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Federal Government
Quick Hit
by Brandon Campbell
11:28am
Tue Apr 16

$100,000 Plus In College Debt, ‘No Jobs in Sight’: Chicago Students Push For Loan Reforms (VIDEO)

With total college loan debts pushing nearly a trillion dollars in the U.S., a group of Chicago students are pushing for student loan reforms.

Students told stories of promising futures soon replaced by a grim employment outlook through their prepared speeches at the Chicago Temple United Methodist Church Saturday afternoon.

Amanda Weaver, a Loyola University master’s student, told the crowd of about 200 parents, students and concerned community members that her student loans added up to a combined total pf $134,000.

“My parents, teachers, guidance counselors all told me ‘Go to school, take the loans, invest in my future,’” Weaver said speaking from the church pulpit. “I was told I would get nowhere in the job market without this expensive degree. Well, the truth is, after I graduated there were no jobs in sight.”

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Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
9:57am
Tue Apr 16

AFL-CIO Launches Updated PayWatch Webpage Tracking U.S. CEO Earnings

The AFL-CIO launched its updated and expanded Executive PayWatch webpage Monday, which tracks CEO pay of some of the largest U.S. companies and highlights the country’s growing wealth inequality.

The site’s new data shows that American business executives continued to do very well for themselves last year, while average workers struggled to make ends meet, said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka.

“These CEOs really should be ashamed for trying to balance the budget on the backs of American working people, while at the same time demanding corporate tax cuts for overseas profits,” Trumka said on a conference call with reporters. 

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Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
11:48am
Mon Apr 15

Duckworth Discusses Concerns About Cuts To Social Security, Medicare With Elgin Residents

Residents of the 8th congressional district are terrified that their Social Security and Medicare benefits are going to be cut, U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D, IL-8) said after an hourlong meet and greet with constituents in Elgin this weekend.

“They’re barely making ends meet,” Duckworth told Progress Illinois at her third Congress at Your Corner event, held at the Gail Borden Library. “Whatever we do to balance our nation’s budget, it cannot be on the backs of these people.” Read more »

Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
1:46pm
Thu Apr 11

New Report Explores The Political Impact Of Immigration Reform In Key States

As Congress works toward the final stages of an immigration reform plan, a new issue brief from the Center for American Progress explores how immigration and the growing Latino population could impact the future political landscape in key states.

Immigration issues among Latino voters were crucial in swinging the 2012 presidential election.

And the rapid growth and voting power of the Latino population also ensured key swing states such as Florida, Colorado and Nevada voted for the current Democratic president, according to the brief.

Key states such as Arizona and North Carolina are also reaching demographic tipping points that could shift the states reliably blue, said Philip Wolgin, senior policy analyst for immigration at the Center for American Progress.

“These are states that are becoming swing states in a way that I think nobody really envisioned would have happened in the past,” he said.

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Quick Hit
by Ashlee Rezin
4:38pm
Wed Apr 10

Internet Advocacy Groups Call For Reform Of The Computer Fraud And Abuse Act

Internet advocacy groups Demand Progress and the Internet Defense League have united to campaign for reform and updates to the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) with the launch of a week of action.

Participating organizations, which include members of the Internet Defense League such as Reddit and Wordpress, have asked their users to contact Congress this week to express their support for reform of the CFAA.

A 1986 law designed to reduce Internet hacking, the CFAA allows the federal government to prosecute Internet users for various computer-related offenses.

“The CFAA is punishing too much of our behavior online and too much of our activity,” said Matt Wood, policy director for Free Press Action Fund. The Free Press is a member of the Internet Defense League (IDL). Approximately 30,000 websites participate regularly in the organization’s Internet freedom campaigns.

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