Weekend Digest: The Best Editorial Cartoons Of 2012

For our weekend political readers:

TAX HIKES OPPOSED BY ECONOMISTS
Politico reports that 180 economists have sent a letter to Congress in opposition to any tax hikes as part of the fiscal cliff deal.

We hope that members of Congress will take a step back to read this statement and understand there’s much more at stake here than just some political fortunes. There are genuine policy questions that need to be resolved and resolved properly.

The letter’s signatories include Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who directed the Congressional Budget Office under President George W. Bush, and Jim Miller, who directed the Office of Management and Budget under President Ronald Reagan.

Go to this link to find out why the economists are so opposed to tax hikes that the Obama administration wants to raise on those earning more than $250,000 a year.

RAISING REVENUE FROM CARBON TAX TO AVOID FISCAL CLIFF OPPOSED BY EXXON
A carbon tax on energy emissions has gained support by economists and from both parties in Congress as one way to increase revenue to avoid the looming fiscal cliff.

Even though ExxonMobil has gone on record supporting a carbon tax, Politico reports the company’s VP of Public and Governments Affairs, Ken Cohen says that support only goes so far.

A “revenue-neutral” carbon tax is the oil company’s preferred option only if policymakers are moving forward with putting a price on carbon as an effort to address climate change, Cohen said. But he said ExxonMobil isn’t advocating such a tax simply to raise revenue and head off a coming collision of rising tax rates and automatic federal spending cuts.

Click on this link to get more reaction on this controversial issue.

MAINSTREAM PRESS BLEW THE BIGGEST STORY OF 2012 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
That’s according to two “longtime political observers” in a story from Huffington Post Media.

According to long-time political observers Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, campaign coverage in 2012 was a particularly calamitous failure, almost entirely missing the single biggest story of the race.

Political journalists had no doubt heard similar arguments many times before, mostly from left-wing bloggers. But this time the charge was coming from two of the most consistent purveyors of conventional wisdom in town, bipartisan to a fault.

According to Mann and Ornstein, what was the coverage missed and how did it happen?  Click here to find out.

MORE ‘RIGHT TO WORK’ STATES BEING PUSHED BY CONSERVATIVE GROUPS
In a state where common thought was it could never happen, a “right to work” law was approved in Michigan this past week in a stunning defeat for opponents of the legislation.

Now conservative groups who helped push through that legislation are eyeing other states, but the Washington Post reports that expanding right to work could be “difficult.”

National unions, caught flat-footed in the Wolverine State, pledged to offer fierce opposition wherever the idea crops up next. They consider the laws a direct attack on their finances and political clout at a time when labor influence is already greatly diminished.  In addition, few Republican governors who could enact such legislation seem eager to bring the fight to their states.

But the president of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation thinks at least one more state will adopt a “right to work” law by the end of 2013. Of course, Arkansas is already “right to work.”

Find out which states the Foundation and conservative groups are targeting, along with more reaction and predictions on this divisive issue at this link.

TOP EDITORIAL CARTOONS FOR 2012 PICKED
Some of the most simple yet effective editorial page messages come from cartoons.  The work of talented cartoonist have long been prized by publications for their satire as well as clever drawing ability and caricatures.

The Washington Post has picked its choices for the best editorial cartoons of 2012 and you can decide whether you agree by following this link.