MORNING MESSAGE
TPP Is Dead. Time For a Progressive Trade Vision.
Expect
Trump’s trade deals to be even more damaging for people in the US and abroad
than the TPP would be. That would not be a victory for progressives ... The
question before us is, what is the progressive alternative, if we reject both
the TPP and Trump’s agenda? What we need is what is sometimes called progressive
internationalism: an agenda to pursue a progressive agenda across borders to
create a more just and sustainable global society.
CAN TRUMP AND RYAN AGREE?
“What
Happens When Trump’s Populism Collides with Ryan’s Austerity?” asks TNR’s Jeet
Heer: “[Speaker Paul] Ryan rejects Trump’s agenda on trade, on immigration,
and, not least, on infrastructure … Infrastructure will be an early test of
their relative strength—and, quite possibly, of just how complicated and ugly
it’s going to get.”
Trump
and Ryan aligned on slashing aid to poor, says The Nation’s Bob Herbert:
“With both houses of Congress under Republican control, big tax cuts (heavily
weighted toward the richest among us) are a virtual certainty. As a result,
trillions of dollars in revenues will likely be lost and Congress will be on the
hunt for spending cuts to offset them. Social programs will be among the first
items in their sights … Trump’s approach will likely align with Ryan’s, since
his fundamental take on poverty is that people are poor because they are not
willing to work.”
Ben
Carson may be tapped for HUD Secretary. NYT: “… his last job was as director
of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University, and he has little
background in housing … Mr. Carson cited his childhood in Detroit and his
experience treating inner-city patients as qualifications for the job … Mr.
Carson’s remarks were a striking reversal from last week, when a friend of his
said he had turned down an offer from Mr. Trump to be secretary of health and
human services, citing his lack of experience in running a vast federal
bureaucracy.”
UNION MOVEMENT THREATENED
“Donald
Trump Could Kill The American Union” argues W. Post’s Harold Meyerson
Amazon
faces holiday pilot strike. WSJ: “The pilots are employed by Air Transport
Services Group Inc., which alongside Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc., was
hired by Amazon to fly its packages in 40 dedicated jets by the end of 2018 …
the contracts with Amazon, which is beginning to build its own transportation
network through these kinds of partnerships, have added more flights and
staffing needs at ATSG and Atlas. The increased demand is upsetting pilots as
they try to agree on new labor contracts with management.”
WH TRIES TO SIDELINE ELLISON
Obama
aides skeptical of Rep. Keith Ellison as DNC chief. NYT: “…President Obama’s
loyalists, uneasy with the progressive Mr. Ellison, have begun casting about for
an alternative … [They] have talked about whether Labor Secretary Thomas E.
Perez and former Gov. Jennifer Granholm of Michigan would be willing to run for
the post … Some Democrats, in Mr. Obama’s orbit and beyond, say that elevating
Mr. Ellison would amount to handing the party to Senator Bernie Sanders …”
Ellison
defends himself against anti-Semitism charges. Star Tribune: “… op-eds in
the Weekly Standard and Tablet, a Jewish news website, touted quiet ties Ellison
had with the Nation of Islam … Ellison’s camp sent out a list of clarifications
with the op-eds, saying Ellison has condemned the Nation of Islam and other
groups that promote anti-Semitic statements. In 2003, Ellison helped prosecute
Holocaust deniers in the state legislature…”
The
Nation interviews House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi about Democratic
strategy: “The conversation about ‘engage or oppose’ is going on in the
party, throughout the country, and I think 2-1 people say, ‘Just oppose.’ But
the fact is, if you’re advocating outside, that’s what you can say, but if
you’re inside, you have a responsibility to find common ground. But that doesn’t
mean embrace their proposals … Democrats will not, for the aura of finding
common ground, succumb to supporting what we don’t believe in.”
OVERTIME RULE BLOCKED
Labor
Dept. rule expanding overtime pay is blocked. The Hill: “…Texas U.S.
District Judge Amos Mazzant issued a temporary injunction halting the rule
nationwide … The rule would have extended overtime pay to more than 4 million
workers starting Dec. 1 … Experts say the litigation and possible appeal process
is likely to drag out until the inauguration, which means President-elect Donald
Trump could scrap the overtime changes by dropping the defense of the rule.”
Judge
was nominated by Obama but recommended by Republican Texas senators John Cornyn
and Ted Cruz, reported Dallas News at the time.
HOPE FOR CLIMATE
Michael
Bloomberg delivers optimistic address on climate change to China General Chamber
of Commerce: “…I am confident that no matter what happens in Washington … we
will meet the pledges that the U.S. made in Paris. The reason is simple: Cities,
businesses and citizens will continue reducing emissions, because they have
concluded — just as China has — that doing so is in their own
self-interest.”
Market
forces will bolster renewables, reports Bloomberg: “…Donald Trump will have
limited influence on the U.S. utility industry’s push toward renewable energy,
according to executives and investors … companies are already planning projects
that will commence after Trump leaves office, even if he serves two terms …
utilities have announced plans to close 12 gigawatts worth of coal plants,
largely because cheap natural gas has made them uneconomical … Even without the
Clean Power Plan, Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasts that wind and solar
energy will grow 33 percent over the next two years…”
Youth
sue Washington State government over climate. AP: “Eight children asked a
Seattle judge Tuesday to find Washington state in contempt for failing to
adequately protect them and future generations from the harmful effects of
climate change … The case is part of a nationwide effort led by the Oregon-based
nonprofit Our Children’s Trust to force states and the federal government to
take action on climate change. This month, a federal judge in Eugene, Oregon,
allowed a similar climate change case against President Barack Obama’s
administration to proceed.”
BREAKFAST SIDES
Obama
shrinks prison population. NYT: “President Obama is on pace to be the first
president in a half-century to leave office with a federal prison population
that is smaller than when he was sworn in, a reflection of eight years of
liberal criminal justice policies, historically low crime rates and an
aggressive use of presidential commutations … Some of Mr. Obama’s criminal
justice legacy is easily undone. Justice Department policies that discourage
seeking mandatory minimum sentences by default, for instance, can be torn up.
But other changes, such as new sentencing guidelines, will have a lasting effect
and will be difficult to reverse, regardless of the administration.”
Standing
Rock protesters accuse police of “terror.” The Hill: “Dave Archambault, the
chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, on Tuesday said President Obama
should step in and block the pipeline and help defuse law enforcement actuates
there … ‘Blasting these innocent people with concussion grenades, rubber bullets
the size of baseballs and a water cannon in freezing weather was a deliberate
act of terror sanctioned by the sheriff.'”
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