Greek PM faces crucial confidence vote
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece's embattled prime minister faced a crucial confidence vote in parliament Tuesday over the new cabinet he formed to help pass the unpopular austerity measures needed to avoid a national default.
If Prime Minister George Papandreou's new government fails to get the necessary Parliamentary support in a midnight vote Tuesday, it would throw into question whether it can pass a new austerity bill by the end of the month as demanded by international creditors.
Expectations that Papandreou would win lifted world markets. His Socialist party holds a five-seat majority in the 300-member legislature, and a simple majority is needed to pass."Indications over the last 24 hours or so have certainly been that the government will survive, if only because the alternative would be so dire," said Beat Siegenthaler, an analyst at UBS.
"I will back the confidence vote — but I won't give a blank check," said Socialist lawmaker Panagiotis Kouroumplis.Without parliamentary approval for the Cabinet and the new measures, Greece will not get the next euro12 billion ($17 billion) installment of its euro110 billion ($157 billion) bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund — funds the country needs by mid-July to avoid default.
A default by Greece could spark a financial maelstrom around the world, dragging down Greek and European banks as well as stoking renewed fears over the finances of other eurozone countries, such as Portugal, Ireland and Spain.
Protesters planned to rally outside parliament ahead of the confidence vote, and Greeks faced rolling power cuts Tuesday by striking workers at the state power company, which is up for privatization.
If he loses Tuesday night, Papandreou will have little choice but to call early elections — or try to form a coalition government. However, all opposition parties have said they want elections.
But even after winning, he faces an even more difficult task: Getting parliament to back euro28 billion ($40 billion) worth of spending cuts and tax hikes as well as an unpopular euro50 billion ($71 billion) privatization program by the end of the month.
If the new austerity measures pass, the finance ministers of the 17-nation eurozone will meet July 3 to give Greece its next bailout installment.
Papandreou was forced to reshuffle his cabinet last week amid strong resistance from his own party to the austerity measures and the collapse of talks to form a coalition with the conservative opposition. He replaced his finance minister, appointing Evangelos Venizelos, the former defense minister.
Greece's European creditors and the IMF are also pushing for Greece's main opposition party to support the austerity measures, which have already sparked violent street protests. But Conservative leader Antonis Samaras says Greece's bailout deal should be re-negotiated and has called for cutting taxes to reinvigorate the economy and lift Greece out of recession.
Venizelos spoke with Samaras on Tuesday, and his office released a statement saying Samaras understood the government's need to stick to the timeline agreed by the eurogroup regardless of the opposition's position on the measures.
A key requirement from the eurozone and the IMF is that Greece steps up its privatization drive.European officials are also discussing a second, similar-sized bailout for Greece as it has become evident that Greece won't be able to return to the bond markets and raise money to pay creditors any time soon.
"I trust that the new Greek government will receive the confidence of parliament," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said after meeting Monday with Papandreou, but added the crucial vote was the one on the new austerity package.
"I therefore trust that Greece's elected representatives will back these measures next week in a spirit of national and indeed European responsibility," Barroso said. "These choices are not easy, but nor are the problems that need to be addressed. Now is not the time to falter."
While Greece has been locked out of the international market by exceptionally high interest rates demanded for its 10-year bonds, it has continued to issue shorter-term debt in the form of treasury bills.
On Tuesday, it raised another euro1.625 billion ($2.3 billion) but had to pay an interest rate of 4.62 percent for investors to part with their cash for just 13 weeks, up from 4.06 percent at an equivalent auction a month ago.
The result was discovered by Medicare officials who make long-range cost estimates, after the law was signed.
It would affect about 3 million early retirees. A married couple with an annual income of $64,000 could still get Medicaid. That's because starting in 2014, their Social Security benefits would no longer count as income.
The administration and Democratic lawmakers say it's a well-meaning effort to simplify rules. States want relief from Medicaid costs, a top issue in the White House budget talks with Congress.
Campaign spokesman R.C. Hammond is confirming to The Associated Press that fundraising director Jody Thomas and fundraising consultant Mary Heitman have left the team.
The former House speaker's campaign has been on life support since earlier this month when 16 top aides and advisers resigned en masse over disagreements with the Republican candidate.
People familiar with Gingrich's campaign spending say his fundraising has been weak since he launched his bid and that he has racked up large travel bills. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk openly about campaign inner workings.
Gingrich has insisted that he will stay in the race.
With the exception of Southwest, the no-frills airline where bags fly free, major airlines fail to satisfy leisure travelers and disappoint business travelers even more, according to the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index.
"There's been a bubbling discontent for airlines for some time, but the situation has worsened slightly from a year ago," said ACSI managing director David VanAmburg.
Travelers cited poor service, higher prices and fees for baggage and other services as the main causes of their discontent, it said.
Passenger satisfaction with airlines dropped by 1.5 percent to a score of 65 on ACSI's 100 point scale. Scores have generally hovered in the mid-to-low 60s for the last decade.
Southwest continues to reap top customer service ratings -- and a score of 81 -- in part because it has not taken anything away from customers and then offered it back for a fee, said VanAmburg.
"Now it's the Deltas and Uniteds and Americans that have to act like Southwest has for years," said VanAmburg of Southwest's minimalist service model.
Behind Southwest, Continental scored 64, American 63, United and US Airways tied at 61 and Delta dropped to 56 on the ACSI scale.
Surveys from 2,000 customers put airlines at the bottom of the heap of some four dozen industries tracked by ACSI, alongside newspapers.
Business passengers reported being the least satisfied.
"We're seeing a greater discontent among business travelers simply because they are putting themselves out there more to be let down by the airlines or an experience," said VanAmburg.
Recent mergers, known to have a detrimental affect on satisfaction, pose added pressure, he said.
Delta Air Lines plunged to the bottom of all the airlines for customer satisfaction one year after completing its Northwest acquisition, ACSI reported.
The fate of United, which absorbed Continental, and Southwest, which acquired AirTran, remained uncertain, it said.
(Reporting by Lauren Keiper; Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst and Greg McCune)
AP NewsBreak: Glitch in Obama's health care law
WASHINGTON – Government number-crunchers say President Barack Obama's health care law would let several million middle-class people get nearly free coverage by making them eligible for the Medicaid program for the poor.
The result was discovered by Medicare officials who make long-range cost estimates, after the law was signed.
It would affect about 3 million early retirees. A married couple with an annual income of $64,000 could still get Medicaid. That's because starting in 2014, their Social Security benefits would no longer count as income.
The administration and Democratic lawmakers say it's a well-meaning effort to simplify rules. States want relief from Medicaid costs, a top issue in the White House budget talks with Congress.
APNewsBreak: Gingrich campaign finance team quits
ATLANTA – The top fundraisers for Newt Gingrich's presidential campaign have abandoned his struggling bid amid anemic fundraising and heavy spending.
Campaign spokesman R.C. Hammond is confirming to The Associated Press that fundraising director Jody Thomas and fundraising consultant Mary Heitman have left the team.
The former House speaker's campaign has been on life support since earlier this month when 16 top aides and advisers resigned en masse over disagreements with the Republican candidate.
People familiar with Gingrich's campaign spending say his fundraising has been weak since he launched his bid and that he has racked up large travel bills. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk openly about campaign inner workings.
Gingrich has insisted that he will stay in the race.
Airline passengers fed up with service except for Southwest
BOSTON (Reuters) – Saddled with added fees and higher fares, travelers are fed up with paying more and getting less from major airlines, survey results released on Tuesday showed.
With the exception of Southwest, the no-frills airline where bags fly free, major airlines fail to satisfy leisure travelers and disappoint business travelers even more, according to the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index.
"There's been a bubbling discontent for airlines for some time, but the situation has worsened slightly from a year ago," said ACSI managing director David VanAmburg.
Travelers cited poor service, higher prices and fees for baggage and other services as the main causes of their discontent, it said.
Passenger satisfaction with airlines dropped by 1.5 percent to a score of 65 on ACSI's 100 point scale. Scores have generally hovered in the mid-to-low 60s for the last decade.
Southwest continues to reap top customer service ratings -- and a score of 81 -- in part because it has not taken anything away from customers and then offered it back for a fee, said VanAmburg.
"Now it's the Deltas and Uniteds and Americans that have to act like Southwest has for years," said VanAmburg of Southwest's minimalist service model.
Behind Southwest, Continental scored 64, American 63, United and US Airways tied at 61 and Delta dropped to 56 on the ACSI scale.
Surveys from 2,000 customers put airlines at the bottom of the heap of some four dozen industries tracked by ACSI, alongside newspapers.
Business passengers reported being the least satisfied.
"We're seeing a greater discontent among business travelers simply because they are putting themselves out there more to be let down by the airlines or an experience," said VanAmburg.
Recent mergers, known to have a detrimental affect on satisfaction, pose added pressure, he said.
Delta Air Lines plunged to the bottom of all the airlines for customer satisfaction one year after completing its Northwest acquisition, ACSI reported.
The fate of United, which absorbed Continental, and Southwest, which acquired AirTran, remained uncertain, it said.
(Reporting by Lauren Keiper; Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst and Greg McCune)
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