Happy Thursday Everyone! Today’s newsletter: 1,016 words…3.8 mins
🗞 Today’s Edition: House Passes OBBB, BlackRock buys UK’s Dip, Kids AI Smartwatches…& much more!
🚨 Watch For:
President will sign his prized One Big Beautiful Bill into law on Independence Day - July 4th, 4pm ET
Trump-Zelensky phone call on July 4th
PM Netanyahu visits the White House on Monday, July 7th
Potential finalized deal on Israel-Gaza in the coming week
📜THE HIGHLIGHT
One killer insight to stash in your back pocket
🎬 House of Cards: Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Clears the Chaos
🎪 The overnight political circus that tested every nerve in D.C. ran into the longest recorded House vote. The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA) bulldozed through the House early this morning - the final vote: 218-214,
The 887-page megabill nearly derailed after a mini GOP mutiny.
Initially, 5 Republicans voted no, 8 ghosted the vote (they had ‘family events’ 🙄)
⌚ By 1am ET, President Trump went full Truth Social meltdown mode:
“What are the Republicans waiting for??? … MAGA IS NOT HAPPY, AND IT’S COSTING YOU VOTES!!!”
📿 At one point, Speaker Mike Johnson convened the holdouts to the floor where they huddled to say a prayer.
🌃 Cue late-night White House lobbying, arm-twisting, and deal-cutting. By sunrise, enough defectors flipped
The final vote: 218-214, with two Republicans — Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Pennsylvania’s Brian Fitzpatrick — voting against it alongside all of the chamber’s Democrats.
🤦♀ Then…
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D. - NY) decided to weaponize the legendary “magic minute”, filibustering for 8 hrs 44 mins - breaking the House record for the longest floor speech.
Rep. Jeffries: “This is just one of them [battles], but we wanted to make sure ... in the light of day, just how damaging this one big, ugly bill will be to the American people.”
💬 And then….
JD Vance received this text from a GOP rep: "I was undecided… then I watched Jeffries’ performance and now I’m a firm yes"
📃 The bill:
Massive tax cuts
$46B border wall boost
Defense cash
Work Requirements to qualify for Medicaid
Rollbacks on Biden’s green policies
$3.3 trillion in projected deficit hikes
Debt ceiling increase by $5 trillion
…all wrapped in MAGA branding.
Critics call it a billionaire giveaway; Trump calls it “for the American people” and Trump’s team raced to deliver it to him for a July 4 signing victory.
🏆 Why it matters: Trump’s megabill isn’t just a tax and spending package — it’s a high-stakes power play that reshapes the economy, fuels the deficit, slashes Biden’s climate plays, and hands Trump a July 4th campaign trophy.
♟️THE CHESSBOARD
Geopolitics Decoded In 3 Moves
🇬🇧 BlackRock Buys the Dip — UK Panic Be Damned
📉 While markets freaked over whispers that Chancellor Reeves could be toast (she cried in Parliament…literally), BlackRock and Schroders quietly loaded up on UK gilts - government issued bonds.
💷 The Pound tanked, yields hit 4.68%, No. 10 looked wobbly — but Wall Street’s biggest player didn’t flinch.
💲 Dollar Hedge: Sterling’s slump makes UK debt cheaper for dollar-heavy investors—like BlackRock’s U.S. clients
💰 Why It Matters: Big Money’s betting Britain’s chaos is temporary — and scooping up cheap UK debt. BlackRock’s move is a power play on Britain’s global relevance. As the UK wobbles politically, Wall Street’s betting London stays a pillar in the West’s economic chessboard.
🇺🇸 🇷🇺 Trump, Putin Talk Ukraine and Iran
📞 Trump and Putin held a rare hour-long call as US arms for Ukraine stalled and Zelensky faces growing uncertainty. Trump urged a “swift end” to the war, but Putin doubled down — Russia "will not back down" from its war aims and will continue to pursue its goals in Ukraine
🪆 Kremlin officials insist Ukraine peace talks stay strictly bilateral, sidelining Washington.
🇮🇷 The Middle East also loomed large — Putin called for “diplomacy” on Iran.
🔍 No major breakthrough was reported. Zelensky is scheduled to speak with Trump tomorrow.
💸 US Sanctions Hit Iran’s Oil Smugglers and Hezbollah’s Wallet
🛢 Washington just blacklisted an oil smuggling empire run by Iraqi-Brit Salim Said, accused of funneling billions to Iran’s regime by disguising crude as Iraqi exports. His UAE-based firm VS Tankers and vessels tied to Iran’s “shadow fleet” got slapped too.
🥷 Also on the hit list: Hezbollah’s shady financial arm, Al-Qard Al-Hassan, for laundering cash through Lebanon.
🌎 Context: Sanctions follow US airstrikes on Iranian nuke sites — pressure’s piling on Tehran.
🔥 Why It Matters: The move aims to starve Tehran’s proxy wars—but with oil prices volatile, enforcement will be tricky.
🗽THE EMPIRE FILES
Political Drama From DC To NYC
💥 Ackman to Cuomo: Step Aside, Let Adams Fight the Socialists
🗽 Billionaire Bill Ackman officially backed Mayor Adams for re-election, calling ex-Gov. Cuomo “subdued” and “not up for the fight.”
💲 Ackman’s reasoning? Only Adams can stop far-left candidate Zohran Mamdani, whose anti-NYPD, seize-the-means-of-production platform has Wall Street spooked.
⚡ Translation: Even billionaires think NYC’s future hinges on Adams… flaws and all.
📺 CBS Settles with Trump After Doctored Interview Fallout
💵 CBS News quietly paid Trump $16M to settle claims they deceptively edited a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris before the 2024 election.
Anchor Bill Whitaker got teary, staffers called it a “sellout” and “capitulation”
📚 The payout - earmarked for Trump's presidential library - came despite CBS previously calling the suit "meritless."
🔎 Bottom line: CBS dodged an apology — but their credibility’s bleeding.
🤖 CODES & POWER
Tech Wars, Crypto Chaos, and AI’s Black Mirror Moments
⌚ AI-Powered Kids’ Smartwatch Just Dropped — & Yes, It Talks Back
The $160 watch (Plus: $15/month subscription) comes loaded with GPS, games, and “PinwheelGPT” — a kid-safe AI chatbot for homework help and curious questions.
Designed specifically for kids (ages 7-14), it boasts - no socials, no web browsing. And parents get full spy mode on every chat.
⚡ Translation? It's Apple Watch energy… minus the TikTok addiction.
🚀Circle’s IPO Rocket Fuels Tech Market Rebirth
🪙 Crypto giant Circle’s stock surged 500% post-IPO, hitting a $42B valuation - after the Senate’s GENIUS Act fueled its rocket - sparking VC euphoria. VCs like Accel banked $8B in Circle stock alone.
June saw 5 U.S. tech IPOs (vs. 2/month avg.), with CoreWeave and Figma next in line.
🍾 Meta’s $14B bet on Scale AI added fuel. Caveat: Not all debuts popped—cough Omada Health cough—but after years of drought, Silicon Valley’s popping champagne.
💀 THE ROAST
Because World Leaders Beg To Be Dragged
