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The concept of Short-Termism is fast becoming the darling of progressive economic policy wonks. Predictably, the discourse is littered with inaccuracies and half-truths as pundits rush to publish so as not to be left behind. It is time for a serious convening of interested experts to sort through the issues, but none is scheduled. Until one is convened, a brief walk through the weeds is in order.

The second democratic debate is approaching on Saturday, and the American people want to know: if elected, what will the candidates do to get big money out of our democracy?

Yesterday, Sen. Sanders offered a solid, detailed plan to combat big money in politics. His proposal means that heading into Saturday’s debate all three Democratic candidates now have specific policy agendas aimed at addressing the unprecedented influx of big money into U.S. elections.

“Student debt has become a kitchen-table issue at this point,” says Mark Huelsman, a senior policy analyst at Demos. “Because borrowing is now a prerequisite to college, it’s now embedded in traditional issues of economic fairness and things that students tend to be active about.”

I worked with a New Jersey coalition to pass this bill, and we watched it quickly move through the state legislature and reach Governor Chris Christie’s desk this past June. Even though the bill was supported by the vast majority of Governor Christie’s constituents, the bill then languished for over half a year before yesterday’s veto.

The Fix is aware that some Americans are inclined to reject, outright, the idea that some words — those that we choose to express our ideas, what we say at critical moments and that which we do not mention — have deeper, often multi-layered meaning. But to believe this, you must reject the field of social psychology — and likely political psychology, too. You must believe that all advertising (or for that matter, campaigning) is pointless and has no impact at all. It is to insist that human beings always mean only what they say.

That's obviously not the case.

As you read this, workers across the country from retail, fast food, home care, and the federal government are launching one of the biggest strikes yet, calling for $15 an hour and collective bargaining rights. Together, they make up the American working class, the backbone of our economy, and they are sounding the alarm that they will no longer stand for meager wages and poor working conditions.

However generous Amazon's new benefits are, whether employees actually use those benefits will depend a lot on the culture they work in and the social pressures they face.

"Amazon is notorious for its competitive work environment, and simply having access to leave may not be enough if workers feel they will be penalized in their careers for taking it," said Amy Traub, a senior policy analyst at Demos.

This time next year, the election of 2016 will be over and America will have chosen its next president.

But how many Americans will have actually participated in making this decision?

In the 2012 presidential election, 1.3 million votes decided the winner in the ten states with the closest margins of victory.  But nearly 20 million eligible citizens in those states—Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin—are missing from the voter rolls.