January, 05 2021, 11:00pm EDT
Public Citizen Statement on GOP's Efforts to Overturn Election Results
Congress today will count and certify the Electoral College votes, formally confirming Joe Biden as President of the United States. Republicans in both chambers plan to object to the count and delay the inevitable certification of President-elect Joe Biden's win -- a victory that was affirmed by the Electoral College last month. The following statement was released by Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, ahead of the vote:
WASHINGTON
Congress today will count and certify the Electoral College votes, formally confirming Joe Biden as President of the United States. Republicans in both chambers plan to object to the count and delay the inevitable certification of President-elect Joe Biden's win -- a victory that was affirmed by the Electoral College last month. The following statement was released by Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, ahead of the vote:
"Today, America is likely to witness a dozen or more U.S. Senators and more than 100 Members of Congress aid and abet an effort to undertake a coup.
"That this is purely a theatrical display, given the certainty of failure, does little to mitigate the moral culpability of the coup abettors. Nor does the fact that, after the Georgia run-off election, this ploy looks a lot less politically savvy than it appeared 24 hours earlier.
"None of the U.S. Senators and virtually none of the House members actually believe that Trump won the election or has any valid claim of widespread election improprieties. That truth underscores the severity of their seditious conduct: they don't believe in the merits of what they are doing, their actions are an anti-democratic play for power.
"Soon enough, this distressing episode in American history will be behind us - but its corrosive impact will remain. Tens of millions of Americans have been fooled into believing the election was stolen, undermining not just their belief in our flawed democracy, but their commitment to democracy itself.
"This is a frighteningly dangerous state for the nation. It portends ongoing and perhaps worsening disunity at a time when we need to come together to fight the pandemic and address other great challenges. And it threatens the creation of an enduring quasi-fascist movement perpetuating racist violence, conspiratorial thinking and serious perils for a functioning democracy."
Public Citizen is a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization that champions the public interest in the halls of power. We defend democracy, resist corporate power and work to ensure that government works for the people - not for big corporations. Founded in 1971, we now have 500,000 members and supporters throughout the country.
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From Mass Evictions to Education Cuts, Dem Warns GOP Austerity Would Cause 'Irreparable Damage'
Citing assessments from federal agencies, Rep. Rosa DeLauro said House Republicans' push for across-the-board budget cuts is "unrealistic, unsustainable, and unconscionable."
Mar 21, 2023
The top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee on Monday released
letters from federal agencies that together provide a detailed look at the implications of the House GOP's proposed budget cuts, which would take an axe to programs that help millions of people make rent, feed their families, and afford childcare.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) asked the leaders of major government departments to outline what would happen if House Republicans succeeded in their push to freeze federal spending at fiscal year 2022 levels, a move that would inflict deep across-the-board cuts on agency budgets.
DeLauro said the agencies' responses make clear that the cuts "would cause irreparable damage to our communities by gutting the programs every single American relies on."
"Those proposals are unrealistic, unsustainable, and unconscionable," said DeLauro. "The draconian cuts would take away the opportunity for 80,000 people to attend college and impact all 6.6 million students who rely on Pell Grants. If implemented, 200,000 children will lose access to Head Start, and 100,000 children will lose access to childcare, undermining early education and parents' ability to go to work."
"As if that was not enough to deter these harmful cuts," she added, "1.2 million women, infants, and children would lose vital nutrition assistance they receive through WIC."
Those figures come directly from letters that agency heads sent to DeLauro last week as congressional Democrats and the Biden administration ramp up their criticism of the House GOP's pursuit of steep spending cuts, which Republicans are demanding in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling and averting a catastrophic default.
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) toldRoll Call on Monday that House Appropriations Chair Kay Granger (R-Texas) has instructed Republicans to "scrub every penny, every department, every agency, dollar, every penny spent, to try to find savings, to try to figure out where we can cut spending in a responsible way"—though top GOP lawmakers have indicated they will likely shield the fraud-ridden Pentagon Pentagon from cuts.
"Continued Republican calls for cuts of this magnitude—both secret proposals from Republican leadership and public demands from extremists in the party—would be absolutely detrimental to all Americans."
In a March 17
letter, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) warned that reverting its budget to fiscal year 2022 levels would strip federal rental assistance from 640,000 families, making it "impossible to stave off mass evictions."
The Department of Education, meanwhile, estimated that GOP cuts would have the effect of "removing more than 13,000 teachers and service providers from classrooms serving low-income children."
"A reduction of 22% from currently enacted levels would cut $468 million in federal support to determine, disburse, and service student aid," the agency continued. "This level of funding would have devastating effects on student and parent interactions with the department, as well as on their ability to successfully apply for and receive student aid."
In a press release, DeLauro spotlighted projections from other agencies that demonstrate the far-reaching consequences of the GOP's austerity push:
- After recent near-misses, our air travel would come to a halt with 125 Air Traffic Control Towers shutting down, impacting one-third of all airports;
- Following the catastrophic derailments in eastern Ohio and West Virginia, rail safety jobs would be dramatically reduced, with 11,000 fewer safety inspection days, and 30,000 fewer miles of track inspected annually;
- Amid a mental health and overdose crisis, nearly 1 million people facing a suicidal or mental health crisis would be unable to access support services through the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, and tens of thousands of individuals could be denied admission to opioid use disorder treatment, denying them a potentially life-saving path to recovery;
- An estimated 2 million vulnerable individuals and families, including rural and underserved populations, would lose access to healthcare services through Community Health Centers;
- With the looming rise of food insecurity, nutrition services, such as Meals on Wheels, would be cut for more than 1 million seniors; and
- The Social Security Administration would be forced to close field offices and reduced access to in-person services, and people applying for disability benefits would wait an additional two months for the processing of claims.
And that's not even the full picture: DeLauro is still awaiting responses from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Agency for International Development, among other departments.
"The programs that we fund every year keep our communities safe and healthy, lower prices, and create jobs, and we have increased investments in them year after year with the support of Democrats and Republicans in both the House and the Senate," DeLauro said Monday.
"Continued Republican calls for cuts of this magnitude—both secret proposals from Republican leadership and public demands from extremists in the party—would be absolutely detrimental to all Americans, many of whom have not seen a pay raise in years and are struggling to pay their bills," said the Connecticut Democrat. "The math is not there."
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'An Act of Climate Denial': Biden Faces Anti-Willow Protests After IPCC Report
"Biden will keep being haunted until he changes course," said one climate campaigner.
Mar 21, 2023
Further emboldened by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's fresh call for rapid emission cuts, campaigners are planning to rally outside the U.S. Interior Department on Tuesday morning to protest the Biden administration's approval of a massive oil drilling project that—if completed—would spew millions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year.
In a press release announcing the demonstration, which is set to begin at 9:00 am ET, Fossil Free Media said those voicing outrage over the administration's decision to greenlight the project will include climate activists, social media influencers, students, and others.
The protest will coincide with President Joe Biden's planned remarks at the White House Conservation in Action Summit at the Interior Department, which signed off on a version of ConocoPhillips' Willow Project last week despite widespread opposition and warnings that it would undermine the global climate fight.
The Interior Department has estimated that the Alaska drilling project—the largest of its kind on U.S. public land—could produce nearly 580 million barrels of oil over three decades and unleash more than 270 million metric tons of planet-warming CO2. Green groups are suing the administration in an effort to stop the project, which is not expected to begin producing oil for another six years.
Jamie Henn, the director of Fossil Free Media, wrote Monday that the IPCC's report "makes it all the more clear that Biden's approval of the Willow Project was an act of climate denial and destruction."
The report, the product of years of work by hundreds of leading scientists from around the world, says greenhouse gas emissions must be cut by 60% over roughly the next decade to keep the Paris climate accord's critical warming target alive.
The Biden administration's approval of the Willow Project and other drilling—during his first two years in office, Biden outpaced former President Donald Trump in permit approvals—called into further doubt the White House's commitment to treating the climate crisis as an "existential threat."
"Reading the U.N.'s latest dire climate warnings just days after Biden approved massive new Arctic oil drilling is utterly infuriating," Shaye Wolf, climate science director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said Monday. "The fossil-fueled path to more climate disasters, mass displacements, and wildlife extinctions is bleak, but it's not inevitable."
"Chief among world leaders, Biden has the tools to not only ratchet up renewables but move us decisively off fossil fuels," Wolf added. "Scientists have mapped the way to a livable planet, but we need the political will to get us there."
On Monday, shortly following the release of the IPCC report, climate activists disrupted a Washington, D.C. event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, where White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi appeared to deliver an address on the "future of U.S. climate and energy leadership."
Reutersreported that "a dozen protesters holding a sign saying 'End Fossil Fuels' chanted 'Keep your promise, no new drilling' for several minutes, preventing Zaidi from starting his remarks." Zaidi responded by pointing to the climate investments approved under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
"At the end of the day, nobody in a position of power seems to be accepting the reality and the urgency of this moment," Reilly Haught, a 23-year-old protestor from West Virginia, told Reuters. "And that's what we wanted to share with him. We just can't go on with business as usual with only the people in suits having these important conversations."
Collin Rees of Oil Change International tweeted Monday that "'climate leaders' don't approve huge fossil fuel projects like the Willow Project, which would negate most emissions reductions from the IRA even under rosy estimates."
"The IPCC is clear—no new oil + gas," Rees added. "Biden will keep being haunted until he changes course."
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Calls Mount for US to Provide Free School Meals to All Children
"Hiving off a tiny part of the public school bundle and charging a means-tested fee for it is extremely stupid," argues Matt Bruenig.
Mar 20, 2023
Minnesota last week became just the fourth U.S. state to guarantee universal free school meals, triggering a fresh wave of demands and arguments for a similar federal policy to feed kids.
"Universal school meals is now law in Minnesota!" Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, who represents the state, tweeted Monday. "Now, we need to pass our Universal School Meals Program Act to guarantee free school meals to every child across the country."
Omar's proposal, spearheaded in the upper chamber by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), "would permanently provide free breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack to all school children regardless of income, eliminate school meal debt, and strengthen local economies by incentivizing local food procurement," the lawmakers' offices explained in 2021.
Congressional Republicans last year blocked the continuation of a Covid-19 policy enabling public schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to all 50 million children, and now, many families face rising debt over childrens' cafeteria charges.
"The school bus service doesn't charge fares. Neither should the school lunch service."
Matt Bruenig, founder of the People's Policy Project, highlighted Monday that while children who attend public schools generally have not only free education but also free access to bathrooms, textbooks, computer equipment, playgrounds, gyms, and sports gear, "around the middle of each school day, the free schooling service is briefly suspended for lunch."
"How much each kid is charged is based on their family income except that, if a kid lives in a school or school district where 40% or more of the kids are eligible for free lunch, then they are also eligible for free lunch even if their family income would otherwise be too high," he detailed. "Before Covid, in 2019, 68.1% of the kids were charged $0, 5.8% were charged $0.40, and 26.1% were charged the full $4.33... The total cost of the 4.9 billion meals is around $21 billion per year. In 2019, user fees covered $5.6 billion of this cost."
Bruenig—whose own child has access to free school meals because of the community eligibility program—continued:
The approximately $5.6 billion of school lunch fees collected in 2019 were equal to 0.7% of the total cost of K-12 schooling. In order to collect these fees, each school district has to set up a school lunch payments system, often by contracting with third-party providers like Global Payments. They also have to set up a system for dealing with kids who are not enrolled in the free lunch program but who show up to school with no money in their school lunch account or in their pockets. In this scenario, schools will either have to make the kid go without lunch, give them a free lunch for the day (but not too many times), or give them a lunch while assigning their lunch account a debt.
Eligibility for the $0 and $0.40 lunches is based on income, but this does not mean that everyone with an eligible income successfully signs up for the program. As with all means-tested programs, the application of the means test not only excludes people with ineligible incomes, but also people with eligible incomes who fail to successfully navigate the red tape of the welfare bureaucracy.
The think tank leader tore into arguments against universal free meals for kids, declaring that "hiving off a tiny part of the public school bundle and charging a means-tested fee for it is extremely stupid."
Bruenig pointed out that socializing the cost of child benefits like school meals helps "equalize the conditions of similarly-situated families with different numbers of children" and "smooths incomes across the lifecycle by ensuring that, when people have kids, their household financial situation remains mostly the same."
"Indeed, this is actually the case for the welfare state as whole, not just child benefits," the expert emphasized, explaining that like older adults and those with disabilities, children cannot and should not work, which "makes it impossible to receive personal labor income, meaning that some other non-labor income system is required."
Conservative opponents of free school lunches often claim that "fees serve an important pedagogical function in society to get people to understand personal responsibility" and because they "are means-tested, they serve an important income-redistributive function in society," he noted. "Both arguments are hard to take seriously."
Pushing back against the first claim, Bruenig stressed that right-wingers don't apply it to other aspects of free schooling such as bus services. He also wrote that the means-testing claim "is both untrue and at odds with their general attitudes on, not just redistribution, but on how child benefit programs specifically should be structured."
A tax for everyone with a certain income intended to make up the $5.6 billion in school meal fees, he argued, "would have a larger base and thus represent a smaller share of the income of each person taxed and such a tax would smooth incomes over time," while also eliminating means-testing—which would allow schools to feed all kids and ditch costly payment systems.
As Nora De La Cour reported Sunday for Jacobin: "The fight for school meals traces its roots all the way back to maternalist Progressive Era efforts to shield children and workers from the ravages of unregulated capitalism. In her bookThe Labor of Lunch: Why We Need Real Food and Real Jobs in American Public Schools, Jennifer Gaddis describes how early school lunch crusaders envisioned meal programs that would be integral to schools' educational missions, immersing students in hands-on learning about nutrition, gardening, food preparation, and home economics. Staffed by duly compensated professionals, these programs would collectivize and elevate care work, making it possible for mothers of all economic classes to efficiently nourish their young."
Now, families who experienced the positive impact of the pandemic-era program want more from the federal government.
"When schools adopt universal meals through community eligibility or another program, we see improvements in students' academic performance, behavior, attendance, and psychosocial functioning," wrote De La Cour, whose reporting also includes parent and cafeteria worker perspectives. "Above all, the implementation of universal meals causes meal participation to shoot up, demonstrating that the need far exceeds the number of kids who are able to get certified."
Crystal FitzSimons, director of school-based programs at the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), told Jacobin, "There is a feeling that we can't go back."
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