Eric Papa
ericpapaclarinet.bsky.social
Eric Papa
@ericpapaclarinet.bsky.social
NYC has a great public financing system that allocates to candidates matching funds for campaigns. This means that when a candidate raises a min. amount of money in small dollar donations (under $250), they obtain matching public funds.
How Zohran Mamdani Beat Citizens United
The New York City mayoral candidate used an undervalued political strategy to battle against dark money.
www.levernews.com
November 3, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
🎧LEVER TIME: @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social is the culmination of a 40-year movement that built NY’s clean elections system giving outsider candidates public money to compete with oligarchs.

Now, there’s a push to replicate that system across the country.

Search “Lever Time” in your podcast app.
How Zohran Mamdani Beat Citizens United
The New York City mayoral candidate used an undervalued political strategy to battle against dark money.
www.levernews.com
November 3, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
"Factchecking Trump on '60 Minutes'"

In today's 'First Draft' morning newsletter from Zeteo, I counted and debunked at least *17 obvious, brazen lies* that the president told CBS's Norah O'Donnell, and that she just let slide:
🧾 Factchecking Trump on '60 Minutes'
Mehdi debunks the president's lies, unpacks the failure of our mainstream media, and has the latest from Gaza, as well as Trump's 'Great Gatsby'-esque Halloween party.
zeteo.com
November 3, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Another big reason why I will always recommend @prospect.org for news.

Important read.
November 2, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Out of all of the outlets I read for news, there is always one I keep coming back to: The American Prospect.

They do a great job and the best part is that they don't have an opinion section like the New York Times does. They just have articles that tell you what's happening and what it all means.
October 30, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
NEW: @aclu.org obtained ICE's "Alien Enemies Act Validation Guide," confirming all it takes to be sent to rot in prison in El Salvador is being Venezuelan and 1) having a tattoo an ICE officer says is a "gang tattoo" and 2) displaying "logos," "symbols" or clothes an ICE officer says are gang signs.
March 30, 2025 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
March 30, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
AOC: I want to live in an America that guarantees healthcare to every person.

I want to live in an America that has a living wage for every person

I want to live in an America where you have free speech to express yourself and not be afraid of being put on a list or deported.
March 21, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Reposted by Eric Papa
23 Senators constituents have gotten responses from - out of 23 four are some version of No, Sens. Kim, Sanders, Murray and Kaine. talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/tally-3
Tally
In this post, I am collecting reports about where Democratic senators are...
talkingpointsmemo.com
March 10, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
Elon Musk has called for Amtrak and the Postal Service to be privatized.

Be warned: this is a call to gut essential public services to pad corporate profits.

Here are my 5 rules of thumb for when public services should NOT be privatized.
The Truth About Privatization | Robert Reich
Robert Reich explains why using the private sector for government services can have negative consequences. Watch More: 7 Economics Fundamentals ►► https://youtu.be/utuX4_uD5lE
www.youtube.com
March 6, 2025 at 9:30 PM
GOP and Musk plotting to cut mandatory spending that funds social security, medicare, and medicaid, just so they can fund tax cuts that have been proven to increase the debt and the deficit.
CAUGHT: Elon Plots DESTRUCTION Of Social Security | The Kyle Kulinski Show
YouTube video by Secular Talk
www.youtube.com
February 13, 2025 at 9:54 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
Sen. Tim Scott took millions from banks and said exorbitant customer fees “should not be disturbing or illegal.” Now he’s overseeing financial agencies and trying to reinstate junk fees.
Tim Scott Is “Proud” To Protect His Donors’ Junk Fees
Sen. Tim Scott took millions from banks and said exorbitant customer fees “should not be disturbing or illegal.” Now he’s overseeing financial agencies and trying to reinstate junk fees.
buff.ly
February 13, 2025 at 9:26 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
It’s no secret that Chair Powell and I disagree on a lot, but today we agreed: without the CFPB, there is no federal regulator making sure giants banks don't cheat you.
February 11, 2025 at 11:31 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
Bleak but true. To have any hope of rebuilding it, any Democratic president that comes next would have to match Trump’s aggressive pace and wield the executive branch to destroy the billionaires’ power for good and permanently safeguard our regulatory agencies. Hard to imagine.
February 12, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Reposted by Eric Papa
NEW: President Donald Trump and Elon Musk nearly destroyed USAID in three weeks. And the new administration may have broken the law almost immediately, experts told ProPublica.

By @annamaria.bsky.social and Brett Murphy
In Breaking USAID, the Trump Administration May Have Broken the Law
ProPublica’s reporting provides new details about what legal risk officials were prepared to take and what laws they may have violated on their way to creating a “constitutional crisis.”
propub.li
February 9, 2025 at 6:46 PM
For all of my musician friends out there, just know that it would certainly be in your best interest in advocating for more investments in public transit such as increased national connections via train and more walkable neighborhoods.

Why? Well, driving is prohibitively expensive and...
February 8, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Pretty good article that addresses the need to redesign rural areas in the US so that they are less car-dependent.

Yes, even in rural areas, design choices and public transit investments can be made so that it's less necessary to drive.

Where I live in northeastern PA, it was originally...
How less car-centric planning can benefit rural areas too
Transportation policies that are less car-centric offer benefits for rural areas too, a new report argues.
ggwash.org
February 8, 2025 at 5:51 PM
I am always amazed at the programs that were established under the New Deal Era that were aimed at supporting the people and creating a better life for them.

There was also a Federal Music Project, which employed musicians across the US. It was also a big reason why Florence Price...
Do We Need a Second New Deal?
Revisiting the New Deal era offers crucial lessons in the current political moment. It shows how a distinctly American progressive politics might capture the support of a broad swath of the country an...
www.currentaffairs.org
February 8, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
New DOGE names:

The accounts of DOGE focused on young Silicon Valley engineers are incomplete.

It also includes attorneys with elite establishment credentials -- at least two former SCOTUS clerks and a third who will clerk for Gorsuch next term

www.propublica.org/article/elon...
The Elite Lawyers Working for Elon Musk’s DOGE Include Former Supreme Court Clerks
Much attention has been paid to the young Silicon Valley engineers working for Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, but the group has also hired high-powered legal talent.
www.propublica.org
February 7, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Reposted by Eric Papa
NEW: More than 300 career employees at the EPA have left. Those who remain face a painful decision: resign or work for an administration that plans to radically reshape the EPA while reversing environmental protections.

By @fastlerner.bsky.social & @pratheekrebala.bsky.social
“We Feel Terrorized”: What EPA Employees Say About the Decision to Stay or Go Under Trump
More than 300 career employees at the Environmental Protection Agency have left. Those who remain face a painful decision: resign or work for an administration that plans to radically reshape the EPA…
propub.li
February 6, 2025 at 12:00 PM