Daily Archives: July 18, 2017

Protesters gather outside Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake's office voicing their opposition to Republican plans to repeal and replace Obamacare on July 10, 2017. | John Shinkle/POLITICO

Liberal activists fighting to save Obamacare are seeking to capitalize on an unexpected gift at least another week, if not more, before the Senate GOP will bring its repeal plan to the floor.

Progressive groups already had stocked this week with public protests against the Republican legislation, expecting a make-or-break vote. But Sen. John McCains absence from the Capitol following surgery for a blood clot handed the left a major opportunity to rally opposition and keep the spotlight on the GOPs struggle to even begin debate on a bill that polls dismally with the public.

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Activists are preparing protests well into next month aimed at keeping the pressure on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) conference, particularly the half-dozen most closely watched moderate swing votes.

Every day the Senate doesnt repeal ACA and gut Medicaid is a day that makes it less likely theyll be able to, MoveOn.org Washington director Ben Wikler told reporters. "Every day this bill is dangling out there in public, it becomes more unpopular."

The fresh push kicked off on Monday. The Bernie Sanders-backed group Our Revolution staged sit-ins at a half-dozen Senate GOP offices throughout the day, while the upstart liberal organization Indivisible prepared for more than 100 demonstrations in 39 states on Tuesday. More activist groups returned to the Hill for a series of near-daily rallies against the bill, with appearances by Democratic senators.

The right mounted no similar flurry of public activity in defense of the bill, underscoring the mismatch in grassroots energy between liberals and conservatives who had pressed McConnell to embrace a more straightforward repeal strategy.

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And the harder McConnell pushes for a vote on uprooting the Affordable Care Act, the more his opponents relish his failure to notch that quick victory.

With only two public GOP no votes on taking up the bill Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky activists are expecting to see several Republicans hop off the fence at once. They acknowledge that the extra time provided by McCain's recuperation also gives McConnell time to cajole undecided Republicans one-on-one, but they're banking on the imminent Congressional Budget Office score of the bill and negative headlines to make the majority leader's job even harder as the clock ticks toward August.

"Extra time matters a lot more when youre appealing to the general public that despises this bill than it does when youre playing an inside the Beltway game of trading buy-offs and favors with people who were listening anyway," Jesse Ferguson, a veteran Democratic strategist advising pro-Obamacare groups, said in an interview.

Rather than organize the sort of massive marches that anti-Trump groups favored earlier in the year, health care organizers are focusing on personal stories from constituents appealing directly to their senators. Capitol Police reported arresting 33 demonstrators in the Senate as of midday Monday during liberal groups' protest actions.

"The message weve been telling our groups, especially the ones in D.C., is to go to an office," said Indivisible policy director Angel Padilla. "You want to go rally and march? Great! But if you want to be effective at congressional advocacy, go to your member's offices and make sure they see you inside."

In that vein, Planned Parenthood is setting up a Wednesday event for supporters to share personal stories about how the seven-year-old health care law has helped them and call their senators, national organizing director Deirdre Schifeling told reporters. Another liberal group UltraViolet told reporters Monday that it had commissioned planes to fly in Ohio, Alaska and West Virginia all swing states represented by moderate Republicans undecided on the repeal bill.

Ferguson also identified another benefit to anti-repeal activists from the delay in a Senate vote: The CBO may have time to release a nonpartisan score of a new addition to the legislation, authored by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), that would allow insurers to sell plans not compliant with Obamacare. Republicans had suggested they might rely on a score of the Cruz proposal from the Trump administration if the CBO were not able to finish an independent assessment in time for a vote this week.

"They would have to rely on whatever sham analysis" the Department of Health and Human Services could produce, Ferguson said, "but now theyve lost that excuse."

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Liberals pounce on Obamacare vote delay - Politico

NDP Leader John Horgan, shown after his June 29 meeting with Lt.-Gov. Judith Guichon at Government House in Victoria, will be sworn Tuesday as B.C.s 36th premier. CHAD HIPOLITO / CANADIAN PRESS Files

VICTORIA B.C.s New Democrats will introduce a gender-balanced cabinet Tuesday, as the party transitions to power a day after laying off more than 100 Liberal political appointees at the legislature.

The cabinet will be a mix of old and new NDP MLAs, but will also maintain a balanced proportion of male and female ministers. Yet the NDP will stop short of creating a stand-alone ministry of womens equality, which the party has operated in past governments. Instead, the new government is expected to consider womens equality and gender equity issues in each ministry separately.

Premier-designate John Horgan will become B.C.s 36th premier during a ceremony at 2 p.m. at Government House, where his cabinet will then be officially unveiled. NDP MLAs who made the cut received phone calls late Monday evening telling them of their portfolio.

Horgans first public event will be anopen house at the legislature Tuesday evening, where the new premier and his cabinet will mingle with the crowd.

Its an opportunity for the public to come and tour the legislature, to meet the new cabinet, to meet the new MLAs and to have a chance to see their new government get down to work, said NDP MLA Carole James, who is widely expected to be named finance minister on Tuesday.

We expect a big crowd and lots of families.

Former NDP leader Carole James is expected to be named as B.C.s new finance minister on Tuesday. CHAD HIPOLITO / PNG

Tuesdays swearing-in of the new NDP government waspreceded Monday by its transition team terminating numerous Liberal staff, senior civil servants and communications officials inside government, as the party prepared to install its own officials in key positions.

Across government about 125 BC Liberal-appointed staff are leaving, said NDP spokesperson Jen Holmwood. The staff we are replacing were politically appointed by the Liberals. This is not unique to our government. This is actually fewer than the Liberals let go in 2001.

Such terminations are not unusual when one political party replaces another in government.

Staff inside the 220-person government communications branch appeared particularly hard-hit by the firings, with deputy minister John Paul Fraser being removed by the NDP. The incoming New Democrat head of the civil service Don Wright will set his own senior management team of deputy ministers, and several other Liberals were believed to be displaced.

Several communications directors were also let go, including finance ministry communications director Jamie Edwardson, widely considered one of the most professional and non-partisan of the officials in government communications. Many staff in ministerial offices were also fired, which includes a mixture of partisan assistants and non-partisan scheduling clerks.

James described the staff turnover as a routine part of transitioning to a new government and downplayed the numbers.

You are not looking at wholesale change. You are looking at people who are able to fit and able to be committed to the agenda we are moving ahead with, she said. So its a number of very committed civil servants who are staying and doing good work and will continue to do good work and you will see some changes that you always see with a change in government.

James said the NDP will at a future date release the exact figures on firings. Terminated staff are eligible for severance of generally up to 18 months salary depending on their years of service, age and other considerations though the NDP did not have a breakdown of costs available yet or a list of the new NDP staff.

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NDP to usher in gender-balanced cabinet as it ousts Liberal-appointed staff - Vancouver Sun

AURORA | Aurora City Council could become considerably bluer this fall if three candidates, all graduates or soon-to-be alumnae of a program designed to get more Democratic women involved in politics, are as successful as their peers across the state and country.

A trio of women running for three different city council posts this November were each molded by Emerge Colorado, an organization that guides women who are also registered Democrats through a six-month-long crash course in how to run a political campaign.

The three candidates are: Allison Hiltz, whos running for one of two available at-large seats, Crystal Murillo, whos currently the sole challenger to Ward I incumbent Sally Mounier, and Nicole Johnston, whos vying for the up-for-grabs Ward II seat. The current Ward II representative, Renie Peterson, is term limited.

All three of the candidates running in Auroras upcoming election have not run for political office before. Both Hiltz, a policy associate for the National Conference of State Legislatures, and Murillo, who works in the admissions office at the University of Denver, graduated from the Emerge Colorado program last summer. Johnston, a community activist and consultant for non-profit organizations, is still in the process of finishing the Emerge program during its week-long summer intensive course.

The Colorado chapter of Emerge is the local spoke of a nationwide network, which comprises efforts in 21 states. Since it was founded in 2002, the group has trained more than 2,500 women across the country, according to the Emerge America website. The Colorado branch was founded in 2012.

But the organization has seen a considerable uptick in interest since last years presidential election, according to Jenny Willford, executive director of Emerge Colorado.

Willford said Emerge chapters nationwide saw a nearly 90 percent bump in inquiries. Locally, the chapter saw at least a two-fold increase in the number of inquiries, she said.

Its exciting to see all of the renewed interest and almost like a sense of duty to step up, Willford said. And, yes, I think this new interest in politics is going to translate to municipal elections.

After applying and paying a tuition fee, about 20 women in last years Emerge class attend 70 hours of training, which is spread over the course of about one weekend each month, according to Hiltz and Murillo. Training topics ranges from campaign finance to constituent relations to media navigation.

In Aurora, each of the Emerge-affiliated candidates said they want the local city council to better reflect the city it serves. That means candidates who are younger and of various political persuasions and backgrounds.

I just felt it was necessary to add a different perspective, especially when realizing the lack of representation embodied on our current city council, said Murillo, who is 23-years-old.

Auroras current city council is made up of six females and fives males, the vast majority of whom are white Republicans. The average age among council members is roughly 64 years old, according to voter registration records.

The median age in the city is about 37 years old, according to data compiled by Aurora officials. Nearly one-third of the citys population identifies as Hispanic, according to census data. Less than half of the citys some 350,000 residents report their race being white alone, according to statistics reported by City-Data.com.

Emerge has experienced wild success in Colorado in recent years, with a nearly 90 percent win-rate in municipal-level and state-level elections last year. Seven of the eight graduates who ran in a 2016 election won. Two of last years Emerge winners make up a portion of Auroras delegation in the state legislature; Dominique Jackson in House District 42 and Dafna Michaelson Jenet in House District 30.

And its not unusual for several Emerge candidates to run in the same race, as they are this year in Aurora, according to Willford. In 2015, three different Emerge graduates won three seats on the Westminster City Council. A previous Emerge alumnus, who was already on the council, brought the total number of Emerge Councilmembers in that city to four more than half of the total seats.

Across the country, the group succeeds in placing about 70 percent of affiliated candidates into elected office, according to the Emerge America website.

But Willford said the Emerge Colorado graduates are not targeting specific cities with vulnerable seats. The organization and its participants are more focused on creating a more well-rounded government, she said.

I would say the community is changing in a way that who is representing (community members) on council should be reflective of the voters, she said. At the end of the day, we dont want to take over city council. We want a more reflective democracy.

Aurora Sentinel reporter Cassandra Ballard contributed to this report.

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3 new liberal faces emerge as groomed Aurora city council candidates - Aurora Sentinel

It takes a village to make a wrestler.

Though the fans of Appalachian Mountain Wrestling (AMW) may not appreciate The Progressive Liberal Daniel Richards for the far left ideology he brings to the ring, Richards appreciates the fans, and the promotion that gave him a platform to become an overnight internet sensation. Just a month ago, AMW had a couple hundred followers on their YouTube channel, with maybe twice that many views on the episode that caught the eye of Deadspin at the end of June.

Were approaching 50,000 the last time I checked, Daniel Richards said, in an interview this week with Paste. Our subscribers have gone up by a hundred, which proportionally is significant. We had 230-something before, and now were approaching 350 or more. Thats big for a little independent promotion like us.

Its a metaphor for the whirlwind month Richards has had. Part-time wrestler Daniel Richards by night, successful realtor Daniel Harnsberger by day, the 36-year-old has found himself at the center of a media whirlwind all thanks to his unusual gimmick: a true blue, die hard, yellow dog liberal decked out in Democratic donkeys and a shirt covered in Hillary Clintonphotos, hitting the mat with conservative foes deep in the heart of Trump Country.

To me its only made it more exciting and more enjoyable, Richards said of the extra attention. I think its brought a little extra fanfare which of course is a great thing. I dont know if it means Ill strike it rich, but it certainly helps. Even if it means a few extra hours of work, maintaining his businesses and new bookings in the wake of his newfound national notoriety. I still have my real estate businesses to tend to, and thats been harder. At the end of the day Im not going to fail, its just been less sleep for this liberal.

Though Richardss on-camera relationship with the AMW roster, and certainly with their passionately conservative fans, is combative, he paints a more bipartisan picture of AMWs perspective on his moment in the spotlight.

Everyone knows whats going on. I think at the end of the day everyone there realizes its a good thing for everybody, and theres not been an interview of any significance that Ive done where I havent promoted AMW, Richards said. I think I know that. Its not like Ive gotten a big head about this, Beau [James] hasnt. Beau and I, with all the coverage weve gotten, were still the same two people we were before. Maybe itd be looked at negatively if I was being an arrogant prick or something, but Im not.

Beau James, Richardss mentor and a man with more than twenty years of experience in the world of wrestling, went to a great deal of effort to smooth Richardss path in the locker room when he first joined the AMW ranks, and Richards has mentioned in previous interviews James would feed him his lines and coach him on the gimmick in front of other wrestlers to make sure they knew Richards wasnt just showing up to stir the pot.

When asked if that was still the case, Richards explained, That was at first, because Im an outsider to fans, I still am. But when I first came there I was an outsider to that locker room. So to make sure that I didnt have instant heat in the dressing room, Beau made sure that people heard him giving me the direction. If Id just come out and said that stuff, itd be understandable, itd be like who is this jerk? To put it mildly.

So that was definitely done with my best interest in mind, and I appreciate that. But thats the beauty of working for someone like Beau, because Beau is a wealth of knowledge and has the experience to understand a dynamic like that. Hes been around 28 years, wrestled all over the country, and rubbed elbows with some of the greatest wrestlers in the entire business. So Im a beneficiary of his education, and Im fortunate that hes passing down part of it to me.

Not to say that Richards isnt as liberal as his gimmicka gimmick topped off by a cross-arm neckbreaker finisher called the Liberal Agenda. Though he may not be quite as pompous as his Daniel Richards persona, Harnsberger is a proud liberal, and just as outspoken about it, a rarity in an entertainment business dominated by a family of wealthy Republican donors and a Trump cabinet member.

Harnsberger is surprised by everyone elses surprise at his liberal leanings, but is quick in interviews to confirm theyre all his. Its shocking to me that everyone is shocked, even Chris Hayes on his shows said, you know, at first we thought this was a conservative playing a liberal, then we figured out hes an actual liberal! And Im like, yes!

In the radio interviews they quickly find it out, and Im pleased the feedback I get is, well, you know what youre talking about. I dont know every nuance of every policy but I do follow the news. I think its more important than ever to follow the news, not only because of the time and the President that were living in and under, just being in wrestling, I think its important to keep a pulse on whats going on in the world.

What is it like, then, to feel so passionately about your politics and climb into a ring where you know theyll get booed nine shows out of ten?

Im a villainized version of myself because the fans, Harnsberger said. Beau could book me any way possible to try to get me loved by the fans, but if I just have the name The Progressive Liberal Daniel Richards, that alone Im just gonna get heat. Its just heat with those people there. Itd be a tough go.

So thats why Im villainized, and I play off of it, but I think thats how you would go in real life. If you went to work and people were talking shit to you, you would justI guess some people would wilt, but thats not me. I would fire back. And thats me. I antagonize them in the ring and then in my interviews, I try to. Theyre so narrow-minded over there, including one of the wrestlers who thinks that if youre liberal, youre gay. And first of all, theres nothing wrong if that is the case, Im not, but I dont really care that they think I am, so Ill throw in a lot of extra flamboyance I maybe wouldnt otherwise. Its just to egg them on because they dont like it. Thats fine. Theyre on the wrong side of history, and you know, Im not.

Theres a level of nuance there even most big name wrestlers often missbeing a progressive character without going out of your way to make your progressive views the problem, and instead, just accepting the responses as they come. For Harnsberger, being Daniel Richards means putting a little salt and pepper on the person he is when he wakes up in the morning, but not making his ideals the butt of the joke. (More big name wrestlers could take a hint from Harnsberger in this regard.)

He doesnt go out of his way to engage fans in political debate after matches, though, and has an old-school view of keeping kayfabe. I try to stay away from any interactions from fans, he said, Because theres nothing I hate more than watching someone whos trying to be a heel and at the end of the night theyre glad-handing fans and holding babies, and I see that a lot.

After a movies over, Tom Hanksisnt coming out like, oh, this thing was all fake. It doesnt happen. And I dont want to compromise the hard work Ive put in, especially with my character, to kill the suspension of disbelief Ive worked so hard for.

He did admit, though, that I printed some pictures, Im selling those bad boys.

Theres a band I really like called One-Eyed Doll, the lead singer, her names Kimberly Freeman. Ive seen them three times live, and shes so interactive and personal with her fans I think I take part of that and make it mine when it comes to interacting with fans of mine.

For Harnsberger, the key to the gimmickimparted to him by Beauis understanding the audience and rolling with the crowd response, without letting his gimmick get lost or changed by the added attention. Ive got bookings in the future where people are going to cheer for me because of where I am. Ive got a show in Annandale, Virginia, which is Northern Virginia, and Ill be cheered there, or Im pretty confident I will be. I look forward to that. I dont need cheers, boos dont hurt my feelings. Its just an interesting change of pace, just like all this has been.

The Progressive Liberal gimmick does give him some freedom to have fun toying with fans, though. We went out to Gray, Tennessee, to a festival, and people are just booing me and saying stuff. And I interact with them, but totally as a heel. Im considered smug and arrogant and all that so I play that up as Im setting up my table, Im like, Move, move, the most famous wrestler in the world, setting up! Gotta sell pictures!

I dont walk around thinking that, Ive certainly gotten a lot of notoriety out of it I did say in a post-match interview with Kyle [Maggard], on the live mic I said, How does it feel to be beaten by the most famous wrestler in the world? And at least for the first week I might have had a justifiable claim there. Thats not for me to say, but at least in the first week I had a justifiable claim.

Whether hes been the most famous wrestler or not, Harnsberger has stayed humble and up front about his origins, and in most interviews only has kind words for AMW, Maggard, James, and the other professionals who have helped him hone his craft and find a home for his gimmick.

The reason trickle-down economics doesnt work is because of people, Harnsberger said firmly, dipping back into the toes of the ideological waters that make him Daniel Richards even as he discusses his passion for AMW and appreciation for the help and support hes been given since he returned to the wrestling ring. Republicans say, oh the rich guys are gonna start paying everyone else more when you give them the tax break. And thats not what happens.

In my universe, I just feel like you use good things that have been given to you to lift other people up, but also recognize what got you there, and to me, thats all Im doing is giving props to people who deserve it. The Richmond Times-Dispatch followed me around for most of [Monday], they photographed me while I was working out, but I wanted my trainer Jennifer Rothemich to be there with me. Shes helped me with my diet, I broke my hand like my second match for AMW Jennifer helped me with that. I wanted her to be there so she could get a rub from it, at least people know hey, this gal is a personal trainer and it couldnt hurt her for sure.

Though Rothemich couldnt make the interview, Harnsberger said, I try to do that on all levels because its all a product its just a team effort. Were all independent contractors but truly, for this to work, everyones got to be involved and pitch in. I came up with a great gimmick, and its my idea and all that, but Beau helped me understand it better and then helped me understand my audience better. Its not a one-man show.

As for future opportunities, The Progressive Liberal has his eyes on one opponent for a potential future feud. I think theres a match that needs to happen between myself and Sam Adonis, an independent wrestler in Mexico who wrestles as an ardent supporter of President Trump. I knew about Sama friend of mine, she sent me an article about Sam and thats how I first knew about him. Now its funny, now that Im having my little run right now, people are putting us in the same light. Usually you see a story about me and theres a story linked about him in the related section.

A midterm election grudge match, maybe?

We need to have something and we need to do it now, strike while the irons hot. But well see. So Sam is one, the whole dynamic there if anything.

He still has an eye on the big fish of sports entertainment, the WWE. Thats where Ive wanted to go since I was a kid. I stepped away from the business and had this big hiatus that I think really killed my chances of having any kind of stardom, but I made my goal this year that I want to be on there for a one-time match. And that can happen! Well see. I wanted that and to be ranked in Pro Wrestling Illustrated, so well see if either happens.

C.K. Stewart is a freelance writer with a lot of opinions about comics, wrestling and wrestling comics. He can also be found at Newsarama or livetweeting terrible pay-per-views on Twitter @ckayfabe.

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How "The Progressive Liberal" Dan Richards Became the Media's Favorite Wrestler - Paste Magazine