The general outlines of the budget problem are not hard to agree on. The current high levels of deficit spending were brought on almost entirely by the Great Recession and will decline as (if?) the economy grows. The real budget crunch lies down the road a few years with exploding entitlement spending–mostly in Medicare and Medicaid.
Monthly Archives: January 2011
The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Goes Out With a Whimper
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesThe usual suspects were rounded up and they had a few hearings. Then many months later they issued another report for the bookshelves, destined only to gather dust next to hundreds of other reports of one catastrophe or another.
Public Citizen’s Blog Features Steve Berk
Posted in In the CourtsPublic Citizen’s Consumer Law and Policy Blog recently featured a post of mine on their blog. In the post, I compare the role of plaintiffs’ attorneys to that of Batman in Gotham City — a comparison that is not as farfetched as it may sound on the surface.
The Voters of Chicago Will Be the Big Losers if Rahm Emanuel is Denied A Place on the Ballot
Posted in Social PolicyWhen the Mayor decides not to seek re-election, [Emanuel] decides he wants to return to the city he loves and use his considerable political skills (acknowledged by the leadership of both political parties) to run for Mayor. He hopes to help the citizens of that city navigate the difficult economic times and bring jobs and new opportunities to all.
Wall Street Execs Still Paid Extravagantly
Posted in Consumer ProtectionHigh School teachers and nurses will never claim top salaries, but they deserve some recompense for funding the current pay scale on Wall Street. Why not base pay on job creation instead of gambling (oops I mean “trading”). How ’bout a little shame fellas?
Personal Remembrance – In Honor of Jerold Solovy
Posted in Weekend EditionI will miss him. To steal a line from Tom Wolfe, Jerry Solovy was “a man in full.” But when I’m in the office late preparing for a deposition and just want to go home, he’ll be next to me urging me to get the legal analysis right and file a brief without a word out of place.
Person of the Week: Justice Elena Kagan
Posted in Person of the WeekFor her insightful questioning, and merely a rookie on the bench, Justice Kagan is our person of the week.
Almost Scammed By World Progress Report: A New Perspective
Posted in Consumer ProtectionAfter a solicitation I received last week, I better understand the mindset of the victim. My experience does not involve a Ponzi Scheme per se, but a different kind of scam; one that played on my hubris.Mr. Peters represented his company as World Progress Report.
Goldman Sachs – The Smartest Kid on the Playground – Beginning to Care What Others Think?
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesGoldman has implemented new procedures to: (1) disclose the source of its profits; (2) increase transparency; (3) separate and clearly define the responsibilities of traders and investment bankers; and (4) publish a simplified balance sheet in addition to the balance sheet required under minimum accounting standards.
Depression Postpones Allen Stanford Ponzi Scheme Trial
Posted in In the CourtsWhen “depression” brought on by the fact that you stole $7 billion from innocent investors, is your excuse, I have to draw the line and side with the prosecutor and aggrieved investors.
With “Job Killing” Health Care Bill the Fun Has Begun: Guest Post by Jeff Goldberg
Posted in Weekend EditionJob killing? Over the last year and a half Republican opponents of health care reform claimed that the new law is unconstitutional, that it contemplates government death panels, that it will interpose government between patients and doctors, destroy the American health care system, bust the budget, bankrupt Medicare and lead us down the road to tyranny. Now? Job killing? That’s it?
Happy New Year – Wall Street Banks Dream Up New Fees To Replace The Old: A Consumer’s Guide
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesIf you’ve got a Wall Street banker’s salary there’s not much to worry about. On Main Street, however, we’d best beware: the fees are coming.
Guest Post: Jeff Goldberg on Attacking Economic Growth
Posted in Weekend EditionWill Republicans, heirs to, and in many cases participants in the Clinton impeachment effort, act to slow economic growth over the next two years? Their small government mantra comes ready-made with policies that can hurt the economy in the short term: large scale federal spending cuts, denying federal assistance to struggling states, curtailing unemployment benefits, attacking the independence of the Fed, and threatening and/or carrying out a government shut down being among the most obvious.
Quick Links: Head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; Public Sector Employees Fleeing
Posted in Consumer ProtectionElizabeth Warren has apparently begun the hunt for a head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. While it is unfortunate that Ms. Warren herself will apparently not lead the CFPB, hopefully she will find someone that shares her vision and eagerness. She has conferred with “business and consumer groups,” but ultimately the decision must be hers.