By Victor Volsky

Intelligent idiots, smart fools, multi-degreed morons – lots of monikers could describe a category of individuals dismayingly prominent in the ruling elites of the West. They are the people so divorced from reality, so engrossed in bookish pursuits that – for all their undoubted intellectual accomplishments and often as a direct consequence thereof – they invariably end up with egg on their faces whenever they try to engage in practical activities.

Worse yet, they idolize each other, sticking up for one another out of class solidarity. Case in point: a few days ago I watched a gathering of noted media intellectuals on C-SPAN. David Brooks of the New York Times was supposed to counterbalance the four leftist pundits who vigorously extolled Barack Obama’s genius. But even the token conservative’s criticism was perfunctory. Having poked a couple of holes in the administration’s economic agenda, Brooks waxed lyrical about Obama’s personnel policy. He was struck by the “sheer intellectual brilliance” of the economic team Obama has assembled, people “like Larry Summers” who dazzle any gathering and dominate any discussion. Read the rest of this entry »

By Daniel Salvaterra

North Carolina is a state with a huge budget deficit. It is one of the worst state deficits in the nation at $4.6 billion or 21% of the general fund budget for fiscal year 2010. In addition, North Carolina has the 5th worst unemployment rate in the country at 11.1%, and just missed the top 10 lists of the worst states in the country for business (39th here, and 38th here).

So how has the Tar Heel State proposed it solve its budget crisis and spur economic growth? Not by cutting spending of course! Governor Beverly Perdue has proposed $1.5 billion in tax increases, much of which will come from taxing online retail sales from companies that have no physical presence in the state. Read the rest of this entry »

By ADAM NAGOURNEY and CARL HULSE
Published: July 11, 2009

WASHINGTON — President Obama is stepping up efforts to maintain public support for his agenda as rising unemployment presents him with the biggest test of his political strength since taking office.

Faced with an economic downturn that has proved deeper than the White House initially projected, Mr. Obama asked Americans on Saturday to remain patient, arguing that his $787 billion stimulus plan had saved the economy from collapse and put it on a gradual course to recovery. Read the rest of this entry »

By Edwin Chen

July 11 (Bloomberg) — President Barack Obama said his $787 billion stimulus bill “has worked as intended” as he pushed back against Republican criticism that his recovery program has failed to rescue the economy.

“It has already extended unemployment insurance and health insurance to those who have lost their jobs in this recession,” Obama, who is traveling today in Ghana, said in his weekly Saturday radio and Web address. “It has delivered $43 billion in tax relief to American working families and business.” Read the rest of this entry »

Written by: Ron Paul
Our country currently finds itself in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the 1930s and, as during all economic crises, people search for the answer as to why this has happened. Not only have large financial firms been affected, but also mainstays of American industry such as GM and Chrysler, all the way down to the Mom & Pop stores on Main Street. The easy way out is to blame the traditional scapegoats: foreign governments, fraudulent businessmen, and greedy speculators. But the real villain is far more sinister; the organization entrusted with maintaining a stable dollar and touted as the guarantor of economic stability – the Federal Reserve. Read the rest of this entry »

By DAVID ROGERS | 7/9/09 4:24 AM EDT

For a party that wants to dream big, Democrats keep tripping over the small stuff.

This summer’s agenda is historic: health care, climate change, financial regulatory reform. So why can’t the White House — with a 60-vote majority in the Senate — win a simple fight over a $12 million bus security program targeted for termination? Read the rest of this entry »

By: Mark Tapscott Editorial Page Editor 07/08/09 5:52 PM EDT

Carol Browner, former Clinton administration EPA head and current Obama White House climate czar, instructed auto industry execs “to put nothing in writing, ever” regarding secret negotiations she orchestrated regarding a deal to increase federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-WI, is demanding a congressional investigation of Browner’s conduct in the CAFE talks, saying in a letter to Rep. Henry Waxman, D-CA, that Browner “intended to leave little or no documentation of the deliberations that lead to stringent new CAFE standards.” Read the rest of this entry »

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer Stephen Ohlemacher, Associated Press Writer – Wed Jul 8, 6:16 pm ET

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama promised to fix health care and trim the federal budget deficit, all without raising taxes on anyone but the wealthiest Americans. It’s a promise he’s already broken and will likely have to break again. Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress have already increased tobacco taxes — which disproportionately hit the poor — to pay for extending health coverage to 4 million children in working low-income families.

Now, lawmakers are looking for more revenues to help pay for providing medical insurance to millions more who lack it at a projected cost of $1 trillion over the next decade. Read the rest of this entry »