February 4, 2010 - The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is running out of money. The reason for this is that the agency, which insures mortgages for lenders, is being hammered by the nation's high foreclosure rate. Not surprisingly, the FHA has tightened their lending standards, but at the same time they have also implemented a policy that could just create another housing bubble. As of this past Monday, the FHA is allowing buyers that use FHA insured loans to quickly turn around and sell their property. This is an activity commonly referred to as "flipping" and it is usually engaged in by real estate speculators. It was one of the primary factors that fueled the boom in housing prices over the last decade and which led to the collapse in real estate markets in late 2008.

February 2, 2010 - By virtually any standard, the economic stimulus package passed last year has failed to pay dividends in the form of jobs. Unemployment remains at 10% and while many economists are claiming that the worst is behind us, there is little evidence of this on Main Street. If we are in recovery mode, it is a jobless recovery. Yet the Obama administration continues to push for additional government spending - supposedly to create or maintain jobs even though there is no evidence that the first spending package has created any dividends. At the same time, in the administration's new budget, it is cutting funding for NASA's Constellation program. And the immediate effects of those cuts will be thousands of layoffs.

January 28, 2010 - In the State of the Union speech given by President Obama yesterday, the President criticized a recent Supreme Court ruling that allows corporations to fund issue advertising during election season. The case, Citizens United vs. the Federal Elections Commission ended a ban on such advertising that has been in place for several years. While it is true that the ruling overturned a portion of McCain-Feingold, a bill that placed strict limits on corporate funding of elections, the rhetoric surrounding the Court's decision has been loud and largely inaccurate. The issue concerns ACCESS because we know that corporate lobbying is a corrupting influence in American politics, but we also believe in the Constitution. And we all know, you can't have your cake and eat it too!

January 25, 2010 - In just a few days, President Obama will give his second State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress. While it is widely expected that he will shift the focus to his speech to job creation and the economy, it is highly unlikely that he will paint a true picture of the financial position the country is in. Real unemployment rates are higher than they have been since the Great Depression and Congress and the White House have been printing and spending money so fast that it is almost impossible to keep track of. The end result is that the country is broke and that the only way to dig out of our financial mess is to inflate our way out of it. If you think that sounds farfetched, it is exactly what the government did to pay for all of the big government programs of the 1930's; forcing taxpayers to foot the bill for the government's spending splurges.

January 22, 2010 - It has been a while since ACCESS has done a story on RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), but the problems associated with this technology continue to grow. RFID tags are now included in passports and many credit cards. The technology can allow hackers to identify you as an American citizen when you are traveling, and steal your credit card information without ever coming into direct contact with your credit cards. Consumers need to be aware of this issue and take appropriate steps to protect themselves. The following video report does a good job of explaining the downsides of RFID technology and gives some information about how you can guard against crime.

January 21, 2010 - Since the beginning of the downward spiral of financial markets in late 2008, there have been calls emanating from Washington for new banking regulations. The primary aim of those new regulations would be to prevent companies in the financial sector from engaging in risky activities that could lead to another collapse; especially if those activities are being backed up by taxpayer dollars. This morning, President Obama put forth a series of proposals that he wants included in a broader financial services bill being considered on Capitol Hill. While there are significant issues associated with the overall bill, the suggestions made this morning warrant serious consideration.

January 20, 2010 - Both personal and business bankruptcies soared in 2009. Business bankruptcies rose 38% over 2008 levels with 89,402 filings nationwide. Consumer bankruptcies increased by 32% to more than 1.3 million. Both numbers are the highest they have been since 2004; the year that congress modified bankruptcy laws making it harder and more costly to file.

January 15, 2010 - It is a basic premise of our form of government that our elected officials are supposed to listen to the People; the citizens of the United States. Unfortunately, that premise is now being violated on a regular basis. Just look at the healthcare debate. Numerous polls show that nearly 60% of voters oppose the plans being considered by Congress, yet Congress seems determined to pass healthcare legislation anyway. The same was true of renewal of the Patriot Act. Yet Congress ignored the people and renewed even the most egregious constitutional violations anyway. How did we get to this point? Why is it that out politicians simply feel that they can ignore voters? Well, Judge Andrew Napolitano has put together a series of videos on the Constitution and American politics. And one of those segments does a very good job of explaining how our government has gotten so screwed up.