Sunday October 19th

This week in America: The good news for Trump just keeps rolling in — tariffs are working, prices are dropping, and his critics are suddenly the ones in handcuffs.

Politics & Policy

Well, it turns out President Trump’s tariffs aren’t just ruffling feathers in Beijing — they’re reshaping aisles at Walmart. CEO Doug McMillon’s right-hand man just admitted nearly two-thirds of Walmart’s products are now “Made in the USA.” Translation: Trump’s trade play worked, and the left’s favorite corporate punching bag just became a patriotic supplier.

Meanwhile, former National Security Advisor John Bolton — remember him? The mustache that wrote a tell-all? — has been indicted for allegedly sending classified documents through his AOL email account. Yes, AOL. Because nothing says “national security” like “You’ve got mail!”

And in actual good news for normal Americans: Trump just struck a deal to cut IVF drug prices by up to 84% — because apparently, he can fix both the economy and fertility.

Elsewhere, Massachusetts taxpayers are fuming after their mayor dropped $850,000 on two statues and asked for a six-figure raise. The only thing more inflated than his ego is his paycheck.

Markets & Money

GoFundMe’s CEO says Americans are now crowdfunding groceries — because after years of “expert” economic leadership, folks are passing the digital hat just to afford a loaf of bread.

Mortgage rates dipped again to 6.27%, the second straight week of relief. Great news if you can still afford a down payment in a country where a starter home costs more than your parents’ entire block.

And Wall Street’s “AI boom” is being called a bubble by — you guessed it — Wall Street. The same geniuses who brought you the 2008 crash are suddenly worried about too much innovation.

Business & Culture

Beyond Meat has gone… well, beyond broke. Once a $7.8 billion darling of the “save the planet” crowd, it’s now trading closer to “save your lunch money” levels. Turns out fake meat has real debt.

Vegas is struggling too — tourism’s down 11.3%, hotel rooms are empty, and workers are begging for shifts. Apparently, what happens in Vegas… is unemployment.

Walmart’s not done winning though — they’ve teamed up with OpenAI so customers can now shop through ChatGPT. Finally, a robot that tells you where the paper towels are without calling a manager.

Amazon, meanwhile, is hiring 250,000 new workers and shelling out over $1 billion in pay raises. Nestlé’s taking the opposite route — slashing 16,000 jobs to “cut costs.” You can almost hear the corporate empathy machine whirring.

Winners & Losers

Winners:
🇺🇸 American manufacturing — courtesy of Trump’s tariffs
💊 Families pursuing IVF — 84% cheaper hope on the horizon
🛒 Walmart — from woke to working for America

Losers:
📉 Beyond Meat — turns out fake burgers can’t pay real bills
📩 John Bolton — charged, AOL’d, and officially out of office
🎰 Vegas tourism — what happens there... apparently doesn’t anymore

America Decides:

And now, a few states — led by Florida — are finally asking the question every homeowner’s been thinking: why are we still paying rent to the government?

Liberals sprinted to kneel before King Fauci the second he barked an order—but when it comes to less crime, peace, and America First? Suddenly, following the government is tyranny.

According to Moody’s, 21 states and D.C. are already in or teetering on recession, with another 13 just “treading water.” Translation: more than two-thirds of America is one bad jobs report away from tanking — but don’t worry, the experts who didn’t see 2008 coming assure us “everything’s fine.”

After years of funding everything but U.S. industry, JPMorgan Chase just discovered patriotism — to the tune of $1.5 trillion. Their new “Security and Resiliency Initiative” promises to rebuild energy, manufacturing, and defense. CEO Jamie Dimon says America’s been “too reliant on unreliable sources,” which is Wall Street-speak for: “Turns out China owning half our supply chain might’ve been a bad idea.”

Billionaire Ken Griffin says leaving Chicago for Miami wasn’t exactly a tough call — citing crime, taxes, and a general sense that Chicago’s become less “financial hub” and more “criminal obstacle course.” After 30 years up north, Citadel’s now parked under palm trees, proving once again that money moves faster than reform — especially when there’s sunshine and zero state income tax.

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The latest Henley Passport Index shows Singapore at the top of the world with 193 visa-free destinations, while the U.S. passport just fell out of the top 10 for the first time ever — now tied with Malaysia at 12th. Once the global VIP pass, the American passport’s new motto might as well be: “We used to run this place.”

A new Goldman Sachs report finds that 40% of Americans making over $500,000 a year are living paycheck to paycheck — proving you can’t out-earn bad habits or a $7 oat milk latte addiction. Between luxury mortgages, private school tuition, and “networking” trips to Cabo, the nation’s top earners are learning what middle America already knows: when everything costs more, nobody’s rich.

Los Angeles County CEO Fesia Davenport — already making $570,000 a year — just secured a $2 million taxpayer-funded payout after claiming a ballot measure hurt her feelings and reputation. Apparently, in California, emotional distress now pays better than public service. Taxpayers foot the bill, she takes months off — and calls it healing.

According to Redfin, 1 in 7 homebuyers are bailing on deals at the last minute, spooked by repair costs, high prices, and déjà vu from the 2008 crash. Sellers now outnumber buyers by half a million, which means open houses are starting to feel less like real estate showings — and more like desperate speed dating with a mortgage broker.

A Memphis resident who once blasted Trump’s National Guard deployment is now admitting it’s made the city “much nicer.” After troops hit the streets to tackle violent crime, even skeptics are conceding that law and order actually… works. Turns out when you replace “defund” with “deploy,” things get a lot safer real fast.

After a watchdog report exposed a $553 million left-wing funding network, billionaire Christopher Hohn has officially cut off the cash flow from his Children’s Investment Fund Foundation. The report accused Hohn’s grants of fueling radical activism in the U.S., prompting him to hit the brakes. Translation: he realized bankrolling America’s meltdown isn’t exactly a good investment strategy.

United Airlines just launched its first Starlink-equipped mainline flight, giving passengers internet that doesn’t die halfway through a YouTube video. The airline plans to retrofit 15 Boeing 737s a month, expanding Musk’s satellite internet across its fleet. After years of buffering wheels at 30,000 feet, travelers can finally stream, scroll, and complain about delays in HD.

With silver prices exploding past $53 an ounce and a Philly Fed reading plunging to -12.8, analysts are whispering the unthinkable — gold could hit $30,000. The so-called “great repricing” is underway as global supply strains and central bank hoarding send precious metals into orbit. Translation: while Wall Street panics, the people who actually own gold are just polishing their bars and smiling.

Let’s talk about Zohran Mamdani — the latest Democratic Socialist promising to “save” New York by bleeding it dry.

He’s not even pretending anymore. The man’s openly admitting he wants residents paying over 52% in taxes, as if that’s some moral badge of honor. His shopping list of “free” programs includes free college, free housing, free healthcare for all, free migrant aid, and of course — free everything for everyone except the people actually footing the bill.

And who’s paying for this utopia? You are — if you still have the nerve to work, own a business, or God forbid, turn a profit in the city. Mamdani’s plan is to hike income taxes on anyone earning over a million, jack up corporate taxes to Jersey levels, and then pretend the rich won’t notice. Spoiler: they will. And they’ll move.

Here’s the truth — New York doesn’t have a tax revenue problem; it has a spending addiction. Every new “free” promise is just another bill mailed to the middle class. Even Governor Hochul — who isn’t exactly a fiscal conservative — wants nothing to do with this kamikaze economics.

The result? More tax flight, more empty office buildings, and more “For Lease” signs than Times Square billboards. Mamdani calls it “equity.” The rest of us call it what it is — economic suicide disguised as social justice.

At least he’s honest. Finally, a politician who tells you upfront he’s planning to take your money and call it compassion.

If that’s the future New York wants, fine. But don’t expect the rest of America to pay for the hangover.

What do you think?
We want to hear from you — drop your comments, takes, and hard-hitting feedback below. We’ll read every one of them (yes, even the bold ones) and feature the best responses in next week’s issue. Keep it sharp, keep it honest… and maybe keep it printable.