CNBC
"Key Fed inflation measure rose 2.8% in March from a year ago, more than expected"
Jeff Cox @JEFF.COX.7528 @JEFFCOXCNBCCOM
PUBLISHED FRI, APR 26 2024
KEY POINTS
* The core personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy increased 2.8% from a year ago in March, unchanged from February and slightly higher than expected.
* Personal spending rose 0.8% on the month, more than the personal income increase of 0.5%.
* The personal saving rate fell to 3.2%, down 0.4 percentage points from February and 2 full percentage points from a year ago.
Inflation showed few signs of letting up in March, with a key barometer the Federal Reserve watches closely showing that price pressures remain elevated.
The personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy increased 2.8% from a year ago in March, the same as in February, the Commerce Department reported Friday.
That was above the 2.7% estimate from the Dow Jones consensus.
Including food and energy, the all-items PCE price gauge increased 2.7%, compared with the 2.6% estimate.
On a monthly basis, both measures increased 0.3%, as expected and equaling the increase from February.
Markets showed little reaction to the data, with Wall Street poised to open higher.
Treasury yields fell, with the benchmark 10-year note at 4.67%, down about 0.4 percentage points on the session.
Futures traders grew slightly more optimistic about two potential rate cuts this year, raising the probability to 44%, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch gauge.
“Inflation reports released this morning were not as a hot as feared, but investors should not get overly anchored to the idea that inflation has been completely cured and the Fed will be cutting interest rates in the near-term,” said George Mateyo, chief investment officer at Key Wealth.
“The prospects of rate cuts remain, but they are not assured, and the Fed will likely need weakness in the labor market before they have the confidence to cut.”
Consumers showed that they are still spending despite the elevated price levels.
Personal spending rose 0.8% on the month, a touch higher even than the 0.7% estimate though the same as February.
Personal income increased 0.5%, in line with expectations and higher than the 0.3% increase the previous month.
The personal saving rate fell to 3.2%, down 0.4 percentage points from February and 2 full percentage points from a year ago as households dipped into savings to keep spending afloat.
The report follows bad inflation news from Thursday and likely locks the Fed into holding the line on interest rates through at least the summer unless there is some substantial change in the data.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that PCE in the first quarter accelerated at a 3.4% annualized rate while gross domestic product increased just 1.6%, well below Wall Street expectations.
With inflation still percolating two years after it began its initial ascent to the highest level in more than 40 years, central bank policymakers are watching the data even more intently as they contemplate the next moves for monetary policy.
The Fed targets 2% inflation, a level that the core PCE has been above for the past three years.
The Fed watches the PCE in particular because it adjusts for changes in consumer behavior and places less weight on housing costs than the more widely circulated consumer price index from the Labor Department.
While they watch both headline and core measures, Fed officials believe the index excluding food and energy provides a better look at longer-run trends as those two categories tend to be more volatile.
Services prices increased 0.4% on the month while goods were up 0.1%, reflecting a swing in consumer prices as goods inflation dominated since the early days of the Covid pandemic.
Food prices showed a 0.1% decline on the month while energy rose 1.2%.
On a 12-month basis, services prices are up 4% while goods have barely moved, increasing just 0.1%.
Food is up 1.5% while energy has gained 2.6%.
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/04/26/pce-inf ... rcent.html
THE ECONOMY
Re: THE ECONOMY
REUTERS
"Investors brace for 5% Treasury yields as US inflation worries mount"
By David Randall
April 26, 2024
NEW YORK, April 26 (Reuters) - As U.S. inflation worries grow, some investors are preparing for the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield to breach a 16-year high of 5% hit last October.
Bond yields, which move inversely to prices, have climbed in recent weeks as signs of persistent inflation erode expectations for how deeply the Federal Reserve will be able to cut interest rates without further fueling consumer prices.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year note is up 80 basis points this year and last stood at 4.70%, a five-month high.
Many investors are betting further weakness lies ahead for bonds.
Global fund managers' fixed income allocations in the latest BofA Global Research survey are down to their lowest level since 2003.
Bearish Treasury positioning among some classes of hedge funds stands at its highest level of the year, according to BofA data, even as other asset managers have increased their bullish bets.
"It all boils down to one word: inflation."
"If the market doesn't see signs that inflation is contained, then there's no reason that yields won't keep pushing higher," said Don Ellenberger, senior portfolio manager at Federated Hermes.
He has decreased his portfolio's interest rate sensitivity, wary that sticky inflation and labor market strength could push yields as high as 5.25%.
Further evidence that inflation is heating up again came on Thursday, with data showing the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index excluding food and energy rose far more than expected in the first quarter.
Futures markets showed investors now expect the Fed to deliver just 35 basis points in rate cuts this year, compared to the more than 150 points that were priced in at the beginning of 2024.
Another hot inflation reading on Friday, when PCE data for March will be released, could further close the window on rate-cut expectations this year.
More insights on the economy could come at the conclusion of the U.S. central bank's monetary policy meeting on May 1.
'HIGH-WATER MARK'
The level of Treasury yields is closely watched by market participants, as elevated yields can translate into higher borrowing costs for consumers and companies and tighten financial conditions in the economy.
A sharp run-up in yields during the latter part of 2023 sparked a sell-off in the S&P 500, though equities rebounded when yields reversed.
This year's rally in stocks has stumbled in recent weeks as yields have risen, with the S&P 500 cutting its gains to around 6% on a year-to-date basis, from more than 10%.
Some investors have used the weakness in bonds to add to their fixed income holdings, confident that yields are unlikely to rise much further unless the Fed says it is looking to once again raise its benchmark overnight interest rate from the current 5.25%-5.50% range.
Others, however, have been skeptical inflation will cool anytime soon.
"Inflation is not coming down like the Fed thought it was," said Arthur Laffer, president of Laffer Tengler Investments, who is bearish on longer-dated Treasuries and believes yields could rise as high as 6%.
"You're not getting paid to take risk in the bond market right now."
Michael Purves, head of Tallbacken Capital Advisors, wrote it's "not inconceivable" that the 10-year Treasury yield could reach its 2007 high of 5.22%, if higher prices for oil and other raw materials continue pushing up inflation.
The price of Brent crude is up about 17% on a year-to-date basis, even after retreating in the last week on easing fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.
Fiscal worries are another factor that could push yields higher.
Ratings agency Fitch downgraded the U.S. credit rating last year partly due to concern over rising debt levels.
Many investors anticipate a rise in term premiums - or the compensation demanded to hold long-term debt.
"The fiscal conditions of the U.S. are starting to matter, and it can put tremendous pressure on yields and push down on equity valuations in a very short period of time if the market starts to worry more," said Bryant VanCronkhite, a senior portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments, who expects 10-year Treasury yields to move above 5%.
Still, there are reasons to think a return to 5% yields would be a "high-water mark" for investors, said Alex Christensen, a portfolio manager at Columbia Threadneedle Investments who is overweight two-year Treasuries.
The market narrative that dominated since the so-called Fed pivot in December "was very one-sided and left little room for changes in the inflationary trend," Christensen said.
He believes the Fed is unlikely to pivot towards rate increases.
"We think the general inflationary trend is stable to lower," he said.
Reporting by David Randall; Editing by Ira Iosebashvili and Paul Simao
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/inve ... 024-04-26/
"Investors brace for 5% Treasury yields as US inflation worries mount"
By David Randall
April 26, 2024
NEW YORK, April 26 (Reuters) - As U.S. inflation worries grow, some investors are preparing for the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield to breach a 16-year high of 5% hit last October.
Bond yields, which move inversely to prices, have climbed in recent weeks as signs of persistent inflation erode expectations for how deeply the Federal Reserve will be able to cut interest rates without further fueling consumer prices.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year note is up 80 basis points this year and last stood at 4.70%, a five-month high.
Many investors are betting further weakness lies ahead for bonds.
Global fund managers' fixed income allocations in the latest BofA Global Research survey are down to their lowest level since 2003.
Bearish Treasury positioning among some classes of hedge funds stands at its highest level of the year, according to BofA data, even as other asset managers have increased their bullish bets.
"It all boils down to one word: inflation."
"If the market doesn't see signs that inflation is contained, then there's no reason that yields won't keep pushing higher," said Don Ellenberger, senior portfolio manager at Federated Hermes.
He has decreased his portfolio's interest rate sensitivity, wary that sticky inflation and labor market strength could push yields as high as 5.25%.
Further evidence that inflation is heating up again came on Thursday, with data showing the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index excluding food and energy rose far more than expected in the first quarter.
Futures markets showed investors now expect the Fed to deliver just 35 basis points in rate cuts this year, compared to the more than 150 points that were priced in at the beginning of 2024.
Another hot inflation reading on Friday, when PCE data for March will be released, could further close the window on rate-cut expectations this year.
More insights on the economy could come at the conclusion of the U.S. central bank's monetary policy meeting on May 1.
'HIGH-WATER MARK'
The level of Treasury yields is closely watched by market participants, as elevated yields can translate into higher borrowing costs for consumers and companies and tighten financial conditions in the economy.
A sharp run-up in yields during the latter part of 2023 sparked a sell-off in the S&P 500, though equities rebounded when yields reversed.
This year's rally in stocks has stumbled in recent weeks as yields have risen, with the S&P 500 cutting its gains to around 6% on a year-to-date basis, from more than 10%.
Some investors have used the weakness in bonds to add to their fixed income holdings, confident that yields are unlikely to rise much further unless the Fed says it is looking to once again raise its benchmark overnight interest rate from the current 5.25%-5.50% range.
Others, however, have been skeptical inflation will cool anytime soon.
"Inflation is not coming down like the Fed thought it was," said Arthur Laffer, president of Laffer Tengler Investments, who is bearish on longer-dated Treasuries and believes yields could rise as high as 6%.
"You're not getting paid to take risk in the bond market right now."
Michael Purves, head of Tallbacken Capital Advisors, wrote it's "not inconceivable" that the 10-year Treasury yield could reach its 2007 high of 5.22%, if higher prices for oil and other raw materials continue pushing up inflation.
The price of Brent crude is up about 17% on a year-to-date basis, even after retreating in the last week on easing fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.
Fiscal worries are another factor that could push yields higher.
Ratings agency Fitch downgraded the U.S. credit rating last year partly due to concern over rising debt levels.
Many investors anticipate a rise in term premiums - or the compensation demanded to hold long-term debt.
"The fiscal conditions of the U.S. are starting to matter, and it can put tremendous pressure on yields and push down on equity valuations in a very short period of time if the market starts to worry more," said Bryant VanCronkhite, a senior portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments, who expects 10-year Treasury yields to move above 5%.
Still, there are reasons to think a return to 5% yields would be a "high-water mark" for investors, said Alex Christensen, a portfolio manager at Columbia Threadneedle Investments who is overweight two-year Treasuries.
The market narrative that dominated since the so-called Fed pivot in December "was very one-sided and left little room for changes in the inflationary trend," Christensen said.
He believes the Fed is unlikely to pivot towards rate increases.
"We think the general inflationary trend is stable to lower," he said.
Reporting by David Randall; Editing by Ira Iosebashvili and Paul Simao
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/inve ... 024-04-26/
Re: THE ECONOMY
REUTERS
"Chipmaker Intel falls as AI competition hurts forecast"
By Reuters
April 26, 2024
April 26 (Reuters) - Intel shares slumped more than 12% on Friday after a downbeat forecast signaled that the boom in AI was diverting enterprise spending away from its traditional data center chips.
The stock has fallen around 30% so far this year as Intel trails rival chip companies such as Nvidia in producing advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips and components.
Intel forecast second-quarter revenue of $12.5 billion to $13.5 billion, compared with analysts' average estimate of $13.57 billion, according to LSEG data.
"While we believe they are doing everything they can to try to repair things, it is clear the company is profoundly broken, and it will take years to see the fruits of their (currently exhaustive) labor," Bernstein analysts said in a note.
Intel is planning a $100 billion spending spree across four U.S. states to build and expand factories.
It also unveiled a new AI chip earlier this year to keep up with competition.
Friday's drop was set to erase nearly $19 billion from the company's market value, which stood at $149.4 billion as of Thursday's close.
Businesses have prioritized spending on advanced and speedy AI server chips, hurting demand for Intel's central processing units, which had long been the mainstay chip powering data centers.
Although encouraged by the launch of Intel's Gaudi 3 AI chip, "we worry the company will continue to cede wallet share within the overall data center compute market to the likes of Nvidia and Arm", Goldman Sachs analysts said.
Still, Intel is optimistic that a fresh upgrade cycle for personal computers around a new version of Microsoft's Windows operating system will help PC sales in the second half of the year.
That could translate to more demand for its chips used in those devices.
The company's earnings contrasted strong results from Microsoft and Alphabet, which are Nvidia clients and also design in-house chips for their data centers.
Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath
https://www.reuters.com/technology/inte ... 024-04-26/
"Chipmaker Intel falls as AI competition hurts forecast"
By Reuters
April 26, 2024
April 26 (Reuters) - Intel shares slumped more than 12% on Friday after a downbeat forecast signaled that the boom in AI was diverting enterprise spending away from its traditional data center chips.
The stock has fallen around 30% so far this year as Intel trails rival chip companies such as Nvidia in producing advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips and components.
Intel forecast second-quarter revenue of $12.5 billion to $13.5 billion, compared with analysts' average estimate of $13.57 billion, according to LSEG data.
"While we believe they are doing everything they can to try to repair things, it is clear the company is profoundly broken, and it will take years to see the fruits of their (currently exhaustive) labor," Bernstein analysts said in a note.
Intel is planning a $100 billion spending spree across four U.S. states to build and expand factories.
It also unveiled a new AI chip earlier this year to keep up with competition.
Friday's drop was set to erase nearly $19 billion from the company's market value, which stood at $149.4 billion as of Thursday's close.
Businesses have prioritized spending on advanced and speedy AI server chips, hurting demand for Intel's central processing units, which had long been the mainstay chip powering data centers.
Although encouraged by the launch of Intel's Gaudi 3 AI chip, "we worry the company will continue to cede wallet share within the overall data center compute market to the likes of Nvidia and Arm", Goldman Sachs analysts said.
Still, Intel is optimistic that a fresh upgrade cycle for personal computers around a new version of Microsoft's Windows operating system will help PC sales in the second half of the year.
That could translate to more demand for its chips used in those devices.
The company's earnings contrasted strong results from Microsoft and Alphabet, which are Nvidia clients and also design in-house chips for their data centers.
Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath
https://www.reuters.com/technology/inte ... 024-04-26/
Re: THE ECONOMY
The Washington Examiner
"White House Report Card: Biden drives his approval rating into a ditch"
Story by Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner
27 APRIL 2024
This week’s White House Report Card finds President Joe Biden in a tornado of trouble.
Let’s start with his polling.
Gallup on Friday averaged other polling that has shown just how unpopular the president is.
Biden has dropped to a 68-year presidential low, 38.7% approval.
That is nearly 10 points below where former President Jimmy Carter was at this point in his presidency, and we remember what happened in his reelection bid.
That dismal approval rating puts Biden exactly 10 points below the bare historical minimum he needs to secure reelection, according to Gallup.
Next there is the economy.
Not only has inflation dug in and GDP petered out, but union workers are publicly ripping Biden’s leadership on live TV.
And there were more examples of the president’s stumbles and mumbles.
First there were reports of aides being ordered to walk between the president and media cameras to hide Biden’s feeble gait.
There were his weird and wrong claims that he used to drive 18-wheelers.
And he’s back to reading aloud directions to “pause” on his teleprompter.
Both our graders saw troubles this week.
Conservative Jed Babbin graded it a “D-minus” and highlighted moves by the White House to hurt the economy.
Pollster John Zogby graded the week a “C” and said the president’s stumbles have blocked chances to take advantage of problems facing his political foe, former President Donald Trump.
Jed Babbin
Grade: D-
President Biden’s war on the American economy continued with more regulations this week designed to bring it to a halt.
And that’s not the half of it.
You might remember former President Donald Trump’s 2017 remark that there were “very fine people” on both sides of the Charlottesville, Virginia. “white supremacist” rally.
Biden said that sparked his entry into the 2020 presidential race.
But this week he said something similar when talking about anti-semitic protests at colleges.
He condemned the hate talk, but added, "I also condemn those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians…”
Biden is still terrified of the Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) wing of the Democratic Party who won’t vote for him unless he bashes Israel and qualifies every defense of American values with defenses of the Palestinians and their ilk.
Biden also continued his EV push.
But his far-sighted regulatory regime is, at the same time, making it harder to produce electricity.
This week a final regulation was issued that requires coal and natural gas electricity producers to effectively cut all emissions by 2032.
For many the only solution will be to close, thus reducing the amount of electricity available.
If you want to shut down the U.S. economy, that’s one easy way to do it.
Meanwhile, inflation caused by Biden’s radical spending continues.
Old Joe celebrated Earth Day by subsidizing solar panels — more billions spent on nonsense.
Bidenomics continues to wreck our economy.
And let’s not forget Biden’s latest venture into “net neutrality” which will reduce competition on the internet and raise consumer prices.
Fortunately, there wasn’t a lot of international action this week, though the Middle East remains on edge following Israel’s response to Iran’s massive attack last week.
Finally, Old Joe claimed to have driven an 18-wheeler in his long career.
Of course, he never did.
And he managed to read out loud the instructions on his teleprompter to “pause” at one point.
His mental state continues to decline rapidly.
John Zogby
Grade: C
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are tied in a two-way and tied in a five-way race.
Not 'virtually' tied, but really tied.
And they are likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Biden should have been able to take advantage of Trump's legal and financial woes, gag orders and all.
But the current president got gob-smacked by pretty lousy economic news.
No sooner had Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan Chase, declared a boom economy, a new report showed the GDP grinding down to an annualized 1.6% growth rate and inflation jumping back to a 3.7%.
The president traveled to key battleground states touting federal spending that was generating jobs and winning adulation from the locals.
But his job approval is still at about 40% and he is still trailing in battleground states.
Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of former President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on X @jedbabbin.
John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Survey and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His podcast with son and managing partner and pollster Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Their firm polls for independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Follow him on X @ZogbyStrategies.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... fccc&ei=16
"White House Report Card: Biden drives his approval rating into a ditch"
Story by Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner
27 APRIL 2024
This week’s White House Report Card finds President Joe Biden in a tornado of trouble.
Let’s start with his polling.
Gallup on Friday averaged other polling that has shown just how unpopular the president is.
Biden has dropped to a 68-year presidential low, 38.7% approval.
That is nearly 10 points below where former President Jimmy Carter was at this point in his presidency, and we remember what happened in his reelection bid.
That dismal approval rating puts Biden exactly 10 points below the bare historical minimum he needs to secure reelection, according to Gallup.
Next there is the economy.
Not only has inflation dug in and GDP petered out, but union workers are publicly ripping Biden’s leadership on live TV.
And there were more examples of the president’s stumbles and mumbles.
First there were reports of aides being ordered to walk between the president and media cameras to hide Biden’s feeble gait.
There were his weird and wrong claims that he used to drive 18-wheelers.
And he’s back to reading aloud directions to “pause” on his teleprompter.
Both our graders saw troubles this week.
Conservative Jed Babbin graded it a “D-minus” and highlighted moves by the White House to hurt the economy.
Pollster John Zogby graded the week a “C” and said the president’s stumbles have blocked chances to take advantage of problems facing his political foe, former President Donald Trump.
Jed Babbin
Grade: D-
President Biden’s war on the American economy continued with more regulations this week designed to bring it to a halt.
And that’s not the half of it.
You might remember former President Donald Trump’s 2017 remark that there were “very fine people” on both sides of the Charlottesville, Virginia. “white supremacist” rally.
Biden said that sparked his entry into the 2020 presidential race.
But this week he said something similar when talking about anti-semitic protests at colleges.
He condemned the hate talk, but added, "I also condemn those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians…”
Biden is still terrified of the Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) wing of the Democratic Party who won’t vote for him unless he bashes Israel and qualifies every defense of American values with defenses of the Palestinians and their ilk.
Biden also continued his EV push.
But his far-sighted regulatory regime is, at the same time, making it harder to produce electricity.
This week a final regulation was issued that requires coal and natural gas electricity producers to effectively cut all emissions by 2032.
For many the only solution will be to close, thus reducing the amount of electricity available.
If you want to shut down the U.S. economy, that’s one easy way to do it.
Meanwhile, inflation caused by Biden’s radical spending continues.
Old Joe celebrated Earth Day by subsidizing solar panels — more billions spent on nonsense.
Bidenomics continues to wreck our economy.
And let’s not forget Biden’s latest venture into “net neutrality” which will reduce competition on the internet and raise consumer prices.
Fortunately, there wasn’t a lot of international action this week, though the Middle East remains on edge following Israel’s response to Iran’s massive attack last week.
Finally, Old Joe claimed to have driven an 18-wheeler in his long career.
Of course, he never did.
And he managed to read out loud the instructions on his teleprompter to “pause” at one point.
His mental state continues to decline rapidly.
John Zogby
Grade: C
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are tied in a two-way and tied in a five-way race.
Not 'virtually' tied, but really tied.
And they are likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Biden should have been able to take advantage of Trump's legal and financial woes, gag orders and all.
But the current president got gob-smacked by pretty lousy economic news.
No sooner had Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan Chase, declared a boom economy, a new report showed the GDP grinding down to an annualized 1.6% growth rate and inflation jumping back to a 3.7%.
The president traveled to key battleground states touting federal spending that was generating jobs and winning adulation from the locals.
But his job approval is still at about 40% and he is still trailing in battleground states.
Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of former President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on X @jedbabbin.
John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Survey and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His podcast with son and managing partner and pollster Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Their firm polls for independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Follow him on X @ZogbyStrategies.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... fccc&ei=16
Re: THE ECONOMY
USA TODAY
"President Biden scraps 'Bidenomics' after slogan falls flat"
Story by Joey Garrison, USA TODAY
27 APRIL 2024
WASHINGTON ― Last June, in what the White House envisioned would be a turning-point speech in Chicago, President Joe Biden introduced a new slogan aimed at selling an economic revival.
The mantra was "Bidenomics."
And on this day, the word was plastered everywhere: flanking Biden on massive blue signs as he talked up an improving economy, across the base of his lectern, and draped down the walls of Chicago's historic post office where Biden spoke to a couple hundred supporters.
For the rest of the year, Biden would go on to tout "Bidenomics" about every time he discussed the economy as he sought to tie his policy agenda − investments in manufacturing, infrastructure and the middle class − to historically low unemployment, a robust jobs market, and inflation that, after peaking in the summer of 2022, was cooling.
But over time, all the "Bidenomics" talk has disappeared.
During a recent campaign swing this month in Pennsylvania − in which Biden made three stops and sought to contrast his economic agenda with former President Donald Trump's − Biden never mentioned the term "Bidenomics."
Nor did he utter the phrase during separate addresses to electrical workers and builders unions over the past week.
Or Thursday in Syracuse, N.Y., where he announced more than $6 billion in subsidies for two microchip factories.
The White House concluded that too many Americans didn't know what "Bidenomics" meant.
Congressional Democratic candidates and party activists never embraced the label as they work to overcome the president's low approval ratings to win back control of the House.
And because inflation has proven stubbornly high, the slogan became synonymous with an economy that, despite several strong metrics, many Americans fear is headed in the wrong direction.
"'Bidenomics' could mean anything to people, and we needed words or phrases that communicate more −like jobs, (tackling) rising costs and 'junk fees,'" said Celinda Lake, a former Biden campaign pollster in the 2020 election.
"'Bidenomics' ended up being confusing to voters because they thought it was Biden's economy rather than Biden's economic policies."
What 'Bidenomics' was supposed to mean versus what it became
"Bidenomics" was first coined by conservative critics of Biden in columns in the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal ahead of the 2020 election.
By embracing the "Bidenomics" tag, the White House hoped to turn an attack line used by Republicans into a strength − similar to Democrats embracing "Obamacare," originally a Republican slander, as the name for President Barack Obama's signature health care law.
From the White House's perspective, "Bidenomics" was supposed to encompass an economic platform focused on growing an economy "from the middle out and the bottom up" − cutting health-care costs, forcing billionaires to "pay their fair share" in taxes, eliminating so-called "junk fees" and leveraging the federal government for historic investments in manufacturing of microchips and clean energy, infrastructure and innovation.
If Republicans were going to use "Bidenomics" as an attack, why not work to define it to Biden's advantage?
"I don’t think they meant it as a compliment, but they started referring to my economic policies as 'Bidenomics.'"
"Well, guess what?"
"It’s working," Biden said in a speech last August, reciting a line he turned to often.
But the calculus ignored a reality: When much of the country heard "Bidenomics," it reminded them of high inflation, not Biden's efforts to make the U.S. a microchip hotbed or the nation's economic rebound since the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the outlook on the economy remains sour.
In a New York Times/Sienna College poll this month, only 21% of voters described the economy as "excellent/good," compared to 79% who called it "fair/poor."
"I think that the fundamental root of it all was that people thought the situation would be parallel to Obamacare," Lake said.
"And for a number of reasons, it wasn't remotely parallel to Obamacare."
Drew Westen, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University who consults for Democrats on messaging, questioned coining any policy or bill after a president's name, arguing it turns off nearly half the country automatically.
And he said while the economic resurgence after the pandemic is "a phenomenal achievement," not all people have felt it.
"It was a bad call to use that term," Westen said.
"At that time, people were seeing the Biden economy as the inflation economy."
"That appears to be changing, but I still wouldn't go back to 'Bidenomics.'"
How Biden's use of 'Bidenomics' disappeared over time
Biden still leans into his message of "investing in America" and promotes the same policies.
But nearly a month has passed since Biden said "Bidenomics" during public remarks.
It came during a March 26 speech in Raleigh, North Carolina on his efforts to lower health care costs.
Before then, Biden hadn't used the word "Bidenomics" since late January, according to a USA TODAY review of Biden's public remarks archived by the White House.
Most notably, Biden left "Bidenomics" out of his March 7 State of the Union address before Congress.
Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and other spokespeople for Biden, have also retired the phrase.
The messaging was very different last summer and fall.
Biden said "Bidenomics" 15 times in his June 28 speech in Chicago that debuted his new slogan to the nation.
He mentioned "Bidenomics" another 77 times in speeches through October, including as many as six or seven times in single speeches.
"'Bidenomics'" is just another way of saying 'restoring the American Dream,'" Biden said last year on multiple occasions.
"That's Bidenomics in action," was another favorite Biden line that later disappeared.
In a Sept. 14 speech in Largo, Maryland, Biden framed the presidential election as a "choice between Bidenomics and MAGAnomics," accusing Trump and Republicans of wanting to cut taxes for the wealthiest Americans and corporations, gut Social Security and Medicare and end cost-saving measures for the middle class.
Yet Biden touted "Bidenomics" only four more times in both November and December, and he has said it only three times total this year.
White House: 'The press is caught up in semantics'
From the outset, most Democratic House and Senate candidates were cool to embrace "Bidenomics" in their campaigns.
Although they defend Biden's economic policies, no campaign ads emerged using the "Bidenomics" term.
Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., a strong Biden ally, told NBC News in November that he didn't like the word.
"The people that he (Biden) stands for don’t deal with economics,” Clyburn said at the time.
"They deal with day-to-day issues."
"They have to educate their children and feed their families and develop their communities − and that doesn’t sound like ‘Bidenomics.’”
An analysis by Axios found congressional Democrats went from saying "Bidenomics" nearly 500 times last July in public speeches and social media posts to just 10 times in March, compared to 474 mentions of "Bidenomics" by Republicans in March.
In a statement to USA TODAY, the White House downplayed Biden's shift away from "Bidenomics" as the focus of the media, not everyday Americans, and argued the president is still talking regularly about the policies that make up "Bidenomics."
“While the press is caught up in semantics, consumer confidence is higher than at this point under Presidents Obama, Bush, Clinton, and Reagan; the President’s economic approval is rising; and he is on the road touting his accomplishments that are widely supported and making a real difference in peoples’ lives," said Michael Kikukawa, assistant White House press secretary.
"The President will continue talking about Bidenomics − his agenda to grow the economy from the middle out and bottom up," he said, calling his approach a "sharp contrast" with Republicans.
Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said House Democrats' and Biden's "victories for working families" is what will matter to voters in November − "not a slogan."
But if Democrats do look for another slogan, they might consider one Democrat's advice.
"If the the right suggests the term, don't use it," said Westen, author of "The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation."
"You never want to take the other side's branding of anything about you or your programs and run with it − because it's been designed by the other side to create the associations in people's minds that they want to create."
Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly Twitter, @joeygarrison.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... fccc&ei=46
"President Biden scraps 'Bidenomics' after slogan falls flat"
Story by Joey Garrison, USA TODAY
27 APRIL 2024
WASHINGTON ― Last June, in what the White House envisioned would be a turning-point speech in Chicago, President Joe Biden introduced a new slogan aimed at selling an economic revival.
The mantra was "Bidenomics."
And on this day, the word was plastered everywhere: flanking Biden on massive blue signs as he talked up an improving economy, across the base of his lectern, and draped down the walls of Chicago's historic post office where Biden spoke to a couple hundred supporters.
For the rest of the year, Biden would go on to tout "Bidenomics" about every time he discussed the economy as he sought to tie his policy agenda − investments in manufacturing, infrastructure and the middle class − to historically low unemployment, a robust jobs market, and inflation that, after peaking in the summer of 2022, was cooling.
But over time, all the "Bidenomics" talk has disappeared.
During a recent campaign swing this month in Pennsylvania − in which Biden made three stops and sought to contrast his economic agenda with former President Donald Trump's − Biden never mentioned the term "Bidenomics."
Nor did he utter the phrase during separate addresses to electrical workers and builders unions over the past week.
Or Thursday in Syracuse, N.Y., where he announced more than $6 billion in subsidies for two microchip factories.
The White House concluded that too many Americans didn't know what "Bidenomics" meant.
Congressional Democratic candidates and party activists never embraced the label as they work to overcome the president's low approval ratings to win back control of the House.
And because inflation has proven stubbornly high, the slogan became synonymous with an economy that, despite several strong metrics, many Americans fear is headed in the wrong direction.
"'Bidenomics' could mean anything to people, and we needed words or phrases that communicate more −like jobs, (tackling) rising costs and 'junk fees,'" said Celinda Lake, a former Biden campaign pollster in the 2020 election.
"'Bidenomics' ended up being confusing to voters because they thought it was Biden's economy rather than Biden's economic policies."
What 'Bidenomics' was supposed to mean versus what it became
"Bidenomics" was first coined by conservative critics of Biden in columns in the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal ahead of the 2020 election.
By embracing the "Bidenomics" tag, the White House hoped to turn an attack line used by Republicans into a strength − similar to Democrats embracing "Obamacare," originally a Republican slander, as the name for President Barack Obama's signature health care law.
From the White House's perspective, "Bidenomics" was supposed to encompass an economic platform focused on growing an economy "from the middle out and the bottom up" − cutting health-care costs, forcing billionaires to "pay their fair share" in taxes, eliminating so-called "junk fees" and leveraging the federal government for historic investments in manufacturing of microchips and clean energy, infrastructure and innovation.
If Republicans were going to use "Bidenomics" as an attack, why not work to define it to Biden's advantage?
"I don’t think they meant it as a compliment, but they started referring to my economic policies as 'Bidenomics.'"
"Well, guess what?"
"It’s working," Biden said in a speech last August, reciting a line he turned to often.
But the calculus ignored a reality: When much of the country heard "Bidenomics," it reminded them of high inflation, not Biden's efforts to make the U.S. a microchip hotbed or the nation's economic rebound since the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the outlook on the economy remains sour.
In a New York Times/Sienna College poll this month, only 21% of voters described the economy as "excellent/good," compared to 79% who called it "fair/poor."
"I think that the fundamental root of it all was that people thought the situation would be parallel to Obamacare," Lake said.
"And for a number of reasons, it wasn't remotely parallel to Obamacare."
Drew Westen, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University who consults for Democrats on messaging, questioned coining any policy or bill after a president's name, arguing it turns off nearly half the country automatically.
And he said while the economic resurgence after the pandemic is "a phenomenal achievement," not all people have felt it.
"It was a bad call to use that term," Westen said.
"At that time, people were seeing the Biden economy as the inflation economy."
"That appears to be changing, but I still wouldn't go back to 'Bidenomics.'"
How Biden's use of 'Bidenomics' disappeared over time
Biden still leans into his message of "investing in America" and promotes the same policies.
But nearly a month has passed since Biden said "Bidenomics" during public remarks.
It came during a March 26 speech in Raleigh, North Carolina on his efforts to lower health care costs.
Before then, Biden hadn't used the word "Bidenomics" since late January, according to a USA TODAY review of Biden's public remarks archived by the White House.
Most notably, Biden left "Bidenomics" out of his March 7 State of the Union address before Congress.
Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and other spokespeople for Biden, have also retired the phrase.
The messaging was very different last summer and fall.
Biden said "Bidenomics" 15 times in his June 28 speech in Chicago that debuted his new slogan to the nation.
He mentioned "Bidenomics" another 77 times in speeches through October, including as many as six or seven times in single speeches.
"'Bidenomics'" is just another way of saying 'restoring the American Dream,'" Biden said last year on multiple occasions.
"That's Bidenomics in action," was another favorite Biden line that later disappeared.
In a Sept. 14 speech in Largo, Maryland, Biden framed the presidential election as a "choice between Bidenomics and MAGAnomics," accusing Trump and Republicans of wanting to cut taxes for the wealthiest Americans and corporations, gut Social Security and Medicare and end cost-saving measures for the middle class.
Yet Biden touted "Bidenomics" only four more times in both November and December, and he has said it only three times total this year.
White House: 'The press is caught up in semantics'
From the outset, most Democratic House and Senate candidates were cool to embrace "Bidenomics" in their campaigns.
Although they defend Biden's economic policies, no campaign ads emerged using the "Bidenomics" term.
Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., a strong Biden ally, told NBC News in November that he didn't like the word.
"The people that he (Biden) stands for don’t deal with economics,” Clyburn said at the time.
"They deal with day-to-day issues."
"They have to educate their children and feed their families and develop their communities − and that doesn’t sound like ‘Bidenomics.’”
An analysis by Axios found congressional Democrats went from saying "Bidenomics" nearly 500 times last July in public speeches and social media posts to just 10 times in March, compared to 474 mentions of "Bidenomics" by Republicans in March.
In a statement to USA TODAY, the White House downplayed Biden's shift away from "Bidenomics" as the focus of the media, not everyday Americans, and argued the president is still talking regularly about the policies that make up "Bidenomics."
“While the press is caught up in semantics, consumer confidence is higher than at this point under Presidents Obama, Bush, Clinton, and Reagan; the President’s economic approval is rising; and he is on the road touting his accomplishments that are widely supported and making a real difference in peoples’ lives," said Michael Kikukawa, assistant White House press secretary.
"The President will continue talking about Bidenomics − his agenda to grow the economy from the middle out and bottom up," he said, calling his approach a "sharp contrast" with Republicans.
Viet Shelton, spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said House Democrats' and Biden's "victories for working families" is what will matter to voters in November − "not a slogan."
But if Democrats do look for another slogan, they might consider one Democrat's advice.
"If the the right suggests the term, don't use it," said Westen, author of "The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation."
"You never want to take the other side's branding of anything about you or your programs and run with it − because it's been designed by the other side to create the associations in people's minds that they want to create."
Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly Twitter, @joeygarrison.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... fccc&ei=46
Re: THE ECONOMY
The Center Square
"Elevated inflation, poor GDP growth raise concerns"
Story by Casey Harper
29 APRIL 2024
(The Center Square) – Federal data released Friday showed that inflation remains elevated.
The figures came out on the heels of other data showing the U.S. Gross Domestic Product underperformed in the first quarter of this year.
Both the inflation and GDP data points raised concerns among economists and renewed criticism of President Joe Biden among Republicans.
“Given the elevated levels of inflation – and this is the new normal for 2024 – the market is going to need to get over hopes for Fed rate cuts,” Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance in North Carolina, said in a statement.
“Yes, they may cut once (or not at all), but there is no possibility the Fed is going to cut rates 3 or more times, unless we go into recession.”
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released the Personal Consumption Expenditure data Friday, which showed the PCE rose 0.3% last month.
The federal Consumer Price Index, another leading marker of inflation, reported prices rising 0.4% last month.
“A lot of people have argued elevated inflation is just because of housing and housing is lagged/inappropriate,” Jason Furman, a Harvard economist and former economic advisor during the Obama administration, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday.
“But even excluding housing, recent inflation is highly elevated…” he continued
That inflation data comes after new federal data this week showed that the GDP increased at an annual rate of only 1.6% in the first three months of this year, much less than the 3.4% growth in the previous quarter and well below experts’ expectations.
“New GDP numbers out - yet ANOTHER depressing quarter under Biden…” Richard Stern, an expert at the Heritage Foundation, wrote on X.
“This marks the THIRD quarter in a row of the government growing faster than the economy!
“That's socialism at work as the woke left-wing government eats everyone else's lunch off the buffet table – all while the personal saving rate falls off a cliff and is less than half what it was pre-pandemic,” he added.
Republicans heaped on more criticism of Biden after the new economic data.
“Antisemitism is running rampant on campuses,” U.S> Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., wrote on X.
“Illegal immigrants are invading both borders."
"Inflation is rising and draining the pocketbooks."
"America is experiencing one crisis after another under Joe Biden's failed leadership.”
Prices have risen nearly 20% since Biden took office.
“President Biden’s recipe of outlandish spending and higher taxes is robbing the American people and hurting the economy,” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said in a statement.
“The soaring cost of gas and groceries keeps killing family budgets – leaving Americans struggling to either pay rent or buy a house."
"The latest GDP report shows an economy sagging under the weight of failed economic policies."
"With prices continuing to rise and the Federal Reserve likely to keep interest rates at the highest levels in over 20 years, the American Dream is slipping out of reach for more families.”
Biden, though, has rebuffed criticism and pointed to his other economic wins, as The Center Square previously reported.
“Today’s report shows the American economy remains strong, with continued steady and stable growth,” Biden said in a statement last week.
“The economy has grown more since I took office than at this point in any presidential term in the last 25 years – including 3% growth over the last year – while unemployment has stayed below 4% for more than two years.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... d1f6&ei=12
"Elevated inflation, poor GDP growth raise concerns"
Story by Casey Harper
29 APRIL 2024
(The Center Square) – Federal data released Friday showed that inflation remains elevated.
The figures came out on the heels of other data showing the U.S. Gross Domestic Product underperformed in the first quarter of this year.
Both the inflation and GDP data points raised concerns among economists and renewed criticism of President Joe Biden among Republicans.
“Given the elevated levels of inflation – and this is the new normal for 2024 – the market is going to need to get over hopes for Fed rate cuts,” Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance in North Carolina, said in a statement.
“Yes, they may cut once (or not at all), but there is no possibility the Fed is going to cut rates 3 or more times, unless we go into recession.”
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released the Personal Consumption Expenditure data Friday, which showed the PCE rose 0.3% last month.
The federal Consumer Price Index, another leading marker of inflation, reported prices rising 0.4% last month.
“A lot of people have argued elevated inflation is just because of housing and housing is lagged/inappropriate,” Jason Furman, a Harvard economist and former economic advisor during the Obama administration, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday.
“But even excluding housing, recent inflation is highly elevated…” he continued
That inflation data comes after new federal data this week showed that the GDP increased at an annual rate of only 1.6% in the first three months of this year, much less than the 3.4% growth in the previous quarter and well below experts’ expectations.
“New GDP numbers out - yet ANOTHER depressing quarter under Biden…” Richard Stern, an expert at the Heritage Foundation, wrote on X.
“This marks the THIRD quarter in a row of the government growing faster than the economy!
“That's socialism at work as the woke left-wing government eats everyone else's lunch off the buffet table – all while the personal saving rate falls off a cliff and is less than half what it was pre-pandemic,” he added.
Republicans heaped on more criticism of Biden after the new economic data.
“Antisemitism is running rampant on campuses,” U.S> Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., wrote on X.
“Illegal immigrants are invading both borders."
"Inflation is rising and draining the pocketbooks."
"America is experiencing one crisis after another under Joe Biden's failed leadership.”
Prices have risen nearly 20% since Biden took office.
“President Biden’s recipe of outlandish spending and higher taxes is robbing the American people and hurting the economy,” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said in a statement.
“The soaring cost of gas and groceries keeps killing family budgets – leaving Americans struggling to either pay rent or buy a house."
"The latest GDP report shows an economy sagging under the weight of failed economic policies."
"With prices continuing to rise and the Federal Reserve likely to keep interest rates at the highest levels in over 20 years, the American Dream is slipping out of reach for more families.”
Biden, though, has rebuffed criticism and pointed to his other economic wins, as The Center Square previously reported.
“Today’s report shows the American economy remains strong, with continued steady and stable growth,” Biden said in a statement last week.
“The economy has grown more since I took office than at this point in any presidential term in the last 25 years – including 3% growth over the last year – while unemployment has stayed below 4% for more than two years.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... d1f6&ei=12
Re: THE ECONOMY
THE CAPE CHARLES MIRROR APRIL 29, 2024 AT 11:56 AM
Paul R Plante, NYSPE says:
Following up on a perceptive comment elsewhere in here by Kim @ APRIL 28, 2024 AT 1:23 PM concerning these “government grants” of money coming down to localities from the federal government, where Kim remarks quite correctly that “local governments just view this as ‘free money,’“ and further following up on a comment made by myself above here @ APRIL 17, 2024 AT 5:49 PM, where I remarked that the last several days of my apparent quietude in here, as has again been the case these last so many days, is because I am forced by circumstances way beyond my control, like trying to stop a train wreck, to instead be “out there” in what these days passes for the “real” world, where I am embroiled in a controversy splitting my small community which is a direct outcome of what happens when BIDEN INFRASTRUCTURE MONEY is mindlessly made available to small towns like mine for alleged “infrastructure” improvements, which small towns, to get their hands on what they consider “free money,” a windfall of riches into their pockets courtesy of the federal government in Washington, D.C., have to promise to put their local taxpayers in hock for a certain percentage of the project cost, whether those taxpayers want or need the project, in this case a public water supply for a school that already has a public water supply, without we who are the taxpayers having any say in the matter, period, largely because the process of actually getting that money, being entirely political in nature, is going on behind closed doors with absolutely no transparency for the affected taxpayers of whom I am one, as can be seen beginning @6:34 into this video of the April 11, 2024 Poestenkill, New York town board meeting ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 ) where I go ballistic with respect to us being lied to and misled as I vent some incandescent rage at a corrupt town board for selling us into debt slavery to get their hands on some $5,277,567 of grant money of which $670,367 is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-EC grant, and $1,693,ooo in a congressional community project funding grant from Kirsten Gillibrand, with us in a small community being on the hook for a minimum of $272,433, subject to cost overruns we will also be on the hook for, all based upon an imaginary crisis at local middle school as the need for the grant money.
In other words, to get their hands on this “free government money,” the Poestenkill town board simply lied, knowing they could and would get away with it, because first of all, given the secrecy, who would even know, and then, once they did find out, which always happens, other than vent some fury about it, as I am seen and heard doing in that video, and make some noise, which goes away real soon, what can they do about it?
Which takes us to a letter on the subject I just sent out this morning to Democrat New York state governor Kathy Hochul wherein was stated as follows, to wit:
29 APRIL 2024
The Honorable Kathy Hochul
Governor of New York State
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224
RE: Questionable WIIA Grants in Town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County; Condemnation by Poestenkill Town Board of Algonquin Middle School carbon filtration system paid for in part by WIIA Grant as inadequate to protect children’s health; An incredible waste of taxpayer dollars
Dear Governor Hochul:
I am writing to you as a concerned taxpayer of the Averill Park Central School District, which district serves the needs of elementary, secondary, and special education students residing in the towns of Berlin, Brunswick, East Greenbush, Nassau, North Greenbush, Poestenkill, Sand Lake, Schodack and Stephentown concerning a $90,000 Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) and Intermunicipal Grant awarded by your office in its wisdom on May 11, 2023 to the Averill Park Central School District and its Board of Education through the State Environmental Facilities Corporation for the effective treatment of drinking water at Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County by installing granular activated carbon vessels for PFAS treatment at the Algonquin Middle School.
At the time your office awarded this WIIA Grant to the Averill Park School District less than a year ago on May 11, 2023, you were quoted as saying “New York is committed to providing communities with the resources needed to upgrade water systems and improve water quality,” and “We are continuing our nation-leading clean water investments with $500 million for clean water infrastructure in this year’s budget helping to protect the health and safety of our residents, preserve our environment, and improve quality of life for all with access to safe, reliable and clean water,” which is why your office awarded that WIIA grant, which act by your office we thought was fully supported by the following language from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in a February 2022 Community Update to the people of Poestenkill, to wit:
Beginning in December 2021, the school installed a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community.
end quote
What happened subsequent thereto is that the Town Board of Poestenkill, acting in its capacity as the Board of Health of the town of Poestenkill where the Algonquin Middle School is physically located, in conjunction with its Public Health Coordinator, a professional position in Poestenkill involving responsibility for supervision of the environmental health program of the Poestenkill Department of Health, and whose work involves the enforcement of state Public Health Laws relating to public water supplies in Poestenkill, appointed a Blue Ribbon Select Commission of Investigation headed up by Poestenkill councilman Eric Wohlleber and comprised of the best scientific and legal minds in Poestenkill including former Obama EPA administrator Judith Enck, which Blue Ribbon Investigatory Commission was charged by the Poestenkill town board in its capacity as Poestenkill board of health with conducting an independent investigation of the charcoal filters paid for in part by the WIIA Grant awarded by your office to the Averill Park School District on May 11, 2023.
As a result of that investigation, the findings of which were released at a public information meeting in Poestenkill on April 25, 2024, it was determined by the Poestenkill town board acting in its capacity as the Town of Poestenkill Board of Health that the carbon filtration system at the Algonquin School paid for in part by the $90,000 WIIA Grant awarded by your office on May 11, 2023 should be condemned and withdrawn from service as it is in essence a piece of junk that fails to protect the health and well-being of the students, faculty and staff of the Algonquin School, that the system is no good, that when your office awarded the Grant, it didn’t know what it was doing, and that in the learned opinion of the Poestenkill town board, its public health coordinator, and its Blue Ribbon Select Commission of Investigation, Tomhannock Reservoir water would better protect the health and safety of the children who are students at the Algonquin Middle School, along with faculty and staff, while preserving the environment in Poestenkill, and improving quality of life for all in the Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill with access to safe, reliable and clean water from the City of Troy piped through the Town of Brunswick, and then through the Town of Poestenkill, for which purpose the town of Poestenkill is about to obtain another WIIA Grant of $2,314,200 to run a special water main to the school and to dismantle and scrap the carbon filtration system the May 11, 2023 WIIA Grant awarded by your office in part paid for.
Which raises the important question of how on earth this fiscal fiasco could have happened in the first place, where the State Environmental Facilities Corporation approved a $90,000 grant to the Averill Park Central School District for something worthless, and is now forced to have to award a $2,314,200 WIIA Grant to the town board of Poestenkill to undo and correct the harm done by the $90,000 WIIA Grant on May 11, 2023 to the Board of Education of the Averill Park Central School District that paid in part for a system the town board of Poestenkill acting as board of health of Poestenkill has determined is an unsafe piece of junk by dismantling and scrapping the charcoal filters and ordering the Averill Park School Board to hook up to Poestenkill’s municipal water supply, instead.
Thanking you in advance for a prompt response to this taxpayer inquiry, I remain
Respectfully,
Paul R. Plante
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-922756
Paul R Plante, NYSPE says:
Following up on a perceptive comment elsewhere in here by Kim @ APRIL 28, 2024 AT 1:23 PM concerning these “government grants” of money coming down to localities from the federal government, where Kim remarks quite correctly that “local governments just view this as ‘free money,’“ and further following up on a comment made by myself above here @ APRIL 17, 2024 AT 5:49 PM, where I remarked that the last several days of my apparent quietude in here, as has again been the case these last so many days, is because I am forced by circumstances way beyond my control, like trying to stop a train wreck, to instead be “out there” in what these days passes for the “real” world, where I am embroiled in a controversy splitting my small community which is a direct outcome of what happens when BIDEN INFRASTRUCTURE MONEY is mindlessly made available to small towns like mine for alleged “infrastructure” improvements, which small towns, to get their hands on what they consider “free money,” a windfall of riches into their pockets courtesy of the federal government in Washington, D.C., have to promise to put their local taxpayers in hock for a certain percentage of the project cost, whether those taxpayers want or need the project, in this case a public water supply for a school that already has a public water supply, without we who are the taxpayers having any say in the matter, period, largely because the process of actually getting that money, being entirely political in nature, is going on behind closed doors with absolutely no transparency for the affected taxpayers of whom I am one, as can be seen beginning @6:34 into this video of the April 11, 2024 Poestenkill, New York town board meeting ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 ) where I go ballistic with respect to us being lied to and misled as I vent some incandescent rage at a corrupt town board for selling us into debt slavery to get their hands on some $5,277,567 of grant money of which $670,367 is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-EC grant, and $1,693,ooo in a congressional community project funding grant from Kirsten Gillibrand, with us in a small community being on the hook for a minimum of $272,433, subject to cost overruns we will also be on the hook for, all based upon an imaginary crisis at local middle school as the need for the grant money.
In other words, to get their hands on this “free government money,” the Poestenkill town board simply lied, knowing they could and would get away with it, because first of all, given the secrecy, who would even know, and then, once they did find out, which always happens, other than vent some fury about it, as I am seen and heard doing in that video, and make some noise, which goes away real soon, what can they do about it?
Which takes us to a letter on the subject I just sent out this morning to Democrat New York state governor Kathy Hochul wherein was stated as follows, to wit:
29 APRIL 2024
The Honorable Kathy Hochul
Governor of New York State
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224
RE: Questionable WIIA Grants in Town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County; Condemnation by Poestenkill Town Board of Algonquin Middle School carbon filtration system paid for in part by WIIA Grant as inadequate to protect children’s health; An incredible waste of taxpayer dollars
Dear Governor Hochul:
I am writing to you as a concerned taxpayer of the Averill Park Central School District, which district serves the needs of elementary, secondary, and special education students residing in the towns of Berlin, Brunswick, East Greenbush, Nassau, North Greenbush, Poestenkill, Sand Lake, Schodack and Stephentown concerning a $90,000 Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) and Intermunicipal Grant awarded by your office in its wisdom on May 11, 2023 to the Averill Park Central School District and its Board of Education through the State Environmental Facilities Corporation for the effective treatment of drinking water at Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County by installing granular activated carbon vessels for PFAS treatment at the Algonquin Middle School.
At the time your office awarded this WIIA Grant to the Averill Park School District less than a year ago on May 11, 2023, you were quoted as saying “New York is committed to providing communities with the resources needed to upgrade water systems and improve water quality,” and “We are continuing our nation-leading clean water investments with $500 million for clean water infrastructure in this year’s budget helping to protect the health and safety of our residents, preserve our environment, and improve quality of life for all with access to safe, reliable and clean water,” which is why your office awarded that WIIA grant, which act by your office we thought was fully supported by the following language from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in a February 2022 Community Update to the people of Poestenkill, to wit:
Beginning in December 2021, the school installed a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community.
end quote
What happened subsequent thereto is that the Town Board of Poestenkill, acting in its capacity as the Board of Health of the town of Poestenkill where the Algonquin Middle School is physically located, in conjunction with its Public Health Coordinator, a professional position in Poestenkill involving responsibility for supervision of the environmental health program of the Poestenkill Department of Health, and whose work involves the enforcement of state Public Health Laws relating to public water supplies in Poestenkill, appointed a Blue Ribbon Select Commission of Investigation headed up by Poestenkill councilman Eric Wohlleber and comprised of the best scientific and legal minds in Poestenkill including former Obama EPA administrator Judith Enck, which Blue Ribbon Investigatory Commission was charged by the Poestenkill town board in its capacity as Poestenkill board of health with conducting an independent investigation of the charcoal filters paid for in part by the WIIA Grant awarded by your office to the Averill Park School District on May 11, 2023.
As a result of that investigation, the findings of which were released at a public information meeting in Poestenkill on April 25, 2024, it was determined by the Poestenkill town board acting in its capacity as the Town of Poestenkill Board of Health that the carbon filtration system at the Algonquin School paid for in part by the $90,000 WIIA Grant awarded by your office on May 11, 2023 should be condemned and withdrawn from service as it is in essence a piece of junk that fails to protect the health and well-being of the students, faculty and staff of the Algonquin School, that the system is no good, that when your office awarded the Grant, it didn’t know what it was doing, and that in the learned opinion of the Poestenkill town board, its public health coordinator, and its Blue Ribbon Select Commission of Investigation, Tomhannock Reservoir water would better protect the health and safety of the children who are students at the Algonquin Middle School, along with faculty and staff, while preserving the environment in Poestenkill, and improving quality of life for all in the Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill with access to safe, reliable and clean water from the City of Troy piped through the Town of Brunswick, and then through the Town of Poestenkill, for which purpose the town of Poestenkill is about to obtain another WIIA Grant of $2,314,200 to run a special water main to the school and to dismantle and scrap the carbon filtration system the May 11, 2023 WIIA Grant awarded by your office in part paid for.
Which raises the important question of how on earth this fiscal fiasco could have happened in the first place, where the State Environmental Facilities Corporation approved a $90,000 grant to the Averill Park Central School District for something worthless, and is now forced to have to award a $2,314,200 WIIA Grant to the town board of Poestenkill to undo and correct the harm done by the $90,000 WIIA Grant on May 11, 2023 to the Board of Education of the Averill Park Central School District that paid in part for a system the town board of Poestenkill acting as board of health of Poestenkill has determined is an unsafe piece of junk by dismantling and scrapping the charcoal filters and ordering the Averill Park School Board to hook up to Poestenkill’s municipal water supply, instead.
Thanking you in advance for a prompt response to this taxpayer inquiry, I remain
Respectfully,
Paul R. Plante
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-922756
Re: THE ECONOMY
REUTERS
"US Treasury to borrow $243 billion in Q2, higher than January forecast"
By Alden Bentley
April 29, 2024
April 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury said on Monday it expects to borrow $243 billion in the second quarter, $41 billion more than the January estimate largely due to lower cash receipts, partially offset by a higher cash balance at the beginning of the quarter.
The second-quarter financing estimate assumes a cash balance of $750 billion at the end of June, the Treasury said in a statement.
Attention now turns to Wednesday when the Treasury will detail its borrowing plans and auction sizes of various maturities.
With yields near the highest in months, the market has been highly attuned to the supply of Treasuries as concerns mount over rapidly rising U.S. debt.
The Federal Open Market Committee is expected to keep its benchmark rate unchanged on Wednesday at the end of its two-day meeting.
Speculation is growing that the Federal Reserve will not pivot to easing rates until late this year, given the U.S. economic strength and inflation that is stuck above its target rate of 2%.
At the same time, the Fed is expected to soon taper its quantitative tightening program, in which it lets bonds it bought during the pandemic to mature without replacing them on its balance sheet.
That will affect how much cash the Treasury needs to raise via Treasury bills.
Treasury officials said on Monday the borrowing estimates assumed no change to the Fed's current $60 billion per month roll-off of Treasuries.
The Treasury also announced it expects to borrow $847 billion in the third quarter, as it projects a cash balance of $850 billion at the end of September.
It also said in the first quarter the Treasury borrowed $748 billion in net marketable debt.
It ended the first quarter with a cash balance of $775 billion.
The Treasury explained that the end-March cash balance was $12 billion below the January forecast because higher cash receipts and lower outlays were partially offset by a $25 billion higher ending cash balance.
Reporting by Alden Bentley; Editing by Richard Chang
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-t ... 024-04-29/
"US Treasury to borrow $243 billion in Q2, higher than January forecast"
By Alden Bentley
April 29, 2024
April 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury said on Monday it expects to borrow $243 billion in the second quarter, $41 billion more than the January estimate largely due to lower cash receipts, partially offset by a higher cash balance at the beginning of the quarter.
The second-quarter financing estimate assumes a cash balance of $750 billion at the end of June, the Treasury said in a statement.
Attention now turns to Wednesday when the Treasury will detail its borrowing plans and auction sizes of various maturities.
With yields near the highest in months, the market has been highly attuned to the supply of Treasuries as concerns mount over rapidly rising U.S. debt.
The Federal Open Market Committee is expected to keep its benchmark rate unchanged on Wednesday at the end of its two-day meeting.
Speculation is growing that the Federal Reserve will not pivot to easing rates until late this year, given the U.S. economic strength and inflation that is stuck above its target rate of 2%.
At the same time, the Fed is expected to soon taper its quantitative tightening program, in which it lets bonds it bought during the pandemic to mature without replacing them on its balance sheet.
That will affect how much cash the Treasury needs to raise via Treasury bills.
Treasury officials said on Monday the borrowing estimates assumed no change to the Fed's current $60 billion per month roll-off of Treasuries.
The Treasury also announced it expects to borrow $847 billion in the third quarter, as it projects a cash balance of $850 billion at the end of September.
It also said in the first quarter the Treasury borrowed $748 billion in net marketable debt.
It ended the first quarter with a cash balance of $775 billion.
The Treasury explained that the end-March cash balance was $12 billion below the January forecast because higher cash receipts and lower outlays were partially offset by a $25 billion higher ending cash balance.
Reporting by Alden Bentley; Editing by Richard Chang
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-t ... 024-04-29/
Re: THE ECONOMY
REUTERS
"US regulators seize troubled lender Republic First, sell it to Fulton Bank"
By Reuters
April 26, 2024
April 26 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators have seized Republic First Bancorp and agreed to sell it to Fulton Bank, underscoring the challenges facing regional banks a year after the collapse of three peers.
Philadelphia-based Republic First, which had abandoned funding talks with a group of investors, was seized by the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC), appointed as a receiver, said on Friday Fulton Bank, a unit of Fulton Financial Corp, will assume substantially all deposits and purchase all the assets of Republic Bank, which is the operating name for Republic First, to "protect depositors".
Republic Bank had about $6 billion in total assets and $4 billion in total deposits, as of Jan. 31, 2024.
The FDIC estimated the cost of the failure to its fund will be $667 million.
Apart from deposits, Republic also had borrowings and other liabilities of approximately $1.3 billion, Fulton said in a statement.
Fulton said the deal almost doubles its presence in the Philadelphia market with combined company deposits of approximately $8.6 billion.
"With this transaction, we are excited to double our presence across the region," said Fulton Chairman and CEO Curt Myers in a statement.
Republic Bank's 32 branches in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York will reopen as branches of Fulton Bank on Saturday or on Monday during business hours.
The decision marks the latest U.S. regional bank failure following the unexpected collapses of three lenders - Silicon Valley and Signature in March 2023 and First Republic in May.
Republic Bank had struck a deal with an investor group that included veteran businessman George Norcross and high-profile attorney Philip Norcross late last year, but the effort was terminated in February.
After that deal collapsed, the FDIC resumed efforts to seize and sell the bank, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news.
Republic Bank cut jobs and exited its mortgage origination business in early 2023 as it reeled under pressure from higher costs and inability to improve profitability.
The bank's stock price has tumbled from just over $2 at the start of the year to about 1 cent on Friday, leaving it with a market capitalization below $2 million.
Its shares were delisted from the Nasdaq in August and now trade over the counter.
Piper Sandler & Co and BofA Securities acted as financial advisers to Fulton, while Sullivan & Cromwell LLP acted as legal adviser.
Reporting by Manas Mishra, Pritam Biswas and Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Saeed Azhar in New York; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar, Sriraj Kalluvila and Muralikumar Anantharaman
https://www.reuters.com/business/financ ... 024-04-26/
"US regulators seize troubled lender Republic First, sell it to Fulton Bank"
By Reuters
April 26, 2024
April 26 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators have seized Republic First Bancorp and agreed to sell it to Fulton Bank, underscoring the challenges facing regional banks a year after the collapse of three peers.
Philadelphia-based Republic First, which had abandoned funding talks with a group of investors, was seized by the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC), appointed as a receiver, said on Friday Fulton Bank, a unit of Fulton Financial Corp, will assume substantially all deposits and purchase all the assets of Republic Bank, which is the operating name for Republic First, to "protect depositors".
Republic Bank had about $6 billion in total assets and $4 billion in total deposits, as of Jan. 31, 2024.
The FDIC estimated the cost of the failure to its fund will be $667 million.
Apart from deposits, Republic also had borrowings and other liabilities of approximately $1.3 billion, Fulton said in a statement.
Fulton said the deal almost doubles its presence in the Philadelphia market with combined company deposits of approximately $8.6 billion.
"With this transaction, we are excited to double our presence across the region," said Fulton Chairman and CEO Curt Myers in a statement.
Republic Bank's 32 branches in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York will reopen as branches of Fulton Bank on Saturday or on Monday during business hours.
The decision marks the latest U.S. regional bank failure following the unexpected collapses of three lenders - Silicon Valley and Signature in March 2023 and First Republic in May.
Republic Bank had struck a deal with an investor group that included veteran businessman George Norcross and high-profile attorney Philip Norcross late last year, but the effort was terminated in February.
After that deal collapsed, the FDIC resumed efforts to seize and sell the bank, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news.
Republic Bank cut jobs and exited its mortgage origination business in early 2023 as it reeled under pressure from higher costs and inability to improve profitability.
The bank's stock price has tumbled from just over $2 at the start of the year to about 1 cent on Friday, leaving it with a market capitalization below $2 million.
Its shares were delisted from the Nasdaq in August and now trade over the counter.
Piper Sandler & Co and BofA Securities acted as financial advisers to Fulton, while Sullivan & Cromwell LLP acted as legal adviser.
Reporting by Manas Mishra, Pritam Biswas and Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Saeed Azhar in New York; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar, Sriraj Kalluvila and Muralikumar Anantharaman
https://www.reuters.com/business/financ ... 024-04-26/
Re: THE ECONOMY
REUTERS
"US consumer confidence deteriorates in April"
By Reuters
April 30, 2024
WASHINGTON, April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated in April, falling to its lowest level in more than 1-1/2 years amid worries about the labor market and income, a survey showed on Tuesday.
The Conference Board said that its consumer confidence index fell to 97.0 this month, the lowest level since July 2022, from a downwardly revised 103.1 in March.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index little changed at 104.0 from the previously reported 104.7
"Confidence retreated further in April as consumers became less positive about the current labor market situation, and more concerned about future business conditions, job availability, and income," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board in Washington.
"According to April's write-in responses, elevated price levels, especially for food and gas, dominated consumer’s concerns, with politics and global conflicts as distant runners-up."
Consumers' inflation expectations were unchanged at 5.3%.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-c ... 024-04-30/
"US consumer confidence deteriorates in April"
By Reuters
April 30, 2024
WASHINGTON, April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated in April, falling to its lowest level in more than 1-1/2 years amid worries about the labor market and income, a survey showed on Tuesday.
The Conference Board said that its consumer confidence index fell to 97.0 this month, the lowest level since July 2022, from a downwardly revised 103.1 in March.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index little changed at 104.0 from the previously reported 104.7
"Confidence retreated further in April as consumers became less positive about the current labor market situation, and more concerned about future business conditions, job availability, and income," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board in Washington.
"According to April's write-in responses, elevated price levels, especially for food and gas, dominated consumer’s concerns, with politics and global conflicts as distant runners-up."
Consumers' inflation expectations were unchanged at 5.3%.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-c ... 024-04-30/