Members of the organization Demos, a research advocacy group based in New York City, discuss why the government is not responsible for all of our nation’s problems. The discussion was held at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, DC.
Harry Alford, CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce, says its “B.S.” that consumers will bare and absorb the costs that arise from Cap and Trade legislation. “Costs are always carried onto the consumer,” Alford adds. “It’s economics 101.” (0:46)
Mark Gertler, a Professor of Economics at New York University, discusses the efforts the Federal Reserve will possibly have to make with the stimulus package. (0:30)
Kate Obenshain, former chairman of the Virginia GOP, said at an event for the Young America’s Foundation that Reagan also understood that not only did freedom need to be understood but it needed to be re re-institutionalized. (1:01)
By Kayleigh Harvey – Talk Radio News Service
At a House Joint Economic Committee Hearing today, Dr. Christina Romer, Chair of the Council for Economic Advisors, was asked by Congressman Vic Snyder (D-Ark.) “How should we view the added uncertainty in the economy both here and abroad that may be created the threat of a major health flu pandemic around the world?” Dr. Romer said the costs at this stage were “uncertain,” adding the priority of the administration was to “save lives.”
Olivier Blanchard, an economic counselor and director of research at the IMF, states his belief that the economic crisis will begin to subside later this year, as long as economic policy remains consistent with those that already presently exist. (0:28)
Domonique Strauss-Kahn, chairman of the International Monetary Fund, applauds governments for being proactive in stopping financial crisis through stimulating the economy. However, the governments must continue to act in this manner or the world faces the fate of a longer and deeper recession. Also, he stresses how the International Monetary Fund is key to guiding world out of the recession. (0:28)
by Christina Lovato, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service
“Loosely speaking, rich dumb kids are more likely to make it through college than poor smart kids, and that’s telling you that we are a society in which whatever we may like to imagine we are not a society that has anything like equality of opportunity,” said Paul Krugman, a Professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University and Nobel Prize-winner.
Today at a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, and Human Services hearing, witnesses expressed their thoughts on the economy, healthcare and inequality. Krugman said that one major reason why a growing economy has failed to deliver to ordinary Americans is because of inequality. “Many of the gains in income went to a small minority of very well-off people, with most workers seeing little rise in real wage,” he said. Krugman said that the secondary reason for the failure of economic growth is the dysfunctional health care system. “We are unique among advanced countries in not having some form of universal coverage, yet we spend far more to cover 85 percent of our population than our counterparts spend to cover everyone, with no evidence that we receive correspondingly better care,” Krugman said.
Keith Hall, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, had something different to say about healthcare. Hall said that since the start of the recession in December 2007, 4.4. million payroll jobs have been lost, and the unemployment rate has increased from 4.9 to 8.1 percent. But Hall said “employment has grown only in healthcare, private education, and government.”
“We first need to measure the stimulus package against the current needs of the economy…. The package as it now stands is mitigating. It’s not even enough to prevent us from having a very severe recession…. If we respond to concern about the size of the package by scaling back other government spending we’re undoing the effects of the stimulus package, making it even more inadequate,” concluded Krugman.
Chairman David R. Obey (D-Wis.) concluded the hearing by stating that he believes that we can strengthen the safety net for those who aren’t doing well in the economy through actions like universal healthcare and pension protection. “The problem is that it has been said by others in the past, at some times in our recent history it appears that a rising tide has raised only all yachts.”
Sen. Menendez (D-N.J.) sees foreign aid to Latin and South America as mutually beneficial for them and the United States. (0:41)
Economics, tax cuts, social security and health care dominated a discussion held by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) today looking at how the next president will pay the nation’s bills. AARP, which is the nation’s largest lobbying organization, held the forum with policy advisors for both Senators McCain and Obama. The discussion was moderated by Wall Street Journal Economics Editor David Wessel and also featured Diane Lim Rogers from the Concord Coalition and John Rother with AARP. (more…)
