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At the press conference held at the Levittown Community Action Coalition’s YES Community Center, Representatives Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen were joined by community leaders including Michael Dowling, CEO of Northwell Health, Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, President and CEO, Family and Children’s Association, Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Randi Shubin Dresner, President and CEO of Island Harvest, Nicole Zerillo, Director of Strategic Communications of AHRC, Larry Lamendola, Co-Chair of Levittown Community Action Coalition, Dr. Shetal Shah, Past President of American Academy of Pediatrics NY Chapter 2, and Wendy Darwell, President and CEO of Suburban Hospital Alliance of New York State. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

By Karen Rubin, editor@news-photos-features.com, news-photos-features.com

Leaders of Long Island’s health care, social service organizations and environmental groups warned of the damaging impacts to lives “of neighbors, family, community” as a result of the funding cuts in the Republican budget bill (known as Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill”) that passed the House in the middle of the night by a single vote. The bill, while slashing Medicaid, SNAP, clean energy projects and raising costs, delivers the needless tax cuts to the wealthiest, and will explode the national debt by $3.3 trillion.

As the Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee reported, the “GOP Tax Scam” cuts nearly $1 trillion from the health care system – effectively chipping away if not repealing entirely the Affordable Care Act – eliminating health coverage for at least 13.7 million Americans including 1.5 million New Yorkers.

The largest cut to hospitals and healthcare providers in history, will raise costs for consumers, shift costs to states and cut payments to providers, and make it harder for people to get and keep affordable health coverage.. People who no longer have access to care early and in clinics, will be forced to go to emergency rooms when they are sicker, at much higher cost. Since New York and other states guarantee access to health care, that results in higher taxes and higher premiums on private insurance – so even if you thought that these historic cuts to Medicaid would not impact you, they will.

The bill cuts a historic $700 billion in Medicaid; $267 billion in SNAP benefits; triggers $490 billion in Medicare cuts; and would result in 10 million Americans losing health insurance, all to deliver an average tax break for the top 0.1 percent of $225,000, paid for by taking away the services from millions of the most vulnerable people who will suffer from the loss in services the most, while still resulting in exploding the national debt by $3.8 trillion.

The proposed healthcare cuts in the House-passed reconciliation package represent the largest cut to hospitals and healthcare providers in history. The bill eliminates health coverage for at least 13.7 million Americans, including 1.5 million New Yorkers. It raises costs for consumers, shifts costs to states and cuts payments to providers, and makes it harder for people to get and keep affordable health coverage.

Nearly 7 million New Yorkers benefit from Medicaid. New York State estimates these changes will cost New York $13.4B per year. NYS currently spends $35.5B per year in state dollars on Medicaid.

Hospital losses in NYS will exceed $1.3B annually due to an increase in uncompensated care and reduced reimbursements. According to the Fiscal Policy Institute, Long Island will lose almost 30,000 jobs as a result.

Congressmembers Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen, Democrats of Nassau County, brought together community leaders at the YES Community Counseling Center in Levittown, Long Island, to address the impact of cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other essential safety net programs.

“I have serious concerns about the reconciliation and budget plan for several reasons,” said Rep. Suozzi. “Most notably, the package includes callous cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and other vital programs that support hospitals, nursing homes, and children’s care centers. These cuts will significantly undermine the delivery of healthcare services, putting access and quality of care at risk for everyone.”

“Additionally, the reconciliation package expands tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans—those who need them the least,” Suozzi continued. “While implementing these deep and harmful cuts, the budget plan also adds significantly to the national deficit.”

“I’m all for making people’s lives better with the SALT deduction, but we don’t need to cut taxes for wealthiest while taking away health insurance and food assistance from people who need it most,” Suozzi said.

People making more than $1 million per year would have an average tax cut of almost $90,000. The top 5% would receive almost half of the total tax cuts

“If New York has to pick up the bill, our taxes will go up in one of most highly taxed places, because we [in New York] take care of our poor, our elderly,” said Congressmember Laura Gillen. “What kind of country do we want to be? One that cares about the vulnerable or only cares about those who pay to play?” © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Rep. Gillen said, “Being factual, not fear mongering, there are real life impacts these cuts will have on neighbors, friends, our own wallets. When Medicaid cuts go through, it will increase premiums on private insurance. Cuts to SNAP, to Island Harvest, will have devastating impact. When health care costs go up, parents won’t eat to have money for child’s medication.

“Be honest: all this is cost shifting scheme to make it look like they are making cuts to be fiscally responsible, but they are increasing deficit, while shifting the burden to New York State to pick up bill for what federal government will no longer be spending in New York to feed hungry. If New York has to pick up the bill, our taxes will go up in one of most highly taxed places, because we [in New York] take care of our poor, our elderly.

“What kind of country do we want to be? One that cares about the vulnerable or only cares about those who pay to play?

”There is no greater champion for eliminating waste fraud abuse [than me], but this is about putting up roadblock to those who need assistance to get ahead.” Gillen said.

“It’s about what we believe in – health, environment. This is the opposite,” said Michael Dowling, CEO of Northwell Health. “ We should be going forward, not backward – help people more, not taking away for which people fought so many years to get, and assume it doesn’t matter – it’s about a philosophy of government, about caring, it’s what you believe in. Up here, we believe America is better than this. We have got to make sure this is curtailed and can be reversed as the bill goes into the Senate.” © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

This budget bill, Northwell Health CEO Michael Dowling declared, “is undermining our commitment to public health and health overall – not just hospitals and ambulatory clinics, but everything. It is a curtailment of protecting people against pollution, against commitment to dealing with gun violence, undermining major commitment to research and science across the board – 50% reduction in funding for National Institutes of Health – [engendering] the idea that science is bad, that science doesn’t work. We’re all healthier because of commitment to science of last 50 years. What is happening is undermining of trust in government, trust in organizations.

“We also see an assault on international partnerships and alliances – eliminating the alliance with the World Health Organization which provides us across the board information on what happening around world healthwise, alerting us to what might happen here.

“It is a devaluation of past successes we’ve all had. Taken all together, it sends the message we don’t care much about health, wellbeing, people’s livelihoods, especially those not at top echelon, that we can’t trust anything unless we tell you what we want you to trust,” Dowling declared.

Turning to the specifics of the budget bill, Dowling noted “the implications are larger than you think.” It will reduce revenue by $370 million; cut Medicaid by $200 million; curtailing eligibility for Medicaid will render 1.5 million people in New York ineligible for Medicaid. The bill also cuts millions from Northwell’s research. (Northwell is the largest employer in New York State.)

“It’s about what we believe in – health, environment. This is the opposite. We should be going forward, not backward – help people more, not taking away for which people fought so many years to get, and assume it doesn’t matter – it’s about a philosophy of government, about caring, it’s what you believe in. Up here, we believe America is better than this. We have got to make sure this is curtailed and can be reversed as the bill goes into the Senate,” Dowling said.

Wendy Darwell, President and CEO of Suburban Hospital Alliance of New York State, noted, “The numbers here for health care are staggering – $1 trillion in health care cuts in all, means $13.5 billion in cuts to New York State; 1.5 million will lose insurance coverage; $150 million cut a year to Nassau and Suffolk hospitals. It is not possible for New York State to absorb $13.5 billion hit without cutting benefits, eligibility, providers.

“The numbers are hard to relate to. You may think the cuts may hit somebody else, but they hit everybody. People who need care will continue regardless of insurance or not, so will come to the ER without insurance, get care in the most expensive way, probably when they are much sicker. Instead of spending a little money on coverage, we will spend a lot on emergencies, and most will get charity care. That destabilizes the healthcare infrastructure – health systems will have to respond. It will be hard to retain the level of service, the kind of access as now.

“If don’t think this applies to you, you will likely face longer wait times at the ER, less access to service in community, it will be harder to get appointments to see doctor. It cuts across the health care system.”

Most people do not realize how expansive the state’s health insurance coverage options are now because of the funding system, but could include the adult child who aged off insurance at 26 (thanks Obamacare!); a parent in nursing home. In absence of a better option, Medicaid is long term care insurance for New Yorkers.

Cuts will have impact on commercial insurance, because costs will have to be offset – if you have private insurance, you won’t be immune either. From a hospital perspective: the median operating margin in New York State 0%, so any cuts put that margin into negative.Cuts this staggering can’t be absorbed and will fundamentally destabilize the state’s healthcare system.”

Congressman Suozzi noted,”I’’m in a relatively wealthy district, yet 29% of children in my district [40% nationally] rely on Medicaid for health insurance; two out of three senior citizens in nursing homes in America are covered by Medicaid, one out of 10 of vets in America are covered by Medicaid. Think of the children, the elderly, the disabled that will be impacted by this.”

Dr. Shetal Shah, Past President of American Academy of Pediatrics NY Chapter 2 (Long Island) said, the House bill jeopardizes health of 37 million children across country at risk.

“Medicaid is foundational to children’s health in New York State – 49% of all newborns are covered by Medicaid; 44% depend upon Medicaid for life saving asthma medication…Medicaid is for all of us -not just for people more socially vulnerable.” Even if you get insurance through your employer there are annual caps on coverage. “if you are unlucky to have a newborn with congenital heart lesion, you will surpass the limits in a matter of weeks; few could afford the tens of thousands a day to care.” Medicaid can be the difference between selling a home to pay for medical debt. “It is a safety net for all of us – sad fact is most don’t think about it until we need it.”

Also, hospitals rely on each other to provide high level care across Long Island and state – children’s hospitals across Long Island are shared resources, specialized resources. Medicaid helps keep them open, but drastic cuts are a threat that hospitals will close. Then we all lose community resources – pediatric ER , specialized burn and rehabilitation, pediatric dialysis and intensive care centers.

“Make no mistake: these cuts will cause all of us to pay more; will detach children from primary care; simple problems that could be addressed in clinic become bigger problems in ER; and private insurance will raise premiums to offset costs.”

Mental health services are also jeopardized, at a time when the state and Long Island are still struggling under a mental health crisis, with overdoses and suicides.

Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, President and CEO, Family and Children’s Association, said his agency serves 36,000 children facing drug addiction, mental health crises, and suicidal ideation.

“It’s no secret this country, this state, and Long Island struggled under mental health crisis since covid – number of overdoses – over time – more than 1 in 4 adults have demonstrated symptoms of anxiety and depression; one in six kids contemplated suicide. The single largest payer of children’s mental healthcare is Medicaid

“Things are starting to get better in attempted suicides, suicides, involuntary placements, school avoidance. It’s undeniable – one of the ways we’ve made any progress has been through Medicaid programs that support mental health, that support facilities to support kids considering taking own life. We could take a victory lap in drop in opioid overdoses – decrease in fatalities is cause to celebrate but not for too long – 30,000 didn’t die. But 80,000 Americans did die – nothing to celebrate.”

“Now is not the time to rip the rug from out from under families, hospitals, communities, folks who spent 10 years looking for hope in midst of crisis – finally have glimmer of hope only for Washington to take away. Everyday average folks should understand that this could happen to any one’s family – make sure care and treatment available, speak up now.”

(Reminder: Republicans are constantly blaming the gun violence epidemic on mental health, rather than the unconscionable easy access to weapons of war, but do nothing to provide mental health services. Instead, as Suozzi pointed out, the budget bill repeals a $200 fee and requirement to register “unusual or dangerous firearm accessories like silencers that dates from 1934, and that brought $145 million in revenue on 710,000 silencers sold in the USA in 2024. “They gut the Affordable Care Act, but make it easier to buy silencer,” Suozzi said.]

The Republican “Big Beautiful Bill” cuts funding for Narcan that has saved thousands of people who would have died from overdoses, and for drug treatment. And Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is sitting on $100 million in federal money to address opioid addiction, noted Larry Lamendola, Co-Chair of Levittown Community Action Coalition.

The House bill would also impact more than 7000 who depend on disability services – housing, employment services, transportation, day services, and direct support from meals to medication. In New York, medicaid funds 95% of services overseen by office of disability services to organizations like AHRC, said Nicole Zerillo, Director of Strategic Communications of AHRC.

Medicaid is a shared federal and state program. When the federal share shrinks, the state has to choose whether to reduce services, put people on wait list. More staff leave, smaller providers close and people with developmental disabilities lose the supports they need to live safely.

New York spends $850 million, “but continued investment relies on a sustainable federal match. We can’t afford to backslide. Forcing people to recertify Medicaid eligibility twice year won’t improve accuracy or root out fraud, it will just limit coverage,” she said.

“The Republican Budget bill “undoes 75 years of progress to help move from institutions to inclusion [note: that is the DEI that Trump has declared “illegal.”]

“The bill risks cutting critical supports – and pushing people back to margin: protect Medicaid, right to live in community and protect the future spent generations building.”

Randi Shubin Dresner, President and CEO of Island Harvest, noted that 2.8 million New Yorkers – 14% of the population – depend on SNAP dollars. It’s not just about giving people who are vulnerable money so they can buy food. That money is spent in local supermarkets, delis, bodegas, with an $11.5 billion impact on local businesses in New York State.

The cuts in SNAP will take 9.5 billion means off the table every year, across the country. Every meal supports a person. 9.5 billion meals are at risk for our neighbors, relatives most in need.

Cuts have already impacted Island Harvest – $1.7 million in cuts has taken a million meals off the table.

“Many Long Islanders don’t qualify for SNAP benefits because the cost of living is so high on Long Island. So why in one of the richest communities, richest zipcodes, is Island Harvest helping over 200,000 people each year? Because it is one ecosystem- so if there are cuts in others – housing, mental health, Medicaid – it always means people have to make decisions about where to cut in family budget. The easiest is food budget – we eat 3 meals a day, countless parents are giving up 1 or 2 meals in order to fed children, pay med gills and transportation to doctor. If there are more cuts , they will cut more meals at home. Young mothers have to water down formula for their infant to make it through the day.”

Besides the direct impacts on health care, Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” slashes funding for clean energy and climate action, in order to force people back to relying on fossil fuels that impact health and contribute to pollution, global warming, climate change and climate disasters.

“This big ugly bill takes us back to 1960s energy policy,” declared Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment. “Today, we are implementing 21st century energy policy for the 21st century, tomorrow, we will be taken back to the 1960s. This bill derails the clean energy sector, one of fastest growing job ;sectors in America.”

Since Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, over 2000 new industry, manufacturing companies have been created in the U.S.; $289 billion in private sector investment; 130,000 jobs in clean energy. This bill completely eliminates the tax credit for solar, for residential and commercial. Low income and working class Americans are using the tax credits, not to save the planet but because of affordability and stability to home energy gills.

It eliminates all tax credits for electric vehicles – workign class and mid-income residents were using to add affordability to their transportation, so they aren’t at the mercy of unpredictable and expensive gas prices.

It does away with all tax credits for energy efficiency – appliances, HVAC systems, changing windows that made homes warmer in winter, cooler in summer, and helped stretch dollars and save energy.

While removing incentives for clean energy, the bill promotes “Drill, baby, drill,” – going back to oil and natural gas that will increase air pollution – asthma, heart attacks, respiratory illness, premature deaths, water contamination, and increase and accelerate the impacts of climate change – which Long Island cares about. Overall, taking us back in energy policy is bad for health, It makes no sense, unless you are invested in the oil industry..

Suozzi and Gillen noted that House Democrats attempted to amend the budget bill – offering 500 different amendments over the marathon sessions in committees and on the floor – all of which were shot down by Republicans, who even shot down raising taxes on those earning $100 million a year.

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Democracy, Democratic Party, Democrats, Elections, News & Photo Features

VP Kamala Harris Accepts Democratic Nomination for POTUS Outlining ‘A New Way Forward,’ An Opportunity Agenda ‘For the People’ & Defense of Freedom, Democracy

August 23, 2024 krubin

In a stirring, pitch-perfect speech accepting the Democratic Party’s nomination for President, Vice President Kamala Harris prosecuted the case for her election, listing her credentials, outlining her “Opportunity Agenda”, her plans to bring the nation forward, and building to a powerful crescendo in declaring her defense of national security and America’s role as leader of the Free World defending freedom and democracy not only for every American, but for freedom-seeking people around the world.

Along the way, she listed why Donald Trump and the Republicans, with their chaos and Project 2025 blueprint to strip Americans of freedom, and Trump’s denigration of the nation and US military, his promise of retribution and weaponizing Justice and the military, and his kowtowing to the despots, tyrants and autocrats he hopes to emulate, was wholy unqualified to ever occupy the Oval Office ever again.

“It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done, guided by optimism and faith: to fight for this country we love, to fight for the ideals we cherish, and to uphold the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on Earth — the privilege and pride of being an American,” Harris declared.

Here is a highlighted transcript of her historic speech: – Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention after delivering her speech accepting the Democratic nomination for president. She would be the first Black South Asian woman U.S. president © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com via MSNBC.

      THE VICE PRESIDENT: Good evening! (Laughs.) (Applause.)

     AUDIENCE: Kamala! Kamala! Kamala!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: California. (Laughs.) (Applause.)

Good evening, everyone. Good evening. (Laughs.) (Applause.) Good evening. (Laughs.) (Applause.)

Oh, my goodness. (Applause.)

Good evening, everyone. Good evening. Go- — (laughs). (Applause.) Good evening. Thank you. (Applause.)

Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Kamala! Kamala! Kamala!

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Good evening. (Applause.)

Thank you. Thank you. Thank — thank you. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you, everyone. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.)

     AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you all.

     AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. (Applause.)

Okay, we’ve got to get to some business. We’ve got to get to some business.

     Okay. Thank you all. (Applause.) Okay. (Laughs.) Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.) Thank you, thank you. Please. Thank you. (Applause.)

     Please. Thank you so very much. Thank you, everyone. Thank you, everyone. Thank you. (Applause.)

     Okay, let’s get to business. Let’s get to business. All right. (Laughs.) (Applause.)

So, let me start by thanking my most incredible husband, Doug — (applause) — for being an incredible partner to me, an incredible father to Cole and Ella. And happy anniversary, Dougie. (Laughs.) (Applause.) I love you so very much.

To our president, Joe Biden — (applause) — when I think about the path that we have traveled together, Joe, I am filled with gratitude. Your record is extraordinary, as history will show, and your character is inspiring. And Doug and I love you and Jill and are forever thankful to you both. (Applause.)

And to Coach Tim Walz — (applause) — you are going to be an incredible vice president.   (Applause.)

And to the delegates and everyone who has put your faith in our campaign, your support is humbling.

So, America, the path that led me here in recent weeks was no doubt unexpected, but I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys.

So, my mother, our mother, Shyamala Harris, had one of her own. And I miss her every day and especially right now. And I know she’s looking down smiling. (Applause.) I know that.

So, my mother was 19 when she crossed the world alone, traveling from India to California with an unshakable dream to be the scientist who would cure breast cancer. (Applause.)

When she finished school, she was supposed to return home to a traditional arranged marriage, but as fate would have it, she met my father, Donald Harris, a student from Jamaica. (Applause.) They — they fell in love and got married, and that act of self-determination made my sister Maya and me. (Applause.)

Growing up, we moved a lot. I will always remember that big Mayflower truck packed with all our belongings, ready to go to Illinois; to Wisconsin — (applause); and wherever our parents’ jobs took us.

My early memories of our parents together are very joyful ones: a home filled with laughter and music — Aretha, Coltrane, and Miles. At the park, my mother would say, “Stay close.” But my father would say, as he smiled, “Run, Kamala, run. Don’t be afraid. Don’t let anything stop you.” (Applause.) From my earliest years, he taught me to be fearless.

But the harmony between my parents did not last. When I was in elementary school, they split up, and it was mostly my mother who raised us.

Before she could finally afford to buy a home, she rented a small apartment in the East Bay. In the bay — (applause) — in the Bay, you either live in the Hills or the Flatlands. We lived in the Flats, a beautiful working-class neighborhood of firefighters, nurses, and construction workers — (applause) — all who tended their lawns with pride.

My mother, she worked long hours. And like many working parents, she leaned on a trusted circle to help raise us: Mrs. Shelton, who ran the daycare below us and became a second mother; Uncle Sherman; Aunt Mary; Uncle Freddy; Auntie Kris. None of them family by blood and all of them family by love. (Applause.)

Family who taught us how to make gumbo, how to play chess — and sometimes even let us win. Family who loved us, believed in us, and told us we could be anything and do anything. (Applause.)

They instilled in us the values they personified: community, faith, and the importance of treating others as you would want to be treated — with kindness, respect, and compassion. (Applause.)

My mother was a brilliant, five-foot-tall brown woman with an accent. (Applause.) And as the eldest child — as the eldest child, I saw how the world would sometimes treat her. But my mother never lost her cool. She was tough, courageous, a trailblazer in the fight for women’s health. And she taught Maya and me a lesson that Michelle mentioned the other night. She taught us to never complain about injustice, but do something about it. Do something about it. (Applause.) That was my mother.

And she taught us — and she always — she also taught us — and she also taught us “and never do anything half-assed.” (Applause.) And that is a direct quote — (laughs) — a direct quote.

I grew up immersed in the ideals of the Civil Rights Movement. My parents had met at a civil rights gathering. And they made sure that we learned about civil rights leaders, including the lawyers, like Thurgood Marshall and C- — Constance Baker Motley — those who battled in the courtroom to make real the promise of America.

So, at a young age, I decided I wanted to do that work. I wanted to be a lawyer. And when it came time to choose the type of law I would pursue, I reflected on a pivotal moment in my life.

You see, when I was in high school, I started to notice something about my best friend, Wanda. She was sad at school, and there were times she didn’t want to go home.

So, one day, I asked if everything was all right, and she confided in me that she was being sexually abused by her stepfather. And I immediately told her she had to come stay with us, and she did. (Applause.)

This is one of the reasons I became a prosecutor — to protect people like Wanda — because I believe everyone has a right to safety, to dignity, and to justice. (Applause.)

As a prosecutor, when I had a case, I charged it not in the name of the victim but in the name of the people for a simple reason: In our system of justice, a harm against any one of us is a harm against all of us. (Applause.)

And I would often explain this to console survivors of crime, to remind them no one should be made to fight alone. We are all in this together. (Applause.)

And every day in the courtroom, I stood proudly before a judge and I said five words: “Kamala Harris, for the people.” (Applause.)

And to be clear — and to be clear, my entire career, I’ve only had one client: the people. (Applause.)

And so, on behalf of the people; on behalf of every American, regardless of party, race, gender, or the language your grandmother speaks; on behalf of my mother and everyone who has ever set out on their own unlikely journey; on behalf of Americans like the people I grew up with — people who work hard, chase their dreams, and look out for one another; on behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on Earth, I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America. (Applause.)

     And with this election — and — (laughs) — and with this election, our nation — our nation, with this election, has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past; a chance to chart a new way forward — (applause) — not — not as members of any one party or faction but as Americans. (Applause.)

     And let me say, I know there are people of various political views watching tonight, and I want you to know I promise to be a president for all Americans. (Applause.) You can always trust me to put country above party and self; to hold sacred America’s fundamental principles, from the rule of law to free and fair elections to the peaceful transfer of power. (Applause.)

     I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations. A president who leads and listens; who is realistic, practical, and has common sense; and always fights for the American people. (Applause.)

     From the courthouse to the White House, that has been my life’s work. (Applause.)

     As a young courtroom prosecutor in Oakland, California — (applause) — I stood up for women and children against predators who abused them.

     As attorney general of California, I took on the big banks — (applause) — delivered $20 billion for middle-class families who faced foreclosure and helped pass a homeowner bill of rights, one of the first of its kind in the nation. (Applause.)

     I stood up for veterans and students being scammed by big for-profit colleges — (applause) — for workers who were being cheated out of their wages, the wages they were due — (applause) — for seniors facing elder abuse.

     I fought against the cartels who traffic in guns and drugs and human beings — (applause) — who threaten the security of our border and the safety of our communities.

     And I will tell you, these fights were not easy and neither were the elections that put me in those offices.

     We were underestimated at practically every turn, but we never gave up, because the future is always worth fighting for. (Applause.) And that’s the fight we are in right now: a fight for America’s future. (Applause.)

Fellow Americans, this election is not only the most important of our lives, it is one of the most important in the life of our nation. (Applause.)

*Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention delivers her speech accepting the Democratic nomination for president.* “It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done, guided by optimism and faith: to fight for this country we love, to fight for the ideals we cherish, and to uphold the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on Earth — the privilege and pride of being an American,” Harris declared. *© Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com via MSNBC.*

     In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man. (Laughter.) But the consequences — but the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious. (Applause.)

     Consider — consider not only the chaos and calamity when he was in office but also the gravity of what has happened since he lost the last election.
     Donald Trump tried to throw away your votes. When he failed, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol, where they assaulted law enforcement officers.

     When politicians in his own party begged him to call off the mob and send help, he did the opposite. He fanned the flames.

     And now, for an entirely different set of crimes, he was found guilty of fraud by a jury of everyday Americans — (applause) — and separately — and separately found liable for committing sexual abuse.

     And consider — consider what he intends to do if we give him power again. Consider his explicit intent to set free violent extremists who assaulted those law enforcement officers at the Capitol; his explicit intent to jail journalists, political opponents, and anyone he sees as the enemy; his explicit intent to deploy our active-duty military against our own citizens.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Consider — consider the power he will have, especially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled that he would be immune from criminal prosecution.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: And how he would use the immense powers of the presidency of the United States not to improve your life, not to strengthen our national security, but to serve the only client he has ever had: himself. (Applause.)

     And we know — and we know what a second Trump term would look like. It’s all laid out in Project 2025, written by his closest advisers. And its sum total is to pull our country back to the past. But, America —

     AUDIENCE: We are not going back!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: — we are not going back. (Applause.)
     We are not going back. We are not going back.

     AUDIENCE: We’re not going back! We’re not going back! We’re not going back!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: We are not going back to when Donald Trump tried to cut Social Security and Medicare.

     We are not going back to when he tried to get rid of the Affordable Care Act, when insurance companies could deny people with preexisting conditions.

     We are not going to let him eliminate the Department of Education that funds our public schools. (Applause.)

     We are not going to let him end programs like Head Start that provide preschool and childcare for our children. (Applause.)

     America, we are not going back.

     AUDIENCE: We’re not going back! We’re not going back! We’re not going back!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: And we are charting — and we are charting a new way forward — (applause) — forward to a future with a strong and growing middle class, because we know a strong middle class has always been critical to America’s success. And building that middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency. (Applause.)

     And I’ll tell you, this is personal for me. The middle class is where I come from. My mother kept a strict budget. We lived within our means, yet we wanted for little. And she expected us to make the most of the opportunities that were available to us and to be grateful for them, because, as she taught us, opportunity is not available to everyone.

     That’s why we will create what I call an opportunity economy — an opportunity economy where everyone has the chance to compete and a chance to succeed — (applause) — whether you live in a rural area, small town, or big city.

     And as president, I will bring together labor and workers — (applause) — and small-business owners and entrepreneurs and American companies to create jobs, to grow our economy, and to lower the cost of everyday needs like health care and housing and groceries.

     We will provide access to capital for small-business owners and entrepreneurs and founders. (Applause.) And we will end America’s housing shortage — (applause) — and protect Social Security and Medicare. (Applause.)

     Now compare that to Donald Trump, because I think everyone here knows he doesn’t actually fight for the middle class. Not — he doesn’t actually fight for the middle class. Instead, he fights for himself and his billionaire friends. And he will give them another round of tax breaks that will add —

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: — up to $5 trillion to the national debt.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —
     THE VICE PRESIDENT: And all the while, he intends to enact what in effect is a national sales tax — call it a “Trump tax” — that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year.

     AUDIENCE: Booo –
     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, instead of a Trump tax hike, we will pass a middle-class tax cut that will benefit more than 100 million Americans. (Applause.)

     Friends, I believe America cannot truly be prosperous unless Americans are fully able to make their own decisions about their own lives, especially on matters of heart and home. (Applause.) But tonight, in America, too many women are not able to make those decisions.

     And let’s be clear about how we got here. Donald Trump handpicked members of the United States Supreme Court to take away reproductive freedom.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: And now he brags about it. In his words, quote, “I did it, and I’m proud to have done it.” End quote.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, I’ll tell you, over the past two years, I’ve traveled across our country, and women have told me their stories. Husbands and fathers have shared theirs.

     Stories of women miscarrying in a parking lot, developing sepsis, losing the ability to ever again have children, all because doctors are afraid they may go to jail for caring for their patients. Couples just trying to grow their family, cut off in the middle of IVF treatments. Children who have survived sexual assault potentially being forced to carry a pregnancy to term.

     This is what’s happening in our country because of Donald Trump. And understand, he is not done. As a part of his agenda, he and his allies would limit access to birth control, ban medication abortion, and enact a nationwide abortion ban, with or without Congress.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     And get this. Get this. He plans to create a national anti-abortion coordinator and force states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Simply put, they are out of their minds. (Applause.)

And one must ask — one must ask: Why exactly is it that they don’t trust women? Well, we trust women. We trust women. (Applause.)

     And when Congress passes a bill to restore reproductive freedom, as president of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law. (Applause.)

In this election, many other fundamental freedoms are at stake: the freedom to live safe from gun violence in our schools, communities, and places of worship; the freedom to love who you love openly and with pride — (applause); the freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water and live free from the pollution that fuels the climate crisis — (applause); and the freedom that unlocks all the others, the freedom to vote. (Applause.)

     With this election, we finally have the opportunity to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the Freedom to Vote Act. (Applause.)

     And let me be clear. And let me be clear. After decades in law enforcement, I know the importance of safety and security, especially at our border.

     Last year, Joe and I brought together Democrats and conservative Republicans to write the strongest border bill in decades. The Border Patrol endorsed it. But Donald Trump believes a border deal would hurt his campaign, so he ordered his allies in Congress to kill the deal.

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, I refuse to play politics with our security, and here is my pledge to you. As president, I will bring back the bipartisan border security bill that he killed, and I will sign it into law. (Applause.)

     I know — I know we can live up to our proud heritage as a nation of immigrants and reform our broken immigration system. (Applause.)

     We can create an earned pathway to citizenship and secure our border. (Applause.)

And, America, we must also be steadfast in advancing our security and values abroad.

     As vice president, I have confronted threats to our security, negotiated with foreign leaders, strengthened our alliances, and engaged with our brave troops overseas. (Applause.)

     As commander in chief, I will ensure America always has the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world. (Applause.) And I will fulfill our sacred obligation to care for our troops and their families, and I will always honor and never disparage their service and their sacrifice. (Applause.)

     AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: I will make sure that we lead the world into the future on space and artificial intelligence; that America, not China, wins the competition for the 21st century; and that we strengthen, not abdicate, our global leadership.

     Trump, on the other hand, threatened to abandon NATO. He encouraged Putin to invade our allies. Said Russia could, quote, “do whatever the hell they want.”

     AUDIENCE: Booo —

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: Five days before Russia attacked Ukraine, I met with President Zelenskyy to warn him about Russia’s plan to invade. I helped mobilize a global response — over 50 countries — to defend against Putin’s aggression. (Applause.) And as president, I will stand strong with Ukraine and our NATO Allies. (Applause.)

     With respect to the war in Gaza, President Biden and I are working around the clock, because now is the time to get a hostage deal and a ceasefire deal done. (Applause.)

     And let me be clear. And let me be clear. I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself — (applause) — and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself, because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7 — (applause) — including unspeakable sexual violence and the massacre of young people at a music festival.

     At the same time, what has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating. So many innocent lives lost. (Applause.) Desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety, over and over again. The scale of suffering is heartbreaking.

     President Biden and I are working to end this war, such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination. (Applause.)

     And know this: I will never hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to defend our forces and our interests against Iran and Iran-backed terrorists. I will not cozy up to tyrants and dictators like Kim Jong Un, who are rooting for Trump — who are rooting for Trump. (Applause.)

     Because, you know, they know — they know he is easy to manipulate with flattery and favors. They know Trump won’t hold autocrats accountable because he wants to be an autocrat himself. (Applause.)

     And as president, I will never waver in defense of America’s security and ideals, because in the enduring struggle between democracy and tyranny, I know where I stand and I know where the United States belongs. (Applause.)

     AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

     THE VICE PRESIDENT: So, fellow Americans — fellow Americans, I — I love our country with all my heart. (Applause.)

     Everywhere I go — everywhere I go, in everyone I meet, I see a nation that is ready to move forward, ready for the next step in the incredible journey that is America.

     I see an America where we hold fast to the fearless belief that built our nation and inspired the world — that here, in this country, anything is possible; that nothing is out of reach. An America where we care for one another, look out for one another, and recognize that we have so much more in common than what separates us. (Applause.) That none of us — none of us has to fail for all of us to succeed. (Applause.) And that in unity, there is strength.

     You know, our opponents in this race are out there every day denigrating America, talking about how terrible everything is. Well, my mother had another lesson she used to teach: Never let anyone tell you who you are; you show them who you are. (Applause.)

     America, let us show each other and the world who we are and what we stand for: freedom, opportunity, compassion, dignity, fairness, and endless possibilities. (Applause.)

     We are the heirs to the greatest democracy in the history of the world. And on behalf of our children and our grandchildren and all those who sacrificed so dearly for our freedom and liberty, we must be worthy of this moment.

     It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done, guided by optimism and faith: to fight for this country we love, to fight for the ideals we cherish, and to uphold the awesome responsibility that comes with the greatest privilege on Earth — the privilege and pride of being an American. (Applause.)

     So, let’s get out there, let’s fight for it. Let’s get out there, let’s vote for it. And together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told. (Applause.)

     Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America. Thank you all. (Applause.)

Election 2024

Democrats Announce Themes, Ways to View Democratic National Convention, Aug. 19-22

August 18, 2024 krubin

Vice President Kamala Harris, here in New York City speaking to the largest union of hospitality workers in the country, will accept the Democrats’ nomination for President on August 22, when the evening will be themed, “For Our Future.” The DNC outlined the themes for the four nights of the convention and the 16 different ways Americans can view, more than ever. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

CHICAGO – Today, Democrats announced the themes that will guide programming through the four nights of the convention and the 16 different platforms Americans can use to watch the convention. The themes are: “For the People, For Our Future.” The convention will further introduce Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz to the nation and lay out their bold vision for America, including how they will fight for people, our freedoms, and our future.

Since the outset of convention planning, Democrats have been building the stage for our nominees to tell their story to America. Bringing back beloved elements of in-person conventions while building on the success of 2020’s innovative programming, the convention will tap into the growing energy and coalition behind the Harris-Walz ticket to reach more Americans wherever they are.

“Our convention is an opportunity to bring the story of our party to the American people — not just the story of what we’ve achieved under the Biden-Harris administration, but how the Harris-Walz ticket is planning to build on that historic record for a new way forward into the future,” said Convention Chair Minyon Moore. “The story here is simple and it’s one that will resonate with Americans across the country: Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are fighting for the American people and America’s future — Donald Trump is only fighting for himself.”

The convention will take place over four nights from Monday, August 19 – Thursday, August 22, 2024. Convention programming will air live from the United Center in Chicago between 6:15-11 PM Eastern/5:15-10 PM Central on Monday, and 7-11 PM Eastern/6-10 PM Central for all other days. Over the course of those four nights, programming centered around the following thematics will bring the story of the Democratic party and our nominees to the American people.

Monday, August 19: For the People – While Donald Trump puts himself first, Democrats are fighting for the American people. President Biden has exemplified this through his leadership and legacy as a historic president who put the American people’s interest above his own. The accomplishments and results President Biden delivered for people, with Vice President Harris by his side, will be on full display during the convention, as will Kamala Harris’s commitment to fighting on behalf of everyday Americans. At its core, the Harris-Walz ticket is a ticket for the people.

Tuesday, August 20: A Bold Vision for America’s Future – This race isn’t just a choice between two candidates. It’s a choice between two very different visions of America. While Donald Trump believes our best days are behind us, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz know the best days lie ahead. Standing in stark contrast to the Trump-Vance Project 2025 agenda designed to take us backwards, the Harris-Walz ticket presents a brighter vision where everyone will have a chance not just to get by, but to get ahead.

Wednesday, August 21: A Fight for Our Freedoms – Vice President Harris has spent her entire career fighting for Americans’ freedoms. In Governor Tim Walz, Vice President Harris chose as her running mate a champion for America’s working families and a staunch defender of those same fundamental freedoms. Donald Trump spent his four years in office fighting to strip our rights away, and he’s once again running on an extreme agenda to go even farther in turning back the clock on all the freedoms we hold dear.

Thursday, August 22: For Our Future – America can’t afford to put Donald Trump back in the White House — because a second Trump term would be even more dangerous and more extreme than the first one. But the choice we face in November isn’t just about us versus Donald Trump. This election is a fight for the future. Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will lead America into a brighter, more hopeful era.

16 Ways to Watch the Democratic National Convention

The Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) announced that it will stream the 2024 Democratic National Convention on over a dozen platforms – more than ever before – as part of its efforts to reach Americans everywhere they are. For the first time in convention history, the convention will host vertical streams across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. These cutting edge vertical streaming platforms will allow Americans to tune into the convention on their mobile devices and see the convention alongside the millions of Americans who will be watching from home.

With an unprecedented number of ways to tune in, this year’s convention will engage voters in new, innovative ways, meeting viewers wherever they are and however they choose to watch.

Primetime convention programming will air live from the United Center in Chicago from 6:30-11 p.m. Eastern/5:30-10 p.m. Central on Monday and 7-11 p.m. Eastern/6-10 p.m. Central on Tuesday-Thursday.

“The convention team set out with an ambitious goal of reaching more Americans than ever before, and today’s announcement is yet another milestone in our mission to broadcast Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz’s story to all Americans,” said DNCC Executive Director Alex Hornbrook. “With more and more Americans consuming their news in new and innovative ways, Democrats stand ready to meet them where they are – and to bring our vision for a brighter future to households all across the country.”

To ensure the Democratic Convention is the most accessible in history, the DNCC will offer a range of accessible viewing options. The program will be available with English and Spanish language audio, along with corresponding captions in both languages, opening up the convention to a broader range of audiences. Additionally, the DNCC will provide American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation and audio description services to streaming partners, ensuring that all attendees can experience the convention fully and inclusively.

The official live stream of the 2024 Democratic National Convention will be available at DemConvention.com. On the website, visitors will also be able to find the complete convention schedule and resources for viewers, delegates, and the media, as well as further plans and details.

In addition to the DemConvention.com livestream and traditional broadcasts, the DNCC is working with streaming partners to broadcast and house convention content on a range of platforms, to bring the full broadcast live and on-demand to Americans all across the country.

The full list of platforms is as follows:

Computer + Tablet + Mobile Device

DemConvention.com/watch
- YouTube.com/demconvention
- x.com/demconvention
- tiktok.com/@demconvention
- instagram.com/demconvention
- Facebook.com/demconvention
- Twitch.tv/demconvention
- Amazon Prime Video

TV Device Apps (search for “Democratic National Convention” or “2024 DNC”)

AppleTV
- RokuTV
- FireTV

TV Providers

Comcast Xfinity X1
- Comcast Xfinity Flex
- DIRECTV via Satellite
- DIRECTV satellite-free and DIRECTV STREAM
U-verse TV

Visit www.DemConvention.com for more information

Biden Administration, Health Care, President Joe Biden

FACT SHEET: By The Numbers: Millions of Americans Would Lose Health Care Coverage, Benefits, and Protections Under Congressional Republicans’ Plans

November 1, 2022 krubin

This fact sheet on the impact on health care coverage, benefits and protections under the Congressional Republicans’ plans was provided by the White House:

While President Biden has secured a cap on insulin costs at $35/month, a cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs to $2000, enabled Medicare for the first time to negotiate drug prices, and lowered the cost of health care premiums, Congressional Republicans have promised to strip Medicare of the right to negotiate drug prices and remove the $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket pharmacy expenses and would put Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security on the chopping block every five years. © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

President Biden’s top priority is to lower costs for the American people. He was proud to sign the Inflation Reduction Act into law, taking on Big Pharma to allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug costs for the first time, capping seniors’ drug costs at the pharmacy and the cost of insulin, and lowering health insurance premiums for people who get coverage through the Affordable Care Act. President Biden and Congressional Democrats are committed to protecting and strengthening Social Security and Medicare.

Congressional Republicans have a very different vision. They have promised to strip Medicare of the right to negotiate drug prices and remove the $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket pharmacy expenses. Florida’s Republican Senator and Chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee Rick Scott has championed a plan to put Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security on the chopping block every five years. Further, Congressional Republicans have repeatedly pledged to hold the American economy hostage by refusing to raise the debt limit unless they can cut Social Security and Medicare benefits that tens of millions of Americans have already paid into.

Here’s what Congressional Republicans’ plan would mean:

Part I: Putting Bedrock Programs like Social Security and Medicare on the Chopping Block and Threatening the Global Economy Unless Those Programs Are Cut

All Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security beneficiaries would see their benefits threatened under Sen. Rick Scott’s plan to put those programs on the chopping block every five years. Sen. Ron Johnson’s vision of putting them up for a vote every year would make that even worse.

Congressional Republican leaders have also repeatedly said they will use the debt limit as leverage to cut these bedrock programs. Congressional Republicans have supported Medicare and Social Security cuts including:

Gradually increasing the Medicare eligibility age to 67 and the Social Security eligibility age to 70. (Republican Study Committee FY 2023 Budget)
Transforming Medicare benefits into a voucher where seniors would get a fixed amount of money to purchase a private health plan (Better Way Plan) or offering beneficiaries the option to transition to a premium support system (Republican Study Committee FY 2023 Budget) – which could lead to hundreds or thousands of dollars in additional out of pocket costs for seniors throughout the country.

Part II: Repealing the Prescription Drug and Health Care Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act

President Biden has worked for decades to let Medicare negotiate drug prices, and that is finally happening thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act. This will save billions of dollars for both Medicare beneficiaries, who will see reduced premiums and out-of-pocket costs, and the federal government. Kaiser Family Foundation estimates suggest that some 5 to 7 million beneficiaries each year use the types of high-cost drugs that could be subject to negotiation and will directly face higher cost sharing if these provisions are repealed.

The Inflation Reduction Act also requires prescription drug companies to pay rebates if they increase drug prices faster than inflation. According to an analysis by the Department of Health and Human Services, the cost of 1,200 prescription drugs rose faster than inflation in the last year alone – some prescription drugs increasing by $1000 in just one year. If Congressional Republicans repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, drug companies will be able to continue raising prices without paying a rebate, rather than putting that money back into Americans’ pockets.

Before the Inflation Reduction Act, Medicare beneficiaries with conditions like cancer, multiple sclerosis, and lung disease could face thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket prescription drug costs per year. Thanks to President Biden and Congressional Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act, those costs will be capped at $2,000 per year, saving over 1 million beneficiaries an average of over $1,300 per year. If Congressional Republicans get their way and repeal the law, over 1.4 million Medicare beneficiaries will pay more each year – thousands of dollars more in some cases – for drugs at the pharmacy.

Drug manufacturers have raised insulin prices so rapidly over the last few decades that some Medicare beneficiaries struggle to afford this life-saving drug that costs less than $10 a vial to manufacture. Today, Medicare beneficiaries are enrolling in plans that must cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at no more than $35 per month per prescription, a protection they will lose if the law is repealed.

The Inflation Reduction Act saves 13 million Americans an average of about $800 per year on their health care premiums, by continuing the improvements to Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits enacted in the American Rescue Plan. By making health care more affordable, these improvements have expanded coverage to millions of people, helping bring the uninsured rate to an all-time low. Starting today, during Open Enrollment season, Americans can choose health insurance plans that lock in the Inflation Reduction Act’s cost savings for 2023. But Congressional Republicans would repeal this assistance, drive premiums higher, and jeopardize the progress the Biden Administration has made in driving the uninsured rate to a historic low. Older Americans would see especially large premium spikes; in most states, annual premiums for a 60-year old making $60,000 would more than double to over $10,000.

Biden Administration, Democrats, Elections, News & Photo Features

Democrats Deserve to Boast Over Historic Progress in Biden’s First 2 Years

October 20, 2022 krubin

US Senator Chuck Schumer with NY Governor Kathy Hochul and NYC Mayor Eric Adams at the 2022 Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown. Senator Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader, is touting historic progress since Democrats took control of Congress and the White House © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Washington, D.C. – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) released the following statement on the historic achievements made by Senate Democrats since President Biden took office:

“There are two words that I believe perfectly summarize the Senate under Democratic leadership: productive and bipartisan. To even do small things in the Senate is tough. To pass major pieces of bipartisan legislation in the longest evenly divided Senate in history is a testament to Democrats’ persistence and hard work to deliver for the American people,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said.

“On top of all the major accomplishments last year, in 2022 alone, we passed a significant postal reform bill over a decade in the making. We passed a bold and robust government funding package which included the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. We passed critical emergency aid for the people of Ukraine. We passed the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching bill, after a century of waiting. We confirmed the first Black woman to the Supreme Court. We passed the first gun safety legislation in 30 years. We passed an historic investment in America’s future with the CHIPS and Science Act. We passed legislation to help our veterans suffering from the effects of toxic burn pits. And we passed the Inflation Reduction Act which will lower costs for prescription drugs, fight climate change and cut down on inflation and the deficit.”

Lowering Costs, Creating Jobs, And Taking Historic Action to Fight Climate Change. The Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act, historic legislation that will lower drug and energy costs, create jobs, reduce the deficit, and take the most significant action ever to fight climate change.

Delivering Critically Needed Historic Legislation To Rebuild Our Crumbling Infrastructure. The Bipartisan Infrastructure law is “the biggest public-works bill since former President Eisenhower created the interstate highway system in 1956.” The infrastructure law includes the largest-ever investment in clean drinking water, the largest-ever investment in public transit, the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak, and the largest investment in clean energy transmission and EV infrastructure in U.S. history. Across the country, Senate Democrats have held event after event to spread the word about the direct impact these investments will have on their communities. And the Senate passed the Water Resources Development Act of 2022.

Providing Critical Support For American Families. Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, more than 160 million Americans received economic impact payments. The American Rescue Plan provided tens of billions of dollars to support vaccination and testing in response to the COVID pandemic. The 2022 funding law includes historic investments in our communities.

Supercharging American Innovation and Laying the Groundwork for a New Century of American Leadership. President Biden signed the Chips and Science Act, critical legislation to boost American competitiveness, ease supply chains, invest in scientific research, incentivize semiconductor manufacturing, and create jobs. President Biden signed bipartisan ocean shipping legislation to ease supply chains and drive down costs of shipped goods.

Righting Wrongs For Our Veterans and Their Families. The Senate passed and President Biden signed historic legislation to help veterans exposed to burn pits access the care they need for injuries sustained serving their country.

Enacting The First Major Gun Safety Law in Decades. President Biden signed the most significant gun safety legislation in 30 years, including incentives for red flag laws, closing the “boyfriend loophole,” creating new federal straw purchasing and trafficking criminal offenses, and funding a historic expansion of mental health services. And the Senate confirmed the first permanent Director of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives since 2015.

Supporting and Modernizing the Postal Service. The Senate passed bipartisan legislation to invest in the Post Office and improve delivery.

Protecting Americans Against Hunger. President Biden signed the FORMULA Act and the Access to Baby Formula Act to expand the availability of baby formula. And President Biden signed the Keep Kids Fed Act to extend funding for healthy meals for children over the summer.

Making Historic Steps to Restore the Judiciary. Senate Democrats confirmed the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Thanks to Senate Democrats, President Biden has had 75 District and Circuit Court judicial nominees confirmed. And, according to FiveThirtyEight, “Biden’s judges are breaking records on diversity.”

Supporting The People of Ukraine Against Putin’s Illegal War And Holding Russia Accountable. Senate Democrats passed and President Biden signed legislation to provide more than $10 billion in support for the people of Ukraine, followed by an additional $40 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine,suspend Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with Russia, ban the importation of Russian energy exports, and the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act. And the Senate approved NATO membership for Finland and Sweden.

Ending Forced Arbitration for Survivors of Sexual Assault. President Biden signed a bipartisan bill that ends forced arbitration in workplace sexual assault and harassment cases, allowing survivors to file lawsuits in court against perpetrators.

Fighting Back Against Hate, Crime and Oppression. President Biden signed into law legislation to make lynching a federal hate crime. The COVID-19 Hate Crimes law will allow us to better confront anti-Asian hate crimes. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, passed unanimously by the Senate, will ban the sale of goods made by Uyghur slave labor and take a stand against the genocide of the Uyghur people. President Biden signed bipartisan legislation to provide support to the victims of crimes. And President Biden signed legislation to commemorate Juneteenth, celebrating the end of slavery in the United States. The Senate passed legislation to streamline research of marijuana. The 2022 Omnibus funding bill also included a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act.

Undoing the Trump Administration’s Worst Rules and Making Progress in the Fight Against Climate Change. President Joe Biden signed three separate laws to repeal Trump-era rules,“blocking payday lenders from avoiding caps on interest rates, restricting climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas drilling and ending rules on how the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission settles claims.”

Confirming History-Making Nominees. According to the Brookings Institution, the Biden administration made history with “the most diverse set of confirmed appointees.”This includes the first Native American Cabinet Secretary (Sec. Haaland), the first woman to be Secretary of the Treasury (Sec. Yellen), the first Black Secretary of Defense (Sec. Austin), and many more.

Biden Signs Historic Inflation Reduction Act: ‘It’s about tomorrow. It’s about delivering progress and prosperity to American families’

August 16, 2022 krubin

Here is an edited, highlighted transcript of President Joe Biden’s remarks as he signed the Inflation Reduction Act, with historic investments in climate action, long-fought improvements in health care and prescription drug affordability, tax reform and deficit reduction, and in the immortal words of Biden as Obama’s VP, a “BFD.” –Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

*President Joe Biden signs the historic, transformative Inflation Reduction Act, saying “It’s about tomorrow. It’s about delivering progress and prosperity to American families.” The act makes* historic investments in climate action, long-fought improvements in health care and prescription drug affordability, tax reform and deficit reduction, and in the immortal words of Biden as Obama’s VP, a “BFD.” (via C-Span)

I’m about to sign the Inflation Reduction Act into law, one of the most significant laws in our history. Let me say from the start: With this law, the American people won and the special interests lost. The American people won and the special interests lost.

For a while, people doubted whether any of that was going to happen. But we are in a season of substance. This administration began amid a dark time in America — as Jim said, “a once-in-a-century pandemic” — devastating joblessness, clear and present threats to democracy and the rule of law, doubts about America’s future itself.

And yet, we’ve not wavered. We’ve not flinched. And we’ve not given in. Instead, we’re delivering results for the American people. We didn’t tear down; we built up. We didn’t look back; we looked forward.

And today — today offers further proof that the soul of America is vibrant, the future of America is bright, and the promise of America is real and just beginning. (Applause.)

Look, the bill I’m about to sign is not just about today, it’s about tomorrow. It’s about delivering progress and prosperity to American families.

It’s about showing the American and the American people that democracy still works in America — notwithstanding all the — all the talk of its demise — not just for the privileged few, but for all of us.

You know, I swore an oath of office to you and to God to faithfully execute the duties of this sacred office.

To me, the critical duty — the critical duty of the presidency is to defend what is best about America. And that’s not hyperbole. Defend what’s best about America. To pursue justice, to ensure fairness, and to deliver results that create possibilities — possibilities that all of us — all of us can live a life of consequence and prosperity in a nation that’s safe and secure. That’s the job.

Fulfilling that pledge to you guides me every single hour of every single day in this job.

You know, presidents should be judged not only by our words, but by our deeds; not by our rhetoric, but by our actions; not by our promise, but by reality.

And today is part of an extraordinary story that’s being written by this administration and our brave allies in the Congress.

This law — this law that I’m about to sign finally delivers on a promise that Washington has made for decades to the American people.

I got here as a 29-year-old kid. We were promising to make sure that Medicare would have the power to negotiate lower drug prices back then — back then — prescription drug prices.

But guess what? We’re giving Medicare the power to negotiate those prices now, on some drugs.

This means seniors are going to pay less for their prescription drugs while we’re changing circumstances for people on Medicare by putting a cap — a cap of a maximum of $2,000 a year on their prescription drug costs, no matter what the reason for those prescriptions are.

That means if you’re on Medicare, you’ll never have to pay more than $2,000 a year no matter how many prescriptions you have, whether it’s for cancer or any other disease. No more than $2,000 a year.

And you all know it because a lot of you come from families that need this. This is a Godsend. This is a Godsend to many families and so, so long overdue.

The Inflation Reduction Act locks in place lower healthcare premiums for millions of families who get their coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Last year, a family of four saved on average $2,400 through the American Rescue Plan that I signed into law that Congress voted in place.

In the years ahead, thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, 13 million people are going to continue — continue to save an average of $800 a year on health insurance.

The Inflation Reduction Act invests $369 billion to take the most aggressive action ever — ever, ever, ever — in confronting the climate crisis and strengthening our economic — our energy security.

It’s going to offer working families thousands of dollars in savings by providing them rebates to buy new and efficient appliances, weatherize their homes, get tax credit for purchasing heat pumps and rooftop solar, electric stoves, ovens, dryers.

It gives consumers a tax credit to buy electric vehicles or fuel cell vehicles, new or used. And it gives them a credit — a tax credit of up to $7,500 if those vehicles were made in America.

American auto companies, along with American labor, are committing their treasure and their talent — billions of dollars in investment — to make electric vehicles and battery and electric charging stations all across America, made in America. All of it made in America.

This new law also provides tax credits that’s going to create tens of thousands of good-paying jobs and clean energy manufacturing jobs, solar factories in the Midwest and the South, wind farms across the plains and off our shores, clean hydrogen projects and more — all across America, every part of America.

This bill is the biggest step forward on climate ever — ever — and it’s going to allow us to boldly take additional steps toward meeting all of my climate goals — the ones we set out when we ran.

It includes ensuring that we create clean energy opportunities in frontline and fence-line communities that have been smothered — smothered by the legacy of pollution, and fight environmental injustice that’s been going on for so long.

And here’s another win for the American people: In addition to cutting the deficit by $350 billion last year, in my first year in office, and cutting it $1.7 trillion this year, this fiscal year, we’re going to cut the deficit — I point out — by another $300 billion with the Inflation Reduction Act over the next decade.

We’re cutting deficit to fight inflation by having the wealthy and big corporations finally begin to pay part of their fair share.

Big corporations will now pay a minimum 15 percent tax instead of 55 of them got away with paying zero dollars in federal income tax on $40 billion in profit.

And I’m keeping my campaign commitment: No one — let me emphasize — no one earning less than $400,000 a year will pay a penny more in federal taxes. (Applause.)

Folks, the Inflation Reduction Act does so many things that, for so many years, so many of us have fought to make happen.

And let’s be clear: In this historic moment, Democrats sided with the American people, and every single Republican in the Congress sided with the special interests in this vote — every single one.

In fact, the big drug companies spent nearly $100 million to defeat this bill. A hundred million dollars.

And remember: Every single Republican in Congress voted against this bill.

Every single Republican in Congress voted against lowering prescription drug prices, against lowering healthcare costs, against a fairer tax system.

Every single Republican — every single one — voted against tackling the climate crisis, against lowering our energy costs, against creating good-paying jobs.

My fellow Americans, that’s the choice we face: We can protect the already-powerful or show the courage to build a future where everybody has an even shot.

That’s the America I believe in. (Applause.) That’s what I believe in.

And today — and today, we’ve come a step closer to making that America real.

Today, too often we confuse noise with substance. Too often we confuse setbacks with defeat. Too often we hand the biggest microphone to the critics and the cynics who delight in declaring failure while those committed to making real progress do the hard work of governing.

Making progress in this country as big and complicated as ours clearly is not easy. It’s never been easy.

But with unwavering conviction, commitment, and patience, progress does come…

And when it does, like today, people’s lives are made better and the future becomes brighter, and a nation can be transformed.

That’s what’s happening now. From the American Rescue Plan that helped create nearly 10 million new jobs, to a once-in-a-generation infrastructure law that will rebuild America’s roads, bridges, ports; deliver clean water, high-speed Internet to every American; to the first meaningful gun safety law in 30 years — and if I have anything to do with it, we’re still going to have an assault weapons ban, but that’s another story. And to get significant veterans’ healthcare law in decades, for the first time; to a groundbreaking CHIPS and Science Law that’s going to ensure that technologies and jobs of the future are made here in America — in America.

(Applause.)

And all this progress is part of our vision and plan and determined effort to get the job done for the American people, so they can look their child in the eye and say, “Honey, it’s going to be okay. Everything is going to be okay.”

Everything is going to make sure that democracy delivers for your generation. Because I think that’s at stake.

And, now, I know there are those here today who hold a dark and despairing view of this country. I’m not one of them.

I believe in the promise of America. I believe in the future of this country. I believe in the very soul of this nation. And most of all, I believe in you, the American people.

I believe to my core there isn’t a single thing this country cannot do when we put our mind to it. We just have to remember who we are. We are the United States of America.

There is nothing nothing beyond our capacity. That’s why so many foreign companies decided to invest their — make chips in America. Billions of dollars. We’re the best. We have to believe in ourselves again.

And now I’m going to take action that I’ve been looking forward to doing for 18 months. (Laughter and applause.) I’m going to sign the Inflation Reduction Law. (Applause.)

Okay. Here you go. (The bill is signed.)

LEADER SCHUMER: It’s now law.

(Applause.)

Biden Administration, Build Back Better, Democrats, News & Photo Features

White House Reacts to Joe Manchin’s Betrayal of Pledge to Support Build Back Better

December 19, 2021 krubin

President Joe Biden speaking last May on his optimism that Build Back Better (the American Families Plan) was back on track. Despite months of negotiations and compromises to get Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) support, he suddenly announced he would vote “no,” upending Biden’s agenda and likely torpedoing Democrats’ ability to retain control of Congress in the 2022 midterms © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki issued this statement following Senator Joe Manchin’s surprising reversal in declaring he would vote “no” on President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better bill, despite assurances given to Progressives when they agreed to de-couple the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill from the budget reconciliation framework to provide universal pre-K, child care and elder care, affordable prescription drugs, and mitigate climate change. Manchin has strung along the President and Democrats for months. Here is her statement:

Senator Manchin’s comments this morning on FOX are at odds with his discussions this week with the President, with White House staff, and with his own public utterances. Weeks ago, Senator Manchin committed to the President, at his home in Wilmington, to support the Build Back Better framework that the President then subsequently announced. Senator Manchin pledged repeatedly to negotiate on finalizing that framework “in good faith.”

On Tuesday of this week, Senator Manchin came to the White House and submitted—to the President, in person, directly—a written outline for a Build Back Better bill that was the same size and scope as the President’s framework, and covered many of the same priorities. While that framework was missing key priorities, we believed it could lead to a compromise acceptable to all. Senator Manchin promised to continue conversations in the days ahead, and to work with us to reach that common ground. If his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the President and the Senator’s colleagues in the House and Senate.

Senator Manchin claims that this change of position is related to inflation, but the think tank he often cites on Build Back Better—the Penn Wharton Budget Institute—issued a report less than 48 hours ago that noted the Build Back Better Act will have virtually no impact on inflation in the short term, and, in the long run, the policies it includes will ease inflationary pressures. Many leading economists with whom Senator Manchin frequently consults also support Build Back Better.

Build Back Better lowers costs that families pay. It will reduce what families pay for child care. It will reduce what they pay for prescription drugs. It will lower health care premiums. And it puts a tax cut in the pockets of families with kids. If someone is concerned about the impact that higher prices are having on families, this bill gives them a break.

Senator Manchin cited deficit concerns in his statement. But the plan is fully paid for, is the most fiscally responsible major bill that Congress has considered in years, and reduces the deficit in the long run. The Congressional Budget Office report that the Senator cites analyzed an unfunded extension of Build Back Better. That’s not what the President has proposed, not the bill the Senate would vote on, and not what the President would support. Senator Manchin knows that: The President has told him that repeatedly, including this week, face to face.

Likewise, Senator Manchin’s statement about the climate provisions in Build Back Better are wrong. Build Back Better will produce a job-creating clean energy future for this country—including West Virginia.

Just as Senator Manchin reversed his position on Build Back Better this morning, we will continue to press him to see if he will reverse his position yet again, to honor his prior commitments and be true to his word.

In the meantime, Senator Manchin will have to explain to those families paying $1,000 a month for insulin why they need to keep paying that, instead of $35 for that vital medicine. He will have to explain to the nearly two million women who would get the affordable day care they need to return to work why he opposes a plan to get them the help they need. Maybe Senator Manchin can explain to the millions of children who have been lifted out of poverty, in part due to the Child Tax Credit, why he wants to end a program that is helping achieve this milestone—we cannot.

We are proud of what we have gotten done in 2021: the American Rescue Plan, the fastest decrease in unemployment in U.S. history, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, over 200 million Americans vaccinated, schools reopened, the fastest rollout of vaccines to children anywhere in the world, and historic appointments to the Federal judiciary.

But we will not relent in the fight to help Americans with their child care, health care, prescription drug costs, and elder care—and to combat climate change. The fight for Build Back Better is too important to give up. We will find a way to move forward next year.

Coronavirus Pandemic, Democrats 2020, Donald Trump, Economic Development, Economic Policies, Economy, Election 2020, Government spending, Joe Biden, News & Photo Features, Social Safety Net

Biden Reacts to Trump COVID Relief Executive Orders: ‘Unable to deliver for the American people in a time of crisis, Donald Trump offered a series of half-baked measures’

August 9, 2020 krubin

Vice President Joe Biden reacted to Trump’s COVID Relief Executive Orders, saying “Unable to deliver for the American people in a time of crisis, Donald Trump offered a series of half-baked measures.” © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

On Saturday, August 8, Trump signed four Executive Orders intended to substitute for Congressional Republicans compromising with Democrats on a relief package against the health and economic ravages of the coronavirus pandemic. In a vitriolic speech, delivered to a mini-rally assembled from among his Bedminister golf course members, he attacked the Democrats’ plan, threatened a stock market crash should Joe Biden become president, and promised to end the payroll tax (which funds Social Security) should he be elected.

Indeed, Trump delivered this campaign promise: to reduce income taxes and capital gains taxes (in order to goose the stock market), in effect robbing the US Treasury which is already over $25 trillion in debt with trillions added because of the 2017 GOP tax cuts and the trillions spent on COVID relief, much of it going to the wealthiest and best connected. Instead of providing aid to states and localities which have been devastated by depleted revenues and run-up in costs to address COVID-19, he put more of the burden on states to come up with his faux employment benefits (it requires 25% to be paid by states). Instead of funding election protection and the post office, he accused Democrats of stealing the election.

“The massive taxpayer bailout of badly run blue states we talked about — that’s one of the things they’re looking to do. Measures designed to increase voter fraud,” he told his adoring audience.

“You know what it’s about? Fraud. That’s what they want: fraud. They want to try and steal this election because, frankly, it’s the only way they can win the election.

“The bill also requires all states to do universal mail-in balloting — which nobody is — nobody is prepared for — regardless of whether or not they have the infrastructure. They want to steal an election. That’s all this is all about: They want to steal the election.”

Trump couldn’t resist attacking proposals for a Green New Deal: “And they want to do the Green New Deal, which will decimate our country and decimate — it’s ridiculous, too. It’s childish. I actually say the Green New Deal is childish. It’s for children. It’s not for adults.”

And when asked what happens if the states can’t pony up the 25% to continue the $400 (not $600) unemployment benefits (the 75% that the federal government would spend would be coming from the states’ share of the CARES Act funding), he said, “Well, if they don’t, they don’t… So I don’t think their people will be too happy.”

As for the reduction in unemployment benefits, Trump said, “this gives them a great incentive to go back to work.”

Questioned about the constitutionality of going around Congress, which has the sole “power of the purse,” Trump said, “This will go very [fast]– if — if we get sued. Maybe we won’t get sued. If we get sued, it’s somebody that doesn’t want people to get money. Okay? And that’s not going to be a very popular thing. “

Pressed whether a President should go around Congress “ and decide how money is collected and spent?” Trump retorted, “You ever hear the word ‘obstruction’? “yes,” the reporter replied. “You were investigated for that.”

Trump then replied, “They’ve obstructed. Congress has obstructed. The Democrats have obstructed people from getting desperately needed money.”

“But this is in the Constitution, Mr. President,” the reporter insisted.Asked why he keeps taking credit for Veterans Choice, which was passed in 2014 by the Obama Administration, Trump abruptly ended the press conference.

In reaction to Trump’s executive orders, Vice President Joe Biden, presumptive Democratic nominee for President, issued this statement: –Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

Unable to deliver for the American people in a time of crisis, Donald Trump offered a series of half-baked measures today. He is putting Social Security at grave risk at a time when seniors are suffering the overwhelming impact of a pandemic he has failed to get under control. And make no mistake: Donald Trump said today that if he is re-elected, he will defund Social Security.

For months, Trump has golfed rather than negotiated, and sown division rather than pull people together to get a package passed. Now, instead of staying in Washington and working with Republicans and Democrats to reach a bipartisan deal, President Trump is at his golf club in New Jersey signing a series of dubious executive orders.

This is no art of the deal. This is not presidential leadership. These orders are not real solutions. They are just another cynical ploy designed to deflect responsibility. Some measures do far more harm than good.

One order is Donald Trump’s first shot in a new, reckless war on Social Security. Trump announced a payroll tax plan with no protections or guarantees — like the ones the Obama-Biden administration enforced a decade ago — that the Social Security Trust Fund will be made whole. And, Trump specifically stated today that if re-elected, he plans to undermine the entire financial footing of Social Security. He is laying out his roadmap to cutting Social Security. Our seniors and millions of Americans with disabilities are under enough stress without Trump putting their hard-earned Social Security benefits in doubt.

Another order brings cuts, chaos, and confusion to our system of unemployment insurance. Trump is unilaterally reducing the amount laid-off workers could receive. And he purports to provide these benefits until the end of the year, but only identifies enough funding to make it a handful of weeks. Even with that limited funding, Trump is basically playing a cruel game of robbing Peter to pay Paul: He is taking billions of dollars of federal natural disaster funding away so it won’t be available to states like Florida. And, he is forcing states to choose between imposing benefit cuts for unemployed workers or slashing funds for public schools, health workers, and first responders.

A third order, on evictions, is woefully inadequate to deal with the emerging housing crisis. He is leaving our nation’s renters with ever-mounting debt and leaving our small family landlords badly squeezed. Without a comprehensive plan to help our American families make rent, they will leave this crisis months behind on their payments while many landlords teeter on the verge of bankruptcy.

And a fourth order is a band-aid approach to student debt that leaves out 7 million borrowers who obtained their federal loans from private lenders or their college rather than the Department. The economic strain on these Americans is deep and unrelenting.

There is a solution to all of this pain and suffering. A real leader would go back to Washington, call together the leaders of the House and Senate, and negotiate a deal that delivers real relief to Americans who are struggling in this pandemic. We need a president who understands their struggle and believes in their courage to overcome.

Civil Rights

Obama Tribute to John Lewis Summons New Generation to Take up Cause of Freedom, Justice

July 18, 2020 krubin

President Obama gives the commencement address at Rutgers University, May 15, 2016. In paying tribute to the life and legacy of Congressman John Lewis, Obama said, “America is a constant work in progress. What gives each new generation purpose is to take up the unfinished work of the last and carry it further – to speak out for what’s right, to challenge an unjust status quo, and to imagine a better world.” (c) Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com

President Barack Obama issued this tribute to Congressman John Lewis, a hero to so many in the cause of freedom and equality, who passed away at the age of 80:

America is a constant work in progress. What gives each new generation purpose is to take up the unfinished work of the last and carry it further – to speak out for what’s right, to challenge an unjust status quo, and to imagine a better world.

John Lewis – one of the original Freedom Riders, chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the youngest speaker at the March on Washington, leader of the march from Selma to Montgomery, Member of Congress representing the people of Georgia for 33 years – not only assumed that responsibility, he made it his life’s work. He loved this country so much that he risked his life and his blood so that it might live up to its promise. And through the decades, he not only gave all of himself to the cause of freedom and justice, but inspired generations that followed to try to live up to his example.

Considering his enormous impact on the history of this country, what always struck those who met John was his gentleness and humility. Born into modest means in the heart of the Jim Crow South, he understood that he was just one of a long line of heroes in the struggle for racial justice. Early on, he embraced the principles of nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience as the means to bring about real change in this country, understanding that such tactics had the power not only to change laws, but to change hearts and minds as well.

In so many ways, John’s life was exceptional. But he never believed that what he did was more than any citizen of this country might do. He believed that in all of us, there exists the capacity for great courage, a longing to do what’s right, a willingness to love all people, and to extend to them their God-given rights to dignity and respect. And it’s because he saw the best in all of us that he will continue, even in his passing, to serve as a beacon in that long journey towards a more perfect union.

I first met John when I was in law school, and I told him then that he was one of my heroes. Years later, when I was elected a U.S. Senator, I told him that I stood on his shoulders. When I was elected President of the United States, I hugged him on the inauguration stand before I was sworn in and told him I was only there because of the sacrifices he made. And through all those years, he never stopped providing wisdom and encouragement to me and Michelle and our family. We will miss him dearly.

It’s fitting that the last time John and I shared a public forum was at a virtual town hall with a gathering of young activists who were helping to lead this summer’s demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd’s death. Afterwards, I spoke to him privately, and he could not have been prouder of their efforts – of a new generation standing up for freedom and equality, a new generation intent on voting and protecting the right to vote, a new generation running for political office. I told him that all those young people – of every race, from every background and gender and sexual orientation – they were his children. They had learned from his example, even if they didn’t know it. They had understood through him what American citizenship requires, even if they had heard of his courage only through history books.

Not many of us get to live to see our own legacy play out in such a meaningful, remarkable way. John Lewis did. And thanks to him, we now all have our marching orders – to keep believing in the possibility of remaking this country we love until it lives up to its full promise.

Coronavirus Pandemic, Government spending, Governor Andrew Cuomo, News & Photo Features, NYS Acts to Contain Coronavirus

Cuomo Hits Back at McConnell’s ‘Drop Dead Blue States’ Remarks as GOP Says Will Put Brakes on Aid in Midst of Pandemic

April 23, 2020 krubin

By Karen Rubin, News-Photos-Features.com

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo hit back hard on Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell signaling he would block aid to states most impacted by the coronavirus. McConnell, boasted in a press release that he had no intention of bailing out “blue states.”

Cuomo, who is staring down a $15 billion budget deficit, said that without federal aid, states (which are not allowed to go bankrupt) would be forced to cut back on health workers, police, fire, teachers, mass transit and social services as the state.

“15,000 people died in New York, but they were predominantly Democratic so why help them? Don’t help New York State because it is a Democratic state? How ugly a thought. Think of what he’s saying,” Cuomo said during his April 23 press briefing.

“For crying out loud, if there were ever a time for you to put aside your pettiness, your partisanship, your political lens you see the world through – help Republicans but not Democrats – that’s not who we are. If ever there was a time for humanity, decency, now is the time.”

Except that is exactly who McConnell and the Republicans are, and demonstrated it through every crisis.

McConnell is clearly seeing the political advantage of pushing Blue States into near bankruptcy – that figured into how he constructed the 2017 Tax Act which limited the deductibility of State and Local Taxes (SALT) because it would adversely impact blue states over red ones, force state government to cut back on services or risk a tax revolt.

But Cuomo also pointed to the stupidity of that: California is the world’s 5^th largest economy and accounts for 14% of US GDP; New York State is the third largest economy in US, accounting for 8% of GDP – taken together, these two states alone account for nearly one-fourth of GDP.

“If New York and California are allowed to go bankrupt, that would take down the entire economy,” Cuomo said.

Moreover, Cuomo insisted, “When it comes to fairness, New York State puts much more money into the federal pot than it takes out. At the end of the year, we put in $116 billion more than we take out. His state, Kentucky, takes out $148 billion more than they put in. He’s a federal legislator distributing the federal pot of money and New York puts in more money to fed pot than takes out, his state takes out more than it puts in. Senator McConnell, who’s getting bailed out? It’s your state that is living on the money that we generate. Your state is getting bailed out. Not my state.

“How do you not fund schools, hospitals in the midst of crisis, police, fire, healthcare – frontline – if you can’t fund the state, the state can’t fund those services. It makes no sense.” (Probably the same way you cut $500 million in funding to the World Health Organization in the midst of a pandemic.)

“The entire nation depends on what governors do to reopen, but then not fund state government? I am I going to do it alone?

“States should declare bankruptcy? That’s how to bring the national economy back? You want to see that market fall through the cellar, just let New York State declare bankruptcy, Michigan, Illinois, California declare bankruptcy. You will see a collapse of the national economy. That’s just dumb.”

Reports are showing that the $350 billion intended to help small businesses get through the crisis has almost entirely gone to big, profitable businesses and entities with close ties to banks. (See: Banks Gave Richest Clients ‘Concierge Treatment’ for Pandemic Aid)

The National Governors Association, a bipartisan group of governors from around the country, wrote federal officials this week pleading for $500 billion to help them make up for lost tax revenues during what they called “the most dramatic contraction of the U.S. economy since World War II.”

None of the four stimulus bills that have passed the Senate, amounting to trillions of dollars of funding, have provided any aid to states hardest hit by the virus. As it happened, these happen to be Democratic states – New York, which accounts for almost one-third of all coronavirus cases and deaths; New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois and California.

Republicans have been gleeful at sending billions to corporations and well-connected, able to skirt whatever oversight and provisions the Democrats had tried to impose (Trump said he would take the reporting requirements as a suggestion and promptly fired the Inspector General), balked at expanding unemployment assistance, and reneged on promises to help states now billions in the red because of the expenses of maintaining services as revenues have all but dried up with the lock-down of all but essential work.

Mimicking his obstruction to Obama’s recovery when refused to allocate enough money for the Recovery Act, McConnell has been content to see the budget deficit rise by $3 trillion (on top of the $1 trillion Trump added even as the economy boomed, because of the Republican tax scam) as long as it could be steered to friendly industries and donors, now expressed glee to let blue states go bankrupt.

“I think this whole business of additional assistance for state and local governments needs to be thoroughly evaluated,” McConnell said in an interview with the conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. “There’s not going to be any desire on the Republican side to bail out state pensions by borrowing money from future generations.”

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has consistently asserted that future stimulus bills would send aid to states and localities, but McConnell is now signaling that now that they have gotten four stimulus bills amounting to a slush fund with little oversight and accountability, they will be unwilling to provide direct help to states. All of a sudden, they are concerned about rising debt. (Reminder: Republicans shut down government and threatened to refuse to raise the debt ceiling during Obama unless Obama would rescind Obamacare from the budget.)

Once this last stimulus bill passes the House, as is expected, Democrats will lose all leverage to get aid to states, localities, hospitals, workers and the unemployed.

Meanwhile, Cuomo reported on the preliminary results of the state’s first statewide survey intended to determine what percentage of the population has antibodies after being exposed to the infection.

The preliminary results suggest that 13.6% of the state has been infected (and now has antibodies), with the greatest proportion downstate: 21.2% of people in New York City, 16.7% of Long Island, 11.7% of Westchester/Rockland and 3.6% of the rest of the state. The 3,000 in the sample were randomly surveyed in grocery stores and box-stores – in other words, people who were out and about.

Based on that infection rate, it would suggest that 2.7 million New Yorkers have been infected. If that were true, the 15,500 fatalities would suggest a death rate of 0.5%. However, Cuomo stressed that the fatalities counted were only those that took place in hospitals and nursing homes, but do not include those who died at home.

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