The night seems darkest right before dawn...
WASHINGTON -- Just as huge government debts have already wrecked countries throughout Europe, the Federal Reserve warned that the nation's mounting federal debt is a threat to America's economy. In testimony on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the United States has to do something to get its deficits under control. While Bernanke expressed the belief the economy "appears to be back on track," he cautioned it'll be difficult to get the rising federal debt under control. "The federal budget appears to be on an unsustainable path," the Fed chief said. He called on lawmakers to come up with a plan to reduce the federal deficit. The national debt currently stands at a massive $13 trillion. Five years from now, it's expected to grow just shy of $20 trillion, according to the Treasury Department. Budget hawks have been worried the U.S. is headed down the same financial path as Europe, which is roiled by debt crises across the continent.
(CNN) -- The Arabic-language network Al-Jazeera released a full transcript Monday of the most recent videotape from Osama bin Laden in which the head of al Qaeda said his group's goal is to force America into bankruptcy. Al-Jazeera aired portions of the videotape Friday but released the full transcript of the entire tape on its Web site Monday. "We are continuing this policy in bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy. Allah willing, and nothing is too great for Allah," bin Laden said in the transcript.
"From the very beginning of his terror campaign, bin Laden's fight was with the Saudi rulers of the Arabian Peninsula," [CBS News Consultant Fouad] Ajami wrote in The Wall Street Journal. "America was to pay for its protection of the House of Saud. The causes bin Laden picked up along the way — the cause of Iraq, the call of Palestine — were always incidental to him, weapons of convenience."
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