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When describing the Boehner's plan as perceived by the CBO we used one key word: "laughable" in that i) it cut far less than many had expected it would cut, particularly during its "first stage" and ii) it had a pathetic $4 billion of actual discretionary cuts in its first projected year. It seems even the GOP has realized that its plan is nothing but a red herring, and as a result has declared that it is delaying its previously scheduled vote on the debt ceiling which was supposed to take place tomorrow, has now been delayed until Thursday after...

AEI’s Michael Barone wrote recently about the higher education bubble, which could also described as a “low-interest education loan bubble” to reflect the government’s role in subsidizing higher education, similar to its role in subsidizing homeownership. The topic has been receiving a lot of attention lately, and there is even now a Wikipedia listing for “higher education bubble.”

BOSTON (AP) - A former Massachusetts state senator convicted of corruption after being videotaped stuffing bribe money into her bra has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison.

An irate former employee has taken hostages at a the headquarters of BMW in France, in Montigny-Le-Bretonneux.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- U.S. banks are failing at the fastest rate in two decades. No, the financial crisis hasn't returned. Wall Street doesn't need another bailout. But in communities around the country, 143 banks have collapsed so far this year - more than all of last year. This time, the failed banks are smaller, on average, than in 2008 and 2009. The damage to the industry has thus been milder this time. Still, the wave of closings points to the persistent struggles of many communities and states. On Friday, regulators closed four small banks: One each in Maryland and Washington...

BRASILIA/SEOUL (Reuters) - Policymakers from the world's new economic powerhouses in Latin America and Asia on Thursday criticized the U.S. Federal Reserve's move to inject billions of dollars into the U.S. economy to boost growth. Emerging market economies said the Fed's move made any substantive deal on cutting global economic imbalances less likely at next week's Group of 20 meeting in Seoul. Developing countries also threatened fresh steps to curb capital inflows which are pushing up their currencies against the U.S. dollar. "Everybody wants the U.S. economy to recover, but it does no good at all to just throw dollars...

German Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle said on Thursday he was concerned at U.S. efforts to stimulate growth by injecting liquidity into its struggling economy. "I view that not without concern," Bruederle said, adding that a variety of measures were needed to solve the problem and it was not enough to pump in liquidity alone. "We hope the U.S. economy gets back up stronger on its feet," he said.

Two years have passed since the worst financial crisis since the 1930s dealt a body blow to the world economy. Working with policymakers at home and abroad, the Federal Reserve responded with strong and creative measures to help stabilize the financial system and the economy. The Fed also purchased more than a trillion dollars' worth of Treasury securities and U.S.-backed mortgage-related securities, which helped reduce longer-term interest rates, such as those for mortgages and corporate bonds.

BOGOTA, Colombia — A car packed with at least 110 pounds (50 kilograms) of explosives blew up in an office district of Colombia's capital Thursday, shattering windows in dozens of buildings and injuring nine people, police said. No deaths were reported. It was the first car bombing in Bogota since a blast killed two people a year and a half ago, and came five days after Juan Manuel Santos was sworn in as president.

Russia, July 30 (Reuters) - Forest fires sweeping across central Russia have killed at least 23 people, officials said on Friday.

Violence erupted in the Bangladeshi capital as thousands of garment workers protested over a government-backed wage increase that fell short of demands. Police said protesters blocked traffic and burned cars in Dhaka. It comes after officials said on Thursday that the minimum monthly wage would rise to 3,000 taka ($43), up from 1,662 taka. However, some labour unions had called for a wage of 5,000 taka.

The U.S. government needs to elaborate a credible plan to address its soaring debt in order to maintain its Aaa credit rating, Moody's Investors Service's told Dow Jones newswire.

Buoyant Massachusetts Republicans say U.S. Sen. John Kerry’s boat tax bumbling could turn the state’s already storm-tossed Democratic congressional campaigns into a fleet of S.S. Minnows: at risk of being lost. “Campaigning with Kerry would be like campaigning with Thurston Howell III on Gilligan’s Island,” said Jennifer Nassour, chairwoman of the state’s Republican Party. “Could he be more out of touch?” GOP consultant Ron Kaufman expects Democrats to flee from what he called “the sinking ship.”

European regulators said the vast majority of banks passed stress tests, boosting U.S. stocks in the afternoon. But analysts wondered if the tests papered over key risks, notably financials' holdings of government bonds. Seven of 91 banks — five Spanish as well as one German and one Greek — failed the stress test. Regulators assessed the banks' ability to survive a double-dip recession based on how much sovereign debt they hold on trading books, not hold-to-maturity bonds. The problem, analysts say, is that banks hold much more long-term bonds and the stress test didn't take into account possible government defaults...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Obama administration, which has been under fire for not developing a concrete plan for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, says it will hold a conference in next month to discuss their future. The administration said Tuesday the event will be held Aug. 17 at the Treasury Department. The financial overhaul signed by President Barack Obama didn't address their future, despite protest from Republicans that it was incomplete without a plan for the two companies. The Obama administration has said it wants to wait until next year to determine their future. So far stabilizing the...

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- A top Chinese central bank official suggested switching away from the U.S. dollar as a benchmark for the yuan's foreign-exchange rate, switching instead to a basket of currencies, according to remarks published Thursday.

BERLIN — At least 10 people were killed and another 15 injured when mass panic broke out Saturday in a tunnel at an annual celebration of techno music in western Germany. The deaths occurred at the Love Parade in Duisburg, near Duesseldorf, where thousands had gathered for the event.

DETROIT – General Motors Co. will buy AmeriCredit Corp. for $3.5 billion, a deal that allows the automaker to expand loans to customers with poor credit and offer more leases, key areas where GM must grow to accelerate its car sales. But the acquisition of the independent auto financing company also means that GM, which is 61 percent owned by the U.S. government, is getting back into the business of making risky loans. GM said it advised the U.S. Treasury Department of the acquisition, although government approval was not required.

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- The United States announced Thursday it will resume cooperation with Indonesia's special forces after ties were severed more than a decade ago over alleged human rights abuses by the commando unit. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates made the announcement after meeting with Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Thursday in the capital of Jakarta. Indonesia had said it wanted the United States to reconsider resuming joint training.

Shirley Davis, a 66-year-old retired phone-company administrator who lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., is more than $33,000 in debt, earns just $2,414 a month and filed for bankruptcy in June. Shortly before that, she ripped open an envelope from Capital One Financial Corp., which pitched her a credit card even though it sued her in 2006 to recover $4,470 she owed on a different card from the bank.