Progressive Briefing for Friday, July 13, 2018

Justice Department reopens Emmett Till murder investigation

The Justice Department, upon receiving “new information”, has reopened a 63-year-old cold case of the racist murder of Emmett Till, a black 14-year-old from Chicago. The department says at this point it cannot provide any details about the reactivated investigation.

Ireland passes bill to fully divest from fossil fuel by end of 2018

It’s a first of its kind and Ireland will become the first country to fully divest from fossil fuel. On Thursday, the lower house of the Irish legislature passed a bill that addresses the climate crisis that the world faces.

Donald Trump’s global chaos tour: As he runs wild in Brussels, GOP senators start to back away

After threatening to blow up NATO and declaring victory, Trump is off to London to meet the “Baby Trump” blimp.

Upon his arrival in Brussels for the annual NATO meeting, the president opened the show with a fusillade of insults toward America’s allies, a grand display of ignorance on every key issue and a total disregard for history, diplomacy or the national security of the United States. And that was only the start of the crazy.

Koch-connected group out to kill Outlaw Dirty Money and other initiatives

A group funded by billionaires Charles and David Koch already is hard at work trying to knock the Outlaw Dirty Money initiative off the ballot. But is Arizona Public Service involved?

Rigged: New report details how combined $5.1 trillion in tax cuts by Bush, Obama, and Trump went mostly to nation’s richest

With $5.1 trillion, the U.S. government could provide healthcare for all Americans and make public colleges tuition free with cash to spare, but a report released on Wednesday by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) shows that the past three presidents have instead opted to send this vast sum of money to the richest Americans through massive tax cuts. But really, are we surprised?

DNC panel approves plan to gut power of superdelegates

The Democratic National Committee’s (DNC) Rules and Bylaws arm cleared a major hurdle in the fight to curtail the power of superdelegates on Wednesday by approving a plan that would end their ability to cast votes for the presidential candidate on the first ballot at the party’s convention. This is an important first step towards making the Democratic Party’s process more “open and transparent.”