February 2021 - Page 4 of 10

Klain Says His Job Is to Make Sure Progressive Voices Are Heard

February 22, 2021February 22, 2021 Buck Banks

“Progressives are a big part of our party and making sure their voices are heard here at the White House is a big part of my job.”

— White House chief of staff Ron Klain, in an interview with the Daily Beast.

— Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) delivered a pointed rebuke of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) following his much-criticized trip to Cancun, Mexico, as a winter disaster rocked Texas last week, CNN reports.

Nearly Half of Republicans Would Join Trump’s Party

February 22, 2021 Buck Banks

46%

A Suffolk University-USA Today poll found that 46% of Republicans said they would abandon the GOP and join the Trump party if the former president decided to create one. Only 27% said they would stay with the GOP, with the remainder indicating they would be undecided.

A Half-Million Americans Are Dead from COVID-19

February 22, 2021 Buck Banks

500,000

New York Times: “Roughly one year since the first known death by the coronavirus in the United States, an unfathomable toll is nearing — the loss of half a million people. … No other country has counted so many deaths in the pandemic. More Americans have perished from Covid-19 than on the battlefields of World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined.”

Ocasio-Cortez Raises $4 Million for Texas Relief

February 22, 2021 Buck Banks

$4 million

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said her fundraiser for relief efforts in Texas doubled to $4 million on Saturday.

An Affiliation Revelation

February 10, 2021 Buck Banks

They backed a guy who writes with a Sharpie,
So their affiliation switch seems like malarkey.
But after the insurrection
They had a revelation,
And now Republicans are fleeing the Grand Old Party.

Richard Haas Leaves Republican Party

February 10, 2021 Buck Banks

“I didn’t leave the Republican Party; the Party left me.”

— Council on Foreign Relations President Richard Haass announced that he has officially left the Republican Party, invoking a version of famous quote from his former boss, Ronald Reagan.

Huge Bipartisan Majority Wants Biden’s Relief Package

February 10, 2021 Buck Banks

83%

A new CBS News/YouGov poll finds that 83% of Americans favor passing the economic relief package that Congress is considering.Large majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and independents, as well as Americans of all income levels, approve of the stimulus bill.

Professor Says Trump Lawyers Misrepresented His Words

February 10, 2021 Buck Banks

“The worst part is the three places where they said I said something when, in fact, I said the opposite.”

— Michigan State University professor Brian Kalt, “a constitutional law professor whose work is cited extensively by former President Donald Trump’s lawyers in their impeachment defense brief says his work has been seriously misrepresented,” NPR reports.

Kinzinger Calls on GOP to Hold Trump Accountable

February 10, 2021 Buck Banks

“If the GOP doesn’t take a stand, the chaos of the past few months, and the past few years, could quickly return. The future of our party and our country depends on confronting what happened — so it doesn’t happen again.”

— Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) argues in the Washington Post why his fellow Republicans must hold Trump accountable for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

“Progressives are a big part of our party and making sure their voices are heard here at the White House is a big part of my job.”

— White House chief of staff Ron Klain, in an interview with the Daily Beast.

“Look, when a crisis hits my state, I’m there. I’m not going to go on some vacation.”

— Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) delivered a pointed rebuke of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) following his much-criticized trip to Cancun, Mexico, as a winter disaster rocked Texas last week, CNN reports.

46%

A Suffolk University-USA Today poll found that 46% of Republicans said they would abandon the GOP and join the Trump party if the former president decided to create one. Only 27% said they would stay with the GOP, with the remainder indicating they would be undecided.

500,000

$4 million

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said her fundraiser for relief efforts in Texas doubled to $4 million on Saturday.

“I didn’t leave the Republican Party; the Party left me.”

— Council on Foreign Relations President Richard Haass announced that he has officially left the Republican Party, invoking a version of famous quote from his former boss, Ronald Reagan.

83%

“The worst part is the three places where they said I said something when, in fact, I said the opposite.”

— Michigan State University professor Brian Kalt, “a constitutional law professor whose work is cited extensively by former President Donald Trump’s lawyers in their impeachment defense brief says his work has been seriously misrepresented,” NPR reports.

“If the GOP doesn’t take a stand, the chaos of the past few months, and the past few years, could quickly return. The future of our party and our country depends on confronting what happened — so it doesn’t happen again.”

— Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) argues in the Washington Post why his fellow Republicans must hold Trump accountable for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“The man is afraid of the voice of the people and that the people understand and know what he’s doing. He’s trying to stifle the ability of journalists to let the people of America know what’s really going on with their government.”

— “Kamala Harris called President Donald Trump’s ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House ‘absolutely abhorrent,’” The Wrap reports.

“Not one of them is trained in technical skills. Not one research PhD, as opposed to China, where half the cabinet is science and technology PhDs. We’re led by grifters and fools.”

— Columbia professor Jeffrey Sachs, on X, on President Trump’s 35-person cabinet.

“Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far… The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.”

— Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), breaking with President Trump in a direct-to-camera video.

Numerati

1,000

10%

“The unprecedented spate of mid-decade redistricting for the U.S. House has changed the congressional districts for one-tenth of Americans and significantly altered the makeup of at least one-fifth of districts, according to a new study,” the Associated Press reports.

71%

$9.5 billion

“The Trump administration last year spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave for federal workers as part of its plan to shrink the government and save taxpayers money, according to a new estimate by a congressional watchdog,” CNN reports.

470

Reuters has documented at least 470 targets of retribution under Trump’s leadership – from federal employees and prosecutors to universities and media outlets. The list illuminates the sweeping effort by the president and his administration to punish dissent and reshape the government.