Obama Mulls Tax Cuts Beyond Republican Plans [Bloomberg]
President Barack Obama may press Congress for tax cuts that would exceed his past proposals as well as some of the offerings from House Republicans to strengthen his hand in talks on measures to boost the U.S. economy, according to a person familiar with the discussions. With Obama set to lay out his plans in a Sept. 8 address to Congress, the administration is focusing on cuts targeted at middle-income Americans to spur consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the economy, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss in.

News Corp. Alters Board; CEO’s Son Skips Bonus [WSJ]
News Corp. nominated venture capitalist James Breyer to its board and said two current directors will leave, in a shakeup that adds a new outside voice to the company’s board as it faces criticism of its corporate governance in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal at its U.K. newspaper unit. Mr. Breyer will replace Thomas Perkins, another venture capitalist who has served on News Corp.’s board since 1996. Separately, Kenneth Cowley, a former News Corp. executive who became a director in 1979, will leave the board, the company said. Both Mr. Perkins, 79, and Mr. Cowley, 76, were expected to retire. The company will decide later whether to add another director to fill the open spot.

US banks offered deal over lawsuits [FT]
Big US banks in talks with state prosecutors to settle claims of improper mortgage practices have been offered a deal that is proposed to limit part of their legal liability in return for a multibillion dollar payment. The talks aim to settle allegations that banks including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial seized the homes of delinquent borrowers and broke state laws by employing so-called “robosigners”, workers who signed off on foreclosure documents en masse without reviewing the paperwork.

The Post-Labor Day Letdown [WSJ]
Labor Day stirs up a unique range of emotions. While some people love the prospect of crisp, cool air, football and fall fashions, others experience a stab of dread this time of year as vacations end, school starts up and pressures mount at the office. “I really get into the joy of life on vacation and it always takes me awhile to get back into the joy of contract law,” says Helen Bender, a law professor in New York. There are few studies or statistics on the end-of-summer malaise, but therapists, career coaches—even marriage counselors—report an increase in people seeking help in early fall. “Change is always hard and this is a time when both nature and our lives are changing,” says Betsy Stone, a psychologist in Stamford, Conn.

Mandatory Audit Firm Rotation and Greek Bond Accounting: What Might Have Happened? [Accounting Onion]
Tom Selling: “[In] Hans Hoogervorst’s recent letter to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), […] he expressed concern for the pie-in-the-sky numbers produced by some EU banks on their Greek bonds classified as ‘available for sale’ (AFS). Now, I would like to pose a hypothetical: what if mandatory auditor rotation had been in effect? Would Mr. Hoogervorst’s letter have been unnecessary?”

The Case Against Summer [WSJ]
Supposedly, summer vacation happens because that’s when the kids are home from school, although having the kids home from school is no vacation. And supposedly the kids are home from school because of some vestigial throwback to our agricultural past. This is nonsense.

Microsoft accountant facing prison for $1 million theft [SPI]
An accountant who admitted to stealing from Microsoft Corp. to teach his bosses a “lesson” will likely be sentenced to prison Tuesday. Pleading guilty to money laundering in December, Randal Ray Seal stole $1.1 million while working as an accountant at the Redmond corporation. Seal had become disenchanted in his work following a series of layoffs and a management change in his department. In a letter to the court, the 54-year-old faulted himself for worrying more about his ego than his conscience.

~ Morning, gang. We’ll be doing a half day today, so we suggest you do the same. Have a great three-day weekend and we’ll see you back here on Tuesday.

U.S. Is Set to Sue a Dozen Big Banks Over Mortgages [NYT]
The federal agency that oversees the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is set to file suits against more than a dozen big banks, accusing them of misrepresenting the quality of mortgage securities they assembled and sold at the height of the housing bubble, and seeking billions of dollars in compensation.

SABMiller Queries Foster’s Financial Statement [Bloomberg]
SABMiller Plc (SAB), which has made a hostile $10 billion bid for Foster’s Group Ltd. (FGL), questioned the Australian brewer’s statements on its financial performance and net debt in a submission to the country’s Takeover Panel. The Australian government agency received the application from SABMiller, according to a statement on the panel’s website. A panel hasn’t been appointed and no decision has been made to conduct proceedings, the government agency said. SABMiller argues there is “no reasonable basis for several forward-looking statements” in Foster’s fiscal 2011 results presentation, according to the statement. The world’s second- largest brewer by volume sought an order that Foster’s clarify “misleading and deceptive” remarks.

Investors to SEC: Please Don’t Switch to IFRS [CFOJ]
When SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said in June that investors aren’t clamoring for International Financial Reporting Standards, she may have been understating things… a bit. Now, some of the biggest U.S. investor groups are letting the SEC know in no uncertain terms that it should postpone its decision on IFRS and even stop the convergence process between U.S. GAAP and IFRS.

Boeing’s Tax Assets Could Trump Liabilities for Years [CFOJ]
In total, the company has tax liabilities of roughly $10.7 billion. That’s compared to $14.4 billion in deferred tax benefits, which means it ultimately won’t pay anything to the IRS unless the value of those assets erode.

U.S. Showed No Job Growth in August; Rate Stays at 9.1% [NYT]
The net addition of no jobs in the month was down sharply from a revised 85,000 gain of jobs in July, the Labor Department said Friday, and was far below a consensus forecast by economists of 60,000. The unemployment rate stayed constant at 9.1 percent in August.

Undocumented workers got billions from IRS in tax credits, audit finds [WaPo]
The Internal Revenue Service allowed undocumented workers to collect $4.2 billion in refundable tax credits last year, a new audit says, almost quadruple the sum five years ago. Although undocumented workers are not eligible for federal benefits, the report released Thursday by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration concludes that federal law is ambiguous on whether these workers qualify for a tax break based on earned income called the additional child tax credit.

D.C. Circuit: ‘The IRS is Not Special’ [TaxProf]
I won’t have it!

Salesforce Chief Calls Accounting Criticisms “Ludicrious” [SFC]
In fact, [Mark Benioff] says, Salesforce set the standard for other software-as-a-service companies that came after it.

KPMG Announces Nationwide Community Service Campaign at More Than 200 Non-Profits to Mark 9/11 Anniversary [KPMG]
As part of the “Service in Remembrance” campaign, taking place from September 6-11, thousands of KPMG partners and employees will volunteer at more than 200 non-profits across the country. “We look forward to being a part of something extraordinary, as the KPMG family proudly joins millions of Americans in support of the National Day of Service,” said KPMG LLP Chairman and CEO John Veihmeyer.