This and That---November 11, 2025 Edition

A few random observations, charts and factoids to provide some context on what is going on in the world.

Nothing For Something

Why did the Democrats shut down the federal government for the last 41+ days?

I am still trying to figure that out.

We have all heard the term about getting "Something for Nothing".

It seems that the result of the federal shutdown for Democrats was getting "Nothing for Something".

The Republicans in the House passed a clean continuing resolution that would have totally funded the federal government at current levels based on existing law.

That included funding for SNAP benefits, the U.S.military and all the rest.

It did not include the additional Obamacare subsidies passed as a temporary measure during Covid that Biden and the Democrats determined would end at the end of this year.

The Republicans did not establish the December 31, 2025 expiration date---the Democrats did.

Due to the filibuster rules the Senate was unable to get enough Democrats to support the funding to keep the government open. 

Initially, the Democrats demanded $1.5 trillion in funding to restore healthcare funding for illegals and other items to attempt to get Trump and the GOP to cave. When that tactic failed their demand was to extend the Obamacare subsidies for which they set the expiration date originally.

More than 40 days later there are many federal employees who have been laid off, many more have not been paid including air traffic controllers and TSA personnel and SNAP benefits have been curtailed.

Eight Democrats crossed over on Monday night and voted to allow government funding to be restored.

What did Democrats get in return?

Nothing. 

Everything they got could have been had without the government shutdown.

Federal employees back to work.

SNAP benefits restored to the end of this fiscal year.

A vote on the Obamacare subsidies in December.

All of it was for nothing.

It was all theater and drama meant only to try to harm Trump and to boost Democrat turnout in last week's election.

The Dems did get higher turnout but for the most part they won where they were going to win anyway in New York City and blue states like New Jersey and Virginia.

The far left in the party is very unhappy with the capitulation and wants to primary the Democrats who broke ranks.

Credit: https://x.com/mitchellvii/status/1987829089726599391

However, do you think it was coincidence that of the seven Democrats and one independent who voted yes on the CR, two, Senators Dick Durbin of Illinois and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, are retiring. The remaining six are not up for reelection until at least 2028.

It is yet another reminder that most of the people in D.C. are not there to serve the people's interests.

Their first priority is to serve themselves.

Pelosi To Retire---Is Investment Fund Management Next?

The official announcement was made last week that Nancy Pelosi is not going to run for re-election for her House seat representing San Francisco.

Perhaps she believes that she and her husband can make a go of it in the investment management business.

After all, they took a atock portfolio that was valued at between $610,000-$785,000 in 1987 when she first took office and turned it into a $134 million portfolio today according to The New York Post.

Source: https://nypost.com/2025/11/08/us-news/nancy-pelosi-made-130-million-in-stock-profits-in-her-37-years-in-congress-a-profit-of-16930/

In the last 10 years, Pelosi has seen a 25.5% annualized return on her stock portfolio.

For context, here are the stock returns of the very best stock fund managers in the United States over that same period.

For additional perspective, the Pelosi returns are double those of Warren Buffett's (considered the best investor of the last 50 years) stock returns over the last decade.

It will be interesting to see if Nancy and her husband can sustain that same performance after leaving office.

My suggestion is that if she goes into the investment management business that she makes sure to include this disclaimer in BOLD lettering.

"Past performance does not guarantee future results".

Sports Gambling

Sports gambling has been in the news recently as both current and formers NBA players  and two major league baseball players have been indicted on federal criminal charges involved with sports betting and money laundering.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/current-and-former-national-basketball-association-players-and-four-other-individuals

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/two-current-major-league-baseball-players-charged-sports-betting-and-money-laundering

It should come as no surprise considering the growth in legalized sports gambling over the last several years.

From $7 billion in 2018 to $149 billion in 2024. It is surely higher in 2025.

What I found interesting is how sports betting compares to other forms of entertainment.

More money is wagered on sports than is spent on movies, books, concerts and sports tickets COMBINED!

Source: American Gaming Association data via Grok

Of course, some of those sports bets pay off but those who gamble on sports still lose $14 billion per year

to the major sports books. The House edge of 4%-10% insures that most who wager will lose over time.

That $14 billion is still close to the $15 billion that is spent annually on sports tickets.

In my view, all of this proves why sports gambling was considered to be a bad idea and was illegal for most of the last 100+ years.

However, when the sports books are making almost as much money from those gambling as the team owners are from selling tickets, it is not likely to be changing any time soon.

In fact, it will get much worse and we will undoubtedly be seeing more headlines like those above.

Student Loan Debt

Since the forbearance period on student loan debt was terminated earlier this year, after being place for almost four years, the number of loans that are seriously delinquent has exploded.

Over 14% of student loans have been delinquent for at least 90 days.

 

That is more than double the number that are delinquent on their credit card debt and almost five times those far behind on their car loans.

 

For those age 50+ the serious delinquency rate is 20%.

It is 15% for those in their 40's.

This all reveals the mathematical result when payments are on loans are ignored and compounding interest does the rest.

Of course, Joe Biden and the Democrats made matters worse by telling these student loan borrowers that they were going to cancel their debt.

The four years of Covid forbearance was the perfect time for these borrowers to pay off their loans.

Everyone received Covid assistance and interest was not accruing. Payments were not required but there was no law that said payments could not be made.

Of course, very few did that.

Why pay on a loan you are told that is going to be canceled?

Now that payments are required again most found other uses for the money that they should have been using to pay their student loan debt.

The pain of this student loan debt will only compound further with credit rating reductions and possible garnishment of wages and Social Security to pay the debt.

Bankruptcy is not an option as federal law prohibits it being used to discharge student loan debt.

Expect much more pain ahead for those with student loan debt.

Equal Justice?

Is there anything approaching equal justice in Washington, D.C.?

Remember all those who were charged and convicted in Washington, D.C, surrounding the events of January 6th, 2021. Some were grandmothers who merely walked through the U.S. Capitol.

This included a number of individuals who were waved in by the Capitol Police through open doors.

They were branded as insurrectionists.

Fast forward to the case of the man who hit a federal agent in Washington, D.C. with a Subway sandwich after he had already berated the officer this summer for being in the city as part of President Trump's crackdown of crime in the nation's capitol. The man was actually an employee in the Justice Department.

Source: https://abc7.com/post/doj-employee-throws-sandwich-federal-agent-pam-bondi-fires-alleged-washington-dc-subway-thrower-sean-charles-dunn/17546943/

Around 11 p.m. on Sunday, Dunn approached a group of CBP agents, pointed a finger in an agent's face and swore at him, calling him a "fascist," a police affidavit says. An observer's video captured Dunn throwing a sandwich at the agent's chest, the affidavit says.

Why are you here? I don't want you in my city!" Dunn shouted, according to police.

Dunn tried to run away but was apprehended, police said.

A Washington, D.C. grand jury refused to indict the man on felony assault charges as was requested by the U.S. Attorney for D.C.

He was then tried on a misdemeanor assault charge and was found not guilty by a D.C. jury last week.

Source: https://abcnews.go.com/US/dc-sandwich-throwers-misdemeanor-assault-case-nears-closing/story?id=127227869

His defense attorney argued that throwing the sandwich was protected free speech and compared it to a child throwing a stuffed animal during a temper tantrum.

The D.C. jury selected from a pool of registered voters who only gave Donald Trump 6% of the vote in the 2024 election.

Is that a fair and impartial jury?

Let's compare.

Someone walking through the U.S. Capitol after being waved in by the Capitol Hill Police is guilty of insurrection.

However, physically assaulting a federal officer is protected free speech.

This is equal justice?

 These are dark times for the rule of law in our country if this is considered equal justice.