General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Nation: What Should Democrats Demand in the Budget Showdown?
http://www.thenation.com/blog/176535/what-should-democrats-demand-budget-showdown?rel=emailNation#2. Universal preschool. President Obama has already put forward his plan to expand preschool to all. Democrats could stake out ground by not just demanding preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds but going even further to offer free, quality childcare (that pays workers a decent wage) for all. The benefits of free access to high-quality preschool are already well known. One study found that Chicagos program will generate $11 for every dollar spent in economic benefits over a childs lifetime. Another found that society stands to see a $9 return for every dollar spent in increased earnings and employment and reduced crime, need for public benefits and grade repetition. Well-educated Americans help increase the labor supply, which boosts GDP. None of these studies take into account the fact that universal preschoolparticularly if it extends down to infantsis a huge benefit for working parents, particularly women, who are the default caretakers.
3. Raise the minimum wage and index it to inflation. Democrats have been calling for a raise in the federal minimum wage, which has been stuck as $7.25 an hour for four years. Worse, the tipped minimum wage is just $2.13, which hasnt been raised since 1991. If the wage had kept up with inflation since its peak in the 1960s, it would be over $10 an hour. Fast food strikers have gone further, demanding a raise to $15 an hour, so as bargaining leverage Democrats can start at least that high and make sure it keeps rising as costs rise. And the good news is a raise would give the economy a much-needed boost. The Chicago Fed found that raising the wage to $9 would increase household spending by $48 billion, and even if the possibility of job losses is taken into considerationwhich is pretty unlikelyspending would still go up by $28 billion, or 0.2 percent of GDP. Raising the wage to $10.10 an hour would lift nearly 6 million people out of poverty. Not to mention that it would help close the gender wage gap and the racial wealth gap.
4. Free public college. It may sound far-fetched, but the cost isnt quite so large as you might think. The Roosevelt Institutes Mike Konczal has found that the government already spends $22.75 billion on tax breaks and incentives for the cost of higher education. The government also spends about $104 billion on student loans. But the cost of providing free public higher education has been estimated at about $127 billion, lining up close with the figure the government already spends on subsidizing college. Konczal points to evidence that a public option for higher education could do a lot to control tuition costs. It would also likely expand access to higher education for many that currently see it as out of reach financially, creating a highly skilled workforce and boosting economic growth.
Number five is guaranteed paid family leave, sick days and vacation. Seem a good starting point, but I'm still looking for a little tax relief for the middle class and a little more tax burden for the very wealthy.
dembotoz
(16,832 posts)denverbill
(11,489 posts)I don't think anyone would be suggesting we act like moronic Republican dipshits if they weren't holding a gun to the head of America.
You wanna sing kumbaya and play nice with them, good luck with that.
leveymg
(36,418 posts)RESPONSE TO POST: "What Should Democrats Demand in the Budget Showdown?"
Gothmog
(145,554 posts)All of the suggestions set forth above are great but it hurts our position to be demanding benefits for doing our job.
Cali_Democrat
(30,439 posts)We need to have demands of our own. This is how negotiations work.
Negotiating doesn't mean give the other side everything.
Fawk that!
kydo
(2,679 posts)But it will never happen.
denverbill
(11,489 posts)We've got to shove this in their faces to make it real. Then they can withdraw their demands and we can withdraw ours and do what should have been done to begin with.
If the minority party in one house (or the President alone for that matter) can blackmail the other 2 parties to the agreement and force legislation through during an emergency, Republicans should never be able to assume Democrats won't risk the destruction of the country just as much as Republickers are now.