The liberal perspective on the “Occupy” movement is really something spectacular. Before the movement had really even announced a position or set of “demands,” progressives were pushing each other out of the way to embrace it. When they did finally come up with a set of ideals, which mostly involve eliminating their personally accrued debt, President Obama practically made it his new national agenda, branded “We Can’t Wait.” Now you have Hollywood “celebrities” like mega-millionaires Russell Simmons, Katy Perry and Russell Brand hopping by for a photo-op with the anti-capitalist …
Camping out for nearly a month, yelling, chanting, and painting signs is apparently some people’s idea of a good time. But given all this time on their hands, and with just a little guidance, “Occupy Wall Street” protestors might really make a difference. They could, for example, help out this small-business owner. Gene Mark has some creative action items for the protestors of “Occupy Wall Street.” In his witty Huffington Post piece, filled with good-natured sarcasm, Mark calls on the protestors to help his small business during protest down time. …
Americans remain convinced of Washington’s culpability in the economic crisis from which the country is still struggling to recover, according to a pair of new polls. The ongoing “Occupy” protests notwithstanding, Americans are more likely to blame the federal government than the financial sector for the country’s economic woes. According to a poll conducted by The Hill, 56 percent of likely voters believe Washington is “more to blame” for the economic crisis. Only 33 percent said Wall Street shoulders most of the culpability. That poll phrased the question as an …
Just last week, America learned that September was yet another bad month for the Obama economy, with the unemployment rate remaining flat at 9.1 percent. A new report out today predicts more bad news down the road: Wall Street could see 10,000 securities jobs lost by the end of 2012. That’s on top of the 22,000 jobs the industry has lost since January 2008. The Wall Street Journal reports: New York City’s securities industry could lose nearly 10,000 jobs by the end of 2012, New York state’s comptroller predicted, a painful …
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this morning that employers added 117,000 jobs in July, up from June’s dismal 18,000 but still below the number needed to keep pace with population growth. The unemployment rate also fell 0.1 percent to 9.1 percent. Get complete analysis from Heritage’s Rea Hederman and James Sherk, who produce a monthly jobs and employment report. All eyes will again be on Wall Street today. After the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost more than 500 points yesterday, the world eagerly awaits reaction to today’s jobs report. …
Listening to some politicians recently, you’d think capitalism benefits only those on Wall Street, not Main Street. Yet the benefits of capitalism have proven over history to benefit all of society. The heart of capitalism is the private ownership of property. Without free enterprise, individuals would not be able to have the opportunity to own economic resources and compete in the marketplace. Capitalism provides valuable goods and services, rewards hardworking people and initiatives, creates a higher standard of living for all, narrows the gap between the common person and wealthy, …
Somebody spilled the beans Tuesday, telling the truth about the financial reform bill being debated in Congress. But most media ignored it. Rather than being the targets of this bill, Wall Street financiers will be rewarded by it. The chairman of Goldman Sachs, Lloyd Blankfein, told a Senate subcommittee, “The biggest beneficiary of reform is Wall Street itself.” So why does President Obama instead want us to believe the legislation is our revenge against Wall Street, a chance to get our money back after so many bailouts?
As early as today, the House is set to approve Rep. Barney Frank’s (D-MA) financial regulation bill intended to prevent future Wall Street bailouts by granting regulators sweeping new powers to control firms deemed “too big to fail.” But as Heritage Senior Research Fellow David John explains below, the Frank bill actually encourages future bailouts by signaling to markets that the targeted firms guaranteed against failure, thus enabling risky business decisions. Worse, by empowering the FDIC to seize and close failing financial institutions, while also establishing a fund enabling the …
For months now, the Treasury Department has been grappling with the consequences of “Too Big to Fail” — the idea that some enterprises are too large to allow to fail. Now here’s comes the Justice Department with “Too Big To Succeed,” the idea that some firms are too large to allow to suceed. That at least is the implication of a policy change announced this week by new DOJ Antitrust Division chief Christine Varney. Specifically, in two speeches, she renounced a report developed by the Bush DOJ last year on …
Policies premised more on class-warfare than sound economics, are not going to get us out of this recession. They may actually delay recovery. In my last post, I discussed the example of a ban on “golden parachutes” for top executives. Now, another item from the Treasury’s pay rules for companies receiving “extraordinary assistance” that may soon be foisted on the broader market: executive pay caps. The rule is short and sour: Senior executives can receive no more than $500,000 in total annual compensation. They can also receive restricted stock that …
