Trade war chaos and Epstein's odd connections

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VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE FRI, AUG 16, 2019 CNBC POLITICS EDITOR'S NOTE   Hello readers,   Another wild week is in the books. Markets went on a rollercoaster ride in part due to the Trump administration's trade fight with China and topsy-turvy bond markets. Investors are getting more worried about a potential recession. That could pose a huge problem for the president's reelection chances next year.   Trump knows it, too. But his scapegoat doesn't reside in Beijing. Rather, the president has focused his anger on Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, whom Trump appointed, for raising rates in December and then not committing to a more aggressive rate-cutting agenda. The president's rage at the Fed has divided the administration. Senior officials told CNBC's Kayla Tausche this week that Trump and his hawkish trade advisor Peter Navarro are the only ones in the White House blaming the market volatility and increasing economic uncertainty on the central bank, and not trade tensions.   Elsewhere, the case of Jeffrey Epstein grows more bizarre and troubling by the day. New revelations about his death only raised more questions about what happened in his jail cell. And the whereabouts of his alleged "madam" remained a mystery even as prosecutors continued their investigation. Brian Schwartz also revealed this week that Epstein, a former friend of Trump and Bill Clinton, somehow found his way into the orbit of Microsoft founder Bill Gates – years after Epstein had already served time for a sex crime.   That's a lot of dark and heavy stuff to digest. If you're looking for some lighter reading for this weekend, we also have a story about people obsessed with collecting political memorabilia, from campaign buttons to ... Bernie Sanders puppets.    Thanks for reading.    Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? They can sign up here. For more on the intersection of business and politics, sign up for the weekly Capital Exchange newsletter here. Mike Calia @Michael_Calia KEY STORIES  Trump, Navarro are the only ones in the White House blaming the Fed for volatility Two senior administration officials told CNBC that the overriding belief in the White House is that the rate hikes are not the main source of the problem. Rather, they say, it is Trump's trade war and tariffs against China. Years after serving jail time, Jeffrey Epstein found a way to meet with Bill Gates Microsoft founder Bill Gates spoke more than once with Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier accused of child sex trafficking, to discuss ways to increase philanthropic spending, according to sources. Pentagon eager to resolve JEDI contract as China races to develop military cloud system "We don't want to waste any more time moving forward because we know our potential adversaries are doing it at their own speed," U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan says. Gun control groups outspend the NRA on ads since recent massacres The NRA has instead focused its recent advocacy on tweeting and being in direct contact with President Donald Trump. Ray Dalio says he wouldn't rule out China weaponizing its massive US Treasury holdings Other observers have dismissed the suggestion that China would sell U.S. Treasurys to gain an upper hand in the trade war. John Hickenlooper drops out of 2020 presidential race as he considers Senate run Colorado Democrats have been urging Hickenlooper to join the state's U.S. Senate race, where the party is attempting to unseat Republican incumbent Cory Gardner. Trump's money ties to NFL owners go much deeper than Dolphins' Stephen Ross Multiple NFL owners, including Washington's Dan Snyder and New England's Robert Kraft, have supported President Donald Trump's political activities in recent years. These political super fans turn their activism into collector's items For some collectors, political memorabilia is more than just a way to show support for candidates. It's about holding on to pieces of history.       Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2019 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS