How Can the US Contain Coronavirus and Rescue the Economy? Start with Helping Low-Income Workers.

This week, as the Coronavirus pandemic spread in the US and stock market volatility sparked flashing red alarms for the national economy, the Trump administration floated several proposals for stimulating the markets and staving off a recession. The problem is that none of the proposals thus far adequately address the needs of the most vulnerable group amid this pandemic – low-income workers.  Right now, 6 … Continue reading How Can the US Contain Coronavirus and Rescue the Economy? Start with Helping Low-Income Workers. »

Democracy Needs A Paper Trail

As I’m writing this, it’s several days since the Iowa caucuses, our nation’s first step towards choosing a Democratic presidential nominee to face off against President Donald Trump. And it’s also several days after one of the more spectacular election night snafus in recent memory.  The Iowa fiasco has already drawn widespread condemnation, and threatened to undermine public confidence in this aspect of our democratic … Continue reading Democracy Needs A Paper Trail »

Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: Dr. Karen Seal Stewart

Some members of the Patriotic Millionaires inherited their wealth or accumulated it from highly paid employment or investments that did very well. I, on the other hand, earned much of my own wealth through my knowledge of the American tax system and the advantages it gives to wealthy investors.  By using extremely favorable tax laws, I was able to postpone paying taxes on the profitable … Continue reading Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: Dr. Karen Seal Stewart »

Democracy Depends on Checks and Balances. What Happens When They Abdicate?

With the senate set to acquit our current President of what appears to be an act of blatant, unrepentant corruption, the flaws and weaknesses of our constitutional system have become increasingly apparent. As the shoddy, broken impeachment process in our current Senate has shown us, if you are a member of an incumbent party, encouraging a foreign power to interfere in elections is not a … Continue reading Democracy Depends on Checks and Balances. What Happens When They Abdicate? »

Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: John Michael Hemmer

As an American, I believe ours should be a land of golden opportunity—golden opportunity that should be equally available and accessible to all Starting 70 years ago, I experienced American opportunity manifesting into reality in my own life.  As descendants of a poor family that raced for land in the Oklahoma Land Rush, my family survived on $90/month and lived in a tiny apartment.  In … Continue reading Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: John Michael Hemmer »

Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: Patricia Martone

I’m Patricia Martone, and I joined Patriotic Millionaires in 2016. For thirty years, I was a well-paid partner in some of the nations’ leading law firms, and I now run my own consulting law practice. I am also an investor and have benefitted from a strong stock market. I don’t feel guilty about my wealth. I worked hard as an attorney, and my firm’s employees … Continue reading Why I Am A Patriotic Millionaire: Patricia Martone »

A Decade After Citizens United: Big Money Wins, Voters Lose

Ten years ago today, the Supreme Court shocked the nation with a ruling that declared legislation limiting campaign spending by corporations, unions, and nonprofits violated the first amendment. Since that calamitous decision to allow unrestricted political spending, we’ve witnessed the most expensive decade of American elections and the degradation of the average voter’s political power. The 2010 decision was the final nail in the coffin … Continue reading A Decade After Citizens United: Big Money Wins, Voters Lose »

Year In Review: 2019

As 2019 comes to a close, let’s take a moment to look back at the major events that impacted the state of the economy – and the national conversation around our three core issues – as we enter the new year, and the many policy developments this year that are giving us hope for better, brighter decade to come. 

SNAP Cuts Hurt Most Vulnerable – And the Economy

Under new rules that even Ebenezer Scrooge would find harsh, Trump’s Department of Agriculture is planning to cut over 700,000 Americans from SNAP benefits, also known as food stamps. This ruthless and misguided change is another move by the Trump administration in their continued effort to attack poor Americans simply for the misfortune of living in poverty. 

Beware the Mirage of the Progressive Corporate Image

Houston, we have a problem: popular brands are increasingly touting progressive values while promoting toxic work cultures where employees are overworked, under-paid, and under-valued.  This week, new reports revealed concerning practices at companies like Uber, Equinox, and Away continue to paint a grim picture of an all too-common reality for American workers: as major companies rake in ever-higher profit margins, workers aren’t being paid or … Continue reading Beware the Mirage of the Progressive Corporate Image »

Just Pay Your Taxes, Mr. Bezos

A couple weeks ago, billionaire Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced that he would be donating $98.5 million to charitable organizations to fight homelessness across the United States. While the move garnered Bezos a fair bit of glowing press coverage, we have reservations about celebrating the world’s richest man for using the spectacle of philanthropy as a political shield against paying his fair share in taxes.

Policy Primer: the Millionaires Surtax

Judging from the endless stream of news stories and data coming out every day on the unequal state of American economy, it should come as no surprise that policy proposals on taxing the rich have taken center stage ahead of 2020. While American CEO’s have enjoyed a 1,000% pay increase, wages for the everyday worker have remained pretty much stagnant, leaving the country with staggering … Continue reading Policy Primer: the Millionaires Surtax »

The Bare Minimum Series: Jobs and Businesses

Raising the federal minimum wage to at least $15 an hour will lift millions of Americans out of working poverty – and it’s scaring a lot of special interests who profit from keeping people poor. In this series, we’re dismantling the myths, one by one, that Raise the Wage opponents use to try and stop 40 million workers from making the money they deserve.  This … Continue reading The Bare Minimum Series: Jobs and Businesses »

Actually, Taxing Capital Is A Great Idea

As the 2020 presidential candidates increasingly talk about raising taxes on the wealthy, it seems like every day a new, well-paid talking head comes out of the woodwork to try and convince us all why this would somehow, actually, be a bad thing. The latest act of mental gymnastics comes to us from Lee Ohanian, an economics professor at UCLA, who desperately wants working Americans … Continue reading Actually, Taxing Capital Is A Great Idea »

The Bare Minimum Series: One Fair Wage

The federal minimum wage for tipped workers has been stuck at $2.13 an hour since 1991. This means that if you’re a restaurant server, bartender, hairdresser, ride-share driver, or other worker that receives tips, your employer is only required to pay you $2.13 an hour. Even with this meager requirement, there have been countless instances of wage theft, thanks to today’s age of credit cards, … Continue reading The Bare Minimum Series: One Fair Wage »

The Bare Minimum Series: Regional Variation

Raising the federal minimum wage to at least $15 an hour will lift millions of Americans out of working poverty – and it’s scaring a lot of special interests who profit from keeping people poor. In this series, we’re dismantling the myths, one by one, that Raise the Wage opponents use to try and stop 40 million workers from making the money they deserve.  This … Continue reading The Bare Minimum Series: Regional Variation »

More Americans Are Struggling Than This Administration Wants to Admit

The national poverty rate is one of the most widely used indicators of the nation’s economic success – but the rate masks how many people are actually living in poverty.  Now, The Trump Administration is publicly weighing reducing the cost-of-living adjustments to make way for an even lower poverty line. This is a flagrant attempt to ignore the hardships of families already living below the … Continue reading More Americans Are Struggling Than This Administration Wants to Admit »