Jun
06
2013

O'Reilly Spins a Correction on 'White House Visits'

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On last night's O'Reilly Factor (6/5/13), the Fox News host asserted that there's still a lot the White House isn't telling us about the IRS/Tea Party scandal. But in the process he also, in his own special way, issued a correction–of sorts: The president will also not explain the IRS situation. His defenders denying that former IRS Chief Douglas Shulman visited the White House 157 times. But he was cleared into the People's House 157 times. That is a fact. Those who diminish the Shulman factor are lying directly to you. Now this is confusing. O'Reilly has been telling his [...]

May
17
2013

FAIR TV: The IRS & Obama's Scandal Trifecta, Matthews Praises Reagan, Newseum Scandal

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What should we make of the so-called "trifecta" of scandals hitting the Obama White House? And what questions should we ask about the IRS/Tea Party story? Also this week: Chris Matthews wants Obama to take charge–just like the union-busting Ronald Reagan. And the Newseum decides two Palestinian journalists shouldn't be considered part of their tribute to journalists who died reporting the news.  

May
17
2013

Is There Really a 'Scandal Trifecta'?

Benghazi, the Justice Department seizing AP phone records, and the IRS targeting Tea Party groups: Much of the Beltway press corps–which has pushed the Benghazi story for months–is seeing the Obama presidency in a state of near free-fall. But what's actually happening?

May
08
2013

Between Two Economists Lies the American Center

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The "center" doesn't usually indicate where most of the public is, but rather where elites have determined an appropriate middle between opposing arguments.

Mar
20
2013

Bill Maher Urges Vilification of Bill Maher

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On his last HBO show, Bill Maher complained about how much he and his wealthy cohort pay in taxes. But he's unlikely to get much sympathy from the 2010 version of Bill Maher.

Feb
21
2013

When You're Cutting Social Security, 'Wealthy' Begins at $25K

Elderly man on Chicago el train.

Here's a proposal for Social Security that was on the New York Times' op-ed page yesterday (2/20/13): The top third of beneficiaries (by lifetime income) [would] receive no annual cost-of-living adjustment in retirement. The middle third would get half of today’s adjustment, and the bottom third would receive the same annual increase they do now. Such a reform…would reduce Social Security spending by more than a tenth over a decade and fix the program’s long-term financing. This is part of Paul Ryan adviser Yuval Levin's attempt to find "common ground" on the entitlement issue: "Both sides should agree at least [...]

Feb
20
2013

Why Does a Climatologist Need to Explain Economics to Joe Nocera?

NASA climatologist James Hansen has tried to explain to New York Times columnist Joe Nocera why he's so wrong about the tar sands, but Nocera's account of their argument makes it seem like explaining anything to him would be an uphill battle.

Feb
20
2013

Tom Friedman's Apple Hunch

Tom Friedman wrote a column about how government policies are harming the recovery. What we need is some kind of grand bargain to, as the headline puts is, "unparalyze" the economy and spur new growth. What's that mean? Cuts to Social Security and Medicare, along with "tax reform."

Feb
07
2013

Millionaires Are–or Perhaps Aren't–Leaving California

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The early headline on a New York Times story (2/7/13) by Adam Nagourney was, "Millionaires Consider Leaving California Over Taxes." At some point they changed the headline, probably because there's nothing in the article that would support it. But the problems with the piece remain. The story it's trying to tell is about a new tax increase on income over $1 million. Combined with federal/state taxes, the tax bill can really start to add up for the super wealthy–an "unpleasant surprise for the rich." I feel as bad for them as you do, no doubt. The point of the article, [...]

Jan
18
2013

FAIR TV: France vs. Spain, NYT Erases West Bank Occupation, Wall Street Journal's Tax Graphic

On the new FAIR TV: The Washington Post says France had better slash wages and benefits in order to be more like Spain. Why would they want to do that? The New York Times erases a headline referring to the occupation of the West Bank. And when the Wall Street Journal wanted to show  what the new tax deal meant for "you"–who exactly did they have in mind?

Jan
02
2013

Tom Brokaw and the Not-So-Rich Wealthy

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The December 30 episode of Meet the Press was, of course, devoted to discussion of the "fiscal cliff." And NBC veteran Tom Brokaw was on hand to recycle some of the most tiresome talking points about wealth and taxes.

Jan
02
2013

CBS: Pity the Millionaires

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If the country were to fall off the fiscal cliff, we were told, there were going to be some winners and losers. But CBS Evening News found a different kind of of fiscal cliff victim: people who inherited land worth millions of dollars.

Dec
17
2012

John Boehner–Philosopher?

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Are John Boehner's ideas about tax cuts evidence of his "philosophy"? Or are they just misleading?