Happy Tuesday, y’all! After a little break this past Friday, we’re back with The Breakdown.
Today’s the first day of October, and I truly couldn’t be more excited. Some folks here in the office were amused that I started decorating for Halloween in September, but now spooky season is in full swing, and I’m READY.
So that’s the big thing in my life. The big thing in the news? The allegations made by a whistleblower against the President. Read more about it below, along with news on Billie Eilish’s sustainable world tour, Oprah’s million dollar donation to students, and a very cute use of the Animoji feature.
- Jackie, DoSomething
Here’s What’s Up With Trump, Ukraine, and the Ongoing Impeachment Inquiry House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced last week that Congress is moving forward with an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump over his alleged interactions with the Ukrainian government to dig up dirt on Presidential Candidate Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
What Happened?
A whistleblower reported a complaint against Trump on August 12 through the US Intelligence Committee. Even though the committee’s inspector general deemed it “urgent” and “credible,” Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire did not pass it on to Congress (which some argued violated the law). After a unanimous vote from the Senate, the report was released.
What Does the Complaint Say?
Mainly, the complaint alleges these things:
1. Over several months, Trump pressured the Ukrainian government to investigate an unfounded accusation about corruption in Ukraine by former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
2. Trump did this in a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 25, 2019. A readout of the call (not a verbatim transcript) was released -- here are some analyses of it.
3. The White House tried to cover up the call, removing its records from the computer system where they’re usually stored, and putting them in another that’s reserved for highly classified material.
For more background on the complaint, this video breaks it all down in just a few minutes.
Why Does It Matter?
Based on the allegations, Trump and his aides may have violated four laws related to campaign finance, bribery, extortion, and obstruction of justice. Basically, if the complaint is to be believed, Trump may have used American foreign policy to fulfill a personal interest (damaging a political rival) and then tried to hide it.
What's Next?
House Democrats have launched an impeachment inquiry, where they’ll investigate some more before deciding whether to move forward with impeachment. To be clear, impeachment is a process of charging a government official for crimes committed in office -- it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be kicked out of office. See the whole impeachment process visually here.
Protecting the World While Touring the World: Billie Eilish is Going Green Billie Eilish is teaming up with environmental organization Reverb to make her Where Do We Go? arena world tour “as green as possible.” The 17-year-old singer announced her 2020 tour along with the measures she’s taking to reduce environmental impact at her concerts.
She said fans will be allowed to bring reusable water bottles, that plastic straws will be banned, and that recycling bins will be plentiful. Artists like Harry Styles, Shawn Mendes, and Maroon 5 have previously collaborated with Reverb to bring sustainability to the forefront of their tours.
Take Action: No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. Try one of these environmental actions.
Oprah Winfrey Donated Over $1 Million for HBCU Students At a fundraiser, Oprah Winfrey made a donation of $1.15 million to the United Negro College Fund, which provides scholarships to Black students attending historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
This is hugely impactful, considering student loan debt is most heavily carried by Black students. Students of color are more likely to take out student loans, borrow more on average, and are more likely to struggle with repayment than their white peers.
Winfrey spoke about the “power of education” and matched the donations already raised at the 17th annual Maya Angelou Women Who Lead Luncheon. (The reactions from students and faculty were priceless.)
Take Action: Access to affordable education is just one thing that can contribute to a lack of diversity in fields like STEM -- representation is another. Share a STEM Superhero to inspire younger students.
3 Breakdown Readers Making Their Impact
Tell us about the cool stuff you’re doing, and Anthony and I are guaranteed to become your #1 fans. Here are some Breakdown readers we’re cheering on this week!
“Last February, my partner and I produced a full-length musical we'd written about mental health in high schools at our college. This month, we found out that a youth theater company in Ohio wants to perform it!” - Socks, 20, California
“I partnered with a children's hospital to give kids gift bags for the local university's football game day!” - Kaitlyn, 23, West Virginia
And a shoutout to Tina in Arizona, a DoSomething Club leader who named her club the News Changers (we’re really hoping that we had something to do with that). Finding this newsletter useful? Forward today's edition to a friend and encourage them to subscribe.
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