Obama announces new chief of staff WASHINGTON (AP) — In a jolt to the White House, President Barack Obama announced Monday that chief of staff William Daley was quitting and heading home, capping a short and rocky tenure that had
Obama announces new chief of staff
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a jolt to the White House, President Barack Obama announced Monday that chief of staff William Daley was quitting and heading home, capping a short and rocky tenure that had been expected to last until Election Day.
Obama budget chief Jack Lew, a figure long familiar with Washington’s ways, will take over one of the most consuming jobs in America.
Daley’s run as Obama’s chief manager and gatekeeper lasted only a year. It was filled with consequential moments for the White House, like the killing of al-Qaida terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, but also stumbles with Congress and grumbles that Daley was not the right choice to coordinate an intense operation of ideas, offices and egos.
Obama said he reluctantly accepted the news and at first refused to accept Daley’s post-holidays resignation letter last week.
Daley did not waver, expressing to his boss a desire to get back to his family in Chicago, where Daleys have dominated city politics for decades.
IRS reviving tax cheats program
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Internal Revenue Service is reviving a program that lets Americans hiding their money abroad pay back taxes and penalties while avoiding criminal prosecution, an effort that in recent years has netted the government billions of dollars.
IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, who announced the program’s renewal Monday, said previous efforts in 2009 and 2011 resulted in the collection so far of $4.4 billion from 33,000 people, an amount he said “we never thought we’d reach.” He said the government could reap several times that amount from the newest initiative plus people deciding against stashing their assets overseas in the first place.
Under the new program, those who voluntarily disclose their offshore holdings will face penalties of up to 27.5 percent of their assets, plus back taxes and interest for up to eight years. People whose money hidden abroad does not exceed $75,000 could face penalties of 12.5 percent.
Muslim charged in Fla. bomb plot
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A Kosovo-born man was charged with plotting to attack Tampa-area nightclubs and a sheriff’s office with bombs and an assault rifle to avenge wrongs done to Muslims, federal authorities said Monday.
According to a federal complaint, Sami Osmakac, 25, recorded an eight-minute video shortly before his arrest explaining why he wanted to bring terror to his “victims’ hearts” in the Tampa Bay area. Osmakac is a naturalized American citizen born in Kosovo, then part of the former Yugoslavia in eastern Europe.
Borrowing surges as economy gains
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are feeling confident enough in the economy to go back into debt.
Consumer borrowing surged in November by $20.4 billion, the Federal Reserve said Monday. It was the third straight increase and the largest monthly gain in a decade.
The jump in borrowing was largely because people took out more loans to buy cars and swiped their credit cards frequently to purchase holiday gifts.
In November, total consumer borrowing rose to a seasonally adjusted $2.48 trillion. That’s nearly at pre-recession levels and up from a post-recession low point of $2.39 billion reached in September 2010. Borrowing had tumbled for more than two years during and immediately after the recession.
Since then, consumers have increased their borrowing in 13 of the past 14 months. Americans are taking on more debt after seeing the unemployment rate drop and the economy improve, albeit modestly. Many are also leaning on their credit cards and loans to make up for wages that haven’t kept pace with inflation this year.
Holiday sales were solid in November, and the U.S. auto industry had its two best sales months for the year in November and December. The Fed’s credit report appeared to reflect those sales.
The category that measures credit card debt rose in November by $5.6 billion, the most since March 2008. The gauge that tracks auto loans and student loans increased $14.8 billion, nearly matching July’s gain that was the biggest since February 2005.
