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11/7 CNN Calls It for Biden – Not Just Pennsylvania. Update: Sanders is On CNN after 2 CT.

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

And Kamala Harris is the new VP-elect.

A buddy of mine said MSDNC also called it for Biden. I have a hunch the C-suites of the various networks met and of course, with the last blessing of the AP, decided it would be sometime this morning, after Penn’s mail-in ballots counted were at 85% for Biden.

Of course, the orange menace won’t concede.

Jibber-jabber, tweets, videos, and sunshine.

11/6 TGIF Night 4 of the 2020 General Election

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Long time since I’ve had this happen:

One of the responses:

Biden was supposed to address the nation tonight, but I suspect that’s not happening due to AP not calling any of the remaining states.

Wow, 4 nights and looks like its going through the weekend, probably into next week.

By request, Benny’s Bar is Open. Bud and bartenders are available. Wear your mask, but feel free to play music videos; please add news, tweets, and good snarks!

Bar Wait Person with Mask 2020-07-24 170727.png

Bar Wait Person with Mask 2020-07-24 170727.png

11/4 General Election 2020 Updates –AZ, GA expected to Present New Totals and Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Continuing coverage about the GE and other news.
New York’s Working Families Party cleared the threshold to keep its automatic ballot line.

A progressive party in New York appears poised to retain its automatic ballot line, overcoming new barriers backed by the state’s Democratic governor, Andrew M. Cuomo.

According to late Tuesday night voter tallies, at least 283,000 New Yorkers voted for Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Kamala Harris on the Working Families Party line, amounting to 4.5 percent of all votes cast in the presidential election.

Those numbers far exceed the state’s new thresholds for third-party ballot access. According to the new rules, a third party must garner 130,000 votes in a presidential election, or 2 percent of the total vote — whichever is higher — if that party wants to retain its ballot line.

The previous threshold was 50,000 votes in a race for governor.

The Working Families Party has sparred with Mr. Cuomo in recent years. The new rules posed such a risk to the party’s electoral influence that it directed significant financial resources away from competitive races and toward preserving its ballot line.

“Working people and Black and brown communities are historically challenged when we grow in power — and the threat to our ballot line is no different,” Sochie Nnaemeka, the Working Families Party’s state director for New York, said in a statement Tuesday night. “What’s clear, though, is our campaign to protect the ballot line has only resulted in a stronger, more united progressive movement in New York State.”

More election news, tweets, videos, etc in the comments. Bar is closed, but you are welcome to bring your own beverage.

11/3 Benny’s Bar 1600 Pennsylvania is Open for Election 2020 Night Part 1

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Polls are just about closed in western IN and KY; eastern parts of those states closed at 6pm.

(image attribution: NYT)

Music videos are encouraged, along with tweets, news, jibber-jabber.

Budtenders are available as well!

Bar Wait Person with Mask 2020-07-24 170727.png

Bar Wait Person with Mask 2020-07-24 170727.png

10/27 News Roundup, Numbers, and Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Along the Keystone XL Pipeline, Hoping for a Miracle

The pipeline, expected to be operational in 2023, would transmit 830,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Alberta’s tar sands to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico, crossing through the US Midwest. Environmentalists believe that should the pipeline succeed, it will commit North America to continued investment in fossil fuels, dooming any realistic effort to curb climate change.

“The reality of the footprint is so much beyond what the pipeline itself is just doing. [There are] spills and leaks and those kinds of risks, but folks living there are already experiencing increased truck traffic and risks of Covid,” said Gabby Brown, the senior press secretary of the environmental organization Sierra Club.

The US Army Corps of Engineers has attempted to push through construction under Permit 12—a fast-track water crossing permit. But a federal judge, in response to a lawsuit filed in July of last year by members of the Northern Plains Resource Council and other environmental groups, prohibited the Corps from using this permit. Plaintiffs claim that the Corps violates the Clean Water Act and challenges the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. “The idea that a foreign country could impose imminent domain and violate the sovereignty of another country with the support of our so-called leaders is unbelievable…. What is the benefit? A few short-term jobs and longtime destruction?” Dena Hoff, a plaintiff and member of the Northern Plains Resource Council, said to me this month.

To add to the destructive legacy of the Trump Administration:

More news, tweets, videos, etc in the comments. Sure Happy It’s Tuesday.

10/22 Sure Happy It’s Thursday Debate Night at Benny’s Bar

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Tonight is the last tug of war speeches debate between the two nominees of their respective parties. One of them should have never been there but managed to wreck our country further, and the other one still wants an Obama-Biden revival.

He shouldn’t be there either.

But we got outnumbered. We know Bernie would have ripped Trump up and down on the pandemic alone and finished him there.

So the debate moderator at the debate site of Belmont University, Nashville, is Kristen Welker of NBC News. There will be 6 topics, and they are as follows:

  • Fighting COVID
  • American Families
  • Race in America
  • Climate Change
  • National Security
  • Leadership

Hmmm, let’s see. Except for maybe topic number 2, in which both candidates have family members who have benefitted from political ties to them, Trump will either take the Amy Barrett approach, and change the subject, or we will see “the best ever” answers. Biden will be able to speak to Fighting COVID and National Security at least. The rest– whatever their consultants may prep them for.

The moderator will not have control of the microphone, so it’s not exactly clear who will be muting it.

The debate will be 9-10:30 PM EDT on ABC · CBS · NBC · PBS

Stream: C-SPAN on YouTube · CBSN · CNNgo · Fox News Go · USA Today BBC News on YouTube TV

Apps: CBS News App · Fox News App · NBC News

Guess it’s time for popcorn and plenty of water to chase those cocktails/beers. Benny’s Bar is open, place an order.

Bar is Open.JPG

Bar is Open.JPG

You can treat this as an open thread. Fun tweets, snarks, news, and jibber-jabber. Floor is yours.

10/21 News Roundup, Numbers, and Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Here’s something cheerful to start the day:

Make America Green Again

In fact, the U.S. is currently on a path away from that green dream. Bigly. The Trump Administration is in the process of finalizing the country’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. (It will shortly become the only one in the world that contributes more than 2 percent of global emissions without being a member of the landmark climate pact). Emissions have been on the rise again after years of incremental dips — slowed this year only because of a deadly pandemic. And the nation’s most vulnerable communities are routinely forced to reckon with environmental contaminants, extreme weather, and industrial pollution.

Climate change could tip the scales in these 6 toss-up House races
The issue — and, frankly, the world — is hotter than in any previous election cycle.
If a couple of intrepid aliens dropped by to observe a Congressional hearing on climate change, knowing that humanity’s survival hinged on finding a solution to rising temperatures, they would hurry back to their home planet under the impression that Earth was doomed.

It doesn’t have to be this way. That green dream could be a reality — and for the most part, we know what we need to do to bring it to life.

Below, you’ll learn about eight tools lawmakers could leverage to make America great on climate change. These are interventions that already exist, and concern everything from your home to your local transportation system.

All we need to do is reach out and grab them.

More news, tweets, videos in the comments section. 13 days until Election Day.

10/20 Down Ballot News Roundup and Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on by

Let’s check on our list of progressives and see how things are going for them, starting with Paula Jean Swearengin. The link in the tweet leads you to video clips from In West Virginia Politics.

More news, tweets, video, and good jibber-jabber in the comments. Sure Happy It’s Tuesday.