Progressive Briefing for Thursday, July 26, 2018

But Yosemite is not the only place suffering wildfires. In the U.S. there are currently 60 uncontained large fires – these are fires spanning more than 100 acres of timber or more than 300 acres of grass or sage land. There are a further 11 contained large fires and 14 new ones as of Wednesday, according to the USDA Forest Service. These are predominantly in Colorado, Oregon, and California.

Meanwhile in Europe – which has also been suffering a severe heatwave – wildfires near Athens, Greece have killed at least 76 people. As the New York Times reported Tuesday, the fast-moving fires have forced “thousands of tourists and residents to flee in cars and buses, on foot, aboard boats and on makeshift rafts. In desperation, some people plunged into the Aegean waters and tried to swim to safety.”

White House used Chinese-made silverware at made in America Product Showcase: Report

The White House reportedly used Chinese-made silverware while serving refreshments on Monday at its annual Made in America Product Showcase, which is meant to show off American-made products.

According to Syracuse.com, Matt Roberts, president of New York–based Sherrill Manufacturing, the last flatware maker in the U.S., said the White House used Oneida Ltd. flatware, which now sells flatware made overseas, at the annual showcase.

The news outlet reported that Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) and Sherrill Manufacturing have made repeated efforts to convince the White House to purchase American-made silverware. The effort reportedly has bipartisan support, with Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) also asking President Trump to buy the firm’s Liberty Tabletop utensils for use at state dinners.

‘Revolting:’ Betsy DeVos unveils proposal to make it harder for students defrauded by predatory schools to get loan relief

In a development critics deemed a sign of the administration once again serving corporate interests, Trump’s Education Department, headed by billionaire Betsy Devos, on Wednesday rolled out a proposal that would make it harder for students defrauded by for-profit colleges to be given debt relief.

Betsy DeVos just proposed a ‘policy’ that will devastate students cheated by sham for-profit colleges, making it nearly impossible to have a fraudulent loan cancelled. @BetsyDeVosEd is supposed to work for students, not for-profit shareholders. Revolting. https://t.co/jMo3Kksy6u

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) July 25, 2018

2017 was deadly for environmental activists across the world

Environmental, land, and indigenous activists are being killed at a record rate and governments are turning a blind eye, according to a new report by the watchdog group Global Witness.

According to the report, at least 207 land and environmental defenders were killed in 2017. More than half (60 percent) of the murders took place in Latin America, with Brazil recording 57 killings, Colombia 24 and Mexico 15. The report also stressed that documenting and verifying these murders – particularly in Africa – was extremely difficult, so the real figure might be even higher.