USA News and Discussions

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caltrek
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Sanders Says Democrats Need 'Major Course Correction' to Prevent GOP Takeover
by Jake Johnson
January 10, 2022

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/ ... p-takeover

Introduction:
(Common Dreams) Sen. Bernie Sanders said in an interview published Monday that too much of the Democratic Party has "turned its back on the working class" and is in need of a dramatic shift as central elements of its agenda—from voting rights to climate action to social spending—face possible collapse thanks to corporate-backed lawmakers.

In the conversation with The Guardian, Sanders (I-Vt.)—a two-time contender for the Democratic presidential nomination and the current chair of the Senate Budget Committee—said the party must immediately undertake "a major course correction" if it hopes to advance its popular agenda, reverse its falling support among key constituencies, and prevent the increasingly authoritarian GOP from seizing power.

"We have tried a strategy over the last several months, which has been mostly backdoor negotiations with a handful of senators,” Sanders noted, referring to talks over Democrats' $1.75 trillion reconciliation package and other pressing issues. "It hasn't succeeded on Build Back Better or on voting rights. It has demoralized millions of Americans."

"It is no great secret that the Republican Party is winning more and more support from working people," he said. "It's not because the Republican Party has anything to say to them. It's because in too many ways the Democratic Party has turned its back on the working class."

With the entirety of the Build Back Better Act verging on failure largely due to the persistent obstruction of one lawmaker—fossil fuel industry ally and coal profiteer Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)—Sanders called on President Joe Biden and the Democratic leadership to force floor votes on highly popular individual components of the legislation.
caltrek's comments: Sanders is right. The time for negotiations is ended, and they should have ended a long time ago. Better to have votes and be defeated. At least it becomes clear who supports what, and forces opponents to publicly explain themselves. Instead, we have these rope a dope tactics carried on by folks like Senator Manchin who now seem to have been negotiating in bad faith. One suspects that he never intended to compromise, but always intended to torpedo the negotiations. I am greatly disappointed and frankly had hoped for a better outcome.
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caltrek
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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Inside the Bizarre Story of a California Man Arrested with 300 Voting Ballots -- and the Right-wing Outrage that Followed
by Alex Henderson
January 11, 2022

https://www.alternet.org/2022/01/theres ... ud-police/

Introduction:
(Alternet) After Southern California resident Eduardo Mena was arrested in August 2021 and found with 300 election ballots in his possession, right-wing media were quick to make election fraud claims. But according to Sgt. Mark Ponegalek of the Torrance Police Department, there is no evidence that Mena had election fraud in mind — as those ballots were among the many allegedly stolen items in his possession.

Mena was arrested on August 16, 2021, and SFGate reporter Eric Ting notes that the following night, the Torrance Police Department posted details of his arrest on Facebook.

The Facebook post read, “Last night, officers responded to a male subject passed out in a vehicle in the 7-11 parking lot. Officers learned he was a felon & located Xanax pills on him. Officers continued their investigation and discovered a loaded firearm, methamphetamine, thousands of pieces of mail, a scale & multiple CA drivers licenses and credit cards in other individuals’ names.”

The “thousands of pieces of mail” part is important, as the ballots were only part of the mail the Torrance Police suspected Mena of stealing. But it was the voting ballots that right-wing media zeroed in on. Ponegalek specifically talked about the ballots in another Facebook post.

“Ponegalek said that early signs — the multiple driver's licenses and credit cards — pointed to the case being one of stolen mail, identity theft and bank fraud, which is precisely what investigators found,” Ting explains. “In November, the suspect, 34-year-old Eduardo Mena, was charged with bank fraud and identity theft, with the police department putting out a statement last week noting that ‘investigators have not uncovered any evidence indicating Mena intended to engage in any type of election fraud,’ and alleging that Mena stole the mail from a Postal Service vehicle. But the damage had already been done.”
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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Hoyer: White House to ask for more pandemic relief funds
Source: Roll Call

The Biden administration is preparing to ask Congress for “substantial” funding to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic domestically and abroad, according to House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer.

The Maryland Democrat told reporters Tuesday during a pen and pad briefing that he expects the White House will ask lawmakers to appropriate funding for testing, vaccines and “to make sure schools have resources to keep themselves safe.”

Hoyer did not say whether congressional leaders would seek to tie the forthcoming supplemental spending request to the Feb. 18th deadline for funding the government. But he added pandemic aid “has an immediacy and an urgency that should compel us to move quickly.”

The Office of Management and Budget did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether a proposal is forthcoming. House Appropriations Chair Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., said talks are in the preliminary stages.

Read more: https://www.rollcall.com/2022/01/11/hoy ... ief-funds/

Who wants to bet that the little guy won't be getting another fucking 600, 1,200 or 1,400 dollar check from this. I'll probably go to corporate America and more bullshit.
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caltrek
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Who wants to bet that the little guy won't be getting another fucking 600, 1,200 or 1,400 dollar check from this. I'll probably go to corporate America and more bullshit.
Top
If I were in a more optimistic mood, I might take you up on that bet. Given the way things have been going lately, I am afraid your assessment may be realistic. In any case, normally I am not a betting man.

What I came here to post:

Legal Expert Dismantles Manchin’s False Claims About the Filibuster 'Tradition of the Senate'
Meaghan Ellis
January 12, 2022

https://www.alternet.org/2022/01/legal- ... tradition/

Introduction:
A legal expert is pushing back against Sen. Joe Manchin's (D-W.Va.) recent remarks suggesting the filibuster is a centuries-old "tradition of the Senate."

According to Manchin, the filibuster is “the tradition of the Senate here in 232 years now. … We need to be very cautious what we do. … That’s what we’ve always had for 232 years. That’s what makes us different than anyplace else in the world.”

However, The Washington Post's Glenn Kessler has a detailed argument to refute Manchin's claims. He began with clear facts breaking down the meaning of the word "filibuster."*

"Without saying so, the statement concedes Manchin was wrong to cite a 'tradition' of 232 years," Kessler wrote.


Conclusion:
In conclusion, Kessler assessed Manchin's false claim with three Pinnochios.
*https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics ... ilibuster/





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weatheriscool
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CPI for all items rises 0.5% in December; shelter and used cars and trucks up, energy down
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics


Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 a.m. (ET) January 12, 2022
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.5 percent in December on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.8 percent in November, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 7.0 percent before seasonal adjustment.

Increases in the indexes for shelter and for used cars and trucks were the largest contributors to the seasonally adjusted all items increase. The food index also contributed, although it increased less than in recent months, rising 0.5 percent in December. The energy index declined in December, ending a long series of increases; it fell 0.4 percent as the indexes for gasoline and natural gas both decreased.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.6 percent in December following a 0.5-percent increase in November. This was the sixth time in the last 9 months it has increased at least 0.5 percent. Along with the indexes for shelter and for used cars and trucks, the indexes for household furnishings and operations, apparel, new vehicles, and medical care all increased in December. As in November, the indexes for motor vehicle insurance and recreation were among the few to decline over the month.

The all items index rose 7.0 percent for the 12 months ending December, the largest 12-month increase since the period ending June 1982. The all items less food and energy index rose 5.5 percent, the largest 12-month change since the period ending February 1991. The energy index rose 29.3 percent over the last year, and the food index increased 6.3 percent.
{snip}

Contact Information

Read more: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm


https://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock-ma ... 47890.html
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caltrek
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^^^The nice thing about government reports is that they can be quoted at length without fear of copyright infringement. That said, I found the report on the energy sector to be particularly interesting:
Energy
...
The energy index rose 29.3 percent over the past 12 months with all major
energy component indexes increasing. The gasoline index rose 49.6 percent
over the last year. The index for natural gas rose 24.1 percent over the
last 12 months, and the electricity index rose 6.3 percent.


Note how minor the rise in the electricity index for the last 12 months was relatively low (6.3 per cent) in comparison to gasoline (49.6 per cent) and natural gas (24.1 per cent). I think that trend bodes well for electric vehicles.

Also of interest:
The index for food at employee sites and schools, in contrast,
declined 49.3 percent over the past 12 months, reflecting widespread free lunch
programs.
This sort of thing demonstrates why the Build Back Better plan might actually help to lower inflation. Another example would be investments in energy infrastructure that could result in lower long term energy costs. Too bad Manchin and the Republicans want to kill Build Back Better on the dubious grounds that it will add to inflation. Oh well.

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm
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caltrek
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Meanwhile, on the political front:

Biden is Rising to the Moment, but can Congress?
by Ben Jealous
January 12, 2022

https://otherwords.org/biden-is-rising- ... -congress/

Introduction:
(Other Words) President Joe Biden’s recent visit to Atlanta, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s hometown, focused national attention on a somber fact: the legacy of the civil rights movement is threatened by recent and ongoing attacks on voting rights.

Sitting on the campus of Morehouse College, Dr. King’s alma mater, surrounded by friends and colleagues in the voting rights movement, I felt proud that we had arrived at this moment. Every one of us was committed to keeping our eyes on the prize, prepared to do whatever it takes to see President Biden sign urgently needed voting rights protections into law.

President Biden’s words matched the magnitude of the moment. “I will not yield,” he said. “I will not flinch. I will defend the right to vote and our democracy against all enemies, foreign, and yes, domestic.”

Biden appealed to Republican senators to restore the bipartisan tradition of supporting voting rights, but he also made it clear that the Senate should act even if they do not.

“To protect our democracy, I support changing the Senate rules, whichever way they need to be changed, to prevent a minority of senators from blocking action on voting rights,” he said. “When it comes to protecting majority rule in America, the majority should rule in the United States Senate.”
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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caltrek
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^^^He is also on Linkedin. I participated in one of his threads. It was really neat that a labor economist followed up right behind me and made some great points that I failed to make. You might say we owned the conservatives. :D

What I came here to post:

“Seditious Conspiracy” Charges Against Oath Keepers Mark a Major Advance in January 6 Investigation
January 13, 2021

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/20 ... onspiracy/

Introduction:
(Mother Jones) FBI agents on Thursday arrested Stewart Rhodes, the founder of far-right Oath Keepers, and charged him with seditious conspiracy, the Justice Department announced. The sedition charge marks a major and largely unexpected advancement in the federal investigation into the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Rhodes was taken into custody in Granbury, Texas, according to his lawyer, Jonathon Moseley, who said he was on the phone with Rhodes about plans for him to be interviewed by the House select committee investigating January 6, when the FBI called. “The FBI special agent said they were outside and he needed to come out with his hands up and be arrested,” Moseley said.

The DOJ also charged 11 other Oath Keepers with seditious conspiracy. Most of those group members already faced other charges related to storming the Capitol on January 6, including conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding—the congressional counting and certification of electoral votes. The sedition charges, which carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, were new and represent the first use of such laws against alleged January 6 participants or planners.

The allegations suggest that the DOJ may be expanding its prosecutions to focus on people who helped plan but did not directly take part in the attack. Almost all of the more than 700 defendants previously charged by prosecutors for their actions on January 6 are accused of either storming the Capitol or fighting with police outside Congress. Though Rhodes entered a restricted area outside the Capitol on January 6, according to the feds, he does not appear to have entered the Capitol building itself.

In the indictment against Rhodes and other Oath Keepers released on Thursday, the Justice Department said that Rhodes and his co-conspirators coordinated travel to DC; brought firearms, ammunition, and paramilitary gear to the DC area; and organized into teams that were prepared “to use force to stop the lawful transfer of presidential power.”


caltrek's comment: Don't look back Donald trump, something may be gaining on you.
Last edited by caltrek on Sat Jan 15, 2022 6:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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weatheriscool
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Re: USA News and Discussions

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Thieves in LA are looting freight trains filled with packages from UPS, FedEx and Amazon
Source: CNN Business
Photos and videos showing piles of empty boxes littered alongside rail tracks in Los Angeles County, California have gone viral as shipping companies say they've seen a dramatic spike in railroad theft. Some of the boxes are packages from companies like UPS, Amazon and FedEx.
Union Pacific, one of the country's largest railroad companies, says it may avoid operating in Los Angeles County following the spike in thefts, which it blames on lax prosecution of crimes. The containers and trains are locked, but can be broken into.
Union Pacific said last month in a letter to the Los Angeles District Attorney that it saw a 160% year-over-year increase in theft in LA county. The company claims that a December 2020 special directive issued by District Attorney George Gascón that changed how low-level offenses are prosecuted has contributed to the uptick.

Union Pacific said in its letter that in the last three months of the year it made over 100 arrests of "active criminals vandalizing our trains" in partnership with the LA police department and Los Angeles Sherriff department. But Union Pacific, which has its own police department with jurisdiction over the 32,000 miles of tracks it owns, said that even as it has expanded its security resources and partnered more closely with local law enforcement, the problem isn't going away. After being arrested individuals are released from custody within 24 hours, it said.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/14/economy/ ... index.html


This shit needs to be cracked down on hard!!! Fucking bastards. :twisted:
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