Media clips

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• The Sinister Logic of Trump’s Immigration Freeze

  “What this did instead was just mostly cut the number of people who can come to reunify with family, and including the … parents of adult U.S. citizens,” says Daniel Costa, an analyst with the Economic Policy Institute. Trump has “taken action to reduce the ways that immigrants can come to the U.S. where they have rights and a path to permanent residence and citizenship, but he hasn’t touched the visa categories where there’s tons of abuses.” Indeed, Trump has increased access to low-wage immigrant labor every year he has been in office, while sharply restricting the avenues available to immigrants for acquiring American citizenship.

  The Atlantic April 30, 2020
• Warrenton extends virus emergency through May

  States have been overwhelmed by more than 26 million unemployment claims during the first five weeks of government restrictions over the coronavirus, including 330,000 Oregonians and nearly 3,000 people in the county. A recent national survey by the Economic Policy Institute found that for every 10 people who successfully filed unemployment benefits, three to four have tried and failed.

  The Daily Astorian April 30, 2020
• Why long-term flexible work options could be a game changer for women

  As the coronavirus pandemic continues to force millions of employees to work from home, experts predict these flexible work options could be here to stay. And according to Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, these policies could have a positive benefit on working women, allowing them to “make a schedule around the other responsibilities they have.”

  CNBC Make It spoke with Gould, along with several other experts, to discuss how long-term flexible work options could be a game changer for women at work and at home.

  CNBC April 30, 2020
• Will coronavirus create urgency to expand Medicaid? NC legislative debate has new life.

  She said more than 300,000 of those newly jobless North Carolinians likely lost their employer-sponsored health insurance, citing a study from the Economic Policy Institute, a liberal-leaning think tank.

  Raleigh News and Observer April 30, 2020
• Jobless Rate Much Higher Than We Think: Millions Can’t Get Unemployment

  For every 10 people who successfully filed for unemployment insurance benefits over four weeks in March and April, an additional three to four people tried and failed to make claims, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Economic Policy Institute.

  “These findings imply the official count of unemployment insurance claims likely drastically understates the extent of employment reductions and the need for economic relief during the coronavirus crisis,” the study’s authors, Ben Zipperer and Elise Gould, wrote.

  103.7 The Fox April 30, 2020
• How Will The US Economy, Small Businesses & Workers Recover From COVID-19 Losses?

  On this edition of Your Call, we’re speaking with Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz about how the US government has handled the COVID-19 crisis. He says the public safety net is not working and the US is on course for a second Great Depression.

  Later in the show, we’ll speak with Thea Lee, president of the Economy Policy Institute, about why millions of workers have been unable to collect unemployment benefits. What systemic changes are needed to tackle these issues?

  Guests:

  Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel prize-winning economist, professor at Columbia University, and author of Globalization and Its Discontents Revisited: Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump

  Thea Lee, president of the Economic Policy Institute and co-author of The Field Guide to the Global Economy

  KALW April 30, 2020
• Paul Molino: Lower corporate tax rates does not mean profits are ‘trickling down’

  During the 1950s when the rate was 53%, economic growth was almost 4%, according to the Economic Policy Institute at http:/www.epi.org. After lowering the rate to 35% our economic growth dropped to less than 2%.

  The Union April 30, 2020
• Many laid-off US workers due to coronavirus might make more money with unemployment benefits

  The $600 boost works out to working full time at $15 an hour, which is the minimum wage level that many Democrats in Congress support. The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour, which has been unchanged for a decade and is followed by 21 states, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

  FOX 11 News April 30, 2020
• Mayor of San Juan Says Puerto Ricans Haven’t Received Relief Funds

  A new survey by the Economic Policy Institute finds millions of U.S. workers who’ve lost their jobs have been unable to file for unemployment benefits, with state agencies unable to keep up with the sheer volume of new claims. This comes as the official U.S. unemployment rate is set to reach 16% or higher this month — levels not seen since the Great Depression. In Puerto Rico, San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz says residents of the U.S. territory have yet to receive promised relief during an island-wide coronavirus lockdown. She spoke with MSNBC on Saturday.

  Democracy Now! April 30, 2020
• No income and number 88,000 in line: This is what it’s like to be unemployed in America

  The Economic Policy Institute found that for every 10 people who said they successfully filed a jobless claim in the previous four weeks, three to four more attempted to apply but couldn’t get through the system to file a claim.

  Not only did it take time for guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor to trickle down to state unemployment insurance offices, but state employees have also had to figure out how to process the claims, says Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute.

  That’s on top of handling the “sheer magnitude of … of people filing claims,” she says, adding that it’s even taking time for some online applications to be updated so their questions address the wider array of situations workers are facing.

  USA Today April 30, 2020