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News Releases

  • Tax Cut: Who Benefits?

    ROBERT McINTYRE McIntyre is director of Citizens for Tax Justice, which has the only computer model outside the government capable of a detailed analysis of the effects of the proposed tax cuts. CTJ has a series of reports on its website, including the newly released “Distributional Effects of the Senate Finance Committee-Passed Version of the Bush Tax Plan.” Among its findings: While the top 1 percent of Americans — those making $373,000 or more — will get a tax cut averaging $44,293, the bottom 60 percent — those making less than $44,000 — will get an average of a $330…

  • Responses to Mitchell Report on Mideast

    ALLEGRA PACHECO An American/Israeli Jewish human rights lawyer who represents Palestinians in the West Bank, Pacheco is now a Peace Fellow at the Bunting Institute at Harvard/Radcliffe. She said today: “In calling for the end of the building of settlements on occupied territory, the Mitchell report is calling for Israel to stop an illegal act. There shouldn’t be any debate on that. Last week the Red Cross, which is the official arbiter of the Geneva Conventions, said that settlement building constitutes a war crime. The U.S. State Department responded by saying that the Red Cross was ‘not being helpful.’ Such…

  • Implications of New Census Data on Rise of Single-Parent Families

    New census data released today show an increase in single-parent families. “The portion of the country’s total 105.5 million households that were headed by single fathers with children living there doubled in a decade, to 2 percent,” the Associated Press reports. AP added that “single-mother homes made up 7 percent of all households in 2000, up from 5 percent over 30 years ago.” Responding to the data, the author of a new book on families and economics said this afternoon that “many mothers and fathers stay involved with their children even if they don’t live in a traditional married family…

  • Energy Policy: Analysts Available

    With President Bush announcing proposals for a national energy policy today, the following analysts are available for interviews: MINDY SPATT Media director of TURN, The Utility Reform Network, Spatt said today: “Many outside California don’t understand why deregulation has failed. The generators (like Reliant, Dynegy, Mirant) and traders (like Enron and Williams), which control our electric supply, are manipulating and gaming the market in order to extract obscene profits. Last week, a megawatt, which costs less than $150 to produce, was being sold for $1,900. Several state agencies are investigating market abuse, including allegations that plants have been taken off…

  • Welfare Policy

    Congressional hearings are being held today on President Bush’s nomination of Wade Horn, the founder of the Fatherhood Initiative, to become Assistant Secretary for Family Support at the Department of Health and Human Services. On Friday, the National Council of Women’s Organizations will hold a briefing on “welfare reform” reauthorization. The following analysts are available for interviews: JACQUELINE PAYNE Policy attorney with the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, Payne said today: “Horn advocates denying single-parent families access to important public benefits whose supply is limited — such as Head Start, subsidized housing, school loans and grants, and job training…

  • A War Chest Against AIDS in Africa?

    This morning, President Bush, joined by Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, announced $200 million for a new global “war chest” to fight AIDS around the world. Many activists and analysts familiar with the situation were immediately critical; some have been protesting in front of the White House this afternoon. Among those available for interviews are: KATE KRAUSS Krauss is a member of Act Up Philadelphia, which is working with the Health Gap Coalition. Protesting in front of the White House today, she said: “Bush’s White House ceremony this morning was a farce. It was designed…

  • Judicial Nominees: Implications as Federalist Society Supplants ABA

    As President Bush makes appointments to federal courts, the following analysts are available for interviews: JULIE GERCHIK Assistant director of the Institute for Democracy Studies and co-author of the recently-released report “The Federalist Society and the Challenge to a Democratic Jurisprudence,” Gerchik said today: “Behind the tidal wave of new judicial nominees are key organizations poised to sweep away the established principles and institutions of our democratic legal system. The driving force generating this tidal wave is the Federalist Society, which is targeting the courts, the law schools, administrative agencies and the American Bar Association as part of a comprehensive…

  • Rumsfeld: Lost in Space?

    This afternoon, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is announcing plans for a major boost in the importance of space for U.S. military strategy. The following analysts are available for interviews: KARL GROSSMAN Author of the forthcoming Weapons in Space, Grossman is professor of journalism at the State University of New York. He has just completed production of the documentary “Star Wars Returns.” He said this afternoon: “Today’s announcement is a major step by the U.S. government in turning the heavens into a war zone. As the Rumsfeld ‘space commission’ report recently said: ‘In the coming period, the U.S. will conduct…

  • Energy Policy

    WENONAH HAUTER Director of Public Citizen’s Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program, Hauter said today: “The Bush administration’s proposal to urge federal agencies to conserve electricity is a sham, because Bush’s previous commitments to slash energy efficiency and conservation efforts in the private sector will overwhelm any gains made in the public sector…. The year 2000 — which saw the highest energy prices since the Gulf War — was a record for energy industry profits. Exxon Mobil was indicative of the entire oil and gas industry, enjoying the highest profits of any company in America’s history, recording after-tax earnings of…

  • Social Security Panel

    Today, President Bush named members of a new White House panel aimed at overhauling Social Security. Among those on the commission are individuals associated with AOL Time Warner, Reliant Equity Investors, Fidelity Investments, the World Bank and the American Enterprise Institute. The following analysts are available for interviews: DIANA ZUCKERMAN President of the National Center for Policy Research for Women and Families, Zuckerman said today: “Social Security is the most important anti-poverty program in the U.S., providing a safety net for every citizen, even if they live to be 100 — or more. It deserves an open-minded commission. Instead, the…

  • Alternatives to Federal Anti-Drug Policies

    WASHINGTON — With a $195 million federal anti-drug ad campaign now underway, some experts on drug policies and the law are questioning the effectiveness of the latest efforts to curb drug use. Among those available for comment are: DARRYL COLBERT Program Administrator for the Substance Abuse Network of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington,…

  • What Should Be Done With the Budget Surplus?

    WASHINGTON — For the first time in decades, government officials and policy wonks in the nation’s capital are talking about what to do with a federal budget surplus. The Congressional Budget Office predicts a surplus of between $43 billion and $63 billion this year. While many in Washington are pushing for tax cuts, some policy…

  • While Clinton Offers Reassurances in Hong Kong, Some Critics Dispute His Economic Assumptions

    WASHINGTON — President Clinton hopes that his public statements in Hong Kong on Friday will help to soothe jitters about economic turmoil in Asia. But some policy analysts in the United States are raising fundamental questions about the recent upheaval that has roiled the economies of many Asian nations. Despite assurances from U.S. officials, critics…

  • Critics Question Human Rights Standards

    WASHINGTON — While many applaud statements by President Clinton in China specifically citing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, analysts associated with the Institute for Public Accuracy are raising questions about selective adherence to the Declaration’s provisions. Among those available for comment are: ANURADHA MITTAL Mittal, policy director at the Institute for Food and Development…

  • Clinton in China: Balancing Business and Rights?

    WASHINGTON — Reports of a “large-scale” signing and major business deals on tap during the U.S.-China summit are intensifying the concerns of some analysts. Many support dialogue with the world’s most populous nation, but they remain troubled by President Clinton’s handling of economic, military and human rights issues. Among those available for comment are: JAMES…

  • Critics Dub “Cost of Government Day” Cost of Disinformation Day

    WASHINGTON — As the Americans for Tax Reform Foundation promotes “Cost of Government Day,” claiming that it takes until June 25 for Americans to pay for “the burdensome cost of government,” economists associated with the Institute for Public Accuracy ridiculed the group for purveying dubious assertions. Among those available for comment are: RANDY ALBELDA Ms.…

  • Social Security: “Shortfall” Warnings Distort Reality, Critics Charge

    WASHINGTON — Hours after an influential think tank released a report Monday warning of a multi-trillion-dollar “shortfall” for Social Security, several economists and policy analysts denounced the report as a misleading effort to promote privatization of the federal program. The report, issued by the Heritage Foundation, claims that Social Security “is a very bad deal…

  • Context for Clinton Trip to China

    WASHINGTON — As President Clinton prepares for the summit in China, think tanks in the United States are churning out media releases on U.S.-China relations. But some scholars associated with the Institute for Public Accuracy, a nationwide consortium of policy researchers, contend that key aspects of the summit’s economic context are being overlooked. Among those…

  • U.S. Foreign Aid: Should It Buy Support?

    WASHINGTON — With Congress now at work on proposals to fund U.S. foreign aid programs for fiscal year 1999, analysts are debating the merits of such assistance. Today, the Heritage Foundation released a policy paper claiming that the largest portion of Washington’s foreign aid budget “goes to many countries that seldom support U.S. foreign policy…

  • Election Analysts See Opportunity, Challenge

    WASHINGTON — While think tanks such as the American Enterprise Institute are showcasing their analysts for the 1998 elections, many political researchers say the greatest concerns of most Americans will remain on the back burner. Issues such as education, the distribution of prosperity and the relationship between money and political access are addressed by the…

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