Oil prices keep hitting new record highs. Yesterday saw the price of oil hit $57/bbl for the first time, before it fell slightly by the end of the day. Probably of more significance is the fact that market sentiment is apparently solidfying around the idea that such high oil prices are here to stay, and […]
The Economist makes some excellent points about Bush’s economic team this week. 1) It is very weak, as everyone knows. 2) This may not be a major problem under normal circumstances. 3) This will almost certainly be a very major problem if something goes wrong. George Bush’s economic team still looks weak There are two […]
It would seem that William Buckley has decided to show the kids over at NRO how to an oped on economics as he blasts Lou Dobbs for being a trade protectionist: The indignation of Mr. Dobbs caused some viewers to wonder whether there was, suddenly, a development in the economic picture that altered the common […]
Donald Luskin’s latest – Krugman’s $600 billion bungle – cannot deny that Paul Krugman has caught George Bush and Joseph Lieberman in a blatant misrepresentation of what the Social Security Administration said about the alleged unfunded liabilities. But he defends this claim that the cost of delay is around $600 billion per year: Here’s how […]
When Bush supporters whine the Democrats have no plan, all they are really doing is saying they do not wish to engage in a real discussion. Today the President said this morning that he found Robert Pozen’s plan interesting: Q: Will you say if you’re specifically supportive of an income test for the slowing of […]
Let me follow up on my post from yesterday with one more chart. The problem with the US’s fiscal situation is not the fact that the federal government is running a budget deficit today. The problem is that it will run massive deficits as far as the eye can see into the future, even assuming […]
In the wake of Bush’s appointment of Josh Bolton (Mr. “There is no United Nations… When the United States leads, the United Nations will follow”) to the position of US ambassador to the UN, the latest Bush appointment to an important multinational body seems only fitting: WASHINGTON – President Bush will recommend that Defense Deputy […]
The BEA reported on the US’s current account deficit for 2004. And the winner is… $666 billion, or 5.7% of GDP: The U.S. current-account deficit–the combined balances on trade in goods and services, income, and net unilateral current transfers–increased to $665.9 billion in 2004 from $530.7 billion in 2003. An increase in the deficit on […]
Last week, I plugged a paper on Social Security by a professor at the University of Oregon, Mark Thoma. As it turns out, he also has a blog — take a look. And while I’m plugging economists’ blogs, see also Calculated Risk, which may be a bit to the right of Angry Bear, but is […]
Halliburton: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Military auditors still have “major” unresolved issues with Halliburton, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, a day after Democratic congressmen released an audit questioning $108 million in costs by the contractor. A Pentagon spokeswoman said the audit, which found $108 million in questionable fuel delivery costs in Iraq by Halliburton unit Kellogg […]