Dean Baker

Yet another WSJ editorial finding its way into the news section. The Federal Reserve Board could easily replace China as the buyer of the bonds. Furthermore, if China opted not to buy U.S. government bonds, the dollar would fall against the yuan, which would reduce our trade deficit. This would increase employment and reduce the […]

The Washington Post reports on how Washington is playing an increasing role in regulating Wall Street as a result of the bailout. This is only part of the picture. Wall Street has long run to Washington for help in increasing its profits. The most notable recent case was in 2005 when Wall Street got Congress […]

USA Today told readers that: “private economists worry the country could face the grim prospect of seeing interest rates soar in future years and the dollar weaken as foreigners dump their U.S. holdings.” Actually, private economists who understand economics are pleased by the prospect of the dollar declining. If this is brought about by the […]

The NYT noted the large age-divide over support for President Obama’s health care program. While this is real, and has shown up in many polls, it is not clear whether this is based on real concerns or the fact that many seniors now believe in death panels. The piece then suggested that the divide is […]

Republicans may give this as their reason for opposing a public option, but politicians do not always say what they mean. This is certainly a more politically appealing line then saying that they oppose a public option because of their close ties to the insurance industry. Since the NYT does not know the real reason […]

This is the case where people who believe in democracy and markets should agree. The bailout of the banks was an exercise in corruption and favoritism. The Obama administration’s deals with the pharmaceutical industry, doctors, and hospitals look the same. I’m completely with Tyler on this one. –Dean Baker

The Washington DC Fox affiliate reported on a new device that a Burger King outlet in New Jersey is now testing. According to the news segment, the outlet has a metal sheet that cars drive over as they go into the drive-through window. The metal sheet has wheels that the car turns, which generate electricity. […]

The Post presents the Obama administration’s claims about the impact of its stimulus package on employment and the turnaround in the economy and then presents the claims of the Republicans that it did not help the economy. It would have been helpful to tell readers that the vast majority of economic analysts support the administration’s […]

The NYT has a good article pointing out how the financial collapse has led to surprisingly little change on Wall Street. Toward the end of the piece it notes efforts to require that derivative instruments be traded through clearinghouses. It later uses the term “exchange” as though it is identical to clearinghouse. This is not […]

The Post again pushed the line that the United States needs China to keep buying up dollars to hold down the value of the yuan. This is the exactly the policy that the Obama administration and the Bush administration had publicly been pushing China to stop under the guise that it was “manipulating” its currency. […]