proof of investor fear gold soared. our experts have you covered. the best advice for you and your money. from the new york stock exchange to our money managers, ashley webster up first from the floor. so, ashley, what were traders telling you about this wild session? well you know what? almost become normal, hasn t it? there is nothing normal about this. we have traders staring at the screens. two things going on today, sell equities buy gold. other people saying you know we saw a little bit after comeback this afternoon on news that opec may be open to cutting production. they said how sad opec is one thing out there that can make our markets move higher. there is a sense of anxiousness that is not only for the global economy but for the economy here in the u.s. you mentioned the financials, deirdre, certainly concerns about european banks. that added to the rough feelings if you like of how secure is the system right now? how secure. the banks here. had janet yellen talk
smokes. we head to davos as liz claman looks at healthcare.gov. tackling the obamacare website. the man who says his company is fixing healthcare.gov. we have the story from davos, switzerland. gerri: all that and more on the willis report where consumers are our business. gerri: we begin tonight with growing concerns president obama s plan to eliminate tax breaks for 529 plans will penalize middle-class americans and force them to send their kids to two-year community colleges. only the wealthy say the president s opponents will be able to afford the four-year degree for their children. with more on this, brad blakeman former deputy assistant to president george w. bush and a republican strategist. let s start at the top here. this policy, to eliminate this tax break for middle-class americans, how does this help the middle class? it doesn t. it hurts the middle class. americans now there are 12 million accounts, seven million americans are paying in what they can sc
how do you do that? getting the most out of those home-related tax deductions? we have the ultimate guide to the best cruise ships, all based on consumer reviews. all that and more coming up on the willis report where consumers are our business. the gerri: tonight dealing with the explosive college costs in two very different ways. in a moment, students just plain refusing to pay their loans. but we begin in wisconsin where governor scott walker successfully frozen tuition costs. it is a bold move other states are watching carefully. governor walker wants to keep the freeze in place a few more years. he is facing stiff opposition from democrats but getting support where it matters most, the students. ryan grunwald is with us. vice chairman of college republicans of uw madison. senior at the school. welcome to the show, very good to have you here. so let s talk about what s going on here. are you finding support on campus for curtailing these spending costs? gerri grea
it is scary. scary knowing, i was could have ran into it or something. also, our users guide to paying for college. we ll crack the code on getting more financial aid. 2/3 of people receive some sort of financial aid. it is $150 billion worth of aid out there. gerri: stuck on a plane. a 50-minute flight turns into a nine-hour nightmare. so why does the airline get a free pass? tensions are high. all that and more, coming up on the willis report where consumers are our business. gerri: here we go again. president obama flexing his muscles considering bypassing congress in order to pad the government s pockets by raising taxes through executive action. here is what white house press secretary josh earnest had to say about it today. the president has asked his team to examine the array of executive authorities that are available to him to try to make progress on his goals. i m not in a position to talk about those in any detail at this point but the president s v
ask, positive at this do it, do not take money out of retirement accounts. gerri: get a bigger home without moving an inch. how do you do that? home improvement expert tom cite letter is here. airlines try sneaky way to charge more money. some say it is downright dishonest. we ll expose it. all that coming up on the willis report, where consumers are our business. tonight is the president turning his back on the middle class? mounting evidence like rising jobless claims and stagnant wages flying in the face of obama s rosy comments on the economy. in fact majority of americans say government policies are not helping their bottom lines. so will obama s middle class economics push morerpeople out of the middle class? we re asking peter morici, economist and professor at university of maryland smith school of business and republican strategist brad blakeman who served as deputy assistant to president george w. bush. welcome to you both. i will start with you, peter. big jo