Millions of people remain out of work, underpaid, and burdened by debt and diminishing economic opportunities. Yet the political class from Madison to Washington continues to debate forced austerity measures that will sharply impact working families and the poor. An economic crisis that originated in the misdeeds of the financial sector has turned into a conservative assault on government, unions, the social safety net, and public investments created by progressives in the 20th century.
With the battle lines sharpening between Rep. Paul Ryan and President Barack Obama over how best to address the nation’s budget deficits, how do progressives ensure their priorities are met in these fights? What do state-level budget fights, especially in terms of the role of labor, tell us about the best way to mobilize to meet the conservative assault? What would a truly progressive approach to deficit reduction look like? What about the critical need for employment measures and long-term investments in our economy and people?
Join us for an important discussion of our nation’s economic priorities with Lawrence Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute.
PROGRESSIVISM ON TAP is a lecture and discussion series founded by the Progressive Studies Program at the Center for American Progress, focused on the history and intellectual traditions of progressivism and liberalism. The goal of PROGRESSIVISM ON TAP is to provide an informal forum for budding activists and professionals to explore the political values and theoretical debates within the broader progressive tradition and to apply those lessons to contemporary political discourse.
The speakers, lectures, and debates covered within the series are designed to examine why we believe what we believe as progressives, who the most important thinkers and icons are within the movement’s history, where progressives differ on intellectual grounds, and what the theoretical foundations are for many of our current policy and activism efforts.
We aim to help young people and activists engage their traditions not just in Washington but in other similar programs with progressives in communities across the country. As the program develops, we hope to help others launch PROGRESSIVISM ON TAP salons in cities and towns across the country in local settings that are relaxed, inviting, informative, deliberative, and open to new ideas.