i'm alice rivlin. >> susie: and finally tonight, talk about the power of positive thinking. new polls show that despite americans out of work, home values plunging, and 401-k's looking like 201-k's, we are feeling less stressed about debt. the recession is forcing us to take steps to get out finances in better shape. and as a result, experts say, we're taking charge of our lives, and feeling better about it. but, we're still a nation of borrowers. if you run the numbers, jeff, for every $100 an average household earns, it owes $124 in some kind of debt. >> ouch, pulling the belt and wait for the economy to turn around, i guess. >> good advice. >> jeff: that's "nightly business report" for monday, july 13. i'm jeff yastine. goodnight, everyone and good night to you, susie. >> susie: goodnight, jeff. i'm susie gharib. we hope to see all of you again tomorrow evening. "nightly business report" is made possible by: this program was made possible by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. captioning sponsored by wpbt captioned by media access group at

there are also extended interviews with alice rivlin and alan blinder about the fed's independence andattempts to be more transparent. >> lehrer: next tonight, the arrests of seven north carolina men raise new fears about homegrown terrorism. ray suarez has our story. >> suarez: it was from this home in a rural corner of north carolina that 39-year-old daniel boyd and a group of alleged co- conspirators are accused of quietly planning "violent jihad." >> i spoke with him on several occasions and never was there any idea that he was involved in something like that, or could have the capacity to be involved in something like that. >> suarez: on monday, more than 100 federal agents fanned out across the state to arrest boyd, his two sons, and four others. a 14-page indictment accuses the men of a long-standing conspiracy to plan and launch an overseas terrorist attack. boyd, the silent cell's alleged mastermind, is an american-born muslim convert. the indictment claims that he traveled to afghanistan and pakistan in the late 1980s to train alongside islamist fighters then battling the sov

>> solma but then again, says alice rivlin, who succeede blinder as vicchair, there's ways a risk ofsaying too much. >> i made speech in nebraska which w interpreted as talking dn the dollar. i certainly dn't think i had but somebody did and e dollar actually fell. t that was the exception. most of theime, i was really caref. >> solman: but e person's cauti can be another's shroud of secrecy. thus the debate overhe fed, its transparey, its accountability, debate on full display in coness at the ment. >> i just don'tee why there shouldn't be 100% rystal-clear transparency of eversingle function of the fed after t fact. >> because we have to be extraordinarily careful thathe markets and the public d't think that cgress is trying to influence motary policy decisions. >> solman: but iwe don't know howhe fed decides until long after, cngressman bill posey prsed. >> we don't know ifhey're the bestecisions. we don't know who the fepicked to be winners and losers. and i... i think the publ really has a right to knothat. >> solman: e hot potato of the moment ia house bill sponsored by long-te

she's alice rivlin, seni fellow at brkings and former ce chair of the federa reserve. >> with the economy in dp ression and the budget deficit off thcharts, should the president postne his ambitious est for health reform? absolutely not: should push hardero get comprehensive reform enacted now. millns of workers are losing healthoverage along with their jobsnd many more fear this will happen to them. sinesses are reducing health covera and workers with diminished incomes a struggling to patheir doctor bill how could have a more dramat illustration of why we need bas health coverage for eryone that does not depend the ups and downs of empyment? moover, currently soaring deficits relate to theecession itself a financial system repair. these deficits will rede as the economy improvesbut the long r budget picture remains grim. the st hope for reducing the rate of growth of federa spending in the ture is making health care devery more efficient sohat we get more re per dollar. reducing waste require investment iinformation systems, analysis of efftive treatments, and ne reimbursement stems tha

she's alice rivlin, senior fellow at broongs and former vi chair of the federa reserve. >> with the economy in dee receion and the budget deficit off the arts, should the president postpo his ambitious qut for health reform? absolutely not: hehould push harder tget comprehensive reform enacted now. millio of workers are losing health cerage along with their jobs a many more fear this will happen to them. bunesses are reducing health coveragend workers with diminished incomes are struggling to pay eir doctor bills. how could weave a more dramaticllustration of why we need basicealth coverage for evyone that does not depend on the ups and downs of emploent? moreer, currently soaring deficits relate to the ression itself andinancial system pair. these deficits will rece as the economy improves, t the long runudget picture remains grim. the be hope for reducing the rate of growth of federal spending in the fure is making health care deliry more efficient so tt we get more ca per dollar. reducing waste requires investment in formation systems, analysis of effecve treatments, and new reimbursemen