http://www.bloomberg.com/…

U.S. presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama each deserve credit for a breakthrough in talks on a $700 billion plan to revive the credit markets, their advisers said today.

Republican McCain worked with party members in the House to achieve plan changes such as government insurance of mortgage- backed securities and a phase-in of federal aid, Senator Lindsey Graham said on the “Fox News Sunday” television program.

“The fact is the House Republicans were not in the mix at all” until McCain arrived at the talks, said Graham, a South Carolina Republican. McCain “was decisive in regards to the House being involved.”

Senator John Kerry, an Obama adviser, disagreed. McCain said “he was going to interrupt his campaign to come down and save the negotiations,” according to the Massachusetts Democrat. “What he did was interrupt the negotiations to come down and save his campaign.”

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd said in a CNN interview today that McCain’s trip was “a political stunt” that “delayed and slowed down this process.”

Obama was supportive of negotiations in a “mild” and constructive” way by calling in over eight or nine days of talks, said Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat.

If they want to take credit I’m happy to give it to them. When the depression comes I just hope whichever clown is in office will take the blaim.

http://www.bloomberg.com/…

U.S. lawmakers said they made a breakthrough in talks on a $700 billion plan to revive the credit markets and expect to announce an agreement on legislation later today. Negotiators resolved “our differences so we can go forward with a package to stabilize the market,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters when talks at the Capitol ended after midnight Washington time.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the proposed deal “will work and be effective” in the marketplace. More work needs to be done, “but I think we’re there,” he said.

Bush spokesman Tony Fratto said early this morning that administration officials are “pleased with the progress tonight and appreciate the bipartisan effort to stabilize our financial markets and protect our economy.”

Senator Kent Conrad, a North Dakota Democrat who chairs the Budget Committee, said $250 billion would be immediately available and another $100 billion could be used when requested by the president for debt purchases. Congress could bar the expenditure of the remaining $350 billion only by passing a resolution to block it from being spent.

The package includes a provision aimed at “preventing golden parachutes” for executives of companies who leave firms that have sold troubled assets to the government, Conrad said.

Companies that sell debt to the government will issue stock warrants to the government so that taxpayers “can gain as companies recover” from economic difficulties, Conrad said.

A proposal that would allow judges to modify mortgage terms for struggling borrowers in bankruptcy proceedings wasn’t included, said Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat. “We pushed very hard” for the bankruptcy provision, “but we feel we got good foreclosure mitigation language in there,” Dodd said.

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said the plan “appears to embrace” his principles that the legislation include oversight by an independent board; protections for taxpayers to ensure they receive any profits; measures to help homeowners stay in their homes; and rules to make sure “CEOs are not being rewarded at taxpayers’ expense.”

“There were a series of breakthroughs here in the end” and the agreement on executive compensation “was certainly the most important,” Conrad said. He declined to give further details because the language being drafted by lawyers is “quite complicated.”

Taxpayers will not see a dime of any possible profits… the GOVERNMENT will. What Mr. Obama means is he will be less likely to tax the shit out of us if the happen to make a few pennies from this ‘deal.’ Which is highly unlikely. It really hits home I hope, especially after reading below, that these politicians are not representatives of the people. They represent big business and the elite. It has always been like that and always will. The potential the government has due to its assumed role is a incredible draw on those who would like to use that power for their own interests. It is an inherently flawed system and no ammount of wishful thinking or “getting in the right guy” will fix it.

Read More…

http://www.nytimes.com/…

The Bush administration on Saturday formally proposed to Congress what could become the largest financial bailout in United States history, requesting unfettered authority for the Treasury Department to buy up to $700 billion in mortgage-related assets.

The proposal, not quite three pages long, was stunning for its stark simplicity. It would raise the national debt ceiling to $11.3 trillion. And it would place no restrictions on the administration other than requiring semiannual reports to Congress, granting the Treasury secretary unprecedented power to buy and resell mortgage debt.

A $700 billion expenditure on distressed mortgage-related assets would be roughly what the country has spent so far in direct costs on the Iraq war and more than the Pentagon’s total yearly budget appropriation. Divided across the population, it would amount to more than $2,000 for every man, woman and child in the United States.

“This is a good foundation of a plan that can stabilize markets quickly,” Mr. Schumer said in a statement. “But it includes no visible protection for taxpayers or homeowners. We look forward to talking to Treasury to see what, if anything, they have in mind in these two areas.”

In Florida, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, the Democratic presidential nominee, said he would press for a broader economic stimulus initiative to be part of the bailout plan for financial firms.

Senator John McCain of Arizona, the Republican nominee, issued a statement on Saturday saying he was reviewing the administration’s plan. He also urged the administration and lawmakers to consider his own plan for creating a trust within the Treasury Department to aid ailing mortgage lenders and other financial institutions.

Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, said in a statement: “This proposal is, and should be kept, simple and clear.” He added, “Simply put, now is not the time for partisan plans or pet projects.”

Some Democrats, including lawmakers like Mr. Frank and Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and the chairman of the banking committee, were adamant about including provisions to promote government action to stabilize real estate prices and help troubled borrowers refinance their mortgages.

Still another group of Democrats was pushing for a wider stimulus package that would direct help more directly and immediately to Main Street, perhaps including an increase in unemployment benefits and investments in infrastructure projects, including bridges and roads, that would help to create jobs.

A fourth, smaller group of lawmakers was highly critical and in some cases adamantly opposed to the plan. That group included including Senator Jim Bunning, Republican of Kentucky, and Senator Bernard Sanders, independent of Vermont.

“The free market for all intents and purposes is dead in America,” Mr. Bunning declared on Friday. “The action proposed today by the Treasury Department will take away the free market and institute socialism in America. The American taxpayer has been misled throughout this economic crisis. The government on all fronts has failed the American people miserably.”

COME ONE, COME ALL! FREE MONEY! FREE FASCISM! ALL YOU CAN CARRY!

I have to laugh because otherwise I may cry.

http://www.reuters.com/…

An $85 billion government rescue of insurer American International Group Inc looked increasingly likely on Tuesday to stave off a bankruptcy that would have thrown world markets back into turmoil.

The Federal Reserve will extend AIG $85 billion in exchange for a nearly 80 percent stake to bail out the troubled insurance giant, a person briefed on the matter said.

The deal would avoid the biggest corporate bankruptcy ever and follows a government bailout of mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae just over a week ago.

Then AIG shares, which had sunk 21 percent in regular trading, fell as much as 48 percent in after-hours dealings after reports of a rescue that could wipe out shareholders.

The New York Times, which had reported that AIG could file as soon as Wednesday for bankruptcy protection, later reported the deal with the Fed.

“This would mean another shareholder wipeout,” said David Ader, head of government bond strategy at RBS Greenwich Capital in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson were briefing members of Congress on the deal on Tuesday evening, a Treasury official told Reuters.

“They’re too big to fail. AIG touches too many people and too many companies globally, and it would be much more of a disorderly event if it went bankrupt than it was with Lehman,” said Anton Schutz, president of Mendon Capital in Rochester, New York.

Of course they did. The government goes back on it’s claim, tax payers get it in the ass and the economic problems will continue that much longer.

I bet Lehman Bros. is a bit pissed.

UPDATE:

A bit more info over at CNN:

The line of credit to AIG, which is available for two years, is designed to help the company meet its obligations, the Fed said. Interest will accrue at a steep rate of 3-month Libor plus 8.5%, which totals 11.31% at today’s rates. AIG will sell certain of its businesses with “the least possible disruption to the overall economy.”

AIG will sell certain of its businesses with “the least possible disruption to the overall economy.” The government will have veto power over the asset sales and the payment of dividends to shareholders.

The company’s management will be replaced, though Fed staffers did not name the new executives. The board will remain. For customers, it will be business as usual, officials said.

Two years ain’t no bridge loan.

NEW YORK, August 27, 2008-The historic ServiceNation Summit will begin
the evening of Thursday, September 11, 2008 with a Presidential Forum
featuring Senators John McCain and Barack Obama. On September 12, New
York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg will open the day-long summit with
welcoming remarks and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will be
the keynote speaker and conclude the day.

The co-hosts of the summit are Caroline Kennedy, attorney, editor and
writer; Alma Powell, Chair, America’s Promise Alliance; Vartan
Gregorian, President, Carnegie Corporation; Bill Novelli, CEO, AARP, and
Richard Stengel, Managing Editor, TIME. Confirmed participants and
speakers include:

* Senator Hillary Clinton, New York
* Senator Chris Dodd, Connecticut
* Usher Raymond IV, Summit Youth Chair; Founder, New Look
Foundation
* Governor Charlie Crist, Florida
* Governor David Paterson, New York
* Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan, The King Hussein Foundation
* Dr. Mehmet Oz, Founder and Chairman, HealthCorps
* Jeffrey Sachs, Director, Earth Institute at Columbia University
* Laurie Tisch, Philanthropist, Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund
* Robert Kennedy, Jr., President, Waterkeeper Alliance
* Kenneth Cole, Fashion Designer
* Martin Luther King III, CEO, Realizing The Dream
* Kelly Caffarelli, President, Home Depot Foundation
* Geoffrey Canada, President and CEO, Harlem Children’s Zone
* Laysha Ward, President, Target Foundation
* Dr. Amy Gutmann, President, University of Pennsylvania
* David Gergen, Professor, Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of
Government
* Scott Cowen, President, Tulane University
* Jean Case, CEO, The Case Foundation
* Ray Chambers, Amelior Foundation
* Chancellor Joel Klein, New York City Schools
* Wendy Kopp, Founder and CEO, Teach For America

The ultimate vision of ServiceNation is an America in which, by 2020,
100 million citizens will volunteer time in schools, workplaces, and
faith-based and community institutions each and every year (up from 61
million today), and that increasing numbers of Americans annually will
commit a year of their lives to national service.

ServiceNation’s bipartisan Summit Leadership Council includes mayors,
governors, former senators and leaders from every sector of American
society (attached is complete list). Major supporters-in addition to
AARP, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Target and TIME-include the
Peter G. Peterson Foundation, The Home Depot Foundation, Bank Of
America, Case Foundation, Charina Endowment Fund, The Jenesis Group, the
Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund and Goldman Sachs.

At the bottom of the email are instructions on getting press credentials just like all other releases I’ve received. The difference in this latest one is the inclusion of “PLEASE NOTE: NYPD/U.S. STATE DEPT. CREDENTIALS REQUIRED!” I do not have a NYC press ID and according to the NYPD website it takes 3 to 4 weeks to acquire one… and that’s assuming they’d actually issue one to me. I’ve sent an email to the Service Nation media person concerning this as well as my fellow Manhattan Libertarian Party members. Worse case, I make up my own press ID and show up. Worst that could happen is I get arrested.

http://wcbstv.com/…

It’s called “Operation Sentinel” and it proves just how far the NYPD will go to protect this city from terrorists. The plan involves some high-tech tracking that is coming under fire from some groups.

New York City is going to great lengths to make sure that bomb-toting terrorists can’t reach us.

“New York City is something special,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday. “It’s not just a very big city in this world. It is, in many senses, the iconic city. It represents Western Democracy.

As part of the plan the NYPD is creating a huge buffer zone, working with cops in a 50-mile radius of the city. Officials in New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Long Island are given radiation detectors to stop terrorists as far away from New York City as possible.

Police also plan to track every vehicle that enters Manhattan.

“We’re going to be adding cameras as we go forward,” NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

That part of that plan calls for photographing and scanning license plates of cars and trucks at all bridges and tunnels. Even small ones like the Willis Avenue Bridge will also be used to detect radiation.

“I don’t think it’s hyperbole to call this Big Brotherish,” said Christopher Dunn of the New York Civil Liberties Union. “The New York City Police Department is creating a huge computer database of the movement of everyone in a vehicle in Manhattan.”

Civil libertarians take issue with one aspect of that plan – data on each vehicle entering Manhattan would be stored for at least one month. Bloomberg, however, defended the idea.

“It is always a balance between freedoms to come and go between civil liberties and security, and I think we pretty much have the balance pretty much right,” Bloomberg said.

The reaction of New Yorkers CBS 2 HD spoke to were mixed.

“I guess I would feel safer in light of everything that happened,” said Tavis Rivere of Ridgewood, N.J. “The city has been under a lot of, you know, pressures and stuff.”

“It’s a violation — I mean it’s ridiculous,” said Sharday Hill of Teaneck, N.J. “I don’t know want everybody or someone knowing where I’m at 24 hours a day.”

The city also intends on putting Lower Manhattan in a so-called “ring of steel,” with 3,000 public and private security cameras below Canal Street. There will be 600 cops assigned to protect ground zero.

Thank you Sharday Hill of Teaneck.

Cameras are too inefficent. I think the government should mandate GPS trackers be installed in every car and have them all tracked in real time. They should also perform random vehicle checks at all entryways to the city and those roaming gangs of paramilitary should be stopping people on the street who look suspisious to ask for identification. Then I guess I’d feel safer in light of everything that happened. The city has been under a lot of, you know, pressures and stuff.