Hillary Clintons Modern progressive vision: Shared Prosperity
Today in New Hampshire, Hillary Clinton outlined her vision for economic growth with fairness. She outlined her views on how America could restore a strong middle class in the face of globalization and the Bush Administration’s concerns for the special interests.
Rising Inequality Undermines the Middle Class:
The fruits of our modern global economy are showing up in the corporate bottom line, not in workers’ paychecks. CEOs have seen their pay go from 24 times the typical worker’s in 1965 to 262 times the typical worker’s in 2005. Last year, the share of national income going to corporate profits was the highest since 1929 – while the share going to the salaries of American workers was the lowest.
Globalization and economic policy dynamics are generating rising income inequality. In 2005, all income gains went to the top 10% of households, while the bottom 90% saw their income decline – despite the fact that worker productivity has increased for six years. In 1970, the top 1% of households held roughly 9% of our nation’s income. In 2005, they held 22% -- the highest level since 1929.
Harder for America’s middle-class and working-class families to make ends meet. Costs are up: health care premiums are up 87 percent since 2000. While productivity growth has gone up 18%, family incomes have gone down $1,300.
This Administration’s policies have fostered these economic outcomes.
* Large corporate interests receive protection and benefits
o No-bid contracts to Halliburton
o Significant tax breaks to oil companies
o Tax incentives to corporations shipping jobs overseas
o A $1,000-per-patient subsidy to private Medicare plans
* Every baby born today starts life with $29,000 of our national debt on his or her shoulders – the largest birth tax in our nation’s history.
A New Progressive Vision: Principles and Policies
We need a new vision of economic fairness and shared prosperity: The foundation of a strong economy is the investments we make in each other – in education, health care, clean energy and new technologies. Shared prosperity, which supports the hopes, dreams and aspirations of all our people, is the true measure of our economic success.
We can achieve these ideals – and this vision – by:
1. Leveling the playing field and reducing special breaks for big corporations. That means scaling back oil and gas subsidies; allowing Medicare to negotiate lower prices with big drug companies; and requiring big oil companies to either invest in alternative energy or pay into the Strategic Energy Fund to spur clean energy research and development.
2. Eliminating incentives for American companies to ship jobs and profits overseas. Specifically, the tax code rewards companies for offshoring jobs by enabling them to defer paying American taxes for as long as they hold the money abroad. The current policy puts companies that create jobs in America at a competitive disadvantage. We must pursue tax policies that reward the decision to create jobs in America, rather than abroad.
3. Reforming the governance of corporations and the financial sector. It is inconsistent with our values to allow CEO pay to skyrocket while workers’ wages and benefits are under threat. There needs to be greater public scrutiny of CEO pay, and more independence of Boards of Directors.
4. Restoring fiscal responsibility to government. That means balancing the budget; saving Social Security; reducing our dependence on foreign creditors (e.g. China); returning high-income tax rates to the 1990s levels; reforming the AMT; and ensuring that corporations pay their fair share of taxes.
5. Give every young person an opportunity to attend college, and ensure that education starts early in life and continues into adulthood. College should be made more affordable so that students of all backgrounds can attend. Also, every child should have ready access to high quality pre-K.
6. More support for community colleges and lifelong learning. We should expand regional skills alliances and other job training programs to ensure workers have the valuable skills they need.
7. Help working people earn enough to support their families and help them save for the future. That means simplifying and expanding the EITC; overhauling the unemployment insurance system; and making it easier for workers to join unions.
8. Ensure that every American has quality, affordable health care. It is intolerable that 45 million Americans are without health insurance, particularly considering that we are spending nearly $500 billion on the war in Iraq.
9. Make investments necessary for creating new jobs. New job sources are needed to preserve and expand the middle class. Investments in alternative energy can create new jobs for the 21st century; expanded access to broadband will bring opportunities to underserved/disadvantaged communities; the manufacturing base can be re-energized through creative partnerships; and innovation—with increased government support for R&D—will help us find and develop the jobs of tomorrow.
