Category: Congress

America, Congress, House, Trump December 19, 2019January 7, 2020

Democracy Prevails | Donald J. Trump Impeached

Washington (GGM) Analysis | December 19, 2019
by Noreen Wise

Wednesday evening December 18, 2019, the United States House of Representatives upheld their oath of office, moral conviction, and determination to protect our democracy by voting on two Articles to impeach Donald J. Trump, the 45th president of the United States.

Article I: Abuse of Power

230 Dems voted YES
197 GOP voted NO
1 Dem present, Tulsi Gabbard, but no vote cast

Article II: Obstruction of Congress

229 Dems voted YES
198 GOP voted NO
1 Dem present, Tulsi Gabbard, but no vote cast

In light of the clear and overwhelming evidence regarding Trump’s shakedown of the Ukraine president to undermine his political rival in the 2020 election, Joe Biden, as well as obstruction of Congress when they began investigating the matter, the unfortunate lack of GOP support for impeachment shows a unified GOP front to back the president rather than the Constitution. A very sad reality for America.

“A president who subverts both our elections and our constitutional system of checks & balances puts himself above the law. It’s Congress’ duty to hold the president, any president, accountable. It gives us no pleasure, no pleasure to stand here today. But President Trump’s conduct has put our next election at risk. President Trump’s behavior puts the integrity of Constitutional order at risk. And President Trump’s continued actions put the rule of law at risk.” ~Jerry Nadler, Chairman House Judiciary Committee, December 18, 2019, following the impeachment of Donald J. Trump

What I found to be the most powerful and inspirational moment of this historic day, was the morning impeachment rally on the Capitol side lawn in front of Mitch McConnell’s office sponsored by a coalition of grass roots advocacy groups to protect our democracy and unite us all together to confront this anti-American aggression. It was a carryover of the more than 600 Impeachment Eve rallies held across the country the night before, with horrified Americans pouring onto the streets from coast-to-coast to protest Trump’s behavior and defiance of the constitution.

The sentiments shared with the public by a host of guests speakers during the morning rally were the ones I grew up on. The same values my father believed in when he expressed to his children the importance of our democracy every July 4th. The ones the veterans recounted when they stood and spoke of their willingness to risk their lives to protect our democracy for all Americans, and challenged politicians to be willing to sacrifice their jobs to protect the Constitution. Other speakers outlined examples throughout American history, about the many contentious turning points, but reminding us that our democracy had prevailed because of our Constitution and rule of law.

The rally speeches were pure, untarnished American values and ideals that we all surely remember but haven’t heard much of during these three Trump years. It was the parting of the fierce, dark storm clouds with the bright beams of sunlight filtering through. A message of hope and belief and inspiration that conjurs up so many memories, for me it was the July 4th summer evenings, sitting on the grass at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut watching the fireworks with my many cousins. My father would challenge us to dream a big dream, because in America we can accomplish any dream, so shoot for the stars.

Climate Action, Congress, National Security, Nature October 4, 2019January 7, 2020

Longworth HOB & Critical Compost | Climate Action

Washington (GGM) Analysis | October 4, 2019
by Noreen Wise

Success in reducing atmospheric carbon levels to the targeted 350 PPM from the current 412 PPM will come from tiers of immediate action. If every tier nails its targets, we’ll save the globe and civilization. This should motivate us to Act Now, especially when we consider how basic and easy many of the “actions” are for lowering carbon.

The main TIERS:

Individual carbon footprint
Corporations, businesses & organizations
Local, state & federal government and agencies
Farms
Nature
Miscellaneous

All we have to do as individuals is focus on the tiers that we fall under. The greatest obstacle to succeeding at carbon reduction though, is missing the small, easy opportunities that we fail to recognize. The ones right under our nose that we would be able to execute immediately if we were more aware.

Composting is the best example of a basic missed opportunity. For example, take the Longworth House Office Building dining hall in Washington, DC where thousands of constituents, lobbyists, and House Representatives eat breakfast and lunch Monday through Friday each week. Sadly, Longworth does not currently compost, despite the fact that the US Botanic Garden is across the street and would thrive on weekly fresh compost, as would the massive acres of capitol grounds that are also across Independence Ave.

According to Exploring Green , Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment:

51% of “trash” dumped into landfills is compostable
Annually, the world throws away approximately 1.3 billion tons of food
3.3 billion tons of CO2 is released each year to process the wasted food (production, harvesting, transporting and packaging)
Wasted food thrown away in a landfill releases methane
Methane increases global warming 21 times that of CO2
On the other hand, wasted food that’s composted and layered into soil, increases the soil’s nutritional content which increases the amount of carbon it can sequester

Thus, composting uneaten food at home, at work and in restaurants and dining halls is a no-brainer. In fact, many school districts are jumping in. Capitol Hill dining halls would only have to change one of its two trash signs to “FOOD/COMPOST.” This is so easy, it’s scary.

HillReport10-3-19a — Trash sign at Longworth HOB dining hall. A red asterisks has been placed on the items that can be composted. The uneaten food would have to be removed from the packaging before it’s dumped into the compost bin.

Our oceans sequester approximately 25% of atmospheric carbon and nature 28%. The big challenge with ocean carbon sequestration is that it increases water temperature as well as acidity. The increase in water temperature, melts the glaciers which raises the global water levels. The higher temperature also causes changing climate which becomes that much more extreme.

To save humanity from climate extremes, the focus is now on increasing carbon sink in nature and in soil, and trying to lower ocean temperatures. Nature — which means planting more trees and greens, and elevating the nutritional values in soil — is one of the new climate action touchstones on the carbon sequestration front. In short, compositing has become a vital necessity. Thus, missed opportunities sound the alarm.

Composting has become such a critical factor in the success of lowering our atmospheric carbon levels, that a whole new industry is starting to take shape. CompostNow.org is a compositing service for home, office, and restaurants.

They provide heavy duty plastic bin
They pick up full bin each service day, and leave an empty one
They track waste & compost creation by the pound
Members earn compost! Very easy and rewarding.

When the carbon facts are this simple and the cost a bare minimum, and #ActNow only a matter of changing signs, it’s unfathomable how anyone would pass on this opportunity. Come on, Longworth… let’s FIX THIS!

Congress, Health, National Security March 22, 2019March 25, 2019

Power of Majority | Fighting the Opioid Crisis by Rejecting Sackler Family Name

Washington (Gallant Gold Media Hill Report |Perspective | March 21, 2019) – Money may buy family influence, but the Sackler family will lose all of it’s power when it’s up against an army of millions angered at the wrongful death of nearly 700,000 Americans as a direct result of the Sackler’s aggressive marketing campaign of OxyContin to America’s primary care physicians, along with the intentional misrepresentation of the potential risk of addiction. In Massachusetts last month, the recent public release of the unredacted court documents in a lawsuit brought against eight members of the Sackler family, along with nine employees at Purdue Pharma, has finally shed some much needed light on the Sackler’s willful indifference towards the millions who suffer daily from chronic pain, resulting in a nationwide tragedy, shattering hundreds of thousands of American families.

Purdue Pharma began manufacturing Oxycontin in the United States in 1996. Initially, it was prescribed to cancer patients, as well as patients who had surgery, and those suffering from chronic back pain. The specialists managing the care of these particular patients were very aware of the potential addiction of OxyContin and kept prescriptions in line with FDA recommendations. In the early 2000’s however, Richard Sackler identified a lucrative path to staggering profitability by aggressively marketing OxyContin to primary care physicians as a solution for any type of pain. The sky was suddenly the limit.

The Sackler family fortunes totaling over $12 billion, have mushroomed in direct relation to Richard Sackler’s unconscionable marketing campaign that veered dramatically from FDA recommendations. Richard Sackler intentionally honed in on primary care physicians who wouldn’t question Purdue Pharma’s prescription recommendations, both the dose and the frequency. These doctors who weren’t specialists, trusted the enhanced recommendations of the Purdue Pharma reps, who were paid lucrative bonuses when their doctors hit targeted prescription milestones. The doctors were wooed to symposiums at posh resorts. All the typical marketing schemes used to sell upscale consumer products.

However, OxyContin most assuredly isn’t the same thing as a NordicTrack, and shouldn’t be marketed as such. There’s now a growing movement, in light of this greed motivated annihilation of nearly 700,000, that pharmaceutical profits should be capped, or even prohibited.

The Sackler’s close ties to the arts, with exquisite galleries heralding the Sackler name, each exuding such inspirational, positive vibes, now seem more like an elaborate mask of deception, covering up a malevolent heart.

The Sackler ties to the most prestigious museums in New York City, London and Beijing may have begun long before OxyContin his pharmacy stockrooms, but this artistic veneer, is in conflict with the hundreds of thousands of deaths that lie beneath the surface of this deceptive wash.

These fabulous aesthetic pillars in our top cities are relying on the public to support their existence. But how can we possibly visit if the Sackler works, now ornamental symbols of evil and greed, grace these beautiful museum walls. Today, the Tate in London announced it will no longer be accepting any Sackler family donations. the National Portrait Gallery of London banned Sackler money earlier in the week.

The following is the list of Sackler Galleries that should be closed down and replaced:

Freer|Sackler Gallery Smithsonian on National Mall in Washington DC
Sackler Wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City
Sackler Galleries at the Royal Academy of Arts in London
Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archeology in Beijing

We cannot bring back the dead, unfortunately. But we can certainly honor the dead by demanding that the world’s top museums, remove the Sackler Galleries immediately.