News
National Journal | Senate Punts CR Vote to Weekend
The Senate will not vote Thursday on a continuing resolution to fund the government, delaying the vote for at least a day, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced on Thursday afternoon. Democrats charged that Republicans delayed the vote to help colleague Scott Brown of Massachusetts avoid a debate in his hotly contested Senate race.
Bloomberg | Greek Leaders Struggle With Spending Reductions
Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras struggled to clinch agreement with his coalition partners on an 11.5 billion-euro ($14.9 billion) budget-cut package that’s key to receiving international aid funds.
WSJ | U.K. Deficit Hits Record for August
U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne looks on course to miss his borrowing target after official data Friday showed the budget deficit in August was the largest for that month since records began.
Market Watch | Household debt climbs at fastest rate in 4 years
American households accumulated debt at the fastest rate in the second quarter in more than four years, and total domestic debt grew at the quickest rate in 3 1/2 years, according to data released Thursday showing an increased willingness to borrow.
WSJ | Fight Looms on Greek Bailout
A confrontation is brewing among Greece's international creditors over who will provide the financing needed to keep the country afloat.
NY Times | California Debt Higher Than Earlier Estimates, a Task Force Reports
Gov. Jerry Brown of California announced when he came into office last year that he had found an alarming $28 billion “wall of debt” looming over the state, which had to be dismantled.
Econ Comments & Analysis
WSJ | An Illinois Pension Bailout?
Now that Chicago's children have returned to not learning in school, we can all move on to the next crisis in Illinois public finance: unfunded public pensions. Readers who live in the other 49 states will be pleased to learn that Governor Pat Quinn's 2012 budget proposal already floated the idea of a federal guarantee of its pension debt. Think Germany and eurobonds for Greece, Italy and Spain.
