therealnews--2020-07-21--Report: Hogan Killed Mass Transit Despite Discriminatory Impact

Md. Gov. Larry Hogan is accused of killing a project that would connect disinvested Baltimore neighborhoods with jobs and opportunities despite the racially discriminatory impact.
Story Transcript
This is a rush transcript and may contain errors. It will be updated.
Jaisal Noor: Welcome to the Real News. I’m Jaisal Noor. Maryland governor Larry Hogan has launched a new book positioning himself as a Republican moderate willing to take on President Trump, but newly published documents cast out on one of Hogan’s central claims that he’s protected civil rights. Hogan ignored the racially discriminatory impacts of canceling a mass transit project known as the Red Line according to new documents published in Politico. We’ll talk to the author. We’ll also be joined by the journalist who exposed that when Hogan canceled the Red Line, he shifted that money to highways near property he owned. So, he personally stood to profit.
All of this has had implications for the people of Baltimore and a potential presidential run by Larry Hogan in the future. Well, now joining us to discuss this is Sheryll Cashin, Professor of Law at Georgetown University, author of the new piece, How Larry Hogan Kept Blacks in Baltimore Segregated and Poor. Hogan portrays himself as a moderate who cares about minorities, but his decision tells a different story, particularly this decision to cancel Baltimore’s Red Line. Thank you so much for joining us.
Sheryll Cashin: Thank you for having me.
Jaisal Noor: So we’re in this historic moment where the entire world has come to a reckoning about the impacts of racism, especially structural racism, how government reinforces racism throughout our society. Baltimore was the first city that had segregation and it’s been ground zero for red lining and other discriminatory predatory practices. There was a proposal to build mass transit, connecting areas that have been disinvested for generations that was known as the Red Line. One of Larry Hogan’s first moves as governor was to cancel the Red Line.
You obtained documents through freedom of information requests in the state of Maryland that have shed light on this decision. It’s important to note that the NAACP Legal Defense Fund tried to file an injunction to seek more information about this. We never knew a lot of details about what happened during that process. So, you’ve obtained information about this. Can you share with us what you’ve uncovered?
Sheryll Cashin: Yeah. I want to give my colleagues who run the Georgetown Law Civil Rights Clinic credit. They’re the ones who filed the freedom of information claims. Me and my research assistant burrow through the trove of things that were disclosed. I was involved because I’m writing a book. Once I learned about the cancellation of the Red Line, I don’t even live in Baltimore, but the more I read about it, the more outraged I was particularly the fact that after Governor Hogan canceled the Red Line and reallocated all of the 700 plus million dollars, that was supposed to be for the Red Line to outlying road projects and not even Baltimore’s roads benefited from this, it was so obvious to me as an outsider looking that this looked like racial disparity, if not intentional racial discrimination.
I was even further outraged when I saw that LDF and a local transit equity group had filed with the Department of Transportation a civil rights claim of racially disparate impact and the Trump administration closed it without making any findings. Civil rights don’t mean anything if the state won’t give black people equal protection. What they said, the Trump administration said, “Okay, in lieu of making findings in this case, we’re going to make Maryland undertake a comprehensive title six disparate impact analysis. That was, years later, no one knew what had happened. So, we filed this request and find emails from 2018 in which officials at MDOT, the Maryland Transportation Department and the Federal Transportation Department went back and forth. The Obama administration opened and had invoked an investigation.
The Trump administration, somebody at the staff level seem to be trying to do their job. They opened a corrective action and demanded that Maryland conduct this comprehensive analysis. They basically claim, “Well, there’s no disparate impact.” This is what the emails reveal, because census tracks with high numbers of minorities benefited from other large sums of transportation money. That’s what they say, large sums. Do they quantify it? No, I suspect they didn’t quantify it, because if they had, the numbers would look very bad.
Why? Because Baltimore had lost a $2.9 billion project that was going to connect highly isolated Red Line black neighborhoods to job opportunities. They lost this $2.9 billion project. Hogan threw them a bone, about 135 millions for what they call Baltimore link, which was supposed to make the bus system more efficient, but actually made it worse. So, they didn’t do any real analysis and the Trump administration just accepted that assertion at face value and closed this investigation. Closed it without giving the public any notice. Right?
So, I had just gotten through reading this and was contemplating what I was going to do. I’m writing a book. Then, Hogan is puffing himself up and contrasting himself to Trump and painting himself as a moderate who can bring people together, but yet at the time of the rescission, which was two months after the uprising, after the death of Freddie Gray, he is very … you could call it a dog whistle. He called the people who vandalized thugs, he talked about the city as a declining city. I will let his actions and words speak for themselves. I don’t purport to know his heart or his motivations, but in terms of impact, his actions were racially disparate and anti-black.
Jaisal Noor: The Hogan administration famously left Baltimore off of a map. It had made listing investments in highways across the state. We’re also joined by Eric Cortellessa who wrote the piece Who does Maryland’s governor really work for? Larry Hogan has more in common with Donald Trump than his reputation suggests. Eric, so we’ve just heard the one part of the story. The other part of the story is where this money actually went and who stood to benefit from it. Can you tell us what you’re reporting uncovered?
Eric Cortellessa: Absolutely. Well, there’s really two scandals involved in this story. There’s the scandal of canceling the Red Line in and of itself, which had devastating consequences on Baltimore. This was a project that was decades in the making. There was already hundreds of millions of dollars in sunken costs in the groundwork of getting ready to build the Red Line, right? Around $300 million were already spent to build the Red Line and then Governor Hogan gave up $900 million in guarantees from the Obama administration to build this project that was going to connect Baltimore to the suburbs, that was going to connect East and West Baltimore to each other, and that was going to have a really big, positive impact on blacks living in the city.
What happened at the same time that Hogan canceled the Red Line was he made a major shift in the state’s transportation strategy, which was not to spend money on mass transit, but to spend money on highways, roads, and bridges. One of the first things he did in 2015, just as he was canceling the Red Line was he advanced a project in Prince George’s County to build an interchange and a couple of other projects right near property that he owned that he stood to benefit from.
His company has continued to invest in that area with a number of other projects since then, but it already had ownership in a parcel of land, just down the road from an interchange that was really a dormant project, had gone through some development and planning under previous administrations, but that Hogan expedited quickly upon becoming governor. He got the money to do that because he freed up money by canceling the Red Line.
This is a bigger story in terms of how the governor has dealt with his private real estate business while in office. I think it’s also important to note that one thing he did about a year after taking office and it wasn’t official until about a year and a half after he took office, was he entered into a trust agreement in which he put up three former business associates in charge of his trust and left the company in charge with it. He left the company to his brother, but at the time that he canceled the Red Line and advanced this project that his company stood to benefit from, he was not in a trust and he was in full control of his company. That had not happened yet.
Even in the years after, we continued to see the governor advanced projects in his transportation budget every year that are right near or adjacent to properties that he owns, including in Hyattsville and other parts around the state. So, this has been an important trend in the governor’s tenure, and it’s been very lucrative for him, right? He chose to share his tax returns for three years while in office 2015, 2016, 2017 during the reelection campaign, which showed that he made $2.4 million in income on a governor salary that is much lower than that, close to 180,000.
One big thing that was left out of those documents were attached statements that would have detailed the sources of those income, right, where that money actually came from. So, he didn’t really share all of his tax returns and he hasn’t been willing to share his tax returns from before he became governor, so there’s no way to compare how much he made before entering office in January 2015 and comparing that to how much he made after he became governor. This is a really big story to do with Maryland. Of course, after my story came out in January, there had been action on that.
Legislation was currently being drafted and going through the committee process to change Maryland’s conflicts of interest laws that would put more oversight on disclosure laws, but of course, I did have ethics officials and lawyers say that the governor’s decision in and of itself already violated Maryland’s existing conflicts of interest laws because he participated in decisions that he stood to benefit from. So, that is really one thing that has happened at the same time as the Red Line was shuttered.
Jaisal Noor: Professor Cashin, so we’re in this historic moment, global protest, protest across the country and right here in Baltimore and in Washington DC, demanding officials account for racial disparities and Baltimore has some of the greatest racial disparities in terms of wealth and also in terms of income mobility. According to a 2015 study, the longer you grow up poor and black in Baltimore, the lower your net income is over your lifespan. So, those disparities are extreme here. Talk about why it’s important to invest in infrastructure like mass transit that can connect disinvested communities with things like education in schools and jobs and other opportunities.
Sheryll Cashin: Right. So, as you know, Baltimore ranks last in the country on Harvard economist, Raj Chetty’s index for social mobility for poor children. As you say in the intro, that’s a direct result of public policy choices made for a century, right? So, America lectures to black people in high poverty neighborhoods, tells them to reject thug life, get a job, get an education, right? But, we dog whistle about black people to hide the fact that government for decades and to this day overinvest in white space, which is what happened with the cancellation, the reallocation of the Red Line and disinvest in black communities. Right?
So, it’s easy to lecture people. It’s a lot harder to sensitively look at the structural barriers that society has intentionally created. For the large numbers of black mothers in the corridor that was going to be serviced by the Red Line, a lot of them don’t have cars. If they tried to get a job, a lot of the jobs are 90 minutes away by bus, right? If you have children and have to get them to school, it’s a nightmare. Right? Only 2% of the jobs in Baltimore are in the neighborhoods, the poor black neighborhoods that would have been served by the Red Line. Right? So, transportation is one thing.
Meanwhile, I wrote about this in my article too, a state agency, I believe is a legislative agency of Maryland said that every year schools in Baltimore are underfunded by about 340 million. The children of the Charm City endure some of the highest teacher ratios, student to teacher ratios in the country. This is common everywhere. We have a separate in an equal school system. I cited a study in my article in which showed that in 2016 this country spent $23 billion more in majority white school districts than in other districts that serve the same numbers of children, right?
So, we don’t acknowledge the systems. Everywhere you turn in isolated black neighborhoods you felt face health disparities, you face education disparities, you face difficulty getting a decent food in an affordable price. Often, the state is disinvested in your neighborhood in terms of infrastructure, services, trash collection and yet, everybody wants to ignore this. I have to say raising signs that say black lives matter is a beautiful gesture, but if you live in a neighborhood that has historically been over invested in, going forward, we’re not going to have equity if you … you’re going to have to make a sacrifice and perhaps not get as much as you’re used to be getting.
Jaisal Noor: Eric, I wanted to end with you. We’ve been talking about civil rights. There’s also the election coming up. Right around the time a Hogan announced his book coming out, he made a move that surprised a lot of people that is we’re going to try to conduct a normal election in November. You had a piece in the Washington Post titled Larry Hogan is creating chaos and fear for the November election. Can you talk about what to expect in just a few months?
Eric Cortellessa: Well, I think the first thing that is really concerning was the decision to make this transition. One thing you want to note about that June primary and the April 28th special congressional election to replace Elijah Cummings that were conducted as universal vote by mail elections, was that they were extraordinarily successful. The April 28th special congressional election turnout was 10% higher than the primary in February, which was actually the more competitive race. It was a democratic primary and a democratic enclave. That was conducted the old fashioned way. On the June 26th election, Maryland had some record high turnout.
There were more Maryland Democrats who voted in that presidential primary in 2020 than in any other presidential primary in Maryland history. There’s only one other election that had a higher percentage turnout and that was in 2008 for Obama. You had more people vote in that primary as Democrats than in any other election in Maryland history. It was especially successful in Baltimore. The turnout in the primary overall was 48%. That was three percentage points higher than in 2016. Then you had more voters vote in the mayoral primary than in any other since 1983.
So, one thing we found with vote by mail is that not only has it been extraordinarily successful at boosting turnout, and we’ve seen that in other parts of the country, right? The vote by mail states and the 2018 midterms had 10 percentage point higher turnout rate than the average nationwide. But, we learned in Maryland and especially in Baltimore was that it’s successful even in low income minority neighborhoods. It’s successful when you follow a certain formula. That is you mail everyone a ballot, but you make sure to hold enough in-person vote sending center options so that the voters who either don’t have access to mail or the remedies, which in many cases can be technology, right? Because one thing that state board of elections will do, if you don’t get your ballot in the mail and you report it, they can email you a PDF and you can mail it back or drop it off at a drop box.
Of course, a lot of low income people don’t have access to printers or even computers. So, you have to have those remedies in place, but so long as you do and if you have enough vote centers for enough of voters, Amber McReynolds, the head of the National Vote at Home Institute who ran Denver’s elections office says you basically need one for every 30,000 voters. As long as you do that, you have very few complications, voters who don’t get their ballots in the mail are able to vote in person and you get really high turnout. That’s overall.
When you have a pandemic like COVID-19, this becomes even more urgent and necessary, because for starters, it’s in the public health to have more people voting at home and not going to polling places where you have high traffic, a lot of people coming in touching the same pens and doorknob, standing close to each other, right? That’s not what we should be doing especially as infection rates are surging and we don’t know what’s going to be the case in November. We’re expecting a potential second wave. It could be very dangerous.
At a time when you are setting up local election boards to fail, I spoken to a number in the last few weeks who say we’re not equipped to handle this. So, just take Anne Arundel County for example. They are short of 1,050 election judges they need to operate their 195 polling places. So, A, they’re not going to be able to recruit them because most of the times people who fill in those roles are elderly more at risk people and they also have other problems in terms of expenses, right? It’s going to cost a lot of money not only to keep these polling places open, but to provide all the safety equipment. Right?
David Garreis who was the deputy elections director of Anne Arundel County told me it will cost $200,000 on plexiglass alone for their county. Another thing is a lot of the places that are polling places like schools and senior centers do not want to allow voting in those spaces. Anne Arundel County has already had 18 back out and that’s just as of last week when I spoke to him. In Baltimore City, you have another issue, which is a reflective of another issue across the state, which is, how are you going to train election officials and election judges, right? The University of Baltimore trains 4,000 of the some 20,000 election judges throughout the state and the president of the university is not allowing those trainings to take place on campus.
So, because of this decision, you’re setting up local election boards not to have the equipment and the capacity and the manpower to run these things effectively. You’re going to have really long lines. It’s going to take … one of the reasons lines were long on June 26 was because how much time it took to clean up in between voters coming in and out. That was compounded by the fact that they just didn’t open enough of in-person vote centers, but only less than 3% of the voters who voted period voted in person. So, the vast majority voted by mail.
So, I think you’re going to have a lot of problems trying to run the election this way. That’s why not a single member of the state board of elections advocated for a traditional normal election. You had a split, there were three Republicans and two Democrats, two advocated for universal vote by mail, mailing everyone a ballot, keeping a few limited polling places open. Another one said mail everyone an absentee ballot and limit polling places. Those were the Republicans. Then there were the Democrats and Hogan took the option that nobody wanted, which was a traditional election and open all the 1,600 plus polling places and leave these local election boards unequipped to handle what they’re going to have to do in November.
So, I think it’s a really dangerous and bad decision. I think it risks disenfranchising voters and especially low income minority voters. I also think forcing people to have to fill out an absentee application is a big mistake especially since Maryland has seen the success of simply mailing every voter a ballot. For one, it’s more expensive. You’ve got to pay to mail everyone the application, and then you’re going to have to pay to mail it back to everyone. Election officials are very concerned that, with many things, people wait for the last minute and those ballots are going to come in a week or be postmarked, just before the deadline and they’re going to have to figure out how many they have to produce in a very short period of time.
The other thing is it’s going to confuse voters. It’s very confused messaging, which is we want everyone to absentee vote, but we’re going to have every single polling place open. So, I think it’s going to be a very costly election. I think those estimates should come out over the next few weeks and that’s going to be very important. I think it’s going to reduce turnout and it’s going to create more chaos and confusion than we would have had, had we simply just followed the model that was successful in June and April, but make little fixes that would have made a remedy, the few problems that we did experience.
Jaisal Noor: I know people have been encouraging folks to request those ballots and get them in the mail and do it early to avoid potentially not being able to vote in November. I want to thank you both for joining us, Sheryll Cashin, Professor of Law at Georgetown University and Eric Cortellessa, he’s the digital editor at Washington Monthly. For folks in Maryland, in Baltimore or across the country, wanting to know and understand what Larry Hogan’s impact has been on the city of Baltimore and on Maryland, I think this is a really vital discussion. Something that has not received enough attention. Thank you both for joining us.
Sheryll Cashin: Thank you.
Eric Cortellessa: Thanks for having us.
Jaisal Noor: Thank you for joining us at the Real News Network.
Studio: Will Arenas
Production: Will Arenas
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therealnews--2020-07-21--Stir Crazy! Episode #69: A Failed State?

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therealnews--2020-07-21--Instead Of Battling COVID-19, Trump Launches A War On Protesters

This is a rush transcript and may contain errors .
It will be updated .
Text : Minutes after this interview was recorded , Trump announced he ’ s sending federal troops into additional cities .
Donald Trump : Well , I ’ m going to do something ; that I can tell you , because we ’ re not going to let New York and Chicago and Philadelphia and Detroit and Baltimore , and all of these , Oakland is a mess , we ’ re not going to let this happen in our country .
All run by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to The Real News .
I ’ m Jaisal Noor .
Chanting , “ Feds stay clear , the moms are here.
” Dozens of mothers lined to form a human shield to protect anti-racist protestors from federal agents who Portland ’ s mayor has blamed for escalating violence in the city .
The mothers were later teargassed .
Speaker 2 : Their actions are terrifying .
I mean , we as a democracy … and we need to stand up .
I ’ m 60 years old .
I probably shouldn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this is beyond acceptable .
Speaker 3 : Several officers on our streets , further escalating tensions and causing harm to Portlanders right now , this is not the America we want .
This is not the Portland we want .
Where is the accountability for what federal officers are doing ?
Jaisal Noor : Amid massive spikes in coronavirus cases across the US , instead of launching a war on COVID-19 , Trump has launched a war on protesters , including in Portland where unidentified federal agents have arrested anti-racist protestors for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ obtained documents shedding light on what ’ s happening in Portland and the plans to take those tactics nationwide .
We ’ re joined by the Nation ’ s DC correspondent , Ken Klippenstein , to talk about his new piece , The Border Patrol Was Responsible for an Arrest in Portland .
An internal memo obtained exclusively by The Nation details a coordinated program of domestic counter-insurgency .
Thanks so much for joining us , Ken .
Ken Klippenstein : Thanks for having me .
Jaisal Noor : So tell us what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what was given to me from an official within Department of Homeland Security , were essentially talking points that they were given to be able to interface with the public and with the media about what exactly this operation is .
And it should be pointed out that this didn ’ t all begin last week , although that ’ s when social media kind of blew up and the media started taking notice .
Federal agents have been operating in Portland and elsewhere for weeks now .
And the authority that this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ announced his executive order to protect the monuments and respond to civil unrest .
The Department of Homeland Security convened a task force called the Protecting American Communities Taskforce , PACT for short .
And so it ’ s under PACT that these federal agents , border patrol in some cases , are operating .
Jaisal Noor : So the mayor says he wants these federal agents out .
He blames them for the escalating violence we ’ ve seen in the city .
The attorney general of Oregon says they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ACLU says they ’ re going to sue .
But some sources you spoke to said these tactics might be legal .
Can you talk about that ?
Ken Klippenstein : Yeah , that ’ s the biggest part of the scandal , I think , is that having unmarked cars and in some cases , unmarked federal agents , that ’ s actually consistent … A formal senior intelligence official at DHS told me that that ’ s often done at the discretion of supervisor-level officials within DHS .
Now , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mean it ’ s good or that it ’ s desirable .
But unfortunately , I think this is what it looks like when you have DHS running around .
Now , I want to distinguish their ability to move around in unmarked cars from the fact that they ’ ve been deployed at all .
That ’ s a completely separate legal question , and that ’ s one that ’ s being litigated right now .
If you look at what the Trump administration has said , it looks like a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ executive order .
And it should be pointed out that Bill Barr , the attorney general , he ’ s a big fan of a unitary executive .
And I can ’ t think of a better illustration of that philosophy of law , the idea that the presidency and the executive branch enjoys all of these special powers , especially in emergency-type situations .
It should be pointed out that this is all consistent with his way of doing things .
It was reported by legal observers recently , I can ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but that Bill Barr actually did something very similar , deploying federal agents to the Virgin Islands 15 years ago or so in response to the aftermath of a hurricane .
And it looks like there ’ s very similar authorities that they ’ re trying to drive here , saying they ’ re protecting courthouses and things because you can play all sorts of games with the law and find justification for things .
So long story short , the legal justification for the actual deployment of these federal officers to respond @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most , broken windows , graffiti , that kind of thing , that ’ s really what the debate should be around .
When you ’ ve got these federal agents not identifying themselves , that is unfortunately a characteristic of DHS .
When you watch a movie or something like that and you see FBI , ATF , that kind of thing on their suit , maybe in some cases , NCIS , they ’ re wearing a hat that labels it on it .
DHS is quite different from all those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ … They have certain freedoms to not identify themselves in that way .
So the debate here should really be , why is DHS involved in something that according to the mayor of Portland and the senators there , is something that can be handled by local law enforcement ?
Jaisal Noor : Is this the first time these kind of tactics have been used in this country ?
Ken Klippenstein : No , it ’ s not .
Again , field-level supervisors can authorize them not to identify themselves .
And as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if they can find any sort of justification for it that will provide them tactical advantage , they ’ re going to use it .
And as I mentioned , in the case of Bill Barr , he has created legal justification years and years ago for the deployment of federal troops to protect courthouses .
So there is context .
There is some context for that , whether or not that ’ s legally viable , we can debate that .
But certainly the not having themselves identified , that ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what ’ s really unusual here is the fact that the locality doesn ’ t want any of this help .
And in fact , when I talked to law enforcement folks within DHS as well , who I should point out are not left-wing activists by any means , they ’ re saying this stuff is counter productive even if you assume that we need to have a big law enforcement response to all this .
So what was told to me is that when federal law enforcement identify themselves , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sorts of civil unrest that the administration claims to be concerned about .
So when they ’ re operating in secrecy , there won ’ t be that deterrent because you don ’ t know that the police are sitting there watching .
Jaisal Noor : This is all coming amid this disastrous response from the Trump administration to COVID-19 that the Times had a piece about how they were trying to just pretend that it was going to go away by itself in April .
And obviously , that has backfired insane @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the population , but about a quarter of the world ’ s deaths and cases , and there ’ s no end in sight .
Do you expect these tactics to escalate around the country as we approach the November election ?
Trump , as of right now , is behind in the polls .
And it seems like defending monuments , cracking down on protests , the arguments that crime is out of control in these Democratic-controlled cities … I ’ m quoting Republican talking points and campaign ads right now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is the justification to go into these cities to sort of restore order .
Can we expect more of this , in the upcoming weeks and months ?
Ken Klippenstein : Absolutely .
If you look at the documents that have been provided to me , not only do they say it ’ s unclear how long the timeline is going to be for these deployments , it also doesn ’ t say where .
So these are instructions for them to interface with the media and answer their questions .
They say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are going to be deployed or for how long , because they claim that that ’ ll hurt operational security .
But I have to imagine that they could say , “ We ’ ll be in this state or city ” or something without necessarily imperiling these potential investigations .
But yeah , not only did they not know that , they also had a part in these documents saying that they have drones raring and ready to go for when they ’ re called upon .
So I think we could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that we will .
Jaisal Noor : A lot ’ s made of Trump ’ s interview with Chris Wallace this weekend , and Trump wouldn ’ t commit to accepting the election results in November .
So yeah , we ’ re all going to be following this story and watching it really closely .
Ken Klippenstein , thank you so much for joining us , The Nation ’ s DC correspondent and has been following this beat for a long time .
So thank you so much for joining us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Great to be with you .
Jaisal Noor : Thank you for joining us at The Real News Network .

The Nation’s Ken Klippenstein discusses the leaked documents that reveal CBP as the federal agency detaining protesters in Portland.
Story Transcript
This is a rush transcript and may contain errors. It will be updated.
Text: Minutes after this interview was recorded, Trump announced he’s sending federal troops into additional cities.
Donald Trump: Well, I’m going to do something; that I can tell you, because we’re not going to let New York and Chicago and Philadelphia and Detroit and Baltimore, and all of these, Oakland is a mess, we’re not going to let this happen in our country. All run by liberal Democrats.
Jaisal Noor: Welcome to The Real News. I’m Jaisal Noor. Chanting, “Feds stay clear, the moms are here.” Dozens of mothers lined to form a human shield to protect anti-racist protestors from federal agents who Portland’s mayor has blamed for escalating violence in the city. The mothers were later teargassed.
Speaker 2: Their actions are terrifying. I mean, we as a democracy … and we need to stand up. I’m 60 years old. I probably shouldn’t be here in public, but this is beyond acceptable.
Speaker 3: Several officers on our streets, further escalating tensions and causing harm to Portlanders right now, this is not the America we want. This is not the Portland we want. Where is the accountability for what federal officers are doing?
Jaisal Noor: Amid massive spikes in coronavirus cases across the US, instead of launching a war on COVID-19, Trump has launched a war on protesters, including in Portland where unidentified federal agents have arrested anti-racist protestors for the last several days. The Nation obtained documents shedding light on what’s happening in Portland and the plans to take those tactics nationwide. We’re joined by the Nation’s DC correspondent, Ken Klippenstein, to talk about his new piece, The Border Patrol Was Responsible for an Arrest in Portland. An internal memo obtained exclusively by The Nation details a coordinated program of domestic counter-insurgency. Thanks so much for joining us, Ken.
Ken Klippenstein: Thanks for having me.
Jaisal Noor: So tell us what you found.
Ken Klippenstein: So what was given to me from an official within Department of Homeland Security, were essentially talking points that they were given to be able to interface with the public and with the media about what exactly this operation is. And it should be pointed out that this didn’t all begin last week, although that’s when social media kind of blew up and the media started taking notice. Federal agents have been operating in Portland and elsewhere for weeks now. And the authority that this operation drives from is when President Trump announced his executive order to protect the monuments and respond to civil unrest. The Department of Homeland Security convened a task force called the Protecting American Communities Taskforce, PACT for short. And so it’s under PACT that these federal agents, border patrol in some cases, are operating.
Jaisal Noor: So the mayor says he wants these federal agents out. He blames them for the escalating violence we’ve seen in the city. The attorney general of Oregon says they’re going to sue the feds. The ACLU says they’re going to sue. But some sources you spoke to said these tactics might be legal. Can you talk about that?
Ken Klippenstein: Yeah, that’s the biggest part of the scandal, I think, is that having unmarked cars and in some cases, unmarked federal agents, that’s actually consistent … A formal senior intelligence official at DHS told me that that’s often done at the discretion of supervisor-level officials within DHS. Now, I want to stress that doesn’t mean it’s good or that it’s desirable. But unfortunately, I think this is what it looks like when you have DHS running around. Now, I want to distinguish their ability to move around in unmarked cars from the fact that they’ve been deployed at all. That’s a completely separate legal question, and that’s one that’s being litigated right now.
If you look at what the Trump administration has said, it looks like a lot of it is driving from this executive order. And it should be pointed out that Bill Barr, the attorney general, he’s a big fan of a unitary executive. And I can’t think of a better illustration of that philosophy of law, the idea that the presidency and the executive branch enjoys all of these special powers, especially in emergency-type situations. It should be pointed out that this is all consistent with his way of doing things. It was reported by legal observers recently, I can’t remember what outlet reported it, but that Bill Barr actually did something very similar, deploying federal agents to the Virgin Islands 15 years ago or so in response to the aftermath of a hurricane.
And it looks like there’s very similar authorities that they’re trying to drive here, saying they’re protecting courthouses and things because you can play all sorts of games with the law and find justification for things. So long story short, the legal justification for the actual deployment of these federal officers to respond to what frankly looks like, at most, broken windows, graffiti, that kind of thing, that’s really what the debate should be around. When you’ve got these federal agents not identifying themselves, that is unfortunately a characteristic of DHS. When you watch a movie or something like that and you see FBI, ATF, that kind of thing on their suit, maybe in some cases, NCIS, they’re wearing a hat that labels it on it. DHS is quite different from all those agencies because they don’t actually … They have certain freedoms to not identify themselves in that way. So the debate here should really be, why is DHS involved in something that according to the mayor of Portland and the senators there, is something that can be handled by local law enforcement?
Jaisal Noor: Is this the first time these kind of tactics have been used in this country?
Ken Klippenstein: No, it’s not. Again, field-level supervisors can authorize them not to identify themselves. And as a current DHS official told me, if they can find any sort of justification for it that will provide them tactical advantage, they’re going to use it. And as I mentioned, in the case of Bill Barr, he has created legal justification years and years ago for the deployment of federal troops to protect courthouses.
So there is context. There is some context for that, whether or not that’s legally viable, we can debate that. But certainly the not having themselves identified, that’s something with plenty of precedent. But what’s really unusual here is the fact that the locality doesn’t want any of this help. And in fact, when I talked to law enforcement folks within DHS as well, who I should point out are not left-wing activists by any means, they’re saying this stuff is counter productive even if you assume that we need to have a big law enforcement response to all this. So what was told to me is that when federal law enforcement identify themselves, that can have a deterring effect on the sorts of civil unrest that the administration claims to be concerned about. So when they’re operating in secrecy, there won’t be that deterrent because you don’t know that the police are sitting there watching.
Jaisal Noor: This is all coming amid this disastrous response from the Trump administration to COVID-19 that the Times had a piece about how they were trying to just pretend that it was going to go away by itself in April. And obviously, that has backfired insane levels. The US has 4% of the population, but about a quarter of the world’s deaths and cases, and there’s no end in sight. Do you expect these tactics to escalate around the country as we approach the November election? Trump, as of right now, is behind in the polls. And it seems like defending monuments, cracking down on protests, the arguments that crime is out of control in these Democratic-controlled cities … I’m quoting Republican talking points and campaign ads right now. But they’re saying this is the justification to go into these cities to sort of restore order. Can we expect more of this, in the upcoming weeks and months?
Ken Klippenstein: Absolutely. If you look at the documents that have been provided to me, not only do they say it’s unclear how long the timeline is going to be for these deployments, it also doesn’t say where. So these are instructions for them to interface with the media and answer their questions. They say not to disclose where these federal agents are going to be deployed or for how long, because they claim that that’ll hurt operational security. But I have to imagine that they could say, “We’ll be in this state or city” or something without necessarily imperiling these potential investigations. But yeah, not only did they not know that, they also had a part in these documents saying that they have drones raring and ready to go for when they’re called upon. So I think we could see things dramatically escalate, and unfortunately, that we will.
Jaisal Noor: A lot’s made of Trump’s interview with Chris Wallace this weekend, and Trump wouldn’t commit to accepting the election results in November. So yeah, we’re all going to be following this story and watching it really closely. Ken Klippenstein, thank you so much for joining us, The Nation’s DC correspondent and has been following this beat for a long time. So thank you so much for joining us for this interview.
Ken Klippenstein: Great to be with you.
Jaisal Noor: Thank you for joining us at The Real News Network.
Studio: Taylor Hebden
Production: Taylor Hebden
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therealnews--2020-07-22--Outrage At Maryland’s Plan For In-Person Voting Despite Pandemic

Jaisal is currently the Democracy Initiative Manager at the Solutions Journalism Network and is a former TRNN host, producer, and reporter. He mainly grew up in the Baltimore area and studied modern history at the University of Maryland, College Park. Before joining TRNN, he contributed print, radio, and TV reports to Free Speech Radio News, Democracy Now! and The Indypendent. Jaisal's mother has taught in the Baltimore City Public School system for the past 25 years. Follow him on Twitter @jaisalnoor.


therealnews--2020-07-22--This Is Not A Drill – 2020: Stand Up, Fight Back

Any strategy about the 2020 elections has to take very seriously the threats and attacks on particular groups and communities. Black, trans, immigrant, and indigenous folks, are organizing hard for radical change and to shape the outcome of the 2020 elections and beyond.
In this episode of OrgUp’s This Is Not A Drill, hosts Adam Gold and Rishi Awatramani talk with M Adams, Daroneshia Duncan-Boyd, and Judith LeBlanc to understand how groups are organizing to defeat Trump and Trumpism, end the long history of oppression and racist violence against their communities, and win a new world.
Morathi Adams, Co-Executive Director of Freedom Inc
Daroneshia Duncan- Boyd, Executive Director of Trans United Fund
Judith LeBlanc, Director of Native Organizers Alliance
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therealnews--2020-07-23--The Real News Network Joins Lawsuit Against Maryland Police Department

The Real News Network , the NAACP Prince George ’ s County Branch , and the National Action Network have filed a joint motion asking a judge to unseal a report that contains details of discrimination and racial bias within the police department of Prince George ’ s County , Maryland .
The motion , filed this week in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland , seeks the release of an unredacted version of the so-called Graham Report , an independent investigation that found the department failed to address racial bias against officers of color or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ individuals employed by the agency .
The report was commissioned as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by a group of African-American and Latino officers earlier this year .
The suit alleges the department routinely brushed aside claims of discrimination against officers of color and ignored complaints of racist behavior by officers towards residents .
It also alleged Black and Latino officers were routinely passed over for promotion .
However , key details like the names of the officers accused of wrongdoing were shielded from public disclosure after lawyers representing the department asked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the report .
Former Prince George ’ s County Police Chief Hank Stawinski resigned shortly after the redacted report was released .
In the motion filed this week , plaintiffs argue the redacted information is critical to prompting needed reforms inside the department and to holding specific officers accountable for their actions .
“ Much of the Graham Report ’ s salient information—such as allegations of racial discrimination and harassment within the PGPD and the identities of the public officials perpetrating such discrimination and harassment—is hidden from public view , ” the motion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strongly in and will for fight for the public ’ s right to know , ” said TRNN ’ s Executive Director John Duda .
“ Particularly when it comes to policing , which is under increased scrutiny for good reason , we believe full transparency is absolutely essential.
” The Prince George ’ s County Police Department is no stranger to controversy .
Earlier this year officer Michael Owen Jr. shot and killed William Green , who was handcuffed and sitting in the front of Owen ’ s patrol car .
Owen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ currently awaiting trial .
Prince George ’ s County entered into a consent decree with the Department of Justice in 2004 .
The DOJ ’ s investigation concluded the police department employed unconstitutional and racist tactics that were hidden from public scrutiny—A fact cited in the new motion as a critical justification for making the report available to the public .
“ The documents sought by Plaintiffs thus fall squarely within the types of documents which must be publicly available if we are to have a functional and accountable system of local government @ @ @ @ @ @

The Real News Network, the NAACP Prince George’s County Branch, and the National Action Network have filed a joint motion asking a judge to unseal a report that contains details of discrimination and racial bias within the police department of Prince George’s County, Maryland.
The motion, filed this week in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, seeks the release of an unredacted version of the so-called Graham Report, an independent investigation that found the department failed to address racial bias against officers of color or act on complaints of racist behavior by individuals employed by the agency.
The report was commissioned as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by a group of African-American and Latino officers earlier this year. The suit alleges the department routinely brushed aside claims of discrimination against officers of color and ignored complaints of racist behavior by officers towards residents. It also alleged Black and Latino officers were routinely passed over for promotion.
However, key details like the names of the officers accused of wrongdoing were shielded from public disclosure after lawyers representing the department asked a judge to seal substantial parts of the report. Former Prince George’s County Police Chief Hank Stawinski resigned shortly after the redacted report was released.
In the motion filed this week, plaintiffs argue the redacted information is critical to prompting needed reforms inside the department and to holding specific officers accountable for their actions.
“Much of the Graham Report’s salient information—such as allegations of racial discrimination and harassment within the PGPD and the identities of the public officials perpetrating such discrimination and harassment—is hidden from public view,” the motion states.
“The Real News believes strongly in and will for fight for the public’s right to know,” said TRNN’s Executive Director John Duda. “Particularly when it comes to policing, which is under increased scrutiny for good reason, we believe full transparency is absolutely essential.”
The Prince George’s County Police Department is no stranger to controversy.
Earlier this year officer Michael Owen Jr. shot and killed William Green, who was handcuffed and sitting in the front of Owen’s patrol car. Owen was charged with second-degree murder and is currently awaiting trial.
Prince George’s County entered into a consent decree with the Department of Justice in 2004. The DOJ’s investigation concluded the police department employed unconstitutional and racist tactics that were hidden from public scrutiny—A fact cited in the new motion as a critical justification for making the report available to the public.
“The documents sought by Plaintiffs thus fall squarely within the types of documents which must be publicly available if we are to have a functional and accountable system of local government,” the motion states.
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Fascism in Fatigues


therealnews--2020-07-23--Who’s Responsible For The Rise In COVID-19 Cases In Prison?

Eddie Conway talks to activists from Michigan and California—two hot spots for COVID-19 cases in prisons .
In both states @ @ @ @ @ led to a rise in cases .

Eddie Conway talks to activists from Michigan and California—two hot spots for COVID-19 cases in prisons. In both states, mistakes by prison officials led to a rise in cases.
Story Transcript
This is a rush transcript and may contain errors. It will be updated.
Eddie Conway: Welcome to this episode of Rattling the Bars. I’m Eddie Conway, coming to you from Baltimore for The Real News Network.
Of course, everybody around the country has been following the COVID-19 cases, the pandemic, and we have been following the cases in the prison system. And just recently, there’s been dramatic changes, not just outside, but inside prisons. And San Quentin in California is a epicenter of the rise of COVID cases, through mistakes made by the State of California. And so is Michigan. It’s also the epicenter in the Midwest of COVID-19 cases through another mistake made by prison officials.
So far, there’s been over 57,000 cases within the prison system across America, and there’s been 650 some deaths already of prisoners. Much of this probably could have been avoided with personal protection, distancing and so on.
But joining me today to kind of explain what happened in California and Michigan is activist, Arthur League, from California. And joining me from Michigan is Amani Sawari. And so Amani Sawari and Arthur League, thank you for joining me.
Amani Sawari: Thank you for having me.
Arthur League: Yes. Thank you for having me.
Eddie Conway: There’s 5,000 cases in California, so let’s start off with California. There is 4,000 cases in Michigan, of course, but let’s start off with California. What happened? Why this outbreak, this increase? And why in San Quentin, which was almost COVID-free? All of a sudden now, there’s thousands of cases. Arthur, can you kind of tell us what happened out there and what’s the ramifications?
Arthur League: In California, or in San Quentin particularly, it was free. There was not a single case of COVID-19 in San Quentin. We actually had a rally there and a press conference outside the gates in May when there was absolutely not one case. And we told the State that it was going to get there and it was going to be devastating because of the layout of San Quentin. I actually had an apartment there for a number of years, so I know it quite well.
And what happened was they had a COVID outbreak in a prison in southern California, the California Institution for Men. They tested these men, and they decided to ship a group of them, over 100, to San Quentin. However, they tested them and nearly a month went by before they transferred them. And by the time they got to San Quentin, there were many of them infected, and they put them in living situations with people who were already there. And it just ran through like the wildfire that it will.
San Quentin is a very old prison. It’s reminiscent of cowboy days, bars, no doors, and they put the positive folks on top, the top tier. So anytime they coughed or sneezed or anything, droplets would just rain down like snow, and it just devastated. And the number, of about two weeks, it went from zero to nearly 1,000 cases.
Eddie Conway: What happened in Michigan? I mean, it always had cases, but Rikers Island was leading. Now, Michigan is number two in the nation. What happened there?
Amani Sawari: Yeah, so you mentioned 600 some deaths of people in prison. Michigan accounts for over 10% of those deaths, and it doesn’t even have as big of a population as states like California and New York’s prison system. So it’s really grossly being mishandled here in Michigan.
What happened here was there were two corrections officers that had tested positive for the coronavirus early in March, and that was at Macomb Correctional Facility and Parnell Correctional Facility. At that time in March, there were no cases from the inmate population. And so not too long before the end of the month, Parnell and Macomb were considered the most infested facilities. And so people were being sent to those facilities and sent out of those facilities. So once they started transferring folks is when it exploded. And so they transferred 60 people from Parnell to Gus Harrison Correctional Facility.
And I actually have a friend at Gus Harrison Correctional Facility that was concerned when he noticed that they were clearing out areas, particularly around the control rooms, for quarantine space. And they were questioning, “Well, why are we creating quarantine space here if there is no one here that has contracted the virus?”
And then we found out they’d moved 60 people from a very highly infested prison, Parnell, to a prison that had no cases. And then before we know it, people started having cases that weren’t even infected before. And so, they were transferring people from facilities where there were a lot of infections over to facilities where there were none. And now, it’s exploded.
So Parnell and Macomb Correctional Facility have over 1,000 cases, and then Gus Harrison Correctional Facility has 1,200 cases. So the entire State of Michigan’s prison population has nearly 4,000 cases right now, and that all started with two corrections officers.
Eddie Conway: Arthur, I understand that the guards are not wearing masks. They’re not using protective gear. There has been some resistance about prisoners complaining that they might have symptoms. What’s the medical situation there? And I understand there has been somewhat of a scandal. Somebody got fired. Explain that.
Arthur League: The person who was fired was the head of the medicine or the doctor, head doctor, for the California Department of Corrections. He was the person in charge of all the medicine there. The interesting part is they fired him, but he never authorized any transfers. So the people who authorized the transfers was the corrections department themselves. He seems to be a scapegoat. I don’t know if he’s a good doctor or a bad doctor. I know that the medicine at San Quentin is terrible, or in the whole Department of Corrections is terrible. In fact, they’re under a consent decree. But, they chose him to be the sacrificial lamb. Why, I just don’t know.
And as far as the guards, they are certainly keeping the tradition alive in terms of making the prisoners the responsible parties in this process. And they themselves were actually running around being very uncooperative around this question. However, not only has COVID-19 exploded amongst the prison population, but it has exploded among the guards. And there is a new awakening and appreciation for what’s going on even among the guards, I think.
Eddie Conway: Amani, if you could, what’s the situation, the medical situation, in those Michigan prisons? Are the guards wearing protective gear? Are the prisoners being kept at a safe distance? What’s actually happening now, if you know?
Amani Sawari: So right now, all of the staff are required to wear face masks. The people, the prisoners are also required to wear face masks. They’ve even been told if they’re not wearing a face mask, that they could get a ticket. So the situations around the coronavirus and how it’s being handled, those methods are actually being used as a form of punishment now, rather than being promoted as a way to keep people healthy. It’s if you’re not wearing your mask, and usually it’s not the most protective type of mask, they actually passed out ripped up t-shirts that folks could use as masks. So that is being required for folks to wear, even though it’s not the most protective thing. And if you’re not wearing it, then you could be punished. You could be sent to solitary. You could be sent into the quarantine area because you’re just assumed to have the virus because you’re not wearing the mask. So now, that’s being used as a form of punishment.
I’ve also heard folks in prison tell me that guards will walk past their cells coughing and laughing, knowing that they’re sick. They’ve witnessed guards falling asleep in the control desk because they know that these people are sick. They’re not healthy, but they’re still being forced to come into work because there is such a shortage of staff members. We can see very plainly that our corrections department has no way to manage this effectively, especially with the current overcrowded conditions that we have in our corrections department.
We still have pole barn prisons that were supposed to be temporary facilities that are still operating, and those have mold. And so, there are so many conditions-
Eddie Conway: Wait, wait one minute. What kind of prisons? I didn’t understand that. What kind of prisons do you still have?
Amani Sawari: So in the ’90s, there were prisons that were built as temporary facilities. So when Michigan started to use its Truth in Sentencing policies, which didn’t allow people to leave any earlier than their minimum, the prison population shot up. And so we currently have seven prisons that are called pole barns that are temporary facilities. So they’re not supposed to house people for longer than a year, but people spend their whole bit there.
And so there are six people, sometimes eight people, to a cell in those spaces. There is mold. There is water damage. It’s not ventilated. These prisons, these facilities were not built to hold people for long periods of time, and yet they’ve been around for nearly a decade.
And so now, it’s even more serious because we have this viral health crisis that’s really highlighting the fact that these prisons need to come down. We also need to change our sentencing laws, so that people that are certainly past their earliest release date can come home. So there are a lot of situations that are making the pandemic even more dangerous here in Michigan, and it’s really has to do with our overcrowded conditions.
Eddie Conway: So Arthur, they are reporting that Governor Newsom is planning to release 8,000 prisoners within the next month or two. And I understand that the California prison system is grossly overcrowded, and in order to even bring it back to normal capacity, at least 29,000 prisoners have to be released. But I understand that doctors are saying that actually 50% of the prison population has to be released in order for the prisons to become safe. What’s the situation there on the ground with the activists, and what kind of demands are being made on the governor? Because 8,000 seems like a drop in the bucket.
Arthur League: I guess the 8,000 is a reflection of some of the pressure that’s being put on by activist organizations in the state. The governor is playing politics with people’s lives, and the prison population is over 130% of normal or capacity. It’s very overcrowded.
The reason the doctors are saying that 50% of the people is these prisons, when they begin to do this thing they call mass incarceration, California went from nine prisons to over 100. I mean, I’m sorry, over 35. And then they added 58 county jails as places where you could keep prisoners, and they’re still that overcrowded. They’ve got people leaving the state going to other states, private prisons in other states. They don’t have them here.
And I think the 8,000 people that the governor is talking about should come home. I think that what it’s about though is to try to essentially trick the population into thinking that there is something being done that’s going to impact this COVID-19 situation. What it does is impact how people are viewing him. He thinks that’s going to get the pressure off. Here on the ground, we’re going to his house. We’re going to the prisons. We’re all over the state demanding that they do a whole lot more than they’re doing.
And the way California prisons are constructed, it’s like eggs in a egg carton. And it’s because they have so many people. Now, they putting tents on the yards. So this notion that 8,000 people is going to make a difference, it only makes a difference in the newspaper or politically, not in any real way.
Eddie Conway: Amani, what is the State doing there, or what are the activists on the ground demanding of the State at this point?
Amani Sawari: One thing that I want to mention is that we still don’t have visits. Across the country there are no visits, but the visiting room has been transformed into a quarantine area as well and so has the educational space. So where there was space to do theater, where there was space to meet with family, now it’s just beds for people to be in quarantine that have contracted the virus.
What we are asking for as a community of activists right now from the State of Michigan are a few things. First, when it comes to communication, we feel like we should have free phone calls across the board. We aren’t able to sit and share space with our loved ones. We’re in the midst of a pandemic, and we can’t check on them, we can’t see them. We need to be able to talk to them. There are long lines at the phone because everyone’s trying to use the phone.
And at Gus Harrison, it wasn’t until today that they installed phones inside of the unit. All the phones were outside on the yard. So we were asking for months for them to put some phones inside so that there would be more places where people could use the phone, especially when people aren’t outside on the yard.
So we want free phone calls. We want to be able to communicate with our loved ones. Also, video visitation, want to be able to see our loved ones. We don’t want that to be a replacement for in-person physical visitation, but that is something that could be incorporated during this time that we’re not able to share space. And especially just to make sure that we can keep people motivated, keep people’s morale high, and really see the people that we love.
We experience this outside, where people are in the hospitals alone, but we can still FaceTime them. Our loved ones are inside, and especially if they’re quarantined, everything is taken from them. We need to be able to see our loved ones. So that’s another thing.
And then also when it comes to sentencing, Michigan is one of the very few states left that’s still holding onto this Truth in Sentencing policy. And there is no truth in the way that we sentence people, because there’s no way that any judge could look at any person and say definitively when they will be fully rehabilitated.
So we’re asking our state to repeal Truth in Sentencing so that we can make sure that there isn’t an overcrowding in the prison and so that resources allocated to our corrections department are more evenly distributed and more effectively distributed to serve all the individuals there. Because right now with the population number and the way that our sentencing structure is, people that are ready to come home can’t come home.
We couldn’t even go for trying to get elderly folks out, trying to get pregnant mothers out because of these Truth in Sentencing policies. It created a barrier that didn’t even allow the department to manage its own population. And so it’s time to repeal those types of laws so that we can get people home that we need to get home during this pandemic.
Eddie Conway: Well, Amani, just as a final statement, can you suggest what the public, loved ones, friends, supporters can do and should be doing right at this point?
Amani Sawari: So right now, there is a couple of really critical things that loved ones and advocates for people’s human rights that are currently in Michigan state prisons can do. One of those things is to check out the Michigan Prison Rehabilitation Credit Act. Right now, MPRCA organizers are in a lawsuit battle with the State to get an extension on the deadline for submitting petitions. And so we have a petition that’s currently live, that’s currently collecting signatures in order to repeal Truth in Sentencing. And we need your signature to get that on the ballot.
So people can go to mprca.info to either download the petition, to sign it online, or to see where pop-up locations will be that they can sign the petition in person if they don’t have access to a printer. And then folks, if they do have access to a printer, can just mail it back to our PO box, which you’ll also find on the website.
And then another thing that’s really important is to make sure that you’re holding prison officials accountable. And so calling in, making sure that you’re checking into your loved one, but then also calling the facility and letting them know that you’re watching. Oh, my loved one wasn’t able to call me, or my loved one, he hasn’t called me in a week. What’s going on there? You are entitled. We are entitled. We are paying the taxes that staff these prison officials, that maintain these facilities.
And so we really need to break down that opaque wall that’s in between the public and what’s going on behind the wall. And that wall is getting thicker because now we can’t visit. People can’t use the phones regularly. People don’t have access to the kiosks. Movements are being monitored. And so that wall is getting thicker. So we need to do what we can to make sure that we break down that wall from the outside. We need to be checking in.
And if you’re not connected with someone on the inside but you consider yourself a prisoner human rights activist, then please connect to someone on the inside that you can support because there are a lot of people during this time that need your support.
Eddie Conway: Arthur, what would you suggest people in California and the nation, in fact, do at this point to try to remedy the situation? Because it’s probably only going to get worse without some really serious action.
Arthur League: Well, I think in California, that I’m certainly more familiar with, the governor has declared a state of emergency, and he has empowered himself with powers under that state of emergency that has essentially set aside the penal code. So every law on the book that tells you how people can get clemency, how people can get pardons, how people can get paroled, are now not valid. The governor has it all in his hand.
What he doesn’t have is the political wheel. And the thing that I would tell people around the country is hold the politicians accountable to the decisions that they’re making and to basically have a real clear understanding that there is a direct pipeline from these institutions where this virus is running rampant and the institutions that people live in. These guards don’t live in the prisons. They come back to the community, and they’re bringing with them to the prisons and to the community from the prisons their environment and what they are themselves open to catch. And for the families to get out there and make some noise.
One of the things that’s happening here in California is that families are really psyched up and are out in the streets. In couple of days, we’ll be going to the head of the California Department of Corrections and the Capitol, and its families leading the way.
Eddie Conway: Okay. Amani, Arthur, thanks for joining me, and we’ll have to revisit this again for a update. So if something happens before that occurs, please contact us so we can follow up. Thank you for joining me.
Amani Sawari: Thank you for having me.
Arthur League: Yes. Thank you.
Eddie Conway: And thank you for joining this episode of Rattling the Bars for The Real News Network.
Studio: Cameron Granadino
Production: Cameron Granadino, Ericka Blount Danois
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therealnews--2020-07-24--Climate Change And Hatred For Trump May Put Biden In The White House

Climate justice groups are disappointed at the recently unveiled Biden-Sanders joint action plan on climate change , saying it fails to recognize the urgency of the situation which can overshadow Democrats ’ efforts to rally the more progressive voices behind the presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden .
Since Sen. Bernie Sanders ’ abrupt exit from the Democratic field mid-April , the respective teams of Biden and the Vermont senator have cooperated to build a joint action plan that can rally both Democratic conservatives and left-leaning progressives behind a unified political agenda .
On July 8 , after weeks of haggling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out with wide-ranging policy recommendations , including on climate change , overseen and approved by top Biden supporter and former Secretary of State John Kerry and Sanders ’ ally Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez .
As reported in TRNN ’ s climate roundup last week , the plan aims to convert four million buildings to comply with energy efficiency standards in the next four years ; to achieve “ net-zero ” emissions by 2030 ; and to reach 100 % carbon pollution-free power by 2035 .
There are other specific proposals to address systemic problems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ addition to increasing taxes on corporations from 21 % to 28 % .
But critics were quick to point out the proposal makes no mention of phasing out fracking—an extraction method linked to water and air pollution , greenhouse gases , and increased incidence of earthquakes .
The Biden-Sanders team also recommends retrofitting power generating plants with carbon capture and sequestration ( CCS ) technology—a measure backed by the fossil fuel industry and seen as a subsidy to keep oil and gas corporations in business .
This has attracted flak from key national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Movement and Extinction Rebellion , which are demanding direct action to reverse the tide of climate-related catastrophes .
Talking to TRNN , Alyssa Morin of the Sunrise Movement put it bluntly : “ Joe Biden has accepted $ 800,000 from energy companies .
And the fact that he has done so speaks about how he is likely to act in future .
We don ’ t have a reason to believe he will sign on to carbon tax and pollution tax because he did not sign on to the green new deal.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stem the climate crisis , largely comprises young progressive voices under the age of 40 who , Alyssa maintains , are most affected by the climate emergency and economic bubbles .
The movement supports and endorses like-minded political candidates and aims to create millions of high-paying jobs through conversion to a non-fossil fuel-based economy .
“ We only have 10 years to achieve a 100 % carbon free economy , ” Alyssa said , adding that “ the targets set by the climate unity task force don ’ t convey the sense of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ commitment to achieve 100 % carbon pollution-free power is a significant step , Alyssa observed the unity plan commits to spending $ 2 trillion in four years compared to Sanders ’ $ 16 trillion over 10 years , which is significantly more money available per year .
“ It makes you wonder how we will make the shift to renewable economy if we ’ re not spending as much.
” Matt Kearney , a spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion ( XR ) , echoed Morin ’ s sentiment .
Talking to TRNN from Boston @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on available scientific evidence which suggests we have 10 years or fewer to switch to renewables and a zero-emission economy .
“ Biden ’ s campaign seems to be going in the same direction but the timeline is off the mark .
We ’ re demanding a faster action because the science is telling us there is no time , ” he said .
XR , a global environmental movement employing nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action on the climate crisis , has attracted climate activists from all ages and walks of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US cities over the years .
Commenting on the specifics of the Biden-Sanders unity task force climate proposal , Kearney said : “ I don ’ t know why fracking was not mentioned [ in the plan ] .
XR demands include mitigating the damage done by fracking and 100 % carbon-fossil fuel free energy means an end to fracking.
” He said there ’ s an opportunity for Biden to clarify what he means by carbon-free , and that “ naming fracking as a don ’ t and wind and solar as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Mark Longabaugh is a Democratic strategist who advised Bernie Sanders in his 2016 presidential run .
He had a word of caution for the activist circles : “ Don ’ t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
” “ This all or nothing mentality is not a good strategy , ” he said , adding : “ I understand the frustration in some quarters but we have to move forward .
By any measure , Biden has put forward the most powerful and progressive agenda ever.
” Longabaugh , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democratic candidate Andrew Yang ’ s 2020 campaign , maintains that if Biden wins the presidency and Democrats manage to take back the Senate , then there will be a chance to get going on a more progressive track .
“ The environment today is very different from what it was in 2016 .
Biden ’ s politics is so much better today .
He ’ s reached out to the progressives , formed unity commissions , and is bringing the party together masterfully.
” TRNN asked Kearney and Morin if the Biden-Sanders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democratic efforts to get young , progressive voters to vote for Biden .
“ I ’ m not sure .
Supporting Biden is going to be a very personal choice because of his past , ” remarked Morin .
She added it ’ s been a pleasant surprise to see young people getting involved in politics and beginning to see their voices can be heard .
Kearney agreed that voting will be a personal choice for many .
“ Some would vote for AOC , some would look at 100 % carbon free @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this as a partial step .
It ’ s fair to say that those who take their cue from climate science have totally been in Sanders ’ camp and might actually drop out.
” Longabaugh added that the manner in which Biden has moved to the left is smart politics “ because he understands the demands coming from the activist wing of the party.
” Asked by TRNN whether it ’ s issues like climate change or the common opposition to Trump ’ s presidency which will ultimately forge political unity , Longabaugh @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Trump is the ultimate unifier .
We have to get him out .
And most Americans believe climate change is real and care about it .
So both these dynamics go hand and hand .
”

Climate justice groups are disappointed at the recently unveiled Biden-Sanders joint action plan on climate change, saying it fails to recognize the urgency of the situation which can overshadow Democrats’ efforts to rally the more progressive voices behind the presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Since Sen. Bernie Sanders’ abrupt exit from the Democratic field mid-April, the respective teams of Biden and the Vermont senator have cooperated to build a joint action plan that can rally both Democratic conservatives and left-leaning progressives behind a unified political agenda.
On July 8, after weeks of haggling, the Biden-Sanders joint task force came out with wide-ranging policy recommendations, including on climate change, overseen and approved by top Biden supporter and former Secretary of State John Kerry and Sanders’ ally Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
As reported in TRNN’s climate roundup last week, the plan aims to convert four million buildings to comply with energy efficiency standards in the next four years; to achieve “net-zero” emissions by 2030; and to reach 100% carbon pollution-free power by 2035. There are other specific proposals to address systemic problems, such as climate justice, in addition to increasing taxes on corporations from 21% to 28%.
But critics were quick to point out the proposal makes no mention of phasing out fracking—an extraction method linked to water and air pollution, greenhouse gases, and increased incidence of earthquakes.
The Biden-Sanders team also recommends retrofitting power generating plants with carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technology—a measure backed by the fossil fuel industry and seen as a subsidy to keep oil and gas corporations in business.
This has attracted flak from key national climate action groups, including the Sunrise Movement and Extinction Rebellion, which are demanding direct action to reverse the tide of climate-related catastrophes.
Talking to TRNN, Alyssa Morin of the Sunrise Movement put it bluntly: “Joe Biden has accepted $800,000 from energy companies. And the fact that he has done so speaks about how he is likely to act in future. We don’t have a reason to believe he will sign on to carbon tax and pollution tax because he did not sign on to the green new deal.”
Sunrise, a nationwide movement working to stem the climate crisis, largely comprises young progressive voices under the age of 40 who, Alyssa maintains, are most affected by the climate emergency and economic bubbles. The movement supports and endorses like-minded political candidates and aims to create millions of high-paying jobs through conversion to a non-fossil fuel-based economy.
“We only have 10 years to achieve a 100% carbon free economy,” Alyssa said, adding that “the targets set by the climate unity task force don’t convey the sense of urgency.” Acknowledging that Biden’s commitment to achieve 100% carbon pollution-free power is a significant step, Alyssa observed the unity plan commits to spending $2 trillion in four years compared to Sanders’ $16 trillion over 10 years, which is significantly more money available per year. “It makes you wonder how we will make the shift to renewable economy if we’re not spending as much.”
Matt Kearney, a spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion (XR), echoed Morin’s sentiment. Talking to TRNN from Boston, Kearney said XR bases its demands on available scientific evidence which suggests we have 10 years or fewer to switch to renewables and a zero-emission economy. “Biden’s campaign seems to be going in the same direction but the timeline is off the mark. We’re demanding a faster action because the science is telling us there is no time,” he said.
XR, a global environmental movement employing nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action on the climate crisis, has attracted climate activists from all ages and walks of life and has staged rallies in major US cities over the years.
Commenting on the specifics of the Biden-Sanders unity task force climate proposal, Kearney said: “I don’t know why fracking was not mentioned [in the plan]. XR demands include mitigating the damage done by fracking and 100% carbon-fossil fuel free energy means an end to fracking.” He said there’s an opportunity for Biden to clarify what he means by carbon-free, and that “naming fracking as a don’t and wind and solar as dos would be consistent with XR vision.”
Mark Longabaugh is a Democratic strategist who advised Bernie Sanders in his 2016 presidential run. He had a word of caution for the activist circles: “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
“This all or nothing mentality is not a good strategy,” he said, adding: “I understand the frustration in some quarters but we have to move forward. By any measure, Biden has put forward the most powerful and progressive agenda ever.”
Longabaugh, who was also a political strategist for Democratic candidate Andrew Yang’s 2020 campaign, maintains that if Biden wins the presidency and Democrats manage to take back the Senate, then there will be a chance to get going on a more progressive track. “The environment today is very different from what it was in 2016. Biden’s politics is so much better today. He’s reached out to the progressives, formed unity commissions, and is bringing the party together masterfully.”
TRNN asked Kearney and Morin if the Biden-Sanders joint climate proposal will help or hinder Democratic efforts to get young, progressive voters to vote for Biden. “I’m not sure. Supporting Biden is going to be a very personal choice because of his past,” remarked Morin. She added it’s been a pleasant surprise to see young people getting involved in politics and beginning to see their voices can be heard.
Kearney agreed that voting will be a personal choice for many. “Some would vote for AOC, some would look at 100% carbon free economy slogan, and others would see this as a partial step. It’s fair to say that those who take their cue from climate science have totally been in Sanders’ camp and might actually drop out.”
Longabaugh added that the manner in which Biden has moved to the left is smart politics “because he understands the demands coming from the activist wing of the party.” Asked by TRNN whether it’s issues like climate change or the common opposition to Trump’s presidency which will ultimately forge political unity, Longabaugh said both of those factors are critical. “Trump is the ultimate unifier. We have to get him out. And most Americans believe climate change is real and care about it. So both these dynamics go hand and hand.”
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therealnews--2020-07-24--400,000 Marylanders Could Face Eviction As COVID-19 Spikes

Amid another surge in COVID-19 cases and as the economic crisis fueled by government inaction worsens , activists are demanding action to avoid evictions , water bill shutoffs and to extend unemployment relief amidst the great economic crisis since the Great Depression .
After weeks of declining COVID-19 cases , Maryland is experiencing rising hospitalization and positivity rates , especially among those 35 years of age and under .
The number of COVID-positive patients at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore doubled overnight from July 20 to July 21 , according to two nurses who help treat patients recovering from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helping lead the international response to the pandemic .
The hospital had to transfer non-COVID patients from one unit in order to accommodate the influx of new cases , the nurses said , speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press .
“ The hospital had a plan in place if there was a surge , but they really didn ’ t expect that until later in the year , ” said one nurse .
The nurses said many of the new cases are low-wage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clerks or correctional officers , who are unable to work from home or socially distance .
They also noted an uptick of cases from the Latinx community , who represent a disproportionate number of frontline workers .
“ It ’ s not uncommon to get someone in their 20s or 30s , who ’ s never been hospitalized before , all of a sudden having difficulty breathing , ” the nurse said .
A second nurse confirmed those details .
“ I can speak from personal experience that anyone who has recently tested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to work .
Mostly they are servers at restaurants , ” they said .
A contact tracer for the State of Maryland confirmed an uptick in cases .
“ I can verify the spike in young Hispanics .
Our bilingual tracers are overwhelmed , ” said the source , who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press .
On July 22 , Baltimore City announced a mandatory mask order to go into effect July 24 , and an end to indoor dining , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and restaurants in Ocean City , Maryland , a popular vacation spot where patrons were seen not wearing masks , have been forced to shutter after a surge in cases there .
While local governments are enacting some new restrictions and mandating mask use and social distancing , tens of thousands of Maryland residents could face eviction as the state ’ s eviction moratorium expires on July 25 .
A federal eviction moratorium in the CARES Act , which has prevented 12 million people from being evicted , expires at midnight on July @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Apartment Owners Association found nearly 60 % of landlords said their tenants are unable to pay rent because of the COVID-driven economic crisis .
Long-time housing activist Barbara Samuels tweeted , “ As courts reopen next week , over 400,000 Maryland adults , 31 % of renters , report they are behind on rent & face eviction .
This is one of the highest rates in the country , on par w/ poorer states .
We need # RentReliefNow ” Thus far , Maryland Gov .
Larry Hogan and Baltimore City Mayor Jack @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eviction moratorium .
An estimated tens of thousands of renters in Baltimore will be unable to pay rent .
32 % of U.S. households missed their July housing payments , CNBC reported .
Activists are rallying in Annapolis on July 24 and 25 to demand the state not allow evictions .
Activists targeted Young ’ s home early on July 12 with a similar demand ( Boston extended their moratorium until the end of 2020 ) , and to increase funding to the city ’ s $ 13 million coronavirus rent relief program @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of what ’ s needed .
The anonymous group behind the action said in a statement the funding could come from the $ 500 million police budget and the $ 103 million in federal disaster relief funds the city has received .
Activists also criticized Mayor Young for failing to implement key elements of the Water Accountability and Equity Act , which caps water bills based on income .
“ For years , and even during this pandemic , renters have been routinely denied assistance with water bills , ” said Zafar Shah @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ As of today , the denial of renters ’ requests to discounts , repayment agreements , and billing dispute resolution is unambiguously illegal.
” “ Despite being legally mandated , residents of Baltimore are still unable to get meaningful assistance with their water bills , and low-income Baltimoreans will not have their bills made more affordable , ” Rianna Eckel , Senior Maryland Organizer for Food & Water Action said .
Baltimore ’ s City Council is considering protections for workers , especially those in sectors deep in a harsh economic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , or event venues shut down due to COVID-19 .
98 % of UNITE HERE ’ s 300,000 members have become unemployed due to lockdowns , and Local 7 in Baltimore is backing two measures that would protect the jobs of such workers .
Councilmember Kristerfer Burnett has sponsored two bills to aid workers affected by COVID-19 : the Laid-Off Employees Right of Recall ( 20-0544 ) and COVID-19 Employee Retention ( 20-0543 ) .
The legislation would require hotel , event center , and commercial property owners to bring back the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when they reopen or restore operations .
If the company changes ownership , the new owners would be required to retain current workers .
Billionaires have increased their wealth by 20 % — $ 637 billion—during the pandemic .
Meanwhile , over 1.6 million people have signed a MoveOn petition urging the federal government to extend the $ 600 weekly federal unemployment payments that are set to expire at the end of July until Dec. 31 , 2020 .
Republicans are proposing to reduce the weekly payments to $ 100 .
The only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the 1 in 5 renters , or 13.8 million adults , who are behind on rent according to the Census Bureau , that soon may no longer be an option .
“ The pandemic is certainly not over , ” the nurse said .
” If the government is able to help people stay at home or work from home , they should be doing everything possible.
” It remains to be seen if Maryland ’ s leaders will extend economic protections for workers and renters affected by the pandemic .

Photo courtesy of CASA
Amid another surge in COVID-19 cases and as the economic crisis fueled by government inaction worsens, activists are demanding action to avoid evictions, water bill shutoffs and to extend unemployment relief amidst the great economic crisis since the Great Depression.
After weeks of declining COVID-19 cases, Maryland is experiencing rising hospitalization and positivity rates, especially among those 35 years of age and under.
The number of COVID-positive patients at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore doubled overnight from July 20 to July 21, according to two nurses who help treat patients recovering from the coronavirus at the hospital, which is helping lead the international response to the pandemic.
The hospital had to transfer non-COVID patients from one unit in order to accommodate the influx of new cases, the nurses said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press. “The hospital had a plan in place if there was a surge, but they really didn’t expect that until later in the year,” said one nurse.
The nurses said many of the new cases are low-wage essential workers, such as grocery store clerks or correctional officers, who are unable to work from home or socially distance. They also noted an uptick of cases from the Latinx community, who represent a disproportionate number of frontline workers.
“It’s not uncommon to get someone in their 20s or 30s, who’s never been hospitalized before, all of a sudden having difficulty breathing,” the nurse said.
A second nurse confirmed those details. “I can speak from personal experience that anyone who has recently tested positive is someone who is still going to work. Mostly they are servers at restaurants,” they said.
A contact tracer for the State of Maryland confirmed an uptick in cases. “I can verify the spike in young Hispanics. Our bilingual tracers are overwhelmed,” said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.
On July 22, Baltimore City announced a mandatory mask order to go into effect July 24, and an end to indoor dining, which experts say spreads the coronavirus. Bars and restaurants in Ocean City, Maryland, a popular vacation spot where patrons were seen not wearing masks, have been forced to shutter after a surge in cases there.
While local governments are enacting some new restrictions and mandating mask use and social distancing, tens of thousands of Maryland residents could face eviction as the state’s eviction moratorium expires on July 25. A federal eviction moratorium in the CARES Act, which has prevented 12 million people from being evicted, expires at midnight on July 24. A survey by the American Apartment Owners Association found nearly 60% of landlords said their tenants are unable to pay rent because of the COVID-driven economic crisis.
Long-time housing activist Barbara Samuels tweeted, “As courts reopen next week, over 400,000 Maryland adults, 31% of renters, report they are behind on rent & face eviction. This is one of the highest rates in the country, on par w/ poorer states. We need #RentReliefNow”
Thus far, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Baltimore City Mayor Jack Young have rejected calls to extend the eviction moratorium. An estimated tens of thousands of renters in Baltimore will be unable to pay rent. 32% of U.S. households missed their July housing payments, CNBC reported.
Activists are rallying in Annapolis on July 24 and 25 to demand the state not allow evictions. Activists targeted Young’s home early on July 12 with a similar demand (Boston extended their moratorium until the end of 2020), and to increase funding to the city’s $13 million coronavirus rent relief program, which advocates say falls far short of what’s needed. The anonymous group behind the action said in a statement the funding could come from the $500 million police budget and the $103 million in federal disaster relief funds the city has received.
Activists also criticized Mayor Young for failing to implement key elements of the Water Accountability and Equity Act, which caps water bills based on income.
“For years, and even during this pandemic, renters have been routinely denied assistance with water bills,” said Zafar Shah, attorney at the Public Justice Center. “As of today, the denial of renters’ requests to discounts, repayment agreements, and billing dispute resolution is unambiguously illegal.”
“Despite being legally mandated, residents of Baltimore are still unable to get meaningful assistance with their water bills, and low-income Baltimoreans will not have their bills made more affordable,” Rianna Eckel, Senior Maryland Organizer for Food & Water Action said.
Baltimore’s City Council is considering protections for workers, especially those in sectors deep in a harsh economic recession, such as hospitality, hotels, or event venues shut down due to COVID-19. 98% of UNITE HERE’s 300,000 members have become unemployed due to lockdowns, and Local 7 in Baltimore is backing two measures that would protect the jobs of such workers.
Councilmember Kristerfer Burnett has sponsored two bills to aid workers affected by COVID-19: the Laid-Off Employees Right of Recall (20-0544) and COVID-19 Employee Retention (20-0543). The legislation would require hotel, event center, and commercial property owners to bring back the same employees they employed before the crisis hit when they reopen or restore operations. If the company changes ownership, the new owners would be required to retain current workers.
Billionaires have increased their wealth by 20%—$637 billion—during the pandemic. Meanwhile, over 1.6 million people have signed a MoveOn petition urging the federal government to extend the $600 weekly federal unemployment payments that are set to expire at the end of July until Dec. 31, 2020. Republicans are proposing to reduce the weekly payments to $100.
The only safe place is at home, but for the 1 in 5 renters, or 13.8 million adults, who are behind on rent according to the Census Bureau, that soon may no longer be an option.
“The pandemic is certainly not over,” the nurse said. ”If the government is able to help people stay at home or work from home, they should be doing everything possible.”
It remains to be seen if Maryland’s leaders will extend economic protections for workers and renters affected by the pandemic.
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FIRST NATIONS FRIDAY

Stir Crazy! Episode 71: Today we are joined by journalist, organizer, and founding executive director of Crushing Colonialism Jen Deerinwater; Miwok journalist and community organizer Desiree Kane; and journalist and community builder Johnnie Jae. Hosted by Kim Brown.
If you have comments/questions/suggestions email us at stircrazy@therealnews.com
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therealnews--2020-07-24--Why You Should Give a F*ck | Ep. 7 | Courts

Studio Technician (former)
Coming from a background in video production and filmmaking, Tunde Ogunfolaju was a studio tech for TRNN from 2018-2020. He operated, monitored, and adjusted audio, video, lighting, and broadcast equipment for the purposes of handling day-to-day production of in-studio, remote and live streamed interviews involving current political news for TRNN. He is a Baltimore native and great enthusiast of 90’s R&B as well as old school wrestling.