Setting the Record Straight on Inflation

With a vote on President Biden’s Build Back Better plan looming ahead in the Senate, centrist and right-wing politicians are yet again wringing their hands over the prospect of inflation. Some Senators, most notably West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, have cited inflation as a potential reason to delay the passage of the Build Back Better Act. While it’s true that inflation is on the rise, there … Continue reading Setting the Record Straight on Inflation »

Billionaires Play by a Different Set of Rules

Over the weekend, online personality, self-described “edge lord,” and richest person alive Elon Musk taunted Americans on Twitter in response to a Democratic proposal that would tax unrealized gains for the obscenely wealthy. The billionaire lamented that, because of his meager salary, in order to pay his tax bill under the billionaires income tax he would be forced to sell some of his hundreds of … Continue reading Billionaires Play by a Different Set of Rules »

Democrats Cannot Pass This Tax Cut for Millionaires

Democrats just can’t get out of their own way. As negotiations around the Build Back Better Act continue, a small group of House Democrats are undermining their party’s ability to sell the legislation to the American people by including a proposal in the Act to lift the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap. Doing so would put more money into the pockets of millionaires … Continue reading Democrats Cannot Pass This Tax Cut for Millionaires »

A (Tiny) Step in the Right

This week, Congressional Democrats are knee-deep in the trenches of negotiations over the final details of President Biden’s Build Back Better Agenda. The President’s initial $3.5 trillion proposal included new spending for social programs and bold tax increases on the wealthy and corporations, including a tax on billionaires’ unrealized capital gains and significant increases in corporate, income, and capital gains tax rates. But now it … Continue reading A (Tiny) Step in the Right »

Striketober

This year, the incoming chill of fall is carrying more than just autumn leaves – it’s bringing with it the winds of change. Workers across America are saying enough is enough in response to stagnant wages, brutal working conditions, and mistreatment of workers in the midst of a recession, global pandemic, and skyrocketing corporate profits. Over 100,000 organized workers from across the country have authorized … Continue reading Striketober »

Tax Havens and Tax Reform

This week, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released The Pandora Papers, a scathing exposé that details how the world’s wealthiest take advantage of international tax loopholes and tax havens to hide their wealth across the globe. While the report largely focuses on the finances of international leaders and elites, the fact that the wealthy are using loopholes to dodge their taxes is nothing new … Continue reading Tax Havens and Tax Reform »

Conservative Dems Can’t Handle the Truth

Last week conservative Democrats attempted to sabotage the President’s agenda and they were solidly defeated. Their demand that the House vote on the bipartisan infrastructure package before details of reconciliation were finished, in direct opposition to a deal agreed upon by Democrats in the House, Senate, and White House, would have sabotaged any attempts to pass the desperately needed funding and tax hikes on the … Continue reading Conservative Dems Can’t Handle the Truth »

Congress Should Represent All Americans- Not Just the Rich

With a contentious debate in Congress regarding the reconciliation bill and its passage, it would seem that the bill and its contents (pulled straight from President Biden’s Build Back Better Agenda) are controversial among the American people as well. Instead, polls have demonstrated that the vast majority of voters support the bill and its provisions. The only group that consistently opposes the bill and actively … Continue reading Congress Should Represent All Americans- Not Just the Rich »

No Infrastructure without Reconciliation

Last night, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced to her caucus that she plans to bring the bipartisan infrastructure bill up for a vote this Thursday, separate from the budget reconciliation package. This stands in direct contrast to the agreement reached within the Democratic caucus that both bills would proceed simultaneously, and must be rejected by all Democrats who care about advancing the party’s full … Continue reading No Infrastructure without Reconciliation »

The American People Want to Tax the Rich

Tensions are rising in Congress as we near September 27th, the date centrist Democrats are demanding a vote on their bipartisan infrastructure bill. They want to pass infrastructure first at the expense of the much larger, more impactful reconciliation bill, but progressives are promising to vote down infrastructure until the two pass at the same time. With all the fuss, you would think that the … Continue reading The American People Want to Tax the Rich »

Progressives Must Hold Strong

The fight between various factions within the Democratic party over the outcome of the infrastructure and budget reconciliation negotiations is coming to a head. For months the Caucus has been working on a strategy that would put both the infrastructure bill and a budget reconciliation package up for a vote at the same time, satisfying both centrists and progressives. Unfortunately, corporate interests have been out … Continue reading Progressives Must Hold Strong »

Neal’s Tax Plan Has Billionaires Popping Champagne

Earlier this week the House Ways and Means Committee, led by Rep. Richard Neal, released their rewrite of the federal tax code as part of the Democrats’ budget reconciliation proposal. The committee’s proposed changes are, to say the least, completely inadequate. Their proposal preserves the preferential treatment the rich currently receive in the tax code, ensuring that billionaires in America will continue to pay a … Continue reading Neal’s Tax Plan Has Billionaires Popping Champagne »

Not Good Enough

The House Ways and Means Committee released their proposal yesterday outlining new tax hikes to invest in President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill, and we are incredibly disappointed in what they’ve come up with. Their plan, assembled by Committee Chair Richard Neal, is an utter failure of not just the President’s agenda, but of the American people. It fails to end the preferential treatment of the … Continue reading Not Good Enough »

Reconciliation Negotiations Are Heating Up

It’s time to get down to business. After months of leadup and preliminary negotiations, committees in the House are just days away from releasing the first official details of the Democrats’ multi-trillion-dollar reconciliation bill. There’s a lot at stake here, with trillions of dollars of support for American families and tax hikes on the rich hanging in the balance as a few centrist Democrats seek … Continue reading Reconciliation Negotiations Are Heating Up »

The Value of Labor

As we come out of Labor Day weekend, let’s talk about labor. More specifically, let’s talk about the way the law treats labor. You’ve likely heard dozens of politicians talk endlessly about how American workers are the backbone of our country, and how the value their labor creates for their communities is what makes America great. But talk is cheap. When it comes to what … Continue reading The Value of Labor »

America Needs Democratic Unity

Recently, a group of nine moderate and conservative Democrats voiced their opposition to the tactics Democrats are using to pass two bills simultaneously: a limited bi-partisan infrastructure package, and a more ambitious reconciliation package designed to pass with only Democratic votes. In a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, they stated they planned to withhold their vote on the budget package if the infrastructure bill was … Continue reading America Needs Democratic Unity »

Spending versus Investments, the Great Debate

We’re finally reaching the point where real economic change is on the horizon through the upcoming infrastructure and reconciliation bills. During this time it can be hard to clearly see progress with all the confusion and noise of Washington. Debates about government spending have often been dominated by concerns from conservatives and moderate politicians. Even still, we have to remember that making investments that will … Continue reading Spending versus Investments, the Great Debate »

Overcoming the Opposition

Earlier this week, after months of negotiations, a bipartisan infrastructure bill passed in the Senate. This was followed quickly by a $3.5 trillion budget that sets the stage for Democrats to pass a reconciliation bill that would make one of the largest investments in American families in the last half century. But while we’re in a moment of great opportunity, there are, as always, many … Continue reading Overcoming the Opposition »

Wealth Gap on the Rise

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, millions of Americans have faced financial hardship and economic instability. Some have lost their jobs or been furloughed, many have been uprooted from their homes or have even become homeless (not to mention the millions that have gotten severely ill and hundreds of thousands that have died). Even well beyond the peak of the pandemic, 24 million adults … Continue reading Wealth Gap on the Rise »

Democrats Must Tax the Rich to Pay for Roads

Yesterday, after weeks of deliberation, a bipartisan committee of Senators finally proposed the beginnings of an infrastructure bill. This bill failed to do one thing that Americans have been asking of their representatives; tax the rich. Simply shifting money around and pointing the blame at unemployed Americans in a global crisis is just another way of burdening regular people with paying more than their fair … Continue reading Democrats Must Tax the Rich to Pay for Roads »