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Weekend Must Reads
Washington, May 26 -
Phil Gramm and Steve McMillin: The Debt Problem Hasn’t Vanished George Will: Appeals court limits labor board’s lawlessness Early in an opinion issued recently by a unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Judge A. Raymond Randolph said: “Although the parties have not raised it, one issue needs to be resolved before we turn to the merits of the case.” The issue he raised but could not resolve — that is up to the Supreme Court — illuminates the Obama administration’s George Wallace-like lawlessness. It also demonstrates the judiciary’s duty to restrain presidents who forget the oath they swear to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.” Quartz: Five words from Bernanke have Wall Street running scared It was too good to last forever. For most of 2013, the effortless stride of the US stock market has coaxed more and more investors—both retail and pros—into stocks. Before yesterday’s stumble, US stocks were up about 17% year-to-date, making them one of the best-performing asset classes in the world. And then Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke had to go and upset the apple cart by uttering five little words: “In the next few meetings.” Time: The Next Real Estate Bubble Has Already Begun (But It’s Not What You Think) The American public is, for obvious reasons, a bit gun-shy when it comes to asset bubbles. Ever since the financial crisis, market watchers have worried about bubbles in the stock market, in high yield debt, and even the reinflation of the real estate bubble. The latest asset class to receive worried attention from policy makers? Farmland. CNBC: Wagging the Dog: Why the Fed Fears Wall Street The stock market has long been the mistress in the marriage between the Federal Reserve and the economy...The mere mention from Chairman Bernanke that the Fed was contemplating an exit from its monthly asset purchases sent global markets into a tizzy. Peters Schiff: The Biggest Loser Win While the world's economies jockey one another for the lead in the currency devaluation derby, it's worth considering the value of the prize they are seeking. They believe a weak currency opens the door to trade dominance, by allowing manufacturers to undercut foreign rivals, and to economic growth, by fighting deflation. On the other side of the coin, they believe a strong currency is an economic albatross that leads to stagnation. But the demonstrable effects of currency strength and weakness reveal the emptiness of their theory.
President Obama has raised the national debt by nearly $6.2 trillion, the equivalent of $78,385 per family of four. It is true that projected deficits recently have been reduced…But unless the economy soars, or a significant budget agreement is reached, the most lasting legacy of the Obama presidency will be a $10 trillion increase in the national debt—a burden that bodes ill for the nation's future.