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December 16th, 2022:

Abbott is now attacking immigration-focused non-profits

Always be finding a new enemy, that’s the motto.

Gov. Greg Abbott called Wednesday for the state to investigate whether nonprofit organizations have helped people enter the country illegally, adding another talking point to his border hawk arsenal and another headache to humanitarian relief groups that help migrants in Texas.

Abbott made his request in a letter to Attorney General Ken Paxton in which he cited the increased number of migrants expected at the border once Title 42 — a federal public health order issued near the start of the pandemic that officials have used to turn away migrants at the border — comes to an end in a few days at a time of record migrant crossings. Earlier this week, 1,500 people waded across the low waters in the Rio Grande and into El Paso in one crossing, stressing the city’s limited resources to deal with migrants.

Without citing any evidence, Abbott said he had received reports that nongovernmental organizations — a term that generally refers to nonprofit, humanitarian groups — “may be engaged in unlawfully orchestrating other border crossings through activities on both sides of the border, including in sectors other than El Paso.”

“In light of these reports, I am calling on the Texas Attorney General’s Office to initiate an investigation into the role of NGOs in planning and facilitating the illegal transportation of illegal immigrants across our borders,” Abbott wrote, adding that he is ready to “craft any sensible legislative solutions [Paxton’s] office may propose that are aimed at solving the ongoing border crisis and the role that NGOs may play in encouraging it.”

Abbott’s office did not respond to a question asking what reports his office was citing. Fox News reported Monday that Mexican police had escorted 20 buses from other parts of Mexico to nongovernmental organizations at Mexican border cities. The outlet reported that the migrants then walked from the nongovernmental organizations and crossed illegally into El Paso.

Texas does not have jurisdiction over Mexican nongovernmental organizations, and the reporting did not allege any improper action by a U.S.-based nongovernmental organization.

Still, nonprofit groups working to help migrants on the border say Abbott’s call for investigations could make their jobs harder. The move drew an immediate rebuke from Democratic lawmakers and local officials.

“Governor Abbott’s decision to investigate NGOs that are providing humanitarian care for migrants is shameful and intended to intimidate and instill fear in non-profit and faith-based organizations that exemplify the values we should all aspire to,” U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, said in a statement. “Most border NGOs that work tirelessly on the border help provide temporary shelter, food and hospitality to migrants, most of whom will be awaiting adjudication of their asylum claims with sponsors they have in different parts of the country. They have been doing this work for decades and deserve our praise, not persecution.”

Dylan Corbett, executive director of the El Paso-based Hope Border Institute, said in a statement that Abbott’s language was “alarming and an unequivocal attempt to intimidate humanitarian organizations working on the front lines.”

“This is a moment for border communities to come together to meet a humanitarian challenge. We need the support and collaboration of the government at all levels, not political grandstanding that dangerously approaches criminalizing Good Samaritans,” Corbett said.

In Texas, nonprofits that aid migrants play a crucial role. Once migrants are released by federal officials into border cities, which frequently do not have the resources to deal with the large number of people crossing the border, these groups help temporarily house the migrants and help them find transportation to other parts of the country. In many areas, immigration officials bring migrants to nonprofit groups once they have already been processed by the federal government and are free to be released.

[…]

But without the nonprofits’ work, border cities would likely have more migrants roaming the streets without any way to move on if they’re trying to reach a different destination where they may have family members or a support group to help them until their immigration process is finalized. Abbott has even partnered with some nonprofit groups to carry out his policy of busing migrants to Democrat-led cities like Washington, D.C.New YorkChicago and Philadelphia.

Nothing quite captures the zeitgeist of the modern “conservative” movement like an old white guy wildly overreacting to some bullshit story he just saw on Fox News. I bet Abbott was a top-notch chain email forwarder back in the day.

I make dumb jokes about stuff like this because honestly I’m not sure what else I can do right now. I’d love to hear some good strategic ideas because I’m fresh out, and the next election is obviously too far away to be of any importance right now. Maybe there was hope for some kind of action at the federal level in the lame duck section, but that’s not looking great right now either.

The immigration framework proposed by two bipartisan lawmakers that would have passed permanent relief for young undocumented immigrants in exchange for harsh border measures has reportedly failed.

Thom Tillis and Kyrsten Sinema “did not strike a deal that would have been able to secure the necessary 60 votes in the evenly divided Senate during the lame-duck session,” congressional officials told CBS News. John Cornyn “and other members of GOP leadership said there was scant Republican support for the plan,” CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez tweeted Wednesday.

The termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program through right-wing courts is not a matter of if, its a matter of when, and passage of a deal during the lame duck represented the last chance to pass some sort of relief before an anti-immigrant Texas judge issues his decision. Kevin McCarthy has already promised he’ll pass no humane relief, as part of his campaigning to become speaker. That includes a corrupt bargain targeting Department of Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas for impeachment.

The immigration proposal came as young immigrants (as well as the farmworkers who feed America) rallied for legislative action before the current congressional term ends in January, and was a sweet-and-sour deal attempting to garner the 10 Republicans needed to overcome the Jim Crow filibuster.

The sweet: Relief for DACA recipients, who for five years have been watching the program be attacked by Republicans, both at the federal government level and in the courts. The sour: Harsh border enforcement measures, including an extension of Stephen Miller’s anti-asylum Title 42 policy for at least another year. CNN had also reported increased border security funding, anywhere from $25 billion to $40 billion, on top of the billions that border agencies already get. But apparently, none of that was enough to convince 10 members of the GOP caucus, according to Cornyn.

Cornyn, since we’re already discussing him, once made a laughable claim in a campaign ad that he’s supported legalization for undocumented immigrant youth, and that he’s actually been fighting for them behind the scenes. But given a real, high-stakes chance to do something about, like right now during the lame duck session and as an end to the DACA program is inevitable, he’s done nothing but throw cold water on the proposal.

It’s not hard to boil all this down to Republicans just not wanting to do anything about DACA recipients—even when presented with the kind of border measures they love—because they want to keep using immigrants as a political tool.

I guess nothing is truly dead until they all adjourn, but this is where we are right now. And as long as the Republicans feel like they’re doing better with the system remaining broken, why should they do anything different? The Chron and Daily Kos have more.

NWSL releases its report on abuse by coaches

The followup report names some names that hadn’t been named before.

Widespread misconduct, including sexual abuse, manipulation and mocking athletes’ bodies, has plagued the National Women’s Soccer League for a decade, according to an investigation commissioned by the league and its players’ union.

“Club staff in positions of power made inappropriate sexual remarks to players, mocked players’ bodies, pressured players to lose unhealthy amounts of weight, crossed professional boundaries with players, and created volatile and manipulative working conditions,” the 128-page report released Wednesday said.

Officials “displayed insensitivity towards players’ mental health and engaged in retaliation against players who attempted to report or did report concerns. Misconduct against players has occurred at the vast majority of NWSL clubs at various times, from the earliest years of the League to the present.”

The league was founded in 2012 and is the longest-running professional women’s soccer league in U.S. history, the report said.

Investigators reached out to 780 current and former players, all 12 NWSL teams and 90 current and former club staff, and those from the league office. More than 200,000 documents were reviewed during the investigation conducted by the law firms of Covington & Burling and Weil, Gotshal & Manges, according to the report.

The league and its players union said in a statement steps have been taken in the past 14 months to address systemic issues highlighted in the report.

Among those efforts: strengthening the league’s anti-harassment policy; enhancing vetting procedures for new hires and establishing an anonymous hotline where players can report misconduct.

League Commissioner Jessica Berman apologized for the league’s glaring failures.

“This report clearly reflects how our league systemically failed to protect our players,” Berman said in a statement.

Our players “deserve, at a minimum, a safe and secure environment to participate at the highest level in a sport they love, and they have my unwavering commitment that delivering that change will remain a priority each and every day,” the statement said.

A report released in October documented similar problems across the league.

That would be the Yates Report, which was commissioned by US Soccer, whose statement on this report is here. I didn’t realize this report was also in the works, but as noted above it addresses some individual coaches that have been linked to these problems but who weren’t named in the Yates report for whatever the reason. In particular, this report details the allegations against now-former Houston Dash coach and GM James Clarkson.

According to the report, the joint investigative team first received a complaint about Clarkson last December. The Dash, acting on initial findings from the joint investigation, indefinitely suspended Clarkson in April before the regular-season opener.

The report also included allegations of misconduct by former Dash coach Vera Pauw, Clarkson’s immediate predecessor.

On Wednesday, the Dash released a statement that said the club would not renew Clarkson’s contract, which expires at the end of 2022.

“We apologize to players, present and former, who were subject to misconduct by James Clarkson and 2018 head coach Vera Pauw,” the statement read in part. “Our vision of building and maintaining a culture of excellence on and off the pitch starts with cultivating a respectful and healthy working environment. Our priority is to ensure that our personnel and policies reflect that directive.”

Seven current and former Houston players interviewed initially by the investigative team described Clarkson as “volatile, verbally abusive, and not showing appropriate regard for players’ well-being.”

After Clarkson’s suspension, investigators interviewed 19 additional current and former Dash players and staff, including Clarkson. They also collected and reviewed relevant emails, texts, and WhatsApp messages from interviewees and the club.

“At the conclusion of its investigation, the Joint Investigative Team determined that Clarkson’s actions constituted emotional misconduct,” the report said.

[…]

While a majority of players interviewed did not believe Clarkson’s treatment of players constituted abuse or misconduct, two players reported that they sought therapy based on Clarkson’s conduct. Several players said Clarkson targeted one or two players each year for excessive and unjustified criticism, and a majority of interviewees believed Clarkson’s mood could be unpredictable in a way that “contributed to a culture of anxiety.”

Several incidents are described in the report.

  • In March, the Dash went on a preseason trip to Mexico City to play against Mexican club Pumas. Four Dash players had dinner at a Pumas player’s apartment the night before the first game, and the next morning during warmups, one of those Dash players was sick. Although Dash players said they had not been drinking and team medical staff attributed the player’s illness to altitude sickness, Clarkson believed she was hungover. He attempted to get security footage from the hotel and could not but later reprimanded the entire team for selfishness and told them “cameras don’t lie.” Afterward, when captains told Clarkson he scared the players, he replied that they “should be scared.”
  • In another game, Clarkson reportedly criticized and berated an injured player after she requested to be subbed out of the game because of ankle pain.
    While the NWSL was investigating an incident in which Chicago Red Stars player Sarah Gorden said she and her boyfriend were racially profiled by security after a game in Houston at PNC Stadium, Clarkson wrote phone numbers for stadium security on a board at a team meeting and asked players to call and apologize for their conduct, supposedly because players had violated COVID-19 protocols by going into the stands. Some thought Clarkson was defending stadium security, although he later apologized for being insensitive.
  • In his interview with investigators, the report said, Clarkson “exhibited a lack of candor” and “denied ever raising his voice at players or losing control of his emotions, notwithstanding credible evidence to the contrary.”
  • Dash players told investigators they felt uneasy reporting Clarkson’s misconduct because his dual role as head coach and general manager gave him a “ridiculous amount of power” and because they perceived Clarkson and former club president John Walker to be “best friends.” Walker stepped down at the end of the 2022 season.

    The report noted that although Clarkson advocated for the development of a mental health program with the Dash, he also demonstrated insensitivity toward players’ mental health in his interactions with them and repeatedly failed to understand how his conduct impacted players.

    The report also said that Pauw, who coached the Dash for one season in 2018, shamed players regarding their weight and attempted to assert excessive control over their eating habits. Because Pauw lived in the same housing complex as Dash players, she inserted herself into their eating and workout habits in ways players felt were inappropriate.

    Pauw reportedly did not want players to lift weights because she said it made them too bulky, and she often commented with disgust about players’ appearances. Players said Pauw’s behavior affected one teammate who struggled with an eating disorder.

This is the first that I’ve heard the name Vera Pauw. The charges against these two are not quite as serious as some of those in the Yates report, which included sexual assault and harassment, but they’re clearly bad. I sure wouldn’t want to work for anyone who treated me like that. I suspect that there are a lot of coaches out there in the professional and amateur ranks whose behavior towards their players, of all genders, is at least as bad as these two. That’s not in any way to excuse Clarkson and Pauw but to say that this same work is needed elsewhere, too. At least this is a start. CBS Sports and ESPN have more.

Please don’t threaten to kill your political opponents

We really shouldn’t have to say these things, except that nowadays we really do.

Rep. Randy Weber

A former candidate for U.S. representative has been accused of threatening to kill his political opponent, U.S. Rep. Randy Weber, TX-14, according to federal court filings.

Keith Douglas Casey has been charged in connection with making a threat against a U.S. official, according to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Casey has run several times to unseat Weber from office. For instance, in 2022, he received some 5,178 votes, or 7.9%, compared to Weber’s 89%, or 58,439 votes, in the Republican primary.

Weber also handily defeated Casey in the 2018 Republican primary, with Casey finishing in third place with about 5% of the vote.

And in 2016, the Galveston County Daily News reported Weber had defeated challenger Casey in the primary race for the U.S. House of Representatives District 14, garnering about 84% of the vote compared to Casey’s 16%.

But the politics then reportedly gave way to something more sinister. In March 2022 Casey allegedly began telling people he’d defeated Weber in the race for the spot — and that he was going to kill him, according to the complaint.

Staff members in Weber’s office first reported the matter to federal law enforcement as early as March 29.

In reading the rest of the story, it seems that Casey was acting erratically, and there may be some underlying issues that I am in no way qualified to guess at. It also appears that he was in the thrall of election denialism, and I hope we can all agree that that leads nowhere good. I hope that in the end this all winds up being much ado about nothing. But whatever does happen, we have to take this sort of thing very seriously.