Clipmarks | Brian Wingfield's clips

What Happened to the Bailout?

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 03:13:34 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Treasury said the plan needed to be implemented carefully, but the sense of urgency seems to be gone.

Clip Source: online.wsj.com

WASHINGTON -- A majority of financial firms say a lack of clarity about important aspects of the Treasury Department's rescue plan is diminishing their willingness to participate, according to a survey conducted by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, the industry's top lobby group.

Treasury originally said it would start purchasing troubled assets within weeks of Congress's passage of the $700 billion financial-rescue package in early October. Now, however, the department's efforts are focused on a separate program to invest $250 billion of new capital into the banking and financial sectors.

Tim Ryan, president and CEO of Sifma, said Treasury needs to turn its attention back to creating a mechanism for the purchase and pricing of these assets. The idea behind the original plan was that removing bad assets -- such as mortgage-backed securities -- from banks' books would spur financial firms to resume lending.

Tags: bailout, treasury, sifma

CEOs Take Luxury Jets To Beg For Cash

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:48:50 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: At least the Big Three can say with certainty that they're burning through cash.

Clip Source: abcnews.go.com

The CEOs of the big three automakers flew to the nation's capital yesterday in private luxurious jets to make their case to Washington that the auto industry is running out of cash and needs $25 billion in taxpayer money to avoid bankruptcy.

The CEOs of GM, Ford and Chrysler may have told Congress that they will likely go out of business without a bailout yet that has not stopped them from traveling in style, not even First Class is good enough.

All three CEOs - Rick Wagoner of GM, Alan Mulally of Ford, and Robert Nardelli of Chrysler - exercised their perks Tuesday by flying in corporate jets to DC. Wagoner flew in GM's $36 million luxury aircraft to tell members of Congress that the company is burning through cash, asking for $10-12 billion for GM alone.

Tags: bailout, detroit, gm, ford, chrysler

Not All Plumbers Disagree With Obama

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:33:33 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Early this year, the plumbers' and pipefitters' union became the first international trade association to endorse Obama for president.

Clip Source: www.ua.org

On January 9, 2008, the United Association became the first International Union to endorse Senator Barack Obama as its candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. This endorsement was discussed with the General Executive Board and they concurred.

Barack Obama is the choice of the UA because he has always fought for working people throughout his career and will do the best job of bringing badly-needed change to Washington. Obama will help us keep existing jobs and work to develop new, higher paying jobs here in America, reform our health care system, fix our ailing schools and make sure that the pensions of our retirees are safe.

Tags: obama, mccain, plumber

Corporate Tax Dodging

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:07:10 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Here's where the IRS might want to focus its efforts.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

WASHINGTON - Two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes between 1998 and 2005, according to a new report from Congress.

The study by the Government Accountability Office, expected to be released Tuesday, said about 68 percent of foreign companies doing business in the U.S. avoided corporate taxes over the same period.

Collectively, the companies reported trillions of dollars in sales, according to GAO's estimate.

"It's shameful that so many corporations make big profits and pay nothing to support our country," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who asked for the GAO study with Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.

An outside tax expert, Chris Edwards of the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, said increasing numbers of limited liability corporations and so-called "S" corporations pay taxes under individual tax codes.

Tags: irs, tax, corporate, gao

A Last-Ditch Effort at Deregulation

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:00:14 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Interesting? Yes. Surprising? No. Let's see a full list of the 90 new regulations in the works.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

The White House is working to enact a wide array of federal regulations, many of which would weaken government rules aimed at protecting consumers and the environment, before President Bush leaves office in January.

Tags: deregulation, bush, lame-duck

Political Oil

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:51:22 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Purely a political move by the administration feels you pain on high gas prices. Oil and natural gas on the OCS is still as off limits as it was before the president made the announcement.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

WASHINGTON — President Bush lifted a presidential moratorium on drilling for oil and natural gas on the Outer Continental Shelf on Monday, hoping to prod Congress to act to clear the way for exploration along the country’s coastline in response to soaring energy prices.

“The time for action is now,” Mr. Bush said as he announced in the White House Rose Garden that he was lifting an executive order, which was first issued by his father in 1990 and was renewed by Bill Clinton.

By itself, the move will have little impact, because Congress enacted a moratorium in 1982 that remains in place. But the step underscores the rising political pressure to address high oil and gasoline prices in the middle of an election year.

Tags: oil, gas, outer continental shelf, drilling

Bob Dylan Talks About Obama

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:43:36 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: From an interview on Dylan's website. Hat tip to Politico.com for digging this up.

Clip Source: www.bobdylan.com

You liked Barack Obama early on. Why was that?

I’d read his book and it intrigued me.

Audacity of Hope?

No it was called Dreams of My Father.

What struck you about him?

Well, a number of things. He’s got an interesting background. He’s like a fictional character, but he’s real. First off, his mother was a Kansas girl. Never lived in Kansas though, but with deep roots. You know, like Kansas bloody Kansas. John Brown the insurrectionist. Jesse James and Quantrill. Bushwhackers, Guerillas. Wizard of Oz Kansas. I think Barack has Jefferson Davis back there in his ancestry someplace. And then his father. An African intellectual. Bantu, Masai, Griot type heritage - cattle raiders, lion killers. I mean it’s just so incongruous that these two people would meet and fall in love. You kind of get past that though. And then you’re into his story. Like an odyssey except in reverse.

Tags: bob dylan, barack obama

More on the Stevens Investigation

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 18:25:18 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: A comprehensive overview from the Anchorage Daily News

Clip Source: community.adn.com

The Alaska political corruption investigation

A broad federal investigation of public corruption has been under way in Alaska for more than four years, although it didn’t become widely known until Aug. 31, 2006. That’s when teams of federal agents executed search warrants at the offices of six state legislators, as well as others, in Anchorage, Juneau and elsewhere around the state.

The government has since brought indictments against five state legislators. Three have been convicted by juries and two are awaiting trial. Four others - two former top officials with Veco Corp., the former chief of staff of Gov. Frank Murkowski and a private-prison lobbyist - have entered guilty pleas and are cooperating with the government.

Tags: stevens, alaska, investigation, corruption

Oil: An Industry in Crisis?

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 02:34:01 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Not sure if that's the case--crisis might apply to the financial services industry right now--but it's certainly an interesting article.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Oil production has begun falling at all of the major Western oil companies, and they are finding it harder than ever to find new prospects even though they are awash in profits and eager to expand.

Part of the reason is political. From the Caspian Sea to South America, Western oil companies are being squeezed out of resource-rich provinces. They are being forced to renegotiate contracts on less-favorable terms and are fighting losing battles with assertive state-owned oil companies.

“This is an industry in crisis,” said Amy Myers Jaffe, the associate director of Rice University’s energy program in Houston. “It’s a crisis of leadership, a crisis of strategy and a crisis of what the future looks like for the supermajors,” a term often applied to the biggest oil companies. “They are like a deer caught in headlights. They know they have to move, but they can’t decide where to go.”

And much of their production is in mature regions that are declining, like the North Sea.

Tags: oil, crisis, exxon, shell, bp

Why GM Should Go Bankrupt

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:31:38 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Interesting take from Portfolio.com on why GM should file for Chapter 11 protection.

Clip Source: www.portfolio.com

Join the Conversation
15 Comments | Read All

Why bankruptcy might not be the worst thing that could happen to General Motors.

Of course, there are downsides. Shareholders would be wiped out, but the stock is down 74 percent this year alone, so they’ve been pretty much obliterated anyway. The more serious objection is that it would be a catastrophe for vehicle sales. No one, the theory goes, will buy a car from a bankrupt company out of fear that the warranties would be worthless and parts wouldn’t be available. But G.M. has access to plenty of $1,000-an-hour lawyers, and one of them should be able to find a way to guarantee warranty protection to G.M. vehicle owners. Get a court guarantee; buy coverage from Midas or Hertz or whomever.

Tags: gm, bankruptcy, bailout

Going Ba(ra)ck On His Word?

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:19:44 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Obama opts to pursue private financing, resulting in a blitz of protest from McCain's camp. This was expected as Obama raised an unprecedented level of cash during the primaries. It also invites more scrutiny of his donors.

Clip Source: blog.washingtonpost.com

Sen. Barack Obama has switched course on general-election funding, announcing this morning that he would reject public financing and raise every dime for the fall campaign on his own.

The announcement was widely expected. For months, Obama has eased back from an earlier pledge to "pursue an agreement with the Republican nominee to preserve a publicly financed general election," warning that it could impose unfair constraints.

The decision means Obama will give up $85 million in public money. But it frees him to raise $300 million or more from the 1.5 million-plus donors in his database, giving him an enormous -- almost breathtaking -- advantage over Sen. John McCain.

Tags: obama, mccain, fundraising, election

Is Deflation Next?

Sat, 01 Nov 2008 17:38:54 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

As dozens of countries slip deeper into financial distress, a new threat may be gathering force within the American economy — the prospect that goods will pile up waiting for buyers and prices will fall, suffocating fresh investment and worsening joblessness for months or even years.

The word for this is deflation, or declining prices, a term that gives economists chills.

Tags: deflation, economic crisis

Obama Calls on Congress to Pass Rescue Plan

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:35:16 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Wait--hasn't he said that the U.S. has only one president at a time?

Clip Source: www.chicagotribune.com

President-elect Barack Obama called Saturday for the lame-duck Congress to approve a "down payment" on an economic rescue plan that he said was needed to boost jobs, extend unemployment benefits and help ease the financial burden on families.

Using the Democrats' weekly radio address as a forum to speak to the nation for the second consecutive week, Obama also promoted themes first sounded in his campaign touting a long-term investment in the nation's crumbling roads, bridges and schools as well as in a "green energy economy" to divest the country from foreign oil.

Tags: obama, fiscal stimulus, congress

Abandoning Pay-Go on Health Care

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 03:52:49 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Did anyone really think it could be paid for with tax increases or budget cuts elsewhere?

Clip Source: thehill.com

Healthcare reform could require Congress to make exceptions to pay-as-you-go budgeting, according to one of Sen. Edward Kennedy’s (D-Mass.) most senior aides.

“Certainly, there’s a strong inclination within large quarters of Congress that [health reform] has to be substantially paid for, but whether it’s every penny, every dime – those discussions still have to happen,” Kennedy aide Michael Myers said at a briefing hosted by the liberal healthcare group Families USA Thursday.

Tags: health care, pay-go, kennedy

Good news for AT&T and Verizon...

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:37:28 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: ...bad bad for civil rights groups.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

WASHINGTON - Bowing to President Bush's demands, the Senate sent the White House a bill Wednesday overhauling bitterly disputed rules on secret government eavesdropping and shielding telecommunications companies from lawsuits complaining they helped the U.S. spy on Americans.

The relatively one-sided vote, 69-28, came only after a lengthy and heated debate that pitted privacy and civil liberties concerns against the desire to prevent terrorist attacks. It ended almost a year of wrangling over surveillance rules and the president's warrantless wiretapping program that was initiated after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The House passed the same bill last month, and Bush said he would sign it soon.

Tags: telecomms, at&t, verizon, wiretapping