Unf*cking The Republic - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

Trump and the Fed: Why Trump is Determined to Fire Jerome Powell. Aug 11, 2025

Show notes

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 as low as one percent. In today’s episode, we game it out to explain what would happen if rates suddenly dropped so low in this economic environment. (Spoiler: It would be catastrophic for the average American.) Then we reveal what Trump’s actual motives might be for doing so.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:40

Post Show Musings: 00:14:59

Resources

The New York Times: Trump says Treasury’s Bessent rules out replacing Powell as the Fed chair.

MSNBC: Bessent walks back suggestion that Trump accounts are 'backdoor' to privatize Social Security

UNFTR Resources

Trump Accounts.

Stablecoin and the Stable Genius: Donald Trump’s Plan to be the Central Banker to the World

Video: Trump’s SHADOW CRYPTO Network is WORSE Than You Think

Project 2025.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

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Trump vs. Lula: Trump’s Arrogance Toward Brazil and the LAC Is a Threat to Us All. Aug 04, 2025

Show notes

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 friend Jair Bolsonaro, dubbed the “Trump of the Tropics.” Or so he claims. There’s a lot more to this ridiculous and misguided trade war than hurt feelings and bad economics. It’s about Brazil’s leadership of the BRICS+ alliance that threatens to undermine Trump’s plan to personally become the central banker to the world.

Resources

Jeffrey Group: Brasil June 6th, 2025

IMF: IMF Staff Completes 2025 Article IV Visit to Brazil

OECD: OECD Economic Outlook, Volume 2025 Issue 1

Deloitte: Brazil economic outlook, March 2025

Al Jazeera: Trump’s hefty tariff on Brazil expected to push the country towards China

The Guardian - President Lula hits back as Trump tariffs threaten US-Brazil trade showdown

VoxDev: Understanding Brazil’s falling income inequality

PBS: Argentina secures IMF loan and ends most capital controls in key milestones for President Milei

MeidasTouch: Trump’s PANICKED MOVE delivers DEATHBLOW

Atlantic Council: The stablecoin race

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Income Inequality in the U.S.: Why You’re Struggling. Jul 24, 2025

Show notes

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 the preeminence of the U.S. Dollar as the cheap and easy money era comes to a grinding halt. Few of the old tools in the Fed and Treasury toolkit will be as effective as they once were, and the Trump administration seems determined to build a private shadow central banking system that will make matters worse for everyone but the uber-wealthy.

Resources

US Leading Indicators

Art Market Research: Benchmark Indices for the Art Market

Book Love

Jodi Dean: Capital’s Grave: Neofeudalism and the New Class Struggle

UNFTR Episode Resources

Stock Buybacks Surge: Another Red Flag for the U.S. Economy.

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Show Notes. Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

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 lowest in decades: Polling

CBS News: 20 states sue DHS, FEMA for cuts to disaster mitigation program

Resources

Max’s Meidas Touch Contributor Playlist

Steven Semler: Polygraph

UNFTR Resources

Progressive Spotlights

We Watched Tucker So You Don’t Have To. Is It Time To Worry?

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Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

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Our Eroding Empire: Max Unfiltered. It’s Now or Never. Jul 18, 2025

Show notes

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 control the world’s money supply. It turns out they aren’t just intent on destroying the system to remain in power—they’re setting themselves up to BE the power. Full disclosure: it’s a bit of a rant, but it’s the foundation for more to come.

Resources

Civiqs: Donald Trump: Job Approval, Second Term

The Untouchables: The Chicago Way

UNFTR Resources

Mamdani’s Mayoral Bid Exposes the Real Threat to NYC

Video: The Case AGAINST Buttigieg in 2028

The Prosperity Doctrine.

F*ck Milton Friedman.

Libertarians Are Exhausting: But They Might Be On To Something(s).

Manufacturing Dissent.

“Project 2025.”

Video: Yanis Varoufakis on Technofeudalism and the End of Capitalism

5 Non-Negotiables

Video: Old Democrats Must Go or Trump NEVER Will

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

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Immigration Smokescreen: Masking Trump’s War on the Poor. Jul 14, 2025

Show notes

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’s a specious argument to distract from the fact that they’re cutting healthcare for millions of vulnerable Americans.

Access the episode resources.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Chapter One: Cruelty. 00:01:55

Chapter Two: Smokescreen. 00:05:29

Chapter Three: Emergency. 00:10:35

Chapter Four: Theft. 00:14:47

Post Show Musings: 00:16:48

Outro: 00:20:21

Resources

New York Times: A List of Nearly Everything in the G.O.P. Bill, and How Much It Would Cost or Save

Rising: Stephen Miller “Torches ICE”

New York Times: The Senate Wants Billions More in Medicaid Cuts, Pinching States and Infuriating Hospitals

KFF: 5 Key Facts About Immigrants and Medicaid

FactCheck.org: A False Claim About Illegal Immigration and Medicaid - FactCheck.org

Healthinsurance.org: Can undocumented immigrants get Medicaid?

KFF: Potential Impacts of 2025 Budget Reconciliation on Health Coverage

Video: Trump's WAR on Immigrants and Poor People

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The SALT Deduction: How “Tax Relief for Homeowners” Became Another Giveaway to the Rich. Jul 10, 2025

Show notes

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 so many tax policies that sound great on the surface, the SALT deduction is actually one of the most regressive tax breaks in our entire system. We’re talking about a policy that overwhelmingly benefits wealthy households while doing absolutely nothing for the majority of Americans. And right now, Congress is debating whether to make this tax break even more generous.

Resources

Brookings: The SALT tax deduction is a handout to the rich. It should be eliminated not expanded

CNBC: Trump’s ‘big beautiful bill’ passes SALT deduction limit of $40,000. Here’s who benefits

Forvis Mazars: Be Wary of Pre-Emptive Tax Planning on Itemized Deductions & SALT

TIME: A Wonky Tax Break for the Well-Off Is a Bigger Problem for Democrats Than You'd Think

Gottheimer: RELEASE: SALT Caucus Co-Chairs, Members Meet & Discuss Fight to Restore State and Local Tax Deduction

Tax Foundation: A More Generous SALT Deduction Cap in the Big, Beautiful Bill Would Cost Revenue and Primarily Benefit High Earners

RSM US: Bill limits SALT deductions for some financial and professional services firms

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

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BONUS: 2025 Manny + 99 Takeover. Jun 26, 2025

Show notes

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’s 5NN

POLITICO: MAGA right attacks Zohran Mamdani’s religion following his win

News Beat Podcast

Free The Press Substack

Hip Hop Can Save America! Substack

Rolling Stone: People Are Discovering NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s Rap Past

UNFTR Discord

AP News: Fed’s Powell repeats warning about tariffs as some GOP senators accuse him of bias

Contraband Camp: How the Growth of AI is Endangering the Health of Black People

Manny Faces Book

HHCSA Discord

Silent Knight

SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)

Tunde Adebimpe: Thee Black Boltz

Goose: Everything Must Go

Matt Berninger: Get Sunk

Max for MTN

Buy UNFTR Coffee

NPR: Chew On This: Is It Chomping Or Champing?

UNFTR Resources

Zohran Mamdani Has Already Won.

Video: Zohran Mamdani Already Won: Leading the Race & the Way

Max for MTN: Why Zohran Won the NYC Primary

Mamdani’s Mayoral Bid Exposes the Real Threat to NYC

The Economics of Racism.

Video: The Economics of Racism.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Zohran Mamdani Has Already Won: Leading the Race and Leading the Way. Jun 23, 2025

Show notes

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, Bulwark Podcast and, of course, UNFTR (ahem) have all featured Mamdani. In some ways, he might be even more popular as a national political figure among leftists than he is among New York City voters. We’ll find out in a matter of days. There are those, however, who see this race as an isolated case and in no way a bellwether in a broader political sense. They would be wrong.

Chapters

Intro: 00:40

Post Show Musings: 00:19:10

Outro: 00:46:37

Resources

The City: Who Votes the Most in New York? West Siders, Older People and College Grads

POLITICO: Mario Cuomo was disappointed, 'homo' signs or not

Zohran For NYC

Emerson Polling: New York City 2025 Mayoral Poll: Mamdani Surges into Second, Cuomo Holding Lead One Month Out

Emerson Polling: New York City Mayoral Poll: Mamdani Catches Cuomo In Rank Choice Voting

FairVote: Ranked Choice Voting

UNFTR Resources

Phone A Friend: Zohran Mamdani.

Video: Zohran for NYC Mayor: The Democratic Socialist Taking Over Gotham

Video: Zohran Mamdani Already Won: Leading the Race & the Way

FMF Day Sale through June 30

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trump Accounts: A Drop in the Leaky Bucket. Jun 19, 2025

Show notes

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 we dissect the plan and reveal how it’s mostly political theater. It’s another giveaway to Wall Street that increases inequality because of the way it’s structured. But there’s another reason why the GOP is so keen to pass this plan that has nothing to do with making babies rich, and everything to do with erasing entitlements.

Access the episode resources.

Resources

Congress: H.R.1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act

MarketWatch Guides: How Much Is the Average American Saving?

UNFTR Resources

Pulling Apart the GOP Budget.

Video: Why is Trump Giving Babies $1000 Just For Being Born?

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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