Author: Richard Eskow

Several lawmakers who supported and implemented several “tough on crime” policies in the 1980s and 1990s have said they regret it. Democratic presidential candidate Martin O’Malley helped push “tough on crime” laws, but he stands by his decision to support them. O’Malley, former Maryland governor and Baltimore mayor, said he still believes what he did was right because of the violence and crime that plagued Baltimore. “We had a horrible problem in our city with the proliferation of open air drug markets,” he said. “People wanted them shut down, so that’s what we did. Yes, enforcement levels spiked. But...

By the end of this month, the James Zagroda 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, the bill that allows funding for the health benefits of 9/11 first responders, will expire. The provision of Zagroda’s law that funds ongoing treatment for 9/11 first responders and survivors who deal with chronic diseases as a result of their presence at Ground Zero will expire. In one year, nearly $3 billion that is meant to compensate those who suffered economic losses because of the 9/11 attacks will also disappear. Currently, it seems as though Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, will not vote...

Former New York governor and Republican presidential candidate George Pataki announced on Twitter that he will not vote for the GOP if his rival, Donald Trump, won the nomination. As expected, Trump responded with a bomb after Pataki sent multiple tweets denouncing Trump’s campaign. Let me be very plain, I’m not going to vote for @RealDonaldTrump …He is unfit to be president @chucktodd @meetthepress @foxnewssunday #MTP — George E. Pataki (@GovernorPataki) September 13, 2015 I’ll keep my dignity and the principles that the GOP was founded upon. https://t.co/1g1Vig4AeM — George E. Pataki (@GovernorPataki) September 13, 2015 I would hope...