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The simple truth is the economy isn't working the way it should; incomes and wages are not keeping up with the cost of living. Wage stagnation, underemployment, the exploding cost of a college education and the erosion of pensions are leaving many without hope. From rural towns to inner cities, millions can no longer achieve the American dream. Meanwhile, Washington special interests and powerful corporations have acquired more and more wealth.

The three of us represent very different districts in Rhode Island, New York and Illinois. Despite the clear regional differences, what we hear from our constituents is the same: They are tired of this rigged system. What they want most is a fighting chance at building a brighter future for themselves and their families. And what they need is a better deal.

Democrats will deliver real solutions, lasting economic growth and take significant action to improve the lives of the American people.

This agenda was created from the ground up across both the House and the Senate, and includes input from across the entire ideological spectrum. By listening to all voices, the agenda reflects the beautiful mosaic and diversity of our country -- as well as the hopes, dreams and aspirations of its people.

Through A Better Deal, we will create opportunities for those who need them most, not just those at the very top. We'll make government responsive to all hardworking Americans, not just a select few. And we'll make certain that if you work hard that you can support your family, that you can retire with the security and dignity that you've earned, and that your children can get the skills and knowledge they need to secure good-paying jobs in their hometowns.

For Democrats, this is our collective vision. This is not a slogan. It's who we are and what we intend to accomplish for the American people.

First, our plan starts by creating millions of good-paying, full-time jobs by directly investing in our crumbling infrastructure -- and putting people back to work building our roads and bridges. To help our small businesses thrive, we will prioritize entrepreneurs over giving tax breaks to special interests. We will fight for a living wage -- so parents don't have to work three or four jobs just to pay rent. And we will keep our promise to millions of workers who earned a pension, Social Security and Medicare so they can retire with dignity.

Second, we will lower the crippling cost of prescription drugs and the cost of an education that leads to a good job with a college degree or a technical skill. And we will crack down on monopolies and the concentration of economic power that has led to higher prices for consumers, workers and small businesses -- and make sure Wall Street never endangers Main Street again.

Third, we will offer new tax incentives to employers to invest in their workforce through training and education. To make sure our country stays on the cutting edge, we will bring high-speed Internet to every community in America and offer an apprenticeship to millions of new workers. We will encourage innovation, invest in advanced research and ensure start-ups and small businesses can compete and prosper. By making it possible for every American to get the skills, tools and knowledge to find a job or to move up in their career, we'll not only improve individual lives, we'll also stay competitive in the global economy.

The choice we face is simple. We can continue down this path of a rigged system and allow Washington to turn a blind eye to painful economic realities that so many Americans are facing. Or we can stand on the side of the American people. We can invest in hardworking families and build an economy that puts Americans first -- defined by better jobs, better wages and a better future.

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Democrats: Our plan for a better deal (opinion) - CNN.com

President Harry Truman, who tried to enact a national health care system, gives his 1949 inaugural address. Corbis via Getty Images

For years afterwards, the Democratic partys platform called for a "federally-financed and federally-administered...system of universal National Health Insurance," as the

But Democrats were thwarted by the large price tags, the policy complications, and the pernicious association with socialism, leading them to eventually conclude that only more modest reforms like Obamacare were possible. And support for the approach in the Senate among Democrats lags behind the House.

"There's a bit of a false dawn with single-payer that this is going to be popular even once details are known," said Jim Kessler, the senior vice president for policy at the centrist Democratic think tank Third Way.

"There's going to be tons of disruption," Kessler continued. "Maybe it's worth it, maybe it isn't. But before people sign on in a rush to it, we have to have a serious analysis of what it's going to mean for people and all the institutions involved."

"The ACAs changes to the health insurance system and the number of people affected by those changes has been small compared to the upheaval that would be brought about by the movement to a single-payer system," the Urban Institute noted in its

Indeed, the same polls that supporters cite to demonstrate the appeal of single payer also show that voters are responsive to negative arguments about costs and government control.

"While a slim majority favors the idea of a national health plan at the outset," wrote Liz Hamel and her colleagues at the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation of their

Many Democrats worry their party is hurtling toward a policy commitment they dont fully understand when they should be focused on defending existing gains.

"We're one bad election away from the Affordable Care Act being repealed," said Kessler, referring to possible GOP gains in next year's midterm elections.

Its possible single-payer could give way to less sweeping changes if Democrats retake power.

Democrats have revived their push to create a public option a government-run alternative that would be sold alongside private insurance on the ACA exchanges. The idea, which liberals unsuccessfully fought to include in the ACA, would be far less expensive than full single-payer since most Americans would still get coverage from traditional insurance. Another proposal is to allow older people to voluntarily buy into Medicare.

"Every major breakthrough from Civil Rights to Social Security to what happened on the right under Ronald Reagan were driven by significant mobilization behind an idea that was much more extreme than what actually happened," Yale political scientist Jacob Hacker, who popularized the public option, told NBC News.

A few short years ago, Hacker's idea for a public option was killed by conservative Democrats involved in crafting Obamacare who saw it as too radical. Now, Hacker gets attacked by single-payer activists as a sellout for still favoring the idea.

Some politicians are trying to temper expectations. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., championed the Obamacare provision that allows states to enact their own single-payer plans, but noted that places like California and Vermont have had trouble finding a way to "get from here to there."

Instead, he hinted at a more gradual path to single-payer by passing legislation that would encourage more workers to buy insurance on an individual basis rather than through their employer. If you gave them access to a public option, he argues, it could grow to eventually become the dominant plan.

"You really strengthen the exchanges and probably provide another path for people actually advocating single-payer...to make the transition work," he said.

As for Conyers, who turned 88 a few months ago, hes willing to wait.

"I've said before, this is a civil rights issue and it'll take a movement on the scale of the one Dr. King led," he said. I'm glad we're here it shows we're making progress but my goal isn't a certain number of co-sponsors, it's passing a bill that makes every American Medicare-eligible."

See the article here:
Government-Run Health Care: Democrats' New Litmus Test - NBCNews.com

Now that Democrats have defeated a major plank of the Republican agenda, the question is whether that success will drive President Trump and the Republican leadership to the negotiating table and whether Mr. Schumer can keep Democrats who are up for election in red states in line and safe from defeat next year.

While Republicans have spent the last six months enmeshed in internal squabbling, Mr. Schumer has largely made sure Democrats stood on the sidelines. Mr. McConnell cut out Democrats on Day 1 of this Congress, using every method to bypass them on deregulation votes, cabinet confirmations, a tax overhaul and health care policy.

That has had a big impact, said Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California. If you leave out a whole political party, she said, and then you chasten them for not helping, well, that unites that party.

Yet Democrats give Mr. Schumer song-belting, frequently badgering, endlessly frenzied credit for his tireless attention to senators from every faction, and for quiet outreach to Republicans who he thinks could be partners down the line.

He has worked carefully far more than Mr. Reid, many Democrats agreed to be almost relentlessly inclusive, talking with them at all hours of the day, over every manner of Chinese noodle, on even tiny subjects, to make them feel included in strategy. Recently, as he sat in a dentists chair waiting for a root canal, he dialed up Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut to talk about a coming judiciary hearing concerning Donald Trump Jr.

I think he makes it look easier than it is, Mr. Blumenthal said about Mr. Schumer.

Mr. Trumps election stunned him.

Mr. Schumers original plan after the election was to find a way to work with his fellow New Yorker on issues where he thought they might align, such as an infrastructure bill.

I take whats given me, Mr. Schumer, 66, said in a (shoeless) interview in his Capitol Hill office right off the Senate floor, one festooned with portraits of his idols (Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson), maps of New York and mildly goofy photos with other Democrats.

Fleeting dreams of using Mr. Trumps populism to triangulate against a Republican-controlled Congress dissolved, he said, when Mr. Trump instead decided to move right away to repealing the Affordable Care Act. So Mr. Schumer turned to an opposition agenda, doing everything within his limited powers to slow, block or obviate Mr. Trumps agenda.

Were in the minority, so were not making policy, Mr. Schumer said. We have to know when to dance and when to fight. The Trump administration has made it harder to dance.

For the fight, Mr. Schumer held together his disparate group of red state moderates, left-wing resistance fighters, hard-core policy wonks and everything in between, forming a partisan blast wall against Republican efforts to repeal the health care law, in part via maddening delays of basic Senate business.

Mr. Schumers schmoozing abilities have been important. He knows who I am, said Senator Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia, who is among the partys moderates in a state Mr. Trump won handily and who has largely opposed Mr. Trumps agenda.

I tell him when I think he is moving too far to the left, Mr. Manchin said, as when Mr. Schumer pushed to filibuster to block Mr. Trumps nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. There were no conversations with Harry.

It was not an article of faith that Mr. Schumer could do what he has done. With several Democrats up for re-election next year in states Mr. Trump won, both Republicans and Democrats assumed that those vulnerable lawmakers would be tempted to try to help unravel the health care law, vote for large tax cuts and the like.

He makes it clear to people that the opposition is about Medicaid cuts for the middle class and working class, not just the poor, Mr. Blumenthal said, explaining the rationale for fighting the health care law repeal. Its about opioid treatments, not just reproductive rights.

Mr. Schumers central weapon is procedural tricks to slow Mr. Trumps nominees, something that infuriates Mr. McConnell. I dont like it, and we are not going to do it as a practice, Mr. Schumer said, but when youre choosing a cabinet nominee, especially a controversial one, it makes sense.

All told, he said, his relationship with Mr. McConnell is an improvement over Mr. McConnells with Mr. Reid. Mr. Schumer has repeatedly told Mr. McConnell that Democrats would ease up on their obstruction once health care was behind them.

Ive known Chuck a long time, and he represents his state and his caucus well, Mr. McConnell said in an email before the health care vote. And while New York and Kentucky are very different places, we respect and work well with each other even if we are trying to achieve very different goals. The Senate as an institution functions through cooperation and constant conversations with the other side of the aisle.

Mr. Schumer committed one slight toward Mr. McConnell that baffled even his closest allies, voting against letting Mr. McConnells wife, Elaine Chao, become secretary of transportation.

She would not commit to spending money on transportation, Mr. Schumer said, even though most other Democrats gave her the nod. The move frosted Mr. McConnell, several Republicans said.

Mr. Schumer has watched Republicans struggle with moving from, in Speaker Paul Ryans words, an opposition party to a proposition party a major reason that Mr. Schumer and other Democrats recently rolled out a new economic message and policy platform for Senate and House Democrats.

He has recognized Democrats need a positive agenda, said Jim Manley, a former aide to Mr. Reid. And has begun putting that face before his caucus and the public.

Mr. Schumer seems to approach this with his usual blithesome manner, singing show tunes and the Shirelles as he races from phone call to meeting, sliding away from potential pests, a cellphone pressed to his face.

I love every single member of my caucus, he said. Oddly, this is likely true.

Get politics and Washington news updates via Facebook, Twitter and in the Morning Briefing newsletter.

A version of this article appears in print on July 30, 2017, on Page A15 of the New York edition with the headline: Schumer, With Songs And Persistence, Keeps The Democrats Together.

Read the original:
How Schumer Held Democrats Together Through a Health Care Maelstrom - New York Times

Rep. Kurt Schrader says hes a member of an endangered species the Blue Dogs.

Founded in 1995, the Blue Dogs are a conservative coalition of New Deal Democrats who prize fiscal responsibility and national security as their core mission, while often leaning pro-life and pro-gun. In the past, the group aligned nicely with voters in swing districts in the industrial Rust Belt states across the Midwest and in the South and even resonated with people in places like Schraders home state of Oregon.

Or they did until Barack Obama got elected in 2008. As the Democrats took a sharp turn left, voters punished Blue Dog members for their partys progressive bent, even though they didnt represent it.

By 2016, Republican Donald Trump had stolen the Blue Dogs pragmatic economic message and their thunder. Voters in Pennsylvania and Ohio, who had once been represented by Blue Dog members of Congress and supported Democratic candidates for president, flipped for the outsider candidate.

Trump nearly won my Oregon district, said Schrader. I frankly blame a lot of Trumps success ... on Democrats. All this deep soul searching, whats the right message and what did we do wrong? Pretty easy. We didnt talk to average Americans.

In 2008, when Schrader was first voted into office, the House of Representatives had 54 Blue Dogs and a Democrat majority of 263 seats compared with 178 Republican. Today there are just 18 Blue Dogs in the House, and Democrats have 194 seats compared to 240 Republican.

We talked to an elite group of folks who had personal identity issues or cultural issues, and all those are important, but youve got to reach out to people and talk about their pocketbook issues, their education issues, Schrader said.

And yet, the Blue Dogs may be experiencing a bit of a resurgence. Despite Trumps success, the coalition actually won six seats in 2016, and Schrader is now making it his mission to restore the caucus to prominence in 2018.

We punched way above our weight this last election cycle in the Democratic Party, and were going to be doing so again, he said.

The Democrats are desperate for a new approach after Hillary Clinton lost the presidency. Last week, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer declared that his party would fight for a better deal for American workers: creating jobs with an infrastructure plan, boosting the minimum wage to $15 and providing paid family and sick leave. With an entirely economic focus (and no mention of progressive identity politics), Schumer seemed to echo Trump and hit upon the Blue Dogs core message of jobs and wages, albeit with different solutions.

Although Schrader did not speak to Schumers comments, he said he was buoyed by Minority House Leader Nancy Pelosis recent statement that she accepts Democrats who are pro-life. Its a start at getting back to a message that is inclusive, that is attractive to voters who were drawn to Trumps message that says we hear you, he said.

Although it seems obvious that Democrats should move to the middle to win back Trump voters, Schrader knows he has his work cut out for him, beginning with his own party. Unsurprisingly, progressive activists the loudest, most energized members of the Democrat party dont like the Blue Dogs.

Elections are most dominated by the most extreme elements of the parties, said Jason Altmire, a former Blue Dog representative who held his seat in Western Pennsylvania for six years until 2012. Centrists are largely unrepresented in Congress.

In future elections, Schrader hopes voters will start picking representatives based on individual policies instead of their partys platform. I think whatll happen is that voters, for the first time ... are going to look at the people who are running for their particular seat and ask, What is this person going to do for me? Is that person representative of my values? Schrader said.

Blue Dog Democrat Patrick Murphy, who represented Bucks County, Pennsylvania, for four years before losing his seat in 2011, is the kind of politician who should do well in Trumps America.

The son of a beat cop, Murphy was the first Iraq War veteran to run for Congress. He campaigned for a government that lives within its means, ethics reform and a GI Bill of Rights, and he spoke eloquently on his frustration over the handling of the war. His views fit the blue-collar sensibilities of his district like a glove.

But after Obama was elected, Murphy took hard votes on TARP, bailouts, the stimulus bill and ObamaCare while favoring climate legislation decisions that didnt always gel with his centrist district.

The Republicans grabbed his seat and have held it for the last six years.

Now Schrader once again has his eye on Murphys congressional seat. Bucks County is the perfect place for a Blue Dog to run in 2018. It has a generous mix of voters who are working and middle class, suburban and rural, moderate and staunchly independent.

If Democrats take back the House next year, it will likely be because of a Blue Dog comeback, but only if the progressive arm of the party gives them a shot in the primaries.

This is on Democrats, said Schrader. Its not so much that people made the wrong choice in Trump, but that we didnt give them any other choice.

View original post here:
Democrats need these conservatives to win in 2018 - New York Post

Re: What does the Democratic Party stand for? [Opinion, July 25]: Thats way too simple to answer. Democrats stand for nothing.

A country song once said, Youve got stand for something or youll fall for anything. But in fairness, they are very proficient in obstructing and chaos.

Mike Chamberlin, San Clemente

Growing up, my parents were Republican, so in my early adult years I called myself a Republican, mainly because of my parents influence. As I got older and started paying attention to policies and practices of both parties, I switched to voting for Democrats but call myself independent.

I think the Democratic Party stands for the working people and families helping with fair wages and benefits we all need. They also protect our environment by not letting big companies pollute without regulation.

All I see from the Republican Party is tax breaks for the rich (that dont need it) including big companies. They represent big banks, taking donations from big oil people like the Koch brothers then voting in a man with no government experience but a catchy slogan (Make America Great Again) mired in unethical scandals and firing anyone who stands up to him or disagrees with him. It makes no sense to me.

The Democrats have to show the people that they stand for working families and the little guy not big business and special interests that pollute our air, water and soil. The choice is clear to me but not everyone looks through the same pair of glasses.

D.L. Marshall, Orange

Todays Democrats stand for socialism, deception, corruption, fake news, open borders, lawlessness, government rights over individual rights, individual non-responsibility, the political class, garnering votes by any means, abortions, the breakdown of the family unit, rewriting American history, the indoctrination of our youth, anything anti-white, anti-religious, anti-First and Second Amendment; and of course anti-Trump!

Jim Porterfield, Brea

It is hard to say what the Democrats stand for. It is much easier to say what they stand against, which is President Donald Trump, his family and anyone who ever has supported his election and policies. Their negative and seditious attacks through character assassination and slander have created an atmosphere of hatred toward the elected president.

Despicable hate speech, threats and the depiction of the severed bloody head of Trump in the style of terrorist. There was even a public play in Central Park where the actor dressed to look like the president was assassinated by knife. The list of the Lefts hate speech, which in other circumstances they would call a crime, continues.

This has gone way over the line of debate in a democracy and turned into violence as was witnessed recently when Republicans were targeted on a baseball field by a supporter of Bernie Sanders. As President Obama reminded us when he was in office and controlled the House and the Senate, the election gave him the power.

The Democrats have refused to accept the election and there has never been such drama and hate.

Frank Householder, Huntington Beach

The Democratic Party stands for doing everything possible to obstruct the Trump presidency while showing no concern for the welfare of the American people in the process. Talk about sore losers, the Democrats had one of the worst candidates for the presidency this country has seen in 200 years.

Now its time to put that behind them, act like adults and find a way to work with the Republicans.

Rodger Clarke, Santa Ana

A Better Deal: Better Jobs, Better Wages. That message seems very much like a component of the Republican agenda, but restricting it to jobs. We also know that goal is not attainable at any level that would impact society.

They need to message: Safety for our citizens. Reducing the size of the federal government. Working in alignment with the Constitution and retracting from those areas of government where the expansion is not authorized by the Constitution.

The Democratic Party brings no value to the table at this time because messaging is all about dumping Trump and it is a negative. In my opinion, they need to stop the Trump bashing and begin working with the rest of Congress to get things through and they need to show where they are cooperating.

Sharon D. Brimer, Lake Forest

As a life-long Democrat, I have found myself unable to vote for any candidate the Democrats have put up for election in many years. I see their agenda is to promote big government, taking freedoms away from the public, and increasing taxes to an unbearable level.

Their single-payer health plan scares the heck out of me. It would be nothing more than an uncompetitive HMO run by untrustworthy politicians.

Larry Bremer, Laguna Hills

I can tell you what Democrats used to stand for: The working guy, the middle class, entrepreneurs, civil rights, womens rights, voting rights, unions, ending poverty, providing a safety net for those who didnt have one.

Today they stand for Were not Trump. Just as the Republican Party continues as Were not Obama.

Regarding California, Democrats represent an oligarchy whose mission is to spend, tax, regulate and make it impossible for anybody whos not rich to live here.

Alan Graner, Anaheim

The Democrats I know stand for a world where we are all treated equal regardless of our gender, sexual orientation, age and the color of our skin. Equal pay for woman.

We believe in providing opportunities to those who have fewer resources and need the help through funding for early childhood education and ample funding overall for the public school systems. Assistance for childcare for those parents who want to work, single mothers, housing for the homeless.

I support Obamacare! I believe improvements can be made to the system. Dont throw it away improve it. I work full-time and my husband does as well and we have insurance but not everyone is so lucky. Our daughter who is a graduate student just lost her insurance when she turned 26 and now is covered under Medi-Cal. We are thankful for that.

I and many of our Democrat friends believe that universal health care is a right for all regardless of ability to pay. The corporations that rarely pay their fair share of taxes can pay more to support universal health care.

Linda Scotton, Huntington Beach

Politicians from both sides of the aisle are all promises and no action. Now the Democrats want us to believe they have a new agenda. Is it a coincidence that it sounds a lot like President Trumps agenda? The only difference is that he is living up to his slogan even as the obstructionist, resist movement continues.

The Democrats need to start relating to all of their constituents. The politicians still havent figured out why President Trump won. Its because he listens to the people and acts like a real person. He speaks to all the American people not just Republicans.

In 1988, Oprah Winfrey asked Trump if he would ever run for president. He said he would only consider it if he really thought the country was in trouble. Well, we were in trouble. Partly because politicians dont care what the people think anymore. They believe they know better than us.

President Trump is listening to us and responding to our wishes. The swamp has lost sight of what their function is. They are so afraid that President Trump is going to reveal their greed and take away the power they have enjoyed for so long, so they resist.

This is a new American revolution and the Trump administration is fighting it for us. I dont need to yell at the television anymore during the evening news because President Trump is there speaking for me finally someone is there. God Bless our president.

Ronald A Fante, Seal Beach

The rest is here:
Letters: Democrats are the party of nothing Orange County Register - OCRegister