The answer to the question in the title is simple: a change in political power dynamics in this country in favor of conservatives, primarily Republicans, but also the Blue Dogs and New Dems from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party.
The U.S. is the only advanced country in the world without a paid family leave program in place-- and American women have been picking up on that. Paid family leave was a big issue in Hillary Clinton's campaign that she handled very well-- but which was almost entirely ignored by the media. And Ivanka Trump-Kushner has been talking it up as a theory that's supposed to put a happy face on her father's neo-fascist regime.
For yesterday's post, Reactionary Blue Dogs And Wall Street-Owned Corporate Dems Want You To Know They're Not Socialists, we looked at a quote from Texas progressive Mike Siegel, running in a gerrymandered red district that goes from liberal north Austin into the deep red exurbs northwest of Houston. Siegel was speaking at an event with Congressman Ted Lieu and VoteCommonGood leader Rev. Doug Pagitt, a progressive evangelical activist.
Blue Dog Max Rose and progressive Democrat Ilhan OmarIt should be no surprise to anyone who's been paying attention that the Republicans are going to run against Democrats next year by asserting they're all "socialists" who want to turn the U.S. into Venezuela. I asked Alan Grayson about the problem that Democratic candidates will be facing as they endeavor to combat these pernicious tactics.
If the budget is a statement of values, the Democrats' presumed inability to unite behind one, speaks volumes about a party whose tent is too big to be functional. Trump's DOA budget will never get a vote but his intention of a high increase for the Pentagon and paying for his vanity wall by cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid is all anyone needs to know about his values and his party's values.
Yesterday, the House voted, 245-182 to void Trump's absurd declaration of a national emergency on the southern border. Every single Democrat voted for it-- as did 13 Republicans:
Out on the hustings, Democratic candidates who pay attention to the voters are learning quickly that Trump, Putin and Mueller aren't as pressing for them that they are for MSNBC hosts.
"President" GasHouse Judiciary Committee Chair Jerry Nadler was the ranking member of the committee but he didn't have a free shot at the chair when the Democrats won back the House. Pelosi ally Zoe Lofgren is the number 2 most senior Democrat on the committee and she decided to play "a woman should have this position" card. In a case like that, the House Steering and Policy decides with the guidance of the top Democrat in the House.
Last cycle, just as election fever started revving up, the DCCC's regional vice chair for Texas, quit. Ben Ray Lujan and his lame reactionary staffers were overjoyed that they weren't going to have a disrupter sticking his nose into "their business." He promised to fill the empty seat quickly. But never even tried. The regional vice chair for the West Coast, Ted Lieu, flipped 7 seats.
Almost every time I watch a Bernie Sanders speech or video, like the one above, I think, oh, that could be part of his 2020 announcement. Well... we won't have to wait much longer. I don't think anyone will be surprised to know that Bernie is getting close to announcing. And Saturday, Politico reported that his announcement video has been recorded.
