Dean Baker

Thomas Friedman gives readers a lecture on adult and childish behavior in his column today. In the latter category is the opposition to the reappointment of Ben Bernanke as Federal Reserve Board chairman. It is worth noting that Bernanke ignored the growth of the housing bubble, the collapse of which has given us the worse […]

The NYT gave us a dose of bipartisan nonsense on its oped pages when it ran a piece by Senators Schumer and Hatch that called for giving employers a tax credit equal to the 6.2 percent employers’ side contribution for Social Security on people hired this year. The problem with this idea is that there […]

Given the bias in its news coverage it should hardly be a surprise that the Washington Post editorial board endorsed Ben Bernanke for another term as Fed chairman. Still, the arguments in its editorial are worth noting. To begin with, the title of the piece “scapegoat at the Fed,” should give everyone a good laugh […]

When it came to evaluating arguments on Oregon’s initiatives to raise taxes on the wealthy and corporations, the WSJ told readers that: “big numbers are being wielded on both sides.” This is of course true, however WSJ reporters in principle have the time and expertise to determine which numbers are correct, most readers do not. […]

This should have been a headline in news articles everywhere. According to the NYT, Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell complained that spending was the problem driving the deficit and expressed his concern that a deficit commission could lead to tax increases and that, “raising taxes in the middle of a recession is not a good […]

The second paragraph of a front page Washington Post article tells readers: “Now, an aggressive stance against the bankers, financiers and even government officials popularly blamed for causing the crisis is gaining political momentum, and there are signs it is eroding the very financial stability the government championed.” This statement is misleading in several ways. […]

Frederick Mishkin, the former Federal Reserve Board Governor who is best known for his 2006 study praising Iceland’s economy to the sky, endorsed Bernanke’s reappointment as Fed chair. According to the NYT, Mishkin commented: “My view is Chairman Bernanke helped save the world from depression, … Whether you agree with every policy he’s pursued or […]

It is always best to be careful in pointing items not mentioned by the President or any other political figure. (it’s a long list.) In the context of discussing President Obama’s plan to impose a tax on the country’s largest banks, the Washington Post told readers that, “he did not mention that the biggest banks […]

The WSJ discussed the likely line-up on a vote to approve Ben Bernanke’s reappointment as Fed chairman. At one point it tells readers that: “If the full Senate votes in a similar proportion that the Senate Banking Committee did in its 16-7 approval last month, Mr. Bernanke would receive 69 votes—the fewest since Paul Volcker, […]

The NYT has an article on President Obama’s turn to a more populist stance on Wall Street. At one point the article notes criticisms that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Larry Summers, the head of the National Economic Council, were too friendly to Wall Street banks. It reports that Obama “believed they [Geithner and Summers] […]