you're short netflix, and then, frankly, there's no tomorrow because that stock is up so huge. and i keep telling you, the market cap doesn't represent the opportunity. it's bigger. i'd like to say there's always a bull market try to promise to find it for you. i will see you tomorrow. \s. we see only 11% of the population is actually people firmly uninsured now insured, so we didn't really eat into the uninsured population. so is the program working? we saw people very adept at walking. economics always works. if i can find a cheaper policy versus the one i have, i'll go buy that. all right. that's the ceo of health insurance giant aetna, explaining a major failing if obamacare. next we'll show you why he says his company may have to pull out of the exchanges. is president obama already a lame duck? with the state of the union next week, we'll look at what he can

still get down in the three years he has left in the white house. is it even worth praying for some pro-growth policies. and a tax shocker from the irs, this year, loads of new taxes, reduced deductions, more about to slam millions of americans consumers and businesses. the question is, could these new taxes have something to do with our sluggish stock market so far this new year? all those stories, much more coming up on "the kudlow report", beginning right now. good evening, everyone. i'm larry kudlow. we're live at 7:00 p.m. eastern and 4:00 p.m. pacific. insurance companies starting to wear that i options in response to the shockingly bad enrollment numbers. the total number still 5 million short of the administration's goal. only 11% are people who were

previously uninsured. the numbers are so bad that insurance companies will have to raise their premiums or pull out of the program all together. here's what the aetna ceo had to say to cnbc this morning? >> may 15th we have to submit rates for 2015. will we get beat up because they are double digit or just have to pull out of the program. those questions can't be answered until we see the population we have today. >> so if the insurers pull out is obamacare destined to crumble. is the individual mandate dead in the water? we bring in matt isleses, and our friend is a senior fellow at the manhattan institute. mr. bertolini said some important things here, the population is very small here, 11 million. that's not very good.

most importantly i think he's saying there is not enough consumer choice, not enough market freedom, and therefore there's going to have to be big premium hikes and therefore he may have to leave the system all together. now, he's got no skin in the political game. he's just being a businessman. what's your response to his complaints? >> well, i have a lot of respect for aetna. it has a great and storied history, but i think we have to look at this as a long-term play. right now we're only a little ways into the open enrollment. we have about 70 more days and we'll have to wait and see what population actually shows up. there's still a lot of choice for consumers and they're sorting through their options. >> how much time do we have? one of the things that mr. bertolini said, is he's going to start is publishing his premium

rates in may for 2015. that's where the heat will come down. do you think by this may these enrollment numbers -- when i say enrollment, i mean noninsured getting insured, do you think that story will change materially? >> you know, if you ever want on good quote about obamacare, he's the guy to give it. at the end of 2012, he was one of the first insurance ceos to talk about rate shock and the problem with the premiums under the law. you know what he said, which was very important? he said they'll probably have double-digit increases, which means that because the older and sicker people are signing up, but not the younger and healthier people, that means the plans will be a lot more expense i have been. aetna was in a maximum of 15 states. the for-profit insurers in general have been very careful about getting involved in these exchanges. if they don't work and they get out, it's no skin off their

back. >> see, matt, mr. bertolini is talking about adverse selection, as you well know. these obamacare plans, they're all pretty much one size fits all, the differentials are in the premiums versus the deductibles, but what he's saying is you didn't give them enough choice. they might have wanted a small package, might not have wanted all bells and whistles. i don't need all kinds of maternity mandates at my age going into the insurance policy. what he's saying is we could have done it cheaper, but we didn't do it cheaper. because they didn't do it cheaper, they're going to have to jack up their premium. because they're going to jack up their premiums, they're going to go elsewhere. this is another key point, he said. they won't go to the obama public exchanges, they will go to private exchanges. what's your reaction to that? >> well, there's a lot of different pieces there, larry. first, let's say, within the

choice question, right now there is quite a bit of choice within the exchanges. we see differences across plans. certainly in how much they cost among the premiums and the provider networks. if people wanted a skinnier plan and option, that's true that they don't have that option now, given what's required under obama care. i'm not so sure we'll see people going to private exchanges. for individuals it's going to be the public exchange market or nothing. all right. i want to switch gears. it's related, but i want to ask this. is this bad enrollment data, and now the threat of losing some big insurance companies, will this convince president obama to abandon the individual mandate itself? take a listen to what texas governor rick perry had to say about that today. >> i'll suggest to you that the law will be changed, it will be changed substantively, just on the fact that it does not have

the substance to be a powerful influence in this country. people understand it costs too much. there are people losing their health care. so the idea that this affordable carable, obamacare, whatever you want to call it is going to stick around, is just not reality. >> let me begin with this thought. i think that this is going to be very unpopular, and already becoming very unpopular. people don't want to pay fines to the i.r.s. they can't collect it anyway. by court decision, the i.r.s. is not mandated to collect it, but here's my question, basically. why is it that the president has allowed cancellations shareholders who then re-up, they're out of the penalty phase, but people who are uninsured and want to come in for the first time risk the penalty phase? now, that strikes me as being monumentally and politically unfair. >> it is unfair. you know what else is very, very

interesting, larry? the various activist groups looks organizing for america and all they navigators, they did a a lot of market research about what kinds of messages would convince people to enroll, and they tested whether or not they should tell people, you know what? you better sign up or there will be mandate, a dax you'll have to pay. when they surveyed for that, people recoiled, they were so angry, so upset. that's why all these adding for obamacare never mention that there is a mandate, there's a fine if you don't show up. a lot of people are going to wake up in 2015 and find out they soy money to the i.r.s. that's when it will really hit the fan. >> what do you think the likelihood is that the president will tweak this further and get rid of the individual mandate for reasons i cited, for a lot of different reasons, it's

fundamentally unfair, that people don't want to pay fines, they want more choice in the matter and political it's not going to wash. this is not a great year, by the way, to put the i.r.s. in the middle of any controversy. what do you think, matt? >> i think the individual mandate has already been a critical part, but we have seen the administration consistently moved the goalpost. i think there's a good chance they could change the enrolledment deadline, but remember, it is insurers were very concerned about the weakness of the individual mandate and whether or not it would actually bring people into the market. there would be very downstream impacts on the insurance industry if they decided to walk away. >> no, no, i get that. that's fair enough, but i guess what i'm asking is, the individual mandate is fining people, and maybe young people, but i think there's inherent

infairness, whether it's 1% for the first year, 2% for the-second year, 2.5% for the third year. in other words, there's not real choice, and i think theiumer cohorts are not coming in at least so far. i think that's where the rebellion takes place. that has political r578ifications. young people are an obama/democratic constituency. that may be blown out of the water unless this individual mandate is changed. >> they're not going to get rid of the statutory language. what they will do if they're worried about the political blowback is they'll decline to enforce it. if there's a president president in 2017, he can use a same justification that the obama administration did, and through executive order get rid of the mandate without any action by congress. that's the real danger that -- >> well, already give you the last word. why do you think the mandate is

absolutely vital? >> the reason is, without bringing additional people into the market, then we will face this problem of adverse selection and continued higher rates. that will will not be good for the long-term sustainability. >> i get the adversion -- but what i'm saying is the current system, the young people will not sign up, anyway. so i would argue it's not working, and i would also argue if the administration wants to force it to work or somehow come down hard on it, that will make it worse. the political situation worse and the insurance situation worse. >> look, they're going to have to balance those decisions as they look to the election. i think it will stay in place for now. all right. we'll leave it there. i want to meet the head of aetna. i think he had great things to say. it's a warning for the entire project. president obama still has three years left in the white house, but some people are

already calling him a lame duck? we count down to the special coverage of the state of the union that will be next tuesday in washington, d.c. we asked, what can president obama get done in the rest of his second term? and it's time for everyone to choose their list of the 25 most influential people in business and finance. cnbc has narrowed the list of choices down to 200. you get to pick your do that 25. areas later i'm going to discuss some of my first picks, and then we'll ask them to give us their names, too. you can vote right now on cnbc.com. i'm joining the discussion on twitter, #cnbc25. it's all great fun, but it is interesting. let the people decide. don't forget -- free market capitalism is the best past to prosperity. i certainly hope we are picking business leaders and financial

leaders who believe in free -- i'm kudlow. i believe. we'll be right back. ♪ ♪ stacy's mom has got it goin' on ♪ ♪ stacy's mom has got it goin' on ♪ ♪ stacy's mom has got it goin' on ♪ [ male announcer ] the beautifully practical and practically beautiful cadillac srx. lease this 2014 cadillac srx for around $319 a month with premium care maintenance included. ♪

at a company that's bringing media and technology together. next is every second of nbcuniversal's coverage 0f the 2014 olympic winter games. it's connecting over one million low-income americans to broadband internet at home. it's a place named one america's most veteran friendly employers. next is information and entertainment in ways you never thought possible. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal. president obama gives what would be his sixth state of the

union next week, but i'm guessing income equality, tax the rich, all of that will be a key part of the speech. in other words, i fear he's catching the sand firsta disease, being spread by mayor de blasio and elizabeth warren. i wonder whether the president doesn't need a flu shot. here is former clinton adviser, and former virginia republican governor and rnc committee chairman jim gilmore. jim, let my start with you. is the state of the union going to be about inequality, taxing the rich? is it going to be about transferring more federal benefits? >> i certainly hope not. we don't know what the speech will have in it, but it ought not to have that. there's a danger here of his

destroying the profit motive, the incentives to be entrepreneu entrepreneurs. i'm working on a project called americanopportunity.org, and we think the central point needs to be economic growth. we're hoping the president will put the program into his state of the union when he says, look, the state of union isn't that great, we need to grow more, i have a plan. and if he'll do that, i don't think he is a lame duck. >> richard, by the time he gets to paragraph 3 of the domestic part of this speech, he's going to ask for a higher minimum wage, whatever it is now. he's going to ask for extending unemployment benefits. this is nothing to do with the growth that governor gilmore is talking about. it has nothing to do with that kind of growth. more, if he gets the taxes, he may even mention the corporate reform tax, but he wants it to

be revenue-positive, so the government can get its paws on more money to spend on various benefits and pet projects. now, that's not growth. that's the de blasio, that's the elizabeth warren disease, richard. >> somewhere in there is a question, right? >> yes. yes. i mean, i certainly can guarantee governor gilmore that the president will not destroy the entrepreneurial system with the state of the union address, and i do not think he will pursue policies on the left. i think he's going to continue to pursue moderate economic policies that are good for all americans, as i believe he has been doing. i think it will include an effort to try to get congress to raise the minimum wage. i think he will talk a lot about immigration, where i think there is a good opportunity still to compromise with the republicans and get something done. i think that he will say if he

can't get things done with congress, that he will not be afraid to act in this second term independently by executive order. >> well, you know, governor gilmore, again i think the minimum wage and unemployment extension, that stuff may get through. my own view, i wish it wouldn't. there are better way toss do it. but if it gets through, it would be boiled down with republicans putting fiscal responsibility and some incentives into that. but i want to come back to this, the reform of the corporate tax, i mean, we a chap on last night who wants to abolish the corporate tax, a professor from boston university who has done the work with the brookings institute, left of center institute. he abolished the corporate income tax, it will grow the economy and most of all it will help workers and increase wages. president obama is not going to say anything like that. that would be refreshing. he's not going to go there.

>> no, but he ought to. again, with the program we're doing at americanopportunity.org, we think you could buy the corporate tax rate down considerably. if you do that, you're going to explode growth. if he leaves this administration after the remaining part of his time and we're still slogging along with no growth, he's not a successful president, and i think he has to do something about it. >> he may not be a lame duck at this point, all right? that's from bill's column this morning in "wall street journal," but i think he hayes limited elbow room. the degrees of political freedom will be very, very limited. i think you mentioned this a moment ago. most interesting thing he might try to do is make a deal with republicans on immigration reform. now, obama is not a deal maker. you worked for one, clinton. obama has very poor deal-making

skills. but if he could put immigration reform together that makes sense and is balanced, and has economic growth in it, i think that would sal van the second term. all right? where do you think they're going to go with this this are they going to open up and say help me on this, i want to reach across the aisle? >> i think you're exactly right. i think that when they are now looking very hard for an opportunity to make something of the second term with the limited options you mentioned, the options are limited for any number of reasons in addition to the fact that it's the second term, but i think the smart thing to do would be to try to make a deal with republicans and congress on immigration reform, because i think many smart republicans understand that they need to do something to get beyond the immigration issue to enable success for their own party. i think if the president is smart, he will not try -- he will not overreach and he will

try to offer things that he thinks the republicans should go for. which i think is what the president wants to do. >> look, obama will have to defend obama care. i don't know how his 'goods to have to do that. he'll have to end the individual man dade. we talked about that in the first segment. i think he's got to do that. final word to you. regardless immigration reform, regardless the republicans' chances to recapture the senate in 2014. are you, as a card-carrying conservative, former virginia governor, you ran the rnc, you know the ropes. do you think there's a deal to be made between the president and the republican house on immigration? >> yeah, i think there probably is, but i think that you've got to answer some of the fundamental questions in immigration, which is, are we just going to declare open borders, and anybody that can

get here, it's going to be all is forgiving? i think that's the fundamental policy question that's got to be answered, larry, if i want to leave your viewers with one idea, it is that getting more people jobs and employed is a better way to improve their quality of life than something like the minimum wage. the minimum wage will increase unemployment, it will slow growth, get people jobs and get people employed. if the president can do that, he can be a success. frankly if he didn't, i don't think immigration will bay him out. >> what is the chances that they'll wuss out shall if you really want it to -- want to put assistance into wageearners, you would be better doing it with a direct wage subsidy. at least you wouldn't be pressuring the business. but the republicans always wuss out on that. what's up with that? >> well, they don't make their case. i don't think they have a clear concept and a message to the american people that talks about the welfare of the american

people that they want to produce. you know, they get themselves wedged into this notion that we're just going to be against this reform or this minimum wage. you have to offer a more posit vision. i would urge my colleagues to do that. the best way to do that is to talk about a dynamic exciting economy where people can have careers, where young people can get started, where people laid off can suddenly find another job, because the economy is dynamic. >> last night we heard the professor at boston university -- abolish the corporate income talk altogether. his work at the tax policy center, the brookings institute. it's not heritage or kato, they say if you abolish the corporate tax, the biggest winners would be workers and wage-earners. how about that? now, that would be something. richard socarides, i'm going to

bug you about this. >> that's some great research. >> he's not a reagan supply-sider, he's just a economist, and he's come up with these numbers from the tax policy center, which i think you would great is bakley objective, bipartisan, make left of center. that's where you get your working growth. we need jobs. i got to get out of here. richard, jim, thank you. be sure to tune in on tuesday. we'll be broadcasting live to preview the president's state of the union address. now, it's not a great day for the energy boom. we're about to take you to texas, where a big part of the keystone pipeline has finally opened for business. believe it or not. stay with us, next up on "the kudlow report." ♪

♪ [ male announcer ] a car that is able to see, to calculate, to think -- and can respond to what it encounters. ♪ even if that means completely stopping itself. it's the stuff of science fiction... minus the fiction. the 2014 e-class. see your authorized dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services.

cozy or cool? "meow" or "woof"? everything the way you want it ... until boom, it's bedtime! and your mattress a battleground of thwarted desire. enter the sleep number bed. designed to let couples sleep together in individualized comfort. he's a softy. his sleep number setting is 35. you're the rock, at 60. and as your needs change over time you can adjust your bed to sleep better together. 48-month financing available through february 2 only at your local sleep number store. find your sleep number setting and know better sleep. of the dusty basement at 1406 35th street the old dining table at 25th and hoffman. ...and the little room above the strip mall off roble avenue.

♪ this magic moment it is the story of where every great idea begins. and of those who believed they had the power to do more. dell is honored to be part of some of the world's great stories. that began much the same way ours did. in a little dorm room -- 2713. ♪ this magic moment ♪ 35r9 of the keystone pipeline opened today, that's right. the part that didn't need federal government approval. jackie deangelie is in port arthur, texas for us. >> reporter: it's a tale of two pipelines. the trans-canada keystone pipeline southern leg began today. it's transporting oil across a 48 a-mile pipeline.

this is really key, because you have four refineries here, big refineries, exxon, motifa, and motal and have a wlero. this is really significant. that oil will be able to reach about 25% of the nation's rye fining capacity in the gulf coast. that's when you include the refineries that are nearby lake charles and also in new orleans. moving this light sweet crude in this way benefits the refiners, saves them roughly $15 per barrel to do it via pipe. this raises the question, of course, what about the northern leg of keystone. it could bring another 830,000 barrels of heavier crude from alberta, canada to the gulf cost. the cost saving there about $20 to $25, so you can see why the refiners are guest behind it.

the canadians are growing somewhat impatient as they await a decision, recently say that president obama has punted on this sure, and secretary of state john kerry says the u.s. will not be sbushd making a final decision. but thens of thousands of jobs and the fishes we aefficiencies getting. so potential the opening of the southern leg could move the ball forward, and that conversation. larry, back to you. all right. many thanks to jackie. i'm sort of scratching my head. secretary of state john kerry says they won't be pushed into a decision? they've had years. in fact the state department has okayed this thing three times. i wouldn't exactly say pushed. i would say, get going. switch gears. don't say we didn't warn you. tax shock is coming. we're talking about the tax bill you'll have to pay this april 15th. the new taxes aren't just a

headache for you. they could be holding back the economy, maybe even the stock market as well. we have jared bernstein and art laugher. i think they have a disagreement. i'm kudlow. we'll be right back. there's a new form of innovation taking shape.

at a company that's bringing media and technology together. next is every second of nbcuniversal's coverage 0f the 2014 olympic winter games. it's connecting over one million low-income americans to broadband internet at home. it's a place named one america's most veteran friendly employers. next is information and entertainment in ways you never thought possible. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal.

come april 15th, a lot of people will as a new higher top tax rate, fewer deductions and exemptions. a lot of wealthy americans are facing about a 43% or 44%, and there's a big jump in capital gains and medicare payroll tax. great, what will this do to the economy? as people pay this, what will it do to the stock market? joining us now, former chief economist for vice president biden jared byrne teen and art laffer. is this a great idea? >> no, it's not. larry, you can't tax an economy into propertain. we already have a horrible economy. why anyone would want to tax an economy in this state more is beyond me, but jared, you'll have to explain it, old friend. >> i'll be happy to. first of all, you did a bit of

jujitsu there. you said a lot of people -- and then you correctly switched. a lot of wealthy people. in fact the marginal tax rate increase applied largely to families above $450,000. that's about the top 1.5, maybe 2%. i fully agree that they're going to face higher marginal rates, but that leaves 98% of the population that isn't. also, i think we have to consider that where has the growth gone? i don't agree with art that this is a horrible economy. we certainly have more to go, but the growth has gone exclusively to the top of the scale. so the fact they have to pay a bit more i think makes sense in a progressive system. >> go ahead, art. >> these are the decision makers. these are the people who hire the people. why would you want to impose it on them more than anyone else? >> i can answer that. unlike the two of you, and i say

this respectfully, we have argued about this for years -- i simply don't see in the empirical research. i get your theory, but i don't see the kind of negative relationship you're talking about between a couple points on the top marginal tax rate. it's just not there. i. >> i would say open the eyes a bit wider. it will come right to you, jared. >> by the way, the stock market, of course there's a whole issue, obama will talk about income inequality, he's catching the de blasio disease and all that. i wish he wouldn't, but i know he's going to. i have to accept that. >> i'm not sure you're right, but we can talk about that later. >> i'm pretty sure i'm right. >> mere's the point. why is it so many pundits on the left say that all that does is help upper income, rich people. you know as well as i do that

half the population is in the stock market, the so-called investor class. that includes, you know, union people, private unions, government unions. they are benefiting. their pensions are benefiting because of the rise in stock market value. they should be counted. the wealth that they are accumulating from this five-year bull market in stocks gives you an entirely different and, by the way, better picture of why this inequality stuff is a lot of hoke 'em and poke 'em. >> i'm not one of those people you just cited. i'm careful to point out there are a lot of pensions and retires in the stock market. it's true that half the stock market shares are held by -- that half the population holds the share, the vast majority of the value is concentrated at the top. if you look at the boom in the stock market and who's benefited from it, frankly the market is up about 70% in the real terms.

the median household income is down. >> the problem is how little the poor own. it -- >> i'm sympathetic to that, but i think you have to be more preci precise. >> why tax corporate? >> we're talking about a couple points on the marginal rate. what does it pay for? health care coverage for a ton more people. >> i won't get the money, jared. stop it. warren buffett won't pay for it. >> look, that we disagree on. i think there's a very strong correlation between increases in tax rates and the collection of tax revenue. i get i don't believe in the laffer curve. >> how dare i? >> love laffer, hate the curve. >> why do you tax those most

likely to invest? they raise the capital gains tax rate by 3.8% for obama care, so call it 4%, they raise the medicare payroll tax by almost a full percentage point. the dividend tax was raised. why raise taxes on investment that gives you the seed corn for the economy -- jared, you can't create a job unless you have a profitable business you can't have a profitable business unless you have investors invest their money to get a good rate of return after tax. >> so, look -- i listened to the health care -- you're making a ton of sense tonight. it's actually making me nervous, but let me say a couple points. first of all, you know, i'm a person who believes that we absolutely need more revenue in order to meet many of the challenges we face. i don't think we can raise it all from the top 1%. that said, those really are the

folks who have consistently done the best. let me ask a question -- corporate profitability is up 50% over this expansion, and we simply haven't see the wageearner employ gain that you are predicting. >> but profitable has come up without tax rates being lowered. they're looking to the future, not to the past. it's not what corporate profits are. >> i got to get out. this is what -- i say this every segment now. we had him on the show last yigt. lawrence cotlikoff, abolish the corporate tax all together. jared, the wealthy profitable corporations, they don't have to hang out with the 40% tax rate. they can go anywhere in the country. i can't debate that. i've got to get -- >> one thing, you said something incorrect earlier. the president as i understand it -- >> you're going to come back. >> revenue-neutral.

>> he a positive -- >> i'll get back to you. hang on. cnbc is asking all of us to vote for our picks for the 25 most influential business and economic leaders of the last 25 years. now, i have some names i want to endorse, so do art and jared. you can vote, too, right now, we're going to debate some big names up next and abolish the corporate tax. (shouting above the chaos) if you're having trouble hearing me... ... you might need to come closer... ... half a world closer!

woman: welcome to learning. spanish in the car.c on. passenger: you've got to be kidding me. driver: this is good. woman: vamanos. driver & passenger: vamanos. woman: gracias. driver & passenger: gracias. passenger: trece horas en el carro sin parar y no traes musica. driver: mira entra y comprame unas papitas. vo: get up to 795 miles per tank in the tdi clean diesel. the volkswagen passat. recipient of the j.d. power appeal award, two years in a row.

we are the thinkers. the job jugglers. the up all-nighters. and the ones who turn ideas into action. we've made our passions our life's work. we strive for the moments where we can say, "i did it!" ♪ we are entrepreneurs who started it all... with a signature. legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses, turning dreamers into business owners. and we're here to help start yours. i have a big meeting when we land, but i am so stuffed up, i can't rest.

[ male announcer ] nyquil cold and flu liquid gels don't unstuff your nose. they don't? alka seltzer plus night fights your worst cold symptoms, plus has a decongestant. [ inhales deeply ] oh. what a relief it is. cnbc, kicking off our year-long coverage of 25th anniversary. we start today voting on cnbc first 25 the gold? over the past 25 years. you can vote, cnbc.com/25. there's so many great contenders out there, but just bear with me. i want to start with this list. all right? i believe the most significant potential catastrophy was the financial meltout in the autumn of 2008 and the winter of 2009. i will propose tonight ben

bernanke, sheila bair, hank paulson and tim geithner, because at that point in the autumn of '08 and the winter of '09, they worked together to add liquidity to the banking system and to guarantee money market funds and all forming of bank debt and deposits to stop the system from imploding. if our system had imploded, the world would have gone with it, and it would have been worse than the great depression. i don't agree with dodd/frank. i don't agree with the other qes. there's a lot of over-regulation. i'm just saying these four people at that moment gave us a much needed rescue mission. so i think their names have to go down. we're going to have this for a while, but let me bring in

jared bernstein and art laffer. your picks? >> i think fred smith and current people, jack welch, they're very much in that. my all-time favorite is george shultz, the most important person in the last century, but i do not think those that you picked were really that good. i think we should have done nothing and the economy would be far better today. >> by the way, if you're going to pick george shultz, why don't you pick art laffer? >> he's still around. >> art laffer is still around? >> jared -- >> the laffer/mondale model, you were picked as one of the best 100 brains by "time." i mean, seriously mr. shultz, is a great man, didn't do well in the nixon administration. >> he did great. i was with him the whole time there. he was really great. he kept a lot of bad things from happening.

>> bernanke and sheila bair et al. helped. >> i like your list. those were kind of some of my folks as well, but i decided to go with the google guys. i think their work has been so transform tiff. there's probably not a day gone by where anyone that can hear my voice hasn't used google many times. i was sort of thinking what would have happened if somebody else was the chairperson of g.e. or jpmorgan. and on the economy. >> by the way, we don't have enough time. i got the google guys on my list. i've got a lot of business people on the list. steve jobs, i'm going to talk about him, because i think is absolutely transform atiff. i agree with you about google.

there are a number of leading business men and women we need to talk about, but anyway, this is the first pass. come armed. we can do this every time on your show. art laffer, jared byrne teen, professor george shultz, i'll think about that. please vote now. tomorrow night, we're going to keep this discussion going hot with a look at some of my picks, including, as i said, the late, great steve jobs. now, maybe the markets have fallen back into their fed anxiety mode. there are signs it might taper faster and more deeply than investors suspected. is that what's keeping the mark so stale? we'll have two top investors next up on "the kudlow report." want it ... until boom, it's bedtime! and your mattress a battleground of thwarted desire. enter the sleep number bed. designed to let couples sleep together in individualized comfort. he's a softy. his sleep number setting is 35.

you're the rock, at 60. and as your needs change over time you can adjust your bed to sleep better together. 48-month financing available through february 2 only at your local sleep number store. find your sleep number setting and know better sleep. okay, here comes airplane. [ imitates airplane ] [ crying ] [ door opens, closes ] okay, here's choo-choo. chugga, chugga, chugga, chugga. hi. let me give it a shot. great. [ imitates car engine revving ]

wonder where he got that idea. [ male announcer ] like father, like son. 259 horsepower. available all-wheel drive. yeah, it flies. introducing the new regal. frbuick. bulldog: oh boy! bulldog: mattress discounters presidents day sale! get a queen-size sealy gel memory foam mattress for just $497. and get four years interest-free financing on the entire tempur-pedic cloud collection. [yawns]

welcome back to court court. two big names reporting and pleasing after the bell today. netflix posted better than expected numbers eps of 79 cents, besting the street's forecast for 66 cents. in the u.s. netflix added 2.3 million customers to its streaming service. on the international side, netflix added 1.7 million members and ended the year with 44 million total customers. that stock shooting higher in the after hours, now up nearly 240% in just the past 12 months. investors also cheering news from ebay. the headline there -- carl icahn

revealing a stakes of about 1% in the company, the activist has nominated two board members, and he wants them to sell off the paypal. done ahow telling analysts that ebay accelerate paypal's success, and ebay funds paypal's growth, so the battle lines have been drawn. ebay reporting 81 -- analysts had been looking for 80 cents. tomorrow on cnbc, tune in for an exclusive interview with john done ahoe at 9:00 a.m. eastern. >> josh, my friend hang on with me for a minute. i want to go back to netflix. big numbers.

that's fine. they're going to be embroiled with carl icahn. i wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy, but that will happen. netflix looks unstoppable, invulnerable. am i right about that? they get pr, earns, you can get them on your own tv. they're unstoppable. >> certainly it had a monster run, larry. as we mentioned triple digits. some investors might have taken some profit off the table, but you had a monster move with those numbers after the bell today. switching gears quickly. i was on the conference call, drawing the baselines very -- telling an analyst, listen, he spoke with carl icahn last week, respected the views, but the two just disagree.

we just. >> great stuff. many, many thanks, josh limiten. will the fed taper and tight enfaster than stock markets think? let's welcome carol roast and dan agreehouse. all right, carol, what's your take right now? >> we've got good news coming out, bad news coming out. this will be a year of sluggish growth, so i think it's a time for investor toss rebalance. some of the names, quiter discretionary that did we are now getting beaten up. i think a lot of that money is going elsewhere.

i know that you're a long-term investor, but i think there would be rebalancing, and you're playing industry sectors -- >> why? just before we get back to dance, really smart guys. are looking for better economic growth. why are you so pessimistic about growth? >> well, i think that the fed policy -- >> is this a chicago thing? >> well, you always brighten me up, especially with your nice ties and the way you look. i'm a realist, i do believe all the cash that's been hoarded is not being invested. if they don't make the capital investments, don't hire people, what is the but then what becomes a catalyst for growth?

>> dan, you heard it. i just want to turn you loose, but i want to say one thing. i know you watch money. you and i may be the last guys to watch money. into brought money aggregate has something to do with the economy. number one, only growing at 5%, and number two the velocity is collapsing. what is your take on that? is that a harbinger? >> i totally disagree on the bad economy think. if anything it's accelerating. it may end up being 2 to 2 1/2 rather than 2 1/2 to 3, but right now all signs are pointing toward better growth in 2014. as for the money supply, i'm not sure how i feel. i think it was lindsey that was on "squawk box" two or three months ago, and he said he

doesn't have any idea, because he doesn't think it matters. do you think the fed will taper and tighten faster? 25 seconds, real quick. >> no. they're going to finish up by the end of the year give or take, but i think -- i've said this for months i think people are making too big a deal. thank you. that's it for tonight's show. be sure to watch "squawk box" tomorrow from davos, live interview with jamie dimon. . but the m-class sees in your blind spot... ♪ pulls you back into your lane... ♪ even brakes all by itself. it's almost like it couldn't crash... even if it tried. the 2014 m-class. see your authorized dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services.

see your authorized dealer for exceptional offers fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that parker. well, did you know auctioneers make bad grocery store clerks? that'll be $23.50. now .75, 23.75, hold 'em. hey now do i hear 23.75? 24! hey 24 dollar, 24 and a quarter, quarter, now half, 24 and a half and .75! 25! now a quarter, hey 26 and a quarter, do you wanna pay now, you wanna do it, 25 and a quarter - sold to the man in the khaki jacket! geico. fifteen minutes could save you... well, you know.

>> in this episode of "secret lives of the super rich"... >> i wanted to take you to a malibu beach house. >> yeah. >> and i figured what better beach house than this one? >> i have to tell you i saw bruce willis' malibu beach house, and let me tell you -- it would fit in the garage. [ laughs ] >> this little stretch of sand is now known as billionaire's beach. [ engine revving ] there are very few things in the world that money cannot buy. but here's one. >> just 'cause you got a couple of bucks, you can influence what we're doing? you can change the commitments i've made to my other billionaire customers? >> right. >> doesn't happen. >> he said that in new york and in los angeles, he visited many homes where models had to share --re