Posts Tagged “financial bailout”
- With Senate passage late Wednesday of an expanded financial rescue package that includes tax breaks for both businesses and the middle class as well as added federal protection on bank deposits, the House will tackle a bill that may be more appealing to many members but is actually about $110 billion more costly. How many times have you decided that popular model was overpriced–until they added a bunch of goodies to it that you decided were "essential"?
 Tonight’s vice-presidential debate couldn’t be more crucial for Sarah Palin, who recent polls say is facing greater doubt from voters that she has the right experience to be president. Luckily for Joe Biden, it’s much simpler–he has to remember that this is a debate, not a filibuster…- Pediatricians are urging the FDA to ask for a voluntary recall of over-the-counter children’s cold medicines, saying there are too few benefits and too many risks not to seek more traditional remedies–rest and plenty of fluids. And I’m certain that all those manufacturers, with millions of dollars in now-worthless inventory, would wholeheartedly agree…
- A new AP poll shows that Barack Obama has increased his lead over John McCain to a 48-41 percent advantage, and some Republican strategists close to his campaign are privately worried that his chances for victory are fading. At this point, they see only two possibilities for a McCain win–either discover evidence that Obama is a KKK member, or we actually won the Vietnam War…
 The trial of OJ Simpson is nearly in the hands of the jury, as both sides have rested–without the testimony of Simpson, who faces armed robbery and kidnapping charges. His attorney knows that no matter what The Juice says, the jury will just hear, "I’m a murdering SOB who got away with it–ain’t it great?"
Tags: Barack Obama, Children, debate, FDA, financial bailout, health care, Joe Biden, John McCain, OJ Simpson, Sarah Palin
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- Just two days after the House soundly defeated the financial rescue bill worked out by Congressional leaders and the White House, the Senate will vote on a modified version of the bill Wednesday that is likely to pass. It will contain tax breaks that some House members oppose, but the Senate’s quick action in passing it could pressure them into siding with it–it sounds just like Thanksgiving at my house, only with money instead of sweet potatoes and giblet gravy…
 The stock market, after a record one-day loss Monday, rebounded Tuesday to post its third-highest gain ever–a 485 point jump in the Dow Jones averages. Generally I’m a fan of rollercoasters, but this is just one big tummy ache…- Both Barack Obama and John McCain, who will return to Washington Wednesday to vote on the Senate version of the financial rescue bill, both called for providing banks with greater security by raising the amount of FDIC-insured funds in accounts to $250,000. That provision is included in the Senate bill, which means McCain still might be able to take credit for personally saving the American economy…
- Thursday’s debate between vice-presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin is an unusually-anticipated event, with more media credentials issued than for any other VP debate. I imagine many reporters want to be on hand for a night of potentially historic statements–some because they defy logic, others because they defy the dimension of time…
- A new genetic test for for the flu virus just approved by the the government will allow labs across the US to identify flu strains in a matter of hours instead of days–which could be crucial if a deadly new strain suddenly appears. This is a great achievement–I can’t wait for when they finally can quickly identify a potential hangover…
 The Chicago White Sox became the last Major League Baseball team to make the postseason Wednesday night when they beat the Minnesota Twins 1-0 in a tie-breaker game for the American League Central Division championship. Chicago’s pitching was outstanding, giving up only two hits–one to each of the twins, I presume…
Tags: Barack Obama, financial bailout, health care, Joe Biden, John McCain, Major League Baseball, Sarah Palin, Senate, Wall Street
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- Top Congressional and administration officials are scrambling to craft a new financial rescue proposal after the House soundly defeated the first Capitol Hill/White House effort–largely due to the response from thousands of constituents opposed to using $700 billion of their money to bail out the private sector. Most of them have a different kind of bailout plan in mind–one with those greedy CEO’s all in a leaky boat somewhere far from shore…
- The stock market reacted to the bailout failure in historic fashion, with a sell-off resulting in the worst drop in Wall Street history–falling 777 points at the close. It’s distressing to say the least–I was sure my 401K couldn’t possibly be a negative number…
- Political experts say that John McCain, who made a great deal of suspending his campaign so he could inject himself into the work of rescuing the nation’s financial industry, has painted himself into a corner now that the bill he essentially married himself to has gone down to defeat. I guess he could blame Obama for making him go to the debate…
 Time for an OJ Update: the prosecution has rested its case against Simpson, who they say kidnapped and robbed some Las Vegas memorabilia dealers. The defense has begun its case but has not yet decided if Simpson will testify–I mean, would you believe anything he said?- It appears that the honeymoon may be over for Sarah Palin, as an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows a dramatic downturn of positive feedback from a month ago and an AP survey found 61 percent of Americans believe she does not have the right experience to be president. The McCain campaign is at a crossroads–do they run or do they pull Palin’s cover story on Maxim…
 NASA’s Phoenix spacecraft has made more dramatic discoveries–including evidence of past water at its Mars landing site and the the lander’s first look at snow on the Red Planet. There are only a couple of possible explanations–there may be or have been life there, or we’re gonna need a plow guy up there…
Tags: financial bailout, John McCain, Mars, NASA, OJ Simpson, Sarah Palin, Wall Street, Wall Street Journal
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- Congressional leaders and the White House completed negotiations on the president’s $700 billion rescue plan late Sunday night, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying, "This isn’t about a bailout of Wall Street, it’s a buy-in, so that we can turn our economy around." So am I the only one a liitle freaked over Pelosi using poker lingo to explain how they’re making everything better?
 Both John McCain and Barack Obama Sunday used carefully crafted words to show their support of the financial rescue plan just completed by the White House and Congressional leaders, with Obama saying he’s inclined to back it, "because I think Main Street is now at stake", and McCain stating, "The option of doing nothing is simply not an acceptable option." McCain running mate Sarah Palin was also asked for her assessment, but she was apparently late for Girls Night Out at TGI Friday’s…- As the world mourned the death of movie icon Paul Newman over the weekend, close associates of his said that he wanted to be remembered most for the establishment of the "Hole In The Wall" camps he started for children with life-threatening illnesses, and that he wanted the charitable work of his Newman’s Own food company to continue after his death. We certainly won’t forget all his gifts to us–including Brick, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy, Henry Gondorf, Frank Galvin, and Fast Eddie Felson…
- A Chinese space mission returned to Earth Sunday and its crew of three astronauts hailed as national heroes after they completed the country’s first spacewalk, a significant step toward China’s ambitious plan to build a space station and land a man on the moon. Government officials insisted all the astronauts had proof they met the program’s mininum age requirements…
 Hurricane Kyle spent the weekend threatening Maine with its first Category 1 storm in 17 years–but instead delivering little more than a serious soaking to a few Downeast communities before weakening to to a tropical storm and making landfall in Canada’s Nova Scotia. I guess the biggest concern was the wild blueberry crop and the associated shortage of blueberry pies, ruining a perfectly good Maine lobster dinner…- A conservative legal group plans to send the IRS sermons from nearly three dozen clergy members who made pointed political references to candidates from the pulpit Sunday in order to force a legal challenge to a rule that such activities can risk the church’s tax-exempt status. I understand most of the homilies were deemed adequate; however, a few had to be discarded due to their apparent "Vote Pat Robertson for God On Earth" campaign effort
Tags: Barack Obama, China, financial bailout, Hurricane Kyle, John McCain, Maine, Nancy Pelosi, Paul Newman, Sarah Palin
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- The White House’s bailout plan to avoid a financial meltdown suffered one of its own Thursday, as hopes that Congress would pass the $700 billion fix were dashed–by the president’s own party, who refused to send a negotiator to a late-night meeting aimed at working out a deal. I understand the president had to convince Dick Cheney not to take all the dissenters hunting with him…
 And that meltown continued to pick up more heat Thursday, as the FDIC seized Washington Mutual and its $307 billion in assets–making it the the biggest banking failure in US history. They were obviously trying to be a financial leader, only I’m pretty sure this wasn’t it…- Among the perks enjoyed by lawmakers in California is all the free gas they need, at a cost to taxpayers of $220,000 so far this year–all while those same lawmakers couldn’t pass a budget with the state facing a $15 billion deficit. Wow–looks like these folks have attended some of those Destroying State Government seminars in Albany…
 Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain are still at odds over whether to hold their first debate Friday, with Obama saying he intends to be at the University of Mississippi debate site while McCain–who earlier suggested it be postponed so the two could negotiate a financial rescue plan–is now mum on the subject. I guess he could always send VP nominee Sarah Palin in his place–McCain just has to be sure he gives her a note to say it’s OK…- The GAO, Congress’ official investigator, claims the FDA’s efforts to control food-borne illnesses are stymied by a lack of oversight of the produce industry. An agency spokesperson denied the allegation, then asked several people in the office if they knew who was in charge of lettuce…
 A Swedish daredevel crossed the English channel while strapped to a homemade jet-propelled wing Friday after jumping from a plane at an altitude of over 8800 feet. I’m sure there are situations where you’d want to do something like this on purpose, only I get ill thinking of them…
Tags: California, financial bailout, Financial meltdown, White House
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