Economic News

Polipundit notes that President Bush needs to start "talking up" how good the economy is doing.... for instance, this Business Week story that tax receipts due to the raging economy are way up, so that the federal budget deficit for 2006 will come in far below prior estimates. Good point. But why does the President have to "talk up" things that are simply facts that the news media should report accurately without having to be prompted? Unemployment is very low, interest rates on home mortgages remain historically quite low, home ownership is way up, the economy is growing robustly, tax revenues are streaming into the federal government coffers despite Bush's tax cuts (or, more accurately, because of them... but that's thinking too far outside the static box much of the media is in), etc., etc., etc. Shouldn't most Americans simply know these facts by reading the papers?

Oh... I remember why not. Because there is a rule against reporting good news if it redounds to the benefit of Republicans or conservative policies.