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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Religious leaders protest cuts to Medicaid, SNAP in Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
WASHINGTON — Despite the June heat, hundreds of clergy and their congregants joined Democratic senators at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday to protest the Trump administration's proposed cuts to the federal budget in a vigil that one leader described as 'very moving.' Leaders from more than 30 churches, organizations and denominations gathered to oppose cuts to Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits in the budget bill passed by the House last month. They said prayers, read scripture and sang songs to commemorate Pentecostal Sunday, where disciples received 'courage to act,' and demonstrated to 'not forget the least of these,' the Rev. Jim Wallis said. The 'big, beautiful bill' passed in the House late last month after weeks of debate. It is now in the Senate for consideration and several senators have said they want to see changes to the package before they can support it. The demonstrators Tuesday sought to push senators to make those changes. Bishop Dwayne Royster of the Faith United Church of Christ in Washington, D.C., spoke to the crowd wearing what he described as a Ghanaian symbol that means 'the all sufficient God.' 'And I'm here today to say we have an insufficient government,' he said. 'We have an insufficient government that cannot do the things that it has been called to do, which is care for its citizens all across the country.' 'We need to call out our government's insufficiency because there are people who will go hungry all across the land because SNAP benefits are about to get cut,' Bishop Royster continued. 'The problem is that Jesus fed the 5,000, why can't the United States of America?' Bishop Royster said that the country needs to reevaluate how it views itself and oppose the bill that he said will make billionaires richer and send others into poverty. The faith leaders said they were gathered to protest the budget because they believe it is an immoral document. Paul Raushenbush, the CEO of Interfaith Alliance, told the Deseret News that he found the demonstration Tuesday moving because of the unity between so many different people of faith. He described the budget bill as 'antithetical' to Christian values. 'If you look at Jesus's life and Jesus's teachings, kind of across the board, they lift people up who are hungry, they lift up the people who are sick, they lift up the children,' he said. After the faith leaders held their vigil, participants proceeded to the steps of the Senate and were joined by Sens. Chris Coons, Cory Booker, Raphael Warnock, Lisa Blunt Rochester and Michael Bennet. Coons said Tuesday that they were gathering to remind lawmakers that 'no faith teaches that you should take away food from hungry children and health care and seniors and children in order to pay for a bigger tax cut for billionaires and the biggest corporations.' 'That is the core of what this bill does,' Coons told MSNBC before the vigil, later adding, 'A budget is a moral document and this budget bill is an immoral document.' Raushenbush said he was glad to see Democratic support for their advocacy because religion and faith have become associated with the Republican Party. 'It was wonderful to hear their voices and to hear how deeply faithful they are,' Raushenbush said of the senators. 'I think one of the reasons it's so important to do this is that there is a false narrative out there that one side of the aisle has God and the other side is nonreligious.' He noted that faith leaders who assembled on Tuesday held meetings afterward with senators on both sides of the political aisle as the Senate considers changes to the bill.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Yahoo
State Department warns travelers about drugging-dating scam in Brazil
The State Department and its consulate in Rio de Janeiro are warning American travelers about a scam in which criminals seduce unsuspecting visitors, drug their drinks and steal their belongings. The scam occurs year-round, but the agency expects to see predatory behavior during Carnival, the raucous party kicking off this weekend and running through March 8. The U.S. consulates and embassy in Brazil issued a security alert Feb. 3 titled 'Carnival and Drugging-Dating Scam 2025.' Steve Royster, consular chief at the consulate general in Rio, told The Washington Post in an interview Thursday that scammers typically target young, male tourists in bars, nightclubs and crowded areas or through dating apps. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. 'We want Americans coming for the party to have the latest information on a crime pattern that we've seen in Rio de Janeiro and other places around Brazil,' he said. - - - How drugging-dating scams work Royster said the multistep swindle starts with female con artists approaching male visitors with the promise of romance or intimacy. They will seek them out in tourist areas or lure them through dating apps. Once a connection is made, they will move the 'date' to the traveler's hotel room, where they will serve drinks or food spiked with a sedative. While the victim is incapacitated, the thieves will steal their personal belongings. 'The victims wake up, sometimes two hours later, to find they're missing money, phones, passports and other documents and valuables,' Royster said. The primary objective, travel safety experts say, is to rob the traveler and not injure or sexually assault them. 'They are trying to take anything they can sell on the black market,' said Tyler Hosford, a regional security manager for International SOS, an international security risk firm. Royster said the State Department noticed an increase in incidents in 2024, when the Rio consulate tracked about 40 reports involving this crime. As of Thursday, this year's count is at least three, though the actual number could be higher because of underreporting. 'We only see people who come to us when they need to get a new passport,' Royster said, 'so they can travel again.' Though the agency most recently singled out Brazil for the dating hoax - Colombia earned a similar warning in 2023 - international security experts say it happens around the world. Hosford said travelers should be on alert in destinations popular among college-age and other Gen Z partyers, such as the Caribbean and Mexico. He has also detected the crime in Southeast Asia and Europe. Cities with a high population density, large concentration of bars and nightclubs and throngs of 'unsuspecting young people' are fertile ground for this crime, said Mike Ballard, director of intelligence at Global Guardian, an international security provider. The rise of dating apps is compounding the issue, he said. Ballard said drugging that leads to sexual assault is almost always men targeting women, but drugging for robbery or kidnapping is more evenly split. He said gay men in Brazil have also been marked for these types of crimes, and robbery can escalate into murder. - - - How to avoid being scammed The State Department urges travelers to take precautionary measures: - Do not wearing flashy or expensive jewelry or clothing. - Travel in pairs or groups. - Do not go to bars or nightclubs alone, and never accept a drink from a stranger. - If rendezvousing with a match from a dating app, bring a companion and choose a public meeting place. - Enroll in the agency's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, which will send out alerts and advisories from the local embassy. The Brazil consulate also has a WhatsApp channel. At the start of your trip, Hosford recommends storing your valuables in the hotel safe. On your phone, delete all but one payment app and download a tracking app, so your friends and family traveling with you and at home will know your whereabouts. 'It's like going to a party in college,' he said. 'Use the buddy system.' You should also disable the biometric features on your phone, so no one can use your face or fingerprints to access your personal information and accounts. 'You get drugged, you pass out. They hold the phone up to your face, and bang, they open it,' Hosford said. Whether at a bar, party or your hotel room, he said to select beverages that come in a sealed container you can open yourself. If this is not possible, carefully watch the person mixing your drink, a safety practice that, he admits, can dampen the passion. 'If you meet someone special and are trying to have a romantic evening,' he said, 'it can be kind of a buzzkill.' But, it goes without saying, being the victim of a crime is even more heartbreaking. Related Content Federal workers haunted by Oklahoma City bombing fear Trump's barbs The best frozen french fries? Our taste test found a clear winner. Scientists warn of long-term damage as Trump's orders slow research
