February, 08 2021, 11:00pm EDT
Just Do It
Today, Meagan Hatcher-Mays, Director of Democracy Policy for Indivisible, issued the following statement:
WASHINGTON
Today, Meagan Hatcher-Mays, Director of Democracy Policy for Indivisible, issued the following statement:
"There is no hope for unity in this country unless the Senate convicts Donald Trump for inciting a deadly riot at the Capitol on January 6, and permanently bans him from ever holding federal office again. No one is above the law, least of all Donald Trump, the human embodiment of white supremacist toxic masculinity. A man who cares so little for anyone other than himself that he sent a violent mob to the Capitol to wreak havoc and death on sitting Members of Congress and even his own Vice President. Five people ended up dead. Trump never apologized. Instead, he told his army: 'We love you. You are very special.'
"Senate Republicans in particular must, at long last, prove to the American people that they are more loyal to our democracy than they are to Donald Trump and Trumpism. They must vote to convict. They are jurors in this impeachment trial but they are also witnesses -- witnesses not just to the events on January 6 but to four years of racism, corruption, and death. Every time Senate Republicans let Donald Trump off the hook, he is emboldened to inflict even more terror. If he gets away with this, I shudder to think what he'll do next."
Indivisible Project (501c4) drives coordinated campaigns, powering the grassroots Indivisible movement to defeat the rightwing takeover of American government and win an inclusive democracy and bold progressive policies.
LATEST NEWS
AOC Says Mayor Eric Adams Attack on Migrants 'Is Not Leadership'
The congressional Democrat knocked the New York City Mayor for declaring that asylum-seekers and other immigrants would "destroy" the city, comments another lawmaker denounced as "repugnant MAGA garbage."
Sep 09, 2023
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is among those criticizing New York City's Democratic Mayor Eric Adams for comments he made this week demonizing asylum-seekers and other migrants.
The latest conflagration kicked off by Mayor Adams, the former police officer turned politician, began Wednesday night when he charged that an influx of migrants would "destroy New York City" as he lamented that he could "not see an ending" to the perceived crisis and said the federal government must do more to help.
Defenders of refugee and migrant rights, however, pushed back after video of the remarks spread on social media.
In a Twitter post on Friday, Ocasio-Cortez castigated Adams. While agreeing that the Biden administration should "step up" to do more, she said that solutions to the growing number of migrants do exist but that "Alienating people isn't one of them."
"A core issue we have is not solely the presence of asylum seekers," continued Ocasio-Cortez. "They want to work and New Yorkers want to hire them. It’s that goverment is forcing people to remain on public systems [because] we won’t let them work and support themselves, which is all they want. Work authorizations and extending [temporary protected status (TPS)] can do a lot here."
But, she said, the divisive rhetoric like that from Mayor Adams "puts solutions even further away, and only escalates tensions and obstacles."
"This dangerous rhetoric is something you’d expect from fringe politicians on the far-right of the political spectrum, not from the mayor of a city that has always welcomed and celebrated its diverse and critically important immigrant community."
Ocasion-Cortez, who represents parts of Queens and the Bronx, was far from Adams' only critic.
Guerline Jozef, co-founder and executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, which advocates for the rights and dignity of migrants and asylum-seekers in the city, said his group was deeply concerned about the Mayor's comments.
"We call upon Mayor Adams to clarify and reconsider his statements, and we urge him to engage in meaningful dialogue with organizations and experts in the field to gain a deeper understanding of the complex issues surrounding migration," said Jozef. "We further extend an invitation to Mayor Adams and his administration to collaborate with us and other organizations to ensure that New York City continues to uphold the principles of diversity, equity, and justice for all."
City Councilmember Tiffany Cabán of Queens joined the chorus of rebuke by calling Adams' comments nothing by "repugnant MAGA garbage," a reference to the anti-immigrant ideology of former President Donald Trump and other leading Republicans. Further evidence that the Mayor's comments were more in line with the GOP than the Democratic Party to which he belongs, several high-profile Republicans, including far-right presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy applauded the remarks.
Redmond Haskins, a spokesperson for the Legal Aid Society and Coalition for the Homeless, toldThe Gothamist newspaper the comments were "reckless and unproductive fear-mongering" by the Mayor.
"This dangerous rhetoric is something you’d expect from fringe politicians on the far-right of the political spectrum, not from the mayor of a city that has always welcomed and celebrated its diverse and critically important immigrant community," said Haskins.
Sawyer Hackett, a Democratic strategist and consultant, said of Adams, "This is not a person any elected Democrat should take messaging advice from."
In her critique, Ocasio-Cortez said anyone who continues to ignore the root cause of asylum-seekers arriving in the U.S. due to poverty, safety concerns, or political instability in their own countries is missing a key aspect of the issue.
"If we want to reduce the number of asylum seekers in general, we have to make U.S. foreign policy part of this conversation," the congresswoman said. "We must discuss U.S. policy in Latin America, which often goes ignored by politicians and media alike, despite the fact that it's a major factor."
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Over 1,000 Dead From Devastating Earthquake in Morocco
Death toll expected to climb as emergency workers search for survivors in Marrakesh and other impacted villages and cities.
Sep 09, 2023
This is a developing story... Check back for updates...
The strongest earthquake to hit the country of Morocco in more than 120 years has left over 800 people dead and many thousands more trapped, missing, or injured.
The quake registered 6.8 on the Richter scale with the epicenter located in the Atlas Mountains and not far the city of Marrakesh where historic buildings—many built of mortar and stone not designed to withstand such tremors—collapsed and the streets filled with people overnight trying to flee the destruction and danger.
"The problem is that where destructive earthquakes are rare, buildings are simply not constructed robustly enough to cope with strong ground shaking, so many collapse resulting in high casualties," Bill McGuire, professor emeritus of geophysical and climate hazards at University College London, told the Associated Press. "I would expect the final death toll to climb into the thousands once more is known. As with any big quake, aftershocks are likely, which will lead to further casualties and hinder search and rescue."
Morocco's interior ministry put the death toll at 822 as of Saturday morning, with 672 injured, but later revised those numbers to reflect that over 1,000 people are confirmed dead and more than 1,200 injured. Both numbers are almost certain to keep rising. Though the stronger impacts were closer to Marakesh, the earthquake was felt across the country, including in Casablance, Essaouira, and the capital city of Rabat.
Large nations, including both the United States and China, sent their well wishes to the people of Morocco.
"I am deeply saddened by the loss of life and devastation caused by the earthquake in Morocco," said U.S. President Joe Biden in an overnight statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all those impacted by this terrible hardship."
Biden said his administration as in contact with Moroccan officials and willing to send whatever help might be necessary. "We are working expeditiously to ensure American citizens in Morocco are safe," Biden said, "and stand ready to provide any necessary assistance for the Moroccan people."
"On behalf of the Chinese government and people, I would like to express my deep grief for the victims and sincere condolences to the families," said China's President Xi Jinping.
Dr. Mohammad Kashani, associate professor of structural and earthquake engineering at the University of Southampton, spoke with the Guardian to offer his analysis of the disaster.
"The earthquake was magnitude 6.8 with 18.5km depth, which is quite shallow," explained Kashani. "The shallow earthquakes are normally more destructive. The location is at the boundary of the Eurasian and African plates. Almost all earthquakes occur at the boundary of tectonic plates due to their movement."
"It is too early to see the extent of damage," he continued. "However, from what I’ve seen in photos and videos this very similar to the earthquake that occurred in February in Turkey. The area is full of old and historical buildings, which are mainly masonry. The collapsed reinforced concrete structures that I saw in the photos were either old or substandard."
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UN Puts Out 'Truly Damning Report Card' for Climate Action Before Global Summits
"This report is a wake-up call to the injustice of the climate crisis and a pivotal opportunity to correct course," said one expert.
Sep 08, 2023
"The United Nations' polite prose glosses over what is a truly damning report card for global climate efforts. Carbon emissions? Still climbing. Rich countries' finance commitments? Delinquent. Adaptation support? Lagging woefully behind."
That's how Ani Dasgupta, president and CEO of the World Resources Institute, began his response to a "global stocktake" report released Friday by the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) ahead of two global summits.
"This report is a wake-up call to the injustice of the climate crisis and a pivotal opportunity to correct course," Dasgupta continued. "We already knew the world is failing to meet its climate goals, but leaders now have a concrete blueprint underpinned by a mountain of evidence for how to get the job done."
"There are a few bright spots worth celebrating," he noted. "But overall, the report finds there are more gaps than progress—gaps that can only be erased by transformational change across systems like energy, food, land, and transport. The future of our planet depends on whether national leaders use this stark assessment as a catalyst for bold systems transformation."
"This report makes clear that President Biden is squandering precious time every second he fails to take bold action on fossil fuels."
The UNFCCC report comes nearly eight years after countries finalized the Paris climate agreement, which aims to keep global temperature rise this century below 2°C, relative to preindustrial levels, with a more ambitious target of 1.5°C.
"The global stocktake was designed under the Paris agreement to assess our global response to the climate crisis and chart a better way forward," the UNFCCC explained Friday. "The global stocktake is held every five years and is intended to inform the next round of nationally determined contributions to be put forward by 2025."
Data collection began in 2021, ultimately resulting in more than 170,000 pages of written submissions and over 252 hours of meetings and discussions. The new synthesis report summarizes 17 key technical findings from the discussions.
"I urge governments to carefully study the findings of the report and ultimately understand what it means for them and the ambitious action they must take next," said U.N. Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell. "It's the same for businesses, communities, and other key stakeholders. While the catalytic role of the Paris agreement and the multilateral process will remain vital in the coming years, the global stocktake is a critical moment for greater ambition and accelerating action."
As University College London professor of climatology Mark Maslin explained, the report "makes it clear that the Paris agreement was a game-changer" but also countries' greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction pledges are not in line with the 1.5°C target.
"The U.N. estimates that... we need to reduce global GHG emissions by 43% by 2030 and further by 60% by 2035 compared to 2019 levels and reach net-zero [carbon dioxide] emissions by 2050 globally," Maslin summarized. "This is a huge ask given that greenhouse gas emissions were at their highest level ever in 2022."
"All the technology exists to undergo the net-zero transformation but the huge increases in renewables, [electric vehicles], and batteries [have] to be even more rapid to make the huge cuts suggested by the U.N.—estimates are we need everything to happen five times faster," he added.
The UNFCCC publication was released in preparation for the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP28)—scheduled for November and December in Dubai, United Arab Emirates—where the first global stocktake will conclude.
"This global stocktake report provides clear direction on how we can meet the expectations of the Paris agreement by taking decisive action in this critical decade," said COP28 President-Designate Sultan Al Jaber—whose selection for the summit post is controversial because he also heads the UAE's Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. "We must urgently disrupt business as usual and unite like never before to move from ambition to action and from rhetoric to real results."
The report also comes just ahead of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres' Climate Ambition Summit scheduled to begin on September 20 in New York City. In response, activists have planned the March to End Fossil Fuels on September 17.
Organizers of the NYC march are calling on U.S. President Joe Biden to stop federal approvals for new fossil fuel projects and repeal permits for "climate bombs" like the Willow project and the Mountain Valley Pipeline; phase out oil and gas drilling on public lands and waters; declare a climate emergency; and provide a just transition.
Advocacy groups supporting the march issued fresh demands for action on Friday in response to the UNFCCC publication.
"This report makes clear that President Biden is squandering precious time every second he fails to take bold action on fossil fuels," said the Center for Biological Diversity's Jean Su, who previously authored a document detailing how an emergency declaration would empower the administration to tackle the climate crisis. "Every day we're seeing and feeling the harms of fossil-fueled climate change from extreme heat to deadly wildfires and devastating floods."
"As leader of the world's largest oil and gas producer, Biden has more power than anyone to stop expanding the fossil fuels driving this deadly crisis," Su added. "Ahead of the U.N.'s Climate Ambition Summit, thousands of people will be in the streets of New York on September 17 for the March to End Fossil Fuels. This is the perfect opportunity for Biden to declare a climate emergency, use all his executive powers to phase out fossil fuels, and finally secure a legacy as a climate leader."
"We need the biggest players to use their power to avert climate chaos, and to flex their muscle to protect human life rather than protecting corporate polluters."
Greenpeace International policy coordinator Kaisa Kosonen on Friday called out governments across the globe, declaring that "our house is burning down and the people with the power to save us are still sipping coffee pretending it's not happening."
"No government can claim they didn't know how to fix the climate problem," she said. "They've been thrown a lifesaver again and again by scientists, and now we have this report. What the world is waiting for is action; leadership. We need the biggest players to use their power to avert climate chaos, and to flex their muscle to protect human life rather than protecting corporate polluters."
Looking toward COP28, Kosonen argued that "at this year's U.N. climate summit, governments must agree to end the use of oil, gas, and coal in a fast and fair way and make the polluters pay. Leaders can no longer smile and claim they support the Paris agreement and its 1.5°C warming limit, if they fail to give fossil fuels an end date and continue their expansion."
"The solutions are ready—renewables are now the cheapest power source—but we've got to push the fossil fuel industry out of the way," she stressed. "Fossil fuel corporations are holding us hostage, but their time's up."
The UNFCCC report and resulting calls for action follow a series of scientific findings throughout the week that also generated demands for a swift end to fossil fuels, including that Antarctica is warming more quickly than models project, this summer is the hottest on record, and last year greenhouse gas concentrations, global sea level, and ocean heat content all hit record highs.
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