The Progressive Wing

Tips, Comments, Complaints, Etc!

On Technicality, Sanders Delays Tax Bill’s Passage

With congressional Republicans on the verge of approving major tax cut legislation Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) deployed a procedural tactic likely to delay its passage until Wednesday.
After the House passed the bill on a largely party-line vote of 227 to 203, Sanders and Wyden objected to the inclusion of three provisions with no budgetary impact. In order to approve legislation through the budget reconciliation process — with just 51 votes instead of the usual 60 — senators are barred from considering unrelated policy matters.
The violation of the so-called Byrd Rule will force the Senate to strip those provisions from the bill and vote on a different version than what passed the House. That, in turn, will require a second vote from the House, likely on Wednesday, before the legislation can advance to President Donald Trump’s desk.
“In the mad dash to provide tax breaks for their billionaire campaign contributors, our Republican colleagues forgot to comply with the rules of the Senate,” Sanders said Tuesday in a written statement. “We applaud the [Senate] parliamentarian for determining that three provisions in this disastrous bill are in violation of the Byrd rule.”

The House Has to Revote on the Tax Bill Because It Broke the Byrd Rule. What Is the Byrd Rule?

Without Remorse, House GOP Passes ‘Morally Corrupt, Cruel, and Barbaric’ Tax Bill

“The public reaction to today’s heinous tax bill will speed the day when that tax justice is realized.”

Senate approves most drastic changes to US tax code in 30 years

Senate Republicans have passed a sweeping overhaul of the US tax code, placing Donald Trump on the brink of scoring his first major legislative victory.
The Senate approved the $1.5 trillion tax bill, which includes permanent tax breaks for corporations and temporary tax cuts for individuals, by a final vote of 51-48. Once enacted, the legislation will represent the most drastic changes to the US tax code since 1986.
The bill was passed along party lines, with every Senate Republican present voting in its favor and all Democrats voting against it. Arizona senator John McCain, who is undergoing treatment for brain cancer, was the lone member to be absent for the vote.
Although the bill’s passage was expected, tensions boiled to a surface as the final vote was held, as Democrats sharply criticized Republicans for a bill independent analysts have projected will disproportionately benefit the wealthy and corporations.

The Republican Plan Isn’t Just About Taxes—It’s About Shredding the Safety Net

After passing a deficit-exploding tax giveaway, Republicans will use the deficit as an excuse to cut vital programs that help people make ends meet.

Ryan: Medicare overhaul not the focus next year

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Wednesday that Medicare reform will not be a focus for Republicans next year amid Democratic warnings about cuts to the program.
Instead, Ryan said that the focus next year will be on welfare reform, which he said could include changes to Medicaid.
“Do we want to get entitlement reform? Of course we do, but the kinds of entitlement reforms I think that we’re going to be pursuing are the kinds that help make sure we get people get from welfare to work,” Ryan said on ABC. “That’s what really we’re focused on this Spring.”

Hypocritical liar. He knows if Medicare and SSI are threatened, his kind get booted, gerrymandering, voter suppression, etc. notwithstanding. Is this yahoo running next year or not? I keep hearing yes and no.

Benny

Guess the delay did not hinder the process.

House has to revote but the GoP has more than 10% for its passage.

So much time spent on Russia.

I think if they going to spend time Russia, they should compare the GOP to the oligarchs there.

I’m just not seeing what more the Dems could have done that would have stopped the GOP from passing their tax scam. It’s actually the most unpopular legislation in decades and they still passed it. The goal now is to vote as many of the bastards out as possible next November. How to accomplish that is the next big Dem debate.

Here Are the 227 GOP House Members Who Just Voted to Raise Taxes on 90 Million Working Families to Give Tax Breaks to Millionaires and Corporations

After Republicans in the House of Representatives voted Tuesday to approve a tax plan that will give massive tax cuts to corporations and millionaires at the expense of 90 million working families, opponents who have spent months advocating against the proposal condemned the lawmakers who passed it.
“These are the 227 GOP House members who voted for the #GOPTaxScam. They voted to raise taxes on over 90M working families, while giving massive tax breaks to millionaires and corporations that will be paid for by cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and education. SHAME!” Americans for Tax Fairness tweeted after the vote, accompanied by what they called a “list of shame.”

Every GOP House member is complicit, including those from NY, NJ, etc. who House leadership allowed to vote against the tax bill because their votes weren’t needed. These assholes voted to make Ryan speaker and there will no hiding for them from voters for the disastrous consequences of the tax vote.

Just wait until Ryan and the rest of the maggots/GOPukes start screaming for cuts in SSI, and Medicare.

Corporations Say Publicly They’ll Pocket the Tax Cut, But Republicans Aren’t Listening

Oh they are listening alright…

It’s Not Just Corker: 14 GOP Senators Stand to Reap Millions From #CorkerKickback

WATCH: After a person shouts "liar!" at Paul Ryan during his speech on House floor, audio from the chamber is cut pic.twitter.com/thyCtiFDeJ
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 19, 2017

https://youtu.be/5sVvkPuPuRA

Confusion and chaos ahead as new tax rules take immediate effect

The most sweeping tax code overhaul in a generation will soon head to President Donald Trump’s desk — and Republicans are enjoying a victory dance.
Now comes the real-world turmoil.
America’s new tax system will go into effect in just 12 days, and payroll companies are bracing for confusion as they figure out new withholding rules that will affect millions of American paychecks.
The Treasury Department and the IRS will have to quickly write new regulations to implement the new law, governing everything from the tax regime for businesses that don’t organize as corporations to the endowments of the nation’s elite universities and how multinational corporations are taxed on the profits they make abroad.
..
House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) has also acknowledged that lawmakers will almost certainly need to pass corrections to the tax bill, H.R. 1 (115), which took less than seven weeks from the first bill’s introduction to final passage.

In Iowa, Bill de Blasio Speaks, Chews and Tries to Lead (to the Left)

Mayor Bill de Blasio took the stage here on Tuesday evening, more than 1,000 miles from the city he governs, to outline his vision to revive a Democratic Party that he described as lost in recent years but on the precipice of a great comeback.
“We are at the beginning of a progressive era,” he predicted in a 35-minute speech before more than 150 liberal activists.
Mr. de Blasio was the headline speaker at the annual holiday party of Progress Iowa, a group that, like the mayor, hopes to pull Democratic politics to the left. In a dark suit and red tie, Mr. de Blasio hailed attendees as “an army of good.”
“We are not the party of elites,” he said. “We are not the party of big donors. We are the party of working people.”

Bill de Blasio to Iowa Democrats: Move left and win

“No,” said Bill de Blasio. “I’m not running for president.”
The mayor of New York City, fresh off a 39-point reelection victory, would answer versions of the 2020 question all day. Media back home, media that had followed him to America’s 102nd largest city, had been asking the question since de Blasio’s first trip to Iowa in 2015. He was asked again at a press gaggle before his speech to Progress Iowa, giving a definitive answer to a question that is asked whenever a politician travels to Des Moines.
“Look, seriously, mayor of New York City is one of the best public service jobs in the nation,” de Blasio said in an interview before the gaggle. “I can do big things, and do them quickly. I’ve got four years and 13 days left.”
But de Blasio intended to spend many of those coming days helping elect progressive Democrats around the country — in New York, but also in any congressional district that would have him, “with a focus on economic populism” to rebrand his party. In the afternoon gaggle, when asked how he could juggle his job and his campaign travel, de Blasio literally stuck a piece of gum in his mouth and began walking.

Future of Keystone XL pipeline becomes more muddled after PSC denies revisions

The future of the Keystone XL pipeline became even more muddled Tuesday with further delays expected.
The Nebraska Public Service Commission unanimously rejected TransCanada’s request to amend its application for a route across Nebraska. TransCanada said it would “take some time” before considering whether to build the $8 billion project.
The company gave no timeline for such a decision, after earlier stating that it would decide this month whether the long-delayed Keystone XL was financially viable or not.
While a TransCanada spokeswoman said the project remains “viable,” opponents of the pipeline claimed victory, saying Tuesday’s decision by the Nebraska Public Service Commission added more uncertainty, and likely more delay and expense, to the project.
“They ought to take the hint and withdraw their application (for a route),” said attorney Ken Winston, who represents the Sierra Club.

Nebraska regulators deny TransCanada request on Keystone XL route

Nebraska regulators on Tuesday denied TransCanada Corp’s request to amend its route application for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline through the U.S. state, a potential setback for the company as it seeks to head off legal challenges.
The Nebraska Public Service Commission (PSC) issued an approval for the line in late November, removing what appeared to be the last big regulatory obstacle for the long-delayed project, which has been backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
But the commission’s approval was not for the route TransCanada had singled out in its application. Instead, the commission approved an alternative route that shifts it closer to an existing pipeline right-of-way down the eastern side of the state, a move opponents of the pipeline have said violates state statutes.
TransCanada filed a motion last month with the commission seeking permission to retrospectively amend the route application, a move that a company official said was intended to prevent lawsuits that could delay the project.
The commission on Tuesday voted 5-0 against the motion.

polarbear4

Thank the dieties, one and all ( and the PSC). It’s victories like this that give us all hope.

US will ‘take names of those who vote to reject Jerusalem recognition’

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, has warned UN members she will be “taking names” of countries that vote to reject Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
In a letter seen by the Guardian, Haley told countries – including European delegations – that she will report back to the US president with the names of those who support a draft resolution rejecting the US move at the UN general assembly on Thursday, adding that Trump took the issue personally.
Haley writes: “As you consider your vote, I encourage you to know the president and the US take this vote personally.
“The president will be watching this vote carefully and has requested I report back on those who voted against us,” she continued.
Haley followed the letter by tweeting: “At the UN we’re always asked to do more & give more. So, when we make a decision, at the will of the American ppl, abt where to locate OUR embassy, we don’t expect those we’ve helped to target us. On Thurs there’ll be a vote criticizing our choice. The US will be taking names.”

Yeah I’m sure those countries are quaking in their boots.

polarbear4

No kidding. Nobody likes a bully, and most of them don’t even have to pretend to now that we are in decline. But there may be a few that will change their vote b/c of feared consequences.

Donald Trump threatens to cut aid to countries over UN Jerusalem vote

Donald Trump has threatened to withhold “billions” of dollars of US aid from countries which vote in favour of a United Nations resolution rejecting the US president’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
“We’ll save a lot. We don’t care. But this isn’t like it used to be where they could vote against you and then you pay them hundreds of millions of dollars,” he said. “We’re not going to be taken advantage of any longer.”
The warning appeared aimed largely at UN members in Africa, Asia and Latin America who are regarded as more vulnerable to US pressure.
..
Key US allies Britain, France, Italy, Japan and Ukraine were among the 14 countries in the 15-member council that voted in favour of calling for the US to withdraw its recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on Monday, and were expected to do the same on Thursday at the assembly.
Diplomats expect strong support for the resolution, which is non-binding, despite the US pressure to either abstain or vote against it. However a council diplomat said Canada, Hungary and the Czech Republic might bow to US pressure and not support the draft resolution.
..
Responding to the US threats Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki and the foreign minister of Turkey – a co-sponsor of the UN vote – Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport that they believed UN member countries will ignore “pressure” from Haley.
“No honourable state would bow to such pressure,” Cavusoglu said.
“The world has changed. The belief that ‘I am strong therefore I am right’ has changed. The world today is revolting against injustices.”

polarbear4

“At the will of the American people.” Probably not. Not much is, these days.

Amtrak derailment: safety gear was not active after rush to launch service

The rush to launch a service on a new, faster Amtrak route near Seattle came at a deadly cost: none of the critical speed-control technology that could have prevented a derailment was active before the train set off on its maiden voyage.
Work to install the sophisticated, GPS-based technology known as positive train control is not expected to be completed on the newly opened 15-mile span where the train derailed until next spring, according to Sound Transit, the public agency that owns the tracks.
The train was going at 80mph in a 30mph zone on Monday when it raced off the rails as they curved toward a bridge, hurtling train cars on to a highway below, investigators said. Three people were killed, and dozens were injured. Federal investigators say they are looking into whether the engineer was distracted.
A positive train control system could have detected the speeding and automatically applied the brakes to stop the train, said Najmedin Meshkati, a University of Southern California professor who has studied the technology for three decades. “It is another layer of safety,” he said.
..
Railroads are under government orders to install positive train control by the end of 2018 after the industry lobbied Congress to extend earlier deadlines, citing complexity and cost.

Somalis were shackled for nearly 48 hours on failed US deportation flight

More than 90 Somali men and women were held shackled on an airplane for nearly 48 hours – and some were forced to urinate where they sat – during a failed attempt to deport them from the US, according to a lawsuit filed late on Monday.
Seven passengers representing the 92 people onboard alleged they suffered “inhumane conditions and egregious abuse” on the 7 December flight, which was due to land in Mogadishu, Somalia, but only reached Dakar, Senegal, where it was held for 23 hours before returning to the US.
“When the plane’s toilets overfilled with human waste, some of the detainees were left to urinate into bottles or on themselves,” the lawsuit says. “Ice [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents wrapped some who protested, or just stood up to ask a question, in full-body restraints. Ice agents kicked, struck, or dragged detainees down the aisle of the plane, and subjected some to verbal abuse and threats.”
..
The plaintiffs, who include people who have lived in the US for decades, say they fear death and persecution at the hands of the Islamist militant group al-Shabaab, which has spread terror throughout Somalia and killed more than 500 people with a massive truck bomb in October.
This fear has been heightened by widespread media attention their flight received when it returned to the US.
“When this plane goes back, everyone will know they are coming back, including al-Shabaab,” said Rebecca Sharpless, an immigration attorney who helped file the lawsuit.

“Slave Ship Conditions” for Somalis as Deportation Flight Sheds Light on Horrific Practices Under Trump

How a Group of Immigration Attorneys Stopped a Deportation Flight to Cambodia

A plane packed with around 50 Cambodian Americans set for deportation was scheduled to depart on Monday from Texas for Phnom Penh. But a court order issued late Thursday has blocked, at least for now, the Trump administration’s plan to expel them.
A US district-court judge granted a month-long temporary restraining order after attorneys argued that—in the course of raiding, apprehending, detaining, and attempting to deport more than 100 people to Cambodia in recent weeks—Immigration and Customs Enforcement denied people due process and violated the agency’s own procedures.
The restraining order doesn’t cancel the deportation orders. But it does offer these Cambodian nationals, many of whom are refugees and have lived in the United States for decades, time to sort out their cases.

polarbear4

Something has to be done to stop the training/brainwashing of these people who are manning these agencies and those in private security. They have it deep inside that the “other” is deserving of their hatred and their rage. I imagine they treat the family dog better. Such a shame and an outrage.

Florida judge halts deportation of 92 Somalis shackled on plane for 48 hours

A Florida judge has halted the deportation of 92 Somali men and women who alleged US immigration authorities physically abused them when they were shackled on an airplane for nearly 48 hours during a failed attempt to return the group to Somalia.
US federal district judge Darrin Gayles halted their deportation hours after lawyers filed a class action lawsuit against the government that alleged the Somalian immigrants were held in “inhumane conditions” on the airplane and faced heightened danger in Somalia because of subsequent media attention.
The group of deportees, which included people who had lived in the US for decades, were headed to Somalia on 7 December when the flight was turned back to the US from Dakar, Senegal, after being held there for 23 hours.
The judge’s order on Tuesday night stops the government from deporting the men and women for at least two weeks. The government said in court on Tuesday that it had planned to try to deport the group again on Wednesday morning.
“The judge acted just in time,” Rebecca Sharpless, lead attorney on the lawsuit, said in a statement.

Investigating Jill Stein for Russian Collusion Decried as ‘Dangerous’ and ‘Absurd’

In what critics called a “dangerous precedent” and identified as an obvious move to deflect the still serious concerns about allegations that the Trump campaign colluded with Russian officials to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election, multiple news outlets reported late Monday that the Senate Intelligence Committee is now investigating the campaign of Green Party candidate Jill Stein.
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), the committee chairman, told reporters Monday that in addition to the campaign of President Donald Trump, the committee has “two other campaigns that we’re just starting on.” As the Washington Post noted, Burr has indicated previously the committee is looking into Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Dennis Trainor Jr., Stein’s former campaign communications director and acting manager, told BuzzFeed News, which first reported the story, that he was contacted Friday about the investigation into Stein’s campaign. When Burr was asked by BuzzFeed what the committee was looking for in its probe of the Green Party candidate, he said, “collusion with the Russians.”

Jill Stein Will Hand Over Russia-Related Communications to Senate Committee

In her first comments to the press, former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein said she will cooperate fully with the Senate Intelligence Committee’s investigation into “collusion with the Russians” during the 2016 campaign, and is currently searching for relevant documents. Stein denies holding any substantive communications with the Russian government or RT, its state-owned media property.
Stein says her involvement in the inquiry, first reported by BuzzFeed News, came as a surprise when her campaign was first contacted last month. After a subsequent dialogue between attorneys representing Stein and lawyers from the Senate Intelligence Committee, the former candidate received a formal request for cooperation. Although she says the possibility of testifying before Congress has not yet been broached, Stein says she would be “happy to do so” if asked.
Still, Stein clearly resents the Senate’s attention vis-à-vis electoral interference and foreign meddling: “This smacks of the dangerous underbelly of these investigations. The extent to which they exercise overreach, politicizing, and sensationalism is a danger to democracy, especially in the current climate of all-out war on our First Amendment rights. This is not a time to be attacking the rights of political speech and political association.”

Since it’s being led by the Republicans, this is an “obvious move to deflect the still serious concerns that the Trump campaign colluded.”

They already tried it with Bernie, and failed.

polarbear4

Can we spell McCarthy?

Trump Administration Rolls Back EPA Plan to Restrict Dangerous Household Chemicals

The Trump administration has quietly delayed action on dangerous solvents that the Environmental Protection Agency had previously planned to ban. Under former President Barack Obama, the agency had been in the process of restricting the use of the three commonly available chemicals, but the Trump administration’s latest update on its effort to roll back regulation puts the proposed Obama rules on the back burner.
The three chemicals — TCE, NMP, and methylene chloride — are used to strip furniture, remove grease, and dry clean clothes. All three are clearly dangerous: The EPA has deemed TCE a carcinogen “by all routes of exposure,” NMP is a developmental toxin, and methylene chloride has killed at least 56 people since 1980, many of whom were stripping bathtubs.
But the Trump administration has dimmed the possibility of quick action on these — and perhaps all — dangerous chemicals. The new regulatory plan, which the White House released last week, showed that the chemicals were moved from the proposed rule category to “long term action.” In all, 469 Obama-era regulations were withdrawn and 860 put on hold.
Although there was no mandatory date for finalizing the Obama rules, the bans were widely expected to take effect in 2018. An official move to “long-term” action means the process will be slowed, perhaps indefinitely.

EPA Considers Allowing Bee-Killing Pesticide to Be Sprayed on 165 Million Acres of U.S. Farmland

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will consider allowing the bee-killing pesticide thiamethoxam to be sprayed on the most widely grown crops in the U.S. The application, if approved, would allow the highly toxic pesticide to be sprayed directly on 165 million acres of wheat, barley, corn, sorghum, alfalfa, rice and potato.
The proposal by the agrochemical giant Syngenta to dramatically escalate use of the harmful neonicotinoid pesticide came last Friday, on the same day the EPA released new assessments of the extensive dangers posed by neonicotinoids, including thiamethoxam.
“If the EPA grants Syngenta’s wish, it will spur catastrophic declines of aquatic invertebrates and pollinator populations that are already in serious trouble,” said Lori Ann Burd, director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s environmental health program. “You know the pesticide-approval process is broken when the EPA announces it will consider expanding the use of this dangerous pesticide on the same day its own scientists reveal that the chemical kills birds and aquatic invertebrates.”
Neonicotinoids have long been known to pose serious harm to bee populations. But the new EPA assessments found the commonly used pesticides can kill and harm birds of all sizes and pose significant dangers to aquatic invertebrates.

Puerile Pruitt is so bought off and stupid that it would be pathetic is it wasn’t such a physical threat.

polarbear4

Not good for people, either, I imagine.

wi62

I’m sure its excellent for Profits and inst that all that matters with our corporate owned politicians

EPA Says Glyphosate Does Not Cause Cancer, Contradicting IARC

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released on Monday a human health and ecological draft risk assessment for glyphosate, concluding that the widely used—and highly controversial—pesticide is “not likely to be carcinogenic to humans.”
According to the EPA’s announcement, the assessment “found no other meaningful risks to human health when the product is used according to the pesticide label.” However, the announcement noted, “the ecological risk assessment indicates that there is potential for effects on birds, mammals, and terrestrial and aquatic plants.”
Last month, the ingredient won a new five-year lease in the Europe Union, following a bitter fight. Similarly, Monday’s draft assessment is a foundational document in the EPA’s potential extension of the product’s registration for use in 2019, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The EPA’s latest findings contradicts the March 2015 conclusion of the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which labeled glyphosate a “probable carcinogen.”

polarbear4

Environmental Pollution Agency

What a farce our government has become, and it has been a long time coming.

The fury around Donna Brazile is symptomatic of our times by Thomas Frank

Brazile’s present offense is that her book reveals an arrangement between the Hillary Clinton campaign and the DNC that effectively gave the campaign control over the party apparatus well before Clinton became the party’s official presidential nominee in 2016. Brazile has given serious substantiation, in other words, to the charge that Sanders and his followers threw at the Democratic party through much of last year: that the process was rigged.
Members of the punditburo blasted Sanders last year for suggesting such a thing; now they are blasting Brazile for confirming it. They vituperate even though what she and Sanders have said is, well, true.
Which is to say that the fury swirling around Donna Brazile is somehow symptomatic of our times. Since she had a front-row seat to everything that happened last year, her analysis and recollections of that volcanic election are valuable by definition. But what she has to tell us doesn’t fit easily into the simple moral framework that now guides all our thinkings on politics.
For example. Donna Brazile wanted Hillary Clinton to be president and worked hard to achieve that result, but she also thinks Clinton and her team blundered repeatedly. This feels like common sense to me, but in the Republic of the Righteous it is a brain-stopping contradiction; it may not be uttered.
Brazile regards Donald Trump as an obvious scoundrel, yet she can also understand how he appealed to ordinary Americans in the deindustrialized states. Again, not a startling insight, really—but try saying it in the pages of any American prestige publication.

The Government Has Screwed Up the Bundy Case Even Worse Than We Realized

A federal judge could declare a mistrial in the case of Cliven Bundy’s armed standoff due to government misconduct.

I do not have sympathy for the ’cause’ of the Bundy’s (Heavily armed people mad about paying up for using the lands of the public) and think its about 100% opposite of what something like Standing Rock was about (peaceful protest in the name of conserving the land).. BUT… there are many similarities in tactics used against them that cannot be overlooked.