On The Money: Mnuchin pulls out of Saudi summit | Consumer bureau to probe controversial blog posts on race | Harris proposes new middle-class tax credit

Happy Thursday and welcome back to On The Money, which is almost as valuable as the $900-million Mega Millions jackpot. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

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THE BIG DEAL–Mnuchin pulls out of Saudi conference: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced Thursday that he will pull out of a major economic conference being hosted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman next week in Riyadh, amid tension over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. 

“Just met with @realDonaldTrumpand @SecPompeo and we have decided, I will not be participating in the Future Investment Initiative summit in Saudi Arabia,” Mnuchin tweeted Thursday morning.

Mnuchin announced his decision after meeting with President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the latter of whom returned Wednesday from a trip to Saudi Arabia where he met with members of the royal family.

The decision for Mnuchin to skip the conference is the toughest signal the administration has given against Saudi Arabia and comes after nearly a week of speculation over whether he would go to Riyadh. 

He had come under pressure in recent days from Republican members of the Foreign Relations Committee to skip the conference after the disappearance of Khashoggi, a U.S.-based Saudi journalist who was a frequent contributor to The Washington Post.  Mnuchin’s decision came soon after the French and Dutch finance ministers withdrew from the summit. The Hill’s Alexander Bolton has more here.

The decision to skip the conference was just one of many signals from the administration on Thursday of a tougher stance on the Saudis. More on that here.

LEADING THE DAY

Harris rolls out bill to create new middle class tax credit: Let the pre-2020 platforming commence! Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) on Thursday rolled out a proposal to create a new refundable tax credit for low- and middle-income individuals and families — the latest economic policy proposal from the potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.

“Americans are working harder than ever but stagnant wages mean they can’t keep up with cost of living increases,” Harris said in a news release. “We should put money back into the pockets of American families to address rising costs of childcare, housing, tuition, and other expenses. Our tax code should reflect our values and instead of more tax breaks for the top 1% and corporations, we should be lifting up millions of American families.” The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda breaks it down here.

How it works:

• Families making up to $100,00 annually would be eligible to receive a tax credit of up to $6,000, with would decrease as a taxpayers’ income increases. Taxpayers could receive the credit either at the end of a year or in monthly installments over the course of a year.
• The bill would also increase funding for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, which helps low-income taxpayers prepare their tax returns.
• Harris proposes paying for the bill by repealing parts of President Trump’s tax-cut law that don’t provide saving money for taxpayers making under $100,000, and by imposing fees on financial institutions with assets of more than $50 billion. 

Consumer bureau to probe top Trump official’s past racial comments: The acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has asked internal government watchdogs to investigate the emergence of and response to writings by a top agency employee dismissing racial discrimination.

Acting CFPB chief Mick Mulvaney has asked the Federal Reserve inspector general office to probe the growing controversy over 14-year-old blog posts written by Eric Blankenstein, associate director of the Office of Supervision, Enforcement and Fair Lending.

The CFPB, housed within the Fed system, uses the central bank’s inspectors for internal probes. Mulvaney’s referral was first reported by Politico and the Associated Press, and a CFPB spokesman confirmed Mulvaney’s request to The Hill. I’ll tell you more here about where things stand at the bureau. 

GOOD TO KNOW

• Former top White House economic adviser Gary Cohn said Thursday that the Federal Reserve is right to be hiking interest rates and that President Trump should not criticize the independent central bank.
• Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is pushing the Federal Reserve to maintain severe penalties on Wells Fargo until president and CEO Timothy Sloan is replaced.
• China on Thursday said that it “regrets” the United States’ decision to withdraw from the United Nation’s treaty that regulates international postage.
• Banks on Thursday pushed back on a plan from regulators to simplify the “Volcker Rule” that prohibits them from trading on their own account, according to Reuters.
• Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan on Thursday said the U.S. labor market was the ‘tightest’ he’d ever seen it, but also noted that productivity growth remained low.

ODDS AND ENDS

• The growing consensus among Amazon watchers is that the place that checks the most boxes for its next headquarters is Northern Virginia, according to the New York Times.
• The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is launching a new division meant to help fintech startups – including those launching initial coin offerings (ICOs) – navigate federal law, according to CoinBase.
• Marijuana retailers across Canada have reportedly been experiencing shortages or running out of stock entirely just one day after the country moved to legalize the recreational sale of the drug.