With unprecedented speed and cooperation, Congress and the White House forged a deal to inject around US$150 billion into the US economy in a move to rejuvenate it and ease turmoil that the US' problems spawned in the world's markets.
Few developments were expected yesterday as lawmakers digested Thursday's announcement of an agreement between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Republican leader John Boehner and Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson that is intended to stave off the first recession since 2001.
The Senate very often wins its battles with the House. But now, with the power of the administration of US President George W. Bush behind them, House leaders are optimistic that their simply drawn measure would prevent the Senate from making significant changes such as extending unemployment benefits.
The US economic problems stemmed from a collapse of housing prices, escalating oil prices and tight credit related to the housing disaster. The domestic and foreign turmoil that followed made the economy replace the war in Iraq as a chief worry of US voters as the presidential nomination campaign heats up.
As the possibility of economic recession became more plausible, lawmakers eagerly jumped at a chance to ward off the financial collapse threatened during an election year.
The package passed on Thursday features tax rebates of US$600 to US$1,200 to most tax filers within six months in the hope they will spend the money quickly and jolt the ailing economy to life. Businesses would get US$50 billion in incentives to invest in new plants and equipment.
"This package will lead to higher consumer spending and increased business investment," Bush said in hailing the agreement on Thursday.
The bill will go straight to the House floor next week and on to the Senate, where some Democrats hope to add elements such as extending unemployment benefits.
Indeed, many Democrats, such as House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, and Senator Edward Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate, were deeply unhappy that Pelosi agreed to jettison that proposal in late-stage talks, along with plans to increase food stamp payments.
"I do not understand, and cannot accept, the resistance of President Bush and Republican leaders to including an extension of unemployment benefits for those who are without work through no fault of their own," Rangel said.
Also see: S&P warns of rise in distressed corporate debt
Also see: Investors in Asia boosted by Wall Street's advances
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique