Better to buy the equities for more leverage ..
btg my top choice by far great management (most suck) and have a lot of low cost production coming online in next year or two..
if you want a basket of equities gdxj junior miners that will have good volatility..
cef audited gold/silver in a vault in Canada (low volatility) follows the metals
btg my top choice by far great management (most suck) and have a lot of low cost production coming online in next year or two..
if you want a basket of equities gdxj junior miners that will have good volatility..
cef audited gold/silver in a vault in Canada (low volatility) follows the metals
One of my biggest problems with gold research is that almost entire industry and everyone that is pro-gold online are just extreme, extreme charlatans. Separating fact from fiction is very difficult when most of these people aren't really catering to someone who just wants PM's as a hedge, but rather trying to influence those who believe in doomsday scenarios and other assorted paranoid kooks. Guess it is easier to get those peoples cash and makes for simpler marketing.
Very difficult to find credible analysis on the subject. Everyone who pushes gold has some skin in the game whether it be Schiff, Paul and any of the other hucksters that are trying to get people to pony up.
Very difficult to find credible analysis on the subject. Everyone who pushes gold has some skin in the game whether it be Schiff, Paul and any of the other hucksters that are trying to get people to pony up.
Gold is the ultimate safe haven for hanging on to your dosh, as an investment it's very variable but it will always have a "reasonable value", sovereigns are a nice size, very convertible
Look at the mess in India just now, it's got pretty chaotic... unless you're sitting with your rupee stash converted into gold sovereigns, if you've done that you have nothing to fear
Look at the mess in India just now, it's got pretty chaotic... unless you're sitting with your rupee stash converted into gold sovereigns, if you've done that you have nothing to fear
coin shop you have it in your possession and they will charge you more than the spot price
my suggestion is cef (currently 62% gold 38% silver) and trading at an 8% discount to the net asset value (when it's out of favor it's at a discount.. when it was soaring to 1900 back in the day it was at a premium)..
here's their site showing the nav.. http://www.centralfund.com/Nav Form.htm
if you want only gold through etf only thing off top of head is gld but with that its "paper gold" so if entire ponzu scheme/derivative market blew up it would too.. not likely but ya never know ha..
One thing I do wonder about is if the entire market becomes deflationary then why wouldn't gold? Yes, it wouldn't deflate as much as housing or equities but it could lose to being in cash if the dollar gets stronger. And the dollar could certainly get stronger in a deflationary period.
Granted you would still do OK relative to other investments. The best case scenario for gold is stagflation isn't it? A possibility if the central bankers try to print our way out of this but otherwise not likely. Tough to say how much more printing they can do.
Granted you would still do OK relative to other investments. The best case scenario for gold is stagflation isn't it? A possibility if the central bankers try to print our way out of this but otherwise not likely. Tough to say how much more printing they can do.
[h=1]Everyone who can now see your entire internet history, including the taxman, DWP and Food Standards Agency[/h]Thursday 24 November 2016
The IndependentAs the Investigatory Powers Bill passes into law, internet providers will be required to keep a full record of every site that each of its customers have visited
Do you know which parts of the Government can access your browsing history? Reuters/Toby Melville Organisations including the Food Standards Agency and the Department for Work and Pensions will be able to see UK citizens’ entire internet browsing history within weeks.
The Investigatory Powers Bill, which was all but passed into law this week, forces internet providers to keep a full list of internet connection records (ICRs) for a year and to make them available to the Government if asked. Those ICRs in effect serve as a full list of every website that people have visited, rather than collecting which specific pages are visited or what's done on them.
ICRs will be made available to a wide range of government bodies. Those include expected law enforcement organisations such as the police, the military and the secret service, but also includes bodies such as the Food Standards Agency, the Gambling Commission, councils and the Welsh Ambulance Services National Health Service Trust.
Watch Theresa May speaking about surveillance
The full list of agencies that can now ask for UK citizens’ browsing history, which is laid out in Schedule 4 of the Bill and was collected by Chris Yiu, is below:
The same part of the Bill also stipulates the lowest office or rank that each person within those organisations must be if they want access to the records. In the police, for instance, any viewer must be at least an inspector or a superintendent.
The IndependentAs the Investigatory Powers Bill passes into law, internet providers will be required to keep a full record of every site that each of its customers have visited
Do you know which parts of the Government can access your browsing history? Reuters/Toby Melville Organisations including the Food Standards Agency and the Department for Work and Pensions will be able to see UK citizens’ entire internet browsing history within weeks.
The Investigatory Powers Bill, which was all but passed into law this week, forces internet providers to keep a full list of internet connection records (ICRs) for a year and to make them available to the Government if asked. Those ICRs in effect serve as a full list of every website that people have visited, rather than collecting which specific pages are visited or what's done on them.
ICRs will be made available to a wide range of government bodies. Those include expected law enforcement organisations such as the police, the military and the secret service, but also includes bodies such as the Food Standards Agency, the Gambling Commission, councils and the Welsh Ambulance Services National Health Service Trust.
Watch Theresa May speaking about surveillance
The full list of agencies that can now ask for UK citizens’ browsing history, which is laid out in Schedule 4 of the Bill and was collected by Chris Yiu, is below:
- Metropolitan Police Service
- City of London Police
- Police forces maintained under section 2 of the Police Act 1996
- Police Service of Scotland
- Police Service of Northern Ireland
- British Transport Police
- Ministry of Defence Police
- Royal Navy Police
- Royal Military Police
- Royal Air Force Police
- Security Service
- Secret Intelligence Service
- GCHQ
- Ministry of Defence
- Department of Health
- Home Office
- Ministry of Justice
- National Crime Agency
- HM Revenue & Customs
- Department for Transport
- Department for Work and Pensions
- NHS trusts and foundation trusts in England that provide ambulance services
- Common Services Agency for the Scottish Health Service
- Competition and Markets Authority
- Criminal Cases Review Commission
- Department for Communities in Northern Ireland
- Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland
- Department of Justice in Northern Ireland
- Financial Conduct Authority
- Fire and rescue authorities under the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004
- Food Standards Agency
- Food Standards Scotland
- Gambling Commission
- Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority
- Health and Safety Executive
- Independent Police Complaints Commissioner
- Information Commissioner
- NHS Business Services Authority
- Northern Ireland Ambulance Service Health and Social Care Trust
- Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service Board
- Northern Ireland Health and Social Care Regional Business Services Organisation
- Office of Communications
- Office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland
- Police Investigations and Review Commissioner
- Scottish Ambulance Service Board
- Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission
- Serious Fraud Office
- Welsh Ambulance Services National Health Service Trust
The same part of the Bill also stipulates the lowest office or rank that each person within those organisations must be if they want access to the records. In the police, for instance, any viewer must be at least an inspector or a superintendent.
If you want to avoid the government guys you just use stuff like the TOR browser
The data collected will be too voluminous to be useful, private companies use like 10% of total customer data to achieve good useful results.
IMO they've been collecting this stuff for at least 10 years in any case, like your own NSA.
The data collected will be too voluminous to be useful, private companies use like 10% of total customer data to achieve good useful results.
IMO they've been collecting this stuff for at least 10 years in any case, like your own NSA.
I guess trump hasn't read the constitution he will be swearing to defend soon nor his Supreme Court history..
most shocking and scary quote to date for me..
constitutional comservatives speak up! Oh yeah my bad you will only speak out when it's anti liberal speak.. obamacare nonstop bad mouth.. 1st amendment free speech stuff rally around the flag said by a "conservative" who cares..
murderers don't lose citizenship.. mind blowing that our soon to be president saying this.. unreal
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"Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag - if they do, there must be consequences - perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!"
Trump via twitter...
most shocking and scary quote to date for me..
constitutional comservatives speak up! Oh yeah my bad you will only speak out when it's anti liberal speak.. obamacare nonstop bad mouth.. 1st amendment free speech stuff rally around the flag said by a "conservative" who cares..
murderers don't lose citizenship.. mind blowing that our soon to be president saying this.. unreal
------------
"Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag - if they do, there must be consequences - perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!"
Trump via twitter...
We aren't talking about a guy running for president anymore we are talking about a guy who will be president soon.. big difference.. Supreme Court has ruled on this.. he's not becoming a dictator..
amazing stuff.. fascism rules! Let's yawn
i let him off the hook on a lot of stuff cause it's Donald and he likely wasn't winning.. now that he's actually gonna be president he just can't say this shit to deaf ears..
"It is pretty remarkable that the President-elect of the United States is calling for penalties, criminal penalties for protected speech," said CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin on Tuesday. "Why is he doing this? That is the question. Is he trying to distract attention from something else? I don't know why he would be, his transition seems to be going pretty well. What is the purpose behind this? I don't really get it."
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this article released 6 minutes prior to tweet
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Donald Trump Son-in-Law Jared Kushner Could Face His Own Conflict-of-Interest Questions
Even as an unpaid adviser, Mr. Kushner’s financing arrangements for his real-estate firm could draw scrutiny
By Peter Grant
Updated Nov. 29, 2016 6:49 a.m. ET
Businesses belonging to real-estate magnate Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President-elect Donald Trump, may present conflict-of-interest issues if Kushner ends up taking a job in the new administration. Photo: Associated Press
The real-estate company controlled by Jared Kushner, President-elect Donald Trump’s son-in-law, has hundreds of millions of dollars in loans outstanding from domestic and foreign financial institutions, markets condominiums to wealthy U.S. and foreign buyers and has obtained development financing through a controversial U.S. program that sells green cards.
Those and other business activities could raise conflict-of-interest issues if Mr. Kushner is named to a staff position in the Trump administration. Executive branch employees are prohibited from participating in any matter in which there is “a close causal link” between that matter and a “real possibility” of a financial gain or loss, according to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
Mr. Trump has floated the idea of Mr. Kushner taking a number of roles in his administration. But he also is considering not giving Mr. Kushner any staff position to sidestep the conflict issue, a person familiar with his thinking said Monday.
If Mr. Trump wanted to give Mr. Kushner an official role he also would have to comply with federal nepotism law. Even if Mr. Kushner were to serve in the new administration as an unpaid adviser, his potential influence on policy would invite scrutiny, legal experts said.
Ethics experts are divided on how strictly conflict-of-interest rules should be interpreted. Some wealthy individuals and business people who have joined previous administrations have sold stocks, bonds and a wide range of other assets to comply with conflict laws.
Henry Paulson was told “you have to get rid of your financial services stocks” when he was named to head the Treasury Department, said Richard Painter, a law professor at the University of Minnesota who was chief White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush. “It’s a criminal statute so you don’t want to get too close to the line.”
The president himself isn’t subject to the conflict-of-interest law, but all other government employees must follow it. That would include anyone working for the White House, even in a task-force role comparable to the position Hillary Clintonfilled on President Bill Clintonadministration’s health-care plan in the 1990s.
Mr. Kushner would be able avoid conflicts by selling assets just as Mr. Paulson did in 2006. Mr. Paulson was able to take advantage of a George H.W. Bushadministration-era tax provision that allowed him to defer capital gains on more than $600 million in Goldman Sachsshares, Mr. Painter said.
Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump walk through the lobby of Trump Tower in New York earlier this month. Photo: Richard Drew/Associated Press
Mr. Kushner, 35 years old, is married to Ivanka Trump, and was a confidant of Mr. Trump during the campaign. “Jared’s a very smart guy. He’s a very good guy. The people that know him, he’s a quality person and I think he can be very helpful,” Mr. Trump said in an interview last week with the New York Times.
Mr. Kushner has discussed putting his assets in a blind trust as part of accepting a federal job. But Mr. Painter said this probably wouldn’t work unless he sold assets and put the money in a trust. “You can’t pretend you don’t own something just by putting it in a blind trust,” he said.
In the past, employees have obtained waivers to the conflict-of-interest law. This happened when the U.S. invaded Kuwait in 1990 and there was concern among Bush administration members that they might be subject to the law by owning stock in oil companies.
Kathleen Clark, a government ethics lawyers and law professor at Washington University, said she didn’t think Mr. Kushner would run afoul of rules if he participated in broad policy issues involving such things as the direction of interest rates or whether the U.S. military should side with Israel in a war. “These are not specific matters involving particular parties,” she said.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Kushner said in an email: “If Jared were to serve in some capacity in the new administration, Kushner Companies would put a rigorous process in place to ensure that no conflicts exist.”
Kushner Cos. owns thousands of apartment buildings throughout the U.S. and numerous high-profile development projects and other properties in New York. These include the office tower at 666 Fifth Ave.; the Puck Building in SoHo, which Kushner Cos. converted into luxury condominiums; and Brooklyn properties it is converting into high-tech office space.
Kushner Cos. just completed a $370 million refinancing arranged by Deutsche Bank AG on a 250,000 square foot retail space in Midtown Manhattan. The company’s website also identifies a long list of domestic financial partners, including Citigroup Inc., Prudential Financial Inc., M&T Bank and Wells Fargo& Co.
Foreign banking partners include French bank Natixis SA, which led a group that lent Kushner Cos. $375 million in 2013, as well as Israeli banks Bank Hapoalim and Bank Leumi.
“I wouldn’t want him involved in regulated financial services if he has big loans out with banks,” Mr. Painter said. One way around the problem would be to recuse himself.
Mr. Kushner’s real estate interests also could be helped or hurt by other activities of the U.S. government. For example, the Treasury Department announced earlier this year new rules applying to the sale of title insurance, in part to make it more difficult for foreign buyers to conceal their identities. This might make it harder for Kushner to sell high-price units in the Puck Building, or any future condo projects.
The Trump Bay Tower stands under construction in Jersey City, N.J., in March.Photo: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg News
Another potential conflict comes from Mr. Kushner’s participation in the federal EB-5 program, which allows wealthy foreign investors to obtain U.S. green cards. His company used the program to finance its Trump Bay Street rental tower that just opened in Jersey City. The $200 million project has a licensing deal with the Trump Organization to use the Trump name.
Kushner executives have declined to say how much of the financing was raised through the EB-5 program. The Kushner Co. website lists as one of its financial partners the U.S. Immigration Fund, a private firm that acts as a middleman between foreign investors who want to buy green cards for at least $500,000 each and developers seeking inexpensive financing.
The new Trump administration will likely need to take a stand on EB-5 because it has come under increasing fire in Congress and other places. Critics say it is become dominated by developers of projects in wealthy neighborhoods rather the poor areas for which it was intended.
A key provision of the program is scheduled to expire in early December but could get extended while Congress debates possible reforms. Mr. Trump hasn’t taken a formal position on EB-5.
More of the same..
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[h=1]Trump Picks Former Goldman Banker Steven Mnuchin As Treasury Secretary[/h]While it has yet to be officially confirmed by the Trump transition team, moments ago the NYT reported that - in what had previously been leaked on several occasions on various other outlets most notably the WSJ - former Goldman banker and Soros employee, Steven Mnuchin "a financier with deep roots on Wall Street and in Hollywood but no government experience" is expected to be named Donald J. Trump’s Treasury secretary as soon as Wednesday.
The WSJ has confirmed as much, reporting that "President-elect Donald Trump will name longtime banker and former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary, turning to a campaign loyalist and fundraiser for the incoming administration’s top economic cabinet post, a transition official said Tuesday."
Steven Terner Mnuchin at Trump Tower in Manhattan this month
From the NYT:
When Mr. Trump won New York’s Republican presidential primary in April, Mr. Mnuchin attended the victory party. The next day, he accepted Mr. Trump’s invitation to become the campaign’s national finance director. A number of Mr. Mnuchin’s friends made comments to various publications expressing shock at the decision. Mr. Mnuchin was unfazed. “Nobody’s going to be, like, ‘Well, why did he do this?’ if I end up in the administration,” he told Bloomberg Businessweek in August.
As the WSJ adds, "Mr. Mnuchin’s Wall Street pedigree presents a contrast with the populist themes Mr. Trump struck in his campaign, railing against big banks and vowing to close tax loopholes that benefit hedge funds. Mr. Trump also repeatedly attacked his rivals in the primary and general elections for their Wall Street ties, especially those connected to Goldman Sachs."
If confirmed by the Senate as Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin will join a list of prominent bankers who made similar moves from Wall Street to Washington, including two of his former bosses at Goldman, Henry Paulson and Robert Rubin, who were both top Goldman executives before running Treasury.
* * *
For those who have missed our previous piece on the career banker, here are some more details on Mnuchin's background from the WSJ:
Even though the nomination is still unofficial, moments ago CBS' reproter Charlie Keye tweeted that it can also confirm that "Trump has chosen financier Steven Mnuchin as his nominee for Treasury Secretary."
And just like that the swamp feels a little bit more full.
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[h=1]Trump Picks Former Goldman Banker Steven Mnuchin As Treasury Secretary[/h]While it has yet to be officially confirmed by the Trump transition team, moments ago the NYT reported that - in what had previously been leaked on several occasions on various other outlets most notably the WSJ - former Goldman banker and Soros employee, Steven Mnuchin "a financier with deep roots on Wall Street and in Hollywood but no government experience" is expected to be named Donald J. Trump’s Treasury secretary as soon as Wednesday.
The WSJ has confirmed as much, reporting that "President-elect Donald Trump will name longtime banker and former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary, turning to a campaign loyalist and fundraiser for the incoming administration’s top economic cabinet post, a transition official said Tuesday."
Steven Terner Mnuchin at Trump Tower in Manhattan this month
From the NYT:
Mnuchin, 53, was the national finance chairman for Mr. Trump’s campaign. He began his career at Goldman Sachs, where he became a partner, before creating his own hedge fund, moving to the West Coast and entering the first rank of movie financiers by bankrolling hits like the “X-Men” franchise and “Avatar.”
As Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin would play an important role in shaping the administration’s economic policies, including a package of promised tax cuts, increased spending on infrastructure and changes in the terms of foreign trade. He could also help lead any effort to roll back President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran and opening to Cuba by reimposing sanctions on Tehran and Havana.
As the NYT adds, his selection fits uneasily with much of Mr. Trump’s campaign rhetoric attacking the financial industry. Mr. Trump, in a campaign ad intended as a closing argument, portrayed the chief executive of Goldman Sachs as the personification of a global elite that the ad said had “robbed our working class.” But, the NYT notes, Mnuchin has said that he agrees with Mr. Trump’s priorities, and he was an early supporter of a candidate who clearly prizes loyalty. As Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin would play an important role in shaping the administration’s economic policies, including a package of promised tax cuts, increased spending on infrastructure and changes in the terms of foreign trade. He could also help lead any effort to roll back President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran and opening to Cuba by reimposing sanctions on Tehran and Havana.
When Mr. Trump won New York’s Republican presidential primary in April, Mr. Mnuchin attended the victory party. The next day, he accepted Mr. Trump’s invitation to become the campaign’s national finance director. A number of Mr. Mnuchin’s friends made comments to various publications expressing shock at the decision. Mr. Mnuchin was unfazed. “Nobody’s going to be, like, ‘Well, why did he do this?’ if I end up in the administration,” he told Bloomberg Businessweek in August.
As the WSJ adds, "Mr. Mnuchin’s Wall Street pedigree presents a contrast with the populist themes Mr. Trump struck in his campaign, railing against big banks and vowing to close tax loopholes that benefit hedge funds. Mr. Trump also repeatedly attacked his rivals in the primary and general elections for their Wall Street ties, especially those connected to Goldman Sachs."
If confirmed by the Senate as Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin will join a list of prominent bankers who made similar moves from Wall Street to Washington, including two of his former bosses at Goldman, Henry Paulson and Robert Rubin, who were both top Goldman executives before running Treasury.
* * *
For those who have missed our previous piece on the career banker, here are some more details on Mnuchin's background from the WSJ:
Despite his successful Wall Street career, Mr. Mnuchin has no experience running a massive organization—the Treasury Department has 86,000 employees—or in economic or financial policy-making. The biggest entity Mr. Mnuchin has run was the technology division of Goldman, which had over 5,000 employees.
Mr. Mnuchin’s acquaintances describe him as smart, with several people calling him “nerdy.” He regularly attends New York philanthropic galas. He has long held high-profile positions on charity boards and is a former director of the Whitney Museum of American Art. At an event for New York charity City Harvest in 2006, Mr. Mnuchin and his ex-wife were photographed with Mr. Trump. Mr. Mnuchin is now engaged to Scottish actress Louise Linton.
Mr. Mnuchin joined Goldman in 1985. He worked in the fixed-income department, eventually overseeing trading in mortgages, U.S. government, money market and municipal bonds. He made partner in 1994. Mr. Mnuchin later became the firm’s chief information officer.
When Goldman converted into a publicly traded company in 1999, Mr. Mnuchin, like other partners, made millions. He later bought a 6,500-square-foot apartment in 740 Park Avenue, a storied Manhattan co-op built by Jackie Kennedy’s grandfather that is known as the “billionaires’ building.”
At a recent conference, Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein called Mr. Mnuchin a “highflier, a partner at a young age. He did very well. He is a smart, smart guy.”
In 2002, Mr. Mnuchin left Goldman and later was hired to run a credit fund set up by billionaire George Soros.
In 2004, Mr. Mnuchin and two former Goldman colleagues founded hedge fund Dune Capital Management LP with financial backing from Mr. Soros. Dune soon expanded into the entertainment business, striking up a film-financing deal with a unit of 21st Century Fox. Among the films Dune financed was “Avatar,” one of the all-time box office hits.
21st Century Fox and News Corp, parent company of The Wall Street Journal, share common ownership.
In 2008, IndyMac Bank in Pasadena, Calif., collapsed in one of the largest bank failures in U.S. history. Mr. Mnuchin led a group of investors, including funds run by Mr. Soros and other hedge-fund and private-equity titans, who bought it from the government for about $1.5 billion. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation agreed to cover a portion of any future loan losses, a lucrative arrangement for Mr. Mnuchin and his partners. Regulators who negotiated with Mr. Mnuchin found him to be the kind of detail-oriented person who would “know the cost of every pencil,” according to a person familiar with their thinking.
Mr. Mnuchin, who became chairman of the renamed OneWest Bank and CEO of its parent company, relocated to Los Angeles and bought a mansion in the Bel Air neighborhood.
The deal soon became controversial. In 2011, community activists descended on Mr. Mnuchin’s Bel Air home to protest over the possible eviction of a homeowner who was behind on her mortgage payments to OneWest.
In 2014, OneWest was sold to CIT Group Inc., earning Mr. Mnuchin and Dune hundreds of millions of dollars in profits, according to a person familiar with the matter. He later pocketed $10.9 million in severance payouts when he left the company.
Despite the huge profits, OneWest’s legacy continues to trail Mr. Mnuchin, who now sits on CIT’s board and owns more than 1% of its shares.
A portion of OneWest’s mortgage business is under investigation by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Last July, CIT said it was forced to take a $230 million charge as it cleaned up accounting problems at OneWest. And two California housing groups this month accused OneWest of discriminating against minorities by not putting branches in their communities.
Meanwhile, 14 years after leaving Goldman, Mr. Mnuchin remains in the firm’s orbit, showing up at alumni events and involving other ex-Goldman executives in his finance deals.
He has continued to work those angles as Mr. Trump’s finance chairman, a post he assumed in May. Mr. Mnuchin negotiated a joint fundraising agreement with the Republican National Committee, easing the way for major donors to give both to the party and to Mr. Trump. The committee’s chairman, Lewis Eisenberg, is a Goldman veteran and contemporary of Mr. Mnuchin’s father.
* * * Mr. Mnuchin’s acquaintances describe him as smart, with several people calling him “nerdy.” He regularly attends New York philanthropic galas. He has long held high-profile positions on charity boards and is a former director of the Whitney Museum of American Art. At an event for New York charity City Harvest in 2006, Mr. Mnuchin and his ex-wife were photographed with Mr. Trump. Mr. Mnuchin is now engaged to Scottish actress Louise Linton.
Mr. Mnuchin joined Goldman in 1985. He worked in the fixed-income department, eventually overseeing trading in mortgages, U.S. government, money market and municipal bonds. He made partner in 1994. Mr. Mnuchin later became the firm’s chief information officer.
When Goldman converted into a publicly traded company in 1999, Mr. Mnuchin, like other partners, made millions. He later bought a 6,500-square-foot apartment in 740 Park Avenue, a storied Manhattan co-op built by Jackie Kennedy’s grandfather that is known as the “billionaires’ building.”
At a recent conference, Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein called Mr. Mnuchin a “highflier, a partner at a young age. He did very well. He is a smart, smart guy.”
In 2002, Mr. Mnuchin left Goldman and later was hired to run a credit fund set up by billionaire George Soros.
In 2004, Mr. Mnuchin and two former Goldman colleagues founded hedge fund Dune Capital Management LP with financial backing from Mr. Soros. Dune soon expanded into the entertainment business, striking up a film-financing deal with a unit of 21st Century Fox. Among the films Dune financed was “Avatar,” one of the all-time box office hits.
21st Century Fox and News Corp, parent company of The Wall Street Journal, share common ownership.
In 2008, IndyMac Bank in Pasadena, Calif., collapsed in one of the largest bank failures in U.S. history. Mr. Mnuchin led a group of investors, including funds run by Mr. Soros and other hedge-fund and private-equity titans, who bought it from the government for about $1.5 billion. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation agreed to cover a portion of any future loan losses, a lucrative arrangement for Mr. Mnuchin and his partners. Regulators who negotiated with Mr. Mnuchin found him to be the kind of detail-oriented person who would “know the cost of every pencil,” according to a person familiar with their thinking.
Mr. Mnuchin, who became chairman of the renamed OneWest Bank and CEO of its parent company, relocated to Los Angeles and bought a mansion in the Bel Air neighborhood.
The deal soon became controversial. In 2011, community activists descended on Mr. Mnuchin’s Bel Air home to protest over the possible eviction of a homeowner who was behind on her mortgage payments to OneWest.
In 2014, OneWest was sold to CIT Group Inc., earning Mr. Mnuchin and Dune hundreds of millions of dollars in profits, according to a person familiar with the matter. He later pocketed $10.9 million in severance payouts when he left the company.
Despite the huge profits, OneWest’s legacy continues to trail Mr. Mnuchin, who now sits on CIT’s board and owns more than 1% of its shares.
A portion of OneWest’s mortgage business is under investigation by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Last July, CIT said it was forced to take a $230 million charge as it cleaned up accounting problems at OneWest. And two California housing groups this month accused OneWest of discriminating against minorities by not putting branches in their communities.
Meanwhile, 14 years after leaving Goldman, Mr. Mnuchin remains in the firm’s orbit, showing up at alumni events and involving other ex-Goldman executives in his finance deals.
He has continued to work those angles as Mr. Trump’s finance chairman, a post he assumed in May. Mr. Mnuchin negotiated a joint fundraising agreement with the Republican National Committee, easing the way for major donors to give both to the party and to Mr. Trump. The committee’s chairman, Lewis Eisenberg, is a Goldman veteran and contemporary of Mr. Mnuchin’s father.
Even though the nomination is still unofficial, moments ago CBS' reproter Charlie Keye tweeted that it can also confirm that "Trump has chosen financier Steven Mnuchin as his nominee for Treasury Secretary."
And just like that the swamp feels a little bit more full.
Maybe we should criminalize your supporters giving nazi salutes while we are at it donnie?
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[h=1]White Nationalists Salute the President-Elect: "Hail Trump!" - The Atlantic[/h]Daniel Lombroso and Yoni Appelbaum
Nov 21, 2016
[h=1]The Atlantic[/h]
Daniel Lombroso / The Atlantic [h=1]'Hail Trump!': White Nationalists Salute the President Elect[/h]Video of an alt-right conference in Washington, D.C., where Trump’s victory was met with cheers and Nazi salutes.
“Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory!”
That’s how Richard B. Spencer saluted more than 200 attendees on Saturday, gathered at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., for the annual conference of the National Policy Institute, which describes itself as “an independent organization dedicated to the heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world.”
Spencer has popularized the term “alt-right” to describe the movement he leads. Spencer has said his dream is “a new society, an ethno-state that would be a gathering point for all Europeans,” and has called for “peaceful ethnic cleansing.”
For most of the day, a parade of speakers discussed their ideology in relatively anodyne terms, putting a presentable face on their agenda. But after dinner, when most journalists had already departed, Spencer rose and delivered a speech to his followers dripping with anti-Semitism, and leaving no doubt as to what he actually seeks. He referred to the mainstream media as “Lügenpresse,” a term he said he was borrowing from “the original German”; the Nazis used the word to attack their critics in the press.
“America was until this past generation a white country designed for ourselves and our posterity,” Spencer said. “It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us.”
The audience offered cheers, applause, and enthusiastic Nazi salutes.
Here is the video, excerpted from an Atlantic documentary profile of Spencer that will premiere in December 2016.
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[h=1]White Nationalists Salute the President-Elect: "Hail Trump!" - The Atlantic[/h]Daniel Lombroso and Yoni Appelbaum
Nov 21, 2016
[h=1]The Atlantic[/h]
“Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory!”
That’s how Richard B. Spencer saluted more than 200 attendees on Saturday, gathered at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., for the annual conference of the National Policy Institute, which describes itself as “an independent organization dedicated to the heritage, identity, and future of people of European descent in the United States, and around the world.”
Spencer has popularized the term “alt-right” to describe the movement he leads. Spencer has said his dream is “a new society, an ethno-state that would be a gathering point for all Europeans,” and has called for “peaceful ethnic cleansing.”
For most of the day, a parade of speakers discussed their ideology in relatively anodyne terms, putting a presentable face on their agenda. But after dinner, when most journalists had already departed, Spencer rose and delivered a speech to his followers dripping with anti-Semitism, and leaving no doubt as to what he actually seeks. He referred to the mainstream media as “Lügenpresse,” a term he said he was borrowing from “the original German”; the Nazis used the word to attack their critics in the press.
“America was until this past generation a white country designed for ourselves and our posterity,” Spencer said. “It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us.”
The audience offered cheers, applause, and enthusiastic Nazi salutes.
Here is the video, excerpted from an Atlantic documentary profile of Spencer that will premiere in December 2016.
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[h=1]Who Is Wilbur Ross? Donald Trump's Reported Commerce Secretary Is Yet Another Billionaire[/h]Celia Darrough5 hours ago
According to several media outlets, billionaire Wilbur Ross will be Donald Trump's commerce secretary. A Trump transition team official reportedly told NBC News that Ross, the founder and head of WL Ross & Co, will likely be officially announced on Wednesday. And Ross is not a new face to Trump's team. CNBC reported that he's been advising him recently, but he also was around for Trump in the early 1990s, when Trump was going through some financial issues with his Atlantic City casinos.
The 79-year-old investor reportedly has a net worth of $2.9 billion, which he gained through working for a couple decades at Rothschild Inc., a financial advisory group where he oversaw the bankruptcy advisory division, before opening his own firm. His bankruptcy background means he's well-versed in buying troubled or failing businesses, reworking them, and selling them off — a practice The New York Times called "tricky."
While he may bring business experience to the White House, Ross has no official government experience. But that doesn't make him an outsider. Although Trump promised to bring in outsiders to "drain the swamp" of Washington, Ross is very much an insider, having served on the U.S.-Russia Investment Fund board under President Bill Clinton and as an advisor to former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Source: Drew Angerer/Getty Images News/Getty Images
If you want to know how insider-y Ross is, according to a New York Daily Intelligencer article, Ross was once the leader of a secret Wall Street fraternitycalled Kappa Beta Phi. Members, according to the article, include Wall Street elites like former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a former Goldman Sachs chairman, the CEO of AIG, hedge fund billionaires, the list goes on. Kevin Roose, who wrote the article, said that he snuck into a Kappa Beta Phi event and saw a "group of wealthy and powerful financiers making homophobic jokes, making light of the financial crisis, and bragging about their business conquests at Main Street’s expense." When he was found out, Roose claimed, Ross was reportedly one of the people who tried to convince Roose not to publish the story. Ross' membership in the group has been reported before, but Bustle has reached out to him for comment regarding the allegations.
According to The New York Times, Ross is fairly in line with Trump when it comes to commerce. He is reportedly in favor of big tax cuts for corporations, is against Obama's Affordable Care Act, will consider certain anti-trade opinions that Trump holds, may put high tariffs on goods from China, and wants to reduce taxes and regulations on energy companies.
Trump's spokesman Jason Miller had not yet confirmed the nomination on Tuesday, but did say, "Though President-elect Trump has not yet announced his pick for this position, it goes without saying that Mr. Ross has been a fantastic advocate for the president-elect’s plan to bring back jobs, eliminate the trade deficit, and make good deals for America’s workers."
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[h=1]Who Is Wilbur Ross? Donald Trump's Reported Commerce Secretary Is Yet Another Billionaire[/h]Celia Darrough5 hours ago
According to several media outlets, billionaire Wilbur Ross will be Donald Trump's commerce secretary. A Trump transition team official reportedly told NBC News that Ross, the founder and head of WL Ross & Co, will likely be officially announced on Wednesday. And Ross is not a new face to Trump's team. CNBC reported that he's been advising him recently, but he also was around for Trump in the early 1990s, when Trump was going through some financial issues with his Atlantic City casinos.
The 79-year-old investor reportedly has a net worth of $2.9 billion, which he gained through working for a couple decades at Rothschild Inc., a financial advisory group where he oversaw the bankruptcy advisory division, before opening his own firm. His bankruptcy background means he's well-versed in buying troubled or failing businesses, reworking them, and selling them off — a practice The New York Times called "tricky."
While he may bring business experience to the White House, Ross has no official government experience. But that doesn't make him an outsider. Although Trump promised to bring in outsiders to "drain the swamp" of Washington, Ross is very much an insider, having served on the U.S.-Russia Investment Fund board under President Bill Clinton and as an advisor to former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Source: Drew Angerer/Getty Images News/Getty Images
If you want to know how insider-y Ross is, according to a New York Daily Intelligencer article, Ross was once the leader of a secret Wall Street fraternitycalled Kappa Beta Phi. Members, according to the article, include Wall Street elites like former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a former Goldman Sachs chairman, the CEO of AIG, hedge fund billionaires, the list goes on. Kevin Roose, who wrote the article, said that he snuck into a Kappa Beta Phi event and saw a "group of wealthy and powerful financiers making homophobic jokes, making light of the financial crisis, and bragging about their business conquests at Main Street’s expense." When he was found out, Roose claimed, Ross was reportedly one of the people who tried to convince Roose not to publish the story. Ross' membership in the group has been reported before, but Bustle has reached out to him for comment regarding the allegations.
According to The New York Times, Ross is fairly in line with Trump when it comes to commerce. He is reportedly in favor of big tax cuts for corporations, is against Obama's Affordable Care Act, will consider certain anti-trade opinions that Trump holds, may put high tariffs on goods from China, and wants to reduce taxes and regulations on energy companies.
Trump's spokesman Jason Miller had not yet confirmed the nomination on Tuesday, but did say, "Though President-elect Trump has not yet announced his pick for this position, it goes without saying that Mr. Ross has been a fantastic advocate for the president-elect’s plan to bring back jobs, eliminate the trade deficit, and make good deals for America’s workers."
