USA Today Says Taxes are Low, Downplays Temporary Nature of Tax Cuts
Tax bills fell to the lowest level since 1950 in 2009, according to a new analysis from USA Today. But don't be fooled into thinking that's a good thing. The newspaper downplayed the pain caused by the recession and the fact that the downturn lowered both incomes and consumption. USA Today undermined criticism of taxes saying, "Amid complaints about high taxes and calls for a smaller…
Chris Matthews: Greece's Woes the Fault of Right-wing Governance; But
Chris Matthews is stuck in the 1970s, it seems, and I'm not talking about his pop culture references.
Talking with CNBC's Jim Cramer on the May 6 "Hardball" about the Greek fiscal crisis, everyone's favorite MSNBCer blamed "right-wing" dictators from the Cold War era for financial troubles in Greece, Portugal, and Spain [MP3 audio available here]:
I'm a political guy, you're a money…
Tea Party Movement Not Realizing U.S. is Bailing Out Greece, Says CNBC
The European Union and the International Monetary Fund to the rescue! The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) soars and investors breathe a sign of relief. But where's this $1 trillion in bailout funds for Greece coming from? On CNBC's May 10 "Squawk Box," host Joe Kernen channeled Rick Santelli's anti-bailout populism, suggesting it was important to note that this bailout was made possible in…
Paul Krugman Is Nation's Most Partisan Economist, Study Finds
Most economists are not susceptible to partisanship in their work, a new scholarly study finds. But anyone who reads Paul Krugman's columns in the New York Times will hardly be surprised to learn he is a glaring exception to the study's findings. He consistently changes his fiscal views depending on the party in power."Krugman has changed his tune in a significant way regarding the budget deficit…
CBO Estimate: $85 Billion April Deficit, Federal Receipts Still Fallin
If a genuine, sustained economic recovery is truly underway, why can't the government show us the money? This would appear to be a question the establishment press has no interest in answering. As seen in the graphic at the right (HT to an e-mailer), when the government's Monthly Treasury Statement is released next Wednesday, the anticipation is that it will show an April deficit of $85 billion…
Bill Maher Strikes Back at George Will Armed With Falsehoods and Bill
After making a fool out of himself going up against George Will on last Sunday's "This Week," Bill Maher dug an even deeper hole five days later trying to strike back at the well-known columnist with a peculiar blend of falsehoods and Bill Clinton.As NewsBusters previously reported, Maher was humiliated on national television last week when he errantly claimed Brazil was "off oil" only to be…
Name That Party: Toledo Blade's Provance Highlights 'Republican Scanda
Columbus Bureau Chief Jim Provance at the Toledo Blade is a one-man "Name That Party" creativity machine: In March of last year (covered at NewsBusters; at BizzyBlog), in a story about late financial reports from Ohio's state government, Provance identified State Auditor Mary Taylor, who criticized Governor Ted Strickland's administration for being so tardy with the numbers that they could not…
Jobs Gained: Only 6,662,000 More Needed in 2010 to Fulfill Obama Promi
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its monthly jobs report early May 7 announcing a rise in unemployment to 9.9 percent and an increase of 290,000 jobs. Any positive job growth is good news to be sure. But in order for Obama to meet his pledge of 4 million jobs created by the end of 2010, the U.S. economy would have to add 932,000 jobs each and every month between now and the…
CNBC's Bartiromo: 'That is Ridiculous. This Really Sounds Like Market
While everyone is scratching their heads and trying to figure out how the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) lost nearly 1,000 points before rallying back to lose only 347 points - it appears not to be limited to just one stock. On CNBC's May 6 "Closing Bell," correspondent Matt Nesto explained that investigators for both the stock exchanges and for Citigroup, the firm that some are pointing…
Chris Matthews Lies About Michael Brown's Arguments About Obama Respon
"Everyone is entitled to his opinion, but not his own facts," Daniel Patrick Moynihan is credited as having once said. MSNBC's Chris Matthews would do well to heed the counsel of the late liberal New York senator.The "Hardball" host yesterday smeared former Bush FEMA Director Michael Brown as having this kooky notion that President Obama approved of offshore drilling in March only because he knew…
ABC Touts Tom Friedman to Lobby for Taxes on Oil and Carbon
Good Morning America on Thursday again brought on Tom Friedman to lobby for taxes on carbon and oil. Talking to host George Stephanopoulos, the New York Times columnist urged Barack Obama to "use" the oil spill in Gulf of Mexico and push "a bill through the Senate." Friedman discussed America getting off oil and argued, "Well, ultimately, it's going to require a price on carbon that will…
Olbermann Channels Obsession to Discover BP Spill Culprit: It's 'Chene
Usually, the crazy rantings of MSNBC host Keith Olbermann can be dismissed as the norm and easily ignored. But on May 5, Olbermann gave a glimpse of an obsession with former Vice President Dick Cheney - a man that has been out of office for 471 days - that was just too bizarre to let go. Although Olbermann didn't outright absolve the Obama administration for not responding quick enough to the…
Networks Fail to Expose GM's Misleading Commercial
Have you seen the new General Motors commercial? In it, CEO Ed Whitacre highlights the taxpayer-funded bailout GM received and then brags: "We have repaid our government loan, in full with interest, five years ahead of the original schedule." That advertisement (Watch it here) gives the impression that A) GM is financially stable and able to repay its debts B) the government bailout was…
CBS Affiliate Threatens GOP Candidate for Mentioning Giannoulias Bank
CBS's local affiliate in Chicago today threatened to stop covering the Illinois Senate race if the Republican candidate continues to harp on an issue extremely damaging to his Democratic opponent.If a candidate for the United States Senate was a senior loan officer for a bank that made over $20 million in loans to convicted bookies and pimps (while he was employed as a loan officer), is that…
