. >> cyprus and its days of turbulence. parliament is expected to vote on a new plan intended to raise funds and qualify the country r a bailout, staving off bankruptcy. the next few hours will determine the future of the country, said the government spokesman. in the meantime, with the banks closed this is a country in waiting. midday, the main shopping street here almost deserted. >> it is empty. this is one of the busy high streets. it's deserted. it's unbelievable. >> at the cash machines of a troubled bank, withdrawals are limited to 260 euros a day. >> they're afraid maybe next week -- this is our [inaudible] >> in the supermarket, there's evidence of a cash economy expanding. >> we have suppliers demanding cash. not all of them but some are in a panic situation and are demanding cash payments. >> so everyone is waiting to see whether the government can strike a deal with the e.u. by the deadline of monday and save the country from bankruptcy. the challenge for cyprus and its parliament is how to raise nearly $6 billi

cyprus is too small, doesn't matter, and the eurozone would survive if cyprus were to exit. taxing deposits, richard, in exchange for bailout funds should make europeans a little skittish because it could set a precedent for the future but cyprus is interesting for his geopolitical implications, particularly because of russia. there are suggestions that russia might demand rights to a naval base there, contracts to exploit gas, natural gas reserves under the island's territorial waters and 36% of europe's gas supply comes from russia already. that leverage over europe would only increase if russia gets involved in cyprus' natural gas. cyprus is important for that reason because europe doesn't want a whole lot more of russia in europe, but that's really the only effect it is going to have minimal effect on the rest of the world, richard. i don't think it matters all that much. >> oh, dear. the short answer, allie, is yes, even though cyprus is just that got on the map, a fraction of the eurozone economy, it is what it stands for politically, philosophically, monetarily, bigge

is giving cyprus has to be matched by the cyprus government coming up with about close to seven billion themselves the problem is they don't have the money and the only way they can get it out is out of their depositors now on the other side of the equation the germans will only agree to this bailout if the russians depositors which is a lot is about thirty billion dollars worth of russian money in those banks they don't get away scot free so there's a little bit of behind the scenes politics happening here in terms of who is getting hit i'm not sure that's michael but it's quite i mean a lot of russians are not happy about your head michel. they're not happy but i don't it's because of deposits in the central bank says up to seventy billion in deposits in cypriot banks seven billion is held by russian nationals that may be not underestimate but certainly nothing more than double that out of seventy billion now it's quite true that russian entities have loaned money to the. cypriot banks but it's a different matter overwhelmingly the people who are getting burned by this tax on deposito

not as much and you know like the math you just said that that cyprus is a special case but cyprus is is now in real trouble when the banks open on thursday . so i do think that we will have problems as we go down the line this is just the beginning cyprus yes absolutely there's no question that when the banks open you're going to see an exodus of money even because people are scared no one's taking a chance what's going to happen the week after because we still have the greek crisis unfolded from one day to the next you didn't know what was going on and so anyone who can will probably take all their money out especially foreign depositors and this is of course going to hurt the cyprus economy and the small depositor in multitude of ways so michael is it fear no more than anything else. well yes sure i mean we focus a little bit on small savers but they're not the only savers just on them you know if you were a bar owner or a taxi driver or something are you going to take a check from someone you going to take a. credit card payment i doubt it. but actually know what going to get is t

>> pretty grim prospects in cyprus. and in a speech to the cypriot people tonight, the president called the deal painful but he said it was the best he could get. for more on the reaction there, i spoke to the bb's tim wilcox. we have now some clarity on the deal that cyprus has struck with europe. does it look like the island's actually going to be worse off because of this? >> it's instinct because i've just been talking to one of the m.p.'s who voted against the proposals last week, which was going to have a 10% levy or hair cut on deposits over 100,000 euros and 6.7% for those under, and she admitted today for the first time, because she hasn't on previous occasions, that probably people would be worse off and that is because of the fundamental damage that this -- the bailout deal is going to do to the cypriot economy. leading economists here, nobel prize winning economists here are talking about this economy being in recession. perhaps really quite deep recession for as long as five years. and that is because a sma

cyprus's revisit a revising its bank plans or by easing the burden for those with small deposits but holders of more than a hundred thousand euros would lose almost ten percent of their cash the country's parliament is expected to vote on the package later today the president had moved to dip into people's pockets is to secure a vital cash injection from the e.u. and the i.m.f. plans are triggered a run on the banks and protests in the country more from lucy robson a journalism living in cyprus. there are several parties which are against this this option that is being proposed by the government it isn't guaranteed at all but the government has said that it is willing to revise the terms of any levies initially they were going to be quite harsh on small depositors but there have been terms proposed about anybody with less than twenty thousand euros in the bank being tax free with any any outcome from this decision if the government is toying with the idea of finding the five point eight billion required euros from other sources . government bonds could be involved also possibly bank

a hot of european eyes on cyprus this weekend. the p.m. of lebanon, najib mikati has revined -- resigned after his cabinet was unable to decide on how election should be carried out later this year. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has phenomenonny pologized for the death of troops. the reconciliation was brought on by president obama's trip to the middle east. our north american editor, who is traveling with the president, has sent us this report. >> at israel's holocaust memorial, president obama declared we must work for the light. but ermon than diplomacy the man was hoping to change the way america was seen in the world when we came into office. obama has shown a passionate respect for their country that is sweet music to israeli ears and many liked his push for peace. one newspaper declared "love has paid a royal visit." >> for our sons and daughters are not born to hate. they are taught to hate. so let us fill their young hearts with the same understanding and compassion that we hope others have for them. >> he mailed trib

news out of cyprus throws the stock market into a tizzy. in today's cover story, is outsourcing over? new signs u.s. companies are keeping jobs close to home. plus, is plastic losing its power? why younger generations are steering clear of credit cards. and, three ways bond traders are making money. first business starts now. you're watching first business: financial news, analysis, and today's investment ideas. good morning. it's tuesday, march 26th. i'm angela miles. in today's first look: stocks on a roller coaster ride: the dow ticked up to a record high early in yesterday's session on word a bailout deal would rescue cyprus. then worries surfaced about what the deal would mean for banks, sending the blue chips down 117 points to end the day with a 64-point loss. what a day. a new report shows coal consumption could rise higher this and next year due to strong demand. and a tweet moves tesla stock. late in the session, the co- founder tweeted something really exciting will be announced thursday, driving the stock up to $37. matt shapiro

and i think cyprus was probably a gift to the u.s. treasury market, to help keep rates very low and attract save investors. >> and we welcome now tim leetch. cyprus to you is so yesterday. you're watching slovenia, right? >> that's right, bill. >> slovenia? >> slovenia. we're trying to look over the horizon, as opposed to yesterday. and when we see the banking pressure on countries like cyprus, we think about what's next. and what does this really mean for the stability of the banking structure in europe as a whole. and we're concerned, frankly. we haven't seen the structural repairment that the europeans have had to step up to do. and certainly, cyprus hasn't convinced anyone that the european leadership has their act together. >> so, yesterday, the sell-off was the fear, and this was inflamed by the dutch finance minister, that maybe the cyprus bailout was a template for future bailouts of other countries, should they need that. is that what you're thinking as far as slovenia goes? >> well, to a certain extent, it could be. and that

neil: in cyprus explodes and banks reopened, let's see what happens to the residents of cyprus. people say oh, we are there for you. perhaps is next. that they >>. melissa: i'm melissa francis and here who is made money today. investors that are staying optimistic about cyprus. it is scrambling to win a last minute bailout to avoid collapse right now as we speak. the bulls are betting a deal happens before the monday deadline. the euro is rallying against the u.s. dollar, and, if you owned apple, you made money. a top analt expects the next iphone to arrive this summer. shares rallied 2% closing above the 50-day moving average. that is the first time since october 4th for that stock. look at that. but the big money winners of the day, anyone who bet on harvard basketball whoo-hoo!. my alma mater won its first ncaa ever, ever. the school has been around since 1636. upse number three seed new mexico. i will cash in with a wager i made with one of my guests this week, if harvard wins anything, if they win a single game, score one point i win. how about that? >> i send you joe's sto

we have cyprus out there. we know about that event. in my notes, cyprus equals vermont. looking about the same, sort of economic size that is out there. we don't think cyprus, the he will havements there will really de -- derail some of the positive developments unfolding in the peripheral eurozone bond markets. david: jack, let me take one country in particular mexico. because i've been reading a lot howe they're cracking down on some of their legendary corrupt union leaders. they're doing other things to release the supplyside of that economy to let businesses work with greater freedom. is mexico a big hit as far as you're concerned? >> it is. i talked a little bit the eurozone peripherals. there is opportunities there. but probably better opportunities in latin america and mexico is probably the lead on that. we've been building out positions in mexico over the last year. you're absolutely right. they're one. few countries that sort of is embracing supplyside economics. moving down this path of reforms. breaking up monopolies. david: including union monopolies. >> exa

why is the russian government so mad about the cyprus plan to tax accounts in cyprus? they are such money lauderers. many elizabeth warren threw out the rate of $22 an hour for minimum wage. i think she is nuts. first up, still licking their wounds from the november election, the republican national committee is out with a new report that outlines steps needed to reboot the party for 2016. among the proposed reforms, a streamlined process for earlier convention. improved outreach to women and young and minority voters. will the reforms be enough to give the gop brand a much-needed boost? joining us is mark stevens, ceo of msco and author of "your marketing sucks." with me the rest of the hour and i thought i introduced before, but i didn't, mark hanna and republican strategist chip saltsman. mark, what did this republican document do for the gop? >> it does nothing. it is a committee report adding to a pollution of noise that is going on in the republican party right now. the fact is as a marketing person, you cannot have a brand, talking about branding, you can't have

that cyprus is a unique situation. and i'ming looking at what you're looking at. >> haven as an offshore. >> a lot of money. >> about getting back at the russians. >> yeah. >> there it is right there. contagion risks are overrated. >> it's just not the origin. it's the size, the size of the banking system there is huge. >> three times gdp. >> no, no, no, eight times gdp. the average in europe is three times the gdp. here in the u.s. it's only one times gdp. they did that on purpose. >> some monday my is from russian. >> foreign money. >> we don't though that it's criminal money. it's packed opt plimized at a minimum is the way they describe it. they sought that money for sure. >> they are known for having lax money laundering laws. >> no comparison in the you r eurozone. >> excellent. >> switzerland was in this situation. >> going back to the initial point, greece was a very small country as well. 2% of the gdp of the eurozone and created a big problem which started that and spent the rest of the region. >> the size of

cyprus will receive the first payment worth $13 billion in early may. for more on the deal let's check in with cnbc's karen tso. >> looks like wall street will open up stronger as a result. these funds are crucially -- it's those deposit holders under 100,000 euros in the bank won't be targeted. those are safe but this bailout deal is still a disaster for those more than 100,000 euros, some wealthy businessmen and britons who have money in the banks will be targeted. basically we'll see banks shift deposits below 100,000 into the bank of cyprus to create a good bank, better means that uninsured deposit holders will hand over 4.2 billion euros and also those in bank of cyprus, the so-called good bank will be forced to make a contribution as well so the question marks from here, what happens with those who still have money invested in cyprus? will they try to remove it and capital controls are still in place in the country but many concerned that cyprus is still going to be a going concern from here and whether the country can reduce its gdp which stands

of capital out of cyprus's banks. they're trying not to let the money flood out of the country. this is what we're seeing at this very hour. still talk of a solidarity investment fund where people from around the world, countries from around the world can invest in the fund. still moscow is saying you know what? we'll not help out cyprus just yet. that's what we're hearing this hour. tracy: lizzie, we unfortunately don't have ton of time. this money is ours and we'll do what the hell we want with it. >> type produce's money is the government's, if they want the european central bank money. this is politically dicey for germany. that is why germany says, cyprus has to fund its own bailout with the bank deposit tax. we'll watch out throughout the weekend, if this flies it would be a big deal to stop, for the first time, a member country of the eurozone exiting in the 14-year history of the e.u. monetary union. adam: you have got to wonder people in spain and italy say i might want to get my money out. >> one point. talk

if you are a billionaire in europe and had a lot of money parked in cyprus and maybe cyprus or the euro zone not a smart place to park extra money. maybe that money would come here to the united states or be put in u.s. equities. >> channel, come on, work with me. >> channel? i mean, logically that makes a lot of sense, right? somehow it would find its way in the united states or u.s. equities of some form. i'm not convinced that's exactly what's going to happen. but we'll see. i think to his point, if cyprus is a template for the rest of europe, then that's a little scary. i understand that cyprus is not a big deal. someone mentioned this morning a cyprus is created every month or so in china. so i understand the size of cyprus is not a big deal, but maybe this is a template or this is sort of a precursor to things that makes it rather interesting, i think. >> still to come on "fast," much more on cyprus including how russian dollars could turn the pain into gains for other nations to this point heren o the desk. >>> plus, round two of "fast money" madness continues. big bank powers go

societe generale has subsidiary in cyprus. biggest banks in cyprus are local banks. david: boy, do you see this spreading, erin? we've got to go. do you see i had spreading beyond spain and italy and possibly even over here? >> i think that is not likely. it might even take a while to spread to spain and italy. that may only happen if we start it see worsening trends in credit walt. david: erin davis from "morningstar". good to have you on. thanks so much for explaining it. appreciate it. >> thank you. david: thank you very much. sandy, over to you. >> david, people might have a little less to spend this spring but that doesn't mean they won't be buying new clothes. you never sacrifice fashion. up next we've got a top analyst ready to share her fashion stock picks for your portfolio. >>> samsung's newest phone putting a lot of pressure on apple. find out how the tech giant is responding to the competition. log on to facebook.co facebook.com/afterthebell, click on the "like" button. tell us what you think is the best smartphone on the market right now. ♪ . today is

cyprus is no longer an island. cyprus is a tsunami. it scares me customers worldwide. that is what they are hoping to avoid this weekend. it depends on whether they deal with this. going to john brown, and our own nicole petallides on whether they can and will. nicole knows of what she speaks. her parents are from cyprus and she has visited there many times or so. these are wholly times. >> i am so glad that you're painting it in the proper way. this is .2% of europe's gdp. it is a small island and it is being menial to so many. but it paints a picture of what is going on there. which is catastrophic. you go in there and you are talking about confiscating peoples money. not letting them have access and availability to them. almost turning this over what really is a huge political battle around the world. the russians and germans and the eurozone and cyprus is caught in the middle. in the meantime from the people are not able to access their money. they don't have gas lines. they are not able to get gas. it is unbelievable the fact that they are living there. the fact t

uninsured deposits in cyprus will suffer a 40% to 80% cut. if you are a depositer, it's called what's called the pascal wager and a small probability of a very consequential event and you should move your money. >> one of the fundamental difference differences between the u.s. economy and euro zone. >> huge differences. the u.s. economy first and foremost dealt with the banking system up front and in a bold fashion. second, the u.s. economy is healing economically, so we are seeing the housing market recover, the corporate recovering the household, europe has yet to find growth. and thirdly, the u.s. economy has a flexible exchange rate which allows greater flexibility. >> thank you very much, indeed, for joining us. >> thank you. >> and the leaders of cyprus aren't the only ones under pressure these days. still to come on tonight's program, francois has only been leading france for a year and his poll numbers are already iving cause for concern. >> the berlin wall has been pulled down to make way for a building project. it's a controversial

neil: but this is one thing cyprus they argue might be cyprus, but i would imagine if this would spread to countries like greece and italy, and they were even to consider it, quite a develop reaction, what do you see? >> well, thank you, neil, and cyprus is the test market for this. i think it could spread throughout under if it is successful. if you look at cyprus, you are a citizen, you woke up this morning and you were informed that government closed down the atm, they chained doors on the banks and you can't have your money that undermines the trust in the banking system. neil: how are you going to avoid a bank run? even if they patch this over, are you telling me, someone of average intelligence is not going to say, i don't want to risk it, i am taking my money out to be safe. >> here is how bad it is, if you are a citizen of cyprus, you can't go to atm or the bank, you will be given a choice to vote, you can vote not to take bailout, and your bank fails your banking system fails and your country falls with chaos or take the bailout, have 10% of your money confiscated i believe sto

we've reports from moscow and cyprus, coming up next, please stay with us. >> situation in cyprus getting worse today, banks will not open until next week at the he earliest. good evening michelle. >> larry, another day, another attempt to try to come up with a rescue plan for cyprus, today cyprus suggested that they would try to raid a pension fund, and promise to pay the workers down the road. but that idea was not liked. additionally they are trying get money from trussia. there's a deep and close relationship with russia, they are trying to come up with a deal or a bailout. so far they are empty handed. in the meantime the banks are closed. the european central bank is flying in cash so the ats have money, they can only do it for so long. they can not under insolvent banks. and two of the banks are clearly insolvent. so they have a choice of shutting down a couple of banks or leaving the euro. >> as michelle said, the big part of the story is russia. will russia rescue cyrus and their own tax laundering haven. steve is in moscow. >> reporter: yes they came to russia looking for financ

is getting ready for cyprus. the bank of england suggesting the bank put $38 million aside just in case. just in case of what? >> it is frightening. pilot and cyprus and i hope it is no less at home we get the national debt wich is claiming steadily under control. we are frighteningly close to moving the direction of portugal and itay and greece and now cypress. neil: but our situation is not as nearly asdire although charlie gasparino said rear the tallest midget in the room. is that enough for now? i think the u.s. is the main beneficiary of the implosion which this is not just a couple of days in the making i talk about the stock market as a leading indicator the stock market was down 90% over the years preceded. if you look at stocks we have the u.s. dollar at the multi month high and u.s. stock market not far from the all-time high but bankamerica, a jpmorgan will do very well and made beneficiaries. neil: when i see england take the insurance fund out out, and i hear an italian depositors wory, obviously th

>> it's a train wreck that we see unfolding in cyprus. basically, what you're seeing here is a dictate from brussels and the european union directed by the germans. they no popular mandate for this move which in effect is highway robbery, really. a large number of cypriots are going to lose a huge amount of money as a result of this deal. it can only lead to potentially civil unrest. >> let me challenge you on this, highway robbery. >> this new plan is the most market-based plan i've seen coming out of the european union. what they're doing is they're basically holding wealthy depositors and other investors, shareholders, bondholders. this is a bail in among those people, not a taxpayer bailout. now i agree there are transition issues here and we're seeing one of these transition issues whether it's banks run in cyprus, but dan nile, this is what we should have done in the usa. we shouldn't have had taxpayer bailouts. we should have had bail ins and not the guaranteed depositors and it's the uninsured depositors. why not? >> i see it, rea

now they want to say that the little cyprus banks, bigger than cyprus itself, but the bigger cyprus bailout that taxes depositors is a line in the sand to cause a meltdown like synergy, they love irony. i'm telling you right here, right now, it won't. it didn't cause one last monday when people were unprepared for it then and it won't cause one this monday when people are prepared for it. what a terrible bailout it is. bye, bye, bye. i know everything pails in comparison to cyprus, but earnings did make or break stocks with nike to the upside and the fantastic quarter last night or oracle to the downside when it got crushed for a hideous quarter known for the horrendous number that is the company delivered. you know what? we'll have to pay close attention to earnings, even with cyprus, and that leaves us with dollar general, dg. it reports monday. last time dg spoke the company spoke about making less money per sale, that's the gross margin thing, and it was obliterated. the stock is in a comeback nicely above the horrific conference call we had last time. and that's the theme of this marke

yes, they have been discussing cyprus. they've secured ads 10 billion euro bailout package after a long night of tacks in the belgium capital with international lenders. laiki bank will be wound down. uninsured deposits greater than 100,000 euros in both banks will be frozen and subject to a levy. bondholders are set to be wiped out. those t bank of cyprus will have to make a contribution to the bailout. now, there has been a relief bounce this morning. equity markets by and large down around 0.5% for the ftse and the zex ra dax. the ibex is up around 0.9%. the ftse mib up 0.5%. unicredit up 1.8%. santander up 1.8%, as well. you have to remember, actually, if we were surprised by the lack of negative impact on the investors last week, there shouldn't be a huge bounce on the resolution, either. 1.2997 as far as euro/dollar. so a pretty small move on the euro after initially getting a bounce a little earlier this morning. we'll show you where we stand with the futures board at the moment. maybe we won't have u.s. futures. ri

how has this cyprus bailout package been. what has been the reaction from some of your fish bowls on this. the reaction has been very cautious in respect that we are the official standpoint by regulators by even bank bank officials and even the government has done to them one of the situation is being very much wanted to react and really basically everyone is on the is on the alert in case contagion spreads contagion the official position is contagion is not expected to spread because of this. however all eyes are on cyprus to see how the situation develops the feeling we are getting on the media is that nobody is underestimating the situation more that will be caught by surprise if it happens the cypriot a president said the e.u. is experimenting with his country the smallest states seem to be getting rougher treatment from the logic on a means that should multi be worried about this. it is true that the supreme bank bailout deal that was on president did in so far short of the bank lead which is the first time we have seen

max kaiser welcome to the kaiser report cyprus banks are going to open today no they aren't yes they are no they're not are they they haircut on the deposits is ten percent now is fifteen percent now it's forty percent now is there a percent or maybe it's one hundred percent cyprus is leaving the euro no it's not leaving the troika back to the plant no those are back to play yes it no it doesn't welcome to the new world order it's called yes no maybe and maybe you'd have gold silver and bitcoin taking you out of this mess or else your wealth is going to be well yes no or maybe the way stacey exactly max you know there's one thing that's never uncertain about all of these plans they have and that is that you yes none of them will work that's a good bottom line analysis yes they all don't work. so you know while panic goes was determined who is time to go sit the head of the central bank of cyprus be static because nothing's going to work that's how the gold panic goes on amazon it goes not the go to work around here it's all bad it was it he's the head of the central bank of cyprus th

deal forces cyprus to freeze all accounts over $130,000. there will limit prank withdrawals to about 1 1/3 dollars and closed its second largest bank this covers a harbinger of things to come in europe and even the united states? we will speak with economist richard wolff, author of, "democracy at work: a cure for capitalism." >> fundamentally, this is a struggle to take a crisis caused by the business community and make demands of people pay for it. that is what austerity means. the real test is whether the people will absorbent and accept it. >> all of that and more coming up. >> this is "democracy now!," democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. the government of cyprus has brokered a last-ditch $13 billion bailout deal with european officials to stave off the collapse of its banking sector. under the deal, on deposits above approximately $130,000 in the island's main banks will be frozen and used to help pay off the banking sector's debts. in addition, cyprus' second- largest bank will be shut down. an earlier version

cyprus? really. jane wells has been asking exactly that question on tw twitter. >> cyprus has a gross domestic product of $24 million. who are these people? we learned they really have a great sense of humor. one ad company parodied new york state of mind with state of mind. ♪ there's no toilets round, just a big hole in the ground ♪ >> see the whole hilarious video on my blog. how did one potential bank tax on an island give everybody a market wedgejy? i asked, it's like fill in the blank. here's responses. it's like a 20 buck battery grounding entire 787 fleet. an unpruned tree in ohio taking down the entire northeastern power grid. like a kim kardashian marriage. only lasts a short while and utterly meaningless. bloomberg banning large sodas. sailing a carnival ship and expecting to make it home. like me giving a rip about honey boo boo's next show. >> i love all of those. >> i liked them all till the last one. jane wells has clearly not redneckognized that's a hot show. >> when you have to su

middle east prices, if what happens in cyprus can spread to other places. there are other headlines out there that can hurt us. our unemployment number moving in the wrong direction. time will tell, but as for now we have built a series basin foundation. cheryl: thank you very much. reaction from the floor of the new york stock exchange. we will begin their 28 minutes from now when the bell will ring. nice market. positive reaction to what we have heard now from fed chairman ben bernanke. coming up, we will be talking with one of our favorite fed insiders. william poole. call in built. a former air reserve bank president. he will be joining me to get his reaction and talk about what he did in year -- didn't hear from the chairman did bernanke. we'll be right back. we'll be right back. ♪ all stations come overo mission a for a final go. this is for real this time. step seven point two one two. rify and lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is ptured. is connecti

see the same situation as cyprus? >> absolutely. we have banks that are literally telling us because we know from our controls that they are trying even to regenerate it. they are trying to get people to borrow more money again. we're not changing the way -- wage structure of america, which these people required to go into debt to supplement their wages. the irony is, we are trying to kickstart our economy, to get it going again. but the problem is, our economy was a train headed into a stone wall in the first years of this century. if we get our economy going again without fundamental changes, what we're doing is putting the same train back on the track headed toward the same wall. cyprus shows us what is happening. we don't have to take a small countries. take great britain, are classic ally. their economy is in the second or even in some people's minds, the third recession within the crisis since 2007. they are falling in austerity problem or process exactly like that supported by mr. boehner and the economic downturn in great br

actually a big win for citizens in cyprus. lawmakers rejected today an unpopular and unprecedented proposal to tax bank deposits. it was part of a larger eurozone bailout plan to rescue those banks and keep the nation solvent. the crucial vote came after a wave of protests, and as cypr t cypriots scrambled to withdraw cash from their atms. bertha coombs joins us with more on today's historic vote and what's ahead for cyprus? >> what's ahead is a very big question. the world was watching the tiny island nation again today, in a show of hands-on opposition, party members voted no on a tax and 10% of bank deposits, a condition set by eurozone officials to secure 10 billion euro bailout. many called it extortion. ruling party members abstained saying beyond saying no they need to find another plan. parliament's now adjourned until thursday as cypriot officials continue to appeal to the european unaelectoral bank, the ecb for new bailout terms. the government is hoping this defeat will give them leverage to negotiate new terms with

we'll go live to cyprus for that. and the newest story on the explosion of social security berths and the federal government is dishing out. what's the incentive to work when you can live off the government dole because of back pain? those outrageous numbers are next. friday night, buddy. you are gonna need a wingman. and my cash back keeps the party going. but my airline miles take it worldwide. [ male announcer ] it shouldn't be this hard. with creditcards.com, it's easy to search hundreds of cards and apply online. creditcards.com. >> astounding and sickening news numbers this morning on the entitlement explosion here in america. welcome to the new hour of "varney & company." i'm charles payne in for stuart. well, the number of americans on social security disability alone far outpaces the number of new jobs that are being created in this economy. in fact, here are the numbers for you. 14 million, that's how many disability checks the federal government sends out each month. the government spends more on disabled w

if this was about cyprus this wouldn't be a big deal. if they could do this and think about it this way, about cyprus when it starts to come to spain, if it ever gets to spain and starts to come to italy if it ever gets to italy, that that becomes the worry and then you have a run on those banks too. >> rose: is it a real problem is, a likelihood it run on spain and italy. >> i'm taking the position in this column and there are people take ag vy differt position on this that it actually won't create a run. the situation in cyprus is so unique and different and so small and the depositors and the economy are so such a different breed, the idea that there's all of this russian money with all this speculation, you know, that this is a tax haven and that this is money that people have questions about, that the way europe is approaching sigh pruls is not the way you'd awe approach these other countries and if you approach the other countries this way you crea real problemnd the know that. >>hat brings what happens to the parliament and what i

>> no, i'm not that worried about cyprus. i think there are obviously issues there, but i think they're very much containable. obviously, the ecb, i don't know what they thought they were doing there. they were clearly unprepared for the reaction, which is a little startling, but i don't think that's going to be a big conflagration. but what i would say, you know, i disagree with doug, i don't see a downside. for me, the risks are very symmetric. we're still very, very far from anything resembling full employment. you have to look very hard to find any basis for inflation in this economy. although i would agree the qe doesn't have a huge effect, it's something you could do. if you can boost the economy with no real risk to inflation, why would you not do that? >> i think the key is that they're spending bullets every day when they do this. and if cyprus turns into a broader your problem, they'll want to have ammunition to fight back, and they should. i worry about them doing things when they don't have to. and they proven. it

we have had these problems in cyprus. and the economy keeps on picking up what a little bit of momentum here. not fantastic momentum. but certainly more than i think people were expecting if you go back to two months to the -- two or three months to the end of last year. >> what's the most interesting thing about that, john? did it happen after the sequester or did it happen in light of, you know, no payroll tax holiday? or the fed is orchestrating it? >> i don't think the fed is orchestrating it. despite qe, i'm not sure how quantitative easing causes it at this point to cut back on lower. so what this jobs number signals is that layoffs are declining. maybe that means companies being more lean and mean are thinking five years after the the start of the financial crisis maybe it's time to get on with growth plans. this aligns with the payroll survey week and probably gives us a decent shot of another number above 200,000 for job creation, which would be good news. i'm not saying it's great. but i am saying despite all th