Obama '08?

I believe an idealogical point is important. For example, do you think treating one company different than another one is constitutional, yes or no? To try to make it as simple for you to understand as possible, is it logical to bail out one company that is threatened with bankruptcy, but not another one?

http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=20030&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DPD
More Federal Workers' Pay Tops $150,000
The number of federal workers earning $150,000 or more a year has soared tenfold in the past five years and doubled since President Obama took office, a USA Today analysis finds.
The fast-growing pay of federal employees has captured the attention of fiscally conservative Republicans who won control of the U.S. House of Representatives in last week's elections. Already, some lawmakers are planning to use the lame-duck session that starts Monday to challenge the president's plan to give a 1.4 percent across-the-board pay raise to 2.1 million federal workers.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, who will head the panel overseeing federal pay, says he wants a pay freeze and prefers a 10 percent pay cut.
Federal salaries have grown robustly in recent years, according to a USA Today analysis of Office of Personnel Management data. Key findings:
• Top-paid staff have increased in every department and agency. The Defense Department had nine civilians earning $170,000 or more in 2005, 214 when Obama took office and 994 in June.
• The biggest pay hikes have gone to employees who have been with the government for 15 years to 24 years. Since 2005, average salaries for this group climbed 25 percent compared with a 9 percent inflation rate.
• Medical doctors at veterans hospitals, prisons and elsewhere earn an average of $179,500, up from $111,000 in 2005.
Federal workers earning $150,000 or more make up 3.9 percent of the workforce, up from 0.4 percent in 2005.
• Since 2000, federal pay and benefits have increased 3 percent annually above inflation compared with 0.8 percent for private workers, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
• Members of Congress earn $174,000, up from $141,300 in 2000, an increase below the rate of inflation.
Source: Dennis Cauchon, "More Federal Workers' Pay Tops $150,000," USA Today, November 10, 2010.

rjb, Good advise, but what did you find that refutes that article?

It would be interesting to dig a little deeper into OMB data to find out what caused the number of federal employees earning over $150k to increase by so much.

A final note, perhaps, on the GM IPO. Shares were priced at $33 each and rose by 7% before settling down at $34.19 (up 3.6%). Volume, measured in number of shares traded, was about half of the number of shares issued.
By all accounts, the government did a commendable job of dealing with Wall Street on this. I was somewhat involved with IPO's years and years ago. It was not at all unusual to have them under priced and to have shares go to privileged clients who could flip them for a 50% or 100% profit in a day.
The underwriters (like Goldman Sachs etc) took a fee of .75% vs normal rates of many times that.
All in all, in my opinion, this was a successful day for the government in bringing GM to market.

CHESS MATCH
It appears tonight that the Democrat House leadership has signed on to bringing a bill to the floor that would offer tax breaks to the mid and lower level tax payers but not to those in the highest income tax brackets.

This is, as I understand it, a new bill rather than an extension of the law due to expire at the end of the year that would temporarily extend tax cuts to everyone.
Many liberal Dems pushed for this even though, if it is defeated, tax cuts for everyone would go away.

The Senate and the White House are wary about this approach, seeming to prefer to punt the issue down the field for awhile.
The Repubs, fresh off of the killing today of extending some unemployment benefits, could be put in a box if they oppose the Dem plan unless tax cuts for the wealthiest are extended.
Have I summarized this reasonably accurately based on yall's reading?
Thanks.

Actually, it does offer tax breaks to those in the highest income brackets; just not on their income at the highest level. They enjoy the same tax cuts that everyone else will on their income below that level, so it's fair to say that ALL Americans get a tax cut under this plan.
Cycloptichorn