Blackstone Partners Profit on IPO Taxes

Budget would institute 'Buffett Rule,' boost infrastructure

(NEWSER) - President Obama officially unveiled his $3.8 trillion budget today, and as expected it draws a 2012 battle line, calling for higher taxes on the wealthy combined with spending measures intended to bolster the economy, the AP reports. "We built this budget around the idea that our country has always done best when everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules," Obama said, according to CNN . "This is not about class warfare. This is about the nation's welfare." More»

Experts offer healthy dose of skepticism

(NEWSER) - After Facebook's IPO filing on Wednesday, analysts are abuzz over a suggested $75 billion to $100 billion valuation. If the social network is to live up to the hype, it'll have to be "the next Google—or better," experts tell MSNBC . Opinions from around the web:

• Sure, 845 million active monthly users and $3 billion in yearly revenue is nothing to sniff at. But a $75 billion valuation would make Facebook worth 40% of Google, whose profits are 11 times the social network's—whose growth may already be slowing, MSNBC notes.

Company's ticker symbol will be FB

(NEWSER) - Mark Zuckerberg's little startup filed papers with the SEC today to become a publicly traded company. Some of the Facebook particulars:

• The company says it plans to raise $5 billion, but that figure is expected to rise to perhaps $10 billion by the time the big day arrives in the spring. (The AP thinks the stock will debut in May.)
• The Wall Street Journal pegs the company's potential value at between $75 billion and $100 billion.
• The ticker symbol will be FB, though the filing didn't specify which exchange would be used for trading, notes MarketWatch .
• The company reported $3.7 billion in revenue in 2011, up from about $2 billion in 2010. Analysts expected $4.3 billion, says the Journal.

Filing 'an American milestone'

(NEWSER) - The company Mark Zuckerberg founded in his dorm room eight years ago is expected to file for Silicon Valley's biggest-ever initial public offering today. The Facebook IPO will aim to raise $5 billion, and will value the company at between $75 billion and $100 billion, insiders tell Reuters . The filing paves the way for the stock to start trading in May, and many observers expect a twist, possibly involving a way in for Facebook's 800 million users. "Pandemonium is what I expect in terms of demand for this stock," an IPO expert tells AP . "I don't think Wall Street would want to anger Facebook users." More»

Anti-tax advocate reveals plan for Republican majority

(NEWSER) - Anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist sat down with the National Journal recently to talk tax cuts, Republican majorities, and ... the impeachment of President Obama. Let's start with Norquist's ideal outcome in the 2012 elections: "If the Republicans have the House, Senate, and the presidency ... you extend the Bush tax cuts out for a decade or five years." The impeachment part comes if Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich happen not to win the White House. More»