Obama
Five Things Obama Didn't Want You to Hear in His State of the Union
Seeking to put the best possible spin on his message, President Barack Obama took some liberties with the truth in his State of the Union address.
Although the president never actually lied, he repeatedly left out facts that contradict his claims of success.
President Obama hadn't yet left the House chamber when the reality check started. And it didn't take long to find some pretty big the holes in the State of the Union address.
U.S. Nears Colombia Trade Deal, Strengthening Economic Ties with Latin America
The United States has resolved labor issues with Colombia, paving the way for approval of a stalled free-trade agreement (FTA) and strengthening economic ties between the countries.
The United States and Colombia were expected to announce the agreement this week after months of talks, people familiar with the matter said Tuesday.
Former U.S. President George W. Bush first signed a U.S.-Colombia FTA in November 2006 with then-Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. The legislation stalled in Congress because Democrats refused to ratify the agreement until the Colombian government improved labor standards.
Will Egypt End the "Obama Arms Bazaar?"
While many investors are focused on the roles that Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) and Twitter played during Egypt's recent turmoil, I immediately zeroed in on all the American-made military hardware that exists in that region – and began to analyze the risk that investors face if the U.S. defense industry quite literally bet on the wrong horse.
Between 2006 and 2009, we sold more than $50 billion worth of weapons systems and related hardware to Middle East nations, according to the Congressional Research Service. The value of annual military contracts in the region has quadrupled since 2000, according to CNN.com.
And it doesn't look like things are slowing down – at least, not yet.
Obama Proposes Fannie & Freddie Reforms as Housing Market Continues to Languish
Three years after the housing market collapsed, efforts to clean up the financial mess created by Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) – the government agencies that largely inflated the bubble – remain stuck in limbo as Washington policymakers bicker over the details.
Meanwhile, the market continues to suffer through the aftermath.
The total value of U.S. single-family homes plummeted by roughly $798 billion in the final three months of 2010. For the year, values fell by more than $2 trillion to $22.3 trillion, according to Zillow.com.
More than 27% of all homeowners are now underwater and mortgage rates are swiftly starting to move up – threatening to kill any chance the market has to rebound from the worst disaster in its history.
What Do You Think Of President Obama's Budget Proposal?
U.S. President Barack Obama released his fiscal 2012 budget request Monday, igniting a partisan debate that's certain to escalate in the days and weeks to come.
The details will take months to hammer out, but the outcome is clear: American households can expect a lengthy dose of austerity.
The one question still to be answered is this: Just who will be hit the hardest?
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