June 1, 2019

Youth Activists Holding Coordinated Press Conferences to Raise Awareness on Landmark Court Case

Youth activists in the U.S. and around the world are using June 1 as a day of action to support a landmark court case that could affect the climate crisis, holding coordinated press conferences to draw attention to the litigation.

The case, Juliana v. United States, was first filed in 2015 by now-college student Kelsey Juliana and 20 other youth plaintiffs. The lawsuit demands the government act to protect the climate and environment for the future by making the right to a stable climate constitutionally protected.

Emery Kiefer, campus program coordinator for the Al Gore-led Climate Reality Project, told The Guardian that youth activists are "becoming more and more involved and understanding the nexus of climate policy and the importance of elections and campaign," a shift that's leading to change as more and more people take the next generation seriously.

"Youth are an important catalyst for change because they're the ones that people are finally starting to listen to," said Kiefer.

"Climate change is the most pressing issue for our generation,"

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/06/01/youth-activists-holding-coordinated-press-conferences-raise-awareness-landmark-court

May 11, 2019

Who's been sitting in Pelosi's chair? Democrat Ocasio-Cortez

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In another first for rookie congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the liberal Democrat from New York on Friday became the youngest woman to preside over the U.S. House of Representatives.

Sitting in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s chair as part of a routine rotation of House members, Ocasio-Cortez took her turn with the gavel and ran the chamber for about an hour. The duty is shared day-to-day by members of the House majority, currently the Democrats.

“That was my first time presiding. And it’s exciting. It’s certainly a view. I wish we could, I wish we were allowed to take photos,” she told reporters after the session.

Ocasio-Cortez describes herself as a Democratic socialist and is the most prominent member of a group of female Democrats elected to the House for the first time last November, bolstering the party’s liberal wing.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-ocasio-cortez/whos-been-sitting-in-pelosis-chair-democrat-ocasio-cortez-idUSKCN1SG280

Hope to see her there as the Speaker down the road.

May 8, 2019

AOC on Trump's Tax Disclosures.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
✔
@AOC
Wouldn’t you think someone who personally lost over a BILLION dollars (“more than nearly any other taxpayer in America”) be vulnerable to shady activity to get out of that hole?

If they became the most powerful public servant in America, wouldn’t you want to see their taxes? 🤔

https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-aoc-trump-taxes-loss-20190508-qfsb3evisfhspn77g3hvqy2nhm-story.html

April 9, 2019

Progressive Democrats Threaten to Tank $733 Billion in Pentagon Spending

Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus are threatening to wield their significant power in the House to tank a key budget measure unless the Democratic leadership agrees to boost healthcare, education, and other domestic social spending in line with the Pentagon's budget increase.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), co-chairs of the 104-member CPC, are leading the push for an amendment that would add around $33 billion per year to domestic spending programs as part of a crucial two-year spending bill, which could receive a vote as early as Tuesday. The legislation would hike Pentagon spending to $733 billion per year. Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) are among the sponsors of the progressive amendment.

"We need to prioritize our communities, not our military spending. Progressives aren’t backing down from this fight," Jayapal tweeted.


https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/04/09/progressive-democrats-threaten-tank-733-billion-crazy-pentagon-spending-if-social

Eisenhower warned Americans about the Military/Industrial/Complex back in the 50's.

April 8, 2019

White House scuttles MLB's Cuban agreement

The Trump administration scuttled Major League Baseball's historic agreement with the Cuban Baseball Federation, arguing that the sport's governing body is part of the Cuban government and that the agreement violates United States trade law.

In December, MLB and the MLB Players Association announced an agreement with the Cuban federation similar to those for players under contract to clubs in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan -- one the league believed would end the defection of players and erase the human trafficking of Cuban players that has become the standard as they attempt to join MLB.

Negotiations for the Cuba-MLB agreement date back to President Barack Obama's detente with Cuba. The deal was seen as an effort to eliminate the dangerous trafficking that had gone on for decades, which the MLB referenced in its letter to the Treasury and State departments, with Reds outfielder Yasiel Puig, White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu and Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes among those whose harrowing journeys were cited.



http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/26472986/white-house-scuttles-mlb-cuban-agreement

April 8, 2019

Wow! A great women's national championship basketball game.

Baylor 82 Notre Dame 81

April 3, 2019

Harris: 'I believe' Biden accusers

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said Tuesday that she believes women who say they felt uncomfortable after receiving unwanted touching from former Vice President Joe Biden.

"I believe them and I respect them being able to tell their story and having the courage to do it," Harris said at a presidential campaign event in Nevada.

The California senator added that Biden will need to decide for himself whether to run for president.

"He's going to have to make that decision for himself. I wouldn’t tell him what to do," Harris said.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/437107-harris-i-believe-biden-accusers

March 28, 2019

Happy to Engage Workers...on Green New Deal, Ocasio-Cortez Accepts GOP Invite to Kentucky Coal Mine

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Wednesday accepted an invitation to tour a coal mine and meet with voters in Kentucky—taking advantage of an opportunity to engage with some of the Americans who could benefit most from a Green New Deal. The invitation came from Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.), a member of the Congressional Coal Caucus who asked the New York Democrat to visit his district after she gave an impassioned speech in the House, blasting Republicans and centrists for dismissing the Green New Deal legislation that she is sponsoring as a proposal that would benefit only large coastal cities.

Ocasio-Cortez indicated she would use the opportunity to speak with Kentucky residents about how their lives and futures could be positively affected by the Green New Deal. The plan would create an estimated 10 million jobs in its first decade for Americans, including former fossil fuel sector workers, who would build a new sustainable energy infrastructure aimed at shifting to 100 percent renewable energy by 2035.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/03/28/happy-engage-workers-and-community-green-new-deal-ocasio-cortez-accepts-gop-invite

How change can happen. AOC is doing the right thing.

February 27, 2019

Could the talking heads at CNN just STFU and let us hear what is going on.

February 23, 2019

Some comic relief from Trevor Noah