Insights: Macro

This morning, Secretary Bessent said there was substantial communication with the Chinese over the weekend to resolve the escalation in tensions the emerged on Friday. He also said that he still expects Presidents Trump and Xi to meet at the end of this month in South Korea. And, in the wake of his tariff escalation on Friday, Trump yesterday...

Government Shutdown

President Trump ordered DOD to pay U.S. troops this week, which eliminates a catalyst for resolving the current government shutdown. At this point, there is no indication either side feels significant pressure to concede. Democrats continue to insist that an extension of enhanced ACA subsidies gets resolved before they will support a “continuing...

Treasury Secretary Bessent indicated that the administration may begin providing aid to farmers as early as this week, though reports indicate that this could slip, in part due to the government shutdown. Reports suggest that the administration is considering providing ~$10b in aid. Republicans, led by Sen. Grassley (R-IA), have been pushing the...

Fed Personnel/Litigation

Last week, the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) deferred a ruling on President Trump’s motion for stay on lower court rulings barring his firing of Federal Reserve Board Governor Cook. Rather than ruling on the President’s motion for a stay, SCOTUS has scheduled oral arguments on the matter for January. No official date has been set, but currently SCOTUS...

Government Shutdown

On Friday, the Senate took an additional vote on a House-passed “continuing resolution (CR)” that would provide appropriations through November and allow the government to re-open, but no Democrats voted for it beyond the three that had done so earlier last week. Seven Democratic votes will be required in addition to all Republicans to reach the...

Healthcare, Macro

Fiscal Year 2026 Funding/Government Shutdown, ACA

Yesterday’s meeting between President Trump and Congressional leaders yielded no progress towards resolution of FY26 government funding. In fact, both sides emerged from the meeting echoing their partisan messages with no indication they intend to soften their current positions (i.e., Democrats demanding that an extension of enhanced ACA...