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The politicization of Central Banking: Letter from the editor

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

Dear readers,Welcome to POLITICO’s special report on central banking — a little taste of the things to come as we gear up to the launch of our dedicated coverage of European Central Banking on May 30 — the eve of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the European Central Bank itself! Suffice to say, there’s never been a more important time for the fourth estate to scrutinize the movers and shakers in the world of central banking. The extraordinaryamount of liquidity provided by last-resort lenders in the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2008 is finally reaping what many feared it could sow: inflation, first rampant, then chronic.That leads to banking fragility and a fragmenting global economy rocked by protectionist forces. From labor, resource and innovation challenges to outright confrontation risk between hostile states, monetary policy was not...

QE and the central bank hangover that just won’t end

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

For 30 years after the end of the Cold War, it seemed central banks could virtually do no wrong. Well, they have now. With inflation at its highest in 40 years, the aura of infallibility enjoyed by the likes of Alan Greenspan and Hans Tietmeyer, former heads of the Fed and the Bundesbank, is gone forever.  Quantitative easing, and its increasingly obvious shortcomings, may not have destroyed the argument for central bank independence outright but it has badly shaken the credibility of institutions that a poorer and more precarious public desperately need to be credible and a bulwark against the crazier ideas of politicians. What if the gold bugs that serious economists love to hate were right all along? What if the sophisticated sounding operations central banks wheeled out in the wake of the global financial crisis and the pandemic to keep the system ticking over were really just a cover for something far more basic: “Money printer goes brrr.” It might be g...

Biden to meet with congressional leadership again on Friday as threat of national debt default looms

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

(CNN) — President Joe Biden and top congressional leadership will meet again on Friday after they emerged from their hour-long meeting in the Oval Office on Tuesday with little to show that they’re moving toward a deal to raise the debt ceiling and avoid a default that would have catastrophic economic consequences.House Republicans want to attach spending reductions to a debt ceiling increase and have passed a debt limit plan that does just that. But Biden and congressional Democrats have insisted on passing a clean increase on the debt limit before addressing a framework for spending.After the meeting, Biden told reporters that White House and congressional leadership staff will meet daily before Friday’s top-level meeting.The president said he “made it clear” during the meeting “that default is not an option,” adding that he’s “absolutely certain” the US can avoid defaulting on its obligations because an “...

East Hartford, CT Police release bodycam video of officers rescuing people from apartment complex filled with smoke

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

Police in East Hartford, Connecticut released bodycam video of officers rescuing people from an apartment complex filled with smoke on Monday.Police saw the smoke when they were at the building for a welfare check. Everyone made it out safely, including one resident in a wheelchair. Two officers were sent to the hospital, but have since been released. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Buddy Holly the Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen wins best in show at Westminster Dog Show

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

(CNN) — Buddy Holly the Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen has been named best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. He’s the first of his breed to win the top prize at the prestigious dog show.The PBGV, who earlier in the day won the hound group, charmed judges with his confidence and calm demeanor.Westminster is one of the oldest sporting events in the US, second only to the Kentucky Derby. Since 1877 — before the American Kennel Club even existed — canines from the frequently winning wire fox terrier and prissy poodle to the bug-eyed boxer and devoted Doberman have vied for best in show.More than 3,000 dogs from 210 breeds were expected to compete this week, per the Westminster Kennel Club. The canine competitors first face off against other dogs of their breed, during which they’re judged against American Kennel Club breed standards, and the best of the breed goes on to group judging. Dogs are divided into seven gr...

Ravens returning to London in 2023 season with game against Titans

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

The last time the Ravens played in London was in 2017 in what was a blowout loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium. Afterward, coach John Harbaugh said he had no interest in going back anytime soon.Six years later, the Ravens and Harbaugh are headed back overseas.The NFL unveiled its slate of five international games on Wednesday morning. The Ravens will play the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 15 in a Week 6 matchup at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The game will kick off at 9:30 a.m. and be broadcast on the NFL Network.“We look forward to taking on the Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,” Ravens president Sashi Brown said in a statement. “It’s exciting to witness and play a role in the NFL’s rise in popularity across the globe. This is an incredible opportunity to play in front of and connect with Ravens fans in the United Kingdom and throughout Europe.”The team’s full 2023 schedule, which also includes three trips to the West Coast to ...

NFL schedule news: Chicago Bears won’t play in Germany this year

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

The Chicago Bears will not play in Germany during the 2023 season.The NFL announced its five-game international slate Wednesday morning, and the Bears were not part of the lineup.Rumors and news reports this spring suggested the NFL was considering sending the Bears to play the Kansas City Chiefs in Frankfurt, Germany. But NBC Sports’ Peter King reported this week the Chiefs requested the Bears not be their international opponent.The Chiefs will play the Miami Dolphins in Frankfurt on Nov. 5.And later this year, the Chiefs will host the Bears at Arrowhead Stadium. The date and time of that matchup will be announced Thursday when the full NFL schedule is released.The Bears’ opponents for the 2023 season already are set. At home, they will play the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders and Arizona Cardinals. The Bears will go on the road to play the Lions, Packers, Vikings, Chiefs, New Orl...

Chicago Bears Q&A: Is a reunion with Leonard Floyd a possibility? How much improvement can be expected from Justin Fields?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

The NFL calendar never rests. With the draft and rookie minicamp in the rearview mirror for the Chicago Bears, this week brings the 2023 schedule release, followed by the start of organized team activities on May 22.The Bears still have holes to fill on their roster, too, and that’s where Brad Biggs’ weekly Bears mailbag begins.With a wide-open NFC North, why aren’t the Bears signing some of these defensive ends in free agency to prove-it deals? Plenty of cap space to make this roster better still. — @jameslawrencef2A couple of thoughts here. The Bears certainly have enough cap space to accomplish just about anything they want at this point in the offseason. Overthecap.com estimates they have nearly $31 million available after signing their entire draft class. General manager Ryan Poles has talked about being calculated and remaining flexible, and while you’re correct the division appears wide open, this doesn’t strike me as the time or place to f...

Mass event will let hackers test limits of AI technology

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

No sooner did ChatGPT get unleashed than hackers started “jailbreaking” the artificial intelligence chatbot — trying to override its safeguards so it could blurt out something unhinged or obscene. But now its maker, OpenAI, and other major AI providers such as Google and Microsoft, are coordinating with the Biden administration to let thousands of hackers take a shot at testing the limits of their technology.Some of the things they’ll be looking to find: How can chatbots be manipulated to cause harm? Will they share the private information we confide in them to other users? And why do they assume a doctor is a man and a nurse is a woman?“This is why we need thousands of people,” said Rumman Chowdhury, lead coordinator of the mass hacking event planned for this summer’s DEF CON hacker convention in Las Vegas that’s expected to draw several thousand people. “We need a lot of people with a wide range of lived experiences, subject matter expertise and backg...

Japan, South Korea partnership funds to go to chips, energy

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:38:59 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Top business leaders from Japan and South Korea announced Wednesday they will use a fund meant to underscore the two countries’ burgeoning ties to strengthen their cooperation in energy, industry and other sectors. Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, and its South Korean counterpart, the Federation of Korean Industry, announced a fund of 200 million yen ($1.5 million) in March. The money comes from an initial installment of 100 million yen ($750,000) from each side to complement efforts initiated by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s government to resolve a historical dispute over Japanese brutality during its 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. The two groups selected specific areas of joint projects for the Future Partnership funds, focusing on youth exchanges and industrial cooperation, said Kendanren chair Masakazu Tokura and Federation of Korean Industry acting chair Kim Byong-joon Wednesday at a joint news conference in Toky...