One Fiscal Cliff Down, Boehner, and Al Gore's Big Payday

Vice President Joe Biden and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell negotiated much of the fiscal cliff deal, but left the heavy lifting for February. The deal will extend the Bush-era tax cuts for most Americans and spare millions from the Alternative Minimum Tax. It did not address, however, the debt ceiling or entitlement reform, among other hot topics. Also this week, House Republicans indicated trouble ahead as rogue members did not support the reelection of John Boehner as Speaker of the House. Elsewhere, Federal Trade Commission said Google had not violated anti-trust or anti-competition laws. Google is battling similar concerns in Europe. On the media front, Al Gore stands to make $70-$100 million off a sale of his Current TV network to al Jazeera. Is crony capitalism on the rise? (Joining us this week on the Right is Luigi Zingales, Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago.)

Banner image: President Obama and Vice President Biden meet in the Oval Office with the leadership of Congress to discuss the fiscal cliff, December 28, 2012. Official White House Photo by Pete Souza