Catherine Rampell
@crampell.bsky.social
Economics editor at The Bulwark. MS NOW (formerly MSNBC) anchor. Previously WaPo op-ed columnist and NYT reporter. Econ, politics, immigration, tax, etc. + occasional theater nerdery.
Rhodium projects that under current policy, US GHG emissions will be 26–29% under the 2005 level in four years, driven by an influx of natural gas and renewable production. Their forecast for 2040 is 27-41% below the 2005 level. rhg.com/research/tak...
size of corp debt one rung above junk is close to record highs
Chinese critical technology patenting is dominated by private firms and public universities rather than state-owned enterprises, with universities playing a far larger role than in the United States. www.nber.org/papers/w35551
Chinese Sputnik Moments?
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
nber.org
As his confirmation to lead the Justice Department hung by a thread last week, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told faith leaders on a private call that he was preparing to take action to roll back abortion access nationwide. www.politico.com/news/2026/08...
Blanche assures anti-abortion supporters that Dobbs will be ‘permanent in every single state’
The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.
politico.com
Missouri residents are voting on whether to phase out state income tax and allow lawmakers to expand sales taxes www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
Missouri Is Latest State to Vote on Abolishing Income Tax
Republican-led states continue trying to cut income taxes, while some Democratic-led states move to increase them on high earners.
wsj.com
Eric Adams remains the most confusing person in politics hellgatenyc.com/eric-adams-i...
Eric Adams Is Selling Data Centers in Wisconsin Now
The former mayor had a wild weekend, and other links to start your day.
hellgatenyc.com
Probably a good rule www.cornellsun.com/article/2026...
University Prohibits Processing Wild Animals in Communal Kitchens After Bear Skinning Uproar
Cornell prohibited the processing of game in shared kitchens after two students skinned and butchered a legally hunted bear in Ganędagǫ: Hall in September.
cornellsun.com
Transportation secretary Sean Duffy benefited from millions in corporate donations to make a show about road trips. But two months after Duffy said the show would premiere, it doesn't appear to exist at all. My latest False Flag @thebulwark.com: www.thebulwark.com/p/what-the-h...
What the Hell Happened to Sean Duffy’s Road-Trip TV Show?
Three months after it was announced, the secretary of transportation’s summer show—funded by companies he regulates—hasn’t aired a single episode.
thebulwark.com
Twenty five states sue Trump administration over latest global tariffs www.cnbc.com/2026/08/03/t...
Twenty five states sue Trump administration over latest global tariffs
Twenty five states sued the Trump administration, arguing its latest global tariffs unlawfully replace duties already struck down by courts.
cnbc.com
What this means is that Trump has stolen an estimated $100mm from US taxpayers by avoiding the pending audit of his filed returns. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Blanche Strikes Deal With GOP Holdouts to Advance His Nomination
Holdout Republican senators are backing a deal with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to formally rescind an order creating an “anti-weaponization fund” that could have paid $1.8 billion to Preside...
bloomberg.com
Capital One asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by President Trump’s trust over its closing of Trump Org-affiliated accounts years ago, saying it did so only after money laundering concerns were flagged by experts. thehill.com/business/600...
Capital One says Trump Organization accounts were closed after money laundering review
Lawyers for Capital One on Friday asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by President Trump’s trust over its closing of Trump Organization-affiliated accounts years ago, saying it did s…
thehill.com
New: We found 50 cops who misused Flock cameras and other license-plate readers for personal purposes, often to spy on their girlfriends or ex-wives. He "watched every single move I made. ... Who do you turn the chief of police in to?" wapo.st/3S6rTuo
She left her ex. He secretly tracked her through a network of policing cameras.
Flock’s array of license-plate cameras was built to fight crime. But at least 50 law enforcement officers were charged with or accused of misusing it and other systems.
wapo.st
"No additional staff have been hired to help with the implementation of the new Medicaid requirements as the state grapples with a budget crisis." nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news...
Nebraska becomes first state to disenroll Medicaid recipients under new work requirements
The first work requirement-related disenrollments begin in Nebraska on Saturday. While the state Medicaid director estimates this will impact 200 Nebraskans, advocates are concerned that the number wi...
nebraskapublicmedia.org
Commerce Department quietly announces 7 new equity stakes in private companies thehill.com/policy/techn...
Commerce Department quietly announces 7 new equity stakes in private companies
The Department of Commerce quietly announced this week it will designate more than $870 million in federal incentives for semiconductor manufacturing in exchange for a minority equity stake in seve…
thehill.com
Sen. John Kennedy on Trump's blatant reflecting pool lies: "The president says it was caused by vandals. I don't know if he really believes that or it's part of his political messaging or he's just thinking out loud ... he grows anxious when he has an unexpressed thought."
"Some people act like only way to support universal coverage as a goal is to support Medicare for All, as if anyone who doesn’t back M4A isn’t truly committed to universal coverage. That would surprise the likes of Ted Kennedy, legendary MA Dem senator who was the patron saint of universal coverage"
The ‘Medicare for All’ Test for Michigan Democrats
Haley Stevens wants to move legislation. Abdul El-Sayed wants to move the debate. But first, one of them has to keep the seat blue.
thebulwark.com
President Trump decided to buy 11 polar icebreakers, worth almost $7 billion, after a game of golf with Finland’s president. The question, experts say, is how many the U.S. really needs. nyti.ms/4hK355K
“The bottom line is that an important part of the Fed’s credibility is not just to say that it has certain goals but also to explain how it will achieve those goals.” www.apollo.com/insights-new...
Why Did Long Rates Go Up During the Fed Press Conference? | The Daily Spark
The chart below looks at what Fed chair Kevin Warsh said during the press conference minute-by-minute: Subscribe for daily updates.
apollo.com
Dollar heads for worst week in three months on concerns Fed won’t move forcefully enough to contain inflation www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Dollar Heads for Worst Week in Three Months as Fed Doubts Grow
The dollar headed for its worst week in three months on concerns the Federal Reserve won’t move forcefully enough to contain inflation.
bloomberg.com
Republicans are on the verge of finally fixing our out-of-control budget deficits. But first they need to get just *one more* unfunded spending binge out of their system—and then (they swear) they’ll get around to that purge. www.thebulwark.com/p/gop-fiscal...
GOP Fiscal Responsibility Is Always a Bill Away
Republicans keep passing budget-busting bills—and promising spending cuts will come out tomorrow.
thebulwark.com
A republic, if you can shake it down www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
Exclusive | ‘The Boss Wants This Money’: Inside Trump’s Unprecedented Fundraising Operation
Meredith O’Rourke, nicknamed ‘princess of darkness,’ carries out the president’s desire to wring hundreds of millions from companies for his projects.
wsj.com
Three budget-busting reconciliation bills later, Republican “deficit hawks” are still voting yes and promising the spending cuts will come next time. @crampell.bsky.social looks at the GOP’s endlessly deferred version of fiscal responsibility.
VA to run trial of GLP-1 drug to treat alcohol abuse abcnews.com/Politics/va-...
VA to run trial of GLP-1 drug to treat alcohol abuse
The study aims to enroll more than 600 veterans at 18 VA medical centers.
abcnews.com
amazing. no notes www.reuters.com/world/africa...
US government map of Africa mislabels every country at global conference
A U.S. government map of Africa mislabeled every country during a State Department presentation at a global conference taking place in Brazil this week, causing a stir among attendees who took screen...
reuters.com
US oil inventories fall to ‘precariously low’ level as Iran war disrupts supply www.ft.com/content/86f3...
US oil inventories fall to ‘precariously low’ level as Iran war disrupts supply
Decline could erode ability to supply Asian and European markets dependent on supplies from the Middle East
ft.com
"Under the changes to the FoodNet surveillance system, the 10 participating states — meant to represent a cross section of the broader population — no longer have to report cases of listeria, for example." kffhealthnews.org/public-healt...
Cyclospora Boosts Fears That Worse Foodborne Outbreaks Are Ahead - KFF Health News
The recent outbreak of a foodborne parasite sickened thousands and hospitalized hundreds across the U.S. before federal investigators identified the suspected source. Food safety experts say cuts to t...
kffhealthnews.org
