The financial/credit crisis is drying up equity and putting homeowners upside-down(opens in new tab) in their mortgages, making student loans(opens in new tab) more difficult to get, and dimming(opens in new tab) prospects for retirement among many workers.
Even though the United States is among the wealthiest nations in the world, employers pay these workers less(opens in new tab) than workers who hold similar jobs elsewhere. Child-care workers here earn less than housekeepers(opens in new tab) – a sad example(opens in new tab) of economic priorities that are simply out of order.
According to a new report by the Pew Research Center, middle class families are feeling the squeeze(opens in new tab). They aren’t alone – the budget prognosis(opens in new tab) for many states(opens in new tab) isn’t good. But a recent Gallup poll shows Americans are now more “redistributionist(opens in new tab)” than they were at the end of the Great Depression.
If we’re going to solve market failures and live without fear for our economic security, we need to make shared investments in public structures – like education, transportation and health.
Taxes are a condition of liberty(opens in new tab), and it’s time Washington had a fairer tax structure(opens in new tab) that promotes shared prosperity for our common future.