By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
European shares traded lower early on Friday on waning hopes that U.S. President Barack Obama and key lawmakers would manage to reach an 11th-hour budget compromise.
President-elect Vladimir Putin's lavish promises of higher wages and benefits for soldiers, doctors and teachers were a key element in winning a new term in the Kremlin.
"Equities look set to exit 2012 with a whimper, after politicians in Washington said that a deal to resolve the budget issues is now very unlikely before the deadline," Chris Weafer of Moscow-based Sberbank CIB investment bank said in a note.
"Russia needs a different economic model if it's going to achieve the level of growth that's required to sustain stability, both economic and political," Mr. Weafer said.
