Politics

Harris’ Plan To Stop Price Gouging Could Create More Problems Than It Solves

Published

4 weeks ago

2024-08-19

Kamala Harris Unveils Economic Plan Tax Cuts, Housing Boosts, and Price Gouging Ban

Food prices have risen by more than 20% under the Biden-Harris administration, leaving many people ready to stretch their expenditures at the grocery shop.

On Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris announced a solution: a government prohibition on price gouging in the food business.

“My plan will include new penalties for opportunistic companies that exploit crises and break the rules,” Harris stated during a campaign event.

Harris’ Plan To Stop Price Gouging Could Create More Problems Than It Solves

There is only one issue: some economists believe Harris’ idea will cause more problems than it will solve.

Gavin Roberts investigated anti-price gouging statutes enacted in several states during the outbreak. One of the most significant consequences he found, particularly at food stores, was that these laws encouraged people “to go buy goods more than they would if prices had risen.”

Roberts, chair of Weber State University’s economics department, told CNN that when prices are high, the best policy response is usually to do nothing.

This would cause consumers to put off by, say, high beef costs to buy another form of meat or protein instead. This helps keep beef on grocery store shelves for those willing to pay higher rates.

While Harris argues her idea “will help the food industry become more competitive,” Roberts believes it will accomplish the opposite. “It’s more likely to maintain that status quo,” he said because it would prevent new competition from entering to take advantage of the higher profit margins, which could have helped cut prices in the long run.

Jason Furman, the Obama administration’s senior economist, agreed with Roberts that anti-price gouging measures could accidentally harm consumers. “This is not sensible policy, and I think the biggest hope is that it ends up being a lot of rhetoric and no reality,” he told the newspaper. “There’s no upside here, and there is some downside.”

Rather than pursuing anti-price gouging policies, Roberts suggested that Harris look into what prevents new parties from joining concentrated industries.

According to a campaign fact sheet, Harris intends to increase resources so that “the federal government can identify and take on price-fixing and other anti-competitive practices in the food and grocery industries.”

Campaign officials declined to comment on criticisms of Harris’ proposed price-gouging ban, referring CNN to Harris’ speech and the information sheet sent before it.

What’s behind pricing hikes over the last few years
The jury is still out on how much price gouging has contributed to inflation in recent years.

According to the San Francisco Federal Reserve, reported business price gouging was not a significant cause for the inflation increase that began in 2021, although progressive think tanks have published data indicating a more direct link.

Harris’ Plan To Stop Price Gouging Could Create More Problems Than It Solves

Until late last year, firms typically stated on quarterly earnings calls with investors that customers continued to pay for items even when they raised prices. Demand remained robust, fuelled by higher salaries and economic stimulus that increased savings. Many economists believe supply and demand, rather than corporate greed, drove corporate profits.

In any case, the inflation that Americans have had to deal with in recent years is the result of factors such as the war in Ukraine, government spending, and pandemic-related disruptions throughout the economy. The enormous stress on supply systems during the epidemic, for example, contributed considerably to inflation rising in early 2021.

The Harris idea has some backers as well.

Lindsay Owens, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative, a progressive think tank, praised the initiative. “I definitely don’t think that the price gouging statute will result in shortages,” she told CNN, adding that it would give government agencies like the Federal Trade Commission greater jurisdiction to “crack down on bad actors” that charge customers more money.

“It’s good to see this aggressive approach,” she told me.

SOURCE | CNN

Politics

Trump Media Stock Jumps After Former President Says He Won’t Sell Shares When Lockup Expires

Published

19 hours ago

2024-09-16

Kiara Grace

NEW YORK — Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. shares rose on Friday after former President Donald Trump said he would not sell his ownership in the social media company.

“I don’t want to sell my stock. “I don’t need money,” Donald told reporters at his golf club in Los Angeles.

Donald owns over 115 million shares in the corporation, according to a recent SEC filing. According to Thursday’s closing price of $16.08, Donald’s stock is worth nearly $1.85 billion.

Trump Media Stock Jumps After Former President Says He Won’t Sell Shares When Lockup Expires

If the former president desires, he can begin selling shares of Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social, on September 19, when a lockup provision expires. The lockup agreement banned corporate insiders from selling newly issued shares for six months after the company went public in March.

Even though Donald would earn a sizable payoff if he sold, Trump Media’s stock is now significantly less valuable than it was six months ago. When the company debuted on the Nasdaq in March, it reached a high of $79.38.

Donald founded Truth Social after being barred from Twitter and Facebook following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol brawl. Trump Media, headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, has been losing money and failing to generate revenue. According to regulatory documents, it lost approximately $58.2 million last year and generated only $4.1 million in revenue.

Trump Media Stock Jumps After Former President Says He Won’t Sell Shares When Lockup Expires

“I use it as a method of getting out my word,” Donald remarked on Friday about Truth Social. “For me, it is a great voice.”

Following Donald’s debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, the stock fell by more than 10% on Wednesday. On Friday, shares rose as much as 29% and closed up 11.8%.

SOURCE | AP

Politics

Liberal Defence Departments Spends $34 Million on Sleeping Bags Unsuitable for Canadian Winters

Published

3 days ago

2024-09-13

Geoff Thomas

Sleeping Bags Unsuitable for Canadian Winters

Canadian soldiers travelling to an Alaskan military drill were given 1960s military sleeping bags after complaining that the new ones were poor quality and unsuitable for sub-zero weather.

Despite the Liberal government spending more than $34.8 million on new sleeping bags, the Canadian Army requested late last year that hundreds of soldiers attending a joint northern exercise in Alaska with the Americans be provided antiquated, 1960s-vintage sleeping bags.

In late November last year, about 350 men from the 3rd battalion of the Canadian Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry went to Ram Falls Provincial Park, west of Red Deer, Alta., to train for northern operations.

During the training exercise last autumn, soldiers stated that despite using both the inner and outer shells and sleeping in stove-heated tents, they remained cold.

The temperatures during the exercise ranged from -5°C during the day to -20°C at night. According to an internal DND report dated December 5, 2023, the soldiers noticed “critical issues” with the new GPSBS sleeping bags, including a lack of warmth.

GPSB sleeping bags cost taxpayers $34.8 million, were not suitable for for typical Canadian winter conditions – CBC Image

The inadequacy of the new GPSB sleeping bags caused the Department of National Defence (DND) to begin seeking for extra sleeping bags to keep soldiers warm and usable in the Far North.

The briefing memo proposed that soldiers participating in the drill with the US be “loaned” 500 of the army’s old Arctic sleeping bags, which the new system was intended to replace.

The Trudeau administration has emphasised the importance of protecting Canada’s Arctic in recent defence policy updates, and has committed a series of new equipment acquisitions for cold weather operations.

Specifically, the policy promised to purchase “new vehicles adapted to ice, snow, and tundra.”

However, some soldiers who contacted CBC News with complaints about the sleeping bags expressed scepticism about such claims, citing DND’s failure to deliver on something as fundamental as a sleeping bag fit for the Canadian winter.

The DND stated that the 3rd battalion was the second unit to complain about the new sleeping bags. During a separate drill, troops from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment, discovered flaws in the new sleeping bags.

Nonetheless, the government stated that it will not abandon the new sleeping bags and has begun a separate procurement of sleeping bags fit for a Canadian winter at an undisclosed cost to taxpayers.

In its statement to the CBC, the DND stated that it solicited comments from soldiers, but they did not respond immediately when asked what type of cold weather testing was conducted before purchasing the sleeping bags.

The GPSBS sleeping bags were chosen through a rigorous competition process, with technical requirements such as insulation value, bag weight, and packing volume, according to the DND.

NATO Secretary-General Urges Trudeau to Honour Canada’s Spending Target

NATO Secretary-General Urges Trudeau to Honour Canada’s Spending Target

Politics

Trudeau’s Grapples With a Mass Exodus of Senior Staff

Published

5 days ago

2024-09-11

Geoff Thomas

Five chiefs of staff for Liberal ministers have quit - Image Counter Signal

The minority Liberals are returning to a precarious position in the House of Commons, having lost the automatic support of the New Democratic Party, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is currently grappling with an exodus of senior staff.

According to six Liberal sources who each confirmed some of the names of those leaving, five of his 38 ministers are losing their chiefs of staff in quick succession, with several already gone. These chiefs of staff include the top advisers at Global Affairs, Heritage, Environment, National Revenue, and Mental Health and Addictions.

According to the sources, a number of employees had been contemplating their departures for months, while others had been entertaining the idea for an extended period before ultimately making the decision. Some of the sources stated that five out of 38 is a significant decrease, despite the fact that the Liberals have frequently encountered turnover among their ministerial staff since assuming office in 2015.

The Globe and Mail is refraining from disclosing the sources due to their inability to disclose an internal staffing change.

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office downplayed the importance of the departures. Hundreds of political personnel are responsible for providing support to our government, cabinet ministers, and members of Parliament. Turnover is a typical aspect of the employment process for the personnel who perform this critical function, according to Mohammad Hussain, the press secretary for the PMO.

Trudeau’s loss of its top executive

Peter Wilkinson, the director of staff to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, is departing the office less than two years after his appointment. Senior staff member Jamie Kippen, who has served as the chief of staff to Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault for an extended period, has already completed his final day. Jude Welch, the director of staff for Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, has already departed.

Sarah Welch, the chief for Ya’ara Saks, the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, and Frédérique Tsai-Klassen, the chief to Minister of National Revenue Marie-Claude Bibeau, are also departing. According to the sources, the majority of the senior staff who are departing do not currently have a position lined up. However, they are eligible for severance payments that are calculated based on their years of service.

The party’s loss of its top executive, national campaign director Jeremy Broadhurst, a prominent senior Liberal for the past two decades, coincides with the exodus of top staff in ministerial offices. He was previously the national campaign director in 2019 and a senior adviser in the PMO before returning to the party last year.

Mr. Broadhurst tendered his resignation on Thursday, mere days prior to Mr. Trudeau’s scheduled meeting with his caucus in Nanaimo, British Columbia. Three Members of Parliament informed The Globe that they are anticipating the Prime Minister’s presentation of a credible strategy to regain the support of Canadian electors.

Senior staff members have resigned

According to two senior officials, it is unlikely that Mr. Trudeau will designate a replacement for Mr. Broadhurst at the caucus meeting. Nevertheless, an official in the PMO stated that the caucus will be provided with a comprehensive roadmap for the upcoming election. The two officials who were prohibited from disclosing the internal planning are not being identified by The Globe and Mail.

In addition to the anticipated resignation of Transportation Minister Pablo Rodriguez and the departure of Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan in July, all of the senior staff members have resigned.

Mr. O’Regan was a significant political ally of Mr. Trudeau. Mr. Rodriguez is anticipated to declare his departure from the federal Liberals in order to participate in the provincial party’s leadership race, as he currently occupies the most significant political position in Quebec for the government.

“I believe it is a sign of the end of government,” Lori Turnbull, chair of the public and international affairs department at Dalhousie University told the Globe and Mail. She said senior staff members are aware that their departures will only exacerbate the perception and reality of the current state of Trudeau and the government.”

“There is a perception that the Trudeau government has reached its conclusion and that the upcoming election will result in a loss.” The departure of senior staff indicates that even those who are committed to Team Trudeau can perceive the impending doom.

“It raises the question of whether we would witness the same departures in the event that a new leader were selected,” she continued.

The second-in-commands for each office have already been appointed to numerous top-level positions; however, the most critical position at Global Affairs has yet to be permanently replaced.

As of Sunday, Alexandre Boulé has assumed the role of interim chief for Ms. Joly, according to her office. In the interim, deputy chief of staff Joanna Dafoe will succeed Mr Kippen at Environment, and deputy Michael Lartigau will succeed Mr Welch at Heritage.

Marianne Dandurand has succeeded Ms. Tsai-Klassen as the superintendent of National Revenue.

The office announced on Sunday that the position of chief to the Mental Health and Addictions minister is still vacant.