Quote of the Day: Government Cutbacks are Hurting the Recovery

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From Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, answering a question about the “choke points” holding back the economy:

In the last year or two and going forward, we have been seeing fiscal consolidation, particularly at the state and local level….I understand these are necessary steps from the perspective of individual states and localities; I’m not criticizing that. It’s just a fact, though, that these contractions are affecting the pace of growth in the broader economy.

Bernanke said that other things affecting the pace of recovery included problems in Europe and a sluggish U.S. housing market.

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Owned by no one—except you.

We just keep seeing it happen: Newsrooms owned by billionaires and corporations are spinning their own narratives, overwriting the truth, following only stories that keep them in the pocket of those with even more power.

Not here. We’re not owned by anyone. We’re not part of any cult that demands our allegiance to a bottom line. We’ve spoken up and spoken out while other newsrooms changed their stories—or cut them altogether—to keep the C suite happy.

Our mission is to find the truth and amplify it. That’s why we’re independent, nonprofit, and, crucially, funded by readers. The investigations on our website will always be free to read, watch, and listen to, but our newsroom is powered by readers who pitch in what they can so we can keep asking the hard questions.

Can you chip in today?

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