Strangely
Washington's efforts at Wall Street reform and consumer protection keep having strange and unintended consequences for Main Street businesses and customers. The Durbin Amendment, part of the Dodd-Frank Act, set a cap on the amount financial institutions can charge merchants to process debit card transactions. Previously, the average "interchange" fee was 44 to 45 cents per transaction. As of Oct. 1, the maximum swipe fee was cut to 21 cents. The intent was to keep the cost of doing business down, but that goal is reportedly being thwarted by the credit card companies' response.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA) have eliminated the discounts they previously offered on interchange for small transactions -- those under roughly $10. Instead, the credit card companies now charge many small businesses the maximum 21-cent fee allowed by the law. (Daily Finance, 12/8/2011)
From Barney Frank meddling with the housing market (and precipitating the financial crisis) to Dick Durbin messing with the banks, this is why RedStateVT pushes back against regulation. Politicians are not capable of thinking two steps ahead.
Planning Ahead
With Ms. Sebelius’s decision on Wednesday, the Obama administration is taking a more socially conservative stance on Plan B, one closer to that of the Bush administration than to many of its own liberal supporters, even as President Obama has taken a tougher position on higher taxes on the wealthy to pay for a broad payroll tax cut — a stance popular with his political base. (NYT, 12/7/2011)
Isn't the New York Times marvelous? See how they tie together two seemingly unrelated topics: the abortion pill and taxes on the wealthy.
Again And Again
Ann Coulter is at it again. In her upcoming appearance on Logo's "A List: Dallas," the conservative pundit told gay Republican cast member Taylor Garrett that it was in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community's best interests to be pro-life as "liberal yuppies" will start aborting their unborn gay children once scientists discover a gene for homosexuality. (Huffington Post, 12/8/2011)
Not sure we see the controversy here.....straight liberals who embrace abortion in all its forms (any trimester, partial birth, birth defect, etc.) would NOT do what Coulter suggests?
Protection Racket
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says the Chevy Volt is safe to drive even though the government is investigating fires caused by damage to the electric car’s battery. LaHood told reporters today that his department isn’t trying to protect the maker of the Chevrolet Volt, General Motors, from possible repercussions from the government’s safety investigation. LaHood says his department isn’t in the business of protecting the automobile industry. (Boston Herald, 12/8/2011)
Well, maybe DOT isn't in the business of "protecting" car companies, but POTUS is and problems with the Volt will put yet another nail in the "all-things-green coffin."
Droned
Iran paraded what its military described as a captured C.I.A. stealth drone on national television on Thursday and lodged an official diplomatic protest, portraying the visual images as an intelligence and propaganda windfall in its conflict with the West over its nuclear program. (NYT, 12/9/2011)
Obama's drone campaign has been a signature success. Still we can't help but wonder at the reaction of the media had a Bush drone been lost...
At First
When he first took office, President Obama promised to cut the federal deficit in half by 2013. But instead he's increased it by more than $4 trillion. Indeed, under his direction, the U.S. government spent about $1 trillion on a Keynesian-style stimulus that failed to create the jobs promised, will spend trillions more creating a European-style health-care entitlement with ObamaCare, and has more Americans on welfare than ever before. (Jim DeMint (R-SC), WSJ, 12/9/2011)
A well-stated reminder to bloggers on the Left who keep telling RedStateVT: "Bush didn't raise taxes to pay for the war."
No comments:
Post a Comment