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Why the Fed’s Jobs Program Will Fail by Robert B. Reich, robertreich.org | December 13, 2012
Republicans want to make corporations and the wealthy even richer — demanding tax cuts and roll-backs of regulations on the pretense that companies and the wealthy are the “job creators.” But the real job creators are America’s middle class and all those aspiring to join it, whose purchases propel the economy forward. And whose declining earnings are holding the economy back. So two cheers for Ben Bernanke and the Fed. They’re doing what they can. The failure is in the rest of the government — at both the federal and state levels — still dominated by deficit hawks, supply-siders, and witting and unwitting lackeys of big corporations and the wealthy. read more »The Billionaires’ Long Game by Robert B. Reich, robertreich.org | December 12, 2012
I keep hearing that the billionaires and big corporations that poured all that money into the 2012 election learned their lesson. They lost their shirts and won’t do it again. Don’t believe that for an instant. It’s true their political investments didn’t exactly pay off this time around. But if you think these losses mean the end of high-stakes political investing, you don’t know how these people work. You see, if and when they eventually win, these billionaires will clean up. Their taxes will plummet, many of laws constraining their profits will disappear, and what’s left of labor unions will no longer intrude on their bottom lines. And they have enough dough to keep betting until they eventually win. That’s what it means to be a billionaire political investor: You’re able to keep playing the odds until you get the golden ring. read more »Michigan Workers now have Right to “Work for Less” by Juan Cole, juancole.com | December 12, 2012
What “right to work” laws do is allow workers to be free riders, benefiting from union representation without paying the dues that support the officials, lawyers and others who make successful collective bargaining possible. Unsurprising, in “right to work” states, unionization rates fall precipitously. “Right to work” can also be called a “wage reduction program,”, since the average wage of the average worker in “right to work” states is roughly $5,000 less than in states that do not interfere with unions. Some 70% of Swedish workers are unionized, compared to about 9% in the United States. The nominal per capita annual income of Swedes is $57,638. For the United States? $48,328. And, income inequality is twice as bad in the U.S. as in Sweden. But, folks, you might as well give up on being Sweden. You are all peasants now, so bow the knee to your lords. read more »How Michigan’s Right-To-Work Law Came to Be by Theresa Riley, billmoyers.com | December 12, 2012
As police held back thousands of protesters near the state capital building, Michigan, the birthplace of the modern labor movement, became the 24th state to enact so-called “right-to-work” legislation. Earlier today, Governor Rick Snyder signed two bills preventing public and private sector unions from requiring workers to pay union fees. The Detroit News reports that after requests from Grover Norquist and others, Snyder switched sides on the issue. United Auto Workers President Robert King said in an interview, that the Koch brothers and Amway owner Dick DeVos “bullied and bought their way to get this legislation in Michigan.” State Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville may have been under pressure, the DetroitFree Press said, from the anti-union Americans for Prosperity and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), both financially supported by the Koch brothers. ALEC’s model right-to-work bill “mirrors the Michigan law word for word.” read more »The Democrats' Fight in Michigan by Michael Tomasky, thedailybeast.com | December 12, 2012
It tells us something that Governor Rick Snyder signed the right-to-work bill into law with no fanfare, in private, as if he didn't quite want to own up to it. The whole question of how this came about is an interesting on. But Michigan voters, if properly organized by labor, might undo this. Remember, Ohio voters undid a somewhat similar conservative law last year. That vote was 61 to 39 percent, and if anything Michigan is slightly more union friendly. Democrats can't afford to leave this fight to unions. The ultimate goal here is to weaken not just unions, but the Democratic Party. So the Democrats--the national party, the money people, and so on--have no choice but to put some muscle into this fight, starting today. read more »In Michigan, the Republican Will to Power by Jonathan Chait, nymag.com | December 12, 2012
Republicans understand full well that Michigan leans Democratic, and the GOP has total power at the moment, so its best use of that power is to crush one of the largest bastions of support for the opposing party. I don’t think Democrats abstain from this behavior (to anything like the degree the GOP employs it) because it’s made of angels. Rather, the Democratic party comprises an economically diverse coalition, including not just labor but business as well. Even if Democrats could come up with a plan to crush the political power of business — which is hard because business is way larger and stronger than labor, even in Michigan — huge chunks of the party would object. Whereas nobody in the GOP cares about labor at all, so it’s easier to unify them behind the kind of political/class war strategy we’re seeing here. read more »Far from the Final Defeat in Michigan by Anna Clark, prospect.org | December 12, 2012
Now that Michigan, with its symbolic power as the home of the United Auto Workers, has become a right-to-work state, what’s next for workers concerned about fair wages and fair working conditions? What is the long view of organizers here? Those I spoke with say there is no substitute for votes. But how to keep voters motivated when the next major election is nearly two years out? Coalition building is the other major strategy for Michigan organizers. This week’s right-to-work protests brought diverse activists and citizens together in an all-too-rare way. That collective power needs to be carried forward for exponential political influence. Building union membership to help mitigate the threat of devastation from right-to-work, which will go into effect in April. Free riders who don’t pay union dues but get the benefits of labor wins are a real problem that won’t go away with an uptick in membership. But more workers who are aware of their stake in collective bargaining, the better. read more »Alternative Futures for Labor by David Rolf, prospect.org | December 12, 2012
America’s unions and our allies must have the courage to acknowledge that the crisis we face cannot be met with old models and old tools. We must imagine an alternative future, even if we do not yet know what form it will take. We must embrace risk and failure as necessary elements of a long-term strategy for success. Unlike unions of the mid-20th century, today’s unions and their leaders won’t be remembered for the contracts they bargained, the strikes they led, or the workers they organized. Just as John L. Lewis is remembered today for creating a new kind of union, we’ll be remembered—or won’t be—for whether we had the vision to reallocate our resources and our talent on a massive scale to create a new model for worker advocacy, power, and organization that can give rise to an American middle class for the 21st century. read more »He's Only Stuck If He Lets Himself Be by Mike Lux, Huffington Post | December 11, 2012
There was a headline in the Washington Post on Sunday that completely summarizes the Republicans' fondest dreams as well as the expectations of the D.C. establishment's conventional wisdom: "Debt Crisis Expected to Define Obama's Second Term." It's a reminder of something I learned when I first came to D.C.: the conventional wisdom in D.C. is almost always wrong. Indeed, it is hard to think of one big time over the last 20 years when the conventional wisdom turned out to be right. This isn't to say deficits won't continue to be an issue -- the House Republicans will make sure of that. And Democrats and progressives should certainly engage in the debate over how to bring deficits down over the long run. At the end of the day, though, it is Barack Obama who will determine whether, as the headline suggested, debt and deficits will define Obama's second term. That will only be true if he lets it be. read more »As Washington Fiddles over the Fiscal Cliff, the Real Battle Over Inequality Is Happening in the Heartland by Robert B. Reich, robertreich.org | December 11, 2012
Washington has a way of focusing the nation’s attention on tactical games over partisan maneuvers that are symptoms of a few really big problems. A case in point is what’s now happening in Michigan. In the state where the American labor movement was born – and where, because of labor unions, the American middle class once had the bargaining power to gain a significant portion of the nation’s total income – Republicans and big money are striking back. Connect the dots: As unions have withered, the middle class’s share of total income and wealth has dropped. The decline of the median wage in America over the last three decades correlates exactly with the declining percentage of American workers who are unionized. And as the super-rich have grown even wealthier, they’ve been able to extend their power through the Supreme Court and the Republican Party – advancing a war on the middle class. read more »
The Latest
The sweatshop price of Apple’s huge success, Marketwatch | February 3, 2012
The beautiful iPad, a technical and financial success story in the modern age. If you have bought one you probably love it, its that good. more »TARP expected to cost U.S. only $25 billion, CBO says, The Washington Post | November 30, 2010
The Troubled Assets Relief Program, which was widely reviled as a $700 billion bailout for Wall Street titans, is now expected to cost the federal government a mere $25 billion - the equivalent of less than six months of emergency jobless benefits. more »
If GOP wins, Expect More Obstruction, The Washington Post | October 19, 2010
I'm cautious about the conventional wisdom that the Democratic Party is about to get flattened by a Republican steamroller. Pollsters are less certain than they'd like you to believe about who's a "likely voter" and who isn't. more »
Banks Restart Foreclosures, The Wall Street Journal | October 19, 2010
Bank of America Corp. reopened more than 100,000 foreclosure actions, declaring that it had found no significant problems in its procedures for seizing homes. GMAC Mortgage, a lender and loan servicer, said that it also is pushing ahead with an unspecified number of foreclosures that came under intense pressure.
Geithner Weak Dollar Seen as U.S. Recovery Route Versus BRICs, bloomberg.com | October 19, 2010
Gridlock Sam: The Tea Party’s Bridge to Beyond Nowhere, pbs.org | October 19, 2010
The Tea Party has captured the imagination and spirit of many Americans and may very well turn that into a powerful voting bloc come November. But, that bloc may not have a leg or girder to stand on as our nation’s infrastructure continues to crumble. more »
Administration Assures Pelosi on Restoration of Renewables Aid, thehill.com | August 11, 2010
The Obama administration has “assured” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that $3.5 billion in renewable energy loan guarantees diverted for other policy priorities will be restored this year. more »
S. Carolina Takes Stimulus Money, The New York Times | August 11, 2010
State Aid Bill Breezes Into Law, dyn.politico.com | August 11, 2010
Included is $10 billion to preserve teaching jobs in the new school year, and $16.1 billion to help states cover their Medicaid payments for the first six months of 2011. more »
$26-Billion Aid Package for States Becomes Law, Los Angeles Times | August 11, 2010
