POLITICO MAFIOSO

Byron York - Uncovered: New $2 billion bailout in Obamacare



Investigators for the House Energy and Commerce Committee have discovered that a little-known provision in the national health care law has allowed the federal government to pay nearly $2 billion to unions, state public employee systems, and big corporations to subsidize health coverage costs for early retirees. At the current rate of payment, the $5 billion appropriated for the program could be exhausted well before it is set to expire. Read More






Byron York - Unions deploy money and muscle in Battle of Wisconsin


Weeks after Gov. Walker signed the budget bill into law, the battle over union prerogatives is not only not subsiding -- it's spreading to new fronts. There are the recall efforts going on in which Democrats and Republicans are each targeting the other party's state senators. There is a court battle over whether the new law can be implemented. There is a campaign for the state supreme court that has become an extension of the union fight. And now there is the intimidation campaign -- join us or else -- aimed at business owners.






Brian Hughes - Obama dispatches CIA to aid Libyan rebels


Though White House officials refused to comment publicly on any CIA presence in Libya, administration sources argued that an intelligence presence should hardly be equated with deploying combat troops since CIA personnel are stationed in virtually every country worldwide.






Susan Ferrechio - Tea Party presses GOP to get tough on budget cuts


The latest negotiations between Democrats and Republicans are centered around a compromise that would cut just $33 billion from this year's budget, which runs through September. But that number is not sitting well with many in the GOP, who pledged during last year's campaign to cut deeper.






Timothy P. Carney - Miley Cyrus needs a good lobbyist to ward off Rebecca Black


Imagine a very successful business that has plateaued, in a very competitive industry where businesses come and go frequently. All the time I see businesses like this lobby for strict new government regulation that keeps out new entrants. Miley Cyrus is thinking along similar lines, according to the Daily News. Read More






Brian Hughes - Obama finally accepts transparency award in private meeting


President Obama accepted a transparency award from open-government advocates this week – during an unpublicized, closed-door meeting. It was a strange conclusion to a two-week saga, in which the White House announced the award before canceling the ceremony at the last moment citing scheduling conflicts. The abrupt cancelation came as some questioned Obama's commitment to meet his campaign pledge on government openness. Read More






Phil Klein - Shorter campaign season? Primary voters can wait


RNC Chairman Reince Priebus has said that the reason why more GOP presidential candidates haven't announced yet is that the voters want a shorter primary season. I'd have to agree with him. If there's one thing we learned during the last presidential cycle, it's that 2007 was virtually meaningless. Read More






Phil Klein - Just balance the damn budget!


Later today, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., plans to introduce a balanced budget amendment that he says he expects will unite the Republican caucus. While Toomey is no doubt one of the more sincere and serious lawmakers when it comes to wanting to get our nation's debt under control, I've always been a skeptic of the effort to pass such an amendment. Read More