Wall Street’s wild party in jeopardy as Fed threatens aid cutoff
The central bank plans to begin yanking back assistance to the economy as early as next month, and many Fed officials are open to increasing interest rates next year.
Today's Liberal News
Americans’ fortunes soared during the pandemic. Some lawmakers see lasting lessons.
Key aspects of the economy are doing better than before the pandemic, which supporters say shows how government spending can help.
News Roundup: Criminal contempt, an untrustworthy Supreme Court, and goodbye voting rights
In the news today: The House Rules Committee voted to approve a contempt of Congress referral against Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon, with the full House set to vote on it on Thursday. And ahead of that, Republicans were lining up to defend Bannon. Meanwhile the orange jackass is being investigated for more criming. In news sure to please Chief Justice John Roberts, more than half of all Americans don’t trust the Supreme Court.
Republicans filibuster bill to save democracy. Democrats keep filibuster in place
Sen. Joe Manchin’s big effort to find “10 good people” in the Republican conference in the Senate will fail Wednesday. The Senate will hold a cloture vote on the Freedom to Vote Act, Manchin’s alternative voting rights and elections reforms bill for which he promised Republicans votes, and Republicans will filibuster it.
Republicans Turn Judicial Nominee’s Hearing Into Transphobic Spectacle
GOP senators took turns making offensive and false claims about a Virginia sexual assault case involving someone they called “a male wearing a skirt.
October 20th is International Pronouns Day! Here’s what you need to know
This Wednesday, Oct. 20, many folks around the world are recognizing International Pronouns Day (IPD). Started in 2018, this is a day for people to raise awareness about the importance of using the correct pronouns for people, to share educational resources for people who want to learn more, and to remind folks about the serious dangers people who exist outside of the traditional gender binary face. The end goal is for sharing pronouns to be a common practice.
Report finds Trump used federal COVID-19 food program for political gain, ran it incompetently
Most people would—quite rightly—assume that “fresh produce” and “Donald Trump” have no business being in the same sentence unless there’s some secret Russian kompromat Christopher Steele left out of his dossier. I’d like to say Trump and produce are like oil and water, but they’re more like matter and antimatter. I shudder to think what would happen to his body if he ever came within 100 yards of a kale leaf.
‘Trump of the South’: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro accused of ‘crimes against humanity’
According to a leaked government report seen by CNN on Tuesday, a Brazilian congressional panel is calling for charges of “crimes against humanity” against President Jair Bolsonaro over his mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, alleging that he intentionally allowed the coronavirus to run rampant and wipe out hundreds of thousands in his failed and unscientific attempt to achieve herd immunity.
Jim Jordan Struggles To Answer House Panel’s Questions About Jan. 6 Trump Calls
The Ohio Republican said he did not speak to Trump during the attack. He had previously said he did.
Democrats Come To Grips With Building Back Smaller
They haven’t yet found a way around Kyrsten Sinema or Joe Manchin.
What Does Joe Manchin Do Now?
The Democratic Party’s push to protect future American elections from GOP suppression and subversion is once again largely in the hands of the moderate senator from West Virginia. For the second time this year, Republicans today unanimously blocked voting-rights legislation from coming up for debate in the Senate. Democrats have the ability to pass the legislation on their own, but only if Manchin—among others—will allow them to do so.
The Good Part About ‘Waning’ Immunity
In early March, Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona, celebrated a milestone: hitting the point of full vaccination, two weeks after getting his second Pfizer shot. Since then, he’s been watching the number of coronavirus antibodies in his blood slowly but surely decline.
FDA authorizes Moderna, J&J Covid-19 boosters, allows mix-and-match shots
The announcement clears the way for a major expansion of the country’s booster campaign.
Democrats weigh vouchers for Medicare dental benefits amid funding squeeze
The idea came up during a meeting Tuesday between House progressives and President Joe Biden.
The Hidden Costs of Living Alone
If you were to look under the roofs of American homes at random, it wouldn’t take long to find someone who lives alone. By the Census Bureau’s latest count, there are about 36 million solo dwellers, and together they make up 28 percent of U.S. households.Even though this percentage has been climbing steadily for decades, these people are still living in a society that is tilted against them.
Voting Rights Legislation Filibustered By Republicans For A Third Time
Will Democrats now finally change filibuster rules to protect voting rights?
‘I’m Invincible’: FBI Arrests Capitol Rioter Who Was ‘Not Too Worried’ He’d Be Charged
Landon Mitchell told a Facebook friend he thought the FBI wouldn’t get him because he “was masked up the whole time.
A Worrisome Peek Inside Yale Law’s Diversity Bureaucracy
Updated at 4:50 p.m ET on October 20, 2021. Have you ever wondered what deans of diversity do behind closed doors? Until last week, the public had little visibility into their methods. Then covertly recorded audio emerged of Yaseen Eldik, Yale Law School’s director of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and Ellen Cosgrove, an associate dean, pressuring a student to issue a written apology for emailing out a party invitation that offended some of his classmates.
Novavax expresses fresh confidence in its vaccine
In wake of report on manufacturing difficulties, the Maryland-based drug firm vowed to file for emergency-use authorization by the end of the year.
Meet India Walton: Black Socialist on Democratic Ticket for Buffalo Mayor Snubbed by NY Dem Party
As early voting kicks off Saturday in a nationally watched mayoral race in Buffalo, New York, we speak with India Walton, who shocked the Democratic establishment when she defeated four-term Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown in the Democratic primary. Since then, the self-described socialist has faced stiff opposition from within her party, with many top Democrats in the state, including Governor Kathy Hochul and Senator Chuck Schumer, refusing to endorse her.
“Dire Crisis of Poverty”: NYC Taxi Drivers Launch Hunger Strike to Demand Relief from Medallion Debt
A group of New York City taxi drivers launched a hunger strike Wednesday demanding the city provide debt relief from their taxi medallion loans. Since 9/11, thousands of taxi drivers have accrued massive debt largely due to the city artificially inflating the cost of taxi medallions, the permits required to drive a taxi. Drivers have also denounced the mental health impacts triggered by the financial ruin. At least nine have died by suicide.
10,000 Striking John Deere Workers Demand “Equitable” Pay & Benefits as Company Sees Record Profits
We go to the picket line in Iowa, where thousands of workers are on strike at John Deere after the United Auto Workers failed to reach an agreement with the company to improve wages. Despite reporting record profits in 2021, John Deere forced employees to work overtime and announced significant cuts to raises and benefits. Chris Laursen, 19-year John Deere worker on strike in Ottumwa, Iowa, says profit margins went to shareholders and a 160% salary increase for the CEO.
Striketober: Labor Militancy Grows as U.S. Workers Walk Off the Job & IATSE Members Get Tentative Deal
We begin our coverage of what some are calling “Striketober” with a look at how the union of 60,000 television and film production workers averted a strike just hours before a midnight deadline on Saturday, when it reached a tentative agreement with an association of Hollywood producers representing companies like Walt Disney, Netflix and Amazon.
Walkouts and strikes hit hospitals in pandemic hot spots
There have been at least 30 strikes of health care workers so far this year, according to a tracker from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
Covid-stricken states still struggle months after Biden’s surge
The federal officials President Joe Biden promised were slow to arrive in several states experiencing acute upticks in the Midwest and South.
Fauci tamps down concern about Covid-19 booster review process
The top infectious disease doctor said data gathered in the United States and elsewhere points toward the need for the booster shots.
Appeals court keeps Texas abortion law in place
The new decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals extends a previous order that for now keeps in place the Texas law known as Senate Bill 8.
The political peril that Biden didn’t see coming
The current inflation spike now appears to be on track to persist deep into 2022.
Opinion | What the Supply Chain Crisis Reveals About American Infrastructure
Politicians like to argue in favor of more infrastructure — and more spending on it. But we can use the capacity we already have in much smarter ways.
Wall Street’s wild party in jeopardy as Fed threatens aid cutoff
The central bank plans to begin yanking back assistance to the economy as early as next month, and many Fed officials are open to increasing interest rates next year.