Remember shortly after Obamacare’s passage and ATT and Caterpillar announced that they would write down so many billions of dollars worth of healthcare costs due to the new healthcare law?  Why haven’t more corporations done the same?  Why has the stock market flourished since then? Especially since late August? 

Since the Supreme Court ruled that Corporations may also be involved in political speech, what would be a good way to silence the corporations in regard to the latest healthcare reform efforts?  Why haven’t corporations made a bigger stink about the continuing resolutions that continue to fund Obamacare?  Insert the Early Retiree Reinsurance Plan, ergo the May 2010 press release as a starting point in the theory that the Democrats have found a way to pay off the employers liable for employee coverage for a larger chunk of medical expenses for those in early retirement years with the over 55 year old crowd.

 http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/fact-sheet-early-retiree-reinsurance-program

Note that this coverage applies to governments as well as private employees as well as religious organizations.  That is a huge swath that can cover people over 55 who generally can’t qualify for low cost insurance, but those organizations can write off up to 80% of claims worth $15000 – $90000 for people not yet eligible for Medicare. 

This is a $5 Billion slush fund.  Is this why Republicans didn’t want to touch the Obamacare in the Continuing Resolution? 

I subscribe to www.joe-duarte.com ‘s free emails, the tip for this week, says that there is up to a trillion dollars of this slush fund available to the government.  Is that why the Democrats can’t come up with more than $20 Billion in cuts?  For example recall the recent GE experience in that they received a $4 Billion check from the government due to their write offs, that is that they were net receivers of $4 Billion. Was it early retiree related as well as their Green Energy projects?  This free email was largely based on this Reuters report http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/28/us-healthcare-reform-business-idUSTRE72O6XE20110328 about how the health care law is currently paying via tax credits and how those companies are currently benefiting from Obamacare tax write offs. 

Yes taxpayers are on the hook for this while corporations margins are growing and they are buying back stock, not that I begrudge them the success or their impressive looking stock charts, but here is a factor that points to why those margins are improving. 

What factors does this help as far as the stock market is concerned?  What about all the pension funds with Union and state Retiree plans? They were enormously underfunded as of the Stock market down turn in 2008-2009. Now we are back to 1300 level on the S&P 500 and 12000 out of the high of the high of 14000.  Would all this stop in case of a government shutdown for more than a quarter? 

Considering everything that went to trying to stop Obamacare from passing, knowing that corporate interests have a voice, the silence seems deafening, except for the editorials outlining the changes already occurring.  On has to dig deep into the industries already affected such as the indoor tanning salon association such as this link to the 10% so called “Caucasian tax” by Rush Limbaugh. (Apropos isn’t it?) 

http://www.theita.com/resource/resmgr/docs/federal_reg_june_15_final_an.pdf

The silence seems deafening at this point and it will take a special kind of politician to defuse this landmine.  LOL.

She couldn’t bring herself to say she supported the natural rights of man as declared in the Declaration of Independence such as the right to Life.  So if Obamacare takes effect, Death Panels will be supported cause she will support the laws of the land and couldn’t bring herself to say anything in support of the founding guidance given in the Declaration of Independence.

Isn’t that reason enough to filibuster the Obama rubber stamp that is Elena Kagan?

Since the passage of the Healthcare Bill, couldn’t help but notice a plethora of bills and events going through DC, once the logjam that was the healthcare bill, bills on reforming financial regulations, a proposal for allowing gays in the military, confirmation of a Mr Liu for a federal judgeship, were all on the agenda for the week.  Greece and Portugal weigh on the Euro, hence a stronger USD, and a mild down day on the equities market, March 24, 2010.  As for the military, I am concerned about getting taxed for the Healthcare bill, in addition to paying for the current insurance that we have.

On mainstreet, I heard Limbaugh’s interview with an Insurance rep describe how she was updating her resume due to payout requirements for insurance companies going to 85% instead of what was the industry standard of 65%.   The other highlight for reading was an IBD editorial regarding how employers will have to pay up for spouses who get fired from their other job. The quote in question comes from a Heritage Foundation report.
First, employers would be faced with a $3,000 annual penalty for hiring a single parent—and are therefore likely to not hire such an individual. Likewise, if one company lays off an employee with a working spouse, that could generate a $3,000 tax penalty for the other spouse’s employer—unless the other employer lays off the other spouse as well.[1]

On CNBC towards the closing bell on the 24th of March 2010, a bond trader described how the healthcare bill was starting to sink in, and how that would equate to large trillion dollar deficits and much higher rates on the longer ends. I started the day with hearing Rep Levin talk about punishing China for manipulating their currency to keep it weak. So a coincidence that CNBC ran a headline that the bond auction was weak today a coincidence? What movie characters said, “You think,”?  Is that N. Dakota senator who was arguing for the deficit reducing qualities of this bill listening, Hm- LOL.
Partisanship– bring it on!!!!!!!!!!!!!  No more token 15B $ jobs bills, tax cuts now for all. repeal the healthcare debacle.

http://blogs.investors.com/capitalhill/index.php/home/35-politics/1461–texas-dems-nominate-woman-who-wants-obama-impeached

In a spirit of bipartisanship I want to extend a bravo to the Dems in Texas. 

Congrats to this Rep for getting over 50% of the vote in the Democratic Primary and LOL winning the general.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0310/A_Larouche_Dem_wins_Texas_primary.html?showall

http://www.investors.com/images/editimg/ibded/1-RAMclr-040809-liberty.jpg

Recall the Detroit residents looking for government bailouts and calling it Obama’s stash.  Limbaugh calling 4th of July, “The Dependents Day.”

Have you noticed that US equitie indexes went up with the decline with the USD and went down with signs of strength for most of the last few years? Will that trend reverse?  Will the signs of higher yields in the bond market, aka selling of treasuries or overwhelming supply,  without a strong demand bring the USD strength?   My favorite free author of late on the equity market is SyHarding at the StreetSmartreport via >www.decisionpoint.com>favorite advisors>StreetSmart. 

When Germany reunited they had a strong currency due to their high reunification costs and needed to attract funds to their bonds, high bond yields attracted those funds.  When there was a currency crisis in Asia in 1998, investors sought the USD, and the uber strong parabolic equity market of the 1990s, especially the Nasdaq, thanks to the internet ecommerce, brought in a huge USD demand (and strong capital gains income to help make the Clinton look like a fiscal conservative and Bush and Republicans didn’t keep spending down when the capital gains income cratered, another topic another day. )  So we will see if the USD will rally some more from here.  When states, like California have very poor business environments, and when the USA has huge unfunded deficits like the entitlements for social security and medicare are pretty well known for their USD bearish fundamental factors.   So lately, the Greece bond downgrade has weighed heavily on the Euro of late, hence some strength the USD .   These are not the only sovereign debt issues out there either, with plenty of news stories making it sound like Keynesian economics is all the rage in governments, especially our own USA.

According to the Seasonal sections of the Sy Harding’s work, the second year of a presidency is always bullish for the stock market in the past since the end of WWI.  Anyone with a Stock Traders Almanac will see that a Republican Congress and a Democrat president has been the best winning combination for stocks in the past.  Is that what this market is pricing in?    

http://www.decisionpoint.com/TAC/HARDING.html

The 2003 tax cuts created jobs, 8 million worth and don’t get me started on how many were saved.-they have been wiped out in the last six months.

Since the minimum wage hikes started in 2007, unemployment rates have gone from 4.6% to 9.5%.  Its a leading cause of teen unemployment as well.

As Obama poll numbers go down the stock market goes up. In particular in relation to how traders perceive whether there taxes will go up.  See Thursday and Friday headlines this past weekend as the Healthcare bills were shelved until October according to Drudgereport headlines.  See July 30 rally numbers at there peak.

Green jobs, from Spain and California, 15%+ and California over 10% plus there are so such things as stimulative green jobs.   California’s Truckee area congressman noted that California’s jobless rate diverged to the negative side when AB32 was enacted- which now passes as the current Cap and Trade bill.

Waxman has been the power behind the Cap and Tax Congressional bill and the Healthcare reform bill.  Why would anyone let a  Rodeo Drive Congressman fight for Main Street, except a San Francisco Democrat? 

This is response to Bulls and Bears reaction to Obama’s speech in which he claimed credit for avoiding a depression.  THE CRISIS isn’t over, wait for the Commercial loan rewrites to occur in the next 18 months and watch the fur fly.

Name one stimulative policy that affects everyone that has been enacted. Corporate tax cuts, anyone? 

  Where’s the deficit numbers that was put off until August ( errWill it be ad infinitum?) 

Drilling for oil, Russians and Chinese are drilling for oil near Cuba, Angola has a pro drilling for oil policy, Nigerian has pro drilling for oil policy.

European Greens aren’t impressed by the watered down Cap and Tax bill, so how can we set the example for Green policies.

Why not set the example with deficit reductions in federal spending?

Thanks to tomorrow’s IBD’s editorial writers, for July 16, There is the following quote from page 16 of the Health care reform bill.

• “Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer
• offering such coverage does not enrolle any individual in
• such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the
• first day” of the year the legislation becomes law.
• So we can all keep our coverage, just as promised — with, of
• course, exceptions: Those who currently have private individual
• coverage won’t be able to change it.  Norwill those who leave a company
• to work for themselves be free to buy individual plans from
• private carriers.

 http://eibd.investors.com/pdf/eIBD071609.pdf#page=1

This is my first political meeting with a local GOP group, up the road from my residence, in Evans GA.  Other State reps were there also. 

Mr Deal is an experienced legislator and is familiar with GA northern border areas and water issues.  He will have plenty of competent competition. 

The Congress is so busy with legislation, granted they don’t get a chance to read it, but I was flabbergasted that he was not familiar with the Walpin firing and its details.  Is Obama using this legislative period to consolidate power and weed out his critics while overwhelming the legislators with his agenda? This tactic worked with the Walpin dismissal.

Who is a Friend of Oil and Oil Companies?

 I couldn’t help but ask that question while sitting at a McDonalds, watching my kid play and striking up a conversation with someone who complained about how much money the oil companies were making at the time of $4/ gallon gas. 

I then asked the question on this diary entry http://www.redstate.com/vladimir/2009/05/23/the-climate-industrial-complex-or-green-energy-whores/#comment-589.   The article that the diary referenced stated, “There would be an outcry — and rightfully so — if big oil organized a climate change conference and invited only climate-change deniers.”  The issue that I had with that statement is that some oil companies are also pursuing green technologies and are at least addressing the climate change issue on their web sites and are least looking for ways to lower emissions even if they are not pursuing alternatives to oil. 

The biggest concern is the GW 2007 Energy bill which aims to have $ 36  billion gallons worth of ethanol available by 2022.  The issue with that is that it would take the entire current corn and a large portion of the grain crop, and that at least a gallon of regular gasoline is needed to produce the ethanol.  Sen Kay Bailey Hutchison proposed freezing ethanol production to current levels.  Noting that the switch to ethanol had added approximately $600 million worth of costs to food since 2006 until the April 2008 timeframe.  Ethanol at more than 10% of the gasoline mix is corrosive etc.  Even my new push mower warns against using gasoline with more than 10% ethanol because of the corrosive characteristics of the higher than 10% ethanol blends.

http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=294448306418994&kw=Kay,bailey,hutchinson

With the above mandate in mind, the 2007 Energy Bill, fast forward to now, the state of energy is thus: there is still a subsidy for the corn  and switchgrass ethanol and as noted on a BP website, they are partnering with Dupont and the Brazilians to produce ethanol from cellolosic sources of energy.  BP is adverse to using food stock for ethanol.  One of my favorite stock commentators, www.joe-duarte.com  made mention of this development and that investors are accumulating BP stock, see his late May entry.   After a perusal of the BP web site, Exxon Web site and Chevron web site, BP has the most extensive section on their alternative fuels and the most encouraging progress in this area due to their bio butanol efforts and work with the Brazilian ethanol producers along with Dupont.

Politicians and oil companies must address the climate change issue due to the subsidies due to their corn and grain farmers and to hedge against government or environmental extremists and activists.  Even the conservatives at the Republican Study Committee are addressing the alternative fuel issue by promoting “ an all the above “, pursuit of energy sources.  No one can afford to be a denier even if they don’t subscribe to the “Peak Oil Theory” that originated from the 1950s and are current on some estimates that American oil sources may well have around a trillion barrels of oil locked away in federal lands and on nearby coasts.  (http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=326073872477255&kw=trillion%20barrels%20of%20oil)

When using OpenSecrets.org, with 2007 statistics- for identifying the favorite companies for Congress to hold stock in, there is General Electric at the top of the list with 96 members of Congress holding stock with 53 Dems and 43 Republicans. #5 Bank of America with 30 Dems and 29 Republicans. #8 Exxon Mobil with 19 Dems and 36 Republicans.  So there are plenty of energy companies and a variety of companies that Congressional leaders hold.

What was intriguing was finding a group called www.Cleantech.com and the www.worldenergysummit.com . Among the sponsors for the world energy summit were GE, Exxon Mobil and Media Watch.   

        Among the networking clients that raise the hairs on the back of my head for the www.cleantech.com group is the American Federal Reserve and the American Treasury Department.  No other Central Banks from any other country are mentioned as sponsors. 

Why is that critical?   The Federal Reserve and other Central banks should be known for their lack of influence from political forces and known for their inflation fighting or price stability maintaining abilities.   Now, seeing the Fed and Treasury listed as policymakers that can be contacted through the Cleantech networking throws that into doubt since the Cleantech group promotes green technologies and jobs.  (There was a CNBC article on Fed President Lockhart’s concern about keeping rates low in the US for too long, which I believe was a reason for the USD appreciation against commodity currencies today, June 5, 2009)Even with Lockhart’s USD strengthening comments, Geithner’s got the reins on the Fed and the interest rates and is there any question about where his heart is in regards to supporting the Global Warming dogmas?

The independence question is further thrown into doubt when an article from a professional investor notes the following regarding the Fed and Treasury policies while giving lip service to a strong USD. http://www.deltaga.com/market-commentaries/the-plummeting-dollar-prosperity-plan.html