In the News
Mary Cannon-James, president of AFSCME Iowa Retiree Chapter 61, spoke Thursday at a Capitol Hill event hosted by Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), warning of the risks to older Americans like her if the Fiscal Commission Act (H.R. 5779) becomes law.
The bill is a solution in search of a problem. It would convene a group of experts – individuals who surely don’t or won’t depend on monthly Social Security checks to pay the bills – to address a so-called fiscal crisis that doesn’t actually exist.
A coalition of U.S. labor leaders spoke out forcefully on Thursday against the Republican-led push for a "fiscal commission," denouncing the proposal as an attack on Social Security, Medicare, and other programs that tens of millions of current and retired workers depend on to meet basic needs.
A proposed fiscal commission to fast-track deficit reduction measures, already under attack from the right, also faces a stepped-up assault from the left.
Rep. John B. Larson, D-Conn., led labor union leaders at a news conference Thursday to protest legislation that would create a bipartisan, bicameral commission that would devise a plan to curb red ink and require Congress to take an up-or-down vote on it with no amendments.
Many retired Americans have struggled with rising prices in recent years. A survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that 58% of retired workers worry they will have to make substantial spending cuts due to inflation.
For more than two decades in Washington, D.C., East Hartford Congressman John B. Larson has been harping on the need to protect the Social Security system, or as he likes to say, America’s best insurance policy.
SOUTH WINDSOR — As a teen who loves technology and video games but struggles with procrastination, South Windsor High School senior Ryan Duong found a way to use his passion to solve his problem.
Ryan, 17, created an app called "ClockIn!," a program that allows users to schedule out their tasks.
While there are many apps that have similar functions, what makes his app unique is that "you can only schedule plans for today or tomorrow, so you don't overwhelm yourself," he said.
Washington, DC – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Congressman John Larson (CT-01) to introduce the ‘Assault Weapon Financing Accountability Act,’ which would ban the use of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) financing for the purchase of assault weapons and the ghost gun kits that are used to build them.
Regardless of their political persuasion, most Americans agree that Social Security should be protected in the face of a looming funding shortfall. That’s not the case in Congress, however.
WASHINGTON – The American Federation of Government Employees is echoing calls from nearly 120 lawmakers for Congress to reject a proposed fiscal commission that would bypass elected leadership and make recommendations to slash vital federal programs and government services.
“A fiscal commission would give a small group of lawmakers and non-elected individuals enormous power to recommend cuts to Social Security and other popular programs without any ability for the public to weigh in,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said.
Decrying Republican plans for "ripping away Social Security from seniors behind closed doors" via a so-called fiscal commission, more than half of U.S. House Democrats on Thursday urged congressional leaders to scrap plans to fast-track the controversial panel.