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One of the key differences between UC and CSU is their academic offerings. The CSU system awards mostly bachelor's degrees, and does not offer as many advanced-level degrees as UC. Meanwhile, the UC system has an excellent reputation for research and theory-based teaching.Changes to University of California SchoolsYour admission won't be automatically rescinded if you can't get your transcript to the school by July 1, 2021, as long as you contact the admissions department well ahead of time and work with an admissions counselor.If you can't finalize your admissions decision by the deadline to accept (May 1 for freshmen, June 1 for transfer students), you can contact the admissions office about deferment. UC schools are being flexible and working with students who've been affected by COVID-19.UC schools have gone test optional in 2021, meaning that you can submit your test scores, but they aren't a required part of your application.Additionally, all UC schools will stop requiring the ACT and SAT as part of the admissions process for in-state students by 2025. For more information about what that means for you, check out this FAQ. For the most up-to-date information on UC schools and the coronavirus, be sure to check out the COVID-19 page for UC schools.Changes to CSU SchoolsLike the University of California, California State schools have also made some pretty substantial changes for the 2020-2021 academic year. If you're applying for Fall 2021 admission to a CSU school, here are some changes you can expect:CSU schools will accept grades of "Credit" or "Pass" to fulfill course requirements for spring or summer 2020 terms. These pass/fail grades won't be calculated into students' GPAs, though.Students who can't submit their transcripts by the July 15, 2020 deadline won't have their admission rescinded. Instead, they'll be accepted on a provisional status until they can have their transcripts sent to their school. Transcripts must be received during the Fall 2020 semester.CSU will honor all existing transferable credit for 2020 AP exams where students score a 3, 4, or a 5.CSU will temporarily suspend the use of ACT/SAT examinations in determining admission eligibility for all CSU campuses for the 2021-2022 academic year.What Are the UC Schools?The University of California system is a group of highly prestigious public research universities in California. Established in 1869, UC has grown to include over 280,000 students and 227,000 staff and faculty members.There are 10 campuses, nine of which offer both undergraduate and graduate education:UC BerkeleyUC DavisUC IrvineUCLAUC MercedUC RiversideUC San DiegoUC San Francisco (graduate programs only)UC Santa BarbaraUC Santa CruzThe UC schools are large schools, typically with 20,000 or more undergrads. UCLA has the biggest undergrad enrollment of the UC schools at 31,600, while UC Merced has the smallest enrollment at around 8,000 (it's also the newest of the UC schools, having opened its doors in 2005).As a whole, the UC system offers 160 academic disciplines and 800 degree programs.UC schools are highly regarded and top-ranked. They are extremely competitive to get into and are considered some of the best public universities in the nation.What Are the CSU Schools?The California State University system is a group of public universities based in California. It is the largest public four-year university system in the US.Even though the CSU schools aren't nearly as competitive as are the UC schools, they're still pretty popular because they offer quality academics at an affordable price for California residents.Officially established in 1972, the CSU system comprises 23 schools, which all have undergraduate programs available:CSU BakersfieldCSU Channel IslandsCSU ChicoCSU Dominguez HillsCSU East BayCSU FresnoCSU FullertonHumboldt State UniversityCSU Long BeachCSU Los AngelesCal Maritime AcademyCSU Monterey BayCSU NorthridgeCal Poly PomonaCSU SacramentoCSU San BernardinoSan Diego State UniversitySan Francisco State UniversitySan Jose State UniversityCal Poly San Luis ObispoCSU San MarcosSonoma State UniversityCSU StanislausIn total, approximately 482,000 students attend CSU, where 53,000 faculty and staff are employed.Undergrad enrollment varies tremendously at the CSU schools. CSU Fullerton has the largest enrollment at about 35,000 undergrads, while Cal Maritime has the smallest enrollment at just over 1,000 undergrads.Additionally, CSU has an incredibly diverse student body, with a high percentage of non-traditional and commuter students, and is known for catering to minority and low-income students.Unlike the UC schools, which focus more on research and academic publishing, CSU focuses more on helping students develop professional, practical skills that will lead them to great jobs right out of college.UCLA campus (Alton/Wikimedia Commons)UC vs CSU: Full ComparisonHere's a side-by-side Cal State vs UC comparison so you can see how the two university systems are both different and alike:University of CaliforniaCalifornia State UniversityNickname(s)UCCSU, Cal StateLocationMostly large cities in northern and southern CaliforniaMix of small and large cities throughout CaliforniaPublic or Private?PublicPublicTotal Enrollment285,216481,929# of Campuses9 + 1 graduate school23# of Bachelor's Programs~900~2,700US NewsRankingHighest: UCLA, #20 (Nat'l)Lowest: UC Merced, #97 (Nat'l)Highest: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, #3 (Regional West)Lowest: CSU East Bay, #80 (Regional West)Niche GradesHighest: A+ (UCLA, UC Berkeley, UCSB)Lowest: B (UC Merced)Highest: A (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo)Lowest: B- (CSU East Bay)Acceptance RateHighest: UC Merced, 72%Lowest: UCLA, 12%Highest: CSU Bakersfield, 100%Lowest: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, 28%6-Year Graduation Rate85.3%62.1%Gender RatioFemale: 53%Male: 47%Unknown: <1%Female: 57%Male: 43%Non-Binary: <1%Ethnicity BreakdownAsian/Pacific Islander: 30%White: 24%Hispanic/Latinx: 22%International: 16%African American: 4%Unknown: 3%Hispanic: 43%White, Non-Hispanic: 22%Asian American: 15%Non Resident Alien: 6%African American: 4%Two or More Races: 4%Unknown: 4%American Indian: <1%Pacific Islander: <1%Commuter Schools?Not really, except for UC Irvine and UC RiversideYes, most campusesAverage Tuition & FeesIn-state: $14,100Out-of-state: $43,800In-state: $6,782Out-of-state: $16,286Overall ReputationWorld-class public university system known for its premier academics, selectivity, and researchVery large, high-quality public university system known for its affordability and flexible class offeringsNicknamesThe University of California system is often shortened to "UC," which is why you'll typically see the UC schools referred to as UC Berkeley or UC Irvine, for example, instead of the University of California, Berkeley or the University of California, Irvine (both of which are definitely a mouthful!).That being said, "UC" can also refer to the University of Cincinnati, so be sure to specify which University of California school you're talking about.The California State University system is usually called "CSU" or "Cal State." So the California State University, Fullerton could be called either CSU Fullerton or Cal State Fullerton, for instance.Be aware that "CSU" can refer to several other colleges, too, such as Colorado State University, Chicago State University, and Cleveland State University.LocationThere are 10 UC schools (including one graduate-only school in San Francisco) and 23 CSU schools.The UC schools are mostly located in larger cities in either northern or southern California:CSU is a little different. Since there are more CSU schools than there are UC schools, the system is more spread out across the state and has campuses in smaller cities as well as larger cities. This element of convenience makes CSU easier to access for many people throughout California.University TypeBoth the University of California and the California State University are public state university systems, meaning that they're both funded by the California State government. For more information on how public universities differ from private ones, check out our in-depth guide.SizeCSU is by far the larger of the two systems, both in terms of number of schools and student enrollment. While UC is home to nine undergraduate schools and 280,000+ students, CSU has 23 schools and a whopping 480,000+ students.Regarding undergraduate enrollment specifically, UC currently has 285,126 undergrads while CSU has 481,929 undergrads. However, the individual campuses in the UC and CSU systems vary quite significantly in enrollment.The following chart shows total undergraduate enrollment at UC and CSU schools, from largest undergraduate student body to smallest. All UC schools have been highlighted in green.SchoolUndergrad EnrollmentCSU Fullerton​40,445CSU Northridge​38,391CSU Long Beach38,075San Diego State35,081San Jose State32,926CSU Sacramento​31,156UC Davis30,982UC San Diego30,794UC Irvine30,382San Francisco State​29,586CSU Los Angeles​27,675Cal Poly Pomona​26,443UC Santa Barbara23,349UC Riverside22,055CSU San Bernardino​20,311UC Santa Cruz17,517CSU Chico17,014CSU Dominguez Hills15,741CSU East Bay15,528CSU San Marcos13,964CSU Stanislaus​10,974CSU Bakersfield10,493Sonoma State9,459UC Merced8,151Humboldt State8,347CSU Monterey Bay​7,616CSU Channel Islands​7,093Cal Maritime1,120As you can see, the three largest schools are as follows:CSU FullertonCSU NorthridgeCSU Long BeachAnd the three smallest schools are as follows:Cal MaritimeCSU Channel IslandsCSU Monterey BayMost UC schools are very large, with around 20,000 to 30,000 students.Meanwhile, the CSU schools have a broader spread of enrollment, with some larger schools (including CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, and San Diego State), some smaller, and many in the medium and medium-large range (about 10,000-20,000 students).CSU Northridge (Guanzhan Chen/Wikimedia Commons)AcademicsWhereas the UC system offers about 900 bachelor's degree programs, the CSU system offers more than 2,700 bachelor's programs. Obviously, what's available at each specific UC and CSU school will vary, so make sure to check ahead of time what majors and minors are offered at the UC and/or CSU schools you're considering.You can look at the list of UC majors by school here, and the list of CSU majors by school here.Rankings and GradesWhile both the UC system and CSU system are solid options for college, the UC schools are much more highly ranked and prestigious overall.All UC schools rank in the top 100 national universities on US News. By contrast, most CSU schools rank fairly well, but not amazingly, on the US News Best Regional Universities West list.In addition to US News rankings, we looked at student-produced grades on Niche. Niche grades for UC and CSU schools indicate high to very high student satisfaction at UC, and average to high student satisfaction at CSU.Three UC schools managed to nab an A+ rating (UCLA, UC Berkeley, and UC Santa Barbara), which no CSU schools were awarded. The highest grade a CSU school earned was an A, an honor that goes to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.SelectivityOverall, the UC schools—being very prestigious and highly ranked—are much more difficult to get into than are the CSU schools, especially UC Berkeley and UCLA, the two highest-ranked schools.In other words, acceptance rates at UC schools are often far lower than those at CSU schools.Here's an overview of the acceptance rates for all UC and CSU schools, from most selective to least. Once again, all UC schools have been highlighted in green for clarity.SchoolAcceptance RateUCLA12%UC Berkeley17%UC Irvine27%Cal Poly San Luis Obispo28%UC Santa Barbara30%UC San Diego32%San Diego State34%CSU Long Beach39%UC Davis39%CSU Fullerton41%CSU Los Angeles42%UC Santa Cruz51%Cal Poly Pomona55%CSU Northridge56%UC Riverside57%CSU Fresno58%CSU San Marcos58%San Jose State64%Cal Maritime67%CSU San Bernardino69%CSU Chico72%UC Merced72%San Francisco State72%CSU Channel Islands74%CSU East Bay74%CSU Monterey Bay75%Humboldt State79%CSU Sacramento82%CSU Dominguez Hills83%CSU Stanislaus89%Sonoma State91%CSU Bakersfield100%As you can see here, eight of the nine UC schools have acceptance rates around 50% or lower, making them all at least somewhat selective. By contrast, most of the CSU schools are much easier to get into, with many having acceptance rates of 55% or higher.Hearst Memorial Mining Building at UC Berkeley (Joe Parks/Wikimedia Commons)Student DemographicsBoth UC and CSU have slightly more female-identifying students than they do male-identifying students (as well as a nominal number of unknown or non-binary students).Ethnic demographics differ somewhat, however. At UC, the three largest ethnic/racial groups are Asians/Pacific Islanders (30%), whites (24%), and Hispanics/Latines (22%). At CSU, it's Hispanics (43%) followed by non-Hispanic whites (22%) and Asian Americans (15%).Both university systems have a clear devotion to diversity, but CSU shines a little brighter in its commitment to serving Hispanic/Latinx populations Currently, 21 out of its 23 schools are Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs).Still, the UC system is making big strides to serve this population, too. At present, six of the 10 UC schools are considered HSIs.Commuter SchoolsOne major difference between UC schools and CSU schools is undergraduates' living situations.At most UC schools (besides UC Riverside and UC Irvine), it's very common for undergraduates to live on campus in university housing. At most CSU schools, however, undergraduates commute to campus and do not usually live in university housing (if even offered).There are several advantages when it comes to commuter campuses, such as the option to save money on housing by living at home with your parents and having more flexible class options, which are often given to accommodate older, non-traditional students.Nevertheless, some of the cons of commuting to college include the following:It can be harder to make friends and socializeTraffic can be a nightmare, especially in big cities in CaliforniaYou'll likely have to race to find parking every day before classTo learn more about commuter campuses, read our in-depth guide.Tuition and FeesSince both the UC and CSU systems are public university systems, what you pay in tuition and fees will ultimately depend on whether you're a California resident or not. In-state tuition every year is$6,782 at CSU and $14,100 at UC. As you can see, CSU is far cheaper to attend than a UC school—in fact, it's more than $7,000 cheaper!When it comes to out-of-state tuition and fees, these figures jump dramatically. At UC, out-of-state students must pay $43,900 per year—over three times higher than what in-state students pay. By contrast, CSU charges tuition differently to out-of-state students, either by the semester unit ($396 each) or by the quarter unit ($264 each).Cal Poly San Luis ObispoUC vs CSU: Which Schools Should You Apply To?When it comes to Cal State vs UC, which schools should you apply to? Here are four useful tips to help you make your decision.#1: Think About Size and SettingTwo big factors for many students are the size and overall location of the school.With UC schools, most are on the larger end in terms of undergrad enrollment (with 20,000-40,000 students), whereas the CSU schools vary significantly, from as few as 1,000 undergrads to as many as 40,000.If you're interested in having a smaller, more intimate student body, first look at the CSU schools before you consider any UC schools. If you'd prefer a more bustling environment, then feel free to look at pretty much all the UC schools (except UC Merced) and about half the CSU schools.In terms of setting, location can vary a lot for both UC and CSU depending on the campus. It might help to remember, though, that UC schools are mostly based in larger cities, whereas CSU schools can be found in smaller cities as well as larger ones.If you plan on commuting to school, keep in mind that larger cities might have worse traffic.#2: Figure Out Your Academic InterestsAnother factor to consider is your academic interests and what you want to major in (if you know).UC and CSU schools don't all offer the same majors and minors, so you'll definitely have to do some research to see what kinds of programs each school offers and whether they have the ones you're interested in. You can do this by using the list of UC majors and the list of CSU majors.For example, a few CSU schools offer majors in apparel/fashion merchandising and management, whereas no UC schools offer any equivalent undergraduate program.You might also want to take into consideration whether your field has a better reputation at UC or CSU. For example, both UC Berkeley and UCLA have premier engineering programs, so you might want to prioritize applying to these schools if you're planning to be an engineering major.#3: Consider Costs and Financial AidUC and CSU differ a lot in what they charge you for tuition and fees each year, so make sure that you're fully aware of what you'll be responsible for paying. Although it's clearly a lot cheaper to attend CSU instead of UC, doing this might mean sacrificing quality of academics and overall prestige for affordability.Remember, too, that you'll need to consider financial aid packages. Despite UC's high cost, 56% of California undergrads at UC pay absolutely nothing in tuition. As for CSU, there are tons of merit-based scholarships you can apply for to try to save some money.Whether you apply to UC schools, CSU schools, or a combination of the two, it'll be a smart idea to look into external scholarships as well.#4: Compare Your Academic Profile With Those of Admitted StudentsLastly, you'll need to consider your own academic profile—that is, your GPA and SAT/ACT scores—and see how you compare with real admitted applicants to the UC and/or CSU schools you're looking at. Doing this should help you make an ideal college list that includes a balanced number ofsafety schools, target schools, and reach schools.For example, if your GPA and SAT/ACT scores are about the same as those of admitted students to a particular UC or CSU school, then that institution can be considered a match, or target, school.If your GPA and scores are higher, then that's a safety school, as you're very likely to get accepted.Finally, if your GPA and test scores are significantly lower than the averages at a certain UC or CSU school, then that institution can be considered a reach school, as you're unlikely to get in with your current academic profile (but still could, of course).UC Santa Barbara (Coolcaesar/Wikimedia Commons)Recap: What's the Difference Between UC and CSU?So when it comes to UC vs CSU, how do these two university systems actually differ?For starters, the University of California is a very renowned public university system known for its world-class research and highly accomplished professors. Meanwhile, as the largest four-year public university system in the US, the California State University is primarily known for its quality academics and affordability.Here are some other key ways these two university systems differ:Size: There are 10 UC schools, including one graduate school, and 23 CSU schools; regarding enrollment, CSU has around 200,000 more total students than UC does, and its schools have a bigger range in enrollment as wellDegree programs: UC offers around 900 bachelor's programs, while CSU has over 2,700Rankings: All UC schools are ranked extremely high, whereas CSU schools typically rank well but not greatSelectivity: UC schools are generally much harder to get into than CSU schools, which range in acceptance rate from as low as 30% to as high as 100%Tuition and fees: CSU is much cheaper than UC, especially if you are an out-of-state student; however, UC does offer a lot of financial aid that can help offset these costsIn the end, to find the right college for you—whether that happens to be a UC school, a CSU school, or something totally different!—you must consider the following four factors:Size and settingYour academic interestsCosts and financial aidHow your academic profile compares with those of admitted students

Ken Nwadike Jr. (aka “The Free Hugs Guy”) is known for his work in de-escalating violence during protests, riots, and political rallies. His life story is one of a determined, tender heart—reminding us that we can accomplish incredible things if we remain motivated by love. We talk with Ken about how he went from sharing a room with four siblings and his mother in a homeless shelter to inspiring millions of people around the world.FULL TRANSCRIPTJeff: Can you take us a little bit through your story? You grew up here, right?Ken: Yes. Grew up here in South Central Los Angeles. Before then, my family, we were living in Seattle, Washington at the time. Five kids in our family and one day we came home from school to our house being raided and my father was arrested and my mom decided at that time she was going to just take all five kids in our family and moved us here to Los Angeles. We got here 1991, so shortly after our arrival, we're watching on the news the Rodney King beating happen and then a little while after that, the LA Riots of '92.We were still a new family in Los Angeles trying to get on our feet at the time and while everyone else is watching these riots take place on the news, we're looking right outside the windows of the shelter that we're in and seeing all of the fires and the chaos going on. Watching the race divide happen as we saw the black versus white, black versus asian communities, so much division happening right before us and that was my welcome to LA was seeing this level of chaos unfold right in front of us.Fast forward, by the time I got to middle school, I went from being this kid that I felt like was really outgoing. I had so many siblings in my house and we didn't really have the opportunity to be shy but eventually I became very shy, very introverted, and kept to myself when I would walk around campus and just really struggled to find myself while I was in school.Jeff: What were your living conditions at this point in your life?Ken: It was rough. We were hopping in and out of homeless shelters pretty much my entire young adult life because for my mom, raising five kids by herself, it always made it hard for her to go out and find work because babysitters were expensive. So being in these shelters, it was really tough. Some of the spaces that we would stay in, just imagine a room this size, probably even a little smaller with all six of us in there. The boys, we would have sleeping bags on the floor. My mom and sister had their little beds or cot, whatever you would call it. That went out for what I felt was far too long. Just so many years of our life trying to get on our feet.Our living conditions as children, it wasn't easy at all.Jeff: You weren't only dealing with the actual hardships of being homeless but you were also dealing with the stigma associated with it. It must be tough with friends and social groups.Ken: Very much so. To try and hide it in school because kids are mean at that age and so you just worry about any of that word getting out and then getting picked on even beyond your regular appearance. Haircut, clothes, shoes. I think even beyond that when kids know you actually live in a homeless shelter. That could be really bad for a young kid.Jeff: You discovered something that you excelled at and it was you were really fast.Ken: It came by accident. My way of coping with the struggles that we were going through, I would just hit the streets and just go run. I think that's where some of the initial talent started to come from but I didn't know that I was an athlete. One day, as I was in high school. There was a coach at the school, one day he was walking past me and he said, "Hey, how come every time I walk past you, you're looking at the ground?" I had told him when I make eye contact with people they give me dirty looks, sometimes they have mean things to say. It's just easier for me to keep to myself. He said, "Let's get you out on the track team."I was super excited about it. I remembered rushing back to the shelter and telling my mom. The coach wants me to join the track team, what do you think? She was like, "We can't really afford any extracurricular activities but if you can figure out how to make it happen, go for it." So I went back to the school and I remember in PE class people leave behind their old shoes and running shorts and things and I just grabbed those and I started training with the team.By the time school came back in session and I had told that coach I really want to the mile as my primary event and he had said. He said, "I was talking with the counselor and found out that your family lives in a homeless shelter that's not nearby the school so there's a charter school in the district nearby where you're supposed to be so I'm fighting to keep you here.Sure enough, he was able to just through talking to the counselor got me to stay there and he had told me, just with keeping you here at this school, I'm really concerned about your well being so just know that you can lean on me, you can lean on some of these teammates that you've been training with to change your circumstances, to run away from homelessness.I set out to run my first mile, ended up running that in four minutes and 17 seconds.Jeff: Wait a minute, four minutes and 17 seconds on your first mile?Ken: First mile.Jeff: What's the world record for a mile?Ken: I know for a long time, the American record was 3:47 which was held by my coach. Yeah, as a high school kid, probably 15 years old at the time running a 4:17. People were like where did that come from? I think a lot of it was just hitting the streets and training on my own. Already having some of that stamina built up but then just knowing that I didn't want to let people down. I didn't want to let that coach down, my teammates down. These are people who, for the first time, I felt like they believed in me.Even more importantly, I saw it as a ticket out of homelessness. If I do this well, maybe I can get to college. If I do this well maybe it can open up other opportunities for me. I was literally running for my life. That was how I viewed it. You can go back to these shelters or I Think at the time I was thinking about if I graduate from high school, what do I do next? I was probably just going to go into a branch of the Armed Forces. I'm glad that I didn't go that route. There's a lot more that I've been able to provide for my family and even give to the country with some of the work that I've been able to do as opposed to going into the Armed Forces right out of high school, which at the time I felt would have been my only option if it wasn't for track and field.Jeff: Take us through your track and field career and how that segued into your first swing at community activism or community organization.Ken: Totally. After high school ... You know what was interesting is a number of college coaches and scouts, they started coming out to my races to see me run. I didn't really know much about the sport. I was just doing it for the people that were around and that I cared about. I really wanted to go to UCLA or USC. At that time, we had been transferred to a shelter that was in downtown San Diego and while I was at that school, I had just finished up my run and then my high school coach says, "Hey Steve Scott was here to see you, he left his phone number." I'm like, "Who the heck is Steve Scott?"He goes, "Steve Scott is America's fastest miler. He holds the American mile record. He's famous for being a miler and that's your event." I was like, "Where is he?" He's like, "He said he had to leave but he really wanted to talk to you because he's taking a coaching position at a college in San Diego and he wants you to go there." I wanted to go to UCLA or USC and when their scholarship offer came back, it was partial and I was like there is no way I'm going to be able to afford that so I went back and tracked down Steve and he was like, "I was hoping you would call me," gave me a full ride so I ended up going to Cal State San Marcos.I got faster there. From there I joined the Nike Farm Team which is an Olympic development program that was based out of Stanford University. In training with them, now I'm around all of these athletes, some of whom had already competed in the Olympics and I just really loved the sport. While I was there, I started thinking about all of these kids that I grew up in and out of these shelters with that would never have this sort of opportunity that I had where someone comes into their life, believes in them, tries to change their circumstances so I wanted to be that for these kids.Everyday I would leave track practice, I would go volunteer my time at homeless shelters around there. Eventually I left the Bay area, I was down here in LA so I continued doing the same thing. I would start spending time in these homeless shelters trying to tell these kids, change your life you can change your circumstances, those of you guys that are using drugs right now or in gangs right now, let's hone in on what your actual talents are. It was crazy because sometimes they would tell me really off the wall stuff. I would say, "What's your biggest goal that you can think of right now?" And I remember one kid said, it was a girl, and she said, "My biggest goal is to end up on the Jerry Springer show so I could tell the whole world all of my drama." I'm like, "Yo, you've got to dream bigger than that."I convinced a number of the kids to hone in on what some of their talents were and then I told them, why don't we create an event together? Let's create this event, we'll call it the Hollywood Half Marathon, we'll shut down Hollywood Boulevard and we'll try to bring out as many runners as possible to raise funds and awareness for homeless teens. I realized I can't just tell them to change their circumstances, sometimes you have to show them, sometimes you have to hold their hand. That was my way of holding their hand and just really trying to inspire them. We set out to do it. Called up LAPD, say how much is it going to cost to shut down Hollywood Boulevard and the cop laughed.Jeff: So that's something, to put in context, that happens for major movie premieres or for the Oscars.Ken: Yeah.Jeff: This is not a simple thing that happens every day.Ken: No, it's not just some guy who came out of a homeless shelter and said I've got this idea, I want to shut down Hollywood Boulevard. The cop, he was like do you understand the cost of that and all of the logistics that goes into shutting down such an iconic road? I didn't think anything of it. I was like, "There's a bunch of kids in this shelter that I'm trying to inspire," and he's like, "You might want to choose somewhere else to do that."We were actually on speaker phone at the shelter at the time. I remember the look on their faces where it was just like boom, shut down, this is not happening. That look of disappointment from them, I was like we can't let this be the end. So I started reaching out to various media outlets and saying, "Here's what I'm trying to do. Here's my story and why I'm trying to do it." Fortunately, NBC4LA got on it right away, shared the story. From there, there were all of these other news sites that started picking it up. Celebrities started reaching out to me.Some of them were runners already but they hadn't competed in races and they were like we want to get behind your cause so they started tweeting about it, spreading the word. It helped. Just getting all these runners out. Before we knew it we had over 10,000 people that had registered to run in the Hollywood half marathon. I still wasn't even sure yet how I was going to shut down the Boulevard but we got the money though. We've got a million bucks now so called the cop back up and I said, "We've got the money so we want to try to make it happen." We were down to the wire for the date that I had set in mind to pull this off. Before you know it, just made all the connections.Days before, it was really amazing for some of those kids that were living at the shelter at the time. Some of them at the LA Covenant House, some at the Los Angeles Youth Network. Being there in that meeting where they knew me as the guy who was like I don't like cops either, I don't trust the cops - because none of these kids did either. I'm like we don't really vibe with the cops. Now here we are, days before this race. 75 police officers in this meeting ballroom up at the Hilton Universal as I'm there with a clipboard telling them, "I'm going to need you at this intersection shutting this down. I need these freeway on and off ramps."Just imagine what that's like for a kid in a homeless shelter who is looking at another kid from a homeless shelter who is pulling this off. To them, it was unreal. Even to me. As it was all happening, I'm like this can't be real. This can't really be happening right now.I didn't get to breathe that sigh of relief until that first runner crossed the finish line.Jeff: Was that moment where you felt like, "Damn, anything is possible."Ken: Totally. Totally because that was such a feat that I couldn't have even dreamed that. I remember standing on the balcony, we were at the W hotel, they became our host hotel of the event because the starting line ran past there. Just imagine what it's like for a single mother that struggled raising five kids her entire life and we're there on the balcony right before the race is about to start and I had told my mom, in about five minutes there should be about 10,000 people that are going to run past the front of this hotel right now. She was on the balcony and she was watching and as they run by, my mom just burst into tears. She's like, "All of these people are out here because my son, who grew up in these shelters nearby, wanted to inspire some of these young kids to show them that that doesn't have to be their finish line."It was such a special moment because my mom and I, we struggled the most getting along growing up because I felt like she put all this pressure on me as the first son in the family that without a dad in the house, all this pressure falls onto Kenny. We butt heads a lot. That was such a special moment for her to see.That sort of pride that came from my mother, it was really special and to know that even just a moment like that had helped us overcome some of our personal issues but even to show her, all of the struggling that we did for over a decade after my father was out of the picture, it doesn't have to be like that anymore. That was how we just set out on this pace to try and change as many things in our lives as possible. Things are good now. Growing up was really rough.Jeff: So, obviously running played such a central part of your life and of your trajectory. You ended up at the Boston Marathon, not exactly how you'd imagined being at the Boston Marathon.Ken: Yeah. Just imagine after we put on this, what I felt was a dream race. It was a dream come true to pull this thing off. Afterward, our whole production staff, we go and get a bite to eat, we're hanging out, we say let's take a break from breaking down a lot of the stuff and we'll go hang out and then the next morning, we'll continue after we watch the Boston Marathon together. As runners, the Boston Marathon is like our Superbowl.So we're watching the Boston Marathon and bombs go off at the finish line of their race. Initially we were like there's no way that that really happened. Just imagine a day earlier we're at the finish line of our own race and I know what that's like. When you're high fiving runners, you're hugging them and all of this joy and excitement as people cross the finish line. Now we're watching on the news as on the other side of the country, people's limbs are blown off. People died at the finish line of the race.I was just in shock. I felt like it was such an attack on something that I loved so much because it changed my life. If it wasn't for running I don't know where I would be literally today, right now. Running has played such an intricate part in so many different areas of my life runners have been some of the best friends that I've ever met, people who encouraged me and motivated me. I knew I needed to have some sort of bold stand of solidarity because I didn't want people to be scared saying I'm not going to participate in this race or that race because what if something like that happens again.So I set out on this campaign to try to promote as many people to come out to the next Boston Marathon as possible. In promoting it, then I realized maybe I need to run a Marathon, too. I had never run a marathon before. Before that, the longest distance for me was a 5K. That's three miles. A marathon, 26.2 miles, I was like, this is going to be tough. But then of all marathons to choose, I didn't know that you have to qualify to run in the Boston Marathon. The qualification standards are insane.I knew if I'm going to try to pull this off, it's probably going to take me a year to train to run that qualification standard. I started training to do it. Called up my coach at Nike, said can you put together a work out plan for me? Even he doubted it. He's like, "Ken, you're not built for a marathon, man."So I started training. Tried to qualify at this race and I ended up staying on pace the whole way until right as I came through the finish line. I ran the 3:05 that I needed to run but it was like point 11 seconds or something like that so wasted an entire year of training and now unable to go.Jeff: So you ran and it was 3:05 and 11 seconds?Ken: Yeah.Jeff: And that wasn't good enough.Ken: No.Jeff: You had to hit the 3:05.Ken: It has to be 3:05.00 to go to the Boston Marathon. There is no - they don't bend on those qualification standards based on what your age is. The older you get, the slower the time gets. That year, a 3:05 flat wouldn't have even gotten me there because so many people were trying to run in the Boston Marathon that they actually sped up the qualification time so it would have been maybe a 3:04 or 3:03 that it would have taken for me to get there.I tried again. Six days later. Which you don't do. If you've ever run a marathon before, you would know. You're still struggling to get feeling back in your legs a month later, not even six days. Here I was, I ran that first race on a Sunday, I came back that same Saturday, flew out to Utah and was like I'm going to try this again. Here I was, I'm trying to inspire and motivate these kids that were living in the shelter at the time and telling them you can do anything you put your mind to it, you can pull it off. They were like, "Ken, you can't run a marathon though." I needed to prove them wrong and I needed to get to the Boston Marathon.So I flew out to Utah because there was this race called Big Cottonwood Mountain where you would come down the side of that mountain and then it finishes at sea level. My thought was if you're coming down the side of a mountain, it's going to propel you forward fast. I was like, "I got this." Come through, I run exactly 3:05 again, and this time like point nine seconds. Even just a little faster again but not fast enough to get into the Boston Marathon.It was the first time I had come through the finish line of a race in all my years of running and I crossed the line and I just burst into tears. One, my body was hurting. Two, I felt like not only did I let down these kids at the shelter, but all of the people that I was promoting this campaign to online saying let's get as many people out to the Boston Marathon to show our stand of solidarity, to show that we won't be intimidated by these acts of terrorism on our sport. Now, the guy who was leading this campaign isn't able to participate in the race. You can imagine what that felt like for me.I got back to the shelter and I was talking to the kids and I said, "I've tried everything I can to try to get into the Boston Marathon, I can't do it. What do you guys think if I just fly out to Boston anyway? I print free hugs on a t-shirt and I just go and try to hug as many people as possible. Just to show them we're not going to allow hate to divide us. Just to remind people how important love is and how much we need to come together.”If you've ever met some of these kids out here that live in the homeless shelters or even some of these kids from the hood, they're very doubtful of any of that love stuff. So they're looking at me with the side eye and right away they're like, "Ken, that's the stupidest idea we ever heard of. Who is going to hug some random brother in Boston? Boston of all places? You're not going to get any hugs. You're wasting your time."So, I let their doubt set into my head but I had already purchased this flight because I was so sure that I was going to qualify to get to Boston. I booked a hotel room, flight, everything. Thinking I'm going to run it. I'm going, no matter what.I stopped by the mall, I grabbed a black t-shirt, I went to one of those on the spot printers. They printed the free hugs on the t-shirt and I flew out to Boston. As I was on the plane and I was really thinking about this idea. Okay, where do I stand? How do I do it? How do I initiate that first hug? IS anyone even going to hug me? All this doubt really started to take over and I was like this isn't going to go well.I got there, I set up on the race course, I was probably about mid way because. I said mid way might be the sweet spot where I get people where they are still kind of excited but the pain is just starting to set in so they could use a hug at that point.When I got there, on course, it was like the first wave of maybe a dozen people or so just blew right past me as I'm holding this sign and I set up a camera. They just blew right past me. I was like this is going to be a rough day. When the first guy came into get that hug, it changed everything.That broke the ice. Once he took that first hug, nonstop. Thousands of people.Young, old, men, women. People that stuck around and shared words of encouragement with me, people that said how much this is needed, what it meant to them, people who would just come in and hug me and just cry on shoulders. People that would just say keep this up, the world needs so much more of this.I went from going there with all of this doubt to my heart exploding while I'm out there. Just imagine what it's like being a kid who grew up the way that I grew up to where now you just have this outpouring of thousands of strangers just coming in and hugging you. I'm talking about real hugs. Some people who would pick me up and run a few paces with me. Some people that would just really stay there and hang on and talk. It was really special.Jeff: This was a gift that you were giving but you were receiving it, too.Ken: That's what's so cool about hugs. People don't realize. It's not possible to give a hug without receiving a hug. I wish that more people would take up on that offer when you're offering hugs. It's helping you, too.Jeff: The experience coming out of the Boston Marathon kind of set you off on a whole path.Ken: Yes.Jeff: That was at first about going to more races and more sporting events, is that right?Ken: Mm-hmm.Jeff: But then eventually, that morphed into something else. What was that inflection point?Ken: I was going to a number of different races for a while and that was where this work had started to feel a little flat because I realized I'm always around happy people. That really set in to mind when I was at the Disneyland half marathon and I was giving hugs there and it was that light bulb goes off. You're at what's called the happiest place on earth giving hugs to try to make people happy. I was like, this isn't my place. This isn't where I'm supposed to be. Especially, it was at the time when Treyvon Martin had just been shot by George Zimmerman, there were a number of similar incidents like that that had taken place. The Michael Brown shooting. My heart just started to get really heavy at that time seeing all of this death and destruction and riots and protests starting to unfold.I felt like if anywhere needs hugs or dialogue around unity and inclusion and civility, it would be those places. I knew that showing up at these running races and giving people hugs, that's not the best use of what I felt were some of my talents or my abilities to bring people together. So, around that time, I started making some YouTube videos in my studio, just sharing with people how important it is that we come together. An agent out of Connecticut had picked me up to start speaking at schools about that similar message. I Started traveling around to these schools and I started going to riots and protests and I was in South Carolina one night, I was giving a lecture at the University there and then the riots unfolded in North Carolina and I remember coming out of that talk and as we got out into the lobby, all of these kids were glued to the TV watching what was happening in North Carolina.I said, "How far are we from there?" They said, "It would probably take you about 30 minutes to get there, maybe 30 minutes to an hour." I remember just jamming out of the school as quick as possible and rushed out to North Carolina. As soon as I showed up there, it was already a really chaotic scene. All of this tear gas and pepper spray in the air, the police were shooting those flash bang devices that sound like gun shots. As I'm running in, there is tons of people running out. Even people saying, "Yo, don't go in there. It's bad. It's bad." I knew that's where I need to be. Where people are going to be hurting and where I could lend a hand.As I get in there, right away tying a covering over your face because all of the gas that was in the air so you just start choking immediately. People had already started breaking into some of the buildings downtown. I remember seeing as they had broken into the art gallery. They were taking art off the wall. I was like, this is starting to seem like LA in 92 all over again. But, in LA in 92, I was a boy and there wasn't really much that I could have done as this 11 year old kid watching the riots all around me and wanting there to be peace. Now, as an adult, I have a voice now. I can try to figure out what I can do to help in this situation.As I'm seeing all of that chaos unfold, right away I start talking to some of the protestors and letting them know, "Hey man, you don't want to do this. You guys that are busting up cars." They are jumping on top of cars and crushing them from the top. I saw some guys just walking around with hammers and they are walking up to police cars and just banging out the windows. Some of the hotel workers that were in that hotel were all hiding behind the reception desk as there was a line of protestors just throwing rocks and bricks into the hotel trying to hit them. Some of them were laughing about it. I'm like, "What good is this going to solve? If anything all of the media cameras that are down here are filming all of this and it makes you guys look bad. It's not going to create any change at all."As I'm having that conversation with some of the protestors, you start to form a crowd around you because people are like what's this guy talking about? That crowd started to get bigger as I'm walking and talking with them. Then things took a really interesting turn as we were walking by a line of riot police and the largest cop that's in the crowd, here is this, this giant six foot something and not like six foot one like me. I think this cop was probably, Chris might be six nine or so. Giant guy. In his riot gear. White guy. In North Carolina and he says, "Hey man, do I get one of those hugs?" I was like oh man. Here I am with all of these protestors who I've got to stand down. They are not crushing cars or running into the buildings and a lot of these protestors, being black, some of them Latino, all of them are looking like what's he going to do? Is he really going to go and hug this cop?I was super nervous at the time. My heart is racing. At first, I want to be sure is that even what he said? I don't want to walk up on this line of police and get tazed or shot in front of this whole crowd. So I was like, "What did you say?" And he said, "Do I get a hug? Come here. Bring it in." I was like, damn. He really did say that. I go over toward their line and I hug this cop. Sure enough, before I can even turn around from coming out of that hug, these protestors who were in agreement with me and I had gotten to stand down, they're now picking up those same bricks and bottles that they were throwing at the police officers and now they're cursing at me, they're calling me all sorts of stuff. A coon. An uncle Tom. Way even worse stuff than that before I could even turn around.They're like come over here, come over here. At that moment you go into flight or fight mode. I'm like I'm definitely not going to fight this mob but I'm still really fast, I could just run away really quick. But you've got all these news cameras around and one thing I have always known is when you run away from a fight like that, you're probably going to get chased. I knew in this moment, I'm thinking I have to really defend the message that I came here with. I'm thinking what would someone like Doctor Martin Luther King do in a situation like this when he is trying to create peace in a really volatile situation? Do you back off and do you allow chaos to win or do you stand your ground for what your message is?Rather than running off, instead I approached these protestors and it was almost like fear went out the window in that moment because now I became more purpose driven. Here's my purpose. Here's my message in being here. I didn't even think about what could have happened as a number of them already had rocks and bricks in their hands because they were throwing them into buildings, they were throwing them at the police. I didn't have on any armor. I literally just had on just as you see me right now. A black t-shirt.Rather than running away I start walking in toward them and letting them know why it's important for us to see each other as human beings and how change was going to come about. Change wasn't going to come about by us destroying that area. I was letting them know, I'm not even from here but I know what happens if you guys allow this to escalate in your city. I watched what happened when LA allowed it to escalate and when the police eventually retreated and allowed the city to run things on their own. There was well over 50 deaths that happened here in LA at that time. The countless amounts of fires, people who lost their businesses. At that moment, I'm trying to explain to them, that's what the future could be if you allow things to just go on as they are. You guys are going to destroy your own community. You will suffer because of that. Part of why I suffered as a child, it made it very hard for my mom. We were living right in that area so when everything got burned down, there's no work.There's people who have very little that are going to suffer the most. You're not going to hurt the rich people or the police or who you felt were your oppressor. You're going to hurt your own self. That conversation really got through to people and helped deescalate some of the tension that was there that night. I felt like that was a real turning point for the work that I was doing. Here I was, before, showing up giving hugs at a race and now, in that moment, saying in the middle of a riot, you created thinking points for people.Jeff: You became a first responder who was helping with conflict resolution but in a completely new and different way. You brought that to just countless and countless situations. I believe you went to Charlottesville.Ken: Which was probably one of the most scary or traumatic situations I was in was in Charlottesville.Jeff: Yeah. You've given a lot of people hugs that some of which you probably don't share their values and that you disagree with and don't represent a great morality. White supremacists. Homophobes. Misogynists. All along the spectrum. I guess one of my questions would be for you is is there anyone that is not deserved of a hug?Ken: Wow. Great question. I think even the people that you think wouldn't deserve a hug probably got that way because they didn't receive hugs. They didn't feel a strong personal connection to anyone. I feel like that's what's causing so much hatred today. That's what's causing so much division and stress and mental health issues for a lot of people is when they feel they're alone or isolated.Isolation has driven so many people to suicide. When a person feels like they're not loved, then what's the point in living? When you feel that way it makes it easier to hurt people because you don't care about yourself so then you don't care about other people either. When I'm out on this mission, it's because I wholeheartedly believe it. I truly believe that we can change the world through positive interaction. Even if it's not a hug. Let it be dialogue. Let it be just reaching across the aisle to interact with people that you might feel aren't deserving of it. People that you think are different than you. People with different belief systems. It' through that that we find common ground.There's been people that I felt like there's no way I'm going to get along with this person and then find out that we have a similar taste in music or that we like the same sports or activities. Whatever our beliefs are that we felt divided us, when you can build your friendship on that one thing that you can stand on and tune out some of the sometimes trivial differences, that's where change happens.I don't think that there's anyone that's undeserving of a hug. Sure, there's people that probably none of us want to hug but knowing that somebody, the right person hugging them, it can change their life and the person that's hugging them as well.Jeff: Yeah. It takes a rare individual to find that kind of compassion and God bless you for all of the work that you're doing.Ken: Thank you.Jeff: Thank you for doing this interview.Ken: Appreciate it. Thank you..

I would live in a world where Donald Trump reigns as the president of the United States, but I would love to live in a world where I believed in the rosy picture of his successes. I would love to believe that the things he brags about are true. I would love to believe that the stock market is genuinely what he says it is, that the economic numbers are really what they say they are and not fudged, and overall that everything is as great as he says it is. But, I don’t believe and I take everything with a grain of salt. Why?, because he changes and put everybody in the places that he wants to tout his success- his people, not impartial people who would do their best to give an accurate read on things- and its easy to get the feeling that he would say anything that he wants them to say- and if they don’t comply, then they are out. Am I saying that these people are liars and that I have proof of this?- no, I am not saying that I have proof, I am saying that I simply don’t believe that the stuff that they are giving out to be true. This is a speculative question, and I am stating that this to be what I believe- never forget that Donald Trump himself, before getting into office said the same thing that I am saying about him, - about Barack Obama’s economy. He speculated that let me explain a little bit, why I think like I do. Obama’s administration was fudging the numbers. I also believe that the next administration to come in will find out that at least half of what I believe to be true. Still,Let's look and absorb some situation, and you will make of it what you willTRUMP: Janet Yellen should be ‘ashamed’ of what she’s doing to the countryGOP presidential nominee Donald Trump told CNBC on Monday the Federal Reserve is doing what President Barack Obama wants by keeping interest rates low.Fed Chair Janet Yellen and central bank policymakers are very political, and Yellen should be “ashamed” of what she’s doing to the country, Trump said, adding the Fed is not even close to being independent.By keeping interest rates low, the Fed has created a “false stock market,” Trump argued in a wide-ranging interview in which he also talked about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s health problems.Trump said rates are being kept lower to bolster Obama’s legacy. “Any increase at all will be a very, very small increase because they want to keep the market up so Obama goes out and let the new guy ... raise interest rates ... and watch what happens in the stock market.”Doubting whether rates would change while Obama remains in office, Trump said: ”[Obama] wants to go out. He wants to play golf for the rest of this life. And he doesn’t care what’s going to happen after January.”In response to Trump’s charges about politics influencing the central bank, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari told CNBC in a separate interview on Monday there’s no truth to that notion.American savers are the worst hit by the Fed’s easy monetary policies, Trump said. “The ones who did it right — they saved their money [and] they cut down on their mortgages, ... and now they’re practically getting zero interest on the money.”Ariel Investments Vice Chairman Charles Bobrinskoy told CNBC the Fed deserves to be criticized for missing opportunities to raise interest rates and for hurting savers and pension plans. But he said it is “dangerous” and “not healthy” for Trump to question the Fed’s integrity.“I don’t think Janet Yellen is making her decisions based on trying to help Obama or Clinton. I think they have a view that the world economy is weak enough that it’s not a great time to raise rates. I don’t happen to share that view, but I don’t think this is political,” he told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Monday.As a real estate businessman, Trump said: “I love low-interest rates,” but for the good of the nation, rates should be higher.“If I refinance something, I can get money for almost nothing,” Trump said. But knocking Obama for the national debt going to $19.5 trillion under his watch, Trump said the debt needs to be reduced because higher rates would make interest payments exorbitant.“These crazy, low-interest rates, they’re not always going to be this way ... because of market [conditions],” he said.Janet Yellen - Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janet_YellenJanet Louise Yellen (born August 13, 1946) is an American economist at the Brookings Institution who served as the Chair of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018, and as Vice Chair from 2010 to 2014.Political party‎: ‎DemocraticDeputy‎: ‎Stanley FischerNationality‎: ‎AmericanEducation‎: ‎Brown University‎ (‎BA‎); ‎Yale Univer...‎Early life and education · ‎Career · ‎Economic philosophy · ‎Honors and awardsAnd I quote:Janet Yellen, the first woman Fed chair, proved the skeptics wrong and got fired anywayShe’s about to be replaced by a still qualified, but less qualified, man.By Emily Stewart Jan 24, 2018, 1:30 pm ESTOn February 3, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, the first woman to lead the central bank and likely the most qualified nominee ever for the post, will exit the Fed, leaving a legacy described as “near perfection” and with an “A” grade from a majority of economists.And yet in 2014, the US Senate confirmed Yellen by a vote of 56-26, the lowest number of “yes” votes a confirmed Fed chair has ever received.The economy under Yellen hasn’t been flawless — wage growth and inflation have remained sluggish — but generally, she’s done her job exceptionally well. She has overseen the biggest drop in unemployment of any Fed chair in modern history and the stock market’s continued rise, helped steer the continued economic recovery, and guided the return to pre-crisis policy.“If we judge the Fed by its capacity and its performance in hitting the mandates or the objectives that Congress gives it — price stability, maximizing employment — the record of the economy under her chair has been just shy of stellar,” said Sarah Binder, an expert on Congress at the Brookings Institution and George Washington University.President Donald Trump could have renominated Yellen for the spot — it is a norm for presidents to renominate Fed chairs picked by their predecessors — but instead, he passed her up for a still qualified, but less qualified, man. The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Jerome Powell as the next chair of the Federal Reserve by an 84-13 vote. Powell was appointed to the Federal Reserve’s board of governors by President Barack Obama in 2012.“Janet Yellen: Leading economics scholar; former CEA chair, former SF Fed President & Fed Vice Chair: 56-26. Jay Powell: Not an economist; investment banking & private equity experience: 84-13,” observed University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers on Twitter. “Explain the difference.”Justin Wolfers@JustinWolfersGuys, it's time for some Senate confirmation history:* Janet Yellen: Leading economics scholar; former CEA chair; former SF Fed President & Fed Vice Chair: 56-26* Jay Powell: Not an economist; investment banking & private equity experience: 84-13.Explain the difference.2,332Guys, it's time for some Senate confirmation history:* Janet Yellen: Leading economics scholar; former CEA chair; former SF Fed President & Fed Vice Chair: 56-26* Jay Powell: Not an economist; investment banking & private equity experience: 84-13.Explain the difference.— Justin Wolfers (@JustinWolfers) January 24, 2018Twitter Ads info and privacyGuys, it's time for some Senate confirmation history:* Janet Yellen: Leading economics scholar; former CEA chair; former SF Fed President & Fed Vice Chair: 56-26* Jay Powell: Not an economist; investment banking & private equity experience: 84-13.Explain the difference.— Justin Wolfers (@JustinWolfers) January 24, 2018“Yellen is the only Fed Chair not to be reappointed in the last 39 years,” noted Washington Post columnist Matt O’Brien. “This will never stop being absurd.”Matt O'Brien✔@ObsoleteDogmaYellen is the only Fed Chair not to be reappointed in the last 39 years.This will never stop being absurd.Ben White✔@morningmoneybenThe Yellen record is basically: Strong equity markets, strong economy, low inflation, smooth transition to policy normalization. A short tenure but a highly successful one. We owe her thanks.— Ben White (@morningmoneyben) January 23, 20181,608Yellen is the only Fed Chair not to be reappointed in the last 39 years.This will never stop being absurd. https://t.co/Ko4mIkuZXt— Matt O'Brien (@ObsoleteDogma) January 24, 2018A quick refresher on Yellen and the FedThe Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States. One of its main responsibilities is managing interest rates and influencing the availability and cost of credit in the American economy. It sets the “federal funds rate” — the interest rate banks charge one another for overnight loans — and can adjust the rate to sway the economy.The bank has a “dual mandate,” a set of goals it is supposed to achieve: maximizing employment and stabilizing prices for goods and services. In practice, that means the Fed tries to keep the unemployment rate low and targets an inflation rate of 2 percent.President Obama appointed Yellen, succeeding Ben Bernanke, who was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2006 and renominated by Obama in 2010. She arrived at a time when the Fed was still trying to steer the US economy past the financial crisis. The central bank, under Bernanke, had dropped interest rates to 0 percent and implemented a tactic known as “quantitative easing,” an unconventional approach of buying government bonds and mortgage-related securities, in an effort to inject money into the economy and speed up the recovery.Yellen oversaw the end of US quantitative easing in 2014.In monetary policy terms, Yellen is considered to be dovish — meaning she prefers looser policies, such as low-interest rates, that are meant to stimulate economic growth. (That’s opposed to hawks, who are more concerned about inflation and therefore inclined to increase interest rates.)Powell, the next Fed chair, is thought to be dovish as well and is expected to continue many of Yellen’s policies. “On monetary policy, it’s hard to find a lot of daylight between them,” Binder said.Yellen has had multiple detractors. She’s proven them all wrong.Not only has Yellen had to face economic headwinds as Fed chair, but she’s faced political backlash as well. Though the Federal Reserve is meant to be an apolitical body, observers’ attacks on Yellen have been anything but.Sam Bell, a Fed watcher and research adviser at Fed Up, a campaign to encourage the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low, in a series of tweets on Tuesday laid out what various Republican lawmakers said about Yellen — again, probably the most qualified Fed chair nominee ever — when Obama nominated her in 2013. (Only Republicans voted against her.)Yellen served on the Federal Reserve’s board of governors during the 1990s and was chair of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Bill Clinton. She served as president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco from 2004 to 2010 and became the Federal Reserve’s vice chair in 2010, ascending to chair in 2014.Sam Bell@sam_a_bellJerome Powell will be confirmed as Fed Chair in 10 minutes. Let's take a walk down memory lane and remember what senators said about Yellen 4 years ago. As Victoria notes, no Fed Chair has ever gotten fewer votes for confirmation. (Thread)Victoria Guida✔@vtg2I was curious whether Powell would make it to 90 yes votes. Ultimately 84 senators voted to move him closer to final confirmation. Much higher than the 56 votes Yellen got in 2014.— Victoria Guida (@vtg2) January 23, 20182,385Jerome Powell will be confirmed as Fed Chair in 10 minutes. Let's take a walk down memory lane and remember what senators said about Yellen 4 years ago. As Victoria notes, no Fed Chair has ever gotten fewer votes for confirmation. (Thread) https://t.co/bzLfsSOJME— Sam Bell (@sam_a_bell) January 23, 2018Twitter Ads info and privacyJerome Powell will be confirmed as Fed Chair in 10 minutes. Let's take a walk down memory lane and remember what senators said about Yellen 4 years ago. As Victoria notes, no Fed Chair has ever gotten fewer votes for confirmation. (Thread) https://t.co/bzLfsSOJME— Sam Bell (@sam_a_bell) January 23, 2018Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) warned that Yellen at the helm of the Fed would continue the policies of her predecessor, Bush appointee Bernanke, and exacerbate “the danger of a dramatic spike in interest rates, unsustainable asset bubbles, and job-killing inflation.” Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said he voted against her because of her support for monetary policies that “threaten the short and long-term prospects of strong economic growth and job creation.”And the criticism continued past Yellen’s confirmation, despite what appears to have been a largely successful run.Marvin Goodfriend, one of President Trump’s nominees for the Federal Reserve’s board, in 2015 said that “leadership at the Fed is very, very poor, to say the least.” Trump on the campaign trail often criticized Yellen, saying at a September 2016 debate with Hillary Clinton that the Fed was doing “political things” and keeping interest rates artificially low to prop up the economy.Despite the attacks against her, Yellen has accomplished her mission. Unemployment is at 4.1 percent, and if it stays there, Yellen will complete her time (which ends on February 3) at the Fed with the lowest final rate of any Fed chair since 1970. The current inflation rate is hovering right around the Fed’s 2 percent target. US economic growth is picking up.“And what did she get for it? Withering criticism for 4 years,” Bell wrote.Sam Bell@sam_a_bell·And what did she get for it? Withering criticism for 4 years. And then when her work was done -- when she achieved the holy grail (4% unemployment, 2% inflation) she was kicked to the curb. 1st time a Fed Chair completed a 1st term and wasn't renominated in modern Fed history.— Sam Bell (@sam_a_bell) January 23, 2018Sam Bell@sam_a_bellJerome Powell is a nice guy. And from the transcripts, he is remarkably open to new information. But he knows about 1/1000th of what Yellen knows on monetary policy. He's a blank slate. The principal thing he has going for him -- he says he will continue Yellen's policy!1,080Jerome Powell is a nice guy. And from the transcripts he is remarkably open to new information. But he knows about 1/1000th of what Yellen knows on monetary policy. He's a blank slate. The principal thing he has going for him -- he says he will continue Yellen's policy!— Sam Bell (@sam_a_bell) January 23, 2018Twitter Ads info and privacyJerome Powell is a nice guy. And from the transcripts he is remarkably open to new information. But he knows about 1/1000th of what Yellen knows on monetary policy. He's a blank slate. The principal thing he has going for him -- he says he will continue Yellen's policy!— Sam Bell (@sam_a_bell) January 23, 2018On Tuesday and Wednesday, praise for Yellen and the hashtag #ThanksYellen began to pop up on Twitter.I think we should judge Fed chairs more often on how well they fulfill the dual mandate.Reasonably measured, I think there's a solid case for Janet Yellen as the greatest of all time. The Michael Jordan of Fed chairs, if you will.— Alan Cole (@AlanMCole) January 24, 2018Humblebrag: I was the only reporter to step out of my role briefly at the Dec press conference and #Thanks, Yellen. Her courage improved the lives of millions of Americans, including members of my family— Craig Torres (@ctorresreporter) January 24, 2018But despite her success, Yellen is now on her way out. “It’s hard to know what to make of it, except to say that the type of partisanship that we’ve seen elsewhere in Washington, certainly over the Obama years and before, that the intensity of partisan allegiance, even for President Trump, has seeped its way into the Fed,” Binder saidHere, Yellen fights back:Janet Yellen says Trump has a ‘lack of understanding’ of Fed policies and the economyFormer Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen has taken plenty of hits from President Donald Trump. Now she’s delivering a few of her own.In a radio interview Monday, the ex-central bank chief questioned Trump’s comprehension of monetary policy as well as his understanding of basic economics.Asked if she thinks the president “has a grasp of economic policy,” Yellen flatly responded, “No, I do not.”“Well, I doubt that he would even be able to say that the Fed’s goals are maximum employment and price stability, which is the goals that Congress have assigned to the Fed,” she added in the interview with American Public Media’s “Marketplace. ” “He’s made comments about the Fed having an exchange-rate objective in order to support his trade plans, or possibly targeting the U.S. balance of trade. And, you know, I think comments like that shows a lack of understanding of the iwith Trump by not saying much of anything.When he campaigned for president in 2016, Trump said Yellen should be “ashamed” of her handling of monetary policy, accusing her of keeping interested rates artificially low to boost the fortunes of former president Barack Obama, who appointed Yellen as chair.Though Trump softened his tone somewhat after he took office, he decided against reappointing her, making her the first Fed chair not to get a second four-year term since the Jimmy Carter administration.Yellen had little to say, though, about not getting the reappointment, and went on to join her predecessor, Ben Bernanke, as a fellow at the Brookings Institution. She also is the incoming president of the American Economic Association.When it comes to economics, she said Monday that Trump misunderstands some fairly elementary concepts, citing his stance on reducing trade deficits with China and other global partners.“And when I continually hear focus by the president and some of his advisers on remedying bilateral trade deficits with other trade partners, I think almost any economist would tell you that there’s no real meaning to bilateral trade deficits, and it’s not an appropriate objective of policy,” she said.Yellen is not alone in getting skewered by Trump.Her successor, Jerome Powell, has come under intense criticism for raising interest rates, and there was even speculation that Trump might replace him.Yellen said Trump’s pressure on what is supposed to be an independent Fed isn’t healthy.“President Trump’s comments about Chair Powell and about the Fed do concern me because if that becomes concerted, I think it does have the impact, especially if conditions in the U.S. for any reason were to deteriorate, it could undermine confidence in the Fed,” she said. “And I think that that would be a bad thing.”Now an argument can be made that Trump replaced her because she was a Democrat and he wanted a Republican in that position, but, he is also attacking Powell who has put in that position, and wants to replace him. Here is Powell’s take on this:Fed Chair Powell: ‘The law is clear,’ Trump can’t fire meFederal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in an interview aired Sunday that he does not think he can be fired by President Donald Trump.While continuing to avoid direct comment on the president’s withering criticism of central bank interest rate policy, Powell told CBS’ “60 Minutes” that Trump can’t remove him from office.“The law is clear that I have a four-year term, and I fully intend to serve it,” Powell told the news magazine show. Asked directly if he thought Trump could fire him, he said, “no.”A series of interest rate hikes in 2018 drew the president’s wrath, even though he nominated Powell to the Fed position after choosing not to put up former Chair Janet Yellen for a second term. The Fed under Powell unanimously approved four rate hikes in 2018, continuing a move toward policy normalization that Yellen began in December 2015. Trump has said the rate hikes are the biggest threat to U.S. growth.WATCH: Justin Wolfers: the Biggest risk to a strong U.S. economy is TrumpWATCH NOWVIDEO04:25Justin Wolfers: the Biggest risk to a strong U.S. economy is Trump in the White HouseDuring that period, the U.S. saw its best economic gains in a recovery that began in mid-2009. GDP rose nearly 3 percent for the year, though most economists see that cooling off in the years ahead.In that regard, Powell reiterated the Fed’s recently stated position that it can be patient when it comes to the future path of the policy as it watches the incoming data. Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report indicated a gain of just 20,000, helping to ratify concerns that the first quarter will show little if any, economic growth.Powell said that the Fed, while likely on hold for a while, will be making its policy decisions based on the data and not on political considerations.“We are directed to execute policy in a strictly non-political way, serving all Americans, and that’s what we do,” he said. “We are independent in that sense.”Powell told “60 Minutes” anchor Scott Pelley that he thinks the economy is still strong, though he acknowledged that weakness around the world could start to hit the U.S.“I would say there’s no reason why this economy cannot continue to expand,” he said.Here is another one Trump wanted to put in position:UPDATE 5-Moore, under fire, withdraws from a bid for Fed postMay 2 (Reuters) - Economic commentator Stephen Moore has withdrawn from consideration for a seat on the U.S. Federal Reserve Board after weeks of criticism about his political partisanship, shifting views on interest rate policy, and sexist comments about women.“Steve Moore, a great pro-growth economist, and a truly fine person has decided to withdraw from the Fed process,” President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter on Thursday. “Steve won the battle of ideas including Tax Cuts ... and deregulation which have produced non-inflationary prosperity for all Americans. I've asked Steve to work with me toward future economic growth in our Country.”Earlier Thursday, Moore had told Bloomberg TV that he was “all in” and that he expected to be nominated within three weeks.Moore, 59, was picked by Trump in March to fill one of two vacant positions at the Fed but had not been formally nominated. Trump’s other pick for the Fed, businessman Herman Cain, withdrew from consideration in mid-April after lawmakers expressed discomfort with the sexual harassment allegations that short-circuited Cain’s presidential bid in 2012. Cain has denied those allegations.Moore, for his part, has said his comments about women were meant as humor. On Thursday, U.S. Senator Pat Toomey agreed and said he was “inclined to support” Moore’s nomination.But in a letter of resignation and in an interview on Fox Business Network, Moore said the toll the scrutiny was taking on his family made continuing the process untenable.At the Fed, Moore would have had a permanent vote on setting interest rates for at least five years and as many as 11 years, depending on which of two vacant posts he would have occupied.Moore’s loyalty to Trump worried some lawmakers, concerned that his partisanship could threaten the Fed’s independence, seen as critical to the U.S. central bank’s ability to conduct policy effectively. Moore has worked with Trump since early in his 2016 campaign for president, and in interviews in recent weeks has tied the U.S. economy’s prospects directly to whether Trump is re-elected.Over the years, Moore said less about monetary policy than fiscal policy, and his views have been less consistent. As recently as September 2015 he called for eliminating the U.S. central bank and removing then-Fed Chair Janet Yellen, who he said was keeping money too easy.More recently, Moore called for the firing of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell after the central bank raised interest rates in December and, like Trump, he has called for rate cuts this year.Democrats hailed his withdrawal.“The only thing less funny than some of Mr. Moores tasteless, offensive, sexist jokes was the idea that President Trump would even consider him for a seat on the Federal Reserve,” said Senator Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in an upper chamber.There are many people who were fired by Trump, and as we found out recently some for the simple reason that they would not do his bidding. and over this very weekend, he spent quite a bit of time rage twitting about Don Mc Gahn and Christopher WrayTrump Implicates his Hand-Picked FBI Director in Democratic CoupBY TODD NEIKIRK May 13, 2019When Donald Trump famously fired Jim Comey as FBI Director, he chose to install Christopher Wray in his place. Wray had previously served as the Assistant Attorney General under previous President, George W. Bush.Photo by Win McNamee/Getty ImagesWray has earned the ire of the President by agreeing with the intelligence assessment that Russia meddled in the 2016 election. On Sunday night, Trump tweeted that his own nominee, Wray is a toady and the FBI has no leadership.The president wrote, “Just another abuse of power in a long series of abuses of power by the Democrats that began during the Obama Administration, continued through the Mueller FBI operation, & now the baton has been passed to Jerry Nadler to continue to abuse power to harass President Trump.”He then implicated his FBI Director in the apparent scheme, “and the Democrat National Committee-The Democrat Party apparatus has been caught using donor Dollars to Collude with Russian Intelligence to attack a domestic political opponent (me). The FBI has no leadership. The Director is protecting the same gang…..that tried to….overthrow the president through an illegal coup.”Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump·“Just another abuse of power in a long series of abuses of power by the Democrats that began during the Obama Administration, continued through the Mueller FBI operation, & now the baton has been passed to Jerry Nadler to continue to abuse power to harass President Trump..— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019“Just another abuse of power in a long series of abuses of power by the Democrats that began during the Obama Administration, continued through the Mueller FBI operation, & now the baton has been passed to Jerry Nadler to continue to abuse power to harass President Trump..— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019“Just another abuse of power in a long series of abuses of power by the Democrats that began during the Obama Administration continued through the Mueller FBI operation, & now the baton has been passed to Jerry Nadler to continue to abuse power to harass President Trump.Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump....and the Democrat National Committee-The Democrat Party apparatus has been caught using donor Dollars to Collude with Russian Intelligence to attack a domestic political opponent (me). The FBI has no leadership. The Director is protecting the same gang.....that tried to...62.5K....and the Democrat National Committee-The Democrat Party apparatus-has been caught using donor Dollars to Collude with Russian Intelligence to attack a domestic political opponent (me). The FBI has no leadership. The Director is protecting the same gang.....that tried to....— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019Twitter Ads info and privacy....and the Democrat National Committee-The Democrat Party apparatus-has been caught using donor Dollars to Collude with Russian Intelligence to attack a domestic political opponent (me). The FBI has no leadership. The Director is protecting the same gang.....that tried to....— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019Many expect that Trump will soon fire the pragmatic FBI Director. Former Federal Prosecutor, Elliot Williams, said of Wray, “It’s just a matter of time before he’s out, too. It seems that individuals in the Justice Department at the highest levels who seem to state the facts and the law as they exist seem to not do well, as we saw with Jeff Sessions and on down, the White House counsel as well.”GOP in an Uproar as Donald Trump Jr. has Issued a SubpoenaBY SHANNON BARBER May 13, 2019The Senate Intelligence Committee has issued a subpoena for Donald Trump Jr. regarding the contents of the Mueller Report and the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The Senate Intelligence Committee is remarkably more bipartisan in its workings than the House Intelligence Committee, and therefore it is more feasible that this body would ask the president’s son to appear.(Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)There are Republicans in Congress who take issue with the subpoena. One such person is House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). Rep. McCarthy appeared on CBS’s Face the Nation and said:“Donald Trump Jr. has spent 27 hours already testifying. They’re requesting him back based upon something that [former Trump fixer Michael] Cohen has said when he is in jail for lying to Congress.”While McCarthy may have a point, it is also true that Michael Cohen was well aware that if he continued to lie to Congress his deal would be rendered null and void. He would then face a much tougher jail sentence. That is likely something that he was unwilling to risk.Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) is the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. He seems committed to fulfilling his Congressional duty to be a check on the Executive Branch. Therefore, he has no issue being a check on a president from his own party.Burr’s reasoning for the subpoena is reportedly the fact that there are inconsistencies between Trump Jr’s earlier testimony and the Mueller report.Whether this is true or not remains to be seen. It will also be interesting to see if the White House fights this subpoena.I started writing this and just realize that there are just too many examples of this to mention- I could be here all night. Donald Trump does nothing by accident, and what the does is geared to benefit himself and his family- they are untouchable in his estimation, and he would do anything to keep it that way. He puts people in place with the sole intention of them catering to him and saying the things that he wants them to do or say, and if they don’t, then they are replaced. Trump opens his mouth and the lies spew out- so how can I believe in the things that he says. And by the same token, people like William Barr proved that you have to take everything those who stick around him say should be taken with a grain of very fine salt. His son-in-law is in the very top ranking position that no member of Congress had to vote on, as a matter of fact, we were told that objections to Jared Kushner were over-ridden by the great man himself. What’s sad is that Trump is riding roughshod over everyone, nothing and no one seems able or has the desire to stop himSmoke and mirrors!