Writing in the New York Times over the long weekend, Nobel laureate Paul Krugman continued to make the case for more government stimulus of the economy. He wasn't advocating for the usual stimulus that funds road and bridge projects or shores up state budgets – though that is still needed. He was promoting unemployment insurance (UI), which is helping to hold the economy together by keeping the jobless in their homes and food on their tables as they slog through "the worst job market since the Great Depression."

Ryan McNeely had an interesting post over at Think Progress this afternoon on Roll Call's recent "extremely flattering profile" of Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD), a leader among the Blue Dog Coalition in the House. McNeely notes that the article portrays Herseth Sandlin "as a thorn in the side of [Rep.] Nancy Pelosi [D-CA], bravely defending the nation from increased deficits." Of course, the problem with that description, like the media's general portrayal of the debate on deficits and debt, is that it is so oversimplified that "it does a grave disservice to our discourse."

If you're reading this blog, you probably pay at least a little attention to the news, so you likely already know that Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Peter Orszag will be stepping down in the next month or so. Since this is the first "high level" Obama official to leave, it is predictably setting off a flurry of media attention about Orszag's potential replacement.

This news is a bit old, but I thought it was interesting enough to warrant a late post. On June 10, Treasury released its May TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) report, providing an update for the bailout program. The big, "milestone" news from the report is that TARP repayments have now exceeded the remaining balance. According to the report, through May, TARP recipients paid back $194 billion, which is more than half of the total funds TARP has paid out ($384 billion, which includes everything, from the bank warrants to the AIG payments to the auto bailouts). In other words, TARP recipients have paid back $194 billion, meaning that the returned funds now outweigh the remaining balance.