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FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE STATE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

Middle Wisconsin News

www.MiddleWisconsin.com June 29, 2012

IN THIS ISSUE:

JUNE 2012
June . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Moving Forward . . . . . . . . 2 Working Wisconsin . . . . . 3 Hope and Challenges . . . 4 American Health . . . . . . . 5 Tax Pledge Cult . . . . . . . . 7 Programs At Risk . . . . . . 8 Sanders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Messaging . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Challenging The Myth . .11 Peoples Budget . . . . . . 12 Middle Wisconsin News welcomes letters, articles and essays on relevant topics. We ask that you limit submissions to 800 words and provide sources when appropriate. Submissions may be edited for length, clarity and taste. Emailed submissions should be sent in plain text or Microsoft Word attachments to: [email protected]
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The kids are on the beaches and the boats are on the lakes. It is June in Wisconsin. The early peas and the onions and the kohlrabi are on the dinner table. There are green tomatoes, tiny peppers, and flowers on the cucumbers and squash. It is June in Wisconsin and the flower gardens are beautiful. The trilliums are gone, but daisies and Indian paintbrush are everywhere. Much like our state, progressives are renewing themselves - are growing their determination to make Wisconsin a place of fairness, and respect, and community. Several articles in this June newsletter give us hope and guidance. We have also tried to point out some of the glaring contradictions and hypocrisies besetting our state. At the end of the newsletter this month we have published the Progressive Caucus Budget. We have done so because this budget has received virtually no news coverage (even in public media) even though, unlike the immoral Ryan budget, it represents the sincere work of true statesmen who are genuinely concerned about America and her people. We urge you to take the time to read the Peoples Budget. It is a work of intelligence - a breath of fresh air - in a world of misleading half -truths and outright lies. At only 12 pages long, the Peoples Budget is a clear, concise, educational document. As always - we shall overcome.

Middle Wisconsin News Moving Forward

By Joyce Leudke - Hayward

June 29, 2012 Page 2

What a roller coaster ride the people of Wisconsin have been on for the past sixteen months--ever since Scott Walker decided to drop the bomb. (To this day that phrase makes me shudder.) Needless to say, for many of us, the historic roller coaster ride ended with the most bruising/spiraling crash leaving many of us to ponder: What has happened to our once progressive state and the values so many of us hold dear? Will our state be forever changed? Where do go we from here for those of us who continue to hold true to progressive values? How do common ordinary citizens fight for control of our state when the insidious influences and money from outside Wisconsin are infiltrating every aspect of our state? How do common ordinary citizens fight for control of our legislature that is being taken over by ALEC and other outside forces? How do progressives find a voice in the media when it is clear that more of the message is being controlled by non-progressives? How does a state get beyond the divide and conquer strategy that served this governor and GOP legislators so well? This divide and conquer strategy cuts the heart out of my state and me personally. How do we educate the students of this state with a system that is also being divided into private and public entities? Each one is being pitted against each other by this divide and conquer strategy. How do people find and keep jobs that pay a living wage when the public sector and the private sector are also divided? How do we function as a society when the backs of all of us on the bottom rungs of the ladder contin ue to be broken by the people on the top rung who want ever more. As one of the Koch brothers stated -- this is paraphrased because I dont have the direct quote: I want my share and thats all of it. How do we heal? How do we move Forward as our state motto instructs us to do? The list of questions could fill volumes; and unfortunately, the questions are often met with silence. Where do we start? Here are some small steps I will personally take as I journey through this dark time for my state. - - Robert Kraig
Citizen Action of Wisconsin

Building a powerful progressive movement that can challenge the right is about coming together and staying together.

1. I will continue to meet with the people in my small grassroots groups: A. To draw energy, support, and inspiration from a diverse group of people. B. To come up with a strategy to move forward. C. To be educated and informed and to educate and inform. 2. I will continue to ground myself in my faith which I have to admit is often shaky. 3. I will continue to support and promote progressive values: fairness, respect, and community as stated in the objectives of Middle Wisconsin. 4. I will continue to support progressive candidates in state and federal elections who promote just and transparent government, healthy communities, social responsibility, thriving local economies, envi ronmental stewardship and quality education as the mission statement of Middle Wisconsin states. 5. I will renew my commitment to defend public education and educators in every way possible. 6. I will remain an activist with my eyes wide open as to the uphill climb we are now facing as progressives, not only in Wisconsin but in our nation.

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Middle Wisconsin News

June 29, 2012 Page 3

Working Wisconsin - Labor News and Views The Task Before Us

By John Spiegelhoff - Merrill, WI

Our elections have replaced horse racing as the sport of kings. These kings are multibillionaire, corporate moguls who by divine right --not of God, but of the Supreme Courts Citizen United decision-are now buying politicians like so much pricey horseflesh. - -Bill Moyers

Quand l'injustice devient loi, la rsistance est un devoir! Which means: When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes a duty!
Robber baron is a term used for a powerful 19th century American businessman. By the 1890s, the term was typically applied to businessmen who were viewed as having used questionable practices to amass their wealth. Allegedly, their "questionable practices" usually included setting the product at extremely low prices (and paying their workers very poorly in order to do so), buying out the competitors that couldn't keep up, and once there was no competition, they would hike prices far above the original level. It combines the sense of criminal ("robber") and illegitimate aristocracy ("baron"). It is now official. Wisconsin has been bought and sold. The State of Wisconsin is now a subsidiary of Koch Industries. The Robber Barons dumped enormous and undocumented amounts of money into Wisconsin assisted by the bought and sold Federal Supreme Court via Citizens United. They saturated the media with lies. They distorted the reality before us. They told outright lies. Many of my fellow Wisconsinites believed the lies. What do we do now? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Run for public office and advance progressive ideals. Organize or join a Union. Work for progressive candidates in their quest for public office. Join a community organization that cares about true Wisconsin values. Refuse to patronize companies who support regressive, ideological and destructive agendas (I havent patronized Walmart for 8 years or more and Kwik Trip for nearly two years and I dont eat Johnsonville brats). 6. Organize activities in your local community which support workers and the middle class way of life. 7. Dont use Republican speak such as Obamacare (Affordable Health Care Act), Job creators or tax burden (taxes are an investment in our communities). Talk like a progressive. 8. Hold your elected officials accountable by going to town halls and speaking your mind. 9. Withdraw your money from the big banksters and invest the money in a local Credit Union. 10. Read Dont Think of an Elephant by George Lakoff or Whats the Matter with Kansas by Thomas Frank to understand how common people vote against their economic interests. Then do something about it once you understand it. 11. And last of all.take a deep breath, take time for yourself, realize there are other like -minded people out there, dont give up and prepare yourself for a long protracted fight for justice.

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Middle Wisconsin News Information Technology Solutions

Hope and Challenges
By Virginia Kirsch - Wausau

June 29, 2012 Page 4

Workers and progressives may finally realize that change happens through collective action, not electoral politics.
--Arun Gupta and Steve Horn on Truthout

In the style of Parker Palmers suggestion to develop small groups (five or six people), our group, Informed and Involved Citizens, has been meeting once a month since February 2011. Our June meeting was a bit like the first meeting: apprehensive, uncertain of what to do or where to go. We learned to study our opponent and to never underestimate our opponent. We did not realize the extent of anger and frustration among the voters. On the other hand, money talks. He who controls the media controls the message. If you repeat something enough times, people will believe you. That old truth showed itself very clearly in the recall election. The past 16 months helped us find new strengths. We never thought we would be writing so many letters to elected officials and to the newspapers. We never thought we would appear on the Madison streets with posters. We surprised ourselves by going out to collect recall signatures. We discovered that Facebook carried messages for Wisconsin from all over the world. We definitely moved out of our comfort zone. Our challenges are: 1. How do we get our message out? The progressive movement is about peopleall of the people. 2. How do you support progressive businesses? How do you vote with your dollar? Join cooperatives. Do your financial business with credit unions. 3. How do we broaden the scope of progressives? How do we reach out to the poor, the forgotten people who have no voice in whats going on? 4. We need to keep going and to include everyone. 5. The values to be held are: life, fairness, respect and community. 6. Work with Move to Amend: pass an amendment to the US Constitution to eliminate corporate money from all politics. 7. More women are needed as leaders in political and economic realms. Work to pro mote women as leaders. Appreciate womens gifts of intuition, inclusion, and working to resolve problems, not just talking about them. Remember Parker Palmers advice from Healing the Heart of Democracy: 1. Understand that we are in this together. 2. Appreciate the value of the other. 3. Hold the tension in life-giving ways. 4. Develop a sense of your personal voice. 5. Work to create community. There are many things to ponder. A bumper sticker reminded me to try to be informed, not just opinionated.

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Middle Wisconsin News Information Technology Solutions

June 29, 2012 Page 5

American Health
STANDING ON PRINCIPLE
The most important thing the Arab Spring brought us was to give women leadership roles. When women become leaders of men, and men are following, when women sacrifice themselves and get killed in front of men, when they get detained for political issues and men dont feel ashamed of women who are arrested, this is a change.
- -Tawakkul Karman, Yemeni activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize for her part in the revolution against the former dictator Salehs rule.

By Lon Newman Wausau, WI

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who has problems of his own in Milwaukee, is leading a procession of lawsuits opposing a national requirement of health insurance companies to cover contraceptives. The cardinal called it a totalitarian incursion against religious liberty. His principle argument, is that religious institutions should not . . . be forced by the government to provide coverage for contraception or sterilization, because it . . . violates their religious beliefs." On that principle, legislators across the country are working to deny state and federal funding to organizations that provide contraceptive services. These lawmakers and their political allies echo the United State Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) reasoning that it is unjust to force taxpayers, employers, or members of the Church to support institutions or their affiliates which are committing acts they decry as intrinsically evil. The morality of contraception has been debated for generations, but what if we apply Cardinal Dolans reasoning where the question of morality and legality is indisputable? Recent polling shows that 80% of American Catholics find contraception morally acceptable and almost all Catholic women who have had sex have used a method forbidden by the Church. On the other hand, protecting sexual predators is neither moral nor legal. At the same time the anticontraception lawsuits were filed, a Wisconsin court ruled that the Green Bay Archdiocese illegally concealed sexual assaults of children and put other children at risk. If it is the bishops principle to stop federal and state funding for institutions and affiliates that have acted immorally, we can begin where there is no question of legality or morality. Let us deny funding to institutions, like the Green Bay Archdiocese, that have been convicted of conspiring to protect child sexual predators. The bishops have tried and failed to make a credible cost or health argument against contraception even among their parishioners. Family planning saves taxpayer dollars and insurance premium increases for contraceptive coverage would be nominal. Failing at persuasion, they turn to federal courts. They demand a series of exemptions for employers and institutions in the name of religious freedom: Exemption from civil rights protections for homosexuals. Exemption from grant requirements to provide comprehensive medical referral services to victims of sexual assault and sex-trafficking. Exemption from requirements that adoption agencies serve gay couples.

The bishops invoke the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. in their insistence on being awarded federal grant funds without anti-discrimination protections for women, sexual assault victims, and homosexuals. The demands reveal that Dolans defense of civil rights begins and ends with imposition of his narrow institutional authoritarianism even on employees or students or women who disagree. This profoundly contradicts the individual liberty protections guaranteed by our Bill of Rights. The bishops central argument is that we must enforce a standard of defunding institutions engaged in actions they disapprove. Let us call upon Cardinal Dolan, the USCCB, and their political allies to practice what they preach. Eliminating public funds and taxpayer support for organizations criminally convicted of protecting child predators will prove they are standing on principle.
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Middle Wisconsin News Information Technology Solutions

June 29, 2012 Page 6

American Health
Lessons on Religious Freedom from North Dakota
"You never know what spark is going to really result in a conflagration...You have to do things, do things, do things; you have to light that match, light that match, light that match, not knowing how often it's going to sputter and go out and at what point it's going to take hold. That's what happened in the civil-rights movement, and that's what happens in other movements. Things take a long time. It requires patience, but not a passive patience--the patience of activism."
--Howard Zinn

By Lon Newman Wausau, WI

Last week in North Dakota, voters rejected a constitutional amendment that, in the name of religious freedom, would have enabled discrimination and other abuses in the name of religion. The voters affirmed constitutional protections for the free exercise of religious belief and against the establishment of state-sponsored religions. There are three principle reasons that amendment was rejected that also apply to the Conference of Catholic Bishops current campaign against a federal requirement of insurance to cover contraceptives: Institutions which accept tax-exemptions and/or public funds must abide by the fundamental protections of our constitution including those against racial and gender discrimination. Accepting public funds and/or tax exemption requires compliance with public standards. In the case of Catholic clinics and hospitals, for example, a majority of Catholics agree that there are conscience protections for individuals, but the institutions may not refuse to provide necessary medical services. Although a citizen may be exempted from acting in a way contrary to religious beliefs (for example fight in a war, participate in the pledge of allegiance, eat particular foods, or take birth control), that is very different from not paying taxes that are required of everyone. Americans have a profound respect for religious freedom as the founders intended it. North Dakota voters reaffirmed it. The "no" vote was 64.5% to 35.5% -- very close to the same result against the "personhood amendment" in Mississippi (as Congresswoman Baldwin pointed out at Malarkey's last week). Maybe progressive Wisconsin voters have been moving to North Dakota and Mississippi and the conservatives have been coming here . . . we just haven't noticed yet. ========================================================= The measure as it appeared on the ballot read:[4] This initiated constitutional measure would add a new section to Article I of the North Dakota Constitution stating, "Government may not burden a persons or religious organizations religious liberty. The right to act or refuse to act in a manner motivated by a sincerely held religious belief may not be burdened unless the government proves it has a compelling governmental interest in infringing the specific act or refusal to act and has used the least restrictive means to further that interest. A burden includes indirect burdens such as withholding benefits, assessing penalties, or an exclusion from programs or access to facilities." YES means you approve the measure as stated above. NO means you reject the measure as stated above.

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Middle Wisconsin News

The Grover Norquist

June 29, 2012 Page 7

Tax Pledge Cult

When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men living in society, they create for themselves, in the course of time, a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it.
- - Frederic Bastiat, French writer and economist, 1850

I Pledge Allegiance To The Flag Of The Wall Street Lords Of America And To The Predator Class For Which They Stand. Subjugated Masses Under domination, With Liberty and Justice For The Fit.

June 2012 Featured Cult Members

Missionaries For The Lords Of Wall Street
These are the men and women who have placed allegiance to an ideology above their allegiance to the people of America - who have placed ideology above truth and intelligence. No matter how it harms America, these individuals refuse to ask the very rich and corporations to pay their fair share. Indeed, it is the goal of these individuals to destroy our government, or, as their Supreme Leader Norquist phrased it, To drown it in a bathtub. This is the respect these men and women have for the hope of humanity - for America once the shining light of democracy. Drown it in a bathtub.
U.S. Congressman Paul Ryan (R - Wisconsin) I grew up reading Ayn Rand and it taught me quite a bit about who I am and what my value systems are, and what my beliefs are. Its (Ayn Rands writing) inspired me so much that its required reading in my office for all my interns and my staff. U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (R - Wisconsin) Ayn Rands Atlas Shrugged is my foundational book.

For a complete list of Tax Pledge Cult Members see:

http://s3.amazonaws.com/ atrfiles/files/files/072911federalpledgesigners.pdf

U.S. Congressman Sean Duffy (R - Wisconsin) Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush said that Republicans like Sean Duffy had outsourced their principles and convictions by signing conservative lobbyist Grover Norquists pledge during testimony before congress on Friday 6/1/12. Bush made it clear he would never sign Norquists pledge to protect tax breaks for millionaires, Big Oil, and corporations that ship jobs overseas. http://www.wispolitics.com/printerfriendly.iml?Article=271638

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Middle Wisconsin News Programs at Risk - Tax Breaks for the Wealthy

June 29, 2012 Page 8

"This material [article] was published by the Center for American Progress" (online) http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2011/02/tax_breaks_infographic.html

Middle Wisconsin News

June 29, 2012 Page 9

SANDERS

The existing economic system did not arise as the result of some immutable natural force. It was created by a small clique of corporate power brokers and free market fundamentalists who reshaped the rules of the national and international economy so that they could reap a greater share of the rewards of economic activity while passing more of the costs to others. From their perspective, it has been a splendid success. For the rest of us, the current system provides a powerful demonstration of why, in our role as citizens, we need to become more savvy about issues of institutional design. - - David Korten Agenda for a New Economy

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Middle Wisconsin News

An Improved Messaging Paradigm For the Grassroots
Reprinted From Handout At Wisconsin Grassroots Network Conference Stevens Point, WI 6/23/12

June 29, 2012 Page 10

Background: For over 30 years Republicans and their think tanks have been featuring several major messaging themes, ditto-heading them back to the public through their massive radio presence, Fox News, and Sunday morning talking heads: government is too big and must be shrunk, taxes are taking away our freedoms, and the public sector takes too much out of our economy. In implementing the above messaging, they naturally pit government workers vs. private sector workers and union jobs vs. non-union jobs. To seal the deal, they hype social conservative/religious issues on guns, God, and gays to feed raw meat to their angry minions to keep them politically engaged and distracted from their personal lives and needs. The Democratic answer to the above has been issue-by-issue, inconsistent messaging over the years, often as a function of election cycles and not sustained background messaging prior to elections. The Dems have never realized that campaigns are won between elections, not always during elections. Moreover, because the Dems control so little media and media messaging, they are always playing defense when the other side is playing offense. New Paradigm: Dissect Republican messaging and it clearly tends to be exclusionary in nature. That is, their side and their message can only prevail because the other side looses or gets things taken away. . . . and it is easy to want to take away things in their world because they want people to look over their shoulders to see that government workers, welfare recipients, immigrants, union workers, etc. are USING THEIR TAXES and have things they want. Rather than seeing everyone thrive, the answer is to take away and redistribute to corporations and the wealthy. Time for a change. Inclusion is the opposite of what the Republicans have been messaging. Inclusion at its core means that we all do better when everyone does better. A rising tide floats all crafts, big and small. Why take away? There is another twist to this story that the Dems have not understood: if we fight on Republican turf with their exclusionary language, and throw back at them raw facts and data and do not bring emotion and affect into messaging, we miss the point. It is in personal lives where politics and policies can really come to life and be real. The real concern should NOT be whether government is too big or too small or whether someone has something we dont, but whether families (i.e. YOUR FAMILY) are thriving because when families thrive, communities thrive . . . And when communities thrive, everyone does better. It is about families and making sure families are thriving. It doesnt get any simpler than this. Suggested Implementation: Inclusionary messaging would allow WI grassroots to offer a new vision and energy for Wisconsin politics. Here are but a few possible messaging themes/approaches: 1. Who doesnt deserve access to good health care, quality public education, or secure retirement years? Name them! Who are they? This question makes a great foil for those who argue take-away. 2. Another message frame that comes out of this thinking is the promise of a better tomorrow starts today . . . Get involved and make a difference for your family and community. 3. Another message frame is opportunity of access and advancement underpins family and community prosperity (i.e. can you access it where you live?). 4. Imagine a WI grassroots sign campaign that might say, WI Grassroots: Supporting Families, Building Communities. 5. A more specific version of inclusive messaging could go like this: If private pensions are not working or dont exist, rather than taking the Wisconsin Retirement System down, why not open it up to private sector workers? Or, how about defined benefit options for all? The point is that the WI grassroots has a host of interesting, positive, and engaging messaging opportunities available in using this paradigm (billboards, flyers, door hangers). Can you help take this idea to the next level?

Middle Wisconsin News

June 29, 2012 Page 11

CHALLENGING THE MYTH...

And if all others accepted the lie which the party imposedif all records told the same tale then the lie passed into history and became the truth. George Orwell, 1984 (published in 1949)

The Myth of Either/Or

By Dave Svetlik - Mosinee

We can either protect Lake Superior or create mining jobs. We can either have mountain-top mining or we have to give up coal. We can either have skyrocketing government debt or cut social security and Medicare. We can either have good schools or good roads. We can either have clean air or a good economy. We must either give tax breaks to corporations or they will move elsewhere. We can either have taxes or jobs. We can either have regulations or jobs. We can either have the Wisconsin Retirement System or a good private sector. Thats it - no other solution. Either/Or. Decide now - - - quick, before its too late. This deal wont come again! And so it goes. Much like the exclusionary messaging talked about in the Improved Messaging Paradigm article on page 10 of this newsletter, either/or is a setup - a con game. Its purpose is to catch the public off guard - to stop people from asking question or suggesting other solutions. It is smoke and mirrors designed to advantage one group of people at the expense of another. In current American politics, it is almost always intended to advantage corporations and the super rich at the expense of our families, our communities, and our democracy. We can no longer afford the false dichotomy of either/or. As we move forward in our fight to restore sanity and genuine family values to our state and our nation, it is imperative that we no longer tolerate destructive either/or logic. We can protect the environment and have a good economy. In fact they are complementary and if we do not protect our environment we will soon have no economy at all. We can raise taxes and have good jobs. In fact it is tax cuts that are now one of the greatest job killers because they have redistributed so much wealth to the already wealthy that average people have too little income to sustain the real job creator - demand. We can have regulations and high employment. In fact the record shows that on average, regulations create a net job increase because they force the development of new, job creating technologies. We are all beginning to slowly understand that we have all - our families, our communities, our state and our nation - become the victims of the insidious, destructive messaging perpetrated on our society by the forces of greed and selfishness. It is imperative that we change what is happening. It is imperative that we learn how to change the message. The future of our kids and grandkids depends upon it.

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Budget of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Fiscal Year 2012 Read the People's Budget Read The Technical Analysis by the Economic Policy Institute (External Link) Read And Share The One-Page Handout
The Peoples Budget eliminates the deficit in 10 years, puts Americans back to work and restores our economic competitiveness. The Peoples Budget recognizes that in order to compete, our nation needs every American to be productive, and in order to be productive we need to raise our skills to meet modern needs. Our Budget Eliminates the Deficit and Raises a $31 Billion Surplus In Ten Years Our budget protects Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid and responsibly eliminates the deficit by targeting its main drivers: the Bush Tax Cuts, the wars overseas, and the causes and effects of the recent recession. Our Budget Puts America Back to Work & Restores Americas Competitiveness Trains teachers and restores schools; rebuilds roads and bridges and ensures that users help pay for them Invests in job creation, clean energy and broadband infrastructure, housing and R&D programs Our Budget Creates a Fairer Tax System Ends the recently passed upper-income tax cuts and lets Bush-era tax cuts expire at the end of 2012 Extends tax credits for the middle class, families, and students Creates new tax brackets that range from 45% starting at $1 million to 49% for $1 billion or more Implements a progressive estate tax Eliminates corporate welfare for oil, gas, and coal companies; closes loopholes for multinational corporations Enacts a financial crisis responsibility fee and a financial speculation tax on derivatives and foreign exchange Our Budget Protects Health Enacts a health care public option and negotiates prescription payments with pharmaceutical companies Prevents any cuts to Medicare physician payments for a decade

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Our Budget Safeguards Social Security for the Next 75 Years Eliminates the individual Social Security payroll cap to make sure upper income earners pay their fair share Increases benefits based on higher contributions on the employee side Our Budget Brings Our Troops Home Responsibly ends our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to leave America more secure both home and abroad Cuts defense spending by reducing conventional forces, procurement, and costly R&D programs Our Budgets Bottom Line Deficit reduction of $5.6 trillion Spending cuts of $1.7 trillion Revenue increase of $3.9 trillion Public investment $1.7 trillion

Support for the People's Budget President Bill Clinton "The most comprehensive alternative to the budgets passed by the House Republicans and recommended by the Simpson-Bowles Commission" "Does two things far better than the antigovernment budget passed by the House: it takes care of older Americans and others who need help; and much more than the House plan, or the Simpson-Bowles plan, it invests a lot our tax money to get America back in the future business" Paul Krugman genuinely courageous achieves this without dismantling the legacy of the New Deal Dean Baker "if you want a serious effort to balance the budget, here it is." Jeffrey Sachs A bolt of hopehumane, responsible, and most of all sensible Robert Reich "modest and reasonable" The Economist CourageousMr. Ryan's plan adds (by its own claims) $6 trillion to the national debt over the next decade, but promises to balance the budget by sometime in the 2030s by cutting programs for the poor and the elderly. The Progressive Caucus's plan would (by its own claims) balance the budget by 2021 by cutting defense spending and raising taxes, mainly on rich people.

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The New Republic ...something that's gotten far too little attention in this debate. The most fiscally responsible plan seems to be neither the Republicans' nor the president's. It's the Congressional Progressive Caucus plan The Washington Post "Its much more courageous to propose taxes on the rich and powerful than spending cuts on the poor and disabled." Rachel Maddow Balances the budget 20 years earlier than Paul Ryan even tries to The Guardian the most fiscally responsible in town would balance the books by 2021 The Nation "the strongest rebuke...to the unconscionable 'Ryan Budget' for FY 2012." Center for American Progress "once again put[s] requiring more sacrifice from the luckiest among us back on the table" Economic Policy Institute "National budget policy should adequately fund up-front job creation, invest in long-term economic growth, reform the tax code, and put the debt on a sustainable path while protecting the economic security of low-income Americans and growing the middle class. The proposal by the Congressional Progressive caucus achieves all of these goals." The Washington Post The Congressional Progressive Caucus plan wins the fiscal responsibility derby thus far." Rolling Stone "This is more than a fantasy document. It's sound policy." Forbes "instead of gutting programs for the poor like Medicaid and Medicare, food stamps, and the new healthcare law, the Peoples Budget focuses on cuts in defense. It also doesnt scrap new financial regulations designed to at least partly stave off another massive financial collapse like the one that put us in this mess in the first place."

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U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515

The Peoples Budget

Budget of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Fiscal Year 2012

Executive Summary
Budgets are more than collections of numbers; they are a statement of our values. The Congressional Progressive Caucus Budget is a reflection of the values and priorities of working families in this country. The Peoples Budget charts a path that keeps America exceptional in the 21st century, while addressing the most pressing problems facing the nation today. Our Budget eliminates the deficit and stabilizes the debt, puts Americans back to work, and restores our economic competiveness. The CPC Budget addresses these problems by listening to the American people. In poll after poll, they are telling us, their representatives in the American government, that they want to preserve Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, to make higher education more affordable, to expand job training programs, to cut taxes burdening the middle class, to subsidize affordable housing, and to provide financial assistance for those struggling to prevent foreclosures. The majority of America thinks cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, K-12 education, heating assistance to low-income families, student loans, unemployment insurance, and scientific and medical research are completely unacceptable. In contrast, Americans find a progressive tax policy very acceptable. The overwhelming majority of America supports additional taxes on millionaires and billionaires, eliminating unnecessary weapons systems, eliminating tax credits for the oil and gas industries, phasing out Bush tax cuts, and eliminating subsidies for new nuclear power plants. Poll after poll give voice to what Americans are asking of us. Our Budget, in response, listens to what the American people are telling us. It does all of the above in a fiscally responsible way that dramatically reduces our borrowing from banks and foreign governments and ensures our long-term economic competitiveness. It does all of the above recognizing that in order to compete, we need every American to be productive, and in order to be productive, we need to raise the skill level of every American and meet the basic needs of every working family. It does all of the above while remaining rooted in fairness, recognizing that America works only when everyone has an opportunity to make it in America. Our Budget Eliminates the Deficit by 2021 The CPC budget eliminates the deficit in a way that does not devastate what Americans want preserved, specifically, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Instead of eroding Americas hardearned retirement plan and social safety net, our budget targets the true drivers of deficits in the next Continued On Next Page

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decade: the Bush Tax Cuts, the wars overseas, and the causes and effects of the recent recession. By implementing a fair tax code, by building a resilient American economy, and by bringing our troops home, we achieve a budget surplus of over $30 billion by 2021 and we end up with a debt that is less than 65% of our GDP. This is what sustainability looks like. Our Budget Puts America Back to Work & Restores Americas Competitiveness The CPC budget rebuilds America and makes it competitive again. We put America back to work. We rebuild our roads and bridges, ensuring that those who use it help pay for it. We rebuild our dams and waterways with seed money for shipping systems that can compete with the rest of the world. We rebuild our education system by training more and better teachers, restoring schools, helping each student graduate, and supporting community colleges. This is what competitiveness looks like. Our Budget Creates a Fair Tax System The CPC budget implements a fair tax system based on the American notion that fairness and equality are integral to our society. Our budget restores fairness to a system that unfairly benefitted the richest few while hurting the majority of America. Our budget heeds Americas call to end the Bush Tax Cuts including the estate tax and create fair tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires while maintaining credits for the middle class and students. It ensures that the banks that wrecked our economy pay a modest financial responsibility fee and that exotic trading by Wall Street traders who gambled away Americas savings is levied a tax. It guarantees that hedge fund managers (and those who use them) do not get special treatment by taxing capital gains and dividends as ordinary income. It eliminates charity to oil companies making record profits from prices paid at the pump by the American people, given that it is unfair that the American people must also give these oil companies billions of dollars in handouts. Finally, our budget taxes US corporate income as it is earned, in much the same way Americans are taxed. This is what fairness looks like. Our Budget Brings Our Troops Home The CPC budget responsibly ends our wars that are currently paid for by American taxpayer dollars we do not have. We end these wars not simply to save massive amounts of money or because the majority of America is polling in favor to do so, but because these wars are making America less safe, are reducing Americas standing in the world, and are doing nothing to reduce Americas burgeoning energy security crisis. The CPC budget offers a real solution to these fiscal, diplomatic and energy crises, leaving America more secure, both here and abroad. The CPC budget also ensures that our countrys defense spending does not continue to contribute significantly to our current fiscal burden a trend we reverse by ending the wars and realigning conventional and strategic forces, resulting in $2.3 trillion worth of savings. This is what security looks like. Our Budgets Bottom Line Deficit reduction of $5.6 trillion Primary spending cuts of $869 billion Net interest savings of $856 billion Total spending cuts of $1.7 trillion Revenue increase of $3.9 trillion Public investment of $1.7 trillion Budget surplus of $30.7 billion in 2021, debt at 64.1% of GDP.

The Baseline

May 24, 2012 Page 11

The CPC Budget baseline includes both a ten-year doc fix and Alternative Minimum Tax Patch.1 The adjusted deficit, which was the starting point for this proposal, is compared with the CBO current law deficit below. We have calculated an adjusted debt level to reflect adjusted deficit levels. We have also calculated the net deficit impact of various policies to include interest adjustments based on net interest levels identified in the CBOs March budget update.

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1 Note: Not patching the AMT would save $683 billion over ten years. Not maintaining the doc fix would save $298 billion over ten years. The cost of maintaining these policies amounts to just under $1 trillion over ten years, but not including these costs would amount to budget gimmickry. 3

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Overview of Our Policies

Individual Income Tax Policies Allow the Bush-era tax cuts to expire at the end of 2012, but extend marriage relief, credits, and incentives for children, families, and education Immediately rescind the upper-income tax cuts in Decembers tax deal Index the AMT for inflation for a decade (the AMT patch is fully paid for) Schakowsky millionaire tax rates proposal (adding 45%, 46%, 47%, 48%, and 49% top rates) Tax all capital gains and qualified dividends as ordinary income Progressive estate tax (Sanders estate tax, repeal of Kyl-Lincoln) Limit the rate at which itemized deductions can reduce tax liability to 28%for high earners Replace the tax exclusion for interest on state and local bonds with a subsidy for the issuer Corporate Tax Reform Tax U.S. corporate foreign income as it is earned Eliminate corporate welfare for oil, gas, and coal companies Enact a financial crisis responsibility fee Financial speculation tax (derivatives, foreign exchange) Reinstate Superfund taxes Health Care Enact a public option Negotiate Rx payments with pharmaceutical companies CMS program integrity and other Medicare and Medicaid savings in the presidents budget Prevent a cut in Medicare physician payments for a decade (maintain doc fix) Social Security Raise the taxable maximum on the employee side to 90% of earnings and eliminate the taxable maximum on the employer side Increase benefits based on higher contributions on the employee side Defense Savings End overseas contingency operations emergency supplementals starting in Fiscal Year 2013, providing $170 billion in FY2012 to fund redeployment, while saving more than $1.8 trillion from current law spending levels over ten years Reduce baseline defense spending by reducing strategic capabilities, conventional forces, procurement, and R&D programs Comprehensive Jobs Program Invest $1.45 trillion in job creation, education, clean energy and broadband infrastructure, housing, and R&D Infrastructure bank Surface transportation reauthorization bill ($213 billion)

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The Peoples Budget Eliminates the Deficit Achieves Budget Surplus by 2021

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The Peoples Budget Brings Debt Below 65% of GDP by 2021

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The People's Budget Offers a More Sustainable Path for Deficits

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The People's Budget Offers a More Sustainable Path for Public Debt

Putting America Back to Work and Restoring American Competitiveness

Education In addressing the nations long-run fiscal challenges, investments in education enhance the long-term growth potential of the economy by investing in the skills of our present and future workforce. The nations human capital can be increased in many ways, including through formal and informal education, experience gained over time on a job, and training in the workplace. Front-end investment in Pre-K, K-12 and higher education is the most important contribution we can make to our economic growth in the long run. A more skilled workforce can produce more, and higher-skilled workers tend to earn higher wages. Transportation Rebuilding our highways and waterways will create jobs in the short term and is at the heart of our international competitiveness in the long term. Our budget dramatically increases transportation outlays through a surface transportation reauthorization bill as outlined in the presidents 2012 budget request.

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Infrastructure The new Infrastructure Bank will provide loans and grants to support individual projects and broader activities of significance to our nations economic competitiveness. For example, the IBank could support improvements in road and rail access to a West Coast port that benefits farmers in the Midwest, or a national effort to guarantee private loans made to help airlines purchase equipment in support of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). A cornerstone of the IBanks approach will be a rigorous project comparison method that transparently measures which projects offer the biggest value to taxpayers and our economy. This marks a substantial departure from the practice of funding projects based on more narrow considerations. Energy Independence With only 3% of the known oil reserves in the world, the United States cannot become energy independent or measurably affect the world price of oil simply by drilling more within our borders. We need to set loose the clean energy industry that is ready to take hold if we make the public investments in transportation and storage. Our budget will unleash American ingenuity and talent to build a new clean energy economy in which the United States will regain its rightful place as a world leader, move energy independence and address our global warming challenges. Housing The middle of a historic recession and a jobless recovery is not the time to cut support for affordable housing. Investments in housing are one of the most potent job creation tools we have, because every dollar invested in housing creates two dollars and twelve cents in additional economic activity and induces as much as seven additional dollars in indirect economic activity. Providing housing not only reduces the rate of homelessness, which costs state, local and federal governments tens of thousands of dollars for every homeless family, but provides the vital backbone for creating long-term economic viability for every family in America: a place to call home.

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Bringing Our Troops Home and Reducing Defense Spending

End emergency war funding beginning in FY 2013 The CBO baseline assumes that all discretionary fundingincluding emergency war fundinggrows with inflation (from a starting point of $159 billion in 2011) when projecting future discretionary spending. Eliminating all emergency defense funding starting in 2013 would save $674 billion over 2012-16 and $1.6 trillion over 2012-21 relative to this baseline. Reduce base discretionary defense spending Our budget institutes a realistic reduction in defense spending on conventional and strategic forces and capabilities that would not compromise our national security interests or capabilities. Savings would accrue from decreasing routine deployment of U.S. troops overseas (ignoring overseas contingency operations), reducing the size of the Army and Marine Corps as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wind down, reducing the fleet size of the U.S. Navy, reducing the number of Air Force squadrons, and canceling outdated coldwar weapon systems (including variations of the F-35, MV-22 Osprey, and Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle), among other savings. This proposal does not touch Tri-Care.

A Fair Tax System Individual Income Tax Policies

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Allow the Bush-era tax cuts to expire at the end of 2012 (allowing rates to revert to Clinton era levels), but extend marriage relief, credits, and incentives for children, families, and education Our budget maintains marriage penalty relief (standard deduction, EITC phase-out, and the 15% bracket), the expanded CTC, education incentives, and other incentives for children and families. Rescind the upper-income tax cuts in the tax deal Repealing the 33% and 35% tax brackets, reinstating the limitation on itemized deductions and personal exemption phase-out, ending capital gains and dividends tax cuts, and returning the estate tax to 2009 parameters would save roughly $95 billion over 2012-14 (tax-year 2012 spills into FY2013 and the capital gains tax cut spills into FY2014).2 Index the AMT for inflation for a decade The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) was designed to keep wealthy taxpayers from using loopholes to avoid paying taxes. But because it is not automatically updated for inflation, more middle-class taxpayers are getting hit with the AMT. While we need a long-term solution to this problem, until one exists we have to be honest about our obligations to the middle class families in this country. Our budget fully pays for the AMT patch for the next decade. Schakowsky millionaire tax rates proposal (adding 45%, 46%, 47%, 48%, and 49% top rates) The Schakowsky plan creates five additional income tax brackets, starting at 45 percent for married couples making over $1 million dollars a year and increasing to 49 percent for people making $1 billion and over. The current top tax rate is 35 percent for people making $379,150 a year or more. Progressive estate tax Our budget rescinds the estate tax in the tax deal and replaces it with Sen. Sanders progressive estate tax. The policy would include a $3.5 million exemption followed by a progressive series of marginal tax rates as follows: a 45% rate on the taxable portion of estates up to $50 million, a 55% rate on the portion of estates up to $500 million, and a 65% rate on the portion of estates worth over $500 million. Tax capital gains and qualified dividends as ordinary income This policy would eliminate the preferentially low rates on long-term capital gains and qualified dividends (currently 15%) and again tax all capital income as ordinary income under the marginal tax rate structure. The tax rate on longterm capital gains is scheduled to rise to 20% in 2013 and dividends are scheduled to be taxed again as ordinary income. Cap the benefit on itemized deductions at 28% For itemizing tax filers, the value of itemized deductions rises with their marginal tax rate (the rate on the last dollar earned), which makes many tax code preferences regressive (let alone the fact that non-itemizers see no benefit). This policy would limit the tax benefit of itemized deductions (home mortgage interest, etc.) to 28%.

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2 Assumes

these three tax cuts expire for all tax filers, not just those making above $200,000/$250,000. The estate tax is treated separately. 9

May Replace the tax exclusion for interest on state and local bonds with a subsidy for the issuer The budget would replace the tax exclusion for interest income on state and local government bonds with a direct subsidy to borrowers (i.e., state and local governments), which would be a more cost-effective way of reducing their borrowing costs. Under this policy, state and local governments would make taxable interest payments to borrowers and receive a 15% subsidy from the federal government for the interest paid on those bonds. This would simplify the tax code, increase budgeting transparency, and more cost-effectively subsidize borrowing by state and local governments.

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Corporate Tax Reform

Tax U.S. corporate foreign income as it is earned Taxing the earnings of U.S-controlled foreign subsidiary corporations (incorporated overseas) as earned rather than when earnings are repatriated to the United States would increase domestic investment and make it harder for firms to offshore jobs. The tax deferral on earnings from U.S.-controlled foreign subsidiary corporations enables firms to indefinitely avoid repatriating foreign earnings, because firms are taxed only when foreign earnings are received by the U.S. parent company as dividends. Our budget eliminates the deferral of income from U.S.-controlled foreign subsidiary corporations. Foreign tax credits (reducing U.S. tax liability by the amount of tax paid to foreign governments) would still be allowed, although the credit limits would be treated differently. The U.S. parent corporation would no longer split domestic and foreign expense activities, so the credit would only be allowed against tax liability to foreign governments. Additionally, because all earnings would be treated identically, the differentiation between active and passive foreign income would no longer matter. Eliminate corporate welfare for oil, gas, and coal companies Our budget repeals exploration and development expensing, preferential tax treatment of royalties, and domestic manufacturing deductions, among other tax preferences, for oil, natural gas, and coal producers. Reinstate Superfund taxes The Environmental Protection Agencys Superfund program, once largely funded by dedicated taxes, is now largely funded by general revenue. Having a stable source of funding, rather than relying on year-to-year appropriations, would help plan multi-year cleanup of hazardous chemical waste. The budget would reinstate the Superfund excise taxes that expired in 1995 in order to finance cleanup of hazardous waste. Enact a financial crisis responsibility fee Our budget levies a leverage tax (0.15% of covered liabilities) on the large banks with more than $50 billion in assets (as proposed in the Presidents 2011 budget request). Wall Street Gaming Tax A tax on derivatives, credit default swaps and other exotic financial products, including both sides of futures and forwards, option premiums and foreign exchange spot transactions. This is a tax levied directly against the types of opaque, complex trades that Wall Street manipulators used to inflate their profits and were the direct cause of the financial crisis. Reducing tax avoidance and evasion through better compliance and enforcement For our tax system to operate efficiently, we must ensure taxpayers truly fulfill their obligations, this includes and will focus on corporations that notoriously dodge taxes. Revenues will reduce the deficit even further than currently scheduled.

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Functional Increases by Proportional Formula for FY12

After recouping significant savings and reforming the tax code so that it is in line with the values of working families, the CPC budget provides a portion of additional discretionary spending with which to increase investment in domestic and international priorities. The following proposed formula would dictate how CPCs additional discretionary spending is allocated by functional category in the alternative budget. Even with additional discretionary spending over current law, the CPC budget still eliminates the deficit within ten years and provides a budget surplus by Fiscal Year 2021. Function 150: International Affairs (15% Allocation of budget increase over baseline as a plus-up) SMART Security Foreign Assistance U.S. Institute of Peace McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program Bilateral Global HIV\AIDS Programs (PEPFAR) Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (The Global Fund) Global Health and Child Survival USAID, Maternal Health, Child Health, and Nutrition Programs; USAID, Presidents Malaria Initiative; USAID, Family Planning and Reproductive Health; USAID, Bilateral Tuberculosis Programs Function 270: Energy (10% plus-up) Renewable energy technology and deployment Function 300: Natural Resources and Environment (5% plus-up) Reestablishment of the Civilian Conservation Corps Natural Resources Conservation Service Wetlands Reserve Program Conservation Stewardship Program Function 450: Community and Regional Development (5% plus-up) Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Community Development Fund Function 500: Education, Training, and Social Services (20% plus-up) ESEA IDEA Drop-out prevention Head Start Job Training and Workforce Development Youth Summer Jobs Social Services Block Grants (SSBG) On-the-Job Training Early Learning Challenge Fund Dislocated Workers Program

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Functional Increases by Proportional Formula for FY12 (con.)

Function 500: Education, Training, and Social Services (con.) Senior Community Service Employment Program Green Jobs Innovation Fund National Endowment for the Humanities Pell Grants TRIO National Endowment for the Arts Function 550: Health (10% plus-up) Domestic HIV/AIDS Maternal Health Enhanced Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP) Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) National Institutes of Health (NIH) Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (The Global Fund) Mentoring of Children of Prisoners Community Health Centers Function 600: Income Security (20% plus-up) Extend and Safeguard Unemployment Insurance Child Nutrition Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (Food Stamps) Food and Nutrition Service (including WIC) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Low Income Housing Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Tenant Based Rental Assistance Project Based Rental Assistance Public Housing Capital Fund Public Housing Operating Fund Affordable Housing Trust Fund Section 8 Housing Vouchers Function 700: Veterans Benefits and Services (10% plus-up) Veterans & Military Families Wounded Warriors K-9 Corps Function 750: Administration of Justice (5% plus-up) State and Local Law Enforcement Juvenile Justice DOJ Administrative Review and Appeals

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