Did Americans Want a Political Revolution?
Joe Biden told us there was an easy path. Reality will soon catch up to that fantasy.
304 Articles by: David Sirota
David Sirota is editor-at-large at Jacobin. He edits the Lever and previously served as a senior adviser and speechwriter on Bernie Sanders’s 2020 presidential campaign.
A New Trump Rule Tries to Help Big Oil Crush the Climate Movement
Trump’s Labor Department is trying to help Big Oil prevent retirees’ money from flowing out of the fossil fuel industry and into environmentally sustainable investments. When it comes to climate change or anything else, corporate interests dominate the state.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo Blocks Tax Hikes on Billionaires Bankrolling His Political Machine
Forty-three New York billionaires have donated to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s political machine. Now he’s blocking attempts to tax his ultrarich friends.
Senate GOP Copied and Pasted Andrew Cuomo’s COVID-19 Corporate Immunity Law
While raking in cash from health care industry donors, Beltway Republicans copied language from an Andrew Cuomo law meant to shield negligent nursing home execs into their new COVID-19 relief package, word for word.
Andrew Cuomo and Health Care Execs Just Got Dealt a Setback
New York state legislators just passed a bill limiting Governor Andrew Cuomo’s attempt to shield his big donors from COVID-related lawsuits. But nursing home CEOs are still protected for negligence or wrongdoing that took place earlier this year.
Joe Biden Just Made a Big Promise to His Wall Street Donors
Two weeks after being lauded for his task force policies, Joe Biden promised wealthy campaign contributors that changing corporate behavior “is not going to require legislation — I’m not proposing any.” The Left should be worried.
A Huge Wall Street Scandal Just Exploded In Kentucky
GOP law enforcement officials are targeting Stephen Schwarzman, the billionaire who bankrolls Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump’s political machine. The lawsuit breaks open a major financial scandal that threatens the world’s largest private equity firms — with global implications.
The Pentagon Is Giving Billions to Corporate Criminals
As the Senate considers defense budget cuts, a new government report says the Pentagon is giving billions to companies “cited for willful or repeated safety, health or fair labor standards violations.”
Health Care Lobbyists Are Donating Large Amounts to Democrats. They Want Execs’ Immunity From COVID-19 Lawsuits.
Earlier this year, New York governor Andrew Cuomo helped a donor shield health care executives from COVID-19–related lawsuits. Washington Democrats are weighing similar legislation. Now, new data shows that a lobbying group funneled campaign cash to New York Democrats as the bill was being passed.
Trump Wants Federal Agents to Invade American Cities. Democrats Aren’t Doing Much to Push Back.
Donald Trump deployed unidentified Department of Homeland Security agents to Portland, where they abducted protesters off the street into unmarked vehicles, and he wants to do the same elsewhere. House Democrats rightly say they’re horrified by Trump’s actions — yet are refusing to do anything substantive to stop them.
Brett Kavanaugh’s Confirmation Got a Big Boost From a Mysterious Individual Donation of $15.9 Million
When Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court was under fire, a dark money group called Judicial Crisis Network came to his aid. According to recently obtained documents, more than half of JCN’s funding came from one mysterious, unnamed donor who gave $15.9 million towards the effort.
Wall Street Is Deeply Grateful for the Supreme Court’s Recent Little-Noticed Ruling
Supreme Court Justice John Roberts has been praised recently as a heroic force for moderation. But his court’s recent ruling just helped Wall Street giants stomp on thousands of public-sector workers and retirees in one of America’s poorest states.
The US Government Gave Big Oil the Power to Prosecute Its Biggest Critic
The government has taken the extraordinary step of giving prosecutorial power to a law firm that has worked for Chevron — and is allowing that prosecutorial power to be aimed at Chevron’s chief adversary, who has been under house arrest for the past year.
The 1 Percent Are Cheating Us Out of a Quarter-Trillion Dollars in Taxes Every Year
As the social safety net is shredded, new data show that billionaires and corporations are refusing to pay hundreds of billions of dollars of owed taxes every single year. It really puts all the hand-wringing about “looting” into perspective.
Trump’s Labor Secretary Is Reaching Cartoonish Levels of Supervillainry
Donald Trump’s labor secretary Eugene Scalia has been busy lately: 1. helping money managers shift workers’ retirement savings into high-risk private equity schemes to enrich Wall Street, 2. relaxing rules dictating that money managers work in clients’ best interests, and 3. stopping the moving of workers’ savings into low-risk, environmentally sustainable investments.
Democrats Are Working With Liz Cheney to Prolong Dick Cheney’s Endless War
Rep. Liz Cheney, daughter of Dick, is trying to prolong her father’s endless war in Afghanistan. You would think that every Democrat would be united in opposing such a policy, right? Well, you would be wrong.
Chief Justice John Roberts Is Carrying Out Corporate America’s Long-Term Plan Perfectly
In 2005, Chief Justice John Roberts was nominated to the Supreme Court because the business lobby believed he would turn the court into a corporate weapon — and that’s precisely what he has been doing ever since.
The US Public Paid to Develop This COVID-19 Drug. It Will Cost $3,000 a Dose.
The American public helped pay for the development of remdesivir, a COVID-19 drug. That same American public will now be charged $3,000 for a treatment — a treatment that experts say costs less than $10 to produce.
The Supreme Court Is Still Repeatedly Ruling in Favor of the Ultra-Wealthy
The Supreme Court has made some surprising recent rulings defending rights for LGBT people and immigrants. Those rulings should be applauded — but they also shouldn’t distract us from how the court is continuing to erode democracy and worsen inequality with new rulings that are huge boons for the rich.
SEC Regulators: Private Equity Is on a Crime Spree
Securities and Exchange Commission regulators recently issued a scathing report that reads like a last-ditch plea for help in reeling in private equity billionaires, who have all but free rein to fleece whoever they want, whenever they want.