1/ SpaceX's president says she's donating her SpaceX "shares" to Trump Accounts. That's a head scratcher, because the law doesn't allow Trump Accounts to hold shares of individual companies. And it points to a bigger problem: the Trump admin is all over the map on this…

NEW: Prediction markets promise people a chance to profit by betting against each other. But our first-of-its-kind analysis suggests something different. @bradlipton.bsky.social and @todusola.bsky.social find that ordinary Kalshi users have lost a whopping estimated $583.5 million since 2021.

The CFPB was created by Congress to hold powerful financial institutions accountable and protect consumers from financial abuse. Whether it continues to fulfill that mission under new leadership has come into serious doubt, argues our @bradlipton.bsky.social:

More than 4.2 million homeowners—including 1.1 million low- & moderate-income borrowers—could benefit when interest rates fall to 6%. The catch: lenders prioritize higher-income applicants b/c it's easier. @bradlipton.bsky.social tells Realtor.com that may be illegal: www.realtor.com/news/trends/...

Mortgage refinancing has the potential to put thousands of dollars *every year* in the hands of middle class families if interest rates eventually fall -- more than many government programs. The Trump admin’s reckless actions have put this option increasingly out of reach. But when it...

What do $10,000 Knicks tickets, Hershey’s taking the chocolate out of the Goodbar, and Buy Now Pay Later loans have in common? The Financialization of Everything. With thanks to @kirenitynow.bsky.social for my first foray into fancy video content.

1/ If you've heard that the Department of Labor is proposing to allow crypto and private equity/credit into 401(k)s, you haven't heard the whole story. The media is being misled -- it's much worse than that!

We’ve spent decades told that if the economy grows, people’s lives will get better. Millions are working harder, paying more, and losing faith that institutions can deliver. Imagine an economy and democracy that actually make life better. That’s why today, we’re launching The #GoodLife Agenda. 🧵

1/ USA Today says the “Trump phone” may be coming soon but also maybe not coming soon. This saga is lolz. I’m still waiting for the Trump FTC to announce its investigation! Don’t worry not holding my breath. Here’s the debacle for anyone not terminally online. Vibes=QVC meets constitutional crisis.

1/ “Crypto market structure” is an aggressively boring phrase for something that could matter a lot: whether crypto gets regulated like other investments, or gets a special loophole big enough to drive a financial crisis through. I wrote about this last year.

1/ Bowling may sound like something from a different decade, and in some ways it is. But as more of us think about disconnecting from our phones, maybe it’s time to bring some things back. Wait, guess what has screwed that up? Financialization!

Had a weird craving for savory breakfast so tried out the new Boulangerie Saint George in DC

This op-ed by Krysten Sinema (remember her?) proposing to make CFPB a bipartisan commission is one of the weirdest things I've seen in a while, given that SCOTUS is about to get rid of (most) bipartisan commissions. What planet is she living on? The same one as before, I guess. tinyurl.com/bdfsaxty

The song that never ends. Banking trades stomp their feet about the current crypto "compromise"---"the proposed language falls short of that goal." H./T @tbakerbroadmoor.bsky.social www.icba.org/w/banking-tr...

When @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social — very much not a bomb-thrower — is saying this, you know it’s serious. open.substack.com/pub/goodpoli...

Finally made it to Eebee’s for what is arguably DC’s best burger.

FINANCIALIZATION (the only great dim sum place in DC proper closing to make way for a bank) dc.eater.com/dc-restauran...

One of the most striking things about these wacky quotes is the way they give Trump chance after chance after chance and dismiss Harris based on innuendo. If you want to see what racism and sexism looks like in 2026....

The amount of money invested in private credit has tripled since 2015, yet remains poorly understood. This $1.3T sector is making headlines and our experts, @elizabethwilkins.bsky.social, @grahamsteele.bsky.social, and @bradlipton.bsky.social, unearth the risks brewing: https://bit.ly/4tJkuic

I started by asking "What is financialization?" And then I started to see it everywhere. My latest for @rooseveltinstitute.org. This will be the subject of future work! rooseveltinstitute.org/blog/what-is...

This from Roberts is all you need to know about him: "I recognize that the posture of this stay request is not typical, but review is sought of what has been described as the most expensive regulation ever imposed on the power sector--net costs have been estimated to run as high as ~480 billion."

This column by @stevevladeck.bsky.social is worth reading in full. What we are seeing from the Supreme Court shadow docket now has its roots in rulings against Pres. Obama which truly were unprecedented and led by CJ Roberts, whose reputation should take a hit for sending the Court down this path.

1/ I keep reading that the Trump administration is focusing on affordability. So why are his financial regulators trying to drive up costs? Exhibit A: Comptroller Jonathan Gould is running around the country trying to overturn state affordability laws! 🧵 @reporterev.bsky.social

Instead of “quietly asking,” Treasury could demand standardized, usable and comparable financial data from private credit firms. But that would require a functional Office of Financial Research, which Bessent has gutted.

Apparently the Caesar wrap at Ted’s Bulletin is going viral. Pretty good! And the homemade tots were really good.

One thing that jumps out from CFPB's latest court filing: they are NOT serious about enforcing the law or examining for compliance by financial institutions. Drastic cuts to CFPB enforcement & supervision (254 to 50; 523 to 77). Reupping this 🧵 on why that matters. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/01/u...

1/ An alliance between Trump and the crypto industry means that people will soon be able to use crypto instead of cash for mortgage down payments. This threatens to inject a *lot* of volatility into the housing market. And just remember who is on the hook for that…🧵 www.coinbase.com/blog/coinbas...

for anyone who needs it, good primer on why this is a terrible idea papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Market Lunch @easternmarketdc

lotta conversations like this one (via @bradlipton.bsky.social )

In a moment where it’s so clear that so much is broken, we have to get down to the studs on what our public institutions and policy are for. That’s true for taxes. This is a shared social project to fund our public goods, create broad social insurance, and rebalance power in our economy.

NEW from me and @joeldodge07.bsky.social for @rooseveltinstitute.org / Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator: Trump is using the Defense Production Act to promote fossil fuel of a major donor. We show how it could instead be used to promote clean energy Abundance. rooseveltinstitute.org/publications...

The regulatory context here is that the SEC does not meaningfully supervise investment banks, and the (imperfect) alternative structure put in place after the 2008 financial crisis to supervise nonbank financial companies has been whittled away by lawsuits and years of deregulation.

I vividly remember sitting through a House Financial services meeting last year where a Congressman stated that "America was fine before the creation of the CFPB." Amazing how quickly some people forget the pain of the past. And you know the old saying about those who can't remember the past....

1/ Very pleased to have a short article, "Statutory Hammers: Legislative Drafting in an Age of Cynical Litigation," published in the Harvard Journal on Legislation Online today. journals.law.harvard.edu/jol/2026/03/...

1/ For people who saw the *second* district court ruling about the CFPB last week, let me do a quick explainer on what happened, because it’s all getting pretty confusing! 🧵 thehill.com/regulation/c...

In the midst of an illegal and unpopular war, a crypto company is advertising an exclusive Mar-a-Lago luncheon with the President for the top investors in the Trump-branded memecoin. (If Trump bails, they may have to settle for a "limited edition Trump NFT.") www.politico.com/news/2026/03...

1/ PUPPY PAYDAY LOANS 🐶 Last week, Oregon passed a law protecting Oregonians (?) from out-of-state lenders charging 100%+ annual interest through so-called "rent-a-bank." We may be seeing a nationwide trend really spotlighting the failures of modern banking regulation. 🧵 ocj.org/news/oregon-...

Credit reports are one of the few things in the consumer financial universe that affect nearly everyone. So that means nearly everyone has something to lose from the Trump Admin's abandonment of consumers here.

Had a Dan Dan craving. Recipe by @fuchsiadunlop.bsky.social

Ok one more. Plane banh mi @bunmee

The end of the Berkeley tour. Rose Pizzeria

I may be moving to Berkeley. Viks Chaat.

NEW from @shahrzadshams.bsky.social & me @rooseveltinstitute.org: Donald Trump just called the Supreme Court "fools & lap dogs" and we've already forgotten about it. What the ancient history of last Tuesday means for progressives rethinking SCOTUS power. rooseveltinstitute.org/blog/trumps-...

If your BART from the airport gets you to Berkeley at 4:30, you might as well try to walk into Cafe Chez Panisse, right? Asparagus is in season out here and the worst that can happen is they say no.

@newsweek.com with the scoop 👇 A 10% credit card interest rate cap is popular. But voters are skeptical it will actually happen. “If a credit card cap were a priority for the Trump admin, it should have been signed into law months ago,” as our Emily DiVito pointed out.

On Thursday, CEO @elizabethwwilkins.bsky.social met with @mayor.nyc.gov to talk about what it takes to govern—investing in public capacity and building the talent pipeline to deliver for working people. That’s the Roosevelt tradition: pairing big ideas with the capacity to deliver lasting results.

I do wonder about some of the reporting on this. Seems clear @warren.senate.gov came ready to play, and there has been crickets from the admin on this since Trump's "announcement." Maybe reporters who covered Trump's initial pronouncement should start mentioning that?

Snowy night pork goulash. Recipe America’s Test Kitchen

Stuffed shells with peas fennel and spinach. Recipe by America’s Test Kitchen