Will New FinReg Hiring Quotas Further Damage Business Prospects?

By Tim Connolly

Once again, we find details in FinReg that are absolutely impossible to understand, quantify, or even predict the MASSIVE expansion of federal intrusion into business by the Obama Administration and the Democrat controlled Congress. The 1,261 word Section 342 may be one of the most expensive and damaging provisions for any finance related businesses, on Wall Street or not:

The section establishes at least 20 new Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion across the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, Securities and Exchange Commission and other finance-related agencies. It orders the directors of these offices to develop standards that "ensure, to the maximum extent possible, the fair inclusion and utilization of minorities, women, and minority-owned and women-owned businesses in all business and activities of the agency at all levels, including in procurement, insurance, and all types of contracts."

The legislation states that this applies to “services of any kind,” including investment firms, mortgage banking firms, asset management firms, brokers, dealers, underwriters, accountants, consultants and law firms. Every contractor and subcontractor must now certify that their workforces reflect a “fair inclusion” of women and minorities.

Who will decide if your firm’s services have a “fair inclusion” of minorities and women? How exactly are we, as businesses in a free market based, capitalist economy, supposed to make long-term planning decisions on investments and expansion when the government continues to make these power grabs throughout the economy? [more...]

Tax the Rich; Lay Off the Poor

By Bill Glynn

Timothy Geithner continues to speak out about the expiration of the Bush tax credits. Alan Greenspan does, too. But even Ben Bernanke encouraged Congress to continue the cuts to support an already very fragile economy. You see, when you do away with the tax breaks for the "rich" (those making more than $250K a year) and raise capital gains, shove ObamaCare down our throats, tout “redistribution of wealth,” strangle the financial Industry with regulations, and much more to come, it will be a disaster. The simple fact is if you tax people more, they will have less money to spend and invest and, worse, much less money to hire workers and a corporate tax rate that will be #2 in the world. Think about it and don’t forget how much more attractive it’s going to be for big companies to do business overseas. [more...]

An Economic Surge: 2-Step Plan

By Bill Glynn

Armchair quarterbacking aside, Americans are more concerned than ever with the state of our economy. Everyone seems to have an opinion, but few offer real solutions. My new book, "The United States of Bankruptcy" does, however, offer a plan that can save the economy right away.

First of all, I have mentioned Freddie and Fannie in the past, but don't forget Ginnie. The government committed $5 trillion off the balance sheet to prop up these abysmal failures that despite their guarantee have been reduced to worthless pink sheet stocks. The government has already borrowed over $150 billion to turn around and give it to them and this will be over a trillion dollars, at least in the foreseeable future, and Ginnie is a huge problem on the horizon. This policy is flat out wrong!

What should be done immediately is that a large portion of that same guarantee be redirected to afford all the citizens of this nation, rich and poor, the onetime option to consolidate and refinance ALL their debts. This one move will significantly reduce toxic loans - the horrifying loan guarantees coming home to roost - and reduce the cost of the debt that Americans already have. This would immediately increase disposable income in America by tens of billions and that means more spending, saving, and investing.

Why? The root cause of the housing, credit card, auto, student loan and other bad debts is Americans not being able to pay their bills. You can keep cutting limbs off the tree and buying up all the bad debt, but that costs hundreds of billions at a minimum. It is essential to help people afford the debt they owe and, thus, get to the root of the problem. This doesn't require minting or borrowing more money; they are already in debt and managing this is increasingly becoming worse or has already imploded and virtually destroying their lives. [more...]

The Fact is Consumers' Credit is a Disaster

...therefore, financial reform, consumption and recovery will be, too

By Bill Glynn

What can the government do right now without spending any money and buying hoards of bad debt?

43 MILLION Americans are in credit jail. These are people with a credit score lower than 600 and considered credit unworthy today; and I assure you, with financial reform, they are not getting bail for a long, long time. There will be millions joining the crowd this year and in the years to come; and even more devastating and with longer-term consequences is the continued rise of foreclosures and bankruptcy. The landmark Financial Reform legislation is about to make it far worse as the result will cause banks and credit card companies to constrain borrowing even more than they have already and taxes will make sure it gets worse. I offer two solutions at the end of this blog.

Obama: Bumbling Incompetent... or Bumbling Marxist?

By Wayne Allyn Root

Welcome to "the teleprompter depression." Each time Obama steps in front of a teleprompter, another business dies. As a common-sense small businessman, I have a front row seat to a slow motion economic Armageddon that will be written about, discussed and debated for decades to come. Big shot economists don’t listen to guys like me. They scoff as I keep predicting in commentary after commentary that small business is suffering a catastrophe of epic proportions - leading this nation towards levels of unemployment and economic crisis that will rival or surpass the Great Depression. I do not believe the tragedy that is unfolding before our eyes is a mistake, coincidence, or due to incompetence. I believe my old college classmate Obama (Class of ’83 Columbia University) is a Marxist purposefully trying to destroy capitalism, by overwhelming the system, thereby creating a distraction giving him cover to redistribute America’s wealth to his voters (those who create no jobs, pay few taxes, depend on government handouts for survival, or work for government or unions). [more...]