Bread and Butter and Hope - Robert Reich

[justaprogressive]

Friends,

It’s fitting that today — on the 90th anniversary of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signing Social Security into law — we understand Zohran Mamdani’s remarkable win in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary in his simple progressive message: New York City is in an affordability crisis and the wealthiest New Yorkers must help respond.

Mamdani’s three main proposals to help working families cope with it are to make city buses free, freeze the rent for stabilized apartments, and expand free child care.

Under Mamdani’s plan, the financial burden of paying for these policies would largely fall on wealthy taxpayers and businesses (a stance that has put Mamdani at odds with many corporate Democrats — more on this in a moment).

For example, Mamdani estimates that the price tag for universal child care for infants and toddlers until they reach kindergarten age would be between $5 billion and $8 billion. To pay for this, he would push the state to increase taxes on residents making more than $1 million a year and hike taxes on large corporations.

It’s not just Mamdani in New York. Progressives are winning elections across America with a mix of bread-and-butter proposals to help average people better cope with the costs of living and a message of hope that such proposals can be enacted and will work.

In 2021, Michelle Wu of Boston became the city’s youngest mayor in a century by pushing a similar set of proposals. Wu promised to “free the T,” the nickname for Boston’s transit system. She also called for expanded access to pre-K seats for 3- and 4-year-olds and for new rent control regulations.

A recent poll of Boston’s electorate by the Suffolk University Political Research Center finds that 65 percent of voters support “a cap on rents or other forms of rent control.” A recent national survey from the Pew Research Center finds that about 6 in 10 adults support raising taxes on large businesses and households making more than $400,000. That support has also materialized in voter referendums, even in cities where progressive candidates have stalled.

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/bread-and-butter-and-hope]

[yardwork]

1. Mamdani's approach can win for Democrats.

I believe we lost in 2016 and 2024 partly because wealthy donors and old guard consultants pushed for a "moderate" message.

People don't want moderate right now. Yes, Bidenomics was working - but we have to recognize all the people who are left behind in our economy.

Those of us with retirement portfolios, pensions, houses that appreciated in value - to us, things seem ok.

Things are not at all ok for millions of Americans. They do work hard, but companies have abandoned fairness. It's contributing to bigotry between groups, as people blame others for their situation. In fact, the blame lies with the very wealthy, who have grabbed way more than their share.

Yes, the Republicans caused most of this, and then they lie and blame it on Democrats. It's infuriating.

BUT too few Democratic politicians speak out forcefully. Too few have platforms that address the very real struggles of the American poor and middle class.

Good for Mamdani. I hope more Democrats propose radical (yes, I said radical) solutions.