N.J. Gov. Chris Christie must put politics aside, help needy

If you didn't catch it this morning former NJ Senate Majority Leader Barbara Buono (D-Middlesex) had an excellent Op-ed piece published over at NJ.Com that emplores Governor Christie to put politics aside and help those that are the most needy by putting the needs of other before personal ambitions by creating a more progressive tax system that will help families that are currently living paycheck to paycheck:

When leaders of political parties in New York state recently agreed to raise the tax rate on the wealthiest to help the middle class, a truly revolutionary concept was born — politicians putting the needs of the people ahead of their own personal ambitions.

In New Jersey, unfortunately, Gov. Chris Christie has set his sights on the national stage and repeatedly refused to consider the democratically led effort to create a more progressive tax rate because it would defy the rules of the conservative playbook.

This same steely denial of the realities of the working class is evident on the conservative side of every major debate taking place in Washington — whether it’s on debt reduction, extending the Social Security payroll tax or the merits of the Occupy movement.

Overlooked is the growing number of Americans now living in, or just above, poverty. In New Jersey, the number of residents receiving food stamps has doubled in the past four years. Recently released Census figures based on a new poverty formula show that nearly 50 million Americans are poor and the number of those living just above the poverty line is far greater than once believed.

What makes this new formula unique is that it takes into account government assistance such as food stamps, housing aid, subsidized lunches and the Earned Income Tax Credit. Once these factors are considered, roughly 3 million people rise above the poverty line, proving government assistance can and does make a difference in the lives of working families.

Sadly, those on the right have no qualms about slashing these assistance programs, proving their empathy extends only to the super rich while the plight of poor and middle-class families is viewed with rote disregard....

Finish reading Senator Buono Op-ed that was posted online at NJ.Com .... Here

"Occupy Oakland" Documentary

I was sent a link to this "Occupy Oakland" video, It is sympathetic to the Occupy Wall St. movement, gives a brief glimpse into the Oakland occupy movement and was produced rather well. It is interesting to watch and worth a look.



When is the last time you used your amendment rights? In this documentary, you will follow an immigrant in his exploration of the Occupy Wallstreet movement in his hometown of Oakland, where tear gas and warlike scenes as well as grassroots movements are satirized. How to Be American? Perhaps it's more than just living in this great country.
"Occupy Oakland"

Rush Holt: "Occupy Wall Street" and the American Dream

You have often heard me say that the American Dream belongs to all of us. Occupy Wall Street has, over the past month, gained the support of hundreds of thousands of Americans who seem to be saying the same thing. They are expressing many different ideas but are united by a conviction that is impossible to deny: that unless we act now, America will no longer be a land of equality, that our middle class will not have a fair shake, and that Washington’s policies will tilt ever more fiercely in favor of the most privileged among us.

The protestors feel in their gut that our nation is less fair and equitable than it was a generation ago, and the evidence proves them right. Nearly 25 million Americans are unemployed or underemployed. The typical working-age family’s earnings are no higher today than they were almost two decades ago. And according to one study by a Federal Reserve economist, inequality has become so entrenched that a poor family would need nearly 10 generations – more than 200 years – to achieve middle-class income.

Put another way, if you are poor today, then you may reasonably hope that your great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandchildren will finally climb into the middle class. Is that what the American Dream has come to?

Yet despite the tremendous challenges facing ordinary families, today is a good time to be very wealthy. Over the past three decades, the after-tax income of the top one percent of Americans has nearly tripled.

This explosion in inequality was not a freak occurrence beyond the influence of policymakers. Rather, it was the direct result of policy run amok: decades of tax cuts for the very wealthy and a determined strategy of taking cops off the beat on Wall Street. I have fought tooth and nail against these policies, with some success – most notably the passage of last year’s Wall Street reform bill and the creation of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But too many in Congress are clinging to the failed ideologies that led to this crisis and are abandoning ordinary Americans who, through no fault of their own, cannot find a job or pay their mortgage.

Those people of privilege who disparage or dismiss the demonstrators as unfocused, naïve rebels without a cause seem to miss the point. Mystified, they say, “What are these demonstrators talking about? Our success shows the reality of the American Dream. We have made it through our work and wit.” Some politicians, clueless, want to pursue policies that would exacerbate these inequalities. Yet the truth is that runaway inequality has dampened America’s growth and weakened America’s society. If we fail to restore the American Dream to all of our citizens, the cost to our country – economically and in our individual freedoms – will be enormous.

It is no wonder that people are frustrated, angry, and disillusioned. What is astonishing, and alarming, is that so many in Congress have ignored their plight for so long.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress