Susan Collins Engineered the USPS Disaster She’s Now Protesting | Washington Monthly

As it turns out, Collins is actually one of the members of Congress most responsible for the Postal Service’s devastation. Long before DeJoy started manipulating the USPS, Collins was at the forefront of a bill that crippled the agency’s finances.

In 2005, she sponsored and introduced legislation, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA), that required the USPS to pre-pay the next 50 years worth of health and retirement benefits for all of its employees—a rule that no other federal agency must follow. As chair of the Senate oversight panel at the time, she shepherded the bill’s passage, along with her House GOP counterpart Tom Davis, during a lame-duck session of Congress. It passed by a voice vote without any objections—a maneuver that gave members little time to consider what they were doing.

To meet the mandate for prefunding USPS’s health and retirement benefits, the measure required the Postal Service to place roughly $5.5 billion into a pension fund every year between 2007 and 2016, followed by sizable additional payments, making it impossible for the institution to run a profit. To make it even harder for the USPS to make money, the law prohibited the agency from any new activities outside of delivering mail. In an essay for the Washington Monthly last year, New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell, who voted for the bill, called it “one of the worst pieces of legislation Congress has passed in a generation.”

 

Source: Susan Collins Engineered the USPS Disaster She’s Now Protesting | Washington Monthly

Minneapolis officer calls for charges to be dropped in George Floyd case | TheHill

An autopsy done by Hennepin County found that Floyd had fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system at the time of his death but said that the cause of death was “cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression,” not drugs.

Source: Minneapolis officer calls for charges to be dropped in George Floyd case | TheHill

Coronavirus Pandemic: DeWine announces sports can go forward… (Really stupid passing buck to local schools, some of which will endanger students and families un-necessarily- not safe for Big Ten but ok for high school Big Ten wannabes)

Gov. Mike DeWine’s highly anticipated announcement on high school sports was made this afternoon, when he said all fall sports will be permitted to continue.

DeWine said the announcement comes with a restriction on the amount of fans, saying only family members will be allowed to attend

 

Source: Coronavirus Pandemic: DeWine announces sports can go forward, performing arts orders coming

Manila hospitals swamped even as lockdown curbs are set to ease today

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Hospitals in Manila remain overwhelmed and health workers are still overworked two weeks after a strict coronavirus lockdown, but a “reboot” of the official response should see infections plateauing or even going down, the government and health experts said yesterday.

Starting today, shutdown restrictions that had been in place in Metro Manila and four nearby provinces since Aug 4 will be eased.

The curbs are being lifted, even though nationwide infections continue to top 3,000 a day, and more than 500 people are reported to have died this month alone.

That is one-fifth of the total death toll.

The Health Ministry said yesterday that infections had neared 170,000, with 4,836 new cases. More than 2,680 people have died.

The Philippines currently has the most number of Covid-19 infections in South-east Asia.

“Right now, we’re still receiving so many reports about how overwhelming the waiting time is at emergency departments, that (the departments) are filled to the brim and can no longer admit patients,” said Dr Pauline Convocar, president of the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine.

Four out of every five hospital beds for Covid-19 patients in the capital are already occupied, according to the Health Ministry’s daily bulletin.

President Rodrigo Duterte reimposed quarantine measures early this month in Manila and four nearby provinces – home to about 27 million or one-quarter of the country’s population – after more than 160 medical groups said the health system was on the verge of collapse.

The Philippines went through one of the longest shelter-at-home restrictions in the world, from mid-March to May.

But since emerging from the lockdown on June 1, confirmed infections in the archipelago had increased more than fivefold and surged past 160,000.

HOSPITALS OVERWHELMED

Right now, we’re still receiving so many reports about how overwhelming the waiting time is at emergency departments, that (the departments) are filled to the brim and can no longer admit patients.

DR PAULINE CONVOCAR, president of the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine.

That made the Philippines the epicentre of the pandemic in South-east Asia, dislodging Indonesia.

Dr Anna Lisa Lim, an infectious and tropical diseases specialist at the Philippine General Hospital, said the recent two-week lockdown probably slowed the spread of the virus and gave hospitals a “timeout”.

But that was not the main goal, she added.

“The more important, primary goal was to regroup and try to see whether there was a more concrete response to symptoms of an overwhelmed system.

“That was achieved to a certain extent. It opened up a dialogue,” she said.

She added that this led to a “reboot” in the government’s response.

This “refreshed approach” will see the government shoring up its grassroots response, so that those who fall sick do not react by going straight to hospital for treatment, she said.

Mr Duterte’s spokesman Harry Roque told reporters earlier that the government will employ pooled testing, and that contact tracers will make house calls, so that more asymptomatic cases can be found in communities and workplaces, where most clusters of infected cases are surfacing.

More community treatment and isolation facilities will be built, so that mayors and other grassroots leaders can respond more effectively as testing uncovers outbreaks in their areas, he added.

Mr Roque said businesses allowed to reopen will also be held to higher health standards.

Professor Guido David, who heads a University of the Philippines’ research team that tracks Covid-19 statistics, said that if the government follows up on the changes in its pandemic response, the Philippines could soon see a “flattening” of Covid-19 cases.

He also said the R-naught, which describes the virus’ infection rate, had fallen from 1.5 last month to just 1.1 this month. If it falls below 1, “that means we’ve flattened the curve”, he added.

But Dr Benjamin Co, an infectious diseases specialist, said the R-naught alone could not be used as a metric.

Apart from keeping it below 1, cases should also drop to just 200 a day from a current average of more than 3,000, and the proportion of those testing positive should slide to 5 per cent, he added.

“Only when we achieve those and sustain it for at least 14 days can we call it a victory,” he said.

Let’s block ads! (Why?)

Gov. Greg Abbott, other Texas leaders want to freeze property tax revenues for cities that cut police budgets

Want to take power from local government to govern itself because State knows better how to govern than local government – GOP Texas dictatorship wannabes!
Gov. Greg Abbott along with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, hold the first meeting of the Texas Safety Commission at the Texas Capitol August 22, 2019.

Gov. Greg Abbott along with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, hold the first meeting of the Texas Safety Commission in 2019. On Tuesday, Abbott said lawmakers plan to craft legislation that will freeze property tax revenues in cities, like Austin, that cut police budgets.

Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune

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Gov. Greg Abbott and top Texas leaders announced Tuesday that they will push for legislation next year that would freeze property tax revenues for cities that cut police budgets on Tuesday, just days after the Austin City Council approved a budget that will cut police funding by one-third and reinvest money in social services.

The proposal sets up what is expected to be a fight in the 2021 Texas Legislature over what police reform should look like following the in-custody death of George Floyd that reignited a national movement against police brutality and racial injustice.

“Any city in the state of Texas that defunds law enforcement will have their property tax revenue frozen as of that time,” Abbott said in Fort Worth, where the press conference was held. “This will be an effective tool that effectively will prevent cities from being able to reduce funding support for law enforcement agencies.”

Texas’ four largest cities — Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio — each spent more than a third of their general funds on their police departments in their respective 2020 fiscal years. But on Thursday, Austin decided to cut its police department budget by $150 million, after officers and the city’s top cop faced months of criticism over the killing of an unarmed Black and Hispanic man, the use of force against anti-police brutality protesters and the investigation of a demonstrator’s fatal shooting by another citizen.

“If we have police brutality, we don’t need fewer police, we need less police brutality, and so we need to take action, whether it be as a Legislature or in police departments or whatever the case may be,” Abbott said. “We do need to take action to ensure that law enforcement officers are trained in ways in which they will not engage in police brutality.”

The death of Floyd, a Black man killed by Minneapolis police officers during an arrest, has spurred protests against police brutality and calls to reduce police funding across the state and country. Police reform advocates are pushing cities to reallocate police funds to areas like housing, social services and public spaces. Austin was the first major Texas city to cut its police department’s budget.

Last week, the Texas Legislative Black Caucus unveiled provisions they plan to include in a George Floyd Act when the legislative session begins in January. The proposals included some related directly to Floyd, like banning chokeholds and requiring officers to intervene if another officer is using excessive force. But it also revived efforts that have previously failed at the Capitol after facing opposition from police unions. One such measure would be to end arrests for criminal violations that at most would result in a fine, like theft under $100.

While Abbott has mentioned potential proposals following Floyd’s death, they have mostly fallen in line with what police unions also support. He repeatedly spoke of increased training for officers Tuesday, but the item Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said would be a priority in the Senate is to ensure police funding is not diminished.

Abbott was joined in the press conference by Patrick, Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, several Republican North Texas lawmakers and Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price. During the press conference, Abbott made a reference to a report from The Wall Street Journal that showed increases in homicides and robberies in Austin this year. But experts have pointed out that crime rates are nowhere near the high levels of two decades ago. An analysis of the University of Pennsylvania shows a marginal increase in violent crimes compared to previous five years in Austin.

Bonnen, who is not returning to the legislature in 2021, criticized Austin Mayor Steve Adler for opposing police funding cuts in previous years during property tax debates, only to support it now.

“It is not acceptable,” Bonnen said. “Law enforcement is not a tool of political agendas and I would ask the city of Austin to stop using them as one.”

Austin City Council member Greg Casar said in a statement that Abbott recently request a 4% budget cut to the Texas Department of Public Safety as the state faces budget shortfalls during the COVID-19 recession.

“The message from the tens of thousands of Austinites who made their voices heard in this year’s budget process was clear: We must decrease our over-reliance on police to handle all of our complex public safety challenges and instead reinvest in domestic violence shelters, mental health first responders, and more,” Casar said.

San Antonio’s proposed budget for 2021 increases overall police funding by $8 million, but cuts overtime and funds health and violence prevention programs. In Dallas, the proposed 2021 budget includes a minor increase in police funding, and $3.2 million for safety net resources. Both cities are scheduled to approve their budgets in September.

The Houston City Council approved a minor funding increase to its police department in June, but an amendment that tried to redistribute some of the money to other areas, like the police oversight board and loans for businesses owned by Black and brown people, was rejected.

In Fort Worth, where Abbott’s press conference was held, voters supported renewing the half-cent sales tax that funds at least 24% of the city police department’s budget in July. According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the city is considering a proposal to redirect some funds within their Police Department to expand their mental health team, increase funding to nonprofits and creating a civilian response program.

Abbott said Tuesday’s press conference was held in Fort Worth because “Fort Worth is doing it right” in terms of investing in police and public safety. While Abbott mentioned Floyd’s death in Minneapolis, there was no mention during the conference of Atatiana Jefferson, or other high-profile Texas police killings of Black residents. Jefferson, a 28-year-old Black woman, was killed last year after a Fort Worth police officer shot into her home during a welfare check. The former officer, Aaron Dean, has been indicted on a murder charge.

Advocates have argued that while police departments receive a large portion of city funds, safety net programs remain underfunded and Black and brown communities are disproportionately affected by unemployment, lack of adequate housing and poverty. In 2018, 19.6% of Black Texans lived below the poverty line, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, compared with 20.9% of Hispanic Texans and 8.5% of non-Hispanic white Texans.

“The only way that you’re going to prevent crime is by addressing the root causes of crime, and the main one is poverty,” said Nora Soto, co-founder of Our City Our Future in Dallas. “Police have acted as a poverty patrol. They’re criminalizing poor people.”

Police unions explain that law enforcement is expensive and involves a wide range of responsibilities, which include everything from responding to potentially dangerous emergency 911 calls to attending monthly neighborhood meetings.

“Just because of the sheer volume of tasks that we are responsible for dealing with, public safety is going to be the most expensive part of a city budget across the board. That’s really just demand,” said Jennifer Szimanski, public affairs coordinator for the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas.

Disclosure: Steve Adler is a former Texas Tribune board chairman and has been a financial supporter of the Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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