Democratic Primary Debates and news: on Corporations
Deval Patrick:
Served on board of corporate parent of predatory lender
From 2004 to 2006, Patrick was on the board of ACC Capital, corporate parent of Ameriquest, the nation's largest originator of subprime loans--described as one of "the worst" lenders in the country by the Treasury Department. It used high-pressure sales
tactics to get people who already owned their homes to refinance themselves out of straightforward mortgages and into loans that featured skyrocketing interest rates and balloon payments. It particularly targeted the African-American community.
Patrick joined the board after it was already under investigation and has argued he used his position to help change the bank's culture. In May 2005, with Patrick on its board, the company settled a $50 million class-action lawsuit charging it had
defrauded borrowers in four states. The following year, it agreed to pay $325 million to end a lawsuit brought by 49 state attorneys' general that alleged systemic fraud. Patrick quit the board shortly after the $325 million settlement.
Source: DailyBeast.com on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 24, 2019
Bernie Sanders:
Workers should have 45% of board seats, 20% of stock
On corporate governance, there's the same Warren-Sanders two-step. He envisions workers taking 45% of corporate board seats, compared with her 40%. His Corporate Accountability and Democracy Plan would move workers into ownership.
Under the proposal, major corporations would have to transfer at least 2% of company stock to their workers every year until employees owned at least 20% of the corporate operation.
Source: The Nation magazine on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 19, 2019
Julian Castro:
Tax capital gains annually, not when assets sold
Castro would target the annual untaxed gains the wealthy realize on the value of their assets. Deep pockets currently pay tax on their investing profits only when they sell assets. Under the mark-to-market approach that Castro favors, owners of assets
that gain in annual value would pay tax on those gains. Workers have their labor income taxed at the end of every year, and "multi-millionaires and billionaires who rely primarily on investment income" should have the same obligation, he said.
Source: The Nation magazine on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 19, 2019
Marianne Williamson:
Make it illegal for CEOs to be paid with stock options
Williamson supports a wealth tax and a return to a 70 percent top-bracket income tax. She said she wants to "make it illegal for CEOs to be paid with stock options," considers herself "the
first presidential candidate to advocate for reparations" for slavery and believes "strong unions make America strong by reducing wealth inequality."
Source: The Nation magazine on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 19, 2019
Andrew Yang:
Anti-trust doesn't address issues of modern tech companies
Andrew believes that the current anti-trust framework doesn't address the problem of large companies that don't charge users or feel the need to report a profit. He would promote legislation allowing Americans to own their data and address the impact of
technology on their lives, such as the mental health effects. He'd create a Cabinet-level Department of Technology staffed by experts and located in Silicon Valley to find ways to address the problems that these tech companies are causing.
Source: USA Today on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 7, 2019
Tom Steyer:
Unchecked capitalism has failed us
I'm a progressive and a capitalist, but unchecked capitalism has failed us. We must end the corporate corruption and unchecked capitalism that has hijacked our democracy, and finally reverse the Republican policies that have allowed big corporations to
write their own rules that reward shareholders at the expense of American workers. I've developed a clear vision for a strong, fair and just economy not by nationalizing industries but rather by fixing what is broken with our capitalist system.
Source: USA Today on 2019 Democratic primary
Nov 7, 2019
Andrew Yang:
Set environmental standards for companies
One principle that we're going to have in our businesses here is that, if you are a very large business, you need to measure your carbon imprint and your effect on the environment. And then if we extend that to operations in other countries that are
either of U.S. companies or, over time, our trading partners, then we can have more sophisticated standards that include environmental impact, not just for American companies, but the companies and countries we do business with.
Source: Climate Crisis Town Hall (CNN 2019 Democratic primary)
Sep 4, 2019
John Hickenlooper:
Treat dividends & long-term capital gains as ordinary income
Gov. Hickenlooper also wants to change the way capital gains are taxed. For instance, he supports treating dividends and long-term capital gains as ordinary income (with exceptions for long-term capital gains linked to small businesses, primary
residences and retirement accounts), including gains realized when the asset owner dies. He also wants to adjust taxable long-term gains to account for inflation over the period that an asset is held.
Source: Rocky Mengle, finance.yahoo.com, on 2019 Democratic primary
Aug 12, 2019
Tom Steyer:
Calculate CA corporate income tax based on in-state sales
Billionaire Tom Steyer is the latest Democratic candidate to throw his hat into the ring. So far, he hasn't proposed any specific new tax law changes since joining the race.
However, last year he did call for a 1% "wealth tax" on assets greater than $20 million and an unspecified estate tax increase.He also has a history of throwing his money behind progressive causes, including efforts to:-
Raise cigarette taxes in California;
- Require out-of-state businesses to calculate their California corporate income tax based on the percent of sales in the state; and
-
Adopt a carbon tax in Washington.
That should give voters some idea where Steyer stands on tax issues.
Source: Rocky Mengle, finance.yahoo.com, on 2019 Democratic primary
Aug 12, 2019
Wayne Messam:
Trump tax cuts disproportionately benefits big business
Mayor Wayne Messam rails against President Trump's 2017 tax reform law. The condemnation is familiar--the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, he says, disproportionately benefits big business and millionaires.Beyond bashing the TCJA, Mayor Messam's overall plan
to wipe out student loan debt has some tax proposals in it. First, any canceled student loan debt would not be taxable income under the plan. Second, Mayor Messam has called for a new payroll tax on employers to help offset the cost of higher education.
Source: Rocky Mengle, finance.yahoo.com, on 2019 Democratic primary
Aug 12, 2019
Tom Steyer:
Take the corporate control out of politics
Economy: Limit the influence of corporations in politics and raise the minimum wage.
In his campaign announcement, Steyer said he wanted to "take the corporate control out of politics," adding that if corporations have an "unlimited ability to participate in politics, it will skew everything because they only care about profits."
Source: PBS News Hour 2019 coverage of 2020 Democratic primary
Jul 10, 2019
Tom Steyer:
Corporate corruption has broken our government
The overriding issue today is that the politics of our country, the government, has been taken over by corporate dollars. We have a broken government as a result of corruption from corporations. The only solution to that is retaking the democracy and
returning the power to the people. All of the policy [plans in the Democratic primary] that are [being] hotly debated are important, nuanced, thoughtful, smart--but not going to happen.
Source: The Atlantic magazine on 2019 Democratic primary
Jul 10, 2019
Marianne Williamson:
Repeal corporate tax cuts
ECONOMY/TRADE: Increase minimum wage by region, repeal corporate tax cuts in 2017 tax law.Williamson has put forward a four-step plan to reduce income inequality. It includes providing cash relief through a universal basic income; creating jobs
through Green New Deal legislation; boosting government funding for early education and caregiving; and introducing a universal savings program. Williamson has proposed paying for the plan by rolling back tax cuts to the wealthy and big businesses.
Source: PBS News Hour 2019 coverage of 2020 Democratic primary
May 13, 2019
John Hickenlooper:
Market must allow entry to new businesses
For several decades now people in the middle class and poor haven't had the security and opportunity that our economic system used to create for them. What is the reason why we're seeing such a large number decline in the number of startups?
Maybe they're looking at that landscape and saying these companies are too big I can't get in. We have to make sure that we have a competitive system whereby little guys feel they've got an honest, a decent chance to succeed.
Source: CBS Face the Nation 2019 interviews: 2020 Democratic primary
Mar 10, 2019
Julian Castro:
Top earners & corporations must pay fair share
I think it's going to take asking wealthier individuals to pay their fair share. We've had basically the last forty years essentially of lower and lower commitment on people at the very top. Same thing goes for corporations. We have multinational
corporations that are hardly paying anything in federal taxes. We need to ask them to pay their fair share. I think that we can consider different ways, different proposals, to be able to raise more revenue from, you know, the wealthiest corporations.
Source: CBS Face the Nation 2019 interviews: 2020 Democratic primary
Jan 13, 2019
Page last updated: Dec 11, 2020