Wednesday's ' Lessons From The Malaise ' is David Leonhardt's last economics column before becoming the New York Times' Washington bureau chief. It pretty much encapsulates his liberal worldview, while assuming his premises are universally shared. One of the tricky things about the subject is that almost nothing is certain in the way that, say, two plus two equals four. Economics - which is at root a study of human behavior - tends to be messier. Because it's messier, it can be tempting to think that all uncertainty is equal and that we don't really know anything. Leonhardt again writes... continue reading
What is it with New York Times columnists likening Republicans to terrorist groups? On Sunday Nicholas Kristof compared Tea Party sympathizers in Congress to Al Qaeda . Now Thomas Friedman in his Wednesday column ' Can't We Do This Right? ', not content to argue that Tea Party Republicans are misguided, calls them the ' Hezbollah faction ' of the G.O.P. That is why we need to raise new tax revenues as well - so we can simultaneously shrink the entitlements programs, but still keep them viable, and generate the funds needed to strengthen all five parts of our growth... continue reading
At the top of Wednesday's NBC Today, as co-host Ann Curry declared that "Americans are just fed up with the stalemate" over the debt ceiling, fellow co-host Matt Lauer announced: "The latest setback came last night when House Speaker Boehner was told by the Congressional Budget Office that his proposal would cut spending far less than advertised." In the report that followed, correspondent Kelly O'Donnell noted: "Speaker Boehner's team is going back to work to find more cuts, just as the public is so increasingly frustrated." O'Donnell went on to reiterate "a big setback" for the plan as "The Congressional... continue reading
Good Morning America's Jon Karl on Wednesday chided a "broken down" Congress unable to get a debt ceiling deal done. Karl ignored Barack Obama's role in failing to secure legislation that would end the impasse. Instead, he complained, " The whole place seems to have broken down. Republicans can't even convince some of their own members to vote for the Republican plan ." Karl made this point more than once, highlighting, "Republicans delayed a vote on their bill in the House because they don't even have enough Republican votes to pass their own bill." The journalist did allow that Democrats... continue reading
CBS's Michelle Miller leaned towards supporters of taxing junk food on Tuesday's Early Show, playing three sound bites from them and none from opponents. Miller only made one vague reference to the opposing side, and she immediately followed it by playing up the supposedly positive result of a tax: " While some say a new tax is the last thing we need, it could mean a healthier America ." The correspondent led her report by hyping how "we're paying quite a hefty toll" for creating "cheap fast food," and launched into her first sound bite, which came from Michael Jacobson,... continue reading
On Tuesday's NBC Today, co-host Ann Curry touted President Obama trying to scare the American people into supporting his debt ceiling plan: "He called for public activism, so much so that we hear that Capitol Hill web sites were crashing last night because so many people were trying to e-mail their representatives. It looks like he spooked main street...will he also spook Wall Street?" Curry directed that question to CNBC Mad Money host Jim Cramer, who promptly rejected such doom and gloom: "No, not at all. Frankly, Wall Street's very calm. The markets are looking pretty good today.... No one's... continue reading
On Tuesday's NBC Today, correspondent Kristen Welker portrayed President Obama as the great compromiser while reporting on his Monday night address on the debt ceiling: "...the President still pushed for a balanced approach , cut spending and raise tax revenue....With time running out, the President called for compromise." In contrast, Welker depicted House Speaker John Boehner as stubborn and unwilling to deal: "Boehner seemed to reject all talk of compromise , backing a House GOP plan....Earlier, the President did endorse a plan put forward by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid....But Boehner said that's not the answer." Welker touted how Obama... continue reading
ABC Skipped Story of Dem Rep Allegedly Sexually Assaulting a Teen; Will They Notice His Resignation?
[Updated at end of post.] ABC, as of Tuesday morning, has skipped any coverage of embattled Democratic Congressman David Wu , accused of what The Oregonian called "an unwanted sexual encounter with the 18-year-old daughter of a childhood friend." On Tuesday, Wu announced he would be resigning. Will ABC finally cover this story? CBS and NBC have both noted the story in news briefs, but ignored other Wu scandals. ABC last mentioned Wu back on February 22, when Good Morning America co-host George Stephanopoulos interviewed the politician for other bizarre, but unrelated, antics. At that time, Wu was dealing with... continue reading
ABC on Monday and Tuesday ignored its own poll's finding that 37 percent of Americans now blame Barack Obama's policies for hurting the economy . No mention was made of the results on Monday's World News or Nightline. On Tuesday, Good Morning America news anchor Josh Elliott vaguely explained, "And a new ABC News poll finds Americans are increasingly pessimistic about the future. 68 percent who suffered a layoff in their household say jobs remain very hard to find in their area." However, no one on the program highlighted respondents' negative feelings towards the President. The 37 percent number is... continue reading
During an NBC News special report following President Obama's Monday night speech that blamed the GOP for the debt ceiling stalemate, Meet the Press host David Gregory argued the President was doing John Boehner a favor: "...this is a president trying to help the Speaker of the House make the case to freshman Republicans who won't give at all on the idea of tax increases." Gregory declared that Obama was "trying to create more pressure on them [Republicans] among the public, who are fed up with this, to say we've got to find some way to compromise here.... he's actually... continue reading