Erica E Phillips
@ericaephillips.bsky.social
News editor for the nonprofit CT Mirror (@ctmirror.bsky.social). Interested in how state policy decisions affect our everyday. Formerly WSJ, Marketplace, etc. she/her
What if I just LIKE doing the things that AI is offering to do for me?
So many people think that the students who can't pay back their loans are going to like Vassar or Oberlin or even Harvard. In reality they're going to schools like Legends Barber College or Construction Training Center. www.npr.org/2026/09/16/n...
This is how a lot of businesses operate. And a lot of people voted for this guy because he promised to run the country “like a business.” I wouldn’t even describe this as a conscious decision by the president—I think this is how he has understood the world from Day 1. (Screenshot: NYT newsletter)
As always, @louisathomas.bsky.social put it exactly right. www.newyorker.com/sports/sport...
Why Isn’t Everyone Talking About Olivia Miles?
The W.N.B.A. has never attracted more attention. But, increasingly, the conversation around the league can overshadow the game itself—and its players.
newyorker.com
ProPublica’s latest Impact Report is a must read and a huge validation of our local journalism. And it’s beautiful too. www.propublica.org/atpropublica... Kudos to partners @ctmirror.org and @readfrontier.bsky.social for prominent billing!
Congrats we just made it impossible to come here for a PhD www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/16/m...
Trump administration limits student visas to four years, changing longstanding policy - The Boston Globe
The new rule, which also restricts the international students’ ability to transfer schools or change majors without approval in their first year, will go into effect in mid-September.
bostonglobe.com
As suspending the federal gas tax gains traction in Washington, a prescient reminder from our Senior Fellow @pkrugman.bsky.social: gas tax holidays are largely a windfall for producers that barely move prices at the pump for the consumers suffering from inflation.
BREAKING: CT Mirror and @propublica.org have won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Local Reporting for "On the Hook," an investigation into how Connecticut's towing practices had come to favor tow companies at the expense of low-income residents. More here: ctmirror.org/series/on-th...
NYT reports the Iran war is costing ~$1 billion a day. It’s now been going for 56 days, which means the total cost at this point could be close to that of Connecticut’s entire two-year state budget, $55.8 billion. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/23/u...
Iran War Has Drained U.S. Supplies of Critical, Costly Weapons
nytimes.com
Fewer immigrants mean more jobs and higher wages for American workers, right? The data tell a different story. www.wsj.com/economy/jobs...
What Everyone Got Wrong About Jobs and the Immigration Crackdown
More than a year into President Trump’s immigration crackdown, there is little evidence of widespread disruptions in the labor market, or of meaningful benefits to American workers.
wsj.com
NEW: Trump accepted $37m worth of donated steel for his WH ballroom project from the Luxembourg-based company ArcelorMittal. Days later, the WH made adjustments to Trump's tariffs that could benefit ArcelorMittal.
White House Secures Foreign Steel for Ballroom Project
nytimes.com
Trump’s critics have raised concerns about the trades in oil futures, S&P 500 ETF options and prediction markets made ahead of the president’s announcements.
The Well-Timed Trades Made Moments Before Trump’s Policy Surprises
The president’s critics have raised concerns about the action in oil futures, S&P 500 ETF options and prediction markets.
on.wsj.com
Came here to say that I thought it was cool to see former Hartford Yard Goat, Ezequiel Tovar, starting at shortstop for the WBC-champion Venezuelan squad @yardgoats.bsky.social
There’s a big hearing at the CT Capitol today on homeschool regulation. A good day to revisit this excellent piece by Emilia Otte from late last year. ctmirror.org/2025/12/14/c...
CT doesn’t regulate homeschooling. Should it stay that way?
Seeing their kids fall behind during COVID galvanized a new cohort of parents to educate their children themselves. They’re sticking with it.
ctmirror.org
Look at these charts. TransUnion and Experian, two of the three major credit bureaus, have started dismissing a larger share of consumer complaints without help. The timing coincides with the Trump administration’s dismantling of the CFPB. www.propublica.org/article/cred... @joeljacobs.bsky.social
“What I don’t understand is why more people don’t do it,” Graham said. “Try to shape these events. This is a moment of world history here. Just jump in the deep end of the pool.” www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
Lindsey Graham’s Quest to Sell Trump on Striking Iran
Few others in the president’s ear argued for the attack as effectively as South Carolina’s senior senator.
wsj.com
Oh. I learned about circuit breakers in March 2020, when they were triggered four times. At the time, it hadn’t happened since 1997. www.marketplace.org/story/2020/0...
What you need to know about the stock market’s circuit breakers
When the S&P 500 drops 7%, all trading is halted.
marketplace.org
George Pearkes@peark.es · 8mo agoOne of those nights
Big “Those who don’t learn history are doomed to repeat it” energy
Good explainer here. “Billionaires use borrowed money for living expenses, pledging their shares or other assets as collateral. The interest on the debt is much lower than a capital-gains tax bill would be, and their stock portfolios can continue accumulating gains.” www.wsj.com/finance/bill...
Billionaires’ Low Taxes Are Becoming a Problem for the Economy
Tax avoidance by the superwealthy is an economic issue as well as a political one.
wsj.com
our government used a Blackhawk helicopter in a major American city, detained children and zip-tied U.S. citizens all to target... squatters and the alleged Tren de Aragua presence? "It was a brutal lie against the American public." www.propublica.org/article/chic...
The Real Story Behind the Midnight Immigration Raid on a Chicago Apartment Building
The Trump administration has claimed the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua had taken over the building. But new documents make no mention of the gang and reveal federal agents had information about “ille...
propublica.org