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

NYC Police Suppress Cindy Sheehan’s Right to Free Speech

How is this allowed in the United States? NEW YORK (AP) – Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan said Tuesday she was hurt slightly in a scuffle that erupted when police broke up a rally as she was at the microphone. An organizer was arrested and charged with using a loudspeaker without a permit. “I was speaking […]

Scott McClellan on Poverty: “Failed Policies of the Past”

The President’s press secretary was pressed on the issue of poverty yesterday. As usual with this Administration, they pat themselves on the back as they blame Bill Clinton: The policies that this President has pursued are bold ones and they are ones that are achieving real results for all Americans. The President, from day one, […]

Arithmetic & the Clinton–Conservative View of How to Fund Katrina Relief

CNN notes: WASHINGTON (CNN) – Since the president prefers not to raise taxes to finance Hurricane Katrina recovery, three senators suggested Sunday that Congress cut spending, delay a Medicare prescription benefit and forego a tax cut for the rich. Senate Democrat Joe Biden from Delaware suggested sacrificing a cut in estate taxes, and Republicans Lindsey […]

The Debtor Society

How can the US aspire to an “Ownership Society”, when in reality the nation is mortgaging its future, or in the words of Warren Buffett, becoming a “Sharecropper’s Society.”? And how can the US revel in slightly above trend GDP growth that comes at the expense of massive quantities of new consumer and government debt? […]

Katrina Relief & Ricardian Equivalence

Credit should go to conservatives like Andrew Samwick who object to Bush’s free lunch philosophy: If we can handle it now, why weren’t we handling it before? Why does rebuilding New Orleans compete favorably with this unspecified set of least useful programs, but not funding Social Security personal retirement accounts? Or the new Medicare prescription […]

A Tale of Two Cities

Question: what do the following two headline stories have in common? Answer: they are the most important logistical endeavors and tests of management competence that the Bush administration has faced. From the New York Times: Poor Planning and Corruption Hobble Reconstruction of Iraq The United States has poured more than $200 million into reconstruction projects […]

Redefining ‘Conservative’

Dan Froomkin does a good job today of covering how Bush’s speech last night was rather odd, in many ways, coming from someone who is self-described as ‘conservative’. Some of the media analysis brought together in Froomkin’s column today: Mr. Big Government Michael Tackett writes in the Chicago Tribune about what he calls Bush’s “act […]

The US Current Account Deficit

New figures were just released this morning about the US current account deficit during the April-June period of 2005. From the BEA release: The U.S. current-account deficit–the combined balances on trade in goods and services, income, and net unilateral current transfers–decreased to $195.7 billion in the second quarter of 2005 (preliminary) from $198.7 billion (revised) […]

Truth in Newscrawls?

I can’t guarantee that this isn’t a Photoshop job, but here’s something from my Inbox that rings rather true: AB

Schumer v Roberts

Charles Schumer is my hero. I’m starting to think that he may be one of the most intelligent and articulate senators that we have. Sorry for the length of the following transcript excerpt; I couldn’t resist. From yesterday’s confirmation hearings : SCHUMER: [L]et me ask you this about judges in general. You sit on a […]