Think you can spend the public's money better than the government has? Well, you should check out the National Priorities Project here to find out how your congressional district could have spent the money we gave to the richest 1% in tax cuts this year. And for an example of how federal budget cuts are affecting local communities, take a look at this article from the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Rebecca Carr of Cox Newspapers is reporting that West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd has also had an annonymous hold on S. 2590 in addition to Sen. Stevens. I'm immediately inclined to wonder: Is this characteristic of Senators in their 80's? Unlikely. Here's an explanation from Byrd's press spokesman Tom Gavin for the Senator's hold:

Rumors are flying that Sen. Byrd (D-WV) also has a hold on S. 2590. I suppose we need to figure out what Coburn did to him as well? More at TPMMuckraker.com

We've noted that there's been a spate of establishment-types (and establishments) that have come out denying basic conservative talking points on economic policy. Now, here's new Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, who says that a raise in the minimum wage will not cause inflation. BNA has the story. In a written response to questions from Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-Fla.), Bernanke avoided addressing whether he thought the federal minimum wage should be raised, but he said the small number of workers affected would mean that overall labor costs and inflation would see little upward pressure.