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Democrats must limit oil shocks along with climate risks

Energy issues are defining U.S. consumer, economic and security challenges more profoundly than any time since the oil embargoes of the 1970s. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has placed enormous pressure on global oil and natural gas supplies, driving up prices around the world, and exacerbating already high domestic inflation, with U.S. consumers facing new record gasoline prices of more than $4.50 a gallon in part due to the new EU embargo on Russian oil this week.

Yet, the crisis comes with real opportunity. Consumer anger over energy costs and new concerns about U.S. energy security are together providing key Democrats, especially perpetual swing vote Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), with fresh political motivations to enact a sweeping package of clean energy tax incentives that can also limit future oil shocks.

Late last week, Manchin indicated that renewed talks with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden(D-Ore.)  may yet yield a deal on clean energy, as part of a scaled back Democratic-only budget reconciliation bill also focused on deficit reduction and Medicare prescription drug price cuts. And while Manchin has said reducing inflation is his chief policy concern, he and other Democrats have been slow to acknowledge that a revolution in domestic clean energy innovation and commercialization through tax incentives can help insulate America from future global oil shocks, improving U.S. energy security, along with addressing climate change.

Gaining long-term benefits of cheaper energy and insulation from fossil fuel commodity price shocks, however, will require a period of time where certain technologies need pending tax incentives to gain market share, help balance the electrical grid and lower prices. The costs of wind and solar power has fallen by more than 80 percent in just the last decade, making it cheaper than fossil energy in many markets, but due to it’s intermittency these climate-friendly renewable energy sources will require greater deployment of electricity storage and smart grid technologies encouraged through the tax code and federal innovation incentives. 

Electric vehicle adoption can over time reduce U.S. oil demand dramatically, lowering consumer fuel and maintenance costs, and helping America manufacturers compete with foreign EV producers, especially China. But today, EVs typically have sticker prices of at least $10,000 more than comparable gasoline-powered cars, although auto producers project rapidly reduced new EV prices as production lines reach scale. This is precisely why a pending Senate Finance Committee bill proposes consumer tax credits for EVs of at least $7,500. Under current law, domestic EVs produced by GM and Tesla no longer qualify for tax credits, so Congress must act to help our own manufacturers. 

Even so, the U.S. will still need to produce more oil and natural gas for years to come to limit price shocks and improve energy security, as many Democrats have been slow to admit. But greater renewable electricity, along with existing and new nuclear, hydropower, geothermal, hydrogen and other sources, can reduce domestic price pressures on U.S. natural gas, more of which will need to be exported to help our EU allies break free from Russian gas. More broadly, the reduction in U.S. oil and gas reliance must remain a central long-term goal, both to address climate change and to wean the world from the influence of petro-dictators like Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Just as in the 1970s, the U.S. today cannot now rely on increases in Middle Eastern oil supplies to help cut oil prices, since Saudi Arabia especially has turned a deaf ear to requests for more production while making billions each day in new profits. The Saudi crown prince, the Kingdom’s de facto ruler, recently refused to even take President Biden’s call on the topic, and last month the Saudi energy minister said he intends to “work out a [production] agreement with OPEC plus …which includes Russia.”

This suggests the Saudis and OPEC intend to limit production and keep global oil prices high for the foreseeable future, perpetuating energy inflation, their own high profits, and U.S. oil security vulnerability. This prospect is a key reason Biden now intends to visit Saudi Arabia and meet with the crown prince after a visit to Israel in late June.

Historically, in the face of Russian aggression, Middle East hostility, and oil price spikes, the U.S. has responded with bipartisan policies to increase energy supplies, reduce oil demand and address resulting economic and security vulnerabilities. In the 1970s, legislation supported by both Democrats and Republicans created the U.S. Energy Department, instituted the first auto fuel efficiency regulations, and created the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Again in the 2000s during the Iraq War, Congress passed the Energy Policy Act of 2005 with bipartisan support to increase alternative supplies, and a Democratic House and President George W. Bush were able to pass a bill to raise domestic auto fuel efficiency to cut oil demand in 2007.

Yet, in a stunning demonstration of the high cost of extreme political partisanship to average Americans, Congress has been unable to pass major bipartisan energy and climate legislation, even as the energy crisis has worsened.

Now as midterm elections loom, time is running out for Congress to act. If bipartisan negotiations falter, as seems likely, then Democrats must act alone this summer as best they can. The White House and most Democrats may simply have to swallow hard and accept elements like increased debt reduction aimed at inflation to make sure needed energy and climate action finally happens.

At a May press conference, Biden said, “I want every American to know that I’m taking inflation very seriously and it’s my top domestic priority. … And to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and reckless autocrats like Putin, I’m working with Congress to pass landmark investments to help build a clean energy future as well.” 

Given newly urgent energy inflation and security concerns important to most Americans, Democrats now have compelling new reasons to act on clean energy, in addition to the climate crisis. If they don’t, an increasingly disgruntled electorate tired of years of inaction on energy and climate will likely seal their fate in November.

Paul Bledsoe is strategic adviser at the Progressive Policy Institute and professorial lecturer at American University’s Center for Environmental Policy. He served as communications director of the White House Climate Change Task Force under President Bill Clinton.

Source: TEST FEED1

Zelensky: Russian forces control one-fifth of Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday that Russian forces now occupy about 20 percent of Ukrainian territory, almost 100 days into the war.

Zelensky told Luxembourg’s legislature that Russian troops have invaded more than 3,600 “settlements” but that Ukrainian forces have taken back more than 1,000 of them. He said Luxembourg’s motto, “We want to stay what we are,” is what Ukraine is fighting for. 

After withdrawing from areas around the capital of Kyiv, Russian forces have focused attacks on Ukraine’s south and east, scoring a key military victory last month with the seizure of the port city of Mariupol.

Zelensky noted that despite Friday marking 100 days of the current invasion, Ukrainians have been fighting Russia for years since its forces entered the Donbas region in 2014. 

He said almost 12 million Ukrainians have become internally displaced and more than 5 million have fled the country since Russia invaded in February, adding that fighting was raging along a more than 1,000-kilometer line from Kharkiv in the east to Mykolaiv in the south. 

Zelensky visited the front lines of the war in Kharkiv on Sunday, his first public appearance outside Kyiv during the war, as Ukrainian forces began a counteroffensive to repel the Russian attack. The president’s office reported that Russian forces occupied as much as 31 percent of the region, but said Ukraine has taken 5 percent back. 

Zelensky said he is grateful to Luxembourg’s people and its government for the weapons it has provided to Ukraine, despite its relatively small military might, as well as the countries contribution to exerting economic pressure on Russia through sanctions.

“It is reminiscent of World War II, when Nazi aggression threatened the lives of entire nations,” Zelensky said. “Therefore, we must significantly increase the pressure on Russia to stop this catastrophe and prevent such aggressions in the future.” 

He said he expects Luxembourg, as one of the original members of a “united Europe,” will support Ukraine’s candidacy to join the European Union and NATO. Ukraine first applied to join NATO in August, and Ukrainian officials attended their first NATO cyber defense center meeting Monday. 

Source: TEST FEED1

New CNN president teases changes to network strategy

New CNN President Chris Licht announced a number of changes to the network’s editorial strategy in the coming months, signaling his first initiatives since taking over as head of the cable news giant last month.

“Over the past four weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to meet hundreds of you in person and virtually. I look forward to more in the coming days and weeks as I travel to Atlanta, London, Los Angeles, and back to Washington this month,” Licht wrote in a memo sent to employees on Thursday.

“Our conversations have provided invaluable insight into the company and the issues on your minds. Thank you for your honesty and transparency — it’s crucial to our success.”

Licht said the network would pull back on usage its often-displayed “breaking news” banner that had become a staple of the network’s graphics and chyrons in recent years.

“It has become such a fixture on every channel and network that its impact has become lost on the audience,” Licht wrote, adding the network had updated its internal guidebook for what constitutes breaking news.

“It certainly will need tweaks, so we are open to feedback, but this is a great starting point to try to make ‘Breaking New’ mean something BIG is happening,” he said.

CNN has also created a new beat focusing on “Guns in America,” Licht announced, though the network’s top boss did not provide details on who at the network would fill the role or when coverage would begin.

“CNN is uniquely positioned to foster informed policy discussions in this space and help illuminate possible solutions to America’s epidemic of gun violence,” he wrote.

Licht also announced a new interim head of digital for CNN.com and set a company town hall for June 16. He said during his initial discussions with employees across the network that filling open positions had been a central theme of concern.

“Please know my leadership team is very focused on identifying critical roles and working to put the right people in them. This process is days from being complete and managers will be able to act soon after,” he said.

Licht joined CNN in May, replacing former President Jeff Zucker, who was ousted following a personal and professional conduct scandal stemming from the firing of Chris Cuomo, the network’s top prime-time host.

Source: TEST FEED1

Uvalde students won't return to Robb Elementary School

The superintendent of the Uvalde, Texas school district announced on Wednesday that students will not be returning to Robb Elementary School after the devastating shooting there last week that left 19 children and two adults dead.

“Students and staff will not be returning to the Robb Elementary campus. We are working through plans on how to serve students on other campuses and will provide that information as soon as it is finalized. We are also working with agencies to help us identify improvements on all UCISD campuses,” Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District (UCISD) Superintendent Hal Harrell wrote in a letter, which was also on behalf of the UCISD Board of Trustees.

Harrell wrote that the school is continuing to cooperate with authorities on the shooting and would be providing counseling services to staff and families “for the foreseeable future.”

The superintendent noted they would not be commenting on the investigation into the massacre until a review had been completed by law enforcement, noting it “is ongoing and information is evolving.”

There is increasing scrutiny over authorities’ response to the shooting, given a more than hour lapse between when the gunman entered the school and when officials responded to the attack. Discrepancies have also emerged in the original version of events as detailed by police.

Meanwhile, the shooting has reigniting the national conversation around gun violence, with Democrats in Congress pledging to hold votes on reform.

Source: TEST FEED1

New York City's toothless effort to reduce small businesses regulations

In January, New York City Mayor Eric Adams issued his “Small Business Forward” plan, which required all city agencies to revisit and make proposals for either eliminating or reducing the fines imposed on small businesses for many of the city’s regulations that were deemed unnecessary or excessive. 

As of just a few weeks ago, the recommendations – all 118 of them – are now here and in writing. And the result is underwhelming. To give credit where it’s due, I appreciate that the mayor is taking steps to make life better for his city’s small business owners. And the plan eliminates many regulations. But frankly, most of the 118 “reforms” are either reduced fines or a waiving of first violations. And even with these measures, the number of regulations that a New York City small business still faces is pretty daunting.

It’s a city (and state) that burdens its employers with new regulations that recently have increased the number of mandated paid leave days, in addition to the requirements for family, sick and paid time already mandated.

It’s a city that passed bills to restrict electronic monitoring of employees. Small businesses in New York pay the nation’s highest minimum wage ($15 per hour) and are required to predict their employees’ schedules in advance. They are fined if they don’t provide space for lactation or if they discriminate based on a person’s hair. They must also comply with some of the nation’s most complex and onerous anti-harassment rules. 

So, you would think that when the mayor orders a reduction in regulations, small businesses in New York would get a relief from all of this, right? Unfortunately not.  Small businesses there still face fines if they:

 – Leave an exterior door or window open while an air conditioner/central cooling system is operating;

 – Fail to locate a scale between a buyer and seller;

 – Do not include a year-round phone number and/or address of their tax preparer on their receipts;

– Fail to properly post a permit for work at their premises;

– List “prohibited” drinks (beverages other than water, milk, fruit/vegetable juice) on a children’s meal menu;

– Have a refund policy that doesn’t state under what conditions a refund will be given or fail to post a complaint and refund sign “prominently and conspicuously”;

– Have a “dirty” sidewalk;

The list goes on.

Of course, there are many legitimate and necessary health and safety requirements that businesses must comply with, including the proper handling of food, not selling cigarettes to minors and operating a safe workplace. These are important. And I’m certainly encouraged by Mayor Adams’s effort to reduce his city’s regulations on small business, even when these reductions are, for the most part, toothless.

So, what more can be done to help New York’s small businesses? How about welcoming some of those new entrepreneurs who were among the millions of startup application filers during the past two years? 

To do this, New York’s mayor needs to turn to a higher authority: the state. He and Gov. Kathy Hochul should take a hard look at the countless licensing and permit requirements that are required for anyone looking to start up or do business in New York.

Is it really necessary for interior designers to be licensed? Or an electronics store? Do you really need the state’s approval to operate a nail salon, pet store or to sell scrap metal? And why do cosmetologists, tourist guides, locksmiths, massage therapists, hair stylists, real estate appraisers and someone who provides bikini waxes need to be licensed? Why do snowmobile dealers, telemarketers, Halal certifiers and fund raisers have to register with the government? 

To be a cosmetologist in New York, you’re required to complete a 1,000-hour approved course of study and pass written and practical examinations. To be a locksmith in the state, you must, among other requirements, get a “letter from Local Union No. 74 Service Employees International Union indicating successful completion of a locksmithing course at a school and one (1) Certificate Recommending an Applicant for a Locksmith License…or show evidence of other certifications.” 

I mean…c’mon, guys, this is crazy. Life is about mitigating risk, and I’m pretty sure that the great majority of consumers are able to take responsibility for choosing who will do their hair or fix their locks. Will the city and state be foregoing licensing and permit fees? Yes. But by making it easier for a startup to operate in New York, the state and city will certainly benefit from the taxes generated.

Delaying penalties for innocuous infractions is toothless. Relaxing the requirements for people to independently make their livelihood in a place is the best way to support small businesses, provide jobs and nurture growth.

Gene Marks is founder of The Marks Group, a small-business consulting firm. He frequently appears on CNBC, Fox Business and MSNBC.

Source: TEST FEED1

Senate Democrats targeting McCormick, Oz ahead of recount

As the Pennsylvania Senate Republican primary heads to a recount, Democrats are going after both of the possible GOP candidates.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) released two ads on Thursday attacking Republican candidates Mehmet Oz and Dave McCormick, who are separated by roughly 900 votes, or about 0.1 percentage points with Oz leading.

The winner will face off against Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who cruised to victory in the Democratic primary.

The DSCC released separate ads attacking each Republican candidate, aiming to cast Oz as a “Hollywood scam artist” and McCormick as a “Wall Street insider.”

“While Republicans remain locked in their never-ending, intra-party fight, Democrats are wasting no time in ensuring voters know that neither scam artist Mehmet Oz nor Wall Street insider David McCormick can be trusted to represent Pennsylvania in the Senate,” said DSCC spokesperson Patrick Burgwinkle. 

“Both Oz and McCormick were already limping out of election night – and the weeks ahead will ensure whichever GOP candidate ultimately emerges will be entering the general election even more badly damaged,” he added.

Brittany Yanick, Oz’s communications director, said the “Biden/Fetterman agenda is wrong for Pennsylvania” in an email to The Hill.

“John Fetterman’s radical agenda harms Pennsylvania workers and makes our communities less safe. Pennsylvania needs to send a bold leader to Washington, like Dr. Mehmet Oz, who will stand up for our values and help heal our great country.”

The Hill has reached out to the McCormick’s campaign for comment.

The ad attacking Oz, titled “Showtime,” highlights his career as a celebrity physician, where he is best known as the host of “The Dr. Oz Show.” The ad criticizes Oz’s endorsement of weight loss cures questioned by many scientists.

“Doctors have called him a fake who endangers patients willing to peddle anything to make it in Hollywood,” the ad says as footage rolls of Oz kissing his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

“And now, in politics, too,” the ad continues.

The ad also says Oz is “pretending” to be from Pennsylvania and is “pushing [former President] Trump’s election lies.” Oz received Trump’s endorsement early in his campaign, and the former president held a rally to support Oz’s bid in the weeks leading up to the primary.

The ad attacking McCormick lambasts him for his time as a hedge fund manager and for previously living in Connecticut, saying he moved to Pennsylvania to “buy a Senate seat.”

“He got rich cozying up to China and outsourcing jobs,” says the ad, titled “Has Its Price.”  

“He took taxpayer money and promised to create them here but fired Pittsburgh workers instead,” the ad says.

The close GOP election automatically triggered a recount under state law. McCormick filed a lawsuit asking a state court to order that some 860 mail-in ballots with missing dates be counted.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a brief administrative stay pausing the count of some mail-in ballots in a contested 2021 judicial election in Pennsylvania over similar issues. The dispute could affect the legal challenges in the GOP Senate primary contest.

Fetterman suffered a stroke just before the primary election last month but easily defeated Rep. Conor Lamb. Fetterman’s wife told Politico on Wednesday that his doctors are “really impressed” with his progress but they weren’t sure when it would be safe for him to return to the campaign trail.

The race to succeed retiring Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) is among the most competitive Senate contests of this year’s midterm elections. Democrats are eyeing the race as a key pickup opportunity as they seek to hold or expand their razor-thin Senate majority.

Source: TEST FEED1

3 seriously injured after hot air balloon collides with train in Wisconsin

BURLINGTON, Wis. (WFRV) — Three people suffered life-threatening injuries after a hot air balloon reportedly collided with a train in Wisconsin.

The Burlington Police Department said that on Wednesday around 8:15 p.m., first responders were dispatched after it was reported that a train had hit a hot air balloon. Three people in the balloon reportedly had life-threatening injuries.

Two people were airlifted to a local hospital, and an ambulance transported a third. Witnesses reportedly told authorities that the hot air balloon “appeared in distress and collided with a Northbound Canadian National Train,” according to police.

The Burlington Police Department is conducting an investigation with the National Traffic Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration, Canadian National and the Wisconsin State Patrol.

No additional details were provided.

Anyone with information is asked to call the police at 262-342-1104.

Source: TEST FEED1

New ad shows Kentucky Dem nominee for Senate wearing noose

KENTUCKY (KTVX) — In an ad entitled “Pain of our Past,” Charles Booker, a Kentucky state representative and Democratic nominee in Kentucky’s 2022 Senate race, shines a light on his ancestors’ painful history.

The ad evokes an emotional reaction, as Booker, who is challenging Sen. Rand Paul in November’s midterm election, can be seen wearing a noose around his neck as he calls for action.

The ad begins with a voiceover of the Democratic nominee saying, “The pain of our past persists to this day,” and a shot of a noose swinging back and forth as it hangs from a tree.

The noose is, of course, a reference to the age-old hateful practice of lynching.

Booker points to lynching as a “tool of terror” that existed throughout the South in states like Kentucky.

The ad continues, showing a black and white photo of a man hanging from a tree by his neck as a large crowd is gathered around, peering toward the camera.

“It was used to kill hopes for freedom, it was used to kill my ancestors,” he says as he appears on screen with a noose around his neck, wearing a suit fit for the Senate floor.

Booker is the first black Kentuckian to receive the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate.

He cites his nomination as a “historic victory for our Commonwealth” before bringing up his opponent, Sen. Paul, who appears on screen giving a half-hearted smile.

Booker goes on, pointing to Paul as “the very person who compared expanded health care to slavery, the person who said he would have opposed the Civil Rights Act, the person who single-handedly blocked an anti-lynching act from being Federal law,” all while a noose hanging around his neck as he stands by a tree.

The sounds of a tightening rope can be heard as Booker says, “The choice couldn’t be clearer.”

“In November, we will choose healing,” he says as he lifts the rope from around his neck. “We will choose Kentucky.”

Booker is a lifelong resident of Louisville’s West End, growing up in what has been one of the poorest zip codes in Kentucky, his website states.

It also says he has “been homeless” and has had to ration his insulin because he couldn’t afford the medication he needed as a Type 1 diabetic.

The Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate was first elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives in 2018, becoming the youngest black state legislator in nearly 90 years.

Source: TEST FEED1

Bribing some voters by forgiving student loans may backfire on Biden

It’s funny how politics works in this country. I mean, if a voter bribes a politician, the guy passing money under the table to get special treatment from the pol could wind up in prison for a long time. But if a politician makes a deal, not with one voter but with millions of them, by offering goodies in exchange for their votes, it’s not called “bribery” and it’s not even a crime. It’s called “politics as usual.”

While both parties are guilty of doing this, Democrats have a more accomplished record for this kind of thing. Give out “free” money to voters and they’ll thank you with their support, is how the thinking goes. But let’s not be too harsh on Democrats; enticing voters with “free” stuff is part of their playbook, their political DNA. 

Which brings us to the trial balloon Joe Biden has been floating recently. The one about how he wants to forgive some student loan debt, supposedly to ease the burden on those folks who took out loans to go to college and now — oh, the horror! — actually have to pay it back. Whether the president can do this or not with the stroke of his pen, via executive order, is not clear. But it looks like Biden may very well try.

One Biden plan we’ve been hearing about would forgive $10,000 in debt to former students earning $150,000 or less ($300,000 for a married couple). You might think that a couple pulling in $300,000 a year could figure out a way to pay back $10,000. But then they might have to give up a Caribbean vacation next winter — and that wouldn’t be right, now would it?  

I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that neither the right nor the left is happy with the proposed plan. The left doesn’t think it goes far enough — progressives such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) think all student loan debt should be forgiven, and conservatives think that if you take out a loan and promise to pay back what you owe, that’s exactly what you should do.

I wonder if it has occurred to President Biden that, while he may win some support for his “free” money bonanza, he also might alienate a lot of people who took out student loans and scrimped and saved to pay back what they owed. Not only did they pay off their loans and miss out on Biden’s gravy train, but now their tax dollars will help pay off somebody else’s loan.

You think these folks will rush to the polls on Election Day in November to say “Thank you” for making them feel like suckers?

A New York Times reader from San Jose, Calif., wrote a letter to the editor asking, “Why should I pay for your student loans? Are you going to pay my mortgage? … Why should I now have to pay for the people who knew perfectly well that they were going deep into avoidable debt? I know it’s politically valuable to tell millions of people you are going to forgive their debt, but it’s not right.”

Even the sages on the Times editorial board, who rarely encounter a progressive idea they don’t like, have problems with this one. “Proponents of debt cancellation argue that Democrats need to deliver on a campaign promise to a key constituency, and it may well be politically advantageous for them to do so before the midterm elections, when turnout of the Democratic base will be critical to the party’s success,” says a Times editorial. “But if the Biden administration puts forward a plan that voters do not regard as fair, the party could face a backlash at the polls.”

Bingo! If this scheme is actually implemented, Democrats may lose more support than they pick up. But desperate politicians come up with all sorts of desperate ideas. And Joe Biden is one desperate politician at the moment, given his sinking poll numbers and the prospect that his party will get a shellacking in the November midterms.  

So, Biden apparently must decide whether to roll the dice: Will his plan win support among college-educated swing voters who live in the suburbs and can be persuaded to vote for Democrats in November — and also win over younger voters, whose support for Biden has pretty much collapsed?  

Oh, did I mention that a big chunk of student loan debt has been incurred by wealthy Americans, people who went to graduate school to become doctors and lawyers? So, forgiving debt would help them more than it would help the less-well-off borrowers about whom Joe Biden supposedly cares so much..

Good luck in November, Mr. President. You and your party are going to need it.

Bernard Goldberg is an Emmy and an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University award-winning writer and journalist. He was a correspondent with HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel” for 22 years and previously worked as a reporter for CBS News and as an analyst for Fox News. He is the author of five books and publishes exclusive weekly columns, audio commentaries and Q&As on his Substack page. Follow him on Twitter @BernardGoldberg.

Source: TEST FEED1