How to vote early, safely and by mail in all 50 states

If you want to vote early because you’re worried about the health risks of standing in line on Election Day, but you’re also worried that the U.S. Postal Service won’t deliver a mail-in ballot in time to be counted, what should you do? 

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy attempted to reassure Americans Tuesday about the USPS, announcing that he is not going to make any changes before the election that might hamper or slow mail delivery. But he has come under intense scrutiny for his political donations to President Trump, his announced changes to mail delivery and Postal Service leadership, and his potential financial conflicts of interest inside the mail and package delivery industry. 

CREDIT SOURCE: This post is from Yahoo News • August 19, 2020. To read the rest of the article, click here.

Dear Friends

The truth is self-evident

Today, in America, it’s all gone to hell, and the agent provocateur of this ‘American carnage’ is Donald J. Trump.

The U.S Gross Domestic Product (GDP) showed in the extraordinary second quarter, April through June of 2020, skid to an annualized rate of 32.9%. A historically poor showing in at least 145 years. That 32.9% percent represents the loss of a third of the economy.

With 157,000 deaths (still counting), California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, and Michigan, intensifying outbreaks have forced authorities to dial back their reopening plans and restrict business activity once again.

It must be exhausting with millions of infected and the lack of cohesive national strategy, America has become a global laughing stock.

The United States of America is now one giant cage where none of us can leave because no other countries will allow us in.

While many countries have stemmed the tide and turned the corner on COVID-19, the United States, is a vortex of death and economic depression. The truth is self-evident.

The patchwork quilt of state, local, and federal directives has left the general public bemused and bewildered.

What is a public health issue has become heavily politicized, we cannot even agree on the life-preserving measures of wearing a simple cloth-mask.

Not only the CDC, bullied into compliance with the White House, water down guidelines.

As I watch the deadly havoc visited on states like Florida, Texas, and Arizona, my thoughts wander to my dislike of craven politicians sacrificed public health to curry presidential favor.

Each of us has the moral obligation to stand up, speak up, and speak out ~ John Lewis.

Faced with a national emergency our country and leadership have reacted with one accord and vision.

These politicians knew better. A measure of how far we fall as a nation, and a scathing indictment the damage Trump has done to America as a union. Trump despises expertise. Even gone as far as to attempt to smear public health officials …a government that traffics in conspiracy theories, untruth, and unproven wonder cures.

Dear friends abroad, you don’t even want us to visit you right now you bare no blame, after all, we’re number one for all the wrong reasons. Meanwhile, I hold out hope for a better tomorrow and until I will day-dream of Paris and exotic locales.

African Immigrants in the United States of America

The

Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part IV

By J Reynold Weeks

A Four-Part Series – The Conclusion

Key Points

• People not affected not have to get off public benefits because the public charge will not apply to them.

• While the new rule about public charge, most immigrants are 'NOT' impacted; refugees, U and T visa applicants, and immigrants applying for VAWA, DACA, TPS, etc. as described in parts one through three.

• The new rule only affects those applying for a green card through a family member petition. If applying for asylum or asylee benefits, this will not apply to them, U visa adjustments, etc.

• The new rule does not change who is eligible for benefits.

• If you are worried that the public charge rule might apply to your situation, get legal help from a trusted attorney or accredited representative at a non-profit organization.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will I Be Deported If I Use Public Benefits?

Public charge is a test applied when an immigrant applies for a green card or entry into the United States. In California, for example, the counties and state offices do not call ICE. They only use the information to enroll you or your family member in a benefit.

An Attorney Told Me That I Should Disenroll Myself Or My Children From Public Benefits, To Apply For A Green Card. Is This True?

Under current rules at immigration in the U.S., the only public benefits that would make a person a public charge are cash assistance and long term institutionalization care. People applying for other types of immigration status, including asylum, visas for a victim of a crime, domestic violence, and naturalization, are not affected by the public charge. People applying for other types of immigration status, including asylum, visas for a victim of a crime, domestic violence, and naturalization, are not affected by the public charge. However, if a person is applying at an American consulate for a visa, the rules are strict. The person should consult a trusted legal representative for advice.

Will, I Be Considered A Public Charge If I Use WIC?

No! Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is not a consideration.

Will, I Have Problems If My Children Use, Medi-Cal?

No! USCIS will not consider benefits received by family members when deciding if a person is a public charge, as long as it is not the sole source of income for the family. Children’s use of Medi-Cal is exempt.

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Will I Get Deported If I Go To The Emergency Room Or Use Emergency Medi-Cal?

No! This type of emergency service is not considered under public charge.

I’m Pregnant And Not A U.S. Citizen. Will I Have Problems With Immigration If I Use Medi-Cal?

The new rule will look at the use of Medicaid but does not include Medicaid for pregnant women or children under 21. In California, people who are not applying for a green card through a family member do not have to worry about being a public charge.

I Was Injured On The Job And Receiving Payments From My Employer because I Can’t Work. Will This Create Problems For Me If I Apply For A Green Card Or To Become A Citizen?

No! Benefits that a person earns through their jobs, such as worker’s compensation or unemployment benefits, don’t count against the person in a public charge test.

Will I Have Problems, If I Get Help From A Domestic Violence Shelter, A Food Pantry, Church, Mosque, or Synagogue?

No! Services available to the community as a whole or without an income requirement will not make someone a public charge.

Things To Remember

• If you and your family members already have green cards: Public Charge and any changes to it has NO impact on you.

• If you are applying for or have one of the following statuses – U.S. Citizenship or TPS, U or T Visa, Asylum or Refugee status, or Special Immigrant Juvenile Status: Public Charge test does NOT apply to some immigrants listed here. Benefits received while you are in this status will not be counted against you in the future, even if you apply for a green card on another basis.

• If your family plans to apply for a green card or visa outside the United States: U.S. consular offices abroad use different rules in making their decisions. Talk with an expert for advice in your case before making any decisions in dealing with the ever-changing U.S. immigration policies on Public Charge.

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African Immigrants in the United States of America

The Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part III

By J Reynold Weeks

A Four-Part Series

Five Things To Know About Public charge

The Trump administration recently announced it will be harder for some people to receive certain visas or a green card through a family member if they use Medi-Cal, SNAP, and subsidized housing. The change to the ‘Public Charge’ is what we are discussing. Not everyone needs to worry about the new public charge rule.

If you are a Green Card holder (lawful permanent resident)

• Generally, people who already have a green card are not affected by 'public charge.'

• There is no public charge test to renew a green card.

• Green card holders cannot be deported simply for using public benefits. Very difficult for the government to deport a green card holder being a ‘public charge.’

• This public charge rule could apply if a permanent resident leaves the United States for more than 180 days during one trip. The government can ask questions to see if the person is a ‘public charge’ upon returning to the U.S. Green cardholders need to speak to a trusted immigration attorney or an accredited representative before they embark on a trip that will keep them out of the U.S. for more than 180 days.

• There is no public charge test to apply for citizenship. However, an immigration official might ask you questions about receiving public benefits to figure out if you received benefits when you were not eligible for it. Warning: You should review your public benefits history with a trusted legal representative before applying for citizenship.

IF YOU ARE UNDOCUMENTED

Each state has its rules. The State of California does not tell Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when you sign up for a public benefit.

If you are not eligible to apply for a green card now, there is no reason to give up the needed benefits.

The public charge test only affects some people who are applying for a green card through a family sponsor or petition or applying for certain temporary visas abroad. The new changes to public charge only affect applications filed in the U.S. on or after October 15, 2019.

Some immigrants do not have to worry about a public charge test. These people can use public benefits without problems because the public charge doesn’t apply to them. These people include:

• Refugees, asylees, and people applying for asylum

• People applying for a U visa (victims of crime), T visa (victims of trafficking), VAWA (certain victims of domestic violence), and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected)

• People applying for a green card based on already having a U visa, T visa, VAWA, asylum, or refugee status

• People renewing TPS or DACA

Anyone who wants to submit an immigration application should work with a trusted immigration attorney, an accredited representative, to prepare a strong application.

IF YOU WANT TO SPONSOR A FAMILY MEMBER TO COME TO THE U.S.

There is no public test to naturalize. You can become a U.S. citizen even if you have used benefits or need a fee waiver for your application. There is no public charge test to renew a green card.

You can sponsor a family member and still use public benefits.

If you are sponsoring your family member and do not have enough income to support your family member, you can add a second (“joint”) sponsor who has enough income to support the family member. Important: Review your family member’s financial documentation with a trusted immigration attorney, or accredited representative, to prepare a strong application, and decide whether joint sponsor needed.

If a family member is going to a visa interview inside the U.S., only your family member’s use of certain benefits can be counted against them.

On the other hand, if your family member is going to a visa interview outside the U.S. at a consulate, your use of benefits might show that you cannot financially support your family member. In this case, a joint sponsor might be needed. Talk with a trusted attorney or accredited representative to help prepare the case.

The final article 'Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part IV' will be in the next publication.

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African Immigrants in the United States of America

The

Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part II

By J Reynold Weeks

A Four-Part Series

What’s In The New Rule?

While the test for whether someone is likely at any time to become a public charge will still be prospective as required by the statute, the new rule redefines the definition of a public charge. Instead of assessing whether an applicant is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for income support, the new rule defines a public charge as a person who receives any number of public benefits for more than an aggregate of 12 months over 36 months period. Each benefit used, counts toward the 12-month calculation. If the applicant receives two different benefits in one month, it counts as two-months use of benefits.

The rule expands the list of publicly-funded programs that immigration officers may consider when deciding whether someone is likely to become a public charge. Under the new rule, Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as Food Stamps), 'Section-8' housing assistance, and federally subsidized housing will be used as evidence that a green card or visa applicant, is inadmissible under the public charge ground.

The rule also considers that all use of cash aid, including not just Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and SSI but also any state or local cash assistance program, could make an individual inadmissible under the public charge ground.

Benefits received by family members of the immigrant will still not be considered in the public charge determination. Additionally, Medicaid received by applicants while under age 21 or while pregnant is not considered. Also, the rule does not change long-standing policies that allow immigrants to access emergency medical care and disaster relief without public charge repercussions.

It is very important to remember that prior receipt of benefits is only one factor in the public charge determination. The new rule sets out criteria for considering several factors in assessing the likelihood that a person will need more than 12 months of public assistance in aggregate over 36 months in the future. The rule also elaborates on criteria for considering financial status, family size, age, education, skills, and employment, among others.

The rule allows immigration officers to consider English proficiency (positive), or lack of English proficiency (negative), medical conditions and availability of private health insurance, and past use of immigration fee waivers. The rule requires immigrants to attach a Declaration of Self-Sufficiency when applying for a green card in addition to the many forms already required.

The rule creates “heavily weighted negative factors” and a couple of “heavily weighted positive factors.”

It is a heavily weighted negative factor to receive more than 12 months of public benefits in the aggregate over the 36 months before applying for adjustment or admission. Heavily weighted positive factors include having a household income of at least 250% of the federal poverty level ($64,375 for a family of 4) and having private health insurance. It is not clear to me how an officer should decide a case that has a heavily weighted factor or both heavily weighted negative and positive factors.

Bonds are possible where an immigration officer finds inadmissibility based on public charge. Bonds will be highly discretionary. The new rule says that heavily weighted negative factors in a case will generally make an applicant ineligible for a bond.

'Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part III' will be in the next publication.

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African Immigrants in the United States of America

The Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part I

By J Reynold Weeks

A Four-Part Series

About 2.1 million Africans migrated to the United States of America in 2018, according to official records. This number increases to 4.2 million when those from the Caribbean nations, included.

Top countries of origin for African immigrants were Nigeria 221,000 (14 percent); Ethiopia 164,000 (10 percent); Egypt 143,000 (9 percent); Ghana 121,000 (8 percent). Altogether constituting 41 percent. Four States have more than 100,000 African born immigrants: New York has 164,000; California 155,000; Texas 134,000 and Maryland 120,000.

Approximately 68,000 African born immigrants reside in the Greater Los Angeles area. For the past; 10 years, those who recently immigrated are predominantly refugees. About 27 percent. Those who escaped civil wars and ethnic conflicts in their various countries of origin.

What is Public Charge?

A public charge has historically been a person dependent on the government for financial and material support.

With the new rule, it now becomes a test to determine if someone applying for permanent residence through a relative or a visa to enter the United States is likely to depend on public benefits in the future.

On August 14, 2019, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule related to public charge in the Federal Register. The Public Charge rule which, was to take effect as of October 15, 2019, became enforced after the US Supreme Court on January 27, 2020, lifted a nationwide injunction barring implementation.

The new rule will mainly impact those seeking permanent residence (green card) status through family member petitions, or, for a visa to enter the United States. No other types of immigration cases impacted. It is advisable immigrants consult with immigration experts who understand the public charge rule, to learn whether the public charge applies to them or their families. Many categories of immigrants are exempt from public charge.

Public Charge Exemptions

• Refugees and Asylees

• Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) a special way for minors currently in the US to adjust their status and become permanent residents.

• U Visa – Set aside for victims of crimes and their immediate family members.

• VAWA self-petitioners –Violence Against Women Act

• T Visa – These are visas for victims of human trafficking

• DACA applicants – Deferred action for childhood arrivals. However, if they later apply for a green card through a family member, they will have to go through a public charge test.

• TPS applicants – Temporary Protected Status: designated countries

• Most legal permanent residents - unless you travel outside of the US for more than 180 days.

• US citizens

• Others – Amerasians; Afghan and Iraqi military translators; certain Cuban and Haitian adjustment applicants; certain Nicaraguans; and Central Americans under NACARA- The Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act passed in 1997; Soviet and Southeast Asian Lautenberg parolees.

A Few Important Points Regarding the Public Charge

• The new rule interprets a provision of the immigration and Nationality Act (INA) about inadmissibility. The inadmissibility ground at issue... a person is inadmissible if they are likely to become a public charge. INA 212(a)(4) applies to individuals seeking admission into the United States or applying for adjustment of status. The provision of the law does not apply to all immigrants, as stated.

• Public Charge and this rule do not apply in the naturalization process, through which lawful permanent residents apply to become United States citizens.

What Is The Current Law?

Currently, immigration officers decide public charge by evaluating whether an applicant for a green card or an individual seeking to enter the United States on certain visas is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for support. Primary dependence refers to reliance on cash-aid for income support or long term care paid for by the government.

To decide whether an individual is a public charge, immigration officers rely on multiple factors specified in the INA. They must also rely on the “affidavit of support,” which is a contract signed by the immigrant’s sponsor, indicating that the sponsor will financially support the immigrant. This affidavit of support offers strong evidence that the immigrant will not become primarily dependent on the government.

Under existing policy, immigration officers also consider whether an immigrant applying for a green card or admission to the United States has used cash aid such as “Welfare” or “SSI” (Supplemental Security Income) or long-term institutionalized care in the past. Immigrants who have used this form of assistance will have to show that it is not likely they will need these resources for support in the future.

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The use of publicly-funded health care, nutrition, and housing programs are not currently considered negative factors for purposes of public charge. Beginning October 15th, 2019, according to the new rule, some of these benefits will be considered in the public charge determination. It must be noted that this is a drastic change from the longstanding policy.

Also, the new rule will apply only to adjustment of status applications postmarked on or after October 15th, 2019. It will not affect pending applications postmarked before that date.

Individuals seeking to enter the United States apply at consulates abroad. At these consulates, the officers use what is referred to as the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) as guidance on how to make decisions.

'Dilemmas of the New Public Charge Rule - Part II' will be in the next publication.

Long Live the King

Our Republic is dead

By Anonymous

As the impeachment debacle reached its inevitable climax, it was clear that the Rule of Law was under siege.

Despite undisputed facts, a blockade of important witnesses and a paper-thin defense, the Republican-controlled Senate, acquitted the President. Incredibly, Mitt Romney was the lone dissent crying out for principle and integrity. Indeed, the fact that Romney was so virulently attacked by his erstwhile colleagues showed how far our democracy has fallen. Republicans writ large has abrogated their principles and constitutional responsibilities in pursuit of unbridled power.

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The party’s slavish devotion to the cult of Trump is mystifying. A corrosive agent on our democracy, he has subverted the Justice Department, runs a shadow foreign policy, and damaged American credibility abroad.

Susan Collins, the Republican Senator from Maine naively reiterated that impeachment would have a sobering effect on Trump. Yes, I am still laughing.

Invariably Trump has been emboldened by his acquittal sought to punish political enemies, and purge non-Trump acolytes from government, and trying to lighten jail sentences for his allies; convicted felons Roger Stone and Michael Flynn. These swirling currents in play, the American public could be forgiven for being impacted by a heavy dose of cynicism in light of today’s political state. However, now is not the time for apathy. America in the past has negotiated rough political terrain, and clearly, an engaged electorate is the key to restoring a nation's enduring faith in democracy.

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A Rock And A Hard Place

With a philosophy of maximum cruelty

By Angela Brooks

In this year's presidential election, the immigration issues, and the horrific treatment of migrants will be central. Our collective psyche indelibly scarred by the horrific images of migrant children in cages, family separation, and the intolerable conditions at the southern border. Caught in this transnational vortex are many African migrants whose plight has been largely ignored by the mainstream media.

African migrants hoping to reach the US

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Cutting off much-needed aid to countries in Central America and Africa has only magnified the problem. If the Trump administration thought its actions would stem the migrant tide allied with the philosophy of maximum cruelty, it has proven to be inept and chaotic. These refugees fled their home nations for a myriad of reasons, including war, poverty, and economic opportunity. However, the reality for many has been a nightmare. Instead of reaching American utopia, their dreams have stalled as detainees in Mexican migrant camps.

The squalid conditions have engendered new threats against African migrants trying to survive a hostile environment.

Apart from the language barrier, migrants face overt racism, violence, and threats from human traffickers.

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Congresswoman Karen Bass | Representing California 37th District

In late 2019, a California Representative Karen Bass led a delegation to the Mexican border, where she highlighted the plight of this downtrodden class. We can only hope that the congresswoman’s fierce activism changes the narrative of the public perception of this crisis.

The Ghosts of Paradise

Seeking human kindness

By Angela Brooks

Walking through urban landscapes, one can’t escape the zombies. These creatures shuffle down sidewalks, sometimes in various states of mental distress. Some push grocery carts packed with the detritus of their nightmarish existence. Others talk to invisible friends. They move to various locations in search of food and shelter. They linger in every space encampments, and we slide past them uncomfortable in our shallow existence.

The Changing Face of Homelessness

Homelessness is a national epidemic, a national shame, and a perfect metaphor for our throwaway society.

There are various reasons for this blight. Mental illness, addiction, poverty, and a lack of affordable housing are all contributing factors. Besides, the number of our heroic veterans who end up on the streets is equally quite disturbing.

Affluent enclaves are not excluded from the issue as; suburbia, beaches, parks, and commercial hubs fall prey to the problem. As we draw closer to the holiday season, thoughts about the less fortunate seem to resonate more strongly. Indeed, most of us know we are one paycheck away from oblivion.

Government and local agencies must do more to ensure the welfare of all citizens. Affordable housing, living wages, and mental healthcare are all viable solutions as opposed to the criminalization of the down-and-out.

In this election cycle, we hear very little from Presidential candidates on the issue perhaps if the zombies could give donations to campaigns, they would be the quite undead, no more.

The Edge Of Darkness

We have seen mass carnage in California, Texas, and Ohio roared xenophobic hatred

By Jose` Manuel Guzman

One of the proudest days of my life was the day I became an American citizen. I pledged allegiance to my newly adopted homeland, and, with a multitude of others, I basked in the shared reflective glory of that beautiful day. In my mind's eye, that memory would remain forever untarnished.

Enter Donald J. Trump.

We have a President who is entirely too comfortable trotting out racist tropes while pandering to a white nationalist agenda. People of color have become the designated villains. Immigrants, legal or not, is now the ‘Other,” not American. Baltimore and other racially diverse cities have derisively labeled, “infested.”

Four congressional women of color have been the target of Trump's race-baiting venom. The reference of America; Love it or leave it and “Send her back,” about one of the congresswomen who were not US-born. Minories and refugees dehumanized as evidenced by their often brutally harsh treatment at the southern border.

Immigrants are the lifeblood of America, as we are stronger because of diversity. The day I became a US citizen, I was keenly aware of the collective joy in the room, and, the prospect of new opportunities.

Trump has betrayed the idealism that is truly exceptional. The racist vitriol being injected in American body politics has real consequences. Minorities and people of color are uneasy as hate crimes increase. Kids and adult is being told, “to go back to your country.”

In her memoir, ”Becoming” former First Lady Michelle Obama is unforgiving in the fact that TRUMPS WILD “Birther” rhetoric placed the lives of her family in mortal danger. The unvarnished bigotry of Trump is a clarion call to those who would commit acts of violence in his name.

Racism and fear cynically being exploited for political gain. However, in this scenario, the soul of the nation becomes collateral damage. Unbridled hate will unravel the unique American mosaic, for most of us, 2020 can’t come soon enough. Shame on the political toadies, and societal leaders, who complicit in Trump's racism by nature of their deafening silence. America will survive this current maelstrom with renewed hope for all its people.

In the past weeks, we have seen mass carnage in California, Texas, and Ohio roared xenophobic hatred. Trump has to know his words have consequences, but in a strange twist of fate, he might very well unite the country he sought to rip apart.

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Amoral, Erratic, Incompetent, Systematic undermining and acted in ways, Verbal incontinence

Women In The Crosshairs

Reproductive rights

By Angela Brooks

Women's rights as an issue will be an integral part of next years presidential campaign. Roe v Wade has been a matter of settled jurisprudence for generations of women. However, in recent times the debate has been resurrected as a cultural wedge issue.

The deadly game of attacking our reproductive rights and impacting access to healthcare has become political food for conservative Republicans in red states. Alabama and Georgia are just the latest states to institute draconian anti-abortion laws currently being challenged in the courts.

Alabama Judicial System

Georgia Supreme Court

The health of women should never be politicized. A life and death decisions about one's health are as deeply personal as it gets. Restricting access to safe and legal abortion would lead us into a time warp of back street practitioners and assorted quacks.

For the longest time, conservative ideologues have waged war on women's health with scant regard for real-life consequences. Minority women suffer high mortality rates. Groups such as Planned Parenthood offer a myriad of services other than abortions. Preventive cancer screenings and so much more often in underserved communities.

Women have vested interest in next year’s election. If Trump wins, he continues to pack the Supreme Court. And women's rights truly will be eroded.

Weak Democrats Are Blowing It

Speaker Pelosi has dithered on the impeachment issue

By Ola George & Theo Edwards

In basketball parlance for Democrats, the 2020 election should be a slam dunk. Trump is one of the most unpopular presidents in modern history. A buffoon and liar who has insidiously injected himself into the American body policy and is seemingly eroding the tenets of our democracy.

There is more than a nasty hint of collusion with Russia and the accompanying “Keystone Cop” cover-up.

The Mueller Report definitively outlines specific instances of obstruction. The report highlights the full extent of the president’s transgressions and provides a clear blueprint for Congress to impeach. And yet, the Democrats have once again brought a water pistol to a gun fight. They insist on playing by the Queensbury Rules while Republicans are back-alley fighters with brass knuckles in their back pockets.

Donald Trump and Nancy Pelosi

Have Democrats forgotten Bush vs. Gore unbridled voter suppression tactics or Mitch McConnell’s theft of Obama’s Supreme Court pick?

Trump and his acolytes have made a mockery of the system. Witnesses have been told not to appear or testify before Congress. Documents requested have been denied, and Attorney General Barr has attempted to strangle the Mueller’s scathing indictment of the president’s conduct.

Speaker Pelosi has dithered on the impeachment issue and seems far too willing to sacrifice Congress’ constitutional responsibility on the altar of political expediency in order to win in 2020. Surely an impeachment inquiry would bring to light the full litany of Trump's transgressions to the public. It would bolster the Democrats chances.

At the time of writing this piece, Robert Mueller has decided to honor congressional subpoenas and finally testify. What took so long?

Does anybody doubt that if Obama a scintilla of Trump's shenanigans would have been publicly hung, drawn and quartered?

Democrats need to show some spine and stand up for Rule of Law. If Democrats do not stand for principle then, they, stand for nothing and our democracy truly is in jeopardy.

The Resistance Strikes Back

Women Midterm Elections

Reflects America at its best

I needed a little time distance to digest and absorb the ramifications of the November midterms. Many of you literally acquired PTSD after being bombarded by a myriad of political ads. Like many, I was genuinely concerned for the soul of the nation. The Trump Administration from day one has been beset with unprecedented chaos.

In 2018 each day our senses were assaulted by the dystopian nightmare of the Trump presidency. The White House has become a revolving door of disgraced and disgruntled officials. In addition, many of Trump’s inner circle are now convicted felons.

Domestically while pandering to his base Trump actively stoked the fires of government distrust and racial resentment. Summer brought us the migrant crisis and the soul-crushing spectacle of family separation and kids in cages. A shocked world was watching… Was this a new America recast in Trumpian fashion? The entire system of “Checks and Balances” was seemingly shredded reckless leader and a feckless Republican controlled congress that had abdicated its constitutional responsivities.

Overseas, Trump courted dictators while confusing traditional strategic allies and trade partners. The pillars of our democracy, an independent press, and judiciary and law enforcement all were all subjects to blistering political attacks. Lest we forget, the Mueller probe is the. “Sword of Damocles” that is an existential threat to the Trump presence. Against this backdrop of uncertainty, I braced for the midterms. Would my faith in the American people be decimated? Surely the nation had given into Trump fatigue and would rally to provide a check on a “mercurial“ President?

The rest is history, faith restored.

The GOP has yet to learn their lesson. After losing in 2012 a GOP autopsy concluded that in order to service the party would have to conduct significant minority outreach. They have failed miserably.

The view House reflects America at its best, stunning in its array of ethnic, gender and religious diversity. In contrast, the GOP fully embraced “Trumpism.” Voter suppression and racial resentment politics being the main stock in trade. The same old tired playbook.

2020 draws a little closer every day. I have renewed faith that people’s eyes are open and they can see that the Emperor has no clothes. It is clearly time for people of good will to stand up against bigotry and fight for the principles that make America so unique.

Immigration

Immigration

Photo Courtesy: John Moore/Getty Images

Dr. Jenkins is from rural Mississippi and has a passion for helping those who find themselves caught up in the current immigration quagmire.

VIDEO IMAGE COURTESY: Rev. Dr. Bill Jenkins, Christ Ministry Center

Under the leadership of Pastor Bill Jenkins, a United Methodist clergyman, Christ Ministry Center is part of the “Safe Harbors Network” an ecumenical humanitarian ministry. It is also a United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and a Church World Service Agency.

The Safe Harbors Network supports and guides churches, organizations, and individuals who are committed to sheltering “documented” refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers. “Documented” means they have legal papers provided by the U.S. Immigration Court providing legal U.S. residence until their court hearing. More on the Safe Harbors Network.

In a separate HuffPost article October 8, 2018, former Secretary of State Colin Powell criticized President Donald Trump for placing himself rather than the American people at the center of the nation. Powell justifies his assertion Trump has changed the read on the First Amendment of the US Constitution "we the people" to "me the president." As for immigration, "the world is watching," the former secretary of state warned. More About This.