Welcome! College football returns this week.
Also. Philip is out sick, so I’m doing this myself. Also, we should be talking about the sanctions on Iran, but we’ve got a trade war brewing with Canada. Wall Street expects TACO.
💵 Treasury may spend $1 trillion on bond buybacks. We are $40 trillion in debt.
🚫🥃🍸🚫 The FAA intends to ban pre-flight drinks on planes, not because of drunks, but because the plastic cups are suddenly an evacuation hazard.
🚨Economic Hell for Iran. I apologize and think the Secretary of the Treasury should probably not have placed this somewhere with such an aggressive paywall. But there’s some good substance in what Bessent plans.
Those who sever Iran’s remaining financial and commercial connectivity will reinvigorate their own. They will deepen their access to global capital, reinforce confidence in their markets and attain the standing they seek in the world economy. The alternative for those who tether themselves to Tehran is the foreclosure of any path to lasting prosperity. Illicit finance will flourish, as it so often does, where confidence has collapsed. And any nation that serves as a financial artery of a withering regime should expect to share in its isolation. To become a sanctuary for terror is to become, in the eyes of the United States, a global pariah.
**🇨🇳China Not Mentioned. **China is not mentioned by name, but China is all over this. In fact, this report from Reuters pushed out by the Treasury Department, goes there:
The Treasury in recent months has sanctioned independent Chinese “teapot” refineries for purchases of Iranian oil and expanded its targeting of the shadow fleet of tankers transporting Iranian oil.
A much more powerful tool is the authority to sanction banks in China and other countries that are facilitating transactions with Iran, a step that the Trump administration has so far been unwilling to take amid a delicate trade truce with Beijing.
🚨🚨Iran’s Divide. The civilian side of Iran’s leadership wants a deal. The military and Ayatollah do not.
🎼 It’s Who You Know. The President had the DOJ back off an antitrust investigation of LiveNation after their lawyers, who are the President’s lawyers, talked to the President.
California Ends Talks. The state thinks Paramount is leaking discussions about the state’s lawsuit over merging with Warner Brothers.
Must See Video. Abdul El-Sayed blames America for terrorism.
Related. CAIR is funding El-Sayed.
👂 The Show Notes is my blueprint for radio but is only for subscribers. You can subscribe and listen here.
The dirty little secret in Washington is that the GOP expects to lose the House. Hakeem Jeffries is preparing for that by meeting with Jared Kushner.
The private discussion comes less than three months before the
[midterms]. Democrats are aiming to take control of the House in the November elections, with Jeffries in line to possibly become the next House Speaker if they win the majority. It also comes as Republicans — led by Mr. Trump — have cast Democrats as the party of dangerous extremes.
[The New York Times]first reported the meeting, which took place in New York City and covered a broad range of topics and potential areas of common ground such as housing, immigration and cost of living. The White House and a Kushner spokesperson did not immediately respond to CBS News’ requests for comment.In a statement, Jeffries did not confirm the meeting but said Democrats will not tolerate Republicans’ “my-way-or-the-highway approach to governing that has failed the American people.”
The big problem for Jeffries is that much of the partisan Democrat base wants 100% obstruction and they’re furious with Jeffries for having the conversations. But the Speaker will be obligated to fund the government.
With 70 days to go until the midterms and the cost of living at the forefront of people’s minds, the President has decided to start a trade war with Canada. He expected the Canadians to roll over in negotiations and Canada did not.
US President Donald Trump pledged to double the automobile tariff on Canadian vehicles and parts starting next year, escalating the spiraling trade fight between the two economies.
Trump posted on Monday that “Tariffs on all Cars, Trucks, both large and small, Automotive Parts, and Steel” would rise to 50%, effective Jan. 1. The current auto rate is 25% but is applied only to non-US content. Imported steel already faces a 50% charge.
The latest tariff threat comes after negotiations between the US and Canada broke down Friday, which led to a
[50% levy]on billions of dollars worth of Canadian goods to take effect. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced a package of[retaliatory duties].
Canada’s Prime Minister is an actual economist, unlike many of those who whisper in Donald Trump’s ear, and what we miss is that antagonism for the United States is at an all time high in Canada across party lines. So a firm stance against us helps the Canadian PM.
The intensifying late-summer backlash against data centers is inspiring panic among some corners of the tech sector — amid fears that the industry is mishandling a political crisis that will stretch into 2028 and beyond.
Those worries have deepened in recent weeks as politicians across the political spectrum embraced various curbs on data center construction, with Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, potential Democratic White House hopeful Josh Shapiro and Michigan GOP Senate nominee Mike Rogers being among the latest to sign on.
Iranian state TV broadcasts video targeting Barron Trump with $10m bounty (
Euro News)Are ships passing Hormuz more willing to defy Iran or US? What data shows (
Al Jazeera)AIPAC Wants to Back This Republican, but He Has Some Reservations (
NY Times)Ted Cruz says Texas Senate race will be a “$200 million” fight (
CBS)Dems turning more GOP Senate strongholds into midterm battlegrounds (
Axios)AOC’s Craaazy Economic Theory Lives On (
WSJ)Kanter Freedom ejected after confrontation with Sky’s Cloud (
ESPN)The Former Local News Anchor in the Political Fight of Her Life (
WSJ)This democratic socialist has upset the party establishment. Here’s her strategy for Congress (
CNN)Five Non-Debt Problems That the U.S. Government Is Largely Ignoring (
NRO)Goldman Sachs partner warns of ‘huge danger’ in letting AI replace bankers’ reasoning skills (
CNBC)
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