May 28, 2021: Big Biden Budget Battle Brewing; UN Opens Gaza Inquiry; Sanders Rallies For College Athletes

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TODAY'S HEADLINES:


The Biden administration will today unveil its biggest and sure
to be most controversial proposal yet – for a $6 trillion federal
budget. And from child care to electric vehicles, there’s a lot
in there for Republicans to cry over.


Meanwhile, the United Nations is launching an
unprecedented, open-ended inquiry into the root causes of the
latest violence in Gaza. War crimes may be found on both sides,
but Israel has made clear it does not welcome the scrutiny.


And lastly, hard-working college athletes could
finally get what’s due to them. Senators Bernie Sanders and Chris
Murphy want to give them the right to form unions and bargain
collectively with colleges.


THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:


Why can’t we have nice things? Politico reports that President
Joe Biden continues to negotiate with Republicans on his
big-ticket spending plans. But yesterday, when he left Washington
for Ohio, he mocked them for voting against the coronavirus
recovery package and then turning around and promoting the bill.
In a speech at Cuyahoga Community College, Biden said his
trillions of dollars in proposals are already igniting economic
recovery and creating millions of jobs following the coronavirus
pandemic. Back in Washington, Senate Republicans sent Biden their
latest proposal, but the $928 billion infrastructure plan is
still hundreds of billions less than the White House’s last offer
of $1.7 trillion.


And there’s an even bigger budget fight brewing. The New York
Times reports Biden will propose a $6 trillion budget today that
would take the United States to its highest levels of federal
spending since World War Two. Biden is looking to fund a sweeping
economic agenda that includes new investments in education,
transportation and fighting climate change. The budget request
includes money for roads, water pipes, broadband internet,
electric vehicle charging stations and advanced manufacturing
research. It also envisions funding for affordable child care,
universal prekindergarten and a national paid leave program.
Spending on national defense would also grow, though it would
decline as a share of the economy.


Biden plans to fund his agenda by raising taxes on corporations
and high earners. The documents show budget deficits shrinking in
the 2030s. So maybe we can have nice things after all.


UN Opens Gaza Inquiry


his diplomatic dispatch comes from the Guardian. The UN’s main
human rights body will launch an investigation into systematic
discrimination and repression in Israel and Palestine, with the
aim of identifying the root causes of recent Gaza bloodshed. The
proposal, called at the request of Muslim states, was passed by
the forty seven-member United Nations human rights council
yesterday. Opening the session in Geneva, the UN rights chief,
Michelle Bachelet (Ba-chuh-let), said Israel’s
attacks on Gaza this month could constitute war crimes if they
were found to be disproportionate. She also accused Hamas of
firing indiscriminate rockets on Israel. Bachelet, a former
president of Chile, called the death and injury of children in
the conflict "a source of shame for all."


According to the Guardian, Bachelet said the Gaza violence was
directly linked to protests in Jerusalem that began weeks
beforehand, which she said were met with a heavy response from
Israeli security forces. She said two factors led to the
escalation – the imminent eviction of Palestinians under forced
displacement in the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah; and Israel’s
use of excessive force against Palestinian protesters, including
at the al-Aqsa mosque. Yesterday’s resolution received twenty
four votes in favour, nine against and fourteen abstentions. The
US didn’t vote because it is not a member of the council. Israel
and its allies, including the US, have accused the UN of
anti-Israel bias. Criticize away, but is anyone better suited
than UN investigators to establish the facts of the situation?


Sanders Rallies For College Athletes


College sports break! The Washington Post reports that a new bill
from Congressional Democrats would allow college athletes to
unionize, making it possible for students from across
universities to band together to form unions within athletic
conferences. The bill from Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and
Chris Murphy of Connecticut would rewrite federal labor law to
define all college athletes receiving scholarships and other pay
as employees of both public and private universities. It would be
a significant reimagining of the college sports landscape. And it
would open a door to athletes receiving additional compensation
from colleges by bargaining over wages, working conditions,
revenue sharing agreements, and other rights afforded to
employees.


The Post says the bill, called the College Athlete Right to
Organize Act, is unlikely to pass in the current Congress. A
companion bill introduced by three House Democrats has also not
found any Republican co-sponsors. But it has created substantial
momentum in Congress to pass legislation that would set a single
standard for how athletes can earn income, rather than a
patchwork of conflicting state laws. In a statement yesterday,
Sanders linked the right of athletes to form a union to the fight
to earn money through their personal brands. He said, "College
athletes are workers. ... We cannot wait for the NCAA to share
its billions with the workers who create it.". The NCAA put out a
statement condemning the bill. But of course they did – they
don’t want to share the wealth!


AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:


The Associated Press reports that Senate Republicans are poised
to deploy the filibuster to block a commission on the January 6th
insurrection. The GOP maneuver may shatter chances for a
bipartisan probe of the deadly assault on the US Capitol and
revive pressure to do away with the procedural tactic. Indeed,
why give the Republicans a veto?


According to the Washington Post, Amazon and other retailers are
opposing a bipartisan measure in Congress that would require
online sellers to clearly state where their products are made.
Current laws don’t force online retailers to include this
information. Sounds like a fine loophole if you sell tons of
cheap junk made god-knows-where!


The Seattle Times reports that three Tacoma, Washington police
officers will face criminal charges in the March 2020 killing of
Manuel Ellis, a thirty three-year-old Black man whose death
sparked widespread calls for justice. State Attorney General Bob
Ferguson said yesterday he will charge officers Christopher
Burbank and Matthew Collins with second- degree murder, and
Timothy Rankine with first-degree manslaughter. More consequences
for violent cops – let’s get it trending!


The New York Times reports that the New York City Council voted
overwhelmingly yesterday to expand a subsidy program that could
make apartments affordable to tens of thousands of people who are
homeless or threatened with eviction. The council voted to
sharply increase the value of housing vouchers provided by the
city. The value of the new vouchers would be in line with fair
market rent. So they’re actually useful? Imagine that.


MAY 28, 2021 - AM QUICKIE


HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner


WRITER - Corey Pein


PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw


EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn