U.S. Fiscal Outlook Improving -- At Least For Now
The federal deficit will continue to shrink, official estimates show, even if Congress does nothing further to cut spending or raise tax revenues.
The federal deficit will continue to shrink, official estimates show, even if Congress does nothing further to cut spending or raise tax revenues.
As President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, he presides over an economy much healthier than the one he inherited four years ago. Yet growth remains slow and unemployment high.
President Obama's offer to limit the growth of Social Security benefits would cost the average retiree less than $50 in the first year. But the cuts would grow over time, and that has advocates for seniors worried that Democrats in Congress will break their promise to shield the program from cuts in deficit reduction talks.
President Barack Obama will host his former political rival Mitt Romney for a private lunch at the White House Thursday, their first meeting since the election. Obama promised in his victory speech earlier this month to engage with Romney following their bitter campaign and consider the Republican's ideas.
President Barack Obama plans to make a public case this week for his strategy for dealing with the looming fiscal cliff, traveling to the Philadelphia suburbs Friday as he pressures Republicans to allow tax increases on the wealthy while extending tax cuts for families earning $250,000 or less.
The other day, Nate Silver proposed a $2,000 bet (for charity) with Joe Scarbrough on the outcome of the election. But let's be honest, the New York Times polling guru has WAY more at stake than that. We're talking millions of dollars on his being right that Obama will stomp Romney in the Electoral College.
A disagreement over gas prices and energy policy produced a heated tit-for-tat argument between Mitt Romney and President Obama at the second presidential debate.
Make no mistake about it: come Thursday morning, there will be a winner. If Romney wins, he will change the narrative of this election and give his flagging campaign some much-needed energy. If Obama wins, he has all but sealed up his re-election. If it is a draw, Obama wins because with so little time remaining Romney needed to do more than draw even.
The White House says President Barack Obama and his family paid more than $160,000 in federal taxes last year.
President Barack Obama on Monday sent Congress a new budget that seeks to achieve $4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade while at the same time showering billions of dollars of increased spending on areas aimed at giving the economy a quick boost.
Seeking cooperation in a polarized climate, President Barack Obama called on Congress Tuesday to act quickly on bipartisan measures that would extend tax breaks for small businesses and help startup companies raise money. He said he would sign the legislation "right away."
In a defiant display of executive power, President Barack Obama on Wednesday will buck GOP opposition and name Richard Cordray as the nation's chief consumer watchdog even though the Senate contends the move is inappropriate, senior administration officials told The Associated Press.
The news across the financial world is good for unions, which will find organizing a bit easier; adequate for Greece, which will find getting bailed out a bit easier, and bitter for JPMorgan which had to accept a $153.6 million SEC fine for misleading investors about a mortgage securities transaction.
During an impromptu drop-in at a conference of personal finance writers, President Obama was asked: How does he approach his own household finances? His response was timeless, irrefutable, and not quite consistent with his prescription for the federal government.














