Biden's "Best Night" Was Pretty Damn Bad

Friday, September 13, 2019 We deliver stories that fuel resistance, 365 days a year. Please join us in the fight to keep real journalism alive. [Donate Now →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Biden's "Best Night" Was Pretty Damn Bad]( William Rivers Pitt, Truthout None of the candidates in Houston needed a big night more than Joe Biden. Fortunately for him, his previous performances had set the bar lower than whale feces at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, so he had almost nowhere to go but up. Still, Biden managed to reveal his blatant, deeply entrenched racism even further Thursday night by suggesting that Black parents are incapable of parenting their children. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Post-9/11 Terrorism Watchlist of More Than 1 Million Judged Unconstitutional]( Marjorie Cohn, Truthout Information from the U.S. government's terrorism watchlist is shared with more than 18,000 state, local, city, county, college and university, tribal and federal law enforcement agencies, 533 private entities, and more than 60 foreign governments. However, a federal judge held that the watchlist violates due process because it fails to provide notice of inclusion or the evidence on which inclusion was based, and there is no opportunity to rebut the evidence. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [With Bolton Out of the Way, Peace With North Korea Is Possible]( Christine Ahn, Truthout Since the day John Bolton became national security advisor, prospects for peace with North Korea looked grim. Bolton, whose vision for North Korea policy ranged from cyberattacks to regime change using special forces, has sabotaged every agreement between the U.S. and North Korea since the 1994 Agreed Framework. With him out of the way, the long-overdue peace process has a fighting chance. Democrats need to get on board. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Sanders Says Democratic Socialism Means Creating an Economy That Works for All]( Amy Goodman and Juan González, Democracy Now! During the third round of Democratic presidential primary debates, Sen. Bernie Sanders defended his vision of democratic socialism. "The U.S. should not be the only major country on Earth not to provide paid family and medical leave," Sanders said. He also emphasized the importance of implementing Medicare for All and a living wage for all workers. [Watch the Video and Read the Transcript →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Republican Lawmakers Across the Country Rebel Against Democracy]( Sophia Tesfaye, Salon As gerrymandered maps are being struck down by courts and the 2018 midterms point to a massive turnout in 2020, Republicans are preparing to break and reshape the rules in an attempt to win by obstructing the democratic process. From walking out to avoid voting on a climate change bill in Oregon to blocking a voter-approved measure to restore voting rights to people convicted of felonies in Florida, conservatives show that if they can't win at the ballot box, they will abandon democracy. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Israel Was Caught Spying on Capitol Hill Cell Phones and Trump Was Fine With It]( Juan Cole, Informed Comment The FBI has traced mysterious electronic spying devices placed throughout Washington, D.C. -- including close to the White House and the Capitol -- to Israel. As the Trump administration has chosen not to act on this information, intelligence insiders had no other options but to turn to the press. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Wall Street Billionaires Set to Mingle With Mike Pence at Financial Conference]( Gin Armstrong and Derek Seidman, Eyes on the Ties As people across the world denounce the Trump administration's destructive climate policies, top Wall Street figures are preparing to hobnob with Vice President Mike Pence at an upcoming investor conference. The Delivering Alpha conference convenes some of the world's most powerful fossil fuel profiteers -- who are tied to some of the gravest problems humanity faces -- so that they can network to further their agendas. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Civilians Work Toward Peace in Wartime Afghanistan]( Kathy Kelly, The Progressive While many in Afghanistan live in fear of increased Taliban power over their country, they also grapple with the aerial terrorism regularly inflicted upon them by the U.S. military -- which the United Nations recently found to be responsible for a majority of the increased civilian deaths in 2019. To catalyze a genuine peace process in Afghanistan, the U.S. must acknowledge the recklessness of its invasion and occupation and call for an immediate end to U.S. and NATO militarism in Afghanistan. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Warren's Social Security Reform Is Not as Ambitious as Sanders's]( Karen Garcia, Sardonicky Democratic presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have both released plans this year to reform Social Security that aim to increase taxes on wealth, which is currently taxed at a much lower rate than income from work. However, Warren's plan does not go as far as Sanders's plan to close the tax gap between the wealthy and everyone else. Sanders demands that billionaires pay more, while Warren politely asks them to contribute a fair share. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- In Case You Missed It --------------------------------------------------------------- [Unjust, Coercive Police Interviews Are Traumatizing Children of Color]( Amanda Anger, Truthout Thirty years have passed since the innocent youth in the Central Park Five case were unjustly targeted and punished, but the police practice of conducting coercive interviews with children without consent or legal counsel continues. Organizations established to protect children from abuse regularly end up functioning as law enforcement agencies, plagued by the biases of our legal and foster care systems against people of color. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [More People Are Voting -- But 1,688 Polling Places Have Closed in 6 Years]( Mike Ludwig, Truthout After the record voter turnout for the 2018 midterms, analysts are predicting an unprecedented turnout for the 2020 election. However, civil rights groups are warning that the mass shuttering of polling places in 13 states, including states with deep histories of racial voter suppression, could make it harder for people of color as well as rural voters, voters with disabilities and lower-income voters to access the ballot. [Read the Article →]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Like what you're reading? Support Truthout's independent news and analysis by making an automatic monthly donation. 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