Thought pieces from Black and brown Demos staff who have collaboratively reflected on the history of racism, the current state of our democracy, and envisioned the power of an inclusive democracy.
The Supreme Court said Saturday that, for the first time, it is allowing a voting law to be used for an election even though a federal judge, after conducting a trial, found the law is racially discriminatory in both its intent and its impact, and is an unconstitutional poll tax. It is not only not a good look for the court, it is an abdication of the federal responsibility to protect every American voter from racially discriminatory voter suppression.
Less than 10 years ago Demos and other voting rights groups approached North Carolina after an investigation revealed that the state was failing to meet its obligations under Section 7 of the National Voter Registration Act—a federal law that requires North Carolina provide individuals who apply for public assistance the opportunity to register to vote.
While some fairly valuable tax breaks for students have been kept from the chopping block, the Senate GOP’s tax bill could go a long way toward decimating funding for public colleges and universities, and community colleges in particular.
In his testimony at the Senate’s “Dollars and Sense” hearing on dark money and the impact of McCutcheon v FEC, Justice Stevens made several clear and important points about the “giant step in the wrong direction” the Supreme Court has taken on money in politics.
Yesterday, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse, Charles E. Schumer, Michael Bennet, Richard Blumenthal and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts re-introduced the DISCLOSE Act, a comprehensive disclosure legislation that came within one vote of overcoming a party line filibuster and adopting comprehensive disclosure legislation. This time, Congress should pass the DISCLOSE Act and require disclosure of contributions to organizations engaged in political spending.
Chicago, IL – Today, Heather McGhee, president of Demos, spoke during the Opening Session of the inaugural Obama Foundation Summit, a gathering of civic leaders in Chicago. The following are her remarks, as prepared for delivery.
The economy is not the weather. Economic news may come to us like a weather report—the stock market going up or down like the temperature—but it’s not actually unseen natural forces that dictate the way the wind will blow economically.
On Thursday, June 25, Demos will join hundreds of concerned Americans in a rally for voting rights in Roanoke, Virginia, to mark the 2nd anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which gutted the Voting Rights Act.
A new bill introduced today by Senator Tom Harkin and Rep. George Miller would raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, and more importantly, peg it to inflation so that it would automatically adjust. The proposed wage hike is higher than the $9 per hour proposed by President Obama and is closer to what the minimum wage would be now if it had kept up with the rate of inflation. The bill also increases the tipped wage, which has not risen in twenty years.
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision vacating the federal bribery conviction of former Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell. The Court’s ruling narrowed the scope of federal bribery laws and required clearer jury instructions on the kinds of “official acts” that can be prosecuted when officeholders accept personal gifts from private individuals. In response, Brenda Wright, Vice President of Policy and Legal Strategies at Demos, issued the following statement:
It’s the first tax day since Congress passed, and Donald Trump signed, the $1.5 trillion tax law bestowing a gigantic permanent tax break on corporations and temporary reductions for some individuals, while stripping health coverage from millions of Americans.
Senate Judiciary Committee Must Focus on Judge Gorsuch’s Troubling Money-in-Politics Record
Dear Majority Leader McConnell, Minority Leader Schumer, Chairman Grassley, and Ranking Member Feinstein:
As organizations representing tens of millions of Americans, we write to express our deep concern regarding the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States because of his troubling record on money in politics.
Jeffrey Toobin is up with a piece today, “Another Citizens United – But Worse,” about the Supreme Court’s next money in politics case. In McCutcheon v. FEC, slated for oral argument in October, appellants challenge contribution limits on the total amount of money one individual can transfer in direct contributions.
David Callahan has already posted a comprehensive analysis of Mitt Romney's recently revealed assertion that 47 percent of Americans are entitled freeloaders, and it's well worth a read.
So I'm going to tackle another, related question: Why is there such a persistent, pernicious tendency to beat up on the poor? What psychological needs are filled by this all-too-common feature of our political discourse?
