The Presidency of America's Maverick

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John McCain signs budget but uses new modified line-item veto powers to cut corporate welfare and other or barrel spending



Woodruff: The President today signed his first budget into law wich like he wanted increases spending for military and education including giving the department of education setting the terms and conditions of those block grants which he likely will use to facilitate education reform. He also though used his new modified line item-veto power to remove pork barrell from the bill and also cut billions in what he calls corporate subsides as well.

Like in requirement for the law , Congress voted and approved the new modified bill and it became law. Special Interest groups that have been negatively affected by this modified line item veto have already announced their attention to sue on conditional grounds like we expected. Bill so what will happen to the budget in the meanwhile

Schnider: Well we do expect that some district court will rule the modified line iterm unconstitutional , inside sourced do tell us that the adminstration's legal team has already begun to  prepare the appellate brief so the decision will be ready to be heard by an appeal court within a few months which means if the supreme court takes up this case like we expect it too , it will likely do so by early next year before the next budget .

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Congresswomen Nancy Johnson introduces a prescription drug bill in the Subcommittee on Health



Shaw: The chair of the subcommittee on health , Congresswomen Nancy Johnson introduced a prescription drug bill today in the subcommittee. Here are some of the details in the bills

- Covers the cost of all prescription drugs above 15 dollars under medicare

-  Provides a subsidy for large employers to discourage them from eliminating private prescription coverage to retired workers

- Allows medicare advantage to offer part D plans

- it requires higher copays from wealthier seniors


Shaw: Secretary Thompson called the proposal a great starting point and will try to do all he can to make sure these main provisions remain through the committee processes.

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What month in 2001 is it at this point in the tl?

Late April just before the first 100 days are complete

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Summary of President McCain's First 100 Days:



Greenfield: President McCain in his first 100 days so far has ben very successful in getting his reform agenda passed from campaign fiance reform, to the modified line item veto and getting a budget which has very little pork barrel spending and less corporate subsidies in there. Now the question is whether President McCain is able to push on the more concrete policy agenda such as taxes, education, healthcare and currently two of them are still in committee and education reform is done through the department of education.

Schnider: Usually you see a President push through one major issue at a time as they beleive usually that that helps you direct your focus and energy more into passing that major bill . President McCain has a different approach which is you push at multiple fronts at the same time , through the various committees the issue would be debated as he beleives this would allow Congress to have more time to pass various pieces of legislation . We will see how this works but it is very unorthodox.

Woodruff: The President though remains very popular as CNN took a poll today and heres what we got

Approve: 67%
Dissaporve: 21%

 
So it seems like his honeymoon period is still ongoing

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President McCain gives speech on improving civic education :



McCain: Thank You all for coming here , today I want to talk about an important issue and that is civic engagement. My belief is it starts in our schools and I believe that we should test civic knowledge for kids once in elementary school, middle school, and high school so we can make sure our kids have the proper civic knowledge they need to make our nation a better place as adults. This means not only teaching them our history, our constitution which are very important but on ways citiznes can get involved because our nation only works when people get involved. Again that means yes we need to teach them how our government works nationally but how it works on a state and local level too and how they can get involved at that level because many of the things that directly impact people have nothing to do with whats going on here in Washington but in their state capitols , local councils, school board and local ballot measures. This is why I am proposing congress pass a bill that provides extra funding to states and local municipalities which will do these things and I hope all of you write to both your representatives in congress and in the state legislature to make this happen as well. Thank You and May God Bless you

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Interesting read so far.

Thanks

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Results of May 1st Special Elections :


Woodruff: Last night there were special elections in 4 different races so now lets so over them and the results first in the Alaska Senate Race where the daughter of former Senator Frank Murkoski was elected.

Alaska Senate Race:

Alaska State Representative Lisa Murkowski(R) 52.4%
Interim Senator Dennis Egan(D) 47.3%

Result: Republican Gain

President McCain had come to Alaska in the final days to hold a rally in Alaska and it seemed like it did work and now the Republican Senate Majoirty will be 52-48. Now lets look at the 3 congressional races

In the races for the House republicans will hold SC-3 and FL-4 by comfortable margins like expected but in New York 30th Democrats have gained that seat so the republicans house majority now will be 226 seats to 209 for the Democrats

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House Ways and Means Committee Passes Tax Reform Bill:

- Tax Rate Cuts: Lowest Bracket will be brought down to 10% with the threshold being brought up to $70,000 for couples, rates being cut by 7% for couples making between $70,000 and $400,000 and 3.5% for couples making more than $400,000

- Standard Deduction: Raised to $5000/$10,000

- A permanent ban on Internet sales taxes

- Members of the armed forces deployed overseas would pay no income taxes

- Increases Child Tax Credit to $1000

- Creates a tax free Family Security Account

- Removes Offshore Tax Deferral


Woodruff: So the only major difference from the President's proposal and this is the tax cuts are larger and also congressional republicans want to separate out entitlement reform from taxes so instead the McCain administration asked to increase the child tax credit instead which is exactly what happened

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Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan announces he will retire and shortlist for potential replacements released



Woodruff: Longtime Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan announced he will retire , although he will stay on the position until a replacement can be confirmed by the senate. He called the job the honor of his lifetime , and said working with the people he did is something he will never forget and when asked what he felt the federal reserves greatest accomplishment in his tenure was , he said it was stopping the 1987 wall street crash from turning into a severe recession . Asked about a potential replacement he said would not want to speculate but if asked by the President about particular names he would be willing to help give the President more information about that person.


Ok here's the Shortlist:

Former Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Lawrence Lindsey
 


Economist James M Buchanan



Economist Greg Mankiw

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House of Representatives Passes Committee bill with minor changes from committee version:

Shaw: The House of Representatives today was able to pass the tax bill with around 246 votes with 20 moderate Democrats joining every Republican in voting for this bill and now it will go to the senate where if they cant get 60 senators to vote for this they will have to use the reconciliation process which then means major portions of the bill would expire within 10 years.

Senator Phill Gramm confident that Senate can pass Tax Reform Bill without major changes to legislation



King: So Senator Gramm what is your opinion on the bill the House of Representatives just passed

Gramm: Its a fantastic bill with it reducing rates across the board , a boon to families with the standard deduction being raised along with the child tax credit increasing too and the family security account and lastly it helps the men and women in our military as well

King: Do you have confidence the bill could pass the senate as it is without any major changes made to it

Gramm: I definitely think we can, and while yes I believe some minor details will have to be made to get to 60 votes, I think we definitely can reach 60 votes and pass this bill without making any major changes. Some changes that we will make is we will get rid of more deductions and I believe that doing that will get enough Democrats on board to pass this bill.

King: Last question, whats your opinion on the vacancy in the Federal Reserve Chair

Gramm: Well first I want to thank Mr.Greenspan for the wonderful job he did , and as you know I have called him the greatest central banker in the world but Id like to go further and call him the greatest chair the federal reserve has ever seen. As for who should replace him, well that is up to the President and I look forward to the senate hearings of anyone the President nominates in July because that person will have giant shoes to fill, and frankly it will be very difficult to measure up to the greatness of Mr.Greenspan.

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President McCain appoints Economist Greg Mankiw to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve:



McCain: Thank You, everyone, as you know long time federal reserve chair Alan Greenspan has decided to step down this August after serving honorably for the last 14 years and I want to thank him for the wonderful job he did as chair of the reserve. While it will be difficult for someone to do as good of a job in that role , I believe that Gregory Mankiw an economist who currently is a distinguished professor at Harvard University which is why I have decided to nominate him to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve.

Mankiw: I want to thank President McCain for this honor and I also want to thank outgoing chair Alan Greenspan for the great job he did during these past 14 years and let him know that if I am confirmed by the United States Senate I will work hard every day to do as good of a job in that position as you have done. The Chair of the Federal Reserve has the responsibility of carrying out the main purpose of the Federal reserve which is to promote the goal of maximum employment, and controlling inflation and keeping the Federal Reserve independent from the political battles of the day. In this new century, issues facing us have become more complex then before which is why we need to develop complex solutions in solving them and I look forward with working with the members of the federal reserve in doing so. Thank You

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I hope this timeline goes far enough in the future to be able to compare Mankiw's response to the subprime mortgage crisis to Greenspan's one in real life.

That is the plan although it will take some time before we get to that point

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Senate Passes their own version of the Tax Reform Bill

Woodruff: The Senate in a 63-37 vote today votes to pass a tax reform bill which while has made some changes kept most of the remain parts of the house bill in tact with the exception of the elimination of the internet sales tax which this bill preserves. President McCain said he believes the house should pass this bill soon and he will sign it into law , so lets look at the key provisions of this bill which we beleive the house will pass as well

Details:

- Tax Rate Cuts: Lowest Bracket will be brought down to 10% with the threshold being brought up to $70,000 for couples, rates being cut by 6% for couples making between $70,000 and $400,000 and 2.5% for couples making more than $400,000

- Standard Deduction: Raised to $5000/$10,000

- Members of the armed forces deployed overseas would pay no income taxes

- Increases Child Tax Credit to $1000

- Creates a tax free Family Security Account

- Removes Offshore Tax Deferral

- Eliminates ability to claim Yachts and Boats for the mortgage deduction



House passes Senate Version of Tax Bill and President McCain signs it into law:



McCain: Thank You, Thank You. Today is a great day for the citizens of our great nation, where we give them back some of the surplus back to the American people so they have the ability to spend more money the ways they want which will further stimulate the economy(Applause). This bill also helps families out with it increasing the child tax credit, the stand deduction and creating a family security account which allows married couples to contribute up to $6000 in tax deferred accounts which can be used by them for one year without any penalty what so ever(Applause). We also will provide relief to the men and women in our military as this bill will ensure that if they are deployed overseas that they would not have to pay income tax for that year(Applause). I want to thank members of both parties for working together to pass this bill and now there is one thing left and that is for me to sign it

President McCain Signs Bill:

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Greg Mankiw sworn in as new Federal Reserve Chair after being confirmed by voice vote:



Shaw: Economist Greg Mankiw was sworn in as the new Federal Reserve chair after he was confirmed by a voice vote in the Senate yesterday. He will succeed Alan Greenspan who served as the chair for 14 years and who many consider to be the greatest chair of the federal reserve in history due to many of the successes in this past era. Chairman Mankiw in his speech after taking the oath talked about many of the challenged facing this new century and about the current recession as well and his hopes we can recover from it as quickly as possible.


President McCain's approval ratings

Woodruff: With congress out on recess until September and the President now heading for his first major vacation of his presidency lets take a look at the President's approval and the House Generic Ballot Numbers


President McCain's Approvals:

Approve: 61%
Disapprove: 31%


House Generic Ballot:

Republicans: 45%
Democrats: 45%


Schinder: With Democrats needed less than 10 seats in the midterms it very much looks like the House battle will be very close once again in 2002 with it being possible neither party hits 220 seats coming Janaury 2003.

As for the President he is planning a tour of the nation about healthcare reform beginning in the second week of September as congress will be taking on the issue of healthcare reform come September .

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Schedule of President McCain's 9 day Healthcare tour:

Shaw: The President tomorrow will be embarking the nation on a 9 day healthcare reform tour where he will be holding townhalls in 8 cities talking about a seperate issue each with the healthcare system and how that can be fixed

September 9th: Townhall with residents of Fairfax County, VA about healthcare price reform
September 10th: Townhall at a retirement community in Collier County, FL about Medicare Reform
September 11th: Townhall with Medical Professionals in Atlanta, GA to talk about malpractice reform
September 12th: Townhall with residents of Tyler County, TX to talk about problems with the access of healthcare in rural communities
September 13th: Townhall with residents of Phoenix, Arizona to talk about children healthcare reforms
September 14th : Will take a break from townhalls
September 15th: Townhall with residents of Los Angeles, CA  to talk about Medical Saving Accounts
September 16th: Townhall with residents of Chicago, IL about expanding health insurance through tax credits
September 17th: Townhall with residents of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to talk about helping small business owners and their employers get health insurance


Schnider: Doing townhalls is something that helped fuel his Presidential Bid in 2000 leading him to upset then heavy favorite Texas Governor George W Bush in the Republican Primaries and now he seems like is doing it to help fuel the efforts in passing healthcare reform an issue that stifled many President sin the past due to how complex it is. How much of a success the tour will be in pushing these efforts, nobody can tell but it is a smart decision on my part to do this tour.

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Breaking News: America under Attack as Terrorist attack New York City and Washington DC:



Shaw: If you are just coming in , we have extremely tragic news to report to you and that is that terrorists have attacked both New York City and Washington DC by hijacking airplanes and crashing them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. All we can do now is pray for the safety for the people in these cities but its very possible that there will have been more fatalities from these attacks than Pearl Harbor and possibly worst than any day of the civil war as well. Right now we have gotten word that the President who was supposed to address a townhall in Atlanta today, is being taken to an undisclosed location by Air Force One and is canceling the rest of his healthcare tour as well. Members of President McCain's cabinet have been moved to the bunker and members of congress have been evacuated from the capitol building as well. Lets go back to Aaron Brown who is in New York to get more

Brown: Yes as you can hear firefighters, the police, and other emergency vehicles as they are all helping with the rescue effort near the world trade center. We have also been told that Governor Pataki has activated the national guard and they are heading down to secure the area as well.

Shaw: We would like to stop you right here because the Mayor of New York City is about to make a statement so lets here from him

Guiliani: Today has been an extreme tragic day for not only our city but our entire nation and my heart goes out of the victims of this tragedy. In order to ensure the safety and security of the people of this city,  I have ordered all schools and public places to remain closed for the rest of the day and the next two days . I have also just spoken to President McCain and he has told us that the full resources of the US government will be used to help our city recover from this tragedy and he has pledged to do whatever he can in his power to bring those people to justice. I want to let our people know that despite how dark this moment is for our city , we will rebuild and together we will make New York stronger than we ever have been before. God Bless all the people of New York and may God Bless America


Breaking News: 4th plane crashes in Pennsylvania

Shaw: We have some more breaking news and that is a 4th plane has crashed in a field in Pennslyvania. How it crashed their we have no idea or what the plane's original target was but this day keeps getting more and more tragic with this latest news.

Greenfield: What we do know is that the President from air force one had ordered all planes to be grounded and any planes still in the air after the order was in effect would be considered hijacked and would be shot down. Whether this plane was shot down or not we have no idea but all we can do is pray for the families of these victims.

President McCain gives Oval Office Address responding to attacks:



Note: Photshop done by DPK

McCain: My fellow Americans, today our way of life came under attack by cowardly and despicable people who hijacked commercial airplanes and used it to attack the World Trade Center and Pentagon . Thousands of our fellow Americans who had begun their day like they would any other day were suddenly killed by these despicable and evil terrorists and I can pledge to the families of the victims of today's attacks that we will bring the perpetrators of these attacks to justice. I have ordered all resources of the federal government be used to investigate and find out not only who perpetrated these attacks, but also who helped them plan , fund these attacks and gave harbor to these terrorists.

These terrorists attacked us to frighten us and bring chaos to our nation but I can tell you that they have failed in their goals because while they do have the ability to bring down the structures our tallest buildings, but cannot even dent the structure of the United States of America. They attacked us because we are everything they try to deny to others and that is the great beacon of freedom and opportunity in the world. Many times throughout our history from the revolution, to the civil war to the second world war that beacon was viewed under threat but not only did we preserve it but we were able to live up to it even more than we ever have and we will continue to remain the beacon of freedom and opportunity.

Tonight I ask all of you to give your prayers to the families of the victims of today's attacks and join me in a moment of silence as well. May God Bless All of You and May God Bless the United States of America

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President McCain visits New York City and promises a swift and decisive response :



Source: https://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/08/26/early.polls/index.html

Woodruff: President McCain visited New York today , met and thanked the first responders at ground zero for their service and is currently going to make a brief statement right now

McCain: Walking around the city of New York today and meeting the people of this great city and the first responders at ground zero today made it clear more than ever that while the terrorists were able to take down our tallest buildings, they have not only failed in their ultimate goal in breaking our country's spirit but have showed that that spirit is more alive than ever.  It is that very spirit of the people of this country that helped build up our nation , guide us through many crises and truly made our country the United States of America we all love. Walking around this great city has made me more confident then ever to proclaim that the state of our union is strong and I want to let the people who knocked the world trade center down know that they will hear from all of us soon.

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Excerpts from President McCain Address to a Joint Session of Congress:



Souce: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/app/uploads/2019/02/RTX6LFXE-1024x683-e1549455385158.jpg

Speaker Hastert: Ladies and Gentleman , its my high honor to welcome to you , the President of the United States!!

Congress Floor: Standing Ovation


President McCain: Mr Speaker, Mr.President Pro Tempore, members of congress, and my fellow Americans:

Last Tuesday  our nation was attacked by a terrorist group called Al-Qaeda who hijacked our airplanes and used it as weapons against our nation. The purpose of these attacks was to frighten our country into turning on each other and surrendering to their demands but I can tell you that they have failed(Standing Ovation). Instead of turning on one another , our country has come together regardless of race, gender, politics and has shown how heroic they really are. From the first responders at ground zero, to the passengers who stormed flight 93 despite knowing they would die did so to save the lives of other Americans and they have shown the world that the state of our union is strong(Standing Ovation). Americans from all walks of life have shown the terrorists that while they may be able to take down our tallest building they will never be able to take down the our country(Standing Ovation).

Now the terrorists who did this will face justice for their actions along with any country that supports them will share their fate(Standing Ovation). Without the help of the Taliban , Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda would never have been able to grow as powerful as they become and have the ability to carry out these types of terrorist attacks so today I am making the following demands to the Tailban

1.   hand over Osama Bin Laden and all the leaders of Al-Qaeda to the US where they can face justice

2.  give us the location of every training site in your nation

3. Stop all funding for any and all terrorist organization

We will be giving them 15 days to mee these demands and if they dont meet these demands in that time period I want to let them know that we will view that as an declaration  of war against our nation(Standing Ovation) , and we will respond with a declaration of war against you as well(Standing Ovation). While these threats may seem new we have faced similar threats before and the forces of freedom have prevailed over evil every time just like we did in World War Two when the world came together to defeat the Nazis and Imperial Japan and just like we did then we will prevail today(Standing Ovation).

Lastly I want to discuss some ways we can prevent attacks such as the one that took place last Tuesday from taking place again, and the first step is to recognize all the departments that deal with our homeland security and put them under one new cabinet level department called the Department of Homeland security and I would be pleased to nominate Former CIA Director Robert Gates to head the new department(Standing Ovation). We also must increase airport security and give our intelligence agencies more tools to percent terrorist attacks as well(Standing Ovation).

Thank You May God Bless You and May God Bless the United States of America

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Over 90% of Americans approve of Job President McCain is doing along with supporting an Invasion of Afghanistan if demands are not met

President McCain's Approvals:

Approve: 93%
Disapprove: 4%

Opinion of Invading Afghanistan if Demands are not met:

Approve: 92%
Disapprove: 5%

 
Greenfield: I think the fact that the President's approvals have hit the highest in American history at over 90% along with the fact that over 90% support invading Afghanistan if the demands the President made arent met shows that we are more united than we ever have been on the onset of what many are calling a new global war against terrorism. This is important because to fight such a war we need to come together as a nation, regardless of party identification which is exactly what has happened.

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Breaking News: US Declares War on Afghan Government after Demands arent met



Note: Photshop done by DPK

McCain: My Fellow Americans, as you know in my speech to Congress I gave a list of demands our nation was making to the Afghanistan Government and warned them that if the demands weren't met in 15 days it would be considered an act of war against our nation and we would respond as such. After 15 days not only have they not met the demands, and due to that the United States Congress today have officially declared War against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan . The Tailiban regime have oppressed their people for years , have provided safe haven to terrorists but I can tell the people all across the world that that evil regime is going come to an end. Before I end this speech I want to ask all of you tonight to join me in praying for the men and women in uniform tonight.

Thank You , May God Bless You, May God Bless the Men and Women in Our Military and May God Bless America

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Congress Passes Bills giving Intelligence Agencies more surveillance powers, creating a cabinet-level department called the Department of Homeland Security and a mandatory sentencing bill and President McCain signs them into law.


Summary of Bills:

Department of Homeland Security Act:

- Creates a cabinet-level department named the Department of Homeland Security

- The head of the Department will be called the Secretary of Defense

- Reorganizes many departments which deal with protecting the homeland security of the United States  into one unified and integrated Department.

Nominee to head Department of Homeland Security: Robert Gates

Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT ACT) Act :

https://cdt.org/wp-content/uploads/security/011031summary.shtml


Mandatory Sentencing for Terrorism Act:

- Anyone over the age of 18 involved in a terrorist attack will receive the death penalty

- Anyone under the age of 18 involved in a terrorist attack will be sentenced to life in prison



Robert Gates Unanimously Confirmed by United States Senate  to head new Department of Homeland Security:



Shaw: Former CIA Director today was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate to head the new Department of Homeland Security. 

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Breaking News: US and Nothern Alliance Forces take Kabul :



Shaw: We have some breaking news in to report and that is that four weeks after the invasion of Afghanistan begin, the US and Nothern Alliance Forces have taken Kabul the capital of Afghanistan from the Taliban.

CNN Military Correspondent: At this point, it looks like the Taliban have given up trying to fend of the invasion and is in full retreat mode at this point. US Forces though are still aggressively moving in to ensure they can capture top leaders of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda including the mastermind of the September 11th attacks, Osama Bin Laden. Right now they are moving into the last major stranglehold of the Tailban and that is Khandar.

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Breaking News: Osama Bin Laden and other Al-Qaeda leaders killed in raid at Tora Bora



Shaw: We are hearing the President is about to deliver some breaking news so lets head straight to the oval office



Note: Photoshop done by DPK

McCain: My fellow Americans, last night our military conducted an operation that killed Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks that killed thousands of innocent men, women and children. We also were able to kill other top leaders of Al-Qaeda who were trying to escape Afghanistan along with Bin Laden and make sure that those people do not take his place as the leader of the most despicable terrorist organization in the world. I can also report to you that we have successfully been able to remove the Taliban government who gave safe haven to terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda from power as well over the past two months and now we begin the long road ahead to help rebuild Afghanistan and make sure for certain that Afghanistan never again becomes a breeding ground for terrorism like it was when the Tailban was in control of the nation.

Thank You , May God Bless You, May God Bless the Men and Women in our Military and May God Bless America

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Realized I forgot an update for the 2001 Off-year Election, but the results are the same as OTL with Warner winning in Virginia, McGreevey in New Jersey and Bloomberg in New York City

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Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after major accounting scandal causes stock to plummet below one dollar

Shaw: Enron once a major energy company based in Houston has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy after further fallout from one of the largest accounting scandal in American history resulted in his stock price plummeting to below one dollar.

CNN Financial Ananylst: Enron which came under SEC investigation in October was found to be concealing losses by misusing mark to market accounting. Enron on many instances was found to list values of deals they signed even after they collapsed and failed to yield profits and an example of this was that despite Blockbuster withdrawing from a contract they continued to claim future profits . Enron was also found to have used something called special purposed vehicles or enties to hide its debts , toxic assets from investors.

Shaw: My question is how were they able to get away with this for so many years

Anaylst: That's the perplexing question , given they are a client of Arthur Anderson one of the Big 5 accounting firms but the SEC has filed an inquiry into them as well to see if they had any part in this .

Shaw: So will their be anything else done

Analyst: Yes we are hearing the Department of Justice is considering opening a criminal investigation into Enron as well




Source: https://www.mcc4tax.com/the-role-of-accounting-in-enrons-downfall/