Yesterday I headed west from the conference while my son Robbie headed south to the nCino nSight event. But while in Manhattan Dawn S. asked me, “How do you know if there’s a vegan at your party?” Answer: “They’ll tell you.” It’s not hard to find someone to tell you why the “Sell America” trade is rampant in the financial markets, impacting rates and borrowers, and reminding us that politics and lending are indeed entwined. The U.S. should curb its “ever-increasing” debt burden, said Gita Gopinath, First Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, in an interview with the Financial Times published Tuesday. Recall that Moody’s downgraded the U.S. credit rating due to rising government debt and interest payments, and as fiscal analysts raise concerns over Donald Trump’s proposal to extend and expand tax cuts. Gopinath noted that recent developments, including a truce on tariffs between the US and China and a US-UK trade agreement, are positive, but said “very elevated” trade policy uncertainty continues to affect the US economy. The IMF lowered its US growth forecast in April, citing trade tensions as a significant factor. The nation’s growing debt reflects a persistent imbalance between government spending and revenue, with no clear reversal in sight: regardless of party, no politician seems to be able to say no. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by Xactus and its commitment to the continued transformation of the mortgage verification industry. Pioneering a new class of technology, “Intelligent Verification,” Xactus is redefining how the industry originates and services mortgages. Today’s has an interview with Finance of America’s Ashley Smith and Ryan Schmidt on why reverse mortgages deserve more attention from the broader mortgage industry and what’s holding back adoption.)