With a blank check from the Senate’s sham impeachment trial in hand, Donald Trump is out for revenge. He’s starting to lash out against anyone who put their loyalty to the country ahead of their loyalty to him. His latest target? Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the top Ukraine expert who was on the fated July 25th phone call where Trump tried to extort an investigation into the Bidens from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Vindman later testified before the House about what he heard on the call. Vindman did this country a great service. He felt, in his words, a "sense of duty" to tell Americans the truth -- and now, that honorable act has cost him his job, his career, and his privacy. Vindman needs to know that Americans are thankful for his courage -- and that Trump's attacks can't change the important truth that he told. And the White House must be met with a nationwide outcry -- thousands and thousands of us speaking out and condemning Trump's abhorrent decision to punish Vindman for his patriotism.

These defined contribution plans became popular as a way for workers to save for their retirements by investing small amounts of money each year in a tax-deferred account using pre-tax money. When the retiree started taking distributions, the distributions were counted as ordinary income for tax purposes. Upon the death of the retiree, the beneficiaries of the defined contribution plan would have to take the required minimum distribution every year and pay taxes on that distribution as ordinary income. Because these defined contribution plans would continue to grow tax-deferred, the distributions could continue for decades and could be passed on to the heirs of the beneficiaries. This was a great way for workers to acquire savings and pass those savings and the resultant income on to their children and grandchildren thus creating generational wealth. This changed when the revenue provision of the SECURE ACT passed. Now, the distribution period is shortened to ten years. The effects of this change are two-fold. First, workers can no longer provide long-term savings and income to their children and grandchildren. Second, because the distribution period is shortened, more money is distributed so more money is taxed. Furthermore, the increased distribution will more than likely push the beneficiary into a higher tax bracket. The rich get to leave their kids over $11,000,000 tax free with no restrictions. The working class get to leave their kids a tax increase. Furthermore, the rich get a $1 trillion tax cut over ten years because of the Trump Tax Act. This tax cut helped increase the federal deficit by 26% from 2018 to 2019. The rich get a $1 trillion tax cut. The working class get a $15.7 billion tax increase. REPEAL THE REVENUE PROVISION OF THE SECURE ACT THAT IS A $15.7 BILLION TAX INCREASE FOR WORKERS AND THEIR FAMILIES.

Representative Garcia stated, in a public forum, that "...in the Constitution of the United States (if) they are found guilty of being a socialist member you either go to prison or are shot,” which is neither true nor becoming of a public servant of your stature. "They’re enemies of the free state,” he continued. “What do we do with our enemies in war? In Vietnam, (Afghanistan), all those. What did we do?" With these quotes, he demonstrated that he lacks the critical thinking skills and moral rectitude to represent Montanans in any capacity. Further, he disgraced our state on the world stage. Most seriously, he incited violence among his constituents for political purposes. This is a perilous time for our nation, in which political partisanship has taken priority over good governance and civility at every level. We the people must stand up to those who would see this trend continue, who would brand their constituents, indeed their neighbors, as enemies of the free state for nothing more than expression of their political views. The statements made, and doubled down on, by Representative Garcia are an alarming escalation of this violent rhetoric and he must be held accountable for them. Only pressure from the people of Montana can compel him to take responsibility for his actions, so please join me in condemning him publicly. By acting together in the interests of our state and our communities, we can begin to change the ugly course our politics have taken.

The POST Act addresses the long-unmet need for civilian oversight of NYPD surveillance practices, particularly the acquisition and deployment of novel, highly-invasive technologies. For years, the NYPD has built up an arsenal of spy tools on the public tab while trying to block public notice and debate. These tools not only include the so-called “gang database,”[1] but also items like facial recognition, IMSI catchers (so-called “stingrays”), and automated license plate readers that can monitor a vehicle’s location throughout the city.[2] These tools threaten all New Yorkers' privacy, but they pose a particularly potent threat to our immigrant communities and New Yorkers of color. Unchecked, the growing use of surveillance technology threatens to obscure and automate racial inequalities under the guise of unbiased computer systems. And too often, these systems create a risk of information sharing with federal agencies, including Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”). For example, the NYPD has contracted for years with the private firm Vigilant Solutions, which operates a national database of over 5 billion license plate data points. Shockingly, in recent years, we learned that Vigilant Solutions was not just contracting with local police departments, it was also contracting with ICE. This is the vendor that the NYPD uses to record countless New Yorkers’ license plates per day, and we do not have an accurate understanding of how the NYPD may be sharing license plate data with ICE. Even worse, the NYPD relies on Vigilant Solutions’ artificial intelligence to map out social networks, label New Yorkers as “criminal associates,” and create databases based on the company’s unproven algorithms. This is just one example of countless surveillance tools that requires a systematic solution. The POST Act is not just a comprehensive response, but also a modest one. The NYPD can continue using these tools by complying with limited protections against waste, discrimination, and misuse. In fact, the POST Act would be one of the most limited surveillance reform bills in the country, especially when viewed in comparison to San Francisco’s and Oakland’s oversight legislation, which also contain outright bans on facial recognition technology or to Massachusetts’s proposed state-wide moratorium on facial recognition. Additionally, many of the jurisdictions require legislators to approve each and every surveillance system their municipality buys, unlike the POST Act, which only requires public notice. The measure is not just widely supported by your City Council colleagues, it’s even endorsed by the New York Times.[3] The message is clear: civilian oversight of surveillance enhances the public’s trust in police departments and public safety. After a hearing before the Public Safety Committee in December, thirty-two City Council members and the Public Advocate have now signed on as POST Act cosponsors. The time is now for a vote of the full City Council. [1] https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2019/7/23/the-nypds-gang-database-a-new-age-of-stop-and-frisk [2] https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2019/9/26/domain-awareness-system [3] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/18/opinion/nypd-post-act-surveillance.html

The 2020 election has started. Do you want to make sure your vote counts when you go to the polls? Sign this petition and tell your Chief Election Official to ensure that elections are secure and accessible, registrations are processed, and your vote is counted. The chaos of voting in Iowa this week caused voters to be confused and doubt their votes would count. The voter suppression in 2018 in Georgia was an election robbed. That is no way to run a democracy. This is a warning to elections officials nationwide: turnout in the 2020 elections will be high and the world is watching. We can blame the Iowa caucus problem on bad technology. But the decision-makers who run elections in other states can avoid such a mess. Election officials must do everything in their power to make sure new tech is working and establish solid back up plans if it fails, well before the first voters head to the polls. 2020 is the election of our lifetime. Turnout will be high. Our democracy may hinge on a single principle: If polls aren't prepared, our voices aren't heard. We can act now to make sure every voter can cast a ballot that counts. This year, voters will be casting ballots on new voting machines for the first time. They'll be voting by mail for the first time. They'll be registering online for the first time. Election officials: don't wait. Act now to make sure those systems have solid backup plans, thorough testing, and paper backups so every voter is heard. Please join with us and demand that your Chief Election Official prepares for the 2020 election, so that every vote can make their voice heard.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is for people who have “an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors." Rush Limbaugh has only been a divisive media host.

The Iowa caucuses were deeply flawed long before any app was introduced – and now is our opportunity to do something about it. The caucuses discriminate against people with disabilities, people who work at night, parents (especially women) who need to care for children or elders. And, of course, giving Iowa such an outsized role in our primaries further silences the voices of people of color and city-dwellers who are already marginalized by our political structures.

It will take all of us to defeat Trump and the Republicans -- but it's clear for the good of the country and the world, we have to. A majority of Americans want him removed, now let's get out there to make sure they all vote on November 3.

He is a traitor to the great tribe of Cherokee Nation

Our democracy is at stake.

The fiasco created by the Iowa caucuses could be just a preview of what’s to come -- if we don’t get serious about securing our election systems right now. Caucus-goers tried to make their voices heard, showing up and speaking out for the presidential candidate they believe in. But the night quickly devolved into chaos -- as officials tried to use a new, untested app to report the results. Precinct leaders struggled to use the app. Many hadn’t been trained on it at all. And as a result, nobody could be certain that their vote was going to count. The only thing that prevented a complete electoral disaster? Tried-and-true paper ballots, which election officials could recount by hand. As other states gear up for their primary elections, we must pressure election officials to implement the strong, simple solutions that protect our democracy: paper trails and risk-limiting audits. Anything run on a computer can be hacked or experience glitches -- so these backups are essential to make sure the final results are accurate. Add your name to tell election officials nationwide: if we can’t count on you to conduct elections that are free, fair, and accurate -- then we don’t have a real democracy anymore. Every election must include paper ballots and risk-limiting audits.

Our national debt is out of control. His travel has racked up millions of taxpayer dollars and has benefited his organization expeditiously. The previously administration spent $70 million on travel over eight years! He has no conscience when it comes to spending others money. All of us are paying for him to attend Republican rallies and that should be paid for by his party. Not independents and democrats. It's time to open the books for Americans to see these expenses and the appropriations committee to reign in these excessive expenses to start.