Notes in the Margin

The GSEs have likely been told by the administration to buy up more mortgage debt to create the illusion that there is more demand for real estate than there is. 

Cuban hospitals are overwhelmed, pharma drugs are in short supply, and diagnostic tools are in short supply. The Cuban state is pretending nothing is wrong. 

Hassett was thought to be a done deal, but Trump and his allies are now suggesting that Kevin Warsh is the frontrunner. 

He's described by media as "hard right" and "ultra-conservative" which suggests he's a center-right candidate who, nonetheless, handily beat his communist rival. 

The countries seen as targets to follow Brexit are Austria, Hungary, Italy and Poland, according to leaked details of the US national security strategy.

On Wednesday, the silver price hit $63.86 per ounce — nearly double its level a year ago — after the Federal Reserve trimmed rates by 25 basis points.

Christopher Chantrill: Most every corrupt government program begins as a moral crusade and ends up as a spoils system: Social Security, Medicare, Obamacare, etc. 

Federal workers are a powerful lobby in Washington, and taxpayers pay for federal bureaucrats' wages inflated through federal laws favoring federal unions. 

President Trump is planning to appoint a two-star US general to lead the international force that may be deployed to Gaza under the US ceasefire deal.

Mercer: "Whether such crass utilitarians like it or not, the Anglo-Israeli-American genocide in Palestine is a moral matter."