Posted on Monday, February 23, 2009 - 12:17 pm:

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By Alexandra Twin, CNNMoney.com senior writer NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks tumbled anew Monday morning as any enthusiasm that the government may boost its stake in Citigroup was tempered by ongoing worries about the economy.

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Posted on Tuesday, February 24, 2009 - 09:58 am:

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The economy will take longer simply because the financial system is broken and our Fearless Leaders are clueless - worse...their attempts at fixes are exacerbating the problems and putting roadblocks up to the market forces that could clean up the mess and restructure the financial sector.

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Associated Press
Published: February 22, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate’s Republican leader says U.S. automakers seeking government aid still aren’t doing what’snecessary to save themselves. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky says that failure, in his view, is leading to a long-term policy in which the government simply props up the auto industry.

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Harley-Davidson shares fall on sales worries
February 23, 2009
6:56 PM ET
NEW YORK (AP) - Shares of Harley-Davidson Inc. fell Monday, as the overall market dropped and investors continued to fret about the company's 2009 sales amid tight credit markets and a weak economy.

The iconic motorcycle maker's shares fell 51 cents, or 4.7 percent, to close at $10.31, after dropping to $10.19 earlier in the session. Over the past 52 weeks, Harley-Davidson shares have traded between $10.07 and $48.05.

Baird's Craig R. Kennison said he expects Harley-Davidson sales to be down about 23 percent this year.

"The government 'stimulus' package contains pork for Harley buyers — which may drive fence-sitters to buy," Kennison wrote in a note to investors. "Meanwhile, our near-term stock outlook hinges on the TALF program — which may become active in March."

According to a recent Baird survey of 72 U.S. dealers, demand for Harley-Davidson motorcycles was down 10 percent to 15 percent in January and early February, but sales volumes for the period were still better than expected, partially as a result of a trade-in promotion, Kennison said.

Those numbers put the company on track to sell 58,000 to 60,000 in the first quarter, ahead of his estimate of 53,000 bikes, Kennison said.

But while average dealer inventories are down about 19 percent from the same time last year, they're still slightly higher than dealers had planned and fewer bikes are selling at or above the suggested retail price.

"We would be concerned if this trend persists, but note that Harley planned to ship aggressively in quarter one so that it has time to slow production in quarter two to restructure," Kennison said.

At the same time, the majority of surveyed dealers reported that credit conditions have gotten worse, as the company's financing arm continued to tighten its lending policies, he said.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Posted on Tuesday, February 24, 2009 - 02:08 pm:

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WASHINGTON - President Obama yesterday took the wind out of plans to purchase a fleet of sophisticated new Marine One helicopters that could set taxpayers back more than $11 billion.

"The helicopter I have now seems perfectly adequate to me," Obama told a group of lawmakers and businessmen at a White House summit on "fiscal responsibility."

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Obama's comments yesterday came in response to Sen. John McCain's appraisal of the sprawling waste in the federal government. "We all know about cost overruns" in Pentagon spending programs, McCain (R-Ariz.) told Obama. "Your helicopter is now going to cost as much as Air Force One."

Obama revealed he has instructed Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to look into the matter of the exploding helicopter overruns. Dismissing the need for a new helicopter came on the heels of a daylong summit on the economic crisis.

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ALBANY - At a time when state workers are being asked to forgo any pay hikes, the chief of staff to Gov. Paterson's wife was given a $25,000 raise in December - plus a $3,866 bonus - even though she began working for the state only last July, The Post has learned.

The whopping 28.4 percent raise - granted while Paterson was asking 130,000 public employees to give up 3 percent pay hikes because of the state's fiscal crisis - went to Michele Clarke-Ceres, who was hired on July 10 as an $88,000-a-year "special assistant," records show.

Five months later, her salary was raised to $113,000 a year, retroactively effective to Oct. 2, giving her the windfall $3,866 bonus.

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Last updated: 9:23 am
February 24, 2009
Posted: 2:22 am
February 24, 2009

A $410 billion spending bill unveiled yesterday will fund the US government for the rest of the fiscal year - and kick in $2.2 million for the Center for Grape Genetics in upstate New York.

The measure comes just days after the $787 billion economic-stimulus package was signed; it'll be voted on by the House later this week.

But it's not all nuts and bolts - there's plenty of pork, like the millions for the grape center in Geneva, NY, thanks to Sen. Chuck Schumer, and Reps. Maurice Hinchey and Michael Arcuri.

Other New York earmarks include: $143,000 for Manhattan's American Ballet Theatre "for educational activities"; $214,000 for Stony Brook University "to teach scientists how to effectively communicate with the public and the press"; and $950,000 for a Poughkeepsie pedestrian bridge.

The measure also includes $500,000 for a Senate "pilot program" to defray the cost of mass-mail postcards notifying constituents of town-hall meetings.

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