Robert Reich

Jan. 30, 2017 – Donald Trump has reorganized the National Security Council – elevating his chief political strategist Steve Bannon, and demoting the Director of National Intelligence and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Bannon will join the NSC’s principals committee, the top inter-agency group advising the President on national security. Meanwhile, the […]

Jan. 20, 2017 – The ongoing contest between the Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders wings of the Democratic Party continues to divide Democrats. It’s urgent Democrats stop squabbling and recognize seven basic truths: The Party is on life support. Democrats are in the minority in both the House and Senate, with no end in sight. […]

Jan. 16, 2017 – At his turbulent his news event last Wednesday (I won’t dignify it by calling it a news conference), Trump reiterated that he will build a wall along the Mexican border. “It’s not a fence. It’s a wall,” he said, and“Mexico will pay for the wall.” Here are 6 reasons why Trump’s […]

Jan. 13, 2017 – Tyrants don’t allow open questioning, and they hate the free press. They want total control. That’s why Trump’s so-called “news conference” on December 11 – the first he’s held in six months – wasn’t really a news conference at all. Consider: 1. Trump refused to answer questions from reporters who have run […]

Dec. 7, 2016 – Last week, Trump made a deal with Carrier (and its parent, United Technologies) to keep 800 jobs in Indiana rather than sending them to Mexico. Indiana agreed to give Carrier $7 million in tax breaks, and Trump assured United Technologies that its $6 billion a year in military contracts would be […]

Nov. 28, 2016 – Democracy depends on a free and independent press, which is why all tyrants try to squelch it. They use seven techniques that, worryingly, President-elect Donald Trump already employs. 1. Berate the media. Last week, Trump summoned two-dozen TV news anchors and executives to the twenty-fifth floor of Trump Tower to berate […]

Nov. 21, 2016 – Trump’s First 100 Day agenda includes repealing environmental regulations, Obamacare, and the Dodd-Frank Act, giving the rich a huge tax cut, and much worse. Here’s the First 100 Day resistance agenda [with thanks to Alan Webber]: 1.  Get Democrats in the Congress and across the country to pledge to oppose Trump’s agenda. […]

Nov. 10, 2016 – As a first step, I believe it necessary for the members and leadership of the Democratic National Committee to step down and be replaced by people who are determined to create a party that represents America – including all those who feel powerless and disenfranchised, and who have been left out […]

Oct. 30, 2016 – The parallels are striking. In the last decades of the nineteenth century – the so-called “Gilded Age”— America experienced inequality on a scale it had never before seen, combining wild opulence and searing poverty. American industry consolidated into a few giant monopolies, or trusts, headed by “robber barons” who wielded enough […]

Oct. 20, 2016 – Amid all the focus on the presidential race it’s also important to keep in mind Democrats have a fighting chance to take back the Senate in November. There are at least 12 races in play. Win five, and Democrats are in control regardless of the outcome of the presidential election. Many […]

Oct. 2, 2016 – According to the New York Times, Donald Trump declared a $916 million loss on his 1995 tax returns – which could have allowed him to legally avoid paying any federal income taxes for 18 years. The loss stemmed from Trump’s investments in the early 1990s. Ordinary investors in Trump’s business empire […]

Sept. 22, 2016 – I finally found a Trump supporter – this morning when I went to buy coffee. (I noticed a Trump bumper sticker on his car.) “Hi,” I said. “Noticed your Trump bumper sticker.” “Yup,” he said, a bit defensively. “I hope you don’t mind my asking, but I’m curious. Why are you […]

Aug. 17, 2016 – The best argument for a single-payer health plan is the recent decision by giant health insurer Aetna to bail out next year from 11 of the 15 states where it sells Obamacare plans. Aetna’s decision follows similar moves by UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest insurer, and Humana, one of the other giants. […]