Politics

Consumer Credit Jumps More Than Expected In January, Back Over $5 Trillion

We have repeatedly warned that with their savings – and especially “emergency covid savings” – gone or nearly gone, Biden admin’s residual savings data manipulation notwithstanding…

… US consumers had no choice but to max out their credit cards in order to “extend and pretend” their moment of purchasing greatness, or as we called it three months ago, their last hurrah (see In “Last Hurrah”, Credit Card Debt Explodes Higher Despite Record High APRs As Savings Rate Craters), a hurrah that would last very briefly as it was only a matter of months if not weeks before said cards were denied.

One month later, that’s exactly what happened, when to our surprise, revolving credit cratered at the fastest pace since the covid crash, contracting a whopping $13 billion, an event which for a country that lives on debt – literally – is unheard of outside of a recession.

Commenting on the plunge, we said that “we don’t know what sparked this sudden reversal in the favorite American pastime – i.e., to buy stuff one can’t afford and hope to pay it back some time in the future for a modest 29.95% APR – but we know what didn’t: falling rates… because they didn’t.” We then proceeded to show that the average interest rate on credit card balances were at the second highest on record ever though the Fed had already cut rates by 100 bps.

And while it would have been normal, if not expected, for credit card balances to continue declining with savings rates near record lows and with credit card rates at record highs, trust the US economy to do precisely the opposite of what is logical and according to the latest just released consumer credit data, US consumers exited 2024 with a bang after Consumer credit soared by a record $40.8 billion in December, a complete reversal of the November drop, and a month that sticks out like a sore thumb in the history of consumer credit as shown below.

And while one would expect that the record December surge in credit would quickly reverse at the start of the year amid the ongoing drawdown in savings – and the lack of holiday spending – the US consumer has a habit of doing just the opposite of what is expected, and according to the latest NY Fed data, in January consumer credit surged again, rising by $18.084 billion (from a downward revised $37.1 billion vs $40.8 billion previously), and the third highest monthly increase since June 2023…

… which sent the total back over $5 trillion.

Taking a closer look at the number, revolving credit – i.e., credit card debt – increased by $9 billion or roughly half of the near record $21 billion surge in December.

Non-revolving debt (i.e. student and auto loans) rose almost by the same amount, up $9.1 billion and also down from the $16.2 billion the previous month.

Looking at the composition of nonrevolving credit, the Fed reported that in…

‘Civil War Is Now Official’ – Syria Erupts Into Worst Bloodshed Since Assad’s Fall

Any lingering delusions that Syria could emerge from its Western-imposed, regime-change victimhood and enter an era of peace and stability were obliterated on Thursday, as 48 people were killed in battles between supporters of the deposed Bashar al Assad government and the country’s new radical Islamist regime. As all-out civil war looms, increasingly disturbing sectarian violence has an important minority sect asking for Russian intervention to safeguard their lives. 

Insane videos coming out of Syria after the announcement of an uprising against Jolani’s regime pic.twitter.com/sizIupxiSf
— COMBATE | (@upholdreality) March 7, 2025
In the town of Jableh, which lies in Syria’s coastal Latakia province, pro-Assad forces ambushed and killed 16 members of the regime’s security forces. In the ensuing retaliation, 28 pro-Assad militants and four civilians died, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Latakia hold the highest concentration of Alawites — the minority sect of Islam that’s principally found in Syria, with the Assad family themselves being the most prominent members. Alawites comprise about 10% of the country’s population. Notably, the province is also home to the Russian-operated Khmeimim air base. The ambush targeted regime forces who’d carried an operation in rural Latakia aimed at arresting a former Assad government official.
Thursday’s battles took place in Syria’s coastal Latakia province, which holds the greatest concentration of Alawites 

The ambush was well-executed, according to a security official in Latakia. “[In] a well-planned and premeditated attack, several groups of Assad militia remnants attacked our positions and checkpoints, targeting many of our patrols in the Jableh area,” Mustafa Kneifati told German news outlet DW. Those pro-Assad forces are said to have included soldiers loyal to former Syrian army General Suheil al-Hassan, though it’s unknown whether Hassan himself participated in the battles. The fighting spanned over a period of hours, with regime security forces responding to the ambush with helicopter gunships and artillery.

Alawites in Jableh countryside defend themselves after Al-Jolani gangs attack their villages #BREAKING #BreakingNews #Syria #عاجل #سوريا #جبلة #العلويين pic.twitter.com/6mBOUOEG2f
— Al-Julani gangs (@AlJulanigangs) March 6, 2025
Thursday’s fighting may be just a precursor to something far more intense: There are reports of large convoys of regime forces moving toward the Syrian coastal region. 

The combat comes alongside rising sectarian violence, with Sunni militants victimizing Alawites who had long enjoyed peace as the Alawite Assad family ruled the country from 1971 until December 2024, when President Bashar al Assad fled as Sunni extremists took over. While the new government repeatedly warns against sectarian reprisals against Alawites, citizens say security forces themselves have engaged in executions, kidnappings and home seizures. 

Videos are circulating on social media which purportedly show the horrors being visited on the Alawites. From a grisly video that’s said to show dozens of massacred Alawites in a heap, to another that’s described as capturing Sunnis shooting at the residences of Alawites in Homs province: 

So America, Turkey and Israel helped Osama bin Laden’s guys take over Syria – what’s the worst that could happen, right?
Okay, I know you’re remembering that time Obama…

Could A Bombshell Discovery Render All of Biden’s Presidential Actions ‘Null and Void’?

Authored by Matt Margolis via PJ Media,

The Biden presidency might have been the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the American people. A shocking investigation by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project has revealed that virtually every document bearing Joe Biden’s signature during his presidency was signed by an autopen — except for one.
Mandel Ngan/Pool via AP

What makes this revelation particularly damning is that the only document confirmed to have Biden’s actual signature was his letter announcing his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race. Let that sink in for a moment.

Remember when House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) revealed his discussion with Biden when Biden couldn’t recall signing the executive order halting LNG exports? Now we know why — he probably didn’t. The real question is: Who did? Who was running the country while Biden was not all there?

WHOEVER CONTROLLED THE AUTOPEN CONTROLLED THE PRESIDENCY
We gathered every document we could find with Biden’s signature over the course of his presidency.
All used the same autopen signature except for the the announcement that the former President was dropping out of the… https://t.co/CC3oJUkNr4 pic.twitter.com/mtNrZsALDu
— Oversight Project (@OversightPR) March 6, 2025
The use of the presidential autopen dates back to the 1950s, and there’s been much debate about its legality. In 2013, Barack Obama became the first president to sign a bill into law using an autopen. He was vacationing in Hawaii at the time. His office relied on a 30-page memo from President George W. Bush’s legal team asserting that the president’s presence was not required as long as said president had authorized the signature. 

What’s not clear, in the case of Biden, is who was running the autopen and whether Biden was aware it was happening. 

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is demanding that the Department of Justice investigate whether Biden’s obvious cognitive decline allowed unelected bureaucrats to essentially run the government without presidential oversight. If this is true — and let’s be honest, all signs point to yes — every executive order, every pardon, and every official action taken under Biden’s name could be constitutionally void.

Bailey’s letter to Michael E. Horowitz, the inspector general of the Department of Justice, spells it out perfectly.

I write to request that you conduct a full investigation into President Biden’s mental capacity in his final days in office. By now, Biden’s mental decline is famous. Under the 25th Amendment, his inability to make decisions should have meant a succession of power. Instead, it appears staffers and officers in the Biden administration may have exploited Biden’s incapacity so they could issue orders without an accountable President of sound mind approving them. That would explain why the Biden administration’s orders were aggressively much farther to the left than any previous President. If in fact Biden’s staffers were exploiting his mental decline, those orders are null and void.

The evidence is overwhelming. We know that Biden’s handlers desperately tried to prevent anyone from meeting with him one-on-one. Even Democratic insiders admit the truth. DNC…

Watch: SpaceX Gears Up For Another Starship Launch Attempt

SpaceX canceled Monday’s Starship/Super Heavy test flight (Flight Test 8) after failing to resolve technical issues with the mega-rocket in the final minute of the countdown. Now, Elon Musk’s rocket company has announced that Flight Test 8 has been rescheduled for Thursday evening. 

“Counting down to Starship’s eighth flight test. Weather looks favorable at the pad, and the 60-minute launch window opens at 5:30 p.m. CT,” SpaceX wrote on X late in the afternoon. 

Counting down to Starship’s eighth flight test. Weather looks favorable at the pad and the 60-minute launch window opens at 5:30 p.m. CT → https://t.co/alyJTRtOIP pic.twitter.com/EWUCtBhojH
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) March 6, 2025
 

*  *  * 

Just over six weeks after SpaceX’s Starship-Super Heavy Flight Test 7 lifted off from Boca Chica, Texas, ending in a dramatic spectacle—the massive booster successfully caught by ‘Chopsticks’ while Starship itself was lost in a fireball over the Atlantic Ocean—Elon Musk’s space company is set to conduct Flight Test 8 of the world’s largest rocket this evening. 

Starship’s launch window opens at 1730 local time at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in south Texas. The primary goal of this launch is to test Starship’s ability to deploy Starlink “simulator” satellites into low Earth orbit. 

Summary of Flight Test 8:

Launch Details:

Scheduled for Monday, March 3

60-minute launch window opens at 5:30 p.m. CT

Live webcast starts 40 minutes before liftoff on SpaceX’s X account and X TV app

Post-Flight 7 Investigation & Upgrades [upgrades made after Flight Test 7’s firey demise of Starship]: 

Hardware and operational changes made to increase upper stage reliability

Forward flap upgrades reduce reentry heating exposure

Propulsion system enhancements include a 25% increase in propellant volume

Avionics system redesigned for added capability and redundancy

Flight Objectives:

Follows same suborbital trajectory as previous missions

First payload deployment test (four Starlink simulators)

Multiple reentry experiments to improve upper stage return and catch capabilities

Super Heavy booster launch, return, and catch attempt

Key Experiments & Tests:

Starlink simulators to be deployed, but expected to burn up on reentry

Single Raptor engine relight in space test planned

Reentry stress tests: Tiles removed to test vulnerable areas, Metallic tile alternatives tested, including active cooling, and Structural stress tests on rear flaps at max reentry pressure.

Catch fitting thermal performance test

Radar sensor accuracy tests on chopsticks for improved vehicle retrieval

Super Heavy Booster Enhancements:

Upgraded avionics, including a more powerful flight computer

Improved power/network distribution and smart batteries

Booster Return & Catch Criteria:

Safety measures in place: Healthy systems required on booster tower and Final manual command needed from Flight Director before boostback burn. 

If conditions are not met, booster will soft splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico

The crypto-based online betting marketplace Polymarket has nine bets on today’s test flight, including the following: Will “Chopsticks catch Super Heavy?” Those odds stand at 78%. 

Watch Test Flight 8 Here:  

. . . 

Tyler Durden
Thu, 03/06/2025 – 18:00…