Mark Cuban Charged With Insider Trading
Dallas Maverick’s owner Mark Cuban has been charged with insider trading by the SEC. After learning that mamma.com was raising money in a private offering, he dumped his 6% stake the very next day. Once it became public that mamma.com was privately raising money the stock dropped by more than 10%. By using his insider knowledge, Cuban saved himself an estimated $750,000 dollars in losses.
Barney Frank: “I think there are a lot of rich people out there who we can tax”
It takes real chutzpah for the a*shole who caused the mortgage meltdown to recommend more spending and higher taxes. Frank should have been booted out of Congress long ago.
(hat tip Hot Air)
U.S. To Buy Stakes In Nation’s Nine Largest Banks
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the U.S. government has decided to buy stakes in nine of the nation’s largest banks.
The U.S. government is expected to take stakes in nine of the nation’s top financial institutions as part of a new plan to restore confidence to the battered U.S. banking system, a far-reaching effort that puts the government’s guarantee behind the basic plumbing of financial markets.
This move comes on the heels of the British government’s decision to buy stakes in their countries largest banks.
Congress Approves Bailout, Bush Promises To Sign
Believe it or not, Congress took the unusual step of putting aside their hatred for one another and actually passed the damn bailout bill!
With the economy on the brink and elections looming, Congress approved an unprecedented $700 billion government bailout of the battered financial industry on Friday and sent it to President Bush for his certain signature.
The final vote, 263-171 in the House, a comfortable margin that was 58 more votes than it garnered on Monday. The vote capped two weeks of tumult in Congress and on Wall Street, punctuated by daily warnings that the country confronted the gravest economic crisis since the Great Depression if lawmakers failed to act.
Immediately after the vote President Bush pledged to quickly sign the $700 billion dollar package into law.
President Bush said Friday he would quickly sign into law a far-reaching $700 billion bill to bailout the nation’s tottering financial industry and thanked Congress for acting in a bipartisan and decisive fashion.
“There were moments this week when some thought that the federal government could not rise to the challenge. But thanks to the hard work of members of both parties, in both houses, and the spirit of cooperation between Capitol Hill and my administration, we completed this bill in a timely manner,” Bush said in remarks in the Rose Garden.
Now that the feds have their obscene bailout package lets see if they can right the ship and get this country going again.
$700 Billion Dollar Bailout Rejected, Market Drops 700+ Points
The U.S. House of Representatives defeated a proposed bailout package of more than $700 billion dollars in a vote of 228-205. The stock market immediately took a nose dive with the Dow Jones dropping more than 700 points, which is more than on 9/11.
In a stunning vote that shocked the capital and worldwide markets, the House on Monday defeated a $700 billion emergency rescue for the nation’s financial system, ignoring urgent warnings from President BushDow Jones industrials plunged nearly 800 points, the most ever for a single day. and congressional leaders of both parties that the economy could nosedive without it. The
Democratic and Republican leaders alike pledged to try again, though the Democrats said GOP lawmakers needed to provide more votes. Bush huddled with his economic advisers about a next step. The House was to reconvene on Thursday instead of adjourning for the year as planned.
The stock plunge began even before the 228-205 vote to reject the bill was officially announced on the House floor. The decline for the day surpassed the 721-point previous record, on the day after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, though in percentage terms it was well short of the drops on Black Monday of October 1987 and at the start of the Depression.
This is almost a self-fulfilling prophecy at this point. Now that the markets are spooked about a looming disaster, any failure to pass this massive bailout will cause the looming disaster to happen for sure. It’s too bad the Democrats were not interested in regulating Fannie and Freddie back in 2004 when the Republicans wanted too. Now they have the chutzpah to blame this mess on so-called “Bush economic policies.”
McCain Suspends Campaign To Focus On Economy
This statement from the McCain campaign via Drudge:
MCCAIN: America this week faces an historic crisis in our financial system. We must pass legislation to address this crisis. If we do not, credit will dry up, with devastating consequences for our economy. People will no longer be able to buy homes and their life savings will be at stake. Businesses will not have enough money to pay their employees. If we do not act, ever corner of our country will be impacted. We cannot allow this to happen.
Last Friday, I laid out my proposal and I have since discussed my priorities and concerns with the bill the Administration has put forward. Senator Obama has expressed his priorities and concerns.This morning, I met with a group of economic advisers to talk about the proposal on the table and the steps that we should take going forward.I have also spoken with members of Congress to hear their perspective.
It has become clear that no consensus has developed to support the Administration’ proposal. I do not believe that the plan on the table will pass as it currently stands, and we are running out of time.
Tomorrow morning, I will suspend my campaign and return to Washington after speaking at the Clinton Global Initiative. I have spoken to Senator Obama and informed him of my decision and have asked him to join me.
I am calling on the President to convene a meeting with the leadership from both houses of Congress, including Senator Obama and myself. It is time for both parties to come together to solve this problem.
We must meet as Americans, not as Democrats or Republicans, and we must meet until this crisis is resolved.I am directing my campaign to work with the Obama campaign and the commission on presidential debates to delay Friday night’s debate until we have taken action to address this crisis.
I am confident that before the markets open on Monday we can achieve consensus on legislation that will stabilize our financial markets, protect taxpayers and homeowners, and earn the confidence of the American people. All we must do to achieve this is temporarily set politics aside, and I am committed to doing so.
Following September 11th, our national leaders came together at a time of crisis. We must show that kind of patriotism now. Americans across our country lament the fact that partisan divisions in Washington have prevented us from addressing our national challenges. Now is our chance to come together to prove that Washington is once again capable of leading this country.
I really just don’t know enough about all this economic stuff to really have an opinion on it. It sounds serious enough that I’m guessing we should probably do something about it, but I’m certainly not convinced that handing over $750 billion dollars to anyone with only a few days discussion is necessarily the most prudent course of action.
Abu Dhabi To Buy Chrysler Building For $800 Million
The NY Post is reporting that the wealthy Abu Dhabi Investment Council is negotiating an $800 million deal for a 75 percent stake in the famed Chrysler building in NYC.
Jobless Rate Falls To 5%
From the AP:
For the fourth month in a row, the economy lost jobs, the Labor Department reported Friday. But in April the losses totaled 20,000, an improvement from the 81,000 reductions in payrolls logged in March. Job losses for both February and March turned out to be a bit deeper than previously reported.
The latest snapshot of the nationwide employment conditions—while clearly still weak—was better than many economists were anticipating. They were bracing for job cuts of 75,000 and for the unemployment rate to climb to 5.2 percent.
I find it amusing that liberals are actually able to scare people with their rhetoric concerning the economy. Are times a little tough? Sure they are, but the left would have us believe that 3/4 of the American people destitute, and living under a bridge.
Unemployment in the U.S. now stands at 5% which means that 95% of Americans have a job. Let me repeat that, only 5% of Americans are without work.
Even in 2006, when unemployment was at 4.2%, President Bush’s approval rating on the economy was only at 40%. The reason for that is the left-wing media’s constant drumbeat almost for the entire Bush presidency that the economy was teetering on the brink, which was total nonsense.
Feds: No Recession Yet
It appears that we’re not yet in a recession (much to the chagrin of Democrats) at least according to the latest numbers released today.
The economy grew by 0.6 percent for the first quarter, which is not good but better than analysts were expecting.
The country’s economic growth during January through March was the same as in the final three months of last year, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. The statistic did not meet what economists consider the classic definition of a recession, which is a retraction of the economy. This means that although the economy is stuck in a rut, it is still managing to grow, even if modestly.
Some analysts predicted growth of around 0.5 percent for the first quarter, and some even predicting negative growth. Now those same analysts have changed their minds and are predicting negative growth for the current April-June period.
McCain Calls For Break On Gas Tax
John McCain called Tuesday for the federal government to free people from paying gasoline taxes this summer.
In an effort to help people weather the downturn in the economy immediately, McCain urged Congress to institute a “gas-tax holiday” by suspending the 18.4 cent federal gas tax and 24.4 cent diesel tax from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
He also renewed his call for the United States to stop adding to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and thus lessen to some extent the worldwide demand for oil.
Combined, he said, the two proposals would reduce gas prices, which would have a trickle-down effect, and “help to spread relief across the American economy.”
For someone who allegedly knows nothing about economic matters, that is one of the smartest proposals I’ve heard so far in this election.
-Chris Jones
Bush/Cheney Tax Returns Released
President Bush:
Adj. Gross Income = $923,807.00
Taxes Paid = $221,635.00
Vice President Cheney:
Adj Gross Income = $3.04 Million
Taxes Paid = $602,651.00
Deal Reached on Tax Rebates for Stimulus
From the AP:
Democratic and Republican congressional leaders reached a tentative deal Thursday on tax rebates of $300 to $1,200 per family and business tax cuts to jolt the slumping economy.
Congressional officials close to the negotiations said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio reached agreement in principle in a telephone call Thursday morning.
The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two wanted key members of their parties to sign off on the accord before any announcement.
The accord came as the White House said Thursday an agreement was imminent.
Pelosi, D-Calif., agreed to drop increases in food stamp and unemployment benefits during a Wednesday meeting in exchange for gaining rebates of at least $300 for almost everyone earning a paycheck, including low-income earners who make too little to pay income taxes.
Families with children would receive an additional $300 per child, subject to an overall cap of perhaps $1,200, according to a senior House aide who outlined the deal on condition of anonymity in advance of formal adoption of the whole package. Rebates would go to people earning below a certain income cap, likely individuals earning $75,000 or less and couples with incomes of $150,000 or less.
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