ratings

The fox is guarding the henhouse at America's colleges and universities as accreditors slap a seal of approval on schools with subpar graduation rates, clearing the way for government aid to flow where it shoudln't and further imperiling the US taxpayer in the process.

Anyone that believes that this is “sustainable” in any way, shape or form is crazy. We have accumulated the greatest mountain of debt that the world has ever seen, and yet despite all of the warnings we just continue to race forward into financial oblivion. There is no possible way that this is going to end well.

Looking back at the Lehman Brothers collapse of 2008, it’s amazing how quickly it all happened. In hindsight there were a few early-warning signs, but the true scale of the disaster publicly unfolded only in the final moments before it became apparent that Lehman was doomed. Could this happen to Deutsche Bank?

Is Deustche Bank the next Lehman is likely the wrong question to be asking. Is Lehman the template for European banking may be more to the point. Take it from the guy that called the Lehman debacle 5 months before the fact.

As unemployment rises to near 27%, a new poll shows more than half of Greeks support giving in to creditors "if they insist on it." Meanwhile, anti-austerity protests are back, with communist-affiliated union members demonstrating at the finance ministry in Athens. 

• Pressing for Greek concessions, Merkel and Hollande keep Tsipras waiting (Reuters)
• Treasuries Extend Slump as Pimco Dumps Two-Thirds of Holdings (BBG)
• U.S. prepares plans for more troops, new base in Iraq: officials (Reuters)
• Texas policeman resigns after video shows him toppling teen (Reuters)
• Kuroda Says Hard to See Yen Dropping More, Spurring Surge (BBG)
• Tech Startups Woo Investors With Unconventional Financial Terms — but Do Numbers Add Up? (WSJ)
• Putin is a 'bully', U.S. needs to respond resolutely: Jeb Bush (Reuters)

A national poll from CNN/ORC Tuesday morning found Clinton with her highest unfavorable rating in 14 years: Just 46% of those surveyed viewed her favorably, compared with 50% who viewed her unfavorably. (The last time her negatives were this high was in March 2001, when 53% of those surveyed viewed her unfavorably.) On whether Clinton “is honest and trustworthy,” CNN found just 42% of people say she is; 57% say she is not.

Hint...

Last month, Chicago saw its debt cut to junk at Moody's, triggering billions in accelerated payment rights and jeopardizing efforts to improve the city's finances in the face of a budget gap that's set to triple over three years. Citi has more on the dreaded "downgrade feedback loop."

Presidents have always exercised emergency powers, but now thanks to dozens of new laws, regulations, court decisions and executive orders, Barack Obama is the most powerful president in all of U.S. history. Of course the U.S. Constitution does not actually give the president any special powers during a time of national emergency, but over time presidents have decided that they should be able to exercise such powers and the courts have generally agreed with them.

In spite of all of the 'apparently good' outcomes of Cuba’s experimentation with equal sharing of wealth; in recent years Cuba seems to be moving away from the planned economy model. Instead, it is moving to more of a “mixed economy,” with more entrepreneurship encouraged. While we don’t have explanations for all of the things that are going on, here are a few insights on what is happening...

"More than 35 million young people, aged 16-29 are neither employed nor in education or training," the OECD reports. Meanwhile, two-thirds of college graduates will depend on their parents for up to five years after graduation in the US.

On Tuesday, Deutsche Bank agreed to a $55 million SEC settlement tied to allegations it hid billions in losses by mismarking its crisis-era derivatives book. The bank has always contended its valuation methodologies were sound. Here is the real story...

In downgrading the city, Moody’s said it expected “Chicago's credit challenges will continue, both in the near term and in the long term [as] unfunded liabilities of the Municipal, Laborer, Police, and Fire pension plans grow and exert increasing pressure on the city's operating budget.” That looks to have been an accurate assessment, because as Bloomberg reports, Chicago’s budget gap is set to triple by 2017.

"The U.S. Department of Education wants to remind you that you may qualify for a repayment plan that calculates your monthly payment based on your income. You will likely qualify for an income-driven repayment plan if your total federal student loan debt exceeds your annual income. Under an income-driven plan, your initial payment could be as low as $0 per month." -- US Department of Education