Category: Politics

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New Polling Supports Aggressive Action to Address Economic Inequities in the Recovery from COVID-19

  By Pennsylvania, Progressive Politics, Public Policy

Originally published by KRC-PBPC here. New polling shows support for aggressive government action to address economic inequities in the recovery from COVID-19. A new 10-state poll carried out by Global Strategy Group of “unheard middle” voters—those who are neither strong Democrats nor strong Republicans—revealed broad support for bold state government action both to relieve the economic distress created by COVID-19 pandemic and to address the inequities revealed by it. By a huge margin, middle of the road voters believe that large “the state government still needs to do more to protect the economy and hard-working families” (91%) than “the state government doesn’t need to spend more taxpayer dollars in response to the economic impacts of the pandemic” (9%). Public policies that focus on protecting working people and small businesses are enormously popular, including “requiring workplaces to provide paid sick days to their employees” (supported by 90%); “providing low-interest loans to… Continue reading

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The Far Right Has Given up on America

  By Pennsylvania, Politics

When you demand that businesses reopen immediately and the stay-at-home order ends, and when you are saying the “cure is worse than the disease,” you are basically saying that our country doesn’t work anymore and can’t work anymore. You are saying that the country that defeated Hitler; that went to the moon; that has created extraordinary technology and vibrant art; and that has tried to created a multi-ethnic, multi-racial, pluralistic society that, however much it fails to live up to its ideals, is still widely respected in the world for the attempt, is no longer capable of dealing with a crisis in a way that protects our lives AND restores our economy in a way that is fair to all of us. There are countries in the world that cannot protect their citizens’ lives and economic future (and if we could help ourselves we could, and should, help them.) But… Continue reading

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The Second Time as Farce: Trump’s Failed Fascism

  By 2020, Fascism, Politics

A conflation of two Facebook posts has given me a little hope today. I first saw someone post that they don’t understand how Trump is seen as a strong man by his supporters when he is so evidently a whiny, complaining, insecure, inarticulate fool desperately pretending to be what he obviously is not and looking for affirmation from everyone. And reading that, I realized that this is almost exactly how I described all the folks complaining about business closures and stay-at-home orders. They pretend to be tough and criticize us “snowflakes” who they say are afraid of the virus. They say that our freedom depends on people like them. And yet they aren’t rushing to do essential, frontline jobs; they don’t seem to care that anyone else is sick or dying or that what they seek might lead to more illness and death; and they are certainly not willing to… Continue reading

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Tears and Rage

  By Politics

I go back and forth between tears and rage. We are witnessing the greatest failure of political leadership by one person in the history of this country and one of the greatest failures in human history. Tens of thousands of people are going to die. Our economy will suffer immensely, and the burden will fall most heavily on the most vulnerable among us. And why? Because the narcissistic moron who sits in the chair of Washington, Lincoln, and FDR has not, and still will not, prepare for the crisis and take charge of meeting it. The virus was going to affect us. But it did not have to be nearly this bad and in so many ways. Continue reading

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What Not to Do in the Face of a COVID-19 Driven Recession: Lessons from the Corbett Years

  By COVID-19, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Budget

Originally published by KCR-PBPC here. By Marc Stier and Diana Polson As COVID-19 hurtles us towards a global recession, Pennsylvania will need to make difficult decisions about how to handle a possibly huge shortfall in state revenues as well as a mandated increase in state costs for such things as Medicaid. We are working to estimate how much state revenues will suffer due to the recession but there are many unknowns, especially because this is an unusual recession, one that is a product of deliberate and necessary policy choice. With no models for this kind of recession, we do not know how deep the recession will be, how long it will last, or how quickly the economy can recover. At this point, we can only give a wide range of possibilities. It is likely that state revenues will drop between $4.5 and $9 billion in the current fiscal year and… Continue reading

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Here Is What We Know About the COVID-19 Stimulus Bill

  By COVID-19, Economic Development, PBPC Blog posts, Politics

Originally published by KRC-PBPC here. Here is what we think we know about the bipartisan COVID-19 stimulus / relief bill that we expect the Senate to pass today. Let me be clear that lawmakers reached a deal—but the legislative text is not yet complete. Legislative staff members are working to fill in all the blanks on the agreements in order to have a full bill to move to the floor today. Some of these details may change in the final version. We will be updating this blog post throughout the day as we receive more details. Cash payments: The bill provides a one-time stipend of about $1,200 per individual making up to $75,000, $2,400 for couples making $150,000 or less, and $500 per child. The payment will be reduced gradually as incomes rise. Individuals who make up to $99,000 and couples making up to $198,000 would receive less. Though still unsure, we believe… Continue reading

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M4A and the Future of American Politics

  By Health Care, Inequality, Politics, Public Policy, US

Elizabeth Warren’s campaign may be over soon. But before she disappears, let’s learn from what may have doomed her campaign, her stance on health care. Some of my friends who know that I’m a latecomer to Medicare for All might be surprised I’m enthusiastic about it now. And those who believe some of the silly stuff Sanders’s supporters said about Warren’s version of M4A, will be outraged that I think Warren has something to offer on this subject. Going really bold and then pulling it back was not smart politics by any means. Warren pulled off a political self-hat trick. First, she offered a bold M4A plan that scared the centrists. Then she offered an interim health care plan that the left felt was a betrayal. And, ultimately, she made everyone wonder if she knew what she was doing. But for reasons I’m going to explain, both her ultimate goal… Continue reading

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Majority rule with democracy or how to do a contested convention

  By 2020, Elections, Politics

Democrats are facing the possibility of a disastrous brokered convention, one that could remind us of the 103 ballot convention in 1924 that made it impossible for the party to win a winnable election. It seems possible that Bernie Sanders will come to the convention with a plurality of delegates—that is more than any other candidate—but not the majority required to win the nomination on the first ballot. That would lead to a second ballot in which the unelected party leaders and members of Congress who serve as superdelegate would vote. There are two problems with this scenario. First, it is very difficult to have a brokered convention without brokers, political leaders who can move large blocks of delegates. The presidential candidates will presumably have some influence on their delegates but not real authority over them. Even with brokers, conventions sometimes led to a long, drawn-out process that, at its… Continue reading

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Only Wealthy Immigrants Need Apply: The Chilling Effects of “Public Charge”

  By Immigration, Pennsylvania

By David Dyssegaard Kallick, Cyierra Roldan and Marc Stier Originally published at by the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center of the Keystone Research Center. The day the new public charge rule goes into effect, the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center and the New York Fiscal Policy Institute are releasing a report demonstrating the harm it will create for Pennsylvania families, the Pennsylvania economy and state revenues. The “public charge” inadmissability test has been part of federal immigration law for more than one hundred years. Federal law allows the government to deny permanent residence (a “green card”) to a person “likely at any time to become a public charge.” The Trump administration’s new regulations significantly stiffen this forward-looking test. The public charge rule will make it much more difficult for low- and moderate-income families to make their lives in the United States if they are considered likely to use public benefits… Continue reading

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Falling Down a Chute to Oblivion

  By Philosophy, Politics

There was a time in my life–teens and twenties mostly–when death terrified me. I had occasional thoughts and nightmares about falling slowly down a chute to oblivion, all the while grasping at walls that were too sheer to provide any but a momentary delay. I haven’t been bothered by those thoughts for years. One of the nice things about growing older, if you do it right, is that your concerns broaden far beyond yourself. Having children helps. Making friends helps. Taking part in important work that engage you with ideas and people helps. All these are ways to connect to something beyond yourself, and something that will survive your death. And gradually you recognize that what truly defines you as a human being–the things you love–will survive your own death and that the part you have played in loving them will survive you as well.  Those nightmares have come back,… Continue reading