Unf*cking The Republic

The U.S. is running out of options to service the national debt. Secretary Bessent announced that we will now use revenue from tariffs to pay down budget deficits, rather than reinvest them into the economy. Some are treating this as welcome news. At the same time, the GOP has formed a working group to draft up a “sequel” to the Big Beautiful Bill to deepen cuts to Medicaid and federal...

Hustle Culture relies on the toxic myth of rugged individualism. Four out of every ten Americans rely on “side-hustles” in the gig economy to make ends meet. For many these side hustles are the only source of income. For decades our political leaders have sold the myth of self-reliance rather than bolstering worker protections. The result is a population that lives in economic precarit...

Max and 99 are back at it for another edition of Show Notes! They cover a few trending headlines plus Trump Stablecoin ep. feedback, and have an unnecessarily long conversation about soap. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:12:14 Episode Feedback: 00:51:32 Memberships: 01:25:42 Outro: 01:30:12 Headlines New York Times: Cracker Barrel’s New Modern Logo and Aesthetic Become a Politi...

Donald Trump has laid the groundwork to become one of the wealthiest people on the planet by personally making money from every dollar printed in the United States. And the worse the economy gets, the more money he stands to make. The House has already passed three crypto bills that would make this potential a reality by allowing the Trump family to control the global stablecoin market. Now it&rsq...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently took himself out of the running to take over as Chair of the Federal Reserve at the end of Jerome Powell’s term. (Or when Trump fires him illegally.) Perhaps it has something to do with his serious flub recently when he said the quiet part out loud about privatizing Social Security. Either way, Trump is on a mission to cut the Federal Funds rate to a...

Donald Trump recently announced a new round of tariffs including outrageous ones on Brazil that bring the effective tariff rate to 50%. Forget that we have a surplus with Brazil or that they’re one of the biggest economies in Latin America, one of our closest allies historically and the biggest democracy in South America. Trump’s upset that the Lula administration is targeting his frie...

Income inequality is often spoken about but still widely misunderstood. There’s a reason why the vast majority of Americans are barely getting by while the top income earners continue to pull ahead. We’re entering a new phase of capitalism, however, and it stands to affect even some of those who were previously untouched by economic downturns. There is trouble brewing that threatens th...

Max and 99 are back together to cover emails, comments and headlines! Tune in and enjoy. Chapters Intro: 00:00:19 Headlines: 00:23:46 Emails: 1:07:20 Memberships: 1:34:20 Reviews: 1:34:55 Outro: 1:35:07 Headlines CNN: Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans advance nomination of former Trump lawyer Emil Bove as Democrats walk out The Hill: Favorable views of Democratic Party low...

Donald Trump is implementing the Project 2025 playbook faster than anyone anticipated, and old guard Democrats have no idea how to combat him. But there’s another endgame coming into focus that will shock even astute political observers. This “Max Unfiltered” episode plants the seeds for upcoming episodes that examine how Trump and his allies are planning to loot the Treasury and...

The Trump administration has declared war on immigrants and poor people and is using immigration as a smokescreen to cover for Medicaid cuts in the so-called Big Beautiful Bill. Henchmen like Stephen Miller and Scott Bessent are promoting the false narrative that “illegal” immigrants are receiving Medicaid coverage and responsible for much of the fraud and abuse in the system. It&rsquo...

Today we’re diving into one of the most contentious tax battles happening in Washington right now—the State and Local Tax deduction (SALT). Now, if you’ve been hearing politicians talk about “tax relief for hard-working homeowners” or “supporting middle-class families,” you might think this sounds pretty good, right? But here’s the thing— like...

Manny and 99 jumped into the studio to have some fun and connect while Max was away. They covered headlines, some music recommendations and general UNFTR business. Enjoy! Access episode resources. Chapters Intro: 00:00:00 Housekeeping: 00:02:13 Headlines: 00:09:01 Recommendations: 00:46:00 Memberships: 01:00:26 Outro: 01:00:50 Outro pt. 2: 01:16:26 Resources FMF Day sale through June 30 UNFTR&rsqu...

We’re only a day away from the New York City Democratic Primary for mayor and early voting turnout is the largest in years. No matter what happens, Zohran Kwame Mamdani has already won the race. Mamdani’s candidacy has galvanized the national media in a way that a local primary race has rarely ever done. CNN, MSNBC, Zeteo, Hasan Piker, MeidasTouch, Pod Save America, The Breakfast Club,...

Trump is touting his new “Trump Accounts” plan as part of the Big Beautiful Bill Act. The plan would provide $1,000 to every baby born in America between 2025 and 2029 in a tax deferred account that allows matching each year of up to $5,000. It’s a way to encourage savings at a young age and works similar to the successful 529 education funds, but there are key differences. Today...

Max and 99 return to answer Unf*cker emails, talk Discord episode topic suggestions, and cover current events. Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:20 Headlines: 00:09:10 Discord: 00:24:09 Emails: 00:59:40 Memberships: 01:36:38 Outro: 01:37:59 Resources FMF Day Deals Politico: Mamdani surges in new poll, leading Cuomo for first time in New York mayor’s race Video: Zohran for NYC Mayor: The Democrati...

Donald Trump overrode Governor Gavin Newsom to federalize the California National Guard to police the streets of Los Angeles. Protests over ICE’s deportation tactics are growing, prompting the Trump administration to leverage extreme authority over the protests, with Pentagon head Pete Hegseth warning that he will call in the Marines if necessary. All of this calls into question the limits o...

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the United States added 139,000 “non-farm payroll jobs” in the month of May, 2025. These figures came in close to what experts projected and depending upon one’s ideological perspective, it was either evidence of economic strength and resilience under Trump or a sign of a slowing job market as a result of Trump’s tariff policies a...

We’re experimenting with something. As we work toward a complete breakdown of the federal budget in a comprehensive essay and companion episode, we’re bringing our audience into the content creation process. We have a feeling this is going to be one of our behemoth entries into the canon (and potentially a two-parter.) So rather than overwhelm everyone with information in one shot, we...

How much credit risk is in the market? Equities get the headlines but the world runs on credit. Jamie Dimon recently declared that credit was a “bad risk” on the heels of Moody’s downgrading the U.S. credit rating and a spike in the 10 Year Treasury yield. Suddenly, the boring old credit and bond markets are all the rage on the financial news channels, and it goes much deeper tha...

Pete Buttigieg is a legitimate star in the Democratic Party. Having moved his family to Michigan there was speculation that he might run for the governor’s office or become a Senator. But he turned down both options and instead set his sights on the 2028 Presidential election. In addition to making the rounds on multiple cable shows and podcasts to help rehabilitate the image of the Democrat...

Corporations announced a staggering $233.8 billion in stock buybacks in April, the second-highest monthly total ever recorded. But unlike previous buyback bonanzas, this isn’t a sign of economic strength or corporate confidence. Quite the opposite. Are buybacks just one big shell game or are they fiscally prudent? Corporate stock buybacks have inspired great debate since a Reagan era tax law...

Crude Oil tanks as OPEC+ floods the market with product. Russia and Saudi Arabia just did the unthinkable by announcing that they’re increasing output by 411,000 barrels per day starting in June. With demand forecasts going down every day as the world braces for a Trump induced global recession, it’s the exact opposite move from what everyone expected. This episode tackles what this me...

Is this the end of Capitalism? If so, what comes next? Does it even matter what we call it? Today Max pauses to reflect on the speed and totality of damage wrought by the Trump administration, and whether it’s bringing about the end of Capitalism on purpose in order to return to a state reminiscent of the industrial era when the working class lived to serve the elite and the poor thrown to t...

Max and 99 return from their Show Notes hiatus to discuss the 5 Non-Negotiables, global events, and share some genuinely insightful tangents (for a change lol). Enjoy! Chapters Intro: 00:00:21 Discord Comments: 00:06:46 5NN: 00:10:04 Emails: 00:33:34 Memberships: 01:58:40 Outro: 02:01:41 Resources Only 3 days left in our Spring Fund, Friend, and Hell Raiser! Become a member today . Subscribe to th...

Market speculation into commodities like Bitcoin and Crude oil pose dangerous risks during the best of times. Heading into a recession, the stakes are even higher. The temptation to participate during volatile periods is a psychological phenomenon that takes hold among casual investors who rarely realize when they’re part of an institutional con. When leveraged institutions are in desperate...