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If Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker loses the election to recall him from office Tuesday, the political press will declare the arrival of Big Labor's comeback. If Walker wins, it will be seen as yet another sign of labor's demise. The election to recall the Republican governor, sparked by Walker's successful 2011 effort to end collective bargaining for public employees, has drawn participation from many different groups, including the tea party. But unions, which have long been fighting stories of their demise, have much of what's left of their reputation as powerful political organizers riding on the race. Union membership in 2011 fell to a record low for the second straight year, according to the Department of Labor, but that's not the only avenue in which unions have been struggling. Bill Schneider, a a senior fellow and resident scholar at centrist think tank Third Way, told Yahoo News that labor has lately experienced "tougher times winning" electoral race...

What should be done about the economy? Republicans claim to have the answer: slash spending and cut taxes. What they hope voters won’t notice is that that’s precisely the policy we’ve been following the past couple of years. Never mind the Democrat in the White House; for all practical purposes, this is already the economic policy of Republican dreams. Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times Paul Krugman Go to Columnist Page » Blog: The Conscience of a Liberal Related in Opinion Paul Krugman Blog: 1937 (June 3, 2012) More on the Economy » Connect With Us on Twitter For Op-Ed, follow @nytopinion and to hear from the editorial page editor, Andrew Rosenthal, follow @andyrNYT . Readers’ Comments Readers shared their thoughts on this article. Read All Comments (925) » So the Republican electoral strategy is, in effect, a gigantic con game: it depends on convincing voters that the bad economy is the result of big-spending policies that President Obama hasn’t...

*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...

aldron on Mar 24, 2012 at 10:56 am HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania — Republican lawmakers who vote for tax increases are “rat heads in a Coke bottle,” anti-tax activist Grover Norquist said during a speech Friday at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference, a conservative gathering where he was a featured speaker. Last week, Norquist called Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval a “ rat ” for supporting tax increases. This week, Norquist expanded the attack, saying that the same way Coca-Cola would lose customers if a rat head was found in a Coke bottle, Republicans voting for tax increases “damage the brand.” Instead, Norquist said, the GOP needs conservatives like former President Ronald Reagan who oppose taxes at all costs: NORQUIST: Don’t raise taxes. Tax reform? Sure. Reduce rates, broaden the base, like Reagan did. … No net tax increases! [...] Republican elected officials who vote for tax increases are rat heads in a Coke bottle . Watch it: By invoking Reagan to make his cas...

Help | Apply for New EIN | Exit EIN Assistant Your Progress: 1. Identity 2. Authenticate 3. Addresses 4. Details 5. EIN Confirmation Congratulations! Your EIN has been successfully assigned. EIN Assigned: 45-4653126 Legal Name: OLMOS FOUNDATION IMPORTANT: Save and/or print this page and the confirmation letter below for your permanent records. The confirmation letter below is your official IRS notice and contains important information regarding your EIN. CLICK HERE for Your EIN Confirmation Letter Help with saving and printing your letter Once you have saved or printed your letter, click "Continue" to get additional information about using your new EIN. Help Topics What if I do not have access to a printer at this time? Can I access this letter at a later date? IRS Privacy Policy

"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...

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...