"Words that make actions speak louder."
Almost everyone knows that to “pull a Kanye” means to steal the limelight when it rightfully belongs elsewhere. With Sen. Dodd’s suggestion that the Consumer Financial Protection Agency be housed in the Federal Reserve, it looked as if Ben Bernanke had successfully “pulled a Kanye” on an independent CFPA. But before Bernanke had time to […]
Two noted shills for the banking industry – Republican Lamar Alexander and Rupert Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal – just trotted out the “socialism” boogeyman, so here we go again: another lie, another con, another ripoff. “School loan socialism” is the new Death Panel. But, hey, somebody’s gotta keep Sallie Mae’s corporate jets flying. Alexander’s op-ed […]
Nobel Prize-winner Joseph Stiglitz said the Fed was “corrupt,” Elizabeth Warren said she wanted to fight for the CFPA until there were “blood and teeth” on the floor, and Robert Rubin said “virtually nobody” sa
Robert Byrd just came out in favor of using reconciliation in health reform. Since reconciliation’s also known as the “Byrd rule,” that’s a definitive a confirmation of its legitimacy as you can get. It’s like having Chuck Berry saying “that’s a good Chuck Berry lick,” or having Mary propose a “Hail Mary pass.” And the […]
At what point does “bipartisanship” begin to erode the democratic process? Here’s my answer: When it’s used to take decision-making power away from voters and place it in the hands of a governing elite – an elite which acts in secret so that its members cannot be held accountable to anyone for their actions. Democrats […]
When I worked in the Financial District back in the nineties, the big-shot investment types loved to talk about accountability. Almost all male, they loved macho posturing. They got big money because they took big risks, they’d say. They were the Danger Boys. They had to lay it all on the line every day. But […]
The pheremonic scent of compromise is inducing euphoria in the nation’s capitol once again. Not that there’s anything wrong with compromise, if it results in policies that work. But we’ve just pulled ourselves back from the brink of financial meltdown, and tens of millions of households are experiencing their own economic catastrophes. This is no […]
Steven Pearlstein of the Washington Post waxed lyrical today about the compromise deal on financial regulations proposed Sens. Dodd and Corker, calling it a “creative bipartisan proposal.” It’s certainly “bipartisan,” and it may even be “creative.” What it isn’t is effective. It’s not just a compromise – unfortunately, it’s also compromised.
Before we get to the specifics, here’s what you need to know about the credit card companies: They’re out to shaft you. They’ll shaft you every chance they get. They’ll shaft you six ways from Sunday. They’ll shaft you with bells on, while whistling the “Hallelujah Chorus.” If they could, they’d shaft you from a […]
The White House has just released “The President’s Proposal” on health reform. It must be considered in context, and the context is this: The House and Senate have each passed a bill and they’re deadlocked on the differences between them. The President is outlining what he considers a reasonable resolution of the two bills, with […]