Paul Waldman

this is spot on

the tax hikes these people go apocalyptic about are, in relative terms, almost always tiny - the MA millionaires’ tax, for example, is 4% on income above $1M

but paying taxes hurts their feelings far more than their wallet

Why Wall Street Idiots Love Trump No Matter What Harm He Does to the Economy It's the most banal and foolish reason you could imagine.

“So far, so good” says Jamie Dimon, the King of Wall Street, about Trump’s deranged tariff policy. How can we solve this mystery?

paulwaldman.substack.com/p/why-wall-s...

Problem is, as a tool for economic development this is incredibly weak. They spend a bunch on construction up front, but once built these data centers employ tiny numbers of people to maintain. Their answer is "But what if we built MORE data centers? Why? Cuz A. Iyeeeeee!!!!" Good luck with that.

Big Tech’s $400 Billion AI Spending Spree Just Got Wall Street’s Blessing Microsoft joined Nvidia in the $4 trillion market-cap club, while Meta is closing in on the $2 trillion mark.

Apparently, Wall Street is displeased that unlike other tech giants, Apple isn't flushing hundreds of billions of dollars down any available toilet labeled "A.I." with sufficient vigor and speed.

All the right incentives!

www.wsj.com/tech/ai/tech...

As I argue here, we're going to look back on this period, right now, as the end of the post-1967 era of both US foreign policy and diaspora Jewish identity vis-a-vis Israel. At least we should hope so: paulwaldman.substack.com/p/israels-sp...

“There’s a lot of things where we may just need better research. We’ve never talked about environmental exposures that may, say, cause cancer.”

Classic right-wing move: Claim that something that has been extensively studied has never been studied before, which is why we can't do anything about it.

In half the corporations in America they're scrambling to slap some AI bullshit on whatever they do, not because it accomplishes anything for their employees or their customers but because the bosses have been told it's the future and they'd better get on board or they'll be left behind

Behold, the leading political philosopher on the right.

Musk's "America Party" is failing to launch The billionaire hasn't taken visible steps to make formal filings for the America Party.

What a surprise, Elon Musk never really cared enough about starting a third party to do anything about it, and it'll never happen

www.axios.com/2025/07/30/e...

Are all the Silicon Valley bros still eating that Soylent goop? What happened to that?

They issued kind of a milquetoast statement saying they don't approve but also faculty senates should get too involved in politics.

Opinion | The DOJ’s attack on George Mason sends a clear message to those not fully aligned with MAGA The Education Department opened an investigation into George Mason in early July, saying it had received complaints about the university’s efforts to promote diversity.

And here's my latest at MSNBC, on the Justice Department going after the George Mason faculty for the crime of expressing support for the president of the university. Republicans truly are committed to free speech on campus.

www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

Israel's Special Place In American Politics May Never Recover With the undeniable horrors coming from Gaza, something has shifted. Could Israel become just another U.S. ally?

What if Israel was just another U.S. ally, not one whose position is exalted beyond all others? With growing condemnation of its actions in Gaza, that may be where we’re headed.

My latest at The Cross Section: paulwaldman.substack.com/p/israels-sp...

What now?

This is a complex problem from a practical point of view, but any Democrat who thinks voters reward them for holding the moral high ground should be asked when they arrived here from their home planet, because it certainly couldn't have been more than a week or two ago

1. Trump's rural supporters get crappy, expensive satellite internet rather than stable, cheaper fiber that promotes economic development, which the law promised them.

2. Elon Musk gets billions of taxpayer dollars.

All going according to plan.

Excellent thread on the crypto snake oil the admin is selling.

It might be a good idea to war-game the likely future crypto collapse now to prepare for the damage it will do to the economy, which could be as bad as the 2008 financial crisis. But nah, we'll probably just bail out all these scammers.

Fossil Fool How Europe took Trump for a ride

Good point from @pkrugman.bsky.social: The promises Europe made to Trump on investment and buying US energy are meaningless and won't happen. Maybe the clever way to deal with him is to mimic him: make crazy promises he can tout but will quickly forget about.

paulkrugman.substack.com/p/fossil-fool

The Gen Xers Who Waited Their Turn to Be CEO Are Getting Passed Over More companies are holding on to older leaders or passing over a generation in search of the next ones.

Once again, my generation gets the shaft.

On the other hand...

1. We are objectively the worst generation

2. Not being made CEO is a sign you're not a psychopath, so maybe it means we're redeemable after all

www.wsj.com/lifestyle/ca...

Before this they interviewed the executive director of B'Tselem, but before talking to her they read a long statement from the IDF about why everything they're doing is fine.

And yet, I know plenty of American Jews who refuse to listen to NPR because they think it's relentlessly anti-Israel.

Let's not forget that this seat was vacant because Islamaphobic Democrats wouldn't let Biden's appointee be confirmed. And Schumer let the clock run out.

what an incredibly sad and miserable way to live

there’s so many amazing things to do in NYC (and cities everywhere) - imagine being unable to enjoy them because you’re scared out of your mind every time you see someone whose skin is a different color

Tech elites are turning AI into ChatGPTrump The administration's new AI plan gives Silicon Valley everything it wants — for a price.

In exchange for giving the AI companies everything they want, all they have to do is create an anti-woke AI for the government to use.

Call it ChatGPTrump.

My latest at Public Notice: www.publicnotice.co/p/trump-ai-a...

All these right wing bros who are obsessed with who's a "real" man, if they met Trump in person and he said "Drop your pants, get on your hands and knees and say 'Wah wah, I'm a widdle baby' while I spank you" they would do it in a heartbeat

Faculty Support of George Mason’s President Draws Federal Investigation

The faculty at George Mason issued a statement supporting the president of the university, so the Justice Department is now investigating the faculty.

This is "You have committed thoughtcrime and will be punished" stuff.

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/28/u...

It is an extraordinary loss of intellectual expertise that the American people invested millions in developing

Every scientist who earns a graduate degree in the US is the product of an investment by the public

This is like setting money on fire

With the departures of Catherine, @pbump.com and @perrybaconjr.bsky.social, things have gone from "There are still some excellent voices at the Post" to "They're probably just going to publish AI-generated columns before long."

The business geniuses there are doing a bang-up job.

The Transformative Power of Not Giving a Damn About Public Opinion Just look at what Trump has accomplished. Democrats need to learn the lesson.

Republicans are the “Yes we can” party, and it doesn’t matter that the public doesn’t like what they’re doing. The results are just as consequential.

paulwaldman.substack.com/p/the-transf...

Josh Hawley is rolling out his compelling 2028 persona, Guy Who Feels Your Pain Now That The Bills He Voted For Made Your Life Miserable

Why Amazon Wants an AI Bracelet That Records Everything You Say The tech giant’s acquisition is its latest move into the burgeoning AI-gadget business.

Try to imagine meeting someone who says "This? It's my AI bracelet that even now is recording every word we're saying. Cool, huh?" Very not cool, you'd say, as you back away and vow never to get within 50 feet of that monster ever again as long as you live.

www.wsj.com/tech/persona...