EPA And DOT Propose New Standards For Trucks And Buses

by Stuart Shapiro

Earlier this week EPA and DOT issued proposed rules that would, for the first time, establish fuel efficiency standards for large trucks and buses.

This comprehensive national program is projected to reduce GHG emissions by about 250 million metric tons and save 500 million barrels of oil over the lives of the vehicles produced within the program’s first five years.

This action is important for two reasons.  First, projected net benefits to the economy range from $3-9 billion per year.  Second, it is a preview of policymaking over the next two years.  If Republicans make enough gains …

Scientists Find “Liberal Gene”

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego say they’ve found the first genetic marker that can identify someone’s political views.

…the researchers were able to show that people with a specific variant of the DRD4 gene were more likely to be liberal as adults, but only if they had an active social life in adolescence.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter affecting brain processes that control movement, emotional response, and ability to experience pleasure and pain. Previous research has identified a connection between a variant of this gene and novelty-seeking behavior, and this behavior has previously been associated with personality traits …

Sarah Palin: I’ll Run For President “If There’s Nobody Else To Do It”

Perhaps Sarah Palin isn’t aware that there is a plethora of hopefuls lining up for the Republican nomination. Nevertheless, she told Entertainment Tonight’s Mary Hart that she’s ready run if no one else will. (h/t Political Wire)

“It’s going to entail a discussion with my family [and] a real close look at the lay of the land, to consider whether there are those with that common sense, conservative, pro-Constitution passion, whether there are already candidates out there who can do the job … or whether there’s nobody willing to do it, to make the tough choices and …

Unemployment Claims Drop Sharply

You know if this number were reversed, the right wing would be having a field day. Unemployment claims dropped sharply last week, the second week in a row, and the is the second lowest number for claims this year.

Some companies are adding workers. Pharmaceuticals company Novartis AG said Wednesday that it will add 300 new jobs and invest $600 million over the next five years in its research headquarters in Cambridge, Mass. And engine maker Cummins, Inc. said Tuesday that it will expand its headquarters in Columbus, Ind. and add at least 350 jobs by 2012.

The number …

Leading Economists: Painfully Slow Economic Gains Into 2011

An AP survey of top economists shows them predicting very slow gains in the economy and job market during the next year.

In their view, shoppers and employers will stay cautious. Households will keep saving. Inflation will remain tame. And unemployment will dip only a bit from the current 9.6 percent rate to a still-high 9 percent at the end of 2011.…

France Raises Retirement Age. Should We Do The Same?

In France, the retirement age is going up from 60 to 62, a move that has incurred many protests.

The 336-233 vote in the National Assembly was a victory for conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has stood firm despite the protests – a stance that has resulted in his lowest approval ratings since he took office in 2007.

The opposition Socialist party, which spearheaded the parliamentary battle against the bill, called its passage “a great disappointment for the French people, who overwhelmingly rejected this … profoundly unfair text.”

Is the Socialist part in France crazy to protest, and should …

House Speaker Wanna-Be John Boehner To Appear At Rally For Nazi Reenactor

House Minority Leader John Boehner is honoring Ohio Republican House candidate Rich Iott with an appearance at an election rally in Toledo. Iott is the candidate who used to play dress-me-up in Nazi regalia as a father-son “bonding experience,” and was renounced by other Republicans like House Minority Whip Eric Cantor.

You’ve got to love the flier:

Calling all Iott Volunteers! Please join us for this very special pre-election rally with House Minority Leader, John Boehner. What a great way to start off our pre-election weekend. Please wear any Iott gear you may have! Should you have any further questions, …

Obama On “Daily Show”: “Yes We Can, But…”

Asked on the “Daily Show” if “Yes, we can” is still operative, President Obama got a laugh from the audience when he added “but” to that phrase.

“You ran on very high rhetoric, hope and change, and the Democrats this year seem to be running on, ‘Please baby, one more chance’,’’ Mr. Stewart said at one point. At another, he asked the president if he was now running on “Yes we can, with certain conditions.’’

Mr. Obama replied, “I think I would say, ‘Yes we can, but –“

Mr. Stewart, laughing, cut the president off. Mr. Obama jumped in again, …

Flashback: George W. Bush Praising Fannie and Freddie, and Home Ownership For Those With “Bad Credit Histories”

Republicans love to beat up on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and blame Democrats for pushing home ownership for those who may not have the means to pay off their debts. Here, from 2002, is President George W. Bush, saying Freddie is “dismantling barriers” to help more people have home ownership,  how “deserving families who have bad credit histories” can own homes, and that  “the low income home buyer can have just as nice a house as anybody else.”

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NY Gubernatorial Candidate Kristin Davis: “Vote Homo, Not Cuomo”

The Manhattan Madam, so-named in the wake of her work attaining companionship for Client No. 9, former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, has a new ad blaming Democrat Andrew Cuomo for not having done more to promote gay marriage. Davis also wants to legalize marijuana and decriminalize prostitution.

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On Wednesday’s Radio Show…

• Former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey joins Alan to discuss President Obama’s efforts to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

• Fox News contributor Juan Williams joins Alan to discuss his recent firing from NPR .

• Is America close to having its first female president? Nicolle Wallace, former communications director for George W. Bush, talks with Alan about her new novel, Eighteen Acres.…