Where is the Money Going?
Small Farmers Say Goodbye to Easy Government Help
Research and extension outreach programs, a key source of support for small farmers across the United States, are in danger of closing up as federal and state government funding dries up.
The American Agriculturist reports that many publicly... read more
Record Obama Fundraising Rakes in Grassroots Support
If President Barack Obama has a problem with his left flank, as some liberal critics contend, it’s not showing up in his latest—“staggering”—fundraising totals.
During one three-month period (April-June) this year, the Obama reelection effor... read more
JPMorgan Chase Ponies Up Tens of Millions Again to Settle Allegation
JPMorgan Chase has become the third major bank to settle charges of improperly gaining access to the local bond business of local governments.
The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Internal Revenue Service, bank regulators and 25 state... read more
Taxing the Top 25 Hedge Fund Managers Like Average Citizens Would Cut Deficit by $44 Billion
When an individual’s income, both pre-tax and after-tax, goes up more than 400%, shouldn’t they pay taxes like those eking out a living?
That’s the argument by tax reformers who want to go after some of the biggest earners on Wall Street. In... read more
Federal Reserve Approves Halving of Debit Card Fees in Partial Victory for Merchants over Banks
In a battle of retailers vs. banks, retailers claimed victory after the Federal Reserve approved drastically lower debit-card fees charged by financial institutions.
The banking industry has been making $20 billion annually off merchants who... read more
Bipartisan Bill Would Force Congress to Wait for Pensions as Long as other Americans
Having long enjoyed their pensions before typical retirement age, members of Congress now face the risk of losing this perk as a result of new legislation introduced in both the House and Senate.
Representative Bobby Schilling (R-Illinois) i... read more
House Committee Votes to Repeal CEO Pay Disclosure
House Republicans are supporting a lobbying effort by corporations to repeal new rules requiring the disclosure of executives’ salaries.
Publicizing the pay of corporate leaders, which was included in the Wall Street reform legislation adopt... read more
TV Set-Top Boxes Waste $2 Billion a Year in Electricity
Set-top boxes, the equipment that comes with television cable and satellite services, have turned out to be real energy hogs, wasting billions of dollars in electricity each year.
Whether Americans are watching TV or not, the boxes run at fu... read more
Federal Court Says Merck Isn’t Owed $473 Million in Tax Refunds
Pharmaceutical manufacturer Merck is on the hook to pay $473 million to the IRS for taxes owed by its newest acquisition, Schering-Plough.
Following an audit in 2004, IRS officials determined that Schering-Plough, manufacturer of such drugs ... read more
JPMorgan Chase Agrees to Pay $154 Million to Settle Fraud Charges
JPMorgan Chase has become the second major Wall Street bank to settle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over claims that it defrauded investors by selling mortgage-based securities designed to fail.
The bank will pay $153.6 m... read more
Congress Rebrands Earmarks as “Programmatic Requests”
An earmark by any other name is still an earmark, as long as certain conditions apply. An earmark is a budget expenditure that goes directly to a specific project without having been requested by the agency or department that would normally over... read more
Judge Approves Largest Settlement Ever against U.S. Government…$3.4 Billion
A federal judge has approved the largest settlement ever against the U.S. government, clearing the way for more than a billion dollars to be distributed among thousands of American Indians.
The agreement ends one of the longest and most comp... read more
Big Corporations Claim a Tax Holiday on Foreign Earnings Would Create Jobs…Don’t Believe It
Corporate America is lobbying Congress for a tax holiday on foreign earnings that companies want to bring home, claiming the move will serve as another stimulus for the floundering U.S. economy.
The corporations want the tax on foreign earni... read more
Navy’s New, but Almost Abandoned, Radar Testing Center
At the U.S. Navy’s Virginia testing grounds for its most sophisticated air and ballistic missile defense radar systems, a unique six-story building sits largely vacant, after more than a billion dollars was invested in the program behind its pur... read more
Number of High-Income Americans Who Paid No Income Tax Doubled in One Year
The IRS has reported that the number of taxpayers earning more than $200,000 annually who owed no income taxes nearly doubled from 2007 to 2008, the most recent year for which statistics are available.
There were 4,375,660 individual income ... read more
$6.6 Billion of Taxpayer Money Vanished in Iraq
Labeled the biggest heist in American history, about $6.6 billion delivered to Iraq by the United States after the 2003 invasion has disappeared.
The money was part of $12 billion in cash that was flown to Iraq on U.S. military planes, presu... read more