12/21/20 12/21/20 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! the $340 million in new money that is included in the proposal not been discussed given they inadequate nature of the unprecedented crises that we face. amy: the house could be voting as soon as today on a new $900 billion coronavirus aid package

that includes $600 stimulus checks and expanded unemployment benefits. we will hear from senator bernie sanders on why working families devastated by the pandemic need far more help. then we look at president-elect joe biden's climate change team. >> together this team will ensure that environment all justice and human impacts are top of mind as we tackle these issues. amy: the incoming biden administration is vowing to address environmental justice and to listen to the science as it confronts the climate emergency. we will hear from members of the team, including interior secretary nominee deb haaland who is poised to become the first native american to hold a cabinet position in u.s. history. >> i am proud to stand here on the ancestral homelands of the tribal nation. the president-elect and vice president-elect are committed to

a diverse cabinet, and i'm honored and humbled to accept the nomination for secretary of the interior. amy: plus, we will speak to former epa official mustafa ali who resigned in 2017 to protest the trump administration's policies. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. lawmakers reached a deal sunday on a $900 billion coronavirus relief package after months of stalled negotiations and just days before vital benefits were set to expire for millions across the united states. the measure includes $600 direct payments for taxpayers earning under $75,000 a year. qualifying parents will get another $600 per child. undocumented immigrants will not receive benefits, but their spouses may qualify. the legislation also includes enhanced federal unemployment benefits, aid for small

businesses, schools, and childcare, and money for vaccine distribution. the bill also extends by one month a moratorium on evictions and $25 billion in emergency assistance to renters. the stimulus does not included state and local aid, which the democrats had been fighting for, or corporate liability protections, which republicans had demanded. congress is expected to vote on the measure today. the white house said sunday president trump plans to sign the deal. the first shots of the moderna vaccine are expected to be injected today as millions of doses of the second covid-19 vaccine approved in the u.s. started rolling out to more than 3700 locations sunday. the food and drug administration issued an emergency use authorization for the vaccine friday for people 18 and over. a centers for disease control and prevention advisory panel said sunday frontline essential workers, including teachers, grocery store workers, daycare staff, police and firefighters,

and those over 75 should be the next in line to receive the vaccination after the first wave of frontline health workers and nursing home residents. this all comes as the u.s. recorded over 250,000 cases in a day for the first time friday. nearly one in 200 people in the u.s. was diagnosed with covid-19 in the last week, though the actual number of infected people is likely much higher. in tennessee, which now has the hight number of new cases relative to its population, nearly one of every 100 residents sted pitive within the last week. republican governor bill lee is still refusing to issue a mask mandate. in los angeles, hospitals are making plans for rationing care if the surge continues apace in the coming weeks. canada, russia, and india have joined a growing list of european countries that are banning u.k. travel after british health officials warned

a new, highly infectious strain of the coronavirus is sweeping britain and is "out of control." london and the southeast of england have gone into a strt lockdown. british officials claim the new variant could be 70% more contagious but is not thought to be more deadly. many scientists are skeptical of the claim, which has not been peer-reviewed. researchers say there is no evidence it will impact the covid-19 vaccines. president-elect joe biden formally introduced the team he says is charged with tackling the existential threat of the climate crisis. this is brenda mallory, who is tapped to run the council on environmental quality. >> will work with a broad range of partners on a broad range of issues, tackle the full breadth of climate change, preserve the natural treasuries of our nation , center environment of justice, and help more communities

overcome legacy environmental impact. amy: we'll have more on this later in the broadcast. president trump is reportedly mulling increasingly desperate ways to overturn the results of the 2020 election. in a heated ovalffice meeting friday that included rectly pardoned former national security adviser michael flynn and his attorney sidney powell, trump considered appointing powell, who promoted conspiracy theories about rigged voting machines, as special counsel to investigate alleged voter fraud. powell had been ousted from the trump campaign legal team over her outrageous remarks. trump also reportedly discussed invoking martial law, which flynn had suggested earlier in the week. sidney powell was seen back at the white house sunday night. in related news, the trump campaign is asking the supreme court to overrule pennsylvania judges and throw out over 100,000 mail-in ballots in yet another last-ditch attempt to overturn h defeat.

in other voting news, a federal judge friday rejected a request by georgia's two republican senators, kelly loeffler and david perdue, to prevent new georgia residents from voting in the january 5 runoff election if they voted in another state in november. in iraq, at least one person was injured sunday as attackers fired a volley of rockets at the u.s. embassy in baghdad's heavily fortified green zone. the embassy said an anti-missile system intercepted the rockets mid-flight, preventing more damage. the attack came ahead of the first anniversary of president trump's assassination of iraan general qassem soleimani, who was killed in a u.s. drone strike near baghdad international airport on january 3. in afghanistan, a car bomb exploded in the capital kabul on sunday, killing nine people, and wounding 15 others including a parliamentarian. the blast followed a bombing at a religious gathering in afghanistan's ghazni province friday that left 15 people dead and 20 injured, with children

among the victims. the attacks came just days after the top u.s. general, joint chiefs chairman mike milley, held unannounced talks with taliban peace negotiators in qatar. in india, over two dozen people have died since mass protests began last month against prime minister narendra modi's move to deregulate agricultural markets. officials say around half of the deaths have been caused by the harsh winter as tens of thousands of farmers are camping out in the cold on the outskirts of new delhi. a state of natural disaster has been declared in fiji after cyclone yasa flattened entire llages and killed at least four people, including a three-month-old baby. prime minister frank bainimarama sounded the alarm over the increasing frequency and strength of cyclones in fiji, saying, "this is not normal. this is a climate emergency." back in the u.s., a new watchdog

report finds new york police officers used excessive force and were unprepared to respond to racial justice protests that rose up this summer following the police killing of george floyd. over 2000 people were arrested at protests in may and june as a stream of reports and videos of police violence circulated online. this is the new york city department of investigation commissioner margaret garnett. >> tactics, whichnclude encirclement, mass arrests, bato and pepper spray use, and other tactics reflected a failure to calibrate an appropriate balance between public safety or officer safety interest and the right of protesters to assemble and express their views. amy: in related news, a boston police sergeant has been put on leave as an investigation is carried out into abuses during black lives matters protests in boston. the media outlet the appeal last week published a report and bodycam footage showing police officers used excessive force on demonstrators, including liberal use of pepper spray, and boasted

about attacking protesters. a warning to our viewers, this story contains disturbing images. in georgia, new bodycam footage from the minutes after three white men murdered ahmaud arbery while he was out jogging show arbery was still alive when police arrived at the scene but officers did not immediately help him. they also declined to cuff travis mcmichael even though he admitted to shooting arbery. lee merritt, a lawyer for arbery's family, said of the recently released videos -- "there has not been a black murder suspect in history who got the deference that these men received." seattle police raided and cleared an encampment of unhoused people at a public park friday and arrested over 20 people. residents of the camp were given just 15 minutes to gather their belongings. police also used rubber bullets to disperse protesters at the site. community organizer and attorney nikkita oliver tweeted -- "sweeping cal anderson park in winter during a pandemic is inhumane.

why not actually offer people food, supports & services, rental assistance, places to live? @mayorjenny do better. residents without homes are still humans & still residents." she was referring to the mayor. the cdc has advised cities to leave encampments in place during the pandemic if they are not able to help rehouse them in safe places. in arizona, members of the san carlos apache nation are organizing a day of action today in opposition to a proposed copper mine in a sacred portion of the tonto national forest. the tribe says the planned mine would raze an ancient forest, known as oak flat, and contaminate a large swath of southern arizona. the trump administration is racing to approve the mine as part of a massive transfer of federal land to oil, gas and mining companies in the final days of trump's presidency. the plans include a proposed uranium mine in south dakota, an open-pit lithium mine in nevada, and a natural gas pipeline which

would run through virginia and west virginia and cross under the appalachian trail. we will have more on this later in the broadcast. in cybersecurity news, a massive breach of u.s. government data continues to widen, with federal officials now saying the hack targeted the agency overseeing the u.s. nuclear weapons arsenal and five other government agencies. secretary of state mike pompeo said friday it was clear that russia was behind the hack. just hours after he made that claim, president trump broke his silence on the issue and said that china -- not russia -- may have been responsible, while downplaying the scope of the hack. trump tweeted, "everything is well under control." trump's former top adviser on homeland security, tom bossert, told "the new york times" it may take years to root out the effects of the hack and that "entire new networks need to be built." and the supreme court dismissed a lawsuit friday challenging trump's plan to exclude undocumented people from the final census count. the court said it was premature

to rule on the case which is "riddled with contingencies and speculation." immigrant rights groups vowed to keep fighting against trump's unconstitutional plan. and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. the house could be voting as soon as today on a new $900 billion coronavirus aid package after a deal was reached by congressional leaders on sunday. while the legislative text has not yet been released, the package is expected to include $600 relief checks for qualified adults and children and a temporary $300 increase in weekly unemployment benefits. the bill is expected to extend a cdc moratorium on evictions until january 31. many economists say a far larger stimulus package is needed to address the nation's economic crisis. last week 885,000 people filed new claims for unemployment benefits -- the highest weekly level in three months.

meanwhile, a new study shows at least 8 million americans have been pushed into poverty since summer. on friday, senator bernie sanders of vermont spoke from the floor the senatand decried the aid de as "total inadequate." he called for $1200 emergency checks for every working-class adult and $500 per child. worsts country faces the set of public health and economic crises that we have faced in over 100 years. as a result of the pandemic, more people are becoming infected than ever before. right now. hospitalization is higher than .t has ever been before right now. and more people are dying than ever before, literally, day after day.

we all hope and pray the new vaccine will be distributed as quickly as possible and it will put an end to this nightmare. thatoday, the truth is millions of low-income and middle-class families are suffering in a way that they have not suffered since the the 1930's.sion of today, the reality is over half of our workers are living paycheck-to-paycheck trying to starvation wage of $10 or $12 an hour. the reality is millions of our senior citizens are trapped in their homes, unable to see their kids or grandchildren, unable to go to a grocery store, and many $12,000ng to get by on a year, $40,000 year social security and scared that may

come down with the virus and die. in addition, millions more with disabilities are suffering. workers areour either unemployed or make less than $20,000 a year. and in the midst of this pandemic, because we are the only major country on earth not to guarantee health care to all people as a right in the midst of this pandemic, worse health overcrisis in 100 years, 90 million americans are uninsured or underinsured and unable to go to a doctor when they need to. further, we have the worst in modernrisis history, some 30 million families worried that because they cannot pay their rent they a and up out on the street --

they may end up out on the street. that is, mr. president, where we are today economically. country means anything, if democracy means u.s. government means anything, it means we thist turn our backs on suffering. not in vermont, not in wisconsin, not in new york, not in any state in this country where people are hurting in an unprecedented way. mr. president, members of congress should also be aware that we are far behind other major countries in terms of protecting working families during this pandemic. not only does every other wealthy country guarantee health care to all people as a human right, almost all of them are

providing far more generous benefits to the unemployed and the struggling in their countries than we are doing in our country. -- sorry, bad a president, several months ago, i introduced legislation, along with senator kamala now our vice president-elect, and editor markey that would during the course of this economic crisis -- $2000 a00 a month month to every working-class person in this country. exactly what we should be doing. but unfortunately, given a conservative nature of the senate, i understand that is not going to happen. yet at a time massive income and wealth inequality as senator

schumer just indicated, at a time when huge corporations were making record-breaking profits, the republican leadership here in the senate was able to provide over $1 trillion in tax , largeto the 1% corporations. yes, and a time when i'm a change -- yes, climate change is real. at a time when climate change threatens the entire planet, this congress was able to provide hundreds of billions of dollars in corporate welfare to the oil companies and the gas companiesand the coal who are exacerbating the climate crisis. here int the other day the senate and in the house, legislation was passed which

$740 billion to the military -- the largest military budget in history -- more than the next 10 nations combined. we spend more on the military than the next 10 nations combined. so we can do all of those things -- tax breaks for billionaires, massive corporate welfare, huge military expenditures -- but in the midst of the worst economic meltdown since the great depression, somehow congress is effectively tond the needs of working families will stop madam president, as a result of the pandemic, the government told restaurants and bars, retail stores, schools,

malls, small businesses all over doors.untry, "shut your it is too dangerous for you to be open." and they did that because that is what the public health experts said was the right thing to do in order to control this horrific pandemic. the government has not done, madame president, is to provide the workers who lost their jobs and lost their incomes as a result of those shutdowns with the help that they need in order to pay their bills and to survive economically. week in supplemental employment benefits that congress passed unanimously in march expired in july -- over five months ago. during that time, the republican

senate has done nothing to help working families pay their their children, go to a doctor, or pay for the lifesaving prescription drugs they need. and the senate has not done new where near enough to provide help for the struggling small businesses in vermont and all across this country who are desperately trying to stay afloat. asther, madame president, bad as the economy has been in general, it has been far worse for african-americans and latinos. during the pandemic, nearly 60% of latino families and 55% of african-american families have either experienced a job loss or

a cut in pay. madam president, for nine months we have asked tens of millions of working people in this on one $1200rvive check. with no help for health care, no support for hazard pay, no assistance for rent relief. absolutely nothing. meanwhile, matter president, i should mention that over the same nine-month period, 651 alien ears -- billionaires in ae united states became over trillion dollars richer. but trillion dollars in increased wealth for the very

richest people in our country. check for tens of millions of americans desperately trying to survive. unconscionable. that is immoral. and that scott to change. view,president, in my $340 billion in new money that is included in the proposal now being discussed his totally inadequate given the nature of the unprecedented crises that we people cannotcan wait any longer. they need economic relief. right now their kids are going hungry.

they are being evicted from their homes. they can't go to the doctor. they need help and they need it now. working-class american needs $1200 at least. $2400 for couples. $500 for children. clear to emphasize a point that senator schumer made. and that is what i'm talking must not is money that be taken from other important priorities like 16 weeks of supplemental unemployment benefits, aid for small business, nutrition, housing, and the other important provisions in this bill. we need adequate funding to address the unprecedented crises

that we face. we should not and cannot and must not take from peter to pay paul. we cannot cut unemployment benefits in order to help small business. we have got to do it all right now. and because senator bernie sanders speaking friday on the floor thousand. he wore his mask throughout his speech. next up, we look at the climate crisis team, which joe biden announced saturday. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. under pressure from progressives and communities of color, president-elect joe biden moved saturday to make climate change and top concerns as he selects his cabinet and the members of his climate team. speaking at event in wilmington, delaware, biden introduced michael regan, head of north carolina's department of environmental quality, as his choice to lead the environmental protection agency. regan will be the first black man to direct the epa, where he has served in several roles during the clinton and george w. bush administrations, including as the national program manager for the agency's office of air quality planning and standards. reagan's selection comes after weeks of speculation biden would instead tap mary nichols, head of the california air resources board, who fought the trump admistration's attempt to roll back pollution protections.

more than 70 environmental justice groups wrote to biden earlier this month to oppose her nomination, saying she has a "bleak track record in addressing environmental racism." nichols was instead tapped to head a new white house office of climate policy. this is michael regan accepting biden's nomination to lead the epa. >> growing up hunting and fishing with my father and grandfather in eastern north carolina, i developed a deep love and respect for the outdoors and our natural resources. but i also experienced respiratory issues that required me to use an inhaler on days when pollutants and allergens were especially bad. i've always been curious about the connection between our environment and our health, how the world around us contributes to or detracts from our enjoyment of life. so after completing my education in environmental science, there

was one place in particular that i wanted to work -- the epa. when i started that first summer internship, i never imagined that one day i would be asinated to lead an agency its administrator. so this opportunity, well, it is a dream come true. since the start of my career, my also been the same -- to safeguard our natural resources, to improve the quality of our air in our water, to protect our families and our communities, and to help the opportunities with the cleaner, healthier world. now i am honored to pursue those goals alongside leaders who understand what is at stake. presently biden called out the plight of the paisley communities during the campaign. he made it clear we were no longer just dealing with the issues up to the fence line of these facilities, but we would

actually's the the people on the other cited of fence lines. he is backed up that commitment by assembling a team that reflects america. i am proud to join vice president-elect as a fellow hbcu graduate in this administration. together this team will ensure that environmental justice and human impacts are top of mind as we tackle these tough issues. after nearly a decade at the epa, i know firsthand the remarkable dedication and talent of those career staff. as a statefficial, i understand how actions from epa can help or hurt local efforts. we are going to ensure that epa is once again a strong partner for the states, not a roadblock. we will be driven by our convictions that every person in our great country has the right to clean air, clean water, and a

healthier life no matter how much money they have in their pockets, the color of their skin, or the community they live in. amy: that is michael regan, president-elect biden's pick to head the environmental prection ancy. he will get to work closely democratic congresswoman deb haaland of new mexico, who biden has tapped to lead the interior department. the native is first american cabinet secretary in history if confirmed. she is a member of the pueblo of laguna and a co-sponsor of the green new deal who participated in protest against the dakota access pipeline as 10 rock in 2016. -- standing rock in protests at -- 2016. she would take over the stewardship of about one-fifth of federal lands from the current interior secretary david bernhardt, a former energy industry lobbyist. this is congressmember haaland accepting biden's nomination for

secretary of interior on saturday. cooks i am proud to stand here on ancestral homelands plus of president like a vice president like ours committed to a diverse cabinet i am honored and humbled to accept their nomination for secretary of the interior. growing up in my mother's beenhold, my life has not easy. i struggled with homelessness. i relied on food stamps and raised my child as a single mom. struggle to give me perspective so i could help people to succeed. my grandparents who were taken away from their families as children and sent to boarding schools in an effort to destroy their traditions and identities, maintained -- this moment is profound when we consider the effective former secretary of the interior once proclaimed his goal of go civilize or exterminate us."

i'm a living testament to the failure of that horrific ideology. i also stand on the shoulders of my ancestors and all the people who have sacrificed so i can be here. my dad was he was marine and no matter where we were stationed, he made sure we spent time outdoors. time with my dad the mountains or beach and time with my grandparents in the cornfield in the going me to respect the earth and to value our resources. i carry those values with me everywhere. i am a product of their resilience. as our country faces the impacts of climate change and environmental injustice, the interior department has a role to address these challenges. the president-elect's goals driven by justice and empowering communities who have shoulder the burden of environmental negligence. and we will ensure the decisions

at interior will once again be driven by science. change cant climate only be solved with participation of every department and of every community coming together in a common purpose. this country can and will tackle this challenge. the issues under interiors aboutiction are simply conservation, there woven in with justice, good jobs, and closing the racial wealth and health gaps. this historic moment will not go by without the acknowledgment of the many people who believed in me over the years and have the confidence in me for this position. our planet and all of our protective land stop i am honored and ready to serve. thank you.

amy: that is new mexico congressmember deb haaland, biden's pick to head the interior department. she would be the first native american cabinet member in history if approved. meanwhile, longtime environmental attorney brenda mallory will chair biden's council on environmental quality. this is mallory accepting the position. >> i am honored and humbled by the trust you have placed in me. i look forward to getting to work with this incredible team. i know firsthand the challenges that everyday people face when what unexpected illness or expense can up and the economic stability of a family. i grew up in the working class community and connecticut, a town is so different from scranton, pennsylvania. i know the faces of the marginalized. i appreciate the challenges of urban pollution. climate change" " and "environmental justice" were

not part of the vernacular back then, the evidence of their impact was all around. i did that setting, there was plenty of opportunity to work and make a difference in people's lives. my parents, particularly my father, dedication to tackling community challenges was vitally important. wasice in all its forms essential. they taught me to be a problem solver. to recognize each of us is blessed with different talent and we are all called to bring those gifts to bear in whatever -- wherever we are to work with anyone and everyone to make things better in communities that we share. this has been the driving force and the guiding principle of my journey. i earned a high school scholarship that changed the course of my life. i became the first person in my family to go to college. i attended law school.

at each stage, i was aware of how different the world i came from was from e one i was entering. i did not set up to specialize in environmental issues, but once i started, i was always mindful of the practical implications of the decision. as a staffer the kinetic commission on human rights, i learned give my mental protection and ensuring the health and well-being of all communities had to be reconciled . it is essential we deploy smart and human -- humane policy to help communities pull themselves back from the edge and improve the health, security, and prosperity of all people. the build back better plan is poised to breathe new life into the council on environmental quality. broad group ofa partners on broad issues, tackle a full breath of climate change,

preserve the natural treasures of our nation, center environment will justice, and help more communities overcome legacy environmental impact. i am grateful to the president-elect and vice president-elect for elevating this work and lifting up the communities where it will make the most inference. amy: longtime environmental attorney brenda mallory. if confirmed, she will chair biden's council on environmental quality. this is gina mccarthy, who served as head of the epa under president obama. she will now head a new white house office of climate policy. >> all i can think of his back when i was in grammar school and at the nuns used to jump up and say, "run, close the windows in our classrooms," because when the rubber factory across the chemicalarted to spew stitches into the air, it would

come wafting into our classroom. and that smell kept us from recess more days than i or my teacher ever cared to remember. there wased out early just an intrinsic connection between our environment and our health. and that understanding drew me into a very long career of public service -- which i will never regret and always cherish. and i did it because trying to he families in communities just like mine and those are facing certainly much deeper and more insidious legacies of environmental harm, so they could overcome the challenges that were holding them back. environment protection is part of my moral fiber. it is what i live for. and i am proud of the progress we have made across the united states.

and i am proud of the work th i did for many years at local and state governments, as well as at the epa to make sure our air and water was cleaner, to make community safer and more livable and begin to confront the crisis of climate change. and i am here today becse climate change is not only a threat to the planet, it is a threat to our health and our well-being. it is a threat to people everywhere. and the pressures natural resources that we depend on. defeating this threat is the fight of our lifetime. amy: that's gina mccarthy, who will serve as head a new white house office of climate policy. her deputy national climate adviser will be pakistani-american, ali zaidi, who is currently the deputy secretary for energy and environment for the state of new york. >> i am deeply honored to answer your call to serve this nation

that i love, especially at this moment of consequence. for our planet and the people who live here, the peril of the climate crisis is already evident. but we can also see the promise casting a machining, installing and rewiring, pouring new foundations and building new industries. and in the possibility of ,epairin communities hurt places where pollution has been heavy, an opportunity has never quite reached. mr. president-elect and madame vice president-elect, you campaign on delivering that promise by mounting a response equal to the existential threat that we face. not only by listening to the

science, but also by invigorating the economy, revving up manufacturing and innovation, spurring good paying union jobs and advancing justice long overdue. leading by the example of america at its best. when my parents moved from pakistan to pennsylvania, they brought two little kids and a few suitcases of dreams. dreams their kids are living today. my brother, a doctor on the front lines of the covid crisis, and me, moving to the front lines of the fight against climate change. to be healthy, to have purpose, to be able to get back -- that

is how our parents taught us to define the american dream. amy: that's biden's incoming deputy national climate adviser, ali zaidi. in another major move announced saturday, president-elect biden said his team will also include former michigan governor jennifer granholm as energy secretary. if confirmed, she will play a key role in helping to fulfill his pledge to move the united states off ofossil fuels. >> my commitment to clean energy was forged in the fire. i was the governor of michigan, as the president-elect said, during the great recession, when it struck and pushed our auto industry -- which is the lifeblood of michigan -- to the brink of utter collapse. workers were losing their jobs. no fault of their own. banks would not lend. people were losing their houses.

our unemployed rate in michigan was 50%. in detroit, 28%. now,hen, thankfully, as help was on the way. joe biden and the obama administration worked with us to rescue the auto industry and the million jobs that are attached to it. they worked with us to retool and electrify detroit for the future of course, and to diversify michigan's economy on the premise of this promising future in clean energy. so today in the midst of another harrowing crisis, clean energy remains among the most promising jobs and economic growth sector in the world. over the next two decades,

countries and companies are going to invest trillions -- not in batteries and wind turbines, solar panels, energy-efficient applians, energy-efficient buildings. they will upgrade their electric grids using smart technology. millions of good paying jobs will be created. millions. but where? where will those jobs be? will they be in china or in the other countries that are fighting tooth and nail to corner the market on this hopeful electric and clean energy future? where are those jobs going to be here in america? the path to building back better starts with building and manufacturing and deploying those products here, stabbing them "made in america" and

exporting them around the world. we can win those jobs for american workers with the right policy. amy: that is energy secretary to money jennifer granholm. then talked about why jobs were so important to her by talking about her family's history. >> my dad was born in rural canada in a log cabin with no extremewater in poverty. his father, my grandfather immigrated to canada when -- from sweden during the great depression. again, seeking opportunity. but when my grandfather could not find a job to support his young family, in desperation, my grandfather shot himself -- leaving my gramother and three young children in dire poverty. my father was three years old

when that happened. when he was 11, my dad found nevert a sawmill and he stopped working. he married my mom. they came to america for work. despite not having a college degree, i hard-working gentle father got the fair chance that he was looking for in america. he had started out as a bank teller and he retired as head of the bank. and it is because of my family's journey and my experience in fighting for hard-working michigan families that i have become obsessed -- obsessed with creating good paying jobs in america. amy: former michigan governor jennifer granholm who present like biden has tapped as his incoming energy secretary. will

become back, we will speak to former epa official mustafa ali. he resigned in 2017 from the epa to protest trump administration policies. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. a response now to president-elect joe biden's announcement saturday of the members of his climate team who will tackle what he called the "existential" threat of the climate crisis. his specs include deb haaland of new mexico to leave the interior department, making her the first native american cabinet secretary in history if confirmed. and michael regan, head of north carolina's department of environmental quality, as the first black man to lead the environment protection agency. biden also picked longtime environmental attorney brenda mallory to chair biden's council

on environmental quality. gina mccarthy, who served as head of the epa under president obama, will lead a new white house office of climate policy. former michigan governor jennifer granholm will be energy secretary. last month, biden named john kerry as international presidenti envoy on climate change. washington, go to d.c., to speak to mustafa ali, former head of the environmental justice program at the environmental protection agency. in 2017, he resigned in protest of the trump administration's efforts to severely scale back the size and work of the agency. he first helped launch the epa's office of environmental justice in 1992 and served under both republican and democratic administrations. he is now vice president of the national wildlife federation. mustafa, welcome back to democracy now! listened to innd our last segment people standing

up one by one talking about the climate crisis and specifically referring to the issue of environmental justice, we see the power of movements. people chosen that president-elect biden had planned to originally choose, like the head of the epa, going with michael regan, heading up the of our middle agency in north carolina. can you talk about those movements and what they have accomplished? >> transformational set of movements that are happening. for us to see individuals saying the words and being tied to environmental justice, understating the impact of climate change, something we've never seen before. it also speaks to the hard, credible work environmental justice leaders across the country have been doing to ensure our president-elect is giving serious thought to

vulnerable communities, to the impacts having from the climate crisisand working through with his team and making these decisions -- not snap decisions, but deep thought going into the individuals and hearing a listing to the ices of community. amy: can you talk about uncle regan heading up the environment protection agency if he is confirmed? you have known him for many, many years. he once entered at the epa post it would be the first black man to head of the agency. about the talk original reported pic of president-elect biden being mary nichols from california and what happened, the movement that sent she did not deal with climate justice in the way that environment will justice movements felt needed to be represented as head of the epa? >> let me start off by saying

environment on justice is our northstar for our country and the present has made significant commitment that environmental justice is one of his priority areas. therefore, it has to be part of the evaluation and set of criteria -- you know, when you're choosing individuals. various been an exrt and champion on clean air-related actions. we want to make sure we honor that. but you also have to make sure you're honoring the voices of community as you're moving in the development of policies of regulations and set of actions and a number of stakeholders from california and then across the country called out the fact they felt that mary had not honored that, that she had not fully listened to the voices and included them in the processes that were happening in california. and that became a drag i think on her being nominated as the environment protection agency's

administrator. then you transition to michael. michael, i've known him since he was a student. as you heard, as the listeners heard earlier, as a tied to the land, a tight of the community. has been a strong regulator on environmental impacts, so understanding how the climate crisis is playing out in the fact that we also had to be focused when you can't also be focused on a clean economy. he has a number of challenges ahead of him, but being in north carolina, get a democratic governor but a republican set of lawmakers who were continually trying to slow down the process. he did some great work around coal ash. there are others w probably wished there had been more in the space. but he pushed duke energy to address some of those issues. he also worked on making progress in the p5 issues.

he has to to be surrounded by a number of folks who will help hem to achieve the goals t president is going to psych out. he needs those who have the challengesbecause of are huge, but the set of opportunities are even larger. i think michael is up to the task. and folks will hold him accountable. amy: and to have deb haaland to be the interior secretary, the first native american in history to be named to the cabinet. your response? >> congresswoman holland has my heart. she is a true progressive. she is someone who is anchored in culture, anchored in the changes that can and will happen inside of our country. i've been blessed to do a number of events with deb. she is the real deal. the beauty is the diversity of

this administration is not just in the color of people scan but also their commitment to folks back home and folks across our country. so i think it was an excellent selection and having congresswoman deb haaland to ofd -- lead the department interior. amy: yemen number of people overall in the administration .ho come from the time of obama i guess the question is, how do you ensure the movement, for example, that you're part of come are going to continue to be heard? i think of the first african-american who was named head of the epa, lisa jackson, and she ultimately quit under president obama because she felt undermined and not have support not by the republicans but by the democrats in the obama administration when she tried to propose tougher regulations on smog pollution that she had negotiated for over a year.

she felt undercut when the president, that time obama, did not support her. how do you avoid a situation like this? >> that is what i appreciate about democracy now!, it is all about real talk. we have to understand we have power in this process. it does not matter if it is democrat or republican or independent who is leading, we have to stay engaged, hold people accountable. the reity is, 2022 is not that far away. 2024 is not that far away. folks are going to have to listen to the voices of community, progressive voices, moderate voices, and others that they want to be able to win on these issues. there are a number of other positions that are going to be filled. those individuals who are coming from other parts of the party have to fill some of those positions to make sure they move forward. amy: very quickly, in arizona,

members have called today a day of action in opposition to an opposed a coppermine. the tribe sing would raise an ancient forest known as oak flat and contaminate a large swath of southern arizona. the trump administration raising to approve it as part of a massive transfer federal into oil, gas, mining companies in the final days of the trump presidency. what about these final days and what trump is attempting to do? >> we have to stay focused. they continue to impact our federal lands just so folks can do additional mining. these are traditional lands. back. have to fight folks had been going through legal challenges on many of these actions. we have to continue to put a spotlight on it. when the new administration comes in, they have to use every tool they can to reverse any of these decisions that will have long term, historical impacts on

verbal communities across our country. amy: mustafa ali, thank you for being with us, former head of the environmental justice program at the environmental protection agency. now vice president of the national wildlife federation. democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed ai>úog

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