It is astounding that New York Gov. Kathy Hochul beat Lee Zeldin by just five points, in a state that has not elected a Republican governor since 2007.

As NY’s first female governor, Hochul should have energized women and independent voters. Zeldin’s hard-right MAGA views should have alienated many of them. But Hochul ran an uninspiring campaign. Zeldin hit the stump hard, blaming Democrats’ bail reform laws for higher crime rates and attacking the Manhattan D.A., who is Black, as soft on crime.

New York is supposed to be one of the bluest states in the Union. But Republicans flipped four seats in Congress, and Governor Kathy Hochul’s race was a nail-biter for Democrats.

Three key factors probably played a big role. State Democrats’ attempt to gerrymander election districts backfired. Republicans turned the election into a referendum on crime, while Democrats fumbled badly on that issue. Hochul ran a lackluster campaign, so Democratic candidates did not have coattails to ride on.

Republicans blame Biden’s spending programs for causing inflation. But other factors have been more important: the war in Ukraine, lockdowns in China, Covid-related supply chain disruptions, and the Federal Reserve Bank’s slow response. Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid relief package helped millions of Americans avoid poverty and it averted a deep recession. Impartial observers like Ben Bernanke, former Federal Reserve chairman, said Biden made the right policy decision, even though his Covid package contributed “somewhat” to inflation.

What are the trends in voter suppression, and what can you do to help protect voting rights?

Listen to a panel of experts who discussed these critical topics on September 12, 2022, at a forum sponsored by ClassACT HR73.

The speakers included: E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post; Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX); Michael Waldman of NYU’s Brennan Center; Sam Spital, Litigation Head, NAACP Legal Defense Fund; and Cecile Scoon, President of the League of Women Voters of Florida.

Please join me on Monday, September 12, 7-8:30 pm, for an important forum: “Voter Suppression: A Cancer in Our Body Politic”. ClassACT HR 73 will host this virtual forum.

You can register for the forum at: https://www.classacthr73.org/event-4886655

EJ Dionne, Washington Post columnist, will moderate the forum, which will bring together prominent activists and experts concerned with election integrity to discuss how repressing voting threatens our democracy.

President Joe Biden has taken a radical approach to tackling the student loan crisis, and that’s not a compliment. Still, Biden resisted progressives’ most extreme demands and adopted a middle course. He has skewed his program toward middle-class and working-class Americans, rather than highly paid professionals. Biden will impose an income test and provide more debt relief for lower-income Americans. He has also proposed common-sense changes that will make life easier for all Federal student loan borrowers in the future.

Sen. Joe Manchin has once again torpedoed the Biden Administration’s latest attempt to pass a bill fighting climate change and to raise taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations. Manchin claims to oppose the bill because it would add to inflation. That is a bogus rationale, but Republicans will quote Manchin as they try to blame Biden for causing inflation. In fact, promoting alternative energy programs like electric vehicles should reduce pressure on gasoline prices and raising taxes is anti-inflationary. The Democrats have to get out the message that their policies are helping Americans, not causing higher prices.

Dear WSD reader,

Voter suppression is a huge threat to our democracy, as state legislatures pass waves of restrictive voting laws that target minority voters. I have been writing about this topic for ClassAct, an organization of college classmates that focuses on political and social justice issues.

As you know, I've been keenly interested in voting issues for some time. Last year, I co-authored a primer on gerrymandering for ClassAct and moderated a forum on that key topic, in June 2021.

I am sending you ClassAct's latest newsletter, which contains several materials on voting suppression--and offers suggestions on how you can help to combat this scourge:

A five-minute video, in which my classmate Jim Harbison and I discuss the key issues and threats related to voter suppression

My two-page summary of the recent trends in state legislatures and the Supreme Court's rulings

A spreadsheet listing volunteer organizations that are deeply involved, and effective, in motivating potential new voters and registering them

You can easily access these materials by clicking on the buttons in the newsletter.

Best regards,

Ryan O'Connell

The Supreme Court is swinging a wrecking ball at the Constitution. The radicals on the Court are shredding well-established constitutional rights—and creating brand-new ones—as they cast aside precedents willy-nilly. Goodbye, Roe v. Wade and Miranda. Hello, an absolute right to carry guns on the streets on New York City.

The Court threw out New York’s gun control law and established a new, fundamental right to carry a concealed gun in public. The decision is a travesty based on a fraud. This is a radical reinterpretation of the Second Amendment and an extraordinary assault on a state’s authority to protect its citizens.

So much for states’ rights….

New York Democrats’ brazen attempt to gerrymander the electoral maps has blown up in their faces. Their move backfired badly, as maps imposed by the courts pit several Democratic incumbents against each other in newly drawn districts.

This setback has ramifications for politics on the national level as well as for Congressional and State Senate races in the Empire State.

Democrats had hoped that the gerrymandered New York maps would allow their party to pick up three additional Congressional seats in the state and give them a better shot at maintaining their Congressional majority in the midterm elections.

Now, the Democrats could lose some seats in New York. Furthermore, two high-profile members of Congress representing parts of Manhattan, Jerry Nadler and Carolyn Maloney, will have to run against each other in a newly combined district.

President Biden is under great pressure from Bernie Sanders and other progressives to cancel student loans. A sweeping bailout would help struggling borrowers, but it would be an undeserved gift for many affluent Americans not in dire straits. Such a radical step would be unfair to the two-thirds of American taxpayers who do not go to college, who would not benefit from the program, and it would put a dent in the government’s finances.

Instead, President Biden should consider three targeted approaches: income-repayment plans, allowing student loan borrowers to declare bankruptcy, and forgiving loans for graduates of for-profit colleges.

If President Biden does decide to cancel student loans, he should limit the relief to $10,000 per borrower and impose an income cap of $75,000. That would cut the cost and direct more benefits to lower- and middle-income Americans.

Progressive Democrats have a new rallying cry— “Cancel Student Debt!”—as they put pressure on President Biden to forgive $1.5 trillion of student loans. These are the same folks who came up with that catchy phrase, “Defund the Police”, which Republicans have used to bash Democrats.

Many young Americans are struggling to pay their student loans, but forgiving the debt across the board would not be a good approach. There are less expensive, more targeted solutions than a sweeping bail-out…particularly since a broad forgiveness program would help many affluent Americans. That might trigger a backlash among white working-class voters, which could hurt Democrats in the midterm elections.

If President Biden does decide to cancel student loans, he should limit the relief to $10,000 per borrower and restrict the program to Americans earning less than $75,000.

A political earthquake is shaking up France’s presidential election, as the country veers sharply to the right. In the first round of the election, Emmanuel Macron, the incumbent, beat Marine Le Pen, the leading far-right candidate…but by less than five points.

France is very different from the United States, of course, but there are some striking similarities in their recent political trends. Working-class voters and small business owners have abandoned traditional parties, flocking to politicians who demonize immigrants and attack globalization and “out of touch elites”.

And the French might just elect as their next leader a politician who openly admires Vladimir Putin and despises NATO and the European Union. Marine Le Pen, the leader of the National Rally party, has even refused to endorse sanctions against Russia, despite the horrors in Ukraine. If she became President, NATO could lose one of its main pillars.

Vladimir Putin has unleashed World War III. Conquering Ukraine is just his first step. Putin wants to destroy NATO and recreate the Soviet Empire, with its string of puppet regimes in Eastern Europe. Putin is driven by a deep hatred of the West and the United States. Putin believes that he is man of destiny, chosen to restore Russia to its former imperial glory.

This is 1939, and Ukraine is Poland. But this time, the Russians are the fascist invaders, and this time, the messianic, power-mad dictator has nuclear weapons at his disposal.

Americans have to understand that our country must go on a war footing. We must increase our military spending, and significantly. This is not another Cold War; the shooting has already started. We are in a hot war.

Vladimir Putin claims that Ukraine has always been part of Russia…but Ukrainians do not agree. Putin alleges that Ukraine discriminates against Russian speakers, but the country’s President speaks Russian. Although 30% of Ukrainians speak Russian, few of them want to live under Russian rule. Putin’s aggression and bullying have backfired, and he has driven Ukrainians to embrace the West. Putin’s says NATO is a threat to Russia, but that is standing reality on its head, and NATO membership remains just a dream for Ukraine anyway. Putin’s Big Lies about Ukraine are not gaining traction or helping his cause.

Vladimir Putin may invade Ukraine, claiming that his smaller neighbor is threatening Russia’s security….and that Ukraine belongs to Russia anyhow. This is an eerie parallel to Hitler’s invasion of Poland in 1939. How will the West react this time?

Biden has warned Putin the US will impose harsh financial sanctions if Russia attacks Ukraine, but will that deter Putin? The US should sell or give Ukraine anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems, quickly. The US should also consider launching large cyberattacks on Russia if an invasion takes place.

If Russia conquers Ukraine, that will encourage China to invade Taiwan and, with its credibility shattered, the US will lose its role as superpower.

How can President Biden save his Build Back Better (BBB) program after Sen. Joe Manchin rejected it? Biden has to convince the public and Manchin that Covid, not government spending, has caused inflation. For Republicans, “inflation” is the new “socialism”, but that’s bogus. Manchin also worries (too much) about BBB’s impact on the deficit. Biden should address Manchin’s concern by leaning on Sen. Krysten Sinema to reverse her position and support repealing the Trump tax cuts. If Biden has to threaten to primary Sinema, so be it. BBB’s family support payments and climate change provisions are critical for our country’s future.

Politicians on both sides are gerrymandering election districts to stack the deck in their own favor. But most extreme gerrymandering attempts are taking place in states dominated by Republican legislatures. The U.S. Senate must pass two key voting rights bills…and soon. Schumer and other Democratic Senators must stop dithering and abolish the filibuster, at least for proposals, like these two measures, that would protect fundamental rights like voting. If not, fair and free elections could go the way of the dinosaur in many states. And very quickly.

This is crunch time for our democracy.  The Senate has a chance, perhaps its last, to ensure that we have fair elections throughout the nation. The Senate must pass two proposed voting rights laws. To do that, the Senate must modify the filibuster rule, too, by allowing a carve-out for laws that protect the right to vote. If the Senate fails to act, then the American experiment in democratic government may come to an end, and soon.  

Democrats must pass Joe Biden’s $4 trillion plan, which would re-invigorate the U.S. economy, reduce inequality and fight climate change. The tax increases would be reasonable and would not be a drag on the economy. Conservatives’ complaints about huge tax and spending increases, inflation and “socialism” are nonsense. So are Sen. Joe Manchin’s claims that the plan is “fiscal insanity”. If Congress does not pass Biden’s plan, the U.S. will stagnate and the divisions in our society will grow even sharper.