• Ten years ago, a military coup toppled then Honduras President Manuel Zelaya, seen as a progressive advocating constitutional reform. The coup, backed by the United States, ushered in a decade of gang violence, drug trafficking and mass migration to the United States.
(“How Seeds of Border Crisis Were Planted in Honduras 10 Years Ago,” Christian Science Monitor, July 17, 2019; “Honduran President Is Accused of Drug Conspiracy,” Wall Street Journal, Aug. 3 2019; “Guatemala’s Migrant Pact With US Threatens to Unleash a Political Crisis,” Washington Post, July 27, 2019)
• Billionaire Kevin Plank, CEO of sports apparel company Under Armour and Goldman Sachs, cashed in on a portion of Donald Trump’s tax overhaul by using their influence in the Maryland governor’s office to get access to lucrative tax breaks in opportunity zones designed to uplift low-income communities. In backing Plank’s $5.5 billion Port Covington retail and office development project, ProPublica reports that Republican Gov. Larry Hogan dropped development projects from adjacent neglected low-income minority neighborhoods
(“One Trump tax cut was meant to help the poor. A billionaire ended up winning big,” ProPublica, July 19, 2019)
• With the threat of climate change, Louisiana’s government officials are devising new strategies to buy out homeowners in low-lying areas increasingly prone to flooding. Yet, the program, promoted by Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, has be approved by the state’s Republican legislators, many of whom have ties to oil and gas industry – and count themselves among the nation’s declining number of climate change deniers.
(“Louisiana’s coastline is disappearing. Can the bayou be saved?” Christian Science Monitor, July 23, 2019)
This week’s News Summary was narrated by Ruthanne Baumgartner.
