Free Republic

On Friday’s “PBS NewsHour,” New York Times columnist David Brooks said that the GOP tax bill is working better than he thought it would and the evidence “seems to be that what the Trump people told us would happen is happening, that companies are reinvesting the money.” Brooks stated, “I was against the Trump tax cuts. But the early evidence is that they’re working better than I thought. And so, in the first quarter, among S&P companies, capital expenditures are up 39 percent. That’s a seven-year high. That’s far higher than a lot of us thought. Stock buybacks, which is...

In 2016, 20.9 percent of black borrowers and 15.5 percent of Hispanic borrowers were turned down for a conventional loan; at the same time, just 8.1 percent of white and 10.4 percent of Asian applicants were denied a conventional loan. Blacks in the mid-1990s were roughly twice as likely to be denied as whites. In 2016, blacks were 2.6 times as likely to be denied a conventional mortgage as whites. Borrowers in suburban areas had the best chances of being approved for a mortgage – 8.4 percent of all suburban homebuyers were denied for a conventional loan in 2016, while...

Which element of Donald Trump do you delight in despising most? Every day brings a fresh example of pugnacious behaviour, another execrable opinion, more insights into his arriviste 24-carat gold tap taste or strutting vanity. We lap up every revelation; his bombast is brilliant clickbait. The Trump Show gains top ratings in our everyday dialogue; his latest tweets are a failsafe conversation starter. This week alone brought a basketload of delights (he’s the gift that just keeps on giving. No wonder sales of the New York Times are up 10 per cent). Now we know he’s the author of that...

A new ruling from the California state supreme court may open the door for legislators in that state to once again try to wipe out the gig economy, including companies like Uber, Lyft and Airbnb. Previous, direct attempts to regulate such companies out of existence have failed so far, but this case deals with a tangentially related employment area. The court is ordering a change to how the state classifies independent contractors along with temporary employees. By allowing companies to classify certain workers as independent contractors, they don’t have to comply with minimum wage laws, pay overtime or conform to...

Weekly jobless claims increased less than expected last week and the number of Americans receiving unemployment aid fell to its lowest level since 1973 Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims rising to 225,000 in the latest week. The four-week moving average of initial claims fell to the lowest level since March 1973.

Russian military spending fell by a fifth last year, its first decline in nearly two decades, with tighter purse-strings likely to affect Moscow's military activity ahead. But while global military spending rose one percent to $1,739 billion last year, Russia's fell 20 percent in real terms to $66.3 billion. Russia's finances are still fragile following a two-year economic downturn brought on by Western sanctions and a collapse in global oil prices.STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Russian military spending fell by a fifth last year, its first decline in nearly two decades, with tighter purse-strings likely to affect Moscow's military activity ahead, a...

Leakers and lawbreakers rewarded with Clinton-administration jobs — and the American public none the wiser about deep-state corruption T here are lots of possible counterfactuals to think about had Hillary Clinton won the presidency as all the experts had predicted. The U.S. embassy would have stayed in Tel Aviv. “Strategic patience” would likely still govern the North Korea dilemma. Fracking would be curtailed. The — rather than “our” — miners really would be put out of work. Coal certainly would not have been “beautiful.” The economy probably would be slogging along at below 2 percent GDP growth. China would be...

The US economy could grow at or above President Trump’s goal of 3% this year. And White House economists predict it’ll be that way indefinitely. Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers sees it differently. “Yes, we are growing at a reasonably rapid rate, but it’s taking unsustainable fiscal deficits to drive us to that point,” Summers told Yahoo Finance at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles. “It’s taking unsustainable increases in credit to drive us to that point. It’s taking unsustainable increases in asset prices. You can always generate a sugar high. The real problem for us is not...

Student loan debt in America has been called a crisis. The loans many students take out to cover their education can impair them from owning houses and saving for retirement later in life. And many others can't even make their monthly payments. Some 40 percent of borrowers are expected to default on their loans by 2023. In some states, the situation is worse than others. That's the takeaway from a new project by The Urban Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, which has mapped student loan debt across the country. Here are 10 states hit hard by student loans.

Who makes $300,000 a year? •A Bay Area Rapid Transit janitor made $234,000 + $36,000 in benefits in 2016 •A Bay Area Rapid Transit elevator technician made $235,814 + $48,429 in benefits in 2016 •Starting salaries for 22 year old employees at Facebook, Google, and Apple range from ($80,000 – $120,000) + ($10,000 – $50,000) in annual equity grants. •30 year old first year Associate in banking earns $150,000 in base salary + ($0 – $120,000) in bonus •A 26 year old Airbnb employee shared he got a $250,000 total compensation package back in 2015 •A 26 year old first...

Discrimination and Disparities by Thomas Sowell, Basic Books, New York, March 20, 2018 (143 pages, $28.00, hardcover) "Just the facts, ma'am." That was Joe Friday's interrogation refrain on Dragnet. The same comment could serve as the subtitle of Thomas Sowell's recent book, Discrimination and Disparities. Few works on politically explosive topics maintain such a consistent focus on empirical evidence while avoiding rhetorical jabs at opponents. On the other hand, empirical evidence cuts deep, especially when critics can't protest the author's "nasty" style. As radio talker Larry Elder observes, "[f]acts are to liberals what kryptonite is to Superman." Sowell's title, if...

First-time claims for unemployment benefits fell to a 48-year low last week as the labor market shows further signs of tightening after years of steady growth. Claims plummeted to 209,000, a decrease of 24,000 in the week through April 21, from the previous week's 232,000, the lowest level since Dec. 6, 1969, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The four-week moving average, a better gauge of the labor market's health, fell by 2,250 claims to 229,250. New York accounted for the bulk of the drop, with the number of claims in the state dropping 18,402. A tighter labor market is...

I hate to disappoint liberals and the liberal mainstream media. But they haven’t a clue why I voted for President Trump. They either don’t understand…they’re blind, deaf and really dumb…or they’re purposely misrepresenting my views. So, here goes. Here’s why I voted for President Trump (and I think many of the 63 million Trump voters will agree)... Because I’m a member of the 3.8%.Forget the infamous 1% the media loves to quote and discuss. That’s the super rich who the media wants you to resent. That group has no effect on your life. What matters is the 3.8%. A...

The numbers: The trade deficit in goods narrowed 10.3% to $68 billion, according to the government’s advanced report released Thursday. This was the first narrowing of the deficit in seven months and came in well below the $73.4 billion estimate of economists polled by MarketWatch. The government’s advanced report on wholesale inventories showed a 0.5% gain in March. And advanced retail inventories fell 0.4% What happened: Imports fell 2.1% in March and the declines were widespread. Of the major categories, only auto imports rose in the month. Exports rose 2.4% during the month. The narrowing of the deficit in goods...

I stopped to grab a burger in Marin County today and was kind of shocked to see the following posted on the front door. That is a pretty steep starting wage for nonskilled labor, and $5.00 more than the California minimum wage. In-N-Out does pay their employees well. The private burger chain pays store managers an average yearly salary of more than $160,000 with no college degree or previous management experience required. Facebook engineers soon to be flipping burgers. Nonbinding It is clear the minimum wage in California is nonbinding — that is irrelevant — and all the bluster about...

There Is More to the Trade War than Trade April 6, 2018 The clamor of timorous voices that have greeted the president’s “Trade War” with China makes one fear for the republic. Let’s do a quick recap: China has extracted billions of dollars of intellectual property and confidential business information from U.S. companies. This has cost thousands of jobs and billions in lost revenue for the United States. China imposes unfair restrictions on foreign companies that want to do business there, requiring them to become minority partners in joint ventures, transfer intellectual property, or in some instances, China blocks them...

The consumer confidence index climbed to 128.7 in April from 127 in March, the Conference Board said Tuesday. Two months ago, the index hit the highest level since the end of 2000. The present situation index, a measure of current conditions, rose to 159.6 from 158.1. The future expectations index advanced to 108.1 from 106.2. Americans were more optimistic about their own finances and they think jobs are easy to find, the survey showed.

All the "smart people" told us it wouldn’t. They are expecting something else. Something big. Something about a big blue wave.Yet 2018 cannot be measured between the parties of Democrat vs Republican, Conservative vs. Liberal, or any other traditional political construct of left vs right.Never-Trump right of center pundits and lobbyists have aligned themselves with Trump-hating leftists. Traditionally moderate blue-collar Democrats find themselves benefitting from the policies—and even tariffs—from a Republican White House. The economic boom has been unleashed, our enemies have sudden new-found respect for our word, and we may have a President who might actually qualify for...

Join Freepers throughout the world to pray for PRESIDENT TRUMP and VICE-PRESIDENT PENCE and for AMERICA: All Levels of Government, Family, Military, Business, Education, Churches, Health Care Systems and the Media. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. —1 John 5:14 Forum threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind. Please join us in prayer today for our economy, the national debt, and our finances.

As an innovator and early adopter of freeways, California became the symbolic capital of car culture. But the ease of movement conferred by the massive postwar freeway building boom was short-lived, turning the dream of car travel into a nightmare of congestion and long commutes. The story of how Californians went from getting around to getting stuck behind the wheel is deeply entwined with the history of the urban freeway, an enterprise that advanced earlier and on a larger scale here than anywhere else in the country. Half a century ago, there was reason for optimism about cars. Los Angeles...