Progressive Breakfast: Remembering Julian Bond

MORNING MESSAGE

Robert Borosage & Roger Hickey
Remembering Julian Bond
Robert Borosage: America lost a giant this weekend when Julian Bond left us at 75. And CAF lost a friend, a founder, a mentor and a guide. Julian lived a large life, devoted to making America better. And we all are beneficiaries of his work and his wisdom.
Roger Hickey: For those of us becoming active in the movement — especially those of us in the South — Julian Bond was an absolute hero. He had the courage under fire of the SNCC organizers. And he stood up to the whole Georgia power structure not only against racism but also against the war in Vietnam. He was cool.

Trump Plan Attacks Immigration

Donald Trump issues first position paper on immigration. NYT: “[Trump] called for a wall to be built along the southern border [funded] largely through increasing fees on border movement between the United States and Mexico … Mr. Trump’s proposal also calls for strengthening the ‘enforcement arm’ of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, to be paid for by ‘eliminating tax credit payments to illegal immigrants.’ … He proposed enforcing the nationwide e-verify system, ending birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants and increasing the prevailing wage for the temporary H-1B visas.”
“Dream plan” for anti-immigrant voters. Bloomberg: “The plan attacks legal and illegal immigration from all angles. It leaves no option except for mass deportation of the estimated 11 million people in the country illegally … He seeks to slash legal immigration by imposing new burdens on employers that want to hire skilled foreign workers under the H-1B visa program…”
Republicans coalescing around raising the retirement age. NYT’s Paul Krugman: “…Jeb Bush says that the retirement age should be pushed back to ’68 or 70′. Scott Walker has echoed that position. Marco Rubio wants both to raise the retirement age and to cut benefits for higher-income seniors … What’s puzzling about the renewed Republican assault on Social Security is that it looks like bad politics as well as bad policy.”

Clinton Tries To Impress The Left

Hillary leans left on policy, says The Hill: “The trend leftward reached a new level last week, when Clinton introduced a sweeping $350 billion proposal to reduce the burden of exploding tuition debt for millions of college students and graduates –– a provision included in the Progressive Caucus’s budget … Clinton has also adopted proposals on immigration, education, voting rights and criminal justice that are winning strong reviews from leading liberal Democrats.”
But refrains from fighting for $15. W. Post: “Obama and Clinton have both expressed support for raising the federal minimum to $12 an hour … [And neither] has spoken critically of a $15-an-hour federal minimum. But recent comments from the candidate, and from officials in Obama’s administration, suggest Clinton and Obama may be worried that such a large increase could prove too much for some parts of the country to bear.”

Germany To Vote On Greece Bailout

Merkel backs Greek bailout. NYT: “Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Sunday that she expected theInternational Monetary Fund to take part in the new bailout for Greece, as she sought to head off opposition to the aid package in the German Parliament.”
“Economists Say Greece Should Get Debt Relief” reports Bloomberg: “A whopping 92 percent of respondents said Greece should receive some form of easing of its debt burden … The Bloomberg survey of 42 European economists was conducted Aug. 7-14.”

Economy Still Divided By Race

“Racial wealth gap persists” despite educational gains. NYT: “From 1992 to 2013, the median net worth of blacks who finished college dropped nearly 56 percent (adjusted for inflation). By comparison, the median net worth of whites with college degrees rose about 86 percent over the same period, which included three recessions — including the severe downturn of 2007 through 2009, with its devastating effect on home prices in many parts of the country…”
Pinellas County, Florida schools collapse after school board votes end racial integration policies. Tampa Bay Times: “In just eight years, Pinellas County School Board members turned five schools in the county’s black neighborhoods into some of the worst in Florida. First they abandoned integration … Then they broke promises of more money and resources. Then — as black children started failing at outrageous rates, as overstressed teachers walked off the job, as middle class families fled en masse — the board stood by and did nothing.”
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