Tangle

In January, Managing Editor talked with Meredith Sumpter. She is the CEO of FairVote, a nonpartisan organization that researches and advances voting reforms including ranked choice voting and the Fair Representation Act. They discuss the significance of ranked choice voting (RCV) as a reform for improving American democracy. She addresses misconceptions about RCV, emphasizing its simplicity and ef...

On Sunday, President Donald Trump  named five digital assets — Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, Solana, and Cardano — that will make up a “Crypto Strategic Reserve” for the United States. The announcement follows Trump’s January 23  executive order establishing the Working Group on Digital Asset Markets, which is tasked with evaluating the creation of a strategic stockpile of national digital assets...

On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky  met  at the White House to conduct final negotiations over a mineral-rights deal. During an Oval Office discussion open to the press, Trump, Zelensky and Vice President JD Vance discussed the future of the Ukraine-Russia war. Toward the end of the meeting, however, Vance and Zelensky clashed over how the a...

In today's episode, Isaac is officially back! Isaac and Ari talk about Elon Musk obviously, government waste, DOGE, some of the people that are flying under the radar thanks to Elon Musk, the republicans new budget bill and the Ukraine deal. Finally, Ari and and Isaac play a game and learn about a terrible D3 college that ruin them. And last but not least, the Airing of Grievances. This is a previ...

In today's Friday edition, Executive Editor and Founder, Isaac Saul, debunks some of the myths and misconceptions about Tangle (and himself). He outlines our company's principles and gives a candid description about our mission, our work, and the goals we aim to accomplish. Thank you to all of our readers and listeners and we hope this gives clarity to everyone. As always, please feel free to writ...

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump  told reporters  that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had accepted the draft of a deal that would send partial revenues from Ukraine’s rare earth minerals to the United States. Zelensky described the agreement as  a “framework”  and said he and Trump would be holding further discussions. The deal could be signed as soon as Friday, when...

On Thursday, the Senate  confirmed  Kashyap “Kash” Patel as the next director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Patel was a former federal prosecutor who served in the White House during President Donald Trump’s first term and is viewed by many as a Trump loyalist. On Sunday, Trump  announced  that Patel had named Dan Bongino as deputy FBI director. Bongino is a pop...

On Saturday, Elon Musk  posted on X  that federal employees must respond to an email from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) detailing their work in the past week, adding that “failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.” Shortly after, OPM  emailed  federal employees asking for a list of “5 bullets of what you accomplished last week” by Monday at 11:59pm ET ( scre...

On Friday, President Donald Trump  fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General Charles “CQ” Brown Jr., as part of a series of dismissals of top Pentagon officers. Shortly after Trump announced Brown’s dismissal, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth  said  that he would replace Admiral Lisa Franchetti, chief of U.S. naval operations, and General James Slife, the Air...

In today's episode, Managing Editor Ari Weitzman and Executive Producer Jon Lall discuss various themes surrounding political dynamics, feedback on the podcast, and the implications of Elon Musk's actions with Doge. They talk about the challenges within the Democratic Party, the quest for authenticity in politics, and the complexities of government efficiency. Ari then speaks with Ray Brescia, a l...

The day Donald Trump was inaugurated, my son was born. In retrospect, the timing feels inevitable ("Founder of politics newsletter has baby on inauguration day"), but it created an interesting dynamic for me. Most notably, I got to step back from the day-to-day ruckus of what it's like when Trump is flooding the zone with news and could take in each story with a bit more thoughtfulness. And as I r...

Republicans in Congress are  moving  to pass a budget plan to advance President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda. On Wednesday, the Senate  voted  50-47 to take up the outline of a budget that would increase immigration and military spending but does not include an extension of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The vote is a key step in the  budget reconciliation process , whi...

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has gained access or attempted to gain access to numerous departments across the federal government for its cost-cutting initiatives. The actions have prompted state attorneys general to file suits blocking DOGE from accessing confidential data, and in the past week several U.S. district judges have  issued   temporary rul...

On Tuesday, U.S. and Russian officials  met  in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the future of the war in Ukraine. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff led the American delegation, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov represented Russia. The meeting did not include Ukraini...

Editor's note: We are off for President's Day today, but have a special edition featuring a guest writer today. Core to our mission at Tangle is offering perspectives from influential and thoughtful voices from across the political spectrum. As we've grown, our ability to advance that mission has also grown, allowing us a broader reach and new ways to offer coverage of political news to our subscr...

Please enjoy this preview episode of our Sunday podcast. The full editions are available exclusively for premium podcast members. To become a member, please go to tanglemedia.supercast.com and sign up. In this episode, Ari and Will talk about a significant NBA trade, a lot of Trump administration talk and propriety in government. After that Ari and Will go over some global defense budgets in a fun...

This is the 3rd Annual Valentine's Day Podcast! On this special episode, Isaac and his amazing wife, Phoebe, talk about navigating through their experiences as first time parents, how their perspectives have expanded and changed on birth, healthcare, family leave, and abortion. They also discuss their future and what each is looking forward to. And throughout the episode, they are joined by a very...

Back in 2022, we  published  an original essay from our outgoing editorial intern Audrey Moorehead, who wrote about the experience of transitioning from her hometown in Lynchburg, Tennessee, to Harvard University. Audrey has remained a part of the Tangle family since the end of her internship, and last year, she recommended a Harvard classmate of hers, Sophia Downs , as a candidate for o...

On Monday, Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove  directed  the Southern District of New York to dismiss without prejudice all charges in its corruption case against New York Mayor Eric Adams. In its dismissal, the Department of Justice  reasoned  that the case was politically motivated by the Biden administration and interfered with the mayor’s ability to combat the city’s...

On Friday, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought  took over  as acting head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and ordered the agency to grant officials from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) access to its non-classified systems. Over the weekend, Vought  directed  CFPB employees to “stand down from performing any work task,” then...

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order called “ Keeping Men out of Women’s Sports ” prohibiting all participants who do not meet the government’s definition of biological females from competing in girls’ and women’s sports. The order directs the federal government to withhold funding from K-12 schools and colleges that do not comply, drawing authority from Title IX of the E...

Ari Weitzman interviews Senator Andy Kim, the first Korean American Senator from New Jersey. They discuss Kim's political journey, his motivations for serving, and his reflections on the roles of the House and Senate. The conversation also touches on voter engagement strategies for Democrats and concludes with rapid-fire questions that reveal Kim's personal insights. This is a preview of today's s...

On Saturday, a federal judge  blocked  the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staff from accessing the Treasury Department’s payment systems. U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer ruled that only “civil servants with a need for access to perform their job duties” may use the system, while special government employees are explicitly barred. The ruling will remain in place until at l...

Please enjoy this preview episode of our Sunday podcast. The full editions are available exclusively for premium podcast members. To become a member, please go to tanglemedia.supercast.com and sign up. In this episode, Ari and Will talk about the complex relationship between the federal government and private companies, particularly in the context of Trump's governance style. They discuss Trump's...

On Wednesday, January 29, an Army Black Hawk helicopter carrying three soldiers collided with an American Airlines plane carrying 60 passengers and four crew members over the Potomac River. The plane had been approaching Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., and was preparing to land when the helicopter intersected its path,  killing all 67 people . The crash was the deadliest air acci...