Pacific Progressive

President Obama's Progressive China Policy: Assessing the US-China Relationship Today and What Lies Ahead

By Nina Hachigian, Winny Chen

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

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On the eve of this year’s Strategic and Economic Dialogue meeting between senior U.S. and Chinese government officials in Beijing, recent headlines highlight that the United States can work with China, that we must work with China, that we will always champion its own interests and values while doing so—and why these efforts can be exceedingly frustrating.

Consider first the apparent breakthrough on economic sanctions against Iran. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that the U.N. Security Council, including China and Russia, were finally able to agree on a draft resolution that would place tougher sanctions on Iran for its illegal nuclear program. Then came the news that North Korea is to blame for the sinking of a South Korean warship earlier this month. While the international investigation was ongoing, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il had visited China and met with its top leadership, infuriating the South Koreans.

Irritating the Chinese (around the same time of the Dear Leader’s trip) was the U.S. Department of State’s tentative decision earlier this month to provide funding to a company linked to the Falun Gong movement outlawed in China—a company that has developed software that allows users to circumvent government blocks, including, potentially China’s Great Firewall. Finally, highlighting an issue that is likely to dominate the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, or S&ED talks, while in China this week, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke criticized Bejing’s efforts to disadvantage U.S. businesses operating in China via new Chinese attempts to support “indigenous innovation” over foreign products and services.

Vector Control District Kills Rat Control Privatization Program

A program that was designed to allow private pest control companies to take rat abatement calls and then sell services to homeowners was voted down at the May 20, 2010 meeting of the Orange County Vector Control District (OCVCD) after the pest operators declined to participate after finding out what would be involved.  The pilot program was proposed by Trustee Robert Ming, a Council Member from Laguna Niguel.  

The Orange County Pest Control Operators of California (OCPCOC) sent a lette explaining why they didn't want to participate in the program.  Download PCOC 5-20-2010 Letter  In the letter, OCPCOC shows that they don't understand the fundamental difference between the public health service provided by OCVCD and the work done by private pest control companies.  The services provided by OCVCD, which include red fire ant eradication, rat abatement, West Nile virus tracking, among others, require a systemic approach to locate, contain and eradicate the problems before serious health problems occur.  OCVCD is allowed to go into properties to evaluate and eliminate problems to check the spread of disease.  From the letter, it's clear that the private pest companies are unwilling to do that.  

OCVCD receives about $6 per home each year as a tax assessment. This money is used to pay for rat services, West Nile virus, red fire ant eradication, mosquito control and other services.  If the rat control program had been privatized, the private pest companies would have received a portion of the $6 per home per year to provide rat control services, which is a tiny fraction of what the companies usually charge for this type of service.  If the private companies were providing the services to the home owners, their would be a strong economic incentive to sell services during the OCVCD calls.  

How the Tax Bill Would Affect Medicare, Medicaid and COBRA Subsidies

By Andrew Villegas, KHN Staff Writer

This article was published by Kaiser Health News.

Caught up in the congressional politics swirling around a pending tax bill are proposals that affect health care for newly laid-off workers as well as Medicare and Medicaid patients.

On the table: two proposals to extend — once again — subsidies for COBRA health insurance and a "fix" of Medicare payments to doctors. Without action by the end of the month, those laid off after June 1 would have to pay the entire cost of continuing their health insurance and doctors could see their Medicare payments slashed by 21 percent. 

And the legislation would also continue the extra federal payments to help hard-pressed state Medicaid programs. 

The tax "extenders" bill extends unemployment benefits, a number of popular tax cuts and funds small business loan programs. 

Congress is considering several solutions on the COBRA, Medicaid and Medicare payment issues and the House is expected to act early next week.

Good News 600,000 Gallons Later: Obama Administration Instructs BP to Use Less Toxic Dispersant

By Ellen-Marie Whelan

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

A surprising—and welcome—twist to the unfolding disaster in the Gulf Coast came yesterday when the EPA informed BP that the company has 24 hours to choose a less toxic form of chemical dispersant to break up its oil spill. BP must then use the new dispersants within 72 hours after the EPA approves of the new chemicals.

The dispersant BP is currently using is manufactured by a company with which it shares close financial ties, and it is known to be more toxic than others on the market. The exact chemical makeup of the dispersants is protected under trade laws, but Britain banned similar formulations of the same dispersants BP has been using more than a decade ago.

It’s not clear what the health consequences of the dispersants will be in the long term, but studies following the Exxon Valdez spill shoed that the dispersants accumulate in living organisms at very high concentrations and harmed the developing hearts of both Pacific herring and pink salmon embryos. A National Academies of Science 2005 report on these dispersants also included several sobering cautions. Most lab studies use the fluorescent lighting usually found in the labs when they test toxicity and chemical breakdown, but research conducted under conditions more equivalent to natural sunlight indicate that toxicity increases significantly after sun exposure—by 12 to 50,000 times as much.

The Impact of Health Reform on Health System Spending

By David M. Cutler, Karen Davis, Kristof Stremikis

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

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The health reform legislation passed in March 2010 will introduce a range of payment and delivery system changes designed to achieve a significant slowing of health care cost growth. Most assessments of the new reform law have focused only on the federal budgetary impact. This updated analysis projects the effect of national reform on total national health expenditures and the insurance premiums that American families would likely pay. We estimate that, on net, the combination of provisions in the new law will reduce health care spending by $590 billion over 2010–2019 and lower premiums by nearly $2,000 per family. Moreover, the annual growth rate in national health expenditures could be slowed from 6.3 percent to 5.7 percent.

Overview

To judge the merit of the comprehensive health reform legislation recently signed into law by President Obama, it is essential to understand its impact on the affordability of insurance coverage and overall health care spending. Most assessments of the new law consider the federal budget only. For example, the Congressional Budget Office “scored” the federal budget impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as modified by the Reconciliation Act (Affordable Care Act), finding a modest deficit reduction in the first 10 years of implementation.

Orange County Progressive Summit - June 12

OCEC, Equality CA, Americans United, HRC, PCU, Women For:OC, Courage Campaign and other co-sponsors are planning a full day of informational workshops that individuals and large organizations alike can put to practical use. Our keynote speakers, Mimi Kennedy and Marjorie Cohn, will educate and inspire you. You will be able to meet other committed activists and browse the booths of dozens of like-minded community partners.

The Orange County Progressive Summit will be held on June 12, 9 am - 4:30 pm at St. Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church, 3233 Pacific View Dr, Corona Del Mar, CA 92625

For more information please go to ocprogressivesummit.org

Tax Extenders 101: A Primer on Job Creation and Relief for American Families

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

Download this memo (pdf)

What are tax extenders?

The phrase “tax extenders” refers to a bundle of provisions in H.R. 4213, a bill that the House is expected to vote on this Thursday. Among other provisions, the bill includes the extension of unemployment and COBRA health insurance benefits for those Americans hit hardest by the Great Recession, and fiscal relief to states to preserve critical health services and save the jobs of teachers, firefighters, and police officers. It also includes an extension of the current rate of Medicare payments to doctors through the end of the year.

The tax extenders bill will also likely postpone expiration of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families emergency fund, which has allowed states to expand work-focused programs and create subsidized jobs for families struggling during this recession. And it may include funding for a youth summer jobs program.

Why do we need to extend unemployment insurance and TANF emergency funds again?

The economic recovery that has been under way since the middle of 2009 is gaining momentum and the labor market is finally starting to add jobs, but this growth is far from stable. The unemployment rate was 9.9 percent in April 2010, and much higher among particularly vulnerable groups such as African Americans (16.5 percent), Hispanics (12.5 percent), youth (25.4 percent), and those without a high school diploma (14.7 percent).

We Share More Than a Fence: US-Mexican Cooperation on Migration, Crime, and Climate

By Michael Werz , Winny Chen 

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon spoke at a White House press conference yesterday and a joint session of Congress today about some of the common challenges the United States and Mexico face—migration, international criminal networks and common security, and climate change. The Obama administration has, after many years of neglect under President George W. Bush, initiated a new era of hemispheric politics. Mexico is the closest and most important partner in this endeavor and, as the Obama administration recognizes, deserves greater support from its neighbor to the north.

The United States needs to help Mexico improve the rule of law and judicial reform, and at the same time stop the illegal flow of arms and money from the United States. Both countries need to find ways to enhance economic development. One promising way to do so is by cooperating on alternative energy; another is working together to create a rational immigration system that promotes legal, orderly migration flows. Our societies are so intertwined the relationship cannot be reduced to narco wars and antimigration laws—and no fence can reverse our common future.

Our common issues transcend the Mexican-American border and blur the traditional distinction between domestic and foreign policy. As President Calderon asserted in today’s speech before Congress, “We are stronger together than apart.” Only jointly and in close cooperation can the United States and Mexico tackle these challenges.

Think Again: This "Tea" Swallows Republicans

By Eric Alterman 

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

“The 2010 electorate has swallowed an emetic—disgorging in a series of retching convulsions officeholders in both parties who seem to embody conventional Washington politics.” So sayeth Politico’s John F. Harris and Jim VandeHei, the sages of up-to-the-second insider conventional wisdom, about the recent results of this year’s midterm election primaries.

And while the beltway is atwitter with earthquake metaphors—which, personally, I much prefer to Allen and VendeHei’s projectile vomit-based explanations—the authors admit that, “The anti-establishment, anti-incumbent fevers on display Tuesday are not new.” In fact, however, almost all the rebellion is on one side. Now it may be that Democrats are planning a rebellion against their political establishment, but it’s a hard argument to make when Exhibit A is a lifelong Republican.

A vote against Alan Mollohan (D-WV) in Washington was a vote against corruption. And Democrat Blanche Lincoln—who proved a particular pain in the ass on health care reform, the president’s primary political project, and did not support the Employee Free Choice Act—was forced into a runoff by a member of Arkansas’s political establishment—its lieutenant governor, Bill Halter. Mark Critz, the easiest Democratic establishment target and a not terribly charismatic ex-staffer to John Murtha, beat a Tea Party Republican in a special election in a voting district that chose John Kerry in 2004 and John McCain in 2008. In a straightforward “people versus power” election that guy should be filing for unemployment today.

So the story on the Democratic side is, well, no story.

Learning from Tragedy: BP Disaster Investigation Must Be Free, Clear, and Complete

By Daniel J. Weiss

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

President Obama is likely to sign an executive order sometime during the next several days that would create an independent commission to investigate the causes behind the tragic BP oil disaster. A thorough independent investigation is essential to understand what caused the explosion that cost 11 workers their lives, and what led to the failure of the blowout preventer that was supposed to prevent an oil gusher.

The independent commissions established by Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan to investigate the Three Mile Island near-nuclear meltdown and the Challenger Space Shuttle accident, respectively, provide valuable guidance for the design and operation of the BP investigation.

Unlike many congressionally chartered commissions, the TMI and Challenger commissions were not required to have a particular bipartisan balance. The TMI panel did not establish specific criteria for its membership. President Carter appointed prominent people from various fields. The chair was Dartmouth College President John Kemeny, who had worked on the Manhattan Project to develop the atom bomb. The panel included five professors, a union president, a CEO, a governor, an environmental leader, and a resident near TMI.

The executive order to create the Challenger panel required members “from among distinguished leaders of the government, and the scientific, technical, and management communities.” Its chair was former Attorney General and Secretary of State William Rogers. The panel included two former astronauts, a former test pilot, and physicists and engineers from both academia and the aerospace industry.

Chase Leaves Thousands Stuck in Loan Mod Limbo

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica

This article was published by ProPublica.

As we wrote on Tuesday, the new data the Treasury Department released show a number of problems with the mortgage modification program. But JPMorgan Chase leads the pack when it comes to those stuck in loan mod limbo.

JPMorgan Chase, the data show, has the most homeowners waiting more than six months for a final answer on whether they’ll get a permanent modification. (What we still don’t have data on is how many many homeowners have applied for a modification to begin with and how long they’ve waited.)

Although we’ve been providing estimates on this backlog formonths, this was the first time the Treasury had divulged the exact numbers. Only one other servicer, the relatively small Saxon, has a higher proportion of homeowners who’ve been waiting for months to hear whether their trial modifications will become permanent.

Forty-five percent of all trial modifications that Chase has begun—which are supposed to last no longer than three months—have dragged on for at least six months without a final answer from the bank. (See how other banks are doing.)

Loan Mod Logjam Continues for 265,000 Homeowners: Failures Jump

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica

This article was published by ProPublica.

New data released Monday shows that the administration’smortgage modification program continues to be plagued by delays and disappointment for hundreds of thousands of homeowners.

Of the 1.2 million homeowners who have begun a modification in the last year, about 265,000 have been stuck in “trial” periods for six months, double the three months that trial periods are supposed to last.

The number of homeowners dropped from the program also continues to rise, meaning that many homeowners can expect to wait more than half a year for a decision from their mortgage servicer only to then be dropped from the program.

You can see our interactive breakdown of the data here. It shows which mortgage servicers are primarily responsible for the continued logjam.

The delays have long been a problem with the program: we reported in January that nearly 100,000 homeowners had been stuck in a trial period for over six months. Homeowners and advocates frequently complain that mortgage servicers ask for the same documents over and over, give contradictory information, and make mistakes. Nearly 1,000 homeowners have written to ProPublica over the last year to tell us their stories about seeking a mortgage modification, and we continue to hear the same complaints.

The Oil Disaster Is a Health Disaster, Too: How to Protect Public Health in the Aftermath of Major Disasters

By Lesley Russell, Ellen-Marie Whelan

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

The tragic BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has taken 11 lives. The immediate economic and environmental damages are still unfolding as the 7,500 square mile oil slick oozes toward the Atlantic Ocean. But Louisiana's vibrant fishing and seafood industries have been shut down in anticipation of oil contamination.

The oil gusher also poses a less visible, but just as dangerous, threat to public health from the oil, its fumes, and the dispersants—the chemicals used to clean up the oil. All can be highly toxic and harm the health of those exposed to them, especially volunteers and workers engaged in cleanup operations and those with respiratory ailments, the elderly, and young children living on the Gulf Coast.

here is no clear public health infrastructure to monitor and address these potential human health hazards or any others that may arise in the future. So we need to learn from the health disasters of the past, such as those that occurred from the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 and the World Trade Center attack of 2001, and not wait for this to become a public health emergency before responding.

The human health problems evolving from the BP oil disaster are insidious and unknown. The first and most obvious are the health effects from the oil itself. This is mostly a risk for those in the immediate Gulf region and the cleanup workers. More concerning is the ill effects that may come from the way that BP cleans up these oil disasters using dispersants. These are chemicals sprayed directly on the oil slick to break it up into much smaller particles. This does not remove the oil, but the dispersal makes it less visible and prevents it from washing up on the shoreline by breaking the oil into droplets that then often sink to the ocean floor.

Healthy Students Are Better Students: Health Reform Bill Gives a Boost to School-Based Health Centers

By Saba Bireda

This article was published by the Center for American Progress.

The recently passed Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L.111-148, promises to make far-reaching changes to our current health care system. But the law’s benefits may go well beyond improvements to care and savings to consumers. At least one provision in the law could help improve academic outcomes for low-income students by providing much-needed health services at school.

The law for the first time creates federal grant programs to fund the expansion and support of school-based health centers, or SBHCs. School-based health centers provide free, comprehensive health services to students during school hours, including primary care, mental health, dental, vision, and nutrition services. The centers are typically located in medically underserved communities—almost a third in rural areas—and the grant program would give preference to SBHCs that serve large populations of children eligible for state Medicaid or children’s health insurance plans. Students in most schools have sporadic access to a school nurse, but students at or near SHBC schools can use the center for most of their health care needs.

There are currently about 2,000 SBHCs in the United States, but advocates such as the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care estimate that many more clinics are needed to serve students who are uninsured or living in underserved areas. One grant program, authorized under section 4101(a) of the health reform bill, would provide $200 million for SBHC facility costs. A second program, authorized under Section 4101(b) but with no funds yet appropriated, would cover operation costs of existing SBHCs.

Preventing Sexual Assault in the Military a Concern of Rep. Loretta Sanchez

Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (CA-47), the ranking female member on the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), was successful in ensuring key sexual assault provisions were included in the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act. These provisions, which received unanimous support from Rep. Sanchez’s colleagues on the Military Personnel Subcommittee, will help ensure that our military leaders are taking an active role in preventing and prosecuting cases of sexual assault, and that victims have access to meaningful legal and counseling services.

“I am pleased that this year’s National Defense Authorization Act will include concrete initiatives to help prevent cases of sexual assault in the military,” said Rep. Sanchez. “Although the military has taken significant steps to address this issue, there has actually been an 11 percent increase in reports of sexual assault cases involving military personnel, including a 16 percent increase in combat areas like Afghanistan and Iraq. In order to effectively curb this problem, Congress and our military leaders need to work harder, together, to create a safe, inclusive environment for every soldier who serves this county. The provisions I advocated for in the NDAA will help encourage that kind of collaboration.”

In December 2009, the Defense Task Force on Sexual Assault in the Military Services released a report with the group’s findings and recommendations regarding the issue of sexual assault in the military. Rep. Sanchez submitted the following key provisions to the Armed Services Committee to ensure their inclusion in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act:

·       Language directing every U.S. military service secretary to ensure all commanders and senior enlisted leaders are actively involved in sexual assault prevention and awareness programs.

·       Language ensuring victims are offered adequate legal assistance and basic protections (like privileged communications).