Charles Homans on this week's RS podcast* "How 'Stop the Steal' Captured the American Right" is this week's New York Times Magazine cover story. And author Charles Homans is my guest on this brand new episode of the "Reliable Sources" podcast. Homans describes how the "Steal" movement predates Trump and will outlast him. In short, this strain of right-wing thinking is so much bigger than Trump and 1/6. Homans told me about his interviews with Trump supporters at rallies; w...

Charles Homans on this week's RS podcast* "How 'Stop the Steal' Captured the American Right" is this week's New York Times Magazine cover story. And author Charles Homans is my guest on this brand new episode of the "Reliable Sources" podcast. Homans describes how the "Steal" movement predates Trump and will outlast him. In short, this strain of right-wing thinking is so much bigger than Trump and 1/6. Homans told me about his interviews with Trump supporters at rallies; w...

From horse breeders to vaccine makersIt's easy to see why some of the biggest names in public health chose to rely on Poonawalla. Few manufacturers can come close to the scale at which SII is able to produce vaccines. The company — which was founded by Poonawalla's father, Cyrus, 55 years ago — produces 1.5 billion vaccines each year for measles, rubella, tetanus and many other diseases. The jabs are mainly distributed to low-income countries worldwide, including India. Poonawalla e...

From horse breeders to vaccine makersIt's easy to see why some of the biggest names in public health chose to rely on Poonawalla. Few manufacturers can come close to the scale at which SII is able to produce vaccines. The company — which was founded by Poonawalla's father, Cyrus, 55 years ago — produces 1.5 billion vaccines each year for measles, rubella, tetanus and many other diseases. The jabs are mainly distributed to low-income countries worldwide, including India. Poonawalla e...

But engineering this big of a move won't be easy. Netflix's entrance into the ad space will be complicated. Competition for viewers among streaming services is tight. And if a large batch of subscribers downgrades to the lower-cost version to save money, it would hurt revenue even as new users sign up. "We urge caution to the belief that Netflix will be able to use advertising to grow revenue in a vacuum," Bank of America analysts said in a report published late last month. "The adv...

But engineering this big of a move won't be easy. Netflix's entrance into the ad space will be complicated. Competition for viewers among streaming services is tight. And if a large batch of subscribers downgrades to the lower-cost version to save money, it would hurt revenue even as new users sign up. "We urge caution to the belief that Netflix will be able to use advertising to grow revenue in a vacuum," Bank of America analysts said in a report published late last month. "The adv...

"I do not think the US is currently in a recession," Powell said earlier this week. "There are just too many areas of the economy that are performing too well." But GDP doesn't just turn negative on its own, and Thursday's data contains useful guidance for understanding a complex economic moment. Pay attention: Inventories, or goods held by a business that haven't been sold yet, had a major role to play. Companies stocked up on many items late last year as they attempted to dod...

"I do not think the US is currently in a recession," Powell said earlier this week. "There are just too many areas of the economy that are performing too well." But GDP doesn't just turn negative on its own, and Thursday's data contains useful guidance for understanding a complex economic moment. Pay attention: Inventories, or goods held by a business that haven't been sold yet, had a major role to play. Companies stocked up on many items late last year as they attempted to dod...

If you don't have that much now, cut out some non-essential expenses and add the money you would have spent to the kitty. And if you own your home, consider getting a home equity line of credit before rates rise again, since it can help supplement your emergency reserves so long as you can resist tapping it for anything else, Lima said. Stress test your financial plan: Should there be a recession, you may come out of it unscathed. But you can't assume that in advance. What you can d...

If you don't have that much now, cut out some non-essential expenses and add the money you would have spent to the kitty. And if you own your home, consider getting a home equity line of credit before rates rise again, since it can help supplement your emergency reserves so long as you can resist tapping it for anything else, Lima said. Stress test your financial plan: Should there be a recession, you may come out of it unscathed. But you can't assume that in advance. What you can d...

Spirit and Frontier airlines Wednesday finally pulled the plug on their proposed deal, which had been on life support for months, clearing the way for a possible purchase of Spirit by JetBlue Airways. The proposed merger of Spirit and Frontier, first announced in February, was never able to capture the support of a majority of Spirit shareholders after JetBlue stepped in with its more lucrative all-cash offer. But Spirit management continued to push for the Frontier deal, arguing that the Jet...

Spirit and Frontier airlines Wednesday finally pulled the plug on their proposed deal, which had been on life support for months, clearing the way for a possible purchase of Spirit by JetBlue Airways. The proposed merger of Spirit and Frontier, first announced in February, was never able to capture the support of a majority of Spirit shareholders after JetBlue stepped in with its more lucrative all-cash offer. But Spirit management continued to push for the Frontier deal, arguing that the Jet...

Brexit still unresolvedAccording to Ilzetzki, a major priority for the next prime minister should be to clarify "once and for all, the UK's relationship with its larger trading partner," the European Union. Truss, who voted to remain in the EU in 2016, has since become a staunch advocate for Brexit. She is pushing to rip up the Northern Ireland protocol — a piece of legislation central to the EU withdrawal agreement the UK signed in 2020 — which enables the free flow of goods between Nor...

Brexit still unresolvedAccording to Ilzetzki, a major priority for the next prime minister should be to clarify "once and for all, the UK's relationship with its larger trading partner," the European Union. Truss, who voted to remain in the EU in 2016, has since become a staunch advocate for Brexit. She is pushing to rip up the Northern Ireland protocol — a piece of legislation central to the EU withdrawal agreement the UK signed in 2020 — which enables the free flow of goods between Nor...

And since 2014, the EPA has regulated that all diesel sold and produced in the United States must be ULSD (ultra low sulfur diesel) -- a standard of diesel which limits sulfur contents to 15 parts per million. Sulfur content regulations have reduced toxic emissions by at least 90%, according to the EPA. The EPA's regulations greatly benefit the environment. But lowering the sulfur content of diesel has led to lower energy density (less fuel economy per gallon) and raised production costs...

And since 2014, the EPA has regulated that all diesel sold and produced in the United States must be ULSD (ultra low sulfur diesel) -- a standard of diesel which limits sulfur contents to 15 parts per million. Sulfur content regulations have reduced toxic emissions by at least 90%, according to the EPA. The EPA's regulations greatly benefit the environment. But lowering the sulfur content of diesel has led to lower energy density (less fuel economy per gallon) and raised production costs...

Tesla, as is its practice, did not respond to a request for comment on its sales and production so far this quarter. Tesla had never previously disclosed its Chinese production numbers prior to Musk's tweet, so the estimate of how many cars it had built there from the CPCA could not be confirmed. * Shanghai production has been in focus for Tesla investors after being shut by Covid lockdowns for most of the second quarter. That resulted in a rare quarter-to-quarter drop in earnings and sa...

Tesla, as is its practice, did not respond to a request for comment on its sales and production so far this quarter. Tesla had never previously disclosed its Chinese production numbers prior to Musk's tweet, so the estimate of how many cars it had built there from the CPCA could not be confirmed. * Shanghai production has been in focus for Tesla investors after being shut by Covid lockdowns for most of the second quarter. That resulted in a rare quarter-to-quarter drop in earnings and sa...

One month ago, Li Jiaqi disappeared from the internet. The 30-year-old livestreamer, also known as Austin Li, was — until recently — one of China's biggest internet celebrities, with 64 million followers on Taobao, an online shopping platform. He once sold 15,000 lipsticks within five minutes in a sales competition against Alibaba founder Jack Ma, winning himself the nickname "China's lipstick king." But the superstar salesman has gone silent after his popular livestream show was ab...

One month ago, Li Jiaqi disappeared from the internet. The 30-year-old livestreamer, also known as Austin Li, was — until recently — one of China's biggest internet celebrities, with 64 million followers on Taobao, an online shopping platform. He once sold 15,000 lipsticks within five minutes in a sales competition against Alibaba founder Jack Ma, winning himself the nickname "China's lipstick king." But the superstar salesman has gone silent after his popular livestream show was ab...

"Without a clear direction, markets are confining mortgage rates to move within a tighter range, as the sharp upward push has moderated," he said. In response to high inflation the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by 75 basis points last week, the second hike of that size in as many months. The Federal Reserve does not set the interest rates borrowers pay on mortgages directly. Instead, mortgage rates tend to track 10-year US Treasury bonds. But they are indirectly impacted ...

"Without a clear direction, markets are confining mortgage rates to move within a tighter range, as the sharp upward push has moderated," he said. In response to high inflation the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by 75 basis points last week, the second hike of that size in as many months. The Federal Reserve does not set the interest rates borrowers pay on mortgages directly. Instead, mortgage rates tend to track 10-year US Treasury bonds. But they are indirectly impacted ...

It's not politicos or investment bankers who hold the key here. It's policymakers at the Federal Reserve who are trying to cool off 40-year high inflation by raising interest rates. Another three-quarter-point interest rate hike is expected this week, along with critical readings on second -uarter GDP, consumer confidence, and a consumer price reading. (More fodder for the recession guessing game.) "You can look at the last six times that the Fed has adopted a rising interest rate e...

It's not politicos or investment bankers who hold the key here. It's policymakers at the Federal Reserve who are trying to cool off 40-year high inflation by raising interest rates. Another three-quarter-point interest rate hike is expected this week, along with critical readings on second -uarter GDP, consumer confidence, and a consumer price reading. (More fodder for the recession guessing game.) "You can look at the last six times that the Fed has adopted a rising interest rate e...