'Fast Money' Recap: A Risky Market for Investors

Gene Munster, an analyst from Piper Jaffray, appeared on the show to talk about Apple (AAPL Quote), which was up 5% today. Speaking from the MacWorld show in San Francisco, he said the company, for the first time, has been clear about the potential for risk after Steve Jobs attributed his weight loss problem to a hormone imbalance.

On the succession issue, he said the company has done a good job of getting a group of senior executives in front of investors and believes Tim Cook, who is currently running the company, is the strongest candidate to succeed Jobs.

As for the trade show, Munster mentioned the iMac and Mac Mini as the most talked-about products and expects an announcement on the iPhone Nano to come in the next two to six weeks. He also expects Jobs to make a big product announcement in that same time frame.

He said he is still positive on Apple because it offers "one of the biggest growth opportunities in the portable communications market --- the concept of a computer in your pocket." "People are under-estimating that," he said.

Ratigan asked Arthur Laffer, the noted supply-side economist, to comment on reports of Obama's stimulus plan, including a proposal for a huge tax cut for individuals and businesses.

Laffer said there has to be tax rate reductions for tax cuts to be meaningful. He also did not see much of a stimulus in Obama's proposed tax rebates for previous taxes paid.

He said the stimulus package is going to hurt the economy because it will result in a higher tax burden for the populace.