Progressive Breakfast: Donald Trump's Victory Is Not The Last Word

MORNING MESSAGE

George Goehl & LeeAnn Hall

Donald Trump's Victory Is Not The Last Word

Trump’s campaign has already been building a wall—not between the United States and Mexico but between American communities. He is building this wall with myths about white people under siege from black and brown “others”—immigrants stealing jobs, Black Lives Matter activists threatening “law and order,” or Muslim Americans undermining shared values ... I know firsthand how well this story plays. But I also know we have the capacity to tear down walls so that people can unite and build an economy and political system that works for all of us.

POPULAR VOTE MINORITY ELECTS DONALD TRUMP

Cook Political Report's David Wasserman: "Thinking HRC will easily win the popular vote by 1-2 million."

Rust Belt backlash breaks Democratic coalition. American Prospect's Harold Meyerson: "... the Rust Belt—whose rust buildup Bill Clinton signally contributed to by signing deals that offshored millions of decent-paying jobs—revolted. Last night, from Pennsylvania in the east to Iowa in the West, one formerly-solid Democratic state after another saw their white working class, their small town and rural voters, get vengeance against an establishment that had left much of their economy in ruins ... There’s one other crucial factor in the revolt of the Rust Belt: deunionization."

TNR's Brian Beutler analyzes how Trump won the "missing white vote": "...we have to accept that there was a great deal of truth to what the political analyst Sean Trende dubbed the 'Missing White Voter' thesis—that every election year, in rural communities in the rust belt and the panhandle of Florida, millions of white people without college degrees just don’t vote ... What it took was a campaign of undisguised white nationalism—brash, unapologetic scapegoating of immigrants and Muslims. It took not only misogyny, but the endorsement of sexual assault."

NYT's Nate Cohn: "Clinton suffered her biggest losses in the places where Obama was strongest among white voters. It's not a simple racism story"

The Nation's Joan Walsh envisions what Republicans will now do: " With control of all three branches of government, the GOP is able to promote an agenda that, in its particulars, Americans tell pollsters they reject: austerity, tax cuts for the rich, abortion and gay marriage either condemned or illegal, college unaffordable, Social Security and Medicare slashed. It will ignore, even suppress, the just claims of the Black Lives Matter movement; the cruelty of mass incarceration and the killings of young black people will continue. We had a chance to stop this, and we weren’t able to."

"Don't Mourn, Fight Like Hell" says Mother Jones' Clara Jeffrey: "There is no time, no room, no space to do anything but push back against what, in large part, this will turn out to be: not just a protest vote by rural whites who feel left behind, but the coming out of a burgeoning white nationalist, authoritarian movement."

Clinton team "saw it coming." Politico: "They recognized that Sanders and Trump had correctly defined the problem—addressing anger about a rigged economy and government—and that Clinton already never authentically could. Worse still, her continuing email saga and extended revelations about the Clinton Foundation connections made any anti-establishment strategy completely impossible. So instead of answering the question of how Clinton represented change, they tried to change the question to temperament, what kind of change people wanted, what kind of America they wanted to live in. It wasn’t enough."

REPUBLICANS SET TO CONTROL WASHINGTON

Politico previews Trump cabinet: "...Trump campaign is seriously considering Forrest Lucas, the 74-year-old co-founder of oil products company Lucas Oil, as a top contender for Interior secretary, or donor and Goldman Sachs veteran Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary ... Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani and Chris Christie ... are being considered for top posts. ... Trump campaign officials have worried privately that they will have difficulty finding high-profile women to serve in his Cabinet ... [But] aides have also discussed tapping Sarah Palin for Interior Secretary..."

Relations with congressional Republicans may not be smooth. Politico: "...Republicans on the Hill will fall in line with the Trump agenda when they have to do so ... And they'll have a prime chance to advance their agenda with the policy-lite Trump in the Oval Office ... [But] Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) must navigate his rocky relationship with Trump and the many Republicans on the Hill whose positions on abortion, taxes and immigration conflict with the president-elect’s values."

"President-elect Trump due to appear in court later this month" notes Politico: "Before Donald Trump raises his right hand to take the oath of office in January, he’s set for a less-auspicious swearing-in: taking the witness stand in his own defense in a federal court civil trial over alleged fraud in his Trump University real estate seminar program ... In addition to several suits over Trump University, Trump has threatened lawsuits against a dozen or more women who’ve accused him of sexual impropriety in recent months—and several of those women have threatened to counter sue if he comes after them. There’s also a New York state investigation into his charitable foundation and a reported federal investigation into some of his advisers’ ties to Russia."

WORLD (MOSTLY) SHUDDERS

Nations worry about world order. NYT: "...Trump’s promise to pull back militarily and economically left many overseas contemplating a road ahead without an American ally ... Perhaps nowhere was Mr. Trump’s win more alarming than in Mexico ... One of the few places where Mr. Trump’s victory was greeted enthusiastically was Russia, where state-controlled television has been feasting on the circuslike elements of the American election ... Israel was another place where Mr. Trump enjoyed some support, mainly because of the perception that he would give the country a freer hand..."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts. Telegraph: "Donald Trump's victory is an 'unmistakable rejection of a political establishment and an economic system that simply isn't working for most people', Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said. Mr Corbyn did not congratulate the US President-elect on his victory, unlike [PM] Theresa May who praised his 'hard-fought campaign'."

PROGRESSIVES WIN KEY BALLOT INITIATIVES

Minimum wage ballot initiatives pass. WSJ: "Colorado, Arizona, Maine and Washington all passed minimum-wage increase initiatives, with Washington raising it to $13.50 per hour by 2020 and the others to $12 per hour in the same time frame. That would put them on the level of what is deemed the current statewide living wage by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s living-wage calculator, which uses location-specific expenditure data to estimate the wage needed to support an individual or family in a given area."

Massachusetts voters reject charter school expansion. MassLive: "In a devastating loss for supporters of charter schools, Massachusetts voters on Tuesday voted against a ballot question that would have allowed the state to approve up to 12 new or expanded charter schools a year, outside of an existing cap ... The pro-charter school money came from a mix of Massachusetts corporations, individuals working in the financial industry, out-of-state donors like the Walton family who owns Wal-Mart and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg."

Washington State rejects "revenue-neutral" carbon tax. Seattle Times: "Initiative 732, which sought to apply a tax on energy-derived coal, oil gas garnered just 42 percent after ballot counts around the state ... The measure had trouble marshaling consensus among progressive and environmental groups."

"Florida voters say no to misleading solar amendment" reports Miami Herald: "Florida voters rejected Amendment 1 on Tuesday, the utility-backed measure to limit rooftop solar expansion, after a scrappy, grassroots campaign and last-minute revelations raised doubts about the proponents’ claims that their goal was to expand solar generation ... with nearly three-quarters of precincts reporting, the vote was almost evenly split, falling short of the 60 percent needed for a state constitutional amendment to become law."

Progressive rising star Pramila Jayapal wins House seat. Huffington Post: "...she will be the first Indian-American woman to hold a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives ... Jayapal will also join Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), the first Indian-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate ... Jayapal earned an early endorsement from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)."

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: Donald Trump Wants Working Americans to Fight Each Other

MORNING MESSAGE

George Goehl

Donald Trump Wants Working Americans to Fight Each Other

People's Action co-executive director George Goehl writes in The Nation:

Trump’s campaign has already been building a wall—not between the United States and Mexico but between American communities. He is building this wall with myths about white people under siege from black and brown “others”—immigrants stealing jobs, Black Lives Matter activists threatening “law and order,” or Muslim Americans undermining shared values ... I know firsthand how well this story plays. But I also know we have the capacity to tear down walls so that people can unite and build an economy and political system that works for all of us.

LEFT BUOYING CLINTON

Left seen as rallying behind Clinton. W. Post:"...Clinton appears to have less of a challenge on her left flank than Al Gore did in 2000; final polls show her enjoying party loyalty comparable to that of Barack Obama in his two campaigns."

Clinton emphasizes manufacturing to hold on to Michigan. The Hill:"'I am not one of these folks who thinks well we just can’t make it in America anymore, because if we have a plan and we actually commit to fulfilling that plan we can lead the world in precision machining, in 3D printing,' Clinton said ... 'My opponent chose to make many of his products overseas,'..."

Scott Wallace reads excerpt from "The Danger of American Fascism," written 72 years ago by his grandfather Vice-President Henry Wallace, to get out the vote:"A fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends."

DOWN BALLOT LOOMS LARGE

Our Revolution faces "big test" writes The Nation's D.D. Guttenplan:"A lot has been written about the 'Sanders effect' in close congressional races, where his backing has helped power candidates such as Russ Feingold, Pramila Jayapal, and Zephyr Teachout. Much less attention has been paid, however, to the dozens of down-ballot races where an expenditure of just a few thousand dollars can make the difference between a hopeless cause and a viable campaign. 'Our real focus is down ballot,' says [Our Revolution chair Larry] Cohen."

Dems face uphill road in House races. Roll Call:"Clinton must post large margins to push down-ballot Democrats over the edge. She may have the advantage nationally, but her unpopularity still rivals Trump’s in many places. That’s one reason why Democrats have had to continue spending in districts in Iowa or Nevada, for example, that they should have put away months ago."

Not many governor's races. TNR:"Thirty-six states elect their governors during off-years instead, including 16 of the 20 largest by population ... That form of electoral staggering, which also affects races for the country’s 99 state legislatures, puts Democrats at a significant structural disadvantage ... young people, racial minorities, and the poor—though reliable constituencies during media-saturated presidential campaigns—vanish during midterm elections."

Roll Call explores why Dems likely to lose Senate race in OH:"...when [Ted] Strickland entered the race, the [Sen. Rob] Portman campaign hatched a plan to target the Democrat on two issues: coal and guns [and] spent heavily to discredit Strickland with his former base ... Strickland has raised just $10 million this campaign, less than half the nearly $20 million Portman raised ... Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld [who lost] the Senate Democratic primary [said,] 'If you’re Democrats, you really need to amplify your margins in urban communities and with millennial voters.'"

Progressives see hope in NC. The Nation's Joan Walsh:"In 2008, the new multiracial North Carolina elected Democrats Barack Obama president and Kay Hagan senator. In 2010, the old white conservative North Carolina fought back ... [Rev. William] Barber’s 'Moral Majority' movement, which since 2013 has grown to include those fighting the ugly anti-transgender 'bathroom bill' HB2, as well as the anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant backlash here and nationwide, has gotten ever more powerful."

People's Action co-executive director George Goehl reports on increased youth organizing:"While we were visiting with students in Reno, Student Action launched a tweetstorm using the hashtag #Nov9WeMobilize. With a series of memes and tweets throughout the day, young people at campuses across the country shared stories about why they’re organizing not just for the election, but beyond ... The young people we met in Reno on Thursday, working hard in a sometimes thankless environment, represent a bright spot in an often bleak election cycle."

WILL THE VOTE BE PROTECTED?

NYT's David Leonhardt spots "The Real Voter Fraud":"In Ohio, residents who make a minor error filling out personal information will have their votes discarded ... In Texas, people have posted photographs to social media showing signs at polling places that claim voters need photo identification. They do not ... In Wisconsin, some state employees have made it difficult to obtain voter-identification cards, defying a court order. The same has happened here in North Carolina, with perfectly eligible voters receiving the runaround. North Carolina has also closed polling places in some areas and changed early-voting hours."

Improvement for Native American voting access in Nevada, but problems persist. LAT:"...the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada sued in October and got two sites added to the state’s approximately 435 polling locations. They wrote a letter to the Nevada secretary of state shortly afterward to ask for more but were rejected. Duckwater was one of those places that didn't get a site, even though its residents have the longest trek to cast ballots in Nevada — about 270 miles round trip ... Native American advocacy group Four Directions, was part of the [successful lawsuit that ... placed [sites] in Nixon and Schurz ... early voting at the Nixon site had already born fruit, with a 10% increase in turnout..."

OurFuture.org's Libero Della Piana shares voter help hotlines:"If you have problems trying to vote for WHATEVER reason, call the hotlines below ... 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) Our Vote Hotline hotline will be answered live in real time by trained volunteers from 30 minutes before polls open and 30 minutes after polls close in each state."

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: Behind the Job Numbers, Millions Are Being Left Behind

MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

Behind the Job Numbers, Millions Are Being Left Behind

A team of political scientists, writing in the Washington Post, concluded that “Trump supporters who are struggling economically perceive U.S. economic performance overall to be much worse than it actually is.” Those voters believed that the unemployment rate is three times higher than the official number, and these new figures aren’t likely to change that ... They may not know the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but they know their own economic reality and those of their peers and their communities. So do the African-Americans, women, manufacturing workers, and other workers who confront economic injustice on a daily basis. These diverse groups of working people could become a new coalition for change. Where are the reports that speak to, and for, them?

WHO'S VOTING?

Latino turnout seen as surging. NYT:“…Hispanic America has been mobilized like never before in the 2016 election, and is emerging as a formidable force with the power to elect a president. Energized by anger at Mr. Trump and an aggressive Democratic campaign to get them to the polls, Latinos are turning out in record numbers and could make the difference in the outcome in several highly contested states.”

While African-American turnout may be down. Roll Call:“…initial early voting statistics in battleground states like North Carolina and Florida painted a troubling picture … Clinton’s campaign this month has dispatched Obama to eight medium or large U.S. metropolitan areas in swing states that rank among the top 41 regions in terms of African-American populations … Obama let black voters hear his disappointment — and alarm — Wednesday on the ‘Tom Joyner Morning Show,’ …”

Mixed signals in early vote. McClatchy:“Nearly 42 million Americans have already voted for president … it’s clear Hispanic turnout among early voters will outpace the 2012 and 2008 presidential elections … Yet registered Democrats in Florida and North Carolina have smaller leads over registered Republicans among early voters in 2016 than they did in 2012 … It’s possible that some registered Democrats could vote for Trump and that some registered Republicans defect to Clinton … The lower turnout could also be due to North Carolina’s process of challenging voters’ registration, a practice one U.S. judge called ‘insane.'”

Trump’s “most extreme supporters say they believe that they have already won,” reports NYT:“[Trump] has also emboldened extremist groups that say he has validated their agendas … ‘Trump has shown that our message is healthy, normal and organic — and millions of Americans agree with us,’ said Matthew M. Heimbach, a co-founder of the Traditionalist Youth Network, a white nationalist group that claims to support the interests of working-class whites. It also advocates the separation of the races.”

Minimum wage increases on the ballot in several states. Mother Jones:“Arizona, Colorado, and Maine propose moving toward a $12 minimum wage by 2020, while the state of Washington would raise its minimum wage to $13.50 an hour, also by 2020. Arizona and Washington’s measures would also create mandatory paid sick leave for workers. If these initiatives pass, as many as 2.1 million people could soon earn higher hourly wages.”

WHAT DO THEY STAND FOR?

Politico’s Michael Grunwald assesses the Clinton and Trump platforms:“Hillary Clinton plans to raise taxes on the rich, while Donald Trump plans to cut taxes on the rich … Trump also wants to repeal President Barack Obama’s health care reforms and Wall Street reforms, while Clinton wants to keep them and strengthen them … [But] traditional broadcasts on ABC, NBC and CBS have devoted just 32 minutes to all policy issues this year.”

Immigration “center stage” says The Hill:“Immigration is not on the ballot, but it was Donald Trump’s signature issue from the day he launched his campaign … Much of the 2017 debate will hinge on the results of Tuesday’s elections –– up and down the ballot. If Democrats do retake the Senate, it could put pressure on Speaker Paul Ryan … Pro-reform Republicans believe immigration can become the conservative issue that unifies the party under its core principles –– if GOP leaders ignore the far-right reform opponents.”

Trump’s platform “anti-woman” says American Prospect’s Dorothy Samuels:“If the Republican Party is to ever to reverse the tide of women now fleeing the GOP, its leaders must belatedly disown Trump and Trumpism. More importantly, the party must move away from its obsessive hostility to abortion rights and access.”

The New Yorker’s Alec MacGillis delves into the looming fight over Clinton appointees with Wall Street ties:“It is known that [Sen. Elizabeth Warren] and her allies look favorably on people such as Sarah Bloom Raskin, a Deputy Treasury Secretary, and Tom Perez, President Obama’s Labor Secretary. They have also expressed strong reservations about Laurence Fink, the C.E.O. of BlackRock; Hamilton James, the president of the Blackstone Group; and Blair Effron, the founder of the investment firm Centerview Partners. Lately, critics have focussed on Thomas R. Nides, who is seen as a contender for a prominent position in a Clinton Administration, possibly even chief of staff … he spent most of the past decade as an executive at Morgan Stanley, a bank that helped precipitate the 2007-08 financial crisis, received a ten-billion-dollar bailout from the government, then fought efforts to reform the financial sector.”

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: Why Is Washington Still Pushing the Trans-Pacific Partnership?

MORNING MESSAGE

Robert Borosage

Why Is Washington Still Pushing the Trans-Pacific Partnership?

Both Clinton and Trump oppose the TPP. It was exhibit one in the populist argument made by Bernie Sanders. Leading environmental, consumer, labor, citizen-action, and human-rights groups are organized against it. The white working-class voters who flocked to Trump’s banner loathe it. Yet, bizarrely, first thing after this election is over, President Obama, the Republican leaders of the House and Senate and the business lobby are planning to launch a full-court press to drive the TPP through a lame-duck session of Congress.

FINAL WEEKEND

Both campaigns look to motivate base vote in final weekend. NYT:“…Clinton is moving to reinforce her position among crucial constituencies, including black communities in North Carolina and Florida, and Hispanic strongholds in Nevada and Arizona … Where Mrs. Clinton has homed in on minority turnout in early-voting states, Mr. Trump has delivered a broad-brush message denouncing Mrs. Clinton as corrupt … Trump has tested his strength in unconventional places — one day in tossup states, another in Democratic-leaning states like Michigan and New Mexico, still another in states that Mrs. Clinton seemed to have locked up long ago, like Virginia and Colorado.”

AP reviews the early voting numbers:“Hillary Clinton … continues to maintain an apparent edge over Donald Trump, with more than one-quarter of all expected ballots cast … the tens of millions of early votes cast also point to strength from Democratic-leaning Latino voters, potentially giving Clinton a significant advantage in Nevada and Colorado … In North Carolina and Florida, Democrats did better with mail balloting than they had in previous elections … But the big turnout — especially among black voters — hasn’t yet happened…”

Wages rise in final pre-election jobs report. Bloomberg:“Payrolls climbed by 161,000 last month following a 191,000 gain in September that was larger than previously estimated … The jobless rate fell to 4.9 percent … The figures are likely to keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise borrowing costs next month for the first time in 2016 … Wage gains picked up, with average hourly earnings rising 0.4 percent from a month earlier to $25.92. The year-over-year increase was 2.8 percent…”

CORPORATIONS SEEK TO SHAPE & WIN BALLOT INITIATIVES

Corporations spend heavily on secretary of state elections. NYT:“The targeting of secretaries of state with campaign donations, corporate-funded weekend outings and secret meetings with industry lobbyists reflects an intense focus on often overlooked ballot questions, which the secretaries frequently help write … a difference of even a few words on a ballot measure can have an enormous impact on the outcome.”

Deceptive enviro measures on state ballots. The Nation:“… what do you do if you’re a big utility company that fears competition from alternative-energy sources? In Florida, apparently, you perform a ‘little bit of political jiu-jitsu’ to make an anti-solar measure sound like its opposite … California voters are considering two ballot measures related to plastic bags, which can harm fish and other wildlife. Like the solar-power amendment in Florida, both measures are sponsored by industry groups—plastics manufacturers, who’ve funded a front group called the American Progressive Bag Alliance—and they’re written in ways that may confuse voters.”

Left split on Washington state carbon tax ballot measure. The Hill:“Proponents say it will help reduce the prime driver of climate change and reform a regressive tax code … But it’s facing surprising opposition from many greens … Any new revenue from the carbon tax will go toward lowering other taxes in the state rather than raising money for potential carbon-cutting investments … Opponents also point to projections that the tax will lead to millions of dollars in lost revenue.”

Paris agreement takes effect today. The Hill:“…John Morton, director for climate and energy at the White House National Security Council … said the agreement is taking effect ‘much, much faster, years faster, than most people expected. And with that entry into force, that puts us on a much accelerated path toward implementation of that goals that we laid out in Paris a year ago.'”

JOCKEYING FOR CLINTON CABINET

“Liberals push Kara Stein to lead SEC” reports Politico:“When Sen. Elizabeth Warren last month demanded that President Barack Obama immediately replace SEC Chair Mary Jo White, she said the president could easily fill the position without Senate confirmation. That was a tacit endorsement of Kara Stein, the agency’s lone Democratic commissioner, who could move into the top job without Senate involvement … Other names that have been circulated by progressives for top jobs: Labor Secretary Tom Perez; former CFTC Commissioner Gary Gensler; Deputy Treasury Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin, and Heather Boushey, the chief economist on the Clinton transition team.”

Huge network of Clinton allies competing for administration posts. The Hill:“this transition is expected to be brutal given the number of people in the vast orbit of Bill and Hillary Clinton who have been waiting for years to have a shot at a job in a future administration.”

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: In This Hate-Filled Election, There's Always Love

MORNING MESSAGE

George Goehl and Ai-jen Poo

In This Hate-Filled Election, There’s Always Love

In the next few days, we’ll hear a lot from the pundits about the polls and numbers, about swing states and safe states, about different demographic categories and who can tip the scales. What inevitably gets lost in the horserace is the story about the real people, especially people at the bottom of our economy and living on the margins, and the issues they care about. That’s why we’ll be talking with immigrants in Aurora, Colorado, students and Native Americans in Washoe County, Nevada, domestic workers in Dade County, Florida, formerly incarcerated people in Arizona, and working-class white people in New Hampshire ... Follow our journey here on OurFuture.org, and on social media using the hashtag #BestofUS2016.

PROGRESSIVES CALL ON CLINTON TO BE BOLD

OurFuture.org’s Robert Borosage defends progressive moves to influence a Clinton cabinet:“Roger Lowenstein, reporter turned investment banker, spewed out an incoherent rant against Warren in a New York Times op-ed. The heads of the Third Way, a Wall Street funded message shop, fretted that Clinton might fill her administration with “progressive conformists.” The Washington Post editors raised the specter of a progressive “blacklist.” How dare progressive organize around appointments for a president they have helped to elect? … Who the hell do they think they are? Wall Street bankers?”

“Left emboldened for post-Obama era” says The Hill:“Figures on the left were frequently exasperated with President Obama, particularly during his early years in office, for what they saw as a misguided, ‘post-partisan’ approach to seeking deals with Republicans. They’re warning that Hillary Clinton, should she ascend to the White House, would struggle to win reelection if she took the same tack.”

Clinton will have to “juggle” three intra-party factions, says NYT’s Thomas Edsall:“Hillary Clinton must juggle three competing interest groups: her party’s upscale pro-trade, globalist wing; its underdog minority wing; and organized labor. She is paying a price for her triple allegiance [with] new levels of Republican loyalty among white working class voters …”

“Trump Pushed Millennials Out of the Republican Party” says The Atlantic’s Ron Brownstein:“…all evidence suggests Trump is further alienating a Millennial generation that is already cool to the GOP—and is poised to become the electorate’s largest cohort in 2020 … The Millennial generation is defined by its diversity; over two-fifths of Millennials are young people of color.”

OBAMA SHAKES UP DAKOTA DEBATE

“Tribe cheers Obama talk of rerouting ND pipeline” reports The Hill:“Obama told NowThis News on Tuesday that the Army Corps of Engineers ‘is examining whether there are ways to reroute the pipeline,’ … ‘We applaud President Obama’s commitment to protect our sacred lands, our water and the water of 17 million others,’ Dave Archambault, the chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux, said on Wednesday … said Craig Stevens, a spokesman for the group Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now[,] ‘Even if possible, rerouting the line would require years to complete, new easements, new environmental and cultural studies, and cost hundreds of millions of dollars,’ … ‘There’s no reroute that doesn’t involve the same risks to water and climate,’ Sara Shor, 350.org’s Keep It in the Ground campaign manager said.”

Earthjustice’s Jan Hasselman make case against Dakota Access Pipeline in W. Post oped:“No such thoughtful consideration has occurred to date. Initial federal permits, and partnership with affected tribes, were treated as a ‘check the box’ exercise. Nowhere was there a careful analysis of how much the Missouri River crossing threatened water quality and tribal treaty rights. Nowhere was there a thoughtful public discussion of whether a new major oil pipeline should be placed in a river providing drinking water to 17 million people.”

“Cars hit fuel economy record in 2015” reports The Hill:“Model-year 2015 cars averaged a carbon dioxide emissions standard that was 7 grams per mile higher than what the EPA required for that year … A separate EPA report released Wednesday concluded that average fuel economy was 24.8 miles per gallon, 0.5 mpg higher than the previous year.”

Global community tries to cut airplane emissions. NYT:“…much still needs to be resolved before the 15-year aviation accord comes into force beginning in 2021. The first six years of the deal will be voluntary … most of the industry’s focus will fall on a complicated offsetting system, in which airlines buy credits from climate change projects, like renewable energy programs often in the developing world, to counterbalance their own carbon emissions.”

BREAKFAST SIDES

Trump’s tax avoidance may spur reforms. NYT:“‘Trump’s scheming on his taxes has put a spotlight on [how] for the most fortunate … you hire a battery of experts, and you pay what you want when you want to, or even nothing at all.’ [said Sen. Ron Wyden.] Kevin Brady, Republican of Texas and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee [said] much the same thing.”

UK needs parliamentary approve for Brexit. NYT:“The court’s decision seemed likely to slow — but not halt — the process for a British withdrawal from the 28-nation union … [The] Conservative Party holds only a slim majority, with 329 seats in the 650-seat Parliament. Although most lawmakers opposed the decision to leave the European Union, it would be politically toxic for them to overturn the referendum outcome.”

Militia groups may spark post-election violence. Reuters:“The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks extremist groups, estimates there were 276 active militias last year, up from 42 in 2008 … Amid the war games, [militia member Chris] Hill weighed plans for a possible armed march on Washington if Clinton wins …”

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: The Biggest House Race Of 2016: Teachout vs. Faso

MORNING MESSAGE

Bill Scher

The Biggest House Race Of 2016: Teachout vs. Faso

If [Zephyr] Teachout holds on to that three-point lead and overcomes [John] Faso’s Super PAC money, she will not only be an example of how small-donor campaigns can triumph over corporate cash in swing districts. She will also be a case study of how progressive populists can use a combination of policy detail and political jiu-jitsu to beat back right-wing attacks.

KKK TRIES TO SWAY ELECTION

KKK embraces Trump. Mother Jones:“The KKK quarterly The Crusader (‘The Premier Voice Of The White Resistance’) devoted its latest front page to a throaty defense of Trump’s ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan … [KKK leader Pastor Thomas] Robb stopped short of calling it a formal endorsement … The Trump campaign … issued a statement denouncing the paper.”

“White nationalists plot Election Day show of force” reports Politico:“The National Socialist Movement, various factions of the Ku Klux Klan and the white nationalist American Freedom Party all are deploying members to watch polls, either ‘informally’ or, they say, through the Trump campaign. The Oath Keepers, a group of former law enforcement and military members that often shows up in public heavily armed, is advising members to go undercover and conduct ‘intelligence-gathering’ at polling places, and Donald Trump ally Roger Stone is organizing his own exit polling, aiming to monitor thousands of precincts across the country.”

BACKLASH AGAINST SCHUMER, RYAN

“Liberals wary of Schumer tax plan” reports The Hill:“Sen. Charles Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) ideas for overhauling the tax system are encountering skepticism on the left … viewing them as too favorable to corporations at a time when populist sentiment is running high … Schumer has floated the idea of ‘deemed repatriation’ for corporate earnings outside the U.S. and a minimum tax on future foreign earnings regardless of whether they are repatriated. While Schumer has not specified the rates he would like to see for those taxes, he has suggested they should be lower than 35 percent … opposition from the left is unlikely to deter Schumer, who has shown a willingness to take on the liberal base in the past.”

House Freedom Caucus plots post-election strategy. Politico:“Top members of the House Freedom Caucus will hold a rare, pre-election strategy session in Washington on Wednesday to chart the group’s moves in November and beyond. One of the most pressing questions preoccupying Washington is what the group will do about Paul Ryan…”

PRESSURE TO SHAPE CLINTON CABINET

Congressional people of color press Clinton for diverse cabinet. The Hill:“The congressional Hispanic, Asian and black caucuses recently held separate meetings with Clinton’s transition team to put forward names of minority candidates for Cabinet and high-ranking administration posts … Former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who is heading the transition team, attended some of those meetings … Here are some of the names the so-called Tri-Caucus … has floated…”

WP edit board slams progressives for trying to shape Clinton cabinet:” Ms. Clinton is being told, apparently, to apply a series of litmus tests to her potential nominees … The advance veto on future nominees that Ms. Warren and Mr. Sanders are seeking, if carried to its logical extreme, would make them de facto usurpers of presidential power.”

BERNIE FLEXES MUSCLE

Bernie Sanders opposes MA ballot initiative to greatly increase number of charter schools. Boston Herald quotes:“Wall Street must not be allowed to hijack public education in Massachusetts.”

Sanders calls out drug company for price gouging. The Hill:“Eli Lilly’s stock dropped nearly 2 percentage points after Sanders criticized the rising price of the company’s Humalog brand insulin, citing a Washington Post report on soaring costs of the diabetes drug.”

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.more »

Progressive Breakfast: Obamacare's Biggest Problem is Profit, Not Government

MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

Obamacare's Biggest Problem is Profit, Not Government

It’s true: the Affordable Care Act is having problems. But Republicans who say those problems are caused by “big government” have it exactly backward. Obamacare’s current difficulties are grounded in our country’s political fetishization of the private sector – a fad that began in the Republican Party, but has unfortunately spread to much of the Democratic establishment. Government isn’t the problem here. It’s the solution.

RACE HOLDS STEADY

Politico poll shows no change:“Hillary Clinton has a slim three-point lead over Donald Trump one week before Election Day, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll conducted entirely after FBI Director James Comey announced the discovery of new emails … there is not yet evidence that the revelations have drastically altered the contours of the election … 33 percent it made them much less likely to vote for Clinton. But most of those voters are already aligned against Clinton”

Unions try to win white working-class votes for Clinton. American Prospect’s Justin Miller:“…organizers have adopted ‘deep canvassing’ methods that have had some success getting voters to explain their reasoning and then conducting a conversation that may persuade them to shift their perspective. If Clinton does pull off a win in Ohio … it will largely be due to efforts like those that slowly make inroads in the most frustrated white communities.”

STATES SQUEEZE INFRASTRUCTURE

“Slowdown in State, Local Investment Dents U.S. Economy” reports WSJ:“Such government austerity is unusual in the eighth year of an economic expansion, and it is acting as a headwind just as the worst effects of the energy-industry bust, a strong dollar and inventory drawdown are fading. State and local governments spent an annualized $248.47 billion on construction in August—the least since March 2014 and down nearly 11% from its recent peak in mid-2015. The decline depressed gross domestic product growth this spring and was on track to weigh on growth again in the third quarter.”

American Prospect’s Gabrielle Gurley asks “Can We Finally Think Big?” on infrastructure:“… neither Clinton’s five-year, $275 billion plan nor Trump’s ‘at least double her numbers’ calculation begin to address the trillions needed in leaky pipes, corroded tracks, decrepit trains, and faulty wiring, much less 21st-century smart grids, protections against sea-level rise, and innovative green investments … Launching transformative infrastructure investments begins with a philosophical shift that reworks attitudes toward government in order to identify the mechanisms required to unleash the trillions needed to start that work.”

Bryce Covert criticizes Hillary Clinton’s spending pledge in NYT oped:“[Clinton promised,] ‘I am not going to add a penny to the national debt.’ … interest rates on the country’s debt are incredibly low, hovering around 2 percent. That means we could borrow more money at a very low cost … New money could be put to incredibly good use, rebuilding deteriorating roads and bridges or investing in education.”

FED MEETS, JOBS NUMBERS DUE

Federal Reserve meets, monthly jobs numbers released, this week. NYT:“Federal Reserve officials insist that their meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington will be like any other Fed meeting … the politics are fraught, and even proponents of a rate increase have said they do not see much difference in waiting a few more weeks … On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its report on the nation’s hiring and unemployment for October. This snapshot of the economy will be the last before Americans go to the polls on Election Day…”

Fed not expected to raise interest rates, but could soon with more inflation. WSJ:“…inflation is gradually coming back to life … it’s still below the 2% level the Federal Reserve targets, one reason the Fed is almost certain to leave interest rates unchanged when it meets this week. But economic circumstances and attitudes of policy makers have shifted in the past year in ways that suggest the likeliest path of inflation is up, not down.”

Economic growth still not reducing inequality, says NYT’s Eduardo Porter:“Despite last year’s gains, the bottom 60 percent of households took a smaller share of the income pie than four decades ago … Whether it is life expectancy or infant mortality, incarceration or educational attainment, countless statistics offer a fairly dark picture of the American experience … America’s rich are richer than the rich almost anywhere else. Its poor are still poorer than the poor of its peers in the developed world.”

BREAKFAST SIDES

A revamped trade policy needs to go beyond stopping “corporate capture” says W. Post’s Jared Bernstein:“All global income must be saved (by households, governments or businesses) or spent (consumed or invested) … they’re exporting savings and importing the demand for manufactured goods from other countries, notably the United States … putting issues of excess savings back into the trade policy agenda, we would be taking a step in favor of healthier, more equitable globalization.”

“Will Democrats Nuke the Filibuster?” asks TNR’s David Sarasohn:“…banning it on Supreme Court nominations would be the hydrogen bomb. But that may be necessary next year … [Said Sen. Jeff Merkley,] ‘If there’s deep abuse, we’re going to have to consider rules changes.’ … The expected incoming Democratic leader of the Senate, Charles Schumer of New York, has carefully said nothing about further changes. But he said in September, ‘A progressive majority on the Supreme Court is an imperative, and if I become majority leader, I will make it happen. I will make it happen.'”

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