The Barefoot Accountant of Accountants CPA Hartford, Connecticut, LLC, presents the video and transcript of Senator Bernie Sanders presenting “An Economic Agenda for America: 12 Steps Forward” before the Senate on December 2, 2014.
MADAM PRESIDENT, IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE IN THIS PARTICULAR MOMENT IN OUR HISTORY MUST MAKE A VERY FUNDAMENTAL DECISION, AND THAT DECISION IS DO WE CONTINUE THE STATUS QUO WHICH INCLUDES A 40-YEAR DECLINE OF OUR MIDDLE CLASS AND A HUGE AND GROWING GAP BETWEEN THE VERY, VERY RICH AND EVERYONE ELSE, OR DO WE FIGHT FOR A BOLD AND MEANINGFUL ECONOMIC AGENDA THAT CREATES JOBS, RAISES WAGES, PROTECTS OUR ENVIRONMENT AND PROVIDES HEALTH CARE FOR EVERY AMERICAN?
MADAM PRESIDENT, THE QUESTION OF OUR TIME IS WHETHER OR NOT WE ARE PREPARED TO TAKE ON THE ENORMOUS ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL POWER OF THE BILLIONAIRE CLASS, OR DO WE CONTINUE TO SLIDE INTO ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL OLIGARCHY? THAT IS THE QUESTION WHICH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE MUST ANSWER, AND I HOPE AND EXPECT THAT THEY ARE PREPARED TO ANSWER WITH A RESOUNDING YES AND A DESIRE TO MOVE THIS COUNTRY IN A VERY DIFFERENT DIRECTION.
MADAM PRESIDENT, THE LONG-TERM DETERIORATION OF THE MIDDLE CLASS, ACCELERATED BY THE WALL STREET CRASH OF 2008, HAS NOT BEEN A PRETTY PICTURE. TODAY WE HAVE MORE WEALTH AND INCOME INEQUALITY THAN ANY MAJOR COUNTRY ON EARTH, WITH THE TOP 1% OWNING MORE WEALTH THAN THE BOTTOM 90%, WITH ONE FAMILY, THE WALTON FAMILY OF WALMART, OWNING MORE WEALTH ITSELF THAN THE BOTTOM 40%.
MADAM PRESIDENT, TODAY IN THE UNITED STATES, WE HAVE THE HIGHEST RATE OF CHILDHOOD POVERTY OF ANY MAJOR COUNTRY ON EARTH, AND WE ARE THE ONLY MAJOR COUNTRY ON THIS PLANET THAT DOES NOT GUARANTEE HEALTH CARE TO ALL PEOPLE AS A RIGHT.
THE UNITED STATES ONCE LED THE WORLD IN TERMS OF THE PERCENTAGE OF OUR PEOPLE WHO GRADUATED COLLEGE, AND THAT IN A GLOBAL ECONOMY IS AN ENORMOUSLY IMPORTANT ISSUE. WE CAN’T CREATE JOBS UNLESS WE HAVE A WELL-EDUCATED WORK FORCE. MADAM PRESIDENT, WE WE WERE ONCE IN FIRST PLACE IN TERMS OF PERCENTAGE OF OUR PEOPLE WHO GAWDED COLLEGE. TODAY WE ARE IN 12th PLACE.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I THINK AS MOST AMERICANS UNDERSTAND, WE ONCE WERE THE ENERGY OF THE WORLD IN TERMS OF THE QUALITY OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE, OUR ROADS, BRIDGES, WASTE WATER PLANTS, WATER SYSTEMS, RAIL, BUT TODAY, AS ALL AMERICANS KNOW, OUR PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE IS LITERALLY COLLAPSING BEFORE OUR EYES.
MADAM PRESIDENT, REAL UNEMPLOYMENT TODAY IS NOT 5.8% 5.8% — THAT IS OFFICIAL UNEMPLOYMENT — BUT WHEN YOU INCLUDE THOSE PEOPLE WHO HAVE GIVEN UP LOOKING FOR WORK AND THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING PART TIME WHEN THEY WANT TO WORK FULL TIME, REAL UNEMPLOYMENT IS 11.5%. YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT IS 18.6%. AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT IS OVER 30%. TODAY MILLIONS OF AMERICANS ARE WORKING LONGER HOURS FOR LOWER WAGES.
MADAM PRESIDENT, WHEN WE TRY TO UNDERSTAND WHY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE ANGRY, IT’S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT IN INFLATION ADJUSTED FOR DOLLARS, THE MEDIAN MALE WORKER, THAT MALE WORKER RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ECONOMY, EARNED $783 LESS LAST YEAR THAN HE MADE 41 YEARS AGO. $783 LESS THAN HE MADE 41 YEARS AGO, DESPITE ALL OF THE INCREASES IN PRODUCTIVITY.
MADAM PRESIDENT, THE MEDIAN WOMAN WORKER MADE $1,300 LESS LAST YEAR THAN SHE EARNED IN 2007. SINCE 1999, MEDIAN MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILY HAS SEEN ITS INCOME GO DOWN BY ALMOST $5,000 AFTER ADJUSTING FOR INFLATION, NOW EARNING LESS THAN IT DID 25 YEARS AGO. WHY ARE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ANGRY? THAT’S WHY. A HUGE INCREASE IN PRODUCTIVITY. ALL OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, AND YET THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME IN AMERICA IS $5,000 LESS THAN IT WAS IN 1999.
MADAM PRESIDENT, IT SEEMS CLEAR TO ME THAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE MUST DEMAND THAT CONGRESS AND THE WHITE HOUSE START PROTECTING THE INTERESTS OF WORKING FAMILIES AND NOT JUST WEALTHY CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTORS. WE NEED FEDERAL LEGISLATION TO PUT UNLESS OF OUR UNEMPLOYED WORKERS BACK TO WORK, TO RAISE WAGES AND TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT ALL AMERICANS HAVE THE HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION THEY NEED FOR HEALTHY AND PRODUCTIVE LIVES. IN OTHER WORDS, WE MUST HAVE A VISION FOR THE FUTURE THAT TALKS ABOUT WHAT THIS NATION CAN BECOME, IN TERMS OF JOBS, IN TERMS OF INCOME, IN TERMS OF EDUCATION AND IN TERMS OF HEALTH CARE.
MADAM PRESIDENT, LET ME JUST VERY BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SOME OF THE MAJOR INITIATIVES THAT I INTEND TO FIGHT FOR IN THE NEW CONGRESS, AND THERE ARE 12 MAJOR INITIATIVES WHICH IF ENACTED WILL TRANSFORM THE MIDDLE CLASS OF THIS COUNTRY.
NUMBER ONE, WE NEED A MAJOR INVESTMENT TO REBUILD OUR CRUMBLING INFRASTRUCTURE, OUR ROADS, BRIDGES, WATER SYSTEMS, WASTE WATER PLANTS, AIRPORTS, RAILROADS, SCHOOLS, ET CETERA. IT HAS BEEN ESTIMATED THAT THE COST OF A BUSH-CHENEY WAR IN IRAQ, A WAR WE SHOULD NEVER HAVE GOTTEN INTO IN THE FIRST PLACE, WILL END UP COSTING US SOME $3 TRILLION. MADAM PRESIDENT, IF WE INVESTED $1 TRILLION IN REBUILDING OUR CRUMBLING INFRASTRUCTURE, WE COULD CREATE 13 MILLION DECENT-PAYING JOBS AND MAKE THIS COUNTRY MORE EFFICIENT AND MORE PRODUCTIVE. WE NEED TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE, NOT IN WAR.
TWO, THE UNITED STATES MUST LEAD THE WORLD IN REVERSING CLIMATE CHANGE AND MAKING CERTAIN THAT THIS PLANET IS HABITABLE FOR OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN. WE MUST TRANSFORM OUR ENERGY SYSTEM AWAY FROM FOSSIL FUELS AND INTO ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND SUSTAINABLE ENERGIES. AND WHEN WE DO THAT, MAKE OUR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM ENERGY EFFICIENT, MAKE OUR HOMES MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT, MOVE TO WIND, SOLAR, GEOTHERMAL, BIOMASS, WE CAN ALSO CREATE A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF GOOD-PAYING JOBS.
THREE, WE NEED TO DEVELOP NEW ECONOMIC MODELS TO INCREASE JOB CREATION AND PRODUCTIVITY. INSTEAD OF GIVING HUGE TAX BREAKS TO CORPORATIONS WHICH SHIP OUR JOBS TO CHINA AND OTHER LOW-WAGE COUNTRIES, WE NEED TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO WORKERS WHO WANT TO PURCHASE THEIR OWN BUSINESSES BY ESTABLISHING WORKER-OWNED COOPERATIVES. STUDY AFTER STUDY SHOWS THAT WHEN WORKERS HAVE AN OWNERSHIP STAKE IN THE BUSINESSES IN WHICH THEY WORK, PRODUCTIVITY GOES UP, ABSENTEEISM GOES DOWN, AND EMPLOYEES ARE MUCH MORE SATISFIED WITH THEIR JOBS.
FOUR, UNION WORKERS WHO ARE ABLE TO COLLECTIVELY WAR BE A GAIN FOR HIGHER WAGES AND BENEFITS EARN SUBSTANTIALLY MORE THAN NONUNION WORKERS. TODAY CORPORATE OPPOSITION TO UNION ORGANIZING MAKES IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR WORKERS TO JOIN A UNION. WE NEED LEGISLATION WHICH MAKES IT CLEAR THAT WHEN A MAJORITY OF WORKERS SIGN CARDS IN SUPPORT OF A UNION, THEY CAN FORM THAT UNION.
FIVE, THE CURRENT FEDERAL MINIMUM WAGE OF $7.25 AN HOUR IS A STARVATION WAGE. WE NEED TO RAISE THE MINIMUM WAGE TO A LIVING WAGE. NO ONE IN THIS COUNTRY WHO WORKS 40 HOURS A WEEK SHOULD LIVE IN POVERTY.
SIX, WOMEN WORKERS TODAY EARN 78% OF WHAT THEIR MALE COUNTERPARTS MAKE. WE NEED PAY EQUITY IN THIS COUNTRY, EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK.
SEVEN, MADAM PRESIDENT, SINCE 2001 WE HAVE LOST MORE THAN 60,000 FACTORIES IN THIS COUNTRY AND MORE THAN 4.9 MILLION DECENT-PAYING MANUFACTURING JOBS. WE ONCE LED THE WORLD IN TERMS OF OUR MANUFACTURING CAPABILITY, YET IN STATE AFTER STATE WE HAVE SEEN SIGNIFICANT LOSSES IN MANUFACTURING JOBS AND WHEN PEOPLE WALK INTO A STORE, IT IS HARDER AND HARDER FOR THEM TO PURCHASE PRODUCTS MADE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. MADAM PRESIDENT, THE TIME IS NOW FOR US TO END OUR DISASTROUS TRADE POLICIES THAT’S NAFTA, CAFTA, PERMANENT NORMAL TRADE RELATIONS WITH CHINA — BECAUSE THESE POLICIES SIMPLY ENABLE CORPORATE AMERICA TO SHUT DOWN PLANTS IN THIS COUNTRY AND MOVE TO CHINA AND OTHER LOW-WAGE COUNTRIES. MADAM PRESIDENT, WE NEED TO END THE RACE TO THE BOTTOM, AND TO DEVELOP TRADE POLICIES WHICH PROTECT THE INTERESTS OF AMERICAN WORKERS AND NOT JUST MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS. AMERICAN COMPANIES SHOULD START INVESTING IN THIS COUNTRY AND NOT SIMPLY IN CHINA AND OTHER LOW-WAGE COUNTRIES. POINT NUMBER
EIGHT — IN TODAY’S HIGHLY COMPETITIVE GLOBAL ECONOMY, MILLIONS OF AMERICANS ARE UNABLE TO AFFORD THE HIGHER EDUCATION THEY NEED IN ORDER TO GET GOOD-PAYING JOBS. 40, 50 YEARS AGO WE HAD A SITUATION IN THIS COUNTRY WHERE SOME OF THE GREAT PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES OF OUR NATION, THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, STATE COLLEGES ALL OVER AMERICA WERE VIRTUALLY TUITION-FREE, AND ANYBODY COULD GO TO THOSE SCHOOLS, REGARDLESS OF THE INCOME OF THEIR FAMILIES. TODAY, FOR MANY, MANY FAMILIES AND YOUNG PEOPLE, THE COST OF HIGHER EDUCATION IS SIMPLY UNAFFORDABLE, AND EITHER STUDENTS CHOOSE NOT TO GO TO COLLEGE BECAUSE THEY CAN’T AFFORD IT, OR THEY COME OUT OF SCHOOL DEEPLY IN DEBT, A DEBT FASTENED ON THEIR SHOULDERS FOR DECADES. MADAM PRESIDENT, QUALITY EDUCATION IN AMERICA FROM CHILD CARE TO HIGHER EDUCATION MUST BE AFFORDABLE FOR ALL. WITHOUT A HIGH QUALITY AND AFFORDABLE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM, WE WILL BE UNABLE TO COMPETE GLOBALLY IN THE INTERNATIONAL ECONOMY AND OUR STANDARD OF LIVING WILL CONTINUE TO DECLINE. WE HAVE GOT TO INVEST IN EDUCATION. THE IDEA THAT WE ARE LAYING OFF TEACHERS IS COMPLETELY ABSURD. POINT
NUMBER NINE — THE FUNCTION OF BANKING, THE BANKING SYSTEM, IS TO FACILITATE THE FLOW OF CAPITAL INTO THE PRODUCTIVE AND JOB-CREATING ECONOMY. THAT’S WHAT BANKING IS SUPPOSED TO BE. PEOPLE SAVE, PEOPLE PUT MONEY IN BANKS, THAT MONEY HE GOES OUT INTO THE ECONOMY SO PEOPLE CAN BUY HOMES, CREATE BUSINESSES. FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS CANNOT BE AN ISLAND UNTO THEMSELVES, STANDING AS HUGE PROFIT CENTERS OUTSIDE OF THE REAL PRODUCTIVE ECONOMY. IN OTHER WORDS, BANKING MUST BE A MEANS TO AN END, IMPROVING SOCIETY, CREATING JOBS, PROVIDING PEOPLE WITH DECENT HOUSING, NOT SIMPLY A MEANS BY WHICH FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS MAKE MORE AND MORE PROFIT. MADAM PRESIDENT, TODAY SIX HUGE WALL STREET FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS HAVE ASSETS EQUIVALENT TO 61% OF OUR GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT, CLOSE TO $10 TRILLION IN SIX FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS. THESE INSTITUTIONS UNDERWRITE MORE THAN HALF THE MORTGAGES IN THIS COUNTRY AND MORE THAN TWO-THIRDS OF THE CREDIT CARDS. THE GREED, RECKLESSNESS AND ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR OF MAJOR WALL STREET FIRMS PLUNGED THIS COUNTRY INTO THE WORST FINANCIAL CRISIS SINCE THE 1930’S, AND EVERY DAY WE OPEN UP A NEWSPAPER — OUR NEWSPAPERS AND WE SEE ANOTHER MAJOR BANKING SCANDAL. THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER, MADAM PRESIDENT, IS THAT THESE FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS ON WALL STREET ARE TOO POWERFUL TO BE REFORMED. THEY HAVE TOO MUCH MONEY, THEY HAVE TOO MUCH WEALTH, THEY HAVE TOO MANY LOBBYISTS, THEY MAKE TOO MUCH IN CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS. OUR GOAL MUST BE TO BREAK THEM UP. THEY HAVE TOO MUCH POWER, TOO MUCH WEALTH, THEY MUST BE BROKEN UP SO THAT OUR FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS BEGIN TO SERVE THE NEEDS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE AND NOT SIMPLY THE C.E.O.’S AND THE STOCKHOLDERS OF WALL STREET FIRMS.
NUMBER 10, THE UNITED STATES MUST JOIN THE REST OF THE INDUSTRIALIZED WORLD AND RECOGNIZE THAT HEALTH CARE IS A RIGHT OF ALL AND NOT A PRIVILEGE. I THINK MANY AMERICANS DON’T KNOW THAT WE ARE THE ONLY MAJOR COUNTRY ON EARTH THAT DOES NOT GUARANTEE HEALTH CARE TO ALL PEOPLE AS A RIGHT, AND YET WITHIN THIS DYSFUNCTIONAL HEALTH CARE SYSTEM, WE TODAY HAVE 40 MILLION PEOPLE WHO HAVE NO HEALTH INSURANCE, WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE WHO ARE UNDERINSURED, WE HAVE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WITH HIGH PREMIUMS, HIGH DEDUCTIBLES, AND AT THE END OF ALL OF THAT WE END UP SPENDING ALMOST TWICE AS MUCH PER CAPITA ON HEALTH CARE AS DO THE PEOPLE OF ANY OTHER MAJOR COUNTRY ON EARTH. MADAM PRESIDENT, THE TIME IS NOW FOR US TO DECLARE THAT HEALTH CARE IS A RIGHT OF ALL PEOPLE, AN PRIVILEGE. WE NEED TO PASS A MEDICARE FOR ALL SINGLE PAIR SYSTEM. — SINGLE PAYER SYSTEM. POINT
NUMBER 11. MADAM PRESIDENT, MILLIONS OF SENIOR CITIZENS IN THIS COUNTRY LIVE IN POVERTY AND WE HAVE THE HIGHEST RATE OF CHILDHOOD POVERTY OF ANY MAJOR COUNTRY ON EARTH. I HEAR A LOT OF DISCUSSION ON THE PART OF MY REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES AND SOME DEMOCRATS THAT WE SHOULD BE CUTTING SOCIAL SECURITY. WELL, I STRONGLY DISAGREE. IN MY VIEW, WE MUST STRENGTHEN AND EXPAND SOCIAL SECURITY, NOT CUT IT. AND THAT IS TERRIBLY IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY AT A TIME WHEN MORE AND MORE SENIORS ARE SLIPPING INTO POVERTY AND WE HAVE MILLIONS OF SENIORS WHO ARE TRYING TO SURVIVE ON $12,000, $13,000, $14,000 A YEAR, MAKING DECISIONS EVERY SINGLE DAY ABOUT WHETHER THEY BUY THE MEDICINE THEY NEED, WHETHER THEY HEAT THEIR HOMES ADEQUATELY, OR THEY BUY THE FOOD THAT THEY NEED. WE SHOULD NOT BE CUTTING THESE PROGRAMS, WE SHOULD BE EXPANDING THESE PROGRAMS.
THE 12th AND LAST POINT THAT I WOULD MAKE AS PART OF AN AGENDA THAT WE BUILDS AMERICA AND REBUILDS OUR MIDDLE CLASS, IS AT A TIME OF MASSIVE WEALTH AND INCOME INEQUALITY WE NEED A PRODUCTIVE TAX SYSTEM BASED ON ABILITY TO PAY. IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE THAT EVERY SINGLE YEAR WE HAVE MAJOR PROFITABLE CORPORATIONS WHO PAY NOTHING IN FEDERAL INCOME TAXES, AND IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE THAT WE HAVE CORPORATE C.E.O.’S IN THIS COUNTRY WHO MAKE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS EVERY YEAR WHO ENJOY AN EFFECTIVE TAX RATE WHICH IS LOWER THAN THEIR SECRETARIES’. THAT IS GROTESQUELY UNFAIR AND IT MUST BE CHANGED. FURTHER, WE HAVE GOT TO ADDRESS THE DISGRACE THAT EVERY SINGLE YEAR OUR COUNTRY LOSES OVER $1 BILLION IN REVENUE BECAUSE CORPORATIONS AND THE WEALTHY STASH THEIR MONEY IN OFFSHORE TAX HAVENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. THE TIME IS LONG OVERDUE FOR REAL TAX REFORM WHICH SAYS TO THE WEALTHY, WHICH SAYS TO LARGE, PROFITABLE CORPORATIONS THAT THEY HAVE GOT TO BEGIN PAYING THEIR FAIR SHARE OF TAXES.
SO LET ME CONCLUDE, MADAM PRESIDENT, BY GETTING BACK TO THE POINT THAT I MADE IN THE BEGINNING OF MY REMARKS. AND THAT IS THAT WE ARE IN A PIVOTAL MOMENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY. THE VERY, VERY RICH ARE BECOMING RICHER, THE MIDDLE CLASS IS DISAPPEARING, AND TODAY WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE LIVING IN POVERTY THAN AT ALMOST ANY TIME IN AMERICAN HISTORY. AND WITH THE WEALTH OF THE BILLIONAIRE CLASS, THEY ARE EXERCISING THEIR POWER POLITICALLY BECAUSE CITIZENS UNITED, A DISASTROUS SUPREME COURT DECISION, HAS GIVEN THEM THE POWER TO BUY ELECTIONS AND CONTROL TO A SIGNIFICANT DEGREE OUR POLITICAL PROCESS.
AND WE AS A NATION HAVE ULTIMATELY GOT TO MAKE A DECISION ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE THAT PROCESS, WHERE THE MIDDLE CLASS CONTINUES TO DECLINE AND THE VERY, VERY RICHEST PEOPLE BECOME RICHER, OR WHETHER WE ARE PREPARED — AND THIS IS NOT EASY STUFF — TO STAND TOGETHER TO TAKE ON THE BILLIONAIRE CLASS AND THEIR GREED AND TO SAY ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, THIS COUNTRY DOES NOT JUST BELONG TO THE TOP 1% OR THE TOP .1% BUT IT BELONGS TO ALL OF US, AND I HOPE VERY MUCH THAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE BECAUSE IF THEY DO, WE CAN BRING ABOUT A TRANSFORMATION OF THIS COUNTRY SO THE GOVERNMENT BEGINS TO WORK FOR ALL OF THE PEOPLE AND NOT JUST THE BILLIONAIRES ON TOP.
AND WITH THAT, MADAM PRESIDENT, I … YIELD THE FLOOR….
Accountants CPA Hartford, LLC