Emails Show Trump’s CDC Went MIA in Pennsylvania When COVID-19 Hit
Newly revealed emails show that Pennsylvania officials have had to overcome a lack of leadership from Trump’s Centers for Disease Control to carry out basic digital contact tracing.
20407 Article(s) by: Ryan Switzer
Ryan Switzer is a PhD candidate in sociology at Stockholm University. He researches right-wing politics in welfare states.
If There’s a Gap Between the Popular Vote and the Electoral College, Hit the Streets
There’s a real danger that the Right will steal the election by halting the vote count. But US elections can be stolen in more prosaic ways — like the Electoral College. If there’s a discrepancy between the Electoral College and the popular vote, the Left should make it clear that the result is illegitimate.
New York City’s Fiscal Crisis Can’t Be Solved on the Backs of Its Working Class
If New York City is going to avoid catastrophic austerity measures in response to the COVID-19–induced fiscal crisis, the city’s municipal unions will have to summon a fighting spirit that has been missing for a very long time.
Rossana Rossanda Wanted a Party of and for Workers in Struggle
Rossana Rossanda died last month after decades of commitment to first the Italian Communist Party and then the dissident manifesto group. She insisted that a left party should be shaped by the demands of workers’ everyday struggles.
Bolivian Trade Union Leader Orlando Gutiérrez Gave His Life for Democracy and Socialism
Orlando Gutiérrez, the Bolivian militant trade union leader, has been murdered by a fascist gang in Bolivia. He gave his life to the struggle for democracy, workers’ rights, and socialism. Orlando will not be forgotten. And fascism will not win.
The Fossil Fuel Industry’s Dark Money Is Getting Even Darker
A fossil fuel company admitted it made $9.5 million worth of political expenditures to advance its corporate interests — and a Delaware court is helping hide the details.
The Labour Antisemitism Report Has Always Been a Politically Motivated Travesty
When Britain’s Equality and Human Rights Commission announced it was investigating Labour’s treatment of its Jewish members, many of Jeremy Corbyn’s opponents claimed this as proof of his supposed antisemitism. But the inquiry is itself a political weapon — and as the Commission publishes its much-hyped, long-delayed report today, the attacks against the Left are only intensifying.
Happy 100th Birthday to the Communist Party of Australia
In 1920, a small group of socialists met in Sydney to found the Communist Party of Australia. They fought for a world free of exploitation and built on solidarity. They failed in their ultimate goals. But a century later, we remember their legacy of struggle and the real accomplishments of the workers’ movement in Australia.
Donald Trump Has Done One Good Thing — He’s Desacralized the American Presidency
Like the monarchy in Old Regime France, the mystique of the presidency has always played a crucial role in maintaining the symbolic legitimacy of an oppressive American political order. In four years, Donald Trump has systematically destroyed that mystique.
Canada’s Only Social-Democratic Government Has Been Decisively Reelected in British Columbia
British Columbia has historically been dominated by right-wing governments, so last weekend’s overwhelming New Democratic Party win is a significant moment. John Horgan, the first two-term NDP premier in the province’s history, needs to set out a more ambitious agenda in his second term.
Chileans Can Finally Finish the Revolution Against Augusto Pinochet
On Sunday, Chileans voted by a huge majority to abandon the Augusto Pinochet-era constitution. Currently first place in polls for next year’s presidential election, Chilean Communist Daniel Jadue told Jacobin how his country can break from Pinochet’s neoliberal dogmas.
It’s Not Centrism Versus Extremism, It’s Socialism Versus Barbarism
The Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma falls into the common trap of conflating the far left and far right, grouping both under the umbrella of “extremism.” In reality, the politics advanced by the socialist left represents a countervailing force to right-wing conspiracism and reaction.
Both Football Players and Fans Are Sacrificial Lambs for Money-Hungry Universities
In normal times, college football players are seen by administrators as cash cows for universities. Under coronavirus, more than ever, other students are, too. And whether it’s student-athletes suffering severe injury or fans risking illness, both are considered expendable in the pursuit of profit.
Nationalize Walmart
Walmart is the largest private-sector employer in the United States, and it’s an important source of low-cost groceries for consumers around the country. It also pays poverty wages, busts unions, and drives economic inequality. Luckily, there is an economically viable route to solving those ills: bring the megacorporation under public ownership.
How Australia’s Greens Are Winning a Left-Wing Vote in the Heart of “Conservative Queensland”
After the Australian Labor Party’s 2019 election loss to the Liberals, the commentariat bemoaned Queensland’s seemingly entrenched conservatism. Yet as a state election approaches, the experience of campaigners and volunteers on the ground tells a different story.
MAS’s Adriana Salvatierra: “Now We Can Continue the Revolution in Bolivia”
Last weekend’s Bolivian elections saw socialist Luis Arce romp to victory with 55 percent of the vote. Former senate president Adriana Salvatierra told Jacobin how the restored MAS government can undo the damage caused by last year’s coup — and set Bolivia back on the path to social transformation.
“The Residents in My District Don’t Have the Luxury of Incremental Change”
Democratic Socialists of America–backed candidate Omar Fateh scored an upset primary victory and will almost certainly represent the Minnesota State Senate district where George Floyd was killed. We talked with Fateh about the working-class agenda he put forward, why he’s a democratic socialist, and how Floyd’s killing transformed the political landscape.
Bernie Sanders Would Make a Very Good Secretary of Labor
Bernie Sanders is reportedly making a bid to be the secretary of labor in a potential Biden administration. That’s good news. The labor secretary has broad latitude to raise worker standards — and Bernie could use the bully pulpit to declare that all workers will have the full backing of the federal government if they organize on the job.
Poland Is in Revolt Against Its New Abortion Ban
Last Thursday, Poland’s Constitutional Court banned almost all abortion, as part of a wider Catholic-conservative offensive against women’s rights. But the ruling has already sparked strikes and blockades across Poland — and the working-class women least able to afford a clandestine abortion are leading the revolt.
Rep. Van Taylor Is Against Bailouts for Everyone But His Own Industry
Texas Rep. Van Taylor has voted against aid for renters and student debtors. Yet the real estate mogul is now using his office to pressure the government into giving his commercial real estate industry a bailout.