Today's Liberal News

Rep. John Lewis, civil rights hero and the conscience of Congress, has died

The United States lost one of its great living heroes Friday night with the death of Rep. John Lewis. Lewis, 80, had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in December 2019.

Lewis was first elected to the House in 1986, but he first came to national prominence in the 1960s as a civil rights activist. He was a Freedom Rider in 1961, a speaker at the March on Washington in 1963, beaten and arrested repeatedly without ever giving up the fight.

Florida can’t meet residents’ COVID-19 testing needs, but pro sports in Florida have no problem

As COVID-19 continues to tragically break new records of spread throughout the country, our testing capacity is beyond strained. Places like California, early in its response to the growing pandemic, are finding themselves hard-pressed to test enough people fast enough. Meanwhile, insufficient and slow testing and not enough stimulus support from the federal government for the overwhelming majority of Americans has led to new outbreaks.

A San Diego Karen strikes again, demands half of the money raised for barista she harassed

Social media continues to be flooded with stories of individuals who refuse to wear masks amid the novel coronavirus pandemic despite consistent pleas from health officials to do so. Throughout the country, many essential workers are left to deal with violent and rude anti-mask individuals who retaliate when denied services due to safety protocols.

But those being harassed aren’t the only ones sharing their stories on social media.

Susan Collins is up to old tricks, making up new rules to avoid talking Trump and playing the victim

Sen. Susan Collins’ schtick is getting really, really old. All the way back in September 2018, she was throwing her own pity party about all the mean people pledging their loose change to help defeat her in 2020. She’s still at it, trying to make the amazing display of democracy on the part of small dollar donors into something nefarious. It’s a bribe, she says in an extremely convoluted message to would-be donors.

The Atlantic Daily: Is There a Song of the Summer?

Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox.(THE ATLANTIC)“Can one great bop unite the sweltering, socially distanced masses?” our culture writer Spencer Kornhaber asks.

Jamaal Bowman Is Ready to Join the Squad

Eliot Engel first won his seat in Congress in 1988, in a primary that helped end the old corrupt Bronx machine. Today, according to the official call by the Associated Press, he lost his June primary to newcomer Jamaal Bowman, in a race that became a national symbol of the rise of a new wave of progressives.A lot is happening in Engel and Bowman’s sliver of the Bronx and Westchester—and a lot is changing.

How Trump Closed Down the Schools

This article was updated on July 17 at 2:45pm.Few things have captured Donald Trump’s fickle attention for long during the pandemic, but for the past 10 days, the president has been highly focused on one issue. He has insisted on the need for America’s schools to reopen in August with students in classrooms five days a week, hoping that this might revive the economy, and with it his reelection chances in November.

Philadelphia Delays Unhoused Encampment Eviction as CDC Says “Let Them Remain” & Stop COVID Spread

As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says unhoused people living in encampments should be allowed to remain where they are to help stop the spread of COVID-19, we go to Philadelphia, where the mayor has postponed the eviction of an encampment planned for this morning. “The Philadelphia Housing Authority has about 5,000 vacant properties,” notes Sterling Johnson, an organizer with Black and Brown Workers Cooperative, who joins us from the camp.

Sonia Shah: “It’s Time to Tell a New Story About Coronavirus — Our Lives Depend on It”

The United States hit an all-time high of 75,600 new COVID cases Thursday — the largest number recorded in a single day since the pandemic began. Top U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci says the spike in cases resulted from states rushing to reopen their economies. We speak with investigative journalist Sonia Shah about the government’s failed response, the false idea that the virus is a “foreign incursion,” and “vaccine nationalism.

“This Is Trump’s War”: U.S.-Backed Saudi Bombing in Yemen Continues as Coronavirus Spreads

As the coronavirus spreads in Yemen, where the population already devastated by the world’s worst humanitarian crisis faces growing hunger and aid shortages, the Saudi-led, U.S.-backed coalition continues to drop bombs in the country. We speak to Yemeni scholar Shireen Al-Adeimi, who calls the ongoing crisis “Trump’s war.” “We’re seeing death rates that are just astronomical,” Al-Adeimi says.

The Books Briefing: What to Read If You’re Looking for Something to Read

Editor’s note: This week’s newsletter spotlights some of our favorite Books Briefing reading lists from the past few months. We’ll be back with a fresh newsletter next week.
Know other book lovers who might like this guide? Forward them this email.
What We’re Reading(HERITAGE IMAGES / GETTY)
Your socially distanced summer-reading list (May 15, 2020)
“Books to bring on an airplane. Books to enjoy at the beach.

No One Has to Get Their Period Anymore

At the posthumous retrial of Joan of Arc in 1455, two decades after she was burned at the stake as a witch and a heretic, she was declared an innocent martyr. During the trial, a personal valet offered evidence of Joan of Arc’s piety and purity during her 19 years on Earth: “She never suffered from the secret illness of women.” As far as the people closest to her knew, he claimed, she never got her period.