Clem’s Chronicles: Housing/GM/Burris-Blagojevich Audio Tape

Howdy folks-Clem Lane here. Here’s tonight’s missive:

HOUSING-Some good news on the housing front. While median prices continue to fall, there are signs, Betsy Stark tells us on WORLD NEWS, “that the relentless decline in home sales is bottoming.” And why not-being a buyer in this housing market looks pretty darn good. Stark explains: “The National Association of Realtors said today the median price of a home in the U.S. dropped more than 15 percent in the past year to $170 thousand. Add that to 30-year mortgage rates below 5 percent…and an $8000 federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers and many say the stars have aligned for buyers.” Those buyers? Stark tells us that “first-time homebuyers drove almost half of April’s sales”. What’s selling? Stark: “The homes that are selling fastest are small starter homes, especially those in foreclosure. Realtors estimate foreclosures accounted for a whopping 45% of sales in April.” Any good news for home sellers? Stark: “Economists say prices probably have further to fall but some are hopeful they too could stabilize by the end of the year.”
 
GM-Bad news for those of you holding out hope that GM would be able to skirt bankruptcy as they reinvent themselves into a 21st century car company. The company apparently has been unable to reach a deal with bondholders who hold some $27 billion in General Motors debt. Without that deal, bankruptcy looms. Chris Bury, reporting for WORLD NEWS,  says that “the deal fell apart because  G.M. couldn’t convince people like Hal John…to walk away from their investments for a pittance.” John had bought a couple hundred thousand dollars worth of GM bonds for his two daughters back in 2002 and G.M.’s offer to him? Hal John: “In terms of my investment, this is probably four cents on the dollar. It is egregious. It’s outrageous. It defies any kind of explanation.” Now bankruptcy-Bury describes it as “imminent”-means what? Bury: “The company that emerges will be owned largely by the U.S. Government which may spend up to $50 billion more on G.M. In return, it will own about 70%. The U.A.W. up to 20%. Bondholders and investors, the rest. “ Bankruptcy means a whole lot of hurt ahead for union workers/retirees, car dealerships, and for “taxpayers, soon to be the new owners, it is a giant gamble.”

CHRYSLER- (AP)Chrysler began a marathon bankruptcy court hearing today (in New York) to persuade a judge to approve its plan to sell most of its assets to Italian automaker Fiat and save itself from liquidation. The company was waiting to see whether Judge Arthur Gonzalez would approve the sale despite protests from a group of Indiana state pension and construction funds that hold less than 1 percent of Chrysler’s secured debt. If Gonzalez OKs the sale, the automaker could emerge from bankruptcy within weeks. After hearing about nine hours of testimony, the judge adjourned the hearing until Thursday and anticipated it could stretch through Friday.

BURRIS/BLAGOJEVICH TAPE-An audiotape was released today of a wiretapped phone conversation featuring Illinois Senator Roland Burris speaking with Robert Blagojevich, brother of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. The conversation occurred, Jon Karl told us on WORLD NEWS, in November 2008 “just six weeks before Burris was appointed to the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama.” The content? Karl: “Blagojevich gets right to the point: he wants money for his brother’s campaign….Burris gets to the point too: he wants the Senate seat.” On the tape, Burris can be heard discussing the pitfalls of looking like he’s trying to buy the Senate seat, and offers a possible solution. Burris: “And my law partner we were gonna try to do something at the law firm. I might be able to do this in the name of Tim Wright.” Karl notes that “the conversation ends with a promise from Burris to help Blagojevich”. Burris:”It will be done before the 15th of December”. So what does all this mean Jon Karl? Karl: “There’s no evidence that Burris ever went ahead and raised money for the governor, but this tape is especially damaging to Burris because back in January he denied, under oath, having discussions about the Senate seat with the Blagojevich team.”

SOTOMAYOR, THE DAY AFTER:  Discussion on judge Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination continued today.  White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Sotomayor has started to reaching out to senators, speaking to Senators Reid, McConnell, Leahy and Sessions on the phone.  Republicans, while acknowledging there is little chance they can prevent her from being confirmed, continued to raise questions about comments Sotomayor made during a speech at Berkeley in 2001.  On Twitter, Newt Gingrich called Sotomayor a “racist” and said “new racism is no better than old racism…white man racist nominee would be forced to withdraw. Latina woman racist should also withdraw.”  When asked about the comments, Karen Travers reports that Gibbs “said that it is important to look at the entire speech in context and look at her entire record when evaluating her.  ‘I think we can all move past YouTube snippets and half-sentences, and actually look at the honest-to-God record…and come to the conclusion that the president came to that we’ve nominated somebody that deserves [the nomination].’” Meanwhile, reaction from the Latin community has been enthusiastic.  John Berman reports: “Hispanics are the nation’s largest minority group (15.4%), and the fastest growing, projected to reach 30 percent of the population by 2050.  But in some ways under-represented; right now they make up under 6 percent of Congress.  Some see this moment as an historical marker, a pivot point.”  Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy has released a copy of the questionnaire Sotomayor has to complete as part of the nomination process.  Ariane DeVogue sent a copy of the questionnaire to the SCOTUS DL.  (thanks to Marisa Bramwell for this entry)

FAKE ABDUCTION:  A woman who faked her kidnapping and fled to Florida with her daughter is in the custody of  law enforcement officials. Authorities say Bonnie Sweeten called 911 several times Tuesday afternoon to report she and her daughter, Julia Rakoczy, were carjacked by two black men after a car crash in Bucks County and stuffed in the trunk of a Cadillac. Today authorities said surveillance tape showed Sweeten and her daughter at Philadelphia International Airport boarding a plane for a 3pm flight to Florida Tuesday.  Sweeten and Rokoczy were spotted at Disney World today and taken into custody.  Esposito/Shaylor/Friedman report: “As the investigation developed, investigators became increasingly skeptical of her abduction tale which was told against the backdrop of a probe into Sweeten’s alleged involvement in the theft of about $300,000, sources close to the investigation told ABC News.  Sweeten also had recently told a friend, investigators said, that she was feeling suicidal. Investigators say friends and relatives noted she was scared in the days prior to her disappearance.”  Law enforcement officials tell ABC News they are expected back in Philadelphia by Thursday.  (thanks to Marisa Bramwell for this entry)
 

MILITARY SUICIDES-With Army suicides at their highest level in nearly 30 years,  military commanders continue to try and address the problem. At Fort Campbell (Kentucky) today, Martha Raddatz tells us that “hundreds of soldiers were called together…to hear  a startling statistic from their commander.” That statistic? Since January 1st, Fort Campbell(Kentucky) has had 11 suicides, the most at any Army base. Commanders at the base have set aside routine duties for three days to find and help soldiers at risk of killing themselves. Raddatz tells us that “what is surprising about the suicide statistics is that it is not soldiers who have been deployed 2, 3, or 4 times here in Iraq or in Afghanistan. It is the soldiers who are on their very first deployment who are at the greatest risk.” What types of things are driving people to suicide? Raddatz says that “Relationship problems or the fear of disciplinary action are the most common causes of military suicides.” One add on Fort Campbell from the Associated Press-“ Fort Campbell leaders have asked soldiers on the post to look out for each other and paired them up through a "battle buddy" system. Unit leaders are also reviewing and updating lists of soldiers who may be a risk for suicide and are reminding them they can seek help from resources such as a chaplain or a hospital.” Raddatz, recapping the tragic shooting at a Baghdad combat stress center earlier this month, says it’s “yet another chilling reminder for military leadership that mental health problems are every bit as deadly as enemy fighters.”

PAKISTAN BLOODSHED:   There was a horrifying scene in the center of Lahore, Pakistan’s second largest city.  Lahore was once one of the county’s more peaceful cities.  But this was the third deadly attack there since March. Nick Schifrin went to Lahore to see what happened:  “At rush hour gunmen rammed a car into security barriers, outside the city’s emergency services building – then got out and started firing.  Moments later, the car blew up, killing police inside.”  The blast blew up two city blocks, leaving a huge crater, killing as many as 30 people and wounding another 250, many of them civilians.  Nick says the attack also targeted the local office of Pakistan’s premiere spy agency: “Ironically it was that spy agency that helped create militant groups in the first place – to fight India in Kashmir.  But now those groups are targeting Pakistan itself. And they are working with the Taliban – creating multiple terrorist fronts – fighting from the Northwest Frontier to the eastern province of Punjab.” The attack was believed to be revenge for the month-old army offensive against the Taliban in the Swat Valley.  (thanks to Ed Bailey for this entry)

OTHER STUFF-
–REMAINS IDENTIFIED AS MALE-Remember the remains found in the Des Plaines River last week? Well we don’t know who they belong to precisely, but we now know that they are that of an unidentified MALE. Speculation had centered on several high-profile missing females, including Stacy Peterson, the fourth wife of Drew Peterson who went missing in 2007.
–OIL PRICES-New high price for oil this year Benchmark crude for July delivery rose $1 to settle at $63.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices haven’t been that high since early November.  Oil prices dipped below $35 a barrel as recently as March. OPEC ministers meet tomorrow in Vienna. No production cut announcement expected. BBC is covering.
–BANK WATCH LIST-The FDIC said today that there are now 305 banks on its “watch list” up from 252 reported at the end of December. That’s a 21% increase. FDIC says these institutions have $220 billion in assets. On average, about 13% of banks on this list eventually fail. (Matt Jaffe)  note: Vic Ratner filed for ABC NEWS RADIO.
–SABERI MEETS WITH SEC OF STATE CLINTON-Roxana Saberi, the Iranian-American journalist recently freed after four months in an Iranian prison, met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today in Washington. Clinton said she was relieved that Saberi was free and Saberi expressed thanks for the support she got during her prison stay, saying it gave her "a lot of strength and hope." Note: Diane Sawyer conducts the first interview with Ms. Saberi since her return to the States. That interview airs Friday on GOOD MORNING AMERICA.