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Doubtful Dems, Shutdown Showdown Shakedown

Nayaba Arinde
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Doubtful Dems, Shutdown Showdown Shakedown

Disappointing and disappointed Dems are currently occupying the same news cycle.

By Nayaba Arinde
On Wednesday night, 12th November, the historic 43-day government shutdown ended when the House agreed to the Republican spending bill with a 222-209 vote.
But while temporary relief is certain, cheers may be slightly muted.
On Tuesday, 11th, November 2025, eight defecting Democrats sided with Republicans to end the six week government shutdown, without getting any real assurances of keeping health care premiums at an affordable level inline with the income levels of the majority of the nation.


“Democrats are wondering if there was a point to all of this if their leaders were going to cave,” Professor Basil A. Smikle Jr. PhD, told Our Time Press. “Given the results on election day, many Democrats wanted the Senate to hold the line and feel let down.”
The Columbia Professor and political strategist added, “It’s welcome news for workers that needed to get paid and airline travelers that were facing disruptions leading up to the holidays.”

President Trump now gets to consider signing the solution into reality.
Congressional Minority Leader, Brooklyn’s Hakeem Jeffries said before the vote, “If it doesn’t happen this week, next week, this month, next month, then it’s the fault of Donald Trump, House and Senate Republicans, who continue to make life more expensive for the American people.”
But, political observers, and everyday people are asking, what about the Affordable Care Act. It was not part of the final deliberations.


There is underground rumblings that the Democrats flipped on themselves, and perhaps had been posturing so that they seemed dedicated to supporting the 42 million people who were in danger of losing their government benefits, just so they could ride that dissatisfaction all the way to the November 4th polls, and sweep the ballot across the nation, including the new Democratic (Democratic Socialists of America) Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani.


“The eight senate Democrats caved,” former Bronx Assemblyman Michael Blake told Our Time Press. “We should never have to decide between meals or Medicare. What we are watching is exactly why people are craving a new generation of real Democrats who will fight for the people.”


With a Republican saying they will address the healthcare issue soon, but not now, many House Dems raged at Senate Minority Leader, Senator Chuck Schumer’s inability to competently lead the collective. There are lowkey talks by high-ranking Democrats calling for Jeffries and Schumer to face primary challenges next year.

Current City Councilmember Chi Osse says he will run for Jeffries’ seat.
Asked about Schumer’s leadership, Jeffries defended him enthusiastically. Declaring that the greater majority of Senate Democrats, led by Schumer “have waged a valiant fight over the last seven weeks, defeating the partisan Republican spending bill 14 or 15 different times, week after week after week.”


Forty-two million people have been trying to figure out how to make a dollar out of 15 cents. Some of the six-week-unpaid federal workers are borrowing from credit unions and other sources, not sure how–or when, they can repay that money lent for everyday living. Trump’s tariffs are depleting food on the kitchen table.

The tariffs are diluting the tanks. Everyday people are buying less food, struggling with health care options, childcare, transport, and paying rent, mortgages, utilities, and with taxes coming out of all income “working to pay the government” to quote Whoopi Goldberg.


“Under this deal, there is no guarantee that we will be able to protect 1.6 million New Yorkers’ healthcare, and that is what this shutdown was all about,” said New York State Attorney General Letitia James. “And it’s unfortunate that we cannot depend on or trust our federal government.

There is a possibility that our SNAP case will be mooted as a result of this deal, but at the end of the day, this administration is seeking to claw back benefits from states and/or from some of these vendors — all while they try to take food off the table from children, seniors, veterans and families. I will do everything in my power as Attorney General to protect New Yorkers’ healthcare while we continue this fight to protect food stamps.”


Government officials note that even with the shutdown over, there will be a residual impact across the board from flights to benefits distribution. There have been 8,000 flight cancellations since Friday, November 7th. The area’s airports, including JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark, are continuing to experience cancellations and delays, with some people spending days at the airports. Lines at TSA were over an hour long in some of the 40 airports, which had dozens of TSA and air traffic control people calling in sick. Some took on side jobs, such as driving for Uber, to pay their personal bills.


Trump claimed that he would give a $10,000 bonus to airport workers who stayed on the job and dock their wages for those who did not.
The crossing Dems said that they based their decision on helping to end the shutdown.
Up to 42 million people in America have been living with the fear for 6 weeks that they could lose their SNAP benefits, many turning to the long lines of the stretched-thin food pantries.


Approximately 20 million people will see their health premiums increase by as much as $300.
Jeffries said that any future health care arrangement with the Republicans needs to be “ironclad and in legislation.”
Fresh off of a so-called blue wave in the national November 4th General Election results–including New York City’s own new Mayoral-elect Zohran Mamdani, naysayers and Monday morning quarterback armchair analysts have said that Democrats fumbled the ball and “caved in” by having the 43-day shutdown without a win, or any of the main gains they claimed they were fighting for.


The whole painful exercise is about Republicans dismantling President Barack Obama’s health care. Extending Obamacare, which tens of millions rely upon, was the Democratic sticking point, so to concede with this off the table has made many irate.
The eight Democrats who crossed over to side with the Republicans, and their vote made the deal possible after the six-week shutdown, but they conceded the key issue of extending ObamaCare.


Jeffries slightly chastised the dithering Dems, saying, “They’re going to have to explain themselves.” This, as Republicans said, they promise to possibly address the issue they adamantly opposed in a few weeks. Perhaps.
Former Assemblyman Blake, who just announced a run for Congress in the Bronx next year, concluded, “If Obamacare is not continued in its current form, people are going to lose their lives, because of not having access to healthcare. We know that if people have to decide between rent, groceries, and going to the doctor, they will prioritize protecting their home and feeding their families before they prioritize protecting themselves.
“The democrats should never have agreed to this cave-in, and they must find a way to have the Affordable Care Act extended in some way.”


As for the Republican claim that they would revisit the affordable health issue, Blake added, “I have never known a doctor to take on a promissory note.”

Colvin Grannum

Fern Gillespie
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Colvin Grannum

Reflections from a Brooklyn Changemaker

Fern Gillespie
For over 30 years, Colvin W. Grannum has been an influential and instrumental changemaker in Brooklyn’s nonprofits. Currently, the President of Flagstaff Clapham Group, his impact as the founder and CEO of Bridge Street Development Corp and former President and CEO of Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation continues to be felt in the borough’s economic development. Born and raised in Bedford Stuyvesant, Grannum graduated from Erasmus Hall High School. He earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a law degree from Georgetown University.

Prior to community service, he was an attorney with the United States Department of Justice, the New York State Attorney General and other institutions. He is on the board of Carver Savings Bank and has served on advisory boards at JP Morgan Chase, Fannie Mae, HSBC Bank, Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Our Time Press recently spoke with him about his continued work impacting community economic development in Brooklyn.

OTP: You are currently the Chair Bed Stuy Early Development Center. What are the organization’s outreach projects?
CG: We have a big campaign to support Black home ownership and we have a big campaign to protect homeowners against deed theft. We help homeowners and home buyers. If you’re a home buyer, we have programs and work in partnership with other organizations, including Bridge Street to help people qualify for mortgages to get the necessary financial education so that they can acquire homes. We also work with existing homeowners who are having difficulty maintaining homeownership.

They could be in foreclosure. They could have confronted some catastrophic event which damaged their home like a flood, or some other natural events. We could help them get more low financing or restructure their mortgages so that they can continue to live there. We have a big campaign in helping people avoid the tax lien sale. Where the city sells tax liens to investors, and investors can use those tax liens to collect all the taxes or to foreclose on a person’s property.

OTP: You are a lifelong Brooklyn resident and community leader. What do you think about the impact of gentrification in some Brooklyn neighborhoods?
CG: I like racial and income diversity in neighborhoods. I think those things are healthy. Growing up on Cambridge Place, we had people with range of different incomes. Not everyone was a professional. We had people with a range of different skills and educational levels. Everybody was Black. I like neighborhoods that have amenities and that are safe. Where I grew up in Clinton Hill is now over 70 percent white.

I wish it was more racially diverse. I don’t think the evolution of the neighborhoods is the problem. I think inequity in income and wealth was the problem. If more Black people could own their own homes and could compete to acquire these homes, I think maybe we would feel differently. Because there wouldn’t be this tsunami of people who are not from our community and some who don’t seem to value our community or its history.

OTP: You headed the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation as Chief Executive Officer from 2001 to 2022. What do you think your impact has been on the legacy of the organization?
CG: I think a lot of people don’t realize there’s a lot of pressure on Black organizations that were founded by Black people. There’s a difference between an organization that was founded by white people and then hires a Black leader and an organization that was founded in a large part by Black folk and consistently led by Black folk. Restoration is one of those places. Bridge Street Development Corporation is another. Just so the pressure on those organizations, in my opinion, is very high.

During the 20 years that I was at Restoration, I saw a lot of organizations just fail. And I don’t think they failed because of poor leadership necessarily. I just think that the pressures on those organizations is extremely high. I think their raising money, getting contracts and getting loans is more difficult. When I got to Restoration, there were some people who wanted it to go into bankruptcy. That was in 2001. We were able to reverse that and keep it going for another 22 to 23 years.

Turning it around and keeping it growing, we simultaneously restored the brand. There was a time when Restoration’s brand was very strong in the in the late 1960s and the 70s while Franklin Thomas was president and in part because it was the largest community development corporation in Brooklyn and owned the most land and had the most talented people and got the most funding.

When I was there, we restored the brand by getting involved with a lot of things like policy. Not so much politics. During my tenure, Restoration became a leading borough-wide provider of financial coaching and counseling. And in connection with Restoration’s 50th anniversary in 2017, we staked out a position as a city-wide leader on closing the racial wealth gap. This was pre-George Floyd.

We invested a significant amount of resources on educating key stakeholders on the racial wealth gap and helping Brooklyn residents begin the process of building savings and wealth. Our team was committed to moving our programs and services beyond the walls of Restoration Plaza.

We sent staff out into the community. We also demolished a major wall–the West Plaza Wall– at the Plaza to make the Plaza more welcoming and interactive with the foot traffic along the Plaza. This was a great success as many more people and organizations set up program, events, and other activities in the West Plaza. We also created a 5000 square state of dance studio that was open to community dance companies and other organizations across the City. I think we made it a business friendly environment. We partnered with local residents.

I think Restoration Rocks and Bed Stuy Alive are an example. We renovated the Billie Holiday Theatre when I was there and had municipal affordable housing. We were committed to partnering with the local merchants and local property owners. The City of New York became a partner in that initiative. We formed that Business Improvement District which is performing today.

OTP: In 1995, you left a successful 17-year career as a corporate and government attorney to be the founding director and CEO of Bridge Street Development Corporation, a faith-based nonprofit. What was your philosophy when you established the organization?
CG: One of the things that I feel good about is when I see Bridge Street’s motto, which is “Building on Community Strength” is that I wrote that back in 1996. That was the philosophy. In Bed Stuy and Central Brooklyn there is strength there. I did not like that when people talked about those communities, many people talked about the weaknesses.

They didn’t emphasize the strength. I’ve always thought that you build on strength. You don’t build on a weakness. So our job as community developers is to identify the strengths of the community and build projects and initiatives and those strengths.

More than a Cookbook

Bernice Elizabeth Green
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More than a Cookbook

Stanley B. White’s Because I Said So… That’s What’s for Dinner! The Single Dad’s Guide to Mealtime is hailed by reviewers as “your go-to companion for navigating the kitchen as a single dad.” Released this past June, the Bronx-based author’s “comprehensive guide offers a wealth of easy, nutritious recipes designed specifically for busy fathers and their kids,” it is reported.


But there’s more going on here. It is bound to be the go-to tool for all cooks at all levels of chefdom, moms as well as dads, parents or not. Like most cookbooks these days, Stanley’s work shares the simple recipes, time-saving tips, fun activities in the kitchen and insights into creating balanced meals to promote healthy eating habits. But there’s something more than cooking here, according to Mr. Fred Price, who brought Stanley to our attention. So, Our Time Press asked the first-time author to share some food for thought about himself as a single dad raising a son (now in his late 20’s and, according to the author, “still listening to me.”)
In Part One of a two-parter, Stanley talks about himself in an OTP Q&A:

Bernice Elizabeth Green, Our Time Press: Mr. White, was becoming an author your life goal, or was the “SingleDad” purpose-driven, related to your son?
Stanley White: I do not know if I ever truly had a life purpose, in the sense that I always knew what I wanted to be or to do with my life. My life objective, in itself, was always evolving, always changing. What I can say as far as a purpose in life was, I wanted to be a good father to my son. I didn’t have the best relationship with my own father. I wanted to be all the things to my son that I felt my father was not for me. The idea of fatherhood for me was terrifying. My wife, at the time, wanted children right away. I wasn’t in a rush. I never felt it was the right time. I didn’t have all my ducks lined up in my life. I didn’t want us to have to struggle along the way.

But a friend and mentor of mine told me once that there is never a perfect time and that you can plan as best you can, but in the end, when it happens, it happens and you will deal with it all, good and bad. So yes, the time did come and we got pregnant. The reality of it all was still new and I found myself listening to Stevie Wonder’s “Songs in the Key of Life” album, and “Isn’t She Lovely?” came on. I listened to that song from beginning to end. I cried as I listened to Steve Wonder expound on his love for his new daughter.

I heard that song with new ears, being that I was going to be a father myself. I realized why the thought of being a father scared me so much before. One, was I even capable of that deep a love Stevie was talking about and, then, if I am, you live for them now; selfish time is over. I love my son, and my purpose became clear upon his arrival. It was to be the example of the man I would want him to be. To show him how to think for himself so that he could stand on his own, take care of his own, and have the willingness to serve others.

My purpose was to show him how to fish for himself so he would not have to rely on others to give him fish. I wanted him to know, you can live as you like in this world, you just have to figure it out.

OTP: What can women, men, and children learn from your story? Did you set out to teach a lesson or to actually tell a story so others can draw their own conclusions?
Stanley White: The late great Johnny Bristol said it best, “Hang on in there, baby”. In the end, I didn’t set out to teach a lesson with this book. Ultimately, you are left to draw your own conclusions as to what you will get out of this. For the most part, through those times, my son and I were just living it out in real time. But, in hindsight and retrospect, this is more of an observation of what happened and what came out of it.

So when I say hang on in there, baby, it’s because it will get tough. You may question yourself and the decisions that got you here, but you keep looking for and at the light and do your best with an inner trust that you are doing it all for the right reasons. It won’t be perfect all the time, but your children aren’t necessarily looking for perfection from you. Just knowing you are there sometimes counts for more than what you provide, and we need to remember that, as fathers in particular.

OTP:To those who have secrets to hold, is it ever too late to do what one has always dreamed of doing?
Stanley White: I believe we can live as we like. We just have to figure it out. I always wanted that. Not just for me but also for my family, friends, and my community. So, yes, if I’m able to figure my stuff out and I can help others do the same…, then, yes, I’m all for it. I also believe we are put on this earth to serve. When we serve one another as people, we are all enriched.


Whether we are performing the service ourselves or engaged in the services of others, we are enriched. Maybe this would be my way of providing service to my fellow man and woman. If I succeed, it only means I’ve helped someone else succeed in the process. If they succeed, I succeed, and if I succeed, they succeed, in service, enriched.

OTP:Why is “the call” of the ancestors more important than ever?
Stanley White: Forty years ago, the Honorable Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam gave the word to Black men across America to join him in a Million Man March in Washington D.C. I was there and the impact it had on me will remain with me for the rest of life. I’ll sum it up easily: “We got this!” We, as Black men, got this!! We as Black people, got this!!! Lest you forget, because those lessons aren’t being taught on the regular, WE GOT THIS.

Go back and check the FACTS, We got this. Ask your elders what really happened and they’ll tell you that and then some. Go back and read the real history of what our ancestors accomplished and overcame throughout the centuries, and you will know, We got this we just forgot. We forgot we need each other. We forgot we need to trust in one another. We just got to remember to remember and do what we do. Whether that messaging sounds old-fashioned to anyone is of no concern to me. If it sounds old-fashioned to some, then they forgot, and they need to remember to remember.

Fifty years ago Diana Ross once famously sang and asked, “Do you know where you’re going to, do you like the things that life is showing you, where are you going to, do you know?” With that I would tell young people, go back and read the real history of what our ancestors overcame throughout the centuries and what they accomplished at the same time. “How you going to know where you’re going when you don’t know where you’ve been”. At that point, they will know who they come from, where they’ve been and they can decide with insightful eyes where it is they want to go.

OTP: Music drives your passion, it seems. What music did you play as you wrote your book, and if you can string them along in sequence, what songs, in general, epitomize the soundtrack for your life story?
Stanley White: If I were to admit to a true passion in my life it would be music. Now although as a self admitted “foodie”, I love food and the passion that’s needed to create through cooking is to be recognized. But, it’s still food and it will be forever needed because you need it to sustain life whether you cook it or someone else does. For me, music has always been that necessity for me as much as food is. I feel the same way about music as we all feel about food. I need it to live.

Philadelphia’s own, The Mighty O’Jays said it best and I know they had me in mind when they sang “I Love Music”, any kind of music. That’s me, and there are far too many songs and artists who have influenced me and provided the soundtracks to my life to try and list some of them here and now.. I think I’ll have to start a SingleDad playlist and stream it on the SingleDad website. And I’m also proud to see how my passion for music was picked up and is now carried by my son who is an artist in his own right. I’m so proud of him.

  • – Legacy Ventures

Nigeria: Trump Exaggerates & Talks Violence

Kazembe Batts
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Nigeria: Trump Exaggerates & Talks Violence

By Kazembe Batts
IG: @kazbatts
The contempt for African people, leaders and nations by President Trump is once again on display. Trump has arrogantly challenged the national sovereignty of “the Giant of Africa.” Nigeria is once again a target of the Trump administration’s short-sighted and haphazard foreign policy actions. With the following alarming quote from the 46th USA president on his social media, he threatens “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”


The social media post by Trump came unexpectedly to Nigerian officials. Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, a spokesman for Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in an interview with Al Jazeera, denied Trump’s claims of mass killings of Christians. “We’ve continuously made our point clear that we acknowledge the fact that there are killings that have taken place in Nigeria, but those killings were not restricted to Christians alone.

Muslims are being killed. Traditional worshippers are being killed… The majority is not the Christian population… Nigeria was ready to work with its partners to fight this scourge of terrorism, but not any passive action that will undermine the sovereignty of our country.” Nonetheless Nigeria has struggled to curtail violence and massacres across the country, both from international terrorist groups like Boko Haram and disputes between farmers and herders.


Once again, like it did during his first term, the Trump administration added Nigeria to the “Countries of Particular Concern” list of nations that Washington says have violated religious freedoms after Biden had removed Nigeria during his presidency. Other nations on that list include China, Myanmar, North Korea, Pakistan and Russia. Spokesperson for the ministry of foreign affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, stated “The Federal Government of Nigeria will continue to defend all citizens, irrespective of race, creed, or religion… like America, Nigeria has no option but to celebrate the diversity that is our greatest strength.”


American state department and diplomatic officers may not know this, but the irony and ridiculousness of the Nigerian government being accused of complicity in a Christian genocide is that Nigeria’s President Bola AhmedTinubu, a Muslim from southern Nigeria, is married to Christian pastor Oluremi Tinubu. “Religious freedom and tolerance have been a core tenet of our collective identity and shall always remain so, Nigeria opposes religious persecution and does not encourage it. Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all faiths” explained Tinubu in his own social media post.

When making key government and military appointments, Tinubu, like his predecessors, seeks to balance Muslims and Christians, so that each community is represented. Last week, Tinubu changed the country’s military leadership and appointed a Christian as the new defense chief. Nigeria’s population of 220 million is split between Christian and Muslim populations.


Nigeria has both the largest population and economy in Africa. If Nigeria’s territorial integrity can be wantonly disregarded by unproven allegations of genocide, causing the American military machine to invade, then what does that mean for the sovereignty of other African nations? How will African nations and African people worldwide respond if unprovoked war is waged upon them. Yes, there is murder of all types of people in Nigeria but there is no genocide against Christians.


Responses and comments from African American leaders have been muted. Gone are the days of Marcus Garvey, Paul Robeson, Malcolm X or Elombe Brath. These leaders would offer an international perspective on African issues and then organize to make the American political establishment recognize legitimate African concerns and issues.
The contempt for all things African from the Trump administration has no bounds.

Nobel Prize-winning author Wole Soyinka said on Tuesday that his non-resident visa to enter the United States had been rejected, adding that he believes it may be because he recently criticized President Donald Trump. The movement for African life and dignity continues.

So Far So Good

Eddie Castro
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So Far So Good

By Eddie Castro
We are entering the third week of the 2025-26 NBA season and one of the biggest questions going into the new campaign for the New York Knicks is could they replicate or perhaps be a better team than they were last year? The team is facing their highest expectations in some time with many fans and sports analysts indicating this year as a Finals or bust scenario.

As we go to press, the Knicks have a win-loss record of 6-3, which sits them at the No.2 seed in the Eastern Conference. There are already a few differences to point out regarding the teams’ performance through nine games. For starters, the Knicks have protected home court with a 6-0 current record which matches their best home record start since the 2012-13 season.


Other factors of the Knicks improved look is the team adapting to the new offensive system orchestrated by Head Coach Mike Brown. The improved bench depth led by newcomer Jordan Clarkson and establishing a defensive identity anchored by Mitchell Robinson and the offensive system which has created not only a higher volume of three-point fields goal attempts, but more three-pointers made thus far.

The current system has created more balanced scoring and less looks of Jalen Brunson holding on to the ball. The coaching staff in general have implemented new defensive coverages which should benefit the team moving forward. Having a healthy roster including Robinson and Karl Anthony-Towns doesn’t hurt either as he was bothered last year with knee and thumb injuries.


The Knicks currently have a +8.7-point differential this year as opposed to last year where their full net rating was +4.2. With New York’s offensive rating being high, their defensive rating is not as good as beginning this year especially their three-point defense. They are giving up a high volume of three-point attempts and field goals made to their opponents. This could be a big problem moving forward if there is no improvement because as exciting as well-balanced offense can look, defense is a major key to a top-tier team hoping to win a championship.

The team is currently on a four-game winning streak with players like OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges to name a few flourishing within the offensive system. With Captain Brunson leading the way and Robinson being the team’s X-factor of defense, there should be a lot of highs when it comes to New York Knicks basketball.


Sports Notes: (Football) The Jets are on a 2-game winning steak! (Please be advised that was not a typo) the team will head to Foxboro to battle the New England Patriots tonight. The New York Giants fired Head Coach Brain Daboll on Monday after the team lost another winnable game in what was another fourth-quarter collapse. The team will look to regroup when they play the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.


On behalf of myself and everyone here at Our Time press, we want to thank all the men and women past and present who have fought and are fighting for our country to ensure we can all go about our day-to-day lives safely, a belated Happy Veteran’s Day!

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