Are you a fan of Twinkies, the cream-stuffed yellow cake confection packed with sugary goodness, wrapped in a thin layer of cellophane? If so, here’s some bad news for your sweet tooth: Hostess Brands Inc., the maker of Twinkies, HoHos and other convenience store delicacies, has filed for bankruptcy just two years after emerging from its previous bankruptcy. CBS News and the AP report that Hostess—which employs 19,000 workers in 49 states—has more than $860 million in debt, faces high labor expenses, rising ingredient costs, and a decrease in sales …
Peter Schweizer doesn’t have many friends on Capitol Hill these days. So few, in fact, that he was told not to even show his face at a congressional hearing on insider trading — even though that hearing was the direct result of his new book, “Throw Them All Out.” Schweizer, a fellow at the Hoover Institution, spoke at The Heritage Foundation this week about his research on the “permanent political class” in Washington, D.C., and the crony capitalism that has enraged so many across America. We caught up with him …
A new book by Hoover Institution fellow Peter Schweizer details the startling extent of the cronyism that has pervaded President Obama’s “green jobs” push. According to Schweizer, 4 out of every 5 renewable energy companies backed by the Energy Department was “run by or primarily owned by Obama financial backers.” Those companies’ “political largesse is probably the best investment they ever made in alternative energy,” Schweizer explains. “It brought them returns many times over.” Such is the inevitable consequence of large government interventions in private markets. Leaving aside the losses associated …
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) is mighty disappointed with President Obama. The chairman of the House Budget Committee, who has bested Obama in head-to-head policy showdowns, blames the president for failing to outline a solution to the debt crisis while dividing America with talk of class warfare. Ryan’s speech at Heritage yesterday made news for its strong critique of Obama. He sat down for an interview afterward to outline why he’s so disheartened by Obama. Ryan also redefined how Americans should look at class warfare, taking aim at crony capitalism and …
Catching you up on clips, commentary and news of the day. Sign up for the daily email update from Scribe. At 50, the Chinook remains the Army’s workhorse – Michael Hoffman, Army Times Graves eyes upper rungs of conservative ladder – Daniel Malloy, The Atlantic Journal-Constitution Lawmakers: Revamp disaster recovery system – Deborah Barfield Berry, Clarion Ledger A major victory, but the battle rages on – Peter Brookes, New York Post The green-jobs fallacy – Ed Feulner, St. Paul Pioneer Press Obamanomics: Hollow out defense, fatten up cronies – James …
Driving the conversation: President Obama released his deficit reduction plan on Monday, which would reduce the national debt by $3 trillion over ten years through a variety of tax hikes, superficial cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, and by incorporating savings gleaned from drawing down America’s military presence in the Middle East. Taxes: As he is wont to do, Obama called on Congress – specifically, the supercommittee – to reform the tax code. The only tax changes included in the president’s plan are – surprise! – tax hikes. Those will include …
Catching you up on clips, commentary and news of the day. Sign up for the daily email update from Scribe. Senator Casey Breaks With President Over Jobs Bill – CBSPittsburgh.com GE Responds to Charges of Crony Capitalism – Tim Carney, The Washington Examiner EPA Delays Global Warming Rules Again – Conn Carroll, The Washington Examiner GOP Lawmaker Wants Probe of White House Support of LightSquared – Brendan Sasso, Hillicon Valley FORD TV Ad Slams Obama Auto Bailouts – Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers, US News & World Report Solyndra Not Sole …
In what Politico is calling “the first whiff of the desperation inside the White House about the slowness of the economic recovery,” President Barack Obama spoke to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce yesterday, claiming: “I understand the challenges you face. I understand you are under incredible pressure to cut costs and keep your margins up. I understand the significance of your obligations to your shareholders and the pressures that are created by quarterly reports. I get it.” No. No, he doesn’t. President Obama went on to say, “Even as we …
To rephrase President Obama’s State of the Union theme: “This is our generation’s apparatchik moment.” Yes, he said “Sputnik” instead, but his actual agenda is about the apparatchik—government by party leaders, bureaucrats and the well-connected. His agenda is symbolized by his push for “green jobs” as the path to a better future. Simply put, the green jobs agenda spends billions of taxpayer dollars to destroy existing jobs and replace them with jobs in politically-favored businesses, raising the costs of energy along the way. The politically-connected win. Existing job-holders and companies lose. Home …
Today the Bureau of Labor and Statistics released its monthly jobs report showing that the U.S. economy added only 103,000 jobs this December. With the unemployment rate now at 9.4%, this marks the 20th month in a row that the unemployment has been over 9 percent, a post–World War II record. You are going to hear a lot of noise from the White House about how this drop from a 9.8% unemployment rate to 9.4% means the economy is in a strong recovery. This is false. The reality is that …
