This cartoon by Chad Crowe ran in The Wall Street Journal this week with an editorial that said that business leaders know that “America first” is the wrong approach but that they are being politely silent for fear of upsetting the administration. It’s been an obvious economic truth to me, and I do not have any […]
Yesterday Pennsylvania labor unions became the latest to suffer a legislative setback Labor unions are under attack. Newly elected Republican governments around the country went to work this past month to weaken the unions exactly as they announced in the campaign season. While labor unions normally support Democratic pro-labor platforms, this year many unions and their […]
Republicans have shouted about repealing Obamacare for the past six years. The war chants grew even louder since the November election. Now that the Republican Congressional leadership actually has the ability to defund and repeal the health care law they despise, almost all of the discussion in the news this month is about the features of […]
Congressman John Conyers, Jr. of Michigan plans to lead actions aimed at reform of the Electoral College rules in the new 2017 Congress. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact calls for Electoral College delegates to pledge all of their electoral votes to the popular winner no matter who won in their states. So far the change […]
“I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours.” —President Barack Obama, farewell address 1/10/2017 9 tactics for local boards Leaders of progressive businesses, community organizations and especially nonprofit environmental organizations whose future is at stake are scrambling to reorganize their government relations strategy since the […]
In 2005 I published an editorial that forecast that climate change denial would eventually be ruled a culpable offense by some court. I predicted that certain New Jersey governments denying climate change, specifically those that refused to respond to sea level rise, would eventually be held responsible for property loss that could otherwise have been […]
The State of New Jersey Department of Community Affairs officially estimates that 70% of the state’s work force in industries like farming, fishing and construction are undocumented. I see these South American origin neighbors every day and I have great respect for them. In the past we had many Mexicans but in recent years most […]
If you do not have a social security number, perhaps because you do not have legal immigration status in the US yet, then I strongly recommend that you obtain and use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). Here are four key points: No fear of INS – An ITIN is not used as an immigration enforcement tool. Many millions […]
Trump’s health care reform plans turn out to offer potential career windfall for me. I haven’t considered it in any detail because the election came as such a surprise. In fact, I haven’t even seriously considered the details or impact of the proposed Repeal and Replace Obamacare Act. This blog post simply summarizes the first […]
Until now, New Jersey had both an estate tax and an inheritance tax. Estate taxes are paid by the deceased person’s estate before the money is distributed to their heirs. Inheritance taxes are paid by the heir who inherits the money or assets. The New Jersey law referred to as the Transportation Trust Fund bill negotiated by state […]