U.S. Economy

Loony! And wrong!

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:01:00 PST

It seems so long ago now, after a summer and fall of town hall healthcare rage and Birther conspiracies and South Carolina GOP politician kookiness. But back in the spring, for a few weeks in March, CNBC's "Mad Money" investment advice dispenser Jim Cramer solidified his own nomination for the Year in Crazy by running amok in a distraught state of fear and trembling spawned by a downward-spiraling stock market. Of course, Jim Cramer's shtick is crazy -- his show isn't named "Mad Money" for nothing. His gimmick is to froth and gesticulate and gibber, spewing out buy and sell recommendations like a nuclear-powered popcorn popper. But on March 3, when the stock market was testing the 7,000 barrier, he appeared on the "Today" show in a state of anger that did not appear feigned. Nearly shaking with rage, eyes bulging, he laid into the new president.

Larry Summers bumbles again

Andrew Leonard — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 05:58:00 PST

From Mike Allen's Politico Playbook on Sunday, summarizing the appearances of President Obama's top two economic advisors on the weekend news shoes:

Obama, bank execs face off

PHILIP ELLIOTT and DANIEL WAGNER, Associated Press — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 23:01:00 PST

President Barack Obama is asking bank executives to support his efforts to tighten the financial industry, while bankers are prepared to tell the president he should stop oversimplifying their concerns if he wants good-faith collaboration.

Obama blasts banks

DARLENE SUPERVILLE, Associated Press — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:01:00 PST

President Barack Obama singled out financial institutions for causing much of the economic tailspin and criticized their opposition to tighter federal oversight of their industry.

Matt Taibbi goes Obama scalp hunting

Andrew Leonard — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:33:00 PST

Matt Taibbi's latest screed, "Obama's Big Sellout," will undoubtedly be a big hit on the Web with the swelling legions of critics who believe the president is actively engaged in selling out the working man for Wall Street plutocrats. But baked into the narrative are enough misrepresentations -- all designed to make Obama look as bad as possible -- that it's hard to take it seriously as a useful contribution to the ongoing discussion about how properly to fix the U.S. economy. It's the classic Taibbi approach: vastly and sloppily overstate the case in absurd, over-the-top rhetoric while ignoring any possible counterargument.

Concerning my despicable boomer "hatred"

Andrew Leonard — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 09:30:00 PST

Judging by the comments thread on yesterday's post, "Curse of the Boomer Hegemony," and some extremely upset and vituperative letters written to me personally, I really hit a nerve with my comments on the generation that supposedly won't let go.

Curse of the boomer hegemony

Andrew Leonard — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 13:30:00 PST

Those darn boomers. For decades, they've dominated pop culture, politics, the economy and the media, and even now, as they finally edge their way toward retirement, they refuse to let go.

The socialist American?

Andrew Leonard — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:43:00 PST

As Bloomberg News headlines go, this one is pretty straightforward: "Americans Want Government to Spend for Jobs, Send Bill to Rich."

Can we stop the new derivatives loophole?

Andrew Leonard — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:18:00 PST

If you agree that one of the building blocks of the financial crisis was the decision to exempt large swathes of derivatives trading from regulatory oversight -- codified in the infamous Commodities Futures Modernization Act of 2000 -- then you probably have been paying reasonably close attention to House Financial Services chairman Barney Frank's efforts to shepherd new derivatives regulation into law.

President's jobs initiative doesn't measure up

Robert Reich — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 06:10:00 PST

Barack Obama is trying once again for balance. On the one hand, he wants enough government spending to offset the timid spending of consumers and businesses. Otherwise, the jobs and wage recession could drag on for years. On the other hand, he doesn't want to set off more alarm bells about the budget deficit. Otherwise, conservative Democrats might join forces with Republicans to block heath care. So what does he do? A little bit more stimulus spending, but stimulus spending that doesn't look like more stimulus because it's not really adding to the deficit. It's coming out of savings from money already authorized to be spent on the bank bailout. Hmmm?

Not quite a New Deal: Obama's jobs plan

Andrew Leonard — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:01:00 PST

If President Obama could enact legislation that was as powerful as his speeches, the recession would be a distant memory and there would be good, high-paying jobs a-plenty for us all.

The trial of Ben Bernanke

Andrew Leonard — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 09:50:00 PST

If we know a man by the enemies he keeps, then who is Ben Bernanke? His foes range across the political spectrum from left to right, and during his confirmation hearings today, few senators offered anything more than a lukewarm endorsement.

Goldman foretells an unemployment nightmare

Andrew Leonard — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 06:58:00 PST

Just in time for President Obama's jobs summit, Reuters columnist James Pethoukoukis gives us a glimpse at Goldman Sachs' economic outlook, compiled by ace forecaster Jan Hatzius. (Found via Calculated Risk.)

Without smart investments, high unemployment will be permanent

Robert Reich — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 06:04:00 PST

Most ideas for creating more jobs assume jobs will return when the economy recovers. So the immediate goal is to accelerate the process. A second stimulus would be helpful, especially directed at state governments that are now mounting an anti-stimulus package (tax increases, job cuts, service cuts) of over $200 billion this year and next. If the deficit hawks threaten to take flight, the administration should use the remaining TARP funds.

Is the jobs summit just a photo op?

Angela Blackwell — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:03:00 PST

Some of the best minds of this generation are getting together at the White House jobs summit this week to get our economy back to pre-recession levels.

The latest insult from the credit card industry

Andrew Leonard — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 07:45:00 PST

So let's say you are a typical American facing a tough recession. You are having trouble making your mortgage payment. You've been carrying a lot of debt on your credit cards. Maybe your partner loses his or her job or you get a pay cut. You read the newspapers and figure times will be hard for a while.

NYC food emergencies up nearly 21 percent

VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:01:00 PST

The recession may be easing, but the urgent need to feed New York's hungry is still sharp.

The Washington establishment suffers a serious defeat

Glenn Greenwald — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:21:00 PST

Something quite amazing happened yesterday in Congress: the House Finance Committee -- in a truly bipartisan and even trans-ideological vote -- defied the banking industry, the Federal Reserve, the Democratic leadership, and mainstream Beltway opinion in order to pass an amendment, sponsored by GOP Rep. Ron Paul and Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson, mandating a genuine and probing audit of the Fed. The Huffington Post's Ryan Grim has the best account of what took place, noting:

Tom the Dancing Bug

Ruben Bolling — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:20:00 PST

The great jobs-stocks disconnect

Robert Reich — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:19:00 PST

How can the stock market hit new highs at the same time unemployment is hitting new highs? Simple. The market is up because corporate earnings are up. Corporate earnings are up because companies are cutting costs. And the biggest single cost they’re cutting is their payrolls. So they let people go and, presto, their balance sheets look better and their stock prices rise.