The Senate commemorated the Columbus holiday Oct. 11 by holding a special session to pass the corporate tax bill, also known as the FSC/ETI bill. The previous week the House had passed the bill, which was designed to remove certain corporate tax subsidies on exports which had been ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization two years ago. The new tax breaks hit the nation at a time when corporate tax revenue has dropped to a historic low -- and the federal deficit has climbed to an all-time high. Last week, the Congressional Budget Office reported the FY 2004 federal deficit hit a record $413 billion.

In the past few days, the government released separately two numbers showing record deficits: The final fiscal year 2004 federal budget deficit of $413 billion -- the highest dollar value on record A monthly trade gap in August rising to $54 billion -- the second highest on record.

The U.S. employment situation remains weak as the Bureau of Labor Statistics September report showed an increase of just 96,000 jobs. That figure is far below the level needed to keep pace with overall population growth.