My response to another article in In These Times suggesting Democratic super majorities are the way forward:
Link: http://inthesetimes.com/article/14715/taking_a_stand/
There is nothing "progressive" about this "Congressional Progressive Caucus"other than how the Democrat's head hack, George Lakoff, has used linguistics to pervert and bastardize the word "progressive" to mean creating "progressive sounding policy directives" framed in a way to make people think something "progressive" is going to be done when Lakoff explicitly warns Democrats not to bring forward specific progressive solutions to any problems. (Lakoff, "Don't think of an Elephant.")
In his follow-up book ("Blueprint"); Lakoff goes on to red-bait, in typical Hubert Humphrey (author of the Communist Control Act) fashion, real progressive solutions to the problems working people and the working class are experiencing.
When it comes to "jobs;" Keith Ellison, Raul Gijava, John Conyers and Bernie Sanders play this card to the hilt--- never missing an opportunity to talk about "jobs, jobs, jobs."
Along comes Conyers with something he calls a "full employment act" when this proposed legislation has nothing what-so-ever to do with full employment other than creating some jobs, in the larger scheme of things only a few jobs, when the unemployed working people of this Nation need over fifteen-million new jobs at real living wages to achieve real full employment.
(See my suggestions in the header of my blog for what it will take to get America to work.)
Why hasn't the "Congressional Progressive Caucus" brought forward a real "Full Employment Act" which would require and mandate the President and Congress to attain and maintain full employment along the lines of the Wright Patman proposed, labor pushed--- U.S. Senate passed--- and Wall Street opposed, House defeated, "Full Employment Act of 1945" when Wall Street drew the line-in-the-sand and said, "enough!" as massive repression was initiated against the labor movement under the guise of an anti-Communist driven which-hunt creating mass national hysteria followed up with Taft-Hartley and Hubert Humphrey's "Communist Control Act?"
None of the members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus have the moral and political courage of a Wright Patman, the populist liberal Democrat from Texas; nor do any of today's labor "leaders" have the class consciousness required to mobilize the working class for such a battle.
The only thing we get from the so-called "progressive" Democrats is talk, talk, talk instead of "jobs, jobs, jobs."
If just one job was created every-time one of these politicians uttered the words, "jobs, jobs, jobs" we wouldn't have any unemployed people in this country but the dirty imperialist wars--- as Mark Twain properly called them--- which these members of the "Congressional Progressive Caucus" haven't mustered the courage nor attempted to fully mobilize the American people in opposition to, are killing jobs the same way these barbaric wars are killing people... not to mention that the wealth of our Nation needed to solve all these social and economic problems might as well be tossed into the deepest depths of the oceans rather than funding this insanity of militarism and war after war.
Is the solution to be found in electing a Democratic super majority as this article and the members of the "Congressional Progressive Caucus" are suggesting?
Well, we gave Obama a Democratic super majority which bailed out Wall Street instead of Main Street.
And look at Keith Ellison's home state of Minnesota where I live--- a huge Democratic super majority with a Democratic governor, a Democratic majority in the State House and a Democratic majority in the Minnesota State Senate and we can't even get the attention of these Democrats to repeal and rescind "At-will Employment" and replace it with "Just Employment."
This Democratic super majority refuses to pass anti-scab legislation and anti-lockout legislation.
This Democratic super majority refuses to pass Minimum Wage legislation that makes the Minimum Wage a real living wage instead of a miserly poverty wage; these Democrats don't seem to understand what my 8 year old granddaughter understands that poverty wages cause poverty.
All of these things--- real reforms--- are what politicians like to call "revenue neutral;" they cost tax-payers nothing.
But, don't we all know that massive unemployment drives all wages down and corporate profits up? Wall Street loves massive unemployment. Massive unemployment enables employer lockouts and makes the recruiting and hiring of "replacement workers" (scabs) easy.
This Democratic super majority sees an employer lockout here in the Red River Valley going on well over a year at American Crystal Sugar--- a tax-payer subsidized business/industry where scabs are working as the workers who voted these Democrats into office are suffering the consequences... this employer lockout is not "revenue neutral" it is tax-payer subsidized to the hilt.
Anyone who thinks electing more Democrats is a solution to the mess this country is in is living in some kind of "la-la land" of the make-believe; not a Nation where Wall Street dominates with a strangle-hold the social, political and economic life of this country through the creation of this two-party trap.
What is required if we are to move progressive politics forward--- the politics and economics of livelihood--- is the creation of a working class based progressive people's party with the patience, stamina and courage to challenge Wall Street for power--- Democrats will never be up to this task, they never have been. It is utterly foolish to even think that a party which is owned lock, stock and barrel by Wall Street, and beholden to Wall Street, is going to turn and defeat Wall Street's thoroughly reactionary agenda of imperialist wars abroad paid for with austerity measures here at home.
In typical George Lakoff instructed fashion, these so-called "progressive" Democrats propose a "defiant anti-austerity budget" which boils down to no specific solutions to the problems being experienced by the working class. It is mere nice-sounding words and political hyperbole without any organized fight back; a gimmick to once again hoodwink workers into thinking Democrats with super majorities are going to solve our problems when time and time again we have seen these Democratic super majorities refuse to bring forward even the most minute reforms intended to initiate the road to massive reforms required to tide the working class over as this rotten capitalist system goes through its death throws and convulsions of economic collapse before our very eyes.
Make no mistake about this: capitalism now in its highest stage of imperialism which has grown barbaric and cannibalistic is on the skids to oblivion placing us on a dangerous road leading straight to hell with no stops for a breather in purgatory.
By-the-way; I have seen first hand here in Minnesota how Congressman Keith Ellison is just one more Humphrey-Mondale knock-off playing the working class for chumps and suckers.
Minnesota's more than 40,000 casino workers workers forced to work in this hideous Indian Gaming Industry in loud, noisy, smoke-filled casinos at poverty wages without any rights under state or federal labor laws as the wealthy white mobsters run off with all the profits leaving behind greater poverty as they make huge campaign contributions to Ellison and his Minnesota Democratic super majority as a payoff for these worthless politicians to turn their backs on injustice--- if anyone thinks these Democrats are going to stand up and fight for worker's rights or the livelihoods of workers ask a worker employed at one of the more than three-hundred casinos now comprising this hideous Indian Gaming Industry which Keith Ellison, Raul Grijava, John Conyers, Bernie Sanders and those "progressives" like Senator Ben Cardin helped to create--- the very kind of workforce Scott Walker and Rick Snyder drool over and dream about for all workers.
Have we already forgotten that each and every member of this so-called "Congressional Progressive Caucus" bailed on single-payer universal health care and have backed the Israeli killing machine to the hilt with Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison being a no-show.
Alan L. Maki
Director of Organizing,
Midwest Casino Workers Organizing Council