20/20 Vision

Nest Eggs Bills on the Hill

Update 354:  Nest Eggs Bills on the HillIs it Goose Eggs or Law after Floor Vote? A big-ticket bipartisan bill is blasting through Congress?  Really? Or is this “Infrastructure Week” again? No, this is serious stuff and it’s about retirement.  We look at the two leading proposals to address the dire underpreparedness of Americans for …

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2020 Presidential Candidate Series (Warren)

Update 353: 2020 Presidential Cand. SeriesSen. Warren’s Prolific Progressive Policy Platform Today’s update marks the start of our new bi-weekly series, a review of the economic policy platforms of prominent 2020 Democratic presidential candidates who have qualified for one or more DNC debates. First up, we examine Senator Elizabeth Warren’s proposed “wealth tax.” Below, we …

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Wall St. Regulators Face Music of House ‘18 Class

Update 352 — Wall St. Regulators Face Music of House ‘18 Class at HFSC Hearing Tomorrow Today, we mourn the loss of Alice Rivlin, founding director of the Congressional Budget Office and a “decathlete” of high-level public office.  Her steady hand and even temper weathered multiple administrations and several financial crises, both local and national. …

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2020 Candidates on Education Finance Policy

Update 351 — Class of 2020 Pres. Candidates:Making the Grade on Education Finance Policy Over the course of the last decade, a consensus has emerged among progressive policy makers that something serious must be done to address the costs of higher education, tuition and debt.  2020 candidates are weighing in, setting priorities and offering proposals. …

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Fed Stability Report and the Perils of Prediction

Update 350 — Fed Stability Report and the Perils of Prediction, Cycles, and Psychology On Monday, the Federal Reserve released its latest assessment of risks to the financial system in its biannual Financial Stability Report.  The Report mainly focused on the increase in high risk corporate debt — or leveraged loans (see last week’s update). …

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O-Zone Program’s Protections Paltry

Update 348 — O-Zone Protections Paltry;Road for Investors, Public Still Perilous The Trump Administration’s putatively anti-poverty program known as the Opportunity Zone initiative seeks to promote economic investment in 8,700 distressed areas throughout the country.  It was passed into law as part of the Trump tax cut. Taxpayer money is put to use here as …

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FY 2020 Coming into View

Update 346 — FY 2020 Coming into ViewBackward, Baby Steps So Far; Cliff 2.0 Looms As Congress departs for a two-week recess, it leaves behind a budget process with miles to go. Where does the FY 2020 budget making process stand, what steps are ahead, what is at stake, and what are the obstacles to …

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HFSC Megabank CEO Hearing

Update 345 — HFSC Megabank CEO Hearing:Private Custodians of Public Systemic Risk The CEOs of the nation’s biggest financial institutions will meet on Capitol Hill tomorrow for the first time since the financial crisis for a House Financial Services Committee hearing.  The purpose of this unusual gathering is to hold the firms these CEOs lead …

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