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Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.

Donte Donald (Color Of Change PAC), Marisol Bello (Community Change Action), Monica Robinson (Planned Parenthood Votes), Eunic Ortiz (SEIU)
Today, a group of leading progressive organizations, including Color Of Change PAC, Community Change Action, Planned Parenthood Votes, and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), launched a $30 million campaign, Win Justice, to expand the electorate by mobilizing at least three million voters of color, young people, women, and union supporters in four key battleground states: Florida, Minnesota, Nevada, and Wisconsin. As many states shift election dates, modify polling places, and move to mail-in ballots, Win Justice will make an investment that is large enough to directly impact election results in each state and work to make voting accessible while combating systemic voter suppression. Win Justice will be particularly focused on the impact of vote-by-mail on historically marginalized Black, Latino, and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities and will engage these voters so they exercise their right to vote.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the country and many face rising unemployment and lost wages, voters of color are at greatest risk of being disenfranchised, especially by Republican voter suppression efforts. The Win Justice campaign will adjust to this reality by combining digital tools with traditional methods to connect with these voters. In addition to in-person field organizing if health officials deem it safe, the campaign will engage more deeply with voters by mail and phone, sending personalized postcards, and holding one-on-one conversations. The campaign will also focus on innovative digital organizing tools and a robust paid media campaign to Get Out The Vote.
"By prioritizing people of color, women, and young people through sustained, thoughtful engagement, Win Justice has the potential to expand the realms of possibility in our politics. When these groups of people vote, they consistently vote for more progressive candidates and policies, such as climate justice, immigration, social justice, women's rights," said Rashad Robinson, Spokesperson for Color Of Change PAC. "We are excited to continue building on the success of Win Justice in 2018. Real and consistent efforts to incorporate these voters and their specific voices into policymaking and politics would not only make our communities more just and equitable, but also shift power to the people that are too often overlooked."
"The Win Justice program is groundbreaking because it upends business-as-usual politics that deprioritizes low propensity voters of color or takes our vote for granted," said Lorella Praeli, President of Community Change Action. "It's never been more important than now during the coronavirus pandemic when we have to ensure voters of color remain civically engaged and exercise their right to vote. We see time and again that when you organize black, brown and immigrant voters in our communities, whether it is online or in-person, when you reach out to us about the issues we care about and when we hear from the people we know and trust, black, brown and immigrant voters will engage and vote. This program is not just about individual elections, but about reshaping the electorate to fundamentally shift the balance of power in this country and to engage -- and turn out -- voters that campaigns or parties may not otherwise reach."
"There can be no justice until we elect champions who will fight for reproductive freedom," said Jenny Lawson, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Votes. "The stakes for abortion access and reproductive health care have never been so high, and sitting on the sidelines is simply not an option. Planned Parenthood Votes is proud to fight shoulder to shoulder with our allies in this movement. We need to reach the communities who have been targeted and silenced by this administration and the people in power -- from voters of color, to immigrants, to young people, to women. Enough is enough: While our country's health care needs continue to rise in the face of a global pandemic, it's time for the politicians who attack our health care and our reproductive rights to lose their jobs."
"Working people, whether on the frontlines of this public health crisis or struggling in this economic crisis, are more engaged in politics now than in any election in our lifetimes," said Mary Kay Henry, International President of the Service Employees International Union. "Working people are making their voices heard loud and clear in this election that we must protect all workers - especially after being asked to risk their lives by going to work without protective equipment or hazard pay. Win Justice is about prioritizing deep engagement with Black, brown and Asian Pacific Islander voters. Workers and communities of color can't afford to return to normal - we need to reject the inequality and economic pain that defines COVID but was present long before COVID. That's what this election is about. Win Justice is the first step toward a better future where we rewrite the rules, rebuild the economy based on workers' power and reinvest in communities."
"Win Justice is committed to empowering voters, building power for our communities, and standing against the incompetent leadership that is putting the lives of so many at risk - especially now during the coronavirus pandemic," said Melissa Morales, Florida State Director for Win Justice. "We built a successful campaign in the 2018 cycle that mobilized and engaged our communities and increased Democratic turnout. Our 2020 campaign will build on that success by expanding the electorate; engaging voters of color, working people, and women; and mobilizing enough voters to make a winning difference in these crucial battleground states."
This groundbreaking coalition of leading progressive organizations, each of which have a track record of running large scale voter turnout in these communities, will have a particular focus on infrequent voters of color, including young people and women. The $30 million Win Justice campaign will be multilingual and lean on trusted community messengers to mobilize voters, including a robust virtual organizing effort that includes phone, text, mail, and digital as well as paid advertising on TV, radio, and digital platforms.
Thanks to the collaboration of the partner organizations and their unique expertise, Win Justice can connect and educate voters on immigrant, worker and reproductive rights, health care, economic, and racial justice issues. Utilizing powerful messengers with lived experiences, Win Justice will have an unmatched ability to organize communities, mobilize voters, and hold elected officials accountable. Win Justice can also hold elected officials accountable for incompetent leadership that puts the lives of millions of Americans at risk, including front line workers in Black, Latino, and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.
Unlike many other organizations that focus on persuading high frequency voters, Win Justice is focused on expanding the electorate to drive infrequent and new voters to the polls to fundamentally change the voices at the table and the outcome of the election. Rather than only doing a last minute "Get Out the Vote" push days before the election, Win Justice partner organizations are on the ground for the long haul, earning the trust of these communities, engaging partners on the ground, and driving toward grassroots victories -- not just in November, but for years to come.
The Win Justice partnership builds on a successful collaboration in the 2018 cycle when Win Justice organizers and partners knocked on more than 3.4 million doors, achieved 80 million digital impressions, sent more than 2.1 million texts, and made more than 800,000 phone calls in Florida, Michigan, and Nevada combined, increasing Democratic turnout by one full percentage point.
Community Change Action is a national organization that builds power from the ground up. We believe that effective and enduring social movements must be led by those most impacted by injustice and voting is one essential lever of change.
"It is astonishing that any president would try to target, shame, and harass children just trying to be themselves, let alone a president with so many actual problems to address," said the state attorney general.
The US Department of Justice on Monday continued President Donald Trump's crusade against transgender youth competing in sports in line with their identity by suing the Minnesota Department of Education and the state's high school league.
"The United States files this action to stop Minnesota's unapologetic sex discrimination against female student athletes," says the complaint, filed in a federal court in the state by the DOJ's Civil Rights Division.
"The state of Minnesota, through its Department of Education, and the Minnesota State High School League require girls to compete against boys in athletic competitions that are designated exclusively for girls and share intimate spaces, such as multiperson locker rooms and bathrooms, with boys," the complaint continues. "This unfair, intentionally discriminatory practice violates the very core of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972."
The Associated Press noted that "the administration has filed similar lawsuits against Maine and California, and has threatened the federal funding of some universities over transgender athletes, including San José State in California and the University of Pennsylvania."
Tim Leighton, a spokesperson for the league, told the AP that it does not comment on threatened or pending lawsuits. According to The New York Times, Emily Buss, a spokesperson for the state department, said Minnesota's leadership was reviewing the complaint while remaining "committed to ensuring every child—regardless of background, ZIP code, or ability—has access to a world-class education."
While Trump and his allies have aimed to stop all trans women and girls from competing as they identify—including at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles—the fight with Minnesota specifically traces back to the president's February 2025 executive order, after which the administration began investigating the state.
The Minnesota Department of Education gets over $3 billion in federal funding. Democratic state Attorney General Keith Ellison sued to stop the administration from pulling that money last April. In September, the US departments of Education and Health and Human Services concluded that the state agency and league violated Title IX, and the case was referred to the DOJ in January.
In a Monday statement, Ellison said that the DOJ's lawsuit "is just a sad attempt to get attention over something that's already been in litigation for months."
"Donald Trump is currently facing an unpopular war that he launched, rising gas prices, massive health insurance price hikes, and a partial government shutdown caused in part by his ICE agents killing two Minnesotans in broad daylight," Ellison said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "It is astonishing that any president would try to target, shame, and harass children just trying to be themselves, let alone a president with so many actual problems to address."
The DOJ filing about trans student-athletes came less than a week after Ellison and other Minnesota officials sued the Trump administration over its refusal to cooperate with state investigators probing the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents earlier this year, as well as the shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, who was wounded but survived.
“Trump has shown he will abuse every inch of power we give him," said one critic. "So you would think that given an opportunity to check his authority and protect Americans, Democrats would jump at the chance."
Critics denounced the top Democrat on the US House Intelligence Committee after he said Monday that he would vote to extend a highly controversial authorization for warrantless government spying sought by President Donald Trump that has been abused hundreds of thousands of times under various administrations.
While acknowledging that many of his Democratic colleagues will vote against reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) because they do not trust Trump to use the provision's sweeping surveillance powers legally, House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Jim Himes (D-Conn.) signaled that he would support renewal and vote against any efforts for privacy protections.
“There’s a lot of people who are going to switch from yes two years ago to no today," Himes told The Hill. "Because even though Donald Trump’s been president for five years, and he has never abused the program—I would know it pretty much in real time if he did—even though that’s true, people don’t trust Donald Trump."
"And you know, that word came up a lot in the classified briefing; there’s a huge trust gap here," he added. "So there’s going to be a lot of people switching on the Democratic side from yes to no.”
While Section 702 ostensibly limits warrantless surveillance to non-US citizens, such spying also captures the communications of Americans. The measure has been abused at least hundreds of thousands of times, including to spy on protestors, congressional donors, journalists, and others.
“Donald Trump has shown he will abuse every inch of power we give him," Sean Vitka, executive director of the pro-democracy group Demand Progress, said in a statement Monday. "So you would think that given an opportunity to check his authority and protect Americans, Democrats would jump at the chance."
"But instead, Rep. Jim Himes is failing his critical role as an overseer of intelligence agencies and using his political power to lobby his fellow Democrats in service of the Trump administration domestic surveillance agenda," Vitka continued. "It is unforgivably cynical and reckless for Rep. Himes to make it easier for this administration to spy on Americans, especially at a time when government agencies’ have made it clear that they intend to supercharge surveillance with [artificial intelligence], and when their misuse of these powers is horrifically on display.”
Nearly 100 civil society groups including Demand Progress are urging congressional Democrats to "stand firm" and vote against Section 702 reauthorization without reforms, including closing the so-called data broker loophole.
Among the Democratic lawmakers reportedly considering voting against the extension is Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), who voted for reauthorizing Section 702 in 2024—when Congress extended the spying power until April 20, 2026.
“I supported it because I felt very comfortable that... additional guardrails were safeguarding Americans’ privacy in a sufficiently significant way as to justify the importance of getting this information on an urgent basis," he told The Hill. "And as a former prosecutor, I know how difficult it can be to get a search warrant, and especially in these cases where there often isn’t even probable cause, but my vote was taken on the expectation that the law would be implemented as written."
“And we now have an administration that has routinely, repeatedly, regularly—and seemingly and intentionally—violated numerous laws, undermined the Constitution, attacked our democracy, and simply cannot be trusted with the privacy information that is included in the materials gathered and potentially searched," Goldman continued.
"So unless I receive a lot more information about every single search for a US person that has been done by this administration since they came into office, I don’t see how I can possibly support the reauthorization," he added.
"Right now the US and Israel are realizing 'Greater Israel' by attacking-invading Lebanon and Iran," said one professor. "Hegseth is saying it's Greenland, Cuba, Canada, and Mexico next."
Alarm mounted Monday over the Trump administration's "Greater North America" plan, a geopolitical blueprint for US imperial hegemony from Greenland to Guyana that's drawing comparisons with a messianic project being pushed by President Donald Trump's far-right allies and war partners in Israel.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth first unveiled the plan earlier this month, telling reporters: "Trump has drawn a new strategic map, from Greenland to the Gulf of America to the Panama Canal and its surrounding countries. At the Department of War we call this strategic map the Greater North America."
"Why? Because every sovereign nation and territory north of the Equator, from Greenland to Ecuador and from Alaska to Guyana, is not part of the 'Global South,'" Hegseth added. "It is our immediate security perimeter in this great neighborhood that we all live in."
Graeme Garrard, a Canadian professor at Cardiff University in Wales, said Monday on social media in response to Hegseth's comments: "By 'Greater North America' he means 'Greater United States. The US is now and has long been a menace and threat to the sovereignty and independence of its hemispheric neighbors."
Numerous observers have compared Trump's "Greater America" with the "Greater Israel" movement, whose most zealous proponents want to conquer everything between the Nile and Euphrates rivers—that is, all of Palestine, Lebanon, and Jordan; most of Syria and Kuwait; large parts of Egypt and Iraq; and some of Turkey—for Israel.
"Hesgeth's 'Greater North America' should be taken VERY seriously as a real threat," University of Lausanne professor Julia Steinberger, who is Swiss-American, said on social media. "Right now the US and Israel are realizing 'Greater Israel' by attacking-invading Lebanon and Iran. Hegseth is saying it's Greenland, Cuba, Canada, and Mexico next."
Based on the biblical boundaries of ancient Jewish kingdoms, Greater Israel is rooted in the supremacist supposition that the Abrahamic deity figure God promised the Jews all of the lands between the Nile and Euphrates.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza—and other prominent right-wing Israelis support the Greater Israel vision and are working to make it a reality by accelerating the illegal settler colonization and ethnic cleansing of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, preparing to annex the dwindling Palestinian territories, and planning to occupy—perhaps permanently—parts of Syria and Lebanon.
For nearly two centuries, claims of divine favor have also underpinned US expansionism, most famously expressed in Manifest Destiny and mid-19th century plans to annex lands "from the Arctic to the Tropic." This notion drove the US conquest of half of Mexico, as well as later takeovers of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. The US also took control over the Panama Canal, which it built at the cost of thousands of laborers' lives, most of them from Barbados and other West Indies isles.
"It is part of the great law of progress that the weak should give way to the strong, and that the superior should displace the inferior races," one New Orleans newspaper opined in 1848.
Nearly 178 years later, Hegseth echoed this supremacist ideology, telling Latin American leaders that the region must remain "Christian nations under God" and stand united in the face of "radical narco-communism."
Like the 19th century US imperialists, Trump has also repeatedly expressed his goal of "taking Cuba"—an objective that goes back over 200 years, when Thomas Jefferson, then a former president, called the island “the most interesting addition which could ever be made to our system of states."