THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEBT DEAL: It's Pretty Much Meaningless - Only 2% Of Total Cuts To Take Place Before Obama Reelection, Manufacturing Index Falls To 2-Year Low, Iceland Should Be The Euro Debt Model (Links)
THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEBT DEAL: It's Pretty Much Meaningless
BREAKING - Reid: Senate debt vote may not be until Tuesday
Appeals Court Overturns 5 A.I.G. Convictions - NYT Dealbook
Cuts may not be enough to avert AAA downgrade
Could Iceland be a model for debt-ridden Europe? - BBC Great Read
ISM manufacturing gauge falls to two-year low
Treasuries rise Monday, pushing 10-year yields to their lowest levels since November
Billionaire Wilbur Ross downplays downgrade threat
What China, Others, Are Saying About US Debt Deal - Forbes
Bulldoze: The New Way To Foreclose - TIME
A Simple Bailout Plan for Housing and the U.S. Economy - Good Idea
The Vespa Has Crashed Into The Mountain: Italy Burning
Obama’s approval numbers hit all-time low - Gallup
How pilots wrestled in vain to save Air France jet - Fascinating Read From Black Box
Aug 1, 2011 at 4:34 PM
Reader Comments (6)
http://thehill.com/homenews/house/174649-whip-count-house-leaders-seek-votes-to-pass-debt-limit-deal
Dennis Blair was speaking to the Aspens the other day and mentioned that we were doing a lot of stupid stuff in the name of defense. He specifically mentioned the drone program as doing more harm than good. And here's the kicker: he said the US intelligence and Homeland Security "communities" are spending $80bn a year OUTSIDE of Pakistan and Afghanistan on the drone program!
Course, Jennifer is just happy the GOP is firewalling off defense or homeland security funding for budget cuts. No doubt wars won't be subject to a balanced budget amendment either, so what's the point.
http://www.carbontax.org/blogarchives/2011/06/10/the-carbon-tax-revenue-menu/
[snip]
Getting the politics to align for a carbon tax requires the right blend of honey and vinegar. For years, advocates’ and opponents’ attention alike has focused on the vinegar – the tax part. Lately, though, we’ve noticed growing interest about how to best spread the honey — the potentially huge revenues a carbon tax would generate. Here’s a primer on the options: what they are, how they would work, their merits and drawbacks, and who’s pushing them hardest......
.......The allure of carbon tax revenue also offers a growing incentive for other nations to match a U.S. carbon tax in order to avoid WTO-sanctioned border tax adjustments, capturing the revenue themselves.......
....... Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) also introduced a cap & dividend bill in the Ways & Means Committee. It relies on a cap to set the CO2 price indirectly, aiming for 85% reductions (over 2005 levels) by 2050. Because of its similar emissions trajectory, we’d expect Van Hollen’s bill to generate similar revenue to Rep. Larson’s bill: roughly $80 billion in the first year, rising to about $600 billion within a decade.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/its-cbo-fielding-vat-questions-congress-0
[snip]
Elmendorf declined to specify which members and said he has yet to field an official request to study a VAT tax. The CBO is in the process of figuring out how best to study a VAT tax's impact, sorting through various structures employed by other countries. Elmendorf also declined to estimate what a VAT tax level would need to be to cover the 2020 debt, which the CBO predicted will be 90 percent of GDP.
Pelosi says new tax is 'on the table'
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/61783-pelosi-says-new-tax-is-on-the-table
[snip]
"Somewhere along the way, a value-added tax plays into this. Of course, we want to take down the healthcare cost, that's one part of it," the Speaker added. "But in the scheme of things, I think it's fair look at a value- added tax as well."
Pelosi said that any new taxes would come after the Congress finishes the healthcare debate consuming most lawmakers' time, and that it may come as part of a larger overhaul to the tax code.