USuncutMN says: Tax the corporations! Tax the rich! Stop the cuts, fight for social justice for all. Standing in solidarity with http://www.usuncut.org/ and other Uncutters worldwide. FIGHT for a Foreclosure Moratorium! Foreclosure = homelessness. Resist the American Legislative Exchange Council, Grover Norquist and Citizen's United. #Austerity for the wheeler dealers, NOT the people.
USuncutMN supports #occupyWallStreet, #occupyDC, the XL Pipeline resistance Yes, We, the People, are going to put democracy in all its forms up front and center. Open mic, diversity, nonviolent tactics .. Social media, economic democracy, repeal Citizen's United, single-payer healthcare, State Bank, Operation Feed the Homeless, anti-racism, homophobia, sexISM, war budgetting, lack of transparency, et al. Once we identify who we are and what we've lost, We can move forward.
Patriotic Millionaires for Fiscal Strength--rich guys in favor of raising taxes on themselves and other wealthy people--say they are irritated over President Obama's failure to do just that.
Nor do they believe his latest announcement that he intends to try again, says Erica Payne, founder of the Agenda project and coordinator of the Patriotic Millionaires campaign.
The president, when a candidate in 2008, had recommended ending the Bush tax cuts for households earning over $250,000 a year. But he conceded that point when he signed into law in 2010 an agreement with Republicans to extend the Bush tax cuts two more years.
It's that concession that has disappointed and rankled Patriotic Millionaires, curdling their feelings. "The administration cut the deal they felt they needed to cut," shrugs Payne. "But we disagreed wholeheartedly. The president's quick and easy capitulation on an issue with such solid moral elements was disheartening."
One of Obama's primary jobs, she says, is to be chief educator.
"He did not do a good job on this issue or on the one we are currently facing. There's a moral lens through which you have to view these choices."
On Sunday, the White House announced it would renew its attempt to increase taxes on the wealthy. That proposal is expected to be part of a speech the president will deliver later this week describing his long-range plan for strengthening the economy and dealing with the nation's debts and deficits.
Payne has little confidence the president will fare any better in the fight ahead than he fared against the Republicans in 2010.
"Allegedly, he was always in favor of raising taxes on people making over $250,000. In fact, he capitulated when pushed. He showed little marketing accumen. It's not a very auspicious beginning to what will be the continuing fight. He knows he won't get it through the House. It would surprise me greatly if he actually stepped up to fight for it."
In her view, the fight this time--over whether to raise the nation's $14 trillion debt ceiling--"ups the ante" and makes less likely an administration victory on forcing the wealthy to pay higher taxes.
"At the end of last year they had an easy fight, and they couldn't make the case. Now they have a much more difficult fight and a more difficult end point, which is raising the debt ceiling. He didn't make it when it was easy. I see no reason to think he'll do it now. This White house has been surprisingly inept at articulating what's sensible public policy. It's not ideologically driven one way or another."
Her group's members are, she says, are "just as irritated now as they were four months ago." And in the interim they have grown in number: Patriotic Millionaires now counts about 150 members.
Patriotic Millionaires earned headlines last winter when it ran ads calling on the President to let the Bush tax cuts expire on the wealthy. The ads read in part:
"We have done very well over last several years. Now, during our nation's moment of need, we are eager to do our fair share. We don't need more tax cuts, and we understand that cutting our taxes will increase the deficit and the debt burden carried by other taxpayers. Letting tax cuts for incomes over $1 million expire is an important step in that direction."
The statement was signed by 45 persons "who now or in the past earned an income of $1 million per year or more." They included Jerry Cohen of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, Grammy Award-nominated DJ, MOBY, Princeton Review founder John Katzman, and star attorney Guy Saperstein.
What's ahead for the group?
"We're in the process of doing a second public statement," says Payne, "probably next week or so. We're signing up for round two."
Quite literally at the 11th hour on Friday, April 8, narrowly averting a government shutdown, Democratic and Republican congressional leaders and President Obama reached agreement on a spending bill that will fund the federal government for the last six months of Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, which ends on September 30, 2011.The agreement is actually two bills – a seven day Continuing Resolution to allow time for the last minute work needed to enact the full spending package, and a Continuing Resolution (CR) that funds government, unless otherwise specified, at FY2010 levels for the remainder of FY2011.
The package includes $1.049 trillion in funding, a nearly $40 billion reduction from Fiscal Year 2010 levels. This includes $12 billion in reductions contained in previous continuing resolutions, as well as nearly $28 billion in additional new spending cuts.
The package also includes funding for the Department of Defense and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for FY2011. At $513 billion, the Pentagon’s annual “base” budget (not including the $158 billion for Iraq and Afghanistan) will experience 1% real growth.
The agreement is being described as cutting only 1% of federal spending in FY2011. The cuts, however, focus largely on non-security discretionary spending, which represents approximately 12% of the total federal budget, or roughly $420 billion in FY2010. In light of this, it is important to note that the resulting cuts will have a disproportionately negative impact on the “non-security” discretionary budget, which includes funding for education, food, housing, etc.
NPP recently released its analysis of the FY2012 budget plan issued by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI). The plan cuts $6.2 trillion in spending over the next decade as compared to the budget projections released with President Obama's proposed budget for FY2012.
NPP's analysis looks at the proposed cuts in FY2012, long-term funding, deficit projections and significant proposed policy shifts for major federal programs like Social Security and Medicare.
FY2011 Funding by Appropriation Subcommittee and Selected Programs
NOTE: The non-security funding levels shown do not include a 0.2% “across the board” cut included in the legislation that applies to all non-defense programs, projects, and accounts.
Agriculture – Funds Agriculture programs at $20 billion, $3 billion below FY2010 levels and $3.2 billion below the FY2011 request.
This includes funding of $6.75 billion for the Special Supplemental Feeding Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), which supplies nutritious foods and health education to low-income pregnant women and children up to five years of age. This is a cut of $504 million below FY2010 levels, or roughly 7%.
Commerce, Justice, Science – Funds Commerce, Justice, and Science programs at $53.4 billion, $10.9 billion (17%) below FY2010 levels and $7.1 billion (12%) below the FY2011 request. The plan cuts State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance $415 million (24%) from FY2010 levels. It reduces National Science Foundation (NSF) research funding by $43 million (1%) in FY2010, and eliminates a proposed $400 million increase for NSF in FY2011.
Defense – Funds the Department of Defense annual “base” budget at $513 billion, approximately $5 billion above FY2010 levels (1% real growth) and $2 billion below the FY2011 request. The bill also includes an additional $157.8 billion for “Overseas Contingency Operations” to fund ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Pentagon’s base budget continues to grow, albeit at a slower pace than in recent years.
Energy and Water – Funds Energy and Water programs at $31.8 billion, $1.7 billion (5%) below FY2010 levels and $3.6 billion (10%) below the FY2011 request. The plan cuts funding for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy by $438 million (roughly 20%) from FY2010, and cuts Defense Environmental Clean-up $638 million (11%).
Financial Services – Funds Financial Services and General Government programs at $22 billion, $2.4 billion (10%) below FY2010 levels and $3.4 billion (14%) below the FY2011 request. This includes operations of the U.S. Treasury, the Government Services Administration (GSA) and certain parts of Washington D.C. government.
Homeland Security – Funds the Department of Homeland Security at $41.8 billion in discretionary funding, $784 million (2%) below FY2010 levels and $1.9 billion (4%) below FY2011 request. Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) Aviation Security rises just under 1% from FY2010, but the package eliminates a proposed $330 million increase in FY2011. First Responder Grants for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are cut $786 million from FY2010 levels.
Interior – Funds Interior and Environment programs at $29.6 billion in discretionary funding, $2.6 billion (8%) below FY2010 levels, and $2.8 billion (8.5%) below the FY2011 request. The Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Parks Service are cut 4.7% ($141 million) and 4% ($127 million) respectively, and the National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities are each cut $13 million (8%) below FY2010 levels. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is cut $1.6 billion (16%) below FY2010 levels.
Labor, Health & Human Services, Education and Related Agencies – Funds Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies programs at $157.7 billion, $5.5 billion (3.4%) below FY2010 levels and $13 billion (7.6%) below the FY2011 request.
The bill funds the Pell Grant program – which provides tuition assistance for low-income undergraduate (and certain graduate) students – at the current maximum award level of $4,860. The Administration had proposed increasing the maximum award to $5,500.
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) which provides home heating assistance to low-income households, is cut 8% below FY2010 levels, a reduction of $390 million. Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is cut $80 million (16%) from FY2010 levels.
The plan reduces funding for Title X – a federal grant program that provides comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services, with priority given to persons from low-income families – to FY2008 levels, a cut of $17 million from FY2010.
Legislative Branch – Funding for Legislative Branch programs that support the operations of the U.S. Congress is reduced $103 million from FY2010 levels.
Military Construction/Veterans Affairs – Funds Military Construction/Veterans Affairs programs at $76.6 billion in discretionary funding, $600 million above FY2010 levels and $3.4 billion above the FY2011 request. Includes an increase of $13.8 billion for the VA over FY2010 and cuts Military Construction accounts approximately $10 billion from FY2010 levels.
State and Foreign Operations – Funds State Department and Foreign Operations programs at $48.3 billion, $504 million below FY2010 and $8.4 billion below the FY2011 request. This includes a $377 million cut to U.S. contributions to the United Nations and international organizations from FY2010 levels and $304 million below the FY2011 request. Funding for the Peace Corps is reduced 6% ($25 million) from FY2010 levels.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development – Funds Transportation, Housing, Urban Development and Related Agencies programs at $55.5 billion, $12.3 billion (18%) below FY2010 levels and $13.2 billion (20%) below the FY2011 request.
The bill eliminates new funding for High Speed Rail and rescinds $400 million in previous year funds, for a total reduction of $2.9 billion from FY2010 levels. The Community Development Fund was reduced $942 million (26%) from FY2010 levels.
Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1% | Society | Vanity Fair: "INEQUALITY Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1% Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.
By Joseph E. Stiglitz•Illustration by Stephen Doyle May 2011"
Should be printed out and given to your politicians at every opportunity.
One of three great articles to come out. Will be posting the other two today.
The deal reached between Republicans and Democrats in the late hours last Friday night cuts spending for the remaining six months of this fiscal year by about $39 billion. It took lawmakers all weekend and all of Monday to turn the painstakingly negotiated agreement into legislative language.
Now, the specifics of those spending cuts are available. While details of exactly how the cuts will affect Minnesota still aren't available, the cuts are wide ranging and will be felt by the public, said one Democratic staffer.
Minnesota will likely see a decline in federal assistance for local law enforcement. Two programs that help pay for equipment and salaries for police departments across the country will lose over $600 million in funding at a time when state and local budgets remain under pressure.
One of those programs has helped hire more than 1,400 police officers in Minnesota since the mid-1990s, according to DFL Sen. Al Franken's office. But the office wasn't able to provide estimates on how many officers might be affected by the budget deal.
Across the state, thousands of small projects that would have been financed by congressional earmarks won't happen. Members of DFL Rep. Betty McCollum's office pointed to the Twin Cities Central Corridor transit project as the kind of program that gets its start with earmark funding to pay for feasibility studies.
Other programs affected by the cuts include the WIC program which helps nursing mothers and children. It fed more than 240,000 Minnesotans in 2009. But even with the reduced funding, the program does not anticipate any recipients will receive less food, according to Sen. Franken's office.
Money to help people with low incomes pay for heat was also cut as part of the deal.
A wolf control program based in Grand Rapids is reportedly close to running out of money, according to the Duluth News Tribune.
Minnesota will also probably see its high speed rail plans derailed. House Republicans managed to cut off spending for one of President Obama's signature initiatives at a time when Gov. Mark Dayton was hoping to secure funds to connect the Twin Cities to Chicago.
Staffers from Sen. Franken's office said they hoped there would be other funding opportunities for high speed rail later this year, but they agreed the train program would be slowed down.
Republicans described the cuts as necessary at a time when the federal budget deficit exceeds $1.6 trillion.
"There's a lot of programs that have benefits. The challenge is to prioritize," said Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen.
Paulsen was pleased that Democrats and Republicans were able to reach a deal to cut spending and he said Republicans had re-framed the debate in Washington to focus on cutting rather than adding spending.
Republicans have already proposed even deeper cuts for next year's budget and have proposed a plan to balance the budget over several decades by transforming the Medicare program into a system of vouchers for those currently under 55.
Democrats have denounced the Republican plan, which also includes lowering tax rates on those with high incomes. Last week, DFL Rep. Keith Ellison called the plan, "the roadmap to ruin."
Amid this debate, President Obama plans to lay out his vision for how to balance the federal budget while maintaining a social safety next in a speech tomorrow.
US Uncut Minnesotais allying with other groups to picket those corporate banking tax avoiders who refuse to pay up their fair share @4:30, 90 S. 7th Street, Wells Fargo, Mpls, April 18th – and then onto Bank of America. Flash mob, picket, chalking. TheMinnesota billionairesesses and billionairesthreaten to counter picket wearing Easter bonnets! Oh, my! http://usuncut.org/actions/298
We never expected to be writing an article with this title. Aren’t united citizens a good thing? Civil Rights movement?Egypt? Madison?
Yes, but that’s not the kind of people power we’re talking about here. What we want to fight is the disastrous 2010 Supreme Court Citizens United v Federal Election Commission (FEC) decision. Ironically, “Citizens United” is the name of a conservative advocacy group which receives corporate funding and works to promote increased rights for corporations. The Citizens United v. FEC case originally dealt with the question of whether or not airing Citizens United’s documentary about Hillary Clinton was an advocacy ad, and therefore subject to existing restrictions on election ads under the McCain-Feingold law.
Whether your passion is protecting the environment or creating green jobs or improving public education—or really any other issue on which corporate interests are blocking real solutions—this is your campaign too.
But in a brazen act of judicial activism, the court decided to consider the much broader issue of corporate spending to influence elections, which wasn’t even presented in the original case. In a decision that stunned democracy advocates and trampled a number of campaign finance laws, a slim five-Justice majority ruled that corporations—including for-profit corporations—do indeed have a right to spend as much money as they want to elect or defeat candidates in our elections.
This decision effectively grants corporations the same First Amendment Free Speech protections granted to real live people.
The catch is that corporations obviously are not people. Someone get the Supreme Court a biology textbook! There are some really big, and really significant, differences. For starters, people are part of the biological system; we need clear air and water, a healthy environment, a stable climate to thrive. Corporations are legal entities, created by people, and have no such biological needs and thus no inherent reason to safeguard the environment.
People make decisions based on a constant balancing of many interests, including love for our families and communities, compassion, kindness, desire for a better world, as well as economic and material interests. Corporations don’t have families and communities, nor hearts with which to love them. As Justice Stevens said in his dissenting opinion, “corporations have no consciences, no beliefs, no feelings, no thoughts and no desires.” Instead, corporations—by both law and the demands of the market—are under enormous pressure to focus on one thing: maximizing profit.
Their single minded focus, plus their enormous scale, means it’s dangerous to invite them into our democracy. If corporations spend even a tiny percentage of their profits on influencing election outcomes, they can dwarf the contributions from real people, skewing election results to favor corporate interests, which aren’t always the same as the interests of workers, families, and the environment.
At the Story of Stuff Project, we have partnered with organizations working for solutions to issues as diverse as climate change, toxics in consumer products, and the wastefulness of bottled water. In every case, when we ask these experienced organizers what the biggest obstacles to progress are, the answer is the same: corporate influence in the political process.
The Citizens United v. FEC decision makes this problem even worse. Reversing it is a critical step to reclaiming our democracy by the people and for the people. Yes, we know that reversing this case won’t immediately prevent the myriad other ways that corporations exert influence in our democracy, but it is a really, really important place to start. Reversing a Supreme Court decision requires a new Constitutional Amendment so we’re joining with a number of organizations launching a national campaign to obtain one. It’s not going to be quick or easy, but working for big changes requires big efforts. And while we’re working on it, we can be building a broad-based national movement to get corporations completely out of our democracy—and get the people back in.
This is a really important fight. Until we wrestle control back from the corporations, we can’t leverage our amazing democracy for real progress on any of the issues we care about. So, whether your passion is protecting the environment or creating green jobs or improving public education—or really any other issue on which corporate interests are blocking real solutions—this is your campaign too. Here are five ways to plug in and get started.
Five Ways to Fight Citizens United:
Watch The Story of Citizens United v. FEC
Watch The Story of Stuff Project’s latest film, The Story of Citizens United v. FEC: Why Democracy Only Works when People are in Charge at www.storyofcitizensunited.org. Then share it widely! Post it on Facebook, tweet about it, blog about it, organize a showing in your school or church, put a link on your website. Help turn the volume up on this much needed conversation!
The Story of Citizens United:
Party for the Cause
Hold a house party to screen the The Story of Citizens United v. FEC and invite others to join the campaign. Invite friends, neighbors, family members over to your place for an evening of democracy in action! You can download our House Party Guide, which has house party tips and action ideas, here.
Sign on
Sign Public Citizen’s petition calling for a Constitutional Amendment clarifying that free speech is for people, not corporations. We need a lot of signatures to launch this ambitious campaign. Please download the petition here, make copies and carry them around with you collecting signatures—and thus telling others about the campaign—everywhere you go. If you want to sign electronically, please do so here and forward this link on to your friends and family.
Get National
If corporations spend even a tiny percentage of their profits on influencing election outcomes, they can dwarf contributions from real people, skewing election results to favor corporate interests, which aren’t always the same as the interests of workers, families, and the environment.
Join a national organization working on taking back our democracy. This way your local efforts can be magnified and it’ll be a lot easier to track this issue and identify opportunities to get involved locally and nationally. Check out Public Citizen, Free Speech for People, People for the American Way and Move to Amend.
Democracy: Use it or Lose it
One reason corporations have been able to hijack our democracy is that many of us haven’t engaged much in it ourselves lately. If we want policy makers who prioritize public good, healthy jobs, and a sustainable environment, we need to get involved, hold them accountable, and engage as active citizens every day—not just on voting day. Join a local organization working on an issue you care about, host a community event to share information, write letters to your congresspeople and local newspapers to share your opinion. There are an infinite number of ways to get involved and once enough of us do, we can take back our government so that it really is by the people, for the people. Then, we can get to work solving today’s pressing problems with a government working for us, instead of big business.
Annie Leonard and Allison Cook wrote this article for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions. Annie is the author and host of The Story of Stuff and the director of the Story of Stuff Project; Allison is special project coordinator for the Story of Stuff Project.
The Story of Stuff will take you on a provocative tour of our consumer-driven culture—from resource extraction to iPod incineration—exposing the real costs of our use-it and lose-it approach to stuff.
