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Why we should invest in GM, Ford and Chrysler

First, the United States Congress should pass and the president of the United States should sign a rescue package for General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, post-haste.

If this was the "Roaring '90s" or even the "Fabulous '50s," an operational cessation by General Motors (NYSE: GM), Ford (NYSE: F) and Chrysler, would hurt the U.S. economy. As investors know, however, we are not in the 1990s or the 1950s, but in a teetering economy, and an auto sector cessation would be devastating, driving the U.S. economy into a deeper and longer recession.

Second, the notion that only companies that "perform" in the free market should continue and that others, the underperformers, should fail, as an absolute rule, simply has not been the history of the United States economy. Moreover, dozens of companies receive billions of dollars in subsidies from the U.S. government, which is you, the taxpayer.

Need a few examples? Let's do what the late, great New York Governor Al Smith would do: Let's look at the record.

Continue reading Why we should invest in GM, Ford and Chrysler

Profiting from the Bush military industrial complex

The current administration's stock market performance is likely to be a prouder legacy than the one which it will leave in Iraq. Nevertheless, as of yesterday, it is at the bottom of the last ten administrations -- just below that of Richard Nixon. Here are the presidents ranked from best to worst in terms of average annual S&P 500 returns during their tenure:

  • Bill Clinton: +17.40%
  • Gerald Ford: +17.00%
  • Harry Truman: +15.60%
  • Dwight Eisenhower: +14.90%
  • Ronald Reagan: +14.40%
  • George H. W. Bush: +14.40%
  • John Kennedy: +12.40%
  • Jimmy Carter: +11.20%
  • Lyndon Johnson: +10.20%
  • Richard Nixon: +0.60%
  • George W. Bush: +0.56%

But this administration's S&P 500 performance masks the enormous stock market benefits resulting from its Industrial Policy -- the application of national leadership to favor specific industries. By betting correctly on which industries a new leader's policies will help, investment opportunities could emerge. To that end, in May 2001, I began to think about which industries would benefit from an oil man in the White House. This led to the W-Industrial Complex (WIC) Index which tracks stocks in the energy, defense, conservative media, and high-end retailing industries.

Continue reading Profiting from the Bush military industrial complex

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA+44.2910,291.26
NASDAQ+15.822,166.90
S&P 500+5.501,098.51

Last updated: November 11, 2009: 05:28 PM

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