“North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!” This tweet from Donald Trump at the beginning of the New Year brought to mind the very serious concern, “Button, button who’s got the button?” In the childhood guessing game, this is a question to … [Read more...]

It now appears that the Republicans will get a tax bill to President Trump to sign before the holidays. The bill will be a gift for a few. But, because of its serious inequalities, for most Americans it will be a lump of coal in their stockings. The tax plan was purportedly going to cut taxes for the many. The hard truth is this is not the case. The plan is just an extension of the Trump approach to governing in his first year - which is doing so in a manner which taxes … [Read more...]

When victory is more important than values democracy suffers. In the early morning hours on December 2nd the Senate Republicans in passing their tax bill sacrificed our country on a partisan cross. The Senate will now meet with the House in a conference committee to reconcile the many substantial differences between its version of a tax bill with the House’s version. The outcome of this process is uncertain at this point in time. What is certain is that no matter what the final … [Read more...]

Shortly after the mass shooting of 26 people in a church in Sunderland Springs, Texas by a single person with a gun, President Trump provided his “informed” diagnosis of this tragedy from Japan, on the first leg of his 12-day Asian trip. He proclaimed “I think that mental health is your problem here.” Trump added “This isn’t a guns situation.” In response to a reporter’s question, one day later in Korea, Trump reinforced his “expert” opinion stating that gun … [Read more...]

Over the past several months, there have been numerous reports on declining support and approval for President Donald Trump. For example: In June, Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight reported, “There’s been a considerable decline in the number of Americans who strongly approve of Trump from a peak of around 30 percent in February to just 21 or 22 percent of the electorate now.” An August Wall Street Journal/NBC poll showed that since April, the number of … [Read more...]

In spite of a rebounding and more robust economy, many in the lower middle and working classes remain anxious and concerned about their futures. There has been low and slow wage growth and, as we discussed in our last blog, the changing nature of jobs, the middle class and the American Dream have pushed a large part of the workforce toward a gloomy perspective. There have been various proposals to make the economy work better for America’s workers. The Trump administration suggests that a … [Read more...]

Over the past few months, there have been several indicators that the American economy may be humming on all cylinders again. They include: A report from the Hamilton Project of the Brookings Institution showed that in July, nearly a decade after the start of the Great Recession, employment had recovered to its “demographically adjusted pre-recession level.” This means that more than 10 million jobs were added in that 10 year period. The Census Bureau’s annual report on Income and … [Read more...]

On Monday, August 21, there was a total eclipse of the sun. Americans across the nation from Oregon to South Carolina responded with awe and euphoria at the wonder of this spectacular event. Just two weeks later on this upcoming Monday, September 4, Americans across this nation will celebrate Labor Day. There will be little to no celebration in the organized labor movement, however, as the eclipse of its power and influence continues. That eclipse is not total. But, it is … [Read more...]

There is no question that our current immigration system is broken and needs to be fixed. It’s been that way for some time. During 2013, Congress spent a considerable amount of talent and energy trying to find an approach to immigration reform that was workable. The Senate managed to pass a bi-partisan bill but things ground to a halt in the House. Since then, there has been a lot of talk but no real action on immigration reform. Deportations of illegal immigrants … [Read more...]