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BABY GOT GREENBACK
Donald Trump is giving money to babies — while taking a lot more away from the most vulnerable Americans.
Giving millions of kids a head start in life in the form of a little nest egg in a long-term savings account sounds like a good thing, no matter which politician gets the credit. And that’s the best thing that can be said about the new Trump Accounts, which promise to hand $1,000 in somewhat-tax-advantaged accounts to kiddos born between 2025 and 2028. And yet, as they say, the devil is in the details. And there are a lot of details to this plan — which gives the devil a lot of places to hide.
The accounts allow parents to contribute an extra $5,000 per year, which will grow tax free until the kid turns 18. After that, half the value can be withdrawn, while what’s left will be converted into a traditional IRA retirement account. Today, tech mogul Michael Dell donated $6.25 billion to add $250 each to millions of accounts for more children, including many who don’t qualify for the original $1,000. You can learn more about the details, and whether your family might qualify, here [ [link removed] ], here [ [link removed] ] and here [ [link removed] ].
But ah, those pesky details. Because of their structure, Trump Accounts could actually widen the wealth gap in America, according to experts [ [link removed] ]. The poorest families likely won’t be able to add more money to their accounts, while wealthier families can max out the $5,000 contribution limit. In recent years, Democrats repeatedly tried to pass [ [link removed] ] legislation similar to the Trump accounts, which would’ve benefited more low income Americans. The bill repeatedly died in Congress.
In fact, these new savings accounts aren’t actually better for most families than existing options, such as 529 educational savings funds, many experts say. “It’s like, thank you government for the free money, but I care about the usefulness,” Alan Cole, a senior economist at the Tax Foundation, told Yahoo! Finance [ [link removed] ]. “And realistically, this is the sixth or seventh best tax-free savings account option.”
How did we even get here? The story is as quirky as it is American. A chat between Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and a professional poker player during a card game [ [link removed] ] last year resulted in the former host of “The Apprentice” promising to open investment accounts for millions of kids. Today, the dude who founded Dell threw in a few extra billion. If all this isn’t emblematic of the late stage capitalist hellscape we live in, I don’t know what is.
Trump is trying to reclaim the “affordability” narrative, despite countless policies that have tightened Americans’ wallets.
While Trump was touting these new accounts in the White House, his administration was simultaneously threatening to make life worse for America’s poorest. The Trump administration will withhold federal food aid benefits (SNAP) to low-income Americans in blue states that don’t share information about recipients with the federal government, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced during [ [link removed] ] a North Korean-style cabinet meeting today. Those states will only receive SNAP aid once if they “comply,” she added.
But free money in your kid’s bank account sounds great, right? Well… sort of. The plan was approved as part of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” last summer… which also dramatically cut healthcare and food benefits for the poorest Americans. Under that plan, some 12 million people could lose medical coverage, and another 3 million could lose food benefits. The bill effectively left 30 percent [ [link removed] ] of young adults in limbo over their access to health care.
The White House also refused to dole out [ [link removed] ] SNAP benefits during the government shutdown until judges forced them to do so. Benefits like these help people right now — while these Trump-branded savings accounts will take almost two decades to pay out anything at all (and in the meantime, they’ll be pumping up the stock market, to the benefit of all those rich money managers on Wall Street).
The Trump Accounts could’ve been executed much more effectively. Since when has Trump been about substance, though? He’s obsessive about good headlines and receiving praise. No average person is gonna complain about an extra $1,000 in their bank account. And once these accounts go through, I dare any future politician to run against them.
But if the White House wants to help people economically, there are more effective ways… starting with not slashing food aid and healthcare.
THE STRUGGLE ISRAEL
Donald Trump has bragged about securing a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. But Palestinians in Gaza say that the war isn’t over.
Israel and Hamas agreed to a fragile ceasefire deal in early October, which included the exchange of Israeli hostages and the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners. Since then, Israel has reduced the scale of its attacks and allowed some additional humanitarian aid inside Gaza.
But the reality on the ground is stark: More than 350 Palestinian have been killed [ [link removed] ] since the peace deal was enacted, according to local health authorities.
Do Palestinians feel safe? “The clear answer is no,” Mohammed El Aklouk, an aid worker based in Gaza City, told the What A Day [ [link removed] ]podcast [ [link removed] ]. “I [heard] some shooting one week ago in our neighborhood … We are afraid to send our kids to any school.”
Aklouk’s family has been displaced seven times since the war began, he said, and his last home was destroyed during the current ceasefire. “I’m trying to find an alternative place… to start from zero, to rebuild my life with my family, and to continue our lives,” he said.
Last month, the BBC reported that Israel had destroyed more than [ [link removed] ] 1,500 buildings in Gaza since the ceasefire began.
“The ceasefire risks creating a dangerous illusion that life in Gaza is returning to normal,” Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard said in a statement [ [link removed] ] last week. “The world must not be fooled. Israel’s genocide is not over.”
WHAT ELSE?
Federal prosecutors charged [ [link removed] ] the suspected shooter of two National Guard troops in Washington, D.C. with murder, assault and firearms offenses, the Washington Post reports.
How the hell did the former president of Honduras [ [link removed] ], [ [link removed] ] who helped flood the U.S. with cocaine, secure a pardon from Donald Trump? He sucked up to Trump in a personal letter, and former Trump aide Roger Stone lobbied on the ex-president’s behalf, according to Axios. “Your resilience in the face of relentless political persecution has inspired me deeply,” wrote the former prez, Juan Orlando Hernandez. “Like you, I was recklessly attacked by radical leftist forces.” It’s sad that it’s this easy to manipulate our nation’s leader.
Special envoy Steve Wikoff and Trump son-in-law [ [link removed] ] Jared Kushner met with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in Moscow today to discuss possible plans to end the war in Ukraine. Few details were immediately available afterwards, but we might learn more soon if (...or when?) Witkoff mistakenly tweets [ [link removed] ] his private thoughts again.
Corporations are expected to reap $16 billion [ [link removed] ] from retroactive GOP tax breaks, according to a nonpartisan federal analysis. Progressives argue that the tax breaks won’t stimulate the economy, as Republicans claim. “This blatant corporate handout will do nothing to encourage additional investments, as it is impossible to incentivize economic activity that has already happened,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) wrote in a letter.
Pop star Sabrina Carpenter and the [ [link removed] ] publisher of Franklin the Turtle blasted the Trump administration for using their work in heinous ways. In Carpenter’s case, ICE used her song “Juno” in a video depicting ICE raids. In the publisher’s case, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth depicted the turtle using a rocket launcher on drug boats.
The Trump administration is funding fewer grants [ [link removed] ] in literally every area of science and medicine, according to the New York Times. The White House has claimed that it is slashing “woke programs” that “poison the minds of Americans.” But the reality is that these research programs — which include studies of cancer, aging, diabetes, and countless other topics — have made the United States a world-renowned science hub. As a result, some scientists say their colleagues are leaving the U.S. for other opportunities.
Have you been putting off getting that REAL ID? [ [link removed] ] If so, then hopping on an airplane will cost you an extra $45, starting in February. (Yes, you can still use a passport instead if you really don’t wanna go to the DMV.)
LIGHT AT THE END OF THE EMAIL…
It’s Giving… Tuesday! A great day to support your favorite charity [ [link removed] ] or local food bank [ [link removed] ]. (We linked two that we love.) ‘Tis the season, gang!
Costco wants its money back! [ [link removed] ] The wholesale retailer-hotdog vendor became the latest company to sue the government over its tariff policy, demanding refunds if the Supreme Court rules that Trump administration’s duties were illegal.
Starbucks settled a labor law dispute with workers [ [link removed] ] in New York City, agreeing to pay more than $38 million to some 15,000 baristas. That comes out to about $2,500 each, which is probably how much I spend annually on tips at coffee shops. I really oughta buy a moka pot…
The Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. received [ [link removed] ] a pen that had been used by Erno Spiegel, a Jewish prisoner at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, to falsify records of dozens of children, saving their lives. “In the hands of my father in Auschwitz, it became a tool of survival, a means to preserve names instead of numbers, and a quiet act of resistance,” Spiegel’s daughter told the Washington Post.
Cats meow more often when they’re trying [ [link removed] ] to get a man’s attention, according to a small study that attempted to demystify feline behavior. Why? “The researchers are suggesting that many cats have concluded that men don’t always listen, and adjusted their behavior accordingly,” the New York Times writes. So even cats know that men are bad listeners? We’ve got some self-provement to do, fellas.
A man living in Southern California is trying [ [link removed] ] to figure out how to deal with a black bear he discovered living in the cozy crawl space beneath his house. Local authorities, apparently, are busy with other matters. “The plan is, I’m going to buy a bunch of dinner rolls, and line them down the street up to the hole, and have some sandbags ready,” he told the AP. “When he comes down the street to get the dinner rolls, throw sandbags in there and cover it with pepper spray, and just hope he stays away.” I mean, with the cost of housing these days, can you blame the bear?
Belgium is tired of the Netherlands’ shit. [ [link removed] ] No, literally. Brussels rejected a request from the Dutch to spread thousands of tons of manure onto Belgium farmland, as the Netherlands faces a nitrogen crisis. This whole situation stinks.
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