Dusty Bake Activate
Fukk your corny debates
We're one term and a year into the presidency of a Democratic President, who appeared in personal ideology at least, to be more progressive on domestic policy as anyone since LBJ. We had a Democratic House and Senate with a super majority his first two years.
We can debate all day where the blame lies for why things are the way they are now, be it intentional wolf tickets sold by a center-right corporatist President and Democratic party, incompetence or weakness at getting legislation passed, unprecendented obstruction by the Republicans, the bureaucratic hindrances that come with governing and legislating in confluence with monied interests in Washington, or some combination of all, and that's been done to death here.
But we should all be in agreement that the results we've gotten are underwhelming. We got a stimulus that was about half of what most people in the Obama administration's Council of Economic Advisors thought was needed, and about 40% tax cuts, Bob Dole's Heritage Foundation-conceived 1996 healthcare plan plus some Medicaid expansion, a 4.6% tax increase on income over $400K per year 5 years in, no real tuition reform other than some minor cuts in interest rates due to removing the middlemen, continued taxpayer bailouts of banks and financial reform that does little more than set up regulatory bodies, no federal indictments against the rampant fraud on Wall Street, just some bullshyt fines, no relief for homeowners with underwater mortgages, no real jobs bill, Bush's civil liberties violations on steroids, and income inequality still rising, with 95% of gains since the trough of the recession going to the richest 1%.
If you go by polls, Americans are more progressive on most issues. People want to see rich people pay more taxes, don't want social security and Medicare cut, want the military budget cut, want weed legal,, want to keep abortion legal, think job creation is more important than deficit reduction, and want universal healthcare with a public option.
I posted this a while back. http://www.thecoli.com/threads/the-progressive-caucus-presents-the-peoples-budget.97825/
http://grijalva.house.gov/uploads/The CPC FY2012 Budget.pdf
That sounds like an agenda I can get behind.
So my question is how do we actually get progressive legislation enacted, particular when it comes to economics? Is it even possible? Let's try to be constructive and not to turn this into an Obama/Democratic party defending vs. an Obama/Democratic party bashing thing.
@The Real
@Serious
@Broletariat
@Candor
@Type Username Here
@acri1
@Robbie3000
@Broke Wave
@zerozero
@whoever else I forgot that wants to comment.
We can debate all day where the blame lies for why things are the way they are now, be it intentional wolf tickets sold by a center-right corporatist President and Democratic party, incompetence or weakness at getting legislation passed, unprecendented obstruction by the Republicans, the bureaucratic hindrances that come with governing and legislating in confluence with monied interests in Washington, or some combination of all, and that's been done to death here.
But we should all be in agreement that the results we've gotten are underwhelming. We got a stimulus that was about half of what most people in the Obama administration's Council of Economic Advisors thought was needed, and about 40% tax cuts, Bob Dole's Heritage Foundation-conceived 1996 healthcare plan plus some Medicaid expansion, a 4.6% tax increase on income over $400K per year 5 years in, no real tuition reform other than some minor cuts in interest rates due to removing the middlemen, continued taxpayer bailouts of banks and financial reform that does little more than set up regulatory bodies, no federal indictments against the rampant fraud on Wall Street, just some bullshyt fines, no relief for homeowners with underwater mortgages, no real jobs bill, Bush's civil liberties violations on steroids, and income inequality still rising, with 95% of gains since the trough of the recession going to the richest 1%.
If you go by polls, Americans are more progressive on most issues. People want to see rich people pay more taxes, don't want social security and Medicare cut, want the military budget cut, want weed legal,, want to keep abortion legal, think job creation is more important than deficit reduction, and want universal healthcare with a public option.
I posted this a while back. http://www.thecoli.com/threads/the-progressive-caucus-presents-the-peoples-budget.97825/
http://grijalva.house.gov/uploads/The CPC FY2012 Budget.pdf
That sounds like an agenda I can get behind.
So my question is how do we actually get progressive legislation enacted, particular when it comes to economics? Is it even possible? Let's try to be constructive and not to turn this into an Obama/Democratic party defending vs. an Obama/Democratic party bashing thing.
@The Real
@Serious
@Broletariat
@Candor
@Type Username Here
@acri1
@Robbie3000
@Broke Wave
@zerozero
@whoever else I forgot that wants to comment.
)
Money governing politics is the first thing that needs to go. 