By Rachel Goldfarb, originally published on Next New Deal
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The Case for Raising the Minimum Wage (U.S. News and World Report)
David Cooper makes the case that raising the minimum wage is not only advisable but necessary: with full-time minimum wage workers living below the poverty line, every taxpayer is subsidizing low wage employers. Not the most uplifting way to see your tax dollars at work.
Workers Strike Over Federal Contracts and Low Wage Jobs In D.C.(HuffPo)
Arthur Delaney and Dave Jamieson spoke to workers striking yesterday to protest low wages at workplaces funded by federal contracts. If taxpayers subsidize low-wage workers, this piece of the puzzle is even more frustrating, because federal contracts could set a higher wage floor.
SNAP Rolls: They’re Elevated for a Reason (On The Economy)
Jared Bernstein explains why SNAP enrollment isn’t dropping right alongside unemployment, even though that’s a pretty logical idea. Unemployment may be down, he says, but that doesn’t mean people have actually gone back to work, and in the meantime, they still need to eat.
Keynes Skeptics Find New Economic Poster Boy (NY Mag)
Jonathan Chait has discovered the new face of austerity, following the collapse of Reinhart-Rogoff: James Buchanan (the economist, not the unloved U.S. president). Buchanan argued “temporary” stimulus would create permanent long-term deficits, but Chait isn’t buying it.
Naming Names in the Dodd Frank Mess (TAP)
David Dayen wants us to stop blaming generic “Wall Street lobbyists” for gutting Dodd-Frank when they have name-brand help. Regulators like Mark Wetjen, one of the Democratic commissioners on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, are also responsible for weaker rules.
The IRS controversy isn’t about taxes. It’s about disclosure. (WaPo)
Dylan Matthews thinks that the IRS controversy is really about the distinction between 501(c)(4)s and 527s: The former can keep donors a secret, but 527s must disclose. Apparently tea party organizations are worried that no one would donate to them if they had to own up to it.
A Keynesian Victory, but Austerity Stands Firm (NYT)
Eduardo Porter examines why Keynesian economists are running victory laps around austerians, yet austerity politics are still reigning across the globe. The intellectual battle may be won, but politicians are resisting.
New on Next New Deal
Creating Good Jobs is the Defining Issue of Our Time (Next New Deal)
Roosevelt Institute Senior Fellow Richard Kirsch knows that our biggest economic problem isn’t the deficit or national debt: It’s jobs. Good jobs, the ones that provide decent pay and benefits, are disappearing, and the economy can’t recover without them.