thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--Census Bureau’s Plans To Go Digital Raise Concerns Of Iowa-Like Breakdown

Just ask the organizers of the Iowa caucuses , which offered a cautionary tale on the technological woes that could befall a big political event .
Some observers worry that this year ’ s census carries the same potential for mayhem — except on an infinitely larger scale .
The U.S. Census Bureau plans to try out a lot of new technology .
It ’ s the first once-a-decade census in which most people are being encouraged to answer questions via the internet .
Later in the process , census workers who knock on the doors of homes that have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new mobile app to relay answers .
“ I must tell you , the Iowa ( caucus ) debacle comes to mind when I think of the census going digital , ” Eleanor Holmes Norton , the congressional delegate for the District of Columbia , said this week at a hearing on the census .
Cybersecurity is another worry .
Experts consider the census to be an attractive target for anyone seeking to sow chaos and undermine confidence in the U.S. government , as Russia did in the 2016 presidential election .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The agency promises that responses to the questionnaire will be kept confidential through encryption , and that it ’ s working with the Department of Homeland Security and private-sector security experts to thwart cyber attacks .
To hinder illegitimate responses , the bureau is blocking foreign IP addresses and stopping bots from filling out fake responses , among many other measures .
The bureau says it has developed two secure data-collection systems , so that if one goes down , the other can substitute .
Other mechanisms are in place to prevent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
For the past three years , the Government Accountability Office has placed the census on its list of high-risk programs , mainly because it is relying on technology that has not been used before .
Just last week , census officials decided to use a backup data-collection system for handling the online responses .
That step was taken after officials grew concerned that the primary system , developed by a third-party contractor , would not be able to handle excessive traffic .
The primary system experienced performance problems when up to 400,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time .
The backup system , called Primus , was developed in-house and can handle up to 600,000 users at once .
But it was never tested during a test-run for the decennial census in Rhode Island two years ago .
“ Late design changes such as a shift from one system to another can introduce new risks during a critical moment , ” Nick Marinos , the GAO ’ s director of information technology , testified this week at the congressional hearing .
“ The bureau needs to quickly ensure that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are finalized to reflect this change and fully tested before going live.
” Then there ’ s the mobile app for census takers who will be sent out to visit the homes of residents who have not filled out the forms by May .
Bureau officials are still working to find out why the app sometimes needs to be restarted or reinstalled for it to work properly , according to a GAO report released this week .
The Census Bureau has not finalized its backup plans for the online questionnaire system .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the bureau still had to do 191 corrective actions for cybersecurity that were considered “ high risk ” or “ very high risk , ” the GAO said .
In the same report , the inspector general said the bureau did not securely use commercial cloud services during census preparations and found many security deficiencies that indicated the agency was “ behind schedule and rushed to deploy its systems ” for the Rhode Island test-run .
In Iowa , fewer than 200,000 voters picked a candidate .
The census will be conducted on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to count residents in almost 130 million households with the help of 52 IT systems .
The nationwide headcount has been touted as the largest peacetime operation the government undertakes .
An accurate count is crucial for determining how many congressional seats each state gets and the distribution of $ 1.5 trillion in federal spending .
Respondents who do not want to answer the questionnaire online can do so by telephone or by mailing in a paper form .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The stakes are high when a major civic exercise involves a large population, new technology that has not been thoroughly tested and an entire country waiting on the results.
Just ask the organizers of the Iowa caucuses, which offered a cautionary tale on the technological woes that could befall a big political event. Some observers worry that this year’s census carries the same potential for mayhem — except on an infinitely larger scale.
Advertisement
The U.S. Census Bureau plans to try out a lot of new technology. It’s the first once-a-decade census in which most people are being encouraged to answer questions via the internet. Later in the process, census workers who knock on the doors of homes that have not responded will use smartphones and a new mobile app to relay answers.
A government watchdog agency, the Census Bureau’s inspector general and some lawmakers have grown concerned about whether the systems are ready for prime time. Most U.S. residents can start answering the questionnaire in March.
“I must tell you, the Iowa (caucus) debacle comes to mind when I think of the census going digital,” Eleanor Holmes Norton, the congressional delegate for the District of Columbia, said this week at a hearing on the census.
Cybersecurity is another worry. Experts consider the census to be an attractive target for anyone seeking to sow chaos and undermine confidence in the U.S. government, as Russia did in the 2016 presidential election.
Advertisement
In a worst-case scenario, vital records could be deleted or polluted with junk data. Even a lesser assault that interfered with online data collection could erode public confidence. In 2016, a denial-of-service attack knocked Australia’s online census offline, flooding it with junk data.
The Census Bureau says it’s ready. The agency promises that responses to the questionnaire will be kept confidential through encryption, and that it’s working with the Department of Homeland Security and private-sector security experts to thwart cyber attacks. To hinder illegitimate responses, the bureau is blocking foreign IP addresses and stopping bots from filling out fake responses, among many other measures.
The bureau says it has developed two secure data-collection systems, so that if one goes down, the other can substitute. Other mechanisms are in place to prevent failure and to back up essential functions.
“All systems are go,” bureau Director Steven Dillingham said.
For the past three years, the Government Accountability Office has placed the census on its list of high-risk programs, mainly because it is relying on technology that has not been used before.
Just last week, census officials decided to use a backup data-collection system for handling the online responses. That step was taken after officials grew concerned that the primary system, developed by a third-party contractor, would not be able to handle excessive traffic. The primary system experienced performance problems when up to 400,000 people were answering questions at the same time.
Advertisement
The backup system, called Primus, was developed in-house and can handle up to 600,000 users at once. But it was never tested during a test-run for the decennial census in Rhode Island two years ago.
“Late design changes such as a shift from one system to another can introduce new risks during a critical moment,” Nick Marinos, the GAO’s director of information technology, testified this week at the congressional hearing. “The bureau needs to quickly ensure that the system is ready and that contingency plans are finalized to reflect this change and fully tested before going live.”
Then there’s the mobile app for census takers who will be sent out to visit the homes of residents who have not filled out the forms by May. Bureau officials are still working to find out why the app sometimes needs to be restarted or reinstalled for it to work properly, according to a GAO report released this week.
In Iowa, a newly developed smartphone app was blamed for delaying the reporting of results from the first-in-the-nation presidential contest .
The Census Bureau has not finalized its backup plans for the online questionnaire system. As of the end of last year, the bureau still had to do 191 corrective actions for cybersecurity that were considered “high risk” or “very high risk,” the GAO said.
Advertisement
Last summer, the bureau’s Office of Inspector General identified several weaknesses in the agency’s backup planning efforts, including the ability to recover data stored in the cloud in the event of a large-scale attack or disaster.
In the same report, the inspector general said the bureau did not securely use commercial cloud services during census preparations and found many security deficiencies that indicated the agency was “behind schedule and rushed to deploy its systems” for the Rhode Island test-run.
The inspector general currently is conducting another audit of the bureau’s information-technology security, but there’s no word on when it will be finished, said Robert Johnston, the agency’s chief of staff.
In Iowa, fewer than 200,000 voters picked a candidate. The census will be conducted on a much grander scale as it attempts to count residents in almost 130 million households with the help of 52 IT systems. The nationwide headcount has been touted as the largest peacetime operation the government undertakes.
An accurate count is crucial for determining how many congressional seats each state gets and the distribution of $1.5 trillion in federal spending. Respondents who do not want to answer the questionnaire online can do so by telephone or by mailing in a paper form.
Advertisement
Dillingham told lawmakers that the concerns raised by the inspector general had been remedied. The Census Bureau is prepared to distribute millions of paper forms in the event a catastrophe prevents people from responding online, bureau officials added.
“We can recover data if we had a breach,” said Albert Fontenot, an associate director at the bureau. “At the worst case, we would send someone out to re-collect that data.”
___


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--The Case Against A 'Medicare For All' Litmus Test, Courtesy of Ocasio-Cortez

Ocasio-Cortez wasn ’ t tempering her endorsement of Sanders or suggesting he back off Medicare for All .
On the contrary , she made it clear ― both in the original quote and later on Twitter ― that one reason she supports Sanders is that he campaigns on his ideals , pushing the boundaries of debate as far as he can .
Two Different Ways Of Shifting The ‘ Overton Window ’ Few believe Medicare for All has or will soon have the support it needs in Congress to pass .
When Sanders re-introduced his legislation in 2017 , it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them have already backed off the bill in one way or another .
When Rep. Pramila Jayapal ( D-Wash. ) re-introduced her version of Medicare for All last year , it had just 107 co-sponsors , 25 fewer than it had the year before .
That ’ s an argument for demanding it upfront and negotiating only as a last resort ― especially when the candidate is somebody like Sanders , who makes the case with such clarity and conviction .
Watching Sanders win over potentially skeptical audiences , like he did at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hall , makes it easy to imagine how his pitch could be an asset in an election .
Arguments Over Ends vs .
Arguments Over Means Reasonable people can disagree about which argument is more persuasive , or where an ideal middle ground between the extremes lies .
But too often in the past few years , and especially during the presidential campaign , this strategic debate has turned into a moral one , with supporters of Medicare for All describing dissenters as sellouts to corporate interests or indifferent to the people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ didn ’ t achieve full universal coverage .
To be clear , there are real differences among the candidates and among the Democrats more generally when it comes to health care .
Medicare for All has been Sanders ’ lifelong cause and is , by all accounts , an expression of his deeply held beliefs on equality .
It ’ s difficult , maybe impossible to find a lawmaker more dedicated to the cause .
Biden , by contrast , has never made health care a priority .
And though it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plight of people without insurance , he was among the Obama administration officials in 2009 urging the president to hold off on health care reform for at least a year because it was so politically perilous and the economy needed more attention .
But other Democrats who have taken grief for their positions on health care may be getting an unfair rap .
The most obvious example is Sen. Elizabeth Warren ( D-Mass . )
, who eventually landed on what amounts to a three-step plan : Executive action to bring down drug @ @ @ @ @ @ @ create a generous public option and improve coverage under the Affordable Care Act , and then trying to pass full Medicare for All legislation two years later .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) got lots of attention Thursday with a statement she made to HuffPost’s Matt Fuller.
It was about “Medicare for All,” which has become a defining issue in the Democratic presidential campaign, and whether Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Medicare for All’s best-known champion and Ocasio-Cortez’s first choice for 2020 Democratic nominee, could actually get such a plan through Congress.
Advertisement
“A president can’t wave a magic wand and pass any legislation they want,” Ocasio-Cortez warned, acknowledging the political obstacles such a proposal would inevitably encounter. “The worst-case scenario? We compromise deeply, and we end up getting a public option. Is that a nightmare? I don’t think so.”
Ocasio-Cortez wasn’t tempering her endorsement of Sanders or suggesting he back off Medicare for All. On the contrary, she made it clear ― both in the original quote and later on Twitter ― that one reason she supports Sanders is that he campaigns on his ideals, pushing the boundaries of debate as far as he can.
But Ocasio-Cortez was also recognizing that, at least in the near term, Congress is unlikely to pass anything as ambitious as Medicare for All ― and that more incremental progress could still be worthwhile.
She makes a good point, one Democratic voters ought to keep in mind.
Two Different Ways Of Shifting The ‘Overton Window’
Few believe Medicare for All has or will soon have the support it needs in Congress to pass. When Sanders re-introduced his legislation in 2017, it had just 16 co-sponsors and some of them have already backed off the bill in one way or another. When Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) re-introduced her version of Medicare for All last year, it had just 107 co-sponsors, 25 fewer than it had the year before.
Advertisement
That’s not a knock on either Sanders or Jayapal, or Democrats like Ocasio-Cortez, who through their tireless advocacy have moved Medicare for All into the mainstream debate ― or, more precisely, moved the mainstream debate so that it now includes Medicare for All.
It’s a classic example of shifting what’s known as the “Overton Window” ― which means, roughly, the range of ideas that are part of the political conversation ― and it’s precisely why progressives like Ocasio-Cortez think it’s so important to start with maximal demands, rather than start “negotiating with ourselves,” as she told Fuller.
“I think that a president that is more ambitious than Congress is what we need, not less ambitious,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
Progressives make this argument frequently, and there’s a lot to it.
But there’s also a counter-argument, which is that maximalist demands can drive away would-be supporters and voters, rendering strategic decisions about negotiating posture moot because officials never get elected and, as a result, never get to the bargaining table in the first place.
“Demanding the ideal and settling for an adequate compromise sometimes works,” Mark Schmitt, director of the New America Foundation’s political reform program, wrote Thursday. “But sometimes it just makes you irrelevant, or alienates those who’ve been attacked, or costs elections.”
Advertisement
On health care in the 2020 cycle, there’s a case for either approach. Medicare for All fires up supporters, is simple to explain, and promises tangible, meaningful benefits even to people who have insurance already.
That’s an argument for demanding it upfront and negotiating only as a last resort ― especially when the candidate is somebody like Sanders, who makes the case with such clarity and conviction. Watching Sanders win over potentially skeptical audiences, like he did at last year’s Fox News town hall, makes it easy to imagine how his pitch could be an asset in an election.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y) says Medicare for All may not have the votes to pass right away, but pushing for it, as Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has, shifts the debate and would lead to a better compromise. Joe Raedle via Getty Images
But Medicare for All, which would replace existing insurance arrangements with a new government-run plan, can be a tough sell given that even Americans unhappy with the status quo get spooked by big changes ― and that faith in government remains as low as it’s been in a half-century.
Those sentiments may have already played a role in the 2018 midterms. A regression analysis by Emory University political scientist Alan Abramowitz found that House Democratic candidates “who supported Medicare for All performed worse than those who did not, even when controlling for other factors.”
Advertisement
If fears about Medicare for All are really that significant, that’s one argument for starting with a public option as a demonstration project of sorts, in order to get people more comfortable with the idea. Sometimes policy itself can shift the Overton window.
Arguments Over Ends vs. Arguments Over Means
Reasonable people can disagree about which argument is more persuasive, or where an ideal middle ground between the extremes lies. But too often in the past few years, and especially during the presidential campaign, this strategic debate has turned into a moral one, with supporters of Medicare for All describing dissenters as sellouts to corporate interests or indifferent to the people who would still suffer in a system that didn’t achieve full universal coverage.
Probably the most memorable instance of this was in July of last year, after Vice President Joe Biden laid out a health care plan that included a public option along with other reforms designed to make insurance and drugs more affordable.
Under the Biden plan, millions would get coverage, and many struggling with high costs would get significant financial help. But, by the campaign’s own estimates, it would still leave 15 million people without insurance.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) would introduce a public option and then, after two years, ask Congress to take up Medicare for All. Boston Globe via Getty Images
Advertisement
Progressive analyst Matt Bruenig did a back-of-the-envelope calculation, using some well-known data on links between insurance and mortality, and published an item (later republished in the socialist Jacobin) he titled, “Bidencare System Will Kill 125,000 Through Uninsurance.”
To be clear, there are real differences among the candidates and among the Democrats more generally when it comes to health care. Medicare for All has been Sanders’ lifelong cause and is, by all accounts, an expression of his deeply held beliefs on equality. It’s difficult, maybe impossible to find a lawmaker more dedicated to the cause.
Biden, by contrast, has never made health care a priority. And though it’s unlikely he’s indifferent to the plight of people without insurance, he was among the Obama administration officials in 2009 urging the president to hold off on health care reform for at least a year because it was so politically perilous and the economy needed more attention.
But other Democrats who have taken grief for their positions on health care may be getting an unfair rap. The most obvious example is Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who eventually landed on what amounts to a three-step plan: Executive action to bring down drug prices, pushing for legislation that would create a generous public option and improve coverage under the Affordable Care Act, and then trying to pass full Medicare for All legislation two years later.
Her approach has its pluses and minuses, all of them fair game for criticism. But one part that especially angered progressives ― her belief that full-blown Medicare for All can’t pass right away ― sounds an awful lot like what Ocasio-Cortez acknowledged as political reality on Thursday.
Advertisement
“We have a disagreement here, but we want to end up in the same place.” - Sen. Sherrod Brown, speaking to a Medicare for All supporter
And although it’s fair to wonder whether Warren would put more emphasis on other priorities, like fighting political corruption or making child care available to all working parents, that’s no reason to question her progressive bona fides, especially when she has a long record as one of the Democratic Party’s most progressive members ― by some metrics, even more so than Sanders.
An even better example may be a Democratic senator who thought about running for president and ultimately decided against it, but not before making clear he would not back Medicare for All. The senator is Sherrod Brown of Ohio who, like Sanders and Warren, has a strongly progressive record even though, unlike his New England counterparts, he represents a Midwestern, conservative-leaning state.
Nobody should question Brown’s commitment to the idea that health care should be a right. When Brown first got to Congress, he refused to accept the generous insurance available to lawmakers, saying it was his way of highlighting the plight of people without coverage. He finally started taking it in 2011, after the Affordable Care Act became law. But pushing Medicare for All now would be a “terrible mistake,” he said last year, because of its potential to spook those voters Democrats need to just win elections.
Maybe he’s right about that and maybe he isn’t. Strategic questions are rarely simple, especially when it comes to issues like health care on which the public has so many conflicting and half-informed opinions. But perhaps that also means it’s time to stop thinking of Medicare for All as a litmus test ― or, worse still, a moral one.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--Donald Trump Spins Twitter Users Out With Daytona 500 Lap Plan

Some people will do anything for attention , wo n't they ?
Sad .
Oh well ... that 's what @ @ @ @ @ reality tv fake billionaire con-man to head the country .
Patriots get condemned or arrested @ @ @ @ @ all his time doing dumb stuff to get attention .
pic.twitter.com/lnWcYxCtpZ

Some people will do anything for attention, won't they? Sad.
Oh well ... that's what we get for electing a reality tv fake billionaire con-man to head the country. Patriots get condemned or arrested, and the president spends all his time doing dumb stuff to get attention. pic.twitter.com/lnWcYxCtpZ


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--Chris Hayes Names Only Thing Standing Against ‘Authoritarian Decline’ Under Donald Trump

Chris Hayes on Friday night broke down what he believes is the only thing standing between the rule of law in America and “ a kind of authoritarian decline ” under President Donald Trump .
And that ― the host of MSNBC ’ s “ All In ” declared ― “ is us.
” “ It ’ s not any law anywhere and it ’ s certainly not the words as written in the Constitution , ” said Hayes , while picking apart the ongoing fallout surrounding Attorney General William Barr ’ s intervention in cases against Trump allies including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have , the institutions we have , those are all vitally important , but fundamentally we are what stands in the way , ” Hayes added .
The news anchor later noted how “ the restraint , the thing stopping the president from doing whatever he wants are people ” who mobilize , organize , call switchboards of Congress and resign from their roles as civil servants in protest .
“ Heck , people marching and protesting outside the Department of Justice if that ’ s what it takes , because the only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” he added .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Chris Hayes on Friday night broke down what he believes is the only thing standing between the rule of law in America and “a kind of authoritarian decline” under President Donald Trump.
And that ― the host of MSNBC’s “All In” declared ― “is us.”
“It’s not any law anywhere and it’s certainly not the words as written in the Constitution,” said Hayes, while picking apart the ongoing fallout surrounding Attorney General William Barr’s intervention in cases against Trump allies including Roger Stone.
Advertisement
“The laws we have, the institutions we have, those are all vitally important, but fundamentally we are what stands in the way,” Hayes added.
The news anchor later noted how “the restraint, the thing stopping the president from doing whatever he wants are people” who mobilize, organize, call switchboards of Congress and resign from their roles as civil servants in protest.
“Heck, people marching and protesting outside the Department of Justice if that’s what it takes, because the only thing to stop him is us,” he added.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--Sam Donaldson Makes Rare Democratic 2020 Presidential Endorsement

Sam Donaldson is all in for Michael Bloomberg .
The veteran ABC news anchor on Friday endorsed the billionaire media mogul ’ s run for president , telling CNN ’ s Anderson Cooper he believed Bloomberg was the “ best-suited ” Democratic candidate to take on Donald Trump in November .
Donaldson acknowledged how , as a working reporter in Washington for 52 years , he ’ d never given money to candidates or registered for a political party .
But times had changed and he now felt compelled to act because “ we are in the grip ” of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Donaldson explained .
“ He ’ s mean , he ’ s corrupt and if we don ’ t get this right , we may lose the things that have made this country the best place to live in the world and that shining city on the hill that Ronald Reagan used to talk about which was the envy of the world , ” he added .
Donaldson later dismissed concerns that Bloomberg was attempting to buy the presidency , saying he wouldn ’ t be “ beholden to anyone ” because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in , and played down the anger over the stop-and-frisk policing strategy that was used during Bloomberg ’ s time as New York mayor .
`` I think Mike Bloomberg is best-suited to take on Donald J .
Trump . ''
Fmr .
ABC News anchor Sam Donaldson explains his decision to support Bloomberg in 2020 , saying of Trump , `` We are in the grip , Anderson , of a sick , ignorant man .
`` https : //t.co/pLTZELMKX0 pic.twitter.com/0Qt0q2aKgp — Anderson Cooper 360° ( @ AC360 ) February 15 , @

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Sam Donaldson is all in for Michael Bloomberg.
The veteran ABC news anchor on Friday endorsed the billionaire media mogul’s run for president, telling CNN’s Anderson Cooper he believed Bloomberg was the “best-suited” Democratic candidate to take on Donald Trump in November.
Donaldson acknowledged how, as a working reporter in Washington for 52 years, he’d never given money to candidates or registered for a political party.
Advertisement
But times had changed and he now felt compelled to act because “we are in the grip” of a “sick, ignorant man,” Donaldson explained.
“He’s mean, he’s corrupt and if we don’t get this right, we may lose the things that have made this country the best place to live in the world and that shining city on the hill that Ronald Reagan used to talk about which was the envy of the world,” he added.
Donaldson later dismissed concerns that Bloomberg was attempting to buy the presidency, saying he wouldn’t be “beholden to anyone” because he’s putting his own money in, and played down the anger over the stop-and-frisk policing strategy that was used during Bloomberg’s time as New York mayor.
Check out the clip here:
"I think Mike Bloomberg is best-suited to take on Donald J. Trump."
Fmr. ABC News anchor Sam Donaldson explains his decision to support Bloomberg in 2020, saying of Trump, "We are in the grip, Anderson, of a sick, ignorant man."https://t.co/pLTZELMKX0 pic.twitter.com/0Qt0q2aKgp — Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) February 15, 2020


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--An Unusual New York City Election Tests Whether Global Warming Can Win A Local Race

Yet it ’ s that Mad Libs of modern politics that set Constantinides on his current course , which found him back in his old stomping grounds last week knocking on doors in the cold evening drizzle .
This time , he was selling something entirely different : himself , as the climate change-focused candidate seeking to be the new Queens borough president .
Climate populism is an unusual approach for this New York City post to which few outside party machine circles pay attention .
Largely a holdover from the late 1800s , when Manhattan , Brooklyn , Queens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first fused into one city , the position has long been a way to hand ascendant party power brokers an eight-figure budget to dole out and build a network of support while biding time until a more intriguing electoral slot comes along .
( Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is considered a top contender for New York City mayor next year , and Melinda Katz , the most recent Queens borough president , quit her post last year after winning the county ’ s nationally watched district attorney race . )
As the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ environmental committee , Constantinides styled himself as New York ’ s leading climate crusader .
Last year , he passed historic legislation , dubbed a “ Green New Deal for New York City , ” requiring energy-efficiency retrofits on large buildings , increasing renewable power on rooftops , and starting the process of closing the city ’ s two dozen oil- and gas-fired power stations .
Other bills , including one to replace the jail complex on Rikers Island with a solar farm and water treatment plant and another to create an entire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ projects , have yet to come up for a vote .
Yet he faces serious competition in a race that ’ s likely to see low turnout and geographical divisions the city ’ s most diverse and physically largest borough .
The eight other candidates who last month met the 2,000 signatures required to appear on the ballot include Councilman Donovan Richards , a real estate favorite with a strong base of support in climate-vulnerable southeastern Queens , and Elizabeth Crowley , a former councilwoman and cousin of former U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y. ) in 2018 .
Coupled with a broader set of proposals to expand disability access to public spaces and establish satellite offices with staff that speak the native languages of residents in immigrant neighborhoods , the platform echoes Washington Gov .
Jay Inslee ’ s ill-fated bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination .
The former candidate , who dropped out last summer after failing to get more than 1 % in national polls , ran as the race ’ s climate candidate , weaving progressive policy ideas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to drastically curb emissions by 2030 and transition the United States off fossil fuels .
Aside from the obvious differences between local and federal policymaking , Constantinides diverges from Inslee ’ s vision by prioritizing public utilities .
Whereas Inslee ’ s plan emphasized forcing private utilities off gas , oil and coal , Constantinides leans closer to Democratic frontrunner Bernie Sanders ( I-Vt. ) as the only candidate in the borough president race to embrace the public power plan New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America put forward .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the systems over which ConEdison and National Grid , two investor-owned utilities , enjoy regulated monopolies .
For starters , the special election is just the first of five times Queens voters are tasked with weighing in on the borough president , as The City reported in January .
After the March 24 ballots select a fill-in for Katz , voters of both major parties will return to the polls in June for a primary and again in November for a general election to complete the final year of Katz ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 2021 .
Next year , there will be another primary and another general election to choose a new borough president for a four-year term .
Yet Constantinides ’ remaining opponents are formidable .
One of the few public polls released in the race , from Crowley ’ s campaign , showed Crowley leading among 1,282 likely voters in the election and Constantinides trailing in fourth place .
And the party establishment is coalescing behind Richards , who is widely seen as the likely favorite to win next month .
In December , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Queens Democratic Party chieftain , endorsed Richards in a backroom meeting that both Constantinides and Van Bramer denounced as “ corrupt .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
RIDGEWOOD, N.Y. ― In a past life, during the halcyon days before hipsters colonized New York City’s outer boroughs, Costa Constantinides sold toys here in this working-class, immigrant neighborhood in central Queens.
It was a time when the city had more crime but fewer cars. Hometown slumlords weren’t in the White House, and a deadly superstorm hadn’t yet given New Yorkers a taste of the climate catastrophe that now looms.
Advertisement
Yet it’s that Mad Libs of modern politics that set Constantinides on his current course, which found him back in his old stomping grounds last week knocking on doors in the cold evening drizzle. This time, he was selling something entirely different: himself, as the climate change-focused candidate seeking to be the new Queens borough president.
After serving six years on the City Council representing his native Astoria, a middle-class Mediterranean enclave in western Queens, Constantinides wants to work for the entire borough of 2.3 million people ― a place that, on its own, would rank as the United States’ fourth-largest city, slightly behind Chicago and ahead of Houston.
The job of the borough president is generally viewed as a perch for political patronage, but Constantinides is pitching himself as the candidate who cares most about the climate crisis — an issue heretofore unheard of in the race for this relatively obscure seat.
“I’m running to completely transform this office and bring green jobs to Queens,” Constantinides, told 31-year-old Franklin Mendez, after knocking on the door of Mendez’s second-floor walkup. “We can take back control. We can build clean power here, and we can own it ourselves, not let ConEd own it.”
Advertisement
Climate populism is an unusual approach for this New York City post to which few outside party machine circles pay attention. Largely a holdover from the late 1800s, when Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island were first fused into one city, the position has long been a way to hand ascendant party power brokers an eight-figure budget to dole out and build a network of support while biding time until a more intriguing electoral slot comes along. (Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is considered a top contender for New York City mayor next year, and Melinda Katz, the most recent Queens borough president, quit her post last year after winning the county’s nationally watched district attorney race.)
The Unisphere fountain in Flushing Meadow Corona Park in Queens. JOHANNES EISELE via Getty Images
But borough presidents also oversee the community boards that control land-use and zoning policies, which can dictate developers’ fortunes and how the borough addresses its dire housing shortage, not to mention the planet-heating emissions that come from buildings.
It’s here that Constantinides has created a path for himself in the crowded March 24 special election.
As the head of the City Council’s environmental committee, Constantinides styled himself as New York’s leading climate crusader. Last year, he passed historic legislation, dubbed a “Green New Deal for New York City,” requiring energy-efficiency retrofits on large buildings, increasing renewable power on rooftops, and starting the process of closing the city’s two dozen oil- and gas-fired power stations. Other bills, including one to replace the jail complex on Rikers Island with a solar farm and water treatment plant and another to create an entire new city agency devoted to climate adaptation projects, have yet to come up for a vote.
Advertisement
His “Green New Queens” platform in the current race includes new programs with unions like IBEW Local 3 to train high school students in solar installation, doubling Queens’ green spaces by 2030, and appointing a new “resiliency czar” to serve as deputy borough president. He’s also promised to completely abandon the borough president’s personal car service and has backed a socialist campaign to municipalize the city’s electricity and gas utilities.
Other parts of the platform are already gaining traction. Constantinides’s proposal to give all five borough presidents voting appointees on Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s board, granting them more say over the city’s ailing subways and buses, was introduced as a bill in the state legislature in Albany last month.
“There’s a lot of power here,” Constantinides said in an interview. “Queens could be the fourth-largest city in the country yet we treat the borough president like it’s a ceremonial office, like they’re supposed to be a cheerleader. It should be a policy-heavy office.”
Yet he faces serious competition in a race that’s likely to see low turnout and geographical divisions the city’s most diverse and physically largest borough. The eight other candidates who last month met the 2,000 signatures required to appear on the ballot include Councilman Donovan Richards, a real estate favorite with a strong base of support in climate-vulnerable southeastern Queens, and Elizabeth Crowley, a former councilwoman and cousin of former U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley, the powerful party boss dethroned by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in 2018.
Echoes Of The Presidential Primary
The realities of climate change hit home in Queens in October 2012. Superstorm Sandy whipped Queens with winds of up to 85 miles per hour and inundated the coastal neighborhoods with surges up to 6.5 feet high, according to National Weather Service records. In total, 43 New Yorkers died in the city, including several Queens residents in the beachfront Rockaways who drowned in their homes.
Advertisement
Queens borough president candidate Costa Constantinides knocks doors in Ridgewood, Queens. Terence Cullen
By 2019, 79% of Queens residents understood climate change was happening, 87% wanted schools to teach more about global warming, and 77% said they prioritize environmental protection over economic growth, according to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication’s county-level polling. Perhaps more tellingly: 66% wanted local officials to do more about global warming.
During Katz’s final year as borough president, she budgeted $65 million for renovations, construction and other projects across the borough. That included $815,000 for a new boiler at the Queens Theatre, $1 million for affordable housing construction in the Jamaica neighborhood and $3 million for upgrades to a park playground in the Flushing area.
Constantinides is proposing to redirect much of that budget toward projects that would scale up solar, wind and battery power across Queens and invest in coastal projects that provide much-needed flood and storm protections.
Coupled with a broader set of proposals to expand disability access to public spaces and establish satellite offices with staff that speak the native languages of residents in immigrant neighborhoods, the platform echoes Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s ill-fated bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. The former candidate, who dropped out last summer after failing to get more than 1% in national polls, ran as the race’s climate candidate, weaving progressive policy ideas into a book-length stack of technocratic proposals to drastically curb emissions by 2030 and transition the United States off fossil fuels.
Advertisement
Aside from the obvious differences between local and federal policymaking, Constantinides diverges from Inslee’s vision by prioritizing public utilities. Whereas Inslee’s plan emphasized forcing private utilities off gas, oil and coal, Constantinides leans closer to Democratic frontrunner Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) as the only candidate in the borough president race to embrace the public power plan New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America put forward. The plan calls for a public takeover of the systems over which ConEdison and National Grid, two investor-owned utilities, enjoy regulated monopolies.
“Electricity is a human right meant for everyone — just like clean water and high-speed internet access,” Constantinides wrote in an op-ed last November. “We’ve lost too many generations to illness and poverty because utility companies have withheld this right to line their own pockets.”
Courting Support In A Weird Race
From the outset, Constantinides faced an uphill climb.
For starters, the special election is just the first of five times Queens voters are tasked with weighing in on the borough president, as The City reported in January. After the March 24 ballots select a fill-in for Katz, voters of both major parties will return to the polls in June for a primary and again in November for a general election to complete the final year of Katz’s term, which ends on Dec. 31, 2021. Next year, there will be another primary and another general election to choose a new borough president for a four-year term.
Winning the special election would give Constantinides an incumbent’s advantage in the races ahead. And he said he plans to stay for the long haul, ideally retaining the office through 2030, the deadline by which United Nations scientists determined the world must halve emissions or face irreversible climate destruction.
“If I have the opportunity to transform city government around climate change, that’d be a decade well spent,” Constantinides said. “This whole office can be focused on fighting climate change.”
Advertisement
The sudden departure last month of Constantinides’s main rival for the progressive vote considerably improved his odds. Citing family issues, Long Island City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, a gay progressive who campaigned hard for Katz’s left-wing opponent Tiffany Cabán, dropped out of the race. His exit eliminated competition for the increasingly left-leaning western half of the borough, which elected Ocasio-Cortez to Congress and went overwhelmingly for Cabán in the hotly contested district attorney primary.
Endorsements have poured in for Constantinides since January. State Sens. Michael Gianaris, the powerful Astoria Democrat credited with driving Amazon out of the borough, and Jessica Ramos, a hard-line progressive who ousted a conservative Democrat in 2018, have backed him. So does Josh Fox, the activist, Sanders 2020 surrogate, and filmmaker behind the Emmy-winning anti-fracking documentary “Gasland.”
Neighborhoods in the Rockaways remained damaged for months after 2012's Superstorm Sandy. Spencer Platt via Getty Images
“I’ve worked with him for years to stop fracking and defend New York City from climate change and his vision for renewable energy and sustainability in New York is desperately needed right now,” Fox said. “I endorse him wholeheartedly.”
Yet Constantinides’ remaining opponents are formidable. One of the few public polls released in the race, from Crowley’s campaign, showed Crowley leading among 1,282 likely voters in the election and Constantinides trailing in fourth place. And the party establishment is coalescing behind Richards, who is widely seen as the likely favorite to win next month. In December, U.S. Rep. Greg Meeks, the powerful Queens Democratic Party chieftain, endorsed Richards in a backroom meeting that both Constantinides and Van Bramer denounced as “corrupt.”
Advertisement
That hasn’t stopped Richards, whose council district includes the storm-ravaged Rockaways, from gaining grassroots support. Milan Taylor, executive director of the Rockaway Youth Action Fund, took it as a slight that the Constantinides campaign hadn’t yet contacted the local nonprofit. His group has yet to endorse, though Taylor noted he doesn’t “think there’s a stronger candidate” on climate change than Richards. (Richards’ campaign website instead focuses on criminal justice reform, affordable housing, immigrant rights and public transit.)
“The fact that Costa’s campaign has not reached out to our organization ― we’re an organization in a frontline community made up of Black and brown young people ― it definitely makes that rhetoric just seem simply as rhetoric,” Taylor said. “The fact that you’re saying all this stuff about climate change and you haven’t reached out to us? That’s a red flag.”
Yet the message seemed to resonate when Constantinides pitched it directly to voters.
Peering out from behind the door to his apartment, Raul Neri, 19, admitted he hadn’t thought much about climate change until seeing the hellish images of the inferno that scorched Australia in recent months.
“It’s scary, man,” he said. “It’s good someone wants to do something.”
Standing in her door jamb as the drizzle came down, Tran Nguyet, 78, listened to Constantinides repeat his pledge to double green spaces across the borough. She looked up at the bare deciduous tree on the sidewalk outside her building.
“Hey, that sounds good to me,” she said. She reached down to pick up her paper, and Constantinides quickly bent over to grab it for her. She smiled and said, “Yes, I’ll be voting next month.”


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--Rachel Maddow Names What 'Rattles My Molars The Most' About William Barr

And how do we get our legal system back when these guys are done with it ?
How do we @ @ @ @ @ they ’ re improperly kiboshed ?
Because what we ’ re living through as of @ @ @ @ @ threat to the rule of law in the United States of America , we are @ @ @ @ @ we recognize that we have a lack of the rule of law .
It is @ @ @ @ @ law is no longer in effect when it comes to criminal cases that have anything @ @ @ @ @ or his perceived interests .

And how do we get our legal system back when these guys are done with it? How do we get those cases back if they’re improperly kiboshed? Because what we’re living through as of this week is not a threat to the rule of law in the United States of America, we are emerging into a reality where we recognize that we have a lack of the rule of law. It is broken, the rule of law is no longer in effect when it comes to criminal cases that have anything to do with the president or his perceived interests.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-15--'Camo Ladders' Now Being Used To Scale Border Wall

Smugglers in Ciudad Juárez , Mexico , are now scaling the southern border wall using inexpensive “ camouflage ladders ” that blend in with the barrier ’ s upright bars , U.S. Border Patrol officials have told the El Paso Times .
The ladders are made of cheap rusted rods of 3/8th-inch rebar with thinner poles that hook over the barrier at the top — and narrow metal cross “ steps.
” Used ladders litter both sides of the barrier — or are left hanging on the wall because they blend in with the upright bars or screens of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to the newspaper .
“ Somebody is making money off those ladders , ” border agent Joe Romero told the Times , pointing to a ladder that had been discovered by an eagle-eyed colleague and destroyed .
The ladders began making an appearance last May , he said .
Twenty feet of rebar used in the ladders costs 99 pesos — about $ 5.30 — at a hardware store in Juarez , according to the El Paso Times .
Officials didn ’ t specify whether the ladders were specifically being used in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ under President Donald Trump ’ s administration .
“ We ’ re starting to see a lot of evading activity , ” said Ramiro Cordero , a spokesman for the El Paso sector , which includes West Texas and New Mexico .
“ They are utilizing ladders to go over the fence and diversionary tactics.
” Border Patrol apprehensions of single adults — who are most likely to use the ladders — have nearly doubled in the sector to more than 10,000 individuals from October to January , compared with the same period @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump has boasted that his border wall is “ impenetrable.
” Yet videos have shown people scaling the wall with ladders .
Barrier sections have also been sawed through with a cordless power tool easily purchased in hardware stores — then fit back into place for the next person to come through .
Last month a section of Trump ’ s border wall blew over in high winds on top of some trees in Mexico , in an area of the border 100 miles east of San Diego .
Trump took $ 2.5 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help replace some 100 miles of existing border barriers .
He now aims to transfer at least an additional $ 3.8 billion allocated to the Pentagon to build more wall .
Trump has repeatedly insisted that Mexico will pay for the wall , which has not occurred .

Smugglers in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, are now scaling the southern border wall using inexpensive “camouflage ladders” that blend in with the barrier’s upright bars, U.S. Border Patrol officials have told the El Paso Times.
The ladders are made of cheap rusted rods of 3/8th-inch rebar with thinner poles that hook over the barrier at the top — and narrow metal cross “steps.” Used ladders litter both sides of the barrier — or are left hanging on the wall because they blend in with the upright bars or screens of the barrier and are difficult to spot, according to the newspaper.
Advertisement
“Somebody is making money off those ladders,” border agent Joe Romero told the Times, pointing to a ladder that had been discovered by an eagle-eyed colleague and destroyed. The ladders began making an appearance last May, he said.
Twenty feet of rebar used in the ladders costs 99 pesos — about $5.30 — at a hardware store in Juarez, according to the El Paso Times.
Officials didn’t specify whether the ladders were specifically being used in sections of the barrier that were replaced under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Illegal border crossings in the area are on the rise, officials told the newspaper.
“We’re starting to see a lot of evading activity,” said Ramiro Cordero, a spokesman for the El Paso sector, which includes West Texas and New Mexico. “They are utilizing ladders to go over the fence and diversionary tactics.”
Advertisement
Border Patrol apprehensions of single adults — who are most likely to use the ladders — have nearly doubled in the sector to more than 10,000 individuals from October to January, compared with the same period last year, the newspaper reported.
Trump has boasted that his border wall is “impenetrable.” Yet videos have shown people scaling the wall with ladders. Barrier sections have also been sawed through with a cordless power tool easily purchased in hardware stores — then fit back into place for the next person to come through.
This is the newly replaced wall along the US/MEXICO border. #TheWall pic.twitter.com/MIrD3HhVsE — J. Omar Ornelas (@fotornelas) December 4, 2019
Last month a section of Trump’s border wall blew over in high winds on top of some trees in Mexico, in an area of the border 100 miles east of San Diego.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--'What Have We Become?' — New Republican Video Rips Trump Revenge On Lt. Col. Vindman

A new video ad by the Republican Lincoln Project praises the integrity of Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and criticizes President Donald Trump for firing him after he testified in the House impeachment hearings .
“ Lt .
Col Vindman upheld his oath to the Constitution ; Donald Trump has not , ” said a statement by the anti-Trump group announcing the new video , titled “ Telling the Truth.
” “ Trump , who is afraid of those who know the truth and those who comply with the law , is unleashing a tyrannical assault on Lt. Col. Vindman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members who stand tall and speak the truth , ” said a statement by the group .
“ This is another glaring and sad moment in the Trump presidency that shows why he is unfit to serve as commander-in-chief.
” The video includes scenes of Vindman testifying in response to a subpoena from the U.S. House last year .
Vindman , who listened to the July 25 call that triggered the impeachment inquiry , called it “ improper ” for the president to “ demand ” that Ukraine launch an investigation into a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Joe Biden .
The call threatened to “ undermine our Ukraine policy and ... our national security , ” Vindman testified .
After Trump was acquitted by Senate Republicans in the impeachment trial , Vindman was fired from his National Security Council post and escorted from the White House last week .
Trump has called Vindman “ insubordinate ” for testifying and has suggested that the military should investigate him , which the Army has no intention of doing , said a top official .
The Lincoln Project was founded last year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ George Conway , husband of White House counsel Kellyanne Conway , to defeat Trump ’ s reelection — even if it takes a Democrat .
Another Republican group , Republicans for the Rule of Law , also released an ad attacking Trump ’ s retaliation against Vindman last week .

A new video ad by the Republican Lincoln Project praises the integrity of Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and criticizes President Donald Trump for firing him after he testified in the House impeachment hearings.
“Lt. Col Vindman upheld his oath to the Constitution; Donald Trump has not,” said a statement by the anti-Trump group announcing the new video, titled “Telling the Truth.”
Advertisement
“Trump, who is afraid of those who know the truth and those who comply with the law, is unleashing a tyrannical assault on Lt. Col. Vindman and highly decorated American patriots and service members who stand tall and speak the truth,” said a statement by the group. “This is another glaring and sad moment in the Trump presidency that shows why he is unfit to serve as commander-in-chief.”
The video includes scenes of Vindman testifying in response to a subpoena from the U.S. House last year. Vindman, who listened to the July 25 call that triggered the impeachment inquiry, called it “improper” for the president to “demand” that Ukraine launch an investigation into a “political opponent,” former Vice President Joe Biden. The call threatened to “undermine our Ukraine policy and ... our national security,” Vindman testified.
Advertisement
“What have we become?” the video asks at the end.
The Lincoln Project was founded last year by a group of Republicans, including George Conway, husband of White House counsel Kellyanne Conway, to defeat Trump’s reelection — even if it takes a Democrat.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--L.A. Officials Say Asian Teen Was Assaulted, Bullied Over Coronavirus Fears

A 16-year-old Asian student in Los Angeles County was sent to the emergency room this week after being assaulted over unfounded fears of the coronavirus outbreak , according to local authorities .
L.A. County officials held a news conference on Thursday to condemn the rise in anti-Asian sentiment , fearmongering and apparent violence that stems from misinformation about the virus known as COVID-19 , which was first detected in mainland China .
The victimized student , who was from the San Fernando Valley , was reportedly brought to the emergency room after an alleged assault and required an MRI to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Los Angeles reported .
Los Angeles police are investigating the incident .
“ A young person was bullied ... , physically attacked and accused of having the coronavirus simply because he was Asian American , ” Manjusha Kulkarni , executive director of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council ( A3PCON ) , said Thursday .
Kulkarni told HuffPost that the student ’ s family didn ’ t initially want to make the attack public “ because they wanted to maintain their child ’ s privacy and were worried about his safety @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is currently working with school officials to respond to the alleged attack , she added .
A3PCON has been communicating with the student and his family to support them during this time .
Chinese restaurant owners in New York City have reported seeing fewer customers in recent weeks due to the fear of the spread of coronavirus , despite there being no confirmed cases of the new virus in the state .
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio ( D ) urged residents to support Asian businesses to combat anti-Asian sentiment driven by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thursday to Flushing in Queens , which has one of the largest Chinese communities in the U.S. “ In hard times , New Yorkers know to stand by their neighbors , ” de Blasio said .
“ We ’ re in Flushing today to embrace Asian American-owned small businesses and say to all New Yorkers : New York City ’ s Chinatowns are open for business.
” Kulkarni said that the backlash burdening Asians in the U.S. during the outbreak is linked to longstanding racism against Asian people that harks back to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Japanese American concentration camps during World War II .
“ I think with groups of color or marginalized communities , there is a feeling that [ those groups ] did something to cause [ the problem ] , ” Kulkarni said .
“ The same was true with Ebola and H1N1 .
You can see that in some of the hate , which includes references to Chinese eating dogs or reptiles or other animals that Americans do not consume.
” There have been only 15 confirmed cases in the U.S. of the novel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases in California .
“ We also need to make sure we ’ ve educated ourselves on our own prejudices , ” he said Thursday .
“ That means really checking ourselves , thinking before you act and make an assumption .
Are you doing something based on a gross generalization or stereotype about another group ?
” “ Many may be quick to assume that just because someone is Asian or from China that somehow they are more likely to be carriers of the virus , ” he said .
“ We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we see it .
We need to speak up , not be bystanders , be upstanders .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
An Asian middle school student in Los Angeles County was sent to the emergency room this week after being assaulted over unfounded fears of the coronavirus outbreak, according to local authorities.
L.A. County officials held a news conference on Thursday to condemn the rise in anti-Asian sentiment, fearmongering and apparent violence that stems from misinformation about the virus known as COVID-19, which was first detected in mainland China.
Advertisement
The victimized student, who was from the San Fernando Valley, was reportedly brought to the emergency room after an alleged assault and required an MRI to check for signs of concussion, KCBS-TV in Los Angeles reported. Los Angeles police are investigating the incident.
“A young person was bullied ... , physically attacked and accused of having the coronavirus simply because he was Asian American,” Manjusha Kulkarni, executive director of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council (A3PCON), said Thursday.
Community leaders said during the news conference that the student was 16 years old, but Kulkarni later told HuffPost the student was not 16, though she declined to share the boy’s actual age for privacy reasons.
Kulkarni told HuffPost that the student’s family didn’t initially want to make the attack public “because they wanted to maintain their child’s privacy and were worried about his safety and well-being.” However, the family is currently working with school officials to respond to the alleged attack, she added. A3PCON has been communicating with the student and his family to support them during this time.
Advertisement
Officials didn’t further identify the victim nor the school. The student’s family was afraid to speak out, according to KABC-TV in Los Angeles.
Community leaders gather in #GrandPark to educate about how #coronavirus is transmitted and fight reported racist backlash @CBSLA pic.twitter.com/uUWVA15cZ2 — Kara Finnstrom (@KaraFinnstrom) February 13, 2020
Misinformation surrounding the new coronavirus has led to spikes of racist fearmongering against Asian people.
Chinese restaurant owners in New York City have reported seeing fewer customers in recent weeks due to the fear of the spread of coronavirus, despite there being no confirmed cases of the new virus in the state.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) urged residents to support Asian businesses to combat anti-Asian sentiment driven by fear of the coronavirus during a visit Thursday to Flushing in Queens, which has one of the largest Chinese communities in the U.S.
Advertisement
“In hard times, New Yorkers know to stand by their neighbors,” de Blasio said. “We’re in Flushing today to embrace Asian American-owned small businesses and say to all New Yorkers: New York City’s Chinatowns are open for business.”
Kulkarni said that the backlash burdening Asians in the U.S. during the outbreak is linked to longstanding racism against Asian people that harks back to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Japanese American concentration camps during World War II.
“I think with groups of color or marginalized communities, there is a feeling that [those groups] did something to cause [the problem],” Kulkarni said. “The same was true with Ebola and H1N1. You can see that in some of the hate, which includes references to Chinese eating dogs or reptiles or other animals that Americans do not consume.”
There have been only 15 confirmed cases in the U.S. of the novel coronavirus in seven states, including eight cases in California.
Robin Toma, assistant director of the L.A. County Human Relations Commission, warned Los Angeles residents against unnecessary panic and fear.
Advertisement
“We also need to make sure we’ve educated ourselves on our own prejudices,” he said Thursday. “That means really checking ourselves, thinking before you act and make an assumption. Are you doing something based on a gross generalization or stereotype about another group?”
He also reminded people that being Asian doesn’t make someone more susceptible to the virus.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--Trump’s 29th Trip To Mar-a-Lago Brings Golf Tab To 334 Years Of Presidential Salary

“ Can you believe that , with all of the problems and difficulties facing the U.S. , President Obama spent the day playing golf .
Worse than Carter , ” he wrote three years later .
As he began his own run for the White House , candidate Trump repeatedly promised that golf would never make it onto a President Trump ’ s schedule .
“ I love golf , but if I were in the White House , I don ’ t think I ’ d ever see Turnberry again .
I don ’ t think I ’ d @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told a rally audience in February 2016 , referring to his courses in Scotland and Miami .
“ I don ’ t ever think I ’ d see anything .
I just want to stay in the White House and work my ass off.
” Yet after three years in office , Trump has spent two-and-a-half times as many days on a golf course as Obama had done at the same point in his first term .
If Trump plays golf both Saturday and Sunday , he will have played 248 times .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ had played 92 times .
And because Trump insists on playing at courses he owns , the cost to taxpayers has been nearly four times as high as it was for Obama .
More than two-thirds of Trump ’ s golf outings involve seven-figure trips aboard Air Force One , mainly to Florida and New Jersey , but also to Los Angeles , Ireland and Scotland .
Obama , in contrast , played most of his golf on courses at military bases within a short drive of the White House .
What ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on playing at courses he owns and profits from has put at least a few million taxpayer dollars into Trump ’ s cash registers in the form of hotel room and restaurant charges for the White House staff and Secret Service agents who accompany him .
The Washington Post found recently that Trump ’ s business has charged the Secret Service as much as $ 650 a room per night at Mar-a-Lago ― more than three times the normal rate that federal employees are supposed to spend in South Florida ― and $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump ’ s Bedminster , New Jersey , resort .
During an early Mar-a-Lago visit , White House employees ran up a $ 1,006 bar tab , which taxpayers also paid .
How many taxpayer dollars precisely are flowing into Trump ’ s pocket is not known because the White House refuses to detail how many executive branch employees stay at Trump properties and how much they are being billed .
The White House on Friday did not respond to HuffPost ’ s queries on the matter for this weekend ’ s trip @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the trust that now owns his family business .
He promised during his campaign that he would separate himself from the Trump Organization should he win , but reneged on that pledge even before taking office .
Trump similarly promised he would release his tax returns when he ran for president , but he has refused to do that as well .

LOADING ERROR LOADING
President Donald Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago on Friday evening for the 29th golf-related trip of his presidency to his for-profit Palm Beach, Florida, resort, raising his total taxpayer golf tab to $133.8 million.
That figure translates to 334 years of the presidential salary that Trump and his supporters frequently boast he is not taking.
Advertisement
During Barack Obama’s presidency, Trump frequently claimed he was playing golf too much and at too great an expense to taxpayers.
“I play golf to relax. My company is in great shape. @BarackObama plays golf to escape work while America goes down the drain,” Trump tweeted in December 2011.
“Can you believe that, with all of the problems and difficulties facing the U.S., President Obama spent the day playing golf. Worse than Carter,” he wrote three years later.
As he began his own run for the White House, candidate Trump repeatedly promised that golf would never make it onto a President Trump’s schedule. “I love golf, but if I were in the White House, I don’t think I’d ever see Turnberry again. I don’t think I’d ever see Doral again,” he told a rally audience in February 2016, referring to his courses in Scotland and Miami. “I don’t ever think I’d see anything. I just want to stay in the White House and work my ass off.”
Advertisement
Yet after three years in office, Trump has spent two-and-a-half times as many days on a golf course as Obama had done at the same point in his first term. If Trump plays golf both Saturday and Sunday, he will have played 248 times. Obama by his 1,123rd day in office had played 92 times.
President Donald Trump departs from the White House for a weekend trip to Mar-a-Lago on Jan. 31, 2020. Sarah Silbiger via Getty Images
And because Trump insists on playing at courses he owns, the cost to taxpayers has been nearly four times as high as it was for Obama. More than two-thirds of Trump’s golf outings involve seven-figure trips aboard Air Force One, mainly to Florida and New Jersey, but also to Los Angeles, Ireland and Scotland. Obama, in contrast, played most of his golf on courses at military bases within a short drive of the White House.
What’s more, Trump’s insistence on playing at courses he owns and profits from has put at least a few million taxpayer dollars into Trump’s cash registers in the form of hotel room and restaurant charges for the White House staff and Secret Service agents who accompany him.
The Washington Post found recently that Trump’s business has charged the Secret Service as much as $650 a room per night at Mar-a-Lago ― more than three times the normal rate that federal employees are supposed to spend in South Florida ― and $17,000 a month for a cottage at Trump’s Bedminster, New Jersey, resort. During an early Mar-a-Lago visit, White House employees ran up a $1,006 bar tab, which taxpayers also paid.
Advertisement
How many taxpayer dollars precisely are flowing into Trump’s pocket is not known because the White House refuses to detail how many executive branch employees stay at Trump properties and how much they are being billed. The White House on Friday did not respond to HuffPost’s queries on the matter for this weekend’s trip.
The president is the sole beneficiary of the trust that now owns his family business. He promised during his campaign that he would separate himself from the Trump Organization should he win, but reneged on that pledge even before taking office.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--Federal Judge Lashes White House 'Banana Republic' Influence In Andrew McCabe Case

The Justice Department announced Friday that it wasn ’ t pursuing any criminal charges against McCabe — a frequent target of Trump ’ s — for allegedly misleading investigators about a leak to the media concerning an FBI probe into the Clinton Foundation .
Walton , who was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush and serves in the District of Columbia , chided DOJ prosecutors in September for repeated delays in deciding whether to bring charges against McCabe and keeping him under a cloud of suspicion , which he suspected served White House interests .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , especially — unfortunately , to be candid — in light of the way by the White House , which I don ’ t think top executive officers should be doing , ” he said , according to a transcript of a discussion when prosecutors requested yet another delay .
“ I don ’ t think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted .
I just think it ’ s a banana republic when we go down that road and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ made that are conceivably ... influencing the ultimate decision , ” Walton said .
“ I think there are a lot of people on the outside who perceive that there is undue , inappropriate pressure being brought to bear.
” The judge called it “ disturbing , ” adding that the “ integrity of the process is being unduly undermined by inappropriate comments and actions on the part of people at the top of our government.
” He warned that “ as a government and as a society we ’ re going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this.
” Walton also said that McCabe had a “ right to have the government make a decision and not hold his life in limbo pending a decision as to what ’ s going to happen.
” I don ’ t think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted .
McCabe took over as acting FBI director after Trump fired the agency ’ s former director , James Comey , in May 2017 .
At the time , the FBI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ties to Russia .
After Comey ’ s firing , Robert Mueller was named as a special prosecutor to conduct the probe .
McCabe quickly became a target of attacks by Trump , as well Fox News commentators who parrot the White House talking points .
He was fired from his post in early 2018 by then-attorney general Jeff Sessions , just hours before the 21-year FBI veteran was set to retire and become eligible for a full pension .
McCabe subsequently sued the DOJ , arguing that he was fired as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plan and scheme to discredit and remove DOJ and FBI employees who were deemed to be his partisan opponents because they were not politically loyal to him.
” McCabe called the decision a tremendous “ relief ” in an interview on CNN , but slammed the DOJ for taking two years to reach an “ obvious conclusion.
” ( See the video above . )
He also said that the timing of the decision — “ coming on the tails of all the controversy over the Roger Stone sentencing — is curious , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been intended to calm the controversy over Barr ’ s recent interference in other cases .
The Justice Department on Tuesday overturned a sentencing recommendation of seven to nine years for Stone , Trump ’ s long-time pal and one-time adviser who has been convicted of seven felonies , a day after the president complained about the proposed penalty .
Barr has since also ordered a review of the case against Trump ’ s former national security adviser Michael Flynn , who initially pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his communication with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sworn into office .
Flynn withdrew his guilty plea last month .

A federal judge compared White House involvement in an investigation of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe to a “banana republic,” and accused people “at the top” of undermining the “integrity” of the judicial process, new documents revealed Friday.
Advertisement
The Justice Department announced Friday that it wasn’t pursuing any criminal charges against McCabe — a frequent target of Trump’s — for allegedly misleading investigators about a leak to the media concerning an FBI probe into the Clinton Foundation.
Walton, who was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush and serves in the District of Columbia, chided DOJ prosecutors in September for repeated delays in deciding whether to bring charges against McCabe and keeping him under a cloud of suspicion, which he suspected served White House interests.
“I fully appreciate the complexity of the assessment, especially — unfortunately, to be candid — in light of the way by the White House, which I don’t think top executive officers should be doing,” he said, according to a transcript of a discussion when prosecutors requested yet another delay.
“I don’t think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted. I just think it’s a banana republic when we go down that road and we have those type of statements being made that are conceivably ... influencing the ultimate decision,” Walton said. “I think there are a lot of people on the outside who perceive that there is undue, inappropriate pressure being brought to bear.”
Advertisement
The judge called it “disturbing,” adding that the “integrity of the process is being unduly undermined by inappropriate comments and actions on the part of people at the top of our government.” He warned that “as a government and as a society we’re going to pay a price at some point for this.”
Walton also said that McCabe had a “right to have the government make a decision and not hold his life in limbo pending a decision as to what’s going to happen.”
“I don’t think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted.” - U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton
McCabe took over as acting FBI director after Trump fired the agency’s former director, James Comey, in May 2017. At the time, the FBI was investigating the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia. After Comey’s firing, Robert Mueller was named as a special prosecutor to conduct the probe.
McCabe quickly became a target of attacks by Trump, as well Fox News commentators who parrot the White House talking points. He was fired from his post in early 2018 by then-attorney general Jeff Sessions, just hours before the 21-year FBI veteran was set to retire and become eligible for a full pension.
Advertisement
McCabe subsequently sued the DOJ, arguing that he was fired as a result of “Trump’s unconstitutional plan and scheme to discredit and remove DOJ and FBI employees who were deemed to be his partisan opponents because they were not politically loyal to him.”
McCabe’s attorney was informed in a Friday letter of the DOJ’s decision that criminal charges would not be filed.
Trump was reportedly furious when he found out charges were not going to filed.
McCabe called the decision a tremendous “relief” in an interview on CNN, but slammed the DOJ for taking two years to reach an “obvious conclusion.” (See the video above.)
He also said that the timing of the decision — “coming on the tails of all the controversy over the Roger Stone sentencing — is curious,” indicating that the announcement may have been intended to calm the controversy over Barr’s recent interference in other cases.
The Justice Department on Tuesday overturned a sentencing recommendation of seven to nine years for Stone, Trump’s long-time pal and one-time adviser who has been convicted of seven felonies, a day after the president complained about the proposed penalty. Barr has since also ordered a review of the case against Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who initially pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his communication with then-Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before Trump was sworn into office. Flynn withdrew his guilty plea last month.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--Michael Bloomberg Appeared To Blame Obama For Racial Division In 2016

Though Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg has been playing up his relationship with Barack Obama in his recent campaign ads , the billionaire once blamed the former president for letting racial division thrive .
During a November 2016 speaking event at Oxford University in England , the former New York City mayor suggested that Obama had failed to address issues of racial segregation : I would argue that today we are more segregated , in America certainly , than we were , in terms of race , than we were a dozen years ago , and yet we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first Black president .
“ Why are we more separated than we were before ?
” is the question you ’ ve got to ask yourself .
Why during the Obama administration didn ’ t we pull together ?
Ask the president .
That ’ s his job really to pull people together .
You can listen to the remarks around minute 54 in the video below .
Those critical comments from 2016 throw a bit of a wrench in the image of his and Obama ’ s relationship that Bloomberg ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bloomberg ad that began circulating Feb. 5 centers entirely on past supportive comments Obama has made about the candidate , including one praising him for bringing people together .
“ At a time when Washington is divided in old ideological battles , he shows us what can be achieved when we bring people together to seek pragmatic solutions , ” Obama is quoted as saying in the ad .
The former president has not made any endorsement in the 2020 Democratic primary .
When asked if Bloomberg stands by his 2016 remarks , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ While Mike has never been shy to critique Washington dysfunction or partisan division , he believes that President Obama showed extraordinary leadership in the White House.
” Bloomberg made a late entrance into the presidential race in November and quickly came under fire for his outsize spending on advertising , with many accusing him of trying to buy his way into the Oval Office .
Though he hasn ’ t been competing in the early primary and caucus states , he dropped more than $ 300 million on ads in January alone .

Michael Bloomberg had some critical comments for Obama in 2016. Henry Romero / Reuters
Though Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg has been playing up his relationship with Barack Obama in his recent campaign ads, the billionaire once blamed the former president for letting racial division thrive.
During a November 2016 speaking event at Oxford University in England, the former New York City mayor suggested that Obama had failed to address issues of racial segregation:
Advertisement
I would argue that today we are more segregated, in America certainly, than we were, in terms of race, than we were a dozen years ago, and yet we’re just finishing up eight years with our first Black president. “Why are we more separated than we were before?” is the question you’ve got to ask yourself. Why during the Obama administration didn’t we pull together? Ask the president. That’s his job really to pull people together.
You can listen to the remarks around minute 54 in the video below.
Those critical comments from 2016 throw a bit of a wrench in the image of his and Obama’s relationship that Bloomberg’s campaign has tried to push. A Bloomberg ad that began circulating Feb. 5 centers entirely on past supportive comments Obama has made about the candidate, including one praising him for bringing people together.
“At a time when Washington is divided in old ideological battles, he shows us what can be achieved when we bring people together to seek pragmatic solutions,” Obama is quoted as saying in the ad. The former president has not made any endorsement in the 2020 Democratic primary.
Advertisement
When asked if Bloomberg stands by his 2016 remarks, his spokesperson Julie Wood said, “While Mike has never been shy to critique Washington dysfunction or partisan division, he believes that President Obama showed extraordinary leadership in the White House.”
A spokesperson for Obama did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


thehuffingtonpost--2020-02-14--Twitter Users Share Tales Of Stop And Frisk With #MyBloombergStory

Padilla put his hands up , knowing things could escalate , and that they had done nothing wrong .
It was 2007 , or maybe 2008 .
Padilla doesn ’ t quite remember the date — only that he must have been 17 or 18 years old .
Padilla said the police officer emptied their pockets , threatened them with the possibility of arrest and the use of force .
Then , he let them go .
When they asked him why they were stopped , the police officer told them that they fit a “ description , ” Padilla @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Twitter this week with the hashtag # MyBloombergStory , an online campaign aiming to shed light on the experiences of brown and Black New Yorkers under the leadership of former Republican mayor Michael Bloomberg — now the billionaire presidential candidate rising in the Democratic primary polling .
This was Padilla ’ s personal encounter with the city ’ s “ stop-and-frisk ” policy , a directive to police to stop , question and search suspicious people .
It disproportionately targeted Black and brown teenagers and sowed major distrust between communities of color and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ major part of Bloomberg ’ s legacy in the city ; stop and frisk increased sevenfold under his tenure between 2002 and 2013 .
Under Bloomberg , stop and frisk reached its peak in 2011 , when more than 685,000 people were stopped .
According to the New York Civil Liberties Union , about 90 % of stopped and frisked New Yorkers were found innocent .
Bloomberg has been making explicit overtures to Black voters on the campaign trail ; in Houston , Texas , he held a “ Mike for Black America @ @ @ @ @ @ @ defending the stop-and-frisk policy in the past , and recognized structural racism .
A Quinnipiac poll of Democratic voters Monday showed Bloomberg with 22 % support among Black Americans , second only to former Vice President Joe Biden , who had 27 % support .
In recent days , audio of Bloomberg defending the stop-and-frisk policy during a 2015 speech at the Aspen Institute prompted Benjamin Dixon , a progressive activist and podcast host , to call on New Yorkers to share their experiences in the city under Bloomberg .
Since then , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on social media .
Jamaal Bowman , a former middle school principal who is now running for New York ’ s 16th congressional district — sitting Democrat Rep. Eliot Engel ’ s seat — said he was pulled over in the Bronx for allegedly forgetting to put on his turn signal .
He was taken out of his car , handcuffed and put in a holding cell .
As a teacher , he had to report the arrest to the Department of Education , which he said held back his overtime pay .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ school , ” Bowman said .
“ There weren ’ t metal detectors put in white schools .
Part of my job as a dean of students was to moderate metal detectors .
So I was part of the criminalization of Black and brown kids .
That ’ s not why I got my master ’ s ... to play corrections officer at my school.
” Bloomberg has not participated in any Democratic primary debates because he ’ s self-funding his campaign and therefore ineligible because of a DNC donor requirement ― but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he ’ s likely to be onstage in Nevada next week .
He has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into a presidential bid , far more than any other candidate in the field , and is forgoing the first four contests of the primary , instead focused on the Super Tuesday states .
His stock has been rising in the polls , particularly in diverse Southern states , where he has been gaining support from Black voters .
“ His money is saturating an image of him that doesn ’ t match @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York have had with him , ” Dixon , who himself is from Atlanta , Georgia , said .
“ He has bought himself out of his true record.
” “ Ninety-five percent of your murders — murderers and murder victims — fit one M.O .
You can just take the description , Xerox it and pass it out to all the cops , ” Bloomberg is heard saying on the audio recording .
“ They are male minorities , 16 to 25 .
That ’ s true in New York .
That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” “ By the time I left office , I cut it back by 95 % , but I should ’ ve done it faster and sooner .
I regret that and I have apologized — and I have taken responsibility for taking too long to understand the impact it had on Black and Latino communities , ” Bloomberg said .
Cases of stop and frisk in New York City expanded dramatically under Bloomberg ’ s leadership .
In 2013 , a federal judge ruled the implementation of the policy unconstitutional , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Between January 2004 and June 2012 , the NYPD conducted more than 4.4 million stop-and-frisk checks , 52 % of which were of Black residents , according to court ruling .
The policy has since been widely deemed ineffective , and there has not been an increase in violent crime since the ruling .
“ It ’ s supremely offensive to people of color , to make them choose between two white supremacists , ” Padilla said of Bloomberg ’ s candidacy .
“ It ’ s really offensive to working-class people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s what a lot of the stories are highlighting .
It is offensive to even suggest that Bloomberg should be the Democratic nominee .
Do I really have to choose between two racist oligarchs ?
That ’ s a nightmare scenario .
”

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Andrew J. Padilla, a New York City writer and filmmaker, was walking into Manhattan’s Riverside Park with two of his friends one night to hang out, when a police officer pointed a gun at them.
Padilla put his hands up, knowing things could escalate, and that they had done nothing wrong. It was 2007, or maybe 2008. Padilla doesn’t quite remember the date — only that he must have been 17 or 18 years old.
Advertisement
“It was a feeling of impotence,” Padilla told HuffPost in a phone interview. “That we could die.”
Padilla said the police officer emptied their pockets, threatened them with the possibility of arrest and the use of force. Then, he let them go. When they asked him why they were stopped, the police officer told them that they fit a “description,” Padilla said.
Padilla recounted his story on Twitter this week with the hashtag #MyBloombergStory, an online campaign aiming to shed light on the experiences of brown and Black New Yorkers under the leadership of former Republican mayor Michael Bloomberg — now the billionaire presidential candidate rising in the Democratic primary polling.
#MyBloombergStory
My friends & I (17/18 yrs old) were walking into Riverside Park, next to Columbia University. We heard someone scream: "HEY!"
I didn't turn around. "HEY" isn't my name. One of my less street smart friends did. THANK GOD.
It was a cop w his gun drawn at us. https://t.co/8Y2XmfoNn1 — Andrew J. Padilla 🇵🇷 (@apadillafilm6) February 13, 2020
This was Padilla’s personal encounter with the city’s “stop-and-frisk” policy, a directive to police to stop, question and search suspicious people. It disproportionately targeted Black and brown teenagers and sowed major distrust between communities of color and law enforcement. It was also a major part of Bloomberg’s legacy in the city; stop and frisk increased sevenfold under his tenure between 2002 and 2013. Under Bloomberg, stop and frisk reached its peak in 2011, when more than 685,000 people were stopped. According to the New York Civil Liberties Union, about 90% of stopped and frisked New Yorkers were found innocent.
Advertisement
Bloomberg has been making explicit overtures to Black voters on the campaign trail; in Houston, Texas, he held a “Mike for Black America” rally, where he apologized for defending the stop-and-frisk policy in the past, and recognized structural racism. A Quinnipiac poll of Democratic voters Monday showed Bloomberg with 22% support among Black Americans, second only to former Vice President Joe Biden, who had 27% support.
Democratic presidential candidate and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks during his campaign launch of "Mike for Black America," at the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip) ASSOCIATED PRESS
In recent days, audio of Bloomberg defending the stop-and-frisk policy during a 2015 speech at the Aspen Institute prompted Benjamin Dixon, a progressive activist and podcast host, to call on New Yorkers to share their experiences in the city under Bloomberg. Since then, thousands have used the #MyBloombergStory hashtag on social media.
First thing first, if you or anyone else you know has been a victim of Bloomberg’s stop and frisk policy, record a video of your story, tweet it with the hashtag, #MyBloombergStory We want to hear how Bloomberg’s policies impacted your life. — Benjamin Dixon (@BenjaminPDixon) February 12, 2020
Moumita Ahmed, who founded Millennials for Bernie, recounted her father getting stopped, detained and held for hours in 2002 when she was 12 years old. At the time, she didn’t know what happened to him.
Advertisement
“That night I went from hospital to hospital to see if unidentified bodies were admitted,” Ahmed wrote.
It was 2002.
My dad was stop & frisked for having a Muslim name.
He was detained w/o a phone call to his family for hours. We couldn’t report him missing.
That night I went from hospital to hospital to see if unidentified bodies were admitted.
I was 12! #MyBloombergStory — Moumita🌹Bloomberg is a racist (@disruptionary) February 14, 2020
Jamaal Bowman, a former middle school principal who is now running for New York’s 16th congressional district — sitting Democrat Rep. Eliot Engel’s seat — said he was pulled over in the Bronx for allegedly forgetting to put on his turn signal. He was taken out of his car, handcuffed and put in a holding cell. As a teacher, he had to report the arrest to the Department of Education, which he said held back his overtime pay.
In an interview with HuffPost, Bowman added that it wasn’t just stop and frisk. Students were subjected to heightened policing in schools.
Advertisement
“They put metal detectors in my school,” Bowman said. “There weren’t metal detectors put in white schools. Part of my job as a dean of students was to moderate metal detectors. So I was part of the criminalization of Black and brown kids. That’s not why I got my master’s ... to play corrections officer at my school.”
“Now his record is coming out because people who experienced his tenure in New York are speaking up,” Bowman added.
Bloomberg has not participated in any Democratic primary debates because he’s self-funding his campaign and therefore ineligible because of a DNC donor requirement ― but that’s been eliminated, and he’s likely to be onstage in Nevada next week. He has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into a presidential bid, far more than any other candidate in the field, and is forgoing the first four contests of the primary, instead focused on the Super Tuesday states. His stock has been rising in the polls, particularly in diverse Southern states, where he has been gaining support from Black voters.
“His money is saturating an image of him that doesn’t match up with the experience people of New York have had with him,” Dixon, who himself is from Atlanta, Georgia, said. “He has bought himself out of his true record.”
Bloomberg apologized for his administration’s use of stop and frisk before entering the presidential race and again after 2015 audio leaked of him defending the policy.
Advertisement
“Ninety-five percent of your murders — murderers and murder victims — fit one M.O. You can just take the description, Xerox it and pass it out to all the cops,” Bloomberg is heard saying on the audio recording. “They are male minorities, 16 to 25. That’s true in New York. That’s true in virtually every city,”
“And the way you get the guns out of the kids’ hands is to throw them up against the wall and frisk them,” the clip continues.
Bloomberg’s statement about the recording was a little misleading, saying he “inherited” the policy, and cut it back by the end of his tenure in office.
“By the time I left office, I cut it back by 95%, but I should’ve done it faster and sooner. I regret that and I have apologized — and I have taken responsibility for taking too long to understand the impact it had on Black and Latino communities,” Bloomberg said.
Cases of stop and frisk in New York City expanded dramatically under Bloomberg’s leadership. In 2013, a federal judge ruled the implementation of the policy unconstitutional, saying that it amounted to racial discrimination. Between January 2004 and June 2012, the NYPD conducted more than 4.4 million stop-and-frisk checks, 52% of which were of Black residents, according to court ruling. The policy has since been widely deemed ineffective, and there has not been an increase in violent crime since the ruling.
Advertisement
“It’s supremely offensive to people of color, to make them choose between two white supremacists,” Padilla said of Bloomberg’s candidacy. “It’s really offensive to working-class people to choose between two billionaires. That’s what a lot of the stories are highlighting. It is offensive to even suggest that Bloomberg should be the Democratic nominee. Do I really have to choose between two racist oligarchs? That’s a nightmare scenario.”
Dixon, and others participating in the social media campaign, are hoping their voices can compete with Bloomberg’s massive advertising presence.