Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Trump's America Is Facing a $13 Trillion Consumer Debt Hangover
Bloomberg | Matt Scully | 06/06/17

Americans faced with lackluster income growth have been financing more of their spending with debt instead. There are early signs that loan burdens are growing unsustainably large for borrowers with lower incomes. Household borrowings have surged to a record $12.73 trillion, and the percentage of debt that is overdue has risen for two consecutive quarters. And with economic optimism having lifted borrowing rates since the election and the Federal Reserve expected to hike further, it's getting more expensive for borrowers to refinance.

Some companies are growing worried about their customers. Public Storage said in April that more of its self-storage customers now seem to be under stress. Credit card lenders including Synchrony Financial and Capital One Financial Corp. are setting aside more money to cover bad loans. Consumer product makers including Nestle SA posted slower sales growth last quarter, particularly in the U.S. ... Read more

Comey's YUUUge Day On The Hill
Salon | Matthew Sheffield | 06/06/17

Even if he says nothing new, James Comey's testimony is going to put a real focus on Trump's Russia scandal

Even as news stories of numerous interactions between Russia and associates of President Donald Trump have continued to break on a frequent basis, congressional Democrats have become more circumspect in their rhetoric about the subject. On Sunday, Virginia Sen. Mark Warner told CNN that while there is "a lot of smoke" in terms of contacts, "we have no smoking gun at this point." In large measure, that is because any legal prosecution or impeachment actions would have to rely upon real documentation or sworn public statements. Thus far, those things do not exist. But fired FBI director James Comey's upcoming public testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee may provide a way of bringing the numerous threads of the Russia scandal together in a way that becomes a historical moment. ... Read more

Everything we know about the Mueller probe so far
Politico | Darren Samuelsohn | 06/06/17

Mueller, who brings a wealth of national security experience, is expected to take an expansive view of his role.

His first appointments -- tapping longtime law-firm partner James Quarles and Andrew Weissmann, the head of the Justice Department's criminal fraud unit -- were the opening moves in a politically red-hot criminal case that has upended the opening months of the Trump White House.

Mueller is expected to take an expansive view of his role. He inherited a spate of existing federal probes covering figures including the president's son-in-law and senior White House adviser, Jared Kushner, and former campaign hands Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn and Carter Page. ... Read more

Keith Olbermann Apologizes to UK: 'Trump Is Not Of Sound Mind'
HP | Mary Papenfuss | 06/05/17

A somber Keith Olbermann apologized to Britain for Donald Trump's insensitive comments attacking the competence of London's mayor in the wake of Saturday's attack on London Bridge. "Donald Trump is not of sound mind," explained Olbermann in the latest offering of GQ's "The Resistance." "We are working to correct the problem as soon as possible." ...

... "Amid all that he creates -- mass confusion, charges of corruption, hints at collusion -- there is a stark reality. In almost any other job in this country, assuredly in any other private sector job ... Donald Trump, our national embarrassment, our international disgrace, would have been fired by now," he said. ... Read more
If He Were Doing Any Other Job, Donald Trump Would Have Been Fired by Now (#83) | Keith Olbermann | 06/05/17 | 8:39