20/20 Vision

What’s the Gig Idea, Anyway?

Update 364 — What’s the Gig Idea, Anyway?Labor Mobility: an Independence Day Inquiry Labor mobility, the willingness and ability of workers to move — geographically, or just from firm to firm — seems aided by technology and made more promising by workers’ increasing readiness to change jobs and on short notice, with “job” coming to mean project …

What’s the Gig Idea, Anyway? Read More »

2020 Presidential Candidate Series — Sen. Harris

Update 363 — 2020 Presidential Cand. Series:Economic Agenda of Senator Kamala Harris  The chief economic proposal offered by Sen. Kamala Harris is a progressive, redistributive tax cut providing relief to middle-class Americans. Its significant revenue cost is only partially offset in the current proposal. We’ve seen tax proposals of similar scale (Trump), beneficiaries (BIll Clinton) and …

2020 Presidential Candidate Series — Sen. Harris Read More »

The Economic Debate Offstage

Update 362 — The Economic Debate Offstage:Corporate Debt and Emerging Financial Risks All eyes will be on the first Democratic debate tonight in Miami.   Starts 9:00 pm ET and ends at 11:00. Ten — half the qualifying field of candidates — will participate tonight.  The other half will do so at the same venue …

The Economic Debate Offstage Read More »

2020 Pres. Candidates Propose Bevy of Tax Credits

Update 361 — 2020 Pres. Candidates Propose Bevy of Tax Credits, But Are They Progressive? The 2020 Democratic presidential candidates are advancing a smorgasbord of tax credit proposals, mainly focused on augmenting existing tax credit programs, such as the earned income tax credit (EITC) and the child tax credit (CTC).  Tomorrow, House Ways & Means …

2020 Pres. Candidates Propose Bevy of Tax Credits Read More »

2020 Presidential Candidate Series — Mayor Buttigieg

Update 360 — 2020 Presidential Cand. Series:Economic Agenda of Mayor Pete Buttigieg Who is Mayor Pete and what is his early polling boomlet about? At 37, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg would be the youngest president in American history.  Several recent presidents have entered office earlier in their lives than might have been ideal and …

2020 Presidential Candidate Series — Mayor Buttigieg Read More »

House Financial Svcs. Cmte. Adopts Eight Bills

Update 359 —  House Financial Svcs. Cmte. Adopts Eight Bills; Focus on Housing Reform This week, the House Financial Services Committee marked up eight bills, including five housing proposals.  Chair Waters has put housing front-and-center in her legislative agenda, with a particular focus on a ‘housing trilogy’ in the areas of affordability, discrimination, and homelessness. …

House Financial Svcs. Cmte. Adopts Eight Bills Read More »

Here Comes a Housing Pitch

Update 358 — Here Comes a Housing Pitch: Can Mitch Afford to Swing and Miss? The major piece of unfinished business from the financial crisis of 2008 is housing finance and housing policy generally.  The GSEs, under conservatorship since then, and long-standing problems in housing finance and the underlying market have been awaiting comprehensive reform. …

Here Comes a Housing Pitch Read More »

Export-Import Bank Reauthorization

Update 357 — Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization; Bizarre Bugbear of Incoherent Opposition If ever there were a government program a Trump administration could love, it would be the Ex-Im Bank.  It finances American trade and jobs and supports critical industry, including national defense contractors, doing so at a profit to taxpayers. Yet, to run the Bank, …

Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Read More »

2020 Presidential Cand. Series: Sanders

Update 356 — 2020 Presidential Cand. Series:Economic Agenda of Sen. Bernie Sanders In 2016, Sen. Bernie Sanders ran for president as the progressive challenger to Hillary Clinton, an alternative for those fed up with the establishment. He almost won the nomination. Now, with over twenty Democratic contenders in the 2020 primary, many of whom are …

2020 Presidential Cand. Series: Sanders Read More »

Nest Eggs Bills on the Hill

Update 354:  Nest Eggs Bills on the HillIs it Goose Eggs or Law after Floor Vote? A big-ticket bipartisan bill is blasting through Congress?  Really? Or is this “Infrastructure Week” again? No, this is serious stuff and it’s about retirement.  We look at the two leading proposals to address the dire underpreparedness of Americans for …

Nest Eggs Bills on the Hill Read More »