with the help of economic analyst richard gill, we'll examine that question on economics usa. m david schoumacher. what's economics all about? there have always been theoretical answers to that question, but reality complicates the most elegant theories. economics usa is about theory and reality in 20th-century america, and how people and events have shaped economic decisions that affect our lives. those decisions usually involve tradeoffs. in 1980, congress designated over 100 million acres of alaskan land as national parks and wilderness areas. why did congress make that decision? how much did it cost the nation? in 1867, when the united states purchased the territory of alaska from russia, the acquisition was derided as wasted money. a century later, after two gold rushes, alaska braced for another. the new gold was oil. millions of barrels lay beneath the permafrost. during the 1970s, when the skyrocketing price of foreign oil threatened to devastate the american economy, alaskan oil seemed to promise hope for american energy independence. then along came 1979. revolutionar

for economics usa, i'm david schoumacher.tioning is made possible by the annenberg/cpb project captioning performed by the national captioning institute, inc. captions copyright 1986 educational film center

later we talk davos with the chairman of the world economic forum usa, plus, pepsico chairman indra nooyid on monday, an interview with target chairman and ceo, greg steinhafel. that's coming up at 6:00 a.m. eastern time on monday. we'll be right back. you read this. watch that. 000 tdd# 1-800-345-2550 you look for what's next. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 at schwab, we can help turn inspiration into action tdd# 1-800-345-2550 boost your trading iq with the help of tdd# 1-800-345-2550 our live online workshops tdd# 1-800-345-2550 like identifying market trends. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 now, earn 300 commission-free online trades. call 1-888-628-2419 or go to schwab.com/trading to learn how. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 sharpen your instincts with market insight from schwab tdd# 1-800-345-2550 experts like liz ann sonders and randy frederick. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 get support and talk through your ideas with our tdd# 1-800-345-2550 trading specialists. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 all with no trade minimum. and only $8.95 a trade. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 open an account and earn 300 commission-free online trades. call 1-888-62

investors around the world are taking money out of emerging markets because of improving economic outlooks in the usa and europe reserve banks in india south africa and turkey have raised interest rates but so far it's done little to stop the exodus. an expensive mistake by google could turn into a golden opportunity to china's lenovo group as it expands beyond its success in the puzzle computer industry mogul is getting ripped off a consul headache by selling its most robust mine from business to the noble as the american company into a swan said in a lvl is gearing up for a major expansion the struggling month and make it for twelve and a hostile billion dollars in twenty eleven to push into the roaring smokes and markets and have a platform for its own android operating system. off to just two years the internet giant is selling one to roma to just under three billion. still do who will be keeping most of the sharon is valuable paintings. iran has proved a headache. he tossed a two hundred and sixty million dollars in the third quarter of last year. lenovo already has a strong presence on the chin

economic issues. talk about this "usa today" poll despite what joel said about public polls. from yesterday. >> he likes this one. >> 63% of the american people support extending unemployment. and 73% of the american people support raising the minimum wage. we're likely to hear about those issues in the state of the union. your party stands in the way of both. they won't bring it up for a vote, they won't extend unemployment insurance. you're on the wrong side of these issues, isn't that a problem going into -- >> no, it's not. if you ask people in a poll, do you support fill in the blank, you'll get high numbers. they asked people for health care reform and then found out it meant obama care. this president can't have a serious conversation about income and equality if he and bill de blasio and other democrats on the left are against school charters. the charter school students are are black and hispanic. how will you take away their education can the best chance they have -- >> what about the minimum wage? >> what about it? >> more than 60% of minimum wage earners are women

he tells germ german tv that the usa routinely engages in economic espionage. he says people want to kill him. he says he'll never get a fair trial in the u.s. >>> president obama will lay out an ambitious agenda in the state of the union address tomorrow night. white house advisers say he's prepared to work with or without congress to achieve the goals. high on the list, closing the gap between rich and poor. he'll detail his ideas for gun control and immigration reform. and it is aimed at reversing dismal approval rating. just 37% believe the president has the ability to make the right decisions for the country. abc news will have complete coverage of the state of the union address and the republican response tomorrow night beginning at 9:00 eastern. >>> an entire city in alaska repains cut off this morning after back-to-back avalanches. the only road into the city of valdez is blocked. barges are bringing in trucks that are filled with food. people are being told to prepare to evacuate immediately. >>> as for today's weather in the lower 48. sunny in the wes

premier event last summer and saw dramatic comeback by arcle team usa -- by oracle team usa but the event wasn't the economic success many thought it would be. cup officials are considering hawaii or san diego as host for 2017. >>> michael's stores retailer is looking into reports of credit card fraud. it hasn't confirmed a breach and there is no word on how many customers may be affected. the company has posted an alert on its website. there are more than 20 michaels stores here in the bay area. >>> bees are a crucial part of the farming economy and hundreds of hives have disappeared! how the thief was trying to make a buck. >> football fans gearing up for super bowl -- monday? super bowl friday?! why the big game could be moved from a sunday for the first time ever. >> and finally, the high pressure that's been over the bay area may move for what seems like the first time ever. we have the forecast coming up as we look live over the city, after a break. ,, ,,,,,,,,,,,, stealing more than 250 bee s ld farm. >>> it's a crime you might never expect. a man has been arrested for stealing more than 250 beehives

people on earth they don't give themselves enough credit for their own importance in the usa not only economically but also as a model for economic and political development. i always describe taiwan is a miracle because in a matter of few decades has transformed itself from a military dictatorship to democracy movement and strong really an impoverished place into a prosperous nation. so i think taiwan services model for many developing countries around the world but i think also it's experience of taiwan has learned a lot of lessons which anything can be useful for other countries in the region taiwan is a leader in many areas that people don't think about for example its progress in fighting against trafficking in persons. it's one of i think only two countries in the region are ranked in the first year but the us it's been a leader in nonproliferation and spin up you know i think of certainly a very forward leaning in trying to develop trade relations with other countries moving and this is an area which i'm quite interested in as well. okay all my supposed center will also devote some attentio

that according to the heritage foundation's latest index of economic freedom. this year, the usato twelfth place due to overregulation and taxes and debt. what can we do to get america back up at the top of that list, where she belongs? let's welcome jim roberts, fellow for economic freedom and growth with the heritage foundation. in my next life, i want to be a fellow for economic freedom and growth. i just love that title. >> it's a great job, larry. >> i bet it is. you're very kind to come on. i know it's a busy day for you. let's focus on the u.s. for a minute. you're talking about the last seven year decline so that covers a republican and democratic presidency. what are the big problems, in your judgment? >> the big problems are many taxes and one of your earlier guests talked about the already high corporate tax rate. in addition, there have been more taxes loaded on to american companies and individuals that have lessened american competitiveness in the world. business freedom, we are looking at hundreds of regulations that are being imposed on our companies. this cost $7

usa. if we are serious about economic growth, time to heed the call of business leaders, labor leaders, faith leaders, law enforcement, and fix our broken immigration system. america is closer to energy independence and we have been in decades. businesses plan to invest 100 billion dollars in new factories that use natural gas. help states get those factories built, and congress can help by putting people to work building fueling stations that showed cars and trucks to american natural gas. i will issue an executive order requiring federal contractors to pay federally funded employees a fair wage of at least $10.10 an hour. you should not have to live in poverty. , congressillions more needs to get on board. say yes, give america a raise. [applause] we have a chance right now to be other countries and the race for the next wave of high-tech manufacturing jobs. my administration has launched for high-tech manufacturing, in north carolina and ohio, we have connected businesses to universities that can help america lead the world in advanced technologies. tonight, we will launch six more this ye

today amongd by usa the tossed economic -- top economic forecasters in the country. he received his undergraduate degree from purdue university and earned his phd from the university of maryland at college park. thank you. dr. yun. berry ziggas is the director of the consumer federation of american housing. previously he was a senior vice president of fannie mae, leading the community lending initiative. he has been an advocate for low and moderate income borrowers and underserved communities working to make housing more affordable. has a ba in history and graduated from the advanced management program at the wharton school of business at the university of pennsylvania. thank you, sir. let's get started. i am going to start off with you, jeff. for some time, he is a working to better understand how lenders large and small are prepared or the ability to repay. can you talk to us about the q.m. standards and the changes? >> absolutely. first of all, thank you for having us. this is an important issue in our industry. when we have been tracking for a number of months. y

yun was listed by "usa today" among the top economic forecasters in the country. received his undergraduate degree from purdue university and our and his ph.d from university of maryland at college park. thank you, dr. yun. barry, our fourth bill is the direct of housing policy for the consumer federation of america. he also consults with foundations, nonprofits and others in strategy and policy and program development. previously he was a senior vice president of fannie mae leading the community lending initiative. he has been an advocate for low and moderate income borrowers and underserved communities working to make housing more affordable. he has a ba in history from grinnell college and graduated from advanced management program at the wharton school of business at the university of pennsylvania. thank you, sir for joining us today. let's get started. i'm going to start off with you, jeff. for some time in our a has been with lenders nationwide to better understand how lenders in large and small, are prepared for the building to repay rule. can you talk to h

usa today. we are going to have jobless claims. this is the driver for the dollar component. existing home sales and leading economicndicators also due to come out. keep an eye on dollar/sterling. 16588. ian mccafferty says business investment is feeble, hence the reason might -- the reason why stimulus needs to stay. let's give you some company news this morning. a successful bid by china's lenovo to buy the low-end server business of ibm may trigger a u.s. security review. lenovo is likely to pay up to $2.5 billion for the ibm unit. a deal would be announced as soon as this week. the growing chinese investment in the u.s. has prompted national security concerns. hyundai reported fourth-quarter profits that missed analyst estimates. eroded earnings of south korea's biggest carmaker. thechairman forecast weakest sales growth in eight years for 2014. a chief executive is said to be planning to propose that the new york stock exchange be the primary home for their shares. milanonne will recommend as a secondary listing at a board meeting next week. ok, they are ready. we're going to go head-to-head. one of the best co

. >>> "usa today" says the world's top executives see a brighter economic future. a survey by price waterhouse coopers finds 34% expect the international economy to improve this year. >> and "washington post" saying more crude oil spilled in rail accidents last year than in the 40 years since the government began keeping track. derailments in north dakota and alabama leaked more than 1 million gallons of crude. >>> we're looking at another round of possibly record- breaking temperatures outside. high pressure overhead. storms off the coastline just can't get here and this one impressive in the pacific. it will ride over the top of the ridge. sunny mild temperatures again this afternoon as high as 70 in concord, 70 in oakland, 69 in san jose and 65 degrees in san francisco. fire danger going to be elevated especially in the north bay tonight, red flag warnings there, still plenty of sunshine for the weekend. >> announcer: this national weather report sponsored by toyota. let's go places. >>> snowplows are going high tech. >> ahead, we ride along to see the new way l

usa. times have changed a lot since 1984. steve jobs and apple are a big reason why. we will be right back. ♪ >> the world economicum annual meeting is all about business, especially when it involves booze an strobe lights. this was the rage are at the epicenter of partying. mckenzie holds the party every year. people look like they are having a lot of fun. last night, jon stewart called what happens at davos self- congratulatory excess. if anyone got skewered the most, it is the banks. people blame the big financial institutions for the financial crisis. the people in charge know that. here is their side of the story. >> we will be in the penalty box. why not? it was a big trauma. there were a lot of causes. one has to be poor risk judgments made by certain banks. to the extent banks were getting a lot of benefits from their good risk management, and it turned out to be flawed, it is fair you pay some price and reputation when it does not go well. >> this is the most damaging financial crisis since the depression and maybe before that. with all the home foreclosures, bank failures, and the impact it had on the gl

. >> the whole idea of promise zones or economic freedom zones gets the whole thing. why not make the whole usase zone in terms of real tax reform and other regulatory reforms that unleash the entrepeneural energy in this country? martha: what is your outlook? when you look at the economy in this country and you hear about this proposal. sound nice, might make some people feel something is going on but what do you think, what do you think? >> the economy, barring a foreign crisis and there are a lot brewing out there, barring a big crisis the u.s. economy should do well this year compared to the last four or five years. i think we can break out of the 2% zone, get up to 3%. that is still pathetic by u.s. historic standards but compared to the last four years that is one huge step forward. that is why the stock market is doing well, they sense something will be doing better than we've had in recent types. martha: what about republican economic initiatives? some on your side would say, where are they? where are the ideas about how to really spur growth and get rid of some of these regulations? >>

usa buying cheap currents, that game is over. >> i don't mind that. do you mind that, those carry trades unwinding? is that a big economic issue? >> i think the issue is expectations. and i think the second issue is i don't think people are sure what the fed will do. forward guidance notwithstanding. yellen, is she the bernanke shovel brigade leader? >> it's a whole -- i don't think it's a whole lot different. i think the market doubts that growth will be there to supplant the qe that is not going to be there. or that the increase in quantitative easing. that's really the forecast that i think investors have to make. if the fed's going to withdrawal, i'm okay with that. if there is growth in gdp, if there is job growth, lower unemployment rate. what you you seem to be saying is the market is backing on a mistake from janet yellen and it's a mistake to bank on that mistake. >> to some extent the fed, janet yellen is in this rocket ship that has no windows. she has a lot of instruments and a lot of equations, but she's not really sure. so she's trying to steer around. what are the rules? is it a commodity rule, a gold rule, a --

economically hard-hit communities in the country fight poverty. this is an approach to deal with stagnate rates. >> we are joined by sasha abramsky, an author of "the american way of poverty," and "breadline usa: the hidden scandal of american hunger and how to fix it." what's your reaction it the promise zones? >> it's a good idea. it's part of the problem. one thing that lyndon johnson thought about was you had to bypass bureaucracy and bring the poor into a conversation about their lives. you can't just talk about people, you have to talk with people, bring them into the conversation. the encouraging thing about the promise zones is they are designed to stream line, bypass bureaucracies, designed to boost public transport systems, affordable housing and are designed to do so with public impact and participation. i hope it's a good start. i hope it doesn't become the end point. >> the programs have been tried before, targeted help, to mixed reviews. why do you think this time it will work better. >> it is a mixed review. some work better than others. there have been extremely good results. >> some communities in atlanta have gone through tremendous rejuvenation. they were living cities proj

a poll in "usa today" that showed 65% of americans say the gap between rich and everyone else is growing wider. and 60% say the economicirly favors the wealthy. now that crosses both political lines, right? so in other words, the majority of americans think the system is rigged against them. >> a majority of americans do, which is why it's such a saliant political argument and on top of that, this whole notion of economic mobility that i was just talking about, carol is what everybody sort of grew up in america believing, which is that even if your family is poor, you can pull yourself up by your boot straps and move up that economic ladder more quickly. now we discovered, according to this harvard study that mobility hasn't changed in 50 years, okay? and that's a real problem, too. so it's not only economic inequality, but it's this question of mobility. so you aren't able to move up that ladder any faster. put all these things together and it's a very salient political argument. the question is, carol, who do you blame? if you are a republican you say, big government programs like head start and all the rest haven't

economic opportunities in a 21st century. in addition to many of the nation's largest companies, the american people have weighed in on the need to address this growing threat. and they want action now. a "usatoday" poll in december found that 81% of americans think climate change will be a serious problem if nothing is done to reduce it. and 75% of americans say that the u.s. should take action on climate change even if other nations do less. that poll also found that americans overwhelmingly support clean energy solutions like generating electricity from solar and wind. and here's the thing about the american people. they all say this. not just democrats. not just republicans. not just independents. the only place that we have a partisan divide is right here in the congress. i'm encouraged that significant action to address climate change is already under way. including establishing limits on carbon pollution from cars and trucks. the obama administration is also working on carbon pollution limits for new and existing power plants. together, these efforts address the nation's two largest sources of carbon pollution. now, a new peer reviewed study in the journal "nature" finds that unless