Weekly Recap 10/15: Chaos & Violence

By TokyoSand on October 15, 2023 • ( 1 )

I’ve got to say, this last week was pretty bad.

Here at home, the Republicans in the House are in total chaos and have now let 11 days go by without having a Speaker of the House, the position 2nd in the line of succession. At another time, their infighting might be something we could sit back and laugh at, except that we need our government to function. We are running out of time to fund the government after McCarthy’s short-term resolution expires. And overseas, our allies are counting on us and we can’t come through because Congress isn’t working.

Overseas, Israel suffered a horrific attack by Hamas terrorists. The country is facing enemies that want their country gone on all three sides. My Jewish friends are no more than one or two degrees away from someone affected by the violence in Israel, and they are all fearing for their safety right here in the U.S. as anti-semitism spikes. And then you have the Palestinians, who are trapped in every way a people can be trapped. There will be more violence and anger and vitriol and fear in the days ahead.

The editorial cartoonists did what they do to cover these stories, which you’ll find below. And while it was much, much harder to find good news this week, I did find some.

Good News

In a second round of voting for a new Speaker of the House, Jim Jordan could only muster 155 Yes votes, while 55 people voted No. He can only lose 4 Republicans.

Fresh off of raising minimum wage for fast food workers for larger restaurant chains to $20/hr, CA governor Gavin Newsom signed a law to raise the minimum wage for health care workers to $25/hr.

Wisconsin Republicans appear to be backing off a threat to impeach the new state supreme court judge, Janet Protasiewicz.

A federal judge, and Trump appointee, ruled that Galveston County in Texas violated the Voting Rights Act when they drew their county commissioner precincts.

Illinois abolished cash bail.

New York banned facial recognition technology in their schools.

Three tribal nations on the West Coast regained stewardship of nearly 700 miles of ancestral coastal lands. Source

The corporation that had been planning to merge with Trump’s social media company has given up the ghost and is returning over $500M to its investors.

The Biden administration announced new initiatives aimed at working towards banning junk fees in business and the banking sector.

Lauren Boebert’s opponent Adam Frisch raised $3.4 million last quarter, while Boebert only raised $853,840.

Call to Action

If you have a Republican representing you in Congress, call their office today (yes, Sunday) and leave a message to tell them that under no circumstances do you want them to vote for Jim Jordan to become Speaker. You can stress that you will make sure they lose their next election if they do so. Find your Congressperson’s contact info HERE.