Month: May 2018

MORNING MESSAGE

Jeff Bryant

New Charter School Plan Should Alarm the Nation

Charter schools already have a segregation problem. But a new law about to pass in North Carolina directs even more taxpayer money into funding charter schools that by design, if not by intent, lead to more racial segregation of school children. This alarming development should be a wakeup call to the nation on how a campaign to re-segregate public schools is being carried out in the name of “school choice” and “local control.”

How Trump Stacks Courts For Conservative Causes

Donald Trump is weaponising the courts for political ends. The Guardian: “It was a startling omission even according to the peculiar moral norms of the Trump era. When Wendy Vitter, one of the US president’s judicial nominees, was asked whether she supported the supreme court’s 1954 Brown v Board of Education decision to end racial segregation in schools – a near sacred pillar of progress for civil rights in the 20th century – she did not say yes. ‘I don’t mean to be coy,’ Vitter, who is up for a seat on the US district court for the eastern district of Louisiana, told her Senate confirmation hearing. ‘But I think I get into a difficult area when I start commenting on supreme court decisions which are correctly decided and which I may disagree with.’ If approved, Vitter, currently general counsel of the Roman Catholic archdiocese of New Orleans and an opponent of abortion rights, would join a wave of lifetime appointments that threatens to fundamentally tilt the balance of America’s courts – and embolden conservative activists to bring cases that once seemed lost causes.”

Virginia Will Expand Medicaid

After years of trying, Virginia finally will expand Medicaid. NYT: “Virginia’s Republican-controlled Senate voted on Wednesday to open Medicaid to an additional 400,000 low-income adults next year, making it all but certain that the state will join 32 others that have already expanded the public health insurance program under the Affordable Care Act. Republican lawmakers in the state had blocked Medicaid expansion for four straight years, but a number of them dropped their opposition after their party almost lost the House of Delegates in elections last fall and voters named health care as a top issue. The vote, on a budget bill that included the Medicaid expansion, came almost three months after the House approved a similar plan. Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat also elected last fall, has been a vocal proponent of the expansion and can now claim a victory that his predecessor, Terry McAuliffe, desperately wanted but never got.”

Trans Woman Dies In ICE Custody

Transgender woman becomes sixth person to die in ICE custody since October. ThinkProgress: “Roxsana Hernandez, a 33-year-old transgender Honduran woman who was part of the Central American migrant caravan in late April, died of pneumonia complications at a hospital in New Mexico on May 25 while in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Hernandez fled Honduras due to the violence and discrimination she received for being transgender. Pueblo Sin Fronteras, the group that organized the caravan, claim Hernandez died due to the horrific conditions of her detainment. When she reached the United States, Hernandez was placed by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) into holding cells colloquially known as “iceboxes” because of their frigid temperature. Hernandez also lacked adequate food and medical care and was held in a cell where the lights were turned on 24 hours a day.”

‘Zero Tolerance’ Cruel To Children At Border

Trump immigration policy veers from abhorrent to evil. NYT: “We as a nation have crossed so many ugly lines recently, yet one new policy of President Trump’s particularly haunts me. I’m speaking of the administration’s tactic of seizing children from desperate refugees at the border… Is this really who we are? As a parent, as the son of a refugee myself, I find that in this case Trump’s policy has veered from merely abhorrent to truly evil. Family separations arise in part because of the new Trump administration policy, announced last month, of ‘zero tolerance’ for people who cross the border illegally. That means that parents are jailed (which happened rarely before), and their kids are taken away from them. ‘That’s no different than what we do every day in every part of the United States when an adult of a family commits a crime,” Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen told NPR this month. ‘If you as a parent break into a house, you will be incarcerated by police and thereby separated from your family.’ Yet Mirian, a Honduran woman who arrived in the U.S., broke no law. She simply followed the established procedure by presenting herself at an official border crossing point and requesting asylum because her life was in danger in Honduras — nevertheless, her 18-month-old was taken from her.”

DHS ‘Race Paper’ Sanctions Surveillance Of Activists

Racial-Justice and Civil-Liberties Groups Call on DHS to Release Inflammatory ‘Race Paper’. Free Press: “More than 40 racial-justice and civil-liberties groups delivered a letter urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release an unredacted version of a memo referred to as the “Race Paper.” According to DHS, the memo allegedly covers efforts by U.S. authorities to monitor domestic terrorism driven by race-related ‘extremist’ ideologies. The FBI came under heavy criticism in 2017 for creating the designation ”Black Identity Extremist” as a discriminatory measure to target racial-justice advocates for surveillance and prosecution. Similarly, the DHS memo appears to wrongly characterize peaceful, anti-racist groups carrying out protests as worthy of invasive and persistent surveillance. ‘We are concerned that biases and inaccuracies reflected in the ‘Race Paper’ could result in unconstitutional law enforcement activities throughout the country that disproportionately impact activists, protesters, and communities of color,’ reads the letter. The signers include 18 Million Rising, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Brennan Center for Justice, the Center for Media Justice, Color Of Change, Free Press, the Muslim Justice League, the NAACP, the National Lawyers Guild, Project Censored, the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law and the Southern Poverty Law Center.”

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MORNING MESSAGE

Sam Pizzigati

U.S. CEOs Are World’s Best – For Themselves

U.S. CEOs are the best in the world – for themselves. They certainly do not deliver the best results for average people. To really understand how staggering America’s CEO-worker pay imbalance has become, we need to widen our field of comparative vision, from domestic to global: our CEOs, on average, make four times more than other top execs around the world, and 269 times what an average U.S. worker makes. And these gaps are getting wider, every year. That’s a big deal.

Poor People’s Campaign Protests Inequality

Poor People’s Campaign is the angry response to inequality America needs. HuffPost: “Two Mondays ago, a bunch of dedicated rabble-rousers launched a new Poor People’s Campaign. Thousands demonstrated in Washington, D.C., including members of the union I lead, the United Steelworkers. The group, led by the Rev. William Barber II and the Rev. Liz Theoharis, plans actions in 30 states over 40 days. This past week, dozens of Poor People’s Campaign activists were again arrested in Washington, D.C., as they demanded restoration of the Voting Rights Act. The campaign is dedicated to the idea that ‘people should not live in or die from poverty in the richest nation ever to exist.”’ Its revival could not be more urgent or timely. The original Poor People’s Campaign was the vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, who wanted to expand the fight for civil rights to include a movement against the indignities of poverty across all racial lines. Dr. King was assassinated before he formally launched the campaign, but his supporters took up the cause beginning with an encampment in Washington, D.C., in 1968. Fifty years later, income inequality is worse… 140 million Americans are either impoverished or so low-income that they are unable to routinely afford food, clothing and utilities. Dr. King would be appalled.”

Slow Response To Puerto Rico Storm Prompts 5,000 Deaths

Puerto Rico death toll much higher than official estimates. NPR: “Perhaps 5,000 people died in Puerto Rico in 2017 for reasons related to September’s Hurricane Maria, according to a study that dismisses the official death toll of 64 as ‘a substantial underestimate.’ A research team led by scientists at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health didn’t simply attempt to count dead bodies in the wake of the powerful storm. Instead, they surveyed randomly chosen households and asked the occupants about their experiences. From that approach, they concluded that between Sept. 20 and Dec. 31, 2017, there were 4,645 ‘excess deaths’ — that is, deaths that would not have occurred if the island hadn’t been plunged into a prolonged disaster following the devastating storm.”

The Art Of Screwing Up The Deal

Trump is proving to be the world’s worst dealmaker. DailyKOS: “A week after declaring the trade war between the US and China “on hold” Trump has reversed himself by breaking that armistice. He has announced a series of actions, including an as-yet-undetermined set of Chinese-made goods that will be subject to a 25 percent tariff along with new restrictions on Chinese investment in the United States. This action seems to take positions back to where they were in April, with Trump threatening one set of tariffs and China preparing their own tariffs in reply. The most obvious casualty of that earlier round of threats was US farmers, who stood to lose an enormous portion of their export market… The Post calls Trump’s stances on economics and diplomacy “fluid.” By which they don’t mean flexible. More like unpredictable, erratic and nonsensical. It’s not just the positions themselves that are harming America’s standing in the world. The way Trump negotiates—by deception, bullying and sudden changes of direction—is leaving the US isolated and with few willing partners.”

Trump Escalates Anti-Immigrant Campaign Rhetoric

Trump doubles down on ‘animals,’ demands border wall. The Tennessean: “Two weeks after coming under fire for his controversial remarks on immigrant members of the MS-13 gang being “animals,” President Donald Trump doubled down on the sentiment at his rally Tuesday in Nashville. ‘What was the name?’ Trump asked the crowd gathered at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, referring to the criminal gang, a topic he brought up multiple times during his speech. ‘Animals!’ the crowd cheered, echoing the remarks Trump made earlier this month during a conversation about immigration. The rally in support of U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican candidate for the seat held by retiring Sen. Bob Corker, followed a private fundraiser for Blackburn earlier Tuesday evening in Music City… The president again repeated his promise to ‘build the wall,’ a pledge to produce some form of physical barrier between the U.S. and Mexico. While Trump had promised Mexico would pay for building the wall, he eventually said U.S. tax dollars would initially fund construction. Tuesday night, he repeated his assurance that Mexico would foot the bill for the wall, and that ‘they’re going to enjoy it.’”

Stephen Miller Is Trump’s Top Troll

Trump’s right-hand troll. The Atlantic: “In the campy TV drama that is Donald Trump’s Washington, Miller has carved out an enigmatic role. He lurks in the background for weeks at a time, only to emerge with crucial cameos in the most explosive episodes. The one where Trump signed a havoc-wreaking travel ban during his first week in office, unleashing global chaos and mass protests? Miller helped draft the executive order. The one where the federal government shut down over a high-stakes immigration standoff on Capitol Hill? Miller was accused of derailing the negotiations… Inside the White House, Miller has emerged as a staunch ideologue and an immigration hawk championing an agenda of right-wing nationalism. But people who have known him at different points in his life say his political worldview is also rooted in a deep-seated instinct for trolling. Miller represents a rising generation of conservatives for whom ‘melting the snowflakes’ and ‘triggering the libs’ are first principles.”

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MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

Real Corruption: Mick “Pay and We’ll Talk” Mulvaney

It’s not just that Mick Mulvaney has no scruples; he has no shame. When it comes to deep corruption, which perverts government’s role for the benefit of the privileged few, Trump’s Budget Director is a master of the art. And now that he also helms the CFPB, which is meant to safeguard consumers, his graft will cause deep and lasting harm to millions of Americans.

SCOTUS Rules Against Workers In Arbitration

Supreme Court upholds workplace arbitration contracts barring class actions. NYT: “The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that companies can use arbitration clauses in employment contracts to prohibit workers from banding together to take legal action over workplace issues. The vote was 5 to 4, with the court’s more conservative justices in the majority. The court’s decision could affect some 25 million employment contracts. Writing for the majority, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch said the court’s conclusion was dictated by a federal law favoring arbitration and the court’s precedents. If workers were allowed to band together to press their claims, he wrote, ‘the virtues Congress originally saw in arbitration, its speed and simplicity and inexpensiveness, would be shorn away and arbitration would wind up looking like the litigation it was meant to displace.’ Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg read her dissent from the bench, a sign of profound disagreement. In her written dissent, she called the majority opinion ‘egregiously wrong.’ In her oral statement, she said the upshot of the decision ‘will be huge under-enforcement of federal and state statutes designed to advance the well being of vulnerable workers.’”

Majority Of Dems Want Progressive Agenda

72% of Democrats want Congressional candidates to push Progressive agenda. Common Dreams: “Amid congressional primary races and ahead of the November 6 election, new survey results indicate that a large majority of Democratic voters believe that promoting a ‘progressive agenda’ should be the top priority of any Democrat running for Congress. A CBS News/YouGov poll (pdf) asked Democrats, Independents, and those who lean toward voting for Democrats to choose between two options for what Democratic candidates’ “first priority” should be. A full 72 percent said they want to see party candidates prioritize a progressive political agenda. The remaining 28 percent opted for merely opposing President Donald Trump’s agenda.”

Poor People’s Campaign Revives MLK’s Most Radical Idea

Fifty years after MLK’s death, activists revive his most radical project: the Poor People’s Campaign. Salon: “Fifty years after Martin Luther King Jr. first launched the idea in the last months of his life, this past week saw the kickoff of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, starting with an initial 40-day period of nonviolent direct action and civil disobedience. Described as “a moral fusion coalition that is multi-racial, multi-gendered, intergenerational, inter-faith and constitutionally grounded,” it shares King’s commitment to fighting the “Triplets of Evil” — systemic racism, poverty, and the war economy and militarism — but adds the interrelated problem of ecological devastation. Unlike the original, this new campaign is not solely focused on bringing the moral witness of the poor to the nation’s capital. It is simultaneously organizing in dozens of states as well, and building coalitions of poor people’s power in those states is the core of its long-term strategy.”

How Media Falls For Trump’s Racism

NYT explains how media outlets fall for Trump’s racism. Media Matters: “President Donald Trump’s defenders are attacking the media, claiming that his recent comments — in which he called some undocumented immigrants “animals” in response to a question about suspected members of the gang MS-13 — were taken out of context. But The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman explained that attacking the media for reporting on his vague, often racially coded statements has been a core part of Trump’s playbook since at least 2015.”

Trump Is A Symptom, Not The Cause

Corporate power dominates our politics. Truthout: “The Trump administration did not rise, prima facie, like Venus on a half shell from the sea. Donald Trump is the result of a long process of political, cultural and social decay. He is a product of our failed democracy. The longer we perpetuate the fiction that we live in a functioning democracy, that Trump and the political mutations around him are somehow an aberrant deviation that can be vanquished in the next election, the more we will hurtle toward tyranny. The problem is not Trump. It is a political system, dominated by corporate power and the mandarins of the two major political parties, in which we don’t count. We will wrest back political control by dismantling the corporate state, and this means massive and sustained civil disobedience, like that demonstrated by teachers around the country this year. If we do not stand up we will enter a new dark age.”

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MORNING MESSAGE

Jeff Bryant

NC Teachers Shout ‘Listen to Us!’ to Lawmakers

Why does it take shutting down thousands of schools to get political leaders’ attention? What is this “dialogue people haven’t been wanting to have”? The truth is people who’ve been deciding education policy have forgotten we live in a democracy. For years, it’s been too easy for politicians to ignore teachers because the gap between what goes on in schools and what gets decided in state capitals and Washington D.C. has gotten way too wide. Teachers in North Carolina, and elsewhere, are reminding us of that.

Houston Police Chief Calls For Gun Control

Houston police chief says he’s ‘hit rock bottom’ after school shooting. CNN: “The police chief said he’s tired of the common refrains after mass shootings that ‘guns aren’t the problem’ and ‘there’s little we can do.’ ‘I know some have strong feelings about gun rights, but I want you to know I’ve hit rock bottom and I am not interested in your views as it pertains to this issue,’ he said. There have been 22 school shootings where someone was hurt or killed in the US so far this year. That averages out to more than one shooting a week. The shooting at Santa Fe High School on Friday comes months after a massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left 17 people dead in Parkland, Florida. Though Acevedo did not describe what kind of gun reform he’d want to see enacted, he said now is the time to do more than pray.”

Farm Bill Collapses, Roiling GOP

House Farm Bill Collapses Amid Republican Disarray. NYT: “The factional rancor threatening Republicans heading into the midterm elections this fall erupted into the open on Friday when a slugfest among moderates, hard-line conservatives and House leaders over immigration and welfare policy sank the party’s multiyear farm bill. The twice-a-decade measure — which would have imposed strict new work requirements on food aid recipients while maintaining farm subsidies important to rural lawmakers — failed on a 213-to-198 vote. It was a rebuke of Speaker Paul D. Ryan by a key bloc of conservatives over his refusal to schedule an immediate vote on a restrictive immigration bill sponsored by the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. Republican moderates, for their part, were moving in the opposite direction, shrugging off the pleas of their leaders as they worked toward forcing votes on legislation to protect from deportation young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children.The fights were striking, not only because of their intensity but also because of the participants… This time, with their districts dominating the Democrats’ target list for the coming midterm races, the moderates are holding firm to their own demands.”

GOP Races To Appoint Federal Judges

The war over confirming federal judges is heating up again. NPR: “Democrats may hold 49 votes in the Senate but for all practical purposes, they have been completely disarmed when it comes to opposing President Trump’s judicial nominees. Now Republican leaders, worried about possibly losing control of the Senate in the November elections, are racing against the clock to push through as many judicial nominations as they can. But even some of their own members are privately worried that abandoning longtime practices and understandings is undermining the Senate’s constitutional power to provide its advice and consent on judicial nominations.”

Trade War With China “On Hold”

Mnuchin says trade war with China is ‘on hold’. The Hill: “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Sunday that a trade war with China is ‘on hold.’ ‘We’re putting the trade war on hold, Mnuchin said on ‘Fox News Sunday.’ ‘We have agreed to put the tariffs on hold while we try to execute the framework,’ he added. The apparent detente comes a day after the U.S. and China released a joint statement saying the two nations agreed to take measures to ‘substantially reduce the United States trade deficit in goods with China.’”

WH Threatens To Defund Abortion Services

Trump administration will pull funds from groups that perform abortions or provide referrals. WaPo: “The Trump administration is proposing to bar clinics that provide abortion services or referrals from receiving federal family-planning funds, a far-reaching move that would deprive Planned Parenthood and other women’s health centers of millions of dollars a year. The proposal would require a ‘bright line’ of physical and financial separation between clinics that receive $260 million annually in federal funding and any organization that provides abortions or referrals to abortion clinics. The move delivers on a long-held objective of abortion opponents, who are staunch supporters of President Trump. In a statement Friday, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that it ‘would ensure that taxpayers do not indirectly fund abortions’ and that Trump ‘is pleased to support” it.’”

KS Signs Anti-LGBT Adoption Law

Kansas governor signs anti-LGBT adoption bill. Truthout: “Kansas Governor Jeff Colyer signed a bill into law on Friday that will allow adoption agencies to refuse same-sex couples. The bill, known as the Adoption Protection Act, was designed to insulate religious organizations that want to discriminate against the LGBT community. Approved in the Kansas Legislature earlier this month, the bill permits agencies to refuse homes ‘for foster care or adoption when the proposed placement of such child would violate such agency’s sincerely held religious beliefs.’ Similar adoption bills are being considered in Oklahoma and Colorado, and at least seven other states have already passed such laws. Some of these laws only apply to organizations that do not receive government funding. The Kansas law extends to agencies operating under taxpayer-funded contracts.”

Income Gap Is Toxic To Democracy

The 9.9 percent is the new American aristocracy. The Atlantic: “The meritocratic class has mastered the old trick of consolidating wealth and passing privilege along at the expense of other people’s children. We are not innocent bystanders to the growing concentration of wealth in our time. We are the principal accomplices in a process that is slowly strangling the economy, destabilizing American politics, and eroding democracy. Our delusions of merit now prevent us from recognizing the nature of the problem that our emergence as a class represents. We tend to think that the victims of our success are just the people excluded from the club. But history shows quite clearly that, in the kind of game we’re playing, everybody loses badly in the end.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

Real Corruption: The Scott Pruitt Story

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt seems to be a terrible, self-centered person, who spares no expense on himself as long as someone else foots the bill. But the real reason Scott Pruitt should be removed from office is he abuses his position to cause lasting harm to current and future generations. While Pruitt and other White House officials are personally deplorable, and may prove to be personally corrupt, the real corruption isn’t who they are. It’s what they do. Scott Pruitt abuses the public trust by using his office to serve the Koch brothers and other fossil-fuel magnates, and he is killing us and our kids in the bargain.

Women Win Big In Primaries

Women sweep to victory in House primaries. Politico: “Tuesday was a a good night for female candidates. In Pennsylvania, the state’s all-male congressional delegation is poised to gain several female additions, as women swept to House Democratic primary victories in a number of Democratic-leaning and contested. In Nebraska, another woman — a Bernie Sanders-style liberal the party fears could harm its chances of winning back the House this fall — narrowly defeated a top Democratic recruit for a battleground congressional seat. There were also closely watched statewide primaries in the four states that voted Tuesday. Pennsylvania Republicans picked their nominees to face two targeted Democrats: Sen. Bob Casey and Gov. Tom Wolf. And Idaho Rep. Raúl Labrador failed to overcome the struggles of GOP House members running in statewide primaries so far this year in his campaign for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, losing to Lt. Gov. Brad Little. But Tuesday‘s contests were dominated by crucial primaries that will play an important role in the battle for control of the House next year. Pennsylvania was ground zero in that effort: Democrats are hoping a newly redrawn congressional map and a spate of retirements will lead to a handful of pickups in November and get the party closer to the 23 seats it needs to regain control of the chamber.”

Paulette Jordan Wins ID Nomination

Paulette Jordan claims Democratic victory in Idaho: ‘We won this race by everyone.’. Idaho Statesman: “Surrounded by a loud, jubilant crowd in a small Boise bar, Paulette Jordan claimed victory in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, beating two-time candidate AJ Balukoff and going one step closer to becoming the first female, Native American governor in the United States. ‘I didn’t win this race by Democrats alone,” the 38-year-old former state legislator declared as red white and blue balloons popped and supporters cheered, nearly drowning her out. ‘We won this race by everyone.’ She thanked her supporters and her family and her ancestors. She vowed that ‘never again’ will Democrats have to vote for the lesser of Republican evils. She promised to fight ‘with every single ounce of my life’ for access to health care and better education and to preserve the wild lands that make Idaho so special. ‘We are not afraid, and never again will we stand down,” Jordan said. “This is a great celebration tonight… Come tomorrow this race is still going on. We’ve still got a lot of work to do.’”

Progressives Tip NB Vote

Progressives Notch a Victory in Nebraska. Slate: “The progressive wing of the Democratic Party scored an upset victory in Tuesday’s House primary in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, non-profit executive Kara Eastman leads former congressman Brad Ashford, 50.9 percent to 49.1 percent—a difference of just over 500 votes. Nebraska law calls for an automatic recount for any race where the margin of victory is 1 percent or less. The eventual Democratic nominee will face Republican Rep. Don Bacon in a general election that was considered a toss-up when Ashford, with strong establishment backing, was the heavy favorite to win the Democratic nomination. It’s not clear how Eastman’s nomination would affect the calculus for November, but the fact that the race could potentially be headed for a recount is remarkable, given Ashford’s incumbent-like advantages. He entered the primary as the heavy favorite, and quickly secured the support of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which was betting that the former one-term congressman could win a rematch with Bacon, two years after Ashford lost by a single percentage point.”

Trump Ratchets Up Immigration Demands

Frustrated Trump wants action on border wall, immigration. The Hill: “President Trump on Tuesday demanded that Congress make progress on building his signature wall along the Mexican border, underlining his frustration with the lack of legislative progress on immigration. During a visit to Capitol Hill, Trump called on Congress to beef up border security, crack down on so-called sanctuary cities and end the practice of “catch and release” immigration laws — a slate of ideas that have run into a buzz saw of opposition from Democrats. ‘We are calling on Congress to secure our borders, support our border agents, stop sanctuary cities and shut down policies that release violent criminals back into our communities,” Trump said at an event outside the Capitol honoring fallen law enforcement officers. ‘We don’t want it any longer. We’ve had it. Enough is enough.’”

U.S. To Detain Migrant Children On Military Bases

Trump administration preparing to hold immigrant children on military bases. WaPo: “The Trump administration is making preparations to hold immigrant children on military bases, according to Defense Department communications, the latest sign the government is moving forward with plans to split up families who cross the border illegally. According to an email notification sent to Pentagon staffers, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will make site visits at four military installations in Texas and Arkansas during the next two weeks to evaluate their suitability to shelter children. The bases would be used for minors under 18 who arrive at the border without an adult relative or after the government has separated them from their parents. HHS is the government agency responsible for providing minors with foster care until another adult relative can assume custody.”

US Refuses To Accept Refugees

Apartments are stocked, toys donated. Only the refugees are missing. NYT: “The flow of refugees to the United States has slowed nearly to a halt, demonstrating that what President Trump’s administration could not achieve by executive order, it is accomplishing by bureaucracy. The administration has cut the staff that conducts clearance interviews overseas, intensified the screening process for refugees, and for those people it characterizes as high-risk, doubled the number who need to be screened. As a result, if the trickle of refugees admitted continues at its current pace, just 20,000 are projected to enter the United States by the end of this year, the lowest figure since the resettlement program was created with passage of the Refugee Act in 1980. The machinery of refugee resettlement has ground down accordingly. ‘Every stage in the process works like the assembly line in a factory — each station knows exactly what to do and how to do the hand-off to the next step,’ said Barbara Strack, who retired in January as the chief of the Refugee Affairs Division at United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. ‘This fiscal year,’ she added, ‘the administration essentially ‘broke’ the assembly line in multiple places at the same time.’”

US Pay Gap Is Extreme And Growing Fast

US study lays bare extreme pay-ratio problem. The Guardian: “The first comprehensive study of the massive pay gap between the US executive suite and average workers has found that the average CEO-to-worker pay ratio has now reached 339 to 1, with the highest gap approaching 5,000 to 1. The study, titled Rewarding Or Hoarding?, was published on Wednesday by Minnesota’s Democratic US congressman Keith Ellison, and includes data on almost 14 million workers at 225 US companies with total annual revenues of $6.3tn. Just the summary makes for sober reading. In 188 of the 225 companies in the report’s database, a single chief executive’s pay could be used to pay more than 100 workers; the average worker at 219 of the 225 companies studied would need to work at least 45 years to earn what their CEO makes in one. It also shows how some of the most extreme disparities in CEO-to-worker pay exist in industries that are considered consumer discretionary, such as fast food and retail, with a 977 to 1 disparity, one of the widest gaps.”

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MORNING MESSAGE

Jess King

We Can Build an America That Works for All of Us

We need to run on progressive values in the Reddest places in this country, to bring it back by speaking about the economic needs of working families that have been left out by both parties. I’m stepping up to run for Congress because I’m sick and tired of working my heart out to support other people working their hearts out to not get any further ahead. We can simply do better. And together, we will build an America that works for all of us.

New Poor People’s Campaign Kicks Off 40 Days Of Protest

New Poor People’s Campaign echoes MLK in 1968, LA Times: “Hundreds of poor and low-wage workers, clergy and activists were arrested Monday outside the U.S. Capitol and at statehouses across the country as they kick-started a revival of the Poor People’s Campaign — the civil disobedience movement founded 50 years ago by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. The 40 days of planned protests and other activities, organizers said, are intended to highlight the issues of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation and the societal cost of America’s military buildup. The idea is to lift poor people to the top of the nation’s agenda, disrupting the mainstream political conversation and jolting lawmakers, pundits and the 24-hour news cycle dominated by the Trump administration. A looming question, as organizers pledge to usher in one of the largest waves of nonviolent direct action in U.S. history, is whether the campaign’s message will gain traction.”

Primary Battles In PA, NB, ID, OR

Every May 15 primary election you should know about, briefly explained. Vox: “For national Democrats, the stakes are by far the highest in Pennsylvania — where some of Democrats’ best House pickup opportunities in the country will be on the ballot this fall, along with a governorship and US Senate seat they’ll have to defend. Idaho and Oregon, then, have competitive Republican primaries for governor, while Nebraska has one key US House seat Democrats are targeting, and one of the few Republican-held US Senate seats that will be on the ballot this fall.”

Left Challengers Take On Democratic Politics-As-Usual

A Democratic spring: 12 Left challengers take on the party establishment in 2018. In These Times: “The Left has sprouted an independent electoral infrastructure, including the formation of new groups like Our Revolution, Justice Democrats, Indivisible and Brand New Congress; the invigoration of existing political organizations like the Working Families Party; and a shift toward greater electoral engagement by groups like People’s Action and the Democratic Socialists of America. Another trend, propelled by Trump’s grotesque misogyny and the emergence of the #MeToo movement, is a surge in the number of women running for office. As of mid-April, 331 women had filed to run, easily beating the old record of 298, set in 2012. Of those, Democrats outnumber Republicans 248 to 83.”

EPA Cut Off Chemical Pollution Study

White House, EPA headed off chemical pollution study. Politico: “Scott Pruitt’s EPA and the White House sought to block publication of a federal health study on a nationwide water-contamination crisis, after one Trump administration aide warned it would cause a “public relations nightmare,” newly disclosed emails reveal. The intervention early this year — not previously disclosed — came as HHS’ Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry was preparing to publish its assessment of a class of toxic chemicals that has contaminated water supplies near military bases, chemical plants and other sites from New York to Michigan to West Virginia.The study would show that the chemicals endanger human health at a far lower level than EPA has previously called safe, according to the emails.”

DeVos Slashes Investigations Of Fraud By For-Profit Colleges

DeVos is sabotaging the Education Department’s investigation of for-profit colleges. NYT:“Members of a special team at the Education Department that had been investigating widespread abuses by for-profit colleges have been marginalized, reassigned or instructed to focus on other matters, according to current and former employees. The unwinding of the team has effectively killed investigations into possibly fraudulent activities at several large for-profit colleges where top hires of Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, had previously worked. During the final months of the Obama administration, the team had expanded to include a dozen or so lawyers and investigators who were looking into advertising, recruitment practices and job placement claims at several institutions, including DeVry Education Group. The investigation into DeVry ground to a halt early last year. Later, in the summer, Ms. DeVos named Julian Schmoke, a former dean at DeVry, as the team’s new supervisor.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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MORNING MESSAGE

Paulette Jordan
Providing a Chance for a Better Way of Life

When I left my Tribal council to run for higher office to serve my district, I served it in a very conservative part of my state. We have white supremacists in our neighborhood. And you’re looking at the Indigenous woman – the only Indigenous representative in the entire state. So I’m wholly honored, but I’m humbled by the fact that people are building into this progressive movement that we’re building in Idaho. Because they’re not looking at me as an Indigenous woman, the first to make history in our state, but they’re seeing me as a leader, someone with a bold new vision, with innovative solutions. And providing a chance – a better way of life.

Big Pharma Relieved By Trump’s Prescription Drug Strategy

Trump’s unimpressive plan to Lower drug prices. Bloomberg: “In what he described Friday as “the most sweeping action in history to lower the price of prescription drugs for the American people,” President Donald Trump ignored every step that would make a real difference. Indeed, a list of the actions he left out of his “blueprint” could serve as a guide to good policy. Trump neglected, to begin, his campaign promise to let Medicare use its vast purchasing power to negotiate prices. He said nothing in support of bipartisan legislation in Congress that would get generic drugs to market faster — the best way to lower prices for both government and private insurers. He didn’t mention letting Americans import medicines from other countries that carefully control drug quality. And he said not a word about the comparative effectiveness studies that the U.S. needs to judge what individual medicines are worth. Instead, he offered mostly timid and familiar ideas. Cut red tape at the Food and Drug Administration to bring drugs to market faster. Give individual insurers in Medicare’s Part D drug program a little more room to negotiate prices for subsets of beneficiaries. Adjust the rules on how pharmacy benefit managers negotiate rebates.”

Trump Vows To Protect ZTE Jobs In China

In about-face on trade, Trump vows to protect ZTE jobs in China. NYT: ” As China and the United States go toe-to-toe on trade and maneuver ahead of a historic North Korea meeting next month, an unlikely obstacle has emerged: a second-tier Chinese electronics maker, ZTE. The company said last week that it had halted “major operating activities” after being penalized by the United States Department of Commerce. On Sunday morning, President Trump surprised many in Washington when he indicated a willingness to rethink the punishment. He also appeared to walk back from brinkmanship that has threatened the United States’ trade talks with China. In a tweet, Mr. Trump said he was working with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, to prevent the collapse of the company, which employs 75,000 people. ‘Too many jobs in China lost,’ Mr. Trump wrote. ‘Commerce Department has been instructed to get it done!’”

Mass ICE Raids Ravage Rural Communities

Mass ICE raids leave broken communities. The Intercept: “A month after dozens of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents surrounded a meatpacking plant in Morristown, Tennessee, and detained 97 men and women who worked there, the tight-knit rural community is still reeling, but the initial shock has seeped into a quiet pain, as families adjust to lives without work and their loved ones… The Trump administration has promised more worksite immigration enforcement. In January, ICE’s Acting Director Thomas Homan said these operations would increase by “400 percent.” As The Intercept reported last month, ICE appeared to take workers at the Southeastern Provision plant into custody based on their ethnicity, rather than asking question to determine whether they were eligible for arrest and deportation. The day after the raid, about 550 children missed school. At least 160 children found themselves without at least one of their parents.”

ICE Loses 1,500 Children In Custody

ICE reports they have lost track of 1500 children they’ve taken from parents. AP: “A Senate subcommittee has found that federal officials lost track of nearly 1,500 migrant children last year after a government agency placed the minors in the custody of adult sponsors in communities nationwide. The Health and Human Services Department says it uses its limited funds to track the safety of at-risk children, and could not determine where 1,475 missing minors had gone. The Health and Human Services Department came under fire two years ago for rolling back child welfare policies meant to protect unaccompanied minors fleeing violence in Central America. An Associated Press investigation found that more than two dozen were placed in homes where they were sexually assaulted, starved or forced to work. The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations says federal agencies need to take full responsibility for the children’s care.”

NC Voters Dump Pro-Deportation Sheriff

NC voters dump Democratic sheriff who backed ICE deportation program. NBC: “Voters in North Carolina’s largest county, which includes Charlotte, ousted their sheriff last week in a Democratic primary fought over immigration and criminal justice reform. Advocates like the American Civil Liberties Union, which invested an unusually large amount of money in the race, hope to use it as a model as they look for ways to resist the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown at all levels of government… The ACLU spent $175,000 in Mecklenburg County — almost three times the amount the winner on Tuesday raised in the first quarter of the year — helping to turn around a race that internal polling showed was the incumbent’s to lose. Garry McFadden, a retired homicide detective who has been recognized by former President Barack Obama, won the three-way primary on Tuesday with 52 percent of vote. Incumbent Sheriff Irwin Carmichael came in a distant third, with 20 percent of the vote, blaming “outside influences” and the immigration issue for his loss, even as he defended his policies. There is no Republican on the ballot in the general election, so McFadden is effectively sheriff-elect.”

More from OurFuture.org:

Convenient Tales About Riches Within Reach. Sam Pizzigati: “Our popular culture can’t seem to get enough of life-affirming tales of modest multi-millionaire seniors. These stories make us feel good. They also, unfortunately, reinforce a message that our society’s richest — and their cheerleaders — find enormously convenient. But if ‘discipline, sacrifice, and hard work’ build wealth, why do so many millions of disciplined, sacrificing, and hard-working Americans today have so little of it? Why is the ‘millionaire next door’ — especially for our millennial generation — becoming a vanishing species?”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

Primary Day: Lessons for Democrats

This week’s primaries prove Democrats’ chances of wresting control of Congress this November depend largely on turnout. Tuesday’s results demonstrate that Progressives can win in red states, but they’ll need better exposure and solid candidates to do it. It’s not clear what the rise in GOP turnout means, but Democrats should not assume they’ll have the edge on enthusiasm or voter participation in November.

Progressives Endorse Candidates in NY, CA

Progressive groups endorse Dems in two key House races. The Hill: “Two major national progressive groups have unveiled endorsements for Democratic challengers running in key House races in New York and California. Democracy for America (DFA) and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) are backing Democrat Dana Balter, who’s running to challenge Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.), and Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar, who’s looking to unseat Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.). Both races are seen as top opportunities to flips seats and bring Democrats closer to taking back the House. Hillary Clinton won Katko’s district by more than 3 points in 2016. But President Trump won Hunter’s district by a comfortable double-digit margin. ‘Let’s elect game-changing progressives in the blue wave that’s coming — progressives are going to compete everywhere and they’re going to win,” said PCCC co-founder Stephanie Taylor. ‘The Republican Party’s attacks on working families have opened up opportunities for Democrats to win in places they haven’t won in decades, and it’ll be essential for Democrats to embrace a bold, economic populist message in these districts.’ But first, both endorsed Democrats must navigate competitive primaries.”

Normal, IL Votes To Become “Welcoming City”

Normal, IL passes Welcoming City ordinance. Bloomington Pantagraph: “Normal is now officially a ‘welcoming city.’ Despite some opposition, the Normal City Council approved a welcoming-city ordinance Monday, offering residents assurances Normal police officers will carefully consider their interactions with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and tell residents why officers are requesting their citizenship information. Officials said they hoped those steps would encourage all residents to work with police to improve public safety, increase public awareness of police procedures and reduce fear among immigrants who could face deportation. ‘There’s an issue in this country on immigration… What we’re saying here today is, if you’re in our community and you need our services and you’re buying our services, you can have them,’ said Mayor Chris Koos. “Taking this step will go a long way to allay some fears.’” Koos helped negotiate the ordinance with local activist groups who allied as the Keep Families Together Coalition and attended Monday’s meeting in force, rallying beforehand on Uptown Circle and filling the City Council chamber in the nearby Uptown Station.

Trump Wants To “Shut” Borders

Trump unloads on Homeland Security secretary in lengthy immigration tirade. WaPo: “President Trump berated Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen in a dispiriting Cabinet meeting on immigration Wednesday, according to three administration officials, but her colleagues denied reports that she has threatened to quit. Trump lashed out at his Cabinet, and Nielsen in particular, when told that the number of people arrested for illegally crossing the Mexico border topped 50,000 for the second consecutive month. The blowup lasted more than 30 minutes, according to a person with knowledge of what transpired, as Trump’s face reddened and he raised his voice, saying Nielsen needed to ‘close down’ the border. ‘Why don’t you have solutions? How is this still happening?’ he said, adding later, ‘We need to shut it down. We’re closed.’”

DeVos May Shut Down English Language Learners

DeVos may scrap the Federal office for English-Language Learners. EdWeek: “Education and immigration advocates are pushing back against a Trump administration plan that would consolidate the federal office that helps guide education for millions of English-language-learner and immigrant students. Under the proposal, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos would fold her department’s office of English-language acquisition into the broader office for elementary and secondary education, according to advocacy groups briefed this week on the department’s potential plan. The proposal also calls for eliminating the director’s position for the English-language acquisition office, a job currently held by José Viana. Education Department officials told advocacy groups that the latest plan to restructure would allow the department to merge English-learner support with services provided to other disadvantaged student groups—a decision that ELL advocates say would actually work against the best interests of the students. The move is part of a broader effort by DeVos and her deputies to revamp the agency.”

New Military Force Authorization Would Allow Indefinite Detentions

Will Congress Authorize Indefinite Detention of Americans?. Truthout: “Under the guise of exercising supervisory power over the president’s ability to use military force, Congress is considering writing Donald Trump a blank check to indefinitely detain US citizens with no criminal charges. Alarmingly, this legislation could permit the president to lock up Americans who dissent against US military policy. The bill that risks conveying this power to the president is the broad new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), S.J.Res.59, that is pending in Congress. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair Bob Corker (R-Tennessee) and Democratic committee member Tim Kaine (Virginia) introduced the bipartisan bill on April 16, and it has four additional co-sponsors. This proposed 2018 AUMF would replace the 2001 AUMF that Congress gave George W. Bush after the September 11 attacks. Although the 2001 AUMF authorized the president to use “all necessary and appropriate force” only against individuals and groups responsible for the 9/11 attacks, three presidents have relied on it to justify at least 37 military operations in 14 countries, many of them unrelated to 9/11.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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MORNING MESSAGE

Angela Simaan

The GOP Tax Cuts Are Bad Champagne for Small Business

The GOP’s tax cuts gift $1.5 trillion to those who need it least: the nation’s wealthiest corporations and individuals. The Koch brothers alone will pocket more than $1 billion every year. Even as lawmakers insist these dollars will trickle down to Main Street, small business owners and workers will not be fooled. Maybe, with our help, the next Congress will be up to the task of supporting the real engine of growth in our economy.

Cordray Wins In Ohio

Cordray wins Democratic primary for Ohio governor. Bloomberg: “Richard Cordray, the former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, won the Democratic primary for Ohio governor Tuesday after promising to focus on families’ economic concerns. Cordray, 59, defeated Dennis Kucinich, a former congressman and Cleveland mayor, and four other candidates for the party’s nomination, according to the Associated Press… Kucinich had positioned himself as the more liberal candidate on issues such as supporting single-payer health insurance, banning assault weapons and legalizing marijuana.”

Incumbents Stumble In Primaries

6 takeaways From Tuesday’s primary elections. NYT: “Primary elections in four Republican-leaning states rattled Congress on Tuesday night, as voters ejected a sitting member of the House and set up intense campaigns for the Senate in several battlegrounds. Republicans averted a worst-case scenario — the nomination of an ex-convict coal baron in West Virginia — but faced warning signs elsewhere… Voters nearly always dislike Congress, but Tuesday was a vivid illustration of just how toxic the taint of Washington may be in 2018.”

Congress Rolls Back Anti-Discrimination Lending Rule

Congress rolls back anti-discrimination auto loan rule. NPR: “The House on Tuesday passed a measure to roll back guidance on auto lending issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The vote is the first test for a new strategy employed by Republicans in Congress, which could enable the repeal of hundreds of administrative regulations passed in recent decades. The guidance, issued in 2013, was intended to limit discriminatory practices in the auto loan business. Congress repealed the guidance using the Congressional Review Act, a little-known law that allows Congress to undo the rules issued by administrative agencies and government regulators… Tuesday’s vote marks the first time it has been wielded to reverse administrative guidance — meaning the regulatory agencies’ interpretations of federal laws. Because most guidance is not “submitted to Congress,” lawmakers argue they can start the clock whenever they want on hundreds of rules issued over the past two decades. Critics worry this could open the door for congressional rollback of any number of hard-fought consumer and environmental protections.”

DOL Won’t Enforce Fiduciary Violations

DOL won’t enforce best interest violations as fiduciary rule dies. Citywire: “With its fiduciary rule set to come off the books Monday, The Department of Labor (DOL) has reiterated its position that it will not pursue broker-dealers managing retirement savings over claims they carried out prohibited transactions. The DOL rule went into partial effect in June 2017, with the agency stating at the time that broker-dealers accused of making investment decisions that were deemed not to be in the best financial interests of their clients would not be charged as long as they could prove they worked ‘diligently and in good faith’ to comply with the rule’s impartial conduct standards. The latest guidance note issued on Monday by the DOL stated it will continue to uphold this ‘temporary policy’ until further notice.”

Haspel Faces Questioning Over CIA Torture

Moment of truth for Trump pick to lead CIA. The Hill: “Gina Haspel is set to face off with senators Wednesday in what is expected to be a bruising relitigation of the use of harsh interrogation techniques during the George W. Bush administration. Haspel is set to be grilled by the Senate Intelligence Committee not only about her role in the use of the techniques, but also about her involvement in the destruction of videotapes documenting a pair of brutal interrogations at a black site prison that she briefly ran. Democrats on the committee have lambasted the CIA — and Haspel as its current acting director — for declining to declassify more information about her participation in the interrogation program.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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MORNING MESSAGE

Amanda Ballantyne

Small Businesses Tell Us What Works, If We Listen

Imagine a vibrant community with jobs that pay a living wage, hospitals that can meet every community member’s health needs, and 21st-century infrastructure like good public transportation and safe drinking water. That’s what small businesses – and most people – say they need. Small-business owners are often held up as examples of the virtues we prize as a nation: they’re risk-takers, inventive, and most of all, invested in their communities. But lawmakers are too busy catering to Wall Street to listen to this kind of common sense from Main Street.

Trump Wants To Cut Child Health

Trump tries to woo conservatives with bid to cut spending. Politico: “The administration had last week planned to send Congress a package of $11 billion in spending reductions. But since then, some conservatives have quietly pushed for an even bolder proposal, particularly after the GOP’s spending binge in recent months, said Republicans familiar with the discussions. One of the White House’s biggest targets in the cuts package is $7 billion from the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides health care to 9 million low-income children… It’s hard to see a lot of Republicans up for reelection wanting to cut health care for poor kids no matter where it comes from. The package is expected to pass the House. Its future is more uncertain in the Senate.”

Races To Watch In Today’s Primaries

Every May 8 primary election you should know about. Vox: “The 2018 midterms begin in earnest on Tuesday, with four primary elections in Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia, and North Carolina. The candidates for crucial Senate, House, and governors’ races will be decided. It’s a heckuva lot to keep track of. Here is the absolute bare minimum you need to know about every important election on May 8.”

Dem Candidates Back Jobs For All

Likely 2020 Democratic candidates want to guarantee a job to every American. NPR: “The 2018 midterm primary season is really heating up this week, which means it’s time to think about elections… like the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries. No major candidates have declared that they’re preparing a run against Donald Trump in two years, but whispers are already building around potential candidates. A few of them have coalesced around a seriously ambitious policy idea — guaranteeing a job for every American who wants one. If enacted, such a program could be big or small; it could create massive reverberations in the private sector; and it could reshape monetary policy. One thing that’s more certain is that Americans will be hearing about the idea of job guarantees for the next few years.”

U.S. To Separate Immigrant Families At Border

Sessions threatens jail and separating children from parents at border. NYT: ” The Trump administration announced Monday that it is dramatically stepping up prosecutions of those who illegally cross the Southwest border, ramping up a “zero tolerance” policy intended to deter new migrants with the threat of jail sentences and separating immigrant children from their parents. ‘If you cross the Southwest border unlawfully, then we will prosecute you. It’s that simple,’ Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in announcing a policy that will impose potential criminal penalties on border crossers who previously faced mainly civil deportation proceedings — and in the process, force the separation of families crossing the border for months or longer. The new policy could flood the immigration courts, already suffering severe backlogs, and create new detention space shortages for federal agencies that even now have been forced to release many undocumented immigrants until their cases can be heard.”

Trump To Eject Hondurans

Trump’s denial of TPS to Hondurans will break up thousands of families. The Nation: “The Trump administration announced that it was ending Temporary Protected Status for tens of thousands of Hondurans living in the United States. Immigrant-rights groups estimate this will affect at least 57,000 individuals. Behind those numbers are real people, with real emotions, and real families about to be torn asunder. Women like Sonia Paz, a longtime Los Angeles resident, with three children and seven grandkids. Men like Victor Diaz, who fled starvation wages on a coffee plantation in the early 1990s and now lives and works in Richmond, California; and Mario Guzman, who departed Honduras after being tortured in an army-run jail and has worked as a trash collector in Northern California for nearly a quarter-century.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast and OurFuture.org are projects of People’s Action.

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