Progressive Breakfast: The New Normal: Organizing to Break the Cycle of Climate Disaster

MORNING MESSAGE

The record-breaking floods in Louisiana are the latest example of what many working people already know all too well: climate change has already begun, and it is wrecking our communities. ... It may be tempting to throw up our arms, declaring that there’s nothing we can do, that we are woefully unprepared. But we know better. There is something that we can do, and it’s something that we know how to do quite well. We need to organize. We must intervene at every level to ensure that our systems for prevention and recovery start doing their jobs effectively and accountably.

Sanders To Launch Our Revolution, Wed, Aug. 24

Join Bernie Sanders Wed, Aug. 24 – to launch Our Revolution – at more than 2,000 organizing meetings nationwide. Find a house meeting in your area.Or, if you can’t host or get to a house, meeting, you can find the live video stream at www.berniesanders.com. As Sanders said in an email to supporters, “I and others will lay out some of the next steps we can take as a movement to empower a wave of progressive candidates this November and win the major upcoming fights for the values we share.” Events start at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT.

Obama Readies Last Push for Trans-Pacific Partnership

Obama Readies One Last Push for Trans-Pacific Partnership. New York Times: “His successor, whether Democrat or Republican, opposes it, as does most of his party. Delegates at the Democratic National Convention waved signs saying ‘T.P.P.’ slashed by a bold line, while the Republican Party platform opposed any vote on it in Congress this year. Yet President Obama is readying one final push for approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the largest regional trade agreement ever, between the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations. And though the odds may be long, a presidency defined by partisan stalemate may yet secure one last legacy — only because of Mr. Obama’s delicate alliance with the Republicans who control Congress.”

Louisiana Floods

Louisiana governor seeks donors and volunteers after floods: ‘We need help’. The Guardian: Louisiana governor John Bel Edwards pleaded for aid for his state on Sunday, saying that after a week of devastating flooding, ‘we really need help.’ Unlike a hurricane, Edwards told CNN on Sunday, ‘this rain event didn’t have a name, so we have folks around the country who I think are just now realizing how significant it was.’ Days of extraordinary rainfall caused severe flooding around southern Louisiana this week, killing at least 13 people, damaging an estimated 60,000 homes and forcing thousands to the shelter of evacuation centers.
Louisiana residents without flood insurance face uncertainty. RawStory: “In Louisiana, an estimated 42 percent of homes in high-risk areas have flood insurance, according to FEMA. Only 12.5 percent of homeowners in low and moderate-risk zones do. Many of the areas hit hard by record rainfall last week were not considered at high risk for flooding. Those residents without flood insurance are eligible for up to $33,000 in FEMA individual disaster assistance funds, although most will likely receive less than that, based on payments following other major disasters.”

Trump Pivots on Immigration

Trump campaign signals possible shift on immigration stance. Reuters: “A senior aide to U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump signaled a possible shift in his hardline immigration policies on Sunday, saying his plans to deport 11 million people who are in the country illegally were under review. … On Sunday, his new campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, told CNN that Trump was committed to a ”fair and humane“ approach to those living in the country illegally. ‘What he supports is to make sure we enforce the law, we are respectful of those Americans who are looking for well-paying jobs and that we are fair and humane to those who live among us in this country,“ Conway said on ”State of the Union.’ Pressed on whether Trump’s plans would include a ’deportation force” that the candidate previously pledged to set up, she replied: ‘To be determined.’”
In the latest shift, Trump campaign wavers on mass deportations. Washington Post: “Donald Trump’s campaign wavered Sunday on whether he would continue to call for the mass deportation of 11 million illegal immigrants from the United States, the latest in a series of sometimes-clumsy attempts to win over moderate GOP voters without alienating millions who have flocked to his hard-line views. After insisting for more than a year that all illegal immigrants “have to go,” Trump met with a newly created panel of Hispanic advisers on Saturday and asked for other ideas — making clear that his position is not finalized, according to two attendees. Any shift would represent a remarkable retreat on one of the Republican nominee’s signature issues.

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