It’s a curious thing that, while Republicans see the American Jobs Plan as “transformational,” deserving of sustained opposition and a crushing and dispiriting defeat, not all in the coalition that elected Biden seem to appreciate the scale and scope of this bill and the imperative of its passage. When the Republicans say it is “transformational,” for once they speak the truth. We should understand the bill that way too, and thus deserving of our practical attention and action too.

Or, to put it differently, if you are itching to fight neoliberalism, join the effort to pass this bill.

Shouldn’t write off legal remedies to end voter suppression, but the main site of struggle is legislative. But it can’t be left to Congress or state legislatures to decide the fate of voting rights legislation. Democratic minded people have to intervene and leave their stamp on this struggle that has such a high gravitational pull. End of the summer actions in Washington or cities and towns around the country would seem imperative. Delay is the ally of our enemy on the extreme right.

Obviously that decision isn’t mine to make. It will be decided elsewhere – mainly at the leadership levels of the diverse organizations that were instrumental in electing Biden-Harris and Congressional Democrats last year.

Here’s Engels letter to Bloch in which he makes a case against economic reductionism, at least, in the “first instance.” E.P. Thompson, by no means an economic determinist and in a reply to (or polemic against) Louis Althusser, a French Marxist, said that the economic factor is present not only in the last instance, but in every instance and the role of historians is to uncover how and to what degree. Thompson, it should be said, thought highly of Engels, who in letters at the end of his life, addressed and challenged dogmatic interpretations of the writings of Marx and himself. In the wake of the lively, at times contentious, debate over the rise and fall of Trump, Engels observations/letters when he was an old man, are worth reading (or reading again).

The Catholic bishops hate Biden and love Trump. What a bunch of moral hypocrites. Much more could be said. Glad I bailed on this outfit more than a half century ago.

From afar India Walton seems like a pretty remarkable candidate. From what I read she made a firm commitment to bring a new form of governance to the city of Buffalo, making people and their needs – not real estate interests, not police – the foremost priority.

I don’t know how much her avowed socialist pedigree figured in her campaign and election. Probably on the margins and there is nothing wrong with that. But what I find interesting is that she had no hesitation not only to embrace socialism on election night when asked if she was a socialist by a local reporter but also the dexterity to give a quick and succinct – not long winded – rendering of socialism in her reply: “All it means is that I’m putting people first. People over profits. I’m representing the working class, the poor, the forgotten.”

I doubt if I would have answered the question this way years ago, but her reply captures, for me at this point in my political life, the essence of what socialist governance should be about, albeit with this addendum – robust mass participation and decision making – deep democratization – in the affairs that matter in people’s lives should be a distinguishing feature of socialism as well. I’m sure the new mayor would agree.