Need to know…

• Obama to Demand $1.6 Trillion in New Tax Revenues. President Obama will begin budget negotiations with congressional leaders Friday by “calling for $1.6 trillion in additional tax revenue over the next decade, far more than Republicans are likely to accept and double the $800 billion discussed in talks with GOP leaders during the summer of 2011.” President Obama, in a meeting with union leaders and other liberal activists, “also pledged to hang tough in seeking tax increases on wealthy Americans.  In one sign of conciliation, he made no specific commitment to leave unscathed domestic programs such as Medicare.”

• U.S. Deficit Grows in First Month of FY ‘13. The U.S. Treasury reports that the national budget deficit rose in October. The deficit was $120 billion last month, up from $98 billion a year earlier and larger than forecasts for a $114 billion deficit. Expenditures rose to $304 billion while receipts only rose to $184 billion, which increased the deficit. The United States reported a small budget surplus in September, the last month of FY 2012, but it was insufficient to keep the deficit below $1 trillion for the fourth year in a row.

• U.S. Housing Inventory Dropped in October. New data shows the number of U.S. homes for sale dropped 17% year-over-year in October, which could suggest weakening demand in the ongoing housing recovery. The Realtor.com website reveals a drop in inventory in all but five of the 146 housing markets covered. List prices remained flat or showed some increase, and the smaller October inventory could lead to growing list prices.

Worth the read…

• From Dissatisfaction Comes Innovation – Forbes
• Small Businesses Need Clarity and Consistency in the Tax Code – Washington Post
• Small Businesses Turn to Alternative Lenders – USA Today
• What the President Can Learn from Business Executives – Fox Business
• The Greatest Young Inventors in America – Forbes
• Energy Independence in the United States? Don’t Pop the Cork Yet – New York Times
• Geithner Warns Against Delaying Solution to Fiscal Crisis – Reuters
• Innovation Balancing Act – Huffington Post
• Small-Business Optimism Stays Steady – Wall Street Journal
• The Economy (Probably) Can’t Survive a Short Dive into Austerity Crisis – Washington Post
• Resources for Ex-Military Entrepreneurs – Fox Business
• The New Patent Law: End of Entrepreneurship? – Forbes
• Why Entrepreneurship and Crowdfund Investing Go Hand-in-Hand – Huffington Post
• Geithner’s Push for Money Fund Overhaul Sparks New Opposition – Businessweek