truthout--2020-09-28--Agribusiness Is Trying to Greenwash Its Dirty Waste as “Renewable Energy”

Over the past months , while communities have been struggling to meet basic needs like water and health care , bad-acting corporations like Tyson and Smithfield fight ( or quietly settle ) class-action lawsuits over their refusal to protect their workers during a global pandemic .
They ’ ve also been leading a quiet campaign to dupe Americans into accepting their carefully crafted narrative of being “ good stewards of the planet.
” Supporting this false narrative is a new polluting partner in crime : the emerging biogas industry .
Biogas , sourced from factory farm manure and processed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest dirty energy to be backed by a greenwashing campaign from Big Ag and Big Gas .
Biogas technology is being promoted as “ renewable natural gas , ” and as a solution to air and water pollution across the United States .
In 2018 , Dominion Energy and Smithfield Foods signed a half-billion-dollar agreement to promote biogas , citing their companies ’ greenhouse gas emission reduction goals .
“ Our partnership is revolutionizing the future of sustainable energy and agriculture in this country , and we are thrilled to partner with Smithfield @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Dominion stated at the time .
In reality , the promotion of biogas as “ renewable ” by agribusinesses and the energy industry is misleading and harmful .
Burning dirty biogas releases carbon dioxide and other pollutants , including smog-forming nitrogen oxides , ammonia and hydrogen sulfide .
Additionally , biogas is comprised of more than 50 percent methane , a potent greenhouse gas that ’ s nearly 90 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over many years .
Beyond the climate implications , the biogas industry creates a host of problems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ factory farms that are typically located in low-income areas and communities of color .
The operation of digesters in these communities only exacerbates existing environmental degradation through increased mega-farm activity , increased diesel pollution from trucks and equipment , and the construction of a vast web of new underground pipelines to transport the gas to market .
In addition to these pipelines being a constant explosion threat , their placement requires the disruption and destruction of rural landscapes , natural habitats and sometimes even homes .
Meanwhile , with the aid of complicit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legislators , biogas infrastructure is expanding at a troubling pace .
In Delaware and Maryland , factory farm biogas plots are churning with an incredible lack of transparency .
Right now , a massive digester and tanker truck project is being developed in Delaware to process poultry litter in the region .
It ’ s a plan designed in part to respond to ongoing concern about excess manure and phosphorus throughout the Eastern Shore of Maryland .
Perdue , one of the nation ’ s largest poultry producers , is hoping the third @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the facility is being built at the site of their failed pelletizer and composting plants — and because it ’ s committed to a 20-year agreement with biogas giant Bioenergy DevCo .
By creating a market for factory farm waste , this project will entrench factory farms on the Eastern Shore for decades .
In Iowa , a planned biogas conference was canceled at the beginning of the pandemic , but the same group was awarded a new federal grant just last month to develop new methods of turning manure into gas .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Roeslein Alternative Energy were awarded the five-year , $ 10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture ’ s National Institute for Food and Agriculture .
Simultaneously , Congress has repeatedly sought to fan the biogas flames .
First to come was the Agricultural Environmental Stewardship Act , introduced last summer .
During the pandemic , its lead sponsors — Senators Sherrod Brown ( D-Ohio ) and Pat Roberts ( R-Kansas ) , and Rep. Ron Kind ( D-Wisconsin ) — have been peddling biogas by asking Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the pandemic .
The legislation , which would offer huge financial breaks to companies looking to profit off digester technology , hasn ’ t made much forward momentum , but it is still alive and well .
Then came the industry-supporting Agriculture Resilience Act .
Introduced in the House before the pandemic in February , the lead sponsor , Representative Chellie Pingree ( D-Maine ) , was the keynote speaker alongside World Bank leaders at a conference hosted by the World Biogas Council in May 2020 .
According to organizers , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dialogue amid worldwide COVID-19 lockdowns , and highlight the use of biogas worldwide , understand the barriers preventing growth and policy contexts , identify potential solutions , discuss new innovations and address technological challenges and opportunities.
” The Growing Climate Solutions Act , another bill introduced during the pandemic — by Senators Mike Braun ( R-Indiana ) , Debbie Stabenow ( D-Michigan ) , Lindsey Graham ( R-South Carolina ) and Sheldon Whitehouse ( D-Rhode Island ) — has bipartisan support and is most likely to advance .
The legislation aims to open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fuller monetization of digester and biogas operations — and the filthy waste supplying them .
But there are good bills in Congress as well .
For example , Sen. Cory Booker ’ s ( D-New Jersey ) Farm System Reform Act calls for major agricultural reforms that uplift independent family farmers , protect rural communities and public health , and overhaul our corporatized food system .
Among the reforms is an immediate ban on the construction of new large factory farms or the expansion of existing ones , while also initiating a phaseout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The Farm System Reform Act would go a long way toward squashing the toxic biogas industry and , most notably , transforming our entire food system for the better .
But from a climate perspective , fighting biogas is just one small piece of a remarkably complex clean energy puzzle .
Science tells us that in order to maintain hope of avoiding the most catastrophic , irreversible effects of climate change , we must solve the puzzle quickly — likely within the next decade .
Among many other things , solving the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all new fossil fuel development , including fracking , and an aggressive national mobilization to develop solar and wind power on a massive scale .
Increased energy efficiency standards across our economy must be a part of the solution as well .
In the meantime , the burgeoning biogas industry poses a direct threat not only to our fragile climate but also to the health and environment of countless vulnerable communities on the front lines of the filthy factory farm and manure digestor industry .
We can and must act to shed exposing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and halt it in its tracks .

Part of the Series Covering Climate Now
This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
Over the past months, while communities have been struggling to meet basic needs like water and health care, bad-acting corporations like Tyson and Smithfield fight (or quietly settle) class-action lawsuits over their refusal to protect their workers during a global pandemic. They’ve also been leading a quiet campaign to dupe Americans into accepting their carefully crafted narrative of being “good stewards of the planet.” Supporting this false narrative is a new polluting partner in crime: the emerging biogas industry.
Biogas, sourced from factory farm manure and processed in massive “digesters,” is the latest dirty energy to be backed by a greenwashing campaign from Big Ag and Big Gas. Biogas technology is being promoted as “renewable natural gas,” and as a solution to air and water pollution across the United States. In 2018, Dominion Energy and Smithfield Foods signed a half-billion-dollar agreement to promote biogas, citing their companies’ greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. “Our partnership is revolutionizing the future of sustainable energy and agriculture in this country, and we are thrilled to partner with Smithfield to grow this exciting new industry,” Dominion stated at the time.
In reality, the promotion of biogas as “renewable” by agribusinesses and the energy industry is misleading and harmful. Burning dirty biogas releases carbon dioxide and other pollutants, including smog-forming nitrogen oxides, ammonia and hydrogen sulfide. Additionally, biogas is comprised of more than 50 percent methane, a potent greenhouse gas that’s nearly 90 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over many years.
Beyond the climate implications, the biogas industry creates a host of problems on the ground. It relies on factory farms that are typically located in low-income areas and communities of color. The operation of digesters in these communities only exacerbates existing environmental degradation through increased mega-farm activity, increased diesel pollution from trucks and equipment, and the construction of a vast web of new underground pipelines to transport the gas to market. In addition to these pipelines being a constant explosion threat, their placement requires the disruption and destruction of rural landscapes, natural habitats and sometimes even homes.
Biogas, sourced from factory farm manure and processed in massive “digesters,” is the latest dirty energy to be backed by a greenwashing campaign from Big Ag and Big Gas.
Meanwhile, with the aid of complicit local leaders and laws written by industry-friendly legislators, biogas infrastructure is expanding at a troubling pace. In Delaware and Maryland, factory farm biogas plots are churning with an incredible lack of transparency. Right now, a massive digester and tanker truck project is being developed in Delaware to process poultry litter in the region. It’s a plan designed in part to respond to ongoing concern about excess manure and phosphorus throughout the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Perdue, one of the nation’s largest poultry producers, is hoping the third time’s a charm, as the facility is being built at the site of their failed pelletizer and composting plants — and because it’s committed to a 20-year agreement with biogas giant Bioenergy DevCo. By creating a market for factory farm waste, this project will entrench factory farms on the Eastern Shore for decades.
In Iowa, a planned biogas conference was canceled at the beginning of the pandemic, but the same group was awarded a new federal grant just last month to develop new methods of turning manure into gas. Iowa State University, Penn State and Roeslein Alternative Energy were awarded the five-year, $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture.
Simultaneously, Congress has repeatedly sought to fan the biogas flames. First to come was the Agricultural Environmental Stewardship Act, introduced last summer. During the pandemic, its lead sponsors — Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Pat Roberts (R-Kansas), and Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisconsin) — have been peddling biogas by asking Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to bail out the industry at the apex of the pandemic. The legislation, which would offer huge financial breaks to companies looking to profit off digester technology, hasn’t made much forward momentum, but it is still alive and well.
The burgeoning biogas industry poses a direct threat not only to our fragile climate but also to the health and environment of countless vulnerable communities on the front lines of the filthy factory farm industry.
Then came the industry-supporting Agriculture Resilience Act. Introduced in the House before the pandemic in February, the lead sponsor, Representative Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), was the keynote speaker alongside World Bank leaders at a conference hosted by the World Biogas Council in May 2020. According to organizers, the event “aims to maintain the international dialogue amid worldwide COVID-19 lockdowns, and highlight the use of biogas worldwide, understand the barriers preventing growth and policy contexts, identify potential solutions, discuss new innovations and address technological challenges and opportunities.”
The Growing Climate Solutions Act, another bill introduced during the pandemic — by Senators Mike Braun (R-Indiana), Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan), Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island) — has bipartisan support and is most likely to advance. The legislation aims to open carbon markets to farmers, allowing for fuller monetization of digester and biogas operations — and the filthy waste supplying them.
But there are good bills in Congress as well. For example, Sen. Cory Booker’s (D-New Jersey) Farm System Reform Act calls for major agricultural reforms that uplift independent family farmers, protect rural communities and public health, and overhaul our corporatized food system. Among the reforms is an immediate ban on the construction of new large factory farms or the expansion of existing ones, while also initiating a phaseout of existing large factory farms by 2040.
The Farm System Reform Act would go a long way toward squashing the toxic biogas industry and, most notably, transforming our entire food system for the better. But from a climate perspective, fighting biogas is just one small piece of a remarkably complex clean energy puzzle. Science tells us that in order to maintain hope of avoiding the most catastrophic, irreversible effects of climate change, we must solve the puzzle quickly — likely within the next decade.
Among many other things, solving the puzzle will require a quick halt to all new fossil fuel development, including fracking, and an aggressive national mobilization to develop solar and wind power on a massive scale. Increased energy efficiency standards across our economy must be a part of the solution as well.
In the meantime, the burgeoning biogas industry poses a direct threat not only to our fragile climate but also to the health and environment of countless vulnerable communities on the front lines of the filthy factory farm and manure digestor industry. We can and must act to shed exposing light on the truth behind the industry, and halt it in its tracks.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.


truthout--2020-09-28--Tax Returns Show Trump Looting Treasury to Stave Off His Own Financial Disaster

The great white whale of Trump-era journalism was finally harpooned and boated on Sunday night — Tax returns , ho !
— and the resulting product is a thunderclap of venality and greed astride a form of grasping self-interest unseen in the White House since the epic corruption of Warren Harding .
In 2018 , The New York Times published an exhaustive report on the myriad ways the Trump family , going back to patriarch Fred Trump , used a variety of tax dodges to hide the family fortune .
This latest Times report lays out what Donald Trump has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and including the years he has been in office .
“ The tax returns that Mr. Trump has long fought to keep private tell a story fundamentally different from the one he has sold to the American public , ” reads the Times report .
“ His reports to the I.R.S .
portray a businessman who takes in hundreds of millions of dollars a year yet racks up chronic losses that he aggressively employs to avoid paying taxes .
Now , with his financial challenges mounting , the records show that he depends @ @ @ @ @ @ @ businesses that put him in potential and often direct conflict of interest with his job as president.
” No , it is not a pretty picture .
It is , in fact , pathetic nearly to the point of unrestrained hilarity .
The bragging “ billionaire ” blowhard president of the United States is more than a billion dollars in debt , and about half of that is coming due in the next few years .
Journalist Dan Alexander , on the Trump beat for Forbes and author of White House , Inc. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into a Business , sat down on Sunday night and crunched some numbers based upon the Times reporting .
If Alexander and the Times have it right — which they very likely do , given how articles of this magnitude endure weeks of factual and legal scrutiny before seeing daylight — Trump is only a few short years away from being subsumed by a tidal wave of red ink that will wash him out of most of his properties and leave him stranded on the beach like some strange orange whale .
According @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is $ 100 million in debt for Trump Tower , with the loan coming due in less than two years .
He owes $ 139 million for his 40 Wall Street property , debt coming due in 2025 .
His stake in the 1290 Ave. of the Americas property has him $ 285 million in the hole , and comes due in 2022 .
His stake in the 555 California St. property is $ 163 million , and comes due this time next year .
This list goes on and on , ultimately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in debt .
There is currently a great deal of “ We knew that already !
” commentary being inspired by this inspired piece of Times journalism .
To no small degree , this is true : Donald Trump and his entire family are , among other things , perhaps the most obvious pack of grifters to come down the road since the original snake-oil salesmen plied their blighted wares on the dusty byways of a fledgling nation .
It does not take an electron microscope and the sensory perception of a canyon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That being said , now we have the receipts , and they portray Trump as being much more than merely greedy .
He hasn ’ t turned the White House into his personal ATM machine because he loves money like any good capitalist does .
He ’ s doing it to stave off looming financial disaster ; he ’ s looting the Treasury not simply because he can , but because he absolutely has to if he wants to avoid getting pauperized by his own horrid business instincts .
He ’ s using @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gaping holes in his sinking ship .
This makes him pathetic and infuriating , yes , but it also makes him dangerous .
As we stampede toward an election that Trump appears more and more willing to steal or disrupt in order to stay in office , we have with this Times piece a more acute understanding of his motivations .
If Trump loses this election , he loses his access to the spigot of federal money he ’ s using to hose down his inferno of debt , and his personal financial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ away .
If that happens , Trump would have no money to pay the kind of lawyers he will need to keep a roof over his head .
His humiliation before the world would be complete and absolute , and that , right there , is the fate he has manifestly dreaded for the term of his life .
That is what Trump is fighting to avoid on November 3 .
Not so much for the money or the freedom , but to avoid the disgrace .
A man with such a towering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ awesome political powers , now faces a final confrontation with what appears to be his greatest fear : shame .
Trump ’ s efforts to attack the veracity of this news won ’ t wave the debt collectors away .
Understanding this , you will understand why so many are flatly terrified at what he might do in 36 days , and beyond , to dodge the awful reckoning he has fled from for so long .

If Trump loses this election, he loses his access to the federal money he’s using to hose down his inferno of debt.
The great white whale of Trump-era journalism was finally harpooned and boated on Sunday night — Tax returns, ho! — and the resulting product is a thunderclap of venality and greed astride a form of grasping self-interest unseen in the White House since the epic corruption of Warren Harding.
In 2018, The New York Times published an exhaustive report on the myriad ways the Trump family, going back to patriarch Fred Trump, used a variety of tax dodges to hide the family fortune. This latest Times report lays out what Donald Trump has done with that fortune, up to and including the years he has been in office.
“The tax returns that Mr. Trump has long fought to keep private tell a story fundamentally different from the one he has sold to the American public,” reads the Times report. “His reports to the I.R.S. portray a businessman who takes in hundreds of millions of dollars a year yet racks up chronic losses that he aggressively employs to avoid paying taxes. Now, with his financial challenges mounting, the records show that he depends more and more on making money from businesses that put him in potential and often direct conflict of interest with his job as president.”
No, it is not a pretty picture. It is, in fact, pathetic nearly to the point of unrestrained hilarity. The bragging “billionaire” blowhard president of the United States is more than a billion dollars in debt, and about half of that is coming due in the next few years.
Journalist Dan Alexander, on the Trump beat for Forbes and author of White House, Inc.: How Donald Trump Turned the Presidency into a Business, sat down on Sunday night and crunched some numbers based upon the Times reporting. If Alexander and the Times have it right — which they very likely do, given how articles of this magnitude endure weeks of factual and legal scrutiny before seeing daylight — Trump is only a few short years away from being subsumed by a tidal wave of red ink that will wash him out of most of his properties and leave him stranded on the beach like some strange orange whale.
According to Alexander’s tally, Trump is $100 million in debt for Trump Tower, with the loan coming due in less than two years. He owes $139 million for his 40 Wall Street property, debt coming due in 2025. His stake in the 1290 Ave. of the Americas property has him $285 million in the hole, and comes due in 2022. His stake in the 555 California St. property is $163 million, and comes due this time next year. This list goes on and on, ultimately coming out to approximately $1.1 billion in debt.
The bragging “billionaire” blowhard president of the United States is more than a billion dollars in debt.
There is currently a great deal of “We knew that already!” commentary being inspired by this inspired piece of Times journalism. To no small degree, this is true: Donald Trump and his entire family are, among other things, perhaps the most obvious pack of grifters to come down the road since the original snake-oil salesmen plied their blighted wares on the dusty byways of a fledgling nation. It does not take an electron microscope and the sensory perception of a canyon bat to pick up on this.
That being said, now we have the receipts, and they portray Trump as being much more than merely greedy. He hasn’t turned the White House into his personal ATM machine because he loves money like any good capitalist does. He’s doing it to stave off looming financial disaster; he’s looting the Treasury not simply because he can, but because he absolutely has to if he wants to avoid getting pauperized by his own horrid business instincts. He’s using gobs of our cash to plug the gaping holes in his sinking ship.
This makes him pathetic and infuriating, yes, but it also makes him dangerous. As we stampede toward an election that Trump appears more and more willing to steal or disrupt in order to stay in office, we have with this Times piece a more acute understanding of his motivations.
If Trump loses this election, he loses his access to the spigot of federal money he’s using to hose down his inferno of debt, and his personal financial Armageddon is only a few scant years away.
If that happens, Trump would have no money to pay the kind of lawyers he will need to keep a roof over his head. His humiliation before the world would be complete and absolute, and that, right there, is the fate he has manifestly dreaded for the term of his life.
That is what Trump is fighting to avoid on November 3. Not so much for the money or the freedom, but to avoid the disgrace. A man with such a towering yet fragile ego, in possession of awesome political powers, now faces a final confrontation with what appears to be his greatest fear: shame.
Trump’s efforts to attack the veracity of this news won’t wave the debt collectors away. Understanding this, you will understand why so many are flatly terrified at what he might do in 36 days, and beyond, to dodge the awful reckoning he has fled from for so long.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.


truthout--2020-09-28--Fallout From Climate Disasters Are Being Exacerbated by a Housing Crisis

When Carolina ’ s neighbor came to tell her that the fire was coming for her home , she was doubtful .
She didn ’ t see any smoke .
But within half an hour it was there , dark and ugly .
Carolina was caring for her son in the mobile home where she lived south of Medford , Ore. , with her husband , father , and brothers .
( Carolina and her husband are undocumented immigrants from Mexico , and because they are currently pursuing an asylum claim , we are withholding their last names . )
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ morning for work picking pears , apples , and grapes on a nearby farm .
When the smoke got thick , Carolina , who doesn ’ t drive , called her husband to pick her up .
By that time , police had arrived in the neighborhood and were telling everyone to leave .
Nearby , Carolina recalls , everything was burning .
She gathered a few legal documents , took her son by the hand , and fled .
There is virtually nothing left now of the mobile home where Carolina lived @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was home to a number of immigrant families , was swallowed by the Almeda fire , one of more than 2,000 wildfires that ripped across the West Coast in late August and September .
In Oregon they consumed a million acres , double the last decade ’ s average for a fire season .
In California , fires tore through an area almost of the size of Connecticut .
The blazes drove tens of thousands of people from their homes , and the smoke trapped everyone else .
For a week it felt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the horizon invisible behind layers of smog , the air the color of dirty sherbet .
In Portland , which for several days had the worst air quality of any city in the world , the haze eventually lifted like a lid off the city .
But for people like Carolina the crisis is hardly over .
Carolina , her husband , Constantino , and her son , Miguel Angel , who is 11 and has developmental delays , came to the United States last year , and moved into the mobile home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in for a decade .
Now that ’ s gone , along with the cars that were parked outside and everything else the family had besides the clothes they were wearing , the car the men had taken to work that morning , and the few documents that Carolina managed to grab .
The family of seven spent the first night in the parking lot of the Jackson County Expo Center along with thousands of other evacuees .
Then they moved into a small camper on the farm where Constantino works and , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with donations from a GoFundMe campaign .
Constantino and the other men kept picking fruit in the choking smoke .
Not working wasn ’ t much of an option .
“ No one has gotten sick , thank God , ” Carolina said .
“ They need to work , because now we don ’ t have a house , [ and ] the cars were burned.
” Carolina ’ s family didn ’ t have any kind of home insurance , she said , nor did most others who lost homes in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ won ’ t be easy .
Affordable housing was already scarce in the Rogue Valley , an agricultural area home to a significant immigrant community .
Before the fires the area had a rental vacancy rate below 2 percent , according to the Los Angeles Times , one of the lowest in the country .
A third of the residents of Talent , a town of 6,500 just south of Medford that was substantially demolished by the Almeda fire , were already spending more than half of their income on rent .
Homelessness @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a longtime real estate agent in Jackson County estimates that “ the vast majority ” of what low- and moderately priced housing there was in the area has been destroyed .
“ It ’ s like this fire went after the poorest and most vulnerable people in our community , ” a city councilor in Phoenix , another community wrecked by the flames , told the Times .
September ’ s fires are likely the most intense wildfire event in Oregon ’ s history .
Thanks to climate change , the conditions that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drought and high winds — are becoming a “ new normal.
” For a rising number of families , so is the colossal task of starting over .
As climate change magnifies ecological risk — making hurricanes stronger , wildfires fiercer and less predictable — it ’ s also amplifying inequity .
Last year , New York Times reporters spent three months reporting from one of the largest homeless encampments in Oakland , Calif. , and found that many people were there because of natural disasters .
One woman lost her home to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lost hers to Hurricane Harvey in Texas .
Undocumented immigrants are particularly vulnerable , according to a forthcoming paper in the journal Geoforum that analyzes the emergency response and recovery effort after a massive 2017 wildfire in California : “ Despite being on the front lines of disaster , ” the paper reads , “ explicit exclusion from recovery and relief efforts leaves undocumented immigrants without a safety net in California ’ s nearly year-round wildfire season.
” In Oregon now , it ’ s easy to see how climate events , overlaid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wage stagnation , and a pandemic , could leave families like Carolina ’ s with nowhere to go .
This problem will only get worse , because in a sense the world is shrinking .
Across the globe , coastlines are disappearing .
Saltwater is seeping inland , deadening agricultural fields .
Deserts are expanding , as an atmospheric circulation pattern called the Hadley cell , which creates a dry , hot band around the middle of the earth roughly from the top of the Sahara down to the bottom of the Kalahari @ @ @ @ @ @ @ change in global greenhouse gas emissions , extreme heat will become common in the South and Southwestern US , as well as a swath through India , Pakistan , Bangladesh , and China where a fifth of the world ’ s population lives .
According to a recent New York Times/ProPublica analysis , 28 million Americans , not just in the West but also in states like Georgia and Florida , are likely to face mega-fires by 2040 , while 100 million people live in areas projected to become so hot and humid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hazard .
As more and more people flee from natural disasters , there will be fewer and fewer decent places to go .
Carolina went back to see what remained of their home a few days after she evacuated .
“ Everything turned to ashes .
Nothing good remained , ” she said .
Her family has gotten some assistance from local organizations — groups like the Unete Center for Farmworker Advocacy and Oregon ’ s Latinx farmworker union , Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste , are distributing aid — but she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a new home , she and other families will need a lot more help .
Carolina ’ s father and brothers , who have legal status , could go back to Mexico for a while and then return , but she ’ s still waiting on a court date for her asylum case , and has had trouble finding legal assistance .
“ My son , my husband and I , it will be more difficult for us because we do not have a work permit , ” she said .
“ We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ honorable people and we want to work , to have a better future for our child.
” Asked what about that future she thinks the fire will change , Carolina said , “ Well , everything .
”

Part of the Series Covering Climate Now
This story originally appeared in The Nation and is republished here as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
When Carolina’s neighbor came to tell her that the fire was coming for her home, she was doubtful. She didn’t see any smoke. But within half an hour it was there, dark and ugly.
Carolina was caring for her son in the mobile home where she lived south of Medford, Ore., with her husband, father, and brothers. (Carolina and her husband are undocumented immigrants from Mexico, and because they are currently pursuing an asylum claim, we are withholding their last names.) The men had left at four that morning for work picking pears, apples, and grapes on a nearby farm. When the smoke got thick, Carolina, who doesn’t drive, called her husband to pick her up. By that time, police had arrived in the neighborhood and were telling everyone to leave. Nearby, Carolina recalls, everything was burning. She gathered a few legal documents, took her son by the hand, and fled.
There is virtually nothing left now of the mobile home where Carolina lived. Most of her neighborhood, which was home to a number of immigrant families, was swallowed by the Almeda fire, one of more than 2,000 wildfires that ripped across the West Coast in late August and September. In Oregon they consumed a million acres, double the last decade’s average for a fire season. In California, fires tore through an area almost of the size of Connecticut. The blazes drove tens of thousands of people from their homes, and the smoke trapped everyone else. For a week it felt as if the world had shrunk, the horizon invisible behind layers of smog, the air the color of dirty sherbet.
In Portland, which for several days had the worst air quality of any city in the world, the haze eventually lifted like a lid off the city. But for people like Carolina the crisis is hardly over. Carolina, her husband, Constantino, and her son, Miguel Angel, who is 11 and has developmental delays, came to the United States last year, and moved into the mobile home that her father owned and had lived in for a decade. Now that’s gone, along with the cars that were parked outside and everything else the family had besides the clothes they were wearing, the car the men had taken to work that morning, and the few documents that Carolina managed to grab.
The family of seven spent the first night in the parking lot of the Jackson County Expo Center along with thousands of other evacuees. Then they moved into a small camper on the farm where Constantino works and, recently, into a larger camper purchased with donations from a GoFundMe campaign. Constantino and the other men kept picking fruit in the choking smoke. Not working wasn’t much of an option. “No one has gotten sick, thank God,” Carolina said. “They need to work, because now we don’t have a house, [and] the cars were burned.”
Carolina’s family didn’t have any kind of home insurance, she said, nor did most others who lost homes in her neighborhood. Finding a new one won’t be easy. Affordable housing was already scarce in the Rogue Valley, an agricultural area home to a significant immigrant community. Before the fires the area had a rental vacancy rate below 2 percent, according to the Los Angeles Times, one of the lowest in the country. A third of the residents of Talent, a town of 6,500 just south of Medford that was substantially demolished by the Almeda fire, were already spending more than half of their income on rent. Homelessness was on the rise. Now, a longtime real estate agent in Jackson County estimates that “the vast majority” of what low- and moderately priced housing there was in the area has been destroyed. “It’s like this fire went after the poorest and most vulnerable people in our community,” a city councilor in Phoenix, another community wrecked by the flames, told the Times.
September’s fires are likely the most intense wildfire event in Oregon’s history. Thanks to climate change, the conditions that drove the fire — including a long drought and high winds — are becoming a “new normal.” For a rising number of families, so is the colossal task of starting over. As climate change magnifies ecological risk — making hurricanes stronger, wildfires fiercer and less predictable — it’s also amplifying inequity. Last year, New York Times reporters spent three months reporting from one of the largest homeless encampments in Oakland, Calif., and found that many people were there because of natural disasters. One woman lost her home to a 2014 wildfire in California; another lost hers to Hurricane Harvey in Texas. Undocumented immigrants are particularly vulnerable, according to a forthcoming paper in the journal Geoforum that analyzes the emergency response and recovery effort after a massive 2017 wildfire in California: “Despite being on the front lines of disaster,” the paper reads, “explicit exclusion from recovery and relief efforts leaves undocumented immigrants without a safety net in California’s nearly year-round wildfire season.” In Oregon now, it’s easy to see how climate events, overlaid on top of a housing crisis, wage stagnation, and a pandemic, could leave families like Carolina’s with nowhere to go.
This problem will only get worse, because in a sense the world is shrinking. Across the globe, coastlines are disappearing. Saltwater is seeping inland, deadening agricultural fields. Deserts are expanding, as an atmospheric circulation pattern called the Hadley cell, which creates a dry, hot band around the middle of the earth roughly from the top of the Sahara down to the bottom of the Kalahari, shifts northward. Without a dramatic change in global greenhouse gas emissions, extreme heat will become common in the South and Southwestern US, as well as a swath through India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and China where a fifth of the world’s population lives. According to a recent New York Times/ProPublica analysis, 28 million Americans, not just in the West but also in states like Georgia and Florida, are likely to face mega-fires by 2040, while 100 million people live in areas projected to become so hot and humid that working outside will be a health hazard. As more and more people flee from natural disasters, there will be fewer and fewer decent places to go.
Carolina went back to see what remained of their home a few days after she evacuated. “Everything turned to ashes. Nothing good remained,” she said. Her family has gotten some assistance from local organizations — groups like the Unete Center for Farmworker Advocacy and Oregon’s Latinx farmworker union, Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste, are distributing aid — but she said that to actually rebuild or find a new home, she and other families will need a lot more help. Carolina’s father and brothers, who have legal status, could go back to Mexico for a while and then return, but she’s still waiting on a court date for her asylum case, and has had trouble finding legal assistance.
“My son, my husband and I, it will be more difficult for us because we do not have a work permit,” she said. “We want to stay here because we are honorable people and we want to work, to have a better future for our child.” Asked what about that future she thinks the fire will change, Carolina said, “Well, everything.”
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.


truthout--2020-09-28--1.8 Billion Tons More Greenhouse Gases Will Be Released, Thanks to Trump

When President Donald Trump visited California on September 14 and dismissed the state Secretary of Natural Resources Wade Crowfoot ’ s plea to recognize the role of climate change in the midst of the Golden State ’ s worst and most dangerous recorded fire season to date , he gaslighted the tens of millions of West Coast residents suffering through the ordeal .
While Trump declared that the weather will just “ start getting cooler ” and that science is irrelevant to the wildfires , millions were struggling to breathe through the toxic smoke that gave Portland the week-long distinction @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the planet , with pollution levels in Seattle and San Francisco close behind .
Whole towns in California and Oregon have been destroyed by the wildfires .
A growing body of scientific evidence over the last several decades confirms that as atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases rise , so too will frequent , intense and increasingly deadly weather events .
Strange new weather phenomena like fire tornadoes , “ snowacanes ” and “ rain bombs ” are now part of our experience and language .
Droughts , unprecedented heat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flooding are happening more often , becoming more severe , and occurring over larger and larger areas .
This year several strange and extreme weather conditions combined to create the perfect firestorm across the Western U.S. A prolonged record-breaking heatwave saw temperatures reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit in Death Valley , California , on August 16 , and 121 degrees Fahrenheit in the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills three weeks later on September 6 .
In mid-August , more than 10,000 dry lightning strikes began igniting fires in Northern California , Oregon and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Area where they were eerily close to heavily populated areas .
Lightning-induced fires are also torching Idaho , Arizona , Utah , Montana , Colorado and New Mexico .
Subsequent high winds in drought-stricken landscapes then turned the initial sparks into major conflagrations .
By the morning of Trump ’ s California appearance , 28 major fires had incinerated more than 3 million acres just in California .
Fires in California , Oregon and Washington had combined to create a hellscape of toxic smoke that turned the skies in those states orange , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ detected as far away as Europe .
At least 35 people had died .
Meanwhile , on the other side of the country , Hurricane Sally , one of five named storms then swirling in the Atlantic , was just two days away from flooding coastal communities from the Florida Panhandle to Louisiana .
Sally , which submerged downtown Pensacola in five feet of water , hit just three weeks after Hurricane Laura caused massive flooding and 10 deaths .
Slamming into the Louisiana coast with 150-mile-an-hour winds , Laura was one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. history .
So far , 2020 has been an extremely busy hurricane season with more than 20 named storms , seven of which formed in the first half of September .
With two more months before the hurricane season officially ends , there could be several more .
Meanwhile , many of the fires across the West are still burning .
Nor has catastrophic weather spared the middle of the country this summer .
On August 10 , a particularly strong derecho , a quick-forming massive wall of intense winds , blasted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Indiana .
The derecho cut a path 770 miles long , held its strength for 14 hours , and clocked winds up to 140 miles per hour .
Four people died , and crops and buildings on some 10 million acres in Iowa — nearly a third of the state ’ s farmland — were heavily damaged .
This storm also caused significant damage to cars and homes , downed power lines and destroyed massive numbers of trees in Cedar Rapids , Des Moines and parts of Chicago .
In 2019 , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ report mandated by Congress to study the impacts of climate change , found that without substantial and sustained greenhouse gas reductions along with vast infrastructure upgrades , unabated climate change will threaten much that many Americans take for granted and lead to an unrecognizable , dystopian existence for large swaths of the population .
Among the report ’ s findings : food will become harder to grow and be lower in quality but more expensive .
Clean , safe water supplies will become scarce in many parts of the country .
Human health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ air and water pollution , greater exposure to disease-carrying insects , pests , foodborne and waterborne pathogens , as well as the emotional strain of having to deal with the reality and uncertainty of catastrophic weather events and their aftermath .
Heat will kill more people .
Energy supplies will become increasingly unstable and more costly ( because most U.S. power plants need a steady supply of cooling water to operate ) .
Moreover , the report predicts that already compromised roads , bridges , and the safety of pipelines all over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violent storms and flooding .
Whole communities , especially those facing rising sea levels along the coastline , will be forced to move .
Increasing production and supply chain disruptions will cause significant damage to the economy as a whole .
Areas and industries that depend on natural resources and good , stable weather will likely be hardest hit with annual losses in the hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century , an amount exceeding the current total economic output of many U.S. states .
Overall , the report @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. economy throughout this century , ” though it notes that poor and disadvantaged communities will disproportionately bear the worst impacts .
A stark illustration of what current levels of greenhouse gas emissions will look like is provided in maps by the Rhodium Group , a New York-based independent research organization , which forecasts a much harsher living environment for many parts of the U.S. over the next 20 to 40 years .
Temperatures above 95 degrees Fahrenheit will become much more common , especially in the South and Southwest , with places @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interior Southern California and southern Texas likely sweltering in 95 degrees or hotter for half the year .
Along with rising temperatures , humidity is expected to dramatically increase , even in places like Arizona , Southern California and Nevada , which have long been known for their dry heat .
When excessive humidity combines with extreme heat , it creates “ wet bulb ” temperatures where sweating fails to cool the body .
Such conditions make it dangerous to work outside or for kids to play outside , According to Rhodium ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ track to turn much of the Mississippi Valley , the abovementioned areas in the Southwest , southern Texas , and coastal areas in Florida , Georgia , North Carolina and South Carolina into high wet bulb zones .
Despite all of these future threats — on top of the climate disasters we are already seeing — Trump , the ruling Republicans , the fossil fuel sector and their defenders in right-wing media continue to deny climate change .
“ If we don ’ t have a stable environment to live in , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , liberty , or pursue happiness , ” Jeffrey Potent , adjunct professor of sustainability at Columbia University ’ s School of International and Public Affairs , told Truthout , decrying the Trump administration ’ s attack on the government ’ s ability to oversee and protect our environment .
“ This is completely different from anything I have encountered in Washington , ” said Tyson Slocum , director Public Citizen ’ s energy program .
“ It ’ s an all-out assault on everything for the public interest.
” Before he assumed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ barriers to freedom and economic prosperity .
Since taking office , he has targeted anything enacted by the administration of his predecessor , Barack Obama , and taken steps to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris agreement , the international effort to combat climate change .
He has also staffed heads of key agencies with climate deniers of various stripes , forced out career public servants and created a hostile work environment for those who don ’ t profess loyalty to his deregulatory agenda .
Like Trump himself , some of his cabinet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and abusing their positions of authority .
One example is Trump ’ s first Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) Administrator , Scott Pruitt , who aggressively worked to overturn Obama ’ s climate regulations , spent most of his time in private meetings with fossil fuel and chemical company executives , sidelined career EPA staff and reconfigured independent scientific advisory boards to make them more supportive of the industries EPA is charged with regulating .
Dubbed “ one of the most scandal-plagued Cabinet officials in U.S. history , ” Pruitt resigned in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ abuses , including using the agency as his personal concierge service and piggy bank .
Pruitt ’ s deputy , Andrew Wheeler , a former coal industry lobbyist and longtime Republican Washington insider , took over and has continued Trump ’ s deregulatory agenda apace .
At the Department of Interior ( DOI ) , a sprawling agency that oversees 75 percent of the country ’ s public federal lands and includes the U.S. Geological Survey , which is tasked with evaluating natural hazards that threaten life and the health of our ecosystems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ head the agency .
Like Pruitt , Trump ’ s first Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke aggressively attacked environmental regulations , ditched more than 200 advisory panels , and pushed to open up vast swaths of public land to oil and gas drilling .
Described by one environmental group as “ the most anti-conservation Interior secretary in our nation ’ s history , ” Zinke was forced out after numerous highly publicized conflict-of-interest scandals .
The DOI is now run by Zinke ’ s deputy secretary , David Bernhardt , another longtime Republican Washington @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has also been the subject of several government ethics complaints for various violations favoring polluting industries .
More recently , longtime climate change denier David Legates , a climatologist at the University of Delaware previously funded by fossil fuel interests , was hired for a top job advancing weather modelling and prediction at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) .
Legates has called for increasing carbon emissions .
The Trump administration has done much more than stack government agencies with fossil fuel industry proponents .
It has removed or diluted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government platforms as it can and decimated independent scientific advisory boards that provide unbiased , fact-based information the government needs to enact policies that protect the public .
It has also slashed environmental agency staffing and budgets .
The Damage So Far A September 17 report by the Rhodium Group calculates that 1.8 billion tons more greenhouse gases will be released over the next 15 years as a result of climate change rollbacks the Trump administration has achieved so far .
These include repealing Obama ’ s main climate policy , the Clean @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reduce dirty emissions from power plants ; increasing pollution from cars by rolling back fuel economy standards and challenging California ’ s longtime authority to set stricter emissions standards ; targeting controls on hydrofluorocarbons , powerful greenhouse gases used mainly in refrigerators and air conditioners that also destroy the Earth ’ s protective ozone layer ; and allowing unreported and unregulated emissions of methane , another potent greenhouse gas , by oil and gas companies .
Besides these measures , Trump is also trying to gut core environmental statutes like the Clean Air @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act , all of which were enacted to protect human health and preserve a livable world .
The Paris agreement aims to keep the rise in average global temperatures at less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and hopefully cap it at 1.5 degrees C or lower .
We are now at approximately 1.2 degrees C and counting .

Part of the Series Covering Climate Now
This story is part of Covering Climate Now , a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
When President Donald Trump visited California on September 14 and dismissed the state Secretary of Natural Resources Wade Crowfoot’s plea to recognize the role of climate change in the midst of the Golden State’s worst and most dangerous recorded fire season to date, he gaslighted the tens of millions of West Coast residents suffering through the ordeal.
While Trump declared that the weather will just “start getting cooler” and that science is irrelevant to the wildfires, millions were struggling to breathe through the toxic smoke that gave Portland the week-long distinction of having the most hazardous air on the planet, with pollution levels in Seattle and San Francisco close behind. Whole towns in California and Oregon have been destroyed by the wildfires.
A growing body of scientific evidence over the last several decades confirms that as atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases rise, so too will frequent, intense and increasingly deadly weather events. Strange new weather phenomena like fire tornadoes, “snowacanes” and “rain bombs” are now part of our experience and language. Droughts, unprecedented heat, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes and flooding are happening more often, becoming more severe, and occurring over larger and larger areas.
This year several strange and extreme weather conditions combined to create the perfect firestorm across the Western U.S. A prolonged record-breaking heatwave saw temperatures reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit in Death Valley, California, on August 16, and 121 degrees Fahrenheit in the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills three weeks later on September 6. In mid-August, more than 10,000 dry lightning strikes began igniting fires in Northern California, Oregon and Washington, including all over the Bay Area where they were eerily close to heavily populated areas. Lightning-induced fires are also torching Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Montana, Colorado and New Mexico. Subsequent high winds in drought-stricken landscapes then turned the initial sparks into major conflagrations.
By the morning of Trump’s California appearance, 28 major fires had incinerated more than 3 million acres just in California. Fires in California, Oregon and Washington had combined to create a hellscape of toxic smoke that turned the skies in those states orange, blood red and deep magenta and was detected as far away as Europe. At least 35 people had died.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, Hurricane Sally, one of five named storms then swirling in the Atlantic, was just two days away from flooding coastal communities from the Florida Panhandle to Louisiana. Sally, which submerged downtown Pensacola in five feet of water, hit just three weeks after Hurricane Laura caused massive flooding and 10 deaths. Slamming into the Louisiana coast with 150-mile-an-hour winds, Laura was one of the strongest hurricanes to make landfall in U.S. history.
So far, 2020 has been an extremely busy hurricane season with more than 20 named storms, seven of which formed in the first half of September. With two more months before the hurricane season officially ends, there could be several more. Meanwhile, many of the fires across the West are still burning.
The Trump administration has removed or diluted discussion of climate change from government platforms and decimated independent scientific advisory boards that provide unbiased, fact-based information.
Nor has catastrophic weather spared the middle of the country this summer. On August 10, a particularly strong derecho, a quick-forming massive wall of intense winds, blasted through Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. The derecho cut a path 770 miles long, held its strength for 14 hours, and clocked winds up to 140 miles per hour. Four people died, and crops and buildings on some 10 million acres in Iowa — nearly a third of the state’s farmland — were heavily damaged. This storm also caused significant damage to cars and homes, downed power lines and destroyed massive numbers of trees in Cedar Rapids, Des Moines and parts of Chicago.
In 2019, the Fourth National Climate Assessment, a comprehensive report mandated by Congress to study the impacts of climate change, found that without substantial and sustained greenhouse gas reductions along with vast infrastructure upgrades, unabated climate change will threaten much that many Americans take for granted and lead to an unrecognizable, dystopian existence for large swaths of the population.
Among the report’s findings: food will become harder to grow and be lower in quality but more expensive. Clean, safe water supplies will become scarce in many parts of the country. Human health will take a significant hit from worsening air and water pollution, greater exposure to disease-carrying insects, pests, foodborne and waterborne pathogens, as well as the emotional strain of having to deal with the reality and uncertainty of catastrophic weather events and their aftermath. Heat will kill more people. Energy supplies will become increasingly unstable and more costly (because most U.S. power plants need a steady supply of cooling water to operate).
Moreover, the report predicts that already compromised roads, bridges, and the safety of pipelines all over the country will be vulnerable to damage from violent storms and flooding. Whole communities, especially those facing rising sea levels along the coastline, will be forced to move. Increasing production and supply chain disruptions will cause significant damage to the economy as a whole. Areas and industries that depend on natural resources and good, stable weather will likely be hardest hit with annual losses in the hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century, an amount exceeding the current total economic output of many U.S. states.
Overall, the report predicts “substantial net damage to the U.S. economy throughout this century,” though it notes that poor and disadvantaged communities will disproportionately bear the worst impacts.
A stark illustration of what current levels of greenhouse gas emissions will look like is provided in maps by the Rhodium Group, a New York-based independent research organization, which forecasts a much harsher living environment for many parts of the U.S. over the next 20 to 40 years. Temperatures above 95 degrees Fahrenheit will become much more common, especially in the South and Southwest, with places like Phoenix, Arizona, much of interior Southern California and southern Texas likely sweltering in 95 degrees or hotter for half the year.
Along with rising temperatures, humidity is expected to dramatically increase, even in places like Arizona, Southern California and Nevada, which have long been known for their dry heat. When excessive humidity combines with extreme heat, it creates “wet bulb” temperatures where sweating fails to cool the body. Such conditions make it dangerous to work outside or for kids to play outside. According to Rhodium’s projections, current emissions are on track to turn much of the Mississippi Valley, the abovementioned areas in the Southwest, southern Texas, and coastal areas in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina into high wet bulb zones.
Despite all of these future threats — on top of the climate disasters we are already seeing — Trump, the ruling Republicans, the fossil fuel sector and their defenders in right-wing media continue to deny climate change.
“If we don’t have a stable environment to live in, there’s no way to have life, liberty, or pursue happiness,” Jeffrey Potent, adjunct professor of sustainability at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, told Truthout, decrying the Trump administration’s attack on the government’s ability to oversee and protect our environment.
“This is completely different from anything I have encountered in Washington,” said Tyson Slocum, director Public Citizen’s energy program. “It’s an all-out assault on everything for the public interest.”
Foxes Guarding the Henhouse
Before he assumed power, Trump attacked regulations as unnecessary barriers to freedom and economic prosperity. Since taking office, he has targeted anything enacted by the administration of his predecessor, Barack Obama, and taken steps to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris agreement, the international effort to combat climate change. He has also staffed heads of key agencies with climate deniers of various stripes, forced out career public servants and created a hostile work environment for those who don’t profess loyalty to his deregulatory agenda.
Like Trump himself, some of his cabinet choices displayed an audacious penchant for self-dealing and abusing their positions of authority. One example is Trump’s first Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, Scott Pruitt, who aggressively worked to overturn Obama’s climate regulations, spent most of his time in private meetings with fossil fuel and chemical company executives, sidelined career EPA staff and reconfigured independent scientific advisory boards to make them more supportive of the industries EPA is charged with regulating. Dubbed “one of the most scandal-plagued Cabinet officials in U.S. history,” Pruitt resigned in disgrace after revelations about his multiple brazen abuses, including using the agency as his personal concierge service and piggy bank.
Trump is trying to gut core environmental statutes like the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act, all of which were enacted to protect human health and preserve a livable world.
Pruitt’s deputy, Andrew Wheeler, a former coal industry lobbyist and longtime Republican Washington insider, took over and has continued Trump’s deregulatory agenda apace.
At the Department of Interior (DOI), a sprawling agency that oversees 75 percent of the country’s public federal lands and includes the U.S. Geological Survey, which is tasked with evaluating natural hazards that threaten life and the health of our ecosystems, Trump installed another flamboyant anti-environmentalist to head the agency. Like Pruitt, Trump’s first Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke aggressively attacked environmental regulations, ditched more than 200 advisory panels, and pushed to open up vast swaths of public land to oil and gas drilling. Described by one environmental group as “the most anti-conservation Interior secretary in our nation’s history,” Zinke was forced out after numerous highly publicized conflict-of-interest scandals.
The DOI is now run by Zinke’s deputy secretary, David Bernhardt, another longtime Republican Washington insider and former oil industry lobbyist who has also been the subject of several government ethics complaints for various violations favoring polluting industries.
More recently, longtime climate change denier David Legates, a climatologist at the University of Delaware previously funded by fossil fuel interests, was hired for a top job advancing weather modelling and prediction at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Legates has called for increasing carbon emissions.
The Trump administration has done much more than stack government agencies with fossil fuel industry proponents. It has removed or diluted discussion of climate change from as many government platforms as it can and decimated independent scientific advisory boards that provide unbiased, fact-based information the government needs to enact policies that protect the public. It has also slashed environmental agency staffing and budgets.
The Damage So Far
A September 17 report by the Rhodium Group calculates that 1.8 billion tons more greenhouse gases will be released over the next 15 years as a result of climate change rollbacks the Trump administration has achieved so far. These include repealing Obama’s main climate policy, the Clean Power Plan, which was intended to reduce dirty emissions from power plants; increasing pollution from cars by rolling back fuel economy standards and challenging California’s longtime authority to set stricter emissions standards; targeting controls on hydrofluorocarbons, powerful greenhouse gases used mainly in refrigerators and air conditioners that also destroy the Earth’s protective ozone layer; and allowing unreported and unregulated emissions of methane, another potent greenhouse gas, by oil and gas companies.
Besides these measures, Trump is also trying to gut core environmental statutes like the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act, all of which were enacted to protect human health and preserve a livable world.
The Paris agreement aims to keep the rise in average global temperatures at less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and hopefully cap it at 1.5 degrees C or lower. We are now at approximately 1.2 degrees C and counting.
Tired of reading the same old news from the same old sources? So are we! That’s why we’re on a mission to shake things up and bring you the stories and perspectives that often go untold in mainstream media. But being a radically, unapologetically independent news site isn’t easy (or cheap), and we rely on reader support to keep the lights on.
If you like what you’re reading, please consider making a tax-deductible donation today. We’re not asking for a handout, we’re asking for an investment: Invest in a nonprofit news site that’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers, not afraid to stand up for what’s right, and not afraid to tell it like it is.
Copyright © Truthout. May not be reprinted without permission.


truthout--2020-09-28--Trump’s Extremist Supreme Court Pick Could Hand Him the Election

As President Trump nominates conservative federal judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s seat , we look at how an emboldened 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court could dramatically loosen gun laws , hurt immigrant communities and play a possibly central role in deciding a close presidential election .
“ Her religious conservatism is not what ’ s extreme about her .
It ’ s her actual judicial opinions , ” says Elie Mystal , justice correspondent for The Nation .
“ She does not use her religion to guide her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extremist conservative views.
” This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : This is Democracy Now !
The Quarantine Report .
I ’ m Amy Goodman .
President Trump has nominated the conservative federal judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg ’ s seat .
Barrett is a 48-year-old former Notre Dame law professor who clerked for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia .
On Saturday , Barrett spoke alongside President Trump at the White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ slammed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for proceeding on Barrett ’ s nomination so close to the election .
In 2016 , McConnell refused to hold confirmation hearings for Merrick Garland , President Obama ’ s pick to replace Scalia , who had died nearly nine months before the election .
At the time , McConnell said , quote , “ The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice , ” unquote .
But now Republicans are racing to get Barrett confirmed at a time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some states .
The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to start Barrett ’ s confirmation hearing on October 12th .
A full Senate vote could occur as soon as October 22nd .
If Barrett is confirmed by Election Day , she ’ ll immediately take part in a major case that could determine the future of the Affordable Care Act .
On November 10th , the oral arguments will be heard .
Three years ago , she wrote a law review article criticizing Chief Justice John Roberts upholding the ACA , writing , quote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute , ” unquote .
Well , on Sunday , Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden criticized Trump ’ s nomination of Barrett .
AMY GOODMAN : Amy Coney Barrett could also help decide who wins the presidential election .
Last week , Trump said he expects the election to end up before the Supreme Court , saying that ’ s why he ’ s pushing the Senate to rapidly confirm a replacement for Ginsburg .
Twenty years ago , Barrett worked with George @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the contested Florida recount .
Two other future Supreme Court justices at the time , John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh , also helped Bush ’ s team , which actively worked to stop a recount .
Amy Coney Barrett has a record of taking conservative stances on abortion , gun rights and immigration .
She once called abortion “ always immoral.
” The Human Rights Campaign has called her an “ absolute threat to LGBTQ rights.
” During her confirmation hearing , Senate Democrats are also expected to ask questions about her membership @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Praise .
Members of the group pledge a lifelong loyalty oath to the group , which assigns each member a personal adviser , known as “ heads , ” for men , and , until recently , “ handmaids , ” for women .
In a moment , we ’ re going to Alexis McGill Johnson , president and CEO of Planned Parenthood , but we are staying with Elie Mystal for a few minutes right now , The Nation ’ s justice correspondent .
Elie , you wrote a piece that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an Extremist — Just Not the Kind You Think.
” Explain .
ELIE MYSTAL : Yeah .
So , there are a lot of people who kind of started where you ended , Amy , where they have focused on her religious conservatism and her membership in this group , and the fact that she has written extensive law review articles about what Catholic judges should do and shouldn ’ t do while on the bench .
And so people have kind of focused in on the religious conservatism of her nomination .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the issue that her religious conservatism is not what ’ s extreme about her .
It ’ s her actual judicial opinions .
In fact , she only uses the religion card , the religion angle , when it serves her particular purpose in terms of policy against abortion rights or LGBTQ rights .
Overall , she does not use her religion to guide her through her decisions ; she uses her extremist conservative views to guide her through her decisions .
It ’ s not a religious position to deny people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s Amy Coney Barrett ’ s position to do that .
That ’ s her deal .
It ’ s not a religious position to ignore the deliberate indifference to human life when a prison guard shoots shotgun shells into a crowded cafeteria ; that ’ s Amy Coney Barrett ’ s position to ignore the deliberate indifference to human life .
So , she has a bunch of extreme conservative positions that make her a problematic nominee far beyond her religious affiliations and whatever .
Quite frankly , I don @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I care about her decisions .
AMY GOODMAN : Of course , she can also weigh in on the election , if in fact the presidential election goes to the Supreme Court .
ELIE MYSTAL : Yes .
To be clear , Donald Trump could have nominated Atticus Finch , and I would oppose the nominee , because having a nominee to take office in the middle of an election — I mean , people are saying , like , “ Oh , right before the election.
” It ’ s not right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ started .
People are voting , right ?
So , what Trump is trying to do is pick his own judge in a contested election about his own presidency , that , as we talked about in the last second , he kind of has to win , or else he ’ s going to jail , right ?
So , that is not how the system of laws and government is supposed to work .
So , there is no person that I think Trump should be allowed to nominate in these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and because of the timing of the nomination .
Amy Coney Barrett is — of the people that Trump could have nominated , Amy Coney Barrett is one of the most extreme people that he could have nominated , as opposed to a kind of moderate , middle-of-the-road person .
And so , obviously , I think there ’ s a lot of justified concern that if she gets to the court , she will be a fifth vote in favor of handing Donald Trump the presidency .
AMY GOODMAN : We ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Johnson , head of Planned Parenthood , in just a minute , about abortion and Obamacare , which is going before the Supreme Court on November 10th .
But I wanted to ask you , Elie , about one major case set to come before the court , Fulton v. Philadelphia , which involves religious freedom and gay rights , that could have much broader implications — the case brought by Catholic Social Services , a faith-based group , which refuses the placement of foster children to same-sex couples .
The group was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Philadelphia contracted with to place abused and neglected children in foster homes , but the city ended the contract after learning that CSS denied placement of children with same-sex couples .
And the charity then sued Philadelphia , citing a violation of free religious exercise and free speech if they were forced to provide services to LGBTQ couples .
Oral arguments scheduled for November 4th .
Explain the significance of this case .
ELIE MYSTAL : This is one of the most important cases on the Supreme Court docket , and it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rights and LGBTQ adoption privileges .
But it also goes to the heart of a new and , I think , dangerous trend in our First Amendment jurisprudence .
The First Amendment ’ s protection of freedom of religion is supposed to be a shield , right ?
It ’ s supposed to protect me , a religious observer , to allow me to act and support my faith in the privacy of my own home and in my public space , right ?
What the religious right is trying to do to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a shield to protect people to a sword to go after people who don ’ t agree with their preferred religion , right ?
Like , that ’ s completely flipping the First Amendment on its head .
And so , what the issue in this Fulton County case is , is the group who discriminates against gay people in adoption — that ’ s just what they do — and they ’ re allowed to do that because that ’ s — freedom of religion means freedom to hate people that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so they can hate them or whatever .
But what they want to do is to force the city of Philadelphia to adopt that discrimination , to adopt that bigotry , and make it part of city policy by allowing them to continue to place foster children , who are wards of the state , based on the Catholic services ’ bigoted decision-making in terms of who is able to adopt .
Now , so it ’ s a critically important case for those reasons .
The problem is , and the reason @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , to me , so much play into this , is that liberals were going to lose that case already .
There aren ’ t five votes against this kind of corruption of the First Amendment .
I don ’ t know that — with Ruth Bader Ginsburg passing away , I don ’ t know that there were two votes , because in the past , cases like this , this version of the First Amendment , both Justice Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan have joined the religious conservatives for this , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the First Amendment .
So , with RBG gone , I really think it ’ s going to be an 8-1 case with only Sonia Sotomayor standing opposed .
AMY GOODMAN : Elie , we just have 30 seconds .
What do you think Democrats should be doing right now ?
ELIE MYSTAL : Everything except for adding legitimacy to the process .
You can not go to these hearings .
You can not add your voice to these processes .
You have to do everything you can to delay , and then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Senate and expand the court , because that ’ s the only way that — that ’ s the only thing that you can do .

As President Trump nominates conservative federal judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat, we look at how an emboldened 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court could dramatically loosen gun laws, hurt immigrant communities and play a possibly central role in deciding a close presidential election. “Her religious conservatism is not what’s extreme about her. It’s her actual judicial opinions,” says Elie Mystal, justice correspondent for The Nation. “She does not use her religion to guide her through her decisions; she uses her extremist conservative views.”
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now! The Quarantine Report. I’m Amy Goodman. President Trump has nominated the conservative federal judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat. Barrett is a 48-year-old former Notre Dame law professor who clerked for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. On Saturday, Barrett spoke alongside President Trump at the White House.
JUDGE AMY CONEY BARRETT: I clerked for Justice Scalia more than 20 years ago, but the lessons I learned still resonate. His judicial philosophy is mine, too: A judge must apply the law as written. Judges are not policymakers, and they must be resolute in setting aside any policy views they might hold.
AMY GOODMAN: Senate Democrats have slammed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for proceeding on Barrett’s nomination so close to the election. In 2016, McConnell refused to hold confirmation hearings for Merrick Garland, President Obama’s pick to replace Scalia, who had died nearly nine months before the election. At the time, McConnell said, quote, “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice,” unquote. But now Republicans are racing to get Barrett confirmed at a time when early voting has already begun in some states. The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to start Barrett’s confirmation hearing on October 12th. A full Senate vote could occur as soon as October 22nd.
If Barrett is confirmed by Election Day, she’ll immediately take part in a major case that could determine the future of the Affordable Care Act. On November 10th, the oral arguments will be heard. Three years ago, she wrote a law review article criticizing Chief Justice John Roberts upholding the ACA, writing, quote, “Chief Justice Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute,” unquote.
Well, on Sunday, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden criticized Trump’s nomination of Barrett.
JOE BIDEN: There’s no mystery about what’s happening here. President Trump is trying to throw out the Affordable Care Act. He’s been trying to do it for the last four years.
AMY GOODMAN: Amy Coney Barrett could also help decide who wins the presidential election. Last week, Trump said he expects the election to end up before the Supreme Court, saying that’s why he’s pushing the Senate to rapidly confirm a replacement for Ginsburg. Twenty years ago, Barrett worked with George W. Bush’s legal team on the contested Florida recount. Two other future Supreme Court justices at the time, John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh, also helped Bush’s team, which actively worked to stop a recount.
Amy Coney Barrett has a record of taking conservative stances on abortion, gun rights and immigration. She once called abortion “always immoral.” The Human Rights Campaign has called her an “absolute threat to LGBTQ rights.”
During her confirmation hearing, Senate Democrats are also expected to ask questions about her membership in a secretive Catholic group called People of Praise. Members of the group pledge a lifelong loyalty oath to the group, which assigns each member a personal adviser, known as “heads,” for men, and, until recently, “handmaids,” for women.
In a moment, we’re going to Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, but we are staying with Elie Mystal for a few minutes right now, The Nation’s justice correspondent.
Elie, you wrote a piece that is headlined “Amy Coney Barrett Is an Extremist — Just Not the Kind You Think.” Explain.
ELIE MYSTAL: Yeah. So, there are a lot of people who kind of started where you ended, Amy, where they have focused on her religious conservatism and her membership in this group, and the fact that she has written extensive law review articles about what Catholic judges should do and shouldn’t do while on the bench. And so people have kind of focused in on the religious conservatism of her nomination.
And I just wanted to focus people on the issue that her religious conservatism is not what’s extreme about her. It’s her actual judicial opinions. In fact, she only uses the religion card, the religion angle, when it serves her particular purpose in terms of policy against abortion rights or LGBTQ rights. Overall, she does not use her religion to guide her through her decisions; she uses her extremist conservative views to guide her through her decisions.
It’s not a religious position to deny people seeking public assistance a green card; it’s Amy Coney Barrett’s position to do that. That’s her deal. It’s not a religious position to ignore the deliberate indifference to human life when a prison guard shoots shotgun shells into a crowded cafeteria; that’s Amy Coney Barrett’s position to ignore the deliberate indifference to human life.
So, she has a bunch of extreme conservative positions that make her a problematic nominee far beyond her religious affiliations and whatever. Quite frankly, I don’t care about her religion. I care about her decisions.
AMY GOODMAN: Of course, she can also weigh in on the election, if in fact the presidential election goes to the Supreme Court.
ELIE MYSTAL: Yes. To be clear, Donald Trump could have nominated Atticus Finch, and I would oppose the nominee, because having a nominee to take office in the middle of an election — I mean, people are saying, like, “Oh, right before the election.” It’s not right before the election; the election has started. People are voting, right? So, what Trump is trying to do is pick his own judge in a contested election about his own presidency, that, as we talked about in the last second, he kind of has to win, or else he’s going to jail, right? So, that is not how the system of laws and government is supposed to work. So, there is no person that I think Trump should be allowed to nominate in these circumstances, because of the election issue and because of the timing of the nomination.
Amy Coney Barrett is — of the people that Trump could have nominated, Amy Coney Barrett is one of the most extreme people that he could have nominated, as opposed to a kind of moderate, middle-of-the-road person. And so, obviously, I think there’s a lot of justified concern that if she gets to the court, she will be a fifth vote in favor of handing Donald Trump the presidency.
AMY GOODMAN: We’re going to talk with Alexis McGill Johnson, head of Planned Parenthood, in just a minute, about abortion and Obamacare, which is going before the Supreme Court on November 10th. But I wanted to ask you, Elie, about one major case set to come before the court, Fulton v. Philadelphia, which involves religious freedom and gay rights, that could have much broader implications — the case brought by Catholic Social Services, a faith-based group, which refuses the placement of foster children to same-sex couples. The group was one of 30 agencies that the city of Philadelphia contracted with to place abused and neglected children in foster homes, but the city ended the contract after learning that CSS denied placement of children with same-sex couples. And the charity then sued Philadelphia, citing a violation of free religious exercise and free speech if they were forced to provide services to LGBTQ couples. Oral arguments scheduled for November 4th. Explain the significance of this case.
ELIE MYSTAL: This is one of the most important cases on the Supreme Court docket, and it goes right to the heart of LGBTQ rights and LGBTQ adoption privileges. But it also goes to the heart of a new and, I think, dangerous trend in our First Amendment jurisprudence. The First Amendment’s protection of freedom of religion is supposed to be a shield, right? It’s supposed to protect me, a religious observer, to allow me to act and support my faith in the privacy of my own home and in my public space, right? What the religious right is trying to do to the First Amendment is to change it from a shield to protect people to a sword to go after people who don’t agree with their preferred religion, right? Like, that’s completely flipping the First Amendment on its head.
And so, what the issue in this Fulton County case is, is the group who discriminates against gay people in adoption — that’s just what they do — and they’re allowed to do that because that’s — freedom of religion means freedom to hate people that you don’t like, and so they can hate them or whatever. But what they want to do is to force the city of Philadelphia to adopt that discrimination, to adopt that bigotry, and make it part of city policy by allowing them to continue to place foster children, who are wards of the state, based on the Catholic services’ bigoted decision-making in terms of who is able to adopt. Now, so it’s a critically important case for those reasons.
The problem is, and the reason why Amy Coney Barrett doesn’t, to me, so much play into this, is that liberals were going to lose that case already. There aren’t five votes against this kind of corruption of the First Amendment. I don’t know that — with Ruth Bader Ginsburg passing away, I don’t know that there were two votes, because in the past, cases like this, this version of the First Amendment, both Justice Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan have joined the religious conservatives for this, again, I think, corruption of the First Amendment. So, with RBG gone, I really think it’s going to be an 8-1 case with only Sonia Sotomayor standing opposed.
AMY GOODMAN: Elie, we just have 30 seconds. What do you think Democrats should be doing right now?
ELIE MYSTAL: Everything except for adding legitimacy to the process. You cannot go to these hearings. You cannot add your voice to these processes. You have to do everything you can to delay, and then win the White House and win the Senate and expand the court, because that’s the only way that — that’s the only thing that you can do.
AMY GOODMAN: Elie Mystal is The Nation’s justice correspondent.


truthout--2020-09-28--AOC Calls Trump a “Walking Scam” as His Federal Income Tax Records Are Released

Financial records that President Donald Trump has persistently fought to keep hidden from the American public show that the billionaire real estate mogul didn ’ t pay a dollar in federal income taxes in 10 of the 15 years prior to his White House victory and paid just $ 750 in both 2016 and 2017 , revelations that further expose the extent to which the U.S. tax code imposes greater burdens on the working class than the ultra-wealthy .
“ In 2016 and ‘ 17 , I paid thousands of dollars a year in taxes as a bartender .
Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y. ) tweeted late Sunday in response to the bombshell New York Times report on the president ’ s tax records .
“ He contributed less to funding our communities than waitresses and undocumented immigrants .
Donald Trump has never cared for our country more than he cares for himself .
A walking scam.
” According to the Times , which obtained long-sought tax returns spanning two decades , the records provide new insights into how Trump has utilized massive losses accumulated in the world of business to avoid paying federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ net income from his fame — his 50 % share of “ The Apprentice , ” together with the riches showered upon him by the scores of suitors paying to use his name — totaled $ 427.4 million through 2018 .
A further $ 176.5 million in profit came to him through his investment in two highly successful office buildings .
So how did he escape nearly all taxes on that fortune ?
Even the effective tax rate paid by the wealthiest one percent of Americans could have caused him to pay more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rests in a third category of Mr. Trump ’ s endeavors : businesses that he owns and runs himself .
The collective and persistent losses he reported from them largely absolved him from paying federal income taxes on the $ 600 million from “ The Apprentice , ” branding deals and investments .
The records also offer new details surrounding a decade-long , behind-the-scenes fight between Trump and the IRS over a $ 72.9 million income tax refund the billionaire claimed and received in 2010 thanks to a “ little-noticed provision in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ signed as part of the Great Recession recovery effort.
” Under the provision , the Times explained , “ business owners could request full refunds of taxes paid in the prior four years , and 50 % of those from the year before that.
” “ Mr .
Trump had paid no income taxes in 2008 .
But the change meant that when he filed his taxes for 2009 , he could seek a refund of not just the $ 13.3 million he had paid in 2007 , but also the combined $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , when ‘ The Apprentice ’ created what was likely the biggest income tax bite of his life.
” The enormous refund is the subject of an ongoing IRS audit that the president has repeatedly cited as a justification for his refusal to release his tax returns , breaking with decades of precedent .
The Times reported that “ the dispute may center on a single claim that jumps off the page of Mr. Trump ’ s 2009 tax return : a declaration of more than $ 700 million in business losses that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in prior years .
Unleashing that giant tax-avoidance coupon enabled him to receive some or all of his refund.
” In a statement late Sunday , Stand Up America spokesperson Ryan Thomas said that “ a man who uses dubious tax schemes to avoid paying taxes or lies to the public about his finances has no place in the Oval Office.
” “ Four years ago , Donald Trump broke decades of precedent when he refused to release his tax returns to the public .
At each turn since , he ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the public — even as congressional and criminal investigators look into how he ’ s profited off the presidency and his decades of fraudulent tax schemes , ” said Thomas .
“ We ’ ve demanded Trump ’ s tax returns for years because the American people deserve to know what he ’ s paying — and the answer appears to be very little.
” On top of laying bare Trump ’ s long-running efforts to dodge federal income taxes , observers noted that the records also offer a window into a world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that ’ s far broader than the president ’ s personal exploits .
“ There ’ s so much in these tax returns that are not just about Trump , but about how the rich have different rules , ” tweeted Michael Linden , executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative .
“ A worker earning an hourly wage can ’ t deduct ‘ business expenses ’ from their income .
A teacher can ’ t carry over losses for a decade .
”

The records show that Trump paid just $750 in federal income tax in both 2016 and 2017.
Financial records that President Donald Trump has persistently fought to keep hidden from the American public show that the billionaire real estate mogul didn’t pay a dollar in federal income taxes in 10 of the 15 years prior to his White House victory and paid just $750 in both 2016 and 2017, revelations that further expose the extent to which the U.S. tax code imposes greater burdens on the working class than the ultra-wealthy.
“In 2016 and ‘17, I paid thousands of dollars a year in taxes as a bartender. Trump paid $750,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) tweeted late Sunday in response to the bombshell New York Times report on the president’s tax records. “He contributed less to funding our communities than waitresses and undocumented immigrants. Donald Trump has never cared for our country more than he cares for himself. A walking scam.”
According to the Times, which obtained long-sought tax returns spanning two decades, the records provide new insights into how Trump has utilized massive losses accumulated in the world of business to avoid paying federal income taxes:
Mr. Trump’s net income from his fame — his 50% share of “The Apprentice,” together with the riches showered upon him by the scores of suitors paying to use his name — totaled $427.4 million through 2018. A further $176.5 million in profit came to him through his investment in two highly successful office buildings. Related Story News | Politics & Elections Crowd Boos, Chants “Vote Him Out” After Trump Appears at Ginsburg Memorial Trump plans to name Ginsburg's successor to the Supreme Court on Saturday. Truthout So how did he escape nearly all taxes on that fortune? Even the effective tax rate paid by the wealthiest one percent of Americans could have caused him to pay more than $100 million. The answer rests in a third category of Mr. Trump’s endeavors: businesses that he owns and runs himself. The collective and persistent losses he reported from them largely absolved him from paying federal income taxes on the $600 million from “The Apprentice,” branding deals and investments.
The records also offer new details surrounding a decade-long, behind-the-scenes fight between Trump and the IRS over a $72.9 million income tax refund the billionaire claimed and received in 2010 thanks to a “little-noticed provision in a bill [former President Barack Obama] signed as part of the Great Recession recovery effort.”
Under the provision, the Times explained, “business owners could request full refunds of taxes paid in the prior four years, and 50% of those from the year before that.”
“Mr. Trump had paid no income taxes in 2008. But the change meant that when he filed his taxes for 2009, he could seek a refund of not just the $13.3 million he had paid in 2007, but also the combined $56.9 million paid in 2005 and 2006, when ‘The Apprentice’ created what was likely the biggest income tax bite of his life.”
The enormous refund is the subject of an ongoing IRS audit that the president has repeatedly cited as a justification for his refusal to release his tax returns, breaking with decades of precedent.
The Times reported that “the dispute may center on a single claim that jumps off the page of Mr. Trump’s 2009 tax return: a declaration of more than $700 million in business losses that he had not been allowed to use in prior years. Unleashing that giant tax-avoidance coupon enabled him to receive some or all of his refund.”
Shock of shocks! Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed billionaire, received a $72.9 million tax refund from the IRS while not paying a nickel in federal income taxes in 10 out of 15 years. Yep. Trump l-o-v-e-s corporate socialism for himself, rugged capitalism for everyone else. — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 27, 2020
In a statement late Sunday, Stand Up America spokesperson Ryan Thomas said that “a man who uses dubious tax schemes to avoid paying taxes or lies to the public about his finances has no place in the Oval Office.”
“Four years ago, Donald Trump broke decades of precedent when he refused to release his tax returns to the public. At each turn since, he’s attempted to shield his financial records from the public — even as congressional and criminal investigators look into how he’s profited off the presidency and his decades of fraudulent tax schemes,” said Thomas. “We’ve demanded Trump’s tax returns for years because the American people deserve to know what he’s paying — and the answer appears to be very little.”
On top of laying bare Trump’s long-running efforts to dodge federal income taxes, observers noted that the records also offer a window into a world of tax avoidance by the wealthiest Americans that’s far broader than the president’s personal exploits.
“There’s so much in these tax returns that are not just about Trump, but about how the rich have different rules,” tweeted Michael Linden, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative. “A worker earning an hourly wage can’t deduct ‘business expenses’ from their income. A teacher can’t carry over losses for a decade.”
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