Thank You Inflation
Seniors are getting the biggest increase in their Social Security checks in 10 years through President Biden’s leadership.
—White House tweet, November 1, 2022
A Government That Robs Peter to Pay Paul Can Always Count on the Support of Paul
Fifty-nine percent of voters between the ages of 18 and 34 back the [student-loan forgiveness] plan, while 34% are opposed.
—Wall Street Journal, November 3, 2022
Secretary of Corporate Welfare
Gina Raimondo, the commerce secretary, … is the most important phone call in Washington that many chief executives can make. As the United States embarks on its biggest foray into industrial policy since World War II, Ms. Raimondo has the responsibility of doling out a stunning amount of money to states, research institutions and companies.
—New York Times, November 26, 2022
Quite the Mystery
As the financial world examines why major firms threw hundreds of millions of dollars at the 30-year-old [Sam] Bankman-Fried, the capital is looking anew at his courtship of Washington and why he sought to build ties with [Roshin] Behnam and the agency he leads, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
—Washington Post, November 28, 2022
Paris the City of No Light
Over the past two years, groups of young athletes practicing Parkour—a sport that consists of running, climbing and jumping over urban obstacles—have been swinging around big French cities switching off wasteful shop signs at night, in a bid to fight light pollution and save energy.
—New York Times, October 13, 2022
Apparently the Justice Department Has Too Much Time on Its Hands
The Justice Department’s antitrust investigation into professional golf includes the powerhouse bodies Augusta National Golf Club and the United States Golf Association, in addition to the PGA Tour, according to people familiar with the matter.
—Wall Street Journal, October 26, 2022
We’ll Have Hovercraft before This Train Is Built
When California voters first approved a bond issue for the project in 2008, the rail line was to be completed by 2020, and its cost seemed astronomical at the time—$33 billion—but it was still considered worthwhile as an alternative to the state’s endless web of freeways and the carbon emissions generated in one of the nation’s busiest air corridors.…
Fourteen years later, construction is now underway on part of a 171-mile “starter” line … which has been promised for 2030. But few expect it to make that goal.
Meanwhile, costs have continued to escalate … the “final plan” raised the estimate to $113 billion.
—New York Times, October 9, 2022
Is the President Saying That People Who Get a Government Loan Lose Their Right to Criticize the Government?
You don’t get to accept hundreds of thousands of dollars in pandemic loans and then attack my Administration for helping working folks get some relief.
—President Biden on Twitter, November 7, 2022
Massachusetts Voters Vote to Raise Taxes on Other People
Question 1 supporters celebrated victory as voters opted to levy an additional income tax on Massachusetts’ highest earners.
—Boston.com, November 9, 2022
