Agency Admits Economic Stability and Consumer Protection Not Mutually Exclusive

For those with a basic grasp of (non-political) economics and a keen memory for how massive consumer fraud and non-transparent financial products helped cause the current economic crisis, it’s an obvious proposition: Helping consumers avoid fraud, usury, overly powerful banks and fee-hungry brokers is good for the economy. But a More…

Five Ways American Workers Found Out Today That They’re Screwed

It’s a rare day in America that the government, economists and members of the media establishment will come together and tell Americans that, actually, they’re all screwed. But since today is one of those days, let’s count the ways this recession has permanently altered the American economy for the worse. More…

Is the Greco-European Financial Crisis Goldman’s Fault, Too?

The Greek debt crisis — which is threatening to spread to Spain, Portugal, Italy and Ireland and force the Germans to bail out the Greek government with German taxpayer dollars — is all the rage right now, with people trying to figure out how to stop the contagion and halt More…

Long-Term Job Losses Demand Large-Scale Fix

While the national unemployment rate of 10.2 percent is a sobering reminder of the depth of this recession and the protracted timeline a recovery will take, the challenges posed by long-term unemployment are far greater.

“We are breaking every record post-Great Depression on long-term unemployment,” said Heidi Shierholz, an More…

Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to Wall Street: Save Those Documents

The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) is acting under a legal mandate to investigate the “causes of the collapse of each major financial institution” that failed or received a government bailout in the panicked days of last fall — and the FCIC intends to act quickly, Chairman Phil Angelides said More…

Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Mulls Its Own Role in Regulatory Reform

The 10 members of the panel named by Congress to investigate the causes of last year’s economic implosion appear to be wrestling with their role in this year’s push for financial industry regulatory reform, judging from their statements at today’s first hearing.

Brooksley Born, who fought unsuccessfully to regulate derivatives More…

Only Forceful Action Can Change Foreclosure Crisis Tide

The time may be ripe for a shift in strategy as the foreclosure machine grinds on, and new foreclosure notices reach the troubling milestone of 10,000 per day.

A weak economy has added job losses and falling home values to the mix of toxic loans that prompted More…

Another Poll Shows Environment to Be a Record-Low Priority

Earlier this week, I wrote about how the economic crisis had led record-high numbers of Americans to dismiss the threat of global warming.

Now Gallup has a new poll that confirms this trend and, for the first time in 25 years of polling, shows that most Americans would More…

Economic Crisis Sidelines Global Warming Concerns

As the Obama administration moves forward with its green agenda, climate change concerns have been elevated to a top priority. Yet in the midst of the deepening economic crisis, public opinion appears to be moving in the opposite direction.

A Gallup poll released last Wednesday found a More…

Another Hole in the Obama Foreclosure Plan

As we wrote today, there’s a real hope among housing experts that President Barack Obama’s new plan to tackle the foreclosure crisis will be wonderfully successful, but the voluntary nature of the program has left more than a few doubts lingering.

And here’s another reason to worry: The component More…