WASHINGTON — A continuing weak economy and last month’s bipartisan tax cut legislation will drive the government’s deficit to a record $1.5 trillion this year, a new government estimate predicts. The eye-popping numbers mean the government will continue to borrow ...

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Gov. Martin O’Malley acted wisely in deciding to address fundamental issues in the state pension system before making any move to shift teacher pension costs to local governments. This was an especially tough call in a year when the state ...

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State lawmakers face a session of reckoning during the Maryland General Assembly’s next three months in Annapolis. First, they face an estimated $1.6 billion operating budget deficit for the fiscal year that begins July 1 without benefit of more than ...

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Bipartisanship? Reaching across the aisle? These are throwaway lines few of us take seriously anymore. But Republican and Democratic governors wouldn’t have to reach far these days. When it comes to budgets, they’re basically in the same aisle. The lingering ...

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ACCIDENT — Smoke drifts lazily above the town hall in this tiny Western Maryland municipality while inside, city leaders warmed by a squat, wood-burning stove ponder how to squeeze a few more bucks out of the $124,000 budget. Sometimes fueled ...

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ANNPOLIS — Gov. Martin O’Malley called for unity and cooperation in his inaugural address Wednesday as he outlined his plan to meet the challenges ahead in this “period of profound economic change.” His speech came two days before he is ...

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WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve paid a record $78.4 billion in earnings to the U.S. government last year, reflecting gains from the central bank’s unconventional efforts to lift the economy. The payment to the Treasury Department is the largest since ...

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Maryland’s budget woes will dominate the 2011 legislative session as lawmakers seek to bridge a $1.6 billion deficit without the federal safety net that eased the state’s fiscal pain in recent years. Gov. Martin O’Malley has vowed to avoid tax ...

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. trade deficit fell to its lowest level in nine months, as growing demand for American goods overseas and a falling dollar pushed exports to their highest level in more than two years. The trade deficit narrowed ...

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WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama announced a two-year pay freeze for federal employees Monday, and warned the American public that the move is the first of many difficult decisions that must be made to reduce the nation’s mounting deficits. “The ...

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