Posts by Nick Cassella

Daily Clips: August 5th, 2016

Daily Clips: August 5th, 2016

ALL MEN FOR TRUMP’S ECONOMIC TEAM:  The sexism is strong in this one. 255,000 JOBS ADDED IN JULY: 77 straight months of private sector job growth. And the unemployment rate is now down to 4.9%. According to the New York Times: The employment data painted an unusually strong tableau of growth, with nearly all of the indicators that form the basis of the Labor Department’s monthly jobs report pointing in the right direction. Hillary Clinton should be talking about this recent report non-stop. Here is her moment to talk about economic growth and why her vision will continue to grow the American economy.  HOURLY WAGES GROW AS WELL: Adding to the robust job creation, the average hourly wage increased by 0.3 percent in July, a bit faster than expected. Together with a slight extension of the average work week, this puts more money in the pockets of U.S. households. This bodes well for consumer spending, which still comprises the most important component of the economy, suggesting that the U.S. is in relatively good shape to resist the growth slowdown afflicting other countries. HRC LEADS TRUMP IN GEORGIA TWEET OF THE DAY: FACT: Wages are rising at the fastest pace in 7 years → https://t.co/C8P76lnNkb #JobsReport pic.twitter.com/erXP4sSOsd — The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 5, 2016

Daily Clips: August 4th, 2016

Daily Clips: August 4th, 2016

THOMAS FRIEDMAN COMPLAINS THAT HRC DOESN’T TALK ABOUT GROWTH: And he’s right. While Hillary often spends time talking about “good paying jobs”, she never fully completes the circle; that is, when American workers are paid more that helps stimulate our economy and grows the pie. US JOBLESS CLAIMS RISE MARGINALLY HILLARY CLINTON’S MILLENIAL CHANGE:   The core of Clinton’s problem: About one-fifth of Millennials surveyed said they would vote for Sanders against Trump, but not for her. Two-thirds of those Sanders hold-outs said they see “no real difference” between Clinton and Trump on the issues they care most about. Sanders “was trying to paint her as a tool of the oligarchs and neo-conservatives,” said Baumann. “And he had some success.” OBAMA’S APPROVAL RATING REACHES 54% ERIC GREITENS MANAGES TO SAY NOTHING SUBSTANTIVE AND SHOOT A GUN IN 30 SECONDS: TWEET OF THE DAY: Looks like Melania may have worked in the States on a tourist visa, making her an illegal immigrant. https://t.co/8Vk17ZqyFo — Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) August 4, 2016

Daily Clips: August 3th, 2016

Daily Clips: August 3th, 2016

PRAMILA JAYAPAL JUST SCORED A HUGE PROGRESSIVE VICTORY:  Congratulations, Pramila! She now will face either Brady Walkinshaw or Joe McDermott in the general election. TRUMP ASKS WHY US CAN’T USE NUKES:  Good god. No wonder Rudy Giuliani and Reince Priebus want to sit him down for an intervention . TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMICS MUST DIE:   WORKERS, BUSINESSES DOING WELL IN SEATTLE:   Opponents might try to characterize these [minimum wage] increases as marginal. But for workers and families living on the margins, these increases make a meaningful difference in their day-to-day lives. TWEET OF THE DAY: Right-wing ideology on the run: at least 11 legislators allied with Gov. #Brownback ousted in #Kansas GOP primary. https://t.co/22NuzX7GZG — EJ Dionne (@EJDionne) August 3, 2016

Daily Clips: August 2nd, 2016

Daily Clips: August 2nd, 2016

FIRST OFF: Turn in your ballot, Washingtonians. As a citizen, this is a basic responsibility. Don’t shirk it. If you don’t know about local races, don’t worry, some awesome local blogs have got you covered . TWEET OF THE DAY: A little kid is yelling "Take the bitch down!" when Trump mentions Hillary Clinton. A little kid. No more than 10, I would say. — Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) August 2, 2016 SUPPORTING TRUMP IS THE GOP’S EQUIVALENT OF THE IRAQ WAR VOTE: I think [Trump’s big name supporters] are making a mistake not just from some lofty historical perspective but in how they will look in the relatively near future. IS HILLARY CLINTON REALLY THE MOST QUALIFIED CANDIDATE EVER? This article makes a very compelling case that Hillary Clinton is, in fact, not the most qualified candidate in our nation’s history. Check out James Monroe’s resume: Secretary of war, secretary of state, governor of Virginia, ambassador to both the UK and France, and a senator. That’s a delicious set of qualifications, James. VANCOUVER SLAPS 15% TAX ON FOREIGN HOME BUYERS: Nice touch.

Daily Clips: August 1st, 2016

Daily Clips: August 1st, 2016

HOW THE ‘STUPID PARTY’ CREATED DONALD TRUMP:  The Republicans have not “run away from the anti-intellectual label” in my lifetime, in fact, they’ve “embraced it for their own political purposes.” Sure, some of this anti-intellectualism was aimed at highlighting how Republicans weren’t a party of elites (even though they were – see George W. Bush). The trend, this article concludes, “has now culminated in the nomination of Donald J. Trump.” They nominated an ignoramus to become POTUS and this debacle should force the party to “rethink its growing anti-intellectual bias and its reflexive aversion to elites.” DONALD TRUMP GAVE REPUBLICANS THE CHOICE OF RACISM OR DEFEAT:  Annnnnnnd they chose racism. SHOULD EVERYONE GO TO COLLEGE?  Great blog post on the necessity of universal postsecondary education. TWEET OF THE DAY: For those new to this: all Ryan budgets are huge tax cuts for rich, savage cuts for poor, and magic asterisks to pretend they reduce deficit — Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) August 1, 2016

Daily Clips: July 29th, 2016

Daily Clips: July 29th, 2016

CONGRATULATIONS HILLARY CLINTON! HOW PROGRESSIVE WAS HILLARY CLINTON’S ACCEPTANCE SPEECH?  I was impressed with Hillary’s speech last night. Sure, there was some empty rhetoric, but for the most part I thought it was a very inspiring speech that was littered with progressive policy choices. Perhaps one of Clinton’s most powerful lines used themes Nick Hanauer has outlined in his “ parasite economy ” argument: “It’s wrong to take tax breaks with one hand and give out pink slips with the other.” HILLARY CLINTON WILL DOMINATE THE FEMALE VOTE:     EXPECT MORE WAR:  Sigh. Perhaps the least emphasized fact of this presidential election is that whoever wins, American foreign policy is going to get more belligerent, more inclined to the use of military force to solve problems, less accepting of the limits of American power to resolve conflicts. BEST SPEECH OF THE NIGHT: TWEET OF THE DAY: Stunning photo by @benlowy . #DemsInPhilly pic.twitter.com/sIi2S7MmjH — Dan Zak (@MrDanZak) July 29, 2016

Daily Clips: July 28th, 2016

Daily Clips: July 28th, 2016

THE FUTURE OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY:  Imagine how different last night would’ve been if Clinton had got the nomination instead of Obama. It’s quite a thought experiment. The Democratic Party would be far different, in my opinion and Dylan Matthew’s. Here’s the latter’s take: The sequence was supposed to go in reverse. Clinton would get the nomination after Obama put up a respectable showing. She might pick him as a running mate, or pick a fairly boring, well-qualified white dude like Biden or Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland or Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh or former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack , who would then run against a more seasoned Obama in the 2016 primary. That would have resulted in a very different Democratic Party in 2016. It would be a party inextricably, personally linked to the Clinton family, whose only qualified public servants and potential Cabinet appointees are people personally loyal to the Clintons. It would be a considerably more militarily hawkish party. BARACK OBAMA’S SPEECH: You must watch this seminal piece of public speaking. THE DIVERSE LEFT AND WHITE WORKING-CLASS RIGHT: Those voters haven’t been the party’s center for years: except for Bill Clinton in 1996, no Democrat has won more than 40 percent of white voters without a college education since 1980, according to media exit polls. On a national basis, Democrats have largely replaced them with increased support from Millennials, minorities, and college-educated whites—while running just enough above their national numbers among working-class whites in the key Midwestern battlegrounds to retain the advantage in those pivotal states. TWEET OF THE DAY: Tim Kaine represents the middle class. Trump doesn't know what it is. pic.twitter.com/innwNURL3c — Chuck (@JoltedToad) July 28, 2016

Daily Clips: July 27th, 2016

Daily Clips: July 27th, 2016

HILLARY CLINTON BECOMES THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR POTUS : An incredible moment in American history took place yesterday afternoon. Although our country is often embarrassing, we should be proud of this achievement. TRUMP HAS NO IDEA WHAT HE THINKS ABOUT THE MINIMUM WAGE TRUMP ASKS PUTIN TO HELP HIM WIN ELECTION: The Don is clearly trying to grab the media’s attention during the DNC. And it’s working, as per usual. BILL O’REILLY VOUCHES FOR SLAVES’ LIVING CONDITIONS:  Horrific, but unsurprising. BILL CLINTON BECOMES FIRST MAN TO GIVE FIRST LADY SPEECH: It’s ironic that, in politics and other male-dominated public spheres, one of the roadblocks for women is objectification and sexualization, but when it comes to Hillary Clinton, whose ambition and brains have long rendered her bloodless in the American imagination, hearing her described as an object of desire could feel corrective and bizarrely just.

Daily Clips: July 26th, 2016

Daily Clips: July 26th, 2016

WHY THE NEWS SEEMS SO DIRE:  There is a difference between feeling safe and being safe, and the media understands this all too well. They manipulate our primal minds to make us feel like the world is spinning out of control, because that’s best for their ratings. As the futurist Ray Kurzweil put it , it’s not that violence is getting so much more common in the U.S., but rather that the information about it is more accurate. DAVID BROOKS CANNOT SELF-REFLECT: With no irony at all, David Brooks lectures Clinton on her candidacy, telling her: “You’re going to have to show you understand the way members of your class have slighted people who are less educated and less cosmopolitan.” This coming from a New York elite who didn’t see Trump coming and couldn’t understand why people were so angry at the state of politics…less than six months ago. And he has the self-righteousness to lecture Clinton. Good grief. MICHELLE OBAMA’S DNC SPEECH TRANSCRIPT:  Truly beautiful piece of work. She delivered it with excellent pacing and emotion, as well. TWEET OF THE DAY: Robby Mook said that Clinton is gonna turn heavily to economic message post convention https://t.co/p5v66u8gri — Sam Stein (@samsteinhp) July 26, 2016  

Daily Clips: July 25th, 2016

Daily Clips: July 25th, 2016

TWEET OF THE DAY: So, all HRC wants to do is to put the word “email” on the back burner. So, much for that… — amy walter (@amyewalter) July 25, 2016 FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON’T FREAK OUT OVER NATIONAL POLLS: In fact, polling during the conventions is even less likely to be predictive of the final outcome of the election than polling at both earlier and later times of the year, says Princeton election guru Sam Wang. DAY 1 OF DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION: Bernie Sanders will take the stage tonight and “get one last chance to push his agenda in front of an audience of millions.” And oh yeah, he’ll also endorse Hillary Clinton. HOW ROUSSEAU PREDICTED TRUMP:  The political philosopher, Rousseau, was an anti-elitist and many of his warnings about concentration of power are coming true today. His take on human nature is…honest and runs against liberalism’s reliance on the individual: Rousseau refused to believe that the interplay of individual interests, meant to advance the new civilization, could produce any natural harmony. The obstacle, as he defined it, existed in the souls of sociable men or wannabe bourgeois: it was the insatiable craving to secure recognition for one’s person from others, which leads ‘each individual to make more of himself than of any other.’