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Progressive politicians, activists, and advocacy groups on Thursday cheered as Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to the United States Supreme Court, becoming the first Black woman and first public defender to serve on the nations highest judicialbody.

Jackson, who was nominated by President Joe Biden to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in amostly party-line vote of 5347. Three Republican senatorsSusan Collins (Maine), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Mitt Romney (Utah)joined all members of the Democratic caucus in voting to confirm the 51-year old federal appellatejudge.

This is truly ajoyful day for the country, said Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (DWash.), calling Jackson one of the most experienced nominees in decades: aformer district court and court of appeals judge, Supreme Court clerk, U.S. Sentencing Commission member, and former publicdefender.

The country saw her poise, grace, thoughtfulness, and brilliance as she handled every part of the confirmation processincluding some outrageous attacks from Republican senators that damaged only their credibility, not hers, she added. She has shown what it means to rise above the nastiness and to bring her history as ajudge and her experience as aBlack woman to her jurisprudence. She rightfully has earned the admiration and respect of millions across thecountry.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (IVt.) said in astatement that in these difficult times, the stakes for the future of this country are higher than ever and the Supreme Court will play asignificant role in shaping thatfuture.

In my view, we need anew member of the Supreme Court who has astrong track record of standing up for justiceeconomic justice, racial justice, social justice, political justice, and environmental justice, he added. There is no doubt that Judge Jackson is thatperson.

Jacksons confirmation was also hailed by Rashad Robinson, president of the civil rights advocacy group Color of Change, who said she has raised the bar in terms of qualifications for the Supreme Courtgreatly raising our countrys expectations for who should sit on ourcourts.

Her perspective as apublic defender has long been missing from the court and denied influence across the judiciary, as has her real-world experience addressing racial injustices in sentencing, he continued. We must remember and redouble our commitment to redefining the role of judges and prosecutors across our countryto ensure they serve the people rather than serving corrupt interests and ensure they end racial injustice rather than exacerbatingit.

We must also remember that Black activismand Black votersbrought us to this long-awaited moment, Robinson added. Black voters and activists made President Biden promise to appoint aBlack woman to the Supreme Court, and Black voters and activists made him keep thatpromise.

Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law president and executive director Damon Hewitt said that Judge Ketanji Brown Jacksons rise to the Supreme Court is amoment unlike any other in our nationshistory.

Hewitt added:

Our democracy is on the precipice, which is evident from the relentless attacks on voting rights and the right to reproductive freedom, efforts to ban truthful curriculum from schools, and threats to school board members and election workers. These are all manifestations of the politically motivated culture war that undoubtedly fueled the unnecessarily fraught process that Judge Jackson endured these past few weeks. The spectacle should not be regulated to ahistorical footnote, but should instead stand as awarning that the embrace of baseless attacks on nominees corrodes our political systemand that those intent on waging aculture war ultimately will notwin.

The disability advocacy group RespectAbility noted that during her time on the lower courts, Justice Jackson has ruled that public school districts must do their due diligence to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, providing students adequate services before placing them in privateschool.

Justice Jackson has also ruled incarceration facilities must address the needs of every prisoner with adisability upon entry, the group added. As apublic defender, Justice Jackson defended clients with mental health, intellectual, and developmentaldisabilities.

In astatement, RespectAbility policy director Philip Kahn-Pauli said that we look forward to her continuing to advocate for people with disabilities on the highest court in theland.

A coalition of climate and environmental advocacy groupsAzul, Chispa League of Conservation Voters, Clean Water Action, Corazn Latino, Earthjustice, Endangered Species Coalition, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace USA, Interfaith Power and Light, League of Conservation Voters, Natural Resources Defense Council, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, Trust for Public Land, Waterway Advocates, and The Wilderness Societyreleased ajoint statement celebrating Jacksonsconfirmation.

Clean air, clean water, climate action, environmental justice, and the right to vote are at stake in our judicial system right nowespecially in the Supreme Court, the groups wrote. Our laws are only as strong as the judges who uphold them. We are confident that Justice Jackson understands the governments authority to protect the public and will hold everyone, including powerful corporate polluters, to the same high standards of thelaw.

After 233years, it is well past time for the Supreme Court to include aBlack woman, they added. This is an essential step forward, as communities of color bear disproportionate burdens of toxic air and water pollution and our nation faces the enormous challenge of addressing environmental injustices from coast tocoast.

This story was first published at Common Dreams.

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Ketanji Brown Jackson Is Now a Supreme Court JusticeAnd Progressives Are Thrilled - In These Times

As soon as Emmanuel Macron was sure that Joe Biden had won the American election, he tweeted: We have a lot to do to overcome todays challenges. Lets work together! There was no effusive tweet this week from the lyse when 54 per cent of Hungarian voters re-elected Viktor Orban as Prime Minister for a fourth term.

The silence from Macron was deafening. Not so his principal rival in Frances impending election. On Sunday evening Marine Le Pen tweeted an old photo of the happy couple shaking hands with the declaration: When the people vote, the people win! Le Pen will hope that Orbans victory is a good omen ahead of Sundays first round of voting; they have much in common a shared vision of the future, what Orban described in his victory speech as Christian Democratic, middle-class conservative and patriotic politics.

It is likely that she will not unseat Macron, who is odds-on to win a second term as president in the final vote on 24 April. An upset isnt an impossibility given the way the polls have narrowed in the past month there are now just five percentage points between them but Macron is the safer option in this era of grave uncertainty. Better the devil and all that.

Its been a challenging year for Macron, not at all what he expected when France assumed the rotating presidency of the EU Council on 1 January. It was the ideal dovetail as he readied himself for re-election, the consolidation of his power as head of the Republic and, to all intents and purposes, Europe. Angela Merkel had just shuffled off the international stage and the new Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, had the appearance of a rather bland successor. Macron envisaged himself the de facto president of Europe.

Scholz, however, has proved to be the most hawkish German leader for decades. His decision in response to Russias invasion of Ukraine to invest 100 billion to modernise the countrys military and buy American F-35 fighters has wrongfooted Macron. Germany is back is the message, and although it will take time for the defence investment to bear fruit, France is no longer the EUs only senior player militarily. This is a blow to Macrons dreams of a European army. Hes been pushing the idea for a while, memorably describing Natos brain death in 2019. Russias invasion of Ukraine has strengthened his conviction.

This was a factor in Macrons decision on 1 January to usher in Frances presidency of the EU Council by unfurling the blocs blue and gold flag under the Arc de Triomphe. Nationalists were apoplectic, none more so than Le Pen, who declared it an attack on Frances identity. Macron didnt care. Indeed, the EU flag was flown again from the Arc last month when he hosted EU leaders to a summit in Versailles to discuss events in Ukraine. Orban was there, signing up Hungary to the sanctions imposed against Russia. Hungary in March 2022 has returned to the fold, exclaimed one French diplomat. Thanks, Putin!

Not so fast. Orban remains a reluctant participant in the EU response to Russias invasion. He has not sent weapons to Ukraine or permitted other member states to transit their arms through Hungary. He is the only European leader critical of Volodymyr Zelensky. The disdain is mutual. Zelensky has described Orban as virtually the only [leader] in Europe to openly support Putin. Which, of course, he is.

Hungarian voters werent put off by the Putin factor. Its the cheaper energy bills, stupid. That and the EU. One of the campaign slogans of Hungarys opposition alliance of liberals and socialists was Orban or Europe. The answer was emphatic, leaving the opposition to rue that all-too-common failing among Europhiles: over-estimating the street appeal of the EU. They ignored the fact that Orban has been asking his people the same question since 2010: my way or the EUs?

The same dynamic was evident last summer when Hungary passed legislation banning the dissemination in schools of material judged to promote homosexuality or gender change. The EU was furious. Respect LGBT rights or leave the EU, they told Orban at a stormy summit. It was really forceful, a deep feeling that this could not be, Dutch PM Mark Rutte explained. It was about our values; this is what we stand for. Macron described it as a cultural battle and said: To fight against homophobic laws is to defend individual freedoms and human dignity.

Rutte and Macron spoke passionately about individual freedoms and human dignity shortly before they imposed some of the most illiberal measures ever seen in their post-war countries. In the name of enforcing lockdown policies, Dutch police in Rotterdam opened fire on protestors with live rounds and in France millions of people who refused the vaccine were shut out from society by a president who cheerfully admitted he wanted to piss them off.

Orban is credited in 2014 with coining the phrase illiberal democracy; but judging by what has gone on in much of the West in the past two years, his creed has caught on.

His response to the LGBT furore was to remind his western critics that during the days of communism in Hungary he had championed the rights of minorities. Homosexuality was punished and I fought for their freedom and their rights, he said. He then stated that parents and not the EU should have the final say in how their children are educated about sex.

He portrays his agenda as genuinely liberal and his opponents as hectoring, proscribing or condescending. All too often, they play straight into his hands. We never had so many opponents, Orban said after his victory. Brussels bureaucrats the international mainstream media, and the Ukrainian president.

Macron will never be reconciled to Brexit, because the idea of any country flourishing outside the EU is an alternative truth. In a speech to the European parliament in January, Macron said: It is up to our generations to renew our Europe, to fulfil its promises of democracy, progress and peace.

But now there is war once more in Europe, which is already testing the resolve and unity of the EU as the economic ramifications start to bite. This week Germany rejected an EU embargo on Russian gas imports, and several French companies are refusing to withdraw from Russia. On the other hand, Poland which shares Hungarys cultural conservatism has moved closer to Brussels in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. Yet Macron is the EU darling, and Hungary and Poland are the populist pariahs.

The notion of the Visegrad Four countries as a bloc Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia is falling away. The Czechs and Slovaks have centre-left governments, so its hardly an illiberal alliance. The Poles, more hawkish on Russia than perhaps anyone else in Europe, are appalled at Orbans cosiness with the Kremlin. At the Visegrad Four summit in London last week, the differences were such that they struggled to agree a statement.

This leaves Orban more alone than ever within the EU, and Putin will seek to exploit this isolation, as he has for many years with prominent western politicians he considers hostile to Brussels. In congratulating the Hungarian PM on his victory, the Russian President expressed his desire to further strengthen bilateral ties of partnership.

Putin would like to send a congratulatory message this month to another European leader, but it is unlikely that Marine Le Pen will grant him that opportunity. Rather Macron will be re-elected president and Brussels will have at its heart once more its greatest cheerleader.

Whether he will be able to renew Europe remains to be seen. Macron is desperate to be the saviour of the EU but he might end up being its last true believer.

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Progressives vs populists: Macron, Orban and Europe's faultline - The Spectator

The presidential ambition of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains unshakable despite Vice President Yemi Osinbajos decision to join the 2023 race.

The Lagos chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) stated this after Tinubu met with the governors elected on the platform of the APC in Abuja on Monday.

The APC leaders meeting with the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) was held hours after Osinbajo met the APC governors and declared his presidential ambition.

The Lagos APC tweeted after Tinubus meeting: Our focus remains unshakableThank you for coming PGF Governors Message loud and clear Our focus remains unshakableThe objectives defined.Future assuredASIWAJU is the answer.

Thank you for coming PGF Govs Message loud and clear Our focus remains unshakable The objectives defined.Future assured

ASIWAJU is the answer pic.twitter.com/Lphfxk2tpY

Tinubu was believed to have used the meeting which was held at the Kebbi State Governors Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja, to seek assurance from the APC governors to support his presidential bid.

While the APC leader has yet to formally declare for the race, he had informed President Muhammadu Buhari about his ambition during a visit to the State House in January.

Osinbajo was said to have resisted pressure from his supporters to declare his ambition earlier than now because of his loyalty to Tinubu and the need to observe the body language of his former boss.

His declaration now officially pits him against Tinubu in the race to grab the presidential ticket of the ruling APC.

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Lagos APC Says Tinubu 'Unshakable' After Meeting Progressives Govs Over Osinbajo's Declaration The Whistler Nigeria - The Whistler Nigeria

CLEVELAND, Ohio - It takes bravery to make history. And according to Jeff Charney, the chief marketing officer behind characters like Flo, the Aflac Duck and Dr. Rick, its sorely needed for good advertising too.

Thats why MKHSTRY, his new marketing collective, makes potential customers take a 75-question test as a bravery barometer before theyre invited to hire his new company.

I want to work with the bravest gamechangers possible, Charney said.

Charney, 62, has been working in the advertising industry since he was 17. Hes been the chief marketing officer at QVC, Aflac and most recently Progressive in suburban Mayfield, where he worked for 11 years before retiring from Progressive.

Over his career he won more than 100 awards for advertising that was disruptive and made brands stand out.

Even though he was named Ad Ages BRAND CMO of the Year in 2021, Charney said he wanted to walk away from the corporate world on top to launch his own marketing collective based in the Cleveland area.

MKHSTRY isnt an advertising agency or a normal consulting firm, Charney said. The collective is built around accelerating ideas and getting brands and agencies to do things in new ways.

Charney announced the new company in late March, and since then hundreds of companies have already reached out to try to become clients, he said.

He only wants to work on ideas that crack the code with innovative ways to advertise. Charney also wants people that have courage to make decisions, which is why customers have to be invited to hire the collective.

Charney said the best campaigns he worked on, whether it was a motorcycle riding insurance saleswoman or a loud duck, worked because they were unusual for the time, and because he and his team didnt treat them like traditional ad campaigns.

Actress and comedian Stephanie Courtney, who plays the television character "Flo" in commercials for Progressive, throws out a ceremonial pitch before a a Cleveland Indians game in 2009. Mark Duncan, AP

He said the best characters were the ones they treated like a Saturday Night Live cast member.

Flo was a character he inherited a year after her creation, but Charney said Progressive kept her relevant and made her a household name because they leaned on comedian Stephanie Courtneys improv skills.

Charney said she told him she was funnier than what the writers were coming up with. So they bet on those skills and surrounded her with other improv actors. When Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield started doing commercials, Charney said they made sure he got improv training too.

The Aflac Duck, another character he inherited but worked with for many years, was created because the CEO didnt care if he needed to scream Aflac at the top of his lungs. Hed do anything that worked.

So when the copywriters who created the character came across a loud, obnoxious duck at lunchtime they went with it. Even choosing the bird over actor Ray Romano, who was doing ad campaigns at the time.

One of Progressives newest characters, Dr. Rick, is probably better known as the life coach that tries to stop people from turning into their parents. He doesnt sell insurance directly, but he does try to keep people from hoarding lawn gnomes, clapping at the end of movies or giving unsolicited grilling advice at barbecues.

Charney said characters like that become memorable because theyre authentic and relatable. The Progressive ads about parentamorphosis were partly inspired by Charneys own experiences, like when he ran after a speeding driver doing 60 mph in the 30-mph zone near his home.

I was doing the same thing my dad did 30 years earlier, Charney said.

MKHSTRYs aim is to help both companies modernize, or to help them get an idea off the ground. MKHSTRY isnt designed to be a brands longtime consultant.

When presented with an idea that could be game-changing, Charney said the collective will help companies will be a team with experts tailored to that industry or task. The aim is to help get that idea off the ground and to teach the company how to fly on its own.

MKHSTRY will also work with advertising agencies and train them to do things differently and in a modern way. The collective will also be a lifestyle brand, selling clothing and other items.

The traditional advertising model is for brands to buy space, whether it be in print, TV, radio or digital. Its also slow and often companies play it safe, he said, saying advertising has used the same model for 150 years.

Charney said technologies like blockchain and Web3 are removing the gatekeepers and opening more avenues and less rules around advertising. Its a great time for someone who wants to be bold and idea-first, but they have to be willing to act fast and do things out of their comfort zone.

Right now the collective has six main partners outside of Charney, who are all working remotely, he said. The company will continue to have no offices, walls or bureaucracy as it builds out, he said. But as they start to bring in clients, hell build out individual teams for each company or project.

He believes its the roaring 20s of marketing and that the industry is ready for disruption. As the name implies, Charney said he wants to work on ideas that accomplish one main thing, making history and changing the game for advertising.

Im not doing it to spite the industry, Charney said. Im doing it because I love the industry.

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Progressives former top marketing executive, behind many Flo, Baker Mayfield and Aflac Duck ads, starts his - cleveland.com

The new liberalism

Since the terms socialism, Marxism and communism carry the stigma of philosophies that have failed, groups who believe in those ideologies started calling themselves progressives in the 1920s. Their goal was to usurp control of the Democratic Party by creating problems and then offering solutions to the problems they created.

In order to create problems, progressives introduced political correctness and diversity. Type Saul Alinsky into any search engine. Read Rules for Radicals. You will then know what progressives have in store for America.

Liberalism does not mean what it used to mean. If Democrats knew what they were really voting for, they would vote for another party.

Todays Democratic Party is not the party of President John F. Kennedy. Since the 1960s, many laws have been for social reform, such as civil rights and environmentalism. Rules then written by Washington bureaucrats in charge of enforcing those laws are regulations that businesses and you and I must obey or risk fines and imprisonment.

Progressives favor policies that promote social progress by using the government to force reforms while promoting submission to the government, because, according to them, the government always knows whats best for everyone.

Progressives believe in collectivism, not individualism. When you think of Social Security, Medicare or the income tax, do you think of individuals?

New laws normally benefit groups or corporations that have lobbied for them, not individuals, while additional regulations add additional costs that are passed on to us. Along with those costs there can be hidden taxes we never see on our sales receipts.

In medieval times, serfs had to give their lord one-third of all they produced. Today, because of embedded (invisible) taxes, every dollar you spend you are unknowingly paying almost 40% for local, state and federal taxes!

What does that make us?

Sonny Heninger, Leesburg

One picture says it all.

I'm talking about Nancy Polosi tearing up the State of the Union address a few years ago. I guess some people think this is an example of class.

Ever notice how Democrats just don't seem to be able to get past Trump? No matter what else is going on, it's always Trump, Trump, Trump.

I guess it's not surprising, after all. You can't expect them to mention the disastrous exit from Afghanistan (Biden ignoring advice from military advisers); the unspeakable situation on our southern border (caused and then ignored by Biden); the surge in crime in so many Democrat-run cities (ignored again); our completely embarrassing and incompetent vice president (ignored again); the skyrocketing inflation (Bidens solution is to spend more); or the systematic destruction of our coal, gas and oil industries (a policy too unbelievable to believe).

Of course, don't remind them of Biden's campaign promise to unite the country, shut down the coronavirus, or never to invoke mask or inoculation mandates. But, the most troubling of all is their plan to remake our country into what they think it should be. Take the country that has achieved the highest level of industrial success, greatest military strength ever achieved and the highest standard of living ever, and turn it into some kind of socialistic state, a system that has been tried in many different forms and has never worked! Could it be that their real and only objective is to gain as much power as they can?

The Democratic plan: Keep the people thinking about Trump, and they will not notice what we are doing behind their back.

Roger Ball, Leesburg

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Today's letters: Readers comment on the term 'progressives' and the Democratic plan - Daily Commercial