Samuel Vasquez Martinez

Members of Congress should get an annual pay raise. Better yet, raise their salaries to match the President’s salary ($400k/yr), prohibit any individual stock purchases or sales while in office, and put in a lobbying ban after office.

when you have anti-DEI proponents openly going after black military officers for recruiting from HBCUs and suing schools for their black and Hispanic enrollment *even after the schools ended any racial preferences* then the only honest label for these people is "segregationist"

Bill Banning Off-Brand E-Bike Battery Sales Passes Congress, Spurred by New York Tragedies Federal budget package includes long-delayed measure to prevent fires that have killed and injured hundreds, steered by Schumer, Gillibrand and Torres.

BIG deal for the regulation of e-bike batteries. an extremely rare bipartisan bill that has now passed in the Senate, and earlier in the House. could take effect by year's end:

Really is amazing we’ve had six weeks of takes about how Trump “remade the GOP” and no we’re getting: enormous corporate tax cuts; huge cuts to the social safety net and privatization.

Latest @citibikenyc.bsky.social expansion has been announced by @nyc-dot.bsky.social. 🤩

State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, master of the bill name acronym game, is reintroducing a bill to create an adult vaccine opt-out information system as the Registry for Keeping Justified Records Act -- or the RFK, Jr. Act

Jeremy Allen White Joins ‘Star Wars’ Film ‘The Mandalorian & Grogu’ as Jabba the Hutt’s Son "Star Wars" movie "The Mandalorian and Grogu" has added Jeremy Allen White, the Emmy-winning star of "The Bear," as the voice of Jabba the Hutt's son.

What does this even mean

variety.com/2024/film/ne...

Shivers? Is it really that bad that GM is not prioritizing robotaxi development? Cars (self driving, electric, or otherwise) are not going to solve our urban/ climate issues. If anything, its investing in our public transit options, no?

Josh Shapiro Is Using Highway Money to Save Mass Transit. Could… New York has a little-noticed tool to shift billions of highway dollars to climate-friendly public transit projects. The governor doesn’t seem interested.

NEW: In Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro diverted $153 million in federal funds from highways to mass transit.

If Hochul did the same, it could help keep the MTA's projects on track after she lowered the congestion pricing toll.

nysfocus.com/2024/12/09/j...

Acadia Healthcare’s Methadone Clinics Face Fraud Complaints Acadia Healthcare falsifies records at its methadone clinics and enrolls patients who aren’t addicted to opioids, a Times investigation found.

Acadia is profiting off the opioid epidemic and fighting my bill to expand access to lifesaving methadone treatment. Their corporate greed should have no place in health care. www.nytimes.com/2024/12/07/h...

1968: one federal minimum wage was enough to keep a family of 3 above the poverty line.
Now: one federal minimum wage falls over $5,000 BELOW the 2024 poverty line for a family of two.

Working a full time job used to mean getting paid enough to afford a comfortable life.

A trans person didn’t deny your health insurance claim, a giant corporation did.

An asylum seeker didn’t raise your rent, a billionaire’s private equity firm did.

Our focus must be taking on the billionaires & corporate greed.

Why this East Village restaurant is refusing to remove its curbside dining structure EV Grieve is the leading news, entertainment and lifestyle blog about the East Village of New York City.

The City Council's ridiculous ban on winter outdoor dining is a jobs issue: Fewer tables means fewer customers and more people out of work. evgrieve.com/2024/12/why-...

My dog has nicer sweaters than I do… it’s tough out here

Should I re-activate Netflix for this??

Unsheltered Homeless Youth Population Doubled, Annual City Report Finds A count conducted last January found the number of youth sleeping in drop-in centers, places of worship, subways, fast food joints and other crash spots spiked as migrant arrivals grew.

The number of young people without shelter in New York has more than doubled in a year, but the city is not considering adding beds to the system, as @katiehonan.bsky.social and @gwynnefitz.bsky.social report. www.thecity.nyc/2024/12/03/h...

Mentions on CNN and MSNBC since Election Day:
Woke, wokeness, or identity politics: 482
Populism or populist: 166
Labor unions: 55

How to Make Citi Bike More Affordable And more news for your Tuesday.

Citi Bike has gotten more and more expensive.

Now, two councilmembers want the City to step in and, as @lincolnrestler.bsky.social put it, "invest resources, just like we subsidize every other form of public transit in New York City."
hellgatenyc.com/will-nyc-fin...

Across the country, people are starting meal preparations and traveling to be with friends and family.

Tell us your favorite dish on the Thanksgiving table, and we’ll share our knowledge about the work behind the ingredients. #WeFeedYou

For the first time in a while overdose deaths are declining - seven straight months of declines. The cause is complicated but appears to be the culmination of a number of different Biden admin policy initiatives coming to fruition. And yet it meant absolutely nothing politically.

I think there are two issues, the substance and the messaging. The messaging was much more timid than the substance here and didn’t have a populist tone.

What Trump’s big win means: Albany Dems must enact advances on affordability As Democrats pick ourselves up off the mat after the elections, there is no time to lose in addressing the fundamental causes that led to the reelection of Donald Trump. It is now clear that, among…

Voters clearly rejected the failures of "moderate" policy. What's needed now from Democrats is bold leadership on housing, child care, public transit, utility & medical bills, and wages to tackle affordability and prevent further slide toward authoritarianism. www.nydailynews.com/2024/11/17/w...

What does active audiobook reading entail?

Makes you wonder where the Make America Healthy Again people are on this 🤔 I guess they’re more worried about fluoride…

After so much progress on PFAS, we are in danger of the Trump admin rolling it all back. Even more reason to protect NY from dangerous forever chemicals with S.5648 by @bradhoylmansigal.bsky.social www.nrdc.org/bio/kate-don...

Good read!

One thing I find interesting about the echo chamber complaint is that an echo chamber just won a presidential election.

Put aside the convo of whether it’s “good” or “bad” for a moment. The far right has devoted enormous resources + time to building echo chambers & loathes spaces they don’t control

Hi! I put together a fledgling starter pack of lawmakers, reporters and other denizens of the New York State Capitol in Albany.

What other accounts should be on this list? Send 'em my way. Particularly interested in adding lawmakers, reporters and other Albany officials.

go.bsky.app/82vouic

Column | Lots of Republicans suddenly think the economy wasn’t that bad after all Polling from YouGov shows a sharp shift in Republican opinions over the past month.

A month ago, nearly two-thirds of Republicans said that their economic situation was worse than a year ago. One Trump victory later, fewer than half do.
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Georgia Dismissed All Members of Maternal Mortality Committee After ProPublica Obtained Internal Details of Two Deaths In a letter, the state’s public health commissioner said the action was taken because “confidential information provided to the Maternal Mortality Review Committee was inappropriately shared with outs...

So, @propublica.org reports that Georgia's maternal mortality review committee determined that two women died after being denied access to care under the state's abortion ban, and Georgia's response is to dismiss all members of the committee.
www.propublica.org/article/geor...