Today at Talk Radio News

Today at the Washington Bureau, Chief Pentagon Correspondent Meredith MacKenzie will be covering events at the Pentagon. Legal Affairs Correspondent Jay Tamboli will be at the Supreme Court. Chief United Nations Correspondent Dan Patterson will be at the UN, after which he will go to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to cover the floods with Correspondent Dawn Jones.

Staff will covering a defense briefing with General Dan McNeille, commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, a discussion on "Iran, Middle East and Russian Perspectives," events at the "Prepare for Launch" health reform summit, a discussion on "How will the next president reduce nuclear dangers?" and a conference call briefing to release the NAHB (National Association of Home Builders)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for June and discuss what the housing market needs to get back on track.

China, Cuba drilling for oil off Florida

Three steps that must be taken to maintain the United States’s economic position in the world were cited by Vice President Dick Cheney at the United States Chamber of Commerce. Cheney thanked the Chamber for understanding economic issues and motivated it to assist policy makers in decision making.

Cheney defended tax cuts made by President Bush, saying that a sudden tax increase is “not the prescription” the United States needs to secure its economic status. Cheney said that if Bush’s tax cuts are allowed to expire, taxes will increase by $280 billion a year. The thousand dollar per child tax break given to families would be halved, causing an average of $1,800 increased taxes for 116 million Americans. Cheney said that this “government greed” would have the most harmful effect on Americans in the lowest tax brackets.

Cheney also promoted free trade initiatives and argued against the protectionism promoted in some of the presidential campaigns. He said that a free trade agreement with Colombia would benefit the United States by allowing American products to enter Colombia without tariffs. According to Cheney, 90 percent of Colombian goods already enter the United States duty free. Cheney said that protectionism brings “false comforts” and that the demise of a trade agreement with Colombia would not only hurt the American economy, but would also cause the United States’s image in Latin America to suffer.

In light of increased gas prices, Cheney advocated that the United States increase domestic oil production, saying that an increase in supply is the only way to lower prices. Cheney supported initiatives that develop new energy technologies but reiterated that the United States’s dependence on oil cannot be erased overnight. Cheney not only pushed for oil production in ANWAR, but also supported oil production off of the East and West Coasts. Cheney said that China and Cuba are producing oil off the coast of Florida, noting that “even the Communists” understand increased oil production is economically vital.

Changing regulations in changing times

The Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness met to discuss whether the regulatory structure of capital markets is outdated. Participating speakers agreed that the current regulatory system is in need of modernization to deal with changing markets but disagreed over what that modernization entailed. Eugene Ludwig, the founder of Promontory Financial Group, LLC, suggested that a system that enforces less while equally regulating large and small institutions is needed. Ludwig said that power is moving to favor large institutions and that this movement was not the intention of the founders of the United States.

Harvey Pitt, CEO of Kalorama Partners, LLC, agreed that smaller regulation is necessary but also challenged the idea of how to regulate. Pitt said that too many regulatory agencies act in a reactionary manner only. He added that reacting to an issue after it has occurred is not a regulatory practice but rather an enforcement practice. Pitt said that financial institutions, especially in light of the subprime mortgage crisis, would benefit by meeting with regulatory agencies to verify compliance with standards. Pitt said markets will only be harmed by additional regulation that is undue.

Peter Wallison of the American Enterprise Institute reiterated that the US regulatory system has failed consistently because a line of people from mortgage brokers through to the market “didn’t do their jobs.” Wallison added that Congress would have protected a consumer’s option to engage in high risk mortgages had a regulatory agency gone before Congress and stated potential for widespread consumer loss. Annette Nazareth, the former commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said that like democracy, capital market regulations are imperfect but still necessary.

President Bush addresses small business owners

President Bush addressed America’s Small Business Summit put on by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Discussing the economy and small businesses in America, Bush delivered a commanding speech offering hope and optimism on the economy. Offering his own experience on understanding about growing a business and sympathizing with the small business owners in the room, he said that the stimulus plan that has been enacted is helping. “We’ve cut taxes,” he claimed and went on to state that he believes Americans can spend money more wisely than their government can, drawing a large cheer from the crowd. He also stated that he would like to see the tax relief made permanent and commented that he would veto any unwanted bill.