BerlinRosen’s Post

Congratulations to the winners of yesterday’s election – and we look forward to working with the Administration and legislators in the new legislative session. The 2023 election has passed and New Jersey voters, in exit polling, overwhelmingly stated that strengthening the economy and tackling affordability is their No. 1 issue. These have been priority issues the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce has been pushing for many years. Moving forward, the Chamber looks forward to meeting with policymakers to discuss ways to build upon our state’s economic momentum highlighted by New Jersey climbing 23 places to No. 19 in CNBC’s annual Top States for Doing Business list. However, there is more work to be done to maintain that ranking or place even higher. The Chamber will continue to push its six-point legislative agenda designed to assist employers of all sizes and, if implemented, build on the state’s recent successes. New Jersey has the potential to be a Top 10 state in the nation when it comes to doing business – and let’s all work together to achieve that milestone. A strong economy will benefit every business and resident of our state. More information: https://lnkd.in/eYsAYkq7

Generations of partisan gridlock have left us with insolvent entitlement programs like social security and Medicare. Critical programs like affordable child care and paid leave are called impossible due to the same deficits. Smart spending is the key to overcoming these challenges and addressing our most pressing national issues. Let's transcend party lines and invest in our future. #SmartSpending #RedFernAnalytics https://lnkd.in/gTvfGj3v Robert Horne, John Burnam

Some interesting bits and pieces in the Liberal Democrat manifesto. On corporate governance, they propose that companies should produce a formal statement of corporate purpose and to report formally on their social and environmental impact (High Pay Centre called for this in our recent submission to the Corporate Governance Code consultation https://lnkd.in/eAc8-JM7). However there's nothing on worker representation on company boards, which was in their previous two manifestos On tax, they commit to reforming capital gains tax (40% on gains over £50k and 45% over £100k) and pushing for a global minimum of 21% corporation tax - though don't say anything about the complementary initiative to ensure global co-ordination of more effective taxation of super-rich individuals. There are also a host of employment policy including a new 'Worker Protection Enforcement Agency' to enforce rights like the minimum wage, plus a higher minimum wage for workers on zero hours contracts. But no mention in the entire document of anything to do with trade unions https://lnkd.in/eZCfSAvK

Where Power Rivals Power The Founders felt that by having a wholesome balance between the federal and state governments, the people would have recourse to one or the other in case of usurpation or abuse by either. Commenting further on this, Hamilton said: They Founders Would Have Frowned on the 17th Amendment But would the states be able to protect themselves from the might of the federal government if the Congress began legislating against states' rights? Originally, the states could protect themselves because U.S. Senators were appointed by the state legislatures, and the Senate could veto any legislation by the House if Representatives which they considered a threat to the rights of the individual states. Unfortunately, the protection of states' rights by this means was completely wiped out by the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913. That amendment provided that Senators would thence forth be elected by popular ballot rather than appointed by the state legislatures. This meant the states as sovereign commonwealths had lost their representation on the federal level, and their Senators would be subject to the same popular pressures during an election campaign as those which confront the members of the House of Representatives. Since that time, there has been no veto power which the states could exercise against the Congress in those cases where a federal statute was deemed in violation of states' rights. The Senators who used to be beholden to their state legislatures for their conduct in Washington are now beholden to the popular electorate. Federal funds appropriated for a state are generally a source of popular acclaim, and Senators, like Congressmen, usually hasten to get them approved. Too often it has been of little consequence that those funds might be expended in violation of basic powers reserved to the state. Sometime in the not-too-distant future, the people may want to take another look at the present trend and consider the advantages of returning to the Founders' policy of having state legislatures in the United States Senate. It might give us another generation of Senators like Daniel Webster, John Calhoun, and Henry Clay. What do you think. Repeal the 17th amendment... Term limits... No retirement system and the people set the salaries. Maybe we. Luke get some men and women who represent we the people not me and my pocketbook ???

House passes $460 billion package of spending bills. Senate expected to act before shutdown deadline: The House has passed a $460 billion package of spending bills that would keep money flowing to key federal agencies through the remainder of the budget year. The post House passes $460 billion package of spending bills. Senate expected to act before shutdown deadline first appeared on Federal News Network. #FederalNewsRadio #Congress

Business leaders, want to know how your elected representatives voted on issues affecting you? Here is your 2024 legislative session recap, highlighted with key bills and votes cast by legislators in the 40th and 42nd districts: https://lnkd.in/gRXjEbMh

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS_ the Tories recent losses in ‘safe seat’ By Elections probably won’t serve as a wake-up call because they are notoriously anti-woke_ They’ll continue inflicting their nightmares by lurching further to the right, stoking more division, creating a more hostile environment, and making a laughing stock of themselves, at tax payers expense. According to some reports, Tories lost the By Elections because their own loyal stalwarts didn’t turn up - hardly a confidence vote, not because Labour won. But Labour did win, love them or loathe them, they overturned a huge Tory majority in a supposedly safe seat. What next for the Tories predicted to lose seats in droves at the next General Election, or already announcing they will step down in an attempt to stave off the proverbial Portillo moment, to avoid hiding in fridges, scurrying out of the results hall as bad losers, only to end up on GB News in a questionable transfer of non-existent skills? Most of them are probably not that bothered. Their pockets are lined, their coffers are full, they've emptied the public purse, decimated public services, and have left public finances floundering in the red as the aftermath of the Lettuce Truss experiment and the Kamikwasi budget fiasco takes hold. Tax revenue has decreased, excess deaths have increased, the rich are richer, the lifeblood is being squeezed out of middle incomes, the poor are out of touch, the sick are suffering and dying as they wait for treatment in a 7.75 million NHS queue. Austerity Mk2 is going to be difficult to implement because there is nothing left to cut, and local councils are already facing bankruptcy. So, the Tory go to is to target the disabled, the vulnerable, and the unemployed, even though they know this won’t plug the gap. Collectively, the Tories have systematically failed the country so that they, their donors, and the others in the dark money think tanks which pull their strings can succeed, at any cost. Polls and recent Elections indicate they are on target for a resounding defeat at the next General Election, they’ll keep us waiting for that though. The petition calling for a General Election is being ignored by government, but you can still sign it here: https://lnkd.in/ejknxW9c Meanwhile, Silly Fishy Rishi lavishly jets about in private air craft and continues to repeat on loop that he is ‘delivering for the British people’. He’s actually delivering a sack of potatoes and pie in the sky. And given his lack of transparency and leadership on professionalism, integrity, and accountability, he’s delivering failures not change, just same old same old. The Tory murmurings and votes of no confidence are already starting to trickle in, again. For those soon to be outgoing Tories in search of next steps who need help, they can flog second hand PPE, write a ‘How not to…’ book about HS2, rent a berth on the empty Bibby Stockholm, or migrate to Rwanda_ #toriesunfittogovern

When are we voters going to let Republicans know that we are DISGUSTED with the mess in the House because of their political gamesmanship. Congress has NEVER been this flamingly USELESS. All because the repugnicans are kowtowing to an ex-president's wishes - ALSO unprecedented. 27 bills passed during ALL of 2023 that were signed into law - lowest since the Great Depression. More TEMPORARY budget bills - NEVER have I seen such a jury-rigged approach to funding the government. VOTE BLUE and show these pettifoggers that we voters have had it. The truly AMAZING aspect of their mess is that President Biden has still managed to keep our country running fairly smoothly despite a DO-NOTHING House. Stock market at an all-time high. Lowest unemployment in 50 years. Terrific job creation numbers. AND he'd have better results at the border IF the House hadn't tabled the BI-PARTISAN immigration bill that #PO1135809 wanted aborted. Biden just keeps keeping on - working on greedflation, working on reducing the economic burdens of the working class, including taking on credit card company abuses.

The developments in Kenya have been quite interesting. Particularly for young people. It raises the question of how will we as historians document the experiences of the youth and their agency on the continent? Comment below!