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Sunday, June 7, 2026

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.” – Isaiah 40:29

Gaza genocide – Wikipedia

New Fed report warns of ‘remarkable’ increase in households skipping meals due to food costs – CNN

Virginians suffer as callous, major cuts to food stamps become entrenched – Virginia Mercury

“The federal government’s contempt for the poor, as evidenced through major cuts to crucial food benefits for low-income Americans, is a blight on our nation, columnist Roger Chesley writes…
“…eight of the 10 localities with the highest rates of food insecurity are rural and concentrated in Southwest Virginia. Those areas typically select Republicans in Congress – and GOP congresspersons almost unanimously supported cuts to SNAP and Medicaid last year. All five Virginia Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives – Ben Cline, Morgan Griffith, Jennifer Kiggans, John McGuire and Rob Wittman – voted to slash the social safety net. All of them are up for re-election this fall…”

Fed Beige Book – May 2026

“Higher-income households remained resilient and less sensitive to price increase, while middle-income households were described as ‘squeezing more life out of every dollar before deciding to spend it,’ and low-income consumers showed greater financial strain. Overall, there were reports of increased credit card usage, fewer retail visits, and stronger demand for necessities…” 

DOGE wanted to declare 2.7 million people dead at Social Security: whistleblower – Marketwatch

“The latest whistleblower complaint, which was first reported by the Washington Post, comes after the Trump administration entity known as the Department of Government Efficiency embedded itself in the Social Security Administration last year with the stated aim of rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. ‘DOGE,’ as Elon Musk dubbed the entity, has come under fire from two other whistleblowers for mishandling data and compromising the Social Security numbers of every American.

The Department of Homeland Security initially asked the Social Security Administration to mark about 6,000 living people as dead, and those people were added to the death file, according to the latest complaint. They were later removed from that database, the complaint said. Then in April 2025, DHS transmitted to SSA a second list of 2.7 million individuals to be marked as dead, the whistleblower said.

Schofield expressed concern that the plan was part of an effort to ‘deport immigrants, regardless of whether they were suspected terrorists or convicted violent criminals,’ according to the complaint. When asked why DHS wanted the 2.7 million people to be marked as dead, a DOGE worker said that ‘either the lives of these individuals would be ruined … and they would be driven to “self-deport”‘ or ‘they would have to go to a local Social Security office, at which point SSA field office staff would send them to DHS offices,’ where officials would ‘detain them for deportation,’ according to the whistleblower complaint…”

Government officials and advisors who planned “killing” Social Security beneficiaries in official records should be charged with fraud and attempted fraud and related crimes, and if convicted, do mucho jail time. BTW, could beneficiaries targeted for financial injury resulting from reporting them as dead, apply for compensation from Trump’s anti-weaponization fund (which apparently is still alive)?

DOL Inflates Wages to Force Out H-1B Workers – Laissez-Faire, Laissez-Passer

“DOL is helping DHS’s mass deportation of legal immigrants.”

“DOL claims that H‑1B and other employer-sponsored foreign workers are paid “below market” wages and that its rule fixes this problem. But the proposed rule only inflates wages to restrict the supply of skilled foreign workers beyond what the law allows and will force existing H‑1B workers to leave the country. H‑1B workers are objectively among the highest paid in America, earning wages in the top 10 percent nationally. It would be disastrous to exclude them…”

US measure to deepen Israel military cooperation faces bipartisan pushback – Al Jazeera

“Democrat Ro Khanna and Republican Thomas Massie say they will try to remove the pro-Israel section from US defence bill.“

“…Critics have expressed concern that the push may make US military aid to Israel less transparent, concealing it as cooperation rather than a separate expense. The measure also risks tethering the US military to its Israeli counterpart technologically at a time when the American public is rapidly turning against Israel, according to recent public opinion polls…”

US House votes for measure that would end Iran war, in blow to Trump – Reuters

Trump Administration Turns to a New Rationale to Justify Old Tariffs – NYT

“The administration has settled on a more legally and politically durable way to impose tariffs, but some say the focus on forced labor laws is merely a pretext for protectionism.”

“…Trade experts have welcomed efforts to end or reduce forced labor, but some have complained that the new tariffs are primarily aimed at finding a way to block foreign products and raise revenue, not ending human rights abuses…

“Eswar Prasad, a professor of trade policy at Cornell University, said the administration had switched its justification for broad tariffs onto a ‘morally and perhaps also legally more defensible ground.’ But he pointed out that the Trump administration’s apparent concerns about forced labor in other countries seemed inconsistent with domestic stances that were not friendly toward workers and unions…”

China eliminates tariffs on Africa to outmaneuver Trump – msn/WSJ

“The move could help China secure essential supply chains for critical minerals such as cobalt, copper and coltan. It also opens the door for more opportunities for Chinese companies to join with African governments on infrastructure, logistics and manufacturing projects that need Beijing’s financing…

“Beijing’s initiative contrasts sharply with the Trump administration’s approach to what the president has referred to as “shithole countries.” The U.S. hit South Africa, the continent’s largest economy, and the mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo, with blanket U.S. tariffs of 30% and 15% respectively last year. Trump then instituted blanket 10% tariffs on all nations, but the legality of his actions remains under court review…”

Which superpower is better at “free markets” and “capitalism”?

Corporations and the Crisis of Care – Robert Kuttner/TAP

“The U.S. suffers from a mass exodus of primary care doctors, as medical practice is dictated by corporate masters at the expense of physicians and patients.”

 “…The U.S. is now said to be short at least 20,000 primary care physicians, but one recent study found that the shortage would rise to 208,000 if all Americans had good health insurance…

“All told, about 78 percent of physician practices are now owned by corporate entities.

“In most of the country, this is actually a crime. Corporate practice of medicine laws require physicians and not conglomerates or other corporate structures to own medical practices in 33 states and the District of Columbia. But private equity and other entities get around this by using figurehead physicians to ‘own’ the practice while all the business decisions are made by the firms or affiliated ‘management service organizations.’ In several states, bills have been introduced to tighten these laws and end the shell game. The only one that has passed is in Oregon, which prohibits private equity owners from dictating clinical decisions, but does not fully prohibit their involvement. Oregon’s implementation will be closely watched by other states looking to reduce corporate control of health care…”

Comment: It’s complicated and it’s simple: The US needs to cover ALL its people and spend a sh–load less on medical care. Shrink the size of the pie. All Americans get to eat. Make equitable adjustments to the size of slices going to providers.

A Movement Is Growing to Close the Largest ICE Jail on the East Coast – Truthout

“…Democratic Congressmembers Summer Lee and Chris Deluzio made an unannounced visit Tuesday to Moshannon, where Rep. Lee said they were granted a ‘pretty sanitized tour’ of the women’s unit and saw at least two people held there who are pregnant.

“Officials denied Rep. Deluzio’s request to meet with Randy Cordova Flores, a Peruvian father and asylum seeker arrested in February at a traffic stop in Springdale, Pennsylvania. Last August, Rep. Lee was turned away from a visit after she sent an inquiry about medical care for another asylum seeker, Maklim Gomez Escalante, who was detained there after being hospitalized for heart problems…”

UAW Local 2093 begins strike at American Axle in Three Rivers – CBS

“‘No contract, no axles,’ the union said. ‘In 2008, workers at American Axle took major sacrifices to save the facility from closure during the Great Recession. Many long-time workers who were making as much as $29 an hour in 2008 saw their wages slashed to $14.50. Today, eighteen years later, workers are still yet to make up all that lost ground, with wages at American Axle currently topping out at $22 an hour after a five-year progression, with inflation-adjusted wages cut in half from their pre-2008 levels.'” 

ICE Retaliates Against Hunger Strikers at NWDC – theStranger

We couldn’t afford to pay for my mom’s dementia assisted living anymore. She moved into a tiny house next door to me – Insider

Some may be wondering if it’s permissible to house a relative in an RV or trailer on your driveway.

Is it legal to live in a camper in Virginia? – Park(ing)Day

Robot caregiver helps aging Americans stay in their homes – LA Times

Robot caregiving has a long way to go to match the help with activities of daily living that home health, assisted living, and nursing home workers provide. (“AiLexa, please wipe…”)

The Effects of a Sudden Stop in Low-Skilled Immigration: Evidence from Korea’s Guest Worker Program – NBER

“As workforces in high-income countries age and shrink, immigrants increasingly fill entry-level, low-skilled jobs. We examine what happens when this labor supply is abruptly reduced, exploiting South Korea’s sudden suspension of its low-skilled guest worker program following the 2020 COVID-19 border closure. Using policy-driven variation in firms’ pre-pandemic reliance on immigrant labor, we show that the collapse in inflows led to a significant increase in firm exit. Among surviving firms, greater pre-pandemic dependence on immigrant workers resulted in production disruptions and operational delays. Firms did not respond by expanding domestic hiring to replace missing guest workers. Instead, they adjusted by reallocating incumbent Korean employees toward lower-skilled tasks, contributing to occupational downgrading and significant wage declines. These findings suggest that low-skilled immigrant workers were not easily substitutable in the short run and that tighter immigration constraints can impose substantial adjustment costs on both firms and native workers.”

What could you buy with this in 10 years?

Edith Pritchett/WaPost

Trump is facing a new inflation warning from the bond market, adding to his midterm challenges – AP

“The world is getting more uptight about lending money to President Donald Trump’s government — causing interest rates to climb in ways that are worsening affordability pressures, hampering economic growth and creating a new risk for Republicans in November’s midterm elections…”

7 Common Pitfalls in Bond Investing and How to Avoid Them – Investopedia

Happy 101st Birthday, Charles! – William Emmons/Substack

“One interesting speculation is whether one would have been able to invest more profitably knowing what great economic trends and political events were coming during the last 101 years. It’s difficult to draw a definite conclusion but one thing is clear: Stocks don’t always beat long-term bonds over long holding periods.

“The key to stocks beating bonds appears to be negative real short-term interest rates, caused by inflation and financial repression. These were ingredients in the Great Inflation and they, plus unprecedented fiscal stimulus, characterize the current period since the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-09…”

Sunday, May 31, 2026

Blast from the past:

Genesis 19 – Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

1The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2“My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

3But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

6Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

9“Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

10But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

The backlash to revelations of sexual torture of Palestinian prisoners aims to raise the cost of speaking out – Yuli Novak/Guardian

“Israel’s response to recent NY Times reporting detailing the horrific sexual violence inflicted on detainees seeks to silence those who assert the basic fact of Palestinian humanity.”

“…B’Tselem, the Israeli human rights organization I lead, has documented this system through testimonies from released Palestinian detainees who were held in various Israeli facilities. At any given moment, thousands of Palestinians are held inside this system. Their testimonies reveal a regime of deliberate sexual harassment and abuse, humiliation, violence, starvation, and severe physical and psychological torture. Sexual violence is one part of a broader system that denies Palestinians rights and dignity, treating them not as human beings but as bodies that can be humiliated, broken and discarded.

“The accounts themselves are as consistent as they are gruesome. In testimonies collected and verified by B’Tselem, Palestinians held in Israeli custody describe sexual violence used as a tool of torture and domination: forced nudity, severe beatings to the genitals, dogs set on naked prisoners and forced anal penetration with objects. Tamer Qarmut described a soldier raping him at Sde Teiman detention camp: ‘During the torture, one of the soldiers raped me. He shoved a wooden stick into my anus, left it there for about a minute, and pulled it out. Then he shoved it back in, even harder, and I screamed at the top of my lungs. After a minute, he pulled the stick out again, told me to open my mouth, pushed the stick into my mouth and forced me to lick it.’ …”

B’Tselem – The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories

Sexual torture of Palestinian men by Israeli authorities. Reproductive Health Matters, 23(46), 71–84. – PubMed (2025)

‘We Demand Freedom’: Immigrants on Strike in New Jersey Prison – Labor Notes

“Nationwide, the majority of imprisoned immigrants through 2025 had no criminal records. As the American Prospect has reported, the GEO Group is raking in record profits with a federal contract valued at $1 billion. Some of these profits come from imprisoned immigrants working for little or no pay. Workers report they are coerced into participating in the government’s supposedly Voluntary Work Program through solitary confinement and other forms of torture…”

Fiscal and Economic Effects of Tariffs – Econofact/Kyle Pomerleau/AEI

“As with other taxes, tariffs have important equity and efficiency considerations. Although they can raise revenue and protect certain domestic industries, they reduce economic output, misallocate resources in the economy, reduce the quantity and quality of goods and services available to consumers, and burden households with lower real after-tax incomes.”

See Previous Posts

Featured

Thanks to The Hill for running our op-ed:

Trump’s 401(k) proposal could be a major step toward retirement security – Karl Polzer/Hill

“To succeed, Trump’s proposal must meet two fundamental requirements: funds to save and invest and accounts overseen by a fiduciary. The millions of workers with no money left over from their paychecks after covering the cost of living need more than just access to a retirement account — they also need money to put in that plan, week by week and month by month. This is why, without congressional action, most low-income workers will likely still be left out…”

Thanks to the Richmond Times-Dispatch for publishing this column:

New governor prioritizing ‘affordability’ should push reforming Va.’s regressive tax code – Karl Polzer

“…It will take some time for the new governor and Democrats running the state legislature to find effective ways to make life in Virginia more affordable. Reducing the tax burden on low-income families should be part of their agenda. Meanwhile, legislators should avoid adding taxes that hit the poor the hardest.”

States Can Push Back Against Reckless Federal Tax Policy. Here’s How. – Governing

Beware of Republicans bearing cash!

Substituting Cash for Health Insurance Can Drive Up Costs, Medical Bankruptcy – Karl Polzer/CCSE

Not! (for now)

Senate GOP health care plan fails on mostly party-line vote – Hill

As suspected, the two health care subsidy votes were performative art organized by Senate leaders setting a high bar (60/100 votes). Clock’s still ticking for millions of Americans needing health insurance they can afford.

Health Care–Related Savings Accounts, Health Care Expenditures, and Tax Expenditures – JAMA
“Conclusions and Relevance: Participation in FSAs is associated with higher health care expenditures and tax expenditures, while HSAs are not associated with reduced expenditures. Tax policy could be better targeted to enhance insurance coverage and health care accessibility.”

Why Substituting Cash for Insurance Can Drive Up Both Total Costs and Individual Medical + Financial Risk – Statement to US Senate Finance Committee

Submitted to Finance Committee Hearing: “The Rising Cost of Health Care: Considering Meaningful Solutions for All Americans”

“No matter how many adjustments the government might make, giving people money to leave the risk pool and bargain on their own with the players in health system undermines the basic concept of insurance – which is pooling risk and resources to make hard-to-predict future expenses more affordable.”

A ‘conservative/progressive’ path to negotiating Social Security solvency: Bend the cost curve, grow revenue, and protect low earners – Karl Polzer/IQInk

Updated Oct. 8, 2025

“This paper presents options – some favored by conservatives, others by progressives – as a framework for negotiating an equitable solution to Social Security’s financing shortfall.  Taken together, the changes could generate up to twice as much in savings and revenue as needed to balance Social Security’s books…

“Congress could strike a deal drawing about half the savings needed to fix Social Security through a gradual benefit reduction by changing the formula for determining initial benefit levels while protecting the lowest earners.  The rest of the gap could be filled through tax increases.  These financing options provide room for targeted benefit improvements to help the lowest income pay their bills and families raise children.”

Judge says Trump administration ‘used antisemitism as a smokescreen’ against Harvard – USA Today

Trump Administration’s Cuts to Harvard Funding Are Unconstitutional, Judge Rules – msn/WSJ

CCSE correspondence with Harvard President Garber

“Prediction: Harvard University will be teaching students from all over the world long after what remains of Trump and his brain trust rest in silence beneath the ground. BTW, White House staff could benefit from taking free public finance courses at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Harvard has a positive fund balance. The United State government, not so much.”

No peace, no prize. – Karl Polzer

“Republican members of the US Congress, which is financing Israel’s now escalating ethnic cleansing of Gaza, have nominated President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.  It is hard to fathom the depth and irony of their fawning depravity.  The Nobel prize is clearly a trophy that he covets. But shouldn’t a peace prize have something to do with reducing conflict and killing? The US president and Congress, including a majority of Democrats, are doing the opposite of making peace.  They are facilitating Israel’s daily, systematic killing, starvation, and displacement of entire populations of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank…”

Trump ‘1-2 punch’ shifts tax burden from top onto middle-and lower-income Americans – Karl Polzer/CCSE

“Economists and business analysts increasingly agree that Trump’s tariffs are raising prices. There is far less awareness that the historic spike in tariffs – coupled with the tax cuts just made permanent by Congress – comprise a major shift in the tax burden. Taken together, these two changes promise to make the US tax system more regressive. In our increasingly unequal country, taxpayers at the bottom of the economic pecking order are taking on proportionally more of the tax burden as the well-off shoulder less…”

New capitalism III: Capital – Branko Milanovic

“Why is capital so concentrated and why so few have it?”

“The new capitalism has even in the rich countries failed to produce what Margaret Thatcher, and Friedrich Hayek before her, called ‘property-owning society’. (For good measure, Thatcher added ‘democracy’ too.) Even when we include income from forced savings that becomes pension wealth, between one-half and almost 90 percent of the population in rich countries are financial-capital destitute. That percentage becomes more than 90, or even more than 95, in less developed countries…”

Related CCSE work:

Half of Americans have no retirement savings — here’s how Congress can look after them …. op-ed

How the U.S. Retirement Saving System Magnifies Inequality – Society of Actuaries

Growing inequality has shrunk Social Security’s revenue. Revitalizing its tax base could help restore solvency without cutting benefits.

New Capitalism in America: Richest capitalists and richest workers are increasingly the same people – Global Inequality

Branko Milanovic: The World Under Capitalism – Stone Center/Toronto Public Library

Prof. Milanovic discusses two types of capitalism – “liberal capitalism” in the US and “political capitalism” directed by the Chinese Communist Party. Both systems have produced relatively high levels of income inequality.

Comparing United States and China by Economy – Statistics Times

2025 Social Security groundhog day:

US needs $28 trillion more over 75 years to pay promised benefits

“A few months after the Trump Administration chain-sawed Social Security’s leadership and staff, four newly installed senior officials overseeing the program released the annual report on its declining financial condition.  This year’s actuarial forecast is a bit gloomier due in large part to a benefit expansion enacted by the previous Congress.  However, in the big picture, not much has changed.  Social Security’s looming insolvency remains…

“As I have pointed out to the Senate Budget Committee, the process of spending down Social Security reserves already is increasing overall federal spending and pushing up annual deficits. Drawing down reserves in the Social Security trust funds requires the Treasury to sell bonds (or find other sources of revenue) to raise cash to pay the program’s 74 million beneficiaries.

“On pp. 51-52, this year’s report estimates that Social Security will draw down $181 billion from the combined trust funds in 2025 with the amount rising to $405 billion in 2033. As a result, the federal government is gradually moving to finance part of the program’s benefits through newly issued debt substituting for now-insufficient payroll taxes...”

More on these issues can be found in these CCSE articles and testimony:

‘Trump kids accounts’ in budget bill would drive up inequality and raise the national debt – Karl Polzer/CCSE

“Helping young people learn how to save and build up money for college and adult life are worthy goals. But new ‘Trump kids accounts’ embedded in the massive Republican tax and spending bill before the US Senate not only duplicate existing programs.  They also would widen financial gaps between families in our already very unequal country.  In addition, tax subsidies for money invested in Trump accounts would go mostly to well-off families and push up the national debt…”

Failure to prosecute and jail law-breaking employers is wasting $$ billions in the fight against illegal immigration – Karl Polzer/CCSE

“The federal government has had authority since 1986 to criminally prosecute individuals and companies employing workers not legally in the United State, but it has rarely used that authority regardless of the administration in office. A one-year snapshot taken during Trump’s first term found that no company was criminally prosecuted for having workers not authorized to be in the country, a Syracuse University study shows…

“Changing the equation to incentivize employers to help enforce, rather than skirt, the nation’s immigration laws does not mean subjecting them to cruel and unusual punishment.  No need to suspend billionaires and entrepreneurs in cages from a tower or use branding irons.  It does mean applying and stiffening laws against hiring illegals and tax avoidance.  Financial penalties, public shaming, and loss of contracts could be a start.  If that isn’t sufficient, start putting law-breaking employers in jail.  They are lining their pockets by stealing jobs from American workers, both native born and those immigrating legally.”

Thanks to the Virginian-Pilot for running our op-ed:

Many questions, few answers about exempting tips from taxes – Karl Polzer/Virginian-Pilot

“Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposal to exempt tipped income from state taxes — like President-elect Donald Trump’s on a national level — could help some low-wage workers.  However, it also poses risks for others and raises complex issues facing scrutiny as the state legislature begins its work…”

To provide access to all readers (the newspaper’s op-eds are gated), below is the original submission including links to sources:

Youngkin pitch to exempt tips from taxes could benefit some.  A better option is raising the $2.13 tipped minimum wage.

Statement to 11/20/24 US House Appropriations Committee hearing on Social Security:

A way to ensure Social Security can meet short- and long-term promises to American workers and their families: Bend the cost curve, grow revenue, and protect lower earners – CCSE

“As keeper of the federal government’s purse strings, the House Appropriations Committee plays a part in maintaining Social Security’s commitment to American workers, their families, and taxpayers.  First, Committee members can weigh in as Congress and the Treasury find hundreds of billions of dollars annually in cash outside the appropriations process to draw down Social Security reserves.  The Committee can also help ‘leave room’ in future budgets for revenue increases that might be necessary to keep Social Security solvent as it coordinates with House Ways & Means, Budget, and other Committees on tax and spending issues.”

A ‘conservative/progressive’ path to Social Security solvency: bend the benefit cost curve, grow revenue, and protect lower earners – CCSE

The next President and Congress will face daunting fiscal issues.  In the shadow of historic levels of national debt, lawmakers will be bargaining over trillions of dollars of taxes and spending as they deal with expiration of the Trump tax cuts.  On top of that loom major Social Security financing gaps.   Paying promised benefits will require the government to raise more than $2 trillion in cash over the next eight years and more than $24 trillion to achieve long-run solvency.

This paper presents policy options – some favored by conservatives, others by progressives – as a framework for negotiating a solution.  Taken together, the changes could generate more than twice as much in savings and revenue than needed to balance Social Security’s books. 

Four ‘low-budget’ ways Congress can help working-class families raise more children – Karl Polzer/ Washington Examiner op-ed

– Expand the child tax credit to help more working-class parents and grandparents raising kids.
– Provide Social Security credit for unpaid work raising young children.
– Update/improve SSI so more people with disabilities can work, save.
– If taxes must go up, hold the working poor harmless.

Click here for longer version including references and related articles.

It’s Social Security ‘groundhog day’ as trustees repeat annual forecast of declining finances

“…The trustees’ report, however, neglects to mention how Social Security already is impacting the overall federal budget.  As pointed out to the Senate Budget Committee, the mechanics of spending down Social Security’s reserves require the Treasury to draw funds from general revenue and issue new debt to the public.  As a result, Social Security is gradually and organically moving to paying for current benefits through debt substituting for now-insufficient payroll taxes that it traditionally relies on.”

Missing the obvious: life expectancy in the U.S. is closely related to income – Karl Polzer

“The underlying theory is simple:  More income and wealth allow people and governments to support more years of life.  Fewer resources put them at a disadvantage.  Some politicians who see the connection may be leery of talking about it.  Doing so would lead to awkward questions about improving working and living conditions for millions of Americans and dealing with growing economic inequality.

“The strong relationship between income and longevity is clear when comparing states… (E)ight of the nine states with the lowest median household income also are among the bottom nine in longevity.  Similar clustering occurs comparing the highest ranked states across the two categories. Seven of the nine states with the highest median household income also are among the top nine in life expectancy.   

“Realizing they are rowing in the same economic boat could prompt states to join forces on policy changes, particularly Mississippi, West Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, New Mexico, Kentucky, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Tennessee, and others ranking at or near the bottom…

“Presidential candidate and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley strongly proposes raising the program’s retirement age on the premise that increased life spans are undermining Social Security’s long-term solvency.  If long-held assumptions about longevity were challenged, and potential losses to low-income workers and low-income states caused by raising the eligibility age came to light, would she change her position?  Republican candidate Donald Trump, by the way, opposes cuts in Social Security as do most Democrats…”

Thanks to the Washington Examiner for running this op-ed:

Senate minimum wage bills make bipartisan compromise possible – Washington Examiner

For longer version with references, see:

Senate minimum wage bills make bipartisan compromise possible.  Now for the political energy to get it done. – Karl Polzer/CCSE

Previous work on this issue:

One way to make living easier in Virginia – letter to WaPost

Yes, raise the minimum wage, but don’t stop there – op-ed

Analysis: Considerations on Raising the U.S. Minimum Wage To Help Workers and Families While Minimizing Negative Impacts

The US should take a hard look at the Netanyahu government’s brutality before giving it more weapons – Karl Polzer/CCSE

“More Americans are rightly asking if Israel could neutralize Hamas without massive destruction and loss of civilian life.  Indiscriminate air attacks by the Netanyahu regime already have killed and injured tens of thousands of Gazans with no end to the violence in sight.  To put this in perspective, imagine how Washington, D.C., would look if a foreign government with the power to fence in the District of Columbia dropped a comparable number of bombs here while shutting off access to water and food and destroying most of the capital area’s housing and medical system.  UN officials say conditions in Gaza are catastrophic.”

Thanks to the Washington Post for publishing our letter to the editor:

One way to make living easier in Virginia – Karl Polzer/letter to WaPost

“Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) told reporters he is ‘concerned about the cost of living in Virginia and we’re continuing to evaluate how best to address that,’ as reported in the Nov. 26 Metro article ‘Budget battle looms in Virginia. Facing a tighter fiscal environment and Democratic control of the legislature, Mr. Youngkin and fellow Republicans could help working families without denting the budget by making an expected Democratic push for a higher minimum wage a bipartisan affair.

“The GOP has been trying to attract more minority and working-class voters. However, party leaders have stopped short of addressing core economic issues, such as supporting higher wages and better benefits, and mainly stress cultural issues…”

Background Information on these issues provided to Virginia legislators

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