The economic stimulus debate is dominating news coverage these days. But hos fair and objective is the reporting? Which networks are basically parroting the Obama administration talking points? Which anchors show their bias more clearly? How does the selection of economic ‘experts’ impact the fairness of the coverage? We ask Jeff Poor of the Business and Media Institute.
While lawmakers page through the endless economic stimulus plan, the Capitol Steps examine the health care sector and enjoy the endless parade of prescription drugs we see on television every day. Click here to listen to “Ten Pills and You’re Fine” and our chat with Steps star Elaina Newport.
President Obama says lawmakers need to pass the economic stimulus package to jump-start the economy and also to begin the transformation of our nation’s energy policy away from what he calls “the tyranny of oil”. So what would the energy provisions in the bill actually accomplish? What should be eliminated? And what should be added? We ask David Holt, president of the Consumer Energy Alliance.
We have Thursday’s top news…How is President Obama changing his rhetoric in support of the massive economic stimulus package? What are moderate senators saying about where the middle ground might be in this debate? What are the latest jobless numbers? What are the conclusions of the first major report on how the Bush administration handled the TARP money? What is CIA Director nominee Leon Panetta saying about his qualifications for the job and the philosophy he will take to the job? Why was Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in surgery today? What is her prognosis? And what happened today on Wall Street? We have all the answers as we bring you the biggest stories for Thursday, February 5, 2009.
There’s plenty of debate over just how much job creation will be spawned by the massive economic stimulus bill being debated in Congress. But the Senate version will likely provide 300,000 jobs for illegal immigrants. How is this possible? Why is the Senate version different on this issue than the House bill? Who is responsible for this back room deception? And which version will carry the day on this issue? We ask Robert Rector, senior research fellow in domestic policy studies at the Heritage Foundation.
The mainstream media are always titlting to the left but in the 2008, the press was more in the tank than ever for the Democrats – and specifically Barack Obama. That’s the thesis of the new book by longtime network television reporter Bernard Goldberg entitled “A Slobbering Love Affair: The True (And Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media”. Why does Golberg believe coverage of the campaign crossed the line from bias to activism? What’s the difference and why is that difference important? Why did the press consider the campaign more about themselves than Obama? Why did reporters really loathe Sarah Palin? How was it obvious that negative stories for Obama got far less attention than ones that reflected poorly on John McCain? And what risk do we run if this media activism is allowed to continue? We ask these questions and more to Mr. Goldberg.
After all the wrangling, what kind of stimulus bill will emerge from the U.S. Senate? Why did Tom Daschle’s nomination get dashed? Why did Obama pick GOP senator Judd Gregg to serve in his cabinet? How will the Republican party change with Michael Steele as the new chairman? And who will win the marathon U.S. Senate race in Minnesota? We ask John Gizzi, political editor at Human Events.
If you examine the contents of the economic stimulus legislation, you’ll see billions and billions of dollars being targeted for many of our nation’s 50 states. From funding health care programs to paying for infrastructure upgrades that should have been covered by state funds, almost every governor in America has their hand out in hopes of getting some help from Washington. So have states just been hit by a rough economy or are they the victims of their own rampant spending? What would the policies in the stimulus plan actually accomplish? What policies would actually work? And are most states within range of of solvency or they in a financial death spiral like the one playing out in California? We ask Jonathan Williams, director of the Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force at the American Legislative Exchange Council.
We have Wednesday’s top news… What kind of caps is President Obama placing on firms that receive bailout money? What is the purpose of this order? What is Obama’s approach for a final stimulus bill? Why do Republicans say the current version is unacceptable and who do they blame for that? What happens now that Obama has signed S-CHIP expansion into law? Is this just the tip of the iceberg in terms of government involvement in health care? And what happened on Wall Street today? We have all the answers as we bring you the biggest stories for Wednesday, February 4, 2009.
On Wednesday, President Obama announced that executives of companies receiving taxpayer assistance through the TARP (or bailout) funds will have their salaries capped at $500,000 until the government is repaid the TARP loans. Is this a way of promoting responsible use of taxpayer funds or guaranteeing the flight of top-level talent of executives to firms not saddled by Obama’s restrictions? How are Wall Street firms reacting to this move? Is this the start of even more government intrusion into the free market? We ask Jack Gage, associate editor at Forbes magazine. We also get Jack’s insights on the merits of the current economic stimulus plan before Congress, as well as the Republican alternative.
