Tired of ads? Want to support our progressive journalism? Click to learn more.LEARN MORE
Enjoy good journalism?
… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we here at Raw Story believe in the power of progressive journalism. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and legal efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. And unlike other news outlets, we’ve decided to make our original content free. But we need your support to do what we do.
Raw Story is independent. Unhinged from corporate overlords, we fight to ensure no one is forgotten.
We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click to donate by check.
Value Raw Story?
… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we believe in the power of progressive journalism — and we’re investing in investigative reporting as other publications give it the ax. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. We need your support to do what we do.
Raw Story is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us in the future. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.
  |  |
Report typos and corrections to: corrections@rawstory.com.
Senate Republicans left hanging with no idea how to handle Trump's second impeachment: report
January 16, 2021
On Saturday, POLITICO reported that Senate Republicans are going into the second impeachment trial of outgoing President Donald Trump without holding a conference or strategizing the issue at all.
"The Senate GOP has not spoken as a conference for more than two weeks now, since Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell asked Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who wasn't present, to explain his plans to challenge the election in a party conference call," reported Burgess Everett. "Since that Dec. 31 conversation, eight senators challenged the election results, the Capitol was overrun by pro-Donald Trump rioters and the president was impeached."
<p>"Now, as McConnell's conference prepares to enter minority status and faces another grueling impeachment trial, senators are largely being left without guidance from leadership over how to come down on Trump," said the report. "The conference, so divided now over the outgoing president, is being given space to breathe, according to three senators who spoke on the condition of anonymity."</p><p>McConnell himself has said that he <a href="https://www.rawstory.com/mitch-mcconnell-2649930163/" target="_blank">has not made up his mind</a> on impeachment yet. He has also refused to call an emergency session to hold the trial before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, effectively punting the matter to Democrats when they assume control of the Senate.</p><p>Trump was impeached on a single article of inciting insurrection, due to his role in encouraging the protests that turned into a violent invasion of the U.S. Capitol. 67 Senators would need to vote to convict President Donald Trump in order for there to be a vote against barring him from holding public office.</p>
CONTINUE READING
Show less
After Biden unveils COVID-19 relief plan, Rashida Tlaib doubles down on demand for $2,000 monthly payments
January 16, 2021
Joining a chorus of progressive critics disappointed by the direct payment provision of President-elect Joe Biden's new coronavirus pandemic relief plan, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib on Friday evening reiterated the need for two bills she has introduced that would aid Americans affected by the ongoing public health and economic crises.
Biden's $1.9 trillion proposal calls for $1,400 checks, the difference between the $600 that lawmakers agreed to in a recent relief package and the $2,000 sought by some Democrats for months. Though President Donald Trump backed boosting the checks on his way out the door, the increase failed to garner enough congressional support.
<p>
Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Cori Bush (D-Mo.)
<a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/15/2000-means-2000-ocasio-cortez-says-1400-payments-biden-plan-fall-short-promised" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">expressed</a> disappointment that Biden's plan doesn't include $2,000 checks. Tlaib (D-Mich.) joined in, tweeting: "That $600 is already in the clutches of landlords and bill collectors. Stop compromising the working class, and our most vulnerable neighbors."
</p><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" class="" data-tweet-id="1350215757410537475" frameborder="0" id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/index.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1350215757410537475&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawstory.com%2Fr%2Fentryeditor%2F2649960634%23&theme=light&widgetsVersion=ed20a2b%3A1601588405575&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 269px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="Twitter Tweet">
</iframe>
</div><p>
Tlaib also promoted two bills she introduced last session: the Automatic BOOST to Communities (ABC) and the Building Our Opportunities to Survive and Thrive (BOOST) acts. The former would provide $2,000 per month to eligible individuals during the Covid-19 crisis, then $1,000 monthly payments for the next year.
</p><p>
As a <em>Forbes</em> <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanguina/2020/04/22/stimulus-proposal-2000-payment-plus-1000-per-month-until-1-year-after-crisis-ends/?sh=67dc136a6fa5" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">report</a> about the ABC Act, shared on Friday by Tlaib, detailed:
</p><blockquote>
The payments would be made via direct deposit if the [U.S.] Treasury has the individual's banking information on file, unless the individual would prefer to have their payment made on an Interim BOOST Card (BOOST Card).<br/>
The BOOST Card would be a prepaid debit card that would not be subject to any fees, penalty charges, or usage restrictions. The full amount would be available for immediate withdrawal at any ATM in the country without any usage or withdrawal fees. Individuals who do not have banking information would receive their payments via a BOOST Card.</blockquote><p>
The Michigan Democrat officially <a href="https://tlaib.house.gov/media/press-releases/tlaib-jayapal-introduce-groundbreaking-bill-deliver-universal-recurring" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">introduced</a> the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/6553?" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ABC Act</a> in April 2020 with Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), after a few weeks of <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/21/two-1-trillion-coins-rashida-tlaib-proposal-calls-us-treasury-fund-coronavirus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">public discussion</a> about it. Jayapal, <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/11/09/exactly-what-we-want-see-overhaul-expected-strengthen-power-congressional" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">chair</a> of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is currently <a href="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/01/12/after-positive-covid-test-jayapal-demands-house-sergeant-arms-remove-gop-lawmakers" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">battling</a> Covid-19 after sheltering with maskless GOP lawmakers while pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol last week.
</p><p>
"We have to deliver $2,000 survival checks to the American people. Not anything less," Jayapal <a href="https://twitter.com/PramilaJayapal/status/1349845246029537282" target="_blank">tweeted</a> Thursday evening. She has stuck to that call throughout the pandemic:
</p><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" class="" data-tweet-id="1309904198679621633" frameborder="0" id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/index.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1309904198679621633&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawstory.com%2Fr%2Fentryeditor%2F2649960634%23&theme=light&widgetsVersion=ed20a2b%3A1601588405575&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 602px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="Twitter Tweet"></iframe></div><p>Tlaib on Friday also highlighted the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/3590" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">BOOST Act</a>, which she and Jayapal <a href="https://tlaib.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-tlaib-colleagues-introduce-anti-poverty-legislation-helping-218-million" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">introduced</a> in June 2019—months before the pandemic—with Reps. Jesús "Chuy" García (D-Ill.), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas), and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.). That bill would provide a Middle-Class Tax Credit of up to $3,000 annually for a single taxpayer and up to $6,000 annually for married couples, families, and joint filers.</p><p><a href="https://tlaib.house.gov/issues/boost-act" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">According to </a>a page of Tlaib's congressional website dedicated to the BOOST Act:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Individuals can receive up to $250 per month.</li><li>Families can receive up to $500 per month.</li><li>The credit is refundable, meaning that taxpayers who qualify for it can get it even if they owe no taxes. Filers with no income are still eligible for the credit.</li><li>Can be claimed by single filers making wages up to $49,999.</li><li>Families making wages up to $99,999 are eligible.</li></ul><p>When the bill was introduced, long before the economic devastation of the pandemic, Adam Reuben, director of the Economic Security Project, said that "while Americans work hard—whether it's a full-time job, or caring for a sick family member—an outdated notion of who deserves help from our society means that too many still struggle to make ends meet."</p><p>"The BOOST Act would essentially provide a cost-of-living refund to those who need it most," he added, "so that in the richest country in the world, we can make sure that no one lives in poverty."</p><p>With millions of Americans now out of work because of the public health crisis, and struggling to keep food on the table and a roof ever their heads, the need for relief is even greater. As Pressley <a href="https://twitter.com/AyannaPressley/status/1350159028563881984" target="_blank">put it</a> in a tweet Friday afternoon: "The people deserve, demand, and require $2,000 recurring monthly survival checks."</p> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>
CONTINUE READING
Show less
'Done with this guy': Trump's Capitol riot set off a war among Breitbart staffers over support for president
January 16, 2021
According to a report from the Daily Beast's Will Sommer, support for Donald Trump at conservative Breitbart.com plummeted as right-wing extremists stormed the Capitol and threatened lawmakers at the president's urging on January 6th.
According to Slack chats, one editor -- while arguing with other staffers -- reached her limit and wrote, "Destroy Trump."
As Sommer explained, the internal messages at Breitbart revealed many who were extremely angry at the scenes of the rioters tearing up the building and battling with Capitol police -- believing it undermined every achievement of the Trump administration -- while others tried to make excuses that the president was not to blame even though he suggested they march on the lawmakers as they certified the Electoral College votes.
On the morning after the assault, international news editor Frances Martel wrote to her colleagues, "I am just not feeling charitable AT ALL. Destroy Trump."
Martel then added, "He set us back like 10 years. We have worked so hard to promote our values, values that made him president when he hawked them, and now he does this, leaving everything in shambles? Nah, destroy him. Let it be a lesson to every other 'populist.'"
Breitbart columnist John Nolte attempted to make the case that the president wasn't to blame, writing, "Trump explicitly asked people to be peaceful and respectful yesterday, and then almost immediately called for the violence to stop," but Martel wasn't having it.
"Dude told rioters 'We love you, you're special,'" Martel messaged back. "Done with this guy, get him outta there with the stage cane."
Senior editor-at-large Rebecca Mansour also chimed in and referenced the death of Trump supporter Ashli Babbitt, by writing, "I do blame Trump for all of this. Her death is on him as far I'm concerned."
According to Sommer, the break with Trump was stunning.
"Breitbart, like other outlets closely tied to Trump, has shied away from ever directly criticizing him, especially for his election-fraud lies and heated rhetoric leading up to the deadly riot. But the internal chat messages demonstrate that anger over the outgoing president's role in inciting the MAGA mob has reached even the Trumpiest strongholds of right-wing media," he wrote.
You can read more here (subscription required)
Trending
Latest
Videos
Copyright © 2021 Raw Story Media, Inc. PO Box 21050, Washington, D.C. 20009 | Masthead | Privacy Policy | For corrections or concerns, please email corrections@rawstory.com.