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The Fed's announcement that it would keep interest rates at nearly zero until unemployment falls below 6.5 percent was, by most measures, good news. Although cheap money has proven to be no great solution to a weak economy, it has had some positive effects. Just ask anyone who has managed to
Blog
David Callahan
This year’s holiday shopping season has started with a bang with 247 million shoppers (an all-time high and up from 226 million last year) spending an average of $423 each at local or online stores during the Thanksgiving Black Friday weekend.[4]According to the National Retail Federation, retail
Policy Briefs
Consumers Union
USPIRG
To hear the media tell it, all eyes are on the fiscal cliff. Which side is compromising and which side isn't? Which side's numbers add up? How can votes in the House and the Senate be structured for maximum political gain? What will the deal ultimately be? And, most important, which side will win
In the media
Arianna Huffington
We all know that smokers and drinkers cost our healthcare system a fortune thanks to their self-destructive behavior. So it makes sense to heavily tax cigarettes and booze as a way to bring down the deficit or fund government healthcare programs. Right? Well, no. In fact, the economic case for so
Blog
David Callahan
Eric Scheiderman is leading a seven state coalition to bring suit against the EPA for failing to address methane emissions from the oil and gas industry -- a violation of the Clean Air Act.
Blog
J. Mijin Cha
Attorney General Eric Holder was in Boston yesterday, speaking at the Kennedy Library about voting issues. His speech covered a number of topics, but one part that jumped out to us was Holder's embrace of shifting the responsibility to register voters away from individuals and to government through
Blog
David Callahan
The airwaves are once again crackling with the saga of crime and punishment in the international banking sector. HSBC has been penalized $1.92 billion for money laundering in the service of rogue states, but has engaged in even more money laundering for Mexican and Colombian drug cartels. It is
Blog
Wallace C. Turbeville
Despite what critics say, renewable energy is not only a viable alternative energy source, production is booming. The U.S. has installed a record amount of solar so far this year with even more installation in the fourth quarter expected. All this growth comes in the wake of the furious attacks on
Blog
J. Mijin Cha
The Coalition for Sensible Safeguards has produced a report detailing five areas in which protections significantly help make the December and New Year festivities a safer and more joyful experience.
Press release/statement
Washington is in a fiscal panic, yet surprisingly few people are asking an obvious question: Why in the world is the Obama Administration proposing to spend $8 trillion on security over the next decade? Included in that giant sum is not just Pentagon spending, but also outlays for intelligence
Blog
David Callahan