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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (714864)	11/23/2005 2:15:15 PM
From: tonto	Respond to of 769667

DJ Prudential Starts Oil-Sector Coverage On Positive Note By Jim Jelter SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones)--Convinced that there's more upside in the booming oil industry, Prudential Equity Group initiated coverage of the group Friday with a favorable overall rating, based on the strength of the underlying energy market. But the brokerage doled out mixed reviews on individual stocks, some of which are now close to being fully valued following a year of banner profits. "We have a favorable rating on the integrated oil sector. While energy-commodity prices have pulled back from their September highs, along with the equity names, the fundamental operating environment remains strong," Prudential analyst Jason Gammel wrote in a research note. Among market trends pointing toward sustained growth, Gammel cited oil prices that are managing to hold at around $55 a barrel, resurgent U.S. demand for refined petroleum products and the likelihood of continued strong natural-gas prices going into the winter, due to lingering production outages in the Gulf of Mexico. "In this environment, we expect that the integrated oil companies should continue to post outstanding results: We expect earnings will grow by about 9% in 2006 vs. 2005, and that the average return on capital employed will be 28% in 2006," Gammel said. But in launching coverage of six of the world's biggest publicly traded oil companies, Prudential sees only two - Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and BP Plc (BP) - deserving to be overweighted in investors' portfolios. Ratings on Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) and Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO), were started at underweight, while Chevron Corp. (CVX) and ConocoPhillips (COP) were assigned neutral ratings. Exxon Mobil, having just handed in a third-quarter profit of $9.92 billion on record-high revenue of $100.7 billion, scores highly in all areas, according to Gammel. The analyst believes the company's share price still has room to grow; he also thinks Exxon will continue to reward shareholders through strong dividends and share buybacks, and to top the industry for return on capital while it continues to keep pace with demand by replenishing reserves. "Based on our 2006 oil price forecast of $55 a barrel, we expect the company will generate a 36% return on capital employed, best among the integrated oil companies," Gammel said. He put a $69 target on Exxon Mobil's share price. BP also was launched with an overweight recommendation for pretty much the same reasons, with Gammel especially impressed with the company's ability to boost its reserves in the face of rising world demand. He set a $76 target on its share price. Chevron, the No. 2 U.S. oil company behind Exxon Mobil, garnered a less enthusiastic neutral rating, due mainly to what Gammel called its modest production outlook. Nevertheless, he predicted the company would post a 30% return on its investments, slightly ahead of the 28% average expected for the group. He assigned Chevron a target price of $65. ConocoPhillips joins Chevron with a neutral rating due to a shareholder yield that Gammel estimated at 5% in 2006, slightly trailing its bigger rivals. He set a $72 price target on the company. Royal Dutch Shell lagged the pack "based on relative valuation a flat production outlook, and below-average returns on capital employed," Gammel added. He forecast a 24% return on the company's capital outlay. At the same time, he estimated Royal Dutch Shell will spend about $4 billion next year buying back shares which, with a 4% dividend yield, will generate a shareholder yield of about 5.8%. That's roughly comparable to the 7% total shareholder yield expected from Chevron or 5% but about half of the 11.8% expected from BP. Royal Dutch Shell shares received a $65 price target. Marathon Oil also was started by Prudential at underweight, carrying a $61 price target. Gammel said Marathon's shares are nearly fully valued and the company faces "modest" 1% production growth in 2006. "We view Marathon as largely a refining margin play, and while we see refining margins remaining reasonably strong in 2006, we believe that the market has reflected these conditions in Marathon's stock price," Gammel said. -Contact: 415-733-0500 (END) Dow Jones Newswires November 18, 2005 14:33 ET (19:33 GMT) Copyright (c) 2005 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.- - 02 33 PM EST 11-18-05

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (714864)	11/23/2005 2:42:52 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Respond to of 769667

then who ever remember who is kerryflipflopper ?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (714864)	11/23/2005 2:50:33 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Respond to of 769667

bad news for kennyboy: turkey going to sewers--Jobs Picture Is Looking Brighter By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 2:35 p.m. ET WASHINGTON (AP) -- Falling energy prices have economists believing improvement is on the way for hiring, which has been mired in a hurricane-related lethargy for the last few months. When the government's new snapshot of the nation's employment climate is released next week, many economists are forecasting payrolls will have grown by more than 200,000 for November, a solid rebound from two dreary months. The rationale behind this expected bounce back: Business people are in a better frame of mind and more inclined to step up hiring now that energy prices have retreated from record highs and the energy supply and transportation disruptions from the trio of Gulf Coast hurricanes are fading. Brian Bethune, economist at Global Insight, is predicting the Labor Department's monthly employment report out next week will show a gain of around 215,000 jobs for November. ''We'll have very solid overall job gains that will punctuate the start of more normal activity in terms of employment,'' Bethune said. While the overall economy has weathered fallout from the hurricanes well, the labor market has felt more deeply the devastation from the storms. In September, employment declined for the first time in two years; in October payrolls grew by just 56,000 -- a subpar performance. High energy prices -- made worse by the hurricanes -- was cited as a big factor. Striking a more positive note about the situation going forward, Federal Reserve policy-makers at their Nov. 1 meeting said the hurricanes only ''temporarily depressed'' employment. The Labor Department reported Wednesday that new applications filed for jobless benefits rose by 30,000 to 335,000 for the week ending Nov. 19. But even with the increase, the level of claims is well below October's weekly average of 350,000. ''I think any number below 350,000 is associated with good job growth,'' said Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics. ''I think we are definitely getting back on track for fundamentally good job generation.'' Mayland is predicting the Dec. 2 unemployment report will show the economy added 250,000 jobs in November. Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29. Rita barreled into the region on Sept. 24. Those storms battered crucial oil and gas facilities, choked off commerce and destroyed businesses. Wilma, which hit on Oct. 24, caused widespread power outages and property damage across Florida. Hurricane-related job losses last week came to 21,000 -- well below their peak in September. That brought to 582,400 the total number of layoffs related to Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma over the last 12 weeks. Still, Bethune and other economists believe business confidence is improving as energy prices ease. Oil prices briefly shot up past $70 a barrel in late August, and gasoline prices topped $3 a gallon. Oil prices now are hovering around $58.15 a barrel, while gasoline prices last week were averaging around $2.30 a gallon. With energy prices easing and job growth expected to pick up, retail groups and economists are upgrading their forecasts for the holiday shopping season. The National Retail Federation now predicts holiday sales will increase 6 percent from last year. An earlier forecast called for a 5 percent rise. Even with the moderation in energy prices, though, the Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates again on Dec. 13 to keep inflation under control. And, for all the predictions of a jobs rebound, there is still reason to be guarded. Economists can't always forecast a bulls-eye. Last month's job growth of 56,000 was about what half what economists had predicted. Even if overall job growth improves, not all industries will reap the benefits. Car makers and manufacturers in particular are expected to continue to face challenges. ------ On the Net: Labor Department: dol.gov

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (714864)	11/23/2005 7:19:24 PM
From: DuckTapeSunroof	Respond to of 769667

Re: "Nevada, Virginia, Missouri, Florida, Ohio and Iowa." Weren't those all 'Red' or 'Purple' the last go-round? Geeze! (But they still seem to love him in Idaho and Utah! :) Guess it's a good thing for the Grand Old Party that he won't be heading up any more tickets.... What gets my attention is that he's net down 20 points in Nevada and Virginia! And down more in Missouri (22 points) and Florida (24 points) then in Hawaii (only down 21 points there). And down 27 points in Ohio --- sheesh!

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (714864)	11/23/2005 7:39:09 PM
From: DuckTapeSunroof	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769667

Two-to-One Majority Believes Bush Administration 'Generally Misleads Public on Current Issues to Achieve Their Own Ends' prnewswire.com Majority also believes the 'Scooter' Libby affair is an 'indication of a larger problem in the Bush administration' ROCHESTER, N.Y., Nov. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Ever since President Bush's 2004 election victory, the polls have been reporting the more or less steady decline in his popularity, and last week The Harris Poll(R) reported his ratings had fallen to a new low, only 34 percent positive. There are obviously many reasons for this decline, which probably include the events in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, the legal problems of Congressman Tom Delay and Senator Bill Frist, the indictment of "Scooter" Libby, and continuing concerns about the economy (notwithstanding its continued growth). One measure of the president's political problems is that by 64 to 32 percent, virtually a two-to-one majority, many people believe that the Bush administration "generally misleads the public on current issues to achieve their own ends." Replies to this question, like public attitudes on many political issues, are highly polarized. A large 68 to 28 percent majority of Republicans believe that "the Bush administration generally provides accurate information regarding current issues." On the other hand, even larger majorities of Democrats (91% to 7%) and Independents (73% to 25%) believe that the information provided is generally misleading. These are the results of a Harris Poll of 1,011 U.S. adults surveyed by telephone by Harris Interactive(R) between November 8 and 13, 2005. Other results of this poll are: * A 56 to 18 percent majority of adults believe that Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who has been charged with perjury and obstruction of justice, is guilty. * A 35 percent minority believes that the "Scooter" Libby affair is "an isolated incident," whereas a majority (55%) thinks it was "an indication of a larger problem in the Bush administration." Here again, opinions are highly polarized. Fully 70 percent of Republicans believe this was an isolated incident, but only 12 percent of Democrats and 29 percent of Independents agree with this. The Supreme Court Better news for President Bush comes with replies to a question about the Supreme Court. Only a 42 percent minority of all adults think that President Bush is trying to make the Supreme Court too conservative. This includes 63 percent of Democrats and 67 percent of liberals, but only 16 percent of Republicans and 20 percent of conservatives....