Continue reading Will Health Care Reform Make Us Sick?

Will Health Care Reform Make Us Sick? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Apr 2010 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

President Obama has been under severe pressure to rein in federal spending, both from Americans here at home as well as trading partners like China.

During his State of the Union message on Wednesday, Obama is expected announce a three-year spending freeze for 1/6 of the federal budget.

The proposal will include freezes in discretionary spending in the Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Energy, Transportation, Agriculture and Health and Human Services. The freeze would affect $447 billion in spending or 17% of the total federal budget.

Continue reading State of the Union to Include a Proposed Spending Freeze

State of the Union to Include a Proposed Spending Freeze originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In the 1960s, President Lyndon Johnson's economic/social policy, the Great Society, came up against a counterforce and competing claim few in public policy circles at that time had expected: Lyndon Johnson himself.

Johnson, in a decision that would alter U.S. society and the cultural landscape, chose to escalate U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, and vastly increased government defense spending. The spending, when combined with spending for the Great Society, posed the question: "Could the U.S. economy tolerate increased government spending for defense and for social programs without an increase in inflation?" This is known in economics circles as the "guns and butter" question.

Continue reading Guns and butter: Can the U.S. have both at the same time?

Guns and butter: Can the U.S. have both at the same time? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Health Care's costs & the misguided debate

Health Care's costs & the misguided debate originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 22 Jul 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Economic firestorm: Which costs more, stealing or stupidity?

Economic firestorm: Which costs more, stealing or stupidity? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday urged passage of at least $61 billion in new economic stimulus funding this month, but said the future of the legislation requires the cooperation of Republicans in the Senate and President Bush.

Continue reading Re-think new stimulus package? Push infrastructure!

Re-think new stimulus package? Push infrastructure! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

How many billions are Paulson and Bernanke asking for? Seven hundred billion dollars. Now that's real money! And the administration is touting this new program as if they knew what they were talking about.

We have heard folks wondering how and why Treasury Secretary Paulson should be given the power and discretion to do as he sees fit with this bailout money.

We have heard people speaking about the pain and the injustice, along with the doubts and reservations about the concept of giving away so much money.

Actually giving this handout to companies that have demonstrated such corrupt thinking and irresponsibility (see SEC opens the gates and the world drowns) is a supreme injustice given that their decisions led to the collapse of once-mighty financial industry titans. See Lehman Bros 158-year sad ending for just one example.

Has anyone asked how the Treasury came up with that number? Can someone explain the difference between $700 billion and a blank check?

Continue reading $700 billion is real money!

$700 billion is real money! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money."

To paraphrase the late Senator Everett Dirksen (R-Illinois), if a couple billion is real money, what's $400 billion amount to? Fiscal trouble for the United States, says an economist.

The U.S. federal budget deficit will double this year, to $407 billion, from $161 billion last year, the Congressional Budget Office announced Tuesday, in its revised baseline projection report (pdf).

The CBO said a weakening economy, spending for the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars and the War on Terror, higher entitlement spending, and a slowing growth rate in federal receipts are among the factors that will push the deficit to 3% of GDP this fiscal year, which ends September 30.

The deficit will rise to $438 billion next year, fiscal 2009, remain roughly at that level, $431 billion, in fiscal 2010, before tapering to $325 billion in fiscal 2011.

The CBO also expects U.S. GDP to grow just 1.5% in 2008 and slow to 1.1% in 2009.

Economist Glen Langan said the multiple $400 billion deficits are bad enough, but they could rise considerably, if the U.S. Treasury's bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac does not go well. "If the housing market does not stabilize in the year ahead, Treasury could end up spending tens of billions more per year," Langan said. "Nearly all of that cost would be born by the taxpayer, which means the deficit will increase."

Continue reading CBO: U.S. budget deficit to exceed $400 billion thru 2010

CBO: U.S. budget deficit to exceed $400 billion thru 2010 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Is infrastructure investment good for the U.S. economy?

Is infrastructure investment good for the U.S. economy? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Recession, housing seen increasing budget deficit for new president

Recession, housing seen increasing budget deficit for new president originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading A high U.S. budget deficit means higher taxes, prices, interest rates

A high U.S. budget deficit means higher taxes, prices, interest rates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Congressional Democrats talk up second economic stimulus package

Congressional Democrats talk up second economic stimulus package originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It is alarming to me that the same people who screw up the economy (or stand by watching) are the ones that are now promoting the remedies. They have proven without a shadow of a doubt that this is not their strong suit. The proposed economic stimulus package has bi-partisan support and calls for an estimated $156 billion of tax rebates ranging from $500 to $1,000 (+ $300 for each child) that might show up in May.

If we are going to add on to our already humungous joke of national debt, than I want to invest this capital in something that will bring a higher return on invested capital (ROIC) than the paltry one time mad money. That expenditure should be for national infrastructure projects like roadways, bridges, tunnels, and waterways.

We have all heard about the poor condition of our national infrastructure and the hundreds of billions of dollars of repair work and replacement that is desperately needed.

This alternative would bring visible results that every single person in the country would benefit from and improved linkages always stimulate economic growth. Road improvements even reduce fuel consumption by shortening routes and reducing friction both strategically and physically.

Continue reading Fund roads & bridges NOT mad money stimulus

Fund roads & bridges NOT mad money stimulus originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 04 Mar 2008 17:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Taj Mahal's dollar refusal symbolic of greenback's rough 2007

Taj Mahal's dollar refusal symbolic of greenback's rough 2007 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 20 Dec 2007 19:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gee whiz what a shock Crude hits new record above $95 in after-hours trading and other commodities will not be far behind. Can't wait to see what gold, sugar, and even water will cost as the dollar becomes more worthless. I have written many recent pleas to leave the rates alone because it was fairly obvious what would happen if rates were cut yet again. In a 9 to 1 vote the Federal Reserve Board voted to cut rates by a quarter point to 4.5%.

Only Thomas Hoenig, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City opposed the increase. He preferred no change in the funds rate. Let's make him chairman of the board. Better yet, maybe he would make a good write-in candidate for president. I wonder what he thinks of federal spending, the war in Iraq, health care, education -- He has certainly peaked my interest and I do not know him at all, but he has made a good impression so far.

In Europe the Dollar is falling, while gold passes $800. Where will it all end? It cannot end well if nobody wants to "pay the piper". When you consider the reasoning behind the Feds rate cut you have to be concerned. The rationale behind the cuts is that the lower borrowing costs will induce consumers and businesses to boost spending, energizing economic growth.

Continue reading Fed cuts rates, dollar down, oil and gold up - who would have thunk it?!

Fed cuts rates, dollar down, oil and gold up - who would have thunk it?! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 31 Oct 2007 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This one obviously became "A Bridge Too Far" fetched, as Alaska Abandons Infamous 'Bridge to Nowhere' included in last year's budget as part of the traditional pork-barrel spending that goes on in Washington -- usually following long speeches about trimming the fat.

There is probably nothing more universally consistent in a campaign speech than the promise to cut federal spending. Of course politicians are equally consistent on failing to do so once they are in office. However, in the case of this infamous bridge to an Island of a few hundred residences, the political heat, under the proverbial magnifying glass, was too much.

The public outrage and direct lobbying from various budget watchdog groups and with the support of Senator Tom Coburn, Representative Jeff Flake, and Representative Mark Kirk, the State of Alaska has officially abandoned plans to pursue the infamous Gravina Bridge. Money is still earmarked for the state, but the recently elected new governor decided to drop the project.

Continue reading Sunday Funnies: Alaska abandons infamous 'bridge to nowhere'

Sunday Funnies: Alaska abandons infamous 'bridge to nowhere' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 28 Oct 2007 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wall Street and its scoreboard stock exchanges are jubilant with the 0.5% cut in the prime rate. But all is not well. As expected, gold and oil hit record highs on the news yesterday and the sky's the limit. The dollar will be losing value and foreign investors will be buying increasing amounts of our equities, including land, buildings, public and private companies. Expect American ownership to decrease.

The fact that the Federal Reserve sought to pacify investment bankers and individuals who made bad deals in an effort to shore up what was starting to look like big trouble in the "heartland" is not, I think, worthy of celebration. Yes, we should be grateful that Ben Bernanke and crew are keeping a watchful eye on the pulse of the economy and did not wait until we drowned to throw in a lifeline. But for this conservative group to make the cut they had to think things were bad, and that is not exactly heartening news.

Transportation stocks are not doing well this morning, and neither are delivery companies. FedEx Corp (NYSE: FDX) and United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) are showing losses or treading water, even though the overall market is notably up. Why? Fuel costs.

Continue reading FedEx & UPS are not celebrating Bernanke's worried rate cuts - should you?

FedEx & UPS are not celebrating Bernanke's worried rate cuts - should you? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We heard a lot of nice sentiment from President Bush Tuesday night but, alas, it is another case of too little, too late. (Or... is it never too late?) It would be great if the $18 billion in "pork barrel" spending he mentioned is really cut by restricting the ease with which our legislature can attach its pet projects to entirely unrelated bills under the cover of darkness. This is the equivalent of about seven weeks of spending on the Iraq war, at current levels.

It also begs the question as to what the administration was thinking until now, as we spent perhaps $100 to $120 billion during his watch on an abundance of special projects. If we give the President and his team credit for on-the-job-training the first year, even though every candidate makes cutting government spending a part of his platform, the administration should still have done something earlier, especially with Republicans steering this ship! This is very embarrassing -- and shameful!

It makes me think the attitude in Washington was that 'the Democrats got theirs, now we're going to get ours'.

Continue reading Bush makes his money speech & so does Frank Deford, who's listening?

Bush makes his money speech & so does Frank Deford, who's listening? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Jan 2007 19:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.