Sen. Bernie Sanders suggests some reforms needed to help workers navigate the problems generated by the explosive growth of A.I.: “First, we must move to a 32-hour work week with no loss in pay. Think about it. Today, American workers are 4oo percent more productive than they were in the1940s when the 40-hour work week was first established. Artificial intelligence and robotics will greatly increase that productivity. Workers must benefit from that increased output through a shorter work week. A 32-hour work week with no loss of pay would be a major step forward in improving the quality of life for millions of Americans. Second, we must require large corporations to allow workers to elect at least 45% of the members of their boards of directors, similar to what already takes place in Germany. Workers need a seat at the table to best determine how AI is used in their companies. If Tesla workers were on their corporate board, I doubt very much that they would be rewarding Elon Musk with a trillion dollar pay package. Third, we must greatly increase profit sharing at our nation’s largest corporations. In my view, workers should receive at least 20% of the stock in companies they work for. Corporate profits should not just be going to enrich wealthy stockholders and the billionaires who own them. Fourth, we need to substantially expand the concept of employee ownership in America. When workers own their own businesses and are more involved in the decision-making processes, they will make choices that benefit everyone in the company, not just the people on top. Fifth, instead of providing billions of dollars in tax breaks to companies that are throwing workers out on the street and replacing them with new technologies, we should enact a robot tax on large corporations and use that revenue to improve the lives of workers who have been harmed in this transition. Bottom line, AI and robotics will bring a profound transformation to our country. Nobody denies that. In my view, we must fight to make sure that these changes benefit all of us and not just a handful of billionaires. Let the debate begin and we need your participation.”

In “Previewing the New Jersey and Virginia Governor Races: Part Two,” Michael Baharaeen writes at The Liberal Patriot: “Next week, voters in New Jersey and Virginia will go to the polls to select new governors in the first major election since Donald Trump was re-elected. In my previous rundown of these races, I detailed how historical trends suggest Democrats are favored to win both. But I also noted that over the last four years, these two blue-leaning states have drifted rightward and delivered some surprise wins for Republicans—and that Democrats can’t take either one for granted…This week, we’re diving into the current state of play, including what the polls show, which issues are dominating, and how much all this can tell us about what to expect next week…Heading into the final stretch of the campaign, Democrats appear to be in a stronger position in Virginia than in New Jersey. According to the RealClearPolitics average of polls, the Democrat in the race, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, lead her GOP challenger, Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, by about seven points…Up the Atlantic coast, the landscape looks a little different. Though New Jersey has for years been a much bluer state than Virginia in federal elections, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate there, Mikie Sherrill, is having a tougher go at it than Spanberger. Sherrill has held a lead over Republican challenger, Jack Ciattarelli, since late summer, but it has narrowed considerably over the past couple of months. RealClearPolitics’ polling average showed Sherrill’s advantage dropping from nine points in August to just 3.7 points as of this week…When married together with historical election trends, this evidence adds to the idea that Spanberger and Sherrill are the favorites ahead of next week. However, Sherrill is arguably in a tougher fight, and there is a clear opening for Ciattarelli to upset historical trends and become New Jersey’s first Republican governor since Chris Christie…Next week, I’ll conclude this series with a look at the arguments for why each party’s candidate could win in each state—and detail a list of things I’ll be watching for heading into election night.” More here.

From “Is Economic Populism the Key to Winning Over Rust Belt Voters?” by Jared Abbott, head of the Center for Working-Class Politics, at In These Times: “For all their divisions, Americans share one conviction: the economy comes first…In September 2024, 81% of registered voters told Pew the economy would be very important to their presidential vote—the top issue on their list, ahead of all others. Gallup likewise found the economy was the most important of 22 issues, with 52% calling it ​“extremely important” and another 38% ​“very important,” making it a significant factor for roughly nine in ten voters. And this February, Pew reported that economic concerns dominate Americans’ top national problems, including the affordability of health care (67%) and inflation (63%)…But beyond general concern about ​“the economy,” affordability and inflation, it’s much less clear what specific economic policies might help to nudge more infrequent voters to the polls and turn swing voters into Democrats…Centrist Democrats claim that the best policies to connect with working-class voters are commonsense, practical, non-ideological policies aimed at strengthening economic growth and expanding economic opportunities for working people. For example, a post-election study conducted by PPI of battleground voters found that 82% of Americans agreed that it should be easier to start a business, 83% favored having more alternatives for college and 81% wanted to reduce government budgets. By contrast, only 47% of respondents in the PPI survey supported taxpayer-funded health insurance and just 42% had a favorable view of ​“increasing social spending and redistribution.”…Progressives counter by arguing that the notion Americans are averse to bold progressive economic policies is a myth — and there’s substantial evidence to support that claim. Recent polls have shown, for example, that 63% of Americans favor higher taxes on large corporations, 76% support Congress passing a national paid family and medical leave program, and 65% of working-class respondents want to see worker representatives on corporate boards of directors, while 69% of working-class respondents hope the federal minimum wage will rise to $15 per hour, and 79% of working-class voters support increased funding to Social Security and Medicare. But just because voters express hypothetical support for a given policy doesn’t mean they would be moved to support candidates who endorse it.” More here.

Some notes from Martha McHardy’s article, “Donald Trump’s Support Among Middle Class Crumbling: Poll” at Newsweek: “Middle-income voters surveyed by YouGov/The Economist remain broadly negative about the economy under Trump. Their approval of his handling of the economy has slipped from 41 percent in August to 37 percent in October, while disapproval rose from 50 to 59 percent. Views on inflation were even more negative, with just 33 percent approving and 63 percent disapproving in October, compared to 33 percent approval and 57 percent disapproval in August…However, some of the polling data shows the outlook of middle class voters has begun to stabilize after months of decline…While only 22 percent of respondents in October said the economy was “getting better,” that figure has remained steady since September after a sharp drop earlier in the summer. The share saying the economy was “getting worse” has held at 52 percent for two consecutive months…Similarly, the share of middle-income voters reporting that their personal finances have improved fell slightly, from 17 percent in August to 15 percent in October, while those saying their situation was “about the same” has stabilized near 45 percent…The dim economic mood follows signs of renewed strain in key areas: Inflation rose to 3 percent in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)—its highest level since January—while the unemployment rate reached 4.3 percent, the highest in four years.”