Trump is NOT the answer

[onawah]

I just work on not being naive these days, and that 1.3 billion bill might turn out to be just like those bills that have gone to "aid and research" cancer, and have done nothing good at all, though they have certainly helped line Big Pharma's pockets.
In any case, we already know what is causing the Autism epidemic: vaccines.
I dare say Trump knows it too.
Who said Trump is a Nazi?
I didn't, but he's certainly not a Superman either.
The best answer now that I can see is massive public activism and uprisings.

Posted by thepainterdoug (here)

All I can say is , this so called evil guy in office just signed a 1.3 billion dollar bill to aid and research Autism so he's not doing a very good job of being a Nazi.

[onawah]

Taxpayer funded Ivanka jewelry
From Social Security Works' email update today:
12/23/19
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ve...ivanka-jewelry

"In recent days, we’ve been shining a light on the Trump administration’s cruel new regulations that will deny benefits to hundreds of thousands of Social Security recipients―all claiming to increase “efficiency” and prevent government waste. We’re fighting back―chip in today!

This is straight out of the playbook of Trump’s Medicare and Medicaid Administrator, Seema Verma. She cut her teeth working for Gov. Mike Pence in Indiana—crafting cruel and burdensome restrictions to make it harder for families to qualify for Medicaid.

Donald Trump was so impressed by that resume that he put Verma in charge of running Medicare and Medicaid. Verma is using that position to fly around the country, promoting for-profit Medicare Advantage plans over traditional Medicare, attacking Medicare For All, and imposing Medicaid restrictions across the country.

Verma doesn’t believe in publicly funded health care. But she does believe that taxpayers should pay for her stolen Ivanka Trump jewelry.

Social Security Works is fighting to expose the corruption of Trump cronies like Seema Verma, and fight their cruel policies.

While Verma was busy giving a speech bashing Medicare For All, her luggage was stolen from a rental SUV. Verma filed a claim for taxpayer reimbursement of $47,000 in stolen goods—including a $5,900 Ivanka Trump brand pendant and a $325 moisturizer.

And earlier this year, she was billing taxpayers millions for her personal PR agency to plant puff pieces about her in the press.

Verma’s spent her career taking health care away from people who desperately need it. But when she’s the one in need of some overpriced moisturizer, she demanded that the public pay up.

Social Security Works today to power our fight to protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid from Verma and her fellow Trump appointees.

Thank you for fighting with us,

Alex Lawson
Social Security Works"

[Pam]

Posted by onawah (here)
Taxpayer funded Ivanka jewelry
From Social Security Works' email update today:
12/23/19
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ve...ivanka-jewelry

"In recent days, we’ve been shining a light on the Trump administration’s cruel new regulations that will deny benefits to hundreds of thousands of Social Security recipients―all claiming to increase “efficiency” and prevent government waste. We’re fighting back―chip in today!

This is straight out of the playbook of Trump’s Medicare and Medicaid Administrator, Seema Verma. She cut her teeth working for Gov. Mike Pence in Indiana—crafting cruel and burdensome restrictions to make it harder for families to qualify for Medicaid.

Donald Trump was so impressed by that resume that he put Verma in charge of running Medicare and Medicaid. Verma is using that position to fly around the country, promoting for-profit Medicare Advantage plans over traditional Medicare, attacking Medicare For All, and imposing Medicaid restrictions across the country.

Verma doesn’t believe in publicly funded health care. But she does believe that taxpayers should pay for her stolen Ivanka Trump jewelry.

Social Security Works is fighting to expose the corruption of Trump cronies like Seema Verma, and fight their cruel policies.

While Verma was busy giving a speech bashing Medicare For All, her luggage was stolen from a rental SUV. Verma filed a claim for taxpayer reimbursement of $47,000 in stolen goods—including a $5,900 Ivanka Trump brand pendant and a $325 moisturizer.

And earlier this year, she was billing taxpayers millions for her personal PR agency to plant puff pieces about her in the press.

Verma’s spent her career taking health care away from people who desperately need it. But when she’s the one in need of some overpriced moisturizer, she demanded that the public pay up.

Social Security Works today to power our fight to protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid from Verma and her fellow Trump appointees.

Thank you for fighting with us,

Alex Lawson
Social Security Works"

How in the world could she possibly expect the taxpayers to pay for that? Shouldn't she make a claim to her auto insurance if she has that kind of coverage. Who would expect their employer to pay for stuff stolen from their car? Also, who in their right mind lugs 47, 000. oo worth of trinkets around with them?? And the taxpayers are just supposed to take her word for it and cough up that kind of money? Dear god, the corruption and entitlement is just beyond pale. Imagine the number who could be insured for that amount?

[onawah]

It doesn't surprise me all that much, but then I've just finished watching the 2019 movie, "Where's my Roy Cohn?" about Donald Trumps mentor.
In those kinds of circles, there are no ethics; "winning" is all that matters.

See: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7193362/

[onawah]

Trump Proposes Ending Disability Benefits for Hundreds of Thousands
'A National Disgrace': Trump Proposes Social Security Change That Could End Disability Benefits for Hundreds of Thousands'
Published on
Monday, December 16, 2019
by Jake Johnson, staff writer Common Dreams

"Donald Trump and his advisers know that this will kill people, and they do not care. Every current and future Social Security beneficiary must band together to defeat this horrific proposal, or else all of our earned benefits will be next.

Activists are working to raise public awareness and outrage over a little-noticed Trump administration proposal that could strip life-saving disability benefits from hundreds of thousands of people by further complicating the way the Social Security Administration determines who is eligible for payments.

The proposed rule change was first published in the Federal Register last month but has received scarce attention in the national media. Last week, the Social Security Administration extended the public comment period on the proposal until January 31, 2020.

Alex Lawson, executive director of the progressive advocacy group Social Security Works, told Common Dreams that the rule change "is the Trump administration's most brazen attack on Social Security yet."

"When Ronald Reagan implemented a similar benefit cut, it ripped away the earned benefits of 200,000 people," Lawson said. "Ultimately, Reagan was forced to reverse his attack on Social Security after massive public outcry—but not before people suffered and died."

"Every current and future Social Security beneficiary must band together to defeat this horrific proposal, or else all of our earned benefits will be next."
—Alex Lawson, Social Security Works
Patient advocate Peter Morley, who lobbies Congress on healthcare issues, called the proposal "a national disgrace."

"This is not over," said Morley. "We will all need to mobilize."

The process for receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is already notoriously complicated, and the Trump administration is attempting to add yet another layer of complexity that critics say is aimed at slashing people's benefits.

As The Philadelphia Inquirer reported last week, "those already receiving disability benefits are subject to so-called continuing disability reviews, which determine whether they are still deserving of compensation for an injury, illness, or other incapacitating problem as their lives progress."

Currently, beneficiaries are placed in three separate categories based on the severity of their disability: "Medical Improvement Not Expected," "Medical Improvement Expected," and "Medical Improvement Possible." People with more severe medical conditions face less frequent disability reviews.

The Trump administration's proposed rule would another category called "Medical Improvement Likely," which would subject beneficiaries to disability reviews every two years.

According to the Inquirer, "an estimated 4.4 million beneficiaries would be included in that designation, many of them children and so-called Step 5 recipients, an internal Social Security classification."

Step 5 recipients, the Inquirer noted, "are typically 50 to 65 years of age, in poor health, without much education or many job skills [and] often suffer from maladies such as debilitating back pain, depression, a herniated disc, or schizophrenia."

"This seems like the next iteration of the Trump administration's continued efforts to gut Social Security benefits."
—Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Penn.)
Jennifer Burdick, supervising attorney with Community Legal Services in Philadelphia, told the Inquirer that placing Step 5 recipients in the new "Medical Improvement Likely" category and subjecting them to reviews every two years would represent "a radical departure from past practice."

Lawson of Social Security Works said "Donald Trump and his advisers know that this will kill people, and they do not care."

"Every current and future Social Security beneficiary must band together to defeat this horrific proposal," added Lawson, "or else all of our earned benefits will be next."

In addition to lack of coverage from the national media, most members of Congress have also been relatively quiet about the Trump administration's proposal.

Two Pennsylvania Democrats—Sen. Bob Casey and Rep. Brendan Boyle—condemned the proposed rule change in statements to the Inquirer.

The proposal, said Casey, "appears to be yet another attempt by the Trump administration to make it more difficult for people with disabilities to receive benefits."

Boyle said the "changes seem arbitrary, concocted with no evidence or data to justify such consequential modifications."

"This seems like the next iteration of the Trump administration's continued efforts to gut Social Security benefits," Boyle added." "

https://www.commondreams.org/news/20...end-disability

[AutumnW]

From Onawah's post about Social Security Benefit requirements being altered.

Step 5 recipients, the Inquirer noted, "are typically 50 to 65 years of age, in poor health, without much education or many job skills [and] often suffer from maladies such as debilitating back pain, depression, a herniated disc, or schizophrenia."

They are tightening criteria for those already on disability to requalify every couple of years. It is already next to impossible for relatively healthy people to navigate the bureaucratic maze of benefits programs. Imagine somebody with schizophrenia trying to do this, regardless how well they are doing on the new class of medication.

And in the case of paranoia, imagining 'the government' is out to get you might be better than dealing with the harsh reality of a government willing to leave you all alone...completely and totally alone.

And they will make those with back injuries requalify too. Hmm...well, lots of people who voted for him are former coal miners , farmers, laborers, on disability for bad backs. In which case, the ironic meme, 'get government off my back' is going to be used to their distinct disadvantage.

Oh man...what a country.

Thanks for the info, Onawah!

[AutumnW]

In any case, we already know what is causing the Autism epidemic: vaccines.
I dare say Trump knows it too--Onawah

You could say, we don't know for absolute certain and the 1.3 billion will cement this ignorance by the funding being either directly or indirectly channeled to big Pharma. There is NO WAY the federal government (whose biggest controller after the banks and oil industry, is big pharma), is going to take a chance that their cash cow is gutted instead of milked.

[onawah]

I'm certain you're right Autumn, and that Trump knows a lot more than his fans think, who are constantly making excuses for his supposed ignorance about so many issues, including the things he actually lies about.
...Such as the following from Alliance for Retired American's email update today:

"Looks like retirees got the president's attention last week.

On Wednesday, President Trump told the world that cuts to Medicare and Social Security were “on the table” as soon as this year.

On Thursday, he sent a tweet promising that he would never cut Social Security or Medicare.

Sounds good -- but he’s trying to cut Social Security RIGHT NOW.

The Trump Administration is trying to shove through a plan to deny hundreds of thousands of disabled Americans -- including veterans and children -- the disability benefits they have already qualified for.*
Every budget the President has submitted to Congress included steep Medicare cuts that would mean less care at a higher cost to retirees.
His advisors - including the White House Chief of Staff -- have been open about pushing the president for more cuts.
We can’t forget that his allies on Capitol Hill are ready to help. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says cutting earned benefits is his top priority for 2021. And Sen. Mitt Romney is trying to pass a law creating a secret panel that will deliberate in private and create plans to cut Social Security and Medicare.

So far we’ve been able to stop them. But we must stay vigilant and defend the health care and retirement benefits we have earned. The best way to do that is to pay attention to what the Administration does, not what the President says.

We promise to keep you updated on this and other important retiree news.

Sincerely,

Richard Fiesta
Executive Director

*Thanks to the more than 10,000 Alliance activists who stepped up and told the Social Security Administration to reverse course on the cruel Social Security disability insurance changes. We are grateful and will keep you updated in the coming weeks."

(Following are some excerpts from LA Times articles the Alliance has referenced.)
By MICHAEL HILTZIK BUSINESS COLUMNIST
JAN. 23, 2020
https://www.latimes.com/business/sto...ocial-security

"With his penchant for saying the quiet parts out loud and assuming no one is paying attention, President Trump on Wednesday opened the door to cutting Social Security and Medicare later this year.

The word came at the very end of an interview conducted by Joe Kernen of CNBC, in connection with Trump’s appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Here’s how it unfolded, according to the tape and transcript from CNBC:



Source: http://projectavalon.net/Davos_2020_...dent_Trump.mp4

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/22/davo...ent-trump.html

“KERNEN: Entitlements ever be on your plate?

“PRESIDENT TRUMP: At some point they will be. We have tremendous growth. We’re going to have tremendous growth. This next year I — it’ll be toward the end of the year. The growth is going to be incredible. And at the right time, we will take a look at that. You know, that’s actually the easiest of all things, if you look, cause it’s such a—
Hillary Clinton is going to destroy your Social Security and Medicare. ... I am going to protect and save your Social Security and your Medicare."

DONALD TRUMP, 2016
Trump then wandered off into a string of false and incoherent claims about the economy. “We’ve never had growth like this,” he said, even though economic growth during Trump’s term is nowhere near a record pace.

What’s important is that Trump appears to be falling into lockstep with the more general Republican position that closing the federal deficit requires cutting back on Social Security, Medicare and other social safety net programs. Never mind that the deficit was opened into a gaping maw by the tax cut Trump signed in December 2017, which went mostly to corporations and the wealthy, the effect of which goosed economic growth for a short period but has faded.

Other commentators have underscored the conflict between Trump’s appearing open to tampering with Social Security and Medicare, and his promise during the last presidential campaign to leave those programs alone.

Mitch McConnell, John Barrasso, Joni Ernst
BUSINESS
Column: A Republican senator hints at gutting Social Security ‘behind closed doors’
Sep. 6, 2019
“Every Republican wants to do a big number on Social Security,” he said in one appearance. “They want to do it on Medicare, they want to do it on Medicaid. And we can’t do that. And it’s not fair to the people that have been paying in for years.” Just before election day 2016, he claimed: “Hillary Clinton is going to destroy your Social Security and Medicare. ... I am going to protect and save your Social Security and your Medicare.”

Cutting benefits has been part of Republican orthodoxy for decades, but the drumbeat has gotten louder. In September, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) talked about the need to go “behind closed doors” to reform Social Security, because it’s clear that the American public won’t stand for it being done in the open. A year earlier, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) labeled Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — so-called entitlements — “the real drivers of the debt” and called for them to be adjusted “to the demographics of the future.”

It’s worth noting that proposals to cut social insurance benefits are certain to be dead on arrival as long as Democrats control at least one chamber of Congress, as they do currently. Indeed, the Democratic Party, through its representatives in Congress and its candidates for president, has shown itself to be strongly in favor of expanding and increasing Social Security benefits, not cutting them back.

Trump still can do a lot of damage to these programs by starving their administrative budgets or tinkering with administrative rules, as he’s proposed to do with Medicaid and Social Security Disability Insurance.

US-POLITICS-TRUMP
Column: Mitch McConnell says it out loud: Republicans are gunning for Social Security, Medicare and Obamacare next
Oct. 19, 2018
As I’ve reported before, Trump’s cavalier approach to these programs isn’t really a secret.

His proposed 2020 budget would have pared as much as $1.5 trillion from Medicaid, partially by repealing the Medicaid expansion enacted as part of the Affordable Care Act, and partially by converting the program to a block grant to states — a system that destroys the program’s ability to match funding with costs and results in a massive shortfall over time.

Trump’s budget would gut the nation’s disability programs by $84 billion. At least $10 billion of that would come from Social Security disability through changes in eligibility rules. An additional $400 million would come out of the Social Security Administration’s administrative budget, which is already strapped for cash, in the next year alone. Beneficiaries could expect more busy signals on the phone lines and longer waits at Social Security offices.

In October, Trump signed an executive order bristling with stealth attacks on Medicare. Buried within the order was a provision that would destroy Medicare by driving its costs to an unsustainable level. He also proposed to turn more of the program over to commercial insurers. As I wrote then, “Put simply, he’s proposing to privatize Medicare.”

Again, all this has been hiding in plain sight. Trump’s latest remarks have gotten a lot of attention, because they appear to be so blunt. But the danger the Trump administration poses to programs that protect America’s most vulnerable populations has been evident almost from the first."

Posted by AutumnW (here)
In any case, we already know what is causing the Autism epidemic: vaccines.
I dare say Trump knows it too--Onawah

You could say, we don't know for absolute certain and the 1.3 billion will cement this ignorance by the funding being either directly or indirectly channeled to big Pharma. There is NO WAY the federal government (whose biggest controller after the banks and oil industry, is big pharma), is going to take a chance that their cash cow is gutted instead of milked.

[onawah]

In Win for Bayer-Monsanto, Trump EPA Claims Cancer-Causing Weedkiller ‘Safe’
Alex Formuzis Environmental Working Group
THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2020
https://www.ewg.org/release/win-baye...source=twitter

"WASHINGTON – The Environmental Protection Agency reaffirmed its claims today that the active ingredient in Bayer-Monsanto’s carcinogenic weedkiller Roundup is safe, ignoring a growing body of independent research showing a strong connection between glyphosate and cancer in humans.

“Today’s announcement underscores that the Trump administration’s willful ignorance of science and abject fealty toward the chemical pesticide industry knows no bounds,” said EWG President Ken Cook. “No American should believe for a second that Trump and EPA chief Andrew Wheeler ever give a thought to whether their policies could harm public health.”

Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Bayer-Monsanto’s Roundup, is the most widely used pesticide in the world. It is largely used as a weedkiller on genetically modified corn and soybeans. But it is increasingly being used for crop management and applied pre-harvest to a number of non-genetically engineered crops, including oats.

Last year, a report in Environmental Sciences Europe documented how the EPA ignored a large number of independent, peer-reviewed studies that link glyphosate to cancer in humans. Instead, the report found, the EPA used research paid for by Monsanto to support the agency’s position that glyphosate is not carcinogenic.

Since 2018, three separate juries found glyphosate caused cancer in four California residents who were exposed to the herbicide while handling Roundup, and awarded multimillion-dollar damages to the plaintiffs. There are now more than 13,400 similar cases against Bayer.

Last April, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry released an analysis that gave weight to studies connecting glyphosate and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and recommended monitoring children’s exposure to the toxic weedkiller.

In 2015, 17 of the world’s top cancer researchers convened by the International Agency for Research on Cancer reviewed hundreds of studies on glyphosate and voted unanimously to classify the weedkiller as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” In 2017, California added glyphosate to its official list of chemicals known to cause cancer.

Three rounds of laboratory tests commissioned by EWG found glyphosate in nearly every sample of oat-based cereal and other breakfast products at levels higher than what EWG scientists consider protective for children’s health with an adequate margin of safety. Last week, Kellogg’s announced it will take steps to phase out the use of glyphosate to dry oats and wheat before harvest.

###

The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.

[onawah]

Trump is pro-fracking, but new research by Food & Water Watch exposes the deceptive spin behind the supposed climate benefits of the switch from coal to fracked gas-sourced electricity.

The research finds that largely as a result of the fracking boom, methane emissions from fracked gas used for electricity have an even greater climate impact than the CO2 emitted at power plants themselves.

The report, Fracking’s Bridge to Climate Chaos: Exposing the Fossil Fuel Industry’s Deadly Spin, underscores the toll that fracking has taken on clean air, clean water and a safe climate. https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/si...echaos-web.pdf

[onawah]

U.S. Funding of Islamist “Charity” Groups Triples Under Trump
JANUARY 28, 2020
|JUDICIAL WATCH
https://www.judicialwatch.org/corrup...20200203150847



"The amount of American taxpayer dollars that go to Islamist organizations has drastically increased under the Trump administration, which has doled out millions to radical nonprofits, including a recent allocation to a terrorist front group named as an unindicted co-conspirator in a terrorism financing trial. Between 2017 and 2018 the U.S. government more than tripled its funding to organizations either influenced or controlled by Islamist activists from $4 million to $13.5 million, according to an analysis conducted by a think tank dedicated to protecting Western values from Middle Eastern threats.

The Philadelphia-based nonprofit, Middle East Forum (MEF), reviewed millions of dollars in government grant data and found that the Trump administration is dedicating a lot more to radical Muslim groups than the Obama administration, which gave Islamist-linked organizations an average of $1.7 million annually. A big chunk of the money, around $8.7 million, has gone to the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), a surrogate of the south Asian paramilitary group Jamaat-e-Islami, which was recently banned by the Indian government under anti-terrorism laws. An ICNA subsidiary known as Helping Hand for Relief and Development has openly partnered with the Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which was involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack that killed 164 people. The $8.7 million was delivered in 2018 for “disaster assistance projects,” according to the government data obtained by MEF.

Other radical groups whose coffers have been filled by the Trump administration include Islamic Relief ($800,000), which is closely tied to the Muslim Brotherhood and has been designated as a terror-financing organization by Israel and the United Arab Emirates; the Islamic Institute of Knowledge, which is linked to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and the Iranian regime, has received $780,000 from the U.S; the Muslim American Society, identified by MEF as the Muslim Brotherhood’s leading activist organization in the U.S., got $160,000 from Uncle Sam. The group’s Philadelphia branch recently broadcast a disturbing video of kids at its center singing about chopping off the heads of Jews. Dar al-Hijrah, an extremist mosque in Virginia that the U.S. government says operates as a front for Hamas, received $100,000. Al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Aulaqi was the imam at the Falls Church mosque and two of the 9/11 hijackers attended his sermons as well as Nidal Hassan, the Ft. Hood terrorist sentenced to death for murdering 13 and wounding dozens of others at a Texas Army base.

Just a few months ago, another $100,000 went to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) via a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant program. CAIR is a terrorist front group that was named as a co-conspirator in a federal terror-finance case involving the Hamas front group Holy Land Foundation. For more details read a Judicial Watch special report on Muslim charities. CAIR was founded in 1994 by three Middle Eastern extremists (Omar Ahmad, Nihad Awad and Rafeeq Jaber) who ran the American propaganda wing of Hamas, known then as the Islamic Association for Palestine. The Obama administration allowed CAIR to transform the way U.S. law enforcement agencies conduct anti-terrorism training by permitting the group to bully agencies at the local, state and federal level to alter materials determined to be discriminatory against Muslims. This includes getting the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to purge anti-terrorism training curricula of material coined “offensive” to Muslims. Judicial Watch uncovered that scandal, obtained the FBI records and published an in-depth report. CAIR also got several local police departments and the U.S. military to eliminate anti-terrorism training materials and instructors deemed anti-Muslim.

The Trump administration seems to have maintained a cozy relationship with CAIR, recently joining forces with the group by suing a Michigan suburb for rejecting a Muslim organization’s zoning request to construct a mosque within city limits."

(Especially interesting considering that Judicial Watch's usual coverage of Trump is favorable.)

[Philippe]

U.S. Funding of Islamist “Charity” Groups Triples Under Trump
JANUARY 28, 2020

If all this funding is factual, why would they do that? The funding by the Obama administration of the Muslim Brotherhood that took power in Egypt for some time, was explained as a means of keeping control of them. Is it the same strategy that continues ? Seems crazy but we do not have the total picture. But even that picture will be totally crazy as the whole conflict is fomented by opposing crazy religions.

[Wind]

I'm calling it now, Bernie has a really good chance of winning the election if he gets to go against Trump. That is if he gets to, because the DNC is so damn corrupt and they will try everything in order they can to stop him with the help of msm, because he ain't in it for the corporations and their puppets.

I have to say that I have feel like he is one of the few genuine candidates since JFK who is in it for the people and not for the corporations. That is giving me hope when it comes to politics, because otherwise I think that it's a total sham. Especially in US where the whole system is so corrupt as money is involved in politics.

The rhetoric about him being a socialist isn't affecting his popularity, if anything all the hits he is taking is only increasing it. I find it that most americans are totally clueless about socialism and social democracy anyways.

If people are not ready for true change then of course things will stay as they are, except that maybe division and chaos will be increasing as it always happens in these kind of situations with these kind of leaders.

Trump isn't the problem, but he's just a symptom of the problem. Can anyone honestly say that America truly has been getting great again in these past three years and that the world looks more peaceful now? Looks like to me that it's only been getting worse and divided. At least that's how the rest of the world sees it. I think you have to have blinders on if you think otherwise and I mean no offense, but I have to be frank about it.

It's not about left vs right or liberal vs conservative, it's about common sense. The world desperately needs more of it.

[Sarah Rainsong]

I'm really skeptical of the DNC putting anyone out that can beat Trump. While Bernie has got good support among D's I don't think it's enough to get him to the WH and not enough to actually help people. The parties are too divided.

As it appears right now, it will be a repeat of 2016. Both sides will dig their heals in. While one will end up in the WH, it will not be a win. It will be a loss for everyone because it will only create more anger, more distrust, more division.

We need someone who will represent the interests of the people, not the banks or oligarchs or corporations. Someone who actually puts the good of the people above money, who stops relying on production as a measure of the well-being of the people in our nation.

But neither the DNC or the GOP establishment will ever get behind such a candidate. They will dismiss, discredit and flat-out ignore him. If people really want unity, really want to kick out the establishment and get someone to actually represent them, they're going to have to ignore the candidates that are propped up by that establishment.

I don't know what it's going to take to get us there.

[onawah]

Federal regulations for school lunches—never strong to begin with—are about to get worse.
From Organic Consumers Association
2/4/20
https://www.organicconsumers.org/blo...more-junk-food

"If Trump’s U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) pushes through its proposed new rules, schools will be allowed to serve up more processed junk food (pizza and fries), and fewer fruits and vegetables.

The rules, masquerading under the pretense of giving schools “greater flexibility” and reducing food waste, are another gift to corporate lobbyists, like the Corn Refiners Association, the Snack Food Association (SNAC International) and yes, the School Nutrition Association.

TAKE ACTION: Tell the USDA: Add Healthy Organic Fruits and Veggies to School Meals, Not More Junk Food! https://advocacy.organicconsumers.or...633/petition/1

Under changes, proposed by USDA Deputy Under Secretary Brandon Lipps, schools would be allowed to cut the amount of fruit served at breakfast in half, and substitute sweet pastries or granola bars.

The new rules would also let schools replace leafy green vegetables with french fries—never mind that in addition to being fried in unhealthy oils, because schools aren’t required to source organic potatoes, those fries will come from potatoes drenched in a toxic soup of pesticides.

Colin Schwartz, deputy director of legislative affairs for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, told the Washington Post that the proposed rules, if finalized, “would create a huge loophole in school nutrition guidelines, paving the way for children to choose pizza, burgers, french fries and other foods high in calories, saturated fat or sodium in place of balanced school meals every day.”

In other words, the USDA proposes to undermine kids’ health by feeding them junk foods linked to childhood obesity and chronic disease.

Some 30 million children participate in the National School Lunch Program, and 22 million are from low-income families. Lowering the nutritional standards for school meals could have disastrous implications for those kids.

The food low-income children eat at school is often their only chance for a healthy meal. That’s why we think the USDA should be raising the standards for school meals, not lowering them. School breakfasts and lunches should include more healthy organic foods that are pesticide-free—not more processed junk food."

[onawah]

House to vote on disapproval resolution of Medicaid block grants
From Action Network email update today 2/4/20
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/...om-trumps-cuts

"Donald Trump isn’t waiting for Congress anymore. He’s doing an end-run on Congress and unilaterally trying to destroy Medicaid through a system of “block granting.”

Under this awful policy, states would receive a fixed amount toward Medicaid, regardless of their health care spending. This is nothing more than a continuation of a long-term Republican goal: cutting health care spending everywhere they can, regardless of who is harmed. Now, they are trying to do administratively what Trumpcare failed to do legislatively.

Together, we are going to stop him.

Sign the petition: Don’t let Donald Trump destroy Medicaid with block grant cuts! Tell Congress to reject Trump’s plan to cut long-term care.
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/...om-trumps-cuts
For people with disabilities, seniors who need long-term care, children, and others who receive Medicaid coverage, ending Medicaid’s coverage guarantee state-by-state is unacceptable and dangerous.

In short, Trump’s “block grant” scheme would cut Medicaid funding. And that would lead to long-term care budget cuts, forcing seniors from nursing homes and causing their health to suffer.

Thankfully, Democrats are pushing back. And we are going to stand with them.

In the coming days, the House of Representatives will vote on a resolution that will reject Trump’s block grant plan.
The Hill writes:

“The controversial Medicaid plan will let states apply for a waiver to scale back Medicaid spending by converting part of their Medicaid funding into a block grant.

Democrats have been arguing the administration doesn’t have the authority to approve such drastic changes, and Medicaid advocates argue the changes would hurt low-income people and invite states to cut costs and reduce coverage.”

The Affordable Care Act, while not perfect, has expanded Medicaid in 37 states so far, leading to millions more people gaining access to health care. Trump’s decision to go the opposite direction is spiteful and dangerous.

Having failed in Congress to take away more people’s health care by enacting Trumpcare, Trump is planning to wreck Medicaid on his own, bypassing Congress with a presidential order.

If we had Medicare for All, every single American would finally be able to receive health care. Period. But until we get there, we must defend what we have. Together, we must fight against Trump’s scheme to cut Medicaid by allowing block grants to erode Medicaid’s vital coverage.

Sign the petition: Don’t let Donald Trump destroy Medicaid!" https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/...om-trumps-cuts

Thank you for your support,

Michael Phelan
Social Security Works

[Bluegreen]

We have reached a new nadir of national embarrassment

[Sarah Rainsong]

Yep. I woke up to these two headlines:

CBS News: Trump Snubs Pelosi Handshake
CNN: Nancy Pelosi Rips Up Trump's State of the Union Speech

National embarrassment is right.

Maybe this November we should add the role of 'Official Capitol Hill Babysitter' to the ballot.

#sarcasm #disgusted

[frankstien]

[Ba-ba-Ra]

Regarding those that are reporting that Trump snubbed Pelosi's handshake:

I went back and watched it several times. He was already turning away from her when she held out her hand. Did he see it? I'm not sure, but in my mind, there is a good chance he didn't. Decide for yourself. OTOH, Pelosi was mumbling to herself and to Pence (who ignored her) throughout the speech, as well as making faces that were inappropriate. Her tearing of the speech was quite dramatic. Some believe it was to shift the speaking points from: What a great speech" to upstaging him by her actions.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=LPlvYeEfceU