Obama Can't Cull Farm Subsidies

Gathering sees cooperation, reluctance to address endemic problems

(NEWSER) - World leaders at an international summit in Montreal today agreed that rebuilding Haiti will take decades. In fact, "rebuilding" is hardly the word—if successful, the state envisioned by envoys to the conference will bear little resemblance to pre-earthquake Haiti. Canadian PM Stephen Harper said the world community must commit to years of involvement in Haiti and "hold ourselves and each other accountable." More»

Environmental rules, car dealerships among sticking points

(NEWSER) - Democrats from rural areas aren’t pleased with President Obama, and they’re threatening to show it by revolting against key parts of his domestic agenda, Politico reports. The tension boiled to the surface last week when rural and moderate Democrats decried plans to close 3,400 General Motors and Chrysler dealerships, but many are also angry about new regulations from Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency. More»

(NEWSER) - Republicans think they’ve found one chink in President Obama’s armor: public fear over rising national debt. Some 51% of Americans disapprove of Obama’s efforts to control federal spending, according to a recent poll. In every other area, Obama enjoys positive ratings. “The president is still popular, but his policies are catching up with him,” Sen. Lamar Alexander told Politico. “When that happens, it helps us make our points.” More»

pls. try to get into head/deck that this figure is 4x the record, set in 2008

(AP) - With the economy performing worse than hoped, revised White House figures point to deepening budget deficits, with the government borrowing almost 50 cents for every dollar it spends this year. The deficit for the current budget year will rise by $89 billion to above $1.8 trillion—about four times the record set just last year. More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s vow to scour the federal budget for savings hasn’t amounted to as much as many hoped, the Washington Post reports. The administration will today announce $17 billion in proposed cuts to 121 programs, a sliver of the $3.4 trillion budget. “Even if you got all of those things, it would be saving pennies, not dollars,” said one economist. “And you’re not going to begin to get all of them.” More»