Housing Signs Point to More Market Woes

Staff / Truthdig Jun 6, 2008 The housing market is continuing its descent into Slumpsville, judging by the way things have gone over the first quarter of 2008, and indicators don't look good for the immediate future, either. American homeowners have been forced into foreclosure in record numbers this year and late payments have soared to a new high. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

U.S. Consumer Confidence at 28-Year Low

Staff / Truthdig May 16, 2008 A survey released Friday showed that U.S. consumer confidence has fallen to the lowest point since the "stagflation" of the early 1980s. According to the survey, lower-income households, citing rising food and fuel prices, were the main source of the drop in confidence. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Toward a New Washington Consensus

David Sirota / Truthdig May 16, 2008 What passes for smart economic policy is actually a set of right-wing globalization measures that destabilizes the world economy. For the sake of Americans and others, our politicians need to wise up. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Jeff Madrick on ‘High Wire,’ Peter Gosselin’s Look at the Economic Meltdown

BLANK May 2, 2008 A star reporter for the Los Angeles Times has written a clear, even elegant anatomy of an economy that is much worse than you probably think. Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )

Bush Passes the Buck

Staff / Truthdig Apr 30, 2008 Why is it that the U.S. economy is on a serious downswing? Could it be that we're in the midst of a super-expensive war with little sign of scaling down in the near future that has jacked up oil prices to new heights and strained the federal budget? According to Bush, he'd have worked out our economic woes if it weren't for those meddling congressional Democrats. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Bush Ready to Stimulate America

Staff / Truthdig Apr 26, 2008 President Bush announced that rebate checks will start winging their way to taxpayers as early as Monday, helpfully observing that Americans need a little help paying for necessities like groceries and gas during this economic "slowdown" -- a slightly different story from his initial justification for this economic stimulus plan, and one that wasn't lost on his critics. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

McCain Piles On in ‘Bitter’ War of Words

Staff / Truthdig Apr 15, 2008 John McCain joined Hillary Clinton in critiquing Barack Obama's characterization of small-town Pennsylvania's (and by extension, perhaps, America's) "bitter" outlook, telling a crowd of magazine and newspaper editors on Monday that Obama's description represented "a contradiction from what I believe America is all about." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

It Ain’t Argentina This Time

Staff / Truthdig Apr 9, 2008 The International Monetary Fund, the darling lending institution of neoliberal capitalists, believes that the US's current mortgage crisis is dragging down the world economy The IMF is predicting at least a two-year global economic downturn, led by the U credit crunch, that also has a gambling chance of turning into a "global recession". Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The Next Great Depression?

Staff / Truthdig Apr 1, 2008 It's looking that way for a growing number of Americans. Record home foreclosures, escalating unemployment and price hikes are hitting them in the gut, creating a record number -- 28 million -- who are in need of food stamps to feed themselves and their families. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Shrinking Payrolls Worry Economists

Staff / Truthdig Mar 20, 2008 A sharp jump in the number of Americans filing for unemployment has brought the four-week average to its highest level since the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Last week, 378,000 new claims were filed. Roughly 2.8 million workers currently receive unemployment benefits. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The Race to Captain a Sinking Ship

Eugene Robinson / Truthdig Mar 18, 2008 The Democratic presidential candidates squabble over real or imagined racial sensitivities, the Republican presidential candidate stages photo opportunities with the troops in Iraq, and meanwhile the financial system is coming apart at the seams. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Be Careful What You Wish For

E.J. Dionne Jr. / Truthdig Mar 18, 2008 Never do I want to hear again from my conservative friends about how brilliant capitalists are, how much they deserve their seven-figure salaries, and how government should keep its hands off the private economy. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )