Cooking The Books

Forthright
The back-and-forth was a blunt reminder that Mr. Obama remains a polarizing figure as the two parties seek common ground on an emotional issue that has defied resolution for more than two decades. (NYT, 2/17/2013)

Obama a polarizing figure? How did that get by the censors at the New York Times?


Totally Gross
University of California at Irvine economist David Neumark has looked at more than 100 major academic studies on the minimum wage, and he says the White House claim of de minimis job losses "grossly misstates the weight of the evidence." About 85% of the studies "find a negative employment effect on low-skilled workers." (WSJ, 2/15/2013)

Our political mentor - we call him The Master - told us a story years ago that we have never forgot. He grew up in the deep south and once had a job picking cotton. Even at an early age he realized that the only thing standing between his job and automation was a rise in the minimum wage, i.e. if his weekly wages increased, he would be replaced by a machine. The Master is wise indeed.


Stoked
Some bankers hoped that Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the liberal firebrand who helped create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, would be subdued in her first term as she learned the ways of the Senate. Warren’s avoidance of the Beltway media appeared to stoke these hopes. Well, forget it.

Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, came out blazing Thursday in her first high-profile appearance as a member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, ripping into regulators and starkly suggesting banks may be cooking the books. (POLITICO.com, 2/15/2013)

It will be interesting to see if the banks who supported Obama now run to him demanding that he call off Warren. 


Far Away
Tens of thousands of people converged on the National Mall on Sunday to urge President Barack Obama to reject the Keystone XL pipeline, a project they say will cause irreparable damage to the climate. The rally, which was organized by the Sierra Club, 350.org and the Hip Hop Caucus, was billed as the largest climate rally in American history. Organizers estimated that about 35,000 people participated in the rally. The U.S. Park Police does not give crowd estimates.

“All I ever wanted to see was a movement of people to stop climate change and now I’ve seen it,” Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, said to the crowd of protesters, who traveled to Washington from dozens of states. “I cannot promise you we’re going to win, but I’ve waited a quarter century to find out if we were gonna fight. And today, at the biggest climate rally by far, by far, by far, in U.S. history — today, I know we’re going to fight.” (POLITICO.com, 2/17/2013)

Angry about $4/gallon gasoline? Blame McKibben. America needs the oil and is going to buy it from some country. McKibben's position means that we will buy it from countries that may be hostile to us, rather than a friendly neighbor. This is Liberal Logic.


Head Fake
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) just released its latest batch of Head Start data, revealing, once again, that its students are receiving far less than a “head start.” The study, which was finally released the weekend before Christmas after more than a year’s delay, examines the third-grade outcomes of two groups of Head Start students: those who began the program at age three and another who began at age four.

In 2010, HHS released a similar report looking at first-grade outcomes. Both studies show similar results: Not only does Head Start have no impact on children’s academic outcomes, but it also has little to no impact on other measures of child well-being and, in some cases, even has some negative impacts. (Rachel Sheffield, Heritage.org, 1/13/2013)

Head Start doesn't work. Which is why Obama (and fellow bloggers) want to see more of it. Also Liberal Logic.