"All you need to know to navigate today's economic debate."

Top Treasury Official Leaves for Lobbying Firm (HuffPo)
As the revolving door turns...one of the Treasury Department's leading liaisons to the Hill, Damon Munchus, jumps ship for lobbying position.

The Deflationist: How Paul Krugman Found Politics (NewYorker)
Larissa MacFarquhar profiles the professional and personal agenda of Times columnist Paul Krugman.

Dodd, Corker Near Key Reform Deal (Politico)
Senate negotiators are nearing a deal to create a consumer watchdog within the Federal Reserve.

Obama to Highlight Cost in New Health Bill Push (NYT)
President Obama this week will begin a climactic push to rally restive Congressional Democrats to pass major health care legislation by hammering the argument that the costs of failure will be higher insurance premiums and lost coverage.

Geithner, Summers Leading Search for Successor to Fed's Kohn (Bloomberg)
The search to fill vacancies at the Federal Reserve is being led by President Barack Obama's Treasury secretary and chief economic adviser, indicating Chairman Ben Bernanke will get support for his policies.

Chile Asks for International Aid as Looting Spreads After Quake (Bloomberg)
Chile asked for international aid to recover from the 8.8-magnitude earthquake that killed at least 723 people in the South American country.

Greece Set to Outline New Austerity Measures Wednesday (WSJ)
he Greek government is expected to outline a new austerity package of about €4 billion ($5.42 billion) on Wednesday in an effort to cut its huge budget deficit by four percentage points this year.

For AIG Deal, It Paid to Wait (WSJ)
American International Group Inc.'s sale of its Asian life-insurance business to Prudential PLC was well over a year in the making.

Krugman: No Bill Is Better Than a Weak Bill (BaselineScenario)
James Kwak responds to Paul Krugman's recent column in which he prefers no financial reform at all to weak and ineffective reform.

"All you need to know to navigate today's economic debate."

Plan to Seek Use of U.S. Contracts as a Wage Lever (NYT)
The Obama administration is planning to use the government's enormous buying power to prod private companies to improve wages and benefits for millions of workers.

In Greece's Crisis, Fed Studies Wall St.'s Activities (NYT)
Greece's problems deepened on both sides of the Atlantic as the Federal Reserve disclosed it was investigating Goldman Sachs and other banks that helped the country mask its debts.

AIG Quarterly Loss Narrows on Shrinking Investment Writedowns (Bloomberg)
The [recent] net loss of $8.87 billion narrowed from $61.7 billion, a year earlier when AIG posted the biggest loss in U.S. corporate history.

Cote, Rivlin Said Among Picks for Deficit Commission (Bloomberg)
Honeywell International Inc. Chief Executive Officer David Cote and former Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Alice Rivlin will be named today by President Barack Obama to a commission on cutting the federal deficit.

Push to Oversimplify at Climate Panel (WSJ)
A months-long crisis at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has upended the world's perception of global warming, after hacked emails and other disclosures revealed deep divisions among scientists.

At health-Care Summit, Obama Tells Republicans He's Eager to Move Ahead (WaPo)
President Obama declared Thursday that the time for debate over health-care reform has come to an end, closing an unusual seven-hour summit with congressional leaders.

McCain Goes Off the Nuclear Deep End (MotherJones)
Kate Sheppard on McCain's reaction to the Obama administration's $54.5 billion plan to ignite the nuclear power industry.

"All you need to know to navigate today's economic debate."

Worst Revelation Yet in the On-going Goldman -- AIG -- NYFed Scandal (WallStreetPit)
Roosevelt Institute Braintruster L. Randall Wray on Richard Teitelbaum's reporting today that Timothy Geitner's New York Fed hid the smoking gun that proves Goldman played the key role in bringing down AIG.

Senators, Finally, Near an Attractive Deal on Financial Regulation (WaPo)
Senators Chris Dodd and Bob Corker plan to unveil a bipartisan bill that attempts to bring financial reform into fruition. The deal is called 'attractive' by the Post, but it's looking more like Swiss Cheese from our perspective.

Big Questions Still Linger on Eve of Health Care Meeting (NYT)
David Leonhardt writes on Thursday's bipartisan health care summit and the final obstacles posed to health care reform.

Nationwide Strike Paralyzes Greece (WSJ)
Greek police clashed with youths in central Athens Wednesday as tens of thousands of people took to the streets in protest at the Socialist government's austerity measures.

When Betting on Bernanke, Best Go Long (WSJ)
Kelly Evans on the buildup to Wednesday's semiannual report to be given by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

Geithner May Give Regulators Leeway in Applying Volcker Rule (Bloomberg)
The U.S. Treasury Department wants to give regulators discretion to define proprietary trading as the White House tries to revive its plan to bar banks from making hazardous bets that could cause another financial crisis.

Greece Holds Back Bond Sale in Game of ‘Chicken,' Ignis Says (Bloomberg)
Greece may be playing "a game of chicken" over a planned 10-year bond sale as it negotiates with European Union officials on budget targets, according to Ignis Asset Management.

Volcker Rule Being Deep Sixed (NakedCapitalism)
Yves Smith on the intricacies of the Volcker rule, including its limitations.

"All you need to know to navigate today's economic debate."

Obama to Urge Oversight of Insurers' Rate Increases (NYT)
President Obama will propose on Monday giving the federal government new power to block excessive rate increases by health insurance companies.

Greece Said to Have Arranged Swaps With 15 Banks (Bloomberg)
Greece arranged swap agreements with about 15 securities firms, including some payments from banks that may have helped hide the country's true deficit.

AIG Death Spiral Ends as Bailout Support Brings Stable Revenue (Bloomberg)
AIG is showing stable revenue for its insurance units and improving its ability to repay taxpayers 17 months after a bailout that swelled to $182.3 billion.

Bailout Anger Undermines Geithner (WSJ)
Deborah Solomon writes on the anger that has been directed towards Geithner and the treasury following the bailouts.

Merrill Lynch Veterans Rejoin Herd (WSJ)
Sam Chapin and Todd Kaplan, who left Merrill Lynch & Co. amid an exodus of top investment bankers as the securities firm was sold to Bank of America Corp., are returning to their old firm.

Obama's New Housing Band-Aid (MotherJones)
Andy Kroll writes on Obama's plan to release $1.5 billion in stimulus funds to relieve the housing crisis.

The Elephant at the Health Care Summit (TruthDig)
E.J. Dionne examines the nature of Obama's health care summit and it's consequence for the future of reform.

Lowering The Boom On Financial Leverage (BaselineScenario)
This guest post by David Moss examines the reasons that the American financial system was not able to handle the subprime mortgage crisis, among other things.