May 17, 2012
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Corporate influence, Regulation
Proposed ethics rules from the Obama Administration would limit the ability of federal employees to accept gifts from lobbyists, including gifts of free attendance at trade association events. A recent article in The New York Times about these proposals gave opponents of the rule the run of the article, without ever probing their claims. In this Story Repair, the voices of opponents of the regulation continue to be heard, but they are situated in a firmer and broader news context.More
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Labor, Regulation
Department of Labor rules promote higher standard of living for workers, hold employers to promises of full-time work. DOL, worker advocates say rules will create incentive for Americans to take jobs, but employers say that the changes will be "catastrophic," insist they need low-wage, flexible-hour environment.More
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Legislation
In several high-profile and contentious votes this year, lawmakers have been continuously pressured by party leaders, the Obama Administration, and the press to fall in line behind "reasonable" compromises, something many say is necessary in a time of divided government. But some legislators in the House of Representatives, by voting against most or all of those bills, have indicated that they do not believe that compromise is valuable in and of itself, but only when the result reflects their vision of the country's future. Indeed, historians point out that the history of compromise in the United States has been decidedly mixed, leading these scholars to wonder why compromise is currently so highly and uncritically valued. "There are examples of compromise that we look back on now and say, 'It's a good thing that happened,'" said Ross Baker, a congressional historian at Rutgers University. "But history is replete with examples of compromises that basically betrayed fundamental principles."More
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Environment
Votes in both houses of Congress last week demonstrate strong support for the denial of climate science, despite the sweeping scientific consensus that supports it. While some Republicans have been frank about denying the science, many other Republicans (and some Democrats) attempted to frame the votes to amend the Clean Air Act and strip the Environmental Protection Agency of its authority to regulate greenhouse gases as responses to EPA “overreaching.” In fact, the charge of overreaching appears to be largely an attempt to obscure the fact that some members of Congress are unhappy that EPA went ahead and used the authority the Supreme Court has confirmed that the Agency possesses. The charge also diverts attention from the decision made by some members of Congress that action on climate change is less important than protecting the short-term interests of local industries.More
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Economy
A new Chamber of Commerce report gives states good grades for not having employment regulations that go beyond minimum federal standards. It turns out that the Chamber's “good” for business ratings routinely went to states that fared poorly on measures of social well-being, and that its “poor” for business ratings routinely went to states that fared well on measures of social well-being.More
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Gender equity, Reproductive health services
Significantly more women are turning to medications instead of surgery for abortions, ending unwanted pregnancies earlier and with less risk of complications to the woman, according to a new study by the Alan Guttmacher Institute. Harassment and intimidation of abortion clinic employees and patients were rampant, particularly at these busiest clinics, the study found. According to the organization, the ratio of pregnancies ending in abortions was unchanged.More
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Deregulation, Economy, NYC, Taxes
Based on a close examination of the Mayor’s Dec. 8 speech, Dec. 12 appearance on NBC's Meet the Press, his past record, and feedback from across the ideological spectrum, it is clear that his self-described “common sense proposals” on economic policy largely reflect a traditional Republican stance in the echoing of a pro-corporate agenda.More
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Discrimination, Gender equity, Legislation
When members of Congress returned recently for the lame-duck session, the Senate finally took up a piece of anti-discrimination legislation that cleared the House of Representatives nearly two years ago. The Paycheck Fairness Act would have narrowed the defenses employers can use to justify paying men more than women, imposed greater penalties, and protected employers who share or ask about salary information; advocates said it could have helped close the wage gap between men and women. But opponents argued the law would have led to frivolous litigation and represented overreach by the government. In the end, 58 senators supported the law, but it was defeated by the GOP's refusal to permit a final vote on the merits.More