I don’t know at what age you stop believing things aren’t there if you close your eyes, but I'm sure it's less than 64, which is the average age in the Senate.
It didn't take for Crypto to get into the real financial markets. 2008 showed what the housing industry can do to the economy. The ink on the "Genius Bill" isn't dry and the Crypto fox is already in the hen house. Donny and the Oligarchs will Hoover up everyone's money when the economy crashes in a year or two.
What may also not be well understood is when (not if) there is a crypto based financial crash, who will pay the bill? Who will come to the rescue of the banks and neo-financial firms who are in danger of failing and causing an even wider financial crisis? Taxpayers, of course, reaffirming the old truth that we too frequently allow organizations to privatize gains, while socializing losses.
"The ink on the "Genius Bill" isn't dry and the Crypto fox is already in the hen house." 🦊🐔🐓🐔🐓jimT !!
How exactly can a currency be based on nothing not even air or magic??? I am much too old for too many more 🤯which I assume is emoji for a head exploding. ie: mine
Question: Most descriptions of OBBB emphasize that it would make life worse for the “needy” (horrible term). Would it not also expand the numbers of those who cannot afford a decent life? For example, the likely implosion of nursing home care threatens both those in care and their potential home caregivers, who would have to forgo paid work to provide the care. Is there a way to calculate this effect?
Love your columns. Thank you. I do think resistance is futile, especially when the Senate is more radical than the House. To date the GOP has gone along with everything he wants and has called him out on none of his bad behavior. I think we have to let the GOP break this thing before we can put it back together (fully realizing the fix may include more authoritarianism than many would prefer).
I have been an avid and appreciative reader of yours for decades so know that you know that this bill is a fait accompli. Because of the Medicaid change that just happened the three Republican Senators that will vote against the bill have been officially chosen.
"Spending cuts to the health insurance program for the poor and disabled partially offset revenue losses from tax cuts in the measure and are a crucial demand of GOP fiscal conservatives.
The revision helps Republicans shore up the spending cuts they need to fund the bill, but it could also alienate three crucial senators — Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina — who have been pushing to scale back the Medicaid cuts."
The Senate bill exempted some cuts for Alaska to get Senator Murkowski's vote and thought that by giving some of it to "all non-contiguous states", that they could slip it by the parliamentarian. Nope. Will see if they overrule the parliamentarian next.
"The Senate’s parliamentarian, who is reviewing provisions to ensure they comply with the chamber’s rules, is continuing to evaluate a few health care provisions.
Just Sunday morning, she ruled that several health care provisions violated the rules. Her ruling included two that would cause more spending on Medicare and Medicaid in Alaska and Hawaii, according to the Senate Budget Committee."
Speaking of eyes wide shut, how can Rs rationalize that a $25 billion trickle to rural hospitals will plug the hole of their $1 trillion funding cut for Medicaid? If already struggling rural hospitals are lucky enough not to close for a bit, Krugman writes this morning how the hedge fund bros will euthanize them:
"In recent years health care has become a major focus of private equity investments, with private equity firms purchasing a number of hospitals.
What they do next, according to a study published last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association, is sell off land and buildings, then charge the hospitals rent for use of facilities they previously owned. The result, the study claims, is a reduced quality of care for patients, resulting in more falls and higher mortality."
For Jane and John Citizen gasoline prices less than last year, groceries a little higher, nothing to worry about… unless, market prices nosedive, unemployment spikes, interest rates jump, in other words a recession, or worse. Trump is still popular, the 74M Trump voters still behind him.
At what point does the nation and Repubs reject his leadership?
It is *not* locked in the sense that any subsequent Congress can legislate a budget that could override it well before 2034, which is quite common, especially when the political makeup of the Congress flips.
It didn't take for Crypto to get into the real financial markets. 2008 showed what the housing industry can do to the economy. The ink on the "Genius Bill" isn't dry and the Crypto fox is already in the hen house. Donny and the Oligarchs will Hoover up everyone's money when the economy crashes in a year or two.
What may also not be well understood is when (not if) there is a crypto based financial crash, who will pay the bill? Who will come to the rescue of the banks and neo-financial firms who are in danger of failing and causing an even wider financial crisis? Taxpayers, of course, reaffirming the old truth that we too frequently allow organizations to privatize gains, while socializing losses.
Of course we will. Just like in 2008.
Ooooh, i likes it !!:
"The ink on the "Genius Bill" isn't dry and the Crypto fox is already in the hen house." 🦊🐔🐓🐔🐓jimT !!
How exactly can a currency be based on nothing not even air or magic??? I am much too old for too many more 🤯which I assume is emoji for a head exploding. ie: mine
Question: Most descriptions of OBBB emphasize that it would make life worse for the “needy” (horrible term). Would it not also expand the numbers of those who cannot afford a decent life? For example, the likely implosion of nursing home care threatens both those in care and their potential home caregivers, who would have to forgo paid work to provide the care. Is there a way to calculate this effect?
Love your columns. Thank you. I do think resistance is futile, especially when the Senate is more radical than the House. To date the GOP has gone along with everything he wants and has called him out on none of his bad behavior. I think we have to let the GOP break this thing before we can put it back together (fully realizing the fix may include more authoritarianism than many would prefer).
Dear Dr. Berstein,
I have been an avid and appreciative reader of yours for decades so know that you know that this bill is a fait accompli. Because of the Medicaid change that just happened the three Republican Senators that will vote against the bill have been officially chosen.
"Spending cuts to the health insurance program for the poor and disabled partially offset revenue losses from tax cuts in the measure and are a crucial demand of GOP fiscal conservatives.
The revision helps Republicans shore up the spending cuts they need to fund the bill, but it could also alienate three crucial senators — Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina — who have been pushing to scale back the Medicaid cuts."
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/senate-republicans-restore-medicaid-cuts-161131357.html
The Senate bill exempted some cuts for Alaska to get Senator Murkowski's vote and thought that by giving some of it to "all non-contiguous states", that they could slip it by the parliamentarian. Nope. Will see if they overrule the parliamentarian next.
"The Senate’s parliamentarian, who is reviewing provisions to ensure they comply with the chamber’s rules, is continuing to evaluate a few health care provisions.
Just Sunday morning, she ruled that several health care provisions violated the rules. Her ruling included two that would cause more spending on Medicare and Medicaid in Alaska and Hawaii, according to the Senate Budget Committee."
Speaking of eyes wide shut, how can Rs rationalize that a $25 billion trickle to rural hospitals will plug the hole of their $1 trillion funding cut for Medicaid? If already struggling rural hospitals are lucky enough not to close for a bit, Krugman writes this morning how the hedge fund bros will euthanize them:
"In recent years health care has become a major focus of private equity investments, with private equity firms purchasing a number of hospitals.
What they do next, according to a study published last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association, is sell off land and buildings, then charge the hospitals rent for use of facilities they previously owned. The result, the study claims, is a reduced quality of care for patients, resulting in more falls and higher mortality."
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/29/us/politics/trump-policy-bill-health-insurance-cuts.html
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/inequality-part-v-predatory-financialization?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=277517&post_id=167074067&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=5fyvow&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2821826?guestAccessKey=00d9206e-c4e5-468b-be37-9ba2a2b551fd&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=073024
For Jane and John Citizen gasoline prices less than last year, groceries a little higher, nothing to worry about… unless, market prices nosedive, unemployment spikes, interest rates jump, in other words a recession, or worse. Trump is still popular, the 74M Trump voters still behind him.
At what point does the nation and Repubs reject his leadership?
Remember the Reichstag fire?
https://washingtonspectator.org/the-four-memos-quietly-rocking-washington/
Is this locked in til 2034? If it passes
It is *not* locked in the sense that any subsequent Congress can legislate a budget that could override it well before 2034, which is quite common, especially when the political makeup of the Congress flips.
When do the bond vigilantes show up? Why would anybody buy long(er) duration bonds at near current rates when this bill is almost certain to pass?