one from reuters. ashley: oil dropped to below 52 bucks. it is heading south. stuart: is that a factor? ashley: it affects market. stuart: neil, it is yours, stuart, no one is blaming you for this selloff. stuart: you can, if you like. neil: i'm getting email, way to go cavuto, never-trumper, you getting downturn you wanted. i immediately shot back, varney started it. i had nothing to do with it. stop writing. it is embarrassing. thank you very much, my friend. you did it again. that larry kudlow chat you just had that lit up the markets. this is what lit them up. take a look. >> the president has indicated he is optimistic with respect to potential china trade deal but, but, but, we've got pretty sizable distance to go here. neil: that is like old miles and miles apart wilbur ross was

saying couple weeks back. remember the commerce secretary telegraphing this would not come easy. add to that a separate report on cnbc, maybe the president and xi xinping will not meet after all. the schedules simply don't allow it. that at least got some people thinking, we're definitely not going to see a meeting before the march 1 deadline, which 25% tariffs on better than $200 billion worth of goods goes into effect. everyone sold off on that. i had nothing to do with it. it was all varney. it was all larry kudlow. it was everyone but me. anyway go to market watchers mike murphy, dan shaffer is here and lauren simonetti is here. lauren, where the trades and talks are going is a big thing, aren't they? >> we had an analyst who said we get a trade deal stocks will sell off anyway because we have expectation we'll get one. one comment kudlow said, past

month several instances someone comes from the administration to walk back optimism we have a deal. might agree in principle, idea of structural reform, enforcement whatever they agree on is a whole different story. neil: he was in the role dialing back mnuchin's remarks who is going to china next week and he is sort of setting the stage for whatever the stage is set for. kudlow was dialing it back. you know, dan, you've been saying we've been hanging around on this for a long time good or ill. where do you stand on it? >> i think that china's not stupid. they will drag this along as much as they can, they see turmoil going on in the united states. remember their president is permanent. neil: they're not free of turmoil. industrial production, 12 years lows. >> they eventually know president trump will no longer be president. their leader will always be the leader. neil: not if his economy

tumbles. >> if it tumbles, the chinese have been known to do other things financially like the japanese have done. neil: remove the opposition. >> things are different there, but the problem with the talks is, that, this is, my opinion, i don't think there is a clear picture, neil, as to what they exactly are trying to accomplish. they're trying to negotiate but what are they actually trying to negotiate? the answer, in my mind, is that you're trying to negotiate a flat field, to eliminate the tariffs completely. i don't think the chinese are going to do that. i think they are just going to play along, make the expectations, push it down the road again. that is what i see happening. neil: interesting. >> as far as the stock market is concerned, i'm very concerned about the stock market because the tariffs have now taken a toll on not just major companies in america but smaller companies in america. they have to pay more for goods coming into china because of the tariffs trump put on. that is a problem. neil: there are worries. by the slowdown worries were

paramount before we got any of this trade news, right, mike? we saw confirmation of that out of the european union. a report that trade would slow. germany, italy, portugal, spain, they're all reporting softer numbers. japan isn't on fire. what is going on here? >> i respectfully disagree. i think -- neil: who do you disagree with? >> no, i think the u.s. is the best mace to invest right now. i think our economy is doing well although some companies are hit by tariffs. if you look overall at the s&p 500 earnings that are coming in i think they're fine to support a market not only at this price but higher. neil: so whatever is happening to caterpillars, deeres, boeings, they're selling off course, boeing in particular has been chasing multiyear highs, don't pay attention to today? >> i think that is the exact point. boeing is selling off an

all-time high, if i'm not mistaken. neil: that's true. >> it will not go straight up forever. this is reason for some people to take profits but i don't see it as anything more than that. both china and the u.s. will vote with their pocketbooks. they will do what is best for their interests. i believe a deal will get done. if a deal is off the table, that is a negative, that is negative not only for the u.s., more so for china but the global trade economy. neil: i don't see a deal being scrubbed. >> i don't either. >> bernanke said in 2018 the economy was fine. we're getting the same thing out of the same fed chairman today. yet, mike, we're seeing these numbers coming out of europe and germany, great britain with the deadline of march 29th for brexit, they don't even have a plan, where is the growth going to come from to support stocks at current levels? that is what is my concern. >> can i answer that? first-quarter earnings in the u.s., look all companies in u.s., guided down in first quarter. we could see contraction first

time in earnings in the u.s., arguably stronger than europe and certainly china. neil: they have been off before. when this quarter was supposed to be, the quarter we completed was supposed to be six to 7% earnings growth. we're double that. >> i think, you talk about growth, we have strong gdp growth here in the u.s. we don't necessarily -- the united states of america? >> g ge p is being lowered -- gd being is being lowered. >> from what to what? >> look italy. >> u.s. >> we're in global economy. >> we are in global economy. >> we'll be dragged down by global countries can't buy from us? >> or the rest of the global economies catch up with the u.s. >> that is impossible. that is impossible. neil: great bull and bear market. >> impossible is a tough statement to make. neil: totally not going to happen? let me ask you, this guys. we're back and forth trying to avoid a government shut down, you know, god knows what, on this whole border thing.

and two sides are inching together. is it your sense from what you're getting neither side obviously benefits from another shutdown but that a deal will be had, at least there a deal will be had to avoid a shutdown, to avoid the president having to declare an emergency? >> not by monday. in order to do the all the is, cross all the ts -- neil: they have to have done tomorrow? >> the latest monday. i think they're too far apart. it becomes, when you have a budget it reflects your values. will democrats say we need some sort of structure, barrier, whatever it. neil: let's get that? will republicans say, i am hopeful it happens because there was not a number the president trump gave in the state of the union what he will accept for border. if republicans go to 1.7 billion or democrats agree with barrier, get new mechanism, automatic continuing resolution, you come

in, protect politicians from themselves? keep the government open. neil: i don't know whether that will be a good or bad thing. >> there is going to be some deal. that is similar going on in china. both sides there need a deal. both sides in the china trade need a deal. whether it happens by monday or tuesday -- neil: you're still bullish? >> i'm still bullish. i don't think people act against their self-interests. i think they act in their self-interests. neil: we see that happen. >> short term. eventually they reach a deal. neil: dan? >> i watch ad speech. i am communications major from syracuse. i know public speaking. he made it very clear, he made the case very clear to the american people and to the constituents of the democrats in their districts, this is what is going on. this is the issue. i'm here to help out. i'm here to make it work. you look when the cameras panned all the snickering going on by statements that he is saying, you know, i just did some research over the weaken about winston churchill.

winston churchill was very similar. he didn't like a lot of other countries way of life. he was very stern about it. he wasn't very popular about that. but when push came to shove, protecting great britain, he did it. and that is what made him very famous and all the quotes. trump, you know, i'm not saying the guy is a between just but he is trying to protect this country from the last straw of what could hurt it. we've seen that -- neil: you don't think he is going to bend. so you think there is a good possibility we don't get a deal? >> i don't think there is going to be a deal. i don't think the democrats want to make a deal. i think mike, they want to hurt themselves because they want to have this face how strong they are against somebody the president, who they don't like. it is not the principle what he is trying to do. it is it is who it is. that is a big problem in politics today. >> you can't be the party of retest stance and constantly going against moving forward though. congressman cuellar, texas, border town, laredo area, he

gave me optimism. he said you're not getting 5.7 billion. you could get something, not just that amount, maybe we're open to some sort of structure. he is right there at the border. he is a democrat. >> i looked at state of the union through a more positive lens and i think the fact that people were coming together and cheering together and kind of -- there was snickering i would say every state of the union i've seen has some sort of snickering -- neil: see what i do when varney is on. >> exactly. me too. i think there is going to be a deal. i think both sides will give in a little bit. we're going to have something. neil: the deal that doesn't necessarily mean it's a good deal right? it will be something? >> having increasing -- i'm in the camp increasing our border security or keeping bad people out or enforcing our laws is a good thing for our country and our economy. >> also, neil, 5.7 billion based on budget of the united states, even treasurys being auctioned today is not a issue. neil: i think we sort of slough off this in the scheme of

4 trillion-dollar budget all that. i get that. if we did that with everything, 3 trillion-dollar deficit. >> he came to the 5.7 billion for a reason. it's a calculated number. neil: right. >> not out of thin air. neil: all right. >> if they're willing to lower the number they're still fighting about it, then again it is based on principle. neil: you were going to say, lauren? >> i forgot what i was going to say. neil: both you guys are that mess herrizing. as you were speaking, as you were chatting, larry kudlow after interviews giving a gaggle. reporters pepper them with questions as they do the president, as he takes off on air one. he was talking about the president meeting with xi xinping on the tail end of his trip to meet with the north korean leader, i believe they're meeting in vietnam at the end of the mon. so far no indication of that. no indication of that. and he left.

we'll have more after this. at&t provides edge-to-edge intelligence, covering virtually every part of your healthcare business. so that if she has a heart problem & the staff needs to know, they will & they'll drop everything can you take a look at her vitals? & share the data with other specialists yeah, i'm looking at them now. & they'll drop everything hey. & take care of this baby yeah, that procedure seems right. & that one too. at&t provides edge to edge intelligence. it can do so much for your business, the list goes on and on. that's the power of &. & when your patient's tests come back...

comcast business built the nation's largest gig-speed network. then went beyond. beyond chasing down network problems. to knowing when and where there's an issue. beyond network complexity. to a zero-touch, one-box world. optimizing performance and budget. beyond having questions. to getting answers. "activecore, how's my network?" "all sites are green." all of which helps you do more than your customers thought possible. comcast business. beyond fast.

neil: all right. oil prices are going down here, almost 4%. had been down a little north of that earlier on. inventories tightened in u.s. taking venezuelan oil off the market to make sure it doesn't get back to president maduro down there. he is still insisting remaining president right now. he is shut off the country to any and all oil. normally you would see that fear, things are going to escalate hiking oil prices, but not today. the inventory is a far bigger factor. ford announcing a major growth plans today. and some that are going to benefit the chicago area

directly. we go first on fox with jeff flock, who with ford's executive vice president, joe hendrix. sir. reporter: president of global operations, joe hendrix. behind me you see the police interceptor, neil? that is made in chicago. it is an explorer. they announced a billion dollar investment in the plant that makes them on the south side of chicago and 500 new jobs. joe, gm earlier this week, they're cutting jobs, production jobs. you're not only not cutting them, you're adding them. what is going on? >> ford had a long-time commitment to american manufacturing. we build more vehicles in america than anybody else. we employ for factories. that is leading exporter out of the vehicles of the u.s. all those things reinforce our commitment building in america. building south side of chicago is another example of that. reporter: they're cutting. stock market likes that. >> we have shareholders to be

concerned about an concerned about because they're important part of our base. we think making vehicles here, having a competitive business here, working with our partners is part of a strong business. reporter: you are laying off people in europe because that hasn't been a great business. >> we started consultation process with the works council in germany, uk, other places in europe as part of the process. there we will restructure the business there. takes a little while to do that. it is important. reporter: i have to ask you, see suvs, explorers, great, best-selling suv in the history of suvs, right? super duty truck you announced this week. you've made a bet on suvs, trucks. i talked to the guys at toyota. they say, you know what? we like passenger cars. you and gm both seem to be him him -- eliminating passenger cars. choice letter too. what makes you think you made

the right call? >> almost seven out of 10 vehicles sold in u.s. are trucks, suvs. they want fuel economy, we can give it. like hybrid version of explorer and want safety of with the height. reporter: venezuela, oil shocks. we're $50 a barrel roughly right now. what if we get $100 a barrel? >> we lightweighted vehicles on new platforms and have plug-in hybrid versions to get fuel economy. reporter: that makes sense, neil. obviously these suvs get a whole lot more fuel economy, than they used to, maybe if we get oil shock, people stick to the suvs. neil: seven out of 10 vehicles sold are suvs or trucks. that is amazing. >> isn't that amazing? we've made a global switch across the rubicon. neil: i remember the days we got seven feet a gallon. i think mine still does. it is an older vehicle. reporter: my yugo got about

that. remember the yugo. neil: i remember the yugo, sure. back in washington, congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez, senator ed markey, they have a green new deal legislation that they're about to announce. charlie gasparino reports that a lot of wall street democrats are worried about the direction initiatives like that are taking the party. maybe the congresswoman as well. sir? >> you know, i just want to say a little off topic i noticed a spring in your step today. i saw the markets were down. neil: incredible. >> you were so happy this morning. neil: i was not happy. you know the nasty mail -- >> i saw you back before you come on here, toasting people with pumpkin spice lattes. hey, living it up. neil: you are just -- >> [laughter] you know, you're going to get hate mail now. neil: i'm the never-trumper. i want the market to sell off. >> you want the trade deals just to die. neil: i'm a globalist.

i thought they were talking about my weight. what is going on with all the other stuff? >> interesting a lot is happening at goldman sachs. i've been covering banks of forever and if you know something about goldman sachs it is most democratic of all the firms. their ceo's gone to administrations for democratic, they had republicans, hank paulson was republican. bob ruben was a democrat. if you look at all the banks one firm heavily democrat over the years was goldman sachs. gary cohn, when he was number two, he was one of the first wall street guys to back up barack obama. neil: sure. >> lloyd blankfein who recently retired was always a hillary supporter for many, many years. right now there is an implosion in there, i guess the best way to put it. they are freaking out because they are seeing that the democratic party is no longer than the democratic party they supported, mildly, liberal on social issues but centrist on real core economic issues.

this is a democratic party that is going full-on socialist, they are freaked out. neil: full on them. >> full on them. what is interesting that lloyd blankfein who just retired as ceo got in the middle of the whole movement toward the left tweeting at senator bernie sanders. didn't tweet at schumer which is interesting. schumer and sanders you know penned an op-ed in "the new york times," very controversial, should basically outlaw stock buybacks. don't ask me why. the economics was pretty absurd. part of corporate greed that companies are using money to buy back. neil: premise they were critical of the republican tax cuts because that is what a lot of companies did. >> saying somehow it was bad, know what i'm saying. i got news, it wasn't. i'm not saying the best use of capital, but if they don't do buybacks, you don't have improving economy, they will just hoard the cash. you can try to tax it away, do whatever you want, that is not very productive either. so lloyd blankfein came out with tweets, attacking, basically

challenging bernie sanders on twitter. what we know from inside the firm they want to stay out of it. they're keeping their heads down. they have to deal with democrats. they don't want to be targeted. goldman sachs was viciously targeted after the financial collapse. they're cheering on former ceo, go for it, defend capitalism for us and defend us because they know -- neil: not so much the talk of raising top individual rate but there is move afoot obviously to go after a wealth tax, higher estate tax, but wall street and rich people in general are in their sights. >> yeah, this is obama on steroids. goldman sachs did not like obama. gary cohn, supported, led the charge on wall street to support him in the first term. the second term after dodd-frank, gary cohn did a 180. goldman didn't support obama against romney. but they look at these, the people, the crew that is now running the democratic party, and bringing schumer into its fold per that article, obama on

steroids. this is not just semiprogressive politics. neil: sounds like behind the scenes they're kind of pushing him on, right? >> they're pushing on lloyd to go after -- neil: they can't publicly challenge. >> they're scared to death going after these guys, getting a big target on their back, hauled in front of hearings before maxine waters. you know the whole drill. are you happy? market only down 314. you look more dour now. neil: incredible. charlie gasparino, thank you very much. i want to clarify something i said a little earlier about the gaggle involving larry kudlow who had told our stuart varney not even more than a half an hour ago, that the two sides, china, united states are still far apart. then there was a separate issue, i believe, on cnbc report initially, that the president was nixing or didn't have time to meet with xi xinping of china. larry kudlow was trying to clarify that. he did say that the president

says he does expect to meet with xi xinping on trade. when and where is totally up in the air. doesn't depend on meetings this week. wouldn't want to say one way or the other. at some point, this is coming from kudlow in this gaggle, the two presidents will meet. that is off in the distance. still at the moment. whatever that means, it is not imminent. we'll have more after this. have such a great trip. yeah, have fun! thanks to you, we will. aw, stop. this is why voya helps reach today's goals... all while helping you to and through retirement. um, you guys are just going for a week, right? yeah! that's right. can you help with these? oh... um, we're more of the plan, invest and protect kind of help... sorry, little paws, so. but have fun! send a postcard! voya. helping you to and through retirement.

state of the art technology makes it brilliant. the lexus nx, experience the crossover in its most visionary form. experience amazing at your lexus dealer.

♪ ♪ our new, hot, fresh breakfast will get you the readiest. (buzzer sound) holiday inn express. be the readiest.

♪ >> what is our plan in venezuela? >> the humanitarian crisis is real. he conducted a sham election and declared himself president. we simply said we're not going to recognize that. trish, we tried to deliver humanitarian assistance from colombia, from the united states and colombia into venezuela. the venezuela military under the direction of mr. maduro stopped that. this is horrific stuff. neil: yeah, this is true. some of these shots will indicate using trucks or

boxcars, anything they can, they have blocked major bridges and roads from accepting any outside aid and medicine would be coming from the united states and a host of other countries, that want to help the venezuela people out. the military is doing that. the same military oil obviously to nicolas maduro, the president, not giving up reins of government anytime soon, so it would appear. someone knows better. director of policy planning, key a skinner. >> good to be back with you, neil. first time since i joined the trump administration. neil: congratulations for that. how do you handle this? if the government is actually forcibly preventing aid, basic stuff like food and medicine getting into venezuela? >> yes, neil, it is a horrific situation that maduro and his security forces are blocking medicine, food, nutritional supplements and a whole range of

products that are needed by thousands of people in venezuela. for example, he has made it impossible for the united states to bring the global fund, hiv aids medicine to 65,000 venezuelans who need it to live daily. what we do, to speak to your question on this matter, i think continue the whole of government effort in the united states, which is including the prepositioning of these medicines and other humanitarian assistance products, through usaid which has been incredibly aggressive. other parts of the u.s. government are involved as well. at the state department where i work our assistant secretary for the western hemisphere kim breyer has been incredibly thoughtful about advancing the cause of democracy and humanitarian aid in venezuela. you just played a clip from

secretary pompeo who is just presenting unvarnished view that, this is a humanitarian crisis, but what he was really saying, and i deeply appreciate it as a new state department employee, is saying that american values and american interests are intersecting in venezuela of the we support the guaido, interim guaido regime because it is based on the rule of law. neil: would you insist as guaido has, that aid should come in and soldiers shouldn't brock it? seems to me push will come to shove here. >> a whole of government effort which has been remarkable, but also international community is growing in its resistance to what maduro is doing. neil: can you get the aid through? i have seen the boxcars and trucks on major bridges and roads.

why couldn't soldiers from the outside or u.n. peacekeepers from the outside go to that point, get out of the trucks, walk it over? is it your sense that their lives would be in jeopardy, that it would start a war? >> i'm not sure it would start a war, if i can say that, the sheer force of the international community will wear down the ability of maduro and his sources to continue to blockaid and continue to fight for power. 40 countries recognized the interim regime. united states, eu, canada, others have committed millions of dollars in humanitarian assistance, for civil society to help the country. neil: but they can't get in there. they can't get in there. >> i think the sheer magnitude and moral clarity which the world is responding will make it

for this crisis to continue and for maduro to exist. in fact interim president guaido has called for him to leave -- neil: he is not leaving. he is not leaving. all the moral guidance in the world will not feed people or provide medical attention they need. do you fear that it will come to blows here? >> i'm not prepared to say that. i disagree with you in a little bit i think the international community in a very concerted way is looking at the conflict early on in contrast to the way syria involved. suggests that the outcome may be a lot faster and a lot better than what many are predicting right now. neil: we'll watch closely. kiron, thank you for your time. congratulations for appointment. that is a big deal. richly deserved. >> thank you. neil: that is not a typo on the screen, the dow is really down 325 points. a lot has to go back to weakness in the global economy.

we added salt to the wound here with reports that china-u.s. talks might not be going so well. for that matter, president and his counterpart in china will meet before presumably tariffs on additional $200 billion of worth of chinese goods kick in. they're selling first. they're asking questions later. they do that a lot. we'll have more after this. char. i've even built my own historic trading model. and you're still not sure if you want to make the trade? exactly. sounds like a case of analysis paralysis. is there a cure? td ameritrade's trade desk. they can help gut check your strategies and answer all your toughest questions. sounds perfect. see, your stress level was here and i got you down to here, i've done my job. call for a strategy gut check with td ameritrade. ♪

now's the really fun part:m car. choosing the color, the wheels, the interior. everything exactly how i want it.

here's the thing, just because i configured this car online doesn't mean it really exists at a dealership. but with truecar, i get real pricing on actual cars in my area, i see what others paid for them and they show me the ones that match the car i want, so i know i can go to a truecar certified dealer and it'll be right there waiting for me... today, right now. this is truecar.

neil: you know not everything is, you know, selling off today. these two banks, bbt, suntrust announcing a merger that will create a 66 billion-dollar firm. the sixth largest u.s. bank. i believe this is the first such paring -- pairing in the industry since the financial meltdown. maybe more to come. we shall tee. we're watching that closely. including disappointment over progress on china doesn't look immediately imminent. whatever.

kristina partsinevelos has been following it all. >> yes, in regards to twitter we're looking at too, the entire tech sector is being hit broadly, primarily before larry kudlow did discuss china you saw the tech sector down. twitter did release earnings yesterday. revenue strong, earnings per share strong, but the problem with a lot of investors the cautious tone when it comes to guidance. we'll bring up some of the points we're seeing for the company. what are they talking about? their revenue will be 715 million to 765 which is a little lower than what analysts are expensing. you're seeing expenses for the next quarter will jump 20%. the company, this has a lot of chatter, amongst a lot of analysts and traders, texting with one guy, getting rid of the monthly active user metric. instead they're going to focus on daily active users, supposedly a little bit better of a metric. there is discrepancies why twitter is doing this now when

the monthly active number is falling. how is the street reacting? we're getting nets from rbc, holding the stock at $32. he believes the margins might be squeezed with increase of expenses. the bank of montreal, one analyst there, he says there is a lot of potential with in streaming service i get to in a second. his price target is $35. last, mkm partners says this is the time to reset expectations. the company is spending for its future. buy with a price target of 43. a major takeaway, one the company is focusing on their metrics, so the daily active users. the second thing which is interesting for those that use twitter, live streaming partnerships twitter has with bleacher report and several other media outlets launching on line problems on twitter alone

and live 20 streaming nba games. neil: thanks very much, kristina. earnings by and large are going better than expected now, for a quarter completed, december 31st of last year. now the focus turns to the quarter we're in right now, first quarter of 2019. there all bets are off. some are saying, forget about a gain. we could look at slight contraction, first in a long time. we have stanford professor dave dotson. very good to have you back, professor. how is this looking? >> it doesn't look that good actually. i look at beat rate or companies that beat earnings estimates in the fourth quarter, it wasn't that great, it was 71%. you say that sounds pretty good it is not that good. corporations issue padded numbers they plan on beating. traditionally in the last year it has been 80% of the companies beat it. this last quarter it was 70%, which means that 30% of american companies didn't beat their own

padded numbers in the, excuse me in the fourth quarter. neil: very well-put. that is very well-put. the other thing we're missing, not to down play this, what is happening on the revenue front because the miss there has been a little more noteworthy, right? >> yes, that's right. if you look at beat rate both in terms of the earnings and revenue. you know, the other way to think about this is this. the earnings estimates are what the company or the, company signals to analysts what they think they are going to do. i think a better metric is look how they compared to last year. in the fourth quarter, it wasn't really that bad, actually. and it was just not quite as good as they thought. what is interesting the clear signaling that corporations and ceos are giving for the first quarter of 2019 and 2019 in general, which things are slowing down. they have been crystal clear about that as you pointed out. why that is so important, the economy is fragile. it is fragile because of one word, which is debt.

consumer debt is all-time high. corporate debt is all-time high. take consumer debt for example. this economy has not been fueled by productivity gains. it has been fueled by people borrowing money to buy stuff. you could have stagnant wages still have growth year after year. what happens when you have a lot of debt, when the spouse comes back, i lost my job, you crash your car, you're less able to react to it. so contraction is far greater. that is what we have to worry about. economy has a hair trigger on with all this debt. neil:p much more aggressive, in your face house, democrats, the democrats no fan of the tax cuts. i'm saying they're a little angry a lot of companies used that as their free to do, to buy back their stock or hike dividends. some of them want to end that. they will make life very difficult for corporate chieftans that argue for that. it is the house. we still have republicans running the senate.

we still have a republicans running the white house. this could get a little feisty, right? >> it will be kind of interesting when senate democrats and congressional democrats try to tell ceo's how they're supposed to use their money. it is their right to borrow money and their right to spend it legally however they want. it made sense in the past to use that money for corporate buybacks, to pay dividends, m&a. that doesn't do anything for productivity gains. so the curious thing is this. i think democrats are right, that cheap money, which has been fueled by fed keeping the interest rates so low has not been used for the long-term economic health. it is used for short-term earnings. i think they're right there. what they're wrong, is washington, d.c., can start telling corporations how they should or shouldn't use their cash flow. that is tricky. neil: that is a dangerous area. them giving financial advice is a little risky. but we'll see. professor, thank you very much. dave dotson, stanford school of business lecturer, much more. they're after the

president's tax returns, this you know. but they think they have got a rationale for getting them like now. at a key hearing, today. that wa♪ ♪ 'cause every day starts like a race. ♪ ♪ you got a side that loves that style, ♪ ♪ but to fit in those shoes gonna take awhile. ♪ ♪ today life's got you runnin'. ♪ ♪ tomorrow big things are comin'. ♪ ♪ that's why nationwide is on your side. ♪ ♪

there's brushing...and there's oral-b power brushing. oral-b just cleans better. even my hygienist said going electric could lead to way cleaner teeth. and unlike sonicare, oral-b is the first electric toothbrush brand accepted by the ada. oral-b. brush like a pro.

who we are as people and making everybody feel welcome. ordering custom ink t-shirts has been a really smart decision for our business.

- [narrator] custom ink has hundreds of products and free shipping. upload your logo or start your design today at customink.com.

neil: want to pass along a quick item coming into our newsroom. fox confirms the appropriations chairman in the senate, richard shelby, had his meeting with president trump. said it went very, very well. he expect as deal over the weekend or monday, to avoid another government shut down over the border wall funding issue. he didn't go into particulars here. we hope to get more. the gist of it, they are making progress. he was optimistic enough to presumably bounce some details off the president. if the president would have said i don't like anything of these things, he would have no doubt conveyed that to the senator. the optimism could be coming from the white house itself. we'll keep you posted on that. we'll keep you posted on unusual development over donald trump's personal finances and his taxes that could go act over decades. it is at a special hearing, 2:00 p.m. eastern time today. edward lawrence on capitol hill with more. edward, what is this about? reporter: this could be the start of many hearings where the democrats could try to call to

get the president's tax returns. in two hours the house ways and means committee will hold a hearing on tax law as it relates to the president and vice president's tax returns. now there are a number of technical tax law witnesses who will be hear. essentially what this does, it sets up for the committee chairman, richard neil eventually to call for the president's taxes, something house speaker nancy pelosi supports. >> i think overwhelmingly this public wants to see the president's tax returns. and so, they want to know the truth. they want to know the facts. and he has nothing to hide. reporter: if the house ways and means committee chairman demands that the treasury secretary will turn over the president's tax returns, it could set a new precedent. the danger is that the committee could ask for any individual tax return solely based on political reasons. now it is important to note that the irs audits the president annually and the fbi investigates financial dealings when any president comes into office. now this is important, match

this with the announcement yesterday from the intelligence committee chairman, adam schiff, who says that he is going to look into the president's financial dealings, to see if there is any bias. neil, we could be looking at beginning of that investigation after investigation, after investigation as we get towards the 2020 elections. back to you. neil: ed, thank you very much. edward lawrence. dan mitchell, center for freedom and prosperity. they are hot to trot to get the taxes. this might be a way to do it. but what do you think? >> they're hoping, if they can get trump's tax returns, that they will find some unknown business dealing with russia, or maybe they will say, ah-ha, he is not a billionaire, only couple hundred million or maybe they will say, oh look, he took advantage of loopholes in the tax system, isn't that terrible? let's tax the rich more. there is a whole bunch of possibilities. the democrats don't know what they will find but they definitely know they want to get those tax returns public. neil: i'm wondering as well, whether this gets to be

something that goes into mueller probe hands? i suspect the mueller probe, you know, probably more than i do on this, has veered away from issue of collusion to business dealings. some going back to the beginning of the trump empire itself in the 1960s and '70s. i'm wondering if that is the case, this is morphed into like a tax issue? >> i assume that the mueller investigation, as all government investigations, has the legal ability to have already looked at the president's tax returns, not to mention all sorts of other financial details from different trump companies and trump-related companies. so i think that professional investigators already know the information. politicians on capitol hill, there are looking at it for different reason. they want to make political controversy out of the whole topic. neil: it is interesting, they haven't come out yet. i always thought in all this

time, the years people talk back and forth, one year of one page, came out seemed to signal a huge loss, which might telegraphed president didn't pay as candidate at the time, even before, any taxes in the years since to write off those losses. we don't know, right? >> exactly. and, now, i start with the premise and a bias i think all of us should have some level of privacy but on the other hand politicians have this habit, once they get in office getting rich every and richer. so disclosure of their financial affairs maybe makes some sense, we want to find out, are they using political power to line their own pockets? god those that happens all the time. neil: you and i may disagree, if you run for president, open up your entire life, you have to open up your tax returns. i don't think something people should volunteer to do, if you run for highest office in the land, democrat, republican, that goes with the territory.

you have got to do that. that is just me. dan, i do want to touch very quickly on new jersey looking at a possible rain tax to deal with, you know, sewer installation, stuff like that, rain would affect i cannot imagine this will go over well in the garden state. >> we had a similar controversy couple years ago in maryland. as a objective, neutral, rational issue, should companies, landowners pay for associated infrastructure that is caused by their building? yeah, maybe so, but here's the problem, new jersey is a taxaholic state. the politicians are driving the state into economic ruin with taxes, spending and debt. they're not using this revenue to offset some other tax cut. it is simply another way of extracting more money. and then, you add in the fact that with diminished deductibility of state and local taxes, new jersey is probably facing a fiscal crisis. but rather than address that

crisis of overspending, too much taxes, they're figuring out a new way to grab more money from people. neil: when it rains it pours, see what i did there? >> exactly. neil: dan mitchell. we'll have more after this. do you at session lows. . .

>> the president has indicated that he's optimistic with respect to a potential china trade deal, but, but, but we have a pretty sizable distance to go here. neil: see, there was the but, but, but, that started the sell, sell, sell because we were down but that agrees with selling, larry kudlow is saying let's not get ahead of our skis on this one, we are nowhere kneel a deal -- near a deal right now and the president might not be meeting with his chinese counterpart after all before tariffs kick in on 200 billion plus, stock sold

off, the big multinational players like boeing and caterpillar, they started selling off. wall street journal editorial member dan henninger, dan, where is this going? >> the china trade deal? well, i mean, larry kudlow has raised the question in a very serious way. to me it was interesting, neil, that after larry kudlow made the statement and we listened to him, but, but, we have a long way to go, market tanked. obviously at least the markets are extremely sensitive to the prospect for a china-u.s. trade deal. it's a big deal. neil: miles and miles, that's all they hear then boom. >> a big deal, a lot of the market, economy companies are loaded up on the outcome. now this raises the question to my mind anyway whether the administration is pursuing the right course in trying to get china to change.

initially we thought it was about trade and the chinese said, well, we will buy more soybeans from your farmers, import more cars, the trump white house has said this is about affecting structural changes inside the chinese economy. that is a good idea, but you're challenging kind of the fundamental idea that xi jinping has about the future of china and its economy, that's a big negotiation. neil: come together -- >> that can't come together in a week or two. i guess it raises the question whether the threatened tariff or trade war are right vehicle for affecting the big change, the trump white house -- neil: they argue that talks are promises. so far height -- lighthizer said no. >> the chinese will put back and won't give us anything, whether import or structural change.

i understand the argument. it's a dilemma for them but we are seeing the question raised here of whether the tariffs are really the right weapon. for instance, we threatened huawei, 5g telecom company, perhaps something like that, we will make it hard for you to do business in the united states unless we get some of the changes rather than imposing tariffs. neil: added angst that the chinese is slowing, european commission to report that largely blames trade issues for growth that might be half what it was last year. what do you think? >> well, yeah, i think the trump white house has to be sensitive to that because, look, president trump built state of the union speech around tax cuts and regulation, we do have an extraordinary economy right now but going forward into 2020 president trump is going to be depending heavily on sustained

strength of the economy, if it gets pulled by weakness in china and weakness in europe will create political problem in 2020. he doesn't want to see that happen. neil: dan, thank you very much. i also wanting to to the other issue that's washingtoning -- dominating washington these days that will avoid government shutdown and the latest on that and other things going on concurrently. >> well, house speaker nancy pelosi indicated that morning that she doesn't think that there's going to be shutdown. richard shelby, chairman of house appropriation's committee which has been central to the committee, working behind closed doors, he went to the white house to brief the president, not too much on the meeting. what we have been told on capitol hill that monday will be the magic day, that's slamming things together because the

deadline is next friday night. the house now has 72-hour rule where they have to post the legislation for full 3 days and then you have to get through the senate. now, again, they can waive that but they are getting right up against it. i have been told consistently that they are going well. we are talking things outside a border barrier or call. how many ice agents, ice beds, interior enforcement. those are key points right now. ly tell you that things seem to be going well, anita, she's pretty willing to talk and when numbers -- people start to not talk in the hall or give you a quote, that means things are serious and also things that they might be getting close to getting a deal, neil. neil: when senator shelby was talking with the president and

seemed to express some optimism, what was that based on? was that based on the ongoing talks or reception he was receiving if he -- if he shared that with the president? >> well, you know, mitch mcconnell, the senate majority leader yesterday, he said he's been, quote, praying for a while and he indicated earlier in the week that he wasn't sure what the president could sign. some people asked what nancy pelosi thinks about the deal, she's been optimistic from the start. i tell you a little secret, it is in nancy pelosi's interest and if you got her down and talk today her about this, she would say to work to get a deal. here is why, you the freshmen house democrats who haven't voted on any major piece of legislation, we did something in the short-term, they don't want to go back to fighting over border wall, they want to be seen as new-breed of lawmaker and getting things done and so if they can get something across the finish line and that's something that nancy pelosi has to be mindful of, the freshmen

factor, what you might see is people at the margins, the most liberal democrats won't vote for it and the most conservative republicans, you the big fat middle and that gets it across the finish line. neil: we will watch closely, chad, thank you very much. >> thank you. neil: house majority whip is not opposed to the idea of a wall itself. take a look. let me get a sense from you. >> we don't have anything against a wall so long it's define what had a wall would be, one that would use drones to make it hard to get over, one that will use x-ray equipment to make it too wide to get around and we use scanners to be so deep, we can't burrow under it. neil: he doesn't find the idea of a wall to be immoral and

reconstruct what nancy pelosi said when she used the term to describe the wall, that receives referring to 30-foot cement wall that other types of walls were not immoral, i will leave it at that because the president is talking about cement, could be steel, cottage cheese, you name it. regardless we have seen progress around the issue that we argued from the beginning would make this happen or not, campus reform, what do you think this is looking, kevin? >> first of all, i want to know at what point does a wall become immoral and at what point moral, is it the material? neil: i don't remember her saying that or distinguishing the fact that it would be a 30-foot cement wall, she said a wall is immoral. >> i think it's the idea of security that's appalling to many americans. as it stands it is tough to see us getting funding for a wall here in the near future, a lot

of it comes down to lack of leverage of president trump and republican part. a lot more leverage when they said they will shut down the government for this. a lot of people blaming him for it and all of this conversation i think you can't overlook just how far to the left the democrat party has gone on immigration as a whole, the fact that this is is issue is now centered around border security being immoral and the abolishment of ice, even throwing things like the green new deal, i think a lot of people in the middle are getting concern with just how radical ha t left has become and might rile people on the base and they run the risk of alienating large portion of americans especially 2020 looming. neil: each tries to appease their own base and i'm wondering as well better to be over this and move on because they'll be bigger fish to fry, right?

>> i disagree to a certain extent because most of trump's face, it would shutter the idea of protection to dreamers, record number of illegal immigrants to getting amnesty or protection, the fact that he was willing to do that does show willingness to compromise, to maybe make base a little upset to get the broader thing they want and in this case border wall funding. i don't see willingness from the leaders of the democrat party. neil: the president should stick to his runs, even though the base he will count on for reelection? >> in the short-term it certainly would be advantageous to offer up compromise in order to get something done. it's hard to envision scenario leading in 2020 if there's nothing as far as barrier goes, he might end up declaring a state of emergency, if there's nothing at all, it'll be hard to get the base there, the base

would be willing to forgive if he were to offer concessions, well, i had to make concessions in order to make bigger things that you all wanted, people weren't chanting give us tax reform, they were chanting build the wall, among everything else that's the main issue trump thoos -- has to focus if he wants to get reelected. neil: speaking of chatting we are getting news that he's not in the mood to chat with congress, washington post reporting that he's giving democrats a deadline of 6:00 p.m. today to respond, he's saying you will not testify unless democrats drop their subpoena threat, the decision not to recuse himself from special counsel bob mueller's investigation would be a mistake and they want it explained in detail to them in person.

get ready, this gets nasty. this isn't just any moving day.

this is moving day with the best in-home wifi experience and millions of wifi hotspots to help you stay connected. and this is moving day with reliable service appointments in a two-hour window so you're up and running in no time. show me decorating shows. this is staying connected with xfinity to make moving... simple. easy. awesome. stay connected while you move with the best wifi experience and two-hour appointment windows. click, call or visit a store today.

neil: all right, it was long party lines of senate judiciary committee did approve bill barr to be the next attorney general of the united states, goes before the full senate, also republican controlled, just a matters of day now where he's expected to take over that job, we are also separately following acting director who does not want, that is the acting attorney general, who does not want to testify before a key committee in congress unless demanding that he do so is dropped. he's perfectly happy to talk to them. whitaker said not under the

threat of a subpoena. apple facing new privacy issues, the company that used to lecture others has now become the issue. republican of indiana, speaker of the house, education and labor committee, congressman, do you trust apple when it comes to these issues? >> well, it's a fair question. i don't know, i mean, there have been so many questions posed and raised in recent months that would lead many of us to question them. i suppose, neil, that answer is to be determined. neil: the reason that i raise it is move for democratic colleague to get to the bottom of it, at the same time near and dear to you, but i'm wondering, outright war on capitalism going on but the perception among the money interest in this country, tech guys in the country,

corporations in this country when it comes to wealth tax, state taxes, more hearings, it's going to be a very different atmosphere, what do you think? >> it already is every day since the congress started on january 3rd, a completely different atmosphere especially on the house side here on capitol hill with hearing after hearing lambasting the basic of what makes the country great and system a capitalism in the united states of america. that's just where i came from, neil, from a hearing about raising minimum wage to $15 an hour and that's the type of -- of outrageousness that you will see a lot of for the next couple of years. neil: your issue is on federal level it shouldn't be set that high and that even though 15-dollar wage, 20 plus, the demand is such that employers have to do that but that's their call, that shouldn't be the government's call; is that

right? >> there's no question about it. we should leave decisions like this and so many other decisions that are made around here to the state to begin with like the minimum wage subject. we don't have to look any further like seattle raising minimum wage, low wage earners in this economy who depend on jobs like these to rise up and pursue the american dream in their own way. i'm one of those stories, neil, i didn't come from a family with a lot of money and i worked my way through high school and college to pay for college dry. if -- degree. there are millions of americans affected. 1.5 million americans will lose their job by 2029 if we raise minimum wage for $15 an hour. neil: it has been raised and the opposite has happened. the backdrop is a very strong economy, i grant you.

in a way stronger economy is mute to your point n. >> in a strong economy wages are rising on their own due to economic growth that is been achieved in this economy over the past couple of years under president obama, so more of that is yet to be accomplished and we should be passing laws and rolling back some of the tax burden on businesses big and small, especially small businesses that could create policies, higher wages for low-skilled, low-waged earners, that's what i want to see more rather outrageousness than the federal government raising minimum wage to $15 an hour. neil: congressman, thank you very much, following up on what the congressman is saying, he too is concerned about the direction the country is going and the socialism that the president talked about in his speech, was that overplayed, overdone, the dow down 319

points. we will have more after this. ♪ opportunity. what we deliver by delivering.

you're here to buy a usethat's smart. suv. truecar can help. it's great for finding a new car, but you already knew that. it's also great for finding the perfect used car. you'll see what a fair price is and you can connect with a truecar certified dealer. so no matter what you're looking for, there it is. this is how buying a used car should be. this is truecar. (upbeat music) ♪

neil: in venezuela that's offering world of hurt, the government there under nicolás maduro has blocked bridges to prevent foreign aid mainly from the united states and food, medical supplies from getting into reach people who sorely needed. rebecca, what did we do? >> well, we are doing the right things already. we are continuing to back the interim government oppose maduro and continue sanctions and draw attention to the fact that the united states is on the support of the venezuelan people, maduro is the one who is opposing them and his time is limited, the more international attention we can draw to this, the more allies and partners we can get to come along side us and support, the opposition to maduro which they are because american leadership the better,

so you have to keep it up, maduro's time is limited, neil, the more military officials that we see leaving him and actually opposing him the better and we've already seen one senior air force general defect and so we need more of that. neil: yeah, because you will need a lot more. i mean, if he has the vast majority of generals, i believe one is out of the country, that's not going to turn the tide. i'm surprised that more haven't turned, what do you think? >> well, we have to continue to do that. we want to peel off the military and these other countries, it's not like the other countries where military is separate. in venezuela how the military goes is how the country goes, and so what they are going to be able to see is the writing on the wall, you're seeing that the maduro regime is having a hard time getting tons of gold shipped out of the country because those working for him are afraid that they will get hit or nailed by u.s. sanctions

so as they are squeezed and no longer have access to cash, gold, banks outside of the country, it's only a matter of time. as the military begins to see and see better path, they see a better option, we are hopeful that they'll begin to split and peel off more of these guys. neil: what would happen, i know roads and bridges that are blocked by trucks or boxed cars, whatever, what would happen if aid came right up to the border there and they walked it in? >> well, that's an option, the thing that this administration is trying to avoid is becoming militarily embroiled in what's going on in venezuela. but the more we can show that we are actually providing this aid and this aid is there and it's for the people and it's not our fault that things are so bad and there's chaos and everything else that's going on in venezuela. it's the fault of maduro, he's the one against his people. this is the way socialism works,

neil. venezuela is not a good example of what socialism can be, but it's a perfect example, the poster child because you need authoritarianism to force socialism, it's inherently against freedom and liberty and prosperity and that's why you see millions of venezuelans leave the country since maduro has taken power. neil: the people of venezuela know that aid is being prevented? >> some of them do. some of them do. it's difficult to get this information out there but some of them do and so it just -- time is not on maduro's side, i'm optimistic, i wasn't optimistic a few weeks ago, as you're watching the fact that -- take russia, russia is patron of venezuela. they are starting to see a little bit of a change perhaps in the favor of those actually trying to get maduro out of power. neil: all right, rebecca, thank you very much. >> thanks, neil.

neil: green-new deal just unveiled. let's say ben steins is not happy. >> seeing our economy without addressing the racial wealth gap . it's screening technology that helps you find a stock based on what's trending or an investing goal. it's real-time insights and information, in your own customized view of the market. it's smarter trading technology, for smarter trading decisions. and it's only from fidelity. open an account with no minimums today.

neil: all right, you are looking live at university, howard schultz is speaking there and hitting democrats hard on all the spending that they're advocating and ignoring the debt. he said piled up on both parties but someone has to do something about it because it's a ticking time bomb, watching remarks closely and starbucks founder is entertaining independent run as president, that's not in dear with the democrats, he would stiffen votes from the democrats and hand donald trump keys to the white house for another 4 years, antjuan, what do you

think of him? >> he's a distraction. i'm not against or oppose of him running, but the same question i asked every client, potential client i sit down with, why are you doing with and the question is you want to win in november. i think the road is very tough and hard for anyone to win in this country as independent particularly with the excitement we see on the democratic ticket this time around. neil: but it's not impossible, right, ross perot got 19% of the vote, in fact, he was leading before he first quit the race in return so you could have made the argument he could have won, we don't know. >> i'm not saying -- i'm not saying it's not possible but highly unlikely, let my say it that way. neil: you're more worried that your nominee wouldn't make compelling enough case to toward him off?

>> i lived through 2016, clinton campaign, what i saw in 2016 particularly in the general election we were somewhat split coming out of election, third-party candidate and key battleground states like rust belt where hillary lost by small margins we could have made ground had there been third-party ticket subbing oxygen from the democratic ticket. neil: rur not serious? >> i'm very serious, look at the numbers. neil: you're saying that hillary clinton lost because of third-party -- >> no, no. i'm saying that was part of the reason. neil: maybe lousy candidate, horrible candidate. >> i'm not saying that's the only reason, if you look at margins that's pretty clear and cut. if you look at the special election for congressional district in ohio a couple of months ago, the third-party candidate who was somehow deemed as not liberal enough received more third-party votes than the margin in which democratic lost,

so what we do know a credible third-party candidate or someone views third-party candidate can be detrimental and dissatisfaction whether we lose or win in the country. neil: i was under the view if major-party candidate or candidate make a compelling enough case, doesn't matter whether 4 or 5 in the race, you'll stand out and go onto win and i wonder, i see a crowded party field like donald trump had with 15 other competitors for republican nomination and he emerged, survived that, bill clinton did the same in a crowded deal when no one gave him a chance. they rest or fall based on the appeal of their base, right? >> maybe, but keep in mind you name scenarios and situations that happened before, we are living in unusual times in our politics and the temperature is at unusual high, neil --

neil: it was high in 2000. >> i think we live in a different political moment than we were at that point in time. i think so. the. neil: there you go. your perspective, you're a young guy, your perspective is like last week. [laughter] >> no, i think my perspective is one that when i talk to people around the country whether it's caucus goers, whether democrats, soft republicans, whether it's independent thinkers, they more think like antjuan. neil: you're a smart guy, you're saying things that you don't like, saying things about debt and spending it, you watch it, same subject, that he's saying thing that are in vogue with the country that's intent of making government bigger, that's the bottom line? >> i don't think so. i think part of the discussion is that he's not talking about the issues that i think that matter to everyday working

people. no, no, neil -- [inaudible] >> no, no, i'm not saying it doesn't matter. i said issues with an s, the thing that i hear when i talk to people about what's important to them are quality of life issues. i just don't hear mr. howard schultz talking about those things on a regular basis, i'm not saying this but on a regular consistent basis i don't hear him talking about those things. neil: have you tried any of his lattes? >> i am not a frequent goer of starbucks. neil: all right, thank you very much, antjuan, very good to talk to you. >> thank you, neil. neil: alexandria ocasio-cortez unveiling a new green deal and saying that it will pay for itself. take a look. >> this is an investment. for every 1 dollar that we spend on tax cuts we get less than a dollar back.

this is about making smart investment and making about investment that is actually generate returns. neil: capitalist code author ben stein, what do you take of that? >> the fact that we listen to her is amazing, the fact that he take attention is amazing, why do we even listen to her. she's charming and very good-looking, why are we looking at her? neil: she speaks passionately about the party. >> doesn't know about investment. what she's really -- neil: where is there investment gotten us -- >> very, very good question. unfortunately we don't have many people, as much investments except in omaha, nebraska that's

investment savvy. a new way to control the american people, all the ways of socialist thinking are ways to control the american people and to take away their freedom to choose, freedom to do what they want to do with their lives. socialism is about maintaining government control over people. a green new deal will add dimension to that, there's so much talk in the democratic party about controlling people and not letting people live their own lives and do what they want to do with their own lives. this is going to be on base of freedom and the fact that they'll prosper and growth and people will be happier if they have a control, don't have bureaucrat controlling their lives. neil: you're mad because she wants to raise your taxes? >> no, you have forgotten, it's been so long that i've seen you, i like high taxes.

neil: we can't get spending under control. would you be comfortable with 70% top rate or higher, 2% tax on wealth that elizabeth warren is considering or something similar that kamala harris is considering? >> i'm perfectly happy with that as long as people at your income level at in the mine. neil: it's interesting that you say that. let me ask you about this trend that's gotten to be very effective because it does raise and poll well, obviously, you don't have to pay for it, a lot of americans support it,ic what i hear a lot of republicans dismiss it and sort of wave their hand that isn't going anywhere, they're missing something that has more populist appeal than they know. >> the ordinary guy who cannot live paycheck to paycheck, see peoples that are billionaires,

jealous and you can't blame people to be envious. what we don't want to do control government policy that government runs people's lives, we are all about freedom in this country. equality is a nice thing. we don't want anyone starve to go death. by the way i'm 100% for government health plan to cover everybody, perfectly fine with me. what i do want to see is government control how many logs i can put in my fireplace and what kind of car i can drive. i don't want to see government control -- [inaudible] neil: okay, a lot of the common themes among -- most by the way that are running for president right now is that there's been -- it's huge gap between rich and the poor. the only way that you can force back to the middle is to really tax the wealthy, not just a little bit but a lot, how do you

feel about that? >> you have to tax the wealthy so much it would be insane in order to squeeze that back to middle class. anyway, the middle class -- neil: forcing that issue to make that math better, you like that approach? >> i don't -- the american enterprise -- neil: you just said you're for higher taxes on yourself. >> i am for higher taxes on very rich people like you. a large part of the middle class has disappeared upward and not downward. that's part why the middle class is disappearing, we don't want to have any homeless people in the country. some of them are become well to do. the idea that the middle class is disappearing and all becoming homeless is nonsense. neil: all right, when you look at donald trump's america versus , i will use kamala harris because she's rising on the polls, her version of what he

wants to make donald trump? >> going with donald trump, he wants freedom and he wants freedom and opportunity, goaled with him. the way americans get to be richer is have more freedom to control their own lives and destiny. where americans get poorer is where government supervises everything. neil: effort led by democrats to rise rate, the government owed your son -- >> i don't think the government is owed anything by me in favor of my son. my son will use to create tech know pop music and will make happier and better place. my son has got very big studio in his home where he is making tech know pop music and i know that will make america a much happier place. neil: ben stein, thank you very much, you're the best.

>> thank you, sir. neil: all all right, we will hae more after this. s ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ a business owner always goes beyond what people expect. that's why we built the nation's largest gig-speed network along with complete reliability. ♪ to tv on any device. beyond low-res surveillance video. to crystal clear hd video monitoring from anywhere. gig-fueled apps that exceed expectations. comcast business. beyond fast.

and the army taught me a lot about commitment. which i apply to my life and my work. at comcast we're commited to delivering the best experience possible, by being on time everytime. and if we are ever late,

we'll give you a automatic twenty dollar credit. my name is antonio and i'm a technician at comcast. we're working to make things simple, easy and awesome.

neil: all right, now we don't know whether the president is going to meet with chinese counterpart before the march first deadline. therewas some confusion and mayp

over to chinese leader, now that does not seem to be a given and frustration and concerns about chinese trade talks which apparently larry kudlow has described as still far apart. blake berman with the latest, hey, blake. >> hey, neil, larry kudlow the eternal optimistic, whenever larry kudlow sort of sets expectations that grabs the attention of people and grabs the attention of the market today when he appeared on interview with stuart varney earlier this morning and said the following here about the potential of a meeting between president trump and president xi of china possibly before the president heads over to asia later this month and also listen here to what cuddly said at the very end of this clip, watch here. >> but he has said it is likely that that meeting will take place and i might add the president has indicated that he's optimistic with respect to a potential china trade deal,

but, but, but, but, we have a pretty sizable distance to go here to quote a colleague of mine, we have miles to go before we sleep. >> pretty sizable distance to go here as it relates to potential of a trade deal, that's what the caught the attention of the market, as it relates to a potential meeting between president trump and president xi, what we can tell you, neil, robert lighthizer, steve mnuchin, treasury secretary are headed over to beijing next week. until that meeting takes place, i asked the treasury secretary about that, the administration is pointing to that very meeting and wanting to see what comes of that before there's any sort of determination that will be made as to what happens after that as it relates to a potential meeting between president trump and president xi. i think you will hear before they came, that turns out to be

a very important meeting. now the meeting that matters is the one taking place next week and seemingly drive whatever happens after that, neil. neil: a lot of meetings, all right, thank you very much, blake berman at the white house. apple with update on software, ios software to fix group base, the one that allows to snoop on participants before or after they -- they have the update, you can group-time again after the bug is fixed and not listen in on your friends. look at me. a little more after this.

. .

oh, wow. you two are going to have such a great trip. yeah, have fun! thanks to you, we will. aw, stop. this is why voya helps reach today's goals... all while helping you to and through retirement. um, you guys are just going for a week, right? yeah! that's right. can you help with these? oh... um, we're more of the plan, invest and protect kind of help... sorry, little paws, so. but have fun! send a postcard! voya. helping you to and through retirement. neil: regular viewers of show know that charlie gasparino has a problem with millenials. something has really got his goat. what is going on?

>> gen-yers, before 94? anyway, this will be a big time educational segment for you because my producer, lydia moynihan, who is millenial, street straddles the gen-y. she came up with a great idea about venmo. it's a person-to-person payment system. sign up for the app. instead of everybody throwing down five credit cards, going out to dinner or splurging, everybody does later. someone bills and someone pays and bills everybody later. so that is how it goes. if you were taking out your whole team, and everybody was on venmo, you would put down your credit card and charge everybody else later, because you will split it up. it is easier way of doing it. neil: what if they don't? >> they could say no, and that screws up people. we had with this article, this is a fox business investigation. what we looked at the dark side of venmo.

yes people screw other people. guess what? it is often used for people to extract payments out of other people, that they shouldn't be paying. it is often used when dates go awry. we have a whole story about this on foxbusiness.com. lydia wrote it. neil: i don't get it when dates go awry? what do you mean? >> we have great anecdote about emily, works in finance, has a pick of the litter of all the guys. apparently the date didn't go so well. the guy said he would buy drinks. come on a date, i will buy drinks. after the date didn't go so well he venmoed her $25. cost of martini. neil: she is not obligated to pay him. >> there is peer pressure. gen-yers, when you get venmo, there is intense peer pressure. neil: they all see? >> there is peer pressure to pay. what we did, we asked, we asked them, what happened goes on with

these relationships after you get venmoed. read the piece. go through it with great detail. they break up. spoke with behavioral psychologists, what impact it has on millenial generation and gen-ys, instead of fighting over the bill in person -- neil: you're like a t-rex with the bill. >> they call them alligator arms. i can't -- neil: how do other people know about it though? who in your orbit? you have to have them in your objector bit. >> everybody can see. neil: facebook friending someone. >> there is peer pressure. we found relationships are getting blown up left and right. lydia had one issue she went out, she went out for high-end coffee bar with some, with one of her friends. she had to leave for doctor's appointment. the friend said i will pick it up. she came over to my house last night, indulge in some wine and

cheese whatever. she was in her uber, of course they use uber she saw a venmo thing, little emoji popped up green tea, you owe me $7.58. neil: wow. >> and she was like, horrified. when she told me bit, i said, what do good reporters do when you're horrified about something? you report about it. so she -- neil: how do other people know about it? >> they're on the app. neil: whether they are part of this, okay. >> there is peer pressure to pay. because, sounds like cheap -- like cheap s.o.b. we have example after example. a guy says, can i crash on your couch. he says okay. all of sudden $500 appears on his venmo bill because it's a night in hotel. neil: wow. >> the other guy figured out how much they charge. it is really disgusting. anyway we get into societal

impact. neil: on the site right now? >> foxbusiness.com. neil: wow, i think it is charles payne's lead item. did you know about this, charles? totally out to lunch on this whole thing. charles: gasparino breaking news every day, this might be his top 10. neil: i don't know. maybe best we don't know. >> charles, venmo is part of paypal. maybe there is a stock story. charles: i'm in paypal. they have been going down recently. tell me more. neil: all right, my friend. take it away. neil, fantastic seeing you and ben stein together. it has been a long time. neil: is he really a great guy? charles: he is amazing. neil: be well. charles: good afternoon, everyone. a pretty amazing day so far. i'm charles payne. this is "making money." stocks are falling amid new worries about the global economy. we will go deep into the moods of these markets. mood swings over last month 1/2 have been amazing. big bank