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The GOP Hates Jobs by Zach Carter, blogs.alternet.org | March 2, 2010
Over a million people receiving unemployment benefits ran out of financial rope on March 1 thanks to Sen. Jim Bunning’s (R-KY) self-righteousness. As a result of bizarre Senate procedural rules, Bunning’s sole “no” vote was enough to stop a bill that would have extended unemployment benefits for those who are out of work. Of course, Bunning had plenty of moral support from his fellow Republicans. read more »Not A Game by Sen. John Kerry, tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com | March 2, 2010
This has to end. In the last Congress, the Republican minority more than doubled the previous record for filibusters, and they are on a pace to challenge or surpass that "accomplishment" this Congress as well. And filibusters are only the most obvious part of it. On issue after issue, votes large and small, the strategy from the GOP at the highest levels has been the same: exploiting every Senate rule, playing every trick to try to slow things down. They put holds on bills that later pass by 90 votes, filibuster things they later vote for, block things they previously proposed. They used the filibuster to shoot down a debt commission that they themselves called on President Obama to implement! It doesn't have to be this way. read more »The Principle Of Favoring Wealth Over Work by Natasha Chart, OurFuture.org | March 2, 2010
This morning, Democrats used some of their time on the floor of the Senate to plead with Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) to drop his objection to extending unemployment benefits and COBRA assistance, fixing a 21% cut in Medicare payments, and continuing funding for numerous federal transportation projects whose suspension has left 2,000 workers on furlough. read more »Clean Energy Here -- Not So Clean Hands Over There by Leo Hindrey, Huffington Post | March 2, 2010
This Thursday, March 4, I am addressing the Apollo Alliance on Clean Energy and Good Jobs on the subject of "How to Make the U.S. a Leader in the Clean Energy Economy", a topic made urgent in the midst of the ongoing Great Recession by the promising reality that 'the deployment of just wind and solar power has the potential to support globally 20 million new jobs by 2030 and trillions of dollars in revenue.' read more »The Innovation Delusion by Ralph Gomory, Huffington Post | March 2, 2010
In the United States, innovation has become almost synonymous with economic competitiveness. Even more remarkable, we often hear that our economic salvation can only be through innovation. We hear that because of low Asian wages we must innovate because we cannot really compete in anything else. Inventive Americans will do the R&D and let the rest of the world, usually China, do the dull work of actually making things. read more »US Manufacturing -- Losing Out? by Clyde Prestowitz, OurFuture.org | March 2, 2010
Clyde Prestowitz is founder and President of the Economic Strategy Institute. It is posted as part of our series, Is Manufacturing Making It? read more »AFL-CIO Seeks a Real Jobs Bill by Meteor Blades, dailykos.com | March 2, 2010
Remember the New Deal? You know, that 75-year-old collection of programs without which the Great Recession would have been an even worse disaster than it is? read more »AFL-CIO Seeks a Real Jobs Bill by Meteor Blades, dailykos.com | March 2, 2010
Remember the New Deal? You know, that 75-year-old collection of programs without which the Great Recession would have been an even worse disaster than it is? read more »The Myth of the manufacturing recovery by Robert E. Scott, OurFuture.org | March 1, 2010
This post originally appeared at The Huffington Post, Robert Scott is Senior International Economist and Director of International Programs, Economic Policy Institute. It is posted as part of our series, Is Manufacturing Making It? read more »The Mismeasure of Manufacturing by Natasha Chart, OurFuture.org | March 1, 2010
This post is part of our series, Is Manufacturing Making It? read more »
The Latest
Stiglitz Says U.S. Faces `Anemic Recovery,' Needs More Stimulus, bloomberg.com | August 6, 2010
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz said the U.S. economy faces an “anemic recovery” and the government will need to enact another round of “better designed” stimulus measures. read more »
Employment Situation Summary, bls.gov | August 6, 2010
Small Business Bill Appears to Be Stuck in Senate, mcclatchydc.com | August 5, 2010
Pelosi Calls on House to Return Next Week to Move $26 Billion State Aid Package, thehill.com | August 5, 2010
Speaker Nancy Pelosi threw lawmakers’ summer plans into chaos Wednesday, announcing the House will interrupt its six-week recess and return to Washington next week to act on Medicaid and education funding for states. read more »
State Aid Bill to Bring House Back, Politico | August 5, 2010
Aid Package Aimed at Saving State Jobs Passes Key Hurdle in Senate, The Washington Post | August 5, 2010
Two Republicans crossed party lines to advance the $26 billion package, handing President Obama a victory in his campaign to bolster the shaky economy. With many governors struggling to close gaping budget deficits, administration officials feared a fresh round of state layoffs or tax increases could knock the nation's wobbly recovery off-course.
Senate Breaks Republican Filibuster on State Aid, Teachers’ Jobs, blog.aflcio.org | August 5, 2010
The Senate today voted 61-38, to end a Republican filibuster of aid to state and local governments that would save or create nearly a million jobs for teachers, public employees, police officers, firefighters and others. read more »
Foreclosed On—By the U.S. , The Wall Street Journal | August 4, 2010
James Currell is struggling to prevent his Minnesota home from being foreclosed. But his lender isn't a bank. It is the U.S. government.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is facing the prospect of foreclosing on a number of properties in the coming months, from homes to commercial buildings, a result of a souring mortgage portfolio it took over when it helped bail out Bear Stearns in 2008.
More Workers Face Pay Cuts, Not Furloughs, The New York Times | August 4, 2010
The furloughs that popped up during the recession are being replaced by a highly unusual tactic: actual cuts in pay. Local and state governments, as well as some companies, are squeezing their employees to work the same amount for less money in cost-saving measures that are often described as a last-ditch effort to avoid layoffs.
Businesses Split Over Tax Credits , The Wall Street Journal | August 4, 2010
In a letter to Senate leaders Monday, 22 firms including Bank of America Corp., General Electric Co. and Hewlett-Packard threw their support behind a recent proposal from Sen. Max Baucus (D., Mont.) that would end certain small tax breaks on overseas income, raising $11.5 billion over 10 years to pay for tax incentives the firms are eager to maintain, including the research tax credit.
