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Even if you believe the U.S. should be running big deficits right now to stimulate growth, as I do, it is easy to grow deeply disturbed by projections of rising interest payments on the national debt in the coming years.
Blog
David Callahan
I don't generally worry too much about deficits or about U.S. debt held by foreigners. But in writing a post earlier today about interest on the debt, it occurred to me to investigate just how much money the United States pays out to China and Japan (our biggest economic competitors) every year in
Blog
David Callahan
Recently, Demos’ Mijin Cha discussed New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s $1 billion Green Bank proposal. The plan would create a fund, combing public and private capital, directed at spurring investment in clean technology and promoting private enterprise in the sector.
Blog
Jason Hochman
One obvious way to reduce the deficit is to squeeze Medicare recipients by forcing them to pick up more of the tab for their healthcare costs. And any number of proposals floating around in Washington would do exactly that. The problem, though, is that older Americans covered by Medicare are already
Blog
David Callahan
A scheme under consideration in Virginia to rig the Electoral College in Republicans’ favor could well violate a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, experts on the law say. But that very provision is itself under challenge by the GOP, and could be struck down by the Supreme Court later this year
In the media
Zachary Roth
The General Accounting Office has issued a report on the progress of the regulatory agencies as they implement the Dodd-Frank Act financial reforms. It is a depressing read. Fewer than half of the 236 rules required by the act have been adopted. There are not even proposed rules that the public can
Blog
Wallace C. Turbeville
Using political power to keep employees from organizing unions can be highly effective. That’s one forceful lesson to draw from the new figures on union membership.
Blog
Amy Traub
One road to democracy is through periodic, competitive elections with secret ballots, protected by the rule of law.
Blog
Michael Lipsky
Washington, DC: Today, a petition on the White House website urging President Obama to “use the State of the Union to call for a constitutional amendment to get big money out of politics” exceeded the 25,000 signatures necessary to guarantee an official White House response. The petition, launched
Press release/statement
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — One of the biggest surprises in President Barack Obama’s second inaugural address this week was the prominence given to climate change, marking it as a signature issue for his second term. The president spoke of the need to preserve the planet for future generations. But
In the media
Darrell Delamaide