Mediaboss Marketing

A slew of ideological battles within the Democratic Party over the coming weeks, stretching from the Bronx to the hollers of eastern Kentucky to the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, will test Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumers ability to dictate primary outcomes both nationally and in his home state.

Senate Democrats political operation, previously led by former Nevada Sen. Harry Reid and now by Schumer, has not lost a primary since the 2010 election cycle, but must fend off left-wing candidates in both Kentucky and Colorado over the course of the next week. And after originally declining to pick sides in a contested House primary in his home state, Schumer endorsed House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Eliot Engel, who is desperately trying to fend off a challenge from educator Jamaal Bowman.

Both Bowmans bid in New Yorks 16th District and the Kentucky contest which pits Schumer-backed former fighter pilot Amy McGrath against progressive state Rep. Charles Booker point to a still-emerging alliance between Black and Latino voters and progressive groups that could spoil the Democratic establishments ability to swat aside primary challenges.

These coalitions potential strength has only grown as the coronavirus pandemic and the protests following the death of George Floyd have exposed systemic inequalities in health care and policing. If the left can successfully re-create them in the years to come, almost every Democratic politician in America up to and including those as powerful as Schumer could face serious primary challenges.

From New York to Kentucky, theres a multiracial slate of progressive candidates that are surging, said Sochie Nnaemeka, the New York state director of the Working Families Party, which is backing Booker and Bowman. Primary voters are sending a clear message that politics as usual wont get us heading in the right direction.

L. Joy Williams, a New York Democratic strategist and consultant for New York Rep. Yvette Clarkes re-election bid, was blunt about the potential impact progressive wins could have on Schumer.

It will have an immediate impact in terms of people thinking about whether he is vulnerable, she said.

Schumers office declined to comment. Any attempt to unseat Schumer, who remains popular throughout the state, would be a monumental uphill battle. Persistent rumors have suggested Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the pioneer of modern left-wing primary challenges, could run against Schumer in 2022.

Win McNamee via Getty ImagesSenate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is navigating increasingly powerful ideological currents this primary cycle as progressive challengers face off against establishment candidates.

Progressives are targeting a number of primaries in New York. The Working Families Party and other left-leaning groups are optimistic about Mondaire Jones chances to replace retiring Rep. Nita Lowey in a district representing a swath of suburbs to the north of the city. Adem Bunkeddeko is mounting a second challenge to Clarke in a Brooklyn-based seat after losing by less than 2,000 votes in 2018. And there are two dueling progressive candidates in the race for a Bronx-based district that is the nations most Democratic.

But its the battle for Engels seat where Schumer has expended the most political capital. In early June, Schumer made it clear he hadnt picked sides between Engel and Bowman as the latter picked up political momentum. Schumers declaration forced Engel to remove his states senior senator from an online list of campaign endorsers.

Schumers neutrality couldnt last: Pro-Israel groups count both men as crucial allies, and are desperately working to keep Engel in office. Dov Hikind, a former New York assemblyman, questioned Schumers pro-Israel credentials.

A little over a week later, Schumer told the Jewish Insider he was supporting the incumbent.

Schumer has long been more conciliatory toward the left wing of the party than other Democratic leaders. He backed now-Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison for Democratic National Committee chair in 2016, gave both Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren roles in Senate leadership, and voted with Sanders and other progressive senators against a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada late last year.

Chuck is responsive to these kinds of pressures when he pays attention to them, said Adam Jentleson, a Democratic strategist who was a top aide to Reid. Theres a misplaced confidence in the centrist vision of the party based on [former Vice President Joe] Bidens victory in the primary.

I think the important thing moving forward is to take the left seriously,he continued.Its going to be the place where the most energizing ideas are coming from, and where a lot of the grassroots money is coming from.

And Schumers long-term political goal of reclaiming the Senate majority is now within his grasp. President Donald Trumps continued political decline has increased Democrats chances of winning Senate seats even in red-tinted states like Georgia and Iowa, and Schumers political operation has matched or outspent Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells in most states. And after some early recruiting struggles, he managed to convince two former presidential candidates former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Montana Gov. Steve Bullock to run for Senate instead.

Still, the structure of the 2018 Senate map, which was heavy on Democratic incumbents running for re-election, meant Schumer has largely been able to avoid the partys Trump-era ideological battles until this year. So far, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee-backed candidates have cruised, easily winning in Iowa and North Carolina against a mostly disorganized left wing of the party.

But that may change in Kentucky and Colorado. Senate Democrats have long viewed victory in the Bluegrass State as unlikely, but believed McGraths incredibly strong fundraising shes raised more than $40 million, compared to McConnells $23 million, according to Federal Election Commission records could help pin McConnell down and prevent him from aiding other GOP incumbents financially.

Early last week, Schumer told reporters he believed McGrath would triumph, happily explaining how a super PAC controlled by McConnell had reserved $10 million worth of airtime in the state. Later in the week, he ignored a HuffPost reporters questions about his confidence in his prized recruit.

Senate Democrats are still confident McGrath can hold off Booker, though they acknowledge the race will be far closer than previously expected. Bookers participation in Black Lives Matter protests in recent weeks has helped galvanize support, rallying progressives both in Kentucky and nationally to his cause. One of his ads features McGrath struggling to answer why she hasnt participated in the protests.

McGrath has hit back with an electability argument.

Shes Kentuckys best chance to move on from Mitch McConnell, an announcer says at the start of McGraths latest ad. Polling shows shes the only Democrat who can beat him.

If the race in Kentucky is mostly about draining McConnells resources, the contest in Colorado on June 30 is essential to Democratic victory in the battle for the Senate. It was seen as a coup when Schumer convinced Hickenlooper, a popular former governor and mayor of Denver, to drop out of the presidential race and run for Senate against vulnerable incumbent GOP Sen. Cory Gardner.

Instead, Hickenlooper has made multiple gaffes in recent weeks as his lone remaining primary rival, former state House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, has repeatedly attacked him from the left on climate change and other issues.

After Romanoff released an ad on Friday attacking Hickenlooper over an ethics violation, a quickly formed super PAC fired back with an ad attacking Romanoffs immigration record.

The super PAC, Lets Turn Colorado Blue, wont have to make its donors public until after the primary because it began spending after the pre-primary FEC filing deadline. Groups affiliated with Schumer have used similar tactics in the past to temporarily hide their donors.

The race between Hickenlooper and Romanoff has not become the flashpoint the Kentucky contest has. While both Warren and Sanders endorsed Booker, Sanders has remained neutral in Colorado and Warren has sided with Hickenlooper.

In part, this is because Romanoff doesnt have sterling progressive credentials, even if he now supports the Green New Deal and Medicare for All. In 2014, he aired an ad touting his support for a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution while running for House, and he voted against in-state college tuition for undocumented college students in the legislature.

Even if Schumers Senate picks survive, however, its clear the left is growing more capable of causing headaches for the establishment.

Progressive voters, and voters as a whole, are embracing and running toward the most systemic policy changes, Nnaemeka said. Thats the ground were operating on now, and I dont think its going to shift.

CORRECTION: This article previously misidentified the district in which Bowman is running as the 17th; it is the 16th.

Calling all HuffPost superfans!

Sign up for membership to become a founding member and help shape HuffPost's next chapter

Go here to see the original:
Chuck Schumer Faces The Progressive Surge - HuffPost

The first inside the gates was Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, when she knocked off Queens machine boss Joe Crowley in June 2018. Three months later, a slew of progressive and socialist insurgentsbeat incumbents in New York state legislative primaries: some whod been serving decades, and others whod been part of the renegade Independent Democratic Conference, which shifted power in Albany toward Republicans. Those primaries brought Jessica Ramos, Alessandra Biaggi, Julia Salazar, and a host of others to Albany, where they uncorked a burst of bottled-up of progressive legislation.

Then came Tiffany Cabn, a former public defender who ran a shoestring campaign for Queens district attorney and came out ahead on election day in the summer of 2019, only to lose by a few dozen votes when the absentee ballots were counted.

The campaigns of the last two years created a roadmap for left-wing insurgents this cycle, with the Cabn and Ocasio-Cortez races pointing progressives to the New York City neighborhoods where their strength is particularly strong, exposing opportunities to unseat new incumbents. The 2018 bids for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general, by Cynthia Nixon, Jumaane Williams, and Zephyr Teachout, respectively, left behind additional local data. While Jamaal Bowmans challenge to Rep. Eliot Engel has gotten the most coverage, Reps. Yvette Clarke, Greg Meeks, and others are fending off spirited challenges from the left. Progressive Mondaire Jones, meanwhile, has moved into the lead in an open congressional primary in a southern New York district. That same force is rattling the cages of the machine in down-ballot races throughout the city.

The 34th Assembly District in Queens, for instance, covering Jackson Heights, has been represented for years by Michael DenDekker, a reliable cog in the local machine, yet it broke 59-26 for Cabn. Jessica Gonzlez-Rojas, a longtime activist and the executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, saw what was happening around her. We saw wins like AOC, whos my congresswoman, and Jessica Ramos, who took out an IDC member, which is the Independent Democratic Conference, and then Catalina Cruz, whos my neighboring assemblywoman, who was a former DREAMer, she said. All these inspiring Latinas breaking glass ceilings, and then a lot of my neighbors are like, Is DenDekker still there? Why dont you run against him?

Despite the presence of other progressives in the primary, Gonzlez-Rojas has the consolidated support of New Yorks socialist and progressive organizations.(Ocasio-Cortez has not endorsed in this race, having weighed in only on competitive local primaries outside of her district. I understand that endorsements are complicated, Gonzlez-Rojas said.)

Gonzlez-Rojas is one of a slate of credible progressive challengers taking on state Assembly incumbents in the June 23 primary, running largely on the argument that New Yorks pandemic-and-Trump-administration-produced budget crisis should be resolved by taxing the wealthy rather than austerity. The insurgency is also coming for the top prosecutor in Albany, with a Bernie Sanders-backed challenger taking on a 16-year incumbent. Jabari Brisport, meanwhile, a public school teacher andDemocratic Socialists of America activist, is running for an open Brooklyn state Senate seat against the machine-backed Tremaine Wright; he has the backing of Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez, Salazar, Nixon, the Working Families Party, and most of the institutional left. If Brisport follows Salazar to Albany, the citys Senate delegation will have significant DSA representation.

Gonzlez-Rojas is one of a slate of credible progressive challengers taking on state Assembly incumbents in the June 23 primary.

Photo: Courtesy of the Gonzlez-Rojas Campagn.

In addition to Brisport, the NYC DSA is backing Samelys Lpez for the House of Representatives, Zohran Mamdani for Assembly in Queens, and Phara Souffrant Forrest and Marcela Mitaynes for Assembly in Brooklyn. The group nearly doubled its first quarter fundraising goal, raising more than $175,000 to support phone banking, mailers, and other critical resources for the campaigns in its slate of endorsements.

Nixons endorsement by the DSA during her 2018 gubernatorial run was controversial within the organization, but the argument that backing her would help build the groups capacity now appears prescient. She has remained active with the group, and appeared alongside Sanders surrogates Nina Turner, Philip Agnew, and Jaboukie Young-White at a high-profile NYC-DSA fundraiser on May 31. They raised $60,000 that night. The rising insurgency is a sign that the multiracial, class-conscious movement inspired by Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez and led largely by young and working people is alive and well even as politicians and news organizations critical of Sanders have penned its obituary in the wake of his failed presidential bid. When we talk about the political revolution that means building power at every level of government, Sanders tweeted after two socialists won primaries for state legislative office in Philadelphia this month.

The challengers, most running in New York City, have public opinion on their side, according to a new survey by Data For Progress. Four in five voters favor high taxes on those making more than $2 million per year and an additional tax on investment gains made by billionaires. Three-quarters backed a tax on people with multiple homes, and four in five supported a tax on digital advertising platforms like Google and Facebook. Just three in 10 supported cuts to Medicaid.

A broad coalition of progressive groups Make the Road New York, Citizen Action of New York, New York Working Families Party, New York Communities for Change, VOCAL-NY, Community Voices Heard, and the Alliance for Quality Education has rallied behind most of those candidates, while being split on others, and seized on the results of the survey. During this pandemic, he has balanced the state budget on the backs of working-class Black and brown people once, and threatens to do it again, the coalition said in a statement, referring to Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo. This data show that New Yorkers categorically reject the Governors approach and demand urgent action from him and the legislature.

We keep hearing that the coronavirus has put New York state in debt and put us in a position where cuts are necessary. We progressives, myself included, are saying, wait a second, theres money on the table that were not addressing, Gonzlez-Rojas. Whats exciting about the poll is that theres data there. Its not just hearsay or conversations. Theres real numbers behind it, that we shouldnt be cutting education or health care or housing in a moment where theres money on the table.

Incumbent Aravella Simotas largely votes the Democratic line, but that might not work anymore in this district, where Ocasio-Cortez and Cabn both romped over their opponents in gentrifying Astoria, and voters also backed Nixon, Williams, and Teachout in their 2018 statewide races. Housing activist Zohran Mamdani, whose race is a major priority of DSA, doesnt have the backing of much else of the more established progressive infrastructure, such as the WFP, making it an interesting test of the strength of the DSA and the left absent that institutional support. Simotas, meanwhile, is backed by companies fighting labor protections for gig workers; New Yorkers for Flexible Work, which appears to be a front group for companies like Uber and Lyft, is running ads on Spotify in support of her. Ubers top lobbyist, Patrick Jenkins, donated $1,000 to Simotas last month. Jenkins is a longtime friend and former college roommate of New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. Simotas also received a contribution of $500 from Savas Konstantinides, a city taxi fleet owner under federal investigation into possible lending fraud in the city taxi industry. Mamdanis campaign is focusing on rights for drivers in the district.

Part of this district, gentrifying quickly, is similar to Mamdanis, but part is still traditional Queens neighborhoods, where young people and progressives have made fewer inroads. Incumbent Catherine Nolan, not particularly progressive, is fortunate to have two challengers rather than one Mary Jobaida and Danielle Brecker, who may end up splitting the progressive vote. Local activists say Jabaida, running a shoe-string operation, is giving Nolan the most serious challenge and has the most progressive support, though neither has institutional backing from the coalition backing a broader slate.

Assistant Assembly Speaker Felix Ortiz has served since 1994, and has been tied up in a corruption investigation. Marcela Mitaynes, a housing activist, has the backing of everyone from DSA to WFP and Ocasio-Cortez, whose willingness to endorse against a member of the Assembly leadership raised eyebrows in the city. This is arguably the citys closest-watched Assembly race.

This rapidly gentrifying district in the heart of Brooklyn was once represented by Hakeem Jeffries, now a member of Congress and major power player locally and nationally. Jeffriess friend and successor, Walter Mosley, has the backing of the WFP (he bucked leadership to back WFPs ballot access), but nurse and housing activist Phara Souffrant has the support of DSA and Ocasio-Cortez making this race something of a proxy war between Jeffries and Ocasio-Cortez, two local titans whose congressional staffs have been engaged in high-profile conflict. New Yorkers for Flexible Work, the group running ads against Simotas, is also spending on ads in support of Mosley.

Carmen Aroyyo, the 84-year-old machine incumbent in this South Bronx district, was challenged by 29-year-old Amanda Septimo from the left with the backing of WFP. Arroyo falsified her petition signatures and was disqualified from the ballot, meaning the insurgent will waltz into the seat. Septimo had run a strong race for the seat in 2018, and is an example of the adage that if you want to win, you often have to run twice.

Sam Fein, an Albany County legislator, was recruited by the WFP to take on incumbent John McDonald III. The local SEIU is behind Fein, but there is little progressive infrastructure outside New York City to boost him. This race could help build that, giving local progressives something to organize around.

Adam Bojak, a tenants rights attorney, is running with the backing of DSA national, as well as its Buffalo chapter a test of DSAs strength outside the city. WFP is behind Jon Rivera.

In a handful of other races, the left is working to fend off challenges to progressive incumbents.

Steven Lee, a controversial New York police officer, is challenging Assemblyman Ron Kim, a foe of the local real estate industry who was pivotal in fending off Amazons headquarters. Lee and his campaign chair were recently caught ginning up racist memes to attack Kim.

Lees campaign chair Mike Cheng, in a chatroom run by Lee, shared a cartoon of Kim Jong Un praising Lees politics, and suggested people circulate it, adding, in a remarkable admission, Because we use other fake account but its maxed out and they have spam filters.

That provoked Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, who has been broadly hostile to the insurgency, to condemn the assault: Let me be clear racist attacks and cyberbullying have no place in our public discourse, and the attacks that my colleague, Ron Kim, has been experiencing are truly disgusting. Racist dog whistles hidden behind phone accounts are beyond contempt and cowardly. Now more than ever we should be looking to lift each other up. Ron is a true champion for his district and an important voice in our Assembly Democratic Majority. He works hard for his community and I am proud to call him a friend.

Lee, who distanced himself from the fake spam accounts, also falsely suggested he had the support of Rep. Grace Meng.

Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Nious recent floor speech against Cuomos Medicaid cuts became a rallying cry for progressives. A former backer of Elizabeth Warren who later endorsed Sanders, this Manhattan representative now has both senatorssupport as she fends off a challenge from Grace Lee, who has the heavy backing of real estate interests.

Dianna Richardson was elected in 2015 with her name only appearing on the WFP ballot line, and has emerged as a leading progressive voice in the legislature. Jesse Hamilton, a former member of the turncoat Independent Democratic Conference, is challenging her in a primary, with the Brooklyn machine doing nothing to help the incumbent Richardson revealing once again that the machines defense of incumbents is linked to ideology, not incumbency.

Correction: June 20, 2020

This story originally misspelled the name ofJessica Gonzlez-Rojas.

Here is the original post:
Progressives Targeting New York Incumbents in Down-Ballot Races - The Intercept

Ankur Shukla Published 8:45 a.m. PT June 19, 2020

Former Vice President Joe Biden called for justice and accountability in the death of George Floyd, a black man who died shortly after his arrest by four Minneapolis police officers. "George Floyd's life matters," Biden said. (May 27) AP Domestic

Subscribe: Read local news and views with a 99-cent subscription to the RGJ

This opinion column was submitted byAnkur Shukla, a native Nevadan anda veteran of international and U.S. presidential campaigns. Heholds a masters of public policy from Harvard University.

Dear progressives,

I want to reach out to you as a moderate Democrat. I am writing today because I need you. Reports are that many progressives are unenthusiastic about Joe Biden, and perhaps may not vote for him. Perhaps that is you. If so, please allow me to tell you something you already know: The country needs you, your voiceand your vote. I genuinely believe the opportunity for the progressive movement has never been greater.

Since you are a progressive, I do not have to convince you that Donald Trump is bad for the country. Like me, you are terrified for yourself and your loved ones health and safety as the coronavirus ravages through the nation and Trump prioritizes the stock market over the health of citizens. Like me, you were probably horrified when peaceful protestors were dispersed with tear gas and flash grenades, violating their First Amendment rights. Undoubtedly you were once again disappointed when Republicans looked away and even pretended to not have seen the whole thing. You and I have a common disgust for all this.

I have to admit, as a moderate I have not always understood the progressive point of view. I think there are a lot of moderates who need to better understand the progressive perspective and vice versa. However, despite our differences, we are on the same team. We believe that climate change is an existential threat, that health care is a human right, that a college education should be free, that a womans right to choose is sacrosanct, that there is racial injustice in the criminal justice system that must be corrected, to name only a few. We are all concerned about the courts being packed with right-wing judges and what could happen to the Supreme Court if Republicans win the White House and Senate again. We largely have the same goals, but we disagree on how to get thereMedicare for All versus strengthening the Affordable Care Act to get to universal health care, for example.

Opinion: Six ways to make sure Joe Biden wins and Donald Trump loses in the November election

The progressive movement has changed the political debate in this country, and even moderate presidential candidates adopted some progressive policies. The obvious example is Medicare for All and free college, which of millions of voters support, and which several moderate candidates included in their platforms.

I worked for the Pete Buttigieg campaign. One of the policies that drew me in was free college at public colleges and universities for low- and middle-income students a direct contribution from the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign. Biden would later adopt this policy. The obvious conclusion is that the progressive movement holds great sway in the Democratic Party, and that is where, I would argue, you come in.

Progressives can continue to make an impact. I understand you may not favor Biden, and you may even distrust him. Perhaps you feel he has let you down in the past. I understand that, as a moderate, it is much easier for me to be enthusiastic about Biden. However, I would argue that there is plenty of reason for you to be excited about a Biden presidency, especially if we win both the House and the Senate.

One reason you have to be excited is that Biden has been moving to the left. Even before becoming the presumptive nominee, he adopted signature proposals from Sanders and Warren. Furthermore, Biden has incorporated prominent progressives into his leadership team. Typically, a presumptive nominee moves to the center of the ideological spectrum. Not Biden. So, there is great potential for progressive policies to be incorporated into Bidens agenda. Progressives can shape the Democratic National Committee platform and influence the narrative.

Also, with Biden at the top of the ticket, down-ballot Democrats have a great shot at winning the Senate with the same coalition that won the House in 2018. Progressive proposals could become law. And unlike in the past, progressives have a large, powerful caucus in the House, which will undoubtedly hold even a moderate Democratic president to account. There have even been rumblings out of the campaign that Biden wants more of an FDR-style presidency to heal the country after so much tumult, as opposed to his original incrementalism. You have an opening.

Ankur Shukla(Photo: Provided by Ankur Shukla)

What is more certain is that if Trump and Republicans win again, there will certainly be no advance in progressive policies. The country will most certainly continue to move backwards on the environment, health care, education, race relationsand so on.

There is only one choice right now:A possibility of advancing progressive goals with Biden, and with Democrats controlling both houses of Congress, or continued degradation of our country.

Have your say: How to submit an opinion column or letter to the editor

Read or Share this story: https://www.rgj.com/story/opinion/voices/2020/06/19/progressives-win-biden-shukla/3221951001/

Excerpt from:
Progressives will win with Biden | Shukla - Reno Gazette Journal

Imagine this: its the day after the presidential election, and Donald Trump is officially on his way out. The era of toddler imprisonment, pandemic denial, regulatory rollbacks and constitution shredding is over. And under new leadership from a Democrat in the White House, we can finally focus on making sure every American has access to healthcare, quality education, stable housing and a livable planet. Right? Wrong.

I hope Trump and the Republicans get voted out of Washington this November, but heres the sobering truth: our presumptive Democratic presidential candidate has told us in no uncertain terms that hes not interested in changing the status quo. While I love and respect our progressive allies in Congress, and I hope to see their numbers grow in November, we simply cant wait for the rest of Washington to wake up and adopt a progressive agenda. But we can win real progress over the next four years, by fighting at the state level to do what Washington wont. Thats where New York comes in.

I was born and raised in Brooklyn, and Ive seen New York politics change a lot in that time, but nothing compares to the last few years. The 2016 presidential election was a wake-up call for Democrats, and New York progressives leapt to their feet and got to work. We showed up at the polls for progressives and broke the Republican stranglehold on the New York state legislature, and finally put an end to the ridiculous Independent Democratic Conference. We embarrassed the centrist establishment and gave hope to the entire country when we elected Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to the US House of Representatives. In just four years, we have chipped away at the complacent, corporate-funded, pseudo-progressive Democratic establishment thats never prioritized working-class people and we have forced them to listen to what working-class people need. The resurgent, grassroots socialist movement we have built is fast becoming a beacon of humanity in an inhumane, capitalist country whose establishment politicians yes, including Democrats resist real change at every turn.

We simply cant wait for the rest of Washington to wake up and adopt a progressive agenda

This nation is crying out for progressive leadership, and New York is poised to deliver it. Even with lackluster leaders such as Andrew Cuomo and Bill de Blasio in our executive branches, New Yorkers are hungry for serious change. Amid an unprecedented global pandemic thats led to record unemployment and housing instability, New Yorkers are putting their hard-earned dollars, time and energy behind progressive movements.

The nation is not going to get universal healthcare under Joe Biden. Yet last year, in New York, we were just one vote shy of passing a bill to give every New Yorker access to healthcare. With just a few more true progressives in Albany, we can finally pass the New York Health Act and guarantee free healthcare to every single one of the nearly 20 million people who call New York home.

We can also become the first state to fully fund the infrastructure that will protect us from climate change, and we can power every home and business from Staten Island to Champlain with clean, renewable energy. We can reclaim our power grid from greedy corporations and distribute that energy via a public utility. We can remind the rest of the United States what happens when everyone has the right to a free, quality education from preschool to college. We can defund the nations largest police department and reinvest in our communities, modeling an approach to public safety that doesnt rely on guns and mass incarceration. And we can decide that the ultra-wealthy no longer profit from our state without paying their fair share of taxes.

In a lot of this country, even Democrats would call these policies pipe dreams. Lets prove them wrong. In New York, they can become reality, because were not going to settle for the status quo. The need for these changes has never been more urgent, and no one is in a better position to implement them than the progressive wing of the New York Democratic party. New York has the chance to serve as a blueprint for how the nation moves forward, even without progressive leadership in Washington. Were not willing to wait, so well have to lead the way.

Follow this link:
Could New York become a progressive beacon in the United States? - The Guardian

The TAKE with Rick Klein

The fights that would have been never really went away.

Former Vice President Joe Biden was largely spared of can-he-heal-the-party anxieties due to the unusual timing of him wrapping up the nomination in the midst of a pandemic, followed by this national reckoning over race and policing tactics.

But progressive concerns about the direction of the Democratic Party are emerging. They are dominating down-ballot primaries coming up in states including Kentucky, Colorado and New York; one House race there even has Sen. Elizabeth Warren endorsing a challenger, and Hillary Clinton among those sticking with the incumbent.

The latest lobbying push for Warren to join Biden's ticket is predicated on the calculation that the former vice president needs to tack left to unite his party. Then there's the range of progressive groups -- black and Latino groups, along with organizations associated with Sen. Bernie Sanders' former campaign -- warning that Biden's police-reform proposals are insufficient for the moment.

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a roundtable on economic reopening with community members in Philadelphia, June 11, 2020.

"You cannot win the election without the enthusiastic support of Black voters, and how you act in this moment of crisis will play a big role in determining how Black voters -- and all voters concerned with racial justice -- respond to your candidacy," the coalition of some 50 organizations wrote to Biden.

Biden has resisted getting drawn into a debate over "defund the police," and has also hesitated on supporting reparations for black Americans. His proposed police reforms would go significantly farther than anything espoused by President Donald Trump, and Biden's campaign responded to his executive order Tuesday by saying "the burden is on President Trump and congressional Republicans to act."

Biden has had more flexibility than most recent Democratic nominees to put forward his vision of the party, after he secured the nomination with more party unity than was widely expected.

But part of his burden from here is to recognize the passions of the moment and the movements inspired to act. Some of the loudest voices are being directed at Trump, though efforts to get Biden's attention could matter more in November.

The RUNDOWN with MaryAlice Parks

Nearly three weeks after the death of George Floyd, Trump on Tuesday met with American families who have also had loved ones killed by police officers.

In signing his executive order, he made it clear that there is overwhelming support for some policing reforms, such as the banning of chokeholds in most incidences.

In this June 1, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington.

Of course, the president's actions this week will continue to be met with skepticism by those who have been deeply hurt and sidelined by his words in the past. At campaign rallies, the president used to joke about letting police be brutal with and mistreat protesters. Just a few weeks ago, in a tweet, he seemed to encourage police to misuse their authority and use lethal force against looters.

Ahmaud Arbery's mother described Trump as "compassionate," and said that while she does not believe his executive order is enough, it's a start.

The president offered preliminary support for the bill that Republican senators have been drafting and intend to unveil Wednesday morning, but the country is struggling with some deja vu. In the past, after crises, Trump has said he will back legislation -- on gun control, health care and immigration -- only to pivot and pull his support, even from Republican bills, at the last minute.

Trump called for unity in the Rose Garden Tuesday, but then went on to criticize President Barack Obama.

The fact is, this is a president who has repeatedly used racist language himself, and so healing and new trust after that will take time and Democrats will have to decide if passing any reforms with members across the aisle is better than passing none.

The TIP with Molly Nagle and John Verhovek

Biden is headed to the Philadelphia suburbs -- his third trip to the key swing state of Pennsylvania in recent weeks -- to deliver remarks and meet with small business owners on the challenge of getting back to work as the country continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic.

Biden's campaign, which has inched back onto the physical campaign trail throughout June, has sought to highlight the former vice president's plan to "reopen" the country safely as concerns over the virus continue, hoping to draw a contrast with Trump.

Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign event devoted to the reopening of the U.S. economy during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Philadelphia, June 11, 2020.

"Vice President Biden will discuss how President Trump has no plan besides hanging an 'open for business' sign to get Americans back to work, restore consumer confidence and re-open the economy," a Biden campaign aide said of his remarks.

But while the candidate has thus far been able to stay close to home in a critical battleground state amid the pandemic, excursions to some electorally critical states are butting up against a stark reality.

On Tuesday, the battleground state of Florida reported a record high one-day increase of COVID-19 cases, and the mayor of Miami put the city's reopening plan on hold. Meanwhile Arizona and Texas, two states Biden has insisted he can and will compete in this cycle, set new state records for coronavirus hospitalizations just this week.

BRINGING AMERICA BACK

Lockdown orders have limited in-person efforts to connect with potential voters. So those running for state and local races are relying on digital tools like Zoom calls and social media instead. Read this story and more by checking out Bringing America Back, an ABC News feature that highlights the day's top stories in economic recovery and medical preparedness amid the coronavirus pandemic.

THE PLAYLIST

ABC News' "Start Here" podcast. Wednesday morning's episode features ABC News White House correspondent Karen Travers who tells us what's in President Donald Trump's new executive order on policing and previews what the Senate Republicans could announce Wednesday. ABC News Transportation correspondent Gio Benitez explains how airlines are planning to ensure that passengers wear masks on flights. And, ABC News' Alex Stone tells us about the first company to plead guilty in connection with wildfire deaths. http://apple.co/2HPocUL

FiveThirtyEight Politics Podcast. Support for the Black Lives Matter movement has increased dramatically over the past few weeks. In this installment of the FiveThirtyEight Politics podcast, the team looks at whether public opinion on police and racism has moved in tandem. They also discuss the request from President Trump's re-election campaign that CNN retract and apologize for a poll showing him trailing former Vice President Joe Biden and ask whether the partisan positions on social distancing have broken down. https://53eig.ht/2N3pH1r

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Download the ABC News app and select "The Note" as an item of interest to receive the day's sharpest political analysis.

The Note is a daily ABC News feature that highlights the key political moments of the day ahead. Please check back tomorrow for the latest.

Read the original here:
The Note: Progressives put Biden on warning -- again - ABC News