One reason Hannah Spencer did well is she passed the “gets it test” few politicians do on two levels. First: personally we heard praise she seemed normal in touch & respected voters. Second message; the below from her speech is the perfect distillation of what we hear in groups.
Nigel Farage expresses support for Trump's "unorthodox" breach of international law - on grounds that they may "make China and Russia think twice"
But the main impact on Russia and China will be to help them to legitimise aggression in cases like Ukraine and Taiwan, citing Trump/US as analogous.
Since returning to office, Trump has:
-Stripped 1 million federal workers of collective bargaining rights
-Reversed Biden's minimum wage hike for federal contractors
-Gutted OSHA and frozen enforcement of a regulation protecting miners from lung disease
"Pro-worker" president.
Elon Musk didn’t get rid of any waste, fraud or abuse—he and DOGE were the waste, fraud and abuse, and they actually ended up costing taxpayers some $135 billion while firing thousands of workers and cutting essential services people rely on. Musk and President Trump have fired more than 260,000 of the federal workers who get us our Social Security checks, make sure our food and water are safe, care for our veterans, provide disaster relief, conduct research on cures for deadly diseases, protect workers’ safety, and mediate our union contract negotiations. These and so many other harms to working people are outlined in the report released by the AFL-CIO’s Department of People Who Work for a Living based on testimony from workers and local community members at hearings across the country.
If Musk is actually leaving DOGE, we celebrate that his departure is in large part thanks to the relentless organizing of working people in the streets and in the courts to end this unelected billionaire’s control of our government. Now Musk’s actions must be audited to see if he still has access to federal buildings, agency staff, or databases and systems, and he must be held accountable for removing or retaining any private data or using his unofficial leadership status in this administration to make himself and his companies even richer. But the damage has already been done—and the threat to working people doesn’t walk out the door with Musk. President Trump’s other corporate billionaire Cabinet members still have outsize influence over our government, and DOGE’s team of Musk loyalists is still free to steal our personal information and break government platforms. And we anticipate that it will be just as harmful—if not worse—if radical Project 2025 author Russell Vought takes over DOGE as rumored. Vought has used his role as director of the Office of Management and Budget to try to fire and strip collective bargaining rights from thousands of federal workers as part of his campaign to “traumatize” them. The Department of People Who Work for a Living was created to get DOGE out of the government—and any step forward to send Musk packing is a victory for America’s working families and our unions who fight for them. The labor movement won’t rest until DOGE is fully gone and every harm it has caused to federal workers, essential government programs and the people who rely on them is reversed.
Elon Musk didn't get rid of any waste, fraud or abuse—he and DOGE were the waste, fraud and abuse.
We won’t rest until DOGE is fully gone and every harm it has caused to federal workers, essential services, and the people who rely on them is reversed. aflcio.org/press/releas...
A question that I haven't heard a good answer to: if cutting migration by a third in a year hasn't changed the narrative on it at all - what would make you think cutting it by another third (or half] would?
Really worth a read
Nigel Farage is a political fraud ‘cosplaying’ as a working-class champion.
Judge him by what he does, not what he says.
He and his mates in Reform have voted against commonsense laws that would boost rights at work for millions.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Great day out on the doors in Runcorn✊️🌹
Donald Trump has just made the strongest possible argument for 🇬🇧 to positively reset its economic relationship with the 🇪🇺, our largest market.
In the face of punitive & arbitrary 🇺🇸 tariffs, the government must do everything it can to protect British jobs & industry.
Who could have predicted this?
Spain’s success should strengthen Labour’s resolve on the Employment Rights Bill.
“Boosting workers’ rights and living standards has been +ve for growth and productivity… and is key to combating the threat from the far right”
“We must give hope to working people”
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
On the money!
Think Reform’s net-zero announcements may well be their first big mistake since their rise in the polls. There would definitely be scope to criticise specific climate measures, but trying to actively reverse shift to renewables lands well on wrong side of British public opinion.
Watch and enjoy
So-called man of the people Nigel Farage is not actually (surprise, surprise) on the side of working people.
Exclusive - Labour urged to defend workers’ rights bill as poll shows huge public support
Poll reveals 72% of UK voters favour ban on zero-hours contracts, including majority of Tory and Reform supporters
Labour MPs tell the Guardian govt must face down critics and deliver bill in full.
At our rally at the Department of Labor, AFL-CIO President @lizshuler.bsky.social laid out what’s at stake for working people in our fight against unaccountable billionaires who harm working people.
When we fight, WE WIN!
A big loss for the Mirror. @jbeattiemirror.bsky.social is one of the best in the business.
Look forward to seeing what he does next.
For all the talk of culture wars, @pewresearch.org found that the economy was the most important issue for Trump voters ahead of the 2024 election. If tariffs tank the economy there will be political consequences...
NEW: With senior Labour figures worrying about Reform, a huge new MRP poll has them on course to win scores of seats from Labour.
Current snapshot - Reform would win 76 seats, with 60 coming from Labour, right across England and Wales.
🧵
Ken Martin gave a hell of a good speech here: “Are we on the side of the robber baron, the ultra-wealthy billionaire, the oil and gas polluter, the union buster. Or are we on the side of the American working family, the small business owner, the farmer, the immigrant, and the students?"
BREAKING: Philadelphia workers have won the first Whole Foods union under Amazon with UFCW.
Since Amazon bought the chain, workers have lost benefits and felt the squeeze.
Now they're fighting back against the multi-trillion dollar giant and hoping this win will be the first of many.
This care worker was bitten by a patient and nearly lost her finger. But because she was on a zero-hours contract, she didn’t get a single penny in sick pay...
🚨 It's time to ban zero-hours contracts and deliver the New Deal for Working People in full.
metro.co.uk/2025/01/22/w...
New sunlight beats old sunlight!
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
Read this 👇 A vital reminder of why strengthening workers’ rights is so important.
metro.co.uk/2025/01/22/w...
Wow. Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde fearlessly calls out Trump and Vance to their faces. This is heroic.
(posting in 3 parts due to Bluesky's 1 minute limit)
Sad that @ayeshahazarika.bsky.social flaming Musk went viral, but her important, powerful plea was not even clipped by #BBCQT.
"I don't want to hear politicians squabbling, defensiveness from councils, police, social workers, community leaders. The only people that matter here are the victims." ~AA
Inflation down in December, with Core CPI down 0.3%
The UK economy continues on track for disinflation. Inflation is not an immediate cause for concern for the economy, but weaker-than-expected growth is
To boost growth, investment and prosperity, interest rates must come down
