William Spriggs is the chief economist at the AFL-CIO. 

Here is an uncomfortable truth. Republicans' obstruction of President Obama’s policies means they have gotten the policies they wanted. But, these policies have been least effective in growing jobs.

The Romney campaign argues that the path to American prosperity starts with lowering the taxes on American business and unleashing American entrepreneurial zeal. Republicans complain that President Obama has not cooperated with them to implement this vision. Of course, the truth is more nuanced.

Tonight Mitt Romney tried to reinvent himself, appealing to Americans’ aspirations and hunger to come together while trying to show his personal side. But his policy proposals or record do not reflect the kind of America where working families get a fair shake. Whether it's proposing to cut back severely on Medicaid, forcing seniors on fixed incomes to pay more out of pocket for their health care or cutting taxes for the wealthiest Americans, the Romney-Ryan budget doubles down on the failed economic policies that brought on the economic crisis in the first place.

He touted his business experience, despite his business record as an outsourcer. He called out divisiveness, despite proposals that would provide bigger income disparities and ignored Republican obstructionism for the past two years.. 

The AFL-CIO will be offering a live response to the Republican National Convention tonight, as Mitt Romney offers his "vision" for America. Tune in at 10 p.m. for live tweeting and at 11 p.m. for a response on the blog.

You can follow the action on our Twitter account, @AFLCIO or on the Web at www.twitter.com/aflcio.  

Bashing unions and working people seems to be the unifying theme of the 2012 Republican National Convention (RNC) held in Tampa, Fla., this week.

Josh Eidelson wrote for Salon that the RNC's choice of speakers and agenda is "a full-on embrace of the same anti-union agenda that helped earn Scott Walker and Nikki Haley their Tuesday night speaking slots."

The new platform reflects a Republican Party even more hostile to organized labor than the one that nominated John McCain four years ago.

The AFL-CIO will be offering live responses to the Republican National Convention on Wednesday and Thursday nights, as Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney offer their "vision" for America. Paul Ryan will be speaking tonight at 10 p.m., and Mitt Romney, Thursday night at 10 p.m.

You can follow the action on our Twitter account, @AFLCIO or on the Web at www.twitter.com/aflcio.   

Nearly nine out of 10 Americans say they disapprove of the U.S. Congress, and for good reason, too, says House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). The current Congress is the least productive in history. But, says Pelosi in a column in USA Today:

The source of congressional inaction today is a Republican congressional leadership that cannot, or will not, govern; that will not put aside partisanship to work together.

An editorial in today's New York Times says as the election gets closer, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney may try to roll back some of his ardor for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Walker's extreme agenda. But "but voters should be skeptical. As Mr. Walker’s actions show, they are at the core of Republican ideology."

Don't miss this one.