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

Dear Progressive Reader,

Democrats in the U.S. Senate have announced ([link removed]) that, with the added support of Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, they now have enough votes to pass the “Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 ([link removed]) ” over any Republican objection. The bill came about after Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, and Joe Manchin, Democrat of West Virginia, were finally able to come to the table. Despite its name, the bill also includes the largest single amount of spending ($369 billion) to combat climate change in U.S. history. According ([link removed]) to the Environmental Defense Fund, this bill is also critical to tackling “the worst megadrought in 1,200 years.” However, it falls far short of what some in the party had hoped for. Speaking on
the Senate floor on Wednesday, Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont, noted, “As currently written, this is an extremely modest piece of legislation that does virtually nothing to address the enormous crises that working families all across this country are facing today.” The bill does not, he pointed out, address the minimum wage, childcare costs, or student loan debt.

In an op-ed on our website this week, Terri Gerstein of the Harvard Labor and Worklife Program writes that it is time to raise the federal minimum wage. “The lingering low federal minimum wage drags down communities where it’s the only pay standard, while in contrast, raising the wage generally has a positive ripple effect, even on workers making more than the minimum rate,” she points out ([link removed]) . And as Eleanor Bader notes ([link removed]) , rent is “too damn high. . . . As the median rent spikes to $2,000 across the country, housing justice activists double down on efforts to counter price-gouging landlords.” Also, public schools activist Don Macleay reports ([link removed]) from Oakland, California, “At the same time that Oakland public
schools are increasingly threatened with closure and privatization, the city of Oakland is also considering a sweetheart real estate deal surrounding a sports stadium.”

In other news, Bill Lueders continues his investigation ([link removed]) into the obfuscation by State of Wisconsin officials around the case of the eviction of his mother from a residential care facility; Jeff Abbott looks at ([link removed]) the U.S. State Department’s expanding list of corrupt officials in Central America; photojournalist Daniel Brown follows ([link removed]) efforts in Chicago to reduce deaths by gun violence; and Rebecca Goodman, a high school senior, shares a moving reflection ([link removed]) on her thoughts and feelings on the day the U.S. Supreme Court announced its Dobbs decision overturning nearly fifty years of reproductive rights.

Please keep reading, and we will keep bringing you important articles on these and other issues of our time.

Sincerely,
Norman Stockwell
Publisher

P.S. – The Progressive is participating again this year in the annual Netroots Nation ([link removed]) conference. From August 18-20, activists and strategists will gather in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for this in-person networking event. More than 4000 attendees and 400 featured speakers will participate in 100 panels and events during the three days. Jeff Bryant, lead fellow ([link removed]) of our Public Schools Advocate project, will be hosting a panel ([link removed]) on Friday, August 19, titled “Democrats Desperately Need A Winning Strategy For Public Education.” For more information on the event and how to register to attend in person, or to view all of the sessions online, visit the registration page ([link removed]) .

P.P.S. – If you like this weekly newsletter, please consider forwarding it to a friend. If you know someone who would like to subscribe to this free weekly email, please share this link: [link removed].

P.P.P.S. – If you don’t already subscribe to The Progressive in print or digital form, please consider doing so today ([link removed]) . Also, if you have a friend or relative who you feel should hear from the many voices for progressive change within our pages, please consider giving a gift subscription ([link removed]) .

P.P.P.P.S. – Thank you so much to everyone who has already donated to support The Progressive! We need you now more than ever. If you have not done so already, please take a moment to support hard-hitting, independent reporting on issues that matter to you. Your donation today will keep us on solid ground in 2022 and will help us continue to grow in the coming years. You can use the wallet envelope in the current issue of the magazine, or click on the “Donate” button below to join your fellow progressives in sustaining The Progressive as a voice for peace, social justice, and the common good.
Donate ([link removed])

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2022 The Progressive, Inc.

P.O. Box 1021 • Madison, Wisconsin 53701 • (608) 257-4626

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])