Local News
House girds for second try on rescue
WASHINGTON (AP) — House members are getting another chance to vote on a bill many would like to avoid: A massive financial rescue that has infuriated millions, but is being promoted as critically needed to stave off a deep recession.
This time, it comes back to the House loaded with billions of dollars worth of tax cuts and other sweeteners. They are meant to attract at least a dozen House members who voted against the measure Monday, when it failed, 228-205, triggering a record drop in the stock market.
Senators added the new items in a 74-25 vote late Wednesday, sending the rewritten package back to the House for a showdown vote expected Friday.
After the Senate vote, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said, “We’ve sent a clear message to Americans all over that we will not let this economy fail. This is not a piece of legislation for lower Manhattan. This is legislation for all America.”
The rescue package would let the government spend billions of dollars to buy bad mortgage-related securities and other devalued assets held by troubled financial institutions. If successful, advocates say, that would allow frozen credit to begin flowing again and prevent a serious recession.
To some degree, at least, House GOP opposition appeared to be easing as the Senate added $100 billion in tax breaks for businesses and the middle class, plus a provision to raise, from $100,000 to $250,000, the cap on federal deposit insurance.
House Republicans also welcomed a decision Tuesday by the Securities and Exchange Commission to ease rules that force companies to devalue assets on their balance sheets to reflect the price they can get on the market.
The Senate-backed package extends several tax breaks popular with businesses. It would keep the alternative minimum tax from hitting 20 million middle-income Americans. And it would provide $8 billion in tax relief for those hit by natural disasters in the Midwest, Texas and Louisiana.
Leaders in both parties, as well as private economic chiefs almost everywhere, said Congress must quickly approve some version of the bailout measure to start loans flowing and stave off a potential national economic disaster.
Tax cuts new and old are favorites for most House Republicans. Help for rural schools was aimed mainly at lawmakers in the West, while disaster aid was a top priority for lawmakers from across the Midwest and South.
Another addition, to extend the deductibility of state and local taxes for people in states without income taxes, helps Florida and Texas, among others.
Increasing the deposit insurance cap was a bid to reassure individuals and small businesses that their money would be safe in the event their banks collapsed. It was particularly geared toward small banks that fear customers will pull their money and park it in larger institutions seen as less likely to fold.
The Senate vote lacked the drama of Monday’s House vote, but it had its celebrity moments. Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and his GOP rival, John McCain, came off the campaign trail to vote for the package, thrilling tourists who glimpsed them in the Capitol’s corridors and drawing hordes of reporters and photographers.
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Tax time attracts e-mail crooks
DALLAS — The Internal Revenue Serice warns taxpayers against being fooled by e-mails that appear to be from the IRS about your tax return or refund.
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Sweetheart Style show to include blast from the past
The Weatherford Chamber of Commerce’s annual Sweetheart Style Show is set for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday at the Doss Heritage and Culture Center.
This is the fifth year for the event, and it’s taking on a new twist. -
Suspect nabbed in Watauga traffic stop
Parker County Sheriff’s Investigators have one man in custody in connection with an aggravated robbery case last week in Azle, in which a man was beaten with a pistol and robbed inside his residence.
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Parker County Republican Women host Candidate Forum for County Offices
WEATHERFORD – The public is invited to a Candidate Forum for Parker County Offices at the monthly luncheon meeting of the Parker County Republican Women.
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2nd annual “All Star Kids” competition scheduled
WEATHERFORD – The Ninth Grade Center’s JV Jazz will hold their 2nd annual “All Star Kids” Beauty and Talent competition for children ages 0 through 18 years of age on Saturday, Feb. 20, at the NGC Auditorium on South Main.
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Girl scout food drive
Weatherford Girl Scout Troop #4821 will be conducting a Food Drive to benefit the Parker County Center of Hope beginning Monday and lasting through Saturday.
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TOTS latest production opens Feb. 12
WEATHERFORD – Theatre Off the Square in Weatherford invites you to visit Fayro, Texas once again when the Futrelle Sisters return in "Southern Hospitality," written by Jones, Hope and Wooten and courtesy of Dramatists Play Service. Beginning Friday, Feb. 12, and running weekends through Feb. 28,
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Tax time attracts e-mail crooks
