US Politics
Congress of millionaires robs the unemployed
By Patrick Martin, 3 August 2020
Allowing federal supplemental benefits to expire for 30 million jobless workers shows the class character of both the Democratic and Republican parties.
As stock indexes continue their climb
US unemployment supplement expires, setting the stage for mass hunger and homelessness
By Barry Grey, 1 August 2020
The congressional stalemate over an extension of the unemployment pay supplement, which is certain to result in the total elimination or a major cut in the benefit, is a declaration of war against the entire working population.
Department of Homeland Security assembles intelligence reports on US journalists covering Portland protests
By Jacob Crosse, 1 August 2020
Such reports have been traditionally used to share information regarding wanted criminals or terrorists across federal and local law enforcement agencies.
Socialist Equality Party (US) National Congress adopts resolution on the coronavirus pandemic and the fight for socialism
The Political Committee of the Socialist Equality Party (US), 1 August 2020
The Congress resolution provides an unequaled analysis of the crisis triggered by the pandemic, directed toward the development of socialist class consciousness and the independent action of the working class.
SEP (US) Congress resolution
The global pandemic, the class struggle, and the tasks of the Socialist Equality Party
1 August 2020
This resolution was adopted unanimously by the Sixth National Congress of the Socialist Equality Party in the US, held July 19–24, 2020.
Trump floats delaying election, both parties appeal to military as umpire
By Eric London, 31 July 2020
Trump baselessly claimed the election would be tainted by voter fraud as his poll numbers sank to all-time lows.
Millions face economic and social disaster as Wall Street celebrates
By Jerry White, 31 July 2020
Even as the US economy suffers its sharpest contraction in history and the death toll from the pandemic surpasses 155,000, the private fortunes of America’s billionaires continue to rise.
In congressional testimony
Attorney General Barr aggressively defends violent attacks on protesters in Portland
By Barry Grey, 29 July 2020
The White House remains the cockpit of a conspiracy to destroy democratic rights and establish authoritarian rule in the United States.
Elon Musk discovers Das Kapital
By Joseph Kishore—Socialist Equality Party candidate for US president, 29 July 2020
In a tweet Monday afternoon, Tesla CEO Elon Musk provided his summary of Marx’s great work on capitalist political economy: “Das Kapital in a nutshell,” Musk wrote, is “Gib me dat for free.”
$600-per-week jobless benefit expires for 20 million US workers
By Patrick Martin, 27 July 2020
The Trump administration and Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress are condemning millions of workers to destitution, hunger and homelessness.
Ohio House Speaker arrested for running a $60 million bribery scheme
By Isaac Finn, 27 July 2020
The FBI arrested Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder for alleged corrupt connections involving the electric company FirstEnergy Corporation.
US secretary of state sets out case for conflict with China
By Peter Symonds, 25 July 2020
By ruling out a return to the policy of “containment,” Pompeo’s speech marks a strategy aimed at regime change in Beijing.
Illinois Democrats embrace Trump’s law enforcement “surge”
By Kristina Betinis, 25 July 2020
Illinois Democratic lawmakers have made public statements aimed at assuaging public fears that the federal forces will crack down on anti-police violence protesters in Chicago, just as they have in Portland.
Trump signs executive order on 2020 Census declaring undocumented immigrants are not persons
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 25 July 2020
The order would affect the distribution of federal funding as well as the apportionment of congressional seats.
Judge orders former Trump enforcer Michael Cohen to be released from prison
By Jacob Crosse, 25 July 2020
In a slap at President Trump and Attorney General Barr, Federal District Court Judge Alvin Hellerstein has ordered the release of former Trump confidant and disbarred lawyer Michael Cohen.
150,000 dead in the US and no end in sight
By Andre Damon, 25 July 2020
The resurgence of COVID-19 is a result of the campaign by the Trump administration—with the assistance of the Democrats and the media—to force workers back on the job as the pandemic continues to rage.
SEP files appeal to Federal Sixth Circuit Court in Michigan ballot access case
By Kevin Reed, 25 July 2020
The Socialist Equality Party candidates Joseph Kishore for US President and Norissa Santa Cruz for US Vice President have appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit for review of the July 8 ruling of Judge Sean Cox rejecting their lawsuit against Michigan ballot access requirements during the pandemic.
From Selma to the CIA
John Lewis, civil rights militant turned big-business politician, dies at 80
20 July 2020
The outpouring of tributes from reactionaries and war criminals demonstrates the class role that Lewis came to play, despite his youthful part in asserting the democratic rights of African Americans.
US escalates economic warfare against Russia and China
By Nick Beams, 18 July 2020
After securing a decision by the UK government to ban the Chinese firm Huawei from its 5G rollout, the US is pressuring the Merkel government in Germany to take the same decision.
US moving to ban China-based TikTok social media app
By Kevin Reed, 18 July 2020
There is bipartisan support in Congress for the Trump administration’s aggressive efforts against the Chinese app.
US pushes fabricated claims of Russian hacking of virus research
By Barry Grey, 18 July 2020
The United States is most nakedly pursuing a nationalistic course, aimed at enriching American oligarchs and deploying the vaccine not as a means to save lives, but as a weapon against countries in the crosshairs of US imperialism.
Dozens of high-profile Twitter accounts hacked in “coordinated social engineering attack”
By Kevin Reed, 17 July 2020
The social media site was the target of a coordinated cyberattack on Wednesday in which the accounts of well-known individuals were taken over as part of a scheme to dupe the public out of their Bitcoin cryptocurrency.
Second federal execution in a week goes forward with Supreme Court sanction
By Kate Randall, 17 July 2020
For the second time in as many days, the highest US court vacated a lower court’s order, allowing a federal execution to proceed.
Trump replaces campaign manager as poll numbers plunge
By Patrick Martin, 17 July 2020
Brad Parscale seems to have paid the price for the debacle of Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, last month.
SEP candidates Joseph Kishore and Norissa Santa Cruz respond to California state officials in ballot access lawsuit
By Alan Gilman, 17 July 2020
In a set of court filings Wednesday, the SEP candidates refuted point by point the arguments made by California state officials in an effort to keep them off the November ballot.
US government carries out first execution of federal prisoner in 17 years
By Kate Randall, 15 July 2020
In the modern history of the death penalty in the US, Daniel Lewis Lee’s execution stands out as a particularly egregious affront to due process and basic human rights.
Judge denies bail for Ghislaine Maxwell, charged with aiding Epstein’s abuse of underage girls
By Kevin Reed, 15 July 2020
Maxwell pleaded not guilty to charges that she participated in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring in the 1990s and was denied bail.
Trump commutes prison term for political crony Roger Stone
By Patrick Martin, 13 July 2020
Stone’s convictions on perjury and other federal charges stemmed from the bogus anti-Russia campaign launched by the Democratic Party and sections of the military-intelligence establishment.
Haymarket Books “Abolitionist Teaching” forum: A call to promote racial division among teachers
By Renae Cassimeda and Norissa Santa Cruz, 13 July 2020
As workers in every industry unite across racial lines to fight against the Trump administration’s back-to-work campaign, Haymarket is promoting racial divisions and blaming teachers’ supposed “white privilege” for the crisis facing public education.
Arrested Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell being monitored by federal officials over suicide concerns
By Kevin Reed, 10 July 2020
Anonymous federal officials say they fear Maxwell will take her own life while being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn on charges of aiding Jeffrey Epstein in his sex ring and abuse of teenage girls in the 1990s.
Michigan court rules that SEP must gather signatures despite pandemic
By Joseph Kishore—SEP candidate for US president, 10 July 2020
The district court’s decision is not a serious legal ruling grounded in jurisprudence or reasoned analysis. It is a political decision aimed at barring socialists from the ballot.
The collapse of the New York Times’ “Russian bounties” campaign
By Patrick Martin, 10 July 2020
Less than two weeks after it kicked off a media frenzy, the Times published an editorial effectively conceding that there was no factual basis for its reporting that Russian military intelligence had paid bounties to Taliban fighters to kill American soldiers.
Mr. López Obrador goes to Washington
Mexican president kowtows to his “friend” Donald Trump
By Eric London, 9 July 2020
Obrador’s appearance with Trump yesterday will rank in history as among the most demeaning and sycophantic Washington visits by any Latin American head of state.
US Supreme Court decisions attack separation of church and state and workers’ rights
By Ed Hightower, 9 July 2020
The court’s assault on workers takes the form of an assault on secularism.
Wall Street, Republicans and militarists back Biden campaign
By Patrick Martin, 9 July 2020
The presumptive Democratic nominee has outraised President Trump for two months in a row, thanks in part to a flood of corporate and billionaire money.
Students oppose Trump’s threat to deport international students
By our reporters, 9 July 2020
The Trump administration’s effort to use international students as a bargaining chip to force the reopening of colleges is part of a push to get the economy back open while also scapegoating immigrants for the pandemic.
Trump’s back-to-work diktat threatens teachers’ lives
By Evan Blake, 9 July 2020
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump demanded that US schools reopen in the fall amid a raging pandemic, threatening the lives of thousands of teachers.
Federal judge backs Democrats, rules against SEP challenge to Michigan ballot access requirements during pandemic
By Kevin Reed, 9 July 2020
A Republican-appointed federal judge sided with Michigan Democrats on Wednesday and ruled against the Socialist Equality Party in its lawsuit to block the state’s unconstitutional rules for ballot access in the 2020 presidential elections.
Jeffrey Epstein’s confidante Ghislaine Maxwell relocated to federal jail in New York City
By Kevin Reed, 8 July 2020
Ghislaine Maxwell is to appear in court on July 14 on charges of enticing minors to have sex with Jeffrey Epstein in the 1990s.
US billionaires, politicians cash in on “small business” loan program
By Jacob Crosse, 8 July 2020
Information released Monday by the US Treasury and Small Business Administration reveals how the well-connected and rich helped themselves to billions of taxpayer dollars.
Democrats’ denunciation of America’s revolutionary heritage provides an opening for Trump
By Niles Niemuth, 7 July 2020
The campaign waged by the Democratic Party to discredit Jefferson, Lincoln and other leaders of America’s two revolutions allows Trump to package his extreme right-wing policies as a defense of democratic traditions.
US labor secretary says “reopening” will proceed in face of surging pandemic
By Kevin Reed, 6 July 2020
Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia declared that “Our workplaces can be very safe places to be,” even as hospitalizations broke records in states across the country.
As COVID-19 pandemic explodes out of control
Trump gives fascistic rant at Mount Rushmore event held in defiance of health experts
By Barry Grey, 4 July 2020
Trump sought to use recent attacks on monuments to leaders of the American Revolution and Civil War to brand protesters against police killings as "far-left fascists," while hailing the police and right-wing militia groups and pledging to crack down on opponents of his authoritarian and pro-corporate policies.
Millions in the US face catastrophe as federal unemployment relief set to expire amid surging pandemic
By Kevin Reed, 4 July 2020
The combined economic impact of the raging pandemic and the imminent cutoff of $600 weekly federal assistance is leading to a social catastrophe for millions across the US.
Trump administration gives private equity firms access to 401(k) retirement funds
By Gabriel Black, 4 July 2020
The $7.9 trillion in 401(k) retirement funds will be used to buttress private equity markets and further enrich the financial oligarchy.
An assault on separation of church and state as well as public education
US Supreme Court rules in favor of religious schools
By John Burton and Ed Hightower, 3 July 2020
Undermining the wall between church and state, the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot deny funding to religious schools, sweeping aside dozens of state constitutional provisions enacted to protect public education.
Jeffrey Epstein confidante Ghislaine Maxwell arrested in New Hampshire
By Kevin Reed, 3 July 2020
Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested in New Hampshire on Thursday and charged by a federal court in Manhattan with six counts related to her alleged collaboration with Jeffrey Epstein in a sex ring that involved girls as young as 14 years old.
Primaries show deepening political polarization in US
By Patrick Martin, 3 July 2020
While both the corporate-controlled parties, the Democrats and Republicans, are moving to the right, the bulk of the population is moving to the left.
The New York Times fabricates Russian murder plot
By Patrick Martin, 3 July 2020
The Washington frenzy against Russia has been triggered by a lying propaganda campaign initiated by the New York Times.
As pandemic rages, Trump administration calls on Supreme Court to strike down Obamacare
By Kate Randall, 27 June 2020
An overturn of the Affordable Care Act would wipe out health care coverage for as many as 23 million Americans.
CIA releases TV recruiting ad for streaming video services
By Kevin Reed, 27 June 2020
The CIA has released a TV commercial portraying the agency as a diverse workplace and appeals to young people to become US spies.
Contact tracing and capitalism’s response to the pandemic
By Benjamin Mateus, 27 June 2020
As the globe rapidly approaches ten million cases of COVID-19, the United States continues to ignore any public health measures to contain the pandemic.
YDSA develops ties with SYRIZA youth, Greek party of austerity and police repression
By Sam Wayne, 27 June 2020
Members of the Young Democratic Socialists of America have published a joint statement with the youth section of SYRIZA, the “Coalition of the Radical Left.”
Trump in Tulsa: Fascist ranting and political debacle
By Patrick Martin, 22 June 2020
The BOK Arena was less than half-filled, according to official estimates, a signal of the deepening crisis of the Trump administration and his reelection campaign.
US stokes India-China conflict, blames Chinese “aggression” for border clash
By Keith Jones, 20 June 2020
Senior US official David Stilwell provocatively told a press briefing that the Chinese army had “invaded” the “contested area” between India and China.
More provocations, threats from Trump ahead of Tulsa rally
By Barry Grey, 20 June 2020
In the run-up to his campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma Saturday evening, President Donald Trump is focusing his energies on issuing threats against counter-protesters and incitements to fascistic elements and police officers.
“How can dissent be illegal when that is how the country was started?”
Oklahoma teachers oppose Trump and his Tulsa rally
By Phyllis Steele, 20 June 2020
Educators in Oklahoma, who waged a wildcat strike in 2018, are still ranked near the bottom in the US in pay and per pupil funding.
Amy Klobuchar ends bid to become Biden’s running mate in favor of a “woman of color”
By Genevieve Leigh, 20 June 2020
Neither Klobuchar nor the “women of color” being considered for vice president have anything to do with progressive politics.
Richmond, Virginia police chief ousted following days of violent attacks on protesters
By Ray Coleman, 20 June 2020
Top-level changes at US police departments are bound to continue as public opinion increasingly turns against repressive state measures against peaceful demonstrators.
Socialist Equality Party challenges undemocratic ballot access laws in Michigan
By Joseph Kishore and Norissa Santa Cruz—SEP candidates for president and vice president, 20 June 2020
The lawsuit is part of the SEP’s fight against an undemocratic electoral system that is designed to prevent any opposition to the two parties of the ruling class, the Democrats and Republicans.
Bolton account of Trump White House: Another volley in the conflict within the US ruling elite
By Patrick Martin, 19 June 2020
Press reviews indicate that Bolton’s book attacks Trump entirely from the right, expressing particular bitterness that the administration did not go to war against Iran.
Supreme Court blocks Trump administration’s plan to “immediately end” DACA
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 19 June 2020
A 5-4 majority cited the administration’s failure to provide a “reasoned explanation” as the basis for Trump’s decision to rescind an executive order issued by Obama in 2012.
Protests erupt in Atlanta, Georgia after police fatally shoot fleeing man
By Matthew MacEgan, 15 June 2020
The Atlanta police chief resigned after officers killed Rayshard Brooks in the parking lot of a fast food restaurant Friday night.
Washington, DC’s Democratic mayor renames city street “Black Lives Matter Plaza”
By Dmitri Church and Nick Barrickman, 15 June 2020
Mayor Muriel Bowser’s co-option of the slogan as protests surge throughout the US and internationally is an attempt to cover up the record of the Democratic Party.
140 Trump admin sanctions ICC officials
15 June 2020
Fascistic candidates gain in Republican Party
By Patrick Martin, 15 June 2020
Marjorie Taylor Greene’s campaign produced an ad last week in which she brandished an assault rifle and warned “antifa” demonstrators to “stay the hell out of northwest Georgia.”
In response to protests over police violence
Sanders opposes “defunding” police, calls for increased pay for cops
By Genevieve Leigh, 13 June 2020
Sanders’ position boils down to an absolute defense of the police, which are an instrument of class rule.
Debacle in Georgia primary casts doubt on US elections
By Patrick Martin, 11 June 2020
Voters described waits as long as four hours, a lack of machines and precincts running out of ballots.
Trump, Barr continue threat to deploy military against nationwide protests
By Barry Grey, 8 June 2020
The political situation in the US remains on a knife edge as Trump’s fascistic cabal continues to plot against the Constitution.
New York Times in crisis over op-ed backing military takeover
By Patrick Martin, 6 June 2020
In publishing a fascistic diatribe by Senator Tom Cotton, headlined, “Send in the troops,” the Times editorial page tacitly sided with a military takeover of the United States.
Video: Police on nationwide rampage
1 June 2020
Throughout the country, police attacked nonviolent protestors and journalists with batons, tear gas, rubber bullets, and even vehicles.
Trump incites violent police rampage against protesters
Statement of the Political Committee of the Socialist Equality Party (US), 1 June 2020
Trump’s calls for police violence and repression have been a common theme throughout his administration. Trump views the police as a potential power base for a dictatorial and fascistic regime.
Trump escalates anti-China campaign
By Peter Symonds, 30 May 2020
US President Trump dramatically escalated his reckless anti-China campaign yesterday, making clear that a dangerous confrontation between the two countries is all but inevitable.
US Justice Department drops insider trading investigation of three senators
By Jacob Crosse, 30 May 2020
The three senators, along with a fourth who remains under investigation, dumped large stock holdings based on classified briefings in January about the impending coronavirus disaster.
Memorial Day in America: 100,000 COVID-19 deaths surpass combined US combat fatalities in Korea and Vietnam
By Barry Grey, 25 May 2020
A false narrative dominates the entire coverage of the expanding pandemic—that human life must be balanced against the “economy,” by which is meant the economy of the rich.
Biden’s “gaffe” and the black vote
By Patrick Martin, 25 May 2020
The verbal outburst against host Charlamagne Tha God gave a glimpse of the cynical calculations that underlie the Democratic presidential campaign.
Coronavirus pandemic spreads across the US South
Hospitals overwhelmed in California and Alabama as national death toll approaches 100,000
By Bryan Dyne, 23 May 2020
The spike in cases in such divergent areas of the country is another indication that, contrary to official policy, the spread of the coronavirus pandemic is not slowing but increasing.
Hydroxychloroquine: New scientific study refutes the quack-in-chief
By Benjamin Mateus, 23 May 2020
President Trump claimed this week he had been taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure. His statements demonstrate both ignorance and hostility to science.
US Agriculture Department outlines program to aid farmers hit by pandemic
By Alex Findijs, 23 May 2020
The design of the program will inevitably lead to a disproportionate share of funding flowing to large firms.
Oppose the Trump administration’s deportation of 1,000 immigrant children!
By Norissa Santa Cruz—SEP candidate for US vice president, 23 May 2020
International laws and statutes that once offered special protections for immigrant youth seeking asylum have been made a dead letter by the Trump administration.
Bernie Sanders threatens delegates with removal if they criticize Biden
By Genevieve Leigh, 23 May 2020
Since ending his second bid for the presidency, Sanders has worked to browbeat his supporters into backing Joe Biden.
Trump official blames high US coronavirus death toll on the diversity that “unfortunately” exists in the population
By Jacob Crosse, 19 May 2020
The fascistic comment is the latest attempt by the Trump administration to find an excuse for its catastrophic performance in the COVID-19 pandemic.
As death toll mounts, White House steps up efforts to scapegoat China for pandemic
By Peter Symonds, 18 May 2020
Blaming China not only deflects attention from the Trump administration’s responsibility for the horrific US death toll, but feeds into its anti-China trade war measures.
Purge of government watchdogs escalates drive for authoritarian rule
Trump fires State Department inspector general
By Barry Grey, 18 May 2020
Over the past six weeks, Trump also has removed the inspectors general of the Intelligence Community, Defense and Health and Human Services.
On “This Week” news show, Sanders urges supporters to vote for Biden
By Jacob Crosse, 18 May 2020
Sanders used the national platform afforded him to once again urge his supporters to vote for the right-wing Democratic candidate.
Trump threatens to cut all ties with China
By Peter Symonds, 16 May 2020
The US president’s phony allegations—that China failed to prevent COVID-19 becoming a global pandemic—have been integrated into Washington’s trade war measures.
US House passes $3 trillion coronavirus “relief” bill
By Jacob Crosse, 16 May 2020
In a near party-line vote, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed a fourth stimulus bill that has no chance of being approved by the Republican-controlled Senate.
US Senate reauthorizes domestic surveillance, allows access to internet histories
By Kevin Reed, 16 May 2020
The Senate voted 80 to 16 to reauthorize the domestic surveillance provisions of the USA Freedom Act, including rejection of an amendment that would have barred law enforcement from accessing the internet browsing and search histories of citizens.
Washington places Cuba and Venezuela on “terror” list
By Bill Van Auken, 16 May 2020
After fostering an abortive mercenary invasion aimed at overthrowing Venezuela’s government and murdering its president, the US placed Caracas on a list of governments deemed uncooperative in the “war on terrorism.”
Budget shortfalls and planned cuts threaten higher education across the US
By Alexander Fangmann, 16 May 2020
Colleges and universities across the US are announcing layoffs and eliminating programs in response to declines in state revenue and financial pressures from dormitory refunds and other costs incurred as they moved classes online.
The murderous pseudoscience of “herd immunity”
By Andre Damon, 16 May 2020
Proponents of “herd immunity” argue that measures to contain COVID-19 should be abandoned, allowing the disease to infect billions of people and kill countless millions.
Democrats release fraudulent “relief” bill
By Barry Grey, 14 May 2020
The political charade and partisan grandstanding now under way serve to mask the bipartisan unity when it comes to protecting the basic class interests of the ruling elite.
Republicans win two US House special elections
By our reporter, 14 May 2020
The results were a blow to the Democrats, who lost a seat in California they had first captured in 2018.
Biden embraces Trump’s effort to blame China for COVID-19
By Andre Damon, 14 May 2020
The campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has produced a TV ad echoing the Trump administration’s false claims that China misled the world about COVID-19.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joins Biden-Sanders “unity task force” ahead of 2020 elections
By Genevieve Leigh, 14 May 2020
The announcement of the membership of the task forces is an effort on the part of Sanders to provide the right-wing Biden campaign with a “progressive” gloss amidst growing social unrest.
Biden attacks Trump for “hampering” the reopening of business
By Barry Grey, 12 May 2020
In a Washington Post column Joe Biden criticizes Trump’s handling of the pandemic from the standpoint of disaffected sections of business.
Bernie Sanders’ interview with the Washington Post: The thin gruel of Democratic Party politics
By Genevieve Leigh, 12 May 2020
Sanders glossed over the reality of the health and economic catastrophe facing millions of workers and made no mention of the corporate bailouts for which he has voted in the Senate.
At Trump’s urging: US Justice Department quashes Flynn prosecution
By Patrick Martin, 9 May 2020
The dropping of perjury charges against retired General Flynn—to which he had already pled guilty—is a further step toward the consolidation of an authoritarian regime in Washington.
A video sermon from war criminal George W. Bush on compassion, empathy and kindness
By Jacob Crosse, 7 May 2020
Bush’s call for national unity in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic received a hostile reaction from thousands of social media users.
Trump escalates attacks on China over COVID-19
By Peter Symonds, 2 May 2020
US President Trump has stepped up his propaganda war and threats against China, blaming it for the deadly COVID-19 pandemic that has cost the lives of more than 230,000 people internationally.
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