☕ Daily Brief: Trump's Tariff Warfare
Also, American pride drops to historic lows
Editorial Team
July 01, 2025
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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING
🇺🇸 American pride plummets to historic low. Just 58 percent of Americans feel "extremely" or "very" proud to be American, marking a nine-point drop from last year and the lowest level since tracking began in 2001. Democrats showed the steepest decline — in 2001, 87 percent were very proud to be American; today, that number is just 36 percent. While these numbers remain extremely high for Republicans, they represent a people deeply divided on what it means to have a “good” country.
💊 Feds bust a $14.6B healthcare fraud ring. Justice Department officials uncovered the largest healthcare fraud operation in DOJ history, charging 324 people, including 96 medical professionals. Transnational criminal organizations submitted over $12 billion in fraudulent claims, with one scheme using AI to fake patient consent and stolen identities from more than one million Americans. Notably, this exposure of waste, fraud, and abuse did not involve DOGE.
🏫 Trump admin. finds Harvard violated civil rights. The Trump administration determined that Harvard University “is in violent violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin.” They accuse the school of failing to protect Jewish students from harassment and discrimination. The university must address these violations or potentially lose all federal funding, signaling another major escalation in Trump’s war on Harvard.
🏙️ DOJ sues LA over sanctuary policies. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass (D), and City Council members over its sanctuary city laws. The suit argues LA's ordinance, which prohibits using city resources for immigration enforcement, violates the Constitution's Supremacy Clause by obstructing federal immigration authorities. LA is just the latest city to be sued by Trump’s DOJ, having previously targeted New York, Illinois, and New Jersey.
INSIDER RADAR
RFK Jr. on holding Fauci accountable
Insiders behind the paywall: RFK Jr., Anthony Fauci, Scott Bessent, Jerome Powell, Elon Musk, and Tom Homan.
QUICK AND IMPORTANT
An elderly woman died from injuries sustained in the anti-Jewish terror attack in Boulder, CO.
Texas Doc Takes On The Collagen Industry. You’ve probably heard about collagen and its incredible anti-aging benefits. One health expert is urging anyone over 50 to see these 5 collagen warnings.*
Iran demanded reparations from the US for airstrikes on its nuclear sites, calling them “heinous and serious crimes.”
The State Department revoked visas for the rap duo Bob Vylan after they led chants calling for the death of Israeli soldiers at the Glastonbury music festival.
Idaho authorities identified a 20-year-old with a history of violent behavior as the sniper who ambushed firefighters, killing two and injuring another.
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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
How Qatar bought America with Frannie Block
Reporter Frannie Block uncovered how Qatar is quietly pouring billions into American schools, media, businesses, and even Trump’s inner circle — buying influence from classrooms to Congress.
Her reporting reveals how a tiny Gulf state is shaping what Americans see, learn, and believe through a soft power campaign, often without their awareness…
Listen to the interview in your podcast player of choice here.
THE MAIN STORY
How Trump uses tariffs for global leverage
WHAT’S HAPPENING_
President Donald Trump is using trade negotiations to push a comprehensive foreign policy agenda, tying tariff relief to demands that extend far beyond economics.
From defense spending to tech regulation, countries around the world are being told that access to the American market now comes with strings attached.
_THE FACTS_
By announcing a 90-day pause on his Liberation Day reciprocal tariffs — ending July 8 — President Trump created a powerful bargaining chip for American interests.
Trump has already landed a deal with one country, the United Kingdom, which keeps the blanket 10 percent tariff on British goods entering the US.
Canada announced a digital services tax on US goods; when Trump broke trade talks and threatened more tariffs, the country rescinded the tax and resumed talks.
Trump has tied investment in the "Golden Dome" missile defense system to Canadian trade negotiations.
At the NATO summit, Trump threatened Spain with tariffs for refusing to increase defense spending to the target of five percent of GDP.
The administration is also pushing for Japan and South Korea to commit to the five percent target as part of trade negotiations.
Trump has threatened tariffs to pressure Japan into buying more American rice.
The US is pressuring South Korea to abandon antitrust legislation targeted at and opposed by American tech giants like Google, Meta, and Apple.
Trump asked China to buy more American oil as a thank you for the Israel-Iran ceasefire, as China gets significant quantities of oil from Iran.
_JOIN THE DISCUSSION_
Do you think it’s a good idea to leverage tariffs for sweeping foreign policy change?
Comments are open for everyone.
MEDIA BIAS SPOTTER
How left and right outlets frame the steep drop in American pride
Mentioned behind the paywall: The New Republic, ABC News, The Daily Caller, and Fox News.
THE DAILY DEBATE
📊 How do you feel about being an American?Results will be in tomorrow's newsletter |
POLL RESULTS FROM YESTERDAY
Which recent Supreme Court ruling do you see as the biggest victory?
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🇺🇸 Birthright citizenship (615)
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🏳️🌈 LGBT curricula opt-outs (308)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👨💻 Age verification for lewd sites (40)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🤔 Unsure (39)
🇺🇸 Birthright citizenship: “Birthright citizenship encouraged more illegals to enter America, and taxpayers are footing the bill.” — DKW
🏳️🌈 LGBT curricula opt-outs: “This one is directly related to religious freedom, without which we would lose all our other freedoms.” — Stefan
👨💻 Age verification for lewd sites: “Protecting children from the direct harm of porn sites is the most impactful ruling here.” — AP
🤔 Unsure: “All three are equally huge wins.” — Jim
POP QUIZ
Why did the State Department pull Bob Vylan’s visas? |
Today’s newsletter was written by Brandon Goldman, Anthony Constantini, and Ariel David. We scoured 100s of sources to bring you stories and insights you won’t find in the mainstream media.
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