Supply side economics are what got us to where we are currently and they’re not going to get us out. John Boehner on Meet The Press today… We all know the basic argument: you give people back more of their money, they’ll spend it wisely. Well, during these unique times I think that argument isn’t [...]

Most the following video is about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, but the big idea here is that along with the passage of the stimulus plan comes a new website (just a landing page so far) that will keep track of where and how tax dollars are being spent. Obviously this is an unprecedented [...]

The Oklahoma Ethics Commission thinks it needs more money to investigate ethic violations by politicians. The commission, with seven staff members, feels “stymied” without more funds. They are asking for an additional $360,000 to add five more employees. Legislators are not too crazy about giving them the money. Are they afraid of increased investigations? No, [...]

It’s been widely reported the past couple days that the Congressional Budget Office did a report that showed the stimulus package wouldn’t have immediate effects. Well, that has turned out to be false. From Huff Post: Reports of a recent study by the Congressional Budget Office, showing that the vast majority of the money in [...]

Looks like Obama did a decent job convincing folks that we needed to rebuild our power stations and highways and bridges and schools. Because as pollster Frank Luntz found, the support appears to be overwhelming. From LA Times: Last month, I conducted a national survey of 800 registered voters on their attitudes toward infrastructure investment. [...]

What a difference a day makes… ALBANY – Gov. Paterson, defying the liberal wing of his Democratic Party, has chosen little-known, NRA-backed, upstate Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton as New York’s junior senator, it was learned last night. The surprising – and, for many Democrats shocking – decision to pick the conservative [...]

New Red Sox outfielder Rocco Baldelli, who left the Tampa Bay Devil Rays as a free agent after battling chronic injuries, just took out a newspaper ad in the St. Petersburg Times thanking the fans for their warmth and support. C-L-A-S-S-Y. Regardless of whether his mother reminded him to send a thank you note or [...]

“He understands economics. He’s a very smart guy. He’s a cool rational-type thinker. He will work with the right kind of people. So you’ve got the right person in the operating room, but it doesn’t mean the patient is going to leave the hospital tomorrow.” – Warren Buffett on appropriate expectations of Obama’s economic plans. [...]

It appears that Caroline Kennedy’s withdrawal from consideration for the open New York Senate seat had nothing to do with her uncle’s illness: ALBANY — Problems involving taxes and a household employee surfaced during the vetting of Caroline Kennedy and derailed her candidacy for the Senate, a person close to Gov. David A. Paterson said [...]

Also, the words “we don’t torture” will finally be true. From NY Times: The orders, which are the first steps in undoing detention policies of former President George W. Bush, rewrite American rules for the detention of terrorism suspects. They require an immediate review of the 245 detainees still held at the naval base in [...]

The Minnesota recount saga still hasn’t ended, but Coleman is already moving on? Hrmm… Last session’s senior senator from Minnesota Norm Coleman, still battling Al Franken to be seated in the Senate, has taken a paid job as a consultant to the Republican Jewish Coalition, which harshly attacked Obama last fall, its executive director, Matt [...]

Although the President won 2008 with the latest and greatest tech, it looks like the White House has considerable limitations when it comes to what type of innovative techniques can and can’t be done within its walls. From Wash Post: If the Obama campaign represented a sleek, new iPhone kind of future, the first day [...]

Apparently, even presidents occasionally get a do-over. After the flub heard round the world on inauguration day, Barack Obama has retaken the oath of office, this time in a small ceremony in the White House. Chief Justice John Roberts was there to administer the oath. Word is, everything went to script this time. Although, Constitutionally, [...]

At least those making over $100K. And not only that, he lays down new ethics standards for lobbyists who want to serve in his Administration. Please try to watch the entire thing because Obama talks very specifically about what public service means to him and how his staff should conduct themselves. Looks like this “new [...]

It’s been reported that Dame Caroline Kennedy has called New York Governor David Paterson and withdrawn from consideration for appointment to fill the Senate seat vacated today by Hillary Clinton. Supposedly, Kennedy doesn’t want the appointment any more, due to the poor health of her uncle, Senator Edward M. Kennedy. But Ted Kennedy has been [...]

This is, of course, the shaka sign that Hawaiians use to greet each other. Weird, but I still forget that Obama considers Hawaii his home state. Thanks for the reminder Chief.

O.k., enough with the flowers and rainbows. Let’s look at why there’s reason to be skeptical about Barack Obama and his team. Politico lays out seven worries about Obama’s presidency. I summarize those concerns and comment below: 1. Teams of geniuses don’t always produce genius results. Of course, teams of fools aren’t known for their [...]

NBC reports… As I scan the wires I do get a sense that people all across the globe are genuinely inspired that Obama has become President. What’s your take on it?

Web guru Jason Kottke points out that the Bush administration had almost 2,400 different rules governing what search engines could crawl on the site and report in their results. This was most likely done so that no caches could be created to later compare with any changes that were made. But seriously, most of them [...]

I didn’t post my reactions to Barack Obama’s inaugural address yesterday because I knew I could not be anything close to objective. I was moved by the occasion and caught up in the sense of hope (justified or not). I thought the speech’s tone was an excellent blend of forcefulness and humility, of reaching back [...]