By Robert Romano — “This is Big Brother on steroids.” That is how Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, described an amendment offered by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee to the “Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act” (CISPA). The amendment would have authorized the Secretary of Homeland Security “to acquire, […]

By Robert Romano — Barack Obama has his work cut out for himself getting reelected in 2012. The most recent bad news for the President comes on the longer-term jobs projections from the nation’s central bank. The Federal Reserve has once again downgraded its economic outlook on the U.S. economy , forecasting unemployment to remain high for the foreseeable future, staying […]

By Robert Romano — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has in the past said he opposes a return to the gold standard because it would reduce the central bank’s ability to intervene in the economy, effectively reducing his role to little more than a clerk. Apparently, he […]

By Robert Romano — It would not be an election year without the White House offering yet another bailout for distressed borrowers who owe more money on their homes than they are worth. Of course, it’s all political. Don’t let anyone tell you different. “The goal is […]

By Robert Romano — Despite recent deals totaling tens of billions of euros from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Central Bank (ECB), and the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to prop up the banks that bet poorly on Greek debt, IMF director Christine Lagarde is coming […]

By Robert Romano — What one would have given to be a fly on the wall as the House voted March 29 on the Republican Study Committee (RSC) alternative budget proposal, which ultimately found a majority of the House Republicans voting in favor of ditching the proposal […]

By Robert Romano — Legislation that would allow stock offerings up to $1 million across state lines on the Internet to so-called “unsophisticated” investors has passed both houses of Congress, and now proceeds to the White House for President Barack Obama’s signature. Obama has signaled he will […]

By Robert Romano — According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the budget proposed by House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan , and to be voted on by the House of Representatives, would be balanced by 2040. By his own numbers, the only time the budget would even be cut is in 2013 and 2014, and then […]

By Robert Romano — Since the beginning of the year, gasoline prices have spiked upward dramatically from about $3.25 a gallon to about $3.83, or about $.00725 a day, according to Gasbuddy.com . And if they continue at that rate, they will top $4 a gallon by about April 13, […]

Interestingly,  the European Banking Authority (EBA) and Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) data on net CDS exposure does not match. The difference could be that EBA is only reporting on European data, so one presumes worldwide exposure would be even larger. In any event, […]