Today's Ideas & Actions
July 3, 2009
Why We Need A Public Plan Choice
With health care costs skyrocketing, 57 million American families — or one in five, up from one in seven in 2003 — are struggling with medical bills.
Robert Reich and Jacob Hacker say a public plan option is essential to affordable health care for all. A new Health Care for America Now! report documents how serious the problem will become without a reform that includes public plan choice.
» Hear Robert Reich challenge Democrats to stand up for a public plan, and read "Why We Need A Public Health Care Plan"
» Jacob Hacker tells a House committee why a public plan is the way to keep private insurance companies honest.
» Read the report and our interactive map

Names are circulating for nomination to the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission — formed by Congress to investigate today's financial crisis, and modeled after the Depression-era Pecora Commission that probed the causes of the 1929 economic collapse.
After helping to lead the push for creating the commission, we are demanding that the committee have strong leadership and an uncompromising commitment to exposing the truth.
» Bill Scher: Pecora Commission To Be Named This Week?» Eric Lotke: Madoff: Fall Guy or First of Many?
» Robert Borosage: Gut-Check Time on Shackling Wall Street
» Plus: Robert Borosage explains our call for accountability | News release
Coalition Mobilizing For Financial Reform
More than 200 progressive organizations are working together to push President Obama's financial reform plans even further.
» Read their joint statement | Blog: "Up To Us to Change The Game"
» Eric Lotke: How The Chamber of Commerce plans to destroy capitalism.
» Robert Borosage: The Wall Street Journal is right. Throw Citi under the bus.
» Mike Elk: The grassroots push for a "new way forward" | Related Audio: Interview with economist Simon Johnson
America Is A Center-Left Nation
On a range of issues, from the role of government in the economy to universal health care, America continues to be more progressive than many people think, according to a new report jointly written with Media Matters for America. The report challenges the mainstream media to recognize reality rather than the erroneous conventional wisdom.
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Our Work: Highlights
Looting Social Security
Defending Social Security sounds like yesterday's issue #&8212; the fight people won when they defeated George W. Bush's attempt to privatize the system in 2005. But the financial establishment has pushed it back on the table, claiming that the current crisis requires "responsible" leaders to take action. Will Obama take the bait? Surely not. ... more »


