Washington, D.C. - The Bush administration labels the$15 billion in the Neighborhood Stabilization Act of 2008 (HR 5818)—legislation to help stabilize hundreds of communities swamped by foreclosures across the country—as a bank "bailout." Advocates of the funding in Congress and around the nation argue that the $15 billion is essential to keep communities from falling into blight, and to help millions of additional American families from losing all equity in their homes and then facing foreclosure.

The National Association of Manufacturers and the American Council for Capital Formation today released their latest effort to frighten the American people and their representatives in Congress for acting meaningfully to combat global warming. The NAM/ACCF report, titled “Analysis of The Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S. 2191),” unsurprisingly predicts that the Climate Security Act would lead to higher electric rates, loss of jobs, high allowance prices, and other economic harms. 

Fidel Castro’s formal resignation as Cuba’s president marks the end of an era. Although it remains unclear how much influence he will continue to wield, after 49 years of formal rule by Fidel Castro, it is clear that Cuba will never be the same. It is also long past time for the free will of the Cuban people on the island to guide its future.

Last week’s public opinion snapshot documented how little effect the surge has had on Americans’ opposition to the war in Iraq and desire to end the conflict soon. This week we take a look at another underappreciated aspect of public opinion on the Iraq war—the extent to which Americans believe the war is negatively affecting the economy.

It may be too soon to declare the U.S. economy has entered a recession, but there is ample evidence that the downturn in the housing market is picking up speed, which in turn is slowing economic growth substantially and pointing to a long recovery period ahead.

Economic weaknesses are becoming increasingly apparent heading into 2008. The crisis in the housing and mortgage markets has spilled over into other sectors and is causing much slower economic growth and a weaker labor market. And these problems are increasingly overshadowed by continuously large budget and trade deficits. The United States needs an economic recovery package to counter broad-based economic weaknesses. The economic stimulus passed last week is a good start, but it should be followed by a large-scale reform of U.S. economic policy.

Washington, D.C. – In his 2009 fFederal budget proposal, President Bush once again offered dangerous policy prescriptions that would further damage our broken health care system. This budget, if enacted, would undermine critical public health insurance programs by cutting Medicare by $178 billion over the next five years, largely by reducing support to hospitals that serve needy communities and cutting Medicaid by $17 billion over five years. Additionally, this budget destabilizes employer-sponsored health insurance.

Privacy issues will be central to the forthcoming antitrust merger review of today’s $44.6 billion bid by Microsoft Corp. for Yahoo Inc. U.S. antitrust authorities have already studied these privacy issues in connection with the proposed merger of Google Inc. and DoubleClick, which is still under review in Europe. U.S. and European authorities will almost certainly investigate the privacy aspects of today’s proposed merger more fully than any other merger in history.

President Bush last night spent 45 seconds (including applause) addressing the severe downturn in the housing market. This morning, we were treated to the release of new data on house prices and foreclosures, each of which indicates that a more aggressive role for government is warranted to help solve the current crisis.

Most financial markets around the world have fallen since the start of the year, with all of them plunging in unison yesterday. Today, the Federal Reserve was forced to cut its key federal funds rate by three quarters of a percentage point, to 3.5 percent, to calm global stock markets, as investors adjusted anew to the long-term structural weaknesses in the U.S. economy, particularly in consumer spending and in the housing and mortgage markets.

President Bush’s “surge” strategy in Iraq—now into its second year—was supposed to be temporary. In fact, the president and many of his advisors said it would last only six months. Problem is, the president’s own military leaders know that it is not that simple. Just ask Army Chief of Staff George Casey.

Some financial market gurus suggest that policymakers should let the economy go into a recession, and they may be about to see their wish fulfilled in the wake of today’s release of consumer spending in the critical holiday month of December. Data released today by the U.S. Commerce Department show that last month, consumer spending slipped by 0.4 percent, with spending growth for the year declining to 4.2 percent, the lowest growth since 2002 and down sharply from 5.9 percent growth in 2006.

The new year has begun with a dimmed outlook for the economy. The crisis in the housing and mortgage markets has translated into massive foreclosures and a much weaker labor market. These weak spots are further exacerbated by continually large budget and trade deficits. In this weak economic environment, we run the danger that policymakers will not take the large steps necessary to put the economy back on track for strong, stable, and equitably shared growth.

New employment numbers released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics show the smallest increase in job growth since August 2003, over four years ago, and the highest unemployment rate in over two years. The 5.0 percent increase in unemployment in December, paired with a meager 18,000 jobs added to the economy, make 2007 the weakest year for job growth in the past 4 years. The monthly employment figures are the latest sign of a weakening economy, and mark the end of a year of relatively gloomy news for workers.

The New Year was barely a day old when Americans got a belated lump of coal. For the first time ever, oil prices hit $100 a barrel yesterday. This is forty percent more than the $58 per barrel price from one year ago. Chances are this price may slip in the coming days, yet a key psychological barrier has been broken. And high oil prices in January could lead to higher—perhaps record—gasoline prices this spring, particularly because oil prices are responsible for two-thirds the cost of a gallon of gas.

For much of the last year, the economy and the labor market have been caught in a low-growth cycle, hampered by the fallout from the end of the housing and mortgage boom. We run the danger in this low-growth pattern that policymakers will become complacent about the economy’s long-term fortunes and accept small gains rather than taking the large steps necessary to put the economy back on track for strong, stable, and equitably

Ah, Thanksgiving, a time for visiting family, leaves rustling underfoot, afternoon football...and high gasoline prices. How did that happen? Gas prices are supposed to be lower in the fall due to lower gasoline use after the spike from summer vacations and driving season. But that isn’t the case this year.

Economic reporting often falls prey to low expectations. It’s true that a number of recent indicators have performed better than expected, but the performance is still relatively weak. Stronger growth and employment gains are certainly welcome, yet large risks remain that could quickly weaken the economy in the future. These risks include large budget and trade deficits and the continued fallout from the end of the housing and mortgage boom.

Several indicators point toward a weak and weakening economy, especially in the housing and labor markets. The slowdown in economic activity is largely a result of the end of the housing boom, which has spilled into the economy at large and which so far has not been replaced by another driver of stronger economic activity. At the same time, the economy still faces large risks, such as massive household debt, a comparatively high trade deficit, and continued budget deficits.

The economy is moving along at a moderate pace this month with both employment and wages continuing to grow slowly. The end of the housing boom has been the main force hampering growth, which has spilled into the economy at large. Housing has yet to be replaced by another strong growth sector. For the time being, this trend may mean more moderate employment and wage gains, but also slower increases in household debt than

The housing market decline and the associated home-lending market troubles continue to loom over the broader U.S. economy. The effect of the housing market decline is still largely unknown, but today’s release of new employment data shows some strength remains in the broader labor market.

WASHINGTON, DC— El Center for American Progress acoge con agrado la acción en el Congreso hoy para renovar el debate sobre una reforma migratoria integral.  Los representantes Luís Gutiérrez (D-IL) y Jeff Flake (R-AZ) presentaron esta mañana legislación bipartidista que procura suplantar nuestro sistema irregulado, injusto e impracticable.