Outside the Beltway

Can Wall Street predict the outcome of Presidential elections? Not really.

We may have to deal with the debt ceiling again before the November elections.

The latest projections from Congressional Budget Office are sobering to say the least.

Another weak GDP report that portends stagnation ahead.

The speech did exactly what it was supposed to do: kick off Obama’s re-election campaign while disguised as a call for unity.

Banks have more money than they can lend out profitably.

After years of fighting inflation, some are now urging the Fed to instead target GDP growth and jobs.

Ronald Reagan’s chief economist has a radical plan for solving the housing crisis.

With the advantage of hindsight, it’s clear that more creative strategies were needed. But they probably couldn’t have been passed.

Making sure millionaires pay more tax than their secretary isn’t as easy as it sounds.

Paul Krugman seems to believe that something like the bubble economy we enjoyed until it burst in 2008 could be had again if only our leaders were sufficiently bold.

Karl Smith does the math and doesn’t see why the Federal government should be collecting ANY taxes right now.

Obama’s economic policies are failing because he’s listening to conservatives – not small businesses.

Ben Bernanke didn’t offer many clues in his speech today, but one wonders if he really has any tricks left up his sleeve.

Will the Fed announce another round of Quantitative Easing?

The 30-year bond has actually gained more than a point in early trading after the S&P downgrade!

Like the rest of us, financial analysts across the globe are trying to figure out what the U.S. debt downgrade means.

So, it happened………

Now that America’s political leadership have probably averted a self-inflicted global economic calamity, it’s time to assess the winners and losers.

The House Republicans are functionally insane.

The House GOP has scheduled a vote next week on a debt ceiling package that is solely designed to mollify the base.

The idea that the GOP can block a debt ceiling vote and benefit politically is, quite simply, absurd.

Right now, it’s more prudent for the Federal government to borrow money than to pay cash.

The idea that we can avoid the consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling is patently absurd.

It was a largely fruitless weekend in the debt negotiations.

A study shows how a brief blip in payments in 1979 had negative consequences.

While unemployment remains stubbornly high, Washington is spending its time fighting over the budget deficit

The White House has apparently rejected using a tortured interpretation of the 14th Amendment to deal with the debt ceiling debate.

Barack Obama’s leadership style may be his undoing.

We might be looking at a potential fiscal crisis.

And even more bad news.

All in all, not looking like it will be a fun summer.

Is our current economic situation the result of massive government intervention? The Randians certainly think so.

Moodys warns the the Republican plan to cut spending could cost the economy 700,000 jobs.

Freshman Members of Congress are threatening to block a vote to raise the debt ceiling that Congress will have to take by this Spring. They’d be irresponsible if they did so.

The Federal Reserve is injecting $ 600,000,000,000 into the economy, primarily in the hope that it will boost stock prices and, in turn, the economy. It might work, but if it doesn’t the consequences could be severe.

Dow closes above 11,000 for first time since May after a decline in jobs boosts hopes of stimulus measures from the Fed.

The CBO sees a clear threat of a fiscal crisis during the next two decades unless we’re saved by magic ponies.

For many reasons, the housing market is unlikely to fully recover for the foreseeable future.

The Fed chair, seemingly oblivious to the fact things are pretty bad already, promises to do something if the economy falters. But he’s about out of arrows in his quiver.

Another set of bad economic numbers are out today, and one wonders when we’ll start getting the good news.

If lawyers and MBAs don’t understand their mortgage documents, what chance do the rest of us have?