Here's a story you may have missed because it flies in the face of the dreary conventional wisdom: When advocates of public programs take on the right-wing anti-government crowd directly, the government-haters lose. This is what happened in two statewide referendums last week that got buried under all of the attention paid to the governor's races in Virginia and New Jersey
A media environment that tilts to the right is obscuring what President Obama stands for and closing off political options that should be part of the public discussion. This was brought home at this week’s America's Future Now! conference.... read more »
In a plain-spoken, at times tough, and masterful address to a joint session of congress, President Obama spoke in pragmatic and moral terms about the importance of health care reform as a test of our nation's character. The speech still had a bipartisan flavor, but with a progressive spine.... read more »
The immense amount of progressive activity outside the convention hall, compared to 2004, shows how far the movement has traveled. (Plus, interviews with Arianna Huffington and more.)... read more »
In hotly contested 2008 congressional races on November 4, 2008, the Democratic winners were—overwhelmingly—real progressives who campaigned and won on progressive platforms. Voters didn’t just elect Democrats, they elected progressives. read more »
It's not that simple. A 2005 report by The Sentencing Project noted that while increased incarceration rates were accompanied by a decrease in crime between 1991 and 1998, crime rates had increased between 1984 and 1991, a period in which the rate of incarceration was even higher. The director of the Pew Center on the States recently wrote, "Rigorous studies show that increased imprisonment can claim credit for only 25 percent of the nation's crime drop over the past 15 years. The other 75 percent comes from a wide variety of factors, inside and outside the criminal justice system." Those factors include support for improved policing and community crime prevention programs—federal support for which was cut by the Bush administration. We already lock up a larger percentage of our population than any other country in the world. We need to invest more in the programs and techniques that we know prevent crime and lead to healthier communities.read more »
Why is Barack Obama allowing some retreads from the Clinton era who went on to great riches on Wall Street to set economic policy for his administration? The fatal hallmark of this president’s financial policy is that it is being designed by the very people whose previous legislative efforts created the mess that enriched them while impoverishing the nation, and they now want more of the same. read more »
Obama inspired the country with his campaign, and now he must manage expectations of those swept up by his rhetoric.read more »
Whether the Stupak amendment ends up in the final health care reform bill or is replaced by the more moderate compromises in the Senate bill, both the passage of the amendment and the almost immediate response that women and pro-choice progressives should "take one for the team" hold a lesson and a warning for both progressives and Democrats.read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day.
Paul-Grayson Fed Audit Plan Clears Committee
NYT on House committee vote repudiating Fed: "Mr. Paul, a libertarian Republican who has called for abolishing the Fed entirely, has introduced a version of his bill in every session of Congress since the early 1980s and never made any progress. But the Fed’s trillion-dollar efforts to bail out major banks and rescue the financial system provoked a popular firestorm that ignited both right-wing Republicans and left-wing Democrats. Mr. Paul’s amendment would instruct the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, to carry out audits of all the Fed’s operations. Those include an array of emergency lending programs, bailouts of giant financial institutions, dealings with foreign central banks and the central bank’s efforts to drive down interest rates by intervening in bond markets. Mr. Frank had already agreed that the G.A.O. should be authorized to audit all of the Fed’s rescue programs, but he had wanted to wall off the Fed’s more basic job of setting interest rates to steer the economy."
Vote on overall financial reform package stalled by Black Caucus members demanding more action on economy. The Hill: "Frank delayed the panel’s final vote after Congressional Black Caucus members said they would withhold their votes. 'It has nothing to do with the underlying bill,' said Steve Adamske, Frank’s spokesman. 'It has to do with larger economic issues with the African American community.'"read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day
Senate Health Care Bill Cuts Deficit read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day
Senate Bill And CBO Estimate Today (Really, Maybe, We Think) read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day
Obama Mentions Currency, Hu Doesn't read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day
Currency, Trade, Climate Focus of China Trip read more »
The real problem with Washington, DC, I maintain, is that there seem to be sedatives in the water. read more »
The daily Progressive Breakfast serves up what progressive movement members need to know to start their day
Announced Summit Renews Focus On Job Creation read more »
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