Showing posts with label lobbyist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lobbyist. Show all posts

Special Interests More Influential Than Public Opinion

by Breanna Deutsch.     New research supports what many Americans already believe – lawmakers are influenced more by special interest groups than their constituents. Matt Grossmann, author of the new book, “Artists of the Possible: Governing Networks and American Policy Change Since 1945,” looks at the movers and shakers behind 790      ... MORE

VIDEO: Why Politicians Want To Ban Internet Gambling

Where Is The Outrage Over Corporate Welfare?

by David Brunori.         I recently read the February 24 Good Jobs First report, “Subsidizing the Corporate One Percent,” by Philip Mattera, a respected thought leader in our business. It says that three-quarters of all state economic development subsidies went to just 965 corporations since the beginning of the study in 1976. The Fortune 500       ... MORE

VIDEO: John Stossel - The Privileged People

Toni Clarke: E-Cig Industry Braces For Regulatory Attack

Anti-smoking device has political enemies.     Big Pharma and Big Tobacco to name two. Lobbyists for electronic cigarette companies have been beating a path to the White House, hoping to prevent the administration from imposing strict, and possibly costly, rules on the burgeoning $2 billion industry. In November and December,        ... MORE

Special-Interest Groups Benefit from Minimum Wage Laws

Gary Galles explains why.       Those campaigning for a substantial jump in the minimum wage all assert that the purpose is to help working families. Unfortunately, careful students of the evidence come to a different conclusion. As Mark Wilson summarized it, “evidence from a large number of academic studies suggests that minimum wage   ... MORE

John Stossel: The Privileged People

The cronies who compose the ruling class.       Politicians say, "We're all equal," and pretend that they represent everyone. But, in fact, they constantly pick winners and losers. America is now like the place described in George Orwell's book "Animal Farm": "All animals are equal," but some are "more equal than others." "Animal Farm" was      ... MORE

Baylen Linnekin: This Farm Bill Stinks

A lousy new Farm Bill is about to become law.     CattlePublic DomainLike a phoenix made of pork, the Farm Bill has risen from the ashes. And for opponents of farm subsidies and wasteful government spending, that’s bad news. The measure, which had languished for two years in Congress, passed in the House this week. The Senate is   ... MORE

Taxi Wars: How Govt Tries to Kill Services Customers Want

by Nick Gillespie.        If you've ever tried Uber, the innovative car service available in about two dozen U.S. cities, or have been stuck waiting for a cab, watch the video. Rob Montz and William Beutler's short doc captures attempts by established interests and politicians in Washington, D.C. to crush a service that only added to         ... MORE

Froma Harrop: Scandal In Candyland

Taxpayers get not-so-sweet deal.            Ever notice how some government programs draw the ire of almost everyone? Conservatives, liberals, environmentalists, libertarians, business, labor, consumers and grouchy taxpayers are all opposed. Yet these programs go on as though directed by an unstoppable particle beam from a neighboring     ... MORE

Peter Suderman: The Obamacare Lobbying Bonanza

$3.55 billion to lobby Obamacare.     Back in 2006, when President Obama was still a Senator, he spoke at a summit on lobbying reform. His remarks were quite critical of Republicans, noting that “we’ve seen the number of registered lobbyists in Washinton double since George Bush came into office.” He condemned the practice of letting        ... MORE

VIDEO: "Bootleggers And Baptists"


A lesson on regulation. 

Fed Workers Paid $155M To Work For Labor Unions

by Alissa Tabirian.       Federal employees were paid more than $155 million of taxpayer dollars in 2011 for spending more than 3.4 million hours of "official time" on labor union activities that fell outside their assigned government duties, according to a survey by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). "Voluntary membership in        ... MORE

Byron Tau: Big Marijuana Lobby Fights Legalization Efforts

Putting profit over principle.    Pot legalization activists are running into an unexpected and ironic opponent in their efforts to make cannabis legal: Big Marijuana. Medical marijuana is a billion-dollar industry — legal in 18 states, including California, Nevada, Oregon and Maine — and like any entrenched business, it’s fighting to keep what it has and shut   ... MORE

John Fund: Government's Broke, Hooray

Washington has less money for bribes.  Imagine what the media reaction would be if in the aftermath of yesterday’s Senate vote blocking new background checks, a leading official of the gun lobby had explained his side’s success by saying: “Bribery isn’t what it once was. The government has no money. Once upon a time you would throw  ... MORE