Tyrant-o-Saurus Rex

Weaponizing Tariffs, Original Birkin Bag

Why settle for being the king of America when you can be king of the world? In his latest round of tariff whac-a-mole, Donald Trump has threatened to hit Brazil with a 50% tariff because he doesn't like that way that country's legal system is treating its former president. "I knew and dealt with former President Jair Bolsonaro, and respected him greatly, as did most other Leaders of Countries. The way that Brazil has treated former President Bolsonaro, a Highly Respected Leader throughout the World during his Term, including by the United States, is an international disgrace. This Trial should not be taking place. It is a Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!" If you're wondering what Trump sees in the former president of Brazil, consider that Bolsanaro is facing charges of a coup attempt that included a storming of the Brazilian capital. This isn't the first time Trump has inserted himself into the legal proceedings of another country. Just last month, he called on Israel to drop its "witch hunt" corruption charges against Bibi. Such a call is of course wildly inappropriate. But we've crossed an entirely different line when an American president deploys his pretty much non-existent tariff powers against a country with which we have a trade surplus because he finds he has so much in common with one of its criminal defendants. To the extent that any of them stick, these tariffs are ultimately a tax on the American people. The way they're being bandied about is taxing American democracy.

+ Bloomberg (Gift Article): "Trump has previously used tariff threats to accomplish other geopolitical goals. In January, he announced sweeping tariffs on Colombia before abruptly pulling the threat after reaching a deal on the return of deported migrants. He’s also put 20% tariffs on China for its alleged failure to stop the flow of fentanyl to the US, and threatened BRICS nations with higher duties for undermining the dollar. Still, it’s unprecedented for the US to add a tariff onto a foreign country to stop a judicial proceeding." Trump’s 50% Levy on Brazil Shows World Nothing Is Off Limits.

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Marry Marry Quite Contrary

"Mr. Allred, a recruiter at a trucking company, does not like people who enter the country illegally. He believes they are 'an army of takers,' filling spots in emergency rooms and schools that American citizens have to pay for. He does not like President Trump, either, but one of the reasons he voted for him last year was that it seemed as though he would actually take action on immigration. 'We don’t have an industrial base anymore,' Mr. Allred told me over dinner at his apartment in Bentonville. 'We have trillions in national debt. It’s impossible. We can’t take on millions more people. It’s financially not possible.' But something has happened in Mr. Allred’s life that is bumping up against this view. He finally met, and married, the love of his life. And his wife is in the country illegally." NYT (Gift Article): Against Illegal Immigration, but Married to Someone Here Illegally.

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Local Rag Lag

"Less than a quarter-century ago, the United States had about 40 journalists per 100,000 residents on average. Now, the equivalent number is 8.2 Local Journalist Equivalents, about a 75% decline. This means that big chunks of the country have severe shortages. Stunningly, more than 1,000 counties — one out of three — do not have the equivalent of even one full-time local journalist." The lack of journalists covering local politics and news is bad. And it's made worse by the social media (and soon AI) garbage that's filling the void. Local Journalist Index 2025.

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Bag Lady

We're told stories of profitable ideas that were sketched on the back of a napkin. Well, they've got nothing on one sketched on the back of an air-sickness bag. The original Hermès bag made for Jane Birkin just sold at auction for 7 million euros. (Ironically, that's a price so high the purchaser may experience some nausea.) "The bag was born of a fortuitous encounter on a London-bound flight in the 1980s with the then-head of Hermès, Jean-Louis Dumas. Birkin recounted in subsequent interviews that the pair got talking after she spilled some of her things on the cabin floor. Birkin asked Dumas why Hermès didn’t make a bigger handbag and sketched out on an airplane vomit bag the sort of hold-all that she would like. He then had an example made for her and, flattered, she agreed when Hermès asked whether it could commercialize the bag in her name."

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Extra, Extra

Whistle in the Dark: "If they can do this sort of thing to Abrego Garcia, to 238 people that nobody knows, and send them to CECOT forever with no due process, they can do that to anyone. It should be deeply, deeply worrisome to anyone who cares about their safety and their liberty, that the government can, without showing evidence to anyone of anything, spirit you away on a plane to wherever, forever." NYT: Justice Dept. Whistle-Blower Warns of Trump Administration’s Assault on the Law.

+ No Subtitles or Subtleties: "There was confusion and anger in Liberia on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump praised the English skills of President Joseph Boakai." (English is Liberia's official language. And we have become the world's official laughing stock.)

+ Class in Session: Federal judge pauses Trump's birthright citizenship order in class action suit. (Class action suits are the latest attempt to deal with recent SCOTUS rulings.)

+ Banana Jubilee: "Somewhere along the line, though, the Bananas broke containment. They graduated from minor-league parks to major-league venues, selling out legendary ballparks such as Fenway Park and Camden Yards. During a recent weekend in Los Angeles, Bananas tickets sold on the secondary market for more than tickets to an actual Dodgers-Yankees World Series rematch." Why the Savannah Bananas — not the Dallas Cowboys — are America's Team.

+ Young Blood: An estimated 1 in 3 teens and preteens, ages 12 to 17, have prediabetes.

+ Cereal Number: "Ferrero, the family-owned maker of Nutella, has agreed to buy the iconic American maker of Froot Loops and Frosted Flakes, combining two of the world's most storied sweet brands." Nutella-maker Ferrero to gobble up cereal giant Kellogg for $3.1 billion. (Which is probably a lower valuation than the average pre-launch AI company.)

+ Nick Knack: "The next time you rent a car, that ding on the door might not slip under the radar. Powerful new A.I.-driven tools are helping Hertz and other companies catch every little scratch, and puzzled renters are being asked to pay up." NYT(Gift Article): A.I. Is Making Sure You Pay for That Ding on Your Rental Car.

+ World War Tea: "Matcha’s meteoric rise in popularity, along with a proliferation of resellers who buy large quantities of the tea from the small number of Japanese vendors who produce it each year, has triggered a global shortage and a steep jump in prices. The market turmoil has spurred a fierce debate among the matcha faithful about who exactly is responsible for the dwindling supply—and who deserves to drink it." WSJ (Gift Article): Matcha Lovers Are Turning Against Each Other Over Global Shortage. Plus, Japan struggles to fend off a world without enough matcha.

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Bottom of the News

"Even in an age where flying is a fairly regular occurrence, there are some things that you never forget about your first journey on an airplane.That visceral thrill of being pushed back into your seat as the plane accelerates toward take-off, the jitters that accompany your first bout of turbulence, and the SLUUUUURP sound in the lavatory." The engineering is surprisingly simple and remarkably clever.

+ Ozzy Osbourne collaborates with chimpanzees on abstract expressionist paintings. (Call me when they collaborate on realist paintings.)

+ Photos from this year's Running of the Bulls (an event that somehow explains much of human behavior).