by Bill Scher | Jun 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. House-Senate Conference Approves...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
The deficit problem can be summed up very simply: the public thinks Obama's policies created a huge deficit. Never mind that it was Bush's deficit -- the public doesn't know that. This misunderstanding is leading Washington to take steps that will throw the economy...
by Terrance Heath | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
American Conservatives from Joe Barton to Rand Paul and Sarah Palin have expressed outrage that the President Obama would use the the power of his office to hold BP accountable to the residents of the Gulf Coast. They are outraged because they believe this is...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
"It is very clear that the Republicans in the Senate want this economy to fail," said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., this afternoon in reaction to the latest efforts in the Senate to block a jobs bill from coming to the floor for a vote. Her comment during a news...
by Bill Scher | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
Congressional conservatives have mainly blocked additional stimulus spending on the (economically illiterate) grounds that it would add the deficit. But apparently when it comes to preventing teacher layoffs, conservative opposition is not about the deficit at all....
by Richard Eskow | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
This pretty much says it all: General Petraeus is returning to Afghanistan at the President's request to lead the war effort there, but his wife Holly's struggle to defend our troops against the predatory lending practices of car dealers has been lost. Holly will...
by Eric Lotke | Jun 24, 2010 | Blog
It happened again today. The Washington Post says the Democrats lost in the US Senate because they were “unable to muster the 60 votes needed.” As a result, states won’t get help paying for Medicaid, long term unemployed won’t get relief, and hedge fund managers will...
by Bill Scher | Jun 24, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. No Deal Yet On Derivatives...
by Zach Carter | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog, Financial Reform
Astonishingly, as Wall Street reform enters its final hours a tired, generic corporate refrain against regulation is gaining traction. As bigwig bankers and their lobbyist brethren fight to defeat tough new rules on derivatives—the crazy casino that brought down...
by Robert Borosage | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
Americans have grown fearful. Most believe, not surprisingly, that the country is headed in the wrong direction. For the first time ever, most Americans believe their children may not fare as well as they have. We spend nearly as much as the rest of the world combined...
by Bill Scher | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
Stateline just published a horrifying report on how the recession has depleted government coffers and forced states to execute mass layoffs and deep cuts in services. And the Wall Street Journal today reports that the recession continues to put the hurt on states: a...
by Richard Eskow | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
This Saturday an organization called AmericaSpeaks is sponsoring a "National Town Meeting" on the budget deficit in twenty cities. Although organizers claim to be non-partisan, a review of their materials shows a strong ideological bias and a thinly disguised goal: to...
by Zach Carter | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog, Financial Reform
A coalition of conservative New Democrats, whose leader is being investigated by a Congressional ethics committee over Wall Street fundraising, has officially come out in favor of gutting financial reform. The issue they've targeted: derivatives, the most closely...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
American deregulated corporatism: Short-term profits for a very few at the expense of the rest of us. The Gulf oil spill is driving home the "expense of the rest of us" part of this equation. And the corporatist/conservative reaction to government's efforts to reign...
by Steven Capozzola | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and National Economic Council Director Larry Summers have co-authored an op-ed ahead of the G-20 urging an international agenda that focuses on "work to stabilize debt levels, enact new financial regulation, and reduce...dependence...
by Bill Scher | Jun 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. Auto Dealers Get Upper Hand Auto...
by Mary Bottari | Jun 23, 2010 | Blog
As the fight for financial reform on Capitol Hill enters its final stages, it is worth reviewing what is being done to protect states and localities from the Wall Street con. On Thursday, the House-Senate conference committee on financial reform will take up the...
by Terrance Heath | Jun 22, 2010 | Blog
Andrew Reinbach is right. Deservedly or not, the political gods continue to smile on the Democrats, gifting them with an opposition so predictable and caricaturized — from punishing the unemployed, to defending Wall Street — as to be right out of central...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 22, 2010 | Blog
Over the weekend China announced a change in its currency policy. But is it for real? Or is it designed to head off Congressional action? So far China has pulled away the football. Their Central Bank was buying up dollars as usual to keep the currency from rising....
by Bill Scher | Jun 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. Showdown Over Auto Dealer Loophole...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jun 21, 2010 | Blog
By Tuesday, it will have been five days since Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, got rapped on the knuckles by the House Republican leadership for the sin of repeating a Republican talking point at an inopportune time. That talking point, you'll recall, is that BP is the...
by Bill Scher | Jun 21, 2010 | Blog, The Sequester
In today's W. Post column from Robert Samuelson, at one point he writes, "This is intellectually shallow." If he was referring to his own work, he'd be right. But he was trying to attack the President as dishonest about his energy policy, claiming that Obama is...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 21, 2010 | Blog
America needs an economic/industrial policy like other countries have. THAT is how we will pay off our debt -- by earning money. You may have read about the back-and-forth on Chinese currency this weekend. China said they would let their exchange rate adjust, and then...
by Richard Eskow | Jun 21, 2010 | Blog
"What do I have to do to get you into this car?" How much can you afford to pay every month?" " "My manager's in a good mood." These are the car salesman cliches everybody knows. Now they're trying to add a couple more to the repertoire: "When you take out a car loan...
by Bill Scher | Jun 21, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. Crunch Week For Wall St. Reform...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 21, 2010 | Blog, Making it in America
China's central bank announced over the weekend that it will gradually loosen their currency from its tie to the dollar (but see note below). China said they will allow the currency to appreciate, saying that their economy is recovering. This appreciation will...
by Richard Eskow | Jun 20, 2010 | Blog
Did an interview this morning on Hannah-Beth Jackson's radio show, Progressive Talk Radio in Santa Barbara. The topic was the current state of financial reform in Washington. Click on the "download" link and it will start playing. (There's a burst...
by Sam Pizzigati | Jun 20, 2010 | Blog
Our economy would become the world’s most innovative, our elites have assured us over the past 30 years, if we gave our rich enough incentives to innovate. We kept to our end of the bargain. So where’s the innovation? The pollsters at Gallup have never asked Americans...
by Leo Gerard | Jun 18, 2010 | Blog
The sound that American wind turbines produce as their giant, breeze-propelled blades whip around is a distinctive: Neh-neh-neh-neh-neh-neh. The anticipation is that those energy-generating, whirling arms would create a whooshing sound. And maybe they do in some...
by Richard Eskow | Jun 18, 2010 | Blog
A video of retired Sen. Alan Simpson's foulmouthed rant toward activist Alex Lawson is making the Internet rounds, as well it should: The sheer audacity and rudeness of the guy makes this clip "must-see TV." It's a political bloopers reel (it can be seen at the bottom...
by Terrance Heath | Jun 18, 2010 | Blog, Economy
The unemployment crisis is startling to looking a lot like the gusher in the Gulf, except that where there may not be much political leaders can do about that, there are things that can be done about unemployment. The difference is that they are choosing not to do...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 18, 2010 | Blog
by Bill Scher | Jun 18, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. Deficit Hysterics Block Senate Jobs...
by Zach Carter | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog, Financial Reform
The tough derivatives overhaul proposed by Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., has emerged as the key fight in Wall Street reform. That status is well-deserved. Despite Lincoln's record as a stooge for corporate executives, she is pushing what is by far the most significant...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog, Financial Reform
Corporate lobbyist Lanny Davis, former legal counsel for President Clinton, is launching his own firm next week, and he is previewing his tactics with a slimy and erroneous diatribe against progressives in general and against the Campaign for America's Future in...
by Sara Robinson | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog
The racist outrages are coming so thick and fast out of Arizona these days that was probably only a matter of time before some Nazi group took advantage of the situation to put itself on the media map. And -- whaddaya know! -- here they come, right on schedule....
by Bill Scher | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog
Before Rep. Joe Barton literally apologized to BP CEO Tony Hayward for the "tragedy" of the "$20 billion shakedown" -- otherwise known to the sane as an escrow fund to pay claims to victims of the Gulf gusher -- he stressed he was not speaking for the Republican...
by Dave Johnson | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog
Treasury Secretary Geithner delayed a required April 15 declaration that China is manipulating its currency, saying it will instead be taken up by the G20. China has now warned other G20 countries that the G20 meeting in Toronto next week is not the appropriate place...
by Bill Scher | Jun 17, 2010 | Uncategorized
Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to affect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security. Senate Dems Convene To Chart Energy...
by Zach Carter | Jun 17, 2010 | Blog, Financial Reform
As the House and Senate publicly iron out their differences on Wall Street reform during conference committee, the most important aspect of the overhaul is gaining strength behind the scenes. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., is standing firm on her tough derivatives...
