Elizabeth Warren Grills Jay Powell on Interest Rates; Scott Gottlieb on Vaccine Panel Changes

Senator Warren on Interest Rates and Economic Policy

• 💡 Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized Fed Chair Jay Powell for not lowering interest rates, attributing the delay to economic chaos caused by Donald Trump's tariff announcements.
• 🎯 Warren stated that the Fed's inflation forecast increased from 2.5% to 3.1%, unemployment from 4.3% to 4.5%, and GDP growth from 2.1% to 1.4%, with Powell citing Trump's tariffs as the reason for the shift.
• 💰 She argued that high interest rates increase costs for families on mortgages, car loans, and credit cards, and that Trump's actions are making it harder to lower them.
• 📈 Warren also advocated for increased government spending on areas like child care to boost economic growth and productivity, contrasting this with Republican proposals for tax cuts for the wealthy and cuts to healthcare.
• ⚖️ She emphasized the need for honest markets with rules and strong antitrust enforcement, criticizing proposals that benefit billionaires at the expense of working families.

Dr. Gottlieb on Changes to Vaccine Advisory Panel

• ⚠️ Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb expressed concern over the new vaccine advisory panel appointed by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., noting that most members have openly expressed anti-vaccine views or skepticism towards COVID-19 vaccines.
• 🔬 Gottlieb highlighted that the panel's recommendations influence the US immunization schedule, insurance coverage, and vaccine procurement.
• 💉 The panel is reviewing the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella) and thimerosal, a preservative, with potential moves to withdraw them from the market, despite their established safety and efficacy.
• 🔬 A larger concern is the potential move against alum, an adjuvant used in many pediatric vaccines, which Gottlieb believes could lead to reformulation challenges and potential market withdrawal of essential vaccines.
• 📉 Gottlieb warned that these changes, fueled by anti-vaccine sentiment, could lead to declining vaccination rates, potential outbreaks (especially of measles), and a dismantling of the US vaccine enterprise.

Market and Legal Updates

• 📈 The Nasdaq 100 reached another record high, with companies like Nvidia, Cisco, IBM, Netflix, Broadcom, Microsoft, Oracle, and Palantir closing at record highs.
• ⚖️ A mediator has proposed that President Trump and Paramount Global settle a lawsuit over a 60 Minutes interview edit for $20 million, with Trump's team seeking $25 million and Paramount offering $15 million.
• 🏦 The Federal Housing Finance Agency is directing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to formally consider cryptocurrency assets in single-family mortgage loan risk assessments, a landmark step for digital assets in housing finance.