Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to effect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security.
MORNING MESSAGE: Survey Says, OWS Speaks For USA
OurFuture.org's Richard Eskow: "The public agrees with OWS on health care: 65% of protesters believe government should guarantee health care for all. In the last major poll on the subject, 64% of voters said the same thing. The public agrees with OWS on taxes: 77% of OWS participants want to raise taxes on the wealthy; according to the Marist polling organization, 68% of all voters - including 68% of independents - agree with them. The public agrees with OWS on a secure retirement: 65% of protesters think the government should guarantee a secure retirement. 70% of all voters - including 73% of independents - agree with them."
President Launches Jobs Bill Bus Tour
President Obama mocks GOP's anti-jobs stance. The Hill: "'Maybe they just couldn’t understand the whole thing all at once ... So we’re going to break it up into bite-size pieces so they can take a thoughtful approach to this legislation,' Obama said ... the new effort will start with a proposal to provide $35 billion in funding to states to prevent further layoffs of teachers, police officers and firefighters ... Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) promised Monday to seek a vote on the aid this week, though that could prove difficult to schedule."
Obama also frames the choice. W. Post quotes: "...the Republican plan boils down to a few basic ideas: They want to gut regulations; they want to let Wall Street do whatever it wants ... You’ve got their plan and you’ve got my plan."
Sen. Maj. Leader Reid threatens to keep Senate in session next week to pass jobs legislation reports Politico.
Some argue multi-year transportation bill would be bigger job creator. Politico: "A six-year highway and transit reauthorization is the best possible way to boost the economy, lawmakers say. And backers of the long-term plans say singular focus on the jobs bill — though it puts a positive light on pressing infrastructure issues that don’t always receive national attention — has been a distraction ... But such silence might be a calculated move ... 'I think the president made a tactical decision not to inject himself into the surface transportation authorization debate so as to not undermine the bipartisan effort of Chairman [Barbara] Boxer in moving her bill through the Senate,' a transportation industry lobbyist said..."
Occupy Wall Street may consider backing "New New Deal" program. Mother Jones: "[The] Occupy Wall Street's Demands Working Group ... on Sunday voted to push for a New Deal-style work program funded largely by ending America's wars and taxing the rich ... The plan would involve the federal government raising about $1.5 trillion in new revenue and using it to create 25 million new public-sector jobs paying union-level wages ... But it's not all clear whether Lerner's demand, or any demand, for that matter, will make the cut ... 'That whole big desire for demands is something people want to use to co-opt us,' said a long-time [protester prepared] to fight the Demand group's plan ... noting that organizers of the Demands group hadn't spent much time at the park or respected its meetings. She supports the competing Liberty Square Blueprint, a kitchen-sink manifesto that eschews demands for loosely defined goals."
Starbucks CEO pushes microlending initiative to create jobs, reports NYT's Joe Nocera: "Americans themselves would start lending to small businesses, with Starbucks serving as the middleman. Starbucks would find financial institutions willing to loan to small businesses. Starbucks customers would be able to donate money to the effort when they bought their coffee ... Schultz is hoping to convince other national retail chains to participate as well — so that Starbucks isn’t the only place people can join in the effort. And, of course, he is hoping that Starbucks customers will flock to it in droves."
Fed presidents disagree on next steps. Bloomberg: "'If we sit on our hands as the economy withers relative to our mandate, then we could take a huge hit to our credibility,' said Charles Evans, head of the Chicago Fed ... The Richmond Fed’s Jeffrey Lacker said there’s little more the Fed can do because 'the strength of this recovery is going to be relatively independent of our monetary policy choices.' The contrasting views reflect the depth of disagreement on the policy-making Federal Open Market Committee..."
Health Lobby Pumps Cash Into Super Committee
Super Committee rakes in health industry cash. The Hill: "Members of the deficit-reduction supercommittee have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars from special-interest groups ... Healthcare political action committees gave more to the deficit panel members than political action committees (PACs) representing energy, defense and agriculture interests ... Hospitals, medical-device manufacturers and home-care experts in general would prefer that the supercommittee fail to reach a deal ... Doctors groups, [however], want a permanent fix to the scheduled cuts in payments they receive from Medicare..."
IMF shifts away from counseling austerity. W. Post: "... the agency warned the world’s leading economies that belt-tightening by governments, companies and consumers has been become so aggressive that the global economy could falter because of anemic demand."
Confusion as HHS shelves long-term care program within Affordable Care Act. The Hill: "The seemingly unworkable long-term care benefit contained in the health overhaul has been indefinitely shelved, quickly triggering a new [repeal] offensive from GOP lawmakers that is expected to put congressional Democrats in a politically awkward position ... The administration’s move on CLASS has caused plenty of consternation among the program’s advocates ... [Some] advocates don’t know what to believe, ripping the administration’s communications strategy."
Massachusetts moves to control health costs by replacing fee-for-service system. NYT: "Although important details remain to be negotiated, the legislative leaders and Gov. Deval Patrick, all Democrats, are working toward a plan that would encourage flat 'global payments' to networks of providers for keeping patients well..."
Volcker Rule Draft Takes Another Hit
Former Sen. Ted Kaufman rips Volcker Rule draft: "The complexity of the draft alone raises real questions about how it could be enforced. In addition, knowledgeable experts have numerous concerns about the draft's many vague definitions and clear exemptions."
"Citigroup Closing Proprietary-Trading Unit" reports Bloomberg: "...Danielle Romero-Apsilos, a spokeswoman, said in an e-mailed statement. 'As it does not fit with Citi’s business model under the impending Volcker rule, it is in the process of being wound down.'"
Sen. Bernie Sanders criticizes new rules on energy market speculation. The Hill: "Sanders said recent media reports leave him concerned that the rule, as currently drafted, will 'do little or nothing to lower prices and it will not eliminate, prevent or diminish excessive speculation as required by the Dodd-Frank Act.' The CFTC will consider the final rule at a meeting Tuesday morning."
