Congress continues to trash Social Security without adding the “very” necessary requirement of greater inputs to support what was already there and now adding a new funding requirement. Democrats have passed on providing a solution to Social Security shortfall which appears to be increasing with new withdrawals. Not that one always has to have a […]

So much accomplished with 64 Prescription Drugs by the Biden Administration. So much potential for dismantling these accomplishments by the incoming Trump administration. More discounted drugs. Also, a plan to counter increasing prices increasing faster than inflation. Companies will pay back to Medicare the additional costs. HHS Announces Cost Savings for 64 Prescription Drugs Thanks […]

 – by New Deal democrat My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha. The yield curve is now almost entirely un-inverted, but in part because longer term interest rates have risen (not such a good thing). Meanwhile a variety of short leading indicators stepped on rakes this week, which may be noise, or may be […]

Congress passed the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 early this morning.  None of the articles I read did a good job of describing the purpose of the provisions which were repealed, so you cannot judge whether this was a good or bad choice by Congress. I think it was a mistake because it increases […]

Dollar Stores Are Flashing a Warning Sign About Lower-Income Consumers. WSJ, Jinjoo Lee. Belt tightening from Customers at Dollar stores. Inflation has eased, wage growth has been decent and Americans on average still have more in savings than they used to pre-pandemic. Some might even say the economy has reached a much-vaunted “soft landing.” Low-income consumers, […]

Cap20 gave this explanation April 2024. Angry Bear posted it July 2024. Here we are in December 10, 2024. Years later and the bill has yet to pay for itself. The bill will be repealed unless Congress acts as It was passed under the Reconciliation rule. Has Congress lost integrity from its failure? Republicans do […]

Brief Review of the Economy: Press Release: US Leading Indicators. LEI for the US Increased in November CEI also Improving. LEI Three positive occurrences, today December 20, 2024.  Future economic activity increased 0.3 in November for the first monthly gain since 2022, on strength in the stock market, decreasing unemployment claims, and improvement in building permits. Conference […]

An Unparalleled Record of Support for Federal Student Loan Borrowers  Biden-Harris Administration Approves Additional $4.28 Billion in Student Debt Relief for Nearly 55,000 Public Service Workers, U.S. Department of Education Federal Student Loan Portfolio-by-Age.xls Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has been committed to helping borrowers who have struggled with the burden of student loan […]

 – by New Deal democrat Adjusted for inflation, both personal income and spending came in positive once again in November. But under the hood, the report looked a little tepid, and while it certainly wasn’t recessionary, the data was consistent with what I would expect later in the cycle of an expansion. For the record, real […]

Technically a good report. Not what they were expecting. The economy is still strong at the end of 2024. The third estimate of the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the third quarter of 2024 shows the economy grew at a 3.1% annual rate, which is higher than the 2.8% forecasted.  Factors contributing to the […]