Third World America - Arianna Huffington [91]
And thank you to Katie Flynn, Nour Akkad, Anna Almendrala, Alex Amend, and Michael Spies for all their help with research, fact-checking, and source notes. My gratitude goes to HuffPost’s editor Roy Sekoff, who read the first draft and vastly improved it, to Stephen Sherrill, for all his great editorial suggestions, and to Grace Kiser and Kerstin Picht, who brought extraordinary dedication and commitment both to the subject and to the process of getting the book to press.
My gratitude also goes to Nick Penniman, Dan Froomkin, Adam Rose, Ryan Grim, Shahien Nasiripour, Marcus Baram, Alex Leo, Ryan McCarthy, Brian Sirgutz, and Mario Ruiz, who read the galleys and offered many improvements and suggestions.
Very special thanks to Brenda Carter, Johnny Parker, Matt Stagliano, Linda D. Wilson, Dean Blackburn, Ron Bednar, Mary McCurnin, Kimberly Rios, Faye Harris, Ricky Macoy, Heather Tanner, Amy Brisendine, Rajiv Narayan, Janet H., Patty C., Henry Chalian, Jim Laman, Troy Renault, Rebecca Admire, Monique Zimmerman-Stein, Gary Stein, H. Lee Grove, and Lesa Deason Crowe for sharing their stories of struggle and resilience.
Many thanks also to Jeff Swafford and Patty Elvey, who kept the rest of my life humming. And thanks to the great team at Crown, including Tricia Wygal, art director Whitney Cookman, who designed the powerful cover, and Rachel Rokicki in publicity and Meredith McGinnis in marketing, who were responsible for bringing the book to the world.
Finally, deep thanks to my daughters, Christina and Isabella, and my sister, Agapi—always an incredible source of love and support. This book is dedicated to the millions of middle-class Americans fighting to keep the American Dream alive.
NOTES
Preface
1 The Italian journalist Luigi Barzini: Luigi Barzini, The Europeans (New York: Penguin, 1983), 14, 234.
2 “America,” Winston Churchill reportedly said: William Antholis, “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: EU-U.S. Cooperation on Climate Change,” 19 Jun. 2009, www.brookings.edu.
PART 1: THIRD WORLD AMERICA
1 “The middle class has been …”: Barack Obama, remarks by the president and vice president at Middle Class Task Force Meeting, 25 Jan. 2010, www.whitehouse.gov.
2 During the 2008 campaign: David Plouffe, interviewed by the author in Washington, D.C., 31 Oct. 2009.
3 According to Plouffe, Obama and his team: David Plouffe, The Audacity to Win (New York: Viking, 2009), 9.
4 Just how bad things have: Elizabeth Warren, “America Without a Middle Class,” 3 Dec. 2009, www.huffingtonpost.com.
5 In April 2010, the shot heard: Joshua Gallu and Christine Harper, “Goldman Sachs Sued by SEC for Fraud Tied to CDOs,” 16 Apr. 2010, www.bloomberg.com.
6 In November 2008, as the initial: David Brooks, “The Formerly Middle Class,” 18 Nov. 2010, www.nytimes.com.
7 In a 2010 strategy paper: “From Recession to Recovery to Renewal,” 20 Apr. 2010, www.brookings.edu.
8 At least forty-five states: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “An Update on State Budget Cuts,” 19 Apr. 2010, www.cbpp.org.
9 According to a report by: Ibid.
10 America’s states faced: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “Recession Continues to Batter State Budgets; State Responses Could Slow Recovery,” 25 Feb. 2010, www.cbpp.org.
11 These are massive numbers: Brady Dennis, “AIG Plans Millions More in Bonuses,” 11 Jul. 2010, www.washingtonpost.com.
12 $12.9 billion of which: Christine Harper, “Taxpayers Help Goldman Reach Height of Profit in New Skyscraper,” 21 Dec. 2008, www.bloomberg.com.
13 Toss in the $45 billion: Shahien Nasiripour, “Bank of America TARP Repayment Premature, Analyst Says,” 4 Dec. 2010, www.huffingtonpost.com.
14 and the $45 billion: Malden Read, “Citigroup: TARP Loans Near $45 billion Mark,” Associated Press, 12 May 2009.
15 California is eliminating CalWORKS: Judy Lin, “Schwarzenegger Lays Out Bleak California Budget,” Associated Press, 14 May 2010.
16 Minnesota has eliminated a program: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “An Update on