April, 22 2021, 12:00am EDT
Stand Up America Urges Senate to Pass D.C. Statehood Bill, Celebrates Passage in the House
After the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, Stand Up America Founder and President Sean Eldridge released the following statement:
"All of our citizens should be afforded the same rights, regardless of where they live or the color of their skin. Yet, for centuries, Americans living within the District of Columbia--a majority of whom are Black and Brown--have been denied the rights of representation afforded to their neighbors and have instead been at the mercy of lawmakers from far off states.
WASHINGTON
After the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, Stand Up America Founder and President Sean Eldridge released the following statement:
"All of our citizens should be afforded the same rights, regardless of where they live or the color of their skin. Yet, for centuries, Americans living within the District of Columbia--a majority of whom are Black and Brown--have been denied the rights of representation afforded to their neighbors and have instead been at the mercy of lawmakers from far off states.
"Today, the House of Representatives moved closer to ensuring that those living within the District have autonomy over the laws that govern them and full representation in the halls of Congress. We applaud Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton and the House Democrats who voted for this bill today, and the activists and organizers who made this historic vote possible.
"With the support of the Biden-Harris administration, it's now time for Senate Democrats to step up and make D.C. the 51st state with 51 votes. We must not let the filibuster stand in the way of representation for more than 700,000 Americans."
Stand Up America proudly supports the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, which admits the District as the 51st state, having driven thousands of constituent calls to Congress in support of H.R. 51.
Stand Up America is a progressive advocacy organization with over two million community members across the country. Focused on grassroots advocacy to strengthen our democracy and oppose Trump's corrupt agenda, Stand Up America has driven over 600,000 phone calls to Congress and mobilized tens of thousands of protestors across the country.
LATEST NEWS
Trump Pick to Lead IRS Signals 'Open Season for Tax Cheats'
The nomination of Billy Long, said one lawmaker, indicates "Trump's intention to make the agency less responsive to the American people, while giving a green light to wealthy tax cheats."
Dec 05, 2024
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to run the Internal Revenue Service, former Rep. Billy Long, didn't serve on the House committee tasked with writing tax policy during his six terms in office, and his lack of relevant experience is likely "exactly what Trump was looking for," according to one economic justice advocate.
Progressive lawmakers joined advocates on Wednesday in denouncing Trump's selection of Long, who since leaving office in 2023 has promoted a tax credit that's been riddled with fraud and who spent his time in the House pushing to abolish the very agency he's been chosen to run.
As a Republican congressman from Missouri, Long repeatedly sponsored legislation to dismantle the IRS, which under President Joe Biden has recovered at least $1 billion from wealthy people who previously evaded taxes.
He also co-sponsored legislation to repeal all estate taxes, which are overwhelmingly paid by the wealthiest households, but "said almost nothing on the floor regarding taxes, the IRS, and taxation during his 12 years in Congress," said John Bresnahan of Punchbowl News.
Long's limited experience with tax policy "ought to set off alarm bells," said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who pointed to "vastly improved taxpayer service" under the leadership of IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel, who Biden chose to replace Trump's nominee from his first term, Charles Rettig, after Rettig served his full term.
Werfel has "set up a tremendous direct-file system, and begun badly needed crackdowns on ultra-wealthy tax cheats who rip off law-abiding Americans," said Wyden. "If Trump fires Mr. Werfel, it won't be to improve on his work; it'll be to install somebody Trump can control as he meddles with the IRS."
The appointment is likely to commence an "open season for tax cheats," said Lindsay Owens, executive director of Groundwork Collaborative.
"If he's confirmed, taxpayers can expect longer wait times for customer service, a more complicated process to file taxes, and free rein for the rich and powerful to continue rigging the system at the expense of everyone else."
Since leaving office, Long has promoted the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC), a pandemic-era credit that was intended to incentivize employers to continue paying workers during the economic shutdown when the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States.
He has worked to help businesses claim the credit from the IRS, but fraudulent and improper claims have so permeated the program that the IRS stopped processing new claims temporarily. The U.S. House passed a bill to entirely halt ERTC claims, but it has been stalled in the Senate.
"These ERTC mills that have popped up over the last few years are essentially fraud on an industrial scale, conning small businesses and ripping off American taxpayers to the tune of billions of dollars," said Wyden. "I'm going to have a lot of questions about Mr. Long's role in this business, first and foremost why the American people ought to trust somebody involved with a fraud-ridden industry to run an agency that's tasked with rooting out fraud."
Wyden also pointed out that Long has not been named in a "typical nomination like you'd see after every presidential election." Werfel's term was set to go until November 2027, and the IRS typically operates as a nonpartisan agency.
"Replacing Commissioner Werfel with over three years remaining in his term is a terrible mistake," said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.). "He has done an excellent job rebuilding the IRS, boosting customer service, and enhancing enforcement aimed at wealthy tax evaders. Removing him will clearly signal Trump's intention to make the agency less responsive to the American people, while giving a green light to wealthy tax cheats to evade their fair share of the tax burden."
"Trump's nominee has clearly stated that he wants to abolish the IRS," added Beyer. "The change Trump proposes in IRS leadership would be a gift to tax cheats and a blow to anyone who believes it is important to rein in deficits."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) added that Trump's nomination of Long signals "the weaponization of the tax agency."
"If he's confirmed," she said, "taxpayers can expect longer wait times for customer service, a more complicated process to file taxes, and free rein for the rich and powerful to continue rigging the system at the expense of everyone else."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Bitcoin Hits New High as Crypto-Friendly Atkins Tapped to Lead SEC
"If Atkins is confirmed by the Senate, crypto grifters will surely rejoice at their newfound freedom to swindle, but most investors in the U.S. will be much less safe," wrote one researcher.
Dec 05, 2024
The price of a single Bitcoin topped $100,000 Wednesday—a major milestone for the cryptocurrency—mere hours after President-elect Donald Trump selected crypto advocate Paul Atkins to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Atkins previously served as the SEC commissioner from 2002 to 2008 and then went on to found a financial consulting company, Patomak Global Partners, which included failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX among its clients, according to The Wall Street Journal. Atkins is expected to adopt a warmer approach to crypto.
On a podcast last year, Atkins noted that "if the SEC were more accommodating and would deal straightforwardly with these various [crypto] firms, I think it would be a lot better to have things happen here in the United States rather than outside," according to The Washington Post.
"[Atkins] believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, and that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the world. He also recognizes that digital assets and other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before," wrote Trump on Truth Social when announcing the pick.
Trump on Thursday claimed credit for Bitcoin reaching new heights: "CONGRATULATIONS BITCOINERS!!! $100,000!!! YOU'RE WELCOME!!! Together, we will Make America Great Again!"
Crypto leaders cheered the Atkins news.
"Paul Akins is an excellent choice for the new SEC chair!" wrote Brian Armstrong, the co-founder and CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of the cryptocurrency firm Ripple, called Atkins an "outstanding choice."
Current SEC Chair Gary Gensler has pursued legal action against a number of crypto companies, including FTX, and drawn the ire of the crypto world for maintaining that by and large the crypto industry should be governed by the same SEC rules that oversee stock and bond trading.
Meanwhile, critics of the Atkins pick warned that investors could be less safe if he is confirmed to helm of the SEC.
"Donald Trump's nomination of Paul Atkins to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission is a huge gift to the crypto industry, as evidenced by the immediate jump in Bitcoin's stock price... If Atkins is confirmed by the Senate, crypto grifters will surely rejoice at their newfound freedom to swindle, but most investors in the U.S. will be much less safe," wrote Kenny Stancil, senior researcher at Revolving Door Project, a watchdog group.
Bartlett Naylor, financial policy advocate for Public Citizen, added that "any sentient being—let alone a securities markets expert—should understand that bitcoin is 'thin air,' as Trump himself once put it. That Paul Atkins has made a living promoting such a scam doesn't bode well for his reflexes as a shepherd for investor protection."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Biden Administration Takes 'Morally Bankrupt' Climate Position at ICJ
"This opposition to strong international law on climate justice categorically undermines the Biden administration's climate legacy," said Ashfaq Khalfan of Oxfam America.
Dec 05, 2024
The Biden administration faced backlash from scientists, advocacy groups, and vulnerable Pacific islands on Wednesday for arguing before the United Nations' highest court that the Paris agreement is sufficient and countries should not face additional legal obligations to fight the climate emergency.
The U.S. position, outlined at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by State Department legal adviser Margaret Taylor, was deemed "morally bankrupt" by Oxfam America, which
decried the administration's insistence that "countries do not have clear legal obligations to reduce carbon pollution, especially as it prepares to turn over the executive office to a proven climate denier like President-elect [Donald] Trump."
"This opposition to strong international law on climate justice categorically undermines the Biden administration's climate legacy," Ashfaq Khalfan, Oxfam America's climate justice director, said Wednesday. "The U.S. has today denied any firm obligation to reduce carbon pollution to safer levels, phase out fossil fuel production, or provide funding to lower-income countries to help with renewable energy and protection from climate harms. Governments have failed to do what is necessary to protect humanity from the climate crisis, and it is essential that the ICJ holds them to account by pushing them towards concrete action to ensure climate justice."
Taylor argued during her presentation in The Hague on Wednesday that "the U.N. climate change regime, with the Paris agreement at its core, is the only international legal regime specifically designed by states to address climate change" and that "cooperative efforts through that regime provide the best hope for protecting the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations."
While technically a legally binding international treaty, the Paris accord has failed to arrest the rise of planet-warming carbon emissions, which have surged to an all-time high this year. The agreement—from which the U.S. is expected to withdraw for a second time under Trump—has no enforcement mechanism, and its language leaves ample room for countries to continue burning fossil fuels at levels that scientists say are incompatible with a livable future.
"The U.S. is content with its business-as-usual approach and has taken every possible measure to shirk its historical responsibility, disregard human rights, and reject climate justice."
Delta Merner, lead scientist for the Science Hub for Climate Litigation at the Union of Concerned Scientists, criticized the U.S.—the largest historical polluter—for resisting "calls for climate accountability" at Wednesday's ICJ hearing.
"Instead of taking responsibility for its contributions to the climate crisis, the United States used its 30-minute slot to downplay the role of the courts for global climate action, emphasize nonbinding national commitments under the Paris agreement, and reject the notion of historical responsibility," said Merner. "By framing climate change as a collective action challenge without clear legal obligations for individual states, the United States dismissed the potential for redress or binding accountability measures that advance justice for climate-vulnerable nations."
"In the face of stonewalling from major polluters, we applaud the leadership of Vanuatu and others for advancing this process," Merner added. "These proceedings must continue to center the voices of frontline communities."
The Pacific island of Vanuatu first launched the push for an ICJ advisory opinion on climate in 2021. Less than two years later, the U.N. General Assembly approved a resolution calling on the ICJ to issue an opinion on countries' legal obligations regarding the global fight against climate change.
Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu's special envoy for climate change and environment,
criticized the U.S. presentation at Wednesday's landmark hearing and said treaties such as the Paris agreement can't be "a veil for inaction or a substitute for legal accountability."
"These nations—some of the world's largest greenhouse gas emitters—have pointed to existing treaties and commitments that have regrettably failed to motivate substantial reductions in emissions," said Regenvanu. "There needs to be an accounting for the failure to curb emissions and the climate change impacts and human rights violations that failure has generated."
Vishal Prasad, director of Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change, expressed outrage at what he described as "a disheartening attempt by the U.S. to evade its responsibilities as one of the world's largest polluters."
"The U.S. is content with its business-as-usual approach and has taken every possible measure to shirk its historical responsibility, disregard human rights, and reject climate justice," Prasad added.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular