Hi friends,
This is going to be a light week here at the wiffij for a variety of reasons. None of them are bad.
The news, on the other hand, remains exhausting.
A fourth person has drowned crossing the Rio Grande this month. Texas and its governor are embroiled in a struggle with the Biden Administration over the control of the border.
The Texas National Guard was directly implicated in the deaths of a woman and her children, on January 12, having blocked federal Border Patrol agents from aiding the people who drowned. Then, Governor Abbott ordered guard members to add concertina wire and fencing to block egress from the river.
Today, the Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration can cut the razor wire at the border with Mexico, which runs for about 30 miles along the Rio Grande river. The decision was part of an emergency appeal; while the Administration awaits a decision on other actions by Governor Abbott, Texas must allow Border Patrol full access to the border.
Meanwhile, Republican legislators in the House are refusing to negotiate to pass immigration legislation. Congressman Jamie Raskin noted that the Republicans are agents of chaos:
“Just as Trump is hoping for an economic downturn in our robust, low unemployment economy, they’re hoping for chaos at the border and trying to stop us from preventing it.”
I wish I had a remedy for this. Take a breath, folks.
Sometimes, we just have to do something small and useful. This was the gist of my conversation with a neighbor in the laundry room today. So here’s our small, useful thing today:
The Green Transit, Green Jobs bill (A.6414/S.6089) is in committee in both houses of the NYS legislature. If it passes, it would reduce transportation emissions, which is a critical part of the state’s Climate Action Plan. The bill calls for funds to pay for electric-powered buses and the infrastructure for charging electric buses.
Tell your NYS legislators to pass the Green Transit, Green Jobs bill. This quick action is from EarthJustice.
There will be good news…might be on Wednesday!
with love,
L