Free Republic

This month, some 9,000 people will get to work guiding the country toward a cleaner future. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Within weeks, the nation will deploy 9,000 people to begin restoring landscapes, erecting solar panels, and taking other steps to help guide the country toward a cleaner, greener future. The first of those workers were inducted into the American Climate Corps on Tuesday during a virtual event from the White House. Their swearing-in marks another step forward for the Biden administration’s ambitious climate agenda. The program, which President Joe Biden announced within days of taking office in 2021, is a modern version of...

In a bid to mute GOP criticism of President Biden's economic policies, Cecilia Elena Rouse, Chairperson of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, pointed out that "the production of new regulations since he took office is up by more than 45% over the level attained by Trump after his four years in office. The new 4,429 rules added since January 20, 2021 created new paperwork that has created jobs that otherwise would not have existed." She went on to "compare this with the fact that many of Trump's new rules actually eliminated unnecessary regulations and, thus, reduced job opportunities for...

Friday morning, 26-year-old software developer David Casarez put on a shirt and tie, grabbed his homemade cardboard sign saying "Homeless -- Hungry 4 Success -- Take a Resume" and positioned himself at an intersection in Mountain View, California. A passerby posted his photo on Twitter. Within a day, Casarez had over 200 job offers. No surprise. If you're looking for a job, your odds are better now than any time in the last half century. There are more job openings than people out looking. Employers who used to demand a college degree or experience are dropping those requirements. Unemployment is...

However, another rule is set to take effect soon that might just take the cake. Or pizza, in this case: The nation’s franchise restaurants are about one month away from the imposition of new nutritional-labeling rules dreamed up by the Obama administration, another gift of the grievously misnamed Affordable Care Act. For outlets of brands with 20 or more locations, that means posting signs in the shop with calorie counts for every item on the menu and for every variation on that item. That’s probably not such a big deal if you are, say, Raising Cane’s, and your menu ranges...

The federal government can easily afford a job guarantee program, becoming our employer of last resort.Involuntary unemployment is barbaric. In the wealthiest country in history, almost 30 million people wish they had full-time work. But, as always, there aren’t enough jobs. And because economic security requires decent work, it’s unsurprising that 50 million people are poverty-stricken and 16 million children are hungry. This is a disgrace and an economic error: the US government can easily afford a Job guarantee (JG) program, becoming our employer of last resort. A right to a job may sound outlandish, but it’s common sense. You...

President Barack Obama asserted that he “will consider any and every proposal that’s put to me” in search of a way to get Americans back to work. One idea that the President attributed to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner would entail the Federal Reserve creating a trillion dollars of new money. This money would be placed inside an abandoned coal mine. The mine would be dynamited. The government would then accept bids from private contractors and select one to dig up the money. “I think it’s ingenious,” the President said. “The cost to the government to implement this plan is negligible....

Here's a stimulus success story: In Arizona's 15th congressional district, 30 jobs have been saved or created with just $761,420 in federal stimulus spending. At least that's what the Web site set up by the Obama administration to track the $787 billion stimulus says. There's one problem, though: There is no 15th congressional district in Arizona; the state has only eight districts...

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (Reuters) – The lightly traveled stretch of road on the outskirts of a small Midwestern city may look like a minor two-lane street. But local officials see the rutted road as a prime candidate for a $2.5 million face-lift, paid for by the federal government. Council Bluffs, Iowa, is one of hundreds of U.S. communities eager to tap into an expected flood of money from the economic stimulus bill meant to combat the recession. "It is going to create a lot of jobs, immediate jobs, right now," said Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan, who met with city...

Last November Barack Obama outlined his “back to the thirties” major infrastructure plan. He talked about a two year program of rebuilding “crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing schools building wind farms and so on. You get the picture. That sounds nice but what’s Obama really going to accomplish? This ridiculous boondoggle will cost ONE TRILLION DOLLARS! We’ve already spent half of the seven hundred billion dollars of the so-called bailout fund, and have virtually NOTHING to show for it. We don’t even know where the money has gone! What could possibly make Obama think plunging America deeper into debt by...

What a difference a year makes. President-elect Barack Obama hasn’t even taken office and we’re experiencing climate change. Not the global warming variety that keeps bypassing the bone-chilling American winter. It’s change in D.C. Obama, who promised a government of “change” unveiled a switcheroo in his Jan. 2 radio address, also available on the Change.gov Web site. Obama is releasing details of his economic recovery plan that includes spending hundreds of billions of dollars. It also entails a major jobs component. “The No. 1 goal of my plan, which is to create 3 million new jobs, more than 80 percent...

Dozens of Central Texas drivers got pulled over Thursday for doing absolutely nothing wrong. Travis County deputies kicked off what has become a controversial reward program. You know that heart stopping feeling you get when seeing the flashing red lights of law enforcement in the rear view mirror. Well, you won't see that if you're a good driver, but you may get pulled over. Getting pulled over for doing nothing wrong may not sound right to a lot of people. Travis County Deputy Derrick Taylor says his job is to not only look for bad drivers, but reward and encourage...

On a recent weekend, Erik Ebert traveled to Nevada's remote Black Rock Desert to shoot a rocket 11,000 feet in the air. But before he could even think about launching, he had to cross his fingers and hope that the motor he had ordered for his rocket would also be there, hand-delivered by the vendor. That's because, thanks to increased regulation after 9/11, it is more difficult than ever for rocket hobbyists like Ebert to legally store rocket motors -- which often include fuel that is now classified as an explosive -- at home. That often means the motor has...