by Robert Borosage | Apr 23, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
This week in Washington, hundreds of low wage federal government contract workers walked off their jobs, demonstrating for a living wage and a union. They included Senate janitors and food service workers – the workers who serve the senators their food and clean up...
by Miya Pontes | Apr 22, 2015 | Jobs and Growth
More than 600 federal workers went on strike today, including about three dozen Senate employees, in a protest over low pay by federal contractors. The strike won support from members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), who joined the U.S. Senate contract...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
A new study published by the Economic Policy Institute confirms that “right-to-work” laws aren’t about protecting worker’s rights. “Right-to-work” laws lower workers’ wages, no matter how you look at them. That’s the conclusion of “‘Right-To-Work’ States Still Have...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, This Is The GOP
Last week, my husband and I visited the US Postal Museum. In the exhibit, “Freedom Just Around the Corner:Black America From Civil War To Civil Rights,” I came across a copy of the 1966–67 edition of the Travelers’ Green Book International Edition, or the Negro...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, Jobs and Growth
Conservatives are supposedly all about markets. Markets should decide, not voters. But when it comes to the law of supply and demand for government debt, they go blind. Greg Ip in the Wall Street Journal poses this surprising question: "Is Government Debt Too Low?"...
by Bill Scher | Apr 22, 2015 | Uncategorized
Obama v. Warren Over TPP Obama criticizes Warren on TPP during MSNBC interview. Time quotes: "We’re allies on a whole host of issues. But she’s wrong on this ... [She] is out there saying things like this about the trade agreement: ‘It’s going to help the rich get...
by Richard Eskow | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Retirement Security
The 2016 election season is just beginning, but a surprise issue is already emerging among both Republican and Democratic candidates: Social Security. Some observers thought that conservative candidates would be inclined to avoid the so-called "third rail" of American...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
U.S. Senate contract janitors and food service workers will walk off their jobs Wednesday to protest poverty pay, along with hundreds of striking workers from the U.S. Capitol, Pentagon, Smithsonian Institution and other federal landmarks. They will be joined by the...
by Harvey J Kaye | Apr 22, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
Knowing that "necessitous men are not free men," President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched a New Deal in 1933 that rallied Americans to not only fight the Great Depression, but also to combat poverty, reduce inequality, and enhance American democratic life. Together,...
by Robert Reich | Apr 21, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
These days it’s not unusual for someone on the way to work to receive a text message from her employer saying she’s not needed right then. Although she’s already found someone to pick up her kid from school and arranged for childcare, the work is no longer available...
by Jeff Bryant | Apr 21, 2015 | Blog, Education
Politicians from across the political spectrum have made public schools and schoolteachers the favored whipping post of the day. In blue state New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vowed to “bust up” public education “monopolies” and has bullied through new laws that...
by Leo Gerard | Apr 21, 2015 | Blog
Free traders in Congress formally proposed last week that lawmakers relax, put their feet up and neglect the rigor of legislative review for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade scheme. The TPP is a secret deal among 12 Pacific Rim nations that was covertly...
by Bill Scher | Apr 21, 2015 | Uncategorized
Progressives Rip Fast-Track (But Where's The Tea Party?) Populism2015 rally against fast-track puts pressure on Democrats. Washington Examiner: 'Thank you for lying to us,' said Tefere Gebre, executive vice president of the AFL-CIO labor federation, during a noon...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Apr 21, 2015 | Populism2015, Progressive Vision
There is one respect in which politics is like investing: You don't put your eggs in one basket. The lesson we learned from the Barack Obama presidency is that while it is good to invest some of our hopes in a presidential candidate, no single candidate warrants the...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 20, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth, Populism2015, Trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership
[fve]https://youtu.be/CXgervc2G4A[/fve] As many as 1,000 demonstrators participated in a "Don’t Trade Our Future" rally in Washington on Monday to denounce Trade Promotion Authority and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal that "fast track" will push through...
by Jeff Bryant | Apr 20, 2015 | Blog, Education
Confirming what a recent reporter for Reuters claimed, “the ‘do-nothing’ US Congress may actually be starting to do things.” The report hails passage of “bipartisan initiatives” such as the fix to physician reimbursement in Medicare and the demand that Congress have a...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 20, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Progressive Vision
Hundreds of activists gathered at the Populism2015 conference Sunday to ratify a 12-point platform that puts people and the planet first. Rev. Sam Johnson of Michigan United open the plenary session with a prayer. “Heavenly Creator,” Johnson said, “We give you thanks...
by Bill Scher | Apr 20, 2015 | Uncategorized
Hillary Competes With Sanders, O'Malley For The Left Hillary aims to win over progressives. AP: "Clinton's supporters say her recent comments, particularly on inequality, do not reflect a shift in position [But] Clinton is not in the clear with liberals yet ... Her...
by Richard Eskow | Apr 20, 2015 | Blog, Retirement Security
Never lend money to a conservative. That's one conclusion to be drawn from recent attacks on Social Security by Bloomberg View columnists Megan McArdle and Ramesh Ponnuru. Apparently promises, even legally executed ones, don't mean much to their crowd. McArdle...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 20, 2015 | Blog, Trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership
The "fast track" trade promotion authority bill has been introduced in the Senate. Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution says, "The Congress shall have power to ... regulate commerce with foreign nations." But under fast track, Congress relinquishes that power and...
by Bernie Horn | Apr 19, 2015 | Blog
While we wish that voters considered their electoral choices with a spirit of idealism and a dedication to the common good, that’s just not realistic. Partisan politics requires some elements of marketing. We need swing voters to have a positive general impression...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 19, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Populist Majority, Progressive Vision
The Populism2015 conference started with a bang Saturday night, as more than 750 activists and member of four national progressive organizations came together to announce a new populist alliance around the Populism2015 agenda. National People’s Action, Campaign for...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 19, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Trade
The "fast track" trade promotion authority bill that in essence pre-approves the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement has been introduced in the Senate. Roger Hickey and Robert Borosage, co-directors of the Campaign for America’s Future, issued this statement...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 17, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, This Is The GOP
Unless you slept through the 1990s or were born afterwards, you know that no one but no one drives wingnuts more insane than Hillary Clinton (with the possible exception of Barack Obama). Clinton launched her presidential candidacy this week. Almost immediately, an...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 17, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, Economy, This Is The GOP
In 2011, when he was still House Minority leader, former Rep. Eric Cantor gave a speech about what the GOP could to about inequality, which focused on “how we make sure the people at the top stay there.” Cantor has since gone to his reward, making a lot of money...
by Bill Scher | Apr 17, 2015 | Uncategorized
Fast-Track Battle Begins Bipartisan deal reached on Senate fast-track bill. NYT: "Trade unions, environmentalists and Latino organizations — potent Democratic constituencies — quickly lined up in opposition, arguing that past trade pacts failed to deliver on their...
by Robert Borosage | Apr 17, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Populist Majority, Progressive Vision
Hillary Clinton indicates she favors a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizen’s United, the Supreme Court decision that opened the floodgates to corporate money in politics. She joins President Obama in calling for an end to the hedge fund billionaire tax break,...
by Miya Pontes | Apr 16, 2015 | Jobs and Growth
In addition to being the day hundreds of thousands of workers participated in "Fight for $15" strikes around the nation and the world to call for better pay for low-wage workers, Wednesday was also lobby day for the National Restaurant Association, which had its...
by Jim Hightower | Apr 16, 2015 | Blog, Current Issues, Trans-Pacific Partnership
Come one, come all. Step right up and buy your ticket for a ride on the splendiferous, phantasmagoric, and miraculous Trans-Pacific Partnership! The TPP isn’t some sort of futuristic flying machine. It’s just another global trade scam coming at us like a volcanic...
by Elizabeth Warren | Apr 16, 2015 | Blog, Economy, Financial Reform
[fve]https://youtu.be/HSpfGodTrtk[fve] Remarks at the Levy Institute’s 24th Annual Hyman P. Minsky Conference As Prepared for Delivery Thank you all for being here today. We’re here to ask a critical question at a critical time: what are we to make of Dodd-Frank five...
by Bill Scher | Apr 16, 2015 | Blog
Over at Politico Magazine, I argued that the real Democratic race is "not about whether Hillary will win. Rather, it’s who will win Hillary." In other words, who will exert the most influence over her platform: Establishment wonks like Larry Summers, who led the...
by Bill Scher | Apr 16, 2015 | Uncategorized
Clinton Doesn't Rattle Wall Street Wall Streeters shrug off Clinton's populist rhetoric. Politico: "It’s 'just politics,' said one major Democratic donor on Wall Street, explaining that some of her Wall Street supporters doubt she would push hard for closing the...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Apr 16, 2015 | Jobs and Growth, Populism2015
The wave of "Fight for $15" demonstrations that swept the country Wednesday were in themselves a big deal – actions in more than 230 cities in the United States and in several foreign cities in which hundreds of thousands of workers walked off their jobs to protest...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Current Issues, Jobs and Growth
On a day when millions of Americans render a portion of their earnings to the federal government, thousands of low-wage workers, adjunct professors, some elected officials, and at least one CEO are standing up for an $15 dollar minimum wage — a livable wage for...
by Diane Archer | Apr 15, 2015 | Health
In late March, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill with bipartisan support that would again raise Medicare premiums for people with Medicare with higher incomes. The Senate has also passed the legislation, and President Obama has said he will sign it....
by Dave Johnson | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog
The World Trade Organization ruled this week that the United States is not being fair to Mexican seafood companies by denying "dolphin safe" labels on their tuna, meaning that American citizens won't know whether they are buying tuna that is caught in a way that we...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Tax Reform
Republicans depend on people believing what they say but not paying attention to the things they do. Just how certain are they that no one pays attention to the things they do? Read on. Today is Tax Day, and Republicans are voting to repeal the estate tax. This is a...
by Bill Scher | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Climate
[fve]https://youtu.be/Bgj7KexIPnw?t=41m[/fve] At Monday's Good Jobs Green Jobs conference, Sen. Elizabeth Warren deftly melded her case for building a stronger middle class with her call to avert a climate crisis, saying "both problems grow from the same roots and...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, This Is The GOP
In Fox host Bill O’Reilly’s alternate right-wing universe, Hillary Clinton’s presidential candidacy means, “If you are a Christian or a white man in the USA, it’s open season on you.” [fve]https://youtu.be/M6JR9ePQ0As[/fve] Here on earth, two more unarmed black men...
by Bill Scher | Apr 15, 2015 | Uncategorized
Hillary Reveals Core Themes "Hillary Clinton lays out big vision for her campaign" reports Des Moines Register: "'I want to be the champion who goes to bat for Americans in four big areas,' she [said.] 'We need to build the economy of tomorrow, not yesterday ... We...
