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For Immediate Release
November, 19 2018, 11:00pm EDT
Contact:
Matt Johnson, matt@directactioneverywhere.com, 319.464.5985
Massive Farm Releases 100 Turkeys -- to Activists Facing Felony Charges For Investigating It
Collaboration intended to demonstrate holiday spirit of compassion
WASHINGTON
In a shocking and heartwarming turn-of-events captured on Facebook livestream, hundreds of activists with the grassroots animal rights network Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) -- including renowned actor James Cromwell and two activists awaiting felony trial for investigating turkey farming giant Norbest, LLC -- have rescued 100 turkeys in direct collaboration with Rick Pitman, who is the owner of Norbest.
The slaughterhouse rescue is the result of an unlikely friendship between Pitman and Wayne Hsiung, founder of DxE and one of the felony defendants. Rather than continuing their fight in court, Pitman has stated that he does not support the charges, and the two sides decided on a dramatically different path this Thanksgiving: generosity. Hsiung, Cromwell, and hundreds of animal rights supporters will travel to Norbest to provide vegan food to the employees of the plant and other locals. Pitman, in turn, plans to release 100 turkeys to the activists in an act of Thanksgiving mercy. The birds will be immediately taken to local sanctuaries, where they will live out their lives in happy families. Hsiung and Pitman hope to show that even adversaries can show compassion this holiday season.
This dynamic with Norbest stands in stark contrast to another DxE investigation in Utah, which also resulted in felony charges. After DxE released an investigation exposing horrific animal cruelty at Smithfield's Circle Four Farms in Milford, Utah -- the largest pig farm in the US -- FBI agents raided farm animal sanctuaries searching for piglets removed from the farm by activists. Six activists were later charged with multiple felonies, including a racketeering charge, punishable by up to 60 years in prison.
The action is part of the Animal Liberation Western Convergence, which runs through Wednesday and has over 600 activists participating. On Tuesday, Cromwell -- who turned vegan after starring in the 1995 film "Babe" -- is again leading the way, this time it's a demonstration at the Utah State Capitol Building to demand that action be taken in response to animal cruelty at Circle Four Farms, and that charges be dropped against activists facing related charges. Cromwell will then lead activists to Circle Four to demand that management open the doors to allow activists to inspect conditions and provide care to animals in need.
Investigators with Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) enter farms, slaughterhouses, and other agricultural facilities to document abuses and rescue sick and injured animals. DxE's investigatory work has been featured in The New York Times, Nightline, and a viral Glenn Greenwald expose, and DxE activists led the recent effort to ban fur products in San Francisco. Activists have been
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House Progressives Denounce 'Morally Bankrupt' Bill to End Shutdown Without Healthcare Guarantee
"Make no mistake, people will die from these skyrocketing healthcare costs, paired with Republicans’ brutal Medicaid cuts," said Rep. Ilhan Omar.
Nov 12, 2025
As the US House appears likely to vote Wednesday to reopen the government, House progressives issued a scathing rebuke to their Democratic colleagues in the Senate who voted for a funding bill with no guarantee to protect the healthcare of tens of millions of Americans.
With the backing of leadership, the continued resolution was advanced by a group of eight Senate Democrats this weekend to end what has been the longest shutdown in US history.
In a joint statement, the 94-member Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) announced its opposition to the stopgap funding bill, which it said "includes no provisions to guarantee affordable healthcare and protect tens of millions of Americans from massive price spikes to their premiums, and imposes no strong guardrails to prevent the Trump administration from violating appropriations laws."
The bill agrees to fund the government until the end of 2026, without a deal to extend ACA subsidies that, if allowed to expire at the end of the year, will result in more than 20 million Americans seeing their insurance premiums more than double, according to analysis by KFF. It also introduces no new provisions to prevent President Donald Trump from refusing to spend funds appropriated by Congress, nor does it address the nearly $1 trillion worth of Medicaid cuts passed in July’s GOP spending bill.
"The Senate-passed bill is a betrayal of working people and massively fails to address the urgent needs of the American people,” said CPC Deputy Chair Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). “Instead of working toward a fair deal, House Republicans refused to negotiate and abdicated their duty to serve the American people."
"The Senate-passed bill is morally bankrupt. It is indefensible to allow more than 20 million Americans to see their premiums double and let millions lose their healthcare coverage. Healthcare is a human right, and this bill contradicts that fundamental principle," Omar continued. "Make no mistake, people will die from these skyrocketing healthcare costs, paired with Republicans’ brutal Medicaid cuts."
After over a month of holding out, Democrats ultimately cracked under the White House's use of the shutdown to punish segments of the American public: Government workers hit with mass layoffs, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients illegally denied this month’s benefits, and residents of blue states and cities stripped of congressionally appropriated funding for critical infrastructure.
While Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) voted no on the deal to break the Democratic filibuster, he is widely understood to be the driving force behind the agreement, supporting the clique of eight Democratic senators who voted with the GOP—none of whom face reelection in 2026—to take the fall.
In the aftermath of the cave, Schumer has faced calls from several House Democrats to step down from leadership, including Reps. Ro Khanna (Calif.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), and Mike Levin (Calif.). However, none in the Senate, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), have joined in that push, even though any one of them could force a vote on his leadership within seven days.
As part of the Senate deal, Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) promised that Republicans would hold a vote to extend healthcare subsidies within 40 days. But CPC chairman Greg Casar dismissed it as "nothing but a pinky promise."
“A deal that doesn’t reduce healthcare costs is a betrayal of millions of Americans counting on Democrats to fight for them,” Casar said. “Millions of families would pay the price.”
The CPC has said it will vote no when the bill comes to the House for a vote on Wednesday, as have most other Democrats.
“I will not support any deal that doesn’t improve the lives of working Americans,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the co-chair of the CPC political action committee. “End of story.”
In the GOP-controlled chamber, Democrats cannot stop the bill on their own. But Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) can only afford to lose two Republicans, and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has already signaled that he will vote no.
While others, like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), have expressed concern and disgust toward her GOP colleagues over the bill's lack of a solution to the looming healthcare apocalypse, there's no indication that enough Republicans will defect to kill the resolution.
On Tuesday, Republicans in the House voted down a Democratic amendment that would have extended ACA subsidies for three years.
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Raskin Sounds Alarm Over 'Million-Dollar Jackpot Provision' Snuck Into Senate Shutdown Bill
"One of the most blatantly corrupt provisions for political self-dealing and the plunder of public resources ever proposed."
Nov 12, 2025
House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin is calling out Republicans in the US Senate for slipping into their government funding bill a provision that would let eight GOP senators personally each rake in an extra $1 million in taxpayer money.
As reported by The Hill, the provision allows Republican senators whose data was obtained without their knowledge during former special counsel Jack Smith's investigation to sue the FBI.
"The provision, which is retroactive to 2022, only applies to members of the Senate and would allow them to sue for $500,000 if data was sought without their being notified, as well as once it was obtained," noted The Hill.
Raskin (D-Md.) responded by blasting the "million-dollar jackpot provision" in the Senate bill as "one of the most blatantly corrupt provisions for political self-dealing and the plunder of public resources ever proposed."
Raskin also contrasted Republican senators giving themselves the ability to score a quick $1 million with the economic uncertainty and anxiety facing the American people.
"If it were to pass, this astounding provision would give eight Republican senators a personal payday of at least one million dollars each paid for directly by US taxpayers," he said. "This jackpot is being set up at the same time Republicans throw millions of Americans off Medicaid and deny millions more a tax credit that helps make premiums for health insurance more affordable."
Raskin also shot down claims by the senators that law enforcement officials had violated their rights to privacy during Smith's probe, which sought Republican senators' phone records as part of his investigation into President Donald Trump's efforts to illegally remain in power after losing the 2020 presidential election.
"To be clear, there was no ‘phone tap’ or eavesdropping on the content of their conversations," he said. "The call records subpoenaed were the kind of information you see on a phone bill—a list of calls made and received."
Raskin wasn't the only House Democrat to blast the provision slipped into the funding bill. During a contentious House Rules Committee meeting on Tuesday, Rep. Joe Neguse (R-Colo.) called the provision "deeply insidious" and pushed an amendment to strip it from the legislation ahead of a vote in the House later this week.
"I think it is outrageous for these Republican senators to effectively guarantee themselves million-dollar paydays!" he said. "A retroactive provision in this bill that very clearly applies to them. The removal of all relevant immunity defenses on the part of the United States government. This is insanity to allow this provision to go forward, and I would hope that my Republican colleagues would join us in supporting the removal of this provision."
Neguse: I think it is outrageous for these Republican senators to effectively guarantee themselves million-dollar paydays, a provision in this bill that very clearly applies to them. The removal of all relevant immunity defenses on the part of the United States government. This… pic.twitter.com/ukmEnybcd7
— Acyn (@Acyn) November 12, 2025
Democrats weren't the only congresspeople who criticized the provision, as Reps. Austin Scott (R-Ga.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas) also said that it should be removed, although they both expressed concern that doing so would prolong the government shutdown.
"I personally agree this should removed," Scott said, according to HuffPost reporter Igor Bobic. "The problem is if we remove it, it has to go back to the Senate. I’ve struggled with what to do."
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Trump to Dine With Wall Street CEOs While Throttling Food Aid for Millions
Billionaire JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon will reportedly attend the White House dinner, held as nutrition assistance for millions of Americans remains in chaos.
Nov 12, 2025
US President Donald Trump is set to dine with finance industry titans at the White House on Wednesday as his administration continues to withhold nutrition assistance from millions of Americans, forcing them to rely on overwhelmed food banks and the generosity of their communities to stave off hunger.
Reuters reported that the private dinner is expected to include "several top business executives, including the chief executives of Nasdaq and JPMorgan Chase." BlackRock's Larry Fink and Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon were among those invited.
"The gathering underscores Trump's effort to deepen ties with corporate leaders as his administration rolls out new initiatives aimed at strengthening US capital markets and rebuilding critical domestic supply chains seen as vital to national security," Reuters reported.
News of the dinner came as the US Supreme Court on Tuesday extended an order allowing the Trump administration to continue withholding billions of dollars in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as a legal fight plays out in a lower court and the government remains shut down.
Throughout the shutdown, which is expected to end this week after a group of Senate Democrats capitulated to the GOP, the administration has fought tooth and nail to avoid fully paying out SNAP funds, resulting in the first benefit lapse in the program's history. Over the weekend, Trump's Agriculture Department threatened to penalize any states that did not "undo" full November SNAP payments amid the court fight, prompting sharp pushback from Democratic governors.
"The president should not be directing states to take food out of the mouths of the hungry," said Maine Gov. Janet Mills. "His actions are hurting our most vulnerable people, while the president hosts lavish parties in Florida and builds a $350 million ball room at the White House."
Late last week, as HuffPost reported, Trump hosted a party at his Mar-a-Lago resort where guests dined on "filet, scallops, and a dessert on the same day that the Supreme Court ruled the SNAP food program that 1 in 8 Americans rely on would not be fully funded amid the shutdown."
"Just hours before millions of Americans lost federal food aid earlier this month, Trump hosted a lavish “Great Gatsby” themed party at his Mar-a-Lago resort," the outlet noted. "The theme of the night was 'A Little Party Never Killed Anyone.'"
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