Mel Gurtov

Global Citizen International Digest #131 Cuba, Trump's Next Target. Naked imperialism. open.substack.com/pub/melgurtov/…

ANNOUNCEMENT: MY NEW BOOK China Inside and Out: Politics and Policies in a Turbulent World (Bloomsbury Academic). Focused readings and documents covering both international and domestic affairs in recent years, with emphasis on US-China relations.

The Trump administration seeks to induce “constant fear — a fear of violence from which some people may at a given moment be spared, but from which no one will ever be truly safe,” writes @mashagessen. “State terror has arrived.” nyti.ms/4qIngTo

@Mollyploofkins Statement from Alex Pretti’s parents, Michael and Susan Pretti:

As the mayor of that city has said: ICE should get the fuck out of Minneapolis.”

masked federal troops invading an American city, using Gestapo tactics against our fellow citizens; if you believe you don’t deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest, then send a message to this president.

Springsteen at a concert in NJ: “If you believe in democracy, in liberty, if you believe truth still matters, and it’s worth speaking out, and it’s worth fighting for; if you believe in the power of the law and that no-one stands above it; if you stand against heavily armed

The Second American Declaration WHEN in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary to decide that a government that purports to represent the union of states has failed to do so; . . . (melgurtov.com/2026/01/18/pos…)

Former Bush Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Donald Trump: “I believe Mr. Trump is beyond repair. He is stubbornly uninformed…he is unqualified and unfit to be Commander-in-Chief.” RETWEET if you stand with Gates against Trump!

Global Citizen International Digest #110 The Gaza War May be Over, But Peace is Not at Hand open.substack.com/pub/melgurtov/…

Global Citizen International Digest #103 Israel and Genocide open.substack.com/pub/melgurtov/… We need to read the Genocide Convention to be reminded that what we are seeing in Gaza is genocide.

Check out my latest article: Trump Cedes the Future of Energy to China linkedin.com/pulse/trump-ce… via @LinkedIn

@lisamurkowski You made the worst decision in your career. You'll be remembered for that one before any other. For shame.

This was one of the hardest votes I have taken during my time in the Senate.   My goal throughout the reconciliation process has been to make a bad bill better for Alaska, and in many ways, we have done that. In addition to extending pro-growth tax cuts, a larger child tax credit, and no tax on tips or overtime, we made a historic investment and modernization of the Coast Guard; enhanced our border security and national defense; funded aviation safety, including AWOS/VWOS systems that will save lives; and provided tax-exempt status for the Community Development Quota Program to help western Alaska communities establish a sustainable economy, among other provisions.   We have advanced new opportunities for resource development in the NPR-A, the Coastal Plain, and Cook Inlet that will help us create jobs and increase the share of revenues our state receives. I also co-led the Senate effort to restore a slightly longer phase-out for wind and solar tax credits while deleting a punitive excise tax targeting them.   Those provisions will benefit our economy, but it is the people of Alaska that I worry about the most, especially when it comes to the potential loss of social safety net programs—Medicaid coverage and SNAP benefits—that our most vulnerable populations rely on.   To address the bill’s shortcomings, we have helped our communities through a $50 billion rural health fund. This will mean hundreds of millions of dollars for Alaska hospitals, community health centers, and other providers. We secured commitments from the CMS Administrator to continue to address longstanding priorities which will directly help Bartlett, Fairbanks Memorial, Central Peninsula, and other hospitals in Alaska.   In the SNAP program, we have added tribal exemptions for work requirements, delayed cost-share penalties to help Alaska get benefits to the people who need them, and included work requirement waivers that align with our Medicaid policies. We also secured commitments from the Secretary of Agriculture to provide additional flexibilities to Alaska for SNAP.   But, let’s not kid ourselves. This has been an awful process—a frantic rush to meet an artificial deadline that has tested every limit of this institution. While we have worked to improve the present bill for Alaska, it is not good enough for the rest of our nation—and we all know it.   My sincere hope is that this is not the final product. This bill needs more work across chambers and is not ready for the President’s desk. We need to work together to get this right.

"Trump and Netanyahu Play 'Good Cop, Bad Cop' with Iran." See my blog at melgurtov.com/2025/06/13/pos…

@MarcelHVanHerpe Brilliant and right on the mark with his no-holds-barred assessments.

Excellent!

Global Citizen International Digest #79 Appeasement in Europe open.substack.com/pub/melgurtov/…

Creating a 30,000-person facility, which would be 200 times the size of Leavenworth military prison, would take years, require an enormous guard force (Leavenworth has one guard for every three prisoners), and thus require lots of money. Stupid is as stupid does.

Trump: “Most people don’t even know that we have 30,000 beds in Guantanamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people." Well, we don’t. According to military people who are familiar with Gitmo, it currently can only house 700.

@SenJeffMerkley @RepValHoyle Instead of platitudes, tell us what you are doing to confront Trump's tyrannical agenda. And please don't say we must rely on the judicial system. Yes, that's part of resistance, but a slow moving part. Democrats must show backbone before it's too late.

Always great to talk with Oregonians about their ideas for our state and our nation—thank you to everyone who came out for town halls in Lincoln, Benton, and Linn counties yesterday.     And @RepValHoyle—thanks for joining me in Lincoln and Benton counties!