WASHINGTON – We awoke Monday morning to discover US stock futures getting sucked into a massive black hole. One of Wall Street’s early indicators of the day’s likely stock market direction was well below -500 as the 9:30 a.m. opening bell began to clang. What unfolded next was an ongoing stock market horror movie. Monday’s market version of grindhouse fare has turned into a real shock and awe splatter fest as we approach the noon hour.
Time to run out to CVS and pick up a bottle of Maalox? Maybe not quite yet, but it’s getting tempting.
Techs get slammed in Monday’s shock and awe splatter fest
Techs continue to get slammed. Frankly, they were all WAY overvalued, given the fall elections and the jam-pile of scary issues stacking up in our increasingly dysfunctional capital city.
Justice Ginsburg’s sudden death over the weekend generates more chaos for politicians and traders alike: A boost to Monday’s ongoing stock market horror movie
It’s already old news that Justice Ginsburg passed away over the weekend, apparently due to pancreatic cancer. She’d been in poor health for quite some time. But she was utterly determined to outlast what many figure will be the one and only Trump Administration, thus allowing the Democrats to make sure the Supremes continued to keep the Holy Sacrament of Abortion intact under a liberal Supreme successor.
We’re not engaging in a sniping contest here. But Justice Ginsburg’s stubborn insistence of not resigning her position exemplifies the scorched earth policy of the American left that’s only intensified this year. The Democrat left – including the largely pro-Dem Washington bureaucracy and punditocracy – will do absolutely anything and everything in their power to blunt all Republican initiatives when the GOP is in power.
Socialist tsunami incoming?
Then, the relentless tide of socialism will be unleashed in the next Democrat administration, as the unelected Democrat bureaucrats slam boatloads of new taxes and regulations through Congress in the blink of an eye. With the usual Republican RINOS already geared up, as always, to help the Democrats defeat any Supreme Court nominee President Trump attempts to appoint, expect another swift and even more horrific film sequel to what we might now have to call Kavanaugh I. That one was a real shock and awe splatter fest to remember. This one could be worse.
The President says he’ll nominate a woman to the Supremes by the weekend. But her fate will be uncertain. Expect her to immediately get the Sarah Palin treatment and an endless parade of fake, likely sexual smears. Keep your kids away from the TV, as the dreaded c-word will likely surface, and all manner of lurid, disgusting and completely untrue tales of orgies will surface. There are no rules when Democrats try to destroy people they hate. Which is anyone except them.
The Democrats: A party with absolutely no sense of shame whatever
The greatest power of the modern Democrat-Socialist Party is its apparently genetic ability never to feel any sense of shame about what they do. We’ve gotten used to it. But it remains one of the most repulsive political traits that emerged over the past 50 years. Daily, we watch this once great country disappear into the same black hole we spotted in today’s stock market horror movie.
We’re going on about this because it’s this soon-to-hit the TV screen horror fest that’s likely undermining stocks today along with a whole lotta other stuff. Why? Well, the Supremes, of course. But also the virtual certainty that the latest soon-to-be-disgusting Supreme Court battle has probably poisoned any possibility of another tranche of stimulus legislation. That could further damage many a company already badly hit by our increasingly overdone coronavirus overreaction, and this scares traders and investors to death.
Also Read: Can coronavirus economics finally purge the Marxist rot from US colleges?
At least that’s what one strategist told CNBC Monday morning. More shock and awe
“‘It seems like the biggest reason for the decline in most global stock markets is the concern that tighter virus restrictions in Europe will result from the new spike in Covid cases now that the colder weather is upon us,’ Matt Maley, chief market strategist at Miller Tabak, said in a note on Monday.
“The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite all fell for a third straight week last week. That marks the market’s longest weekly slide since 2019. Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, Google-parent Alphabet and Microsoft all posted steep weekly losses. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite is in correction territory, down more than 10% from its recent record high. It’s been a rough month so far for the market and technology shares. The S&P 500 is off 5% so far in September.”
The hits just keep on comin’ for Sleepy Joe Biden and Son
So let’s see… There’s ongoing Covid-19 economic destruction. We’re approaching a Supreme Court battle that should eliminate any possibility of further stimulus legislation. And, oh yes… The Twin Tylers of ZeroHedge tell us that
“Senate Republicans are set to release their long-awaited report on Joe and Hunter Biden’s activities in Ukraine, and is expected to conclude that Hunter Biden’s lucrative seat the board of Ukrainian energy giant Burisma impacted Obama-era Ukraine policy, which was led by Joe Biden at the time, according to The Hill.
“Joe Biden has been accused of abusing his position in a quid-pro-quo arrangement whereby he admitted he withheld $1 billion in US loan guarantees if the country’s lead prosecutor investigating Burisma was fired.
“The Bidens have denied any wrongdoing, however depositions from former Ukrainian officials who were directly involved, as well as leaked recordings between Joe Biden and former Ukrainian President Petro Proroshenko have painted a picture of textbook corruption. Notably, Ukrainian parliamentarian Andriy Derkach was sanctioned by the Treasury Department for ‘spreading disinformation’ to ‘undermine’ the former vice president when he leaked several recordings of ‘voices similar to Poroshenko and Biden’ discussing the quid-pro-quo, which Derkach says a journalist gave to him.”
Fresh smear campaign on the way for Senate GOP investigators
The Dems, of course, immediately countered with a fresh smear campaign against GOP Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Ron Johnson (R-WI). This vile habit is a reflex for these faux Marxist clowns. But what else could we expect? Wait for another imaginary Trump sex scandal to drop soon. We’re starting to feel dirty for even living here near the one-time capital of the Free World. A city where even George Soros can censor the mention of his evil name on Fox News.
But that’s another story.
This Monday shock and awe splatter fest, can’t make investors happy today. Not can they be very encouraged about the economy, or our endless coronavirus house arrest punishment. We’re seeing this for sure in our portfolios.
401(k) and IRA holders don’t like to see today’s stock market horror movie taking place. In their very own retirement portfolios, no less. But we’d advise sucking it up and taking a look tomorrow morning. Those that can might consider moving some of those funds to safer places. At least temporarily. If history is a guide, we should see some relief on the horizon as October approaches. It often works out this way with stocks in bloody September.
We can’t let our portfolios sink beneath the current wave of Washington irresponsibility
We continue to weed out our most horrible performers before they sink our 2020 portfolio performance entirely. But we continue to hold the stocks and preferred stocks that have stood up better against this September onslaught.
With all that blood in the streets, even Warren Buffett might find himself tempted to buy something. But it’s likely to get worse before it gets better. So we’ll likely avoid jumping in too hard today. Like the announcer used to say on the campy old “Batman” TV serials: “The worst is yet to come!”
So long, for now. But this whole political scene is getting double-plus ugly. It’s hard to see how much of this nonsense the US and its investors can stand. Meanwhile, Monday’s shock and awe splatter fest continues to wreak havoc on investors.
*– Headline image: Cartoon by Branco. Reproduced with permission and by arrangement with Legal Insurrection.
Altered slightly to fit CDN format.*
