JPMorgan ‘Volfefe Index’ Finds Trump Tweets Drive

Treasury Moves

By Tracy Alloway

May 4, 2020, 12:33 AM EDT

"The U.S. Treasury market is showing increased sensitivity to the tweets of President Donald Trump, with signs that algorithmic and high-speed traders are retooling models to take the social media posts into account, according to an analysis by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The bank created the “Volfefe Index,” a reference to the president’s mysterious covfefe tweet of 2017, to track the correlation between Treasury yields and Trump’s tweets. The sensitivity has since increased, with one measurement jumping by more than 60% since JPMorgan introduced the index in September, according to its analysts.

Volatility in the Treasury market linked to Trump’s tweets has surpassed that linked to traditional sources of monetary and economic policy announcements, as measured by the Baker, Bloom & Davis Policy Uncertainty Index, JPMorgan said.

“This intuitively fits the mood of the political moment, where policy decisions are frequently communicated via that channel with limited preliminary coverage or analysis in public media,” wrote interest-rate strategists led by Josh Younger."

moar:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-04/-volfefe-index-finds-trump-tweets-driving-u-s-treasury-moves

Justice Dept. files statement supporting church in legal battle

over coronavirus lockdown

AG William Barr is challenging restrictions he says unfairly

target churches.

By Jon Haworth. Bill Hutchinson and Meredith Deliso

May 3, 2020, 11:58 PM

"8:45 p.m.: DOJ filing supports church in lockdown legal battle

The Justice Department has filed a statement of interest in support of a church embroiled in a legal battle with the commonwealth of Virginia after its pastor was issued a criminal citation for hosting a service in violation of the state's stay-at-home order.

It is the second action of its kind by the Justice Department as Attorney General William Barr seeks to crack down on social distancing restrictions that he says unfairly target religious institutions.

On April 5, Lighthouse Fellowship Church, a congregation in Chincoteague Island, allegedly hosted a 16-person service in violation of the governor's executive orders banning in-person religious services of more than 10 people. The church's pastor received a criminal citation and summons, which carry penalties of up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine."

https://abcnews.go.com/US/coronavirus-live-updates-nfl-confirms-plan-start-time/story?id=70477228

Sidney Powell: Comey & Co. Committed Prosecutable

Crimes in Targeting Flynn, Trump

by ROBERT KRAYCHIK

3 May 2020

"Former FBI Director James Comey and other senior officials in the Obama administration likely committed federal crimes in their use of “lawfare” against former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn and President Donald Trump, said Sidney Powell, Flynn’s attorney, former federal prosecutor, and author of Conviction Machine: Standing Up to Federal Prosecutorial Abuse."

"Powell discussed the latest developments related to her client’s case on SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Sunday with host Joel Pollak.

Recently unsealed FBI documents revealed that the bureau “completely made up what they said [Michael Flynn] said wrong,” said Powell. “I think that’s going to be more evident with the next productions we’re expecting this week. The government has advised that we will be getting more documents, including more text messages between FBI people. What we have right now only goes through approximately January — maybe some into mid-February — but what it shows is an extremely disturbing conversation — and multiple conversations, frankly — between the agents that were in the small group at the FBI determined to set up General Flynn and make up something to prosecute him for or get him fired — their own words even, with respect to their goal.”

Pollak noted the prosecution’s obligation to hand over potentially exculpatory evidence to the defense counsel. He asked, “Why did it take them so long to produce these documents?”

Powell replied, “Because they’ve been hiding it. The prosecution is only as good as the integrity of the prosecutors.” She explained that the above-mentioned internal FBI correspondences only came to be revealed via U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen’s audit of the FBI’s investigation of Flynn."

moar:

https://www.breitbart.com/radio/2020/05/03/sidney-powell-obama-officials-targeted-flynn/