Politix

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump suddenly faces defections in Congress, from right-wing influencers, and even from his own White House chief of staff.In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* Susie Wiles’s…intemperate comments to Vanity Fair about all the incompetents and cynics in the Trump administration; * The challenge of passing the cult following from Trump to JD Vance (or anyone else for that matter).* Why Republican disarray has spread beyond health care.Then, the particularly pitched blowback Trump has faced for pissing on Rob Reiner’s grave. Are we seeing the MAGA alliance crack up? Or are his internal critics limiting themselves to the safe zone of commenting only on Trump’s insensitive social-media posts? And why does the Democratic Party’s strategic outlet turn so heavily on the answers to those two questions? All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the Trump-Vance succession. * Brian’s somewhat more optimistic view on the Trump-Vance succession. * Politicize (Trump’s reaction to) Rob Reiner’s murder.* The Susie Wiles profile.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump is suddenly mired in a huge war-crimes scandal, complicating his desire to launch an actual war (also illegal) against Venezuela. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* All the things that make the circumstances surrounding the order to murder shipwreck survivors so strange and suspicious; * How it all gels with Trump’s broader, corrupt foreign policy;* Whether the so-called Seditious Six Democrats, who first elevated the issue of illegal orders, laid a trap for Trump.* Also, is Pete Hegseth doomed?Then, what’s all that got to do with the midterms? Did left-wing politics doom Democrats in last week’s Tennessee special election? Was the outcome there actually bullish for Democrats? Could it be both things at once? And why is the Democratic establishment really so up in arms about Jasmine Crockett entering the Texas Senate Democratic primary?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Todd Zwillich on what Democrats in Congress did (and didn’t) know about Trump administration war crimes before they made a ruckus about it. * Matt on the bizarre march to war with Venezuela. * Brian on the problem of the missing antiwar movement.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmBrian is adventuring in South America, so Matt is joined by Lakshya Jain of The Argument and Split Ticket to talk about his Wins Above Replacement calculations, which politicians are good at winning, and what we know about them. In the episode, Matt and Lakshya discuss:* The importance of “downballot lag” in assessing candidate quality.* Why AOC and Ritchie Torres are both overrated by their fans. * While highly viral members of congress tend to underperform, while many electoral superstars are relatively anonymous. Then, for paid subscribers, what can really be learned from Zohran Mamdani, a politician who won a difficult race despite being less popular than many of the people he bested in his primary? What’s the point of identifying over performing politicians in the first place? What’s Rashida Tlaib doing right? All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump has lost his grip, and it’s making him prone to a variety of political errors, some of which we enjoy with pure schadenfreude, others of which could cause tremendous collateral damage. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What if anything makes Marjorie Taylor Greene’s early exit from the House of Representatives different from past Trump purges?* Why did he blow up his party’s big plan to make Zohran Mamdani the face of the Democratic Party?* How on Earth does it make sense for him to pick a fight with, and try to court martial, an extremely popular astronaut war hero?Then, for paid subscribers, should we be careful what we wish for? After blowing the vindictive prosecutions of James Comey and Letitia James, should Mark Kelly put himself in harms way and demand his day in military court? Should Democrats be even bolder and clearer about Trump’s general commitment to illegal conduct, and his the specific illegality of his policy toward Venezuela? Is he really just going to blunder us into a destabilizing and terribly unpopular war there?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian notes that MAGA disarray will paradoxically make Trump and his loyalists more determined to mount a coup d’etat. * Matt argues against the Strange New Respect on the left for Marjorie Taylor Greene.* Brian’s conversation with Pat Dennis about public opinion formation.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump’s Epstein coverup has faltered. Jeffrey Epstein’s estate has produced tens of thousands of emails implicating scads of U.S. elites, Trump foremost among them, but including famed economist Larry Summers and other prominent Democrats. Meanwhile, Congress has now voted overwhelmingly to compel the Justice Department to release its Epstein case files.In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What do the recent disclosures actually reveal?* What the fuck Larry Summers?! And, also, ew!* Should erstwhile Summers allies throw him under the bus, even though he’s announced his withdrawal from public life?Then, for paid subscribers, what now? Will Trump sign the Epstein disclosure bill without delay? If so, how will he endeavor to obstruct disclosure once it becomes law? Is the evidence in the case file safe from tampering or destruction? And why has this issue, rather than tariffs or health care or even war in Venezuela, the one that has blown the coalition wide open? (Hint: It has something to do with all the antisemites in MAGA). All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian argues Dems should lean into Epstein politics at least as hard as party strategists want them to lean into “affordability.” * Matt argues moderation shouldn’t be synonymous with throwing a winning hand—possibly relevant to forthcoming Epstein politics.* Emily Catalano on Epstein truthers coming full circle.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmAfter notching huge victories in last week’s off-year elections, Senate Democrats were overcome by a failure of nerve, and agreed to reopen the government without restoring anyone’s health insurance or securing any legal mechanism to rein in Donald Trump’s lawlessnessIn this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What the fuck?* Why did the standoff end the way it did?* How could the eight capitulators plus Chuck Schumer have engineered a better outcome, whether it brought the shutdown to an end or not?Then, for paid subscribers, how will the recriminations play out inside the party? Could it feed a constructive conversation about what a better opposition party might look like? Will they put up any resistance at all when the next deadline looms at the end of January? Are memories long enough that the cave might have an impact on the 2026 midterms? Will Trump interpret this as a mandate to use the infliction of pain to bend Democrats? Or will we all move on when the House votes to release the Epstein files?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian has 16 thoughts on the surrender. * Matt only has 13.* Chris Murphy’s interview with Punchbowl.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmIt was a night of blowout victories in elections for Democrats and Democratic causes across the country, significantly surpassing the party’s most optimistic expectations. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What, if anything, do the margins, and the nature of the sweep, tell us about the politics today;* How compatible are these results with a Democratic Senate victory in 2026?* Why “Democrats should moderate” and “Democrats need to fight harder” takesters both had good nights.Then, for paid subscribers, will frontline Democrats really continue to be afraid of fighting Trump after tonight’s results? Didn’t the revived resistance widen the party’s margins? Shouldn’t this help Democrats across the board? And if so, why do news reports suggest Senate Democrats might yield in the government-shutdown fight, even though they appear to be winning it?Further reading:* Matt writes there’s more to politics than what happens in the four-corners of a campaign. * Brian on why the Democrats’ biggest liability has been the scourge of wimpiness.* Brian’s July piece asking what Democrats intend to do if they win the midterms?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmEven some of Donald Trump’s own voters were shocked to see he summarily demolished part of the White House, surprising many Democrats who had convinced themselves Trump is teflon and people don’t care about his corruption or vulgarity. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* The long history of politicians not doing stuff like this, fearing political backlash;* Whether this episode suggests swing voters can be moved by symbols and appeals to American greatness, or whether this, too, is a distraction from the issues that really matter;* What other corruption scandals Democrats might drag into the partisan fray, now that the middle of the country is wising up to Trump’s let-them-eat-cake greed, at the expense of normal citizens.Then, for paid subscribers, if Trump’s recent political troubles stem from shocking images of the East Wing reduced to rubble, what else in politics is an artifact of media effects? Are Democrats lucky that Trump is so venal and lawless, because Americans would otherwise be highly supportive of how he governs? Or does he mostly get a pass on corruption (because Democrats want to focus on issues) while Republicans invest billions of dollars to define Democrats as out-of-touch wackos?Further reading:* Brian on a Democratic-friendly way to make Trump pay for his corruption, now that it’s breaking through.* Matt: It’s all about policy, including (maybe particularly?) immigration.* A nerd-off between Biden alums who think their biggest mistake was not creating enough winning ideological conflict and outside strategists who think Democrats earned their toxic unpopularity fair and square.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmMore than seven million Americans marched peacefully in the streets. Republicans are palpably spooked about it. And courage is proving contagious: In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss: * How Trump’s king-like abuses are, for the first time in a decade, becoming hard to distinguish from kitchen-table issues;* Whether, given the galvanizing power of No Kings, Democrats should pivot to the theme (away from health care) and make a national scandal of Trump’s demolition of the White House to build a palace ballroom; * The importance of message amplification in getting people to care about anything when their day-to-day lives are unaffected by political scandal.Then, the Democratic establishment comes for Graham Platner with…some pretty explosive opposition research. How much grace does he deserve? What does he need to do to earn it? And how is it that people make decisions about what is sincere and insincere when it comes out of the mouth of a politician. All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Halina Bennet’s report from No Kings DC.* Brian’s piece, from December 6, 2024: The New Gilded Age Will Be Streamed.* Seth Masket on the political class’s over-interpretation of gaffes.* Graham Platner responds to the oppo dump on Crooked Media.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThe government shutdown just crossed the two-week mark. If you take Donald Trump and his people at their word, it doesn’t seem like it’s about to reopen. But they are also huge bluffers. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss: * Has Trump hit upon a (legally dubious) way to keep the government “shut down” indefinitely?* Which signs suggest he’s digging in and which suggest he’s bluffing?* Are we about to test, once and for all, whether anti-authoritarian politics are more compelling and more galvanizing than cost-of-living politics?Then, Republicans are desperate to shrink down and smear No Kings protesters en masse. Can this be interpreted as a sign of weakness? Is it a cunning, if ill-intended attempt to tip the country into civil unrest? How close to 1.000 does a non-violent resistance movement have to bat to keep the majority of the public on its side?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on the median experience of tyranny.* Matt argues the authoritarian menace has arrived.* Brian makes the case that if the current equilibrium devolves into violence, we’ve seen enough to blame Trump.* Erica Chenoweth on civil resistance.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmAs anticipated in last week’s episode, the government did indeed shut down, and as of this recording Congress remains at an impasse. At the same time Donald Trump and Stephen Miller are trying harder than ever to foment street violence in blue cities and maybe even martial law. In this episode, Brian and Matt discuss: * How the GOP’s ongoing Epstein coverup is prolonging the shutdown and making it likelier that they “lose.”* The esoteric Beltway metaphysics of who gets blamed for government shutdowns.* Why Democrats are winning the battle of public opinion despite Beltway consensus that they are to blame.Then, would it really be “winning” the shutdown to force Republicans to renew Affordable Care Act subsidies, without securing any new constraints on Trump’s abuses of power? Would Democrats shut down the government again to have another fight centered more closely on Trump’s authoritarian abuses? Is the dictatorial overreach bad enough now that Democrats should simply withhold their votes under any feasible set of concessions? And which prominent Democrats are doing resistance politics most effectively.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt argues that “authentic” politicians are mostly just acting.* Brian argues that “non-sequitur politics” are a bad basis for fighting fascism.* Bharat Ramamurti imagines how Democrats could force Trump closer to compliance with constitutional rule.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump has crossed an important redline: He ordered his administration to prosecute former FBI Director James Comey, fired the prosecutor who told him he had no case, and installed a lackey who did as ordered. In this episode: * What distinguishes the (weak, losing) Comey indictment from past abuses of prosecutorial power?* Why Comey shouldn’t try to get the charges dismissed on selective prosecution grounds, and should instead demand a speedy trial.* If Trump thinks his revenge tour was “litigated in the election, might a humiliating defeat at the Comey trial be the beginning of the DOJ’s new role as tip of the spear of Trump’s retribution campaign? Then, on the eve of the government shutdown, Brian and Matt look ahead to likely end games. Has the Democrats’ confused posture in the standoff doomed them, or can they reorient everyone in the party to make arguments they can really commit to long-term? Will the public’s presumptive sense that Republicans are to blame for government shutdowns insulate Democrats from backlash? And, as long as they’re keeping the House shuttered to prevent votes on releasing the Epstein files, will Republicans be able to exploit their advantages in this fight?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian argues that if Democrats want a big fight over health care, there are ways to engineer one without shoving it into a fight over the annual budget. * Matt argues Hillary Clinton should have demanded here day in court during Trump 1.0 because the email scandal was bullshit.* Brendan Nyhan on the Comey prosecution precedent.* Josh Marshall on the power dynamics of the shutdown fight.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmWith the firing (and then unfiring) of Jimmy Kimmel, the right-wing crackdown in the name of Charlie Kirk seems to have bumped up against real limits. In light of the week’s developments, we discuss:* The schisms within MAGA that were on display at the Kirk memorial;* How those schisms fused with resistance backlash, forcing ABC and Disney to rethink their decision to take Kimmel off the air;* Whether this is a sign that society as a whole has reached the limits of authoritarian abuses it’s willing to tolerate.Then, Brian and Matt zoom out to ask whether public rejection of a free-speech crackdown can help form the basis of big-tent Democratic unity, from Zohran Mamdani in New York through (maybe!) Geoff Duncan in Georgia. Is Duncan the best candidate in the Georgia Dem gubernatorial primary? Should Democrats back him for the abstract value of proving the party welcomes heterodox voices? And what does progressive uneasiness with Duncan, like establishment Dem uneasiness with Mamdani, tell us about the meaning of solidarity?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian thinks the Kirk crackdown moved Democrats closer to an appropriate fighting posture. * Matt on the crackdown as classic overreach;* Jessica Valenti on why abortion represents the least productive grounds on which Democrats might moderate.* Geoff Duncan explains his conversion to Greg Sargent.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump and several of his top officials have promised to unleash a partisan crackdown in Charlie Kirk’s honor, even as the notion that Kirk’s assassin was in league with the institutional left becomes more far fetched. In light of the week’s developments, we discuss:* Our personal reactions to the Kirk murder, and the contours of the overall public response;* What we know about the GOP plan to use it as a pretext to crack down on political dissent;* The differences between using free speech and believing in free speech; the related differences between good-faith debate and propaganda.Then, is MAGA’s seamless fusion of partisan propaganda with state functions actually a source of political power for the GOP? Between Trump’s sinking poll numbers on issue after issue, public rejection of his immigration crackdown, and spiraling, trollish foreign policy, is there any reason to believe Americans won’t reject a speech crackdown, too? And if the administration is embarking on a losing abuse of power (even if only to generate yet more propaganda) is there any good reason why Democrats shouldn’t fight them by seizing the mantle of free speech?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt’s extremely conflicted take on the looming government shutdown. * Brian on the GOP’s recursive cycle of abusing power to generate propaganda to justify further abuses of power, and how to respond;* The extensive fallout of the propaganda-driven Hyundai factory raid.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmAnother government shutdown looms, and, thus, so do more angsty struggle sessions over what Democrats should do, and what effective opposition looks like. In this episode, we discuss:* How does mounting bad news for Donald Trump—bad jobs numbers, defeats in court, and revelations about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein—affect the politics of a shutdown?* Who’s got the better bead on how Democrats should proceed, Matt, Brian, or Ezra Klein? * Why there’s a hidden danger in Democrats’ inclination to demand extraneous concessions—like renewed funding for Obamacare.Then, how might the lessons of a [knocks on wood] successful shutdown fight help ameliorate ongoing fight between different factions of the Democratic Party, including progressives and abundists? Can they find common ground over their shared interest in making the Democratic Party more responsive and faster moving? Or are progressives too suspicious of strange bedfellows to ever support policy-making coalitions with Republicans and business interests?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian’s shutdown piece.* Ezra’s shutdown piece* Matt’s shutdown piece.* Brian’s response to both. * How to understand recent data revisions. * Brian’s abundance flowchart for an intra-Democratic truce.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThis week, we indulge all the speculation and look ahead to politics if and after Donald Trump dies in office. For instance:* Is a movement that claims the mantle of making America “healthy” sustainable in a world where the obese 79 year old president croaks after his health secretary takes vaccines off the shelf?* Does JD Vance have the juice required to consolidate all the pro-Trump factions (many of which hate each other)?* What becomes of Democratic politics? Can the emerging anti-Trump politics of Democratic presidential hopefuls work against a post-Trump GOP?Then, what’s all this got to do with Democratic propaganda? We discuss a recently unearthed progressive effort to subsidize Democrat-friendly viral content creators, which has already driven bitter recriminations across the online left. Is the problem here message or medium? Would anyone be complaining if the people involved had agreed to be open and transparent about their partnership? Or is subsidizing heavy-on-politics content an altogether mistaken concept?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on the cursed establishment effort to fend off Graham Platner.* Matt also wants to let Graham Platner cook. * Paige Cognetti will run against Rob Bresnahan in a key Pennsylvania bellwether.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThis week, a close look at two troubling authoritarian provocations from the Trump administration: Friday’s dawn FBI raid of John Bolton’s house in Maryland, and Monday’s purported firing of Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. We discuss:* How Matt managed to leave his microphone in Maine.* What Trump seemingly hopes to accomplish by making an example out of Bolton.* Whether opposing the retributive prosecution of a crank like Bolton represents a good test of how to build a unified front against fascism.* Also, what the fuck is going on with Trump’s bruises and cankles?Then, do the Bolton and Cook abuses provide the broad left any openings to peel off Republicans who might see Trump’s consolidation of power as a threat to their own ambitions. If he’ll go after a stalwart Republican like Bolton, why wouldn’t he go after certain Republican presidential candidates? If overlook Trump’s harassment of Cook, what leg will they have to stand on when 2029 Democrats purge Republicans from government, mine their federal records, and have a big fat precedent to point to.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the economic downside of personalist autocracies like the one Trump is building.* Brian makes the case against liberal rectitude politics, which make it so hard for the whole, unified party to stand up for itself. * HEADLINE: Trump, 79, Smears Right Hand in Makeup Amid Cankles Cover-Up.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump’s federal occupation of the capital continues, but the context has worsened. It now unfolds alongside Trump’s seemingly related efforts to: 1) gerrymander as many red states as possible; 2) unconstitutionally void and rerun the Census in a manner that would benefit Republicans; and 3) assert unconstitutional control over the time, place, and manner of elections. In this episode we’ll discuss:* To what extent is Trump’s desire to subjugate the residents of blue cities related to his long-established desire to cheat in elections.* Are Democrats outmatched in the gerrymandering arms race?* Have the opinion makers who discounted Trump’s threat to the 2020 election reverted to complacency once again?Why is Trump acting so spooked about the midterms? And what is to be done? Should congressional Democrats resist these power grabs during the government shutdown fight? Should Democratic governors send their own national guard troops to DC to magnify the contradictions? What kinds of resistance tactics from DC residents would work best to either deescalate the situation, or make it blow back against Trump?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian says it’s gut check time for Senate Democrats: Will they take Trump’s abuses of power head on when the government-funding deadline nears?* Matt: Let’s fix the gerrymandering problem with proportional representation.* Via National Security Counselors, Should Wes Moore (or someone) send blue state national guardsmen to DC?* No comment….

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump has commandeered Washington DC’s police force and deployed federal agents and national guardsmen to patrol DC streets, on plainly pretextual grounds. In this episode we’ll discuss:* What makes this affront to DC sovereignty unusually offensive;* Trump’s stated reasons for seizing power, and how to see through them;* What, if anything, elected Democrats should say and do to defend district residentsThen, behind the paywall, there’s good reason to suspect Trump hopes his DC invasion will distract us from less flattering news. So we’re not going to let him! We discuss the latest indications that Trump has damaged the economy, the steps that can be taken in the event Trump tries to fabricate economic data, and the most recent developments in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the actual policy obstacles to more effective policing in DC.* Brian on why DC residents are perfectly right to be frustrated with national Democrats for leaving us vulnerable to this unwelcome takeover.* Trump’s hackish nominee to oversee government economic data wants to stop releasing government economic data.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThis week, we’re reassessing both the resiliency of the economy, and the health of U.S. democracy.Why? Because recent data suggests Donald Trump’s reactionary policy blitz (global tariffs, mass deportation) has caused the economy to seize up; and Trump has responded by trying to kill the messengers. In this episode you’ll hear all about:* What the recent jobs numbers actually say, and how do they gel with other recent data;* Sydney Sweeney;* Why data pointing to a slowdown, if not a contraction, fits the facts of Trump’s erratic agenda;* The bull and the bear theories of the case: Could the economy somehow continue growing despite all this? Would Trump be freaking out like this if he thought the economy was firing on all cylinders?Then, behind the paywall, is a recession the sort of thing Trump could even theoretically bullshit his way out of? Or would reality break through? What would a “recession coverup” attempt actually look like, given the complexity of the data? And what’s Trump likely to do if and when his excuses and lies stop selling?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on why Trump’s reaction to the jobs report is of a piece with broader signs that he and his administration are spiraling.* Matt notes Argentina’s recent economic successes are attributable to Javier Milei’s decision to abandon an unworkable agenda.* Dean Baker breaks down why the jobs news is so bad.