USA News and Discussions

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More on that by The American Prospect:

https://prospect.org/politics/2024-04-1 ... -junk-fee/

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The Supreme Court effectively abolishes the right to mass protest in three US states
https://www.vox.com/scotus/24080080/sup ... ves-matter

The Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will not hear Mckesson v. Doe. The decision not to hear Mckesson leaves in place a lower court decision that effectively eliminated the right to organize a mass protest in the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Under that lower court decision, a protest organizer faces potentially ruinous financial consequences if a single attendee at a mass protest commits an illegal act.

It is possible that this outcome will be temporary. The Court did not embrace the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit’s decision attacking the First Amendment right to protest, but it did not reverse it either. That means that, at least for now, the Fifth Circuit’s decision is the law in much of the American South.

For the past several years, the Fifth Circuit has engaged in a crusade against DeRay Mckesson, a prominent figure within the Black Lives Matter movement who organized a protest near a Baton Rouge police station in 2016.

The facts of the Mckesson case are, unfortunately, quite tragic. Mckesson helped organize the Baton Rouge protest following the fatal police shooting of Alton Sterling. During that protest, an unknown individual threw a rock or similar object at a police officer, the plaintiff in the Mckesson case who is identified only as “Officer John Doe.” Sadly, the officer was struck in the face and, according to one court, suffered “injuries to his teeth, jaw, brain, and head.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/about ... r-AA1ngukK

Snopes and even the ACLU disagreed with that assertion.

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First They Came for My Appliances
by Abby Zimet
April 14, 2024

Introduction:

(Common Dream) Okay all you naysayers whining shambolic House GOPers aren't doing their job just 'cause they're blocking border solutions, ignoring infrastructure, enabling Ukrainian deaths and barely keeping the government afloat: Listen up. Boldly showcasing their astute priorities, they will fight Monday to liberate your dishwashers, dryers, fridges and other home gizmos from a Marxist "avalanche" of new "Libby Boogyman" rules aimed at keeping the planet from vaporizing into air, and c'mon who cares about that?!

Ever-steadfast in upholding their tradition of chasing fictional ills - Mike 'Election Chicanery' Johnson is now vowing to require proof of citizenship to prevent (brown-skinned) non-citizens from voting even though it's already illegal, also "not a thing" - the GOP-led House Rules Committee meets Monday to discuss six bills to prep them for final votes on the House floor.

The six bills are the Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act, the Liberty in Laundry Act, the Affordable Air Conditioning Act, the Clothes Dryer Reliability Act, the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act and the Refrigerator Freedom Act[/i]. Yes. They are real. They're in response to a number of Biden regulations or proposals aimed at addressing climate change, part of a $369 billion Inflation Reduction Act that seeks to lower costs, reduce energy use, cut pollutants and move to more green-energy practices.

Conclusion:

"First they came for my appliances," one intoned. "I was not an appliance, so I said nothing." Another suggested a key addition to the GOP agenda: a "Stop Wasting Our Time on Meaningless Legislation Act." There were also triumphant stories of deliverance born of the GOP's hard and noble work. "In honor of the Refrigerator Freedom Act, I just opened my front door and set my newly liberated Frigidaire free," one reported. "Needless to say, it's running."

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/further/f ... eedom-act

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Students Sue Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders for Silencing Black History

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/stude ... r-AA1nsI3N

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Federal judge finds ‘strong evidence’ prosecutors for California's Alameda County deliberately kept Black and Jewish people off juries

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/fe ... r-AA1ntpGi

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Biden Signs Foreign Aid Bill Providing Crucial Military Assistance to Ukraine
by Michael Williams, Arlette Saenz and Kevin Liptak
April 24, 2024

Introduction:

Washington (CNN) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law an aid package providing crucial military assistance to Ukraine, capping months of negotiations and debate.

The aid package, passed by the Senate late Tuesday evening and worth $95 billion in total, includes nearly $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific. The package also includes a bill that could eventually lead to the banning of TikTok in the United States - giving Chinese parent company ByteDance roughly nine months to sell it or else it will be banned from app stores in the United States.

Wearing a US-Ukrainian flag pin and speaking from the White House after signing the bill on Wednesday, Biden said it was a “good day for America, a good day for Ukraine and a good day for world peace.”

The aid package, Biden said, is “going to make America safer. It’s going to make the world safer. And it continues America’s leadership in the world.”

Read more here: https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/24/politic ... dex.html

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Arizona House Votes to Repeal Abortion Ban
by Jeremy Duda, Jessica Boehm
April 24, 2024

Introduction:

(Axios) After two weeks of a stalemate, the Arizona House of Representatives voted to repeal an 1864 ban on nearly all abortions that had been reinstated by the state Supreme Court.

The big picture: Thanks to a handful of Republicans, both legislative chambers now have the votes to repeal the pre-Roe ban.

• The move, which Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs has supported, would reinstate a 2022 law permitting abortions through 15 weeks of pregnancy to the books.

Driving the news: Republican state Reps. Tim Dunn (R-Yuma) and Justin Wilmeth (R-Phoenix) joined Rep. Matt Gress (R-Phoenix) to give repeal supporters a 32-28 margin in the House on Wednesday.

Reality check: Even if Hobbs signs a repeal bill, the ban still may temporarily take effect this summer.

Read more here: https://www.axios.com/2024/04/24/arizo ... ed-house

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Democrats say they will save Speaker Mike Johnson's job if Republicans try to oust him

Source: AP

By KEVIN FREKING
Updated 10:54 AM CDT, April 30, 2024

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats will vote to save Republican Speaker Mike Johnson’s job should some of his fellow GOP lawmakers seek to remove him from the position, Democratic leaders said Tuesday, avoiding a repeat of when eight Republicans joined with Democrats to oust his predecessor, former Rep. Kevin McCarthy.

Johnson, R-La., has come under heavy criticism from some Republicans for moving forward with aid for Ukraine as part of a $95 billion emergency spending package that passed this month. It would take only a handful of Republicans to remove Johnson from the speakership if the Democratic caucus went along with the effort.

But Democratic leaders took that possibility off the table.

“At this moment, upon completion of our national security work, the time has come to turn the page on this chapter of Pro-Putin Republican obstruction,” said a statement from the top three House Democrats, Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar. “We will vote to table Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Motion to Vacate the Chair. If she invokes the motion, it will not succeed.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/speaker-mike ... fdf76c2d82

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NYPD Officers Descend on Columbia University Campus to Clear Protest
by Phil Helsel
April 30, 2024

Introduction:

(NBC) After the NYPD entered campus tonight, Columbia blamed the actions of protesters for the situation.

“We regret that protesters have chosen to escalate the situation through their actions. After the University learned overnight that Hamilton Hall had been occupied, vandalized, and blockaded, we were left with no choice,” the university said in a statement.

Columbia said it asked the NYPD to intervene.

“We believe that the group that broke into and occupied the building is led by individuals who are not affiliated with the University,” it said.
Police went on campus shortly after 9 p.m., it said.

Read more here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/l ... cna149926

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The NYPD’s “Outside Agitators” Narrative Is an Excuse for Force
by Inae Oh
May 2, 2024

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) The morning after the New York Police Department arrested pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University, the city’s mayor appeared satisfied.

“This is not a department that was dealing with one production at a time,” Mayor Eric Adams said, flanked by top police officials, during a press conference on Wednesday. “You have to be a well-organized professional operation to deal with all of those encounters.”

This was part and parcel for Adams, a former NYPD officer with a habit of calling the city’s law enforcement “my cops” and “my police department.“ But then came the first inklings of what has become Adams’ calling card as he justifies the crackdown on protests.

“When I first started seeing the protest take place in the city, it just did not fit right,” he explained. “I saw similar indicators from the Black Lives Matter march when it was brought to my attention that there were those who came to the city to disrupt our city.” The mayor then claimed that an investigation had confirmed what had been “feared”: New York City had fallen victim to a global phenomenon in which “outside agitators” sought to radicalize young people. (For what purpose, the mayor wouldn’t say.)

Adams continues to commit to such vaguery. When repeatedly pressed for specific numbers by multiple news outlets the mayor stuck to variations of “I don’t think that matters.”

Read more here: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2 ... ic-adams/

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Greene's motion to vacate vote leaves conservatives with no easy options

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) decision to force action on ousting Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has created a dilemma for some rank-and-file Republicans who will now face a tough choice: vote to boot a party leader endorsed by former President Trump, or join forces with Democrats to protect a figure loathed by many conservatives.

Greene’s resolution, which is expected to reach the floor next week, is likely to fail given the promise from Democratic leaders to keep Johnson in power for the sake of chamber stability. But the Georgia firebrand is pushing ahead, arguing the importance of getting every House lawmaker on the record so voters are crystal clear where everyone stands on Johnson’s leadership track record.

“Every member of Congress needs to take that vote,” she said. “I can’t wait to see Democrats go out and support a Republican Speaker and have to go home to their primaries. … And I also can’t wait to see my Republican conference show their cards and show who we are.

“Are they willing to actually fight? Or are they going to just keep going along to get along?”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/greene-motio ... 00784.html

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[firestar464]

More on that by AP News:

https://apnews.com/article/arizona-gove ... bd89c81a5a

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Reproductive Rights Advocates Close in on Abortion Ballot Measures in Missouri and South Dakota
by Julia Lurie
May 4, 2024

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) Reproductive rights organizers in two states with near-total abortion bans, Missouri and South Dakota, submitted roughly double the signatures needed to allow ballot measures that would put abortion before voters.

In South Dakota, organizers have submitted 55,000 signatures in support of the ballot measure granting a limited right to abortion—far more than the 35,000 required. In Missouri, organizers turned in 380,159 signatures, compared to the required 172,000, in support of a measure enshrining the “the right to reproductive freedom.” Missouri’s language is similar to ballot measures that passed in Ohio and Michigan.

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, abortion rights advocates have won in seven out of seven abortion-related ballot measures. Groups in nearly a dozen states are have secured abortion amendments on the ballot this fall or are pushing to do so. Democrats are counting on these ballot measures to buoy their chances, especially in competitive states like Florida and Arizona.

In both Missouri and South Dakota, Republican policymakers are trying to stop the measures from succeeding.

Read more here: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2 ... h-dakota/

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Congressman praises heckling of war protesters, including 1 who made monkey gestures at Black woman

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/co ... i-AA1o7ngB