The Democrats in the House have voted in new leadership. Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, who grew up in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and who represents a district that includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens, will replace Nancy Pelosi of California as speaker. A 52-year-old lawyer, Jeffries is known for playing a long game, listening to everyone, focusing on getting laws passed. He will be the first Black party leader in the House or the Senate.
Please remind Mr. Thune that SSA is an insurance contract that we paid into. The GOP borrowed from the Fund rather than raise taxes to cover the costs of Operation Iraq Liberation. It is time for the people to call in that loan!
“For decades, it has been a stereotype that Democrats are in disarray, but after two years in which Democrats have managed with just a small House majority to pass an extraordinary slate of major laws…”
Thank you, Speaker Pelosi. I’m confident her legacy of hard-nosed, productive leadership will be continued with the new team.
And, I’m looking forward to watching as the GOP forms their own circular firing squad, with TFG in the middle.
The reality is that the democratic establishment in New York State, focused on getting rid of progressives, who were elected primary winners. By not supporting progressives, we got quite trounced in NYS.
The fact that Zeldin got so close to winning the governor's race, was a disturbing reflection on both Cuomo's undermining of progressives, as well as the older establishment democrats, who poured money into not so popular. democrats. Case in point; the primary winner in Buffalo, a democrat , India Walton, who was also a socialist, elected against an unpopular bought mayor. She won! Then defeated by the democratic establishment in a write in vote.
A real sad yet longstanding commentary.
We could have taken the house, if we did not have such fool hardy Democrats, like Jay Jacobs, leader of the democratic party in New York State eating their own.
If I had not had HCR to read for the past years who has an amazing ability to put current events in context of our history, I would be totally overwhelmed with fear of the demise of our Democracy. Under Trump We have been living in on the edge of demise. Thank God for the brave Democrats who have worked hard to save our Democracy. We the people who read Heather have been able to direct our energy toward working toward preserving Democracy. I personally have been proud of many Democrats who have worked hard on the Jan 6 committee to inform and educate us on how close we were of losing our Democracy. There are many public servants who deserve our votes and thanks for their dedication to saving this country.
Gerrymandering kept the Democrats from keeping the house. Based on the reading, I did prior to the election House Democrats got best result possible. It is a no brainer that Democrats need to gain control in more seats in State Houses. This Michigander is beyond grateful that the State House and Senate are now “Blue”. Hopefully more “Red” states will follow suit, so Democrats have a level playing field.
It seems like lately the Repubs in general have been tossing word salads. I can only hope that the Dems can keep their forward momentum going. In the meantime, no rest for the weary (nor for the wicked) and so we must continue to call, write, postcard, and stay hopeful over the next two years.
I am thankful for you, Dr. Heather, and for the other writers I follow including Jess Craven, Tim Snyder, Judd Legum, Robert Hubbell, Gabe Fleisher, Dan Rather and Elliot Kirschner, and Tomas Pueyo, who keep us informed, inspired, and mostly sane. I am also thankful for the communities that have sprung up following these writers.
McCarthy:“If my position held out, we’d actually have it done by the private sector a long time ago and we’d have efficiency. We wouldn’t have inflation, we’d have a secure border.” Second guessing, criticizing and lying are more his style than working for the people. Private sector like Twitter, FB, oil companies, corporations that are upside down in profits for CEOs? Private prisons? Dismantling Social Security and Medicare? Tax breaks for corporations. Democrats must continue to inform the public that their policies are for the people. Billboards and megaphones!
How are rail worker’s responding to President Biden’s interference with negotiations between the unions and the major rail carriers?
'The request for Congress to impose contract terms that several unions had rejected rankled rank-and-file members who had rallied behind the president.' The following are excerpts from an article in the New York Tiimes.
- Gabe Christenson, legislative representative for his local union, a longtime freight railroad conductor, worked hard to help elect Joe Biden president in 2020. “I knocked on doors for him for weeks and weeks.” Since President Biden urged Congress to impose a labor agreement that his union had voted down, Mr. Christenson has been besieged by texts from furious co-workers whom he had encouraged to support the president.
- more than 100,000 freight rail workers whose unions have been negotiating a new labor contract since 2020, however, Mr. Biden’s intervention amounted to putting a thumb on the scale in favor of the industry.
- They say the rail carriers have enormous market power to set wages and working conditions, power that is enhanced by a federal law that greatly restricts the workers’ right to strike compared with most private-sector employees. They complain that after waiting patiently through multiple procedural steps, including a presidential emergency board, they had a narrow window to improve their contract through a labor stoppage and that Mr. Biden has effectively closed that window.
A narrower House vote on Wednesday, 221 to 207, authorized seven paid sick days for the workers, addressing a key demand. But it is unclear whether that provision can win Senate approval.
“Members of Congress have an opportunity to fight for their constituents by making sure rail workers get paid sick days,” Mr. O’Brien wrote Tuesday on Twitter. “Any politicians who don’t side with workers need to go on the record that they voted against workers.”
'The same day, a group over 100 labor scholars circulated an open letter to Mr. Biden expressing alarm at his call for Congress to impose the agreement that some unions have voted down, and suggesting that the intervention could affect the labor movement for decades.
“History shows us that the special legal treatment of rail and other transportation strikes offers the federal government — and the executive branch in particular — a rare opportunity to directly shape the outcome of collective bargaining, for good or for ill,” the letter said. It added: “These dramatic interventions can set the tone for entire eras of subsequent history.”
'While some rail workers have weighed in on social media with calls for illegal wildcat strikes should Congress impose the agreement, local union officials said that such strikes are unlikely, and they were not aware of any meaningful effort to organize them.'
'Much more likely, they said, is an accelerated flow of workers out of an industry that, according to federal regulators, has lost nearly 30 percent of its employees over the past six years.
They said that with the freight rail work force already lean, additional losses could compound the supply chain problems that Mr. Biden has sought to defuse.'
'Mr. Kindlon, the electrician in New York, said he had already accepted a job in another industry after more than 17 years of railroad work.'
“I’m telling you now, as soon as Congress decides to jam this contract down the BMWED and BLET and SMART guys’ throats, you will see a mass exodus like no mass exodus from any industry ever,” he said, alluding to some of the unions involved.
“It’s going to be like having a strike without having a strike.”
How will the Senate vote?
Latest wrinkles _ 'The House voted to force rail companies and workers to accept a pending agreement and to add seven days of paid leave, a key demand of the employees. But it met with a rocky reception in the Senate.' (NYTimes) See two gifted articles linked below. (yesterday's and today's.)
What’s so refreshing about reading Heather Cox Richardson is that when the Democrats do something positive, she acknowledges it rightly and plainly instead of looking for the devils-advocate angle of “why dems choices made someone, somewhere angry about something.”
Republican new sources paint every GOP story as an example of glowing integrity. And other left-leaning or neutral outlets always highlight the inevitable imperfections in Dems governing actions.
The “HCR News Network” simply/bravely gives beautifully blue-hued credit where credit is due.
Atleast the Republicans are consistent. They are coming for your Social Security.
They really, really are.
This was a conversation I had over and over while talking to Seniors who are in denial that this is a reality. Elections have consequences. This will not only have a direct impact on their survival , but the sector of housing that bases "rent on income". This will be a domino effect that will include a hand on the quality of programs and activities for Seniors.
I know it is cliché, but the Republicans continue to propose the same unpopular policies and expect a different outcome. Supermajorities of Americans favor: 1. Access to abortion, 2. Better gun regulation, 3. Maintaining Social Security, 4. Same-sex and inter-racial marriage in 50 states. But Republicans are in the minority, and the only way to hold on to power is to gerrymander, suppress voting, and claim fraud baselessly. Since that has not been enough to guarantee a hold on power, they have finally resorted to dispensing with democracy entirely and going all in on fascism.
I live in what has for year been a red district, WA-03, where Jamie Herrera-Beutler was primaried by an America First Trumpster, Joe Kent. Kent defeated her in the primary, but despite his Clark Kent good looks and military experience, he was defeated in the general by a Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a small business owner. I had a yard sign made that said: If you’re on Social Security, thank a Democrat. If you want to keep it, vote for one.
My next yard sign is going to be: RESIST and REPEL Republican FASCISM. We didn’t fight it in WW II to give up now.
Like Churchill or someone like him said, Never give up. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never.
I find HCR to be closer to reality but not anywhere near hard enough on the Dems, to be less awful is not enough. Follow Matt Taibbi and Chris Hedges to read the painful truth. Those who really have the courage to tell the truth and push back are censored or worse jailed like Julian Assange. Just saying I wish HCR would really dig in. I stay here to see what the MSM is saying because sadly that is what I am reading here.
There is a lot to unpack in this. It was more than time to get new leadership for the Dems. That said I don’t know the new leaders to have an opinion. There has been such a duopoly that so many young people are understandably just done with both parties. I like many others who still bother to vote just vote against the most awful choice. We see both parties completely beholden to corporations and the military industrial complex. The MSM just bows down to them and you have to dig deep to find what is really going on and where you tax dollars are spent. I find HCR to be way too much of a cheerleader for Biden and the Democratic Party. While the Dems are certainly much better than the GOP that really does not say much. I am not hopeful.
Democrats in "array". It has a nice ring to it. I believe they will be perceived as the adults in the room for the next two years and I won't be surprised if they end up engineering to set the next Speaker when the gang of misfits are unable to seat Kevin.
Please remind Mr. Thune that SSA is an insurance contract that we paid into. The GOP borrowed from the Fund rather than raise taxes to cover the costs of Operation Iraq Liberation. It is time for the people to call in that loan!
“For decades, it has been a stereotype that Democrats are in disarray, but after two years in which Democrats have managed with just a small House majority to pass an extraordinary slate of major laws…”
Thank you, Speaker Pelosi. I’m confident her legacy of hard-nosed, productive leadership will be continued with the new team.
And, I’m looking forward to watching as the GOP forms their own circular firing squad, with TFG in the middle.
Sadly, we could have had a blue wave.
The reality is that the democratic establishment in New York State, focused on getting rid of progressives, who were elected primary winners. By not supporting progressives, we got quite trounced in NYS.
The fact that Zeldin got so close to winning the governor's race, was a disturbing reflection on both Cuomo's undermining of progressives, as well as the older establishment democrats, who poured money into not so popular. democrats. Case in point; the primary winner in Buffalo, a democrat , India Walton, who was also a socialist, elected against an unpopular bought mayor. She won! Then defeated by the democratic establishment in a write in vote.
A real sad yet longstanding commentary.
We could have taken the house, if we did not have such fool hardy Democrats, like Jay Jacobs, leader of the democratic party in New York State eating their own.
He needs to go.
Hopefully, we will recover from this blunder.
If I had not had HCR to read for the past years who has an amazing ability to put current events in context of our history, I would be totally overwhelmed with fear of the demise of our Democracy. Under Trump We have been living in on the edge of demise. Thank God for the brave Democrats who have worked hard to save our Democracy. We the people who read Heather have been able to direct our energy toward working toward preserving Democracy. I personally have been proud of many Democrats who have worked hard on the Jan 6 committee to inform and educate us on how close we were of losing our Democracy. There are many public servants who deserve our votes and thanks for their dedication to saving this country.
Gerrymandering kept the Democrats from keeping the house. Based on the reading, I did prior to the election House Democrats got best result possible. It is a no brainer that Democrats need to gain control in more seats in State Houses. This Michigander is beyond grateful that the State House and Senate are now “Blue”. Hopefully more “Red” states will follow suit, so Democrats have a level playing field.
Can someone explain how Republicans think tying the debt ceiling increase to cuts in Social Security is a winning strategy? What am I missing?
It seems like lately the Repubs in general have been tossing word salads. I can only hope that the Dems can keep their forward momentum going. In the meantime, no rest for the weary (nor for the wicked) and so we must continue to call, write, postcard, and stay hopeful over the next two years.
I am thankful for you, Dr. Heather, and for the other writers I follow including Jess Craven, Tim Snyder, Judd Legum, Robert Hubbell, Gabe Fleisher, Dan Rather and Elliot Kirschner, and Tomas Pueyo, who keep us informed, inspired, and mostly sane. I am also thankful for the communities that have sprung up following these writers.
McCarthy:“If my position held out, we’d actually have it done by the private sector a long time ago and we’d have efficiency. We wouldn’t have inflation, we’d have a secure border.” Second guessing, criticizing and lying are more his style than working for the people. Private sector like Twitter, FB, oil companies, corporations that are upside down in profits for CEOs? Private prisons? Dismantling Social Security and Medicare? Tax breaks for corporations. Democrats must continue to inform the public that their policies are for the people. Billboards and megaphones!
How are rail worker’s responding to President Biden’s interference with negotiations between the unions and the major rail carriers?
'The request for Congress to impose contract terms that several unions had rejected rankled rank-and-file members who had rallied behind the president.' The following are excerpts from an article in the New York Tiimes.
- Gabe Christenson, legislative representative for his local union, a longtime freight railroad conductor, worked hard to help elect Joe Biden president in 2020. “I knocked on doors for him for weeks and weeks.” Since President Biden urged Congress to impose a labor agreement that his union had voted down, Mr. Christenson has been besieged by texts from furious co-workers whom he had encouraged to support the president.
- more than 100,000 freight rail workers whose unions have been negotiating a new labor contract since 2020, however, Mr. Biden’s intervention amounted to putting a thumb on the scale in favor of the industry.
- They say the rail carriers have enormous market power to set wages and working conditions, power that is enhanced by a federal law that greatly restricts the workers’ right to strike compared with most private-sector employees. They complain that after waiting patiently through multiple procedural steps, including a presidential emergency board, they had a narrow window to improve their contract through a labor stoppage and that Mr. Biden has effectively closed that window.
A narrower House vote on Wednesday, 221 to 207, authorized seven paid sick days for the workers, addressing a key demand. But it is unclear whether that provision can win Senate approval.
“Members of Congress have an opportunity to fight for their constituents by making sure rail workers get paid sick days,” Mr. O’Brien wrote Tuesday on Twitter. “Any politicians who don’t side with workers need to go on the record that they voted against workers.”
'The same day, a group over 100 labor scholars circulated an open letter to Mr. Biden expressing alarm at his call for Congress to impose the agreement that some unions have voted down, and suggesting that the intervention could affect the labor movement for decades.
“History shows us that the special legal treatment of rail and other transportation strikes offers the federal government — and the executive branch in particular — a rare opportunity to directly shape the outcome of collective bargaining, for good or for ill,” the letter said. It added: “These dramatic interventions can set the tone for entire eras of subsequent history.”
'While some rail workers have weighed in on social media with calls for illegal wildcat strikes should Congress impose the agreement, local union officials said that such strikes are unlikely, and they were not aware of any meaningful effort to organize them.'
'Much more likely, they said, is an accelerated flow of workers out of an industry that, according to federal regulators, has lost nearly 30 percent of its employees over the past six years.
They said that with the freight rail work force already lean, additional losses could compound the supply chain problems that Mr. Biden has sought to defuse.'
'Mr. Kindlon, the electrician in New York, said he had already accepted a job in another industry after more than 17 years of railroad work.'
“I’m telling you now, as soon as Congress decides to jam this contract down the BMWED and BLET and SMART guys’ throats, you will see a mass exodus like no mass exodus from any industry ever,” he said, alluding to some of the unions involved.
“It’s going to be like having a strike without having a strike.”
How will the Senate vote?
Latest wrinkles _ 'The House voted to force rail companies and workers to accept a pending agreement and to add seven days of paid leave, a key demand of the employees. But it met with a rocky reception in the Senate.' (NYTimes) See two gifted articles linked below. (yesterday's and today's.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/30/business/freight-rail-labor-union.html?unlocked_article_code=o5_gaphPOmAbaE-PejMILYzezVO8IfPo0dDlgwu4ttYnK4a-QQyvzX4bmQjOUZISB-9vDIyQZuDppQUILvyFleK2GfAmWHJnGak0D5D5DaigTr0HE5QJrEqSwMj2YWFbnDYEpPpZgXhcwbk0VXwd6xnG9Uf6r-
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/30/us/politics/rail-workers-strike-house.html?unlocked_article_code=vWmiu763DuMnTj1JkGosxIABKU4kabvMrdilnSNtBPAi6tJ7M-den7VaB0vdnfUMdOr0Xy13l3xeuVtJMYLrF8Pw6wDstthqv_P-qBp_iskeBN1bWRWoIGFeWFiI2vefhwY33hKxCQx0ReVBfD_CCbq40b83ZsH96jqZJ443cSFQpOGxdVIG2pmFH9GSvmopSPncpvr8eunDFm-gGyvpsnh_YLujAxgiqeTxXFYSe4k-ICtqCLABgps5Q0fCuFQyFxH26SybdUXCbdVD04_8E43qRDxHqhBy5Y_MwH0t8U93vbLGzTCuYRPBs3pW9vH78WFaeB26O_FUlcimR8ekY2TrDhNquYs&smid=share-url
What’s so refreshing about reading Heather Cox Richardson is that when the Democrats do something positive, she acknowledges it rightly and plainly instead of looking for the devils-advocate angle of “why dems choices made someone, somewhere angry about something.”
Republican new sources paint every GOP story as an example of glowing integrity. And other left-leaning or neutral outlets always highlight the inevitable imperfections in Dems governing actions.
The “HCR News Network” simply/bravely gives beautifully blue-hued credit where credit is due.
Thank you Heather.
Atleast the Republicans are consistent. They are coming for your Social Security.
They really, really are.
This was a conversation I had over and over while talking to Seniors who are in denial that this is a reality. Elections have consequences. This will not only have a direct impact on their survival , but the sector of housing that bases "rent on income". This will be a domino effect that will include a hand on the quality of programs and activities for Seniors.
A reduction in Social Security is far reaching.
Be safe. Be well.
I think the only people who want to reduce or eliminate SS, Medicare , etc don't need it.
I know it is cliché, but the Republicans continue to propose the same unpopular policies and expect a different outcome. Supermajorities of Americans favor: 1. Access to abortion, 2. Better gun regulation, 3. Maintaining Social Security, 4. Same-sex and inter-racial marriage in 50 states. But Republicans are in the minority, and the only way to hold on to power is to gerrymander, suppress voting, and claim fraud baselessly. Since that has not been enough to guarantee a hold on power, they have finally resorted to dispensing with democracy entirely and going all in on fascism.
I live in what has for year been a red district, WA-03, where Jamie Herrera-Beutler was primaried by an America First Trumpster, Joe Kent. Kent defeated her in the primary, but despite his Clark Kent good looks and military experience, he was defeated in the general by a Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a small business owner. I had a yard sign made that said: If you’re on Social Security, thank a Democrat. If you want to keep it, vote for one.
My next yard sign is going to be: RESIST and REPEL Republican FASCISM. We didn’t fight it in WW II to give up now.
Like Churchill or someone like him said, Never give up. Never. Never. Never. Never. Never.
I find HCR to be closer to reality but not anywhere near hard enough on the Dems, to be less awful is not enough. Follow Matt Taibbi and Chris Hedges to read the painful truth. Those who really have the courage to tell the truth and push back are censored or worse jailed like Julian Assange. Just saying I wish HCR would really dig in. I stay here to see what the MSM is saying because sadly that is what I am reading here.
There is a lot to unpack in this. It was more than time to get new leadership for the Dems. That said I don’t know the new leaders to have an opinion. There has been such a duopoly that so many young people are understandably just done with both parties. I like many others who still bother to vote just vote against the most awful choice. We see both parties completely beholden to corporations and the military industrial complex. The MSM just bows down to them and you have to dig deep to find what is really going on and where you tax dollars are spent. I find HCR to be way too much of a cheerleader for Biden and the Democratic Party. While the Dems are certainly much better than the GOP that really does not say much. I am not hopeful.
Democrats in "array". It has a nice ring to it. I believe they will be perceived as the adults in the room for the next two years and I won't be surprised if they end up engineering to set the next Speaker when the gang of misfits are unable to seat Kevin.