After tweeting, “Despite the constant negative press covfefe” late last night and leaving the tweet undeleted for nearly six hours, Trump took to Twitter again this morning, moving quickly from the “covfefe” debacle to health care and finally to the Paris Climate Agreement. And this is where it appears the press covfefe got ahead of Trump.
This morning, breaking news alerts flew, claiming that Trump will withdraw from the Paris Climate Deal—the historic global pact to curb climate change—which took effect last year. Trump promised to “cancel” the agreement during the campaign and refused to recommit to the deal at last weekend’s G7 summit. But after the press ran with this morning’s breaking news, Trump said he will make his final decision on the agreement “over the next few days.”
Nearly every single country in the world—195 in total—have signed the landmark accord. In fact, only Syria and Nicaragua have not joined the agreement, and Nicaragua stayed out because the accord wasn’t ambitious enough. Withdrawing from the agreement would damage U.S. competitiveness as other countries take the lead in the global transition to clean energy. It would also do serious damage to U.S. strategic interests around the world by alienating U.S. allies and undermining U.S. policy priorities. And all of that isn’t even touching on the impact pulling out of the deal would have on climate change. The Paris Agreement is the best chance we have at slowing global warming and protecting our communities from the threats of climate change. As if that’s not enough: more than a thousand businesses and a majority of American voters support the agreement.
ACTION OF THE DAY
#RubberStamp. Instead of representing us, many members of Congress are instead serving as a rubber stamp for the Trump Administration’s extreme policies. That’s why our friends at Organiizing for America are hosting events to hold those members accountable. Today’s events are for Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ), Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA), and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA).
Don’t live in Arizona or Pennsylvania? Find more events like this at ResistanceNearMe.org. Then check out RecessToolkit.com to use our representation checklist and see whether your members of congress are representing you.
Afghanistan. This morning a massive suicide bombing killed 80 people and injured as many as 350 more in Kabul, Afghanistan. The vast majority of the victims were Afghan citizens, highlighting the incredibly high toll of sustained conflict in the country. The ultimate aim of international military support must be to help Afghanistan achieve a political resolution to the long civil war, secure their country from international terrorist groups, and invest in the future of the Afghan people.
Laptops. Still in, for now. Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security announced that the U.S. decided against banning laptops from airplane cabins on flights from Europe although the option remains “on the table,” according to administration officials.
Russia. Always trending. The investigation into ties between the Trump team and Russia have expanded to involve Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Cohen said the requests from Congress were “poorly phrased,” which is why he hasn’t been cooperating with them. But he’s “happy to testify.” Who’s still happy to not testify? Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn—the one who plead the fifth. He’s expected to turn over documents related to the investigation in the coming days. Stay tuned.
Cleveland. Yesterday, the officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 was fired. The officer, Timothy Loehmann, shot and killed Rice who was playing with a toy gun in a park. His firing was not related to Rice’s murder. It is exceedingly rare for police officers to be charged after such incidents: In 2015, approximately 1,200 people were killed by police across the country and no officer was convicted of murder or manslaughter. Rice’s case was no exception. No officer was charged in his death, but the city of Cleveland launched an investigation following the incident. The investigation found that Loehmann lied on his application to the Cleveland Police Department, which became the grounds for his firing. Frank Garmback, the officer who was with Loehmann, will be suspended for 10 days.
UNDER THE RADAR
#HandsOffMyBC. The future of Trumpcare is currently in the hands of an all-male team secretly drafting the senate version of the bill. But the Trump Administration has other plans to take health care away from Americans: their latest plan is to sabotage contraception coverage. The administration is reportedly preparing to allow any employer to seek a moral or religious exception from the Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate. Currently, some religious organizations can request an exemption to the mandate by stating that providing contraception goes against their religious beliefs. Now, the Trump Administration would significantly broaden the exemption so that any individual, employer, or insurance company that doesn’t want to provide birth control coverage could claim an exemption. If finalized, this would have an enormous impact on access to contraception in the United States. One third of women in the U.S. can’t afford to pay out of pocket for birth control. Thanks in part to expanded access to birth control, an Affordable Care Act provision that saved women an estimated $1.4 billion in its first year alone. One third of women in the U.S. can’t afford to pay out of pocket for birth control. Go to KeepBCFree.com to take action.
GOOD NEWS
Pre-empted. Yesterday, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton vetoed a preemption bill that would have prevented cities and localities from implementing their own minimum wage and sick time policies. Across the country, conservative lawmakers have used preemption bills like this to prevent cities from passing more progressive policies. Gov. Dayton’s veto ensures that the democratic process is preserved and will allow Minnesota cities to move forward in their fights to protect working families.