The bond market shadow over his re-election
Sam Fleming and Courtney Weaver in Washington
YESTERDAY
... it could turn out that the event this week with a more significant impact on the president’s prospects was not the Mueller inquiry but the ominous signals from the bond market.
If some bond investors are to be believed, the auguries for the US and global economy are looking increasingly unfavourable. This week the yield on 10-year US treasuries fell to its lowest since late 2017, as investors bet the Federal Reserve will be forced to cut rates to underpin the US economy. The global bond rally came as a range of central banks adopt a dovish stance in the face of slowing growth in Europe and parts of Asia — as well as the US itself.
The president is anchoring his re-election prospects firmly to the stock market and the economic expansion, which is on track to break records for longevity this summer. Kevin Hassett, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, in February predicted growth in gross domestic product of 3 per cent this year.
That rosy prediction is, however, out of kilter with many other forecasters. The Fed is instead expecting growth of 2.1 per cent in 2019, weaker than the 2.9 per cent figure recorded for 2018. Recent US data point to a further slowdown: the Atlanta Fed is projecting annualised growth of 1.5 per cent for the first quarter. If the bond market is right, the economic prognosis could be on the cusp of getting grimmer at a dangerous time for a president preparing to campaign for re-election ...
https://www.ft.com/content/bc19c338-520a-11e9-b401-8d9ef1626294
= new reply since forum marked as read
to the wails and warning of conservatives-yeah, we still have Repubs and conserves in WA state. 
What happened? Well lot's of folks drove into town to apply for work. People who work in town tend to buy lunch, shop before they hit the road home, go to happy hour, etc. Traffic sucks, of course, and all the new construction doesn't help, but the economy somehow didn't crash. 
Funny, but in a semi-depressed economy, raising wages attracts workers. Who'd a thunk?
BTW, the state already has one of the highest MW in the country and we're not doing so bad yet. What hurts WA the most is the Trump tariffs and their net drag on imports. Seattle is a major West Coast shipping hub. 
