President Barack Obama (Photo courtesy of the AP)

The following article clippings are a snapshot of what the current administration is facing, in their attempts at reshaping the economy. There are nearly 700,000 new jobless claims, home sales are way down and banks recorded their first loss in almost 20 years.

While, President Obama announced this week that he would raise taxes on the rich, which I agree with, as previously stated on this website, I still believe the government is spending too much money on numerous items, throwing too much cash around. This will cancel out the benefits of a tax increase on the rich and become evident when it comes time to balance the nation's books. 

I do understand that the current administration is trying to clean up the debt former President Bush left behind, but this exorbitant spending is not the way to accomplish that goal. You'll be spending more than you are taking in and on borrowed money. That is not going to add up.

667K new jobless claims; new-home sales tumble

WASHINGTON (AP) — New jobless claims rose more than expected last week and the number of Americans continuing to receive unemployment benefits has topped 5.1 million, fresh evidence the recession is increasingly forcing employers to shed jobs.

The Labor Department said Thursday that first-time requests for unemployment benefits jumped to 667,000 from the previous week's figure of 631,000. Analysts had expected a slight drop in claims.

The 667,000 new claims are the most since October 1982, though the labor force has grown by about half since then. The four-week average of initial claims, which smooths out fluctuations, rose to 639,000, the highest in more than 26 years.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. added to the bad news Thursday, saying that it would eliminate about 12,000 jobs as it folds in the operations of failed savings and loan Washington Mutual Inc. In December, the bank said it would cut a total of 9,200 jobs related to the WaMu deal. The 12,000 figure includes 2,800 jobs expected to be lost through attrition...

http://www.google.com

U.S. Treasuries Fall for Third Day on Supply, Spending Concern

Feb. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries fell for a third day as the government sold $22 billion of seven-year notes in the last of three auctions this week as it issues an unprecedented amount of debt to spur the U.S. economy.

Declines were led by 10- and 30-year securities. The administration forecasts a budget deficit of $1.75 trillion in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. That’s 23% higher than a forecast by economists at primary dealer Goldman Sachs Group Inc., and equivalent to about 12 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product...

http://www.bloomberg.com

Obama Budget Has Contingency for More Aid to Banks (Update1)

Feb. 26 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama’s first budget request includes a contingency for as much as $750 billion in new aid to the financial industry this year while laying plans for a health-care system overhaul and higher taxes on the wealthy.

The spending blueprint, sent to Congress today, forecasts record outlays for the current fiscal year of $3.94 trillion, up 32 percent from a year ago. That would yield a record deficit of $1.75 trillion in the year ending Sept. 30, equal to about 12 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product, the highest since World War II.

The Obama administration plans to spend $3.55 trillion in fiscal 2010, beginning Oct. 1, with the deficit narrowing to $1.17 trillion. The president has promised to cut the shortfall in half by the end of his first term.

http://www.bloomberg.com

Top Republicans rip into Obama budget plan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional Republicans, having vowed to return to the conservative principle of limited government, denounced on Thursday President Barack Obama's $3.55 trillion budget as wasteful.

While Obama's fellow Democrats control Congress, he may need the support of fiscal conservatives in his own party, and possibly some moderate Republicans, to pass any budget.

"I have serious concerns with this budget, which demands hard-working American families and job creators turn over more of their hard-earned money to the government to pay for unprecedented spending increases," said Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell...

http://www.reuters.com

US banks post first quarterly loss since 1990

FDIC says US banks posted $26.2 billion loss at end of 2008, first quarterly loss since 1990

WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's banks lost $26.2 billion in the last three months of 2008, the first quarterly deficit in 18 years, as the housing and credit crises escalated.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Thursday that U.S. banks and thrifts also more than doubled the amount they set aside to cover potential loan losses, to $69.3 billion in the fourth quarter from $32.1 billion a year earlier.

Regulators said there were 252 banks in trouble at the end of 2008, up from 171 in the third quarter...

http://finance.yahoo.com