The biggest lie of all is the Senate’s claim that it “is the greatest deliberative body in the world.”
The filibuster makes the Senate the least deliberative legislative and least democratic legislative body by allowing a minority of Senators to prevent the Senate from debating, much less voting on, any legislation that is opposed by the minority party
Majoritarianism is written into the Constitution. But the Senate is not a majoritarian institution. (Emmet is a distinguished lawyer who has taught me why the filibuster is unconstitutional. Thank you, Emmet!)
Dr. Reich, is that why Sens Manchin and Sinema can sell out the majority of their constituents along with the rest of the people? Because it is not a majoritarian institution?
The Senate with two senators for every state (no matter the population) is proper/equal representation is BS.
It allows Senators that represent a minority of voters holding back the majority of voter[s] supported legislation hostage at will and is, and historically has, held back legislation that benefits everyone (except the very wealthy and corporations).
The Congress has now been nearly taken over by the very people that would destroy our democracy under the guise of "protecting" it. Voter fraud is one 'tool' they are now using to "educate" the less [accurately] informed voter to get them to vote against their own best interests. And we cannot forget women's rights either. Another of their fear factors.
I would appreciate an upcoming newsletter regarding WHY senators are allowed to remain in congress when their obstructionism on voting rights and so many other issues goes directly against the oath of office they took when they got elected. What's the purpose of these clowns taking an oath when they can then proceed to do anything immoral, illegal, unethical, etc. with NO CONSEQUENCES. In private business, they would have already been out the door!
No consequences for senators or presidents it turns out. After reading David Cay Johnston's "The Big Cheat", it is clear and astonishing how much donald and his family profited off his presidency. Hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayers money made its way into that family's possession, seemingly without consequence! Not from big business; he made sure it would come from ordinary citizens. When does this get rectified?
Thanks for the reference. I read his 1916 book on Trump, and did not hesitate to pick up our local library's yet available copy of his newest book on Trump. I'm expecting another page-turner.
Voting rights groups have written to Biden, saying, correctly in my opinion, that they don't just want speeches, they want Biden to get the legislation passed. Joe Manchin is not the president, nor is he the Senate majority leader. Maybe Chuck Schumer could give a few Republicans something they really want that is not too destructive in exchange for their support for filibuster reform for this critical legislation. Schumer still seems to be in "appeal to better angels" mode, which doesn't work in this political environment. I agree that Lisa Murkowski might be brought on board, because her own political situation is so precarious that she has little to lose.
Longer term, as New York Times columnists David Brooks and Ezra Klein recently pointed out, Democrats really need to end their longstanding practice of focusing on the White House at the expense of state and local elections, and start working hard to elect Democrats to state legislatures, local boards, and critical election supervisor positions, including on so-called red states.
Many of my former students are now members of city councils, some in red states. They tell me these jobs are rewarding and challenging, and it's possible to get things done for their communities. Also stepping-stones to higher office,
This is great news. This is the kind of information that the general public does not get or have a chance to even think about. We only get what our own local politicians in the state we live in make available. For the average person in every state to have to read about what the politicians are up to everywhere is not possible unless getting that information is your 'Full-time Job' which is what most people use the TV Social Media for. For that reason, this is why the information from TV Media is so important to be monitored for accuracy, which most of the time, it is not.
As has been seen in many states, the “farm teams” as in county commissioners, county supervisors and city council members have been successful for Republicans. Taking strategic note, then action has never been much attempted or successfully strategized by Dems. We are leaving our seed corn to mold. Hence, here we are.
If one or more Republicans can be brought on board, then that would make it bipartisan and Joe Manchin should be happy and vote democratic. That is what he has said he wants, so he should join in a vote with his fellow Democrats.
And how about Cheney? She seems to care about Democracy a great deal.
Yes, knew that, yet I wanted it to be true. My mistake. It is past time for the GOP to dump Trump and start saving Democracy and honoring the pledge that they made to serve The USA.
The filibuster is nothing, it is a man-made rule to crush debate. It is being used by the moneyed class and powerful to wrest democracy from the country. Manchin, Sinema, Collins, Murkowski and Romney work for the plutocratic class to keep them in power and are on McConnells very short leash. The only hope that that I can see that voting rights won't crash and burn like BBB is televised hearings on the insurrection and AT THE SAME TIME have nonstop national protests. I'm not optimistic. Look what the Republicans have been able to achieve in Biden's first year in office. Every time I hear, and I hear this all the time, yada, yada, "Trump running in 2024" my brain explodes. What is that really telling us? It is a euphemism for the oligarchic class that will not allow the rule of law to to put a glove on Trump. Without massive grassroots uprising the Republicans have 'got this.'
You're right, Claire. This is not the moment for people to sit idle and watch. If we don't defend our democracy now, we will spend decades digging ourselves out of this oligarchic hole.
Dr. Rev. William Barber's Poor People's Campaign is planning a march on Washington, D.C. from citizens nationwide. The date is Saturday, June 18th, 2022.
Regarding your question about the SC and the filibuster. I perceive this SC to be rogue with no regard for stare decisis or even our constitution. I say that because of the recent upholding of Texas's grotesque abortion law that was unconstitutional. Why isn't any one or group in any state challenging, taking to court any of the voting suppression laws being enacted?
It's encouraging that Biden seems to be on the campaign trail, hitting hard at the 'forces of darkness' from the GQP and visiting states where it's essential that we maintain our strength and fight back against attempts by the Republicans to gain total control through voting restrictions. But it may well not be enough.
Talks should be underway with the so-called moderate Senators you mentioned with the hopes of getting one Republican Senator, hopefully two, to vote to bring back the older, more workable filibuster which would let the real Democrats actually pass legislation that is critical to the nation and our democracy.
As Biden seems to finally be coming around to the realization that the Republicans will stop any and all sensible Democratic legislation as they did for six years with Obama (why did it take Biden so long to wake up?), a full court press is needed, probing and pressing forward in any and all directions that seem to promise even the smallest of gains.
Biden's Presidency in on a knife's edge, as is our constitutional republic, and it's well past time to take dramatic action so the nation doesn't fall into the hands of the Tea Party/Freedom Caucus/Trump fanatics who are intent on establishing the dictatorship of the corrupt and venal. We cannot let them destroy America.
If only Biden had shown to defend the BBB from his presidential pulpit one tenth of the energy he displayed during his January 6th speech! Maybe he will for the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Amendment Act, if only to increase the number of democratic votes during the mid-term elections. In the meantime, it remains quite discouraging to me that we have to hold our breath in the hope that our elected officials will commit to their own word. I do not mean by necessarily winning but at least by fighting.
It’s difficult to see even one republican support the protection of voting rights when they’ve spent the last decades doing everything to destroy them. The few republicans who toy with the idea are unlikely to step up and actually vote for the two bills currently on the table.
At this point perhaps, President Biden might invoke the “Nuclear Option” to overcome republican obstruction as McConnell did to override the filibuster rules to appoint Supreme Court Justices. This is not the time to tread lightly with the goal of bi-partisanship which will never happen, it’s time to grab the bull by the horn and protect voting rights of every American. Our democracy depends on it.
One thing that is needed is a strong grass-roots campaign to reform our political system. This should include replacing the Electoral College, ending gerrymandering and other voter suppression/selection tactics, and ending big moneys' disproportionate influence. I don't know whether Party initiative would hinder this effort, vs. independent organizations like the League of Women Voters and the Campaign for Democracy. But it has to be done before the next presidential election if possible. The status quo is not going to preserve or improve our democracy.
What we need is a New, New Deal in order to create the democratic majority the first New Deal created. A New, New Deal that spells out unmistakable monetary benefits for the individual AND revenue benefits for enterprise (so long as they abide by the rules and compete on price instead of just inflating their prices, which could be accomplished with a combination of carrot and stick taxation policies.) A universal dividend of $1000/mo. for everyone 18 and older for life paired with a 50% Discount/Rebate policy at retail sale would immediately double everyone's purchasing power and potentially double the free and available money for every enterprise's goods and services. These two basic policies also open up other possible benefits most economists and politicians aren't even aware of.
Change the monetary paradigm and change the world.
Fiscal policy and politics are entwined in our system. Once we get a more equitable and responsible political mechanism, one of the next steps would be ensuring economic fairness.
They are entwined. However we don't want to get the cart before the horse. IMO a new economic and monetary movement is the vehicle for a new political coalition.
I'd have to defer to economists and experienced policy makers like Dr. Reich on which steps are needed in which order. Given the battles over how to reduce inflation without strangling growth, I suspect that pushing economic "bail outs" and income redistribution will meet with the usual strong push back from the fiscal conservatives. So, it's unlikely to happen with the current legislative split. Maybe the answer is a two-pronged attack on both issues at the local level and working upwards. If people recognize that the Dems are actively working for their interests, it may counteract some of the conservative influence that's slowing progressive legislation everywhere.
I'd like to hear from Dr. Reich also. I hasten to add my 50% Discount/Rebate policy at retail sale is game changing in that it immediately doubles every working person's purchasing power (in other words if you're making $30k/yr. you can now effectively purchase $60k worth of goods and services) while potentially doubling the demand for every enterprise's goods and services which is the very definition of good economic times. A 50% reduction to price for everything from a package of chewing gum to autos and homes effectively integrates beneficial price DEFLATION into profit making economic systems. That's what you call paradigm change.
Did you see the Fareed Zakaria special last night on CNN? I now have a better understanding of the WHY Repugnants have sold their souls - to defeat the Left at all cost, including the cost of our democracy. Defeating the Left "trumps" our democracy; it's the most important thing to them. I can't see how we're going to defeat a Party that would rather sacrifice our entire way of life, our freedoms, our rights - in order to keep the Left from gaining power.
Left and Right are just labels. To properly judge of politics, one must look at policies, or the absence of thereof. This is the only relevant way to understand who prioritizes what - people or money. In the case discussed here today, voting rights or government for those already in power. Is Susan Collins "Left" because she is (maybe) in favor of a democratic form of government? Let's not fall for the Fox"news" and Republican labelling game.
I agree that these are 'just labels' but I'm repeating what Fareed said about the Germans in the 1930's. He said that Hitler came to power because those in power wanted to use him to defeat "the Left." Fareed is warning Americans that the same thing is happening here in the U.S. Repugnants are using Trump to defeat Democrats, the opposition, the Left - call it whatever you will.
We fundamentally agree. I would just like to add two things.
One is that being labelled "Left" does not mean much of anything, as when Repugnants :) assimilate "socialism" with communism, i.e. social reformism associated to market economy with totalitarianism. Thom Hartmann revealed once that Bernie Sanders' 2016 program was, almost point per point, that of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. I did not check but I tend to trust Hartmann on this and can easily figure that Eisenhower - who said that whoever did not agree with the New Deal was not American - would be labelled "socialist-communist" today.
The other is that Fareed Rafiq Zakaria, even though his point about the use of Trump to defeat the "Left" seems valid, is not exactly himself who you want to refer to in the defense of democracy. He is way above any Republican but his fundamental political philosophy is that people cannot govern themselves and need the power of a ruling elite. In other words, power can only come from the top down, never from the bottom up since most people cannot educate themselves (which squarely contradicts what democracy is about). In his 2003 book "The Future of Freedom," he contends that in the USA the elites have betrayed their role.
The "elites" are only elite because they "betray their role" for those who believe that the elites are anything more than the most effective exploiters. But "elites" should be called what they are - oligarchs and those with ambitions to be oligarchs. To the extent there is any kind of international cabal it exists only because the greedy, ambitious, unethical, immoral and unsympathetic men (mostly) around the world all strive to use the State apparatus to extract wealth from their own communities. Claro que si!
Phillippe, While I agree with you, unfortunately, "labels" are the reality of the world. I'm always having a difficult time explaining to people that most "democrats" are not "radical left socialists"!!
All labels are misleading. For instance, I am a progressive, but as a former prosecutor I'm also a little conservative on some issues.
The Republicans use "labels" very strategically. It allows people to come to conclusions without any intellectual discussion or analysis. ie Republicans use the term "latte liberals". However, most senators went to Ivy league colleges and in the case of Kennedy from Louisiana, Oxford.
'You know them by their fruits' ; The Republican party has been unethically blocking voting rights for a long time. Let's not pretend that this is an equivalency of both sides of the aisle having similar 'policies'. Which party is enthusiastically trying to end women's rights to decide if and when they want to be a parent, and will do anything to reach their goal, including vigilantism? They want to take away the franchise from the majority of voters in this country!
Absolutely. I am not saying that there is no left and right with definite opposing views. I am saying that the labelling game can be highly misguiding and that it is why Republicans love it so much. The shift to the right in American politics was overwhelmingly played on it, as opposed to an exchange of substantive arguments. Republicans demeaning Democrats as "liberals," and, more recently, Democrats demeaning progressives as "socialists" and "too far left." None of this helps understanding the issues at stake or the respective views' justifications.
There is no left-wing political party in the USA except for the Communist Party USA, whose membership consists mostly of members of the secret police. Particularly disappointing is the complicity of the corporate press in labeling progressive politicians as lefties; in reality, people like Bernie Sanders and the Squad are merely pushing for a return of the highly popular ideas of Franklin Roosevelt.
Phillipe, I see what you mean about labels. But, anyone paying attention can see that the Republicans do not have a platform to help the people actually the (humans), and are 'all hat and no cattle', They don't even pretend to care about people. Let them attack 'Cookie Monster', because that is all they are worth. No substance, all destruction and control and lies. They have many times successfully rigged the game, and want to continue. We need leadership that can use the power we have now. The repugs would not hesitate!
By convincing majorities of voters who have not already been disenfranchised that fending off threats to our democracy are higher priorities than what they are focused on now. Secondary to that, via our legal system which favors Republicans in most and in the ultimate case but may also consider our very democracy a higher priority than other things.
There is something I am happy to see from Democrats that needs to keep going. The way Joe Biden spoke in his speech, direct, powerful, simple, effective, honest…is the way Democrats need to speak. Jim Clyburn’s honest comment that the 15th Amendment was NOT a bipartisan is the way to go to put an end to republican talking point distractions. He called the republicans out!
I think getting a few republicans over to vote for voting rights is far better than giving Sinema and Manchin so much power.
As a 50 year long activist, I've learned one important lesson. When you reach the point of frustration so severe, you can't think of anything else, it is time to admit defeat. Admitting defeat changes everything. The opposition is so busy celebrating, they get sloppy and so convinced they won the war, they get lazy too. And that leaves you free to work on things that matter.
That's why, I think we should just admit that we cannot pass voting rights legislation and keep the filibuster too. Throw the filibuster away, and Democrats and Republicans alike, will be forced to play by new rules. While the Senate is in chaos, Democrats will control the House for another year, giving them time to pass legislation that makes this country a Democracy once and for all.
Time and time again, by vote or polling, the American people have proven themselves, wiser, more moral and fairer than our so-called Representatives. The time has come to lay the Republic to rest, and let Democracy take its rightful place in history.
We can hope and pray for them to help us get the majority, unfortunately the Republicans are not going to do this. They play this game time and time again. Democrats always fall for it. They stick together.
I’m being realistic. You don’t hear Republicans talking about THE BIG LIE, being a LIE. Except for a few, LITERALLY 2; they do nothing.
EVIL THRIVES WHEN GOOD PEOPLE DO NOTHING. It’s going to take a miracle.
Robert, Thank you for the history lesson. Calling the Republican Party a party to governance is a mistake. The Republican Party should be re-named the Anti-Democracy Party.
We are in a cultural war, and it might become a war including violence. We need 3 things to happen, and all three are near impossible:
1. we need two more Democratic senators - where to get those?
2. we need the Democratic Party to expand its tent, become more attractive to working wage earners and rural Americans - they have been going the other way for decades!
3. Those on the left and center need to find ways to empathize with and understand people whose frustrations and world view leads them to Trump - again, for decades, the trend is towards more polarization not less...
Scientific people understand that defining the problem is a necessary step in any solution. But if the above partly defines the problem(s) It's not obvious HOW to fix those things. The one thing that comes to me as worth trying is to personally become more active in the Democratic Party and donate to the candidates that are doing more of the needed work. It is a strategy that says "Let's keep what we have at least, then figure out how to do better."
2. Agreed. The Democratic party must go back to its roots and become the party of "working wage earners and rural Americans." Not sure that equates to "expand its tent" in Washington, though.
3. Agreed. There will be far less frustration and xenophobic scape-goating around once economic and social policies benefiting all (meaning ALL) Americans will effectively be implemented.
A "too" progressive or liberal agenda drives away some of those self-same middle of the road folks. Somehow we need to focus on economic and legal progressivism while leaving some squirm room for folks a bit to the right of the middle... It means compromise. And I agree with you - if economics were better for folks there would be less social tension.
Allow me to disagree this time. This is not primarily about "progressive" or "liberal" but about what any given policy effectively contains. Build Back Better was overwhelmingly popular among republican and democrat voters alike once people knew about its specific measures. Let's forget about political politics for a while. The truth of the matter is out there for anyone to see it when it comes to what people need and want: https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2021/12/23/build-back-better-was-popular-all-year
@Philippe. Sorry I didn't see this when you wrote it. But I'll disagree respectfully - if we can only depend on regular voters who have knowledge of a bill's content I am afraid we miss connecting. Political shorthand, as pathological as it can sometimes be, is the way to help folks deal with all the complexity and cross-arguments. What I feel is that we need LESS partisan messages and more pragmatic messages, "this is what the legislation does for you". I don't really think we are saying anything different to one another?
@Benjamin. Thank you for your reply. If pointing at lawmakers' corruption as the reason why they would not tell people what the legislation does for them, then I am partisan. Against the lawmakers.
You both are correct. BBB is still popular and should be passed.
However, "too" progressive is still a problem when you have a bare majority. In Power Broker, Robert Carr explained how NY Governor Al Smith educated Robert Moses on how to pass legislation piecemeal in order to reach a certain goal. Don't try to accomplish everything in one legislative act. It will be opposed and ultimately defeated.
Think how successful the Republicans are at labeling all democrats as "radical left" or "socialist".
While I believe in "progressive" ideas. The country isn't ready for too much change at one time.
BBB started out at a $5 Trillion price tag, then $3.5 and is now $1.75. In the scheme of things that is $1.75 Billion a year.
The biggest lie of all is the Senate’s claim that it “is the greatest deliberative body in the world.”
The filibuster makes the Senate the least deliberative legislative and least democratic legislative body by allowing a minority of Senators to prevent the Senate from debating, much less voting on, any legislation that is opposed by the minority party
Majoritarianism is written into the Constitution. But the Senate is not a majoritarian institution. (Emmet is a distinguished lawyer who has taught me why the filibuster is unconstitutional. Thank you, Emmet!)
Dr. Reich, is that why Sens Manchin and Sinema can sell out the majority of their constituents along with the rest of the people? Because it is not a majoritarian institution?
The Senate with two senators for every state (no matter the population) is proper/equal representation is BS.
It allows Senators that represent a minority of voters holding back the majority of voter[s] supported legislation hostage at will and is, and historically has, held back legislation that benefits everyone (except the very wealthy and corporations).
The Congress has now been nearly taken over by the very people that would destroy our democracy under the guise of "protecting" it. Voter fraud is one 'tool' they are now using to "educate" the less [accurately] informed voter to get them to vote against their own best interests. And we cannot forget women's rights either. Another of their fear factors.
I would appreciate an upcoming newsletter regarding WHY senators are allowed to remain in congress when their obstructionism on voting rights and so many other issues goes directly against the oath of office they took when they got elected. What's the purpose of these clowns taking an oath when they can then proceed to do anything immoral, illegal, unethical, etc. with NO CONSEQUENCES. In private business, they would have already been out the door!
No consequences for senators or presidents it turns out. After reading David Cay Johnston's "The Big Cheat", it is clear and astonishing how much donald and his family profited off his presidency. Hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayers money made its way into that family's possession, seemingly without consequence! Not from big business; he made sure it would come from ordinary citizens. When does this get rectified?
Thanks for the reference. I read his 1916 book on Trump, and did not hesitate to pick up our local library's yet available copy of his newest book on Trump. I'm expecting another page-turner.
I would click more hearts for your comment if I could, Dee Long!
Voting rights groups have written to Biden, saying, correctly in my opinion, that they don't just want speeches, they want Biden to get the legislation passed. Joe Manchin is not the president, nor is he the Senate majority leader. Maybe Chuck Schumer could give a few Republicans something they really want that is not too destructive in exchange for their support for filibuster reform for this critical legislation. Schumer still seems to be in "appeal to better angels" mode, which doesn't work in this political environment. I agree that Lisa Murkowski might be brought on board, because her own political situation is so precarious that she has little to lose.
Longer term, as New York Times columnists David Brooks and Ezra Klein recently pointed out, Democrats really need to end their longstanding practice of focusing on the White House at the expense of state and local elections, and start working hard to elect Democrats to state legislatures, local boards, and critical election supervisor positions, including on so-called red states.
Many of my former students are now members of city councils, some in red states. They tell me these jobs are rewarding and challenging, and it's possible to get things done for their communities. Also stepping-stones to higher office,
That's good news. The national and state Democratic parties need a vision and a strategy to do this on a larger scale.
This is great news. This is the kind of information that the general public does not get or have a chance to even think about. We only get what our own local politicians in the state we live in make available. For the average person in every state to have to read about what the politicians are up to everywhere is not possible unless getting that information is your 'Full-time Job' which is what most people use the TV Social Media for. For that reason, this is why the information from TV Media is so important to be monitored for accuracy, which most of the time, it is not.
As has been seen in many states, the “farm teams” as in county commissioners, county supervisors and city council members have been successful for Republicans. Taking strategic note, then action has never been much attempted or successfully strategized by Dems. We are leaving our seed corn to mold. Hence, here we are.
If one or more Republicans can be brought on board, then that would make it bipartisan and Joe Manchin should be happy and vote democratic. That is what he has said he wants, so he should join in a vote with his fellow Democrats.
And how about Cheney? She seems to care about Democracy a great deal.
Cheney is a representative, not a senator, unfortunately at the moment.
Yes, knew that, yet I wanted it to be true. My mistake. It is past time for the GOP to dump Trump and start saving Democracy and honoring the pledge that they made to serve The USA.
The filibuster is nothing, it is a man-made rule to crush debate. It is being used by the moneyed class and powerful to wrest democracy from the country. Manchin, Sinema, Collins, Murkowski and Romney work for the plutocratic class to keep them in power and are on McConnells very short leash. The only hope that that I can see that voting rights won't crash and burn like BBB is televised hearings on the insurrection and AT THE SAME TIME have nonstop national protests. I'm not optimistic. Look what the Republicans have been able to achieve in Biden's first year in office. Every time I hear, and I hear this all the time, yada, yada, "Trump running in 2024" my brain explodes. What is that really telling us? It is a euphemism for the oligarchic class that will not allow the rule of law to to put a glove on Trump. Without massive grassroots uprising the Republicans have 'got this.'
You're right, Claire. This is not the moment for people to sit idle and watch. If we don't defend our democracy now, we will spend decades digging ourselves out of this oligarchic hole.
Dr. Rev. William Barber's Poor People's Campaign is planning a march on Washington, D.C. from citizens nationwide. The date is Saturday, June 18th, 2022.
Regarding your question about the SC and the filibuster. I perceive this SC to be rogue with no regard for stare decisis or even our constitution. I say that because of the recent upholding of Texas's grotesque abortion law that was unconstitutional. Why isn't any one or group in any state challenging, taking to court any of the voting suppression laws being enacted?
It's encouraging that Biden seems to be on the campaign trail, hitting hard at the 'forces of darkness' from the GQP and visiting states where it's essential that we maintain our strength and fight back against attempts by the Republicans to gain total control through voting restrictions. But it may well not be enough.
Talks should be underway with the so-called moderate Senators you mentioned with the hopes of getting one Republican Senator, hopefully two, to vote to bring back the older, more workable filibuster which would let the real Democrats actually pass legislation that is critical to the nation and our democracy.
As Biden seems to finally be coming around to the realization that the Republicans will stop any and all sensible Democratic legislation as they did for six years with Obama (why did it take Biden so long to wake up?), a full court press is needed, probing and pressing forward in any and all directions that seem to promise even the smallest of gains.
Biden's Presidency in on a knife's edge, as is our constitutional republic, and it's well past time to take dramatic action so the nation doesn't fall into the hands of the Tea Party/Freedom Caucus/Trump fanatics who are intent on establishing the dictatorship of the corrupt and venal. We cannot let them destroy America.
If only Biden had shown to defend the BBB from his presidential pulpit one tenth of the energy he displayed during his January 6th speech! Maybe he will for the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Amendment Act, if only to increase the number of democratic votes during the mid-term elections. In the meantime, it remains quite discouraging to me that we have to hold our breath in the hope that our elected officials will commit to their own word. I do not mean by necessarily winning but at least by fighting.
It’s difficult to see even one republican support the protection of voting rights when they’ve spent the last decades doing everything to destroy them. The few republicans who toy with the idea are unlikely to step up and actually vote for the two bills currently on the table.
At this point perhaps, President Biden might invoke the “Nuclear Option” to overcome republican obstruction as McConnell did to override the filibuster rules to appoint Supreme Court Justices. This is not the time to tread lightly with the goal of bi-partisanship which will never happen, it’s time to grab the bull by the horn and protect voting rights of every American. Our democracy depends on it.
Susan, I’m not aware of a “‘Nuclear Option’ to overcome Republican obstruction” that Biden is empowered to invoke. Would you clarify?
Susan ; well said!
One thing that is needed is a strong grass-roots campaign to reform our political system. This should include replacing the Electoral College, ending gerrymandering and other voter suppression/selection tactics, and ending big moneys' disproportionate influence. I don't know whether Party initiative would hinder this effort, vs. independent organizations like the League of Women Voters and the Campaign for Democracy. But it has to be done before the next presidential election if possible. The status quo is not going to preserve or improve our democracy.
Agree. We need a pro-democracy movement in America. Now.
What we need is a New, New Deal in order to create the democratic majority the first New Deal created. A New, New Deal that spells out unmistakable monetary benefits for the individual AND revenue benefits for enterprise (so long as they abide by the rules and compete on price instead of just inflating their prices, which could be accomplished with a combination of carrot and stick taxation policies.) A universal dividend of $1000/mo. for everyone 18 and older for life paired with a 50% Discount/Rebate policy at retail sale would immediately double everyone's purchasing power and potentially double the free and available money for every enterprise's goods and services. These two basic policies also open up other possible benefits most economists and politicians aren't even aware of.
Change the monetary paradigm and change the world.
Fiscal policy and politics are entwined in our system. Once we get a more equitable and responsible political mechanism, one of the next steps would be ensuring economic fairness.
They are entwined. However we don't want to get the cart before the horse. IMO a new economic and monetary movement is the vehicle for a new political coalition.
I'd have to defer to economists and experienced policy makers like Dr. Reich on which steps are needed in which order. Given the battles over how to reduce inflation without strangling growth, I suspect that pushing economic "bail outs" and income redistribution will meet with the usual strong push back from the fiscal conservatives. So, it's unlikely to happen with the current legislative split. Maybe the answer is a two-pronged attack on both issues at the local level and working upwards. If people recognize that the Dems are actively working for their interests, it may counteract some of the conservative influence that's slowing progressive legislation everywhere.
I'd like to hear from Dr. Reich also. I hasten to add my 50% Discount/Rebate policy at retail sale is game changing in that it immediately doubles every working person's purchasing power (in other words if you're making $30k/yr. you can now effectively purchase $60k worth of goods and services) while potentially doubling the demand for every enterprise's goods and services which is the very definition of good economic times. A 50% reduction to price for everything from a package of chewing gum to autos and homes effectively integrates beneficial price DEFLATION into profit making economic systems. That's what you call paradigm change.
Did you see the Fareed Zakaria special last night on CNN? I now have a better understanding of the WHY Repugnants have sold their souls - to defeat the Left at all cost, including the cost of our democracy. Defeating the Left "trumps" our democracy; it's the most important thing to them. I can't see how we're going to defeat a Party that would rather sacrifice our entire way of life, our freedoms, our rights - in order to keep the Left from gaining power.
Left and Right are just labels. To properly judge of politics, one must look at policies, or the absence of thereof. This is the only relevant way to understand who prioritizes what - people or money. In the case discussed here today, voting rights or government for those already in power. Is Susan Collins "Left" because she is (maybe) in favor of a democratic form of government? Let's not fall for the Fox"news" and Republican labelling game.
I agree that these are 'just labels' but I'm repeating what Fareed said about the Germans in the 1930's. He said that Hitler came to power because those in power wanted to use him to defeat "the Left." Fareed is warning Americans that the same thing is happening here in the U.S. Repugnants are using Trump to defeat Democrats, the opposition, the Left - call it whatever you will.
Sally Nedelcovych ; True, the Repubicans just want to 'win' at all costs to Democracy.
We fundamentally agree. I would just like to add two things.
One is that being labelled "Left" does not mean much of anything, as when Repugnants :) assimilate "socialism" with communism, i.e. social reformism associated to market economy with totalitarianism. Thom Hartmann revealed once that Bernie Sanders' 2016 program was, almost point per point, that of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. I did not check but I tend to trust Hartmann on this and can easily figure that Eisenhower - who said that whoever did not agree with the New Deal was not American - would be labelled "socialist-communist" today.
The other is that Fareed Rafiq Zakaria, even though his point about the use of Trump to defeat the "Left" seems valid, is not exactly himself who you want to refer to in the defense of democracy. He is way above any Republican but his fundamental political philosophy is that people cannot govern themselves and need the power of a ruling elite. In other words, power can only come from the top down, never from the bottom up since most people cannot educate themselves (which squarely contradicts what democracy is about). In his 2003 book "The Future of Freedom," he contends that in the USA the elites have betrayed their role.
The "elites" are only elite because they "betray their role" for those who believe that the elites are anything more than the most effective exploiters. But "elites" should be called what they are - oligarchs and those with ambitions to be oligarchs. To the extent there is any kind of international cabal it exists only because the greedy, ambitious, unethical, immoral and unsympathetic men (mostly) around the world all strive to use the State apparatus to extract wealth from their own communities. Claro que si!
Phillippe, While I agree with you, unfortunately, "labels" are the reality of the world. I'm always having a difficult time explaining to people that most "democrats" are not "radical left socialists"!!
All labels are misleading. For instance, I am a progressive, but as a former prosecutor I'm also a little conservative on some issues.
The Republicans use "labels" very strategically. It allows people to come to conclusions without any intellectual discussion or analysis. ie Republicans use the term "latte liberals". However, most senators went to Ivy league colleges and in the case of Kennedy from Louisiana, Oxford.
'You know them by their fruits' ; The Republican party has been unethically blocking voting rights for a long time. Let's not pretend that this is an equivalency of both sides of the aisle having similar 'policies'. Which party is enthusiastically trying to end women's rights to decide if and when they want to be a parent, and will do anything to reach their goal, including vigilantism? They want to take away the franchise from the majority of voters in this country!
Absolutely. I am not saying that there is no left and right with definite opposing views. I am saying that the labelling game can be highly misguiding and that it is why Republicans love it so much. The shift to the right in American politics was overwhelmingly played on it, as opposed to an exchange of substantive arguments. Republicans demeaning Democrats as "liberals," and, more recently, Democrats demeaning progressives as "socialists" and "too far left." None of this helps understanding the issues at stake or the respective views' justifications.
There is no left-wing political party in the USA except for the Communist Party USA, whose membership consists mostly of members of the secret police. Particularly disappointing is the complicity of the corporate press in labeling progressive politicians as lefties; in reality, people like Bernie Sanders and the Squad are merely pushing for a return of the highly popular ideas of Franklin Roosevelt.
Phillipe, I see what you mean about labels. But, anyone paying attention can see that the Republicans do not have a platform to help the people actually the (humans), and are 'all hat and no cattle', They don't even pretend to care about people. Let them attack 'Cookie Monster', because that is all they are worth. No substance, all destruction and control and lies. They have many times successfully rigged the game, and want to continue. We need leadership that can use the power we have now. The repugs would not hesitate!
By convincing majorities of voters who have not already been disenfranchised that fending off threats to our democracy are higher priorities than what they are focused on now. Secondary to that, via our legal system which favors Republicans in most and in the ultimate case but may also consider our very democracy a higher priority than other things.
There is something I am happy to see from Democrats that needs to keep going. The way Joe Biden spoke in his speech, direct, powerful, simple, effective, honest…is the way Democrats need to speak. Jim Clyburn’s honest comment that the 15th Amendment was NOT a bipartisan is the way to go to put an end to republican talking point distractions. He called the republicans out!
I think getting a few republicans over to vote for voting rights is far better than giving Sinema and Manchin so much power.
I so hope real republicans like Collins, Murkowski, and Romney have the courage to make voting rights stay strong. It is so important!
I worry about lives being threatened because I can't imaging any other reason why people are hesitating to march on from Trumpism.
As a 50 year long activist, I've learned one important lesson. When you reach the point of frustration so severe, you can't think of anything else, it is time to admit defeat. Admitting defeat changes everything. The opposition is so busy celebrating, they get sloppy and so convinced they won the war, they get lazy too. And that leaves you free to work on things that matter.
That's why, I think we should just admit that we cannot pass voting rights legislation and keep the filibuster too. Throw the filibuster away, and Democrats and Republicans alike, will be forced to play by new rules. While the Senate is in chaos, Democrats will control the House for another year, giving them time to pass legislation that makes this country a Democracy once and for all.
Time and time again, by vote or polling, the American people have proven themselves, wiser, more moral and fairer than our so-called Representatives. The time has come to lay the Republic to rest, and let Democracy take its rightful place in history.
And that is my opinion.
We can hope and pray for them to help us get the majority, unfortunately the Republicans are not going to do this. They play this game time and time again. Democrats always fall for it. They stick together.
I’m being realistic. You don’t hear Republicans talking about THE BIG LIE, being a LIE. Except for a few, LITERALLY 2; they do nothing.
EVIL THRIVES WHEN GOOD PEOPLE DO NOTHING. It’s going to take a miracle.
Robert, Thank you for the history lesson. Calling the Republican Party a party to governance is a mistake. The Republican Party should be re-named the Anti-Democracy Party.
Manchin...Sinema...Dixiecrats
By howdy!
Reich's analysis and argument is always spot on! Thanks for articulating the matter so clearly.
We are in a cultural war, and it might become a war including violence. We need 3 things to happen, and all three are near impossible:
1. we need two more Democratic senators - where to get those?
2. we need the Democratic Party to expand its tent, become more attractive to working wage earners and rural Americans - they have been going the other way for decades!
3. Those on the left and center need to find ways to empathize with and understand people whose frustrations and world view leads them to Trump - again, for decades, the trend is towards more polarization not less...
Scientific people understand that defining the problem is a necessary step in any solution. But if the above partly defines the problem(s) It's not obvious HOW to fix those things. The one thing that comes to me as worth trying is to personally become more active in the Democratic Party and donate to the candidates that are doing more of the needed work. It is a strategy that says "Let's keep what we have at least, then figure out how to do better."
1. By supporting progressives.
2. Agreed. The Democratic party must go back to its roots and become the party of "working wage earners and rural Americans." Not sure that equates to "expand its tent" in Washington, though.
3. Agreed. There will be far less frustration and xenophobic scape-goating around once economic and social policies benefiting all (meaning ALL) Americans will effectively be implemented.
A "too" progressive or liberal agenda drives away some of those self-same middle of the road folks. Somehow we need to focus on economic and legal progressivism while leaving some squirm room for folks a bit to the right of the middle... It means compromise. And I agree with you - if economics were better for folks there would be less social tension.
Allow me to disagree this time. This is not primarily about "progressive" or "liberal" but about what any given policy effectively contains. Build Back Better was overwhelmingly popular among republican and democrat voters alike once people knew about its specific measures. Let's forget about political politics for a while. The truth of the matter is out there for anyone to see it when it comes to what people need and want: https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2021/12/23/build-back-better-was-popular-all-year
@Philippe. Sorry I didn't see this when you wrote it. But I'll disagree respectfully - if we can only depend on regular voters who have knowledge of a bill's content I am afraid we miss connecting. Political shorthand, as pathological as it can sometimes be, is the way to help folks deal with all the complexity and cross-arguments. What I feel is that we need LESS partisan messages and more pragmatic messages, "this is what the legislation does for you". I don't really think we are saying anything different to one another?
@Benjamin. Thank you for your reply. If pointing at lawmakers' corruption as the reason why they would not tell people what the legislation does for them, then I am partisan. Against the lawmakers.
You both are correct. BBB is still popular and should be passed.
However, "too" progressive is still a problem when you have a bare majority. In Power Broker, Robert Carr explained how NY Governor Al Smith educated Robert Moses on how to pass legislation piecemeal in order to reach a certain goal. Don't try to accomplish everything in one legislative act. It will be opposed and ultimately defeated.
Think how successful the Republicans are at labeling all democrats as "radical left" or "socialist".
While I believe in "progressive" ideas. The country isn't ready for too much change at one time.
BBB started out at a $5 Trillion price tag, then $3.5 and is now $1.75. In the scheme of things that is $1.75 Billion a year.