U.S. adds a strong 379,000 jobs in hopeful sign for economy
The February gain marked a sharp pickup from the 166,000 jobs that were added in January.
Today's Liberal News
“We Do This ‘Til We Free Us”: Mariame Kaba on Abolishing Police, Prisons & Moving Toward Justice
Outrage over police brutality and the mass incarceration of Black and Brown people has generated calls to defund and abolish the police.
New York Congressmember Mondaire Jones: Israel Should Ensure Palestinians Have Access to COVID Vaccine
Israel has failed to make COVID-19 vaccines available to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, despite its responsibility under the Geneva Conventions. Critics in the United States say this “vaccine apartheid” is another example of Israeli human rights abuses going unpunished, even as the country receives billions in U.S. aid each year. Congressmember Mondaire Jones of New York says Israel must ensure that Palestinians are vaccinated.
Rep. Mondaire Jones: Voting Rights Bill H.R. 1 Is of “Foundational Importance” to U.S. Democracy
The House of Representatives has approved sweeping legislation protecting the right to vote with the For the People Act, which has been described as the most sweeping pro-democracy bill in decades. The legislation is aimed at improving voter registration and access to voting, ending partisan and racial gerrymandering, forcing the disclosure of dark money donors, increasing public funding for candidates, and imposing strict ethical and reporting standards on members of Congress and the U.S.
Rev. William Barber to Democrats: Overrule the Senate Parliamentarian & Pass the $15 Minimum Wage
The Senate has voted to open debate on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. The legislation has widespread support from voters, with one new poll showing 77% of Americans support the bill, including nearly 60% of Republicans. But the Senate bill has some key differences from the package approved by the House, including a reduction in the number of people eligible for direct stimulus checks and no provision to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.
Democrats Have Decided to Send Checks to Fewer People for No Actual Good Reason
Raise a glass for comity and moderation.
The Absurd Nike Scandal That Has Sneakerheads Losing Their Minds
A tale of “insider trading,” but sneakers.
Key Senate Democrats Want to Keep Sending Americans Money As Long As the Economy Remains Bad
Congress is figuring out it can’t always count on itself to help Americans in an economic crisis.
Who Put Pantone in Charge of Color?
The company best known for its Color of the Year is a governing body in the world of design.
A complicating factor in combating Covid hot spots: Heat
Heat, environmental problems and the pandemic concentrate in certain neighborhoods. Here’s a new idea for what to do about it.
CDC delays guidelines for vaccinated people
The CDC guidelines were expected to be released Thursday but the CDC was told to hold their publishing.
Senate panel deadlocks on advancing Biden’s pick for health secretary
Still, barring any unexpected Democratic defections, Xavier Becerra is likely to be confirmed as early as next week.
Biden’s bubble risk: A reckoning in markets as the economy recovers
“I mean, Shaq has a SPAC. What could go wrong?” one economist says of the euphoria rippling through Wall Street and raising a new round of worries.
Biden targets smallest businesses with exclusive aid window
Only businesses with fewer than 20 employees will be able to apply for aid through the massive Paycheck Protection Program.
Biden’s economic point man draws praise — and pushback
Allies laud Brian Deese’s leadership on the stimulus negotiations, but he’s rubbed some the wrong way.
Biden aims to isolate China on coal — but it could blow back on the U.S.
The U.S. wants to stop new coal projects, but risks losing poor countries to Beijing’s “Belt and Road” agenda.
‘Clearly not healthy’: Markets are giddy about reopening — and that’s the problem
Investors are pumping up bubbles across markets, with excitement growing about more stimulus and widespread vaccinations.
Harris kicks off Senate debate on COVID-19 relief, Republicans make nuisance of themselves
The Senate voted Thursday afternoon to begin debate on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan with the assistance of Vice President Kamala Harris to make the vote 51-50. Yes, Republicans unanimously opposed even moving forward on providing essential aid to the American people to get out of this pandemic.
Meanwhile, Republican Sen.
Not every Republican is as bone-headed as Greg Abbott, as vaccinations exceed 2 million per day
On Tuesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott decided to toss a big fat distraction on how Republicans turned that state’s energy market into a scheme that generates billions in instant profit from pure human misery. Abbott was just one of several Republican governors who have decided that, now that there’s reasonable leadership in Washington, there’s no longer any need for them to even pretend to be reasonable back at home.
DeSantis is giving vaccines meant for Black communities to wealthy white Floridians
It’s no surprise that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis cares more about the rich than the economically vulnerable. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, DeSantis has not only downplayed the virus, but prioritized the health and safety of those he can profit from.
Citing harm to tribal lands and wildlife, groups call on Biden admin to remove certain border wall
Nearly 70 indigenous rights, wildlife, and civil rights groups are calling on the Biden administration to tear down nearly 60 miles of border fencing erected by the previous administration in Arizona, as well as some fencing along other regions of the border.
Congressional Republicans flip all Trump’s blue-collar union voters the bird
On election night, the same party that added some $2 trillion to the national debt in order to deliver a giant tax break to the rich and corporate-y celebrated the inroads Donald Trump had made with blue-collar voters.
“We are a working class party now. That’s the future,” tweeted Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri.
Ultimately, Trump had won some 40% of union households, according to The New York Times.
Charlotte Bennett Recounts Disturbing Exchanges With Gov. Cuomo In CBS Interview
“The fact is that he was sexually harassing me, and he has not apologized for sexually harassing me,” the former aide to Andrew Cuomo said.
Why a Prominent Group of Catholic Bishops Is Objecting to the Johnson & Johnson Vaccine
What will the impact be?
West Virginia’s GOP Governor Calls Lifting Mask Mandates An Ill-Advised ‘Macho Thing’
“I don’t know really what the big rush to get rid of the mask is, because these masks have saved a lot of lives,” said Jim Justice.
Republicans Who Voted To Overturn Election Say Congress Should Stay Out Of Elections
GOP lawmakers didn’t care about leaving elections to the states when they tried to hand victory to Trump on Jan. 6.
The Pandemic’s Future Hangs in Suspense
COVID-19 cases dropped about 5 percent this week, while testing rose 12 percent as backlogs in reported tests—always a little slower to recover than reported cases—rolled in following disruptive mid-February storms. The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 dropped almost 16 percent week over week, making this the seventh straight week of sharp declines in hospitalizations.
Why Republicans Might Be Open to a Minimum Wage Hike
The issue used to be a nonstarter for the GOP. Here’s what changed.
Senate Advances $1.9 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Bill Despite GOP Opposition
Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson has vowed to delay final passage for hours by making the Senate’s clerk read the entire bill aloud.
Keep Your Locks Nourished Between Cuts With This Popular Hair Mask, Now on Sale
The Brigeo “Don’t Despair, Repair!” Deep Conditioning Mask is now $29, or 20 percent off.