Amidst all of the talk of hockey moms, jabs at Democrat Barack Obama, and media bashing, there was not much discussion of the weak economy at this week's Republican National Convention.
In fact, the Republican gathering was notably short on talk of the main issue on the minds of voters. Sure, there was "drill baby drill," but is that really an economic policy? Can Americans drill their way out of the credit crisis? Can we drill our way out of the housing slump? Can we drill our way to prosperity?
"As we head into the closing night in St. Paul, there has so far been no reference to the weak economy," Kudlow said on the network's blog before John McCain's acceptance speech last night. "There has been no economic-recovery message and no growth message."
Interestingly, the Republican platform contained language inserted by economic conservatives rejecting the Bush administration's rescue of Bear Stearns Cos., and possible bailouts of Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE), according to Bloomberg News. The document purposely did not mention the credit crunch because delegates were afraid that any solution that they would offer might make things worse, Bloomberg says. The GOP's embrace of free trade may sell well on Wall Street, but it won't win votes on Main Street where workers are fearful of their jobs being shipped to lower-cost countries overseas.
No wonder the GOP did not say much on the economy.
Most Americans are suffering because of high gas prices, a volatile stock market and plunging home prices. Though technically the economy may be strong and may not even be in a recession, most people and businesses believe they are worse off than they were a year ago.
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is about to enter the "No Spin Zone."
The Illinois senator is due to be interviewed by Fox News' Bill O'Reilly, host of the "The O'Reilly Factor," on Thursday, the final night of The Republican National Convention, according to TVNewser.com. I am sure executives at Fox parent company News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) were high-fiving each other when that interview was secured. The clash between the suave Obama and the bellicose O'Reilly will make for interesting television. It will be like a car accident on the highway that people can't help themselves from gawking at.
Maybe Obama views it as a chance to show his supporters that he is not afraid of O'Reilly, who is a pussy cat compared with Russian strongman Vladimir Putin. It's also quite a contrast to the strategy of Republican John McCain, who is keeping the media at an arm's length. His campaign even canceled an interview the candidate had scheduled with CNN's Larry King because it did not like the tough questions anchor Campbell Brown asked its spokesman about the qualifiicaitons of his running-mate Sarah Palin.
Both the Democratic and Republican conventions have been a dream come true for the cable news channels. More people tuned into CNN, which is owned by Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), for Obama's acceptance than for Fox, MSNBC and the broadcast networks. The address got more viewers than the American Idol final, the Oscars, or the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.
Fox, though, continues to attract more viewers overall, especially during the Republican get-together in St. Paul. General Electric Co.'s (NYSE: GE) MSNBC is gaining viewers too, though some may be curious to see if its feuding on-air personalities will break into a fist fight. All three of the cable news networks are raking in major bucks from those annoying 30-second TV spots that are an unfortunate part of American political life.
A winner has already emerged from the Obama-O'Reilly confrontation before a single punch has been thrown: News Corp. head Rupert Murdoch. The media baron lusts for the power to set the nation's political agenda. Come Thursday night, that's exactly what he will be able to do.
Right here, in my hometown of Minneapolis-St.Paul, the Republican National Convention is set to begin. The hotels, restaurants and bars are abuzz and a table for four is a tough reservation to secure!
The convention has been tempered down as the nation watched Hurricane Gustav, the first and most important priority. As the hurricane dwindles into just a huge rain storm, the convention can resume its course.
They say that once the conventions are finished, the nation truly focuses in on the presidential election. The 15% or so who watch the primaries in earnest will be joined by the other 85% who have tuned out. Well, now it's time to tune in. Both McCain and Obama have interesting and fascinating backgrounds; both have come such different paths to their respective party's nominations.
Many said Obama is inexperienced, until his campaign totally outmaneuvered the Clinton machine -- so much for inexperience. Senator Joe Biden brings 36 years of Washington experience to the ticket, although I'm not sure if that's really relevant in this election.
McCain electrified the Republican base by naming Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. Her experience is also limited, although she does have executive experience, far more than Biden, Obama and McCain combined! The addition of Governor Palin has, at least locally here in Convention City, mobilized a great number of voters who were warm, maybe lukewarm, to Senator McCain. Many in Minnesota thought our governor, Tim Pawlenty, would grace the ticket with McCain. Politics makes for strange bedfellows though.
Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call August 6, 2008 10:30 AM ET
Management Summary
Operator
Welcome to the Time Warner second quarter 2008 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) Now I will turn the call over to Doug Shapiro, Vice President of Investor Relations. Thank you, sir, you may begin.
Doug Shapiro, Vice President of Investor Relations
Thanks and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Time Warner's 2008 second quarter earnings conference call. This morning we issued two press releases: one detailing our results for the second quarter; and the other reaffirming our 2008 business outlook.
Before we begin, there are a few items I need to cover. First, we refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures. Schedules setting out reconciliations of these historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures are included in our earnings release or trending schedules. These reconciliations are available on our web site at timewarner.com/investors. A reconciliation of our expected future financial performance is also included in the business outlook release that is available on our web site.
Congressional Democrats, including Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va, are pushing for the enactment of a second economic stimulus bill worth $24 billion, including a $6 billion lifeline for the beleaguered auto industry. Odds of it passing in a presidential election year are slim to none.
Democrats, though, are giving the people what they want. Regardless of whether it's a good idea or not, it's fantastic politics. Democrats can prove to voters, who are fed up with the lousy economy, that they "feel their pain," leaving aside the debate of whether it's needed.
That explains why House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., says that the second stimulus bill will need to have bipartisan support -- as the first one got -- because it is vital for the economy. Like the first economic stimulus plan, Byrd's bill will be temporary, targeted and provide disaster relief, according to CQ Politics.com.
"The Speaker earlier had vowed to enact a second measure, totaling at least $50 billion, before Congress leaves this year," the website says. "But the president and congressional Republicans have been less enthusiastic about the idea, repeatedly arguing that lawmakers should wait to assess the impact of the tax rebates and other incentives enacted in February."
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the JPMorgan Chase Q2 2008 earnings call. This call is being recorded.
Today's presentation may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and speak only as of the date hereof.
In addition, such statements are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties and the firm's actual returns may differ materially from those described in such forward-looking statements. Please refer to JPMorgan Chase's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Q for a description of the risk and factors that could cause the firm's results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.
eBay, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call July 16, 2008 5:00 PM ET
Management Summary
Operator
Good day and welcome, everyone to eBay's Q2 2008 earnings results conference call. Today's call is being recorded.
With us today from the company is the Chief Executive Officer John Donahoe and the Chief Financial Officer Bob Swan. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Mark Rowen, VP of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.
Mark Rowen, Vice President of Investor Relations
Thank you, operator. Good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for joining us and welcome to eBay's earnings release conference call for the second quarter of 2008. Joining me today on the call are John Donahoe, our President and Chief Executive Officer; and Bob Swan, our Chief Financial Officer.
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call July 15, 2008 5:30 PM ET
Management Summary
Operator
Good day, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the second quarter 2008 Intel Corporation earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the presentation over to your host for today's call, Mr. Kevin Sellers, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please proceed, sir.
Kevin Sellers, Vice President of Investor Relations
Thank you and welcome everyone to Intel's Q2 2008 earnings conference call. Joining me on today's call are Chief Executive Officer Paul Otellini and Chief Financial Officer Stacy Smith. This call is being webcast live and a replay will be posted to our website at approximately 5:00 PM Pacific time and will remain there for approximately two months.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call July 15, 2008 8:30 AM ET Management Summary
Operator
Welcome to the Johnson & Johnson second quarter 2008 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the conference call over to Johnson & Johnson.
Louise Mehrotra, Vice President of Investor Relations
Good morning and welcome. I'm Louise Mehrotra, Vice President of Investor Relations for Johnson & Johnson, and it is my pleasure this morning to review our business results for the second quarter of 2008. With me on the call today is Dominic Caruso, Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer.
A few logistics before we get into the details. This review is being made available to a broader audience via a webcast accessible through the investor relations section of the Johnson & Johnson website. The press release that was sent to the investment community earlier this morning includes the schedule showing sales for major products and/or business franchises to facilitate updating your models. The press release is also available on the Johnson & Johnson website. I will review highlights of the second quarter 2008 results for the corporation and for our three business segments. Following additional remarks from Dominic, we will open the call to your questions. We expect the total call to last approximately one hour.
Genentech, Inc. (NYSE: DNA) Q2 2008 Earnings Conference Call July 14, 2008 4:45 PM ET
Management Summary
Operator
I would like to welcome everyone to the Genentech second quarter 2008 earnings conference. (Operator Instructions) It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Ms. Katherine Littrell, Vice President of Investor Relations. Ms. Littrell, you may begin.
Katherine Littrell, Vice President of Investor Relations
Thank you, Gerald. Good afternoon everyone and thank you for joining our Q2 2008 earnings call. We have posted an earnings call slide set on our website, as per our usual, on www.gene.com.
This call is being electronically recorded and is copyrighted by Genentech. No reproductions, retransmissions, or copies of this conference call can be made without the written permission of Genentech.
Genentech Inc. (NYSE: DNA) to report Q2 earnings; conference call at 4:45 pm.
Tuesday, July 15
PDUFA date for Sciele Pharma, Inc. (SCRX)'s NDA for Aquelle for the treatment of head lice by asphyxiation.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 8:30 am.
Senate Finance Committee: International Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights meeting at 10:00 am with Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) appearing.
Welcome to the General Electric Q2 2008 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the program over to your host for today's conference, Dan Janki, VP of Investor Communications.
Dan Janki, Vice President, Investor Communications
Thank you. First of all, I would like to welcome everyone. Joanne and I are pleased to host today's conference call. The press release went out this morning at 6:30 AM with our financial information; that, along with today's presentation and supplemental financials, is available at our investor website at www.ge.com/investor. You can follow along via the webcast or you download and print the information. Today's presentation does contain forward-looking statements based on the world and economic environment as we see it today, and it is subject to change.
We will be going through today in the presentation an update on second quarter operations and financial results and our outlook on third quarter. To do that we have our Chairman and CEO, Jeff Immelt; and our Vice Chairman and CFO, Keith Sherin.
(Operator Instructions) Good day and welcome to this Marriott International second quarter 2008 earnings conference call. Today's call is being recorded. At this time for opening remarks and introductions, I would like to turn the call over to Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and President of the Continental European Lodging, Mr. Arne Sorenson. Please go ahead, sir.
Arne M. Sorenson, Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President, President - Continental European Lodging
Thank you, Kat. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to our second quarter 2008 earnings conference call. Joining me today are Laura Paugh, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations; Carl Berquist, Executive Vice President, Financial Information and Enterprise Risk Management; and Betsy Daum, Senior Director, Investor Relations.
Before I get into the discussion of our results, let me first remind everyone that many of our comments today are not historical facts and are considered forward-looking statements under federal securities laws. These statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties as described in our SEC filings which could cause future results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by our comments.
Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Q2 2008 Alcoa earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the presentation over to your host for today's conference, Mr. Greg Aschman, Director of Investor Relations. Please proceed, sir.
Greg Aschman, Director of Investor Relations
Thanks, Kim. Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for attending Alcoa's second quarter 2008 analyst conference. On today's conference Chuck McLane, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer will review the second quarter financial results. Klaus Kleinfeld, President and Chief Executive Officer, will highlight current market conditions, industry fundamentals and review Alcoa's strategic priorities. Bill Christopher, Executive Vice President and President of Alcoa's engineered products and solutions business will provide an overview of this business, including performance improvements and growth potential.
Amidst all of the talk of hockey moms, jabs at Democrat Barack Obama, and media bashing, there was not much discussion of the weak economy at this week's Republican National Convention.
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is about to enter the "No Spin Zone."
Time Warner Inc.
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JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Intel Corporation
Johnson & Johnson
Genentech, Inc.
Alcoa's Q2 2008 earnings transcript
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