10
POPSBush or Obama: The Quiz 5. While Obama criticized Bush for "a doubling of the national debt," the federal debt held by the public went from 35.1% of GDP in 2000 to 40.8% of GDP in 2008 -- an increase of 16% as of fraction of GDP. What is it expected to be in 2016 under Obama's budget plan? 6. Obama criticized Bush for Guantanamo, military tribunals, wiretaps, troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and "signing statements." Which one of these Bush practices has Obama ended?
1
POPSNiall Ferguson And The Dollar .... into completely unwarranted European market strength. One wonders (or not) why the G-20 is more than happy to perpetuate the daily raping and pillaging of the DXY. Niall Ferguson discusses US Dollar, Fed Policy Outlook Video: (3:32) http://www.clipsyndicate.com/video/playlist/8178/1166786
4
POPSDrowning in Debt This is from Ross Perot's site (remember him?). One of the comments at the site that I thought was really good: "Our dollar is backed by faith, how much faith is left? Sheesh, they’re going to run out of paper, granted it’s all electronic transfer so maybe not. But man, I just don’t see how catastrophic inflation isn’t a forgone conclusion at this point."
1
POPSOakland Mayor Ron Dellums needs to explain tax mess or resign More: The debt owed to this city by Dellums is incalculable and there is nothing but pride - or arrogance - standing between him and a full public disclosure of the facts surrounding his tax problem. Anything short of that constitutes unacceptable behavior by a public official and violates the public contract between an elected official and the constituency the office serves. I tried to reach the mayor for comment - but he declined to speak with me, his press secretary Paul Rose told me. No one has asked Dellums to disclose anything that any other politician in the same set of circumstances wouldn't be asked to explain. If he cannot provide a public explanation for a controversy that has become another national embarrassment for this city, it's difficult to see how continuing in his current position is going to be good for anyone - either him or Oakland's citizens.
4
POPSU.K. Economic Contraction Is Longest on Record The British economy has now contracted for six successive quarters, making this the longest downturn since the agency started its data series in 1955. And it is starting to further lag behind the 16-member euro area, where France and Germany are contributing to broad improvements in manufacturing, services and consumer demand. Jean-Michel Six, chief European economist at Standard & Poor’s, said the divergence appeared to stem from the higher level of consumer indebtedness in Britain. “U.K. consumers are coming out of a period of very significant leveraging, and the process of unwinding that is long and painful,” he said. “You would expect savings rates to grow and credit demand to fall, weighing on the economy.” Meanwhile, German business confidence in October rose to its highest level in 13 months, according to the Ifo economic research institute in Munich.
1
POPSVote Against Stimulus, Then Race For The Cash. White men speak with forked tongue. On top of that, ""I am writing to request your support for a number of projects in my home state of Utah that I believe merit your department's attention," Bennett wrote, adding that he would "greatly appreciate" any funding considerations for his state." "Utah's lawmakers sent these letters despite repeated promises from President Barack Obama that the stimulus bill wouldn't include pet projects and that the money wouldn't be awarded based on the desires of lobbyists or home-state politicians." Tsk, tsk, tsk.
8
POPSObama’s Tripling of the National Debt in Pictures In 2009, Washington will spend $30,958 per household "the highest level in American history" and under President Obama’s budget, the figure will rise above $33,000 by 2019. The public national debt" $5.8 trillion as of 2008" is projected to double by 2012 and nearly triple by 2019. Thus, America would accumulate more government debt under President Obama than under every President in American history from George Washington to George W. Bush combined. To put that $1 trillion dollars into perspective, have a look at what it looks like! http://izismile.com/2009/03/10/can_you_imagine_one_trillion_dollars_6_pics.html
8
POPSThe Forgotten Depression of 1920 The experience of 1920–21 reinforces the contention of genuine free-market economists that government intervention is a hindrance to economic recovery. It is not in spite of the absence of fiscal and monetary stimulus that the economy recovered from the 1920–21 depression. It is because those things were avoided that recovery came. The next time we are solemnly warned to recall the lessons of history lest our economy deteriorate still further, we ought to refer to this episode – and observe how hastily our interrogators try to change the subject.
2
POPSThe Next Culture War "During this period, debt exploded. In 1960, Americans’ personal debt amounted to about 55 percent of national income. Our current cultural politics are organized by the obsolete culture war, which has put liberals on one side and conservatives on the other. But the slide in economic morality afflicted Red and Blue America equally. If there is to be a movement to restore economic values, it will have to cut across the current taxonomies. Its goal will be to make the U.S. again a producer economy, not a consumer economy."
7
POPSThe Dollar: Like it Or Not Change is Coming Last week we learned that the national debt is likely to grow by more than $9 trillion. That's not great news -- no one likes a big deficit -- but President Obama inherited an economic mess from the Bush administration, and the cleanup comes with an inevitably high price tag. We're paying it now.
3
POPSIran, China Sign a Major Oilfield Deal This can't be good... "China's investment in Iran's energy sector has increased as some western countries, led by the US, have sanctioned Iran over its peaceful(???) nuclear program. " Iran has also recently dropped the US dollar, and we owe China billions in debt. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/business/worldbusiness/08yuan.html?_r=1
1
POPSEver Wish Obama Was More Like Reagan?
Even Ford and Carter did a better job at cutting government. Their combined presidential terms account for an increase of 1.4%—compared with Reagan's 3%—in the government's take of "national income." And in nominal terms, there has been a 60% increase in government spending, thanks mainly to Reagan's requested budgets, which were only marginally smaller than the spending Congress voted. The budget for the Department of Education, which candidate Reagan promised to abolish along with the Department of Energy, has more than doubled to $22.7 billion, Social Security spending has risen from $179 billion in 1981 to $269 billion in 1986. The price of farm programs went from $21.4 billion in 1981 to $51.4 billion in 1987, a 140% increase. And this doesn't count the recently signed $4 billion "drought-relief" measure. Medicare spending in 1981 was $43.5 billion; in 1987 it hit $80 billion. Federal entitlements cost $197.1 billion in 1981—and $477 billion in 1987. (Written in 1988)
2
POPSRussian Professor Predicts End of U.S. Interest in his forecast revived this fall when he published an article in Izvestia, one of Russia's biggest national dailies. In it, he reiterated his theory, called U.S. foreign debt "a pyramid scheme," and predicted China and Russia would usurp Washington's role as a global financial regulator. Americans hope President-elect Barack Obama "can work miracles," he wrote. "But when spring comes, it will be clear that there are no miracles." People like him have forecast similar cataclysms before, he says, and been right. He cites French political scientist Emmanuel Todd. Mr. Todd is famous for having rightly forecast the demise of the Soviet Union -- 15 years beforehand. "When he forecast the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1976, people laughed at him," says Prof. Panarin.
1
POPSVodoo Economics Unfortunately, in practice, the theory had mixed results. During Ronald Reagan’s presidency, a combination of laws cut taxes tremendously for those in the highest tax brackets. The intention behind this was to encourage more investing by those who could afford it, but the benefits for lower-income brackets were marginal. Proponents argued that despite tax cuts, tax revenue would actually go up, since employment would increase significantly due to new businesses. This effect never really occurred, and savings rates actually declined
5
POPSNational Debt Road Trip How do the Obama deficits compare with past presidents? And how did the national debt get so big anyway. This video tries to answer those questions by looking at the debt as a road trip and seeing ...
10
POPSFor Obama, It's 'My Way or the Highway' he complains: "We are the only advanced democracy on earth ... that allows such hardships for millions of its people. There are now more than 30 million American citizens who cannot get coverage. ... We spend 1 1/2 times more per person on health care than any other country, but we aren't any healthier for it." As to his claimed number of uninsured, e's temporarily removed the illegal aliens to lower the number from 47 million to 30 million. But he's still lying to say 30 million "cannot get coverage." Again, 18 million of these make more than $50,000 a year and can afford health care but choose not to purchase it. And millions more have access to government programs and don't access them, which, incidentally, doesn't bode well for Obama's mandated universal coverage plan. And if he has such bipartisan intentions, why did he spend a significant part of his speech demonizing his opponents and misrepresenting their motives?
4
POPSIt is Time to BAIL out of GOVERNMENT The out of control federal spending has spent us into bankruptcy. The lust for more and more power and control over the economy has left us with a bloated government operating without restraint or a moral compass. Our legislators have spent our children's future and their children's. IT IS TIME TO SAY ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
16
POPSStudy: Bush Tax Cuts Cost More Than Twice As Much As Dems' Health-Care Bill In contrast, President Bush and his allies in Congress never even attempted to replace the revenue lost as a result of their enormous tax cuts. The Bush tax cuts were deficit-financed, which increased the national debt and resulted in greater interest payments on that debt, as already explained. These figures make clear that costs cannot be the real concern of lawmakers who oppose the House health care legislation and yet supported the Bush tax cuts. Their position seems to be that showering benefits on the wealthiest five percent of taxpayers and leaving the bill for future generations is preferable to making health care available for all at a much lower cost and paying that cost up front. That demonstrates a different set of priorities than most Americans have, but it doesn’t demonstrate much concern about costs.
4
POPSWhite Voters, Easy Marks For Controversy Stokers
proposed healthcare overhaul, in which some conservatives accused him of socialism. Obama’s ratings seem likely to rise again if he wins passage of healthcare legislation this fall. One such episode came to a head Sunday when Van Jones, Obama’s green jobs czar, resigned after a week of criticism over past inflammatory statements and for signing onto conspiracy theories questioning whether the U.S. government played a role in the Sept. 11 attacks. In another episode, some conservatives have criticized a White House dinner invitation issued to the lead lawyer in the American Civil Liberties Union lawsuits that have forced the government to disclose Bush-era interrogation techniques. The lawyer was invited to an event for the Muslim holiday of Ramadan. And Obama’s plan to address the nation’s schoolchildren Tuesday has prompted an outcry among some conservative parents and GOP officials. Some of them have accused the White House of trying to infuse “socialism”
8
POPSDo You Trust Barack Hussein Obama? and it has nothing to do with the color of the president’s skin. Claiming to bring a “new kind of politics” to Washington, the only thing “new” was just how far off the ethical scale Team Obama has conducted itself. While asserting the administration would be “transparent” and frustrate the status quo of special interests and lobbyists, Obama and his cohorts have systematically cut backroom deals with every imaginable special interest; drug companies, auto unions, and doctors all enjoyed “favors” worth billions of dollars. Then, when faced with a real grass-roots movement, Obama, his supporters, the mainstream media, and the leaders of his party went to extremes in painting the country’s citizens as “Nazis,” “Brown Shirts,” “un-American,” and “astroturfers.” Claiming average citizens were a “mob” that was doing the bidding of his political opponents, Obama, et. al., labeled upset Americans as unhinged racists and more than implied they were implied they were . . .
7
POPSIn President Barack Obama Backyard, 10,000 Patriots Unhappy About Unstainable Government Spending New Lenox Tea Party Express draws 10,000 YouTube (1:58) On tax day, the tea party movement began in earnest. Until now the movement has remained at the local levels. No longer will that be the case. The movement is coming to Washington on September 12, 2009 for a march and rally at the US Capitol. From autos to banking, the government is crowding out the private sector of our economy. Where Bush bailed out the private sector, Obama is making hostile government takeovers. Ignoring our multi trillion dollar deficit, Washington is considering a massive new energy tax and a takeover of health care. On Saturday, September 12th FreedomWorks will be joined by over ten thousands of liberty-loving activists to take a stand against politicians who are bankrupting our future. National co-sponsors include Tea Party Patriots, ResistNet, National Taxpayers Union, Americans For Tax Reform, Young Americans for Liberty, Ayn Rand Center, Campaign for Liberty, Free Republic .
7
POPSGee, Nancy, I Wonder Which Works Best: Tax Cuts or 'Stimulus'? Thursday, September 3, 2009 Video: Dem Rep Pete Stark tells interviewer, “Get the f**k out of here or I’ll throw you out the window” The discussion concerns the national debt: http://theblogprof.blogspot.com/2009/09/video-dem-rep-pete-stark-tells.html theblogprof.blogspot.com
7
POPSIt Took The Republicans 7 Years To Do What The Dems Have Done In 7 Months . . . P'Off The Independent Center Once they went down this path, they’re going all in here, and you can’t take that bet back.” Couldn’t agree more. The public option made it into too many versions in the House to snuff out without a backlash from the fanatical left. But the realization that we could be heading towards the disaster which is the UK’s and Canada’s crumbling ‘public options’ has woken up the electorate and they will have nothing of it. And it always comes back to how to pay for it, and that sets the target clearly on seniors and their rising ranks of health care consumers. Our naive President let this whole mess get out of control. He did not lead and establish a baseline, he let the wing nuts in Congress run amok, and he got the result he deserves. If anyone is serious about health care reform they will junk the current abominations from the left wing and produce something palatable to the nation. It may not save the Democrats from the voter backlash, but it sure will lessen the backlash
1
Pops
Newest Clips
Latest Comments
Most Pops
Print
Save
Turn on live update