Can Congress Make Health-Care Reform Pay for Itself?

The budget that just passed both houses of Congress has given the prospects for health-care reform this year a big boost. With the inclusion of procedural language that would make it impossible for opponents to filibuster, it will now take a simple majority to pass the Senate, rather than 60 votes, simplifying the political arithmetic considerably. But that is only the beginning

Share

Amazon in gay writing censorship row

Online retailer Amazon has found itself at the center of a storm after it removed a number of gay and lesbian-themed books from its sales charts. On Sunday, a number of distinguished writers, including Gore Vidal, Annie Proulx and E.M. Forster, suddenly lost their best-seller ranking — which is the number that Amazon uses to show how well one title sells compared with another

Share

Five Lessons from the AIG Bonus Blowup

Last week, outlets reported that “the clock was ticking” for “embattled” Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, with a few members of Congress openly calling for his ousting. His boss, President Barack Obama, was criticized for not engaging in the congressional furor over the $165 million in bonuses paid out to top executives at AIG — the insurance giant that has received more than $180 billion in federal money. This week Obama remains relatively untouched in the polls, and Geithner is basking in his best week of media coverage yet

Share