Joe Biden Reacts To Economy

CBS

Transcript

joining us now from Washington is Senator Joe Biden Barack Obama's running mate on the Democratic ticket good morning Senator good morning Maggie how are you I'm fine thank you Senator McCain just named some of the same culprits that you and Senator Obama blamed for this crisis yesterday Wall Street greed and excess and he called for a restructuring of oversight and regulation you seem to be on the same page well it seems like John's had an epiphany 9:00 yesterday morning John thought the economy was going great guns and the Bush Administration was doing well and today he thinks it's in crisis and you know I heard John say that the American people are strong John ought to come to my old neighborhood and find out that foreclosures are Skyhigh find out Gas and Grocery prices are up find out the middle class people made 2,000 bucks less over this uh term with the president than they did before he was president find out that in fact they're in real trouble in terms of uh um their ability to stay in their homes I mean I don't understand this I John quite frankly confuses me he he said that the American worker is what's strong that's what he meant and that's what he believes will dig us work is not strong theica the American worker is strong they've been betrayed they've been betrayed by a tax policy that absolutely screws them that in fact gives the money to the very wealthiest Among Us they've been betrayed by a uh a a a a policy of lay Fair here that let the big do what they want don't regulate them they've been betrayed not only by Wall Street but by this administration's policies and the policies John has supported this morning Senator people don't want to look back they want to look ahead to the next four years will you take this opportunity to say specifically and clearly what you and Senator Obama will do to fix this give me two or three solutions I know you've been working on them unlike the our opponents there are Clear Solutions one do not keep this tax hemorrhaging going give the middle class taxpayers a tax break like we're suggesting do not continue the Bush tax cuts that cause us to have to finance our debt through the Chinese to go buy uh Saudi oil number one number two invest in infrastructure immediately spend $70 billion out there rebuilding Bridges and infrastructure roads and the rest put people to work get jobs going three change the way in which we have bankruptcy work so that a bankery judge can say to a creditor you know what we're going to renegotiate we're going to restate the principal of the mortgage here so this person can stay in their house give people a fighting chance instead of the tax policy and the spending policies and the policies of this Administration let me ask you finally Senator Biden what do you say to voters who wonder if given the severity of this crisis right now whether it's the right time to put their faith in a president that has no executive experience and just a handful of years in the Senate I'd say take a look at who they put their the their who in fact has had their hand on the wheel the last eight years take a look at that you want four more years of George W bush and the L Fair policies of John McCain with no regulation over the very people he's now calling Predators then in fact continue it my Lord take a look at what who got us in this hole whose policies this has been a republican philosophy of letting Wall Street do what they want and the middle class be damned it's about time we change it if I sound like I'm angry I am fighting mad for middle class people who are been the scapegoat of this economy because of the policies of the mccains and the bushes Senator Joe Biden thank you [Music]

McCain Shuns Corporate Greed

CBS

Transcript

the financial meltdown is now the big topic on the campaign Trail joining us from Miami Republican Presidential nominee Senator John McCain Senator good morning good morning Harry I want to make sure I have this straight now yesterday on the campaign Trail you reiterated that you believe the fundamentals of the economy are strong at the same time we understand your campaign is issuing an ad that says the economy is in crisis which is it well the economy is in crisis is the fundamentals of our economy are the American worker American worker still the most productive the hardest working most industrious uh worker in the world and I'm proud of them they've been betrayed uh by Wall Street by greed by excess and by corruption and they have been done a great disservice but if someone disagrees that American workers are the best aren't the best in the world we just have a disagreement they're the fundamentals of our and the strength of America but the point is greed excess corruption has betrayed them and now we are facing a crisis and the answer for which is what because throughout your campaign you have said you are anti-regulation would not oversight have helped avert this crisis actually little two years ago I warned that the uh the oversight of Fanny and Freddy was uh was terrible that we were facing a crisis because of it or certainly serious problems and fact is that uh we saw a relationship between Fanny and Freddy and the Congress as well as the administration which caused the housing market obviously was a great contributor in the housing market collapsing as it has which was a big factor in the problems we're having today but uh the the influence that Fanny and Freddy had in the inside the Beltway old boy Network which led to this kind of corruption is unacceptable and I warned about it a couple of years ago do I believe in Access government regulation yes but this Patchwork quilt of of Regulation regulating bodies is designed for the 1930s when they were invented let me ask you this earlier this year on the campaign Trail you said or you admitted that you didn't know a lot about the economy why should voters trust you in these perilous times with the economy of the United States you know that's one of the interesting things about having long conversations the point is I was chairman of the Commerce Committee every part of America's economy I oversighted uh I have a long record far certainly far more extensive of being involved in our economy than uh Senator Obama does well that's the case you bear more responsibility for some of the crisis we're in I warned about it I have said that this Fanny and Freddy thing was of the most uh gra grave importance in the point also is that Senator Obama took he's the third highest recipient of contributions from Fanny and Freddy but the real point is here that it's greed exess corruption we're not going to stand for it we need to make sure that every person who's bank deposit has made a bank a deposit in a bank is insured we need to set up a 9/11 Commission in order to get to the bottom of this and get it fixed and act to clean up this corruption what they've done Harry is they violated the social contract that capitalism and the citizen have and we can't ever let this happen again I'll make sure it never happens again [Music]

Fed holds at 2%; Barclays eyes Lehman deal, AIG seeks $75B

CBS

Transcript

The Federal Reserve held the line on interest rates, leaving them unchanged at 2%. The Fed acknowledged the growing strain on the financial markets and the weakening labor market, but said it expects to see moderate economic growth down the road. On Wall Street, the news initially brought booze from investors, but in the end, stocks rallied and the Dow Industrials climbed about 142 points. The Nasdaq Composite added 27. A partial buyout for Lehman Brothers may be too little too late. British Bank Barkclays has a tentative deal to buy Lehman's trading and investment banking business for $2 billion. This deal could save as many as 10,000 jobs. Investors are now focused on AIG, the world's largest insurance company, is trying to secure $75 billion in loans to avoid bankruptcy. And even the strongest financial companies are feeling the pinch. Goldman Sachs reported a 70% drop in third quarter profit. And there is one bright spot amid the gloom on Wall Street. Oil prices fell nearly $4. A barrel of crude now under 92 bucks. It's dropped $55 from its high just two months ago. And that's your money watch. Log on to cbsnews.com for more.

Notebook: AIG on the Brink

CBS

Transcript

hi everyone Katie's on assignment I'm Kelly Wallace it's the latest crisis to rock the financial markets Insurance giant AIG teetering on the brink of bankruptcy the problems stem from aig's Financial products division not insurance but investors are nervous because this is a colossal firm if it fails the ripples would travel far and wide throughout the global economy businesses from Banks to manufacturers which had Insurance could find themselves exposed an airline for example that bought a contract guaranteeing a certain cost for fuel could suddenly have to pay full price there is better news though for individuals life auto and homeowner policies are guaranteed by state funds so claims would still be paid up to certain limits and people with retirement annuities also have protection AIG is hoping for a bailout from its competitors if it doesn't get one fast in your seat belt The Fallout could touch every corner of our economy I'm Kelly Wallace CBS News

Personal Finance Questions

CBS

Transcript

our financial advisor ray martin good morning ray good morning maggie number one question we got where is my money safe bank mutual funds stocks in my mattress yeah where yeah well here's what people need to know you know you look at your bank accounts make sure your deposits are within fdic insurance coverage limits a hundred thousand per individual account two hundred thousand per joint account two hundred fifty thousand dollars in an ira this applies to bank accounts savings accounts certificates deposits that you own in a bank money in a brokerage account with the failure now the emergency bankruptcy of lehman brothers people are saying hey is my money in a brokerage account are mutual funds safe you have the securities investors protection corporation a four decades old uh federal law that says brokerage accounts are separate from the financial firm they have to be segregated that's why you have all this holding company structure you're protected from a loss of securities in in a transfer of 500 000 securities a hundred thousand in cash and then there's overlay insurance on top of that mutual funds that you have money in a mutual fund is required to be separate from the holding company that owns or runs or manages those mutual funds so companies can't dip in there when they have a bankruptcy and take cash from individual investors out of a mutual fund company we have these protections in place to ensure that companies that get into financial trouble can't take individual investors money good so know the limits is the lesson that's correct all right number two we want you to listen to a question about the 401ks okay my name is felicia daniels and my question is should i leave my money tied up in a 401k or put it somewhere else well felicia's question gets right to the heart of the matter is my money safe and my employer's 401k when you hear about the lehman brothers bankruptcy here first you should know that if you take money out of your 401k it'll be taxable as income it'll be the worst thing you should do so felicia don't withdraw the money second your money as soon as it comes out of your paycheck is immediately deposited into a trust account that is protected by federal law from the creditors of your employer so your employer gets in financial troubles they can't take your 401k money and if you leave there you can transfer it to an ira or whatever so it's safe and if you're not retiring for a while don't even think about it don't even look at it most we actually i i say monitor your 401k at least quarterly most k plans offer 12 to 15 investment options which include stable value money market bond funds and stock funds and diversify include the safer options the guaranteed stable value and bond funds with your diversified stock funds and these have to be diversified and don't get deep into your employer's stock fund in your 401k diversify out of the employer stock in your 401k account all right ray we have so many more questions and maybe we'll have you back tomorrow okay and the next day and the next day all right maggie thank you you're welcome good to see you

Tips For Getting A Mortgage

CBS

Transcript

if You're in the Market to buy a house it is definitely a buyer Market but It's now a lot Harder to get a mortgage joining US with advicees financial journalist and early Show contributor very gibbons good morning good morning Harry UH so This is a Perfect Time to buy House Oh there's so many homes on the Market If you could Only get a mortgage Why is it so difficult to get one Well I mean All these Bad Real Estate deals Bad Bets on Real Estate costing The Big firms billions of dollars so we're all paying the Price Here Even creditworthy borrowers are having a difficult time it's very challenging environment Because They Just don't want to assume the risk Yeah the the people Would lend you the money Just don't want to be in the risk Business They don't want to be in the risk Business They rather issue fewer loans to fewer people than assume Any kind of ris What are rates like Because last time I looked a week or So they're good they're good Ever Since The Fanny Freddy bailout you've seen those rates Drop nicely Because that sort of removed the uncertainty that these firms are going to Stick Around they're Here to Back Up the trillions and trillions of dollars Where The We Under 6% Now 5.8% Which is a nice Five month Low and as you said tons of homes on the Market which puts buyers in a little bit of a Catch 22 Why Well They Can't get the loans Even if they have the Good Credit I mean these Days you really have to have a Score in the mid 600s to get a good Rate 700s mid 700s to get a really Good Rate so you really need to Boost your Credit Score First and foremost and lenders are also going to Look at your debt income ratio your reserves How much you have Left over They want to see that you got some liquidity right What now what kind of mortgages are They offering now is it Back to the you know Arms and All That stuff that got into Everybody That's the mess in the first place so It's Back To issuing The 30-ye fix 10 20% Down Arms are a little hard to Come by these Days Which is a good thing It's Back to the way it used to be right So what then is the Best Way to get a good mortgage Well to to Boost your Credit Score First and foremost you know paying Down The debs paying your bills On Time A lot of people Don't Even know what their Credit Score is like so you want to go to annualceditreport.com Check Out your your your Scores there and and really Work on boosting in right and Which is basically you have to Pay Down your Credit Card debt and All That Other stuff the the blacker your Bottom Line The Better off you are right That's exactly right Okay What's the First Step in applying You Want To Get preapproved of course Just like always and then you want to go Out find a Home as you say A lot of Great homes to choose from Set your Price negotiate your Price some of these buyers are Coming in Harry about 25 35% below Asking Price and they're getting The homes and then of course you want to do the appraisal the inspections All That stuff but you've got To Go in there prepared Yeah all of that paperwork what kind of documentation does this Oh All sorts Of stuff a couple years of Tax documents a couple of Pay stubs you need to prove that you've got the income Coming in lenders are extremely picky you know It's Back to Job Credit Cash All Of that stuff the way It was years ago and the way it probably should Be so It's Back to basics there you go very gimons Thank you so much

Turmoil in World Stock Markets

VOA News

Transcript

on Wall Street the Dow Jones index plunged more than 500 points Monday its worst single day drop in September 2001 stocks also posted big losses in markets around the world as investors tried to absorb the impact of the Leman Brothers collapse and the forced sale of investment brokerage firm Marl Lynch to Bank of America Market analyst Hugh Johnson says the effects could be far-reaching this is not just a problem of Wall Street this is a problem of M Street everybody is caught up in this thing everybody is is to some extent financially hurt some estimates Peg losses since the housing crisis began at more than half a trillion dollars the fear among some economists is that the failure of two of the most respected financial institutions in the US is just a tip of the iceberg New York University Dean and economics professor Thomas kouy says other financial institutions may be at risk there's AIG the insurance giant that's actually a a very uh a very good business that's being threatened by one of its uh one of its lines of business and then there are banks like Wu um and wacovia that are in serious trouble and then there are many other uh smaller banks that have that are in in serious trouble many Americans say they're worried I'm just wondering if the federal government had anything to do with lowering the standards in the first place to allow everyone to have the American dream which now is turning into the American Nightmare I really think that uh something has to be done I'm not sure whether it's a government or the private sector but I think they both have to come together and come to a solution that's going to really help the economy President Bush says he understands their concerns on Monday he said his administration is working to reduce the impact on the broader economy by making loans available to struggling Financial firms in the short run adjustments in the financial markets can be painful both for the people concerned about their Investments and for the employees of the affected firms in the long run I'm confident that our Capital markets are flexible and resilient and can deal with these adjustments in the meantime Thomas kolie says he expects more mergers and more takeovers before problems in the housing and credit markets subside the real challenge is restoring confidence in the financial system uh and beginning to restart mortgage markets and other loan markets and that that's the the main the main concern at this point and in a sign that the investment industry is bracing for difficult times ahead a group of 10 Global Banks and securities firms have pulled their money towards a $70 billion fund that companies can borrow from to deal with future credit shortages mil arga vaa news

Government Bails Out AIG With $85 Billion Loan

Associated Press

Transcript

help is on the way for AIG the government has agreed to provide an $85 billion emergency loan to help rescue the insurance giant bankers and federal officials decided a government bailout of American International Group was the best solution to keep it from collapsing such a collapse could have triggered a wave of problems for banks around the world and it could have opened the ugliest chapter yet of the recent Financial meltdown a meltdown that slashed billions of dollars from Global stock markets this is good news news for New York and great news for policy holders and employees around the world through a reorganization and further action jobs will be saved businesses will be made stable and certainly our financial recovery will be easier if not sooner the bailout calls for the government to seize up to 80% of AIG it would also remove its management similar to when the government took control of mortgage Giants Fanny May and Freddy Mack Mike graia the Associated Press