We have stopped our economic freefall - President Obama

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In his weekly address to the nation, President Obama gave credit to all nations for taking measures which he believes have stopped the economic free-fall. However, there is still much work to be done and he believes the G20- Summit in Pittsburgh September 24-25 will provide an opportunity for "a five-month checkup to review the steps each nation has taken – separately and together – to break the back of this economic crisis."

President Obama pointed to the Recovery Act, which was enacted in February, as an example of action his administration has undertaken to spur economic growth. He also stated that they have worked hard to free up the credit market to put more money into the hands of the consumer.

At the G20 conference the United States is going to "discuss some of the steps that are required to safeguard our global financial system and close gaps in regulation around the world – gaps that permitted the kinds of reckless risk-taking and irresponsibility that led to the crisis".

To this end President Obama is pushing his Consumer Financial Protection Agency proposal (currently before Congress). This agency will have clearly defined rules aimed at preventing shady lending practices such as:

• Loan contracts written to confuse

• Hidden fees

• Financial penalties issued without warning

President Obama gives his assurance that this agency will both establish clear rules and enforce those rules.

He recognizes that Wall Street banks would rather maintain the status quo and have hired lobbyist to work at stopping the bill currently before Congress, but this does not deter his determination to stop the business as usual mentality which this time could result in total financial collapse.

We have all seen how quickly many financial institutions have decided to pay back the government loans rather than abide by the strict rules applied to those loans.

Money Magazine Hoss agrees with the President's philosophy and sincerely hopes that he sticks to his guns and does not succumb to the pressure that will undoubtedly be put on him and his administration to withdraw their proposal for a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

Stay on Track,

Money Magazine Hoss

Next Hoss Cents Free Financial Money Magazine Post: September 27, 2009
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Half of Americans under 65 to lose their health care?

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A brand new report from the Treasury Department indicates that at some point over the next ten years approximately half of Americans under age 65 will lose their health care coverage.

In his weekly White House address, President Obama assured the American people that he would not let this happen. "In the United States of America, no one should have to worry that they’ll go without health insurance – not for one year, not for one month, not for one day. And once I sign my health reform plan into law – they won’t."

President Obama took this opportunity to tell those Americans already with health insurance that nothing in his plan would require them to change their doctor or the coverage they have. Rather, his plan would make sure their insurance would be improved. "We’ll make it illegal for insurance companies to deny you coverage because of a pre-existing condition, drop your coverage when you get sick, or water it down when you need it most. They’ll no longer be able to place some arbitrary cap on the amount of coverage you can receive in a given year or over a lifetime, and we will place a limit on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses – because no one should go broke just because they get sick."

In addition, those currently without coverage will be able (under his plan) to get quality plans at affordable prices.

He reaffirmed his commitment that any plan he signs will not to add one dime to the United States deficits. He actually predicted a deficit reduction of $4 trillion over the long term. How? By successfully slowing the growth of health care cost by a mere one-tenth of one percent.

President Obama stated the time for action is now.

Money Magazine Hoss agrees with the President. Enough debating. What is currently in place is not working. It's time to try something new. In a country as abundant as America, it is a travesty, an international embarrassment, that so many are without the means to get health care.

Stay on Track,

Money Magazine Hoss

Next Hoss Cents Free Financial Money Magazine Post: September 20, 2009
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Unemployment Hits 26-Year High

From The Hoss's Mouth

The US jobless rate reached a 26-year high according to government reports. August had a net job loss of 216,000 jobs, bringing the total job loss since the beginning of 2008 to 6.9 million. The current unemployment rate is 9.7%.

The silver lining in this dark cloud is that fewer jobs were pruned in August than in July (216,000 vs 230,000). In addition it was the lowest job loss since August 2008.
Christina Romer, Chairwoman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, kept a positive outlook by saying it (job losses) is still a terrible number but it is certainly showing those job losses moderating and that really is what is important. In her opinion this demonstrates that the stimulus package is working and they (government officials) will continue to monitor the situation.

The only sectors to show an increase in employment were health care and education. Construction, manufacturing, financial services, government and professional services all incurred job losses.

It is usual for teenagers to have difficulty in finding summer jobs and this may have an effect on the record high unemployment percentage. For example, the teenager unemployment figure for August was 25.5 % versus 10.1% for adult males and 7.6% for adult females.

It will be interesting to see what next months figures bring, but let’s hope that with students returning to school and perhaps a continued decline in job losses that we will see a meaningful drop in the unemployment rate.

Stay on Track,

Money Magazine Hoss

Next Hoss Cents Free Financial Money Magazine Post: September 13, 2009
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