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China Currency Shift: Getting Worse More Slowly by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | April 9, 2010
There are rumors that China will let its currency start to rise a tiny bit. China's currency undervalued by up to 40%, which means goods made there have as much as a 40% advantage coming out of the gate, even before their other rulebreaking trade schemes kick in. read more »Is China Trading Fair? CAF v. CATO on CNBC by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | April 8, 2010
Building a Green Economy by Paul Krugman, The New York Times | April 8, 2010
If you listen to climate scientists — and despite the relentless campaign to discredit their work, you should — it is long past time to do something about emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. If we continue with business as usual, they say, we are facing a rise in global temperatures that will be little short of apocalyptic. And to avoid that apocalypse, we have to wean our economy from the use of fossil fuels, coal above all. But is it possible to make drastic cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions without destroying our economy? read more »Happy 75th, WPA: Its Genius Holds Lessons For Today's Jobs Crisis by Mike Elk, OurFuture.org | April 8, 2010
This week marks the 75th anniversary of the Work Progress Administration, the New Deal centerpiece that helped end the Great Depression by directly creating 3.3 million jobs. As we have just experienced the steepest job losses since then, let’s take a moment to remind ourselves the economic lessons we learned from that historic program. read more »Lumbering Towards A Greater Depression by Natasha Chart, OurFuture.org | April 8, 2010
There's a term for what the trade policies now practiced by the Chinese government, practices that Dave Johnson correctly noted are hurting the whole world's economy for what will ultimately prove to be a temporary advantage for China if the economies of their trading partners should more fully collapse: "beggar thy neighbor." read more »Understanding Why The China Currency Issue Matters by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | April 7, 2010
China has been very smart about looking out for its own interests. read more »The Last Factory in America by Gilbert B. Kaplan, Huffington Post | April 7, 2010
The Sociopaths Who Make Federal Energy, Work Safety Policies by Natasha Chart, OurFuture.org | April 6, 2010
One of the hardest things about training people for combat is that human beings are normally strongly averse, to put it mildly, to killing each other, or even being indirectly responsible for someone's death. read more »Trading Jobs For Diplomacy? by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | April 6, 2010
The Obama administration appears to have backed off from pressuring China to revalue its currency, for now, likely in exchange for diplomatic concessions including helping to pressure Iran on nukes. Chinese currency revaluation is about jobs, because currently China enjoys a competitive head start of up to 40% lower prices because they are keeping their currency too low. read more »Peterson Deficit Summit To Examine, Recommend Latest 'Soak The Poor' Policies by Natasha Chart, OurFuture.org | April 6, 2010
This just in, yesterday: the pro-aristocracy Peter G. Peterson foundation is holding a deficit summit in Washington, DC, to highlight the terrible dangers of the government spending money in a recession. Or, mostly, to provide cover for corporate-friendly politicians who want to help their friends in the finance industry and starve the government of the resources, both political and material, needed to end regulatory capture. read more »
The Latest
Key Dem: Immigration Bill Lacks Votes, thehill.com | June 25, 2010
leading proponent of comprehensive immigration reform admitted Thursday that “there are an insufficient number of Democratic votes” to pass a bill this year.
Rep. Luis Gutierrez’s (D-Ill.) comments are significant because he has aggressively pushed President Barack Obama to pass immigration reform during this Congress.
Dems Could Win Tea Party Voters Over With America-First Trade Message, inthesetimes.com | June 25, 2010
Senate GOP Blocks Jobless Aid Extension, Los Angeles Times | June 25, 2010
Senate Republicans on Thursday once again blocked legislation to reinstate long-term unemployment benefits for people who have exhausted their aid, prolonging a stalemate that has left more than a million people without federal help. read more »
Republicans Thwart Bill With Unemployment Aid, Buyout Tax Boost, bloomberg.com | June 25, 2010
Senate Republicans yesterday killed a bill to extend unemployment benefits, provide aid to state governments and raise taxes on buyout fund managers, saying the measure would add too much to the federal deficit. read more »
Senate Democrats Pull Jobs Bill, Politico | June 25, 2010
Her emphasis on small business is not surprising as a senior Republican tax writer on that Senate panel. But the allusion to health care tells something of the history of the past year, too. read more »
Senate Again Rejects Expanded Spending Package, The Washington Post | June 25, 2010
Unemployment: Outlook Grim For Jobs Bill Ahead Of Vote , Huffington Post | June 24, 2010
Thousands in State Squeezed as Clock Runs Out on Jobless Aid, boston.com | June 23, 2010
Republican Leaders Walk Fine Line on Unemployment, thehill.com | June 22, 2010
Congressional Republican leaders are using the nation’s jobless rate as campaign ammunition while facing pressure from some in their ranks who want to stop extending unemployment benefits. read more »
Senate Grapples With Tax and Safety Net Legislation, thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com | June 21, 2010
The Senate will continue trying this week to break a partisan logjam over a major package of tax changes and safety-net spending, including added unemployment benefits.
The Senate’s inability to advance the bill is a sign that the partisan discord in this highly competitive mid-term election year is causing legislative paralysis.
