https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIscSL9Q2Og&feature
Sunday, August 9, 2020
UTAH PROTESTERS FACE CHARGES WITH POTENTIAL LIFE SENTENCE
By Lindsay Whitehurst, Associated Press.
August 8, 2020
https://popularresistance.org/utah-protesters-face-charges-with-potential-life-sentence/
Salt Lake City, UT – Some Black Lives Matter protesters in Salt Lake City could face up to life in prison if they’re convicted of splashing red paint and smashing windows during a protest, a potential punishment that stands out among demonstrators arrested around the country and one that critics say doesn’t fit the alleged crime.
The felony criminal mischief charges are more serious because they carry a gang enhancement. Prosecutors said Wednesday that’s justified because the protesters worked together to cause thousands of dollars in damage, but watchdogs called the use of the 1990s-era law troubling, especially in the context of criminal justice reform and minority communities.
“This is so far beyond just the enforcement of the law, it feels retaliatory,” said Madalena McNeil, who is facing a potential life sentence over felony criminal mischief and riot charges. Charging documents say she bought red paint at a Home Depot before the July 9 demonstration sparked by a fatal police shooting ruling. She later yelled at and shifted her weight as if to slam into police during the demonstration, charges state. “It’s really frustrating and scary … I just feel so much concern for what this means for the right to protest in general.”
The charges have Democratic leaders at odds in Salt Lake City, the liberal-leaning capital of conservative Utah, with the top county prosecutor arguing vandalism crossed a line and the mayor calling the charges too extreme.
The potential life sentence stands out as harsh punishment even among other people facing felony charges stemming from protests around the country. In Portland, Oregon, for instance, a 32-year-old man is facing up to 20 years on an arson charge alleging he broke into a building that houses the police headquarters and set an office on fire.
The Utah demonstrators are unlikely to serve prison time, said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. Though they’d get at least five years if convicted as charged, criminal cases often end with a plea to lesser counts.
“I don’t think anyone is going to be going to prison on this,” he said. Gill is a generally reform-minded Democrat who said he has participated in Black Lives Matter protests himself and declined to charge dozens of protesters accused of curfew violations.
Still, he argued “there’s some people who want to engage in protest, but they want to be absolved of absolved of any behavior,” he said. “This is not about protest, this is about people who are engaging in criminal conduct.”
But for the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, invoking a law aimed at street gangs in troubling, especially against demonstrators of color. “You are calling participants in a protest gang members,” said attorney Jason Groth.
And there are other side effects to criminal charges, he said. McNeil tweeted Thursday she was asked resign from her job in the nonprofit sector and all the defendants have to post $50,000 bail to get out of jail.
“This is the highest degree felony. This is usually reserved for murders and rapists,” said attorney Brent Huff, who represents co-defendant Madison Alleman.
Another defense attorney Jesse Nix, who represents protester Viviane Turman, questioned whether Gill should have filed charges involving his own office. “No one should get life in prison for putting paint on a building,” he said.
Gill countered that short staffing during the coronavirus pandemic necessitated that but others will handle the case going forward.
More than 30 people have been charged with various crimes in Salt Lake County since the national wave of protests over George Floyd’s death began in late May. Similar first-degree felony counts have also been filed against people accused of flipping and burning a police car May 30.
“We have to have some agreement of what constitutes protected First Amendment speech,” Gill said. “When you cross that threshold, should you be held accountable or not?”
https://popularresistance.org/utah-protesters-face-charges-with-potential-life-sentence/
Salt Lake City, UT – Some Black Lives Matter protesters in Salt Lake City could face up to life in prison if they’re convicted of splashing red paint and smashing windows during a protest, a potential punishment that stands out among demonstrators arrested around the country and one that critics say doesn’t fit the alleged crime.
The felony criminal mischief charges are more serious because they carry a gang enhancement. Prosecutors said Wednesday that’s justified because the protesters worked together to cause thousands of dollars in damage, but watchdogs called the use of the 1990s-era law troubling, especially in the context of criminal justice reform and minority communities.
“This is so far beyond just the enforcement of the law, it feels retaliatory,” said Madalena McNeil, who is facing a potential life sentence over felony criminal mischief and riot charges. Charging documents say she bought red paint at a Home Depot before the July 9 demonstration sparked by a fatal police shooting ruling. She later yelled at and shifted her weight as if to slam into police during the demonstration, charges state. “It’s really frustrating and scary … I just feel so much concern for what this means for the right to protest in general.”
The charges have Democratic leaders at odds in Salt Lake City, the liberal-leaning capital of conservative Utah, with the top county prosecutor arguing vandalism crossed a line and the mayor calling the charges too extreme.
The potential life sentence stands out as harsh punishment even among other people facing felony charges stemming from protests around the country. In Portland, Oregon, for instance, a 32-year-old man is facing up to 20 years on an arson charge alleging he broke into a building that houses the police headquarters and set an office on fire.
The Utah demonstrators are unlikely to serve prison time, said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. Though they’d get at least five years if convicted as charged, criminal cases often end with a plea to lesser counts.
“I don’t think anyone is going to be going to prison on this,” he said. Gill is a generally reform-minded Democrat who said he has participated in Black Lives Matter protests himself and declined to charge dozens of protesters accused of curfew violations.
Still, he argued “there’s some people who want to engage in protest, but they want to be absolved of absolved of any behavior,” he said. “This is not about protest, this is about people who are engaging in criminal conduct.”
But for the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, invoking a law aimed at street gangs in troubling, especially against demonstrators of color. “You are calling participants in a protest gang members,” said attorney Jason Groth.
And there are other side effects to criminal charges, he said. McNeil tweeted Thursday she was asked resign from her job in the nonprofit sector and all the defendants have to post $50,000 bail to get out of jail.
“This is the highest degree felony. This is usually reserved for murders and rapists,” said attorney Brent Huff, who represents co-defendant Madison Alleman.
Another defense attorney Jesse Nix, who represents protester Viviane Turman, questioned whether Gill should have filed charges involving his own office. “No one should get life in prison for putting paint on a building,” he said.
Gill countered that short staffing during the coronavirus pandemic necessitated that but others will handle the case going forward.
More than 30 people have been charged with various crimes in Salt Lake County since the national wave of protests over George Floyd’s death began in late May. Similar first-degree felony counts have also been filed against people accused of flipping and burning a police car May 30.
“We have to have some agreement of what constitutes protected First Amendment speech,” Gill said. “When you cross that threshold, should you be held accountable or not?”
TRUMP SCUTTLES ECONOMIC STIMULUS NEGOTIATIONS
By Jack Rasmus, Popular Resistance.
What’s Next?
Today, August 7, 2020 negotiations on an economic stimulus package between US House Democrats and the White House broke down and broke off. What’s behind it?
In recent days, the Democrats’ leaders, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Shumer, reportedly reduced the cost of their original ‘Heroes Act’ proposals by $1 trillion. Instead of the original cost of $3T in the Heroes Act passed last June, they were willing to agree to a reduced package of $2 trillion. Never mind the attempt to reach a compromise on some middle ground. The White House, through his assigned negotiator, staffer Mark Meadows, Trump rejected the Democrats’ offer. Meadows reportedly slammed the table (a two-bit amateur negotiating tactic) and walked out of negotiations with Pelosi-Shumer in a huff. Meadows’ walkout appears a well planned set up in the works for some time.
What Does This Mean Politically And For The Economy, Now Showing Clear Signs Of The Mild Rebound Of May-June Dissipating In Recent Weeks?
On one level it’s clearly a typical Trump negotiating tactic: Bring a deal to a near close, then make a big show and angrily walk away. Trump’s done that before on numerous occasions. We saw it in the trade negotiations with China in 2018 and again 2019. It didn’t work then with the Chinese trade negotiators, and will likely not work here again—assuming the Democrats don’t lose their backbone and fall for the set up, which has been known to happen in the past.
Trump coyly stayed on the sidelines in the early phase of the negotiations between the Democrats and McConnell in the Senate and Mnuchin at Treasury.
He let McConnell in the Senate carry the early bargaining water. But McConnell’s extreme ideologue wing, led by Rand Paul and others, revolted. They said they couldn’t support any kind of new stimulus because of its impact on the government’s deficit and debt. However, this same Rand Paul-led crew in just one day last week quickly approved a record $760B Pentagon spending bill. Nor did these same folks have any problem approving tax cuts worth $5 trillion in the past two years under Trump. Nothing said about that impact on the budget and national debt.
And its these same hypocrites in the Senate who have been arguing the $600/wk. unemployment benefits for workers under the March 2020 Cares Act were ‘too generous’. The benefit was keeping workers from returning to work, although at least a half dozen university studies—from Harvard, Yale and Princeton—concluded it’s not so.
McConnell’s withdrawal to the sidelines in negotiations in early July—allowing Trump, Meadows and Mnuchin to take the lead in negotiations on the stimulus—may be part of the Republican strategy as well. UP until recent weeks, McConnell and Mnuchin were respectively playing ‘hard cop’ and ‘soft cop’ with Pelosi-Shumer. McConnell wouldn’t budge, which let the Democrats pursue compromise with Mnuchin as lead for the Trump negotiations. Mnuchin and the Democrats actually made some headway and some compromises. Mnuchin sucked them in, getting them to reduce their original Heroes Act $3T proposals to $2T. They were being set up.
Then Mark Meadows, Trump’s hatchet man, joined in taking over the negotiations and played hard cop to Mnuchin’s soft cop. Now Meadows broke off discussions and stomped out today, August 7. The tactic is transparently designed to get the Democrats to reduce their position even further. Propose more than the $1 trillion concessions already made this past week as the cost of getting Meadows to return to the bargaining table. If they do, it makes Trump look tough and in control of the negotiations agenda. And if they don’t, then Trump moves on to legislative by executive action—which also puts him in the appearance of control and the sole person producing the stimulus package.
Trump also wants to put his ‘mark’ on the negotiations, as is always the case. He wants it to look like the parties couldn’t come together, but he was able to hammer out a deal. ‘The Art of the Deal’, right?
And there’s another more insidious objective here. Trump’s been signaling for weeks he’d like to inject his own pet demands and is ready to do so by executive order once again if necessary. He wants to legislate by executive order. He pulled it off before, setting a precedent. That was when he spent money for his wall by shifting it from the Defense Dept., prepared to restore the diverted funds back to the Defense Dept. at a later date. Republican proposals on the table, by the way, provide another $29 billion for the Pentagon—over and above the just awarded Pentagon spending of $760 billion. Now he’ll make a similar move: he’ll divert funds by executive action to pay for his new tax cuts and other measures taking money from some other pot, present or future, to pay for it. Democrats in Congress will be left standing saying ‘hey, you can’t do that’, but it’ll already be done.
Breaking off negotiations now gives Trump the opportunity to introduce his proposals by executive order. To do so is clearly unconstitutional but that means nothing to Trump. He’ll soon announce his own stimulus proposals and start executive orders implementation . He’ll use that fait accompli to force the Democrats to agree to them if they want to be part of any final stimulus deal. And if they don’t,” so what” he’ll say. “They couldn’t get it passed. I did.”
But as the failure to pass a new fiscal stimulus drags on, 14 million workers will lose their supplemental $600/wk. unemployment benefits. That’s roughly $85 billion a month taken out of US GDP, in reduced household consumption. Failure to pass a stimulus also means that 12.3 million renters will be evicted before November, according to the most conservative survey. Some surveys estimate as many as 28 million will be evicted. And no more money for state and local governments facing a growing fiscal crisis that will soon require them to start mass layoffs in September.
The McConnell-Trump strategy is not to bail out state and local governments. It’s about making the high urban population centers—located largely in ‘blue’ states—to bear the brunt of the continuing economic crisis. If they need more money, let them go to the municipal bond market and borrow more. It’s a blue state problem, they argue. Let them sink with it is the Republican view. Or else cut their too generous public employee benefits and pensions.
To sum up, the strategic objectives behind Trump’s ordering his man, Meadows, to break off negotiations are several: inject Trump to the center of the negotiations in the last phase of bargaining so he can take credit for any subsequent deal. Second, allow Trump to raise his pet proposals—like making the payroll tax cut permanent—to the top of the bargaining agenda with the Democrats. Third, let McConnell off the hook and avoid creating a split within his Republican ranks over deficits in order to forge a deal. Fourth, expand Trump’s attack on the legislative and purse strings authority of the US House of Representatives, and thereby push the presidency toward usurping legislative authority still further than it already has.
Trump is not only a tyrant—i.e. someone who sees himself above the law—as witnessed by his recent pardons and his own numerous public statements about himself as president; he is also a classic usurper, attempting to shift legislative authority via executive action from Congress to himself; and he is also moving toward rule by decree—aka a dictator—which is a hallmark of all authoritarian and would-be fascist rulers.
And we should watch out for more ‘rule by decree’ attempts in coming months as he invokes one or more ‘national emergency declarations’ to deal with America’s current triple crises—political as well as economic and health.
With Trump forcing a break-up of the recent fiscal stimulus negotiations, and his to be announced executive orders, the political-constitutional and economic crises in America are becoming increasingly entangled. It almost seems as if Trump’s grand strategy may be to exacerbate the deepening crises as much as possible before November 3, in order to create a pretext for him to declare the election void and challenge the results.
BEIRUT: EXPLOSION WAS ‘AN ACCIDENT CAUSED BY NEGLIGENT GOVERNMENTS’
By Carlos Aznárez, Resumen English.
August 8, 2020
https://popularresistance.org/beirut-explosion-was-an-accident-caused-by-negligent-governments/
After the first news and the stupor generated by the violent explosions in the port of Lebanon, all kinds of rumors and false news began to circulate, trying to further poison the atmosphere of pain in which had fallen on the people of that country. In addition to the very high number of deaths (around 100) and thousands of injured, a strategic port of the Lebanese nation was destroyed. To be able to monitor the situation and the consequences of what happened, we spoke with Wafica Ibrahim, a journalist for Al Mayadeen TV and correspondent for Resumen Latinoamericano, in the Middle East.
Wafica we want you to give us your first impression of what has happened there in Lebanon since this double explosion in the port of Beirut.
This explosion is a terrible accident, a brigade was working and welding grids and they were near some fuel tanks. The workers were working after a week of total confinement and the fuel tank exploded. That blast then caused the explosion of Pier 12 which has fireworks and an ammonium nitrate store. Social networks started using a lot of imagination and throwing out fabricated videos, talking about the possibility of a rocket attack. Others talked about a Hezbollah weapons factory, all stories. No one listened to these stories, neither the opposition, nor the government officials, nor the friends of the resistance, because the port of Lebanon is not at all under the control of the resistance. It has nothing to do with that. There is an immense diversity of politics, religion, class, in the regions of Lebanon and that is reflected in the port administration, the port workers, the army security apparatus, the customs that work there.
Why was the explosion so big and devastating?
Unfortunately, it is due to the negligence, abandonment and lack of responsibility of governments since 2013. It has gone on for 30 years actually, but specifically from 2013 to date and the Lebanese people know the history by heart. Once a ship was stranded on the high seas and asked for support from the port of Beirut, they were saved and when they inspected the ship they found that it had 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate and they had to stop it and ban it from circulation because it was going to Mozambique. Then, suddenly the owners of the ship disappeared and left the ship with their merchandise there. They were never found again. From that moment on, each government left the inheritance to another government, that’s the problem. What to do with that ammonium nitrate that is so dangerous? Because any accident can be dangerous for the whole capital. This is a standing issue that has never been solved before. The last report that was issued, was by the current government 4 months ago warning that this was a big unresolved problem. Now, in view of what happened, the President of the Republic presided over a meeting with the National Defense Council, which formed a commission of investigation and they say that they are very serious in finding those responsible, or rather irresponsible, who are the cause of this enormous accident. This commission asked for 4 days to gather as much information as possible to inform the Lebanese people of the whole truth. We are waiting for that truth.
With all the description that you give, beyond affirming that it was a very serious negligence, it is clear that what happened is of interest to the enemies of Lebanon, Syria and the Resistance. If they had thought about it, they could not have done it better.
Of course. Let’s start from the fact that the consequences are very serious, and all the political forces agree that it was an accident. However, I will not lie to you it is a port that represents so much in the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund currently in Lebanon. Today Lebanon is faced with two options, and it does not have a third. Either it goes east, looking at China, Russia, Iraq and Syria in the economy; or it must fall completely, with its own weight, into the clutches of the IMF. We are now facing this situation with a port, which needs an reinvestment of 800 million dollars to become a port again, and Lebanon does not have one. Moreover, the material losses at the port amount to more than a trillion dollars. The explosion is the biggest disaster to hit Lebanon since the establishment of the Lebanese Republic; that port is Lebanon’s vital artery. It even plays a role in the Silk Road project, because of its geographical location.
Double pain is caused by knowing that this explosion affects Syria, another country on which imperialism has imposed not only war and destruction but also a total blockade.
That’s right. Syria is the second most impacted country by this explosion because it has the support of this port helps to solve its problems and this is a very big economic and social blow to this country. Therefore, we have to wait for the investigations. The security authorities are pleading with the media to wait for the results. That they will be transparent, that the whole world will be surprised by the results. We are all waiting to see what results there may be, but we still think that the Lebanese government, in parallel with this great tragedy, has to initiate a rapid investigation in order to take a correct position. They need to establish agreements to enable the port, although I very much fear that the port of Beirut will become entangled in the circle of political polarization that will follow when the heat of these events dies down. Those politicians who have wanted to be humanists’, both from the opposition and from the right, talking about human beings and feelings, about human values, are very much afraid that these values will cool down and that this will just become another issue of political polarization in this country. Like all issues.
How is the strength of the resistance represented by Hezbollah and how have they reacted? It seems that their leader Hassan Nasrala himself offered the collaboration of his forces to help the population of Lebanon.
Let me tell you that he had a speech scheduled for this Tuesday, but he suspended it because of the national mourning and to accompany the Lebanese people in this very heavy mourning that we are enduring and he gave orders to all the institutions of the resistance, of civil defense, of the infirmary, of the polyclinics, some hospitals that they have, activists in general and sympathizers, to all be in the streets picking up debris, looking for bodies under the rubble, helping people, women and old people who have been locked up in their departments. In short, today in Lebanon there is a spirit of social solidarity, of multilateral, multifaceted patriotism, of all the people who sing outside the symphony, we would say. But that is why the Lebanese government must now come out of this position of hesitation, and not take drastic decisions, not seek categorical solutions to things. To become a little more radical, this is the best time. What better time than this pain that the Lebanese people are going through due to a terrible negligence, a product of widespread corruption throughout all the time leading up to this, and be a government that can bring the Lebanese people together and make a difference.
We would like to express all our solidarity from here to you. Thank you for the informative task of Al Mayadeen and it team of journalists.
Thanks to you who are supporting us so much. Solidarity is what prevails and we know with that spirit Resumen Latinoamericano is on the side of our people in good times and bad.
https://popularresistance.org/beirut-explosion-was-an-accident-caused-by-negligent-governments/
After the first news and the stupor generated by the violent explosions in the port of Lebanon, all kinds of rumors and false news began to circulate, trying to further poison the atmosphere of pain in which had fallen on the people of that country. In addition to the very high number of deaths (around 100) and thousands of injured, a strategic port of the Lebanese nation was destroyed. To be able to monitor the situation and the consequences of what happened, we spoke with Wafica Ibrahim, a journalist for Al Mayadeen TV and correspondent for Resumen Latinoamericano, in the Middle East.
Wafica we want you to give us your first impression of what has happened there in Lebanon since this double explosion in the port of Beirut.
This explosion is a terrible accident, a brigade was working and welding grids and they were near some fuel tanks. The workers were working after a week of total confinement and the fuel tank exploded. That blast then caused the explosion of Pier 12 which has fireworks and an ammonium nitrate store. Social networks started using a lot of imagination and throwing out fabricated videos, talking about the possibility of a rocket attack. Others talked about a Hezbollah weapons factory, all stories. No one listened to these stories, neither the opposition, nor the government officials, nor the friends of the resistance, because the port of Lebanon is not at all under the control of the resistance. It has nothing to do with that. There is an immense diversity of politics, religion, class, in the regions of Lebanon and that is reflected in the port administration, the port workers, the army security apparatus, the customs that work there.
Why was the explosion so big and devastating?
Unfortunately, it is due to the negligence, abandonment and lack of responsibility of governments since 2013. It has gone on for 30 years actually, but specifically from 2013 to date and the Lebanese people know the history by heart. Once a ship was stranded on the high seas and asked for support from the port of Beirut, they were saved and when they inspected the ship they found that it had 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate and they had to stop it and ban it from circulation because it was going to Mozambique. Then, suddenly the owners of the ship disappeared and left the ship with their merchandise there. They were never found again. From that moment on, each government left the inheritance to another government, that’s the problem. What to do with that ammonium nitrate that is so dangerous? Because any accident can be dangerous for the whole capital. This is a standing issue that has never been solved before. The last report that was issued, was by the current government 4 months ago warning that this was a big unresolved problem. Now, in view of what happened, the President of the Republic presided over a meeting with the National Defense Council, which formed a commission of investigation and they say that they are very serious in finding those responsible, or rather irresponsible, who are the cause of this enormous accident. This commission asked for 4 days to gather as much information as possible to inform the Lebanese people of the whole truth. We are waiting for that truth.
With all the description that you give, beyond affirming that it was a very serious negligence, it is clear that what happened is of interest to the enemies of Lebanon, Syria and the Resistance. If they had thought about it, they could not have done it better.
Of course. Let’s start from the fact that the consequences are very serious, and all the political forces agree that it was an accident. However, I will not lie to you it is a port that represents so much in the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund currently in Lebanon. Today Lebanon is faced with two options, and it does not have a third. Either it goes east, looking at China, Russia, Iraq and Syria in the economy; or it must fall completely, with its own weight, into the clutches of the IMF. We are now facing this situation with a port, which needs an reinvestment of 800 million dollars to become a port again, and Lebanon does not have one. Moreover, the material losses at the port amount to more than a trillion dollars. The explosion is the biggest disaster to hit Lebanon since the establishment of the Lebanese Republic; that port is Lebanon’s vital artery. It even plays a role in the Silk Road project, because of its geographical location.
Double pain is caused by knowing that this explosion affects Syria, another country on which imperialism has imposed not only war and destruction but also a total blockade.
That’s right. Syria is the second most impacted country by this explosion because it has the support of this port helps to solve its problems and this is a very big economic and social blow to this country. Therefore, we have to wait for the investigations. The security authorities are pleading with the media to wait for the results. That they will be transparent, that the whole world will be surprised by the results. We are all waiting to see what results there may be, but we still think that the Lebanese government, in parallel with this great tragedy, has to initiate a rapid investigation in order to take a correct position. They need to establish agreements to enable the port, although I very much fear that the port of Beirut will become entangled in the circle of political polarization that will follow when the heat of these events dies down. Those politicians who have wanted to be humanists’, both from the opposition and from the right, talking about human beings and feelings, about human values, are very much afraid that these values will cool down and that this will just become another issue of political polarization in this country. Like all issues.
How is the strength of the resistance represented by Hezbollah and how have they reacted? It seems that their leader Hassan Nasrala himself offered the collaboration of his forces to help the population of Lebanon.
Let me tell you that he had a speech scheduled for this Tuesday, but he suspended it because of the national mourning and to accompany the Lebanese people in this very heavy mourning that we are enduring and he gave orders to all the institutions of the resistance, of civil defense, of the infirmary, of the polyclinics, some hospitals that they have, activists in general and sympathizers, to all be in the streets picking up debris, looking for bodies under the rubble, helping people, women and old people who have been locked up in their departments. In short, today in Lebanon there is a spirit of social solidarity, of multilateral, multifaceted patriotism, of all the people who sing outside the symphony, we would say. But that is why the Lebanese government must now come out of this position of hesitation, and not take drastic decisions, not seek categorical solutions to things. To become a little more radical, this is the best time. What better time than this pain that the Lebanese people are going through due to a terrible negligence, a product of widespread corruption throughout all the time leading up to this, and be a government that can bring the Lebanese people together and make a difference.
We would like to express all our solidarity from here to you. Thank you for the informative task of Al Mayadeen and it team of journalists.
Thanks to you who are supporting us so much. Solidarity is what prevails and we know with that spirit Resumen Latinoamericano is on the side of our people in good times and bad.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)