Have You Ever Met ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán?—and Seven Other Questions for Anabel Hernández Have You Ever Met ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán?—and Seven Other Questions for Anabel Hernández
Braving the wrath of traffickers and government officials, Mexican journalist Anabel Hernández has exposed the corruption at the heart of the drug war. She talked to The Nation’s B...
Oct 23, 2013 / Betsy Reed
Snowden’s Courage Snowden’s Courage
He is brilliant, humble and idealistic.
Oct 23, 2013 / Jesselyn Radack
Noted Noted
Voting Lines: To the Left Although Bill de Blasio is the Democratic Party’s nominee for mayor of New York City, he owes much of his success to the further-left Working Families Party, founded in 1998 by a coalition of labor unions, community groups and local activists—including de Blasio himself. His ascent toward City Hall has coincided with—and is now a symbol of—the party’s efforts to infuse New York politics with true progressive values. In a city long dominated by conservative mayors, perhaps the most surprising feature of de Blasio’s rise is the sustained support he has among voters, given his commitment to a more equitable distribution of the city’s wealth, including significant tax increases on affluent New Yorkers. And while conventional wisdom says that after a primary Democrats must pivot to the right to attract wider support, de Blasio has held firm on this commitment—and current polls show him leading Republican challenger Joe Lhota by over 40 percent. The WFP is now asking de Blasio’s supporters to vote for him on the Working Families Party line. (New York City’s “fusion voting” system allows multiple political parties to cross-endorse the same candidate.) “If enough New Yorkers make our voices heard by voting on the Working Families Party ballot line, it delivers a mandate for elected officials to fight for our progressive values,” says New York State director Bill Lipton. Furthermore, the WFP believes this would bolster de Blasio’s progressive agenda as he negotiates with Governor Andrew Cuomo and state representatives in Albany. AARON CANTÚ Obama’s Wars: Drone Deaths On October 22, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International released two separate investigations into recent US drone strikes carried out in Yemen and Pakistan. The reports came out the same week as two other special reports on drones were scheduled to be presented to the UN General Assembly. Please support our journalism. Get a digital subscription for just $9.50! The findings are grim, especially regarding civilian deaths. HRW focused on six unacknowledged attacks that took place in Yemen between 2009 and this year, which killed eighty-two people, including at least fifty-seven civilians. Two of the six strikes clearly violated international law, according to HRW, and evidence strongly suggests that none of the strikes adhered to the policies for targeted killings outlined by the Obama administration in May. In the meantime, the Obama administration largely refuses to confirm or deny the role of the United States in specific strikes, and has recently nominated former Pentagon official Jeh Johnson, a staunch supporter of drone strikes, to head the Department of Homeland Security. “The essential mission of the US military is to capture or kill an enemy,” he said earlier this year. To read the reports, visit hrw.org and amnesty.org. DYLAN TOKAR
Oct 23, 2013 / Various Contributors
Comix Nation Comix Nation
Oct 23, 2013 / Jen Sorensen
Snapshot: Remembering Sandy Snapshot: Remembering Sandy
This photo, taken the day after the hurricane struck Breezy Point, Queens, is from the book The Rockaways, published on the first anniversary of the superstorm by the Concord Free Press. It combines the work of renowned photographer Gilles Peress with the voices of residents. Please support our journalism. Get a digital subscription for just $9.50!
Oct 23, 2013 / Gilles Peress
JPMorgan Cops a $13 Billion Plea JPMorgan Cops a $13 Billion Plea
They touted securities they knew were trash. The government’s case plainly shows They’re willing to profit from bucket-shop scams, Although they wear much nicer clothes.
Oct 23, 2013 / Column / Calvin Trillin
What the Democrats Can Learn From Ted Cruz What the Democrats Can Learn From Ted Cruz
He’s a fraud and a wacko bird, but at least the Texas senator has the courage of his convictions.
Oct 23, 2013 / Column / Richard Kim
Texas Voter ID Law Discriminates Against Women, Students and Minorities Texas Voter ID Law Discriminates Against Women, Students and Minorities
Texas is a case study in the disastrous consequences of the Supreme Court’s decision that invalidated a key section of the Voting Rights Act.
Oct 23, 2013 / Ari Berman
Healthcare.gov Sucks, but That’s Not the Real Threat to Obamacare Healthcare.gov Sucks, but That’s Not the Real Threat to Obamacare
Ideological resistance to the Medicaid expansion—the heart of the healthcare law—is.
Oct 23, 2013 / Zoë Carpenter
Becoming a Witness at Suzanne Lacy’s ‘Between the Door and the Street’ Becoming a Witness at Suzanne Lacy’s ‘Between the Door and the Street’
At an afternoon of feminist performance art on Brooklyn stoops, eavesdropping was encouraged.
Oct 23, 2013 / Salamishah Tillet