Wall Street’s Risky Business Shortchanges Farmers

It’s too easy to gamble with other people’s money. That’s the picture drawn by the bankruptcy of a brokerage firm that’s left farmers and other investors in the lurch. As much as $1.2 billion in customer money remains missing through MF Global, according to the bankruptcy trustee. Customers included farmers and grain coops in Iowa that had money in MF Global accounts, which they used to trade in commodity futures markets to help manage the major investment risks in agriculture... Read more

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Constitutional Principles at Stake in President’s Actions, Rhetoric

President Obama’s latest media campaign is built around the tag line We Can’t Wait for Congress. Under this banner, he has announced executive actions for everything from mortgage and student loan relief, job placement for veterans, grants for health care workers and stricter funding requirements for Head Start programs. The new slogan highlights the President’s frustration that Congress did not pass his latest economic stimulus... Read more

 

Looking Out for Taxpayers, Consumers with Rx Deal

A reported deal orchestrated by a major pharmaceutical company will make the American consumer pay more than necessary for drugs and inhibit competition from generic drugs. The system shouldn’t be manipulated in a way that bilks taxpayers, hurts consumers and unfairly prevents alternatives from entering the marketplace, and I’m asking questions and seeking accountability with two other senators. In fact, if these types of agreements become... Read more

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Taking Aim at Unnecessary Expenditures

A common sense cost-cutting measure was approved by the Senate late Thursday, an encouraging step in the long-haul effort needed to reduce government spending and establish fiscal responsibility. An amendment I sponsored with Senator Barbara Boxer of California to limit direct taxpayer reimbursement for defense contractor salaries is now part of a Senate-passed bill (S.1867) to authorize funding for the Pentagon in the next fiscal year. Our amendment is aimed at runaway spending on salary reimbursements in a type of contract used extensively by the Department of Defense. Between 1998 and 2010, the benchmark for reimbursing executive salaries in contracts – separate from what these executives are paid by their private-sector employers – grew 53... Read more