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We're Not in Athens Anymore

The selection of Loukas Papademos as prime minister heralds a new era in Greek politics.

Yannis PalaiologosNov 11, 2011
Greek and international media cover the statements of the new Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos , centre, outside the presidential palace in Athens, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Papademos was named Thursday as the prime minister of the new Greek interim government, charged with keeping the debt-strapped country out of bankruptcy and firmly in the 17-nation eurozone. After four days of intense political negotiations, the 64-year-old former vice president of the European Central Bank was chosen to lead a coalition backed by both the governing Socialists and opposition conservatives that will operate until early elections in February. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Greeks, Europeans, and anyone else who knew the score breathed a huge sigh of relief at the news that Loukas Papademos, the former deputy head of the European Central Bank, will be Greece’s new prime minister. His appointment, especially compared with some of the other names that were bandied about during the past few days as candidates for the post, is the best one could have hoped for if—at least if one believes that Greece belongs in the eurozone and that an exit from it, which became an ominously fashionable topic of discussion among Europe’s leaders the last few days, would be a disaster not only for Greece but for the whole euro project.

Obama’s Secret Weapon

Will the electorate blame Congress—not the president—for the sour economy?

John SidesNov 11, 2011
(Flickr/DRStarbuck)

Michael Tomasky’s piece deserves a few responses.  He begins with some unnecessary swipes at political science:

Politics is sometimes a science and other times an art. So here we sit, with the election exactly a year away, and the conventional wisdom in the political press is largely driven by the political-science theory of presidential elections and economic determinism: that is, that the results of presidential elections are pretty much strictly a function of economic conditions, and if those are bad (defined by various measures, chiefly the jobless and growth rates), the incumbent will lose.  By that theory, Barack Obama is pretty well doomed. And yet I don’t know a soul who thinks he doesn’t stand a decent chance of winning next year.

Banker's Choice

Harold MeyersonNov 11, 2011
In this, Monday, Oct. 30, 2006 file photo provided by the Italian presidency, Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, right, shakes hands with Mario Monti on the occasion of the opening of the academic year at the Bocconi university in Milan. Italy's president has unexpectedly named Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, as a senator-for-life Mario Monti, the former European competition commissioner who is widely considered to be a top contender for the Italian premiership, now that Silvio Berlusconi has pledged to resign soon. The surprise move Wednesday night could be a prelude to Monti's getting the nod to head the next government. President Giorgio Napolitano's office announced he had chosen Monti, who now runs prestigious Bocconi University in Milan, for the honor. Senators-for-life include notable figures outside of politics and have voting privileges in the Senate. (AP Photo/Enrico Oliverio,Italian Presidency Press office, File)

So Greece has a new prime minister – Lucas Papademos – and Italy looks about to have a new one, too – Mario Monti. To which not just you and I but damn near every Italian and Greek responds, “Who?”

Neither Papademos nor Monti has ever held elective office, or even run for one. Neither has been a minister, sub-minister or even civil servant in one of their nation’s ministries. Neither has developed, or sought to develop, a public following from their careers as economic technicians, chiefly on the European supra-national level. Yet each is about to lead a major nation.

Relief for Chicken Farmers

The USDA updates rules protecting small-livestock farmers from big business.

Monica PottsNov 10, 2011
Flickr/Stirwise

Late last week, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) sent new rules designed to protect small-scale livestock farmers to the White House for final approval. Farmers have waited more than three years for the changes, which the USDA was directed to review in the 2008 farm bill. The rules haven’t been updated for several decades and have often gone unenforced. In the meantime, the meatpacking industry has grown more powerful, and small farmers have struggled to make ends meet. That is especially true in the chicken industry, in which farmers have basically been forced to contract with a handful of chicken-processing companies and have seen their wages decline drastically.

The Return of Sanity

Harold MeyersonNov 09, 2011
Issue 2 opponents cheer at a rally co-sponsored by the Cleveland Teachers Union and We Are Ohio in Cleveland as they hear election results sounding the defeat of Issue 2 in the Ohio general election on Tuesday, Novmber 8, 2011. By voting no on Issue 2, Ohioans overturned the controversial Senate Bill 5, which, among other things, limited collective bargaining for 350,000 unionized public workers. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

The common thread in yesterday’s unbroken string of Democratic and progressive victories was the popular rejection of right-wing overreach.

Bunga Bunga and the Bond Market

Harold MeyersonNov 08, 2011

It’s clear that the markets don’t want Silvio Berlusconi to continue as Italy’s prime minister. They were cheered yesterday, briefly, when word got around that Berlusconi was stepping down, then subsided into their accustomed grumpiness when he denied it. (We know this by following the interest rates on Italy’s bonds, which are soaring, save during the brief moment when it was thought Berlusconi’s departure was nigh.)

Democrats Misbehave, Obama Gets the Time-Out

Pema LevyNov 08, 2011
http://www.flickr.com/photos/robr/2912198704/sizes/m/

When it comes to addressing the economic crisis, creating jobs, or tackling the deficit, Congress is at a standstill and the American people know it. This morning, a poll from the National Journal shows Americans have little faith that Congress will take on the issues that matter most. For example, 68 percent of respondents said it was "very important" for Congress to spend money in order to create new jobs, but only 27 percent thought it was likely to happen. Another poll, this one by The Washington Post, found that 50 percent of Americans believe Republicans are holding up President Obama's jobs bill for political reasons.

One Big Question

Harold MeyersonNov 07, 2011

Last Thursday, I attended a conclave, sponsored by the Frederich Ebert Foundation, of about 20 American liberals (chiefly economists and union representatives) and 20 German social democrats (economists, unionists, Social Democratic Party officials, and a couple of stray businessmen) to see what we could learn from each country’s respective economic, social, and political arrangements. Early on, one German friend posed a question to us Americans: “Where’s your [i.e., America’s] learning curve?”

Q&A: Justice for Black Farmers

Kaitlin OlsonNov 07, 2011
AP Photo/Alex Brandon

On October 27, after a 15-year fight, a federal judge approved a $1.25 billion settlement to black farmers discriminated against by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In 1997, hundreds of farmers filed a class-action suit, in the case Pigford v. Glickman, alleging pervasive discrimination of black farmers by the USDA between 1981 and 1997. For decades, the department, which regularly gives loans to farmers to keep their business afloat, had refused loans to black farmers while awarding greater loans to white farmers of equal standing. Because of an inability to receive loans, many black farmers were forced to forfeit their farms or operate on a smaller scale. In 1999, the judge demanded a settlement for those with claims.

The Budget Prescription

Christopher MoraffNov 07, 2011

Earlier this month, the European Commission launched a new round of investigations targeting the pharmaceutical industry for allegedly colluding to keep low-cost generic drugs off the market. As a result, regulators are looking into the 2005 contractual arrangements between U.S.-based pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson and the generic branches of the Swiss-based company Novartis to see whether the agreements purposely delayed the introduction of a generic version of the painkiller Fentanyl to the Dutch market.

Union Busters Going Down

Polls for a referendum on an anti-union law in Ohio indicate repeal.

Pema LevyNov 07, 2011
http://www.flickr.com/photos/columbusea/5885306479/sizes/l/

Tomorrow, Ohioans will vote on Issue 2, a referendum to repeal an anti-union law that threatens to destroy public-sector unions in the state. Last spring, the governor and majority-Republican legislature passed Senate Bill 5, restricting public unions' ability to strike, collectively bargain with employers, and collect dues. In response, state Democrats and unions put the law on the ballot. Going into tomorrow's vote, it looks like labor will pull it off. A new survey from Public Policy Polling shows 59 percent of voters plan to reject SB 5 on Tuesday, while only 36 percent of voters will vote to approve it. It would be an immediate victory for workers' wages and job stability. As a crucial swing state, the win for labor also bodes well for Democrats in the 2012 elections.

In Case You Haven't Been Watching

A primer on the #OWS movement

Josh EidelsonNov 05, 2011

Welcome to The Occupied Weekly, the Prospect's roundup of #OccupyWallStreet news and analysis.  Each week, we'll review the news from Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park and other Occupy movements across the country. For the inaugural edition, we've put together the five key pieces that have helped shape our understanding of what OWS is, where it comes from, and where it could be headed. Think of it as an #OWS for Dummies guide:

How Far We Haven't Come, Episode #1707

E.J. GraffNov 04, 2011

Remember "The End of Men," the concept that the future belongs to women, because women are more prepared for today's economy? Well, it hasn't hit us yet. Even when women are better educated, men earn more, at least in most parts of the workforce. As Motoko Rich reports at The New York Times,

Super Dupes

Robert KuttnerNov 04, 2011
From right to left, former Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., former White House Budget Director Alice Rivlin, and former Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo., and Erskine Bowles, co-chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, offer their advice to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2011. The congressional super committee is trying to come up with a package by Thanksgiving that trims the federal deficit by at least $1.2 trillion over 10 years. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

With the Congressional Super Committee required to produce a bipartisan budget-cutting plan by November 23, the best possible outcome would be for the committee to collapse of its own weight.

With no deal, automatic cuts would kick in beginning in 2013. Those budget cuts would be excessive, but that question could—and will—be reopened after the election. And in the meantime, $4 trillion in Bush tax cuts will expire, solving most of the deficit problem.

If Democrats win, it’s all up for grabs. If Republicans win, the cuts will be even deeper.

The 2012 election will be a referendum on whether we want growth or austerity, and whether we want tax fairness.

Greece in Limbo as Papandreou Calls for Vote of No Confidence

Yannis PalaiologosNov 03, 2011

So in the end, after three days of hysteria both on the home front and internationally, there will be no referendum on the Greek bailout plan. According to the latest news, which, given developments in the past week, could be rendered obsolete at any minute, Prime Minister George Papandreou has given up on the idea that the Greek people should decide whether the country should accept its new bailout package and, by extension, whether the country should remain in the eurozone. Papandreou is insisting on a vote of confidence in his government, scheduled for midnight Friday; the vote will gauge his level of support among his party. He may end up winning, though it is more likely that he won’t.

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