Alibaba Looks West
Washington may once again be careening toward an abyss of its own making. It makes good theater, but for now we don't know how or if it will fundamentally shape our lives. So what will? Half a world away, a Chinese company is considering a public offering.
Read moreThe Most Important Lesson the Fed Taught the World This Week
So the Federal Reserve did not taper after all. Having signaled in May and June that the central bank was likely to pare back its monthly purchases of $85 billion in mortgage and Treasury bonds, the bank and its chairman Ben Bernanke essentially said “Never mind,” and decided that now was not the time after all.
Read moreFed Tells Markets: There is No Certainty
So the Federal Reserve did not taper after all, as we know from its mini-bombshell of an announcement on September 18th. Having signaled in May and June that the central bank was likely to pare back its monthly purchases of $85 billion in mortgage and treasury bonds, the bank and its chairman Ben Bernanke essentially said “Never mind,” and decided that now was not the time after all.
Read moreThe Upside: Fed's Non-Decision Means Brace for Volatility
Reuters Columnist Zachary Karabell looks at what the Fed decision to hold off on tapering says about the dysfunction in Washington.
Read moreTechonomy Detroit 2013 Webcast
Techonomy Detroit 2013 is a series of conversations and workshops we began last year at our first Detroit conference. Our urgent theme is the role of technology and innovation in boosting American economic growth, job creation, and urban revival. The all-day Techonomy Detroit focuses on issues that form the foundation of the urban century, with technology at the core of the conversation. We see it as the central source of both disruption and opportunity.
Read moreA New Age of Manufacturing
Discussion about technology and robotics.
Read moreA House Is a Home—Not an Investment
Five years after the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the onset of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the U.S. housing market is at last starting to thrive. It has, in fact, been steadily improving over the past years, and that trend has only accelerated of late.
Read moreA recovery without a home
Five years after the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the onset of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the U.S. housing market is at last starting to thrive. It has, in fact, been steadily improving over the past years, and that trend has only accelerated of late. Housing is widely perceived as a key ingredient to a healthy economy, and so the revival in the housing market has been heralded as a positive step for an American system that has been sluggish at best. Similar trends in the United Kingdom and parts of the EU are greeted as positives as well.
Read moreObama and the End of the Imperial Presidency
In 1973, Arthur Schlesinger wrote about the tendency in American history for the president to assume sweeping powers in times of war and crisis. The balance of power established by the Constitution gets upended; Congress and the courts take a back seat; and the executive makes decisions about life and death largely unchecked.
Read moreObama, Syria, and the decline of the imperial presidency
In 1973, Arthur Schlesinger wrote about the tendency in American history for the president to assume sweeping powers in times of war and crisis. The balance of power established by the Constitution gets upended; Congress and the courts take a back seat; and the executive makes decisions about life and death largely unchecked. He called this "the imperial presidency." Today, with President Obama turning to Congress to endorse a military strike on Syria, the imperial presidency is beginning to wane.
Read moreOur imperial disdain for the emerging world
August this year has been exceptionally unkind to the emerging world. We know that Egypt has been plunged into political and economic turmoil, yet that is only the most extreme case. Elsewhere, stories proliferate about economic slowdowns in Peru and China, and protests in Brazil and Turkey (among others).
Read moreColumn: Fannie, Freddie and our flawed 'Ownership Society'
More than four years ago, President Obama assumed office promising dramatic reform to the housing market. After all, it was the housing market that triggered the financial crisis, and the vast proliferation of low-quality loans that had fueled the housing bubble. But politics delayed those reforms, and now the president is reopening the issue with a call to wind down the two main federal mortgage agencies,
Read moreEither the Math Doesn't Add Up or the Social Consequences are Immense
As the country's focus sharpens on the GOP Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan and his proposals for entitlement programs, The Daily Beast's Zachary Karabell joins Jose Diaz-Balart on MSNBC to discuss his recent article calling for more specifics from Ryan.
Read moreFannie, Freddie, and the Destructive Dream of the 'Ownership Society'
More than four years ago, President Obama assumed office promising dramatic reform to the housing market. After all, it was the housing market that triggered the financial crisis, and the vast proliferation of low-quality loans that had fueled the housing bubble. But politics delayed those reforms, and now the president is reopening the issue with a call to wind down the two main federal mortgage agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Read moreThe Upside: NYC needs entrepreneurs, foreign investors-Hidary
Reuters Columnist Zachary Karabell talks to entrepreneur & New York City mayoral candidate Jack Hidary about how the country's largest city can grow its economy by welcoming tech startups from abroad.
Read moreWhat difference does it make who runs the Fed?
As this week's release of government numbers on unemployment and jobs highlight, the American economy is puttering along in the slow lane. And while few things in life are more frustrating than being stuck in the passenger seat of that car, it certainly beats crashing.
Read moreWhat Difference Does It Make Who Runs the Fed?
As this week's release of government numbers on unemployment and jobs highlight, the American economy is puttering along in the slow lane. And while few things in life are more frustrating than being stuck in the passenger seat of that car, it certainly beats crashing.
Read moreThe New American Dream in an Age of Uncertainty
In a major speech this week on the economy, President Obama emphasized that while the United States has recovered substantial ground since the crisis of 2008-2009, wide swaths of the middle class still confront a challenging environment. Above all, the past years have eroded the 20th century dream of hard work translating into a better life.
Read moreThe Obamacare Plot Twist
For months, we've been told that the impending implementation of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) will lead to soaring healthcare costs and more expensive premiums. That narrative has taken hold, even for those who otherwise support the suite of reforms. And that's why the recent front-page article in the New York Times, reporting that premiums in New York State may actually fall 50 percent or more, came as such a surprise.
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