According to the JCT, last year's $787 billion stimulus bill, enacted with no Republican support, reduced federal taxes by almost $100 billion in 2009 and another $222 billion this year. The Tax Policy Center, a private research group, estimates that close to 90% of all taxpayers got a tax cut last year and almost 100% of those in the $50,000 income range. For those making between $40,000 and $50,000, the average tax cut was $472; for those making between $50,000 and $75,000, the tax cut averaged $522. No taxpayer anywhere in the country had his or her taxes increased as a consequence of Obama's policies.
The Misinformed Tea Party Movement - Forbes.com
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Forbes: Tea partiers confused, taxes ‘lower by every measure’ under Obama | The Colorado Independent
Bruce Bartlett, a fiscal conservative and columnist for Forbes who worked in the George W Bush and Reagan administrations is shocked by what he sees happening on the right these days. He became a conservative, he says, because he saw liberalism as driven by lofty unachievable or unreal motives whereas conservativism he believed was pegged primarily to concern with consequences and so based on cold hard reality. He reports that the Tea Parties have turned the world around. Tea Partiers yelling about taxes are delusional, he writes. They know nothing about taxes.
Forbes: Tea partiers confused, taxes ‘lower by every measure’ under Obama | The Colorado Independent
Forbes: Tea partiers confused, taxes ‘lower by every measure’ under Obama | The Colorado Independent
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
The Importance of Eurobonds | FDL News Desk
The way the Eurozone crisis has gone is that a peripheral country will announce a growing budget deficit and debt. The markets, concerned about the risk of default and the lack of economic growth given the foolish solution of austerity imposed on those countries, then gradually raise borrowing costs. This makes it impossible for those countries to afford to borrow, and they seek bailouts from their Eurozone partners.
If there were a way to smooth out these borrowing costs, it would remove the negative shocks to the system. One excellent suggestion is to pool the risk, to create a bond to pay off debt in the Eurozone guaranteed by all the member countries. This “Eurobond” would make it so Greece or Spain or Italy wasn’t fighting the bond markets all by themselves. It would allow those countries to benefit from Germany’s stronger economy and low borrowing costs, and reduce the spikes in weaker economies that have caused so much trouble. To analogize from our experience, it’s obviously cheaper for the federal government to borrow than it is for, say, Mississippi. It’s a question of leverage.
Perhaps because a big stimulus package isn’t in the offing, France’s new President Francois Hollande has honed in on Eurobonds as one of the key solutions to the crisis.
The Importance of Eurobonds | FDL News Desk
If there were a way to smooth out these borrowing costs, it would remove the negative shocks to the system. One excellent suggestion is to pool the risk, to create a bond to pay off debt in the Eurozone guaranteed by all the member countries. This “Eurobond” would make it so Greece or Spain or Italy wasn’t fighting the bond markets all by themselves. It would allow those countries to benefit from Germany’s stronger economy and low borrowing costs, and reduce the spikes in weaker economies that have caused so much trouble. To analogize from our experience, it’s obviously cheaper for the federal government to borrow than it is for, say, Mississippi. It’s a question of leverage.
Perhaps because a big stimulus package isn’t in the offing, France’s new President Francois Hollande has honed in on Eurobonds as one of the key solutions to the crisis.
The Importance of Eurobonds | FDL News Desk
Volcker Rule Tightening Just the Beginning of a Financial Reform Strategy | FDL News Desk
The Fail Whale trades showed that massive, as-yet unregulated risk still exists in our financial system, with the potential to bring down the economy once again and trigger massive taxpayer bailouts. Since the Administration already passed a law that was supposed to deal with that, they’re scrambling to restore what little of value existed in those laws.
Volcker Rule Tightening Just the Beginning of a Financial Reform Strategy | FDL News Desk
Volcker Rule Tightening Just the Beginning of a Financial Reform Strategy | FDL News Desk
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Justice Watch: A Turning Point at the White House
The deep sense of urgency conveyed by the participants is motivated by the fact that the Senate has confirmed far fewer nominees at this point in President Obama’s first term than it had for his two predecessors, and that current vacancies on the federal bench have actually risen by 43% since he took office. Participants relayed the frustration growing in communities around the nation as understaffed courts face enormous backlogs and justice is frequently delayed for individuals and businesses whose lives and livelihoods often hang in the balance.
Justice Watch: A Turning Point at the White House: Community leaders met with key White House staff, including Attorney General Eric Holder May 7 marked an important milestone in the figh...
Justice Watch: A Turning Point at the White House: Community leaders met with key White House staff, including Attorney General Eric Holder May 7 marked an important milestone in the figh...
Friday, May 4, 2012
Obama’s winning strategy on foreign policy - The Washington Post
For the first time since the early 1960s, the Republican Party enters a presidential campaign at a decided disadvantage on foreign policy. Republicans find it hard to get accustomed to the fact that when they pull their favorite political levers — accusations that Democrats are “weak” or Romney’s persistent and false claims that Obama “apologizes” for America — nothing happens.
Obama’s winning strategy on foreign policy - The Washington Post
Obama’s winning strategy on foreign policy - The Washington Post
Bin Laden documents at a glance - The Washington Post
ON THE U.S. MEDIA: Like any public figures, bin Laden and his advisers were mindful of the media. Adam Gadahn, one of bin Laden’s spokesmen, provided a summary of his view of U.S. TV cable news.
“From the professional point of view, they are all on one level except (Fox News) channel which falls into the abyss as you know, and lacks neutrality too,” he wrote.
CNN seemed to be closely collaborating with the U.S. government, but its Arabic version was better, Gadahn wrote.
“I used to think that MSNBC channel may be good and neutral a bit, but it has lately fired two of the most famous journalists — Keith Olbermann and Octavia Nasser the Lebanese — because they released some statements that were open for argument,” wrote Gadahn, an American citizen.
Bin Laden documents at a glance - The Washington Post
“From the professional point of view, they are all on one level except (Fox News) channel which falls into the abyss as you know, and lacks neutrality too,” he wrote.
CNN seemed to be closely collaborating with the U.S. government, but its Arabic version was better, Gadahn wrote.
“I used to think that MSNBC channel may be good and neutral a bit, but it has lately fired two of the most famous journalists — Keith Olbermann and Octavia Nasser the Lebanese — because they released some statements that were open for argument,” wrote Gadahn, an American citizen.
Bin Laden documents at a glance - The Washington Post
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
A Very Pricey Pineapple - NYTimes.com School Testing for Profit
The Obama administration has been trying to tackle the astronomical costs of 50 different sets of standardized tests by funding efforts by states to develop shared models — a process you will be stunned to hear is being denounced by conservatives like Gov. Rick Perry of Texas as “a federal takeover of public schools.”
Education Secretary Arne Duncan has also begun giving out waivers from the requirement that children in failing public schools be given after-school tutoring. Idea sounded great. Hardly helped the kids at all. But no for-profit tutoring company was left behind.
Mission Accomplished—At Last? - Michael Hirsh - NationalJournal.com
As the president himself acknowledged, the conflict may never be completely over. The new agreement with Karzai makes clear that U.S. funds and U.S. trainers and counter-terrorism forces will be deployed in Afghanistan for at least another decade to come. And many experts on the ground say the readiness of Afghan forces has been overestimated, just as the corruption of Karzai’s government and its lack of support inside the country tend to be underestimated.
But Obama’s closing peroration may still be one of his best campaign lines in 2012: “My fellow Americans, we have traveled through more than a decade under the dark cloud of war. Yet here, in the pre-dawn darkness of Afghanistan, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon.”
It’s not “Mission Accomplished,” not yet. But it’s not bad. And it may help him to get re-elected.
Mission Accomplished—At Last? - Michael Hirsh - NationalJournal.com
But Obama’s closing peroration may still be one of his best campaign lines in 2012: “My fellow Americans, we have traveled through more than a decade under the dark cloud of war. Yet here, in the pre-dawn darkness of Afghanistan, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon.”
It’s not “Mission Accomplished,” not yet. But it’s not bad. And it may help him to get re-elected.
Mission Accomplished—At Last? - Michael Hirsh - NationalJournal.com
Why I Identify as a Skeptic | Daylight Atheism | Big Think
Being a skeptic is not a hard and fast definition-- no one is ever 100% skeptical all the time. I know lots of people who identify as skeptics who don't behave in a skeptical manner most of the time. And I know lots of people who don't identify as skeptics who question and critically think about things. It isn't like the term 'atheist,' which is something you either are or are not. You can't be both a theist and an atheist at the same time-- but you can act skeptically in one situation and not in another.
Why I Identify as a Skeptic | Daylight Atheism | Big Think
Why I Identify as a Skeptic | Daylight Atheism | Big Think
Boyet Jr. High principal offers apology for 'anger, outrage' caused by Obama images | NOLA.com
He said he sought guidance outside the school system, including that of a former professor who opened his eyes to the fact that "when it comes to the school system, we have a very detailed plan on bullying, we have a very detailed plan when it comes to things like sexual harassment. But she said these issues of race, nobody ever talks about it."
Boyet Jr. High principal offers apology for 'anger, outrage' caused by Obama images | NOLA.com
Boyet Jr. High principal offers apology for 'anger, outrage' caused by Obama images | NOLA.com
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