Obama’s Bid to Spur Growth [WSJ]
President Barack Obama called on Congress Thursday to pass a $447 billion package of spending initiatives and tax cuts to boost economic growth, in what might be the White House’s last chance to revive its political fortunes before the 2012 campaign kicks into high gear. More than half of Mr. Obama’s plan consists of payroll-tax cuts for employees and employers—an idea the White House hopes will appeal enough to Republican lawmakers—and is the policy that could have the best chance to pass.

Small Business Is Focus of Tax Cuts [WSJ]
[W]hile the payroll-tax cuts figure to appeal to Republican lawmakers, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor spoke favorably about the idea Thursday, the cuts face some resistance. Many Republicans and even some small-business advocates are opposed to more temporary tax breaks. Some liberal Democrats are nervous about reducing the taxes that are paid to support Social Security, even though the administration promises its plan would have no impact on the program.

New Regulators for Investment Advisers Proposed in U.S. House [Bloomberg]
One or more self-regulatory organizations would oversee U.S.-registered retail investment advisers under a draft bill by Representative Spencer Bachus, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. A Financial Services subcommittee is scheduled to hold a Sept. 13 hearing on investment adviser oversight. The meeting follows a Securities and Exchange Commission report suggesting a self-regulatory organization as one option for fixing the SEC’s inability to inspect investment advisers at a sufficient pace. Critics of the SEC have blamed the agency for failing to uncover investment frauds including the Ponzi scheme of Bernard Madoff.

Settlement Said to Be Near for Fannie and Freddie [DealBook]
Regulators are nearing a settlement with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over whether the mortgage finance giants adequately disclosed their exposure to risky subprime loans, bringing to a close a three-year investigation. The proposed agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, under the terms being discussed, would include no monetary penalty or admission of fraud, according to several people briefed on the case. But a settlement would represent the most significant acknowledgement yet by the mortgage companies that they played a central role in the housing boom and bust.

Why White-Collar Criminals Should Thank President Obama and Congressional Republicans [WCF]
Reports a reformed white-collar criminal.

Friday is D-Day to voluntarily tell the IRS about your offshore assets [Reuters]
A friendly reminder.

U.S. Sees ‘Credible’ 9/11 Terror Threat [WSJ]
The U.S. has received specific and “credible” intelligence that al Qaeda militants in Pakistan may be pursuing a plot to carry out car or truck bombings in Washington and New York City, timed with the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, officials said. U.S. officials said they received the intelligence within the last 48 hours, and that they are taking it seriously because of its proximity to the 9/11 anniversary. As one sign of the importance with which it is being handled, President Barack Obama was briefed on the threat multiple times on Thursday, and directed U.S. intelligence officials to “take all necessary steps to ensure vigilance,” a White House official said.

5 Easy Steps to Stanch the E-Mail Flood [NYT]
Step 1: Admit that you have a problem.

Rick Santelli to Tom Friedman: ‘You’re idiotic’ [TDC]
The discourse remains civil.

When CFOs Become Interim CEOs [CFOJ]
The ascension of CFO Tim Morse to the CEO position at Yahoo is unusual, especially when, as with Morse, the interim tag is applied. In the rare instances when a CFO assumes the interim chief executive position, it’s often because the company doesn’t have a more obvious choice among its operational executives, and wants to nonetheless project a sense of stability.

Blunt E-Mail Raises Issues Over Firing at Yahoo [NYT]
In the upper echelons o executives are forever leaving to pursue urgent opportunities, develop important new ventures or, that old standby, spend more time with their long-neglected families. Hardly anyone ever admits to being sacked. Even in cases where the executive has all but been bodily ejected from his executive suite — Rick Wagoner of prebankruptcy General Motors or Tony Hayward of post-oil-spill BP — the most they say is that they have been asked to step aside.

Taxes in the Age of Terrorism: Echoes [Bloomberg]
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the U.S. has been waging a different kind of war. It’s been both smaller and longer than previous wars, taking less money to fight and more time to win. It’s also been the nation’s first war to be fought entirely on credit.

Tax Cut Extension May Be Tough Sell [WSJ]
President Barack Obama’s push to extend the payroll tax holiday to spur economic growth may not be an easy sell, in part because some economists and lawmakers question if it’s delivering enough bang for the buck. In his speech to Congress Thursday, Mr. Obama is expected to lay out an economic plan with a price tag of $300 billion or more that includes extending the two-percentage point reduction in Social Security payroll taxes paid by employees and reducing the employers’ share.

Facebook doubles first-half revenue [Reuters]
Facebook’s revenue doubled to $1.6 billion in 2011’s first half, a source with knowledge of its financials told Reuters, underscoring its appeal to advertisers while it grapples with intensifying competition from the likes of Google Inc (GOOG.O). Net income in the first half of 2011 came to almost $500 million, according to the source, who wished to remain anonymous because privately-held Facebook does not disclose its results.

Supercommittee May Kick Off Tax Overhaul as It Focuses on Debt [Bloomberg]
The 12-member supercommittee holds its first meeting today in an effort to find $1.5 trillion in cuts in areas including defense spending and Medicare. On taxes, the group is likely to consider setting targets for major changes to be considered over the next year, before Bush-era income tax cuts are set to expire at the end of 2012.

Obama’s whopper of a claim on tax cuts [Fact Checker/WaPo]
The president’s Labor Day speech in Detroit featured an assertion that contained a number of warning signs that it might be an errant fact: “biggest middle-class tax cut in history.” First of all, anytime a politician claims he or she has done something historic, watch your pockets. That’s usually a dubious claim.