Stung by Donald Trump's self-evident truth that history did not begin on September 12th, 2001 and end at noon on January 20, 2009, Jeb Bush asked, "Does anybody actually blame my brother for 9/11?" As it turns out, this is hardly the first time the former Florida governor complained about the unkindness the calendar has […]

Unveiling the Congressional Budget Office's latest long term forecast this week, new CBO Director Keith Hall made an unremarkable statement. "The evidence," Hall explained, "is that tax cuts do not pay for themselves." For the overwhelming majority of economists or just about anyone with a passing familiarity with the U.S. budget since Ronald Reagan first […]

While all eyes have been focused on the worldwide stock market plunge, a recent survey of economists by the Wall Street Journal identified a different threat to the vitality of the U.S. economy. But it's not the instability of Chinese stock prices, the devaluation of its currency, the Eurozone's Greek tragedy or even a premature […]

Over the last few weeks, the U.S. media have hyped the growing love affair between Republicans and the ride-hailing service, Uber. The reasons why are no mystery. Extolling the virtue of Uber and its ilk in the "sharing economy" lets the GOP seem hip, offer the façade of a future looking economic vision and accelerate […]

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Republican nominee John McCain traveled to Ynez, Kentucky to announce his economic vision in the place where LBJ launched the War on Poverty back in 1965. His solution for Americans struggling to make ends meet? Ebay: "Today, for example, 1.3 million people in the world make a living off eBay, […]

After the harsh winter weather that helped bring U.S. economic growth to standstill, the strong May jobs report came as very good news. The U.S. added 280,000 new jobs and saw signs that wage growth is picking up steam. Even the uptick in the unemployment rate to 5.5 percent represents a positive development, as more […]

There's an old Monty Python sketch in which a "Face the Press" interviewer grills the Minister for Home Affairs: "You claimed that you would build 88,000 million, billion houses a year in the Greater London area alone. In fact, you've built only three in the last fifteen years. Are you a bit disappointed with this […]

While investigators are working to understand the causes of the deadly Amtrak train derailment in Philadelphia, the Republicans' best and brightest are adding insult to injury. On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Committee voted along party lines to slash $260 million from Amtrak funding. Meanwhile, David Frum, the man who brought you "the Axis of Evil," […]

If nothing else, today's conservative movement may be the greatest talking point generator in American history. Judging by the conservative choir now singing in unison, the aftermath of the sometimes violent protests in Baltimore is providing just the latest case in point. The tried and untrue sound bites predictably include GOP favorites like "blame the […]

On April 15th, Congressional Republicans missed their deadline for the fiscal year 2016 budget resolution. Nevertheless, and despite their differences on defense spending and the voucherization of Medicare (absent from the Senate bill), the GOP conferees aim to balance the budget in 10 years by slashing over $5 trillion in social programs and safety net […]