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Trump administration to remove 760,000 Affordable Care Act enrollees
The vice president cited fraud
Trump administration to remove 760,000 Affordable Care Act enrollees
The vice president cited fraud
US says it canceled 315,000 Obamacare policies last month
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said on Tuesday it canceled 315,000 Obamacare health plans covering about 760,000 people last month, citing unverified citizenship or immigration documentation and suspected improper enrollments.
Double-digit increases await Pennsylvania Obamacare enrollees
For the second year in a row, Pennsylvanians with individual health insurance through the Affordable Care Act will see an average double-digit increase...
Hoopaholic’s Gazette: A Ruthian Call & Late Season Peach
What does the surprise appearance of some late season peaches at Paul’s have to do with Babe Ruth and U of L hoops? Read on, should you be intrigued. The peaches — from Idaho of all places — are pretty pretty good (to use the voice and vernacular of the assistant who convinced Obama to […]
Sunny, the Obamas’ Portuguese water dog, dies at 13
Sunny, the Portuguese water dog who romped into the White House at the start of President Barack Obama’s second term and injected the mansion with playful — at times, too playful — energy, has died. She was 13.
A feature of the Obama White House, Sunny dies at 14
(CNN) — Sunny, the Portuguese water dog who romped into the White House at the start of President Barack Obama’s second term and injected the mansion with playful — at
The public health insurance option isn't the great choice you think it is
Moderate Democrats have frequently been returning to an old Obamacare debate-era proposal called the public option. They often label it “Medicare for all who want it” in order to piggyback off the better known single-payer proposal. Those who desire reform but get anxious about a universal and single-payer insurance system dubbed “Medicare for All” understandably […]
Gavin Newsom says he won’t run if Kamala Harris runs in 2028
Gavin Newsom’s pledge came as a shock to Tapper, as many have speculated that Newsom was preparing to run in a potential 2028 presidential bid.
Obama says Democrats should have a ‘very clear plan’ on AI policy
Researchers at AI companies have been warning about safety risks and industry leaders have called for a slowdown in development.
Political debate over AI intensifies amid warnings about ‘catastrophic risk’
(CNN) — The debate around artificial intelligence is ramping up in Washington, with Democratic lawmakers sounding alarms on the dangers they say the technology poses and Republican leaders suggesting those concerns are inflated and secondary to winning the AI race with China.Some Democratic lawmakers last week pressured House Speaker Mike Johnson to reconvene the chamber immediately to work on AI regulation, citing what they describe as the “catastrophic risk posed by advanced artificial intelligence.” But the Louisiana Republican on Sunday resisted those calls, instead saying industry leaders should meet with lawmakers to find “balance” in any potential guardrails.“If Congress just races in and does some sort of emergency session to try to regulate AI, we will lose the race to China, and that is a threat to every single American,” Johnson said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama told Democrats to make artificial intelligence regulation a central part of their agenda during a private fundraiser Thursday, warning that the technology could be dangerous “if we don’t get on top of it.”In a fireside chat with House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Obama said whoever runs in the 2028 presidential election should have a “very clear plan” on AI, adding that he saw the need for a “blueprint” on AI guardrails even at the end of his presidency a decade ago.“Certainly, if I were running for president next year, this would be one of my central agendas, and I would have a very clear plan, and I would talk about this, and I would say, ‘Here’s our plan for safety, here’s our plan for making sure our kids are not corrupted by this,’” he said, per excerpts of the remarks provided to CNN by his office. Obama’s remarks were first reported by the New York Times.Concerns over the rapid acceleration of AI reached a fever pitch after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei wrote in a 3,800-word essay Saturday that the race to develop artificial intelligence is in dire need of a slowdown. The call to action came after an OpenAI test model breached the Hugging Face online platform, deepening concerns about cybersecurity.In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Saturday, Amodei called on industry leaders to work together to avoid “the wrong paths” and the possibility of AI harming humanity.One Anthropic researcher, Jacob Coxon, resigned from the firm over worries that the industry wasn’t doing enough to prevent AI from destroying humanity by the end of the decade.Obama said Democrats need a plan to get their agenda on AI underway should they win the House majority in this year’s midterms.Speaking to Jeffries, who is presumed to be speaker of the House should Democrats prevail in November, Obama said, “Once you are speaker, I would strongly urge that the Democrats put together a framework for a very public conversation, and you can break it out into three or four or five issues.”Obama stressed that the framework should be centered on the reality that the technology can’t be stuffed “back into a box.”“This is something that is moving very fast in private hands, and if we don’t get on top of it, I think can be dangerous. If we do get on top of it, I do think it’s beneficial,” Obama said, laying out examples of AI’s potential use in drug development and finding pathways to a clean energy future.“We don’t want to shut off those opportunities, but we have to understand that this is a tool,” he said.Jeffries agreed with the former president in a statement provided to CNN on Sunday.“President Obama is correct that decisive action must be taken on Artificial Intelligence,” he said, adding, “In the majority, we will move urgently on this issue with a legislative response that recognizes the importance of American companies continuing to lead in the Artificial Intelligence area, while putting in place meaningful guardrails that protect the American people from bad actors and the very real damage that can be done to humanity.”Jeffries also accused Republicans of having “abdicated their responsibility to govern” and said Democrats “will not repeat their error.”A source familiar with Obama’s thinking said the former president sees Amodei’s letter and similar reaction from other tech moguls as an encouraging development.But President Donald Trump waved off their concerns, saying he is not worried about any existential threat posed by AI, focusing instead on the US winning in its development of the technology over China.“We’re leading China in AI. We’re the most sophisticated country in the world, and frankly, I want to keep it that way,” Trump said to reporters at the Amgen Irish Open on Sunday.About the concerns expressed by Democrats and others over the technology, the president said, “I think you have a lot of negative forces that are bringing it up that shouldn’t be bringing it up, and they’re bringing up things that won’t happen.”One of Trump’s top economic advisers, Kevin Hassett, also rejected the calls for slowing the technology down, saying on Sunday the bigger concern is a scenario in which a “malevolent actor has access to an AI that’s better than the one we have that can protect us.”Hassett, the National Economic Council director, said on “State of the Union” the White House may hold meetings this week about addressing Amodei’s concerns, but he did not specify whether Trump had floated greater safeguards.“I have concerns that if we don’t win AI, we’re going to be put in a very bad position,” Hassett said. “We are leading China right now.”CNN’s Alison Main and Molly English contributed to this report.The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.THE-CNN-WIRE (TM) & © 2026 CABLE NEWS NETWORK, INC., A TIME WARNER COMPANY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Obama Urges Democrats to Move A.I. Oversight to the Center of Their Agenda
During a private fund-raiser, the former president warned that the technology could be “dangerous” if not managed urgently and with a clear plan.
Greene: Sherri Shepherd to play Genie in Broadway’s ‘Aladdin.’ Was Michelle Obama busy?
Sherri Shepherd’s turn as the Genie in “Alladin” is the latest example of Broadway watering down its product with celebrity casting stunts.
Up, up, and away: Are double-digit health insurance rate increases ahead?
The Sunshine State also led the nation in the number of people who fell off Obamacare plans last year.
Boycott launched against American Diabetes Association includes journal
Trump's $500 Obamacare promise, childhood cancer treatment with long-term risks, and more health news
Trump to give $500 refunds to nearly 1 million Obamacare customers
The refunds comes ahead of the November midterms where high health costs are expected to play a factor.
Trump to send $500 rebate checks to nearly one million Obamacare enrollees
A day after promising to send $5,000 dividend payments to all Americans, President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he would distribute $500 rebate checks to nearly one million Affordable Care Act enrollees in 30 states.
Trump promises $500 Obamacare rebate checks for 1M enrollees in 30 states
The White House alleges they were overcharged by the Biden administration for exchange fees
Trump promises $500 Obamacare rebate checks for 1M enrollees in 30 states
The White House alleges they were overcharged by the Biden administration for exchange fees
Health: The Fight For The Health Of 9/11 First Responders
A quarter century after 9/11, the health of those who responded to the attacks continues to be affected.Some 3,000 people died across three locations that day. An estimated 400,000 people were exposed to toxic contaminants and risked physical injury in the hours and days that followed. That’s according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Since the dust and debris have settled, more than 96,000 have been diagnosed with physical and mental health conditions related to 9/11.In 2010, President Barack Obama signed the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, establishing the World Trade Center Health Program and reopening the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund. Today, more than 150,000 people are enrolled in the program.But that program wouldn’t exist without the advocacy of survivors and first responders who put their bodies and lives on the line following the attacks. How did that fight for care unfold?For more information about the Rutgers WTC Health Program, click here. And to learn more about applying, click here.Find more of our programs online. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.
Detroit's Labor Day misses headliners like Clinton and Obama. Will they return?
The Labor Day parade in Detroit "doesn't seem like it's a priority anymore, for labor or for potential headliners," consultant Adrian Hemond said.
PAS chief to face Malaysian police over explosive US remarks
The US has rejected Abdul Hadi Awang’s claim that it offered help to change Malaysia’s political leadership during Obama’s visit in 2014.
10 new paperbacks to pick up this month
From a nonfiction book by Emily Wilson to titles praised by Barack Obama and Conan O'Brien, there's much to read this September.
I helped build Obama's 2008 campaign. Democrats aren't ready for 2026.
The most dangerous political misinformation of the 2026 midterm election may not go viral. You may never see it at all.
Obama-era mandate slashed after being blamed for 'skyrocketing' housing costs
A new Trump admin housing directive aims to tackle the U.S.'s housing affordability crunch by ending Obama-era rule allowing indefinite liability for property owners over past building design errors.
Florida, hard-hit by Obamacare drop-off, feels the squeeze of rising healthcare costs
Florida has emerged as a national epicenter of the fallout from expired Affordable Care Act subsidies.
How Obamacare changed healthcare
Affordable Care Act enrollment is plummeting. What happened?
Florence Harding Photographed Taught Me About Women Partaking in Politics
What would Florence Kling Harding think now? A week or so ago when I cast my ballot at my designated polling place this thought crossed my mind. I imagine the former first lady would be pleased about how routine voting has become for women in the United States. But perhaps she would not be satisfied. Today, a published essay I wrote for In Pursuit spotlights a lesson in leadership demonstrated by First Lady Florence Harding. In my research, I discovered there’s a lot to be said about this strong female historic figure. But it was the blurry photograph capturing Mrs. Harding voting for her husband Warren G. Harding, one of two presidential candidates from Ohio, on Nov. 2, 1920—Election Day—that drew my attention. It was the first presidential election held in the United States after the ratification and certification of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. Its 106th anniversary was marked on Wednesday. I remember thinking what a shame it was that her presence in the image was imperfect while the mostly men surrounding her were in sharp focus. Perhaps cynically I thought, “No surprise!” On further examination, though, the clear reaction of the people surrounding Mrs. Harding was equally important. In that snapshot of time, many of their expressions were serious. One man stood elevated above the rest with a slight smile as he caught a glimpse of history. Mr. Harding hovered over his wife’s shoulder closely observing the last seconds of her vote being cast. Their gazes were locked in on who would hours later become first lady. Subscribe The attention she drew is worth noting, mostly because, as I learned, Mrs. Harding understood the power her image could have on women across the country. She and I share in common a career in newspapers—hers the business side and mine on the editorial side. Nevertheless, it became clear to me as I write in the essay that she understood if she was seen voting, other women would follow suit. That wouldn’t necessarily be the case in that 1920 election, though, Karen Kedrowski, the director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University, explained to me. Florence Harding was a suffrage advocate. But, suffrage was a contentious issue and women were far from united at the time of the election. In fact, a substantial number of women and active anti-suffrage organizations thought women participating in elections was a “bad idea and antithetical to their roles in the private sphere as mothers and homemakers,” Kedrowski said, adding that women were also viewed as the moral compass for their husbands and sons. If women got involved in politics they would become contaminated by it. Suffragists, on the other hand, wanted to bring that moral presence into politics to help clean things up. Only about 30% of women voted in that 1920 presidential election. That was a start. More than 100 years later in the 2024 presidential election, 66.9% of eligible women voted (91.3 million), compared to 63.7% of men who voted (82.6 million), according to the League of Women Voters. Yes, Florence Harding would be pleased. Subscribe That imperfect Election Day image was important symbolism about women’s potential during what was known as the “Modern Woman” era and the growing public role women were taking in the 1920s. I imagine Florence Harding might agree with other succeeding first ladies when it comes to gender equality and the importance of the vote. Like Michelle Obama when she said in her memoir Becoming, “We all play a role in this democracy. We need to remember the power of every vote.” Or Hillary Clinton during her unsuccessful run for president in 2016 when she remarked on International Women’s Day: “We celebrate the progress we’ve made to advance the full participation of women in economies and societies. And most importantly, we recommit to finishing the unfinished work that remains …” I hope if you are reading this, you will also read my essay on Florence Harding’s leadership lesson for In Pursuit. And perhaps that will move you to dig deeper and read more about Florence Harding’s life circumstances in biographies like First Lady Florence Harding: Behind the Tragedy and Controversy by Katherine A. S. Sibley. No, I do not think Florence Harding would be satisfied despite how far women have come from that day she first entered her polling place. She once wrote to the Camp Fire Girls, “The part that women play in the world has been greatly changed … It has been broadened and enlarged …” It has. And as women continue to engage in civics it continues to be. I imagine Florence Harding would want women to keep meeting the moment. Read the In Pursuit essay Watch on C-SPAN Share East Wing Magazine is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
Florida, hard-hit by Obamacare drop-off, feels the squeeze of rising healthcare costs
ST. CLOUD, Fla. (AP) — Florida chef Elijah Button was chopping onions in June when his knife slipped and sliced his middle finger to the bone.
Florida, hard-hit by Obamacare drop-off, feels the squeeze of rising healthcare costs
Florida chef Elijah Button faces a tough situation after losing his Affordable Care Act health insurance due to a premium hike
Enough with the podcasts. We elected politicians, not influencers.
Nancy Mace posed in a bikini. Gavin Newsom launched a podcast. AOC and Bernie Sanders are TikTok stars. Can they start doing the jobs we pay them for?
Democrats incredulous over Hakeem Jeffries and Jared Kushner meeting
Critics include Senator Chris van Hollen, ex-aide to Obama Tommy Vietor and ex-Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger
Rosie O’Donnell slams Donald Trump with scathing song on last Jimmy Kimmel show: ‘You’ll never be Obama’
Rosie O’Donnell’s final night hosting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ ended with a scathing song, in which the comedian slammed Donald Trump: ‘You’ll never be Obama,’ O’Donnell sang.
Obama strategist turns on rising Dem star over viral Trump attack: 'Gratuitous and unnecessary'
Obama White House strategist David Axelrod called Jon Ossoff's mention of Natalie Harp "gratuitous and unnecessary," despite the clip's 6 million views.
RFK Jr says community health centers should be the model for American healthcare
During a visit to Castle Family Health Services in Atwater, California, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised community health centers as a “template” for the nation’s health system, saying, “Forget about Obamacare.”
Politics and the Limits of Language
Ben Rhodes's new book makes an earnest case for the political power of words. But the degradation of our public life can’t be reversed by rhetoric alone.
Health Insurer Centene’s Chief Financial Officer To Step Down
Centene, one of the nation’s largest providers of Obamacare, said chief financial officer Drew Asher plans to step down as chief financial officer in December.
The U.S. Healthcare System is Already Mostly Socialized
Now that Abdul El-Sayed is the Democratic nominee for Michigan’s open Senate seat, the outcome of this crucial race will depend mainly on two things: Whether Republicans succeed in demonizing El-Sayed because he’s brown and a Muslim, and whether they succeed in demonizing him as a left-wing radical. I will defer for the now the question of whether bigotry will be effective this year, although I will address it another day. What I want to address instead is El-Sayed’s signature issue — healthcare. Yes, El-Sayed advocates Medicare for All, a position the usual suspects denounce as “socialism.” I will get to the politics of his stance soon. Today, however, I want to talk about the substance. We should be clear that El-Sayed doesn’t even call himself a socialist. On the contrary, he explicitly disavows the label, saying “I’m a capitalist who just knows about capitalism”. In fact, as I explained in a previous post, the policies that El-Sayed advocates qualify him as a social democrat, not a socialist. Still, El-Sayed advocates a system under which the government would pay almost all medical expenses. Isn’t that socialism? Well, if that is the criterion then much of U.S. healthcare is already socialist. In fact, the government’s role is so large that U.S. healthcare is better described as partially privatized socialism than as anything resembling a free market. Let’s start with the raw numbers on health insurance, which pays the bulk of Americans’ medical expenses. Americans receive health insurance either from private companies or from public programs, overwhelmingly Medicare and Medicaid. Here’s what the breakdown of coverage and spending between private and public looked like in 2024: While a majority of Americans with health insurance get it from private companies, well over 100 million of us are covered by government programs instead. And these government programs pay more total dollars for medical bills than the private insurers do. Why do government programs that cover a minority of the population account for a majority of health insurers’ outlays? Mainly because Medicare covers seniors, and we’re expensive. Also, while Medicaid covers many younger Americans, disabled and elderly beneficiaries account for most of its spending. Even by the raw numbers, then, U.S. health insurance looks as much public as private. But that understates the government’s role: Private health insurance in the U.S. is both highly regulated and heavily subsidized. This is obviously true for the insurance coverage purchased by tens of millions of Americans through the exchanges established by the Affordable Care Act. But employment-based health insurance, which covers 161 million Americans, is far more of a government creation than most people realize. For employment-based insurance exists largely because of huge implicit government subsidies that come with major strings attached. Here’s how that works. If your employer pays you $10,000, that’s taxable income. But if your employer pays $10,000 toward a company health insurance plan that meets certain criteria, it isn’t taxable. That’s a huge effective subsidy, running at more than $300 billion a year. Take that subsidy into account, along with the more than $100 billion per year spent subsidizing policies purchased under the ACA, as well as the outlays on Medicare and Medicaid, and net effect is that the government pays for more than two-thirds of Americans’ health insurance. Granted, there are strings attached. Roughly speaking, employment-based health plans can’t discriminate based on medical history — that is, they can’t deny coverage to employees with pre-existing conditions — and they also can’t offer the plans only to highly compensated employees — a health plan that is only for the C-suite is considered taxable income. So given the restrictions of the federal tax code, employer-based health insurance is a lot like Obamacare, which also prohibits discrimination based on medical history and provides subsidies to make insurance affordable to lower-paid workers. The fact is that virtually all of private healthcare insurance is already well under some form of government control through regulation and tax subsidies. How should we think about this system? First of all, is Medicare socialist? Don’t tell anyone, but the way Medicare operates — it covers every senior’s medical expenses, whatever they turn out to be, while being funded by taxes that depend on one’s income — could be summarized by the old Marxist slogan “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.” And back in 1961, when Ronald Reagan was the face of a last-ditch effort by the American Medical Association to block the creation of Medicare, he denounced Medicare as “socialized medicine” and warned that it would destroy our freedom. In reality, American freedom survived until Jan. 20, 2025, while Medicare is immensely popular, with an 82 percent favorable rating in the most recent KFF survey. Medicaid, government health insurance for lower-income Americans, comes in at 73 percent. This is in sharp contrast to public views about private insurers, who are widely disliked if not hated and accused of denying essential care. Furthermore, if Medicare is socialism, then the whole U.S. health insurance system, with the government paying most of the bills and placing conditions on private insurers, is almost equally socialist. If you insist on calling any program the government pays for and regulates socialist, then U.S. healthcare would best be described as a partially privatized form of socialism. And one must ask, what is the point of the part that is privatized? Do private insurers add anything positive? Or are they simply parasites, skimming off money that could have been paying for care? The case for viewing insurers as parasites is strong. Many Medicare benefits are now delivered via Medicare Advantage, that is, plans paid for by the government but run through insurance companies. MedPAC, an independent advisory commission, estimates that last year Medicare Advantage plans were overpaid by $84 billion, thanks to practices such as “upcoding,” in which patients’ health problems are overstated to get larger sums from Medicare. Assessing the waste from employer-based insurance is harder, but most evidence suggests that private insurers have substantially higher administrative costs than Medicare does. Furthermore, the complexity of private insurance, with multiple payers all trying to deny care when they can, is a huge burden both on providers — doctors, nurses, and hospitals — and on patients. What do private insurers offer to compensate for these costs? One must go through intellectual contortions to avoid the conclusion that they are, in fact, parasites. Which brings me back to El-Sayed. In supporting Medicare for All, he’s basically calling for an end to the partial, parasitic privatization of a healthcare system that is already hugely dependent on public funding. When one looks at it that way, it’s not at all a radical proposal. Admittedly, the political lift requires overcoming the opposition to higher taxes to pay for Medicare for All. Political realism rather than economics was the reason I and many other progressives supported Obamacare, with all its complexities, rather than demanding an immediate move to Medicare for All. But the political calculus may very well have shifted since the 2000s, as Americans are fed up with a system of unaffordable premiums, rampant claim denials, and byzantine claim administration. Moreover, funding healthcare insurance through taxation would allow for a much more progressive distribution of the cost. That is, compared to the present system, middle-income households would pay less as high-income households would pay more. And the U.S. would stop wasting large sums on pointless administrative costs. So let’s be clear: El-Sayed’s healthcare platform is perfectly reasonable on the merits of cost, fairness and health efficacy. And with private insurers never more hated, while millions of Americans are losing their health insurance, 2026 may be its time. MUSICAL CODA
Top Obama ally reveals which far-left candidate needs to lose to help progressives win
David Axelrod calls Francesca Hong a "font of zany liberal, faculty lounge exotica" and says her Wisconsin primary loss would help Abdul El-Sayed.
Abdul El-Sayed and Barack Obama spoke as Democrats seek to unify following heated Senate primary
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed on Sunday described a “really warm” conversation with former President Barack Obama as the party seeks to find a path forward following last week’s bruising primary.
El-Sayed spoke with Obama as Michigan Democrats look to unite after a bitter Senate primary
“I was grateful for his advice. It was very warm, very inviting, and I know that he knows the critical role that Michigan is going to play,” El-Sayed told NBC’s “Meet the Press."
Obama and Abdul El-Sayed Spoke to Discuss Unity After Michigan Senate Primary
Dr. Abdul El-Sayed’s call with the former president comes as he tries to win over wary Democrats in Michigan’s high-stakes Senate race.
Barack Obama blames Larry David for his infamous tan suit scandal in new sketch
Former president Barack Obama pokes fun at his tan suit debacle with Larry David on the season finale of ‘Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness.’
Trump goes unmentioned but not ignored as Clinton, Bush and Obama step up as essayists on presidents
Three ex-presidents have joined an all-star roster of historians in contributing to a series of essays about presidents back to George Washington
Ex-Obama, Biden diplomat blasts former boss’ border failures: 'They woke up too late'
Ken Salazar says the Biden administration "woke up too late" on the border crisis, creating a vacuum that handed Trump his strongest political issue.
Today’s horoscope: Aries - don’t mix business with pleasure (Aug. 4, 2026)
CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Cole Sprouse, 34; Dylan Sprouse, 34; Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, 45; Barack Obama, 65.
Kennedy, Oz Contend Fraud Crackdown, Not Skyrocketing Prices, Led Millions To Leave Obamacare
Rising premiums forced many people in Affordable Care Act plans to give up their coverage. But the Trump administration claims a huge drop in enrollment is almost entirely due to its fraud crackdown.
Who is Kathryn Ruemmler? Former Obama White House attorney interviewed about Epstein emails
Ruemmler called Epstein, whom she first met in 2014, a “masterful liar” in her opening remarks to the panel, adding that she didn’t see evidence of criminal conduct by Epstein.
Clinton, Obama-era Democratic heavyweights Penn and Emanuel rip NYC's Mamdani over taxes, Israel, blast DSA
Democratic power players Mark Penn and Rahm Emanuel publicly criticize NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani over his property tax plan and Israel positions.
Obama makes one of his first midterm endorsements with a basketball video
The former president is trying to help Josh Turek net a Senate seat in Iowa, which Democrats see as one of their best pickup opportunities of the midterms.
Obama Endorses Josh Turek in Iowa Senate Race With Basketball Video
The former president is trying to help Josh Turek net a Senate seat in Iowa, which Democrats see as one of their best pickup opportunities of the midterms.
A day in the life of Caitlin Clark: All-Star business as usual, Barack Obama's presidential perspective and 'Studbudz' shoutouts
At her third All-Star in as many seasons, Caitlin Clark is garnering more attention than ever.
Rising healthcare costs are reshaping Ohio's midterm elections
A drop in Obamacare enrollees has raised concerns about healthcare costs.
Conan O’Brien shares the hilarious yet painful reason why he has a new hairdo (exclusive)
Conan O’Brien is finally addressing his new hairdo, revealing that the slicked-back look is the result of a sunscreen mishap at the Obama Presidential Center event.
Appeals court rejects Biden's bid to block release of audio from memoir ghostwriter interviews
Joe Biden disagrees with an appeals court's rejection of his effort to block the release of audio recordings of his interviews with a memoir ghostwriter.
As Trump toys with disaster aid, Congress eyes FEMA change
New Jersey, snubbed for $84 million in aid after damaging cold, is among Democratic states turned away by a Republican president
AOC channels Obama's "Hope and Change" message
She's broadening her pitch beyond revolutionary democratic socialism ahead of a potential run for president.
Health Brief: Trump’s Obamacare gamble hits court trouble
Plus: A federal advisory panel is facing scrutiny over members’ ties to peptide products
Biden will publish 'Promise Me, America' memoir after the November midterm elections
The timing of the book — two weeks after midterm elections in which Democrats seek to regain control of Congress — could raise concerns within Biden's party by putting him back into the spotlight.
The States Try to Topple WarnerMount…Thus Begins the Local Antitrust Era
(Welcome to the “Most Important Story of the Week”, my bi-weekly strategy column analyzing the most important (but often not buzziest) news story of the last two weeks. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. Please subscribe.) Well, it looks like it’s time for another strategy column. Can I finally avoid writing about M&A? No, it seems I cannot. Admittedly, I’m a week early with this column, since I usually put it out every other week. But this news couldn’t wait. This will make three “Most Important Stories” in a row with a merger or acquisition as its centerpiece. First, Roku-Fox (an acquisition), then Comcast-NBCUniversal (a divestment!), and now the State AGs and the WGA’s lawsuits against Paramount’s pursuit of Warner Bros. Discovery (antitrust). M&A is usually the “most important” topic any given week, simply because a giant company merging or breaking up (or preventing those outcomes) can have the biggest impact on the streaming board. If you think about these companies as players in a game, changing the number of players is one of the biggest changes you can make. I shouldn’t really complain, either, since this lawsuit is very good news for customers and suppliers (econ speak for talent, workers and indie studios in Hollywood). So let me answer some questions about this potential trial, along with (shudder) making some heavily caveated predictions. I’ll also look at whether Hollywood must consolidate, whether or not the states can win, trouble at X-Box, Netflix’s YouTube binge, and more. Plus, I have five images that visualize this merger and the harm, including three brand new data looks you’ve never seen before. Subscribe Most Important Story of the Week - Can The States and the WGA Stop Hollywood’s Consolidation (Crisis)? If every other newsletter and news outlet is writing about the same story, I try to avoid writing about it as well, but I can’t ignore a story this consequential. The story of the last year was the fate of Warner Bros. Discovery, and this development potentially extends that saga into 2027. As I tried to figure out my angle, I realized, like my last column, I’m again faced with a series of questions. These questions, though, are much more forward-looking. Will the states win? Will the WGA win? If so, what happens to Warner Bros. Discovery? Either way, will this chill the market for future mergers? So you know what that means: predictions. About the future, no less, the hardest thing to predict.1 Just remember: nothing here comes with a guarantee. And the more confident someone is in their predictions, the less you should trust them. This situation is incredibly fluid, nuanced, uncertain and tenuous. So let’s try to explain what may happen. Question: Why File this Lawsuit? I’ll admit, a few months back, I was fairly pessimistic about the fate of this lawsuit. Rumors had started bubbling up that the state Attorneys General (in particular California) wanted to settle with either some minor divestments (usually CNN) or behavioral remedies. And that tracked for me: the states usually settle lawsuits, like the recent John Deere right-to-repair suit. Yet, they plan to fight this. (As they did the LiveNation-Ticketmaster monopolization trial and the Nexstar-Tegna merger.) Honestly, that also makes a ton of sense. Frankly, this move is just good politics for these State AGs. Most are still running for higher and higher office in blue states—some folks have emphasized that only Democratic AGs joined this suit, but given the Ellison/Trump ties, and fears of retribution, that tracks—and a high profile case like this will help them move up the electoral ladder, especially since Paramount and its leadership (the Ellisons, father and heir) have sided with the other side of the political aisle. That makes them unsympathetic to Democratic voters and Hollywood workers in particular. Why did this lawsuit happen? In addition to the very real concerns about industry consolidation, this is why. That said, I don’t think we would have seen this lawsuit for Netflix and Warner Bros., simply because they’re more sympathetic and aligned with Democrats. But those consolidation concerns are real. The “town”—meaning Hollywood and such—really is seeing the damage of mergers on this industry. That’s why the WGA also filed its own lawsuit in defense of workers as well. (Wildcard: What about Europe? Will they try to stop the deal, too? There have been some rumors out of the UK they may try to fight the deal, and UK enforcers just stopped a Getty Images-Shutterstock tie up, so there is precedence. This argument could go either way, though. On one hand, the EU doesn’t need to step in, cause they states are handling it. On the other hand, this could make the EU’s case easier. Just imagine if both sides coordinated. I’ll simply say, “We’ll see!”) Question: Will The State AGs or the WGA Win? Can the state AGs play David to Paramount-Skydance’s Goliath here? That’s really the whole thing, isn’t it? If you know this result, you could make a lot of money. When things are uncertain, it’s tempting to shrug and say, “Eh” meaning it’s a 50/50 proposition. I wouldn’t, though. When in doubt, you should expect that the merging parties succeed. AT&T did successfully buy Warner Bros., after all, and Disney bought Fox without any challenges. Many judges are extremely sympathetic to mergers, and I’d bet the state AGs get a judge who will allow the merger. (Even Obama-appointed judges often allow mergers.) As I understand it, we’ll see two main attacks. First, theatrical films. The AGs are arguing that, when it comes to share of box office and the number of both “wide releases” and blockbuster (or “tentpole”) films, the merging parties will have over 27% market share. Now, the Supreme Court once ruled from on high that any merger that exceeds 30% is presumptively illegal, but that’s guidance, not an ironclad bar. Still, the states will have to argue that this is close to having too much power, and with that power, this will likely further worsen the theater/studio splits in particular. Indeed, as Matthew Stoller pointed out, “just five studios are responsible for 95% of all blockbusters; if this merger goes through, then Paramount and Disney will control 60% of that.” So yes, movie studios will be very concentrated after this merger. Want me to visualize some of that? Well, here’s the share of films that grossed over $200 million at the domestic box office since 2022. (Note: this isn’t all films released in over 3,000 screens, but it is a good look at market power.) First, here are the 43 films by studio: Notice all the blue (Disney), orange (Universal), and purple (Warner Bros)? Yeah, those studios are powerful, and this combines Paramount with one of them. Here’s the look by studio and share of the films that grossed over $200 million: Now, if you look at that and also think, “Huh, should we break up Disney?” I’m with you. I’ve seen some folks poo-poo this idea that this is a real category, but it is! For an upcoming article, I’ve been pulling data on the share of top 100 films at the box office as a share of total box office, and it’s massive. Here’s the chart: (This analysis looks at The-Number’s top 100 films and total domestic box office each year.) To be clear, tentpoles make up 80.7% of the box office each year, so I do think it’s a genuine market. (To be clear, films grossing over $50 million make up 80% of the domestic box office, and films grossing over $100 million make up 64.1%.) I mean, the top 100 films at the box office make up 95% of each year’s grosses. Worse, the combined studios will likely cut output to flex that market power. Everyone can just look at what happened to Disney and Fox to see the precedent. (With fewer films, the remaining theaters have to give more for those few films that remain.) Here’s an image I’ve used a lot, the share of wide-release films from Disney and Fox over time: The AGs will also argue that this consolidation will also impact the cable industry. In this case, the consolidation is actually worse, but that environment is…complicated. Paramount will argue that the cable industry is shrinking. That said, predictions that cable will “go to zero” also don’t look very well supported by the data, as the declines are shrinking, meaning “cable” or “vMVPDs” will likely stabilize at some point. Can the state Attorneys General win on those two main arguments? I honestly don’t know. Again, I’d bet no, since history in general supports that, but it depends on the judge/jury and how they interpret the arguments. Notably, Paramount won’t face accusations about monopoly power in other areas, like streaming, news, sports rights, or vertical integration. I tend to disagree with leaving out sports rights, but I also see the appeal for a simpler case. The states also aren’t really pushing novel theories about labor harm either, which should help. (By the way, Sean McNulty at The Ankler wrote a great run through of potential options, and Capitol Forum also wrote a great paper on theatrical consolidation. Both these pieces predated the lawsuit. Matthew Stoller is also out with his analysis of the pros and cons of the case too.) In some ways, the WGA’s case is even stronger. Quoting Sean McNulty’s summary: “The WGA is citing WARNAMOUNT as crossing a 30% market share in multiple sectors, a number that the Supreme Court has precedent for deeming “presumptively anticompetitive” in a market. According to the WGA numbers, WARNAMOUNT would have represented: - 35% of film writing jobs between 2021 and 2024 - 36% of TV writing projects between 2022 and 2025 - 38% of overall deals between 2021 and 2024” Notably, antitrust enforcers did win recently in the Penguin-Simon & Schuster merger by focusing on labor impact, so don’t count this thinking out. (Wildcard: Will the states try to get a jury trial? Most likely no, they’ll let a judge handle it. If I’m them, though, I’d try to put this in front of a jury. Juries tend to understand monopoly power in a more realistic way than judges faced with legions of economists.) Question: What if They Win? What if They Lose?
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Obamacare rolls shrank dramatically in many states over the past year, new federal data shows
Ohio and Oklahoma each lost nearly one-third of their enrollees over the past year.
Obamacare rolls shrank dramatically in many states over the past year, new federal data shows
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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3 million Americans have dropped Obamacare health coverage over past year, after Republicans let federal subsidies expire
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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Millions drop Obamacare health plans after subsidies expire and costs rise
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Millions drop Obamacare health coverage after subsidies expire and costs rise
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