News & Comment

In American history, the vision of a commonwealth built through citizen labors inspired radicals, labor organizers, small farmers and business owners, suffragists and feminists, and those who struggled against racial bigotry and oppression. “The great problem to be solved by the American people is this: whether or not there is strength enough in democracy, virtue enough in our civilization, and power enough in our religion to have mercy and deal justly with four millions of people lately translated from the old oligarchy of slavery to the new commonwealth of freedom,” declared the African American poet Frances Harper in 1875. The argument was that “building America” gave all who co-created the commonwealth a right to equal participation in its public affairs. In the Republican convention last week, we have a specter of what that might look like. Citizenship and the commonwealth are disappearing like the cat in Alice in Wonderland. It is up to all of us to bring them back. read more »

The GOP, the party of exclusion – no gays seeking marriage allowed, also no Hispanics, no black people, no poor people who are on or ever were on welfare, and no women who are on or ever were on birth control ­– yeah, that private party spent last week taking sole credit for America's greatness, saying in speeches, announcing on signs and even chanting: We built it. read more »

What is Labor Day? And why is it a national holiday? Labor Day is our national holiday to celebrate the contribution that regular working people make to our country and our economy. It is also a holiday that celebrates the way We, the People democracy can deliver prosperity to many, instead of great wealth to just a few -- when it works. Strong unions help make it work. read more »

Come the revolution, rich, white, male conservatives will be the only people left who can "play the race card" and get away with it. Actually, that revolution is already here. And, with apologies to Gil Scott-Heron, it is being televised — in the form of Mitt Romney's attack ads, focused on Obama's imaginary "gutting" of welfare reform. There's a dark, bitter irony in this latest chapter in the ongoing saga of race in America. Our first African-American president can't talk about race. As Ta-Nehisi Coates explains in his excellent article in The Atlantic, "Fear of a Black President," Barack Obama has become "the most successful black politician in American history," by steering clear of "the radioactive racial issues of yesteryear." Yet the success of the GOP's Romney/Ryan ticket, dubbed "white and whiter" by Salon columnist Joan Walsh, actually depends on exploiting the "radioactive racial issues of yesteryear." At this stage in the game, there's only one reason a campaign doubles down on a particular strategy — especially one with so much potential to backfire: it's working. The question is: Why does it work? There are at least a few reasons why it works. See Dave Johnson's post and Digby's post for more about why we on the left are part of the reason it works, and how we can begin to do something about it. For my purposes, I'm going to focus on to big reasons why playing the race card works so well for conservatives: the media, and the base. read more »

Mitt Romney (or someone) writes (or writes for him) in Murdoch/Al-Waleed's Wall Street Journal, that lessons he learned at Bain Capital will help him turn the country around if he is elected President. Is he right? read more »

The following is an issue brief by Nancy Altman, Social Security Works, Eric Kingson, Syracuse University, and Benjamin W. read more »

Did Republicans work to help our President fix the economy and the country after he took office, in the midst of two wars, a financial crisis, and an economic emergency? This is a question every American should consider. The month President Obama took the oath of office the country lost another 815,000 jobs. What did Republicans do to help him and us? read more »

This month the Mitt Romney campaign offered a one-page economic plan, Mitt Romney’s Plan For A Stronger Middle Class. One of the points of the plan focuses on what they call "small business." So what does the Romney plan do for small business? Let's take a look. read more »

The New York Times contains another elite-columnist attack on our Social Security and Medicare systems today. This time it's in the form of an op-ed by Bill Keller. read more »

Last week Republicans filibustered the Bring Jobs Home Act, when polls show dramatic support for ending tax breaks for shipping jobs overseas. read more »