Fire Sale—Seventy-two million, seven hundred fifty-three thousand, six hundred forty-seven? That’s the dollar amount the “FIRE” sector (finance, insurance, and real estate) has contributed to the 24 members of the Senate Banking Committee since 1989. The 14 Democrats on the committee took in $50,294,559. Committee Chair Chris Dodd received $13,985,872, but was surpassed by New […]

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A Mediocrity in Need of a Movement “I think people are dazzled by Obama’s rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to be a mediocre president — which means, in our time, a dangerous president — unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction.” […]

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Going rogue, five Republican-appointed U.S. Supreme Court justices shredded a century of campaign-law precedent on January 21. The justices decided to unleash unlimited corporate political expenditures for the Grand Old Party, which had lost its grip on Congress, the White House, and federal judicial appointments. The court’s majority in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commissioninvited […]

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Redha Al-Najar was at home with his wife and child in May 2002 when armed, masked men kicked in his front door and trained their guns on him while his family looked on. He was taken from his home and loaded into an awaiting vehicle. Then he was gone. Eighteen months later, Houcine Al-Najar, who […]

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IF YOU OWN A reasonably balanced asset portfolio, there’s good news. Stock prices continue to climb in a post-New Year rally. Your recession is over. If you’re a working stiff, the news is not so good. There are 50 percent fewer job opportunities today than there were at the recent job-market peak in 2007. Your […]

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