News

2008

October

14

• $250 billion bank investment plan. President George Bush said this morning that the administration's "unprecedented and aggressive" plan to partly nationalize nine major banks was an "essential short term measure to ensure the viability " of a battered financial system. With

13

• Heavy debts lead some to commit insurance fraud. Burdened by debt and driving home from a night of gambling in West Virginia, Sergio Lopez launched a scheme that at the time must have seemed like a good idea. He pulled his Volkswagen Jetta

• Many cancer patients forgo care because of cost. At a time when they're already fighting for their lives, more cancer patients are now struggling to pay for their medicines. One in eight people with advanced cancer turned down recommended care because of the

10

• Investors, bankers have lost confidence. With its alphabet soup of CDO and CDS and TAF and TARP, the current financial crisis can seem hopelessly complex. But it really boils down to one word: confidence. The global financial system is grinding

• Mixed signals for mortgage giants. Reading the latest report from the federal regulator running mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could give you whiplash. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had said at the end of June that they

• Law equalizes coverage for mental care. An estimated 113 million Americans, including hundreds of thousands in the Washington region, will receive better insurance coverage for their mental health and substance abuse problems because of landmark legislation that for the first time requires

07

• Europe prepares consumer rights plan. The European Commission will release a proposal on Wednesday to guarantee consumer rights across the 27-nation bloc, a move that is expected to help spur shopping online and across national borders. The legislation would require

• Ford will let parents set speed limits for teens. Starting next year, Ford Motor will roll out a feature on many 2010 models that can limit teen drivers to 80 mph, using a computer chip in the key. Parents also have the option of programming the

• Fears of recession deepen as markets plunge. The collapse of stock markets worldwide Monday reflects deepening concerns that government intervention won't be enough to stave off a potentially severe global recession. "Recession is unavoidable at this point," said Marc Pado, stock market

06

• Dollar has surprising strength in weak economy. Stock markets are swooning, credit markets remain frozen, and some foreign officials are predicting that the United States will lose its status as a financial superpower. And yet the dollar — the most visible symbol of

• Wells Fargo, Citigroup in tug of war over Wachovia. Wachovia and Citigroup lawyers spent the weekend in state and federal courts, sparring about Wachovia's decision Friday to break off its engagement with Citigroup after getting a better offer from Wells Fargo. Wachovia agreed on

05

• $10.1-trillion national debt? Let's cut taxes!. Even before the current financial crisis, a federal budget deficit of nearly $500 billion was projected for next year. Now an additional $700 billion has been committed to bailing out Wall Street, not to mention as much

04

• Rescue sweetened with tax incentives. The House of Representatives yesterday approved $107 billion in tax breaks for businesses and consumers as part of a sweeping financial rescue package designed to stave the credit crisis. Saddled onto the 450-page bill is a

• New law seeks to limit executive compensation. In the first significant attempt by Congress to legislate executive pay, the $700 billion financial rescue plan signed into law yesterday includes efforts to rein in the use of "golden parachutes," banning the giant windfalls in

03

• California may need emergency $7 billion loan. California may need an emergency loan of up to $7 billion from the federal government within weeks, the Los Angeles Times on Friday quoted Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as saying in a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry

• Wells Fargo to acquire Wachovia. In an abrupt change of course, Wachovia Corp. said today it agreed to be acquired by Wells Fargo & Co. in a $15.1 billion all-stock deal, wiping out Wachovia's previous plan to sell its banking operations to

02

• No silver bullets here. To hear it from critics on the left and right, the Bush administration and legislative leaders were in such a rush to pass a "$700 billion bailout for Wall Street" that they failed to consider much

01

• La economía familiar y la crisis. Muchos norteamericanos están observando nerviosamente los grandes altibajos de la Bolsa de Nueva York tratando de detectar indicios del colapso de Wall Street, pero ahora son los opacos mercados crediticios los que más

September

29

• Bailout plan's effect not expected to be swift. The tentative agreement Sunday on a $700-billion financial system rescue package would provide a badly needed psychological boost on Wall Street but wouldn't be an immediate panacea for the economy or housing market, experts predicted.

• Bailout bill to go to House. Saying the nation's economy is on the line, congressional leaders are pushing for a vote today on a $700-billion plan to end the financial system's paralysis and protect taxpayers from having to bear the cost.