Small business lender CIT Group is in talks to become government-regulated. (NYT) Obama’s chief auto adviser Steven Rattner steps down from his post because of a pension fund scandal with his former firm. (WSJ) Just months after it paid back the government, Goldman Sachs’ CEO Lloyd Blankfein can now boast profits of $3.4 billion. (Bloomberg) …
Andrew Stecker
Posts by Andrew Stecker
Tricky Dick’s at it again
Former VP Dick Cheney is in the hot seat as secret CIA files from 2001 are uncovered, revealing a plot to assassinate top Al Qeada leaders. Current CIA director Leon Panetta says Cheney gave direct orders to conceal the plan from the House and Senate, which Senator Dianne Feinstein, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, …
GM sloughs off bankruptcy
After the sale of its assets, GM is ready for a fresh start, which CEO Fritz Henderson will announce in a press conference later today. (Reuters) House and Senate Democrats are at yet another impasse over health care legislation, as the debate drags on. Pelosi vs. Baucus 2009 … Rumble in the Capitol! (NYT) Citigroup …
Obama nominates new director of NIH
President Obama nominates geneticist Francis Collins as new director of the NIH. (WSJ) Senator Max Baucus’ health care compromise for employers to be taxed doesn’t go over well with senators up for reelection next year. What a shock. (NYT) Investment giant PIMCO won’t be participating in the federal PPIP program, but the Treasury named nine …
Senators continue to debate provisions for health care bill
Kent Conrad and other senators are hesitant to tax employer-provided health care benefits, in a move they feel will be unpopular with voters. (WSJ) Former A.I.G. CEO Maurice Greenberg is cleared of charges that he removed company stock worth $4.3 billion. (NYT) Our jet-setting president leaves Russia to attend the G8 summit in earthquake-torn in …
McNamara dies, leaving legacy of diplomacy and guilt
Chief architect of the U.S.’s involvement in Vietnam Robert McNamara dies yesterday at 93. (Wash Post) Business deals abound in the wake of President Obama‘s arms negotiations with Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev. (NYT) The Fed dodges an audit and increased transparency laws as Senate refuses to attach them to its spending bill, despite Republican …
Happy Fourth of July; Palin resigns
Sarah Palin resigns as governor of Alaska to pursue her career as a Bumpit spokeswoman. (WSJ) Our leaders are out and about this week. Vice President Biden bumbles around Iraq as President Obama visits Russia to discuss arms control. (NYT) Judge approves sale of GM‘s assets as it goes through grueling bankruptcy hearings. (FT) Publisher …
Biden behaves himself in Iraq
Vice President Biden manages to hold his tongue while visiting Baghdad this week … so far. (Reuters) Ranking Republican on the Finance Committee, Iowa Senator Charles Grassley investigates health plans from insurance giants Aetna and UnitedHealth Group. (NYT) After another aggressive bid to take over NRG Energy, rival power company Exelon CEO John Rowe says …
Thirty state budgets go unbalanced, missing July 1 deadline
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger claims it’s ok that California’s state budget isn’t balanced, since 30 other states don’t have theirs ready either. No big deal. (NYT) Up to three million people who have mortgages with the troubled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be able to refinance, according to HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. But detractors say …
Franken finally wins Senate seat
Al Franken finally takes Minnesota’s Senate seat after an eight-month legal battle, securing a democratic majority of 60 in the Senate. Here’s hoping Stuart Smalley goes to Washington with him, too. (NYT) Mark Sanford may have alluded the news yesterday, but he’s back, claiming “flirtatious” relationships with other women than his Argentinean mistress, and, oh …
Bernie Madoff, age 71, sentenced to 150 years in jail
Bernie Madoff gets 150 years in the slammer for orchestrating the biggest Ponzi scheme in history and his wife, Ruth, has to sell her beach houses, jewelry and furs. Tear. (NYT) Apple CEO Steve Jobs is back to work after a scary liver transplant two months ago. (Forbes) Ivy League endowment funds have shown steep …
How can Goldman Sachs afford year-end bonuses in a recession?
Two noteworthy stories chronicling the hegemonic position of the Goldman Sachs Group appeared last week. The first was a scoop by The Guardian about an internal announcement regarding the record bonuses that Goldman will pay at the end of 2009, assuming that the company’s year-end profit projections are borne out. The second piece was a …