The G-20 meeting in Cannes got under way last week. The sunny beach resort, playground to movie stars and media moguls, was an odd choice for a somber meeting. As President Obama touched down in Air Force One, the Greek government was on the verge of collapse, austerity was sweeping Europe and the future of the Eurozone was in doubt.

The G-20 meeting in Cannes got underway this week. The sunny beach resort, playground to movie stars and media moguls was an odd choice for a somber G-20 meeting. As President Obama and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner touched down in Air Force One, the Greek government was on the verge of collapse, austerity was sweeping Europe and the future of the Eurozone in doubt.

When Barack Obama was a senator, he proposed a Global Poverty Act to fulfill the U.N.’s Millennium Development Goals. The cost in additional foreign aid: $845 billion. On Thursday, as part of the G20 summit, Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, delivered a report on “financing for development” that proposes global taxes on America and other “rich” nations to make the Global Poverty Act a reality.

Does protesting and pressuring powerful players in political and economic life matter? Can the White House and Congress really be moved on questions so central as taxing financial speculation? Yes. And here’s the evidence of how of it works.

Many of this country's biggest companies paid no federal taxes - or even made money through credits and refunds from the government - over the past three years by using an array of loopholes and tax breaks, according to a report released Thursday.