PULSE on Politics

BONUS: The Big Ugly Bill Breakdown: Student Loans & Education (Ep 3)

They didn’t just kill student loan forgiveness—they reached into people’s lives and torched promises that were already in progress. In this episode, we break down how the Big Ugly Bill gutted SAVE, PSLF, and every income-based repayment plan we’ve relied on for decades—and how millions of borrowers are now stuck paying full balances with interest for the rest of their lives. Then we dive into the so-called Workforce Pell Grant—a bait-and-switch gift to trade school students that sounds generous but excludes nearly 80% of real programs. If you thought the alternative to college was safe, think again. This isn’t reform. It’s punishment—for not being wealthy. Episode Resources Note: This is just a small sampling of resources on this Big Ugly Bill. DuckDuckGo is your friend.  ~ H.R.1 The Big Beautiful Bill Act  [https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1] ~ Bipartisan Policy Center: Workforce Pell Grant [https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/workforce-pell-grants-moving-forward-with-accountability/] ~ The Brookings Insitute: The Case for Doubling the Pell Grant [https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-economic-case-for-doubling-the-pell-grant/] ~ Financial Times: Millions Face Collections  [https://www.ft.com/content/0ae46934-ea09-4dc9-bab4-4aa945542ff4] ~ New America: Bad Policy Gotten Worse: Short Term Pells [https://www.newamerica.org/education-policy/edcentral/the-bad-policy-that-wont-die-and-has-gotten-worse-short-term-pell/] ~ Inside Higher Ed: What's Next [https://www.insidehighered.com/news/government/student-aid-policy/2025/07/10/whats-next-after-trump-signed-big-beautiful-bill] Magazine and Foundation Links PULSE of the Great Lakes Magazine [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Foundation [https://lovewhereyoulivefoundation.org] Shop PULSE of the Great Lakes Products [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Podcast on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVIVYFlMfN23vFEA9kMhiahfyY5nhkGjT] Follow Us On Social Media YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@greatlakespulse] Facebook [https://facebook.com/greatlakespulse] TicTok [https://tiktok.com/@greatlakespulse] Instagram [https://instagram.com/greatlakespulse] Threads [https://threads.net/greatlakespulse]

BONUS: The Big Ugly Bill Breakdown - Health System & Reproductive Rights Rollback (Ep 2)

In Episode 1 we covered the cuts to SNAP and Medicaid. In this episode, we go deeper. The cuts don’t stop at Medicaid and food assistance—they come for the very systems meant to keep us alive. From rural hospitals to reproductive rights, this bill takes aim at the infrastructure of care. What happens when your clinic disappears?  When the ambulance never arrives?  When your rights are rewritten in silence? This isn’t about fiscal policy. It’s about power and who’s left without it. Press play. It’s all connected. Episode Resources Note: This is but a sample of resources on this bill. DuckDuckGo is your friend.  ~ H.R. 1. The Big Beautiful Bill Act [https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1] ~ Human Rights Campaign [https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/u-s-house-slashes-health-care-for-millions-of-americans-including-the-lgbtq-community-in-order-to-give-tax-cuts-to-ultra-wealthy] ~ Rural Hospitals At Risk [https://www.aha.org/fact-sheets/2025-06-13-rural-hospitals-risk-cuts-medicaid-would-further-threaten-access] ~ Medicaid Redetermination Policy [https://www.amcp.org/letters-statements-analysis/summary-health-provisions-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-hr-1] ~ Michigan Medicaid Cuts [https://www.michigansthumb.com/news/article/gov-whitmer-medicaid-cuts-impact-700k-20315330.php] ~ Kentucky Hospital Risks [https://kypolicy.org/35-kentucky-hospitals-at-risk-of-closure-due-to-medicaid-cuts/] Magazine and Foundation Links PULSE of the Great Lakes Magazine [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Foundation [https://lovewhereyoulivefoundation.org] Shop PULSE of the Great Lakes Products [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Podcast on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVIVYFlMfN23vFEA9kMhiahfyY5nhkGjT] Follow Us On Social Media YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@greatlakespulse] Facebook [https://facebook.com/greatlakespulse] TicTok [https://tiktok.com/@greatlakespulse] Instagram [https://instagram.com/greatlakespulse] Threads [https://threads.net/greatlakespulse]

BONUS: The Big Ugly Bill Breakdown - SNAP & Medicaid (Ep1)

Welcome to The Big Ugly Bill Breakdown, a special series from Pulse on Politics that breaks down what is arguably the most destructive piece of legislation passed in modern U.S. history—H.R.1, signed on July 4th by a rogue president. In this first episode, we start with SNAP and Medicaid; programs that feed the hungry and provide healthcare for those with the least are now being gutted in broad daylight, wrapped in language that makes it sound like reform. But it’s not reform. It’s punishment. And millions of people are about to feel it. We’re not just reading headlines. We’re walking you through what this bill actually does—line by line, section by section—so you understand how deep the cuts go, who’s going to suffer, and who’s cashing in while the rest of us lose what’s left of our social safety net. This is more than a policy change. It’s a blueprint for cruelty lead by American fascists.  Subscribe and stay with us. There’s a lot more to come. Episode Resources Note: these are only a small number of the unlimited resources regarding this topic. DuckDuckGo is your friend.  ~ H.R.1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act [https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1] ~ GAO SNAP Statistics [https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-21-45] ~ USDA SNAP Statistics [https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap/key-statistics-and-research] ~ CBPP Worsening SNAP's Harsh Work Requirements  [https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/worsening-snaps-harsh-work-requirement-would-take-food-assistance-away] ~ EPI Work Requirements for SNAP and Medicaid [https://www.epi.org/publication/snap-medicaid-work-requirements/] ~ Gig Economy Labor Trends [https://www.businessresearchinsights.com/market-reports/gig-economy-market-102503?utm_source=chatgpt.com] ~ Gig Economy Data  [https://gigeconomydata.org/basics/how-many-gig-workers-are-there] ~ American Progress Medicaid Cuts [https://www.americanprogress.org/article/1-trillion-in-medicaid-cuts-1-trillion-in-tax-giveaways-for-the-richest-1-percent-the-one-big-beautiful-bills-budget-math/] Magazine and Foundation Links PULSE of the Great Lakes Magazine [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Foundation [https://lovewhereyoulivefoundation.org] Shop PULSE of the Great Lakes Products [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Podcast on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVIVYFlMfN23vFEA9kMhiahfyY5nhkGjT] Follow Us On Social Media YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@greatlakespulse] Facebook [https://facebook.com/greatlakespulse] TicTok [https://tiktok.com/@greatlakespulse] Instagram [https://instagram.com/greatlakespulse] Threads [https://threads.net/greatlakespulse]

Episode 6: Hedge Funds and Mobile Home Parks: Part 2 of 2 - It Doesn't Have To Be This Way

The second episode in our two part series. Today we continue the discussion we started in Part 1. Our focus this episode is on why it doesn't have to be this way. We discuss alternatives to hedge fund and private equity ownership of mobile home parks. We talk about what is working, how it works, and why it matters. I'm joined today by Paul Tarranova, Midwest Community Organizer for MHAction; Jim Davis from Family Promise of West Michigan; Holly Hook and Marge Wisniewski, both resident policy advocates fighting the good fight. Welcome to the conversation.  Episode Show Notes mhaction.org Family Promise of West Michigan https://www.familypromisewm.org/who-we-are/our-team/ Magazine and Foundation Links PULSE of the Great Lakes Magazine [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Foundation [https://lovewhereyoulivefoundation.org] Shop PULSE of the Great Lakes Products [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Podcast on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVIVYFlMfN23vFEA9kMhiahfyY5nhkGjT] Follow Us On Social Media YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@greatlakespulse] Facebook [https://facebook.com/greatlakespulse] TicTok [https://tiktok.com/@greatlakespulse] Instagram [https://instagram.com/greatlakespulse] Threads [https://threads.net/greatlakespulse]

Episode 5: Hedge Funds and Mobile Home Parks: Part 1 of 2

This is a doozy of a topic. When we have the conversation about providing and creating affordable housing, we must not leave out of the conversation the need to preserve affordable housing that already exists. It's a problem not only here in Michigan and the Great Lakes Basin Region, but across the United States during end stage capitalism.   What you are about to learn is going to make you pretty angry, if you're someone who cares about anyone outside of the 1%. You're also going to learn that it affects each and every one of us, regardless of whether you reside in a mobile home park or not. We are joined in this podcast by Paul Tarranova, Midwest Community Organizer for MHAction, and two resident organizers of two different mobile home parks in Michigan, Theo Gantos and Pamela Maxey. Welcome to the conversation.  Episode Show Notes mhaction.org More Perfect Union Documentary: Private Equity's Ruthless Takeover of the Last Affordable Housing In America https://youtu.be/wkH1dpr-p_4?si=qq-fseQFC1KenqrG Alden Global's Homes of America pleads guilty in Michigan criminal case; must pay fine and sell property https://pestakeholder.org/news/alden-globals-homes-of-america-pleads-guilty-in-michigan-criminal-case-must-pay-fine-and-sell-property See Theo's Water at North Morris Estates https://www.detroitnews.com/videos/media/video/2024/10/27/video-mt-morris-resident-complains-of-discolored-water-in-mobile-home-park/75164910007/ STATE OF MICHIGAN V NORTH MORRIS ESTATES MHP LLC https://micourt.courts.michigan.gov/case-search/court/D67/case-details?caseId=2024-24B00885-SM-01&tenantKey=D67-25-0626170-00-00&searchUrl=%2Fcourt%2FD67%2Fsearch%3FlastName%3Dnorth%2520morris%26page%3D1 Magazine and Foundation Links PULSE of the Great Lakes Magazine [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Foundation [https://lovewhereyoulivefoundation.org] Shop PULSE of the Great Lakes Products [https://greatlakespulse.com] Love Where You Live Podcast on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVIVYFlMfN23vFEA9kMhiahfyY5nhkGjT] Follow Us On Social Media YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@greatlakespulse] Facebook [https://facebook.com/greatlakespulse] TicTok [https://tiktok.com/@greatlakespulse] Instagram [https://instagram.com/greatlakespulse] Threads [https://threads.net/greatlakespulse]