Progressive search for action

3+ min ago (479+ words) President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Image via Flickr Europe's transatlantic alliance with the United States is history as President Donald Trump has unmistakably declared war on Europe, writes Ian Birrell in British media outlet The i Paper. Russian president Vladimir Putin, Birrell writes, is succeeding in subverting democracy with the help of Trump. "Putin's assault on freedom " aided by his autocratic allies " could not be clearer," Birrell says. "It is now beyond doubt, however, that this ghastly regime is being assisted by the White House in its efforts to destroy Ukraine " and that the United States has declared war on Europe under its appalling President." The recently released US National Security Strategy "sets this out in stark terms," he writes of the three-thousand-plus document that outlines a significant shift in U.S. foreign policy, focusing on domestic strength, economic…...

10+ min ago (1675+ words) Corporations far beyond Starbucks want to keep baristas out of unions. Thousands of Starbucks workers across a hundred cities are nearly one month into an expanding, nationwide unfair labor practice strike in protest of the coffee giant's "historic union busting and failure to finalize a fair union contract," according to Starbucks Workers United, the barista union that has spread to over 650 stores since its birth in Buffalo four years ago. The strike comes after years of illegal anti-union antics by Starbucks and follows a historic $39 million settlement announced on December 1 for more than 500,000 labor violations committed by Starbucks management in New York City since 2021. The rise of Starbucks Workers United has energized the U.S. labor movement, as the struggle to unionize the mega-chain represents far more than baristas pitted against managers: Starbucks is a trend-setting global powerhouse and one of the…...

13+ min ago (463+ words) If there is any group today that deserves the censure of history, it is the Republican members of Congress. Faced with the existential threat that President Donald Trump poses to our democracy, their nearly unanimous response has been to worshipfully give him whatever he wants " reducing their role to little more than handmaidens to a would-be tyrant. These people have been given the honor of serving as representatives in the United States Congress. And all the Constitution asks of them in return is to take and honor an oath to support and defend the Constitution. One by one, these Republicans raise their right hands and take the oath of office. Then one by one, they quickly throw that oath away. They knew doing this would take time, and they were prepared to play the long game. The Federalist Society's core…...

14+ min ago (440+ words) Last week, Palantir co-founder and "Paypal Mafia" member Joe Lonsdale announced that, in the event that the nation went even more full dystopia and he were somehow in charge of everything, he would like to bring back public hangings. By "masculine," I'm pretty certain he means "makes him feel tough/gives him a boner." Now, this would be creepy enough coming from anyone, but coming from a guy who helped found the world's creepiest mass surveillance company " yikes. The sadistic nonsense was actually part of a response to equally ridiculous Quillette founder Claire Lehmann, who suggested that Pete Hegseth ought to be less "grotesque" about his war crimes. Not that he should stop doing said war crimes, but that he shouldn't be so tacky about it. "She's just wrong," he wrote. "Leftist schoolmarm leaders cause violence and evil in our…...

16+ min ago (446+ words) When we named our son Cosmo, I actually didn't tell anybody for that very reason. I didn't want any of the weird faces," the Jurassic World: Rebirth star said on a recent episode of Today with Jenna & Friends, per PEOPLE. You know when you tell someone they go like this, "Oh that's'that's different.' You know when they do that, and you're like, "What's happening? You don't like it?" Ugh, that's so hard! I have felt the same way with my kids' names, with people calling them too popular," too matchy-matchy," and that I should have chosen a different name instead (yes, seriously). Luckily, though, Johansson's mom was supportive. My mom loved it, which was great," the Fly Me to the Moon star, who is also mom to Rose, 11, with ex Romain Dauriac, continued. It was like, phew. She was like,…...

20+ min ago (1010+ words) The network has also brought together community development financial institutions, technical assistance providers, mission-driven organizations, and local and federal agencies to help work toward alleviating the largest threat to small business owners: soaring commercial rents. Lung's background helped the network develop a shared language to bring together stakeholders who have been working on this issue in siloes for decades " and to create space for the broader issues of inequality that leave small, immigrant- and minority-owned businesses vulnerable. "It needs to be about all the ways in which small businesses are disadvantaged, not just in access to capital, but around commercial leases, around ownership, around zoning, and so much more," Lung tells Next City. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Why is it important to address small businesses specifically to effectively combat displacement? Small businesses are a vital…...

22+ min ago (302+ words) Federal prosecutors have indicted and arrested a Democratic Georgia state representative for allegedly stealing almost $18,000 in pandemic relief funds by lying about where she worked. According to 11Alive.com, Rep. Sharon Henderson, who represents a district just southeast of Atlanta, is charged with two counts of theft of government funds and 10 counts of false statements. "The Department of Justice alleges that state Rep. Henderson applied for federal pandemic unemployment benefits while running for the Georgia House in 2020, claiming her 'current employer' at that time was Henry County Schools," said the report. That bio appears to have been removed from the government website, according to the report. Henderson collected $17,811 in pandemic relief money during this alleged scheme, authorities said, taking money that was intended for people who were laid off or furloughed from their jobs, despite the fact that she was working…...

22+ min ago (329+ words) Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel has reportedly signed a one-year extension on his contract with Disney's ABC network, despite President Donald Trump's attempts to have him fired. Kimmel's contract expires in May 2026, with the extension reportedly running until May 2027. Bloomberg reported that Kimmel announced news of the contract extension to his staff on Monday. Kimmel was suspended from his show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, in September after comments on the assassin of GOP activist Charlie Kirk. "We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them," Kimmel said on his show. During an appearance on Benny Johnson's podcast, Carr said the FCC may need to pursue "remedies" against Kimmel, if ABC does not discipline him first. The Trump-appointed chair said he can "certainly…...

25+ min ago (407+ words) Indiana state Rep. Andrew Ireland, a Republican, is downplaying the idea that President Donald Trump's social media attacks have any real influence on people making threats against lawmakers in his state. Indiana Republicans who are unwilling to redraw congressional lines mid-cycle to help the GOP maintain the House majority are now facing swatting attempts and bomb threats, but Ireland insists these incidents are unrelated to Trump's rhetoric on Truth Social. The following day, Trump lashed out at two other lawmakers. In response, Ireland claimed violent threats are coming from "both sides." Keilar pushed back, saying, "That is not happening on both sides," and asked how he was seeing similar threats against his Republican colleagues in Indiana. However, Ireland called it "ridiculous to frame it that way," insisting that people supportive of the redistricting effort are also being swatted, and saying…...

26+ min ago (181+ words) Washington" Ina lettersent to Congress today, more than 230 national, state and local organizations from across the country called for a full national moratorium on the approval and construction of new data centers. The letter cites massive and unsustainable consumption by data centers of energy and water resources, and skyrocking utility costs for families and small businesses. The letter was facilitated by the national environmental group Food & Water Watch, and signed by organizations including Physicians for Social Responsibility, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Progressive Democrats of America, Our Revolution and Americans for Financial Reform. The post 230+ Groups Call For National Moratorium On New Data Centers appeared first on PopularResistance.Org. The letter states, in part: Already, energy demand from data centers in the U.S. is expected to increase up to threefold between 2023 and 2028. Andrecent analysisfrom Food & Water Watch found that by 2028, AI-supporting…...