truthout--2020-12-04--As Thanksgiving COVID Cases Materialize, CDC Urges Against Christmas Travel

Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) and other health experts are discouraging Americans from traveling during the upcoming holiday season in order to stem the spread of coronavirus .
Similar recommendations from the CDC were made last month , in preparation for the Thanksgiving holiday , when officials from the agency gave explicit instructions warning against traveling to see family and friends during that time .
Yet many people disregarded the CDC ’ s guidance .
Data on holiday travel last month reveal that vehicle use was down by only 5 percent from where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Thanksgiving weekend .
And while travel by plane was down substantially compared to past years , the Transportation Security Administration ( TSA ) noted that for four days during the Thanksgiving travel period , more than 1 million passengers were checked at airports across the country .
Only one other day during the pandemic — October 18 — has seen more than 1 million passengers board planes in the U.S .
The CDC had urged Americans to reconsider travel plans during the holiday weekend last month .
Nevertheless , according to an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in 10 Americans said they still intended to travel to see loved ones .
Earlier this week during a telebriefing , Cindy Friedman , chief of The Travelers ’ Health Branch at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , reiterated the need for Americans to consider alternative approaches to this year ’ s holiday celebrations in December .
“ The safest thing to do is to postpone holiday travel and stay home , ” Friedman said on Wednesday .
Friedman also acknowledged the high travel volume seen over the Thanksgiving holiday — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because of it .
Even if a small percent of those who traveled last month had COVID-19 , she said , it would likely translate into hundreds of thousands of infections across the country in the coming weeks .
Speaking with Newsweek about the issue , Manisha Juthani , an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at Yale School of Medicine , noted that this high level of travel could lead to many preventable deaths : “ It is extremely tragic to know that there are preventable deaths on the horizon from public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waiting for vaccine uptake in the months to come .
I won ’ t be surprised if we have over 3,000 deaths per day in a month… I anticipate that we will be marking our holiday season and the new year with record high hospitalizations and deaths while , ironically , administering vaccines at the same time.
” November saw an increase in the number of coronavirus cases reported daily .
At the start of the month , the seven-day average of new cases reported across the country was less than 83,000 per @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day after Thanksgiving — that number was above 165,000 per day .
By December 3 , the rate increased to more than 180,000 new cases per day .
Many expect those numbers to continue their upward trajectory in the next few weeks , due to increases in travel that occurred late last month .
Indeed , many cases related to Thanksgiving travel have likely not yet emerged .
As the CDC has noted , it can take between 1 to 14 days before symptoms of coronavirus develop .
( Thanksgiving happened just eight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people may not present symptoms at all , and may spread the virus that they contracted during the holiday to others in their communities without even knowing it .
As of Friday morning , more than 14.2 million cases of coronavirus have been identified in the United States .
More than 276,000 have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic .

“The safest thing to do is to postpone holiday travel and stay home,” the head of the CDC’s travel branch said.
Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other health experts are discouraging Americans from traveling during the upcoming holiday season in order to stem the spread of coronavirus.
Similar recommendations from the CDC were made last month, in preparation for the Thanksgiving holiday, when officials from the agency gave explicit instructions warning against traveling to see family and friends during that time.
Yet many people disregarded the CDC’s guidance. Data on holiday travel last month reveal that vehicle use was down by only 5 percent from where it was at the year prior over the Thanksgiving weekend. And while travel by plane was down substantially compared to past years, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) noted that for four days during the Thanksgiving travel period, more than 1 million passengers were checked at airports across the country.
Only one other day during the pandemic — October 18 — has seen more than 1 million passengers board planes in the U.S.
The CDC had urged Americans to reconsider travel plans during the holiday weekend last month. Nevertheless, according to an Axios/Ipsos poll prior to Thanksgiving, 4 in 10 Americans said they still intended to travel to see loved ones.
Earlier this week during a telebriefing, Cindy Friedman, chief of The Travelers’ Health Branch at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reiterated the need for Americans to consider alternative approaches to this year’s holiday celebrations in December.
“The safest thing to do is to postpone holiday travel and stay home,” Friedman said on Wednesday.
Friedman also acknowledged the high travel volume seen over the Thanksgiving holiday — and suggested there would be serious ramifications because of it. Even if a small percent of those who traveled last month had COVID-19, she said, it would likely translate into hundreds of thousands of infections across the country in the coming weeks.
Speaking with Newsweek about the issue, Manisha Juthani, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at Yale School of Medicine, noted that this high level of travel could lead to many preventable deaths:
“It is extremely tragic to know that there are preventable deaths on the horizon from public health interventions we can do now while waiting for vaccine uptake in the months to come. I won’t be surprised if we have over 3,000 deaths per day in a month… I anticipate that we will be marking our holiday season and the new year with record high hospitalizations and deaths while, ironically, administering vaccines at the same time.”
November saw an increase in the number of coronavirus cases reported daily. At the start of the month, the seven-day average of new cases reported across the country was less than 83,000 per day. By November 27 — the day after Thanksgiving — that number was above 165,000 per day. By December 3, the rate increased to more than 180,000 new cases per day.
Many expect those numbers to continue their upward trajectory in the next few weeks, due to increases in travel that occurred late last month. Indeed, many cases related to Thanksgiving travel have likely not yet emerged.
As the CDC has noted, it can take between 1 to 14 days before symptoms of coronavirus develop. (Thanksgiving happened just eight days ago.) Additionally, some people may not present symptoms at all, and may spread the virus that they contracted during the holiday to others in their communities without even knowing it.
As of Friday morning, more than 14.2 million cases of coronavirus have been identified in the United States. More than 276,000 have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
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truthout--2020-12-04--Daniel Ellsberg Voices Opposition to Biden’s Frontrunner for Defense Secretary

Legendary Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and Nobel Prize-winning peace activist Jody Williams on Friday both joined a grassroots progressive campaign urging President-elect Joe Biden not to nominate Michèle Flournoy as his Pentagon chief , warning her ties to the weapons industry , hawkish record , and current positions disqualify her for the powerful role .
“ Flournoy was wrong about Iraq , as Biden has acknowledged he was .
But she was then also wrong about Afghanistan , Syria , Yemen , and Libya , ” Ellsberg said in a statement released by RootsAction.org , part of a coalition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vice president to pick a defense secretary committed to peace and without ties to the military-industrial complex .
“ She is wrong right now in opposing the congressional ban on all arms sales to Saudi Arabia , and in planning to maintain Minuteman-type land-based ICBMs , the hair-trigger to the Doomsday Machine , ” Ellsberg continued .
“ Her unquestioned intelligence and competence have long been in service to her serious interventionist misjudgments and to her own involvement in a revolving-door military-industrial complex.
” To the chagrin of progressives leading the charge against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gained the support of some prominent organizations , including the Ploughshares Fund and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists .
Other anti-war groups have yet to speak out publicly about Flournoy , who is still considered the Biden team ’ s frontrunner for defense secretary .
“ If President-elect Biden really has a progressive agenda in mind for his administration , he should appoint members of his cabinet and other high-level positions who demonstrate progressive thinking and do not move this fractured country backwards , ” Williams said Friday .
“ Nominating Michèle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forward thinking .
We do not need a hawk with relationships with the weapons industry.
” During a call earlier this week attended by representatives of more than 100 anti-war and nuclear disarmament groups , some participants “ resisted ” criticizing Flournoy—who currently serves on the board of massive defense contractor Booz Allen Hamilton—over her industry ties .
Mother Jones reported Thursday that Daryl Kimball , executive director of the Arms Control Association , said during the call that “ criticism of Flournoy ’ s ties to the defense industry could just as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is considering ” —a perhaps unintentionally damning assessment of Biden ’ s other potential Pentagon nominees .
According to the Wall Street Journal , other candidates in the running for the post include former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson , a Lockheed Martin board member , and Gen. Lloyd Austin , a Raytheon board member .
Others who took part in the call , such as CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin , were adamant that Flournoy ’ s militaristic record calls for nothing less than forceful opposition from progressives .
“ It feels to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ major concession of the liberal foreign policy community , ” Benjamin told Mother Jones .
“ It doesn ’ t bode well for challenging the Biden administration on key foreign policy issues.
” As The Intercept ’ s Jeremy Scahill wrote Friday , Flournoy is “ a notorious hawk who backed the wars in Iraq , Syria , and Yemen and pushed for Obama to intervene in Libya.
” “ Flournoy began her government career in Bill Clinton ’ s administration , serving at the Pentagon , ” Scahill noted .
“ In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bush-Cheney global war , Flournoy joined a gaggle of mostly neocons at the notorious Project for the New American Century in criticizing the Bush administration for not being militaristic enough in its foreign policy and arguing for an increase in ground troops in the Middle East.
” Matthew Hoh , a former State Department official who resigned in protest against the U.S. war in Afghanistan in 2009 , said in a statement Friday that he does not “ understand how the Democratic Party continues to embrace , and promote , the people responsible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” “ Flournoy has been integral in the failed , counter-productive , and catastrophic wars in Iraq , Afghanistan , Yemen , Pakistan , Syria , Libya , and across Saharan and sub-Saharan Africa , ” said Hoh .
“ Flournoy ’ s resume is conclusive evidence she will serve to justify massive Pentagon budgets , weapons sales to despots , and vainglorious wars , while bringing colossal waste to U.S. taxpayers , death without purpose to American service-members , and unending horror to tens of millions of people in the Muslim world @ @

The Pentagon Papers whistleblower criticized Michèle Flournoy’s ties to the weapons industry and her hawkish record.
Legendary Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and Nobel Prize-winning peace activist Jody Williams on Friday both joined a grassroots progressive campaign urging President-elect Joe Biden not to nominate Michèle Flournoy as his Pentagon chief, warning her ties to the weapons industry, hawkish record, and current positions disqualify her for the powerful role.
“Flournoy was wrong about Iraq, as Biden has acknowledged he was. But she was then also wrong about Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Libya,” Ellsberg said in a statement released by RootsAction.org, part of a coalition of progressive advocacy groups pressuring the former vice president to pick a defense secretary committed to peace and without ties to the military-industrial complex.
“She is wrong right now in opposing the congressional ban on all arms sales to Saudi Arabia, and in planning to maintain Minuteman-type land-based ICBMs, the hair-trigger to the Doomsday Machine,” Ellsberg continued. “Her unquestioned intelligence and competence have long been in service to her serious interventionist misjudgments and to her own involvement in a revolving-door military-industrial complex.”
To the chagrin of progressives leading the charge against Flournoy, the former Pentagon official has gained the support of some prominent organizations, including the Ploughshares Fund and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Other anti-war groups have yet to speak out publicly about Flournoy, who is still considered the Biden team’s frontrunner for defense secretary.
“If President-elect Biden really has a progressive agenda in mind for his administration, he should appoint members of his cabinet and other high-level positions who demonstrate progressive thinking and do not move this fractured country backwards,” Williams said Friday. “Nominating Michèle Flournoy for defense secretary would not be forward thinking. We do not need a hawk with relationships with the weapons industry.”
During a call earlier this week attended by representatives of more than 100 anti-war and nuclear disarmament groups, some participants “resisted” criticizing Flournoy—who currently serves on the board of massive defense contractor Booz Allen Hamilton—over her industry ties.
Mother Jones reported Thursday that Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, said during the call that “criticism of Flournoy’s ties to the defense industry could just as easily apply to the other nominees Biden is considering”—a perhaps unintentionally damning assessment of Biden’s other potential Pentagon nominees.
According to the Wall Street Journal, other candidates in the running for the post include former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, a Lockheed Martin board member, and Gen. Lloyd Austin, a Raytheon board member.
Others who took part in the call, such as CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, were adamant that Flournoy’s militaristic record calls for nothing less than forceful opposition from progressives.
“It feels to me like this is a major, major concession of the liberal foreign policy community,” Benjamin told Mother Jones. “It doesn’t bode well for challenging the Biden administration on key foreign policy issues.”
As The Intercept’s Jeremy Scahill wrote Friday, Flournoy is “a notorious hawk who backed the wars in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen and pushed for Obama to intervene in Libya.”
“Flournoy began her government career in Bill Clinton’s administration, serving at the Pentagon,” Scahill noted. “In 2005, at the height of the Bush-Cheney global war, Flournoy joined a gaggle of mostly neocons at the notorious Project for the New American Century in criticizing the Bush administration for not being militaristic enough in its foreign policy and arguing for an increase in ground troops in the Middle East.”
Matthew Hoh, a former State Department official who resigned in protest against the U.S. war in Afghanistan in 2009, said in a statement Friday that he does not “understand how the Democratic Party continues to embrace, and promote, the people responsible for this nation’s unending wars.”
“Flournoy has been integral in the failed, counter-productive, and catastrophic wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Pakistan, Syria, Libya, and across Saharan and sub-Saharan Africa,” said Hoh. “Flournoy’s resume is conclusive evidence she will serve to justify massive Pentagon budgets, weapons sales to despots, and vainglorious wars, while bringing colossal waste to U.S. taxpayers, death without purpose to American service-members, and unending horror to tens of millions of people in the Muslim world.”
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--2020-12-04--GOP Motions to Adjourn Congress as COVID, Eviction and Hunger Crises Worsen

With mass layoffs persisting at an unprecedented clip , coronavirus deaths surging , and hunger on the rise nationwide , a group of House Republicans on Thursday attempted to pass a motion to adjourn the chamber in what Democratic lawmakers denounced as an “ outrageous ” stunt by members of a party that continues to stand in the way of desperately needed economic relief .
Though the motion , introduced by House Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Andy Biggs ( R-Ariz. ) , was ultimately defeated by the Democrat-controlled House , the attempt to adjourn was viewed as another telling example @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take seriously the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic crisis .
“ People are going hungry and they ’ re treating this like a game , ” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y. ) tweeted in response to the motion , which Republicans used to complain about House rules allowing proxy voting to prevent the spread of Covid-19 on Capitol Hill .
“ Leaders don ’ t abandon people in their time of greatest need.
” Rep. Eric Swalwell ( D-Calif. ) called the GOP ploy “ batty ” and noted that “ Americans are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Over the opposition of the chamber ’ s Republicans , House Democrats in October passed legislation that would send another stimulus check to most Americans , restore the lapsed $ 600-per-week federal unemployment boost , and provide aid to cash-strapped state and local governments .
The Republican-controlled Senate , led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) , has refused to consider the measure .
“ More people died yesterday from Covid-19 than any day since , ” Swalwell said Thursday .
“ We have work to do .
Yet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress .
What the hell are they doing ?
” “ Isn ’ t this a procedural stunt you ask ?
Sure , ” Swalwell continued .
“ What makes it outrageous is a single vote now takes well over an hour to occur with Covid-19 restrictions in place .
Then the chamber must be sanitized .
These are final days of Congress .
It ’ s like pulling the fire alarm during a final exam.
” Other Democratic members voiced similar outrage over the motion , introduced as U.S. coronavirus hospitalizations soared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Department reported that a million Americans filed jobless claims last week , a blaring signal that the economic crisis is nowhere near over .
The House GOP ’ s procedural maneuver came as coronavirus relief negotiations showed signs of life for the first time in weeks , with a possible government shutdown just seven days away and the end of the year rapidly approaching .
Failure to approve additional Covid-19 relief before year ’ s end would be disastrous , economists have warned , particularly given that more than 13 million Americans are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ federal programs expire on December 26 .
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ( D-Calif. ) , Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( D-N.Y. ) , and President-elect Joe Biden have expressed support for using a $ 908 billion bipartisan compromise proposal unveiled earlier this week as a framework for talks going forward , while acknowledging that the plan — which lacks direct payments and provides just $ 300 per week in additional unemployment benefits — is nowhere near sufficient .
“ Of course , we and others will offer improvements , but the need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that with good-faith negotiations we could come to an agreement , ” Pelosi and Schumer said in a joint statement Wednesday .
“ In light of the urgency of meeting the needs of the American people and the hope that the vaccine presents , it ’ s time for Leader McConnell to sit down with Democrats to finally begin a true , bipartisan effort to meet the needs of the country.
” McConnell and Pelosi spoke by phone Thursday afternoon for the first time since the presidential election and , according to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conversation ” about coronavirus relief and an end-of-year spending package to avert a government shutdown .
“ Compromise is within reach , ” McConnell said in a floor speech Thursday .
“ We know where we agree .
We can do this.
” The Republican leader ’ s remarks came just days after he circulated a relief proposal of his own that was immediately dismissed as a non-starter by many Senate Democrats and progressive critics , who lambasted the plan ’ s sweeping liability shield for corporations and exclusion of additional weekly unemployment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government watchdog group Accountable.US , slammed McConnell for “ shilling for special interests ” instead of offering real relief to the tens of millions of Americans struggling to afford basic necessities and possibly facing eviction in the near future .
“ The McConnell Senate enabled the Trump administration ’ s mismanagement of the health crisis and still insists on doing as little as possible to contain the economic fallout , ” said Funk .
“ McConnell ’ s big idea of giving corporations permission to mistreat workers with impunity during a pandemic and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ absolutely nothing to the millions of families who face hunger and homelessness in the Trump recession .
”

With mass layoffs persisting at an unprecedented clip, coronavirus deaths surging, and hunger on the rise nationwide, a group of House Republicans on Thursday attempted to pass a motion to adjourn the chamber in what Democratic lawmakers denounced as an “outrageous” stunt by members of a party that continues to stand in the way of desperately needed economic relief.
Though the motion, introduced by House Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), was ultimately defeated by the Democrat-controlled House, the attempt to adjourn was viewed as another telling example of the GOP’s refusal to take seriously the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic crisis.
“People are going hungry and they’re treating this like a game,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) tweeted in response to the motion, which Republicans used to complain about House rules allowing proxy voting to prevent the spread of Covid-19 on Capitol Hill. “Leaders don’t abandon people in their time of greatest need.”
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) called the GOP ploy “batty” and noted that “Americans are in dire need of food and paychecks.”
Over the opposition of the chamber’s Republicans, House Democrats in October passed legislation that would send another stimulus check to most Americans, restore the lapsed $600-per-week federal unemployment boost, and provide aid to cash-strapped state and local governments. The Republican-controlled Senate, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), has refused to consider the measure.
“More people died yesterday from Covid-19 than any day since,” Swalwell said Thursday. “We have work to do. Yet, the House GOP just motioned to adjourn Congress. What the hell are they doing?”
“Isn’t this a procedural stunt you ask? Sure,” Swalwell continued. “What makes it outrageous is a single vote now takes well over an hour to occur with Covid-19 restrictions in place. Then the chamber must be sanitized. These are final days of Congress. It’s like pulling the fire alarm during a final exam.”
Other Democratic members voiced similar outrage over the motion, introduced as U.S. coronavirus hospitalizations soared to a record high and the Labor Department reported that a million Americans filed jobless claims last week, a blaring signal that the economic crisis is nowhere near over.
Right now a Republican member has put up a Motion to Adjourn, I am voting against it. I seriously don’t know why any member wants to adjourn while we have work to do on behalf of so many Americans who are suffering right now. — Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) December 3, 2020
Nearly 18 million adults are behind on rent & mortgage payments.@SenateGOP refuses to act on numerous relief bills the House has passed & @HouseGOP just issued a motion to adjourn. The Republican party’s contempt for working people is on full display.https://t.co/NC31S3HUJy — Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (@RepPressley) December 3, 2020
The House GOP’s procedural maneuver came as coronavirus relief negotiations showed signs of life for the first time in weeks, with a possible government shutdown just seven days away and the end of the year rapidly approaching. Failure to approve additional Covid-19 relief before year’s end would be disastrous, economists have warned, particularly given that more than 13 million Americans are set to lose unemployment benefits as emergency federal programs expire on December 26.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and President-elect Joe Biden have expressed support for using a $908 billion bipartisan compromise proposal unveiled earlier this week as a framework for talks going forward, while acknowledging that the plan — which lacks direct payments and provides just $300 per week in additional unemployment benefits — is nowhere near sufficient.
“Of course, we and others will offer improvements, but the need to act is immediate and we believe that with good-faith negotiations we could come to an agreement,” Pelosi and Schumer said in a joint statement Wednesday. “In light of the urgency of meeting the needs of the American people and the hope that the vaccine presents, it’s time for Leader McConnell to sit down with Democrats to finally begin a true, bipartisan effort to meet the needs of the country.”
McConnell and Pelosi spoke by phone Thursday afternoon for the first time since the presidential election and, according to the Kentucky Republican, had a “good conversation” about coronavirus relief and an end-of-year spending package to avert a government shutdown.
“Compromise is within reach,” McConnell said in a floor speech Thursday. “We know where we agree. We can do this.”
The Republican leader’s remarks came just days after he circulated a relief proposal of his own that was immediately dismissed as a non-starter by many Senate Democrats and progressive critics, who lambasted the plan’s sweeping liability shield for corporations and exclusion of additional weekly unemployment benefits.
Jeremy Funk, spokesperson for government watchdog group Accountable.US, slammed McConnell for “shilling for special interests” instead of offering real relief to the tens of millions of Americans struggling to afford basic necessities and possibly facing eviction in the near future.
“The McConnell Senate enabled the Trump administration’s mismanagement of the health crisis and still insists on doing as little as possible to contain the economic fallout,” said Funk. “McConnell’s big idea of giving corporations permission to mistreat workers with impunity during a pandemic and giving more handouts to coal CEOs means absolutely nothing to the millions of families who face hunger and homelessness in the Trump recession.”
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--2020-12-04--Biden Hires Fauci and Asks US to Wear Masks for His First 100 Days in Office

President-elect Joe Biden , speaking during an interview with CNN that aired on Thursday evening , announced that he had asked Anthony Fauci , the current director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ( NIAID ) and a member of the Trump administration ’ s coronavirus task force , to remain as an adviser in the White House when Biden becomes president .
Biden also signaled during the interview that he will encourage Americans to wear masks in order to quell the spread of coronavirus , in a stark contrast to Trump ’ s dismissive stance toward @ @ @ @ @ @ @ previously acknowledged that he probably does not have the authority to issue a national mandate to wear masks , but on Thursday he said he will order masks to be worn in certain areas that are under his purview — likely federal buildings and other properties managed by the government .
Beyond that , he also said he ’ d encourage every person in the U.S. to wear masks for his first 100 days in office .
“ Just 100 days to mask .
Not forever — 100 days .
I think we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that occurs with vaccinations and masking , to drive down the numbers considerably , ” Biden said .
The president-elect also spoke about the high probability of a vaccine being made available after he assumes office , saying he would get vaccinated right away to show Americans it is safe — with Fauci ’ s approval , he added .
“ When Dr. Fauci says we have a vaccine that is safe , that ’ s the moment in which I will stand before the public , ” Biden explained .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American people it ’ s safe .
It ’ s safe to do this.
” Biden also announced during the program that Fauci , who is widely regarded as an authoritative source on the subject of infectious diseases , would continue his work on COVID-19 within his administration as director of NIAID , a member of the White House coronavirus response team and Biden ’ s chief medical adviser .
Speaking on NBC ’ s “ TODAY ” show program on Friday morning , Fauci said he accepted the roles “ right on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Biden .
The infectious diseases expert also said he already gave the president-elect a word of warning : 100 days to mask might not be enough .
Fauci described the initiative as “ a good idea , ” but also advised that concerted mask-wearing beyond the 100 days may still be necessary .
“ It might be that after that , we still are going to need it , ” Fauci said .
Biden ’ s approach to the pandemic already represents a stark departure from Trump ’ s .
The president-elect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more likely to base his decisions on science and to listen to medical experts like Fauci .
During the past year , Trump and his allies often sought to discredit Fauci .
In July , for example , members of the White House unsuccessfully attempted to push a smear campaign against the NIAID director .
During a conference call in October , Trump also described Fauci and others who shared his views about better ways to contain the virus as “ idiots ” but acknowledged that it would set off a metaphorical “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fauci during the presidential campaign .
The Biden administration will face huge challenges in its attempt to stem the spread of COVID-19 .
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at University of Washington estimates a significantly high number of deaths from COVID-19 will occur in the next two months , with the cumulative number of Americans dying from the virus reaching 404,000 by the time Biden is inaugurated — nearly 128,000 additional coronavirus deaths between today and January 2021 .
As of Friday morning , more than 14.2 million cases of coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with 276,375 having died from it so far since the pandemic began .

President-elect Joe Biden, speaking during an interview with CNN that aired on Thursday evening, announced that he had asked Anthony Fauci, the current director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and a member of the Trump administration’s coronavirus task force, to remain as an adviser in the White House when Biden becomes president.
Biden also signaled during the interview that he will encourage Americans to wear masks in order to quell the spread of coronavirus, in a stark contrast to Trump’s dismissive stance toward masks and face coverings.
Biden has previously acknowledged that he probably does not have the authority to issue a national mandate to wear masks, but on Thursday he said he will order masks to be worn in certain areas that are under his purview — likely federal buildings and other properties managed by the government. Beyond that, he also said he’d encourage every person in the U.S. to wear masks for his first 100 days in office.
“Just 100 days to mask. Not forever — 100 days. I think we’ll see a significant reduction if that occurs with vaccinations and masking, to drive down the numbers considerably,” Biden said.
The president-elect also spoke about the high probability of a vaccine being made available after he assumes office, saying he would get vaccinated right away to show Americans it is safe — with Fauci’s approval, he added.
“When Dr. Fauci says we have a vaccine that is safe, that’s the moment in which I will stand before the public,” Biden explained. “It’s important to communicate to the American people it’s safe. It’s safe to do this.”
Biden also announced during the program that Fauci, who is widely regarded as an authoritative source on the subject of infectious diseases, would continue his work on COVID-19 within his administration as director of NIAID, a member of the White House coronavirus response team and Biden’s chief medical adviser.
Speaking on NBC’s “TODAY” show program on Friday morning, Fauci said he accepted the roles “right on the spot” when he was asked by Biden. The infectious diseases expert also said he already gave the president-elect a word of warning: 100 days to mask might not be enough.
Fauci described the initiative as “a good idea,” but also advised that concerted mask-wearing beyond the 100 days may still be necessary. “It might be that after that, we still are going to need it,” Fauci said.
Biden’s approach to the pandemic already represents a stark departure from Trump’s. The president-elect’s words indicate he’s more likely to base his decisions on science and to listen to medical experts like Fauci.
During the past year, Trump and his allies often sought to discredit Fauci. In July, for example, members of the White House unsuccessfully attempted to push a smear campaign against the NIAID director. During a conference call in October, Trump also described Fauci and others who shared his views about better ways to contain the virus as “idiots” but acknowledged that it would set off a metaphorical “bomb” if he attempted to fire Fauci during the presidential campaign.
The Biden administration will face huge challenges in its attempt to stem the spread of COVID-19. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at University of Washington estimates a significantly high number of deaths from COVID-19 will occur in the next two months, with the cumulative number of Americans dying from the virus reaching 404,000 by the time Biden is inaugurated — nearly 128,000 additional coronavirus deaths between today and January 2021.
As of Friday morning, more than 14.2 million cases of coronavirus have been identified in the U.S., with 276,375 having died from it so far since the pandemic began.
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--2020-12-04--Dozens of Trump’s Appointees Will Keep Their Jobs After Biden Takes Over

Christopher Prandoni was just 29 when he joined President Donald Trump ’ s administration as associate director for natural resources at the Council on Environmental Quality .
Last year , he hopped over to the Interior Department and became a close adviser to Secretary David Bernhardt , sometimes attending multiple meetings a day with the agency head .
In April , Bernhardt named Prandoni , only three years out of law school , to a $ 114,000-a-year position that ’ s part of the career civil service .
His appointment as a judge in the Interior Department ’ s Office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ land-use disputes , drew sharp criticism from environmental groups concerned that Prandoni would infuse ideology into decisions and undermine the panel ’ s integrity .
“ The job that Prandoni was given was a gift ; it was payment for time served , ” said Brett Hartl , government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity .
“ He never in a thousand years would have gotten this job if he hadn ’ t worked directly with David Bernhardt for months at a time implementing the Trump agenda.
” Prandoni , whose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by E & E News , didn ’ t reply to a request for comment .
He is among 32 political appointees whom the administration has sought to hire into civil service positions in the first three quarters of this year , a phenomenon known as “ burrowing ” that occurs at the end of every administration .
Congress requires the Office of Personnel Management to provide summaries of such requests , since career jobs hold over from one administration to the next and generally have more protections against partisan attempts at removal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back to civil service reforms of the late 1880s , when Congress passed a law to try to ensure that jobs were awarded on merit rather than patronage .
The number of hires sought under Trump is so far roughly similar to the tally of other recent administrations .
The lists OPM provided to Congress include some recent hires who met the agency ’ s standards for competitive , merit-based hiring but have clearly partisan or ideological credentials .
Along with Prandoni , a longtime staffer for the Grover Norquist-led small government group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump administration list includes a former chief of staff to conservative firebrand Sen. Ted Cruz , R-Texas , and a lawyer for energy and mining companies who got his start at a property rights think tank .
Although the incoming Biden administration has not yet addressed the issue , the party coming into the White House typically expresses concern when members of the previous administration embed themselves within agencies , where they can slow implementation of the new president ’ s priorities .
After Trump won the 2016 election , Senate Republicans demanded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transfer requests by the Obama administration .
Trump ’ s transition adviser , Chris Christie , had earlier threatened to change civil service laws to try to dislodge any Obama loyalists who may have found their way into the federal bureaucracy .
In 2010 , following public attention to a spate of burrowers from the Bush administration , OPM began requiring such appointments to be submitted for approval on an ongoing basis .
Compliance hasn ’ t been perfect .
Between 2010 and March 2016 , the Government Accountability Office reported that OPM @ @ @ @ @ @ @ convert political appointees into civil service jobs , but it didn ’ t retain enough information about the approvals for GAO to review them .
According to the Senate Homeland Security and Government Oversight Committee , in 2019 OPM approved 28 conversion requests , returned three without action and denied three .
Of the total who may get new jobs in 2020 , only a few have names attached , since many of the hires were still under review by OPM at the time the lists were compiled ; the process is supposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ often extended .
A court ruled over the summer that if OPM eventually determines the transfer was improper , the employee can be fired .
Five such moves were denied in 2020 because the agency said it “ could not conclude the appointment was free of political influence and complied with merit system principles.
” The Interior Department accounts for several of the approved transfers in 2020 .
Gregory Sheehan was appointed deputy director of the Fish and Wildlife Service in June 2017 .
( Then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke tried to make him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s required scientific degree . )
In that position , he opened hundreds of thousands of acres of federal land to hunting and fishing and shepherded through rules that substantially weakened protections for endangered species .
Sheehan served 14 months before resigning , a spokesman said , to spend more time with his family in Utah .
But in August , after the previous director retired , Sheehan was hired for a $ 166,910-a-year job as director of the Bureau of Land Management ’ s office in his home state .
Environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to industry and local governments , which have long pushed for more access for mining and drilling , although as one of his first actions Sheehan canceled a set of oil and gas lease sales that had been scheduled near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks .
Sheehan referred questions to an agency spokesperson , Richard Packer , who wrote in an email that the Interior Department “ evaluates all candidates for career civil service positions based on their merits and qualifications to execute Interior ’ s mission ; to which , Mr. Sheehan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ director is Barry Bushue , a longtime leader of the American Farm Bureau Federation , the nation ’ s largest agriculture industry lobbying group .
Bushue was appointed to run the U.S. Department of Agriculture ’ s Farm Service Agency office for Oregon in 2018 .
Earlier this year , he was transferred to a career position running BLM ’ s Oregon/Washington division — the site of fierce debates around the federal government ’ s authority over cattle grazing .
Susan Jane Brown , public lands and wildlife director for the Western Environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ background in agriculture does not necessarily mean he knows how to manage the diverse set of interests at play on public lands .
“ I don ’ t know why you ’ d put a farmer in charge of natural resources , because they ’ re different , ” she said .
She has an alternative explanation for the career appointments , given the Trump administration ’ s penchant for high turnover and lingering vacancies .
“ Maybe they are attempting to burrow in some employees , but boy is that a little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ It seems to me that they ’ re simply scraping the bottom of the barrel and finding anybody with a pulse to put into some of these positions for the remainder of the lame duck.
” An Interior Department spokesperson said that the hires of Prandoni , Sheehan , and Bushue were appropriate and conducted according to standard procedures .
“ This takes place in every administration despite whatever false narrative is being spun by special interest groups who are seeking to disparage the character and qualifications of these dedicated public servants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an email .
A final high-profile political appointee converted to career status in the environmental sphere is Brandon Middleton , who got his start challenging regulations under the Endangered Species Act as an attorney for the property rights-oriented Pacific Legal Foundation .
He then worked for Sen. Jeff Sessions , R-Ala. , who brought him to the Department of Justice ’ s environmental division in 2017 , where he continued to correspond with his former foundation colleagues about issues before the DOJ .
Later that year , he joined the Department of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , until he was appointed to a career position as chief counsel at the Department of Energy ’ s Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center , which manages the contracting for cleaning up toxic waste dumps .
Neither Middleton nor the Department of Energy responded to requests for comment .
Conversion requests are typically most common at the DOJ and Department of Homeland Security , and the Trump administration has made plenty of those as well .
Among them : Prerak Shah , a member of the right-leaning Federalist Society who served as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , defending cases on conservative causes celebre like voter ID laws and school prayer .
He then became Cruz ’ s chief of staff before joining Trump ’ s DOJ , and earlier this year he was appointed as an assistant U.S. attorney in the northern district of Texas .
Jordan von Bokern clerked for Judge Amy Coney Barrett , recently named to the U.S. Supreme Court , before being appointed counsel in the DOJ ’ s Office of Legal Policy , which directs initiatives such as coordinating judicial nominations with the White @ @ @ @ @ @ @ converted into a career trial attorney .
Michael Holley was a regional director for the Florida Republican Party , helped run the 2016 GOP convention and then worked on the inauguration before being hired for White House special projects .
In 2019 , he was appointed White House liaison for the Department of Homeland Security , and earlier this year he became a staff action officer in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis , a career position .
Shah , Holley , von Bokern , and the Department of Justice did not respond @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the highest-profile positions went to Tracy Short , who built his career in government litigating immigration cases , mostly in Texas .
In 2017 , he became principal legal advisor to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as it embraced a hard line on deportations .
And in July , he was appointed chief immigration judge at the DOJ ’ s Executive Office for Immigration Review — a prosecutor now running a court system that decides asylum cases .
Denise Slavin , a former president of the National Association of Immigration Judges who retired @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bench , said that under Short , the agency has accelerated filing deadlines in a way that gives judges less discretion to consider the facts of each case .
“ He just doesn ’ t have the courtroom experience to be a chief judge , ” Slavin said .
Short referred questions to EOIR spokeswoman Kathryn Mattingly , who disputed that characterization .
“ Just as former United States Attorneys are sometimes appointed to federal judgeships and former Solicitors General and Attorneys General have been appointed to the Supreme Court , there is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Principal Legal Advisor to the CIJ position , particularly when that individual has had an extensive and exemplary career in public service , including nearly 20 years of immigration and management experience , ” Mattingly wrote in an email .
Short ’ s position , as well as other recent Trump appointees to the immigration apparatus at the DOJ , will survive the transition .
It ’ s possible to dislodge career employees by transferring them elsewhere , but it will take a conscious effort by an administration that ’ s already got @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it gets to the career service jobs .
The Trump administration could speed up the replacement of civil servants before inauguration because of an executive order the president issued in October .
It creates a new “ Schedule F ” category for career employees who have policy-making or policy-advocating roles , and it weakens their employment protections to the point where they could be booted for their political views .
Ron Sanders , a longtime federal government human resources executive who recently resigned from an OPM advisory body called the Federal Salary Council @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Trump administration still has plenty of time to act on that order in its final weeks .
“ I have been contacted by dozens of regular civil servants slated to be converted into Schedule F , ” Sanders said , “ which means they could be removed with little or no procedural protection or due process .
And they could be replaced by somebody else.
” Federal employee unions have supported a bill that would block implementation of Schedule F , but Sanders noted that Biden may want to keep it in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appointments made in the waning days of Trump ’ s term .
Last week , House Democrats sent a letter to 61 federal agencies asking for more detailed information on political appointees who have been hired into career jobs , as well as positions newly designated as Schedule F. Senate Democrats have made similar requests to OPM , but they say that the response has been incomplete .
OPM did not respond to a request for comment .
Overall , some progressive advocates don ’ t think the conversion of political appointees into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as influential as it was in the second term of the Bush administration , when 139 officials found their way into civil service jobs , the GAO reported .
However , even a few people can make a difference .
“ Bureaucrats can slow down the administration ’ s policy efforts .
It ’ s minor , but the more of them there are , it ’ s sort of cumulative , ” Hartl said .
And even if the number of conversions doesn ’ t seem unusually high , the types of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ past .
But since the documents are not released publicly and so many names are redacted , it ’ s difficult to tell who ’ s ending up where until the transfer is approved .
For that reason , Troy Cribb , director of policy for the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service , thinks the OPM ’ s burrowing lists should be more transparent .
“ Having eyes on this is part of the accountability , ” Cribb said .
“ And not having these be public really undermines that .
”

Christopher Prandoni was just 29 when he joined President Donald Trump’s administration as associate director for natural resources at the Council on Environmental Quality. Last year, he hopped over to the Interior Department and became a close adviser to Secretary David Bernhardt, sometimes attending multiple meetings a day with the agency head.
In April, Bernhardt named Prandoni, only three years out of law school, to a $114,000-a-year position that’s part of the career civil service. His appointment as a judge in the Interior Department’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, which arbitrates land-use disputes, drew sharp criticism from environmental groups concerned that Prandoni would infuse ideology into decisions and undermine the panel’s integrity.
“The job that Prandoni was given was a gift; it was payment for time served,” said Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “He never in a thousand years would have gotten this job if he hadn’t worked directly with David Bernhardt for months at a time implementing the Trump agenda.”
Prandoni, whose new job was reported over the summer by E&E News, didn’t reply to a request for comment. He is among 32 political appointees whom the administration has sought to hire into civil service positions in the first three quarters of this year, a phenomenon known as “burrowing” that occurs at the end of every administration. Congress requires the Office of Personnel Management to provide summaries of such requests, since career jobs hold over from one administration to the next and generally have more protections against partisan attempts at removal.
Burrowing has a history that traces back to civil service reforms of the late 1880s, when Congress passed a law to try to ensure that jobs were awarded on merit rather than patronage. The number of hires sought under Trump is so far roughly similar to the tally of other recent administrations.
The lists OPM provided to Congress include some recent hires who met the agency’s standards for competitive, merit-based hiring but have clearly partisan or ideological credentials. Along with Prandoni, a longtime staffer for the Grover Norquist-led small government group, Americans for Tax Reform, the Trump administration list includes a former chief of staff to conservative firebrand Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and a lawyer for energy and mining companies who got his start at a property rights think tank.
Although the incoming Biden administration has not yet addressed the issue, the party coming into the White House typically expresses concern when members of the previous administration embed themselves within agencies, where they can slow implementation of the new president’s priorities. After Trump won the 2016 election, Senate Republicans demanded weekly reports from OPM to track new transfer requests by the Obama administration. Trump’s transition adviser, Chris Christie, had earlier threatened to change civil service laws to try to dislodge any Obama loyalists who may have found their way into the federal bureaucracy.
In 2010, following public attention to a spate of burrowers from the Bush administration, OPM began requiring such appointments to be submitted for approval on an ongoing basis. Compliance hasn’t been perfect. Between 2010 and March 2016, the Government Accountability Office reported that OPM approved 78 out of 99 requests to convert political appointees into civil service jobs, but it didn’t retain enough information about the approvals for GAO to review them.
According to the Senate Homeland Security and Government Oversight Committee, in 2019 OPM approved 28 conversion requests, returned three without action and denied three. Of the total who may get new jobs in 2020, only a few have names attached, since many of the hires were still under review by OPM at the time the lists were compiled; the process is supposed to take 15 business days but is often extended. A court ruled over the summer that if OPM eventually determines the transfer was improper, the employee can be fired.
Five such moves were denied in 2020 because the agency said it “could not conclude the appointment was free of political influence and complied with merit system principles.”
The Interior Department accounts for several of the approved transfers in 2020.
Gregory Sheehan was appointed deputy director of the Fish and Wildlife Service in June 2017. (Then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke tried to make him director, but Sheehan lacked the position’s required scientific degree.) In that position, he opened hundreds of thousands of acres of federal land to hunting and fishing and shepherded through rules that substantially weakened protections for endangered species.
Sheehan served 14 months before resigning, a spokesman said, to spend more time with his family in Utah. But in August, after the previous director retired, Sheehan was hired for a $166,910-a-year job as director of the Bureau of Land Management’s office in his home state. Environmental groups slammed Sheehan as being too close to industry and local governments, which have long pushed for more access for mining and drilling, although as one of his first actions Sheehan canceled a set of oil and gas lease sales that had been scheduled near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. Sheehan referred questions to an agency spokesperson, Richard Packer, who wrote in an email that the Interior Department “evaluates all candidates for career civil service positions based on their merits and qualifications to execute Interior’s mission; to which, Mr. Sheehan was selected.”
Another new BLM state director is Barry Bushue, a longtime leader of the American Farm Bureau Federation, the nation’s largest agriculture industry lobbying group. Bushue was appointed to run the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency office for Oregon in 2018. Earlier this year, he was transferred to a career position running BLM’s Oregon/Washington division — the site of fierce debates around the federal government’s authority over cattle grazing.
Susan Jane Brown, public lands and wildlife director for the Western Environmental Law Center, said Bushue’s background in agriculture does not necessarily mean he knows how to manage the diverse set of interests at play on public lands. “I don’t know why you’d put a farmer in charge of natural resources, because they’re different,” she said. She has an alternative explanation for the career appointments, given the Trump administration’s penchant for high turnover and lingering vacancies.
“Maybe they are attempting to burrow in some employees, but boy is that a little too late,” Brown said. “It seems to me that they’re simply scraping the bottom of the barrel and finding anybody with a pulse to put into some of these positions for the remainder of the lame duck.”
An Interior Department spokesperson said that the hires of Prandoni, Sheehan, and Bushue were appropriate and conducted according to standard procedures.
“This takes place in every administration despite whatever false narrative is being spun by special interest groups who are seeking to disparage the character and qualifications of these dedicated public servants,” spokesperson Benjamin Goldey said in an email.
A final high-profile political appointee converted to career status in the environmental sphere is Brandon Middleton, who got his start challenging regulations under the Endangered Species Act as an attorney for the property rights-oriented Pacific Legal Foundation. He then worked for Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., who brought him to the Department of Justice’s environmental division in 2017, where he continued to correspond with his former foundation colleagues about issues before the DOJ.
Later that year, he joined the Department of the Interior as deputy solicitor for water resources, until he was appointed to a career position as chief counsel at the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center, which manages the contracting for cleaning up toxic waste dumps.
Neither Middleton nor the Department of Energy responded to requests for comment.
Conversion requests are typically most common at the DOJ and Department of Homeland Security, and the Trump administration has made plenty of those as well.
Among them: Prerak Shah, a member of the right-leaning Federalist Society who served as a counselor to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, defending cases on conservative causes celebre like voter ID laws and school prayer. He then became Cruz’s chief of staff before joining Trump’s DOJ, and earlier this year he was appointed as an assistant U.S. attorney in the northern district of Texas.
Jordan von Bokern clerked for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, recently named to the U.S. Supreme Court, before being appointed counsel in the DOJ’s Office of Legal Policy, which directs initiatives such as coordinating judicial nominations with the White House. In April, he was converted into a career trial attorney. Michael Holley was a regional director for the Florida Republican Party, helped run the 2016 GOP convention and then worked on the inauguration before being hired for White House special projects. In 2019, he was appointed White House liaison for the Department of Homeland Security, and earlier this year he became a staff action officer in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, a career position.
Shah, Holley, von Bokern, and the Department of Justice did not respond to a request for comment.
One of the highest-profile positions went to Tracy Short, who built his career in government litigating immigration cases, mostly in Texas. In 2017, he became principal legal advisor to Immigration and Customs Enforcement as it embraced a hard line on deportations. And in July, he was appointed chief immigration judge at the DOJ’s Executive Office for Immigration Review — a prosecutor now running a court system that decides asylum cases.
Denise Slavin, a former president of the National Association of Immigration Judges who retired last year after 24 years on the bench, said that under Short, the agency has accelerated filing deadlines in a way that gives judges less discretion to consider the facts of each case.
“He just doesn’t have the courtroom experience to be a chief judge,” Slavin said.
Short referred questions to EOIR spokeswoman Kathryn Mattingly, who disputed that characterization.
“Just as former United States Attorneys are sometimes appointed to federal judgeships and former Solicitors General and Attorneys General have been appointed to the Supreme Court, there is nothing improper about appointing the former ICE Principal Legal Advisor to the CIJ position, particularly when that individual has had an extensive and exemplary career in public service, including nearly 20 years of immigration and management experience,” Mattingly wrote in an email.
Short’s position, as well as other recent Trump appointees to the immigration apparatus at the DOJ, will survive the transition. It’s possible to dislodge career employees by transferring them elsewhere, but it will take a conscious effort by an administration that’s already got 4,000 political appointments to make even before it gets to the career service jobs.
The Trump administration could speed up the replacement of civil servants before inauguration because of an executive order the president issued in October. It creates a new “Schedule F” category for career employees who have policy-making or policy-advocating roles, and it weakens their employment protections to the point where they could be booted for their political views.
Ron Sanders, a longtime federal government human resources executive who recently resigned from an OPM advisory body called the Federal Salary Council in protest of Schedule F, said the Trump administration still has plenty of time to act on that order in its final weeks.
“I have been contacted by dozens of regular civil servants slated to be converted into Schedule F,” Sanders said, “which means they could be removed with little or no procedural protection or due process. And they could be replaced by somebody else.”
Federal employee unions have supported a bill that would block implementation of Schedule F, but Sanders noted that Biden may want to keep it in place long enough to reverse any career appointments made in the waning days of Trump’s term.
Last week, House Democrats sent a letter to 61 federal agencies asking for more detailed information on political appointees who have been hired into career jobs, as well as positions newly designated as Schedule F. Senate Democrats have made similar requests to OPM, but they say that the response has been incomplete. OPM did not respond to a request for comment.
Overall, some progressive advocates don’t think the conversion of political appointees into career positions will be as deep or as influential as it was in the second term of the Bush administration, when 139 officials found their way into civil service jobs, the GAO reported. However, even a few people can make a difference.
“Bureaucrats can slow down the administration’s policy efforts. It’s minor, but the more of them there are, it’s sort of cumulative,” Hartl said.
And even if the number of conversions doesn’t seem unusually high, the types of positions are more political than in the past. But since the documents are not released publicly and so many names are redacted, it’s difficult to tell who’s ending up where until the transfer is approved. For that reason, Troy Cribb, director of policy for the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, thinks the OPM’s burrowing lists should be more transparent.
“Having eyes on this is part of the accountability,” Cribb said. “And not having these be public really undermines that.”
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--2020-12-04--Biden Must Address Yemen on Day One and Move Immediately to Prevent Future Wars

Going on six years of war and four years of President Trump ’ s complete disregard for the lives of millions of Yemenis caught in the crossfire , President-elect Joe Biden has promised a policy reset .
He has repeatedly called for an end to U.S. participation and weapons in the brutal Yemen conflict .
Biden underscored this in October when he said , “ Under a Biden-Harris administration , we will reassess our relationship with the Kingdom [ of Saudi Arabia ] , end US support for Saudi Arabia ’ s war in Yemen , and make sure America @ @ @ @ @ @ @ door to sell arms or buy oil.
” These long-overdue course corrections will help save lives and accelerate an end to this terrible war , but the Biden administration must do more .
It should work to restore and expand humanitarian assistance across Yemen , pressure the Saudi coalition to end its blockade and lead with determined diplomacy to pressure all parties back to the negotiating table to finally find a lasting peace .
This policy reset will come at a critical time , as the UN is warning of famine in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t improve .
“ We are on a countdown right now to a catastrophe , ” World Food Program Executive Director David Beasley told the UN Security Council .
“ If we choose to look away , there ’ s no doubt in my mind Yemen will be plunged into a devastating famine within a few short months.
” The Saudi- and United Arab Emirates ( UAE ) -led war has pushed 10 million Yemenis to the brink of famine and caused over 24 million people to rely on food assistance for survival @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the worst place on Earth to be a child , with the conflict claiming the lives of at least 85,000 under the age of 5 .
Recent reports indicate that over 100,000 children in Yemen ’ s southern provinces face acute malnutrition and death if urgent humanitarian action is not taken .
To end U.S. complicity in this war , President-elect Biden must start his policy reset on day one by stopping weapons deliveries to the Saudi-UAE coalition , including Trump ’ s recently proposed $ 23 billion sale to the UAE .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Yemen War Powers Resolution prohibiting intelligence sharing , logistical support and spare parts transfers for coalition airstrikes .
Such a demonstration of support from Congress will help Biden exert meaningful pressure on the warring parties to end the violence .
Additionally , becoming the first president to sign a war powers resolution into law will help Biden prevent similar future catastrophes by recognizing the constitutional role of Congress in decisions to go to war .
It will set a powerful precedent , deterring presidents from using military force without congressional debate and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Rep. Ro Khanna of California recently expressed support for this idea , saying , “ I believe that ’ s something we should do right in January and have President Biden sign that War Powers Resolution .
He has indicated a willingness to do that .
That would be an incredible signal.
” Secondly , Biden should immediately reverse the Trump administration ’ s decision to suspend tens of millions in humanitarian aid funds to northern Yemen , and work to expand funding to address malnutrition and disease there .
He must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meet and expand their humanitarian funding pledges for Yemen .
Lastly , to end this war as soon as possible , the Biden administration must work with the United Nations to bring about a political settlement to the conflict .
His administration must double down on the diplomacy needed to bring the warring parties to a ceasefire , end the blockade and create a lasting peace that includes all parts of Yemeni society .
Biden must also oppose any designation of the Houthis as a “ foreign terrorist organization , ” as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would not only impede the delivery of humanitarian aid , but also make peace negotiations nearly impossible .
Six years of unimaginable human suffering is more than enough .
Yemen can ’ t wait any longer .
With urgency , President Biden must fulfill his promise to cut support for the war and prevent Yemen from plunging further into famine .
By working with Congress , the United Nations , U.S. allies , regional and local actors , and representatives of Yemeni civil society — especially women — Biden can help all sides @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

Going on six years of war and four years of President Trump’s complete disregard for the lives of millions of Yemenis caught in the crossfire, President-elect Joe Biden has promised a policy reset. He has repeatedly called for an end to U.S. participation and weapons in the brutal Yemen conflict.
Biden underscored this in October when he said, “Under a Biden-Harris administration, we will reassess our relationship with the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia], end US support for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, and make sure America does not check its values at the door to sell arms or buy oil.”
These long-overdue course corrections will help save lives and accelerate an end to this terrible war, but the Biden administration must do more. It should work to restore and expand humanitarian assistance across Yemen, pressure the Saudi coalition to end its blockade and lead with determined diplomacy to pressure all parties back to the negotiating table to finally find a lasting peace.
This policy reset will come at a critical time, as the UN is warning of famine in the next few months if conditions don’t improve. “We are on a countdown right now to a catastrophe,” World Food Program Executive Director David Beasley told the UN Security Council. “If we choose to look away, there’s no doubt in my mind Yemen will be plunged into a devastating famine within a few short months.”
The Saudi- and United Arab Emirates (UAE)-led war has pushed 10 million Yemenis to the brink of famine and caused over 24 million people to rely on food assistance for survival. Aid agencies have described Yemen as the worst place on Earth to be a child, with the conflict claiming the lives of at least 85,000 under the age of 5. Recent reports indicate that over 100,000 children in Yemen’s southern provinces face acute malnutrition and death if urgent humanitarian action is not taken.
To end U.S. complicity in this war, President-elect Biden must start his policy reset on day one by stopping weapons deliveries to the Saudi-UAE coalition, including Trump’s recently proposed $23 billion sale to the UAE. Biden must work with Congress to pass a Yemen War Powers Resolution prohibiting intelligence sharing, logistical support and spare parts transfers for coalition airstrikes. Such a demonstration of support from Congress will help Biden exert meaningful pressure on the warring parties to end the violence.
Additionally, becoming the first president to sign a war powers resolution into law will help Biden prevent similar future catastrophes by recognizing the constitutional role of Congress in decisions to go to war. It will set a powerful precedent, deterring presidents from using military force without congressional debate and an affirmative vote to approve such action.
Rep. Ro Khanna of California recently expressed support for this idea, saying, “I believe that’s something we should do right in January and have President Biden sign that War Powers Resolution. He has indicated a willingness to do that. That would be an incredible signal.”
Secondly, Biden should immediately reverse the Trump administration’s decision to suspend tens of millions in humanitarian aid funds to northern Yemen, and work to expand funding to address malnutrition and disease there. He must pressure Saudi Arabia and the UAE to meet and expand their humanitarian funding pledges for Yemen.
Lastly, to end this war as soon as possible, the Biden administration must work with the United Nations to bring about a political settlement to the conflict. His administration must double down on the diplomacy needed to bring the warring parties to a ceasefire, end the blockade and create a lasting peace that includes all parts of Yemeni society. Biden must also oppose any designation of the Houthis as a “foreign terrorist organization,” as the Trump administration has threatened, as it would not only impede the delivery of humanitarian aid, but also make peace negotiations nearly impossible.
Six years of unimaginable human suffering is more than enough. Yemen can’t wait any longer. With urgency, President Biden must fulfill his promise to cut support for the war and prevent Yemen from plunging further into famine. By working with Congress, the United Nations, U.S. allies, regional and local actors, and representatives of Yemeni civil society — especially women — Biden can help all sides find the road to peace in Yemen.
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truthout--2020-12-05--Water Protectors Launch Direct Action Against Enbridge Pipeline in Minnesota

Indigenous-led water protectors on Friday engaged in multiple direct actions against Enbridge ’ s highly controversial Line 3 tar sands pipeline in Minnesota , on the same day that state regulators denied a request from two tribes to stop the Canadian company from proceeding with the project .
Water protectors blocked pipeline traffic and climbed and occupied trees as part of Friday ’ s actions .
Urging other Indigenous peoples and allies to “ take a stand , ” the Anishinaabe activists at one of the protests told other Native Americans that “ your ancestors are here too.
” “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , our Mother Earth is crying out for the warriors to rise again , ” they said .
“ Strong hearts to the front !
” In a statement , Line 3 Media Collective said that the pipeline “ violates the treaty rights of Anishinaabe peoples by endangering critical natural resources in the 1854 , 1855 , and 1867 treaty areas , where the Ojibwe have the right to hunt , fish , gather medicinal plants , harvest wild rice , and preserve sacred sites.
” “ The state of Minnesota does not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be impacted by construction and spills , ” the group added .
“ Last week , the Red Lake Band of Chippewa and the White Earth Band petitioned the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to pause its approval of Line 3 construction while challenges to the permits are considered by the Minnesota Court of Appeals.
” On Friday , the MPUC voted 4-1 to reject the tribes ’ request .
According to the Washington Post , the commissioners said that further delays would hurt workers who had traveled to northern Minnesota .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s designation of the project as “ critical ” during the coronavirus pandemic .
On Thursday , the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe ( MCT ) appealed directly to Walz : Indian people have lived along the lakes , rivers , and streams of northern Minnesota since time immemorial .
The people of the MCT have flourished in the area for centuries due to the careful conservation of our resources .
Clean water and unpolluted land capable of providing sustenance is essential to our survival… [ and ] Line 3 poses an existential threat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the water protectors ’ latest act of resistance come just two days after construction began on the $ 2.9 billion , 1,100-mile extension .
According to Indigenous-led environmental group Honor the Earth , the pipeline will have the daily capacity to transport 760,000 barrels of tar sands oil—known as the world ’ s dirtiest fuel—from Alberta , Canada to a port in Superior , Wisconsin .
Stop Line 3 says the pipeline will run “ through untouched wetlands and the treaty territory of Anishinaabe peoples.
” “ We have the right to practice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Scout member Taysha Martineau , one of the Indigenous leaders at the Friday action .
“ We ask you to bear witness and protect our right to do so .
”

State regulators had denied a request from two tribes to stop the Canadian company from proceeding with the project.
Indigenous-led water protectors on Friday engaged in multiple direct actions against Enbridge’s highly controversial Line 3 tar sands pipeline in Minnesota, on the same day that state regulators denied a request from two tribes to stop the Canadian company from proceeding with the project.
Water protectors blocked pipeline traffic and climbed and occupied trees as part of Friday’s actions. Urging other Indigenous peoples and allies to “take a stand,” the Anishinaabe activists at one of the protests told other Native Americans that “your ancestors are here too.”
“Take a moment to speak to her, our Mother Earth is crying out for the warriors to rise again,” they said. “Strong hearts to the front!”
In a statement, Line 3 Media Collective said that the pipeline “violates the treaty rights of Anishinaabe peoples by endangering critical natural resources in the 1854, 1855, and 1867 treaty areas, where the Ojibwe have the right to hunt, fish, gather medicinal plants, harvest wild rice, and preserve sacred sites.”
Become a part of our movement to #StopLine3! https://t.co/25nGfGtxPI — Resist Line 3 (@ResistLine3) December 4, 2020
BREAKING: Two water protectors in trees block Enbridge from constructing a Line 3 drill pad under the Mississippi River! Active logging of the forest next to the Mississippi has stopped. For love of Mother Earth ✊🏽❤#StopLine3 #PrayersIntoAction pic.twitter.com/to7uoXLINd — giniw collective (@GiniwCollective) December 4, 2020
“The state of Minnesota does not have the consent of many tribes that will be impacted by construction and spills,” the group added. “Last week, the Red Lake Band of Chippewa and the White Earth Band petitioned the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to pause its approval of Line 3 construction while challenges to the permits are considered by the Minnesota Court of Appeals.”
On Friday, the MPUC voted 4-1 to reject the tribes’ request. According to the Washington Post, the commissioners said that further delays would hurt workers who had traveled to northern Minnesota. They also cited Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s designation of the project as “critical” during the coronavirus pandemic.
MN Chippewa Tribe comprised of 6-Bands sends an appeal letter to @GovTimWalz urging his administration to #StopLine3 to protect our water, lands and future babies of the #7Generations. "Clean water and unpolluted land capable of providing sustenance is essential to
our survival." pic.twitter.com/6S858lW7FK — Honor the Earth (@HonorTheEarth) December 4, 2020
On Thursday, the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe (MCT) appealed directly to Walz:
Indian people have lived along the lakes, rivers, and streams of northern Minnesota since time immemorial. The people of the MCT have flourished in the area for centuries due to the careful conservation of our resources. Clean water and unpolluted land capable of providing sustenance is essential to our survival… [and] Line 3 poses an existential threat to our well-being.
The vote and the water protectors’ latest act of resistance come just two days after construction began on the $2.9 billion, 1,100-mile extension.
According to Indigenous-led environmental group Honor the Earth, the pipeline will have the daily capacity to transport 760,000 barrels of tar sands oil—known as the world’s dirtiest fuel—from Alberta, Canada to a port in Superior, Wisconsin. Stop Line 3 says the pipeline will run “through untouched wetlands and the treaty territory of Anishinaabe peoples.”
“We have the right to practice our treaty rights,” stressed Gitchigumi Scout member Taysha Martineau, one of the Indigenous leaders at the Friday action. “We ask you to bear witness and protect our right to do so.”
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.