Top News
Kudlow: The Continued Tax-and-Regulatory Threats Coming Out Of Democrat Controlled Washington Stifle Job Creation
Without question, the jobs picture is going to remain cloudy. There’s just too much uncertainty over the economy and the tax-and-regulatory threats coming out of Washington. Businesses can’t be sure about the costs of hiring. ... (more).
Op-ed: Beware Of The Obama Tax Increases
For small businesses, on Jan. 1, one of two things will happen: Taxes will go up, or taxes will stay the same. Coming to grips with this reality will be crucial to jumpstarting the economic recovery. Democrats want Americans to believe that by letting tax rates rise they have discovered religion as deficit cutters. But after a two-year assault on the federal trough in which Congress passed the notoriously wasteful stimulus and added a new health care entitlement, few Americans are even bothering to listen. ... (more).
Charlie Cook: The Midterm Outlook Remains Grisly for Democrats
Labor Day is almost here and Democrats are still waiting for the cavalry to arrive. An exhaustive scan of the horizon reveals no rescuers and none of the things Democrats badly need to save them from tough midterm election losses on Nov. 2. ... (more).
Economic Uncertainty, Stemming From Democrat Talk Of Tax Hikes, Is Preventing Businesses From Hiring
All the talk about taxes—whether to raise them to address the deficit or cut them to stimulate the economy—may be having its own effect on growth. Allan Meltzer, an economics professor at Carnegie Mellon University, said the economy wouldn't fully revive until Washington resolved uncertainty surrounding business costs, including taxes. "Companies are cutting their expenditures and not hiring because they're very uncertain" about these costs, he said. ... (more).
Tidal Wave? 10-Point Poll Edge for GOP
A new Gallup poll released Monday shows Republicans with a record 10-point edge over Democrats on the "generic ballot" test — the question of whether voters prefer a Democratic or Republican congressional candidate. It’s the largest GOP polling edge at this stage in the 68 years of the generic ballot poll. ... (more).
New Poll Shows Americans Are Still Rejecting The Democrats’ Health Care Overhaul
A new poll shows that public support for health care reform dropped sharply in August – a dagger in Democrats’ hopes that their landmark legislation will help them in November’s midterm. The Kaiser Health Tracking Poll has support for the bill dropping seven percentage points in August – down to 43 percent – while opposition rose 10 points to 45 percent. That’s the weakest showing since May – and a far cry from the bump proponents had hoped to see as some of the law’s more consumer-friendly provisions kick in. ... (more).
Editorial: Summer Sizzles, Economy Fizzles
In the closing days of spring, administration cheerleader-in-chief and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. proudly predicted that as the months ahead heated up, so too would the economy. It was to be "recovery summer," according to Mr. Biden, who toured the country touting the alleged benefits of President Obama's "shovel-ready" economic policies. ... (more).
GOP chances of winning House are rising as midterm election nears
The Hill: The playing field of competitive House races has expanded substantially over the past two months, increasing the chances that Republicans will control the lower chamber next year. ... (more).
Economic Growth Cut Sharply Due to Trade Gap
The economy grew at a much slower pace this spring than previously estimated, mostly due to the largest surge in imports in 26 years and a slower buildup in inventories. ... (more).
The Most Fiscally Irresponsible Government in U.S. History Current federal budget trends are capable of destroying this country
There is an instinctive conclusion among the American public that President Obama's stimulus package has failed to create a sustained recovery. Unemployment has increased, not declined; consumers have retrenched; housing starts have crashed along with mortgage applications; and there is a fear that a double-dip recession may very well be in the pipeline. … There are two warning signs of a budget crisis: rising debt and the loss of confidence that the government will deal with it. This administration is on the verge of fulfilling both conditions. ... (more).
Politico: Democrats Privately Fear House Prospects Worsening
Top Democrats are growing markedly more pessimistic about holding the House, privately conceding that the summertime economic and political recovery they were banking on will not likely materialize by Election Day. In conversations with more than two dozen party insiders, most of whom requested anonymity to speak candidly about the state of play, Democrats in and out of Washington say they are increasingly alarmed about the economic and polling data they have seen in recent weeks. ... (more).
ASSOCIATED PRESS FACT CHECK: Stimulus assessments overly optimistic
An examination of details in the White House's 50-page report on the so-called stimulus unveiled Tuesday by Vice President Joe Biden reveals something a bit different than they claimed: a collection of rosy projections that ignore many of the challenges, pitfalls and economic realities in all those areas. ... (more).
Plunge in Home Sales Stokes Economy Fears
U.S. home sales plummeted in July to a level not seen in more than a decade, spurring fears of renewed weakness in housing prices and the broader economy. Sales of previously owned homes fell 27.2 percent from June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.83 million, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday, the lowest level since the industry group started its tally in 1999. ... (more).
9.5% Unemployment Has The American People Remaining Deeply Skeptical Of President Obama’s Economic Policies
A rapidly weakening economy threatens to undermine President Obama's assertion that he has set the nation on a path to prosperity and, with barely two months until congressional midterm elections, Democrats find themselves with few options for reviving the faltering recovery. … But with the budget deficit soaring and polls showing deep skepticism about the impact of Obama's economic policies, even many Democrats are reluctant to support additional spending on the economy. That has left Obama with few alternatives for improving the trajectory of the recovery and reducing a stubbornly high jobless rate, which was stuck in July at 9.5 percent. "They have played their policy hand, and they've got to hope it's good enough," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics who has been advising congressional Democrats. Given the political environment, he said, "there's nothing they can do to make a significant difference in the next six months, or even a year." ... (more).
ABC News: President Obama’s ‘Recovery Summer’ Stimulus Projects Fail to Yield Big Job Growth
After months of withering job losses and weak economic growth, summer was going to be the season of recovery, the Obama administration heralded in June. But with summer quickly coming to an end, those jobs gains and a robust economic recovery have not yet materialized, leaving Democrats on the verge of a fall election campaign in which Republicans are poised to make them eat their words. ... (more).
