I’m liking this:
A Depression-era environmental work relief program may make a revival after a nearly 80-year hiatus.
Last week, three members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation — U.S. Reps. Dwight Evans (D-Philadelphia), Susan Wild (D-Lehigh), and Conor Lamb (D-Mt. Lebanon), introduced the “Restore Environmental Economy and Improve Volatile Economy by the Civilian Conservation Corps Act of 2021,” or the “REVIVE the CCC Act.”
U.S. Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (D-N.H.) joined the three Pennsylvania lawmakers, who are acting as the legislation’s prime sponsors.
In a statement, the lawmakers said reviving the CCC, which put 3 million people to work during the Great Depression, will “create “good-paying jobs,” invest in local communities and help “tackle the climate crisis.”
“This legislation will revitalize the CCC and put people to work with good-paying jobs. This is a smart investment in our local communities, our workforce and our environment,” Lamb said.
The original Civilian Conservation Corps, was created in 1933 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal to provide employment opportunities to young men in the conservation and development of the nation’s natural resources.
The bill’s sponsors argued that the program’s return is needed now as the nation reels from an ongoing pandemic and faces increasingly intense natural disasters due to climate change.
U.S. Senator Bob Casey, Jr. (D. PA) has introduced the Revive the CCC Act in the U.S. Senate. Here’s some more info Braddock Councilwoman and Chair of the Mon Metro Chamber of Commerce, Tina Doose’s (D. PA) op-ed in The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:
In the early 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created as part of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. This work relief program was intended to improve America’s public lands while simultaneously employing thousands of (disproportionately white) men. It helped build both familial wealth and public infrastructure that have lasted well through this century.
In recent years, there has been a resurgence of discussion around reintroducing a modern CCC that could address environmental justice issues within our communities as well as create jobs for underserved populations. A modern CCC would be open to all Americans and could play a vital role providing family-sustaining employment that builds intergenerational prosperity.
These jobs would capitalize on the potential for fixing our urban trees and green spaces, reforesting abandoned minelands, restoring polluted wetlands and other carbon-absorbing natural infrastructure investments.
Groups like ReImagine Appalachia are envisioning a revitalized and updated CCC that would work to solve our infrastructure, climate and employment crises. The Political Economy Research Institute found through a job study that this program could create 53,070 jobs in Pennsylvania, 11,612 jobs in West Virginia and 50,900 jobs in Ohio.
Not only would a new CCC create jobs across our multi-state region, but if it is crafted correctly, it could be an important source of living-wage jobs and apprenticeship prep training, building pathways toward family-sustaining careers for underserved communities by prioritizing employment to Black and indigenous people of color, low-income workers, and those reentering society after incarceration or probation.
Equity and inclusion are both critical factors that must be a part of a modern CCC. Historically, the CCC failed in advocating for the rights of everyone. We must ensure that vulnerable populations are prioritized for work with the CCC. Formerly incarcerated individuals face severe troubles in being reintroduced to the workforce. Unfortunately, many employers hesitate to hire people who were previously incarcerated, even if they were arrested on minor drug charges.
The opioid epidemic has hit our community hard, and we must provide more opportunities and resources to those individuals trying to rebuild their lives after living through addiction and incarceration. The CCC will create jobs for individuals who may not have been offered a job otherwise.
This modern CCC will also ensure that men and women of all ethnicities and socioeconomic status are offered the same opportunity, and individuals from marginalized communities will be prioritized in the hiring process so communities like mine can be revitalized.
Click below to contact Lamb and Casey about more information regarding the REVIVE the CCC Act:
Sen. Bob Casey (D. PA)
Rep. Conor Lamb (D. PA)
There’s another piece of legislation Lamb wants revitalized in the U.S. Senate. Received this e-mail from Lamb’s U.S. Senate campaign last night:
The Violence Against Women Act -- a landmark bill first passed in 1994 -- increases enforcement and penalties for domestic abuse, stalking, and sexual assault. It expired in 2018 and it's our responsibility to reauthorize it now to keep victims alive and keep guns out of the hands of abusers.
I did this work as a prosecutor in the Marine Corps, taking on sexual assault in the military, and I know how important it is to get this reauthorization signed into law so that law enforcement and victim services organizations have the tools and resources they need to keep women safe.
In the House, I voted to pass an updated version of the Violence Against Women Act back in March.
Now, it sits in the Senate waiting for a vote, and Mitch McConnell is blocking the vote on this critical bill for one reason -- because he would rather side with the NRA than with sensible gun owners who know guns don't belong in the hands of abusers.
Can I count on you to stand up to the NRA and Senate Republicans and add your name to our petition to call on the Senate to reauthorize VAWA?
This bill is about keeping dangerous weapons out of the hands of violent people, and ensuring women have the resources and the legal backing to keep themselves and their families safe.
It's past time to get this done. We did our jobs in the House, and now it's time for the Senate to do theirs.
Join me in sending a message to Mitch McConnell, the NRA, and all those who stand in the way of passing this critical legislation -- and tell them to do their jobs by reauthorizing VAWA.
Thank you,
Conor Lamb
Click here to add your name.
While we’re on the subject, Lamb’s potential opponent and Trump endorsed candidate, Sean Parnell (R. PA) (who’s wife filed protective orders against), had this to say about President Biden’s vaccine mandates:
Retiring U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, a Republican, questioned the legality of the mandate in a statement posted to his website Friday. Sean Parnell, the Trump-endorsed GOP candidate running to replace him in 2022, likewise spoke out against the administration on Twitter.
Toomey said although he believes vaccination is "the right choice for most of America," forcing individuals and employers to do so by government fiat is wrong and will backfire.
"But federal government mandates, of dubious legality, will further alienate the skeptical, undermine our institutions, and punish ordinary business owners and their employees," he said.
U.S. Rep. Fred Keller, R-12, likewise vowed to use his authority as the ranking Republican on the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Workforce Protections to "fight these totalitarian measures through all available means."
Also, Lamb got a shout out from a big name on this:
And doing a hell of a job promoting President Biden’s agenda:
And friendly reminder, he supports getting rid of the filibuster:
By the way, I am really liking this guy who is running for Lamb’s seat in the 17th District:
An Iraq War veteran who has become one of Western Pennsylvania’s foremost experts on election reform is running for Congress.
Chris Deluzio — policy director of the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for Cyber Law, Policy and Security — announced his bid for the 17th Congressional District on Monday. He hopes to succeed Rep. Conor Lamb, D-Mt. Lebanon, who is running for U.S. Senate.
Citing a desire to ensure the government serves everyone and not just the powerful, Mr. Deluzio, a Democrat, said he’s troubled by where the country’s headed and warns that democracy is on the line.
“I look around at this country, and I see people — especially on the right — who are willing to put their own self interests ahead of looking out for their neighbors and fellow Americans,” Mr. Deluzio told the Post-Gazette in an interview over the weekend, insisting that he’ll call out those who are attacking democracy.
Mr. Deluzio, who worked on the Brennan Center for Justice’s voting rights and election security teams before taking the job at Pitt, said his work has focused on protecting democracy and the right to vote. He alleged some on the far right are willing to overthrow elections to stay in power and that it’s incumbent upon Democrats to call it out.
Adopting a similar message to the one Mr. Lamb used when he defended the swing district, Mr. Deluzio talks of protecting Social Security and veterans benefits, improving health care, cultivating union power and investing in infrastructure.
“We’ve got to be willing to take on the power that the biggest and richest companies and corporations are wielding over nearly every aspect of our lives,” Mr. Deluzio said.
Democracy and Health are on the ballot this year (Pennsylvania Supreme Court Elections) and next year and we need to be ready to keep Pennsylvania Blue. Click below to donate and get involved with Lamb’s campaign or the Democratic Senate candidate you support along with these Pennsylvania Democratic campaigns and organizations:
Chris DeLuzio (D. PA-17) for Congress
U.S. Senate
Conor Lamb
John Fetterman
Val Arkoosh
Malcolm Kenyatta
Pennsylvania Courts
Maria McLaughlin for Supreme Court
Timika Lane for Superior Court
David Spurgeon for Commonwealth Court
Amanda Green-Hawkins for Commonwealth Court
Lori Dumas for Commonwealth Court
Lt. Governor
Brian Sims for Lt. Governor
Pennsylvania Organizations
Pennsylvania Democratic Party
Draw the Lines PA
Committee of Seventy
Congress:
Eugene DePasquale for Congress
Jerry Dickinson for Congress
Matt Cartwright
Susan Wild
Chrissy Houlahan
Madeleine Dean
Dwight Evans
Mike Doyle
Mary Gay Scanlon