Guide to Money in Politics: Research Tools for Issue Campaigns

This guide contains an overview of some of the leading organizations from around the country that are engaged in unearthing and combating the influence of money in the political process. Click here to download the full report.

Montanans Rally for Budget Courage, Not Cuts

On Friday, April 1st, 2011, 1,500 Montanans flooded the Capitol lawn to voice their objections to sweeping and hurtful cuts in the Montana state budget. “Courage, Not Cuts!,” was their rallying cry. The  “No Fooling with Our Future Rally” was presented by  Montana Organizing Project leaders and activists, who partnered with many groups within theContinue reading “Montanans Rally for Budget Courage, Not Cuts”

Two Steps Backward for Bankers — 100,000 Steps Forward For the People

Last Thursday, April 14, Washingtonians from all walks of life put on their walking shoes and set out on the People’s Walk for Our Future. The five-day, 50-mile walk included stops at places in communities that are facing devastating cuts because of Washington’s $5 billion revenue shortfall: schools, mental health clinics, and many more. LegislatorsContinue reading “Two Steps Backward for Bankers — 100,000 Steps Forward For the People”

Foreclosure Fairness Now Law in Washington State

Last week, the Washington state “Foreclosure Fairness Act” was signed into law, marking a major victory in a long, multi-year fight by advocates for low-income borrowers, including the Statewide Poverty Action Network and Washington Community Action Network (an Alliance affiliate.)

On Tax Day, Some Alarming Tax Stats

Did you know… The federal government collected less in taxes in 2010 than it has in over three generations, and tax rates are at historic lows The Bush tax legacy means we currently tax wealth less than work: middle-income paychecks are taxed at 25% compared to stock dividends and capital gains for the wealthiest, whichContinue reading “On Tax Day, Some Alarming Tax Stats”

On Tax Day, Time to Tell Corporations that the Game of Tax Dodgeball is Over

This year Uncle Sam pushed Tax Day back to April 18, giving us all a three-day tax filing holiday. It’s almost enough to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. Until, that is, you hear about GE, which apparently is on extended vacation, paying essentially nothing in taxes for 2010 despite raking in $5.1 billionContinue reading “On Tax Day, Time to Tell Corporations that the Game of Tax Dodgeball is Over”

Washington CAN! Leads Takeover of State Capitol to Protest Budget Cuts

At 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6, Lieutenant  Mark Arras of the Washington State Patrol addressed a crowd of 100 people who had filled the Capitol Building rotunda with sleeping bags and pillows. They had taken up camp in the Capitol to protest state budget cuts slashing social services like health care and education. “WeContinue reading “Washington CAN! Leads Takeover of State Capitol to Protest Budget Cuts”

Unfair to Immigrants, Costly to Taxpayers

This op-ed, originally published in the New York Times, is co-authored by Andrew Friedman, co-executive director of Make the Road New York, an Alliance affiliate. Every year thousands of immigrants being held on Rikers Island are transferred to federal custody and deported. Only about half of them have a criminal record, many of them areContinue reading “Unfair to Immigrants, Costly to Taxpayers”

Why Medicaid Matters

In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed Medicaid and Medicare into law. At the signing ceremony, he spoke of the tradition of leadership that compelled the country to create such programs. He also spoke of another tradition, one embedded in our national identity and values. He said this value “calls upon us never to be indifferentContinue reading “Why Medicaid Matters”