GOP’s Mindless Opposition to Government
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on November 15th, 2011 5:31 am by HL
GOP’s Mindless Opposition to Government
E.J. Dionne, Washington Post
Health Law Puts Focus on Limits of Federal Power
Adam Liptak, NYT
If the federal government can require people to purchase health insurance, what else can it force them to do? More to the point, what can’t the government compel citizens to do?Those questions have been the toughest ones for the Obama administration’s lawyers to answer in court appearances around the country over the past six months. And they are likely to emerge again if, as expected, the Supreme Court, as early as Monday, agrees to be the final arbiter of the challenge to President Obama’s signature health care initiative.
The New Progressive Movement
Jeffrey Sachs, New York Times
Occupy Wall Street and its allied movements around the country are more than a walk in the park. They are most likely the start of a new era in America. Historians have noted that American politics moves in long swings. We are at the end of the 30-year Reagan era, a period that has culminated in soaring income for the top 1 percent and crushing unemployment or income stagnation for much of the rest. The overarching challenge of the coming years is to restore prosperity and power for the 99 percent.Thirty years ago, a newly elected Ronald Reagan made a fateful judgment: “Government…
Docs Suggest Bachus Profited From Insider Trading
Wynton Hall, Big Gov
U.S. Representative Spencer Bachus (R-AL) had access to highly sensitive financial information during the 2008 bailout debates that may have helped him earn tens of thousands of dollars by trading stock options, even as most Americans’ portfolios took a beating.On Sunday, Rep. Bachus’s trading behavior came under fire in a 60 Minutes report based on Throw Them All Out, the book by investigative journalist and Breitbart editor that has triggered a political earthquake in Washington. Schweizer, who is also a Breitbart editor, devotes a significant portion of the book to…
The Housing Muddle
Robert Samuelson, Newsweek
WASHINGTON — We Americans think of ourselves as problem-solvers, but the housing collapse has so far eluded all solutions. Perhaps 10 million homes have gone into foreclosure since 2006; millions more will follow. From their peaks during the real estate bubble, home prices are down 30 percent; new housing construction has dropped 75 percent; and existing home sales are off almost 30 percent. Housing's collapse is one reason why the economic recovery is so weak. Construction remains depressed, as are the appliance and furniture sales spurred by home buying.It may be that patience is the…
