Good Day to all the Gnus in Gnuville!
I mentioned in yesterday’s GNR comments that my son was defending his PhD dissertation yesterday. Today I have an update — he passed! I can now honestly go around saying “My son, the “doctor”!” 😁
Anyway, yesterday was a super busy day with the defense in the morning and then I was babysitting my grandchild in the afternoon. SO much fun yesterday!
There is SO MUCH good news right now that I literally cannot get it all organized into this GNR with the time I have left so I am going to ask YOU, dear gnusies, to bring bunches of good news in the comments today.
Now, without further ado, let’s get to the news I’ve been able to gather before I run out of time! Oh, and some music, too, of course!!
News from Congress
I’ll begin with a lengthy quote from the (free, public) email newsletter from Punchbowl News. (btw, gnusies, it’s a worthwhile thing to sign up for — even though they lean toward the tired “Dems in disarray” narrative that all the media loves, this group seems to geta lot of inside scoops and has some pretty smart analysis. And they even manage to give Dems some credit from time to time! You can get the newsletter in your email at this link):
BBB progress report
(Nifty note: it occurs to me that people may have ol’ JoeM figured wrong — for instance, he has expressed concern about the time/fund-limited status of some of the provisions of the BBB and it is assumed that’s because he wants them OUT. But maybe it’s not that? I mean, maybe he is actually holding out for MORE in the BBB not less! Those safety net and family friendly items would be GREAT for WV. Maybe he wants those things permanently funded! Possibly? A girl can dream, anyway!☺️):
Internally here at Punchbowl News, we go back and forth about whether it’s possible for the Senate to pass the Build Back Better Act by year end. It’s certainly possible, but just too close to call at this point. Everything depends on Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.).
Still, we thought it might be helpful to lay out what needs to happen in order for the Senate to get the BBB through in the next 11 days -- which is Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s deadline.
First, let’s start with this: Every single day we hear about new disagreements and hurdles in the BBB process. Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), said in the Capitol Monday that there are more than 20 issues that he is “litigating” with the parliamentarian -- that’s a lot, in case you were wondering. We still haven’t gotten a final judgement on the immigration provisions. Separately, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) continue to disagree on the SALT tax cap. This would all have to be settled in order to move forward.
Manchin still sounds skeptical about getting a bill this year. On Monday, Manchin said he’s still “engaged” in talks and plans to speak with PresidentJoe Biden again this week. He said anything is possible when asked if something can get passed this month. And, indeed, we guess that’s true!
If Senate Democrats want to move to the floor next week -- Christmas week -- the parliamentarian needs to wrap up her review this week. Once the bill hits the floor, we expect approximately four days of legislative wrangling. So if we don’t see a bill on the floor by Tuesday -- a week from today -- passage before Christmas is unlikely.
Of course, the Senate could take off Christmas Eve and Christmas and come back the following week to wrap up before New Year’s Eve. There’s time for that to be done. Schumer has pushed his colleagues on the Child Tax Credit, which expires on Dec. 31. The House will be on recess and can be recalled quickly once the Senate passes a bill.
Joe Manchin (sigh): Call me a cock-eyed optimist, but I still think there’s a chance that Joe Manchin wants more in the BBB, not less. Anyway, I think he will vote yes in the end, whatever his reasons for “making a fuss” might be:
Opinion: With Joe Manchin, it’s never over until it’s over, Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post, December 14, 2021.
Let’s keep in mind a few things about Manchin. First, even when he’s agreed to a deal, he’s likely to make a fuss at the end. That’s precisely what happened with the American Rescue Plan. Recall that after a deal was supposedly reached, Democrats had to hold the vote open for hours to allow for even more haggling with Manchin, who in the end got a small tweak on unemployment benefits that hardly justified the delay. That is pure Manchin. The same hang-up occurred when Manchin initially said he would never back the original $3.5 trillion BBB bill, but then voted to move the process forward.
Second, Biden understands Manchin. When Psaki was asked whether the president was “bringing anything new to the negotiating table” on Monday, she delicately replied, “I wouldn’t see this as a negotiating table, as much as a conversation between two — two people who have been in public life for some time and have had good-faith discussions directly. And this is just a continuation of that.” Translation: Time must be spent, and Manchin must see himself as the hero of the deal and champion of the right flank of his party.
Third, Manchin, to date, has not submarined Biden’s agenda. While there is a first for everything, he would have a difficult time accepting blame for the failure of Biden’s presidency. His goal is likely to make this painful, not a failure.
Sen. Warnock: Sen. Warnock (D-GA 😊) is making the case for voting rights legislation working around the filibuster just as they just did for the debt ceiling. I think we can expect this sort of sensible pressure to continue and again — maybe I am too optimistic, but — I think Dems will get voting rights protections passed in the first 6 months of 2022:
Senator sees debt limit increase as model to pass voting legislation, Leigh Ann Caldwell, NBC, December 14, 2021.
“We think it’s so important that we change the rule in order to save the economy,” Warnock said in an interview in his office Tuesday afternoon. “Well, the warning lights on our democracy are blinking right now, and we seem unwilling to respond with the same urgency to protect the democracy that we have to protect the economy.”
Discontent is simmering among Democrats in Washington who have pushed for Congress to treat voting legislation with more urgency. Attempts to pass a bill in the Senate have been met with uniform Republican opposition, making it impossible to overcome the 60-vote filibuster threshold.
Warnock pointed to a one-time rule change the Senate passed last week that would allow an increase in the debt limit with a simple majority vote. He said the Senate was “hypocritical.”
...and just as I wrote that, I found this!
Judge appointed by TFG Dismisses TFG’s tax case
He’ll appeal, because he has to in his desperate attempt to hide his criminal activities, but it's looking like the possible escape route using the R packed courts is coming up to a dead end. That’s good news!
Trump tax records can be released by Treasury Department to House, judge rules, Spencer S. Hsu, Washington Post, December 14, 2021.
A federal judge on Tuesday rejected former president Donald Trump’s long-running effort to block the Treasury Department from turning over his tax records to the House Ways and Means Committee, but put the ruling on hold pending an expected appeal.
U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden, a former Trump Justice Department official appointed to the court in 2017, said even if the former president’s attorneys were correct that House Democrats wanted his records only to expose them for political gain, they were “wrong on the law.”
“A long line of Supreme Court cases requires great deference to facially valid congressional inquiries. Even the special solicitude accorded former Presidents does not alter the outcome. The Court will therefore dismiss this case,” McFadden wrote in a 45-page opinion.
The House Votes to Hold Meadows in contempt of congress
And….BOOM!
The 1/6 Committee means business and I expect the New Year will bring some justice fireworks raining down on the traitors and insurrectionists.
Related (though not from Congress)
Wow, the DC AG has been busy!
🎶 Music Break 🎶
💉 Health News 💉
Through science and innovation, we are going to beat this pandemic:
Pfizer confirms COVID pill’s results, potency versus omicron, Matthew Perrone, AP, December 14, 2021.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Pfizer said Tuesday that its experimental pill to treat COVID-19 appears effective against the omicron variant.
The company also said full results of its 2,250-person study confirmed the pill’s promising early results against the virus: The drug reduced combined hospitalizations and deaths by about 89% among high-risk adults when taken shortly after initial COVID-19 symptoms.
Separate laboratory testing shows the drug retains its potency against the omicron variant, the company announced, as many experts had predicted. Pfizer tested the antiviral drug against a man-made version of a key protein that omicron uses to reproduce itself.
In plant health news:
This might explain how fast cases are rising again with omicron
This study seems to point to a variant that is better at evading vaccines to infect people, but causes milder disease (or maybe the vaccine prevents more serious disease).
Data shows Pfizer's vaccine protects less against omicron but still cuts severe disease, Rachel Treisman, NPR, December 14, 2021.
A major new study out of South Africa shows that Pfizer's mRNA vaccine offered just 30% protection against infection by the omicron variant, compared to around 80% against the delta variant.
Researchers at Discovery Health, South Africa's largest private health insurer, and the South African Medical Research Council analyzed data from some 78,000 people likely infected with omicron, nearly half of whom had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
(While the Moderna shot isn't available in South Africa, NPR's Michaeleen Doucleff explains that "the two vaccines have behaved quite similarly against new variants, with the Moderna vaccine slightly more effective.")
Here's more on the study.
Its findings mean that the omicron variant, which appears to be highly transmissible, will likely lead to more breakthrough cases of COVID-19.
But there's some encouraging news, too. Two shots of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine were estimated to offer about 70% protection against COVID-related hospital admissions, which suggests the vaccine protects well against severe disease (including in older people and those with conditions like diabetes)
🌏🌍 International News 🌎🌏
New Australian plant could make 100 million vaccines a year, AP, December 14, 2021.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s government said Tuesday it plans to start making mRNA vaccines at home with a new plant that could produce up to 100 million doses each year. ✂️
The new factory would be built in Victoria state in a partnership between vaccine manufacturer Moderna and the federal and state governments. It is expected to open by 2024. ✂️
“The mRNA vaccines have proven to be, I’d argue, the biggest scientific discovery over the course of this pandemic,” Morrison said. “And that means that they are a massive part of the future of vaccines, not just here in this country but all around the world.”
Morrison said the plant would produce vaccines for potential future pandemics and as well as seasonal health issues such as the flu. He said the locally produced vaccines could help not only Australia but also the Pacific region, which Australia has already been supplying.
EU plan for sweeping update of Big Tech rules gains momentum, Kelvin Chan, AP, December 14, 2021.
The rules, which have been the subject of fierce lobbying from the tech industry, look set for approval from lawmakers, though they still face tough negotiations next year with EU bodies. The regulations, and similar ones in the United Kingdom to curb harmful online content, show Europe’s role as a pacesetter for regulating the tech industry as a global movement picks up pace following whistleblower Frances Haugen’s allegations that Facebook put profits ahead of safety.
One set of EU rules, the Digital Services Act, aims to make tech companies more responsible for content on their platforms. The lead committee working on the rules said Tuesday that it approved amendments before sending the draft to the full EU Parliament for a vote, expected in January. ✂️
The committee approved a ban on platforms using “dark patterns” — deceptive or nudge techniques to influence users to do things that they don’t intend to — as well as restrictions on targeting ads to children and requiring porn sites to register the identities of users uploading material.
After 70 Years, North And South Korea Agree ‘In Principle’ To Formally End War, Siladitya Ray, Forbes, December 13, 2021.
North and South Korea—along with the U.S. and China—have agreed “in principle” to officially declare an end to the Korean war after nearly seventy years since the end of hostilities, South Korean President Moon Jae-in announced on Monday, signaling a possible cooling of tensions after several months of an escalating arms race in the Korean peninsula.
🤞👀
🎶 More Music! 🎶
🇺🇸 News from States 🇺🇸
SOuth Dakota
If (like me) you were fuming over that cringe-worthy story about the “cash grab” gimmick at a hockey game in South Dakota — and the way its promoters unintentionally shone a spotlight on how terribly SD treats/pays its teachers — well, this nice follow up story is for you!
Organizers of the South Dakota teacher 'dash for cash' are apologizing and paying up, Rachel Treisman, NPR, December 14, 2021.
Organizers said all the money the teachers could grab would be used for their own classrooms and school programs, and had billed it as a way to help educators amidst the stressors of the pandemic.
Instead, as NPR's Bill Chappell reported, it drew widespread condemnation from critics and shone a national spotlight on South Dakota's low teacher pay.
The Stampede and CU Mortgage Direct, which donated the cash for the contest, are now offering teachers an apology and an additional $500 each.
"Although our intent was to provide a positive and fun experience for teachers, we can see how it appears to be degrading and insulting towards the participating teachers and the teaching profession as a whole," organizers said in a statement on Monday. "We deeply regret and apologize to all teachers for any embarrassment this may have caused."
✶✶✶✶ Chicago, Illinois ✶✶✶✶
I meant to include this story last week after it was announced but somehow I overlooked it. The Mayor announced this affordable housing initiative (partly paid for by the American Rescue Plan, — thank you, Joe Biden) which will fund new affordable housing projects in 24 different sites around the city. The best thing about this initiative is that it seeks to incorporate new, affordable rental housing into all kinds of neighborhoods. This is a thoughtful and exciting plan!
Taking a $1 billion step toward ending the affordable housing shortage, CST Editorial Board, Chicago Sun✶Times, December 12, 2021.
“We envision a city where every resident, no matter age, income, identity, ability, has the opportunities and the resources to lead comfortable lives in the communities they call home,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in announcing the program. ✂️
Besides, we like that a range of neighborhoods is included in the plan. Rather than continuing to stack affordable housing in only the poorest areas of the city, this plan reaches neighborhoods ranging from Lincoln Park, where a phase of the ongoing Lathrop Homes renovation will be funded, to Woodlawn, where the rehabilitation of the Island Terrace apartments at 64th Street and Stony Island Avenue is near the Obama Presidential Center site.
As part of the initiative, the city is buying a vacant 6 acre site at 18th and Peoria streets in rapidly gentrifying Pilsen. The $12 million purchase would allow the city to turn the land over to a developer who could build as many as 280 affordable homes there, subject to zoning.
This approach of bringing affordable housing to as many neighborhoods as possible reinforces the fact that these homes are an asset, rather than an afterthought.
🐩💙 CG’s Picks 💙🐩
Hello, Everybody — it’s me, Curlygirl! Mama says I can share some more fun things about animals with you today. This first story is about a very brave zookeeper who brushed a h-h-hippopotamus’s teeth with a humungous toothbrush! Mama says it is NOT a grizzly bear (even though grizzly bears like to get in water, too, and I am a little worried), but hippos ARE pretty dangerous, like grizzly bears. That is why I think the zookeeper is very brave! Mama says the hippo is nearly as well-behaved as I am when I get my teeth brushed! (I don’t think so, because the hippo is not crunching on the brush to help like I do! But I won’t argue with a hippo!):
Ever wondered how a hippo gets its teeth cleaned? It's even cuter than you might think. Heather Wake, Upworthy, December 2021.
Fun fact: Hippos can have anywhere from 38-44 teeth. That means up to 44 chances of a cavity. And with the daily servings of healthy fruits and vegetables that they receive at the zoo, odds are something is gonna get stuck.
Funner fact: Hippo teeth cleanings are a thing.
While there is no shortage of amazing animal videos out there, this one of a hippo getting his smile maintained is certainly giving us something to smile about today, too.
Do you have any squirrels around where you live? We have lots here in the city and this next video is about a squirrel who had a scary accident when he was a baby but some nice humans helped him and then they made him a treehouse and now he has a great life!
I was thinking that hardly anyone ever posts any stories about birds and maybe Rascal feels a bit sad about that, so here is a story for Rascal!
I haven’t got a story about a cat today but I do have a picture of the bonded pair I have shown you before! Here they are taking a nap and the big one has his face pushed right into the little one’s fur and they are both sound asleep! Those two are always like this! Always tucked up together for a snooze!
⚡️ Lightning RoundUp ⚡️
⚡️ Yer Wonkette: Mark Meadows Aims To Shoot Self In D*ck, Takes Out Half Of Fox News In The Process, Liz Dye, Wonkette, December 14, 2021.
⚡️ Old Man Trump Is Looking Weaker and Weaker—Sad! Matt Lewis, Daily Beast, December 14, 2021.
⚡️ Even trimmed down, BBB’s a BFD: The state of the shrinking Build Back Better Act, Andrew Prokop, Vox, December 13, 2021.
⚡️ In which the author lets slip that Sinema is a “yes” on BBB: Manchin, You Won. Now Give Biden a Win, Too. Bill Scher, Washington Monthly, December 13, 2021.
⚡️ BBB could fight the patriarchy! Jobs for Men but Not for Women? Elizabeth Gregory, the Nation, December 14, 2021.
⚡️ One more: The Bogus Bashing of Build Back Better, Paul Krugman, New York Times, December 13, 2021.
⚡️ Yes please, and banks after that, thanks: Biden’s Next Agenda: Anti-monopoly, Paul Glastris, Washington Monthly, November/December 2021.
⚡️ A good life is painful, Sean Illing, Vox, December 13, 2021.
🎶 Even More Music 🎶
💗 How Can You Help Build Our Democracy Back Better? 💗
Put your beautiful bleeding liberal heart into it! 🥰
Democratic litigation hero, Marc Elias was the legal eagle behind the 60 Big Lie losses after the election. Here’s his website, Democracy Docket. You can find information about current cases he is fighting to defend voting rights around the country, as well as actions you can take to help fight voter suppression at the link!
Write to voters around the country with Postcards to Voters. Progressive Muse usually posts an update on current campaigns in the comments and you can also check out the website. It’s easy, fun and it really works to GOTV!
🎩 Also, Goody posted a great list of links and I am going to borrow it because it’s great! 🎩
The only way they can win is by keeping people from voting. They are working like heck to make that happen and we need to do all we can to keep 2022 from being a year when they grab the Senate and House back from us.
How do we do that? Fight voter suppression!
What can you do?
HERE’S HOW TO CONTACT CONGRESS:
U.S. House of Representatives:* Telephone: 202-225-3121
* Website: http://www.house.gov/
U.S. Senate:* Telephone: 202-224-3121
* Website: http://www.senate.gov/
Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:
Contact your Representative
Contact your Senator
And remember, all politics is local and personal! Let’s work to flip state and local elected positions Democratic!
Sister District Project — organization that is working to help Dems win state legislature races.
Finally, whenever you feel your hope fading, read this again:
The 3.5% rule: How a small minority can change the world — and recall that we are a majority.
Also check this out:
The Albert Einstein Institution’s 198 Methods of Non-Violent Action
There’s a multitude of people all over this country — in both so-called “red” states and “blue” — who feel just as strongly as you do about this world and its future. We can do this!
💙 RoundUp WindDown 💙
That’s it from me and the Curlygirly for another Wednesday. I’m looking forward to all the good news you all can share in the comments!
There’s just a little over two more weeks left in 2021 and then we get to do it all over again! argh! But seriously, I have the strongest hunch that 2022 is going to be a year full of surprises and probably a few more shocks and quite possibly some very good news for our country as I think the criminal cabal and the insurrectionists are going to face justice next year.
Chances are, it will be a wild ride, and I recommend that — apart from your regular duties — allow yourself to turn down the constant media noise, the worry and the anxiety. It’s OK to use these dwindling days of 2021 to recharge your batteries. All of the problems and all of the threats and all of your concerns will still be there in the New Year — along with (I expect) some concrete signs pointing to the good work that the 1/6 committee and the DOJ have been quietly doing.
So, take care of yourself and those you love. Do what needs to be done and let what can wait, wait — a few days can replenish your spirit and taking a rest won’t bring down the Republic. Eat nutritious food, get some rest and if at all possible, get outdoors and breathe in some of that fresh cooler air.
Curlygirl and I are grateful for all of you — we can’t think of a better gang of gnus to be sharing these interesting times with! Happy Wednesday!
🎶 Music for your Wednesday 🎶