Tag: payments

Commentary: Trump’s Trials Don’t Hurt Him in the Polls

RealClearWire
Donald Trump at Rally

Donald Trump is out on bail in four jurisdictions facing dozens of felony charges and it does not seem to affect his ratings in the surveys. Many people wonder why.

First of all, let me assure you that Donald Trump is not made of Teflon. Rather, he is probably the most polarizing politician on earth right now. While he does have a very enthusiastic base, a majority of Americans in almost every poll have an unfavorable opinion about him. So it’s not that the various attacks, scandals, allegations, and bad press he has faced ever since he has entered politics have not affected his ratings. They have. Remember that even on the day when he won the presidential election back in 2016, he was the most negatively seen winning presidential candidate in history.

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Cloud Hangs over Commercial Real Estate as Trillions in Debt Set to Come Due

Michigan Star Staff
Commercial Real Estate

Commercial real estate is facing a mountain of debt that many borrowers could have trouble refinancing due to a rapid hike in interest rates and record vacancies, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Around $2.81 trillion in commercial real estate loans are set to expire through 2028, meaning borrowers would either have to pay the amount outright or refinance the debt with higher interest rates, according to data from market research group Trepp. Payments on commercial mortgages are typically only for interest while the loan is active, and when the loan reaches its expiration date, borrowers often refinance at current rates, but doing so would increase payments drastically in a time when commercial developers and property owners are strapped for cash, according to the WSJ.

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Audit: Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency Couldn’t Support $10.2 Billion of Payments

The Center Square

An audit released Friday from the Office of Auditor General Doug Ringler marked 11 “material conditions” – the most severe rating – for how the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency operated during the pandemic, which resulted in losing billions of taxpayer dollars.

The audit found the UIA couldn’t support the appropriateness of $10.2 billion in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance payments, mostly because it added invalid eligibility criteria in the PUA application and didn’t require some PUA claimants to certify they met federal eligibility criteria. 

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Chinese Spies Have Wormed Their Way into Taiwan’s Military

Michigan Star Staff
Policeman holding a rifle - in uniform

Chinese spies infiltrated Taiwan’s military as a part of a campaign to undermine the island’s defense, Reuters reported.

The effort involved recruiting senior officers at the center of the Taiwan’s armed forces, even reaching President Tsai Ing-wen’s security detail, Reuters reported. A retired presidential security officer and a serving military police lieutenant colonel in the unit had convictions upheld this year for leaking sensitive information about her security to Beijing.

“China is conducting a very targeted infiltration effort towards Taiwan,” retired Taiwanese navy Lieutenant Commander Lu Li-shih told Reuters.

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AOC Urges Illegal Immigrant Parents of Children Born in the US to Register for Biden’s Child Care Tax Credit Payments

Michigan Star Staff

Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez urged illegal immigrants who are parents to children born in the U.S. to register for President Joe Biden’s child care tax credit payments on Thursday, video shows.

Parents and guardians will receive checks of $250 to $300 per child monthly until the end of 2021 including undocumented adults who care for children with valid Social Security numbers, according to Ocasio-Cortez.

“These centers are also offering help to undocumented folks with eligible children,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “So any child with a social security number is eligible. Do not count yourself out … if a parent and guardian is undocumented.”

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