Writing at Bloomberg News, economic analyst Kevin Hassett unravels the story behind the recent financial meltdown (H/T Rossputin). An opportunity to avert the crisis came in 2005 with the introduction of legislation to provide a "world-class regulator" of government-sponsored mortgage loan institutions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Then-Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan noted that failure to address the problem was "placing the total financial system of the future at a substantial risk.'" Here's the key passage from Hassett's article (though you should really read the whole thing - it's not terribly long):If that bill had become law, then the world today would be different. In 2005, 2006 and 2007, a blizzard of terrible mortgage … [Read more...]
Slow Joe Biden, the Gaffe-Making Gift that Just Keeps On Giving
One month ago, when we learned Barack Obama had picked someone even more gaffe-prone than himself to be his running mate, I said: Let Joe Biden speak for himself! Last week the 3rd-most liberal U.S. Senator Biden basically announced his intention to lose western Pennsylvania by saying "no coal plants here in America": Then yesterday, the self-professed high-IQ Joe Biden declared his monumental historical illiteracy to Katie Couric: Jessie Walker on Reason.com had the best retort:And if you owned an experimental TV set in 1929, you would have seen him. And you would have said to yourself, "Who is that guy? What happened to President Hoover?" Maybe the next thing we'll learn is that Abraham Lincoln telephoned Ulysses S. … [Read more...]
Romanoff & Kennedy: Saving TABOR’s Heart by Driving a Stake through It
I think Colorado's Democratic powerhouses behind Amendment 59 need to get on the same page. It was only last month that State Treasurer Cary Kennedy was overheard saying that Amendment 59 will "drive a stake in the heart" of the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. In yesterday's Denver Post, however, outgoing House Speaker Andrew Romanoff sought to argue that under Amendment 59 "'the heart' of TABOR — that all tax increases must have voter approval — would be preserved." Uncle Charley came to the valid conclusion:Romanoff and Kennedy need to talk to each other: How do you preserve TABOR’s heart after a stake has been driven through it? Exactly. Someone needs to cartoon this... If you're going to take away all future TABOR refunds … [Read more...]
Average Colorado Springs Voters Reject Anti-Amendment 49 Deception
What do people think of the deceptive Protect Colorado's Culture of Corruption Future ads against Amendment 47 (Right-to-Work), Amendment 49 (Ethical Standards), and Amendment 54 (Government Contracting Reform), when a few pertinent facts are included with them? KRDO in Colorado Springs bothered to ask the man on the street (follow the link for video):"There's nothing exactly covering union dues, union this or union anything," says Colorado Springs voter Todd Landsborough. "You know what's interesting, is this thing right here, you can put that in the garbage can. I mean it's totally misleading."... "I'll probably go online and write them a letter, ‘I think you guys are phony as hell,'" says [Colorado Springs voter Andy] … [Read more...]
Passing Thoughts on “Bailout” Debate
Passing thoughts on the "bailout" debate.... John Hawkins at Right Wing News:If the history of government intervention in this country has taught us anything, it's that we should be much more afraid of the long term ramifications of the government rushing through an emergency "solution" to a problem than the actual problem the government is trying to "solve" in the first place. Agreed. In that spirit, the Heritage Foundation has an excellent piece urging Congress to live up to its "deliberative" role in this debate. Meanwhile, Rossputin has recanted his initial tentative support of the administration's $700 billion bailout plan, writing:[Federal Reserve Chairman Ben] Bernanke is warning us that doing nothing poses serious risks to … [Read more...]
Financial Transparency Moving Forward to Reform Colorado Government
A timeout during the heated election to write: If there's one issue showing true bipartisan momentum in the interest of the public good, it's financial transparency in government. Expect the issue to be up front during Colorado's 2009 legislative session. For now, you can read a Denver Post op-ed co-authored by my Independence Institute colleagues Amy Oliver and Stephanie Kubala. Check it out, and see where the transparency issue has taken hold already, and what promise it holds for Colorado. … [Read more...]
Volunteer Opportunities Abound for Colorado Republicans this Election
This presidential election year, more than any in recent history, is calling for Republican volunteers to get in the game here in Colorado. The race between John McCain-Sarah Palin on one hand and the not-so-dynamic duo of the Obamessiah and Slow Joe Biden on the other is calling you to get involved. There are a dozen Colorado "victory centers" - meaning, probably one very near you - where you can get involved. Maybe I'll see you on the trail this Saturday. Locations and contact information below the fold: … [Read more...]
Cory Gardner Spearheads Grassroots Defense of Colorado Charter Schools
To his credit, State Rep. Cory Gardner is spearheading a grassroots effort to support public charter schools and the families they serve. Recently the Adams 12 school board unanimously decided to support legislation unfriendly to charter schools (see Resolution 1.3). Adams 12 effectively wants to beef up its own authority to deny charters, to limit parents' authority to appeal rejected charter school applications, and to undercut charter schools' already sub-par funding. But Cory Gardner (R-Yuma), a rising star in the GOP, took the initiative to craft a letter alerting charter school parents and supporters to the attack and urging them to get involved in the fight. In all, 17 Republican state representatives and 9 Republican state … [Read more...]
Clearing Up the Facts about Sarah Palin’s Record (for Slow-Learning Commenters)
Since I have several commenters here who insist upon trafficking in rumor and innuendo about Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin, I feel impelled to post a couple useful links: - FactCheck.org: "Sliming Palin" - Pajamas Media: "Separating Palin Fact from Palin Fiction" And yes, I know that Sarah Palin didn't always oppose the "Bridge to Nowhere" and did accept earmarked federal funds years ago as Wasilla mayor, though she ended up strongly (and has remained) on the right side of the issue. Alaskans have taken for granted that Palin is responsible for killing the "Bridge to "Nowhere" (until very recently, even the Alaska Democratic Party even acknowledged as much on their website). Besides, do Barack Obama and Joe … [Read more...]
Hypocritical Attacks from Opponents of Amendment 49 and Amendment 54
No doubt the political season is upon us, and the hypocrisy of large special interest groups is on display. Nowhere is this more true in our state than with the political group Protect Colorado's Future. Their spokesman said in an interview last week with Channel 7:"When you have these out-of-state, or narrow corporate interests trying to divide Coloradans, it's bad for all Colorado," said Jess Knox, wearing a pin that says, "No on 47, 49 and 54." So Protect Colorado's Future wants to make a big deal out of "out-of-state" campaign funds? Well, as Face The State points out today:It’s no secret that out-of-state money is flooding Colorado from both sides. In the unions’ case, the out-of state money is coming from the pockets of … [Read more...]
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