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Presented by NRF Foundation : Delivered daily by 8 a.m., Morning Money examines the latest news in finance politics and policy. | | | | |  | | By Sam Sutton and Eleanor Mueller | | | Editor’s note: Morning Money is a free version of POLITICO Pro Financial Services morning newsletter, which is delivered to our s each morning at 5:15 a.m. The POLITICO Pro platform combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day’s biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro.
| | NEW YORK — JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon hasn’t been shy about his enthusiasm for Nikki Haley’s bid for the GOP presidential nod. On Wednesday, the leader of America’s largest commercial bank urged liberal Democrats to lend the former Trump appointee a hand. “If you’re a very liberal Democrat, I urge you to help Nikki Haley, too. Give them a choice on the Republican side that might be better than Trump,” Dimon said at the 2023 DealBook Summit. A lot has been written about how Haley’s emergence as a Trump challenger has set hearts aflutter among the Never Trump set in Wall Street’s GOP circles. Ray Dalio, the founder of the hedge fund behemoth Bridgewater Associates, earlier this week wrote that “a lot of money is already being gathered to put behind the Trump alternative” and that he thinks “Nikki Haley is the most likely contender … because she is very smart, very practical, has a great moral compass, and can work well across party lines.” (He stopped short of offering an endorsement.) The attitude among the DealBook audience at Lincoln Center was a bit more resigned, Sam reports. While the former South Carolina governor has spent years cultivating relationships with financiers and is well-liked by many around Wall Street, the former president’s lead over the Republican field is considerable. The support she’s garnered from the Koch political network and other blue chip GOP donors like Paul Singer might provide a boost, but it’s unlikely to be enough to break Trump’s hold over the Republican base. Unsurprisingly, there wasn’t a lot of love for Trump or President Joe Biden among the moneyed set at Wednesday’s conference. Biden is hardly beloved by bankers and asset managers, but there is little appetite for how Trump’s leadership could bring chaos if he’s elected to another term. (Wall Street isn’t unique; polls show that enthusiasm for both Biden and Trump is weak.) To that end, Vice President Kamala Harris cast Biden’s likely rematch in existential terms, telling the audience that the U.S.’s democracy is “very fragile. It will only be as strong as our willingness to fight for it. And this is one of those moments in time.” So, with all that out of the way, how’s Elon Musk thinking about 2024? The Tesla founder — who’s been blistered by the White House (and advertisers) after seeming to endorse antisemitic comments on his social media platform — said from the stage that he would “not vote for Biden.” “I’m not saying I’d vote for Trump,” he added. “This is a difficult choice, here.” IT’S THURSDAY — You’ve almost made it through the week. Send tips, gossip and suggestions to Sam at ssutton@politico.com and Zach at zwarmbrodt@politico.com.
| | A message from NRF Foundation: Retail is a great place to start – and a great place to grow a career. The retail industry is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, supporting one in four U.S. jobs – 52 million working Americans. 32% of Americans’ first jobs were in retail, and more than 60% have worked in retail at some point in their careers. Learn more about how we help people get a first chance or a fresh start in retail. | | | | | PCE, personal income and spending for October are out at 8:30 a.m. … New York Fed President John Williams will deliver a keynote at a Bretton Woods Committee and New York Fed event at 9:05 a.m. … CFPB Director Rohit Chopra testifies at Senate Banking at 10:15 a.m. … The SEC has a closed meeting at 2:15 p.m. Warren’s crypto push — Treasury’s call for Congress to expand its power to go after crypto platforms used by terrorist groups and illicit actors should be a wakeup call to lawmakers, Sen. Elizabeth Warren tells Sam. “Congress must respond with a comprehensive bill to give Treasury the tools it needs to shut down terrorist financing,” the Massachusetts Senator said in an interview Wednesday. “The term sheet from Treasury makes clear how urgent the problem is.” The legislative proposals Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo submitted to leaders of the Senate Banking and House Financial Services committees include elements of her bill with Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), as well as changes that echo bipartisan legislation targeting DeFi platforms led by Sens. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) she said. (Adeyemo outlined those requests in a speech to the Blockchain Association on Wednesday, Jasper Goodman reports.) Warren also endorsed the Treasury's push for a secondary tool to cut off businesses that continue to work with sanctioned entities. Warren has been working with fellow Senate Banking member Sen. Cynthia Lummis to include anti-money laundering rules for crypto in the annual defense bill. In a separate interview Wednesday, Lummis, a Wyoming Republican, told Eleanor that talks to build on that push — like Treasury described — have been underway for "a long time." "There's a culture at Treasury of being pretty tight-lipped, and it's nice to finally find just a little fissure so that we can engage," Lummis said, adding that the agency's involvement "helps tremendously" the legislation's odds at enactment. "The fear is that you'll put together a product, introduce it as a piece of legislation, and start getting attacked by the administration," Lummis said. "And with a 50-50 Senate, we can't afford to have subjects that are really nonpartisan begin to take on a 'skins versus shirts' tone."
| | | | Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of new episodes – click here. | | | | | | | | Better luck next time, China hawks — Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) says his and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa)'s proposal to screen U.S. investments in China likely won't make it into the annual defense bill amid opposition from House Financial Services Chair Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), Eleanor reports. McHenry, who wants to use existing sanctions processes instead, is already taking heat from the right. In a statement Wednesday, Heritage Action President Kevin Roberts called his campaign "a gift to Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party." "Politicians like talking the talk about being tough on China — it’s time to walk the walk," Roberts said. "Congress works for the American people, not Wall Street." What's next: Cornyn says he's in talks with House Speaker Mike Johnson on passage of a related bill from House Foreign Affairs Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas), which the panel approved by voice vote Wednesday. McHenry, who sent a letter reupping calls for Rep. Andy Barr's legislation, will likely oppose the effort. "We have to determine whether he can stop it or not," Cornyn said of McHenry. McCaul's measure would expand on Cornyn and Casey's by applying outbound investment restrictions to more Chinese technology sectors and to Russia, Iran and North Korea. Barr's would take a narrower approach by directing the White House to sanction banks that serve certain Chinese companies. "We need to have a green-light, red-light system — very targeted, very specific, very focused on national security — and not empower the Biden administration to grow government and punish benign activities that enrich the American people," Barr said.
| | | | A message from NRF Foundation:   | | | | | On the rocks — Sam reports that the Supreme Court’s conservative justices Wednesday cast doubt on the constitutionality of in-house courts that play a vital role in the enforcement of federal securities laws. Big hire — Brandon Milhorn, a former top aide to FDIC Chair Jelena McWilliams and Vice Chair Travis Hill, is leaving the banking regulator to become the next president and CEO of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. He succeeds James Cooper, who is retiring. — New FDIC data shows that defaults on bank-held mortgages for leased office space jumped in the third quarter, our Victoria Guida reports.
| | | | GET A BACKSTAGE PASS TO COP28 WITH GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Get insider access to the conference that sets the tone of the global climate agenda with POLITICO's Global Playbook newsletter. Authored by Suzanne Lynch, Global Playbook delivers exclusive, daily insights and comprehensive coverage that will keep you informed about the most crucial climate summit of the year. Dive deep into the critical discussions and developments at COP28 from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | We’ve been trying to tell you — Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Reed on Wednesday called on the federal banking regulators to dig into the potential risks linked to private credit — a market that exploded as banks pared back their lending activity following Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. — Private credit lobbyists pushed back. In a statement to MM, American Investment Council President and CEO Drew Maloney cited a recent Federal Reserve report that said the threat the industry poses to financial stability remains limited. Bryan Corbett, the president and CEO of the Managed Funds Association, said that “increased scrutiny of private credit is misplaced.”
| | A message from NRF Foundation: Retail careers are life-changing careers. As the nation’s largest private-sector employer, the retail industry supports one in four U.S. jobs – 52 million working Americans. 32% of Americans’ first jobs were in retail, and more than 60% have worked in retail at some point in their careers. With only 2-5 years of experience in the industry, earnings increase 54%. Those who stay in retail for more than 5 years can expect a staggering 122% increase in compensation. Retail careers also enable faster role advancement, with upward role advancements occurring every 14.5 months. To learn more about how we help people get a first chance or a fresh start in retail, visit nrffoundation.org. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
