theintercept--2020-12-12--Trump's Ban on Foreign Workers Has Left Schools With Teacher Shortages

arrived in the Philippines in January , she was there as both an educator and a parent .
A high school principal from Rancho High School in Las Vegas , she ’ d traveled over 7,000 miles in search of qualified teachers for special education students like her son .
“ Our mentality when we ’ re there is hiring the best for all our kids , ” said Delgado , who makes this recruitment trip alongside other principals in her district each year .
“ They have to have a master ’ s degree and at least three years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them to come — if you ’ re a special ed teacher trained here in the United States , you don ’ t have to have that.
” In the United States , special education teachers are in short supply , as they are for other essential subjects like math and science .
For years , public school districts in states with low teacher pay across the country have relied on foreign workers for these hard-to-fill positions .
The Clark County School District was on track to bring more than 140 teachers , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from abroad ahead of the start of this academic year .
Two were headed to Delgado ’ s school .
But in June , President Donald Trump abruptly froze visas for temporary foreign workers , leaving teachers with pending contracts in limbo .
The administration justified the ban by declaring that it would prevent foreign workers from taking American jobs during an unemployment crisis fueled by the Covid-19 pandemic .
The move was consistent with previous efforts of White House adviser Stephen Miller — the architect behind the president ’ s anti-immigration policies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eliminate or significantly limit foreign work visas .
Administrators like Delgado were caught off-guard , as they were actively recruiting teachers and already scrambling to adapt to an academic year amid a pandemic .
It cut the number of foreign workers hired on the country ’ s most common teaching visa in half nationwide .
The ban added to the country ’ s growing teacher deficit , leaving many schools with dozens — sometimes hundreds — of unfilled positions at the start of the school year .
Those teachers would have served some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , administrators say .
“ Eighty-eight of the teachers that we had offered jobs to are special education teachers , which is a critical shortage , not only in Nevada , but nationally , ” said Jesus Jara , superintendent of the Clark County School District .
The ban on J-1 visas — the federal government ’ s largest visa program , often used as a tool to recruit laborers for hard-to-fill jobs — is in effect until December 31 and was temporarily blocked by the courts on October 1 .
The ruling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California , immediately allowed plaintiffs in the case to begin bringing foreign employees from abroad .
But by then , the damage had already been done .
Nearly six months after Trump ’ s announcement , as the end of his term approaches , some of these positions are still open .
Other vacancies have been resolved with a Band-Aid solution — through hiring long-term substitutes or unlicensed teachers .
“ When the president signed the executive order , ” said Jara , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and created vacancies in high-need areas.
” The effects of Trump ’ s visa ban reverberated through public schools around the country .
In September 2019 , the Ector County Independent School District in Odessa , Texas , of “ Friday Night Lights ” fame , had 69 teachers from the Philippines , India , Spain , and Jamaica in its classrooms .
This year , the district planned to add 43 more .
Fifteen hundred miles away in Fayetteville , North Carolina , the Cumberland County district sought to hire 78 new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Mexico , adding to its roster of more than 300 instructors hired from abroad last year .
Louisiana ’ s public schools were planning to hire 73 foreign language instructors , mostly from French-speaking countries , including France , Belgium , and Canada .
And Denver Public Schools , in Colorado ’ s capital , anticipated bringing on 13 Spanish teachers from the Iberian Peninsula .
Last year , there were 3,454 teachers hired through the J-1 visa , according to Michael J. Cavey , a spokesperson for the State Department @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As of September 2020 , when schools launched into their new academic year — many remotely or with hybrid learning — just 1,620 J-1 teachers were in U.S. classrooms .
International teachers already in the United States with existing contracts — a J-1 teaching visa is valid three to five years — were not affected by the ban .
But many new would-be teachers who had received job offers from districts across the country never made it to the United States .
And there aren ’ t enough American teachers to fill these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ low teacher pay in many districts and fewer young people entering the teaching field after graduating college , school leaders said .
“ We ’ re going to be half the semester in and not have teachers , ” said Gerald Hernandez Jr. , principal of E.E .
Miller Elementary School in Cumberland County , North Carolina , which still had two vacancies for Spanish instruction when the school opened its doors in September .
“ We don ’ t have the pool of candidates in North Carolina to fill the positions , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ someone.
” The proclamation was met with resistance from Congress , including Rep. Dana Titus , a former educator and Democrat from Nevada , whose children attend the Clark County School District .
“ These teachers aren ’ t competing with people who want these jobs ; they ’ re filling jobs that are empty , that nobody ’ s taken , that we need , ” Titus told The Intercept .
“ In the meantime , you ’ ve got children who are falling behind , especially those with special needs.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the president asking that exemptions be made for foreign teachers in Las Vegas .
“ They ’ re letting in health care workers from foreign countries , but not teachers , ” said Titus .
“ It just doesn ’ t make any sense.
” In Louisiana , officials were flabbergasted by the proclamation .
The state , which considers French a “ heritage language , ” relies on foreign teachers to run classrooms in French-immersion public schools .
At the time of the announcement , they had already recruited 73 teachers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and head classrooms of some 2,000 students combined .
“ As soon as that proclamation came out , it was immediately clear that this was a huge issue for us in that those J-1 visas are absolutely the ones that we rely on for the teachers who come to work in the French-immersion system across the state , ” said Matt Mick , communications officer of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana , or CODOFIL , a state agency under the Office of Cultural Development .
Since students were already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic , administrators were concerned about the potential for even a slight delay in native French immersion .
“ When you add that on top , you ’ re looking at a pretty , pretty significant impact , ” Mick said .
CODOFIL lobbied the Departments of State , Homeland Security , and Labor for an exception to the ban .
The exception was granted in July because of CODOFIL ’ s existing exchange programs under a bilateral agreement with the French government to bring in workers under the J-1 program .
When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been granted a similar exception , a State Department spokesperson said that “ districts other than Louisiana public schools hosted J-1 teachers between July 15 and October 1 , ” but would not specify how many exceptions were granted .
Because of the waiver , 49 French teachers and 21 Spanish teachers were granted visas and allowed to travel to Louisiana in time for the start of the school year .
Other districts that were hiring for subjects like mathematics , science , and special education were still unable to recruit from abroad @ @ @ @ @ @ @ qualified or unlicensed teachers to alleviate the gap created by the loss of this foreign teacher pipeline .
“ That ’ s the compromise I had to make , ” said Hernandez of North Carolina .
“ I ’ m not hiring a certified candidate , I ’ m hiring somebody that pretty much qualifies to be a teacher assistant.
” Joseph Uy , principal of Gwendolyn Woolley Elementary School in Clark County School District , who had traveled to the Philippines with Delgado , has filled his open positions with long-term substitutes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ however , don ’ t have the experience of the foreign teachers he planned to hire and require assistants to keep up with the needs of the students , he said .
“ I ’ m having three people do the job of one.
” Delgado knows firsthand how disruptive an inconsistency in the classroom can be for students like her son .
Before the district started recruiting teachers under the J-1 program in 2017 , her son spent several years in elementary school under instruction of a long-term substitute .
“ Obviously @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you that that ’ s a challenge for a student that has special needs , ” she said .
“ You need routines.
” The October 1 ruling reversing the ban made it possible for some districts to hire teachers that will be in U.S. classrooms by January .
But this late in the school year , bringing over enough teachers remains a challenge .
About 40 of the teachers the Clark County School District originally planned to hire declined their delayed offer to teach in the United States .
The district will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ students return from winter break , according to administrators .
“ [ The decision ] was a real blow to our public school system , ” said Jara , the school ’ s superintendent .
“ And ultimately , it ’ s negatively impacting our children .
”

When Darlin Delgado arrived in the Philippines in January, she was there as both an educator and a parent. A high school principal from Rancho High School in Las Vegas, she’d traveled over 7,000 miles in search of qualified teachers for special education students like her son.
“Our mentality when we’re there is hiring the best for all our kids,” said Delgado, who makes this recruitment trip alongside other principals in her district each year. “They have to have a master’s degree and at least three years of teaching experience in the Philippines for them to come — if you’re a special ed teacher trained here in the United States, you don’t have to have that.”
In the United States, special education teachers are in short supply, as they are for other essential subjects like math and science. For years, public school districts in states with low teacher pay across the country have relied on foreign workers for these hard-to-fill positions.
The Clark County School District was on track to bring more than 140 teachers, most of them special education instructors, from abroad ahead of the start of this academic year. Two were headed to Delgado’s school.
But in June, President Donald Trump abruptly froze visas for temporary foreign workers, leaving teachers with pending contracts in limbo. The administration justified the ban by declaring that it would prevent foreign workers from taking American jobs during an unemployment crisis fueled by the Covid-19 pandemic. The move was consistent with previous efforts of White House adviser Stephen Miller — the architect behind the president’s anti-immigration policies — who has for years sought to eliminate or significantly limit foreign work visas.
Administrators like Delgado were caught off-guard, as they were actively recruiting teachers and already scrambling to adapt to an academic year amid a pandemic. It cut the number of foreign workers hired on the country’s most common teaching visa in half nationwide. The ban added to the country’s growing teacher deficit, leaving many schools with dozens — sometimes hundreds — of unfilled positions at the start of the school year.
Those teachers would have served some of America’s most vulnerable kids, administrators say. “Eighty-eight of the teachers that we had offered jobs to are special education teachers, which is a critical shortage, not only in Nevada, but nationally,” said Jesus Jara, superintendent of the Clark County School District.
The ban on J-1 visas — the federal government’s largest visa program, often used as a tool to recruit laborers for hard-to-fill jobs — is in effect until December 31 and was temporarily blocked by the courts on October 1. The ruling, from federal Judge Jeffrey S. White at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, immediately allowed plaintiffs in the case to begin bringing foreign employees from abroad. But by then, the damage had already been done. Nearly six months after Trump’s announcement, as the end of his term approaches, some of these positions are still open. Other vacancies have been resolved with a Band-Aid solution — through hiring long-term substitutes or unlicensed teachers.
“When the president signed the executive order,” said Jara, “it really closed a teacher pipeline and created vacancies in high-need areas.”
“We Don’t Have the Candidates”
The effects of Trump’s visa ban reverberated through public schools around the country.
In September 2019, the Ector County Independent School District in Odessa, Texas, of “Friday Night Lights” fame, had 69 teachers from the Philippines, India, Spain, and Jamaica in its classrooms. This year, the district planned to add 43 more.
Fifteen hundred miles away in Fayetteville, North Carolina, the Cumberland County district sought to hire 78 new teachers from Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, and Mexico, adding to its roster of more than 300 instructors hired from abroad last year.
Louisiana’s public schools were planning to hire 73 foreign language instructors, mostly from French-speaking countries, including France, Belgium, and Canada.
And Denver Public Schools, in Colorado’s capital, anticipated bringing on 13 Spanish teachers from the Iberian Peninsula.
Read Our Complete Coverage The War on Immigrants
Last year, there were 3,454 teachers hired through the J-1 visa, according to Michael J. Cavey, a spokesperson for the State Department, which oversees the exchange program. As of September 2020, when schools launched into their new academic year — many remotely or with hybrid learning — just 1,620 J-1 teachers were in U.S. classrooms.
International teachers already in the United States with existing contracts — a J-1 teaching visa is valid three to five years — were not affected by the ban. But many new would-be teachers who had received job offers from districts across the country never made it to the United States. And there aren’t enough American teachers to fill these open jobs — a combination of increasingly low teacher pay in many districts and fewer young people entering the teaching field after graduating college, school leaders said.
“We’re going to be half the semester in and not have teachers,”said Gerald Hernandez Jr., principal of E.E. Miller Elementary School in Cumberland County, North Carolina, which still had two vacancies for Spanish instruction when the school opened its doors in September. “We don’t have the pool of candidates in North Carolina to fill the positions, so it’s difficult to find someone.”
An empty classroom at Walter Johnson Junior High School on the first day of distance learning for the Clark County School District amid the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on August 24, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Children Falling Behind
The proclamation was met with resistance from Congress, including Rep. Dana Titus, a former educator and Democrat from Nevada, whose children attend the Clark County School District.
“These teachers aren’t competing with people who want these jobs; they’re filling jobs that are empty, that nobody’s taken, that we need,” Titus told The Intercept. “In the meantime, you’ve got children who are falling behind, especially those with special needs.”
Titus’s office drafted a letter to the president asking that exemptions be made for foreign teachers in Las Vegas.
“They’re letting in health care workers from foreign countries, but not teachers,” said Titus. “It just doesn’t make any sense.”
In Louisiana, officials were flabbergasted by the proclamation. The state, which considers French a “heritage language,” relies on foreign teachers to run classrooms in French-immersion public schools. At the time of the announcement, they had already recruited 73 teachers, set to arrive later that summer and head classrooms of some 2,000 students combined.
“As soon as that proclamation came out, it was immediately clear that this was a huge issue for us in that those J-1 visas are absolutely the ones that we rely on for the teachers who come to work in the French-immersion system across the state,” said Matt Mick, communications officer of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, or CODOFIL, a state agency under the Office of Cultural Development.
Since students were already adapting to virtual learning because of the pandemic, administrators were concerned about the potential for even a slight delay in native French immersion. “When you add that on top, you’re looking at a pretty, pretty significant impact,” Mick said.
CODOFIL lobbied the Departments of State, Homeland Security, and Labor for an exception to the ban. The exception was granted in July because of CODOFIL’s existing exchange programs under a bilateral agreement with the French government to bring in workers under the J-1 program. When asked whether any other school districts had been granted a similar exception, a State Department spokesperson said that “districts other than Louisiana public schools hosted J-1 teachers between July 15 and October 1,” but would not specify how many exceptions were granted.
Because of the waiver, 49 French teachers and 21 Spanish teachers were granted visas and allowed to travel to Louisiana in time for the start of the school year. Other districts that were hiring for subjects like mathematics, science, and special education were still unable to recruit from abroad.
“Blow to Our Public School System”
Some schools opted to hire less qualified or unlicensed teachers to alleviate the gap created by the loss of this foreign teacher pipeline.
“That’s the compromise I had to make,” said Hernandez of North Carolina. “I’m not hiring a certified candidate, I’m hiring somebody that pretty much qualifies to be a teacher assistant.”
Joseph Uy, principal of Gwendolyn Woolley Elementary School in Clark County School District, who had traveled to the Philippines with Delgado, has filled his open positions with long-term substitutes in the past. These teachers, however, don’t have the experience of the foreign teachers he planned to hire and require assistants to keep up with the needs of the students, he said. “I’m having three people do the job of one.”
Delgado knows firsthand how disruptive an inconsistency in the classroom can be for students like her son. Before the district started recruiting teachers under the J-1 program in 2017, her son spent several years in elementary school under instruction of a long-term substitute. “Obviously as a parent, I can tell you that that’s a challenge for a student that has special needs,” she said. “You need routines.”
The October 1 ruling reversing the ban made it possible for some districts to hire teachers that will be in U.S. classrooms by January.
But this late in the school year, bringing over enough teachers remains a challenge. About 40 of the teachers the Clark County School District originally planned to hire declined their delayed offer to teach in the United States.
The district will still have more than 150 vacancies when students return from winter break, according to administrators.
“[The decision] was a real blow to our public school system,” said Jara, the school’s superintendent. “And ultimately, it’s negatively impacting our children.”


theintercept--2020-12-12--France's Macron Is Ramping Up a Clash of Civilizations — but Will It Stop Terrorism?

French President Emmanuel Macron was best known internationally for being the target of bright yellow-vested protesters , thousands of whom took to the streets for months to vent anger at domestic misgovernance .
Lately , though , Macron has become more famous for something else : taking up the banner of the clash of civilizations .
With France on edge owing to a slew of terror attacks , most recently a pair of gruesome killings within a few days of each other in mid-October , Macron has arguably fanned , rather than quelled , the flames of unrest .
His @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in France over its Muslim population — the largest in Europe — and the terror threat seems less about directly stopping terrorist attacks than turning a security issue into a culture war , as well as galvanizing support for France ’ s growing geopolitical rivalry with Turkey .
“ There are human rights issues and an issue of racism in France , and at the same time there is a terrorist threat in France .
We can ’ t oppose one to the other , ” said Marwan Muhammad , the former director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a civil rights organization focused on discrimination against French Muslims .
“ The government has been consistently failing to address the terrorist threat from the standpoint of security and criminality .
When they fail on that front , they need to find a political scapegoat .
For them , that would be the Muslim community.
” Macron ’ s decision to make fighting Islamism and reviving the glory days of European empire has been popular with some Europeans looking for assertive leadership .
But it risks doing something else : turning a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ France faces into an unwieldy , grand project .
It ’ s unclear that Macron can actually carry out his mission successfully — which may very well do more harm than good .
began in mid-October , not long after Macron ’ s high-profile sojourn to France ’ s former Lebanese protectorate .
After returning , Macron delivered a provocative speech about the crisis of Islam that quickly went viral around the world .
In short order , events seemed to conspire to underline his point .
All of Europe , not just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a history teacher , Samuel Paty , by an 18-year-old Chechen refugee angered over rumors that Paty had displayed disparaging images of the Prophet Mohammed to his class .
Days later , an extremist went on a stabbing rampage in the southern city of Nice , killing three people in a church .
In the wake of national tragedy , a level of sympathy and solidarity should be expected .
But following the attacks , the global response very quickly moved to criticizing France .
This was at least in part due @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government , which responded to the attacks by projecting the cartoons on public buildings , arresting four 10-year-old children , and launching an indiscriminate crackdown on French Muslim political organizations that had nothing to do with the killings .
Protests and calls to boycott French products spread around the world , while the initial context of the killings was drowned out in a tidal wave of anger and mutual incomprehension .
Within a few weeks Macron himself was calling up the New York Times to complain about perceived bias in American news coverage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ racism in French society by the media was “ legitimizing ” violence .
An article on the Financial Times website that had irked Macron was pulled down after he submitted a letter of complaint , while a similar article about French secularism in Politico was terminated after editors post-facto decided it didn ’ t meet editorial standards .
The irony of Macron ’ s campaign to suppress speech critical of his government has not escaped notice .
“ Racism and double standards can not be challenged by caving in to those who wish @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blaspheme , ” wrote Guardian columnist Kenan Malik in a pointed column remarking on Macron ’ s ironic censorship campaign .
“ Nor can free speech be bolstered , or terrorism contained , by ignoring double standards , racist bigotry and the illiberalism of much of Macron ’ s policies.
” The debate was in line with a growing international discourse about free speech and integration , but it failed to address the root problems that gave rise to terrorism in France .
that France doesn ’ t face a serious terrorist threat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ citizens , including many French Muslims , have been killed in extremist attacks linked to groups like Al Qaeda and the Islamic State .
Macron ’ s reaction , seemingly assigning collective blame for the atrocities , has suggested that France ’ s sloganeering about liberty would not extend to its Muslim population , including the vast majority who have been equally horrified by the attacks as the rest of their compatriots .
A more targeted approach focusing on problems in France — treating it as an organized crime problem rather than a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the global media — might also would yield more obvious results .
Take France ’ s Fiche S , or “ S File , ” security watchlist .
The French government has thousands of individuals on security watchlists , such as Fiche S , which track extremists , including many alleged Islamic radicals .
Many people have found themselves on this list for spurious reasons and had their lives disrupted as a result .
These injustices aside , the list also fails from a security standpoint : The criteria for inclusion on such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ becomes ineffective as a tool for finding actual terrorists .
Rather than finding individuals prone to violence , particularly people with criminal histories like French terrorists often have , the government approach has inclined toward viewing piety as a precursor to violence .
“ There are too many false positives in part because the government idea of radicalization is too extensive , ” said Muhammad , of the Collective Against Islamophobia .
“ If having a beard or attending prayers is considered a sign of radicalization , resources are going to be wasted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ missing a lot of gangsters and criminals.
” Then there is the fiery rhetoric .
In addition to Macron ’ s own recent statements , some of which he has sought to clarify or backtrack from , his voluble Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has generated alarm about what is actually happening in France .
Not long ago , Darmanin was best known for facing serious for sexual assault allegations .
Now he has become better known for his provocative comments about French Muslims .
He has expressed shock over seeing religiously certified food @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terminology to describe sections of society as descending into savagery .
The interior minister has also stated that the government has been carrying out raids on individuals and groups unrelated to the attacks to “ send a message.
” This sort of indiscriminate tough talk may resonate with the ideological far-right and even some ordinary people reeling in the aftermath of collective trauma , but it ’ s also contributed to the same global media backlash that has so irritated Macron .
In the white-hot atmosphere following the attacks , his own disastrous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about the country .
A proposal to extend ID numbers to all French school children as a means of tracking attendance was misinterpreted internationally as a plan to spy on French Muslim children , an unhelpful misconception shared by social media users that quickly spread around the world .
“ The whole affair was interpreted as : The French Government is going to assign an ID number to Muslim students to track them — which is absolutely untrue , ” said Rim-Sarah Alouane , a French legal scholar and Ph.D. candidate in comparative @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ On a legal level this would never pass .
Data on religion , race or ethnicity in France are strictly illegal , with some very regulated exceptions for academic research .
But the horrific comments from the government regarding French Muslims , and the ensuing debates , led to this unfortunate confusion.
” Several actions already taken by the French government have been extreme enough without the need for embellishment .
In recent weeks , the government moved to liquidate many French Muslim civil society organizations and charities , including the Collective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secular political group created to fight discrimination .
In response to government threats , the collective announced that it had relocated its operations out of the country .
At the same time , the government began taking steps to create a state-approved French Muslim civil society under its control .
Given Macron ’ s apparent sensitivity to criticism , it ’ s unlikely that these new organizations will be empowered to provide substantive feedback to government policy like the Collective Against Islamophobia and others have done .
a stereotypically polarizing figure across Europe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hand , he ’ s been demonized as a racist chauvinist at war with a helpless minority .
On the other , he is being celebrated as a warrior against political correctness , unafraid to call out the real problems in society and who is allegedly causing them — in this case , poorly integrated French Muslims and their “ Islamic separatism.
” Amid all this , Macron has also been in the news almost constantly with abortive plans to reconstitute the French empire in the Middle East and revive the era of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the case , the more you narrow the aperture , the more complex things start to appear .
While Macron is clearly interested in taking strong positions on the great issues of world history , there are also the more prosaic , perhaps boring , questions of administering the economic , political , and security needs of the country .
On those counts , Macron has appeared less inspiring .
Before he rebranded as a global warrior of the Enlightenment against religious obscurantism , Macron ’ s biggest problem was dealing with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to raise gas taxes .
Even before the recent terrorist attacks — which , at the end of the day , his security agencies failed to prevent — Macron ’ s pivot to culture war over Islam seemed curiously timed for a country reeling from a public health and economic crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic .
When the French government proposed a new security law that would restrict the filming of police officers , people poured into the street .
In the wake of this outrage , Macron appears to be walking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to shutter nongovernmental Muslim groups and legislate official ones , though , Macron is pressing forward with his plan — and an uprising does not seem to be in the offing .
That the two would-be related efforts are linked , but garner drastically different responses , is not lost on everyone .
And few see any hope for dealing with the security situation through a civil society crackdown on French Muslims or a grand project of religious reformation .
Macron is now pushing ahead with what he calls a “ draft law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a global outcry over his comments about Islamic separatism .
Some of the measures aim at outlawing common cultural practices among some conservative Muslims that are generally unpopular in France .
Experts , though , say that such measures focusing on culture over security are unlikely to stop attacks like the ones that hit the country this fall .
“ It baffles me that right now almost no one is talking about what the intelligence services were doing before this attack and why they didn ’ t catch the assailant beforehand , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ counterterrorism and associate professor in international relations at Leiden University in the Netherlands , commenting on the terrorist attacks and the government response .
“ We still need to see what kind of law comes out of the parliamentary process in the end , but my sense is that the new measures are unlikely to prevent terrorism .
”

In recent years, French President Emmanuel Macron was best known internationally for being the target of bright yellow-vested protesters, thousands of whom took to the streets for months to vent anger at domestic misgovernance. Lately, though, Macron has become more famous for something else: taking up the banner of the clash of civilizations.
With France on edge owing to a slew of terror attacks, most recently a pair of gruesome killings within a few days of each other in mid-October, Macron has arguably fanned, rather than quelled, the flames of unrest. His highly touted response to the growing tensions in France over its Muslim population — the largest in Europe — and the terror threat seems less about directly stopping terrorist attacks than turning a security issue into a culture war, as well as galvanizing support for France’s growing geopolitical rivalry with Turkey.
“They need to find a political scapegoat. For them, that would be the Muslim community.”
“There are human rights issues and an issue of racism in France, and at the same time there is a terrorist threat in France. We can’t oppose one to the other,” said Marwan Muhammad, the former director of the Collective Against Islamophobia in France, a civil rights organization focused on discrimination against French Muslims. “The government has been consistently failing to address the terrorist threat from the standpoint of security and criminality. When they fail on that front, they need to find a political scapegoat. For them, that would be the Muslim community.”
Macron’s decision to make fighting Islamism and reviving the glory days of European empire has been popular with some Europeans looking for assertive leadership. But it risks doing something else: turning a manageable domestic security problem with terrorism that France faces into an unwieldy, grand project. It’s unclear that Macron can actually carry out his mission successfully — which may very well do more harm than good.
Police officers walk past cartoons of French satirical weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo projected onto the Hotel de Region’s facade in Montpellier on Oct. 21, 2020, during a national homage to French teacher Samuel Paty. Photo: Pascal Guyot/AFP/Getty Images
The latest turn began in mid-October, not long after Macron’s high-profile sojourn to France’s former Lebanese protectorate. After returning, Macron delivered a provocative speech about the crisis of Islam that quickly went viral around the world. In short order, events seemed to conspire to underline his point. All of Europe, not just France, was jarred by the beheading of a history teacher, Samuel Paty, by an 18-year-old Chechen refugee angered over rumors that Paty had displayed disparaging images of the Prophet Mohammed to his class. Days later, an extremist went on a stabbing rampage in the southern city of Nice, killing three people in a church.
In the wake of national tragedy, a level of sympathy and solidarity should be expected. But following the attacks, the global response very quickly moved to criticizing France. This was at least in part due to disastrous public relations by the French government, which responded to the attacks by projecting the cartoons on public buildings, arresting four 10-year-old children, and launching an indiscriminate crackdown on French Muslim political organizations that had nothing to do with the killings. Protests and calls to boycott French products spread around the world, while the initial context of the killings was drowned out in a tidal wave of anger and mutual incomprehension.
Within a few weeks Macron himself was calling up the New York Times to complain about perceived bias in American news coverage, claiming that an alleged over-focus on racism in French society by the media was “legitimizing” violence. An article on the Financial Times website that had irked Macron was pulled down after he submitted a letter of complaint, while a similar article about French secularism in Politico was terminated after editors post-facto decided it didn’t meet editorial standards.
The irony of Macron’s campaign to suppress speech critical of his government has not escaped notice. “Racism and double standards cannot be challenged by caving in to those who wish to restrict speech or the right to blaspheme,” wrote Guardian columnist Kenan Malik in a pointed piece remarking on Macron’s ironic censorship campaign. “Nor can free speech be bolstered, or terrorism contained, by ignoring double standards, racist bigotry and the illiberalism of much of Macron’s policies.”
The debate was in line with a growing international discourse about free speech and integration, but it failed to address the root problems that gave rise to terrorism in France.
Few would argue that France doesn’t face a serious terrorist threat. Since 2015, hundreds of French citizens, including many French Muslims, have been killed in extremist attacks linked to groups like Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. Macron’s reaction, seemingly assigning collective blame for the atrocities, has suggested that France’s sloganeering about liberty would not extend to its Muslim population, including the vast majority who have been as equally horrified by the attacks as the rest of their compatriots.
A more targeted approach focusing on problems in France — treating it as an organized crime problem rather than a sectarian conflict with half the planet and the global media — would yield more obvious results.
Take France’s Fiche S, or “S File,” security watchlist. The French government has thousands of individuals categorized as Fiche S, which tracks extremists, including many alleged Islamic radicals. Many people have found themselves on this list for spurious reasons and had their lives disrupted as a result.
These injustices aside, the list also fails from a security standpoint: The criteria for inclusion on such lists are often so broad that they become ineffective as a tool for finding actual terrorists. Rather than finding individuals prone to violence, particularly people with criminal histories like French terrorists often have, the government approach has inclined toward viewing piety as a precursor to violence.
“There are too many false positives in part because the government idea of radicalization is too extensive,” said Muhammad, of the Collective Against Islamophobia. “If having a beard or attending prayers is considered a sign of radicalization, resources are going to be wasted surveilling a lot of ordinary Muslims while missing a lot of gangsters and criminals.”
People gather in Nantes, France, on Oct. 18, 2020, to pay homage to Samuel Paty, a history teacher at the College du Bois d’Aulne in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, who was beheaded by an Islamist terrorist of Chechen origin. Photo: Estelle Ruiz/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Then there is the fiery rhetoric. In addition to Macron’s own recent statements, some of which he has sought to clarify or backtrack from, his voluble Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has generated alarm about what is actually happening in France. Not long ago, Darmanin was best known for facing serious for sexual assault allegations. Now he has become better known for his provocative comments about French Muslims. He has expressed shock over seeing religiously certified food stocked in grocery stores and mainstreamed far-right terminology to describe sections of society as descending into savagery. The interior minister has also stated that the government has been carrying out raids on individuals and groups unrelated to the attacks to “send a message.”
This sort of indiscriminate tough talk may resonate with the ideological far right and even some ordinary people reeling in the aftermath of collective trauma, but it’s also contributed to the same global media backlash that has so irritated Macron. In the white-hot atmosphere following the attacks, his own disastrous government messaging encouraged even more extreme rumors about the country. A proposal to extend ID numbers to all French school children as a means of tracking attendance was misinterpreted internationally as a plan to spy on French Muslim children, an unhelpful misconception shared by social media users that quickly spread around the world.
“The horrific comments from the government regarding French Muslims, and the ensuing debates, led to this unfortunate confusion.”
“The whole affair was interpreted as: The French Government is going to assign an ID number to Muslim students to track them — which is absolutely untrue,” said Rim-Sarah Alouane, a French legal scholar and Ph.D. candidate in comparative law at University Toulouse 1 Capitole. “On a legal level this would never pass. Data on religion, race, or ethnicity in France are strictly illegal, with some very regulated exceptions for academic research. But the horrific comments from the government regarding French Muslims, and the ensuing debates, led to this unfortunate confusion.”
Several actions already taken by the French government have been extreme enough without the need for embellishment. In recent weeks, the government moved to liquidate many French Muslim civil society organizations and charities, including the Collective Against Islamophobia in France, an effectively secular political group created to fight discrimination. In response to government threats, the collective announced that it had relocated its operations out of the country.
At the same time, the government began taking steps to create a state-approved French Muslim civil society under its control. Given Macron’s apparent sensitivity to criticism, it’s unlikely that these new organizations will be empowered to provide substantive feedback to government policy like the Collective Against Islamophobia and others have done.
Left/Top: Demonstrators opposing the publication in France of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad set fire to images depicting French President Emmanuel Macron during a protest outside the French Embassy in London on Oct. 30, 2020. Right/Bottom: A demonstrator takes a picture of police officers during a protest against the bill on police images in Paris on Nov. 21, 2020. Photo: David Cliff/NurPhoto/Getty Images; Christophe Ena/AP
Macron has become a stereotypically polarizing figure across Europe and around the world. On one hand, he’s been demonized as a racist chauvinist at war with a helpless minority. On the other, he is being celebrated as a warrior against political correctness, unafraid to call out the real problems in society and who is allegedly causing them — in this case, poorly integrated French Muslims and their “Islamic separatism.” Amid all this, Macron has also been in the news almost constantly with abortive plans to reconstitute the French empire in the Middle East and revive the era of great European civilization.
As is often the case, the more you narrow the aperture, the more complex things start to appear. While Macron is clearly interested in taking strong positions on the great issues of world history, there are also the more prosaic, perhaps boring, questions of administering the economic, political, and security needs of the country. On those counts, Macron has appeared less inspiring.
“It baffles me that right now almost no one is talking about what the intelligence services were doing before this attack and why they didn’t catch the assailant beforehand.”
Before he rebranded as a global warrior of the Enlightenment against religious obscurantism, Macron’s biggest problem was dealing with a long-running protest movement triggered by a proposal to raise gas taxes. Even before the recent terrorist attacks — which, at the end of the day, his security agencies failed to prevent — Macron’s pivot to culture war over Islam seemed curiously timed for a country reeling from a public health and economic crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
When the French government proposed a new security law that would restrict the filming of police officers, people poured into the streets. In the wake of this outrage, Macron appears to be walking back the effort. On his efforts to shutter nongovernmental Muslim groups and legislate official ones, though, Macron is pressing forward with his plan — and an uprising does not seem to be in the offing. That the two would-be related efforts are linked but garner drastically different responses is not lost on everyone. And few see any hope for dealing with the security situation through a civil society crackdown on French Muslims or a grand project of religious reformation.
Macron is now pushing ahead with what he calls a “draft law to strengthen republican values,” following a global outcry over his comments about Islamic separatism. Some of the measures aim at outlawing common cultural practices among some conservative Muslims that are generally unpopular in France. Experts, though, say that such measures focusing on culture over security are unlikely to stop attacks like the ones that hit the country this fall.
“It baffles me that right now almost no one is talking about what the intelligence services were doing before this attack and why they didn’t catch the assailant beforehand,” said Francesco Ragazzi, an expert on counterterrorism and associate professor in international relations at Leiden University in the Netherlands, commenting on the terrorist attacks and the government response. “We still need to see what kind of law comes out of the parliamentary process in the end, but my sense is that the new measures are unlikely to prevent terrorism.”


theintercept--2020-12-13--Indigenous Groups Push Insurers to Abandon Fossil Fuel Projects

gas projects expand across the United States and Canada , often imperiling Indigenous land without ever obtaining consent , land defenders are increasingly pressuring the financiers of fossil fuel infrastructure — banks , insurance companies , and asset managers — to respect their sovereign land right .
Amplifying the calls of this grassroots movement , the largest organization representing American Indians and Alaskan Natives passed a historic resolution last month calling on “ private insurance companies to end their underwriting of the expansion of tar sands oil , Arctic oil and gas , and LNG export terminals.
” The resolution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of American Indians , or NCAI , also asks insurance companies to adopt policies on “ free , prior , and informed consent.
” This principle , enshrined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples , is “ really just a fancy way of saying that any corporation , any bank , any agency that wants to engage in a project that impacts Indigenous lands and treaty lands must get consent from that particular tribal nation or Indigenous community , ” said Matt Remle , who is Lakota and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ And if the community says no , that project doesn ’ t happen.
” Remle is also the co-founder of Mazaska Talks , an Indigenous-led organization focused on campaigns to divest from projects that violate human rights and treaty rights abuses , which came out of an effort that began about five years ago to defund the Dakota Access pipeline .
This movement pushed the city of Seattle to divest $ 3 billion from Wells Fargo in 2017 , one of the main backers of the pipeline , and sparked similar campaigns @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every major bank has agreed to not fund drilling in the Arctic after facing pressure from Stop the Money Pipeline , a coalition of over 130 organizations which includes Mazaska Talks .
Most Wall Street banks at least publicly acknowledge free , prior , and informed consent while still financing projects , like the tar sands pipelines , that face Indigenous-led opposition .
Yet no major U.S. insurance companies , the biggest insurers of oil and gas projects across the globe , have released publicly facing statements about Indigenous rights , let alone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and informed consent , according to Elana Sulakshana , energy finance campaigner at Rainforest Action Network .
This is , in part , why there has recently been more intense scrutiny of insurance companies ’ enablement of fossil fuel projects on Indigenous land .
The resolution ’ s passage builds on the grassroots Indigenous movements underway that have been pressuring insurance companies , as one tool among many , to defend their land .
For instance , last month , the Gwich ’ in Steering Committee wrote a letter asking insurers to not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grounds in Alaska ’ s Arctic National Wildlife refuge .
Drilling in the calving grounds threatens the migratory Porcupine caribou , which in turn “ threatens the Gwich ’ in existence and way of life.
” The letter calls upon oil and gas companies , banks , and insurance companies to “ stand with the Gwich ’ in Nation by not initiating any oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge.
” This letter was prompted by the Trump administration rushing to auction off drilling rights in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Under federal law , all agencies are required to respect Indigenous nations ’ right to self-governance , which means consulting with communities about drilling projects .
The Bureau of Land Management , the agency that administers federal land , did not engage in any form of meaningful consent , said Bernadette Demientieff , the executive director of the Gwich ’ in Steering Committee .
She noted that the agency held public meetings in only three of the nine Gwich ’ in communities in Alaska and did not hold meetings in communities accessible only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only had hearings in certain communities .
They did not have the government-to-government consultation that they ’ re supposed to , ” said Demientieff .
“ They basically came to our community and told us what they were going to do .
That was it.
” The Bureau of Land Management pushed back against the claim that it did not engage in government-to-government consultation , stating that it held more than 25 meetings “ with tribal governments with the potential to be directly affected by an oil and gas leasing program.
” The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out individually to the 22 insurance companies addressed in the public letter to request a meeting .
So far they ’ ve had one meeting in which Demientieff spoke about the environmental devastation they have been witnessing , she said , such as the erosion of the land beneath coastal villages and “ thousands and thousands of dead fish in our lakes and rivers.
” have also been seeking to meet with insurance companies .
On September 2 , the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen ’ s Association , which represents 16 tribal nations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the CEO of Liberty Mutual , urging the insurance company to “ immediately end its relationship ” with the Keystone XL pipeline .
This pipeline is expected to carry bitumen oil from Alberta ’ s tar sands into the United States in a proposed route that would violate Indigenous treaty rights and sacred sites .
Long and Liberty Mutual did not respond to requests for comment .
Liberty Mutual is providing financial backing to the Keystone XL pipeline with a publicly filed surety bond worth $ 15.6 million .
An additional $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ begins .
The company did not acknowledge the letter , so Indigenous activists delivered a petition and staged a protest on October 2 outside of Liberty Mutual headquarters in Boston , constructing a mock pipeline covered in red handprints to signify the Indigenous women who have been sexually assaulted and murdered , often in connection with fossil fuel extraction and pipeline workers moving near their homes .
On October 19 , over 40 Indigenous women signed another letter to global financiers backing the tar sands fossil fuel projects that will harm their communities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increasing the spread of Covid-19 with an influx of out-of-state workers .
“ We want insurance companies like Liberty Mutual to meet with Indigenous leaders , tribal leaders , chairmen , and presidents .
We want them to meet with grassroots people .
We want them to hear our stories , ” said Joye Braun , a signatory of the October letter , a community organizer with the Indigenous Environmental Network , and a land defender and water protector for the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines .
Fossil fuel infrastructure poses especially @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the “ Indigenous economy is everything from the land , everything that flows from the land , everything that feeds us and nourishes us , clothes us and houses us , that ’ s been able to give all of our basic human needs , ” said Kanahus Manuel , a Secwepemc land defender with the Tiny House Warriors , a movement and village of mobile tiny homes placed strategically in the path of the Trans Mountain pipeline in western Canada .
By failing to take into the harm posed to Indigenous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Manuel points out that insurance companies are also putting their own business in jeopardy .
“ It ’ s bad business to not properly know the risks associated with a project , ” said Manuel .
The pipeline ’ s largest insurer Zurich dropped the project in July 2020 , shortly after Talanx had dropped the pipeline .
Yet a number of insurers listed in the 2019-2020 certificate of insurance are still underwriting the pipeline , including Chubb , AIG , and Liberty Mutual .
Chubb and AIG declined to comment on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presented insurers with a risk assessment of the Trans Mountain pipeline , conducted by the Indigenous Network of Economies and Trade , that outlines the risks associated with Indigenous jurisdiction .
Over half the pipeline will cut through unceded Secwepemc territory , spanning 180,000 square kilometers .
The Canadian government did not seek consent from the Secwepemc , whose land defenders are prepared to stop its construction through “ any means necessary , ” according to the assessment .
“ We are the biggest risk , ” said Manuel .
“ We are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right now , just our pure presence of occupying our land and asserting our Indigenous jurisdiction and territorial authority to our lands.
” She noted that even delays in the pipeline ’ s construction pose a financial risk , which she believes insurers are failing to fully anticipate in their decision to underwrite it .
Manuel was trained to assert the right to the land by her late father , Arthur Manuel , the well-known author and Secwepemc leader .
“ He told me when you go over to the United Nations , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when you go to these international banks and insurance companies , ” Manuel said , “ you walk in like you are the owner and title holder of 180,000 square kilometers of land because you are.
” The Tsleil-Waututh Nation , whose unceded territory centers on the Burrard Inlet in southwestern British Columbia , also conducted its own risk assessment of the Trans Mountain pipeline .
The assessment concluded that oil spills are inevitable , which will undermine the Nation ’ s obligation to steward the land .
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation Sacred Trust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pipeline , reached out to all of the pipeline ’ s insurers about a year ago , according Charlene Aleck , a liaison to initiative .
No insurance companies have agreed to meet , said Aleck .
“ We ’ ve maintained that we ’ re opposed to this pipeline because it does irreparable damage , ” said Aleck .
“ We will continue to do so as long as we need water , as long as we need fresh air and a place to live .
”

As oil and gas projects expand across the United States and Canada, often imperiling Indigenous land without ever obtaining consent, land defenders are increasingly pressuring the financiers of fossil fuel infrastructure — banks, insurance companies, and asset managers — to respect their sovereign land right. Amplifying the calls of this grassroots movement, the largest organization representing American Indians and Alaskan Natives passed a historic resolution last month calling on “private insurance companies to end their underwriting of the expansion of tar sands oil, Arctic oil and gas, and LNG export terminals.”
The resolution, put forward by the National Congress of American Indians, or NCAI, also asks insurance companies to adopt policies on “free, prior, and informed consent.” This principle, enshrined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is “really just a fancy way of saying that any corporation, any bank, any agency that wants to engage in a project that impacts Indigenous lands and treaty lands must get consent from that particular tribal nation or Indigenous community,” said Matt Remle, who is Lakota and the primary author of the resolution. “And if the community says no, that project doesn’t happen.”
Remle is also the co-founder of Mazaska Talks, an Indigenous-led organization focused on campaigns to divest from projects that violate human rights and treaty rights abuses, which came out of an effort that began about five years ago to defund the Dakota Access pipeline. This movement pushed the city of Seattle to divest $3 billion from Wells Fargo in 2017, one of the main backers of the pipeline, and sparked similar campaigns throughout the country. More recently, every major bank has agreed to not fund drilling in the Arctic after facing pressure from Stop the Money Pipeline, a coalition of over 130 organizations which includes Mazaska Talks.
Most Wall Street banks at least publicly acknowledge free, prior, and informed consent while still financing projects, like the tar sands pipelines, that face Indigenous-led opposition. Yet no major U.S. insurance companies, the biggest insurers of oil and gas projects across the globe, have released publicly facing statements about Indigenous rights, let alone the principle of free, prior, and informed consent, according to Elana Sulakshana, energy finance campaigner at Rainforest Action Network. This is, in part, why there has recently been more intense scrutiny of insurance companies’ enablement of fossil fuel projects on Indigenous land.
Activists demand the city of Seattle to divest its money and banking business from Wells Fargo, over the company’s investment in the Dakota Access pipeline, in 2016. Photo: Alex Garland
The resolution’s passage builds on the grassroots Indigenous movements underway that have been pressuring insurance companies, as one tool among many, to defend their land.
For instance, last month, the Gwich’in Steering Committee wrote a letter asking insurers to not back the destruction of the sacred calving grounds in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife refuge. Drilling in the calving grounds threatens the migratory Porcupine caribou, which in turn “threatens the Gwich’in existence and way of life.” The letter calls upon oil and gas companies, banks, and insurance companies to “stand with the Gwich’in Nation by not initiating any oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge.”
This letter was prompted by the Trump administration rushing to auction off drilling rights in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration. Under federal law, all agencies are required to respect Indigenous nations’ right to self-governance, which means consulting with communities about drilling projects. The Bureau of Land Management, the agency that administers federal land, did not engage in any form of meaningful consent, said Bernadette Demientieff, the executive director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee. She noted that the agency held public meetings in only three of the nine Gwich’in communities in Alaska and did not hold meetings in communities accessible only by boat or plane.
“They only had hearings in certain communities. They did not have the government-to-government consultation that they’re supposed to,” said Demientieff. “They basically came to our community and told us what they were going to do. That was it.”
The Bureau of Land Management pushed back against the claim that it did not engage in government-to-government consultation, stating that it held more than 25 meetings “with tribal governments with the potential to be directly affected by an oil and gas leasing program.”
The Gwich’in Steering Committee also reached out individually to the 22 insurance companies addressed in the public letter to request a meeting. So far they’ve had one meeting, with Swiss Re, in which Demientieff spoke about the environmental devastation they have been witnessing, she said, such as the erosion of the land beneath coastal villages and “thousands and thousands of dead fish in our lakes and rivers.” On December 14, the committee announced that Swiss Re had committed not to “provide coverage or investment support for projects related to exploration, drilling or production of oil or gas in the Arctic, including in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.”
Other Indigenous nations have also been seeking to meet with insurance companies. On September 2, the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Association, which represents 16 tribal nations, sent a letter to David Long, the CEO of Liberty Mutual, urging the insurance company to “immediately end its relationship” with the Keystone XL pipeline. This pipeline is expected to carry bitumen oil from Alberta’s tar sands into the United States in a proposed route that would violate Indigenous treaty rights and sacred sites. Long and Liberty Mutual did not respond to requests for comment.
Liberty Mutual is providing financial backing to the Keystone XL pipeline with a publicly filed surety bond worth $15.6 million. An additional $15.6 million bond is required after construction begins.
The company did not acknowledge the letter, so Indigenous activists delivered a petition and staged a protest on October 2 outside of Liberty Mutual headquarters in Boston, constructing a mock pipeline covered in red handprints to signify the Indigenous women who have been sexually assaulted and murdered, often in connection with fossil fuel extraction and pipeline workers moving near their homes. On October 19, over 40 Indigenous women signed another letter to global financiers backing the tar sands fossil fuel projects that will harm their communities across the United States, including by increasing the spread of Covid-19 with an influx of out-of-state workers.
Left/Top: Activists in front of Liberty Mutual headquarters in Boston deliver a petition calling on the insurance company to stop supporting the Keystone XL pipeline. Right/Bottom: Eva Blake, who is Wampanoag and works at the Indigenous Environmental Network, delivers a petition to Liberty Mutual headquarters on Oct. 2, 2020. Photo: Courtesy of Kayana Szymczak/Indigenous Environmental Network
“We want insurance companies like Liberty Mutual to meet with Indigenous leaders, tribal leaders, chairmen, and presidents. We want them to meet with grassroots people. We want them to hear our stories,” said Joye Braun, a signatory of the October letter, a community organizer with the Indigenous Environmental Network, and a land defender and water protector for the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines.
Fossil fuel infrastructure poses especially devastating risks to Indigenous people, given that the “Indigenous economy is everything from the land, everything that flows from the land, everything that feeds us and nourishes us, clothes us and houses us, that’s been able to give all of our basic human needs,” said Kanahus Manuel, a Secwepemc land defender with the Tiny House Warriors, a movement and village of mobile tiny homes placed strategically in the path of the Trans Mountain pipeline in western Canada.
By failing to take into consideration the harm posed to Indigenous communities and the ongoing Indigenous-led resistance, Manuel points out that insurance companies are also putting their own business in jeopardy. “It’s bad business to not properly know the risks associated with a project,” said Manuel.
The pipeline’s largest insurer Zurich dropped the project in July 2020, shortly after Talanx had dropped the pipeline. Yet a number of insurers listed in the 2019-2020 certificate of insurance are still underwriting the pipeline, including Chubb, AIG, and Liberty Mutual. Chubb and AIG declined to comment on the record.
The Tiny House Warriors have presented insurers with a risk assessment of the Trans Mountain pipeline, conducted by the Indigenous Network of Economies and Trade, that outlines the risks associated with Indigenous jurisdiction. Over half the pipeline will cut through unceded Secwepemc territory, spanning 180,000 square kilometers. The Canadian government did not seek consent from the Secwepemc, whose land defenders are prepared to stop its construction through “any means necessary,” according to the assessment.
“We are the biggest risk,” said Manuel. “We are the biggest financial liability against this project right now, just our pure presence of occupying our land and asserting our Indigenous jurisdiction and territorial authority to our lands.” She noted that even delays in the pipeline’s construction pose a financial risk, which she believes insurers are failing to fully anticipate in their decision to underwrite it.
Manuel was trained to assert the right to the land by her late father, Arthur Manuel, the well-known author and Secwepemc leader. “He told me when you go over to the United Nations, when you go to The Hague, when you go to these international banks and insurance companies,” Manuel said, “you walk in like you are the owner and title holder of 180,000 square kilometers of land because you are.”
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation, whose unceded territory centers on the Burrard Inlet in southwestern British Columbia, also conducted its own risk assessment of the Trans Mountain pipeline. The assessment concluded that oil spills are inevitable, which will undermine the Nation’s obligation to steward the land. The Tsleil-Waututh Nation Sacred Trust Initiative, which was formed to stop the pipeline, reached out to all of the pipeline’s insurers about a year ago, according Charlene Aleck, a liaison to initiative. No insurance companies have agreed to meet, said Aleck.
“We’ve maintained that we’re opposed to this pipeline because it does irreparable damage,” said Aleck. “We will continue to do so as long as we need water, as long as we need fresh air and a place to live.”
Update: December 14, 2020
This article has been updated to include that the insurance company Swiss Re pledged not to provide coverage or support for oil and gas projects in the Arctic.


theintercept--2020-12-14--After George Floyd, Carbon Capture Tech Tiptoes into Racial Justice

Beginning in January , the Clean Air Task Force , a research and advocacy group that backs carbon capture , will be launching at least four case studies in California and Texas to study how , if at all , carbon capture technology reduces local air pollution .
Their objective , said Deepika Nagabhushan , who is leading a new environmental justice initiative at the organization , would be to provide front-line communities with the information by the end of 2021 , so residents can better determine whether carbon capture meets their needs .
Nagabhushan told The Intercept that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really brought social equity and addressing systemic racism to the forefront ” of all conversations , including for carbon capture .
Then came the police killing of George Floyd and a summer of protest that reshaped politics , influencing even the debate around carbon capture ’ s role in the fight against climate change .
The coalition ’ s new policy platform , released in late October , is focused on ways that carbon capture projects could also contribute to environmental justice .
In May 2019 , the Carbon Capture Coalition , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , research institutes , and energy groups that support carbon capture technology , released a policy platform that was entirely focused on their desired federal investments .
The agenda emphasized things like expanding tax credits and loan guarantees , as well as incentivizing new research and development .
Some left-wing climate groups take a strong stance against carbon capture , seeing it as a distraction at best and a malign oil industry scheme that will only help prolong , rather than hasten , the industry ’ s decline .
In his presidential climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the stance of groups like Greenpeace , Friends of the Earth , and the Sunrise Movement , calling carbon capture a “ false solution.
” This past September , the House of Representatives passed a nearly 900-page clean energy package , though 18 Democrats , including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , Rashida Tlaib , Ilhan Omar , and Ayanna Pressley , voted against it , after a coalition of progressive climate groups protested the bill ’ s support for carbon capture .
Jessie Stolark , the public policy and members relations manager for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is currently “ undergoing an evolution ” with regards to how they approach potential impacts and benefits to frontline communities .
The political logic is sound : Carbon capture is a rare climate policy with Republican support , and unions and mainline Democrats are already on board , with the holdouts residing on the left .
Demonstrating the benefits to marginalized communities could help erode that opposition .
Climate change , of course , is a global and universal problem for humanity .
But its effects are being and will be felt earliest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ means to mitigate it , and the least political power to confront the overlapping crises it produces and exacerbates .
Major sources of carbon emissions , meanwhile , also tend to be sources of broader forms of pollution , often landing disproportionately on what have come to be known as front-line communities .
This year , in campaign memos sent to Joe Biden and Donald Trump , the Carbon Capture Coalition included language about the need to ensure that the tens of thousands of high-wage jobs associated with carbon capture projects actually benefit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cited , meaning “ expanded support for training and apprenticeship programs undertaken in partnership with community colleges , trade unions and other local institutions in affected communities.
” Stolark acknowledged that some communities may not want the projects even if they do come with high-wage jobs and said the coalition is “ currently brainstorming ” around those questions .
Biden ’ s election has given advocates for carbon capture a lot to be optimistic about .
Back in July , his $ 2 trillion climate plan called for accelerating the development and deployment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new presidential transition website , where he lists four priorities including climate change , Biden mentions a commitment to innovating “ negative emissions technologies ” — an umbrella term that includes so-called direct air capture , or machines that suck already emitted carbon dioxide out of the air .
“ It remains to be seen what they ’ re going to do but one area I ’ m really excited about is just developing the workforce , ” said Stolark .
“ Biden ’ s climate plan said it would create 10 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is that going to look like.
” In a letter sent September 18 , progressive groups including Friends of the Earth , 350.org , and Food & Water Action argued that other environmental justice components of the House ’ s Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act would be undermined by its carbon capture provisions , and that it would perpetuate burdens on front-line communities and communities of color .
“ [ A ] ny new investment toward fossil fuel companies is unacceptable and quite simply incompatible with tackling environmental injustice and the climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legislative manager of Sunrise Movement , told the New Republic after the vote .
( This year BP , Shell , and Exxon Mobil wrote down billions in their fossil fuel reserves , telling investors they recognize that some of their reserves will never be pumped out of the ground . )
Despite the 18 protest votes , carbon capture has no shortage of Democratic support , and the House bill garnered votes from the majority of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and nearly all the Green New Deal resolution co-sponsors .
Sen. Ed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Green New Deal with Ocasio-Cortez , also has a record of supporting carbon capture technology and assured the Carbon Capture Coalition of his support in 2019 .
Unions are also strong supporters , and last year the BlueGreen Alliance , a coalition of labor and national environmental groups , released a plan for tackling inequality and climate change that included support for carbon capture tech .
The environmental groups include the Sierra Club , the Natural Resources Defense Council , the National Wildlife Federation , the Union of Concerned Scientists , the Environmental @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Conservation Voters — collectively known in environmental circles as “ big green.
” The unions include both building trade unions and unions representing industries that wouldn ’ t necessarily be directly impacted by investments in carbon capture , like the Service Employees International Union , the American Federation of Teachers , and the Communication Workers of America .
Both the SEIU and the AFT have passed resolutions in support of the Green New Deal .
Brad Markell , the executive director for the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Council and a strong advocate for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ serve on the Department of Energy transition team for the Biden administration .
Also serving on that team is Noah Deich , the executive director for Carbon180 , a group focused on carbon removal , like direct air capture .
One advantage Biden and carbon capture supporters have on their side is the growing scientific consensus that the only way to reach global climate targets by mid-century would be to utilize carbon capture technology , which can both help reduce future emissions and remove some of the carbon dioxide that ’ s already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for example , the International Energy Agency released a report warning it would be “ virtually impossible ” to reach net zero without carbon capture tech .
In 2018 , the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also affirmed carbon capture tech would be necessary to hit climate targets absent rapid reforestation and major changes to global diets and energy consumption .
There ’ s also the fact that renewable energy alternatives like wind and solar are not viable solutions for reducing carbon emissions in the industrial sector , and nearly a quarter of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ industry .
“ Even if we close every coal fire plant in America — which I don ’ t think we ’ re going to do for a while — but even if we did that , it doesn ’ t change the basic fact that if you believe and follow the science , carbon capture is a thing we must do globally at scale or we won ’ t make it , ” Lee Anderson , director of governmental affairs for the Utility Workers Union of America , told The Intercept last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been outlining priorities they ’ d like to see the Biden administration take on , Congress is also currently considering new legislation that could pass as soon as this month .
Lawmakers are considering bills both to extend a tax credit to incentivize carbon capture projects and to authorize new demonstrations in the power sector .
Notably , while groups like Sunrise and Friends of the Earth have cited environmental justice as a reason to oppose carbon capture , leaders within the carbon capture movement have been crediting progressive climate organizations for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ environmental justice .
“ I think a lot of these movements around a Green New Deal have been really responsible for pushing more groups to center environmental justice in the climate discussion , ” said Erin Burns , policy director for Carbon180 .
“ We ’ re in a great place where the Department of Energy has done really great R & D and we have a lot of information on how to do things like saline storage safely and securely , but when you ’ re talking about the need to inject @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ground , you need to think about how do we talk to communities about that , and what are the questions those communities will have , ” said Burns .
“ We want to make sure we ’ re thinking about developing clear materials to ensure communities can have a strong voice in how these projects go forward , and that there can be really robust , meaningful engagement.
” Burns declined to share specific names but told The Intercept that Carbon180 has started having conversations with environmental justice groups and expressed gratitude @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and expertise .
While “ we absolutely expect resistance and skepticism , ” said Burns , from some carbon capture organizations that may balk at pressure to change their practices , “ at this point I think we are at least cautiously optimistic .
”

In May 2019, the Carbon Capture Coalition, a group of roughly 60 companies, unions, research institutes, and energy groups that support carbon capture technology, released a policy platform that was entirely focused on their desired federal investments. The agenda emphasized things like expanding tax credits and loan guarantees, as well as incentivizing new research and development.
Then came the police killing of George Floyd and a summer of protest that reshaped politics, influencing even the debate around carbon capture’s role in the fight against climate change. The coalition’s new policy platform, released in late October, is focused on ways that carbon capture projects could also contribute to environmental justice.
Beginning in January, the Clean Air Task Force, a research and advocacy group that backs carbon capture, will be launching at least four case studies in California and Texas to study how, if at all, carbon capture technology reduces local air pollution. Their objective, said Deepika Nagabhushan, who is leading a new environmental justice initiative at the organization, would be to provide front-line communities with the information by the end of 2021, so residents can better determine whether carbon capture meets their needs. Nagabhushan told The Intercept that the protests over the last year “have really brought social equity and addressing systemic racism to the forefront” of all conversations, including for carbon capture.
Some left-wing climate groups take a strong stance against carbon capture, seeing it as a distraction at best and a malign oil industry scheme that will only help prolong, rather than hasten, the industry’s decline. In his presidential climate change plan, Sen. Bernie Sanders echoed the stance of groups like Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, and the Sunrise Movement, calling carbon capture a “false solution.” This past September, the House of Representatives passed a nearly 900-page clean energy package, though 18 Democrats, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and Ayanna Pressley, voted against it, after a coalition of progressive climate groups protested the bill’s support for carbon capture.
Orange-painted gas lines are seen of the Mississippi Power Co. carbon capture power plant in De Kalb, Miss., on Nov. 16, 2015. Photo: Rogelio V. Solis/AP
Jessie Stolark, the public policy and members relations manager for the Carbon Capture Coalition, said her group is currently “undergoing an evolution” with regards to how they approach potential impacts and benefits to frontline communities. The political logic is sound: Carbon capture is a rare climate policy with Republican support, and unions and mainline Democrats are already on board, with the holdouts residing on the left. Demonstrating the benefits to marginalized communities could help erode that opposition.
Climate change, of course, is a global and universal problem for humanity. But its effects are being and will be felt earliest and hardest among those with the least means to mitigate it, and the least political power to confront the overlapping crises it produces and exacerbates. Major sources of carbon emissions, meanwhile, also tend to be sources of broader forms of pollution, often landing disproportionately on what have come to be known as front-line communities.
This year, in campaign memos sent to Joe Biden and Donald Trump, the Carbon Capture Coalition included language about the need to ensure that the tens of thousands of high-wage jobs associated with carbon capture projects actually benefit the disadvantaged communities where they may be cited, meaning “expanded support for training and apprenticeship programs undertaken in partnership with community colleges, trade unions and other local institutions in affected communities.” Stolark acknowledged that some communities may not want the projects even if they do come with high-wage jobs and said the coalition is “currently brainstorming” around those questions.
Biden’s election has given advocates for carbon capture a lot to be optimistic about. Back in July, his $2 trillion climate plan called for accelerating the development and deployment of carbon capture technology. On his new presidential transition website, where he lists four priorities including climate change, Biden mentions a commitment to innovating “negative emissions technologies” — an umbrella term that includes so-called direct air capture, or machines that suck already emitted carbon dioxide out of the air.
“It remains to be seen what they’re going to do but one area I’m really excited about is just developing the workforce,” said Stolark. “Biden’s climate plan said it would create 10 million jobs, so our question is what is that going to look like.”
In a letter sent September 18, progressive groups including Friends of the Earth, 350.org, and Food & Water Action argued that other environmental justice components of the House’s Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act would be undermined by its carbon capture provisions, and that it would perpetuate burdens on front-line communities and communities of color. “[A]ny new investment toward fossil fuel companies is unacceptable and quite simply incompatible with tackling environmental injustice and the climate crisis,” Lauren Maunus, the legislative manager of Sunrise Movement, told the New Republic after the vote. (This year BP, Shell, and Exxon Mobil wrote down billions in their fossil fuel reserves, telling investors they recognize that some of their reserves will never be pumped out of the ground.)
Despite the 18 protest votes, carbon capture has no shortage of Democratic support, and the House bill garnered votes from the majority of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and nearly all the Green New Deal resolution co-sponsors. Sen. Ed Markey, the original co-author of the Green New Deal with Ocasio-Cortez, also has a record of supporting carbon capture technology and assured the Carbon Capture Coalition of his support in 2019.
Unions are also strong supporters, and last year the BlueGreen Alliance, a coalition of labor and national environmental groups, released a plan for tackling inequality and climate change that included support for carbon capture tech. The environmental groups include the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the National Wildlife Federation, the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Environmental Defense Action Fund, and the League of Conservation Voters — collectively known in environmental circles as “big green.” The unions include both building trade unions and unions representing industries that wouldn’t necessarily be directly impacted by investments in carbon capture, like the Service Employees International Union, the American Federation of Teachers, and the Communication Workers of America. Both the SEIU and the AFT have passed resolutions in support of the Green New Deal.
Brad Markell, the executive director for the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Council and a strong advocate for carbon capture technology, was tapped to serve on the Department of Energy transition team for the Biden administration. Also serving on that team is Noah Deich, the executive director for Carbon180, a group focused on carbon removal, like direct air capture.
One advantage Biden and carbon capture supporters have on their side is the growing scientific consensus that the only way to reach global climate targets by mid-century would be to utilize carbon capture technology, which can both help reduce future emissions and remove some of the carbon dioxide that’s already been released. This past September, for example, the International Energy Agency released a report warning it would be “virtually impossible” to reach net zero without carbon capture tech. In 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also affirmed carbon capture tech would be necessary to hit climate targets absent rapid reforestation and major changes to global diets and energy consumption. There’s also the fact that renewable energy alternatives like wind and solar are not viable solutions for reducing carbon emissions in the industrial sector, and nearly a quarter of all U.S greenhouse gas emissions come from industry.
“Even if we close every coal fire plant in America — which I don’t think we’re going to do for a while — but even if we did that, it doesn’t change the basic fact that if you believe and follow the science, carbon capture is a thing we must do globally at scale or we won’t make it,” Lee Anderson, director of governmental affairs for the Utility Workers Union of America, told The Intercept last year.
While advocates for carbon capture have been outlining priorities they’d like to see the Biden administration take on, Congress is also currently considering new legislation that could pass as soon as this month. Lawmakers are considering bills both to extend a tax credit to incentivize carbon capture projects and to authorize new demonstrations in the power sector.
Notably, while groups like Sunrise and Friends of the Earth have cited environmental justice as a reason to oppose carbon capture, leaders within the carbon capture movement have been crediting progressive climate organizations for pushing them to think more deeply about environmental justice.
“I think a lot of these movements around a Green New Deal have been really responsible for pushing more groups to center environmental justice in the climate discussion,” said Erin Burns, policy director for Carbon180.
“We’re in a great place where the Department of Energy has done really great R&D and we have a lot of information on how to do things like saline storage safely and securely, but when you’re talking about the need to inject millions of tons of CO2 into the ground, you need to think about how do we talk to communities about that, and what are the questions those communities will have,” said Burns. “We want to make sure we’re thinking about developing clear materials to ensure communities can have a strong voice in how these projects go forward, and that there can be really robust, meaningful engagement.”
Burns declined to share specific names but told The Intercept that Carbon180 has started having conversations with environmental justice groups and expressed gratitude to activists who have lent their time and expertise. While “we absolutely expect resistance and skepticism,” said Burns, from some carbon capture organizations that may balk at pressure to change their practices, “at this point I think we are at least cautiously optimistic.”


theintercept--2020-12-15--Covid-19 Relief Draft Bill Provides $100 Billion “Double-Dip” Tax Deduction for the Wealthy

coronavirus relief legislation , circulated by a bipartisan group of lawmakers , eschews direct payments to average Americans but contains an unusually generous handout to the very wealthy .
The draft legislation , the Bipartisan Emergency COVID Relief Act of 2020 , was released this week as part of a package of two major bills to confront the ongoing crisis .
The draft of the first bill circulating on Capitol Hill contains a number of adjustments to the Paycheck Protection Program , the forgivable loan program that has served as the centerpiece of the government ’ s efforts to curb @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Many of the changes provide extended eligibility for expenses that can be reimbursed by the PPP program , including damage from looting and costs associated with cloud computing , as well as the construction of sneeze guards and other safety measures implemented by businesses .
But one of the revisions in the legislation is a subtle yet radical change that would result in a major windfall for the highest-income Americans and large corporations .
The bill provides that businesses claiming expenses reimbursed by PPP forgivable loans , which are already tax-free , can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ taxable income .
In other words , the change would allow a corporation that claimed $ 1 million in PPP reimbursements to apply that money as a deduction on its tax return , reducing taxable income by $ 1 million .
Critics of this idea , first circulated by a bipartisan set of legislators last summer , note that it provides an unprecedented tax advantage that overwhelmingly benefits investors and high-net-worth professionals .
IRS rules have long prohibited tax-free government grants and reimbursements from being used as deductions .
Steven Rosenthal , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , writing in his blog TaxVox , has noted that the proposal represents a “ double dip ” that abandons longstanding tax norms to provide “ overly generous relief ” that rewards “ savvy , well-connected business and crowds out relief for others , undercutting the effectiveness of Congress ’ aid.
” Rosenthal , in comments to The Intercept , estimates that the PPP deduction provision could reduce the taxes of the highest-income taxpayers by at least $ 100 billion without benefitting workers or those who are unemployed .
The tax deduction provision @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though it is unlikely that those most in need will receive the extra benefits .
Wealthy business owners and large corporations claim the lion ’ s share of business expense deductions .
Rosenthal noted that the Joint Committee on Taxation found that over half of all pass-through business deductions , a class of Americans that includes wealthy doctors and financial consultants , flow to individuals with over $ 1 million in income .
The top 1 percent of Americans by wealth own over half of all corporate stock .
The latest Covid relief @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ travesty ” ; “ Congress is showering billions on millionaires using the cover of ‘ small ’ business.
” Even Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin called out the proposal earlier this year as overly generous to business interests .
“ The money coming in the PPP is not taxable .
So if the money that ’ s coming is not taxable , you can ’ t double dip , ” Mnuchin said on Fox Business .
“ You can ’ t say you ’ re going to get deductions for workers that you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so , a growing chorus of lawmakers has demanded that businesses should be able to deduct tax-free PPP money .
The demand has been pushed by the most senior lawmakers on the tax-writing committees , Rep. Richard Neal , D-Mass.
, and Sen. Chuck Grassley , R-Iowa .
In recent months , nearly half a dozen standalone bills by other members of Congress have floated variations of the same PPP tax deduction proposal .
The latest round of coronavirus relief legislation has been released in two parts .
The first bill , slated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , funds the PPP program along with $ 300 a week for unemployment benefits .
The second bill ties Republican-supported liability protections for companies to Democrats ’ ask for funding for state and local governments — the two segments of legislation that have stalled negotiations for weeks .
There has been little pushback to these tax giveaways , reflecting the general consensus in Congress around the benefits of business tax cuts , no matter how lavish .
Media outlets and many lawmakers , including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Ky. , have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an “ uncontroversial ” aspect of stimulus talks .
Many of the provisions of the original CARES Act , the coronavirus relief legislation passed in March , have been criticized as giveaways to the wealthy with little guardrails to help those most in need .
The Intercept has previously noted that the “ net operating loss ” carryback provision has resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in IRS tax refunds to major corporations that have gone on to spend money on stock repurchasing plans to reward investors .
The law also included @ @ @ @ @ @ @ save real estate investors and owners over $ 170 billion over the next 10 years .

A draft of coronavirus relief legislation, circulated by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, eschews direct payments to average Americans but contains an unusually generous handout to the very wealthy.
The draft legislation, the Bipartisan Emergency COVID Relief Act of 2020, was released this week as part of a package of two major bills to confront the ongoing crisis.
The draft of the first bill circulating on Capitol Hill contains a number of adjustments to the Paycheck Protection Program, the forgivable loan program that has served as the centerpiece of the government’s efforts to curb job loss stemming from the pandemic. Many of the changes provide extended eligibility for expenses that can be reimbursed by the PPP program, including damage from looting and costs associated with cloud computing, as well as the construction of sneeze guards and other safety measures implemented by businesses.
But one of the revisions in the legislation is a subtle yet radical change that would result in a major windfall for the highest-income Americans and large corporations.
The bill provides that businesses claiming expenses reimbursed by PPP forgivable loans, which are already tax-free, can be further used as deductions when calculating taxable income. In other words, the change would allow a corporation that claimed $1 million in PPP reimbursements to apply that money as a deduction on its tax return, reducing taxable income by $1 million.
Critics of this idea, first circulated by a bipartisan set of legislators last summer, note that it provides an unprecedented tax advantage that overwhelmingly benefits investors and high-net-worth professionals. IRS rules have long prohibited tax-free government grants and reimbursements from being used as deductions.
Even Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin called out the proposal earlier this year as overly generous to business interests.
Steven Rosenthal, a tax expert with the Tax Policy Center, writing in his blog TaxVox, has noted that the proposal represents a “double dip” that abandons longstanding tax norms to provide “overly generous relief” that rewards “savvy, well-connected business and crowds out relief for others, undercutting the effectiveness of Congress’ aid.”
Rosenthal, in comments to The Intercept, estimates that the PPP deduction provision could reduce the taxes of the highest-income taxpayers by at least $100 billion without benefitting workers or those who are unemployed.
The tax deduction provision technically applies to all PPP recipients, though it is unlikely that those most in need will receive the extra benefits. Wealthy business owners and large corporations claim the lion’s share of business expense deductions. Rosenthal noted that the Joint Committee on Taxation found that over half of all pass-through business deductions, a class of Americans that includes wealthy doctors and financial consultants, flow to individuals with over $1 million in income. The top 1 percent of Americans by wealth own over half of all corporate stock.
The latest Covid relief bill, Rosenthal said, is a “travesty”; “Congress is showering billions on millionaires using the cover of ‘small’ business.”
Even Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin called out the proposal earlier this year as overly generous to business interests.
“The money coming in the PPP is not taxable. So if the money that’s coming is not taxable, you can’t double dip,” Mnuchin said on Fox Business. “You can’t say you’re going to get deductions for workers that you didn’t pay for.”
Read Our Complete Coverage The Coronavirus Crisis
Even so, a growing chorus of lawmakers has demanded that businesses should be able to deduct tax-free PPP money. The demand has been pushed by the most senior lawmakers on the tax-writing committees, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. In recent months, nearly half a dozen standalone bills by other members of Congress have floated variations of the same PPP tax deduction proposal.
The latest round of coronavirus relief legislation has been released in two parts. The first bill, slated at a cost of $748 billion, funds the PPP program along with $300 a week for unemployment benefits. The second bill ties Republican-supported liability protections for companies to Democrats’ ask for funding for state and local governments — the two segments of legislation that have stalled negotiations for weeks.
There has been little pushback to these tax giveaways, reflecting the general consensus in Congress around the benefits of business tax cuts, no matter how lavish. Media outlets and many lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have described the PPP extension and expansion as an “uncontroversial” aspect of stimulus talks.
Many of the provisions of the original CARES Act, the coronavirus relief legislation passed in March, have been criticized as giveaways to the wealthy with little guardrails to help those most in need.
The Intercept has previously noted that the “net operating loss” carryback provision has resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in IRS tax refunds to major corporations that have gone on to spend money on stock repurchasing plans to reward investors. The law also included a tax revision that is estimated to save real estate investors and owners over $170 billion over the next 10 years.