Senate Republicans Kill Teachers and First Responders Back to Work Act of 2011.

So… Republicans in the Senate don’t care about Teachers or Cops. Nice.
 Teachers and First Responders Back to Work Act of 2011 - Vote Rejected (50-50)
Last week the Senate rejected consideration of this bill that would allocate $30 billion in grants to state and local governments to pay to hire or retain teachers and $5 billion in grants to governments and other groups to pay for law enforcement officers and emergency personnel. This was one component of the president’s broader jobs bill that was rejected earlier in the month.

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Why I’m a Progressive

Why I’m a Progressive Democrat/Liberal 

It was through much pain that I make this article written for a wide audience, there was so much I wanted to talk about, but I felt that if I brought up certain aspects of activism this wouldn’t be effective for the conservative readership. The Vista is the University of San Diego’s student newspaper, our student population is majority white, Catholic, affluent, and conservative. With that in mind, I wrote what I hope will appeal to those students who can look at politics through a compassionate lens. 

“If by a ‘Liberal’ they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people — their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties — someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a ‘Liberal,’ then I’m proud to say I’m a ‘Liberal.’ I was in fifth grade when I found President Kennedy’s famous quote on liberalism. It was September 11th 2001, and after a weary, fearful, and sad school day of watching the unimaginable unfold, our homework was to create an American collage. My flag was full of inspirational Americana, and after hours of combing books, I discovered my centerpiece. I silently re-read it and with brimming eyes, felt that burning pang of pride and righteousness- this quote epitomized my eleven year old vision of America. President Kennedy’s values were what I thought everyone shared. My first perception of liberals was that everyone was liberal- didn’t everyone care about equality, peace, the welfare of the people, and economic justice? Isn’t the definition of government to help its people?

A decade later, I now grapple with another definition, one that is wholly my identity. I am an unapologetic progressive democrat because those progressive values, that printed rhetoric enshrined on a crumbled paper flag, still stir my conscious into action. In politics, we have to choose sides. Distinctively, we go with our feelings of right and wrong, our values stir what Dr. King Jr. would call the “drum-major instinct, to leave a committed life behind”. And a decade after finding JFK’s quote, I still stand for the values of compassion, justice, equality, and fairness that allow us to look forward to a better America and a better world, and inspire me to leave a committed life behind.

I am a progressive because I want my politics to be concerned with social justice and protecting the common good, not fear mongering or drenched in oil. My love for liberal politics inoculated in me the belief that the world is highly malleable and grassroots organizing can make a difference. Immersed in the political thicket with the No on SB1070 campaign, the DREAM ACT, the Repeal of DADT and DOMA, and several Young Democrats efforts, such as World AIDS Day, I know that politics can be more than a volley of dogmatic assertions. If dialectics lead to action, lasting change can be made. Politics are not a zero sum game of ideologue hardball if the values behind the beltway antics help the greater good.

There have been so many monumental societal changes made by progressives.  We couldn’t imagine American life without food safety laws, civil rights, rights for the disabled, pensions, the minimum wage, Social Security, Medicare, the EPA, and worker safety rules. The history of American progressivism is one of creative solutions to promote the common good while creating lasting change. Progressives work for tax fairness, a living wage, dignity and safety in the workplace, fair trade, women’s equality movement, LGBTQ equality, food justice, immigration reform, education attainment, and security in health and retirement, the War on Poverty, and a sustainable environment, among many, many interconnected social justice issues.

During a time of economic crisis, progressive democrats fight for economic justice and security in the U.S. and global economies, protect civil rights and civil liberties, promote global peace and security, and advance environmental protection and energy independence. Progressive democrats look to invest in America and create new jobs in the U.S. by building more affordable housing, re-building America’s schools and physical infrastructure, cleaning up our environment, and improving homeland security. By reaffirming labor rights, we can ensure working families can live about the poverty line and with dignity by raising and indexing the minimum wage. 

I love the Democratic party for its advocacy for the middle class and rising poor. We are all Americans and excluding the poor is not only bad fiscal policy, but inhumane. In 2009, The Census Bureau reported 17.3% of Americans lived in poverty. Business Insider claims that the bottom half of American society only controls about 2% of the wealth. When there is this much inequality and people are suffering, we must intervene to stop the root cause of cyclical poverty, and cutting all social safety nets is not the way to achieve that. The criticism that democrats spend liberally is baseless when the program’s long-term effects provide a healthy return. Want proof? Look at Johnson’s highly successful Great Society programs. When the Democrats passed the Affordable Care Act, it was projected to decrease the deficit by over a trillion dollars over twenty years.

I am a Democrat because I believe that we can get past a lot of our differences by realizing that our basic needs are the same as any other person’s. I believe that government has a duty to protect the vulnerable from abuse by organizations that have no interest but turning a profit. I believe that America should lead by example, and full equality should be more than a legal standard, but a social standard. I believe that war is a failure of diplomacy. I believe that justice, truth, and transparency should be a tenacious standard. Women should have the same access to healthcare and the same income as their male counterparts.  And each succeeding generation should have the opportunity, through hard work, service and sacrifice, to enjoy a brighter future than the last.

I’m a progressive because we can do more than complain about politics. Instead of subscribing to a party agenda that supports two rampant wars, Bush tax cuts, and the war on women, labor, and the environment, you can choose to act on your values.