Senator Kyl: If you Want Middle Class Tax Cuts, Give the Rich a Massive Tax Cut (for 12/5/11)

Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona says he can support the payroll tax holiday in return for another extension of the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts benefitting the wealthiest Americans. http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/12/05/382453/kyl-could-support-a-middle-class-tax-cut-but-only-if-the-rich-get-a-massive-tax-break-too/

SEC Regulations Target Lower Ranking Bankers, Not Their Bosses (for 12/4/11)

The SEC has gone after lower ranking bankers in their suits against banks, such as JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup. It can charge the executives or management team of a bank with "failure to supervise."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/15/sec-regulations-targeting-low-level-bankers-instead-supervisors_n_1095915.html?ref=goldman-sachs

Mortgage Lender Ends Most Lending in Mass. After Lawsuit (for 12/3/11)

What happens when a bunch of mortgage lenders get sued by a State Attorney General? One of them ends lending in that state. That is what happened in Massachusetts when Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley sued five major banks for fraud and wrongful foreclosures. GMAC Mortgage, the nation's fifth biggest lender, ended most of its lending in Massachusetts as a result.

http://thinkprogress.org/special/2011/12/02/381115/mortage-lender-gmac-retaliates-against-mass-lawsuit-by-ending-most-lending-in-the-state/

Women's Unemployment Not Improving (for 12/2/11)

What started out as a recession that slammed men at first is now hurting women more. Men are the ones experiencing the bulk of the gains created by the slow economic recovery, as unemployment for men was at 8.3% in November. At the start of the recovery in June 2009, it was 9.9% for men. For women, it has been stagnant since then. Part of the problem maybe due to Congressional failure to pass bills funding Federal Government jobs.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/02/many-baby-boom-women-going-bust-in-recovery_n_1126244.html?ref=unemployment

Tea Partiers Oppose Four Popular Social Programs (for 12/1/11)

Four popular social programs that Tea Partiers now oppose include School Lunches, Food Stamps, Community Health Centers, and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).

In 2004, both Houses of Congress easily passed bills to fund school lunch programs. Of all Representatives and Senators, only Ron Paul voted against this program. In December 2010, the vast majority of House Republicans voted against funding this program.

George W. Bush urged increasing food stamp funding to legal immigrants during his Presidency. Now, Congressman Paul Ryan wants to turn food stamps into block grants that will cover less people as time goes by.

Spending on community health centers rose 100% during President George W. Bush's term in office. Bush praised them for keeping patients out of hopsital emergency rooms. The current House has cut its funding by over a third.

The EITC opposition by current Republicans may be most noticeable thing they have fought. In the 1980's, President Ronald Reagan described the EITC as the "best job-creation measure" Congress passed during his term in Office. Both Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush strengthened this measure. But now, Republicans like John Cornyn and Michele Bachmann think of it as either a form of welfare or income redistribution.

All of these shifts in the Republcians' attitude towards social spending occurred once Barack Obama assumed the Office of President of the United States. That is the most important point to remember on these issues.
http://www.alternet.org/economy/153014/compassionate_conservatism_4_popular_safety-net_programs_tea_party_republicans_have_turned_against_in_the_age_of_obama?page=entire

Wealthy People Live in Their Own Enclaves, While Rest of America's Neighborhoods Deteriorate (for 11/30/11)

Since 1970, the number of people living in income-segregated neighborhoods, either rich or poor, has doubled. Schools in wealthy enclaves are well-kept, with sealed roofs, up-to-date textbooks, and good teachers. Schools in poor neighboorhoods are not so well-kept and are much less likely to have qualified teachers. The quality of libraries, public parks, road repair, garbage pick-up, and virtually any other public service is vastly better in wealthier districts. Therefore, people do not know as much about people of different backgrounds and develop stereotypes of each other.

http://www.alternet.org/economy/153213/class_segregation%3A_rich_hunker_down_in_wealthy_enclaves_--

Detroit Police Officers & Firefighters Face 10% Wage Cuts Suggested by Mayor (for 11/29/11)

Detroit Mayor David Bing sought to cut his City's police officers and firefighters' pay by 10%. He did this to avoid layoffs. This shows the pressures that the ongoing economic crisis has placed on state and city governments.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/17/police-and-firefighters-t_n_1099900.html?ref=budget-cuts