Category Archives: Democrat

By Tom Lawrence| For the American News

SIOUX FALLS Berk Ehrmantraut says he has one main goal as he begins work as the South Dakota Democratic Partys executive director.

Redefine how the people of South Dakota view the Democratic Party, Ehrmantraut said at his office in a small office complex in Sioux Falls. People dont see a lot of Democratic Party, so much of what they hear is from Republicans.

He said the party needs to emphasize its dedication to jobs, health care and education, while pledging to end corruption in state government.

Its a tall order for Ehrmantraut, a 24-year-old former Aberdonianwho introduced himself to party membersJune 25at the annual McGovern Day fundraiser in Sioux Falls. He had been the senior digital communications manager for the Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, based in Washington, D.C., before returning to South Dakota to manage daily affairs for the state party.

Ive worked on campaigns for Democrats in South Dakota for a long time, he said. Felt like this post was the right way to make an impact.

Ehrmantraut worked for former state Sen. Billie Suttons 2018 gubernatorial campaign and Sutton, in a video message during the McGovern Day program, offered high praise for his former staffer, whom he said had great skills and a strong work ethic.

So excited to welcome Berk back to South Dakota, he said.

Its a big job for a young man. But the state party is rebounding, according to Chairman Randy Seiler, who said an infusion of cash from the Democratic National Committee has helped keep offices open in both Sioux Falls and Rapid City and hire Ehrmantraut and two other staffers.

Berk is smart, hardworking, diligentand a great organizer. He is committed to South Dakota's future. He will be a terrific asset to South Dakota in this new role," Sutton said of Ehrmantraut in a news release.

Seiler said that after a nationwide search for a new executive director, Ehrmantraut rose to the top. The search committee, which included Sutton and party Vice Chairwoman Nikki Gronli, made a unanimous recommendation to hire him.

In reviewing his credentials, he has the right mix in terms of his background, a strong policy background, working for nonprofits, a strong political background working for several campaigns, including for the Sutton campaign in 2018, Seiler told the American News. Berk etched all those boxes. He is a committed, dedicated, altruistic young individual dedicated to moving the party forward, doing whats right, doing good, and helping the Democratic Party be part of the decision-making process in South Dakota.

First, the party needs to get more people to the table. It hasnt won a statewide election since 2008, is heavily outnumbered in both chambers of the Legislature and has struggled with financial problems in recent years.

Pam Cole, a former Brookings County state senator, resigned as executive director in February after one year on the job. She now works as a grassroots organizer for Dakotans for Health, which is seeking to expand Medicaid in the state and other health care issues.

The South Dakota Democratic Partyhas gone through a lot of staffers in recent years and all have struggled to recruit candidates, raise money and, most importantly, win elections.

Ehrmantraut said he senses things are looking up.

Theres a lot of energy right now in the party, he said.

Raising money was his specialty during the 2018 gubernatorial race, and he said candidates will be able to compete with the always well-funded Republican nominees in 2022.

First, however, the Democrats need to line people up to run against three high-profile incumbents. Sen. John Thune, Rep. Dusty Johnson and Gov. Kristi Noem all are up for re-election next year. Ehrmantraut said the party will find good, competitive candidates.

Sutton is regularly mentioned as a potential candidate, but Ehrmantraut said he has no idea at least none he would disclose if the former state senator is ready for another campaign.

Youd have to ask him, he said.

Former Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, now the president of Augustana University, and former U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson, the son of retired Sen. Tim Johnson, are two other prominent Democrats who seemingly could have any nomination they choose.

I havent talked to them, Ehrmantraut said.

One person he knows wont run for office in the foreseeable future, if ever, is himself. Ehrmantraut said he enjoys the behind-the-scenes work and has no desire to be a candidate.

No, Im focused on getting other people elected, he said. Ill talk to you about that in 20 years.

This isn't the first time Ehrmantraut will be quoted talking politics in the American News.

When he was in sixth grade, his class watched President Barack Obama take the oath of office during the school day. Social studies teacher Brett Deibert knew Ehrmantraut kept a close eye on politics, so he asked him for his views.

Hell do all right, the young political observer said.

Ehrmantraut was born in Port Angeles, Wash., but his parents Mark and Brenda Ehrmantraut moved to Aberdeen when he was in sixth grade. They remained in townuntil he was a sophomore in high school before moving to Beresford, where he completed his high school studies. Ehrmantraut got an early start in politics.

In 2014, he campaigned for a Democratic legislative candidate, knocking on doors, doing data entry and communications work. They lost the election in a tough district for Democrats, Ehrmantraut said.

He was a Young Electoral Legislative Leader fellow for the state party. Ehrmantraut worked on a successful petition drive in 2015 to reverse efforts to create a youth minimum wage. Ballot measures have offered bright spots for Democrats during the last decade.

In 2016, he worked for Senate candidate Jay Williams, who lost to Sen. John Thune in a landslide. Then, in 2018, he was a key figure in Sutton's race for governor, which he lost after a vigorous campaign against Noem.

Ehrmantraut attended American University in Washington, D.C., and continued his political training.

In June 2016, he was the universitys delegate to the 2016 College Debate convention at the Dominican University of California in San Rafael. It brought together students from 150 college campuses in the U.S.

After returning, Ehrmantraut told The Eagle, American Universitys campus newspaper, that he learned by listening to various perspectives from young people who were from across the country.

He said he was passionate about ensuring all people had access to health care, having a pro-immigrant national policyand ending gun violence. Not everyone at the seminar shared his opinions, he said then.

So, we had one group session breakout about immigration and I ended up talking to someone who had totally opposite views on what immigration should be and how we should handle it, Ehrmantraut said. But it was a really interesting conversation and a chance to engage with people with different views, which I dont really get to do often.

I think its important for young people to be informed because there are things that can really affect them, he said. For example, the cost of college is something that were all dealing with, (especially)going somewhere like American (University), and there are things that happen in Congress and the political system that really affect what the cost of college is going to be, and how were going to pay for it, and other things like health care. There are decisions made everyday (in the government)that really affect that.

His view on that hasnt changed. Ehrmantraut said he plans to work long days to make the Democratic Party competitive again. As he left the office one day during a recent week, Sydney Swenson, the partys data and field director, told him not to think about politics during the evening.

Thats not going to happen, he replied.

Editor's note: Pam Cole's last name has been corrected in this column.

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New SD Democratic Party leader just 24 but has years of experience - AberdeenNews.com

WASHINGTON As Gov. Greg Abbott tries to raise cash so the state can pick up building former President Donald Trumps border wall, Texas Democrats are trying to keep him from tapping into more than $15 billion in COVID relief funding the federal government is sending to Texas.

Every Texas Democrat in Congress signed a letter on Monday urging Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to take steps to block Abbott from using COVID relief funding on border barriers, asking her to issue a formal rule making clear that recovery funding cannot be used for a border wall, fence, or similar installation. They also say the Treasury needs to make rules ensuring the money cant be used to replenish state funding spent on a border barrier.

Its the latest in an ongoing battle over record numbers of migrants crossing the border and encountering border patrol a fight in which Abbott seeks to lead the GOP on a national level as he pushes to have the state of Texas finish the border wall and begin arresting migrants. Abbott also moved to revoke state licenses from shelters housing migrant children as he declared an emergency in counties along the border earlier this month.

APPROVAL GAP: Texans agree with Gov. Abbott over Biden on border response, poll finds

The governor who will tour parts of the border with Trump this week on Monday tweeted out a video of a tractor clearing brush, declaring that building the border barrier has begun.

But Democrats point out that Abbott has so far identified just a fraction of what it would cost to fill the gaps of the border barrier, and they fear he plans to use federal money to reimburse state funding hes already started to pull for the project.

With no Republican support, we approved $350 billion in the American Rescue Plan for eligible state, local, territorial, and tribal governments to assist local leaders, who confronted pandemic challenges, and to assist with economic and job recovery, the 13 Texas Democrats in Congress wrote in a letter to Yellen. We are concerned by the prospect of Texas Governor Greg Abbotts potential misuse of these funds to continue the misguided plans of President Trump to extend a wall along the border between Texas and Mexico.

A spokeswoman for Abbott said he still plans to call a special legislative session in the fall for lawmakers to decide how to dole out the $15.8 billion in COVID relief Texas is set to receive so the entire Legislature can participate in the allocation process in a way that best serves all Texans.

The governor will work with the Legislature during that special session to determine the most effective use of those federal funds to address the needs of Texans, Renae Eze said.

Abbott has directed that $250 million be taken from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as a down payment for the wall and his office reported raising $450,000 in private donations as Abbott has stressed crowdsourcing will be key to funding the effort. Abbott said the $250 million will go toward hiring a project manager, who will eventually provide a full cost and timeline for the project.

The former administration devoted about $2.8 billion to build or replace barriers along portions of the border in Texas, completing just 55 miles of new wall, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Trump officials had planned to add some 280 miles to the wall in the state. Biden stopped construction on the wall and the White House said earlier this month that some portions of the wall cost the Trump administration $46 million per mile.

[Abbott] has failed to raise enough money to construct more than a few yards, U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a San Antonio Democrat, said in a statement. With so many needs in Texas, spending for a useless wall is truly outrageous. With Abbott having already wasted millions on his pseudo-border security effort, we are determined to restrain him from robbing the recovery funds to misuse for this boondoggle.

It isn't the first time congressional Democrats have asked the federal government to keep a close eye on Texas' stimulus spending decisions.

During the first round of COVID funding last year, Congress allocated $1.3 billion to support public education in Texas, but officials cut state commitments by the same amount and moved the money into the general fund.

Congress later passed another two rounds of stimulus funding that included billions more in public school money. Democrats wrote a similar letter to federal leaders in April, asking that they ensure Texas only use the cash to supplement existing funding commitments, rather than replace them.

IN-DEPTH: White House to Congress: Leave border wall funding to Texas, at up to $46M a mile

The letter comes as recent public polling in Texas shows that Abbott, running for reelection next year, has earned the approval of substantially more Texans than Biden has on the issue.

Forty six percent of Texans approve of Abbotts handling of immigration and the border, according to the survey from the University of Texas and the Texas Tribune, while just 37 percent disapprove. Just 27 percent of Texans approve of Bidens handling of the issue, meanwhile, and 57 percent disapprove.

The online poll of 1,200 residents found Texans are deeply divided on the issue along party lines as well as racial and ethnic groups. Notably, Abbott has a slight edge on the subject among Hispanic Texans, who both parties are trying to woo. Thirty nine percent approve of his handling of the border, compared to 34 percent who side with Biden.

Biden, meanwhile, has said he is working to build a more humane immigration system as his administration deals with a surge in encounters with migrants that began under the Trump administration and reached record levels this spring. The White House has focused its efforts on standing up shelters to house a record number of unaccompanied children arriving at the southern border, an effort that could soon be complicated by Abbotts move to revoke state licenses from shelters housing many of them.

Abbott, who has not ruled out a run for president, has remained laser-focused on the border as he heads into a more immediate gubernatorial primary field in which at least one challenger, former state Sen. Don Huffines, was already campaigning on a border wall.

Abbott has Trumps endorsement, but Huffines has continued to hammer him over the border, saying in a statement last week that Abbott stole his wall idea and calling his plan unacceptable and impractical.

Abbotts plan also includes directing state troopers to begin arresting migrants, a move that immigration experts say is legally dubious after the Supreme Court stopped Arizona from a similar effort in 2012, ruling that only the federal government can enforce immigration law.

Cayla Harris contributed reporting from Austin.

ben.wermund@chron.com

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Democrats try to block Abbott from using COVID funds on border wall - Houston Chronicle

Almost six months into President Bidens first year, some yellow warning lights are flashing for Democrats.

The presidents party has plenty to feel good about, to be sure. The economys recovery from the coronavirus slide is proceeding apace, and the stock market, which former President Donald Trump predicted would collapse upon his departure, actually is up 10% since the Biden inaugural. Mr. Bidens approval ratings are solid, and the infrastructure deal struck last week with Senate Republicans has the potential to become a long-sought bipartisan achievement.

Yet Democrats control Congress by the narrowest of margins, and face a Republican congressional leadership intent, above all, on winning back control in next years midterm elections. They are probing for Democratic weak spotsand finding some.

Mr. Bidens win last year masked Democrats continuing problems with working-class voters, the partys traditional base. Despite his image as a working-class kind of guy, Mr. Biden actually won a lower share of the working-class vote, both white and nonwhite, than did former President Barack Obama in 2012, according to data compiled by Catalist, a Democratic analytics firm. Meantime, House Democratic candidates underperformed Mr. Biden slightly among white working-class voters.

Some new political currents threaten to continue that trend. Over time, Democrats have lost some working-class voters for cultural reasons, and the woke rhetoric among party progressives may exacerbate that problem. Thats why so many Republicans are using the spread of critical race theorywhich advances the argument that America remains in the grip of systemic racismas a cudgel against Democrats.

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What Should Worry Democrats on Path to Midterms - The Wall Street Journal

Some Democrats are eager to build on their Affordable Care Act victories in the Supreme Court by filling a gaping hole created along the way: the lack of Medicaid coverage for millions of low-income Americans in 12 states.

But so far, Republican leaders in those states are refusing to use the health law to expand Medicaid, despite considerable financial incentives offered under the law and sweetened under the Biden administration. Some are trying to defy the will of their own voters, who passed ballot initiatives calling for expansion.

And in Washington, Democrats who want to act are divided about when and how.

Democratic House members from states that have not expanded have begun to push for the federal government to intervene and provide coverage to the four million Americans shut out of Medicaid expansion.

We cannot wait anymore, said Representative James Clyburn, Democrat of South Carolina, one of the holdout states. The states didnt do it. We in Congress have got to move.

But some Democrats quietly express reluctance about spending billions to fix a coverage gap created by Republican governors and legislatures when that money could go to other health care priorities. Democrats are also considering expanding Medicare, which provides coverage to older Americans, by lowering the eligibility age to 60 and covering additional benefits.

If you were thinking in strictly political terms, advocating for Medicare expansion has a lot more political gold than Medicaid expansion, said Joaquin Castro, a Democratic congressman from Texas, which has nearly 1.5 million people shut out of Medicaid eligibility, the most of any state. But that is why we as Democrats need to redouble our efforts to focus on this vulnerable population.

How to bring coverage to Americans in those 12 states is a problem that the creators of the Affordable Care Act never anticipated. The original law expanded Medicaid in all states to cover Americans earning less than 138 percent of the federal poverty line ($17,420 for an individual as of 2021) and required states to provide some funding. In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that provision unconstitutional and instructed the government to make the program optional.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia, all with Democratic leadership, joined the program when it began in 2014. Twenty more states have since joined, including six that used ballot initiatives to circumvent Republican legislatures and governors opposing the program.

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Democrats are divided over how to expand Medicaid in 12 states. - The New York Times

Welcome to Pollapalooza, our weekly polling roundup.

Rising murder, aggravated assault and auto theft rates have increased concern about crime among the American public. According to polling from YouGov/The Economist, the share of Americans who say crime is the most important issue facing America has increased since President Biden took office to a greater degree than any issue except national security. Relatedly, a May 22-25 Fox News poll found that 73 percent of registered voters thought there was more crime nationwide than there was a year earlier. Only 17 percent thought there was less crime, and 7 percent thought the level of crime had stayed about the same.

Fewer, but still a majority, believed crime was up in their local area, too: 54 percent, compared with 28 percent who thought there was less crime in their area and 15 percent who thought it was about the same. (Its worth noting, though, that Americans perpetually believe that crime is on the rise, even when it is not.)

A Gallup poll earlier this year also found that only 27 percent of Americans were satisfied with the nations policies to reduce or control crime, and that 65 percent were dissatisfied. Thats a big change from 2020, when 47 percent were satisfied and 49 percent were dissatisfied.

Altogether, this has sparked a narrative that the rise in violent crime poses a political problem for Democrats, who are the ruling party and also traditionally perceived as softer on crime. But at this point, its not really clear that the crime issue will hurt Democrats and anti-police progressives politically. For starters, Americans are actually pretty divided on what the best solution to stopping crime is. In a YouGov/Yahoo News poll from May 24-26, 32 percent of adults said that law enforcement is not tough enough on most offenders but about the same amount, 27 percent, said law enforcement is too tough on most offenders. (Eighteen percent thought law enforcements level of toughness was about right, while 22 percent werent sure.)

The public is also pretty sharply divided on whether Democrats or Republicans are better on the issue of crime. When asked whether Biden or former President Donald Trump has done a better job handling crime, 34 percent of respondents to the YouGov/Yahoo poll said Trump, while 32 percent said Biden. (Fifteen percent thought the two were about equally good on crime.) Of course, this just mirrors peoples existing partisan preferences a majority of Republicans preferred Trumps handling, while a majority of Democrats preferred Bidens but that just bolsters the theory that crime isnt an issue thats changing anybodys mind.

Similarly, in elections so far in 2021, it also doesnt look like crime is driving voters toward more conservative candidates. True, this weeks Democratic primary for mayor of New York City focused heavily on crime, and the winner was most likely Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, arguably the races most pro-police candidate. But there are plenty of counterexamples: In the Democratic primary for Philadelphia district attorney, incumbent Larry Krasner the George Washington of the progressive criminal-justice movement handily defeated a moderate who attempted to tie Krasners policies to Philadelphias rising crime rate. And in this months special election for New Mexicos 1st Congressional District, the Republican candidate ran what was virtually a single-issue campaign on crime and policing issues; Democrat Melanie Stansbury ended up winning by 25 percentage points, exceeding the districts D+18 partisan lean.

Its possible crime emerges as a wedge issue in the 2022 midterms. But so far, theres little evidence that it is helping one party over the other.

According to FiveThirtyEights presidential approval tracker, 52.6 percent of Americans approve of the job Biden is doing as president, while 42.2 percent disapprove (a net approval rating of +10.5 points). At this time last week, 51.9 percent approved and 42.0 percent disapproved (a net approval rating of +9.9 points). One month ago, Biden had an approval rating of 54.3 percent and a disapproval rating of 40.3 percent, for a net approval rating of +14.0 points.

Excerpt from:

Americans Are Worried About Crime, But That Doesnt Mean Theyre Blaming Democrats - FiveThirtyEight

The older generation does not want to pass the baton. You dont have to die in your seat. Pass the baton on, said Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones, a 37-year-old Democrat who lives in Hastings district.

I want to make sure that Im not stepping into ageism, but we have a bench problem, he said. We have so many good young elected officials, but theyre on the bench.

DeSantis scheduling move led to howls of protest in the majority-Black district because its residents will go without elected representation for so long. But privately theres a growing realization among Florida Democrats that Hastings refusal to leave office helped enable the outcome.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks at the end of a legislative session at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla on April 30, 2021. | AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File

Both parties have their share of elderly members (Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley is considering running again next year for a term that would end when he is 93). But Democrats have been grappling with a noticeable generational divide within their ranks for some time President Joe Biden and top Democratic congressional leaders are all well over 70. Ten of the 12 House members over the age of 80 are Democrats.

The issue has taken on an increased urgency given the partys tenuous hold on Congress. The loss of just one Democrat would tip the balance of power in the Senate, which has heightened scrutiny of its oldest member, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein, who has faced recent questions about her fitness for office. She turned 88 on Tuesday. Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy now 81 and running for reelection to his ninth term had a brief hospital scare in January that alarmed activists.

It was one of the few wake-up calls: Holy s---, we are one stroke or car wreck or Me Too scandal from not having a Senate majority, said Julian Brave NoiseCat, vice president of policy and strategy for the liberal think tank Data for Progress. It is the thinnest majority you can have.

Democrats have a slightly larger margin in the House, but that advantage has been whittled down in recent months by Hastings death and other departures.

Thats led to mounting frustration with the old guard, as well as a feeling of dread that the party is just a heartbeat away from losing control of at least one chamber of Congress.

Progressive activists like NoiseCat are increasingly concerned that issues important to Generation Z and millennial voters such as climate change, voting rights and criminal justice reform are stalled in the hidebound Senate, where the lack of action could depress turnout next year and flip control of one or both chambers of Congress.

Theres a generation of young progressives energized by politics, and a big question in front of the Democratic Party in terms of its ability to channel that energy is whether or not they can deliver on issues that matter to young people, NoiseCat said.

Worries about the make-up of the U.S. Supreme Court where the September death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, enabled President Donald Trump to replace her with conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, 49 are also coloring the debate.

Justice Stephen Breyer, 82 and one of the high courts three liberal justices, faces an organized effort to pressure him to retire and make way for a replacement.

Brian Fallon, a top Democratic operative and executive director of the advocacy group Demand Justice, said Breyers arguments for staying on the court resemble those made by Ginsburg and older politicians like Leahy, who point out that theyre still doing a good job and remain the best choices for their positions.

The big divide in the Democratic Party is as much ideological as it is generational, Fallon said, adding that its not just about policy.

It applies to how politics is conducted, beyond taxes and crime and the war on drugs, he said. Theres no more patience for the idea that the Republicans are going to negotiate in good faith.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the 31-year-old progressive who won her New York seat in 2018 by defeating a longtime Democratic incumbent, reminded her Twitter followers earlier this month that the 2009 death of 77-year-old Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy stymied President Barack Obamas agenda.

During the Obama admin, folks thought wed have a 60 Dem majority for a while. It lasted 4 months, she tweeted. Dems are burning precious time & impact negotiating w/GOP who wont even vote for a Jan 6 commission. [Senate Minority Leader Mitch] McConnells plan is to run out the clock. Its a hustle. We need to move now.

Waleed Shahid, a Democratic strategist and spokesperson for the group Justice Democrats, said he wants the 78-year-old president, 70-year-old Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, 70, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 81, to realize that time is ticking for everyone.

I dont inherently have a problem with a politicians age, Shahid said. The issue is that the Democratic Partys narrow control of the federal government could be upended by illness or death at any moment. That fact should be giving Biden, Schumer, and Pelosi much more urgency to get a broad agenda through Congress as quickly as possible.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, seen here in February 2021, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992. | Greg Nash/Pool via AP

That would require eliminating the filibuster, though, and senators like Feinstein are cool to the idea. In 2018, then-state Sen. Kevin de Len, 54, unsuccessfully challenged her from the left in California, saying it was time for a change. But the powerful senator still managed to hold on to win a fifth term.

There is always going to be an expiration date on the value of seniority, de Len, now a Los Angeles City Council member, told POLITICO. Instead of holding power hostage to our very last days, lets use every ounce of it to help the next generation cut a path to strong leadership both within our party, and in the halls of power.

In Florida, Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, 42, had the same idea when she unsuccessfully challenged Hastings in 2018 and 2020.

Cherfilus-McCormick said she respected Hastings, a beloved figure in the Black community who was first elected to Congress in 1992. But she challenged him because she said he wasnt delivering for the district and we cant sacrifice the community based on the fact that someones an icon.

With Hastings death, Cherfilus-McCormick is now running in what promises to be a crowded primary to succeed him a stark contrast to her two previous solo bids against Hastings.

Theyre jumping in because they believe its an opportunity of a lifetime, because the assumption is that you stay there until you pass. Thats something we have to deal with and confront head on, she said. What we have to deal with as a party is taking succession-planning seriously.

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You dont have to die in your seat: Democrats stress over aging members - POLITICO

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette photographer Tommy Metthe took the top honor in the 71st annual Green Eyeshade Awards competition. Metthes sports photography collection earned the prestigious journalism competitions The Green Eyeshade Award.

On the way to taking the overall award, his sports photography collection also placed first in Sports Photography/Newspapers and won the Print Graphics Divisions overall award.

Columnist Philip Martins criticism portfolio won first place for Criticism/All Dailies.

The newspapers Tracking Coronavirus webpage was first in Specialized Site. Honored for their work on the website were Brian Smith, Maggie McNeary, David Wilson and former employee Yutao Chen.

Other Arkansas Democrat-Gazette winners were former reporter Tony Holt, who won third place Deadline Reporting/Large Dailies for coverage of the federal execution of a Arkansas familys killer.

Reporters Joseph Flaherty and Ginny Monk and former reporter John Moritz won third place in Non-Deadline Reporting/Large Dailies for Covid Behind Bars.

Photographer Staton Breidenthal took second place in Spot News Photography/Newspapers for a collection of his breaking news photographs.

The second place in Feature Photography/Newspapers went to photographer Stephen Swofford.

The newspapers Children in Peril online presentation on child deaths by gun violence and suicide won third place in Digital Media Presentation.

Second place in the Sports Reporting/Online went to Chen and Pete Perkins for 2020 Little Rock Marathon Preview.

Democrat-Gazette staff won third place in Specialized Site for its Lives Remembered online presentation.

Since 1950, the The Green Eyeshade Awards have recognized the best journalism in the southeastern United States. The awards are conducted by Southerners from the Society of Professional Journalists and are open to print, television, radio and online journalists from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.

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Democrat-Gazette photographer wins The Green Eyeshade Award - Arkansas Online

Let Republicans complain that the Jan. 6 investigation is unfair. The facts will speak for themselves. The evidence and testimony will tell the story.

Kurt Bardella| Opinion columnist

The last time a House speaker set up a select committee with an investigative mandate, Republican John Boehner was speaker, it was 2014, and he was launching the GOPs sixth probe of aterrorist attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya,on Sept. 11, 2012.Now Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced shell name a select committee to look into the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. If we are to do justice to the events of Jan. 6, we must resist the temptation to compare the Benghazi and insurrection investigations.

The triggers forthese two select committee investigations could not be more different. Jan.6 was an act of domestic terrorism incited and encouraged by our own political leaders. Benghazi was an act of terrorism that exposed vulnerabilities in our foreign embassy security protocols, and Republicans turned it into away todestroy former Secretary of State Hillary Clintonafter earlier investigations had found noserious wrongdoing.

From minute one, it became clear, the purpose was to blame then-secretary of state Clinton, particularly after she became a Democratic presidential candidate," the late Rep. Elijah Cummings,the senior Democraton the Benghazi Select Committee, said in his book, "We're Better Than This." "The investigation put her under constant scrutiny, accusation, and presumed guilt at one point including an eleven-hour grilling of Secretary Clinton herself.

Cummings instincts were confirmed byHouse Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, who infamously bragged to Sean Hannity that the Benghazi proceedings were part of a strategy to fight and win the 2016 presidential election.

Moreover, when terrorists stormed the Benghazi compound in Libya, resulting in the deaths of four Americans, they did not do so at the instruction of the president of the United States. They did not do so with the support of one of the two major political parties in America. They did not do so as part of a widespread disinformation campaign designed to undermine the integrity of American democracy.

The structure of the Democrats' new select committee must reflect the new reality that their Republican counterparts are engaged in an active cover-up of the events they are investigating. If Republicans in Congress wanted to be honest and equal partners in this investigation, they would have supported forming a bipartisan 9/11-style commission. Instead, they blocked it.

The Republican strategy for the Jan. 6 attack isto pretend it didnt happen.Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia hasused the phrase normal tourist visit to describe the events of a violent insurrection. Nevermind there's a photo of himon the House floor trying to barricade the doors to protect himself from those tourists. Other Republicans have labeled those who wanted to "hang Mike Pence as patriots. Its possible that some Republicans in Congress even gave tours to insurrection planners, who may have used those tours to scout the layoutof the Capitol.

Some Republicans have made a conscious decision to side with the violent Capitol rioters. Manywill attack Democrats and label the select committeea partisan witch hunt. They will complain that the committee isnt fair or equal. My advice: Let them. The facts will speak for themselves. The evidence and testimony will tell the story.

Danger ahead: January 6 Commission defeat previews failures to come on voting and elections

Asthey did with this year'simpeachment proceedings, House Democrats need to appoint their most skilled and savvy members to the select committee. Some who come to mind: Reps. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, Adam Schiff of California, Eric Swalwell of California, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ted Lieu of California, Val Demings of Florida, Joaquin Castro of Texas, Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, Veronica Escobar of Texasand Karen Bass of California.

And the Democratic chair needs to have unilateral subpoena and deposition authority. A subpoena request from Republicansor an effort to veto a subpoenashould require a majority vote of the committee. If Republicans dont like that, just quote Benghazi Chair Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., to them from 2015:I am unwilling to let the minority party veto subpoenas when it is clear they have prejudged the outcome of the investigation.

In addition, House Democratsshould strongly consider ditching the normal five-minute volleys that alternate between Democrats and Republicans. Instead, give each side a set bloc of time to ask their questions. Just like in an actual court hearing, make the witness answer questions from one side first, and then be cross-examined after.

Finally, nothing is more important than a firstimpression. The select committee'sfirst witness should be Washington Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone. Let officer Fanone tell the story of Jan.6from his firsthand perspective. Dare those law and order Republicans to tell officer Fanone that what he experienced was just a normal tourist visit. Show the world the bodycam footage depicting the moment he was brutally assaulted by these patriots.

Mark your calendar: January 6, 2025 could be the date American democracy dies

Republicans aredesperate to move on. Many are trying to convince the world that what we can readily see with our eyes and ears isnt the truth. Democrats dont have to overreach. They dont have to use fiery rhetoric. All they have to do is show the truth, the whole truthand nothing but the truth. Republicans know that, and theyre terrified of it. Its time to find out why.

Kurt Bardella, amember of USA TODAYs Board of Contributors and an adviser to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, isa former spokesperson and senior adviser for Republicans on the House Oversight Committee. Follow him on Twitter:@KurtBardella

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Republicans are terrified of Capitol attack truths and Democrats must find out why - USA TODAY

CASPER Two Wyoming lawmakers and a former state representative say they were targeted as part of an undercover operation performed by conservative operatives, one a Cody native, to infiltrate political campaigns and progressive groups during the 2020 election cycle.

Wyoming appeared to be the home base for these efforts, according to an investigation published Friday by the New York Times. The conservative operatives, Sofia LaRocca and Beau Maier, a 2003 CHS grad, reportedly used the Wapiti home of Erik Prince, the founder of private military firm Blackwater, for training. The effort was funded, the newspaper reported, by Susan Gore, a wealthy Gore-Tex heiress and Jackson resident, who founded the Wyoming Liberty Group, a political advocacy organization with conservative and libertarian leanings.

Rep. Karlee Provenza (D-Laramie) and her husband Nate Martin, the executive director of progressive group Better Wyoming, were among those targeted by LaRocca and Maier, according to the New York Times. So were state Democratic Party leaders and Wyoming Speaker of the House Eric Barlow, R-Gillette. The effort targeted moderate Republicans as well as Democrats.

They pretended to be our friends, Provenza told the Star-Tribune. They stuck around for a long time. I had conversations with these people for over a year.

Provenza and many of the politicos targeted by Maier and LaRocca said the two were not very adept at espionage.

They also were bad at what they did, Provenza said. When we met these folks early on, we were referring to them as moles. We believed they were not who they said they were, but we wrote ourselves off as paranoid.

LaRocca approached the Democratic Party in late January 2019, when she expressed an interest in getting involved in fundraising for the party, explained Nina Hebert, who was then the digital director for the Democratic Party.

There, she remained as a volunteer until she got hired by the Wyoming Democratic Party as a contract fundraiser, although she never raised any money, Hebert said. LaRocca left the organization in June 2020.

I dont think they have enough working knowledge of the political process as a whole, Hebert said.

Barlow had a less intimate experience with the couple. He said he had correspondence with Maier several times over email and phone calls and twice in person.

The majority of the interactions were cordial and policy-centric, he added. He too called the couples spying tactics sad.

Sara Burlingame, a former Democratic state representative from Cheyenne, says she was also targeted by LaRocca while she was in office. LaRocca requested a meeting with her about flipping Wyoming blue, Burlingame said. LaRocca proposed that Democrats need to be really creative and inventive and steal pages from the Republican playbook, like secretly recording, Burlingame said.

But issues in that conversation arose when it became clear that LaRocca did not know much about Wyomings politics.

She didnt know who anyone was in the Legislature was, she didnt know any of our issues, Burlingame said. Its not just that theyre unethical, theyre unrealistic. In a nutshell bad at what they do.

Provenza told a nearly identical story.

Maier also approached Provenza and Martin with a pitch to make Wyoming a blue state, Provenza said.

They also were bad at what they did, Provenza later added. The way he went about it was just clunky.

But why target Wyoming the reddest state in the country, where Democrats wield little power?

We know that the organization is based in Wyoming ... and so it may be that this is the pilot program or some sort of training for these operatives that they will send to other states, said Joe Barbuto, chair of the Wyoming Democratic Party, who also met with LaRocca on multiple occasions.

As of present, theres really no concrete reason that we know of that they were in Wyoming except for thats where this organization was headquartered, he added.

Wyoming politics have, generally speaking, become coarser over the past decade, with more national interference. But state leaders dont want political espionage to be the new normal.

For me, I dont want to sit back and say, Yeah, this is politics because that invites a dangerous reality. It should be completely unacceptable, Provenza said.

Barlow echoed Provenza.

Its very disappointing that we would even consider this to be normal and I dont think anyone does, and I dont hope they do, Barlow said.

Still, the disclosure of the undercover political operation has shaken the Wyoming political sphere, according to interviews with multiple state lawmakers.

I go from not knowing how to feel to extremely violated, Provenza said. These people were in my home.

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NY Times: Cody native one of spies that infiltrated Democrats - Cody Enterprise

WASHINGTONDemocrats face a daunting task: turning years of talking about raising taxes on corporations and high-income Americans into legislation that can get through razor-thin congressional majorities and onto President Bidens desk.

As top Democrats design a roughly $1 trillion infrastructure deal, and a second, broader antipoverty package in coming months, they need to resolve differences over the amount of spending, how much must be paid for, and which of Mr. Bidens proposed tax increases should advance. After meeting with senior administration officials on Thursday, the tax committee chairmen in Congress said lawmakers would make those decisions over the next several weeks.

Were going to build the plan, figure out what people want, what theyre willing to pay for, but also not to be deterred, House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D., Mass.), said in an interview Friday. Theres this moment, when were talking about Great Society achievements and were talking about New Deal achievements. This is it.

Democrats raised taxes each of the last two times they controlled the governmentin 1993 and 2010after bruising political battles that drew objections from moderates inside the party.

Now, some Democrats are convinced that tax politics have changed and public concern about inequality and corporate tax avoidance make the issue less toxic. The goal: approach 1990s levels of taxes, as a share of the economy, without reversing middle-class tax cuts enacted since then or raising taxes directly on households making under $400,000, a level that covers all but 2% of Americans.

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Democrats Focus on Turning Tax Talk Into Action - The Wall Street Journal