Fiscal Cliff: What Really Happens If We Go Over It
It's still unclear what lawmakers will do to address $7 trillion in looming tax increases and spending cuts. If they do nothing by Dec. 31, here's what will happen.
unemployment benefits extension
Tax Compromise: Why Something Was Better Than Nothing
If a compromise by definition is a deal that pleases no one, then the tax deal that cleared Congress Thursday was a rousing success: Conservatives and liberals both dislike it, but those who voted for it agreed that the alternative -- letting taxes rise for everyone -- would have been worse.
Unemployment Benefits Extended for 2.5 Million
Jobless aid that had expired for millions of Americans could start flowing again as early as next week. President Barack Obama signed a bill extending emergency unemployment insurance Thursday after lawmakers approved it.
Unemployment Benefits Clear a Key Hurdle
Minutes after swearing in new Senator Carte Goodwin of West Virginia, Senate Democrats moved swiftly to send an extension of long-term unemployment insurance to an up-or-down vote.
Democrats Set to Extend Jobless Benefits
Senate Democrats are poised to pass an extension of unemployment insurance for the 2.5 million people whose benefits have expired. With passage of the extension highly likely, Obama has leveled last-minute political shots.
New Senator Could Change Unemployment Vote
The appointment of 36-year-old Carte Goodwin to succeed the late U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd appears to give Senate Democrats the 60 votes they need to defeat a GOP filibuster and pass an extension of unemployment insurance.
What If Unemployment Is Really 22%?
Private pollsters and economists are piling up statistics showing the government's official jobless rate is becoming more and more of a fiction. And that's not helping solve the problem that's No. 1 for most Americans.
As the Jobless Suffer, Politicians Play Politics
While the extension of jobless benefits may pass at some point, there's no doubt that both parties see political gain in keeping the bill stalled. Indeed, it seems every major player in the debate has a political agenda that has all but crippled action.
