Make them sweat it
And proving we're different
Hey, did you know the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump is happening right now, as I type this and you read it? True story!
During both the OJ Simpson trial and Clinton impeachment hearings, it seemed as if the entire world was watching; it felt as if the Earth reoriented its core to spin around those courthouses. Two decades later, it couldn’t be more different. In the midst of just the third impeachment trial in US history, news headlines are focused more on the next election than the high crimes of the current president; now, the trial is largely something to play in the background at work before we get home and watch Netflix.
Even many senators can’t be bothered to hang out in the chambers during the impeachment hearings, and they’re supposed to be the jury. And therein lies the problem.
We now exist in a snake-eating-its-tail reality. We know Republicans will vote to acquit Trump, so we don’t bother paying attention; and because we’re not paying attention, Republican senators aren’t sweating their inevitable vote for acquittal. That they will be aiding and abetting the destruction of democracy is clearly beside the point. I mean, look at the absurdity of the quote below, which was said with zero irony and maximum cynicism:
For the record, here’s what Barrasso was complaining about, if you can believe it (and I’m sure you can):
Schiff delivered a dramatic, profound, and important speech… and absolutely nothing will come of it. That’s been predetermined. And without any real stakes involved, the impeachment trial is covered like any other political event. Cable news and newspapers frame it as a partisan bickering match, painting a distorted portrait of Democrats and Republicans as equally childish and irresponsible. But we know that’s not true.
The Progressives Everywhere project isn’t just about getting Democrats elected — the real goal is electing Democrats who will pass laws that will make the lives of working people tangibly better. The policies advanced by the two parties (especially when Democrats are being pushed by activists) have never been more different. Just look at a sampling of this week’s headlines:
Democrats in New Jersey passed legislation mandating that workers receive severance pay if they are fired as part of a mass layoff. It’s the first law of its kind, inspired by the mass layoffs that occurred when Toys ‘R’ Us shut down in 2018 and left 31,000 employees — including 2,000 in NJ — shit out of luck.
The law (S3170) requires that New Jersey employers with at least 100 employees provide their workers 90 days notice — up from 60 — before a large layoff or a plant closing or transfer that will put at least 50 people out of work. It would also force these businesses to pay their workers one week’s severance for every year of service. The payout increases by an additional four weeks if the employer doesn’t comply with the 90-day notification rules.
As private equity companies continue to buy, gut, and toss away the corpses of functioning businesses nationwide, this is a small but important counterbalance for workers. In the coming years, I can see it becoming a priority for activists in blue states, as well as the sort of policy that could be used as a cudgel against Republicans — remember, Trump won in a number of Midwestern states by promising (lying) that he’d bring back the sort of factory and retail jobs that were gutted by companies moving overseas and closing down factories and outlets.
Republicans in Kentucky moved one step closer to passing a more arduous voter ID law, which conveniently serves as a way to blunt the impact of new Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s large-scale restoration of voting rights. Thankfully, progressive (but technically non-partisan) experts there were able to amend parts of the new law to remove some of the more draconian elements. If you click through one of the tweets below, you’ll get a fuller picture of what’s now in that Kentucky bill.
Democrats in Virginia are moving closer to passing a large package of gun control laws, which would deliver on one of the campaign promises that helped the party flip both houses of the state legislature.
On Wednesday, an ‘extreme risk protection order bill,’ known as the ‘red flag’ gun law, became the fourth piece of legislation that passed the Senate and will now move onto the House. Others include a one handgun a month bill, universal background checks and allowing localities to establish “gun free” zones.
Many other bills are still waiting their turn. On Friday, 12 more will be heard.
One of them would require people to report a lost or stolen firearm to police within 24 hours of realizing it’s gone. Another would ban guns at preschools and daycare centers. Senate Bill 13 would ban guns on Capitol Square permanently.
Good on them for listening to voters, not the cosplaying GI Joe lunatics who marched around Richmond on Monday.
Republicans in Ohio continue their pernicious voter purge, which has erroneously tossed thousands of active voters. The Ohio ACLU is pushing a ballot initiative that would create automatic voter registration in the state, which if passed would help ameliorate this awful situation (assuming the GOP actually plays fair ).
Coming up on Progressives Everywhere: This weekend, I’ll have look at upcoming primary battles in New York congressional races. In the weeks to follow, we’ll be running interviews with North Carolina legislative candidates, highlighting new additions to the candidate listing database (working on Ohio and Georgia right now), debuting a new homepage, and offering deep dives into a number of important issues. Plus more!