WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- At least three insurance companies have applied to the Office of Thrift Supervision to buy individual savings and loan companies as a means of getting large capital infusions from the Treasury Department's $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The insurers looking to get aid from the government bailout face new federal regulatory control risks if Treasury Secretary Paulson doesn't pull the plug.

Well, according to the American Research Group, Inc. , 1,100 adults were sampled to find that they will be spending half as much this year, $431, for loved ones. In 2007, $859 was spent; in 2006, $907; in 2005, $942; in 2004, $1,004; in 2003, after we declared victory in Iraq, $976; and so on.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Democrats and Republicans alike want to impose stiff conditions on any bailout of the auto industry — from limiting executive compensation and outlawing dividends to demanding union concessions. That is a sharp contrast to the big bank bailout, where Congress and the Bush administration set few restrictions.

The report came out from the University of Michigan and paints a bleak picture of the national economy

Two years ago, you couldn’t drive more than a mile in some parts of Portland without seeing half a dozen store fronts advertising easy, quick cash. All you had to do was pay 521 percent annual interest (APR) and the cash was yours.

Lincoln National Has No Current Plan To Raise Common Equity

When times get rough financially, who are you going to call? For many Navajos, bad economic times lead to legal problems and thousands each year seek help from DNA People's Legal Services Inc., the legal aid agency that has been representing low-income tribal members for more than 40 years.

(Special) - Investors always like the idea of protection with growth, but it becomes even more attractive in times of high market volatility like we're experiencing now.

Banks, savings and loans, insurers and credit companies are all vying for a piece of the remaining $125 billion of Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson 's program to recapitalize U.S. lenders.