President Obama signs executive order on paid sick days:  In case you missed this story over the Labor Day weekend, Obama signed his 203rd executive order as POTUS (still 88 behind George W. Bush), requiring that federal contractors provide their employees with paid sick leave (seven days to be exact). The Huffington Post explains the importance of this executive order: Although most U.S. workers do receive paid sick days through their jobs, roughly 39 percent of private-sector workers do not, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The workers who don’t have paid sick leave are disproportionately employed in low-wage industries like restaurants and retail. VIDEO: Jorge Ramos explains why Trump’s plan to build a border wall is absurd. American wages fell substantially from 2009-2014: Matthew Yglesias at Vox highlighted “a new report from the National Employment Law Project…showing that inflation-adjusted wages fell substantially between 2009 and 2014 for almost every occupation under the sun.” As you can see from the chart below, wages at Quintile 1 (minimum wage jobs) suffered the biggest set back, further illustrating why it is so important that we lift the wage floor via a higher minimum wage immediately. The Anti-Party politicians: David Brooks looks at the growing anti-establishment figures which have come to dominate political parties in America and across the Atlantic. He argues: These sudden stars are not really about governing. They are tools for their supporters’ self-expression. They allow supporters to make a statement, demand respect or express anger or resentment. Sarah Palin was a pioneer in seeing politics not as a path to governance but as an expression of her followers’ id. Comments comments