Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Keep Voting And Never Give Up!


 

How Americans View Other Countries


The chart above is from the Gallup Poll -- done between February 1st and 20th of a nationwide sample of 1,016 adults, with a 4 point margin of error. 

A Second Trump Term Would Be Better (For Racists)

Political Cartoon is by Bill Day at Cagle.com.
 

Trump Would Cut Social Security - Biden Would Save It


Robert Reich explains why Trump and The GOP want to cut Social Security, and how Biden and the Democrats would save it. Here is part of what he writes: 

During a typically rambling and incoherent interview last week, Trump admitted he would cut Social Security and Medicare if reelected. “There is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting and in terms of also the theft and the bad management of entitlements.”


Trump has tried to walk back the remarks, saying that when he used the word “cutting” he didn’t actually mean “cutting,” and that Social Security has a lot of waste. (In fact, Social Security is well managed, and theft or fraud is rare.)


But there’s no question Trump and his Republican allies want to cut Social Security and Medicare.

 

Here’s why. At the heart of their economic agenda — at least the portion they’re sharing with their super-wealthy backers — is another giant tax cut for the super-wealthy and big corporations. 


The problem is that this tax cut would cause the federal budget deficit to explode — as did their last tax cut for the wealthy — unless Social Security and Medicare are cut. (Remember that as president, Trump repeatedly included cuts to Social Security and Medicare in his official budget proposals.)


This is why Trumpers have been ramping up calls for cuts in Social Security (or raising the age of eligibility, which is the same thing). . . .


In their annual report, the trustees of the Social Security Trust Fund said that Social Security will be able to pay full benefits for another decade but thereafter faces a significant funding shortfall. Unless something changes, after 2034 it will be able to pay only about 80 percent of scheduled benefits. . . .


The problem isn’t that the giant baby-boom generation is sucking up too many Social Security benefits. The Social Security trustees anticipated the boom in boomer retirements. This is why Social Security was amended back in 1983, to gradually increase the age for collecting full retirement benefits from 65 to 67. That change is helping finance the retirements of boomers (like me). 


So what did the trustees fail to anticipate in 1983 when they raised the retirement age for collecting full benefits? Answer: the degree of income inequality in 21st century America.


Put simply, a big part of the American working population is earning less than the Social Security trustees (including me) anticipated decades ago — and therefore paying less in Social Security payroll tax.


Had the pay of American workers kept up with what had been the trend decades ago — and kept up with their own increasing productivity — their Social Security payroll tax payments would have been enough to keep the program flush.


At the same time, a much larger chunk of the nation’s total income is going to the top than was expected decades ago. . . .


As the rich have become far richer, more and more of the total income earned by Americans has become concentrated at the top. Therefore, more and more total income escapes the Social Security payroll tax.

 

The obvious solution to Social Security’s funding shortfall, therefore, is to lift the cap on income subject to the Social Security payroll tax, so the super-rich pay more in Social Security taxes.


To make sure it’s the super-rich — and not the upper-middle class — who pay, it makes sense to eliminate the cap altogether on earnings in excess of, say, $400,000.


As it happens, Biden’s plan does exactly this. 


So there you have it: Trump and his regressive mouthpieces want to cut Social Security so they can give another giant tax cut to the super-rich. 


Biden wants to save Social Security by having the super-rich — who have become far richer over the past several decades — pay more Social Security taxes.

 

The contrast couldn’t be more obvious or more important.

March Madness In Russia

Political Cartoon is by Clay Jones at claytoonz.com.
 

It's Time For The U.S. To Appreciate Its Largest Minority

 

Monday, March 18, 2024

The Albatross Around The GOP's Neck

 

Faith In The Economy Is Still Low But Slowly Increasing

 

The charts above are from the CBS News / YouGov Poll -- done between February 28th and March 1st of a nationwide sample of 2,159 adults, with a 2.8 point margin of error.

The Incredible Shrinking GOP Tent

Political Cartoon is by Marshall Ramsey in Mississippi Today.
 

Trump Threatens Violence If He's Not Elected


From Robert Reich

At a rally today outside the Dayton International Airport in Vandalia, Ohio, Trump warned that “if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a blood bath … for the country.”


He also warned that if he didn’t win, “I don’t think you’re going to have another election, or certainly not an election that’s meaningful.”


In the rest of the speech he repeated his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, which have been utterly discredited. 


He praised the people serving sentences in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol — calling them “hostages” and “unbelievable patriots,” commending their spirit, and promising to help them if elected in November. 


He cast migrants as threats to American citizens — claiming without evidence that other countries were emptying their prisons of “young people” and sending them across the border. “I don’t know if you call them ‘people,’ in some cases,” he said. “They’re not people, in my opinion.” He later referred to them as “animals.”


Trump is clearly desperate. He knows that his future freedom and his fortune both depend on winning in November. He has no qualms about turning Americans against Americans to achieve this goal. Apparently he is even willing to fuel violence, a second civil war. 


Yesterday, Trump’s own former Vice President, Mike Pence, showed enough integrity to refuse to endorse Trump. If other current and former Republican officials had an ounce of integrity, they would do the same. Today’s disgraceful performance should be a wakeup call, if they still need one. 


The rest of us must do everything in our power to ensure that this monster never again comes close to the Oval Office.

New RNC Budget Wheel

Political Cartoon is by Clay Jones at claytoonz.com.
 

Thousands Of Russians Protest Putin's Fake Election


 

Sunday, March 17, 2024

jobsanger Turned 18 Years Old Today


This blog turns 18 today. I have enjoyed writing it since March 17 of 2006, and I'm not done yet. Currently, it has received 11,237,926 page views.

I want to thank all of my readers -- especially those who drop by on a regular basis. I will do my best to keep your interest.

It's No Surprise That He's A Trumper


 

80% Say Religion's Influence Is Declining In The U.S.

 



The charts above are from a Pew Research Center survey - done between February 13th and 25th of a nationwide sample of 12,693 adults, with a 1.5 point margin of error.

Not An Improvement!

Political Cartoon is by Bill Bramhall in the New York Daily News.
 

Media Should Report Trump's Growing Dementia/Paranoia


The media loves to report on President Biden's age. But they need to report more on Donald Trump increasing dementia and paranoia (which is far more dangerous to this country's future). Here is part of what Robert Reich has to say about it:

What if Trump really thinks he’s being persecuted? What if he has a persecution complex? What if he believes his paranoid fantasies?

 

Trump is not facing nearly the same scrutiny for his age as is Joe Biden, yet Trump should be — especially as to increasing signs of dementia.

 

Biden is sane. He’s getting major bills passed. He’s negotiating with world leaders.


But Trump — who has a family history of dementia — is increasingly incoherent and unhinged. 


He has confused Biden with Obama so often that he’s had to put out a statement that the slips have been intentional.

 

In September, Trump suggested that the way to prevent wildfires in California’s forest lands is to keep them damp. Here are his exact words

“They say that there’s so much water up north that I want to have the overflow areas go into your forests and dampen your forests, because if you dampen your forests you're not gonna have these forest fires that are burning at levels that nobody’s ever seen.”

Hello?. . .


In October, Trump warned his supporters that Biden will lead America into World War Two.


He has also claimed that Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group, is “very smart.” That whales are being killed by windmills. That he won all 50 states in 2020. That he defeated Barack Obama in 2016. That the outgoing chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff should be executed. That MSNBC’s parent company is guilty of treason, and will “pay.” And that he will only be a dictator on “Day 1” of a new term.


The most telling evidence of Trump’s growing dementia is found in his paranoid thirst for revenge, on which he is now centering his entire campaign.


On November 11, he pledged to a crowd of supporters in Claremont, New Hampshire, that: 

“We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country, that lie and steal and cheat on elections and will do anything possible — they’ll do anything, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America and to destroy the American dream.”

Are these the words of a sane person? Or of an aging paranoid megalomaniac? Even if it’s unclear to which category Trump belongs, shouldn’t this question be central to the coverage of his campaign for reelection? 


When I’ve asked members of the media why they’re not covering the increasing signs of Trump’s dementia, they say it’s “old news.”. . .


But just because Trump has shown mental instability in the past doesn’t make his mental problems any less relevant now that he is seeking reelection. They’re more relevant. He appears even more delusional and unhinged than before. 


If Biden’s age is fair game, why aren’t Trump’s age and apparent mental decline? 


Biden may appear frail at times, but he’s rational. The growing evidence of Trump’s dementia and paranoia, on the other hand, poses a potential danger to the future of America — if he’s reelected. At the least, the media should be investigating and reporting on it.

Casting Call For A Trump Vice-President

Political Cartoon is by Matt Wuerker at Politico.com.
 

Would You trust A Billionaire More Than China Owning TikTok?


 

Saturday, March 16, 2024

Social Security & Medicare Are On The November Ballot


 

Are You Better Off?

 Political Cartoon is by Clay Jones at claytoonz.com.

Many Are Blaming The Wrong Party For The Unfair Economy

 

Many workers are unhappy with the economy - especially rural workers. They see the rich getting richer while they struggle with an inadequate wage that isn't keeping up with inflation. And they are right. We have a very unfair economy!

But too many of them don't understand why the economy has become so unfair. They believe the lies Republicans are telling them.

Republicans tell them that undocumented immigrants are stealing their jobs. Not true. Those immigrants are taking the dangerous, no benefits, low-paying jobs that Americans don't want. And those immigrants have actually helped the economy by taking those jobs and spending much of the money they earn in this country - boosting the economy. They also pay sales, property, and income taxes (and don't get refunds like citizens).

Republicans tell them that inflation is caused by the budget deficit. Even Republican officials don't believe this, because during the Trump administration they added more to the deficit than during any other administration.

The biggest lie of all is the economic theory Republicans have followed (Trickle-Down economics). Republicans say the answer to our economy is to make sure the corporations and the rich have low taxes and are allowed to make more money. They claim if the rich have more the extra money they have will "trickle down" to the rest of Americans, and everyone will benefit.

But that has never worked, and won't work in the future! While it has been successful in fattening the bank accounts of the rich and the profits of corporations, almost nothing trickles down to anyone else.

In fact, this economic theory is the reason our economy has become so unfair. It has caused a massive redistribution of wealth from the working and middle classes to the rich. The rich now hog all of rising productivity. Before the GOP was able to institute the "trickle-down" theory, rising productivity was shared by all, giving workers a decent living and creating a large and vibrant middle class.

But thanks to the GOP economics, the working class is struggling to keep up with inflation and the middle class is shrinking.

We can fix the economy and make it fair again, but not as long as the GOP has the power to keep their flawed economic theory in place.