Welcome to Wednesday, August 14th, laces and velcros...

"'Give me your tired and your poor who can stand on their own two feet and who will not become a public charge.’"

Ken Cuccinelli, acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, revised the iconic poem on the Statue of Liberty's pedestal to suggest that only immigrants who can "stand on their own two feet" are welcome in the country.

Cuccinelli was speaking with NPR about a new Trump administration "public chare" rule that would make it easier to deny green cards to immigrants who are likely to use public benefit programs.

Mark Krikorian, with the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington think tank that seeks to reduce immigration levels, applauded the move.

“There are hundreds of millions of people who want to move to the United States, and this rule ensures that we allow in only those who will be able to pay their own bills," Krikorian said.

But Rebecca Sanin, CEO of the Health & Welfare Council, said that "Folks are going to be forced to make the decision of whether or not they're going to feed their families or remain in this country. The message is very clearly that people who are not wanted here are people of color.”

Read what Countable users had to say, then join the conversation:

Should the U.S. deny green cards to immigrants on welfare programs?

On the Radar

Ebola Cure

On Monday, a team of scientists and doctors from the World Health Organization (WHO) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that drug trials for a pair of experimental treatments for the Ebola virus appear to significantly improve survival rates for people suffering from the virus. 

An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has infected more than 2,800 people since last August, and there have been 1,794 confirmed deaths from the hemorrhagic fever. The new treatments lower mortality rates to 29% or 34%, with even lower death rates reported for patients who receive them soon after becoming sick.

Before the Senate left the Capitol for its summer recess, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced an agreement to bring the Ebola Eradication Act (S. 1340) to the floor for a vote when the chamber returns in September. The bill, which passed the Foreign Affairs Committee on a voice vote in June and is supported by five bipartisan cosponsors, would allow the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide certain assistance to the DRC to address the Ebola outbreak that’s subject to restrictions under current law. 

Do you support the bill to address the Ebola outbreak?

Under the Radar

Atlanta Bans E-Scooters at Night

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) has called for a ban on electric scooters and bikes from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. The restrictions were brought in response to the death of four riders of the shared vehicles since May.

“Sadly, we have seen a pattern in the recent and tragic fatalities involving scooters – they all occurred after sunset,” Bottoms said in a statement. “This nighttime ban, while we continue to develop further long-term measures, will ensure the safest street conditions for scooter riders, motorists, cyclists, those in wheelchairs and pedestrians.”

Bird, one of the largest e-scooter companies, said it will comply with the curfew. Anyone trying to rent a Bird scooter past curfew will receive a message saying “After Hours, try again in the morning.”

Bird added that it is “exploring long term solutions that more effectively meet the needs of all transit users—in particular, those who require access to transportation in the evening hours. Access to equitable transit options should not be restricted to residents based on their work or class schedule."

Should e-scooters be banned at night?

Social Security Anniversary

On August 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law, creating the Social Security system that still provides federal assistance to the elderly today. The legislation was originally designed to offer vulnerable groups - such as the elderly and the unemployed - protection from poverty through funding obtained from payroll taxes.

The last 83 years have seen Social Security survive challenges from the Supreme Court and has become such a vital component of America’s social safety net that it was expanded 30 years after its creation. Its future is uncertain, however: Social Security - a program that provided benefits to over 50 million retirees in 2016 according to our partners at USAFacts - will face drastic benefit cuts by 2034 if no action is taken by Congress.

How do you feel about the Social Security Act on its anniversary? 

What You're Saying

Here's how you're answering Should $20 Bills Printed After 2022 Feature Harriet Tubman?