Millions of jobless family members have had less than an optimum Christmas thanks to the bipartisan Budget that passed recently without extending Unemployment Ins for.
Great to learn in email this morning that Harry Reid has said Senate will vote when it returns.
According to WaPo its not looking good...
The Plum Line
January may be do-or-die for jobless benefits
By George Zornick
December 31, 2013 at 10:19 am
Conversations with several people involved in the push present a fairly clear road map, though no doubt a very difficult one. The first order of business, as noted, is getting 60 votes for a bill by Sens. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.), which would extend jobless benefits for three months at a cost of $6.5 billion. A confirmation vote for Janet Yellen as Federal Reserve chair may come first, I’m told, but either way Reed-Heller will be dealt with very quickly.
Advocates are hoping that other Republicans have been reading the brutal polls on letting benefits lapse and hearing from constituents on the issue over the holidays, and will return to Washington with a different mindset. “A lot of it is going to be a reflection of what my colleagues are hearing from back home,” Reed told The Post this week.
I wouldn’t rule passage out, but as of today, the bill’s prospects look dim. Heller is the only Republican on board, so four more would be needed in the Senate — and that’s before one even considers the House prospects, where Speaker John Boehner insists that any unemployment extension be paid for with offsetting cuts. The Reed-Heller bill does not have an offset, which my colleague Ryan Cooper notes is a good thing: We shouldn’t be afraid of some paltry deficit spending to help those truly struggling in this economy. Perhaps Boehner will come to see it that way if a bipartisan bill emerges from the Senate and public pressure continues apace. But maybe not.
IMO we should be part of that public pressure and make a huge push on Congress for this.
My brother lost his good middle class union factory job after NAFTA, and has had hell since. He was able to keep from losing his house because of UI benefits. His benefits ran out and thankfully he now has a [crap] job as a part-time low wage night stocker.
Millions more are not so 'fortunate' and are suffering. We can help.
The email this morning was fromCampaign For America's Future
Campaign for America’s Future Board of Directors
Lara Bergthold
Griffin/Schein
Jeff Faux
Economic Policy Institute
Leo Gerard
United Steelworkers
Van Jones
Rebuild the Dream
Dr. Maya Rockeymoore
Global Policy Solutions
Here's the petition
Tell Congress to Extend Unemployment Benefits
Congress failed to extend the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program before they left for vacation.
The result?
Three days after Christmas, 1.3 million long-term unemployed Americans lost their unemployment benefits.
Please add your name to the petition below.
We call on the Senate and the House to extend the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program through 2014, and prevent 1.3 million people from losing their benefits at the end of this year.
Thank you for taking action!
More Action Needed
This is a start. Phone calls to Congress will also be needed. And a massive direct hire jobs program is the goal to help these families.
Electing Better Democrats
As we work on this issue and others we should also push for more Dem progressive candidates in the mid terms who will work for both relief for the unemployed and more jobs in the economy. Our current bunch leans too much toward austerity. ( I know, THE REPUBLICANS, THE REPUBLICANS !!! )
Campaign for America's Future is working for this, as it Progressive Change Campaign Committee.
Elizabeth Warren has given credit to PCCC for kickstarting her run for Senate.
Call Out The Vote
Bold progressives live all throughout the country. To allow our nearly one million members to help bold progressives who live near or far, we have an extensive national "Call Out the Vote" phone program. In 2012, we had a goal to make one million calls, but our passionate 3,200 volunteers made two million calls!
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The Endorsement Process
Take the Candidate Questionnaire Interview with PCCC Staff Campaign Assessment Receive EndorsementClick to Begin
Previous Candidates
We endorsed over 30 candidates in 2012 including...
Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Sen. Tammy Baldwin
Rep. Alan Grayson
Rep. Mark Takano
State Sen. Cecilia Tkaczyk
Sen. Sherrod Brown
At least with the election coming up am happy to see news Democrats' focus for 2014:
The Guardian:
Senate Democrats plan fast-track fix to reinstate lost unemployment benefits
• Democrats plan to make poverty and inequality election issues
• Senator Reed tells Guardian: 'Many of these people are desperate'
Paul Lewis in Washington and Dominic Rushe in New York
theguardian.com, Thursday 2 January 2014 12.27 EST
Democrats believe the issue could lose Republicans votes in this November’s midterm elections. Some of the highest rates of unemployment are in Republican-controlled states, and polls show the public supports reintroducing federal benefits for the long-term unemployed.
President Barack Obama is expected to make tackling economic inequality a major priority for 2014 and his administration has thrown its weight behind the Senate push to reintroduce the benefits program.Gene Sperling, the director of the White House’s National Economic Council, said on Wednesday the president was committed to providing support to the long-term unemployed – a move administration economists say would also boost the wider economy.
“Failing to extend emergency unemployment insurance through 2014 will negatively impact 14 million Americans – the 4.9 million workers who will see unemployment insurance cut off and the approximately 9 million additional family members they are supporting,” Sperling said. “But if Congress does the right thing and acts to extend emergency unemployment benefits through 2014, it is estimated to lead to 200,000 jobs and a fifth of a point of additional economic growth.”
Hope the President and Dem Leadership in Congress go beyond just support for UI bennies to say, a push for an industrial plan with emphasis on climate change abatement jobs....
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Many thanks to those who are taking action for those families!