Potential stunner in Mississippi special election -- And vultures eyeing Puerto Rico for privatization after Hurricane Irma

In Puerto Rico, opportunists think Hurricane Irma may have finally presented them the chance they've been waiting for: They're gunning to privatize the electric grid, a textbook example of Naomi Klein's "shock doctrine" at work. Our story by Kate Aronoff is here, which also includes a very cool 360-degree video about colonialism and austerity on the island. Mississippi Election In Mississippi today, voters head to the polls in what could be a shocker of a special election. A state House seat that has long been in GOP hands is up for grabs, and if Republicans lose it, they lose their super-majority in the legislature. The election was triggered when the former House member -- who had cast a critical vote against expanding Medicaid -- was elected mayor of Hattiesburg and stepped down. The Democrat in the race is Kathryn Rehner, a 27-year-old community organizer who has led the charge in the local area to enroll uninsured residents in Obamacare. She's running as an outspoken populist-progressive, trying to upend the notion that in Mississippi to win as a white Democrat in a non-majority-black district, you have to pretend to be a Republican. The initial Republican front-runner was openly gay and libertarian-leaning, but apparently even in 2017 that was a bit much for Mississippi, so Republican elites recruited the scion of a local family who dominates the paving business to run as well. Republicans are assuming the crowded field means that nobody will get 50% and there'll be a runoff in October, but if previous national patterns hold, it's quite possible Rehner -- using the admittedly clever hashtag #MakeItRehn -- could crack 50 and win it outright. That would be pretty wild. New York Primaries In New York City (and most cities), the elections that tend to matter are the Democratic primaries. Those are today in New York, and a democratic socialist is actually running a competitive race in Bay Ridge. If you're voting today, here's a bit more background on the races. Irma For those wondering if getting walloped by both Harvey and Irma, with half the country on fire, will persuade Republicans to re-think climate change denial, Naomi Klein argues, no, don't count on it. It goes back to the old Upton Sinclair adage: It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it. (It was Upton Sinclair, right?) You're getting this email because you either signed up for it or you took a survey and opted in to this newsletter -- or, probably, you declined to opt out. Either way, I hope you're enjoying it. I'm the Washington bureau chief at The Intercept, and I send this several times a week. If you see an ad here, it's there because sending mass emails turns out to be really expensive. I'm not making any money off of it; it goes to the email service provider and just defrays the cost a bit. If you want to contribute directly to help keep the thing running, you can do so here, though be warned a donation comes with no tote bags or extra premium content or anything. Or you can buy a copy of Out of the Ooze: The Story of Dr. Tom Price, the first book put out by Strong Arm Press, a small progressive publishing house I cofounded. If somebody forwarded you this note, you can sign up to start getting your own copy here. Sent via ActionNetwork.org. To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from Bad News, please click here.