US President Barack Obama on Saturday called on senators to complete passage of the $827bn stimulus package that was struck behind close doors late on Friday. US Senate Democrats agreed to cut their hopes for a larger economic stimulus package and support a compromise that would give Mr Obama an important but narrow victory. In his weekly radio and YouTube address to the nation, Mr Obama said he was pleased that the bipartisan compromise,...

President Barack Obama called bonus payouts at banks getting rescue funds “shameful” as he and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced the government will require financial companies getting aid in the future to cap compensation of top officials at $500,000 a year. “To restore our financial system, we’ve got to restore trust,” Obama said at the White House as he set out new rules for companies that seek “exceptional”...

With Congress moving toward passage of an $800-billion-plus economic stimulus plan, big government is back. Unabashed. With a vengeance. The stimulus is bigger than the Pentagon’s entire budget. It’s more than the United States has spent on the war in Iraq. And its hundreds of provisions reach into almost every aspect of American life — including workers’ paychecks, local schools, digital television and modernizing...

Euphoria was almost universal yesterday…except on Wall Street. “Dad, don’t pick on Obama,” said Maria, calling from California. “I watched the inauguration yesterday. It was moving. Really moving. They seem like such nice people…and they really want to do what’s right. At least, that’s the way it seems to me…” We watched the TV news. The British press focused on the race issue. Blacks...