Progressive Party

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.alternet.org President Donald J. Trump delivers remarks at the Meeting of the Ministers of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on February 6, 2019. / ABC News screenshot So I may be burying the lede on this one—on purpose for once. The buried bit involves a bit of classic Trumpian projection that, sadly and predictably, ventures into the offensive. (Skip ahead if you want to see it. I'll never know.) But first, let's take a look at the most revealing part of the new book by Wall Street Journal repor Michael Bender, Frankly, We Did Win This Election: The Inside Story of How Trump Lost It's no secret that Donald Trump doesn't respect Joe Biden—probably because Biden is everything Trump isn't: compassionate, intelligent, thoughtful, patriotic, grounded in reality, and physically smaller than a calving beluga whale raised almost exclusively on factory-surplus Spam. For this reason, Trump reportedly came under the delusion throughout the summer prior to the election that the Democrats would be forced to replace Biden with someone else. And as a result, Trump took his eye off Biden. In another moment Bender writes that Trump held back on focusing his firepower on Biden during the primary stage of the election because he was Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.laprogressive.com Throughout its nearly 40-year history, Public Justice has specialized in taking on corporate behemoths on behalf of consumers, workers, and others who are determined to fight back against dangerous products, dangerous workplaces and dangerous attempts to block the courthouse doors. On May 14, we scored a major victory against one of the biggest behemoths of all: Monsanto, manufacturer of the weed killer Roundup. We are proud to have played a leading role in securing a Ninth Circuit victory on behalf of Edwin Hardeman, a California resident who developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after decades of exposure to Roundup. The court upheld Hardeman’s headline-generating jury verdict awarding him $80 million. The court’s decision is doubly impressive considering the resources, connections and power Monsanto brought to the case, and the company’s ongoing campaign to immunize itself from accountability. The court’s decision is doubly impressive considering the resources, connections and power Monsanto brought to the case, and the company’s ongoing campaign to immunize itself from accountability. From using its influence in Washington to convince EPA that its product is safe for consumers to its still-running ad campaign assuring the public that Roundup poses no danger – and the very considerable financial resources the company has put into numerous legal fights over the product – Monsanto has stopped at nothing to deny the overwhelming scientific evidence Read the full article

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This Piece Originally Appeared in www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com Fox News over the weekend gave obsessive coverage to Vice President Kamala Harris’s tweet urging Americans to “enjoy the long weekend” over Memorial Day without mentioning the sacrifices made by American military servicemembers. CNN’s Briana Keilar acknowledged on Monday that it was a “bad tweet” but said that she was still surprised that Fox News “went crazy” with it to the extent that it did. New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman then told Keilar the real reason why Fox and other conservatives jumped on the tweet. “I think you have seen Fox News and Republicans chasing shiny objects because whatever efforts they’re trying to do to get at and lower the poll numbers at the Biden White House is not working. So something like this seems like chum in the water for their audiences.” Haberman noted that Republicans during former President Donald Trump’s tenure infamously pretended that they didn’t read his incendiary tweets, and she said they’ve so far been silent on former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn’s endorsement of a military coup in the United States. “It’s hard to treat this as a serious reaction,” she said of outrage over Harris’s tweet. Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com Sunday just before midnight in a surprise move Texas Democrats walked out of the House chamber , depriving Republicans of a quorum and – at least temporarily – killing what experts say would have been them most restrictive voter suppression law in the country from passing minutes before the end of the legislative season. Here’s how Texas Democratic state Rep. James Talarico put it: My Democratic colleagues and I just walked out of the House chamber. We broke quorum to kill SB 7, the Texas voter suppression bill. Good trouble. Necessary trouble. #txlege — James Talarico (@jamestalarico) May 31, 2021 My colleagues and I didn’t make this decision lightly. Breaking quorum is only used for the most egregious abuses of power. We can debate issues, but we won’t debate democracy itself. — James Talarico (@jamestalarico) May 31, 2021 GOP Governor Greg Abbott, who was expected to sign the bill, can still call lawmakers back into a special session to pass to legislation if he chooses, but for the moment the voter suppression bill that targeted Democratic voters is dead. Many watching in the wee hours of the night cheered the Texas House Democrats’ bravery, and are demanding lawmakers on Capitol Hill – who have the majority – tap into the courage and determination of Texas’ Democrats to end the filibuster and pass HR1/S1 and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act to protect and expand voting rights across the country. According to the Brennan Center for Justice , this year already “at least 14 states enacted 22 new laws that restrict access to the vote.” “Overall, lawmakers have introduced at least 389 restrictive bills in 48 states in the 2021 legislative sessions.” Rep. Talarico, who at 32 years old is currently the youngest Texas lawmaker, was not shy in his remarks, calling on Congress to “get their shit together” to protect voters across the country: State lawmakers are holding the line. Federal lawmakers need to get their shit together and pass the For The People Act. — James Talarico (@jamestalarico) May 31, 2021 Here’s how some are celebrating Texas House Democrats and calling on Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate to summon up the courage to take whatever action is necessary to protect Americans’ right to vote. If Texas House Democrats can walk off the floor to kill voter suppression bill, then Senate Dems can kill filibuster to pass HR1 & John Lewis Voting Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in crooksandliars.com With no offense to anyone making observations on the nature of the former Republican Party, we are missing the forest for the trees. All the handwringing over our conservative neighbors’ misbehavior misses something in attributing it to racism or ambition or money or simple hatred of its foes. It is about power. Who has it. Who doesn’t. And who is unwilling to share it. (All they really need to know they failed to learn in kindergarten.) “American politics is being conducted under the threat of violence,” Michael Gerson wrote this week. “If Trump has a political philosophy, one of its main tenets is toxic masculinity — the use of menace and swagger to cover his mental and moral impotence.“ Trump’s art of the deal is in fact Digby’s Art of the Hissy Fit, simply alpha dog behavior — showing who’s boss by barking loudly in the other dog’s face until he rolls over on his back and pees in the air. This is called winning. For all the long-gone conservative pretensions to being a party of ideas, the idea is to win and hold power for its own sake. Whether it is money or politics or intimidation by people “who view the right to bear arms as the right to make armed threats,” as Gerson wrote, having power and wielding it is everything. Base instinct. Nothing more. "Many news outlets, particularly at the local level, avoid honestly describing the Republican Party as increasingly at war with democracy." https://t.co/2abiFP5ieu What @perrybaconjr sees in this column is also what I see. — Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) May 20, 2021 Like Trump, the more conservative whites feel their monopoly on power slipping away, the more dangerous our situation becomes. Yes, as Jay Rosen suggests, exploitation of standard process is common in both the Big Lie and the denial of tenure to Nikole Hannah-Jones. This is an interesting point. In retrospect, an early harbinger of GOP radicalization was the refusal to raise the debt limit as a point of leverage against Obama. We also see this tendency now in the refusal to seat Dems who win elections. And the debt limit is coming up again. https://t.co/a3tN1twPtl — Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) May 22, 2021 But the real common thread is not the particularities of the exploitation of process or the rejection of democracy, but a feral instinct for domination. Like the T-800, that cannot be reasoned with or bargained with. Adam Serwer addressed this at The Atlantic: In the specific case of Hannah-Jones and UNC, the objective is to intimidate those who might share her views by showing that such views could cost them a job. As the conservative writer and aspiring politician J. D. Vance put it in a speech to the Claremont Institute, “If you’re fighting the values and virtues that make this country great, then the conservative movement should be about nothing if not reducing your power and if necessary destroying you.” The traditional argument between American liberals and conservatives is over what problems the state can or should remedy; the position of the Trumpist GOP is that the state is an instrument for destroying your enemies—by which its members simply mean Americans who disagree with them. Q.E.D. Except it’s not about values and virtues. That’s highfalutin window dressing. It’s about power, and about who wields it over whom. Published with permission from Digby's Hullabaloo . Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.alternet.org Scene from Arizona's Maricopa County election audit, A Georgia county appears headed for another review of last year's presidential election results — the latest in a long string of increasingly long-shot attempts by Trump allies to uncover seemingly nonexistent voter fraud and cast doubt on the legitimacy of the 2020 election. This most recent review in Atlanta-area Fulton County cannot change the state's results — which were certified earlier this year and have withstood several recounts already — but plaintiffs in the lawsuit that spurred the review say they're still seeking evidence of fraud and improper counting by election officials. A Georgia judge agreed to unseal more than 145,000 absentee ballots as a part of the inquiry, but crucially decided to keep physical copies in possession of Fulton County officials, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution . The move is seemingly a play to avoid the bizarre, headline grabbing antics of Trump loyalists in Arizona who have subjected hundreds of thousands of ballots from metropolitan Maricopa County to a series of incredibly strange tests : scans with ultraviolet light to uncover nonexistent watermarks and forensic analysis seeking the presence of bamboo fibers (evidence of their source in "Asia"), for example. Henry County Superior Court Judge Brian Amero, who is handling the case, said the ballots will likely be scanned to produce high-resolution images that the plaintiffs, nine Georgia voters, will be able to review. They are seeking evidence that large numbers of the ballots were printed by machines and not filled out by voters themselves. These claims have been thoroughly debunked — the AJC points to expert testimony rebutting such claims, a full hand recount that failed to uncover any evidence of widespread fraud in Georgia, and analysis from Trump's own Attorney General and election security head . Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts blasted the review in a statement. "It is outrageous that Fulton County continues to be a target of those who cannot accept the results from last year's election," Pitts, a Democrat, wrote. "The votes have been counted multiple times, including a hand recount, and no evidence of fraud has been found. "The fact remains that Fulton County safely and securely carried out an election in the midst of a public health crisis." The nine plaintiffs have agreed to pay for the review Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.newsweek.com Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) led a group of Democrats introducing a House resolution opposing a proposed sale of U.S. arms to Israel on Wednesday, while the Biden administration is opposing a United Nations (U.N.) resolution calling for an end to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The U.S. repeatedly blocked the U.N. Security Council's attempt to issue a press release calling for an end to hostilities between Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza, according to the Associated Press. It also opposed a resolution calling for an end to the conflict, arguing that it could "undermine" its own "efforts to de-escalate," with President Joe Biden having told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday that "he expected a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire." Meanwhile, Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.) introduced a House resolution against the proposed sale of $735 million in U.S.-made arms to Israel. The Biden administration submitted the proposal to Congress for review on May 5, five days before the current conflict started. "For decades, the U.S. has sold billions of dollars in weaponry to Israel without ever requiring them to respect basic Palestinian rights," Ocasio-Cortez in a statement. "In so doing, we have directly contributed to the death, displacement and disenfranchisement of millions." "At a time when so many, including President Biden, support a ceasefire, we should not be sending 'direct attack' weaponry to Prime Minister Netanyahu to prolong this violence," she added. Members of Congress were given a 15-day window to approve or disapprove of the proposed arms sale. The window is set to close after Thursday, although Congress could still modify or block the sale before final delivery. The weapons included in the proposal are said to primarily consist of key components to precision-guided missile systems. Tlaib said that the sale of the weapons would send "a clear message" that "the U.S. is not interested in peace, and does not care about the human rights and lives of Palestinians." She also argued that the U.S. "cannot claim to support human rights and peace on Earth and continue to back the extremist Netanyahu regime." The Debate Israel vs Palestinians Share Share Subscribe Subscribe Amazon Music Apple Podcasts CastBox Google Podcasts iHeartRadio Pocket Casts RadioPublic Spotify Stitcher TuneIn RSS Download Description × Advertising / | 00:00 / 50:04 | Skip Listen on Oppression, aggression or self defense? Omar Baddar, a member of the National Policy Council at the Arab American Institute, and David Brog, the director of the Maccabee Task Force join us to debate the current situation unfolding in Israel. Player Code Embed this player on your website using the snippet below Copy The U.N. Security Council resolution that the Biden administration rejected was drafted by the French and included a demand to end the conflict while condemning "the indiscriminate firing of rockets against civilian areas," according to Reuters. The resolution could pass with the backing of nine out of 15 council members as long as it is not vetoed by the U.S. or any of the other four permanent members.The U.N. General Assembly is slated to hold debate on the conflict on Thursday, with a possible vote on the matter to follow. However, General Assembly resolutions are non-binding, while the Security Council holds the power to issue binding resolutions. Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment. Read the full article

Theodore Roosevelt gave a speech what is today one of the most quoted speeches. Citizenship in a Republic is the title of a speech given at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910. One most referenced passage from the speech is known as "The Man in the Arena" https://youtu.be/A311CnTjfos It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. Someone who is heavily involved in a situation that requires courage, skill, or tenacity (as opposed to someone sitting on the sidelines and watching), is sometimes referred to as "the man in the arena". Roosevelt railed against pessimists, today we call it fake news, who disliked people who were about to make a the world a better place. “The poorest way to face life is to face it with a sneer,” he said. “A cynical habit of thought and speech, a readiness to criticize work which the critic himself never tries to perform, an intellectual aloofness which will not accept contact with life's realities—all these are marks, not ... of superiority but of weakness.” The Man in the Arena has become the most famous speech and still  inspires today. Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in www.vanityfair.com By SAUL LOEB/Getty Images. You might not know it from the way he spent months trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election, but Donald Trump actually hated being president. “I loved my previous life. I had so many things going...this is more work than in my previous life,” he told Reuters in 2017. “I thought it would be easier.” Yes, it was an extremely rude awakening for the reality TV show host to learn that being president was an actual job and a pretty difficult one at that. Necessarily, he made some changes to the gig to make it more palatable to him—reportedly watching hours of TV a day , rolling up to the Oval Office at noon , not reading his intelligence briefings —but when it came to the actual work of running the country, he was not a fan. What he did like about being POTUS was the power, and he especially loved holding rallies where his supporters would hang on his every incomprehensible word and aside like he was an authoritarian ruler. So naturally, he’s bringing them back. The New York Post reports that Trump’s team “is in the process of selecting venues” for a pair of rallies in June, with a third expected to take place around the Fourth of July. While Trump has done interviews since leaving Washington, he’s yet to address his base via the campaign-style rallies he held during his four years in office, as the Post noted, the last one being the “Stop the Steal” speech he gave shortly before his supporters stormed the Capitol in an attempt to stop Joe Biden from becoming president. What can one expect from the trio of summer events? Certainly, there will be long, rambling claims about how he won the election and that the Democrats and fake-news media stole it from him. Obviously he’ll also undoubtedly blather on at length about the terrible job Biden is supposedly doing, like he did at some poor couple’s wedding in March: Elsewhere, odds are high to extremely high he’ll complain about not getting enough credit for the COVID-19 vaccines ; attack Liz Cheney and other Republicans who had the audacity to blame him for January 6; mock the lower third of Mitch McConnell ’s face ; and revive his one-sided feud with showerheads and toilets . He’ll most likely also continue to tease a 2024 run for the White House. And speaking of Trump and bids for office, Bloomberg reports that as Republicans hope to regain control of Congress in the 2022 midterms, data reveals that an endorsement from the ex-president may be the kiss of death: The former president is studying races and plans to bestow his superlative-laden endorsements around the country in many 2022 primary or general election contests for the U.S. House, Senate, and governorships, according to a person familiar with his thinking. While those nods can still be the golden ticket in a Republican primary and solidly GOP districts, they also can energize independents and Democrats who don’t like Trump in competitive districts—risking defeat for Republican candidates in the general election and with it possible control of the House, according to studies of the 2018 and 2020 campaigns. In Colorado, Trump’s endorsement last year of Republican senator Cory Gardner in a race that leaned Democratic helped shore up his standing among Republicans, according to David Flaherty, a Colorado–based Republican–leaning pollster and founder of Magellan Strategies. A Magellan poll in October showed Gardner had 89% support among Republicans. But Flaherty said Trump’s backing alienated unaffiliated voters who turned out in large numbers in the general election, Read the full article

This Piece Originally Appeared in seattlemedium.com “…The provisions of the new law and the manner in which it was enacted reflect a thorough disregard for the sanctity of protecting the right to vote and a headlong and determined zeal to diminish Black political power in Georgia,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, LDF’s president and director-counsel. (Photo: iStockphoto / NNPA) ATLANTA — Civil rights groups have filed a new federal lawsuit against Georgia’s sweeping law that makes it much harder for all Georgians to vote, particularly voters of color, new citizens, and religious communities. The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Georgia, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and law firms WilmerHale and Davis Wright Tremaine brought the case on behalf of the Sixth District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Georgia Muslim Voter Project, Women Watch Afrika, Latino Community Fund Georgia, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. The law being challenged is S.B. 202, which was passed by the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate and signed by Gov. Brian Kemp in under seven hours last Thursday. These elected officials’ actions follow the 2020 presidential election and the 2021 runoff elections for two seats to the U.S. Senate that saw record turnout of voters, particularly Black voters, in Georgia. The elections were celebrated not just for their turnout, but also for their integrity, with Georgia officials praising them as safe and secure. But rather than act to expand participation in the political process, Georgia leaders responded by doing what they have done many times in the state’s history: they placed burdensome, unjustified, and unnecessary restrictions on voters, particularly voters of color and other historically disenfranchised communities. The lawsuit challenges multiple provisions in S.B. 202, including the: ban on mobile voting new narrow identification requirements for requesting and casting an absentee ballot delayed and compressed time period for requesting absentee ballots restrictions on secure drop boxes out-of-precinct provisional ballot disqualification drastic reduction in early voting in runoff elections perhaps most cruelly, ban on “line warming,” where volunteers provide water and snacks to Georgians, disproportionately those of color, who wait in needlessly long lines to cast their vote These provisions, the lawsuit charges, violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, and infringe on Georgians’ rights under the First, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. “This law is driven by blatant racism, represents politics at its very worst, and is clearly illegal,” said Sophia Lakin, deputy director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project. “We urge the court to act swiftly to strike it down.” “Legislators and Governor Kemp ignored the very obvious lessons from the election in 2020 and runoffs in 2021: expand safe and secure access to the ballot, codify innovations to voting, and provide additional resources to cash-strapped counties,” said Nancy Abudu, deputy legal director for the SPLC. “Instead, to appease conspiracy theorists and amplify deadly lies about past elections, Georgia’s leaders have chosen to pass into law S.B. 202, which makes it more difficult for every Georgian — but particularly Georgians who are members of historically disenfranchised communities — to vote in a safe, secure, and convenient manner and have that vote counted. In so doing, the defendants have violated federal law and the U.S. Constitution, and we turn to the federal courts and U.S. Congress to address the incredible harm S.B. 202 will have on our clients.” “S.B. 202 is perhaps the most bold and shameful voter suppression legislation enacted in the modern era. Its purpose and target are clear: to create barriers to voting for Black voters who turned out in record numbers for the November 2020 presidential election and the Read the full article

In 2015 Bernie began his campaign as a challenge to the Democratic establishment with a truly progressive voice. A voice which the Democratic party has turned a deaf ear. He stood up to the corruption and greed that has enriched so few at the expense of so many. He made us all acknowledge the inexcusable bigotry inherent in our broken criminal justice system. He opened our eyes to the moral imperative of leaving our planet healthy and habitable for future generations. He spread his message of unity over division, not petty party unity but unity as human beings. He convinced us we deserve a government that represents all of us, not just wealthy campaign contributors and has proven that, with an honest message and the integrity to back it up, their money isn’t needed. Most importantly, he made us believe in a future worth fighting for. For these reasons and the passion of the progressive ideas, the Progressive Party revived. A platform was formed that incorporate the issues and goals of the progressive movement. Read also: https://progressivepartyusa.com/about/   Read the full article

Now is not the time to be quiet! I'm in! DO MORE - SIGN, COPY THE LINK AND SHARE THIS PETITION Read the full article

via Zoom Hosted by Grassroots New Gloucester - a recently formed group to support progressives for local public office and to build strong community participation in town committees and groups. Join us if you are: - Thinking of running for office (Selectboard, School Board, Charter Commission) – now or in the future - Interested in joining a town committee or group - And/or want to support progressive candidates for public office Hear from a variety of speakers about local resources, and answer questions from those interested in joining local offices/committees. Speakers: - Jenna Howard - Communications Director, House Speaker Ryan Fecteau - Anne Gass - Gray Town Council Member - John Salisbury - Expert in Municipal Government and Town Charters If you can’t make it, you can still send us your questions! Email questions to [email protected] After registering, all attendees will receive the zoom link prior to the event. Read the full article

You don't want to miss this! Join us for Unapologetically Progressive Women in celebration of Women's History Month! Meet some dynamic candidates running for office in 2021 who will change the face of local politics! Registration opens Monday, March 8th at 10 AM ET Host committee early registration available NOW! For guaranteed access to our 2021 events, join our National Host Committee today! https://runforsomething.net/2021HOSTS For as little as $8 a month, you can have a guaranteed spot for our virtual and eventual (knock on wood) in-person events for the entire year! That includes our , Unapologetically Progressive events, Front Row Seat, and more. Campaign finance law requires us to collect your occupation, employer, and employer's address. If you are retired, self-employed, or not employed, please use your home address. We're required to collect this information for campaign finance reporting. Contribution rules 1. I am at least eighteen years old.2. This contribution is made from my own funds, and funds are not being provided to me by another person or entity for the purpose of making this contribution.3. I am making this contribution with my own personal credit card and not with a corporate or business credit card or a card issued to another person.4. I am a U.S. citizen or lawfully admitted permanent resident (i.e., green card holder). Please note: Contributions or gifts are not deductible for Federal income tax purposes Read the full article

HISTORY – PROGRESSIVE PARTY 1912 The Progressive Party was a third party in the United States formed in 1912 by former President Theodore Roosevelt after he lost the presidential nomination of the Republican Party to his former protégé and conservative rival, incumbent President William Howard Taft. The new party was known for taking advanced positions on progressive and populist reforms and attracting leading national reformers. After the party’s defeat in the 1912 presidential election, it went into rapid decline in elections until 1918, disappearing by 1920. The Progressive Party was popularly nicknamed the “Bull Moose Party” since Roosevelt often said that he felt “strong as a bull moose” both before and after an assassination attempt on the campaign trail. As a member of the Republican Party, Roosevelt had served as President from 1901 to 1909, becoming increasingly progressive in the later years of his presidency. In the 1908 presidential election, Roosevelt helped ensure that he would be succeeded by Secretary of War Taft. Although Taft entered office determined to advance Roosevelt’s Square Deal domestic agenda, he stumbled badly during the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act debate and the Pinchot-Ballinger controversy. The political fallout of these events divided the Republican Party and alienated Roosevelt from his former friend. Read the full article

It’s time for a new generation of leaders. A Progressive Party that represent the people and fights for its voters, not mega donors. ARE YOU IN? YOUR NAME (*) EMAIL (*) Please leave this field empty. CONTINUE to Home Page   >>> Read the full article