Category U. S. The Great Reset

Aug 26 2022

Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Bribe


Armstrong Economics Blog/Education Re-Posted Aug 26, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

While many are praising Biden for maintaining his campaign promise to cancel student debt, others are furious that the costs will be passed on to the taxpayers. Even Mitt Romney accused Biden of bribing voters before the midterms. “Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan may win Democrats some votes, but it fuels inflation, foots taxpayers with other people’s financial obligations, is unfair to those who paid their own way & creates irresponsible expectations,” the perhaps most liberal Republican senator wrote on Twitter.

Under the plan, borrowers earning under $125,000 annually will receive a $10,000 debt cancelation, while Pell Grant recipients will see a $20,000 reduction. The Penn Wharton School conducted a study in which they believe this program will cost the average taxpayer $2,000. The study found:

"We estimate that a one-time maximum debt forgiveness of $10,000 per borrower will cost around $300 billion for borrowers with incomes less than $125,000. This cost increases to $330 billion if the program is continued over the standard 10-year budget window. Eliminating the borrower income limit threshold produces a 10-year cost of $344 billion. Increasing the maximum amount forgiven to $50,000 per borrower increases the total cost to as much as $980 billion."

Yet, this does nothing to prevent predatory lending, albeit dismissing some interest on loans. This does not reinstate Glass Stegall, the provision that Bill Clinton erased to make student debt non-dischargeable in the case of bankruptcy. In fact, Clinton’s top financial advisor, Larry Summers, believes that this measure will increase inflation. “It consumes resources that could be better used helping those who did not, for whatever reason, have the chance to attend college. It will also tend to be inflationary by raising tuitions,” Summers wrote on his Twitter page. He also warned against continuing the moratorium of benefits expected to last until the end of the year.

Some state that we should be happy for those who are receiving relief, but the true culprits are the predatory lenders offering asinine interest rates and the universities that continually raise their fees. It also causes a disconnect between classes as those who chose trade school or blue-collar roles to avoid college fees will not be too fond of this initiative. It certainly will not help America’s plea to recruit more military personnel either. This is a temporary solution to a deeper problem.

Aug 26 2022

The Inflation Reduction Act – A Change We Don’t Believe In


Armstrong Economics Blog/Inflation Re-Posted Aug 26, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

President Biden agreed to waste billions on the Democrat-supported Inflation Reduction Act. According to a survey of 1,500 Americans as presented by the Epoch Times, neither Democratic nor Republican citizens believe this expensive act will combat rising prices.

Respondents were asked if they believed that the bulk of the package, the $369 billion set aside for climate change initiatives, would reduce inflation. Only 13% said they believed fighting climate change would combat inflation, while 26% admitted they had no clue. Yet, 38% replied by saying it will increase inflation, and an additional 22% think it will have no impact.

Only 8% of Republicans polled agreed with the act (no voting Republican lawmakers supported the measure), while 23% of Democrats were in favor. Around 68% of Republicans warned that the bill would increase inflation; 40% of Independents agreed, as did 17% of Democrats.

This leads one to believe that the measure would never have passed if the taxpayers had the opportunity to vote on how their money was spent. The Congressional Budget Office admitted that the measure would have a negligible effect on inflation. Currently, American households are paying an additional $717 per month due to inflation. This act will only cause Americans to be treated as criminals by the growing and armed IRS, which is training to use lethal force against civilians. Audits will soar, small and medium businesses will suffer, and no one besides those supporting the Green agenda will benefit from the Inflation [Expansion] Act.

Aug 26 2022

Study, No Quantifiable Benefits from COVID Treatment Drug Paxlovid for People Aged 40 to 65


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 25, 2022 | Sundance 


In April 2022, the Biden administration ordered 20 million doses of Pfizer’s antiviral Covid-19 treatment called Paxlovid.

Now a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows the medication shows “no measurable benefit” for the treatment of COVID-19 in patients 40 to 65-years of age.

WASHINGTON — Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill appears to provide little or no benefit for younger adults, while still reducing the risk of hospitalization and death for high-risk seniors, according to a large study published Wednesday.

The results from a 109,000-patient Israeli study are likely to renew questions about the U.S. government’s use of Paxlovid, which has become the go-to treatment for COVID-19 due to its at-home convenience. The Biden administration has spent more than $10 billion purchasing the drug and making it available at thousands of pharmacies through its test-and-treat initiative.

The researchers found that Paxlovid reduced hospitalizations among people 65 and older by roughly 75% when given shortly after infection. That’s consistent with earlier results used to authorize the drug in the U.S. and other nations.

But people between the ages of 40 and 65 saw no measurable benefit, according to the analysis of medical records. (read more)

“Huh, imagine that”…

Aug 26 2022

Tucker Carlson and Harmeet Dhillon Discuss Facebook Suppression of Hunter Biden Laptop Story


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 25, 2022 | Sundance

During a segment on his broadcast this evening, Fox News host Tucker Carlson interviewed Center for American Liberty founder and lawyer, Harmeet Dhillon about how Facebook censored and supressed he Hunter Biden laptop story just before the 2020 election. {Direct Rumble Link} – WATCH:

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Aug 26 2022

Interesting, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Implies FBI Told Platform to Intercept Hunter Biden Laptop Story


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 25, 2022 | Sundance

During a discussion with Joe Rogan, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was asked about the removal of content, specifically citing the example of the pre-2020 election Hunter Biden laptop story.  In his response Zuckerberg says the background context is important because the FBI came to Facebook and told them Russian disinformation was about to drop, just before the New York Post article was published.

This discussion comes on the heels of an FBI whistleblower approaching the Senate Judiciary Committee with evidence the Washington DC field office was specifically working to coverup any discoveries around the Hunter Biden laptop (per Chuck Grassley).   Add the Zuckerberg statement to the whistleblower claim and the resounding implication is the FBI taking advanced proactive measures to stop information they deem adverse to the interests of democrats.  The issue surfaces at 05:00 of the video below.  WATCH (prompted):

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Aug 26 2022

DOJ Submits Proposed Redactions for Mar-a-Lago Raid Affidavit


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 25, 2022 | Sundance

The DOJ had until noon today to submit their proposed redactions to the search warrant used in the Mar-a-Lago raid in order for the documents to be made public.  Highlighting the effort of Main Justice to delay any sunlight, the DOJ waited until the last moment to submit their filing.

With the DOJ submission in hand, Florida Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart will now review the proposal and decide which, if any, parts of the affidavit will now be released to the public.   Judge Reinhart was the judge who originally signed-off on the search warrant.  It is likely he will go along with the redactions, although there is a slight possibility, he may propose an alternative.

Lawyers for media have requested the full unredacted release of the affidavit, and representative of President Trump have also requested a full unredacted release.  Unfortunately, that scenario is extremely unlikely.

Aug 25 2022

Horrific Biden Consequence, 20 Million American Households Behind on Electricity Bills, Pending Shutoff


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 24, 2022 | Sundance

Long-term CTH readers might remember in 2014 when President Obama claimed U.S. families had been paying too little for electricity for too long.  As soon as Joe Biden took office, he began implementing the Green New Deal energy policy that, (a) directly forces higher costs for energy; and (b) is now creating massive problems.

In July I noted my own electricity bill had jumped 28% in a single month.  That bill was followed by another almost identical increase this month.  A review of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July [Data Here] shows that nationally the same thing is happening.  The year-over-year electricity price has increased 15.2%. However, worse still, the July increase alone was 1.9%, which figures to an annualized rate of 22.8%.

When the growth rate of monthly increase is exceeding the year-over-year result, that means future higher prices are coming.  This is a serious problem that cannot be overstated. Already struggling with a doubling of gas prices, massive food price increases at the grocery store and the pain of all costs for goods far outpacing any rate of wage increase, this type of uncontrollable increase in price of electricity is going to hit the middle class hard.

Steve Cortes calls this the backside of the Biden created inflation hurricane.  The backside of a hurricane is the worst because it hits from the opposite direction upon already weakened infrastructure.

The hurricane metaphor is apt because any increase in energy costs will be accompanied by the simultaneous arrival of another wave of food inflation, as the massive increases in field and crop prices start to feed into the food supply chain headed to our forks next month.

Making matters that much worse, Bloomberg is now reporting that 20 million households are now behind in their utility bills, specifically electricity bills, and the moratorium on shut offs has ended.  [Paywall Article]  Steve Cortes has written about the issue on his substack [Here].

One in six U.S. households, that is tens-of-millions of Americans, are now facing having their electricity turned off due to lack of payment.  It is certainly understandable how this horrific outcome would happen. Joe Biden’s energy policies are destroying working class families with unsustainably higher prices.

20 million households is a catastrophic level of utility default.  This is a serious issue with major social implications created by the desperation of those families.  Middle- and lower-income families cannot survive this level of financial pressure.

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Rents are behind. Mortgages are behind.  Car payments are behind. And now this report on utility bills.

Steve Cortes appeared with Steve Bannon to discuss {Direct Rumble Link} – WATCH:

Aug 25 2022

FLASHBACK, Elizabeth Warren Meets the Face of Cold Anger


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 24, 2022 | Sundance 

As the political elite decide they have some form of unknown authority to force working class U.S. taxpayers to fund the choices of others, a furor starts to build.

In this video excerpt a father confronts Senator Elizabeth Warren over her advocacy to cancel college loan debt for those who made a choice to take out those loans.   Across the American landscape this moment rings as representative of two fundamental outlooks colliding.  I think most readers here would relate to the cold anger of the father who confronts the Senator.  WATCH:

Cold anger does not choose the path of division, it simply responds to it.

There is a great chasm within our nation between to diametrically opposing worldviews.  When one side is forced to pay for the indulgent choices of the other, cold anger turns hot.  It is difficult to contain rage in the face of such sanctimony, yet the abusers are prepared to claim victimhood as soon as we respond to the abuse.

This is the powder-keg that sits underneath the quiet surface of cold anger.

Cold Anger tries not to go to violence.  For those who carry it, no conversation is needed when we meet. You cannot poll or measure it; specifically, because most who carry it avoid discussion… And that decision has nothing whatsoever to do with any form of correctness.

Foolishness and betrayal of our nation have served to reveal dangers within our present condition.

Misplaced corrective action, regardless of intent, is neither safe nor wise….

All thoughts appreciated.

Aug 25 2022

Biden Cancels Student Loan Debt for Federal Borrowers, Extends Pause for Loan Payments Through End of Year


Posted originally on the conservative tree house on August 24, 2022 | Sundance 

Buy votes, create disparity and divide people, that’s what democrat policies are designed to do.  Joe Biden follows the playbook by cancelling $10k to $20k in student loan debt for those who have federal government loans.  Students with private loans backed by the federal government are not eligible.

Additionally, Biden has extended the “COVID emergency payment moratorium” through the end of the year.  No one with a federal student loan needs to restart paying until after the midterm election, in 2023.  [White House Fact Sheet Here]

If the economy is doing so great, then why the need for bailouts?

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced his long-awaited plan to deliver on a campaign promise to provide $10,000 in student debt cancellation for millions of Americans — and up to $10,000 more for those with the greatest financial need — along with new measures to lower the burden of repayment for their remaining federal student debt.

Borrowers who earn less than $125,000 a year, or families earning less than $250,000, would be eligible for the $10,000 loan forgiveness, Biden announced in a tweet. For recipients of Pell Grants, which are reserved for undergraduates with the most significant financial need, the federal government would cancel up to an additional $10,000 in federal loan debt.

Biden is also extending a pause on federal student loan payments for what he called the “final time” through the end of 2022. He was set to deliver remarks Wednesday afternoon at the White House to unveil his proposal to the public.

If his plan survives legal challenges that are almost certain to come, it could offer a windfall to a swath of the nation in the run-up to this fall’s midterm elections. More than 43 million people have federal student debt, with an average balance of $37,667, according to federal data. Nearly a third of borrowers owe less than $10,000, and about half owe less than $20,000. The White House estimates that Biden’s announcement would erase the federal student debt of about 20 million people. (read more)

Aug 24 2022

Coinbase Crackdown


Armstrong Economics Blog/Cryptocurrency Re-Posted Aug 24, 2022 by Martin Armstrong

Comment: I use Coinbase to hold some crypto. They sent me an email saying that my account that I had for years would be limited to withdrawals only if I do not give them updated government ID and download the latest version of the application. I use this on my PC and do not have the application. I worry they’ll take what is left of my failing cryptos. Luckily I only put “play money” into these holdings but I imagine others will experience losses and frozen accounts in the near future. The deadline they gave me was October – not sure if that is for all. I messaged out to Coinbase for help updating my account but cannot fully verify it after many tries.

Reply: Government hates cryptocurrency. They have always been concerned about their ability to squeeze out every last penny in taxes from crypto. I am not surprised that Coinbase is emailing users for additional documentation days after the Inflation Reduction Act was passed. With nearly 88,000 new IRS agents, there will certainly be teams of hundreds or thousands of accountants who will analyze all crypto holdings.

The initial idea behind the creation of crypto has been lost. I warned in March on our private blog on Socrates that cryptocurrencies may be suspended altogether one day. Biden could sign an Executive Order to regulate cryptos because countries like Russia can use it to circumvent sanctions. Not only is Biden authorizing the regulation of digital currencies, but he is also instructing to move forward with a central bank cryptocurrency. Once that is done, all other cryptocurrencies will be seized and folded into the government’s crypto. There will be no competition.