by Richard Eskow | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
On April 15, perhaps as you're reading these words, working people in 200 American cities will rally for a $15 base wage and the right to form a union. Solidarity demonstrations are planned in more than 30 cities on six continents, and have already taken place in...
by Robin Claremont | Apr 15, 2015 | Blog, Economy
Today is Tax Day, and millions of Americans are scrambling to file their taxes before the deadline. As you send in that check to the IRS or eagerly await your refund, have you stopped to think about what the federal government is doing with that money? Most Americans...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 14, 2015 | Blog, Economy, Jobs and Growth, Trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership
One state that gets it about "NAFTA-style" trade deals is Ohio. Factory after factory has closed, shipping jobs offshore, and leaving communities devastated. Now Fast Track and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are coming for the rest of the jobs, and Ohio is...
by Leo Gerard | Apr 14, 2015 | Blog
This is no plea for pity for corporate kingpins like Walmart and McDonald’s inundated by workers’ demands for living wages. Raises would, of course, cost these billion-dollar corporations something. More costly, though, is the price paid by minimum-wage workers who...
by Bill Scher | Apr 14, 2015 | Uncategorized
Fast-Track Bill May Come Tomorrow Senate may move bill quickly, House may be roadblock. NYT: "After the bill’s announcement, likely on Wednesday, the [Senate] Finance Committee would move quickly to complete it and send it to the full Senate, setting up a major...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 14, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism
On Monday, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) became the latest politician to declare what anyone who’s paying attention already knew: He’s running for president. Rubio is likely to trip over his past before the race is over. [fve]https://youtu.be/SnpyOnS00lU[/fve] Rubio...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 14, 2015 | Blog, Trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership
The final fight to stop fast track begins this week. The new trade promotion authority ("fast track") bill could be released in the Senate at any moment. (It might be out by the time you read this.) Hatch and Wyden Poised to Introduce Bill With literally zero...
by Digby | Apr 13, 2015 | Blog, Populist Majority, Progressive Vision
I wrote a piece for Salon today about, what else, Hillary Clinton. The headline is harsh (I didn't write it) but I think the piece asks some fair questions: With the Big Announcement yesterday, Hillary Clinton officially entered the race that everyone assumes she’s...
by Dean Baker | Apr 13, 2015 | Blog, Economy, Jobs and Growth
The Labor Department reported the U.S. economy created 126,000 jobs in March. This was a sharp slowdown from the 290,000 average over the prior three months. This relatively weak jobs report led many economic analysts to comment that the economy may not be as strong...
by Bill Scher | Apr 13, 2015 | Uncategorized
Hillary 2016 Begins Hillary Clinton video announcement offers nod to populism: "'Americans have fought their way back from tough economic times. But the deck is still stacked in favor of those at the top,' Clinton says ... That begins to touch on a campaign rationale...
by Robert Borosage | Apr 13, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Progressive Vision
"I’m getting ready to do something too. I’m running for president. Americans have fought their way back from tough economic times. But the deck is still stacked in favor of those at the top. Everyday Americans need a champion, and I want to be that champion. “...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 10, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. When Rand Paul announced his candidacy for president in 2016, he probably didn’t envision his campaign launch becoming one of the worst in recent memory. But that’s exactly what it was. What was supposed to be a great week for Sen....
by Dave Johnson | Apr 10, 2015 | Blog, Trade
Very soon Congress is expected to begin consideration of a trade promotion authority ("fast track") bill. In response the AFL-CIO has announced a "Week of Action Against Fast Tracking Trade Deals." Fast track rigs the process that Congress will use to consider...
by Chuck Collins | Apr 10, 2015 | Blog, Economy, Financial Reform, Tax Reform
This tax season, America’s billionaires are toasting you, the ordinary taxpayer. That’s because you’re the one picking up the tab for our nation’s ailing infrastructure of roads, bridges, and rail transport. You’re also footing the bill for military forces, disaster...
by Bill Scher | Apr 10, 2015 | Uncategorized
Hillary About To Announce Hillary Clinton may announce presidential bid Sunday. Bloomberg: "A person familiar with the Clinton team's plans confirmed that she will make the initial announcement in a video on Sunday before heading to Iowa ... There won’t be a big rally...
by Richard Eskow | Apr 10, 2015 | Blog, Retirement Security
The long knives have been coming out over Social Security lately. The latest wave of attacks was triggered by an amendment from Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) which would have expanded Social Security benefits, and which won the support of...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 9, 2015 | Blog
Paul Krugman makes an important case for bigger government at his blog this week. I'll try to translate his point from economist to English. Every time a conservative blames an individual for making bad choices, it makes the case for more government. When people are...
by Jeff Bryant | Apr 9, 2015 | Blog, Education, Populism2015, Progressive Vision
Is there really "a populist energy building in America, and beginning to drive the debate in the Democratic Party," as my colleague Robert Borosage recently wrote? If your inclination is to answer that question, "Yes," the evidence you're most apt to cite is the...
by Bill Scher | Apr 9, 2015 | Uncategorized
Dems Push Hillary To Go Populist Sen. Warren touts to pledge implicitly urging Hillary to embrace populism. AP: "Warren's comments come a day after the Progressive Change Campaign Committee announced that 5,000 Democratic leaders had signed on to its 'Ready for...
by Bill Scher | Apr 9, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism
Sen. Rand Paul wants to radically slash the size of our federal government and drastically limit its responsibilities. Oddly for a devout ideologue, he doesn't want to tell you that. When Paul was speaking to the country at large in his presidential campaign...
by Robert Borosage | Apr 9, 2015 | Blog, Tax Reform
Next week as Congress returns, House Republicans will address what they consider one of the nation’s most pressing problems: relieving the tax burden on the wealthiest 0.2 percent – two of 1,000, the multimillionaires – by eliminating the estate tax. Its repeal will...
by Richard Eskow | Apr 8, 2015 | Blog, Progressive Vision, Rick Perlstein
Despite the power of incumbency, the backing of President Obama, and an array of wealthy and powerful backers, Rahm Emanuel nevertheless became the first mayor in Chicago history to be forced into a runoff. Sure, Jesús "Chuy" Garcia's defeat was a setback for the...
by Bill Scher | Apr 8, 2015 | Uncategorized
Emanuel Survives, Some Allies Don't Mayor Rahm Emanuel wins runoff. AP: "With nearly all voting precincts reporting results, Emanuel had about 56 percent of the vote ... Emanuel raised far more money than Garcia, plastered the airwaves with ads and had support from...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 8, 2015 | Conservatism
Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul announced yesterday that he is running for president. Paul is the second major Republican candidate to enter the 2016 presidential race, but what he’s running from is at least as important as the office he’s running for. Coming on...
by Gloria Totten | Apr 7, 2015 | Blog, Progressive Vision
This has not been a positive year in state legislatures, and there’s a good chance that, for progressives, this may be the worst session in decades. Wisconsin imposed “right-to-work.” Nevada suspended prevailing wage rules for school construction projects. South...
by Leo Gerard | Apr 7, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, Progressive Vision
After Indiana Republicans passed a license to discriminate law, a restaurant called Memories Pizza in the Hoosier town of Walkerton stepped up last week to make sure potential customers knew its religious rules: “No Shirt, No Shoes, No Certification of...
by Bill Scher | Apr 7, 2015 | Uncategorized
No, We're Not At Full Employment OurFuture.org's Isaiah J. Poole interviews CBPP's Jared Bernstein on "What Robert Samuelson (And Others) Get Wrong About Full Employment": "Bernstein says that his new book will call for policies that would address the 'jobs for all'...
by Bill Scher | Apr 7, 2015 | Blog, Climate, Populism2015
America's clean energy market continues to grow. Our wind power capacity is estimated to grow 85 percent by 2020. The U.S. Energy Department touts that "every 3 weeks the U.S. installs more solar power than in all of 2008." The wave even reaches conservative states...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Apr 6, 2015 | Jobs and Growth
Syndicated columnist Robert Samuelson has penned a column that scoffs at the push for full employment, making the claim that a previous emphasis on full employment led to a disastrous spell of double-digit inflation around 1980. Jared Bernstein, economist with the...
by Dean Baker | Apr 6, 2015 | Current Issues, Economy, Jobs and Growth
The March job numbers came in somewhat worse than most analysts had expected. The slower job growth was largely attributable to unusually bad weather in late February and early March, but most of the commentators seem to be missing this fact. Many are warning that the...
by Dave Johnson | Apr 6, 2015 | Blog, Trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) — and the rigged "Fast Track" process designed to pass it before the public has a chance to react — has become a new "third rail" for progressives and the activist Democratic "base." (This is also true on the right, by the way.)...
by Meghan Byrd | Apr 6, 2015 | Gender Justice, Health, Jobs and Growth
A mother with a newborn baby in Canada has the right to receive paid family leave. So do mothers in France, Brazil, Australia, Pakistan, Venezuela - even Russia. But not those in the United States. Our country is one of only five in the world, and the only developed...
by Bill Scher | Apr 6, 2015 | Uncategorized
Last Day Of Campaigning In Chicago Chicago votes tomorrow for mayor. Chicago Tribune: "... turnout is expected to go up from the near-record low of 34 percent in the first round, and which campaign drives that increase could determine the election's outcome. Emanuel...
by Robert Borosage | Apr 6, 2015 | Blog, Populism2015, Progressive Vision
A populist energy is building in America, and beginning to drive the debate in the Democratic Party. It’s escalating both in the battle of ideas and in action on the ground. It’s starting to propel change at the state and local level, and challenge the limits of the...
by Terrance Heath | Apr 3, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism
This week, wingnuts tried to frighten Americans into believing that gays were going to take away their religious freedom, and learned — in Indiana, Arkansas, and a few other states — that those old tricks don’t work anymore. Discrimination Doesn’t Pay Ever since the...
by Richard Eskow | Apr 3, 2015 | Blog, Conservatism, Jobs and Growth
The Indiana Toll Road begins at the Illinois border, just west of Hammond, and runs past a series of cities that have been hard-hit by the collapse of American manufacturing. They include Gary, where most of the factories have long since closed (its most famous export...
by Robert Borosage | Apr 3, 2015 | Blog, Jobs and Growth
The monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report underwhelmed – a gain of 126,000 jobs, the weakest since December 2013 – with unemployment staying at 5.5 percent. Estimates for January and February were lowered, subtracting 69,000 jobs. Pundits blame it on the...
by Bill Scher | Apr 3, 2015 | Uncategorized
BREAKING: Job Growth Weakens In March Monthly net new jobs drops below 200,000. NYT: "The labor market’s yearlong streak of robust monthly job creation was broken on Friday with the Labor Department’s report that employers added just 126,000 workers in March, a marked...
by Jeff Bryant | Apr 2, 2015 | Blog, Education
Does populist outrage matter anymore? Anyone following the growing resistance to unpopular standardized testing in the nation's public schools may soon see. Thousands of teachers, parents, students, and public school advocates poured into the streets of New York City...
by Bill Scher | Apr 2, 2015 | Uncategorized
McDonald's Offers 89 Cents McDonald's raises its minimum wage, sort of. W. Post: "McDonald's will raise its minimum wage to an average of $9.90 by July 1, up from $9.01, in advance of a planned wave of strikes on April 15 ... The move will cover roughly 90,000 people...
