

    The JCPOA, a landmark agreement signed by Iran, the E3, the US, Russia, and China, was designed to restrict Iran’s nuclear capabilities, limiting its nuclear installations, enriched uranium stockpiles, and research activities—to ensure its nuclear program remains exclusively peaceful. In exchange, Iran was granted significant sanctions relief to bolster its economy. However, the agreement began unraveling in 2018 when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal, labeling it fundamentally flawed and reimposing stringent unilateral sanctions on Iran. In response, Iran accelerated its nuclear program, enriching uranium to 60% purity, a level alarmingly close to weapons-grade, and amassing a 408kg stockpile of highly enriched uranium, according to Western intelligence estimates.

    Tensions reached a new peak in June when Israel, briefly supported by the US, conducted airstrikes targeting across Iran during the so-called “12 Day War”. The strikes aimed to disrupt Iran’s nuclear advancements, penalize its support for regional proxy groups, and collapse the Iranian government, and ultimately install Reza Pahlavi into power as a puppet momarch. While the attacks caused considerable damage to Iran’s infrasturcture and resulted in countless civilian deaths, Western diplomats and Iranian officials offer conflicting assessments of their impact on Iran’s nuclear program. Iran condemned the strikes as a fundamental violation of the JCPOA’s framework, declaring international support for the agreement “obsolete.” In retaliation, Iran temporarily suspended inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a critical obligation under the JCPOA. Although the IAEA confirmed that inspections have partially resumed, the E3 cited Iran’s earlier refusal to grant full access to nuclear sites and its failure to provide a transparent report on its uranium stockpile as key justifications for activating the snapback mechanism.

    Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian denounced the reimposed sanctions as “unfair, unjust, and illegal,” firmly asserting that Iran has no intention of pursuing nuclear weapons. Iran’s foreign ministry argued that the E3’s actions carry no legal weight for UN member states and called on nations to reject the sanctions outright. Iran’s military leadership issued a stern warning, promising a “decisive response” should Israel use the sanctions as a pretext for further aggression. While Pezeshkian moderated earlier threats to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), he cautioned that sustained sanctions and attacks on nuclear facilities could derail future diplomatic efforts. He also dismissed a US proposal to exchange Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile for a temporary three-month sanctions exemption, rhetorically questioning, “Why would we enter such a trap, with a noose tightening around our neck every month?”

    The E3 expressed regret over the necessity of sanctions but emphasized that the decision does not foreclose diplomatic avenues. In a joint statement, they urged Iran to avoid further escalatory actions, noting that last-minute talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly yielded no meaningful progress. The E3 demanded that Iran fully resume cooperation with the IAEA, provide clarity on its uranium stockpile, and engage in direct negotiations with the US. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reinforced this stance, stating, “President Trump has consistently emphasized that diplomacy remains viable—a comprehensive deal is the best path forward for the Iranian people and global stability.” However, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejected negotiations under the current circumstances, arguing that engaging now would signal “surrender” and “disgrace” for Iran.

    Western powers and the IAEA remain deeply skeptical of Iran’s assertions that its nuclear program is purely peaceful. Israel hailed the reimposed sanctions as a “major development” in curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions, urging the international community to employ “every available tool” to prevent Iran from achieving nuclear power status. Conversely, Iran accuses the E3 and the US of failing to honor their JCPOA commitments, particularly regarding promised sanctions relief, and holds them responsible for escalating the crisis. The newly reinstated UN sanctions, which include stringent restrictions on uranium enrichment and ballistic missile technology, compound Iran’s economic woes, already strained by severe US sanctions that have largely isolated it from global financial systems.

    The reimposition of UN sanctions represents a pivotal moment in the ongoing standoff between Western powers and Iran, with both sides firmly entrenched in their positions. While European allies hold out hope for renewed negotiations to de-escalate tensions, the prospects for reviving the JCPOA remain fraught with uncertainty, casting a shadow over future diplomatic efforts.

  • The UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal Recognize Palestinian Statehood

    The UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal Recognize Palestinian Statehood

    On September 21, 2025, the UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal formally recognized Palestine as a sovereign state, marking a significant shift in their long-standing diplomatic positions. This coordinated move, with France expected to follow at the United Nations, reflects growing international concern over Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza. These nations, key supporters of Israel and members of the Group of Seven, broke with the US, which has historically opposed recognizing Palestinian statehood without a permanent resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

    The announcements, made just before Rosh Hashanah, signal a response to mounting public and political pressure, particularly in the UK, where Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced calls from his Labour Party and widespread pro-Palestinian demonstrations. Starmer had pledged in July to recognize Palestine unless Israel agreed to a ceasefire with Hamas, committed to a two-state solution, and ruled out annexing the West Bank, conditions Israel did not meet. Instead, Israel intensified its military operations in Gaza and launched attacks in Doha, Qatar, complicating ceasefire talks. The decision follows the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, which killed approximately 1,200 people and displaced tens of thousands. Israel’s subsequent military campaign in Gaza has resulted in over 65,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza health officials, fueling global outrage and prompting this diplomatic shift.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu swiftly condemned the recognitions, calling them a “reward for terror” and vowing that a Palestinian state “will not happen.” The US, aligned with Israel, blocked a UN Security Council resolution for a Gaza ceasefire, citing insufficient condemnation of Hamas. Despite this, over 140 countries now recognize Palestinian statehood, and the Palestinian Authority holds nonmember observer status at the UN since 2012. Analysts, such as Yossi Mekelberg from Chatham House, argue that while symbolic, these recognitions may not immediately alter Israel’s policies without further actions like sanctions or restricted arms sales. However, the move elevates Palestine’s status globally, framing the conflict as one state occupying another, a perspective echoed by Palestinian human rights lawyer Diana Buttu.

    The recognition of Palestine by the UK recognition carries particular weight due to its historical role in the region. The 1917 Balfour Declaration supported a Jewish homeland in the British Mandate territories, and laws from that period still underpin Israel’s detention policies. Diana Buttu, a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer and former spokesperson for the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) described the UK’s recognition as “powerful” but insufficient given Gaza’s devastation. The Palestinian mission in London plans to mark the occasion with a flag-raising ceremony, symbolizing its new status as an embassy. Hamas welcomed the recognitions but urged “practical measures” to halt Israel’s actions in Gaza and prevent West Bank annexation. UK Prime Minsiter Kier Starmer, rejecting claims that the move rewards Hamas, emphasized that a two-state solution opposes the group’s ideology and condemned it as a terrorist organization unfit for governance.

    While these recognitions do not grant Palestine full UN membership, due to likely US vetoes in the Security Council, they signal a growing international consensus. For Palestinians, the move clarifies their sovereignty but underscores the urgent need for concrete steps to address Gaza’s humanitarian crisis and advance a sustainable resolution.

  • President Donald Trump Attacks UN and Lectures Nations in Address to General Assembly

    President Donald Trump Attacks UN and Lectures Nations in Address to General Assembly

    On September 23, President Donald Trump delivered a nearly hour-long address to the UN General Assembly, blending sharp criticism of the global body with self-congratulation for his administration’s achievements. In a speech that oscillated between grievance and optimism, President Trump touted his “America First” agenda, warned European nations of economic and cultural ruin, and positioned himself as a global peacemaker while questioning the UN’s effectiveness.

    President Donald Trump opened his speech by calling the UN a “feckless institution” filled with “empty words” that fail to resolve global conflicts. He questioned the organization’s purpose, stating, “The U.N. has such tremendous potential. I’ve always said it. It has such tremendous, tremendous potential. But it’s not even coming close to living up to that potential.” His remarks underscored a return to an unapologetically nationalist stance, a departure from the more internationalist approach of his predecessor, President Joe Biden. Despite his criticisms, Trump later met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, assuring him that the US remains “100%” supportive of the organization. “I may disagree with it sometimes, but I am so behind it because the potential for peace at this institution is great,” Trump said, striking a conciliatory tone after his earlier rebuke.

    President Donald Trump used the global stage to issue stark warnings to European nations, arguing that their migration policies and commitment to green energy initiatives were leading to economic and cultural devastation. He described these policies as a “double-tailed monster” that “destroys everything in its wake.” “I’m telling you that if you don’t get away from the ‘green energy’ scam, your country is going to fail,” Trump declared. “If you don’t stop people that you’ve never seen before that you have nothing in common with, your country is going to fail.” He contrasted these policies with his administration’s approach, which has prioritized expanded oil and gas drilling and aggressive crackdowns on illegal immigration in the United States. Trump expressed sympathy for Europe, saying, “I love the people of Europe, and I hate to see it being devastated by energy and immigration.” His remarks were a clear call for other nations to adopt similar policies to those of his administration.

    In a significant development, President Donald Trump addressed Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, revealing a shift in his stance. After meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump announced his belief that Ukraine, with support from the European Union and NATO, could reclaim all territory lost to Russia. “I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” Trump wrote in a post following his speech. “With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option.” This marks a departure from his 2024 campaign rhetoric, where he often suggested the US had limited interest in the conflict’s outcome and promised a swift resolution. Trump also took a swipe at Russia, calling it a “paper tiger” and noting that the war, now in its third year, “should have taken a Real Military Power less than a week to win.” He threatened Moscow with “a very strong round of powerful tariffs” if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not negotiate an end to the conflict.

    President Donald Trump also addressed the growing international push for Palestinian statehood, a movement spotlighted during the UN General Assembly’s discussions on a two-state solution. France recently joined other nations in recognizing Palestinian statehood, a move Trump and Israel strongly oppose. “The rewards would be too great for Hamas terrorists,” Trump argued, referencing the October 7 attacks. “This would be a reward for these horrible atrocities.” He also participated in a group meeting with leaders from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan to discuss ending the Gaza war, calling it his “most important meeting” and expressing a desire to resolve a conflict that “should have probably never started.”

    Early in his speech, President Donald Trump deviated from his prepared remarks to poke fun at logistical issues at UN headquarters, including a malfunctioning escalator and a faulty teleprompter. “These are the two things I got from the United Nations: a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter,” he quipped, drawing laughter from delegates. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric later explained that the escalator issue may have been caused by a videographer from the US delegation triggering a safety mechanism, while a UN official noted that the Trump Administration was responsible for operating the teleprompter.

    President Donald Trump reiterated his ambition to win a Nobel Peace Prize, claiming his administration has “ended seven wars” since his return to office. “Everyone says that I should get the Nobel Prize — but for me, the real prize will be the sons and daughters who live to grow up because millions of people are no longer being killed in endless wars,” he said. He cited efforts to mediate conflicts between Israel and Iran, India and Pakistan, and Egypt and Sudan, though experts note that his impact on these resolutions is not as straightforward as he claims. Trump expressed frustration that the UN had not taken a more active role, stating, “It’s too bad that I had to do these things instead of the United Nations doing them.”

    President Donald Trump’s address was a vivid reminder of his polarizing leadership style, blending boasts of domestic and foreign policy successes with dire warnings to other nations. His unapologetic “America First” posture, coupled with sharp critiques of global institutions and policies, underscored his intent to reshape the international order. As he navigates his second term, Trump’s vision for global leadership continues to spark both admiration and alarm among world leaders.

  • President Donald Trump Moves to Designate Antifa as a Major Terrorist Organization

    President Donald Trump Moves to Designate Antifa as a Major Terrorist Organization

    On September 22, President Donald Trump signed an executive order designating the decentralized anti-fascist movement known as Antifa a domestic terrorist organization. This move, part of a broader crackdown on what the administration calls the “radical left,” directs federal agencies to investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any illegal operations linked to Antifa or its supporters, including through criminal prosecutions. The order accuses the group of orchestrating political violence, such as riots, assaults on law enforcement, doxing, and other acts, aimed at overthrowing the US government.

    In a post on X, President Donald Trump stated, “I am pleased to inform our many U.S.A. Patriots that I am designating ANTIFA, A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER, AS A MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION.” He further emphasized that he would push for thorough investigations into those funding Antifa, ensuring compliance with the highest legal standards.

    White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the order as one of the administration’s first major steps in fulfilling President Donald Trump’s campaign promises to confront left-leaning political entities. Speaking at a briefing earlier that day, Leavitt railed against Democrats and Trump’s political opponents, stating, “Many Democrats in elective office have now been totally captured by a radical fringe of the far left who want to dehumanize every person they disagree with.” She pointed to Democratic lawmakers who voted against a resolution honoring conservative activist Charlie Kirk, whose recent assassination has intensified the administration’s rhetoric. “We must continue to call this wickedness out,” Leavitt added. “It’s the only way that our nation can heal.”

    The announcement follows President Donald Trump’s vow last week to label Antifa a terrorist group, coming in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s killing. In a post on his Truth Social platform, President Trump wrote: “I am pleased to inform our many U.S.A. Patriots that I am designating ANTIFA, A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER, AS A MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION. I will also be strongly recommending that those funding ANTIFA be thoroughly investigated in accordance with the highest legal standards and practices!”

    Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized that the focus would extend beyond Antifa to its financial backers, noting, “We will be most importantly looking at who is funding Antifa and who is funding these other violent left-wing groups.” She cited evidence from the Kirk investigation, including bullets engraved with anti-fascist messages like “Hey Fascist! Catch!” She also referenced a series of alleged Antifa-linked incidents, including assailants shooting and assaulting law enforcement in Texas and Oregon in July, bringing a pipe bomb to a pro-Trump event in 2022, and threatening to shoot police and Trump supporters outside the Florida State Capitol in 2021. “We have seen a rise in violence perpetuated by Antifa, radical people across this country who subscribe to this group,” Leavitt said.

    The term “Antifa,” short for anti-fascist, originates from the German word “antifaschistisch,” referencing 1930s resistance groups that opposed Nazi ideology. It traces its roots to European movements that fought Italian dictator Benito Mussolini during World War II and white supremacist skinhead groups during the Cold War. In the US, Antifa has existed for decades but gained prominence after Donald Trump’s 2016 election and the 2017 Charlottesville rally, where far-right violence galvanized anti-fascist activists.

    Unlike structured far-right groups like the Proud Boys or Oath Keepers, which have clear leaders, hierarchies, and membership, Antifa is a loose, leaderless network of individuals and small cells leaning toward the far left, often including anarchists, communists, and hardline socialists. Its members broadly share anti-government, anti-capitalist, pro-LGBTQ+, and pro-immigration views. Activists often organize organically online and offline, without a national command structure, membership lists, or defined funding sources. This decentralization makes it challenging for authorities to target “leaders” or financial networks, as local groups operate independently.

    Critics, including President Donald Trump and Republicans, frequently use “Antifa” as a catch-all label for a wide array of liberal and left-wing groups they oppose, blurring lines between ideology and action. The administration’s push raises concerns that it could stretch executive authority to suppress large-scale left-wing dissent. President Trump has already suggested charging members of the activist group Code Pink, who protested him during a recent Washington, D.C., restaurant visit, with crimes, signaling a pattern of aggressive targeting. Trump first promised to designate Antifa a terrorist organization during his first term in 2020, but never followed through. The current effort aligns with his declaration that “radical left political violence has hurt too many innocent people and taken too many lives.” Authorities have described Kirk’s accused killer, Tyler Robinson, as holding a “leftist ideology,” though no direct link to Antifa has been established, and the motive remains unclear.

    What distinguishes Antifa from mainstream left-wing activism, according to critics, is some activists’ readiness to employ violence—often framed as self-defense against far-right threats. Participants frequently appear in public wearing dark clothing and face coverings, and online videos capture them wielding clubs, shields, sticks, and pepper spray at rallies. Notable incidents include a 2017 clash in Berkeley, California, where around 100 masked Antifa-linked activists attacked right-wing protesters, leading to multiple arrests. During the 2020 unrest following George Floyd’s killing, self-identified Antifa activist Michael Reinoehl fatally shot a member of the far-right Patriot Prayer group in Portland before being killed by police.

    The executive order invokes powers typically reserved for foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs), which allow the US to ban members, deport individuals, seize assets, and prosecute material supporters. However, domestic groups like Antifa do not fit the FTO criteria, which require the entity to be foreign-based. The order specifies implementation within existing laws, directing agencies to pursue “any and all illegal operations” without broadly criminalizing anti-fascist ideology, a move that would violate the First Amendment. Legal experts anticipate swift constitutional challenges, given Antifa’s lack of a centralized structure. Prosecuting individuals for “material support” to domestic groups lacks the clear legal framework available for foreign ones, potentially limiting the order’s reach.

    As the administration moves forward, the designation’s practical impact remains uncertain. It fulfills a long-standing Trump pledge but underscores deepening partisan divides, especially in the shadow of Charlie Kirk’s death, where his widow, Erika Kirk, urged fighting hate with love, clashing with President Donald Trump’s assertion at the funeral that he “hates” his political opponents. Karoline Leavitt defended the president, saying, “The president is authentically himself.” Whether this authenticity translates to effective policy or fuels further unrest is a question that will define the coming months.

  • Democratic Support Grows for Zohran Mamdani in NYC Mayoral Race

    Democratic Support Grows for Zohran Mamdani in NYC Mayoral Race

    Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, is gaining significant endorsements from party leaders as concerns mount over President Donald Trump’s attempts to influence the race. Mamdani, a state assemblyman and democratic socialist, secured the Democratic primary victory in June 2025, defeating former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is now running as an independent.

    Prominent Democrats, including Congressman Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Congressman Pat Ryan of New York, have formally endorsed Zohran Mamdani. Congressman Raskin, a leading figure in countering President Donald Trump’s influence, praised Mamdani as a “significant and inspiring leader” with a “Rooseveltian” vision, comparing him to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt for his commitment to the working and middle classes. Ryan, motivated by his opposition to former New York Governor and Mayoral Candidate Andrew Cuomo, described Mamdani as a candidate “for the people,” contrasting him with Cuomo’s self-serving record. Even moderates within the Democratic party such as former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and New York Congressman Ritchie Torres have expressed support. Emanuel, after meeting Mamdani, noted his preparedness to govern effectively, while Torres called him “impressively knowledgeable and substantive.” Left-leaning Democrats, including Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, and members of Congress such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Pramila Jayapa, and Jerrold Nadler, have also backed Mamdani, citing his focus on cost-of-living issues.

    Despite Zohran Mamdani’s primary win, some top New York Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, and Governor Kathy Hochul, have not yet endorsed him. Schumer met with Mamdani recently but declined to commit, while Jeffries indicated he would soon clarify his stance. Hochul emphasized the need for pragmatic governance, reflecting her “staunch capitalist” perspective, given New York City’s role as a global financial hub.

    President Donald Trump’s efforts to tilt the race toward Andrew Cuomo, including offering positions to Mayor Eric Adams and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa to drop out, have galvanized Democrats. Party members across the ideological spectrum are urging unity to counter Trump’s influence. Congressman Jamie Raskin stressed the importance of Democratic solidarity, saying, “Democrats must stand together to defend not only our party but our constitution and our country.” Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez echoed this, emphasizing the party’s responsibility to support its nominees post-primary.

    Some moderate Democrats, like Conresswoman Laura Gillen and Conressman Tom Suozzi from Long Island, worry that Zorhran Mamdani’s progressive stance could harm the party in the 2026 midterms by fueling Republican narratives painting Democrats as socialists. However, Mamdani’s strong lead in recent polls, particularly among young voters, suggests his appeal could energize the Democratic base. A New York Times/Siena University poll showed him commanding the race, a critical factor as Democrats seek to regain ground lost to Donald Trump in 2024.

    Since his nomination, Zohran Mamdani has engaged in extensive outreach, meeting with figures like former President Barack Obama and Rahm Emanuel to discuss governance and policy priorities. His ability to connect with both moderates and progressives has impressed many, with Emanuel noting his readiness to “hit the ground running” and Torres praising his intellectual rigor.

    As the mayoral race enters its final stretch, Zohran Mamdani’s campaign is gaining momentum, but the lack of endorsements from key New York Democrats remains a challenge. Meanwhile, Republicans, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, are using Mamdani’s candidacy to attack Democrats nationwide. Despite this, supporters like Congressman Jamie Raskin remain steadfast, advocating for party unity: “When progressives beat moderates in the primary, we want the moderates to support the progressives in the general election.”

  • In A Major Defeat For Opponents of Gerrymandering, Missouri State Legislature Approves Congressional Map To Give Republicans Additional Congressional Seat Ahead Of 2026 Midterm Elections

    In A Major Defeat For Opponents of Gerrymandering, Missouri State Legislature Approves Congressional Map To Give Republicans Additional Congressional Seat Ahead Of 2026 Midterm Elections

    Missouri lawmakers have approved a new congressional voting map for the 2026 midterm elections, responding to former President Donald Trump’s call to secure a Republican majority in Congress. The state Senate passed the redistricting plan with a 21-11 vote, aiming to flip a Democratic-held seat to Republican control. The map now awaits the signature of Republican Governor Mike Kehoe, who introduced the plan last month, describing it as a “Missouri First” map that aligns with the state’s conservative values.

    Typically, states redraw congressional districts early in the decade following the national census, which determines the allocation of House seats. However, Missouri’s move comes mid-decade, driven by Trump’s push for Republicans to create more winnable districts. Missouri Republicans argue that the new map, which creates seven Republican-leaning seats and one strongly Democratic district, reflects the state’s political landscape, where Republicans dominate statewide and legislative elections. Currently, Missouri’s congressional delegation consists of six Republicans and two Democrats.

    Republican state Senator Rick Brattin, representing the Kansas City suburbs, defended the plan, stating, “The question is, are we actually representing the constituency of Missouri with our congressional delegation? A seven-to-one map does that. Democrats in the state legislature fiercely opposed the changes but could do little to stop or slow their passage because Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers. Democratic state Senator Stephen Webber argued during floor debate on September 12 that Republicans were surrendering their independence and bending to Trump’s will. “We’re no longer the ‘Show Me State,’” he said, referring the state’s motto. “We’re the ‘Yes, sir state.’” Democratic state Senator Barbara Washington of Kansas City called the map a “blatant political attack.” “This erases the voice of our community,” she said, her voice rising with emotion. “Carving up Kansas City and silencing our constituents is terrible.”

    On September 10, thousands of activists protested at the state capitol, vowing to collect the 106,000 signatures needed within 90 days to put the measure to a statewide referendum. By September 12, two lawsuits had already been filed to challenge the plan, signaling a contentious legal battle ahead.

    Missouri is not alone in redrawing its maps. President Donald Trump has urged Republican-led states, including Texas, Indiana, and Florida, to adopt district plans that favor Republican candidates. Texas approved a similar plan last month to secure five additional Republican-leaning seats. In response, Democratic-led states like California have proposed maps to bolster Democratic representation, with California’s plan awaiting voter approval on November 4, 2025. Illinois and Maryland are also considering redistricting to favor Democrats.

    As Missouri’s new map heads to Governor Kehoe’s desk, its fate remains uncertain. Legal challenges and a potential referendum could delay or block its implementation. Meanwhile, the national push for redistricting continues, with both parties vying to reshape congressional districts to their advantage ahead of the 2026 midterms. The outcome of these efforts could significantly influence the balance of power in the US House.

  • Conservative Poltiical Activist Charlie Kirk Assassinated In Utah Campus Shooting

    Conservative Poltiical Activist Charlie Kirk Assassinated In Utah Campus Shooting

    On September 10, Charlie Kirk, a prominent conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. The 31-year-old, known for his influential role in mobilizing young conservative voters and his close ties to President Donald Trump, was addressing students as part of Turning Point USA’s college campus tour when the attack occurred. Authorities have described the incident as a targeted political assassination, prompting widespread condemnation and calls for an end to political violence in the United States.

    A rising star in the conservative movement in the US, Charlie Kirk founded Turning Point USA at the age of 18 in 2012, transforming it into a powerhouse of grassroots Republican activism. The organization has amassed millions of followers and played a pivotal role in mobilizing young voters during Trump’s presidential campaigns. Kirk’s events were known for fostering open dialogue between political ideologies, with Vice President JD Vance noting on X that, “If you actually watch Charlie’s events—as opposed to the fake summaries—they are one of the few places with open and honest dialogue between left and right. He would answer any question and talk to everyone.”

    Charlie Kirk’s influence extended beyond his organization, as he became one of the most prominent pro-Trump voices in conservative media. His ability to engage young audiences and his unapologetic advocacy for conservative values made him a polarizing yet impactful figure in American politics.

    The attack took place during Turning Point USA’s first event of a planned college tour. A single shot was fired, fatally wounding Charlie Kirk and prompting Utah Valley University to lock down its campus and cancel classes. Images from the scene, captured by Tess Crowley of The Deseret News, show law enforcement taping off the area as stunned attendees reacted to the tragedy. Utah Governor Spencer Cox confirmed that Kirk was the intended target, stating, “I want to be very clear that this is a political assassination.” Cox, who spoke with President Trump following the incident, vowed to work with federal and state law enforcement to bring the perpetrator to justice. “Abby and I are heartbroken,” Cox wrote on X. “We are praying for Charlie’s wife, daughter, and son.”

    FBI Director Kash Patel reported that a person detained as a suspect was later released, and no one else is currently in custody. Authorities have yet to identify a suspect or confirm a motive for the shooting, leaving many questions unanswered.

    The assassination drew swift reactions from leaders across the political spectrum, with many condemning the act as a stark reminder of the dangers of political violence. President Donald Trump, in a video statement, described Kirk as “the best of America” and blamed “the radical left” for the attack, arguing that inflammatory rhetoric comparing conservatives to “Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers” incited the violence. “This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we’re seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now,” President Trump said. He vowed to investigate those contributing to political violence, including organizations that “fund it and support it,” and ordered flags lowered to half-staff through September 14 in Kirk’s honor.

    In a September 12 interview on Fox & Friends, President Donald Trump expanded on his claims, suggesting that “radical left lunatics” were primarily responsible for the nation’s political violence. He dismissed suggestions of extremism on the right, stating, “The radicals on the right oftentimes are radical because they don’t want to see crime. The radicals on the left are the problem, and they’re vicious and they’re horrible and they’re politically savvy.” Trump also called for investigations into liberal philanthropist George Soros and his family, accusing them of “agitation.”

    Vice President JD Vance offered a prayer for Kirk, writing on X, “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.” He praised Kirk’s commitment to civil discourse, emphasizing the inclusive nature of his campus events.

    Former presidents also weighed in, universally condemning the violence. Former President Joe Biden wrote on X, “There is no place in our country for this kind of violence. It must end now. Jill and I are praying for Charlie Kirk’s family and loved ones.” Former President Barack Obama echoed this sentiment, stating, “We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.”

    Former President George W. Bush called for an end to “violence and vitriol” in public discourse, noting, “Members of other political parties are not our enemies; they are our fellow citizens.” Former President Bill Clinton expressed sadness and anger, urging introspection and renewed efforts for peaceful debate. Even before Kirk’s death was confirmed, Democratic leaders like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned the attack. Newsom, who had interviewed Kirk for his podcast earlier this year, called the shooting “disgusting, vile, and reprehensible.”

    Charlie Kirk’s assassination is the latest in a disturbing series of violent incidents targeting political figures in the US. Earlier incidents include the assassination of Minnesota Democratic state representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, as well as the severe wounding of Democratic state senator John Hoffman and his wife in a separate attack. Authorities reported that the suspect in those cases had compiled a list of largely Democratic lawmakers and abortion rights advocates as potential targets.

    These incidents have heightened concerns about the state of political discourse in America. President Trump’s response has drawn scrutiny, particularly his decision to pardon nearly all individuals convicted of federal crimes related to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, including those who committed violence against police officers. Critics argue that this move undermines efforts to address political violence impartially.

    Turning Point USA released a statement mourning Kirk’s death, describing him as a visionary leader whose loss is deeply felt. “May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior, who suffered and died for Charlie,” the statement read. “We ask that everyone keep his family and loved ones in your prayers. We ask that you please respect their privacy and dignity at this time.”

    As investigations continue, Kirk’s death has sparked a broader conversation about the state of political rhetoric and its consequences. While President Donald Trump and his allies point to inflammatory language from the left as a catalyst, others argue that vilification across the political spectrum fuels division and violence. The assassination serves as a grim reminder of the need for civility and mutual respect in public discourse.

    The nation now mourns a figure who, regardless of political affiliation, sought to engage young Americans in the democratic process. As leaders from both parties call for an end to violence, the hope is that Kirk’s death will inspire a renewed commitment to dialogue over division.

  • President Donald Trump Announces Plan To Ban Mail-In Voting

    President Donald Trump Announces Plan To Ban Mail-In Voting

    On August 18, President Donald Trump announced his intention to issue an executive order aimed at banning mail-in voting before the 2026 midterm elections, a move he claims will restore electoral integrity. During a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, Trump stated, “We, as a Republican Party, are going to do everything possible that we get rid of mail-in ballots.” He added that an executive order is being drafted by top lawyers to end the practice, asserting that mail-in ballots are prone to corruption and voter fraud.

    President Donald Trump has repeatedly argued that mail-in voting undermines election integrity. He claimed, without evidence, “Mail-in ballots are corrupt,” citing unverified anecdotes of individuals receiving multiple ballots in states like California. President Trump has long maintained that mail-in voting enables tampering and multiple voting, despite lacking evidence to support widespread fraud. However, election experts have consistently refuted these claims. Debra Cleaver, founder of VoteAmerica, emphasized the security of mail-in ballots, noting that barcodes on outgoing and return envelopes ensure ballots are tracked and counted accurately. Following the 2020 election, Christopher Krebs, then-director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, declared it “the most secure in American history.” Audits and investigations, including those by Republican officials, found no evidence of significant fraud in the 2020 election.

    President Donald Trump’s proposed executive order faces significant legal hurdles. He argued in a social media post that states are mere “agents” of the federal government in elections and must follow presidential directives. However, Article I, Section 4 of the US Constitution explicitly grants states the authority to regulate elections, with Congress holding the power to alter such regulations. Legal scholars note that the President lacks the constitutional authority to unilaterally ban mail-in voting, rendering the proposed executive order legally questionable.

    Despite President Donald Trump’s claim that the US is the only country using mail-in voting, the practice is common worldwide. According to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, over 30 countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, and Denmark, allow mail-in voting for some or all voters. In the US, 36 states offer no-excuse mail-in voting, with eight conducting elections entirely by mail. The 2020 election saw a surge in mail-in voting due to the pandemic, with 43% of ballots cast by mail, a figure that dropped to just over 30% (46.8 million votes) in 2024, according to the US Election Assistance Commission.

    Election experts warn that eliminating mail-in voting could disrupt electoral processes. David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, called the idea “incredibly bad,” arguing it would create chaos, especially with midterm elections just 15 months away. He noted that mail-in voting, used since the Civil War, enhances accessibility and security when properly implemented.

    The White House, through spokesperson Harrison Fields, defended President Donald Trump’s stance, claiming that Democratic policies like “unfettered mail-in voting” have eroded trust in elections. Fields emphasized Trump’s goal to “secure America’s elections” through measures like voter ID requirements and stricter voting laws in states like California and New York.

    President Donald Trump’s push to ban mail-in voting has sparked renewed debate over election security and accessibility. While he frames it as a safeguard against fraud, critics argue it could disenfranchise voters who rely on mail ballots due to disability, military service, or other constraints. The legal and practical challenges of implementing such a ban underscore the complexities of reforming election systems in a polarized political landscape. As the 2026 midterms approach, the debate over mail-in voting is likely to intensify, with significant implications for voter turnout and trust in democratic institutions.

  • Iran’s Execution Rate Surges In 2024: UN Reports Record Numbers

    Iran’s Execution Rate Surges In 2024: UN Reports Record Numbers

    Iran reportedly executed at least 901 people in 2024, the highest total recorded in nine years and a 6% increase from the 853 executions in 2023, according to the UN human rights chief, Volker Türk. The alarming rise includes about 40 executions in a single week in December, sparking fresh concerns over the country’s escalating use of the death penalty. “It is deeply disturbing that yet again we see an increase in the number of people subjected to the death penalty in Iran year-on-year,” Türk said, calling for a moratorium on executions with a view to eventual abolition.

    Most of the executions were related to drug offences, though dissidents and individuals connected to the 2022 protests were also targeted. The protests, which erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman detained for not wearing a “proper” hijab, have had a lasting impact on Iranian society. Ethnic and religious minorities have been disproportionately affected by the government’s crackdown, with more than half of those executed in 2024 belonging to minority groups, including 183 Kurds, according to a report from Hengaw, a Kurdish human rights organization.

    The execution of women surged to record levels, with at least 31 women put to death, the highest since Iran Human Rights (IHR) began monitoring the death penalty 17 years ago. Among them was Leila Ghaemi, executed after reportedly killing her husband, whom she found raping her daughter. Another victim, Parvin Mousavi, was executed after unknowingly transporting 5kg of morphine while attempting to support her family. Activists argue that such cases fail to meet the “most serious crimes” standard required for capital punishment under international law.

    Juvenile offenders were also among those executed, with the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) documenting the deaths of five individuals who were under 18 at the time of their alleged crimes. This practice is in direct violation of international law, which prohibits the use of capital punishment for juvenile offenders. The execution of minors and vulnerable groups has intensified calls for accountability and reforms within Iran’s judicial system.

    The UN’s fact-finding mission on Iran has noted that the government’s use of the death penalty is part of a broader strategy to instill fear and suppress dissent. “The death penalty is incompatible with the fundamental right to life and raises the unacceptable risk of executing innocent people,” Türk warned, emphasizing that it should never be used for conduct protected under international human rights law. Amnesty International reported that Iran accounted for 74% of all recorded executions worldwide in 2023, a figure that excludes China, where execution data remains classified but is believed to number in the thousands.

    As international scrutiny grows, the Iranian regime faces mounting pressure to address its alarming use of the death penalty. Activists and human rights organizations continue to call for greater transparency, fair trials, and adherence to international standards. The execution surge in 2024 underscores the urgent need for reforms to protect vulnerable populations and uphold the fundamental right to life.

  • Congress Certifies President-elect Trump’s 2024 Victory in Peaceful Transition

    Congress Certifies President-elect Trump’s 2024 Victory in Peaceful Transition

    On January 6, 2025, a joint session of Congress certified President-elect Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 election, fulfilling a vital democratic tradition that was violently disrupted four years ago. This time, there was no sign of unrest, though security at the Capitol was heightened. Unlike President-elect Trump in 2020, Vice President Kamala Harris did not dispute her loss in the November election, and Democrats refrained from raising any objections during the certification of Electoral College votes.

    Vice President Harris presided over the certification process with dignity, even as it confirmed her loss. The session proceeded smoothly, with lawmakers from both parties reading out each state’s electoral votes in alphabetical order and declaring them “regular in form and authentic.” The only noticeable partisan divide came in the applause: Republicans celebrated the states won by Trump, while Democrats cheered for those carried by Harris. The session ended with a standing ovation from Republicans as Trump’s majority was announced.

    Earlier in the day, Vice President Harris described her role as “a sacred obligation,” emphasizing her commitment to the Constitution and democracy. She told reporters in the Rotunda that the key takeaway was that “Democracy must be upheld by the people.” Aides described the peaceful transfer of power as one of the most significant acts of her vice presidency. As Harris led senators to the House chamber, she exchanged polite words with House Speaker Mike Johnson, who had played a prominent role in contesting the 2020 election results.

    The calm and orderly certification process starkly contrasted to the violent events of January 6, 2021. This year, the Capitol was under heavy lockdown, with tall metal fencing and enhanced security measures designated by the Department of Homeland Security as a “national special security event.” The increased precautions reflected the lessons learned from the 2021 riot, which was tied to the deaths of seven people, including three police officers, after Trump’s false claims of a stolen election incited his supporters to storm the Capitol.

    In the days leading up to the certification, President Joe Biden stressed the importance of a smooth transition of power while urging Americans to remember the events of January 6, 2021. Writing in The Washington Post, Biden accused Trump and his supporters of attempting “to rewrite — even erase — the history of that day.” Despite Trump’s campaign promises to pardon individuals convicted for their actions during the 2021 riot, Democrats refrained from challenging the election results, prioritizing constitutional norms over partisan conflict.

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer underscored the importance of upholding democratic principles and warned Trump against pardoning those responsible for the January 6 violence. “It would be a dangerous endorsement of political violence,” Schumer said. “It is wrong, it is reckless, and would be an insult to the memory of those who died in connection to that day.” With the peaceful certification complete, the nation moves forward under Trump’s leadership, but the shadow of January 6 remains a potent reminder of the fragility of democracy.

  • President Biden Celebrates Judicial Milestone, Outpacing Trump’s First-Term Total Of Appointet Federal Judges

    President Biden Celebrates Judicial Milestone, Outpacing Trump’s First-Term Total Of Appointet Federal Judges

    On January 2, 2025, President Joe Biden highlighted the confirmation of 235 federal judges during his presidency, a landmark achievement that narrowly surpassed the 234 lifetime judicial appointments made under President-elect Donald Trump in his first term. Among Biden’s confirmations was one Supreme Court justice, marking the culmination of a determined effort by Democrats to shape the judiciary in the final months of his term.

    In his remarks, President Biden framed the milestone as a safeguard for democracy and a counterbalance to recent judicial decisions, including the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. “Together, these judges are going to hear cases on issues, ruling on everything from whether Americans can cast their ballot, literally how they can cast their ballot, when it will be counted, to whether workers can unionize and make a living wage for their families,” Biden said. He also highlighted environmental priorities, adding, “whether their children can breathe clean air and drink clean water.”

    Flanked by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, Biden reflected on the intense push to confirm his nominees. He praised their shared commitment to diversifying the federal bench, with two-thirds of his appointees being women or people of color. “When I ran for president, I made a promise that I’d have a bench that looks like America and taps into the full talents of this nation,” Biden said. “And I’m proud we’ve kept our commitment.”

    Despite the celebratory tone, Biden acknowledged challenges faced during his term, as federal courts blocked several key policy initiatives, including student debt relief programs, immigration reforms, and stricter air pollution regulations. Most recently, a federal appeals court struck down his administration’s net neutrality rules, a signature tech policy. The president’s remarks underscored how the judiciary has become a battleground for polarizing policy disputes, further eroding public confidence in judicial impartiality.

    This erosion of trust has been exacerbated by “judge shopping,” where lawsuits are filed in districts perceived to favor particular causes. Polls show public faith in the neutrality of US courts has plummeted, a concern echoed by Chief Justice John Roberts in his year-end report, which also addressed the rise in threats against federal judges. Meanwhile, President-elect Trump, who campaigned on criticisms of the legal system, frequently attacked judges who ruled against him, fueling partisan perceptions of the judiciary.

    The urgency to confirm President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees stemmed from a desire to avoid leaving vacancies for Republicans to fill under the incoming administration. The Democratic push mirrored a similar scenario in 2017 when Trump inherited over 100 vacancies after Republicans blocked President Obama’s appointments. Biden’s confirmations now represent over a quarter of the federal bench, setting a new standard for diversity and ensuring a lasting legacy as he concludes his term.

  • Russia Rejects President-elect Donald Trump’s Peace Proposal To End Russia-Ukraine War

    Russia Rejects President-elect Donald Trump’s Peace Proposal To End Russia-Ukraine War

    Russia is dissatisfied with the reported peace deal proposals on Ukraine from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s team, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on December 29, according to state-owned TASS. Earlier reports from the Wall Street Journal indicated that Trump’s team is considering a plan to delay Ukraine’s NATO membership by at least 20 years in exchange for continued Western arms supplies and the deployment of European peacekeepers to monitor a ceasefire. Lavrov said the proposal, as outlined in leaks and Trump’s December 12 Time interview, suggests “freezing hostilities along the current line of contact and transferring the responsibility of confronting Russia to Europe.” “We are certainly not satisfied with the proposals sounding on behalf of representatives of the president-elect’s team,” Lavrov said, specifically rejecting the idea of introducing European peacekeepers in Ukraine.

    Reports suggest that President-elect Donald Trump discussed these ideas during a December 7, 2024 meeting in Paris with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump reportedly emphasized Europe’s need to take the lead in deterring Russian aggression. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that Moscow has received no official signals from Washington regarding these proposals, adding that policy remains under the Biden administration until Trump’s inauguration on January 20. Lavrov expressed Russia’s “willingness to engage” with the new U.S. administration, provided Washington takes the “first move” to restore dialogue severed after the start of Russia’s invasion.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin said on December 26 that Russia aims to “end the conflict” in 2025 while reiterating hopes for a front-line success. Following Putin’s comments, Sergey Lavrov ridiculed the possibility of a ceasefire, adding that “a ceasefire is a road to nowhere. Putin expressed openness to dialogue with Trump but maintained Russia’s firm demands, including no territorial concessions and a rejection of Ukraine’s NATO membership.

    Russia’s rejection of Trump’s peace proposals is significant because it means that the incoming administration will have to revamp its strategy when it comes to negotiating peace between Kyiv and Moscow. As both sides have now rejected parts of the president-elect’s proposal, in order to facilitate negotiations, Trump will have to come up with an entirely new strategy.

    President-elect Donald Trump has previously said on numerous occasions that he would end the war in Ukraine “within 24 hours” and his advisers have reportedly been coming up with a peace plan that would involve freezing all conflict at the front lines and creating a demilitarized zone. Keith Kellogg, the president-elect’s nominee to serve as special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, has said that the nearly three-year war between the two countries will be “resolved in the next few months.” During his recent interview with Time magazine Trump said that he will not abandon Kyiv and that he believes the war would not have broken out if he was president. Russia had previously said that it was “ready to study Trump’s proposals on Ukraine” but specified that “studying” did not mean “agreeing.”

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has previously rejected the idea of freezing the conflict to begin negotiations to end the war. He told the French outlet Le Parisien that Trump “knows about my desire not to rush things at the expense of Ukraine” and said that Ukraine would not give up its territories or its independence.

  • Biden Administration Sanctions Russia, Iran Over Interference In The 2024 Presidential Election

    Biden Administration Sanctions Russia, Iran Over Interference In The 2024 Presidential Election

    The Biden Administration announced on December 31, 2024 that it is leveling sanctions on entities in Iran and Russia over attempted election interference. The Treasury Department said the entities, a subordinate organization of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and a Moscow-based affiliate of Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU, attempted to interfere in the 2024 elections.

    “As affiliates of the IRGC and GRU, these actors aimed to stoke socio-political tensions and influence the U.S. electorate during the 2024 U.S. election,” said the Treasury Department in a news release. “The Governments of Iran and Russia have targeted our election processes and institutions and sought to divide the American people through targeted disinformation campaigns,” Acting Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley T. Smith said in the statement. “The United States will remain vigilant against adversaries who would undermine our democracy,” Smith added.

    A spokesperson for Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York said that Iran has denied interfering in US elections “on multiple occasions,” citing past statements that denied the allegations and calling them “devoid of any credibility and legitimacy,” “fundamentally unfounded” and “wholly inadmissible.” “Our reaction remains the same,” said Ali Karimi Magham, a mission spokesperson. Russia’s Embassy in Washington, D.C., denied the US allegations in a statement, saying “we respect the will of the American people.”

    The Treasury sanctions announcement on December 31 said that the named Cognitive Design Production Center, acting on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, planned operations “since at least 2023 … to incite socio-political tensions among the U.S. electorate.” The Treasury also said the Moscow-based Center for Geopolitical Expertise, “at the direction of, and with financial support from, the GRU,” directed and subsidized “the creation and publication of deepfakes and circulated disinformation about candidates in the U.S. 2024 general election.” That included disinformation that was “designed to imitate legitimate news outlets to create false corroboration between the stories, as well as to obfuscate their Russian origin,” the department’s release said.

    US intelligence officials said in September that propagandists in Russia, Iran and China were using artificial intelligence in efforts to deceive Americans and interfere in the 2024 presidential election. Though none of the entities sanctioned by the Treasure Department are affiliated with China, the department said in a separate letter Monday that its computers had been hacked in a state-sponsored Chinese operation in “a major incident.” China denied that allegation.

  • President-elect Donald Trump Endorses Mike Johnson To Continue As House Speaker

    President-elect Donald Trump Endorses Mike Johnson To Continue As House Speaker

    President-elect Donald J. Trump endorsed House Speaker Mike Johnson for another term in his post on December 30, moving to shore up the fortunes of a leader whose fate he threw into question this month when he sank a bipartisan spending deal Speaker Johnson had struck to avert a government shutdown. The announcement from Trump on his website, Truth Social, ended days of private discussions by the president-elect and his allies about whether to try to save Johnson or find another candidate, as some conservatives have been agitating for. It followed a concerted, monthslong effort by Johnson to ingratiate himself with the president-elect in hopes of winning his backing and averting another messy fight for the speakership at the start of the 119th Congress on Friday.

    It is still not clear whether President-elect Donald Trump’s stamp of approval would guarantee Congressman Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, a smooth road to re-election, given the antipathy he has drawn from some right-wing lawmakers who have recently shown their willingness to buck Trump. Given the very narrow margin of the incoming House majority, the loss of just a few votes could stymie Johnson. One Republican lawmaker, Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky, has already pledged to oppose him, and others have said their support is not a certainty.

    The House is set to choose a speaker as the new Congress convenes, just three days before President-elect Donald Trump’s Electoral College victory is scheduled to be certified by a joint session of Congress. House Speaker Mike Johnson must cobble together a majority in the 435-member chamber to keep his job, a feat that his predecessor Kevin McCarthy struggled to accomplish even though he, too, had Trump’s endorsement at the time. Failure to have a speaker in place by January 6 could delay the certification process and focus attention on the deep divisions within the narrow House Republican majority. It also could slow what Trump and Republican leaders had hoped would be a rapid start to legislative business in the new Congress to begin enacting the president-elect’s ambitious agenda.

    “The American people need IMMEDIATE relief from all of the destructive policies of the last Administration. Speaker Mike Johnson is a good, hard working, religious man,” President-elect Donald Trump wrote in a discursive post that praised himself and his campaign, attacked Democrats, and mocked the Reverend Al Sharpton, with whom he has a long and contentious history. Trump said Johnson would “do the right thing, and we will continue to WIN. Mike has my Complete & Total Endorsement. MAGA!!! A person close to Trump, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the fact that House Republicans had defied the president-elect on the debt limit demand helped Trump realize that some members of the House posed challenges, but that Johnson was not one of them.

    Before making his endorsement on December 30, President-elect Donald Trump had privately told people that House Speaker Mike Johnson had asked for his support, but that he was not sure he was going to back him. Trump and his advisers also told associates, though, that they did not see who else could get the 218 votes required to become speaker. No Republican has emerged to challenge him so far, though several have publicly vented their dissatisfaction with his performance and complained that Johnson did not keep them informed about his spending proposal.

    After President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement, Congressman Jim Jordan, the Ohio Republican who would be a potential alternative candidate, said on social media that he agreed with Trump’s endorsement as a way to move quickly on the Republican agenda. “Time to do what we said we would do.” Jordan wrote on social media.

    On the other hand, Congresswoman Victoria Spartz, Republican of Indiana, said on Fox News before President-elect Trump’s endorsement that she was uncommitted on supporting Mike Johnson for the speakership. She reiterated that view later in a social media post. “I understand why President Trump is endorsing Speaker Johnson as he did Speaker Ryan, which is definitely important,” Spartz wrote. “However, we still need to get assurances that @SpeakerJohnson won’t sell us out to the swamp.”

    After winning the House majority in 2022, Republicans got off to a rough start in 2023, taking 15 ballots and four days to elect Kevin McCarthy as speaker, only to see him deposed 10 months later. That led to Mike Johnson’s surprise election after others on McCarthy’s leadership team were rejected on the House floor. A similar scenario in the new Congress would be an embarrassing spectacle for Republicans who will control the White House and both chambers of Congress.

    In private, President-elect Donald Trump has fumed about the fact that Mike Johnson failed during the end-of-session negotiations this month to deliver on his late demand that a year-end spending package also contain a suspension of the debt ceiling, which would have spared him from having to address with the federal borrowing limit when he takes office. Trump had made that demand after he and his ally, Elon Musk torpedoed the original catchall spending deal Johnson had cut with Democrats. Musk also endorsed Johnson keeping his job on Monday.

    President-elect Donald Trump has complained about a broad fiscal deal negotiated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden in May 2023, which increased the debt ceiling for two years while freezing and capping some government spending. He has also complained that Mike Johnson has failed to find a way to spare him a debt ceiling dilemma early in his next term, given that many Republicans refuse to support raising the limit no matter who is in the White House.

    The Republican resistance to suspending the debt limit showed that despite President-elect Donald Trump’s demands, dozens of the most conservative House Republicans were willing to oppose him and risk the backlash when it comes to a central issue for them. Thomas Massie was among those who balked at the debt limit request, and he renewed his opposition to Mike Johnson after the president-elect’s endorsement. “I respect and support President Trump, but his endorsement of Mike Johnson is going to work out about as well as his endorsement of Speaker Paul Ryan,” Massie wrote on social media, referring to the former speaker who ended up at odds with Trump. “We’ve seen Johnson partner with the democrats to send money to Ukraine, authorize spying on Americans, and blow the budget.” Johnson did rely on Democratic votes multiple times to push through spending bills to avoid government shutdowns and keep aid flowing to Ukraine. The latter position won him Democratic backing when Massie sought unsuccessfully to topple Johnson in May. But Democrats, who were outraged that Johnson abandoned the spending deal he had struck with them this month, have made it clear they would not rescue him a second time.

    Mike Johnson said he was “honored and humbled” by the incoming president’s backing. “Together, we will quickly deliver on your America First agenda and usher in the new golden age of America,” Johnson wrote on social media as he reposted Trump’s endorsement. “The American people demand and deserve that we waste no time. Let’s get to work!”

  • Republican-Run States See Opportunity To Push Extreme Policies Under Trump

    Republican-Run States See Opportunity To Push Extreme Policies Under Trump

    Republican state lawmakers and conservative leaders around the United States see Donald Trump’s re-election as a mandate that will help them enact right-wing policies in Republican-run states across the US. The policies include steep tax cuts, environmental legislation, religion in schools, and legislation concerning transgender medical care and education, among other hot-button social issues. Next year, Republicans will have trifecta control, meaning both legislative bodies and the governorship in a state, in 23 states, while Democrats will only control the three entities in 15 states. The other states have divided government.

    While federal and state control could allow Republicans to advance their top priorities, leaders of progressive groups point to other election outcomes, such as some red states supporting abortion rights, as evidence that even if people voted for Trump, that does not necessarily mean they support what opponents describe as extreme proposals. And they remain optimistic that they will prevail against such measures in court. “We are in a moment right now where the incoming administration” won “by distancing themselves from these very policies that it now seems that they are seeking to accelerate”, said Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, a liberal legal group that includes more than 800 lawyers and has filed legal challenges to Republican regulations and administrative actions. Perryman added: “We are laser-focused on protecting the American people and on ensuring that people in this country have the tools to make their voices heard.”

    Top priorities among Republican state lawmakers appear to concern curriculum and school choice, meaning allowing parents to use public money to send their children to private schools, which can be religious or more socially conservative than public schools. According to Education Week, twenty-eight states have at least one school choice program, such as education savings accounts, which provide public per-pupil funds to families with children who do not attend public schools. President-elect Donal Trump’s platform stated that he wanted “to protect the God-given right of every parent to be the steward of their children’s education” and when nominating Linda McMahon to serve as education secretary, he stated that she would “fight tirelessly to expand ‘Choice’ to every state in America”.

    Since Trump’s election, Republicans in states such as Ohio have also introduced legislation labeled as a “Parent’s Bill of Rights” that would mandate that public school officials notify parents of a student’s mental, emotional or physical health, including “any request by a student to identify as a gender that does not align with the student’s biological sex”. Critics of such legislation have described it as “an endangerment to all LGBTQ+ youth”. Earlier this month, there were 129 pending anti-LGBTQ+ state bills, including proposals to prohibit doctors from prescribing to minors puberty-blocking drugs or gender reassignment surgery, according to the ACLU. Tiffany Justice, co-founder of Moms for Liberty, a rightwing advocacy group, said that the Department of Education under Trump would help states “stop gender ideology being taught in our nation’s schools”.

    President-elect Donald Trump has also promised to eliminate the Biden administration’s efforts to address the climate crisis. The Montana state senator Tom McGillvray said he hoped Trump would mitigate or rescind recent federal environmental regulations. “We don’t need Washington to tell us how to manage our environment,” said McGillvray. Still, the courts could provide a way for people to combat Trump administration policies. The Montana Supreme Court upheld a ruling last month that stated that 16 young plaintiffs had a “constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment” and invalidated a law that barred regulators from considering the effects of greenhouse gas emissions when permitting fossil fuel projects.

    Democracy Forward plans to use the courts to “challenge policies that are harmful and in instances where the incoming administration may be inclined to ignore the law”, said Skye Perryman. And even though Trump captured the popular vote and electoral college, voters in three states, including Montana, supported the Republican-passed ballot measures to protect abortion rights. According to polls, a majority of people also oppose Project 2025, a policy playbook from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. During the election, Trump distanced himself from the plan, which calls for withholding federal funding from states that share data on abortion that occurred within their borders and for dismantling the Department of Education, among a long list of other ideas. But Trump has since appointed people connected to Project 2025, including Tom Homan to serve as “border czar” and Brendan Carr to serve as chair of the Federal Communications Commission. “Some of the same architects behind the extreme federal policies also work at the state level,” said Perryman. “We are obviously monitoring the bills that are being filed in various sessions and ensuring that people at the state and local level can make their voices heard, including through using the courts.”

  • President Biden Condemns Trump as Dire Threat to Democracy in a Blistering Speech

    President Biden Condemns Trump as Dire Threat to Democracy in a Blistering Speech

    President Joe Biden on January 5 delivered a ferocious condemnation of former President Donald Trump, his likely 2024 opponent, warning in searing language that the former President had directed an insurrection and would aim to undo the nation’s bedrock democracy if he returned to power. On the eve of the third anniversary of the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by former President Trump’s supporters, President Biden framed the coming election as a choice between a candidate devoted to upholding America’s centuries-old ideals and a chaos agent willing to discard them for his benefit. “There’s no confusion about who Trump is or what he intends to do,” Biden warned in a speech at a community college not far from Valley Forge in Pennsylvania, where George Washington commanded troops during the Revolutionary War. Exhorting supporters to prepare to vote this fall, he said: “We all know who Donald Trump is. The question is: Who are we?”

    In an intensely personal address that at one point nearly led President Joe Biden to curse former President Donald Trump by name, the President compared his rival to foreign autocrats who rule by fiat and lies. He said former President Trump had failed the basic test of American leaders, to trust the people to choose their elected officials and abide by their decisions. “We must be clear,” Biden said. “Democracy is on the ballot. Your freedom is on the ballot.”

    President Joe Biden’s harshness on his rival illustrated what his campaign believes to be the stakes of the 2024 election and his perilous political standing. Confronted with low approval ratings, bad head-to-head polling against former President Donald Trump, worries about his age, and lingering unease with the economy, President Biden is turning increasingly to the figure who has proved to be Democrats’ single best motivator. Former President Donald Trump, speaking at a campaign rally in Iowa soon after President Joe Biden’s appearance, quickly lashed back, calling the president’s comments “pathetic fearmongering” and accusing him of “abusing George Washington’s legacy.”

    President Joe Biden’s remarks carried echoes of the 2020 campaign when he presented himself as the caretaker of “the soul of America” against a Trump presidency that he and Democratic supporters argued was on the verge of causing permanent damage to the country. The 31-minute speech was President Biden’s first public campaign event since he announced in April 2023 that he would seek re-election and was, in tone and content, arguably his most forceful public denunciation of former President Donald Trump since the two men became political rivals in 2019.

    President Joe Biden’s appearance, meant as a kickoff to help define the 2024 campaign, was an early effort to revive the politically sprawling anti-Trump coalition that propelled Democrats to key victories in recent elections. Mr. Biden’s task now is to persuade those voters to view the 2024 contest as the same kind of national emergency that they sensed in 2018, 2020, and 2022. He began with an extensive recounting of former President Donald Trump’s actions before, during, and after the January 6 attack. The country, President Biden said, cannot afford to allow Trump and his supporters to present a whitewashed version of that day and spread falsehoods about the violent outcome of their effort to undo the 2020 election results. Upholding the nation’s democracy, Biden said, is “the central cause of my presidency.”

    President Joe Biden made no mention of the 91 felony charges the former president faces in four jurisdictions, sticking to a vow to steer clear of his rival’s legal problems and focusing squarely on Trump’s actions rather than any potential criminal consequences for them. “Trump exhausted every legal avenue available to overturn the 2020 election. The legal path took him back to the truth, that I won the election and he was a loser,” Biden said. “He had one act left, one desperate act available to him, the violence of January 6.”

    For a president who has faced intense scrutiny over his vigor in public appearances, the speech was a deftly delivered, focused argument about this year’s stakes. It was President Joe Biden’s latest attempt to build his political identity around the ideas of restoring national unity and upholding fairness, democracy, and collective patriotism. He has come back to those themes many times, during his brief push for voting rights legislation in early 2022, then as the midterm elections approached, and most recently in September, during a speech in Arizona honoring former Senator John McCain.

    In the speech, President Joe Biden sought to frame former President Donald Trump as the leader of a cult of personality, and his Republican allies as sycophants. The president mentioned the recent $148 million judgment against Rudolph W. Giuliani for his lies about Georgia election workers, as well as the $787.5 million that Fox News was ordered to pay to settle a defamation case about its role in spreading election lies. Biden lamented that Fox News hosts and Republican officials who condemned Trump’s January 6 behavior in the moment had since changed their tune and repeated his falsehoods. “Politics, fear, and money all intervened, and now these MAGA voices who know the truth about Jan. 6 have abandoned democracy,” Biden said.

    What remains unclear is how much President Joe Biden’s democracy pitch will resonate with voters who remain nervous about an improving economy, and wary of re-electing an 81-year-old who is already the oldest president in US history. Even some who have expressed deep fears about Trump’s authoritarian impulses are skeptical that the subject will be a winning message in 2024. “As a Biden campaign theme, I think the threat to democracy pitch is a bust,” 2012 Republican Presidential nominee, prominent Trump critic, and Utah Senator Mitt Romney, wrote in a text message to a New York Times reporter. “January 6 will be four years old by the election. People have processed it, one way or another. Biden needs fresh material, a new attack, rather than kicking a dead political horse.”

    President Joe Biden threaded his speech with warnings that former President Donald Trump and Republicans would threaten not only democracy but also major Democratic priorities, abortion rights, voting rights, and economic and environmental justice. Ian Bassin, the executive director of Protect Democracy, a nonprofit dedicated to combating authoritarianism, said he had stressed to Biden’s aides that the president needed to connect democracy to voters’ personal experiences on other issues, in the same way Trump repeats to his supporters that prosecutions of him are persecutions of them. “Democracy is not just a way of structuring elections for order in our government,” Mr. Bassin said. “It’s a set of values about the kind of communities we want to live in and the way that we want to live as neighbors.”

    President Joe Biden warned in his speech that former President Donald Trump was not being shy about what he would do in a second term. “Trump’s assault on democracy isn’t just part of his past. It’s what he’s promising for the future,” President Biden said. “He’s not hiding the ball.” Biden then recounted, in exacting detail, how a Trump campaign rally last year began with a choir of rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6 singing the national anthem while a video of the damage played on a big screen. Trump had watched with approval. The scene, Biden suggested, would be the nation’s fate if Trump and his allies returned to power. “This is like something out of a fairy tale,” Biden said. “A bad fairy tale.”

  • Biden Administration Sues Texas Over State’s Controversial Immigration Law

    Biden Administration Sues Texas Over State’s Controversial Immigration Law

    The Biden administration on January 3 filed a lawsuit against Texas over its controversial immigration law that gives local law enforcement in Texas the authority to arrest migrants, arguing the state “cannot run its own immigration system.” The move comes after the Justice Department threatened last week to sue Texas if it did not back down from the measure. It marks the second legal action against the state this week, as President Joe Biden and Texas Governor Greg Abbott spar over the handling of the US-Mexico border. In December, Abbott, a Trump-aligned Republican, signed into law Senate Bill 4, which also gives judges the ability to issue orders to remove people from the United States. The White House has slammed the law – which is slated to take effect in March – as “incredibly extreme.”

    In its lawsuit, the Justice Department argued that the measure undercuts the federal government’s “exclusive authority” to enforce immigration law. “Its efforts, through SB 4, intrude on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States’ immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations. SB 4 is invalid and must be enjoined,” the complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, states.

    The Justice Department requested that the measure be blocked. “SB 4 is clearly unconstitutional,” Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said in a statement. “Under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution and longstanding Supreme Court precedent, states cannot adopt immigration laws that interfere with the framework enacted by Congress. The Justice Department will continue to fulfill its responsibility to uphold the Constitution and enforce federal law.”

    Earlier this week, the Biden administration asked the Supreme Court to allow it to remove razor wire at the US-Mexico border that was installed by Texas. The dispute is over whether the Border Patrol has the legal authority to cut concertina wire on the banks of the Rio Grande.

    The state of Texas sued last year to stop the wire cutting, saying it illegally destroys state property and undermines security to assist migrants in crossing the border. A federal appeals court ordered Border Patrol agents to stop the practice while court proceedings play out, and the Justice Department has now filed an emergency application, asking the Supreme Court to overturn that decision.

  • Former President Donald Trump Appeals Colorado ‘Insurrection Clause’ Ruling to Supreme Court

    Former President Donald Trump Appeals Colorado ‘Insurrection Clause’ Ruling to Supreme Court

    Former President Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on January 3 to allow him to stay on the presidential primary ballot in Colorado, saying a state ruling banning him was unconstitutional, unfair, and based on a January 6 insurrection that his appeal said did not happen. The court filing, dominated by technical and procedural challenges to the Colorado Supreme Court ruling last month, does not ask the high court to weigh in on whether the former president indeed participated in an insurrection. The state’s highest court concluded that Trump indeed engaged in the January 6 insurrection effort and thus was banned from running under an obscure, Civil War-era clause in the Constitution’s 14th Amendment banning such a person from holding office.

    Former President Donald Trump’s appeal, which experts expect the high court to consider, instead argues that the Colorado court had no business getting involved in the matter at all and that keeping Trump off the ballot would deprive voters of their right in a democracy to choose their leaders. The decision is “a ruling that, if allowed to stand, will mark the first time in the history of the US that the judiciary has prevented voters from casting ballots for the leading major-party presidential candidate,” said the court papers filed late Wednesday afternoon, two days before a deadline to appeal or get booted off the Colorado Republican Party primary ballot.

    The Colorado court ruled in favor of six Republican and independent voters who said the “insurrection clause of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution makes Trump ineligible to hold office and thus, not qualified to be on the ballot. That clause, originally directed at Confederates, says no one can hold office who has previously taken an oath to support the Constitution but then engaged in an insurrection or provided help to enemies of the US.

    Former President Donald Trump’s team, in their legal brief, argued that Congress gets to decide a candidate’s eligibility to serve as president. And while the appeal was specific to the Colorado case, it tacitly invited the high court to offer a ruling that applied nationwide. “It would be beyond absurdity” for the ballot question to be determined by 51 separate state and District of Columbia jurisdictions rather than federal courts, the brief said. “The election of the President of the United States is a national matter, with national implications, that arises solely under the federal Constitution and does not implicate the inherent or retained authority of the states.”

    The brief said former President Donald Trump was never an “officer” of the US and that the oath he took as president was different than those taken by other public servants, meaning he was not subject to the ban on insurrectionists. Further, the court papers said, the clause merely says such an individual cannot serve – not that he or she can’t run for office. The term “insurrection” is unclear, the brief said, and anyway, his lawyers said, Trump did not engage in “insurrection.” “Trump never told his supporters to enter the Capitol, either in his speech at the Ellipse or in any of his statements or communications before or during the events at the Capitol,” the appeal said. “To the contrary, his only explicit instructions called for protesting “peacefully and patriotically” to “support our Capitol Police and Law Enforcement,” to “[s]tay peaceful” and to “remain peaceful.”

    Jena Griswold, Colorado’s Democratic secretary of state, urged the high court to settle the matter. “Donald Trump just filed an appeal to the US Supreme Court to consider whether he is eligible to appear on Colorado’s Presidential Primary ballot. I urge the Court to consider this case as quickly as possible,” Griswold wrote on social media.

    The appeal is virtually certain to be heard by a Supreme Court whose reputation as an unbiased arbiter has suffered immensely in recent years. Questions about ethical transgressions, along with the stunning 2022 reversal of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing abortion rights, have turned the court, in the eyes of many Americans, into another partisan entity. The Trump case puts the court in an extremely uncomfortable position: No matter how it may rule, and no matter the legal arguments used to justify it, the decision is likely to cause a backlash from some political segments in deeply divided America. The high court was the target of criticism after its 2000 ruling that effectively made George W. Bush president. And while the justices may not want to enter that political fray again, competing decisions on the insurrection clause likely means the Supreme Court will have no choice but to get involved.

  • 95 People Killed In Terrorist Attack In Iran

    95 People Killed In Terrorist Attack In Iran

    At least 95 people were killed and scores injured on January 3 in two blasts that struck the central Iranian city of Kerman, where thousands of mourners had gathered to commemorate Qasem Soleimani on the fourth anniversary of his assassination in a US drone strike in Iraq in 2020. Bahram Eynollahi, Iran’s health minister, was quoted by Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) as saying 95 people were killed and 211 were injured. An earlier toll provided by officials, of 103 killed, was lowered because names were repeated on a list of victims, he said. The deputy governor of Kerman, the slain general’s hometown, said the incident was a “terrorist attack,” according to IRNA. The explosions occurred about a half-mile from Soleimani’s burial place, on the road to the graveyard, and roughly 20 minutes apart, the agency reported. Before the blasts, the state-run live broadcast had shown tens of thousands of mourners filling the street, moving calmly in a procession. After the attack, it broadcast video of people running frantically and men wearing emergency medical technician uniforms surging into the crowd. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

    Iran has faced numerous attacks in the past, including from separatist groups, the US and Israel, and Sunni extremists. A 2017 attack in Tehran claimed by the Islamic State terrorist group targeted the parliament building and the mausoleum of the leader of the nation’s Islamic revolution, killing at least 12 people. Israel, Iran’s main regional rival, has callously assassinated 6 nuclear scientists in Iran between 2010 and 2020 and attacked nuclear facilities. This most recent attack is the deadliest terrorist attack in Iran since the Cinema Rex fire in August of 1978. The Cinema Rex fire, carried out by SAVAK, the secret police of the former Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, resulted in the deaths of 470 people and served as a rallying cry in support of the 1978-79 Iranian Revolution that resulted in the overthrow of the Shah’s regime.

    A senior Biden administration official, who spoke to reporters on the condition of anonymity under ground rules established by the Biden administration, suggested that the bombing in Iran was the work of an insurgent group such as the Islamic State. “Based on the [modus operandi] it does look like a terrorist attack and the type of thing we’ve seen ISIS do in the past,” the official said, using an acronym for the Islamic State. “And as far as we’re aware that’s kind of, I think, our going assumption at the moment.”

    Iranian leaders vowed retaliation against “enemies” but did not accuse anyone directly for the attack. “The evil, criminal enemies of the Iranian nation have once again created a tragedy and martyred a large number of our dear people in Kerman,” Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said in a statement. “This tragedy will be met with a strong response.” In a televised speech, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi referred frequently to the US and Israel as he condemned the “heinous” killings but also refrained from explicitly blaming anyone for the blasts. “The criminals who have the blood of the innocent people on their hands, they can’t even tolerate his burial site,” he said. The state news agency reported that Raisi had postponed a planned trip to Turkey on January 4 because of the attacks.

    Qasem Soleimani headed the Quds Force, an expeditionary unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). In that role, he oversaw a network of Iranian-supported proxy groups across the Middle East that helped project Iran’s military and political power in places such as Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. Soleimani joined the IRGC in 1979 following the Iranian Revolution. Reportedly, his training was minimal, but he advanced rapidly and developed a reputation as one of the greatest military tacticians in modern history. Soleimani became commander of the Quds Force in 1988 and formulated Iran’s military interventions in the Syrian Civil War, the war against ISIS, and operations in support of Shi’a sociopolitical groups throughout the Middle East. Due to his active role in the Iranian armed forces and fierce defense of both Iranian territorial integrity and the ideals of the Iranian Revolution, Soleimani became a universally respected figure within Iran and an icon of the cause of anti-imperialism worldwide

    Qasem Soleimani was killed on January 3, 2020, by a US drone that struck a two-car convoy carrying Soleimani on an access road near Baghdad International Airport. The assassination marked a high point in tensions between Iran and the Trump administration, which pursued a “maximum pressure” policy against Iran that included the US withdrawal from a landmark nuclear deal and Iran’s subsequent increase in its nuclear activities. Days after Soleimani was killed, Iran launched a missile attack on a US-occupied base in Iraq that wounded 110 US troops.

    The terror bombings in Iran on January 3 came during another period of rising regional tensions stemming from the war in Gaza. Iranian-backed militant groups in Yemen, Iraq, and Lebanon have staged almost daily attacks in retaliation for Israel’s military offensive, with many of the attacks targeting its principal ally, the US.

  • UN Removes Iran From Women’s Rights Commission Due To Human Rights Violations

    UN Removes Iran From Women’s Rights Commission Due To Human Rights Violations

    The United Nations voted to oust Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women because it “continuously undermines and increasingly suppresses the human rights of women and girls,’’ according to the resolution adopted on December 14. A majority of the 54 members of the U.N.’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) voted on a US-drafted resolution to expel Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women for the remaining of its 2022-2026 elected term. A total of 29 countries elected to the Council voted in favor of expelling Iran. “There are few obviously right and wrong answers in diplomacy,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, said ahead of the vote. “But today – today – we have an opportunity to do something that is clearly the right thing to do.”

    Protests erupted in Iran in September following the death of Mahsa Amini at the hands of Iran’s morality police. Iran carried out its first execution related to the protests on December 8, and many more protesters currently face the death penalty in the country, according to Amnesty International. Because of these heinous human rights abuses, as well as the record of the Iranian government in the realm of human rights since 1979, having Iran as a member of the Commission tarnished the image of the UN body. “If [Iran is] allowed to continue in their role, we believe that it seriously erodes the Commission’s credibility,” Bob Rae, Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, said before the vote.

    Civil society organizations welcomed the UN body’s decision, and some would like to see more action coming out from the UN on Iran. “ The Iranian Diaspora Collective (IDC) calls on the U.N. and other world leaders to continue their solidarity with Iranian women and girls and consider all options, including a forceful, joint response, freezing of assets, cancelling visas of senior members of the government, and downgrading diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic,” Mandy Ansari, Moj Mahdara and Roya Rastegar, co-founders of the IDC, a nonpartisan organization, said in a statement. “The removal of Iran from the UN Commission on the Status of Women is a welcome step toward holding the Iranian leadership accountable for its long history of discrimination and cruelty towards women and girls,” Louis Charbonneau, UN director at Human Rights Watch said. “But today’s justified action by U.N. member countries is a far cry from real accountability for those responsible for the security forces’ lethal violence against protesters after the death of Mahsa Amini.”

    While a majority of countries voted in favor of the resolution, 16 countries abstained, including Mexico, Thailand and Botswana, and some others voted against the resolution. “Tragically, the UN as an organization created for multilateralism is hosted by a country that strives for exclusivity, supremacy, unilateralism, international bullying and intimidation, as part of its foreign policy agenda,” Zahra Ershadi, Iran’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, said following the vote, referring to the United States.

    Russia voted against the resolution and called the vote a political move by Washington. “The ​​United States with a group of its loyal perpetrators have decided once again to pressure their political opponent trying to discredit them.” The Russian Federation delayed the proceedings of the meeting in the morning by asking for a legal opinion on “whether or not such a vote is in accordance with the procedures of the United Nations specifically the procedures.” Iran circulated a letter ahead of the vote, signed by 17 other countries and Palestine ahead of the vote. The letter called the ECOSOC vote “an unwelcome precedent that will ultimately prevent other Member States with different cultures, customs and traditions, who are also interested in serving in the subsidiary bodies of ECOSOC.”

    While countries like Iran and Russia were expected to vote against the resolution, many other unexpected countries were also uneasy with how the resolution came about, according to Richard Gowan, UN expert at the International Crisis Group. “I’ve heard a lot of disquiet and a lot of discomfort from diplomatic contacts about the whole process,” he said. “But the reality was that once the U.S. had put this proposal out there, U.S. allies in particular really had no choice but to go along with it.” He added that the most recent hanging of two protesters gave the resolution additional momentum.

    Mexico, a country that has recently adopted a feminist foreign policy, decided to abstain on the resolution. “We believe that it’s better to have Iran inside the CSW than not,” Alicia Buenrostro Massieu, Mexico’s deputy ambassador, said before the meeting, “we believe that [expelling Iran] wouldn’t change the situation or the reality of women on the ground.” China also criticized the vote, saying: “Removing CSW membership of a member state that has been democratically elected into CSW by ECOSOC sets a very dangerous precedent.” Nigeria also voted against the resolution.“We cannot support the blackmail, the politicization of issues at the United Nations,” Nigeria’s representative at the meeting said.

    The mosr recent ECOSOC decision is not the first time UN member states vote to remove a country over human rights abuses. More recently, the General Assembly suspended Russia from the Human Rights Council following its invasion of Ukraine and reported human rights violations in the country. While it is not the first time such a decision was made in the Human Rights Council, Gowan says its is a first for the Commission on the Status of Women, leading some diplomats are concerned the two removals could lead to a domino effect. “People are drawing the dots,” Gowan said about how some countries may be concerned about these two votes setting a precedent for other expulsions, “but at the same time I don’t think the U.S. has a list of countries that it wants to kick out of other U.N. bodies. I’ve been really struck for a lot of diplomats from countries with no particular reason to worry they’re going to be targets, have been saying that they do worry that this is the sort of exclusionary multilateralism.”

  • Senator Krysten Sinema Switches Parties From Democrat To Independent, Dealing A Major Blow To Demcoratic Senate Control

    Senator Krysten Sinema Switches Parties From Democrat To Independent, Dealing A Major Blow To Demcoratic Senate Control

    Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema is changing her party affiliation to independent, delivering a jolt to Democrats’ narrow majority and Washington along with it. In a 45-minute interview, the first-term senator said that she will not caucus with Republicans and suggested that she intends to vote the same way she has for four years in the Senate. “Nothing will change about my values or my behavior,” Senator Sinema said. Provided that Sinema sticks to that vow, Democrats will still have a workable Senate majority in the next Congress, though it will not exactly be the neat and tidy 51 seats they assumed. The Democrats expected to also have the votes to control Senate committees. And Sinema’s move means that Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), a pivotal swing vote in the 50-50 chamber the past two years, will hold onto some but not all of his outsized influence in the Democratic caucus.

    Senator Krysten Sinema would not address whether she will run for reelection in 2024, and informed Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of her decision. “I don’t anticipate that anything will change about the Senate structure,” Sinema said, adding that some of the exact mechanics of how her switch affects the chamber is “a question for Chuck Schumer … I intend to show up to work, do the same work that I always do. I just intend to show up to work as an independent.” She said her closely held decision to leave the Democratic Party reflects that she’s “never really fit into a box of any political party,” a description she said also applies to her fiercely independent state and millions of unaffiliated voters across the country.

    Senator Krysten Sinema has a well-established iconoclastic reputation. She competes in Ironman triathlons, moonlighted at a Napa Valley winery and often hangs out on the Republican side of the aisle during floor votes. The 46-year-old said her party switch is a logical next step in a political career built on working almost as closely with Republicans as she does with Democrats. That approach helped her play a pivotal role in bipartisan deals on infrastructure, gun safety and same-sex marriage during the current 50-50 Senate. It’s also infuriated some Democrats, particularly her resistance to higher tax rates and attempts to weaken the filibuster. Her move will buck up her Republican allies and is certain to embolden her Democratic critics, at home and on the Hill. Sinema said that “criticism from outside entities doesn’t really matter to me” and she’ll go for a “hard run” after her announcement becomes public, “because that’s mostly what I do Friday mornings.”

    Even before her party switch, Senator Krysten Sinema faced rumblings of a primary challenge in 2024 from Congressman Ruben Galleg. Becoming an independent will avoid a head-to-head primary against Gallego or another progressive, should she seek reelection. A theoretical general-election campaign could be chaotic if both Democrats and Republicans field candidates against her. Senator Sinema asserted she has a different goal in mind: fully separating herself from a party that has never never really been a fit, despite the Democratic Party’s support in her hard-fought 2018 race. Sinema wouldn’t entertain discussions of pursuing a second Senate term: “It’s fair to say that I’m not talking about it right now.” “I keep my eye focused on what I’m doing right now. And registering as an independent is what I believe is right for my state. It’s right for me. I think it’s right for the country,” she said, adding that “politics and elections will come later.”

    It has been a decade since the last Senate party switch, when former Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter left the Republicans to become a Democrat, and even longer since former Senator Joe Lieberman switched from Democrat to independent. Senator Krysten Sinema said she is not directly lobbying anyone to join her in leaving either the Democratic Caucus or Republican Conference, saying that she’d like the Senate to foster “an environment where people feel comfortable and confident saying and doing what they believe.” What that means practically is continuing to work among the Senate’s loose group of bipartisan dealmakers, some of whom are retiring this year. She has already connected with Senator-elect Katie Britt (R-AL) about working together. She insisted that she will not deviate from her past approach to confirming Democratic presidential appointees, whom she scrutinizes but generally supports, and said she expects to keep her committee assignments through the Democrats (she currently holds two subcommittee chairmanships). Nor, she said, will anything change about her ideology, which is more socially liberal than most Republicans on matters like abortion and more fiscally conservative than most Democrats.

    Senator Kryten Sinema voted to convict former President Donald Trump in two impeachment trials, opposed Trump-backed Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett and supported Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, tapped by President Joe Biden. She also supported two Democratic party-line bills this Congress, one on coronavirus aid and the other devoted to climate, prescription drugs and taxes. She said she maintains good relationships with Biden and the Senate majority leader as well as Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who invited her to give a closely watched speech on bipartisanship in his home state several months ago.

  • Iran Executes First Protestor Linked To Ongoing Revolution

    Iran Executes First Protestor Linked To Ongoing Revolution

    Iran has executed a man for allegedly injuring a paramilitary officer in the first known execution linked to revolution that have swept the country since September, state media reported on December 8. Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s judiciary, and the semi-official Tasmin news agency both named the protester as Mohsen Shekari. He was reportedly convicted of “waging war against god” for allegedly stabbing a member of the Basij paramilitary force at a protest in Tehran on September 23. Shekari was sentenced to death on October 23, and executed by hanging on December 8, according to Mizan Online. It was the first execution connected to the protests to be publicly reported by state media.

    Iran Human Rights, a non-profit rights organization that has members inside and outside the country, has called for a strong international response to the execution. “His execution must be met with the strongest possible terms and international reactions. Otherwise, we will be facing daily executions of protesters who are protesting for their fundamental human rights,” the group’s director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said in a statement. Amiry-Moghaddam said that Shekari was executed without any due process or access to a lawyer of his choice in a “show trial” by the Revolutionary Court.

    Several European governments strongly criticized Iran for the execution. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in a tweet that Shekari “was tried and executed in a perfidious rushed trial for disagreeing with the regime.” “The Iranian regime’s inhumanity knows no bounds,” she said. “But the threat of execution will not suffocate people’s desire for freedom.” French foreign ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre said France condemned the execution in the “strongest terms” and “reiterated its strongest commitment to the right to peaceful protest.” She said the demands by the protesters are “legitimate and must be heard.” British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said he was “outraged by the tragic news of the first execution of a protestor in Iran,” while the foreign ministry of the Czech Republic, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, described the news as “appalling,” and said “the Iranian regime uses outrageously disproportionate penalties to instill terror in its population.”

    Several Iranians have been sentenced to death by execution during the nationwide protests, which were sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after she was apprehended by the state’s morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly. Her death touched a nerve in the Islamic Republic, with prominent public figures coming out in support of the movement, including top Iranian actor Taraneh Alidoosti. The protests have since coalesced around a range of grievances with the authoritarian regime. 

    According to Amnesty International, as of November, Iranian authorities are seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in connection with the protests. Approximately 500 people at least have been killed in the unrest since September, according to Norway-based Iran Human Rights organization. Since the demonstrations began, authorities have unleashed a deadly crackdown, with reports of forced detentions and physical abuse being used to target the country’s Kurdish minority group. Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader (dictator)Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has praised the Basij, a wing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, for its role in the crackdown, describing the protest movement as “rioters” and “thugs” backed by foreign forces.

  • Iranian Regime Insiders Begin To Turn Against Government Due To Response To Protests

    Iranian Regime Insiders Begin To Turn Against Government Due To Response To Protests

    The former Iranian former president Mohammad Khatami has urged the current government to be more lenient with protesters, amid ongoing nationwide demonstrations representing the biggest challenge to the Islamic Republic in decades. Khatami, who previously served as Iranian President from 1997-2005 and was aligned with the reformist wing of the Iranian government said the government must listen to the demonstrators before it is too late, in a message ahead of Students’ Day, which marks the anniversary of the murder of three university students in 1953 by Iranian police under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s regime. “I advise the officials to appreciate this presence and instead of dealing with it inappropriately, take a softer approach and listen to them and with their help, recognize the wrong aspects of governance before it is too late for them to move towards good governance,” said Khatami, regarding the government’s handling of the protests.

    The Iranian Revolutionary movement were sparked by the death of a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman in September. Mahsa Amini died after she was arrested by the morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly. Authorities have since unleashed a deadly crackdown on demonstrators, with over 500 people at a minimum having been killed in the unrest, according to the organization Iran Human Rights. 

    Former President Mohammed Khatami said the principles of freedom and security do not have to be mutually exclusive. “Just as freedom is an urgent need and an important demand, security is also important for the country.” “It should not be allowed that freedom and security to be placed against each other, and as a result, freedom is trampled under the pretext of maintaining security, or security, which is a condition for the establishment of order and good order in society, is ignored in the name of freedom,” Khatami explained. The former leader also emphasized that it is important to pay “attention to the rightful demands of the society.” Khatami appeared to place blame on Iran’s government a few weeks ago when he tweeted that “bitter events” in Iran were being caused by the “faulty and incorrect mechanism and method of governance.”

    Khatami also called the phrase “Zan (woman), Zendegi (life), Azadi (freedom),” a beautiful message “that shows the movement towards a better future.” The phrase “Woman, Life, Freedom” is a chant taken from the Kurdish slogan Jin Jiyan Azadi and has been echoed throughout the demonstrations as a call for greater freedoms for women in Iran.

    Other Iranian public figures have also recently called on the government to take action to listen and protect protesters. Prominent Iranian Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid Ismaeelzahi invoked the country’s judiciary to investigate and prosecute individuals abusing women in prisons. A CNN investigation revealed the abuse endured by female prisoners in Iran’s notorious detention facilities, with survivors and eyewitnesses who left the country speaking out about the sexual assault they suffered. In a tweet on December 7, Ismaeelzahi said, “news about the sexual assault of female prisoners with the intention of humiliating, suppressing and forcing them for confessions have been reported in the media, and some prisoners’ accounts confirm this.” “If proven, the biggest corrupters on earth are the perpetrators of these crimes,” he said, referring to a charge given to some protesters who were sentenced to death. “It is necessary for the judiciary to prosecute these people and punish them severely.”

  • Protesters Detail Mass Sexual Abuse In Iranian Prisons By Regime

    Protesters Detail Mass Sexual Abuse In Iranian Prisons By Regime

    Women in Iran detained for protesting against the ruling regime are suffering sexual violence carried out by agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) intelligence agency, as reported on December 1. One woman from the city of Bukan in West Azerbaijan province had told her fellow prison detainees she had been raped while being interrogated by members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) intelligence agency, the outlet IranWire reported. The 22-year-old was transferred to a hospital because of her mental and physical condition but upon release, committed suicide, according to the outlet. 

    Fatemeh Davand, a political activist now in Turkey, had once been detained at the jail in question, Urmia prison, and left Iran in 2021. She told IranWire that women had told her they had witnessed and suffered sexual violence while in detention since the protests began. “At least eight young women, including a 17-year-old girl, said that they were raped by IRGC intelligence forces during their preliminary interrogation before entering the prison,” Davand told IranWire, a collaborative news website run by professional Iranian journalists in the diaspora and citizen journalists inside Iran.

    The death in custody of 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini on September 16, three days after her arrest for allegedly improperly wearing a hijab, has spurred an outpouring of anger against the regime of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ruled Iran as a burtal autocrat since 1989. Protests against the treatment of women have morphed into a full scale revolt against the Iranian regime. However, the unrest has been met with brute force by the IRGC which answers to Khamenei, as well its Basij militia of volunteers. IranWire has identified 577 of the arrested women, some of whom have been released on bail. Fatemeh Davand said that before being sent to Urmia prison, many faced abuse by IRGC agents, including rape at temporary detention centers.

    In November, CNN first reported that unspeakable sexually violent tactics were being used to suppress, demoralize and blackmail protesters, many of whom are kidnapped, disappearing into a network of prisons and secret jails. “There were girls who were sexually assaulted and then transferred to other cities,” one Kurdish-Iranian woman told the network, “they are scared to talk about these things.” Some of rapes were filmed and used to blackmail protesters into silence, utilizing the stigma attached to victims of sexual violence, according to CNN. The network said that many cases of sexual violence it reviewed since the protests started came from the west of the country, where large areas are predominantly Kurdish.

    Hana Yazdanpana, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), a nationalist and separatist militant group of Kurds in Iran, said that women arrested in the Kurdish cities of Sanandaj and Saqqez were frequently sexually assaulted. “We hear about such cases on a daily basis,” she told Newsweek. “However, due to the lack of enough information and the victims’ fear, we cannot proceed on investigations. “After they are raped and freed, they are threatened in many ways. Threatened that if they mention it, next time it will be worse,” she said.

  • Iran Intensifies Violent Crackdown Against Anti-Government Protestors

    Iran Intensifies Violent Crackdown Against Anti-Government Protestors

    Iran’s clerical rulers have stepped up suppression of persistent anti-government protests in the country’s Kurdish region, deploying troops and killing at least four demonstrators on November 20, social media posts and rights groups said. Nationwide protests, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in September in the custody of morality police, have been at their most intense in the areas where the majority of Iran’s 10 million Kurds live. Videos on social media, showed a convoy of military vehicles with heavily armed troops, purportedly in the western city of Mahabad, located in Iranian Kurdistan. The sounds of heavy weaponry could be heard in several other videos. The Norway-based human rights group Hengaw said military helicopters carried members of the widely feared Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to quell the protests in the Sunni-dominated Kurdish city of Mahabad.

    In a statement, carried by state media and other pro-regime mouthpieces, the IRGC confirmed “strengthening” their forces in the northwestern Kurdish region to confront “terrorist separatist groups” in the area. “The security of the people is our red line … and dealing decisively with terrorists is our mandate,” the statement said. Iranian authorities, who have blamed Amini’s death on pre-existing medical conditions, have often baselessly claimed that the unrest has been fomented by countries Iran perceives to be its rivals, and often accuse armed separatists of perpetrating violence. Prominent Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid, a powerful dissenting voice in the Shi’ite-ruled Islamic Republic, called on security forces to refrain from shooting at people in Mahabad. “Disturbing news is emerging from the Kurdish areas, especially from Mahabad … pressure and crackdown will lead to further dissatisfaction,” Abdolhamid tweeted.

    Hengaw said at least four protesters were killed in the Kurdish area. The widely-followed activist account 1500Tasvir said a 16-year-old student and a school teacher were killed in the Kurdish city of Javanrud. Iran’s state media said calm had been restored in the area. But activists and Hengaw said on Twitter that “the resistance” continued in several Kurdish cities. “In (the Kurdish city of) Marivan repressive forces have opened fire at people,” Hengaw said.

    The uprising has turned into a popular revolt by furious Iranians from all layers of society, posing one of the boldest challenges to the clerical leaders since the 1979 Islamic revolution that swept them to power. Ehsan Hajsafi, a footballer who normally plays in Athens, became on November 20 the first member of Iran’s national team to speak out from the World Cup in Doha in apparent support of the protests at home. Other players have kept silent, and some activists have called for protests against the team.

    Overall, the revolt in Iran have stretched into a third month despite violent state clampdown and death sentences issued for at least 15,000 protestors. HRANA said 410 protesters had been killed in the unrest as of November 19, including 58 minors. Some 54 members of the security forces were also killed, it said, adding that more than 17,251 people have been arrested. Authorities have not provided an estimate of any wider death count. Videos posted on social media showed Iranians in several other cities kept up protests, from Tehran to the northwestern city of Tabriz, calling for the toppling of the Islamic Republic and chanting “Death to (Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei“.

  • Nancy Pelosi Steps Down As House Democratic Leader

    Nancy Pelosi Steps Down As House Democratic Leader

    2. Nancy Pelois Steps Down As House Democratic Leader

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on November 17 that she will not seek a leadership position in the new Congress, ending a historic run as the first woman with the gavel and making way for a new generation to steer the party after Democrats lost control of the House to Republicans in the midterm elections. In a spirited speech on the House floor, Pelosi announced that she will step aside after leading Democrats for nearly 20 years and in the aftermath of the brutal attack on her husband, Paul, last month in their San Francisco home, and after having done “the people’s work.” The California Democrat, a pivotal figure in US history and perhaps the most powerful speaker in modern times, said she would remain in Congress as the representative from San Francisco, a position she has held for 35 years, when the new Congress convenes in January. “I will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress,” she said. “For me, the hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect.” Now, she said, “we must move boldly into the future.”

    President Joe Biden, who had encouraged Nancy Pelosi to stay on as Democratic leader, spoke with Pelosi in the morning and congratulated her on her historic tenure as speaker of the House. “History will note she is the most consequential Speaker of the House of Representatives in our history,” President Biden said in a statement, noting her ability to win unity from her caucus and her “absolute dignity.” It is an unusual choice for a party leader to stay on after withdrawing from congressional leadership, but not without precedent and Pelosi has long defied convention in pursuing power in Washington. In an interview with reporters after her announcement, Pelosi said she will not endorse anyone in the race to succeed her and she will not sit on any committees as a rank-and-file lawmaker. She said the attack on her husband “made me think again about staying.” But in the end, after the election, she decided to step down. “I quite frankly, personally, have been ready to leave for a while,” she said. “Because there are things I want to do. I like to dance, I like to sing. There’s a life out there, right?”

    During her remarks on the House floor, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recapped her career, from seeing the Capitol the first time as a young girl with her father, a former congressman and mayor, to serving as speaker alongside US presidents, noting three of the four, but not mentioning Donald Trump. “Every day I am in awe of the majestic miracle that is American democracy,” she said. At one point, she compared the better-than-expected showing for Democrats in the midterms, the first national election after the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, as “proof through the night that our flag was still there,” drawing cheers from colleagues.

    Nancy Pelosi was twice elected to the speakership and has led Democrats through consequential moments, including the passage of the Affordable Care Act with President Barack Obama and the impeachments of President Donald Trump. Pelosi’s decision paves the way for House Democratic leadership elections next month when Democrats reorganize as the minority party for the new Congress. Pelosi’s leadership team, with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Democratic Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina, has long moved as a triumvirate. All now in their 80s, the three House Democratic leaders have faced restless colleagues eager for them to step aside and allow a new generation to take charge. Hoyer said after Pelosi’s remarks that “it is the time for a new generation of leaders” and that he will also step down from leadership but stay in Congress. Clyburn, the highest-ranking Black American in Congress, has said he expects to stay in Congress next year and hopes to remain at the leadership table. Democratic Congressmembers Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, and Pete Aguilar of California have similarly moved as a trio, all working toward becoming the next generation of leaders. Jeffries could make history in the future if Democrats regain control, and he enters the race to become the nation’s first African American speaker of the House.

    First elected in 1986, Nancy Pelosi was among a dozen Democratic women in Congress. She was long ridiculed by Republicans as a San Francisco liberal while steadily rising as a skilled legislator and fundraising powerhouse. Her own Democratic colleagues have intermittently appreciated but also feared her powerful brand of leadership. Pelosi first became speaker in 2007, saying she had cracked the “marble ceiling,” after Democrats swept to power in the 2006 midterm elections in a backlash to then-President George W. Bush and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

  • Senator Mitch McConnel Re-elected Senate Republican Leader Despite Disappointing Election Performance

    Senator Mitch McConnel Re-elected Senate Republican Leader Despite Disappointing Election Performance

    Mitch McConnell of Kentucky on November 16 overwhelmingly won re-election as his party’s Senate leader, holding off Senator Rick Scott of Florida in the first challenge Senator McConnell has faced since assuming the post in 2007. Despite a disappointing election performance that left them demoralized and still mired in the minority, Senate Republicans stuck with their longtime leader, opting for an experienced hand rather than a change at the top that could add to the post-election turmoil engulfing their party. “I think the most important thing we can do is get these differences behind us,” said Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas and a leading McConnell ally.

    The leadership bid by Senator Rick Scott was always a long shot, particularly since he had served as the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the party campaign arm that was tasked with winning back the Senate majority, and came up short. Many of his colleagues saw him as more responsible for the election defeat than Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. But critics of Senator McConnell, who was re-elected leader on a vote of 37 to 10, with one abstention, said they saw it as a worthwhile demonstration of unrest in the ranks. “We had a double-digit vote against the current leader, and that’s never happened in the time I’ve been here,” said Senator Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, who opposed McConnell and attempted to delay the leadership selection until after a December 6 Georgia runoff election, a bid that was soundly rejected by his colleagues.

    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he was not offended by the challenge and some of his supporters relished the showdown as a chance for the Kentucky Republican to give a concrete demonstration of his strong standing within his conference. “We had a good opportunity to discuss the differences, people had an opportunity to listen to both candidates, and I’m pretty proud of 37 to 10,” Senator McConnell said after the vote. The vote at the end of a meeting behind closed doors that stretched for more than three hours, as Republican senators sat at desks in the Old Senate Chamber, a semicircular room adorned with marble columns and an ornate central table hung with crimson fabric, to hash out their differences. The room is a traditional spot for leadership elections.

    Republicans in both the House and Senate are reeling from their poor performance in midterm elections in which they expected to post significant gains based on a sour public mood, inflation, and historical trends. But Senate Democrats held their majority and could still expand it, while Republicans managed to squeak into the majority in the House. Party leaders in both chambers are facing an internal backlash, exposing divides that could persist as they confront Democrats over the next two years.

    Senator Rick Scott and his allies said that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell represented the status quo and that a new approach was necessary if Republicans were to regroup and triumph in 2024. They criticized Senator McConnell for cooperating too much with Democrats, allowing them to notch legislative victories this year that boosted their campaigns. “Clearly, the Republican Party’s got to do something different if we ever want to be a majority party,” said Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO). “I put it to them, you know, what would they see to do differently, and what do they think the approach ought to be. But most Senate Republicans regarded Senator McConnell as a much better bet for a rebound than Senator Scott. “I have a lot of admiration for his vision and look forward to carrying forward with that,” said Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, who was elected as the fifth-ranking Republican, becoming one of two women in the party leadership, alongside Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, who won the fourth-ranking spot.

    The leadership challenge was conducted by secret ballot, but those who indicated they voted against Senator Mitch McConnell included Senators Rick Scott, Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, Mike Braun, and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. “I think Rick Scott accomplished his point,” said Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND). “And that is that several members are frustrated and have been for some time that they want to see a more inclusive process. They don’t want to see so many back-room deals.” Senator McConnell acknowledged the sentiment and said senators were reminded in their private meeting that any five Republican senators could call a party meeting to hash out an issue “We acquainted our members with the tools they have if they have an idea they want to promote,” McConnell said. “I think that will be used more often. I certainly welcome it.” Senator Scott, for his part, hinted that he would not hesitate to continue voicing dissent even in the wake of his loss. “I’m going to continue to fight for what I believe,” Scott said.

    Even though Republicans fell short of expectations on November 8, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and his leadership team emphasized that the Senate, and the nation as a whole, remains narrowly divided and that the Republicans in the Senate could still have significant influence with a Republican House. “It is still a 50-50 country,” said Senator McConnell. “They’ve given us a 50-50 government again. I think what the public is going to be looking at is whether or not this narrowly divided Congress can accomplish anything that does them any good in terms of their lives.” McConnell said he urged the Biden administration and Senate Democrats to try to “find some things between the 40-yard lines that we can agree on, and do them.”

    When the next Congress convenes in January, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will set the record for serving the longest in a Senate leadership role, surpassing Mike Mansfield, Democrat of Montana, who spent 16 years as majority leader in the 1960s and 1970s. The impending record has prompted speculation that Senator McConnell could step aside after he hits that milestone, though he dismissed that idea. “I’m not going anywhere,” he told reporters

  • Iran Protests Heat Up, With General Strikes Planned Amid Continued Government Crackdown

    Iran Protests Heat Up, With General Strikes Planned Amid Continued Government Crackdown

    Protests swelled in cities across Iran on November 15 following a day of general strikes marking the anniversary of one of the deadliest uprisings in the country’s history. Sources on the ground in Iran showed protests in multiple districts across the capital, Tehran, and in other cities like Shiraz, Esfahan, Hamedan, Bushehr, Bukan, Rasht, Qom, Mashhad, and Sanandaj. Sparked by the death in police custody of 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, the protests are now in their ninth week and represent one of the strongest public rebukes against the Islamic Republic and its leadership since the 1979 revolution. The Kurdish rights group Hengaw Human Rights Organization said two men had been killed by security forces during protests in the Kurdish town of Kamyaran in western Iran on November 14.

    Footage showed security forces such as the IRGC and the Basij responding with overwhelming and brutal force against the protestors that violates all the established norms regarding human rights. One video taken from the platform of a Tehran metro station, showed commuters screaming and trying to run as they were being fired on by security forces. A barrage of shots could be heard even as trains were leaving and approaching the platform. Another video from Shiraz showed someone being shot at close range by an armed and uniformed security officer.

    The latest actions in Iran come after nationwide calls for three days of strikes and protests to mark the three-year anniversary of the deadly protests that were sparked by fuel prices. Earlier on November 15, thousands of businesses shuttered, students rallied and some industry workers went on strike, according to social media videos, to commemorate those killed in the November 2019 protests. The 2019 Iranian protests (known as Bloody Aban in Farsi) started in response to the human rights abuses carried out by the Iranian government since 1979, as well as government crackdowns on the Iranian democracy movement. The 2019 protests ultimately resulted in the deaths of 1,500-3,000 protestors and the arrest of over 7,000. Despite the human rights abuses the Iranian government has carried out against its people, the international community has generally ignored the issues of human rights in Iran and has bowed to pressure by the Iranian government to ignore such pressing issues.

    In the latest series of protests in Iran, at least 400 people have been killed by security forces and nearly 16,000 have been arrested. Additionally, the Iranian government has utilized the most inhumane and brutal tactics regarding the protestors. Despite the brutality of the Iranian government and lack of prior success in efforts against the regime, the Iranian people remain united in their efforts to remove the government from power and implement positive political change. As such, the ongoing protests in Iran represent the most serious effort to bring about an end to the current Iranian government in nearly 40 years and a massive step forward by the Iranian democratic movement.

    The response by the Iranian government to the protests has also encouraged international organizations to begin taking action in support of the Iranian people. London-based rights group Amnesty International said it was investigating the death sentences issued to the protestors by the Iranian government and called on the United Nations to take urgent action. The violent tactics by the Iranian government have also led the European Union (traditionally friendly with the Iranian government) to announce fresh sanctions on Iran’s police and military.

    Most of the protests in Iran over the past few days protests erupted after dark. In Tehran, videos showed gatherings and rallies in Enghelab Square, in the heart of the capital, Gisha, Tehran Pars, Ekbatan Town, Sadeghiye and the affluent Shahrak-e Gharb district. People are heard shouting “death to the dictator” or singing “freedom, freedom, freedom” in many of the clips. Young people were also shown forming a human chain in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas and protesters also gathered in Bushehr. Footage showed many people coming out in their cars and honking car horns in solidarity, creating gridlock on some of Tehran’s busiest main streets.

  • Republicans Gain Control Of House Of Representatives

    Republicans Gain Control Of House Of Representatives

    The Republican Party has won back control of the House of Representatives, giving the creating a toehold to check President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats despite a disappointing midterm election. Republicans are on track for one of the smallest Congressional majorities since the 2000 House of Representatives elections despite pre-election predictions that a red wave was coming. Instead, it took more than a week of vote-counting after Election Day for it to be clear the party had won the majority. And that majority could be difficult to manage for a Republican speaker next year. The decisive call came in a California race, with Congressman Mike Garcia being declared the winner in his reelection bid in the state’s 27th District over Democratic challenger Christy Smith. Redistricting in states like Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and Kentucky, open-seat victories and a surprisingly strong showing in New York State carried the Republicans back to power. But President Joe Biden’s middling approval ratings and a lackluster economy largely failed to propel Republican candidates over battle-tested Democratic members and a wider majority. In the end, only six Democratic incumbents fell.

    In a statement on November 16 night, President Joe Biden congratulated House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is in line to be the next speaker, on the Republican victory: “I congratulate Leader McCarthy on Republicans winning the House majority, and am ready to work with House Republicans to deliver results for working families.” For his part, House Speaker-elect McCarthy talked about using the Republicans new power to contain the Biden administration. “Think for one moment. It is official,” he told Fox News’ Sean Hannity. “One party Democrat rule in Washington is finished. We have fired Nancy Pelosi.”

    Democrats held out hope of keeping the House for part of the summer and fall, as voters vented fury at the Republican Party over the end of Roe v. Wade. But while the issue of abortion gave Democrats a boost with voters and helped even up what had been developing as a Republican year, it was not enough to halt the Republican parties gains entirely. Republicans needed to net only five seats to take control of the House. The party notched early victories on election night in Florida, where strong performances at the top of the ticket by Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Marco Rubio, coupled with a new, aggressively gerrymandered congressional map, helped the Republicans add several seats.

    Despite these early wins by the Republicans, the strength shown by the Florida Republicans did not translate over to many of the most competitive districts across the country. A number of endangered Democratic incumbents survived, including Congressmembers like Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, Angie Craig of Minnesota and Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, and the party captured open toss-up seats in states including Ohio, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Still, Republicans notched a banner victory over DCCC chairman Sean Patrick Maloney in upstate New York, one of several pickups in the state. Republican Marc Molinaro won a seat that included much of the turf he lost in a summer special election. And all of Long Island turned red as Republicans George Santos and Anthony D’Esposito captured open blue-leaning seats.

    Additionally, the Republicans managed to flip seats in Virginia, where Jen Kiggans unseated Rep. Elaine Luria; Arizona where Eli Crane defeated Congressman Tom O’Halleran; New Jersey, where Tom Kean Jr. beat Congressman Tom Malinowski; and Iowa where Zach Nunn bested Congresswoman Cindy Axne. Republicans also picked up open seats in Arizona, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Texas and Wisconsin. But most of those districts were seats that Democrats walked away from, thinking they had no shot in keeping them in 2022. Several of them ended up being among the closest contests. In Michigan, Republican John James, a highly touted recruit, beat an underfunded Democrat by less than 1 point. In Arizona, Republican Juan Ciscomani had a much closer than expected contest with Democrat Kirsten Engel. Both contests saw little to no outside spending by Democratic groups.

    Democrats fought back in some places, not only limiting their losses but flipping Republican-held districts in Michigan and Washington State, two places where Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump lost in primaries. Democrats were able to beat the eventual far-right nominees in the general elections. Democratic candidates also felled Congressman Steve Chabot (R-OH) and Congresswoman Yvette Herrell (R-NM) in seats that got bluer thanks to redistricting.

  • Democratic Party Retains Senate Control

    Democratic Party Retains Senate Control

    The Democratic Party kept control of the Senate in the midterm elections, repelling Republican efforts to retake the chamber and making it harder for them to thwart President Joe Biden’s agenda. The House of Representatives elections, on the other hand, resulted in a very narrow Republican majority. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto’s shock victory in Nevada gave Democrats the 50 seats they needed to keep the Senate. Her win reflects the surprising strength of Democrats across the US this election year. Seeking reelection in an economically challenged state that has some of the highest gas prices in the nation, Cortez Masto was considered the Senate’s most vulnerable member, adding to the frustration of Republicans who were confident she could be defeated.

    “We got a lot done and we’ll do a lot more for the American people,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in response to the results. “The American people rejected — soundly rejected — the anti-democratic, authoritarian, nasty and divisive direction the MAGA Republicans wanted to take our country.” With the results in Nevada now decided, Georgia is the only state where both parties are still competing for a Senate seat. Democratic incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock faces Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a December 6 runoff. Alaska’s Senate race has advanced to ranked-choice voting, though the seat will stay in Republican hands.

    Democratic control of the Senate ensures a smoother process for President Joe Biden’s Cabinet appointments and judicial picks, including those for potential Supreme Court openings. The party will also keep control over committees and have the power to conduct investigations or oversight of the Biden administration, and will be able to reject legislation sent over by the House of Representatives. In Phnom Penh, Cambodia, for the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, President Biden said of the election results: “I feel good. I’m looking forward to the next couple of years.” He said winning the 51st seat from the Georgia runoff would be important and allow Democrats to boost their standing on Senate committees. “It’s just simply better,” Biden said. “The bigger the number, the better.”

    The fight for Senate control hinged on a handful of deeply contested seats. Both parties spent tens of millions of dollars in Pennsylvania, Arizona, New Hampshire, Washington, Connecticut, Colorado, Nevada, and Georgia, the top battlegrounds where Democrats had hoped that Republicans’ decision to nominate untested candidates, many backed by former President Donald Trump, would help them defy national headwinds. Democrats scored a big win in Pennsylvania, where Lt. Governor ohn Fetterman defeated celebrity heart surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz, who was endorsed by Trump, to pick up a seat currently held by a Republican. Arizona Senator Mark Kelly won reelection by about 5 percentage points against Trump-supporting Republican Blake Masters.

    Heading into the midterm election, Republicans focused relentlessly on the economy, a top concern for many voters amid stubborn inflation and high gas and food prices. The Republicans also hit Democrats on crime, a message that sometimes overstated the threat but nonetheless tapped into anxiety, particularly among the suburban voters who turned away from the party in 2018 and 2020. And they highlighted illegal border crossings, accusing Biden and other Democrats of failing to protect the country. But Democrats were buoyed by voters angry about the Supreme Court’s June decision overturning the constitutional right to an abortion. They also portrayed Republicans as too extreme and a threat to democracy, following January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol and Trump’s false claims, repeated by many Republican candidates, that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

    Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democratic candidates’ promises to defend abortion rights resonated with voters. He said the election results made him feel good about the country and its commitment to democracy. “We knew that the negativity, the nastiness, the condoning of Donald Trump’s big lie — and saying that the elections were rigged when there’s no proof of that at all — would hurt Republicans, not help them,” Schumer said. “But too many of them, and their candidates, fell into those traps.” Referring to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan, Schumer said voters had rejected “extremist MAGA Republicans.”

  • Democrats Hold Key Gubernatorial Races, Increase Gound In State Government

    Democrats Hold Key Gubernatorial Races, Increase Gound In State Government

    Dispelling predictions of a red wave, Democrats seized complete control of the legislatures in Michigan and Minnesota, and held on to governorships in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, maintaining a bulwark against Republican-dominated legislatures in the latter two states. Democrats also won historic victories in Maryland, where voters elected Wes Moore as the state’s first Black governor, and Massachusetts, where they chose Maura Healey as the state’s first openly gay governor. With those two victories, Democrats increased the number of states where they control the governor’s office and both legislative chambers to 18. Republicans had unified control of 23 states heading into yesterday’s election. “Tonight, I want to say something to every little girl and every LGBTQ person out there. I hope tonight shows you that you can be whatever, whoever, you want to be,” Healey said in her victory speech.

    In closely watched governor’s races in Florida and Texas, high-profile Republican incumbents cruised to reelection. Both Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Texas Governor Greg Abbott have been outspoken opponents of President Joe Biden and have been mentioned as potential presidential candidates. DeSantis called his reelection “a win for the ages” and described Florida as “a refuge of sanity when the world went mad,” referring to his resistance to pandemic-related closures and safety measures. “We made promises to the people of Florida, and we have delivered on those promises,” DeSantis said. In Arizona’s closely fought gubernatorial race, which has attracted national attention, Democrat Katie Hobbs held a slim lead over Republican Kari Lake, who has amplified former President Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election.

    Abortion rights supporters also had reason to celebrate. In California, Michigan and Vermont, voters approved measures to enshrine abortion rights in their state constitutions. In Kentucky, a proposed constitutional amendment to eliminate the right to an abortion appeared headed for defeat. And in Montana, voters were poised to defeat a legislatively proposed referendum that would require medical professionals to provide care to infants born alive after an induced labor, cesarean section or attempted abortion. Physicians in the state and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists opposed the measure. Ballot measures to legalize recreational marijuana use had mixed results. Voters in Maryland and Missouri approved them, but legalization measures in Arkansas, North Dakota and South Dakota failed.

    Michigan, a closely divided battleground state in recent elections, was an especially bright spot for Democrats. Despite talk of a tightening race in the weeks before the election, Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer won a second term by a comfortable margin over Republican challenger Tudor Dixon. Democrats gained a majority in the Michigan House for the first time since 2016 and won the Senate for the first time since 1983. And Democrats won in closely watched races for attorney general and secretary of state, defeating Trump-endorsed candidates who have questioned the results of the 2020 election. Governor Whitmer, who has vowed to “fight like hell” for abortion rights, and other Michigan Democrats may have been boosted by the presence of the abortion rights amendment on the ballot. According to exit polls, nearly half of Michigan voters cited abortion as their top issue, compared with about 30% who pointed to inflation.

  • Voters Give President Joe Biden, Democrats, Historically Low Approvals Ahead of Midterm Election

    Voters Give President Joe Biden, Democrats, Historically Low Approvals Ahead of Midterm Election

    Voters’ approval of President Joe Biden remains deep in negative territory and 70 percent of voters say the country is on the wrong track, both results that bode ill for Democrats as Election Day approaches. Fifty-five percent of registered voters said they disapprove of the job Biden is doing as president, and just 42 percent said they approve in the last POLITICO-Morning Consult poll conducted in advance of the midterm election.

    Voters often treat midterm elections as a referendum on the president and his party, which suggests that support for Democrats is on the wane, and many polling averages indicate that voters are more inclined to vote for Republicans as a result. The POLITICO-Morning Consult poll is an outlier on this question, showing support for Democratic congressional candidates at 48 percent, five points above support for Republican candidates. The poll continued to show economic issues at top of mind for voters, with 78 percent saying both the economy and inflation will play a “major role” in how they cast their ballots. By contrast, 61 percent of voters said crime would play a major role in their voting decisions this year and 57 percent said the same about abortion access.

    Concerns about political violence appear to be increasing among the electorate, with more than two-thirds of voters telling pollsters they believe political violence has increased in the last year. A majority said they believe politicians, social media and the news media are to blame. A full 80 percent of Americans said they were concerned about political violence in the US, a fear that is shared across gender, age, race, and political ideologies. Eighty-seven percent of Democrats reported concerns about political violence, which is defined as an act of violence to achieve a political end, followed by 76 percent of Republicans and independents, respectively. While most voters said they do not believe the risk of political violence is increasing in their own states or local communities, 65 percent responded that they believe it has increased nationally. That majority includes more than 60 percent of Democrats, Republicans, and independents.

    The poll was conducted about one week after an assault on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi by an armed intruder, and most voters in the poll said they believed that the attack was an act of political violence. Sixty-three percent of respondents said they considered the attack either definitely or probably an act of political violence, while 21 percent said it definitely or probably was not a political attack. There was a strong partisan divide between voters who considered the attack to be political in nature and those who do not: Sixty percent of Democrats said it was political while only 23 percent of Republicans agreed. Independents were closer to Republicans on this question, with 36 percent considering it an act of political violence.

    Eighty-three percent of voters place the blame for political violence on the perpetrators themselves, but three-quarters of voters found fault with social media platforms, which have also faced scrutiny from members of Congress for their roles in helping people organize violent attacks and promote violent ideas. Sixty-nine percent also blamed the news media, including 76 percent of Republicans and 64 percent of Democrats. And 55 percent of voters found television hosts and political commentators responsible for political violence, with blame falling equally on conservative and liberal TV personalities. Former President Donald Trump was also found responsible for increased political violence by 57 percent of voters. Eighty-two percent of people who voted for Biden in 2020 blamed Trump as did 31 percent of his own 2020 voters.

    https://youtu.be/fwOEPFgpdeA
  • Iranian “Parliament” Urges Judiciary To Sentence Protesters To Death

    Iranian “Parliament” Urges Judiciary To Sentence Protesters To Death

    A group of 227 members of the Iranian parliament (Majles) has called on the Judiciary to issue death sentences for people arrested during the ongoing anti-government protests. A few token Iranian “reformists” and members of the ultra-conservative branch of the Iranian Principlist political alliance make up the majority of the parliament, which was chosen in a non-competitive, sham vote in February of 2020. The demonstrators were referred to as “mohareb” in a declaration that was read aloud in the parliament on November 6. This Arabic word literally translates to “warrior,” but in Islamic law, or sharia, it signifies “enemy of God,” which is punishable by death. Additionally, they compared the demonstrators to ISIS fighters who “destroy people’s lives and property.” For taking part in the demonstrations, thousands of individuals have already been accused by the Iranian government of “moharebeh,” “corruption on earth,” “assembly and cooperation against national security,” and “confrontation with the Islamic Republic.”

    The Iranian parliament baselessly alleged that “the US and other foes” are instigating violence, organizing demonstrations, and supplying financial assistance and firearms to hijack the protests while referring to the current wave of popular protests as “riots.” In addition, they claimed that “thugs and mobs” had killed dozens of people and compromised national security. Reiterating the official narrative of the Islamic Republic, the parliamentarians said that because “victories of the Islamic Republic” had been achieved in Iraq, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, and Yemen, the “riots” were a response to “enemies of the Islamic Republic” having been vanquished in those countries. The ultra-conservative legislators also requested that the court pursue legal action against “the politicians who incited the riots” without naming any specific people or organizations.

    Speaker of the House Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf claimed earlier in the session that the key players in the country’s discontent are the CIA, Mossad, and their allies. Hardliner parliamentary member Mohammad Esmail Kowsari, who is also a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officer, impliedly threatened late in October that the government will handle the current demonstrations differently going forward.

    While protests continue across Iran, the Islamic Republic’s Judiciary has also announced that it has indicted over 1,000 people who were arrested during the demonstrations. Authorities have been claiming that “separatists” and “instigators” are behind the efforts to overthrow the government and break Iran into areas controlled by ethnic groups, a claim routinely denied by Iranians on streets and social media. The claim that protests are instigated by foreign enemies was first made by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and loyal officials now repeat his conspiracy theory.

    President Ebrahim Raisi on October 25 accused “enemies of the Islamic Republic” of fomenting the protests, echoing what Khamenei said a day earlier. Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf in turn vowed that parliament would take action to change the ways of the morality police in a bid to calm the protesters. “Death sentences against people for exercising their right to freedom of expression, after the killings of peaceful protesters, abductions and gunning down children, and other atrocities, indicate a government that is out of control and willing to quash protests at any cost,” said a statement by Center for Human Rights in Iran. The Norway-based human rights organization also expressed concern regarding the fate of the detained protesters saying, “dozens of them have been charged with the security-related charges of “moharebeh” and “corruption on earth” which carry the death penalty.” The Islamic Republic’s history and current evidence indicate that they intend to use the death penalty as a tool of political repression to intimidate their opposition.

    Since the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian of Kurdish descent who had been detained on September 13 for violating the Islamic dress code and died three days later from severe head trauma, Iran has been rocked by protests. Mahsa was accused of violating the Islamic dress code. Public indignation after a crackdown that resulted in the deaths of additional young men, women, and children expanded protests. Seven weeks later, the demonstrations are still going strong.

  • House of Representatives Passes Bill to Avert Temporary Government Shutdown

    House of Representatives Passes Bill to Avert Temporary Government Shutdown

    The US House of Representatives on February 8 approved legislation to fund federal government agencies through March 11 and avoid a chaotic shutdown of many of the government’s operations when existing money expires at midnight on February 18. The House voted 272-162 to approve the stop-gap measure that will give Democratic and Republican negotiators in the House and Senate an additional three weeks to work out a deal on a full-year funding bill. The temporary measure, the third since the start of the fiscal year that began on October 1 now goes to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has promised prompt action.

    Negotiators have been struggling for weeks to agree on the so-called “omnibus” spending bill to finance the federal government’s wide-ranging activities through September 30, the end of the current fiscal year. During House debate, Appropriations Chair Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) noted that the “omnibus is the only way to unlock” the full $1 trillion in spending on infrastructure projects authorized by Congress late last year. The measure would also beef up spending on defense and veterans programs, along with environmental, education, and other domestic initiatives. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also expressed confidence that a full-year funding bill would be set in place by March 11. Meanwhile, Senator Richard Shelby, the senior Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters negotiators were nearing a deal on top-line spending for such a bill. That figure might hover around $1.5 trillion. Republicans were insisting the money be equally divided between defense and non-defense programs, while Democrats who control Congress fashioned bills providing slightly more money on the non-defense side of the ledger.

    Once the framework of a bill is sketched out through an overall spending level, negotiators are expected to dive into resolving disagreements over specific line-items, such as environmental programs and border security, while also settling perennial battles over policies related to divisive issues such as abortion and Internal Revenue Service activities. “With these basic things, a bipartisan deal should be achievable,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said in a speech on the Senate floor.

  • New York, New Jersey, & Several Other States Rollback Mask Mandates, Other COVID Mandates as Omicron Surge Recedes

    New York, New Jersey, & Several Other States Rollback Mask Mandates, Other COVID Mandates as Omicron Surge Recedes

    Governor Kathy Hochul will drop New York’s stringent indoor mask mandate on February 9, ending a requirement that businesses ask customers for proof of full vaccination or require mask-wearing at all times, and marking a turning point in the state’s Coronavirus response, according to three people briefed on her decision. The decision will eliminate a rule that prompted legal and interpersonal clashes over mask-wearing, especially in conservative parts of New York. It was set to expire on February 10 and would have required renewing. Governor Hochul is expected to let the mask mandate lapse just as a crushing winter surge in coronavirus cases is finally receding. But it was as yet unclear whether the Governor would renew or drop a separate mask mandate in New York schools that expires in two weeks.

    Still, the easing of New York’s pandemic restrictions on businesses comes as Democratic-led states from New Jersey to California have announced similar moves this week, in a loosely coordinated effort that is the result of months of public-health planning, back-channel discussions, and political focus groups that began in the weeks after the November election. The moves highlight how even local officials who installed sweeping safety measures early in the pandemic are now considering shifting to an endemic response to COVID. “This is not a declaration of victory as much as an acknowledgment that we can responsibly live with this thing,” said New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Muphy, who imposed some of the countries strictest COVID-related mandates in the earliest days of the pandemic. Under Governor Murphy’s new policies, which will come into effect on March 7, students and school employees in the state will no longer be required to wear masks.

    Shortly after the New Jersey announcement on February 7, the Democratic Governors of California, Connecticut, Delaware, and Oregon separately said they would also end some mask mandates. Connecticut will permit students and staff members to stop wearing masks in schools by no later than Feb. 28 and Delaware will end mask mandates in schools by March 31. Oregon and California announced the end to mask mandates at indoor public spaces. Governor Gavin Newsom of California wrote on Twitter on February 7 that cases had dropped, hospitalizations had stabilized, and the state’s indoor mask mandate for vaccinated people would expire on February 15. Governor Kate Brown of Oregon on Twitter said on Monday that the state would “lift mask requirements no later than March 31.” The moves to eliminate mask mandates in these states come as the number of reported cases has dipped to its lowest level since the highly contagious Omicron variant touched off a wave of cases in December.

    As of February 8, the daily average of new cases in the United States dropped to around 240,000, the lowest that figure has been since late December. Though the daily average of hospitalizations has steadily declined since its peak on January 20, the daily average of deaths linked to the virus has hovered at nearly 2,600 since January 27. The rollbacks also highlight the patchwork nature of health protocols that have yet to be synchronized from county to county within many states, let alone between states, since the pandemic began in early 2020. New Mexico and Illinois have statewide mask mandates for schools and many indoor settings. Idaho, Louisiana, and Mississippi recommend indoor mask-wearing, and Republican-led states like Texas and Florida have banned mandates. Whether to mandate mask-wearing in schools is up to local officials in most states. The mask rollbacks announced on February 7 appear to undercut messaging coming from federal officials.

    Asked on February 7 about the lifting of mask mandates in New Jersey, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, pointed to federal guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that says masks can reduce transmission of coronavirus. “Our responsibility as the federal government is to rely on the data and the science that is being analyzed by our public health experts,” Psaki said at a news conference.

  • President Joe Biden Announces Deployment of 3,000 US Troops To Europe As Tensions Between Ukraine & Russia Increase

    President Joe Biden Announces Deployment of 3,000 US Troops To Europe As Tensions Between Ukraine & Russia Increase

    President Biden has approved the deployment of roughly 3,000 additional American troops to Europe “in the coming days“, NBC News and The Wall Street Journal confirmed on February 2. It is “the first major movement of US forces in Russia’s military standoff with Ukraine,” intended to shore up the defense of European allies, the Journal writes. According to a senior administration official, 2,000 soldiers from the US will join troops already in Poland and Germany, while 1,000 troops in Europe will move to join US troops currently in Romania, as reported by NBC News. The deployment was confirmed by Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby, who assured the moves are not permanent and that forces are not going to fight in Ukraine; rather, they are going to bolster NATO allies.

    On January 28, President Joe Biden said he planned to move US troops to Eastern Europe and NATO countries “in the near term.” This latest decision arrives after Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 1 accused the US and its allies of ignoring Russia’s demands in the standoff. The move also follows word from Pentagon leaders claiming Putin “had deployed the necessary troops and military hardware to conduct an invasion of Ukraine.” Previously, Biden had said he would only deploy troops if Russia did actually invade, but he seems to have changed his opinion as the situation continues to unfold, adds Axios.

    “Its important that we send a strong signal to Mr. Putin and the world that NATO matters,” Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby told reporters at a press conference. We are making it clear that we are going to be prepared to defend [our] NATO allies if it comes to that.” In Russia, a senior official said the US movements will complicate the crisis. “The unfounded destructive steps will only fuel military tensions and narrow the field for political decisions,” Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said in remarks carried by the Interfax news agency. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba again played down fears of a Russian attack in a call with reporters but said that if Russia makes moves that could signal an imminent invasion Ukraine would react as necessary.

  • CDC: Omicron Cornavirus Variant Less Severe Compared To Earlier Variants

    CDC: Omicron Cornavirus Variant Less Severe Compared To Earlier Variants

    Federal health officials reported on January 25 that the Omicron COVID variant caused less severe illness in hospitalized patients than earlier virus lineages, even though its explosive transmissibility has caused far more infections and led to more than 2,200 deaths a day on average, one of the highest tolls since early last year. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that people hospitalized with the omicron variant had shorter stays and less frequent admission to intensive care compared with those hospitalized with other coronavirus variants.

    Despite record infections and hospitalizations caused by Omicron, the percentage of hospitalized patients with severe illness is lower compared with those in earlier pandemic waves. That lower disease severity is partly the result of immune protection from higher vaccination coverage among those 5 and older, booster use, and previous infection, as well as the potential lower virulence of the virus itself, according to the report. Other studies have suggested that the variant is less able to penetrate deep into the lungs. That pattern notwithstanding, the virus spreads from person to person with frightening speed, resulting in significant numbers of hospitalizations and deaths. On January 25, the seven-day average of daily deaths in the United States was 2,230, the highest since late February 2021.

    “People with underlying conditions, people with advanced age, people who are unvaccinated, can have a severe form of covid-19, following infection from omicron,” World Health Organization epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove said this week. “People are still being hospitalized with this variant, as well as dying.” The strain on health systems stemming from the large numbers of infections underscores the importance of hospital surge capacity and the ability to adequately staff healthcare systems, the report said.

    The CDC report’s findings are consistent with recent studies from health systems in California and Texas, as well as from South Africa, England, and Scotland. One of the studies, a preliminary report by Kaiser Permanente that has not yet been peer-reviewed, looked at nearly 70,000 covid-19 cases in Southern California from November 30 to January 1. It found that rates of hospitalization, admission to intensive care units, use of mechanical ventilation, and death were all substantially lower in patients infected with omicron compared with the delta variant. Hospital stays were also shorter.

    “What sets this report apart is that it focuses on the overall impact of the three waves on the health system, more than on ‘severity,’” Andrew T. Pavia, a professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at the University of Utah, said in an email on January 25. He did not take part in the study. “The omicron wave has been bad news with the largest societal and health care impact, but for infected individuals, particularly those who are vaccinated, the decreased overall severity is good news,” Pavia said.

    The data reinforces the importance of being up to date with vaccinations, including booster shots. Recent data from hospitals has shown that a booster shot is critical to preventing severe outcomes during the omicron surge. In a CDC study released last week, researchers showed that a third dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna shots reduces the chance of hospitalization by 90 percent compared with unvaccinated people, and reduces the chance of a trip to the emergency room or urgent-care center by 82 percent.

  • President Joe Biden Discusses First Year Record, Agenda For 2022 In First News Conference In 10 Months

    President Joe Biden Discusses First Year Record, Agenda For 2022 In First News Conference In 10 Months

    President Joe Biden escalated his partisan rhetoric on January 19 during his first news conference in 10 months, laying the blame for his stalled agenda at the feet of Republicans and suggesting on the eve of his first anniversary that he has been surprised by their intransigence. “I honest to God don’t know what they’re for,” Biden said at one point during his nearly two-hour exchange with reporters. “What is their agenda?” He said the Republican Party is thoroughly cowed by former president Donald Trump. “Did you ever think that one man out of office could intimidate an entire party where they’re unwilling to take any vote?” Biden asked.

    The shift intensified a harsher tone that President Joe Biden has taken this year toward Republicans, starting with an address commemorating the January 6 Capitol assault and continuing in Georgia last week with a blistering address suggesting that those who do not support the current voting rights bills will be remembered in history alongside such notorious racists as Jefferson Davis, the leader of the Confederacy. The sharp critique represents a major shift from Biden’s message during the presidential campaign when he said that Republicans would have an “epiphany” and that partisan gridlock would ease if he took office. And it signals a shift from an inaugural year focused on congressional action to a hard-fought election year with control of Congress at stake.

    President Joe Biden also offered unvarnished thoughts about Russia’s intentions toward Ukraine, suggesting that President Vladimir Putin would probably invade the country. He suggested the US response would be different if Moscow launches a “minor incursion” vs. a massive ground invasion, causing a furor that quickly prompted the White House to clarify that he was distinguishing a military and non-military assault. The President also made news by confirming rumors that he plans to break up his roughly $2 trillion social welfare and climate legislation, called the Build Back Better package, into smaller bills.

    The roughly two-hour exchange was much longer than expected or typical for a presidential news conference, and President Joe Biden called on far more reporters than he usually does. He joked about staying there for hours and even suggested that the journalists keep their questions short so he could answer more of them. Biden gave the news conference in a moment when his polls are falling and he faces a nation that is exhausted by a lingering pandemic and economic uncertainty. 

    A recent Gallup poll showed that just 40 percent of Americans approve of the job that President Joe Biden is doing, while 56 percent disapproved. That’s the lowest rating for any recent president at their one-year mark, aside from Trump, whose rating was a few points lower. He noted several times that the country is not where he had hoped and expected it to be. When asked if he’s done a good job unifying Americans he gave a nuanced answer. “The answer is, based on some of the stuff we’ve got done, I’d say yes,” Biden said. “But it’s not nearly unified as it should be. Biden telegraphed that he will spend more time traveling the country and talking to voters and less time embroiled in prolonged negotiations with Congress. “The public doesn’t want me to be the president-senator,” said Biden, who spent 36 years in the Senate before becoming Barack Obama’s vice president. “They want me to be the president and let senators be senators.”

    The President’s January 19 news conference took on greater significance than usual because it came on the eve of the anniversary of his first full year in office and also a moment when many of Joe Biden’s plans face turbulence. In what appeared to be a carefully calculated message, he repeatedly excoriated Republicans, accusing them of having no goal except opposing him, no leader except Trump, and no agenda at all. “I did not anticipate that there would be such a stalwart effort to make sure that the most important thing was to make sure Biden didn’t get anything done,” he said. “What are Republicans for? What are they for? Name me one thing they are for.”

  • In A Major Defeat For The Demcoratic Party, Voting Rights Legislation Narrowly Fails In Senate

    In A Major Defeat For The Demcoratic Party, Voting Rights Legislation Narrowly Fails In Senate

    Voting legislation that the Democratic Party and civil rights leaders say is vital to protecting democracy collapsed late on January 19 when two senators refused to join their party in changing Senate rules to overcome a Republican filibuster after a raw, emotional debate. The outcome was a stinging defeat for President Joe Biden and his party, coming at the tumultuous close to his first year in office. Despite a day of piercing debate and speeches that often carried echoes of an earlier era when the Senate filibuster was deployed by opponents of civil rights legislation, Democrats could not persuade holdout senators Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia to change the Senate procedures on this one bill and allow a simple majority to advance it. “I am profoundly disappointed,” Biden said in a statement after the vote. However, the president said he is “not deterred” and vowed to “explore every measure and use every tool at our disposal to stand up for democracy.”

    Voting rights advocates are warning that Republican-led states nationwide are passing laws making it more difficult for African Americans and others to vote by consolidating polling locations, requiring certain types of identification and ordering other changes. Vice President Kamala Harris briefly presided over the Senate, able to break a tie in the 50-50 Senate if needed, but she left before the final vote. The rules change was rejected 52-48, with Manchin and Sinema joining the Republicans in opposition. The nighttime voting brought an end, for now, to legislation that has been a top Democratic priority since the party took control of Congress and the White House. “This is a moral moment,” said Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA).

    The Democrats’ bill, the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act, would make Election Day a national holiday, ensure access to early voting and mail-in ballots, which have become especially popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, and enable the Justice Department to intervene in states with a history of voter interference, among other changes. It has passed the House. Both Senators Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema say they support the legislation, but Democrats fell far short of the 60 votes needed to push the bill over the Republican filibuster. It failed to advance 51-49 on a largely party-line vote. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) cast a procedural vote against so the bill could be considered later. Next, Schumer put forward a rules change for a “talking filibuster” on this one bill. It would require senators to stand at their desks and exhaust the debate before holding a simple majority vote, rather than the current practice that simply allows senators to privately signal their objections. But that, too, failed because Manchin and Sinema were unwilling to change the Senate rules a party-line vote by Democrats alone.

    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who led his party in doing away with the filibuster’s 60-vote threshold for Supreme Court nominees during Donald Trump’s presidency, warned against changing the rules again. McConnell derided the “fake hysteria” from Democrats over the states’ new voting laws and called the pending bill a federal takeover of election systems. He admonished Democrats in a fiery speech and said doing away with filibuster rules would “break the Senate.”

    Senator Joe Manchin drew a roomful of senators for his own speech, upstaging the president’s news conference and defending the filibuster. He said changing to a majority-rule Senate would only add to the “dysfunction that is tearing this nation apart.” Several members of the Congressional Black Caucus walked across the Capitol for the proceedings. “We want this Senate to act today in a favorable way. But if it don’t, we ain’t giving up,” said Congressman Jim Clyburn (D-SC), the highest-ranking Black member of Congress. Senator Manchin did open the door to a more tailored package of voting law changes, including the Electoral Count Act, which was tested during the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol. He said senators from both parties are working on that and it could draw Republican support.

    Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK said a bipartisan coalition should work on legislation to ensure voter access, particularly in far-flung areas like her state, and to shore up Americans’ faith in democracy. “We don’t need, we do not need a repeat of 2020 when by all accounts our last president, having lost the election, sought to change the results,” said Murkowski. She said the Senate debate had declined to a troubling state: “You’re either a racist or a hypocrite. Really, really? Is that where we are?” At one point, senators broke out in applause after a spirited debate between Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), one of the longer serving Senators, and the relative newcomer Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), over the history of the Voting Rights Act.

    Dsspite the defeat of the voting rights bill, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer contended the fight is not over and he ridiculed Republican claims that the new election laws in the states will not end up hurting voter access and turnout, comparing it to Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 presidential election. Democrats decided to press ahead despite the potential for high-stakes defeat as President Joe Biden is marking his first year in office with his priorities stalling out in the face of solid Republican opposition and the Democrats’ inability to unite around their own goals. They wanted to force senators on the record, even their own party’s holdouts, to show voters where they stand. Once reluctant himself to change Senate rules, Biden has stepped up his pressure on senators to do just that. But the push from the White House, including Biden’s blistering speech last week in Atlanta comparing opponents to segregationists, is seen as too late.

  • Gallup Poll: Republican Party Overtakes Democratic Party In Party Identification For The First Time Since 1991

    Gallup Poll: Republican Party Overtakes Democratic Party In Party Identification For The First Time Since 1991

    On average, Americans’ political party preferences in 2021 looked similar to prior years, with slightly more US adults identifying as Democrats or leaning Democratic (46%) than identified as Republicans or leaning Republican (43%) overall. However, the general stability for the full-year average obscures a dramatic shift over the course of 2021, from a nine-percentage-point Democratic advantage in the first quarter to a rare five-point Republican edge in the fourth quarter, the largest advantage for the Republican Party since 1991.

    In the first quarter of 2021, 49% of U.S. adults identified as Democrats or leaned Democratic, while 40% identified as Republicans or leaned Republican. In the second quarter, 49% were Democrats or Democratic leaners, and 43% were Republicans and Republican leaners. In the third quarter, 45% were Democrats and Democratic leaners, and were 44% Republicans and Republican leaners. In the fourth quarter, 42% were Democrats and Democratic leaners, and 47% were Republicans and Republican leaners.

    Generally speaking, Gallup and other polling organizations ask all American voters it interviews whether they identify politically as a Republican, a Democrat, or an independent. Independents are then asked whether they lean more toward the Republican or Democratic Party. The combined percentage of party identifiers and leaners gives a measure of the relative strength of the two parties politically. Both the nine-point Democratic advantage in the first quarter and the five-point Republican edge in the fourth quarter are among the largest Gallup has measured for each party in any quarter since it began regularly measuring party identification and leaning in 1991. 

    The Democratic lead in the first quarter was the largest for the party since the fourth quarter of 2012, when Democrats also had a nine-point advantage. The Republican Party has held as much as a five-point advantage in a total of only four quarters since 1991. The Republicans last held a five-point advantage in party identification and leaning in early 1995, after winning control of the House of Representatives for the first time since 1952. Republicans had a larger advantage only in the first quarter of 1991, after the U.S. victory in the Persian Gulf War led by then-President George H.W. Bush.

    Shifting party preferences in 2021 are likely tied to changes in popularity of the two men who served as president during the year. Republican Donald Trump finished out his single term in January, after being defeated in the 2020 election, with a 34% job approval rating, the lowest of his term. His popularity fell more than 10 points from Election Day 2020 as the country’s Coronavirus infections and deaths reached then-record highs, he refused to acknowledge the result of the election, and his supporters rioted at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, in an attempt to prevent Congress from counting the 2020 Electoral College votes.

    Democrat Joe Biden enjoyed relatively high ratings after taking office on Jan.uary 20, and his approval stayed high through the early summer as Coronavirus infections dramatically decreased after millions of Americans got vaccinated against the disease. A summer surge of infections tied to the delta variant of the coronavirus made it clear the pandemic was not over in the US, and Biden’s approval ratings began to sag. Later, the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan caused Biden’s ratings to fall further, into the low 40s. His ratings remain low as the US battles rising inflation and yet another surge of COVID-19 infections, tied to the omicron variant of the virus.

    With former President Donald Trump’s approval rating at a low point and President Joe Biden relatively popular in the first quarter, 49% of Americans identified as Democrats or leaned Democratic, compared with 40% who were Republicans or Republican leaners. In the second quarter, Democratic affiliation stayed high, while Republican affiliation began to recover, increasing to 43%. The third quarter saw a drastic decline in Democratic identification and leaning, from 49% to 45%, as President Biden’s ratings began to falter, while there was no meaningful change in Republican affiliation. In the fourth quarter, party support flipped as Republicans made gains, from 44% to 47%, and Democratic affiliation fell from 45% to 42%. These fourth-quarter shifts coincided with strong GOP performances in 2021 elections, including a Republican victory in the Virginia gubernatorial election and a near-upset of the Democratic incumbent governor in New Jersey. Biden won both states by double digits in the 2020 election.

    Gallup began regularly measuring party leaning in 1991, and in most years, significantly more Americans have identified as Democrats or as independents who lean Democratic than as Republicans or Republican leaners. The major exception was in early 1991, when Republicans held a 48% to 44% advantage in party identification and leaning. From 2001 through 2003 and in 2010 and 2011, the parties had roughly equal levels of support.

    Overall in 2021, an average of 29% of Americans identified as Democrats, 27% as Republicans, and 42% as independents. Roughly equal proportions of independents leaned to the Democratic Party (17%) and to the Republican Party (16%). The percentage of independent identifiers is up from 39% in 2020, but similar to the 41% measured in 2019. Gallup has often seen a decrease in independents in a presidential election year and an increase in the year after. The broader trend toward an increasing share of political independents has been clear over the past decade, with more Americans viewing themselves as independents than did so in the late 1980s through 2000s. At least four in 10 Americans have considered themselves independents in all years since 2011, except for the 2016 and 2020 presidential election years. Before 2011, independent identification had never reached 40%.

    Overall, the Gallup public opinion survey results show that 2021 was an eventful one in politics, after a similarly eventful 2020 that also saw major shifts in party preferences. In early 2021, Democratic strength reached levels not seen in nearly a decade. By the third quarter, those Democratic gains evaporated as Biden’s job approval declined. The political winds continued to become more favorable to Republicans in the fourth quarter, giving the Republicans an advantage over Democrats larger than any they had achieved in more than 25 years. As such, the data shows that the Republican Party may soon become the dominant political party in the US for the first time since the early 1930s.

  • Omicron Surge Spurs New Coronavirus Relief Push In Congress

    Omicron Surge Spurs New Coronavirus Relief Push In Congress

    Hotels, fitness clubs, tour bus companies, and minor league baseball clubs are part of a long line of businesses seeking billions of dollars in new COVID relief aid in response to the Omicron variant surge, if they can overcome opposition from many Republicans who say Congress has already given enough. Lobbyists for the businesses say their campaign has taken on new urgency as the Omicron variant sweeps across the country, forcing many companies to scale back or shut down operations as employees call in sick and customers cancel orders and reservations. A few Republican lawmakers support more relief funding for targeted industries, but most are generally opposed to spending more funds to help struggling businesses. These opponents say that the government has already provided sufficient relief, including more than $900 billion through the Paycheck Protection Program, and that more government spending will fuel inflation and budget deficits. “The U.S. government has no money to give anyone,“ said Senator Rand Paul (R-KY). ”In the past two years, Congress piled on several trillion dollars to our already substantial deficit. This unprecedented accumulation of debt is causing today’s inflation and will continue to wreak havoc in the future.”

    Lobbyists for those seeking aid, which also includes restaurants and Broadway stage productions, contend that their clients were left out of previous relief efforts or didn’t get nearly enough to cover losses. Industry lobbyists are targeting legislation being crafted by Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), the chairman of the Senate Small Business Committee, who had found an ally in Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) for a bill that would deliver roughly $60 billion in grants from the Small Business Administration.

    Efforts to provide COVID relief assistance appear to have support in the House. Nearly 100 Democratic and Republican lawmakers signed a letter in December calling for help for businesses. Prospects are sketchier in the Senate. Under modern Senate procedures, most legislation needs 60 votes for approval. Democrats and their allies control 50 votes, so Senator Ben Cardin is seeking to sweeten the stimulus bill with provisions that can draw the support of 10 Republicans. He has the support of roughly a half-dozen Republicans so far.

    Lobbyists for various industries are angling to add their COVID relief proposals to a large appropriations bill that Congress must approve by mid-February to fund the government for the current fiscal year. But that too could prove tricky. Most Republican lawmakers say they are not eager for more government spending, though that could change if the Omicron surge further disrupts the economy and forces business closures and layoffs.

  • President Joe Biden Announces New US Coronavirus Strategy Regarding Omicron Variant

    President Joe Biden Announces New US Coronavirus Strategy Regarding Omicron Variant

    President Joe Biden on November 29 said the new Omicron coronavirus variant is “a cause for concern, not a cause for panic,” as federal health officials brace for the first cases of the new variant to be detected in the US. “Sooner or later we’re going to see cases of this new variant here in the United States. We’ll have to face this new threat just as we face those who have come before it,” Biden said, speaking from the White House. The President noted scientists and officials are learning more every day about the new variant. He said the new travel restrictions his administration put in place, which went into effect on November 29 and restricted travel from several countries in Southern Africa, gives the US more time to respond. Biden said on December 2 he would put forward a “detailed strategy outlining how we’re going to fight Covid this winter. Not with shutdowns or lockdowns, but with more widespread vaccinations, boosters, testing and more.”

    President Joe Biden told reporters lockdowns to prevent the spread of the virus were off the table “for now.” “If people are vaccinated and wear their mask, there’s no need for lockdown,” Biden said. The President again urged Americans to get vaccinated and get their booster shots, saying it is the best protection against this new variant, as well as any other variants. “We have the best vaccine in the world, the best medicines, the best scientists, and we’re learning more every single day. And we’ll fight this variant with scientific and knowledgeable actions and speed — not chaos and confusion,” Biden said. He continued: “We have more tools today to fight the variant than we’ve ever had before, from vaccines to boosters to vaccines for children, 5 years and older and much more.”

    President Joe Biden was joined during his speech by Vice President Kamala Harris and his chief medical adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci.Officials briefed Biden for approximately 45 minutes on November 28 on the new variant and again early on November 29, with a heavy dose of caution about what is still unknown. Health officials say there are likely far more cases worldwide than is currently known. President Biden praised South African scientists for their transparency and quick work in identifying and reporting the new variant. “This kind of transparency is to be encouraged and applauded because it increases our ability to respond quickly to any new threats, and that’s exactly what we did,” Biden said, adding that he does not believe the travel restrictions would make other countries less likely to report new variants. The President said: “We needed time to give people an opportunity to say get that vaccination now before it, it’s going to move around the world. I think it’s almost inevitable that there will be at some point that strain here in the United States, but I don’t think anyone is going to be reluctant to report.”

    President Joe Biden’s team told him it will likely take one to two weeks to know more about the variant, including whether antibodies handle it effectively. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is currently sequencing coronavirus genomes and working closely with state health officials, two steps that will be critical to figuring out if the variant is already in the US. Biden said to beat the pandemic, the world needs to be vaccinated and said the US has shipped more than 275 million coronavirus vaccines to 110 countries. “Now we need the rest of the world to step us as well,” Biden said. Anthony Fauci said that scientists will be able to make a determination soon on whether the Omicron variant is resistant to current coronavirus vaccines. It is also too soon to tell whether Omicron causes a more severe disease. Fauci said he does not think there is any possibility that Omicron could completely evade any protection from the vaccine, but that it may diminish the level of protection. If there is a diminution of protection, Fauci and other health officials said getting a coronavirus vaccine booster shot could help enhance protection since boosters enlarge the capacity of the body to recognize all kinds of mutations on coronavirus variants.

    President Joe Biden announced on November 26 the US would restrict travel from South Africa and seven other countries starting on November 29 because of the new variant. The Biden administration is now restricting travel from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, and Malawi. The President was acting on advice from Anthony Fauci and the CDC. The Omicron variant has already been detected on five continents, North America, Australia, Africa, Europe, Asia, and the travel restrictions are already generating push back, with South Africa’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation saying they are “akin to punishing” South Africa. The Omicron variant was the quickest to be labeled a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization because of its seemingly fast spread in South Africa and its many troubling mutations. WHO designates coronavirus variants as either variants of concern, meaning they look dangerous enough to bear close scrutiny and continual updates, or as variants of interest, or variants under monitoring. Only five currently meet the definition for variants of concern: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Omicron.

  • Negotiations Resume Between Iran, Major World Powers To Revive 2015 Nuclear Agreement

    Negotiations Resume Between Iran, Major World Powers To Revive 2015 Nuclear Agreement

    Negotiators in Vienna resumed talks on November 29 over reviving Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, with the US taking part at arm’s length as in previous rounds since the Trump administration pulled out of the accord three years ago. Hopes of quick progress were muted after a hard-line new government in Iran led to a more than five-month hiatus in negotiations. But the European Union official chairing the talks sounded an upbeat note after the first meeting concluded. “I feel positive that we can be doing important things for the next weeks,” EU diplomat Enrique Mora told reporters. All participants showed a willingness to listen to the positions and “sensibilities” of the new Iranian delegation, Mora said. At the same time, Iran’s team made clear it wanted to engage in “serious work” to bring the accord back to life, he said.

    The remaining signatories to the nuclear deal formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran, Russia, China, France, Germany, and Britain, convened at the Palais Coburg, a luxury hotel where the agreement was signed six years ago. A US delegation headed by the Biden administration’s special envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, stayed at a nearby hotel where it was being briefed on the talks by diplomats from the other countries. President Joe Biden has signaled he wants to rejoin the talks. The last round, aimed at bringing Iran back into compliance with the agreement and paving the way for the US to rejoin, was held in June. “There is a sense of urgency in putting an end to the suffering of the Iranian people,” said Mora, referring to the crippling sanctions the U.S. re-imposed on Iran when it quit the accord. “And there is a sense of urgency in putting the Iranian nuclear program under the transparent monitoring of the international community,” he said. “What has been the norm over the first six rounds will be again the practice in this seventh round,” Mora added. “Nothing new on working methods.”

    The US left the deal under then-President Donald Trump’s failed “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran in 2018. The nuclear deal saw Iran limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Since the deal’s collapse, Iran now enriches small amounts of uranium up to 60% purity, a short step from weapons-grade levels of 90%. Iran also spins advanced centrifuges barred by the accord, and its uranium stockpile now far exceeds the accord’s limits. Iran maintains its atomic program is peaceful. However, US intelligence agencies and international inspectors say Iran had an organized nuclear weapons program up until 2003. Nonproliferation experts fear the brinkmanship could push Tehran toward even more extreme measures to try to force the West to lift sanctions. Making matters more difficult, United Nations nuclear inspectors remain unable to fully monitor Iran’s program after Tehran limited their access. A trip to Iran last week by the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, failed to make any progress on that issue.

    Russia’s top representative, Mikhail Ulyanov, said he held “useful” informal consultations with officials from Iran and China on Sunday. That meeting, he said, was aimed at “better understanding … the updated negotiating position of Tehran.“ He tweeted a picture of a meeting he described as a preparatory session with members before Iran joined the discussions. A delegation appointed by new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is joining the negotiations for the first time. Iran has made maximalist demands, including calls for the US to unfreeze $10 billion in assets as an initial goodwill gesture, a tough line that might be an opening gambit. Ali Bagheri, an Iranian nuclear negotiator, told Iranian state television  that the Islamic republic “has entered the talks with serious willpower and strong preparation.” However, he cautioned that “we cannot anticipate a timeframe on the length of these talks now.”

    Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh suggested that the US could “receive a ticket for returning to the room” of the nuclear talks if it agrees to “the real lifting of sanctions.” He also criticized a recent opinion piece written by the foreign ministers of Britain and Israel, who pledged to “work night and day to prevent the Iranian regime from ever becoming a nuclear power.” Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, in a video address delivered to nations negotiating in Vienna, warned that he saw Iran trying to “end sanctions in exchange for almost nothing.” “Iran deserves no rewards, no bargain deals, and no sanctions relief in return for their brutality,” Bennett said in the video that he later posted to Twitter. “I call upon our allies around the world: Do not give in to Iran’s nuclear blackmail.” 

  • Republican Party Cements Control Over Competitive States Through Gerrymandering Going Into 2022 Elections

    Republican Party Cements Control Over Competitive States Through Gerrymandering Going Into 2022 Elections

    The Republican Party is locking in newly gerrymandered maps for the legislatures in four battleground states that are set to secure the party’s control in the statehouse chambers over the next decade, fortifying the Republicans against even the most sweeping potential Democratic wave elections. In Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, and Georgia, Republican state lawmakers have either created supermajorities capable of overriding a governor’s veto or whittled down competitive districts so significantly that Republicans’ advantage is virtually impenetrable, leaving voters in narrowly divided states powerless to change the leadership of their legislatures.

    Although much of the attention on this year’s redistricting process has focused on gerrymandered congressional maps, the new maps being drafted in state legislatures have been just as distorted. And statehouses have taken on towering importance: With the federal government gridlocked, these legislatures now serve as the country’s policy laboratory, crafting bills on abortion, guns, voting restrictions, and other issues that shape the national political debate. “This is not your founding fathers’ gerrymander,” said Chris Lamar, a senior legal counsel at the Campaign Legal Center who focuses on redistricting. “This is something more intense and durable and permanent.”

    This redistricting cycle, the first one in a decade, builds on a political trend that accelerated in 2011 when Republicans in swing states including Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan drew highly gerrymandered state legislative maps. Since those maps were enacted, Republicans have held both houses of state government in all three states for the entire decade. They never lost control of a single chamber, even as Democrats won some of the states’ races for president, governor, and Senate. All three of those Northern states are likely to see some shift back toward parity this year, with a new independent commission drawing Michigan’s maps, a state legislative commission drawing maps in Pennsylvania, and a Democratic governor in Wisconsin likely to force the process to be completed by the courts.

    Gerrymandering is a tool used by both parties in swing states as well as less competitive ones. Democrats in deep-blue states like Illinois are moving to increase their advantage in legislatures, and Republicans in deep-red states like Utah and Idaho are doing the same. But in politically contested states where Republicans hold full control, legislators are carefully expanding Republican electoral chances. They are armed with sharper technology, weakened federal voting statutes, and the knowledge that legal challenges to their maps may not be resolved in time for the next elections. Texas, North Carolina, and Ohio have signed into law new maps with a significant Republican advantage. Georgia is moving quickly to join them. Republicans say that the growth of such heavily skewed legislatures is both the result of the party’s electoral victories and of where voters choose to live.

    As Democratic voters have crowded into cities and commuter suburbs, and voters in rural and exurban areas have grown increasingly Republican, Republican mapmakers say that they risk running afoul of other redistricting criteria if they split up those densely populated Democratic areas across multiple state legislative districts. “What you see is reflective of the more even distribution of Republican and right-leaning voters across wider geographic areas,” said Adam Kincaid, the director of the National Republican Redistricting Trust. Trying to draw more competitive legislative districts, he said, would result in “just a lot of squiggly lines.” He pointed to maps in Wisconsin that were proposed by a commission created by Governor Tony Evers, a Democrat. Under those designs, Republicans would still have a majority in both state legislative chambers, though with significantly smaller margins. “They’re limited by geography,” Kincaid said. “There’s only so many things you can do to spread that many voters across a wide area.”

    Democrats note that Republicans are still cracking apart liberal communities, especially in suburbs near Akron and Cleveland in Ohio and in predominantly Black counties in northern and central North Carolina, in a way that hurts the Democrats and cuts against a geographical argument. “They are carving up Democratic voters where they can’t pack them,” said Garrett Arwa, the director of campaigns at the National Democratic Redistricting Committee. He argued that Democratic map proposals “all put forth better and fairer maps that I would say are far from a Rorschach test.”

    Democrats have fewer opportunities to unilaterally draw state legislative maps, particularly in battleground states. Of the 14 states where the margin of the 2020 presidential race was fewer than 10 percentage points, Democrats are able to draw state legislative maps in just one: Nevada. Republicans control the redistricting process in six of those 14 states. But when Democrats have had an opening, they have also enacted significant gerrymanders at the state legislative level. In Nevada, Democrats are close to finalizing a map that would give them supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature, despite President Biden’s winning just 51 percent of the state’s vote last year. The same holds true in deeply blue states. In Illinois, newly drawn State Senate maps would give Republicans roughly 23 percent of seats in the chamber, even though former President Donald Trump won more than 40 percent of voters in the state in 2020.

    Republicans have taken two approaches to ensure durable majorities in state legislatures. The tactics in Texas and Georgia are more subtle, while Republicans in Ohio and North Carolina have taken more brazen steps. In Texas and Georgia, the party has largely eliminated competitive districts and made both Republican and Democratic seats safer, a move that tends to ward off criticism from at least some incumbents in the minority party. “Out of the 150 seats in the Texas House, only six of them are within seven points or closer,” said Sam Wang, the director of the Princeton Redistricting Project. Republicans now hold a 20-seat advantage in the chamber, 85 to 65, and the new maps will give the party roughly two more seats. So while the Republican lawmakers did not try to draw an aggressive supermajority, “what they really did a good job of there is getting rid of competition and getting a reasonably safe majority for themselves,” Wang said.

    In Georgia, where redistricting is ongoing, early maps follow a trend line similar to that of Texas, as Republicans try to eliminate competitive districts. With the current gerrymandered maps in place, Democrats in the state legislature would have needed to win more than 55.7 percent of the vote to flip the Georgia House in 2020, according to the Princeton Gerrymandering Project. The new maps proposed in Georgia maintain that 55 percent threshold, according to Princeton. Republicans in Ohio have taken more risks than their counterparts in other states, keeping some districts more competitive in an effort to increase the party’s majorities. In Ohio and North Carolina, however, Republicans are taking a forceful tack. By keeping some districts moderately competitive, they are taking more risks in an attempt to create significant majorities or supermajorities, and in doing so, they are often flouting laws or court decisions.

  • Biden Administration Seeks To Reinstate Workplace Coronavirus Vaccine Requirement

    Biden Administration Seeks To Reinstate Workplace Coronavirus Vaccine Requirement

    The Biden administration asked a federal appeals court on November 23 to lift a court-ordered stay on a sweeping workplace coronavirus vaccine rule to avoid serious harm to public health, or to allow a masking-and-testing requirement. Delaying the rule by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that requires employees to be vaccinated or tested weekly would lead to thousands of hospitalizations and deaths, the administration said in a filing with the 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals. The White House asked for the rule to be reinstated immediately, but the court set a briefing schedule that runs through December 10.

    President Joe Biden has issued several rules aimed at encouraging vaccinations, although OSHA’s November 5 standard is the most far-reaching. The OSHA rule requires businesses with at least 100 employees, covering tens of millions of American workers, to comply by January 4. Although 82% of US adults have gotten at least one vaccine dose, requiring shots against the coronavirus has become a divisive political issue over trade-offs between civil liberty and public health. The rule was challenged by Republican-led states, businesses, and trade groups, and it was quickly blocked by the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, which called it “staggeringly overbroad” and a “one-size-fits-all sledgehammer.” 

    After the stay was imposed, lawsuits from across the country were transferred to the 6th Circuit in Cincinnati. That has allowed the Biden administration to ask for the 5th Circuit ruling to be reviewed. The administration said in its filing that if the ruling remained, it should at least be modified to allow the masking-and-testing requirement. A modified stay would also shield employers from state and local laws banning vaccine and mask mandates, the administration said.

  • Amid Rising Energy Costs, Biden Administration Taps Strategic Petroleum Reserve

    Amid Rising Energy Costs, Biden Administration Taps Strategic Petroleum Reserve

    President Joe Biden said on November 23 that the administration will tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of a global effort by energy-consuming nations to calm 2021′s rapid rise in fuel prices. The coordinated release between the US, India, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, and the United Kingdom is the first such move of its kind. The US will release 50 million barrels from the SPR. Of that total, 32 million barrels will be exchanged over the next several months, while 18 million barrels will be an acceleration of a previously authorized sale. US oil dipped 1.9% to a session low of $75.30 per barrel following the announcement, before recovering those losses and moving into positive territory. The contract last traded 2.5% higher at $78.67 per barrel. International benchmark Brent crude stood at $82.31 per barrel, for a gain of 3.2%.

    The announcement follows the Biden Administration saying for months that it was looking into the tools at its disposal as West Texas Intermediate crude futures surged to a seven-year high, above $85. Prices at the pump have followed the ascent and are hovering around their highest level in seven years. The national average for a gallon of gas stood at $3.409 on Monday, according to AAA, up from $2.11 one year ago. Crude prices make up between 50% and 60% of what consumers pay to fill up their tanks, AAA said. “The President stands ready to take additional action, if needed, and is prepared to use his full authorities working in coordination with the rest of the world to maintain adequate supply as we exit the pandemic,” the White House said in a statement.

    As of November 19, the SPR held 604.5 million barrels spread across four sites, according to the Department of Energy. It takes 13 days after a presidential announcement for the oil to hit the market, the department said. In total, the SPR, which was founded in 1975 after the oil embargo, can hold 727 million barrels. The SPR can be tapped in three ways: a full drawdown to counter a “severe energy interruption,” a limited drawdown of up to 30 million barrels, or a drawdown for an exchange or test sale, according to the DOE. “This is a well-timed move to try and lower oil prices,” John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital, said after the announcement. “This added supply should help to bridge the production shortfall ahead of winter, especially if we get confirmation of meaningful supply, as well, from several of the major Asian consuming nations.”

    In August, the Biden administration called on OPEC and its oil-producing allies to boost output in the face of rising energy prices. But the group decided to maintain its previously agreed-upon schedule of raising production by 400,000 barrels per month. In April 2020, the group made the unprecedented decision to remove nearly 10 million barrels per day from the market as the pandemic sapped demand for petroleum products. Other producers, including the US, also curbed production as oil prices plunged to never-before-seen lows. Since then, demand has rebounded while producers have been slow to return oil to the market, which has pushed crude to multiyear highs. “Today marks an official emergence of an ‘anti-OPEC+’, a group of top oil-consuming countries that are taking the supply-side dynamics into their own hands in the unconventional and unprecedented release of strategic petroleum reserves to create artificial looseness in the oil market and deliver a negative blow to oil prices,” said Louise Dickson, senior oil markets analyst at Rystad Energy.

  • House of Representatives January 6 Select Committee Subpoenas Far-Right Leaders & Groups

    House of Representatives January 6 Select Committee Subpoenas Far-Right Leaders & Groups

    The House of Representatives Select Committee investigating the Capitol attack issued subpoenas on November 23 to the leaders of the far-right Proud Boys and Oath Keepers militia, directly focusing for the first time on the instigators of the violence at the January 6 Insurrection. The subpoenas demanding documents and testimony targeted both the leaders of the paramilitary groups on the day of the Capitol attack that sought to stop the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s election win, as well as the organizations behind the groups. House investigators in total issued five subpoenas to Proud Boys International LLC and its chairman, Henry “Enrqiue” Tarrio, the Oath Keepers group and its president, Stewart Rhodes, as well as Robert Patrick Lewis, the chairman of the 1st Amendment Praetorian militia. 

    The chair of the Select Committee, Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said in a statement that subpoenas reflected the panel’s interest in uncovering possible connections between the paramilitary groups, efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election and the Capitol attack. “We believe the individuals and organizations we subpoenaed today have relevant information about how violence erupted at the Capitol and the preparation leading up to this violent attack,” Thompson said.  Dozens of paramilitary group members have been indicted by the justice department as they pursue criminal charges against rioters involved in the insurrection, but the Select Committee had not yet publicly sought their cooperation in its investigation. The new subpoenas are aimed to uncover whether there was any coordination between the paramilitary groups and the White House, according to a source close to the investigation, and whether Donald Trump had advanced knowledge of plans about the Capitol attack.

    The Select Committee said they subpoenaed the Proud Boys group since its members called for violence leading up to the January 6 Insurrection and that at least 34 individuals affiliated with the group had been indicted by the justice department for their roles in storming the Capitol. Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson suggested in the subpoena letters to Proud Boys International LLC and Tarrio that the group appeared to have advanced knowledge of the violent nature of the Capitol attack, having fundraised for “protective gear and communications” in planning for January 6. The select committee said they similarly subpoenaed the Oath Keepers for their part in leading the deadly assault on Congress, which a federal grand jury indictment in Washington DC described as a conspiracy involving at least 18 members. The members of the Oath Keepers led by Stewart Rhodes, the select committee said, planned their assault on the Capitol in advance, and traveled to Washington DC with paramilitary gear, firearms, tactical vests with plates, helmets, and radio equipment.

    According to the indictment, the main unnamed conspirator, believed to be Stewart Rhodes, was in direct contact with his Oath Keepers members before, during, and shortly after the Capitol attack, the select committee added in the subpoena letters. The Justice Department has said Rhodes directed members of the Oath Keepers as they stormed the Capitol on 6 January but has not been charged with a crime and has denied any wrongdoing. He surrendered his phone to law enforcement and has sat for an interview with the FBI. House investigators also subpoenaed the leader of the 1st Amendment Praetorian, as Lewis was in constant contact with Trump operatives based at the Willard Hotel in Washington DC, which served as a “command center” for President Donald Trump to stop President-elect Joe Biden’s certification. The select committee said to Lewis that he was subpoenaed in part because he claimed the day after the Capitol attack that he “war-gamed” with constitutional scholars about how to stop Biden from being certified president on January 6. Thompson noted in the subpoena letter that members of the 1st Amendment Praetorian wore body cameras, suggesting the select committee’s interest in obtaining those recordings.

  • Biden Administration Announces Plan To Invest Billions In Expanded Coronavirus Vaccine Manufacturing

    Biden Administration Announces Plan To Invest Billions In Expanded Coronavirus Vaccine Manufacturing

    The Biden Administration is planning to invest billions of dollars to expand US manufacturing capabilities of coronavirus vaccines to increase the supply of doses for poorer nations and better prepare the country for future pandemics. The White House will aim to spur the production of at least 1 billion doses a year by investing in companies that make mRNA vaccines, such as Pfizer and Moderna, and helping them expand capacity by funding facilities, equipment, staff, and training. Pfizer and Moderna said that they are reviewing the government’s proposal and while open to the idea, made no commitments to working with US officials on this effort.

    The announcement received mixed reactions from global health activists, who lauded the investment but raised concerns about the speed of its implementation and the latitude that could be given to pharmaceutical companies. For months, the US has been under pressure to play a larger role in sharing vaccines with the world, but one administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations, said some of the advocacy groups specifically lobbied an investment on the scale the US is making.

    The Biden Administrations’ announcement marks the latest partnership between the federal government and pharmaceutical companies to bolster vaccine production during the pandemic. “The goal is to guarantee capacity to produce approximately 100 million mRNA vaccines a month against covid or other pandemic viruses upon demand for the United States or global use,” said David Kessler, the administration’s chief science officer who oversees vaccine distribution. “We are looking to enter into a historic partnership with one or more experienced pharmaceutical partners. This partnership will be used for COVID and any future pandemic viruses with the goal of having enough vaccines available within six to nine months of the identification of the virus.” Kessler said the funds for the effort have already been allocated as part of the American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that President Biden signed into law in March.

    The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has published a “request for information,” seeking proposals from companies that have experience using mRNA technology. BARDA, which is housed within the Department of Health and Human Services, is responsible for developing vaccines and other medical countermeasures. “It would combine the expertise of the US government in basic scientific research with the robust ability of pharmaceutical companies to manufacture mRNA vaccines,” Jeff Zients, the White House coronavirus coordinator, said at the White House’s coronavirus news briefing. “We hope companies step up and act quickly to take us up on this opportunity to expand production of mRNA vaccines for the current pandemic and set us up to react quickly to any future pandemic threats.” Zients also touted the country’s effort to share vaccines globally, saying the US has already donated 250 million doses and has committed a total of $1.1 billion. He said the US has already donated more vaccines than all other countries combined.

    Vaccine manufacturers said they were open to the Biden administration’s new plan but were also seeking further details. In an interview, Moderna President Stephen Hoge said that his firm was reviewing the government’s request for information. “We haven’t talked about it, but the concepts we’re definitely supportive of and would expect to participate in,” Hoge said. Amy Rose, a spokeswoman for Pfizer, said the company appreciates the administration’s focus on ensuring long-term supply, and the company would review BARDA’s “request for information.” “Pfizer is proud to be a strong and reliable partner to the U.S. government with vast capacity and capabilities that create solutions,” Rose said in a statement. “As we consider the White House’s proposal, we will come to the table with how we can best contribute to the ongoing global fight against the coronavirus.”

    Despite support for President Joe Biden’s plan to expand the manufacture of coronavirus vaccines, current, and former government health officials raised questions about the administration’s newest vaccine manufacturing proposal, suggesting that the White House still needed to flesh out its plan. “How long will this take — at least nine months? Is it really necessary or will we already basically be done with the need by the time it’s online?” asked one former official who previously worked with BARDA and spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the government’s plan.

    Since the US started distributing vaccines, activists have criticized the Biden administration for failing to scale up domestic vaccine manufacturing capacity to boost the global supply of vaccines. Protesters have gathered outside the homes of top officials in Washington in recent weeks, including Jeffery Zients and White House chief of staff Ron Klain, demanding the Biden administration do more to share vaccines with the world. In September, activists gathered outside Klain’s house and set up a 12-foot pile of fake bones they said symbolized American inaction in combating the global coronavirus crisis.

    The US has also faced criticism for moving forward with booster shots for Americans while many countries are struggling to provide the first round of vaccines to its citizens. The Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize booster shots of Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine for all adults this week after some state officials already widened eligibility in recent days. The FDA approved booster shots for some Americans in September, but the agency is likely to broaden access as evidence shows waning effectiveness of the vaccines over time.

    https://youtu.be/Xz7eh_zFqIw
  • IAE Report: Iran Resuming Production of Advanced Nuclear-Program Parts

    IAE Report: Iran Resuming Production of Advanced Nuclear-Program Parts

    Iran has resumed production of equipment for advanced centrifuges at a site the United Nations’ atomic-energy agency has been unable to monitor or gain access to for months, diplomats familiar with the activities said, presenting a new challenge for the Biden administration as it prepares for nuclear talks. The renewed work has raised concerns among Western diplomats who say it could allow Iran to start secretly diverting centrifuge parts if the Iranian government choses to build a covert nuclear-weapons program, although they say there is no evidence at this point that it has done so.

    Iran resumed work on a limited scale in late August at an assembly plant in Karaj, a city west of Tehran, and has since accelerated its production, allowing it to manufacture an unknown number of rotors and bellows for more advanced centrifuges, diplomats said. Iran had stopped work at Karaj in June after a sabotage attack that the Iranian government blamed on Israel, which has not acknowledged responsibility. According to the diplomats, Iran has now produced significant amounts of centrifuge parts since late August, with one of the diplomats saying it has produced parts for at least 170 advanced centrifuges. Centrifuges are used to spin enriched uranium into higher levels of purity either for civilian use or, at 90% purity, for nuclear weapons.

    Iran has withdrawn from most commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal since the Trump administration reimposed sanctions in November 2018. In February, Iran scaled back International Atomic Energy Agency oversight of many of its nuclear-related sites, including Karaj, but agreed to keep agency cameras and recording devices in place at Karaj and some other sites. All of the recent work at Karaj has taken place without any official IAEA monitoring, the diplomats said. Iran significantly tightened security at Karaj after the June alleged sabotage, the latest in a series of explosions at its nuclear facilities over the past two years.

    Iran’s production of centrifuges is a critical issue in talks beginning on November 29 to revive the nuclear deal, which the Biden administration is hoping to restore. Former President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the agreement in May 2018. The original deal was built around the idea that Iran should be kept at least one year away from being able to produce enough nuclear fuel for one bomb. Since the US exited the deal, Iran has installed more than 1,000 more advanced centrifuges, which are able to enrich uranium more quickly. That has helped reduce Iran’s current breakout time to as little as a month.

    The IAEA has echoed Western concerns that Iran’s nuclear activities are no longer being fully tracked, saying in September that Iran’s failure to restore cameras to Karaj is seriously compromising the agency’s ability to ensure continuous knowledge about the nuclear program. According to one of the diplomats familiar with Iran’s program, Iran has installed the centrifuges whose key parts were produced at Karaj at Iran’s underground, heavily fortified, Fordow site. The diplomat said there is no evidence the centrifuges parts have been diverted elsewhere but “as the number of unmonitored centrifuges increases, the likelihood for this scenario increases.” There is no evidence Iran has a covert nuclear program, the diplomats said, and Iran’s core nuclear facilities, including Fordow and Natanz, which produce enriched uranium, remain under IAEA oversight. Iran says its nuclear activities are purely peaceful.

  • Amid Rising Tensions Between Both Countries, US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping Hold First Summit Meeting

    Amid Rising Tensions Between Both Countries, US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping Hold First Summit Meeting

    US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping did not produce any big breakthroughs in their more than three-hour virtual summit on November 15, but they managed to lower the temperature in a bilateral relationship buffeted by rising tensions over Taiwan, trade, and security in the Indo-Pacific region. The video meeting was the first opportunity for the two leaders to meet face to face since Biden took office. This helped facilitate a “different kind of conversation,” according to a senior Biden administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, who described discussions as “respectful, and straightforward and open.”

    President Joe Biden “underscored that the United States will continue to stand up for its interests and values,” and raised a number of issues of concern including human rights, trade, and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific, according to a White House statement. The two leaders also discussed areas of mutual interest including health security and climate change; last week at the big United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland, China and the US agreed to cooperate on new climate measures over the next decade, though neither offered any substantive details. “What President Xi and President Biden really reinforced to one another at multiple points last night was that this relationship needs to be guided by consistent and regular leader-to-leader interaction,” The US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said at an online event hosted by the Brookings Institution. Sullivan added that the dialogue between leaders should continue between senior officials from both countries.

    At the meeting, President Joe Biden also underscored US commitment to the “One China” policy, which recognizes Beijing as representing China rather than Taipei, while reiterating US opposition to any Chinese efforts to unilaterally change the status of the self-governed island of Taiwan, which has become a flashpoint in the relationship amid China’s increasingly aggressive military posturing in the Taiwan Strait. US officials went into the call hoping to come out with some guardrails to prevent any escalation over the island, but the virtual summit did not produce any on Taiwan, the senior administration official said.

    One issue that was expected to arise but that did not is the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing. The US has not yet signaled whether it will send a delegation to the games amid calls for a boycott over China’s supposed mass incarceration of Muslims in the Xinjiang region, which the Biden administration determined constitutes a genocide. President Joe Biden, who dialed into the call from the White House’s Roosevelt Room, was joined by senior foreign-policy aides including Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Xi joined the call from the cavernous East Hall in China’s Great Hall of the People alongside Foreign Minister Wang Yi and top Communist Party officials. 

    The virtual summit was not President Joe Biden and Xi Jinping’s first face-to-face meeting. As vice president a decade ago, Biden traveled through China with Xi at a markedly more optimistic moment in U.S.-China relations. ​​“If we get this relationship right, engender a new model, the possibilities are limitless,” Biden said on a 2013 visit to Beijing. In his opening remarks on Monday, Xi said that he was “very happy to see my old friend.” 

    The meeting came as both leaders are focused on domestic challenges. Biden just signed into law a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, but he is still trying to pass a bumper social spending bill. Last week, a Chinese Communist Party plenum issued a “resolution on history,” elevating Xi’s status and paving the way for him to seek a third term in office next year. Despite Xi’s consolidated grip on power, experts say Chinese officials are looking to stabilize the international environment as they focus on domestic issues including skyrocketing energy prices and rising inflation.

  • Appeals Court Slows January 6 House Select Committee’s Effort To Access Trump White House Records

    Appeals Court Slows January 6 House Select Committee’s Effort To Access Trump White House Records

    A federal appeals court on November 11 granted a short-term delay in the January 6 select committee’s access to former President Donald Trump’s White House records. A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, including President Joe Biden’s first and only appointee to that court, Ketanji Brown Jackson, will instead hear arguments in the matter on November 30. The delay is a minor setback for the House January 6 Committee, which had prevailed in US District Court against Trump’s legal effort to block access to his records altogether. The National Archives, which house Trump’s records, had been preparing to deliver the first batch of requested files to the committee.

    The first batch of documents that was slated for release on November 12 is relatively small, as former President Donald Trump contested just 70 pages. But subsequent tranches identified by the Archives include hundreds of pages that were slated for release on November 26. Those will now likely be delayed, as well. The records include call logs, visitor records and documents culled from the files of top Trump aides like chief of staff Mark Meadows. The committee has repeatedly emphasized the urgency of accessing Trump’s records as it explores the former president’s effort to overturn the 2020 election results, including the January 6 assault on the Capitol that disrupted the electoral vote count and sent lawmakers fleeing in fear.

    Despite claims of urgency, the January 6 House Select Committee did not object to former President Donald Trump’s request for a temporary injunction while the appeals court considers the broader issues. The Justice Department also took no position on the temporary stay. The composition of the appeals court panel is likely to hearten House investigators. The order issued on November 11 indicates that, in addition to Jackson, the panel includes Judges Patricia Millett and Robert Wilkins, who were appointed by former President Barack Obama to the court. The court’s order emphasized that the move to freeze the status quo, for the time being, should not be seen as reflecting what the court will end up deciding about Trump’s attempt to block disclosure of files from his former White House. “The purpose of this administrative injunction is to protect the court’s jurisdiction to address appellant’s claims of executive privilege and should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits,” the order said.

    Despite the slowdown, the case is still moving at breakneck speed through typically slow-moving federal courts. Former President Donald Trump filed suit in mid-October to block the January 6 committee’s access to his records. A District Court judge, Tanya Chutkan, rejected Trump’s efforts, dismissing the notion that a former president could overrule the sitting president on matters of executive privilege. Trump quickly appealed the decision and asked the appeals court to delay the effect of Chutkan’s ruling until fuller arguments could be heard. The appeals court’s decision to set a two-week briefing schedule keeps the case moving on a fast track. Trump is due to file his written brief in the case on November 16, with a reply by the National Archives and the House on November 22. Trump will have an additional reply on November 26 before oral arguments the following week. If Trump loses in the three-judge panel, he has the option to appeal to the full appeals court or the Supreme Court.

  • At COP 26 Conference, US and China Issue Joint Pledge To Slow Climate Change

    At COP 26 Conference, US and China Issue Joint Pledge To Slow Climate Change

    The US and China jolted the United Nations climate summit here with a surprise announcement on November 10, pledging the two countries would work together to slow global warming during this decade and ensure that the Glasgow talks result in meaningful progress. The world’s two biggest greenhouse gas emitters said they would take “enhanced climate actions” to meet the central goals of the 2015 Paris climate accord, limiting warming to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) beyond preindustrial levels, and if possible, not to exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius. Still, the declaration was short on firm deadlines or specific commitments, and parts of it restated policies both nations had outlined in a statement in April of 2021. To try to keep those temperature limits “within reach,” Chinese and American leaders agreed to jointly “raise ambition in the 2020s” and said they would boost clean energy, combat deforestation and curb emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

    The US and China, plus other major emitters such as the European Union, have come under fire in recent days for not yet delivering on some of the lofty rhetoric their leaders showcased last week. But many leaders have demonstrated a willingness during COP26 to go further than they have before, as shown by a new draft of the agreement conference president Alok Sharma released barely 12 hours before the US-China declaration came out. The draft, which Sharma said he hoped would be signed by the end of the week, proposed a breakthrough not seen in three decades of U.N. climate negotiations: an explicit acknowledgment that nations must phase out coal-burning faster and stop subsidizing fossil fuels. “It’s fossil fuels that cause climate change,” said Mohamed Adow, director of the Kenya-based think tank Power Shift Africa. “Explicitly mentioning it gets on the path to addressing it.”

    Many nations have come under scrutiny at the summit, but few have faced closer examination than the US and China. Speaking before US Climate Change Envoy and former Secretary of State John Kerry at an unannounced news conference, Chinese special climate envoy Xie Zhenhua said that as superpowers, the two countries have a special obligation to work together on keeping the world a peaceful and sustainable place. “We need to think big and be responsible,” Xie said, adding, “We both see that the challenge of climate change is an existential and severe one.” He acknowledged that “both sides recognize there is a gap between the current efforts and the Paris agreement goals.”

    Both envoys on November 10 said the joint declaration was a product of nearly three dozen negotiating sessions over the year. While many of those meetings were virtual, US and Chinese diplomats also had face-to-face talks in China, London, and during the Glasgow summit. The declaration also marked a payoff for the men who announced it. John Kerry has spent this year pursuing extensive personal diplomacy, and he has broken with other Biden aides to advocate robust engagement with China on climate issues. Meanwhile, Xie, a veteran Chinese climate negotiator who led his delegation at previous talks in Copenhagen and Paris, came out of retirement to manage China’s climate diplomacy in the run-up to the high-profile talks in Glasgow.

    The news drew various reactions, from outright praise to skepticism over whether the agreement would lead to new and concrete action. “Tackling the climate crisis requires international cooperation and solidarity, and this is an important step in the right direction,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres tweeted. “This is a challenge which transcends politics,” tweeted the EU’s top climate envoy, Frans Timmermans. “Bilateral cooperation between the two biggest global emitters should boost negotiations at #COP26.” Manish Bapna, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, agreed that having the US and China on the same page on climate change trumps having them at odds. But, he added in a statement, if the world is to meet the goals it set six years ago in Paris, “we urgently need to see commitments to cooperate translate into bolder climate targets and credible delivery.”

    China and the US, which together account for about 40 percent of the world’s emissions, are central to any international accord on climate change. The two nations have joined forces before with outsize influence, most notably when President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping forged a similar partnership a year before the Paris climate accord, helping to make that landmark pact a reality.

  • Fifth Circut Court Of Appeals Temporarily Blocks Biden Administration COVID Vaccine Mandate

    Fifth Circut Court Of Appeals Temporarily Blocks Biden Administration COVID Vaccine Mandate

    A federal appeals court temporarily blocked President Joe Biden’s Covid vaccine and testing requirements for private businesses on November 6, just a day after they had officially gone into effect. The Republican attorneys general of Texas, South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Utah, as well as several private companies, filed petitions on November 5 challenging the mandate in the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The court on November 6 ordered the vaccine and testing requirements halted pending review “because the petitions give cause to believe there are grave statutory and constitutional issues with the Mandate.” The three judges who issued the order, Stuart Kyle Duncan, Kurt Damian Englehardt, and Edith Hollan Jones, were appointed by former Presidents Donald Trump and Ronald Reagan.  

    The Labor Department’s top lawyer, Seema Nanda, said the Biden Administration is “fully prepared to defend this standard in court.” The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which polices workplace safety for the Labor Department, developed the vaccine and testing requirements under emergency authority that allows the agency to shortcut the process to issue workplace safety standards, which normally take years. “The Occupational Safety and Health Act explicitly gives OSHA the authority to act quickly in an emergency where the agency finds that workers are subjected to a grave danger and a new standard is necessary to protect them,” Nanda said in a statement after the Republican attorneys general and companies filed their challenge.

    Under the mandates, companies with 100 or more employees must ensure their staff has received the shots necessary for full vaccination by January 4. After that date, unvaccinated employees must submit weekly negative COVID-19 tests to enter the workplace. Unvaccinated workers must start wearing masks indoors at their workplaces starting December 5. Seema Nanda said the mandate “preempts any state or local requirements that ban or limit an employer’s authority to require vaccination, face-covering, or testing.” Texas Governor Greg Abbott banned vaccine mandates in his state through an executive order last month.     

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, in a statement, called the vaccine mandate “a breathtaking abuse of federal power,” arguing that it is “flatly unconstitutional.” Paxton said the mandate goes beyond the “limited power and specific responsibilities” of OSHA. In their petition to halt the mandates, several companies that operate in Texas challenged OSHA’s authority to issue emergency workplace safety standards, arguing that it is an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority to the executive branch. OSHA’s emergency authority was established by Congress. The companies Burnett Specialists, Choice Staffing, and Staff Force also argued that the requirements put them in the position of either violating federal regulations or Texas state law. They also said the mandates would result in irreparable harm, including fines for possible non-compliance as well as the loss of employees to smaller companies who are not covered by the mandates. 

  • Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Passes House of Representatives, To Be Signed Into Law By President Biden

    Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Passes House of Representatives, To Be Signed Into Law By President Biden

    The House of Representatives passed a more than $1 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill late on November 5, sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk in a critical step toward enacting sprawling Democratic economic plans. The Senate approved the revamp of transportation, utilities, and broadband in August. The legislation’s passage is perhaps the unified Democratic government’s most concrete achievement since it approved a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package in the spring. The measure passed in a 228-206 vote. Thirteen Republicans supported it, while six Democrats voted against it. The US Congress has tried and failed for years to pass a major bill to upgrade critical transportation and utility infrastructure, which has come under more pressure from extreme weather. The Biden Administration has also contended passage of the bill can help to get goods moving as supply-chain obstacles contribute to higher prices for American consumers.

    The House vote followed a day of wrangling over how to enact the two planks of the party’s agenda. The push-and-pull exemplified party leaders’ months-long struggle to get progressives and centrists, who have differing visions of the government’s role in the economy, behind the same bills. Democrats entered the day planning to pass both the infrastructure legislation and the party’s larger $1.75 trillion social safety net and climate package. A demand from a handful of centrists to see a Congressional Budget Office estimate of the social spending plan’s budgetary effects delayed its approval. Progressives sought assurances the holdouts would support the bigger proposal if they voted for the infrastructure bill. After hours of talks, and a call by President joe Biden into a progressive caucus meeting urging lawmakers to back the infrastructure bill, the party’s liberal wing got assurances from centrists that they would support the larger package. 

    Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) said the group reached a deal to back the infrastructure plan in exchange for a commitment to take up the safety-net bill “no later than the week of November 15.” A group of five centrists separately issued a statement saying they would back the Build Back Better legislation pending a CBO score that assuages their concerns about long-term budget deficits. 

    In a statement after the House vote, President Joe Biden said the legislation would “create millions of jobs, turn the climate crisis into an opportunity, and put us on a path to win the economic competition for the 21st Century.” He also noted that the procedural vote on the second Democratic bill will “allow for passage of my Build Back Better Act in the House of Representatives the week of November 15th.” The bills together make up the core of President Biden’s domestic agenda. Democrats see the plans as complementary pieces designed to boost the economy, jolt the job market, provide a layer of insurance to working families and curb climate change.

    President Joe Biden and Democrats have looked for a signature achievement they can point to on the 2022 midterm campaign trail as the president’s approval ratings flag. President Biden will welcome the developments, as House passage of the bill followed a strong October jobs report and approval of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine for 5-to-11-year-olds in the US. While President Biden could sign the infrastructure bill soon, the safety net and climate package will likely take weeks longer. The House will have to wait for a CBO score. The Senate may pass a different version of the plan, which would require another House vote. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has set a Thanksgiving target to pass the larger Democratic bill.

    The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act would put $550 billion in new money into transportation projects, the utility grid, and broadband. The package includes $110 billion for roads, bridges, and other major projects, along with $66 billion for passenger and freight rail and $39 billion for public transit. It would put $65 billion into broadband, a priority for many lawmakers after the coronavirus pandemic highlighted inequities in internet access for households and students across the country. The legislation would also invest $55 billion into water systems, including efforts to replace lead pipes. Before the vote, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told MSNBC that “the moment the president signs this, then it’s over to our department on the transportation pieces to get out there and deliver.” It can take years to complete major projects after Congress funds them. Republicans helped to write the bill in the Senate, and it garnered 19 Republican votes in the chamber. A range of congressional Republicans opposed the plan because they considered it too closely tied to Democrats’ larger proposal, which they are passing without Republicans through the budget reconciliation process.

    Despite much bipartisan support, many Democrats considered the infrastructure bill inadequate because it did not address issues including child care, pre-K education, Medicare expansion, and the enhanced child tax credit. Those policies, priorities for President Joe Biden and top Democrats, made it into the House version of the social safety net bill. Democratic leaders tied the proposals together in an effort to keep centrists and progressives on board with both plans. A thorny legislative process has unfolded for months as Democrats try to get disparate groups with varied visions of the federal government’s role in the economy to back both packages.

  • In A Bright Spot For The Democratic Party, Georgia Democratic Party Makes Gains In Municipal & Local Elections

    In A Bright Spot For The Democratic Party, Georgia Democratic Party Makes Gains In Municipal & Local Elections

    Despite losses elsewhere in the country, the Democratic Party gained a net total of more than 40 seats in the local and municipal elections held in Georgia on November 2, including mayorships in Cairo, Stone Mountain, Hampton, and McDonough and crucial city council seats in Lawrenceville, Peachtree Corners, Sandy Springs, Tucker, Stone Mountain, Dunwoody, Brookhaven, Kennesaw, and Powder Springs. While local elections are often immune to partisan trends and are of lower turnout, the results of the election in Georgia are a relatively good sign for the statewide Demcoratic Party in one of the nation’s key battleground states.

    In the cities of McDonough and Warner Robins, voters elected the first African American mayors in those cities’ history, and the first women as well. McDonough City Council member Sandra Vincent told GPB News she is hoping to retain the city’s “small-town feel” while ensuring rapid growth in the surrounding area doesn’t leave residents behind. LaRhonda Patrick defeated incumbent Warner Robins mayor Randy Toms in a runoff election as well.

    Congresswoman Nikema Williams, chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia, said in a statement that the results leave the party well-positioned to continue making gains in 2022. “From Middle Georgia to the coast and everywhere in between, Georgians came out in full force this election cycle to make their voices heard and demand change,” she said. “Democrats’ strong showing in this year’s municipal elections is a testament to the unprecedented grassroots enthusiasm our party has been building across the state for years — and our momentum is only growing.”

    Beyond seats changing hands, runoff elections in the metro Atlanta area also signaled an end to many longtime incumbents’ terms and a new direction for Atlanta’s government. South Fulton Councilman Khalid Kamau ousted incumbent mayor Bill Edwards in the city’s mayoral race, while newcomers Jason Dozier and Antonio Lewis defeated Cleta Winslow and Joyce Shepherd, respectively, for Atlanta City Council seats. With City Councilmember Andre Dickens handily winning Atlanta’s mayoral runoff, Atlanta City Council President Felicia Moore continued the streak of council presidents failing to move up into the city’s highest office.

    Throughout the municipal election season, the Democratic Party of Georgia made nearly 91,000 calls and sent nearly 185,000 texts to voters across the state to get out the vote in dozens of targeted races. Candidates in DPG-targeted races flipped 41 seats in 21 counties across Georgia, while Republican candidates picked up just 6. The counties that saw Democratic flips include Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Chatham, Clarke, Cobb, Cook, DeKalb, Fulton, Grady, Gwinnett, Heard, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Lanier, Meriwether, Mitchell, Oconee, Troup, and Walton.

  • Democratic Governor Phil Murphy Narrowly Wins Re-Election In New Jersey

    Democratic Governor Phil Murphy Narrowly Wins Re-Election In New Jersey

    Democratic New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy narrowly fended off an election challenge from Republican former State Senator Jack Ciattarelli, returns showed on November 3, a day after voting ended in an unexpected nail-biter for the incumbent. Murphy became the first Democratic governor since Brendan Byrne in 1977 to win re-election in New Jersey, even though registered Democratic voters outnumber Republicans by more than 1 million in the densely populated northeastern coastal US state. The incumbent struck a triumphant but politically inclusive tone in a brief victory speech he delivered at an Asbury Park convention hall to supporters chanting, “Four more years!””If you want to be governor of all of New Jersey, you must listen to all of New Jersey. And New Jersey, I hear you,” he told the crowd. 

    Unofficial returns posted by the Associated Press and cited by the New York Times and other media outlets pronouncing the victory for Governor Phil Murphy showed him clinching 50.03% of the vote, compared with 49.22% for Jack Ciattarelli, with 90% of ballots counted. There was no immediate word from Ciattarelli conceding defeat, and his campaign spokesperson, Sami Williams, posted a tweet criticizing the media for calling the race when it did. “With the candidates separated by a fraction of a percent out of 2.4 million ballots cast, it’s irresponsible of the media to make this call when the New Jersey Secretary of State doesn’t even know how many ballots are left to be counted,” she wrote.

    Governor Phil Murphy has presided over a political shift to the left in the state, including new taxes on millionaires, tougher firearms restrictions, marijuna legalization, a higher minimum wage, and paid sick leave. He has also defended his robust public health measures aimed at curtailing the coronavirus pandemic, which emerged as a key point of contention in the race. Jack Ciattarelli, who had trailed Murphy by up to 10 percentage points in some opinion polls, capitalized on widespread unpopularity with Murphy’s aggressive mask requirements for schoolchildren. The Republicans also focused much of their campaign on the state’s high taxes, while accusing Murphy, a wealthy former Goldman Sachs executive, of being out of touch with the electorate.

    New Jersey has trended steadily Democratic in recent years. The party won 10 of the state’s 12 House of Representatives seats in 2020, and President Joe Biden carried the state over then-President Donald Trump last year by more than 15 percentage points. Still, Jack Ciattarelli’s unexpectedly strong performance in New Jersey, and a Republican victory in Virginia’s hard-fought gubernatorial race spelled trouble for Biden’s party heading into next year’s congressional elections. Murphy trailed overnight in the returns but squeaked into the lead as the tabulation of the vote unfolded in several heavily Democratic counties.

  • Republican Glenn Youngkin Wins Virginia Gubernatorial Election

    Republican Glenn Youngkin Wins Virginia Gubernatorial Election

    Republican Glenn Youngkin defeated former Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe in Virginia‘s high-profile election on November 2 for governor, flipping control of a state that President Joe Biden won handily just a year ago. The results there and in other states holding off-year elections sent a warning shot to Democrats, suggesting that trouble may be brewing ahead of next year’s midterm elections. “This is the spirit of Virginia coming together like never before,” Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin told supporters well after midnight, joking breakfast would soon be served. “For too long, we’ve been expected to shelve our dreams, to shelve our hope, to settle for low expectations. We will not be a commonwealth of low expectations. We’ll be a commonwealth of high expectations.” Terry McAuliffe congratulated Youngkin in a statement conceding defeat. “While last night we came up short, I am proud that we spent this campaign fighting for the values we so deeply believe in,” he said, thanking his family and supporters. Virginia will also get its first woman of color lieutenant governor, with the victory of Republican Winsome Sears, a former Marine born in Jamaica.

    Glenn Youngkin, a former private equity executive, and political newcomer campaigned on a promise to unite the factions of the Republican Party and drove a message focused on the economy and education. He kept just enough distance from former President Donald Trump while trying to keep his base engaged. Terry McAuliffe, meanwhile, was weighed down by his party’s post-Trump political fatigue, along with President Joe Biden’s sinking poll numbers and gridlocked agenda in Washington, but ran a campaign that included damaging gaffes and, critics say, was overly reliant on trying to tie Youngkin to Trump.

    Virginia, which always elects a new governor one year after presidential races, has long been seen as a political bellwether and both parties were anxiously watching as results poured in from across the commonwealth, eager for clues about the political landscape that will inform their upcoming campaigns. The Republican victory in Virginia, powered by robust turnout in conservative rural counties, improved support in the suburbs, and a message focused on the economy and alleged anti-white bias in school curriculum, will likely serve as a blueprint for Republicans looking to recapture the House and the Senate next year. “It’s time to hit the panic button, because the base is not motivated,” Democratic pollster Cornell Belcher said, calling the loss “catastrophic” for Democrats. In Virginia, white women swung back toward the Republican Party by 15 percentage points compared to 2020, while African American turnout was down in some key places.

    Turnout will be key in next year’s election and Virginia’s results suggest the Republican base is more engaged than the Democratic one, as is often the case for the party out of power in Washington. “Youngkin’s victory in Virginia should serve as a wake-up call to Democrats everywhere that an epic wave is on the way,” said John Ashbrook, a Republican strategist who works on Senate races and is close to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. “Voters are clearly dissatisfied with the direction our country is headed and they’re prepared to exercise their right to change it.”

     Virginia was one of the first former Confederate states to trend heavily towards the Republican Party beginning in the late 1940s and established a reputation as one of the best states for the Republican Party by the 1980s. Starting in the mid-2000s, however, Virginia began to trend heavily towards the Democrats due to declining Republican support in Suburban areas. For example, no Republican had won a statewide office in Virginia since 2009 and President Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by 10 points in Virginia in the 2020 Presidential election. Moreover, Democratic Governor Ralph Northam, who is prohibited by the state Constitution from running for a second term, won by 9 percentage points in 2017. Democrats won control of the state Legislature for the first time since 1996 two years ago and pushed through an expansion of early voting rules that some analysts predicted would help the party turn out its base.

    Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin made education the centerpiece of his campaign, capitalizing on parental frustration with school closures and a gaffe by Terry McCauliffe in the final debate when he said, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.” The race was stoked by conservative alarmism about critical race theory, an until-recently obscure academic discipline mostly taught in universities. Republicans say the issue could be central in future campaigns across the country. Former President Donald Trump has loomed large over the Virginia race, with McAuliffe looking to tie his opponent to the divisive former president, who lost the state by 10 percentage points in 2020. The NBC News exit poll found that 54 percent of voters said they have an unfavorable opinion of Trump, compared to 41 percent who had a positive view of him. While McAuliffe voters were almost unanimously negative on the former president, only about three-quarters (73 percent) of Youngkin voters had a favorable opinion of Trump and 19 percent had a negative view of him.

    “Being anti-Trump is not going to be enough. Democrats have to show what they’re for,” former Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello said, adding that the party can’t just ignore hot-button issues like the critical race theory debate. “If anyone on the Democratic side thought these culture wars were going to go away without Trump, that needs to be re-evaluated.” Meanwhile, about half of voters said that President Joe Biden was not a factor in their vote for governor, according to the NBC News exit poll, but only 43 percent approved of the way he is doing his job, while a slight majority (56 percent) disapproved. Twenty-eight percent said one reason for their vote for governor was to express opposition to Biden, while 20 percent said it was to express support for the President.

  • Report: US Top General Secretly Called China Over Fears Donald Trump Could Spark War During His Final Days In Office

    Report: US Top General Secretly Called China Over Fears Donald Trump Could Spark War During His Final Days In Office

    The top US general secretly called his Chinese counterpart twice over concerns then-President Donald Trump could spark a war with China as his potential election loss loomed and in its aftermath, the Washington Post reported on September 14. US General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called General Li Zuocheng of the People’s Liberation Army on October 30, 2020, four days before the election, and again on January 8, two days after Trump supporters led a deadly riot at the US Capitol, the newspaper reported. In the calls, Milley sought to assure Li the US was stable and not going to attack and, if there were to be an attack, he would alert his counterpart ahead of time, the report said. The report was based on “Peril,” a new book by journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, which they said relied on interviews with 200 sources and is due to be released next week. Former President Donald Trump, in a statement, cast doubt in the story, calling it “fabricated.” He said if the story was true Milley should be tried for treason. “For the record, I never even thought of attacking China,” Trump said.

    Republican Senator Marco Rubio called on President Joe Biden to immediately fire General Mark Milley in response to the revelations. “I do not need to tell of you the dangers posed by senior military officers leaking classified information on U.S. military operations, but I will underscore that such subversion undermines the President’s ability to negotiate and leverage one of this nation’s instruments of national power in his interactions with foreign nations,” Rubio said in a letter to President Biden. Asked about the Washington Post report, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment and referred questions to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Defense Department.

    President Donald Trump named Mark Milley to the top military post in 2018 but began criticizing him, as well as other appointees and former staffers, after losing the presidential election to Joe Biden in November 2020. The Washington Post reported that Milley was motivated to contact China the second time in part due to a January 8 call with US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who had asked the general what safeguards were in place to prevent an “unstable president” from launching a nuclear strike. “He’s crazy. You know he’s crazy,” Pelosi told Milley, the newspaper reported, citing a transcript of the call. According to the cited call transcript, the general replied, “I agree with you on everything.”

  • President Joe Biden Announces Sweeping Coronavirus Vaccine Mandate Covering Nearly 100 Million Americans

    President Joe Biden Announces Sweeping Coronavirus Vaccine Mandate Covering Nearly 100 Million Americans

    In his most forceful pandemic actions and words, President Joe Biden, on September 9 ordered sweeping new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million American private-sector employees as well as health care workers and federal contractors in an all-out effort to curb the surging COVID-19 delta variant. Speaking at the White House, President Biden sharply criticized the tens of millions of Americans who are not yet vaccinated, despite months of availability and incentives. “We’ve been patient. But our patience is wearing thin, and your refusal has cost all of us,” he said, all but biting off his words. The unvaccinated minority “can cause a lot of damage, and they are.”

    Overall, the immediate reaction to the Biden Administrations’ vaccine mandate proposal was mixed. Both Republican political leaders and private sector unions said that President Joe Biden was going too far in trying to muscle private companies and workers, a certain sign of legal challenges to come. Republican Governor Henry McMaster of South Carolina said in a statement that “Biden and the radical Democrats (have) thumbed their noses at the Constitution,” while American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley insisted that “changes like this should be negotiated with our bargaining units where appropriate.” On the other hand, there were strong words of praise for Biden’s efforts to get the nation vaccinated from the American Medical Association, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the Business Roundtable, though no direct mention of his mandate for private companies.

    The expansive rules mandate that all employers with more than 100 workers require them to be vaccinated or test for the virus weekly, affecting about 80 million Americans. And the roughly 17 million workers at health facilities that receive federal Medicare or Medicaid also will have to be fully vaccinated. President Joe Biden is also requiring vaccination for employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government, with no option to test out. That covers several million more workers. President Biden announced the new requirements in an address from the White House as part of a new “action plan” to address the latest rise in coronavirus cases and the stagnating pace of COVID-19 shots.

    Just two months ago, President Joe Biden prematurely declared the nation’s “independence” from the virus. Now, despite more than 208 million Americans having at least one dose of the vaccines, the US is seeing about 300% more new COVID-19 infections a day, about two-and-a-half times more hospitalizations, and nearly twice the number of deaths compared to the same time last year. Some 80 million people remain unvaccinated. “We are in the tough stretch and it could last for a while,” President Biden said. After months of using promotions to drive the vaccination rate, Biden is taking a much firmer hand, as he blames people who have not yet received shots for the sharp rise in cases killing more than 1,000 people per day and imperiling a fragile economic rebound.

    In addition to the vaccination requirements, Preisdent Biden moved to double federal fines for airline passengers who refuse to wear masks on flights or to maintain face-covering requirements on federal property in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. He announced that the government will work to increase the supply of virus tests, and that the White House has secured concessions from retailers including Walmart, Amazon, and Kroger to sell at-home testing kits at cost beginning this week. The administration is also sending additional federal support to assist schools in safely operating, including additional funding for testing. And Biden called for large entertainment venues and arenas to require vaccinations or proof of a negative test for entry. The requirement for large companies to mandate vaccinations or weekly testing for employees will be enacted through a forthcoming rule from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration that carries penalties of $14,000 per violation, an administration official said. Biden’s order for executive branch workers and contractors includes exceptions for workers seeking religious or medical exemptions from vaccination, according to press secretary Jen Psaki. Federal workers who do not comply will be referred to their agencies’ human resources departments for counseling and discipline, including potential termination.

    An AP-NORC poll conducted in August found 55% of Americans in favor of requiring government workers to be fully vaccinated, compared with 21% opposed. Similar majorities also backed vaccine mandates for health care workers, teachers working at K-12 schools, and workers who interact with the public, as at restaurants and stores. President Joe Biden has encouraged COVID-19 vaccine requirements in settings like schools, workplaces, and university campuses. On September 9, the Los Angeles Board of Education voted to require all students 12 and older to be fully vaccinated in the nation’s second-largest school district. Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, said in late July it was requiring all workers at its headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, as well as its managers who travel within the US, to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by October 4. But the company had stopped short of requiring shots for its frontline workers. CVS Health said in late August it would require certain employees who interact with patients to be fully vaccinated by the end of October. That includes nurses, care managers, and pharmacists.

    In the government, several federal agencies have previously announced vaccine requirements for much of their staff, particularly those in healthcare roles like the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Department of Defense moved last month to require all service members to get vaccinated. Combined, the White House estimates those requirements cover 2.5 million Americans. September 9ths order is expected to affect nearly 2 million more federal workers and potentially millions of contractors. President Joe Biden’s measures should help, but what is really needed is a change in mindset for many people, said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, vice dean at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. “There is an aspect to this now that has to do with our country being so divided,” said Sharfstein. “This has become so politicized that people can’t see the value of a vaccination that can save their lives. Our own divisions are preventing us from ending a pandemic.”

    More than 177 million Americans are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, but confirmed cases have shot up in recent weeks to an average of about 140,000 per day with on average about 1,000 deaths, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most of the spread, and the vast majority of severe illness and death, occurs among those not yet fully vaccinated. So-called breakthrough infections in vaccinated people occur at a rate of about 1 in 5,000, but tend to be far less dangerous and have only resulted in around 500 deaths. 

  • In A Rare Bipartisan Vote, US Senate Passes $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Bill

    In A Rare Bipartisan Vote, US Senate Passes $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Bill

    The Senate gave overwhelming bipartisan approval on August 11 to a $1 trillion infrastructure bill to rebuild the nation’s deteriorating roads and bridges and fund new climate resilience and broadband initiatives, delivering a key component of President Joe Biden’s agenda. The vote, 69 to 30, was uncommonly bipartisan. The yes votes included Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, and 18 others from his party who shrugged off increasingly shrill efforts by former President Donald Trump to derail it. “This historic investment in infrastructure is what I believe you, the American people, want, what you’ve been asking for for a long, long time,” President Biden said from the White House as he thanked Republicans for showing “a lot of courage.” Senator McConnell, who publicly declared that his priority was stopping the Biden agenda, said in a statement that “I was proud to support today’s historic bipartisan infrastructure deal and prove that both sides of the political aisle can still come together around common-sense solutions.” The measure faces a potentially rocky and time-consuming path in the House, where Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a majority of the nearly 100-member Progressive Caucus have said they will not vote on it unless and until the Senate passes a separate, even more ambitious $3.5 trillion social policy bill this fall. That could put the infrastructure bill on hold for weeks, if not months.

    The recently passed infrastructure bill is one of the largest passed by the Senate in recent years. It would be the largest infusion of federal investment into infrastructure projects in more than a decade, touching nearly every facet of the American economy and fortifying the nation’s response to the warming of the planet. Funding for the modernization of the nation’s power grid would reach record levels, as would projects to manage climate risks. Hundreds of billions of dollars would go to repairing and replacing aging public works projects. With $550 billion in new federal spending, the measure would provide $65 billion to expand high-speed internet access; $110 billion for roads, bridges, and other projects; $25 billion for airports; and the most funding for Amtrak since the passenger rail service was founded in 1971. It would also renew and revamp existing infrastructure and transportation programs set to expire at the end of September.

    Its success, painstakingly negotiated largely by a group of Republican and Democratic Senators in consultation with White House officials, is a vindication of President Joe Biden’s belief that a bipartisan compromise was possible on a priority that has long been shared by both parties, even at a moment of deep political division. “This is what it looks like when elected leaders take a step toward healing our country’s divisions rather than feeding those very divisions,” Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), a key negotiator, said before the bill’s passage. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), said that “everyone involved in this effort can be proud of what this body is achieving today — the Senate is doing its job.”

    With a bipartisan victory pocketed, Democrats turned immediately to a more partisan venture, a second social policy package that would fulfill the remainder of their spending priorities. The Senate’s $3.5 trillion social policy budget, which is expected to pass along party lines later in the week, will allow Senate committees to draft legislation packed with policies to address climate change, health, education, and paid family and medical leave, and pass it over the threat of a filibuster. It will also include tax increases and is expected to generate unanimous Republican opposition. “Despite this long road we’ve taken, we have finally, finally reached the finish line,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). But, directing his comments to colleagues eager to take up unaddressed priorities, he added, “We are moving on to a second track, which will make a generational transformation.”

    The Senate vote capped a grueling, months-long negotiation between the Biden administration and Senators in both parties over the scope and size of an infrastructure bill. After an abbreviated effort to work with Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), on a plan that could win backing from Republican leaders, President Joe Biden turned his focus to a group of 10 moderate Republicans and Democrats who had helped strike the compromise that paved the way for a postelection pandemic relief package in December. The Senators and top White House officials spent weeks debating how to structure and finance the legislation over late-night meals, virtual meetings, and phone calls. Even after the group triumphantly announced an outline in June, it took a month to translate that framework into legislation. Along the way, the effort appeared on the brink of collapse, after it failed a test vote in the Senate and former President Donald Trump sniped at it from the sidelines, trying to persuade Republicans that they would pay a steep political price for supporting it.

    “When we have more people on both sides of the aisle who want to do things in a partisan way, as opposed to figuring out how we can work together, I don’t think that’s in the best interests of the country,” Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), one of the key negotiators, said in an interview. “It was really important for the continued relationships within the Senate that are so important to getting things dome. Negotiators were particularly bedeviled by the question of how to pay for their plan. Republicans declared that they would not support any legislation that raised taxes and rejected a proposal to beef up IRS enforcement against tax cheats, and Democrats ruled out raising user fees for drivers.

    Democrats and President Joe Biden, who had initially proposed a $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, made significant concessions. The package includes far less funding than they had wanted for lead pipe replacement, transit, and clean energy projects, among others. To finance what remained, analysts said the government would most likely have to borrow heavily. On August 5, the Congressional Budget Office said the legislation would add $256 billion to the deficit over 10 years, contradicting the claims of its authors that their bill would be fully paid for. That is nearly half of the new spending in the legislation, which includes a patchwork of measures purported to raise revenue to pay for it, including repurposing unspent pandemic relief funds, more tightly regulating cryptocurrency and delaying carrying out a Trump-era rule that would change the way drug companies can offer discounts to health plans for Medicare patients.

    The infrastructure bill also carries major policy changes. It amounts to a tacit, bipartisan acknowledgment that the country is ill-prepared for a worsening climate. Billions of dollars would be invested in projects to protect homes from weather calamities, move vulnerable communities out of harm’s way and support new approaches to countering climate change. It also includes $73 billion to update the nation’s electricity grid so it can carry more renewable energy, $7.5 billion to construct electric vehicle charging stations, $17.5 billion for clean buses and ferries, and $15 billion for removing lead pipes. The agreement targets critical resources toward underserved communities, although not as much as President Joe Biden had requested. It would direct $1 billion over five years, slightly more than half of it in new federal funding, to a program to help reconnect communities divided by highway construction, as well as millions of dollars to help improve access to running water in tribal and Alaska Native communities.

    The infrastructure bill also includes money to restore lakes across the country, $66 billion in new funding for Amtrak, and more funding for programs intended to provide safe commutes for pedestrians. It also creates a $350 million pilot program for projects that reduce collisions between vehicles and wildlife. The bill dedicates an increasing amount each year for grants to clean up drinking water by removing lead-contaminated pipes and making other infrastructure upgrades. The legislation reserves at least $25 million per year for “small and disadvantaged communities.” In the days before the measure passed, senators engaged in a last-ditch attempt to allow some exemptions to strict tax regulations on cryptocurrency brokers that had been included in the original bill, after pushback from senators in both parties. But without agreement on other amendments, negotiators ultimately failed to secure unanimous consent to make those changes.

    Despite the fact that the infrastructure bill passed the Senate by a decent margin, legislation faces a tricky path in the House, where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said she will not take it up until the Senate clears the reconciliation bill. The House has also passed its own infrastructure bill, which includes more money for climate change mitigation and nearly $5.7 billion to pay for 1,473 home district projects, or earmarks, that the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee vetted. A handful of moderate Democrats have urged House Speaker Pelosi to avoid delaying a stand-alone vote on the bipartisan agreement. But leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, in a letter to Pelosi, warned that a majority of its 96 members confirmed they would withhold their support for the legislation until the second, far more expansive package cleared the reconciliation process in the Senate.

  • House of Representatives Passed Bill Establishing Independent Commission To Investigate January 6 Insurrection

    House of Representatives Passed Bill Establishing Independent Commission To Investigate January 6 Insurrection

    The House of Representatives voted on May 19 to approve legislation to establish an independent commission to investigate the violent insurrection on January 6 at the US Capitol, with 35 Republicans breaking with their party to support the bill. The final vote was 252-175. The Republican defections showcased a significant break with Republican leadership in the chamber and former President Donald Trump, who urged members to vote against the legislation. The bill now moves to the Senate where it faces an uncertain fate as Republican resistance is growing.

    The May 19 vote, which came as some Republicans have tried to downplay the violence that occurred on January 6 and align themselves with Trump’s version of reality, was still opposed by most rank-and-file Republicans, after House Republican leaders mobilized against the agreement that had been struck by fellow Republican Congressman John Katko of New York. The margins are an important indicator because just how many House Republicans are willing to buck their party leadership may offer an early signal for how many Republican senators could back the bill. Supporters of the plan will need at least 10 Republicans in the Senate to join all 50 Democrats in the chamber to overcome a 60-vote filibuster and pass the bill. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he is opposed to the bill but wouldn’t tell reporters if he would actively whip his fellow Republicans against it. Moderate Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine said changes would have to be made to the bill before she could support it.

    As the path forward on the January 6 commission bill is growing increasingly rocky in the Senate, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told CNN “of course” he would pursue a select committee to investigate what happened on January 6 if the bill to create an independent commission fails in the Senate. “We are going to pursue this one way or the other,” Hoyer said. “Any attempt to obfuscate, to hide and dissemble will not succeed.” Ahead of the vote, Minority Whip Steve Scalise’s office sent a letter to members informing them that the leadership was now advocating Republicans vote against the legislation, a reversal from Republican leadership’s previous position to not lobby their members on the measure.

    The vote marks an end to a four-month-long stalemate over negotiations, as Republicans and Democrats struggled to agree on the focus and scope of a commission. While Democrats had wanted the commission to focus exclusively on the events leading to January 6, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and others had suggested that the panel also investigate Black Lives Matter protests of last summer, Antifa, and the death of Capitol Police Officer William “Billy” Evans, who was killed outside the Capitol in April. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tapped Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, to work with John Katko, who was one of 10 Republicans to vote to impeach then-President Donald Trump, to put together this deal. When Thompson and Katko announced last week that they had reached a deal, McCarthy told reporters he had not read through the proposal or signed off on it, foreshadowing that Republicans were not in lockstep on their position on the legislation.

    Congressman Bennie Thompson tried to discredit the narrative McCarthy has been peddling, that he was not included in negotiations in the lead up to the deal’s announcement ahead of the vote. “It’s quite unfortunate that the Minority Leader has, at the last moment, raised issues that, basically, we had gone past, and there was no issue, despite all his talk now. But I guess that’s politics,” Thompson told reporters. After the vote, Thompson expressed optimism that the bill could pass the Senate if the chamber’s Republicans are allowed to vote freely. “Well, I am optimistic that it will pass,” Thompson told CNN’s Erin Burnett on “OutFront.” “People said we would not get more than 20 votes in the House from Republicans. We got 35. I am optimistic on the Senate side. If senators are allowed and not arm twisted to go the other way, we’ll get it.”

    The bill lawmakers voted on would create a 10-person commission, with each party getting an equal number of appointments and subpoena power, a key provision that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy had said he wanted early on in negotiations. The legislation tasks the panel with examining “the facts and circumstances of the January 6th attack on the Capitol as well as the influencing factors that may have provoked the attack on our democracy.” In a statement announcing his opposition to the deal, McCarthy accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of failing to negotiate in good faith, argued that a commission would get in the way of investigations already underway and said any commission needed to look at episodes of political violence beyond January 6. “Given the political misdirections that have marred this process, given the now duplicative and potentially counterproductive nature of this effort, and given the Speaker’s shortsighted scope that does not examine interrelated forms of political violence in America, I cannot support this legislation,” McCarthy said. Pelosi responded to McCarthy’s opposition to the deal in a statement by saying, “Democrats made repeated efforts to seek a bipartisan compromise. But Leader McCarthy won’t take yes for an answer.”

    All 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump earlier this year voted in support of the commission. Even though House Republican leadership encouraged members to vote against the bill, some Republican lawmakers came out strongly in support of the legislation or at least hinted ahead of the vote they were leaning toward getting on board. Over the weekend, Republican Congressmembers Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Fred Upton of Michigan joined Katko in coming out in strong support of the bipartisan deal. Congressman Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, another of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, outlined why he is supporting the bill. “I think it’s necessary just given what actually happened on that day and all the buildup. I think it’s important that you know when the country and the Capitol is attacked that way that we take a full accounting and figure out how to prevent it going forward,” Gonzalez said.

  • Iranian Presidential Elections Heats Up As Two Main Contenders Register

    Iranian Presidential Elections Heats Up As Two Main Contenders Register

    Two of the main contenders to become the next Iranian President, Iranian judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi and former parliament speaker Ali Larijani, registered on May 15 to run in next month’s election. The June 18 election to succeed President Hassan Rouhani is seen as a test of the legitimacy of the country’s rulers who are hoping for a high turnout. Term limits bar Rouhani from running again. But voter interest may be hit by rising discontent over an economy that has been impacted by US sanctions reimposed after the Trump Administration exited a nuclear deal between Iran and major powers three years ago.

    Ebrahim Raisi is a 60-year-old mid-ranking cleric in Iran’s Shi’a Muslim establishment and is generally aligned with the radical right wing Iranian politics and was invovled in the mass execution of almost 34,000 Iranian political prisoners over the course of a two month period in 1988. Additionally, Raisi has promoted a populist economic agenda, including Import Substitution Industrialisation and generous cash subsidies for poor and working-class Iranians. Appointed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as head of the judiciary in March 2019, he has emerged as one of the country’s most powerful figures and a contender to succeed Ayatollah Khamenei in the future Ali Larijani, a former nuclear negotiator and an adviser to Khamenei, is hoping to secure backing from both moderates and hardliners and bridge the gap between them.

    “I have come as an independent to the stage to make changes in the executive management of the country and to fight poverty, corruption, humiliation and discrimination,” Ebrahim Raisi was quoted as saying in a statement by local media before registering. “I have come to form a strong people’s government for a strong Iran” with the help of “the brave youth,” Raisi said, apparently alluding to recent comments by Khamenei who said he expected a “capable and energetic government” to come to power. Raisi previously lost to current Iranian President Hassan Rouhani by a 16% margin in 2017. Reformists and rights activists say they are alarmed by Raisi’s background as a hardline judge, especially during the 1980s when he was one of four judges who imposed death penalties on thousands of political prisoners. Raisi said his government “will not lose one moment to lift the oppressive sanctions”.

    In addition to Ebrahim Raisi and Ali Larijani, Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, a moderate ally of Rouhani, also registered to run. Jahangiri hopes to gain the support of moderate and reformist supporters within Iran, as well as Iranian expatriates who are eligible to vote in Iranian Presidential elections Registration of candidates ended on May 16, after which entrants will be screened for their political and Islamic qualifications by the 12-member Guardian Council vetting body, which has in the past disqualified many moderates and reformers.

    https://youtu.be/jCqjzacpynU
  • Despite Decline In Coronavirus Cases, New Jersey Struggling To Manage Pandemic

    Despite Decline In Coronavirus Cases, New Jersey Struggling To Manage Pandemic

    New Jersey Health officials say the state is still “struggling” to manage the pandemic since the latest data shows New Jersey remains wedged inside a Coronavirus hot zone, and it is currently ranked first in the US in Coronavirus deaths per capita over the past week, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli told the state Assembly Budget Committee on April 22 that the trend could continue to slow the pace of reopenings or capacity expansions while the state continues to address problems at long-term care facilities and nursing homes. The state says it has conducted 1,000 infection control inspections and 520 regular surveys as well as investigated 758 complaints at long-term care facilities. Out of that, 613 deficiencies have been cited and $2.2 million in penalties have been imposed against 79 facilities since the pandemic began, Persichilli said. Still, around 8,000 of the state’s 22,000 deaths have been at long-term care facilities and one in 500 New Jerseyans have died from the disease, she said.”Unfortunately, the one thing we’re struggling with is that our death rate from COVID has not decreased,” Persichilli said. “This is not a position to be proud of.”

    Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli told the committee on April 22 that New Jersey has the second-highest death rate in the nation, behind only Michigan. But on April 23, the state jumped to the top position. According to the CDC, New Jersey is reporting a Coronavirus fatality rate of 2.9 per 100,000 population over the past seven days. By comparison, Michigan is 2.6, Georgia and Montana are 2.4 and Pennsylvania and West Virginia are 2.3 per 100,000 people. New Jersey still ranks high in cases, too, ranking second in the nation per capita. The state is reporting a Coronavirus infection rate of 269.7 cases per 100,000 population over the past seven days. By comparison, Michigan is 483, Pennsylvania is 248.5, Minnesota is 238.4 and Maine is 230 per 100,000 population.

    Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli took heat from some lawmakers during the hearing who could not understand why the state could not do more to prevent deaths at long-term care facilities. “Somebody has to be responsible for those losses of lives,” said Assemblyman Harold J. “Hal” Wirths (R-Sussex County). Assemblyman Wirths’ district includes Andover Subacute & Rehab Center II, which made headlines a year ago after stacking more than a dozen bodies in a temporary facility. It was referred to as a “makeshift morgue” by officials. Persichilli said the “virus is at fault,” but she also said that multigenerational housing and New Jersey’s status as having the densest population in the county are also to blame. Given those close quarters, the virus was able to spread too easily and health officials were initially told that the disease was “symptomatic spread,” she said. “I stand by what we did,” she said. “There were people walking around and into our long-term care facilities without a symptom and spreading the disease.” She also said 35 percent of the deaths involved communities of color and three times as many Hispanic men between the ages of 35 and 60 are dying compared to whites. That last statistic compelled the state to up its vaccinations in Hispanic communities, she said. Nineteen percent of the population last week who were vaccinated were Hispanic people.

    Assemblyman Harold J. “Hal” Withs said he was also disappointed that Governor Phil Murphy is taking incremental steps in reopening while Connecticut, which is similar in size and population density, is not. He said the high death is “what’s baffled me a bit because we have had the strictest lockdowns and I don’t see what’s working.” Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said reopening decisions are based on health department data, saying the Murphy administration looks at community spread, hospital capacity and the death rate per 100,000 people. If the state did not take the lockdown steps it needed to take, she said, as many as 1 out of every 250 New Jersey residents could have died. 

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has echoed Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli’s statements, saying he believes the spread of the Coronavirus variants has kept the state’s cases high, even though New Jersey just had a four-day streak of fewer than 3,000 new cases for the first time in five months. Governor Murphy said that there are around 2,000 variant cases. The data comes two weeks after the results of a new analysis by UC Berkeley placed New Jersey’s and America’s coronavirus response among the worst. The state’s vaccination program, on the other hand, has made progress. Murphy has announced that vaccines will be available to everyone 16 years old and over beginning on April 19. 

  • President Joe Biden Unveils Infrastructure Reform Proposal

    President Joe Biden Unveils Infrastructure Reform Proposal

    President Joe Biden unveiled a more than $2 trillion infrastructure package on March 31 as his administration shifts its focus to bolstering the post-pandemic economy. The plan President Biden outlined includes roughly $2 trillion in spending over eight years and would raise the corporate tax rate to 28% to fund it. Speaking at a union hall in Pittsburgh, the President called it a vision to create “the strongest, most resilient, innovative economy in the world” — and millions of “good-paying jobs” along the way. The White House said the tax hike, combined with measures designed to stop offshoring of profits, would fund the infrastructure plan within 15 years.

    The announcement kicks off President Joe Biden’s second major initiative after the passage of a $1.9 trillion Coronavirus relief plan earlier this month. In the new move, the administration aims to approve a first proposal designed to create jobs, revamp US infrastructure, and fight climate change before it turns toward a second plan to improve education and expand paid leave and health-care coverage. President Biden said he will unveil the second part of his recovery package “in a few weeks.” “These are investments we have to make,” Biden said of revamping US infrastructure. “We can afford to make them. To put it another way, we can’t afford not to.”

    While Democrats narrowly control both chambers of Congress (with ultra-conservative Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia being the deciding vote), the party faces challenges in passing the infrastructure plan. The Republican Party broadly supports efforts to rebuild roads, bridges, and airports and expand broadband access, but Republicans oppose tax hikes as part of the process. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, said that he is “not likely” to support the proposal because of the tax increases. McConnell’s Democratic counterpart, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, touted the bill as a means to create jobs while promoting clean energy and transportation. In a statement issued on March 31, he said, “I look forward to working with President Biden to pass a big, bold plan that will drive America forward for decades to come.” 

    President Joe Biden responded to criticism of proposed tax hikes, saying he would not increase the burden on anyone making less than $400,000 per year. He said he did not aim to punish the wealthy. “This is not to target those who’ve made it. Not to seek retribution,” President Biden said. “This is about opening opportunities for everybody else.” Among the administration’s goals, it aims to revamp 20,000 miles of roads and highways and repair 10,000 bridges. The proposal calls to build a national network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers by 2030 and replace 50,000 diesel public transit vehicles. The administration hopes to build or rehabilitate 500,000 homes for low- and middle-income Americans and replace all lead pipes in drinking-water systems. The plan also aims to deliver universal, affordable broadband service. 

    President Joe Biden plans to fund the spending by raising the corporate tax rate to 28%. Republicans slashed the tax to 21% from 35% as part of their 2017 tax law. President Biden also wants to boost the global minimum tax for multinational corporations and ensure they pay at least 21% in taxes in any country. The White House aims to discourage firms from listing tax havens as their address and writing off expenses related to offshoring, among other reforms. Biden hopes the package will create manufacturing jobs and rescue failing American infrastructure as the country tries to emerge from the shadow of the Coronavirus pandemic. He and congressional Democrats also plan to combat climate change and start a transition to cleaner energy sources.

    President Joe Biden has said he hopes to win Republican support for an infrastructure bill. If Democrats cannot get 10 Republican senators on board, they will have to pass the bill through budget reconciliation, which would not require any Republicans to back the plan in a chamber split 50-50 by party. Biden said he would hear out GOP ideas on infrastructure. “We’ll have a good-faith negotiation with any Republican who wants to help get this done,” Biden said on March 31. “But we have to get it done.”

  • Biden Administration Crafting Plan To Reset US Ties With Palestine

    Biden Administration Crafting Plan To Reset US Ties With Palestine

    According to an internal draft memo, the Biden administration is crafting a plan aimed at resetting US ties with Palestine that all but collapsed under former President Donald Trump. Two people familiar with the State Department document, which was first reported by the United Arab Emirates-based newspaper The National, said it was still in an early “working stage” but could eventually form the basis for rolling back parts of Trump’s approach that Palestinians denounced as heavily biased in favor of Israel.

    Since President Joe Biden took office on January 20, his aides have said they intend to repair relations with the Palestinians. The administration has pledged to resume hundreds of millions of dollars in economic and humanitarian assistance and work toward reopening the Palestinians’ diplomatic mission in Washington. President Biden’s aides have also made clear they want to re-establish the goal of a negotiated two-state solution as a priority in US policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But they have moved cautiously with Israel’s March 23 elections looming, followed by Palestinian elections scheduled in coming months.

    A portion of the draft memo quoted by The National said the US vision is “to advance freedom, security, and prosperity for both Israelis and Palestinians in the immediate term.” The document was cited as saying $15 million in Coronavirus aid to the Palestinians could be announced by the end of March. It is also reported to take a tougher stance on Israeli settlement activities and mentions efforts “to obtain a Palestinian commitment to end payments to individuals imprisoned (by Israel) for acts of terrorism.”

    https://youtu.be/4vzedWSdjTA
  • New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy Announces School Reopening Plan

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy Announces School Reopening Plan

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy urged more New Jersey schools to return to in-person learning on March 17, just days after rallying parents placed blame for lingering closures squarely at the Governor’s feet. “Now is the time for all of our schools to meaningfully move forward with a return to in-person instruction, whether it be full-time or with a hybrid schedule,” Governor Murphy said during his regular coronavirus briefing in Trenton. The Governor pointed to billions in federal funding headed to schools from the American Rescue Plan and said his administration is doing everything in its power “to get as many kids back safely and responsibly into a classroom.”

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy’s comments come as the number of students with the opportunity to attend classes in person continues to grow. Governor Murphy reported 142 school districts, serving 107,498 kids, are now providing in-person instruction. Another 534 districts, representing 843,394 students, are operating under hybrid schedules. However, 317,044 students across 98 districts remain in all-remote instruction a full year after most schools initially closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Parent frustration in many of those communities has long since boiled over, leading to parent rallies, legal battles, and even a police investigation into the suggestion of “physical violence” against those keeping schools closed.

    On March 13, about 100 parents from across the state gathered in Montclair to demand action, not just from local school leaders but Governor Phil Murphy himself. “Aside from our (superintendents) and our board of ed, the person that I blame ultimately for this is Governor Murphy,” said rally organizer Danielle Wildstein, a parent in the Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District. She added: “It has come down to (Murphy), who gave the responsibility to the superintendents back in August, gave them a very gray blueprint and then stepped aside… It’s really about him stepping up now.”

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy initially announced last June that all schools would be required to offer in-person instruction this academic year. However, he amended that mandate in August, citing increasing health concerns and logistical challenges brought forward by schools. Murphy said districts could begin the year with all-remote instruction as long as they provided the state Department of Education with documented challenges, such as poor ventilation or a lack of protective equipment, and were working toward set reopening dates. Those dates, however, have been routinely pushed back, including at least one district that said in January it does not plan to open at all this school year. “We know there are students across our state who have fallen behind due to the burden and stress of remote learning, and it is time to stem this tide before more students fall away,” Murphy said on March 17.

    According to the state’s dashboard, New Jersey has reported 188 in-school Coronavirus outbreaks, which have resulted in 890 cases among students, teachers, and school staff this academic year. The outbreak numbers only include cases in which contact tracers concluded people likely gave each other the virus on school grounds. The numbers do not include those who caught the virus during school sports practices, games, or extracurricular activities inside or outside school.

  • Former President Donald Trump To Decide On 2024 Presidential Run After Midterm Elections

    Former President Donald Trump To Decide On 2024 Presidential Run After Midterm Elections

    Former President Donald Trump said on March 16 he would decide whether to make another run for the Presidency after congressional elections in November 2022. Trump has said he is committed to helping fellow Republicans try to win back control of the House of Representatives and the Senate in the 2022 elections, which will be an early referendum on Democratic President Joe Biden’s leadership.“I think we have a very, very good chance of taking back the House,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News. “You have a good chance to take back the Senate and frankly, we’ll make our decision after that.” Trump told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo that his supporters appeared ready to back him again if he ran. “Based on every poll, they want me to run again, but we’re going to take a look and we’ll see,” Trump said.

    In addition to his discussions about the 2024 Election, former President Donald Trump also recommended that everyone take the Coronavirus vaccine, reaffirming his remarks at last month’s Conservative Political Action Conference. Polls show large numbers of Republicans and Trump supporters resistant to getting the vaccination. “It’s a great vaccine. It’s a safe vaccine. And it’s something that works,” said Trump, who quietly got vaccinated himself in January. “I would recommend it and I would recommend it to a lot of people that don’t want to get it, and a lot of those people voted for me, frankly.” The White House has said it would welcome Trump’s support in encouraging his supporters to be vaccinated, although President Joe Biden expressed doubt about how much it would help.

    Former President Donald Trump has largely stayed out of the political spotlight since leaving office in January, other than his speech at the conservative conference in Florida. In his absence, a battle has erupted in the Republican Party between establishment figures such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell who are eager to move on, and conservative Trump allies who believe the party’s future depends on the energy of the pro-Trump base. In his final weeks in office, Trump promoted false claims that he lost his re-election bid due to rampant electoral fraud, stood accused of inciting a mob of supporters to rampage through the US Capitol, and became the first president ever to be impeached twice. Trump has said he will campaign in the 2022 elections for candidates who back him and his policies, and against those Republicans he views as disloyal. He also is making plans to set up a super PAC political organization to support candidates he endorses.

  • Amid Surge In Border Crossings, Biden Administration Reinstitutes Program To Help Migrant Minors Reunite With Families

    Amid Surge In Border Crossings, Biden Administration Reinstitutes Program To Help Migrant Minors Reunite With Families

    President Joe Biden moved to help children fleeing violence in Central America on March 10 even as he grappled with a surge of migrants at the US southern border that is taxing resources and exposing him to bipartisan criticism. White House border coordinator Roberta Jacobson told reporters the Biden administration is restarting the Central American Minors (CAM) program for children, which between 2014 and 2017 allowed children fleeing violence in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to apply in their home countries to settle in the US. Then-President Donald Trump ended the program in 2017. It had allowed children under 21 years old with parents lawfully living in the US to apply for a refugee resettlement interview as a way to avoid making the dangerous journey by themselves to the US.

    The move was the latest step taken by President Joe Biden as he tries to create a more humane situation along the border with Mexico. Mixed messaging by the Biden Administration, however, is leading to criticism from Republicans that he is encouraging migrants to make the dangerous journey to try to reach sanctuary in the US. “The Biden border crisis is real and is only going to get worse,” Congressman Kevin Brady of Texas said at a news conference held by House Republicans on March 10. At the same time, Democrats complain that President Biden is not moving fast enough to release children from Border Patrol custody.

    US officials are urging people not to try to cross the border, warning they will be sent back. President Joe Biden has not reversed a Trump-era public health rule that allows border agents to expel most border crossers quickly but is not applying the policy to unaccompanied minors. “The border is not open,” said Roberta Jacobson, switching to Spanish on several occasions during a White House briefing to stress the point. The phrase was repeated in a call with reporters on March 10 by Troy Miller, the senior official performing duties as the commissioner of US Customs and Border Protection. Miller said agents on the U.S.-Mexico border encountered 100,441 migrants attempting to enter the country illegally in February, confirming the highest monthly total since a major border surge in mid-2019. Miller said more than 19,000 of those encounters were families, close to 9,500 were unaccompanied minors, and the remainder adults. Border officials said they also count repeat crossers in their numbers.

    White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said members of President Joe Biden’s immigration team briefed him on a border visit they had and that they discussed how to speed up the processing of migrant children. A State Department representative said in a statement that the administration is set to resume processing CAM applications, starting with children whose cases were suspended under Trump and then opening up to new applicants. The department plans to reach out to parents starting as soon as March 15, the representative said. To date, the program has reunified almost 5,000 children with their parents.

  • Congress Gives Final Approval Of Coronavirus Relief Bill

    Congress Gives Final Approval Of Coronavirus Relief Bill

    The US House of Representatives gave final approval on March 10 to one of the most significant economic stimulus measures in American history, a sweeping $1.9 trillion Coronavirus relief bill that gives President Joe Biden his first significant victory in office. The measure provides $400 billion for $1,400 direct payments to most Americans, $350 billion in aid to state and local governments, an expansion of the child tax credit, and increased funding for vaccine distribution. Forecasters expect it to supercharge the US economic recovery. “Help is here,” President Biden wrote in a tweet after the vote. The White House said he plans to sign the bill on March 12.

    Approval by a 220-211 vote in the Democratic-controlled chamber came with zero Republican support after weeks of partisan debate and wrangling in Congress. Democrats described the legislation as a critical response to a pandemic that has killed more than 500,000 people and thrown millions out of work. “This is a historic day. It is the beginning of the end of the great COVID depression,” Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) said. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement that passage of the legislation was a pivotal day for the US economy and would speed its recovery. But Republicans said the measure was too costly and was packed with wasteful progressive priorities. They said the worst phase of the largest public health crisis in a century has largely passed and the economy is headed toward a rebound.“It’s the wrong plan at the wrong time for so many wrong reasons,” Republican Representative Jason Smith said.

    Despite unanimous Republican opposition to the measure, Democrats predicted that Republicans would tout the benefits of the bill to constituents, despite their lock-step opposition in the House and Senate. Indeed, Republican Senator Roger Wicker wrote on Twitter: “This funding will ensure small businesses can survive the pandemic by helping to adapt their operations and keep their employees on the payroll.” Democrats were eager to get the final bill to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature before current enhanced federal unemployment benefits expire.

    Although many Republicans supported Coronavirus relief under former President Donald Trump’s administration, no Republican lawmakers voted for the bill in the House or Senate. But the bill is popular with the public. A Reuters/Ipsos national opinion poll, conducted March 8-9, showed that 70% of Americans support the plan, including majorities of Democrats and Republicans. Among Republicans, five out of ten say they support the plan, while nine out of ten Democrats supported it. The legislation could have high stakes for both parties. If it succeeds in giving the economy a major boost, the plan could improve Democrats’ political fortunes as they attempt to hold their slim majorities in Congress in the 2022 midterm elections. Only one House Democrat, Jared Golden of Maine, voted against the package, saying its high borrowing costs endangered the recovery.

    The Coronavirus relief bill passed by the Senate in a marathon weekend session removed a $15-per-hour federal minimum wage increase by 2025; tightened the eligibility for $1,400 direct payments, capping them at those earning below $80,000, cut the unemployment insurance payment to $300 per week from the House’s $400 and targeted some of the state and local government aid to smaller communities. States that voted for Donald Trump in the November election are due to get a larger amount of education and child-care aid per resident than those that backed Joe Biden, according to estimates from two congressional committees. Residents of Republican-leaning states, which tend to have lower household incomes, also are likely to get larger stimulus checks and tax breaks as well, according to an independent research group. The massive spending push is seen as a major driver, coupled with a quickening pace of Coronavirus vaccinations and a slowing infection rate, in a brightening outlook for the economy. Morgan Stanley this week pegged 2021 economic output growth at 8.1%. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development predicted US growth would top 6% this year, up from an estimate of around 3% three months ago.

    With the Coronavirus relief bill now completed, attention turns to President Joe Biden’s next round of major legislation, including massive infrastructure investments, immigration reforms, and climate change initiatives. While conservatives bridled at the $1.9 trillion cost of the Coronavirus relief bill, it could be possible to get Republican buy-in on immigration and climate change legislation in the Senate, said Paul Sracic, a political science professor at Youngstown State University. But getting enough Republican support for Democratic initiatives to propel them to passage will be a challenge and “anything that gets 60 votes in the Senate is likely to be a problem with progressive Democrats in the House,” Sracic added.

  • US Economy Adds 379,000 Jobs In February, Unemployment Drops To 6.2%

    US Economy Adds 379,000 Jobs In February, Unemployment Drops To 6.2%

    The US Economy added 379,000 jobs in February, roundly beating economists’ estimates of 210,000, and indicating that one year into the Coronavirus pandemic, the labor market is finally showing signs of recovery. In the first full monthly employment report under President Joe Biden, the unemployment rate fell to 6.2 percent, from 6.3 percent in January, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. “The ship is pointed in the right direction, and the additional stimulus coming from Congress should be the wind in the sails to get the economy back on track,” said Charlie Ripley, Senior Investment Strategist for Allianz Investment Management. The latest jobs report comes after a month of stumbles in the Coronavirus vaccine deployment and frigid weather that plunged Texas and large parts of the South into a deep freeze that froze oil rigs, ruptured household plumbing, and cost lives. The January jobs report, which showed just 49,000 jobs were added, was revised upwards on Friday to 166,000. Although the economy has been adding jobs, those gains mask the extent to which the labor market is still being held back, and the number of people who have been sidelined for a diverse array of reasons, from child care obligations to health concerns to a lack of job opportunities in fields still devastated by the pandemic. 

    Although monthly job gains have surged and ebbed wildly over the past year, an overarching pattern of slowing employment gains worries labor market observers. “The unemployment rate itself is a bad descriptor of the current labor market conditions,” said Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation. Dan North, chief economist, North America at Euler Hermes, said that although nearly 60 percent of the jobs lost since the onset of the pandemic have been recovered, the labor force participation rate shows another story. “When you go and look at the participation rate, we’ve recovered about 41 percent of what was lost — so it is slower,” he said. The discrepancy arises because of how the government tallies who has a job, and who is actively looking for a job. People are not captured by the official unemployment rate if they have dropped out of the labor force. “There’s a lower participation rate because people have left. That’s the disconnect,” North said. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said last month that the nation’s real unemployment rate is closer to 10 percent, and the flagging labor force participation rate, which was 63.4 percent in February 2020, when unemployment was at just 3.5 percent, reflects that.

    While college-educated people lost proportionately fewer jobs over the course of the pandemic and have regained more of them, people who graduated high school but never obtained a college degree have not been so lucky. “Lower-paid workers, lower-educated workers … they’ve been left behind. They’ve got skills that haven’t been developed, and we’re all less wealthy because of that,” said Bob Phillips, co-founder of Spectrum Management Group. Women, and particularly young women, have lost ground, an observation noted by the Fed’s Powell as well as other officials as a stumbling block that could impede a broader economic rebound. “Women are staying at home because of the school situation, so that is a really significant change that Covid has brought about and will probably stick with us for a while, I think — schools are only slowly opening up,” North said.

  • Former President Donald Trump CPAC Speech Analysis

    Former President Donald Trump CPAC Speech Analysis

    In a February 28 speech to close out the Conservative Political Action Conference, former President Donald Trump teased his political future and repeated the lie that he won the 2020 election.“I stand before you today to declare that the incredible journey we began together four years ago is far from over,” the former president said in his first speech since leaving the White House. “We are gathered this afternoon to talk about the future — the future of our movement, the future of our party, and the future of our beloved country.” The former president began his roughly 90-minute address by asking the crowd: “Do you miss me?” before reviving false claims that he had beaten President Joe Biden in November, lies that inspired the deadly pro-Trump riot at the Capitol on January 6. “Actually, as you know they just lost the White House,” Trump said of Democrats. “Who knows, I may even decide to beat them for a third time,” he added, stopping precise of declaring his 2024 plans.

    Former President Donald Trump later launched into multiple tirades about mail-in voting, voter ID laws and the Supreme Court ruling rejecting his election challenges. “This election was rigged,” Trump said, prompting the crowd to chant, “You won! you won!” “They didn’t have the guts or the courage to make the right decision,” he added of the high court. Prior to Trump’s address, he won CPAC’s presidential straw poll with the support of 55 percent of the more than 1,000 conference attendees asked about who they support for the GOP’s 2024 bid. That he won with just over half of the vote, though, is notable given the event was jokingly referred to as “TPAC” and supporters were spotted bowing in front of a gold-hued statue in his likeness. While 95 percent said they wanted the Republican Party to advance Trump’s agenda, just 68 percent said they wanted to see Trump himself run again.

    Former President Donald Trump said that he is “not starting a new party,” but put fellow Republicans who have crossed him on notice, name-dropping each of the 17 Republicans who voted to impeach or convict him for his role in the January attack. “Get rid of them all,” he said of those members, including Congresswoman Liz Cheney Wyoming and Senator Mitt Romney of Utah. Trump later took aim at Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, who criticized Trump over his actions around the riot. “The Republican Party is united,” he said. “The only division is between a handful of Washington, D.C., establishment political hacks and everybody else all over the country.”

    President Joe Biden was also in the former president’s rhetorical crosshairs, with Donald Trump criticizing his successor on immigration, China, and school reopenings. The White House director of rapid response, Michael Gwin, said in a statement: “The only thing that seems to be able to unite the Republican Party is their opposition to giving Americans $1,400 checks, to getting schools the money they need to reopen safely, to keeping cops, firefighters, and teachers on the job, and to speeding up vaccinations.” “While the GOP casts about for a path forward,” Gwin said, “President Biden is going to remain laser-focused on crushing the virus, re-opening schools, and getting Americans back to work.”

  • New Jersey Ratifies Legislation Legalizing Marijuana

    New Jersey Ratifies Legislation Legalizing Marijuana

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation on February 22 making New Jersey the latest state to legalize marijuana for recreational use, but it is expected to take up to a year before dispensaries will begin selling cannabis to the public. The Democratic governor signed a package of three bills after voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot question in November to legalize adult use of the drug. The enactment came more than three years after Murphy campaigned for governor on the promise to make recreational use legal in the state. Legalization was delayed by political opposition within the state legislature, even though members of Murphy’s own party control both houses.“New Jersey’s broken & indefensible marijuana laws are no more,” Murphy said on Twitter.

    New Jersey Governor Murphy signed into law bills that allow possession of up to six ounces of marijuana by people age 21 or older. Distribution and growing cannabis without a license remains illegal. The legislation, passed earlier on Monday by the Assembly and Senate, also eased penalties for minors’ possession of marijuana. New Jersey now joins more than a dozen other states, including other East Coast states of Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts, in legalizing cannabis for recreational use. Dozens of states permit marijuana to be used by patients suffering a variety of medical conditions.

    The move is expected to boost New Jersey’s pandemic-stricken economy by launching a for-profit cannabis industry that should generate millions of tax dollars for the state. Recreational sales at state-licensed dispensaries, however, may be as much as a year away. “We can get down to the business of establishing a responsible, sustainable, profitable and diverse adult-use and expanded medical cannabis market in New Jersey,” Edmund DeVeaux, head of the New Jersey CannaBusiness Association, said in a statement. “We can stop the senseless arrests for possession and use of a product that should have never been criminalized in the first place, and the voters approved over three months ago,” he said.

    New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and legislators in the State Senate for months stood at an impasse over underage penalties. While the legalization bill made youth possession of marijuana purchased on the legal market a petty disorderly person’s offense, the decriminalization bill provided no penalties for possession of marijuana purchased on the black market. The cleanup measure subjects all underage users to a graduated system of written warnings that would see users’ parents notified on a second offense and see them referred to community-based treatment or counseling groups on the third violation. Underage alcohol offenses would be subject to those same penalties. “Although this process has taken longer than anticipated, I believe it is ending in the right place and will ultimately serve as a national model,” the governor said.

    The standstill threatened political fallout over one of the governor’s chief 2017 campaign promises just as he moved into his re-election campaign. It is still likely to play a part in this year’s gubernatorial race, despite legalization winning overwhelming support at the polls last November. “Raising children these days is hard enough without politicians making it even harder,” Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli said on Twitter. “Today’s decision by Trenton Democrats to prohibit police officers from even asking questions to a car full of underage kids who appear to be smoking weed is outrageous.”

    The cleanup bill, which cleared the Senate in a 22-9 vote with some opposition from democratic lawmakers, including Legislative Black Caucus Chairman Ron Rice (D-Newark) who voted against the bill because it did not eliminate qualified immunity related to marijuana offenses, lowers the bar to criminally charge police who illegally search minors for marijuana by removing a requirement that the search is predicated on an individual’s protected class, like race, religion or age, among others. The measure also bars local governments from enacting their own civil penalties for marijuana offenses and requires the state Attorney General to review police body camera footage from marijuana incidents, including underage users.

    The standstill upended other legislative business as the Assembly was forced to cancel a February 8 quorum and a February 17 voting session that would have made the legalization and decriminalization bills law without Governor Phil Murphy’s signature. Those postponements prevented lawmakers in the lower chamber from introducing new legislation and effectively canceled a slew of committee meetings on unrelated legislation over the past two weeks. Marijuana arrests continued in the interim, despite guidance from Attorney General Gurbir Grewal that directed prosecutors to halt all cases solely involving marijuana charges, but those will stop now that marijuana use is decriminalized.

  • Supreme Court denies election appeal from Pennsylvania Republicans

    Supreme Court denies election appeal from Pennsylvania Republicans

    The US Supreme Court on February 22 brought a formal end to eight lingering disputes pursued by former President Donald Trump and his allies related to the Presidential election including a Republican challenge to the extension of Pennsylvania’s deadline to receive mail-in ballots. The justices turned away appeals by the Republican Party of Pennsylvania and Republican members of the state legislature of a ruling by Pennsylvania’s top court ordering officials to count mail-in ballots that were postmarked by Election Day and received up to three days later. Three of the nine-member court’s six conservative justices, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch, dissented from the decision not to hear the Pennsylvania case.

    Former President Donald Trump lost his re-election bid to former Vice President Joe Biden by a 306-232 margin in the 2020 Presidential election. Now-President Biden defeated Trump by 80,000 votes and the legal case focuses on less than 10,000 mail-in ballots. The Supreme Court, as expected, also rejected two Trump appeals challenging Biden’s victories in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin based on claims that the rules for mail-in ballots in the two election battleground states were invalid. The court also turned away separate cases brought by Trump allies in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, and Arizona, all states won by Biden. It already was clear that the high court had no intention to intervene in the cases because it did not act before Congress on January 6 certified Biden’s victory. That formal certification was interrupted when a pro-Trump mob stormed the US Capitol. The court also turned down motions to expedite the election cases.

    Former President Donald Trump made false claims that the Presidential election was stolen from him through widespread voting fraud and irregularities. From the day after the Presidential election until the middle of December, Trump’s legal team filed some 40 election-related lawsuits challenging the results in seven states (Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico). The Supreme Court ruled these disputes as invalid on December 11 in 1 7-2 decision, with even Trump’s own Supreme Court appointees ruling against him.

    The case brought by Pennsylvania Republicans concerned 9,428 ballots out of 6.9 million cast in the state. The Supreme Court previously rejected a Republican request to block the lower court ruling allowing the ballots to be counted. In his dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas said the Supreme Court should resolve whether non-legislators, including elections officials and courts, have any power to set election rules. Thomas said it was fortunate that the state high court’s ruling did not involve enough ballots to affect the election’s outcome.

  • Supreme Court Sets Stage For Release Of Trump Tax Returns

    Supreme Court Sets Stage For Release Of Trump Tax Returns

    Former President Donald Trump suffered a major setback on February 22 in his long quest to conceal details of his finances as the US Supreme Court paved the way for a New York City prosecutor to obtain the former president’s tax returns and other records as part of an accelerating criminal investigation. The justices without comment rebuffed Trump’s request to put on hold an October 7 lower court ruling directing Trump’s longtime accounting firm, Mazars USA, to comply with a subpoena to turn over the materials to a grand jury convened by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, a Democrat. “The work continues,” Vance said in a statement issued after the court’s action. Trump issued a statement describing Vance’s investigation as part of “the greatest political witch hunt in the history of our country,” accusing New York Democrats of expending their energy on taking down a political opponent instead of tackling violent crimes. “That’s fascism, not justice – and that is exactly what they are trying to do with respect to me, except that the people of our Country won’t stand for it,” Trump added.

    The Supreme Court’s action does not require former President Donald Trump to do anything. The records involved in the dispute were requested from a third-party, Mazars, not Trump himself. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance previously told Trump’s lawyers his office would be free to immediately enforce the subpoena if the justices rejected Trump’s request. A Mazars spokesman said the company “remains committed to fulfilling all of our professional and legal obligations.” Unlike all other recent U.S. presidents, Trump refused to make his tax returns public. The data could provide details on his wealth and the activities of his family real-estate company, the Trump Organization. The Supreme Court’s action, which followed Vance’s hiring this month of a prominent lawyer with deep experience in white-collar and organized-crime cases, could boost the district attorney’s investigation into the Trump Organization following a flurry of recent subpoenas.

    The Supreme Court, whose 6-3 conservative majority includes three Trump appointees, had already ruled once in the subpoena dispute, last July rejecting former President Donald Trump’s broad argument that he was immune from criminal probes as a sitting president. Trump, who left office on January 20 after losing the Presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden, continues to face an array of legal issues concerning personal and business conduct. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance subpoenaed Mazars in 2019 seeking Trump’s corporate and personal tax returns from 2011 to 2018. Trump’s lawyers sued to block the subpoena, arguing that a sitting president has absolute immunity from state criminal investigations. The Supreme Court in July rejected those arguments but said Trump could raise other subpoena objections. Trump’s lawyers then told lower courts the subpoena was overly broad and amounted to political harassment.

    Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance’s investigation initially focused on hush money paid by former President Donald Trump’s former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen before the 2016 election to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. The two women said they had sexual encounters with Trump, which he denied. In recent court filings, Vance suggested the probe is now broader and could focus on potential bank, tax and insurance fraud, as well as falsification of business records. “The Supreme Court has now proclaimed that no one is above the law. Trump will, for the first time, have to take responsibility for his own dirty deeds,” Cohen said in a statement.

  • President Joe Biden Draws A Sharp Contrast With Trump Era In Presidential Debut On World Stage

    President Joe Biden Draws A Sharp Contrast With Trump Era In Presidential Debut On World Stage

    US President Joe Biden, on February 19, drew a sharp contrast with the foreign policy of his much-derided predecessor, Donald Trump, and urged democracies to work together to challenge abuses by autocratic states such as China and Russia. In his first big appearance as President on the global stage, an online “virtual visit” to Europe, President Biden sought to re-establish the US as a multilateral team player after four years of divisive “America First” policies under Trump. Speaking to the Munich Security Conference, the Democratic president distanced himself from the more transactional foreign policy of Republican Trump, who angered allies by breaking off global accords and threatening to end defense assistance unless they toed his line. “I know the past few years have strained and tested our transatlantic relationship, but the US is determined – determined – to re-engage with Europe, to consult with you, to earn back our position of trusted leadership,” he said.

    Several years ago as a private citizen at the Munich Security Conference, now-President Joe Biden reassured participants rattled by the Trump presidency, telling them: “We will be back.” On February 19, he told the virtual online audience: “America is back.” President Biden’s focus on collaboration echoed his message during a private videoconference with the leaders of the Group of Seven advanced economies, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan, a senior administration official said. Biden plans to join G7 members for an in-person summit hosted by the UK in June. His spokeswoman said he would not ask Russia to join the group, as had been proposed by Trump.

    US partnerships had survived because they were “rooted in the richness of our shared democratic values,” President Joe Biden said. “They’re not transactional. They’re not extractive. They’re built on a vision of the future where every voice matters.” He said US allies must stand firm against the challenges posed by China, Iran, and Russia. “The Kremlin attacks our democracies and weaponizes corruption to try to undermine our system of governance,” he said. “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin seeks to weaken the European project and our NATO alliance. He wants to undermine our transatlantic unity and our resolve,” Biden said.

    President Joe Biden also stressed what he called America’s “unshakeable” commitment to the 30-member NATO alliance, another switch from Trump, who called NATO outdated and even suggested at one point that the US could withdraw from the alliance. President Biden also arrived bearing gifts, a $4 billion pledge of support for global Coronavirus vaccination efforts, the re-entry of the United States into the Paris climate accord, and the prospect of a nearly $2 trillion spending measure that could bolster both the US and global economies. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson joined other leaders in cheering Biden’s remarks. “America is unreservedly back as the leader of the free world and that is a fantastic thing,” he told the conference.

    President Joe Biden said the world was at an inflection point, but he was convinced that democracies, not autocracies, offered the best path forward for the world. He said major market economies and democracies needed to work together to tackle challenges posed by great-power competitors like Russia and China, and global issues ranging from nuclear proliferation to climate change and cybersecurity. He took particular aim at China, the world’s second-largest economy, and its failure to abide by international standards, arguing that democracies must shape the rules to govern the advance of new technologies such as artificial intelligence. “We have to push back against the Chinese government’s economic abuses and coercion that undercut the foundations of the international economic system,” he said. Chinese companies, he said, should be held to the same standards that applied to US and European companies. “We must stand up for the democratic values that make it possible for us to accomplish any of this, pushing back against those who would monopolize and normalize repression,” he said.

  • Monmouth County, NJ 2021 Scorecard

    Monmouth County, NJ 2021 Scorecard

    The results are in! Local politics affects us all. For greater transparency in county politics, we will analyze New Jersey’s County System and score the functional groups of each county. Below, let’s review Monmouth County as of 2021:

    Monmouth County is the second-largest county in the state of New Jersey, with a population of ~600,000.

    Leadership

    Counties in New Jersey are governed by a so-called Board of Chosen Freeholders, who are either elected at-large for three-year terms of office on a staggered basis or by concurrent elections. The Board of Chosen Freeholders either has 3,5,7, or 9 members depending n the county. Each January, the freeholders select one of their members to serve as the board director for the year to preside over the board’s meetings and activities. County Freeholders have both administrative and policy-making powers. The freeholders oversee the five mandatory functions of the county government delegated to it by the state. Each freeholder is assigned responsibility for one of the five functional areas: Administration and Special Services; Public Works and Engineering; Human Services, Health, and Transportation; Finance and Administration of Justice, overseeing more than 70 county departments in total.

    Monmouth County has a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders in which its members are subjected to three-year terms, and are elected on a staggered basis.

    In Monmouth County, Administrator Teri O’Connor serves as the county’s chief executive officer and is responsible for carrying out the policies and directives established by the Board of Chosen Freeholders and managing the daily operations of the county’s more than 3,000 employees. This position is appointed by the Freeholder Director.

    As of 2021, Monmouth County’s Freeholders are:

    Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone (R, Neptune City)

    Freeholder Deputy Director Susan M. Kiley (R, Hazlet)

    Ross F. Licitra (R, Marlboro Township)

    Lillian G. Burry (R, Colts Neck Township)

    Dominick DiRocco (R, Wall Township) 

    Constitutional Sheriffs

    According to Article VII Section II of the New Jersey State Constitution, each county in New Jersey is required to have three elected administrative officials known as “constitutional officers.” These officers are the County Clerk and County Surrogate (both elected for five-year terms of office) and the County Sheriff (elected for a three-year term). 

    Monmouth county’s constitutional officers are:

    County Clerk Christine Giordano Hanlon

    Sheriff Shaun Golden

    Surrogate Rosemarie D. Peters 

    Christopher Gramiccioni of Wall Township is the county’s prosecutor, having been formally nominated to the position by Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie in May 2016. Gramiccioni had been serving on an acting basis for almost four years since being appointed to the post in July 2012 by Attorney General of New Jersey Jeffrey S. Chiesa.

    Monmouth County constitutes Vicinage 9 of the New Jersey Superior Court and is seated at the Monmouth County Courthouse in Freehold Borough, with additional facilities in Freehold and Ocean Township; the Assignment Judge for Vicinage 9 is Lisa P. Thornton.

    The 4th and 6th Congressional Districts cover the county. For the 116th United States Congress, New Jersey’s Fourth Congressional District is represented by Chris Smith (R, Hamilton Township). For the 116th United States Congress, New Jersey’s Sixth Congressional District is represented by Frank Pallone (D, Long Branch).

    Partisanship

    Political Preferences & Election Results

    Monmouth County generally leans Republican in federal, state, and local races, though registered Democrats very narrowly outnumber registered Republicans. Al Gore in 2000 and Bill Clinton in 1996 are the only two Democratic presidential candidates to have won it since 1964, when Lyndon B. Johnson won a national landslide and carried every county in New Jersey. All five county Freeholders, all three constitutional officers, and the majority of state legislators are Republicans.

    As of October 1, 2020, there were a total of 482,595 registered voters in Monmouth County, of whom 139,874 (28.9%) were registered as Democrats, 137,292 (28.4%) were registered as Republicans, and 199,621 (41.3%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 5,808 (1.2%) voters registered to other parties. Among the county’s 2010 Census population, 89% of residents of age 18 and over were registered to vote.

    The control of the Board of Chosen Freeholders has changed hands multiple times but has been controlled by the Republican Party by a unanimous margin since 2010.

    Here are the Presidential, Gubernatorial, and Senate election results for Monmouth County Since 2000:

    2000 U.S. Presidential Election: Al Gore (50%-46%)

    2000 U.S. Senatorial Election: Bob Franks (50%-48%)

    2001 N.J. Gubernatorial Election: Jim McGreevey (50%-49%)

    2002 U.S. Senatorial Election: Doug Forrester (50%-47%)

    2004 U.S. Presidential Election: George W. Bush (54%-44%)

    2005 N.J. Gubernatorial Election: Doug Forrester (52%-44%)

    2006 U.S. Senatorial Election: Tom Kean Jr. (52%-44%)

    2008 U.S. Presidential Election: John McCain (51%-48%)

    2008 U.S. Senatorial Election: Dick Zimmer (R) (53%-47%)

    2009 N.J. Gubernatorial Election: Chris Christie (R) (62%-31%)

    2012 U.S. Presidential Election: Mitt Romney (51%-47%)

    2012 U.S. Senatorial Election: Joe Kyrillos (54%-45%

    2013 N.J. Gubernatorial Election: Chris Christie (R) (73%-26%)

    2014 U.S. Senatorial Election: Jeffery Bell (R) (60%-40%)

    2016 U.S. Presidential Election: Donald Trump (53%-44%)

    2017 N.J. Gubernatorial Election: Kim Guadagno (R) (55%-43%)

    2018 U.S. Senatorial Election: Bob Hugin (R) (53%-43%)

    2020 U.S. Presidential Election: Donald Trump (51%-48%)

    2020 U.S. Senatorial Election: Rikin ‘Rik’ Mehta(R) (52%-47%)

    MONMOUTH COUNTY SCORECARD

    1 -5 (poor, below average, average, above average, excellent)

    Public Safety – average / below average (2.5)

    Adequate funding (~$98,000,000 as per most recent data), but mostly focused on salaries on personel as opposed to police officer training.

    SCHOOL SYSTEM – above average (4)

    Well-funded relative to county population, sufficient focus on higher education, vocational schools, and cooperative educational resources. Some issues with

    INFRASTRUCTURE & PUBLIC WORKS – below average (2)

    Road neglect and minimal traffic management

    “Beach Town” Reliance on Seasonal funding from beach tourism 

    TAX SYSTEM – below average (2)

    High (vs state average?) %

    Distributed in favor of School System & Law Enforcement, less priority on Infrastructure 

    COURT SYSTEM  – average / above-average (3.5)

    Experienced Judges & Attorneys

    Efficient Administrative Staff / Paralegals

    Family law and municipal cases are handled less effectively

  • Biden Administration Begins Exploring The Concept Of Slavery Reparations

    Biden Administration Begins Exploring The Concept Of Slavery Reparations

    President Joe Biden supports a study on whether descendants of enslaved people in the United States should receive Reparations, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on February 17, as the issue was being debated on Capitol Hill. Psaki told reporters that Biden “continues to demonstrate his commitment to take comprehensive action to address the systemic racism that persists today.”

    Reparations have been used in other circumstances to offset large moral and economic debt, paid to Japanese Americans interned during World War Two, to families of Holocaust survivors, and to Blacks in post-apartheid South Africa. But the US has never made much headway in discussions of whether or how to compensate African Americans for more than 200 years of slavery and help make up for racial inequality. HR-40, a bill to fund the study of “slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies” has been floated in Congress for more than 30 years, but never taken up for a full vote. Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee reintroduced it in January. Fellow Democratic Congressman Steve Cohen, who chairs the House Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, told a hearing on February 17 it was fitting to consider HR-40 at a time when the country is reckoning with police violence against African Americans and a pandemic that has disproportionately affected African Americans.

    President Biden told the Washington Post last year that “we must acknowledge that there can be no realization of the American dream without grappling with the original sin of slavery, and the centuries-long campaign of violence, fear, and trauma wrought upon Black people in this country.” But like nearly all of the Democratic presidential candidates at the time, he did not embrace the idea of specific payments to enslaved people’s descendants, instead promising “major actions to address systemic racism” and further study. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last June following the death in police custody in Minneapolis of George Floyd, an African-American man, found clear divisions along partisan and racial lines, with only one in 10 white respondents supporting the idea and half of African American respondents endorsing it.

    Calls have been growing from some politicians, academics, and economists for such payments to be made to an estimated 40 million African Americans. Any federal reparations program could cost trillions of dollars, they estimate. Supporters say such payments would act as an acknowledgment of the value of the forced, unpaid labor that supported the economy of Southern US states until the Civil War ended slavery in 1865, the broken promise of land grants after the Civil War, and the burden of the century and a half of legal and de facto segregation that followed.

  • With Trump’s impeachment trial over, President Joe Biden Discusses His Ambitious Agenda In CNN Town Hall Address

    With Trump’s impeachment trial over, President Joe Biden Discusses His Ambitious Agenda In CNN Town Hall Address

    President Joe Biden expressed optimism on February 16 that most US schools would be open by late spring and vowed to continue accelerating the country’s Coronavirus vaccination program, as he sought to elevate his agenda now the drama of Donald Trump’s impeachment trial is over. In a wide-ranging televised town hall that touched on the pandemic, economic relief, China-US relations, and race and policing, Biden also aimed to build public support for his $1.9 trillion Coronavirus relief plan, which is awaiting congressional action. “Now’s the time to go big,” he said during a CNN prime-time broadcast, as he fielded questions from voters at the landmark Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “If we pass this bill alone, we’ll create 7 million jobs this year.”

    With the US Senate having acquitted former President Trump in his second impeachment trial on February 13, the White House is eager to press ahead with President Joe Biden’s proposals on the economy, COVID-19, climate change, and racial inequality. President Biden again made clear he would prefer to turn the page on the divisive Trump era. When CNN host Anderson Cooper asked him whether he agreed with Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that Republicans who voted to acquit were cowards, the president demurred. “For four years, all that’s been in the news is Trump,” Biden said. “The next four years, I want to make sure all the news is the American people. I’m tired of talking about Trump. He’s gone.”

    After a parent and a teacher asked how President Joe Biden planned to ensure that schools could open safely amid the pandemic, the Democratic president said he anticipated that “most” elementary and middle schools would have in-person classes five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office. He also said he believes teachers should be moved closer to the front of the line for inoculation. “I think that we should be vaccinating teachers – we should move them up in the hierarchy,” Biden said, although he noted that states, not the federal government, have the authority to decide how to prioritize vaccinations. Biden said he expected everyone who wanted a vaccine would be able to get one by July when his administration will have secured enough shots to inoculate all Americans. But he also warned that the recovery from the pandemic that has killed more than 485,000 people in the United States would still take many months and urged people to wear masks, maintain social distance, and wash hands for the foreseeable future.

    The February 16 visit, as well as a trip scheduled for February 18 that will take President Joe Biden to a Michigan vaccine manufacturing site, offered the President an opportunity to tout the importance of a new relief bill even as Republicans remain largely opposed to its massive price tag. President Biden wants Congress to pass the legislation in the coming weeks in order to get $1,400 stimulus checks out to Americans and bolster unemployment payments. Some aspects of the bill, including Biden’s push to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, may have a difficult time gaining enough support to pass. After a small business owner raised concerns at the town hall address, Biden suggested he might be willing to consider a more gradual phase-in.

  • Former President Donald Trump Acquitted In Second Impeachment Trial

    Former President Donald Trump Acquitted In Second Impeachment Trial

    On February 13, the US Senate voted to acquit former President Donald Trump on a charge of incitement of insurrection despite significant Republican support for conviction, bringing an end to the fourth impeachment trial in US history and the second for Trump. As opposed to the lack of Republican support in Trump’s first impeachment trial, seven Republicans voted to convict Trump for allegedly inciting the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, when a mob of pro-Trump supporters tried to disrupt the electoral vote count formalizing Joe Biden’s election win before a joint session of Congress. That is by far the most bipartisan support for conviction in impeachment history. The final vote was 57 to 43, 10 short of the 67 votes needed to secure a conviction. Republican Senators Richard Burr of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska, and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania all voted guilty. The vote means the Senate cannot bar Trump from holding future federal offices.

    Moments after the vote concluded, former President Donald Trump issued a statement praising his legal team and thanking the senators and other members of Congress “who stood proudly for the Constitution we all revere and for the sacred legal principles at the heart of our country.” “This has been yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our Country. No president has ever gone through anything like it,” Trump said. Despite the acquittal, President Joe Biden said in a statement that the “substance of the charge” against Trump is “not in dispute.” “Even those opposed to the conviction, like Senate Minority Leader McConnell, believe Donald Trump was guilty of a ‘disgraceful dereliction of duty’ and ‘practically and morally responsible for provoking’ the violence unleashed on the Capitol,” Biden’s statement read in part. President Biden added that “this sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile. That it must always be defended. That we must be ever vigilant. That violence and extremism has no place in America. And that each of us has a duty and responsibility as Americans, and especially as leaders, to defend the truth and to defeat the lies.”

    Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), called the impeachment vote “the largest and most bipartisan vote in any impeachment trial in history,” but noted it was not enough to secure a conviction. The trial “was about choosing country over Donald Trump, and 43 Republican members chose Trump. They chose Trump. It should be a weight on their conscience today, and it shall be a weight on their conscience in the future,” he said in a speech on the Senate floor. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi mocked the Republicans who voted to acquit, most of whom cited his status as a “former” president as the reason for their vote. She called them “a cowardly group of Republicans” who “were afraid to defend their job, respect the institution in which they serve.”

    With control of the Senate split 50-50, the House managers always had an uphill battle when it came to convincing enough Republicans to cross party lines and convict a former president who is still very popular with a large part of the Republican base. In his closing argument, House manager Joe Neguse (D-CO) argued that “The stakes could not be higher. Because the cold, hard truth is that what happened on January 6 can happen again. I fear, like many of you do, that the violence we saw on that terrible day may be just the beginning.” Lead impeachment manager Jamie Raskin (D-MD) urged the Senators to think of the future. “Senators, this trial, in the final analysis, is not about Donald Trump. The country and the world know who Donald Trump is. This trial is about who we are, who we are,” Raskin said. Former President Donald Trump’s lawyer Michael van der Veen, meanwhile, insisted his client did nothing wrong and maintained he was the victim of vengeful Democrats and biased news media. He called the impeachment proceedings a “charade from beginning to end.” While he often seemed angry during his presentation, van der Veen was delighted by the acquittal. Reporters saw him fist bump a fellow member of Trump’s legal team afterward and exclaim, “We’re going to Disney World!”

    The impeachment managers’ task became more difficult when Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced in an email to his colleagues that he would vote to acquit since former President Donald Trump was already out of office.”While a close call, I am persuaded that impeachments are a tool primarily of removal and we therefore lack jurisdiction,” the influential Kentucky Republican wrote in the email, which was obtained by NBC News. McConnell, who rebuffed Democratic efforts to start the trial while Trump was still in office, had condemned Trump’s conduct after the riot and said he’d keep an open mind about voting to convict, something he’d ruled out entirely during Trump’s first impeachment trial last year. After voting to acquit, McConnell blasted Trump for his “disgraceful dereliction of duty” and squarely laid the blame for the riot at Trump’s door in what amounted to an endorsement of many of the arguments laid out by House impeachment managers. “There’s no question — none — that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day,” McConnell said in a speech on the Senate floor. McConnell had suggested in the email earlier in the day that Trump could still face other penalties.

    Two of the Republican Senators who voted to convict, Richard Burr and Pat Toomey, are not running for re-election and are set to retire in 2022. Mitt Romney, the lone Republican Senator to cross party lines and vote to convict Trump in his first impeachment trial, is not up for re-election until 2024, while Senators Ben Sasse, Bill Cassidy, and Susan Collins were all re-elected to six-year terms in November. Senator Lisa Murkowski, who Trump had already vowed to campaign against, is up for re-election in 2022 and is expected to face a tough race against former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Pat Toomey, whose state of Pennsylvania was at the center of several of Trump’s false election conspiracy claims, said, “As a result of President Trump’s actions, for the first time in American history, the transfer of presidential power was not peaceful.” “Unfortunately, his behavior after the election betrayed the confidence millions of us placed in him. His betrayal of the Constitution and his oath of office required conviction,” Toomey said. Senator Cassidy gave a simple explanation for his vote in a 10-second video statement he posted on Twitter. “Our Constitution and our country is more important than any one person. I voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty,” he said.

    https://twitter.com/SenBillCassidy/status/1360697544293183488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1360697544293183488%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fthehill.com%2Fhomenews%2Fsenate%2F538774-gop-sen-cassidy-i-voted-to-convict-trump-because-he-is-guilty

    Opening arguments in the trial began on February 10, with House managers blaming the riot on former President Donald Trump’s months-long campaign to cast doubt on the 2020 election, and his repeated assertions that the only way he would lose was if the election was “stolen.” They focused on his fiery speech on the morning of the January 6 riot, where he urged his supporters to “fight like hell,” and his refusal to take action after they did. Trump declined a request from managers to testify at the trial, and refused to even submit a statement for it, facts Congressman Jamie Raskin urged Senators to keep in mind. “I ask any of you, if you were charged with inciting violent insurrection against our country, and you’re falsely accused, would you come and testify? I know I would,” Raskin said.

  • President Joe Biden Begins Process To Close Down Guantanamo Bay Military Prison

    President Joe Biden Begins Process To Close Down Guantanamo Bay Military Prison

    President Joe Biden’s aides have launched a formal review of the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, reviving the Obama-era goal of closing the controversial facility with the aim of doing so before he leaves office, the White House said on February 12. Aides involved in internal discussions are considering an executive action to be signed by President Biden in coming weeks or months, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters, signaling a new effort to remove what human rights advocates have called a stain on America’s global image. Asked whether President Biden would shut the high-security prison located at the Guantanamo Naval Station by the time his presidency ends, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters: “That certainly is our goal and our intention.” But such an initiative is unlikely to bring down the curtain anytime soon on the offshore facility, due largely to the steep political and legal obstacles that also frustrated efforts by his ex-boss, former President Barack Obama, to close it.

    Set up to house foreign suspects following the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, the prison came to symbolize the excesses of the US “war on terror” because of harsh interrogation methods that critics say amounted to torture. “We are undertaking an NSC process to assess the current state of play that the Biden administration has inherited from the previous administration, in line with our broader goal of closing Guantanamo,” National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne told Reuters, which was the first to report that the review was underway. “The NSC will work closely with the Departments of Defense, State, and Justice to make progress toward closing the GTMO facility, and also in close consultation with Congress,” she added.

    The immediate impact of a new approach could be to reinstate, in some form, former President Barack Obama’s Guantanamo closure policy, which was reversed by former President Donald Trump as soon as he took office in 2017. Trump kept the prison open during his four years in the White House. Now, 40 prisoners remain, most held for nearly two decades without being charged or tried. President Joe Biden’s campaign said during the 2020 race that he continued to support closing the detention center but did not say how he would do it. It is also unclear how specific Biden’s coming executive action might be about his plans for the prison, which holds suspects in the 9/11 attacks among its detainee population. “This is an encouraging and much welcome development,” said Scott Roehm, Washington director of advocacy group The Center for Victims of Torture. “The process needs to move quickly.”

    Opened under former President George W. Bush in 2002, Guantanamo Bay’s population grew to a peak of about 800 inmates in 2006 before it started to shrink. Former President Barack Obama whittled down the number further, but his effort to close the prison was mainly stymied by Republican opposition in Congress. The federal government is still barred by law from transferring any inmates to prisons on the US mainland. Even with his own Democratic party now controlling Congress, their majorities are so slim that President Joe Biden would face a tough challenge securing legislative changes because some vulnerable Democratic Senators might also oppose them.

  • Iranian Government Demands ‘Action’ From Biden Administration To Revive Nuclear Deal

    Iranian Government Demands ‘Action’ From Biden Administration To Revive Nuclear Deal

    Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei demanded “action, not words” from the US if it wants to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and several other world powers, challenging President Joe Biden to take the first step toward a thaw. Iran has set a deadline of next week for President Biden to begin reversing sanctions imposed by his predecessor Donald Trump, or it will take its biggest step yet to breach the deal, banning short-notice inspections by the UN nuclear watchdog. “We have heard many nice words and promises which in practice have been broken and opposite actions have been taken,” Khamenei said in a televised speech. “Words and promises are no good. This time (we want) only action from the other side, and we will also act.”

    President Joe Biden aims to restore the pact under which Iran agreed to curbs on its disputed uranium enrichment program in return for the lifting of sanctions, a major achievement of the Obama administration that former President Donald Trump scrapped in 2018, calling the deal one-sided in Iran’s favor and reimposing a wide range of sanctions. Iran and the US are at odds over who should make the first step to revive the accord. Iran says the US must first lift Trump’s sanctions while the US says that Iran must first return to compliance with the deal, which it began violating after Trump launched his “maximum pressure” campaign. Highlighting the urgency of a diplomatic solution to the standoff, German Chancellor Angela Merkel had a rare phone call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in which she urged Tehran to take steps ensuring its return to full compliance. “It is now time for positive signals that create trust and increase the chances of a diplomatic solution,” Merkel told Rouhani.

    Iran has accelerated its breaches of the deal’s restrictions in recent months, culminating in an announcement that it will end snap inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency on February 23. Such inspections, which can range anywhere beyond Iran’s declared nuclear sites, are mandated under the IAEA’s “Additional Protocol” that Iran agreed to honor under the deal. It signed up to the Protocol in 2003 but has not ratified it. US State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a press briefing that the US was aware of Iran’s plan to cease snap inspections. “As we and partners have underscored, Iran should reverse these steps and refrain from taking others that would impact the IAEA assurances,” Price said, adding: “The path for diplomacy remains open.”

    An IAEA report on February 10 said Iran had informed the IAEA of plans to install more of its advanced IR-2m centrifuges at its main underground enrichment plant at Natanz, in a further move apparently meant to pile pressure on Washington. The IAEA reported on February 1 that Iran had brought a second cascade, or cluster, of IR-2m machines online at Natanz, and was installing two more. The 2015 deal says Iran can only enrich with far less efficient, first-generation IR-1 centrifuges. Iran recently began enriching uranium to 20% fissile purity at another site, Fordow, well above its previous level of 4.5% and the deal’s 3.67% limit, though still well before the 90% that is weapons-grade. Iran had enriched to 20% before the deal. Refining uranium to high levels of fissile purity is a potential pathway to nuclear bombs, though Iran has long said its enrichment program is for peaceful energy purposes only. European parties to the deal, which have called on Tehran not to halt snap inspections, will discuss the issue with the United States on February 11, the French Foreign Ministry said.

    Iranian President Hassan Rouhani played down the importance of the snap inspections, saying that ending them would not be a “significant step”, as Iran would still comply with obligations under a so-called Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA. “We will end the implementation of the Additional Protocol on February 23 and what will be implemented will be based on the safeguards,” Rouhani said at a televised cabinet meeting. “The Additional Protocol is a step beyond safeguards.” Iran’s envoy to the IAEA said on February 10 that the agency’s director-general, Rafael Grossi, would visit Iran on February 13 to discuss the country’s plan to scale back cooperation with inspectors next week.

  • Dozens of Former Bush Administration Officials Leave Republican Party, Calling It A “Trump Cult

    Dozens of Former Bush Administration Officials Leave Republican Party, Calling It A “Trump Cult

    Dozens of Republicans who served in former President George W. Bush’s administration are leaving the Republican Party, dismayed by a failure of many elected Republicans to disown former President Donald Trump after his false claims of election fraud sparked a deadly storming of the US Capitol last month. These officials, some who served in the highest echelons of the Bush administration, said they had hoped that a Trump defeat would lead party leaders to move on from the former president and denounce his baseless claims that the November presidential election was stolen. But with most Republican lawmakers sticking to Trump, these officials say they no longer recognize the party they served. Some have ended their membership, others are letting it lapse while a few are newly registered as independents, according to a dozen former Bush officials who spoke with Reuters.

    “The Republican Party as I knew it no longer exists. I’d call it the cult of Trump,” said Jimmy Gurulé, who was Undersecretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence in the Bush administration. Kristopher Purcell, who worked in the Bush White House’s communications office for six years, said roughly 60 to 70 former Bush officials have decided to leave the party or are cutting ties with it, from conversations he has been having. “The number is growing every day,” Purcell said.

    Their defection from the Republican Party after a lifetime of service for many is another clear sign of how a growing intraparty conflict over former President Trump and his legacy is fracturing it. The party is currently caught between disaffected moderate Republicans and independents disgusted by the hold Trump still has over elected officials and Trump’s fervently loyal base. Without the enthusiastic support of both groups, the party will struggle to win national elections, according to polling, Republican officials and strategists. “We’re having a little bit of a spat right now. But we are going to come together. We have to,” Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said, predicting the party will unite against the agenda of President Joe Biden, a Democrat.

    More than half of the Republicans in Congress, eight senators and 139 House representatives, voted to block certification of the election just hours after the Capitol siege. Most Republican Senators have also indicated they would not support the impeachment of former President Donald Trump, making it almost certain that the former president will not be convicted in his Senate trial. Trump was impeached on January 13 by the Democratic-led House of Representatives on charges of “incitement of insurrection,” the only president to be impeached twice. The unwillingness by party leaders to disavow Trump was the final straw for some former Republican officials. “If it continues to be the party of Trump, many of us are not going back,” Rosario Marin, a former Treasurer of the US under Bush, told Reuters. “Unless the Senate convicts him, and rids themselves of the Trump cancer, many of us will not be going back to vote for Republican leaders.”

  • CDC Implements Sweeping Order Mandating Masks On Public Transportation AS Coronavirus Cases Surge

    CDC Implements Sweeping Order Mandating Masks On Public Transportation AS Coronavirus Cases Surge

    The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a sweeping order late on January 28 requiring the use of face masks on nearly all forms of public transportation as of February 1 as the country continues to report thousands of daily Coronavirus deaths. The order, which takes effect at 11:59 p.m. EST on February 1, requires face masks to be worn by all travelers on airplanes, ships, trains, subways, buses, taxis, and ride-shares and at transportation hubs like airports, bus or ferry terminals, train and subway stations and seaports. President Joe Biden on January 21 ordered government agencies to “immediately take action” to require masks in airports and on commercial aircraft, trains and public maritime vessels, including ferries, intercity bus services and all public transportation. Under former President Donald Trump, a CDC push to mandate masks in transit was blocked, and the agency instead only issued strong recommendations for mask use. President Trump also rejected efforts by Congress to mandate mask use. “Requiring masks on our transportation systems will protect Americans and provide confidence that we can once again travel safely even during this pandemic,” said the 11-page order signed by Marty Cetron, director for CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine.

    While airlines and most transit modes already require masks, the CDC order will make not wearing a mask a violation of federal law that could make it easier for flight attendants and others to enforce. A US airline group told President Joe Biden this month that carriers had had to bar “thousands of passengers” from future flights for failing to comply with airline mask policies. The CDC said people violating the order could potentially face criminal penalties but suggested civil penalties would be more likely if needed. The order will be enforced by the Transportation Security Administration and federal, state and local agencies.

    The order says passengers must wear a mask in transit except for brief periods, such as to eat, drink or take medication. Masks may be either manufactured or homemade. The only exceptions are for travelers younger than two and for those with certain medical conditions. People in private cars and solo commercial truck drivers do not have to wear masks. US airlines raised concerns this week about passenger requests to opt-out of mask-wearing on health grounds. The CDC order says airlines and other transit modes may require medical documentation and consultation by a medical specialist and require a negative Coronavirus test from a passenger to board a plane or a different mode of transportation. The CDC said this week it was “actively looking” at requiring negative Coronavirus tests for domestic air travel after mandating it for nearly all international travel effective January 26. The CDC order says airlines and other operators must “at the earliest safe opportunity, disembark any person who refuses to comply.”

  • President Joe Biden Begins Rollback Of Hardline Trump-Era Immigration Policies

    President Joe Biden Begins Rollback Of Hardline Trump-Era Immigration Policies

    US President Joe Biden on February 2 ordered a review of asylum processing at the US-Mexico border and the immigration system as he seeks to undo some of former President Donald Trump’s hardline policies. President Biden also created a task force to reunite migrant families who were separated at the border by Trump’s 2018 “zero tolerance” strategy. “We are going to work to undo the moral and national shame of the previous administration that literally, not figuratively, ripped children from the arms of their families,” Biden said, as he signed the three immigration-related executive orders at the White House. The executive orders called for a dizzying array of reviews and reports that could trigger policy changes in the weeks and months ahead, but provide limited immediate relief to immigrants barred by Trump-era rules.


    Immigration advocates have urged the new Democratic administration to quickly undo Trump’s policies but President Joe Biden’s aides say they need time to unravel the many layers of immigration restrictions and to put in place more migrant-friendly systems. “It’s not going to happen overnight,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on February 2. The cautious strategy reflects the tightrope President Biden is walking to reverse hardline Trump policies while simultaneously trying to prevent a surge in illegal immigration. Biden opponents could also derail or slow down his agenda with lawsuits if his administration moves too quickly and fails to follow proper procedures.

    In a sign of the wary approach, President Joe Biden’s executive orders on February 2 did not repeal an order known as “Title 42,” which was issued under President Donald Trump to stop the spread of the Coronavirus and allows US authorities to expel almost all people caught crossing the border illegally. He did, however, mandate a review of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), a Trump program that ordered 65,000 asylum seekers to wait in Mexico for their US Court hearings. The Biden administration has stopped adding people to the program but has not yet outlined how it will process the claims of those already in it. Chad Wolf, former acting Department of Homeland Security secretary under Trump, said in an interview that halting the MPP program was a mistake because it had been an effective deterrent to illegal immigration. “If you do have a surge (of migrants), you’re taking one of your tools off the table,” he said in reference to the program.

    The tone of President Joe Biden’s orders differed dramatically from former President Donald Trump’s incendiary immigration rhetoric depicting asylum seekers as a security threat or an economic drain on the US. “Securing our borders does not require us to ignore the humanity of those who seek to cross them,” reads the order dealing with asylum. But opposition from Republicans continues and lawsuits by conservative groups could potentially slow down Biden’s agenda. A federal judge last week temporarily blocked one of his first immigration moves, a 100-day pause on many deportations, after the Republican-led state of Texas sought an injunction.

    Former President Donald Trump won the presidency in 2016 while making border security a major theme of his campaign. If President Joe Biden fails to prevent surges in illegal immigration at the US-Mexico border, he could give ammunition to Republicans in the 2022 congressional elections, said Sarah Pierce, a policy analyst with the Washington-based Migration Policy Institute. “This is the thing that rallied Donald Trump supporters,” she said. President Biden, on the other hand, pledged in his 2020 election campaign to move quickly to reunite parents and children separated at the southern border and the task force set up is aimed at fulfilling that promise. However, it will face a daunting challenge in trying to track down the parents of more than 600 children who remain separated, according to a January court filing in a related case. The children are living with relatives or in foster care, an attorney representing plaintiffs in the litigation told Reuters. The task force will be led by Alejandro Mayorkas, one of the senior officials said on February 1. The US Senate on February 1 confirmed Mayorkas as the new head of the Department of Homeland Security, the first Latino and immigrant to hold that position.

    President Joe Biden’s executive orders also called for a review of former President Donald Trump’s so-called “public charge” rule, which makes it harder for poorer immigrants to obtain permanent residency in the US. The review is expected to start the process to rescind it, according to two people familiar with the plan. President Biden’s asylum-focused order called on US agencies to address drivers of migration in Central America, expand legal pathways to the US and consider ending Trump-era asylum pacts with Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. After the order, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a written statement the US intended to suspend and terminate the agreements, which sought to allow asylum seekers from other countries to be sent to those nations.

  • Democrats Being Formulating Coronavirus Relief Package

    Democrats Being Formulating Coronavirus Relief Package

    Democrats in Congress on February 2 took the first steps toward advancing President Joe Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion Coronavirus aid plan without Republican support. The Senate voted along party lines, with Democrats edging out Republicans 50-49, to open debate on a fiscal 2021 budget resolution with coronavirus aid spending instructions. Using this strategy unlocks a legislative tool needed for Democrats to enact Biden’s package in the face of Republican opposition. Republicans used the ploy when they controlled Congress in 2017 to pass then-President Donald Trump’s tax cut bill without Democratic support. Republicans have pushed back on the plan’s price tag, which follows $4 trillion in Coronavirus aid last year. Later on February 2, the House followed the Senate to begin debate on the budget resolution, voting 216-210, with no Republicans joining in support. The debates are expected to last through the week. Once the budget resolution is passed, Democrats will still have to write a separate, detailed Coronavirus relief bill, meaning it could be early to mid-March before final votes are cast on a bill for President Biden to sign into law.

    President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats seek a new round of direct payments to individual Americans to help stimulate an economy ravaged by shutdowns to curb the spread of the Coronavirus and want to provide more money for programs ranging from vaccines to additional unemployment benefits. If such legislation is pursued without Republican backing, Democrats will have to be careful to craft a relief bill in such a way as to not alienate their more moderate members. At an online luncheon meeting on February 2, President Biden told Democratic senators he was willing to modify his proposal but that a Republican counter-proposal was inadequate, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters. Jared Bernstein, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said on February 2 that the Republican proposal fell far short in a number of areas, including funding to reopen schools. Republicans called for spending $20 billion on schools, compared with Biden’s proposal for $170 billion. “We think that’s what it’s going to take to reach people,” Bernstein told CNN. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer warned, in remarks to reporters, that if a package the size Republicans seek is enacted, “We’d be mired in the COVID crisis for years.”

    The 100-member Senate requires a 60-vote threshold to pass most legislation. Approval of the budget resolution would activate a legislative tool called reconciliation, allowing for Senate passage of the final relief bill with 51 votes that would include 48 Democrats, two independents who align with them, and Vice President Kamala Harris. Republican Senator Patrick Toomey was absent for February 2nd’s vote. His office said he was delayed by bad weather. Toomey’s absence meant that Vice President Harris was not needed to cast her first tie-breaking vote on February 2. If the budget resolution measure passes both chambers it would mark the first time congressional Democrats had used the maneuver to flex their legislative muscle since winning razor-thin control of the Senate in two runoff elections last month in Georgia.

    Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer insisted there was still time to craft a Coronavirus aid effort with Republican support. But Republicans view the reconciliation strategy as a partisan gambit that undermines President Joe Biden’s repeated calls for unity. “We passed five bipartisan COVID packages,” said Senator Todd Young (R-IN). “It’s not a good signal that he (Schumer) is adopting a take-it-or-leave-it approach right after his president delivers an inaugural address based on unity.” While expressing an openness to work with Republicans, the White House said President Biden firmly supports the Democratic approach.

  • Pro-Donald Trump Rioters Storm Capitol In Attempted Coup

    Pro-Donald Trump Rioters Storm Capitol In Attempted Coup

    Pro-Donald Trump rioters overwhelmed the Capitol Police and stormed Congress on January 6, interrupting the certification of Joe Biden’s Electoral College win and throwing the US Capitol into a spiral of chaos and violence. Shortly after 2:30 p.m., lawmakers, staff, and reporters were forced to shelter in place, and several House office buildings were evacuated due to potential bomb threats. Vice President Mike Pence was pulled from the Senate chamber. But the situation quickly spun out of control. Protesters breached the Capitol, entering the Senate chamber and streaming through Statuary Hall. They broke windows, and one man sat in the very seat Pence had been sitting in just a few minutes before, while another was in Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. Lawmakers, reporters, and staffers sheltered throughout the building as pro-Trump rioters banged on doors and shouted. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) were quickly whisked away to undisclosed locations as the violent protesters broke through the Capitol, busting through secure doors, shattering windows and even scaling scaffolding outside of Senate leadership offices. One person was injured when they fell more than 30 feet from the scaffolding. By mid-afternoon, the National Guard was called up to help suppress the unrest, nearly two hours after the first reports of a breach.

    What unfolded at the Capitol was the culmination of months of President Donald Trump’s tweets and statements pushing his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election based on baseless claims of fraud. Lawmakers, helpless amid the chaos, tweeted urgently at the president to call off his supporters and described, in real-time, the violence and destruction they were witnesses to. Some immediately called President Trump’s conduct impeachable, while others, Republicans and Democrats alike, described it as a “coup” attempt and an insurrection. Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE), a Trump critic, described the violence as “the inevitable and ugly outcome of the President’s addiction to constantly stoking division.” Utah Senator and 2012 Republican Presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who also frequently calls out Trump, directly blamed the President, saying, “What happened here today was an insurrection, incited by the United States President.” “There’s no question the president formed the mob, the president incited the mob, the president addressed the mob. He lit the flame,” said Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY).

    Shortly after both chambers were evacuated, President Donald Trump tweeted: “I am asking for everyone at the U.S. Capitol to remain peaceful.” But he did not tell the demonstrators to leave the Capitol. He followed that with a recorded message, saying, “You have to go home now. We have to have peace, we have to have law and order,” President Trump said while still falsely insisting the election was “stolen from us.” President-elect Joe Biden also called on the rioters to stop, saying “This is not dissent. It’s disorder. It’s chaos. It borders on sedition. And it must end now.” The security was in stark contrast to Trump’s impeachment trial or even Black Lives Matter protests last year, when police presence was more pronounced and restrictive. Before rioters were cleared from the complex, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Schumer called for them to exit the Capitol. “We are calling on President Trump to demand that all protestors leave the U.S. Capitol and Capitol Grounds immediately,” Schumer and Pelosi said.

    At 5:30 p.m., three hours after rioters breached the Capitol, the sergeant at arms informed members that the building was finally again secure. Minutes before a 6 p.m. curfew began, an announcement was made warning that anyone who did not leave would be arrested. Shortly before 6 p.m., Senators reconvened behind closed doors to process President-elect Joe Biden’s win and House leaders also vowed to continue their work. Inside the House chamber, the atmosphere was frantic. Capitol Police were warning people they may need to go behind their seats. The House floor quickly turned into chaos. Some top lawmakers, including Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Whip Jim Clyburn, were pulled from the chamber. Minutes later, police rushed members from the floor to be evacuated. Police and floor staff handed out protective hoods as police warned that tear gas had been dispersed outside the chamber. The House evacuation effort was interrupted, however, and roughly two dozen members and reporters huddled in upper gallery, crouching behind seats, as multiple armed officers barricaded the main chamber door. Loud banging noises could be heard, as members exchanged prayers and made calls to loved ones. As the last group of members and staff was escorted from the chamber, multiple protesters appeared to be restrained by police on the House floor.

    Lawmakers and staff had already been on high alert as crowds of Trump allies descended upon the Capitol and local DC officials braced for violence. Then around 1 p.m., offices in both the Cannon and Madison buildings were urgently instructed to leave and move to another building. In some hallways, Capitol Police officers ran door-to-door, instructing staff to leave, according to several of those evacuated. The lockdowns and evacuation orders fueled further anxiety inside the Capitol, as staff were told to stay away from windows and doors. Staff in some office buildings were also instructed to take “escape hoods,” reserved for some kind of chemical attack in the building, and head to the tunnels in Longworth. “All of the members of Congress are just texting each other and trying to make sure that everyone is safe,” said Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin on MSNBC as the chaos was unfolding. “I understand as you just reported that in the chamber they’re now trying to don some gas masks. I dug one out of my storage. We’re sheltering in place. I’m glad to see that the president is now putting out a message that this has gone way too far.”

  • Georgia Senate Runoff Election Analysis

    Georgia Senate Runoff Election Analysis

    Democrats won both Georgia Senate seats, and with them, the US Senate majority, as final votes were counted on January 6, serving President Donald Trump a stunning defeat in his turbulent final days in office while dramatically improving the fate of President-elect Joe Biden’s progressive agenda. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, Democratic challengers who represented the diversity of their party’s evolving coalition, defeated Republicans David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler two months after Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry the state since 1992. Warnock, who served as pastor for the same Atlanta church where civil rights leader the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. preached, becomes the first African American from Georgia elected to the Senate. And Ossoff becomes the state’s first Jewish senator and, at 33 years old, the Senate’s youngest member.

    This week’s elections were expected to mark the formal finale to the tempestuous 2020 election season, although the Democrats’ resounding success was overshadowed by chaos and violence in Washington, where angry Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol to stop Congress from certifying Biden’s victory. January 6’s unprecedented siege drew fierce criticism of President Donald Trump’s leadership from within his own party, and combined with the Republican defeat in Georgia, marked one of the darkest days of his divisive Presidency. Still, the Democrats’ twin victories in Georgia represented a striking shift in the state’s politics as the swelling number of diverse, college-educated voters flex their power in the heart of the Deep South. They also cemented the transformation of Georgia, once a solidly Republican state, into one of the nation’s premier battlegrounds for the foreseeable future.

    In an emotional address on January 6, Senator-elect Raphael Warnock vowed to work for all Georgians whether they voted for him or not, citing his personal experience with the American dream. His mother, he said, used to pick “somebody else’s cotton” as a teenager. “The other day, because this is America, the 82-year-old hands that used to pick somebody else’s cotton picked her youngest son to be a United States senator,” he said. “Tonight, we proved with hope, hard work and the people by our side, anything is possible.” Kelly Loeffler, who remains a senator until the election results are finalized, returned to Washington to join a small group of senators planning to challenge Congress’ vote to certify Joe Biden’s victory. She did not get a chance to vocalize her objection before the violent protesters stormed the Capitol. Georgia’s other runoff election pitted Senator David Perdue, a 71-year-old former business executive who held his Senate seat until his term expired Sunday, against Jon Ossoff, a former congressional aide and journalist. “This campaign has been about health and jobs and justice for the people of this state, for all the people of this state,” Ossoff said in a speech broadcast on social media. “Whether you were for me, or against me, I’ll be for you in the U.S. Senate. I will serve all the people of the state.”

    President Donald Trump’s false claims of voter fraud cast a dark shadow over the runoff elections, which were held only because no candidate hit the 50% threshold in the general election. He raised the prospect of voter fraud as votes were being cast and likened the Republicans who run Georgia’s election system to “chickens with their heads cut off” during a rally in Washington. Gabriel Sterling, a top official with the Georgia secretary of state’s office and a Republican, said there was “no evidence of any irregularities.” “The biggest thing we’ve seen is from the president’s fertile mind of finding fraud where none exists,” he said.

    Both contests tested whether the political coalition that fueled Biden’s November victory was an anti-Trump anomaly or part of a new electoral landscape. To win in the Georgia runoff elections, and in the future, Democrats needed strong African American support. AP VoteCast, a survey of more than 3,700 voters in the Georgia runoffs, found that Black voters made up roughly 30% of the electorate, and almost all of them, 94%, backed Ossoff and Warnock. The Democrats also relied on the backing of younger voters, people earning less than $50,000 annually and newcomers to the state. The Republican coalition backing Loeffler and Perdue was the mirror opposite: white, older, wealthier and longtime Georgia residents. The coalition closely resembles the one that narrowly handed Georgia’s Electoral College votes to Biden in November, making him the first Democratic presidential candidate to win the state in almost three decades. President Donald Trump’s claims about voter fraud in the 2020 election, while meritless, resonated with Republican voters in Georgia. About 7 in 10 agreed with his false assertion that Biden was not the legitimately elected president, AP VoteCast found.

    Publicly and privately, some Republicans acknowledged that President Donald Trump’s monthslong push to undermine the integrity of the nation’s electoral system may have contributed to the Republican Party’s losses in Georgia. “It turns out that telling the voters that the election was rigged is not a great way to turn out your voters,” said Utah Senator and 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney, a frequent Trump critic. Even with Trump’s claims, voters in both parties were drawn to the polls because of the high stakes. AP VoteCast found that 6 in 10 Georgia voters say Senate party control was the most important factor in their vote. Turnout exceeded both sides’ expectations. Ultimately, more people cast ballots in the runoffs than voted in Georgia’s 2016 presidential election.

  • 117th US Congress Sworn In

    117th US Congress Sworn In

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was reelected to lead the chamber as the 117th Congress convened on January 4, with the California Democrat set to shepherd her party through a new Congress with the slimmest majority of any political party since 1917. Members cast their votes for speaker ahead of their swearing in Sunday evening, with Pelosi earning support from 216 Democrats and clearing the threshold of 214 to secure the House’s top position. The proceedings at the Capitol were marked by the Coronavirus pandemic, which led to a changing of procedures to ensure the new Congress could gather safely. Two Democrats, Jared Golden of Maine and Conor Lamb of Pennsylvania, cast votes for Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, respectively. Three Democratic House members voted “present.” Notably, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York, and other members of “The Squad” backed Pelosi in her bid for the speakership. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy won 209 votes from Republicans.

    In remarks following her election to a fourth term as speaker, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the chamber’s “most urgent priority” will be defeating the Coronavirus pandemic and said Congress “must do more to recognize” the workers on the frontlines of the crisis. “They make our lives possible at the state and local level, and will facilitate the distribution of the vaccine. We owe them more,” she said. “Many of our essential workers are from communities of color and low-wealth communities which have been devastatingly and disproportionately affected by the coronavirus. They have been there for us, and we must be there for them.” Pelosi said the new Congress must “pursue justice” as it addresses the disparities the pandemic has exposed, and challenged House members to live up to the pledge to provide justice for all. “In all that we do, let us be for the people – recognizing the beautiful diversity of America, so that no one is left out or left behind,” she said. “We do so, guided by the vision of our founders, the sacrifice of our military and their families and the aspirations that we all have for the children.”

    The new session comes days before lawmakers will meet to count the votes of the Electoral College and finalize the presidential election results. Nearly a dozen Repubican senators said that they plan to object to the results on January 6, citing false claims of widespread voter fraud pushed by President Donald Trump and his allies. Ahead of Sunday’s proceedings, the House sergeant-at-arms and the Capitol attending physician sent guidelines to new and returning House members, according to Roll Call. The traditional quorum call, swearing-in of new members and speaker election is being done in seven groups, significantly lengthening the day’s events. 

    The House convened at noon, with the election of a new speaker as the first order of business. Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, nominated Pelosi for speaker, calling her a “resilient leader.” Members were sworn in following the election. “Nancy Pelosi believes that our sacred mission is to continue America’s long, necessary and majestic march toward a more perfect union,” Jeffries said in a speech on the House floor before the vote kicked off. Texas Congressman Chip Roy, a Republican, objected to seating the 67 representatives from Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nevada. In a statement, Roy said he did so because a number of his colleagues, including fellow members of the House Freedom Caucus, plan to challenge the Electoral College votes from those states over “their deeply held belief that those states conducted elections plagued by statewide, systemic fraud and abuse.” Roy has previously made it clear he oppose this move. “After all, those representatives were elected through the very same systems — with the same ballot procedures, with the same signature validations, with the same broadly applied decisions of executive Judicial branch officials — as were the electors chosen for the President of the United States under the laws of those states, which have become the subject of national controversy,” said Roy, whose objection was voted down 371-2.

    In a striking symbol of how the Coronavirus complicated proceedings, a special section of the House chamber was enclosed in plexiglass so three lawmakers who are in “quarantine status” would be able to vote. Dr. Brian Monahan, Congress’ attending physician, said the “highest possible safeguards have been implemented including separate, enhanced ventilation in this space and separate holding facilities for any Members utilizing” the separate space. Members using the space were required to have tested negative for the virus. The special accommodations were also a reflection of the razor-thin margin in the vote for speaker. Democrats will start the 117th Congress with 222 members, just four over the 218 threshold needed for a majority, with one race in New York still undecided. Proxy voting, which allowed for members to cast votes while not physically present at the Capitol, lapsed with the end of the last Congress. The new House will have to vote on whether to extend proxy voting. This means that anyone who is absent on Sunday will not be able to cast a vote in the speaker election. 

    In the Senate, which also convened at noon for the start of the 117th Congress, Vice President Mike Pence administered the oath of office to pairs of new and reelected members, offering elbow bumps to each. “To say the 117th Congress convenes at a challenging time would indeed be an understatement,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said after members were sworn in. “From political division to a deadly pandemic to adversaries around the world, the hurdles before us are many and they are serious. But there is also plenty of reason for hope. An optimistic, can-do spirit has been one of our country’s most distinctive calling cards since our very earliest days, and with safe and effective vaccines rolling out across our nation every day, I’d say 2021 looks bright already.”

  • Nancy Pelosi Re-elected House Speaker Despite Democratic Congressional Losses

    Nancy Pelosi Re-elected House Speaker Despite Democratic Congressional Losses

    Nancy Pelosi has been reelected speaker of the House by her caucus for Congress’s next session, marking her fourth term with the gavel. The caucus vote was conducted virtually, but a voice vote approved Pelosi. Pelosi did not face any challenge for her post, but she will also need to secure a simple majority, 218 Democratic votes, by the full House of Representatives in January to be sworn in again as House Speaker. She indicated after the vote that the upcoming term could be her last. In 2019, several Democrats voted for someone other than her on the floor, but with a slimmer margin in the majority after the 2020 election, she cannot afford to lose more than a handful of votes. In remarks to her colleagues after the vote on November 18, Pelosi made a pitch for unity. “As we go forward with liberty and justice for all, we must do so listening to the American people, listening to each other with respect, acting to unify, Joe Biden is a unifier, so that will make it easier for us, remembering the guidance of our Founders: E pluribus unum, from many, one,” she said.

    House Democrats are holding leadership elections as they grapple with unexpected losses and the prospects for a Congress that remains divided. The Republican party appears heavily favored to maintain control of the Senate. Additionally, House Republicans picked up at least eight seats, and several races are too close to call. Other top Democratic leaders, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, also ran unopposed and were approved by the caucus to serve in those roles next year. House Democratic Caucus Chair Hakeem Jeffries of New York did not face any competition for his post as the fifth-ranking leader and was reelected as well. For the fourth-ranking position, assistant speaker, Massachusetts Congresswoman Katherine Clark defeated Congressman David Cicilline of Rhode Island. Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (D-IL), who ran the House Democrats’ campaign arm, said she would not run for another term. Congressmen Tony Cardenas of California and Sean Patrick Maloney of New York are vying for the position, which will be decided later this month.

    Before the election, top leaders and political analysts had forecast that Democrats would expand their majority, potentially picking up as many as 15 seats. But the party’s disappointing results sparked a blame game that has increased tensions about policy priorities going forward. Moderates who were ousted or won very narrowly say progressives who pressed to “defund the police” or advocated for sweeping policies like the Green New Deal gave Republican opponents an opening by taking the party off-message when voters were concerned about the economy or the coronavirus. Progressives, on the other hand, have argued their message drove turnout among young voters and people of color. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has downplayed the Republican gains, pointing out that Democrats flipped 40 seats in the 2018 midterms, a figure that meant they had more incumbents to protect this year. She also said Democrats deserve credit for boosting turnout in crucial swing states, helping the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris ticket ultimately win in those places. The speaker circulated a letter on November 16 urging unity among Democrats, saying that “President-elect Biden’s message and mandate as a unifier have given the American people hope.”

    When Nancy Pelosi was reelected in 2018, she agreed to limit herself to two terms as speaker, but the caucus never formally adopted rules to lock in the term limit for the speaker or other top leadership positions. After winning support from her colleagues, Pelosi suggested on November 18 that she would stick by that pledge. She noted that the caucus did not choose to enact term limits for leaders or committee chairs but told reporters, “Whether it passes or not, I will abide by those limits that are there.” She has moved to expand the slots on the leadership ladder to respond to sentiment inside the caucus that she held on too tightly to power and had not given more opportunities for newer members to gain valuable experience.

    Nancy Pelosi will need to manage various ideological factions inside her caucus, which already have different priorities for next year, with a Democrat in the White House. Progressive hopes for broad climate change legislation and significant expansion for health care coverage will face challenges. The California Democrat has negotiated those differences before and brushed off questions last week from a reporter who pressed whether she would need to modify her legislative approach. “Not at all,” Pelosi insisted. She added that “our leverage and our power is greatly enhanced by having a Democratic president in the White House, especially Joe Biden.”

  • Trump Administration Sets Record Low Limit For New US Refugees

    Trump Administration Sets Record Low Limit For New US Refugees

    The Trump Administration has slashed the number of refugees it will allow to resettle in the US in the coming year, capping the number at 15,000, a record low in the country’s refugee program’s history. President Donald Trump finalized his plan in a memo overnight and said the ceiling for fiscal 2021, which started this month, includes 6,000 unused placements from last year “that might have been used if not for the COVID-19 pandemic.” The Republican president, seeking re-election on November 3, has taken a hard line toward legal and illegal immigration, including sharply curbing refugee admissions every year since taking office in 2017.

    In his statement, President Donald Trump said any new refugees this year should be placed by the US State Department in parts of the country open to hosting them. “Newly admitted refugees should be placed, to the maximum extent possible, in States and localities that have clearly expressed their willingness to receive refugees” and “resettled in communities that are eager and equipped to support their successful integration into American society and the labor force,” Trump said. Critics say that President Trump has abandoned a longstanding US role as a safe haven for persecuted people and that cutting refugee admissions undermines other foreign policy goals. Trump’s Democratic rival and former Vice President Joe Biden has pledged to raise refugee admissions to 125,000 a year if he defeats Trump, although advocates have said the program could take years to recover.

    Tens of thousands of refugees have applications in the pipeline for the US, even as increased vetting by the Trump administration and the novel coronavirus have slowed arrivals for the 2020 fiscal year, which had an 18,000 quota. President Donald Trump’s 2021 plan allocates 5,000 slots for refugees facing religious persecution, 4,000 for refugees from Iraq who helped the US, and 1,000 for refugees from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, leaving 5,000 for others. It bans refugees from Somalia, Syria, and Yemen except in “special humanitarian concerns,” citing the risk of terrorism.

  • 2020 Election: Backers of QAnon On Path To Congress

    2020 Election: Backers of QAnon On Path To Congress

    More than two dozen candidates for Congress in the November 3rd elections have endorsed or given credence to QAnon or promoted QAnon content online, the non-profit watchdog group Media Matters says. Two are independents; the rest are Republicans. At least one of them is expected to be elected to the House of Representatives next week, and a second has a good chance. The FBI has listed QAnon as a domestic terrorism threat. The unfounded conspiracy theory, which began in 2017 with anonymous web postings from “Q,” posits that President Donald Trump is secretly fighting a global cabal of child-sex predators that includes prominent Democrats, Hollywood elites, and “deep state” allies. Messages pushed online by its adherents aim to vilify and criminalize political rivals with unfounded allegations. The ADL civil rights group called it “an amalgam of both novel and well-established theories, with marked undertones of antisemitism and xenophobia.”

    The two QAnon-affiliated candidates who are expected to have a chance at winning Congressional seats this year are Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert. Right-wing small business owner Marjorie Taylor Greene, who declared in a 2017 video that “Q is a patriot,” is expected to win a House seat in rural northwest Georgia after her opponent dropped out. Gun-rights activist Lauren Boebert, who told a conservative podcast last spring that she hopes Q “is real,” has a good chance of winning her Republican-leaning district of western Colorado. Both women are political neophytes who declare they want to go to Congress to “stop socialism.” After they won Republican primary elections in the summer, both sought to distance themselves from their previous statements about QAnon. President Donald Trump invited both to attend his Republican National Convention speech at the White House in August.

    After amplifying conspiracy theorists, social media platforms lately have been trying to crack down on QAnon’s sprawl. But a recent poll by Morning Consult said 38% of Republicans believe that at least parts of the QAnon conspiracy are true. A supporter of an early form of the conspiracy, predating President Donald Trump’s election, in 2016 opened fire at a Washington pizzeria that early proponents of the conspiracy claimed was the site of a child sex trafficking ring. President Trump has refused to renounce QAnon and even praised it as patriotic. He has frequently retweeted QAnon-linked content.

    Despite the growing support for the anon conspiracy theory amongst Republicans, some Republicans have publicly denounced the conspiracy theory. “We simply cannot continue to be a party that accepts conspiracy theories and lives in crazy echo chambers,” said Brendan Buck, who worked for two former House Republican speakers, Paul Ryan and John Boehner. “There is no place for QAnon in the Republican party,” House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy told Fox News in August, becoming the highest-ranking Republican to condemn QAnon publicly.

  • Coronavirus Relief Negotiations Stall As Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Comes Out Against Proposed Relief Bill

    Coronavirus Relief Negotiations Stall As Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Comes Out Against Proposed Relief Bill

    Congressional negotiations on a substantial Coronavirus relief bill took a modest step forward on October 20, though time is running out and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, President Donald Trump’s most powerful Senate ally, is pressing the White House against going forward. Senator McConnell on October 20 told fellow Republicans that he has warned the Trump administration not to divide Republicans by sealing a lopsided $2 trillion relief deal with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi before the election — even as he publicly said he would slate any such agreement for a vote. Pelosi’s office said talks with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on October 19 and 20 were productive. However, other veteran lawmakers said there is still too much work to do and not enough time to do it to enact a relief bill by Election Day.

    Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made his remarks during a private lunch with fellow Republicans, three people familiar with them said, requesting anonymity because the session was private. The Kentucky Republican appears worried that an agreement between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin would drive a wedge between Republicans, forcing them to choose whether to support a Pelosi-blessed deal with President Donald Trump that would violate conservative positions they’ve stuck with for months. Many Republicans say they cannot vote for another Pelosi-brokered agreement. McConnell said if such a bill passed the Democratic-controlled House with Trump’s blessing, “we would put it on the floor of the Senate.” Those public remarks came after the private session with fellow Republicans.

    Despite his previous dismissal of further Coronavirus relief efforts, President Donald Trump is hoping for an agreement before the election, eager to announce another round of $1,200 direct payments going out under his name, but it is increasingly evident that time has pretty much run out. If he wins, President Trump is promising relief, but if he loses, as polls indicate, it is unclear that his enthusiasm for delivering Coronavirus aid will be as strong. Recent history suggests that any post-election lame-duck session in the event of a Trump loss would not produce much. “It’s not a question of ‘íf.’ It’s a question of ‘when.’” said Senate Majority Whip John Thune of South Dakota. “We have to do more. We know that.”

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that she and Secretary of Treasury Steve Mnuchin remained at odds over refundable tax credits for the working poor and families with children, the size of a Democratic-sought aid package for state and local governments, and a liability shield for businesses and other organizations against lawsuits over their Coroanvirus preparations. Pelosi’s spokesman, Drew Hammill, wrote on Twitter that she and Mnuchin then spoke for 45 minutes and found “more clarity and common ground” and that “both sides are serious about finding a compromise.” The Pelosi-Mnuchin talks also involve pandemic jobless aid, the second round of $1,200 direct payments, and money for schools, testing, and vaccines.

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had said October 20 was a deadline day, but clarified in an interview with Bloomberg News that the aim is to spur the two sides to exchange their best proposals on a host of unresolved issues, not to close out all of their disagreements or have final legislative language at hand. “Let’s see where we are,” Pelosi said. “We all want to get an agreement.” Time is running out, and Pelosi has instructed her committee chairs to try to iron out details, but the Senate Republican negotiators do not appear as eager as she is. “It’s getting to be toward the last minute and the clock keeps ticking away,” Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL), said. “I’m not optimistic about doing anything.” Aides familiar with the talks say the price tag for a potential Pelosi-Mnuchin deal is inching close to $2 trillion. Senate Republicans are recoiling at both the size of the measure and Pelosi’s demands, even as President Donald Trump is beating the drums for an agreement.“I want to do it even bigger than the Democrats. Not every Republican agrees,” President Donald Trump said in a Fox News interview. “But they will.”

  • US Imposes Sweeping New Sanctions On Iranian Financial Sector

    US Imposes Sweeping New Sanctions On Iranian Financial Sector

    The Trump Administration unilaterally imposed sweeping Sanctions on Iran’s financial sector in a move that critics say could have unintended consequences, including a detrimental impact on the ability of the Iranian people to access humanitarian resources. October 8th’s tranche of sanctions, coming less than a month before the US presidential election, are the latest in the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” campaign that they say is aimed at causing the Iranian government to change its policies. In a press release, the Treasury Department said it sanctioned 16 banks “for operating in Iran’s financial sector,” one bank “for being owned or controlled by a sanctioned Iranian bank,” and another bank affiliated with the Iranian military. Under the new sanctions, “all property and interests in property of designated targets that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons must be blocked and reported to” the Office of Foreign Assets Control. “In addition, financial institutions and other persons that engage in certain transactions or activities with the sanctioned entities after a 45-day wind-down period may expose themselves to secondary sanctions or be subject to an enforcement action,” the Treasury Department said.”Today’s action to identify the financial sector and sanction eighteen major Iranian banks reflects our commitment to stop illicit access to U.S. dollars,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement. “Our sanctions programs will continue until Iran stops its support of terrorist activities and ends its nuclear programs.

    Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the sanctions “are directed at the regime and its corrupt officials that have used the wealth of the Iranian people to fuel a radical, revolutionary cause that has brought untold suffering across the Middle East and beyond.””The United States continues to stand with the Iranian people, the longest-suffering victims of the regime’s predations,” he said in a statement on October 8. Supporters of the move say it is consistent with the Trump administration’s campaign against the Iranian government.”Targeting Iran’s financial sector is the next logical step for an administration which has significantly driven down Iranian oil revenues and sanctioned sectors supporting Iran’s missile, nuclear, and military programs,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu of the neoconservative-aligned think tank the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).”These steps help to sever lingering Iranian touch-points to the international financial system, and thus sharpen the choice Tehran faces as it continues to prioritize regime interest over national interest,” he said.

    Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin claimed that “today’s actions will continue to allow for humanitarian transactions to support the Iranian people,” and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said they “do not affect existing authorizations and exceptions for humanitarian exports to Iran, which remain in full force and effect.”

    https://youtu.be/yVe5YtfR1Xs
  • DHS: White Supremacists ‘The Most Persistent and Lethal Threat’ Within the US

    DHS: White Supremacists ‘The Most Persistent and Lethal Threat’ Within the US

    White Supremacists “remain the most persistent and lethal threat in the homeland,” the Department of Homeland Security concluded in its inaugural threat assessment released on October 6, following widespread concern that President Donald Trump did not do enough to condemn such groups at a debate last week. “I am particularly concerned about white supremacist violent extremists who have been exceptionally lethal in their abhorrent, targeted attacks in recent years,” acting DHS secretary Chad Wolf wrote in a letter accompanying the report, which resembles similar annual documents the Pentagon and intelligence community produce that highlight their top priorities and concerns for protecting American interests. The report categorizes white supremacist militants as part of broader domestic violent extremists or DVEs, and says spikes in the threats they pose “probably will depend on political or social issues that often mobilize other ideological actors to violence, such as immigration, environmental, and police-related policy issues.”

    The conclusion comes a week after the first presidential debate on September 29, in which President Donald Trump declined multiple times to condemn white supremacy. The debate moderator asked President Trump if he would condemn white supremacists and militia groups and tell them they need to “stand down.” After pivoting to talk about left-wing groups, the President said, “Give me a name. Who would you like me to condemn?” “Proud Boys,” Biden interjected. “Proud Boys: Stand back and stand by,” Trump said. The White House initially stood by his debate response before Trump, facing continued outrage and slumping poll numbers, said days later that he does indeed condemn white supremacy. “Let me be clear again: I condemn the KKK. I condemn all white supremacists. I condemn the Proud Boys. I don’t know much about the Proud Boys, almost nothing, but I condemn that,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity on October 1.

    President Donald Trump said at the debate and stressed that he believes the most significant domestic threat comes from far-left groups, including the loosely organized ideology known as Antifa, a conclusion not supported by other agencies that assess domestic risks, including the FBI. The DHS report on October 6 identifies anti-government or anti-authority violent extremism as “another motivating force behind domestic terrorism that also poses a threat to the homeland.” “These violent extremists, sometimes influenced by anarchist ideology, have been associated with multiple plots and attacks, which included a significant uptick in violence against law enforcement and government symbols in 2020. This ideology is also exploited by hostile nation-states, which seek to promote it through disinformation campaigns and sow additional chaos and discord across American society,” the report states.

    The report also assessed the widespread threats to US elections from foreign actors and emphasized that Russia is not the only source of attacks against American democracy. “While Russia has been a persistent threat by attempting to harm our democratic and election systems, it is clear China and Iran also pose threats in this space,” according to the report. In a series of tweets accompanying the report’s release, DHS Chad Wolf wrote that China represents “the most long term strategic threat to Americans, the homeland, and our way of life.” The assessment mirrors that of Trump’s other close security advisers who have downplayed the dangers Russia poses and asserted that China, which the administration blames for the spread of the coronavirus, represents the principal threat to the US.

    The report claims China and Russia are leading international efforts to politicize the US response to the Coronavirus pandemic, saying, “Russian online influence actors have claimed that President Donald Trump is incapable of managing the Coronavirus pandemic and sought to exacerbate public concerns by amplifying content critical of the US response to the public health crisis and the economic downturn. “In contrast, the actors highlighted China’s and Russia’s alleged success against the COVID-19 outbreak and praised President Putin’s COVID-19 plan and Russia’s ample supply of tests.” That conclusion comes as President Donald Trump faces fresh accusations of downplaying the threat posed by the coronavirus. After leaving Walter Reed National Military Medical Center late on October 5, after being treated for his own Coronavirus diagnosis, President Trump said in a collection of statements, “don’t be afraid of it” and “don’t let it dominate your lives.”