Congressional Democrats released their “Better Deal” policy agenda Monday, giving it a name that “intentionally invokes the New Deal,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
Schumer, accompanied by both House and Senate Democrats, kicked off the press conference which featured each member discussing rising costs of living, flat and sinking paychecks, and what they plan to do about it.
“First, we’re going to increase people’s pay. Second, we’re going to reduce their everyday expenses. And third, we’re going to provide workers with the tools they need for the 21st-century economy,” Schumer said, laying out the agenda’s focus.
Members consistently went after big corporations and lobbyists.
“We must crack down on those corporations that send jobs overseas,” said Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M.
They also went after big banks, which comes three days after many of them celebrated the sixth birthday of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a regulatory agency that was created by the Dodd-Frank legislation to keep big banks at bay.
All of this indicates that the populist messages of Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., are having an increasing influence on the party.
Several of the Democrats spoke about a need to strengthen anti-trust laws in order for economic competition to flourish, mentioning increasing concentration of market share in industries such as drug manufacturing, air travel, cable television, and even beer.
The members offered few details, but those they did mention included investment in workforce training and apprenticeships to accommodate workers in an evolving workforce. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., also discussed a tax credit that would incentivize businesses to offer that training.
Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., reinforced her constituents’ desire to work: “They don’t want a handout. And they don’t want our sympathy. They simply want government and corporations not to work against them.”
