View this email in your browser ([link removed])

Welcome back to the Data for Progress newsletter, your update on our research, blog posts, and memes.

AOC for DFP: Voters Support Extending the Census to Ensure an Accurate Count
Data for Progress has a new contributor: Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In a new piece on our blog ([link removed]) released on Thursday, AOC writes that with the U.S. Census Bureau’s decision to suspend all fieldwork until April 15 (and likely further), we need to extend the Census.

Currently, self-reporting is down across the country, especially in diverse, working-class districts like AOC’s. “As things currently stand, those districts hit the hardest by COVID-19, those districts which already suffer greatest from structural racism and inequity, stand to be the most undercounted,” she writes.

The American people are on her side. In a recent poll, we find that 78 percent of voters — including strong majorities of Democrats, independents, and Republicans — support extending the Census in response to COVID-19. Just 10 percent of all voters oppose it.

We Launched the Progressive Pennsylvania Project
With the nation’s attention centered on the presidential election, it’s easy to lose focus on the important state and local races progressives are fighting in. That’s why we announced our new Progressive Pennsylvania Project!

Our Primaries for Progress team has chosen a slate of seven Green New Deal champions, Medicare for All advocates, and criminal justice reformers that are running for the Pennsylvania state house and senate this November. Read about the candidates here ([link removed]) .

These races are competitive, and every dollar counts. Please donate to the Progressive Pennsylvania Project by clicking here ([link removed]) .

We Dropped Three New Memos on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice
We recently dropped three separate memos — all in partnership with The Justice Collaborative — outlining a comprehensive criminal justice response to the COVID-19 crisis.

In the first memo ([link removed]) , we discuss the overcrowding of immigrants in detention facilities, which risks the spread of infection. Our polling shows that 59 percent of voters support an executive order instructing immigration enforcement to suspend new detentions of non-citizens during this state of emergency. This proposal has bipartisan support, with 53 percent of Republicans on board.

In a second memo on reducing jail populations overall ([link removed]) , we asked voters whether they’d support a policy to release everyone from jail who doesn’t pose a threat from public safety. We find that this policy has 52 percent support and 33 percent opposition nationwide.

In the third memo ([link removed]) , we focus on juvenile detention. 60 percent of voters — including a majority of Democrats, independents, and Republicans — support releasing juveniles from prison if they are within six months of the end of their sentence, so long as they are deemed to not pose a public safety risk.

Memo: Americans Support More Stimulus
Earlier this month, we published a memo ([link removed]) showing that Americans strongly support a variety of bold progressive provisions as part of a new relief package. These include:
* Universal paid sick, family, and medical leave (87 percent support, 6 percent opposed)
* Halting evictions, foreclosures, and utility shut-offs (88-8)
* Free coronavirus-related health coverage (78-13)
* Expanding Medicare to include laid-off Americans (74-18)
* $2,000 per month cash payments for every adult (72-18)
* Canceling all student debt (58-34)

All of these policies received majority support from independents and Democrats. A majority of Republicans also supported every issue, with the exception of canceling all student debt.

And in a new memo ([link removed]) released on Friday in partnership with People’s Action, Justice Democrats, The Justice Collaborative, and Social Security Works, we find support for even more provisions, including prohibiting debt collection, garnishing of wages, and repossession during the pandemic (80 percent support, 9 percent oppose) and providing $5 billion in emergency homeless assistance (65 percent support, 20 percent oppose).

Memo: Fighting the Coronavirus and Protecting the Unhoused
More than 500,000 ([link removed]) people in the U.S. do not have a home. These individuals are uniquely vulnerable to COVID-19, as they often come into contact with potentially infected surfaces and people, and emergency shelters are typically cramped and high-density.

In a new memo ([link removed]) with The Justice Collaborative, we show that policies to protect the homeless from the coronavirus are popular. An overwhelming majority of Americans — 81 percent — support purchasing or taking control of unoccupied buildings and housing to temporarily house people experiencing homelessness during this state of emergency. This includes a strong majority of independents and Republicans.

Furthermore, 52 percent of voters support a moratorium on enforcing laws that prohibit unhoused people from sleeping outside or in their vehicles. Just 26 percent oppose.

Study: Biden Can Unite Progressives and Swing Voters with a Focus on Climate
In a new study published by Vox ([link removed]) , we looked at the roughly 10 percent of Trump voters who are considering voting for the Democratic nominee in 2020. Across 23 issues, we found that the issue that predicted persuadability among Trump voters the most was climate change. 71 percent of persuadable Trump voters cited it as an important issue, compared with 27 percent of Trump’s base.

A majority of “Trump-unsure” and “Trump-Dem” voters took the progressive position on every climate issue we tested — even though Trump’s base took the conservative position on these issues.

The New York State Budget is a Failure
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been receiving loads of positive media coverage, and is even being floated ([link removed]) as a potential Democratic nominee.

But this narrative ignores how recently, Cuomo successfully pressured the New York state senate to pass a budget that made cuts to Medicaid, underfunded schools, and rolled back crucial reforms on bail and discovery processes. In a fantastic new blog post ([link removed]) , we break down Cuomo’s austerity and prioritization of the donor class over the marginalized.

Data Bytes
* Memo: The Staggering Economic Impact of the Coronavirus Pandemic: According to a Labor Department announcement last week ([link removed]) , there have been about 16 million unemployment claims due to the COVID-19. But in a new memo released on Friday ([link removed]) , we show that this figure greatly understates the severity of the problem.
According to a new survey, one-third of Americans — including more than half of Americans under the age of 45 — have lost a job, been put on leave, or had their hours reduced as a result of the pandemic.
These Americans are already starting to struggle economically. We found that 41 percent of those who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 are having “immediate” troubles affording basic costs like housing, food, and utilities.

* The Long Reach of Insecure Gig Work in America: Gig work is highly precarious and unregulated, and the COVID-19 crisis is exposing this. In a new analysis ([link removed]) , we show that a quarter of Americans drew income from gig work last year.
These workers have been especially harmed by the coronavirus pandemic. Our survey found that many aren’t simply doing gig work on the side — 45 percent said that their gig work was “essential to meet basic needs,” and an additional 32 percent said it formed an important part of their budget.
The good news? 87 percent of Democrats and 54 percent of Republicans want to make it easier for gig workers to form unions.

* A Plurality of Voters Support Nationalizing Bailed-Out Airline Companies: From February 20 to March 20, Boeing’s stock price plunged from 336 to 95, due largely to ludicrous mismanagement. But Boeing has been saved by the $2 trillion Senate bill, which gave $88 billion in aid to the aviation sector in what’s been called “the mother of all bailouts” ([link removed]) .
We asked voters in a recent survey ([link removed]) if airlines should be nationalized as a precondition for accepting a bailout — something Italy has already done with Alitalia in response to the coronavirus. We found that converting bailed-out airline companies into publicly-owned enterprises has a slim plurality of support — 39 percent support, 35 percent oppose.

* There’s No Liberal Bias in What the Media Chooses to Cover: In a new blog post ([link removed]) , we disprove Trump’s claims that the “Fake News Media” has a liberal bias. A survey of 15,000 political journalists found that while journalists are disproportionately Democratic and liberal, they are just as likely to cover conservative stories as they are to cover progressive stories.

From The Blog
A Plurality of Voters Support Nationalizing Bailed-Out Airline Companies ([link removed])
Voters Support Aggressive Action to Combat the Coronavirus ([link removed])
Don’t Make People Choose Between Starving and Infecting People You Absolute Eggs ([link removed])
The Long Reach of Insecure Gig Work in America ([link removed])
We Need to Cancel Rent During the Coronavirus Pandemic ([link removed])
Voters Support Keeping Congress in Session and Additional Stimulus ([link removed])
The New York State Budget is a Failure ([link removed])
Bail Out Workers, Not Corporations: Why We Need Consumer Debt Forgiveness to Stimulate the Economy ([link removed])
Support for Disability Policies and Rights ([link removed])
The Progressive Pennsylvania Project ([link removed])
There’s No Liberal Bias in What the Media Chooses to Cover ([link removed])
Voters Support Extending the Census to Ensure an Accurate Count ([link removed])


Media Hits
Why The Progressive Left Fits So Uncomfortably Within The Democratic Party ([link removed]) @FiveThirtyEight
More than Half of Voters Under 45 Say They’ve Lost Their Job, Had Hours Reduced, or Gotten Furloughed ([link removed]) @Newsweek
'Green Stimulus' Demanded to Battle Convergent Crises of Coronavirus, Economic Injustice, and Climate Emergency ([link removed]) @Common Dreams
Poll: Americans want corporations to promise no layoffs in exchange for bailouts ([link removed]) @Vox
Study: Biden can unite progressives and swing voters with a focus on climate ([link removed]) @Vox
Ocasio-Cortez calls for extending census period ([link removed]) @The Hill
Millennials will carry Bernie Sanders’s ideas into the future ([link removed]) @Washington Post

Donate
Give us money ([link removed]) . No, seriously, give us money ([link removed]) .

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2020 Data for Progress, All rights reserved.
Hi! You're receiving this email because you signed up on our website.

Our mailing address is:
Data for Progress
1602 A St NE
Washington, DC 20002-6520
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.