I agree on your assessment of Manchin. I won't believe it 'til I see his vote. The rest of your post, just justifies what I have believed for many years. I just don't see how to fix it. unless we can recruit a whole bunch of new legislators who firmly accept the Social Contract, that a society that is fair and just for all is good for the Country. I hope sometime in the future a responsible Congress will do away with lobbyists all together. take money (and TV ) out of politics, have short electioneering periods, and a Congress that is responsible for the welfare of every citizen and the good of America - not just corporate America. I firmly believe Adam Smith had the right idea in the 18th Century, Capitalism is the best economic system ONLY if it is controlled and regulated against excessive greed.
Jul 28, 2022·edited Jul 28, 2022Liked by Robert Reich
Hooray! The alternative was nothing. "Even though it’s not up to the scale of the challenge, it will give Democrats something to crow about in the upcoming midterms."
We needed to show that government can work -- in the face of Fascist opposition.
According to WAPO it's the largest such investment in U.S. history. According to Manchin, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will make a historic down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation, invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030. The bill will also finally allow Medicare to negotiate for prescription drug prices and extend the expanded Affordable Care Act program for three years, through 2025.
Sweep the midterms and this is a stepping stone to solve "the twin challenges of growing inequality and big money drowning American politics."
It disturbs me the military budget increases without debate and audits. In contrast, the people accept an outrageous capitalist system that soaks for every last penny from the cradle to the grave for health care and elder are.
Our legislators have no concerns about the climate disaster that is easily witnessed every day. The pandemic proved inaction with a twist politicization of basic human needs is the name game in the United States. The action that did happen was slow and weak for the people. But corporate welfare is always job one in this government, which is actually corporate socialism.
Excellent and understandable, as always. I think that as well as raising taxes on those who don't pay their resource-chains a fair share - which I imagine is (almost?) all the top earners - we need to remember those who wriggle out of paying due taxes too (Facebook, Google, trump etc.). How much is being lost to tax-trickers like them?
We’ve done this dance before, I have no reason to believe Manchin will follow through (in fact, if I had money to bet I’d say he’ll back out at the eleventh hour again) but even if he goes through with it, it’s not nearly enough. Don’t get me wrong it would be good, just not good enough. We need more Democrats in congress whose priorities aren’t solely on lining their pockets. They exist we just need to elect them.
Very good information, as usual. Money is the big challenge, in the form of increasing gross inequality. A windfall profit tax is overdue, especially with the climate heating reality. It would be good to make it uncool to be a source of excessive heating ; put the blame where it belongs on those who have dynastic wealth who pay little or nothing in taxes. They should be the 'low hanging fruit' to blame!
Why do I keep thinking of the Peanuts cartoon in which Lucy holds a football in place and Charlie Brown runs toward the well-placed ball, planning to kick it?
WARNING - DIFFERENT TOPIC - I had a thought last night!
What if we all were to register as Republicans in time to have our votes count in the Republican Presidential Primary? That way we could help insure a Rump defeat and a more moderate republican candidate. AND hopefully pull this divided country together again.
these ultra rich elites and big corporations won't be crowing so loudly after the revolution has started where the working class and poor -- which i sometimes refer to as the modern slave class -- pick up arms and level the economic and fiscal playing field a bit.
one thing that must be done immediately (amongst all the other "immediate" legislative priorities) is to outlaw lobbying amongst former (?) politicians at every level.
another pressing thing we must do is to make sure people know who their enemies are. big oil is a big enemy of the people, especially shell oil, which doubled their already insane profits ( https://twitter.com/PaidToPollute/status/1552554216840994816 ) TotalEnergies and Centrica (owner of British Gas) as we read here: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/shell-total-continue-buyback-bonanza-after-record-profits-2022-07-28/ (please make sure you understand that graph embedded in the piece: it's really important. better yet, tweet or retweet it often.) so whilst we will be spending a king's ransom on energy we will still be wearing sweaters and coats whilst freezing our body parts off this winter, or burning the last of the furniture to stay warm. just paying for energy needed to simply keep from freezing to death doesn't include the massive price increases on food, shelter and other necessities, like medications, that we are expected to pay for despite our wage DECREASES. is this any way to live? how long before we've all had enough?
"America needs a pro-democracy movement ". Yay, you said it! But a pro-democracy movement focussed (also) on having Americans understand their democratic deficits and hopefully to want to remedy them.
It seems that the Democratic party's whole way of working is to have slightly left economic reforms just out of reach. Joe Manchin is playing his part.
Dear Professor, the specificity with which you critique the Democrats is very helpful and refreshing! Yet the Democratic Party, among the two choices (!) we actually have is the only party fielding candidates at all sympathetic to economic fairness, regulation of internationalist corporations and fair taxation of the richest of the rich. Since all politics are local, only the folks in Manchin's state (for example) can change their senator as the rest of us look on. Not likely. We can only do what Daniel Solomon says in today's post - elect the ones you can, send money to those who might make a difference, actively support the progressives we actually have. With two more senators "not Sinema, not Manchin" more of the "right stuff" can get done! Maybe only slightly more, but hey....
May good change come to pass! I look at the Scandinavian social democracies, and their solutions for social challenges, and I wish we could take a leaf from their books. Thank you for our essay today - we all need to push hard on this one.
Dear Mr. Reich: Bravo! There is no existing law that says capitalism cannot be fair, but relying on good intentions is not enough. The tax and debt burden can no longer be the sole responsibility of the middle class. Ellis Johnson M.D.
I agree on your assessment of Manchin. I won't believe it 'til I see his vote. The rest of your post, just justifies what I have believed for many years. I just don't see how to fix it. unless we can recruit a whole bunch of new legislators who firmly accept the Social Contract, that a society that is fair and just for all is good for the Country. I hope sometime in the future a responsible Congress will do away with lobbyists all together. take money (and TV ) out of politics, have short electioneering periods, and a Congress that is responsible for the welfare of every citizen and the good of America - not just corporate America. I firmly believe Adam Smith had the right idea in the 18th Century, Capitalism is the best economic system ONLY if it is controlled and regulated against excessive greed.
Hooray! The alternative was nothing. "Even though it’s not up to the scale of the challenge, it will give Democrats something to crow about in the upcoming midterms."
We needed to show that government can work -- in the face of Fascist opposition.
According to WAPO it's the largest such investment in U.S. history. According to Manchin, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will make a historic down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation, invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030. The bill will also finally allow Medicare to negotiate for prescription drug prices and extend the expanded Affordable Care Act program for three years, through 2025.
Sweep the midterms and this is a stepping stone to solve "the twin challenges of growing inequality and big money drowning American politics."
It disturbs me the military budget increases without debate and audits. In contrast, the people accept an outrageous capitalist system that soaks for every last penny from the cradle to the grave for health care and elder are.
Our legislators have no concerns about the climate disaster that is easily witnessed every day. The pandemic proved inaction with a twist politicization of basic human needs is the name game in the United States. The action that did happen was slow and weak for the people. But corporate welfare is always job one in this government, which is actually corporate socialism.
Excellent and understandable, as always. I think that as well as raising taxes on those who don't pay their resource-chains a fair share - which I imagine is (almost?) all the top earners - we need to remember those who wriggle out of paying due taxes too (Facebook, Google, trump etc.). How much is being lost to tax-trickers like them?
We’ve done this dance before, I have no reason to believe Manchin will follow through (in fact, if I had money to bet I’d say he’ll back out at the eleventh hour again) but even if he goes through with it, it’s not nearly enough. Don’t get me wrong it would be good, just not good enough. We need more Democrats in congress whose priorities aren’t solely on lining their pockets. They exist we just need to elect them.
Very good information, as usual. Money is the big challenge, in the form of increasing gross inequality. A windfall profit tax is overdue, especially with the climate heating reality. It would be good to make it uncool to be a source of excessive heating ; put the blame where it belongs on those who have dynastic wealth who pay little or nothing in taxes. They should be the 'low hanging fruit' to blame!
Thank you Dr. Reich for letting us see the substance beyond the fog.
Why do I keep thinking of the Peanuts cartoon in which Lucy holds a football in place and Charlie Brown runs toward the well-placed ball, planning to kick it?
This is why people have felt there’s basically been a “one party rule” for a very long time.
WARNING - DIFFERENT TOPIC - I had a thought last night!
What if we all were to register as Republicans in time to have our votes count in the Republican Presidential Primary? That way we could help insure a Rump defeat and a more moderate republican candidate. AND hopefully pull this divided country together again.
these ultra rich elites and big corporations won't be crowing so loudly after the revolution has started where the working class and poor -- which i sometimes refer to as the modern slave class -- pick up arms and level the economic and fiscal playing field a bit.
one thing that must be done immediately (amongst all the other "immediate" legislative priorities) is to outlaw lobbying amongst former (?) politicians at every level.
another pressing thing we must do is to make sure people know who their enemies are. big oil is a big enemy of the people, especially shell oil, which doubled their already insane profits ( https://twitter.com/PaidToPollute/status/1552554216840994816 ) TotalEnergies and Centrica (owner of British Gas) as we read here: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/shell-total-continue-buyback-bonanza-after-record-profits-2022-07-28/ (please make sure you understand that graph embedded in the piece: it's really important. better yet, tweet or retweet it often.) so whilst we will be spending a king's ransom on energy we will still be wearing sweaters and coats whilst freezing our body parts off this winter, or burning the last of the furniture to stay warm. just paying for energy needed to simply keep from freezing to death doesn't include the massive price increases on food, shelter and other necessities, like medications, that we are expected to pay for despite our wage DECREASES. is this any way to live? how long before we've all had enough?
"America needs a pro-democracy movement ". Yay, you said it! But a pro-democracy movement focussed (also) on having Americans understand their democratic deficits and hopefully to want to remedy them.
It seems that the Democratic party's whole way of working is to have slightly left economic reforms just out of reach. Joe Manchin is playing his part.
I agree about not trusting Manchin. I don't know, however, how causing retired people to have to sell their homes is "progressive."
Dear Professor, the specificity with which you critique the Democrats is very helpful and refreshing! Yet the Democratic Party, among the two choices (!) we actually have is the only party fielding candidates at all sympathetic to economic fairness, regulation of internationalist corporations and fair taxation of the richest of the rich. Since all politics are local, only the folks in Manchin's state (for example) can change their senator as the rest of us look on. Not likely. We can only do what Daniel Solomon says in today's post - elect the ones you can, send money to those who might make a difference, actively support the progressives we actually have. With two more senators "not Sinema, not Manchin" more of the "right stuff" can get done! Maybe only slightly more, but hey....
May good change come to pass! I look at the Scandinavian social democracies, and their solutions for social challenges, and I wish we could take a leaf from their books. Thank you for our essay today - we all need to push hard on this one.
Dear Mr. Reich: Bravo! There is no existing law that says capitalism cannot be fair, but relying on good intentions is not enough. The tax and debt burden can no longer be the sole responsibility of the middle class. Ellis Johnson M.D.