Terminal Velocity: Is the Economy Actually Strong, or Is This The Best It's Ever Going To Get?

Terminal Velocity: Is the Economy Actually Strong, or Is This The Best It's Ever Going To Get?

The economy’s growing at 2.7%. Unemployment’s still under 5%. Is the economy about to improve just enough to keep Trump out of trouble in the midterms? The anonymous Banker Bill breaks down another set of rosy economic numbers, while Democratic strategist Kobi Tirey thinks the only economic number that matters to voters is inflation. And even Banker Bill has to admit that inflation isn’t getting better anytime soon. Then: is the AI boom a bubble waiting to pop, or the next Uber-and-DoorDash-style industry finding its footing? Plus — Lisa Cook’s Fed fight, the DSA primary upsets in New York and Denver, and why “the economy is us” might be the only rule that actually matters this election cycle. Is It Bad for the Economy? New episode every other Wednesday. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kobitirey.substack.com [https://kobitirey.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Bust The Trusts And Call Me In The Morning: What's Next For Democrats On Healthcare

The American healthcare system spends $5.3 trillion a year — 18% of GDP — and somehow everyone still feels squeezed. In this deep-dive episode of Is It Bad for the Economy?, Democratic Strategist Kobi Tirey is joined by Sy Mukherjee (veteran healthcare reporter, senior life sciences communications strategist) and Banker Bill to untangle the real dysfunction: not "socialism vs. capitalism," but vertically integrated monopolies that own your insurer, your pharmacy benefits manager, and your doctor — all at once. They cover the Warren-Hawley Act, why breaking up UnitedHealth Group may need to come before Medicare for All, the 30-year chart that shows hospital costs outpacing inflation every single year except during COVID, what Democrats must get right before 2028, and what the Trump administration is accidentally doing correctly. This is the honest, unfiltered healthcare policy conversation most podcasts are too scared to have. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kobitirey.substack.com [https://kobitirey.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Will The Real Kevin Warsh Please Stand Up

The entire financial world revolved around one question yesterday: Which version of Trump’s new Fed chair, Kevin Warsh, was going to show up at his first Fed meeting? OG Inflation Hawk Kevin Warsh?OrThe guy who was willing to say whatever Trump wanted to hear to give him the job? To Democratic strategist Kobi Tirey’s shock, it was the latter. Kobi actually had some nice things to say about Trump’s new Fed Chair for once. But even if Kobi liked what he heard, Banker Bill wasn’t impressed. Warsh’s “no forward guidance” policy means his presentation was also light in substance, and inflation is still too damn high. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kobitirey.substack.com [https://kobitirey.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Trump’s Economic Id: A Trade War Check Up With WSJ’s Gavin Bade

We invited Wall Street Journal trade reporter Gavin Bade back to do a postmortem on the trade war. His answer: it’s not over. New tariffs are coming in late July — more legally durable than before, covering almost every US trading partner, and framed around forced labor and Chinese industrial overcapacity. The kind of thing that’s hard to argue against without sounding like you support slavery. Gavin breaks down why Jamieson Greer has quietly become the most powerful person in US trade policy, why Lutnick has been pushed to the side, and why the administration’s biggest reversal — on China — tells you everything about how they operate when they can’t coerce someone. Plus: Is the AI bubble about to pop and are all these IPOs the insiders cashing out before people notice? Credit card delinquencies, car repos, and why the stock market’s gains are masking a deteriorating picture for the middle 80%. And the data center question Democrats are fumbling — with a closing argument from Kobi on the window that’s rapidly closing. Is It Bad for the Economy? is the podcast where a Democratic strategist, an anonymous Wall Street banker, and occasionally a very good journalist try to figure out who’s actually winning and losing in this economy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kobitirey.substack.com [https://kobitirey.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Is the SpaceX IPO a Wealth Transfer? Plus: Your Electric Bill Since ChatGPT.

Your 401k is about to become exit liquidity for SpaceX insiders — and your electric bill is already 19% higher since ChatGPT launched. Democratic strategist Kobi Tirey and anonymous Wall Street banker Bill break down the SpaceX IPO, what Tesla’s valuation actually means, and the inflation data nobody’s framing correctly: strip out energy and prices are fine. Put energy back in and you can see exactly who’s responsible. Also: why is Jeff Bezos suddenly so friendly with Trump? We have a theory. Plus a look at the electricity price chart that should be front-page news — 30% up in five years from a boring utility, and it’s only going higher. Is It Bad for the Economy? is the podcast where a Democratic strategist and an anonymous Wall Street insider agree on more than you’d expect. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kobitirey.substack.com [https://kobitirey.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]