PSN On The Air

GRITtv Panel: New York State Senator Eric Schneiderman, New York State Assemblyman Darryl Towns, Nathan Newman Executive Director of Progressive States Network, and Washington State Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles on state efforts to raise taxes on those who earn the most.

Iowa State Senator and PSN board member Joe Bolkcom shares his experience pushing for progressive initiatives on wage standards, election reform, anti-war resolutions, and integrative immigration policy, as well as a the promise of state legislators using their growing ranks to form a national coalition for change.

PSN's Austin Guest interviews Kyrsten Sinema, Democratic Representative from Arizona and PSN Board Member, who discusses her work on immigration and LGBT rights, fashioning a more inclusive and optimistic progressive movement, and the importance of building a collaborative multi-state coalition to bring about progressive change in cooperation with the new Obama Administration.

Salem, OR - Representatives of some national "good government" groups will be in Salem today for the first hearing on two bills that would tighten requirements for who gets government contracts and how they use the money. The Oregon legislation could be used by other states that are looking for ways to track job creation and increase accountability.

In fact, Oregon has some ideas that other states may soon be anxious to copy. This morning, a House committee in Salem discusses two bills that propose turning up the heat on government contractors by setting quality standards and tracking their progress. With billions of dollars of federal stimulus money at stake – and a president who says it must be used to create jobs – states are scrambling to figure out how to meet federal requirements.

PSN's Health Care Policy Specialist Adam Thompson participates in a round table discussion on Laura Flanders's GritTv to discuss the prospects for comprehensive health care reform on the eve of President Obama's Health Care Summit.

Texas State Representative and PSN Co-Chair Garnet Coleman shares the story of his roots, sheds some light on corporate privatization schemes, and urges bold progressive state action to implement the federal recovery plan.