Atlanta shooting highlights racial tensions

[link removed]
If you want to know what's wrong with the House GOP right now, there are plenty of places to look—Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jim Jordan, Lauren Boebert, the list goes on. Spreading lies and conspiracy theories, making violent threats, and spending more time fighting culture wars than effectively governing top the list of irresponsible activities in which these Republicans have engaged. And then there's Louie Gohmert, who's no stranger to questionable behavior. The latest? Gohmert proposed a bill to honor Capitol Police officers that made no mention of the insurrection on Jan. 6. The three officers who died as a result of that terrible event? They "passed away in January 2021," according to Gohmert's legislation. The intent is subtle but clear—if the officers weren't killed in the line of duty, or as a consequence of it, then nothing terrible happened at the Capitol on Jan. 6. It's part of a dangerous rhetorical campaign designed to whitewash history and minimize an assault on
democracy that Americans should never forget...lest it be repeated. —Melissa Amour, Managing Editor

NEW TO THE TOPLINE? SUBSCRIBE NOW ([link removed])
Love THE TOPLINE? Help us spread the word and earn TOPLINE rewards here ([link removed]) .
[link removed] Share ([link removed])
[link removed]'s%20Daily%20Digest: https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2Fstanduprepublic.com%2Fthetopline031821 Tweet ([link removed]'s%20Daily%20Digest: https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2Fstanduprepublic.com%2Fthetopline031821)
[link removed] Forward ([link removed])


** 'It's taken six Asian-American women dying in one day to get people to pay attention'
------------------------------------------------------------

In the wake of the Atlanta shootings that left eight people dead—six of them women of Asian descent—federal and local law enforcement agencies are under pressure to step up efforts to combat a rising tide of hate crimes against Asian Americans. Women and older Asian Americans have been especially targeted in a wave of incidents ranging from verbal assaults to violent attacks. Asian-American community leaders say the discrimination and harassment faced by their communities has been downplayed. —The Guardian ([link removed])
* — Outrageous. Cherokee Co. Police Capt. Jay Baker, who is working on the Atlanta investigation, has been criticized for downplaying the potential role anti-Asian bias may have played in the shootings. At a press conference, he claimed of the shooter, "Yesterday was a really bad day for him, and this is what he did." On social media last year, Baker promoted T-shirts calling COVID-19 an "imported virus from CHY-NA." —Forbes ([link removed])
*
* — "Congress sees you. We stand with you." On the Hill, prominent Asian-American lawmakers, scholars, and advocates testified on anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination before a House Judiciary subcommittee today. Chair Steve Cohen convened the hearing with a moment of silence for the Atlanta victims. Rep. Chip Roy, acting as ranking member, said that while he wants justice for the victims, he has concerns about the "policing of rhetoric." —ABC News ([link removed])
*
* — White House to address. President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with Asian-American and Pacific-Islander leaders during a visit to Atlanta tomorrow. A scheduled rally to promote the administration's recently signed Covid relief bill has been canceled so that Biden and Harris can speak with state legislators and other advocates about their perspectives on the growing problem. —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ([link removed])

MORE: White supremacy and hate are haunting Asian Americans —CNN ([link removed])


** House passes Violence Against Women Act
------------------------------------------------------------

The House passed legislation yesterday to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, a law originally authored by President Biden that lapsed in 2019. The bill, which was reintroduced by Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee, Jerry Nadler, and Brian Fitzpatrick, provides grants to state and local governments for programs addressing domestic abuse, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. Only 29 Republicans voted with all Democrats in support of the measure. GOP critics argue that the bill restricts gun rights, and they also object to additional protections provided for transgender individuals. — ([link removed]) The Hill ([link removed])

MORE: House votes to award Congressional Gold Medal to Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department —CNN ([link removed])


** Li & Lau: The emerging fight over gerrymandering
------------------------------------------------------------

"Gerrymandering is one of the hot-button issues of our time. If you look at polling, ending gerrymandering is one of the few things that gets majority support from Democrats, Republicans, and independents. It’s something that people feel strongly about. People understand instinctively that the political process is broken, and they understand that rigged maps are in part to blame." —Michael Li & Tim Lau at the ([link removed]) Brennan Center for Justice ([link removed])

Michael Li serves as senior counsel for the Brennan Center's Democracy Program, where his work focuses on redistricting, voting rights, and elections. Tim Lau is a staff writer/editor with the Brennan Center's editorial team.

MORE: David Haynes: A decade ago, Wisconsin Republicans locked in their power through gerrymandering. Open up this secretive process to the public —Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ([link removed])


** Ohio sues over Covid relief bill
------------------------------------------------------------

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a lawsuit in federal court yesterday over a provision of the recently signed American Rescue Plan Act. In the complaint, Yost challenges a provision in the legislation that forbids state and local governments from using pandemic aid to offset tax cuts. The stipulation has drawn ire from conservative state officials concerned that it will get in the way of future efforts to cut taxes. The lawsuit was filed against the Treasury Department and its secretary, Janet Yellen. Neither the department nor the White House have commented on the suit. —The Hill ([link removed])

MORE: Republican attorneys general threaten key element of the $1.9 trillion stimulus —The Washington Post ([link removed])
[link removed]'s%20amazing!%20Check%20it%20out: [link removed] EARN TOPLINE REWARDS ON TWITTER ([link removed]'s%20amazing!%20Check%20it%20out: [link removed])


** Harford: The danger of doubt
------------------------------------------------------------

"The events of Jan. 6 showed us that conspiracy thinking can have serious consequences. But this is not just about the conspiracy theorists. The psychological traits that lead one down the conspiracy-theory rabbit hole are to some extent present in most of us. ... Nobody likes to feel that they are being taken for a fool, so doubting early and often can seem like the smart thing to do. And if we want to think clearly about the world, skepticism is a good thing. But it’s possible to have too much of a good thing. Indiscriminate belief is worrying, but indiscriminate doubt can be even worse." —Tim Harford in ([link removed]) The Atlantic ([link removed])

Tim Harford is a
Financial Times columnist and the author of "The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics."

MORE: Louie Gohmert avoids mentioning Jan. 6 riot in bill to award Capitol Police congressional medals —Newsweek ([link removed])


** Focus on Russian dark money
------------------------------------------------------------

Remember Natalia Veselnitskaya? She was the Russian lawyer present at the 2016 Trump Tower meeting with Donald Trump, Jr., and other Trump associates that raised suspicions during the Mueller Investigation. Newly released financial records show that a company newly sanctioned by the U.S. over Alexei Navalny's poisoning attack is tied to the money-laundering network that tried to cover up that infamous meeting. ([link removed])
* — First, some background. In 2007, Sergei Magnitsky uncovered a $230 million fraud on the Russian people. After exposing the massive theft of state money, he was arrested and ended up dead in a Russian prison cell. Legislation was enacted all over the world by governments seeking to clamp down on corruption, including the U.S.'s Magnitsky Act. ([link removed])
*
* — How does Veselnitskaya fit in? When the Trump Tower meeting was exposed during the Trump-Russia investigation, she insisted she was not there to sway the election but to make a case against the Magnitsky Act and related investigations. She used promises of providing dirt on Hillary Clinton in order to convene the meeting. ([link removed])
*
* — Despite Veselnitskaya's interventions, the Magnitsky anti-corruption probes have continued, exposing a complex international dark money network that leads right to Russia's murderous chemical-weapons program. The new findings explain why Vladimir Putin was so desperate to stop those investigations. —The Daily Beast ([link removed])

MORE: Putin pulls envoy from D.C. but wishes Biden 'good health' as Russians blast 'killer' remark —CBS News ([link removed])


** Rubin: The economic benefits of voting reform
------------------------------------------------------------

"Faith in democracy and faith in markets go hand in hand. People support pro-growth policies when they believe they will share in the benefits of growth. For these benefits to be widely shared, we need an inclusive growth policy agenda. This can be achieved only if elected officials feel accountable to the broader public. And there is broad accountability only if voting is widespread." —Robert Rubin in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Robert Rubin, co-chair emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, was secretary of the Treasury from 1995 to 1999.

Regarding the Atlanta shooting, people keep talking as if it's a "hate crime" only if it was racially motivated. A crime doesn't have to be racial to be a hate crime. A hate crime targets people because of who they are (demographic traits). The shooter has said he shot the women because they were women and a "temptation" to him. That IS a hate crime. —Vivian B., Texas

Whenever I hear that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell promised a "scorched earth" response that would be a "disaster that Democrats would create" it reminds me of a toddler who just learned that he will not get his way. A tantrum will ensue. But if we want to get the Senate back to work—and it did not work under McConnell's lead—we will have to endure this tantrum that he promises as a patient parent does. Let him get his feelings and frustrations out but mostly just ignore him until he's ready to engage in an actual conversation. He is not the Senate majority leader anymore. I voted the way I did in Georgia to make that happen. It's time for him to learn that "elections have consequences." —Kimberly D., Georgia
TELL US WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT TODAY'S STORIES ([link removed])


** The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.
------------------------------------------------------------
Got feedback about THE TOPLINE? Send it to Melissa Amour, Managing Editor, at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .
CARE ABOUT DEMOCRACY? SHARE SOME DEMOCRACY.
If you love THE TOPLINE, share it with your friends and reap the rewards—from a shoutout in an issue of TL, to exclusive swag, to a call with Evan and Mindy.
[link removed]
Your Dashboard has everything you need to easily share THE TOPLINE
and track your progress.
VISIT YOUR DASHBOARD NOW TO GET STARTED ([link removed])

============================================================
** ([link removed])
The Topline is a project of the Stand Up Republic Foundation.

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.

700 Pennsylvania Ave SE · Washington, DC 20003-2493 · USA