Elms Progressive Media

*Offer limited to cruise ship owners, shopping mall developers, ceiling fan importers, natural gas distributors, and other corporations with suitable K Street connections. —By Michael Scherer | March/April 2005 Issue 4 Orla /Shutterstock Editor's Note:  For perspective on the debate over tax cuts and deficit fixes, a classic case study of how the tax code became a slush fund for corporate America. IN A SEASON OF campaign rallies and million-dollar ad buys, President Bush opted for one decidedly understated ceremony. On October 22, just 11 days before the election, he boarded Air Force One to sign $137 billion in new tax breaks for corporate America, one of the largest industry giveaways in two decades. This was his fifth major tax cut, but this time there was no glad-handing, no photo op—just a one-sentence press release. The president had nothing to brag about. His signature expanded exactly the sort of tax avoidance he had railed against a...

   Email This   Print This   in Share Share this video: Email Video A promise we must keep. In 1935, a landmark federal program called Social Security was established to help families face the uncertainties brought on by retirement. The new program was a promise made to all working people...from all walks of lif...and for all future generations of America. Social Security is for our parents, our children, our grandchildren...and their children. That promise has stood as a fundamental legacy for hard-working Americans—from those of retirement age to young workers just entering the workplace. And over all these years, Social Security hasn't added a single penny to our nation's debt. Yet some on Capitol Hill are ready to discard this important pledge. Standing together to save Social Security on the principles of honor and promises kept. When you thin...

"People Earning 250 Thousand Aren't Rich But Those Earning 60 Thousand Are" As we've all realized by now, the core value of the Republican party is simple: They want cheap, disposable labor with no legal protections. Everything they do is geared toward that end. So they're especially infuriated when the Unwashed Unworthies like us actually manage to pull down a living wage. It disturbs them in a visceral way: Conservatives these days walk a tricky line when it comes to wages. On the one hand, they strive to defend the just earnings of capitalist lords of enterprise. On the other, they try hard to foster resentment of any working people who might actually enjoy living wages and decent benefits. In a nutshell: while Wall Street bankers deserve every penny they get, public school teachers—to take just one example—are overpaid mooches who are leeching off society. The latest hubbub illustrating this strange double standard came after the New York Times reporte...

Two stories once again highlight how the supposedly data-driven corporate-style education reform is actually driven by ideology, with no data too shoddy and suspect to be held up against teachers or as a victory for "reform," and no amount of questionable data enough to sink a champion of "reform" like Michelle Rhee. The New York Times' Michael Winerip asks why, with the Office of the Inspector General in the Department of Education "investigating whether Washington school officials cheated to raise test scores during Ms. Rhee’s tenure," Secretary of Education Arne Duncan would think it appropriate to join a panel also featuring Rhee to discuss, of all things, "the use of education data." Mr. Duncan doesn’t think [there's a problem], according to his spokesman, Justin Hamilton. “It’s irresponsible for a New York Times columnist to presume guilt before we have all the facts,” Mr. Hamilton wrote in an e-mail. “Our inspector general is i...

We all need to go down and join the occupation -- and not just by "liking" it on Facebook, signing a petition or retweeting protest photos. September 27, 2011 | Photo Credit: Sarah Jaffe LIKE THIS ARTICLE ? Join our mailing list: Sign up to stay up to date on the...

Stock markets around the world are tumbling on fears that the global economy is falling precipitously and that U.S. and European lawmakers are unable to stop the bleeding. The market is at risk of the biggest weekly drop since the depths of the global financial crisis in 2008. As of 10:40 a.m. PST, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 425.22 points, or 3.8%, to 10,699.62. That followed a 2.5% drop on Wednesday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index is off 39.09 points, or 3.4%, to 1,127.67. The U.S. declines followed sharp drops overnight in European and Asian markets, most of which fell about 5%. The worldwide sell-off followed the Federal Reserve's announcement Wednesday that it is rejiggering its holdings of Treasury bonds in its latest bid to spur the economy by lowering interest rates on everything from home mortgages to car loans. Many analysts doubt the Fed action will have any measurable effect, and investors were spooked by the Fed's bluntly worded a...

2010 Data Show Surge in Poor Young Families By SABRINA TAVERNISE Published: September 19, 2011 Recommend Twitter Linkedin Sign In to E-Mail Print Reprints Share Close Digg MySpace Reddit Tumblr Permalink WASHINGTON — More than one in three young families with children were living in poverty last year, according to an analysis of census data by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University. Related Times Topic: Census At 37 percent, it was the highest level on record for the group, surpassing the previous peak of 36 percent in 1993, according to the analysis by Ishwar Khatiwada, an economist at the center. By comparison, the rate was about 25 percent in 2000. The economic distress among the country’s youngest families — defined as under the age of...

Home • American Jobs Act American Jobs Act "The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple: to put more people back to work and more money in the pockets of those who are working." —President Barack Obama, September 8, 2011 Featured Videos Watch: What the Jobs Act Means for Schools President Obama believes that every child deserves a great school. Download the Enhanced Speech Graphics See what the President said in his Joint Congressional Session on 9/8/2011 See the Facts Download the Short Fact Sheet Read the Comprehensive Fact Sheet The American Jobs Act and Your Community A State By State Look at the American Jobs Act Pick your state Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Flori...