Media clips

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• When tariffs are a good idea

  Other key reasons for tariffs include national security concerns, shoring up key points in supply chains and combating monopolization of critical imports — aspects that became particularly salient during the Covid-19 pandemic, Economic Policy Institute economists Adam Hersch and Josh Bivens have noted.

  “Tariffs are a valid, and often useful, industrial policy tool that can provide narrow and targeted protection for key sectors,” they noted.

  CNN Business March 10, 2025
• Consumers elected Trump to fix prices – his policies could do the opposite

  While inflation was a centerpiece of Trump’s campaign, so far “We’re not seeing anything that is credibly going to address the high prices of food, housing and health care that he pledged to do something about,” Adam Hersh, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank, told MarketWatch. “What he talked about doing is almost certain to cause prices to go up.”

  MarketWatch March 10, 2025
• Costs of child care now outpace college tuition in 38 states, analysis finds

  The cost of child care now exceeds the price of college tuition in 38 states and the District of Columbia, according to a new analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute.

  The left-leaning think tank, based in Washington, D.C., used 2023 federal and nonprofit data to compare the monthly cost of infant child care to that of tuition at public colleges.

  …

  EPI leaders said child care is unaffordable for working families across the country, but especially for low-wage workers, including those who provide child care.

  “This isn’t inevitable — it is a policy choice,” Katherine deCourcy, EPI research assistant, said in a news release. “Federal and state policymakers can and should act to make child care more affordable, and ensure that child care workers can afford the same quality of care for their own children.”

  Stateline March 10, 2025
• Congress’ proposed cuts may jeopardize Medicaid and negatively impact the economy, report finds

  “It is very hard to imagine coming up with enough savings from what’s in their jurisdiction without a hefty cut to Medicaid, just given its size,” said Josh Bivens, chief economist at the Economic Policy Institute.

  …

  Because the program is the largest federal program for alleviating poverty, cutbacks would increase hardships for already struggling families, according to new research from the Economic Policy Institute.

  CNBC March 10, 2025
• Faith Leaders Blast GOP’s Attacks on Poor and Tax Cuts for the Rich

  At this critical moment in our nation’s history, we need a government that promotes unity and love towards all members of the human family, not division and hatred,” added Barber, whose group released the report in partnership with the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) and the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS).

  The report—titled The High Moral Stakes of the Policy Battles Raging in Washington—explains that “social safety net and housing programs are under attack from two fronts,” pointing to both Republican lawmakers’ pursuit of cuts and Elon Musk, the unelected leader of Trump’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

  Common Dreams March 10, 2025
• Trump Renews No Tax On Tips Pledge In Speech To Congress

  Furthermore, many tipped workers already have little or no federal income tax liability: an estimated 37% of tipped workers earn so little that they pay no federal income tax under current law (due to the standard deduction and credits), according to an analysis by the EPI. ​For those workers, eliminating taxes on tips would not increase their take-home pay because they weren’t paying income tax on those earnings. (Notably, tips would presumably still be subject to payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare unless specifically exempted).

  Economic Implications: Analysts across the political spectrum have raised red flags that no tax on tips is more of a political gesture than sound policy​, notes the Brookings Institution. Similarly, the EPI warns that exempting tips from taxation could “harm more workers than it helps.” In summary, EPI finds such a policy would help very few workers while undermining pay increases for many more, expand the use of tipped work (a system often rife with instability and abuse), and deplete federal and state budgets while creating new avenues for tax avoidance​.

  Forbes March 10, 2025
• Worker Misclassification Is Costing Both Workers and States

  The practice of misclassifying workers as independent contractors is a pervasive trend that gives workers all the obligations of a job without the labor rights and compensation they deserve. 

  Previous estimates suggest 10–30 percent of employers misclassify at least some employees as independent contractors — and it costs workers and our social safety net thousands of dollars per year.

  Inequality.org March 10, 2025
• Why parenting in 2025 feels much harder than it did in the ‘90s—this mom’s take hits home

  Childcare costs are out of control. In 2023, a study published in the Economic Policy Institute  found that in 34 U.S. states, the average cost of infant care exceeds in-state college tuition at public four-year universities. 

  Motherly March 10, 2025
• President Donald Trump Just Implemented 25% Tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Here’s What We Know So Far.

  According to the Economic Policy Institute, tariffs benefit domestic producers by raising the U.S. prices of foreign goods relative to comparable goods produced domestically. Domestic companies also do not have to pay tariffs on the goods they produce and sell within the country.

  Entrepreneur March 10, 2025
• She Has Worked at Subway for Over a Decade. Now She’s Suing for Nearly $54,000 in Stolen Wages.

  Millions of workers across the country regularly experience similar violations, amounting to tens of billions of dollars in illegally withheld wages every year, according to an Economic Policy Institute report.

  Capital & Main March 10, 2025