buzzfeed--2020-04-25--The Coronavirus Pandemic Has Put Gen Z And Young Millennials' Lives On Hold

During our lifetimes , the US has always felt like it was in crisis .
I talked with nine young millennials and Gen Z ’ ers about what the coronavirus pandemic means for their futures .
Gia W. realized things weren ’ t going well when she was kicked out of an office in the middle of a job interview .
The entire building was shutting down because of the coronavirus pandemic .
That surreal experience is just the literal version of what thousands and thousands in Gen Z are experiencing in real time : a sudden stop to their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Companies across the United States are starting to rescind job offers , cancel listings , and cut costs to figure out how to weather a financial crisis .
The recent graduate worries that even the work she is doing — for a small marketing firm — may start to run out as other companies rethink budgets .
“ I ’ m scared that I might end up unemployed and living in my parents ’ basement , which is where I ’ m calling you from right now , ” Gia told me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if no one could have predicted the coronavirus pandemic , America ’ s college students and early twentysomethings somehow aren ’ t surprised .
We were mostly toddlers and small children on September 11 .
Many of our first full memories of national news concern the 2008 financial crisis , the housing market collapse , and the subsequent recession that left many of our young parents in financial nightmares that stalled them for years .
Now , we find ourselves in a once-in-a-century pandemic and an unprecedented economic crisis .
I ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reporting on young Americans like myself and what ’ s shaped their political ideology .
Most have few to no memories of the US before 9/11 , unlike millennials and other older generations .
The country has always felt like it was in a free fall — adrift with a government that they think lacks the imagination and willingness to address the problems that they ’ ll be handed long into their futures .
In New Hampshire , students told me they were so anxious about their futures and climate change that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advocate for candidates and the Green New Deal .
Students at HBCUs across Atlanta told me they were nervous about which candidate would become the Democratic Party ’ s presidential nominee because they wanted to see drastic changes .
“ I don ’ t want the next 20 years to look like the previous 20 years , ” a student at Morehouse explained .
“ I don ’ t believe that just moving 2 feet is enough — [ to paraphrase ] Malcolm X , if there ’ s a knife in my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deep and you take it out 6 inches , you haven ’ t done anything to help me , really.
” A year ago , two teenagers who had launched a pseudo-ironic , pseudo-sincere presidential campaign for Mike Gravel — an old-school , 89-year-old leftist — told me as much .
“ Millennials and Gen Z have grown up in a country where there ’ s no hope and it ’ s incredibly difficult to do better than your parents , ” one said .
“ We are a generation of people who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we ’ ve seen endless wars , and we grew up in the middle of the financial crisis .
How much faith do you expect us to have in that kind of politics ?
” And that was all before the COVID-19 pandemic hit .
Since the illnesses began and the economic loss started to be felt , I ’ ve interviewed nine young millennials and members of Gen Z across drastically different backgrounds — regionally , socioeconomically , and in their upbringings .
Their concerns have metastasized into existential dread , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ generation whose adulthoods could be picked apart and reshaped by a job market that could be far worse than the one that picked apart and reshaped their childhoods .
During our lifetimes , the country has always felt like it was in crisis or teetering on the edge of another : an endless sinking feeling that begins when you realize just how severe the situation might turn out to be — climate change , gun violence , debt .
You get the sense there ’ s no turning back to the world you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first — a 30,000-foot view of the circumstances and how you think they ’ ll play out coming into focus ; you start to see the pieces of a puzzle you desperately don ’ t want to fit together begin to form .
You ’ re free-falling into a version of the future you didn ’ t want .
That sinking , weightless feeling is what it ’ s felt like , for the most part , to be alive for the past 20 years .
Susana Simmonds , 21 , remembers when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Orleans after they immigrated to the United States in 2001 .
They would drive the hour from Baton Rouge for visits to the Venezuelan consulate for visa paperwork .
After Hurricane Katrina wrecked the city , however , they didn ’ t go for about a year .
When they finally did , she said , she realized the disparities in the government ’ s response to Americans in crisis .
“ There were still houses that were literally upside down , ” Simmonds recalled .
“ I remember it all seeming like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lot of people that needed help and I was wondering , ‘ When is someone going to do something ?
’ It ’ s weird to recognize when you ’ re 7 or 8 years old.
” Now a senior at the University of Texas at Austin , Simmonds said that she hasn ’ t fully trusted the government to protect citizens since then — something that deepened as she watched her friends who lived in Houston suffer after Hurricane Harvey in 2017 .
She ’ s concerned that the same slow-moving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ response to the pandemic as she looks back at the lengthy recovery efforts it took for her neighbors and friends whose homes were washed away or flooded .
She ’ s worried that her entrance into graduate school and her ability to work in labs on campus may be delayed if there ’ s not enough action taken to push the country toward recovery .
“ I ’ m worried that I may just be stuck in limbo , ” Simmonds said .
That worry was echoed by everyone I ’ ve spoken @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recent decisions ( a planned move or a new school ) , to the increased burden of responsibility they may need to take on ( to help parents or siblings ) , to the physical limitations of being stuck in one place ( back in their hometowns or far away ) .
“ It leaves you scared and wondering , Did I make the right choice ?
” Stephanie Preising , 24 , told me .
Preising is supposed to move from Connecticut to upstate New York for her doctorate program in plant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s a first-generation college student who immigrated to the United States from Peru in 2000 and now she ’ s worried that her fixed salary from her PhD program won ’ t cover any expenses her family might have if they lose their jobs during the recession .
She said her family started to fret in mid-March about their income .
Would her dad , a school custodian in Connecticut , still be paid when schools closed ?
“ We all sat around the other morning and looked at each other and said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ check , ’ ” Preising said .
“ What happens when the money stops rolling in ?
” The 2008 financial crisis derailed her parents ’ dreams , said Preising , who was around 12 at the time .
“ I saw them take any and every job they could to keep us from going completely bankrupt and to keep our apartment and car — unfortunately , that didn ’ t work out.
” Her parents tried to hide those circumstances from their children , but she and her siblings knew .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ something ’ s wrong , ” Preising said .
“ I saw my parents go into major debt , I saw them working 50 to 60 hours a week , and I never want to see them struggle like that again.
” Regalado is the first member of his undocumented family to attend college — at Sacramento State University — and he ’ s spent his time mentoring students of color through a program with AmeriCorps .
Now , he ’ s weighing his options : continue that work or find a job @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s concerned the program might run out of funding — or he might need to support family members , who aren ’ t able to continue working their off-the-books jobs , which are already in decline as the country sits at home under a soft lockdown .
There will be no economic relief for a majority of Regalado ’ s family because they won ’ t qualify for the assistance , safety net programs , or coronavirus stimulus checks .
They live on the margins of American society .
Regalado has begun to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the table at his home .
“ I just wanted to put my whole family on , ” Regalado said about being the first in his family to attend college and his hope that his degree would place him in a better position to find a job that would provide some economic stability .
“ I ’ m fortunate right now because I can still work and serve the students over FaceTime right now.
” But he ’ s constantly thinking : Is the new job he was hoping to get after graduation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to sign another lease in Sacramento to maintain the job he has now ?
Should he just quit and go work at a grocery store ?
“ I have to go where the pay is and it ’ s difficult right now.
” He ’ s never really trusted the government to assist his family , pointing to his constant anxiety around ICE raids , which he ’ s worried about since roughly 2012 , when he was 15 — that was when he began to realize the implications they could have for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how worried people became when news spread that immigration officers were doing “ roundups.
” Regalado told me that a potential ICE raid would push him toward playing a bigger role in providing economic stability for his family if anyone were to be deported .
“ Just who we are , as brown people , we ’ re often overlooked and singled out when it comes to situations like this.
” “ We ’ re good right now , ” he reiterated , “ but my top priority is making sure food is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to go to the front lines to do that , to work at a grocery store or something else , then I ’ ll do that .
I don ’ t want to but I will.
” For Téa Franco , it was watching her own parents struggle when she was a child during the recession that made her realize that she would need to be realistic about her dreams — and instilled in her the belief that the government wasn ’ t doing enough to support its citizens .
When the recession @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his promotion at work , then she watched her parents fail to keep their family home .
She ’ s now a senior at Winthrop University in South Carolina and plans on attending graduate school in the fall .
But her views are still shaped by what happened in those childhood years , and how the financial industry hurt her parents .
Franco said that before the financial crisis , her parents had been convinced to take out a mortgage for a home that they couldn ’ t actually afford .
She pointed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the government wasn ’ t doing enough to protect citizens and when she began to realize that things were starting to look bleak for many families across the country .
“ They got a bunch of vulnerable people to pay more for houses than they could really afford , and my parents were some of those vulnerable people , ” Franco said .
“ They had bought a new house and we thought everything was going well and it turned out that it was a house that they couldn ’ t actually @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lost our house , too .
“ 2008 was not a great time for the Franco family.
” Even before then , Franco ’ s family had never really had an excessive amount of money .
She ’ d thought that it was just something that her family had dealt with .
“ 2008 was the first time that I was conscious of the fact that things weren ’ t going well for a lot of people , ” Franco said .
“ That was the first time I realized that this was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that this wasn ’ t our fault — it was partially the government ’ s fault for not protecting people .
These bad things are happening to my friends and my family and there was nothing I could do about it.
” Her parents raised her to believe she could do whatever she wanted , but in the years since that crisis , she ’ s approached things differently .
“ It was around that same time when I started to leave my big dreams behind , and I started to think , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ realistic choice ?
What ’ s going to help me make sure that I don ’ t lose my job like my parents did when I get older ?
” “ I just remember feeling like there was something different , ” Sumaya Lohia , a 21-year-old biomedical engineering student , recalled about her family ’ s financial decisions during the 2008 crisis .
“ When we lived in California , my family was considering buying houses and then all of a sudden we were like , Oh !
Well , maybe not.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ working at a Frito-Lay plant in an engineering role after graduation , says the uncertainty of the job market because of the pandemic has made her uncertain about the future .
While the plant has said they still plan on hiring new workers , she ’ s worried that “ anything could happen.
” She ’ s still unsure about her decisions but she ’ s started to weigh the pros and cons of attending graduate school to weather the coming financial crisis ; she ’ s frustrated that the government 's response @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an entire generation of Americans in a precarious situation .
“ I ’ ve always felt like I ’ ve had to look over my shoulder to see what ’ s coming next , and it ’ s frustrating , ” Lohia said .
“ Watching how the government has handled this pandemic so far has made me frustrated .
There are people out there who know what the right course of action is and they ’ re just not willing to listen or take some advice.
” What many of the people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the stasis of the Great Recession years : Americans moved less often because there were fewer job opportunities to move for ; they were less likely to purchase homes , have children , or require different housing needs at the start of the crisis .
They remember the stories from people they know , and the broader coverage : For a decade , people have written about older millennials permanently affected by the Great Recession .
It ’ s not a promising sign for the early twentysomethings now .
They ’ re worried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same position .
“ Do I take a job at a grocery store just to have a job ?
What happens if I end up stuck there because I never have enough to get out of this area ?
” Rachel Feagley , a recent 24-year-old college graduate from central Pennsylvania , told me about her current outlook .
“ It ’ s just a waterfall of bad situations.
” She ’ d read the stories about people who got stuck , underemployed , after the 2008 recession and continued to hear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It took them years to progress toward their goals .
“ I ’ m scared that the same thing might happen to me .
I don ’ t want that.
” Feagley graduated from college two years ago with a degree in wildlife conservation , but she ’ s always been planning her escape from Huntingdon , a small town an hour away from Penn State .
“ There ’ s not a lot of opportunities here naturally , ” Feagley said .
“ The factories are shutting down , main street @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always been in my head that if I want to get ahead I need to leave.
” She did leave to attend college in upstate New York — but after her first year there , a family issue brought her back home to Pennsylvania .
In 2018 , she graduated from Juniata College in her hometown .
“ I tried to leave and then I got sucked right back in , ” Feagley said .
During her senior year , she started applying for environmental volunteering opportunities with the Peace Corps , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mexico .
Her move was abrupt — Feagley said that she was on a plane just two weeks after her graduation — and that it “ just felt right.
” She spent nearly two years there cultivating a relationship with her host family and fell in love with the country , and she didn ’ t plan on returning to the United States after she finished her service .
In mid-March , 22 months into her 27-month mission , Feagley was notified that she and more than 7,000 other volunteers around the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States with only two days to pack , say their goodbyes , and figure out what they ’ d be doing back in the US once they landed .
Members of her family are immunocompromised , so she had to self-quarantine .
She spent her first two weeks — and her 24th birthday — alone in a half-furnished apartment figuring out her next moves .
Would she have health insurance after the three months that Peace Corps volunteers are typically offered when completing their service ?
Would she even qualify for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( As of now , she won ’ t be able to file for unemployment because people who serve in the Peace Corps are considered volunteers , not employees . )
“ I feel very alone and very unsure , and that ’ s not a great combination for trying to reenter a country that you don ’ t know , ” Feagley said .
“ This isn ’ t the United States that I left two years ago .
I feel so out of touch with what ’ s happening here.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about where she might be able to eventually find work .
That ’ s also caused problems .
She ’ s trying to get a car so she can get a job — but dealerships are mostly shut down , and she ’ s struggled to find a notary for a private sale .
“ I ’ m essentially stuck in my town that has a grocery store and a few pharmacies right now and they pay maybe 10 or 13 dollars right now , ” Feagley explained .
“ I don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the future seems very bleak right now .
I ’ m not seeing that ending soon and it only adds to my hopelessness.
” “ I ’ m 24 , you know , I had dreams bigger than where I grew up , ” Feagley said looking back at the reality of the past month .
“ When I finally got a taste for them … now I ’ m back .
My biggest fear right now is getting stuck in a job to get by and taking a while to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , my former colleague Ben Smith wrote a story reflecting on his experience coming of age as a young reporter in a changing Eastern Europe in the early ’ 00s .
The “ brutal human consequences of politics felt foreign to someone raised on the verities of the American 1990s , the minor dramas and major victories of the Clinton presidency , ” he wrote about the assumed repercussions of a line of reporting he ’ d chased down .
It ’ s a sentence that captivated me and that has lingered in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ve talked to young people across the country who feel like they ’ ve always been experiencing the human consequences of politics and government inaction in the 2000s and 2010s .
One of my earliest memories of America is from September 2001 .
I was one of the first students dismissed from my first-grade classroom in Queens , where I saw the frantic look in a group of parents ’ eyes staring up at me through the bright , red mesh stairs .
I had that panicked feeling a second time in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first home in South Carolina to a subprime mortgage , and again in 2005 , while I watched footage of New Orleanians standing on their roofs waving for help , and again in 2007 when the housing bubble burst , and again when my parents lost jobs and worried about money throughout the financial crisis .
I felt it again in 2012 , when I saw the first reports of the Sandy Hook school shooting , and in 2014 when photos of Michael Brown lying in the street started appearing on Twitter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into a church in Charleston , and murdered nine parishioners .
Onward and onward from that summer : police shootings , increasingly dire warnings about climate change , the mass shootings , and the public displays of white nationalism .
After graduating from college and getting a job in the field I ’ d dreamed about , the sinking feeling went away .
But as I was talking to students and other twentysomethings , I realized my own experience isn ’ t very different from most of theirs .
That widely felt experience @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the US , or at least part of it : Nearly all of the young Americans I ’ ve spoken with said they were pushed leftward politically by the circumstances they saw people endure over the course of their lives and the harshness of the future that they were going to inherit from older generations .
Gia — whose job interview got cut short by a building closure — supported Sen. Bernie Sanders during this year ’ s Democratic primary .
She said she was radicalized politically by her upbringing in Detroit during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ severe toll on the city ’ s auto industry workers .
She said that her neighborhood became a wasteland of empty homes and “ for sale ” signs .
“ I saw so many people whose only options were to abandon their homes and leave and run — and these were full families who had no safety net , no one to take care of them , nothing to fall back on and their only option left was to abandon their lives , ” she said .
Her patriotism was severely diminished .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ illusion .
I don ’ t see how older generations can be so patriotic , because when you ’ re in a time of need , your government has not been there for you.
” Gia sees parallels to 2008–09 now as she watches the country respond to the growing crisis around the pandemic and the dire economic downturn affecting millions of American families .
“ We can see that now more than ever with no one having access to health care and they ’ re pulling out all of these socialist measures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is having a meltdown right now , ” she said .
“ It ’ s similar to what happened in 2008 with all of the bailouts , and I feel like we shouldn ’ t have to rely on capitalism and business to take care of us.
” Somewhat at odds , the people I spoke with are both tired of waiting on politicians to figure things out after the fact and want a vastly more robust government .
“ It feels like there are so many things that are out of our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that we as a generation are constantly being shaped by these forces that don ’ t understand us and don ’ t want to understand us , ” Jennifer West , a senior at Dartmouth University , told me .
West , a history major , had planned to take a year off after graduating to work before applying to graduate school or law school .
She ’ s heard from friends who have been through monthslong recruitment processes for jobs that have now been postponed or outright canceled .
She ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who haven ’ t started that search will find few to no job opportunities to apply for — especially for those who won ’ t qualify for stimulus benefits or those whose parents lose their jobs , and what that might mean for their health insurance .
“ This has brought to light a lot of the issues that people have known about for a very long time but that haven ’ t always been visible .
Things like rampant inequality , things like a need for everyone in the country to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impossible demand of paying rent while having a minimum wage job , ” West said .
“ It ’ s not necessarily that we want to place our trust in government , ” she added .
“ It ’ s that we ’ re starting to demand a higher standard than what we ’ re getting right now.
” Hailey Modi , a 21-year-old biomedical engineering student at UT Austin , agrees .
Modi told me that after the 2016 election — the first event that had genuinely shocked her — she turned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had gone wrong .
It was the only political outlook that had made sense to her as she tried to figure out how the country should address disparities .
“ Our whole lives , these structures have failed us and we are looking for political stances outside the mainstream — because we feel like we don ’ t have time to solve these issues like income inequality and climate change .
Incremental change isn ’ t going to get us there in time to prevent — this is dramatic , but it feels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
It ’ s a sentiment I ’ ve heard across races , states , and socioeconomic status — like Bernie Sanders said recently , his movement was winning “ ideologically ” and “ generationally.
” “ The future of our country rests with young people , ” he said .
“ The future of the country is with our ideas.
” The widespread support for Sanders also intermingles the humor and nihilism of a generation of Americans who want to push the government to do more but have no hope in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ There are times where I ’ m like , well , no matter what we do things are never going to get better , ” Franco , the college senior in South Carolina , told me .
“ I was kind of feeling that way a couple weeks ago when Bernie Sanders started losing a bunch of the primary elections and it was clear that Joe Biden was going to be the nominee .
That was a point where I was like , ‘ Well , we can vote , we can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calls and protest , and nothing will really change.
” “ My mind goes there sometimes , ” she added .
“ But then I look back at past revolutions and how long they took and how many people had to get together and agree on something over and over and over again and how resilient and persistent they had to be to get there.
” Look around the internet and you ’ ll find signs of a generation fed up with the circumstances of their lives .
You ’ ll find viral @ @ @ @ @ @ @ teenage years ” were “ defined by economic recession ” and whose young adulthoods are being defined by “ reactionary global fascism and then ultimately cut short by a global pandemic.
” You ’ ll come across bits and pieces of videos of Greta Thunberg , a 17-year-old international climate activist , objectively dragging adults for their inaction on climate change ; or a clip of Paul Rudd emphatically saying “ Hey !
Look at us !
Who woulda thought ?
Not me !
” under a caption about experiencing two “ once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ You might stumble on a clip of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Instagram Live telling people to message their elected officials ' offices while casually giving out tips for making margaritas .
“ They want to continue to get away with doing far too little , and in this moment there is no such thing as doing too much , ” she says as she casually pours triple sec and lime juice into a NutriBullet blender .
“ I mean , honestly , have you ever had a point in your life when the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Where they gave you too much ?
Never happened to me !
I ’ ve never seen that in my life.
” The generation of Americans who have come of age in the shadow of 9/11 and spent their formative years watching their parents , relatives , and friends ’ parents suffer during the economic crisis have long felt that the government isn ’ t doing enough to help citizens .
In a recent Pew research study , 70 % of Gen Z ’ ers and 64 % of millennials surveyed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ should do more to solve problems .
“ It feels like something honestly happens every five years or so that negatively affects this generation and millennials who remember 9/11 a lot better , ” Gia W. told me .
“ School shootings , financial meltdowns , crises — all of those things have impacted the way I think about [ how ] life is going to work out for me.
” “ I think it ’ s affected the way that most of our generation thinks about their lives , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ future-oriented , and I think a lot of it has to do with going through these detrimental situations like the environment and the last election .
Our generation feels like we ’ re not being taken care of and that nobody really cares about what happens to us , and we ’ ve kind of just come to terms with the fact that we probably won ’ t have a good outlook for the future.
” Modi also believes that younger Americans , like Generation Z , have grown up in a society @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some form of crisis .
It ’ s pushed them further left as they try to find solutions to make society equitable .
“ I ’ ve noticed that in slightly older generations like millennials that there was some hope , but that was taken away through 9/11 and throughout the 2008 recession , ” Modi said .
“ For Gen Z , that hope was never there .
“ We grew up in a world where things have already gone terribly wrong and our lives are just preparing for the worst .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to believe in candidates because I ’ ve grown up in this world where everything is going wrong all of the time.
” ●

Gia W. realized things weren’t going well when she was kicked out of an office in the middle of a job interview. The entire building was shutting down because of the coronavirus pandemic.
That surreal experience is just the literal version of what thousands and thousands in Gen Z are experiencing in real time: a sudden stop to their lives just when they’re beginning.
Companies across the United States are starting to rescind job offers, cancel listings, and cut costs to figure out how to weather a financial crisis. The recent graduate worries that even the work she is doing — for a small marketing firm — may start to run out as other companies rethink budgets.
“I’m scared that I might end up unemployed and living in my parents’ basement, which is where I’m calling you from right now,” Gia told me over an early-morning phone call.
Even if no one could have predicted the coronavirus pandemic, America’s college students and early twentysomethings somehow aren’t surprised. We were mostly toddlers and small children on September 11. Many of our first full memories of national news concern the 2008 financial crisis, the housing market collapse, and the subsequent recession that left many of our young parents in financial nightmares that stalled them for years.
Now, we find ourselves in a once-in-a-century pandemic and an unprecedented economic crisis.
I’ve spent much of the last two years reporting on young Americans like myself and what’s shaped their political ideology. Most have few to no memories of the US before 9/11, unlike millennials and other older generations. The country has always felt like it was in a free fall — adrift with a government that they think lacks the imagination and willingness to address the problems that they’ll be handed long into their futures.
In New Hampshire, students told me they were so anxious about their futures and climate change that they were putting their education on pause to advocate for candidates and the Green New Deal. Students at HBCUs across Atlanta told me they were nervous about which candidate would become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee because they wanted to see drastic changes.
“I don’t want the next 20 years to look like the previous 20 years,” a student at Morehouse explained. “I don’t believe that just moving 2 feet is enough — [to paraphrase] Malcolm X, if there’s a knife in my back and it’s 9 inches deep and you take it out 6 inches, you haven’t done anything to help me, really.”
A year ago, two teenagers who had launched a pseudo-ironic, pseudo-sincere presidential campaign for Mike Gravel — an old-school, 89-year-old leftist — told me as much. “Millennials and Gen Z have grown up in a country where there’s no hope and it’s incredibly difficult to do better than your parents,” one said. “We are a generation of people who were not even conscious before 9/11, we’ve seen endless wars, and we grew up in the middle of the financial crisis. How much faith do you expect us to have in that kind of politics?”
And that was all before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since the illnesses began and the economic loss started to be felt, I’ve interviewed nine young millennials and members of Gen Z across drastically different backgrounds — regionally, socioeconomically, and in their upbringings. Their concerns have metastasized into existential dread, and further radicalized the political views of a generation whose adulthoods could be picked apart and reshaped by a job market that could be far worse than the one that picked apart and reshaped their childhoods.
During our lifetimes, the country has always felt like it was in crisis or teetering on the edge of another: an endless sinking feeling that begins when you realize just how severe the situation might turn out to be — climate change, gun violence, debt. You get the sense there’s no turning back to the world you knew prior.
It eases on at first — a 30,000-foot view of the circumstances and how you think they’ll play out coming into focus; you start to see the pieces of a puzzle you desperately don’t want to fit together begin to form. You’re free-falling into a version of the future you didn’t want. That sinking, weightless feeling is what it’s felt like, for the most part, to be alive for the past 20 years.


buzzfeed--2020-04-26--Republicans May Undermine Mail-In Voting Just By Running Down The Clock

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President Donald Trump urged Republicans to “ fight very hard ” against mail-in elections during the coronavirus pandemic — but the party ’ s most effective tactic to impede absentee voting may be just quietly running down the clock .
The handful of American vendors that sell mail-in election equipment told BuzzFeed News they have been flooded with phone calls this month @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surge of requests for absentee ballots .
More Americans than ever are expected to try voting from home in the general election , particularly after seeing crowds at polling sites during Wisconsin ’ s primary , which health officials have now linked to 19 new infections of COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
Yet the companies can ’ t sell the thing election officials need most : time .
“ I would call it an emergency situation , ” said Carl Amacker , whose company , BlueCrest , makes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail ballots and processes them once they ’ re returned .
BlueCrest currently supplies vote-by-mail systems to counties around the United States , yet like others leaders in the industry , it can ’ t expand those systems overnight .
“ Counties need to act very , very quickly , ” Amacker told BuzzFeed News , explaining that it can take months to build and install mail-in election systems .
“ The problem is we are going to run out of time.
” Despite many inquiries in recent weeks , there are “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” added Jeff Ellington , president of Runbeck Election Services , which makes envelope sorters , prints mail-in ballots , and develops software to manage mail-in elections .
“ Every day they waffle on the decision , the harder it ’ s going to be to pull it off in time , ” he told BuzzFeed News .
“ The capacity is there right now , but the longer the decisions are delayed , the fewer and fewer options that will exist for states.
” The emerging consensus among industry leaders and election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for November — particularly in large jurisdictions that haven ’ t processed a huge number of absentee ballots in the past — could require making commitments in the next few weeks .
Smaller counties , with just a few thousand voters , could accommodate more mail-in ballots without many changes .
Getting ready for a big spike in mail-in ballots can involve months of preparation : In addition to building new machinery , the mere act of printing ballots is complex , as neighbors can be in different legislative districts , so ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entail constructing multilayer security envelopes , assigning each envelope a barcode for tracking , and installing computer systems to help verify voter signatures upon return .
Delaware Election Commissioner Anthony Albence , a Democrat , said in a phone call with reporters this month that he ’ s “ preparing for what we anticipate will be an increase of absentee voting , ” adding , “ We are going to have to shift our model to acquire additional scanners and printers.
” But decisions from many state and county election boards are frozen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ money trickles down slowly , and additional federal election relief is stuck in political limbo .
“ We can pound our fist on the table and say they need to order today , ” said Steven Sockwell , the vice president of Hart InterCivic , which provides scanners , software , and other voting services for mail-in elections .
“ The reality is there are a lot of customers who can ’ t move yet because their bosses are saying , ‘ Let ’ s see what happens with the federal funding , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ call .
“ There ’ s not a ton of orders yet , but there are a ton of quotes we ’ ve issued .
Right now everyone is in a wait-and-see mode.
” The Nov. 3 election may feel distant , but there are unanswerable questions about when , and where , it will be safe again for Americans to cluster in groups to vote .
If local election offices get inundated with absentee ballot requests , and they ’ re incapable of mailing out and counting ballots within in timeframes set @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could result in disenfranchised voters , uncertainty , and lawsuits in a fraught presidential race and other elections across the country .
“ The counties were already preparing for record numbers of people to vote in person , ” Amacker said .
“ Now they ’ re preparing for record numbers voting by mail.
” “ If the counties aren ’ t installed with the automated equipment and don ’ t have people trained , and testing completed , by the middle of September , you ’ ve missed the window for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It can take about eight weeks or more to produce big equipment , such as the envelope sorters the size of a bedroom , and some production has already ramped up .
“ These are relatively complicated pieces of machinery , ” Amacker continued .
“ If by mid-May your equipment isn ’ t ordered and processed , it will be a challenge.
” It ’ s impossible to predict how many more people will vote by mail in November , however , partly because the rules are changing by the week .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ request mail-in ballot , known as no-fault absentee voting , though court challenges could change that .
In Texas , a judge ruled on April 17 that any voter can cite the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason to vote absentee — though Texas Republicans may appeal the case and court orders could come down to the wire .
A lawsuit in South Carolina also seeks to expand no-fault absentee voting .
In contrast , in New York , Gov .
Andrew Cuomo announced plans this week to mail absentee ballots to every voter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — a move that the state Republican Party claimed was unconstitutional .
More lawsuits , court rulings , legislative changes , and executive orders on who can vote absentee are all but guaranteed to become the norm between now and the fall — the question is if absentee voting is substantially expanded and voters request it , can local officials keep up ?

President Donald Trump urged Republicans to “fight very hard” against mail-in elections during the coronavirus pandemic — but the party’s most effective tactic to impede absentee voting may be just quietly running down the clock.
The handful of American vendors that sell mail-in election equipment told BuzzFeed News they have been flooded with phone calls this month from local election officials who anticipate a surge of requests for absentee ballots. More Americans than ever are expected to try voting from home in the general election, particularly after seeing crowds at polling sites during Wisconsin’s primary, which health officials have now linked to 19 new infections of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Yet the companies can’t sell the thing election officials need most: time.
“I would call it an emergency situation,” said Carl Amacker, whose company, BlueCrest, makes Relia-Vote, a system that handles outbound mail ballots and processes them once they’re returned.
BlueCrest currently supplies vote-by-mail systems to counties around the United States, yet like other leaders in the industry, it can’t expand those systems overnight. “Counties need to act very, very quickly,” Amacker told BuzzFeed News, explaining that it can take months to build and install mail-in election systems. “The problem is we are going to run out of time.”
Despite many inquiries in recent weeks, there are “not a lot of orders yet,” added Jeff Ellington, president of Runbeck Election Services, which makes envelope sorters, prints mail-in ballots, and develops software to manage mail-in elections.
“Every day they waffle on the decision, the harder it’s going to be to pull it off in time,” he told BuzzFeed News. “The capacity is there right now, but the longer the decisions are delayed, the fewer and fewer options that will exist for states.”
The emerging consensus among industry leaders and election experts is that expanding voting by mail for November — particularly in large jurisdictions that haven’t processed a huge number of absentee ballots in the past — could require making commitments in the next few weeks. Smaller counties, with just a few thousand voters, could accommodate more mail-in ballots without many changes.
Getting ready for a big spike in mail-in ballots can involve months of preparation: In addition to building new machinery, the mere act of printing ballots is complex, as neighbors can be in different legislative districts, so ballots have numerous variations. Mail-in elections also entail constructing multilayer security envelopes, assigning each envelope a barcode for tracking, and installing computer systems to help verify voter signatures upon return.
Delaware Election Commissioner Anthony Albence, a Democrat, said in a phone call with reporters this month that he’s “preparing for what we anticipate will be an increase of absentee voting,” adding, “We are going to have to shift our model to acquire additional scanners and printers.”
But decisions from many state and county election boards are frozen as Congress's first batch of emergency money trickles down slowly, and additional federal election relief is stuck in political limbo.
“We can pound our fist on the table and say they need to order today,” said Steven Sockwell, the vice president of Hart InterCivic, which provides scanners, software, and other voting services for mail-in elections.
“The reality is there are a lot of customers who can’t move yet because their bosses are saying, ‘Let’s see what happens with the federal funding,’” he said in a phone call. “There’s not a ton of orders yet, but there are a ton of quotes we’ve issued. Right now everyone is in a wait-and-see mode.”
The Nov. 3 election may feel distant, but there are unanswerable questions about when, and where, it will be safe again for Americans to cluster in groups to vote.
If local election offices get inundated with absentee ballot requests, and they’re incapable of mailing out and counting ballots within in timeframes set by state laws, the missed deadlines could result in disenfranchised voters, uncertainty, and lawsuits in a fraught presidential race and other elections across the country.
“The counties were already preparing for record numbers of people to vote in person,” Amacker said. “Now they’re preparing for record numbers voting by mail.”
“If the counties aren’t installed with the automated equipment and don’t have people trained, and testing completed, by the middle of September, you’ve missed the window for the November election,” he added.
It can take about eight weeks or more to produce big equipment, such as the envelope sorters the size of a bedroom, and some production has already ramped up. “These are relatively complicated pieces of machinery,” Amacker continued. “If by mid-May your equipment isn’t ordered and processed, it will be a challenge.”
It’s impossible to predict how many more people will vote by mail in November, however, partly because the rules are changing by the week. Seventeen states allow any registered voter to request a mail-in ballot, known as no-fault absentee voting, though court challenges could change that.
In Texas, a judge ruled on April 17 that any voter can cite the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason to vote absentee — though Texas Republicans may appeal the case and court orders could come down to the wire. A lawsuit in South Carolina also seeks to expand no-fault absentee voting. In contrast, in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced plans this week to mail absentee ballots to every voter who requests one for the June primary — a move that the state Republican Party claimed was unconstitutional.
More lawsuits, court rulings, legislative changes, and executive orders on who can vote absentee are all but guaranteed to become the norm between now and the fall — the question is if absentee voting is substantially expanded and voters request it, can local officials keep up?


buzzfeed--2020-04-28--Native American Tribes Won't Have To Share Coronavirus Relief Money With Native Corporations, A Judg

Native American Tribes Won't Have To Share Coronavirus Relief Money With Native Corporations, A Judge Ruled

People line up to get tested for COVID-19 in Oljato-Monument Valley , Utah , April 16 .
The Navajo Nation has one of the highest per capita COVID-19 infection rates in the country .
BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration can not distribute coronavirus relief money intended to help Native American communities respond to the coronavirus pandemic to certain for-profit Native corporations , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It 's the first loss in court for the government over how administration officials are managing the billions of dollars that Congress approved in the Coronavirus Aid , Relief , and Economic Security ( CARES ) Act .
Dozens of tribal governments raced to court in the past two weeks to challenge the Treasury Department 's decision to make Alaska Native Corporations ( ANCs ) eligible for $ 8 billion in funding set aside to benefit Native American tribes .
The tribal governments that sued argued that they stood to lose out on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to share the pool with ANCs .
The ANCs , established by a 1971 law governing how Alaska Natives manage and benefit from their land , have shareholders — primarily members of Native American tribes — and boards of directors , and they serve as holding companies for businesses that range from construction and pipeline maintenance to janitorial and food services .
There are 574 federally recognized Native American tribes and 237 ANCs across Alaska , according to court papers .
Tribal governments argued they needed the money to deliver services to communities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ caused by the novel coronavirus , including providing health care , buying personal protective equipment , and delivering meals to the elderly and children .
They asked the court to enter an immediate injunction since the Treasury Department was set to begin sending the money as early as April 28 .
US District Judge Amit Mehta , who heard arguments last week , agreed with the tribal governments that ANCs did n't qualify as the type of `` tribal government '' that Congress referenced in approving the relief money .
Under the definition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ relied on in the CARES Act , the judge wrote , a tribal government had to be eligible for special programs provided by the US government to Native Americans , and it had to be formally recognized by the US government as the governing body of a tribe .
The ANCs do n't fall into those categories , he wrote .
Mehta noted that Congress put the language about funding for tribal governments in a section of the CARES Act dealing with other `` governments , '' including states , the District of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Virgin Islands , Guam , the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , and American Samoa .
`` Reading the CARES Act to allow the Secretary to disburse Title V dollars to for-profit corporations does not jibe with the Title ’ s general purpose of funding the emergency needs of 'governments , ' '' he wrote .
“ The Chehalis Tribe is pleased that the court saw what was obvious to many of us .
Corporations have no place taking dollars that were allocated for tribal governments , period !
” said Harry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tribe , one of the tribal governments that sued .
“ This ruling will ensure that tribes and tribal members will reap the intended benefits that Congress envisioned in the CARES Act .
This ruling will help tribal governments to lead in the aid and recovery of their people.
” The administration and an ANC that filed a friend-of-court brief argued that the corporations were in a position to deliver services to communities , even if they did n't have the same government-to-government relationship that federally recognized tribes do with the US government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offered any evidence that ANCs are actually providing public services during the pandemic , however .
Mehta also rejected the administration 's argument that the court should n't get involved in the case at all .
The judge wrote that federal courts had a role to play in resolving disputes over how agencies interpret laws passed by Congress — in this case , what exactly Congress meant by using the term `` tribal government . ''
He also did n't accept the government 's argument that the fact that the money was intended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court could n't intervene .
`` Thus , while the Secretary ’ s decisions as to how much to disburse might not be reviewable , his decisions concerning to whom to disburse those funds most certainly is , '' Mehta wrote , adding in a footnote that he was n't saying a court could n't review how much money the Treasury Department paid out in the future , either .
Although the judge blocked the administration from sending relief money to the corporations , he did not order the government to distribute the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ federally recognized tribes .
The government could award money to ANCs and hold onto it until the legal fight is over ; the judge entered a preliminary injunction on Monday , which is not a final order .
The Treasury Department and Justice Department did not immediately return requests for comment .

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration cannot distribute coronavirus relief money intended to help Native American communities respond to the coronavirus pandemic to certain for-profit Native corporations, a federal judge ruled Monday evening.
It's the first loss in court for the government over how administration officials are managing the billions of dollars that Congress approved in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Dozens of tribal governments raced to court in the past two weeks to challenge the Treasury Department's decision to make Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) eligible for $8 billion in funding set aside to benefit Native American tribes.
The tribal governments that sued argued that they stood to lose out on potentially millions of dollars if they had to share the pool with ANCs. The ANCs, established by a 1971 law governing how Alaska Natives manage and benefit from their land, have shareholders — primarily members of Native American tribes — and boards of directors, and they serve as holding companies for businesses that range from construction and pipeline maintenance to janitorial and food services. There are 574 federally recognized Native American tribes and 237 ANCs across Alaska, according to court papers.
Tribal governments argued they needed the money to deliver services to communities hit hard by COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, including providing health care, buying personal protective equipment, and delivering meals to the elderly and children. They asked the court to enter an immediate injunction since the Treasury Department was set to begin sending the money as early as April 28.
US District Judge Amit Mehta, who heard arguments last week, agreed with the tribal governments that ANCs didn't qualify as the type of "tribal government" that Congress referenced in approving the relief money. Under the definition of "tribal government" that Congress relied on in the CARES Act, the judge wrote, a tribal government had to be eligible for special programs provided by the US government to Native Americans, and it had to be formally recognized by the US government as the governing body of a tribe. The ANCs don't fall into those categories, he wrote.
Mehta noted that Congress put the language about funding for tribal governments in a section of the CARES Act dealing with other "governments," including states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa.
"Reading the CARES Act to allow the Secretary to disburse Title V dollars to for-profit corporations does not jibe with the Title’s general purpose of funding the emergency needs of 'governments,'" he wrote.
“The Chehalis Tribe is pleased that the court saw what was obvious to many of us. Corporations have no place taking dollars that were allocated for tribal governments, period!” said Harry Pickernell, senior chair of the Chehalis Tribe, one of the tribal governments that sued. “This ruling will ensure that tribes and tribal members will reap the intended benefits that Congress envisioned in the CARES Act. This ruling will help tribal governments to lead in the aid and recovery of their people.”
The administration and an ANC that filed a friend-of-court brief argued that the corporations were in a position to deliver services to communities, even if they didn't have the same government-to-government relationship that federally recognized tribes do with the US government. Mehta wrote that no one had offered any evidence that ANCs are actually providing public services during the pandemic, however.
Mehta also rejected the administration's argument that the court shouldn't get involved in the case at all. The judge wrote that federal courts had a role to play in resolving disputes over how agencies interpret laws passed by Congress — in this case, what exactly Congress meant by using the term "tribal government." He also didn't accept the government's argument that the fact that the money was intended as "emergency" relief meant the court couldn't intervene.
"Thus, while the Secretary’s decisions as to how much to disburse might not be reviewable, his decisions concerning to whom to disburse those funds most certainly is," Mehta wrote, adding in a footnote that he wasn't saying a court couldn't review how much money the Treasury Department paid out in the future, either.
Although the judge blocked the administration from sending relief money to the corporations, he did not order the government to distribute the entire $8 billion pool to the federally recognized tribes. The government could award money to ANCs and hold onto it until the legal fight is over; the judge entered a preliminary injunction on Monday, which is not a final order.
The Treasury Department and Justice Department did not immediately return requests for comment.


buzzfeed--2020-04-27--Republicans Tried To Defund A Major Obamacare Program. Now The Supreme Court Says The Government Has

Republicans Tried To Defund A Major Obamacare Program. Now The Supreme Court Says The Government Has To Pay Billions To Insurers.

Two people stand at the base of the US Supreme Court in Washington , DC , March 16 .
The United States government must pay health insurance companies $ 12 billion because of a Republican move to undermine the Obamacare markets , the Supreme Court ruled Monday .
The case centered around an Affordable Care Act program to shield insurance companies from risk .
Republicans opposed the program and in 2014 Congress essentially repealed it by stripping it of funding .
But in an 8–1 ruling released Monday , the court found that Congress created a legal commitment when it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ renege on by refusing to cough up the money .
“ These holdings reflect a principle as old as the Nation itself : The Government should honor its obligations , ” says the ruling written by Sonia Sotomayor .
Samuel Alito dissented , saying he would have requested supplemental briefings and rearguments next term .
The case in some ways encapsulates the last decade of the national fight over health care .
Republicans in Congress have been unable to repeal and replace the ACA , but they have taken various steps to make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in many insurers going bankrupt .
Others jacked up premiums to compensate for losses or left the markets altogether , resulting in higher costs for consumers and less competition .
The supposed trade-off was less government spending .
But with Monday ’ s ruling , the government will end up paying insurance companies anyway , long after the damage is done .
Some amount of the $ 12 billion will eventually make its way back to consumers in the form of rebates .
When the Affordable Care Act passed no one knew how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new rules such as mandating insurers to cover people with preexisting conditions .
So the law created a three-year program called `` risk corridors '' to limit the risk of companies taking part in the new Obamacare marketplaces .
If an insurance company priced its plans too low and lost money , the government would cover the losses after a certain point .
Conversely , if an insurer made money it had to pay its profits to the government after a certain point .
The goal was to provide stability in the early @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the markets .
Most insurers underestimated costs and suffered losses .
In 2014 , the first year of the program , profitable insurers paid the government $ 362 million while the government owed unprofitable plans $ 2.87 billion , a net loss of $ 2.5 billion .
Net losses totaled $ 5.5 billion the following year and $ 4 billion in the third and final year of the program .
Sens .
Marco Rubio and Jeff Sessions were among the Republicans leading the charge against the risk corridor program .
Rubio , at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nomination , described risk corridors as a taxpayer-funded bailout for the insurance industry .
Republicans succeeded in cutting off funding for risk corridors .
The program could only pay out the money it took in , meaning insurers received pennies on the dollar from what they were owed .
The industry sued .
The Supreme Court found that the ACA ’ s language — the government “ shall ” make the risk insurance payments — created a legal obligation that Congress can not undo by failing to appropriate funds .
The risk corridor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ battles involving the ACA .
There are several lawsuits working their way through the courts over the Trump administration ’ s canceling of another program to backstop insurance plans .
Most prominently , Republican-led states are suing to have the entire ACA thrown out .
The Trump administration is supporting them .
The Supreme Court will hear that case later this year .

The United States government must pay health insurance companies $12 billion because of a Republican move to undermine the Obamacare markets, the Supreme Court ruled Monday.
The case centered around an Affordable Care Act program to shield insurance companies from risk. Republicans opposed the program and in 2014 Congress essentially repealed it by stripping it of funding.
But in an 8–1 ruling released Monday, the court found that Congress created a legal commitment when it passed the ACA that Congress cannot renege on by refusing to cough up the money.
“These holdings reflect a principle as old as the Nation itself: The Government should honor its obligations,” says the ruling written by Sonia Sotomayor.
Samuel Alito dissented, saying he would have requested supplemental briefings and rearguments next term.
The case in some ways encapsulates the last decade of the national fight over health care. Republicans in Congress have been unable to repeal and replace the ACA, but they have taken various steps to make it less functional. The chaos resulted in many insurers going bankrupt. Others jacked up premiums to compensate for losses or left the markets altogether, resulting in higher costs for consumers and less competition.
The supposed trade-off was less government spending. But with Monday’s ruling, the government will end up paying insurance companies anyway, long after the damage is done. Some amount of the $12 billion will eventually make its way back to consumers in the form of rebates.
When the Affordable Care Act passed no one knew how much it would cost to cover the new rules such as mandating insurers to cover people with preexisting conditions. So the law created a three-year program called "risk corridors" to limit the risk of companies taking part in the new Obamacare marketplaces.
If an insurance company priced its plans too low and lost money, the government would cover the losses after a certain point. Conversely, if an insurer made money it had to pay its profits to the government after a certain point. The goal was to provide stability in the early days when companies were still figuring out the markets.
Most insurers underestimated costs and suffered losses. In 2014, the first year of the program, profitable insurers paid the government $362 million while the government owed unprofitable plans $2.87 billion, a net loss of $2.5 billion. Net losses totaled $5.5 billion the following year and $4 billion in the third and final year of the program.
Sens. Marco Rubio and Jeff Sessions were among the Republicans leading the charge against the risk corridor program. Rubio, at the time vying for the Republican presidential nomination, described risk corridors as a taxpayer-funded bailout for the insurance industry.
Republicans succeeded in cutting off funding for risk corridors. The program could only pay out the money it took in, meaning insurers received pennies on the dollar from what they were owed. The industry sued.
The Supreme Court found that the ACA’s language — the government “shall” make the risk insurance payments — created a legal obligation that Congress cannot undo by failing to appropriate funds.
The risk corridor saga is just one of the legal battles involving the ACA. There are several lawsuits working their way through the courts over the Trump administration’s canceling of another program to backstop insurance plans. Most prominently, Republican-led states are suing to have the entire ACA thrown out. The Trump administration is supporting them. The Supreme Court will hear that case later this year.


buzzfeed--2020-04-27--It’s Been A Decade Since The Supreme Court Ruled On Gun Rights. Kavanaugh And Other Conservative Jus

It’s Been A Decade Since The Supreme Court Ruled On Gun Rights. Kavanaugh And Other Conservative Justices Say It’s Time.

BuzzFeed News has reporters across five continents bringing you trustworthy stories about the impact of the coronavirus .
To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
WASHINGTON — The US Supreme Court on Monday decided not to rule on the latest gun rights case to come before the court , but Justice Brett Kavanaugh and other conservative justices made clear they ’ re ready to take up the Second Amendment again as soon as possible .
A majority of the court concluded Monday that a case challenging a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transportation of firearms had become moot because the city changed the law while the case was pending .
But in a separate one-page opinion , Kavanaugh wrote that he had “ concern ” that lower courts may not be applying the law correctly when it came to gun rights and that the Supreme Court should take up Second Amendment issues “ soon ” — a sentiment that will give hope to groups like the National Rifle Association , which supported Kavanaugh ’ s nomination , and worry gun control advocates who opposed him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ] Alito ’ s concern that some federal and state courts may not be properly applying Heller and McDonald , ” Kavanaugh wrote , referring to the court ’ s last big Second Amendment decisions a decade ago .
“ The Court should address that issue soon , perhaps in one of the several Second Amendment cases with petitions for certiorari now pending before the Court , ” he wrote .
Kavanaugh didn ’ t specify which cases he wanted the court to hear , but he noted that he agreed with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state and local handgun bans ; he highlighted a dissenting opinion he wrote in 2011 as a judge on the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit when he disagreed with his colleagues who upheld an assault weapons ban in Washington , DC .
On a call with reporters on Monday , gun control advocates said one major issue already teed up for the Supreme Court is whether state and local governments can ban or restrict people from carrying guns outside of their homes .
The justices have yet to decide whether @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on that issue to come up to the court .
In 2017 , a majority of justices voted against hearing a public-carry case from California ; Justice Clarence Thomas dissented , joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch , who , like Kavanaugh , was appointed by President Donald Trump .
Kavanaugh ’ s 2011 dissent in the DC assault weapons ban case represented a “ really extreme and dangerous view of the Second Amendment , ” Eric Tirschwell , managing director of gun control group Everytown Law , told reporters .
“ We would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ became the analysis that the Supreme Court adopted.
” Jason Ouimet , executive director of the NRA 's Institute for Legislative Action , the group 's lobbying arm , said in a statement that the organization would continue to press legal challenges to state gun laws .
He also said they hoped New York would pay the challengers ' legal costs .
`` The justices ’ concerns about Second Amendment infringements are real , and our membership is excited to have their rights formally vindicated before the nation ’ s highest court , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the court ’ s conservative wing ruled 5–4 in District of Columbia v. Heller that the city ’ s handgun ban was unconstitutional .
In 2010 , the court ruled in McDonald v. City of Chicago — again with a 5–4 split — that the same principles in the Heller case applied to states trying to ban handguns , too .
Since then , cities and states have passed other types of gun control laws , such as banning assault weapons and restricting public carry .
Lower courts have largely upheld these laws @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to step in when challengers petitioned the court .
When the Supreme Court declines to rule on a case , it leaves in place the ruling from the lower court .
Federal appeals courts set precedent for the regions of the country that they cover , absent a decision from the Supreme Court , which would apply nationwide .
The New York City law at issue made it illegal for residents to travel with a licensed firearm unless they were going to a shooting range in the city .
That meant residents couldn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outside of city limits .
Gun rights advocates sued , arguing that this violated the Second Amendment .
They lost at the district court and on appeal , and they petitioned the Supreme Court to intervene .
While the case was pending , however , New York changed the law to allow licensed gun owners to travel with their guns to a second home or to a shooting range outside of the city .
New York ’ s lawyers argued that meant there was no longer an issue for the justices to rule @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the case alive , arguing the updated law still violated their rights and that New York shouldn ’ t be able to avoid a Supreme Court decision on the constitutional questions by changing the law midway .
The court on Monday issued an unsigned “ per curiam ” decision declaring the case moot ; a “ per curiam ” opinion represents at least a majority of the court , but there isn ’ t a justice-by-justice breakdown .
Kavanaugh wrote separately that he agreed the case was moot .
But he also wrote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dissenting opinion that Alito issued on Monday that expressed concern with how lower courts had been ruling on gun rights in the decade since the McDonald decision .
Alito , joined by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas , wrote that he would have ruled on the merits of the New York case , disagreeing that it was moot .
He acknowledged that the challengers got most of what they wanted when the city changed the law , but wrote the court still could have ruled because there were some unresolved issues , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when traveling to one of the approved locations — to use the bathroom or get coffee , for instance .
A ruling for the challengers also might entitle them to money damages from New York , he wrote .
Alito would have ruled that the New York law was unconstitutional because the right to have a gun in the home for self-defense , as spelled out in Heller and McDonald , extended to a right to take the gun out of the home to practice safely using it .
Alito wrote that restricting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ guns placed too much of a burden on their constitutional rights .
He also wrote that New York had failed to prove its public safety rationale for the law .
“ We are told that the mode of review in this case is representative of the way Heller has been treated in the lower courts .
If that is true , there is cause for concern , ” Alito wrote .
Lawyers for New York and for the challengers did not immediately return requests for comment .

WASHINGTON — The US Supreme Court on Monday decided not to rule on the latest gun rights case to come before the court, but Justice Brett Kavanaugh and other conservative justices made clear they’re ready to take up the Second Amendment again as soon as possible.
A majority of the court concluded Monday that a case challenging a New York City law that restricted the transportation of firearms had become moot because the city changed the law while the case was pending.
But in a separate one-page opinion, Kavanaugh wrote that he had “concern” that lower courts may not be applying the law correctly when it came to gun rights and that the Supreme Court should take up Second Amendment issues “soon” — a sentiment that will give hope to groups like the National Rifle Association, which supported Kavanaugh’s nomination, and worry gun control advocates who opposed him.
“I share Justice [Samuel] Alito’s concern that some federal and state courts may not be properly applying Heller and McDonald,” Kavanaugh wrote, referring to the court’s last big Second Amendment decisions a decade ago. “The Court should address that issue soon, perhaps in one of the several Second Amendment cases with petitions for certiorari now pending before the Court,” he wrote.
Kavanaugh didn’t specify which cases he wanted the court to hear, but he noted that he agreed with the previous Supreme Court decisions that struck down state and local handgun bans; he highlighted a dissenting opinion he wrote in 2011 as a judge on the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit when he disagreed with his colleagues who upheld an assault weapons ban in Washington, DC.
On a call with reporters on Monday, gun control advocates said one major issue already teed up for the Supreme Court is whether state and local governments can ban or restrict people from carrying guns outside of their homes. The justices have yet to decide whether to hear the latest crop of cases on that issue to come up to the court. In 2017, a majority of justices voted against hearing a public-carry case from California; Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch, who, like Kavanaugh, was appointed by President Donald Trump.
Kavanaugh’s 2011 dissent in the DC assault weapons ban case represented a “really extreme and dangerous view of the Second Amendment,” Eric Tirschwell, managing director of gun control group Everytown Law, told reporters. “We would be deeply, deeply concerned if that became the analysis that the Supreme Court adopted.”
Jason Ouimet, executive director of the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, the group's lobbying arm, said in a statement that the organization would continue to press legal challenges to state gun laws. He also said they hoped New York would pay the challengers' legal costs.
"The justices’ concerns about Second Amendment infringements are real, and our membership is excited to have their rights formally vindicated before the nation’s highest court," Ouimet said.
In 2008, the court’s conservative wing ruled 5–4 in District of Columbia v. Heller that the city’s handgun ban was unconstitutional. In 2010, the court ruled in McDonald v. City of Chicago — again with a 5–4 split — that the same principles in the Heller case applied to states trying to ban handguns, too.
Since then, cities and states have passed other types of gun control laws, such as banning assault weapons and restricting public carry. Lower courts have largely upheld these laws, and the Supreme Court has declined to step in when challengers petitioned the court.
When the Supreme Court declines to rule on a case, it leaves in place the ruling from the lower court. Federal appeals courts set precedent for the regions of the country that they cover, absent a decision from the Supreme Court, which would apply nationwide.
The New York City law at issue made it illegal for residents to travel with a licensed firearm unless they were going to a shooting range in the city. That meant residents couldn’t travel with a licensed firearm outside of city limits. Gun rights advocates sued, arguing that this violated the Second Amendment. They lost at the district court and on appeal, and they petitioned the Supreme Court to intervene.
While the case was pending, however, New York changed the law to allow licensed gun owners to travel with their guns to a second home or to a shooting range outside of the city. New York’s lawyers argued that meant there was no longer an issue for the justices to rule on. The challengers tried to keep the case alive, arguing the updated law still violated their rights and that New York shouldn’t be able to avoid a Supreme Court decision on the constitutional questions by changing the law midway. The court on Monday issued an unsigned “per curiam” decision declaring the case moot; a “per curiam” opinion represents at least a majority of the court, but there isn’t a justice-by-justice breakdown.
Kavanaugh wrote separately that he agreed the case was moot. But he also wrote that he agreed with parts of a dissenting opinion that Alito issued on Monday that expressed concern with how lower courts had been ruling on gun rights in the decade since the McDonald decision.
Alito, joined by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas, wrote that he would have ruled on the merits of the New York case, disagreeing that it was moot. He acknowledged that the challengers got most of what they wanted when the city changed the law, but wrote the court still could have ruled because there were some unresolved issues, such as whether gun owners could stop when traveling to one of the approved locations — to use the bathroom or get coffee, for instance. A ruling for the challengers also might entitle them to money damages from New York, he wrote.
Alito would have ruled that the New York law was unconstitutional because the right to have a gun in the home for self-defense, as spelled out in Heller and McDonald, extended to a right to take the gun out of the home to practice safely using it. Alito wrote that restricting New Yorkers from traveling with their licensed guns placed too much of a burden on their constitutional rights. He also wrote that New York had failed to prove its public safety rationale for the law.
“We are told that the mode of review in this case is representative of the way Heller has been treated in the lower courts. If that is true, there is cause for concern,” Alito wrote.
Lawyers for New York and for the challengers did not immediately return requests for comment.


buzzfeed--2020-04-27--Republicans May Undermine Mail-In Voting Just By Running Down The Clock

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President Donald Trump urged Republicans to “ fight very hard ” against mail-in elections during the coronavirus pandemic — but the party ’ s most effective tactic to impede absentee voting may be just quietly running down the clock .
The handful of American vendors that sell mail-in election equipment told BuzzFeed News they have been flooded with phone calls this month @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surge of requests for absentee ballots .
More Americans than ever are expected to try voting from home in the general election , particularly after seeing crowds at polling sites during Wisconsin ’ s primary , which health officials have now linked to 19 new infections of COVID-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus .
Yet the companies can ’ t sell the thing election officials need most : time .
“ I would call it an emergency situation , ” said Carl Amacker , whose company , BlueCrest , makes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail ballots and processes them once they ’ re returned .
BlueCrest currently supplies vote-by-mail systems to counties around the United States , yet like other leaders in the industry , it can ’ t expand those systems overnight .
“ Counties need to act very , very quickly , ” Amacker told BuzzFeed News , explaining that it can take months to build and install mail-in election systems .
“ The problem is we are going to run out of time.
” Despite many inquiries in recent weeks , there are “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” added Jeff Ellington , president of Runbeck Election Services , which makes envelope sorters , prints mail-in ballots , and develops software to manage mail-in elections .
“ Every day they waffle on the decision , the harder it ’ s going to be to pull it off in time , ” he told BuzzFeed News .
“ The capacity is there right now , but the longer the decisions are delayed , the fewer and fewer options that will exist for states.
” The emerging consensus among industry leaders and election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for November — particularly in large jurisdictions that haven ’ t processed a huge number of absentee ballots in the past — could require making commitments in the next few weeks .
Smaller counties , with just a few thousand voters , could accommodate more mail-in ballots without many changes .
Getting ready for a big spike in mail-in ballots can involve months of preparation : In addition to building new machinery , the mere act of printing ballots is complex , as neighbors can be in different legislative districts , so ballots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entail constructing multilayer security envelopes , assigning each envelope a barcode for tracking , and installing computer systems to help verify voter signatures upon return .
Delaware Election Commissioner Anthony Albence , a Democrat , said in a phone call with reporters this month that he ’ s “ preparing for what we anticipate will be an increase of absentee voting , ” adding , “ We are going to have to shift our model to acquire additional scanners and printers.
” But decisions from many state and county election boards are frozen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ money trickles down slowly , and additional federal election relief is stuck in political limbo .
“ We can pound our fist on the table and say they need to order today , ” said Steven Sockwell , the vice president of Hart InterCivic , which provides scanners , software , and other voting services for mail-in elections .
“ The reality is there are a lot of customers who can ’ t move yet because their bosses are saying , ‘ Let ’ s see what happens with the federal funding , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ call .
“ There ’ s not a ton of orders yet , but there are a ton of quotes we ’ ve issued .
Right now everyone is in a wait-and-see mode.
” The Nov. 3 election may feel distant , but there are unanswerable questions about when , and where , it will be safe again for Americans to cluster in groups to vote .
If local election offices get inundated with absentee ballot requests , and they ’ re incapable of mailing out and counting ballots within in timeframes set @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could result in disenfranchised voters , uncertainty , and lawsuits in a fraught presidential race and other elections across the country .
“ The counties were already preparing for record numbers of people to vote in person , ” Amacker said .
“ Now they ’ re preparing for record numbers voting by mail.
” “ If the counties aren ’ t installed with the automated equipment and don ’ t have people trained , and testing completed , by the middle of September , you ’ ve missed the window for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It can take about eight weeks or more to produce big equipment , such as the envelope sorters the size of a bedroom , and some production has already ramped up .
“ These are relatively complicated pieces of machinery , ” Amacker continued .
“ If by mid-May your equipment isn ’ t ordered and processed , it will be a challenge.
” It ’ s impossible to predict how many more people will vote by mail in November , however , partly because the rules are changing by the week .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ request a mail-in ballot , known as no-fault absentee voting , though court challenges could change that .
In Texas , a judge ruled on April 17 that any voter can cite the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason to vote absentee — though Texas Republicans may appeal the case and court orders could come down to the wire .
A lawsuit in South Carolina also seeks to expand no-fault absentee voting .
In contrast , in New York , Gov .
Andrew Cuomo announced plans this week to mail absentee ballots to every @ @ @ @ @ @ @ primary — a move that the state Republican Party claimed was unconstitutional .
More lawsuits , court rulings , legislative changes , and executive orders on who can vote absentee are all but guaranteed to become the norm between now and the fall — the question is if absentee voting is substantially expanded and voters request it , can local officials keep up ?


buzzfeed--2020-04-27--The FDA Is Warning That Drugs Promoted By Trump To Treat COVID-19 Pose Serious Heart Risks

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To help keep this news free , become a member and sign up for our newsletter , Outbreak Today .
The US Food and Drug Administration on Friday warned against the widespread use of two antimalarial drugs — hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine — to prevent or treat COVID-19 , noting they could cause serious side effects including heart problems and even death .
President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the drugs as a possible treatment for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lose ?
Take it , ” Trump said at coronavirus task force press briefing on April 5 .
The FDA 's warning comes as a growing number of studies and experts have raised concerns about the effectiveness of the drugs in safely and effectively treating COVID-19 , for which there is currently no known cure .
A small clinical trial in Brazil was halted after some coronavirus patients being treated with chloroquine experienced irregular heart rates and more than a dozen died , according to a study published Friday .
`` The preliminary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ higher [ chloroquine ] dosage should not be recommended for critically ill patients with COVID-19 because of its potential safety hazards , especially when taken concurrently with azithromycin and oseltamivir , '' the researchers wrote .
In March , the FDA approved the use of the drugs as a possible COVID-19 treatment in hospitals in certain situations .
Several clinical trials are also underway to test the effectiveness of these drugs against the coronavirus .
Outside of these settings , the FDA said on Friday , the use of the medicines is inappropriate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concerned that hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are being used inappropriately to treat non-hospitalized patients for coronavirus disease ( COVID-19 ) or to prevent that disease , '' according to the drug warning .
`` These medicines have a number of side effects , including serious heart rhythm problems that can be life-threatening . ''
After reviewing cases in the FDA 's own adverse events database , published medical studies , and reports in the American Association of Poison Control Centers National Poison Data System , federal officials concluded the drugs may cause `` abnormal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heart rate , '' and pose risks when combined with other medicine used to treat COVID-19 , such as the antibiotic azithromycin .
Talk of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as miracle drugs in response to the coronavirus pandemic has caused a run on pharmacies , triggering shortages for people who rely on the drugs to treat other serious medical conditions , such as lupus .
After pushing for more rigorous study of hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus treatment , Rick Bright said he was recently removed from his role as director of the Department of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Research and Development Authority , according to the New York Times .
`` We are continuing to investigate these safety risks in patients with COVID-19 and will communicate publicly when more information is available , '' the FDA wrote .

The US Food and Drug Administration on Friday warned against the widespread use of two antimalarial drugs — hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine — to prevent or treat COVID-19, noting they could cause serious side effects including heart problems and even death.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the drugs as a possible treatment for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. "What do you have to lose? Take it,” Trump said at coronavirus task force press briefing on April 5.
The FDA's warning comes as a growing number of studies and experts have raised concerns about the effectiveness of the drugs in safely and effectively treating COVID-19, for which there is currently no known cure.
A small clinical trial in Brazil was halted after some coronavirus patients being treated with chloroquine experienced irregular heart rates and more than a dozen died, according to a study published Friday. "The preliminary findings of this study suggest that the higher [chloroquine] dosage should not be recommended for critically ill patients with COVID-19 because of its potential safety hazards, especially when taken concurrently with azithromycin and oseltamivir," the researchers wrote.
In March, the FDA approved the use of the drugs as a possible COVID-19 treatment in hospitals in certain situations. Several clinical trials are also underway to test the effectiveness of these drugs against the coronavirus. Outside of these settings, the FDA said on Friday, the use of the medicines is inappropriate and very risky.
"FDA is concerned that hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are being used inappropriately to treat non-hospitalized patients for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) or to prevent that disease," according to the drug warning. "These medicines have a number of side effects, including serious heart rhythm problems that can be life-threatening."
After reviewing cases in the FDA's own adverse events database, published medical studies, and reports in the American Association of Poison Control Centers National Poison Data System, federal officials concluded the drugs may cause "abnormal heart rhythms," "dangerously rapid heart rate," and pose risks when combined with other medicine used to treat COVID-19, such as the antibiotic azithromycin.
Talk of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as miracle drugs in response to the coronavirus pandemic has caused a run on pharmacies, triggering shortages for people who rely on the drugs to treat other serious medical conditions, such as lupus.
After pushing for more rigorous study of hydroxychloroquine as a coronavirus treatment, Rick Bright said he was recently removed from his role as director of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, according to the New York Times.
"We are continuing to investigate these safety risks in patients with COVID-19 and will communicate publicly when more information is available," the FDA wrote.


buzzfeed--2020-04-28--A Judge Sided With Native American Tribes Challenging How The Trump Administration Is Handling Coron

A Judge Sided With Native American Tribes Challenging How The Trump Administration Is Handling Coronavirus Relief Money