Secretary of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, David Shulkin, has pledged not to privatize the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). He understands, he says, that the VHA’s ability to provide care that, as studies document, is superior to those in the private sector is because veterans are treated in an integrated system that meets all their […]
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Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Reminding the People of Their Power
On Monday, the working-class political organizing group People’s Action held its first annual convention, entitled Rise Up 2017, featuring Senator Bernie Sanders. At a time when record numbers of progressives seem to be running for office, scores of activists proclaimed their candidacies on stage. Following a brassy opening-a marching band played “When the Saints Go […]
Posted inEnergy and the Environment
What States and Cities Can Do To Fight Climate Change
Today, the Prospect is posting Ben Adler’s long-form piece, which also appears in the spring issue of our print magazine, on how states and cities are moving ahead on policies that limit climate change, and what they’re doing to counter the Trump administration’s policies that will make climate change even more severe. As Ben points […]
Posted inWorking in America
DC Paid Leave Coming (Slowly)
Earlier this month Washington, D.C.’s new paid leave law, considered one of the most generous in the United States, went into effect. As The Washington Post reports: The D.C. law provides for up to eight weeks of paid time off to new parents, six weeks to workers caring for ailing family members and two weeks […]
Posted inEducation in America
A Close Look at Education Reform in Washington, D.C.
Today, The American Prospect published a feature story by Rachel Cohen on D.C. school reform. The District of Columbia has been cast as one of the nation’s most successful examples of education reform. Over the last decade, the city has significantly expanded charter schooling and implemented a new teacher evaluation system based in part on […]
Posted inCivil Rights in America
For Feingold, “LegitAction” Is One Way to Stave Off Threats to Democracy
Former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold has decided to jump back into the national spotlight with LegitAction, a new online political advocacy group that plans to help local grassroots organizations raise their public profiles. Relying on social media as well as traditional platforms like newspapers, the Wisconsin Democrat founded LegitAction in March to educate the public […]
Posted inEducation in America
Why D.C.’s First Charter Union Election Was Called Off
In February, I reported on the first public union campaign at a charter school in Washington, D.C. Teachers at Paul Public Charter School wanted to form their own local-the District of Columbia Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff (DC ACTS)-which would be affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers. Seventy-one percent of Paul’s staff signed […]
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
New PAC Will Back Every Single Democrat Running for Congress
For the past two decades, Democratic fundraiser and operative Jonathan Zucker has been fed up with the way his party doles out funds to candidates. The problem, as Zucker sees it, is that Democrats distribute most of their funds to candidates running in swing districts that the party sees as winnable, instead of divvying the […]
Posted inHealth and Social Policy
Congress Determined To Keep Private Sector In Vets’ Heath Care
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill mulling legislation to extend a program that lets veterans seek health care in the private sector have revived their longstanding complaints about long wait times for care at the Veterans Health Administration facilities. Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin and Dr. Baligh Yehia, the agency’s assistant under secretary, appeared before the House […]
Posted inCivil Rights in America
The ACLU’s New Rallying Cry: “See You in Court, and See You in the Streets.”
The day after Donald Trump’s election, the American Civil Liberties Union posted the words “See you in court” on its homepage next to an image of the incoming president. Now, the ACLU has a slightly longer message for Trump: “See you in court, and see you in the streets.” That’s the rallying cry of a […]
