We are changing the conversation around our democracy and economy by telling influential new stories about our country and its people. Get our latest media updates here.
The young participants in Shake-A-Leg Miami’s Saturday program — mostly kids with physical and developmental challenges — arrive at the aquatic facility in Coconut Grove around noon each week to find some 30 students from MAST Academy waiting for them. Those high school volunteers come to organize kayak rides, basketball games and lunch. Yes, the Shake-a-Leg participants benefit tremendously. But those who gain the most are perhaps the volunteers, themselves.
One core assumption of political economy, going back to Marx, is that the owners of capital will not do anything that benefit workers unless their hand is forced -- either by labor unions or government. When it comes to who gets what under capitalism, the logic goes, raw power is all that counts.
In the past 72 hours since its introduction, The Budget For All – an innovative, values driven fiscal plan to keep America exceptional in the 21st Century – has inspired support from noted economists, renowned think tanks and cutting-edge advocacy organizations.
A Shell Oil facility in Singapore If President Obama is responsible for the high gas prices here in the States, is he also responsible for the high prices across the globe?
On Friday, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell signed a new law that will give more rural counties the option of avoiding prison-based gerrymandering, helping to ensure fairer representation for incarcerated Virginians. The law, HB13, passed both Houses unanimously. It was sponsored by Delegate Riley Ingram (R-Chesterfield, Henrico, Prince George, City of Hopewell).
The most common critique of Citizens United is that it allows corporations to wield ever greater influence in our democracy -- on top of the considerable power business already had before the Supreme Court decision in 2010. More recently, during the Republican primary, critics of Citizens United have spotlighted how the ruling gives outsized influence to wealthy individuals -- allowing a handful of billionaires like Sheldon Adelson to decide which candidates live or die on the campaign trail.
Three days of oral arguments on President Obama's Affordable Care Act before the Supreme Court got underway this morning -- just a few days after the law's second anniversary. And while the Supreme Court's decision is not expected until June, the fight, not just over the constitutionality of the health-care law but the fundamental role of government, will again take center stage.