Yesterday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke gave a speech to the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council. He argued that the United States is on an unsustainable fiscal course, and that while he does not advise cutting spending in the next two years, after 2012 Congress needs to get serious More…
Republican leaders have been dishonest with the American people on how they intend to pull the nation out of a recession, President Barack Obama said Wednesday morning during a backyard chat at the home of a Des Moines family. “It’s time to make tough choices and put politics
The Center for American Progress’ Michael Ettlinger and Michael Linden do quick work dismantling the GOP’s Pledge to America, a governing platform released with great fanfare but to little applause last week. Lo and behold, cutting taxes without cutting spending leads to yawning deficits and a fatter national debt.
Today, more than 300 economists and policy experts released a letter warning that “the still-fragile economic recovery will be undercut by austerity economics of the kind being pushed by conservative politicians and by the Deficit Commission.”
The group argues that President Obama and Congress should press for legislation More…
At The Daily Beast, Benjy Sarlin reports that Tea Party-affiliated candidates might force Republicans to get specific on where they would cut the country’s spending. To boot, Rand Paul, the GOP candidate for a Kentucky Senate seat, promises to filibuster any deficit-increasing budget:
The Tea Party Express, feeling their oats after propelling Joe Miller to a (likely) victory over Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) in Alaska, is now preparing to raise and spend some big bucks on behalf of outsider Tea Party affiliated candidate Christine O’Donnell in her long shot Senate bid against More…
Today, TWI contributor Martha C. White has a good piece running down popular proposed cuts to Social Security and looking into how they might impact the most financially insecure Americans.
The context for the piece is the brewing fight over the recommendations of President Obama’s deficit commission — technically, More…
During Utah’s bruising Republican Senate primary battle, challenger Mike Lee repeatedly attacked longtime incumbent Bob Bennett for his habit of requesting earmarks. But Lee also pledged to fight to keep NASA’s Constellation program — a big source of jobs in Utah — alive through congressional spending. Bennett tried in vain More…
Yesterday, the House reconvened to pass and President Obama signed into law a $26.1 billion package granting aid to state governments — $16.1 billion for Medicaid and $10 billion to prevent the layoffs of teachers. While intended as job-saving stimulus, the bill did not add to the deficit.
Preempting Washington politicians looking for easy ways to close the deficit and reduce the debt, the Pentagon is trimming its own budget. Yesterday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced he will close a base, reduce the number of generals and take other measures to slim the military.
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