Sen. McConnell (E-KY) plans to attach a rider to a must-pass spending bill that would essentially gut the remaining campaign finance laws in America. But President Obama could win that argument easily, even in the "liberal" media: folks across the political spectrum despise corporate campaign ads so virulently that Mr. McConnell can't even squawk about "bipartisanship" if Mr. Obama balks. Mr. McConnell might have an easier time pretending to defend the First Amendment," since we do have to work a little bit to make people see the absurdity of that argument. (You know, by pointing out that money isn't speech, and that corporations aren't people, for starters.)
G20 leaders not only want banksters to be able to confiscate bank deposits Cyprus-style if they gamble their way into trouble, they want to be able to confiscate pension funds, too. The more pension funds get involved with banksters, at no discernable benefit to themselves I feel compelled to add, the easier such thievery will get, and the FDIC won't help much, because derivatives are so huge now that the FDIC can't possibly cover them all, and somehow derivatives are now first in line when it's time to feed at the government trough. Still, the linked sentence above would be a pretty terrific 30-second campaign ad. Any Democrat who runs it would obliterate his opponent. Maybe even in Wyoming.
Good news: thanks in part to shareholder activism, British oil corporation BG Group has abandoned plans to give its new CEO a lavish compensation package. Personal to those who squeal ZOMG HOW WILL TEH COMPANEEZ ATTRACTZ TEH TALENTZ!!!! Businesses are supposed to identify and train talent, not steal it from some other business in a perpetual game of Musical Deck Chairs on the Titanic. Seriously, do business leaders have no responsibilities anymore?
Montana lawmaker proposes raising the speed limit to 85 on state highways, citing over-75 MPH speed limits in three nearby states. Most of these big highways were built for 75-80 MPH travel back in the day -- the 55 MPH speed limit is a relatively recent phenomenon -- but getting from A to B even more quickly in a big, sparsely-populated state isn't a be-all-end-all. And given that fuel efficiency tends to dip above 55, one state Senator's complaint that he could have gotten to his oil field job an hour faster if he could have legally driven 85 is, well, a bit odd.
Finally, Chicago City Council votes to advance a $13/hour minimum wage-by-2019 plan backed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, even as the Illinois state legislature considers a statewide $11/hour minimum wage (as well as a ban on higher city minimum wages, there's small government for you!). Should I pile on? Really, should I pile on? Yes, I should pile on -- bankster-buddy Rahm Emanuel probably only supports a hike at all because he's up for re-election, yet his two main opponents support a considerably higher minimum wage, leaving Mr. Emanuel, despite his efforts, as the right-winger in this race.
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