Low Tax States Don't Equal High Job States
As one explores the common threads among states with improving economies, current Republican rhetoric, with its heavy emphasis on tax policy, may cloud the issue. The Department of Labor has released its state-by-state labor numbers: joblessness had declined in 24 states, risen in 13 (and …Gingrich: Good Punditry, Bad Politics
Conservatives cannot recognize that non-conservatives do not share their disdain for President Obama. They are not impressed by the right's overblown criticisms. You know what? That sounds like an interesting speech that Newt Gingrich gave the Maryland Republican party last night. "No …Big Banks Fight Small Business Jobs Bill
Next week, the Senate will consider a bill that will free up business credit and create thousands of jobs without costing the U.S. a dime. So why are banks trying to kill it? Next week, the Senate will hold hearings on something called the “Small Business Lending Enhancement Act.” On its …No Quick Cure for America's Sick Economy
Americans received another disappointing jobs report in May. Why is the U.S. economy growing so slowly? Americans received another disappointing jobs report in May. Only 54, 000 net new jobs: barely a nibble out of the 16-million-plus unemployed and discouraged. Why is the U.S. economy growing so …More Tax Cuts Won't Mean More Hiring
Many conservatives are arguing for another round of cuts in capital gains taxes and other taxes on capital. But these cuts might not spur businesses to add workers. A cruel joke about politics: "It's not that Mr. X lacks principles. It's that he does not understand the principles he has." I …Pawlenty's Tax Cuts Won't Boost Jobs
Tim Pawlenty wants his economic policy to generate jobs, but lower taxes on upper-income earners might not do the trick. During the Q&A session of Pawlenty's economic policy speech Tuesday in Chicago, he was asked a simple question: why do we need even more tax cuts? The questioner noted that …Does Pawlenty Have a Jobs Plan?
On Tuesday, Tim Pawlenty will unveil his economic policy. So far, he's focused on tackling the debt, but will his speech also have serious policies to spur job growth? On Tuesday, Tim Pawlenty will deliver his big economic policy speech in Chicago, promising a "specific plan for boosting the …Weak Economy May Hurt GOP Worse Than Dems
Recent signs of an economic slowdown -- stock market declines, so-so job numbers, sluggish growth -- could well end up hurting Republicans in Congress. Recent signs of an economic slowdown -- stock market declines, so-so job numbers, sluggish growth -- aren’t a good reason for Republicans to …Slow Growth Numbers Call for Smaller Cuts
If Republicans want to seize the upper hand after today's lackluster growth numbers, they will propose a series of more realistic and politically palatable cuts. The okay-but-not-great economic numbers (1.8% economic growth) posted yesterday offer talking points for both Democrats and Republicans. …U.S. Can't Cut Its Way to Growth
Many countries have cut spending, reduced deficits and realized healthy economic growth. But there's a lot more that needs to happen for it to work in the U.S. In a recent blogpost debunking claims that reducing government spending always leads to a quick economic recovery, Frum Forum 's Noah …A Get Rich Slow Scheme
A cheap dollar is no fun for Americans, but as my latest column for The Week points out: it may bring us out of our recession. A cheap dollar is no fun for Americans, but as my latest column for The Week points out: it may bring us out of our recession. Work more. Save more. Export more. …With Huck Out, Will GOP Lose the Middle Class?
He had his political flaws, but Mike Huckabee also understood the economic concerns of the middle class. This Saturday, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee announced that he would not run for the 2012 Republican party's nomination. As my latest column for CNN.com notes, for all his political …GOP Freshmen: Job Numbers Still Too Weak
GOP freshmen were dismissive of Friday's report that the economy had added jobs. Instead, they pushed the White House to do more to boost the recovery and cut energy prices. Friday’s unemployment numbers were greeted almost unanimously by discontentment from freshmen Republican Congressmen over …GOP Jobs Bill Needs a Bigger Shot in the Arm
Why doesn't the Senate GOP job proposal include a 100% tax credit for all businesses big and small? Isn't that the usual conservative proposal to jump-start a sluggish economy? Does anybody understand why the Senate Republican job proposal launched yesterday does not include a 100% tax credit for …What Worries Americans: Big Govt or the Economy?
Yuval Levin sees Americans worried our social-democratic model is going bankrupt. But isn’t our anxiety really due to the worst economic downturn since WWII? This is part two. Click here to read the entire series . Yuval Levin founds his case against the welfare state on this descriptio…Ryan's Rosy Job Numbers: Fact or Fantasy?
Ryan's budget has received the most criticism for his unemployment figures. FF spoke to the source of the numbers to see if they add up. The element of the new Ryan/GOP budget which has received the most condemnation and in some cases mockery are the unemployment figures. Specifically, the Ryan …No Evidence of Double Dip Recession With New Job Numbers
The latest job numbers suggest it is unlikely that America will enter a "double dip" recession. Although the just-announced drop to 8.8 percent unemployment hardly reflects a thriving economy, it does seem to show that the economic recovery has at least some legs. It’s unlikely the economy …College Degrees: No Longer Recession-Proof
In this recession, even a college degree won't protect you from joblessness. The recession is proving that even a college degree does not protect you from joblessness. This may fly in the face of the conventional wisdom but the evidence backs it up. A chart from a Cleveland Federal Reserve report …