On today’s “To the Contrary” Podcast, Bloomberg's Tim O’Brien joins me to unpack a whirlwind week in politics, from Trump’s business entanglements—including a dubious new mobile phone venture—to his rage-fueled media attacks after mixed intelligence on Iran. We explore how Trump’s blending of public power and private profit continues unchecked, and why it's reshaping the presidency in dangerous ways. Plus, we dive into the fallout from New York’s mayoral primary, growing Democratic fractures, and how the GOP is poised to weaponize progressive wins.
Subscribers can listen to an ad-free version right here… or you can watch on YouTube / Listen (and subscribe) on Apple/ Spotify / iHeart / RSS Feed.
Update on the Big Beautiful Friendship
Oh my. In case you thought the Trump-Musk bromance might be patched up:
“Elon Musk rips into ‘utterly insane’ Trump-backed megabill”
“Musk renews attacks on Trump's "big, beautiful bill," says it will "destroy millions of jobs"
Billionaire Elon Musk on Saturday doubled down on his distaste for President Trump's sprawling tax and spending cuts bill, arguing the legislation that Republican senators are scrambling to pass would kill jobs and bog down burgeoning industries.
"The latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country," Musk wrote on X on Saturday as the Senate was scheduled to call a vote to open debate on the nearly 1,000-page bill. "It gives handouts to industries of the past while severely damaging industries of the future."
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, whose birthday is also Saturday, later posted that the bill would be "political suicide for the Republican Party."
The criticisms reopen a recent fiery conflict between the former head of the Department of Government Efficiency and the administration he recently left. They also represent yet another headache for Republican Senate leaders who have spent the weekend working overtime to get the legislation through their chamber so it can pass by Mr. Trump's Fourth of July deadline.
Musk has previously made his opinions about Trump's "big, beautiful bill" clear. In late May, just a few days before he officially left his post in the federal government, he told "CBS News Sunday Morning" he was "disappointed" with the bill's price tag.
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What Happened on Friday?
On Friday, the US Supreme Court joined the Congress in ceding more power to the presidency by weakening yet another check that we thought we had on an out-of-control executive. The senate seems poised to vote on a massive BBB that no one has actually read and will add $4 trillion to the national debt.;
Some highlights of our conversation
On the Big Beautiful Bill:
Sunday dogs
Auggie at sunset.
Supervising the water fun.
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