World markets rose today on news that President Obama and Republicans had reached a deal to raise the debt ceiling, with the Tokyo’s Nikkei and London’s FTSE both up 1.3 percent. U.S. stock futures are pointing to a strong opening as well, with the Dow up 153 points 90 minutes before opening.
The New York Times’s Paul Krugman called the deal struck between President Obama and congressional Republicans to raise the debt ceiling an “abject surrender.” Krugman says the cuts included in the deal will “depress the economy even further.”
Adding his voice to the liberal backlash against the debt deal, Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) called the new deal “a sugar-coated Satan sandwich.” He noted that the CBC had not yet formally declared that it would oppose the deal, but said, “This is a shady bill.”
Reflecting the Great Recession and high unemployment, a new poll finds that “more than one third of likely voters believe America’s best days are over.” A clear majority, 6 in 10, believe the other nations are gaining on and possibly overtaking the U.S. “in important ways.”
Norwegian terror suspect Anders Behring Breivik used eBay to buy chemicals and tools for his attacks, according to Britain’s Sunday Telegraph. Breivik bought sulphur powder, a face respirator, and a “hazmat” suit off the web site. An eBay statement said the company was “assisting Norwegian law enforcement in their investigation.”
July was Iraq’s second-deadliest month of the year, with 259 Iraqis dying in violent attacks. “Iraq remains an extraordinarily dangerous place to work,” said U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Stuart Bowen. “It is less safe, in my judgment, than 12 months ago.”
Florida has turned down or refused to pursue “scores of millions of dollars” in grants made available by the Affordable Care Act, including those for community health centers and setting up its own exchange. Gov. Rick Scott (R) said the grants “don’t fit” the state or its needs, despite Florida being home to the second-highest rate of people without health insurance.
And finally: Sarah Palin’s favorable documentary “The Undefeated” tanked in box offices, bringing in just $5,200 last week. Not only are overall sales down, but in its third week, per-theater sales also plummeted 62 percent from $6,500/theater to just $1,762/theater.
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