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The journalist Gary Rivlin has a chilling investigative piece in The Nation about the massive assault on the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act since its passage in 2010. It illuminates the ways of Washington in an era of big money and how passing laws may be one thing, but fully enacting them is quite another when swarms of lobbyists work full-time to throw sand in the gears of government.
Richard Haass, who leads the Council on Foreign Relations, has a new book out today entitled Foreign Policy Begins at Home in which he argues that the United States needs to get its own house in order to maximize its global power and influence. Haass says the U.S. also needs to avoid getting bogged down in wars of choice that don't involve vital interests, like Iraq.
Nutritional benefit programs can't seem to catch a break. First WIC, which has numerous studies proving its effectiveness in health outcomes for participating mothers and children (not to mention cost savings as a result of participation) is in danger of a 9.3% budget cut as a result of the sequester.
J. Mijin Cha, a senior policy analyst for Demos — a New York City based good government group — and principle author of the report titled "Fresh Start: The Impact of Public Campaign Financing in Connecticut," alongside former Connecticut Secretary of State Miles Rapoport and current Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill, cited significant changes in Connecticut's legislative process since publicly financed campaigns and encourages New York state to pass similar legislation.
The financial services industry is second to none in dreaming up ways to rip off Americans. Show me a a financial product—credit cards, mortgages, checking accounts, 401(k)s, annuities—and I'll show you a stack of consumer complaints documenting how banks and other firms have sought to bleed dry the American public.
Bet if I asked, the odds are good that many people could tell me to the penny what they just paid for a gallon of gas.
So how much did it cost you to invest in your 401(k) last year? I don't know myself. And you likely don't know either.
Over the years, most of us have heard that if we just start saving a few hundred dollars a month in our 20s, we can retire a millionaire. Compound interest is your best friend.
I watched the disturbing Frontline documentary on PBS,The Retirement Gamble, and not surprisingly, I got to thinking about the fees I pay for investing in my retirement accounts.