Where is the Money Going?
American Families Lose Money While Corporations Hoard
The net worth of Americans suffered a blow over the summer, when the collective value of their properties and assets declined 4% to $57.4 trillion ($498,751 per household). The drop was the worst since the middle of the financial crisis in Septemb... read more
U.S. Pays $400 a Gallon for Gasoline in Afghanistan
Over the past six years of war, the expense of delivering fuel to America’s fighting machine in remote parts of Afghanistan has increased 50-fold.
It now costs on average of $400 a gallon to keep planes, tanks and other fuel-dependent machin... read more
Food Stamp Fraud Targeted, but Not Bank Fraud
Going after criminal cases targeting fraud has come down to what’s easier to prosecute for the Obama administration.
While Americans of all stripes have clamored for justice in the wake of the financial crisis, the U.S. Department of Justice h... read more
MF Global-Style Deals Banned, while Investigators Hunt for Missing $1.2 Billion
In the wake of the MF Global controversy, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has adopted new regulations that limit how futures brokerages handle their customers’ money.
The new rules ban firms from borrowing client money through the use... read more
Who’s Profiting from Student Loans?
When students borrow money for college, and often saddle themselves with enormous debts, they wind up taking out loans with one of five major lenders in the U.S. A trillion-dollar business, it has been a source of profit for the big five.
The ... read more
Obama Fights Senate Attempt to Limit Contractors Doing Government Work
Senator Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) wants federal agencies to stop hiring companies to perform jobs that are “inherently governmental functions,” which by their very definition are never supposed to be contracted out.
Examples of these jobs inclu... read more
Banks Earned $13 Billion from Secret Government Loans
Thanks to the Federal Reserve’s generous lending during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, banks that were teetering and at risk of collapsing wound up making billions of dollars in profits, according to Bloomberg Markets magazine.
After combing ... read more
Religious Lobbying on the Rise
Religious groups have increasingly spent money over the past four decades on lobbying in Washington, DC, according to The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
In 1970, fewer than 40 secular groups lobbied Congress and the Executive Branch. Now... read more
Barely Half of Budget for Federal Energy Research Labs is Spent on Research
Members of Congress looking to eliminate waste and redundancy from the federal government received some powerful news last week from the Department of Energy’s inspector general.
IG Gregory Friedman issued a report that makes a strong case for... read more
Upset about the Richest 1%? The Top .000003% Own $25 Trillion
Here’s a statistic for critics of wealth disparity: three millionths of 1% (0.000003%) of the world’s population has a net worth of $25 trillion.
Wealth-X, a self-described “global wealth intelligence and prospecting company,” estimates that t... read more
Members of Congress Prefer to Invest in GE, Proctor & Gamble and Bank of America
Members of Congress think highly of General Electric, making it the most popular investment on Capitol Hill. Seventy-five lawmakers held a total of $3.6 million in GE stock last year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
It just so... read more
U.S. Gives Millionaires $30 Billion a Year in Tax Breaks and Payments
America’s wealthy enjoy an average of $30 billion a year in help from the U.S. government, according to a study produced for Republican U.S. Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.
Individuals earning more than $1 million annually have been taking adv... read more
Banks Quietly Adding New Fees
Bank of America may have lost the battle over its proposed $5/month debit card fee, but, along with other major banks, it is not giving up on charging customers for other services in order to maintain profits.
At BofA consumers can expect to p... read more
Bailouts Not Over…Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Take Another $13.8 Billion
The housing market crisis of 2007-2008 continues to bleed money from the U.S. Treasury as mortgage giant Fannie Mae (the Federal National Mortgage Association) takes another bailout from Washington.
The government-controlled firm needed anothe... read more
Judge Mocks SEC for Going Soft on Citigroup’s Conning of Investors
Federal Judge Jed Rakoff of New York blasted the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this week after it proposed what Rakoff said was a weak and inappropriate settlement with Citigroup for defrauding customers.
The bank sold $1 billion in... read more
Biden Continues to Charge Secret Service Rent
Despite criticism from taxpayer groups, Vice President Joseph Biden has decided to continue charging rent to the Secret Service for guarding him at his home in Delaware.
Earlier this month the Secret Service approved yet another year of paying... read more