America's Democrats

Professor Gordon Lafer says issues like the minimum wage, a living wage and paid sick days are winning issues politically and progressive candidates should call out big business – and win. Service Employees International Union leader David Rolf takes us through the increasingly successful fight for a 15-dollar an hour minimum wage.

As we commemorate another Labor Day, professor Gordon Lafer reminds us that unions gave us the minimum wage, the 8-hour day, and child labor laws – all of which were opposed by the Chamber of Commerce, which continues to oppose what most working Americans demand.

The “Fight for 15,” organized labor’s move to raise the minimum wage, is having success, state by state, reports Service Employees union leader David Rolf.

Clueless CEOs Confused By Workers Quitting

For more than a year, America’s corporate chieftains have been moaning about “The Great Resignation” – the recent phenomena of workers just up and quitting their jobs. And now comes “Quiet Quitting,” workers who don’t leave their jobs, but only do what they were hired to do, quietly rejecting the endless extra (unpaid) tasks and weekend assignments that bosses try to pile on. What’s at work in the heads of all these workers?

Rep. Jackie Speier is Retiring, But She Leaves a Legacy for Women

Congresswoman Jackie Speier represents California's 14th congressional district just south of San Francisco. Jackie has been a strong leader on the important issue of sexual assault in the military. She's been relentless going after the Generals in the Pentagon pressuring them to take cases of sexual assault out of the military chain of command. Where they were too often just swept under the rug. Rep. Speier is retiring this year and reflects on the current fragile state of American Democracy.

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The legacy of Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter was an “outsider” who won the Democratic presidential nomination 40 years ago. His former speechwriter, James Fallows, says that an outsider can win the White House if the public feels there is a crisis – but then it becomes very hard to actually govern. He also says that he should be remembered for many things, not the least of which is deregulation, which paved the way for, among other things, microbreweries!

Who was Smedley Darlington Butler, and why is he important?

Many Americans can’t believe that political coups are part of our country’s history – but consider the Wall Street Putsch of 1933.

Ever heard of it? It was a corporate conspiracy to oust Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had just been elected president. With the Great Depression raging and millions of families financially devastated, FDR had launched several economic recovery programs to help people get back on their feet.

Christian Nationalism Linked to The Insurrection.

According to a new and comprehensive investigation, Christian Nationalism was used to "bolster, justify and intensify the January 6 attack on the Capitol." Bill talks to Jack Jenkins, one of the top reporters covering the religion and politics beat. They explain just what Christian Nationalism is, how it was an integral part of the January 6th events and how it is driving GOP politicians.

If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.

Republicans often tout simple spending cuts as markers of economic responsibility. But that sort of superficial belt-tightening often proves to be far more reckless in the long run. This week, we revisit interviews with two economists about the myths—and dangers—of austerity politics.

Mark Blyth is a professor of international economy at Brown University, and he succinctly explains what’s wrong with austerity as a cure for an ailing economy: “Tighter belts,” he says, “only work if we all wear the same pants.”

Economist Simon Johnson warns that irresponsible austerity methods proposed by Republicans could throw the world into a financial catastrophe. And, he says, it would be the private sector that really suffers.

What’s Up with This Crazy Trucker Protest?

The recent traffic-clogging protests by truck drivers in the US and Canada are about drivers being angry over COVID-19 vaccine mandates – right?

Uh... no. That’s the line being put out by right-wing extremists trying to use the legitimate gripes of truckers for their own political gain. The extremists are nuts... not the truckers.

What's Next for Putin's War

Twenty-six days into Putin's War in Ukraine, can anything be done to stop the carnage and stop Putin? What are the likely next steps, diplomatically and militarily? What are the risks of a wider war, of a nuclear war? To provide some context, Bill has arranged to talk again with the two experts on foreign affairs who gave us their first assessment of the situation in Ukraine three weeks ago. A lot has changed. . Steven Pifer was our Ambassador to Ukraine in the last two years of the Clinton Administration and was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State with responsibilities for Russia and Ukraine in the first four years of the George W. Bush Administration. He is currently a Fellow at Stanford University and the Brookings Institution. Joining him is Joe Cirincione, a Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. He previously served for over 12 years as the President of the Ploughshares Fund, a foundation focused on nuclear nonproliferation and conflict resolution. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.

A look back at Republican tactics.

While Donald Trump dominated the news for much of the last half-decade, Republicans have been tinkering with messaging that obscures just how hostile they are to most Americans’ wants and needs. Today we look back at two instances of this: their attempts to cast theirs as the party of economic equality, and their willingness to use racial and cultural wars and wedge issues to divide the working class.

Labor lawyer Tom Geoghegan thinks Republican “faux populism” is a good sign for Democrats ... because we own the issue.

Donald Trump’s anti-Hispanic rhetoric may make no difference. Why? Because the Latino vote is mostly set in states other than Florida and possibly Colorado, says voting analyst Daniel McGraw.

A Rube Goldberg Inflationary Spiral

Last July, several GOP senators combined their 5-watt intellects to charge that inflation was rising because of the “insane tax and spending spree of President Biden and the Democrats.”

Never mind that the “insane” spending is for such sensible, productive, and enormously popular national needs as childcare and jobless benefits, Mitch McConnell’s rabidly partisan flock saw the chance to politicize the public’s legitimate worries about rising prices.

Bill's Take on Biden's State of the Union

Although Biden is not known as a great orator, he gave a great speech Tuesday night.

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Steve Knievel on his 3 pillars to improve our healthcare system.

Steve Knievel is an advocate for Public Citizen’s Access to Medicines program, focusing on expanding affordable access to medicines. They say that to help stop Big Pharma’s price gouging in the U.S., Congress must listen to the American public, ignore the pharmaceutical industry’s high-paid lobbyists and finally pass legislation granting Medicare the authority to negotiate drug prices.

How to get Congress to reform our broken healthcare system

For $3.5 Trillion a year, shouldn’t we Americans have a world-class healthcare system? Yet, while we spend the most of any advanced nation in the world to get care (more than $10,000 a year per person), we get the worst results.

No surprise then, that the “Medicare-for-All” idea is now backed by 85 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of Independents, and (get this) 52 percent of Republicans! So... why isn’t Congress responding to this overwhelming public demand for universal coverage?

The Dangerous Supreme Court

Lot's of well-deserved focus on Justice Breyer's retirement and the certainty of a Black female nominee from Biden. But it will not change the hard-right Court. The upcoming decisions on Roe v Wade, Affirmative Action, and the power of the Federal Government to regulate health and safety are all under attack and likely to change America for the worse.

Elizabeth Wydra is the President of the Constitutional Accountability Center, a non-partisan progressive organization. It seeks to get the public and judges to understand the Constitution, in its most vital respects, is a progressive document.

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