Stocks have continued the rapid plunge that began a few weeks ago: As of 11:34 a.m., the Dow Jones Industrial Average had fallen by 930 points, the Nasdaq had lost 230 points, and the S&P 500 had lost 87 points.

CNN Business said that traders have become perturbed by rising political risk in the United States, exacerbated by the recent death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg; as more matters get piled onto Congress's already considerable plate, they will likely interfere with efforts to pass another pandemic stimulus package before the election. Bloomberg noted that another driver was a recent report that major banks had allegedly engaged in money laundering, which Wall Street fears will raise their regulatory risk. In addition, new infection spikes in Europe  have raised concerns of another lockdown period and other restrictions. CNBC also noted that technology stocks, once the darling of the pandemic era, have seen stunning reversals, at least partially due to the upcoming ban on WeChat and TikTok, as well as recent fraud allegations at Nikola, whose claims of developing a self-driving truck are now being probed by the government.

Needless to say, today's market madness is likely a confluence of all these factors, leading to an overall terrible day for portfolios everywhere.