The Puerto Rico Monitor Endorses Bernie Sanders For President

The Editor

The Democratic Party Presidential nomination primaries in Puerto Rico take place on March 29th, 2020. While residents of Puerto Rico can't vote in the Presidential election, they can at least have a say in who gets to be the nominee for each of the two major parties. Those Puerto Ricans who are planning on voting in the Democratic primary would do well to use that voice to tell the Democrats that Bernie Sanders needs to be their nominee.

Senator Sanders is the only candidate who is calling for real help for Puerto Rico as it goes through its devastating financial crisis, and is also the only one who has committed to really following through on the desires of the Puerto Rican people regarding the island's relationship with the U.S. He is also for instituting common-sense government programs that nearly every other industrialized country already has: universal health care and free access to state colleges.

Unlike his primary opponents, Bernie Sanders is not owned by the financial industry, and does not take their money. Also unlike others, he is against involving the US (and Puerto Rico) in more unnecessary wars. Senator Sanders is the only candidate  that makes sense, both for the mainland and for its largest colony. A vote for Sanders can spare us more of the insanity and instability of Donald Trump, and also the calculating corruption of the other prospective Democratic nominees. He is truly a people's candidate who stands up for the little guy and the working class. His career in Congress more than proves that.

“When people are suffering and hurting, you don’t continue to squeeze them. We cannot allow Puerto Rico’s budget to be balanced on the backs of the most vulnerable people – working families, veterans, the elderly, children and the poor. It is not only morally wrong, it is also economically unsustainable.”   — Bernie Sanders

For more information on Bernie Sanders' positions on Puerto Rico, go to https://feelthebern.org/bernie-sanders-on-puerto-rico/. And for information on how to participate in the Democratic caucus, email partidodemocratapr@gmail.com or go to https://www.facebook.com/dpcpr/.

Puerto Rico News Digest for June 28, 2018

PUERTO RICAN SOCIALIST HEADED TO CONGRESS?

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Tuesday night victory over congressman Joe Crowley in the Democratic Party primary election for New York's 14th House District puts the young victor of Puerto Rican descent within striking distance of becoming the youngest woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Ocasio-Cortez, who was outspent by Crowley during the campaign by a ratio of 10 to 1, has espoused democratic socialist ideas and was able to garner strong grassroots support in the 14th district, which includes parts of The Bronx and Queens. As her congressional district is solidly Democratic, Ocasio-Cortez is the favorite to win the seat in November's general election.

MAN SHOT TO DEATH FOUND IN OROCOVIS

As reported by El Vocero, a murder was reported shortly before 10 PM last night on road PR-156, in the Las Marianas sector of the mountain town of Orocovis. A 911 call alerted police to the shooting, and upon arriving, they found the body of 35 year old Edwin López Rosario, who was a local resident. The victim had been shot several times in different parts of his body.

NUMBER OF GOVERNMENT WORKERS DROPS BY OVER 12K

From El Nuevo Dia:

"In one year, the number of public servants in Puerto Rico was reduced by 12,033 workers, according to the most recent Registry of Occupied Positions prepared by the Office of the Comptroller. This figure  represents a 6 percent decrease in the government's workforce..."

LAW 80 FIGHT CONTINUES BETWEEN GOVERNOR, LEGISLATURE

From Caribbean Business:

"Gov. Ricardo Rosselló said Thursday that dialogue over the repeal of Act 80 of 1976–on compensation for dismissals without just cause–remains open. “I want to reach a resolution that benefits the people of Puerto Rico. And I will use all the mechanisms that are available: Call for an extraordinary session,  dialogue or whatever to be able to find a solution that can comply with the agreement [with the island’s fiscal oversight board]. I hope all colleagues are willing to have that conversation,” the governor told the media..."

TRANSPORTATION DEPT TO OFFER SERVICES THROUGH APP

From News Is My Business:

"The Puerto Rico Department of Transportation has launched the CESCO Digital Mobile application to enable users to conduct transactions that until Monday could only be done in person at Driver Services Centers (CESCO,) the Treasury Department or via complicated websites. The tool was developed by students from the University of Puerto Rico in Bayamón, Gov. Ricardo Rosselló confirmed upon unveiling the new mobile technology..."

Austerity Doesn't Work

Commentary

W.A. Delgado

Originally published March 16, 2017

When a nation or jurisdiction runs into problems with debt, the pres-
cription usually recommended by the banks, investors, hedge fund
managers and rich lender governments is usually the same: cut costs
by slashing social spending and raise taxes on the poor and middle
class. But these approaches, as has already been demonstrated -- in
Greece, for example -- usually end up tanking the target economy
even further. A society in economic recession or depression isn't go-
ing to get better by making the most vulnerable people suffer, and its
economy won't return to prosperity by leaving working class people
(who usually spend most of their income, putting the money back in-
to the economy) with less money to spend. Austerity doesn't create
employment or growth, and it certainly doesn't create better living
conditions for the bulk of the population. But for the masters of ca-
pital, how average people are doing is just an "externality".  Debts
must be paid, in full and on time, no matter what. The rich can never
suffer, even a bit.  Rather, the poor must always pay the price.

In a world where many governments are "democratic" only in appea-
rance, true democracy continues to erode. Institutions everywhere are
increasingly more beholden to the dictates of the very few and very
privileged, while the wishes of the masses continue to be drowned
out by lofty talk of the rules of the "free market". The orthodoxy of
the inscrutable market must always be obeyed, human beings be
damned. Who cares if people starve, as long as the numbers look
the way they're supposed to look, for the right people?

Recently, Puerto Rico's unelected fiscal control board warned about
the severityof the island's cash flow, and suggested "emergency mea-
sures" be taken. Measures like maybe taxing expensive real estate at
higher rates, or taxing foreign corporations and big box retailers mo-
re? No, of course not. What is needed is to reduce teachers' hours, cut
health services for the sick and slash pensions for the old. So how
will austerity make for a better society? It won't. But it will make
for better financial returns for the masters of capital.

What Puerto Rico really needs in the long term is not austerity, or en-
trepreneurs (another fabled cure for everything). We don't need more
rights and giveaways for the international and local investor classes
or platitudes about "innovation" or personal responsibility. What we
need is true democracy, where the people -- the ones who really keep
society running -- can have a direct say in how the government func-
tions, how its budget is spent, and how (and to whose benefit) the
economic resources of the nation are to be utilized.


W.A. Delgado is a staff writer for the Puerto Rico Monitor.

Austerity Doesn't Work

Commentary

W.A. Delgado

When a nation or jurisdiction runs into problems with debt, the pres-
cription usually recommended by the banks, investors, hedge fund
managers and rich lender governments is usually the same: cut costs
by slashing social spending and raise taxes on the poor and middle
class. But these approaches, as has already been demonstrated -- in
Greece, for example -- usually end up tanking the target economy
even further. A society in economic recession or depression isn't go-
ing to get better by making the most vulnerable people suffer, and its
economy won't return to prosperity by leaving working class people
(who usually spend most of their income, putting the money back in-
to the economy) with less money to spend. Austerity doesn't create
employment or growth, and it certainly doesn't create better living
conditions for the bulk of the population. But for the masters of ca-
pital, how average people are doing is just an "externality".  Debts
must be paid, in full and on time, no matter what. The rich can never
suffer, even a bit.  Rather, the poor must always pay the price.

In a world where many governments are "democratic" only in appea-
rance, true democracy continues to erode. Institutions everywhere are
increasingly more beholden to the dictates of the very few and very
privileged, while the wishes of the masses continue to be drowned
out by lofty talk of the rules of the "free market". The orthodoxy of
the inscrutable market must always be obeyed, human beings be
damned. Who cares if people starve, as long as the numbers look
the way they're supposed to look, for the right people?

Recently, Puerto Rico's unelected fiscal control board warned about
the severityof the island's cash flow, and suggested "emergency mea-
sures" be taken. Measures like maybe taxing expensive real estate at
higher rates, or taxing foreign corporations and big box retailers mo-
re? No, of course not. What is needed is to reduce teachers' hours, cut
health services for the sick and slash pensions for the old. So how
will austerity make for a better society? It won't. But it will make
for better financial returns for the masters of capital.

What Puerto Rico really needs in the long term is not austerity, or en-
trepreneurs (another fabled cure for everything). We don't need more
rights and giveaways for the international and local investor classes
or platitudes about "innovation" or personal responsibility. What we
need is true democracy, where the people -- the ones who really keep
society running -- can have a direct say in how the government func-
tions, how its budget is spent, and how (and to whose benefit) the
economic resources of the nation are to be utilized.


W.A. Delgado is a staff writer for the Puerto Rico Monitor.