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RSN: Why Are the NYT and CNN Stoking Gender Warfare on the Left? |
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Written by <a href="index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=63"><span class="small">Marc Ash, Reader Supported News</span></a>
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Thursday, 03 January 2019 12:26 |
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Ash writes: "So CNN's Anderson Cooper and The New York Times's Sydney Ember and Katie Benner are on the case of gender-based dysfunction within the 2016 Sanders campaign. Apparently they have discovered that progressive women take gender issues seriously. Who knew?"
Senator Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, with supporters. (photo: Todd Heisler/The New York Times)
Why Are the NYT and CNN Stoking Gender Warfare on the Left?
By Marc Ash, Reader Supported News
03 January 19
 o CNN’s Anderson Cooper and The New York Times’s Sydney Ember and Katie Benner are on the case of gender-based dysfunction within the 2016 Sanders campaign. Apparently they have discovered that progressive women take gender issues seriously. Who knew?
The NYT report references Anderson Cooper’s segment on the issue, but struggles to establish inappropriate conduct on Sanders’s part, although Ember and Benner seem to want pretty badly to get there. In totality, it’s remarkably thin in terms of documentation for a feature piece about a leading presidential contender.
It appears that Sanders and other 2016 campaign officials including Jeff Weaver did respond and seemed to acknowledge the need for greater attention to the matter. Ember and Benner nonetheless found it necessary to define many Sanders supporters as “Bernie Bros,” a politically based smear label intended to polarize, which draws attention to the ad hominem and away from the very important issues on which Sanders’s movement is focused. For some reason, the piece did not quote any of the high-ranking women officials in the Sanders organization. The piece makes a cursory case that some women in the campaign felt salaries were skewed but does little to establish a pattern factually.
In a broader sense, however, gender-based divisiveness presents a number of unique perils for the entire progressive movement and is not any place progressives want to go if meaningful progress is the objective.
Senator Elizabeth Warren’s interview with Rachel Maddow aired at almost the same moment the NYT piece on Sanders went live. Warren was strong and showed once again that she has depth, substance, and mettle on progressive issues and that she is a viable option for President. Clearly, Warren and Sanders are at the head of the progressive class.
For the progressive base, that’s good news. It’s a luxury and a benefit to have two well-established, well-respected progressive leaders as legitimate contenders for the 2020 Democratic nomination. Both will need broad-based, energetic, and sustained support from women and men if they are going to focus the Democratic campaign season on a progressive agenda.
Buying into gender-based divisivenesses at this stage of the process is highly counterproductive for the progressive movement. Neither Sanders nor Warren is new to the American political scene. Both have long track records and resumés. Redefining them at this stage is a tactic for defeating them. They are who progressives have known them to be all along. They will be challenged for suggesting that the system be changed fundamentally.
Be prepared.
Marc Ash is the founder and former Executive Director of Truthout, and is now founder and Editor of Reader Supported News.
Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.
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Bernie Sanders' Delegates Ready for Another Run |
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Written by <a href="index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=48990"><span class="small">Norman Solomon, Reader Supported News</span></a>
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Thursday, 03 January 2019 09:16 |
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Solomon writes: "Three out of four former delegates for Bernie Sanders at the 2016 Democratic National Convention now say he's their first choice to be the party's 2020 presidential nominee, while one out of 20 say he isn't their first choice, according to a poll conducted in late December."
Senator Bernie Sanders. (photo: Getty)
Bernie Sanders' Delegates Ready for Another Run
By Norman Solomon, Reader Supported News
03 January 19
 hree out of four former delegates for Bernie Sanders at the 2016 Democratic National Convention now say he’s their first choice to be the party’s 2020 presidential nominee, while one out of 20 say he isn’t their first choice, according to a poll conducted in late December.
The survey asked: “Is Bernie Sanders your first choice for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination?” The results:
76 % Yes
5 % No
19 % Undecided
The poll was conducted by the independent Bernie Delegates Network.
“The survey results are a green light for activating our network to advocate for making Senator Sanders the party’s 2020 presidential nominee,” said Norman Solomon, national coordinator of the online activist group RootsAction.org, who was a Sanders delegate from California and the coordinator of the Bernie Delegates Network at the 2016 convention. “We’ll be moving forward soon as former Bernie delegates decide on our next steps for nationwide communication and grassroots action.”
Solomon added: “If there’s a Sanders 2020 presidential campaign, as now appears likely, it’s clear that he can count on support from a large majority of the people who were his delegates at the national convention. These are local leaders and activists who know how to organize effectively in their communities around the country.”
The executive director of Progressive Democrats of America, Alan Minsky, said “these results from the straw poll once again confirm the powerful base of support that Senator Sanders will have if he runs for president in 2020. We, at PDA, have already called upon Senator Sanders to run, as it is essential that his voice be prominent in a presidential election cycle that will address the most pressing issues facing the country and the world at a perilous moment in our history.”
The chair of the California Democratic Party’s Progressive Caucus, Karen Bernal, said: “The Bernie Delegates Network’s poll results have never been and nor will they ever be spin -- a rare thing in the world of politics. Bernie Sanders is still the only candidate who will lead with ideas he's championed throughout his long career in public service. As the standard-bearer of policies finally considered mainstream by the base of our party, the importance of his presence in the upcoming presidential election cycle cannot be overstated -- without him, the resistance to oligarchy and the war machine suffers. We need Bernie to keep speaking truth to and about power!” Bernal was co-chair of California’s Sanders delegation to the national convention.
The two organizations that sponsored the Bernie Delegates Network in 2016 -- Progressive Democrats of America and RootsAction.org -- will sponsor the relaunched network. PDA members included more than 200 Sanders delegates at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
The Bernie Delegates Network is reactivating after a nationwide survey of former delegates in early December. The votes were 418 “yes” to 25 “no” in favor of reconstituting the organization. (Details are here.)
A total of 384 former Sanders delegates from across the country responded to the latest survey during the last two weeks of December. Former delegates were given a unique code that could only be used to vote once.
“Most Sanders delegates understand that Bernie’s 2016 policies on healthcare, college, green jobs and taxing the wealthy are the basis of a progressive movement that many Democratic presidential hopefuls now claim to embrace -- and they know that Bernie was there first and is the real deal,” said Pia Gallegos, former chair of the Adelante Progressive Caucus of the Democratic Party of New Mexico.
Before and during the national convention in July 2016, the Bernie Delegates Network -- while maintaining independence from the Sanders campaign organization -- enabled Sanders delegates to plan with each other. The network developed a rapid-response capacity to survey Sanders delegates about their issue priorities and tactical preferences, and then quickly share the results. For instance, going into the convention, several hundred delegates voted via the Bernie Delegates Network to give top priority to visibly expressing opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership and support for Medicare for All. The network also expressed its opposition to Hillary Clinton’s choice of Tim Kaine as running mate.
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Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.
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Why Did Mike Pompeo Attend the Inauguration of Brazil's Far-Right President? |
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Written by <a href="index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=47271"><span class="small">D. Parvaz, ThinkProgress</span></a>
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Thursday, 03 January 2019 09:15 |
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Parvaz writes: "Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday attended the inauguration of Brazil's far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro. Pompeo joined other populist leaders, including Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungary's Viktor Orban, in optics that only further support the notion that the United States is running in the same circles as some of the world's most hardline, anti-democratic circles."
Mike Pompeo. (photo: Sergio Lima/Getty)
Why Did Mike Pompeo Attend the Inauguration of Brazil's Far-Right President?
By D. Parvaz, ThinkProgress
03 January 19
It appears to be the first inauguration attended by the secretary of state.
ecretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday attended the inauguration of Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro. Pompeo joined other populist leaders, including Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, in optics that only further support the notion that the United States is running in the same circles as some of the world’s most hardline, anti-democratic circles.
Pompeo’s presence was no small thing to Boslonaro, who retweeted the secretary on Wednesday.
Pompeo and his Brazilian counterpart, Ernesto Araujo, held a press briefing on Wednesday, during which Reuters asked Pompeo about the concern among the Brazil’s civil society about “a possible loss of protection for human rights under this new government.”
Pompeo allowed Araujo to speak first — Araujo said there is “no reason at all” to fear an attack on human rights — and then added that the United States is committed to human rights.
Three days before his departure, the State Department provided the press with an official preview of the trip and took a few questions from reporters. The Washington Post asked a double-barrel question on Brazil as well as Venezuela (where a long-running political and economic crisis has lead to insecurity and mass exodus).
Focusing on Brazil, the reporter asked: “As you know, in Brazil, many members of civil society have expressed concern about incoming President Bolsonaro. Does the Secretary plan to talk with him about U.S. expectations for the need for democracy, human rights, protection of minorities and the rule of law when he takes power?”
The response was basically…not really.
“I’m certain that the Secretary and the president-elect will discuss human rights, and I would point you to – I realize there’s been some concern about older statements that were made many years ago,” said the unnamed official leading the briefing, adding that Bolsonaro “is taking a very strident and very forceful approach to human rights.”
This is baffling, given that Bolsonaro, who is a big fan of President Donald Trump, favors torture and military dictatorship.
He has made numerous homophobic and sexist remarks, including saying that a woman was too “ugly” to be raped by him (“She’s not my type, I’d never rape her. I’m not a rapist, but if I was, I wouldn’t rape her because she doesn’t deserve it,” he said of a leftist deputy.)
Trump has repeatedly praised Bolsonaro, who also hates the media and migrants and has referred to refugees as the “scum of the earth.”
On Wednesday, Bolsonaro showed Trump some Twitter love:
ThinkProgress contacted the State Department with questions on Pompeo’s visit, asking for confirmation that this is the only inauguration he has attended since coming into office and wondering how this is the one that made the cut.
But the partial government shutdown has forced staff into furloughs, which means only urgent queries, such as the safety of human life and national security, will be responded to (“You get the government you pay for,” quipped a press officer). We were pointed to the State Department’s website for our queries.
According to Pompeo’s travel log, this does appear to be the first and only inauguration of any state leader he has attended. The materials on the trip said that he will use the opportunity meet with his counterpart there, and will travel to Colombia on Wednesday to meet with Colombian President Ivan Duque, discussing the ongoing turmoil in Venezuela.
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Ryan Zinke Scribbles About His Public Lands Legacy as National Parks Devolve Into Chaos |
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Written by <a href="index.php?option=com_comprofiler&task=userProfile&user=49875"><span class="small">Bryan Kahn, Earther</span></a>
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Thursday, 03 January 2019 09:15 |
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Kahn writes: "Wednesday is scandal haver Ryan Zinke's last day as Secretary of the Interior. And it looks like his last official tweet will be the perfect memorial to his utter lack of self awareness."
Former Secretary Ryan Zinke. (photo: Getty)
Ryan Zinke Scribbles About His Public Lands Legacy as National Parks Devolve Into Chaos
By Bryan Kahn, Earther
03 January 19
 ednesday is scandal haver Ryan Zinke’s last day as Secretary of the Interior. And it looks like his last official tweet will be the perfect memorial to his utter lack of self awareness.
The tweet features a photo of Zinke’s farewell note that looks part serial killer, part mixtape written in barely-legible red marker on Secretary of Interior letterhead. Here’s what it says:
“It’s been a high honor to serve the President and the American People as @ [sic] Interior Secretary. We’ve restored public lands “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people,” improved public access and shall never be held hostage again for our energy needs. God bless America and those who defend her.”
Crowing about improving access right now is perhaps the most tone deaf part of the note. National parks are being partially shuttered because of a protracted government shutdown over Trump’s border wall. Those that aren’t are filling up with poop and trash. And let’s not forget that Zinke raised the idea of charging more to enter parks, only to abandon it after major public outcry.
But really the whole thing is just one heaping helping of revisionist history and cluelessness. While I’m sure it’s been an honor for Zinke to serve as secretary—he got a flag and rode a horse to work on his first day!—I’m not sure it can be said that he brought honor to the office.
Over his tenure, at least 17 probes were opened into Zinke’s behavior. He may have violated the Hatch Act for tweeting about his MAGA socks (a phrase that feels almost too absurd to write), and he called a sitting Congressman a drunk, also on Twitter. He couldn’t even wear a park ranger hat the right way.
In more serious matters, Zinke was hardly instrumental in restoring public lands. He has been one of the administration’s biggest proponents of drilling for oil and gas, helping to shrink Bears Ears National Monument and wiping out Interior Department climate change guidance policies for land managers. He’s supported opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling as well as basically the entire continental shelf. He fashioned himself as a Teddy Roosevelt conservationist, but his policies have favored big businesses at the expense of better land management. His acting replacement means more of the same, minus the scandals.
And land management will likely keep on deteriorating as Zinke rides off into the smog-choked sunset. There’s no end in sight for the shutdown, and Yosemite, the nation’s most iconic park, announced it was limiting access due to the aforementioned poop that overrunneth on Wednesday. Other parks could follow suit. Really it’s a fitting way to close out Zinke’s tenure.
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y first resolution for 2019 is “Lighten up. When someone asks you how you are, say ‘Never better’ and say it with conviction, make it be true.” And my second resolution is: “Don’t bother fighting with ignorance. It doesn’t bother him, and you wind up with stupidity all over you.”
