Morning all. Another important inflation measure, just released, showed inflation rising last month. It’s now the second in recent days:
The data is now clear - Trump’s tariffs have re-ignited inflation. Prices are rising. His economic agenda is bringing real, material harm to the American people. And what has he done in response to this failure of his economic plan and it’s rejection by the American people? He’s doubled down. This week he’s dramatically increasing tariffs on all goods imported into the US. Prices will keep rising. Interest rates will be remain too high. Consumers and businesses will continue to be harmed. Our allies will be even more angry with America. Simply, he was wrong about how all this would play out. His agenda of sabotage, plunder and betrayal is bringing slower growth, explosive deficits, higher prices, a battered health care system, a weaker country. He is attempting with all his might to shift the tax burden from the wealthy to all of us. His mass deportations are harming farmers and small businesses throughout the country. His attacks on science and universities will leave our young people with fewer opportunities and make our companies less globally competitive. He is making energy more expensive and making it harder for us to win the battle for clean energy tech against the Chinese.
A few minutes ago Trump announced 25% tariffs against goods from Mexico. So that’s now 50% against goods from Brazil, 25% from India and Mexico, 15% from the EU and Japan. Every day, more horrors.
Trump has betrayed his central promise to all of us - that he would bring down costs and make life better for Americans. For as we discussed last night in my new weekly talk, six months in it’s clear that Trump wants more for him and less for the rest of us - something the American people appear to have figured out given his continued precipitous decline in public polls.
I cannot stress how important it is that we make his ruinous tariffs central to our efforts to define and degrade him with voters. It’s all there - higher prices, betrayal, a weaker nation, taxation without representation and a Mad King abuse of power, “Let them cake” plutocracy and more for him & less for all of us. There is also incredible political vulnerability for Trump as his tariffs and the understanding that they will raise prices is the central thing that has been driving his approval rating down and causing his 2024 coalition to unravel. Look at this data from Economist/YouGov:
Down 21 points overall, 44 points with 18-29 year olds, 30 points with Hispanics, 29 points with independents.
He’s dropped 20 points now with people making less than $100,000 a year, and is now deeply underwater with working class Americans.
As this Strength In Numbers poll showed us last week Trump’s (and true in most other polls) Trump’s worst issue is prices/inflation.
Last week I told you that given all this and given the his gross mismanagement and grave danger of the Epstein affair things could get worse for Trump. The tariff path that he choose this week despite the ridiculous public chatter is the worst case scenario for the American economy. We are now officially in Smoot-Hawley tariff levels again after spending 80 years lowering them across the world, and inflation has re-ignited before this next wave of onerous price increases hit. Chairman Powell’s decision to keep interest rates at their current elevated levels was vindicated by both this new data and Trump’s outrageous flouting of the warnings he has ignored about the dangers of what he was doing. As this new Washington Post op-ed explains the Administration’s claims about the projected revenues from the tariffs are incredible, Trumpian bullshit. As Rob Shapiro explained last week our explosive deficits are weakening the economy, contributing to higher interest rates and threatening our economic and national security.
Two of the most important tracking polls, Ipsos/Reuters and Economist/YouGov, found Trump dropping even further this week and hitting his lowest levels of the year. I warned that things could get worse for Trump and they have.
What this means for us is that we have an opportunity now to further weaken and degrade Trump’s political project and we need to seize it. We must make his ruinous, illegal, unconstitutional tariffs central to our indictment of him and be very, very loud about it. We must start focusing our time, attention and money to supporting our candidates and party committees on the front lines of this vital battle to win back power. We need to keep giving to and bolstering Roy Cooper for the enthusiastic reception he has received will encourage other top tier candidates thinking of running to get into their races. The more he raises in these early days the more likely it is we will get the candidates we need to have the election we want to have next year. We need to be even more aggressive about rallying for our intrepid House candidates given Trump’s rancid effort to grab 5 more seats in Texas.
So my friends watch my new video where we discuss all this and other pressing matters when you get a moment. Hit like to this post if it speaks to you. Share it with others you think might be interested. And now…..
Let’s Get To Work People!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here at Hopium we like to do. Here we are proud, plucky, patriots but we are also put your head down, grind it out, get shit done doers. Trump and Republicans have stumbled, and given us a big opportunity now to tell our story and win back power. So let’s get to work everyone!
Support Hopium’s Priority Candidates And Party Committees - A reminder that Election Day, 2025 is a little more than three months away and early voting starts in Virginia in less than two months - September 19th! Donate, volunteer, learn more about our candidates and opportunities here. I consider all these options must dos for anyone serious about winning this year and next year.
Note that Governor Roy Cooper announced a record breaking $3.4m fundraising haul in his first 24 hours in the race. Amazing stuff everyone! Can we get it to $10m by the end of his first week? Let’s keep working it…..
Mikie Sherrill NJ Gov (2025) - $250,000 goal, $45k raised - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer | Watch my interview with Rep. Sherrill
Abigail Spanberger VA Gov (2025) - $250,000 goal, $158k raised - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer | Watch my interview with Abigail Spanberger
Roy Cooper for NC Senate (2026) - $25,000 Labor Day goal, $250,000 goal, $12,000 raised- Donate | Learn More | Volunteer
Jon Ossoff GA Senate (2026) - $250,000 goal, $43k raised - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer
Hopium House 7 (2026) - $250,000 goal, $175k raised - Donate | Learn More, Volunteer, Watch My Interviews With Our Great Members
The New DNC - $200,000 goal $123,000 raised - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer | Watch My Interviews With Ken Martin and Jane Kleeb
Our updated fundraising goals are now for the end of the year, December 31st, except for the 2025 races, which are now for Election Day, 2025. We can do this people!
Our Recommended Actions - We are prioritizing three actions today. You can get our full list of recommended actions here. Let’s get to it:
1 - Call your Senators and Rep To Demand They Revoke Trump’s Terrible Tariffs - Congress simply must take back its tariff authority that Trump has illegally and unconstitutional seized and dangerously abused; and at the very least they must stop what will be Trump’s ruinous new tariff increases slated to start on August 1st. Trump’s economic plan has failed, and we need to find a better way forward.
2 - Bring “Resolutions Of Condemnation” To Your Community - Inspired by the tactics of our Founders learn about how Hopium members are advancing “Resolutions of Condemnation” in their communities across the country and consider bringing this initiative to your state, country or city/town. Remarkably, members of this community are now advancing 50 resolutions projects in 20 states. Can we get to all 50 states by the fall election?
Our newly updated Resolutions page includes a new chat for folks to report in on their progress or seek counsel from those interested in launching a resolutions project in their community. This is one way to fight back against Trump’s unprecedented abandonment of our Constitutional order.
3 - Grow Hopium And This Wonderful Community Of Proud, Plucky, Patriots - We’ve set a goal of trying to grow the Hopium community from the 152,000 we are now to 175,000 by Election Day, 2025. Do what you can to encourage your friends, family and colleagues to become a summer subscriber to Hopium, free or paid. If each current paid subscriber brings in just one new subscriber this summer we will hit our goal.
To encourage the growth of our community annual paid subscriptions are 10% off through Labor Day. Use that link to buy gift or group subscriptions, and join our new referral rewards program too.
Finally, please self-report your activities to our daily paid subscriber chat. These reports help inspire all of us to do more and fight harder! Been impressive to see how many of you remain involved in local, in person protests of all kinds in your communities. Keep it up!!!
Keep working hard all. Proud to be in this fight with all of you, and a fight it truly is - Simon
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