The Rich Have Gotten Richer,
The Poor Are Getting Poorer,
The Middle Class Is Disappearing!

We can and must change direction:
a 21st Century New Deal
by Peter Mathews, Professor of Political Science

June 19, 2009

The top 400 income earners in this nation each received an average of $214,000,000 last year. The average American’s individual income was $26,000 last year. Since the beginning of 2008, 4.6 million plus jobs were lost. All of this and more were the direct result of former President Bush’s and Congress’ wrong headed policies of eight years: “Trickle Down Economics” with huge tax cuts for the super rich; An unjustified, costly and debt generating war in Iraq; Unregulated, Free Trade (not Fair Trade), job exporting, trade deficit generating, anti-worker policies; Further deregulation of banks and finance, allowing Wall Street to go wild.

The best way out of this mess, and to restore the shattered American Dream, is to learn from the spirit and substance of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. While faced with the worst economic Depression in history, FDR inspired us to believe that government should be made a positive instrument that helps provide full-fledged opportunity for all Americans to achieve the American Dream (at the very least, entry to the Middle Class). This must include new government policies that promote:

¦Full employment with high paying private sector and public works jobs in a strong Green Economy.

¦Increased Competiveness for American Businesses by relieving them of burdensome health care costs, by establishing:

¦A Universal Single Payer Health Care System (Medicare for All) which will cost 40% less per person than the present wasteful, inefficient, profit driven system that mainly benefits the insurance companies, drug companies, and HMOs at the expense of American patients, and increases the cost of American products.

¦Universal Free Public Education of all types preschool through college, including academic, technical, trade school and apprenticeship programs that will prepare American workers for the 21st Century workforce.

¦Fair trade between the United States and other countries that will create high paying jobs and new wealth for American workers and others in the world, not just for corporate owners.

¦Pro-worker policies that will strengthen labor unions and once again grow the working middle class.

¦The resurrection of a modern version of FDR’s Works Progress Administration (WPA), Public Works Administration (PWA), Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and other public employment agencies in high tech, manufacturing, and scientific and technological areas. This will stimulate and supplement the private sector by creating high paying government employment: building Maglev high speed trains; alternative energy such as wind, solar, tide and wave power; building K-12 classrooms to reduce class sizes; building hospitals, and dental and health clinics to ensure health care for all Americans.

¦Promote strong support for small businesses through lower taxes and low interest loans for expansion.

¦Full funding for the above programs by closing unfair corporate tax loopholes (ctj.org), eliminating corporate welfare, canceling the Bush tax cuts for the super rich, and ending the war in Iraq rapidly and responsibly. President Obama has claimed, “We’ve got over $1 trillion worth of loopholes in the corporate tax code” (LA Times, Michael Finnegan 9/19/07).
Under the Bush tax cuts, a person earning one million dollars received $97,000 in tax cuts per year for 10 years while a person earning $40,000 received $350. We need to urge President Obama to immediately get Congress to carry out his campaign promise of canceling the Bush tax cuts for the super rich, bringing in $300 billion more. This $1.3 trillion dollars is real money, not borrowed money like the Bush Administration stimulus and bailout packages. This Real Money can fully fund the 21st Century New Deal and pay down our federal debt, bringing fiscal responsibility and increased income and greater wealth for all Americans, not just the wealthy few at the top.

Press Telegram Readers Respond Well to Mathews in Poll
July 2, 2009

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"Do you think Peter Mathews has a chance of beating Laura Richardson" was the question asked of readers by the Long Beach Press Telegram in an online poll after news of the Congresswoman's personal financial troubles gained national attention. Readers, fed up with incompetence and corruption plaguing every layer of government, favored Peter Mathews as Richardson's obvious replacement.
"This is the prevailing sentiment, not only among voters in this district, but literally everywhere we go all over the (Los Angeles) county," said Brett Covey, the campaign's manager. "It's amazing! Anywhere we've gone, people we talk to have heard about Richardson's problems - and they really don't like her. Peter's like a rock star, and everyone wants to talk to him when they find out he's running against her. They like his ideas and want him to be the next Congressperson."
The result of the poll appeared on a front page portion of the Sunday edition of the Press Telegram.

Peter Mathews is a Democratic candidate for the 37th Congressional District of California