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

Executive Orders for Trump and Private Industry

This was from May 2023. I have been reading the OilPrice website just to keep up with what the other side of the room was thinking, Not that I would get all the detail. However, you can surmise what is taking place after a brief read. I do not believe industry finds Trump and his […]

Three reasons Ezra Klein will not become a libertarian

Over at Cato, Michael Cannon tells us that Ezra Klein will become a libertarian.  As evidence, he cites the following passage by Klein: The thing I’ve changed my mind most on in politics in recent years is how destructive bad regulations can be and how seriously I take it now when I hear that regulations […]

Trump and national security

Trump has charged the DoJ and FBI to focus on his political enemies. That means that the focus of these “law and order” agencies will be on Trump’s political security and not our national security. Expect terrorist attacks and domestic violence, which will then be used as an excuse for martial law. Trump has pardoned […]

Paranoia “Striking Deep” Early on In This Administration with Immigration

Early this morning I stepped outside into the thirty-degree weather we are experiencing in the Arizona desert. My across-the-street US Citizen Mexican neighbor was loading up his pickup truck to go do some landscaping work. His is one of the few pickup trucks I have seen with the backend box filled with the essentials needed […]

Oil, Energy, and Krugman

A Bit of Paul Krugman “Trump, Energy and MAGA Brain” “So what’s going on with the proclamation that American energy production, which is one of our economic strong points, is in crisis? Partly it’s a cynical payoff to the oil industry, which more or less openly made a deal to give Trump $1 billion in return for […]

Jobless Claims Trending Higher

Jobless claims: seasonality and neutrality continue  – by New Deal democrat The week’s first meaningful data is jobless claims. These have been trending higher YoY, but with lots of seasonal noise. And that trend continued this week. Initial claims increased 6,000 to 223,000. The four-week moving average (especially more important right now to filter out […]

$2.5 Trillion in Cuts Proves GOP want to . . .

More on How the Republicans will have to cut in order to keep the TCJA. Perspective: “Nearly 60% of mandatory spending is for Medicare and Social Security,” noted one expert. “If they don’t touch those, they’d have to cut Medicaid to the bone.” Call for $2.5 Trillion in Cuts Proves GOP Wants to ‘Steal Our […]

Attempting to Extend the 2017 TCJA Tax Breaks

What is Necessary for Republicans to Extend 2017 Tax Cuts? The tax cuts in the 2017 TCJA were supposed to pay for itself in stimulation of the economy. The TCJA was passed using the Reconciliation Act. It never did pay for itself. So now Republicans are working on cuts to social programs to keep the […]

The Stasi comes to the United States

The former German Democratic Republic (“East Germany”) was a police state in which neighbors spied on neighbors and family members spied on one another. If you were named by a friend or colleague as a potential subversive, the Stasi—the secret police—would arrest you and you could be imprisoned for years on trumped-up charges. After your […]