It feels like every time you check the news,
there's a whole new wave of stuff happening,
especially with the economy and politics. It
can be so overwhelming trying to keep up with
everything. Totally. That's exactly what we're
doing here on The Deep Dive. We take all those
huge news dumps and break down the stuff that
matters to you. Exactly. We've got a ton of news
and analysis today. Yeah. Really focusing on
the big stuff that's been happening with politics
and the economy. Yeah. We're going to help you
understand what's going on without getting lost
in the weeds. And we've gone through all sorts
of sources this week, government stuff, court
decisions, political maneuvering. And we even
have a really interesting take on a new world
leader. Oh, yeah. But first, let's talk about
what's happening with government funding. Okay.
So the Senate's about to vote on something called
a continuing resolution. A CR. A CR. Yeah. And,
you know, it sounds like it's just going to keep
things running as usual. Keeping the lights on.
Yeah. But that's not the whole story. Not even
close. From what we're seeing, the CR is actually
a pretty big deal. There are some big funding
changes and it looks like it's giving even more
power to Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Yeah. That's
where things get really interesting and complicated.
Yeah. So where do things stand in the Senate?
Okay, so there are 53 Republicans in the Senate,
but Senator Paul's probably gonna vote against
this thing. So that leaves them with 52. Okay.
And then there are the Democrats. They've been
talking about a filibuster. Right, for a while
there on Wednesday, it seemed like Schumer was
ready to go for it. Yeah, but then things changed.
A lot changed. There was a pretty intense caucus
meeting on Thursday, and... Gillibrand really
push back against the filibuster. Yeah, it sounds
like Schumer's not really going for it anymore
and probably won't vote for it himself So what's
gonna happen then? Well, we're starting to see
who's probably gonna vote for cloture, you know,
that's the vote to end debate, right? So who's
looking like they'll vote for cloture from what
we're seeing it's looking like Schumer Gillibrand
Federman Kelly and Hickenlooper they'll probably
get a vote for cloture. And, you know, almost
all the Republicans are going to vote for it,
too, so they only need a couple more votes to
end any filibuster. So why are the Democrats
backing down from a fight? I mean, this seems
like a big deal. Well, Schumer and the other
Democrats are saying they're worried about a
government shutdown. They're saying that a shutdown
would be even worse than the CR and that it would
give Musk and Trump even more power. In fact,
Schumer said that the CR is bad, but a shutdown
would be much, much worse. So they're trying
to avoid what they see as the bigger problem.
Right. But there are definitely people who disagree
with that approach. Yeah, for sure. Some people
are saying this was the Democrats' best chance
to push back against Musk no matter what. And
others are pointing out that keeping the government
running doesn't actually stop Musk and Trump
from doing what they want. Right. And a lot of
people who don't like Musk and Trump want to
see the Democrats put up a fight. So it sounds
like no matter what the Democrats do... Someone's
going to be upset. That's the thing. Our sources
are saying that the Democrats were stuck between
a rock and a hard place. No matter what they
chose, it was going to be bad. Yeah, I can see
that. But even if it's the least bad option,
I imagine there are still a lot of Democrats
who are not happy about this. Oh, yeah. There's
a lot of anger and disappointment out there,
especially among the more progressive Democrats.
A lot of the House Democrats are upset, too,
especially the ones who are in swing districts
and have been voting with the party leadership.
Right. They're the ones who are taking the biggest
risks with these votes. Exactly. They feel like
they're putting their necks on the line, and
the CR doesn't really show that the party appreciates
that. So what does the CR actually mean for people?
What are the consequences? Well, there's one
big consequence that's going to hit Washington,
D .C. pretty hard. Oh, yeah. Tell me about that.
OK, so usually when Congress passes one of these
short term funding bills, they include this little
clause that says the D .C. council can spend
the money it budgeted. But that clause is missing
from the CR. And the reason it's missing is because
the Republican leadership in the House doesn't
really care about D .C. residents who are mostly
black and Democrats. So what does that mean for
D .C.? Basically, D .C. is going to have to operate
under its old budget, which means they can't
spend the one point one billion dollars they
were planning to. So where does that money go?
It basically gets put on hold because DC can't
spend money that Congress hasn't approved. And
here's the thing. This doesn't actually save
the federal government any money because this
is money that DC raised from its own residents.
So it's not about saving money. It just sounds
like they're trying to punish DC. Yeah, it really
does. Our sources are saying that the Republicans
are trying to be cruel and punitive towards DC,
maybe because of things like Black Lives Matter
Plaza. So they're trying to use this CR to score
political points. Yeah, but you know what? What?
This actually gives the people in DC another
reason to push for statehood. That's a good point.
So looking ahead, what's next for Congress? Well,
the next big thing is going to be the debt ceiling
debate. That's always a mess. Yeah, it is. And.
because the Democrats are probably going to let
this CR pass, it might look like they're not
willing to fight over the debt ceiling either.
Which could make it harder for them to get what
they want. Exactly. That's why some people are
saying that the Democrats need to come out strong
right now and say that they won't raise the debt
ceiling unless there are limits on Elon Musk's
power. So basically they're saying the Democrats
need to draw a line in the sand. Exactly. They
need to make it very clear what they will and
will not accept. They need to be proactive and
send a strong message. Otherwise, they're going
to be stuck reacting to whatever the Republicans
do. OK, so we've talked about the legislative
branch, but what about the judicial branch? Are
they doing anything to check the executive branch?
Oh, they are definitely stepping up. In fact,
just yesterday, two different judges on opposite
sides of the country ruled against the Trump
administration. Wow. So tell me about these rulings.
What did the judges say? OK, so the first ruling
came from Judge Alsop in California, and the
second one came from Judge Bradar in Maryland.
They both basically said that the Trump administration
can't just fire federal employees without a good
reason and that the employees who were fired
have to be rehired right away. That's pretty
clear. Did the judges have anything to say about
how the administration was acting? Yeah, Judge
Alsop was really upset. He ordered the acting
director of the Office of Personnel Management
to come to court. And when he didn't show up,
Alsop got rid of his deposition and demanded
that someone else come instead. He even said
that the firings were a sham and that the Department
of Justice was lying to the court. Judge Bradar
wasn't quite as outspoken, but his ruling actually
affects more people. It applies to 18 federal
departments, while Alsop's only applies to six.
So what was the reasoning behind these rulings?
Why did the judges decide that the firings were
wrong? Both judges used almost the exact same
language to say that the administration's excuse
for firing these people, which was performance,
just wasn't believable. One of the judges even
called it a load of bull cookies. They both said
that the firing seemed totally unjustified. And
other judges, in similar cases, have been saying
the same thing. So it sounds like the courts
are not buying what the administration's selling.
Nope. So does this mean that all those fired
employees are getting their jobs back? Well,
not so fast. These rulings are called preliminary
injunctions, which means they're temporary. They'll
be in place until the judges can make a final
decision. Judge Alsop's injunction doesn't have
an end date, but Judge Bredar's expires in 14
days, though he could extend it. And the administration's
probably going to appeal no matter what the judges
decide. But even if they're temporary, these
rulings are still a big deal, right? Huge. Our
sources are saying that this is a major loss
for Trump and Musk. All the rulings so far have
been totally in favor of the employees and the
judges haven't been holding back in their criticism
of the administration. So what can the administration
do now? Well, their best hope might be that the
Supreme Court will weaken a law called the Pendleton
Civil Service Reform Act. It's from 1883 and
it basically protects federal employees from
being fired for political reasons. So if the
Supreme Court changes that law, it would be easier
for the administration to fire people they don't
like. Exactly. But for now, it looks like they're
facing a tough battle in the lower courts. It's
been a rough week for the Trump administration
so far. Yeah, it has. Shifting gears a bit, there's
been some sad news in Congress recently. Two
House Democrats passed away. Yeah, that's right.
Representatives Raul Grialva from Arizona and
Sylvester Turner from Texas. Yeah, Grialva had
been in Congress for a long time and was a really
important voice for progressive causes. He was
even the chair of the House Natural Resources
Committee. And Turner was just elected this year
to replace Sheila Jackson Lee. So what does this
mean for the balance of power in the House? Well,
for now, it means that the Republicans have a
bigger majority. They had 218 seats, and now
they have 220. And once a couple of vacant seats
in Florida are filled, they'll have 222. Then
Representative Stefanik's expected to resign,
so it'll probably go back down to 221. But either
way, it's a bigger majority than they had before.
Does that mean they'll be able to pass more of
their agenda now? It's hard to say. Our sources
are saying that even when the Republicans had
complete control of the government a few years
ago, they still had a hard time passing major
legislation. Yeah, getting everyone on the same
page is hard. It is. And without that sense of
urgency, it's going to be even harder to pass
anything. So what happens to those empty seats
now? Well, both of those districts are very likely
to elect Democrats again. Grijalva's district
in Arizona leans Democratic by 15 points and
Turner's district in Texas leans Democratic by
23 points. So it's pretty much guaranteed that
Democrats will win those seats. But it'll take
some time to actually hold the elections and
get those new members sworn in, right? Right.
And it's interesting because Arizona and Texas
have different rules for special elections. Arizona
announces them quickly, but the elections themselves
take longer. Texas is the opposite. They take
a while to announce the election, but then they
happen pretty quickly. But in both cases, it'll
probably be summer before the new members are
in Congress. OK, so let's go international for
a minute. There's a new prime minister in Canada.
and we have a British take on him. Yeah, a reader
from the UK sent us a really interesting perspective
on Mark Carney, the new Canadian PM. You might
remember him as the governor of the Bank of England.
Oh, yeah, he was a big name in UK economics.
What does this British reader have to say about
him? Well, first of all, the reader pointed out
that Carney was the first non -British person
to lead the Bank of England since it was founded
in 1694. It's pretty amazing when you think about
it. Wow, that's a long time. It is. And it also
took him a while to become a British citizen.
It didn't actually happen until 2018 after a
lot of public debate. Interesting. Did his time
as governor coincide with any big events that
our listeners might remember? Oh yeah, big time.
He was in charge during some of the most important
economic events in recent UK history. like the
recovery after the 2008 financial crisis, the
Brexit vote in 2016, and the very beginning of
the COVID pandemic. So yeah, he was definitely
in the hot seat during some really tough times.
So what did people think of him? It was kind
of a mixed bag. Some politicians really liked
him, especially during those crises. But the
people who supported Brexit didn't like him very
much because he kept warning them about the economic
risks. In fact, they even gave him a nickname,
Project Fear. Oh, wow. Yeah. And the public was
split, too. Some people thought he was a really
competent guy who kept things stable, but others
thought he was too focused on helping banks and
financial institutions. So what do you think
his legacy will be in the UK? Well, it seems
like he's known for a few things. He strengthened
the UK's financial system after the 2008 crisis.
He was a big advocate for taking climate change
seriously in the financial world, and he's still
a major figure in global economics and politics.
And there was one more thing about his nationality
that you mentioned. Oh, yeah. He also used to
be an Irish citizen, but he gave up that citizenship
recently. So by the time you're hearing this,
he might not be a British citizen anymore, which
is kind of funny considering he's now the prime
minister of Canada. Very interesting. OK, last
but not least, let's talk about JD Vance and
Ron DeSantis. There was a really interesting
word used to describe JD Vance. Yeah, the word
was creepy. Creaky. Creepy. Our source said that
JD Vance just gives off a creepy vibe, and that
could be a problem if he ever wants to run for
president. So why do they think he's creepy?
Well it seems like it started after he met with
Zelensky in the Oval Office. There's been a ton
of memes about it online making fun of how weird
he acted. The internet is ruthless. It is and
apparently these memes are pretty surreal and
kind of unsettling. So are Vance's supporters
trying to spin this in a positive way? Some of
them are saying that these memes might actually
help him by making him seem more relatable. Nor
relatable. Yeah and others are saying that by
the time he runs for president everyone will
have forgotten about these memes. But your source
doesn't buy that? Nope. They're pretty skeptical.
They don't think Vance likes being the butt of
the joke any more than any other politician would.
And they don't think creepy memes are going to
make him seem more relatable. Plus the internet
never really forgets. Exactly. And when you give
them material like Vance did with Zelensky, They're
never going to let it go. OK, so let's move on
to Ron DeSantis. He's a climate change denier.
Right. Yeah, he is, though. Our source thinks
he might just be saying that because it's what
Republicans are supposed to say. It's definitely
good politics for him in Florida. Right. But
here's the interesting thing. Florida is actually
way ahead of the curve when it comes to solar
energy. Really? Yeah. They're second in the country
for big solar farms and first for residential
solar. And right now, 8 % of Florida's electricity
comes from solar. Wow, that's a lot. So why is
Florida going so big on solar if their governor
doesn't believe in climate change? Well, there
are a few reasons. First of all, Florida gets
a ton of sunshine. A sunshine state. Exactly.
And second, Florida gets hit with a lot of hurricanes
and other bad weather. So having solar panels
on your roof can be really helpful when the power
goes out. That makes sense. Plus, the federal
government gives tax breaks for people who install
solar panels. And this is the big one. Most of
the decisions about power generation in Florida
are made at the local level. So even if DeSantis
wanted to stop solar, he probably couldn't. So
DeSantis talks a big game about climate change,
but he's not really doing much to stop the growth
of solar in his state. Exactly. He recently signed
a bill that says Florida can't mention climate
change in its policies. Wow, really? Yeah, he
called it restoring sanity and said it was about
pushing back against radical green zealots. So
that's his public image. But behind the scenes,
he's not really fighting solar that hard. Nope.
In fact, he quietly vetoed a bill that would
have made it harder to install solar panels.
Interesting. So maybe he's not as anti -solar
as he seems. Maybe not. Our source is hoping
that the economics of solar will win out in the
end, no matter what the politicians say. Makes
sense. Well, we've covered a lot of ground today.
We talked about the government funding, fight
the courts pushing back against the executive
branch, the changes in Congress, a British perspective
on Canada's new prime minister, and the curious
cases of JD Vance and Ron DeSantis. Yeah, we've
been all over the place today. We try to give
you the information you need to understand what's
going on in the world without getting bogged
down in all the details. We just want to make
things a little bit clearer. Exactly. So here's
a question for you to think about. We've talked
about all these different things happening in
politics and the economy, and they're all connected
in some way. What do you think is going to be
the biggest factor that shapes things going forward?
How do you think all these events are going to
play out? That's something to think about. Thanks
for listening to The Deep Dive. See you next
time.