America Gets More Unequal This Month
States start cutting jobless aid. NYT: "Starting on Jan. 1, the maximum period of unemployment payments dropped to 26 weeks in most states, down from as much as 73 weeks ... the country’s safety net for jobless workers has undergone a sudden transformation, from one aimed at providing modest but sustained protection to workers weathering a tough labor market to one intended to give relatively short-term aid before spurring workers to accept a job, any job."
Food banks brace for cuts. NYT: "It is unclear when the new cuts will kick in, even if Congress manages to pass a new farm bill, an effort that has taken almost two years. The House and the Senate appear to have worked out most of their differences on the bill. That compromise is expected to cut about $9 billion from food stamps over 10 years ... food banks say they are all but resigned to less money for food stamps this year. Even before the stimulus money ran out in November, food banks said they were having trouble keeping up. Since 2006, the number of Americans receiving food aid from pantries and similar services has gone up almost 50 percent, according to Feeding America."
W. Post's Harold Meyerson worries Supreme Court will deal blow to union movement: "Such a reconsideration could be of even greater consequence if Alito & Co. go further and rule that no member of a public-employee union should be required to pay the dues that go to securing his or her contract. With the decline of private-sector unions, public-employee unions have become the preeminent organizers of voter mobilization campaigns in working-class and minority communities, the leading advocates of immigration reform, the foremost lobby for raising the minimum wage and the all-around linchpin of the modern Democratic Party. A sweeping, party-line ruling by the five conservative justices in Harris could significantly damage the Democrats."
NY Gov. Cuomo and NYC Mayor de Blasio split over taxes and early education. Bloomberg: "New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says he can finance universal early-childhood education statewide while cutting $2.2 billion in taxes. Mayor Bill de Blasio says New York City still needs to tax the wealthy to create a pre-kindergarten program ... Each has a five-year plan to bring pre-K and after-school programs to their constituents. Cuomo’s would spend more than $2.2 billion to reach every school district in the state; de Blasio’s earmarks $2.5 billion just for New York City ..."
The New Republic's Mark Schmitt proposes a way to effectively talk about inequality: "We need a way to talk and think about inequality that presents it as a system, and then finds the points of intervention that might actually change the system ... One compelling answer lies in the connection between political and economic inequality. At first glance, this might seem to make the problem even bigger, layering the dilemmas of money in politics on top of economic questions. But much inequality has its roots in the rules of the political game, from the role of taxes and patents to the less legitimate gains won through manipulation of the political process ..."
Wall Street's Damage Too Much To Count
Bankers complaining about costs of regulation ignore the costs of the financial crisis, notes NYT's Eduardo Porter: "Under a more pessimistic assumption, the Dallas Fed economists estimated that the cost [of the financial crisis] could be ... about $25 trillion, almost $80,000 per American ... But even that might be an underestimate ... Consider joblessness, which damages physical and mental health and breeds poverty, which contributes to crime. It affects the structure of families ... It is impossible to put an accurate dollar sign on these social costs ... Every time you hear about the need to balance the costs of new financial regulations against their benefits, it might do well to think about that."
The revolving door undermines banker prosecutions, argues Bloomberg's William D. Cohan: "The chance for senior government officials to make millions of dollars after their public service ends convinces them -– subliminally or not -– to pull their punches. No doubt that’s why Jimmy Cayne, the former chief executive officer of Bear Stearns & Co., continues to enjoy playing bridge and golf, his $400 million-plus fortune, his sprawling mansion in Elberon, New Jersey, and his duplex at the Plaza Hotel."
Thaw In Immigration Rhetoric
WH urges less partisan rhetoric to secure deal. Politico: "In meetings with immigration reform advocates, White House officials have said President Barack Obama won’t threaten to take unilateral executive action — at least not yet — and that he wants to give House Republicans some breathing room to try to pass legislation this year ..."
Two aides may be key to immigration reform. NYT: "Esther Olavarria, a Democrat, left Cuba as a child, worked as Senator Edward M. Kennedy’s top immigration lawyer and now holds a post in the White House. Rebecca Tallent, a Republican, left suburban Arizona and became Senator John McCain’s chief of staff, briefly advised Sarah Palin in 2008 and is now a top policy aide to Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio ... 'What they have is superior knowledge of the subject that exceeds any other staffers and any members,' said Mark Salter, a veteran of immigration battles who served as chief of staff to Mr. McCain. 'That gives them an advantage.'"
