Bernie Sanders is the Most Popular Senator in America

uesday, November 24, 2015
BURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 24 – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is the most popular senator in America according to a Morning Consult survey of more than 75,000 voters in all 50 states. Sanders has the highest approval rating of any United States senator among his own constituents at 83 percent.

Senate Democrats had an average approval rating of 54 percent in the survey, while Republicans averaged a 51 percent approval rating.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-is-most-popular-senator-in-america?utm_content=buffer0ce91&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Tuesday Toon Roundup 3: The Rest

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U.S. steps up Ukrainian combat training

Yavirov, Ukraine — The United States began combat training for Ukrainian Army forces on Monday, expanding its effort to help Ukraine defeat Russian-backed separatists.

Until now, U.S. trainers had only worked with Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, and officials say the shift to regular army training signals President Barack Obama’s growing commitment to Ukraine’s defense against the aggression of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Obama remains dug in against the advice of many senior officials who favor sending weapons to Kiev. But the administration considers the training regimen an effective alternative that won’t provoke a dangerous response from Russia, even as officials in Moscow denounce the program.

“This is arguably more important than any of the equipment we’re giving [the Ukrainians],” said Evelyn Farkas, who departed as the top Pentagon official for Russia and Ukraine this fall. “We’re teaching them how to prevail against a further incursion of their territory.”

more

http://www.politico.eu/article/u-s-steps-up-ukrainian-combat-training/

Federal Appeals Court Dropkicks Scott Walker's Bogus Abortion Law Into the Sun

A federal appeals court has ruled that Wisconsin’s law requiring that abortion providers have admitting privileges at a local hospital—effectively and deliberately shutting down clinics in the state—is unconstitutional, reports the Associated Press.

2013 Wisconsin Act 37 was enacted in July of 2013, and while it is purportedly designed to serve the safety and peace of mind of women seeking abortions, its real purpose is to make getting an abortion as grueling and inconvenient as possible. Section 2 includes the infamous “informed consent” provision, which requires that pregnant women receive an ultrasound prior to the procedure. Section 9 explicitly allows the “grandparents” of the “unborn child” to sue the abortion provider for “emotional and psychological distress.” Act 37 is a bullcrap law.

The law also said that all abortion providers must have admitting privileges at a hospital “within 30 miles of the location where the abortion is to be performed.” Planned Parenthood and Affiliated Medical Services—two organizations who provide abortions in Wisconsin—sued the state, arguing that this particular provision “amounts to an unconstitutional restriction on abortion.”

From a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report:

Planned Parenthood sues Texas over blocked Medicaid dollars

Source: AP/Kxxv

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Planned Parenthood is suing Texas over attempts to block Medicaid dollars, beginning another courtroom fight between the nation's largest abortion provider and a Republican-controlled state.

Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards said Monday the lawsuit aims to protect health care access for 13,500 patients statewide.

Texas moved to strip Medicaid funding after accusing Planned Parenthood of scheduling abortions in a way that would best procure fetal tissue for medical research.

The state levied the accusation after anti-abortion activists released undercover videos they say show Planned Parenthood officials discussing the illegal for-profit sale of fetal tissue.


Read more: http://www.kxxv.com/story/30587093/planned-parenthood-sues-texas-over-blocked-medicaid-dollars

Bernie Sanders Leads TIME’S Person of the Year Poll

With eleven days left to go before TIME’s 2015 Person of the Year poll come to a close, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, the upstart candidate for president, holds a wide lead over global notables among TIME readers even as he trails Hillary Clinton in voter polls and fights a long-shot battle for the Democratic nomination.

The self-described democratic socialist currently leads Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist, with 11% in the TIME reader poll compared with her 5%. Sanders also leads Pope Francis and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama, and is far ahead of entertainers like Adele (2%) and Jennifer Lawrence (1.7%). In voter polls against Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, Sanders is consistently losing by about 20 percentage points in national polls. In the Person of the Year poll, Hillary Clinton has earned 1.3 % of the vote, trailing the likes of Vladimir Putin and Francois Hollande as well as Nicki Minaj and Amy Schumer.

Sanders is also beating Donald Trump in the reader poll. Trump told supporters at a rally in Birmingham, Alabama, Saturday that he believed the magazine was considering him for the annual recognition.

Sanders, who was little-known when he began his unlikely bid for president in April, has become a hero on the Democratic left among progressives disillusioned by growing income inequality and money in politics. With a little over two months until the Iowa caucuses, Sanders faces tough odds to win the Democratic nomination. But he has cast a long shadow over the Democratic primary with his ability to introduce a progressive wish-list including breaking up the big banks, instituting public financing of elections, socialistic single-payer healthcare system and tuition free college at public institutions.

Voting on the reader’s choice poll ends Dec. 4 at 11:59 p.m., and the winner will be announced Dec. 7. While American political figures from John F. Kennedy to Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan have been recognized as Man of Year after winning the White House (the issue changed to Person of the Year in 1999), no presidential candidate has been named Person of the Year prior to the end of the campaign.

more
http://time.com/4124110/bernie-sanders-leads-times-person-of-the-year-poll/

Rep. Lamar Smith Continues His Harassment of Scientists

By Phil Plait

The saga of The Man in Congress in Charge of Science but Who Doesn’t Understand It continues.

For those new to this, Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas—chairman of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee—doesn’t think global warming is real. He thinks it’s a huge conspiracy by climate scientists who fudge the data to make it look like the planet is heating up, because Obama.

I wish I were being hyperbolic. But this is literally true.

In Part 1 of our tale, Smith subpoenaed Kathryn Sullivan, the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, claiming that scientists in her agency were “altering the data.” Smith got this idea after a paper was published in Science showing that the global warming “pause” so lauded by climate change deniers didn’t, in fact, exist. This research was done by a team of NOAA scientists and, I’ll note, is correct. The “pause” isn’t real.

That didn’t stop Smith. He also demanded the data, methodology, and emails of NOAA scientists be released (despite the first two already being publicly available). We also learned that Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas—who is the senior Democrat on the committee—sent Smith a letter accusing him of harassing and second-guessing scientists, and also pointed out he’s not qualified to assess the data or methods. This, too, is correct.

more

http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2015/11/23/lamar_smith_harassment_of_scientists_continues.html

Poll Shows Sanders Leads the Democratic Field Overall in Utah;

Written by Bryan Schott on 23 November 2015. Posted in Today At Utah Policy
Bernie SandersAmong all Utahns, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is the most popular Democratic presidential candidate. However, Utah Democrats put former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the front of the Democratic field.

A new UtahPolicy.com survey finds 26% of Utahns say Sanders is the most appealing Democratic candidate while 18% said Clinton. 25% did not express a preference. Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley pulled in 8%.

Democrats and independent voters are on opposite sides when it comes to Sanders and Clinton, with Democrats backing Clinton and independent voters behind Sanders.

Among Democrats, Clinton is a clear choice, garnering 54%. About a third of Utah Democrats (34%) say they support Sanders. O'Malley gets only 3%.

Independent voters in Utah mostly line up behind Sanders. 38% say they are backing the Vermont Senator. Just 15% of that group say they're behind Clinton, and 10% want O'Malley.

more

http://utahpolicy.com/index.php/features/today-at-utah-policy/7734-