Cont: The Biden Presidency (3)

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On a front that I haven't heard as much about...

Averting Border ‘Invasion’, Biden Shows What Effective, Competent Government Can Achieve

The Biden Administration did stuff like...

Opening Regional Processing Centers in key locations in the Western Hemisphere to reduce irregular migration and rapidly process eligible individuals for lawful pathways to the United States, Canada, Spain, and other countries
Surging Panamanian, Colombian, and American personnel to the Darien to root out the criminal smuggling networks
Ramping up efforts to counter lies and disinformation spread by human traffickers through sophisticated, targeted social media advertising campaigns and collaboration with independent influencers throughout the region
Expanding access to the CBPOne App for noncitizens to schedule an appointment to arrive at a port of entry rather than trying to enter between ports
Creating new family reunification parole processes for El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia as an additional lawful pathway
Doubling the number of refugees from the Western Hemisphere as an additional lawful pathway
Accepting up to 30,000 individuals per month from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, and Haiti as part of the expanded parole processes announced earlier this year
Imposing severe consequences for migrants who fail to use lawful pathways, including a five-year bar on reentry and presumption of ineligibility for asylum under a proposed regulation

And the immediate surge after Title 42 ended seems to have subsided now.
 
I'm not a political science expert, but I have to assume significantly reducing the quality of life for your voting base isn't great for turnout.

WHEN, EXACTLY, WILL BIDEN RESTART FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS? After more than three years, the federal government’s pandemic-related suspension of student loan payments and interest is officially coming to an end.

— “Student loan interest will resume starting on September 1, 2023, and payments will be due starting in October,” an Education Department spokesperson confirmed in a statement to POLITICO. “We will notify borrowers well before payments restart.”

Putting a large number of people into economic hardship in the year leading up to the 2024 election:

About 20 percent of student loan borrowers “have risk factors that suggest they could struggle when scheduled payments resume,” according to a new analysis of student loan borrowers released last week by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

https://www.politico.com/newsletters/weekly-education/2023/06/12/biden-admin-will-resume-interest-on-federal-student-loans-sept-1-monthly-payments-due-in-october-00101431#:~:text=%E2%80%94%20%E2%80%9CStudent%20loan%20interest%20will%20resume,borrowers%20well%20before%20payments%20restart.%E2%80%9D
 
I'm not a political science expert, but I have to assume significantly reducing the quality of life for your voting base isn't great for turnout.



Putting a large number of people into economic hardship in the year leading up to the 2024 election:



https://www.politico.com/newsletters/weekly-education/2023/06/12/biden-admin-will-resume-interest-on-federal-student-loans-sept-1-monthly-payments-due-in-october-00101431#:~:text=%E2%80%94%20%E2%80%9CStudent%20loan%20interest%20will%20resume,borrowers%20well%20before%20payments%20restart.%E2%80%9D

I do see the political problem, but if a program is based on a temporary emergency and that ends, rather than artificially extend the emergency you need a new measure. That would probably take congress. The length of time he could continue to fund this approach after the official national emergency ended is surely limited.
 
I do see the political problem, but if a program is based on a temporary emergency and that ends, rather than artificially extend the emergency you need a new measure. That would probably take congress. The length of time he could continue to fund this approach after the official national emergency ended is surely limited.

it might be a different story if doing something about the crushing burden of student loan debt and the absurdly high costs of higher education were an issue that Democrats were talking about more often, but I very much doubt that there's anywhere close to majority within the party who see the status quo as a problem at all.
 
The act of Congress you're waiting for already happened, I think in the 1960s. We just haven't yet had a President who wanted to use it.
 
Biden Administration siding with car manufacturers to block implementation of Massachusetts "right to repair" law that would require auto makers to make their telemetrics data not require proprietary software to read.

The Biden administration has warned car manufacturers that they should not comply with a Massachusetts law that makes it easier for consumers and independent auto shops to repair cars, citing concerns with hacking.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's letter is a huge blow to consumers' rights and is a puzzling move considering that President Biden and his administration have repeatedly championed the right to repair and have specifically stated that they do not believe that right to repair laws pose cybersecurity concerns.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/m7bbkv/biden-administration-tells-car-companies-to-ignore-right-to-repair-law-people-overwhelmingly-voted-for

This law passed via ballot measure in Massachusetts with overwhelming support, 75% voting in favor.

The NHTSA letter is the latest chapter in a decade-long saga in which automotive manufacturers have spent tens of millions of dollars attempting to kill right to repair legislation in Massachusetts. In 2013, Massachusetts passed a law requiring car manufacturers to make parts and diagnostic tools available to independent auto shops and consumers.

That was a watershed moment for consumers because, rather than face a variety of different rules in different states, manufacturers signed a "memorandum of understanding" in which they agreed to comply with a version of the Massachusetts law in every state, effectively creating nationwide access to parts and diagnostics.
 
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Inane Scandal Time!

This time, right-wingers have worked themselves into a tizzy over a Pride flag banner hanging at the White House, with American flag banners hung on both sides. Violation of the US Flag Code! Oh noes!

Except that it wasn't even remotely a violation of the Flag code for multiple reasons, not least of which is that there was an actually flying (on a flagstaff) US flag above it, which directly contradicts their specific lie.

Nevermind that, though, a Republican decided to try to capitalize on the brazen lies made to manufacture outrage to introduce a bill that would likely pretty well ban the usage of all flags that aren't directly for official business purposes on federal buildings. Freedom!
 
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Biden Administration siding with car manufacturers to block implementation of Massachusetts "right to repair" law that would require auto makers to make their telemetrics data not require proprietary software to read.

It's a bit more complicated than that...

The open remote access to vehicle telematics effectively required by this law specifically entails “the ability to send commands.” Open access to vehicle manufacturers’ telematics offerings with the ability to remotely send commands allows for manipulation of systems on a vehicle, including safety-critical functions such as steering, acceleration, or braking, as well as equipment required by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) such as air bags and electronic stability control. A malicious actor here or abroad could utilize such open access to remotely command vehicles to operate dangerously, including attacking multiple vehicles concurrently. Vehicle crashes, injuries, or deaths are foreseeable outcomes of such a situation.
Vehicle manufacturers appear to recognize that vehicles with the open remote access telematics required by the Data Access Law would contain a safety defect. Federal law does not allow a manufacturer to sell vehicles that it knows contain a safety defect...

Given the serious safety risks posed by the Data Access Law, taking action to open remote access to vehicles’ telematics units in accordance with that law, which requires communication pathways to vehicle control systems, would conflict with your obligations under the Safety Act

But...
a 2014 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) already provides secure access to vehicle telematics to independent repair facilities nationwide...

Since manufacturers will have to implement this 'Open Access' functionality to comply with the Massachusetts state law, they will then be liable for any security issues it causes. Open access for 'right to repair' should be limited to functions providing diagnostic info for repair only. But the law does not seem to allow for this restriction. If so then the NHTSA is right to point out the conflict.

It is also curious that independent repair shops apparently already have a way to access telematics securely. If so then what is the point of this new law?

I think the 'right to repair' is an important provision that manufacturers should be providing. But poorly worded laws that don't consider potential consequences are not wanted.
 
It's a bit more complicated than that...



But...


Since manufacturers will have to implement this 'Open Access' functionality to comply with the Massachusetts state law, they will then be liable for any security issues it causes. Open access for 'right to repair' should be limited to functions providing diagnostic info for repair only. But the law does not seem to allow for this restriction. If so then the NHTSA is right to point out the conflict.

It is also curious that independent repair shops apparently already have a way to access telematics securely. If so then what is the point of this new law?

I think the 'right to repair' is an important provision that manufacturers should be providing. But poorly worded laws that don't consider potential consequences are not wanted.

The move to telematics was in part an attempt to evade requirements for wired OBD-II systems to be open source.

The whole "security" complaint is a sham. If they really cared about security this much they'd ditch or heavily restrict the use of these telematics and just use the tried and true wired, closed systems that cannot be hacked remotely.

There was nothing "poorly worded" about the law. The claims that these laws will inherently be a security risk is very much contested.

The way that independent shops have access is entirely at the permission of the big automakers, who charge a pretty penny for access to this proprietary information. There's obvious anti-competition concerns about allowing automakers to control access to diagnostics considering they are also in the repair business themselves and are directly competing with independent shops.
 
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The move to telematics was in part an attempt to evade requirements for wired OBD-II systems to be open source.
I bought 3 different OBD2 devices for my Leaf to run LeafSpy, and none of them worked. I know it can work because my friend loaned me her device and it worked fine (unfortunately she sold her Leaf and forgot to take out the OBD device, so now I can't use hers).

Why didn't they work? Simple. I bought cheap nasty OBD2 devices off auction sites instead of a more expensive one sold by the local Nissan Leaf specialist. Those 3 duds combined cost more than a good one! :o

Nissan says 3rd party OBD2 devices can cause brake faults and other issues.

Nissan advise not to use aftermarket OBD2 devices
Nissan recently confirmed that they have known about the issue of EDIB faults in Nissan Leafs related to use of OBD2 devices for a long time (Nissan material we’ve been given is dated June 2015), and Nissan has posted advice on their Japanese Recall/Service Campaign Information web site in December 2015 (Google translation here or here) that installing/using OBD2 “communication devices” will trigger brake faults, amongst other system issues. Therefore, you may wish to consider Nissan advice “not to use aftermarket OBD2 devices as they cause issues with brakes and other systems”.

According to this information, the new explanation for EDIB faults now provided by Nissan is that the EDIB faults are triggered at the time of the Leaf being in READY OFF state (i.e., turned off) if an OBD2 device is left inserted. Note that we were provided with this information after Nissan New Zealand was presented this summer with a Leaf in EDIB fault mode with an OBD2 device inserted – therefore unrelated to the sub-freezing explanation Nissan provided previously.
 
I bought 3 different OBD2 devices for my Leaf to run LeafSpy, and none of them worked. I know it can work because my friend loaned me her device and it worked fine (unfortunately she sold her Leaf and forgot to take out the OBD device, so now I can't use hers).

Why didn't they work? Simple. I bought cheap nasty OBD2 devices off auction sites instead of a more expensive one sold by the local Nissan Leaf specialist. Those 3 duds combined cost more than a good one! :o

Nissan says 3rd party OBD2 devices can cause brake faults and other issues.

Nissan advise not to use aftermarket OBD2 devices

Yes, the market is ripe for enforcement of a non-proprietary standard. This was an issue that Biden was, before now, quite good about.
 
Biden isn’t far enough left for me. So if I was eligible to vote in US elections I would go for an anti-vaccine, anti-immigrant, pro-Putin candidate who is backed by right-wing billionaires.
 
Biden isn’t far enough left for me. So if I was eligible to vote in US elections I would go for an anti-vaccine, anti-immigrant, pro-Putin candidate who is backed by right-wing billionaires.
I am more afraid of big changes for the better than small changes for the worse. So rather than adjust our party's strategy of inoffensively pursuing the middle, let's only point out that the alternatives are frothing racists from the Nazi end of the loony bin, and hope no one notices we still can't beat them in the polls.
 
Biden isn’t far enough left for me. So if I was eligible to vote in US elections I would go for an anti-vaccine, anti-immigrant, pro-Putin candidate who is backed by right-wing billionaires.

Sigh. Really, the main moral consistent in the Democratic Party since Clinton is unapologetic triangulation.

It's starting to fall apart and now the Party's response is incredulity. It's like Trump broke their brains and even years later we get this "you are stupid to not vote for us" reaction. Which while a fair point, but it also implies that the Party is so inept that they can't sell voters on what should be obvious.

For extra points it's aimed at the wrong people. It isn't the progressives that are abandoning the Party. It's the progressives saying that your policies are driving away other demographics. The working class is pretty much gone, and the Party seems to be eagerly working to lose as many Hispanic votes as they can. It's like the party is trying hard to see how large a margin they can win the popular vote yet still lose the electoral college.
 
Biden isn’t far enough left for me. So if I was eligible to vote in US elections I would go for an anti-vaccine, anti-immigrant, pro-Putin candidate who is backed by right-wing billionaires.

I’m watching the Kennedy Klowns trying to spin his pro-Putin as “anti-war”.
 
I’m watching the Kennedy Klowns trying to spin his pro-Putin as “anti-war”.

Playing devil's advocate, it's really not that hard.

These people are opposed to US intervention, not war in general. They'd be perfectly content with Russia and Ukraine being at war so long as the US wasn't involved in any way.

That said I don't trust any of these people at all in this regard. They are only strategically against US war mongering and would absolutely support US intervention if it were in a foreign affair they cared about.
 
It's funny to see Democrats dismissing the fact that a Kennedy benefits unfairly from the name despite having unpopular ideas, but not noticing how that name got that way in the first place.

(I'm also curious how his support breaks down demographically. Given that it's all based on the name and the Kennedy who made that name what it is died so long ago, I'd expect him to skew toward older voters, like Biden, while Marianne skews toward younger ones.)
 
For extra points it's aimed at the wrong people. It isn't the progressives that are abandoning the Party. It's the progressives saying that your policies are driving away other demographics. The working class is pretty much gone, and the Party seems to be eagerly working to lose as many Hispanic votes as they can. It's like the party is trying hard to see how large a margin they can win the popular vote yet still lose the electoral college.
What policies would those be?
 
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