Daniel Drezner

Donald Trump’s immediate family is making a dizzying sum of money that would be unimaginable without his Presidencies, including profits from overseas deals and at least five different crypto ventures. nyer.cm/zB0NNxq

ICYMI - Trump’s “booming economy” is circling the drain.

This is what happens when you elect a con man to run the country like one of his bankrupt casinos.

*Post by Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.

Reminder: The last time Donald Trump deployed troops to an American city, his poll numbers on the relevant issue (in this case, immigration) instantly cratered and still haven't recovered.

Data from @gelliottmorris.com www.gelliottmorris.com/p/data?open=...

if "bigballs attacked by two 15 year olds" is our Reichstag fire then i officially declare an end to history because we don't want anybody reading that shit later

With Trump set to use crime as a fake justification to threaten DC today, media coverage should make one thing clear: At this point his pattern of manufacturing pretexts for militarizing domestic law enforcement has become undeniable. Some thoughts on that here:

newrepublic.com/article/1987...

Like all the people who vandalized the Capitol…

Goodbye, $165,000 Tech Jobs. Student Coders Seek Work at Chipotle.

My main critique of NYT econ/biz articles (I’m not anti-NYT) is I can usually predict how they’re going to flow based on the headline and opening paragraph. Just too much of the house view/house voice: www.nytimes.com/2025/08/10/t...

Violent Crime in D.C. Hits 30 Year Low Total violent crime for 2024 in the District of Columbia is down 35% from 2023 and is the lowest it has been in over 30 years, according to data collected by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) a...

Trump's own DOJ website still has a press release up from January pointing out that violent crime in D.C. is at its lowest in more than 30 years.

Alan Dershowitz Sues Farmers Market Vendor For Refusing To Sell Him Child WEST TISBURY, MA—Following through on his threat of legal action, civil liberties lawyer Alan Dershowitz confirmed Monday that he had filed a lawsuit against a Martha’s Vineyard farmers market vendor ...

Alan Dershowitz Sues Farmers Market Vendor For Refusing To Sell Him Child

This logic reminds me of the argument in @naunihal.bsky.social's book about how
coup attempts -> coups.

In other words, it's disconcerting.

This is insane. And as dictatorial a power grab as we’ve ever seen in US history. Most of all, though, it’s also just unneeded. Crime is at a generational low in DC.

Big Balls had better never be able to live this down for the rest of his life

*gets up to use the restroom*

"do you need a marine escort? should we call the FBI?"

A teenage 4channer was beat up by two 15 year olds in DC, which was spotted and quickly stopped by nearby police. He told his friends, the richest man in the world and the Vice President of the United States, that he was pummeled by a dozen adult Romanians. A week later, Trump federalized DC police.

Don't know why I inflicted this press conference on myself, but as a DC resident, it is just sickening to listen to Pete Hegseth, Kash Patel, and Pam Bondi (who invoked Jeanine Pirro as DC's "secret weapon") on what they plan to do to "clean up" DC. Shame on those who confirmed them.

At least one of us likes Indian food.

The problem is they have shown they cannot effectively project it in LA and DC, while legally easier for them, is logistically much more difficult.

There’s such a constant stream of bad that it almost gets normalized, but there are still things that stop you dead in your tracks.

Someone forgot to take down this webpage:

www.justice.gov/usao-dc/pr/v...

This dude got his PhD 5 years ago and works at Heritage - here's his unpublished diss with 1 citation www.proquest.com/docview/2452...

Here's the fired Comm. of Labor Statistics with 20+ years of government economics experience and an extensive publishing record
scholar.google.com/citations?us...

I’ve eaten there multiple times. It’s pretty great.

“It is almost as if beliefs about America’s physical infrastructure are downstream from beliefs about America’s social infrastructure. Because that is the infrastructure that has been eviscerated since 2008.”

This piece on people’s perceptions - their “vibes” - about U.S. airports compared to reality, made me think it’s not unlike perceptions - also what FOX News propaganda sells - of crime vs reality. I’m talking big U.S. cities vs other parts of U.S., & trends over time, not US compared to Europe.

This kind of rings true to me. I was surprised how pleasant the Kansas City airport is, for example, on a recent trip.

Maybe we can focus our attention on aviation safety instead...

Did this occur at 6 AM?

Protesters in Israel march against Netanyahu’s plan to escalate Gaza war Families of hostages were among the protesters amid new fears over the 50 remaining captives, with 20 of them thought to be alive, held by Hamas.

Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets across Israel to protest against the Netanyahu government’s plan to expand its military operation in the Gaza Strip.

Pfizer Covid vaccine for young children may not be renewed by FDA Email obtained by Guardian says Pfizer was told approval may not be granted, meaning Moderna may have to fill gap

NEW: The FDA may yank Pfizer's under-5 Covid vaccine this fall. Pfizer has the only pediatric vaccines for all kids over six months, not just those with health conditions. My latest: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Facts, Feelings, and the Friedman Falsification Thoughts about America's airports, American travel, and what that means... for America.

I wrote about the perceptions and reality of U.S. airports and why that represents a falsification of Thomas Friedman. danieldrezner.substack.com/p/facts-feel...

New chatbot on Trump’s Truth Social platform keeps contradicting him An “answer engine” on Trump’s social media site says the 2020 election wasn’t stolen, tariffs aren’t boosting the stock market and Barack Obama is seen favorably.

Trump's Truth Social launched an AI "answer engine" reports @drewharwell.com. But "Truth Search AI contradicts the president by saying that tariffs are a tax on Americans, the 2020 election wasn’t stolen, and his family’s cryptocurrency investments pose a potential conflict of interest." [Gift link]