According to a prominent new study, Arizona is winning a race, not to the top but to the bottom. We are about to lead the nation in jobs for high school dropouts.

WASHINGTON - The White House on Tuesday lowered its forecast for economic growth this year and next, reflecting the drag from the housing slump.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. economy continued to grow in September and early October despite being buffeted by rising energy costs and increased uncertainty caused by the presidential campaign, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday, in its last snapshot of business conditions before Election Day.

WASHINGTON - The economy that turned sluggish at the end of last year isn't doing much better now - and may well be doing worse - as war uncertainties and the stagnant job market make consumers and businesses more cautious. Some analysts worry about a slide back into recession.

WASHINGTON - The economy that turned sluggish at the end of last year isn't doing much better now - and may well be doing worse - as war uncertainties and the stagnant job market make consumers and businesses more cautious. Some analysts worry about a slide back into recession.

We in the conservative movement are still licking our wounds from the last election. As we do some soul-searching, it should be easy to answer one question: Do we side with those who think no tax is high enough, or are we on the side of America’s entrepreneurs, professionals, farmers, ranchers and small business owners?

Unable to get the Legislature to approve her plan, Gov. Jan Brewer moved ahead on her own Tuesday with the creation of a quasi-public agency to promote economic development.

WASHINGTON -  The prospects for a quick economic recovery dimmed Thursday, with new data showing the economy grew at a slower-than-expected rate this spring despite some oomph from tax rebate checks — and actually shrank late last year.

When it comes to bringing quality, high-wage jobs to Mesa, it’s time for the city and business community to follow comedian Larry the Cable Guy’s command to “Git-R-Done.”

The good news: Arizona’s economy will continue to grow next year. The bad news: The growth rate will be slower than in 2006 as the economy downshifts for the third consecutive year.

WASHINGTON - The economy has slowed to a snail’s pace, growing in the just-finished quarter at the slowest rate in more than three years and stirring fresh debate about the country’s financial health heading into the elections.

WASHINGTON - Economic growth slowed to a 2 percent pace in the late summer, more sluggish than previously thought, as the real-estate bust weighed on overall business activity.

WASHINGTON - The economy throttled back in the second quarter as consumers and companies turned cautious amid surging energy prices. Wall Street rallied on the hope that a break in two years of interest-rate pain may be in sight.

Just as Arizona’s construction industry scrambles to keep up with relentless commercial and residential demand, and the Gulf Coast struggles to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration has tossed another obstacle in the way that makes FEMA’s bungled disaster relief seem like a minor wrinkle.

NEW YORK - The physical and psychological damage caused by Hurricane Katrina is likely to reverberate across the global economy in ways that will curb growth well into 2006, economists say.

NEW YORK - The physical and psychological damage caused by Hurricane Katrina is likely to reverberate across the global economy in ways that will curb growth well into 2006, economists say.

Maricopa County's growing family of community colleges is asking voters for a hefty new mortgage to make room for all the new students flooding in. Its sheer size — nearly $1 billion for new buildings and equipment, plus repairs and renovations — demands careful analysis before casting your vote on Proposition 401.

NEW YORK - Consumer spending rebounded in September while manufacturing activity expanded in October, though at a slower pace than the previous month, providing further evidence of continued but moderating economic growth on the eve of the presidential election.

WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary John Snow said Sunday that he foresees steady economic growth during the final three months of this year and throughout 2004.

I was fortunate this week to attend a forum on STEM education - Science, Technology, Engineering and Math - hosted by the local affiliate of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) and came away very impressed by what our state is doing on both a government and business level to address the educational needs of our future workers in the manufacturing and technology fields.