The Julia La Roche Show

In this episode of The Wrap, Chris Whalen breaks down Kevin Warsh's confirmation as Fed chair and explains why this represents a dramatic shift from the progressive, statist Fed created by Mariner Eccles in the 1930s to a supply-side approach. Whalen reveals that Fed chairs have enormous unilateral power and predicts Warsh will reduce the balance sheet and reserves while trading off lower short-term rates, ending the regime where "every time the market hiccupped, the Fed ran in and dumped more reserves." He warns the 30-year bond topping 5% is just the beginning, with the long end potentially hitting 6% as Iran war impacts drive inflation to double digits by year end, possibly requiring rationing of key petroleum byproducts before the midterms. Whalen explains why silver is surging (Chinese tech demand, solid-state batteries, reduced mining) while discussing non-bank mortgage drama with United Wholesale Mortgage potentially becoming "the next Countrywide." He argues stocks will continue rising as inflation hedges, dismisses apocalyptic debt scenarios since the world needs dollars for trade, and predicts we'll need to get used to mortgages in the 6-7% range instead of 4-5% under higher-for-longer.

Thank you to our partners at Goldco. Get your free 2026 Gold & Silver Kit at https://goldco.com/thewrap or call 855-573-0817

Links:    
The Institutional Risk Analyst: https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/ 
The Wrap: https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/post/theira845
Inflated book (2nd edition): https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/inflated-r-christopher-whalen/1146303673
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/rcwhalen    

Use the code TheWrap2026 for 25% off your first year of The Institutional Risk Analyst https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/plans-pricing

Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction - Silver soars, Warsh confirmed, 30-year bond tops 5%
0:32 Kevin Warsh confirmed as Fed chair - What changes now?
6:14 Market
7:29 Banks bought back more stock than they made money
9:00 30-year bond hits 5% for first time since 2008
9:56 Planning rationing strategies for key materials from petroleum
11:04 Could get to double-digit inflation by end of year
12:28 Long end of curve could get closer to 6% than 5%
12:56 Trump meeting with Xi Jinping in Beijing - How big of a deal?
14:25 Dow hitting 50,000 - Blow off top or still runway?
19:02 Silver surging - What's going on?
21:03 The next Countrywide?
24:29 End game with higher for longer under Warsh
27:09 Viewer mail - National debt and market impact
29:19 Will Warsh treat Iran war inflation as self-correcting?
30:33 What Chris is watching next week/closing thoughts

Melody Wright, author of M3 Melody Substack, returns to the show for an in-person episode to discuss the frozen spring selling season and reveals disturbing signs of distress bubbling beneath the surface, including mortgage delinquencies rising at the exact time of year they should be falling. She exposes the "rage delisting" phenomenon where stubborn sellers refuse price cuts despite a massive inventory buildup, explains why the housing shortage narrative is a myth perpetuated by builders seeking a bailout, and warns that prime mortgages are now showing weakness for the first time. Melody argues that a 35-50% price correction is needed for median household income to afford median home prices, with the first wave of 10-12% likely over the next couple years. She reveals a massive shadow inventory wave from boomers that could add 20% more homes each year for the next decade, discusses how investors are fire selling (one investor dumping 300 rentals in a single market), and predicts the back half of 2026 could be "really ugly" as forbearance programs expire. Her advice: sellers should cut prices quickly to avoid cutting further, while buyers should stay patient because "the supply is coming."

Links:
YouTube; https://www.youtube.com/@m3_melody
X: https://x.com/m3_melody
Substack: https://m3melody.substack.com/

Timestamps
0:00 Introduction - Melody Wright returns, spring selling season
1:59 Housing market assessment - "Take three of another year frozen"
5:28 Distress bubbling under the surface
8:15 Why the shortage narrative is so pervasive
11:46 Tracking 86 markets now
15:05 Most worrisome areas - The delusional northeast
16:11 Boomer stubbornness and shadow inventory wave
16:38 How big is the shadow inventory? 20% increase for next 10 years
18:22 How far do prices need to correct? 35% to 50%
20:42 Warning signals
24:25 Most important thing overlooked
27:36 Base case - 35% to 50% correction over significant time
28:46 Spring season warning
29:54 Back half of year could be really ugly
30:17 Shortage of affordable homes because they're mispriced
30:58 Advice for sellers - Get real appraisal, cut quickly
32:36 Advice for buyers - Stay stubborn, wait for math to work
33:04 How does this feel different from 2008?
36:45 Who's buying now if institutionals are fire selling?
37:57 Parting words - Patience for buyers, supply is coming

Michael Pento, president and founder of Pento Portfolio Strategies (PPS), returns to The Julia La Roche for episode 368 to warn that the three asset bubbles in stocks, credit, and real estate continue growing to unprecedented levels, with total market cap now at 230% of GDP versus a 90% average. He reveals that Powell has quietly printed $170 billion since December in an undeclared QE program, calls Powell's tenure "horrific," and celebrates his departure. Pento explains he's "nervously long" the market using his five-sector inflation-deflation model, currently positioned for stagflation with commodities, precious metals, and energy. He warns that credit markets will fracture first, with private credit now at $2 trillion (bigger than the $1.3 trillion subprime market in 2008), and predicts June redemptions could trigger a death spiral. Pento believes we need a 50% market correction to return to normalcy, warns we could see 15% interest rates like the 1980s but with a far worse debt backdrop, and argues the bottom 80% of Americans are already living in depression-like conditions while crony capitalism enriches the top 20%. He sees two paths forward: voluntary asset price reconciliation or forced hyperinflation leading to currency reset.

Links:
https://pentoport.com/
https://twitter.com/michaelpento

0:00 Introduction - Michael Pento returns after 6 months
0:59 Big picture macro view - Bubbles grow bigger
2:19 Powell's "horrific tenure" - $4.5 trillion printed
3:32 QE program continues - $170 billion since December
4:39 Kevin Warsh-led Fed - What changes are coming?
5:52 Warsh will punish Wall Street, boost Main Street
7:06 Stock bubble metrics - 230% of GDP (average is 90%)
8:24 Crony capitalism vs. free market economics
9:10 Why capitalism gets a bad name
10:01 Home price to income ratio at all-time highs
11:01 Disconnect between stock market highs and consumer sentiment lows
11:35 Only top 20% doing well - The "i-shaped economy"
12:33 AI spending reminds Michael of 1999 tech bubble
13:33 Are you confident Kevin Warsh can get us back to normalcy?
14:41 What would normal market valuations look like?
15:06 Would need 50% correction to return to normal
17:05 Wouldn't printing just set us up for more problems?
18:57 Either scenario leads to higher rates
19:37 Implications of double-digit rates on everything
20:38 Are you still nervously long the market?
21:19 Michael's not a perma bear - History of market crashes
23:02 How dangerous can this bubble be when it bursts?
24:03 Michael's 5-sector inflation-deflation model
25:14 Precious metals trade - Why only 6% position
26:41 Energy thesis - After Iran war
27:30 Explaining the 5 sectors - Which is most worrisome?
28:25 Stagflation is the base case going forward
29:01 Post-recession: $6 trillion deficits, $12 trillion Fed balance sheet
29:55 Could we see 15% interest rates like 1980?
31:17 What's the end game here?
33:21 Are we past the point of no return?
34:58 Which bubble bursts first - The epicenter?
35:44 Watch credit markets first - Private credit warning
36:46 June redemptions could trigger death spiral
37:47 Is private credit too big to fail now?
38:21 Risk not getting attention - Pressure on middle class
40:00 Buy now pay later defaults surging
40:29 Bottom 80% living in depression conditions
41:18 Preventing tremors creates epic shocks
42:48 Has anyone talked about $170 billion of QE since December?
43:24 What makes Michael hopeful for the future
44:01 Closing thoughts

Warsh's arrival at the Fed actually means in practice — significant personnel changes, new models, and what Chris calls nothing short of an "earthquake at the central bank." Chris explains why there will be no rate cuts for a while, why the Fed balance sheet is growing again despite Warsh wanting to shrink it, and the one-to-one relationship between the balance sheet and public debt that most people aren't talking about. Plus: silver is in physical shortage and can't be delivered in parts of Asia, private credit is getting quiet as the bad headlines pile up, AMD is Chris's AI play of choice, and why the Iran war means "traumatic shortages by June" even if a deal were struck tomorrow. Chris also answers viewer questions on Warsh shrinking the balance sheet, gold under a tightening regime, the PennyMac LIBOR lawsuit, and Annaly Capital earnings. And Julia closes on her first house.

Thank you to our partners at Goldco. Get your free 2026 Gold & Silver Kit at https://goldco.com/thewrap or call 855-573-0817

Links:    
The Institutional Risk Analyst: https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/ 
The Wrap: https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/post/theira842
Inflated book (2nd edition): https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/inflated-r-christopher-whalen/1146303673
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/rcwhalen    

Use the code TheWrap2026 for 25% off your first year of The Institutional Risk Analyst https://www.theinstitutionalriskanalyst.com/plans-pricing

Timestamps:
0:00 Welcome & intro
0:49 Fed balance sheet growing again even though Warsh wants to shrink it
1:08 The one-to-one relationship between the Fed balance sheet and public debt
3:28 Will we continue to see a more inflationary environment?
3:37 Silver on a tear — physical shortage, can't deliver the metal
4:41 Still money pouring into private credit
8:32 Too many dollars chasing too few returns — what this means for markets
11:10 Are we setting up for a longer term risk?
12:13 GameStop CEO's bid for eBay — what does Chris make of it?
14:08 Changing the models, retiring staff — "an earthquake at the central bank"
16:32 "No rate cuts for a while" — Warsh has to establish rapport first
19:25 Iran hostilities dragging on — how much longer is this a major risk?
the year
23:02 Adding to gold positions — "the selloff was a gift"
25:36 Mortgage sector — rates up, companies waiting for cuts that aren't coming
26:16 Banks not attractive right now — what would make them more attractive?
27:30 Viewer Q — How could Warsh shrink the Fed balance sheet?
27:56 Scarce reserve regime — T-bills, discount window, can he get it done?
29:02 Viewer Q — Is gold a good investment under a tightening regime?
29:52 Viewer Q — PennyMac lawsuit over LIBOR/SOFR transition
31:31 Viewer Q — Annaly Capital earnings — "good earnings, beat expectations"
32:13 What is Chris watching next week?
33:17 GoldCo sponsor — goldco.com/thewrap — 855-573-0817

Michael Green, Chief Strategist and Portfolio Manager for Simplify Asset Management, joins Julia La Roche on episode 366 to break down what he calls the most important and overlooked structural shift in financial history — the rise of passive investing. Green argues that the market isn't broken in the way most people think: it's not fraud or irrational exuberance, it's the mechanical consequence of a regulatory change in 2006 that turned 401k contributions into an automatic, valuation-blind buying machine. With passive now at 55% of the market — and rising 4% per year — Green shares new research showing that somewhere between 65% and 80%, a 1987-style crash stops being a possibility and becomes nearly inevitable. He also connects the dots between our retirement system, the housing crisis, and why both boomers and millennials are scared — just for completely different reasons.

Links:
Follow Mike on X: https://twitter.com/profplum99Read
Mike’s Substack: https://www.yesigiveafig.com/Visit Simplify: https://www.simplify.us/

Timestamps
00:00 Intro and welcome Mike Green
1:04 - What "broken markets" actually means today
2:40 - The Costanza market and how Mike's research began
6:21 - Passive went from 2% to 55% of the market since 1992
7:05 - Why passive investing is just momentum with no valuation filter
9:45 - The 2006 Pension Protection Act — the legislation nobody talks about
10:13 - Why Vanguard and Bogle aren't the ones to blame
10:19 - The book: The Greatest Story Ever Sold
10:39 - The academic paper that forced Mike to rewrite the book
13:59 - Type A vs Type B savers — and the snow cone moment
14:35 - Prices don't move because of information. They move because of flows.
15:08 - The threshold: 65–80% passive and the market becomes unstable
16:07 - Why the coming crash could be worse than 1987
19:37 - The XIV collapse — and what it taught Mike about predicting crashes
22:00 - Is there a disconnect between markets and the economy right now?
22:19 - Nvidia's margins, vendor financing, and the Cisco parallel
24:10 - The S&P could be worth less than 2,000 on a pure DCF basis
25:29 - Pushing back on the "we've never been better off" narrative
27:21 - The valley of death and the precarity line
28:36 - Why demographics are at the center of everything
29:29 - Why boomers are terrified too — and why that matters for younger people
31:14 - The housing trap: boomers won't sell, millennials can't buy
34:21 - What does all this say about the social fabric?
35:18 - "Tax wealth, not work" — the tax code we had in the 1950s
36:41 - Why a wealth tax is actually the wrong solution
38:11 - Wrap up