2020-08-12: News Headlines

Alan Macleod (2020-08-12). Democratic Establishment Commits to Status Quo with Kamala Harris VP Pick. mintpressnews.com Just as America seemed to be in the midst of reckoning over-policing and racial justice, the Democratic establishment threw its support behind a hawkish former prosecutor with a questionable record.

Staff (2020-08-12). As Kamala Harris Makes History as VP Pick, Her "Top Cop" Record Faces New Scrutiny Amid BLM Protests. democracynow.org Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's selection of California Senator Kamala Harris as his vice-presidential running mate for the November election makes her the first Black woman and the first Indian American on a major party presidential ticket. "It's hard to overstate how historic, how monumental this is," says Aimee Allison, president of She the People, which works to elevate the political voice and leadership of women of color. But in the midst of the largest protest movement in American history against racist policing, Briahna Joy Gray, the former national press secretary for the Bernie Sanders pres…

Staff (2020-08-12). Headlines for August 12, 2020. democracynow.org Joe Biden Taps Kamala Harris as Vice-Presidential Running Mate, Florida, Georgia Record Record Coronavirus Deaths as U.S. Colleges Delay Fall Sports Season, Bodies of COVID-19 Victims Lie Unclaimed Outside Chapel in La Paz, Bolivia, QAnon Conspiracy Theorist Wins Georgia 14th Congressional District GOP Primary, Rep. Ilhan Omar Fends Off Primary Challenger Who Dramatically Outraised Her, Clintons, Obamas Among Top Speakers at Democratic National Convention, Beirut Vigil Marks One Week Since Catastrophic Port Explosion, Thousands of Protesters in Mali Demand President's Ouster, Chicago Man Accused of Firing at Poli…

Staff (2020-08-12). What the Nazis Learned from Jim Crow: Author Isabel Wilkerson on the U.S. Racial Caste System. democracynow.org In her extensively researched new book, "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents," Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson argues the United States' racial hierarchy should be thought of as a caste system, similar to that in India. In a wide-ranging interview, she describes how she also looks at the ways Nazi Germany borrowed from U.S. Jim Crow laws. "The Nazis needed no one to teach them how to hate," Wilkerson says. "But what they did was they sent researchers to the United States to study Jim Crow laws here in the United States, to study and to research how the United States had managed to subordinate…

Riva Enteen (2020-08-12). Kamala Harris? Really? Desperate Times, Desperate Measures. counterpunch.org Kamala Harris might be the perfect lens to reveal who the Democrats really are. A good run-down on her track record highlights her assertion that "It is not progressive to be soft on crime." As a San Francisco social worker, I sat on the school district committee that met with families of chronically truant students.

Michael Otto (2020-08-12). Political strike shuts down Bolivia. workers.org Ibarra, Ecuador Do Bolivian lives matter? The Bolivian masses are experiencing a perfect storm of social, health and economic crises. A U.S.-backed military coup overthrew President Evo Morales Ayma in November 2019 — Morales called it a lithium coup. To Wall Street, only the great reserves of Bolivian lithium matter. . . . |

Bruce Lerro (2020-08-12). Lost at Sea: Left Liberals Have No Party. dissidentvoice.org I wrote this article over four years ago in 2016 for the purpose of challenging left liberals to face the fact that they have no party. In re-reading it today, everything I said in the original article remains true. In fact, the Democratic Party has leaned even further to the right over the last four …

Editor (2020-08-12). An anti-racist vote for class unity. workers.org Rashida Tlaib of Detroit made history on Nov. 7, 2018, when she became the first Palestinian American woman elected to Congress. This year, in the weeks leading up to the Michigan Democratic Party primary on Aug. 4, the capitalist media questioned whether she would get a shot at reelection. "Congressperson . . . |

Eds. (2020-08-12). 'What we're seeing now is Jim Crow 2.0'. mronline.org CounterSpin interview with Carol Anderson on voter suppression.

RT (2020-08-12). MSNBC accused of cropping image of Biden calling Kamala to remove script he was reading. rt.com MSNBC has been accused of some comically conspicuous cropping of a photo of Joe Biden, obscuring his notes for the video call in which he told Kamala Harris she would be his 2020 election running mate. | As election season gathers pace ahead of the November vote to decide the US president, every word, photo and soundbite will be pored over endlessly by both the media and the public, which makes it all the more bizarre that MSNBC would attempt to somewhat needlessly obscure the phone script for the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. | MSNBC cropped the photo of Joe Biden video chatting with Kamala Har…

RT (2020-08-12). 'Trust no one & have fun': Sarah Palin embraced by libs as she comes out with words of encouragement for Biden's VP pick Harris. rt.com Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, who ran as VP on the McCain ticket in 2008, has been praised as a "class act" by her detractors after she gave Biden's freshly-announced VP pick Kamala Harris a long list of dos and don'ts.

RT (2020-08-12). Polls show young voters support Biden… but running mate Kamala Harris thinks they're 'STUPID' (VIDEO). rt.com Though young voters seem lukewarm about Joe Biden, polls show their support for the Democrat is greater than for Donald Trump. But a newly-surfaced clip shows his VP pick Kamala Harris doesn't think much of the American youth. | At 77 years-old, Biden would be the oldest president in history if he manages to defeat President Trump in November. His advanced age, however, hasn't repelled young voters. According to the latest Monmouth University

RT (2020-08-12). Wanna bet? US statisticians give Trump 'exact same odds' against Biden as the ones he beat in 2016. rt.com The major statistical analysis website FiveThirtyEight has US President Donald Trump's odds of winning the November election at 29 percent — exactly the same chances he was said to have had in 2016 before he went on to win. | Nate Silver's website, named for the total number of electors in the US electoral college, unveiled its forecast,

RT (2020-08-12). QAnon-supporting, anti-Soros GOP upstart Marjorie Greene on track for Congress after landslide victory in Georgia primary. rt.com A GOP congressional candidate who's come under fire for endorsing 'QAnon' conspiracy theories has taken more than half the vote in Georgia's primary runoff race, putting her on track to become the first Q-supporter in Congress. | Businesswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene prevailed over her fellow Republican John Cowan on Tuesday night, earning more than 57 percent of the vote. Greene ran a victory lap following the final result, celebrating her win despite "the GOP establishment, the media, and the radical left" spending "months and millions of dollars attacking me." | The GOP establishment, the media, & the radic…

_____ (2020-08-12). Letters From Melbourne, a 'Ghost Town Police State' Under Brutal Covid Lockdown. strategic-culture.org The citizens of Australia's second most populous city are suffering under the harshest lockdown conditions of all Western democracies. Their voices need to be heard. | In the last several weeks, Melbourne has introduced shockingly draconian anti-Covid measures, imposed on the metropolis of some 5 million souls. What tragedy was responsible for spurring officials to leap into action? To blame was a fractional

Mark Gruenberg (2020-08-12). Selection of Kamala Harris as VP candidate makes history. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—In a move that is widely expected to boost voter turnout and push Donald Trump out of office in less than 83 days, presumed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden selected Kamala Harris yesterday as his vice presidential running mate. The selection is being widely lauded not just by Black women but by broad swaths of …

Staff (2020-08-12). Trump turning state-owned VOA into personal propaganda arm. therealnews.com The United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) management, which oversees five federally-funded broadcast networks, has suspended four journalists on contract with possible termination. The four journalists are charged with influencing the US elections and violating federal laws by favoring Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden in a video published by the Urdu language service of…

John Wojcik (2020-08-12). Kamala Harris pick can forge historic unity in fight for justice in America. peoplesworld.org The selection of Kamala Harris as the first Black female candidate of a major party for the vice presidency of the United States deserves the support of every single person in this country who cherishes democracy, economic justice, and equality. Kamala Harris has said that in these tough times, "People say it is important that …

CP Editor (2020-08-12). Kamala Harris and her "Top Cop" Record. counterpunch.org

Noam Chomsky (2020-08-12). Trump Is Quite Capable of an "October Surprise" zcomm.org Popular support for autocracy runs disturbingly high. Almost one-fourth of Republicans agree "President Trump should close down mainstream news outlets, like CNN, The Washington Post and The New York Times."

Stephen Lendman (2020-08-12). Joe Biden Picks Kamala Harris as Running Mate. Biden-Harris vs. Trump-Pence. Who is Kamala Harris? globalresearch.ca Whenever US presidential and congressional elections are held, voters get to choose between two pro-war, pro-corporate empowerment, anti-progressive right wings of the one-party state. | Names and faces change, results always the same. Dirty business as usual wins every time — …

WSWS (2020-08-12). Biden picks former law-and-order prosecutor Kamala Harris to be his Democratic running mate. wsws.org Harris satisfies the advocates of identity politics while reassuring big business with her law-and-order record and close ties to the moneyed elite.

Abdel Bari Atwan (2020-08-12). Replaying the 'Syria Scenario' in Lebanon. thealtworld.com The US and its clients are trying to exploit the crisis to advance their plans to destroy Hezbollah. They should know better. | Let us start at the end, without getting bogged down in the details and analyses that fill the Lebanese and Arab media these days: The current ferment in Lebanon, which resulted in the resignation of Hassan Diab's government over the Beirut Port explosion, will eventually lead to the demise of Lebanon's corrupt ruling elite and the 1989 Taif Agreement that brought it to power and established the sectarian carve-up system that sustains it. | The Lebanese people want genuine democratic ref…

Brian Trautman (2020-08-12). The 'Wall of Vets' Continue Long Legacy of Veteran Activism. zcomm.org Veterans are mindful of the crimes that an authoritarian government and occupying military force are capable of. They know that we have a civic duty to stand up to these existential threats to democracy, freedom and liberty…

Jeff Schuhrke (2020-08-12). The US Labor Movement Needs More of the UE's "Them and Us" Unionism. zcomm.org UE's model of militant, democratic unionism can revive labor…

Jeff Harris (2020-08-12). The Medical Assessment of Covid: America Desperately Needs a "Second Opinion" globalresearch.ca Doctors are human and subject to human mistakes. Even doctors with exceptional "expert" credentials are still human and like all humans fallible. That's why patients often seek a second or even third opinion from other expert physicians BEFORE implementing a …

Santa Cruz News Network (2020-08-12). Santa Cruz for Bernie Endorses Brown, Hill and Kumar for Santa Cruz City Council. indybay.org Santa Cruz County for Bernie Sanders has announced their organization is endorsing three progressive candidates for Santa Cruz City Council in the November 2020 election: Sandy Brown, Kelsey Hill, and Kayla Kumar.

Khubaka, Michael Harris (2020-08-12). 2020 Sequoia National Park ~ Buffalo Soldiers Day Celebration. indybay.org California US Senator Kamala Harris, a native daughter of Oakland, California, has an special connection with Buffalo Soldiers as she continues to lead the way helping quantify and qualify the merits of our California Buffalo Soldiers Project.

Michael Harris (2020-08-12). Friday 9/18: Juneteenth Holiday Education Symposium. indybay.org Historic Gold Mining Town | Negro Bar, California | Historic Folsom District…

Slash SFPD's Stash (2020-08-12). Friday 8/21: Rally & March to Slash SFPD's Stash. indybay.org Gather at Civic Center Plaza in front of SF City Hall | March to 850 Bryant…

_____ (2020-08-12). How Trump Can Steal The 2020 Election. popularresistance.org The election was stolen from Clinton four years ago and the even weaker 2020 candidate can expect the same fate. Republicans win the presidency when they steal votes. Democrats need a huge turnout to undo the impact of so-called "spoiled ballots," electronic vote machine theft and the removal of Democratic voters, i.e. Black people, from the rolls. These methods will of course be used in November and ought to be the basis for concerns regarding any electoral malfeasance. | It is important to remember the real electoral threats when Donald Trump decides to have fun with America's collective reptile brain. When he…

_____ (2020-08-12). The Censoring Cancel Culture Against Russia. strategic-culture.org Wyoming Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney,

Staff (2020-08-11). Headlines for August 11, 2020. democracynow.org Lebanese Gov't Steps Down in Wake of Catastrophic Beirut Explosion and Mounting Protests, Trump Mulls Barring Americans from Reentry into U.S.; Coronavirus Cases Rise in Kids, Russia Approves First COVID-19 Vaccine; New Zealand Goes Back into Lockdown, Unrest in Chicago Sparked by Police Shooting Leads to 100+ Arrests, 16 People Arrested in Portland, OR Protests, Including Hate Crime Survivor Demetria Hester, Belarus in Turmoil as Lukashenko Cracks Down on Protests, Opposition Candidate Flees to Lithuania, Bolivia Protests Against Interim Right-Wing Gov't Intensify; Union Calls for General Strike, Fires in Brazil…

Staff (2020-08-11). "Prisons Are Not Fit for Human Occupation": San Quentin Prisoners Speak Out as Virus Deaths Reach 25. democracynow.org California's notorious San Quentin State Prison is experiencing the worst coronavirus outbreak in the United States. At least 2,200 prisoners have been infected, and 25 have died. More than 260 staff members have also been infected. We hear from two people incarcerated at San Quentin about conditions inside and the punitive measures authorities have taken against prisoners campaigning for better safety measures, and speak with James King, a member of the Stop San Quentin Outbreak Coalition. "The conditions at San Quentin are horrific," says King, who was incarcerated at San Quentin from 2013 until December 2019.

Staff (2020-08-11). How the Pandemic Defeated America: Ed Yong on How COVID-19 Humiliated Planet's Most Powerful Nation. democracynow.org As the world passes a grim milestone of 20 million coronavirus cases, we look at how the pandemic humbled and humiliated the world's most powerful country. Over a quarter of the confirmed infections and deaths have been in the United States, which has less than 5% of the world's population. Ed Yong, a science writer at The Atlantic who has been covering the pandemic extensively since March, says existing gaps in the U.S. social safety net and the Trump administration's "devastatingly inept response" made for a deadly combination.

Staff (2020-08-11). Lebanon's Gov't Resigns Amid Public Rage over Beirut Blast, But Protesters Demand Structural Change. democracynow.org After days of protests, Lebanon's government has resigned following the devastating explosion at the Port of Beirut that killed 200 people and injured thousands. The port blast, the source of which was 2,700 tons of highly explosive ammonium nitrate left unattended in a warehouse for more than six years, occurred as Lebanon was already facing political, economic and public health crises. We speak with Ziad Abu-Rish, a historian and research fellow at the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies and co-director of Bard College's Masters of Arts program in human rights and the arts, who says despite public outrage toppli…

Hamzah Raza (2020-08-11). By clasping hands with Netanyahu, 'top cop' Kamala Harris whitewashes Israel's racism. thegrayzone.com A friendly meeting California senator and self-declared "top cop" Kamala Harris held with Israel's right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shows…

Fight Back (2020-08-11). Ilhan Omar speaks at Minneapolis celebration of NO BAN Act passage In House. fightbacknews.org Minneapolis, MN – A small crowd gathered in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood on August 10 for a press conference celebrating the passage of the National Origin-Based Antidiscrimination for Nonimmigrants (NO BAN) Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. | The bill would repeal President Trump's racist travel ban that has prevented immigration from a list of Muslim-majority and African countries. It would also strengthen prohibitions against discrimination on visa applications, permanently barring the executive branch from banning people from entering the United States on the basis of religious affiliation. Approv…

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-08-11). Progressive Ilhan Omar Faces Dark Money and Right-Wing Attacks in Minnesota Primary. commondreams.org "When you speak truth to power, power fights back," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said of Omar's primary challenge. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2020-08-11_at_1.21.58_pm.png

Jamal Rich (2020-08-11). Radical historian challenges traditional Marxist view of 'so-called' American Revolution. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—The 'so-called' American Revolution of 1776 was not a bourgeois-democratic uprising for liberty as the common view would have it. Instead, it was a settler-colonialist revolt, a reactionary event aimed at blocking the impending abolition of slavery. That according to radical historian Gerald Horne, who is challenging both mainstream as well as traditional Marxist narratives about …

Andrew Levine (2020-08-11). Trump and Biden, Two Ignoble Minds Here O'erthrown. counterpunch.org At the presidential level and perhaps down-ticket too, this year's electoral circus will be a spectacle well calculated to cause disgust and despair — thanks mainly to Donald Trump's unprecedented machinations, but also because, at least in the presidential contest, the main contenders, both of them, are embarrassingly unfit to serve. For kindness sake, one

Richard D. Wolff (2020-08-11). Why Capitalism is in Constant Conflict With Democracy. counterpunch.org The capitalist economic system has always had a big problem with politics in societies with universal suffrage. Anticipating that, most capitalists opposed and long resisted extending suffrage beyond the rich who possessed capital. Only mass pressures from below forced repeated extensions of voting rights until universal suffrage was achieved—at least legally. To this day, capitalists

Robin Talbot, Ewan Simpson (2020-08-11). 'Beirut is burning': Lebanese youth leader says country in trouble before blast. peoplesworld.org Following the devastating Beirut explosion, Robin Talbot and Ewan Simpson of the Young Communist League of Britain spoke to Union of Lebanese Democratic Youth (ULDY) president Adnan Al-Mokdad about his organization's response and the fast-moving political situation in Lebanon. The following article detailing their conversation is an edited version of an article that originally appeared …

Anand Naidoo (2020-08-11). The Heat: Race for White House as Trump battles Democrats. america.cgtn.com The race for the White House heats us as Trump and Democrats battle over economic aid.

RT (2020-08-11). Kamala Harris got 'destroyed' by Tulsi Gabbard in Democrat debates, dropped out before primaries — and now might be president. rt.com California Senator Kamala Harris crashed and burned early in the Democrat primary process, never recovering from the debate drubbing she took from Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard. She became Joe Biden's running mate anyway. | "Tulsi" was trending on social networks shortly after the

RT (2020-08-11). Joe Biden chooses Kamala Harris as running mate. rt.com 2020 presidential hopeful Joe Biden has announced his running mate. The Democratic challenger picked former California senator and former prosecutor Kamala Harris, after promising to select a woman of color for the role. | Biden announced his pick on Tuesday, with Harris previously considered a front-runner for…

RT (2020-08-11). At least it wasn't Susan Rice: Democrats could have made a worse running mate pick for Biden. rt.com Barack Obama's national security adviser Susan Rice would have ticked the woke politics box, but her foreign policy failures and lack of domestic experience ultimately made someone else Joe Biden's running mate. | On Tuesday, hours before Senator Kamala Harris of California was announced as Biden's VP pick on the Democrats' 2020 ticket, the betting markets had pivoted to Rice. | This was based on her taking a leave of absence from her New York Times opinion column and selling off stocks in Netflix, as well as the rumor mill fueled by her conspicuous absence from the list of named speakers at next week's Democr…

RT (2020-08-11). Trump launches scathing ad on 'phony' Kamala Harris as Democrats are torn over Biden's VP pick. rt.com President Donald Trump is having a field day with the choice of Kamala Harris as Joe Biden's running mate. While Democrat elites are rallying behind the ticket, frustrated progressives point to her problematic prosecutorial past. | Democrats

RT (2020-08-11). Whose convention is it again? MSNBC uses Republican backdrop to promote Democratic convention. rt.com A graphical blunder by MSNBC demonstrates two facts about modern America: that fact-checking takes second seat to pizzazz, and that neither party has a monopoly on red, white, and blue pageantry. | In a series of graphics announcing the speaker schedule for next week's Democratic National Convention, MSNBC on Tuesday listed the names over a photograph of the Republican Party's 2012 convention — where Mitt Romney accepted his party's nomination in a shower of red, white, and blue balloons. | The gaffe was quickly picked up by hawk-eyed Twitter users, who mocked the network for its sloppiness. Among the fir…

Jonathan Cook (2020-08-11). How the Guardian Betrayed not only Corbyn but the Last Vestiges of British Democracy. dissidentvoice.org It is simply astonishing that the first attempt by the Guardian — the only major British newspaper styling itself as on the liberal-left — to properly examine the contents of a devastating internal Labour party report leaked in April is taking place nearly four months after the 860-page report first came to light. If you are a Labour party …

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-08-11). DNC Announces Progressive Champion Ocasio-Cortez Will Speak at Convention. commondreams.org Previous speculation indicated the popular New York Democrat would be left off the program. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/screen_shot_2020-08-11_at_8.26.42_am.png

Rep. Ron Paul (2020-08-11). Coronavirus Is the New 'Terrorism'. globalresearch.ca House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has proposed the next multi-trillion dollar "coronavirus relief" spending bill that will support testing, tracing, treatment, isolation, and mask policies that have been part of a "national strategic plan" she has been advocating. The Trump administration …

WSWS (2020-08-11). Louisiana Supreme Court denies review of Fair Wayne Bryant's life sentence for allegedly stealing a pair of hedge clippers. wsws.org This horrific experience demonstrates the true face of justice in America, with one set of rules for the poor and oppressed and another set of rules for the wealthy.

WSWS (2020-08-11). Biden's blueprint for a right-wing presidency: Part two. wsws.org On China, the Democratic platform attacks Trump from the right, claiming that his trade war policies have not restored jobs in the United States and pledging to "stand up" to Beijing.

Thomas Knapp (2020-08-11). The "Election Interference" Fearmongers Think You're Stupid. counterpunch.org Xi Jinping and Ali Khamenei prefer Joe Biden to Donald Trump. Vladimir Putin prefers Donald Trump to Joe Biden. That's according to William Evanina, Director of the US National Counterintelligence and Security Center. "Many foreign actors," he says, "have a preference for who wins the election, which they express through a range of overt and

Barbara Boland (2020-08-11). DNC Delegates: Biden Team 'A Horror Show' of 'Disastrous' Foreign Interventionism. globalresearch.ca Former National Security Advisor

Peoples Dispatch (2020-08-11). Cuba's doctors to the rescue. peoplesdispatch.org The efforts by Cuba's Henry Reeve International Medical Brigade have been the most significant example of medical internationalism during the COVID-19 pandemic. The brigade was set up in 2005 by Fidel Castro.

Renee Parsons (2020-08-11). America's Political Crisis: Organized Riots and the Economic Lockdown. globalresearch.ca In case you missed it, not one member of the Democratic hierarchy: not the DNC Chair, not one Democratic Member of Congress, Governor or Mayor, has spoken out to criticize the

_____ (2020-08-11). Democracy — We've had the Russia Report, now where is the America Report? truepublica.org.uk By Rob Woodward — TruePublica: The long-awaited Russia report was published with a call for "immediate action" by the government and intelligence services to tackle the threat from just one country — Russia. The reality was that while Russia may have been meddling at the edges of Britain's democracy, America has been actively involved in …

Sholto Byrnes (2020-08-11). The Flaw in the US Plan to Rally Democracies Against China. globalresearch.ca US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called last week for "a new alliance of democracies" to fight what he called "the tentacles of the Chinese Communist Party". In a speech delivered at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in California, Mr …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-08-11). Bolivians brave repression, continue struggle for democracy. peoplesdispatch.org The national strike and road blockades have intensified across Bolivia. The Bolivian Workers' Center (COB) called for these actions to oppose…

WSWS (2020-08-11). Chicago mayor locks down business district after police shooting sparks looting. wsws.org Democratic officials responded by deploying more police, threatening more aggressive prosecutions and cutting off nighttime access to the Loop.

WSWS (2020-08-11). US Attorney General Barr gives fascistic tirade against Antifa, Black Lives Matter. wsws.org Barr made a political amalgam connecting the Democratic Party, Black Lives Matter, Antifa and terrorism.

WSWS (2020-08-11). New York educators and students denounce Governor Cuomo's push to reopen schools. wsws.org Teachers and students spoke to the WSWS to express their opposition to New York state Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo's plans to allow all schools to reopen in the coming weeks.

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-11). Honey extraction in Daryan, NW Iran. en.mehrnews.com DARYAN, Aug. 11 (MNA) — Some 15.025 tons of honey are produced per annum from 1,391,679 hives in East Azarbaijan Province, northwest Iran. The images show the process of honey extraction in Daryan Village in Shabestar County.

_____ (2020-08-11). If Trump Wins, Russia Did It, If Biden Wins, It Was China And Iran. popularresistance.org Mass media throughout the western world are uncritically passing along a press release from the US intelligence community because that's what passes for journalism in a world where God is dead and everything is stupid. | The press release, from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and authored by National Counterintelligence and Security Center Director William Evanina, claims that Russia wants Donald Trump to win re-election in November and is pushing to advance than goal, while China and Iran are doing the same with Joe Biden. What this completely unsubstantiated narrative means, of course, is th…

_____ (2020-08-11). The AFL-CIO Aided US Interference in Venezuela. popularresistance.org The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) Solidarity Center has a long history of working hand in glove with the U.S. government in undermining democracy and left labor movements throughout the world. | The center emphasizes it has shifted away from these Cold War tactics in recent years. But newly obtained documents show that the Solidarity Center has worked closely with the US to undermine the Venezuelan government in the recent past. Across much of the world, the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) acted as an international a…

_____ (2020-08-11). China To Sanction US Senators, NED And NGO Chiefs Over Hong Kong. popularresistance.org China on Monday announced sanctions on a group of 11 Americans, including lawmakers and top executives of American NGOs, in retaliation for US sanctions on a group of Hong Kong and mainland Chinese officials. | Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a regular press conference that Beijing would impose sanctions on Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, and Representative Chris Smith of New Jersey, all of whom are Republicans.

sputniknews (2020-08-11). Trump Says He Was 'A Little Surprised' Biden Picked Kamala Harris for VP. sputniknews.com US President Donald Trump on Tuesday addressed US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's decision to pick US Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) as his 2020 running mate, saying that he was "a little surprised" by the choice.

sputniknews (2020-08-11). Meet Kamala Harris, Biden's Vice Presidential Pick for 2020 Election. sputniknews.com US Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) was tapped on Tuesday to be Joe Biden's vice presidential running mate on the Democratic ticket in the November 2020 election. Harris' political history extends back to 2003.

sputniknews (2020-08-11). 'Let's Go Win': Politicos, Netizens React to Biden-Harris 2020 Presidential Ticket. sputniknews.com Social media activity related to the US' ongoing protests and the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic took a backseat for a few hours on Tuesday as politicos and everyday netizens provided their opinions on former US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's selection of Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) as his running mate.

Staff (2020-08-11). Many Progressives Respond With Disappointment as Biden Picks Harris for VP. truthout.org Presumptive Democratic nominee for president Joe Biden has selected Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his vice-presidential running mate. | Harris, who herself ran for president in the Democratic primary races against Biden earlier this year, is just the fourth woman to be named to the ticket of a major political party in presidential politics and the third woman to be named a vice-presidential candidate. | While many on social media described Harris as an inspiring choice, others noted that her p…

Staff (2020-08-11). Ardently Anti-Mask Republicans Make Masks Mandatory for Upcoming Convention. truthout.org In spite of many Republicans being The announcement made on Tuesday is the latest example in how Republicans and Democrats…

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-08-11). In 'Battle for the Soul of This Nation,' Biden Names Kamala Harris as Vice Presidential Running Mate. commondreams.org "All of us will need to do everything we can do defeat Donald Trump this November, and Joe Biden will need strong progressive energy to win," said the PCCC in response. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-1206293550_1.jpg

commondreams (2020-08-11). 350 Action Responds to Biden's Choice for Vice President, Kamala Harris. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-08-11). Joint Statement from RootsAction.org and Progressive Democrats of America on the Selection of Sen. Kamala Harris as Vice Presidential Candidate. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Fight Back (2020-08-11). Philippines: Condemnation of the murder of Randall Echanis. fightbacknews.org Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by Jose Maria Sison, National Democratic Front of the Philippines Chief Political Consultant. | In the strongest terms, I condemn the murder of Randall (Randy) Echanis and his neighbor who were unarmed. Randall was a peaceful social activist. He was a mild-mannered man of 71 years. He had a consistent modest personality with a high level of education and intellect. He had long dedicated himself to his social advocacy and had made tremendous sacrifices for many decades. | He was outstanding as an advocate of genuine land reform, rural development and n…

commondreams (2020-08-11). PFAW Responds to Biden's VP Selection: "We Are Proud to Give Biden and Harris Our Support" commondreams.org ______________________________…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-08-11). Progressive Groups Pressure Biden and Trump to Include Nuclear Disarmament in Campaign Platforms. commondreams.org "The United States urgently needs a leader who will have the courage to look at, think hard about, and speak openly about the dire perils posed by our country's vast nuclear arsenal." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/cropped-gettyimages-871194038_0_0.jpg

commondreams (2020-08-11). Joe Biden Chooses Kamala Harris as Running Mate – Greenpeace Response. commondreams.org ______________________________…

commondreams (2020-08-11). Advocates and Voters File to Intervene in Pennsylvania Democrats' Election Lawsuit. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Sasha Abramsky (2020-08-11). Trump Ramps Up His Assault on Democracy. thenation.com Trump Ramps Up His Assault on Democracy…

Staff (2020-08-10). Is Trump Sabotaging U.S. Postal Service Ahead of Election as Part of His Attack on Mail-in Voting? democracynow.org Democratic lawmakers say the Trump administration is sabotaging the United States Postal Service ahead of the November election, when a record number of votes are expected to be cast by mail. Since taking office, U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy — a major Trump donor — has instituted a number of cost-cutting measures that have slowed down the delivery of mail, and overhauled the leadership of the agency in a move that critics say will give him more power. This comes as President Trump continues to attack mail-in voting, claiming…

Staff (2020-08-10). Millions Facing Eviction and Joblessness Get No Immediate Help from Trump's New Executive Orders. democracynow.org President Trump's latest executive orders to extend unemployment benefits and defer payroll taxes may be unconstitutional. Democrats had hoped to extend a program to give unemployed workers an additional $600 in weekly benefits and to extend a federal moratorium protecting some renters from evictions, but failed to overcome opposition from Republican lawmakers. Under Trump's order, unemployed workers would continue receiving an additional $400 a week, but only once states put up a quarter of the money and set up a new system to distribute the payments — a process that could take months. Trump also signed an…

Staff (2020-08-10). Headlines for August 10, 2020. democracynow.org Lebanon Unrest Mounting as Death Toll from Catastrophic Port Blast Tops 200, Trump Signs Executive Orders After Coronavirus Bill Stalls, Dems Say They Are Unconstitutional , U.S. COVID-19 Cases Top 5 Million, with More Evidence of Infections in Children and Teens, Coronavirus Surging Across India, Brazil as Europe and Cuba Reimpose Containment Measures, Hong Kong Arrests Media Tycoon Jimmy Lai Under National Security Law, Protesters Take to Streets of Belarus, Accuse Officials of Fraud After Lukashenko Claims 80% of Vote, Mauritius in State of "Environmental Emergency" as Tanker Leeches Fuel into Protected Areas,…

Staff (2020-08-10). Lebanese Gov't Faces Collapse Amid Rage-Filled Protests over Blast, Economic Crisis & Corruption. democracynow.org The Lebanese government may be on the verge of collapse amid protests over the massive port explosion that devastated much of Beirut and killed at least 200 people and injured thousands. At least four ministers and nine members of Parliament have resigned. "The dominoes are falling," says Dion Nissenbaum, a Beirut-based reporter for The Wall Street Journal, who led an investigation into the official neglect that preceded last week's explosion, and says it has intensified public outrage over long-standing government dysfunction, calling it "the straw that's broken the camel's back here."

Lynnette Grey Bull (2020-08-10). The Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women Human Rights Emergency is Not a Photo-Op for Ivanka Trump. counterpunch.org We need to be clear about what is needed to address this crisis, and it is not a photo-op where our sacred symbols of high office are degraded by being used as props by Ivanka Trump. Democratic 2020 presidential candidate, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, accurately called MMIWG "an unconscionable human rights emergency," and the response must

Jack Rasmus (2020-08-10). Trump's Executive Orders: EOs as PR and FUs. counterpunch.org Less than 24 hours after Trump broke off negotiations on the economic stimulus package with Congressional Democrat leaders, Pelosi and Shumer, last Friday August 7, Trump issued a series of Executive Orders (EOs) that he had been signaling and threatening all last week well before the break up. Almost certainly the legal crafting of the

Labor Video Project (2020-08-10). Free Them All! Care Not Cages! March & Rally In SF Against ICE & Republicrats. indybay.org Activists protested at the ICE office in San Francisco against the imprisonment of children in cages and the ICE terrorism against immigrants and people of color. They also attacked California Governor Newsom, Pelosi and the Democrats for supporting these policies.

Gerald Sussman (2020-08-10). Biden's Ukrainegate Problem. counterpunch.org Joe Biden's role in the Ukraine regime change, as Victoria Nuland put it, was to "midwife" the new government into existence and thereby incorporate another eastern European satellite into America's orbit. This is what the neocons call "democracy promotion." His efforts in Ukraine, however, proved disastrous.

RT (2020-08-10). Victim of 'systemic racism'? Biden's Ferguson anniversary tweet flops… as his own DOJ justified Michael Brown shooting. rt.com Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden seemingly forgot what was made clear by his own administration when he was vice president under Obama: Evidence shows that Michael Brown was killed while assaulting a police officer. | That was the

RT (2020-08-10). 'Give them soy lattes and foot massages' — Ted Cruz roasted for mocking pandemic payments. rt.com Republican Senator Ted Cruz was hammered online after he mocked a Democrat colleague's calls for higher coronavirus payments to Americans. Cruz's brand of 'let them sip soy' humor went down like a lead balloon. | Though President Donald Trump recently signed a slew of executive orders extending unemployment benefits, pausing evictions, deferring student loan payments and implementing a payroll tax cut, the American people have yet to receive another stimulus check from the federal government. | With Congress set to debate a second round of checks in the coming days, some Democrats have called for a more genero…

RT (2020-08-10). What could it mean? Twitter erupts with sarcastic suggestions after Trump refers to himself as 'President T'. rt.com Donald Trump has sparked yet another Twitter drama after referring to himself as 'President T' in a post questioning the loyalty of a senator, prompting users to make sarcastic suggestions of what the 'T' could possibly stand for. | In the Monday tweet, Trump accused Republican Senator Ben Sasse of "going rogue" after he sharply criticized the president's executive orders aimed at providing coronavirus relief while bypassing Congress. | RINO Ben Sasse, who needed my support and endorsement in order to get the Republican nomination for Senate from the GREAT State of Nebraska, has, now that he's got it (Thank yo…

_____ (2020-08-10). After 300 Years, It's Time To End Capitalism, Not Reform It. popularresistance.org The United States is facing multiple crises with no signs of improvement on the horizon – a deep recession, high unemployment, millions of people soon to be displaced from their homes, a failed healthcare system in the midst of a pandemic, the climate crisis and more. We speak with Professor Richard Wolff, an economist and the author of "Democracy at Work", about the history of capitalism and how it is inherently unstable. Prof. Wolff posits that the United States is now in a situation where capitalism is unlikely to survive. He describes why that is and the lessons we must learn from the fatal mistakes made when…

_____ (2020-08-10). How Socialists Won Our Democratic Rights. popularresistance.org The myth of modern democracy is that it was handed down from on-high. In fact, the ruling class resisted extending the franchise at every turn — and it was socialists who fought them for the right to vote. | Since the advent of the modern state, ruling classes have tried to restrain the voting power of workers and those not "well-born." Contrary to the mainstream story that capitalism naturally gave rise to democracy, establishment powers in nineteenth-century Europe restricted the vote for as long as they possibly could. Only when faced with mass mobilization — or when continent-wide war wiped out wo…

Rev. William Alberts (2020-08-10). Cognitive Without Conscience. counterpunch.org President Trump took a cognitive test, and touted his performance as "amazing." The test: he repeated "Person, Woman, Man, Camera and TV" in that order. It is a dementia test that measures memory, not morality, the capacity to recall, not intelligence. Seventy-four-year-old Trump proposed that his 2020 presidential opponent, seventy-seven-year-old Joe Biden take the test

WSWS (2020-08-10). Biden's blueprint for a right-wing presidency: Part one. wsws.org Despite media claims that the Democratic Party has "moved to the left," Joe Biden is running on a thoroughly right-wing program based on the defense of Wall Street and the global interests of American imperialism.

Roger Bybee (2020-08-10). How Trump Plans to Win Wisconsin. progressive.org The Badger State, for Trump and Biden, is ground zero for November's election.

Robert S. Becker (2020-08-10). A good news storyline: Trump repudiated, Biden steady but insufficient. Enter systemic reformers. nationofchange.org Biden is no FDR. To expect systemic reform from Biden is naive but to envision him as a stepping stone is good progressive strategy.

Finian Cunningham (2020-08-10). Hong Kong: 'Freedom'… to Subvert. thealtworld.com The arrest of Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai has sent Western news outlets into a tizzy. We are told that "free speech" is under attack by the Chinese authorities who are supposedly rolling back democracy on the semiautonomous island city. | Lai was