Our Economic Recovery Plan
To address the current economic crisis, we propose a Main Street Recovery Program, a substantial, strategic and sustained plan for economic renewal. It calls for a $900 billion investment over the next two years to boost the real economy and lay the foundation for long-term restructuring.
» Read the "Main Street Recovery Program" | List of endorsers | Podcast | Analysis and commentary | Discuss our Main Street Recovery Plan on Change.gov
What We Must Have
An economic stimulus must be substantial in order to succeed. Economists are coming to agreement that small measures won't budge America's $15 trillion economy. China recently announced a $586 billion stimulus program, planning to invest 7 percent of that country's gross domestic product a year for two years. To lift this economy, an American plan needs to invest at least 3 percent of gross domestic product, or $450 billion, a year for two years.
Public investments must be strategic to be effective. Both tax cuts and bailouts for the rich are ineffective means for stimulating our economy. We need to avert mass layoffs, create new jobs, and build infrastructure that will increase America's productivity. The most effective plan would:
- reduce dependence on foreign oil and address global warming,
- repair our crumbling bridges, roads, and levees,
- provide aid to states so they can avoid layoffs and continue to provide needed services,
- increase aid to education,
- expand research and development,
- tackle the health care crisis, and
- provide aid to those most in need.
Our recovery program must be sustained to build a strong economy. Lifting us out of recession is vital, but not sufficient. America needs a long-term effort to build an economy, not based on asset bubbles and rampant speculation, but on sustained, balanced growth.
The Latest: An Economy for All
Legacy of Shame
- Jul 2, 2009
From huffingtonpost.com
Most of Madoff's victims were pleased with his 150-year sentence, saying it would serve as a deterrent in the future. But unless regulations are properly reformed, rigorously applied and accountability enforced there will be no real deterrent. Madoff's self-proclaimed "legacy of shame" extends to those who provided weak oversight and lax enforcement. read more » Worker Uprising Against Wells Fargo Spreads After Major Victory
- Jul 2, 2009
From huffingtonpost.comThis week, workers at Hartmarx Factory won a major victory against Wells Fargo, as Wells Fargo agreed to keep their factory open. Their victory yesterday represents a major triumph in the growing trend of factory sit ins that started last December when workers, members of United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers occupied the Republic Windows and Doors factory in Chicago. read more » After the Bubble: A New Direction for Housing
- Jul 2, 2009
From dmiblog.comThe housing bubble provided some clear indicators that there is something wrong with our current patterns of housing development. There is nothing sustainable about our current housing model. It has real costs on our pocketbooks, our economy, and our environment. read more » The Fight Over the New Pecora Commission
- Jul 2, 2009
From openleft.comPresident Obama told Wall Street CEOs awhile back that he was the only thing that stood between them and pitchforks. If Democrats protect Wall Street from the populist "pitchforks", they will end up being skewered themselves. read more » The Two Sides of the Balance Sheet
- Jul 2, 2009
From baselinescenario.comAs anyone still reading about the financial crisis is probably aware, a balance sheet has two sides. On the left there are assets; on the right there are liabilities and equity; equity = assets minus liabilities. The goal has always been to provide confidence that there is enough capital to withstand the impact of market and economic turmoil — in particular, its impact on the toxic assets that litter banks’ balance sheets. However, there are two alternative approaches to doing this. read more » Did Free Trade Cause the Recession?
- Jul 2, 2009
From huffingtonpost.comFor many years the world has suffered under a "free trade" regime that eliminates good paying jobs in every country, sending the work to countries that keep wages low and restrict workers' ability to organize for a better life. The profits went to an already-wealthy few and the inequities increased, wealth concentrating massively at the very top. And now consumers around the world have run out of money. This is not a surprise. Did these "free" trade policies cause the recession? read more » Our Jobless Recovery
- Jul 2, 2009
From thenation.comIf current conditions continue, we will head not just toward a jobless, and a manufacturing jobs-less, recovery but also toward an even more weakened economic base that is incapable of sustaining a vibrant middle class. And yet the conditions will continue unless the administration addresses two serious shortcomings in its economic program. read more » Puncturing Old Myths About California’s Budget Woes
- Jul 2, 2009
From news.newamericamedia.orgCalifornia stands on the precipice of destroying our safety net and putting our future prosperity in danger by cutting investments in education. This devastation is unwise and can be avoided. The key to getting started on a better path begins with understanding that,despite a lot of old myths about our budget problems, our current challenge is not our fault, and state spending currently is not escalating out of control. read more »
