M: Dude! The
United States is a consumer-based economy. Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine write
a very concise description of this market trend that defines who we are as a
nation and people, in their political science breakthrough book Stronger Together: A Blueprint for America’s
Future. According to Clinton and Kaine, beginning on page 6,
We
have a 70 percent consumption economy. So when only a small share of people see
their incomes grow, the vast majority of Americans stay stuck in place. And high
inequality compounds the challenges faced by communities that have historically
been shut out from fully participating in our economy. For instance, in the
immediate aftermath of the recession, white families’ net worth remained
essentially flat while the net worth of African American families fell by 34
percent. And even though the housing crisis is behind us, roughly one in five
African Americans and Latinos face the risk of foreclosure—a much higher
proportion than among white Americans.
It’s
Economics 101: when working people have more money in their pockets, everyone
wins. A nurse may finally replace that old car that’s broken down one too many
times, a teacher will buy the new refrigerator he’s been eyeing, and a firefighter
will finally go on that hard-earned and much-needed vacation. The businesses they’re
buying from win because they sell more products and get more revenue. And when
they go one step further and raise their employees’ wages and give them a share
in their hard-earned profits, those workers win, too. That’s how a virtuous
cycle begins, and each rotation broadens the circle of prosperity. There’s more
money for everyone—not just those at the top, but those in the middle and those
at the bottom, too.
D: Man! What
concrete measures do Clinton and Kaine plan to take in order to guarantee that
a virtuous cycle will finally begin for US at the bottom and those in the
middle?
M: Dude! First
off, those of US at the bottom or in the middle must register to vote and cast
our ballots for Clinton and Kaine on Election Day, Tuesday, November 8, 2016. Those
of US who stood behind Bernie Sanders in the primaries must stand by him now
and support and fight on behalf of the Clinton and Kaine ticket that Sanders is
supporting and campaigning for right now. In fact, I am waiting for Sanders’
op-eds in the online versions of the major newspapers. Senator Sanders must
logically explain how a vote for Clinton and Kaine and the Democratic Party,
which Sanders himself joined and remains a member of even today, is the only avenue
for the change we believed in then and should not surrender our votes to
unstable Republican and third-party blundering counterfeits like Donald Trump. The
only thing “green” about Jill Stein and her party is the fortune they have amassed
with Sanders supporters’ pocket money contributions.
D: Man! Bernie
Sanders is campaigning on behalf of Hillary Clinton and his supporters must follow
suit and support Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine as Sanders has.
M: Dude! Hillary
Clinton and Tim Kaine’s book Stronger
Together: A Blueprint for America’s Future needs to be on everybody’s minds
and in their hands right now. Millennials need to read this Democratic Manifesto
with open minds and hearts. Americans need to understand that Hillary Clinton has
embraced a lot substantially in the course of a year and a half of campaigning in
order to mobilize the working poor and middle class and facilitate opportunities
for those of us at the brinks of existence in terms of disenfranchisement,
whether we be homeless and unable to find shelter or trapped within the living
hells of mental illness and drug addiction or, sadly but reality for far too
many families, all of the above!
D: Man! What
concrete measures do Clinton and Kaine plan to take in order to guarantee that
a virtuous cycle will finally begin for US at the brinks?
M: Dude! According
to Clinton and Kaine, beginning on page 73,
If
we want to build an economy that works for everyone, we need to put our
families first. That means matching our policies to how families actually live in
the twenty-first century.
Families
look a lot different today than they did thirty years ago. The movement of
women into the workforce has produced enormous growth over the past few
decades. Women are now the sole or primary breadwinner in a growing number of
households. But too many people—men and women alike—are struggling to be good
workers, good parents, and good caregivers, all at the same time. They are
trying to manage runaway costs of childcare and prescription drugs, worrying
how they will care for an elderly or sick parent, and struggling to live day to
day on a paycheck that just won’t budge.
We
are asking families to rely on an old system of support in a new economic
reality. It’s time for that to change. We will expand access to affordable childcare
and health care, guarantee paid family and medical leave, and provide every
American the confidence of a secure retirement. And while we’re at it—we’re
going to finally secure equal pay for women. These are not luxuries—they are
economic necessities. They are critical to the future we want to build together.
That’s
why, together, we will:
1.
Fight for equal pay for women
2.
Ensure no family pays more than 10 percent of their income
for childcare
3.
Guarantee paid family and medical leave
4.
Ease the financial burden for family caregivers
5.
Defend and enhance Social Security
6.
Expand health coverage and tackle mental health, addiction,
and Alzheimer’s disease [“Prevent, effectively treat, and make an Alzheimer’s
cure possible by 2025” as described in detail beginning on page 99]
D: Man! Guaranteed
paid family and medical leave?
M: Dude! Hillary
Clinton and Tim Kaine outline and then explain every bulleted proposal with
such clarity and reading ease for readers from all backgrounds and educational
levels! It is incredible! Political science for the people and of the people,
but most importantly, must be initiated by the people through their registering
to vote in this presidential election cycle for the Clinton and Kaine ticket.
But pertaining to specifics in terms of guarantee paid family leave and medical
leave, this is how Clinton and Kaine summarily and eloquently and simply explain
the concept with specifics, starting with page 83,
No
one should have to choose between keeping their job and taking care of a sick
family member, and no woman should have to go back to work twenty-four hours
after giving birth. But today the United States is the only developed nation in
the world with no guaranteed paid leave of any kind. In fact, only 13 percent
of American workers have access to paid family leave through their employer —
with the lowest-paid workers up to four times less likely to have access to it
than the highest-paid.
In
an economy where all parents in a household typically hold down a paying job,
paid family and medical leave is core to our economic growth and
competitiveness. Paid leave helps families remain economically stable, benefits
children’s early health and development by allowing parents to care for their
newborn children, and reduces employee turnover. The availability of paid leave
bolsters our economy by enabling more Americans to participate fully in the
workforce. To build an economy that works for everyone, we must ensure that we
don’t leave any talent on the sidelines.
That’s
why we will:
1.
Guarantee up
to twelve weeks of paid family and medical leave. Working men
and women should be guaranteed up to twelve weeks of paid family leave to care
for a new child or a seriously ill family member, such as an ailing parent or a
spouse with cancer. They should also be guaranteed up to twelve weeks of
medical leave to recover from serious illness or injury of their own.
2.
Ensure at
least a two-thirds wage replacement rate for workers. To ensure families
remain stable and supported during both joyful and stressful times, we will
provide financial support to workers taking leave. Workers who have met a
minimum number of hours the previous year should receive at least two-thirds of
their current wages during leave so that low-income and middle-class workers
receive the financial support they need. We can provide working families this
support without imposing additional costs on businesses, including small
businesses.
D: Man! What
about easing the financial burden for family caregivers?
M: Dude! Again,
Clinton and Kaine plainly explain that aspect of our realities with such truth
and empathic decency. Beginning on page 85, Clinton and Kaine disclose such
realities being faced by the overwhelming majority of US that the status quo
press corps is blocking out of televising or publishing.
Nearly
half of all Americans in their forties and fifties are part of the “sandwich
generation,” financially supporting both a child and an aging parent. As baby
boomers age, more and more families will face a similar struggle as they
attempt to provide care for their loved ones – for elderly parents and
grandparents, and for family members with disabilities or with serious or
chronic illnesses.
Many
of these families are forced to spend time out of the workforce, cut back on
work hours, or use personal days to provide needed care to a loved one.
Providing informal caregiving can strain family finances, with caregivers
suffering lost wages, health insurance, and Social Security benefits. These
families deserve our support.
That’s
why we will:
1.
Provide tax
relief to family members who care for ailing parents and grandparents. Family caregivers
often spend $5,000 or more in expenses related to their elders’ care, but in
many cases they receive no tax deduction or credit. Caregiving can be a win-win
for our families and our overall health system. This is why we will offer a 20
percent tax credit to help family members offset up to $6,000 in caregiving
costs for their elderly family members, allowing caregivers to claim up to
$1,200 in tax relief each year.
2.
Expand
Social Security by counting the hard work of caregivers and giving them the
benefits they deserve. Millions of men and women take time out of the paid
workforce to raise a child, take care of an aging parent, or look after an ailing
family member. Caregiving is hard work that benefits our entire economy. But when
Americans take time off to take care of a relative, they don’t earn credits
towards Social Security retirement benefits. No one should face meager Social
Security checks because they took the vital role of caregiver for part of their
career. Instead, Americans will receive credit towards their Social Security
benefits when they are out of the paid workforce because they are acting as
caregivers.
3.
Build on the
Caregiver Respite program. Caring for a sick family member can
exact a significant emotional and physical toll. Both caregiving family members
and those they care for can benefit from occasional temporary relief. We will
invest in programs to improve respite care access for family caregivers of
children or adults of any age with support needs.
4.
Launch a “Care
Workers Initiative” to address the challenges faced by care workers. Families also
rely on home care workers to help them provide needed care to aging, disabled,
or ill family members. Home care workers do hard, essential, compassionate work
for millions of Americans. Despite the extraordinary care they provide, home
care workers are often invisible and among the lowest paid in any occupation. The
low wages in these jobs lead to high turnover and limited training, creating
care systems that do not work for the families depending on care or the workers
who provide it. We will launch a “Care Workers Initiative” to create paths to
professionalize the workforce through career ladders and apprenticeships;
improve the rate-setting processes in the childcare and healthcare systems to
ensure fair wages; provide care workers with an opportunity to come together and
make their voices heard; and develop and enhance matching services to connect
care workers with the families who need them.
D: Man! I want
my HDTV now! Hillary Clinton, Tim Kaine, and the Democratic Party, and
television that is unbiased towards everyday struggling folks like us and,
instead, presents the truth not just its own status quo brand of fiction in
which Clinton and Kaine and the Democrats are not relevant and the wealthy
should never have to pay taxes that would, in reality, be long overdue and the
most efficient means of guaranteeing our republic not only survive but thrive.
M: Dude! American
Voters mustn’t go against their own best interests because of the corrupt
American Press Corps and International Press Corps. Registering to vote and casting
a ballot for the Clinton and Kaine ticket on Election Day, Tuesday, November 8,
2016, is in the best interests of not just our republic but the entire world.
(TO BE CONTINUED...)
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