With 25 million people still unable to find full-time jobs and unemployment insurance close to running out, it's shameful that Republicans in Congress waged ideological warfare over what is typically a pro forma exercise of the Congress.
Olympia, WA— The national June jobs report showed 200,000 more people joined the unemployment lines. In Washington, unemployment is also rising--as jobs shift rapidly from manufacturing to the service sector--and state tuition/student debt is growing fast. Because of these developments, the state’s low- and middle-income families are particularly threatened.
New York, NY-- Recent comments made by President Obama about the threat of budget negotiations stalling crucial social security payments have highlighted the growing pain felt by America's seniors. A new report "From Bad to Worse: Senior Economic Insecurity On the Rise," from the Institute on Assets and Social Policy and national policy center Demos, underscores how seniors have too few resources and too little time to plan for a fulfilling retirement.
Pittsburgh-The newly released national June jobs report showed 200,000 people joined the unemployment lines last month. In Pennsylvania, where the annual unemployment rate is the highest it has been in nearly three decades and state tuition/student debt is on the rise, the state's low- and middle-income families are in danger of disappearing.
A new report, "Under Attack: Pennsylvania's Middle Class and the Job Crisis," outlines these growing challenges facing millions of Pennsylvanians.
New York-A newly released review of a June 27 report by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) shows that voter registration application rates at state public assistance agencies have risen sharply following National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) enforcement actions by advocacy groups Demos, Project Vote, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and others. In contrast, the overwhelming majority of states not targeted have continued to see a long decline in registration of lower-income residents.
House Members To Call on DOJ to Investigate Voter ID Measures in States; Voting Rights Group Applauds Effort
7/13 Press Conference Hosted by Rep. Fudge to Discuss
Conservatives are a house divided these days on many issues. But on the core issue likely to determine the 2012 election, the economy, there’s not a millimeter of space between them. Government is the problem and reducing the burdens of taxes and regulation on America’s job creators stands at the top of nearly every Republican presidential candidate’s agenda. That’s the only way to get the economy humming again, fuel new job creation, and bring unemployment down, they contend.
Political scientists like to argue that politics is about who gets what and that self-interest tends to drive policy preferences. But the real world doesn't always work this way -- certainly not when it comes to government benefits. Some of the same states where residents rely most heavily on public programs routinely elect politicians who are determined to slash these very same programs.
Not a day goes by without a conservative leader or media outlet arguing that the stimulus has been a failure and that uncontrolled government spending is only making the recession worse. Of course, this is nonsense. Worse, it is one of the most damaging lies that conservatives are now telling about the economy.
Everyone in both political parties says they want to bring down unemployment, and that sense of urgency is sure to grow after today's dismal job numbers, which show unemployment creeping up to 9.2 percent.
Purely from a policy standpoint, today was a terrible day to be "against" Medicaid. For the first time, reported The New York Times, a large-scale study of the impact of Medicaid found that
When poor people are given medical insurance, they not only find regular doctors and see doctors more often but they also feel better, are less depressed and are better able to maintain financial stability. . . .
Thank you Scott Walker for the reminder that when it rains, it pours. The Journal Times of Wisconsin reported a few weeks ago that, just as the Governor's collective bargaining changes became law, some Wisconsin inmates were given "the opportunity to help Wisconsin by landscaping, painting, and shoveling sidewalks in the winter." But these opportunities are really nothing more then the carnivorous result of union-busting: pitting at-risk populations against middle class union employees.
After the sudden demise of the News of the World today, tabloid editors will surely think twice before drawing on illegally obtained information. But other unethical practices – used by a range of print, broadcast, and online media businesses – will continue, like paying sources for dubious information (“cash for trash”) or fabricating juicy stories outright to boost circulation or ratings.
With a proposal over future fuel economy standards expected in September, it’s shaping up to be a long summer of wrangling between the Obama Administration and the auto industry over the specifics. While negotiations proceed, the fate of the American car industry may hang in the balance.
One of the more bizarre features of political life over the past two years has been the sense on Wall Street that it has been unfairly demonized in the wake of the financial crash. Top bankers have famously soured on President Obama because of his occasional criticisms of Wall Street -- despite the Administration's record of going easy on an arrogant financial elite who blew up the economy.