-
The U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics just issued its May employment report for the nation, and surprised forecasters by showing a 2.5 million gain in payroll employment and a 13.3% unemployment rate, a drop from 14.7% unemployment in April 2020. The Department acknowledged the improvement was taking place in the context of the…
-
In the past few weeks I have written about the Presidential election in highly competitive swing states, first in Michigan and Pennsylvania on May 5th, and Florida and Wisconsin on May 11th. This article focuses on Arizona and North Carolina, both won by Donald Trump in 2016. Before delving into that subject, here is an…
-
I wrote on my blog on May 28th https://jimbrennanscommentaries.com/2020/05/28/state-budget-crisis-part-2-budget-cuts-loom-as-dc-aid-stalls-but-nys-can-fill-gap-without-tax-increases/Â advocating New York State address its looming budget deficit by borrowing long-term to help avoid severe cuts to schools,hospitals, and local governments, especially with aid from Washington stalled. The State’s budget adopted in April specifically permits the State government to do this. New York City is…
-
The United States Department of Labor May 28 Unemployment Claims report showed that 427,000 New Yorkers filed claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance between May 9 and May 23rd, nearly double the 226,000 New Yorkers who were on this program as of May 9th. Not only that, for the week of May 23rd, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance…
-
Despite pleas from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and state and local government leaders across the nation for major new federal help for budgets devastated by the COVID-19 recession, there is still no clear path to Washington acting quickly to provide financial relief. Although on May 15 the House of Representatives, with its Democratic majority,…
-
Recently I looked at April 2020 Presidential election polling in two highly competitive swing states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, where Vice President Biden had solid leads over Donald Trump despite Hilary Clinton’s narrow losses in 2016. In this article, I continue reviewing other swing states – called Purple by the pundits – this time Wisconsin and…
-
It’s a given that the 2020 Presidential election will run through the three States Donald Trump won in 2016 by a total of 77,000 votes to produce an Electoral College Majority despite his losing the nationwide Popular Vote. Those states are Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The Democrats must win all three of these States, if…
-
New York State and City are the gruesome public health epicenter of COVID-19, with horrific daily death tolls. The coronavirus is likely causing New York to also be the economic epicenter of the nation’s staggering job and economic loss, although those are statistics that will play catch up. New York State’s fiscal year is April…
-
New York State Assemblymember Richard Brodsky, who served in the New York Assembly from 1983 to 2010, died on Wednesday, April 8th, possibly from coronavirus. His district was in Westchester County. I knew him my whole career, and we became friends while I was still an Assembly staffer when he was first elected in 1983.…
-
As the pain of the pandemic spreads throughout the country and the world, pollsters are still taking the political pulse of the nation in the upcoming Presidential election. Many Americans view the Presidential election more fearfully than ever before, and its consequences more fateful. New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie, writing a Guest Editorial Column,…