MORNING MESSAGE
The
Thursday Netroots Nation panel, “Student Debt Crisis: How We Can Help Stop the
Next Economic Bubble from Bursting,” discussed ways to deal with the more than
$1.2 trillion in student loan debt carried by 43 million Americans ... People
carrying this debt are putting off starting families, buying houses and
otherwise being able to participate in having an economic future ... This is a
huge opportunity to activate millions of people who have not been voting, and
candidates are aware of this message: every student in America should have
opportunity to go to college and end up debt free.
Hillary Fleshes Out Details
Hillary
pushes profit-sharing in NH town hall. NYT: “The ‘rising incomes, sharing
profits’ tax credit Mrs. Clinton is proposing would give companies a two-year
tax credit equivalent to 15 percent of profits distributed to employees, to be
capped at 10 percent of wages. The credits would cost an estimated $10 billion
to $20 billion over 10 years and would be paid for by closing corporate tax
loopholes.”
Clinton
diverges on $15 minimum wage. The Hill: “[Martin] O’Malley’s remarks on
Thursday are his strongest yet for a $15 national minimum wage, a level he
supported prior to entering the 2016 field … [Sen. Bernie Sanders] additionally
backs that hourly pay rate. [Clinton] backed efforts to raise local minimum
wages in high-cost areas of the country to $15, but suggested that high a level
might not make sense in other places.”
Hillary
Clinton’s economic rhetoric reflects latest research in how wages rise, says
NYT’s Paul Krugman: “There’s just no evidence that raising the minimum wage
costs jobs, at least when the starting point is as low as it is in modern
America … [The] benefits largely offset the direct effect of higher labor costs
… Once you take what we’ve learned from minimum-wage studies seriously, you
realize that they’re not relevant just to the lowest-paid workers.”
Jeb
Bush walks fine lines in San Francisco. Time: “…Jeb Bush indicated Thursday
that he thinks existing laws sufficient to ensure men and women are paid equally
for the same work, but that he would back legislation in the states to prevent
workplace and housing discrimination against LGBT Americans … Bush said that in
the case of a florist approached by a gay couple, ‘you should be obligated to
sell them flowers…’ … But he said that the objecting florist should not be
required to participate in the wedding…”
Senate Passes Education Reform
Senate
passes, 81-17, its own version of No Child Left Behind revamp. NYT: “[In the
House and Senate bills,] states would be given latitude to decide how [math and
reading] assessment tests are used to measure school and teacher performance.
The Senate version would require states to continue to use the tests as a
significant accountability factor; the House measure does not. Both versions
would prohibit the federal government from requiring any specific set of
academic standards … a provision in the House bill … would permit low-income
students to transfer federal dollars between districts … the Obama
administration strongly opposes such a provision for fear it might drain needed
funds from districts in need.”
More
from Politico: “The Senate bill would dump many of NCLB’s hallmark
accountability provisions. The law’s mandate that schools that repeatedly miss
their performance targets allow students to transfer to another school or face
an overhaul would evaporate. So would the requirement that schools meet specific
performance targets.”
Breakfast Sides
Senate
moves toward long-term transportation bill. The Hill: “Senate Majority
Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday that top lawmakers on transportation
issues, like Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and James Inhofe (R-Okla.), were
sifting through potential methods to pay for a long-term highway bill. McConnell
has set up an initial Tuesday vote for a highway measure.
Interior
Dept. proposes new rule on coal pollution. NYT: “…the rule mandates that
coal companies test and monitor the condition of streams affected by their
activities before, during and after a mining operation … companies would have to
put up increased money for bonds, or collateral, to pay for restoration once
they finished mining … Senator Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, one of the
states that would be most affected, has already introduced legislation that
tries to strike down the proposed regulation.”
Treasury
Dept. investigates online lenders. NYT: “For now, the Treasury’s effort
appears more of a fact-finding exercise, rather than a deliberate attempt to
establish new regulations. The department is inviting public comment on the
sector and plans to hold a round-table discussion this summer with input from
the $12 billion industry, borrowers and consumer advocates.”
Alaska
30th state to expand Medicaid under Obamacare. NYT: “After failing to
persuade his Legislature to expand Medicaid, Gov. Bill Walker of Alaska said
Thursday that he planned to unilaterally accept the federal funds available to
cover more low-income residents under the program.”
IMF
presses Europe on Greek debt relief. Bloomberg: “The agreement … won’t be
enough to keep the euro region together unless Greece’s creditors also lower the
country’s debt burden to boost its growth prospects, Lagarde said
Friday.”
Progressive
Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to
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