Plank
Why the Anti-SOPA Band Hasn't Gotten Back Together
A year ago, the Internet faced the biggest threat in its short lifespan, and won. READ MORE >>
If Avis Is Smart, It Won't Stop With Zipcar
Current TV's New Owners Don't Need Ratings: They Have Money
In a belated but marvelous Christmas present to Roger Ailes, pan-Arab news broadcaster Al Jazeera on Wednesday announced its purchase of Current TV, the cable news network founded by Al Gore. The result—technically called “Al Jazeera America” but instantly dubbed “Al GoreZEERA” by the Internet—stands to revolutionize cable news programming, fusing the massive wealth and global orientation of Al Jazeera with the spunky, left-wing politics of Current. READ MORE >>
How Washington Learned to Love Hostage-Taking
President Obama's decision to agree to a "fiscal cliff" deal that doesn't address the debt ceiling was premised on the thinking that congressional Republicans will not be as successful at holding the economy hostage in the coming months as they were in the summer of 2011. For one thing, the administration believes the business community, and elite opinion more broadly, will be much more vocal than they were last time around in cautioning Republicans against debt-ceiling hijinx. READ MORE >>
How the Fiscal Cliff Deal Cured Washington's Fuzzy Math Epidemic
As public policy, the fiscal cliff deal has few merits to recommend it. But it does have one positive political consequence that has mostly gone overlooked: It substantially narrows the gap between the policy commitments we have made and the way the budget process officially presents them. Americans can finally have a cleaner—if not necessarily more productive—debate over what to do. READ MORE >>
Obama Wasn't Rolled. He Won!
The Payroll Tax Emergency Is ... Over?
On Sandy Relief, GOP Is Stiffing Its Own
The Civil War Endures in the Fiscal Cliff Fight
If you look at the House Republican vote, you find regional divisions that mirror the Red-Blue divisions in the national electorate. All in all, 85 Republicans voted for the Senate resolution and 151 voted against it. The opposition was centered in the Old South. Southern Republicans opposed the measure by 83 to 10. The delegations from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Virginia, Tennessee, and South Carolina were unanimously opposed. As one might expect, the bill got support from five Florida Republicans, including Republicans from Cuban districts. READ MORE >>
The House Comes Around on the Cliff. Why Am I Not Reassured?
If you’re gaming out what’s likely to happen during the next fiscal showdown a few months from now, there are two ways to interpret the legacy of the cliff episode, which ended when the House approved the McConnell-Biden compromise last night. READ MORE >>
