stand up directly and diplomatically for the interests of american producers and most important, in assisting on vote rebalancing of global economy. promoting exports, will not be enough. in the decade prior to the downturn, the american household and business sectors, adding them together. close to 2% of gdp more than earned or net borrowers. in the developments of recent years, it has changed dramatically. 6% short of private sector in comes. the private sector has swung in its deficit of 7-1/2% with 2% deficit to about little less than 6% surplus. that means less demand is one way that we are suffering the aftermath of the worst recession in 50 years. it is right for government to counteract private-sector delivered in. even with all of fiscal measures, of the last several years, total borrowing in the american economy has failed to grow for the last few years. that is the worst two year period since the second world war when total bar wing in the american economy was increased. even with deficits, the deficits have fallen short, that means extra debt. it is less than the amount of reduced borrowing. it is the leveraging the p

we can and we will rebuild and renew the american economy. to do this, we need to do two profoundly important things in the years ahead of. both are necessary. neither is sufficient. first, we must generate for momentum in the economy to fully recover from the great recession. second, we must put in place a framework that assures that our growth, productivity, and living standards continue to lead in a rapidly changing world. we must do everything we can to ensure that this recovery is as rapid as possible. without rapid recovery, all of our other goals will be compromised. there will be no prospect of reducing medium-term budget deficits while simultaneously increasing investment in human capital. there will be no prospect in remaining an example of the rest of the world. there will be no prospect of restoring and growing living standards for the american middle class. above all, there will be no prospect of putting 8 million people who should have jobs back to work. what is holding our economy back? when unemployment has been above 9% for 19

programs in support of policy that are consistent with it and hold out great promise for the american economy and american security for the american private sector that is that the core of efforts to continue the economic miracles that have been performed in the american framework of american history. >> appreciate your time. [applause] >> good morning. we appreciate the opportunity to be here and wonder if it is wise to follow your boss and he was fairly clear and eloquent that are facing cdt, end those that were long term custom folks. it is a challenge looking at the title and he is given us both which is a good thing. just to recap a little of what we have been focusing on for the last year but particularly he came on in march. the paradigm he has put on the table for us is security and facilitation are not two things that have to be in balance. they are essentially the same thing and if we don't accomplish one we won't accomplish the other. he sees the integration of those thingss as the end goal and the end goal is economic competitiveness of north america. as you can tell he is very pa

that we got to think about what is best to grow the economy and what is best to put people back to work. we are here with some good news for the american people this holiday season by a wide bipartisan margin, both houses of congress have now passed a package of tax relief that will protect the middle class, that will grow our economy, and will create jobs for the american people. not only do i want to thank all the leaders here today but i want to thank mayors and governors from across the country who could not be here today. and all work together to get this done. first and foremost, the legislation i am about to sign is a substantial victory for middle-class families across the country. they are the ones hit hardest by the recession we have endured. they are the ones who need relief right now. that is what is at the heart of this bill. this bipartisan effort was prompted by the fact that tax rates for every american were poised to automatically increase on january 1. if that had come to pass, the average middle-class family would have had to pay an extra $3,000 in taxes next year. that would not have been just a blow to families, it

to move forward on what all of us care about and what all of us care about now is growing the american economy and grow creating jobs for the american people. >> there are still some big loose ends here and what is left? what can they get in? >> and there are three big issues out there and first, gays in the military. the house passed a -- passed a standalone bill to repeel don't- ask, don't-tell and that is going tomorrow before senate for a vote and we're hearing from supporters they believe that they have the three republican votes they need to pass it and secondly, the u.s. and russia have a big negotiated nuclear arms treato the table right now and the senate needs to pass that and republicans are not happy with that treaty saying some of the language -- [ no audio ] >> the gop takes over the house and moves forward on the full bill. >> it's not enough, however, to just hold the line on spending, we need to cut spending. that is what the american people want and it's what our economy needs and there is still many in washington who believe otherwise. >> lawmakers are trying to get out of w

. >> breathing life back into the automobile sector of the american economy. >> if destroying cars isgood for the auto business. i wonder how much wealth i would create if i cause an earthquake. >> strong quake has rocked haiti. >> seems crazy to imagine a disaster like this could help an economy. some people think it can. >> i think this can be an opportunity for a real boom economy in haiti. >> she thinks that because she can see the jobs created for clean-up workers and building new buildings. likewise, after september 11, he said the attack could do some economic good. rebuilding would increase business spending. people think that, because they can see the rebuilding. as they can see the extra car sales of cash for clunkers. >> you can see the people going in to buy cars because the government is subsidizing the purchase of cars. what you can't see is what people would have bought if the government wasn't subsidizing the purchase of cars. maybe they would have bought computers. added a room on to their house. put the money in their savings account to save for college. it is hard t

americans. it would also cut the employee's share of payroll taxes for one year. the idea is to kick start the economy. >> susie: president obama also called on top american business leaders for help. meeting in washington today with 20 c.e.o.s, including american express, general electric and google. the president asked them to hire more, and to spend some of the trillions of dollars they have stashed away in corporate coffers. >> we focused on jobs and investment, and they feel optimistic that by working together we can get some of that money off the sidelines. >> susie: so what did the c.e.o.s think? the c.e.o. of u.p.s., scott davis, told our washington bureau chief darren gersh that business leaders and the president are focused on similar objectives. >> it is to grow the american economy and add jobs. we need to do. that if we don't get jobs going, unemployment rates down, we're not going to get the consumer back. and consumers is what really drives this economy. >> were there specific things that the president talked about doing or that the business community recommended that would improve the

the inherent strength of the american economy. we have to do better. we're going to have a serious adult discussion about what we... what we can afford and what we can't and what our true priorities have to be to make ourselves strong now and in the future. and we're going to have that discussion. >> schieffer: david axelrod. always a pleasure to have you. >> thanks, bob. >> schieffer: we'll be back with some other sides of this story in one minute. ♪ [ man ] i thought our family business would always be boots. until one day, my daughter showed me a designer handbag. and like that, we had a new side to our business. [ male announcer ] when businesses see an opportunity, the hartford is there. protecting their employees and property and helping them prepare for the future. nice boots. nice bag. [ male announcer ] see how the hartford helps businesses at achievewhatsahead.com. [ male announcer ] see how the hartford helps businesses what are you looking at? logistics. ben? the ups guy? no, you see ben, i see logistics. logistics? think--ben is new market

this is also on the rise in some american economies. in the past, they have been forced to grapple with malnutrition. now, many have seen an increase in the number of overweight people. in brazil, a 50% of the overweight and 14% as obese. >> always at the beach, always looking good, that is the stereotypical view of resilience. the other side of the story is very different. a new study by the brazilian health ministry has found that every second brazilian is over weight and the trend is increasing. a number of factors are to blame. people have more money but they are also more stressed out of work. ty are getting less physical exercise and they are eating more fast food. >> people have gotten used to eating in fact all the time. people here use any excuse to eat. that is why we are getting fatter. >> there are many opportunities in brazil to git delicious food. people eat for enjoyment, not because they are hungry. >> this is a pediatrician who specializes in dealing with children with weight problems. this 8-year-old was overweight at

and right now what all of us care about is growing the american economy and creating jobs for the american people. >> next we'll turn to cutting spending and cutting debt. >> those t rates will cost $858 billion over two years. house speaker nancy pelosi was not at today's bill signing. >>> think you've had a bad wee look what happened to this couple in iowa when they went on vacation. high winds from a snowstorm blew one of the doors open so the inside of the house was covered with snow. several feet of it in some spots. snow made its way inside the cupboards, in the csets and in the kitchen. this happened last weekend. most of that snow was shoveled out by family members who were asked to go check onhe house. it's a good thing they did, isn't it? >>> still to come tonight, pickpockets we'll see what criminals look for when they size up holiday shoppers. >>> doug has more word about a storm moving our way, and the president once again dissing wa >>> holiday shopping season is a ickpocket's dream. reporter harry hairston spoke with a former pickpocket who is offering advice that mightelp y

the american economy is improving. the european central bank moved to stem the growing euro zone crisis with hefty purchases of portuguese and irish debt and kept its benchmark interest rate at a record low 1%. major retailers reported stronger than expected sales in november, another hint consumer confidence is improving. abercrombie & fitch jumped after sales soared 32%. the number of people who signed contracts to buy homes jumped more than 10% in october. economists had expected a slight decline. >>> ahead of this morning's government's release of november's unemployment figures, data yesterday showed the average number of november's new unemployment claims fell to a two-year low, while economists expect today's numbers to show well over 100,000 new jobs, they also expect the unemployment rate will remain at 9.6%. it would be the 19th consecutive month above 9%, breaking the postworld war ii record set during the 1980s recession. >>> elsewhere, pepsi is now the world's largest beverage maker after buying the juice

small businesses are the heart of the american economy, they are responsible for half of all private-sector jobs and create roughly 70% of new jobs in the past decade. small-business this are not only job generators but are at the heart of the american dream. how does the u.s. government treat small businesses when it comes to immigrants and non- immigrants setting up businesses? i can only speak to my own to tradition on this but i have heard countless episodes of others in the same predicament. eight years ago, i was in scotland running my production company which provides video production and graphic designs for a wide range of clients, both corporate and non- corporate, from start up to the united nations. in 2007, we started a u.s. office to start a u.s. presence. my company only has two full employees but we use a lot of contract employees or events and projects. our total payable has amounted to over $1 million and all profits have been reinvested in the u.s., nothing sent back to the uk. here is my experience with emigrations -- immigration's. 2002, they issued a visa. 2003, success

we can and we will rebuild and renew the american economy. to do this, we need to do two profoundly important things in the years ahead of. both are necessary. neither is sufficient. first, we must generate for momentum in the economy to fully recover from the great recession. second we must put in place a framework that assures that our growth productivity, and living standards continue to lead in a rapidly changing world. we must do everything we can to ensure that this recovery is as rapid as possible. without rapid recovery, all of our other goals will be compromised. there will be no prospect of reducing medium-term budget deficits while simultaneously increasing investment in human capital. there will be no prospect in remaining an example of the rest of the world. there will be no prospect of restoring and growing living standards for the american middle class. above all, there will be no prospect of putting 8 million people who should have jobs back to work. what is holding our economy back? when unemployment has been above 9% for 19

it is clear the american economy needs you to spend more. american consumer drives the economy, the more confident folks are the more money in their pockets, the more they will spend. don't have to be a ph.d to figure that out. president obama tried to spend tax dollars, trillions it has not worked and the president's image has been badly battered. now these going the private route. business will not pay more to the feds neither will rich people. the hope is business will expand and rich people will spend more that happened under presidents reagan and bush the younger, so we hope it happens again. enter bill clinton who joined with president obama last friday to try to convince you that what i just said is true. however, things got a little strained. >> i've been keeping the first lady waiting for about half an hour. i'm gonna takeoff. >> i don't want to make her mad, please go. >> you are in good hands. gibbs will call last question. >> help me, thank you. go ahead. >> bill: many used that sequence to mock both men, not me. i'm glad mr. clin

this just proves that both parties can, in fact, work together to grow our economy and look out for the americannate completes action on this bill, it will move to the house of representatives for consideration. i have been talking with several members of that body. i recognize that people on both sides of the political spectrum are unhappy with certain parts of the package and i understand their concerns. i share some of them. that is the nature of compromise. sacrificing something that each of us cares about to move forward on what matters to all of us. right now that is growing the economy and creating jobs. nearly every economist agrees that this is what this package will do. taken as a whole, the bill that the senate will allow to preceded this very good things for the american economy and the american people. first and foremost, it is a substantial victory for middle- class families across the country who no longer have to worry about a massive tax hike come january 1. it also gives hope to millions of americans who lost jobs through no fault of their own and by making sure they will not s

and so i think it was beneficial to our american economy, certainly to our individual states' economies, and certainly to the regional effect it had. so i think we can make a very strong case about investing in the middle strata, in that income demographic that will allow for a great return system of we need to contrast there the obama taxes and the bush taxes and look first at the outcomes that have been generated, the benefits to the economy in general. i think it's very clear that when we assisted that working family economy, when we assisted the middle income strata in our country, there were great dividends paid by that investment. then to the affordability. $700 to $900 billion worth of investment for spending for a tax cut where there may not be a great return simply will compete with other forces. investing in job creation, job retention, investing in research so that we can compete in a global economy. making certain that our unemployment insurance opportunities, the stretching out of that dividend is affordable. making certain that we go forward and address the deficit situati

americans think our best days are behind us. i just came back from china, and that is not the feeling in china. they know they are on the cause of something big. another economy is growing, they are getting richer. the feeling amongst the chinese people that i experienced as possible about the sense they are moving forward. what you say to the american people and how you advance legislation in informant when people think that our best days are behind us as americans? tavis: tw >> we incorporating a sense of investment in the future and all segments of our society, but also getting beyond this notion that the government is our enemy. that is not the case. the government does a lot of good things, but there is a constant barage and the last decade from certain segments of the media saying that the government is your enemy, the government is evil, they cannot do anything good. the only way we can act collectively, it in or did not individually, is through our elected representatives and the steps that they take to make this a better country. that has always been the case. has government got off the track from time to time? has it been corrupt, as if it -- have a

last-minute shoppers are flocking to stores and to the internet, bringing much-needed joy back to the american economy. >>> first gns. what if babies could communicate what they want without speaking or crying? >>> and "making a difference." bringing the holiday spirit to people who are sometimes forgotten. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening. i'm carl quintanilla in tonight for brian williams. >>> on this christmas eve, as americans rush home for the holidays, the weather is threatening to complicate things. snow in the midwest and the south has prompted hundreds of flight cancellations. european flights in paris have turned into nightmares. all that on top of a new security measure which could impact your next screening at the airport. nbc's ron mott is live tonight in atlanta's jackson airport. ron, good evening. >> reporter: carl, good evening to you. the weather didn't cause a lot of havoc today for air travel, but tomorrow could be a much different story. for all of you flying over the holidays, expect to see something new at security checkpo

response you believe for the great depression, the huge bubble that popped and exploded on the american economy after the roarin'20s. >> t secretary of the treasury is tim geithner. tim geithner and bernanke are the best of pals, even though neither one of them is really -- really moves in social circles in washington, d.c. it's kind of an odd couple, but they have coupled, and they are the ones that are really engineering u.s. finance and economic policy. does that make you comfortable? >> it sure does, compared to the alternatives. tim geithner was involved with the federal reserve bank of new york, which is how he worked with bernanke. but i will say this. the federal reserve system saved this economy, it saved the financial system in the last several years. the whole banking system was frozen for various reasons, including a huge amount of bad loans. you couldn't get money into our economy through the banking system because they wouldn't make loans, simply because they didn't -- >> are you comfortable with the independents, the auto >>> predictions. pat. >> barack obama will demand that the

had people that crossed and brought these innocent children and contributed immensely to the american economy without a way to get legal there is no way for them to go to the back of the line because our congressman lamar smith passed a bell in nineteen ninety six saying that if you're here for one year illegally you have to go home for ten years before you get your green card there is no line for these people and it is dishonest to say these people should go to the back of the line there is no line ok bob it's dishonest to ask people to go to the go ahead go ahead bob go ahead bob barr we we've been allowing in more legal immigrants than we have ever before for a longer period of time when you say there's there's no line you mean the line simply isn't large. enough i mean how many millions and millions more you seem to you seem to prescribe that there's a seemingly endless amount of free access into the united states once this dream act is defeated in the in the u.s. senate and you remove the politics which is what the dream act is really all about it's taking on documents on documented stud

economy. we are here with good news for the american people this holiday season. a wide bipartisan margin, both houses of congress have now passed a package of tax relief that will protect the middle class, that will grow our economy and will create jobs for the american people. not only do i want to thank all the leaders here today, but i want to thank mayors and governors from across the country who couldn't be here today and who worked together to get this done. first and foremost, the legislation i'm about to sign is a substantial victory for middle class families across the country. they're the ones hit hardest by the recession. they're the ones who need relief right now. that's what is at the heart of this bill. bisart san effort was prompted by the fact that tax rates for every american were poised to automatically increase on january 1st. if that had come to pass, the average family would have had to pay an extra $3,000 in taxes next year. that wouldn't have just been a blow to them. it would have been a blow to our economy. just as we're climbing out of a

said they produce thousands of catalog printing jobs, and a national registry will hurt the american economy. bring or disagree, join us online at nbceditorials.com. >>> faux fur. it's the height of fashion without the price and without the cruelty, right? wrong. you might pay for the fake but get the real deal instead. >> you know you were wearing dog. >> are you kidding? monday at 11:00 on bay area news. >>> hi, i'm roger craig, and you're watching "sports sunday" with raj. >> hello, everybody, welcome to "sports sunday." this is the late edition, coming to you from our nbc bay area studios as we approach the midnight hour. thanks for joining us tonight. i'm raj mathai alongside takeo spikes. every week you do this. you keep winning and everyone smiles, and you get a little banged up, but it's okay. >> that's fine, that's fine. >> that was impressive today. it was fun to watch. >> it was do or die. it was one of those games that either you're in or you're out. if you win, you have a chance to ply next week and go ahead and host your own play-off game in january. it was do or die, man. we w

that rich capture that actually exists privately in the usa but they will not put it into the american economy because they rightly perceive that it will not get the reward they want they will therefore put it into the chinese economy here and that's the same reason why they in fact have exported what are probably six or seven million jobs to countries like china or india needs or it's set up and there's a fundamental problem the arrogance which says only consider the interests of a small group of elite corporations only consider the interests of the of the big banks it's sold out mainstream america it's ok johnny when you have. added you don't need here in the united kingdom i've got friends or developers and friends who are in business you know and they tell me stories rather go for a scheme a few years ago and then asked for a million pounds on loan and they'd be offered two million pounds out of banks i want a friend in dublin of the moment he went and asked for one hundred thousand pounds for a very very small development he had an amazing thirty year business travel record and the banks

-- go to the american economy rather than the german economy. there is a broader economic argument that they could stimulate our own economy. there is also the argument to try to consolidate more bases in one, two, or three places. that will allow army families to stay put for a longer time. the typical army life that we are familiar with from history is not as conducive to a spouse holding a job and keeping it for a long time. there are other reasons why secretary runs fell is looking to consolidate more forces -- secretary rumsfeld was looking to consolidate more forces. japan helps us a great deal. what modest differences there are are partially mitigated by host-nation support. this is not a big deal for an established facility in a major industrial country. >> i wanted to get you to react to something that is a little more short-term. congress has just passed the funding to 2010 levels until march 4. this affects the pentagon's budget. does it affect national security? specifically to ms. rivlin, republicans are talking about knocking $100

juncture we have to think about what's best to grow the economy and what's best to put people back to work. we are here with some good news for the american people this holiday season. by a wide bipartisan margin, both houses much congress have now passed a package of tax relief that will protect the middle-class, that will grow our economy, and will create jobs for the american people. not only do i want to thank all the leaders here today but i want to thank mayors and governors from across the country who could not be here today and all who worked together to get this done. first and for most the legislation i am about to sign is a substantial victory for middle-class families across the country. they are the ones hit hardest by the recession. they are the ones who need relief right now. that is what is at the heart of this bill. this bipartisan effort was prompted by the fact that tax rates for every american were poised to automatically increase on january 1st. if that came to pass, the average middle-class family would have had to pay an extra $3,000 in taxes next year. that would not have been a blow to them but a blow to our econo

whether we see it at the airports in the us or all the various interventions that are wrecking the american economy making us all poorer so we have to if we want to change people's attitudes companies attitudes towards the long term i would argue towards the natural long term view in a free market have to do something about the government and the central bank there recognize ok david how do how do we look in more in the long term because again you know if i look at the states here a lot of it over nine percent a lot of economists will tell you twenty percent unemployment it's very hard for a lot of people to think long term now i mean when things are good i guess it's a little we have the luxury of thinking the long term but a lot of people in western europe and united states can't think the long term because the then here and now is so desperate. yeah i don't i think you have to look at you have to look at we're talking about consumerism which is tied to people consuming things and buying things. that they perceive that they need and certainly you know if you look at the data it does show changes