Democrats face two major structural headwinds on the path to regaining a majority coalition. First is governance in blue states, which have not exactly created a progressive utopia in recent decades. The second problem is interest groups that dominate the party coalition by practicing a politics of subtraction, whereby policy purity tests seek to narrow the big tent required for progressives to wield power nationally.
ACLU
Posted inCriminal Justice
Coalition presses Baker to reduce prison population
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE WARNING THAT PUBLIC HEALTH precautions are impossible with prisons and jails at their current population levels, a coalition of legal aid and community groups increased their calls Tuesday for the Baker administration to reduce incarceration and limit COVID-19 risks in correctional facilities. Advocates have warned since the start of the outbreak […]
Posted inTransportation
Concerns on police bias linger after distracted driving vote
OVERWHELMING VOTES IN the House and Senate to enact driver safety legislation belie enduring disagreements within the Legislature over how best to monitor and tamp down racial bias by police. The bill that was sent to Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday is now virtually guaranteed to become law, but the legislation was formed in an […]
Posted inUncategorized
ACLU files suit to block restrictive new asylum rules
THE AMERICAN CIVIL Liberties Union, Southern Poverty Law Center, and Center for Constitutional Rights filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday to block sweeping new asylum restrictions announced by the Trump administration. The regulations proposed by the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security on Monday would effectively prevent most asylum claims by not allowing migrants who […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
BPD commish shows his blue colors
WILLIE GROSS’S weekend Facebook post may have received lots of “likes” from law enforcement compatriots, but it stirred a lot of unnecessary ill will in a city that has been long stained by racial tension but so far escaped the police-community showdowns that have riven other US cities in recent years. Boston’s newly installed police […]
Posted inThe Download
BPD commish shows his blue colors
Willie Gross’s weekend Facebook post may have received lots of “likes” from law enforcement compatriots, but it stirred a lot of unnecessary ill will in a city that has been long stained by racial tension but so far escaped the police-community showdowns that have riven other US cities in recent years. Boston’s newly installed police […]
Posted inThe Download
DA races drawing candidates and attention
Back in December, when the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts launched a voter education campaign targeting the state’s district attorneys, it seemed like a long shot. After all, races for district attorney are located pretty far down the ballot, places where the power of incumbency usually rules. But as election season starts to heat […]
Posted inOpinion
Turning protest into policy reform
AS 40,000 PEOPLE converged on the streets of Boston in late August to march against white supremacy, Massachusetts stood as a beacon of nationwide resistance to the racist policies coming out of the White House. It was fitting; historically, many revolutions have started in Massachusetts. Raising our collective voice against bigotry is a healthy exercise […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
ACLU campaign to spotlight crucial role of DAs
THE AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION of Massachusetts says it plans to mount a campaign this fall urging voters to hold the state’s elected district attorneys accountable for the way the criminal justice system works. The impetus for the campaign grew out of a poll released Wednesday indicating that nearly half of Massachusetts voters believe the […]