On Biden's Black Agenda, the Debt Ceiling, and NBA Covid vaccinations
The Friday Flashpoints!
Nobody asked me but....
***I expended quite a bit of financial and rhetorical capital last year in support of the Biden-Harris presidential ticket and, nearly a year after election day, I still believe that America needed to go in a different direction than the one that former President Donald Trump had set it upon at home and abroad during his term.
While my contributions were relatively minor to the ultimate outcome, they still counted and because of them, I feel that I have a stake in how our nation is being run—and a responsibility to use my public platforms to address my issues with now President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris.
Thinking back to late last summer, when legendary entertainer Ice Cube expressed concerns about the Biden-Harris "Black Agenda," I was one of many pundits who urged him and others to trust that the Democratic ticket offered the best chance at addressing all of the economic, social justice, and health care concerns that our demographic universally faces. I did so because I feared that the 2020 election could come down to a photo finish, similar to Bush vs. Gore 2000, and that Black votes would greatly impact the final outcome.
Indeed, Black votes did matter, and were not only responsible for pushing Biden-Harris to a historic and dominating victory, but also for sending two Democrats, Raphael Warnock and Jon Osoff, to the United States Senate. While a remarkable achievement then, in the now, protocol dictates that we demand that all of those promises that Team Biden-Harris made at town hall meetings on Black Colllege campuses, in our Black churches, and at Black barbecues nationwide are called into account.
To that end, I have some serious questions for the Biden administration at this juncture about:
1. Haitian immigration
2. HBCU funding
3. Reports that V.P. Harris refused to answer questions about Voting rights amid GOP voter suppression efforts across America during a meeting with the leaders of the Divine Nine Black Greek Lettered Organizations this week.
My questions stem from the fact that when I watched Haitian immigrants being beaten and rounded up like escaped slaves before being sent back to Haiti or to Guantanamo Bay, or read how Biden's original $45 Billion dollars in proposed funding to HBCUs has dwindled down to under $2 Billion, or that neither Mr. Biden nor Ms. Harris are using their bully pulpits to demand a federal pushback against Republican state voter suppression efforts, it leaves me to ask whether Ice Cube was right—and perhaps I was wrong in my assumption that Biden's "Build Back Better" would inure benefits for the most loyal voting bloc in the Democratic Party—Black folks.
Yesterday, I posed the above questions on my Facebook page and while I received a number of thoughtful responses, I highlight the following in today’s blog:
As always, I am so grateful for the thoughtful insights that many of my real life friends and social media readers provide on topics of critical importance.
Nevertheless, I ask this morning what good is the symbolism of having Black folks in the White House, Congress, and in key administrative positions if at the end of the day, Black folks are still having to beg our allies to foment common sense reforms? What concerns me the most is that both the reality and even the “perception” of failing to boldly advocate on these issues could lead to low Black turnout during next year's mid-term elections—and a possible Republican wave that would certainly chill any attempts at meaningful Democratic reforms.
Thus, my admonition for Team Biden-Harris to fulfill all of those promises that they made to Black voters last year—or suffer the consequences...
***As a lover of politics since elementary school, I don't remember the debt ceiling being an annual big news deal in my youth like it has become in my maturity. That said, kudos to the U.S. Senate for approving a $480 billion dollar increase that sets the stage for the House to do the same and avoid a government shutdown that could have a detrimental impact on the global economy.
Kudos, too, to Republican Senate Leader Mitch Republican and the other 10 members of his party who placed partisanship aside to join Democrats in keeping the economic pump primed and in working order!
***While I prefer presidents who head off into the sunset and refrain from meddling in the affairs of their successors, consider me not surprised that former President Donald Trump weighed in on the debt ceiling issue this week. From his Mar-A-Lago retreat, Trump said “Republican Senators, do not vote for this terrible deal being pushed by folding Mitch McConnell. Stand strong for our Country."
The tragically ironic reality of Mr. Trump's unasked for commentary is that he promised to eliminate the national debt "within eight years" when he entered the White House in 2017—but saw the nation's debt increase by $7.8 trillion dollars on his watch due, in large measure, to his 2017 Tax Cuts that benefited the rich (those making in excess of $400k per year) and hammered the middle class. A hard core reality that, ostensibly, means that the newly raised debt ceiling will address HIS lack of fiscal austerity according to hard data culled from the Federal Reserve Board.
***Kudos to Golden State Warriors star forward Andrew Wiggins for taking the Coronavirus vaccine after holding out for weeks—and placing his team's championship dreams in jeopardy.
Now, Wiggins was not very happy to do so, saying, “I guess to do certain stuff, to work and all that, I guess you don’t own your body. That’s what it comes down to. You want to work in society today, I guess they make the rules of what goes into your body and what you do.”
Yes, that's exactly right, Mr. Wiggins, there are health rules that we all must abide by to create a safer and more secure society. The truth is that I could not care less that Wiggins is upset, much like the parent who is unfazed by the protests of a child who abhors being forced to eat their vegetables or take a bath but assents after the parent loudly exclaims "because I said so!"
To that end, the cities with NBA arenas have said so, Mr. Wiggins, so thank you for being compliant—and best wishes on what should be an exciting season in a Western Conference featuring the Warriors, the Phoenix Suns, and both the LA Lakers and Clippers!
*** The Hill reports this morning that when it came to mental health issues during the first winter of our collective Coronavirus discontent, that "The frequency of anxiety and depression symptoms among American adults amplified during the winter COVID-19 surge, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study showing the pandemic’s impacts on the country’s mental health. On average, the frequency of anxiety symptoms climbed by 13 percent from August to December 2020 before dropping by 26.8 percent by June 2021. Similarly, the frequency of depression symptoms rose by 14.8 percent before falling by 24.8 percent in the same time periods."
I am not surprised by these numbers and as always, implore my readers to seek counseling or therapy if you are experiencing anxiety, depression, or contemplating suicide. I also encourage you to download the blog of my friend and Spelman Sister Dr. Ericka Goodwin, a brilliant psychiatrist whose podcasts and blogs are extremely helpful to me and all who listen!
***Last Friday, the U.S. State Department released its refugee figures from the fiscal year that ended on October 1st and showed that the Biden administration resettled the lowest number of refugees in the history of the admissions program. As a reminder, Mr. Biden promised to do better than his predecessor, Donald Trump, on this issue, but the numbers are what they are:
*Biden: 11,411 refugees resettled by the close of the fiscal year 2021
*Trump: 11,814 refugees resettled by the close of fiscal year 2020.
I post these numbers to provide further food for thought for my readers whose sense of loyalty to the Democratic Party may lead to diffidence in demanding that "Uncle Joe" 'nem do better.
Lest we forget…
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