Good morning! On this day in 1933, Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed an executive order creating the Works Progress Administration, which would ultimately put around 30 percent of the unemployed to work during the darkest days of the Great Depression. There are some great art deco images in this collection of WPA posters at the Library of Congress.
The future’s here and it’s hot –> That’s the takeaway from the new National Climate Assessment. President Obama sounds the alarm today and talks to TV weather forecasters, hoping to convince the public and Congress that global warming’s for real.
Droned –> David Barron, Obama’s nominee to fill a key circuit court vacancy, is taking fire from both left and right for writing legal memos justifying our drone assassination program. The ACLU is urging senators to read the memos before proceeding, and Rand Paul is threatening to block the nomination. Marcy Wheeler reports for The Week.
Upholding your right to say things with which they agree –> A new study finds that Supreme Court Justices are more likely to uphold the free speech rights of their ideological brethren. While the NYT’s Adam Liptak tries to blame both sides, it’s clear from the data he offers that the dynamic is far more pronounced among the court’s conservative justices.
Speaking of which –> In a 5-4 decision, SCOTUS ruled that explicitly denominational prayers at city council meetings don’t violate the separation of church and state. Mark Sherman reports for the AP.
Justice? –> In March 2012, Occupy protester Cecily McMillan was arrested in what was described at the time as a “police riot.” Yesterday, she was convicted of assaulting an officer who McMillan says grabbed her breast as she was taken into custody. She now faces up to seven years in prison. Jon Swaine and Molly Knefel report on the verdict for The Guardian. And for more background on the case, read Chris Hedges’ “The Crime of Peaceful Protest.”
Yeah, we need a raise –> Pam Tobey reports for WaPo that seven of the 10 most common professions in America pay less today than they did 15 years ago, after adjusting for inflation.
This just in from Sherwood Forest… –> At The Nation, Katrina vanden Heuvel write how the “Robin Hood tax” — a small levy on financial transactions — has growing momentum.
This should make your blood boil –> Vox’s Timothy Lee explains how “five big US internet providers are slowing down Internet access until they get more cash.”
Savagery –> Former Texas Governor Mark White was once proud to have overseen 19 executions in the Lone Star state. But he writes at Politico that while he still thinks society is morally justified in meting out the ultimate punishment, he’s since become queasy after realizing that “we just don’t do a good job at any phase of the process.”
BENGHAZI!! –> CBS asked Nexis to delete its transcript of Lara Logan’s discredited report about the attacks on our consulate in Benghazi, reports Ben Armbruster for ThinkProgress. ALSO: National treasure Roy Edroso tours conservative bloggers’ reactions to the latest ho-hum “revelations” for The Village Voice.
Drape-measuring –> The Monkey Cage is leaping into the election modeling business, giving the GOP an 80 percent likelihood of taking control of the Senate if the midterm elections were held today. BUT: WaMo’s Ed Kilgore writes that in the House, we won’t see the kind of “wave” election Republicans enjoyed in 2010 because that was set up by huge Democratic gains in competitive districts in both 2006 and 2008.
Profiles in plutocracy –> MoJo’s Andy Kroll looks at the quirky conservative mega-donor behind the misleadingly named Americans for Progressive Action super PAC that tried to swing an election in deep-blue Massachusetts.
Romneycare –> In a study that portends well for the Affordable Care Act, researchers found that “the death rate in Massachusetts dropped significantly after it adopted mandatory health care coverage in 2006.” Sabrina Tavernise reports for the NYT.
“Even when you’re dead, you still get harassed” –> Police have raided a Brooklyn apartment again and again looking for a low-level offender who died eight years ago. In a lawsuit, his widow says the NYPD have ransacked the place four times in 2014 alone, despite the fact that she taped a copy of his death certificate to her apartment door. It almost goes without saying that the NY Post headlined its story, “Ghostbusters.”
More great police work –> The Las Vegas Metro Police Department co-sponsored a “Choose Purity” event that told young girls — presumably just girls — that pre-marital sex leads to “four things: sexual assault, gangs, drugs and prostitution.” Also death, which makes five. Bethany Barnes has the story for the Las Vegas Sun.
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