Welcome! Three people are dead after a news helicopter crashed while covering a fatal bus collision in LA.
📈 TODAY: The Federal Reserve is expected to announce a quarter-point rate hike. CNBC
👀 HEADLINE: Charlie Kirk’s Widow Says in Legal Claim University Failed to Protect Him - WSJ (free)
🏈 QUESTION: How much did your favorite college football team spend on its roster? - The Athletic (free)
🔥 MUST READ: Meet Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s handpicked super-woke globalists he thinks will save us from an AI apocalypse - NY Post
‼️ BUSTED: Alabama Senator Katie Britt is publicly praising Trump’s tariffs while privately asking for exemptions for businesses from her state, according to a FOIA request from the WSJ.
😂 LOL: Donald Trump said viewership for the GOP convention last week beat the NFL kickoff game. Now that we have the data, 3 million people watched the convention while 25 million watched the Patriots vs. Seahawks.
🇨🇳 CHINA: Xi Jinping health rumors swirl after Indian PM Modi ‘saw Chinese leader looking uncomfortable’ and interrupted speech to ask ‘is it ok?’ - Daily Mail
👂 The Show Notes is my blueprint for radio but is only for subscribers. You can subscribe and listen here.
“Meta delayed shipping Muse for several months to focus on safety and security. We didn't call for everyone else to do this before we would. We just did it as part of our day-to-day work because it was clearly the right thing for people and for us.”
Zuckerberg on X
**The cost of the Iran conflict is increasingly impacting consumers according to new data. **Soaring oil prices and higher interest rates have combined to push the average household’s monthly expenses up by more than $1,700, according to Moody’s Analytics.
Energy prices continue to hit fresh highs, while the 10-year Treasury yield has climbed to its highest level in more than 19 years, driving up borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans, and other consumer debt. Moody’s estimates the average household is now paying $1,760 more per month than before the conflict began—and warns those costs could climb further if energy markets remain under pressure.
The latest spike comes just days after the Houthis struck a key Saudi oil pipeline. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, however, sought to calm markets, telling CNBC the disruption is expected to be a “brief and temporary interruption” that should be measured in days rather than weeks.
Note the trend in gas prices:
More than two dozen members of Congress and governors told Axios they rarely, or never, use AI, even as Congress faces mounting pressure to regulate the technology.
The admissions came from lawmakers in both parties, including several who oversee committees with jurisdiction over AI. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said, “Heavens no,” when asked if he uses AI. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman James Risch (R-Idaho) said, “I do not personally use it,” while House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) acknowledged she needs a “primer on AI.” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said AI only appears when Google generates answers, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said it “pops up” on her phone, and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said his primary exposure has been AI-generated email summaries that “often get it wrong.” One Republican senator told Axios anonymously that the number of colleagues who regularly use AI is “not very high.”
Why this matters: Congressional leaders are shaping the policy and debate on AI without using or understanding the technology. As one House Democrat told Axios, “It’s fucking absurd… Anyone who’s overseeing this has to be someone who’s a regular user.”
Full story at Axios.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is tapping his formidable fundraising operation to transfer more than $3.6 million into the Democratic Party of Georgia’s coordinated campaign, an investment aimed not just at securing his own reelection but boosting Democrats up and down the ballot.
The spending, which the campaign disclosed for the first time Wednesday, was made over the past two years and offers some of the clearest evidence yet of how deeply Ossoff has invested in a state party operation that he helped overhaul ahead of the 2026 midterms.
He has also installed two longtime operatives in key roles. Kyle Tromley, a former Ossoff political director and veteran Democratic operative, was tapped in December to lead the coordinated campaign. Caroline Saudek, a six-year veteran of Ossoff’s fundraising operation, joined the state party in January to help raise money.
Full story at AJC (free).
The default rate for a group of US private debt borrowers rose to a record in August, according to
[Fitch Ratings].The trailing 12-month private credit default rate across 1,300 borrowers rose to 6.3% at the end of last month, surpassing the previous high of 6.1% in the prior month, said a
[report]released Monday. Fitch also recorded the highest monthly total of private credit default events in the past year.“Private credit defaults continued to rise in August, driven by maturity extension transactions that Fitch deems defaults, as uncertainty around rates and inflation has stifled deal flow making it difficult for sponsors to sell struggling portfolio companies ahead of loan maturities,”
said Lyle Margolis, Fitch’s head of private credit for North America.
Full story at Bloomberg (paywall).
A majority of Americans think artificial intelligence could someday destroy humanity.
The stunning new finding from The POLITICO Poll underscores the depth of people’s anxieties about the rapidly developing technology — and how quickly public sentiment around AI has hardened. Just a few months ago, AI was a nebulous concept for many Americans. Now, lawmakers in both parties are racing to understand how to control its growth.
Overall, about two out of three Americans say there is at least a “moderate” risk that advanced AI could destroy humanity, with majorities across parties, genders and age groups holding that view. Americans who voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024 are somewhat more likely to see such a risk (70%) than those who voted for President Donald Trump (60%).
Full story at Politico.
The most recent inflation data has made clear that prices are still rising, and far too quickly. But American business owners and policymakers are grappling with a thornier question: Are high energy costs a temporary nuisance to wait out, or a long-term economic reality that calls for price increases right now?
The answers have important implications for the U.S. economy.
This week, the Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates in an attempt to slow inflation. But much will also be determined by decision makers pulling their own economic levers. Some businesses are holding their ground, partly on the belief that external price shocks will calm down sooner rather than later. Others are convinced that high energy costs and trade-war volatility have become entrenched features of the economy, and say they no longer have the wiggle room to keep prices stable.
Full story at WSJ (free).
OpenAI investors have approached the company about a new funding round -
CNBCEU’s Ursula von der Leyen says she wants Canada to become an associate member -
NPRGod and Vance at Yale -
Vanity FairAmericans’ income hits record, but lower earners lose ground -
AxiosIran’s hidden leader stirs unease at home -
FTTrump administration orders Kalshi to scrap AI price tracker over national security concerns -
SEMAFORHouse Democrats seek to block data centers from federal tax breaks -
PoliticoWorld’s top-performing sovereign wealth fund warns of looming pullback in U.S. stock market -
CNBCZuckerberg Has an AI Empire to Build. Meet the Adviser Who Handles the Details -
Bloomberg(paywall)Joe Buck agrees to new ESPN deal worth in excess of $100 million: Sources
NYT / The Athletic
For years, I’ve warned about the dangers of big banks using the financial system to push political agendas. But thanks to Consumers’ Research and the Open Banking Rule, consumers have access to more competitive banking options than ever before. That’s why I’m proud to stand with Consumers’ Research as they fight to keep you in charge of your financial future, not big banks that discriminate against conservatives and crush competition. Learn more about their work here.
For years, my friends at the American Energy Institute sounded the alarm on the progressive war on affordable energy. But thanks to the Trump administration’s commitment to safe, reliable nuclear energy, America’s energy future is brighter than ever. That’s why I am partnering with my friends at American Energy Institute to drive economic prosperity through abundant, affordable, and reliable energy for everyone. Learn more about the bright future of American energy here.
