MORNING MESSAGE
Hillary on Quarterly Capitalism: Big Challenge, Timid Reform
Last
week, Hillary Clinton opened an important “conversation” about what she calls
“quarterly capitalism” or excessive “short-termism.” ... In stark contrast with
Republicans presidential candidates who want to cut or eliminate capital gains
taxes, Clinton calls for reforms that will reward longer-term horizons ... But
in what is becoming a signature of the Clinton campaign, the fundamental problem
is addressed with underwhelming reforms ... Clinton does not call for a
financial speculation tax ... endorse taxing the income of investors at the same
rate as the salaries of workers [or] breaking up too-big-to-fail financial
institutions.
Divided Congress Faces Highway Cliff
Highway
trust fund goes bust Friday. The Hill: “Majority Leader Mitch McConnell [is]
hoping to ship the [six-year] bill across the Capitol to the House by the end of
this week [and] force the House’s hand … But if the Senate doesn’t pass its bill
before Thursday, the House may adjourn anyway for the recess and leave the upper
chamber with no other option but to pass the five-month extension.”
Senate
tacks Ex-IM Bank on transportation bill. NYT: “The bipartisan vote, 67 to
26, broke a filibuster … all but one Republican presidential candidate, Senator
Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, [supports] the bank’s demise … 24 Republicans,
nearly half the Senate Republican Conference, voted with Democrats to revive the
bank…”
Sen.
Barbara Boxer breaks with Senate Democratic leaders on transportation bill:
“…they’re irked that she’s signed on to what they privately say is a bad deal
with McConnell, one that does more for his endangered incumbents than it does
for Democrats … Her party’s leadership has been holding out for a broader
spending deal this fall that would chip away at the sequester’s indiscriminate
cuts. Democrats are also hoping to get traction for a long-shot idea hatched by
Sen. Chuck Schumer … to use international tax reform to pay for a longer, more
expensive transportation bill.”
Rail
infrastructure crumbling. NYT: “In Maryland, a century-old rail tunnel
needed emergency repairs this winter because of soil erosion from leaks … In
Connecticut, an aging swing bridge failed to close twice last summer … There
were major delays on four days [in New Jersey] because of problems with overhead
electrical wires and a power substation … The [Northeast] corridor’s ridership
has doubled in the last 30 years even as its old and overloaded infrastructure
of tracks, power lines, bridges and tunnels has begun to wear out.”
Hillary Shows Climate Cards
Hillary
Clinton unveils climate change initiative. W. Post: “Hillary Rodham Clinton
called for harnessing the power of the sun to generate enough renewable energy
to run every home in the country within the next decade … Clinton will fight
efforts to roll back [Obama’s] Clean Power Plan. And she proposes a Clean Power
Challenge, including competitions for grants for renewal energy products, as
well as more assistance to states and cities and more choices for
consumers.”
Aims
to build on Obama’s record. NYT: “The president has pledged to get the
United States to produce 20 percent of electricity from renewable sources by
2030 — essentially tripling renewable power from today. Mrs. Clinton’s plan
would arrive at 33 percent, said Heather Zichal, who served as Mr. Obama’s
senior climate change adviser until last year.”
But
ducks issues that divide Dems: “In addition to [not speaking on] Keystone,
Sunday’s announcement doesn’t confront Clinton’s past positions on oil drilling
or hydraulic fracturing, which have been among greens’ top gripes with her.”
WH
announces corporate partnership to cut emissions. WSJ: “More than a dozen
U.S. companies on Monday will pledge to invest more than $140 billion in efforts
to cut carbon emissions as part of a new Obama administration initiative leading
up to the United Nations climate-change summit later this year. Bank of America
Corp., General Motors Co., Cargill Inc. and AlcoaInc. are among the companies
set to sign onto [the] pledge…”
Jeb Vs. Medicare
NYT’s
Paul Krugman slams Jeb on Medicare: “…the argument he chose to use, which
might have sounded plausible five years ago, but now looks completely out of
touch … The underlying premise here is that Medicare as we know it is incapable
of controlling costs … [But the Affordable Care Act] was immediately followed by
an unprecedented pause in Medicare cost growth.”
Donald
Trump’s political positions are hard to pin down. Politico: “Trump once
endorsed a massive surtax on the rich. But he now wants the top income tax rate
cut in half … He’s praised single-payer health care, yet loathes Obamacare. But
a decade ago he proposed ‘health marts’ that sound suspiciously like today’s
Obamacare exchanges … ‘Unions still have a place in American society,’ he wrote
in 2000. ‘In fact, with the globalization craze in full heat, unions are about
the only political force reminding us to remember the American working
family.'”
Breakfast Sides
America
enters grand experiment on minimum wage. NYT: “A number of researchers have
found that modestly higher minimum wages can raise incomes for low-wage workers
without reducing the number of jobs in an area … But the $15-an-hour proposals
go far beyond the experience of the last few decades, and the recommendations of
a panel appointed by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to raise the minimum wage for workers
at fast-food chains to such a level thrust New York State to the forefront of
the current experiment.”
Progressives
regroup to fight TPP. The Hill: “…liberal Democrats in the House are teaming
up with labor unions and other allies in an effort to thwart the TPP through
social media campaigns, protests on and around Capitol Hill, and regular
briefings with reporters. Trade ministers from the 12 nations negotiating the
proposed accord are seeking to reach a final agreement in Maui, Hawaii by the
end of the month…”
Progressive
Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to
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