The White House and the Congressional leadership are almost in agreement on the terms of the bailout for the Detroit Three. They all agree the auto makers will get something to keep the afloat until March, and they all agree it’s going to be less than the $34 billion the CEOs have asked for. So, how about $15 billion? In exchange for the money, the car companies would be barred from paying dividends to their shareholders or bonuses to their executives as long as the loans are outstanding. They would have to give taxpayers warrants to buy their stock, and submit to an audit by the Government Accountability Office and the special inspector general for the Treasury's financial bailout program. The Bush Administration insisted that the funds come from the existing loan program established further fuel-efficient technologies. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is not happy about this new development. In a letter to the Senate Banking Committee Chairman, Christopher Dodd, Bernanke said the central bank opposes lending to U.S. automakers without congressional action to aid the companies, and suggested options including bankruptcy reorganization. A thin ray of optimism in the U.S. housing market? U.S. pending home sales for October showed a modest decline from the previous month and only a 1% drop year-on-year, much better than the predicted 3%. Most experts agreed that this is encouraging news. However, there were some who cautioned that any optimism should be reserved until December, when it will be clear whether the purchasers of homes currently under contract were able to obtain financing. And if you are currently looking for a job, don’t go knocking on Barack Obama’s door: 300,000 people already did. Alas, there are only 3,300 openings. Now, THAT’S a tough job market!