“GDP” on The Daily Caller

With all the hubbub about the recently passed health care reform (sic?) bill, we thought we would step back and take a look at this thing through the eyes of Professor Alfred E. Neuman, he of irreverent MAD Magazine fame, who is apparently leading the “Don’t Worry, Be Happy!” political party in the 21st century. (more)

With the announcement of six Republicans (Reps. Paul Ryan, Dave Camp, and Jeb Hensarling and Sens. Judd Gregg, Tom Coburn, and Mike Crapo), the lineup for President Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform is set. While the commission will more likely feature show over substance, it also might be an opportunity to move forward on much-needed tax reform. (more)

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On Monday, The Daily Caller’s  Jon Ward interviewed Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Republican and the ranking member on the House Budget Committee. An edited transcript of the interview is below.  (more)

WASHINGTON (AP) – The economy grew for a second straight quarter from October through December, posting a better-than-expected 5.7 percent annual rate, the fastest quarterly pace since 2003. (more)

America’s health care system is so sick that it is tempting to believe that whatever comes out of Congress later this month will have to be an improvement over the current ailment. If nothing else, American health care resembles a mash-up of the television medical dramas House and Scrubs, sometimes great but mostly tragically comical. The bleeding edge of global medical research slices into the ignorance of human physiology more deeply in the United States than anywhere else. Yet, America spends far more of its GDP on health care than any other country in the world and in exchange receives average outcomes disturbingly low for such a technologically advanced nation. That is because tens of millions of un- or underinsured Americans rely upon uber-expensive emergency room care while untold millions more receive care a far cry short of the technological frontier being conquered in their own backyards. (more)

Abstract: President Obama has announced a third stimulus plan, which he presented as a “jobs plan.” It promises to be at least as ineffective as previous attempts to stimulate the economy because it relies heavily on government infrastructure spending even though this has been one of the least effective components of the previous stimulus plan. The latest plan is far less likely to stimulate the economy than it is to stimulate government expansion and the federal deficit, leading to higher taxes on Americans who will receive little in return. (more)