Andrew Yang is running for president. He's a Democrat.

[brush]

I heard pf his campaign today on progressive radio. One of his proposals is a guaranteed income for everyone.

His campaign proposes a $1,000/month "Freedom Dividend" to all US citizens between the ages of 18 to 64, which is a form of Universal Basic Income, and other responses to predictions of mass unemployment from technological automation.[17][18] In a New York Times editorial featuring his 2020 Presidential campaign, he is noted as creating various new policies such as a department focused on regulating the addictive nature of media, a White House Psychologist, making tax day a National Holiday, and to stem corruption, increasing the salaries of federal regulators but limiting their private work after they leave public service.[19] He is running on the slogan "Humanity First."[20] Yang is the first American man of Asian ancestry Democrat to run for President.

[PoliticAverse]

1. DU discussion about him from earlier this year....

https://upload.democraticunderground.com/100210381299

[RDANGELO]

2. What is his current occupation?

[PoliticAverse]

3. See...

https://www.yang2020.com/meet-andrew/

’m not a career politician—I’m an entrepreneur who understands the economy.

[LiberalLovinLug]

4. The garanteed income idea is endorsed by both left and right adiministrations around the world

Because, it saves all kinds of money. You don't need welfare, or a government payment that is not above the minimum amount. It eliminates a lot of other departments etc.. There is less bureaucracy, and the great thing is the stigma of being on welfare is removed.

[rampartc]

8. i'm sure the states spend more on "means testing"

than they send out to means tested recipients.

the means test also prevents many people from leaving weldare ("i can't take a better job or my children will lose medicare.&quot

[PoliticAverse]

9. Until they have to decide how to pay for it - which is why it isn't happening in all those places...

that have "endorsed" it.

[Hortensis]

17. Hillary wanted to run on it but said she and her experts

"couldn't make the numbers work" in 2016. Lots of serious priorities piled up and needing to be dealt with at once, so she thought we'd win at least one chamber of congress, get society and the economy on healthier footings than the Republican congress allowed Obama to achieve, then move forward with a universal basic income. In hindsight, she wondered if she shouldn't have promised it for her first term, so it's clearly doable -- and necessary.

Btw, if this guy can do it in 2021 after the Republicans have spent 4 years deliberately running our nation very deep into debt -- to make sure it can't happen -- and transferring vast amounts of our national wealth to the very wealthy, I might just vote for him myself. Even counting the costs of not tackling more critical needs first. I don't believe he can for a moment, though. Business is extremely different from government. His hackneyed pretense (Repubilcans practically swear at its altar) that being a businessman qualifies him in itself shows he's blowing smoke.

[yuiyoshida]

5. Nice!

[TreasonousBastard]

6. All very interesting, but largely as the beginnings of discussions...

since no one knows what "the addictive nature of media" means. Or how it works with freedom of the press.

And while giving 12 grand a year to the poor might be a decent idea, why give it to the billionaire just to make everything look even? Besides, there is this concept of demand-pull inflation that could just cause a rise in prices, screwing the poor even more.

And so it goes in the marketplace of ideas...

[brooklynite]

10. In 2004, one of Howard Dean's messages was "Bill Gates deserves Govt funded health care"

The theory is that is everyone received the benefit, it can't be framed as "welfare for the poor"

[TreasonousBastard]

15. Maybe, but the money has to come from somewhere. If everyone receives, who gives?

[brooklynite]

16. Nothing in a basic income program assumes that tax collection has stopped.

[TreasonousBastard]

21. Ummm, with extreme deficits like we're running now, tax collection might as well stop...

And even if taxes are increased on some segments...

350,000,000 x $10,000 = $3.5 trillion

So, juggle the numbers to deal with present SS and other payments and taxes, eliminate minors, and other ways to reduce the total and you still have a lot of zeros.

And someone will remember that years ago Italy tried a jumpstarting scheme giving everyone an annual holiday "bonus", and all it did was send a lot of people on vacation and prices were hiked everywhere.

Anyway, "negative tax" schemes seem like a better way to go. Cheaper and more effective.

[Sherman A1]

7. I'm hoping that he progresses along in the process

Heard him speak on C-Span awhile ago and I was very impressed.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

11. Who? Nt

[brush]

12. Info is in the blurb and at the link. Feel free to read.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

13. Again, who? Nt

[brush]

14. Do you have a reading problem? Kinda disappointed in your snark...

about the first Asian American running for president.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

18. I'm sorry, but no name recognition and no record of elected or public service...

...he’s not going anywhere. Especially in today’s world where we need to counter a man in the White House who had no experience in government or public service before running for president.

I don’t mean it as a personal slam against Mr. Yang or that he doesn’t bring any interesting ideas to the table. But at this point he’d be better off running for something like a seat in Congress as opposed to immediately seeking the highest office in the land without any experience.

We need someone who has had experience in elected office, period.

[FSogol]

19. Agreed. n/t

[brush]

20. I get your arguments but come on, that kind of snark about a POC...

[Tommy_Carcetti]

24. My "snark" has nothing to do with him being a "POC"

My “snark” has everything to do with the fact that not only does he have no experience in either elected office or the public sector, but he has basically no name recognition whatsoever. I’d venture to say that over 99% of Americans have never heard of him in their lives or have even the slightest idea of what he does.

His candidacy is basically a nonstarter on those two facts alone. And being a private businessman is no way a qualification for being President in and of itself.

Trust me, if we were talking about, say, Tammy Duckworth or Mazie Hirono I wouldn’t be having this conversation.

[brush]

25. Perception, think perception.

[aikoaiko]

22. Some things sound good, some things weird

Universal income is good.
Dept on addictive nature of media is weird.
Tax Day holiday is weird.


I look forward to hearing more. He sounds like a smart guy but with little political experience.

[ck4829]

23. K&R. He sounds pretty interesting.

[jeffreyi]

26. He wrote a book.

I read it. Premise: jobs are vanishing because of automation. Food service industry, white collar, etc. Wait 'till the truck drivers get hosed. It is happening regardless of what we think or believe (climate change, anybody?). Retraining workers hasn't worked all that well. Universal basic income softens the impact of millions out of work.

I found it interesting.