Articles by J.D. Foster

 

Job One is to Tell the Whole Jobs Story

J.D. Foster | October 30, 2009

Whenever government throws billions of dollars at the economy, one would certainly expect to find some jobs at the end of those dollars. President Obama… Read More

Economy

Exchange Rates and Interest Rates Tell Confusing Story

J.D. Foster | October 13, 2009

The dollar’s steady and sometimes fleet downward slide in exchange markets is eliciting a number of interesting explanations, but most commentators are only looking at… Read More

Health Care

Obama’s Health Care Tax Explanation: Doesn’t Pass the Laugh Test

J.D. Foster | September 30, 2009

The White House put out talking points on Tuesday in an attempt to deflect the debate on the multitude of tax increases in the health… Read More

Economy

The Medicare Raid in Baucus Bill

J.D. Foster | September 25, 2009

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Baucus’ (D-MT) health care reform proposal includes a number of reforms to reduce Medicare outlays. Medicare, as is now well established,… Read More

Economy

Full CBO Scoring Crucial in Health Care Reform

J.D. Foster | September 21, 2009

The Senate Finance Committee will soon take up Chairman Baucus’ health care reform proposal for consideration and amendment. The initial proposal as outlined September 17… Read More

Health Care

Obama’s Deficient Budget Pledge

J.D. Foster | September 10, 2009

President Obama’s address to a Joint Session of Congress on health care reform included a range of urgings, pleadings, and partisan jabs, and a single… Read More

 

On the Fed, the Journal’s Readers Deserve Better

J.D. Foster | August 13, 2009

The snarky aside is a common tool substituting for a sound argument. Sadly, a Wall Street Journal editorial today gave in to the temptation. The… Read More

Economy

Jobs Down 247,000 — Mission Accomplished?

J.D. Foster | August 07, 2009

In a discussion about the economy and the stimulus package President Obama signed into law earlier in the year, Vice President Joe Biden last Sunday… Read More

Health Care

Clunker Health Care Reform

J.D. Foster | July 31, 2009

The $1 billion “Cash for Clunkers” auto bailout Congress passed last June has run out of cash after one week. The House of Representatives is… Read More

Health Care

Elmendorf, Obama Put CBO’s Integrity at Risk

J.D. Foster | July 22, 2009

According to President Obama’s televised remarks, he recently met with Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Doug Elmendorf to discuss health care reform. Of course, the… Read More

Economy

Obama’s Battle of the Bulging Deficit

J.D. Foster | June 30, 2009

“We’ll Need To Raise Taxes Soon” opines Roger Altman, a former Deputy Treasury Secretary under President Clinton, in a Wall Street Journal editorial today. Of… Read More

 

Barney Frank Calls For Bigger Losses at Fannie and Freddie

J.D. Foster | June 26, 2009

Barney Frank, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee has suggested that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the now bankrupt housing finance giants, should relax… Read More

Economy

IMF Tax Recommendation Indicates Obama Tax Policy Off-Target

J.D. Foster | June 17, 2009

On June 15, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a study suggesting national tax policies contributed to, but did not cause, the credit boom and… Read More

Health Care

Baucus Should Support, Not Undermine CBO Integrity

J.D. Foster | June 15, 2009

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Baucus’ recent off-the-cuff remarks to CBO Director Elmendorf highlight the critical role the CBO will play in the coming health care… Read More

Health Care

Obama’s First Health Care Clue

J.D. Foster | June 15, 2009

President Obama has made health care reform among his very top priorities. Good. The health care system is deeply troubled from soup to nuts. Cost,… Read More

Energy

Deficit Spending and Higher Interest Rates Imperil the Recovery

J.D. Foster | June 11, 2009

Long-term interest rates are rising rapidly, with the 10-year Treasury pushing against 4 percent for the first time since the summer of 2008 – before… Read More

Economy

President Needs More Diversity, Fewer Czars

J.D. Foster | June 11, 2009

President Obama has appointed yet another czar. This time it’s a pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg, to monitor the compensation paid to seven companies currently under… Read More

 

Obama Jobs Deficit Now at 6.4 Million, and Climbing

J.D. Foster | June 05, 2009

The economy shed 345,000 jobs in May and the unemployment has jumped to 9.4 percent, its highest level since 1983, and this is regarded as… Read More

 

Results of the Owe-bama Debt-O-Rama

J.D. Foster | May 28, 2009

President Obama recently said, One hundred days ago, in the midst of the worst economic crisis in half a century, we passed the most sweeping… Read More

 

“Terrible” Treasury Auction Exposes Hole in Obama Econ Plan

J.D. Foster | May 08, 2009

The U.S. Treasury auction of long-term bonds on Thursday was “terrible”, in the words of one Wall Street economist, with the rate on the 30… Read More

Economy

Chrysler: Pay Back the Money!

J.D. Foster | May 06, 2009

The Obama Administration appears about to walk away from $7.5 billion in taxpayer money used to prop up Chrysler. This little information nugget was buried… Read More

 

The Tax Punisher

J.D. Foster | May 04, 2009

President Obama’s new corporate tax proposals cover two issues: tax evasion and tax punishment. He may have it half right. The tax evasion part is… Read More

Economy

Treasury Exposes Markets to Added Stress Flu

J.D. Foster | April 28, 2009

Markets are weighed down by worries over the new swine flu and the ongoing stress flu; the former from Mexico, the latter from the Treasury… Read More

 

Initial Talking Points on CBO Scoring of Obama Budget

J.D. Foster | March 20, 2009

• President Obama’s budget presented at the end of February painted a picture of a fiscal trainwreck. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) today confirmed what… Read More

 

House Republicans Show the Search for Principles Goes On

J.D. Foster | March 20, 2009

In Thursday’s outraged House debate on the AIG bonuses, House Republicans rallied around a different approach. Members of both parties in the House and Senate… Read More

 

Darling Needs a College Refresher

J.D. Foster | March 13, 2009

In his piece “International Cooperation is the Way Out of the Financial Crisis” Wall Street Journal, March 13, 2009, U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair… Read More

 

One (Small) Reason For Optimism at the G20 Meeting

J.D. Foster | March 11, 2009

The European Union (EU) is once again lecturing America on its economic policies, and thanks to President Obama’s policies and his allies in Congress, the… Read More

 

No Defense for Obamanomics

J.D. Foster | March 09, 2009

Laura Tyson’s “In Defense of Obamanomics” in the Wall Street Journal Monday well portrayed the view of history and government from the classical American socialist… Read More

 

Obama Tax Proposals (Mostly) Bad News

J.D. Foster | February 26, 2009

President Obama’s budget document lacks the details necessary to judge fully his tax proposals. What we have are proposed streams of revenues over 10 years… Read More

 

Building a Foundation for Budgetary Failure

J.D. Foster | February 26, 2009

The title to President Obama’s budget refers to a new era of responsibility. Responsible budgeting begins with credible economic forecasts. The Obama economic forecast doesn’t… Read More