‘Money Laundering’: Newsom Used Donations to Inflate Book Sales

Luis Cornelio
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‘Money Laundering’: Newsom Used Donations to Inflate Book Sales

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his allies spent weeks boasting that his book, Young Man in a Hurry, became a “best-seller” within hours of its March release. However, a new report found those sales were largely driven by Newsom’s own super PAC using donor funds.

The book, published March 10 and centered on Newsom’s upbringing in California, has reportedly sold 97,400 copies since its release. Of those, 67,000 were purchased by Newsom’s Campaign for Democracy Committee through a donation-for-book scheme,

The leftist New York Times reported Friday that the PAC urged supporters to make donations in exchange for a copy of the book, effectively turning each contribution into a guaranteed sale.

Critics described the setup as a potential money-laundering scheme, with the super PAC purchasing copies from its publisher Porchlight Book Company for every donation, regardless of the amount.

“Make a contribution of ANY AMOUNT today and I will send you a copy,” Newsom reportedly wrote in an email pitch.

In total, Newsom’s PAC spent $1,561,875 on the effort.

Defending the arrangement, Newsom spokesperson Nathan Click said the governor did not receive royalties from those purchases.

“Our goal was to deepen the relationship between him and the millions of folks who have already expressed support for Governor Newsom’s work. And as it turns out, the tactic more than paid for itself,” Click claimed.

Critics questioned the ethics of the program, with some suggesting it may have influenced Porchlight Book Company’s advance for Newsom’s 2026 book.

It remains unclear how much Newsom received as part of that advance. In 2019, however, he was paid $125,000 by Penguin Random House for Ben and Emma’s Big Hit, a children’s book.

A spokesperson for Newsom did not immediately respond to Headline USA’s request for comment regarding the advance for his latest book.

Dem Behind ‘Drunk’ Trump Threat Allegedly Spotted at Liquor Store

Luis Cornelio
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Dem Behind ‘Drunk’ Trump Threat Allegedly Spotted at Liquor Store

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The Democratic congresswoman who sparked backlash over a profanity-laced and unusually late-night post targeting President Donald Trump is once again drawing attention online.

Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., first went viral in the early hours of April 1 after posting a now-deleted vulgar message aimed at Trump that quickly drew scrutiny for its tone and timing.

“So f**king f**ked up, I’ll pray they f**k him to his face. Sorry, I say f**k a lot these days,” she wrote.

The comment came in response to Trump’s effort to end birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants.

Some critics raised questions about whether she may have been “blackout drunk” at the time.

Lee later addressed the backlash on X, denying any wrongdoing and defending her remarks.

“Clearly my language touched a nerve — my nerve was touched by the attacks on our Constitution and its separation of powers. I took an oath to protect and defend it,” she wrote.

Lee is once again circulating on social media Friday under renewed scrutiny.

Journalist Juliegrace Brufke reported on X that a source sent her an image of a woman purported to be Lee inside a liquor store.

“Less than a month after her 1am ‘f**k him to his face’ drunk tweet, Susie Lee was spotted this morning buying wine at 11:40am at the Whole Foods Wine Bar,” the source reportedly told Brufke.

Headline USA could not independently verify that the woman spotted in the photo was Lee. Her office did not respond to requests for comment sent after business hours.

A Lee spokesperson for her district office also did not return a call, and an automated email reply indicated she was out of the office. Requests for comment sent to Lee’s office and communications director were not returned before publication.

The resurfaced image comes as Lee has faced repeated criticism and mockery in recent years.

“Democrat Susie Lee has become Nevada’s fool, more focused on vulgar outbursts than doing the job she was elected to do,” NRCC spokesman Christian Martinez said earlier this month. “Hitting delete doesn’t clean up her mess, it just proves she knows how embarrassing it is.”

In 2022, a local outlet 360 News Las Vegas published a story that questioned Lee’s behavior at a campaign rally at Cheyenne High School.

“WAS CONGRESSWOMAN SUSIE LEE DRUNK OR STONED AT VEGAS OBAMA RALLY?” the headline read.

‘Enough Is Enough’: Trump Tells Israel to Halt Attacks on Lebanon

Headline USA Editor
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‘Enough Is Enough’: Trump Tells Israel to Halt Attacks on Lebanon

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) President Donald Trump instructed Israel to halt its attacks on Lebanon. Iran said the truce with Lebanon was the reason it elected to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. 

“Israel will not be bombing Lebanon any longer. They are PROHIBITED from doing so by the U.S.A. Enough is enough!!!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday. He made the statement the day after he announced the US brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. 

While President Donald Trump claimed that Tehran’s decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was unrelated to Lebanon, Iran said it is allowing traffic through the strait only because of the truce. 

“In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire,” Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi wrote on X. Tehran said that all ships transiting the Strait would need to coordinate with Iran. 

The Iranian military said that the Strait is still closed to military vessels. 

It is unclear if the ceasefire in Lebanon will hold for the next ten days. Since the start of the truce, Israel has already carried out one strike in Lebanon, killing one person. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that he was still in the process of dismantling Hezbollah. 

“We have not yet finished the job. There are things we plan to do to address the remaining rocket threat and the drone threat,” he said. 

Trump asserted that Tehran agreed never to close the Strait again, and that the US blockade of Iranian ports would remain in effect until a final agreement is reached. “Iran has agreed to never close the Strait of Hormuz again. It will no longer be used as a weapon against the World!” the President posted on Truth Social. 

“THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ IS COMPLETELY OPEN AND READY FOR BUSINESS AND FULL PASSAGE,” Trump wrote in a separate post. “BUT THE NAVAL BLOCKADE WILL REMAIN IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT AS IT PERTAINS TO IRAN, ONLY, UNTIL SUCH TIME AS OUR TRANSACTION WITH IRAN IS 100% COMPLETE.”

The President claimed that negotiations with Iran are expected to go quickly, and Tehran has agreed to give its nuclear material to the US. 

Iranian Presidential Spokesman Seyyed Mohammad Mehdi Tabatabaei said that the claim that Tehran agreed not to close the Strait again was “baseless statements of the enemy.”

“The conditional and limited reopening of a portion of the Strait of Hormuz is solely an Iranian initiative, one that creates responsibility and serves to test the firm commitments of the opposing side,” Tabatabaei said on X. “If they renege on their promises, they will face dire consequences.”

While Tehran has not responded to Trump’s assertion that Iran agreed to give up its nuclear material and dismantle its enrichment program, Iranian officials have stated they are only willing to dilute their stockpile of 60% enriched uranium in exchange for total sanctions relief.

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.  

 

ICE Director Stepping Down

Headline USA Editor
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ICE Director Stepping Down

(Sarah Roderick-Fitch, The Center Square) The Department of Homeland Security will see another leadership change as Todd Lyons, acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will step down May 31.

Lyons submitted a resignation letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin Thursday, after serving nearly 20 years with the agency.

Mullin credited Lyons for his role in reenergizing the agency and leading to the deportations of criminal aliens, while overseeing over 22,000 employees and officers.

“Director Lyons has been a great leader of ICE and key player in helping the Trump administration remove murderers, rapists, pedophiles, terrorists, and gang members from American communities,” according to a statement from Mullin. “He jumpstarted an agency that had not been allowed to do its job for four years. Thanks to his leadership, American communities are safer.”

The secretary indicated that Lyons will be pursuing a new career in the private sector.

Lyons has been credited with overseeing the deportations of nearly 600,000 foreign nationals since President Donald Trump began his second term.

Lyons’ exit comes more than a month after former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem was reassigned as the special envoy for the Shield of the Americas.

In January, Customs and Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Greg Bovino was removed from his role following fallout from the deaths of two anti-immigration enforcement protesters in Minneapolis. Bovino eventually retired from CBP at the end of March.

In his statement, Mullin didn’t provide the name of a possible replacement for Lyons.

Man Accused of Killing Charlie Kirk Pushes to Ban Cameras from Court

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Man Accused of Killing Charlie Kirk Pushes to Ban Cameras from Court

(Headline USA) The man accused of killing Charlie Kirk wants a judge to ban cameras from the courtroom and says live broadcasts of the prosecution are violating his right to a fair trial.

Tyler Robinson was back in state court in Utah Friday as his attorneys asked to delay his May preliminary hearing and pressed their claims that biased coverage is tainting potential jurors in his aggravated murder case.

Among numerous examples cited was a New York Post story that suggested Robinson confessed to Kirk’s killing during a courtroom conversation on Dec. 11, in his first appearance after being charged. The conversation with his attorneys was inaudible, but the story cited a “lip reading analysis” to support its claim that Robinson said, “I think about the shooting daily.”

“The predominant purpose being served by the live stream coverage has not been the educational reporting of the court proceedings, but rather advertising profit, sensationalism, political agendas, and, most prominently, the vilification of Mr. Robinson,” his attorneys wrote in their request to bar cameras.

Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty for Robinson should he be convicted in the Sept. 10 shooting of the conservative activist, who was addressing a crowd of thousands on the Utah Valley University campus in Orem.

Robinson, who turned 23 on Thursday, has not yet entered a plea. A trial date has not been set.

Media sensationalism around the case has cut both ways. In a March 30 headline, the U.K.-based Daily Mail reported the bullet that killed Kirk “did NOT match” a rifle allegedly used by Robinson. The story was based on an inconclusive, preliminary finding by ballistics experts and led to speculation about Robinson’s possible exoneration. The FBI is running additional tests, according to court documents.

Media organizations, prosecutors and Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, want the court to allow cameras. They argue the best way to guard against the misinformation and conspiracy theories that concern Robinson’s defense team is to make the process transparent.

Yet livestreaming by media outlets already has tested the patience of Judge Tony Graf.

During the December hearing, Graf temporarily stopped the livestream after it showed the defendant’s shackles in violation of a courtroom decorum order.

A January hearing was interrupted when Robinson’s attorneys said close-up shots of Robinson being livestreamed by a local television station could again lead to claims based on lip reading. That, too, was a violation of Graf’s decorum order. The judge ordered the camera operator not to film Robinson for the remainder of the hearing.

In recent hearings and again Friday, pool cameras for the media were stationed at the rear of the courtroom, behind Robinson. Graf also made camera operators come before him to acknowledge they understand the rules.

Mike Judd, a lawyer for a coalition of media organizations including The Associated Press that are fighting to preserve access, said Graf so far has focused on whether his rules inside the courtroom are being followed, not what the media is saying outside of court.

“The court can do all of that in order to try to control what gets fed into that media ecosystem,” Judd said. “You reduce the likelihood of somebody publishing things that you think may be of potentially biasing concern later on.”

Policies on cameras and livestreaming vary among states. Cameras are generally prohibited in federal courts.

“There’s Supreme Court precedent that says courts generally need to be open to the public, but that’s not an absolute right,” said University of Utah law professor Teneille Brown. “Even if they allow public access, that does not equal a right to broadcast or record.”

The preliminary hearing scheduled for May is for prosecutors to show they have enough evidence to proceed to trial. Authorities have said DNA consistent with Robinson’s was found on the trigger of the rifle, the fired cartridge casing, two unfired cartridges and a towel used to wrap the rifle.

But the defense argued Friday it cannot move forward with the hearing until law enforcement agencies turn over more details about their DNA analysis of evidence.

Prosecutors responded that they have sufficient proof beyond DNA to tie Robinson to Kirk’s killing. That includes surveillance video of Robinson near the university from the morning of the shooting wearing the same clothes as when he turned himself in. Robinson left a handwritten note for his romantic partner confessing to the crime before it happened, and also confessed to friends on the chatroom platform Discord, prosecutors said.

Rescheduling the preliminary hearing could delay the proceedings six months, Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride said.

“Justice delayed is justice denied,” he added.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

US Has Completed Full Withdrawal from Syria

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US Has Completed Full Withdrawal from Syria

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) The US military has completed a full withdrawal from Syria, Syrian officials told Middle East Eye on Thursday, marking the end of a military presence that first began with US special operations troops in 2015.

So far, the withdrawal hasn’t been confirmed by the US military, but back in February, The Wall Street Journal reported that the US was beginning a full pullout from the country and that it was expected to take about two months. At the time, US officials said the move wasn’t related to plans for war with Iran, though the US bases in Syria were known for being exposed to drone and missile attacks.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that it welcomed the handover of all US military installations to the Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda that the US and its allies helped take power in Damascus in December 2024.

The MEE report said that US forces had left their last base in Syria in the country’s northeastern Hasakah province. Syrian officials said that the Syrian military had entered the base, known as Qasrak, which included an airstrip.

When President Trump returned to office in January 2025, the US had about 2,000 troops in Syria. The Trump administration began a drawdown, which was accelerated following the December 2025 attack in Palmyra, Syria, which killed two US National Guard soldiers and an American civilian interpreter.

While President Trump blamed the Palmyria attack on ISIS, the gunman was a member of Syria’s security forces, and US officials have acknowledged to the Journal that the new Syrian military is “riddled with jihadist sympathizers, including soldiers with ties to al-Qaeda and ISIS and others who have been involved in alleged war crimes against the Kurds and Druze.”

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.  

 

The Tax Man Is Handing Out Big Refunds This Year; What’s Your Plan?

Money Metals News Service
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The Tax Man Is Handing Out Big Refunds This Year; What’s Your Plan?

(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals News Service) Have any plans for that big tax refund?

Odds are, you got one. Analysts say around 73 percent of taxpayers will get refunds this year. And they’re getting more back to boot. According to IRS data, the average refund is $3,462. That was up just over 11 percent compared to last year.

You can thank President Trump for that bigger refund. Tax changes passed in the Big Beautiful Bill have boosted refunds, especially for people in service industries who rely on tips.

If you got money back, congrats. But I’m here to throw the cold water of reality in your face.

You still gave the federal government a bunch of money last year.

In the first place, unless you have a low income, Uncle Sam didn’t give all your money back. In the second place, even if you are in the bottom 50 percent of taxpayers who don’t have any federal tax liability at all, you’re still paying out the rear via the inflation tax.

The whole withholding/refund system is a clever propaganda tool.

The withholding system was a brilliant move by the government. It’s like anesthesia. It deadens the pain of taxation. Most people have no idea how much money the government takes from them. Their employer siphons it out of their paycheck and sends it to the IRS. And then they get a refund. I think a lot of people view this as a gift from the government. They certainly don’t feel the pain.

Self-employed people and business owners sure do feel it, though. I know this from experience. I don’t get refunds. I write checks. And let me tell you, writing a check every quarter changes your perspective on taxes. If people realized how much the government took from them, I’m pretty sure there would be a tax revolt.

Instead, we have people celebrating because the government gave them back some of the money it essentially borrowed interest-free for a year.

But hey, it’s always nice to have a little extra money in your pocket, even if it was taken out of your pocket in the first place.

What to Do with That Refund?

So, if you got one of those big refunds, what’s the plan?

I was perusing a few articles featuring folks talking about what they plan to do with their little April windfall. Some said they planned to pay off debt. That seems like a good idea, given that Americans are buried under more than $5 trillion in consumer debt.  Some of the refund recipients said they anticipate making a big-ticket purchase that they couldn’t afford before. (Probably because the IRS was taking money out of their checks every month.) Some adventuresome folks have vacation plans. And a few people said they intend to save their refund.

I’ve got some very important advice for you savers. Don’t just stick that money in the bank. If you do, you will almost certainly buy less when you get around to spending it.

Never forget that the plan is to devalue your currency by 2 percent every year. They actually devalue it a lot more than that. But 2 percent inflation is the plan. That may not sound like a lot, but in 5 years, you’ve lost a little more than 10 percent of your purchasing power. And in a decade, every dollar you saved is worth about 80 cents.

There’s one way to avoid the inevitable currency devaluation inherent in our fiat system. Save in real money – gold and silver. Money Metals has some specials on both gold and silver to help you stretch those refund dollars as far as possible!

Consider this. Had I gotten a $3,500 refund in 2020, I could have bought 2 ounces of gold. (The average gold price in 2020 was $1,774.) At today’s price, those two ounces of gold would be worth around $9,600. That’s a 174.3 percent return in six years.

Let’s look at it the other way. If I put that money in a high-yield savings account with a 4 percent APY in 2020, I would have about $4,430 today. That’s a nice 26.7 percent return in six years. However, the CPI over that same period is – about 26 percent. So, I gained nothing. (And as we know, the CPI understates inflation. The real price inflation rate is closer to double that.)

On top of that, most bank savings accounts don’t pay anywhere near 4 percent. The majority only offer annual yields between ~0.39 percent and 0.62 percent. If you are saving in dollars at the bank, you’re almost certainly losing purchasing power over time.

Hey, Mr. Tax Man! What Are They Doing with All My Money?

Since we’re on the subject of taxes, I can’t help but note that I’m not a big fan of this system.

I can already hear somebody saying, “But Mike, taxes are the price we pay to live in a civilized society.”

Is it really, though?

I’m just going to throw this out there – maybe taking people’s money, effectively at gunpoint, isn’t really so “civilized.”

Isn’t that kind of like stealing?

Or maybe extortion is a better word.

Whatever label you want to put on it, I wouldn’t call stealing or extortion civilized. In fact, it’s kind of the opposite of civilized, right?

And then they spend billions to bomb people on the other side of the world. Also, not civilized.

I get it. The government has to be paid for somehow. But please stop trying to sell me on the beauty of taxation. I ain’t buyin’!

I know; I’m supposed to understand that the government is going to take its ill-gotten gains and make the world a better place. That supposedly justifies the extortion and theft. I should feel good about it!

Well, OK. That sounds good in a political speech, or maybe coming from a civics teacher, but it’s propaganda spin.

And by propaganda spin, I mean utter BS.

Think about it: Given the price tag, we should have reached the pinnacle of civilization by this point.

I think we got hosed.

Here’s the truth: Taxation is the price we pay for an overreaching, unconstitutional government that spends way too much money.

In Federalist #45, James Madison explained that the federal government was intended to be rather small. He wrote, “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.”

We’ve flipped the system on its head. As a result, we hand over a chunk of our income to the IRS, pay an inflation tax, and the federal government is still running massive deficits month after month.

If the federal government operated the way Madison said it should, we wouldn’t be in this situation.

But here we are.

So, the tax man cometh – over and over and over again.

Every year, as I’m doing my taxes, I listen to a song by Reggae artist Lucky Dube. It sums up the situation perfectly.

I pay my gardener to clean up my garden

I pay my doctor to check out da other ting

I pay my lawyer to fight for my rights

And I pay my bodyguard to guard my body

There’s only one man I pay

But I don’t know what I’m paying for

I’m talking about the taxman

I’m talking about the taxman

I’m talking about the taxman

What have you done for me lately?

Mr. Taxman

What have you done for me lately?

Mr. Taxman

What have you done for me lately?

Mr. Taxman

What have you done for me lately?

Mr. Taxman

You take from the rich, take from the poor

You even take from me, can’t understand it now

I pay for the police to, err…I don’t know why

‘Cause if my dollar was good enough

There wouldn’t be so much crime in the streets

They tell me you’re a fat man

And you always take and never give

What have you done for me lately?

Mr. Taxman

Good question. What have you done for me?

I gotta say – not so much.

I mean, sure, we have roads. But have you driven through Ohio lately? It’s not exactly a ringing endorsement for taxation.

But what about schools?

Yeah. OK. Go chat with some public school students. Also, not a ringing endorsement.

But hey, I’ve sent billions of dollars to Ukraine to help with all of the civilizing going on over there.

You get the picture.

So, whether you’re writing a check or buying some gold with your refund, give Lucky Dube’s song some thought.

I think you’ll come to a similar conclusion – Mr. Taxman ain’t doing much for us.

Mike Maharrey is a journalist and market analyst for Money Metals with over a decade of experience in precious metals. He holds a BS in accounting from the University of Kentucky and a BA in journalism from the University of South Florida.

Slowing Consumer Debt Likely Signals Growing Consumer Stress

Money Metals News Service
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Slowing Consumer Debt Likely Signals Growing Consumer Stress

(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals News Service) Consumer spending is “under strain” according to a recent New York Times report. That’s bad news for an economy that depends on people buying stuff.

We see this consumer strain reflected in the slowing growth of consumer debt.

Consumer spending is the engine that drives the U.S. economy, making up about two-thirds of American economic output. As the Times put it, “The enduring strength of consumer spending…has been the main reason that the United States has evaded a recession through successive drubbings over five years: roaring inflation, a rapid run-up in interest rates and a barrage of tariffs.”

The dirty little secret is that “enduring strength” was courtesy of Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and Amex. And the problem with running an economy on credit cards is a pesky thing called a limit. And it appears Americans are getting close to that line.

Showered with stimulus while having no place to go and little to do during the pandemic lockdowns, Americans saved money and paid down their credit card balances. But as post-pandemic price inflation rocked the economy, they blew through their savings and turned to credit cards to make ends meet.

By the end of 2020, revolving debt, primarily reflecting credit card balances, had dropped below $1 trillion to $979 billion. Today, outstanding revolving debt stands at $1.33 trillion.

However, debt growth has slowed to a crawl over the last year or so.

After several months of slowing credit growth, December was an anomaly, as Americans put Christmas on their credit cards. Revolving debt spiked by 7.4 percent that month. But it slowed again in January, charting a tepid 2.3 percent gain. Revolving credit slowed even further in February, growing by just 0.6 percent, according to the most recent data released by the Federal Reserve.

Looking at the broader trend, the growth of revolving credit has slowed markedly over the last year.

Meanwhile, the personal savings rate is at the lowest level since 2008.

Americans have run up a significant amount of debt in just a few years. They currently owe $5.12 trillion.

The Federal Reserve consumer debt figures include credit card debt, student loans, and auto loans, but do not factor in mortgage debt. When you include mortgages, U.S. households are buried under a record $18.8 trillion in debt.

Non-revolving debt, reflecting outstanding auto loans, student loans, and loans for other big-ticket durable goods, also spiked in December, driven by a combination of Christmas spending and new student loans. And like revolving credit, the pace of growth also crashed in January, returning to the slowing trend we saw most of last year with a modest $3.3 billion increase.

Non-revolving credit rebounded slightly in February, but still only charted a below-average 2.8 percent gain.

The Christmas surge notwithstanding, over the last several months, non-revolving credit has averaged a tepid 2 percent increase rate. Before the pandemic, revolving credit growth averaged 5 percent. It appears consumers are opting not to finance big-ticket items, as more and more of their income is necessary just to pay daily expenses.

Other Signs of Consumer Stress

High levels of debt are stressing many American households, especially those on the lower end of the income scale.

LegalShield’s Consumer Stress Legal Index (CSLI) reflects the strain. As a spokesperson put it, “Financial strain has settled into a new normal for American households.”

The CSLI rose 4.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025. It was the third consecutive quarterly increase, pushing the index up 10.4 percent for the year.

The LegalShield Bankruptcy subindex was up 19.9 percent in the second half of 2025, charting a 15.6 percent increase year over year. According to LegalShield, its bankruptcy data has historically served as a leading indicator, preceding actual non-business bankruptcy filings by two quarters with a .95 correlation since 2006.

The Foreclosure subindex was up 15.0 percent year-over-year. According to LegalShield, “The high volume of legal inquiries suggests that homeowners are seeking help to manage rising housing costs.”

Meanwhile, New York Fed data indicate that some households are struggling to keep up with payments on all this debt.

According to the New York Fed, aggregate delinquencies worsened in the fourth quarter. As of the end of 2025, 4.8 percent of all debt was in some stage of delinquency. That was up from 4.5 percent in Q3.

Transitions into early delinquency increased for mortgages and student loans. Transition into delinquency was steady for other debt types.

Transitions into serious delinquency ticked up for credit card balances, mortgages, and student loans while auto loans and HELOC decreased slightly.

Student loan debt has the highest delinquency rate, with 9.6 percent of balances 90+ days overdue. According to the New York Fed, approximately 1 million student loan borrowers who were more than 120 days past due had their loans transferred to the U.S Department of Education’s Default Resolution Group.

Credit card delinquencies are rising, even among consumers with strong credit scores. According to VantageScore, there was a 47 percent year-on-year increase in late payments by people in the prime segment in the third quarter of last year.

It’s clear that Americans are struggling under the pile of debt. Meanwhile, consumer debt is just one factor contributing to the massive Debt Black Hole dominating the global economy.

And even if consumers still have some borrowing power, an economy run on Visa and Mastercard simply isn’t sustainable. When Americans finally hit their credit limit, it will have major implications for economic growth.

Mike Maharrey is a journalist and market analyst for Money Metals with over a decade of experience in precious metals. He holds a BS in accounting from the University of Kentucky and a BA in journalism from the University of South Florida.

Drone Sightings in Restricted Airspace at Colorado Rockies Games Prompt Warning from Authorities

Headline USA Editor
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Drone Sightings in Restricted Airspace at Colorado Rockies Games Prompt Warning from Authorities

(Headline USA) A rash of drone sightings during the Colorado Rockies’ first homestand of the season against the Philadelphia Phillies sent law enforcement scrambling to track down the operators.

No one was arrested after more than a half dozen drone sightings around Coors Field April 3 to April 5, but it is possible the drone pilots could still face a fine later. Still the Federal Aviation Administration and FBI issued a warning Thursday to try to keep drones away from the stadium during the Rockies’ next home games because they are concerned about the potential threat they pose.

“The illegal drone activity did not jeopardize anyone’s safety, but there were enough violations that the teams on the ground were concerned about the number of operators that did not seem to understand the seriousness of the situation. Thus the proactive messaging,” FBI spokeswoman Vikki Migoya said.

The FAA routinely restricts the airspace around major sporting events to protect the crowds and make sure the game can be played without interruptions.

The greatest fear is that someone could use a drone in a terrorist attack that could be just as deadly as the drone attacks that have become common on the battlefields of the Ukraine and Iran wars. That is why the federal government and World Cup host cities are investing hundreds of millions in drone defenses ahead of those games.

But even without a threat like that, Migoya said the problem is that illegal drone activity distracts law enforcement.

“Every instance of illegal drone activity requires a law enforcement intervention to ensure the intent is not nefarious; the fewer violations there are, the more law enforcement can focus on what might be a true threat,” she said.

All the airspace within 3 miles of Coors Field is restricted starting one hour before a game and continuing for one hour after a baseball or football game. Pilots are responsible for checking those restrictions before they fly.

The FAA said that drone operators who violated the restrictions could face fines up to $75,000 per violation and even lose their licenses.

Drones are also required to broadcast their locations. But authorities have other methods available to track down the operators.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Netflix Cofounder and Chairman Reed Hastings to Step Down from Board of Directors

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Netflix Cofounder and Chairman Reed Hastings to Step Down from Board of Directors

(Headline USA) Netflix cofounder and chairman Reed Hastings will step down from the streaming service’s board of directors in June when his term expires, the company said on Thursday.

Hastings plans to focus on philanthropy and other pursuits. Hastings had served as Netflix’s CEO for more than 20 years until 2023 after taking over the role from his friend and fellow company co-founder Marc Randolph in the late 1990s.

“My real contribution at Netflix wasn’t a single decision; it was a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be both beloved by members and wildly successful for generations to come,” he said in a statement.

The company announced Hastings’ departure along with its quarterly results Thursday, its first earnings report since walking away from its offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming business in February.

Netflix shares fell nearly 9% to $98.32 in after-hours trading after the company’s outlook disappointed investors despite strong quarterly results.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

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