Former President Donald Trump has blamed "wokeness" for the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, rather than the law he signed in 2018 that gutted the Dodd-Frank federal regulations. This has become a cautionary tale for the future, as the government must be able to respond to a financial crisis without the interference of politics in order to protect the economy.
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Mike Pence's joke about Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg at the Gridiron Club dinner on Saturday has been met with criticism from the White House, who called for an apology. Chasten Buttigieg, the Secretary's husband, also tweeted in response to the joke. The Biden administration has made it a priority to combat discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals, and has taken steps to ensure all federal employees have access to paid parental leave.
At a rally in Iowa, former President Donald Trump took aim at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, calling him "DeSanctus" and saying he probably shouldn't have endorsed him in his bid for the governor's mansion. Trump also compared DeSantis to 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney, and said he will "protect Iowa ethanol from anyone who wishes to destroy it." The former president said he last spoke to DeSantis "a couple of days ago," but did not elaborate on the conversation.
Thousands of tech CEOs and founders have signed an "urgent" petition calling for relief from the federal government after Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, the second largest in U.S. history. The government has responded by guaranteeing all customers access to their full deposits, providing some much-needed relief. However, the tech industry is still reeling from this "extinction-level event" and its long-term effects remain to be seen.
Shares of regional banks in the US slumped on Monday, as investors sold off their stocks in response to the collapse of SVB Financial Group and Signature Bank. This has raised fears of possible bank contagion, despite the additional funding from JPMorgan Chase to help First Republic Bank meet withdrawal demands. SVB catered to tech startups, internet and software companies, as well as firms in the life science and health care space, and had $210 billion in assets.
South African rapper Costa Titch has tragically died after collapsing onstage during a performance at the Ultra South Africa music festival in Johannesburg. Video footage of his set circulated on social media, showing him appearing to fall onstage and collapse off the stage. The cause of death has not yet been released, and his family has asked for privacy and requested donations to the South African Music Rights Organization in his memory.
Following the second- and third-largest bank failures in U.S. history, the Biden administration and federal regulators announced emergency measures to backstop customers’ deposits, even those that weren’t insured. Despite the emergency measures, Wall Street’s confidence in regional banks remained shaky, causing the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq composite to dip or rise, respectively. Investors are uncertain about the future of regional banks and are watching to see if the emergency measures will be enough to protect customers’ deposits and stabilize the banking system.
The Biden administration is considering updating the nation's racial and ethnic categories for the first time since 1997, based on the more than 4,600 comments submitted by various individuals and organizations. The changes are part of the administration's goal of creating a more equitable society, and the decision is expected to be announced in the near future.