Next Round's on Cindy After Bud Buyout

Jill and Joe Biden earned $333,000 in 2009

(NEWSER) - Tax Day means we get to peek into the personal finances of the Obamas. The president and first lady reported income of $5.5 million in 2009, most of it from his books. They paid $1.8 million in federal taxes and $163,303 in state taxes to Illinois. The first couple donated $329,100 to 40 charities, including gifts of $50,000 to CARE and the United Negro Fund. The president split his $1.4 million Nobel Peace Prize among 10 charities. The White House blog offers their returns in PDF form here . More»

(NEWSER) - The nation’s largest brewers plan to raise beer prices in the fall, the Wall Street Journal reports. Anheuser-Busch InBev—maker of Budweiser—and MillerCoors will further test the notion that beer is generally recession-proof. “The environment is very favorable, we think,” says an Anheuser exec. Both companies have been able to offset sales slumps by raising prices in the last year. More»

Jobs, perks, executive suites disappear

(NEWSER) - Things haven't tasted the same since InBev's takeover—and makeover—of Anheuser-Busch, the Wall Street Journal reports. Cost-cutting has become paramount at a firm once known for its cushy treatment of employees. Jobs have been sliced, executive suites knocked down, and benefits like free baseball tickets made rare. Anheuser-Busch Inbev “is like a start-up,” says the firm’s US boss. “That excites some people and turns off others.” More»

Vanquished GOP candidate presses supporters to 'get our country moving again'

(NEWSER) - John McCain released his first public statement today since conceding the election, congratulating President-elect Barack Obama and urging supporters to work together with the new administration, the Hill reports. “Although we were disappointed with the results,” the joint statement with wife Cindy said, “we must move beyond this campaign and work together to get our country moving again.” More»

Fuming campaign suggests paper find Obama's 'drug dealer'

(NEWSER) - The McCain campaign and the New York Times are at it again after the paper published a partly unflattering profile of Cindy McCain today, Lynn Sweet reports for the Chicago Sun-Times. Mrs. McCain’s lawyer fired off an angry letter at the Times, asking why it drudged up old stories on Cindy's drug use and charitable life. "You have not tried to find Barack Obama's drug dealer that he wrote about in his book," he wrote. “There is a terrific lack of balance here." More»