by Bill Scher | Feb 4, 2008 | Blog
The Sunday shows score one for the Watchdog, actually asking a relevant question for Sen. John McCain. When on Face The Nation, Sen. McCain proposed we "eliminate the AMT [Alternative Minimum Tax], make the tax cuts permanent and give corporate America a tax...
by Bill Scher | Feb 1, 2008 | Blog
Every Friday in our Weekend Watchdog feature, we post suggested questions for scheduled Sunday guests. You can add your own questions in the comment thread. We'll also include contact information for the shows, so we can let them know what their viewers want asked....
by Bill Scher | Feb 1, 2008 | Blog
Economic data have you down? The net loss of 17,000 jobs in January. Wages continuing to fail to keep up with higher prices. Just the latest evidence of an economy that doesn't work for everybody. But that doesn't mean it's not working for somebody! From the...
by Terrance Heath | Feb 1, 2008 | Blog
(With apologies to Gabriel Garcia Marquez.) It began with Veggie Booty. Or rather, I should say, it ended with Veggie Booty. As was my habit, I'd tossed it into the cart during our family's weekend grocery shopping trip. I didn't read the label, in part because I'd...
by Sara Robinson | Jan 31, 2008 | Blog
In one of the comments threads that discussed last week's first Stealing Our Future post, an astute commenter named Ohio Mom did a telling bit of class analysis: I was reminded of the aphorism that the wealthy look to the past and the legacy they've inherited ("our...
by Terrance Heath | Jan 30, 2008 | Blog
Everyone has heard at least one "health care nightmare" story, like the death of 17-year-old Nataline Sarkysian hours after her insurance company approved coverage a liver transplant after repeated denials. Before that, it was the death of Diamonte Driver, for want of...
by Robert Borosage | Jan 29, 2008 | Blog
The old routines don’t work anymore. The presidential smirk seems sheepish. The threats seem like bluster. No one really listens anymore. Even George W. Bush seemed almost giddy that he wouldn’t have to go through this again. The president appears as tired of us as we...
by Bill Scher | Jan 29, 2008 | Blog
Midnight tomorrow is the deadline to submit a nomination for the second annual Maria Leavey Tribute Award, to be announced at Take Back America 2008, convening March 17th to 19th. This your chance to recognize an unsung progressive hero you know and have seen toiling...
by Bill Scher | Jan 29, 2008 | Blog
As we've said before, nothing that President Bush says in a State of the Union address can been taken at face value. But sometimes, there's import beneath the insincerity. And there is import in this line: "And let us complete an international agreement that has the...
by Bill Scher | Jan 28, 2008 | Blog
CNN earlier today was running disturbing video of a man who fell through the ice of a pond in Weymouth, MA. He thankfully was rescued, but because of budget cuts, that almost didn't happen. The Associated Press reported: "Authorities say they were lucky to have the...
by Bill Scher | Jan 28, 2008 | Blog
The Washington Post previews tonight's State of the Union address with this: For years, President Bush and his advisers expressed frustration that the White House received little credit for the nation's strong economic performance because of public discontent about...
by Bill Scher | Jan 28, 2008 | Blog
For the second week in a row, the Sunday shows ask a Watchdog question. But this week's victory is a little hollow. After Sen. John McCain lied to Tim Russert during Thursday's debate about his past comments admitting a lack of knowledge on economics, Russert did take...
by Bill Scher | Jan 25, 2008 | Blog
Every Friday in our Weekend Watchdog feature, we post suggested questions for scheduled Sunday guests. You can add your own questions in the comment thread. We'll also include contact information for the shows, so we can let them know what their viewers want asked....
by Robert Borosage | Jan 25, 2008 | Blog
Barbara Ehrenreich memorably called the talk about the stimulus "clitoral economics." And that was before we got screwed. The stimulus deal just announced is being praised more for its existence than its content. Much lamented partisan bickering was overcome;...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jan 24, 2008 | Blog
The early reviews are in on the economic stimulus plan that has emerged out of talks between the White House, House Speaker Nancy Pelost and House Minority John Boehner. And they are not kind. The Economic Policy Institute's Lawrence Mishel and Nancy Cleeland write...
by Bill Scher | Jan 24, 2008 | Blog
The following was originally posted at The Huffington Post. President Bush delivers his seventh -- and mercifully, last -- State of the Union address on Monday. If it's going to be anything like the previous six, it will be loaded with misleading rhetoric that's...
by Eric Lotke | Jan 24, 2008 | Blog
Today's New York Times worries "That the Good Times Were Mostly a Mirage." The chair of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, gave our (former) prosperity and stability a name. He called it “the great moderation.” But radical conservatives mounted a multi-decade campaign...
by Tula Connell | Jan 23, 2008 | Blog
Anyone can get health care in the United States. Just ask George W. Bush. Last year in Cleveland, he had this to say to the 47 million Americans without health care coverage:I mean, people have access to health care in America. After all, you just go to an emergency...
by Robert Borosage | Jan 23, 2008 | Blog
“As long as the music is playing, you’ve got to get up and dance. We’re still dancing.” These now-immortal words of former Citibank President Charles “Chuck” Prince were uttered in July, as Citibank was about to lose billions in everything from mortgages to credit...
by Bill Scher | Jan 23, 2008 | Blog
As expected, today the conservative minority in the House obstructed the public will, sustained President Bush's veto of bipartisan legislation and denied four million kids health insurance. Advocates for children hoped that they could gain more votes by stressing...
by Bill Scher | Jan 22, 2008 | Blog
Tomorrow, the conservative minority in the House is expected to sustain President Bush's second veto of expanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program. SCHIP has already successfully provided health coverage to six million kids, but nine million more remained...
by Sara Robinson | Jan 22, 2008 | Blog
Brad DeLong once said that "'Nobody could have foreseen ______' is the Bush administration's version of 'The dog ate my homework.'" It does seem to be their handy-dandy Swiss Army Knife, all-purpose explanation for the various disasters that have happened on their...
by Bill Scher | Jan 21, 2008 | Blog
The Sunday shows score their first question for the Watchdog in 2008! Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace did ask Mitt Romney about the federal lobbyists on his campaign team, despite his claim that he doesn't have any lobbyists running his campaign. Romney's response?...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jan 20, 2008 | Blog
Wading into the storm kicked up by Sen. Hillary Clinton's comment that "it took a president" to turn Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream of racial equality into a reality, Bill Moyers nails it on his January 18 commentary for his PBS show, "Bill Moyers' Journal": Many,...
by Bill Scher | Jan 18, 2008 | Blog
Every Friday in our Weekend Watchdog feature, we post suggested questions for scheduled Sunday guests. You can add your own questions in the comment thread. We'll also include contact information for the shows, so we can let them know what their viewers want asked....
by Terrance Heath | Jan 18, 2008 | Blog
It's been a long time since I blogged about Katrina or its aftermath. But I was reminded of it by the steady stream of Katrina-related headlines I've been reading lately. You know, the drumbeat of actual news that barely breaks through the din surrounding stories of...
by Bill Scher | Jan 17, 2008 | Blog
Today's edition of Environment & Energy Daily (sub. req'd) reports on a conference featuring the chief lobbyists for the fossil fuel industries. And they're in panic mode. While David Parker, president and CEO of the American Gas Association, noted "general...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jan 16, 2008 | Blog
Democratic leaders in the House are currently sketching out the details of an economic stimulus package designed to soften the blow later this year of the now-apparent recession. But Robert Kuttner, founding co-editor of The American Prospect and the author of “The...
by Bill Scher | Jan 16, 2008 | Blog
National Review editor Rich Lowry, while trying to dismiss the potency of economic populism among middle-class Republican voters, offered this analysis of Mitt Romney's victory in Michigan and the limited appeal of Mike Huckabee: It turns out that anxious middle class...
by Bill Scher | Jan 16, 2008 | Blog
Conservatives appear confused what argument to make about the struggling economy: pander with newfound populism, make excuses for tax handouts to CEOs, and/or insist everything is going fine. Mitt Romney outpandered John McCain and Mike Huckabee in Michigan, finally...
by Robert Borosage | Jan 16, 2008 | Blog
Remember the Enron employees who watched their retirement savings evaporate as the Enron ponzi scheme, chaired by George Bush’s best buddy, “Kenny Boy” Lay, went up in smoke? The conservative majority on the Supreme Court just told them all: “Drop Dead.” Forced to...
by Robert Borosage | Jan 15, 2008 | Blog
It ain’t sexy, I know, but a word about the economy and the presidential debate. Wall Street banks are holding a fire sale; employment is down, holiday sales tanked. Burdened with record debt and stagnant incomes, homeowners are about to reckon with declining home...
by Bill Scher | Jan 15, 2008 | Blog
Last week, I wrote: "Bill Kristol's New York Times column debuted today. It included a factual error, attributing a Michael Medved quote to Michelle Malkin. That was an appropriate beginning, as Kristol will surely have the Times corrections desk working overtime....
by Bill Scher | Jan 15, 2008 | Blog
Everyone's favorite Bush 2000 Flashback. From the 6/28/00 New York Times: Gov. George W. Bush of Texas said today that if he was president, he would bring down gasoline prices through sheer force of personality, by creating enough political good will with...
by Bill Scher | Jan 15, 2008 | Blog
What will today's Republican primary results in Michigan tell us about what voters want? Nothing. But we don't need the results to know that Michigan voters, like those in New Hampshire and across America, want action on the economy. The Republican candidates...
by Isaiah J. Poole | Jan 14, 2008 | Blog
The resources of TomPaine.com and its rich, groundbreaking tradition of sharp progressive commentary have been incorporated into a newly redesigned OurFuture.org. The result is a website designed to lead a new era of progressive thought and action. Not only will...
by Bill Scher | Jan 14, 2008 | Blog
In an act of small bravery, I got Chinese take-out from Hunan Gourmet last night. Hunan Gourmet has long been one of the most popular Chinese restaurants in my area of Western Massachusetts. But last month, it suffered scandalous press after a take-out order of...
by Bill Scher | Jan 14, 2008 | Blog
Once again, the Sunday shows go 0-for-3 for the Watchdog. On ABC's This Week, Newt Gingrich was given free publicity for his new book, without being challenged on the ridiculous and demonstrably false premises of the book. On CBS' Face The Nation, former Gov. Mitt...
by Bill Scher | Jan 12, 2008 | Blog
Every Friday in our Weekend Watchdog feature, we post suggested questions for scheduled Sunday guests. You can add your own questions in the comment thread. We'll also include contact information for the shows, so we can let them know what their viewers want asked....
by Bill Scher | Jan 10, 2008 | Blog
Two political realities only some in Washington currently grasp. Health care is consistently one the top three issues voters cite as priorities for the next president. And about two-thirds of voters want their government to guarantee health care for everyone. The...
