The Federal Reserve is nearly done completing its revamp of its Washington, DC, headquarters with a price tag of $2.5 billion. The luxurious facility has come under intense scrutiny as many believe they are borrowing from public funds while already operating in a deficit. Yet, these funds will not be added to national debt calculations.
The Federal Reserve operates on a self-funding mechanism, allegedly, using revenue it generates from interest on government securities and other services such as payment processing. Yet, that interest is generated from public funds. However, the Federal Reserve does not need approval from Congress to finance internal costs as it manages to bypass the federal budget.
The national debt is calculated based on congressionally authorized borrowing. Since no Treasury securities were issued, these costs remain off-budget and outside final calculations. The Federal Reserve operated independently, and as such, it can build a massive new facility equipped with garden terraces, elaborate water sculptures, ceiling skylights, and a private elevator system to transport board members to the newly designed VIP dining suite.
There are several special lending programs budgeted through the Fed that will not be included in the national debt. For example, the central bank purchased $500 billion in short-term debt from local and state governments during COVID to push cash into the system. Loans provided through the Main Street Lending Program and the Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) are not factored. The Fed maintains some monetary policy tools absent of congressional approval, like discount window loans and overnight reverse repurchase agreements.
Foreign central banks may exchange their treasuries for dollars, which does not pull from public funds. The FedNow Instant Payment system for banks also operates independently, as does the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that funds around $630 million annually.
The Fed has a $7.4 trillion asset portfolio that is not congressional appropriations. Any losses are considered deferred assets on the central bank’s balance sheet. Now, the Fed differs from other central banks, such as the Bank of Japan or the European Central Bank, which rely more on shareholder capital and government-backed reserves. The 12 regional Federal Reserve banks operate as quasi-private institutions with elected board members, whereas the ECB and BoJ operate as public entities.
The Fed returns around 90% of its net income to the US Treasury despite the current negative press. The new headquarters may be excessive, but it is paramount for the Fed to remain independent from the federal government. Politicians should not drive fiscal policy, as all confidence in the system would be lost. A central bank like Turkey’s, which is completely politically controlled, faces ongoing currency crises and inflation because politicians only want to patch up the short term to ensure they win the next election. Congress should have no say in the Fed’s budget – period.
Posted originally on Apr 29, 2025 by Martin Armstrong
German Finance Minister Jörg Kukies is urging the European Union to force nations to drastically increase aid to Ukraine under an emergency clause. This emergency clause acts as a loophole that could allow Brussels to surpass defense investment parameters.
Kukies penned a letter on April 24, 2025, to Brussels to state that the “changing environment in Ukraine “requires a significant build-up of defense capabilities with a major impact on its public finances.” This clause would force EU members to spend up to 1.5% of GDP on Ukraine for the next four years. Kukies also would like the European Commission to consider expanding what constitute as “defense” spending, as it “adequately reflects the multiple threats to security in Europe” and considering “in particular dual-use expenditure.”
Incoming chancellor Friedrich Merz has already agreed to spend €1 trillion on Ukraine’s military and infrastructure. Germany is not “leading” Europe as many believe. Rather, it is dragging the entire continent into the grave. This is not about helping Ukraine. This is about creating the next perpetual conflict to justify more government power, more taxation, and the further erosion of individual liberty.
The German government believes it has the funds to shell out. Yet, other EU members have not masked their hesitancy to sink into debt at the expense of Ukraine. When Foreign Policy Chief Neocon Kaja Kallas attempted to bend the bloc’s hand to increase spending, a few southern European nations like Italy and Spain shouted that they did not want to excessively increase their debt. Spanish Finance Minister Carlos Cuerpo touched on a point that caused Brussels to shudder. If Europe believes it is acting as a solid consolatory force, then why not consolidate the debt?
Spain proposed a temporary special purpose vehicle (SPV) that would restructure defense debt from national balance sheets by issuing joint European debts through bonds or a similar vehicle. EU and non-EU nations could fund the SPV with a shared repayment obligation. Brussels is still considering the proposal, but rest assured that the top economies in the EU will not want to share the debt obligation. The entire premise of the euro robbed lower GDP nations through a failure to consolidate debt, and nations like Germany refused to forgive their multiplied debt after they adopted the euro because every nation will put itself first. It was a fantasy to believe that a continent could erase its borders and operate as one.
The computer has warned that Europe is at risk of a depression. The EU is collapsing under its own weight. The unelected authoritarian regime in the EU is working to destabilize Europe to fight Russia, and member nations must stand idle and watch their nations spiral into debt to spur on a war that was never their battle to fight.
Posted originally on Apr 29, 2025 by Martin Armstrong
Legacy media will continue to spur anti-Trump propaganda until his dying breath. Even then, they likely would not permit him to rest in peace. We recently saw the media broadcast Donald Trump wearing a navy blue suit at Pope Francis’ funeral, claiming he is disrespecting an entire Christian denomination with his wardrobe selection. The Media Research Center (MRC) recently conducted a poll to see how the media has painted the president during his first 100 days, and to the surprise of no one, coverage was92.2% negative.
MRC looked at national news programs from CBS, NBC, and ABC from January 20 through April 9. An astounding 899 stories discussing the Trump Administration were negative, compared to 7.8% of positive coverage. “Just 100 days into President Donald Trump’s second term, the broadcast evening news landscape is even more lopsided than it was eight years ago, when Trump was besieged with relentlessly hostile coverage,” researcher Rich Noyes wrote. During his first term, the media’s negativity was at 89%. In contrast, Joe Biden received 59% positive coverage from these media networks during his first 100 days.
“Yet despite the overwhelming negativity of their coverage, the networks found Trump irresistible as a news subject, at least compared with Biden. From January 20 through April 9, 2017, the networks saturated their newscasts with 1,900 minutes of Trump news; during the same time period this year, we tallied a massive 1,716 minutes of coverage. But in 2021, evening news viewers saw only 726 minutes of Biden coverage during these same weeks, less than half of the airtime devoted to either of the new Trump administrations,” Noyes wrote.
Tariffs received the most airtime with 361 minutes. As I have stated, the press is attempting to erode confidence in the American economy. DOGE received 301 minutes or airtime, with immigration policies coming in at third with 233 minutes. The news covered tariffs negatively 93% of the time, covering immigration policies with an equal amount of animosity. DOGE government cutbacks were aired an astounding 97% with a negative spin. “Out of nearly four hours of evening news airtime devoted to immigration, these newscasts spent just 3.5 minutes letting viewers know just how much Trump has reduced border crossings,” Noyes commented.
The entire Trump Administration is seen as a threat by the left, who control the mainstream media, hence why they have also painted his cabinet in a bad light. All three major networks portrayed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a negative way 100% of the time. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., despite his efforts that should be seen as neutral, received 89% negative coverage. Unsurprisingly, Elon Musk’s airtime was 96% negative.
“The mainstream media continues to portray President Trump’s historic accomplishments negatively, even though 77 million Americans voted for his policies. Americans know the President is doing what is best for the country, which is why the legacy media’s ratings continue to drop and people are finding new ways to consume the news,” a White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
The media fails to realize that the people voted for Trump because he is the anti-establishment candidate. His supporters know that the media conglomerates hate him AND his supporters, which only made him an increasingly popular underdog. Trump wears it as a badge of honor, even displaying his mugshot outside the Oval Office. Journalism died long ago. These are the same people who helped to orchestrate the COVID narrative, who hid Biden’s mental health, and who insist that they should have the final say on what constitutes misinformation. The primary, if not only, purpose of legacy media is to disseminate propaganda and manipulate the masses.
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