The holiday season is over and now what? Do the real fun and games begin? The 115th congress started and already the ethics issue was presented and withdrawn. Do you think the house republicans withdrew it because of Trump’s tweet? Or from the inundation of their offices with messages from irate constituents on both sides of the aisle? The media credit Trump, I am not so sure about that – and how much did messages from citizens influence Trump? People, look in the mirror. To quote Sonia Sanchez, “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”
Our first guest, KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL, Editor and Publisher of The Nation, is a frequent commentator on American and international politics for ABC, MSNBC, CNN and PBS. Her articles have appeared in The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, Foreign Policy magazine, and The Boston Globe. She writes a weekly web column for The Washington Post. Her blog appears at The Nation.com. She will give some guidance for resistance. She underscores that while the national platform is very important, the changes we need can only come by concerted efforts of people at the local level. Community groups, schools, PTAs, local parties – every level has to be engaged.
But for the Republicans in Congress, this is the opportunity they have been waiting for. The agendas they are presenting to transform America have been their modus vivendi for the last several years. The attacks on Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, women’s reproductive rights, equity in the work place and the classroom – we have seen all of these issues before. The difference now is they are coming at us from every direction all at once and there are few allies for the people at the highest levels of power. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell have a very ambitious agenda for the first 100 days and they have already launched the attacks. Their efforts to repeal the ACA are just that – to repeal it – and not worry too much about replacing it with something “much better.” ADELE STAN, columnist for the American Prospect, will talk about this agenda and some of the structural changes congress might adapt to ensure the passage of these agendas.
Hang in there. Don’t hang your head down. You’re not Tom Dooley and you are not ready to die.
Tune in at 10 AM Thursday to hear more or listen back here!
Mary and Arlene
