Neoliberalism Comes to America
In the early 1970s the United States abandoned the Bretton Woods gold standard, devalued the dollar twice, and faced an oil embargo that quadrupled prices, igniting a decade of supply‑shock inflation. The crisis created fertile ground for Milton Friedman’s neoliberal ideas, which gained traction under Reagan’s 1980‑88 administration through massive tax cuts, deregulation, and aggressive union busting. Those policies slashed the top marginal tax rate from 74% to 25% while tripling the national debt to roughly $2.4 trillion. The era also saw CEO compensation explode and union membership collapse, reshaping the American economy.
The Saturday Report 4/25/26 —What Can Be Done About a Sleep-Deprived, Paranoid 79-Year-Old W/The Nuclear Codes, Awake at 3 Am...
In April 2026 the Justice Department announced the reinstatement of firing squads, reviving a contentious death‑penalty debate. President Trump’s economic approval rating plunged to a historic minus 32, while his erratic late‑night social‑media activity raised alarms about his mental fitness and...
From Surveillance State to Kill Machine: Has the Line Already Been Crossed?
The Pentagon’s FY 2027 request includes a $54.6 billion boost for the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group, a 24,000 % increase aimed at building AI‑driven lethal systems for U.S. Special Operations. Simultaneously, ICE has signed $60 million contracts with Palantir to deploy ImmigrationOS and the...
Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman, the Chicago School economist, became the intellectual backbone of American neoliberalism, advising leaders like Nixon, Reagan, Thatcher and Rumsfeld. His 1962 book *Capitalism and Freedom* attacked government intervention, arguing that licensing and social safety nets distort markets. Friedman’s...
Saturday Report 4/11/26 — When Will the Other Melania Shoe Drop?
The Hartmann Report warns that the Trump administration is moving to make Medicare Advantage the default enrollment for seniors, a shift critics say will increase private profit at taxpayers’ expense. Simultaneously, Iran’s recent closure of the Strait of Hormuz is...
Epilogue
The Hartmann Report essay argues that every Republican president since Eisenhower has attained the White House through fraudulent or illicit means, citing Nixon’s Vietnam sabotage, Reagan’s Iran hostage deal, Bush senior’s use of pardons, Bush junior’s Supreme Court‑backed recount halt,...
Why Are Americans Still Stuck Paying for Oil Wars When EVs Cost Less to Drive?
The episode examines why soaring gasoline prices—driven by geopolitical conflicts and policy choices—make electric vehicles (EVs) a cheaper, cleaner alternative, highlighting that EVs now cost less to operate than gas cars, especially with falling vehicle prices and expanding charging infrastructure....
Thom and Ali Velshi: The Meta Trial Just Exposed Something Dangerous
Thom and Ali Velshi sat down on Velshi’s show to dissect the recent Meta trial, which exposed potentially hazardous data‑handling and competition practices at the social‑media giant. The discussion highlighted the trial’s surprising revelations, including alleged manipulation of user data...
Remember: The Cost of Forgetting
The post argues that societies that ignore or sanitize their darkest chapters inevitably repeat them, citing Germany’s rigorous remembrance of the Holocaust versus Japan’s and America’s selective amnesia. It links collective forgetting to the resurgence of extremist symbols, revisionist curricula,...
Saturday Report 3/21/26 — America’s Healthcare Collapse Is Here, and It Was Written Into Law by the GOP
The GOP‑backed "One Big Beautiful Bill" stripped away the latest Affordable Care Act subsidies, sending premiums soaring and leaving millions without health insurance. Simultaneously, the legislation delivered roughly $5 trillion in tax cuts to the ultra‑wealthy, including President Trump and his...
Hormuz Blues
Investigative journalist Greg Palast disclosed a confidential 323‑page plan drafted in 2004 that outlined how the United States and major oil firms intended to secure Iraq’s oil after the invasion. The document, obtained from the Heritage Foundation and a James Baker...