Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Brace yourself for a coronavirus outbreak
Axios | Sam Baker | date

Public-health officials' warnings about the coronavirus are sounding increasingly urgent, with one top CDC official asking the public yesterday "to prepare for the expectation that this might be bad."

Reality check: Other administration officials, including President Trump himself, were more subdued in their assessments. But underneath those tonal differences, the reality of the coronavirus is the same: It spreads quickly, and has already spread to many countries, making it likely to start spreading here, too.

Where it stands: There are now cases piling up across Asia and into the Middle East, where it's also spreading locally, even from people who weren't exposed in China. As the virus itself spreads and as American travelers can encounter it in more places, the risk of a pandemic rises. Financial markets are already braced for the worst; the S&P 500 fell by 3.4% yesterday as fears of the virus widened.... Read more

Watch full South Carolina Democratic debate | CBS News | 4:38:42

Donald Trump praises US coronavirus response while playing down impact
TheGuardian.com | Ananda Holpuch | 02/26/20

Donald Trump praised US health officials' response to the coronavirus outbreak on Wednesday, as he and other members of his administration attempted to play down its possible impact.

Trump is due to speak about the outbreak on Wednesday evening after briefings from officials in the health department and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ... Read more

Coronavirus shakes the global economy
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 02/24/20

New cases of the novel coronavirus have rocked asset prices in Japan, South Korea and Italy, as those nations and others have ratcheted up emergency efforts to contain the outbreak.

What's happening: Asian stock markets continued to tank overnight, as South Korea's Kospi dropped nearly 4%, Australia's ASX fell by 2.3% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined by 1.8%. MSCI's index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan touched its lowest since early February.

Currencies also have sold off, led by the Japanese yen and Korean won, which have fallen to their lowest levels against the dollar since May and September, respectively, in the past week. The euro clawed back some losses against the dollar after dropping last week to its lowest versus the greenback since mid-May .... Read more

Coronavirus Explodes in Italy, Threatening Europe. Can It Be Contained?
TheDailyBeast.com | Barbie Latza Nadeau | 02/23/20

Italian authorities have locked down several towns and villages after more than 150 cases of the deadly coronavirus were confirmed and three people have died.

The word quarantine comes from 17th-century Venetian dialect for 40 days, which was the amount of time ships had to wait in isolation before entering certain Italian ports during the pandemic known as the Black Death. Now the word is being used again in Italy, applied to the government's draconian reaction as the coronavirus and the disease known as COVID-19 appear to be hitting the country with a vengeance. More than 50,000 Italians living in 10 communities are literally locked down, facing jail sentences and fines if they leave their homes, thanks to the largest outbreak outside Asia.

The towns, all in the north of the country, are cut off from the rest of Italy now, not even the trains stop when they roll through. The church services are cancelled and dipping one's hand in holy water is strictly prohibited. Three major Serie A soccer games in the area have been postponed, and schools have all been closed for the foreseeable future. Anyone defying the restrictions faces three months in jail and a fine of around $250. ... Read more

the World Nuclear Weapons Stockpile

FULL RALLY: President Donald Trump in Colorado Springs, Colorado | Fox10 | 02/20/20 | 1:41:54

Companies are behaving like it's a recession
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 02/21/20

Despite historically low interest rates, U.S. companies are being unusually frugal, holding back on issuing new debt and pumping up their balance sheets with cash.

Why it matters: Historically, when interest rates are low and the economy is strong, companies have levered up to increase capital expenditures and buy assets in order to expand. The opposite is happening now.

What they're saying: "That is highly unusual, as being late cycle this is precisely when companies are supposed to lever up," credit strategists at Bank of America Global Research said in a recent note.

By the numbers: Net debt declined on a year-over-year basis in the fourth quarter of 2019 for the first time in nearly a decade, Bank of America's data show, meaning companies are issuing less new debt and reducing current obligations at an uncommon rate. ... Read more

Prof. Wolff on Trump's Economic Shell Game | TRNN | 02/07/20 | 38:38

New White House personnel chief tells Cabinet liaisons to target Never Trumpers
Axios | Jonathan Swan, Alayna Treene | 02/21/20

Johnny McEntee called in White House liaisons from cabinet agencies for an introductory meeting Thursday, in which he asked them to identify political appointees across the U.S. government who are believed to be anti-Trump, three sources familiar with the meeting tell Axios.

Behind the scenes: McEntee, a 29-year-old former body man to Trump who was fired in 2018 by then-Chief of Staff John Kelly but recently rehired -- and promoted to head the presidential personnel office -- foreshadowed sweeping personnel changes across government. ... Read more

2020 Democratic Presidential Debatein Las Vegas | NBC News | 02/19/20 | 2:28:56

Thank you, Mike Bloomberg, for rescuing the debate
Politico | John F. Harris | date

His performance may have stunk, but he inspired rivals to some of their best performances so far.

Michael Bloomberg may have bought his way on to the debate stage in Las Vegas Wednesday night but the rest of us are in his debt.

These once-every-couple-weeks rituals had become so familiar that watching til the end was a chore. Anyone interested in the future of the Democratic Party had no trouble sticking through all two hours of this latest one. It was raucous and occasionally rude -- also substantive and relevant to the choice Democrats are in the midst of making. At a minimum, it was free of artifice. ... Read more

The real story of Rudy Giuliani's mission for Trump in Ukraine | WP | 02/06/20 | 26:58

Trump says Obama left him an economic mess. Here are the facts | CNN | 02/17/20 | 11:00

"Billions": Season 2020
Axios | Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen | 02/18/20

Why it matters: Billionaire Michael Bloomberg is duking it out with Billionaire Donald Trump, often on Billionaire Jack Dorsey's Twitter and in ads on Billionaire Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook, all chronicled in Billionaire Jeff Bezos' Washington Post.

In this race, billions aren't just buying admission -- they're buying results: Bloomberg's TV blitz ($318 million, per FiveThirtyEight) has pushed him from nowhere to the top tier of national polls, alongside Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden, and helped make him the talk of the post-New Hampshire race. ... Read more

Every Trump Financial Thread Pulled Results In Scandal | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 02/18/20 | 7:33

Trump's Top Trade Adviser Peter Navarro Has a Side Project: Secretly Hunting for 'Anonymous' | WHACK-A-MOLE
Daily Beast | Asawin Suebsaeng White House Reporter | 02/18/20

As President Donald Trump moves to purge his administration of perceived disloyalty, one of his top deputies is also doggedly working to expose perhaps the most famous dissident in its ranks.

Officially, assistant to the president Peter Navarro is Trump's point-man on trade policy. But Navarro has also taken it upon himself in recent weeks to uncover the identity of the person known simply as "Anonymous," the senior Trump administration official who has railed against the president in the New York Times opinion pages and, most recently, in a bestselling book titled A Warning, and whose actual identity has so far confounded White House leak hunters. ... Read more

Economists warn coronavirus risk far worse than realized
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 02/18/20

Worries are growing that the economic impact from the novel coronavirus outbreak will be worse than expected and that markets are being too complacent in factoring it in as a risk.

What's happening: The number of confirmed cases has already far outpaced expectations and even those reports are being viewed through a lens of suspicion that the Chinese government is underreporting the figures.

Yet, U.S. stock indexes have continued to hit all-time highs, bond spreads remain compressed, and even some Asian bourses have recouped losses that followed the initial coronavirus headlines.

Driving the news: Of the 364 companies that have held Q4 earnings calls, 138 cited the term "coronavirus" during the call, and about 25% of those included some impact from the coronavirus or modified guidance due to the virus, according to FactSet. ... Read more

Antarctica Heat Wave Get Worse | TYT | 02/14/20 | 8:53

Judge sets "scheduling" conference call ahead of Roger Stone sentencing
Axios | Zachary Basu | 02/17/20

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson has requested a Feb. 18 "scheduling" conference call in the Roger Stone case, two days before the former Trump associate is set to be sentenced.

Why it matters: Stone's defense team on Friday filed a sealed motion for a new trial -- the second time they've done so -- amid allegations of juror bias and a growing controversy over Attorney General Bill Barr's intervention in the case. ... Read more

Over 1,100 Former Justice Department Officials Call For Barr To Resign | MSNBC | 02/16/20 | 4:19

1,100+ former prosecutors and other DOJ officials call on Attorney General Barr to resign | CNN | 02/16/20 | 6:11

Footage shows rare sighting of lynx family crossing road in Manitoba | Guardian | 02/14/20 | 1:00

The Atlantic Outlines The Trump Campaign's Disinformation Tactics | Velshi & Ruhle | MSNBC | 02/13/20 | 9:36

The Billion-Dollar Disinformation Campaign to Reelect the President
Atlantic | McKay Coppins | 03/2020

One day last fall, I sat down to create a new Facebook account. I picked a forgettable name, snapped a profile pic with my face obscured, and clicked "Like" on the official pages of Donald Trump and his reelection campaign. Facebook's algorithm prodded me to follow Ann Coulter, Fox Business, and a variety of fan pages with names like "In Trump We Trust." I complied. I also gave my cellphone number to the Trump campaign, and joined a handful of private Facebook groups for MAGA diehards, one of which required an application that seemed designed to screen out interlopers.

The president's reelection campaign was then in the midst of a multimillion-dollar ad blitz aimed at shaping Americans' understanding of the recently launched impeachment proceedings. Thousands of micro-targeted ads had flooded the internet, portraying Trump as a heroic reformer cracking down on foreign corruption while Democrats plotted a coup. That this narrative bore little resemblance to reality seemed only to accelerate its spread. Right-wing websites amplified every claim. Pro-Trump forums teemed with conspiracy theories. An alternate information ecosystem was taking shape around the biggest news story in the country, and I wanted to see it from the inside.

The story that unfurled in my Facebook feed over the next several weeks was, at times, disorienting. There were days when I would watch, live on TV, an impeachment hearing filled with damning testimony about the president's conduct, only to look at my phone later and find a slickly edited video--served up by the Trump campaign--that used out-of-context clips to recast the same testimony as an exoneration. Wait, I caught myself wondering more than once, is that what happened today? ... Read more

Global coronavirus deaths top 1,490
Axios | staff | 021420

A patient who returned from China's Hubei province and is under federal quarantine at the JBSA-Lackland military base in Texas is the 15th person in the U.S. to be infected with the novel coronavirus, the CDC confirmed Thursday.

The big picture: COVID-19 has now killed at least 1,491 people and in mainland China infected nearly 63,832 people, a number the CDC believes is underreported. There are more than 500 cases in 27 other countries and territories.

Last 48 hours | In China: Following the diagnosis changes, the number of cases in Hubei jumped by 14,840 to 48,206 and 242 deaths were recorded in the province, according to the National Health Commission. ... Read more

Sex, Lies and Prenups: Donald Trump's Timeless Wisdom on Love
Politico | Michael Kruse and Jordan Muller | 02/14/20

Donald Trump's many books are ostensibly about business and the business of being him. They are chock-full, too, though, with love advice. There's a good reason for that: To Trump, who presents himself as an expert on everything, love is just another deal -- because love and business are basically the same thing. "Treat each decision," he has counseled, "like a lover."

His countless interviews are rife as well with aphorisms and accrued wisdom about the mysteries of love. Except, for him, it's not actually that mysterious. It all comes down to money. Women are either helping him make it or trying to take it away.

Whether you think America's 45th president is a first-class charmer, a sexual predator, just a crass Casanova or a wounded, stunted narcissist congenitally incapable of anything approaching actual love, one thing is for sure: About women, dating, marriage, commitment or lack thereof, the lascivious, adulterous, thrice-married Trump has had a lot to say. ... Read more

Why Trump is beatable in 2020
Axios | Mike Allen | 02/13/20

There is a growing sense among top Republicans and Democrats that President Trump is stronger than ever and very hard to beat this fall, but several data points suggest otherwise.

Why it matters: Amid record-high stock markets and record-low joblessness, Trump trails almost every 2020 Democrat nationally, and is in a statistical tie in swing-state polls.

Yes, he has a big early edge in raising money and gaming Facebook to target voters. But Michael Bloomberg is willing to spend $2 billion (some say twice that) to easily level things -- and will spend big even if he's not the nominee. ... The data points: ... Read more

Investors see stocks overvalued, recession looming
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 02/13/20

An overwhelming majority of the world's asset managers think stocks are overvalued and expect a recession this year or in 2021, according to a survey released Wednesday by the Boston Consulting Group. Many say "the current bull market is running on borrowed time."

Why it matters: The survey of more than 250 asset managers and analysts who oversee $300 billion at firms that collectively manage over $10 trillion shows the continued apprehension of investors from around the globe. ... Read more

Trump's meddling in Stone case stuns Washington
Politico | Natasha Bertrand | 02/12/20

Alarmed veterans of the Justice Department said the legal system was entering uncharted territory.

President Donald Trump's post-impeachment acquittal behavior is casting a chill in Washington, with Attorney General William Barr emerging as a key ally in the president's quest for vengeance against the law enforcement and national security establishment that initiated the Russia and Ukraine investigations.

In perhaps the most tumultuous day yet for the Justice Department under Trump, four top prosecutors withdrew on Tuesday from a case involving the president's longtime friend Roger Stone after senior department officials overrode their sentencing recommendation -- a backpedaling that DOJ veterans and legal experts suspect was influenced by Trump's own displeasure with the prosecutors' judgment. ... Read more

Bernie Sanders' uneasy New Hampshire win
Axios | Margaret Talev, Alexi McCammond | 02/12/20

Bernie Sanders' victory in the New Hampshire primary was real, but he had two moderates close on his heels -- suggesting that Democrats aren't ready to hand the nomination to a socialist without a longer fight.

The big picture: Amy Klobuchar's surprisingly strong showing, along with the close margin between Sanders and Pete Buttigieg, was a reality check on the idea that the moderate wing of the Democratic Party has disappeared.

The strength of Buttigieg and Klobuchar suggests that there's a sizeable moderate bloc that could be difficult for Sanders to overcome. ... Read more

North Korea's Secret Coronavirus Crisis is Crazy Scary
DailyBeaste | Donald Kirk | 02/10/20

North Korea's not saying a word about deaths or illnesses from the coronavirus, but the disease reportedly has spread across the border from China and is taking a toll in a country with a dismal health care system and scant resources for fighting off the deadly bug.

One sure sign of the regime's fears is that it failed to stage a parade in central Pyongyang on Saturday, the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the country's armed forces. Last year, Kim Jong Un himself presided over the procession that displayed the North's latest missiles and other fearsome hardware along with goose-stepping soldiers in serried ranks. ... Read more

Trump Speaks At New Hampshire Campaign Rally | NBC News | 02/10/20 | 1:21:24

PRAY FOR MY HATERS: President Trump National Day of Prayer FULL SPEECH | Fox10 | 02/06/20 | 27:32

There’s more oil and gas than ever -- and the industry is tanking
Axios | Amy Harder | 02/10/20/span>

The world’s oil and natural gas companies are drilling their way into financial and social hell.

Driving the news: The industry’s stocks are in the toilet, and climate change is fast becoming a mainstream investor worry. These problems overlap and neither is going away any time soon -- if ever. ...

... The intrigue: CNBC’s Jim Cramer raised eyebrows by saying recently that he was “done” with fossil fuels and likened them to tobacco. “This has to do with new kinds of money managers, who frankly just want to appease younger people who believe you can’t ever make fossil fuels sustainable,” he said.... Read more

Coronavirus kills 97 people in a single day as death toll tops 900
Axios | staff | 02/10/20

The novel coronavirus killed 97 people in China on Sunday, the country's National Health Commission confirmed, marking the highest number of deaths in a single day since the outbreak began.

The state of play: 2019-nCoV has now killed at least 909 people worldwide -- more than the SARS virus death toll in 2003. All but two deaths in mainland China, the epicenter of the virus, where more than 40,000 people have been infected. There are 361 cases in 27 other countries and territories. ... Read more

Watch George Conway's reaction to Trump's acquittal | CNN | older 02/05/20 | 4:38

Bernie Sanders fires back at Trump over socialism | CNN | older 02/25/19 | 6:00

Peak Trump at the State of the Union
Axios | Mike Allen | 02/05/20

President Trump, on the eve of his impeachment acquittal, delivered a victory-lap State of the Union address in the very chamber where he had been impeached 48 days before -- and just across the Capitol from where he'll be acquitted today.

The state of play: Trump never mentioned impeachment but pounded socialism, setting high-decibel themes for the 2020 campaign at a moment when his potential rivals are in disarray following the Iowa caucus debacle.

Why it matters: Trump is getting stronger, not weaker, despite his impeachment. And he's increasingly self-confident about his message of free market accomplishments, versus what he paints as the dark dangers of modern liberalism. ... Read more

Watch Trump's full 2020 State of the Union speech (Feb 4) | WP | 02/05/20 | 1:15:33

Here Are The Biggest Whoppers From Trump's 2020 State Of The Union
HP | Akbar Shahid Ahmed | 02/04/20

The president inflated details and straight-up misled Americans about his policies during his address to Congress.

President Donald Trump spoke for about an hour and 20 minutes before the U.S. Congress on Tuesday and largely stuck to the script, successfully avoiding any tirades about the ongoing Senate impeachment trial. But even on message, the president's State of the Union speech was all over the place.

He boasted about achievements in promoting peace between Israelis and Palestinians even though his plan makes fighting between them even more likely. He claimed he is protecting preexisting conditions in health care, even though he has repeatedly tried to kill the Affordable Care Act. He bragged about the healthy economy as a strong indicator of the success of his presidency, when much of the economy's success is due to factors outside of Trump's control. ...

... Beyond general comments on health care, Trump returned to a specific lie from last year: the claim that he's tackling the prevalence of AIDS. "We will eradicate the AIDS epidemic in America by the end of the decade," he said. In fact, the president's efforts to stop reproductive health providers from talking about abortion by cutting off government funding are making it harder to prevent the transmission of AIDS both within the U.S. and abroad. ... Read more

The final day of Trump's impeachment trial -- Feb. 5 | PBS | 02/05/20 | Live

LIVE: Lawmakers speaks on Senate floor ahead of tomorrow's final vote in impeachment trial | WP | 02/04/20 | Live

Trump's mid-impeachment State of the Union
Axios | Alayna Treene | 02/04/20

President Trump will address the nation Tuesday night in the same room Democrats voted to impeach him less than two months ago, and a day before he is expected to be acquitted in the Senate.

Flashback: 21 years ago, former President Bill Clinton found himself in the same situation, addressing a country in the midst of a bitter impeachment battle. Clinton avoided using the I-word in his 78-minute speech, sticking with his commitment to focus on doing the work of a president, despite members' attempts to remove him from office.

What we're watching: The big question is whether Trump follows Clinton's lead, and not only focuses on his forthcoming agenda and recent accomplishments -- like passing USMCA and signing "phase one" of the U.S.-China trade deal -- but also fights the urge to take a premature victory lap on surviving impeachment.

What they're saying: Not one Republican senator Axios spoke with on Monday said they think Trump should bring up impeachment. ... Read more

Trump talks impeachment, 2020 Dems in exclusive Super Bowl interview | FoxNews | 02/02/20 | 8:25

Sean Hannity previews his interview with Trump ahead of Super Bowl LIV | FoxNews | 02/02/20 | 6:49

Impeachment, Bernie's Surge, and the Upcoming State of the Union | The Common Good with Robert Reich | older 01/30/20 | 30:10

What's happening with the coronavirus
Click on Image to Zoom in
Axios | staff | 02/03/20

11 people have now been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus in the U.S. after health officials confirmed three more cases in California Sunday -- including the second person-to-person transmission recorded in the United States.

The state of play: 2019-nCoV has killed more than 360 people and infected more than 17,000 people in mainland China, and around 200 in 26 other countries and regions. Meanwhile, after declaring a public emergency, U.S. officials began denying entry into the country on Sunday to any foreign national who poses a risk of infection. ... Read more

Impeachment trial of President Trump continues in Senate | WP | 02/03/20 | Live