Social Issues

A long, long time ago, back in 2008 when most of today's hedge fund analysts were still stressing over what to wear to prom, a man named Bernard Madoff was arrested for bilking unsuspecting investors out of $65 billion.  Madoff ran what is traditionally referred to as a ponzi scheme in which new investments were solicited as a means to fund massive redemptions that otherwise would have resulted in a collapse of his fund long before the FBI finally caught up with his scheme. 

But, Madoff was eventually caught and in 2009 he was sentenced to 150 years in prison for his scheme. 

More details from President Donald Trump’s first budget proposal are trickling out via a flurry of overnight reports from The Washington Post, Associated Press and Bloomberg News.

Here are some of the highlights from the latest batch of trial balloons:

The Trump administration and the House have officially asked for another 90 days to work out a lawsuit over subsidies that help poorer people afford to use their Obamacare insurance plans, further delaying a long-running legal fight that’s already destabilizing the health law.

As Axio snotes, the key point is - "The parties continue to discuss measures that would obviate the need for judicial determination of this appeal, including potential legislative action."

Full motion below...

Bloomberg continues...

Bitcoin is now up over 135% year-to-date, having screamed above $2000 and $2100 overnight as the dollar limped to 6-month lows...

Having shrugged off China crackdowns and worries over 'hard forks', it appears the legalization of the virtual currency in Japan (with Peach Aviation now accepting bitcoin for flight ticket purchases) and broader adoption in Russia have fueled demand in recent weeks...

There was some good news and some not so good news in the Fed's latest annual Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households.

First the good news.