Kline among GOPers warning of ‘government takeover’ of student lending

A group of Republicans, including Rep. John Kline, will meet with reporters this afternoon to protest the Democrats’ plans to eliminate tens of billions of dollars in government subsidies to private companies that lend to students.

Capitol Hill Democrats represent deficit roadblock

On issues as diverse as health care and student lending, provisions designed to rein in deficit spending have all run smack into the ubiquitous inclination of lawmakers to protect their home turf from the scalpel of budget cuts. Their message is familiar: Congress must do something to get its fiscal house in order, just don’t do it in my back yard. And party affiliation is largely irrelevant.

GOP deficit crusade opposed by fiscal hawks

Sen. Jim Bunning’s (R-Ky.) recent one-man stand against legislation extending unemployment benefits offered a high-profile airing of a popular GOP message: Deficit spending, in almost any form, will cause more harm than good to a fragile economy. Standing in the way of the Republicans’ reasoning, however, has been another formidable group: budget experts.

Obama goes all in for health care reform passage

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Democrats demand more relief for troubled housing market

One year after the Obama administration launched its $75 billion anti-foreclosure program, the housing market remains volatile, loan modifications have been scant, foreclosures are still sky-high — and more and more lawmakers are wondering why the White House hasn’t been more aggressive in tackling the crisis.

Economists push for federal job-sharing program

As job creation continues to be the caboose of economic recovery, employment experts of all stripes are hiking the pressure on Congress to tackle the crisis by encouraging employers to cut hours rather than firing workers. And more and more lawmakers are taking heed.

In spending debate, local officials split with Washington GOP

To hear Republicans in Congress tell it, the Grand Old Party is pretty much united against the deficit-spending approach to economic recovery. But don’t tell that to local GOP officials. Faced with the most severe budget crises in decades, state and local policymakers from across the country — including a growing list of prominent Republicans — have been only too happy to accept the additional federal funding that accompanied last year’s $787 billion stimulus bill.

Plan for consumer protection agency falters in Senate

The White House wants it. Senate leaders support it. The House has already passed it. And, in the wake of the worst financial upheaval since the Great Depression, many consumer groups and state regulators say it’s vital if the country is to avoid another economic collapse. Yet the proposal to create a new consumer financial protection agency is, for all practical purposes, dead on arrival in the Senate.

Congress warned not to forget long-term unemployed

There is unemployment, and then there is long-term unemployment. As Congress grapples this month with ways to tackle the nation’s jobless crisis, many economists are hoping lawmakers recognize the distinction.

Activist Biggers fights uphill battle against dirty coal

Jeff Biggers watched helplessly as the hollers of Eagle Creek, Illinois — a corner of the Shawnee National Forest and his family’s home for roughly 200 years — were blasted away.