Retirements Shrink the Senate’s Center
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on January 22nd, 2011 5:31 am by HL
Retirements Shrink the Senate’s Center
Reid Wilson, National Journal
The decisions by three veteran senators to retire in the last week signal the beginning of the 2012 election season. But while the bell has rung for political Washington, the race for Congress kicks off at the cost of three moderate voices—likely to be replaced by winners of stridently partisan primary contests.In a period marked by calls for civility and tempered political rhetoric, all indications are that the 2012 cycle and the president and Congress that result will lose what little bipartisanship remains in Washington.
There’s Already a Crowded White House Field
Sitting Together Is Nice, But Won’t Reduce Rancor
Path Sought to Deal With States Crushing Debt
Mary Walsh, NY Times
Policy makers are working behind the scenes to come up with a way to let states declare bankruptcy and get out from under crushing debts, including the pensions they have promised to retired public workers.Unlike cities, the states are barred from seeking protection in federal bankruptcy court. Any effort to change that status would have to clear high constitutional hurdles because the states are considered sovereign.
Steve Jobs’ Legacy Ranks With Edison, Ford
Rich Jaroslovsky, Bloomberg
This week’s news about Steve Jobs’s health should matter even to people who’ve never bought an iPod or a share of Apple Inc. stock.Lacking information about Jobs’s latest illness, questions have focused on what his absence will mean for Apple. How deep is the management team that will run things while he’s on medical leave? What will the impact be on a stock price that’s made Apple one of the most valuable companies in the world? Are enough cool new things in the pipeline to sustain the company’s spectacular financial…