Friends, Today, Heather and I take a deep dive into this week’s wild ride in the stock and bond markets — why it occurred and what it means. Ten and a half weeks ago, the American and world economies were in fairly good shape, but now there’s a serious risk of what’s called “stagflation.” Tens of millions of people could be seriously hurt. And even more will be hurt if the Republican budget plan goes through, cutting Medicaid and/or Medicare and/or Social Security. So what should be done? What s...
Apr 12, 2025•47 min
Friends, Today Heather and I take a look at the economic emergency Trump created this week with his gargantuan tariffs on imports. It’s the largest peacetime tax hike in American history — and one that keeps rising as other countries retaliate by raising tariffs on our exports to them. It’s all based on another Trump lie — this one, that the tariffs will cause global corporations to create good manufacturing jobs in America. But, as Heather and I discuss, the major reason our manufacturing jobs ...
Apr 05, 2025•37 min
Friends, Today Heather and I assess how far the Trump regime is falling — starting with this week’s “Signalgate” fiasco, the regime’s increasing detention of international students without due process of law, wildly unconstitutional executive orders, brainless tariffs, and coming assault on Greenland (of all places). We also take a look at how voters seem to be responding — overwhelmingly against Trump and Musk — and ask if the Trump fever is finally breaking. Please pull up a chair, grab a cupp...
Mar 29, 2025•42 min
Friends, Today Heather and I delve into the forces holding Trump back — specifically, the federal courts, Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post , and Republican constituents in Republican town halls. Which of these, if any, is likely to be most effective over the long term in preventing Trump and Musk from doing their worst? We also have a special guest — Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter, who this week was illegally fired by Trump for no reason other than … well, we’ll talk with her about t...
Mar 22, 2025•1 hr
Friends, Today Heather and I take a deep dive into the Trump regime’s efforts to suppress free speech on university campuses in America, starting with the detention of a Columbia University graduate student for no reason other than his beliefs and his participation in peaceful demonstrations that the regime disapproves of. We then zoom out to the larger story of the Trump-Musk attack on American universities, and the simultaneous crackdown on dissent by the American oligarchy with power over soc...
Mar 15, 2025•45 min
Friends, Michael is filling in for Heather today (thank you, Michael, and we miss you, Heather). Michael and I assess week 7 of this horrendous regime, starting with Trump’s interminable speech and ending with his decision to pull back from imposing tariffs on Canada and Mexico, after the stock market nearly tanked. We also examine the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision to rein in Trump, congressional Republican resistance to Musk’s “chainsaw” cuts, and the beginnings of a Democratic backbone to resis...
Mar 08, 2025•43 min
Friends, Today, Heather and I discuss Trump’s and Vance’s disgraceful treatment of Ukraine President Zelensky in the Oval Office yesterday — a man who for more than three years has courageously held off Putin’s aggression, maintained the will of the Ukrainian people, and risked his life to contain the Russian dictator. Trump did this to undermine Zelensky’s heroic image in the eyes of the American people so that when Trump bows to Putin’s demands for Ukraine, Republicans in Congress will have a ...
Mar 01, 2025•46 min
Friends, Today, Heather and I assess the fifth week of the regime, when Trump took America over to the dark side by endorsing Vladimir Putin’s narrative of how the Ukraine war began and why Europe should defend itself rather than be an ally of the United States. We also have as our special guest Rohit Chopra, the former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, who was fired by Trump at the same time Trump imposed on the CFPB a stop order that closed much of it down. Chopra was recen...
Feb 22, 2025•56 min
Friends, Today, nearing the end of the fourth week of the Trump-Vance-Musk regime, Heather and I assess Musk’s Oval Office press conference — in which he accused federal employees of dishonesty but provided no evidence — and analyze Musk’s own dishonesty and conflicts of interest. We also examine Trump’s promise in the 2024 election to bring prices down, in light of new evidence of inflation. We also delve into Trump’s Justice Department, and the revolt by the U.S. attorney for the Southern Dist...
Feb 15, 2025•30 min
Friends, Today Heather and I assess week 3 of the Trump regime — a week marked by Trump’s bonkers talk about turning Gaza into a riviera tourist destination by removing all Gazans and setting up “beautiful” beachfront resorts, and by Elon Musk’s almost total takeover of the federal government, including the destruction of USAID. Where is this heading? What’s the meaning of “law” in this lawless environment? Are there any signs that Democrats and other are fighting back? Please grab a cuppa, pull...
Feb 08, 2025•34 min
Friends, Today Heather and I assess the first two weeks of Trump II, the damage he’s done to individuals and to democratic institutions, and what decent people can do to fight back. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our poll, and join in the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe...
Feb 01, 2025•44 min
Friends, Some pundits are saying that Trump II is basically just a rehash of Trump I. Heather and I are here to tell you they’re wrong. Trump II is far worse. Today we discuss Week 1: Trump’s cruel and unconstitutional executive orders; his use of active duty military at the border; his pardons to the 1,500 thugs who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, at Trump’s behest; Elon Musk’s nods and winks to neo-Nazis; and Trump’s conspicuous alliance with the richest oligarchs in America. The...
Jan 25, 2025•37 min
Friends, Today Heather and I look at the last week of the Biden administration and ahead to the first week of Trump’s. What can the confirmation hearings tell us about what to expect? What was the real significance of Biden’s “farewell” address? Will it be fascism or oligarchy, or both? And, by the way, what should we take away from the imminent end to TikTok? Please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, take our poll, and join in the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss thi...
Jan 18, 2025•32 min
Note: I’m reposting this edition of The Coffee Klatch as there seem to have been delivery issues and many people have reported not receiving it. Apologies to anyone receiving this late, or twice. Friends, Today we talk about the L.A. fires, the human disaster as well as its connection to climate change, as well as the firestorm of dangerous and nasty misinformation about it on X, and the future of places like L.A. that are subject to climate disasters. Also: Trump — the first president to enter ...
Jan 12, 2025•38 min
Friends, Today we talk about the L.A. fires, the human disaster as well as its connection to climate change, as well as the firestorm of dangerous and nasty misinformation about it on X, and the future of places like L.A. that are subject to climate disasters. Also: Trump — the first president to enter office as a convicted felon — has a news conference that shows how bonkers he is. And Mark Zuckerberg joins Elon Musk to allow vicious lies on his giant platform. We are witnessing a takeover by a...
Jan 11, 2025•38 min
Friends, Yesterday, Michael Johnson was voted in (barely) as speaker by the new Republican-controlled Congress. This Monday, Kamala Harris will preside over Congress to certify the electoral vote, making Donald Trump the next president. The last time Congress met to certify an electoral vote, it was invaded by Trump supporters who threatened the lives of all members along with the Capitol Police, at Trump’s urging. But instead of being held accountable, Trump is about to become president. The pe...
Jan 05, 2025•41 min
Friends, Today we explore how and why the United States government nearly shut down — due to the ineptitude of Donald Trump, Elon Musk, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and right-wing House Republicans. The shutdown was averted, but a significant number of Republicans deserted Trump. Is this a preview of the chaos we’re likely to see over the next four years? Why does an unelected multi-billionaire have so much power? Will Johnson survive? Why did Trump insist on raising the debt ceiling? And whateve...
Dec 21, 2024•27 min
Friends, Heather couldn’t join us today, so I asked two other colleagues to join today’s conversation. We discuss Time magazine’s decision to name Trump “Man of the Year,” Trump’s decision to name several more questionable people to his upcoming administration, why the murderer of the CEO of United Healthcare has emerged as something of a folk hero, and other contentious topics. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our poll, and join in the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd ...
Dec 14, 2024•42 min
Friends, Today, Michael joins Heather and me to discuss ways in which Americans seem to be “raging against the machine.” We begin with the tragic shooting death of the CEO of United Healthcare, which unleashed a surprising lack of sympathy on social media — “thoughts and deductibles to the family,” wrote one commentator, “unfortunately my condolences are out-of-network,” wrote another. We explore whether this lack of sympathy is related to a larger social and political upheaval against the “esta...
Dec 07, 2024•40 min
Friends, Heather and I thought today a good one to seek silver linings in the darkening clouds over America, so we’ve dedicated this Thanksgiving week coffee klatch to the proposition that we’re not going to be living in Trump’s America. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our poll, and join the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe...
Nov 30, 2024•29 min
Friends, Today Heather and I ask whether Trump has a mandate (spoiler alert: the answer is no). We also take a close look at his new pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi, and ask whether she’s more likely to regard the American people or Trump as her client (answer: Trump). And what is Elon Musk really going to try to do in his position as unofficial Secretary of Cutting Government Waste? Finally, we examine what Democrats should do to fight back. And who speaks for the Democrats now, anyway? Wh...
Nov 23, 2024•39 min
Friends, Like all authoritarians, Trump wants us to become so hopeless that we give up. Well, guess what? We’re not giving up. He can flood the zone all he wants with gonzo nominations — a Fox News host to lead the Defense Department, a sex trafficking clown to lead the Justice Department, a Russian troll to become Director of National Intelligence, a conspiratorial fanatic to run the Department of Heath and Human Services — but we will go on fighting, even harder than before. Today, Heather and...
Nov 16, 2024•38 min
Friends, Like many of you, I’ve been wrestling with grief, fear, and anger. The outcome of the election was far worse than I had feared. On today’s Klatch, Heather, Michael, and I take a deep dive into what happened and why. We also ask: What do we do now ? I don't have all the answers, but I believe Heather, Michael, and I are at least asking the right questions. We’re eager to have your thoughts as well. Please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, take our poll (if you wish), and join in the convers...
Nov 09, 2024•43 min
Friends, Today, with the election just three days away, Heather, Michael, and I take a deep dive into the Trump Republican Party. We look at its malicious misogyny — why it exists, how it will harm women, how it’s communicated, and what its electoral result is likely to be. We also look at the party’s obsession about voter fraud — which is extraordinarily rare but gives Trump and his lapdogs an excuse to demonize Democrats, Harris, immigrants, and the all-purpose “them.” Please pull up a chair, ...
Nov 02, 2024•40 min
Friends, The election is nine days away, and there’s a good chance we won’t know the outcome until days or possibly weeks beyond. On Tuesday, Harris will be giving her final message to America, at the same place on the Washington mall where Trump held his rally on January 6, 2021. Heather and I discuss what that final message ought to be. We also examine why Trump is gaining ground in almost every poll, not just in the battleground states but even in the popular vote. And we ask how best to get ...
Oct 26, 2024•36 min
Friends, Today, Heather and I discuss why we’re optimistic about the election, just over two weeks away. Harris is showing more of her strengths as she subjects herself to interview after interview (including on Fox News). Trump is revealing more of his instability, as he calls the violent assault on the U.S. Capitol “a day of love,” talks about using the military on his political opponents, and continuously veers into incoherence. Meanwhile, the economy continues to improve — more jobs, higher ...
Oct 19, 2024•30 min
Friends, Today Heather and I assess the election outlook, specifically the widening gender gap, which is turning into a gender chasm. American women are overwhelmingly for Harris; men (especially those without college degrees) are overwhelmingly for Trump. Meanwhile, Elon Musk and Trump have become the nation’s most dangerous bromance. Each wants what the other possesses: Trump wants vast wealth and a social media platform that reaches billions; Musk wants more power. Beware. We also explore whe...
Oct 12, 2024•26 min
Friends, This morning, Heather and I explore the biggest issues of the week: the remarkably good economy (September’s jobs report, out yesterday, was about the best you could possibly hope for); the VP debate last Tuesday; special counsel Jack Smith’s additional revelations about January 6; and Hurricane Helene. And, of course, we’ll assess what all this means for the upcoming election (a bit over four weeks away) and whether there will be an “October surprise” for Harris or Trump, and, if so, w...
Oct 05, 2024•30 min
Friends, Today is the third anniversary of the launch of this newsletter community, and I want to thank you. Three years ago today I posted my first daily letter, not knowing who would be out there to receive it. Heather Lofthouse egged me on. (A special thanks to her, as well. And to Alessandra Bosco, whose gimlet eye has caught misspellings and grammatical mistakes I’m too embarrassed to admit, and to Michael Lahanas-Calderón, for his technical help.) I wanted to key off current news but didn’...
Sep 20, 2024•1 min
Friends, It was quite a debate and quite a week. Today, Heather and I look back on both and do our best to peer into the future. What effect will the debate have on undecided voters? What does Kamala Harris need to do in the remaining weeks? What will Trump do? Why is Trump refusing a second debate with Harris? We also examine the consequences of Taylor Swift’s endorsement (and Elon Musk’s grade-school bully boy response). And we take a look at yesterday’s 30th anniversary of the Violence Agains...
Sep 15, 2024•33 min
