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U.S. President Donald Trump leads a roundtable meeting in the Roosevelt Room at the White House, on January 11, 2018 in Washington, DC. "Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?" Trump reportedly said to lawmakers during a separate meeting on Thursday, reportedly referring to El Salvador, Haiti, and African nations. (Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images... with overlay)
#ShitHoleDon Captures Disgust After Trump's Racist "Shithole Countries" Remark
"We can now we say with 100% confidence that the President is a racist who does not share the values enshrined in our Constitution or Declaration of Independence."
Jan 11, 2018
First reported by the Washington Post, and then confirmed by various other outlets, President Donald Trump's racism sparked renewed outrage on Thursday--and the #ShitHoleDon hashtag--after it was learned he referred to Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations as "shitholes countries" during a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers.
"Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?" Trump reportedly said, according to people briefed on the meeting.
\u201cThere are no words for language like this except for one: Racist. https://t.co/KHLMiiHewh\u201d— ACLU (@ACLU) 1515707393
According to a version of the exchange reported by NBC News, Trump said the U.S. should "have more people from places like Norway," but said refugees and immigrants from places like Haiti and Africa should no longer received protections.
"Why do we need more Haitians?" Trump asked, according to the Post's sources. "Take them out."
\u201cTo the Nazi's, the purest Aryans were the Nordic people of Germany and Norway. \u201cWhy are we having all these people from shithole countries [Haiti and Africa] come here?\u201d Trump exploded today, saying the U.S. should bring more people from countries like Norway. Connection?\u201d— Robert Reich (@Robert Reich) 1515709897
In a statement, the NAACP "unequivocally denounced" Trump's latest outburst:
As our nation fights to move forward, our President falls deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole of racism and xenophobia. The United States' position as a moral leader throughout the world has been thoroughly damaged by the continuous lowbrow, callous and unfiltered racism repeatedly espoused by President Trump. His decision to use profanity to describe African, Central American and Caribbean countries is not only a low mark for this president, it is a low point for our nation. This President's failure to grasp simple ideas of inclusion and maturity is an open sore on our democracy that continues to fester.
It is clear that the president wants to return America to its ugly past of white supremacy where immigration laws as well as all laws of society only favored individuals from European nations and European ancestry. In fact, the President himself benefitted from those racially biased laws when his ancestors immigrated to this nation. Yet today, he wants to force the American public to pay billions to build a wall to block off our southern neighbors in exchange for the return of protections for DACA that were already guaranteed to immigrants before he came to office. As we head into 49th NAACP Image Awards being held on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Holiday for the first time to honor his legacy, we realize that the Bull Connor of our day is none other than the President of our nation. As King fought then, we fight today against those seeking to implement slicker and newer forms of racial segregation.
The person who spoke with NBC, the outlet reports, said Trump "was particularly frustrated during discussions about the visa lottery system--a program Trump has railed against repeatedly in recent months."
Alix Desulme, a city council member in North Miami, home to thousands of Haitian Americans, told the Washington Post Trump's comments "disgusting."
"Oh my God. Oh my God Jesus," said Desulme. "I don't know how worse it can get. This is very alarming. We know he's not presidential but this a low. It's disheartening that someone who is the leader of the free world would use such demeaning language to talk about other folks, referring to folks of color."
And while Trump built much of his political brand on both overt bigotry and racist dog-whistling, as president he has been able to actually enact policies that are manifestly racist, including his travel ban directed at Muslim-majority countries and a set of other immigration policies that specifically target predominately black and brown people from countries that include El Salvador, Haiti, and Somalia.
\u201cA year into his presidency and we're still surprised that he'd say something racist?\n\nHe's been pushing racist POLICIES and DOING racist things from day one. Remember the #MuslimBan?\u201d— Trita Parsi (@Trita Parsi) 1515721517
Just this week, the Trump administration ended special protection status from Salvadorans who came to the U.S. as refugees after earthquakes devastated the country in 2001.
\u201cThere is no witty meme or hot take to make here. The fact that our President not only thinks these things, but actively says and acts on them is awful and disgusting. We will continue to stand with our allies against white supremacy. https://t.co/dRnNnRAE8P\u201d— Win Without War (@Win Without War) 1515717131
While the White House released a statement in response to reports about Trump's offensive comments, it did not deny the president said these things.
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) responded by saying he was, "as an American, ashamed of the President" over the comments which he said were "disappointing, unbelievable, but not surprising."
\u201cThis is the real Donald Trump and my biggest fear is that his voters will applaud him. https://t.co/GVDHYvMDof\u201d— Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez (@Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez) 1515711932
"We always knew that President Trump doesn't like people from certain countries or people or certain colors," Gutierrez continued. "We can now we say with 100% confidence that the President is a racist who does not share the values enshrined in our Constitution or Declaration of Independence."
In separate comments to the Post, Gutierrez said Trump's remarks comments "will shake the confidence that people have" in the ongoing talks in Congress about immigration policy. "Democrats and Republicans in the Senate made a proposal. The answer is this racist outburst of the president. How can you take him seriously? They [Republicans] don't believe in immigration -- it's always been about people of color and keeping them out of this country," Gutierrez said.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif) said Trump's racist remarks were "beyond the pale, even for him":
\u201cOnce again, @realDonaldTrump is dividing our nation. His statement today in the Oval Office was beyond the pale, even for him. If the stark racism of @POTUS makes you angry, help us take back the House and Senate this November. And this January 20, go march. https://t.co/iUyHpFPtJN\u201d— Ted Lieu (@Ted Lieu) 1515710714
The disgust and outrage was contagious and fast-moving, as was the use of the new #ShitHoleDon hashtag on social media:
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First reported by the Washington Post, and then confirmed by various other outlets, President Donald Trump's racism sparked renewed outrage on Thursday--and the #ShitHoleDon hashtag--after it was learned he referred to Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations as "shitholes countries" during a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers.
"Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?" Trump reportedly said, according to people briefed on the meeting.
\u201cThere are no words for language like this except for one: Racist. https://t.co/KHLMiiHewh\u201d— ACLU (@ACLU) 1515707393
According to a version of the exchange reported by NBC News, Trump said the U.S. should "have more people from places like Norway," but said refugees and immigrants from places like Haiti and Africa should no longer received protections.
"Why do we need more Haitians?" Trump asked, according to the Post's sources. "Take them out."
\u201cTo the Nazi's, the purest Aryans were the Nordic people of Germany and Norway. \u201cWhy are we having all these people from shithole countries [Haiti and Africa] come here?\u201d Trump exploded today, saying the U.S. should bring more people from countries like Norway. Connection?\u201d— Robert Reich (@Robert Reich) 1515709897
In a statement, the NAACP "unequivocally denounced" Trump's latest outburst:
As our nation fights to move forward, our President falls deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole of racism and xenophobia. The United States' position as a moral leader throughout the world has been thoroughly damaged by the continuous lowbrow, callous and unfiltered racism repeatedly espoused by President Trump. His decision to use profanity to describe African, Central American and Caribbean countries is not only a low mark for this president, it is a low point for our nation. This President's failure to grasp simple ideas of inclusion and maturity is an open sore on our democracy that continues to fester.
It is clear that the president wants to return America to its ugly past of white supremacy where immigration laws as well as all laws of society only favored individuals from European nations and European ancestry. In fact, the President himself benefitted from those racially biased laws when his ancestors immigrated to this nation. Yet today, he wants to force the American public to pay billions to build a wall to block off our southern neighbors in exchange for the return of protections for DACA that were already guaranteed to immigrants before he came to office. As we head into 49th NAACP Image Awards being held on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Holiday for the first time to honor his legacy, we realize that the Bull Connor of our day is none other than the President of our nation. As King fought then, we fight today against those seeking to implement slicker and newer forms of racial segregation.
The person who spoke with NBC, the outlet reports, said Trump "was particularly frustrated during discussions about the visa lottery system--a program Trump has railed against repeatedly in recent months."
Alix Desulme, a city council member in North Miami, home to thousands of Haitian Americans, told the Washington Post Trump's comments "disgusting."
"Oh my God. Oh my God Jesus," said Desulme. "I don't know how worse it can get. This is very alarming. We know he's not presidential but this a low. It's disheartening that someone who is the leader of the free world would use such demeaning language to talk about other folks, referring to folks of color."
And while Trump built much of his political brand on both overt bigotry and racist dog-whistling, as president he has been able to actually enact policies that are manifestly racist, including his travel ban directed at Muslim-majority countries and a set of other immigration policies that specifically target predominately black and brown people from countries that include El Salvador, Haiti, and Somalia.
\u201cA year into his presidency and we're still surprised that he'd say something racist?\n\nHe's been pushing racist POLICIES and DOING racist things from day one. Remember the #MuslimBan?\u201d— Trita Parsi (@Trita Parsi) 1515721517
Just this week, the Trump administration ended special protection status from Salvadorans who came to the U.S. as refugees after earthquakes devastated the country in 2001.
\u201cThere is no witty meme or hot take to make here. The fact that our President not only thinks these things, but actively says and acts on them is awful and disgusting. We will continue to stand with our allies against white supremacy. https://t.co/dRnNnRAE8P\u201d— Win Without War (@Win Without War) 1515717131
While the White House released a statement in response to reports about Trump's offensive comments, it did not deny the president said these things.
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) responded by saying he was, "as an American, ashamed of the President" over the comments which he said were "disappointing, unbelievable, but not surprising."
\u201cThis is the real Donald Trump and my biggest fear is that his voters will applaud him. https://t.co/GVDHYvMDof\u201d— Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez (@Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez) 1515711932
"We always knew that President Trump doesn't like people from certain countries or people or certain colors," Gutierrez continued. "We can now we say with 100% confidence that the President is a racist who does not share the values enshrined in our Constitution or Declaration of Independence."
In separate comments to the Post, Gutierrez said Trump's remarks comments "will shake the confidence that people have" in the ongoing talks in Congress about immigration policy. "Democrats and Republicans in the Senate made a proposal. The answer is this racist outburst of the president. How can you take him seriously? They [Republicans] don't believe in immigration -- it's always been about people of color and keeping them out of this country," Gutierrez said.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif) said Trump's racist remarks were "beyond the pale, even for him":
\u201cOnce again, @realDonaldTrump is dividing our nation. His statement today in the Oval Office was beyond the pale, even for him. If the stark racism of @POTUS makes you angry, help us take back the House and Senate this November. And this January 20, go march. https://t.co/iUyHpFPtJN\u201d— Ted Lieu (@Ted Lieu) 1515710714
The disgust and outrage was contagious and fast-moving, as was the use of the new #ShitHoleDon hashtag on social media:
First reported by the Washington Post, and then confirmed by various other outlets, President Donald Trump's racism sparked renewed outrage on Thursday--and the #ShitHoleDon hashtag--after it was learned he referred to Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations as "shitholes countries" during a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers.
"Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?" Trump reportedly said, according to people briefed on the meeting.
\u201cThere are no words for language like this except for one: Racist. https://t.co/KHLMiiHewh\u201d— ACLU (@ACLU) 1515707393
According to a version of the exchange reported by NBC News, Trump said the U.S. should "have more people from places like Norway," but said refugees and immigrants from places like Haiti and Africa should no longer received protections.
"Why do we need more Haitians?" Trump asked, according to the Post's sources. "Take them out."
\u201cTo the Nazi's, the purest Aryans were the Nordic people of Germany and Norway. \u201cWhy are we having all these people from shithole countries [Haiti and Africa] come here?\u201d Trump exploded today, saying the U.S. should bring more people from countries like Norway. Connection?\u201d— Robert Reich (@Robert Reich) 1515709897
In a statement, the NAACP "unequivocally denounced" Trump's latest outburst:
As our nation fights to move forward, our President falls deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole of racism and xenophobia. The United States' position as a moral leader throughout the world has been thoroughly damaged by the continuous lowbrow, callous and unfiltered racism repeatedly espoused by President Trump. His decision to use profanity to describe African, Central American and Caribbean countries is not only a low mark for this president, it is a low point for our nation. This President's failure to grasp simple ideas of inclusion and maturity is an open sore on our democracy that continues to fester.
It is clear that the president wants to return America to its ugly past of white supremacy where immigration laws as well as all laws of society only favored individuals from European nations and European ancestry. In fact, the President himself benefitted from those racially biased laws when his ancestors immigrated to this nation. Yet today, he wants to force the American public to pay billions to build a wall to block off our southern neighbors in exchange for the return of protections for DACA that were already guaranteed to immigrants before he came to office. As we head into 49th NAACP Image Awards being held on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Holiday for the first time to honor his legacy, we realize that the Bull Connor of our day is none other than the President of our nation. As King fought then, we fight today against those seeking to implement slicker and newer forms of racial segregation.
The person who spoke with NBC, the outlet reports, said Trump "was particularly frustrated during discussions about the visa lottery system--a program Trump has railed against repeatedly in recent months."
Alix Desulme, a city council member in North Miami, home to thousands of Haitian Americans, told the Washington Post Trump's comments "disgusting."
"Oh my God. Oh my God Jesus," said Desulme. "I don't know how worse it can get. This is very alarming. We know he's not presidential but this a low. It's disheartening that someone who is the leader of the free world would use such demeaning language to talk about other folks, referring to folks of color."
And while Trump built much of his political brand on both overt bigotry and racist dog-whistling, as president he has been able to actually enact policies that are manifestly racist, including his travel ban directed at Muslim-majority countries and a set of other immigration policies that specifically target predominately black and brown people from countries that include El Salvador, Haiti, and Somalia.
\u201cA year into his presidency and we're still surprised that he'd say something racist?\n\nHe's been pushing racist POLICIES and DOING racist things from day one. Remember the #MuslimBan?\u201d— Trita Parsi (@Trita Parsi) 1515721517
Just this week, the Trump administration ended special protection status from Salvadorans who came to the U.S. as refugees after earthquakes devastated the country in 2001.
\u201cThere is no witty meme or hot take to make here. The fact that our President not only thinks these things, but actively says and acts on them is awful and disgusting. We will continue to stand with our allies against white supremacy. https://t.co/dRnNnRAE8P\u201d— Win Without War (@Win Without War) 1515717131
While the White House released a statement in response to reports about Trump's offensive comments, it did not deny the president said these things.
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) responded by saying he was, "as an American, ashamed of the President" over the comments which he said were "disappointing, unbelievable, but not surprising."
\u201cThis is the real Donald Trump and my biggest fear is that his voters will applaud him. https://t.co/GVDHYvMDof\u201d— Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez (@Luis V. Guti\u00e9rrez) 1515711932
"We always knew that President Trump doesn't like people from certain countries or people or certain colors," Gutierrez continued. "We can now we say with 100% confidence that the President is a racist who does not share the values enshrined in our Constitution or Declaration of Independence."
In separate comments to the Post, Gutierrez said Trump's remarks comments "will shake the confidence that people have" in the ongoing talks in Congress about immigration policy. "Democrats and Republicans in the Senate made a proposal. The answer is this racist outburst of the president. How can you take him seriously? They [Republicans] don't believe in immigration -- it's always been about people of color and keeping them out of this country," Gutierrez said.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif) said Trump's racist remarks were "beyond the pale, even for him":
\u201cOnce again, @realDonaldTrump is dividing our nation. His statement today in the Oval Office was beyond the pale, even for him. If the stark racism of @POTUS makes you angry, help us take back the House and Senate this November. And this January 20, go march. https://t.co/iUyHpFPtJN\u201d— Ted Lieu (@Ted Lieu) 1515710714
The disgust and outrage was contagious and fast-moving, as was the use of the new #ShitHoleDon hashtag on social media:
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
LATEST NEWS
Trump Labor Statistics Pick Called Social Security a 'Ponzi Scheme' That Should Be Shuttered
"Bureau of Labor Statistics data is what determines the annual cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security benefits," said Rep. John Larson. "It should alarm everyone when a yes-man determined to end Social Security is installed in this position."
Aug 13, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump's pick to replace the top labor statistics official he fired earlier this month has called Social Security a "Ponzi scheme" that needs to be "sunset," comments that critics said further disqualify the nominee for the key government role.
During a December 2024 radio interview, Heritage Foundation economist E.J. Antoni said it is a "mathematical fiction" that Social Security "can go on forever" and called for "some kind of transition program where unfortunately you'll need a generation of people who pay Social Security taxes, but never actually receive any of those benefits."
"That's the price to pay for unwinding a Ponzi scheme that was foisted on the American people by the Democrats in the 1930s," Antoni continued. "You're not going to be able to sustain a Ponzi scheme like Social Security. Eventually, you need to sunset the program."
Trump's choice for the Commissioner of the Bureau Labor Statistics called Social Security a "Ponzi scheme" in an interview:
" What you need to do is have some kind of transition program where unfortunately you'll need a generation of people who pay Social Security taxes, but… pic.twitter.com/MXL7k1C644
— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) August 12, 2025
Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), one of Social Security's most vocal defenders in Congress, said Antoni's position on the program matters because "Bureau of Labor Statistics data is what determines the annual cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security benefits."
"It should alarm everyone when a yes-man determined to end Social Security is installed in this position," Larson said in a statement. "I call on every Senate Republican to stand with Democrats and reject this extreme nominee—before our seniors are denied the benefits they earned through a lifetime of hard work."
Trump announced Antoni's nomination to serve as the next commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) less than two weeks after the president fired the agency's former head, Erika McEntarfer, following the release of abysmal jobs figures. The firing sparked concerns that future BLS data will be manipulated to suit Trump's political interests.
Antoni was a contributor to the far-right Project 2025 agenda that the Trump administration appears to have drawn from repeatedly this year, and his position on Social Security echoes that of far-right billionaire Elon Musk, who has also falsely characterized the program as a Ponzi scheme.
During his time in the Trump administration, Musk spearheaded an assault on the Social Security Administration that continues in the present, causing widespread chaos at the agency and increasing wait times for beneficiaries.
"President Trump fired the commissioner of Labor Statistics to cover up a weak jobs report—and now he is replacing her with a Project 2025 lackey who wants to shut down Social Security," said Larson. "E.J. Antoni agrees with Elon Musk that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme and said that middle-class seniors would be better off if it was eliminated."
US State Dept Releases 'Shameful' Human Rights Report Revamped to Shield Allies, Including Israel
"This sends a chilling message that the U.S. is willing to overlook some abuses, signaling that people experiencing human rights violations may be left to fend for themselves," said one Amnesty campaigner.
Aug 12, 2025
After leaked drafts exposed the Trump administration's plans to downplay human rights abuses in some allied countries, including Israel, the U.S. Department of State released the final edition of an annual report on Tuesday, sparking fresh condemnation.
"Breaking with precedent, Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not provide a written introduction to the report nor did he make remarks about it," CNN reported. Still, Amanda Klasing, Amnesty International USA's national director of government relations and advocacy, called him out by name in a Tuesday statement.
"With the release of the U.S. State Department's human rights report, it is clear that the Trump administration has engaged in a very selective documentation of human rights abuses in certain countries," Klasing said. "In addition to eliminating entire sections for certain countries—for example discrimination against LGBTQ+ people—there are also arbitrary omissions within existing sections of the report based on the country."
Klasing explained that "we have criticized past reports when warranted, but have never seen reports quite like this. Never before have the reports gone this far in prioritizing an administration's political agenda over a consistent and truthful accounting of human rights violations around the world—softening criticism in some countries while ignoring violations in others. The State Department has said in relation to the reports less is more. However, for the victims and human rights defenders who rely on these reports to shine light on abuses and violations, less is just less."
"Secretary Rubio knows full well from his time in the Senate how vital these reports are in informing policy decisions and shaping diplomatic conversations, yet he has made the dangerous and short-sighted decision to put out a truncated version that doesn't tell the whole story of human rights violations," she continued. "This sends a chilling message that the U.S. is willing to overlook some abuses, signaling that people experiencing human rights violations may be left to fend for themselves."
"Failing to adequately report on human rights violations further damages the credibility of the U.S. on human rights issues," she added. "It's shameful that the Trump administration and Secretary Rubio are putting politics above human lives."
The overarching report—which includes over 100 individual country reports—covers 2024, the last full calendar year of the Biden administration. The appendix says that in March, the report was "streamlined for better utility and accessibility in the field and by partners, and to be more responsive to the underlying legislative mandate and aligned to the administration's executive orders."
As CNN detailed:
The latest report was stripped of many of the specific sections included in past reports, including reporting on alleged abuses based on sexual orientation, violence toward women, corruption in government, systemic racial or ethnic violence, or denial of a fair public trial. Some country reports, including for Afghanistan, do address human rights abuses against women.
"We were asked to edit down the human rights reports to the bare minimum of what was statutorily required," said Michael Honigstein, the former director of African Affairs at the State Department's Bureau of Human Rights, Democracy, and Labor. He and his office helped compile the initial reports.
Over the past week, since the draft country reports leaked to the press, the Trump administration has come under fire for its portrayals of El Salvador, Israel, and Russia.
The report on Israel—and the illegally occupied Palestinian territories, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank—is just nine pages. The brevity even drew the attention of Israeli media. The Times of Israel highlighted that it "is much shorter than last year's edition compiled under the Biden administration and contained no mention of the severe humanitarian crisis in Gaza."
Since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Israeli forces have slaughtered over 60,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to local officials—though experts warn the true toll is likely far higher. As Israel has restricted humanitarian aid in recent months, over 200 people have starved to death, including 103 children.
The U.S. report on Israel does not mention the genocide case that Israel faces at the International Court of Justice over the assault on Gaza, or the International Criminal Court arrest warrants issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The section on war crimes and genocide only says that "terrorist organizations Hamas and Hezbollah continue to engage in the
indiscriminate targeting of Israeli civilians in violation of the law of armed conflict."
As the world mourns the killing of six more Palestinian media professionals in Gaza this week—which prompted calls for the United Nations Security Council to convene an emergency meeting—the report's section on press freedom is also short and makes no mention of the hundreds of journalists killed in Israel's annihilation of the strip:
The law generally provided for freedom of expression, including for members of the press and other media, and the government generally respected this right for most Israelis. NGOs and journalists reported authorities restricted press coverage and limited certain forms of expression, especially in the context of criticism against the war or sympathy for Palestinians in Gaza.
Noting that "the human rights reports have been among the U.S. government's most-read documents," DAWN senior adviser and 32-year State Department official Charles Blaha said the "significant omissions" in this year's report on Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank render it "functionally useless for Congress and the public as nothing more than a pro-Israel document."
Like Klasing at Amnesty, Sarah Leah Whitson, DAWN's executive director, specifically called out the U.S. secretary of state.
"Secretary Rubio has revamped the State Department reports for one principal purpose: to whitewash Israeli crimes, including its horrific genocide and starvation in Gaza. The report shockingly includes not a word about the overwhelming evidence of genocide, mass starvation, and the deliberate bombardment of civilians in Gaza," she said. "Rubio has defied the letter and intent of U.S. laws requiring the State Department to report truthfully and comprehensively about every country's human rights abuses, instead offering up anodyne cover for his murderous friends in Tel Aviv."
The Tuesday release came after a coalition of LGBTQ+ and human rights organizations on Monday filed a lawsuit against the U.S. State Department over its refusal to release the congressionally mandated report.
This article has been updated with comment from DAWN.
Watchdog Unveils Standards for Countermeasures to 'Authoritarian' GOP Gerrymandering
"We will not sit idly by while political leaders manipulate voting maps to entrench their power and subvert our democracy," said the head of Common Cause.
Aug 12, 2025
As Republicans try to rig congressional maps in several states and Democrats threaten retaliatory measures, a pro-democracy watchdog on Tuesday unveiled new fairness standards underscoring that "independent redistricting commissions remain the gold standard for ending partisan gerrymandering."
Common Cause will hold an online media briefing Wednesday at noon Eastern time "to walk reporters though the six pieces of criteria the organization will use to evaluate any proposed maps."
The Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group said that "it will closely evaluate, but not automatically condemn, countermeasures" to Republican gerrymandering efforts—especially mid-decade redistricting not based on decennial censuses.
Amid the gerrymandering wars, we just launched 6 fairness criteria to hold all actors to the same principled standard: people first—not parties. Read our criteria here: www.commoncause.org/resources/po...
[image or embed]
— Common Cause (@commoncause.org) August 12, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Common Cause's six fairness criteria for mid-decade redistricting are:
- Proportionality: Any mid-decade redistricting should be a targeted response proportional to the threat posed by mid-decade gerrymanders in other states.
- Public participation: Any redistricting must include meaningful public participation, whether through ballot initiatives or open public processes.
- Racial equity: Redistricting must not further racial discrimination or dilute the political voice of Black, Latino, Indigenous, Asian American, and Pacific Islander, or other communities of color.
- Federal reform: Leaders pursuing mid-decade redistricting must publicly endorse the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act, including provisions banning mid-decade redistricting and partisan gerrymandering.
- Endorsement of independent redistricting: Leaders pursuing mid-decade redistricting must publicly endorse citizen-led independent redistricting commissions as the long-term solution.
- Time-limited: Any new redistricting maps must expire following the 2030 Census, which counts all people in our country, and be replaced through the regular decennial redistricting process.
"We will not sit idly by while political leaders manipulate voting maps to entrench their power and subvert our democracy," Common Cause president and CEO Virginia Kase Solomón said in a statement. "But neither will we call for unilateral political disarmament in the face of authoritarian tactics that undermine fair representation."
"We have established a fairness criteria that we will use to evaluate all countermeasures so we can respond to the most urgent threats to fair representation while holding all actors to the same principled standard: people—not parties—first," she added.
Common Cause's fairness criteria come amid the ongoing standoff between Republicans trying to gerrymander Texas' congressional map and Democratic lawmakers who fled the state in a bid to stymie a vote on the measure. Texas state senators on Tuesday approved the proposed map despite a walkout by most of their Democratic colleagues.
Leaders of several Democrat-controlled states, most notably California, have threatened retaliatory redistricting.
"This moment is about more than responding to a single threat—it's about building the movement for lasting reform," Kase Solomón asserted. "This is not an isolated political tactic; it is part of a broader march toward authoritarianism, dismantling people-powered democracy, and stripping away the people's ability to have a political voice and say in how they are governed."
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