Government officials from the world’s 20 biggest economies will likely back a major international tax initiative to eliminate offshore tax shelters used by corporations to reduce their tax obligations.
Finance ministers from the G-20 are likely to endorse the 15-point action plan by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development at the end of their meeting on Saturday. The plan makes it tougher for multinational corporations to use a loophole that allows them to shift profits to countries with lower tax rates.
Read more at The Fiscal Times
MOODY’S IN A BETTER MOOD ON U.S. DEBT Citing steady growth amid reduced government spending, Moody’s rating agency on Thursday raised the U.S. sovereign outlook to stable from negative and affirmed the country’s triple-A rating. Moody’s said the government’s debt trajectory is on track with criteria it had previously laid out, even without further reduction measures from Washington. Read more at Reuters
CONSERVATIVE GROUP RELEASES ‘OBAMACARENADO’ AD Karl Rove’s independent group, Crossroads GPS, released a new ad that attacks Obamacare by spoofing the Syfy channel’s curiously popular ‘hit’ B-movie “Sharknado.” Entitled “ObamaCareNado,” the ad features an ominous voice saying, “Just when you thought it was safe to go to the doctor ... a rising tide of health care costs ... nobody’s safe from its wrath …” See for yourself here
YELLEN: FED FRONT RUNNER? Thirty-five of 42 economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expect Janet Yellen, the Federal Reserve’s vice chairwoman, to succeed Ben Bernanke as the central bank’s leader when his term ends in January. Other candidates include Obama’s former economic adviser, Lawrence Summers, who received five votes. Read more at The Wall Street Journal
17 days remain in the legislative calendar for the Senate and House to accomplish critical legislative priorities, including passing a budget, approving spending bills to keep the government from shutting down, and raising the debt ceiling to avoid default.
The Fiscal Times examines the remaining days of the congressional calendar here
IRS WATCHDOG DEFENDS ROLE IN TEA PARTY SCANDAL J. Russell George, the Treasury inspector general for tax administration, denied claims on Thursday that he ignored evidence showing the IRS had targeted both liberal and conservative groups.
An audit by his agency released in May indicated the IRS had specifically scrutinized organizations affiliated with the Tea Party movement, prompting outrage and committee hearings among House Republicans that have thus far done little to suggest the conspiracy insinuated by some lawmakers.
George told lawmakers during a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing that his spokeswoman misspoke last month, and said he was “disturbed” he had only recently viewed documents calling on IRS staffers to scrutinize progressive groups. Democrats didn’t seem to buy his comments. “The more we look at him, the more we need to explain his professional credibility,” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) told Politico. “I would start by getting a new inspector general.” Read more at Politico
