If signed into law, the FY 2009 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee would stop the Executive from joining the race to the bottom for cheap labor.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has released a report from leading economists and budget experts criticing a recent paper from the Brookings Institute and the Heritage Foundation called "Taking Back Our Fiscal Future." From the CBPP

Things just keep getting worse and worse for the FY 2009 appropriations bills. First, House Appropriations Committee members get all hot and bothered with each other and refuse to continue to work on appropriations bills. Then, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) casts doubt that any appropriations bills will be passed by the House this year. And now, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has speculated he believes Congress won't enact any bills until long after President Bush starts working on his presidential library. The Hill reported today that Reid

The Tax Policy Center has published a distributional analysis of the recently House-passed Alternative Minimum Tax legislation (H.R. 6275). The TPC has produced distributional estimates for H.R. 6275, the alternative minimum tax (AMT) patch legislation passed by the House on June 25, 2008. In addition, we have updated our estimates of the number of AMT taxpayers, AMT revenue, and the distribution of AMT liability. Finally, we have published an updated list of 12 key facts and projections about the AMT. Read the TPC Analysis