House Rep. Luna says criminally referring Powell to DOJ
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Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bessent calls for internal review of Fed but doesn't think Powell needs to step down
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is taking aim at both the Federal Reserve and the rules the Fed enforces as a supervisor of big banks but making it clear he doesn't think Fed chair Jerome Powell needs to step down immediately. Monday he said on X that there should be a review of the central bank's $2.5 billion renovation of its headquarters and a review of its non-monetary policy operations, arguing that 'significant mission creep and institutional growth have taken the Fed into areas that potentially jeopardize the independence of its core monetary policy mission.' He posted the comments on the same day he spoke at the opening of a Fed conference designed to review the capital framework governing big banks. That conference continues Tuesday. There he made a separate call for 'deeper reforms' of the regulations governing the nation's biggest banks, arguing that 'outdated capital requirements' impose 'unnecessary burdens on financial institutions.' Specifically he suggested that regulators scrap a dual capital structure proposed during the last administration but never enacted, calling it 'flawed.' "We need deeper reforms rooted in a long-term blueprint for innovation, financial stability, and resilient growth," Bessent said in his remarks. But he made it clear in a Fox Business Network interview Tuesday that he doesn't think Powell should step down immediately. His boss President Trump has been calling repeatedly for Powell's resigantion. Bessent is among the candidates being considered to replace Jerome Powell as chair of the central bank once Powell's term expires in 10 months. Trump and other White House officials have been hammering Powell and the Fed over the slow pace of interest rate cuts, with none being made so far in 2025, as well as the costs involved in the Fed's $2.5 billion renovation of its headquarters complex along the National Mall in Washington. Bessent joined that chorus on Monday. 'While I have no knowledge or opinion on the legal basis for the massive building renovations being undertaken on Constitution Avenue, a review of the decision to undertake such a project by an institution reporting operating losses of more than $100 billion per year should be conducted,' Bessent said in his Monday post on X. Trump has considered firing Powell and Bessent urged him no to do so, according to The Wall Street Journal. Powell has said repeatedly that he intends to serve out his term as chair and that his removal is not permitted by law. Bessent in his Monday comments on X did express support for the Fed's independence on the subject of monetary policy, saying that autonomy is 'a jewel box that should be walled off' and that the Fed's independence 'is a cornerstone of continued US economic growth and stability.' But the White House has also made it known that it wants greater control over the Fed's operations outside monetary policy, including the supervision of the nation's biggest banks. Bessent earlier this year said he would be coordinating a broad re-examination of financial regulation, with an eye toward making it easier for banks to lend as a way of boosting the US economy. And he said again Monday that the Treasury would be playing a central role. "The department will break through policy inertia, settle turf battles, drive consensus, and motivate action to ensure no single regulator holds up reform," Bessent said of the Treasury. "We need deeper reforms rooted in a long-term blueprint for innovation, financial stability, and resilient growth." US regulators have already proposed one of the most dramatic rollbacks of bank capital rules since the 2008 financial crisis, saying last month they wanted to alter the so-called enhanced supplementary leverage ratio (eSLR). Banks have complained that this ratio penalizes them for holding lower-risk assets such as Treasury bonds. Doing away with it "should simplify bank capital management" and "that will bring down costs and help banks more effectively manage their capital levels," TD Securities analyst Jaret Seiberg said in a Tuesday morning research note. Even with proposed curtailing of this leverage ratio, large banks would still be bound by their risk weighted capital constraints, Seiberg said. "This is not going to produce material capital relief for banks," Seiberg added. More regulatory changes for big banks could still be on the way. Michelle Bowman, the Fed's top banking regulator appointed by Trump, said in a speech last month that revisiting the eSLR requirement is just the start of broader capital rollback considerations. "More work on capital requirements remains, especially to consider how they have evolved and whether changes in market conditions have revealed issues that should be addressed," she said. Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Boston Globe
27 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Is Massachusetts about to legalize online casinos on your smartphone?
So who's putting this on the fast track? It's unclear who, but it will need get through House and Senate leadership. A spokesperson for Advertisement For those already in the gambling business, the stakes are high, and the politics of it all have made for strange bedfellows. On one side is homegrown sports betting behemoth DraftKings and arch rival FanDuel, which support the bills and stand to benefit by providing the digital platforms that power these games. Joining their camp: MGM Resorts International, which operates a casino in Springfield and online gaming platform BetMGM. Advertisement A DraftKings employee in the lobby of their Back Bay offices. Lane Turner/Globe Staff On the other side is Encore Boston Harbor, the Everett casino operated by Wynn Resorts, and UNITE HERE Local 26, the politically influential hospitality union with many members who work at Encore; they oppose the bills, saying online gaming would cannibalize the brick-and-mortar casino business and reduce jobs in the industry. And then there are those who are wary for fear it will create more problem gamblers by making it even easier to bet on your phone. Supporters and opponents of online casinos squared off during a DraftKings and FanDuel argued that online casinos should be legalized because there's already a robust illegal market, so why not regulate and tax it? According to the mostly on websites based outside the United States. It's the same argument that's been made to legalize sports betting in many states, including Massachusetts, ever since the Supreme Court struck down a federal ban in 2018. Since sports betting began in Massachusetts in early 2023, it has flourished here with billions of dollars wagered, generating more than $300 million in taxes and assessments, according to the Advertisement Type 'online casino in Massachusetts,' and you quickly realize how we're all one Google search away from trying our luck. Seven states, including Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Jersey, have legalized internet casino gaming, and proponents estimate that if Massachusetts levied a 20 percent tax, the state could generate $230 million to $275 million a year in new revenue. (That's the same tax rate as online-only sports betting, while land-based resort casinos are assessed at 25 percent.) And with state lawmakers facing tough budget decisions this year, David Prestwood, a government affairs manager at DraftKings, knew exactly what to tell the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure. 'This money may be especially critical for Massachusetts in the face of anticipated federal funding cuts and reductions in state and local aid,' he said at last month's hearing. Online casinos may seem no different than sports betting, but their appeal runs broader and deeper than placing a bet on a baseball game. And internet gambling is far different than going to a brick-and-mortar casino, which requires getting there and interacting with staff. Online, you can gamble in your pajamas. 'There's all these friction points where the player has the chance to think twice with about placing the next bet,' said Mark Stewart, a board member of the Advertisement Stewart, who is general counsel of The Cordish Companies, a Baltimore real estate and casino developer, testified virtually at the hearing, while Encore Boston Harbor president Jenny Holaday provided written testimony opposing online gaming and warned how it could result in a 'dramatic reduction in the associated taxes that Encore pays to the Commonwealth,' a sum that has totaled nearly $1 billion since the casino opened in 2019. The owner of Encore Casino in Everett is pushing to stop a bill on Beacon Hill that would broadly legalize online gambling on slots and poker games. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff Encore employs about 3,300 workers, about a third of whom are part of Local 26. A union representative also testified against the bills, citing an independent research analysis funded by the (A It's shaping up as a test of who has more clout on Beacon Hill — Encore and its coalition of boots-on-the-ground supporters in the unions and Everett, or tech companies that have deep pockets. Brick-and-mortar casinos could get in on the game, too. The legislation sets aside licenses for the state's existing casino operators, along with four licenses for internet gaming platforms. Along with slots, they'd allow poker, blackjack, craps, and even games with a live dealer. But what about the I can't imagine state Treasurer and Lottery chair, Deb Goldberg, being happy about online casinos, which could eat into lottery profits. The lottery in fiscal 2024 netted nearly Advertisement 'If online gaming expands, we must ensure the Lottery is supported and stays competitive,' Goldberg said in a statement. 'Every dollar spent on private platforms could mean less for our cities and towns and early childhood education.' Then there are concerns about addiction, with calls to the surging since sports betting was legalized. Lia Nower, director of the Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University said what drives up the risk of problem gambling is giving people more options. 'There's a cumulative effect,' she said. 'The more things that you gamble on, the more often you gamble and the more venues in which you gamble, the higher your risk.' In this digital era, online casinos may feel inevitable, yet internet gambling is so new we don't really know how addictive it could be, especially among young bettors. Remember how we initially thought social media was just fun and games? Critics of online gaming say it reduces barriers to problem gambling, compared with going to a brick-and-mortar casino. Steve Helber/Associated Press Yet the pressure will be intense from a gaming industry that's keen to keep expanding online. Boston-based Why? Just follow the money, explains Nower. 'It's the cash cow for the industry,' she said. State Senator Paul Feeney — who is sponsoring the online casino legislation with state Representative Daniel Cahill — said lawmakers are well aware the need to carefully weigh all the costs and benefits, in particular the investments made by land-based casinos which he described as 'sacrosanct.' Advertisement Yet there's also an urgency with the state facing budget pressures. 'I wouldn't say that anything is on a fast track,' said Feeney. 'There's a renewed interest in looking at how we can maximize tax revenue without broad-based tax increases on residents.' We tend to give the Legislature a hard time for moving too slowly, but this time we shouldn't. At the very least, the state should conduct its own independent analysis, rather than relying on industry-funded studies to weigh the impact on existing land-based casinos and the lottery, and whether it would create a new class of problem gamblers. Online gaming is too big of a gamble to not get this right. Shirley Leung is a Business columnist. She can be reached at
New York Post
27 minutes ago
- New York Post
DOJ staffer claims she was fired over husband's controversial anti-ICE app that warns users when feds are nearby
A Department of Justice staffer claims she was abruptly fired after it emerged her husband was the brains behind a controversial anti-ICE app that warns users when the feds are closing in. Carolyn Feinstein, who worked as a DOJ forensic accountant in Austin, Texas, alleges she was terminated last Friday as 'retribution' over her spouse's radical alert system, which she has minority shares in. 'This was retribution. I was fired because of the actions, or activism, of my husband,' Feinstein told the Daily Beast on Monday. 3 Carolyn Feinstein claims she was unfairly fired over her husband's anti-ICE app. Joshua Aaron / Facebook Feinstein's tech husband, Joshua Aaron, recently sparked outrage after it emerged he'd created the ICEBlock app, which alerts users if Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been spotted within a five-mile radius of them. President Trump's border czar Tom Homan and ICE Acting Director Tom Lyon quickly called on the DOJ to investigate after Feinstein's hubby went on CNN last month to advertise the app — sparking immediate backlash. Feinstein claims she informed the DOJ of her ties to the app creator after he allegedly started receiving death threats. 3 Feinstein was a forensic accountant in Austin, Texas for the DOJ under Attorney General Pam Bondi. REUTERS 'Since we live in the same house, I thought it was pertinent to contact my employer, the DOJ, to notify them of death threats that were coming in and just in case I needed to be out of the office, so they would be prepared,' she said. A week later, Feinstein said the Office of the US Trustee started asking questions about the app. Feinstein admitted she has minority shares in All U Chart, Inc., which hold the IP address for the app. 3 The ICEBlock app alerts users if Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been spotted within a five-mile radius of them. ICEBlock She insisted, though, that it was only in case her husband were to become 'incapacitated' so she could then shut it down. A DOJ spokesperson said it had be probing Feinstein's connection to the app for 'several weeks' after it emerged she had interests in the company. 'ICEBlock is an app that illegal aliens use to evade capture while endangering the lives of ICE officers,' the spokesperson said, adding that the department 'will not tolerate threats against law enforcement or law enforcement officers.' Feinstein, for her part, insisted that her role at the DOJ was 'unbiased.' 'It is insulting to me because I dedicated myself and my career to serving the people of the United States, and now the DOJ is claiming I was attempting to harm some of them. And that's not true,' she said.
