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Did Democrats game the CBO process to get phony numbers on healthcare reform? Here’s what CBO director Doug Elmendorf has to say:

I am very comfortable with the numbers we released. There are a number of people who expressed concern that we were being gamed. And I worried about that throughout the year. But I don’t think we were gamed — or at least not in the sense that people seemed to be using that word.

Now, I suppose it’s no surprise that the CBO director thinks the CBO did a good job. Still, he says that his office was keenly aware of the possibility of being gamed and he doesn’t think it happened. And he’s a pretty well respected guy. So to those who continue to claim that the process was fraudulent in some way, I think the ball is back in your court.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

payment methods

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