De Blasio’s National “Contract With America” Strategy Leaks

[RiverLover]

De Blasio’s National “Contract With America” Strategy Leaks
5/8/15


Everyone from Susan Sarandon to Van Jones is helping draft and push de Blasio’s new “Contract with America,” which will push for paid sick leave and free, universal pre-K.

....During the 2013 mayoral campaign, de Blasio used his support of paid sick leave to pummel the Democratic front-runner, Council Speaker Christine Quinn, sparking his come-from-behind victory. De Blasio then signed an expansive law on the topic soon after becoming mayor. Universal pre-K became de Blasio’s signature accomplishment of his first year in office, even if his mechanism to pay for it—a tax on the city’s upper-income earners—was rejected by Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo.

The contract will also put de Blasio in the center of some of the debates currently roiling Washington. According to a draft of the document circulated this week, de Blasio will call for the passage of comprehensive immigration and for Democrats to “oppose trade deals that hand more power to corporations at the expense of American jobs, workers’ rights, and the environment.”...

...De Blasio is expected to be joined in Washington by a more than 60 members of Congress, progressive activists, and labor leaders, among them Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, Congressmen Keith Ellison and Raul Grijalva, and the actor Susan Sarandon. Last month de Blasio convened a number of progressive thinkers at Gracie Mansion, including Nation editor Katrina Vanden Heuvel and civil rights activist Van Jones to hash out ideas about how to build a progressive agenda in 2016. De Blasio has pointedly declined to endorse Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid, even though he was the campaign manager of her 2000 Senate run in New York and even though both Bill and Hillary Clinton were on stage with de Blasio at his inauguration....

...Among some of the other items expected to be on de Blasio’s agenda are a reform of the National Labor Relations Act “to enhance workers’ rights to organize and rebuild the middle class,” the expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, allowing students to refinance student loan debt, closing the carried interest loop, ending tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas, and the closing of a “CEO tax loophole that allows corporations to take advantage of ‘performance pay’ write-offs.”...

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/08/de-blasio-s-national-contract-with-america-strategy-leaks.html

Couple of things I want to add, that last bit - "closing of a “CEO tax loophole that allows corporations to take advantage of ‘performance pay’ write-offs" is just one more gift left to us by Bill Clinton. That is a law he signed. So we can add that to the repeal of Glass-Steagall contributing to 2008, the gutting of welfare, the telecommunications act allowing monopolies like Comcast & Verizon, and of course, NAFTA. And now we have Clinton Act II headed our way & it sure doesn't look good for US.

Also, of note, the 2 major Ohio Dems, Sherrod Brown & Ted Stickland, are refusing to sign de Blasio's contract. Its on the principle of not wanting to sign a pledge, any pledge.~
Bill de Blasio’s Ohio Allies Refuse to Sign Plan to End Inequality
http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-07/de-blasio-s-ohio-allies-refuse-to-sign-plan-to-end-inequality

Thank you Mr de Blasio! People b*tch & complain, but you are actually out there doing something! Big thanks!!!!

[yeoman6987]

1. I actually don't blame them for not signing

It seems to Republican to me. They make them sign stuff all the time. Just release the info and let it be discussed and action taken.

[RiverLover]

3. I agree, its very Newt Gringrichy. But I'm so glad this will get national attention.

And hopefully, a groundswell of support. As we saw from fighting for Net Neutrality & against Keystone, in large enough numbers, we CAN make a difference.

We can be the change we want to see (right, Mr President?).

[sabrina 1]

5. He probably should just have asked for support. He has some great ideas

so he doesn't need to get people to sign on the dotted line.

Otherwise I too am glad he's doing this kind of thing. Raising these issues on a National Scale.

I think he may have ambitions for higher office. And I hope he does. Because he is working on raising his profile on a national level.

We need more people like him in the party.

[leftofcool]

2. Signing pledges is a bit GOPish.

[silverweb]

4. I won't sign pledges, either.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]There has been maybe one exception.

While I'll indicate my strong support of a proposal, policy, or whatever in other ways, it's the reTHUGs who require "pledges" and then use them as political weapons.

Rescind the "pledge" aspect of the plan, Mayor, and you'll have a lot more open support for your terrific plan!

[Cheese Sandwich]

6. I'm open to the idea of getting politicians to sign progressive policy pledges.

I don't know the details of this though but it seems decent based on who signed it.