Counting, conflict, and consequences
Based on traffic stats, the great majority of you arrived in the last few days. We’re living out some likely events I suggested in September. F...
The Biden Administration’s busy first day
Busy day so far:
- Rejoining the Paris Climate Accord.
- VP Harris swearing in three new Senators.
- Staying in the World Health Organization.
- Undoing immigration restrictions and restoring DACA.
- Firing the National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel.
- Freezing student loan repayments and interest.
- No more border wall.
- Revoking a variety of other Trump Administration policies, and…
- Directing the Census to ensure a full and fair count. That’s great for fair districting! Still some threat at the state level for noncitizen data, though.
Follow the Biden Administration’s actions at the White House Briefing Room.
Photo: Tom Roussey, ABC.
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Yes, and Biden had an equally productive second and third day. I am deeply impressed! Clearly Team Biden hit the ground running – and I am sure there are a lot of positive developments in every federal agency that has not yet hit the news.
Unfortunately, going forward, President Biden will need help from Congress, including the Senate. And yet for the time being, Chuck Schumer is Majority Leader in name only. As crazy as it may be, the committees still have Republican chairs and Republican majorities.
The regrettable result is that confirmation of President Biden’s cabinet nominations is being slow-walked, and there is no foreseeable action on his requested Stimulus Deal or other urgent legislation.
McConnell is of course insisting that his price for the required power-sharing agreement is promise that Democrats will not scrap the legislative filibuster.
Numerous commentators are essentially saying that “sooner or later they will have to reach an agreement”.
However, short of Democrats unanimously deciding immediately to scrap the legislative filibuster, I have yet to see anyone suggest a way to make McConnell yield.
Question: If Democrats are not unanimous, is there any way to prevent McConnell from maintaining the current sorry state of the Senate in perpetuity?
Could this proposal by Josh Marshall of TPM provide some incentive?
“…the key importance of the committees right now is getting nominations approved.
“So here’s what to do. Schumer should announce that as long as the stand-off continues and committees are not properly organized, he’ll bring all nominations directly to the floor for votes, bypassing the committees.
“Only a temporary expedient. As soon as they have an agreement they’ll go back to the normal process.
“This both addresses the immediate needs of the country and gives the minority an incentive to negotiate in good faith.
“Words and outrage mean nothing. Action counts.”
So, professors have saddled their students with horrible amounts of debt. They are pretty happy to see Biden as president so that maybe he will shovel more money into their hands – forgive student debt and start the cycle again. Professors earn what – 3x 4x 10x? median family income? and they want the government to keep shoveling more money into their pockets?
You have an unrealistic idea of the financial situation of people at colleges and universities.
Most of the growth in higher-education costs is administrative in nature.
Lecturers and instructors are paid below the US median income, assistant professors slightly above. Full professors, who are basically at the apex of their field, have a median salary about 1.6x median income. Data from AAUP.