Mar 25 How Were Off-Balance-Sheet Transactions Allowed to Continue? Question: In this current financial crisis, I keep hearing about “off balance sheet” transactions. I’m old enough to remember Enron’s collapse, which also entailed “off balance sheet” transactions. What are these (I think they are also referred to as structured… Continue reading
Mar 25 Obama Touts Health Care Reform, Challenges Republicans on Repeal Fight By Lea Winerman President Obama extolled the benefits of the newly-signed health care reform law in a speech Thursday in Iowa City, Iowa, in the first of a series of events aimed at selling the new law to the American public. "I… Continue reading
Mar 25 Thursday: Health Bill Heads Back to House; Lawmakers Receive Threats Democratic Sens. Tom Harkin of Iowa, Chris Dodd of Connecticut, Robert Menendez of New Jersey and Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada hold a news conference Wednesday. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.) Just when House Democrats thought they were… Continue reading
Mar 24 Excerpts: Pelosi on Health Reform as a Model for Future Legislation By Quinn Bowman Fresh off the passage of sweeping health care reform legislation, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke with Jim Lehrer Wednesday about the political battle over the bill, what it means for the American public and why lawmakers were so sharply… Continue reading
Mar 24 What's the Difference Between Quantitative Easing and the Fed Buying Securities? Question: What’s the distinction between “quantitative easing” and the Federal Reserve simply buying and selling government securities to affect the nation’s money supply? Paul Solman: The distinction is that when the Fed is selling, it’s sopping up money from the… Continue reading
Mar 24 President Obama Signs Executive Order on Abortion President Obama signed an executive order Wednesday afternoon reaffirming that no federal money will be used to pay for abortions under the new health care reform law. The order follows through on a promise the president made Sunday to… Continue reading
Mar 24 Reports: U.S., Russia Strike Deal on Arms Control President Obama speaks with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev during meetings in Singapore in November. (Photo by Saul Loeb /AFP/Getty Images.) The United States and Russia, which together control more than 90 percent of the world's nuclear weapons, have agreed… Continue reading
Mar 24 Report Slams Obama Effort to Stem Foreclosures By Jason Breslow The Obama administration's $50 billion effort to plug the nation's home foreclosure crisis has fallen short of expectations and may ultimately prove to "be of questionable value." That's the conclusion of a scathing report released late Tuesday by the… Continue reading
Mar 24 Debate Over Value of Yuan Heats Up in Washington The long-running debate over the value of China's currency is heating up in Washington. Last week, senators from both parties introduced a bill that would compel the Obama administration to confront China over the undervalued yuan, which many… Continue reading
Mar 23 California Republicans Vying for Chance to Replace Boxer in U.S. Senate By Spencer Michels Updated 8:12pm ET California Sen. Barbara Boxer appears to be in political trouble, but as she always reminds audiences and interviewers, she's been in trouble before, and has always emerged a winner. I remember her running for supervisor… Continue reading