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Economy

SUV parts are fabricated in the stamping facility at the General Motors Assembly Plant on June 9, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

SUV parts are fabricated in the stamping facility at the General Motors Assembly Plant on June 9, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

The MNI Chicago Business Barometer, also known as the Chicago PMI, remained unchanged at 58.9 in August, still beating the 58.6 consensus forecast. That’s the joint-lowest level (matching July’s reading) since April.

New Orders and Production increased to their highest levels since June after falling last month. Order Backlogs fell for the second consecutive month following the 23-year high set in June, but also remain very strong. Inventories fell by 6.4 points into contraction, hitting the lowest level since the start of the year.

“Following the sharp rise in the Barometer to a more than three-year high in June it isn’t too surprising to see activity subsequently ease somewhat. However, overall, the trend remains firm, consistent with the growth story of the U.S.,” said Shaily Mittal, Senior Economist at MNI Indicators. “The disappointment comes from the employment indicator which once again contracted, the sixth time in the last 12 months, with fewer firms expecting an increase in hiring.”

The Employment indicator, which performed markedly better since the beginning of 2017, fell for the third month in a row in August. It’s now below 50 for the first time since March.

The Institute for Supply Management this month asked a special question about firms’ current inventory levels. Sixteen (16%) of firms said they were carrying too little, while the majority, 57.4%, said their inventory level was about right. The remaining 26.2% of firms reported stock levels to be too high.

When the same question was posed in November 2015, 44.2% of firms said inventories were too high, while 53.9% said they were at the right level. That meant only 2% deemed their stock levels to be limited juxtaposed to the current year where higher demand expectations have pushed firms to keep higher inventories.

The MNI Chicago Business Barometer, which can be very volatile, tracks both manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors of the economy in the region.

The MNI Chicago Business Barometer, also known

Economy

People count money at Macy's Herald Square store during the early opening of the Black Friday sales in the Manhattan borough of New York, November 26, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

People count money at Macy’s Herald Square store during the early opening of the Black Friday sales in the Manhattan borough of New York, November 26, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said personal income and outlays gained in July, a strong sign for consumer spending, while inflation remained flat.

Personal income increased $65.6 billion (0.4%) and personal outlays increased $45.2 billion in July. Disposable personal income (DPI) increased $39.6 billion (0.3%) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $44.7 billion (0.3%).

Real DPI increased 0.2% in July and Real PCE increased 0.2%. The $29.3 billion increase in real PCE was made up of an increase of $18.7 billion in spending for goods and an $11.8 billion increase in spending for services.

Personal saving was $510.2 billion in July, while the personal saving rate–personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income–came in at 3.5%. Consumer spending data are a real boon to gross domestic product (GDP), which the BEA reported Wednesday increased at a solid annual rate of 3.0% in the second quarter (2Q).

The Atlanta Federal Reserve’s GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the 3Q of 2017 is currently 3.4%. The next GDPNow update is Thursday, August 31.

But inflation remains a concern, or the lack of it. The PCE price index increased 0.1%. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index increased 0.1%.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said personal

Politics

Bernie Sanders stands at the podium on stage during a walk through before the start of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 25, 2016. (Photo: SS)

Bernie Sanders stands at the podium on stage during a walk through before the start of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 25, 2016. (Photo: SS)

A federal judge in Florida last weekend tossed a lawsuit alleging fraud against the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for rigging the primary against Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Harvard law expert Jared Beck filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of residents of 45 states after it was revealed by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks the DNC (named in suit) and former chairwomen Debbie Wasserman Schultz (named in suit) colluded with the Clinton campaign to undermine Bernie Sanders during the 2016 Democratic nomination.

Judge William Zloch, a Reagan appointee, wrote in his dismissal, basically ruled that the DNC had every right to break their own charter and rig the primaries to pick a nominee.

“To the extent Plaintiffs wish to air their general grievances with the DNC or its candidate selection process, their redress is through the ballot box, the DNC’s internal workings, or their right of free speech — not through the judiciary,” Judge Zloch wrote in his dismissal. “To the extent Plaintiffs have asserted specific causes of action grounded in specific factual allegations, it is this Court’s emphatic duty to measure Plaintiffs’ pleadings against existing legal standards. Having done so . . . the Court finds that the named Plaintiffs have not presented a case that is cognizable in federal court.”

The plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit hit Schultz and the DNC with six counts of fraud and violations to Article 5, Section 4 of the Democratic Party charter, which stipulates that the national party will function with total neutrality during Democratic primary contests. While the DNC won the case, their woes are far from over.

With the judiciary offering no assistance, Bernie supporters are now calling for a Demexit. Users on the Facebook page for the lawsuit pointed out that the DNC is now on the record as admitting they do not have to offer free and fair primary elections, with one even stating “at least they [Republican National Committee] were honest.”

The DNC leaks, which came just ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July of 2016, led to the ouster of Debbie Wasserman Schultz. While the “mainstream” media attempted to cover it up, the convention was plagued by protests, walk outs and disruptions on behalf of angry Sanders supporters. She was replaced by Donna Brazile, whom additional WikiLeaks docs released later showed also acted on her bias against Sen. Sanders.

Brazile was caught leaking CNN debate questions to the Clinton campaign. It was also later shown that CNN and other networks colluded with Clinton against President Donald J. Trump.

A federal judge in Florida tossed a

Economy

Jobless claims, an application for first-time unemployment benefits. (Photo: Reuters)

Jobless claims, an application for first-time unemployment benefits. (Photo: Reuters)

The Labor Department said Thursday the advanced figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims was 236,000, beating the consensus forecast. That’s an increase of just 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level and still extremely low ahead of tomorrow’s monthly jobs report, or Employment Situation.

No state was triggered “on” the Extended Benefits program during the week ending August 12 and the previous week was revised up by 1,000 from 234,000 to 235,000.

The four-week moving average–widely considered a better, less volatile gauge–came in at 236,750, a decrease of 1,250 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 250 from 237,750 to 238,000.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was just 1.4% for the week ending August 19, unchanged from the previous week’s unrevised rate. The advance number for lagging seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending August 19 was a very low 1,942,000, a decline of 12,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 1,954,000.

The 4-week moving average was 1,951,500, a decline of 6,250 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 1,957,750.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending August 12 were in Puerto Rico (3.5), New Jersey (2.7), Connecticut (2.5), Alaska (2.2), Pennsylvania (2.2), California (2.1), Rhode Island (2.0), Massachusetts (1.9), Illinois (1.7), and New York (1.7).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending August 19 were in California (+771), New York (+411), Georgia (+263), New Jersey (+187), Michigan (+176), and Oklahoma (+176), while the largest decreases were in Pennsylvania(-831), Oregon (-446), Florida (-290), South Carolina (-290), Minnesota (-281), and Washington (-281).

The Labor Department said Thursday the advanced

Politics

In this Feb. 17, 2017, photo, a protester holds a sign that reads "ICE Hands Off DACA Families Free Daniel," during a demonstration in front of the federal courthouse in Seattle. (Photo: AP)

In this Feb. 17, 2017, photo, a protester holds a sign that reads “ICE Hands Off DACA Families Free Daniel,” during a demonstration in front of the federal courthouse in Seattle. (Photo: AP)

The deadline for President Donald Trump to decide whether to reverse Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, is September 5, 2017. It was set by 10 States demanding an end to what they argue the law views to be illegal executive amnesty.

Otherwise, as the 9 attorneys generals and 1 governor led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxto wrote to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the States will take the Trump Administration to court. The States are Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho (governor), Louisiana, Kansas, Nebraska, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.

Citing unnamed sources, NBC News reported that the President appears poised to “pull the plug” on DACA, which should really be reported as “keep his campaign promise.” Candidate Trump repeatedly referred to DACA as an “illegal executive amnesty” and vowed to “terminate President Obama’s two illegal executive amnesties in which he defied federal law and the Constitution.”

“Immediately.”

People’s Pundit Daily (PPD) has not independently confirmed that NBC News report. But no matter what President Trump decides, the reality is that DACA faces overwhelming, almost insurmountable odds of survival.

Background: DACA vs DAPA

On June 15, 2012, the Obama Administration via the Secretary of Homeland Security announced DACA. It stated certain people who came to the United States by 2007 as children were allowed to request consideration of deferred action for a period of 2 years, subject to renewal if they met certain guidelines.

Applicants, whether they arrived illegally or overstayed their visas, must not have committed any serious crimes and must have been brought to the U.S. by their parents before they were 16 years old.

Deferred action is a use of prosecutorial discretion to defer removal action against an individual for a certain period of time, though it does not provide lawful status.

In 2014, Barack Obama expanded protection from deportation to the parents of illegal immigrants with Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA. The Trump Administration revoked DAPA, but has thus far refused to end DACA.

Reality Check

“If the States sue, they will win. As a legal question, it’s not even close,” Kansas Secretary of State Kris W. Kobach wrote in an op-ed published by Breitbart News. “DACA is not illegal for just one reason. It’s illegal for at least five reasons – three violations of federal law and two violations of the United States Constitution.”

DACA Violations Kris Kobach

As Secretary Kobach noted, it takes just one of these legal arguments to defeat DACA in court, even if Democrats and activists find some liberal hack judge to prolong the inevitable. Further, as Mr. Kobach also noted, 3 of these have already been affirmed by the courts.

Attorney General Sessions has stated publicly the program should be ended. That’s not solely due to his ideology. In fact, it’s not even the predominant reason. He knows it is unconstitutional and doesn’t want to defend the indefensible.

Lawyers at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also told then-Secretary John Kelly, who is now White House Chief of Staff, the Obama era policy is unlikely to hold up to legal scrutiny.

“This is what he’s being told by different attorneys, that if it goes to court it might not survive,” DHS spokesman David Lapan said at the time.

Even Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a RINO (Republican in Name Only) who has been nicknamed Lindsey Grahamnesty by the Republican base, concedes DACA is unconstitutional.

“The Department of Justice can’t win the case,” Mr. Kobach stated confidently and bluntly. “The Fifth Circuit has already ruled on the central legal question, and that is where the case would be heard. The Trump Administration would lose in court, and the president would lose a significant section of his political base as well.”

The law should not and cannot care whether an estimated 200,000 people have applied for DACA status under the Trump Administration, nor that roughly 800,000 will be impacted.

That’s Barack Obama’s fault and, in a Republic, the rule of law must take precedent above the former president’s political ambitions for it to survive. That leaves Congress as the only viable option left to override President Trump’s decision.

Good luck with that.

No matter what President Donald Trump decides, Deferred

Politics

President Donald Trump speaks about tax reform, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017, at the Loren Cook Company in Springfield, Mo. (Photo: AP)

President Donald Trump speaks about tax reform, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017, at the Loren Cook Company in Springfield, Mo. (Photo: AP)

President Donald Trump in Springfield, Mo., on Wednesday sent a clear message to Congress in rallying support for historic tax reform. The president singled out incumbent Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill and made it clear that he will play hardball from the bully pulpit to get it done when lawmakers return to Washington D.C.

“I am fully committed to working with Congress to get this job done, and I don’t want to be disappointed by Congress,” President Trump said, drawing a big cheer from the audience.. “Do you understand me?”

Relishing his return to what he called “the Main Street of America” to officially launch the tax reform push, President Trump made the case for lower and simpler taxes for the working class, and a roughly 50% cut in business taxes.

“The foundation of our job-creation agenda is to fundamentally reform our tax code for the first time in 30 years,” President Trump told a welcoming crowd on the floor of the Loren Cook Company in Springfield.

He repeatedly hammered out that his mission is to create a simple “pro-job,” “pro-worker,” and “pro-America” policy that will “reduce the tax burden on our companies and on our workers. The President took aim at Sen. McCaskill, one of the most vulnerable incumbent Democrats who is seeking reelection to her third term in 2018.

“Millions of Americans have watched that prosperity slip away in the rear view mirror,” President Trump said. “We must lower our taxes. And your senator Claire McCaskill, she must do this for you and if she doesn’t do it for you, you have to vote her out of office.”

Worth noting, Republican Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, who recently announced he is exploring a bid to unseat Sen. McCaskill, did not attend the event. As PPD previously explained, AG Hawley would present a challenge to Sen. McCaskill she is not likely to survive. That’s particularly true if she doesn’t support the tax reform plan.

President Trump also said “ideally” the corporate tax rate should be reduced to 15%, down from 35%, saying it would “make us highly competitive.”

The location of President’s Trump visit is also noteworthy given its proximity to historic Route 66. He used that to point out a time when the factory industry was booming and high-paying jobs were abundant, offering wages that were “enough to support families.” Springfield, a city with a rough population of 167,000 in the southwest region of the state, is now a Republican stronghold for electoral support and fundraising.

The factory he visited is owned by Jerry Cook, a Republican political contributor. Mr. Cook lamented over his company having to look to overseas for parts that are no longer manufactured in the U.S., but he believes President Trump can change that.

“As long as I’m alive, we’ll never manufacture in Mexico, China or anywhere else,” he told the crowd before the President arrived.

President Trump will meet next week at the White House with leaders of the House and Senate, congressional aides confirmed Wednesday.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kty., House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., all are scheduled to attend the meeting at the White House on Wednesday morning.

President Donald Trump in Springfield, Mo., sent

Politics

Missouri Democrat Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal. (Photo: AP)

Missouri Democrat Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal. (Photo: AP)

Missouri Democratic state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal is still refusing to resign even after she was stripped of her committee assignments on a bipartisan basis. Republican Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard and Minority Leader Gina Walsh on Tuesday took bipartisan action in response to her writing in a Facebook response “I hope Trump is assassinated” before deleting her comments.

“I support the decision of Senate Minority Leader Gina Walsh to remove Sen. Chappelle-Nadal from all of her Senate committees,” President Pro Tem Richard said in a statement. “I am also removing her from all appointments under my authority.”

Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Mike Parson on Tuesday called for a special session to expel Chappelle-Nadal from the state’s upper chamber. The move would require a two-thirds vote.

“The recent inflammatory comments made by Senator Chappelle-Nadal are unacceptable and unbefitting conduct of a Missouri State Senator,” Lt. Gov. Parson wrote in a letter to members of the Missouri Senate. “I am calling on the Missouri Senate to go into special session in conjunction with Veto Session, with the purpose of expelling Senator Chappelle-Nadal from the body under the authority vested to the Senate under Article III, Section 18 of the Missouri Constitution.”

“I do not make this request of you lightly, but you and I know it is the right course of action to take for the people of Missouri.”

Despite widespread, bipartisan calls for her to resign, she initially blamed President Donald Trump. Chappelle-Nadal, who played a key role in pushing the debunked “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” narrative in Ferguson that crumbled under forensic and eyewitness scrutiny, only offered an apology after repeated responses that were deeply disturbing to members of her own party.

She represents the 14th District, which includes University City and Ferguson.

“President Trump, I apologize to you and your family,” Chappelle-Nadal said at the Wellspring Church in Ferguson. “I also apologize to all the people in Missouri. And I also apologize to my colleagues in the Missouri legislature for the mistake that I made.”

“I made a mistake. And I’m owning up to it.”

That’s a complete 180 from her initial response, which was to paint herself as a social justice warrior taking a stand against a racist president.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, one of the most vulnerable Red State incumbent Democrats, immediately called on her to resign. Stephen Webber, chairman of the Missouri Democratic Party, joined the senator in those calls.

“State Sen. Chappelle-Nadal’s comments are indefensible,” Chairman Webber said. “All sides need to agree that there is no room for suggestions of political violence in America — and the Missouri Democratic Party will absolutely not tolerate calls for the assassination of the president. I believe she should resign.”

Missouri Democratic state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal still

Politics

In this June 9, 2017 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democratic Party divisions are on stark display after a disappointing special election loss in a hard-fought Georgia congressional race. (Photo: AP)

In this June 9, 2017 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democratic Party divisions are on stark display after a disappointing special election loss in a hard-fought Georgia congressional race. (Photo: AP)

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., released a statement allegedly “denouncing the violent protests carried out this weekend in Berkeley, California.” After attacking President Donald Trump for stating we “must be united & condemn all” violent groups in the wake of Charlottesville, Rep. Pelosi and other Democrats are playing even more convoluted word games.

“Our democracy has no room for inciting violence or endangering the public, no matter the ideology of those who commit such acts,” Rep. Pelosi said. “The violent actions of people calling themselves antifa [sic] in Berkeley this weekend deserve unequivocal condemnation, and the perpetrators should be arrested and prosecuted.”

Last Saturday, Antifa attacked journalists and Trump supporters during the protest at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park in Berkeley, not Neo-Nazis and white supremacists.

Unlike President Trump’s much-criticized statement, the House minority leader didn’t issue a condemnation of Antifa, the group itself, or any radical violent group for that matter. It condemned the “violent actions of people calling themselves Antifa in Berkeley.”

In other words, Rep. Pelosi is trying to cast doubt on whether the violent mob at Berkeley was in fact Antifa, and the rest of her statement makes no mention of the anti-American values that the group itself stands for and advocates.

The Democratic leader is towing the line in the media narrative that disingenuously frames these increasing instances of political violence as clashes between “white supremacists” and “counter-protestors” or even “peace activists,” as Reuters outrageously characterized them last week. This distortion of the truth hides the danger posed by these groups, which was underscored in a recent PPD editorial.

Antifa, or the American brand of Anti-Fascist, often claim and are reported to be anti-government, but they and similiar groups have long-served as the “useful idiots” of despotic, leftwing regimes. In reality, they hold views that are antithetical to classical liberalism, conservatism and republicanism.

U.S.S.R. flags are routinely carried by Antifa and the threat of imminent tyranny at the hands of fascists has long-been their go-to rallying cry. They also happen to be leftwing extremists designated as a domestic terror group by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in New Jersey.

While Rep. Pelosi did address intolerance to the First Amendment, she made a conscious political decision not to identify them by name as the primary threat to those principles.

“In California, as across all of our great nation, we have deep reverence for the Constitutional right to peaceful dissent and free speech. Non-violence is fundamental to that right. Let us use this sad event to reaffirm that we must never fight hate with hate, and to remember the values of peace, openness and justice that represent the best of America.”

For all the criticisms, President Trump’s multiple statements condemned the ideas and values the various groups represent, which is in truth more important than condemning a group by name. Rep. Pelosi did neither definitively.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., released

Companies

Pedestrians walk through the Canary Wharf financial district of London January 16, 2009. (Photo: Reuters)

Pedestrians walk through the Canary Wharf financial district of London January 16, 2009. (Photo: Reuters)

Corporate Profits from current production increased $26.8 billion in the second quarter (2Q) juxtaposed to a decline of $46.2 billion in the first quarter (1Q). They rose 8.1% year-on-year in 2Q 2017 to an annualized $1.785.9 trillion, up from $1.652.1 trillion in 2Q 2016.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) covers corporate profits, which are essential to a company’s stock price, with inventory valuation adjustment and capital consumption adjustment.

Profits of domestic financial corporations decreased $29.4 billion in the second quarter compared with a decrease of $40.7 billion in the first quarter. Profits of domestic non-financial corporations increased $64.8 billion, compared with an increase of $3.8 billion.

The rest-of-the-world component of profits fell $8.6 billion, compared with a slightly steeper decline of $9.3 billion. This measure is calculated as the difference between receipts from the rest of the world and payments to the rest of the world. In the 2Q, receipts increased $8.5 billion and payments increased $17.1 billion.

Corporate Profits from current production increased $26.8

Economy

Workers assemble built-in appliances at the Whirlpool manufacturing plant in Cleveland, Tennessee August 21, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)

Workers assemble built-in appliances at the Whirlpool manufacturing plant in Cleveland, Tennessee August 21, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) increased at a solid annual rate of 3.0% in the second quarter (2Q) of 2017. The “second” estimate conducted by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reflects an upward revision from the initial estimate of 2.8%.

Real consumer spending was revised 0.5% higher to 3.3%, fueled in large part by stronger than expected U.S. retail sales.

Real gross domestic income (GDI) increased 2.9% in the 2Q juxtaposed to 2.7% (revised) in the 1Q. The average of real GDP and real GDI, which is a supplemental measure of U.S. economic activity that equally weights GDP and GDI, gained 3.0% in the 2Q, compared with an increase of 2.0% in the first.

The upward revision to GDP is the second strong piece of economic news out on Wednesday. The ADP National Employment Report far surpassed expectations and the higher-paying goods-producing sectors continued to show sustained strength. All support recent data indicating wages are finally rising.

The Atlanta Federal Reserve’s GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the 3Q of 2017 is currently 3.4%, down from 3.8% on August 16. The slight decline reflects a report on industrial production and real residential investment growth. The next GDPNow update is Thursday, August 31.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that U.S.

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