You always do such a great job at this, Peter. And looking on the bright side, I guess the big economic picture could be worse. (I’m still hoping that Trump’s “Golden Age” develops, maybe starting next year.)
But suppose the government shutdown remains in effect for another six weeks or so. People on WIC and SNAP benefits would suffer, and the airline travel industry might plummet if there are few government airline-safety people working. But what else do you see plummeting? Christmas sales, construction, any sector in particular?
The shutdown is already affecting transportation--LAX had a ground stop over the weekend because air traffic controllers called off when they didn't get paid (who didn't see that coming?).
SNAP is heading off the cliff and Congress is not trying to stop it. Other government assistance programs are likely to follow.
After mid-November military pay is up in the air, and DHS (meaning ICE and CBP) pay is already not happening.
Anything the government inspects will at some point be impacted by the shutdown if it drags on long enough. Anything the government has to approve will at some point be impacted.
Port operations will be slowed down if customs processing is disrupted, and that could negatively impact the holiday sales season (although much of Christmas inventory has already been stocked by most vendors, so the impact will be smaller than one might imagine).
The longer the shutdown drags on the more real the pain will be for ordinary Americans. That's a given. The question is going to be which side is going to catch the most grief. So far, corporate media has not been piling on the GOP over the shutdown, and if that remains the case the Democrats are between a rock and a hard place. They don't have an easy face-saving way out of the shutdown.
And what’s the likelihood that political hack, Powell, will somehow feel a minimal 25 basis points increase is “supported by the overall economic outlook, blah, blah, blah, BS, BS, BS, blather…”
You always do such a great job at this, Peter. And looking on the bright side, I guess the big economic picture could be worse. (I’m still hoping that Trump’s “Golden Age” develops, maybe starting next year.)
But suppose the government shutdown remains in effect for another six weeks or so. People on WIC and SNAP benefits would suffer, and the airline travel industry might plummet if there are few government airline-safety people working. But what else do you see plummeting? Christmas sales, construction, any sector in particular?
The shutdown is already affecting transportation--LAX had a ground stop over the weekend because air traffic controllers called off when they didn't get paid (who didn't see that coming?).
SNAP is heading off the cliff and Congress is not trying to stop it. Other government assistance programs are likely to follow.
After mid-November military pay is up in the air, and DHS (meaning ICE and CBP) pay is already not happening.
Anything the government inspects will at some point be impacted by the shutdown if it drags on long enough. Anything the government has to approve will at some point be impacted.
Port operations will be slowed down if customs processing is disrupted, and that could negatively impact the holiday sales season (although much of Christmas inventory has already been stocked by most vendors, so the impact will be smaller than one might imagine).
The longer the shutdown drags on the more real the pain will be for ordinary Americans. That's a given. The question is going to be which side is going to catch the most grief. So far, corporate media has not been piling on the GOP over the shutdown, and if that remains the case the Democrats are between a rock and a hard place. They don't have an easy face-saving way out of the shutdown.
And what’s the likelihood that political hack, Powell, will somehow feel a minimal 25 basis points increase is “supported by the overall economic outlook, blah, blah, blah, BS, BS, BS, blather…”
That’s a given.
He will “reinterpret” the available data and mumble out something incoherent, just like he always does.
He’s the John Kerry of rate cuts—he was opposed to them before he was supportive of them.