Why Gridlock is Good for Wall Street

After a nightmarish October, Wall Street is back on track to finish the year at all-time highs.

The mother of all Bull Markets is intact, as I suggested in last week’s column. On Tuesday, Nov. 6, the voters chose gridlock and investors have approved.

If you are going to have a divided Congress for the next two years, it’s best to have the Democrats controlling the House and the Republicans controlling the Senate. The Senate is much more powerful than the House. The House can propose budgets and policy changes, but they must be approved by the Senate and avoid a veto by the President.

On the other hand,  the Senate has much more responsibility, especially with the approval of treaties and ratifying the appointment of federal judges and Supreme Court justices. Republicans are likely to increase their majority to 53 senators.

For the next two years, the United States is facing certainty. And that’s good news on Wall Street.

According to Investor’s Business Daily, a divided government is ideal for the stock market. Reviewing the history of Wall Street since World War II, the best outcome came when Congress was divided. As Investor’s Business Daily states, “Looking at S&P 500 returns during each two-year election cycle, from Election Day to Election Day, the best outcome, an average 18.7% two-year return, came when Congress was divided. Unified control of Congress by the same party as the president yielded an average 17.3% two-year gain. When control of Congress was unified under the opposition party, gains averaged 15.7%.”

Last week, I spoke at the New Orleans Investment Conference, a hotbed of bears and gold bugs. It’s time that they throw in the towel and admit that things are looking up. The economy is booming, inflation is tame, unemployment is low, and interest rates are gradually moving up. The tax cuts won’t be reversed. President Trump can still continue deregulating the economy through executive orders. Now if Congress can just control its spending…

Special Note: I look forward to seeing any subscribers coming to the Baron Investment Conference this Friday, Nov. 9, at Lincoln Center in New York City. I will be in the reception area during the coffee break to say hello.

‘Maxims’ Half-Off Sale for the Holidays

I sold two dozen copies of “The Maxims of Wall Street” at New Orleans. Dennis Gartman told the audience, “I love that book, and keep it on my shelf and refer to it every day. When I’m short half a page in my newsletter, I reach for Maxims and fill in the half page with a pithy quote.”

Gartman said, “It’s amazing the depth of wisdom one can find in just one or two lines from your book.”

The book also has been endorsed by Warren Buffett, Jack Bogle, Bert Dohmen, Richard Band and Alex Green.

Hundreds of valuable Wall Street sayings are found in the one-and-only collection, and they will bring back memories. The book is divided into categories, such as “bulls and bears,” “contrary investing” and “market timing” with more than 800 quotes, proverbs, poems and short stories offering a wealth of insights about investing. It has several sections on “bear markets” and “doomsayers and Cassandras.” It also includes Dennis Gartman’s “20 Rules of Investing.”

As we approach the holidays, “The Maxims of Wall Street” is the perfect holiday gift for your relatives, students, investment friends, stockbrokers, money managers  and business colleagues. Buy them by the box and give them out throughout the year.

Stockbroker Rodolfo Milani said, “I find them to be ideal gifts for my best clients. They love it!” The book is beautifully bound in leather-like green with a gold ribbon.

From the analyst who beat the market over 15 years...
Dr. Mark Skousen's Top 3 Income Investments for the Next 12 Months

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Seize upon a 2-for-1 deal. Buy the first copy for $20 and all additional copies are only $10, and I pay the U.S. postage. Also: If you order an entire box of 32 books, you pay only $300 postpaid.

Hetty Green, the late financier known as the “Witch of Wall Street,” said it best, “When I see something cheap, I buy a lot of it.”

To order, call Harold at Ensign Publishing, 1-866-254-2057, or go to www.miracleofamerica.com. (For orders sent outside the United States, contact Harold at Ensign Publishing for additional charges.)

Cuba is hot as a destinationAll cabins aboard the five-star Oceania Insignia for our November 9-16, 2019, cruise (next year) have sold out EXCEPT ours. And we have to turn back any cabins not sold by the end of December. I urge you to sign up now before it’s too late. This week-long trip to Cuba is special — we will be given a private tour in Havana by a free-market economist who actually lives in Cuba and will show us parts of “communist-controlled” Havana that no one else sees. This cruise is not to be missed!

Greg Galloway and I will be speaking on investing. Dave Phillips, president of Estate Planning Specialists, will be talking about estate planning in response to the Trump tax cuts. I also will be giving a talk on the important economic and cultural differences between Latin America and North America.

Plus, my wife Jo Ann, an English professor, will speak on Ernest Hemingway and Cuba. This will be a small private conference with ample opportunity to interact with the speakers and attendees. We’ve already sold over 20 cabins.

Please call Nicole at the MoneyShow (which is organizing the cruise), toll-free at 1-844-225-5838 for a free color brochure, which you can also access here as a PDF. Make your deposit NOW. Cabins are available as low as $2,399 per person/double occupancy, and the price includes airfare from getaway cities, free Wi-Fi and even a $400 shipboard credit. But you must act NOW if you want to join us.

Good investing, AEIOU,

Mark Skousen

You Nailed It!

Sacrificing Our Blood and Treasure in a Hopeless War

Last year, Mayor Brent Taylor, of North Ogden, Utah, took leave from his job and honored a call to duty when he left his wife and seven young children for his 4th deployment to a place of armed conflict overseas. A major in the Utah National Guard, he would be serving to train an Afghan Army commando battalion. His wife supported his decision. His parents come from a long line of super patriots who believe in defending their country.

He was returned yesterday on Election Day in a body bag, having been killed by an Afghan soldier who was being trained by Major Taylor, 39.

When are we going to learn that it’s a terrible waste of our best blood and treasure to fight in the Middle East and neighboring countries such as Afghanistan? My view holds especially true at a time when we are running trillion-dollar deficits.

The Trump administration and the U.S. military must recognize the hopelessness of this never-ending war. It is time to get out and stay out.

From the analyst who beat the market over 15 years...
Dr. Mark Skousen's Top 3 Income Investments for the Next 12 Months

Your email is 100% protected. Read our Privacy Policy.
You'll also receive Dr. Mark Skousen's weekly e-letter, Investor CAFE, at no cost, along with other associated financial content and special offers.

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