Whoops, Social Security Just Went Bust – Henry Blodget – Social Security will pay out more in benefits than it receives in payroll taxes this year, the first big milestone on the road to its eventual insolvency. Thanks to a surge in benefits and a collapse in paychecks, this plunge into the red comes 6 years faster than the most recent CBO estimate predicted (It had been 2016) – Business Insider
————
has 65 page report – Can Government Exit The Housing Market – Submitted by Tyler Durden – Some very useful and surprisingly objective perspectives on the housing market from V.S.Srinivasan, Rajiv Setia and Sandeep Bordia of Barclays. – Zero Hedge
————
Elizabeth Warren profile – Behind Consumer Agency Idea, a Tireless Advocate – By JODI KANTOR – Ask Elizabeth Warren, scourge of Wall Street bankers, how they treat consumers, and she will shake her head with indignation…. Among all the dramatis personae of post-financial crisis Washington, there is no one remotely like Ms. Warren, 60, who has divided the town between those who admire her and those who roll their eyes at her. … – NY Times
————
US Government Single A Rated? – Negative swap spreads cannot be a good omen for the financial markets. … that this curve represents the level of interest rate that banks and financial institutions of AA ratings quality are willing to lend to each other at. If this is the case, the simple fact that US treasuries are trading at interest rate levels that are higher than swap rates would suggest that the US Government has a credit quality that is lower than the AA rated financial institutions. … – Surly Trader
————
‘Garbage, in one word’ – Ezra Klein – James Galbraith is not impressed with Alan Greenspan’s defense of his record: In 66 pages, Mr. Greenspan fails to use the word "responsibility" even once. The word "blame" does not appear. The word "mistake" occurs once; financial firms made them. The word "failure" appears 14 times. None of them are self-referential. … – Washington Post
————
By GEORGE SOROS – Reforming a broken mortgage system – … What needs to be done is clear: The GSEs’ mortgage insurance function must be separated from mortgage financing. The former, mortgage insurance, is the legitimate function of a government agency, especially when the private sector has collapsed. A mortgage insurance entity should be run as a government agency. But mortgage financing should revert to the private sector. This would get rid of a business model that has failed. There is a proven mortgage financing system already up and running. The Danish model … – Politico
————
Bernanke Wants to Keep Rates Low, but Treasuries Aren’t Complying – Paco Ahlgren – The Bottom Violation
————
Bernanke says Fed is receptive to selling security holdings – By Neil Irwin – Washington Post
————
Testimony – Chairman Ben S. Bernanke – Federal Reserve’s exit strategy – FR Board of Governors
————
Plosser Says Fed May Sell MBS Before Raising Rates, WSJ Says – By Steve Matthews – The Federal Reserve should consider selling some of its portfolio of $1.25 trillion of agency mortgage-backed securities before raising its target interest rate, Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Plosser said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. – Bloomberg BusinessWeek
————
Summers Leaving White House?: Report – By Eric Rosenbaum – …and now it looks like the latest Obama economics team member to be on the receiving end of the unlucky bullet is the head of the White House’s National Economic Council, Larry Summers … – TheStreet.com
————
2,000 House staffers make six figures – Politico.com
————
What Healthcare Success? – Bruce Krasting – You have seen this before so please excuse the personal rant. Follows is a copy of a notice from my heavyweight health care provider, UnitedHealthcare/Oxford. Note that at the renewal rate insurance for a family of four now costs $58,600 a year. … How many people are getting letters like this? Not many. 4-5 million is my guess. … Disclosure: Long time Dem. Until recently, a district leader for the party. Steady contributor. Pissed. … – Bruce Krasting Blog