Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Ending the False Debate Over the Debt Ceiling

Joseph Stiglitz is calling for an honest and open debate on the debt ceiling and future expenditures and whether there is any relationship between the two. He states the expansion of the debt ceiling has no relationship between it and laws having future expenditures. The debt ceiling has no bearing on legal expenditures. It is […]

Why are so many long-shot Republicans running against Trump?

As of today, Trump seems well-positioned to win the Republican nomination.  The basic dynamic is familiar from 2016 – Trump has a strong base of committed supporters, the opposition will likely be divided, and many Republican primaries are winner-take-all or winner-take-most.  Couple this with the bump in support Trump got after his indictment in NY, […]

Jobless claims: yellow caution flag persists

Jobless claims: yellow caution flag persists  – by New Deal democrat In response to last week’s big jump in new jobless claims to 264,000, I wrote that it might be an outlier vs. the beginning of a rising trend. This morning claims fell back to their previous average range, at 242,000. The 4 week average […]

Democrats Reintroduce Bill to Expand U.S. Supreme Court

Democracy Alerts – Democrats Reintroduce Bill to Expand U.S. Supreme Court – Democracy Docket, I am certain this bill will not pass in the House. In any case, it puts SCOTUS on alert as to their politics. I would like to see Congress develop a code of ethics for SCOTUS which might go further than […]

US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings

I do not believe there is anything shocking enough to get Americans to react to deluge of killings from bullet-spewing-weapons. No matter what happens, everything goes back to the way it was pre-mass murders. In this case we have had multiples of shootings of 4 or more which qualifies as a mass shooting. Our elected […]

Get busy winning

Get busy winning, Digby’s Hullabaloo, Tom Sullivan Or get busy watching freedom die . . . Blue America‘s Howie Klein (Down With Tyranny) points to an old idea still current and still popular: FDR’s proposed Economic Bill of Rights (1944). Our political bill of rights, FDR saw, was inadequate for assuring “equality in the pursuit […]

Pharmaceutical Companies Eluding Congressional Scrutiny

If you recall, I reported on a West VA. Federal Court Ruling in Favor of Drug Distributors last July. The City of Huntington and the County of Cabell sued three drug wholesalers responsible for distributing hydrocodone and oxycodone or opioids. The claim was AmerisourceBergen Drug Co., Cardinal Health Inc., and McKesson Corp. were responsible for […]

Yellow flag from initial jobless claims turns a little more orangey

Yellow flag from initial jobless claims turns a little more orangey  – by New Deal democrat Initial jobless claims rose 22,000 to 264,000 last week, while the 4 week average rose 6,000 to 245,250. Continuing claims, with a one week lag, rose 12,000 to 1.813 million: Note that both measures of initial claims are at […]

Biden’s First Meeting Remarks with Republican Congressional Leaders

I wish Biden’s advisors had given him some dialogue rebutting McCarthy’s plan for cuts in programs. It is this type of jawboning which make convince some, not all, citizens the need to change their minds. What is the harm, Republicans will bring to the economy over and above what the FED will incur on Labor. […]