Hump day! News and commentary in the comments below. See you there!
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Democrats are running ads to boost pro-Trump candidates—a plan @TaraSetmayer says "can really come back to bite you."
2010’s “terrible [GOP] candidates…would get elected today, let's just be honest,” she tells @mehdirhasan. “Republicans are better at this dark arts strategy." pic.twitter.com/59vUS1Ioe9
— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@MehdiHasanShow) July 27, 2022
Senate Budget Committee Chair Bernie Sanders on Tuesday blasted Democrats’ watered-down drug pricing plan and suggested pharmaceutical industry lobbying weakened the proposal.
“It goes nowhere near as far as it should.” “It’s a very weak proposal. It goes nowhere near as far as it should,” Sanders (I-Vt.) told NBC News’ Sahil Kapur.
The deal unveiled earlier this month would enable Medicare to negotiate the prices of a limited number of prescription drugs. Other provisions include creating a $2,000 out-of-pocket cap for Medicare Part D beneficiaries, stopping brand-name manufacturers from blocking generic options, and penalizing companies that raise prices faster than inflation.
The plan is notably backed by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)—who last year blocked a House-approved budget reconciliation package and said this month that he wouldn’t support new climate spending or tax hikes on the rich and large corporations.
Sanders, who pushed for a sweeping package last year and has long been a leading Medicare for All advocate, pointed to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as a model for drug price negotiation.
“The American people want Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices like the VA does,” the senator said Tuesday, according to The Hill.
“The VA has been doing that for decades. The prices they pay are about half as much as Medicare. This thing will only apply to a certain number of drugs,” Sanders continued, noting that parts of the proposal would not take effect until 2026.
“So it’s a weak proposal. Is it better than nothing? I suppose,” he added of Democrats’ plan.
Sanders also took aim at industry lobbying, specifically calling out the trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). As he put it: “We’re dealing with the power of PhRMA over the Congress. They don’t lose very often.”
As Common Dreams reported last week, Big Pharma is mobilizing an army of lobbyists to tank Democrats’ drug reform plan while hiking the price of prescription medications.
“Pharma is spending millions to defeat a very modest drug pricing bill,” Sanders tweeted Friday. “Joe Manchin, who is blocking climate action, is the major recipient of fossil fuel campaign contributions. This is how a corrupt political system works.”
Texas Republicans are banning books in school libraries across our state.
Today we’re staging a “read-in” in the Texas Capitol to protest this censorship.@GregAbbott_TX: you can borrow my copy of Fahrenheit 451. pic.twitter.com/NJNSn5qWCX
Yet to date, AIPAC has spent not a cent to defeat members of the House or Senate who have threatened American democracy, voted against certifying the 2022 elections, and endorsed Donald Trump’s Big Lie. Instead, it has actually endorsed over three-quarters of the insurrectionist enablers—109 of them in total. Rather than devoting its resources to defending the democratic values on which the U.S. and Israel stand, its super PAC is putting 100 percent of its funds into crushing progressive Democrats it has labeled—without any good reason—“anti-Israel.”
Across the country, this spending has become a dominant storyline in this year’s Democratic primaries and is making Israel more of a political football than it has ever been in American elections.
Last week, in Maryland’s 4th congressional district, AIPAC’s “United Democracy Project” super PAC, or UDP, spent over $6 million to prevent former four-term Congresswoman Donna Edwards from returning to her old seat—helping ensure Edwards was outspent by a staggering 7 to 1. In Texas, the group spent nearly $2 million to help conservative, anti-abortion incumbent Henry Cuellar cling to his seat against challenger Jessica Cisneros. In Pittsburgh, AIPAC and its allies spent over $3 million in a failed attempt to defeat another talented young progressive, Summer Lee.
Next week, these forces hope to secure another victory in Michigan’s 11th district, where redistricting has pitted Jewish-American progressive leader Andy Levin against fellow incumbent Haley Stevens. Here too, AIPAC has spent over $3 million to date to help Stevens defeat Levin—whom AIPAC’s former president has labeled the “most corrosive member of Congress to the U.S.-Israel relationship.”
Levin may seem like a strange target for AIPAC. A staunch supporter of the two-state solution, he speaks passionately about his personal ties to Israel and his commitment to securing its long-term future as a democracy and national home for the Jewish people. The son of former Representative Sander Levin and the nephew of former Senator Carl Levin, he is a proud product of a leading Jewish and Zionist family—a former synagogue president who repeatedly stresses the importance of his Jewish values.
All of this appears, in fact, to be part of AIPAC’s problem with Levin. Like me and so many of our fellow American Jews, Levin is compelled by his genuine commitment to Israel’s future and to Jewish social justice values also to support the human rights of Palestinians and to speak out against Israeli government policies that deepen occupation and promote the creeping annexation of the West Bank.
In the current Congress, Levin introduced the “Two-State Solution Act,” a bill that proposes meaningful U.S. action to promote Israeli-Palestinian peace, to push back against settlement expansion, and to end the 55-year occupation. Among other measures, the bill would put in place clear guardrails to ensure that U.S. assistance to Israel is used only for its legitimate security needs and not to deepen occupation in violation of international law—a commonsense provision that has become increasingly popular with pro-Israel, pro-peace Democrats.
Yet for AIPAC, no meaningful pushback against Israeli policy is ever acceptable. While it publicly smears Levin as “anti-Israel,” the truth is that what it really finds threatening is his willingness, as a Jewish-American who cares deeply about Israel, to oppose the occupation and right-wing Israeli policies—because it sets a “bad example” for other Democrats. David Victor, the former AIPAC president leading the anti-Levin crusade, wrote to prospective donors, “To make matters worse, Andy sincerely claims to be a lifelong Zionist, proud Jew and defender of Israel. So when Andy Levin insists he’s pro-Israel, less engaged Democratic colleagues may take him at his word.”
In truth, nearly all of the Democratic candidates attacked by AIPAC as “anti-Israel” are nothing of the sort. Levin and Edwards voted for security assistance to Israel throughout their time in Congress, and many of the younger congressional candidates attacked by AIPAC’s millions barely have made any public statements on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or foreign policy at all.
The simple fact that these candidates have the support of progressive groups and leaders—or of a liberal pro-Israel group like J Street, of which I am president—is often enough to damn them in AIPAC’s eyes.
By spending millions to attack these candidates, AIPAC hopes to send an intimidating message to others: Cross our red lines, and you could be next. Political space for open and honest debate over U.S. foreign policy has opened up considerably in recent years, and AIPAC is determined to close it down. It longs to return to the days when one-sided congressional resolutions about Israel routinely passed without objection.
Most voters seeing ads from the “United Democracy Project” super PAC have no idea that they are paid for by a group that endorses and funds 109 Republican lawmakers who voted to overturn the election on January 6, 2021—lawmakers who oppose nearly every Democratic priority.
They don’t know that this group’s sole real agenda is to elect politicians who won’t oppose Israeli policies toward the Palestinians. And they don’t know that much of the funding for the ads comes from Republican megadonors like Bernie Marcus and Paul Singer—each of whom has given $1 million so far this cycle to UDP—or other billionaires like WhatsApp founder Jan Koum, a major funder of right-wing Israeli settler groups, who has thrown $2 million into the effort.
While AIPAC’s stated mission is to “secure the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship,” its actions are doing the opposite. Diving so deeply into intra-Democratic Party fights using right-wing Republican money will undo all its work to build broad bipartisan support for Israel.
Instead of keeping Israel out of partisan politics, as the group for years claimed was its aim, it has turned Israel into one of the sharpest wedge issues in American politics.
And by seeking to defeat anyone who dares to stray from uncritical support of everything Israel does, it is preventing Democrats and Republicans from coalescing behind the pro-Israel, pro-peace, anti-occupation policies that leaders like Levin and Edwards support, that majorities of Jewish Americans and Democrats support, and which are in the best long-term interests of both Israel and the U.S.
To respond to this new challenge, Democratic Party leaders should make absolutely clear just how harmful and unwelcome AIPAC’s interventions in its primary contests are. Candidates in competitive primaries should disavow and decline the support of AIPAC and its super PAC—which have come as a surprise to at least some of them.
A group that attacks Donna Edwards and Andy Levin as extremists who must be defeated, while endorsing Jim Jordan, Elise Stefanik, and 100-plus adherents of the Big Lie for reelection, is not a group that should be determining the outcome of Democratic primaries. For the health of the Democratic Party and for the sake of democracy itself, this needs to stop.
Our latest TV ad hits hard. And here’s why: We cannot afford to let another Joe Manchin BUY their way into a Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, just to lose by double-digits in November.
n a stunning move with less than two weeks before the primary, Milwaukee Bucks executive Alex Lasry on Wednesday dropped out of the Democratic U.S. Senate race after having spent more than $12.3 million on the contest.
In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Lasry said he’s endorsing the front runner, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes.
“Mandela won this race,” Lasry said.
A formal announcement will come during a news conference scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
Lasry’s withdrawal put Barnes in the driver’s seat to win the Aug. 9 primary and face Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson in the fall.
Lasry has consistently been running second in polls to Barnes. An internal Barnes poll his campaign released this week showed Barnes up 39% to 25% over Lasry.
In an interview, Lasry said he spoke in recent days to Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, and reached out to Barnes Tuesday to notify him of the decision.
“After talking with Tammy and seeing the data I think it was clear there was no path forward for us to be able to win,” Lasry said.
“We wanted to make sure we were able to unite and rally our support to ensure we’re spending every second we can to get Ron Johnson out of office. It’s clear the lieutenant governor is going to be the nominee,” he added.
In a statement, Barnes said he was “grateful to Alex for all of the work he’s done to move Wisconsin forward, and I’m proud to have his endorsement.
“I deeply admire Alex’s commitment to creating good union jobs and raising wages throughout his career and throughout this campaign, and the work he’s done to bring pride and opportunity to Milwaukee, a city we both love.
We are not equipped to deal with this. Biden got lucky. The drug he took is not readily available to everyone. There are going to be a lot of sick kids in school because masking is now voluntary.
Not only that 4 in 10 parents wont get their kids under 5 vaxed so daycares and pre-schools will become covid central. I wonder if some will mandate vaxes as they are a private daycare business
James Lovelock, the environmental scientist whose influential Gaia theory sees the Earth as a living organism imperiled by human activity, died on his 103rd birthday Tuesday. https://t.co/j3E3zIYfqA
Sorry bruce cant afford the $400 to $4000 that ticketmaster is gouging for them ,Hey i’m just an average working stiff and thats way out of my price point.
I gave up on A-listers like Bruce and McCartney. Elton John was the last A-lister I saw in 2020, just a few days before the first COVID cases were reported in the West. Tickets weren’t too bad then (under $125).
Saw Springsteen a million (it seems) years ago when he was with the original E Street Band. Hubster’s boss/friend got us the seats. Tix sure as h3ll’s bells weren’t expensive: in the $25-40 range. Springsteen is a multi-millionaire. He could put a stop to the ripping off quick. So could Macca. Going to see Roger Waters next month. Most pricey seat: around $90. And that’s a multi-media show. Sheesh!
Today I’ve officially nominated my North Jersey constituent Dr. Oz for membership in the New Jersey Hall of Fame, the highest honor there is for Garden Staters. Congratulations Dr. Oz! @JohnFettermanpic.twitter.com/GK5BEKUiBq
wpDiscuz
‘Is It Better Than Nothing? I Suppose’: Sanders Disappointed by Dems’ Drug Pricing Plan
These creeps have also succeeded in twisting our language to their ends. 🙁
They wont ban Mein Kampf though
Doubtful that Dem leaders care that AIPAC is going after progressives. Probably the opposite.
https://newrepublic.com/article/167169/aipac-aggressive-spending-bad-democratic-party-democracy
Happy Hump Day T and R x 2, Ms. Benny!! 🙂
Becca is running away with it
One ran towards the battle the other from it, you know who ran where
Hola LD/JD! 🙂 Hope you guys are holding up through the heatwave.
More craprate welfare and stock buy backs. Intel has 50+ billion in the bank but need a handout -something’s wrong here
Check the 50+ its about 80 as a post down from this one said.
Quite literally getting what they paid for.
if they could they would eliminate the $7 part and go back to the great depression wages
Alex Lasry drops out of Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Senate primary, endorses Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes
Didnt expect that at all. I imagine Godlinski will drop soon
We are not equipped to deal with this. Biden got lucky. The drug he took is not readily available to everyone. There are going to be a lot of sick kids in school because masking is now voluntary.
Not only that 4 in 10 parents wont get their kids under 5 vaxed so daycares and pre-schools will become covid central. I wonder if some will mandate vaxes as they are a private daycare business
I love it! E-street band and Sopranos member!
Sorry bruce cant afford the $400 to $4000 that ticketmaster is gouging for them ,Hey i’m just an average working stiff and thats way out of my price point.
I gave up on A-listers like Bruce and McCartney. Elton John was the last A-lister I saw in 2020, just a few days before the first COVID cases were reported in the West. Tickets weren’t too bad then (under $125).
Saw Springsteen a million (it seems) years ago when he was with the original E Street Band. Hubster’s boss/friend got us the seats. Tix sure as h3ll’s bells weren’t expensive: in the $25-40 range. Springsteen is a multi-millionaire. He could put a stop to the ripping off quick. So could Macca. Going to see Roger Waters next month. Most pricey seat: around $90. And that’s a multi-media show. Sheesh!
My ticket to Springsteen in 1984 was about $25-30. Born to Run Tour. Great show. Haven’t seen him since.
More fun for Dr. Oz: