Democrats pounce on GOP ‘woke-waste’ attacks

Published

2 years ago

February 21, 2023

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The culture wars have entered the budget battle, as GOP leaders take aim at “woke” spending and Democrats push back with charges of bigotry.

Democrats are pouncing as Republicans sharpen their focus on what they call “woke-waste” in the federal budget, targeting programs ranging from funds for transgender immigrants in Los Angeles to a nature trail named for Michelle Obama in Georgia.

The items were included in a list unveiled earlier this month by Republicans on the House Budget Committee, which identified areas of “wasteful” spending GOP leaders are hoping to eliminate as part of their broader goal of balancing the budget within a decade.

Republicans are defending the focus on “wokeness,” saying they’re working to safeguard taxpayers from a federal government that’s abused its authority with efforts to promote “equity” and “inclusion,” typically on issues of race, gender and sexuality.

Yet Democrats see something more sinister, accusing GOP leaders of targeting minority benefit programs, not because they’re expensive, but because the fight energizes their conservative base.

“It’s very exemplary of their approach, which is a blend of cutting support to working-class families while also lacing in bigotry and racism,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a member of the liberal “Squad,” said. The real goal, she added, is “to distract from the actual economic impact, negative economic impact, that they’re having on working families.”

The Republican attacks on so-called wokeism are hardly new. GOP leaders have, for years, accused Democrats in both the White House and Congress of pushing an agenda that both exaggerates the prevalence of racism in America and oversteps in employing governments at all levels to take it on.

The criticism has targeted agencies as varied as the Pentagon, the IRS and the Department of Education, touching on issues as diverse as military readiness, financial literacy and the teaching of American history. Some charge that deep-state liberals are hellbent on indoctrinating students, soldiers and the public at large with the teachings of critical race theory — a legal theory that has become a shorthand of sorts for any education centered on race.

Since taking control of the House last month, Republicans have extended those arguments with a series of bills designed to combat a “wokeness that has swept our country,” in the words of Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.).

The coming budget debate will be the next battleground in that fight, and Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) previewed the Republicans’ anti-woke strategy with the recent release of his spending cuts wish list.

Among the targeted items are about $6.6 million in funds under a section labeled “stop woke-waste,” which singles out a handful of programs on the chopping block, like $750,000 for “Transgender and Gender nonconforming and Intersex (TGI) immigrant women in Los Angeles,” $1.2 million for “LGBTQIA+ Pride Centers,” and $3.6 million to expand a hiking trail named after Michelle Obama in Decatur, Ga. The spending was greenlit by Congress as part of a $1.7 trillion bipartisan omnibus last year, a bill opposed by all but nine House Republicans.

Republicans who support the cuts see the programs as a misuse of taxpayer dollars. Some Democrats, on the other hand, see those targets as a form of dog whistle as Republicans use their new majority to pass a series of messaging bills and galvanize conservatives ahead of the 2024 elections.

“I think they cut the line pretty close to — maybe cross the line — when it comes to trying to disguise racism with something else,” said Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.), who serves on the House Budget Committee. “I think that’s what it is.”

Arrington’s office did not respond to requests for comment.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), as part of the marathon balloting that won him the gavel last month, had promised a group of far-right critics that House Republicans would seek to balance the budget within a decade. And the Budget Committee, charged with outlining the parameters of federal spending, will launch that process in the coming weeks with the release of its budget blueprint.

They have their work cut out.

The federal deficit for the current fiscal year is projected to be $1.4 trillion. And the “woke” projects Republicans are targeting are all relatively small-budget items. GOP leaders would have to cut roughly 389,000 Michelle Obama hiking trails, for instance, to bring the budget to balance — a dynamic that hasn’t been overlooked by Democrats critical of the Republicans budget strategy.

“It’s absolutely not meaningful at all, except to the people and the agencies that are going to get cut, and I’m concerned about that,” Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), also a member of the House Budget Committee, said. “It’s not even budget dust, to take that kind of money away.”

The GOP’s focus on “wokeness” in the federal budget comes as Republicans face rising pressure to unify behind potential fiscal reforms amid larger funding talks around the debt limit.

Beyond calls for steep reductions to government spending, Republicans have been clashing over which items should be on the table for possible cuts in recent weeks amid a party-wide campaign to use the nation’s debt limit as leverage to extract concessions from Democrats.

The party has seen divisions in both chambers over where to cut, with different factions butting heads over proposals to scrutinize dollars for the Pentagon, as well as whether efforts to reform entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, which account for a massive chunk of federal spending, should also be factored into talks.

But as Republican leaders work to get members on the same page, there has been some agreement to go after “woke” spending, even amid a larger conversation in the GOP around areas to potentially trim in the Pentagon budget.

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) signaled support for the push, while taking aim at what he called a “pretty aggressive approach” by the Pentagon in recent years to conduct “trainings that are more in line with diversity, equity and inclusion, which is the buzzword today.” United Airlines overhauls family seating fees after Biden criticism Nearly 30 percent of work remains remote as workers dig in

“I think that, obviously, a lot of that training is both not good for the military and also a waste of money,” he said. “So, I certainly think there are line items in the budget. I don’t know how much they add up to, but I think there’s certainly something to cut there.”

Democrats, though, have different ideas, accusing Republicans of throwing red meat to their base, for political reasons, while ignoring much more consequential issues. With Democrats controlling both the White House and the Senate, they’re warning that the GOP’s focus on “wokeness” is a dead-end.

“It’s a distraction from the issues that the majority of Americans actually care about,” Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, said. “This is a waste of time [that] will go absolutely nowhere in this Congress.”

Sports

Panthers’ Ekblad suspended 2 games for Hagel hit

Published

34 mins ago

April 30, 2025

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Panthers' Ekblad suspended 2 games for Hagel hit

Associated Press

Apr 29, 2025, 07:28 PM ET

NEW YORK — Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been suspended for two games for elbowing Lightning forward Brandon Hagel in the head midway through Game 4 of Florida’s first-round series against Tampa Bay.

The NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced its ruling after a phone hearing with Ekblad earlier Tuesday. He will be out for Game 5 and either Game 6 of this series or the Panthers’ first game in the next round.

No penalty was called when Ekblad hit Hagel in the chin with his right elbow and forearm with just under nine minutes left in the second period on Monday night. Hagel left the ice and did not return, and Ekblad scored the first of two goals in 11 seconds late in the third to give the defending Stanley Cup champions a comeback victory and a 3-1 series lead.

Coach Jon Cooper said Hagel would not play in Game 5. Hagel was suspended for Game 3 for his late hit that knocked Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov out of Game 2.

Ekblad missed the first two games of the playoffs and the final 18 of the regular season after being suspended for violating the league and NHLPA’s performance-enhancing drug policy. Florida got accustomed to playing without Ekblad.

“If it’s the first time it happens, there’s even questions from the coaching staff about what’s the right adjustment to make in your lineup and how will that play out — there’s a lot of unknown,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “Because we’ve been through it so much when Aaron’s out, we know what the D-pairs are — let’s assume — if he’s out of the lineup.”

Another Florida defenseman, Niko Mikkola, was fined $5,000 for boarding Tampa Bay’s Zemgus Girgensons. Mikkola was given a five-minute major and ejected for the play early in the third period of Game 4.

Sports

Tocchet quits; Canucks 8th team seeking a coach

Published

34 mins ago

April 30, 2025

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Tocchet quits; Canucks 8th team seeking a coach

Ryan S. ClarkApr 29, 2025, 05:05 PM ET
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Add Rick Tocchet to the list of available coaching options on the open market with the Vancouver Canucks announcing Tuesday that Tocchet left the team.

There had been a belief that Tocchet’s time with the Canucks could be coming to an end. Last week saw the discussion of Tocchet’s future with the franchise come under greater focus, with Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford saying they weren’t exercising their option on Tocchet’s contract before adding that they offered him a new, more lucrative deal to remain in Vancouver.

But now? Tocchet joins the list of sought-after coaching candidates and the Canucks become the eighth NHL team that will use this offseason to go through a coaching search.

“After a very long and thorough process, unfortunately Rick has decided to leave the Vancouver Canucks,” Rutherford said in a statement. “This is very disappointing news, but we respect Rick’s decision to move to a new chapter in his hockey career. We did everything in our power to keep him but at the end of the day, Rick felt he needed a change.”

In the same news conference in which Rutherford said the team offered Tocchet a new deal, he also said that Tocchet “may have his mind somewhere else” before adding that he felt Tocchet and his staff did “a good job coaching this team this year” as they did in their first full campaign.

Tocchet was a midseason hire during the 2022-23 season. His first full year in charge saw the Canucks win 50 games, finish with 109 points and win the Pacific Division. He led the Canucks to their first postseason appearance since the 2019-20 season and was a win away from advancing to the Western Conference finals.

Entering this season, the Canucks had most of their players from their playoff team. They started strong with a 15-8-5 record but encountered numerous on-ice and off-ice problems that would prove too large.

Among them was the friction between star forwards J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson. The tension between Miller and Pettersson reached a stage in which Canucks captain Quinn Hughes publicly acknowledged there was an issue with Miller and Pettersson denying such issues.

Miller would be traded to the New York Rangers before the trade deadline, and the Canucks struggled to find someone who could replace his production. They would finish six points behind the St. Louis Blues for the final Western Conference wild-card spot.

Still, Tocchet had the support of Hughes, along with others within the organization who wanted him to stay.

As for what it all means going forward for both parties? Tocchet is among those who will join Mike Sullivan, who parted ways with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday after winning two Stanley Cups in 10 seasons, as one of the most attractive names for teams seeking a new bench boss.

Then there are the teams that need a coach. It’s a list that includes the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Seattle Kraken, plus the Penguins and now the Canucks.

“I’m choosing to move on from the Vancouver Canucks,” Tocchet said. “Family is a priority, and with my contract lapsing, this becomes an opportune time. While I don’t know where I’m headed, or exactly how this will play out for me over the near term, I feel like this is the right time for me to explore other opportunities around hockey.”

Politics

Crush fly-tippers’ vans, government tells councils

Published

34 mins ago

April 30, 2025

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Crush fly-tippers' vans, government tells councils

The government wants councils to crush more vans used to fly-tip rubbish, as it announces a crackdown on the illegal dumping of waste.

No new funding is being given to local authorities for the initiatives, with ministers saying the seven percent raise announced in the budget can be used.

As part of the announcement, the government has also proposed that fly-tippers could face up to five years in prison, although this would require a change in the law.

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Environment Secretary Steve Reed said: “Councils will get much more aggressive against fly-tippers and that includes using the latest technology, things like the new mobile CCTV cameras and drones to identify, track and then seize the vehicles that are being used for fly-tipping to a yard like this and crush them.

“That’s both as a punishment for those people who are dumping the rubbish but also as a deterrent for those who are thinking about doing it.”

He added: “We’re also looking to change the law so that those rogue operators who take rubbish from someone’s home and then dump it on a nearby road – they were getting away almost scot-free under the previous government – they will now be looking at potentially five-year prison sentences.”

The minister claimed the fly-tipping was “out of control” under the last government.

Data from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) shows local authorities in England dealt with a record 1.15 million incidents last year – a 20% increase from 2018/19.

Environment Agency chief executive Philip Duffy said: “We’re determined to bring these criminals to justice through tough enforcement action and prosecutions.

“That’s why we support the government’s crackdown on waste criminals, which will ensure we have the right powers to shut rogue operators out of the waste industry.”

However, the Conservatives claimed that rubbish is “piling high” in areas like Birmingham as refuse workers strike against a pay and jobs offer from the Labour-run council.

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Shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins said: “Wherever Labour is in charge, waste is piling high – like in Birmingham, where Labour’s inability to stand up to their union paymasters has left rat-infested rubbish littered across the street.

“And with statistics showing that of the 50 worst local areas for fly-tipping, 72% are Labour controlled, it is clear that voting Labour gets you rubbish and rats.

“So the British public deserve real action, not this series of reheated announcements and policies already introduced by previous governments that Labour is peddling.”

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “Under the Conservatives’ watch, local communities have been plagued by a fly-tipping epidemic.

“From overflowing bins to piles of hazardous waste, fly-tipping is blighting our landscapes, poisoning livestock on farming land and causing misery for residents.

“Enough is enough.

“The Liberal Democrats are calling for a fly-tipping fighting fund, to push for stronger local enforcement and tougher penalties for offenders.”