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bostonangler

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  1. Americans may have a love-hate relationship with their credit cards, but that’s not preventing them from piling on debt. The country’s outstanding credit-card and other types of revolving debt have jumped almost 20% from a decade ago, reaching an all-time high of about $1.1 trillion, according to a recent study from CompareCards. The average balance on a credit card is now almost $6,200, and the typical American holds four credit cards, according to the credit bureau Experian. Credit-card issuers are also giving Americans more room to run up debt, boosting the typical credit limit by 20% over the last decade to $31,000. Taking credit: More than half of Americans check their credit scores at least monthly, leading to better borrowing habits Can I retire? My husband wants me to retire with him, but he's 10 years older with no life insurance. What should I do? The reasons for the spike in credit-card debt are complicated and potentially worrisome, financial experts say. A middle-class lifestyle has become more expensive with the cost of health care and education outpacing wage growth, prompting more households to rely on their cards to cover emergency expenses and daily spending, experts say. “If you have credit-card debt when times are good, it means you probably aren't putting away as much money as you should for when things eventually go south — and things always eventually go south,” says Matt Schulz, chief industry analyst at CompareCards. What's eye-opening are the types of expenses consumers blame on their credit card debt, says Michael Micheletti, director of corporate communications for Freedom Debt Relief. The debt-reduction company in January surveyed more than 2,000 U.S. consumers about their debt, savings and outlook to get a snapshot of their financial health. “Groceries are the number one reason why people carry a balance,” Micheletti says. “I was shocked, and I typically don't get too shocked with these things.” More consumers may be charging groceries because they’re strapped with other types of debt, such as student loans, which have doubled to about $1.6 trillion in outstanding debt since 2010, he notes. Auto loans and mortgages are also at all-time highs. After repaying monthly home, auto and student loans, some consumers don’t have much wiggle room, Micheletti adds. “Everyday expenses you used to pay cash for, you are now putting on your credit card,” he notes. Some households are also relying on credit cards when they’re in a pinch. Seven in 10 consumers would have trouble coming up with $500 for an unexpected expense, the survey found. A decade of expansion Rising credit card debt isn’t necessarily negative in itself. A strong job market and growing economy mean consumers are more optimistic about job security and their financial outlook, says Gannesh Bharadhwaj, general manager of credit cards at Credit Karma. “A decade ago, we were just starting to come out of the recession caused by the financial crisis,” he notes. “Since then as the economy has recovered and strengthened, consumers have increased their borrowing as they tend to do during good times.” And by some measures, consumers are financially healthier. Credit scores reached an all-time high of 703 last year, out of a possible 850 points. Credit-card delinquencies have dropped by half from a decade ago, CompareCards notes. Even so, about 3 in 10 consumers believe their credit scores are too low — and high balances could be keeping them from boosting their scores. The utilization rate, or the percentage of your card’s available balance that you tap, is the second-biggest factor in your credit score behind your payment history, Schulz says. “If you are somebody whose balance takes up most of your available credit, it will do some damage to your credit score,” Schulz notes. Paying down debt Consumers who carry credit-card balances should focus on paying down their debt in 2020, not only to strengthen their credit scores, but to ensure they’re in better financial shape when the next recession occurs, Schulz says. The risk of a recession within the next year is considered low by many economists, but economic downturns are inevitable. Here are steps to take: Make a budget. First, get a handle on your household spending, recommends CompareCards’ Schulz. Then assess whether you’ll need to pare spending in some areas or earn more income. Ask for a lower credit card interest rate. Calling your credit card company to ask for a lower rate can pay off: About 7 of 10 consumers who requested a rate reduction were successful, according to Bankrate.com. “We often see those interest rates reduced by up to 5-6 percentage points,” Schulz says. “That can be a significant savings.” Open a balance transfer card with 0% interest or a personal loan. It may seem counter-intuitive to take out another credit card, but balance transfer cards — which offer 0% interest for an initial period — can help you save money on interest, providing flexibility to pay down debt, Schulz notes. Personal loans, which offer a structured repayment plan, can also be helpful. The snowball versus avalanche approach. If you’re motivated by a quick win, the snowball method might be your go-to strategy. This prioritizes paying down cards with the smallest balances. The avalanche approach, though, could save more money in the long run, as this focuses on repaying cards with the highest interest rates. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/heres-top-reason-americans-carrying-100104646.html A shrinking middle class.... That's what you get when you create millions of $10 per hour jobs. B/A
  2. Since he was acquitted last week following an impeachment trial, President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr have carried out a series of targeted firings and legal interventions that have the DOJ in turmoil. "Can't recall a worse day for DOJ and line prosecutors," a former prosecutor told Insider. "A robbery in broad daylight in the middle of Chicago is more subtle than Barr's obsession to shield Trump and his co-conspirators." "I am aware of no precedent remotely like it in the history of the DOJ," another longtime former prosecutor told Insider. "It seems to me to be a classic hallmark of a dictatorial [or] fascist government." One former senior DOJ official who worked with the special counsel Robert Mueller when he was FBI director told Insider the last few days have been "a devastating breakdown" in the checks and balances on Trump's power. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. As California Rep. Adam Schiff wrapped up his closing arguments in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial last week, he warned Senate Republicans that if they didn't vote to remove the president from office for abusing his power, he would "do it again." "He has not changed. He will not change," Schiff said. "A man without character or ethical compass will never find his way. He has done it before and he will do it again." In the end, the Senate acquitted Trump in a nearly party-line vote, with key swing-vote Republican senators like Susan Collins and Lamar Alexander voting to acquit while expressing hope that the president had learned his lesson from the bitter trial. Here's what's happened since: Last Friday, Trump fired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and Ambassador Gordon Sondland, who testified against him in the House of Representatives' impeachment hearings. Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., indicated that Sondland and Vindman were fired in direct retaliation for their impeachment testimony. On Monday, Attorney General William Barr acknowledged that he had set up an "intake process" for the Justice Department to vet material that Rudy Giuliani, who is Trump's personal lawyer, collects from Ukrainian sources about former Vice President Joe Biden. On Tuesday, Barr and his top aides publicly overruled the career prosecutors working on the government's case against the longtime GOP strategist Roger Stone and called for a lesser sentence than the one prosecutors had recommended. Barr's intervention led to the withdrawal or resignations of all four prosecutors working Stone's case. The Daily Beast reported late Tuesday that since his acquittal, Trump has privately urged Giuliani to continue working on obtaining damaging information on the Bidens and to update him and the DOJ on his findings. "I think he feels like the chains are off now," one senior administration official told the outlet. "It's like things have taken a turn. The gloves are off. And everything that used to be hush hush is now just…out in the open." Indeed, current and former officials told Insider they struggled to find any precedent for the "breakdown" of the Justice Department's historic independence that has largely kept it insulated from political interference, with one saying Barr's moves have turned it into "an arm of the Trump political machine." rudy giuliani (Photo by Anthony Devlin/Getty Images) 'A classic hallmark of a dictatorial [or] fascist government' Jeffrey Cramer, a longtime former federal prosecutor who spent 12 years at the DOJ, didn't mince words when reacting to the string of developments. "Can't recall a worse day for DOJ and line prosecutors," he told Insider. "A robbery in broad daylight in the middle of Chicago is more subtle than Barr's obsession to shield Trump and his co-conspirators." In reference to Barr's decision to create a direct line for Giuliani to funnel information to the DOJ about the Bidens, Patrick Cotter, a former federal prosecutor who worked with members of the special counsel Robert Mueller's team, told Insider: "I am aware of no precedent remotely like it in the history of the DOJ. It seems to me to be a classic hallmark of a dictatorial [or] fascist government." Barr's facilitation of Giuliani's research is all the more striking given that the former New York mayor is currently under investigation by the Southern District of New York over whether his efforts to dig up dirt on the Bidens in Ukraine violated foreign lobbying laws. The Trump team's push for political dirt on Biden from Ukraine — which it carried out while Trump withheld vital military aid from the country — also made up the crux of the impeachment inquiry. Typically, the DOJ's investigations begin with evidence of potential criminality that's uncovered by professional investigators with agencies like the FBI, the IRS, the DEA, and others. Those investigators then examine the evidence and present it to nonpartisan career prosecutors at US attorneys' offices across the country who make a decision whether or not to prosecute based on the law and the facts. Those cases are then submitted to the DOJ for approval on the basis of whether there's sufficient evidence to file charges to a grand jury. But in this case, for Giuliani — who is acting as Trump's personal agent — to instigate the potential investigation of Trump's political rival is an "unimaginable" and "gross perversion" of the system," Cotter said. "It undermines the credibility the DOJ has spent over century building. It reduces the DOJ to an arm of the Trump political machine." One former senior DOJ official who worked with Mueller when he was FBI director told Insider the last few days have been "a devastating breakdown" in the checks and balances on Trump's power. Barr, this person added, is essentially functioning as Trump's bag man and is "the single most powerful weapon in the president's arsenal." Cramer echoed that point, adding, "AG Barr must realize he is running an organization where he has no respect beyond a few at Main Justice." In light of Trump's and Barr's actions over the last several days, some Democratic lawmakers have called for Michael Horowitz, the DOJ's inspector general, to launch an investigation. That said, there's nothing stopping the president from ousting Horowitz as well. Indeed, reports have surfaced over the last few months that the president is weighing firing Michael Atkinson, the intelligence community inspector general who played a pivotal role in sparking the impeachment inquiry when he informed the House Intelligence Committee of an "urgent" and "credible" whistleblower complaint against Trump, in accordance with federal law. "The buffers are quickly disappearing," Jens David Ohlin, a vice dean at Cornell Law School and an expert in criminal and constitutional law, told Insider. "The usual buffer is a president who doesn't intervene and an attorney general who protects an independent Justice Department. But it appears that we have neither now." https://www.yahoo.com/news/cant-recall-worse-day-doj-110000621.html B/A
  3. That's where you go when you have nothing else... I've seen it here many times... B/A
  4. His series of tweets, soon after Vindman offered his anti-Trump impeachment testimony to Rep. Adam Schiff's panel, were confirmed and corroborated. The story Heine put together from the tweets ran like this: He was apologetic of American culture, laughed about Americans not being educated or worldly, & really talked up Obama & globalism to the point of (sic) uncomfortable. He would speak w/the Russian Soldiers & laugh as if at the expense of the US personnel. It was so uncomfortable & unprofessional, one of the GS [civil service]employees came & told me everything above. I walked over & sat w/in earshot of Vindman, & sure enough, all was confirmed. One comment truly struck me as odd, & it was w/respect to American's falsely thinking they're exceptional, when he said, "He [Obama] is working on that now." And he said it w/a snide 'I know a secret' look on his face. I honestly don't know what it meant, it just sounded like an odd thing to say. Regardless, after hearing him bash America a few times in front of subordinates, Russians, & GS Employees, as well as, hearing an earful about globalization, Obama's plan, etc., I'd had enough. I tapped him on the shoulder & asked him to step outside. At that point I verbally reprimanded him for his actions, & I'll leave it at that, so as not to be unprofessional myself. The bottom-line is LTC Vindman was a partisan Democrat at least as far back as [2013]. So much so, junior officers & soldiers felt uncomfortable around him. This is not your professional, field-grade officer, who has the character & integrity to do the right thing. Do not let the uniform fool you…he is a political activist in uniform. I pray our nation will drop this hate, vitriol & division, & unite as our founding fathers intended! Heine then confirmed the tweets, first with Hickman himself, via his LinkedIn page, and then with Hickman's superior, Lt. Col. Thomas Lasch. It was good reporting with cross-checking, given that something like this out on Twitter could be fake news — but apparently was found to be not. This raises questions about the kind of people being brought into the White House, supposedly to work on "national security" at six-figure salaries. Some of these people, such as Vindman, were Trump-hating partisans who seethed with Trump-loathing and were the first to jump at the chance to testify for the Schiff panel. Some of them, such as the CIA employee identified by Paul Sperry as the original whistleblower, who coordinated with Schiff from the state, were also suspected leakers. Some are people of talent. Yet to place talent above basic, garden-variety loyalty to the country as well as respectful service to its democratically elected leader seems to be a bridge too far for the people who brought these Trump-haters in. They're worthless and ought to be out on their ears. Nobody is that irreplaceable. Now they're coming out of the woodwork. It sounds as though it's long past time for Trump to clean house. This kind of disloyalty to the commander in chief is where it's led. Based on the recollections of the Army men, it started early. Read more: https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/11/so_vindman_was_ridiculing_rednecks_and_sneering_about_american_exceptionalism_to_russian_officers.html#ixzz6DkIfk5SP Follow us: @AmericanThinker on Twitter | AmericanThinker on Facebook Yeah and our president takes the word of Putin over his own agencies. We all know Putin is such a nice guy and we should take him at his word. Comparing a soldier to our president is like comparing a horse and buggy to a an Apollo rocket... When the leader of the free world trusts the leader of the evil empire we have a serious problem. B/A
  5. This administration just gets less and less like a democracy every day. They really need to start calling him King Trump... The idea of The Rule of Law is out the window. The concept of American citizens serving on a jury and doing their public service is meaningless. These people sat through a trial, found the defendant guilty and our president thinks they should be overruled... We are witnessing the systematic tear down our country and way of life. B/A
  6. What a joke... I post actual statistics on convictions and have to put up with the Kool-Aid drinking clown show of the cult members. You should be astounded to see the number of criminals in your party, but instead you continue the denial of truth... It surely will be a great day for those of the cult who awaken from the hypnotic slumber they have been living in. B/A
  7. Nope, the earth is a living organism just like all of us. The virus making the earth sick is us, and like many times in the past, the earth will eliminate the cause of sickness. B/A
  8. You know I was shocked when I saw these statistics... I had no idea the God fearing, bible toting, conservative right had so many convicted felons... It seems to be a party of criminals. B/A
  9. AVERAGE ANNUAL FELONIES BY CAMPAIGN/ADMINISTRATION'S PARTY PRESIDENT’S PARTY # PEOPLE INDICTED # PEOPLE CONVICTED # PEOPLE INCARCERATED DEMOCRATIC 0.20 0.10 0.10 REPUBLICAN 4.28 [5.22] 3.20 [3.23] 1.21 [1.25] * The number in [brackets] includes foreigners arrested for crimes committed on behalf of the candidate or president. The first number only represents U.S. citizens. Felonies by President's Party in the last 50 years (through September 17, 2018). Excludes foreign nationals.
  10. NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH FELONIES BY PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION PRESIDENT PARTY YEARS IN OFFICE # PEOPLE INDICTED # PEOPLE CONVICTED # PEOPLE IMPRISONED CONVICTIONS PER YEAR DONALD TRUMP R 1.7* 7 [35]** 6 [7] 2 (+3) [3 (+4)] 3.5 [4.1] BARACK OBAMA D 8 0 0 0 0 GEORGE W. BUSH R 8 16 9 9 1.1 BILL CLINTON D 8 3 2 2 0.25 GEORGE H. W. BUSH R 4 1 1 1 0.25 RONALD REAGAN R 8 26 16 8 2.0 JIMMY CARTER D 4 1 0 0 0 GERALD FORD R 2.4 1 1 1 0.4 RICHARD NIXON R 5.6 76 55 15 9.8 * Through September 17, 2018. ** Number in [brackets] includes foreign nationals.
  11. Hey we were 70 on Wednesday. Snow on Saturday. 70 again today... The earth will cure itself of the virus... Just give it time. B/A
  12. Problem is all the convicted felons are his appointees.... He sure can pick 'em B/A
  13. is this the story of Q and all the warrants coming down? Because you must realize by now that Q is fantasy... B/A
  14. Vindman was serving long before Trump came along... I doubt he is anything but a dedicated soldier. Eisenhower warned of the bloated military and he was right... America cannot continue spending on endless wars to prop up the war profiteers. We are broke and it is only getting worse. Flynn pleaded out. He was guilty. He was cashing in on his position. I'm sure there are lot's of people in government who could probably be proven guilty of cashing out on the backs of taxpayers... If he wasn't dirty, I'm sure he wouldn't have folded and would of had the support of powerful allies. He isn't a little boy, he knew right from wrong, but greed took over... As we all know greed is a terrible thing. B/A
  15. No they didn't, and that's an issue, but they didn't belittle the armed forces or make jokes about our wounded warriors... Honestly, this guy is a disgrace... Of course this is just my humble opinion. Thanks Pitcher you are certainly a stand up guy and I do appreciate that. B/A
  16. Yes keep supporting the draft dodger while he makes fun of decorated veterans. Jokes about brain damaged veterans having just headaches after rocket attacks... Keep supporting Private Bone Spur... B/A
  17. I can't imagine it, but what if Pete actually won??? First a black president, then a *** president... Heads would explode!!! B/A
  18. I think Disney may sue for using their character... Wouldn't be the first time. B/A
  19. Trump has as much to do with the RV as Bush had, or Obama had... In other words, none of them have anything to do with the RV. The CBI is a central bank. Central Banks are privately owned... Just like our Federal Reserve. It is a private bank... Now if Rothschild says something pay attention... One more time... The Gurus lie... The CBI is private and the queen of England, Trump or any other politician has zero control over their actions. B/A
  20. The end has been coming since the beginning... That's how they control the masses. B/A
  21. Big crowds at rallies, don't always mean people are making a good decision... Here are Americans who got it wrong in the past. History.com Americans hold a Nazi rally in Madison Square Garden - HISTORY
  22. Proven Businessman???? Everything he touches bankrupts... Airline. Bankrupt. University. Bankrupt. Meat company. Bankrupt. Golf courses. Losing millions. Casino. Bankrupt. Who bankrupts a casino? The only business that hasn't failed is the one his dad started... And now he is touching our country. Creating HUGE debt... I disagree with you and Pitcher. History will show Trump to be in low 10% of presidents. JMHO B/A
  23. Not just some of us... Not the just the democrats... This statement means everyone... Putin is not our friend. How Trump and his supporters could doubt our own people and take Putin's word is beyond me. Normally I would laugh at Trump's lack of judgement, but when Lindsay Graham is telling you this on television in front of America it is no laughing matter.... People better wake up to the fact we have a sadly unqualified man running our country... It has been documented many times, that Trump and his worshipers are spreading Putin;s propaganda. Trump and his twitidotics are doing the work for Putin.... JMHO B/A
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