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Samuel Wurzelbacher, a.k.a. 'Joe the Plumber.' [Source: Orlando Sun-Sentinel]Republican presidential candidate John McCain (R-AZ)'s running mate, Sarah Palin (R-AK), accuses Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (D-IL) of advocating socialism as an economic plan. "[N]ow is no time to experiment with socialism," Palin says, referring to Obama's proposal to offer tax credits to those paying no income taxes. Palin echoes comments made by Pennsylvania resident Samuel Wurzelbacher, known to the media as "Joe the Plumber," in which he said Obama's tax plan sounded like socialism to him. Palin tells a crowd in New Mexico: "Senator Obama said he wants to quote 'spread the wealth.' What that means is he wants government to take your money and dole it out however a politician sees fit." Referring to a man in the crowd holding up a sign identifying himself as "Ed the Dairy Man," Palin adds, "But Joe the Plumber and Ed the Dairy Man, I believe that they think that it sounds more like socialism." She continues: "Friends, now is no time to experiment with socialism. To me, our opponent plans sounds more like big government, which is the problem. Bigger government is not the solution." She calls Obama's tax plan "a government giveaway," and says the plan will raise taxes on those who already pay taxes: "He claims that he'll cut income taxes for 95 percent of Americans, but the problem is, more than 40 percent of Americans pay no income taxes at all," she says. "Since he can't reduce taxes on those who pay zero, he wants the government to send them a check that's called a tax credit. And where is he gonna get the money for all those checks that he will cut? By raising taxes on America's hard-working families and our small businesses." Later, at an airport in Colorado Springs, Palin tells a reporter, "There are socialist principles to [Obama's tax plans], yes." She continues, "Taking more from a small business or small business owners or from a hard-working families and then redistributing that money according to a politician's priorities—there are hints of socialism in there and that's why I don't fault or discredit Joe the Plumber for bringing that up, asking if that is socialism." Palin says that the $700 billion White House bailout of failing banks and other financial institutions is not socialism: "I believe that there are those measures that had to be taken by Congress to shore up not only the housing market but the credit markets, also to make sure that that's not frozen, so that our small businesses have opportunities to borrow and that was the purpose, of course, of that part of the bailout and the shoring of the banks." [ABC News, 10/20/2008]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, Samuel Wurzelbacher, Sarah Palin, John McCain
Timeline Tags: Domestic Propaganda, 2008 Elections
Category Tags: USA, Commentaries and Criticisms, Obama Policies and Actions
The US's two most popular conservative radio hosts, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, are repeatedly labeling the current economic collapse the "Obama recession," even though the recession has started already, and President-elect Barack Obama was only elected on November 4 and will not assume the presidency until January 20, 2009. Blaming Obama for Wall Street Plunge - According to reports by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, Hannity's guest Dick Morris, a conservative political operative, tells a Fox News audience on November 6 that the stock market plunge is directly attributable to Obama's election and his intention to "raise the capital gains tax." Hannity calls the stock market plunge "the Obama tanking." On the same day, Limbaugh says on his show: "We have the largest market plunge after an election in history. Thank you, man-child Barack Obama." [Media Matters, 11/7/2008] Hannity says on November 11 that Obama's election is directly responsible for plunging stock market performances, telling his listeners: "Wall Street keeps sinking. Could it be the Obama recession: The fear that taxes are gonna go up, forcing people to pull out of the market?" On November 12, Limbaugh echoes Hannity's characterization, telling his listeners that, as reported by MSNBC's Chris Matthews, "the recession isn't President Bush's fault. It's the fault, catch this, of the president who hasn't yet taken office. It's an 'Obama recession'; that's what he's calling it." Matthews, clearly impatient with Limbaugh's characterization, calls the host's statement an example of "the bitter sore loser's rhetoric we are hearing from the right these days." [Media Matters, 11/12/2008] Experts Credit Obama with Wall Street Stabilization - Experts refute Limbaugh's and Hannity's attribution of the nation's economic calamity to Obama, with the Wall Street Journal giving Obama credit for a post-election upturn in the stock market and blaming "lame economic data" and the continuing "drumbeat of bailouts, potential bailouts, and worries about other bailouts" for the stock market's poor performance. [Wall Street Journal, 11/12/2008] Fox News business commentator Eric Bolling credits Obama's election with stabilizing the stock market until a dismal national employment report caused the market to drop again. And Fox Business Channel's vice president, Alexis Glick, tells her audience on November 7: "I so did not believe that the market reaction over the past two days was about Obama. Wednesday morning we walked in, we saw the Challenger and Gray [planned layoff] numbers, we saw the ADP numbers, the weekly jobless claim numbers—yeah, well, they were basically in line, but we knew two days ago that this was going to be a bloody number. Frankly, we probably knew several months ago that it was going to be a bloody number." The Wall Street Journal and New York Times both agree with Glick's assessment. [Media Matters, 11/7/2008; New York Times, 11/7/2008]
Entity Tags: Alexis Glick, Media Matters, Barack Obama, Fox Business Channel, Eric Bolling, Dick Morris, New York Times, Chris Matthews, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Wall Street Journal
Timeline Tags: Domestic Propaganda, 2008 Elections, 2010 Elections
Category Tags: Commentaries on Economic Issues, USA, Commentaries and Criticisms, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
Fox News pundit Bill O'Reilly and former Bush administration political director Karl Rove tell listeners that media journalists are "overstating" the current economic problems in order to help the incoming Obama administration. O'Reilly asks Rove, "All right, so you are agreeing with me then that there is a conscious effort on the part of the New York Times and other liberal media to basically paint as drastic a picture as possible, so that when Barack Obama takes office that anything is better than what we have now?" Rove's response: "Yes." O'Reilly says that the "plot" is to "blame everything on Bush for quite a long period of time." Rove calls the economic reporting little more than "scare tactics." O'Reilly concludes: "All I want is an honest press. I'm not hoping one way or the other." Amanda Terkel of the Center for American Progress observes: "For years, in fact, the Bush administration has tried Rove and O'Reilly's strategy of insisting that nothing is wrong. Although the United States has been in a recession since December 2007, the Bush administration has continued to insist that the economy was strong. The result? A government unprepared to deal with 'the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.'" [Think Progress (.org), 12/9/2008]
Entity Tags: Karl C. Rove, Center for American Progress, Fox News, Amanda Terkel, Bill O'Reilly
Timeline Tags: Domestic Propaganda, 2010 Elections
Category Tags: USA, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions, Commentaries and Criticisms
NYU Economics Professor Nouriel Roubini tells Bloomberg News that, following the $350 billion injection by the Bush Administration, President Barack Obama will have to use as much as $1 trillion of taxpayer funds to shore up capitalization of the banking sector. "The problems of Citi, Bank of America and others suggest the system is bankrupt," Roubini said. "In Europe, it's the same thing." Roubini also predicts that oil prices will continue to trade between $30 to $40 a barrel all year. Regarding commodities, Roubini said, "I see commodities falling overall another 15-20%. This outlook for commodity prices is beneficial for oil importers, it's going to imply that economic recovery might occur faster, but from the point of view of oil exporters, this will be very negative." [Street Insider.com, 1/20/2009; Bloomberg, 1/20/2009]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, Citibank, Nouriel Roubini, Bank of America
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, USA, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
Eric Cantor. [Source: Washington Post]House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) claims, falsely, that the Obama stimulus package would spend four times as much money on "lawn grass" as it allocates for small businesses. Cantor is referring to the plan's $200 million allocation for renovating Washington's National Mall, which fellow Republicans characterize as "earmarks" or "pork." According to MSNBC and Fox News, Cantor claims: "When you're seeing four times as much money spent on grass in Washington—that is actually lawn grass in Washington—than you do to help small businesses, that has your priorities backwards.… If you look at the bill that passed the ways and means committee yesterday, for every dollar spent to help small businesses, four dollars is being spent to help upkeep the grass on the lawns of Washington. Again, what does that have to do with a stimulus bill?" The Center for American Progress (CAP), a progressive think tank, accuses Cantor of "completely invent[ing] the truth." The draft version of the House stimulus plan allocates over four times as much money for "creating small business opportunity"—$880 million—than for renovating the National Mall. The figures also do not include the stimulus plan's more than $20 billion in business tax cuts. CAP notes that spending money on infrastructure, such as the Mall renovations, is considered one of the most effective ways to stimulate the economy, creating "twice as many jobs as tax cuts." The tax cuts that Cantor champions—mostly for large businesses and wealthy Americans—are, CAP says, among the least efficient ways to grow the economy. Cantor is also wrong in characterizing the Mall spending as money for "lawn grass." The money will be allocated for, among other projects, repairing the Tidal Basin's seawall, adding restrooms to the Mall, and renovating buildings and monuments in Washington's Capitol district. CAP notes that "all of [this] will require new workers and create jobs." [Think Progress, 1/23/2009]
Entity Tags: Eric Cantor, Obama administration, Center for American Progress
Category Tags: Commentaries and Criticisms, Obama Policies and Actions
Conservatives and Congressional Republicans attack President Obama's economic stimulus plan with a variety of claims centering on "earmarks" or "Democratic pork." One claim is that the stimulus package wastes hundreds of millions of dollars on funding for contraceptives. "You know, I'm concerned about the size of the package." says House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH). "And I'm concerned about some of the spending that's in there, [about]… how you can spend hundreds of millions on contraceptives. How does that stimulate the economy?" [New York Post, 1/26/2009] Reduces Costs to State, Federal Budgets - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) explains the rationale behind the funding: "Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost. The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education, and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those—one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government." [Think Progress, 1/26/2009] Limbaugh's Suggestion - Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh retorts that if Pelosi "wants fewer births, I have the way to do this and it won't require any contraception: You simply put pictures of Nancy Pelosi… in every cheap motel room.… That will keep birthrates down because that picture will keep a lot of things down." [Media Matters, 1/26/2009] Savings of $700 Million - The language of the stimulus bill reads: "Under current law, the secretary [of health and human services] has the authority under section 1115 of the Social Security Act to grant waivers to states to allow them to cover family planning services and supplies to low-income women who are not otherwise eligible for Medicaid. The bill would give states the option to provide such coverage without obtaining a waiver. States could continue to use the existing waiver authority if they preferred." The Center for American Progress (CAP), a progressive think tank, explains that this portion of the stimulus bill "would not only aid states, but also provide preventative, cost-saving health care to help low-income women support their families and keep working." According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the measure would save the nation $200 million over five years and $700 million over 10 years. States that choose not to participate in the program are not required to do so. Representative James Clyburn (D-SC) notes, "I think that Mr. Boehner is looking for one little sound bite rather than looking at the total package here and seeing what it will do for the American people." [Think Progress, 1/26/2009]
Entity Tags: Rush Limbaugh, James Clyburn, Congressional Budget Office, Center for American Progress, John Boehner, US Department of Health and Human Services, Nancy Pelosi
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) invests $90 billion in clean energy projects for the next 10 years via loan guarantees, tax incentives, and grants. $38 billion of this is government spending and $20 billion is tax incentives. Symbolically, President Obama signs the bill into law at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where he takes a tour of the museum's solar panel installation. He says he hopes the bill will inspire Americans to get involved in "green" energy the same way that President Kennedy's goal to put a man on the moon inspired Americans in the 1960s. "I hope this investment will ignite our imagination once more in science, medicine, energy and make our economy stronger, our nation more secure, and our planet safer for our children," Obama says before signing the bill. The bill includes: A three-year extension to the tax credit for wind, which would have expired at the end of this year, and an extension until the end of 2013 for geothermal and biomass renewable-energy projects. The credit has been increased to 30 percent of the investment. $4.5 billion in direct spending to modernize the electricity grid with smart-grid technologies. $6.3 billion in state energy-efficient and clean-energy grants, and $4.5 billion to make federal buildings more energy efficient. $6 billion in loan guarantees for renewable energy systems, biofuel projects, and electric-power transmission facilities. $2 billion in loans to manufacture advanced batteries and components for applications such as plug-in electric cars. $5 billion to weatherize homes of up to 1 million low-income people. $3.4 billion appropriated to the Department of Energy for fossil energy research and development, such as storing carbon dioxide underground at coal power plants. A tax credit of between $2,500 and $5,000 for purchase of plug-in electric vehicles, available for the first 200,000 placed into service. Most companies in the green-tech field hail the new focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy in the bill, contrasting it with the Bush administration's support for fossil fuel energy production and its disdain for clean energy programs. Investors and analysts say the new law is a step towards a comprehensive energy policy based on sustained commitment to renewable energy and efficiency. Michael Liebriech of New Energy Finance says: "For years, US policymakers' support for clean energy has been uneven. No longer… the US will have a great chance to be the growth engine for our industry over the next several years." The spending should have an almost-immediate impact, especially in areas such as smart grid technology and energy efficiency, says venture capitalist Dennis Costello. However, even this influx of government funding does not solve all the financial problems facing energy technology firms. The recession continues to grip the economy, he notes, damping demand and making financing of new projects difficult. "It's kind of refreshing to see at least beginnings of a real energy policy, some sort of unified approach to our energy problems," he says. "But it isn't going to solve our energy problems. There are a lot of countervailing factors to give pause to being over-exuberant on the future of energy sector and clean tech." [CNET News, 2/17/2009; Adam Johnston, 7/2013]
Entity Tags: Bush administration (43), Barack Obama, Michael Liebriech, Dennis Costello, Obama administration, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, US Department of Energy
Timeline Tags: US Solar Industry
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Obama Policies and Actions
US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announces a much bigger plan to rescue the US financial system than previously predicted or envisioned, including a much greater government role in markets and banks since the 1930s (see March 15, 2008). Although the administration provides few details, one central portion of the plan that investors most desired to learn about creates bad banks that rely on taxpayer and private investor funds to purchase and hold bad assets racked up by the banks from subprime mortgages, derivatives, and credit defaults. An additional focal point of the plan stretches the final $350 billion that the Treasury may use for the bailout, relying on the Fed's capability to create money. This last tranche of funding allows the government to be involved in the management of markets and banks. For example, with the credit markets, the administration and the Fed propose to expand a lending program that spends as much as $1 trillion as a replacement for the $1.2 trillion decline between 2006 and 2008 for the issuance of securities backed primarily by consumer loans. The third component of the plan gives banks new capital to lend, but banks that receive new government assistance will have to cut the salaries and perks of their executives and limit dividends and corporate acquisitions. Banks must also publicly declare more information about their lending practices. With the newly proposed Treasury requirements, banks will have to give monthly statements on how many new loans they make, yet the plan stops short of ordering banks to issue new loans or requiring them to account in detail for the federal money. The Obama administration's commitment to flood the banking system with funds will combine the $350 billion left in the bailout fund; the rest of the money will be from private investors and the Federal Reserve. Some market observers, along with some federal legislators and economists, criticize the plan for its lack of details. [New York Times, 2/10/2009]
Entity Tags: Obama administration, US Federal Reserve, US Department of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, USA, Obama Policies and Actions
The salt marsh harvest mouse, currently receiving no funding from the Obama stimulus package. [Source: Environmental Protection Agency]Conservative opponents of the new stimulus package claim that the legislation allocates $30 million for saving the endangered salt marsh mouse, and would be spent entirely in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) district. The claim is part of a larger set of claims that the bill is "stuffed with Democratic pork" or "earmarks" (see January 23, 2009 and January 25-26, 2009). The claim is false, with Pelosi's office calling it a "total fabrication" and examination of the bill finding no mention of any such funding allocation. The claim begins with an e-mail from an unidentified House Republican staff member, who claims that he was told by an unidentified federal agency source that if that agency were to receive stimulus money, it would spend "thirty million dollars for wetland restoration in the San Francisco Bay Area—including work to protect the salt marsh harvest mouse." The e-mail identifies neither the agency nor the source, nor does it claim that the money is actually in the package. However, the story is quickly picked up and echoed by Republicans such as former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and Representative Mike Pence (R-IN), both of whom appear on Fox News stating the claim as unvarnished fact. Representative Dan Lundgren (R-CA) calls the supposed spending "absurd." And House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) asks how $30 million "for some salt marsh mouse in San Francisco is going to help a struggling auto worker in Ohio?" The Drudge Report makes the same claim. And the Washington Times runs an article entitled "Pelosi's mouse slated for $30m slice of cheese." The House staffer who circulates the e-mail later acknowledges that the claim, as stated by Huckabee, Lundgren, and others, is erroneous. "There is not specific language in the legislation for this project," he admits. However, the staffer claims: "If the bill passes, the project will be funded according to what the relevant agency told our staff. The bottom line is, if this bill becomes law, taxpayers will spend 30 million on the mouse." Pelosi's staff says that the $30 million is for federal wetland restoration projects such as the California State Coastal Conservancy, none of which will be spent on the salt marsh mouse or even in Pelosi's district. Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill says: "There are no federal wetland restoration projects in line to get funded in San Francisco. Neither the Speaker nor her staff have had any involvement in this initiative. The idea that $30 million will be spent to save mice is a total fabrication.… This is yet another contrived partisan attack. Restoration is key to economic activity, including farming, fisheries, recreation, and clean water." [Washington Times, 2/12/2009; Plum Line, 2/12/2009; Associated Content, 2/14/2009]
Entity Tags: Fox News, California State Coastal Conservancy, Dan Lundgren, Drudge Report, Mike Pence, Drew Hammill, Washington Times, John Boehner, Nancy Pelosi, Mike Huckabee
Category Tags: Obama Policies and Actions, Commentaries and Criticisms
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) accuses the Obama administration of colluding with Democrats to include a "high-speed rail system" from "Las Vegas [Nevada] to Disneyland" in the administration's economic stimulus package. "Tell me how spending $8 billion in this bill to have a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas is going to help the construction worker in my district," he demands. [US House of Representatives, 2/13/2009] Claim at Odds with Facts - Boehner is joined in the claim by several of his House Republican colleagues, including Patrick McHenry (R-NC), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI), and Candice Miller (R-MI), as well as Republican Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Jim DeMint (R-SC). Governor Bobby Jindal (R-LA) includes the claim in his response to President Obama's address to Congress regarding the stimulus package. Many of these lawmakers add the accusation that the supposed rail line, which they call a "levitating train," is an earmark inserted for Senate Majority Harry Reid (D-NV), whose state would benefit from the rail line. In reality, the stimulus bill does not set aside any money at all for a train of any kind between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The bill does provide $8 billion for unspecified high-speed rail projects, which includes "magnetic levitation," or maglev, train systems. The money will be allocated by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, one of two Republican holdovers from the Bush administration in President Obama's cabinet. A Department of Transportation spokesperson says it is "premature to speculate" about what exactly will be funded; the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense says there is "no way that this provision is an earmark for Senator Reid." The governors of Nevada and California—both Republicans—have indicated they would support such a maglev line between those two cities. The nonpartisan site FactCheck.org writes: "We can't predict the future, and it's certainly within the realm of possibility that the Republican who is Obama's transportation secretary will decide to devote the entire $8 billion to a project that is nowhere near shovel-ready and that the Federal Railroad Administration says is not cost-effective—all for the benefit of the Democratic majority leader. But we wouldn't bet on it." [FactCheck (.org), 2/25/2009; New York Times, 2/25/2009] The Center for American Progress notes that Republicans mock the idea of "levitating trains" because, apparently, "they [think] the term sounds funny." FactCheck observes, "In truth, 'levitating' trains really do exist—but they are properly called maglev trains, and they are high-tech marvels" employed in Japan, among other places. [FactCheck (.org), 2/25/2009; Think Progress, 3/2/2009] Plans Include Ohio Lines - While there are no plans for a train line of any kind between California and Nevada in the stimulus package, there are at least two proposals for rail lines in and out of Ohio, Boehner's state. The plans under consideration include a Cleveland-Toledo-Chicago line and a Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati-Indianapolis line. [Think Progress, 2/13/2009] Train to Las Vegas Brothel? - In March, a Republican House member will claim that the supposed "levitating train" will not just go to Las Vegas, but to a brothel. The claim is entirely false (see March 2, 2009).
Entity Tags: John McCain, Ray LaHood, Taxpayers for Common Sense, John Boehner, US Department of Transportation, Thaddeus McCotter, Jim DeMint, Patrick McHenry, Federal Railroad Administration, Bobby Jindal, Candice Miller, FactCheck (.org), Center for American Progress, Harry Reid
Less than one month after his inauguration, President Barack Obama signs into law a $787 billion recovery package, stating that this will "set our economy on a firmer foundation." However, Obama reiterates during the bill's signing ceremony at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science that he will not pretend "that today marks the end of our economic problems, nor does it constitute all of what we have to do to turn our economy around. Today marks the beginning of the end, the beginning of what we need to do to create jobs for Americans scrambling in the wake of layoffs." The legislative battle on the bill ended with only three Republican votes in the Senate and none in the House. As president-elect, Obama initially expected to spend between $675 billion and $775 billion on the recovery package, and the final number is almost exactly that. However, Congress included $70 billion worth of tax cuts in the bill they approved, although more than a few economists say $70 billion in tax cuts won't create as many new jobs as $70 billion in spending would. According to the government's Recovery (.gov) Web site, the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: Saves and creates more than 3.5 million jobs over the next two years; Takes a big step toward computerizing Americans' health records, reducing medical errors, and saving billions in health care costs; Revives the renewable energy industry and provides the capital over the next three years to eventually double domestic renewable energy capacity; Undertakes the largest weatherization program in history by modernizing 75 percent of federal building space and more than one million homes; Increases college affordability for seven million students by funding the shortfall in Pell Grants, increasing the maximum award level by $500, and providing a new higher education tax cut to nearly four million students; Enacts the largest increase in funding of the nation's roads, bridges, and mass transit systems since the creation of the national highway system in the 1950s; Provides an $800 "Making Work Pay" tax credit for 129 million working households, and cuts taxes for the families of millions of children through an expansion of the Child Tax Credit; Requires unprecedented levels of transparency, oversight, and accountability. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs says Obama will seek additional stimulus/recovery funding if needed. [New York Times, 2/17/2009; recovery.gov, 2/17/2009]
Entity Tags: Obama administration, Barack Obama, Robert Gibbs
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Commentaries on Economic Issues, USA, Obama Policies and Actions
A day after CNBC's Rick Santelli engaged in a "rant" against President Obama's economic policies, and called for a modern-day "tea party" to protest those policies (see February 19, 2009), White House press secretary Robert Gibbs invites Santelli to the White House for coffee and to discuss Obama's plan to help homeowners. "I'd be happy to buy him a cup of coffee," Gibbs says. "Decaf." Gibbs has said that Santelli needs to learn more about the economic bailout before engaging in such sharp criticism. "I've watched Mr. Santelli on cable the past 24 hours or so," he says. "I'm not entirely sure where Mr. Santelli lives or in what house he lives but the American people are struggling every day to meet their mortgages, stay in their jobs, pay their bills, send their kids to school.… Mr. Santelli has argued, I think quite wrongly, that this plan won't help everyone. This plan helps people who have been playing by the rules.… I would encourage him to read the president's plan.… It's tremendously important for people who rant on cable TV to be responsible and understand what it is they're talking about. I feel assured that Mr. Santelli doesn't know what he's talking about." Santelli, who has admitted to not reading the White House's bailout proposals, tells CNBC viewers he "would love to accept" the invitation, but—holding a tea bag to the cameras—says he prefers "tea" to coffee. [CNBC, 2/20/2009; Politico, 2/20/2009; Think Progress, 2/23/2009; New York Times, 2/23/2009; Associated Press, 3/2/2009] Shortly thereafter, Santelli will say that he felt "threatened" by Gibbs's reference to not knowing where he lives (see February 23, 2009).
Entity Tags: CNBC, Barack Obama, Obama administration, Rick Santelli, Robert Gibbs
Timeline Tags: Domestic Propaganda
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Commentaries and Criticisms, Obama Policies and Actions
President Obama names Earl Devaney to head the new Recovery Act Transparency and Accountability Board, a new agency designed to oversee the allocation and spending of the $787 billion economic stimulus plan. Devaney is a former Secret Service agent who, as the inspector general of the Department of the Interior, helped expose lobbyist corruption there; he will work closely with Vice President Joseph Biden, who will coordinate oversight of the stimulus spending. Devaney helped expose Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff's dealings with the Interior Department, and helped finger former Deputy Interior Secretary Steven Griles, who later pled guilty to charges of lying to Congress over his acceptance of bribes. Devaney also led an investigation of workers at the Interior Department's Minerals Management Service, where he discovered what he called a "culture of substance abuse and promiscuity" at the Denver and Washington offices of the service. [Associated Press, 2/22/2009]
Entity Tags: Minerals Management Service, Barack Obama, Earl Devaney, Recovery Act Transparency and Accountability Board, J. Steven Griles, US Department of the Interior, Joseph Biden
Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit is in talks with the US government to increase the amount of public ownership of the bank in a move both politicians and bank bosses hope will avert the need for the ailing corporation to be taken into FDIC receivership (see March 15, 2008). Talks commenced after Citigroup shares dropped more than 20 percent in late trading on Friday, leaving the business with a share value of $10.6 billion, with balance sheet assets of $1.95 trillion. Government receivership of Citigroup is seen as politically unpalatable, and US taxpayers could conceivably own up to 40 percent of Citigroup. Economists see government takeover of the corporation as evidence of other major banks struggling with insolvency. The failure of major banks will have calamitous repercussions. The US treasury says it remains committed to helping the banking industry recover without taking complete control. "Because our economy functions better when financial institutions are well managed in the private sector, the strong presumption… is that banks should remain in private hands," the Treasury Department said in a joint statement with the Federal Reserve. Speculation that a major Wall Street institution could be taken into public ownership toppled the market on Friday, February 20; likely targets were heavily rumored to be Citigroup and Bank of America. Bank of America lost nearly half its share value in three days before rallying late Friday afternoon. The latest talks center on a Treasury Department proposal to convert preference shares in Citigroup into new ordinary shares. This move would not involve additional taxpayer funds, but taxpayers would surrender the guaranteed dividends that come with preference stock, as well as some degree of protection in the event of a corporate collapse. Serious questions remain, such as the price at which new shares are issued. Estimates of the size of the government's eventual stake range from 25 percent to 40 percent. With this move, Barack Obama's administration would become a major presence on Citigroup's ordinary share register, thus diluting the interests of existing investors, and heightening fears of political pressure being brought on US banks. Some analysts suggest that banks relying on taxpayer bail-outs are being encouraged to focus lending and liquidity on the national US market. [Guardian, 2/23/2009]
Entity Tags: Obama administration, Citigroup, Vikram Pandit, US Department of the Treasury, US Federal Reserve
Representative Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) expresses her outrage over the so-called "Disneyland to Las Vegas" train (see February 13, 2009 and After), saying she cannot believe President Obama's economic stimulus plan has "$1 billion wasted on a magnetic-levitation train from LA to Sin City." When challenged by reporter Dick Spotswood over the disproven claim, Mack sends a staff member to "get him the bill, it's right there, show him." As Spotswood later reports, "A few minutes later, a staffer emerges with a copy and quietly says 'it's not in the bill.'" [Marin Independent Journal, 3/1/2009]
Entity Tags: Mary Bono Mack, Dick Spotswood
Citigroup logo. [Source: Citigroup]The latest government bailout gives Citigroup bond holders excellent terms and doesn't provide the bank with new money. Instead, Citigroup cut expenses with the elimination of preferred stock dividends, and also converted shares into common equity at an above-market-value of $3.25, positioning itself to take the first hit if it encounters additional losses. Analysts are predicting that the company's losses will continue to increase. Since the beginning of 2009, Citigroup's stock has fallen 78 percent. "Debt holders could eventually be required to participate in further government-led restructuring actions," Standard and Poor's says. [Bloomberg, 3/2/2009] Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit tells investors that increasing the bank's "tangible" common equity from $29.7 billion to as much as $81 billion should "take confidence issues off the table," about the bank's loss absorption ability. The bank lost $27.7 billion in 2008, and is predicted to lose $1.24 billion during the first six months of 2009. "There's no difference here," says Christopher Whalen, co-founder of Institutional Risk Analytics, a Torrance, California risk-advisory firm. "It won't fix revenue, and you're still going to see loss rates." Whalen says that the government's efforts are mainly protecting other financial institutions and foreign goverments that are Citigroup bonds holders. "The taxpayer is funding the operating loss and protecting the bondholders," Whalen notes. "The subsidy for the banks will become one of the biggest lines in Washington's budget." Government Should Organize Citigroup, AIG Bondholders - Whalen also says it would be better if the government organized Citigroup and insurer American International Group Inc. bondholders, since the insurer received a $150 billion US bailout, and also made a deal with the government to convert some of its debt to equity. US government investment fell by more than 50 percent, and the government plans to convert up to $25 billion of its preferred stock to common shares, gaining a 36 percent stake in the bank. At Friday's closing price of $1.50, government investment is worth approximately $11.5 billion. The bank itself has a stock market value of $8.2 billion as of market closing on February 27. Analyst: Investors Should Avoid Citigroup Shares - Richard Ramsden, head of a group of analysts at Goldman Sachs Group, recommends that investors avoid investing in Citigroup shares: "It is unclear whether this is the last round of capital restructuring, which means that existing equity may be further diluted in the future." The bank's move to convert preferred shares to common equity led Moody's Investors Service to adjust its senior debt rating for the bank from A3 to A2. Standard and Poor's also changed its outlook on the bank's debt from negative to stable. "Citi will face a tough credit cycle in the next two years, which will likely result in weak and volatile earnings," S&P analyst Scott Sprinzen says. "We cannot rule out the possibility that further government support may prove necessary." With the first two Citigroup rescue bailouts, the US Treasury bought $45 billion of preferred stock, and the Federal Reserve and FDIC guaranteed the bank against all but $29 billion of losses on a $301 billion portfolio of assets. With the third bailout, the Treasury, the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, and other preferred stockholders, agreed to take common stock at $3.25 a share, giving up dividends. The chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Charles Rangel (D-NY), says: "The administration and the past administration have tried so many different ways that we can only hope and pray that this time they get it right. It seems like with the banks it is a never-ending thing." [Bloomberg, 2/28/2009] Third US Rescue Forces Citigroup Board Changes - The Obama administration demonstrated its willingness to force changes on executives at top banks that receive taxpayer-funded rescue packages by pressing Citigroup to reorganize its 15-member board with new, more independent members. The move sends a message to Wall Street that there are consequences when taxpayer dollars are used to save them. "The government is the new boss, and the new executive committee is no longer on Park Avenue," says Michael Holland who, as chairman and founder of New York's Holland & Co., manages nearly $4 billion in investments. [Bloomberg, 3/2/2009]
Entity Tags: Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, Christopher Whalen, Charles Rangel, Alwaleed bin Talal, AIG (American International Group, Inc.), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Vikram Pandit, US Department of the Treasury, Citigroup, Richard Ramsden, Moody's Investors Service, Standard & Poor's, Michael Holland, Institutional Risk Analytics, Scott Sprinzen, US Federal Reserve
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, USA, AIG, Failing Companies, Obama Policies and Actions
Fox's Megyn Kelly. [Source: Huffington Post / 236 (.com)]Representative Trent Franks (R-AZ) builds on the false claim that Democrats want to build a "levitating train" from Los Angeles to Las Vegas as a favor to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV—see February 13, 2009 and After). Franks tells a credulous Fox News anchor that the train will not only go to Las Vegas, but to the door of Nevada's most famous brothel, the Moonlight Bunny Ranch. Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, repeating Franks's claim, says: "It's a super railroad, of sorts—a line that will deliver customers straight from Disney, we kid you not, to the doorstep of the Moonlight Bunny Ranch brothel in Nevada. I say, to the Moonlight Bunny Ranch brothel in Nevada. So should your tax dollars be paying for these kinds of projects?" Franks continues: "The majority leader of the US Senate, Harry Reid, has fought for this publicly and is committed to this project, even in the face of criticism.… If this is something that is truly the priority of the majority leader of the US senate, it's pretty late in the day, Megyn." No such earmark exists in either the stimulus package or Congress's omnibus spending bill; when the Center for American Progress (CAP) asks Franks's office to prove the claim, his staff refuses, and tells CAP to contact Reid's office. There is a proposal to refurbish a historical rail line between Gold Hill, Nevada and Carson City, Nevada, a substantially different proposal than the "levitating brothel train" Franks claims is being proposed. (The Moonlight Bunny Ranch is actually in Carson City, which may explain the genesis of Franks's claim.) Kelly asks Franks how politicians can be held accountable for such actions, and he responds, "Fortunately, people like yourself and Fox News are a tremendous help in that regard because they tell the people—you know, sunlight has a way of being an accountability all by itself" (see October 13, 2009). [Think Progress, 3/2/2009]
Entity Tags: Moonlight Bunny Ranch, Harry Reid, Trent Franks, Megyn Kelly, Center for American Progress, Fox News
US President Barack Obama attacks the payment of over $200 million in bonuses to top AIG employees (see March 15, 2009). As the company is being propped up by the government using public money (see September 16, 2008, October 8, 2008, and November 10, 2008), Obama calls the bonuses an "inappropriate use of taxpayer funds." [Reuters, 4/17/2009]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, AIG (American International Group, Inc.)
Category Tags: Failing Companies, USA, AIG, Obama Policies and Actions
The US House of Representatives passes a bill imposing a 90 percent tax on bonuses paid to AIG executives. The bonuses were set to be paid in December 2008 and earlier in the month, but there has been a public outcry against them, as the company had to be bailed out by the taxpayer six months ago (see September 16, 2008 and March 15, 2009). [Reuters, 4/17/2009] However, President Obama soon challenges the bill's legality, saying: "I think that as a general proposition, you don't wanna be passing laws that are just targeting a handful of individuals. You wanna pass laws that have some broad applicability. And as a general proposition, I think you certainly don't wanna use the tax code to punish people." The Democratic leadership in the Senate then says that it will wait and see what happens, instead of immediately acting on the bill forwarded by the House of Representatives. This effectively shelves the bill, although several of the executives give their bonuses back anyway (see March 24, 2009). [Politics Daily, 3/24/2009]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, US Congress, AIG (American International Group, Inc.)
Category Tags: AIG, Failing Companies, USA, Obama Policies and Actions
At least 19 Congressional Republicans, including House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), say that the Obama administration's "cap-and-trade" proposal would cost American families $3,128 apiece in extra taxes. Misrepresenting an MIT Study - Boehner, McConnell, and their fellow Republicans base their claim on a 2007 MIT study. However, one of the study's researchers, John Reilly, says that the Republicans are misreading it. According to Reilly, any tax burden on American families would not be felt until 2015, and the cost would be closer to $31 per person and $79 per year. The controversial claim originates in a Web posting by the House Republican Conference on March 24, which says: "The administration raises revenue for nationalized health care through a series of new taxes, including a light switch tax that would cost every American household $3,128 a year. What effect will this have on Americans struggling to pay their mortgages?" The St. Petersburg Times explains that the GOP's "light switch tax" is a reference to President Obama's proposal to tax power companies for carbon dioxide emissions, and allow companies to trade emissions credits among themselves. The program is called cap-and-trade. Republicans say the power companies would pass the tax on to electricity consumers, thus creating what they call a "light switch tax"—a term the Times calls misleading in and of itself. According to the MIT study, such a program would raise around $366 billion per year; Republicans divide that figure by the 117 million households in the US and get $3,128 in additional costs. Reilly says the Republicans are "just wrong. It's wrong in so many ways it's hard to begin." Corrected by Study's Author - And, Reilly says, he told House Republicans so when they contacted him on March 20. "I had explained why the estimate they had was probably incorrect and what they should do to correct it, but I think this wrong number was already floating around by that time." Republicans also claim that the Obama administration intends to use cap-and-trade money to pay for what they call "nationalized health care," a claim refuted by details of the program released by Obama officials. (House Republicans later amend this claim to say that the program will pay for "increased spending.") The Times notes that Boehner rebuffs a second attempt by Reilly to correct the claim that the program will cost American households over $3,000 per year. Further Falsehoods - Instead, nine other Republicans and the neoconservative Weekly Standard begin echoing the claim, with the Standard claiming that their figures show an annual cost of over $3,900 and accusing Reilly of "low-balling the cost of cap-and-trade by using some fuzzy logic." Reilly says the Standard "just completely twisted the whole thing.… It's false." Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) takes the claim even further, saying that the huge annual tax would be levied on "every living American." Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) restates the cost to $4,500 per family, and fellow House colleague Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) raises the rate to $4,560. Fox News correspondent Jim Angle reports Gregg's claim without refutation or examination; on a later Fox broadcast, Gregg says, "every time you turn on your light switch, you're going to be paying a tax." Denouncing the Lies - Reilly has written to Boehner and the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming to denounce the GOP's distortion of the MIT study. Democratic Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) accuses the Republicans of "using an intentional misrepresentation of the study," and says: "One of the things I find most distressing is their repeated falsehood about somehow a $3,000 increase in taxes on the American people based on a research done by MIT. They talked about it four times again last night!… The fact is that in the budget we have an opportunity for people who want to be legislators not communicators to help us allocate how those benefits will be utilized." [St. Petersburg Times, 3/30/2009; Think Progress, 4/1/2009; Think Progress, 4/2/2009]
Entity Tags: Judd Gregg, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Obama administration, John Reilly, Jim Angle, Cynthia Lummis, Earl Blumenauer, House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, House Republican Conference, John Boehner
Timeline Tags: Global Warming
Dick Morris discussing the economy on Fox News. [Source: Fox News]Conservative political pundit Dick Morris tells a Fox News audience that the recent G20 economic summit advocated a "global approach" to the current economic crisis, and discussed putting both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Reserve under the control of the International Monetary Fund—a position not advocated or discussed by anyone in the Obama administration. He worries that there will soon be what he calls "a supernational authority run by bureaucrats, not by elected officials, that will be telling the elected governments, including the United States, what its [economic] regulations should be." President Obama is far more amenable to the idea of allowing a multinational authority to control the US economy, Morris insists, and adds that Obama intends to preside over what he calls "a global redistribution of income, downward," using environmental policy as "an excuse." "We're about to meet Barack Obama the internationalist," Morris continues, "not fighting for American interests, but looking for global coordination." He concludes, "Those crazies in Montana who say, 'We're going to kill ATF agents because the UN's going to take over'—well, they're beginning to have a case." [Media Matters, 3/31/2009]
Entity Tags: Fox News, Dick Morris
Alisyn Camerota. [Source: Fox News]Several media outlets report discredited Republican claims that the Obama administration's "cap-and-trade" global warming initiative would cost American taxpayers over $3,000 per year. Fox News anchors Eric Shawn and Alisyn Camerota (see October 13, 2009), CNN producer Ted Barrett, and the Washington, DC, newspaper Roll Call repeat the claim, which originated in a March 23 House Republican Conference (HRC) "talking points" press release. [GOP (.gov), 3/23/2009; Media Matters, 4/6/2009] The claim points to a 2007 study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but one of the study's authors, John Reilly, says the Republicans' interpretation of it is wrong (see March 24 - April 2, 2009). Reilly says the average household cost of $3,128, as calculated by the HRC, is "nearly 10 times the correct estimate" based on his study's cap-and-trade model. The HRC's error is further shown by a March 30 analysis conducted by the St. Petersburg Times. [St. Petersburg Times, 3/30/2009; Media Matters, 4/6/2009] Both Reilly and the Times show that the average annual cost per household will be closer to $340. On Fox News's America's News HQ, Shawn claims "this cap-and-trade, or as the Republicans call it, cap-and-tax—could add $3,000 a year on our electric bills.… [T]hat's about—$290 or so a month. I mean, imagine the American public, everyone watching right now—all of us—getting an extra 300 bucks or so a month tacked on to our utility bills." Camerota tells viewers of Fox News's America's Newsroom that the cap-and-trade proposal "would be $3,100 per US household." Roll Call's Jay Heflin publishes a claim by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) that "the effort equates to a 'light switch tax' of up to $3,128 each year for families" without informing readers of Reilly's and the Times's differing analysis. [Media Matters, 4/6/2009; Roll Call, 4/6/2009] Similarly, on CNN's Political Ticker blog, Barrett repeats a similar claim, writing, "Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell praised the Senate for having 'slammed the door on using the fast-track process to jam through a new national energy tax' that Republicans say will cost families $3,000 a year in higher energy costs." [CNN, 4/1/2009; Media Matters, 4/6/2009]
Entity Tags: Obama administration, Ted Barrett, St. Petersburg Times, John Reilly, House Republican Conference, Jay Heflin, Alisyn Camerota, John Cornyn, CNN, Fox News, Eric Shawn, Roll Call
Fox News on-screen chyron falsely claiming Obama's 2010 budget is four times larger than biggest Bush budget. [Source: Media Matters]Fox News's flagship morning news broadcast, America's Newsroom, displays an on-screen "chyron" that falsely claims the 2010 budget proposed by President Obama—$3.6 trillion—is four times the largest budget ever submitted by former President Bush. As progressive media watchdog Web site Media Matters notes, Bush submitted a $3.1 trillion budget for 2009 and a $2.9 trillion budget for 2008 (see October 13, 2009). [Media Matters, 4/3/2009]
Entity Tags: George W. Bush, Media Matters, Barack Obama, Fox News
Category Tags: US Monetary Policy, Obama Policies and Actions, Commentaries and Criticisms
President Barack Obama implements a home mortgage rescue plan that he says will prevent as many as 9 million Americans from losing their homes to foreclosure. Obama says that turning around the battered economy requires stemming the continuing tide of foreclosures. He says that the housing crisis that began last year set many other factors in motion and helped lead to the current, widening recession. "In the end, all of us are paying a price for this home mortgage crisis," Obama says. "All of us will pay an even steeper price if we allow this crisis to deepen. The American dream is being tested by a home mortgage crisis that not only threatens the stability of our economy but also the stability of families and neighborhoods. While this crisis is vast, it begins just one house and one family at a time." Of the nearly 52 million US homeowners with a mortgage, about 13.8 million, or nearly 27 percent, owe more on their mortgage than their home is currently worth. Obama's plan contains three initiatives: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac homeowners owing between 80 and 105 percent of what their homes are worth can refinance their mortgage. Prior to implementation of the rescue plan, only those borrowers with at least 20 percent home equity could refinance. Refinancing at a lower rate may save borrowers thousands of dollars yearly on their mortgage payments. Banks will be encouraged to work with homeowners to modify existing mortgages, which is different from refinancing. The Bush administration plan, "Hope for Homeowners," passed late in 2008, tried to do what Obama has now accomplished, but, since banks were not eager to modify terms to help people stay in their houses, the Bush plan is considered a failure. Under Obama's plan, banks who received TARP funding will have to participate and, if they do not, Obama may request that the Congress allow bankruptcy judges to modify mortgage terms. Before Obama's new plan, judges already had the power to modify mortgage terms on a homeowner's second and third homes, although not on their primary residences. Interest rates will be kept low by having the Treasury Department buy up mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in the hope of re-inflating the market for mortgage-related products, even if Treasury may be overpaying for toxic assets in a market with few, if any, other buyers. [Mother Jones, 2/18/2009; CNN, 4/16/2009]
Entity Tags: US Department of the Treasury, Barack Obama, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, George W. Bush, Troubled Asset Relief Program
The US Senate rejects an amendment to the US Bankruptcy Code supported by President Barack Obama that would have saved nearly 2 million homeowners facing foreclosure. Sponsored for the second time in as many years by Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL), the controversial amendment would have given judges the power to modify home mortgages, but strong opposition from the banking industry—as well as 39 Republicans and 12 Democrats—prevents passage. The House version of the controversial measure passed in March 2009. Called the 'cramdown,' the provision was supported by Obama as a final recourse for people to keep their homes. The amendment was a major priority of congressional Democrats and the Obama administration in a drive to tackle the housing crisis. "[H]ard to believe in a time when we're facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created—[that the banks] are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place," Durbin said earlier in the week during an interview with Illinois radio. [ProgressIllinois.com, 4/29/2009; MinnPost.com, 4/30/2009]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, Richard ("Dick") Durbin
In an interview with Bill Moyers, Robert Reich, former labor secretary under President Clinton, says: "I believe that there's no doubt that we're going down to government intervention everywhere, government ownership unprecedented in this country. And it's a long road and a slippery slope. Essentially, capitalism has swamped democracy. The Bush administration started the bank bailouts because the financial system had overreached with wild speculation and was on the verge of breaking down. Tim Geithner and [President] Obama are continuing these big bank bailouts, and I happen to think the bailouts have not worked very well, except as a kind of socialism for big corporations. There's no such thing as pure capitalism without rules and regulations that set limits on profit making, because otherwise it's everybody out for themselves. Otherwise, nobody can trust anybody. Otherwise, it's the law of the jungle.… We rely upon government to set the boundaries—this can't happen because it's fraud, that can't happen because you're stealing something, this can't happen because you're imposing a huge burden on other people. Unless you have a democratic system that allows the rules to be created not by the companies but by the people and the people's representatives reflecting what the public needs—not what the corporations need—you're going to have a system that is not a democracy and not democratic capitalism. It's super capitalism without the democracy. People pressuring their individual Congress members and Obama standing up to the banking industry will force real regulation. There will be no recovery in the sense of going back to where we were because the old path was unsustainable. If we don't lift middle class wages, if we don't get some control over Wall Street, if we don't have genuine health care reform, if we don't do something about the environment and global warming, we will not have a recovery. The next downturn is going to be worse than the downturn we just had, so there's no going backwards. In every conversation I've participated in with the president, I was left with the impression that he understood this very, very well. I think most of the people around him understand this. The question is can he pull this off? Can he overcome the vested interests? It will be a clear indication of his toughness with regard to the willingness to twist arms and demand that the public interest be foremost." [Bill Moyers Journal, 6/12/2009]
Entity Tags: Timothy Geithner, Bill Moyers, Robert Reich, Barack Obama
Category Tags: Commentaries on Economic Issues, Commentaries and Criticisms, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) spent $314.3 million to shut down 16 banks in June 2009, according to reports released today. The federal insurer closed seven banks on June 25, pushing the number of bank failures for 2009 to 52, more than double the failures for all of 2008. The late June closures included six Illinois regional banks, all controlled by one family whose bank business model, according to the FDIC, "created concentrated exposure in each institution." The FDIC says that the failure of the six family-owned banks is due to the banks' investments in collateralized debt obligations and other losses. The failures and subsequent government takeover of the Illinois banks brought total 2009 Illinois bank failures to 12. Local and regional banks have been especially hard hit by plummeting home values that devalued mortgage-backed assets, while rising unemployment rates forced increased numbers of consumers to default on their loans. June 2009 Bank Failures FDIC Update through July 2, 2009 - Founders Bank, Worth, Illinois, with approximately $962.5 million in assets, closed. The PrivateBank and Trust Company, Chicago, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximatedly $848.9 million. Millennium State Bank of Texas, Dallas, Texas, approximately $118 million in assets, closed. State Bank of Texas, Irving, Texas, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $115 million. The First National Bank of Danville, Danville, Illinois, approximately $166 million in assets, closed. First Financial Bank, N. A., Terre Haute, Indiana, assumed all deposits, approximately $147 million. The Elizabeth State Bank, Elizabeth, Illinois, approximately $55.5 million in assets, closed. Galena State Bank and Trust Company, Galena, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $50.4 million. Rock River Bank, Oregon, Illinois, approximately $77 million in assets, closed. The Harvard State Bank, Harvard, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $75.8 million. The First State Bank of Winchester, Winchester, Illinois, approximately $36 million in assets, closed. The First National Bank of Beardstown, Beardstown, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $34 million. The John Warner Bank, Clinton, Illinois, with approximately $70 million in assets, was closed. State Bank of Lincoln, Lincoln, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximaedly $64 million. Mirae Bank, Los Angeles, California, approximately $456 million in assets, closed. Wilshire State Bank, Los Angeles, California, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $362 million. MetroPacific Bank, Irvine, California, approximately $80 million in assets, closed. Sunwest Bank, Tustin, California, agreed to assume all non-brokered deposits, approximately $73 million. Horizon Bank, Pine City, Minnesota, approximately $87.6 million in assets, closed. Stearns Bank N. A., St. Cloud, Minnesota, agreed to assume all deposits, excluding certain brokered deposits, approximately $69.4 million. Neighbor Community Bank, Newnan, Georgia, approximately $221.6 million in assets, closed. CharterBank, West Point, Georgia, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $191.3 million. Community Bank of West Georgia, Villa Rica, Georgia, approximately $199.4 million in assets and approximately $182.5 million in deposits, approved for payout by the FDIC board of directors. First National Bank of Anthony, Anthony, Kansas, approximately $156.9 million in assets, closed. Bank of Kansas, South Hutchinson, Kansas, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $142.5 million. Cooperative Bank, Wilmington, North Carolina, approximately $970 million in assets, closed. First Bank, Troy, North Carolina, agreed to assume all deposits, excluding certain brokered deposits, approximately $774 million. Southern Community Bank, Fayetteville, Georgia, approximately $377 million in assets, closed. United Community Bank, Blairsville, Georgia, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $307 million. Bank of Lincolnwood, Lincolnwood, Illinois, approximately $214 million in assets, closed. Republic Bank of Chicago, Oak Brook, Illinois, agreed to assume all deposits, approximately $202 million. [CNN, 7/2/2009; FDIC.gov, 7/2/2009]
Entity Tags: Martin J. Gruenberg, Sheila Bair, John E. Bowman, Thomas J. Curry, John C. Dugan, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Failing Companies, USA, Obama Policies and Actions
Eighteen consecutive months of job losses and an economy on the verge of collapse have left record numbers of US consumers either unable to pay their debts or chronically late in payments during the first quarter of 2009. According to the American Bankers Association, home equity loan delinquencies rose to 3.52 percent, from 3.03 percent of all accounts in the last quarter of 2008. Late payments on home equity credit lines climbed a record 1.89 percent, and an index of eight types of loans rose to 3.23 percent from 3.22 percent for a fourth consecutive quarter. In a telephone interview with Bloomberg, the American Bankers Association's chief economist, James Chessen says: "The number one driver of delinquencies is job losses, which we've seen build and build. Delinquencies won't come down without a dramatic improvement in the economy, and businesses will have to start hiring again." For the first quarter of 2009, the US economy lost an average of 691,000 jobs in each of the quarter's three months. According to a Bloomberg survey of 61 economists, since the recession began in December 2007, more than 6.5 million jobs have been cut, and the US economy will shrink in 2009 the most since 1946. Outstanding debt on bank card delinquencies rose a record 6.60 percent in first quarter 2009, from 5.52 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, indicating that unemployed borrowers are relying on bank cards, as housing prices corrode their home equity. The ABA stated that more borrowers are using cards to meet daily expenses following their job losses. US banks distributed 9.8 million credit cards from January through April 2009, a 38 percent decline from the same period a year earlier, with the average limit for a new bank card falling 3 percent to $4,594, according to data released by credit reporting agency Equifax. "There is less equity to draw on and certainly financial institutions have been scaling back the available lines of credit," Chessen says. [Bloomberg, 7/7/2009; American Bankers Association, 7/7/2009]
Entity Tags: James Chessen, American Bankers Association (ABA)
Category Tags: Commentaries on Economic Issues, Other, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) regulators take over real estate lender Colonial BancGroup Inc. in the biggest US bank failure this year. Regulators also close four banks in Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania. This increases to 77 the number of federally insured banks that have failed in 2009. The FDIC is appointed receiver of Colonial BancGroup, based in Montgomery, Alabama; Community Bank of Arizona, based in Phoenix; Union Bank, based in Gilbert, Arizona; Community Bank of Nevada, based in Las Vegas; and Dwelling House Savings and Loan Association, located in Pittsburgh. The FDIC approves the sale of Colonial's $20 billion in deposits and about $22 billion of its assets to BB&T Corp., which is based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. According to the FDIC, the failed bank's 346 branches in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Texas will reopen at normal times starting on Saturday as BB&T offices. A temporary government bank is established by the FDIC for Community Bank of Nevada to give depositors approximately 30 days to open accounts at other financial institutions. As of June 30, Community Bank of Nevada had assets of $1.52 billion and deposits of $1.38 billion; Community Bank of Arizona had assets of $158.5 million and deposits of $143.8 million; Union Bank had assets of $124 million and deposits of $112 million as of June 12. MidFirst Bank, based in Oklahoma City, agrees to assume all the deposits and $125.5 million of the assets of Community Bank of Arizona, as well as about $24 million of the deposits and $11 million of the assets of Union Bank, with the FDIC retaining what's left for eventual sale. Dwelling House had $13.4 million in assets and $13.8 million in deposits as of March 31. PNC Bank, part of Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group Inc., agrees to assume all of Dwelling House's deposits and about $3 million of its assets; the FDIC will hold the rest for eventual sale. The FDIC expects Colonial BancGroup's failure to cost it an estimated $2.8 billion and that of Community Bank of Nevada, $781.5 million; Union Bank, $61 million; Community Bank of Arizona, $25.5 million; and Dwelling House, $6.8 million. The 77 bank failures nationwide this year compare with 25 last year and three in 2007. As the economy spiraled downward, bank failures increased seismically, siphoning billions out of the FDIC which, at $13 billion as of the first quarter, is at its lowest level since 1993. While losses on home mortgages may be leveling, commercial real estate loan delinquencies remain a potential trouble spot, say FDIC officials. The FDIC's list of problem institutions soared to 305 in first quarter 2009—the highest since the savings and loan crisis in 1994—increasing from 252 in fourth quarter 2008. Regulators anticipate US bank failures will cost the FDIC about $70 billion through 2013. The shutdown in May of Florida thrift BankUnited is expected to cost the federal insurer $4.9 billion, the second-largest hit since the financial crisis commenced. So far, the costliest is the seizure of big California lender IndyMac Bank in 2008, where it is estimated that the FDIC lost $10.7 billion. In September 2008, the largest US bank failure was the failure of Seattle-based Washington Mutual Inc. (WAMU), with about $307 billion in assets. In a deal brokered by the FDIC, JP Morgan Chase and Co. purchased WAMU for $1.9 billion. [fdic.gov, 8/2009; ABC News, 8/14/2009]
Entity Tags: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Colonial BancGroup, Inc., IndyMac Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Washington Mutual Inc.
Category Tags: Failing Companies, USA, Obama Policies and Actions
Since implementing a program to help millions of homeowners restructure their mortgages to prevent foreclosure, only 235,247 loans have actually been modified, according to the US Treasury Department in its first progress report. After the plan was announced in February, the first banking institutions began accepting applications in April. Between now and 2012, the Obama administration says it is on track to assist 4 million homeowners. The report occurs a week after the administration summoned institutions to Washington to discuss speeding up the program after large numbers of borrowers' complaints that assistance was barely occurring. The Obama administration plans 500,000 modifications by November 1, and hopes to hold the institutions responsible for their performance with the release of monthly reports that allow consumers to see which banks are slow to implement the plan. So far, institutions have extended offers to 15 percent or 406,542 homeowners in danger of losing their homes, with uneven performances by 38 participating servicers. Morgan Stanley's subsidiary, Saxon Mortgage Services, tops the list with 25 percent of its delinquent loans placed in trial modifications. Saxon is followed by Aurora Loan Services, a Lehman Brothers Bank subsidiary, with 21 percent. GMAC Mortgage, partially owned by the US government, has put 20 percent of its troubled loans into trial modifications, while major banks JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America have late loan trial modifications of 20 percent, 15 percent, 6 percent, and 5 percent respectively. The lenders acknowledge that they must improve their performance, and say that they are committed to President Obama's foreclosure prevention plan, stressing that they were already performing modifications prior to the administration's program. Wells Fargo says that it will soon have the ability to send eligible borrowers trial modification agreements within 48 hours. "We set a high bar for ourselves in terms of customer service, and we didn't hit that bar in all cases in the first seven months of this year," says Mike Heid, co-president of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, "We have added 4,000 employees to our loan workout division this year. JPMorgan Chase says it has another 150,000 applications in need of processing and is currently training an extra 950 workout specialists hired earlier in 2009, bringing its modification staff to 3,500 people. "We know we've got more work to do," says Chase spokesman Tom Kelly. "But the bank is pleased with its performance to date." CitiGroup's mortgage agency, CitiMortgage, added 1,400 staffers to its modification team, with 800 dedicated to loss mitigation at its recently opened Tucson, AZ call center. It began placing troubled borrowers in trial modifications in early June. "In the next quarter, one can expect the pace will be even higher," Sanjiv Das, CitiMortgage head, says. Bank of America says it needs to improve its reach out efforts, while noting that it holds nearly one in four trial modifications offered under the Obama plan and has extended nearly 100,000 offers, although only 28,000 trial modifications are in process. Bank of America purchased mortgage giant Countrywide Financial last year, and has the largest number of eligible delinquent loans with almost 800,000. Borrowers have been pressuring the Obama administration as well as servicers and are complaining that servicers are not responding to applications and calls, are losing their paperwork, and are not making timely decisions. Servicers say they are increasing their staffing and upgrading their computer systems to handle the hefty increase in applications. Says Michael Barr, assistant US Treasury secretary for financial institutions, "We are working with servicers to ensure that they can adequately implement the program and servicers are increasing staff and training, but they must also treat borrowers more respectfully and respond in a much timelier manner." [CNN News, 8/9/2009]
Entity Tags: Countrywide Financial, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Bank of America, Aurora Loan Services, US Department of the Treasury, Citigroup, Tom Kelly, Sanjiv Das, GMAC, JP Morgan Chase, CitiMortgage, Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley, Michael Barr, Saxon Mortgage Services
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Commentaries on Economic Issues, Failing Companies, Obama Policies and Actions
In their new report, "The State of Working America 2008-2009," two economists at leading US think tank Economic Policy Institute (EPI) issue warnings that US workers will face harsh challenges as what they term "the Great Recession of 2007" draws to a close. Unemployment - Heidi Shierholz and Lawrence Mishel, co-authors of the report, say that the extent of the huge global crash would have been much worse without President Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. "The disaster would have been even worse without the stimulus law President Obama pushed through earlier this year," Shierholz says. "Job losses would have been so high that the July unemployment figures would have been 9.6 percent or 9.7 percent, not 9.4 percent. We expect a steady climb in the unemployment rate up and over 10 percent by the end of the year. And it'll rise slightly above 10 percent for a few months in 2010 before turning downwards. Until the economy is adding 122,000 jobs per month to take care of the people coming into the job market, unemployment will stay high. We still have a long way to go." Human Cost - Both economists speak of the human penalty. "This is more than a bunch of dry numbers," Mishel declares. "One-third of the jobless—a record—have been out of work at least six months. Many have exhausted their unemployment benefits, which translate into bankruptcies, lost homes, no medical care, and more ills afflicting workers—even employed workers. This recession is much more than just the numbers of unemployed and underemployed, which is also setting a record," he says. "Employed workers are seeing their hours cut, there's an implosion in wage growth, and about 17 percent of large private employers have resorted to unpaid furloughs to save money." Mishel explains that a one-week furlough is the equivalent of a 2 percent pay cut for a worker and his or her family. Media Coverage Poor - In their report, the economists also criticize major media's coverage of the crisis, urging workers not to fall for the usual chatter that things will automatically improve once productivity rises. "In the popular media, economic experts endlessly debate dynamics and causes of the downturn but most of these debates have very little to do with the real economic challenges facing working families today. The men and women of the workforce have worked harder and smarter to make the US a world-class economy and the mantra among economists and policy makers is that 'as grows productivity, so shall living standards improve.' Would that it was so." 'YOYO Economics' - Prior to the crash, the report says, workers faced "rising inequality and lower real incomes for all but the richest 5 percent, diminished bargaining power, less health coverage, riskier pensions if any at all, income constraints that prevent workers' kids from getting college educations to better themselves, and fewer high-paying jobs for those college grads, due to off-shoring and outsourcing." The report nicknames it "YOYO ('You're on your own') economics." "We are in a unique position to judge the results of this experiment in reduced worker bargaining power and YOYO economics," write the two economists. "The macro-economy is in serious disrepair and policymakers must move beyond temporary patches to fundamentally remake the economy so that it works for workers." Effect of Stimulus - The two offer praise for the Obama administration's move to correct economic imbalances with the $787 billion stimulus package, the "cash for clunkers" program, initiatives to help the Detroit auto industry, and the $500 million "green jobs" initiative that have "partially staunched the bleeding." Mishel predicts that, in conjunction with these programs, Congress will pass a second federal extension of unemployment benefits. They also argue that there should be fundamental restructuring away from "free market" policies that give corporations and financiers free sovereignty while the masses are forced to tighten their belts. [People's Weekly World Newspaper, 9/4/2009]
Entity Tags: Lawrence Mishel, Economic Policy Institute, Heidi Shierholz
Category Tags: Commentaries on Economic Issues, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
Having received what the Obama administration calls "exceptional assistance," American International Group (AIG), Citigroup, Bank of America, General Motors (GM), GMAC, Chrysler, and Chrysler Financial are now meeting with executive pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg, and must submit 2009 pay plans for their top 25 executives. In turn, Feinberg must perform a 60-day assessment while working with the seven companies on their salary configurations. Plans for the other 75 executives of the seven corporations are due later. Exorbitant executive pay and bonuses has its critics, with many outraged that the companies are collecting taxpayer money only to pay out expensive bonuses during a massive recession. Others fear that the feds have insinuated themselves too deeply into private business affairs. Feinberg himself admits that his job has built-in conflicts. "Historically, the American people frown on the notion of government insinuating itself into the private marketplace," he says in an interview, one day after his appointment. "My answer to those critics is I understand that concern, I share that concern, and the question is how do you strike a balance between that legitimate concern and the populist outrage at prior industry compensation practices?" The Obama administration has already seen and experienced taxpayers' fury; Feinberg hopes to avoid such outrage. Corporations must prove to him that they are rewarding good performance and discouraging undue risk-taking. "We are not going to provide a running commentary on that process, but it's clear that Mr. Feinberg has broad authority to make sure that compensation at those firms strikes an appropriate balance," say US Treasury Department spokespersons, while noting that Feinberg can't force companies to renege on contract obligations executed prior to February 12, 2009. However, this hasn't prevented cries of foul play by critics upset over excessive government interference in private businesses. "No matter which way I turn, you're facing criticism either from those who are appalled at what these companies did versus those who question the value of the government getting involved," Feinberg says. The recently appointed executive compensation czar is used to dealing with contentious sides having served as compensation fund chairman for the families of victims of the September 11 attacks. [ABC News, 8/12/2009]
Entity Tags: Chrysler Financial, AIG (American International Group, Inc.), Bank of America, Citigroup, Chrysler, General Motors, GMAC, US Department of the Treasury
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, Commentaries on Economic Issues, Obama Policies and Actions
Fox News host Sean Hannity has as a guest Fox business commentator Stuart Varney. Varney accuses the Obama administration of implementing "socialist," "un-American" economic policies. "We've had an 18-month experiment with American socialism," Varney claims, and "we do not like it, we want to reverse it." President Obama's economic policies, Varney says, are "un-American." [Media Matters, 11/17/2010]
Entity Tags: Fox News, Barack Obama, Sean Hannity, Obama administration, Stuart Varney
Category Tags: Bailouts and Other Government Aid, USA, Obama Policies and Actions, Commentaries and Criticisms
A list of 10 companies that have avoided paying US income taxes is provided by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who is pushing for legislation that will close the legal tax loopholes that allow large corporations to avoid the bulk of their tax responsibilities. Chicago Sun-Times reporter Lynn Sweet writes, "Some people call the income tax system with generous loopholes for big companies corporate welfare or corporate entitlements." Sanders's list, based on returns and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documents filed in 2009 and earlier, includes: ExxonMobil. The oil giant made $19 billion in profits in 2009, but paid no federal income taxes, and received a $156 million tax rebate. Bank of America (BoA). The financial corporation made $4.4 billion in profits in 2009, and received nearly $1 trillion in Federal Reserve and Treasury Department "bailout" funds. The bank received a $1.9 billion tax refund. General Electric. This multinational conglomerate made $26 billion in profits in the US, and over the last five years has received $4.1 billion in tax refunds. Chevron. The oil giant made $10 billion in profits in 2009, and received a $19 million refund from the IRS. Boeing. The defense contractor received a $30 billion contract from the US Department of Defense in 2009 to build 179 airborne tankers, and received a $124 million tax refund. Valero Energy. This energy corporation, the 25th largest company in the US, garnered $68 billion in sales in 2009, and received $157 million in tax refunds. Over the last three years, Valero has received a $134 million tax break from the oil and gas manufacturing tax deduction. Goldman Sachs. The financial giant paid only 1.1 percent of its income in taxes in 2008, though it recorded $2.3 billion in profits. It also received nearly $800 billion from the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department. Citigroup. The financial conglomerate made over $4 billion in profits in 2010, but paid no federal income taxes. It received a $2.5 trillion "bailout" from the Federal Reserve and Treasury. ConocoPhillips. The oil conglomerate garnered $16 billion in profits from 2007 through 2009, paid no taxes, and received $451 million in tax breaks through the oil and gas manufacturing deduction. Carnival Cruise Lines. This entertainment giant made over $11 billion in profits between 2006 and 2011, but paid only 1.1 percent of its income in taxes during that period. In a press release calling for "shared sacrifice," Sanders writes: "While hard working Americans fill out their income tax returns this tax season, General Electric and other giant profitable corporations are avoiding US taxes altogether.… [T]he wealthiest Americans and most profitable corporations must do their share to help bring down our record-breaking deficit." Sanders writes that "it is grossly unfair for Congressional Republicans to propose major cuts to Head Start, Pell Grants, the Social Security Administration, nutrition grants for pregnant low-income women, and the Environmental Protection Agency while ignoring the reality that some of the most profitable corporations pay nothing or almost nothing in federal income taxes." Sanders calls for closing corporate tax loopholes and eliminating the deductions for oil and gas companies. He is also introducing legislation that would impose a 5.4 percent surtax on millionaires that would garner as much as $50 billion a year in tax revenues. Sanders says: "We have a deficit problem. It has to be addressed, but it cannot be addressed on the backs of the sick, the elderly, the poor, young people, the most vulnerable in this country. The wealthiest people and the largest corporations in this country have got to contribute. We've got to talk about shared sacrifice." [Chicago Sun-Times, 3/27/2011]
Entity Tags: Boeing Company, Carnival Cruise Lines, Citigroup, Bernie Sanders, Bank of America, ConocoPhillips, Goldman Sachs, Chevron, Lynn Sweet, Valero Energy Corporation, General Electric, ExxonMobil
Category Tags: US Monetary Policy, Bailouts and Other Government Aid, USA, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
Representative Michele Bachmann (R-MN) tells a CBS News viewing audience that the Obama administration is lying when it says the US government would default on its loans if Congress refuses to raise the US debt ceiling. Bachmann accuses the Obama administration of using "scare tactics" to push for a debt-ceiling increase. Bachmann has said previously that Congress should not raise the debt ceiling (see April 30, 2011). Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and other Obama adminstration members, along with a bevy of economists and financial leaders including Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and former Chairman Alan Greenspan, have urged Congress to raise the debt ceiling by August 2 to avoid the US defaulting on its outstanding loans and engendering what many call an economic catastrophe (see May 20, 2011). The US Treasury has used accounting steps, what it calls "extraordinary measures," to avoid default since the nation reached its debt limit on May 16. The final deadline for the US to raise its debt limit is August 2. Bernanke and others have said that even a brief US default could cause an uproar in the global economy. But Bachmann says she has "no intention" of voting for a hike to the limit, saying instead: "It isn't true that the government would default on its debt. Because, very simply, the Treasury secretary can pay the interest on the debt first, and then, from there, we have to just prioritize our spending." Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer asks Bachman: "Experts inside and outside the government say that, if we don't raise the debt ceiling, we face the United States having to default on its financial obligations. Are you saying these are scare tactics? Or are you saying that's not true? How can you say that?" Bachmann replies: "It is scare tactics. Because, Bob, the interest on the debt isn't any more than 10 percent of what we're taking in. In fact, it's less than that. And so the Treasury secretary can very simply pay the interest on the debt first, then we're not in default.… What it means is we have to seriously prioritize. It would be very tough love. But, I have been here long enough in Washington, DC, that I've seen smoke and mirrors time and time again." Bachmann says if elected president, she would end the nation's deficit problem by making extreme cuts in spending. "I would begin very seriously by cutting spending," she says. "President Obama, again, he spent a trillion dollar stimulus program that's been an abject failure. We need to seriously cut back on spending first and foremost, and then prioritize." Her only recommendation to handle the job crisis is to cut corporate tax rates; she explains: "We have one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world; we need to drop that significantly, so that we have a pro-business, pro-job creation environment. So if we cut back the corporate tax rate, if we would zero out the capital gains rates, allow for 100 percent expensing when a job creator buys equipment for their business, that would go a long way toward job creators recognizing that this is a pro-business environment." She says that the administration's health care package, which she calls "Obamacare," will cost "800,000 jobs." Schieffer says, "That is data that other people would question," and she retorts by saying the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), not she herself, has made that claim. A recent analysis by the St. Petersburg Times's PolitiFact showed that Bachmann's claim of "Obamacare" costing 800,000 jobs is an "exaggeration" of the CBO's figures, and is "misleading." Bachmann dodges questions about the elimination of the minimum wage, which she has advocated since 2005, and the elimination of farm subsidies, from which she and her family have benefited. [CBS News, 6/26/2011]
Entity Tags: CBS News, Alan Greenspan, Barack Obama, Bob Schieffer, US Department of the Treasury, PolitiFact (.org ), Congressional Budget Office, Ben Bernanke, Obama administration, Michele Bachmann, Timothy Geithner
Category Tags: USA, 2011 US Credit Default, Commentaries and Criticisms, Obama Policies and Actions
President Obama tells CBS News interviewer Scott Pelley that he cannot guarantee Social Security recipients will get paid on August 3 if Congressional Republicans block the government from raising its debt ceiling by August 2. If the debt ceiling is not raised by that date, the US will go into default on the debt it owes to other nations. "I cannot guarantee that those checks go out on August 3rd if we haven't resolved this issue," he says, "because there may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it." The Obama administration and a large number of economists and financial leaders have warned of economic catastrophe if America defaults on its debt (see May 20, 2011); many Congressional Republicans, led by the House Tea Party Caucus, have refused to consider the idea of raising the debt ceiling (see April 30, 2011 and June 26, 2011), and some even welcome the idea of a debt default. Many Republicans and Democrats are attempting to use the debt ceiling issue to work out a larger economic approach to long-term deficit reduction. Republicans want huge federal spending cuts, mostly from social safety-net programs such as Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, while Democrats want smaller spending cuts balanced by increased revenue through tax increases on the wealthy and the closing of corporate tax loopholes. Obama warns: "[T]his is not just a matter of Social Security checks. These are veterans checks, these are folks on disability and their checks. There are about 70 million checks that go out." Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) states flatly that Congressional Republicans have no intention of attempting to work with Democrats or the Obama administration to balance the budget or reduce the deficit, saying, "After years of discussions and months of negotiations, I have little question that as long as this president is in the Oval Office, a real solution is probably unattainable." However, McConnell says Congressional Republicans would work to avoid default. "The president has presented us with three choices: smoke and mirrors, tax hikes, or default," McConnell says in remarks on the Senate floor. "Republicans choose none of the above. I had hoped to do good, but I refuse to do harm. So Republicans will choose a path that actually reflects the will of the people, which is to do the responsible thing and ensure that the government doesn't default on its obligations." Obama says he would refuse to sign a short-term debt ceiling increase, a tactic advocated by Republican strategists who want to bring the issue up again, and perhaps force another economic crisis, in the middle of the 2012 presidential campaign. "This is the United States of America and, you know, we don't manage our affairs in three-month increments," Obama tells reporters. "You know, we don't risk US default on our obligations because we can't put politics aside." [CBS News, 7/12/2011; Daily Mail, 7/13/2011] The next day, McConnell offers an "alternative" debt ceiling plan which many see as fraught with political costs for Obama and Congressional Democrats (see July 13, 2011).
Entity Tags: Scott Pelley, Barack Obama, CBS News, Mitch McConnell, US Congress, US House of Representatives Tea Party Caucus
Category Tags: USA, 2011 US Credit Default, Obama Policies and Actions
The nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) finds that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly the "food stamp" program, is playing a critical role in keeping American citizens from starving during the economic recession. The program has long been reviled by Republicans and conservatives, and recently Republican presidential contender Newt Gingrich (R-GA) smeared President Obama as "the food stamp president" (see November 30 - December 2, 2011 and January 5, 2012), and falsely claimed that Obama has presided over the largest increase of Americans receiving SNAP assistance in US history (see January 17, 2012). The program benefits a disproportionately large number of children and disabled and elderly people, according to the CBPP. Since the recession began in late 2007, the CBPP says, "SNAP has responded effectively to the recession" in providing much-needed assistance to Americans, particularly since the recession has driven many families into "low-income" status. "According to the Census Bureau's Supplemental Poverty Measure, which counts SNAP as income, SNAP kept more than 5 million people out of poverty in 2010 and lessened the severity of poverty for millions of others." As the economy recovers and legislative provisions expire, SNAP spending will decrease, according to Congressional Budget Office (CBO) predictions. "By 2022 SNAP is expected to return nearly to pre-recession levels as a share of GDP. Over the long term, SNAP is not growing faster than the overall economy and thus is not contributing to the nation's long-term fiscal problems." The payment accuracy of SNAP is extraordinarily high, the CBPP claims, refuting the claims of massive fraud made by Gingrich and other opponents of the program. And, according to the CBPP, economists say that the program is "one of the most effective forms of economic stimulus," helping grow the economy as it protects poverty-stricken families. [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 1/9/2012]
Entity Tags: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Barack Obama, US Census Bureau, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Newt Gingrich, Congressional Budget Office
Category Tags: USA, Bush Policies and Actions, Obama Policies and Actions
The nonpartisan FactCheck.org finds that recent claims by presidential candidate Newt Gingrich (R-GA) that "more people have been put on food stamps by Barack Obama than any president in American history" are wrong. In fact, far more Americans were added to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) rolls under President George W. Bush than under Obama. Gingrich has made the claim in a number of political speeches (see November 30 - December 2, 2011 and January 5, 2012), but his reiteration of the claim during a recent Republican debate in South Carolina has drawn a great deal of media attention (see January 16, 2012). FactCheck finds: "Gingrich would have been correct to say the number now on food aid is historically high. The number stood at 46,224,722 persons as of October, the most recent month on record. And it's also true that the number has risen sharply since Obama took office. But Gingrich goes too far to say Obama has put more on the rolls than other presidents." Information from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Food and Nutrition Service going back to January 2001 "show[s] that under President George W. Bush the number of recipients rose by nearly 14.7 million. Nothing before comes close to that." Moreover, "the program has so far grown by 444,574 fewer recipients during Obama's time in office than during Bush's." The trend in recent months has been for the number of food-stamp recipients to decline, another fact Gingrich fails to note. FactCheck finds that the rise in the number of Americans on food stamps—currently one out of seven—began during the second term of the Bush presidency. "In the 12 months before Obama was sworn in, 4.4 million were added to the rolls, triple the 1.4 million added in 2007," the organization writes. "To be sure, Obama is responsible for some portion of the increase since then. The stimulus bill he signed in 2009 increased benefit levels, making the program more attractive. A family of four saw an increase of $80 per month, for example.… The stimulus also made more people eligible. Able-bodied jobless adults without dependents could get benefits for longer than three months." Part of the reason for the higher number of recipients under Obama is the new outreach to eligible citizens by state governments, according to the USDA; many state governments have worked harder to inform eligible citizens of their right to apply for government assistance, and have reduced the amount of information that claimants must provide to receive assistance. FactCheck concludes: "We don't argue that the program is either too large (as Gingrich does) or too small. It has certainly reached a historically high level, and may or may not grow even larger in the months to come. But the plain fact is that the growth started long before Obama took office, and participation grew more under Bush." And it quotes the USDA's Kevin Concannon, who recently told a Wall Street Journal reporter, "I realize Mr. Gingrich is a historian, but I'm not sure he'd get very high marks on that paper." [USA Today, 1/17/2012] CBS News notes that the White House has called Gingrich's claims "crazy," and finds: "While the number of people on food stamps is indeed at a record level, that's in part because of eligibility rules being relaxed under the administration of George W. Bush. It's also due in part to the economic downturn that began under Mr. Bush.… [T]hat percentage increase hardly makes Obama the 'best food stamp president in American history,' at least when you look at the question proportionally. The percent increase in beneficiaries during Mr. Bush's presidency was higher than it has been under Mr. Obama: The number of beneficiaries went from 17.3 million in 2001 to 28.2 million in 2008—an increase of 63 percent in years that are mostly considered non-recessionary." [CBS News, 1/17/2012] US News and World Report agrees with FactCheck, finding that "SNAP participation has been on the rise since well before President Obama took office. Nearly 17.2 million people in FY 2000 participated in the program, a figure that increased by nearly 64 percent by 2008." [US News and World Report, 1/17/2012] The Associated Press accuses Gingrich of distorting the facts and notes: "It's gotten easier to qualify for food stamps in the past decade but that is because of measures taken before Obama became president. It's true that the number of people on food stamps is now at a record level. That's due mainly to the ailing economy, which Republicans blame on Obama, as well as rising food costs. The worst downturn since the Great Depression wiped out 8.7 million jobs, pushed the unemployment rate to a peak of 10 percent in October 2009, and increased poverty." [Associated Press, 1/17/2012] The nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has found that SNAP is a critical element in keeping poverty-stricken Americans, particularly children and the elderly, from starving during the economic recession (see January 9, 2012).
Entity Tags: Kevin Concannon, CBS News, Barack Obama, Associated Press, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, George W. Bush, US News and World Report, Obama administration, FactCheck (.org), US Department of Agriculture, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Newt Gingrich
Timeline Tags: Domestic Propaganda, 2012 Elections
President Obama speaks on the topic of clean energy in front of the Copper Mountain Solar Project in Boulder City, Nevada, in March 2012. [Source: CleanTechnica (.org)]An analysis by Reuters claims that the $90 billion investment made by the federal government to generate jobs in the field of clean energy (see February 2009) has not produced as many jobs as initially touted. In March 2012, President Obama spoke in front of the Copper Mountain Solar Project in Boulder City, Nevada, which uses 1 million solar panels to power 17,000 homes. The facility only employs 10 people. The green initiative has put people to work retrofitting over a million homes to lower heating and cooling costs, and energy generation from solar and wind sources has nearly doubled since 2008. But some say the program has not created enough jobs. Critics say the program was expected to lower the unemployment rate, currently hovering above 8 percent, and say it has not done so. Supporters say the administration promised too much in the short term and fear a backlash that might undermine support for clean-energy policies across the board. Clean energy specialist Mark Muro of the Brookings Institution says, "All of this stuff is extraordinarily worthy for driving long-term economic transformation but extremely inappropriate to sell as a short-term job program." Janet Bluman, head of the Foundation for an Independent Tomorrow, says, "From my perspective it makes more sense for us to arm our clients with the basic skills, rather than saying, 'By golly, you will do something in the green economy or you won't work.'" Bluman claims that her organization, which trains people for jobs in the Las Vegas area, has seen positions in trucking and accounting go unfilled because training money had been earmarked for green efforts. The federal program earmarked some $500 million for job training, and has employed some 20,000 people, far short of its stated goal. Republicans say the clean-energy program is merely a way for the Obama administration to give money to Obama's friends (see October 15, 2012). GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has claimed, "[Obama] handed out tens of billions of dollars to green energy companies, including his friends and campaign contributors at companies like Solyndra that are now bankrupt." Romney and other Republicans have not advanced proof of their allegations. Supporters say that in the long term, clean energy will "create a bounty of stable, middle-class jobs and fill the gap left by manufacturing work that has moved overseas," as Reuters reports. White House officials say that there is more to the clean energy program than creating jobs. "We have a record of success that has created tens of thousands of jobs and is ensuring that America is not ceding these industries to countries like China," White House spokesman Clark Stevens says. "Thanks to the investments we've made, these industries will continue to grow, along with the jobs they create." Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), an opponent of the program, says: "The green jobs-training program just didn't work. It was a poor investment of tax dollars." Darren Devine of the College of Southern Nevada says: "Will it add a significant number of jobs, enough to make a real dent in our unemployment? No, I don't see that happening." What it will do is help the country reduce its energy consumption, lower the amount of carbon dioxide being pumped into the atmosphere, and help create jobs in the clean-energy and other fields, such as health care, education, and technology. [Reuters, 4/13/2012]
Entity Tags: Janet Bluman, Barack Obama, Charles Grassley, Darren Devine, Obama administration, Copper Mountain Solar Project, Reuters, Willard Mitt Romney, Mark Muro
Category Tags: Obama Policies and Actions
Events in Economic History
Failing Companies: Specific Cases
Global Economic Crisis
Global Economic Crisis by Country
US Economic Policies and Events
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