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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the “Spirit of Ukraine” named by Time as 2022 Person of Year

Time Magazine on December 7 named Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy its person of the year, awarding him the accolade “for proving that courage can be as contagious as fear.” Editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal said the choice of Zelenskyy, alongside “the spirit of Ukraine,” was “the most clear-cut in memory.” “Whether the battle for Ukraine fills one with hope or with fear, the world marched to Volodymyr Zelensky’s beat in 2022,” he said. A comedian-turned-politician who was elected to lead Ukraine in 2019, Zelenskyy has worked ceaselessly since Russia’s invasion on February 24 to inspire his country’s resistance and marshal international...

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Federal agencies planning how to release more migrants when Trump-era Title 42 asylum limits end

The Department of Homeland Security said more migrants may be released into the United States to pursue immigration cases when Trump-era asylum restrictions end in one of its most detailed assessments ahead of the major policy shift. The department reported faster processing for migrants in custody on the border, more temporary detention tents, staffing surges and increased criminal prosecutions of smugglers, noting progress on a plan announced in April. But the seven-page document dated December 13 included no major structural changes amid unusually large numbers of migrants entering the country. More are expected with the end of Title 42...

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Dog whistles go full siren as “arbitrary and capricious” immigration restrictions set to expire

By Ernesto Castañeda, Associate Professor of Sociology, American University A key component of the Trump administration’s anti-immigration policies is currently set to expire on December 21, 2022. Officially called Title 42 of the U.S. Code, the little-known law was established initially in 1944 to prevent the spread of influenza and allow authorities to bar entry to foreigners deemed to be at risk of spreading the disease. In March 2020, on the recommendation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, then-President Donald Trump invoked the law to minimize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. But Trump and his advisers...

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Why proposed development for new downtown soccer stadium should include pay guarantee for service jobs

A proposed development that would bring a new soccer stadium to downtown Milwaukee should include guarantees of good wages and a path to union representation for workers in the stadium district in return for public subsidies, a new report recommends. The report, “Worker Power Levels the Playing Field,” was released on November 29 by COWS, a think tank at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It says taxpayer-funded support for the proposed Milwaukee soccer stadium project, dubbed the Iron District, should come with strings that ensure local hiring and strong job standards even after the project is built out. “In Milwaukee,...

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Janet Yellen and Lynn Malerba make history by becoming first female pair to sign U.S. currency

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on December 8 helped mark a milestone in U.S. history when she held up a newly minted $5 bill signed for the first time ever by two women. Yellen’s signature will appear alongside that of U.S. Treasurer Lynn Malerba, the first Native American in that position. Yellen joked during a stop in Texas about the bad handwriting of some of her male predecessors and said, “I will admit, I spent some quality time practicing my signature.” “Two women on the currency for the first time is truly momentous,” added Malerba, who traveled with Yellen to...

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Massive Keystone pipeline spill validates every safety concern for a disaster that Republicans dismissed

The Keystone Pipeline ruptured on December 7 near a creek in northern Kаnsаs, spilling what its operator, TC Energy, says is about 14,000 barrels of oil. This is equivalent to about 588,000 gallons, an Olympic swimming pool holds about 666,000 gallons. TC Energy says the leak is now contained. This is the largest land-based crude pipeline spill in the U.S. in nine years. Although the Keystone Pipeline has leaked 22 times before this, this week’s spill is bigger than all the others put together. A spill in July 2010 was more expensive — costing more than $1 billion —...

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