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Jill Biden teaches at Northern Virginia Community College. She wants to continue her job teaching community college students helping them prepare for 4 year colleges, even after Mr. Joe Biden becomes the new president of the U.S.  This story of Jill Biden in The Times is exceptional in giving a vivid picture of the person closest to the new U.S. president. Both the Bidens, Joe and Jill, come from working class families in the northeastern U.S. Mr. Biden's life is marked by a single event that has affected his whole life the death in a car accident of his first wife Naomi in December 1972 when he was running for U.S. Senator in Delaware. He won that election becoming the youngest senator in U.S. history. The family retained high ambitions for Joe, hoping that he would become president. Jill met Joe Biden during this campaign and she married Joe in 1975. Jill had spent 13 years of her career teaching English in secondary schools, and the past 27 years teaching in community colleges, including the eight years when Biden was Vice President. Along the way she studied for 2 Masters degrees and a doctoral degree. Her dissertation for the doctoral degree was on the topic- Student Retention at Community Colleges: Meeting Student Needs. Student dropout rates are high about one in three in community colleges dropout.  It is a sign of the misplaced priorities of today that Dr. Biden takes pride in her degree and many do not think this is important enough a topic for a dissertation. Not only her education and hard work studying for advanced education makes her a unique asset, there are other parts of her character that make her exceptional and right for the times. Jill Biden entered a family that in some ways after Naomi's death was broken. The were two children surviving the fatal car accident in 1972, Beau and Hunter. This story shows how she handled this in a way that required extraordinary serenity and composure. There was the ambition of the family. There was the memory of the accident and Naomi. There was the cynicism about her passion for education in fashionable Democratic party circles out of touch with the roots of the national character in education and in libraries starting with Ben Franklin and Jefferson. With president Biden entering office at a time when the U.S. as a country is broken by the very neglect of education, healthcare and working class Americans, Jill Biden at 69 years has the experience, vigor of spirit and character needed today.   ...

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As the final Republican tax bill is debated in Congress on December 19, 2017, Senator Bob Casey cited the following points from the Joint Committee on Taxation Report on the floor of the Senate.  1. Americans building their hopes that their pay checks in February 2018 will be increasing are in for a big disappointment said Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, a senior member of the Finance Committee. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimate is that for the 57 million families making less than 100,000 dollars a year the tax cuts in the Republican legislation will either not reduce their taxes or reduce the taxes by about $100 a year. 2. The bill does little for the big tasks facing America of rebuilding failing infrastructure. Senator Casey cited 4500 bridges needing repair or replacement in Pennsylvania alone. It also does little for health care access for middle class families and is likely to lead to 10% increase in health care premiums. Affordability of college and other hurdles of middle class and working class families remain unaddressed.   3. The $9 billion in the estate tax cuts would finance the Children's Health Insurance program which has expired.  4. The $36 billion in tax cuts for corporations comes at a time when corporate profits are at the highest they have been in 15 years, according to Vanguard founder Bogle. He also points out that wages as a percentage of GDP are the lowest in 15 years. The tax cuts in the Republican bill are not likely to correct this imbalance.  5. The share of GDP of people making more than one million dollars in 1980 was 11%, this is up now in 2017 to 20%. This has led to questions about the wisdom of these tax cuts which disproportionately benefit a very small percentage of Americans who do not need these tax cuts, and come with significant sacrifices for the middle class in terms of what is available in public services, and the cost to their children as infrastructure and access to health and education is made more distant because of a growing U.S. debt from this tax cut. The big problem then with this bill is that it further damages intergenerational mobility in the U.S., undermining the foundation of a democratic society. Damage has already happened in the past three decades as Federal Reserve chairman Janet Yellen pointed out at a conference on Economic Opportunity and Inequality on Oct. 17, 2014, saying-"The past several decades have seen the most sustained rise in inequality since the 19th century after more than 40 years of narrowing inequality following the Great Depression." This is why there is substantial agreement in the media from the Wall Street Journal's Greg Ip to Krugman in the New York Times that the bill fails to correct a harmful trend, and goes further in the wrong direction for a democratic society.       ...

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The Barnier government's austerity plans, the budget cuts, shows Macron made a poor choice as the vote for National Rally and for the Socialist parties was to exactly the opposite to help the middle and working class in France. Macron's great misunderstanding of Barnier, is the story told here in Le Monde. The majority in the National Assembly does not support eroding the purchasing power of the French people and want to help people struggling to pay their bills.

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The election of Ekrem Imamoglu helps to keep Turkish democracy alive by offering voters an alternative to AKP PArty and Mr. Erdogan. Unlike other politicians from the CHP opposition Party, Mr. Imamoglu was able to reach out to mainstream voters in Istanbul, a city of 16 million, where Mr. Erdogan began his effort to offer an alternative in the Turkish politics of the time dominated by the military and the CHP. Imamoglu reaches out to pious AKP voters and to working class voters in a way that other CHP politicians have not. Imamoglu says " Lots of AKP voters asked me why I wasn't running for their party instead. They were pleased when I asked for their prayers rather than their votes. I don't believe the public accepts divisive rhetoric and discriminatory policies." About the populist sentiment that Erdogan aroused in Turkey during the last decade to provide more inclusive atmosphere, Imamoglu says- "Populism has the upper hand in the world at the moment but it will end eventually. Treating people with respect always wins out." Imamoglu's family is in the construction business and he entered politics in an effort to reduce the red tape facing business, and became mayor of the middle class district of Beylikduzu district in the 2014 elections. ...

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Paul Nuttall, a 39 year old history lecturer, takes over the leadership of the UK Independence Party, UKIP, from Nigel Farage. The Daily Telegraph cites a new analysis by the House of Commons that shows UKIP could replace Labor Party in 13 parliamentary seats if only one voter in fifty shifted to UKIP. Farage says UKIP inspired the Trump campaign in America. Nuttall in his acceptance speech said "I want to replace the Labor Party and make UKIP the patriotic voice of working people." Nuttall is seen as being the best bet for UKIP to retain its hold on former Labor supporters in traditional working class constituencies in the north of England.

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The Guardian's Greenhouse says the UAW sees the tariff action with 25% tariff on cars imported into the US starting April 2 2025, as a positive step.  Shawn Fain of the UAW who had the support of president Biden during his term 2020-2024 says DJT's actions match those taken by Biden to help working class Americans and the middle class. Supporting the president “for stepping up to end the free trade disaster that has devastated working-class communities for decades”. “Ending the race to the bottom in the auto industry starts with fixing our broken trade deals, and the Trump administration has made history with today’s actions.” Greenhouse is concerned that the way it is being implemented can create problems with tariffs on one day and off the next. The reason for the on again off again action was to give Mexico, Canada, and China time to respond with action they have not taken on fentanyl flows into the US, and Mexico time to address migrant trafficking across its borders. The US International Trade Commission study in 2024 on the 25% tariff on US auto imports cited by BBC shows it would reduce imports by 75%, increase prices by a modest 5%, and increase revenues of auto makers in the US by 5%. Figures such as prices going up by $6000 may apply to BMW's that are imported from Germany and carry high price tags for a very small very affluent customer group unrepresentative of the US automobile market. ...

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In this interview with Gerald Seib of the WSJ, U.S. president Obama responds to criticism within his party as he pushes for the Trans Pacific Partnership free trade agreement with Japan and other countries in Latin America and Asia. European nations and India have joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank setup by China, creating pressure for the U.S. to respond to China's influence in the region. The interview shows president Obama taking the criticism from inside the Democratic party personally about his lack of concern for middle class and working class families during his six and half years in office.

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Porter of the NYT points out that the figures released from census information that the U.S. median household income increased by 5.2% in 2015 to $56,500 is good news for Americans including minority and working class families at the lower tiers. However more needs to happen compared to previous recoveries in the mid-90's, and for people who suffered during the recession to finally put that experience behind them, says Porter. 

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Bernie Sanders launches his 2020 presidential campaign at Brooklyn College by sharing his personal story of parents who were immigrants from Germany during the Nazi period. His father made a living selling paint to hardware stores and the family struggled in the early years.  He tells students he lived only a short distance away growing up "in a three and half room rent controlled apartment, and going to quality public schools." Mr. Sanders is the top choice in the early primaries including New Hampshire, competing with former vice president Mr. Biden. His campaign raised $10 million in just two weeks at the beginning of the campaign. He is campaigning for Medicare for All, $15 minimum wage, tution free public college. With Mr. Corbyn leading the Labor party in Britain in a new direction, Mr. Sanders is leading the Democratic Party in a new direction, both supporting the pro-working class traditional policies of their parties for most of the twentieth century. ...

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Politics in Britain as Britain prepares for a general election. The UKIP party polls 13 percent and Conservatives 32 percent and only an alliance could beat the Liberals and Labour, Greens combined. So why is Boris Johnson not embracing UKIP and Farage. Boris Johnson top adviser Cummings is said to have kept Farage to a minimum in display during the EU elections, causing resentment. Farage has doubts about the Conservatives and has rejected an alliance. Conservatives see him as playing populist politics and having little interest in the Conservative Party's ideas, somewhat like a Salvini in Italy or Orban in Hungary. Conservatives see Farage as preventing them appealing to moderates.  Boris Johnson hopes to work out new spending to support working class voters in an effort to win broader support for the Conservatives. He also hopes he can go back to voters saying only he could deliver Brexit if given a solid mandate, in dealing with the EU and in dealing with parliament.   ...

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This is an highly important interview by the BBC with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. We have followed the path breaking work of Mr. Lighthizer at Lyrarc.com over 10 years, and have great respect for his effort on behalf of the American people and American workers. Here are some of the remarks he made at the end of the term of the Trump administration. Lighthizer says the objective of trade is not just efficiency, it must be working men and women. This is the shift that Mr. Trump has made. It will be a lasting change as leaders in both parties see this as important, says Lighthizer. There are companies that immediately want to go back to the way things were but Lighthizer says members of both parties will prevent this. This will be a lasting change. Democrats in particular could soon face strident criticism that they have let down the working class from within their party, increasing the risks of the party to represent large parts of the American population. Lighthizer says its not accurate that we started a lot of trade wars, we have simply enforced our laws and insisted on fairness for American workers. There was really no trade war in the improved NAFTA deal in the interests of American workers, which also enhanced worker protections in Mexico, for a win-win on both sides of two neighbors. "We want strong communities in the U.S. and if that means T-shirts will cost another nickel, they will cost another nickel," sums up the way Lighthizer sees it, and the way all of America would see it if one regained the idea of government for the people, of the people and with the people. "We are proud of what we have done to reorient American trade towards working people in the U.S. and less towards outsourcing and corporations," says Lighthizer. And he says that was important to do. Lighthizer only highly underestimates what he has done for America and American workers.  A lot remains to be done. The about $800 billion in overall trade deficit the U.S. has with China, Germany and the rest of the world is not sustainable, he says. The job only gets harder now that the direction is clear.    ...

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The young people in Venezuela increasingly question continued support for president Chavez. About 7.5 million Venezuelans ages 18-30 make up 40% of the electorate. Chavez has won elections since 1998, and has setup a network of youth support. Yet there is now voter fatigue after Chavez's 14 years in power, and this election is being vigorously contested by opposition leader, Henrique Capriles. Voters are increasingly looking for an alternative, and an economy that creates jobs and new opportunities beyond the social welfare state supported by oil earnings offered by Chavez, especially the 42% of the working population in the informal sector. One voter puts it succintly saying what Chavez has to give has already been given, and Venezuela's future lies in a different direction. A new direction would better integrate Venezuela with the global economy bringing in new technology and foreign investment. In addition it would include efforts to enlarge the middle class and improve conditions for the working class, as Brazil has done....

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Russian prime minister Putin makes a road trip that stretches for 1,240 miles from Khabarovsk, near the Pacific coast, to Chita, a city near the Mongolian border. For half of the distance Putin drove a Russian made Lada compact, and for the other half he used a minivan. He seemed to be enjoying the trip shown on state media. The Wall Street Journal shows a picture of him filling gas in his yellow Lada car at a gas station somewhere in Siberia. Political analyst Alexei Makarkin, says the Medvedev-Putin partnership seems to work well, with Medvedev appealing to educated urban middle class, and Putin to the working classes with his informal style and manner. Driving on the soon to be completed Amur highway -which is historic because it links eastern and westen Russia for the first time- Putin was able to connect with local people and working class folk in small towns on the way.

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A few events in the last 50 years are rewriting the rules for business, finance and economics, says the WSJ in this analysis. The admitting of China to the World Trade Organization under president Clinton in 2001 was one, another was the global financial crisis in 2009 with the selling of bad mortgages by the financial industry, the euro currency financial crisis with the bad accounting, real estate industry speculation, and lack of financial oversight in countries such as Greece, Ireland, Spain. The coronavirus pandemic is one more addition to this string of crises and events that have made the working class and middle class in US and Europe poorer and in worse shape after the recovery following World War II.  The changes indicated here are some of the surface changes- such as the shift to the suburbs for cleaner air and better living, the work at home as a serious option, the new focus on health care, wellness, exercise, nutrition and mental health, remote learning and community college as a realistic option to high tuition costs by the education industry, and a pharmaceutical industry refocused on public health and vaccines as it was in its early years before its shift into a simply profit driven industry. The underlying thread for all these changes on the surface is a deeper change in the public mind- a change that redefines what the people believe in just as happened after World War II. Rebuilding the devastated economies of Europe, America and Asia required a new vision at the time after World War II. And reconstruction could only happen with all the people involved and working for the public interest.  This also created a new hope for the future. President Biden's vision is for a new set of priorities that make child care, women's position in the economy, community college education as a right for all as a first step to opening the access to education that existed after the war in 1945. Investment in infrastructure, in building new roads, bridges and rail, water, internet connections, public services in transport, better layout of urban areas, better lives for retirees, are all part of an effort to improve quality and ease of living for all parts of society, not just those who can afford it.  This is uppermost on people's minds and administrations or governments that fail to deliver or simply talk with no action, will not have the support of ordinary working men and women in all countries. This is true for countries and regions as varied in their level of development as the US, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, Japan, India, Brazil and Mexico, and African nations. Democracy, government adminstration, technology and business structures exist for the people, to improve the ease of living, quality of life, through better health, education and public services.  ...

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After many banks and financial companies did not admit wrongdoing in the last two decades even after huge losses to families and working class communities from financial activities, the SEC may finally be asking the right questions after president Biden's democracy summit. Democracy can be damaged as much from inside by impunity for wrongdoing as it is from outside by failed states and authoritarian states. President Biden's initiative in getting together countries was to think of new initiatives as the lessons for democracy have to be relearned by every new generation anew.  The appointment of Mr. Gurbir Grewal can only be seen in this light as Mr. Biden's initiative for democratic processes that work for families and American workers. Gurbir Grewal who takes the top job of making the correction America needs is straightforward about malefactors in finance and banking- "We can't arrest them. We can get them out of the industry." Gurbir Grewal is the the new director of the SEC's enforcement program after serving in difficult jobs in New Jersey and NY state, first as prosecutor and then as Attorney General of New Jersey.  Democracy can be shattered as much by hate crimes as by financial crimes. Either way families and working class families in the US are affected, as are minorities and the less well off sections of the community affecting the credibility of the commitment of the well off to honest governance and to fairness. This credibility was severely damaged in the 2009 financial crisis and the situation continues to this day. To understand first hand by being in the shoes of families and workers, minorities and the less well off, gives Gurbir Grewal the courage to take on this job. He told the New York City Bar Association that Americans have grown cynical about how business and government agencies interact- "the perception that we, the regulators, are failing to hold them appropriately accountable, or worse still, the belief by some that there are two sets of rules."  Mr. Biden can see that if anything can make democratic processes lose even more credibility with the people is when new administrations fail to act. Mr. Obama and particularly Mr. Trump raised the issue of revolving door between government agencies and the finance industries, more recently Tech, yet strong action on wrongdoing was missing leading to a loss of faith in democratic processes working for families and workers in the US. The result is weakening the fabric of society from within just as mounting national security challenges grow for the US from outside in in its industrial competitiveness, and its technological leadership, something that affects all Americans and America's allies overseas in Asia, Africa and Latin America.   ...

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DW.com sees the choice of Timothy Kaine for Democratic vice presidential nominee as a safe choice, with no effort to mobilize the base activated by Bernie Sanders using a choice from that segment of the party. Both Hillary Clinton and Timothy Kaine come from the moderate wing of the party. This is likely to help Hillary Clinton in the swing state of Virginia. Kaine's choice may also be a way to balance the more serious Clinton with the sunnier disposition and campaigning energy of Kaine. To bring a different set of campaigning skills from Kaine- conveying a positive message for Democrats on how they could help the middle and working class, and appeal to independent undecided voters.

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A poll by Reuters and the University of Michigan in mid 2012 shows U.S. voters by a large margin of about 10% feel they are worse off in 2012 than they were in 2008. The situation in working class towns such as Allentown, Pennsylvania, is likely to be critical for the outcome of the U.S. presidential election of 2012.

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This interview with Donald Trump by the publisher, editors and columnists of The Washington Post, Ryan Jr., Hiatt, Lane, Marcus, Diehl, Armai, Attiah, provides an exceptional insight into the views of Donald Trump on domestic and foreign policy, on his campaign for president. It is the result of an effort to get Trump to state his policies on different issues without the fuzziness in which Trump has carried out his campaign, often taking different sides of the same issue. In some situations Trump is pressed hard on his positions or controversial statements, to clarify what he has not clarified in the burst of media attention Trump received in the past 6 months, especially on television media. First some myths and realities. A recent March 19, 2016, issue of the Economist cites the Pew Trust in showing that only about 17% of eligible Republican voters voted in the primaries. A person watching television news media coverage on Fox News, CNN, or MSNBC, would get the impression that the voter turnout was tremendous- this is not confirmed by the Pew Trust survey. The Economist points out that had the other eligible voters cast their ballots and even if Trump had a share of these votes, the results might look different. With a highly fragmented vote in the Republican primaries, and about half of the vote going to candidates other than Trump, Trump's voter support would add up to about 8-9% of eligible Republican voters based on the Pew Survey results. The question here would be is this a representative sample of the U.S. or of the Republican Party. And is one likely to make false generalizations about the nature of the Republican party from such a limited sample of voter opinion. Is voter sentiment inadequately reflected, and results hopelessly skewed because of the lack of good candidates in the Republican Party, and Trump's tactical rhetoric appealing to a group of working class Americans left out in the technological progress of the last decade. In the process is the hard work of the founders of the Republic, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison and the framers of the Constitution being undone by a minority of disaffected voters with legitimate grievances on distribution of economic benefits of the technological progress, trade and global manufacturing networks- with a level of divisive rhetoric and decline in levels of public debate rarely seen. These are the clarifications sought from Trump and his response. Attiah raises the question of divisive rhetoric on minorities Hispanics and Black people- Trump says he is only talking about people here illegally, that he gets support from Hispanics here legally. He turns the question to Muslims and says there is a serious problem there that means being careful about how people are being admitted into the U.S. Questions about Trump's controversial statements about a wall with Mexico are not raised. Ryan pushes hard on the question of the libel laws standard that Trump says he is going to change, asking whether this would happen if Trump thinks the reporting "is wrong" but there is no malice. Trump wants the reporting to be fair for him, that reporters call him to check if he did this or that and why, before writing stuff about him, and he sees the reporting from the Post as very bad about him. He says his lawyers would have to tell the media, that he believes he should loosen up the standards so that this kind of coverage does not continue. On ISIS Trump pulls back when asked by Diehl about statements that suggested he would send the number of troops the generals wanted on the ground- estimated at 20,000 to 30,000- saying he would find it very, very, difficult to do that. On a nuclear option for ISIS Trump says he does not favor that. Suggesting that Trump like the other candidates in the election know there are no easy ways to tackle ISIS. Trump would rely on other countries in the region for help with troops on the ground, something that president Obama also favors, with limited results. Diehl also pushes hard on NATO- Trump says hundreds of billions of dollars are going to NATO and the whole burden for defending South Korea falls on the U.S. when it is not now a rich country that it once was. Diehl corrects him by saying for the public record that its not hundreds of billions, and South Korea, Japan pay 50% of the cost for defending their region. Trump wants to see 100% for the Korean peninsula defense borne by the South Koreans and Japan. Trump seees NATO as a good concept but needing more help from Germany, Poland, Baltics. At one point the Washington Post journalists tell Trump this is a position he shares with president Obama. Trump responds to questions from Hiatt about how he would handle the situations in black communities such as Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland. Trump says he feels law enforcement is important and should play a big role in preventing the destruction of property from day one. He says jobs are what hurts inner cities but offers no solution about how to get the jobs lost in the steel industry for Baltimore, black neighborhoods sitting ironically next to the John Hopkins high technology university complex. Trump brings up the response that jobs could be created if the U.S. simply did not spend money on supporting nationbuilding overseas, a policy that president Obama has supported, and which the public has favored in the U.S. As Holman Jenkins brings up in a column on March 22, 2016 in the Wall Street Journal, these policies are being pursued today, and most of these jobs are not coming back so how would Trump bring them back or do anything about it, especially when Chinese workers in China's factories are being displaced by robotics in places such as Hon Hai factories. The more one thinks about it many of things Trump is saying are already being done, and there are no new solutions Mr. Trump has for today's problems of lack of upward mobility for the middle and working class- a priority for Sanders and Clinton also, not just for Trump. As a television personality and a candidate with a understanding of voter concerns, Trump artfully voices voter concerns of working class Americans for problems that defy easy solutions. Are there risks with Trump's approach that Trump has failed to think through or grasp? Does the unpredictable behaviour Trump suggests that would get allies thinking and trade partners responding lead to unpredictable consequences? Divisive rhetoric creates additional distractions in tackling the problems of the middle class and working class Americans. Divisive rhetoric within the NATO alliance would create additional distractions in tackling the problems of defending the European Union, such as using the very show of unpredictability. Diehl pushes Trump on this question. Would trade threats to China lead to a withdrawal from the Senkaku Islands by China? Trump says he thinks this would cause the Chinese to retreat . What if the Chinese see it differently, in their relations with Japan and South Korea, with a long difficult history, not necessarily in their relations with the U.S. Would a trade war hurt the global economy, and hurt confidence in U.S. fianncial markets just when the U.S. and European economies are staging a recovery, and when the economes of China, Japan and India are in a sensitive phase? These questions could not be raised because of time constraints, but must be on the minds of the editors of the Post and the WSJ, coming from different ends of the political spectrum. How would this help tackle the problem of upward mobility for working class Americans that all the candidates in the presidential election share? ...

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Seib points to the intangible assets Ryan brings to to the Romney presidential campaign, which fill in for areas in which Romney is weak. The working man touch to connect with working class voters, avid sportsman to connect with younger voters, a practising Catholic to reach out to Catholic voters given Romney's Mormon background, the energizing effect for conservative voters having someone who has fought hard for the conservative cause. Also important will be Ryan's friendly manner, down to earth talk, and ability to talk to voters of all opinions, to reach out to independent voters.

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WSJ reporter Monica Langley provides a glimpse behind the scenes of how Donald Trump comes up with his attacks on rivals, and statements on immigration, terrorism, refugees. Trump pays close attention to what is riling voters on any particular week, but other rival politicians are not willing to say. He looks for what resonates with the public, and in today's environment where politicians are cautious, careful and plodding, this strategy works. Donald usually puts down a few points on his private plane, looks at reports from campaign staff, yet makes all the decisions himself on what and how to say it. His memory helps, he says. And he has a flair for words, sounding uncouth at times, but yet choosing words carefully enough to sound reasoanble to his audience. In Jan 2016 this approach has worked for Trump in the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries, stalling progress by rival Ted Cruz, and holding back other rivals. Yet this approach has its risks as the primary season progresses. One of the changes in the Republican party politics in 2016 is the emergence of two candidates Donald Trump representing the white working class, and Ted Cruz representing evangelicals, who are both strident and willing to take strong positions on issues in striking contrast to leading Democrats. Trump on China, immigration, refugees, and Cruz on taxes, cultural issues for evangelicals, IRS, Affordable Health Care Act, and both candidates on terrorism. ...

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Rachel Reeves plan to cut disability benefits was very unpopular with Labor voters. You.Gov poll showing Reform UK Nigel Farage party winning more seats than Labor was the last straw. As a public defender Keir Starmer was a lawyer for the Crown, and lacked the confidence to try to understand macroeconomics delegating it to Rachel Reeves. Starmer made the kind of decision that Scholz made that led to disaster for Scholz in Germany. He promised the voters to invest in the economy yet gave the finance minister post to Christian Lindner of the Free Democrats who was openly blocking every move to invest in Germany. Starmer was making the same mistake in UK having Rachel Reeves block every effort for commonsense and honest decisionmaking. DJT in the US is not the old conservative Republican he is commonsense and straightforward. Starmer could not simply cut disability and other benefits after 15 years of Consevatives austerity budget. DJT's cuts come after liberal some could say overspending by 4 years of Biden, so that Labor had to think carefully.  Nigel Farage of UK was simply going to use Reeves cuts to appeal to Labor voters, and to move to show he would support working class voters in different ways, which is why You-gov showed him beating Labor last week. Reeves would prove a disaster waiting to happen for Labor that it did not need particularly as Farage does not have the grasp of the economy that DJT with Bessent at Treasury and Powell at Fed has. ...

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Thomas Piketty is France's and Europe's best trained economist today with highly popular books, one on Capital, and one on Capital and Ideology. Piketty was trained at the London School of Economics, where Greens leader Annalena Baerbock of Germany was also a student, and today he is professor at LSE. His research has shown that for economic growth to happen after the pandemic European societies need to take the lead and build fairer societies where everyone has a decent living and a fair share of the pool of resources in each country. Piketty is respected by leaders that range from Biden and Scholz in US and Germany to president Xi in China. Biden's Families and Workers plan and Scholz's plan for dignity of workers and working class, and the Common Prosperity campaign of president Xi for greater investments in education, healthcare and housing are all inspired by Piketty and by the socially conscious background of these leaders. Prime minister Modi's plans for Jal Jeevan, cooking gas, to ease the burden on hundreds of millions of Indian women, for farmers with small land holdings in agriculture to improve output and use less chemicals, and for investments in infrastructure projects, housing, are also coming from similar concerns for growth and fairness. ...

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The U.S. makes its first interest rate cut since 2008. The U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point on July 30 2019. For seven years after the financial crisis of 2009 the U.S. central bank cut rates to generate business investment confidence and initially to prevent a deep crash in stock markets. In making this cut the U.S. is now a follower of the European central bank which is cutting rates to stimulate the economy. The U.S. does not want to see too much divergence with European interest rates which are showing negative yields and the U.S. at about 2.25% putting the U.S. with a disadvantage in trade from a stronger currency that results from higher rates. That crisis was a result of poor lending by banks in an irrational search for profits that never materialized. It ended up hurting the savings of ordinary Americans who earned close to zero on savings accounts. A similar pattern was seen in Britain and the European Union, resulting in a loss of confidence of working class voters in the established political parties and the emergence of Trump in the U.S., UKIP in Britain, AfD in Germany and the National Front in France.  ...

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Peggy Noonan calls the Bernie movement and Hillary Clinton adopting his efforts to improve incomes and condition of working class people, a major development. The most electrifying line in her view is the one made by the father of a U.S. Army Captain who died in Iraq, Khizr Khan, himself an immigrant, who said about Trump at the convention- "You have sacrificed nothing." She cites Bloomberg, a successful businessman in media and former Mayor of New York, who said about Trump: "I'm a New Yorker, and I know a con when I see one."  Bloomberg traced the history of the Trump business through repeated bankruptcies, lawsuits and missteps, and added "Trump says he wants to run the nation like he's run his business. God help us." And Noonan cites Hillary's speech as getting better as it progressed, not her best, but doing the work, especially with the line- "Don't believe anyone who says "I alone can fix it."  Biden and Kaine hit on this point repeatedly, and that "he doesn't have a clue," with the crowd chanting "Not a Clue."  ...

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Krugman in the NYT reminds readers Charity Watch gave the Clinton Foundation an "A" rating, better than that given to the American Red Cross. He points out the disservice done by all the innuendo about conflicts of interest. The Associated Press report on the Clinton Foundation he finds part of this creating "shadows"  about meetings with corporate people or others with conflict of interest when all it could find was a meeting with Mohammed Yunus, a winner of Nobel Peace Prize and a longtime personal friend. This points to the need to take a good hard look at each candidate, to look carefully at the details and think about what it means for the country for the next 4 years or the next decade. Krugman fails to mention the economy and job gains and losses, yet this is a huge factor in an election year where upward mobility and the prospects for the middle and working class are major issues. For example Moody's has calculated the loss of about 3 million jobs under Trump and a gain of 10 million jobs under Clinton for the next 4 years.  ...