Robert Reich: How to Build Progressive Power

Social Security Benefits Everyone

Mention Social Security and most people immediately think of the monthly checks received by the program’s 62 million beneficiaries.  Each day we see and hear how retirement, disability and survivor benefits keep people afloat and prevent them from falling into poverty. (Nearly half of beneficiaries rely on Social Security for all or most of their income).  But that money isn’t just a lifeline to beneficiaries and their families, it’s an economic boon for their communities and the entire nation. Every year, $800 billion dollars flow to beneficiaries who spend much of their income locally. They do business at the grocery store, the pharmacy, the auto repair shop, the theater and the hairstylist. They purchase clothing, pay rent and other basic expenses – stimulating and strengthening the economy.

Read the essay. https://www.commondreams.org/views/2018/09/16/social-security-economic-engine-benefits-everyone

Matt Taibbi on the 10-Year Anniversary of the Crash ; Rolling Stone

Matt Taibbi on the 10-Year Anniversary of the Crash; Rolling Stone



Important Myths about the Crash and its Consequences.

The Trump Economy Is on the Path for Another Financial Crisis And It's Likely to Be Even Worse This Time | Alternet

The Trump Economy Is on the Path for Another Financial Crisis ; And It's Likely to Be Even Worse This Time | Alternet

New Census Figures Show That California Has 7.5 Million Residents Living in Poverty — More Than Any Other State - California Budget & Policy Center

New Census Figures Show That California Has 7.5 Million Residents Living in Poverty  More Than Any Other State - California Budget  Policy Center

Wage Growth- Not Quite

MEDIAN INCOME REACHES PRE-RECESSION LEVELS: Eight years after the Great Recession ended, median U.S. household income in 2017 finally returned to its pre-recession level ($61,400), marking the third consecutive uptick in American incomes, according to data released Wednesday by the Census Bureau . But the median's 1.8 percent growth during 2017--President Donald Trump's first year in office--was notably slower than its growth during each of the last two years of Barack Obama's presidency (5.2 percent in 2015 and 3.2 percent in 2016; all figures are adjusted for inflation). Also, the 2017 median remained a bit below its historic peak in 1999 ($62,000 in current dollars).

"Wage growth remained slow," writes POLITICO's Timothy Noah, "and by some measures actually declined in 2017, even as household income rose. Median earnings for year-round, full-time work fell 1.1 percent, after inflation, the Census reported. The household income gain appeared to reflect an increase in the number of hours worked." More from Noah here and more from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute here.

Opinion | Botching the Great Recession - The New York Times

Opinion | Botching the Great Recession - The New York Times



Paul Krugman