plus 3, Obama team pitching budget, jobs plan on Hill - YAHOO!

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• Obama team pitching budget, jobs plan on Hill - YAHOO!
• Obama's Budget Is Under Attack From Both Parties - CNBC
• Fidelity cuts trade commissions to flat $7.95 fee - San Francisco Chronicle
• Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. to Present at Sterne Agee's Financial ... - Stockhouse

Obama team pitching budget, jobs plan on Hill - YAHOO! Posted: 02 Feb 2010 08:44 AM PST WASHINGTON – Top administration officials tried to steer President Barack Obama's new $3.8 trillion budget through a congressional minefield on Tuesday as the day-old plan drew fire from Republicans and Democrats alike. Democrats took shots at the budget's proposed hits on some favored programs, including the elimination of NASA's manned moon flight program and Army Corps of Engineers projects. Republicans generally contended the package didn't do enough to trim deficits while increasing taxes too much. Top Senate Budget Committee Republican Judd Gregg of New Hampshire said Obama's promise to freeze some domestic spending was more symbolism than substance. "Sure, it's the right sentiment but it doesn't get you anywhere," Gregg said. "It's small ball. It's not even a bunt." He also blasted Obama's proposal, being promoted on Tuesday on a presidential visit to New Hampshire, to use $30 billion in funds from the 2008 bank bailout program for a small-business lending program. Gregg pointed out that money repaid by banks from the Troubled Assets Relief Program to the government is by law supposed to pay down federal debt. "It's not for a piggy bank because you're concerned about lending to small businesses," Gregg told White House Budget Director Peter Orszag. Orszag told Gregg the administration was well aware of the provision in the TARP legislation requiring money to be paid back and anything extra used to pay down the national debt. That's why the administration is seeking legislation to authorize the $30 billion small-business lending program, Orszag said. Meanwhile, the Democratic chairman of the Budget Committee, Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., faulted the administration for not doing enough to stanch the deficit flood. While he said he agreed with Obama's plan to spend more now to maintain the fragile economic recovery, Conrad said that administration doesn't do nearly enough to address out-of-control deficits in the next few years. "I don't see the pivot" to tackling the deficit, Conrad said. "I don't see the focus on bringing down that long-term debt." Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., challenged the administration's proposal to include Army Corps of Engineers public works projects in a three-year spending freeze. And Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., railed about the decision to eliminate NASA's program, initiative by former President George W. Bush, to send astronauts back to the moon. The expressions of skepticism and complaints showed how difficult it will be for Obama to win even the support of his own party for his new budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. In a sign that not all of the budget's proposals were in trouble, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus said there is bipartisan support in the Senate to pass a bill that offers tax credits to employers that add workers. Baucus said he supports Obama's plan, and he noted that other senators on the committee, including Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, have proposed similar bills. "We need to work on legislation that will create jobs," Baucus said. "And we need to work across the aisle, so that the legislation on which we work can become law." Administration officials mounted a spirited sales pitch for Obama's new budget, saying that overall it would help lift the economy and keep the nation strong. Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the $768.2 billion defense part of the budget would help pay for "a broad portfolio of military capabilities" as it fights wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Gates said the spending would also help the United States "prepare for a much broader range of security capabilities." Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the panel that the war in Afghanistan is now the Pentagon's top priority. "The Afghan people are the center of gravity and defeat of al-Qaida the primary goal," he said. Administration officials testified at three separate Senate committees — Armed Services, Budget and Finance — to outline Obama's new budget, stuffed with initiatives to spark jobs and lift the economy. The budget was getting an early test with lawmakers weary of record deficits, wary of Obama's tax ideas and nervous about winning re-election in November. Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Obama's Budget Is Under Attack From Both Parties - CNBC Posted: 02 Feb 2010 08:58 AM PST Top administration officials tried to steer President Barack Obama's new $3.8 trillion budget through a congressional minefield on Tuesday as the day-old plan drew fire from Republicans and Democrats alike. Democrats took shots at the budget's proposed hits on some favored programs, including the elimination of NASA's manned moon flight program and Army Corps of Engineers projects. Republicans generally contended the package didn't do enough to trim deficits while increasing taxes too much. Top Senate Budget Committee Republican Judd Gregg of New Hampshire said Obama's promise to freeze some domestic spending was more symbolism than substance. "Sure, it's the right sentiment but it doesn't get you anywhere," Gregg said. "It's small ball. It's not even a bunt." He also blasted Obama's proposal, being promoted on Tuesday on a presidential visit to New Hampshire, to use $30 billion in funds from the 2008 bank bailout program for a small-business lending program. Gregg pointed out that money repaid by banks from the Troubled Assets Relief Program to the government is by law supposed to pay down federal debt. "It's not for a piggy bank because you're concerned about lending to small businesses," Gregg told White House Budget Director Peter Orszag. Orszag told Gregg the administration was well aware of the provision in the TARP legislation requiring money to be paid back and anything extra used to pay down the national debt. That's why the administration is seeking legislation to authorize the $30 billion small-business lending program, Orszag said. Meanwhile, the Democratic chairman of the Budget Committee, Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., faulted the administration for not doing enough to stanch the deficit flood. While he said he agreed with Obama's plan to spend more now to maintain the fragile economic recovery, Conrad said that administration doesn't do nearly enough to address out-of-control deficits in the next few years. "I don't see the pivot" to tackling the deficit, Conrad said. "I don't see the focus on bringing down that long-term debt." Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., challenged the administration's proposal to include Army Corps of Engineers public works projects in a three-year spending freeze. And Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., railed about the decision to eliminate NASA's program, initiative by former President George W. Bush, to send astronauts back to the moon. The expressions of skepticism and complaints showed how difficult it will be for Obama to win even the support of his own party for his new budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. In a sign that not all of the budget's proposals were in trouble, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus said there is bipartisan support in the Senate to pass a bill that offers tax credits to employers that add workers. Baucus said he supports Obama's plan, and he noted that other senators on the committee, including Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, have proposed similar bills. "We need to work on legislation that will create jobs," Baucus said. "And we need to work across the aisle, so that the legislation on which we work can become law." Administration officials mounted a spirited sales pitch for Obama's new budget, saying that overall it would help lift the economy and keep the nation strong. Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the $768.2 billion defense part of the budget would help pay for "a broad portfolio of military capabilities" as it fights wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Gates said the spending would also help the United States "prepare for a much broader range of security capabilities." Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the panel that the war in Afghanistan is now the Pentagon's top priority. "The Afghan people are the center of gravity and defeat of al-Qaida the primary goal," he said. Administration officials testified at three separate Senate committees — Armed Services, Budget and Finance — to outline Obama's new budget, stuffed with initiatives to spark jobs and lift the economy. The budget was getting an early test with lawmakers weary of record deficits, wary of Obama's tax ideas and nervous about winning re-election in November. Slideshow: A History of Government Spending Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Fidelity cuts trade commissions to flat $7.95 fee - San Francisco Chronicle Posted: 02 Feb 2010 08:58 AM PST Fidelity's flat fee replaces a tiered structure that had charged customers as much as $19.95 per trade to as little as $8 depending on asset levels and how many online trades a customer made. In addition to bringing Fidelity's trading commission below Schwab's new price, the reduction puts privately held Fidelity below its two other largest brokerage rivals. TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. charges a flat $9.99, while E-Trade Financial Corp. charges $7.99 to $12.99, depending on a customer's assets and trading frequency. Fidelity's commission cut, which takes effect Wednesday, was coupled with a separate announcement that Fidelity will offer its clients commission-free online trades on 25 exchange-traded funds from iShares, which commands about half of the rapidly growing ETF market. Fidelity, which is based in Boston, hasn't been a player in directly offering ETFs, instead serving as a distributor offering its clients ETFs managed by other firms like iShares. ETFs are baskets of stocks that differ from mutual funds in that they can be traded like stocks during daily trading sessions, rather than being priced once a day. ETFs have drawn attention in part because of BlackRock Inc.'s recent acquisition of iShares as part of a broader $13.5 billion deal to acquire the investment unit of the British bank Barclays. Under the marketing agreement with BlackRock announced Tuesday, Fidelity will still charge $7.95 commissions on about 800 other ETFs from iShares and other providers that Fidelity makes available to its clients. The 25 ETFs for which online trading commissions will be waived cover a broad investment spectrum, offering clients exposure to everything from the Standard & Poor's 500 index of stocks to the MSCI Emerging Markets index. The commission waiver for those 25 ETFs will be in place for at least three years, and possibly longer, said James Burton, president of Fidelity's retail brokerage business. No commission-waiver agreements are expected with other ETF providers, Burton said. Kathleen Murphy, Fidelity's president of personal investing, said Fidelity will likely remain a distributor of ETFs, rather than direct provider competing with such ETF providers as iShares, State Street Global Advisors and Vanguard Group. The commission fee cut on online stock trades comes after San Francisco based Charles Schwab on Jan. 7 announced a new rate that took effect on Jan. 19, and includes $8.95 stock trades or non-Schwab ETFs. The new rate covers online stock trades regardless of investor portfolio size, frequency of trade or size of trade. Fidelity's reduction covers trades made online rather than orders placed by telephone. Trades made by phone will cost an additional $5, or a total $12.95 per trade, while trades made through a financial representative will cost an additional $25, or a total $32.95. While Fidelity is primarily known for its mutual funds, the company has broadened its financial services in recent years, including its brokerage operations. Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. to Present at Sterne Agee's Financial ... - Stockhouse Posted: 02 Feb 2010 07:54 AM PST LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Feb 02, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. (NASDAQ: OZRK) will be presenting at Sterne Agee's Financial Services Symposium in Orlando, Florida on February 10, 2010 at 10:20 a.m. EST. The Company will be represented by George Gleason, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and Greg McKinney, Executive Vice President and Controller. Interested investors may access a live broadcast of the presentation through the event website, http://cc.talkpoint.com/snlf001/020910a_ke/?entity=26_S351NB8, or through the Company's website under Investor Relations. A replay of the presentation will be available through the Company's website for one year after the event. Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. is a bank holding company with $2.8 billion in total assets as of December 31, 2009 and trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "OZRK". The Company owns a state-chartered subsidiary bank that conducts banking operations through 72 offices including 65 banking offices in 34 communities throughout northern, western and central Arkansas, seven Texas banking offices, and a loan production office in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Company may be contacted at (501) 978-2265 or P. O. Box 8811, Little Rock, Arkansas 72231-8811. The Company's website is: www.bankozarks.com. SOURCE: Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. Susan Blair, 501-978-2217 Copyright Business Wire 2010 Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

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