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U.S Attorney  Markenzy Lapointe speaks at news conference
Further

Surreal: U.S. Attorney In Charge of Trump Almost Shooting Is Haitian-American and We Are Here For It

Because things right about now can always get weirder, it turns out the Florida U.S. Attorney handling the case of the latest sick white guy inspired by hateful GOP lies about pet-eating Haitians to go hiding in the bushes to take down Trump with an AR-15 is one Markenzy Lapointe - the first Haitian-born American lawyer, and first black guy, to serve as a U.S. Attorney. We love the smell of irony and karma in the morning.

The alleged "assassination attempt," though the perp didn't fire any shots, took place at Trump's West Palm Beach golf course a couple of days after both lying authoritarian scumbags on the GOP presidential ticket re-iterated their claims that "illegal aliens" from Haiti are eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio, which is def speaking truth to power and house-pets except it's all racist fiction. The migrants are here legally, and no pets have been harmed or consumed in the making of this absurd campaign lie.

That hasn't stopped the two white boys with shit for brains from doubling down on what Vance already conceded on TV is a tall ugly tale, which has now seen Haitians being terrorized, schools receiving at least 33 bomb threats and Springfield officials having to evacuate schools, cancel "CultureFest" and close multiple city offices. After Vance admitted to "creating" his own furry lies, he tried also charging that immigrants are spreading HIV and TB too. Nope. More faux hillbilly lies - about his own constituents, yet.

#OHNoYouDont, said the Ohio-based Red, Wine, and Blue that's organized against the hate and fear. They've now been joined by Lapointe, Haitian-born U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and lead prosecutor of Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon after a Secret Service guy spotted his gun in the bushes where he'd waited 12 hours to claim his 15 minutes of tawdry fame, hopefully taking a moment to thank Trump for revoking gun restrictions for people with mental illness.

Lapointe, 55, was born in Port-au-Prince. He came to the U.S. as a 16-year-old who spoke no English with his mother, a street vendor with no formal education and four other kids; they all shared a cramped two-bedroom apartment in Liberty City. Lapointe worked through high school and skipped his graduation to begin boot camp after signing up for the Marines. A reservist, he was called up to serve in the Gulf War - "I felt a tremendous debt to America (as) an immigrant" - before earning finance and law degrees at Florida State.

Lapointe was nominated by Biden in 2022 and has worked with Jack Smith on the classified documents case; he calls his journey "surreal" and "blessed." Trump might not agree on the blessed part, but he's already fundraising on the latest alleged effort to get rid of him, charging, "There are people in this world who will do whatever it takes to stop us." We can relate. For now, we can also savor the fact of a Haitian immigrant whose job is both to protect and prosecute him. One sage: "Sweet like justice, Karma is a queen."

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A red Tesla is seen parked in Norway
News

'This Is Historic': Electric Vehicles Now Outnumber Petrol-Powered Cars in Norway

In what's believed to be a global milestone, electric vehicles now outnumber gasoline-fueled automobiles on Norway's roads, as the overwhelming bulk of new cars sold in recent months have been battery-powered.

Norway's Road Information Council (OFV) said Tuesday that electric vehicles (EVs) made up 754,303, or 26.6%, of the 2.8 million passenger automobiles registered in the Nordic nation. That's slightly more than the 753,905 registered gasoline-powered vehicles, but far fewer than the 999,715 diesel-burning ones.

Last month, a record 94.3% of all new vehicles sold in Norway were EVs, with Tesla's Model Y as the top seller.

"This is historic. A milestone few saw coming 10 years ago," said OFV director Øyvind Solberg Thorsen. "The electrification of the passenger car fleet is keeping a high pace, and Norway is making rapid strides towards becoming the first country in the world with a passenger car fleet dominated by electric cars."

"But it will take some time before we get there, because there are still 1 million registered passenger cars with diesel engines in the country," Thorsen noted. "The pace we are seeing in the replacement of the passenger car fleet now may indicate that in 2026 we will also have more electric cars than diesel cars."

According to OFV, there could be as many as 3.1 million EVs registered in Norway by the end of the decade.

"The rate of change in the passenger car units is difficult to predict," Thorsen cautioned. "Economic fluctuations in relation to car taxes, prices, interest rates, and other factors affect new car sales—both for private individuals and companies. And tax changes have a big impact on which cars we choose."

Norway—which is ironically Europe's second-largest oil producer—incentivizes EV purchases with generous tax rebates.

In stark contrast with Norway, electric car sales have been lagging in most of the rest of Europe, where EVs make up just 12.3% of new cars sold, according to The Guardian.

Experts say that in order for countries to fulfill their obligations under the Paris climate agreement, zero-emission vehicles—which include EVs and hydrogen-powered automobiles—must account for around 40% of the global car and light truck fleet by 2030.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change and MIT Energy Initiative forecast in 2021 that the global EV fleet will grow from just over 10 million to 95-105 million by 2030, and 585-823 million by 2050.

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Debt Collective student debt protest for older debtors.
News

'Death Should Not Be the Only Relief': Seniors Lead Their First Action Against Student Debt

Carrying mock tombstones reading, "Death is not a relief plan" and "Stop burying us in debt," a group of older debtors held the first-ever senior-led mass action for student debt relief outside the White House on Thursday.

Borrowers over 50 are the fastest-growing demographic of student debtors, and some of them are calling on the Biden-Harris administration to take advantage of federal regulations that empower the Department of Education to cancel debt based on age.

"The only comprehensive student debt relief plan that the federal government offers right now is death," Debt Collective creative media strategist Maddie Clifford said in front of the White House. "That is the only way people can escape from these student loan payments."

The participants in the vigil, who collectively owe more than $1 million in student loans and include members of the Debt Collective's "50 Over 50" caucus, shared their stories as they demanded relief.

"I would have never imagined approaching my 60th birthday with $211,388 worth of student debt," said Renita Walker, a Debt Collective member from Sandy Springs, Georgia. "The idea itself is paralyzing. It is the realization that I will probably work myself to death, literally."

Walker took out loans both to continue her education as a single mother after her husband died and to help her two children pay for school. The loan payments ballooned to the point that she was paying $1,800 a month until she took money out of her 401(k) to bring the payment down to around $1,300 a month, still more than her mortgage.

"I just want to say like many of the people here standing behind me, this was not something we asked for," Walker said. "Unfortunately, the system is broken and we have to live with the results of that."

"For decades, millions of older debtors have crouched in shame, imagining ourselves as failures when in reality the system has failed us. But we will no longer be duped into suffering alone."

Fellow Debt-Collective member and Georgia resident Athena Blue, a 67-year-old retired nurse, also took out Parent Plus loans to pay for her children's education.

Blue spoke of overcoming the shame of indebtedness by learning the history of how former U.S. President Ronald Reagan had pushed for the current student loan system in order to make it more difficult for working-class Americans to attend university as a backlash to campus protests in the 1960s and 70s.

"The debt that I'm in isn't my fault," Blue said. "It was created purposely by people like former President Ronald Reagan who believed that only certain people should have the right to higher education."

Blue said she had managed to pay off all of her interest on her loan in 2020 when it was transferred to another provider and she had to start over.

"This burden of a loan threatens my retirement," Blue said, "So how can you, Congress, the Department of Education, and the White House allow this to continue? How can you allow seniors to be subject to predators like this? Have you no moral compass? No shame?"

Debt Collective member Alicia Barnes, who joined the Navy to avoid taking on any more debt, said she had discovered in a meeting with the Department of Education that day that her service provider had illegally placed her debt into default while she was deployed.

"Instead of including a Suicide Hotline for veterans on every piece of communication we receive, the causes of these tragedies should be met with real solutions including absolving some of the debt we accrued during our service because of this compounded interest and illegal activity by these debt collectors," Barnes said.

Every speaker at Thursday's vigil was a woman, as are the majority of student loan debtors. A disproportionate number of student debtors are Black women in particular.

Many of the speakers went into debt to pursue careers in public service fields like education, pastoral counseling, and social work.

"We are caring human beings that wanted to help out the world," said Debt Collective member Mary Donahue of Maryland. "We just need a little help."

The Debt Collective insists that "death should not be the only relief plan for their old, unpayable student loans."

"Decades of broken student relief programs, corrupt loan services, and government neglect have meant that millions of older Americans dragged decadesold student debts into their retirement," said Gail Gardner, who is 77 years old and owes $549,497.20. "Absent swift, bold policy change, and clear political leadership, this crisis will only deepen. The debtors will get older. The debts will get bigger."

That is why she said she had joined with other older debtors to "demand the White House and the Department of Education finally take responsibility for clearing the student debts burdening myself and millions of older Americans."

Both Gardner and Clifford pointed out that discharging debts based on age was something that the Biden-Harris administration could do without running afoul of right-wing attempts to block President Joe Biden's other attempts at student debt relief.

"We are urging the Biden Harris administration to work as fast and as hard as Republicans are working to keep us in debt to free borrowers from these loans, and they can do it today," Clifford said.

Gardner concluded: "For decades, millions of older debtors have crouched in shame, imagining ourselves as failures when in reality the system has failed us. But we will no longer be duped into suffering alone. This week for the first time in history, older student debtors have gone to Washington to demand our student loan debts get canceled in our lifetime, not at our funerals. We can't afford to wait."

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A man walks past the Springfield City Hall
News

'Blood Libel': Critics Say Trump-Vance Racist Attacks Stoking Chaos in Springfield, Ohio

For the second consecutive day on Friday, schools in Springfield, Ohio were forced to close after receiving bomb threats as the city remained at the center of a political firestorm after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, his running mate Sen. JD Vance, and other prominent Republicans have spread unproven rumors and racist smears about Haitian migrants in the city.

A spokesperson for the school district said Perrin Woods Elementary School, Snowhill Elementary School, and Cliff Park High School were among the public buildings that were forced to evacuate, and Roosevelt Middle School administrators closed the school for the day based on information received from the Springfield Police Department.

Other city business also ground to a halt as the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Ohio License Bureau Southside received emailed threats.

Police said they were working to determine the source of the threats. On Thursday, Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said the nature of the bomb threat that came in via email made clear it was a "hateful response to immigration in our town."

But hours after Rue said that it was "frustrating when national politicians, on the national stage, mischaracterize what is actually going on and misrepresent our community," Vance persisted in spreading bigoted misinformation on the social media platform X.

The junior senator from Ohio repeated a claim that "there has been a massive rise in communicable diseases" in Springfield due to an influx of Haitian migrants, about 12,000-15,000 of whom have moved to the city in recent years and have received a warm welcome from many employers.

Authorities have said reports of a rise in diseases in Springfield are false, as are claims—also spread widely by politicians including Vance and Trump, that Haitian immigrants have been stealing and eating people's pets in the city.

Condemning Vance's latest diatribe, John DiLillo said that if Springfield suffers actual violence following the threats, "it will be his fault."

Trump also continued attacking the Haitian community on Friday, saying in a speech that immigrants have "descended upon" the town and "destroyed the way of life."

Republican lawmakers and activists have frequently said they support "legal immigration" and aim to stop the flow of undocumented immigrants into the U.S.—a topic Trump quickly pivoted to on Friday when asked by a reporter why his campaign continues to focus on Springfield. The majority of Haitian people in Springfield are authorized to be in the U.S., with some benefiting from the Temporary Protected Status program.

New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie warned against reducing the Trump campaign's outlandish lies about Haitian people in Springfield—ones that have also been spread by neo-Nazis—to an election season meme.

"What they're doing is called a blood libel," said Bouie. "It is smearing a group of people with the accusation that they are killing, in the case of Jews in medieval Europe, killing children, in the case of Haitian immigrants in 2024 United States, killing pets and eating them... And the purpose and the point of a blood libel is to incite violence... to drive people to commit violence against others out of fear, anger, and hatred."

"Trump and Vance are trying to start a race riot," he added.

President Joe Biden addressed the issue on Friday in a speech, saying the Trump's campaign attacks on Haitian immigrants are "simply wrong."

"It has no place in America," said the president. "He has to stop what he's doing."

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Rep. Ilhan Omar
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Amid GOP Outrage Over Witnesses, Omar Welcomes Hate Crimes Hearing

On the eve of a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about "stemming the tide of hate crimes" nationwide, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar on Monday commended the panel's chair, Sen. Dick Durbin, for "hosting this groundbreaking yet overdue" event.

Discrimination against Jews and Muslims has significantly increased in the United States since the Hamas-led October 7 attack on Israel and the U.S.-backed Israeli retaliation on the Gaza Strip, which critics worldwide call genocide. In May, Durbin (D-Ill.) vowed to hold a hearing "in response to the ongoing and persistent rise in antisemitism and other forms of bigotry across the country."

The committee announced last week that it had scheduled a Capitol Hill hearing for 10:00 am Tuesday to "examine how we can better protect Jewish, Arab, and Muslim Americans, and other vulnerable communities from bigoted attacks."

Durbin—who has faced calls from Republican committee members to hold a hearing focused on "the civil rights violations of Jewish students" and "the proliferation of terrorist ideology"—said at the time that "hate crimes are a threat to justice everywhere. Sadly, no community is immune from violent acts of hate. Congress cannot turn a blind eye to it."

"We must stand united against hate in all its forms and reaffirm our commitment to justice, equality, and the protection of all Americans, regardless of their race, faith, or national origin."

Omar (D-Minn.) expressed gratitude for Durbin's broader event, saying Monday that "this vital hearing is a crucial step in addressing the alarming rise of hate crimes across our nation, particularly those targeting Muslim, Jewish, and Palestinian Americans."

"I'm glad this committee hearing will address the rise in hate felt by thousands across the country, I hope this hearing serves as a catalyst for meaningful action," she continued. "We must stand united against hate in all its forms and reaffirm our commitment to justice, equality, and the protection of all Americans, regardless of their race, faith, or national origin."

Omar is an outspoken opponent of Israel's assault on Gaza and U.S. support for it. She fled war in Somalia as a child and is one of only a few Muslim members of Congress—and while in office, she has endured intense racism, sexism, Islamophobia, and death threats. Some of the hate has come from fellow federal lawmakers.

Her praise for the hearing came amid reports that some Republicans and Jewish groups are unhappy with Democrats' witnesses: Arab American Institute executive director Maya Berry and Kenneth Stern, director of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate.

Notably, when Stern was with the American Jewish Committee, he helped craft the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism. He has since accused right-wing groups of "weaponizing" it in their efforts to conflate criticism of Israeli government policies and practices with anti-Jewish bigotry.

Describing both Berry and Stern as "at odds with Jewish communal leaders," Jewish Insider reported:

In his opening statement to the committee, obtained by Jewish Insider ahead of Tuesday's hearing, Stern will testify that "advocating for genocide against anyone of course should be robustly condemned; but the mere expression of such ideas (whether intended as such or heard as such) should be countered, not as a matter for discipline."

Stern will also say that it is a good thing that David Duke, the former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, did not face any disciplinary action when he spread Nazi propaganda on Louisiana State University's campus as a student in 1968. "This would have allowed him to claim the status of martyr, and changed the subject to his right to speech as opposed to the content of his hate," Stern will say.

"Berry's written testimony focuses primarily on hate crimes data and reporting, and federal enforcement of hate crimes laws," according to Jewish Insider. The outlet added that the Republican witness Rabbi Mark Goldfeder, director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, "is set to express support for the IHRA definition."

In response to Jewish Insider editor in chief Josh Kraushaar's social media post sharing the report, Center for International Policy executive vice president Matt Duss said, "Translation: testimony from Ken Stern and Maya Berry, who are both widely respected authorities on these issues, makes it harder to use this hearing as part of the campaign to suppress pro-Palestinian activism."

While this will be the first Senate hearing on hate crimes since last October, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has held multiple, mostly focusing on campus anti-genocide protests. Critics have argued that the lower chamber's events have pushed university administrators to enable violent law enforcement crackdowns on students demonstrating against Israel's assault on Gaza.

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Trucks carrying aid supplies to Gaza
News

Analysis Details How Israel's Gaza Siege 'Is Driving a Humanitarian Disaster'

Israel's "complete siege" of the Gaza Strip "is driving a humanitarian disaster," with 83% of required food aid failing to enter the embattled enclave, where the entire population is facing hunger and disease and almost half a million Palestinians are at risk of starvation, an analysis published Monday revealed.

The analysis by 15 international aid organizations noted that a record-low average of just 69 aid trucks are entering the Gaza Strip each day, compared with an already insufficient 500 daily truckloads a year ago. Additionally, the groups said that "only 17 out of Gaza's 36 hospitals remain partially functional, and "critical infrastructure such as water networks, sanitation facilities, and bread mills" have been destroyed.

"While Israeli military attacks on Gaza intensify, lifesaving food, medicine, medical supplies, fuel, and tents have been systematically blocked from entering for almost a year," the aid groups—which include ActionAid, American Friends Service Committee, CARE International, Christian Aid, Islamic Aid, Oxfam International, and Save the Children—said in a statement.

The publication highlights numerous ways that "lifesaving aid is systematically obstructed on a daily basis" in Gaza.

"These include the denial of safety, with more than 40,000 Palestinians and nearly 300 aid workers killed since last October; the sharp tightening of a 17-year blockade to a full siege, which prevents aid from entering Gaza; delays and denials which restrict the movement of aid around Gaza; tightly restrictive and unpredictable control of imports; the destruction of public infrastructure such as schools and hospitals; and the displacement of civilians and humanitarian workers," the analysis' authors wrote.

Zenab, a 33-year-old Palestinian woman pregnant with her second child, said that her pregnancy "has been the hardest time of my life."

"It was also hard to get the medication I needed," she continued. Sometimes I had to walk for hours to different pharmacies, hospitals, and health centers to see if anyone had my medication available. For me as a pregnant woman, there has been hardly any healthcare support, no proper hygiene and sanitation, and no suitable mattress to sleep on."

"I was suffering from complications during my pregnancy," Zenab added. "We didn't have enough water to drink, and had hardly any food. The doctors again told me that my pregnancy was in danger."

Among the report's key findings:

  • 83% of required food aid doesn't make it into Gaza, up from 34% in 2023;
  • An estimated 50,000 children aged between 6-59 months urgently require treatment for malnutrition by the end of the year;
  • 65% of the insulin required and half of the required blood supply are not available in Gaza;
  • Availability of hygiene items has dropped to 15% of the amount available in September 2023, with 1 million women now going without the hygiene supplies they need;
  • Only around 1,500 hospital beds in Gaza remain operational, compared to around 3,500 beds in 2023 which was already well below sufficient to meet the needs of a population of more than 2 million people; and
  • 1.87 million people are in need of shelter with at least 60% of homes destroyed or damaged as of January, yet tents for around just 25,000 people have entered Gaza since May 2024.

"There is a shortage of all humanitarian items. We are overwhelmed [with] these needs and [these] urgent requirements," said Amjad Al Shawa, director of the Palestinian NGOs Network. "People [are] starving due to the shortage of aid. One hundred percent of the population depends on humanitarian aid."

The authors of the analysis—which was released ahead of this week's United Nations General Assembly in New York—are demanding that Israel secure an immediate and lasting cease-fire. They are also calling for an arms embargo on Israel and Israeli compliance with the recent International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion, which found that the occupation of Palestine is an illegal form of apartheid that must end immediately. Israel is on trial for genocide in a separate ICJ case.

"The situation was intolerable long before last October's escalation and is beyond catastrophic now."

"The situation was intolerable long before last October's escalation and is beyond catastrophic now," CARE International West Bank and Gaza country director Jolien Veldwijik said in a statement. "Over 11 months, we have reached shocking levels of conflict, displacement, disease, and hunger."

That includes dozens of children who have died due to malnutrition, dehydration, and lack of adequate medical care.

"Aid is still not getting in, and humanitarian workers are risking their lives to do their jobs while attacks and violations of international law intensify," Veldwijik added. "Aid, which is urgently required for 2.2 million people at risk of dying in the coming weeks and months, should never be politicized. We demand an immediate and sustained cease-fire, and the free flow of humanitarian aid into and throughout Gaza."

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