"At a time when we are cutting health care, cutting education, cutting old people from the budget, we want to put $50 billion in loan guarantees for nuclear power?" asks Mark Hertsgaard, longtime environmental reporter. "Nuclear power will make climate change worse, not better," he argues.

Obama's punching below his weight class again. That was Gary Younge's metaphor, a boxing analogy that makes more sense if you consider the weight a politician carries to be the support for their policies around the country.

"We're able to maintain the illusion that we're fighting a war on drugs and that we're protecting young people we're doing it on the backs of poor people. Poor people of color, rural poor people, poor people who don't have access to jobs. We have one group of people who we've said that their employment is going to be the keepers of these other people that we've locked up for drug use because they don't have jobs and you don't have jobs ever. We've built a whole system out of policing, locking up and controlling poor people," says Deborah Small, who's dedicated her life to fighting for a responsible drug policy that helps, not hurts.

"We need to go back to the day where we actually do ask everyone to pay their fair share--and that includes the wealthiest among us," says Heather Boushey, Senior Economist for the Center for American Progress. She joins us today to unpack President Obama's April 13 address on fiscal policy and deficit reduction.

"We need to go back to the day where we actually do ask everyone to pay their fair share--and that includes the wealthiest among us," says Heather Boushey, Senior Economist for the Center for American Progress. She joins us today to unpack President Obama's April 13 address on fiscal policy and deficit reduction.

Paul Mason of the BBC called them “the graduates with no future.” They've been at the center of protest movements around the world, from Tunisia to Wisconsin.

The details of the compromise that finally kept the government open and made deep cuts to the federal budget for fiscal year 2011 are finally beginning to emerge--and they're not pretty. Millions and even billions from education, labor, the EPA--all for what economist Richard Wolff says is a negligible impact on the actual deficit.

"Everyone from the FDIC to the Pentagon have said that people are doing this as a way of life ... they are trapped in a series of loans," says Kai Wright individuals and families who've become entangled in the system of payday lending. High-interest loans are being made to the people who need the extra cash most--and who are most unable to repay.

This weekend, GRITtv headed to Boston with lots of our favorite media makers, activists, and thinkers for the National Conference for Media Reform. Laura was the emcee for the opening plenary, and then stuck around all weekend, talking about money, media and politics with movers and shakers. Check out some of what we saw at the conference!

"Everyone from the FDIC to the Pentagon have said that people are doing this as a way of life ... they are trapped in a series of loans," says Kai Wright of individuals and families who've become entangled in the system of payday lending. High-interest loans are being made to the people who need the extra cash most--and who are most unable to repay.