Cherchez la Verite: AMY GOODMAN: "A bipartisan budget deal to avert another government shutdown comes before the Senate this week. The House approved the two-year budget agreement last week in a 332-to-94 vote. The bill eases across-the-board spending cuts, replacing them with new airline fees and cuts to federal pensions. In a concession by Democrats, it does not extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million people, which is set to expire this month." DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: "Well, this deal is actually a big win for the Paul Ryan Republicans. They will avoid the embarrassment, shame, and political damage of shutting down the government, and they obtained this from the Democrats without touching at all the major issues. The corporate loopholes aren’t being closed. The tax-avoidance techniques of billionaires, who can legally live tax-free if they choose to, are not being shut down. The hedge fund and private equity managers will continue to be advantaged. And we’re going to kick 57,000 poor children out of Head Start, which means we’re going to narrow their economic futures and make all of us worse off in the future. We’re cutting a billion-and-a-half dollars from medical research to save lives. Why? Because the very richest people in America, those who have benefited most from being in this market, don’t want to pay for that kind of services. And the Pentagon is getting an extra $20 billion out of this deal. We already spend 42 percent of all the money in the world on our military." DAVID L GRISCOM: "If this is what the Democrats in Congress believe is a good deal, I'm going to join a party that believes its representatives should put the stuggling 99% above the filthy rich 1%."

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

AMY GOODMAN: "A bipartisan budget deal to avert another government shutdown comes before the Senate this week. The House approved the two-year budget agreement last week in a 332-to-94 vote. The bill eases across-the-board spending cuts, replacing them with new airline fees and cuts to federal pensions. In a concession by Democrats, it does not extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million people, which is set to expire this month." DAVID CAY JOHNSTON: "Well, this deal is actually a big win for the Paul Ryan Republicans. They will avoid the embarrassment, shame, and political damage of shutting down the government, and they obtained this from the Democrats without touching at all the major issues. The corporate loopholes aren’t being closed. The tax-avoidance techniques of billionaires, who can legally live tax-free if they choose to, are not being shut down. The hedge fund and private equity managers will continue to be advantaged. And we’re going to kick 57,000 poor children out of Head Start, which means we’re going to narrow their economic futures and make all of us worse off in the future. We’re cutting a billion-and-a-half dollars from medical research to save lives. Why? Because the very richest people in America, those who have benefited most from being in this market, don’t want to pay for that kind of services. And the Pentagon is getting an extra $20 billion out of this deal. We already spend 42 percent of all the money in the world on our military." DAVID L GRISCOM: "If this is what the Democrats in Congress believe is a good deal, I'm going to join a party that believes its representatives should put the stuggling 99% above the filthy rich 1%."

MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2013 .

"Makes Absolutely No Sense": David Cay Johnston on Budget Deal That Helps Billionaires, Not the Poor

http://www.democracynow.org/2013/12/16/makes_absolutely_no_sense_david_cay

A bipartisan budget deal to avert another government shutdown comes before the Senate this week. The vast majority of House members from both parties approved the two-year budget agreement last week in a 332-to-94 vote. It is being hailed as a breakthrough compromise for Democrats and Republicans. The bill eases across-the-board spending cuts, replacing them with new airline fees and cuts to federal pensions. In a concession by Democrats, it does not extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million people, which are set to expire this month. To discuss the deal, we are joined by David Cay Johnston, an investigative reporter who won a Pulitzer Prize while at The New York Times. He is currently a columnist for Tax Analysts and Al Jazeera, as well as a contributing editor at Newsweek.

Guest

David Cay Johnston, an investigative reporter who won a Pulitzer Prize while at The New York Times. He is currently a columnist for Tax Analysts and Al Jazeera, as well as a contributing editor at Newsweek. He is author of several books, including The Fine Print: How Big Companies Use "Plain English" to Rob You Blind.