New residential homes are shown under construction in Carlsbad, California September 19, 2011. (Photo: Reuters)
The U.S. Census Bureau report on new residential construction statistics for February show housing starts and building permits missed expectations, though housing completions were very strong.
Building Permits
Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,298,000, a 5.7% (±0.7%) decline from the revised January rate of 1,377,000. However, it is still 6.5% (±2.4%) higher than the February 2017 rate of 1,219,000.
Single-family authorizations in February were at a rate of 872,000, a 0.6% (±0.9%) decline from the revised January figure of 877,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 385,000 in February.
Housing Starts
Privately-owned housing starts in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,236,000, a 7.0% (±16.7%) drop from the revised January estimate of 1,329,000. It is also 4.0% (±12.2%) below the February 2017 rate of 1,288,000. Yet, single-family housing starts, the key component in this report, were at a rate of 902,000 in February.
This is 2.9% (±10.8%) above the revised January figure of 877,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 317,000.
Housing Completions
Privately-owned housing completions in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,319,000, a 7.8% (±14.8%) gain from the revised January estimate of 1,224,000 and a 13.6% (±16.0%)* gain from the February 2017 rate of 1,161,000. That is very strong for this component.
Single-family housing completions in February were at a rate of 895,000, an increase of 3.0% (±10.6%) from the revised January rate of 869,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 418,000.
Popular punditry proclaims that a president’s job approval is the primary driving factor behind midterm elections. This is a myth. Evidence shows no real correlation between midterm swings and presidential job approval.
Let me exemplify:
Change In Presidential Party’s Midterm Popular Vote Margin From Prior Midterm
Table 1 (30s to Low 40s)
Presidential Job Approval Rating
Change in Popular Vote Share
34%
-5
35%
+10
38%
-13
41%
+2
42%
-3
44%
-2
Table 2 (45% to 59%)
Presidential Job Approval Rating
Change in Popular Vote Share
45%
-15
45%
-15
48%
-8
54%
-8
57%
-6
58%
-6
58%
+2
Table 3 (60% & Above)
Presidential Job Approval Rating
Change in Popular Vote Share
60%
-5
62%
-7
63%
+2
65%
+6
65%
+4
66%
-5
Note — the most popular incumbent President saw the same results as the least popular incumbent President. Equally, deeply unpopular presidents have twice improved on their party’s prior midterm performance, while half of very popular presidents saw at least a 5 point decline in their party’s margins over the prior midterm election. The most popular presidential incumbents were more likely to experience a bigger decline in their party’s midterm margins than were the least popular presidents.
Put simply, presidential job approval shows no empirical relationship over time with midterm party performance. Or, put another way: the median midterm result by job approval compared to the prior midterm election:
Table 4 (Averages)
Presidential Job Approval Range
Change in Popular Vote Share
30% to 44%
– 2 to 1/2
45% to 59%
-8
60% and Above
-5
The map of midterm outcomes by job approval looks like what a random map would often look like.
Instead, the most common phenomenon is that the party out of power tends to turn out at higher rates than the party in power during midterm elections, though this normally accounts for about a 5 point improvement over the prior midterm. (The outcomes can be much more skewed in special elections, where turnout can wildly vary).
If that happens in 2018, Democrats would fall far short of taking Congress. If past is prologue, Democrats hanging their hat on presidential job approval polling will end up without a hat come Election Day.
At 3:2 odds, Republicans keeping Congress remains a pretty good bet, as of today.
Robert Barnes is a high-profile criminal defense lawyer and has been dubbed by the media as America’s most successful political gambler. Learn more at Barnes Law LLP. You can follow him on Twitter at @Barnes_Law.
Roofers work on new homes at a residential construction site in the west side of the Las Vegas Valley in Las Vegas, Nevada April 5, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)
Builder confidence in the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) shed only one point to a still-strong 70 in March. The sustained strength in homebuilder sentiment toward single-family homes is welcomed news, as supply shortages on the market are driving prices up and sales down.
“Builders’ optimism continues to be fueled by growing consumer demand for housing and confidence in the market,” said NAHB Chairman Randy Noel, a custom home builder from LaPlace, La. “However, builders are reporting challenges in finding buildable lots, which could limit their ability to meet this demand.”
The HMI component gauging current sales conditions held steady at 77, the chart measuring sales expectations in the next six months dropped two points to 78, and the index gauging buyer traffic fell three points to 51.
“A strong labor market, rising incomes and a growing economy are boosting demand for homeownership even as interest rates rise,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “With these economic fundamentals in place, the single-family sector should continue to make gains at a gradual pace in the months ahead.”
Regionally, the three-month moving average for the Northeast rose one point to 57. The three-month moving average for the South fell one point to 73, while the three-month moving average for the West fell 2 points to 79 and 4 points to 68 in the Midwest.
About the Survey
The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) has been gauging builder confidence, otherwise known as homebuilder sentiment, for roughly 30 years. It rates current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months as “good,” “fair” or “poor.” The HMI also asks builders to rate traffic of prospective buyers as “high to very high,” “average” or “low to very low.”
Scores for each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.
President Donald Trump, followed by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, left, and White House Economic Council Director Gary Cohn arrives for a meeting on the Federal budget, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo)
The Trump Administration announced sanctions against 24 Russian entitles and individuals for interference in the 2016 elections and cyber attacks “targeting critical infrastructure.” The White House stressed that more sanctions are coming against the Kremlin.
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated 5 entities and 19 individuals under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) and Executive Order (E.O.) 13694, “Blocking the Property of Certain Persons Engaging in Significant Malicious Cyber-Enabled Activities.”
“The Administration is confronting and countering malign Russian cyber activity, including their attempted interference in U.S. elections, destructive cyber-attacks, and intrusions targeting critical infrastructure,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “These targeted sanctions are a part of a broader effort to address the ongoing nefarious attacks emanating from Russia.”
Mr. Mnuchin said the White House stressed that more sanctions against Kremlin-tied Russian entitles and individuals allegedly behind “malicious” cyber attacks on the U.S. electrical grid and financial sector, will follow.
“Treasury intends to impose additional CAATSA sanctions, informed by our intelligence community, to hold Russian government officials and oligarchs accountable for their destabilizing activities by severing their access to the U.S. financial system,” the secretary added.
All property and interests in property of the designated persons — or, those targeted by sanctions — subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked. U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.
These entities and individuals are subjects of the recent indictment announced by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on February 16, 2018. Special Counsel Robert Mueller uncovered a sophisticated plot to wage an “information warfare” within the U.S. and a “strategic goal to sow discord in the U.S. political system, including the 2016 presidential election.”
Mr. Rosenstein said the special counsel investigation found no American was a knowing participant in illegal activity and made clear that the indictment did not allege that any of the interference changed the outcome of the presidential race.
Today’s action includes the designation of 3 entities and 13 individuals pursuant to E.O. 13694, as amended, which targets malicious cyber actors, including those involved in interfering with election processes or institutions.
The Internet Research Agency LLC (IRA) tampered with, altered, or caused a misappropriation of information with the purpose or effect of interfering with or undermining election processes and institutions. Specifically, the IRA tampered with or altered information in order to interfere with the 2016 U.S. election. The IRA created and managed a vast number of fake online personas that posed as legitimate U.S. persons to include grassroots organizations, interest groups, and a state political party on social media. Through this activity, the IRA posted thousands of ads that reached millions of people online. The IRA also organized and coordinated political rallies during the run-up to the 2016 election, all while hiding its Russian identity. Further, the IRA unlawfully utilized personally identifiable information from U.S. persons to open financial accounts to help fund IRA operations.
Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin (Prigozhin) provided material assistance to the IRA. Specifically, Prigozhin funded the operations of the IRA. OFAC previously designated Prigozhin under E.O. 13661, “Blocking Property of Additional Persons Contributing to the Situation in Ukraine,” on December 20, 2016.
Concord Management and Consulting LLC provided material assistance to the IRA. Concord Management and Consulting LLC, which is controlled by Prigozhin, provided funding to the IRA. Concord Management and Consulting LLC was previously designated under E.O. 13661 on June 20, 2017.
Concord Catering provided material assistance to the IRA. Concord Catering, which is controlled by Prigozhin, provided funding to the IRA. OFAC previously designated Concord Catering under E.O. 13661 on June 20, 2017.
Dzheykhun Nasimi Ogly Aslanov (Aslanov) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Aslanov acted as the head of the translator project, a department which focused on the United States and conducted operations on multiple social media platforms. He also oversaw many of the operations that targeted the 2016 U.S. election.
Anna Vladislavovna Bogacheva (Bogacheva) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Bogacheva worked for the IRA from at least April 2014 to July 2014. She worked on the translator project.
Maria Anatolyevna Bovda (Bovda) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Bovda worked for the IRA from at least November 2013 to October 2014. She served as the head of the translator project and held other positions within the firm.
Robert Sergeyevich Bovda (Bovda) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Bovda worked for the IRA from at least November 2013 to October 2014. He served as the deputy head of the translator project and held other positions within the firm.
Mikhail Leonidovich Burchik (Burchik) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Burchik acted as the executive director of the IRA and held the firm’s second-highest ranking position. He was involved in operational planning, infrastructure, and personnel throughout the firm’s operations to interfere in the U.S. political system.
Mikhail Ivanovich Bystrov (Bystrov) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Bystrov acted as the general director of the IRA and served as the head of other entities used by the firm to mask its operations.
Irina Viktorovna Kaverzina (Kaverzina) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Kaverzina worked for the translator project and operated multiple U.S. personas that she used to post, monitor, and update social media content for the IRA.
Aleksandra Yuryevna Krylova (Krylova) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Krylova worked for the IRA from at least September 2013 to November 2014, where she served as a director and was the firm’s third-highest ranking position.
Vadim Vladimirovich Podkopaev (Podkopaev) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Podkopaev was responsible for conducting U.S.-focused research and drafting social media content for the IRA.
Sergey Pavlovich Polozov (Polozov) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Polozov acted as the manager of the IRA’s information technology department and oversaw the procurement of U.S. servers and other computer infrastructure that masked the firm’s location when conducting operations within the United States.
Gleb Igorevich Vasilchenko (Vasilchenko) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Vasilchenko worked for the IRA from at least August 2014 to September 2016, and was responsible for controlling social media content and posing as U.S. persons or U.S. grassroots organizations.
Vladimir Venkov (Venkov) acted for or on behalf of and provided material and technological support to the IRA. Venkov worked for the translator project and operated multiple U.S. personas that were used to post, monitor, and update social media content for the IRA.
The Trump Administration has sanctioned more than 100 individuals and entities to date over Ukraine, including 21 individuals, 9 entities and 12 subsidiaries that are at least 50% owned by previously sanctioned Russian companies on January 26, 2018. These sanctions are in addition to other sanctioning efforts relating to Russian activities in support of North Korea, the Global Magnitsky program and the Sergei Magnitsky Act.
The new designations also include 2 entities and 6 individuals allegedly operating on behalf of the Russian government.
The Trump Administration said the Federal Security Service (FSB), or Russian intelligence, knowingly engages in significant activities that undermine cybersecurity. They specifically cited their cyber tools to target Russian journalists and political opponents of the Russian government; Russian citizens and government officials; former officials from countries bordering Russia; and U.S. government officials, including cyber security, diplomatic, military, and White House personnel.
In 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted 2 FSB officers for their involvement in the 2014 hacking of Yahoo, which impacted millions of Yahoo accounts. OFAC previously sanctioned the FSB under E.O. 13694 on December 28, 2016.
Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), or Russian military intelligence, also knowingly engages in significant activities that undermine cybersecurity. The Trump Administration claimed the GRU was directly involved in interfering in the 2016 U.S. election.
The Russian military was also directly responsible for the NotPetya cyber-attack in 2017. OFAC previously sanctioned the GRU under E.O. 13694 on December 28, 2016.
Sergei Afanasyev (Afanasyev) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of February 2017, Afanasyev was a senior GRU official.
Vladimir Alexseyev (Alexseyev) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of December 2016, Alexseyev was a First Deputy Chief of the GRU. OFAC previously sanctioned Alexseyev under E.O. 13694, as amended, on December 28, 2016.
Sergey Gizunov (Gizunov) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of July 2017, Gizunov was the Deputy Chief of the GRU. OFAC previously sanctioned Gizunov under E.O. 13694, as amended, on December 28, 2016.
Igor Korobov (Korobov) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of January 2018, Korobov was the Chief of the GRU. OFAC previously sanctioned Korobov under E.O. 13694, as amended, on December 28, 2016.
Igor Kostyukov (Kostyukov) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of December 2016, Kostukov was a First Deputy Chief of the GRU. OFAC previously sanctioned Kostyukov under E.O. 13694, as amended, on December 28, 2016.
Grigoriy Molchanov (Molchanov) acts for or on behalf of the GRU. As of April 2016, Molchanov was a senior GRU official.
A manufacturing assembly line at the Heinz factory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo: Courtesy of Heinz)
The Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey showed regional factory activity continued to grow at an unusually strong pace in March. While the headline diffusion index for current general activity declined slightly from 25.8 in February to 22.3 in March, the internals are red hot.
The current new orders index, at 35.7, surged by 11 points with 52% of the firms reporting increases. The unfilled orders index rose 6 points to 20.1, which Econoday called “enormously strong.”
Nearly 37% of the manufacturers reported increases in overall activity this month, while just 14% reported decreases. That essentially mirrors sentiment in the earlier-released Empire State Manufacturing Survey for March.
Source: Philadelphia Federal Reserve Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey for Mid-Atlantic Manufacturing in March, 2018.
Delivery times were positive and gained 10 points, while inventories also soared this month. The current inventories index increased from -0.9 to 16.5.
The firms continued to report increases in employment, though the skills gap continues to plague manufacturers. Nearly 35% of the responding firms reported increases in employment, while 9% reported decreases this month. The current employment index edged slightly higher to 25.6, its highest reading in 5 months.
In special questions this month, firms were asked about worker shortages, the skills gap and labor supply, and how they were dealing with those challenges.
Nearly 64% of the firms reported labor shortages, while a higher percentage (70%) indicated a skills gap between requirements and available labor. These percentages were slightly higher than the responses the last time the questions were asked in March 2017. Nearly 48% also reported that they had positions that have remained vacant for more than 90 days.
A factory worker at a New York manufacturing plant. (Photo: Reuters)
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed growth in the region was “robust” for March as the headline general business conditions index climbed nine points to 22.5. The median economist forecast was 15.0, decent but more tepid growth than the actual result.
Overall, 38% of respondents reported that business conditions had improved over the month, while just 15% reported that conditions had worsened.
The new orders index rose 3 points to 16.8 and the shipments index climbed 15 points to 27.0. These readings indicate strong growth in the regional manufacturing sector. The unfilled orders index came in positive for a third consecutive month, rising 8 points to 12.7.
The delivery time index gained 5 points to 16.2, a sign that delivery times continued to lengthen, while the inventories index was little changed at 5.6.
The employee index was steady at 9.4, as was the average workweek index at 5.9. These readings indicate another month of increasing employment levels and hours worked. Input price increases continued to gain via the prices paid index, which ticked up to 50.3, setting a new multiyear high. The prices received index held steady at 22.4, a level pointing to ongoing moderate selling price increases.
The Labor Department said seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims was 226,000 for the week ending March 10, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised down by 1,000 from 231,000 to 230,000.
The 4-week moving average came in at a very low 221,500, a decrease of 750 from the previous week’s downwardly revised average. The previous week’s average was revised down by 250 from 222,500 to 222,250.
Claims taking procedures in Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands have still not returned to normal and extended benefits were payable in Alaska and the Virgin Islands during the week ending February 24.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was unchanged at 1.3% for the week ending March 3 and the advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending March 3 was 1,879,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised up 5,000 from 1,870,000 to 1,875,000.
The 4-week moving average decreased by 17,250 from the previous week’s revised average to 1,890,750. The previous week’s average was revised up by 1,250 from 1,906,750 to 1,908,000.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending February 24 were in the Virgin Islands (9.2), Alaska (3.6), Connecticut (3.0), New Jersey (3.0), Montana (2.9), Puerto Rico (2.9), Rhode Island (2.9), Massachusetts (2.7), Pennsylvania (2.5), and Illinois (2.4).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 3 were in New York (+18,249), California (+11,646), Washington (+1,011), Texas (+873), and New Jersey (+804), while the largest decreases were in Massachusetts (-3,871), Rhode Island (-1,082), Kentucky (-690), Michigan (-637), and Kansas (-463).
Suspected members of the MS-13 gang are presented to the media in San Salvador on June 19, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)
A federal jury Wednesday convicted a member of the El Salvador gang MS-13 in Maryland of conspiracy to participate in racketeering and murder.
Raul Ernesto Landaverde-Giron, aka Humilde and Decente, of Silver Spring, was also found guilty of murder in aid of racketeering, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence and murder resulting from the discharging of a firearm during a crime of violence.
Gang activity surrounding La Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, had been on the rise and expanded to multiple states under the Obama Administration. However, the Trump Administration has made a crackdown on their presence and crime in the U.S. a priority.
“With more than 10,000 members across 40 U.S. states, MS-13 is one of the deadliest gangs in America,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement. “That’s why the Trump administration and this Department of Justice have worked aggressively to dismantle this vicious gang and take its members off of our streets.”
The investigation that led up to the conviction was a joint effort between DOJ, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and other agencies. Ms-13 has become a major criminal organization in California, Texas, Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland.
“Cliques,” or branches of MS-13, now operate throughout Prince George’s County, Montgomery County, and Frederick County.
“Maryland in particular has suffered terribly because of MS-13’s campaign of rape, murder, and extortion,” Mr. Sessions added, adding that this “conviction is another victory for the American people against this uniquely barbaric gang, and I want to thank everyone who played a role in making it possible, especially Homeland Security Investigations, Prince George’s and Montgomery County police, Hyattsville police, and the Assistant U.S. Attorneys and Department of Justice Trial Attorneys who prosecuted the case.”
“MS-13 thinks that they are targeting us—but we are targeting them.”
MS-13 is now a transnational gang primarily made up of immigrants — legal and illegal — or their descendants from El Salvador. Members are required to commit acts of violence to gain and maintain membership, as well as attack and kill rivals, known as “chavalas.” MS-13 issues “greenlights,” or orders to be killed, on members for betraying the gang by cooperating with law enforcement or violating gang rules.
According to evidence presented at the three-week trial, from at least 2012 through at least 2016, MS-13 members planned and committed numerous crimes, including murders and attempted murders in Prince George’s County and Frederick County. Gang members also extorted owners of illegal businesses, among other crimes. Landaverde-Giron was a member of the MS-13 Normandie Locos Salvatrucha Clique.
Trial evidence showed that on Nov. 30, 2013, Landaverde-Giron, along with two other Normandie Clique members, murdered an individual in Frederick, Maryland, who had fled El Salvador to escape a greenlight imposed by MS-13 members in El Salvador. After a co-conspirator recognized the victim in Frederick, Normandie Clique members called an MS-13 leader in prison in El Salvador to confirm the greenlight was still in effect. A co-conspirator then lured the victim to a wooded area in Frederick, where he shot the victim in the head and Landaverde-Giron and another co-conspirator stabbed the victim in the face and neck. Landaverde-Giron was promoted within the Normandie Clique for his participation in this murder.
Landaverde-Giron faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison for murder in aid of racketeering. U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte has scheduled sentencing for June 13. Landaverde-Giron remains detained.
In addition to this conviction, five of the seven defendants charged in this case have previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the racketeering conspiracy.
HSI Baltimore, Frederick Police Department, Prince George’s County Police Department, Hyattsville City Police Department, Montgomery County Police Department, and the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office assisted in the investigation and prosecution. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys William D. Moomau and Lindsay Eyler Kaplan of the District of Maryland.
FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe pauses while testifying before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in Washington, U.S., June 7, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) disciplinary process has recommended that Andrew McCabe be terminated. Attorney General Jeff Session will have the final say on a decision that could impact the 21-year veteran and former deputy director who was removed from his post over misconduct and apparent corruption.
The disciplinary process was kicked off by the findings of a highly-anticipated report conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General Michael Horowitz. Mr. McCabe, an ally of James Comey and Hillary Clinton, was under several investigations for various offenses.
But during a review of his decision in 2016 to allow FBI officials to speak with reporters about an investigation into the Clinton Foundation, Mr. Horowitz concluded that Mr. McCabe lied, according to the people briefed on the matter. Lying is a fireable offense at the Bureau.
While The New York Times first reported the findings, multiple sources confirm that people inside DOJ fully expect him to be fired before Friday. His retirement goes into effect on Sunday, and one source said “outrage” would “boil over” if Attorney General Sessions doesn’t follow the recommendations of the disciplinary process.
“Outrage among the rank-and-file will boil over if, by end of business day, Sessions didn’t fire McCabe.”
FBI pensions are determined by a formula that is based on years of service and prior salaries. Neither the value of Mr. McCabe’s pension nor the impact of his termination, were immediately made clear. It was also unclear whether the attorney general would take action by the end of the week.
“The department follows a prescribed process by which an employee may be terminated,” said Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores. “That process includes recommendations from career employees, and no termination decision is final until the conclusion of that process. We have no personnel announcements at this time.”
Economic analyst Lawrence “Larry” Kudlow appears on CNBC at the New York Stock Exchange, (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 7, 2018. (Photo: Reuters)
Economist Larry Kudlow has accepted the offer from the White House to serve as Director of the National Economic Council, replacing Gary Cohn just one week after his resignation.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Wednesday that no “personnel announcements to be made at this time,” but did confirm that President Donald Trump and Mr. Kudlow spoke on Tuesday.
As People’s Pundit Daily (PPD) reported, Mr. Cohn’s resignation came as President Trump plans to return to the message of economic nationalism that fueled by greatest political upset in modern U.S. political history. It’s a victory for the average working class voter who supported President Trump in the 2016 election.
The former New York businessman-turned-President of the United States ran for the highest office in the land vowing to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and withdraw the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Shortly after taking office, President Trump signed an executive order making good on the latter and moving to renegotiate NAFTA on a bilateral basis.
Mr. Cohn was constantly in opposition to the platform of economic nationalism that resulted in the cracking of the Blue Wall in November of 2016. President Trump became the first Republican presidential candidate to carry Pennsylvania and Michigan since 1988 and the first to carry Wisconsin since 1984.
Mr. Kudlow, a contributing economist at CNBC, has been a staunch support of President Trump’s economic policies. However, he does oppose the recent tariffs imposed on imported steel and aluminum.
Those who cover the White House know that the president insists on having opposing views in his administration.
The former host of CNBC’s “The Kudlow Report” has an extensive background in finance including work for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and as a chief economist and senior managing director at Bear Stearns. Mr. Kudlow also served as the associate director for economics and planning in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) during former President Ronald Reagan’s first term.
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