Morning Brief

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It's a down day for stocks across the globe amid fears of an escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and China. "The increase in the possible tariff rate (to 25% on $200B of Chinese goods) is intended to provide the administration with additional options to encourage China to change its harmful policies and behavior and adopt policies that will lead to fairer markets and prosperity for all of our citizens," U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement.

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The Hidden Agenda Behind the Global Warming Hysteria

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Climate change activists are not just interested in reducing carbon emissions in order to "save the planet." Their underlying desire is to overturn capitalism and replace it with socialist governments worldwide. 

Our story starts with the IPCC, or the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a U.N. organization. "And any settlement of the Global Warming issue by the UN would entail massive transfers of wealth from the citizens of wealthy countries to the politicians and bureaucrats of the poorer countries." (1)

In 1992, at the first U.N. Earth Climate Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Program Executive Director Maurice Strong stated, very candidly: 

"We may get to the point where the only way of saving the world will be for industrialized civilization to collapse. Isn’t it our responsibility to bring this about?" (2)

Former U.S. Senator Timothy Wirth (D-CO), then representing the Clinton Administration as U.S. undersecretary of state for global issues, join…
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IRA Taxes: Rules to Know and Understand

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Article from schwab.com


Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) can be a great way to save for retirement because of the tax benefits they can provide. If you’re eligible, you can choose a traditional IRA for an up-front tax deduction and defer paying taxes until you take withdrawals in the future. Or, if eligible, you might opt for a Roth IRA and contribute after-tax money in exchange for tax-free distributions down the road.


So, what's the catch? There are a few. If you run afoul of some of the IRS rules surrounding these accounts, the penalties can be quite stiff—all the way up to a disqualification and taxation of your entire account.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse, and with few exceptions, the IRS isn’t very forgiving of mistakes. Knowing the rules can help you navigate the many potential IRA tax traps you might encounter on your way to retirement.

Keep in mind that when we discuss taxes and penalties, we’re referring to those at the federal level. In most states, you will also…
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Thoughts on the election results

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As expected, the Democrats took control of the House, the Republicans kept the Senate. This is what the market expected, so there is no longer any uncertainty. Markets hate uncertainty. 

While I can't predict the future, I think we can expect markets to return some gains over the next several months. Today may be the confirmation that the correction has changed to another uptrend. I added to my equity holdings Monday in anticipation of this event. 

But having said that, make sure you have a plan to exit (sell) if the market should decide otherwise. 

Really, I don't think anything is going to happen as far as Washington D.C. is concerned. With a split government, there'll be a lot of talk, but little action. No changes in taxes, immigration, health care, etc. Just the status quo. Which also may be good for the markets. With Democrats in control of House committees, expect more investigations, grandstanding and plenty of theatrics. But this will go nowhere, and just waste time …
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