By Nancy Spannaus January 10, 2021—In a Zoom presentation to a discussion group on Sunday Jan. 3, I began to tackle the question of why, despite enormous activity in favor of abolition in the early period of our Republic, the institution of slavery persisted until the Civil War. My hour-long […]
Dante Alighieri’s Concept of Statecraft And the Lorenzetti Frescoes in Siena by Bonnie James Jan. 5, 2021–The following article was originally published on June 28, 1999 in The New Federalist newspaper. It is reproduced here with minor editing by the author. The occasion for its republication is the 700th anniversary […]
By Angela Vullo November 29, 2020–In the 1950s and ‘60s when a young person in our country was asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”, the answer was likely to be an astronaut, a doctor, a teacher, or an engineer. But, as time went on and […]
A Review of Thomas Frank’s The People, NO! A Brief History of Anti-Populism By Nancy Spannaus Nov. 7, 2020—As the current brawl over the presidential election results should make clear, the people of the United States are dangerously divided, almost split down the middle. In my view, the question before […]
By Angela Vullo Oct 27, 2020–In late August 2019, I penned an article called “Will 2020 Bring Winds of Change?,” citing an MSNBC four-part docuseries called “American Swamp,” which included a segment on infrastructure entitled “Bill to Nowhere.” Today, I can happily report that things have changed. We now have […]
By Nancy Spannaus Aug. 20, 2020—Democrats looking for a comprehensive solution to the economic crisis that is threatening the very integrity of the United States as a nation, had a place to turn during the virtual Democratic National Convention this week. In a webinar featuring local union leaders, state representatives, […]
By Nancy Spannaus June 4, 2020—Tomorrow will be the anniversary of the June 5, 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, the third in a series of murders which decapitated the most promising political leadership of the United States. One by one, they fell: President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, […]
By Nancy Spannaus May 20, 2020—Almost two months ago, the U.S. Congress passed the CARES Act, which committed to spending half a trillion dollars for relief of states and municipalities. Yesterday, the two Administration officials responsible for allocating that money told the Senate Banking Committee that they were still planning […]
April 27, 2020—The National Association of Minority Contractors has joined the movement for the creation of a National Infrastructure Bank (NIB). In a statement issued April 24, the group urged Congress to establish a bank capitalized by existing Treasury debt, which would generate $4 trillion credit dedicated to rebuilding the […]
By Nancy Spannaus Jan.11, 2021—Today marks the release of an invaluable video documenting the record of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton’s opposition to slavery. Under the title “The Evidence for Hamilton against Slavery,” independent researcher Marianne Als beautifully synthesizes text, imagery, and music to support her argument that not only is […]
By Angela Vullo December 17, 2020–As Christmas 2020 approaches, images of the same time period in 1932 come to mind: unemployment lines, swamped food banks, eviction notices, and more. The images are only overshadowed by the staggering number of deaths and other effects of the current deadly pandemic. While the […]
A Brief History of the Principle of National Banking in the United States
Aug. 27, 2018–While Central Banks exist in many other countries, the United States is unique in its successful development of national banking. The purpose of National Banks, developed even before the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, was to marshal the financial resources of the young nation and direct them into […]