Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Republicans put their Founding Funders ahead of the American people


Government regulations create jobs and save lives
 
The republican mantra that “regulations kill jobs” is deceiving, unless you are talking about new hires at mortuaries that will be needed as people die from dirty drinking water, lung disease from breathing polluted air, or eating food contaminated with mercury. 

Republicans and their right wing propaganda outlets such as Fox “News”, say that thousands of regulations prevent jobs from being created, even though CEO’s say that that is NOT true, and as economists, including republican economists, show data that refutes the GOP’s misinformation.

 Mike Morris, the CEO at American Electric Power said, “We have to hire plumbers, electricians, painters, folks who do that kind of work when you retrofit a plant. Jobs are created in the process — no question about that.”
 
A report by the independent Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), at the University of Massachusetts, estimates that more than 250,000 jobs will be created through installation of new equipment at existing power plants and construction of new clean energy facilities.

The data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that regulations are having virtually no impact on job losses. In 2010, only 0.3% of job losses occurred because of government regulation.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) made a statement today on the Senate floor;
 
Republican economist says GOP spreads the falsehood because it has no plan to create jobs.

Bruce Bartlett, an advisor to President Ronald Reagan ​and a Treasury official under President George H.W. Bush, is a trusted, conservative voice on economics. He offered these strong words on the regulation monster under Big Business’ bed:

“No hard evidence is offered for this claim; it is simply asserted as self-evident and repeated endlessly throughout the conservative echo chamber… In my opinion, regulatory uncertainty is a canard invented by Republicans that allows them to use current economic problems to pursue an agenda supported by the business community year in and year out. In other words, it is a simple case of political opportunism, not a serious effort to deal with high unemployment.”
 
But why use regulations proven to protect the health of every man, woman and child in this nation as a scapegoat? What are the origins of the myth?

I believe – as Bartlett does – that Republicans are attacking regulation because they don’t have a plan to create jobs and turn our economy around.

While Democrats have been pushing time-tested remedies for a flagging economy, such as infrastructure investments or middle-class tax cuts, our Republican colleagues have been peddling a cure-all tonic of deregulation.

Bartlett says, “People are increasingly concerned about unemployment, but Republicans have nothing to offer them.”

They’ve offered up the specter of overreaching government regulation to distract from the fact that they haven’t offered a single idea for how to put America back to work.

And they use the argument to justify rolling back everything from clear air and water safeguards to Wall Street and health insurance industry reforms.

What’s more, they’ve spread the tall tale that removing these regulations and letting Big Business do exactly as it pleases will not only prevent job losses, but actually create new jobs.

Bartlett called that logical leap “nonsense.”

“It's just made up,” he said. So, let’s talk fact, not fiction.

*****
Republicans want to kill new financial regulations that were put in place to help prevent another economic collapse that financial institutions caused in 2008. Republicans want to kill the EPA regulations that require some of the oldest coal power plants to upgrade their facilities so they pollute less. 

Republicans want to give free rein to some of the biggest polluters in our country and free rein to financial institutions that have destroyed our economy. And Republicans fought to kill or marginalize the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that will help all Americans from being ripped off by banks.  

The Republican Party works against American families and against you. Republicans put their own jobs and their Founding Funders ahead of the American people and the United States.



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Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Elections results send clear message, stop preying on the American people


Several States held elections yesterday, voting on recalls, ballot questions, and various State offices. And yesterday was a good day for American workers, American women, and American voters; the results were a clear rejection of right wing corporate agendas.

In the State of Ohio, one of the votes which corporations paid close attention to was a ballot proposition known as Issue 2, which asked voters to decide whether to keep or throw out a recently passed law which was pushed by Republican John Kasich, known as SB5.

The anti-worker Bill SB5, which was signed into law by Governor Kasich, would have striped public-employee unions from collective bargaining, prohibit strikes and force teachers, police offers and firefighters to contribute a set amount toward their health benefits and pensions which would not be negotiated.

The people of Ohio clearly told Governor Kasich where he could stick his SB5. The voters of Ohio sent SB5 packing, as Issue 2 was shot down by a margin of 63% to 37%.

Another closely watched vote was for Initiative 26, which took place in Mississippi that would change the Constitution of the State of Mississippi. Voters were asked to vote on “Personhood”. If you are not familiar with the religious rights new axiom called “Personhood” which has turned into a nationwide movement, it’s a backdoor to circumvent Roe v. Wade and would end abortions in States that pass it. “Personhood” redefines abortion laws by defining "person" as beginning at the moment a human egg is fertilized.  It would have banned all contraceptives, outlawed abortions, and could even make it a criminal offense if a woman suffered a miscarriage.

In the State of Mississippi, which is considered the most religious conservative State in the Union, women won a great victory, as they will remain in control of their own uterus, and will not be subject to any backwards government control which is being called for by proponents of “Personhood” across the Nation. The voters in Mississippi shot down Initiative 26 by a 58-42 percent margin. Common sense prevails sometimes where you least expect it.

In the State of Maine, for the last 39 years same day voter registration had been allowed, that is until Governor Paul LePage (R) and his republican controlled legislature took over. Maine voters rejected Gov. LePage and reinstated same day voter registration.  Maine is one of 33 States where Republicans have passed or tried to pass or are in the process of passing voter suppression laws that have not seen since the era of Jim Crow voter suppression laws. Every American in every State should be up in arms as republicans try and take away our right to vote.

In the State of Arizona, Russell Pierce, the author of the contentious SB 1070 anti-immigration Bill which was signed into Law by its Governor Jan Brewer and quickly challenged as unconstitutional by the United States Department of Justice, lost a recall vote and has been replaced by Republican Jerry Lewis.

Several other States held recalls, and voted on Ballot initiatives where most (not all) had the desired outcome one would want if he or she were not in favor of corporations controlling our governments, our votes, and our bodies.

Common sense prevailed yesterday, and sent a clear message to corporatists in Washington DC.

And borrowing a chant often heard these days by Occupy Wall Street protesters across the Nation…Whose Streets, our Streets, whose Country, our Country.

“We the People” showed yesterday that we can make a difference with our rule of one man, one vote, and you can be sure that the corporatists all across our great land are currently looking for new ways to circumvent “We the People”.

Who is America? We are America. Occupy the Voting Booths in 2012.





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