Good morning! It’s Thursday, March 13, 2025. In today’s newsletter:

• Democrats show willingness to fight over shutdown 💪

• The most important news right now — and why it’s important 🧐

• How you can be the smartest person in the room 🧠

• Is Donald wrecking the economy on purpose? 📉 

• Stories the algorithm may have kept out of your feed 👀

⏱️ Estimated read time: 5 minutes, 23 seconds

ABOUT DAMN TIME

Democrats grow some balls in government shutdown showdown

After the typical waffling, Senate Democrats announced Wednesday they won’t roll over and accept a Republican spending plan that would drastically cut public funding—making it much more likely the federal government is headed for a shutdown.

• The government will run out of money on Friday and be forced to shut down— unless lawmakers come to an agreement.

Democrats are pushing for a month-long agreement that would keep all federal spending at current levels while both sides negotiate a path forward.

THE DETAILS: House Republicans used their razor-thin majority to pass their current proposal, which is endorsed by Trump, on Tuesday.

• Their plan would gut funding for the National Institutes of Health and IRS enforcement—as well as blow a $1 billion hole in Washington, D.C.’s budget.

• It would also give Trump—and Musk—more leeway over government spending, with less Congressional oversight.

• And, Democrats say they weren’t consulted at all for what’s currently proposed, which could set a bad precedent.

Progressive lawmakers like AOC have been urging Americans to call Democratic senators to oppose this funding disaster.

BIG PICTURE: Washington insiders are saying it shows that Democrats are ready to play hardball on this shutdown showdown.

• It comes as an overwhelming majority of Democrats say their congresspeople should fight back against Trump and his neofascist agenda.

BUT BUT BUT: Republicans are attempting to blame Democrats for the potential shutdown.

• Democrats are betting that voters will blame Republicans, who control the White House and Congress, for any economic fallout.

The question now is whether GOP leadership will cave—or risk another Trump-induced shutdown.

📰 Most important stories right now

There’s a lot of sh*t out there. Here’s what’s actually important—and why.

DOGE is planning to cut Social Security’s phone services

Why it matters: If Elon Musk gets his way, Social Security will cut off 73 million elderly and disabled Americans ability to apply for or access Social Security benefits by phone—forcing them to either do it online or in person. Remember: Trump doesn’t need to cut Social Security benefits directly to effectively shut down America’s socialistic public pension program that Republicans have hated for decades. Full story from The Washington Post.

Mass firings at Department of Education gut civil rights office, leaving cases in limbo

Why it matters: Trump—a racist, white nationalist—has made no secret about his disdain for BIPOC people, and his administration is putting his hatred into action. This move will effectively cool threats to white supremacy embedded in the nation’s education system (that is, what little work was being done to remove it). Full story from the AP.

EPA launches attack on ‘holy grail’ of climate science — and dozens of enviro rules

Why it matters: This is what it’s really about folks. Donald Trump was elected by the ruling class to roll back any and all restraints on capital—no matter the consequences. And the consequences on this will be deadly. Full story from Politico.

WRECK IT DON

Is Trump wrecking the economy—on purpose?

As predicted, Trump’s tariffs have set off a trade war, sent Wall Street plummeting, and raised fears of a global economic meltdown.

But some Progressives are asking… did he do this on purpose?

WHERE THINGS STAND: Both Canada and the European Union—two of our closest allies—swiftly retaliated yesterday against Trump’s tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports to the U.S.

• Trump and his goons are out there saying that if a recession comes, it’s worth it—which should be comforting to the millions of people who will lose their jobs.

Trump has taken the economy from booming to the brink of a recession in only 20 days, and economists say that whether or not we actually enter a recession is entirely up to Trump.

THE THEORY: This massive, voluntary, and (seemingly) stupid trade war has some people asking, is Trump actually doing this on purpose? Consider the evidence:

• If a recession does come, the super wealthy stand to reap obscene rewards in the long term. That includes Trump’s core constituency (aside from brainwashed people)—and Trump himself.

Called “buying the dip”, in times of economic crisis, rich people can swoop in and buy distressed assets (like cheap stocks, foreclosed homes, or failing businesses) at a steep discount, hold them, and then sell them for a massive profit when the economy recovers.

BRIEF HISTORY: This is exactly what happened after the crashes of 2008 and 2020.

• When the housing market crashed in 2008, hedge funds and private equity firms like Blackstone swooped in and bought houses, profiting massively when home values recovered.

During the Covid crash, the wealthy did the same thing… but also benefited the most from massive government intervention.

• While ordinary Americans only got one-time stimulus checks, corporations and the ultra-rich got trillions in bailouts, low-interest loans, and stock market boosts from the Federal Reserve. They then used that cheap money to buy up distressed assets. Not to mention, many didn’t have to pay it back.

As a result, billionaire wealth skyrocketed during the pandemic, while the working class fell further behind.

THE VERDICT: If the economy truly tanks, it won’t be Trump or his billionaire allies who suffer—it will be working-class Americans who lose jobs, homes, and savings. Trump actually stands to profit off the chaos. So, is he doing it on purpose? You be the judge.

🗳️ Question of the day

Based on the evidence above, do you think Trump wrecking the economy on purpose? Tell us why or why not after you vote!

LAST WEEK’S QUESTION: On Tuesday we asked, do you think Democrats will get it together before the midterms? It split the room.

READERS WRITE: Kathryn voted yes and said: “For 2 reasons: 1) Many, if not most of the supporters of Democrats want to fight fire with fire, so if they want to keep their jobs, they need to start listening. 2) They have to get it together and fight back or we will lose everything we have fought for over the years.”

Anne also voted yes: “Dems have the support of more than 50% of the population. People are calling and protesting to protect our rights to live in a democracy. We will prevail as their circus continues its s...show.”

But others disagree. Edgar voted no and said: “The Democrats do not have a solid leader who can rally a nation towards progress. Currently, the Dems are too fragmented and messaging is too disconnected from the average voter. My hope is for reflection and a rise of a young, strong figure to unite the Democratic cause.”

Joanna said: “They want the benefits of office but don’t have the courage to fight for their citizens. They want to protect their office and position not stand up to a bully fascist. ”

👀 Under the Radar

Here are some stories the algorithm may have kept out of your feed.

• Just hours after Trump used the White House lawn as a Tesla showroom, reports of Elon Musk’s plans to donate a staggering amount of money to Trump emerged

• People zoomed into Trump's Tesla sales pitch and can't believe what they saw

• The first Trans rep in Congress had a brilliant response after being intentionally misgendered in a House hearing

• A new poll shows people are waking up: Americans are negative on Trump’s handling of the economy

• We’re asking the wrong questions about Columbia protester Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest

• Stephen Colbert gave a fiery defense of Khalil on his show last night

• Here’s the definitive list of 199 things you can’t say in the Trump administration as he desperately tries to purge the federal government of “woke”

• In a fully softball interview, Elon Musk looked like he was about to cry when asked about Tesla

• While Trump is banning essential care, Trans people are taking this drastic step

• A Black actress got “insane death threats” — after Elon Musk tweeted about her

• Our favorite comedian had some choice words for Elon on NPR

• USAID workers are now bring told to shred and burn these documents

• Here’s which government agencies have been hit hardest by DOGE cuts — and how many people they’ve fired

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Thank you for reading! - Andrew & Anthony

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