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The American Petroleum Institute Director of Regulatory and Scientific Affairs Howard Feldman warned of a "veritable tsunami" of new EPA air regulations for refineries that could "put some refineries out of business, diminish U.S. fuel manufacturing capacity, and increase our reliance on imported fuels" recently in a conference call with reporters: "The president himself has called on federal agencies to take into account the impact of regulations on jobs and the economy," Feldman said. "EPA should follow through by ensuring that their regulatory proposals are necessary, practical, and fair." Four U.S. refineries closed last year, according to Feldman. He said...

HERNANDO, Miss. -- DeSoto County has formally objected to the Environmental Protection Agency's plan to list it as "nonattainment" on ozone levels. DeSoto County officials also want the EPA to abandon a "misguided" proposal to list the county with Memphis as falling short on ozone standards. In December, EPA announced a proposal to include parts of DeSoto with Memphis, which has ozone emissions above allowable limits set by federal regulation. The plan would include urban areas of DeSoto County and Crittenden County, Ark., in the Memphis ozone "non-attainment" area. Ozone non-attainment could impair industrial recruitment by requiring prospective firms to...

A graph contends the more devout a Muslim is, the more likely he is to be violent. An instructional document saying that in Islam, "war is the rule and peace is only temporary." The paperwork sounds like propaganda produced by Joe Kaufman or U.S. Rep. Allen West. But the documents were used to train FBI agents in counterterrorism. Prompted by an investigation by Wired.com, the FBI this week purged hundreds of pages of similar training documents, saying they contained "factual errors," promoted stereotypes, or were in "poor taste." And the bureau is continuing to review its training materials, with more...

Three years ago today, in his first major act in office, President Barack Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It stirred a great debate. Some called it too big; others warned it was too meager. With just a handful of exceptions, Republicans maligned it as the absolute wrong approach to creating jobs. • Today, that argument is settled. The Recovery Act did what we asked of it. Three million jobs were created or saved. Essential investments in keeping teachers on the job, building a domestic clean energy industry, and repairing our roads and bridges have helped...

When it comes to dealing with climate change—and reducing carbon emissions, the top man-made cause of warming—the international community is doing a crap job. The U.N. process is bogged down, with ambitions that seem to shrink each year even as the summits themselves grow longer and longer. So with the front door locked on climate action, it might be time to try the back. That’s why the U.S.—as well as representatives from the U.N. and several other countries—is getting behind a new initiative to reduce black carbon, methane and other “short-lived” greenhouse gases, so called because they remain in the...

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced Thursday the formation of a new global coalition to fight emissions other than carbon dioxide that contribute to climate change. The coalition—which includes Sweden, Mexico, Canada, Bangladesh and the U.S. will be funded with $15 million, mostly from the U.S. It hasn't yet determined which actions it will take to reduce the emissions, nor has it identified specific reduction targets. The administration is also putting up federal dollars for clean-energy investments, unveiling a 2013 budget plan this week that sets aside hundreds of millions of dollars for wind, solar and other clean-energy...

Like the mythical monster Hydra—who grew two heads every time Hercules cut one off—President Obama, in both his State of the Union address and his new budget, has defiantly doubled down on his brand of industrial policy, the usually ill-advised attempt by governments to promote particular industries, companies and technologies at the expense of broad, evenhanded competition. Despite his record of picking losers—witness the failed "clean energy" projects Solyndra, Ener1 and Beacon Power—Mr. Obama appears determined to continue pushing his brew of federal spending, regulations, mandates, special waivers, loan guarantees, subsidies and tax breaks for companies he deems worthy. Favoring...

General Motors Co. on Thursday reported a record profit of $7.6 billion for 2011, but losses in Europe and thin profit margins in the fourth quarter underscored challenges the company faces in 2012. But GM lost $747 million in Europe, where it is racing to turn around its troubled Opel unit. The company said its 47,500 United Auto Workers-represented hourly workers will receive profit-sharing checks of $7,000, the highest amount workers have received. In addition, they will receive $250 each for meeting quality targets.

Greece's austerity measures are being met with anger and grief by the people of the debt-ridden country. Days of violent protests couldn't stop Greece's parliament from passing a European bailout deal -- but now the country faces massive cutbacks. Whole government departments will be shut down and as many as 15,000 public servants will be thrown out of work. The crisis is even prompting a spike in suicide attemts. One of the things that has forced the Greek people to the precipice is the corrupt and inefficient government that everyone agrees must shrink. For decades, politicians have been handing out...

A sudden new wave of anti-Americanism is thriving in Cairo. ... In Egypt today, all major political forces — the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, or SCAF, the Muslim Brotherhood and the government — are embracing anti-American populism. The new atmosphere in Egypt leaves the Obama administration — and Congress — with some stark choices. Washington can employ the nuclear option — cut the assistance and test the durability of the U.S.-underwritten 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty — or continue to fund an increasingly hostile and unstable state in hopes that democracy will take root. In this environment, prospects...

General Motors Co. is eliminating annual pension contributions for U.S. salaried workers who still receive them and will pare 2011 bonuses for all salaried workers, the auto maker said on Wednesday. The Detroit company also won't give salaried workers pay raises this year, but will offer them an additional week of vacation. The company is looking for ways to reduce its pension obligations and overall costs, while improving quality and productivity throughout the company. GM is expected tell its 26,000 U.S. salaried workers they will receive smaller bonuses for 2011 than the prior year because the company failed to meet...

President Obama heads west today for a three-day, three-state swing aimed largely at filling the coffers of his re-election campaign and honing his message to supporters in key states. Obama will headline eight fundraisers across California and Washington through Friday night. The events are expected to net at least $8.6 million for the Obama Victory Fund. Much of Obama’s focus will be on mingling with some of his wealthiest – and most famous – supporters in Los Angeles and San Francisco, who will play a key role in underwriting his bid for a second term. Later he’ll dine with 80...

Unemployed Americans who started businesses last year was the lowest in at least a quarter-century. In 2011, 3.3% of out-of-work Americans started businesses, compared to 4.7% in 2010. But recent start-up activity is anemic compared to 1989 when 20.3% of unemployed were starting businesses. Until 1997, start-up activity was typically in double digits. “Basically, it was not a very inviting environment for would-be entrepreneurs,” said John A. Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas. “While big business definitely began to reap the benefits of the recovery in 2011, conditions were not nearly as fruitful for existing small business, let along...

Attorneys for the company filed papers in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware last week asking for a court order to dispose of up to 3,900 pallets filled with glass tubes that were used to make Solyndra’s solar panels. The lawyers said the company tried to auction the tubes, return them to a supplier and sell the material to recycling companies. But it was too expensive to ship back to the supplier and nobody seemed interested in buying the glass, the attorneys said in court papers. Unable to sell the assets, Solyndra said it would be cheaper just to abandon the...

Say goodbye to the much-loathed Alternative Minimum Tax and hello to the Buffett Rule. Sweet relief. The AMT has perplexed taxpayers and agonized accountants for decades. But wait: Are the AMT and the Buffett Rule really so different? The two take aim at different types of tax avoidance, so the details have little in common. But the headline is the same: Both were designed to make sure that wealthy citizens pay their fair share of income tax -- without creating a tax monster that somehow reaches down to regular people. When the AMT came into being in 1969, rich people...

Syria stepped up its siege Tuesday on the city of Homs and launched fresh attacks in cities all over the country, leaving dozens dead, according to opposition groups. At least 40 people were killed, according to the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria. The deaths included three defected Syrian soldiers and two women, the group said. Deaths took place in Idlib, Homs, Daraa, Aleppo, Deir Ezzor, Hama, Damascus, the Damascus suburbs, and Latakia, the group said. Fear and horror paralyzed residents in the Syrian city of Homs Tuesday, with snipers preventing anyone from moving and heavy shelling blasting through the...

Athens, Greece (CNN) -- Police turned tear gas and stun grenades on protesters outside Greece's parliament Sunday as lawmakers inside debated another round of austerity measures. Riot police dispersed many of the demonstrators, who were protesting plans for new cuts in government spending, wages and pensions in return for a new eurozone bailout of the debt-stricken country. Prime Minister Lucas Papademos has urged approval of the deal, warning in a speech to the Cabinet Saturday evening of "social explosion, chaos" if it fails. "The state will not be able to pay salaries and pensions or import basic goods" such as...

... Despite his oath of office, in a blatant effort to win the female vote and pander to the pro-choice movement, the president and his administration has mandated that all Catholic churches, schools, universities and hospitals must provide health insurance for their female employees that cover abortion and contraceptive services. This was not a political miscalculation and it is not “women's health” my friends, it is a president and an administration that has determined he can tell any religion what beliefs it can and cannot hold. This is precisely the kind of authoritarian edict that prompted our Founding Fathers to...

WASHINGTON — In the final budget proposal of his term, President Obama on Monday will revive the deficit-reduction and job-creation proposals he first called for last September and forecast a $1.3 trillion deficit for this fiscal year that drops to $901 billion next year, administration officials said on Friday. The election-year budget calls for more than $350 billion in short-term spending and payroll-tax cuts to continue spurring the economy like those in the September plan, including proposals for infrastructure projects and subsidies to states to help keep teachers and first responders in their jobs, requests that Congressional Republicans have blocked...

(Reuters) - U.S. health insurers said on Friday they feared President Barack Obama had set a new precedent by making them responsible for providing free birth control to employees of religious groups as he sought to defuse an election-year landmine. "We are concerned about the precedent this proposed rule would set," said Robert Zirkelbach, spokesman for America's Health Insurance Plans, the industry's trade group. "As we learn more about how this rule would be operationalized, we will provide comments through the regulatory process." Zirkelbach said insurers "have long offered contraceptive coverage to employers as part of comprehensive, preventive benefits that...

Lucas Papademos, the Greek premier, faced pressure to reshuffle his cabinet on Friday after five ministers and undersecretaries resigned in protest against fresh austerity measures imposed by international lenders in return for a second, €130bn bail-out. Three resignations came as the rightwing Laos (People’s) party announced that it was pulling out of his national unity government. Marilena Xenoyiannokopoulouaratzaferispademos, a senior socialist serving as European affairs minister, also stood down, saying she was opposed to labour reforms included in the package. Yannis Koutsoukos, the socialist deputy labour minister, resigned on Thursday. Ms Xenoyiannokopoulouaratzaferispademos accused Greece’s European partners of “violating” the union’s...

(Reuters) - Americans felt worse about their personal finances in early February, even as they saw a light at the end of the tunnel for the jobs market, a survey released on Friday showed. An improving financial situation was reported by just 23 percent of all consumers surveyed in early February, down from 29 percent in January and last year's 30 percent. One in four families reported declines in income in the early February survey, even as official data have shown overall U.S. income growing since last August, albeit at a slow pace. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan overall index...

There’s been a lot of discussion over whether we should have had a smaller or larger stimulus package. But a lot of these arguments leave a key question unanswered: How much stimulus did we actually pass? There was the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, of course. That was the big gun. But after that, there were dozens of smaller measures passed. For instance: The White House only put a single year of expanded unemployment insurance into the original stimulus. They did that, in part, because they expected they would be able to get unemployment insurance extended on its own. That...

What did the mortgage lenders and loan servicers agree to do? The banks and servicers have committed at least $17 billion to reduce principal for borrowers who 1) owe far more than their homes are worth 2) are behind on payments. The amount of principal reduction will average about $20,000 per borrower. Another $3 billion will go toward refinancing mortgages for borrowers who are current on their payments. This will enable them to take advantage of the historic low interest rates currently available. The banks will pay $5 billion directly to the states, the only hard money involved in the...

General Motors appears to be looking to spur sales of its Chevrolet Volt by offering potential California customers a chance to lease the $40,000 extended-range plug-in vehicle with no cash down, GreenCarReports.com said, citing a California Chevrolet dealer. GM is offering a so-called "Quad $0" lease program on the Volt, in which leasing the car requires no down payment, no security deposit, no first-month's payment and no cash due upon sale, the website said, citing Randall Baum at Quality Chevrolet in Escondido, CA. That program gives those interested in driving the car a chance to lease one for as little...

The 2010 healthcare reform law gave states until Jan. 1, 2014, to create "exchanges" in which individuals and small businesses could shop for insurance policies. If the states don't, the federal government will operate exchanges for them. The requirement poses a quandary for lawmakers who oppose the federal law: Should they start working on an exchange, or count on the law being repealed by the Supreme Court or by a new Republican-controlled Congress and White House in 2013? The answer is that each state should set up an exchange regardless of how its lawmakers feel about "Obamacare," because it would...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development announced today that Chevrolet Volt purchasers are now eligible for the state’s $2,500 electric vehicle (EV) rebate. The rebate requires that consumers qualify for and participate in The EV Project, a national study on EV use and charging infrastructure deployment. The EV Project will provide participants with a free Blink® 240V networked charge station and a credit of up to $1,200 towards its installation. To be eligible, Tennessee residents must sign an EV Project participant agreement, purchase the Volt, take delivery of the car, and have SPX Corporation install...

A team of scientists say that sprawling seagrass in the shallows of the Mediterranean may be the oldest living organisms on Earth, far older than humanity itself. Working off of DNA samples, a team of scientists say clumps of seagrass between Spain and Cyprus could be as old as hundred of thousands of years old. The study comes as scientists have sought to increase studies concerning how various organisms will face the changes from global warming. The team of scientists studying the seagrass say that the organism is facing threats from higher than normal sea temperatures and pollutants introduced by...

One of the fathers of Germany’s modern green movement, Professor Dr. Fritz Vahrenholt, a social democrat and green activist, decided to author a climate science skeptical book together with geologist/paleontologist Dr. Sebastian Lüning. Vahrenholt’s skepticism started when he was asked to review an IPCC report on renewable energy. He found hundreds of errors. When he pointed them out, IPCC officials simply brushed them aside. Stunned, he asked himself, “Is this the way they approached the climate assessment reports?” Vahrenholt decided to do some digging. His colleague Dr. Lüning also gave him a copy of Andrew Montford’s The Hockey Stick Illusion....

LONDON -- Meteorologists say ice-free seas in the arctic caused by global warming could explain a chill wind covering much of Europe that has killed more than 300 people. Experts said they believe complex wind patterns are being affected as melting arctic sea ice has exposes huge areas of normally frozen ocean to the atmosphere above, bringing bitterly cold weather to Britain and the rest of Europe. The loss of arctic sea ice could be influencing high-pressure weather systems over northern Russia that bring very cold winds from the arctic and Siberia to Western Europe and the British Isles, scientists...

Fisker Automotive, the maker of an exotic electric sports car that is being built with help from a $529 million federal government loan guarantee, has announced layoffs at its Delaware plant as it tries to persuade the Department of Energy to send it more public funds. The company says 26 Fisker employees have been let go from the Delaware factory where renowned automotive engineer Henrik Fisker promised to one day begin producing affordable electric sedans. A Delaware newspaper also reported that subcontractors working on the car venture have been let go. Fisker was one of a handful of auto companies...

A gray 2005 Chrysler 300C leased by Barack Obama in 2004 failed to sell for the asking price of $1 million on eBay, the Chicago-area seller said. Lisa Czibor, the eBay seller working on behalf of owner Tim O'Boyle, said the $1 million asking price may have been too high for bidders and the auction ended Wednesday without any bids meeting the minimum, the Chicago Tribune reported Thursday.

ALL ACROSS America, liberals have been engaged in a debate over the enthusiasm with which to support President Obama’s reelection. One side argues that while Obama might not have been the second coming of FDR, he was dealt an impossible hand; Republicans obstructed everything Obama tried, which forced him to attempt to compromise. The other side faults Obama for often behaving like a Republican lite rather than fighting for the things for which liberals and Democrats have stood. Complaints notwithstanding, these folks will likely pull the lever for him come November, but they are less excited about doing so than...

Federal and county governments are among the long list of creditors owed money by a nearly-bankrupt local business that stored livestock semen. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provided about $536,000 in loans to the company. The federal government wants its stimulus money back, but so do the business’ 84 other creditors. The company stored the semen in slender “straws” frozen in liquid nitrogen. Now the business’ owner has filed for bankruptcy protection. The public creditors’ hearing is set for 10 a.m. at the U.S. bankruptcy court in Dayton. Genetic Connection owner Roger Clark said he would not...

The Obama administration directed $185.8 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to California to help families boost their home energy savings, create jobs and move toward energy independence. Oakland and San Francisco may risk having to return some of the weatherization money, in part since their programs were slow to start. In San Francisco, officials initially reported they had failed to weatherize a single unit by the end of last year but last month told the department the city had completed 300 units. At the end of 2011, Oakland had received $4 million in stimulus funds but had...

...Friday's unemployment number showed bigger gains for African-Americans and Hispanics than for whites. And young people, another key Obama block from 2008 that has also been heavily affected, also saw big improvements. For each of those three groups, the unemployment rate is now the lowest it's been essentially since Obama took office. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate in January for Hispanics dropped to 10.5 percent, down from 11 percent in December and 12 percent last January. The rate for African-Americans now stands at 13.6 percent, a sharp decline from 15.8 percent in December and 15.7...

The program has shown poor results, and the agency that oversees training has stopped referring people. Government-funded training for so-called green jobs has come to a near standstill in Snohomish County, having produced lackluster results. Nationwide, about $500 million in Recovery Act funds were allocated to train nearly 125,000 people for green careers. Nearly a year and a half later, the audit found, only 52,762 people had been trained and 8,035 had found jobs. The program's underwhelming success rate, both nationally and locally, has people worried. The modest success rate of green training programs didn't come as a surprise to...

WASHINGTON - For most people, the 8.3 percent unemployment rate is the most visible sign of the economy's health. The rate's every movement is closely watched, especially in an election year. But when the rate declines, it's not always because many more people were hired. The unemployment rate can rise or fall even when no jobs are created or lost. Last month, the rate fell because jobs were added. One reason for the rate's decline is that fewer people are looking for work. Here's why: The unemployment rate counts only people who don't have a job and are looking for...

Insurance commissioners in California, New York and Washington State will require that companies disclose how they intend to respond to the risks their businesses and customers face from increasingly severe storms and wildfires, rising sea levels and other consequences of climate change, California’s commissioner said Wednesday. “Our experience and other states’ experience as regulators is you get a far better response rate if you require response to be provided than if you just allow companies to decide when and how they will respond,” said Dave Jones, the California commissioner. “Our goal is to have the most complete, best and accurate...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ben Bernanke is urging lawmakers to balance their desire to cut deficits with policies that could help boost the weak economy in the short run. Bernanke said Thursday in prepared testimony for the House Budget Committee hearing that he recognizes that huge budget deficits represent a serious threat to the economy. "Even as fiscal policymakers address the urgent issue of fiscal sustainability, they should take care not to unnecessarily impede the current economic recovery," Bernanke says. "Fortunately, the two goals ... are fully compatible."

WASHINGTON — Democratic senators introduced a bill Wednesday based on President Barack Obama's proposed "Buffett rule" that would require the wealthiest Americans to pay at least 30% in taxes. The legislation introduced Wednesday by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D., R.I.) would ensure that anyone earning more than $2 million in income each year, including from capital gains, would pay a minimum 30% federal tax rate, Mr. Whitehouse said on the Senate floor Wednesday morning. Wealthy taxpayers who face a tax rate above 30% would still pay the higher rate. Democratic Sens. Daniel Akaka of Hawaii, Mark Begich of Alaska, Patrick Leahy...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today invited investors interested in purchasing pools of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA foreclosures in the nations hardest-hit metropolitan areas with the requirement they rent them for a period of year to pre-qualify. The purpose of the pilot phase will be to examine investor interest in various types of assets,including the location, size, and composition of pools of assets; the ways in which investors maximize the participation of experienced local firms and organizations that can provide the types of services and support needed to ensure community stabilization; the types of structures and/or financing...

The world’s largest automaker avoided embarrassment but became the only American automaker with negative sales in January 2012: it was down 6.1 percent to 167,962 sales. Sales were down across all four of GM’s brands, although the automaker’s most improved models were unlikely heroes, the Chevrolet Volt and GMC Canyon... As for the most improved models, there were some interesting inclusions: the best model was the Volt, which rose 87.9 percent to 603 sales.... Buick: Down 23.1 Percent to 10,208 Cadillac: 8924 Sales, Down 29.1 Percent Chevrolet: 123,864 Sales, Down 1.2 Percent GMC: Down 9.7 Percent to 24,966 Sales

Vice President Joe Biden today told a crowd of re-election campaign donors on Ft. Worth, Texas, that the best way to sum up President Obama’s first term in “shorthand” is with nine succinct words: “Osama bin Laden is dead and General Motors is alive.” The comment came at the end of 40-minute speech during which Biden outlined the administration’s economic agenda and vision for a second term and rattled off a lengthy, sometimes rambling litany of accomplishments since 2009, according to the print pool reporter in the room. “So folks, the best way to sum up I think where we...

Washington - Lest anyone doubt his solidarity with the American blue-collar worker, President Obama left the office Tuesday afternoon and spent some quality time with a Camaro. He never cranked up the stereo and took it for a spin, of course, but rather admired it on the showroom floor of the Washington Auto Show. But the photo op with the classic American muscle car gave Obama the chance to brag that the 2009 bailout he pushed through Congress ended up saving the big automakers. “The U.S. auto industry is back!” Obama declared. Cars are becoming a regular talking point for...

Will investors, consumers and politicians be singing "Take this jobs report and shove it!" come Friday morning? The government will report two key numbers Friday: the number of jobs that were added in January and the unemployment rate. Both figures have been moving in the right direction lately and the hope is that this trend will continue. However, the labor market may have lost a little bit of steam in January. According to a survey of economists by CNNMoney, the current median forecast is that just 135,000 jobs were added last month and that the unemployment rate likely rose to...

Gov. Jerry Brown said Sunday that cap-and-trade fees could help pay for high-speed rail, and that the cost would be well under the $100 billion forecast by the California High-Speed Rail Authority just three months ago. “It’s not going to be $100 billion,” Brown said. “That’s way off.” The voter-approved project would create a 220-mph train from San Francisco to Anaheim with eventual connections to Sacramento and San Diego. According to a transcript of the interview in the Sacramento Bee, Brown said, “Phase 1, I’m trying to redesign it in a way that in and of itself will be justified...

President Barack Obama attended the 99th annual Alfalfa Club dinner Saturday evening. Comprised of a who’s who of Washington elite, the social club’s sole purpose is to meet every January for a night of banquet festivities for its roughly 200 members. Per tradition, each sitting president is invited to deliver remarks at the event. First Lady Michelle Obama accompanied her husband to the gala, held this year at the Capitol Hilton. Washington’s elite weren’t the only attendees. Hundreds of Occupy DC protesters staged a rally outside the event, demonstrating against the perceived injustices of the city’s power brokers and heckling...

CAIRO — Egyptians cast ballots on Sunday for the upper house, with Islamists looking to build on their success in voting for the lower assembly as part of the first polls since a revolt ousted Hosni Mubarak. The powerful Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party won a crushing victory in the lower house of parliament elections, which were contested over three months, to clinch 47 percent of seats. The Al-Nur, representing the ultra-conservative Salafist current of political Islam, came second place, with liberal parties trailing far behind.

Why do Mitt Romney and other wealthy investors pay lower taxes on the income they make from investments than they would if they earned their millions from wages? Because Congress, through the tax code, has long treated investment more favorably than labor, seeing it as an engine for economic growth that benefits everyone. The United States has long had a progressive income tax, in which people who make more money pay taxes at a higher rate than those who make less. But for almost as long, the United States has taxed capital gains -- the profit from selling an investment...