Making Sense

Americans accept the need for taxation, but they don’t like taxes. And they never have—remember the Boston Tea Party? That’s why Americans are susceptible to conservative assaults on the federal estate tax. Progressives need to understand the public mood and change the conversation. Supporting a continuation of the 90-year-old federal estate tax does not mean we favor higher taxes, it means we support tax fairness.

So far this year, one issue of special importance to women has largely been ignored: pay equity. In 2004 election exit polls, sixty-percent of women said that “equal pay for women” was not discussed enough. In 2006, over half of women said that gender equality should be a high priority for Congress. Any progressive advocate seeking to persuade women this year should have the facts on pay equity.

For years, conservatives have kowtowed to the heads of big corporations, who want trade deals that pave the way for them to move manufacturing operations overseas—at tremendous cost to American workers and our economy. John McCain wants to continue this trend, vowing to “remove barriers to free trade,” even though a majority of Americans view foreign trade as a threat to our economy, according to a CNN poll. Only one in four Americans share McCain’s view that free trade offers the U.S. an opportunity for economic growth. Progressives can offer Americans the choice they want by securing America’s place in the global economy through fair trade and a revitalization of America’s critical manufacturing sector.

Now that Congress has voted to bailout Wall Street bankers, what about the rest of us? No one seriously believes that the $700 billion bailout will stop the oncoming recession. This morning, we learned the economy continued shedding jobs in September. Yet this week, Senate Republicans used a filibuster to kill a modest stimulus bill. We need help for the real economy, not just for the mess on Wall Street.