miles so i'm all for efficiency but we can't keep the lights on with efficiency we have to generate electricity why because we don't have a perfect storage method for electricity if we had such a method then that is the true game changer but with regard to renewables look at the just the latest report from the energy information administration here in the united states the estimated natural gas fired electricity is about the cheapest form of power production at about sixty three dollars per megawatt hour on shore wind generated electricity costs fifty percent more offshore wind costs four times as much and and solar thermal cost five times as much this idea that renewables are cheaper than conventional for forms of electricity generation is just simply not true further even if it were on car they're not dispatchable the reality is we need electric sources electricity generation sources that we can turn on and off that's what gives them value having them be intermittent and highly variable gives them of a real world value of essentially zero so that but i think peter just to direct a conversatio

general electric to general motors to general dynamics and it doesn't surprise me what you really have is the sort of echoes of the two major corporate political parties you know m s n b c is supporting this intervention because it's a democrat in the white house you know fox news o'reilly will support any military intervention but some of them like an idiot question box news the same exact thing happened when the united states was bombing serbia and it was under bill clinton and all of the sudden fox became dobbs and they were questioning in there saying where is the congressional authorization and you know it's really silly we have a very narrow spectrum on american t.v. and m s n b c by their boosterism obama in the last couple weeks with a military intervention that's hardly it's really shows how narrow the spectrum it you know and just to talk more about the financial incentive to have any talk about the genie connection exciter but it's not just that when we also have the human factor here when journalists get excited you know they get embedded with the troops and they develop re

when "the new york times" reported that despite $14 billion in worldwide profits last year, general electric paid no federal income taxes for that year. in fact it got a $3 billion tax credit. that has created an uproar. two liberal groups have demanded that ceo jeff immelt resign as chairman of the president's new council on jobs and competitiveness. they have started a petition saying if immelt won't resign, the president should fire him. they say one of america's biggest corporate tax dodgers should not lead the effort to create jobs. today immelt defended ge saying taxes were unusually low in the last two years because of losses during the financial crisis. >> we lost $32 billion in ge capital as a result of the global financial crisis. our tax rate will be much higher in 2011 as ge capital recovers. like any american, we do like to keep our tax rate low. but we do it in a compliant way, and there are no exceptions. >> reporter: immelt said that everyone should pay their fair share of taxes, including ge, and the corporate tax code needs to be reformed to make it more competitive and eli

this week a big story was general electric. general electric is not only not paying taxes, they took a $3.2 billion tax benefit. what does that mean? that means you and i are paying general electric. out of our taxes, we're paying them, effectively. so this idea is simply based on using a number that's inconsequential. our nominal tax rate. if anybody wanted to make a deal with the left if they could find the left, to drop the effective -- the nominal rate and increase the effective rate by closing loopholes, we'd be all for that. okay. we got to wait for microphones. i'll let you figure out who's next. >> well, this may not be your area of say. but i just wondered, you know, you mentioned that things can be done like a second stimulus and -- we're currently seeing a congress that is fighting and in a deadlock and not even able to pass our next fiscal budget. so i guess my question is how do you -- you know, the conservative agenda they seem to be able to create falsehoods in their own reports that are not necessarily accurate.

well you need to pick your targets bank of america is hardly the only corporation general electric as you mentioned is another pay any taxes bank of america and pay them for. three years now. look the normal mechanisms the traditional mechanisms by which incremental or piecemeal reform is made possible in this country are broken the legislative executive judicial branches of government not to mention most of the media has either withered away or been subsumed into the corporate embrace most everything the american sea watch read or hear is controlled by roughly a half dozen corporations including general electric disney rupert murdoch's news corp viacom and that's extremely dangerous when you don't have a mechanism by which the grievances of tens of millions of americans who are really beginning to suffer can be addressed and civil disobedience is all you have left which is why i was at the demonstration in the occupation of the bank of america branch this morning well yesterday we heard what maybe some could describe as a glimmer of hope here senator carl levin basically released a r

the example is general electric that just made $14.2 billion in profit and is not paying any taxes to the petro government -- federal governemtnment. that is alarming. it flies in the face of what social obligations are in this country. we need services that can meet the demands of our population. if we are going to be allowing a company to threaten to leave, we are setting a really bad precedent for other companies to do the same. we heard about zynga wanting to do the same thing as well. it alarms me that we are doing that. if we give these tax breaks, we are aiding and abetting the disparities of wealth. we know that corporations like ge, exxon were wanting to get rid of their tax responsibility. they are amassing more and more wealth. if we approve the deal like this, i believe we are aiding and abetting that type of ability in the corporate sector. we need to make sure they are paying their fair share compared to middle-class people and working-class people. we are paying taxes and we are losing services. it makes sense that the corporate sector can pay their taxes and make sure

general electric unveiled plans to spend $600 million to build the nation's largest solar panel factory>>> and finally, for one shoemaker, kicking up your heels is serious business. christian lobatont filed suit against a company who he claims stole his red sole. >>> the red sox worst start since world war ii. hockeys rangers lose their grip. plus, the ups and downs of tiger woods on the first day of the masters in augusta. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. >>> temperatures are on the way up and it's about time. your weekend forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today." >>> good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, it's golf's most prestigious tournament and they're all after its most coveted prize, the green jacket. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. >>> good friday morning. it is a tradition unlike any other. but amidst the pageantry of the masters in augusta, a 21-year-old rose to the leaderboard on the masters. jack nicholas got things started. tiger woods apparently didn't like this

--cabe mencionar que una de las empresas criticadas es general electric, dueÑa en parte de telemundo.que para perros en san jose ha sido cerrado por las autoridades take vo luego de la muerte de la mascota de una mujer ocurrida el sabado... ---ocurrio en el parque "butcher" en el barrio de cambrian... cuando "julie tien" llego con su perro "collin" el cual murio aparentemente envenenado... ---mientras no se conozca las razones de la muerte del perro, dicho parque permanecera cerrado. ms --a otro tema: el presidente barack obama est peleando la reeleccin y esta semana visita una empresa que, piensa su campaña, sera clave... take nats!! + vo --facebook, por supuesto! --obama estar este mircoles en las oficinas de la red social aqu en la pennsula, para hablar sobre la economa y recibir preguntas de los usuarios. --obama tiene ms de 19 millones de seguidores en facebook... ---- la entrevista ser emitida en vivo desde su portal. take nats !!! take vo- cesar -- y hoy, a las 5 y 12 de la maÑana, una multitud se reuni en san francisco para recordar el devastador terremoto de 1906, de siete-pu

earnings at general electric, a minority owner of this network, rose 77%, but shares slid in response to weak industrial revenue. >>> mcdonald's dipped despite strong sales after a warning from the fast food chain about rising costs worried investors. fast food rival yumm brands reported a healthy rise in profit. in the wake of widespread controversy over tracking devices in apple's iphones, this morning's wall street journal reports iphones and android smartphones both routinely transmit location data back to apple and google helping them tap a growing multibillion dollar market for location-based services. toyota is recalling more than 200,000 rav 4s and nearly 100,000 highlander suvs over potential air bag problems. a federal jury ruled mattel does not own the sketches or the idea for the popular bratz dolls made by mga entertainment despite the claim that the designer made the drawings while employed by mattel. >>> finally, not sure what to do with that drawer of t-shirts? for about $250, you can have them made into a soft and cuddly quilt. >>> the dodgers manage to ignore disraks

. >> if you paid her than $10 on your taxes this year, then you paid more than general electric did, verizon, bank of america and citibank combine. protesters called on the government to bail out the workers, not the banks. >> bays get bailed out! >> there were angry protests a this bank america and at google. an economics professor said the big corporations are in their rights to take big writeups. they also say companies contribute by creating jobs. >>> the s&p 500 is pessimistic about the growing debt. s&p capped the rating for world's large economy but said it was concerned about the long- term outlook for the deficit. the dow dropped 140 points today, closing at 12,201. the nasdaq lost almost 30 points, finishing the day at 2735. >> some bay area lawmakers, when it comes to railroad system, what plan they talked about today. >>> the reason our state-owned university is taking in more out of staters. blast -- out of staters. >>> it's not over, at least for the twins who say mark zukerberg stole their idea. >>> a family trip to reno turned tragic on interstate 80 in berkeley. an o

machines for these tests are made by phillips, and general electric, a part owner of nbc universal. fields has not gotten over the desperation he felt last year. >> i knew something was wrong with me. i knew it. i didn't know what to do. >> but he considers himself lucky to be alive and treasures ti time with his son even more. >>> when we come back, a big mistake coming soon a post office near you. >>> one more note from the open mic last night. clear he's become the latest white house occupant to be surprised by the low technology of the place. the house itself and much of the support structure surrounding the president is nothing like the hollywood version. harrison ford has it all over barack obama who was heard complaining last night, quote, we can't get our phones to work. i always thought i was going to have like really cool phones and stuff. he said the white house is 30 years behind when it comes to technology and he called his people in and said, come on, guys. i'm the president of the united states, where's the fancy buttons and stuff and the big screen comes up. it doesn

when the elevator is empty, the counterweight polls the elevator and it generates electricity by breaking. the same thing as in your toyota creosote or another hybrid car. -- prius or another hybrid car. here inside we have the ibtv drive. this is important for landing of the elevator. also, acceleration and deceleration, if there is instability in a car, can be reduced. >> so we have taken a ride in an antique elevator. >> this was an elevator built in 1913. >> we have checked out current elevator technology. >> these were installed in 1972, outside observation elevators. >> it is not standard because there is no tape that runs it. but shane we have seen the future of the elevator technology. >> i am going to push the access key which will access the voice. >> this has precise generation of power, which is important for highly acrilan the landing of the elevator. >> what happens next week and not know but it will be exciting. thank you for showing us this interesting technology. interesting technology. >> wah! announcer: the smallest moments can have the biggest impact on a child's life.

when the elevator is empty, the counterweight polls the elevator and it generates electricity by breaking. the same thing as in your toyota creosote or another hybrid car. -- prius or another hybrid car. here inside we have the ibtv drive. this is important for landing of the elevator. also, acceleration and deceleration, if there is instability in a car, can be reduced. >> so we have taken a ride in an antique elevator. >> this was an elevator built in 1913. >> we have checked out current elevator technology. >>

will your from boeing, general electric or whether you are from dow. we are out there talking to politicians to be their partners. i'm hopeful the first steps were being made certainly this year and late last year or the right steps. in all honesty is essential that we work together that you have a role. you are critical to this. you are in fact the reason i'm speaking to an audience like this, the most important part of the decision because you see it's not a policy discussion the incipient topic it is a cultural one, it's a way of thinking. it's a wake-up call, a clarion call to young people to highly educated young people like you who chosen to further your stultz, to think through where the world is going, to look into corners, not one, to go through the dimensional chess and to basically think beyond, that three decades ago this country was centralized around infecting a high-technology to the kids could centralizes itself from the information technology and the internet if you liked and the next decade or two for reasons that i struggle with and

we'll see quarterly earnings from general electric, verizon and southwest airlines. speaking of southwest, we'll talk to c.e.o. gary kelly about higher oil prices, its 737 planes, and the airline's outlook for the rest of the year. >> susie: more and more americans are hanging up on landline phones and relying solely on cells. a new study shows one out of every four households now exclusively uses cell phones. that trend is growing fastest in states where incomes are low: arkansas and mississippi. there, one in three adults use cell phones because they don't have traditional wired ones. the numbers also show younger americans and renters are more likely to ditch landlines for cells. >> tom: so you paid the airline 25 bucks to check your bag, and it was lost. now what? starting this summer, you'll get that money back. the transportation department has rolled out new rules for the nation's airlines. they also double the amount of money you get if you're bumped from a flight, require carriers to notify passengers of delays, and ban fare hikes after you've bought the tic

general electric, part owner of nbc universal, is one of the biggest manufacturers of ct scanners. often, doctors say, using the device is a balancing act between what the patient needs and what is safe. and with children the parents often play a role. >> parents come in, they demand cat scans. they want to know what's wrong with their child. they want to make sure they're able to sleep at night and be able to rest and know their child is safe. >> reporter: but increasingly, experts agree that because of the radiation risk this useful tool needs to be used the minimum amount possible. robert bazell, nbc news, new york. >>> federal safety investigators today showed us the actual piece of that southwest airlines 737 involved in the incident friday, when a split opened up in a section of the fuselage and it peeled back the aircraft's skin and depressurized the cabin at 36,000 feet. southwest said it has inspected the 79 aircraft it took out of service. by the way, five of those 737-300 series were found to have small cracks. >>> up next, if you're among those who've been saying that w

debt, and we'd like to see congress lock that in. >> full disclosure when we're talking about general electric, it is a partial owner of nbc news and i want to make sure i'm clear with the audience about that. final question for you. would you say you deserve a second term as treasury secretary? >> look, i've got a lot on my plate, but i'm not going to make news on that today. >> that's not a no. in our business, that's not a no. >> i've got a lot i'm doing and i enjoy this work. >> but you can imagine staying on just because the challenges are so great? >> again, david when i'm going to make news on this, i'll let you know. you won't be the first person, but i'll let you know. >> but close? mr. secretary, thank you. >> thank you. >> good to see you. >>> and coming up, what's at stake in the budget battles and what will it mean for the economy? plus, the 2012 campaign coming into view through the lens of a fragile economic recovery as two of the president's potential opponents, mitt romney, and yes, even donald trump, tout their business experience. will president obama's re-election hinge on

. >> tom: finally tonight, general electric has a tax problem, but not the one you might think. for weeks, the conglomerate's been embroiled in a flap over its low u.s. tax bill. today came word g.e. would send its $3 billion tax refund back to the government. but don't believe it. the official-looking news release announcing the move was a hoax. it was the work of an activist group called "yes men," known for doing this kind of thing. g.e. admits it didn't pay much in taxes last year, but it didn't get a refund, susie. >> we all avoid the tax man. that's "nightly business report" for wednesday, april 13th. i'm susie guard ib. -- gharib. "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 wgbh access.wgbh.org

look at the deal that general electric made. it does not work that way. we let you very much. the one to sell to us. bilk them en wherever the hell you want it. you are not bringing in all your crap including your sheetrock that makes everybody sick. we make a much better project. you cannot compete price wise because of the manipulation. the first thing that happened is that they stop screwing around. here is what happens. about 60% of the will stop. we will increase the hell out of the employment. we will be building plants. we will start building it. they make weaponry. i did not know we even had anything like that anymore. this is high technology stuff. wilcox is great. look it up. they make their own products. he will have thousands of those places. if they do not behave, that is even better. we will start building our own. we will tell all these other companies that have to build your own factories. we got to put our own people to work. i will just go one step further. it can happen so fast. if you look at what is going on, you look at what is going on. we cannot drill i

general electric also lifted its dividend after turning in these results. profits jumped from a year ago and were well above forecast. g.e. says the restructuring of its finance unit is ahead of schedule, and the backlog for some industrial equipment is higher from last quarter. this didn't help the share performance today, though. g.e. was among those dragging on the dow, slipping more than 2%. telecom giant verizon was also a drag, off more than 2%, falling to a one-month low. quarterly earnings were a penny ahead of estimates. still, analysts talk centered around profit-taking, thanks to the rally in anticipation of verizon selling the iphone, which began in february. but it was pfizer that was the big loser among dow stocks. the 3% drop came on almost a three-fold increase in volume. this is the past 90 sessions. one area to watch may be $19, where it bounced off of last month. pfizer reported four patients in a drug trial had died. the medicine being tested is for rheumatoid arthritis. it is not clear if the deaths were related to the drug, though. a t