Adding one more pillar beneath an increasingly solid progressive movement platform, New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio unveiled on Tuesday a new "Progressive Agenda to Combat Income Inequality," calling for universal pre-kindergarten, a higher minimum wage, paid family leave, and higher taxes on the wealthy.
"Indeed, the New York Times predicts that the report "will likely influence Mrs. Clinton's agenda,..."
Yep. She's going to have to tell even more and bigger lies than before. Why do the staff writers at CD write this kind of stuff without the obvious qualifier that none of this "contract" is ever going to be enacted? It's all smoke and mirrors intended to make the Dems look like progressives. Was this writer born yesterday, or does she just have a very short memory? Maybe she actually believes this nonsense. How about some actual journalism here instead of this tripe.
Actually, Congressional Progressive Caucus's "People's Budget" is much more progressive, calling for increases in the Earned Income Tax Credit to provide wage supplements to many more working Americans - plus calling for a Carbon Tax to fairly price fossil fuels and curb carbon pollution.
The Progressive Contract is correct in saying that we must stop tinkering at the margins and make major changes in our economic rules - but it falls short of delivering on this profound imperative.
We will all fall short if we do not promote the CPC's "People's Budget" to galvanize the American voter and elect in 2016 a president and congress that will implement it, starting in 2017.
So long as big money finances our election process we are never going to see progressive reforms enacted. We need a complete overhaul of our campaign financing system to make government work for every citizen in this country. Until that happens, every (2) years we will get nothing but empty promises.
"Progressive" anything is just a word anymore, unless it's backed-up with "non-corporate". Sanders, Grijalva and a handful of others in Congress are courageous enough to do so; since the consequence means a drastic slash to campaign donations.
"Big money", now gets votes, because "personhood" was sanctioned by the corporate majority of our esteemed, now politicized, SCOTUS, thanks to the Bush-Cheney neo-con, trans-nationalists.
Any politician running as a so-called "progressive" (or accepting of this label, without claiming it) will be forced into a repeat of the same old habit of "hand-wringing" and apologizing to us constituents, overtime, because they can't fulfill their campaign promises; so, blame the "other side"? Tired of this? I am. Since August, 1969, I awoke from some "unknown" (later to be known as propaganda) force holding me down. I met others my age, who had attended an "Occupy Event", called Woodstock. My Cleveland upbringing was stood on its head when I compared their recount of events to the negative press from the Nixon forces (But I did love Walter Cronkite's take!) lol
We, who place one promising candidate after promising candidate, into public office, without fail, ALWAYS get shafted. lol Since Reagan and before, once in office, our candidate, these days, soon bows to the neo-con agenda of austerity and militarization of police at home and then continues on with, like President Obama, the "corporate empire agenda" - to placate corporate funders. (And Mother Earth, our progenitor, dies some more.)
So, come on you Millennials and Gen-Xers out there! Take up the challenge, now, from yours truly, a crippled-up ol' geezer Woodstocker! Call these "turncoats" out, who use tired, recycled, obfuscating language, rather than use words that have true meaning and power. Think about what "they" say.
Like these Great Thinkers of our time, who paved your way out of a propagandized hypnosis: Joseph Campbell - "The Power of Myth"and this enduring mantra: "Follow your bliss"; Howard Zinn - Historian (of the People of Peace and Clarity - my words); Noam Chomsky - Linguist, who gets the language thing, big time! And still is with us!
So, just like the new, courageous and vigilant citizens who MUST now, video every move of our civilian police, to protect our Liberty and Justice for All - REAL WORDS! Let us provoke a more respectful approach to what words - like "Climate Justice" mean and similar ones that cannot be spun into meaningless slogans. Thanks! Rock-n-Roll will never die! Baybeeeeee!!
If the "growth" they are talking about equals the conspicuous, keeping-up-with-the-Jones's consumption common in the middle class, this is not what is needed. That is not sustainable.
However, if they are talking about raising the material living standards and righting the injustices of the poor and people of color, while at the same time drastically reducing the power of corporations and over-consumption and waste of the well-to-do, and protecting and regenerating the environment then this IS what we need.
You realize that the "Progressive" Caucus is all mouth, right? That they're a steam valve to keep liberals in the fold - liberals who don't really pay attention?
And that its members fold like a cheap suit when the One Percent or the MIC really wants to hurt us?
Any so-called "Progressive Contract with America" won't be worth the powder to blow it to hell if it does not first and foremost 'expose' and demand that EMPIRE is the hidden CAUSE of all the crimes, offenses, and oppressions being committed against 'the people' of America, 'the people' around the world, and our very world itself by this Disguised Global Capitalist EMPIRE that is merely 'posing' as, and HQed in, our formerly democratic Republic of American.
The first, second, third and only focus of any serious and trustworthy truly progressive revolution against this god damned Empire is to clearly and loudly (but non-violently) 'call it out' as an Empire --- and thus ignite the essential Second American Revolution against EMPIRE (this time an Empire that is more guileful in disguise than to wear Red Coats).
Whenever politicians use the word contract, they specialize in putting the Con in contract.
"Power concedes nothing without demand", leave it to Democrats to concede to power, and sellout citizens demands.
I give these writers of the Progressive Contract praise for their efforts, but like FDR, they are only trying to save capitalism from itself. As long as progressives want to "Rewrite the Rules" maybe we should be thinking a little deeper, and let capitalism destroy itself first.
And, Bob, the only 'word' which shows that someone is really progressive, socialist, and committed to real democracy against Empire --- is to clearly expose this Disguised Global Capitalist Empire as being an 'EMPIRE' --- because recognizing it and 'outing' it as an EMPIRE, and simply to commit to being against the EMPIRE is all we need to do to gather in solidarity against Empire as little as 3% of Americans and we can ignite the essential Second American Revolution against EMPIRE --- this time the Empire is more guileful, smart enough not to wear Red Coats, and knowledgeable enough from the OSS understanding the limits of an earlier Empire installing the first crude model to set-up a mere single-party Vichy disguise in the "Occupied" territory of France, to have now implemented a dual-party Vichy-political facade and disguise of this far more modern Empire hiding behind both the neocon 'R' Vichy party and the neoliberal-con 'D' Vichy party right in the 'Fatherland' (oops, that was the Nazi Empire's name for what this new current Empire 'posing' as, and HQed in, our former country calls the 'Homeland').
And a successful Second American Revolution against this 'disguised' Empire can be non-violent, because the greatest danger and mortal threat to a 'disguised' EMPIRE is to merely expose it, rip-off its mask, and have the courage and openness to discuss it openly and treat it like the Cancerous Empire it is in our body-politic.
It is easy to feel giddy about the prospects of a democratic nomination of Bernie Sanders for president in 2016. His Progressive Agenda wins over everyone who becomes familiar with it. If you were to poll Americans over their preferences of Clinton and Sanders, overwhelmingly voters who are familiar with both candidates will choose Sanders. But as previous nominations have shown, the whole process is rigged to support special interests.
In 1944 Roosevelt was nominated for the fourth time to run as President, but his prefferred running mate, Vice-President Henry Wallace, was jettisoned from the ticket after a conspiratorial group of wealthy and powerful individuals removed the 'peoples choice', Henry Wallace, and replaced him with the mallable and folksy Truman. Though most Americans were looking forward to Henry Wallace's first term as President of the United States, their dreams were quickly crushed as Truman took over the reigns shortly after Roosevelt's death. The result was the unneccessary dropping of two atomic bombs on the Japanese, war in Korea, the strengthening of the military industrial complex and the acceleration of the building of bigger and more nuclear weapons.
I expect a similiar coup to take place during the Democratic nomination process next year as most voters are introduced to Sanders for the first time. Corporate America's choice, the skilled Wall Street communicator Hillary Clinton, will say whatver is neccessary to downplay Bernie Sanders quest for the nomination while pretending to champion the exact same policy changes as her rival is espousing. Somehow (I'm not too sure why moneyed interests are so successful in destroying any and all 'left wing' choices) we can expect Sanders to disappear from the mainstream support of the 99% and fade away as yet another 'foolish idealist' who didn't adjust to the 'real politik' of contemporary society.
I'll do my best to prevent this as I drive down the streets of my city in a van emblazoned with the caption "Anyone but a Democrat or Republican!" blaring out the dangers of of the Clinton/Bush cabal, but just as Henry Wallace learned in 1944, not everything is as it seems.
Take it to the local Democratic precinct levels, just as the TEA (Taxed Enough Already) party did with the Repubs, but Occupy Wall Street style - camped outside the physical building in shifts, 24/7, right up to the November election day.: DEMANDING: (1) No corporate affiliations, whatsoever, with written pledges stating so - any incumbent candidates rejecting "our" (Non-corporate working people of Main Street) demands, defiant candidates WILL be primary'd against. (2) A Climate Justice pledge - "Any legislation that can't pass the "Precautionary Principle" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precautionary_principle] test gets mercilessly attacked by our candidate. (3) Return to paper ballots and citizen counts, period - No more stolen elections!
We workers of "Main Street" will not have our "Public Commons" returned, immediately; but, we will be relentless in our pursuit of our demands by every Democratic candidate, vetting incumbent and challenger with vigor. These (3) core defining objectives, in themselves, will bring about a vigorous citizen involvement in their government. My guess, as a consequence, the ACA will become Medicare for ALL, including vision and dental; "personhood" for corporations will be overturned; wars will be outlawed - non-violent solutions mandated; homelessness will be one's own choice - not civil society's shame; deportations will become rare; Black Lives WILL MATTER; Police will work for us, not the corporation - or go; All student debt will be canceled; plantation slave work replaced by "A REAL RIGHT TO WORK" - as an honorable Union member or not, his/her choice - no "ifs", "ands' or "buts".
So, let's learn from our counterparts - but without the billionaire/libertarian infiltration by the "Forces of Greed". (Thanks Margaret Flowers & Kevin Zeese.) Perhaps the so-called independent voters will decide to rejoin America's Democracy as Force of Good, to be emulated, once again. No more dive to the bottom, because of criminal banksters masquerading as caring citizenry, while our cities become "sacrifice zones" (Thanks Chris Hedges)
Agree with every point you make; within my lifetime I watched the campaigns of Eugene McCarthy and Bill Bradley derailed and it frustrated me to no end.
Hilary will begin to sound like Bernie as the primary season heats up and when people perceive her as the stronger candidate he will fade away as you indicate. A different outcome would result if voters took the time to look at the voting record of candidates to see if it matched their rhetoric and checked to see who was funding their candidacy. Making that effort is essential if we ever to get a candidate who hasn't been blessed by the plutocrats that pull the strings.
Too vague. I smell neolib duopoly dissembling.
Creates more than 8 million good jobs by 2018. How?
Repeals sequester and all Budget Control Act spending caps. Give away to the MIC.
Allows refinancing of student loans. Should write them off as start of free tuition program.
Repeals excise tax on high-priced workers plans and replaces with public option. Need Medicare for all.
Modernizes our defense posture to create sustainable baseline defense spending. More give away to the MIC.
"Progressive Agenda to Combat Income Inequality," calling for universal pre-kindergarten, a higher minimum wage, paid family leave, and higher taxes on the wealthy."
Did anyone ask ALL the people what they want? I'm not sure everyone is enthusiastic about universal pre-kindergarten, and higher taxes elicits a negative knee jerk response.
But a minimum wage, paid family leave and most everything else could be established direct democratically by yearly referendum. Imagine establishing a cap on personal wealth in lieu of taxes and the Kochs without the economic power to buy our government.
The public might even decide to share equally in the 1%'s wealth surpluses above the established wealth cap. Even if we don't decide to share, the Plutocracy would disappear along with its power to corrupt.
