Of Putin, His Puppet, Plutocrats and Pitchforks October 22, 2026October 23, 2026 GREAT NEWS FOR THE WEALTHY U.S. corporate profits as a percentage of the U.S. GDP are at their highest level since 1966, while labor’s share of GDP is at an all-time low (as noted by David Stein). Do you know which party has blocked an increase in the federal minimum wage for the past 17 years? Which party has cut taxes for corporations and the rich? If you’re in favor of the kind of inequality that leads to revolution and economic collapse, that’s the party you should want to see retain control of all three branches of our government 11 days from now. See also: Pitchfork Economics: Any society that allows itself to become radically unequal eventually collapses into an uprising or a police state—or both. Join venture capitalist Nick Hanauer and some of the world’s leading economic and political thinkers in an exploration of who gets what and why. Turns out, everything you learned about economics is wrong. And if we don’t do something about rising inequality, the pitchforks are coming. → If your net worth is $5 million or more, me-mail me about joining the Patriotic Millionaires. HEATHER COX RICHARDSON (from Wednesday, condensed): Everything feels out of whack in the United States. The president’s behavior is becoming more and more erratic. Earlier this week, he walked past the open door of his armored car, known as “The Beast,” and wandered toward an open field before Secret Service agents redirected him. At campaign rallies, he has taken to commenting on how he finds Ohio Republican senator Jon Husted attractive. . . . In the news, Trump’s abandonment of the traditional allies of the United States to embrace Vladimir Putin and Russia remains front and center. Today, Hillary Clinton told Kara Swisher: “I continue to believe that Putin has things on Trump. Photos, videos, whatever it might be.” Clinton reiterated that Trump “is a willing Putin puppet. Putin’s not going to stop with Ukraine…. I guess Trump has this idea that he wants to divide the world. He gets the Western Hemisphere, Putin gets Russia and Europe, and Xi Jinping gets the rest of the world.” Meanwhile, Trump claims he had nothing to do with the slowing of Starlink over Ukraine, telling a reporter: “I wasn’t involved.” . . . Americans are beginning to see the costs of Trumpism. Twelve million Americans have lost healthcare coverage — and Republicans put the WORST of their cuts off until after the midterms. Nearly half of those no longer receiving [food assistance] are children. Although Trump promised to eliminate the national debt and balance the budget. . . the budget deficit for the fiscal year that ended on September 30 clocked in at about $2 trillion . . . Economist Justin Wolfers explained: “Washington has discovered a brilliant financial strategy. Cut benefits for people who need them, cut taxes for people who don’t, and borrow the difference from people who aren’t old enough to vote.” In order to stay in power, Republicans are peddling what Jesse Watters of the Fox News Channel recently called “fear porn.” In September, Watters warned that “the Democrat party and its communist base are running against America” and “want to shatter the pillars of Western civilization.” . . . Sean Hannity told viewers: “We can vote to build on the successes of President Trump, his first two years in office, or you can allow our country to be taken hostage by this new radicalized leftist democratic socialist communist movement and their far-left extremist candidates.” He called Democrats “completely insane.” . . . New Jersey’s Republican former governor Chris Christie told the Washington Post: “For the last decade, our party has been infected by a corrupted moral center.” Neil Bush has voted for Democrat James Talarico. “I have been a Republican for most of my life, and I still believe deeply in many traditional Republican principles. But character matters more than party affiliation. Our democracy depends on leaders who respect our institutions, tell the truth, accept accountability, and seek to unite rather than divide.” → Worth reading and sharing in full. BRAZIL’S RUN-OFF SUNDAY Guess which side Trump is on. (Well, duh!) Have a great weekend.