alternet--2020-11-21--Inside Kelly Loeffler's offshore tax shelter scheme

Months after the Great Recession brought the global economy to its knees , a financial management company called International Exchange ( ICE ) created a way for the world 's biggest banks to keep trading in the very financial instruments that contributed to the crisis in the first place .
This article first appeared in Salon .
To help those clients duck U.S. tax laws , ICE created an offshore entity in the Cayman Islands , and registered it in a building known as Ugland House — one of the most notorious locations for offshore tax shelters .
Salon reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ultra-wealthy unelected Georgia senator who faces a heated runoff this January , helped establish and market that tax dodge and give the banks a new lease on derivatives trading .
In 2009 , Loeffler was the top communications and marketing officer at ICE , and had been married to the company 's founder and CEO , Jerry Sprecher , for several years .
They bought a $ 10.5 million mansion that year .
Though ICE pushes back against the notion that its clearinghouse allows companies to avoid U.S. taxation , the new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — for years pilloried and parodied as one of the most egregious examples of an offshore tax dodge in the world — sharpens questions about the company 's true intent .
It also raises questions about the activities of Sprecher and Loeffler , at a time when Americans were reeling amid generational global economic turmoil .
In 2008 , high-risk derivatives trading wrecked the global financial system .
The complex financial instruments to blame included credit default swaps ( CDS ) , in which lenders essentially sell someone else the risk that a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CDS trades grew so popular and so widespread that when banks began to fail , it set off a brutal chain reaction around the world .
But just a few months after markets crashed that September , ICE , under Sprecher 's leadership , set up an offshore CDS clearinghouse for the largest banks in the U.S. , as well as foreign banks such as Deutsche Bank , UBS and Credit Suisse .
The idea was to add a layer of protection to the trades .
Unlike many other countries , including the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ income earned overseas — at a rate of 35 % .
If that money gets reinvested abroad , however , the tax is deferred .
In other words , if American companies put profits from their foreign subsidiaries in offshore holding companies , they can access it tax-free .
Those deferrals add up .
In 2014 , the Joint Committee on Taxation projected the revenue loss from deferrals at $ 83.5 billion , and the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute estimated in 2017 that deferred taxes on offshore profits will cost the U.S. $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or about $ 126 billion a year .
Nearly 100,000 companies worldwide avail themselves of the Cayman Islands ' 0 % tax rate to duck corporate taxes — twice the size of the territory 's population .
Ugland House , a modest five-story building in the capital of George Town , is home to nearly 19,000 corporate entities , or one corporation for every three square feet of space in the building .
Former President Barack Obama remarked of Ugland House in 2008 , `` Either this is the largest building in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world . ''
The press has frequently profiled Ugland House .
In 2013 the Associated Press called it `` a notorious tax shelter . ''
Foreign Policy magazine said in 2012 that `` the building makes a mockery of the U.S. tax system . ''
The Economist wrote that it was `` a symbol of all that is wrong with offshore financial centers . ''
In 2009 , the year ICE registered its Cayman clearinghouse , Rachel Maddow said that Ugland House was one of the `` go-to destinations for U.S. companies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can avoid paying U.S. taxes on their profits . ''
Loeffler 's forebears in the Senate — Democratic and Republican alike — went after Ugland House by name .
In 2009 , the year ICE registered its Cayman clearinghouse , Sen. Carl Levin , a Michigan Democrat , introduced legislation targeting Ugland House specifically : At a Senate Finance Committee hearing the year before , as the global economy was showing the first cracks from the high-risk trading that ICE later revived in the Caymans , Sen. Chuck Grassley , R-Iowa , said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ price `` because sophisticated tax cheats move dollars offshore , '' and singled out Ugland House : Sen. Max Baucus , D-Mont.
, told the New York Sun in 2008 , the year before Sprecher 's company established its Caymans setup , that Ugland is `` one of the most likely places shady tax transactions could be sheltered . ''
`` If American companies are setting up shop at the beach just to avoid their tax obligations , we ca n't keep our heads in the sand , '' Baucus said , emphasizing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to `` make sure honest American taxpayers are not footing the bill for corporations that are n't paying their fair share . ''
Sen. Byron Dorgan , D-N.D. , said in 2007 that Ugland House was `` the poster child for offshore tax haven abuses , '' a view shared in 2008 by fellow North Dakota Democrat Sen. Kent Conrad : `` Of course , the only business they are doing in this building is monkey business , because what they are doing is claiming they are doing business there in order to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sheldon Whitehouse , D-R.I. , made a similar quip in 2011 : `` The notion that 18,000 corporations are doing business out of this building — that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase 'small business . '
But there is no real business going on here .
The business that is going on here is funny business , under the Tax Code . ''
The ICE Cayman Islands arrangement incentivized the largest American financial institutions to execute CDS trades around the world by allowing them to dodge U.S. taxes on their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that rewarded the people whose recklessness had destroyed the economy only months earlier .
He found a way to give new life to their CDS trades , which had cost millions of Americans their wealth , homes and livelihood .
And Loeffler , his wife and ICE 's top marketing officer , helped package and sell the product .
More recently , Loeffler and Sprecher appear to have tapped another tax loophole for themselves , in the form of a provision in President Trump 's 2017 tax bill that turns private jets into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the plane last December , when Loeffler was appointed to the Senate by Georgia Gov .
Brian Kemp .
She stepped down from ICE to take the job , but her husband is still CEO , and she still holds a stake worth half a billion dollars — and sits on a committee that regulates the business .
In June 2009 , the year after the bottom fell out of the global economy and a few months after ICE registered its Cayman Islands holding company , the couple purchased their $ 10.5 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Descante '' — relax .
Loeffler 's campaign did not reply to multiple detailed requests for comment for this article .
An ICE spokesperson did not provide comment .

Months after the Great Recession brought the global economy to its knees, a financial management company called International Exchange (ICE) created a way for the world's biggest banks to keep trading in the very financial instruments that contributed to the crisis in the first place.
This article first appeared in Salon.
To help those clients duck U.S. tax laws, ICE created an offshore entity in the Cayman Islands, and registered it in a building known as Ugland House — one of the most notorious locations for offshore tax shelters.
Salon reported in September that Sen. Kelly Loeffler, the ultra-wealthy unelected Georgia senator who faces a heated runoff this January, helped establish and market that tax dodge and give the banks a new lease on derivatives trading. In 2009, Loeffler was the top communications and marketing officer at ICE, and had been married to the company's founder and CEO, Jerry Sprecher, for several years. They bought a $10.5 million mansion that year.
(Sprecher is the chair of the New York Stock Exchange, of which ICE is the parent company. The couple is worth between $800 million and $1 billion, per Forbes, an extravagant amount that has made Loeffler a target of political rivals.)
Though ICE pushes back against the notion that its clearinghouse allows companies to avoid U.S. taxation, the new disclosure of its use of Ugland House — for years pilloried and parodied as one of the most egregious examples of an offshore tax dodge in the world — sharpens questions about the company's true intent.
It also raises questions about the activities of Sprecher and Loeffler, at a time when Americans were reeling amid generational global economic turmoil.
In 2008, high-risk derivatives trading wrecked the global financial system. The complex financial instruments to blame included credit default swaps (CDS), in which lenders essentially sell someone else the risk that a borrower will default on their loan. CDS trades grew so popular and so widespread that when banks began to fail, it set off a brutal chain reaction around the world.
But just a few months after markets crashed that September, ICE, under Sprecher's leadership, set up an offshore CDS clearinghouse for the largest banks in the U.S., as well as foreign banks such as Deutsche Bank, UBS and Credit Suisse. The idea was to add a layer of protection to the trades.
Unlike many other countries, including the European Union, the United States taxes income earned overseas — at a rate of 35%. If that money gets reinvested abroad, however, the tax is deferred. In other words, if American companies put profits from their foreign subsidiaries in offshore holding companies, they can access it tax-free.
Those deferrals add up. In 2014, the Joint Committee on Taxation projected the revenue loss from deferrals at $83.5 billion, and the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute estimated in 2017 that deferred taxes on offshore profits will cost the U.S. $1.3 trillion over the next decade, or about $126 billion a year.
Nearly 100,000 companies worldwide avail themselves of the Cayman Islands' 0% tax rate to duck corporate taxes — twice the size of the territory's population. Ugland House, a modest five-story building in the capital of George Town, is home to nearly 19,000 corporate entities, or one corporation for every three square feet of space in the building.
Former President Barack Obama remarked of Ugland House in 2008, "Either this is the largest building in the world or the largest tax scam in the world."
The press has frequently profiled Ugland House. In 2013 the Associated Press called it "a notorious tax shelter." Foreign Policy magazine said in 2012 that "the building makes a mockery of the U.S. tax system." The Economist wrote that it was "a symbol of all that is wrong with offshore financial centers." In 2009, the year ICE registered its Cayman clearinghouse, Rachel Maddow said that Ugland House was one of the "go-to destinations for U.S. companies to set up fake headquarters so they can avoid paying U.S. taxes on their profits."
Loeffler's forebears in the Senate — Democratic and Republican alike — went after Ugland House by name.
In 2009, the year ICE registered its Cayman clearinghouse, Sen. Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat, introduced legislation targeting Ugland House specifically:
The bill is a new addition to the Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act designed to address the Ugland House problem. It focuses on the situation where a corporation is incorporated in a tax haven as a mere shell operation with little or no physical presence or employees in the jurisdiction. . . . The objective of this set up is to enable the owners of the shell entity to take advantage of all of the benefits provided by U.S. legal, educational, financial, and commercial systems, and at the same time avoid paying U.S. taxes.
At a Senate Finance Committee hearing the year before, as the global economy was showing the first cracks from the high-risk trading that ICE later revived in the Caymans, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said American taxpayers should not pay a higher price "because sophisticated tax cheats move dollars offshore," and singled out Ugland House:
Today, we will hear a lot of complicated reasons for why those 9,000 Americans chose to conduct business out of the Ugland House in the Cayman Islands. And today, we will also hope to get some straight answers from our witnesses about why they do so. And the answers have a lot to do with tax evasion. Offshore tax evasion costs Americans tens of billions of dollars every year. . . . We owe it to hardworking honest taxpayers to make sure that their tax burden does not increase because sophisticated tax cheats move dollars offshore.
Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., told the New York Sun in 2008, the year before Sprecher's company established its Caymans setup, that Ugland is "one of the most likely places shady tax transactions could be sheltered."
"If American companies are setting up shop at the beach just to avoid their tax obligations, we can't keep our heads in the sand," Baucus said, emphasizing, as Grassley did, a need to "make sure honest American taxpayers are not footing the bill for corporations that aren't paying their fair share."
Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said in 2007 that Ugland House was "the poster child for offshore tax haven abuses," a view shared in 2008 by fellow North Dakota Democrat Sen. Kent Conrad: "Of course, the only business they are doing in this building is monkey business, because what they are doing is claiming they are doing business there in order to engage in tax avoidance."
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., made a similar quip in 2011: "The notion that 18,000 corporations are doing business out of this building — that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase 'small business.' But there is no real business going on here. The business that is going on here is funny business, under the Tax Code."
The ICE Cayman Islands arrangement incentivized the largest American financial institutions to execute CDS trades around the world by allowing them to dodge U.S. taxes on their profits.
Sprecher then created a system that rewarded the people whose recklessness had destroyed the economy only months earlier. He found a way to give new life to their CDS trades, which had cost millions of Americans their wealth, homes and livelihood. And Loeffler, his wife and ICE's top marketing officer, helped package and sell the product.
More recently, Loeffler and Sprecher appear to have tapped another tax loophole for themselves, in the form of a provision in President Trump's 2017 tax bill that turns private jets into flying tax shelters. The couple bought the plane last December, when Loeffler was appointed to the Senate by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. She stepped down from ICE to take the job, but her husband is still CEO, and she still holds a stake worth half a billion dollars — and sits on a committee that regulates the business.
In June 2009, the year after the bottom fell out of the global economy and a few months after ICE registered its Cayman Islands holding company, the couple purchased their $10.5 million Atlanta mansion. They call it "Descante" — relax.
Loeffler's campaign did not reply to multiple detailed requests for comment for this article. An ICE spokesperson did not provide comment.


alternet--2020-11-21--Here's how Joe Biden can cancel student debt on day one

The incoming Biden administration is facing increasing pressure to cancel federal student loan debt , something Joe Biden is reportedly considering through executive action , which would not require Congress to pass legislation .
Astra Taylor , a member of the Debt Collective , says canceling student debt would be a boon to debtors and the wider economy , and could be part of a larger wave of progressive action from the Biden administration .
`` There was a sense right after the election … that because Democrats did n't take the Senate that it would be impossible for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Taylor .
`` There are things that Biden can do if he 's willing to play hardball , if he 's willing to actually understand that 's what Republicans do , and the Democrats can do the same . ''
This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : We 're going to turn right now to Astra Taylor .
Astra Taylor of the Debt Collective .
The protest comes as the incoming Biden administration is also facing increasing pressure to cancel all federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a group of 200 groups sent a letter to Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris urging them to `` use executive authority to cancel federal student debt on day one of their administration . ''
So yes , we are turning now to the writer , to the filmmaker , to the organizer Astra Taylor , who is a member of the Debt Collective which has just published a book titled Ca n't Pay , Wo n't Pay : The Case for Economic Disobedience and Debt Abolition .
Astra wrote the foreword to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ piece in The Guardian that 's headlined We 're being told Biden wo n't be able to achieve much .
We must reject that idea .
We turn right to that theme .
Astra , let 's begin there .
What does it mean to say that we must reject this idea that not much can be achieved during a Biden administration ?
ASTRA TAYLOR : First , thanks so much for having me .
Wonderful to follow up on those brave words from Representatives Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez .
The `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ captures this spirit .
There was a sense right after the election , the election that is still unending , that because Democrats did n't take the Senate that it would be impossible for a Biden administration to govern .
What is so great in this moment is how the grassroots are saying , `` No , we actually have a deep understanding of how power works and what power you will have , even if the Democrats do not manage to flip those Senate seats in Georgia . ''
Of course flipping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those seats and winning those for the Democrats would be ideal .
But nevertheless , there are things that Biden can do , if he 's willing to play hardball .
If he 's willing to actually understand that that 's what the Republicans do and the Democrats need to do the same .
So there 's a movement afoot to pressure the Biden administration to do this , first by saying , `` We know that you possess this power . ''
So for example , Biden can make appointments using the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Act .
This is a power that Trump used even though he had the Senate on his side .
This essentially allows the president to appoint Cabinet-level posts , people who have been confirmed by Congress or senior employees within certain agencies .
I would recommend people follow Demand Progress and the Revolving Door Project , which have been doing a lot of great work on this , essentially saying there is a way to put people in positions of power so that you can advance the progressive agenda that you were elected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so clear , progressives won this election .
And in a moment of pandemic and economic crisis , we simply can not afford to have a government that fails to govern in the interest of the people .
It 's also the self interest of the Democrats , because they will be crushed in 2022 or 2024 if they do n't do this .
So I am very heartened by movements paying attention of these sorts of things , thinking about staffing , thinking about important positions .
I think all of these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about climate change , whether we 're talking about economic justice , student debt—we recognize the importance of positions like the Treasury or the Office of Management and Budget , and realize it 's all interconnected .
And we need people who are committed to meeting the moment as opposed to the same old politics of austerity .
We need those people in place right now .
So the Debt Collective is very concerned , for example , with issues—who staffs the Department of Education , to ensure that we do n't have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We can not afford to have an Obama 2.0 at the level of the Department of Education .
AMY GOODMAN : And of course we 're talking about the Obama-Biden administration , except Biden would be—is the president-elect .
Now , can you talk about the wish list for Cabinet members ?
A lot has been talked about .
Apparently , President-elect Biden is about to name his treasury secretary .
Among those who progressives have really been pushing is Senator Elizabeth Warren , but there is concern that because she comes from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that that would not guarantee who would fill that Senate seat .
And of course , the Senate , it has not been decided who will run the Senate , because of the two Georgia senatorial runoffs .
But the possibility of Elizabeth Warren .
Now the name being floated among others is Janet Yellen .
You have Bernie Sanders wanting to be labor secretary .
The concern that his state , Vermont , the governor is also Republican .
Phil Scott , who says that he would choose an independent , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that would possibly caucus with the Democratic Party .
But in both these cases , you 've got these Republican governors who make the final decision .
What about the Cabinet , how important it is and these particular candidates , Astra ?
ASTRA TAYLOR : It is absolutely important that we put forward—I think the first thing that the Biden administration needs to do is put forward bold progressive options like Elizabeth Warren .
Sarah Bloom Raskin is another person that people are interested in .
I think she was at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some really interesting things about climate and the power of the Treasury to halt climate change .
So there are these dynamics to consider .
Whether or not the Democrats have the Senate is a big concern .
If they do n't , then what there needs to be , and organizations are doing this , is creating lists of people who are already in government .
So people who have positions on independent commissions within the government that could be appointed through the Vacancies Act .
At the Department of Education , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Randi Weingarten of the AFT , the American Federation of Teachers .
Having the head of a teachers union at the Department of Education would be significant progress .
But we do n't know what is going to happen .
We 're not at the point where we can rest easy .
But I think as people in the movement , we need to signal that we 're paying intense attention to this and that we understand just how critical these positions are .
Again , we need to look at things like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Budget as well , sort of more boring agencies we do n't pay a lot of attention to that actually are influential when we are thinking about the power of the purse .
AMY GOODMAN : In the foreword of the new book Ca n't Pay , Wo n't Pay : The Case for Economic Disobedience and Debt Abolition , you write , `` If we do n't get organized , debtors will keep getting pushed deeper into a financial hole .
In the throes of the pandemic , some payday lenders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on short-term loans , taking advantage of people who have no other way to keep a roof over their heads or put food on the table .
Mass unemployment in the absence of a functioning safety net intensifies mass indebtedness , fueling the already vastly unequal distribution of wealth along predictable racial lines . ''
We are moving into the holiday week .
There are people blocks long on food lines across this country .
Charity groups , food groups that are giving out turkeys or any kind of food are running out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up .
We are talking about millions of people about to lose their unemployment benefits .
Can you talk about the whole issue of debt and what you think is possible ?
ASTRA TAYLOR : Indebtedness was an absolute crisis before the COVID pandemic .
I think we have to begin there .
Already , household indebtedness was reaching historic proportions .
The thing is that access to credit has masked stagnating wages and deepening , mind-boggling inequality .
So what people have had to do , because they 're not paid enough @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to compensate .
So in that sense , people are robbed twice .
You 're robbed at the workplace by being paid poverty wages , then you 're forced to borrow and pay interest to make ends meet .
So we have to borrow money to get an education so we can get a job .
The average student borrower now has about $ 32,000 of debt .
It goes up and up every year .
People have to take out payday loans to keep a roof over their head .
We know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put necessities on their credit cards .
We are talking basic things like food , sustenance .
People of course are drowning in medical debt because we live in a country that lacks universal healthcare .
Medical debt , as Bernie Sanders often pointed out on the campaign trail , is the number one cause of bankruptcy in this country .
If you live in a country with universal healthcare , medical debt does not exist .
So these are political structural problems .
So we are a country of people in debt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of people , are in debt .
Americans died—before the pandemic , Americans were dying on average with $ 62,000 of debt .
The pandemic hits , millions of jobs evaporate and this becomes an even more urgent crisis .
We know before the pandemic that people did n't have $ 400 for an emergency .
What happens when your incomes dries up ?
You go deeper and deeper into debt , delinquency , default .
And all of the psychological and physical consequences that come with that .
We all know that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bad for our health .
So these are structural problems , and the Debt Collective , which is a union of debtors , demands structural solutions .
So just like workers organize in the workplace and want higher wages , benefits , fair terms of employment , we believe debtors also have to organize .
So debtors do not share an office space or a factory floor , but we can come together and organize against our creditors .
That might be a private entity like the bank , or in the case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The federal government holds the vast majority of student debt , an overwhelming amount of it , over 95 % .
So we are trying to build debtor power in this moment , and underscoring the fact that in a crisis like this , the one we 're living in , what we need is cash to the people , just like those unemployment benefits , the checks for $ 1200 that were not nearly enough .
People need the money , the financial support to survive , but we need to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cancellation , of a jubilee .
Otherwise , those cash payments are just going to pay people 's debts .
In fact , we know that the $ 1200 stimulus checks that were sent to people were just basically sent to debt servicing because that 's what people were doing .
They were paying their debts instead of spending the money in the economy which would then provide an economic boost .
And it shows that their priority is paying off their debt , that that 's what they are afraid of .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ with debt cancellation .
And there are calls emanating from all over to cancel medical debt , cancel rent .
And the Debt Collective has been leading the fight for the last ten years to cancel student debt .
And that is now seriously on the table and being debated in Washington , and we have pushed the Biden administration to at least commit to the immediate cancellation of $ 10,000 .
We need to push them further , and we need to push them to use executive power to do so .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ more deeply about student debt , But first , in 2005 , then Joe Biden , who , alongside most Republicans , favored the 2005 Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act , a bill that essentially made it more difficult to file for bankruptcy .
The credit card industry , much of which is based in Biden 's home state of Delaware , also supported the bill and even wrote some of the bill 's key amendments .
This is an exchange between Biden , who at the time was a member @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Elizabeth Warren , who at the time was a Harvard law professor , now of course a senator .
AMY GOODMAN : So , Astra Taylor , if you can describe where Biden has stood—of course he was a longtime senator from Delaware , home of the credit card companies , very much seen as in bed with them—to where he is today , and what kind of concessions he has made and where you think he needs to be .
ASTRA TAYLOR : Biden 's role in the student debt crisis goes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Middle Income Student Assistance Act , which essentially eliminated restrictions on federal loans .
So he has been very involved in expanding lending while also repealing bankruptcy protections , as that clip just pointed out .
Indeed , he was the longtime senator from Delaware , the credit card capital of the world .
So this is his track record .
We have no illusions about who we 're dealing with .
And I think that is one of the benefits of a Biden administration : nobody thinks he is a Messiah @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The 2005 bankruptcy bill was a travesty .
It was written by the credit card industries , parts of it , as you pointed out .
It was actually vetoed under Clinton and then Biden fought passionately for it and it was passed under the Bush administration .
So this is not an encouraging track record in many ways .
And as I said earlier , the Debt Collective was in a fight with the Obama administration , the Obama-Biden administration .
We led a student debt strike that was made up of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ students had been defrauded .
They had been lied to .
And the Department of Education had basically supported and bailed out these predatory corporations that pretend to offer education and do n't .
They leave students—disproportionately working-class , black and brown , single mothers , veterans—buried in debt , unable to get the employment that they were promised .
And that administration absolutely failed to use the power at its disposal to help these students .
In fact , many former OBiden Department of Ed officials went immediately from that administration to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They just waltzed right through that revolving door .
So we have been calling on the Biden administration , along with so many of our allies in the education space , to break with this tradition .
And there are some signs that under pressure , he is doing so .
After Joe Biden won the Democratic nomination , he moved and finally formally embraced student debt forgiveness .
Of course , we know that Bernie Sanders had a policy of full student debt cancellation .
That is what the Debt Collective supports @ @ @ @ @ @ @ erased because those loans should not exist in the first place .
We should not have to mortgage our futures simply to get an education .
Senator Elizabeth Warren has been very good on this issue .
She pushed quite an ambitious student debt plan and is still pushing today .
So Biden has taken up some elements of that plan .
He still needs to go further .
As I said , because of COVID , he has said that he will immediately cancel $ 10,000 of student debt .
This is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He has a long Medium post about this .
The question now though is how is he going to do it , and will he do more .
And we are committed to building a movement to ensure that the Biden administration cancels far more than $ 10,000 of student debt .
Again , we believe he should cancel all of it , and that he uses an authority that the Department of Education already possesses called compromise and settlement .
The Biden administration can erase all student debt on day one .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ this is possible .
Senators Warren and Schumer have embraced this legal argument .
And indeed the Trump administration already used this authority to cancel interest on student loans a few months ago because of the pandemic .
So we are in a very interesting moment where public pressure could really actually make a massive difference and turn Joe Biden from the person who has basically advanced the student debt crisis into the president who finally helps roll it back .
AMY GOODMAN : Astra , if we can cut across the political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this holiday season get biblical , canceling debt obviously is not a new idea .
In Deuteronomy 15 , at the end of every seven years , you must cancel debts .
Go back to that history of debt jubilee .
ASTRA TAYLOR : Yeah , jubilee has a long tradition .
Here we can lean on the work of the late and great anthropologist David Graeber .
David Graeber was a friend of mine .
He brought me into the Occupy Wall Street movement and recruited me to the cause of debt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : The First 5000 years , he talks about how in ancient societies , there were these periodic jubilees , a wiping of the slate .
Essentially , societies would become torn apart by indebtedness .
People started selling themselves and their children into debt slavery .
And there was a recognition that often people would be driven into debt because of circumstances that were n't their fault .
Maybe it was bad crops or maybe there was warfare .
And to keep society from breaking in two , and also to mitigate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the lenders , there would be these periodic amnesties .
So there was the laws of Hammurabi , very famous from 1750 BC , that says there need to be debt amnesties .
So this is not some utopian future-looking idea .
This is something that has deep historical roots .
And there have been critical policies of debt cancellation in the modern era .
Scholars and economists who look at this period often point to Germany after World War II where the debts were wiped away so that Germany would have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and became the economic miracle .
So part of the call for jubilee is part of this long tradition .
And it 's both a kind of moral argument and it says these debts are destroying people 's lives .
They are having disastrous social consequences .
We ca n't afford as a society have those .
But then there 's a kind of practical economic thing , which is that it will actually boost the economy for everybody .
Everybody will be better off if we get rid of these debts , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ca n't be paid wo n't be paid .
So let 's face that fact .
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The incoming Biden administration is facing increasing pressure to cancel federal student loan debt, something Joe Biden is reportedly considering through executive action, which would not require Congress to pass legislation. Astra Taylor, a member of the Debt Collective, says canceling student debt would be a boon to debtors and the wider economy, and could be part of a larger wave of progressive action from the Biden administration. "There was a sense right after the election … that because Democrats didn't take the Senate that it would be impossible for a Biden administration to govern," says Taylor. "There are things that Biden can do if he's willing to play hardball, if he's willing to actually understand that's what Republicans do, and the Democrats can do the same."
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: We're going to turn right now to Astra Taylor. Astra Taylor of the Debt Collective. The protest comes as the incoming Biden administration is also facing increasing pressure to cancel all federal student loan debt. On Wednesday, a group of 200 groups sent a letter to Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris urging them to "use executive authority to cancel federal student debt on day one of their administration."
So yes, we are turning now to the writer, to the filmmaker, to the organizer Astra Taylor, who is a member of the Debt Collective which has just published a book titled Can't Pay, Won't Pay: The Case for Economic Disobedience and Debt Abolition. Astra wrote the foreword to the book as well as a new piece in The Guardian that's headlined We're being told Biden won't be able to achieve much. We must reject that idea. We turn right to that theme. Astra, let's begin there. What does it mean to say that we must reject this idea that not much can be achieved during a Biden administration?
ASTRA TAYLOR: First, thanks so much for having me. Wonderful to follow up on those brave words from Representatives Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The "Biden, be brave" rally also captures this spirit. There was a sense right after the election, the election that is still unending, that because Democrats didn't take the Senate that it would be impossible for a Biden administration to govern. What is so great in this moment is how the grassroots are saying, "No, we actually have a deep understanding of how power works and what power you will have, even if the Democrats do not manage to flip those Senate seats in Georgia." Of course flipping those seats would be ideal, keeping those seats and winning those for the Democrats would be ideal. But nevertheless, there are things that Biden can do, if he's willing to play hardball. If he's willing to actually understand that that's what the Republicans do and the Democrats need to do the same.
So there's a movement afoot to pressure the Biden administration to do this, first by saying, "We know that you possess this power." So for example, Biden can make appointments using the Vacancies Act, the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. This is a power that Trump used even though he had the Senate on his side. This essentially allows the president to appoint Cabinet-level posts, people who have been confirmed by Congress or senior employees within certain agencies. I would recommend people follow Demand Progress and the Revolving Door Project, which have been doing a lot of great work on this, essentially saying there is a way to put people in positions of power so that you can advance the progressive agenda that you were elected to advance.
Because as AOC made so clear, progressives won this election. And in a moment of pandemic and economic crisis, we simply cannot afford to have a government that fails to govern in the interest of the people. It's also the self interest of the Democrats, because they will be crushed in 2022 or 2024 if they don't do this. So I am very heartened by movements paying attention of these sorts of things, thinking about staffing, thinking about important positions.
I think all of these social moments, whether we're talking about climate change, whether we're talking about economic justice, student debt—we recognize the importance of positions like the Treasury or the Office of Management and Budget, and realize it's all interconnected. And we need people who are committed to meeting the moment as opposed to the same old politics of austerity. We need those people in place right now. So the Debt Collective is very concerned, for example, with issues—who staffs the Department of Education, to ensure that we don't have a repeat of the Obama-Biden administration. We cannot afford to have an Obama 2.0 at the level of the Department of Education.
AMY GOODMAN: And of course we're talking about the Obama-Biden administration, except Biden would be—is the president-elect. Now, can you talk about the wish list for Cabinet members? A lot has been talked about. Apparently, President-elect Biden is about to name his treasury secretary. Among those who progressives have really been pushing is Senator Elizabeth Warren, but there is concern that because she comes from Massachusetts, which has a Republican governor, that that would not guarantee who would fill that Senate seat.
And of course, the Senate, it has not been decided who will run the Senate, because of the two Georgia senatorial runoffs. But the possibility of Elizabeth Warren. Now the name being floated among others is Janet Yellen.
You have Bernie Sanders wanting to be labor secretary. The concern that his state, Vermont, the governor is also Republican. Phil Scott, who says that he would choose an independent, which of course, Bernie Sanders is, that would possibly caucus with the Democratic Party. But in both these cases, you've got these Republican governors who make the final decision. What about the Cabinet, how important it is and these particular candidates, Astra?
ASTRA TAYLOR: It is absolutely important that we put forward—I think the first thing that the Biden administration needs to do is put forward bold progressive options like Elizabeth Warren. Sarah Bloom Raskin is another person that people are interested in. I think she was at the Treasury under Obama and has said some really interesting things about climate and the power of the Treasury to halt climate change. So there are these dynamics to consider.
Whether or not the Democrats have the Senate is a big concern. If they don't, then what there needs to be, and organizations are doing this, is creating lists of people who are already in government. So people who have positions on independent commissions within the government that could be appointed through the Vacancies Act. At the Department of Education, some of the names being floated are Randi Weingarten of the AFT, the American Federation of Teachers. Having the head of a teachers union at the Department of Education would be significant progress.
But we don't know what is going to happen. We're not at the point where we can rest easy. But I think as people in the movement, we need to signal that we're paying intense attention to this and that we understand just how critical these positions are. Again, we need to look at things like the OMB, the Office of Management and Budget as well, sort of more boring agencies we don't pay a lot of attention to that actually are influential when we are thinking about the power of the purse.
AMY GOODMAN: In the foreword of the new book Can't Pay, Won't Pay: The Case for Economic Disobedience and Debt Abolition, you write, "If we don't get organized, debtors will keep getting pushed deeper into a financial hole. In the throes of the pandemic, some payday lenders are charging close to 800% interest on short-term loans, taking advantage of people who have no other way to keep a roof over their heads or put food on the table. Mass unemployment in the absence of a functioning safety net intensifies mass indebtedness, fueling the already vastly unequal distribution of wealth along predictable racial lines."
We are moving into the holiday week. There are people blocks long on food lines across this country. Charity groups, food groups that are giving out turkeys or any kind of food are running out of food. Unemployment numbers are going up. We are talking about millions of people about to lose their unemployment benefits. Can you talk about the whole issue of debt and what you think is possible?
ASTRA TAYLOR: Indebtedness was an absolute crisis before the COVID pandemic. I think we have to begin there. Already, household indebtedness was reaching historic proportions. The thing is that access to credit has masked stagnating wages and deepening, mind-boggling inequality. So what people have had to do, because they're not paid enough, is they've had to borrow to compensate. So in that sense, people are robbed twice. You're robbed at the workplace by being paid poverty wages, then you're forced to borrow and pay interest to make ends meet. So we have to borrow money to get an education so we can get a job. The average student borrower now has about $32,000 of debt. It goes up and up every year. People have to take out payday loans to keep a roof over their head. We know the research shows that people tend to put necessities on their credit cards. We are talking basic things like food, sustenance.
People of course are drowning in medical debt because we live in a country that lacks universal healthcare. Medical debt, as Bernie Sanders often pointed out on the campaign trail, is the number one cause of bankruptcy in this country. If you live in a country with universal healthcare, medical debt does not exist. So these are political structural problems.
So we are a country of people in debt. The vast majority, 75% of people, are in debt. Americans died—before the pandemic, Americans were dying on average with $62,000 of debt. The pandemic hits, millions of jobs evaporate and this becomes an even more urgent crisis. We know before the pandemic that people didn't have $400 for an emergency. What happens when your incomes dries up? You go deeper and deeper into debt, delinquency, default. And all of the psychological and physical consequences that come with that. We all know that debt is incredibly stressful. It's bad for our health.
So these are structural problems, and the Debt Collective, which is a union of debtors, demands structural solutions. So just like workers organize in the workplace and want higher wages, benefits, fair terms of employment, we believe debtors also have to organize. So debtors do not share an office space or a factory floor, but we can come together and organize against our creditors. That might be a private entity like the bank, or in the case of student loans, the federal government. The federal government holds the vast majority of student debt, an overwhelming amount of it, over 95%.
So we are trying to build debtor power in this moment, and underscoring the fact that in a crisis like this, the one we're living in, what we need is cash to the people, just like those unemployment benefits, the checks for $1200 that were not nearly enough. People need the money, the financial support to survive, but we need to couple that with a program of debt cancellation, of a jubilee. Otherwise, those cash payments are just going to pay people's debts.
In fact, we know that the $1200 stimulus checks that were sent to people were just basically sent to debt servicing because that's what people were doing. They were paying their debts instead of spending the money in the economy which would then provide an economic boost. And it shows that their priority is paying off their debt, that that's what they are afraid of.
So we need to couple relief programs with debt cancellation. And there are calls emanating from all over to cancel medical debt, cancel rent. And the Debt Collective has been leading the fight for the last ten years to cancel student debt. And that is now seriously on the table and being debated in Washington, and we have pushed the Biden administration to at least commit to the immediate cancellation of $10,000. We need to push them further, and we need to push them to use executive power to do so.
AMY GOODMAN: I want to talk more deeply about student debt, But first, in 2005, then Joe Biden, who, alongside most Republicans, favored the 2005 Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act, a bill that essentially made it more difficult to file for bankruptcy. The credit card industry, much of which is based in Biden's home state of Delaware, also supported the bill and even wrote some of the bill's key amendments. This is an exchange between Biden, who at the time was a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Elizabeth Warren, who at the time was a Harvard law professor, now of course a senator.
ELIZABETH WARREN: They have squeezed enough out of these families in interest and fees and payments that never pay down the principal.
SEN. JOE BIDEN: Maybe we should talk about usury rates, then. Maybe that's what we should be talking about, not bankruptcy.
ELIZABETH WARREN: Senator, I'll be the first. Invite me.
SEN. JOE BIDEN: No, I know you will. But let's call a spade a spade! Your problem with the credit card companies is usury rates, from your position. It's not about the bankruptcy bill.
ELIZABETH WARREN: But Senator, if you're not going to fix that problem, you can't take away the last shred of protection for these families.
SEN. JOE BIDEN: I got it. Okay. Well, you're a very good professor.
AMY GOODMAN: So, Astra Taylor, if you can describe where Biden has stood—of course he was a longtime senator from Delaware, home of the credit card companies, very much seen as in bed with them—to where he is today, and what kind of concessions he has made and where you think he needs to be.
ASTRA TAYLOR: Biden's role in the student debt crisis goes way back to 1978 when he supported the Middle Income Student Assistance Act, which essentially eliminated restrictions on federal loans. So he has been very involved in expanding lending while also repealing bankruptcy protections, as that clip just pointed out. Indeed, he was the longtime senator from Delaware, the credit card capital of the world. So this is his track record. We have no illusions about who we're dealing with.
And I think that is one of the benefits of a Biden administration: nobody thinks he is a Messiah. We know who he is. The 2005 bankruptcy bill was a travesty. It was written by the credit card industries, parts of it, as you pointed out. It was actually vetoed under Clinton and then Biden fought passionately for it and it was passed under the Bush administration. So this is not an encouraging track record in many ways.
And as I said earlier, the Debt Collective was in a fight with the Obama administration, the Obama-Biden administration. We led a student debt strike that was made up of students from predatory for-profit colleges. These students had been defrauded. They had been lied to. And the Department of Education had basically supported and bailed out these predatory corporations that pretend to offer education and don't. They leave students—disproportionately working-class, black and brown, single mothers, veterans—buried in debt, unable to get the employment that they were promised. And that administration absolutely failed to use the power at its disposal to help these students. In fact, many former OBiden Department of Ed officials went immediately from that administration to working in the for-profit college sector. They just waltzed right through that revolving door.
So we have been calling on the Biden administration, along with so many of our allies in the education space, to break with this tradition. And there are some signs that under pressure, he is doing so. After Joe Biden won the Democratic nomination, he moved and finally formally embraced student debt forgiveness. Of course, we know that Bernie Sanders had a policy of full student debt cancellation. That is what the Debt Collective supports. We think every penny should be erased because those loans should not exist in the first place. We should not have to mortgage our futures simply to get an education. Senator Elizabeth Warren has been very good on this issue. She pushed quite an ambitious student debt plan and is still pushing today. So Biden has taken up some elements of that plan. He still needs to go further.
As I said, because of COVID, he has said that he will immediately cancel $10,000 of student debt. This is included in his racial equity plan. He has a long Medium post about this. The question now though is how is he going to do it, and will he do more. And we are committed to building a movement to ensure that the Biden administration cancels far more than $10,000 of student debt. Again, we believe he should cancel all of it, and that he uses an authority that the Department of Education already possesses called compromise and settlement.
The Biden administration can erase all student debt on day one. Legal research from the Debt Collective shows this is possible. Senators Warren and Schumer have embraced this legal argument. And indeed the Trump administration already used this authority to cancel interest on student loans a few months ago because of the pandemic. So we are in a very interesting moment where public pressure could really actually make a massive difference and turn Joe Biden from the person who has basically advanced the student debt crisis into the president who finally helps roll it back.
AMY GOODMAN: Astra, if we can cut across the political spectrum, and as we move into this holiday season get biblical, canceling debt obviously is not a new idea. In Deuteronomy 15, at the end of every seven years, you must cancel debts. Go back to that history of debt jubilee.
ASTRA TAYLOR: Yeah, jubilee has a long tradition. Here we can lean on the work of the late and great anthropologist David Graeber. David Graeber was a friend of mine. He brought me into the Occupy Wall Street movement and recruited me to the cause of debt resistance. In his beautiful book Debt: The First 5000 years, he talks about how in ancient societies, there were these periodic jubilees, a wiping of the slate.
Essentially, societies would become torn apart by indebtedness. People started selling themselves and their children into debt slavery. And there was a recognition that often people would be driven into debt because of circumstances that weren't their fault. Maybe it was bad crops or maybe there was warfare. And to keep society from breaking in two, and also to mitigate the power, to reduce the power of the lenders, there would be these periodic amnesties. So there was the laws of Hammurabi, very famous from 1750 BC, that says there need to be debt amnesties.
So this is not some utopian future-looking idea. This is something that has deep historical roots. And there have been critical policies of debt cancellation in the modern era. Scholars and economists who look at this period often point to Germany after World War II where the debts were wiped away so that Germany would have a chance to restart its economy, and became the economic miracle.
So part of the call for jubilee is part of this long tradition. And it's both a kind of moral argument and it says these debts are destroying people's lives. They are having disastrous social consequences. We can't afford as a society have those. But then there's a kind of practical economic thing, which is that it will actually boost the economy for everybody. Everybody will be better off if we get rid of these debts, based on the logic that debts that can't be paid won't be paid. So let's face that fact.
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alternet--2020-11-21--Watch: AOC excoriate Mitch McConnell on House floor

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to the House floor Friday on behalf of her working-class district and struggling Americans across the country to call out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for sending members of the upper chamber home for Thanksgiving without striking a deal on coronavirus pandemic relief legislation .
The New York Democrat decided to rise and speak out , she said , because McConnell , a Kentucky Republican , `` decided to break the Senate . ''
`` And he broke the Senate , '' she said , `` as there are thousands of people in Texas lined up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate while hospitals no longer have beds to house the sick . ''
`` He broke the Senate , and dismissed the Senate , while 30 million Americans are on the brink of eviction , '' she continued .
`` He dismissed the Senate when every single day , when we go back to our communities , people are asking us , 'Where is there going to be help ?
Is there going to be a second stimulus check ?
Are we going to get the resources that we need ? ''
Recognizing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` extraordinary health and economic hardship of the Covid-19 pandemic , '' the congresswoman emphasized that `` in breaking the Senate , we are abandoning our people . ''
Ocasio-Cortez noted that `` Thanksgiving is around the corner , and there are millions of Americans that wo n't be able to afford a meal to eat , that do n't know if they 'll be kicked out of their home , that are unsure if they 're going to have to quit their job to care for their child . ''
The GOP-controlled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them , '' and `` it is unconscionable , unconscionable leadership to abandon our people . ''
The congresswoman highlighted how the Coronavirus Aid , Relief , and Economic Security ( CARES ) Act from March—the last relief measure that Senate Republicans and President Donald Trump agreed to approve—lifted out of poverty Americans who were trying to navigate the intertwined public health and economic crises .
In the nearly eight months since the president signed the CARES Act , Senate Republicans and the White House have refused to advance multiple relief measures passed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benefits have expired and the pandemic has intensified .
As communities across the country are seeing infections surge , bodies piling up—the U.S. had recorded more than 11.85 million Covid-19 cases and nearly 254,000 deaths as of Friday—and millions of people are also enduring financial difficulties .
Citing recent data from the Census Bureau , Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that less than half of Americans are confident they will be able to afford necessary food over the next four weeks .
While federal lawmakers are arguing about relief packages , `` people are going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needs as blue state needs or as bailouts depending on what party you voted for , '' she said .
`` Hunger has no party .
Illness has no party .
And when we allow suffering to be alleviated or concentrated based on political affiliation , we are doing a disservice to our entire nation . ''
Ocasio-Cortez also noted critiques of how the $ 4 trillion that the U.S. government has put toward the pandemic response has been spent .
As the Washington Post reported last month : [ More ] than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2.3 trillion , has gone to businesses that in many cases did n't need the help or were n't required to show they used the taxpayer funds to keep workers on the job .
By contrast , about a fifth , $ 884 billion , went to help workers and families .
And even less aimed at the health crisis itself , with 16 % of the total going toward testing and tracing , vaccine development , and helping states provide care , among other health-related needs .
In her floor speech , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ covering the costs of future relief for Americans by noting that when he `` authorized a $ 4 trillion leveraged bailout for Wall Street in March , '' McConnell `` was n't concerned about , 'How are we going to pay for that ? '
'' `` It is only when we are talking about relief for working people , for children , for families , for parents , for education , for healthcare , that all of the sudden , we ca n't pay for any of these things , '' she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to tax subsidies for private jets , we 've got the money for that . ''
ABC News reported late Thursday that Democratic aides said staffers of McConnell , Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-N.Y. ) , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-Calif. ) , and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy ( R-Calif. ) met earlier in the day `` to discuss ways coronavirus relief could be tacked on to a must-pass spending bill that needs to clear both chambers of Congress by December 11 to avert a government shutdown . ''
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` that discussions between staffers Thursday were strictly about passing the omnibus spending bill—which would fund the government through next year—and were unrelated to any additional coronavirus relief . ''

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to the House floor Friday on behalf of her working-class district and struggling Americans across the country to call out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for sending members of the upper chamber home for Thanksgiving without striking a deal on coronavirus pandemic relief legislation.
The New York Democrat decided to rise and speak out, she said, because McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, "decided to break the Senate."
"And he broke the Senate," she said, "as there are thousands of people in Texas lined up for food lines. He broke the Senate while hospitals no longer have beds to house the sick."
"He broke the Senate, and dismissed the Senate, while 30 million Americans are on the brink of eviction," she continued. "He dismissed the Senate when every single day, when we go back to our communities, people are asking us, 'Where is there going to be help? Is there going to be a second stimulus check? Are we going to get the resources that we need?"
Recognizing that Americans continue to grapple with the "extraordinary health and economic hardship of the Covid-19 pandemic," the congresswoman emphasized that "in breaking the Senate, we are abandoning our people."
WATCH:
Ocasio-Cortez noted that "Thanksgiving is around the corner, and there are millions of Americans that won't be able to afford a meal to eat, that don't know if they'll be kicked out of their home, that are unsure if they're going to have to quit their job to care for their child."
The GOP-controlled Senate, she said, "abandoned them," and "it is unconscionable, unconscionable leadership to abandon our people."
The congresswoman highlighted how the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act from March—the last relief measure that Senate Republicans and President Donald Trump agreed to approve—lifted out of poverty Americans who were trying to navigate the intertwined public health and economic crises.
In the nearly eight months since the president signed the CARES Act, Senate Republicans and the White House have refused to advance multiple relief measures passed by the Democrat-controlled House, even as benefits have expired and the pandemic has intensified.
As communities across the country are seeing infections surge, bodies piling up—the U.S. had recorded more than 11.85 million Covid-19 cases and nearly 254,000 deaths as of Friday—and millions of people are also enduring financial difficulties.
Citing recent data from the Census Bureau, Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that less than half of Americans are confident they will be able to afford necessary food over the next four weeks.
While federal lawmakers are arguing about relief packages, "people are going hungry, and we are dismissing their needs as blue state needs or as bailouts depending on what party you voted for," she said. "Hunger has no party. Illness has no party. And when we allow suffering to be alleviated or concentrated based on political affiliation, we are doing a disservice to our entire nation."
Ocasio-Cortez also noted critiques of how the $4 trillion that the U.S. government has put toward the pandemic response has been spent. As the Washington Post reported last month:
[More] than half of that sum, roughly $2.3 trillion, has gone to businesses that in many cases didn't need the help or weren't required to show they used the taxpayer funds to keep workers on the job.
By contrast, about a fifth, $884 billion, went to help workers and families. And even less aimed at the health crisis itself, with 16% of the total going toward testing and tracing, vaccine development, and helping states provide care, among other health-related needs.
In her floor speech, Ocasio-Cortez responded to Republicans' concerns about covering the costs of future relief for Americans by noting that when he "authorized a $4 trillion leveraged bailout for Wall Street in March," McConnell "wasn't concerned about, 'How are we going to pay for that?'"
"It is only when we are talking about relief for working people, for children, for families, for parents, for education, for healthcare, that all of the sudden, we can't pay for any of these things," she said. "But when it comes to tax subsidies for private jets, we've got the money for that."
ABC News reported late Thursday that Democratic aides said staffers of McConnell, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) met earlier in the day "to discuss ways coronavirus relief could be tacked on to a must-pass spending bill that needs to clear both chambers of Congress by December 11 to avert a government shutdown."
However, Republican aides told the outlet "that discussions between staffers Thursday were strictly about passing the omnibus spending bill—which would fund the government through next year—and were unrelated to any additional coronavirus relief."


alternet--2020-11-21--Revealed: Georgia Senator David Perdue pushed for tax cuts for his wealthy friends

Sen. David Perdue ( R-Ga. ) privately petitioned U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to give a large tax cut to wealthy sports franchise owners back in 2019 , according to a report obtained by ProPublica .
Following the passing of President Donald Trump 's 2017 tax bill , Mnuchin and the Treasury Department had to include rules and regulations for how the bill would work .
In 2019 , the Georgia senator submitted a letter to Mnuchin on behalf of the owners of professional sports teams .
The new regulations , based on more than one hundred pages of documentation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expressed concern about in his letter : `` The owners of professional sports teams were being excluded from a valuable tax break being granted to many other businesses that are structured so that the companies do n't pay taxes but the owners do , '' Perdue said , according to '' I hope you will reconsider , '' Perdue wrote in the 2019 letter .
Most letters advocating for changes like this one are typically signed by multiple lawmakers .
However , this particular letter was only signed by Perdue .
It still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with this one line within a larger piece of legislation .
However , there is speculation that conflict of interest could be in the cards .
According to MotherJones , a review of Perdue 's campaign contributions revealed sizable donations of approximately `` $ 425,000 from the owners of professional sports teams and their relatives . ''
Some of Perdue 's top donors include the family of U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos , who happen to own the Orlando Magic ; John Ingram , owner of the Nashville SC soccer team ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; and Cleveland Browns , owner Jimmy Haslam , according to the report .
The report also detailed what occurred the day Perdue sent the letter .
On the same day Perdue sent Mnuchin the letter , he received $ 3,000 in donations from three lobbyists at GeorgiaLink Public Affairs Group , a lobbying firm that was representing the Atlanta Braves .
Because of the Braves ' ownership structure , it 's unlikely the team would have been affected by the regulation , but around that time , MLB was lobbying on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its team owners the tax break .
In addition to those big names , Sen. Kelly Loeffler ( R-Ga. ) , also co-owner of the WNBA 's Atlanta Dream , was also included in that list .
Loeffler and her husband , Jeffrey Sprecher , chief executive of Intercontinental Exchange , the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange ( NYSE ) , have donated more than $ 38,000 to Perdue .
However , it is still unclear whether or not Loeffler had discussed Perdue 's petition with him before it was @ @ @ @

Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) privately petitioned U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to give a large tax cut to wealthy sports franchise owners back in 2019, according to a report obtained by ProPublica.
Following the passing of President Donald Trump's 2017 tax bill, Mnuchin and the Treasury Department had to include rules and regulations for how the bill would work.
In 2019, the Georgia senator submitted a letter to Mnuchin on behalf of the owners of professional sports teams. The new regulations, based on more than one hundred pages of documentation, included one narrow regulation that Perdue expressed concern about in his letter: "The owners of professional sports teams were being excluded from a valuable tax break being granted to many other businesses that are structured so that the companies don't pay taxes but the owners do," Perdue said, according to
"I hope you will reconsider," Perdue wrote in the 2019 letter.
Most letters advocating for changes like this one are typically signed by multiple lawmakers. However, this particular letter was only signed by Perdue. It still remains unclear why Perdue became so enthralled with this one line within a larger piece of legislation. However, there is speculation that conflict of interest could be in the cards. According to MotherJones, a review of Perdue's campaign contributions revealed sizable donations of approximately "$425,000 from the owners of professional sports teams and their relatives."
Some of Perdue's top donors include the family of U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who happen to own the Orlando Magic; John Ingram, owner of the Nashville SC soccer team; Los Angeles Kings owner, Philip Anschutz; and Cleveland Browns, owner Jimmy Haslam, according to the report.
The report also detailed what occurred the day Perdue sent the letter.
On the same day Perdue sent Mnuchin the letter, he received $3,000 in donations from three lobbyists at GeorgiaLink Public Affairs Group, a lobbying firm that was representing the Atlanta Braves. Because of the Braves' ownership structure, it's unlikely the team would have been affected by the regulation, but around that time, MLB was lobbying on the rule, urging the Treasury to give its team owners the tax break.
In addition to those big names, Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.), also co-owner of the WNBA's Atlanta Dream, was also included in that list. Loeffler and her husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, chief executive of Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), have donated more than $38,000 to Perdue. However, it is still unclear whether or not Loeffler had discussed Perdue's petition with him before it was sent to Mnuchin.


alternet--2020-11-21--Rudy Giuliani's quixotic frenzy has observers wondering if he may need Trump's protection

Erstwhile LifeLock spokesperson Rudy Giuliani on Thursday emceed a 90-minute Trump campaign press conference at Republican National Committee headquarters , where he and Sidney Powell , the red-pilled lead lawyer for Michael Flynn 's defense team , espoused outright lies and fringe conspiracy theories about President Donald Trump 's electoral loss under high-powered media lights .
At one point , brown-tinged liquid inched down Giuliani 's cheeks after hair coloring appeared to sweat off the man formerly known as `` America 's mayor . ''
There is no evidence of voter fraud in the presidential election , according to election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden won with a record-setting 80 million ballots , posting a margin of victory of nearly six million votes over Trump .
The Trump campaign was met with defeat in three lawsuits on Thursday , hours after dropping a separate federal lawsuit in Michigan seeking to block the certification of ballots from the Detroit area .
Giuliani admitted in open court in Pennsylvania on the previous day that an alleged fraud case was actually `` not a fraud case . ''
Among the lies told by Giuliani and Powell were dishonest attempts to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Hugo Chávez , who died seven years ago .
The self-proclaimed `` elite strike force '' also alleged that the machines were financed by the Clinton Foundation and Democratic megadonor George Soros .
The conference reached the apex , however , with a stemwinder first posited by Powell and echoed more than once by Giuliani , repeating a false conspiracy theory circulating in right-wing internet crawlspaces that those voting machines had somehow sent American votes to Germany which were in turn counted in Spain .
Giuliani 's son , Andrew , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the White House and was present at the press conference , tested positive for COVID-19 the next day .
The 90-minute paroxysm , which Fox News broadcast live in its entirety , drew swift condemnation .
Christopher Krebs , Trump 's recently-fired former director of a Department of Homeland Security cybersecurity unit , called it `` the most dangerous hour and 45 minutes of television in American history .
And possibly the craziest . ''
The New York Times ' Maggie Haberman reported that the sentiment was shared even among Trump 's aides @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whom are speaking publicly — are saying this press conference and what Giuliani is doing is dangerous .
They 're waiting for the president to recognize that but he is not so far . ''
One week earlier , Giuliani made patently false allegations of election fraud at another press conference in the parking lot of a Philadelphia landscaping company adjoining a porn store and a crematorium .
He subsequently wrested full control of the Trump campaign 's legal challenges , making his first arguments before a federal court in 28 years , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Ahead of the election , Giuliani , whose pro bono work for the president led directly to his impeachment , for weeks pushed a dubious story alleging that contents from a hard drive of unknown origin revealed criminal wrongdoing on the part of Joe Biden 's son .
The conspiracy campaign culminated in an online video broadcast in late October in which Giuliani called the former vice president the `` prince of darkness . ''
This whirlwind of outlandish claims have struck observers — Trump allies included — as smacking of desperation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the cheeks of the former mayor , a Trump campaign adviser texted a journalist from The Washington Post asking , `` Is he deteriorating in real time ? ''
Trump backer Geraldo Rivera said on Fox News , `` I love the president .
I wanted him to win this election .
What I saw with Rudy Giuliani , who I 've known for decades , was bizarre . ''
GOP pollster Patrick Ruffini tweeted on Thursday , `` The thing about Rudy is that he was n't a carnival barker or a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for attention .
He had mainstream respectability and was a national hero for a time .
Why he decided to go down this road is a great mystery . ''
The defense attorney for Lev Parnas , one of Giuliani 's indicted former associates , asked the question of the void of Twitter : `` What 's happened to Rudy Giuliani ? ''
CNN analyst Joe Lockhart suggested that Giuliani , who has over the last two years aligned himself with foreign agents and indicted felons , might need Trump 's protection .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ doing what Rudy is doing ?
He needs a pardon and he 's trying to earn it , '' Lockhart tweeted .
A CNN report on Thursday included a passage indicating that Giuliani had recently come under renewed federal scrutiny .
`` Complicating matters is that Giuliani 's post-election swirl of activity comes as federal investigators renewed their investigative interest into his work that is already the subject of a New York-based investigation , '' CNN reported .
The report added that the investigation had cycled out of the headlines as Giuliani arrogated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to his defeat .
According to interviews conducted by Salon with individuals familiar with the case and multiple news reports , Giuliani 's business dealings have been subject of an extended federal probe led by the FBI and the Southern District of New York — the very office he once led .
That probe grew out of the arrest of Parnas and another Giuliani associate , who were booked one year ago on unrelated campaign finance charges at a Washington-area airport as they waited to board a flight to Vienna .
Their arrests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress — and one day after they met Giuliani for drinks at Trump 's Washington hotel .
This week , The New York Times reported that Giuliani , who has scraped for cash in the last year , asked the Trump campaign to pay him a day rate of $ 20,000 for his work on the last-ditch legal crusade .
Such a price tag would rank Giuliani among the most highly paid lawyers in the world .
`` I never asked for $ 20,000 , '' Giuliani told The Times .
`` The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out at the end . ''
However , his performance so far has heads shaking .
`` If the campaign does n't want to pay him $ 20,000 a day , I 'm sure the Biden campaign would , '' a former senior Trump White House official told CNN .
`` It 's easy to joke about this , and Rudy has become the butt of a lot of jokes .
On the other hand , this is deadly serious stuff , '' top election law expert Rick Hasen told CNN .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hundreds of thousands of people , and take the election away from the winner and hand it to the loser . ''
Neither Giuliani nor the Trump campaign responded to Salon 's requests for comment .

Erstwhile LifeLock spokesperson Rudy Giuliani on Thursday emceed a 90-minute Trump campaign press conference at Republican National Committee headquarters, where he and Sidney Powell, the red-pilled lead lawyer for Michael Flynn's defense team, espoused outright lies and fringe conspiracy theories about President Donald Trump's electoral loss under high-powered media lights.
At one point, brown-tinged liquid inched down Giuliani's cheeks after hair coloring appeared to sweat off the man formerly known as "America's mayor."
There is no evidence of voter fraud in the presidential election, according to election officials in every state. President-elect Joe Biden won with a record-setting 80 million ballots, posting a margin of victory of nearly six million votes over Trump.
The Trump campaign was met with defeat in three lawsuits on Thursday, hours after dropping a separate federal lawsuit in Michigan seeking to block the certification of ballots from the Detroit area. Giuliani admitted in open court in Pennsylvania on the previous day that an alleged fraud case was actually "not a fraud case."
Among the lies told by Giuliani and Powell were dishonest attempts to link Dominion voting machines to former Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, who died seven years ago. The self-proclaimed "elite strike force" also alleged that the machines were financed by the Clinton Foundation and Democratic megadonor George Soros.
The conference reached the apex, however, with a stemwinder first posited by Powell and echoed more than once by Giuliani, repeating a false conspiracy theory circulating in right-wing internet crawlspaces that those voting machines had somehow sent American votes to Germany which were in turn counted in Spain.
Giuliani's son, Andrew, who holds a vaguely defined official position at the White House and was present at the press conference, tested positive for COVID-19 the next day.
The 90-minute paroxysm, which Fox News broadcast live in its entirety, drew swift condemnation.
Christopher Krebs, Trump's recently-fired former director of a Department of Homeland Security cybersecurity unit, called it "the most dangerous hour and 45 minutes of television in American history. And possibly the craziest."
The New York Times' Maggie Haberman reported that the sentiment was shared even among Trump's aides: "Trump advisers — none of whom are speaking publicly — are saying this press conference and what Giuliani is doing is dangerous. They're waiting for the president to recognize that but he is not so far."
One week earlier, Giuliani made patently false allegations of election fraud at another press conference in the parking lot of a Philadelphia landscaping company adjoining a porn store and a crematorium. He subsequently wrested full control of the Trump campaign's legal challenges, making his first arguments before a federal court in 28 years, which were panned as "disgraceful."
Ahead of the election, Giuliani, whose pro bono work for the president led directly to his impeachment, for weeks pushed a dubious story alleging that contents from a hard drive of unknown origin revealed criminal wrongdoing on the part of Joe Biden's son. The conspiracy campaign culminated in an online video broadcast in late October in which Giuliani called the former vice president the "prince of darkness."
This whirlwind of outlandish claims have struck observers — Trump allies included — as smacking of desperation. As the brown streaks crept down the cheeks of the former mayor, a Trump campaign adviser texted a journalist from The Washington Post asking, "Is he deteriorating in real time?"
Trump backer Geraldo Rivera said on Fox News, "I love the president. I wanted him to win this election. What I saw with Rudy Giuliani, who I've known for decades, was bizarre."
GOP pollster Patrick Ruffini tweeted on Thursday, "The thing about Rudy is that he wasn't a carnival barker or a second-rate figure who needed to flail wildly for attention. He had mainstream respectability and was a national hero for a time. Why he decided to go down this road is a great mystery."
The defense attorney for Lev Parnas, one of Giuliani's indicted former associates, asked the question of the void of Twitter: "What's happened to Rudy Giuliani?"
CNN analyst Joe Lockhart suggested that Giuliani, who has over the last two years aligned himself with foreign agents and indicted felons, might need Trump's protection.
"One explanation of why Rudy is doing what Rudy is doing? He needs a pardon and he's trying to earn it," Lockhart tweeted.
A CNN report on Thursday included a passage indicating that Giuliani had recently come under renewed federal scrutiny.
"Complicating matters is that Giuliani's post-election swirl of activity comes as federal investigators renewed their investigative interest into his work that is already the subject of a New York-based investigation," CNN reported.
In recent weeks, FBI agents in New York contacted witnesses and asked new questions about Giuliani's efforts in Ukraine and possible connections to Russian intelligence, according to a person briefed on the matter. The FBI investigators, who have spoken to at least one witness previously months ago, came back to ask new questions recently about possible origins of emails and documents related to Hunter Biden that appear similar to those that the New York Post reported that Giuliani and others helped provide. CNN has previously reported that the ongoing probe is examining whether Giuliani is wittingly or unwittingly part of a Russian influence operation, according to people briefed on the matter.
The report added that the investigation had cycled out of the headlines as Giuliani arrogated the leading role in Trump's challenges to his defeat.
According to interviews conducted by Salon with individuals familiar with the case and multiple news reports, Giuliani's business dealings have been subject of an extended federal probe led by the FBI and the Southern District of New York — the very office he once led.
That probe grew out of the arrest of Parnas and another Giuliani associate, who were booked one year ago on unrelated campaign finance charges at a Washington-area airport as they waited to board a flight to Vienna. Their arrests came as impeachment hearings heated up in Congress — and one day after they met Giuliani for drinks at Trump's Washington hotel.
This week, The New York Times reported that Giuliani, who has scraped for cash in the last year, asked the Trump campaign to pay him a day rate of $20,000 for his work on the last-ditch legal crusade. Such a price tag would rank Giuliani among the most highly paid lawyers in the world.
"I never asked for $20,000," Giuliani told The Times. "The arrangement is — we'll work it out at the end."
However, his performance so far has heads shaking.
"If the campaign doesn't want to pay him $20,000 a day, I'm sure the Biden campaign would," a former senior Trump White House official told CNN.
"It's easy to joke about this, and Rudy has become the butt of a lot of jokes. On the other hand, this is deadly serious stuff," top election law expert Rick Hasen told CNN. "They're talking about trying to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of people, and take the election away from the winner and hand it to the loser."
Neither Giuliani nor the Trump campaign responded to Salon's requests for comment.


alternet--2020-11-21--Historian: German denazification has lessons on how to deal with  post-Trump America

Over the last four years , President Donald Trump 's White House has been riddled with scandals , lawsuits , and other incriminating claims with evidence to support wrongdoing .
But due to presidential protections , no one has been able to hold Trump accountable for his actions .
As more evidence continues to mount against the president and many White House officials within his administration , calls for prosecution have become more profound .
In fact , Vice President-elect Kamala Harris weighed in on Trump 's legal battles as she admitted that if she were president , her administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a real possibility the president and his allies could face consequences for their actions ?
A Washington Post editorial breaks offers a realistic perspective on whether or not this could occur .
According to the op-ed , there are liberal concerns about President-elect Joe Biden taking the high road and moving forward without a backward glance at Trump and his administration despite repeated violations of the Hatch Act .
The editorial also raises awareness about the dangerous precedent that could be established if Biden ultimately refuses to prosecute Trump and members of his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are not prosecuted , they argue , it might set a devastating precedent .
Others worry that the desire to prosecute Trump could amount to no more than `` vengeance '' that would further erode democratic norms .
This vigorous debate on the left asks how we as a nation can get to the bottom of the Trump administration 's criminal behavior , while also ensuring that no future administration can act in such a manner again .
The piece went on to offer a comparison of Germany 's denazification period to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Since Trump 's support base is still relatively solid , there are concerns about how a Trump prosecution could further polarize the nation .
The columnist also noted that denazification in Germany took decades .
So , it may require an extended period of time before polarization ends .

Over the last four years, President Donald Trump's White House has been riddled with scandals, lawsuits, and other incriminating claims with evidence to support wrongdoing. But due to presidential protections, no one has been able to hold Trump accountable for his actions. As more evidence continues to mount against the president and many White House officials within his administration, calls for prosecution have become more profound.
In fact, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris weighed in on Trump's legal battles as she admitted that if she were president, her administration would prosecute Trump. So is there a real possibility the president and his allies could face consequences for their actions? A Washington Post editorial breaks offers a realistic perspective on whether or not this could occur.
According to the op-ed, there are liberal concerns about President-elect Joe Biden taking the high road and moving forward without a backward glance at Trump and his administration despite repeated violations of the Hatch Act. The editorial also raises awareness about the dangerous precedent that could be established if Biden ultimately refuses to prosecute Trump and members of his administration.
If Trump and his associates are not prosecuted, they argue, it might set a devastating precedent. Others worry that the desire to prosecute Trump could amount to no more than "vengeance" that would further erode democratic norms. This vigorous debate on the left asks how we as a nation can get to the bottom of the Trump administration's criminal behavior, while also ensuring that no future administration can act in such a manner again.
The piece went on to offer a comparison of Germany's denazification period to the impending post-Trump era of the United States. Since Trump's support base is still relatively solid, there are concerns about how a Trump prosecution could further polarize the nation. The columnist also noted that denazification in Germany took decades. So, it may require an extended period of time before polarization ends.


alternet--2020-11-21--Radical Trump aide who was fired for ties to white nationalists rehired to manage US Holocaust memor

Radical Trump aide who was fired for ties to white nationalists rehired to manage US Holocaust memorials

A former speechwriter for President Donald Trump who was fired after attending a white nationalist meeting has been rehired to manage the United States ' memorials to commemorate the Holocaust genocide .
Although Trump is now in the lame duck period of his presidency , the White House released a statement on Wednesday , confirming several key positions the president is now filling .
The statement confirmed Trump nominated Darren Beattie to become a Commission for the Preservation of America 's Heritage Abroad .
The board , which was founded in 1985 , has the responsibility of `` seeking out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overseas sites related to the Holocaust , '' according to Business Insider .
In 2018 , Beatie was hired by the White House as a speech writer .
However , his time at the White House was short-lived due to CNN 's investigative findings that determined he was a keynote speaker at a white nationalist conference in 2016 .
According to the publication , CNN determined `` Beattie spoke on a panel alongside Peter Brimelow , the founder of anti-immigration website Vdare , at a conferences hosted by the right-wing society the H.L @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the reactions from Beattie 's previous White House position , his latest nomination is also facing opposition .
Jonathan A. Greenblatt , CEO of the Anti-Defamation League released a statement in reference to Beattie 's nomination as he argued that someone who was affiliated with racists should not be allowed to hold the type of position he is being given .
It is downright shocking that the White House has appointed Darren Beattie , who once attended an event with white supremacists and participated in a panel discussion with white nationalist Peter Brimelow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a commission specifically created to help preserve the memory of Jewish victims of Nazi atrocities during the Holocaust .
Beattie spoke at a conference of the racist and extremist H.L .
Mencken Club , where he participated in a discussion with Brimelow , the creator of the racist and anti-immigrant website VDare .
As we have said before , there is no place in any presidential administration or government commission for an individual who would attend and participate in such well-known racist events .
He also urged the White House to reconsider its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is absolutely outrageous that someone who has consorted with racists would even be considered for a position on a commission devoted to preserving Holocaust memorials in Europe .
We urge the administration to rescind his appointment immediately . ''

A former speechwriter for President Donald Trump who was fired after attending a white nationalist meeting has been rehired to manage the United States' memorials to commemorate the Holocaust genocide.
Although Trump is now in the lame duck period of his presidency, the White House released a statement on Wednesday, confirming several key positions the president is now filling. The statement confirmed Trump nominated Darren Beattie to become a Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad. The board, which was founded in 1985, has the responsibility of "seeking out, and overseeing, the preservation of overseas sites related to the Holocaust," according to Business Insider.
In 2018, Beatie was hired by the White House as a speech writer. However, his time at the White House was short-lived due to CNN's investigative findings that determined he was a keynote speaker at a white nationalist conference in 2016. According to the publication, CNN determined "Beattie spoke on a panel alongside Peter Brimelow, the founder of anti-immigration website Vdare, at a conferences hosted by the right-wing society the H.L. Mencken Club."
Similar to the reactions from Beattie's previous White House position, his latest nomination is also facing opposition. Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League released a statement in reference to Beattie's nomination as he argued that someone who was affiliated with racists should not be allowed to hold the type of position he is being given.
It is downright shocking that the White House has appointed Darren Beattie, who once attended an event with white supremacists and participated in a panel discussion with white nationalist Peter Brimelow, to serve as a member of a commission specifically created to help preserve the memory of Jewish victims of Nazi atrocities during the Holocaust.
Beattie spoke at a conference of the racist and extremist H.L. Mencken Club, where he participated in a discussion with Brimelow, the creator of the racist and anti-immigrant website VDare. As we have said before, there is no place in any presidential administration or government commission for an individual who would attend and participate in such well-known racist events.
He also urged the White House to reconsider its decision.
He added, "It is absolutely outrageous that someone who has consorted with racists would even be considered for a position on a commission devoted to preserving Holocaust memorials in Europe. We urge the administration to rescind his appointment immediately."


alternet--2020-11-22--Trump skips G20 pandemic preparedness meeting to golf as COVID cases surpass 12 million in US

After briefly attending the virtual G20 summit from the White House 's Situation Room on Saturday , President Doanld Trump skipped a meeting with other leaders of the world 's 20 largest economies where the attendees discussed the coronavirus pandemic .
The `` Pandemic Preparedness and Response '' meeting included addresses by French President Emanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel , but no American government officials were listed as speakers .
Both Macron and Merkel have been leaders in the global call for a coordinated international response to the coronavirus pandemic , with the French leader calling on Saturday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As the U.S. allies prepared to discuss the financing of vaccine collaborations at the two-day G20 summit , Trump retreated to his golf club in Sterling , Virginia .
In the U.S. , Covid-19 cases passed 12 million cases on Saturday , less than a week after reaching 11 million cases .
On Friday , the country set a new record for new cases recorded in a single day , with more than 198,500 cases confirmed .
Deaths are now higher than average in all 50 states and are peaking in 14 states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dakota .
Governors , including Trump 's Republican allies such as Iowa Gov .
Kim Reynolds , are attempting to undo the damage done by the president'sand his political party 's widespread dismissal of public health guidance like mask-wearing and social distancing .
Earlier this week , Reynolds pleaded with Iowans to obey a new mask mandate , which she issued after months of calling such measures `` feel-good '' restrictions .
`` If Iowans do n't buy into this , we lose , '' Reynolds said this week .
`` The cost @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Despite reports of overwhelmed hospitals in states including Texas , Kansas , Tennessee , and Nevada , the president has taken no questions from reporters about the pandemic since most news outlets declared President-elect Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 election on November 7 .
Instead , the president has been largely focused on his efforts to prove the election , which Biden won by more than six million votes , was rigged and that so-called `` voter fraud '' is behind Biden 's victory .
On Saturday , after leaving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his golf club , Trump tweeted about unspecified `` big voter fraud information coming out concerning Georgia , '' which certified the election results on Friday after a hand recount confirmed that Biden won the state .
`` The president is not only missing from his post , but he 's encouraging a mutiny , '' Larry Jacobs , director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota , told The Guardian on Saturday .
`` There 's no precedent in American history for this kind @ @ @ @ @

After briefly attending the virtual G20 summit from the White House's Situation Room on Saturday, President Doanld Trump skipped a meeting with other leaders of the world's 20 largest economies where the attendees discussed the coronavirus pandemic.
The "Pandemic Preparedness and Response" meeting included addresses by French President Emanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, but no American government officials were listed as speakers. Both Macron and Merkel have been leaders in the global call for a coordinated international response to the coronavirus pandemic, with the French leader calling on Saturday for "solidarity" between countries.
As the U.S. allies prepared to discuss the financing of vaccine collaborations at the two-day G20 summit, Trump retreated to his golf club in Sterling, Virginia.
In the U.S., Covid-19 cases passed 12 million cases on Saturday, less than a week after reaching 11 million cases. On Friday, the country set a new record for new cases recorded in a single day, with more than 198,500 cases confirmed. Deaths are now higher than average in all 50 states and are peaking in 14 states including Maine, Wisconsin, and North Dakota.
Governors, including Trump's Republican allies such as Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, are attempting to undo the damage done by the president'sand his political party's widespread dismissal of public health guidance like mask-wearing and social distancing. Earlier this week, Reynolds pleaded with Iowans to obey a new mask mandate, which she issued after months of calling such measures "feel-good" restrictions.
"If Iowans don't buy into this, we lose," Reynolds said this week. "The cost in human life will be high."
Despite reports of overwhelmed hospitals in states including Texas, Kansas, Tennessee, and Nevada, the president has taken no questions from reporters about the pandemic since most news outlets declared President-elect Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 election on November 7.
Instead, the president has been largely focused on his efforts to prove the election, which Biden won by more than six million votes, was rigged and that so-called "voter fraud" is behind Biden's victory. On Saturday, after leaving the G20 summit and before arriving at his golf club, Trump tweeted about unspecified "big voter fraud information coming out concerning Georgia," which certified the election results on Friday after a hand recount confirmed that Biden won the state.
"The president is not only missing from his post, but he's encouraging a mutiny," Larry Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota, toldThe Guardian on Saturday. "There's no precedent in American history for this kind of deranged behavior."