Lahn harnessed an Iowa backlash to corporate agriculture and Big Pharma
A relatively unknown farmer who openly touted his ties to the Make America Healthy Again movement upset President Donald Trump’s endorsed candidate in Iowa’s GOP gubernatorial primary […]
While warning signs have been flashing ever since President Donald Trump’s war with Iran resulted in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, fallout in the form of a major economic disaster is yet to manifest. “That won’t last forever,” writes the American Prospect columnist Ryan Cooper, who warns that “something is going to snap.”The danger wouldn’t be so looming if the war appeared to be nearing its end, but as Cooper points out, there is little evidence to support such a hope, noting that Iran has “cut off contact with American negotiators, and the two sides are once again shooting at each other. Trump, for his part, recently told a CNBC reporter that I’ really don’t care. I couldn’t care less’ if negotiations are over. They ‘started to get very boring,’ he added.”So apparently, according to Trump himself, he’s feeling no pressure to make a deal, which is exactly what he said in early May. Cooper warns that this places the U.S. in a dangerous position, because while there hasn’t been a “truly major crisis” yet, “it’s only a matter of time before one or more of the severely strained parts of the global economy breaks.”Total catastrophe has so far been avoided based on four factors. First, despite Trump’s best efforts to oppose a green-energy transition, companies and countries around the world have leaned into alternative energy as fossil fuel prices have shot up. At the same time, many nations, particularly in Asia, have begun rationing oil consumption, which while painful, has helped stave off collapse. But a third “more ominous” factor, says Cooper, is that the world has been forced to draw heavily on existing stocks of oil and natural gas. According to Cooper, “Many people saw the Iran war coming, and filled up every oil tanker and storage facility they possibly could. A great deal of that has since been used up. The vast storage complex at Cushing, Oklahoma (regarded as a storage benchmark), has declined from 33 million barrels to 24.5 million — and they can’t be fully emptied. ‘You can’t draw them down to zero because there is gunk at the bottom of the tanks,’ oil analyst Matt Smith told CNN.” At the same time, countries around the world are depleting their reserves. “We’re approaching unheard of inventory levels,” Exxon Senior Vice President Neil Chapman said recently. “Once you get to that point, then you’ll see price shoot up.” A fourth factor, writes Cooper, is “the behavior of the media and financial markets. The D.C. political press can be relied on to uncritically repeat Trump’s preposterous lies about an imminent deal, no matter how many times they have been proved false. Traders on oil and oil futures markets, being either deluded by the media or blinded by wishful thinking or simply incapable of believing that the president of the United States is as stupid and insane as he in fact is, have consistently expected the strait to open back up soon…Oil prices again fell sharply after Trump’s latest promise.” Despite this market manipulation, Cooper warns, “Sooner or later, oil traders are either going to face reality, or bankrupt themselves.”As Cooper points out, “reserve releases and comically underpriced oil futures are effectively subsidizing oil consumption.” While a few countries, primarily in Asia, have taken measures to reduce oil usage, many world leaders “have encouraged their nations to continue using energy at normal levels, and therefore to chew through global inventories more quickly. That means if and when the supply shock hits, it will hit even harder.”On that note, Cooper dives into the looming crises that are poised to destroy several key sectors of the economy. “The most obvious one is in oil itself,” Cooper explains. “As storages dwindle and run out, the only way to match demand to supply will be for the price to rise high enough to destroy something like 10 to 20 percent of global oil consumption. And because a great deal of oil demand is obligatory and therefore not very price-sensitive, that price will likely be north of $150 per barrel. That means gas and diesel at the pump in the $8-to-$10 range, and a corresponding price hike for anything that needs to be transported, or involved in plastic in some way, which is to say basically everything.” Other sectors like agriculture, aluminum, and industrial commodities are in similarly precarious situations due to plunging stock and skyrocketing prices, the fallout from which will be wide-ranging and devastating.And worse still, notes Cooper, “even if the Strait of Hormuz opens tomorrow, these problems are going to take years to resolve.” Oil fields will take months to resume production, vital infrastructure will take years to rebuild, and the need to restock reserves will drive years of structurally higher demand. What’s more, the situation is still in flux, and it could continue to deteriorate in ways no one has forecasted.
Secretary of State Rubio calls allegations that Trump considered personal finances in Iran decisions "completely false" during heated House hearing.
Senate Republicans removed $1 billion in Secret Service security funding for the White House and President Donald Trump’s yet-to-be-built East Wing ballroom from the party’s immigration enforcement bill, according to new legislative text released Wednesday. The move was in response to Republican opposition over the optics of taxpayers footing the $220 million bill for ballroom […]
While appearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent struggled and failed to justify a recent assertion by his boss, President Donald Trump, leading to a tense back and forth. The exchange began when Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) asked Bessent about Trump’s recent assertion that he doesn’t “think about Americans’ financial situation” when considering his conduct regarding the war with Iran. The president made this statement in mid-May — which he later defended as “perfect” — prompting outrage from Americans struggling with rising prices. When asked about the comments on Wednesday, Bessent attempted to dodge, saying, “I believe his remarks were taken out of context.”But Hassan would not be dissuaded so easily, saying, “Here's what he said. He said, quote, ‘I don't think about Americans' financial situation. I don't think about anybody.’ So I'm asking you… Do you think about how the American people are paying more for gas, groceries, and utilities since the president clearly said he didn't? And you speak with the president regularly. Are you trying to tell him the truth about how much costs have increased for the American people?”“Well, senator,” Bessent argued, “I'm going to have to disagree with you on some of that, because I have groceries are going down. Since President Trump took office, food prices — or as many people like to call them, ‘groceries’ — food at home in the statistical data is up 2.5 percent.”“When's the last time you were in a grocery store?” Hassan asked. “Because my husband and I were just in one, and look: the average Granite Stater has paid $3,000 more since Donald Trump took office for basic goods and services. Meanwhile, the country lost 100,000 manufacturing jobs in 2025. So do you tell the president this information or not?”“Again, senator,” Bessent stammered, “The… except for inflation, which is, I believe, going to be a short-term blip, the economic data is very strong. The jobs data has been very strong. The manufacturing has been very strong.”“No, actually that's incorrect,” asserted Hassan. “So let's move on, because what is very clear to me is that neither you nor the president nor this administration are willing to acknowledge how much more people are paying at the gas pump, at the grocery store, in utilities, for health care, for all aspects of American life.”Try as he might, Bessent could not squirm past hard numbers. Hassan is right. When Trump made the controversial statement, the war had been going on for over two months, over the course of which the price of gas rose by roughly 50 percent. The latest numbers show that Americans have spent an extra $500 per household on gas alone since the war began, with Fortune reporting that the war has put a $100 billion burden on taxpayers overall, and prices are not expected to ease for months to come. What’s more, since Trump returned to office, the U.S. has lost between 80,000 and 110,000 manufacturing jobs, while healthcare premiums and other costs have increased precipitously.
Voters in half a dozen states on Tuesday cast primary ballots in races that could determine control of Congress this fall, with the marquee primaries for California governor and Los Angeles mayor still up in the air. In Iowa, voters set the stage for a critical Senate race, while the governor’s race saw the winning…
Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) had a sharp response for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a heated hearing on Wednesday. Bessent was testifying before the Senate Finance Committee on President Donald Trump's budget request when Hassan questioned him about whether the administration was focusing on affordability concerns for Americans amid rising gas and grocery prices."What is very clear to me is that neither you, nor the president, nor this administration are willing to acknowledge how much more people are paying at the gas pump, at the grocery store, or in utilities, for healthcare — for all aspects of American life — nor have you acknowledged the number of manufacturing jobs that were lost in 2025," Hassan said.Bessent tried to interject and claimed the cost of groceries was higher during the Biden administration. Hassan then corrected him, pointing out she was referring to the Trump administration, and the two started to talk over each other in a fiery exchange."The administration has claimed that its top priority is lowering costs for American families but the president instead continues to pursue vanity projects at a significant costs to taxpayers," Hassan said. "He requested $1 billion for the White House ballroom, spent $45 million on a military birthday parade, proposed $100 million arch at Memorial Circle, and now Treasury is planning production of a $250 dollar bill with his face on it. Mr. Secretary, how does the president's requested billion-dollar ballroom, or all of these other vanity products, lower costs for American families or help constrain spending?""Senator, first of all you're incorrect. There is no cost to the American people," Bessent said in response.Bessent claimed the "decorative part of the ballroom is privately funded."Hassan pushed back on his comments."It is national security matters that the billion dollars are for," Bessent said.But the Democratic senator wasn't convinced."That's ridiculous and I think you know it," Hassan said.
Senate Republicans removed funding for security upgrades to President Trump's White House ballroom from their immigration package after the provision threatened the entire legislative effort, according to revised text released WednesdayThe Senate parliamentarian had determined the ballroom language violated specific budgetary requirements, which would have allowed Democrats to filibuster the bill and block $70 billion in ICE and border patrol funding, and Senate GOP leaders acknowledged the provision was procedurally problematic and politically risky, reported CNN.Some Republican senators also expressed concern that allocating funds for the ballroom while Americans faced cost-of-living pressures ahead of midterm elections would project an out-of-touch image.The original Senate GOP text included nearly $1 billion for "security adjustments and upgrades" to the White House ballroom and related security measures following the spring assassination attempt against Trump.Administration officials attempted to clarify that approximately $200 million would fund the East Wing project, with remaining funds directed toward other security initiatives.The revised bill now proceeds without the controversial ballroom security provision.