Democrats are losing ground with one of their most reliable constituencies as new data reveals President Donald Trump&#8217;s approval rating among black voters has ticked up modestly compared to his first term, according to recent polling.
CNN data analyst Harry Enten noted that Trump&#8217;s approval among African American voters has risen from roughly 12% during his first term to about 16% in his second. 
“I think what we’re seeing right now in the numbers is President Trump and the Republican Party are chipping away at the long-term advantage that Democrats have had with black voters,” Enten said. 
Trump also saw gains among black voters in the 2024 election, winning approximately <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/21/trump-black-voters-2026-election-00568650">15%</a> of the vote, up from <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/21/trump-black-voters-2026-election-00568650">8%</a> in 2020.
 A <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/21/trump-black-voters-2026-election-00568650">Pew poll</a> indicates that top issues among black voters include the economy and healthcare, areas where Republicans have sought to make inroads in recent election cycles. 
Some Republican organizers point to shifting attitudes among young voters. Camilla Moore, chair of the Georgia Black Republican Council, said some younger black men were siding with Trump because they “like the whole idea of feeling manly.&#8221;
&#8220;They like the idea of being independent,&#8221; she added. &#8220;They like the idea of being entrepreneurs and controlling their future.” 
Gallup data shows the Democratic Party&#8217;s advantage among black voters has narrowed in recent years. 
The modest shift comes as Republicans and Democrats look to solidify support ahead of the upcoming midterm elections, with the GOP aiming to expand its coalition and Democrats working to maintain their long-standing base of support among black voters. 
&nbsp;

Donald Trump

Trump Gains Ground With A Reliable Democrat Voting Bloc

The Treasury Department aims to curb financial illiteracy after devastating data reveals that over two-thirds of Gen Z cannot answer half the questions on the nation’s Personal Finance Index. 
In response, the Treasury Department is working to address widespread financial illiteracy, particularly among younger Americans. Marking the end of Financial Literacy Month, the Treasury Department welcomed schools from the Washington D.C. area into the historic Treasury Cash Room. The two schools competed in a contest where multiple-choice questions were presented on the screen, and the kids worked together to answer economy-based questions. 
One of the students told The Daily Wire that she plans to take the information she learned back home to share it with her parents.
The event was designed to draw attention to the Treasury Department’s efforts in improving financial literacy through the launch of Trump Accounts and other efforts like the U.S. Mint&#8217;s Coin Classroom, a free website that houses interactive games and videos that teach kids about money.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized that financial literacy is essential to achieving the American Dream. He argued that the Trump Accounts for children would not only create savings early in life but also teach financial literacy through a hands-on approach.
According to Bessent, kids and parents will be able to follow their Trump Accounts together through a mobile app that will teach them directly about how investments grow and compound. For the first 18 years of their lives, kids can watch their accounts and investments grow over time, ensuring an interactive and personalized financial learning experience. 
Surveys suggest that there is a strong demand among younger Americans for this type of education. A poll from Junior Achievement found that <a href="https://jagkc.org/68-percent-teens-want-financial-education/">68%</a> of teenagers want financial education, and a poll by Intuit shows 89% of parents believe personal finance should be a required high school course. 
Along with an education, the accounts also bring children into the ownership economy. “Trump Accounts represent the triumph of capitalism over socialism,” Bessent said. “Through Trump Accounts, our President is creating an ownership economy where all citizens become shareholders in America’s wealth.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) echoed that sentiment, arguing the program could reshape how young Americans view capitalism.
“We have all seen the sad statistics of how many kids are losing faith in capitalism. Ten years from now, a little boy will pull out his phone and look at this app and he’s gonna see his Trump Account. Instead of thinking of big, bad scary corporations, that little boy is gonna say, I own $50 of Apple, I own $100 of Dell, I own $75 of McDonald’s … that will transform this country.” 
More than 5 million children have reportedly been enrolled in the program.

Group of people using smartphones outdoor, wide short low angle view

They Can Scroll All Day But Can’t Manage Money

Economy

Personal finances

Far-left senator Bernie Sanders is working with individuals closely linked to the Chinese Communist Party in his crusade against artificial intelligence.
Sanders on Wednesday evening will sit down with Chinese nationals Xue Lan, a professor at the CCP-funded Tsinghua University, and Zeng Yi, the dean of the Beijing Institute of AI Safety and Governance. The event is slated to examine the &#8220;existential threat&#8221; posed by AI and the need for international cooperation to regulate it.
The Tsinghua University is China’s top engineering school and works hand in hand with the Chinese government and military. The university has been linked to the CCP&#8217;s <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/cbf22f3c-a1f9-11e8-85da-eeb7a9ce36e4?syn-25a6b1a6=1">cyber-espionage campaigns</a> targeting the United States — the university owns companies and projects tied to Beijing’s priorities to achieve technological breakthroughs.
In 2018, Chinese cyber actors targeted Alaskan networks and organizations at the center of trade negotiations with the Alaska state government. The surveillance attacks occurred before, during, and after the negotiations between China and the governor. The United States is a top study abroad destination for the highly skilled student engineers whose top employers after university <a href="https://chinai.substack.com/p/chinai-116-chinas-best-and-brightest">are</a> Nvidia’s Chinese rival Huawei, the State Grid Corporation of China, and China’s Aerospace, Science, and Technology Corporation. 
Yi, of the Beijing Institute of AI Safety and Governance, is an advocate of scaling back AI, warning of environmental concerns that “fall disproportionately on the most vulnerable.&#8221; He argues AI is driving mass surveillance and discrimination.
The campaign from Sanders and his Chinese allies to scale back AI comes as President Donald Trump pushes to make sure the United States stays at the front of the AI race. Trump launched his “American AI Action Plan” in July 2025, which made a commitment to AI development, absent onerous regulation and infrastructure inhibitions. Sanders’ event advocates for the opposite.
The event has been criticized by prominent voices in the American tech industry, such as Marc Andreessen, who called the involvement of China &#8220;concerning.&#8221; There have been warnings from the tech industry that the American left will be China’s only hope to leapfrog America. 
Joe Lonsdale, the co-founder of the defense giant Palantir, said China is desperate to catch up with the United States in the AI fight.
“The United States has opened a significant civilizational lead versus China when it comes to the defense and economic situation around Artificial Intelligence,” Lonsdale said, warning that China is &#8220;desperate to use the left” to set America back. 
He said it’s difficult to tell whether the left is on China&#8217;s side or just naive. 
“CCP leadership encourages regressive socialist views in the United States of America, in [a] desperate attempt to slow adversaries’ economic and military advantage.” 
Sanders leads the Left’s campaign against AI, proposing an AI moratorium in December. He also frequently voices concern over the technology turning on humans. 
“If AI becomes smarter than human beings, we could lose control over this revolutionary technology and AI could turn against the human race with cataclysmic consequences,” he said. 
Trump’s AI czar David Sacks argues the opposite. “As I’ve said many times before, the biggest risk of AI isn’t James Cameron’s The Terminator, it’s George Orwell’s 1984,” he wrote in an X <a href="https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/2048811495224390105">post</a>.
Sacks says the AI safety crowd will inevitably “bring about the Orwellian future they claim to oppose” because “their solutions always favor more government centralization and control.” 
He also argues it&#8217;s crucial that the United States reign over China on AI superiority, or the rest of the world will embed China’s technology into their ecosystems. Sacks claims China’s models enforce ideological bias, censorship, and historical revisionism.

Bernie Sanders

Bernie Sanders Partners With China In Anti-AI Crusade

Artificial Intelligence

China

The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday as Jerome Powell presided over his last meeting as chairman.
The Fed held the rates steady at 3.5-3.75%, set after the last cut in December of 2025, in a split (8-4) vote — the highest dissent level since 1992. Amid the ongoing tensions in Iran, the Federal Reserve has been engaged in a difficult balancing act, facing threats from inflation — with oil prices up 70% on the year — and a weakening labor market, but the split vote suggests that at least a few members favor lowering rates.
The Wednesday Federal Reserve meeting was Powell’s last as Fed chair, as his term is set to conclude on May 15. Despite the fact that he was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2018, the two have had a rocky relationship. Trump often complained that Powell was not moving quickly enough to lower interest rates, nicknaming him “Too Late Powell.” Critics of Powell also argue that he was too late in raising interest rates during the Biden administration. 
“In retrospect, if you look at the data we now have, the Fed should have moved in the fall and maybe even the summer,” said Scott Lincicome, director of general economics and trade at the Cato Institute. 
Trump appointee Kevin Warsh is expected to move more quickly on interest rates, having criticized the Fed for reacting too slowly to inflation. At the same time, Warsh is likely to push for a reduction in the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet, which expanded rapidly when the Federal Reserve resumed quantitative easing (QE) in 2020 during the COVID pandemic. Quantitative easing injects liquidity into the market through the purchase of bonds — and Warsh argued that the adoption of similar contingency policies had continued long after the crisis had ended, contributing to rising inflation. 
Warsh&#8217;s appointment was initially held up due to a criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve&#8217;s $2.5 billion renovations under Powell. Although Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) said he had full confidence in Warsh as a qualified nominee, he blocked the confirmation from proceeding because he disagreed with the DOJ&#8217;s decision to investigate Powell.
&#8220;Protecting the independence of the Federal Reserve from political interference or legal intimidation is non-negotiable,&#8221; he said. Tillis chalked up the criminal allegations against Powell to a &#8220;young U.S. Attorney with a dream trying to get the president&#8217;s attention.&#8221;
Others, like Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), echoed the sentiment, saying he thought Powell made a &#8220;gross error in judgment,&#8221; but did not believe Powell committed a crime.
The DOJ ultimately dropped the investigation against Powell, clearing the way for Warsh and ensuring that Wednesday&#8217;s meeting would be Powell&#8217;s last as Fed chair.

US-ECONOMY-POLITICS-FED-RATE-POWELL

The Fed’s Latest Move As Powell Prepares to Exit

Federal Reserve

Jerome Powell

Kevin Warsh

Following a third assassination attempt against President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt blamed Democratic lawmakers for rhetoric that openly invited violence.
“They’ve incited violence, in my view,” he said. “It’s time to turn down the rhetoric. We’ve been seeing this over and over. I hope that this will be a sobering reminder for everybody about that very important cause.&#8221;
Leavitt, who was already supposed to have begun her maternity leave, hosted an impromptu White House Press Briefing and echoed Johnson’s tone.
&#8220;This hateful and constant and violent rhetoric directed at President Trump day after day after day for 11 years has helped to legitimize this violence and bring us to this dark moment,” she said. “Those who constantly, falsely label and slander the president as a fascist, as a threat to democracy and compare him to Hitler, to score political points, are fueling this kind of violence.”
Addressing the gathered reporters, Leavitt asked what separated the rhetoric wielded by Democratic lawmakers from that contained in the would-be assassin’s manifesto.
The shooter who attempted to attack Trump administration officials on Saturday, for example, claimed that he acted because he was “no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who has repeatedly claimed that Trump is an authoritarian and a threat to Democracy — and, like shooting suspect Cole Tomas Allen, did not hesitate to call the president a “rapist.”
“Wow who would have thought that electing a rapist would have complicated the release of the Epstein Files?” she said in a 2025 X <a href="https://x.com/AOC/status/1943736675877658637">post</a>.
And Ocasio-Cortez was not alone. Even after one assassination attempt on Trump — which left one dead and two others gravely injured at a Butler, Pennsylvania, rally — former Vice President Kamala Harris ignored calls to tone down the rhetoric and referred to her opponent as a “fascist.”
President Trump appears to have had enough of the rhetoric as well, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-explains-delay-leaving-ballroom-says-he-wanted-to-personally-assess-scene">pushed back immediately</a> when CBS News anchor Norah O’Donnell raised a question from Allen’s manifesto: “I was totally exonerated &#8230; You should be ashamed of yourself, reading that &#8230; You’re a disgrace.”
Since the news broke that yet another would-be assassin had targeted President Trump, a number of Democratic lawmakers have attempted to sidestep the landmines in their own party’s rhetoric and simply issue blanket calls condemning political violence.
Former President Barack Obama sparked backlash when he did so, in part because he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/obama-claims-shooters-motive-is-unknown-despite-manifesto-raging-against-trump">also claimed</a> hours after the manifesto’s release that “we don&#8217;t yet know the details about the motives.”
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp (D-WA) was one of the few who stood out, <a href="https://x.com/RepMGP/status/2048232340954943936">saying,</a> in spite of her own personal and political opinions, “Please stop trying to murder the President.”

Secret Service

Republican Leaders Blame Democratic Rhetoric After Third Trump Assassination Attempt

assassination attempt

Karoline Leavitt

Mike Johnson

The would-be shooter who attacked at Saturday&#8217;s White House Correspondents&#8217; Dinner revealed that he was willing to kill everyone in the room.
“I really hope it doesn’t come to that,” Cole Tomas Allen wrote in the 1,000-word document, arguing that the potential mass casualty event was justifiable &#8220;on the basis that most people *chose* to attend a speech by a pedophile, rapist, and traitor&#8221; — a reference to President Donald Trump — and &#8220;are thus complicit.&#8221;
Around <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/04/26/us-news/gunman-tries-to-rush-past-security-at-white-house-correspondents-dinner/">2,500</a> people were in attendance at the event, including the president, Vice President JD Vance, several Cabinet secretaries, and members of congressional leadership, as well as journalists, media personalities, and guests. In his manifesto, Allen wrote that he only considered members of the Trump administration — with the exception of FBI Director Kash Patel, for reasons unknown — fair targets.
Allen wrote that he would only shoot Secret Service, Capitol Police, and hotel security if they shot him first, and pledged not to engage with other workers or guests. However, Allen said he &#8220;would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets&#8221; because he was &#8220;no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.&#8221;
Allen explained that he chose &#8220;buckshot rather than slugs&#8221; in an effort to reduce collateral damage by mitigating &#8220;penetration through walls.&#8221;
In the manifesto, Allen describes himself as a Christian and notes that a possible objection to his actions is that “As a Christian, you should turn the other cheek.&#8221; He then offers a rebuttal, noting, “Turning the other cheek is for when you yourself are oppressed. Turning the other cheek when someone else is oppressed is not Christian behavior; it is complicity in the oppressor’s crimes.”
Another possible objection he lists is &#8220;yield unto Caesar what is Caesar&#8217;s,&#8221; a reference to Jesus&#8217;s dictum that Christians must obey worldly authorities — and another seeming implication that Allen conceived of his attack in religious terms. Allen appeared to be a member of Christian groups and clubs during his time at Caltech. His father is an elder at the Grace United Reformed Church in California, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/whcd-shooting-suspects-sister-worked-at-leftist-journalism-outlets?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=WHCD+Shooting+Suspect%E2%80%99s+Sister+Worked+At+Leftist+Journalism+Outlets">reported</a>.
Acknowledging that his manifesto might be his last words to family and friends, he writes, “I would also like to extend my appreciation to a great many people since I will not be likely to be able to talk with them again unless the Secret Service is *astoundingly* incompetent,” he says, before going on to criticize security.
“This level of incompetence is insane,&#8221; he writes. &#8220;I walk in with multiple weapons and not a single person there considers the possibility that I could be a threat. The security at the event is all outside, focused on protestors and current arrivals, because apparently no one thought about what happens if someone checks in the day before.&#8221;
Allen sent the manifesto to his relatives 10 minutes before he attacked. He closed the missive with a reflection on the unpleasantness of presidential assassination.
&#8220;I want to throw up,&#8221; Allen writes. &#8220;I want to cry for all the things I wanted to do and never will, for all the people whose trust this betrays; I experience rage thinking about everything this administration has done.&#8221;
He signed the manifesto &#8220;Cole &#8216;coldForce&#8217; &#8216;Friendly Federal Assassin&#8217; Allen.&#8217;

Security Scare at The White House Correspondents’ Dinner with President Trump

Manifesto Shows Shooter Was Willing To Kill Everyone At Correspondents’ Dinner

Politics

Shooting

White House Correspondents’ Dinner

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin has signaled he might nix his company’s $6 billion Midtown construction project over tax policy.
Citadel’s Chief Operating Officer Gerald Beeson slammed New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s recent “Tax the Rich” video in which the mayor promoted a new tax policy, invoking Griffin as an example.
“It is shameful that he used Ken’s name as the example of those who supposedly aren’t carrying their fair share of the burdens associated with New York City’s often costly and wasteful spending,” said Gerald Beeson. “In doing so, the mayor has once again manifested the ignorance and disdain of the elite political class towards those who have been consistently committed to building one of the greatest cities in the world.”
If the company moves forward with the construction project, it is expected to create 6,000 high-paying jobs and support 15,000 permanent jobs in Midtown Manhattan, but a recent email to employees hinted it may be halted.
“The project—if we move forward—will entail more than $6 billion dollars of spending,” the email read.
Pershing Square Capital Management CEO Bill Ackman also weighed in, arguing that Griffin contributes significantly to the city without placing demands on its resources.
“Importantly, non-resident owners of NYC apartments who leave them vacant for much of the year are not a burden on NYC schools, services, or other resources, while they drive growth in retail sales, restaurants, theater, and other important sectors of our economy,” Ackman said. “They also often support NYC nonprofits with donations.”
Ackman concluded with a warning, saying the mayor’s policies “will harm the constituencies he is supposedly trying to help.”
Mamdani ran his campaign on taking wealth from the rich and redistributing it in the form of city services like free buses and free childcare.
Figuring out how to pay for these policies has led to challenges for Mamdani, as his authority to levy taxes ends at New York City’s property tax — though the mayor constantly lobbies New York Governor Kathy Hochul to raise taxes.
The pied-à-terre tax that Mamdani claimed would apply to properties like Griffin’s $238 million penthouse is an example of how the mayor is exploiting new revenue sources. The new tax will apply to homes in New York City valued over $5 million. It is expected to raise $500 million, which will allegedly help address the $5.4 billion deficit the city is currently facing.

NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani Interview

68 Seconds And Taxpayers Are Out $6 Billion?

Bill Ackman

New York City

Taxes

Zohran Mamdani

WASHINGTON—Paul Atkins spent much of his first year at the helm of the Securities and Exchange Commission trying to give Americans more opportunities to invest.
“We have half as many public companies as we did 40 years ago,” Atkins told The Daily Wire in his office this week. “The reason why we have a diminishing number of public companies is that as you have mergers and bankruptcies, you don&#8217;t have newbies coming in and your population will dwindle.” 
&#8220;We need to shake things up,&#8221; Atkins added. &#8220;So I&#8217;m pushing my team harder and we can go faster.&#8221;
Atkins, who served on the SEC for six years under President George W. Bush, says he has a mandate from President Donald Trump to “make IPOs great again.” The chairman believes the SEC can incentivize companies through a deregulatory push eliminating burdensome and outdated rules. At the direction of President Trump the agency is exploring reducing company reporting requirements from quarterly earnings reports to semi-annual filings. 
Regulatory reporting forces companies into a costly cycle of legal and compliance work — one many cite as a key reason to stay private. Warren Buffett and JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned in 2018 that the system even pressures companies to manage for the quarter at the expense of long-term performance.
Atkins told The Daily Wire that regulators are preparing to seek public comment on the potential reporting requirements shift. Even if the proposal moves forward, he said, companies would not be required to change, preserving flexibility based on investor demand.
“We haven’t always had quarterly reporting,” Atkins said. “When the SEC was created in 1934, companies reported annually. In 1955, that shifted to semiannual reporting, and it wasn’t until 1970 that quarterly reporting became the standard.”
The SEC is also exploring a more tailored regulatory framework based on company size, including separate categories for small- and mid-sized firms. “There are a lot of expensive provisions that are probably not really applicable to smaller companies.” He added, “This is all part of … modernizing, clarifying our jurisdiction, and transforming to make our rulebook fit for purpose.” 
At the center of Atkins’ agenda is a return to the SEC’s core mission as defined by Congress: protecting investors, maintaining fair and efficient markets, and facilitating capital formation. Under Atkins, the agency withdrew its defense for costly rules that required companies to disclose climate-related risks and ended regulation by enforcement.
But in some areas, the agency is adding rules to “clarify and modernize” its expectations, effectively ending regulation by enforcement — where ambiguity was resolved in the courts rather than through clearer definitions in the SEC’s rulebook.
&#8220;We can&#8217;t just wave a wand and do it,&#8221; Atkins said. &#8220;So it sounds like we&#8217;re going back to regulation, but we&#8217;re not.&#8221;
He says the agency had drifted in recent years toward heavier enforcement and regulation, often at the expense of market access and innovation. By refocusing on capital formation, Atkins believes the SEC can strengthen markets while expanding opportunities for everyday investors.
But regulation isn&#8217;t the only place where Atkins is rethinking the SEC. He&#8217;s also working closely with Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Mike Selig, breaking a contentious history between the two agencies.
Atkins and Selig are working closely to more clearly define where the SEC’s authority ends and the CFTC’s begins — particularly in emerging areas like digital assets. In the past, Atkins said, the lack of clarity created confusion and pushed companies offshore to develop their financial products where investors are not as protected. He pointed to the collapse of FTX, a major crypto exchange, that lacked oversight leading to billions of dollars lost.
Atkins believes the agency can strike a balance between investor protection and fostering innovation in the markets.
&#8220;I believe that our capital markets must continue to reflect our national character,&#8221; Atkins said. &#8220;They must continue to lead the world in their depth, in their dynamism, and in their capacity to translate ingenuity into prosperity.&#8221;

Stocks Fall, Oil Jumps On Doubts Over Peace Deal

President Trump Wants The SEC To ‘Make IPOs Great Again.’ Here’s How They’re Doing It.

Securities and Exchange Commission

Stock Market

As President Trump was pushing American companies to bring manufacturing back inside the country last summer, General Motors said it was <a href="https://news.gm.com/home.detail.html/Pages/news/us/en/2025/jun/0611-plants.html">committed</a> to immediate investments to make sure &#8220;the future of transportation will be driven by American innovation and manufacturing expertise.&#8221;
Recent figures show, however, that the auto giant imported more than a million finished vehicles into the United States in 2025, a massive number that puts it second only to Toyota.
According to the data from S&amp;P Global Mobility, GM imported 1,170,480 vehicles into the United States for sale in 2025, which is just about three times as many as its major U.S. competitor Ford, which brought in 378,123 vehicles. The figures made headlines in Michigan, where both companies are based, and it was emphasized that foreign car companies like BMW are now importing less vehicles into the country than American companies.
In his first months in office, Trump imposed a 25% tariff on imported cars. Companies like GM made promises of massive shifts in manufacturing to show the president that it was an ally in the effort to onshore manufacturing. CEO Mary Barra even <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/general-motors-ceo-defends-trump-auto-tariffs-d6f15ab9?mod=article_inline">praised</a> the tariff strategy.
GM said that it stands out as the most American company in the industry, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2025/04/23/ford-stellantis-american-pride-ads-trump-tariffs/83233807007/">stating</a> that &#8220;there’s only one brand in America that&#8217;s synonymous with baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie.
The numbers stand in contrast to recent statements from GM leadership emphasizing domestic production. CEO Mary Barra has said the company believes “the future of transportation will be driven by American innovation and manufacturing expertise.” 
A closer look at GM&#8217;s supply chain underscores the gap between branding and sourcing. The company&#8217;s &#8220;Patriotic Car Collection,&#8221; released ahead of America&#8217;s 250th anniversary, leans heavily on red, white, and blue imagery. Yet one featured model, the &#8220;Stars &amp; Steel&#8221; Chevrolet, sources more than half of its components from outside the United States, primarily Mexico and Canada. Electric vehicle models often contain even higher percentages of foreign-sourced parts.
At the same time, GM has continued to invest abroad. It recently announced plans to invest $1 billion in Mexico, $300 million in South Korea, and $63 million in Canada.
Compared to competitors, GM&#8217;s import volume stands out. Ford, which has also branded itself as made in America, imports significantly fewer vehicles, though it still brings in close to 400,000 annually. BMW, a European luxury brand, imported roughly a million fewer vehicles than GM.
The trend is not new. In 2024, GM imported 1.23 million vehicles, the highest total among automakers that year, and more than 40% of its workforce was based outside of the United States.
Beyond manufacturing and sourcing, GM’s strategic positioning has shown a pattern of flexibility that often mirrors shifts in the political landscape. The company accepted <a href="https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/11/25/editorial-gm-cozies-up-to-biden-with-suspect-fuel-standard-reversal/">$9 billion</a> from the Obama administration during the 2008 financial crisis and signed onto Obama’s fuel-efficiency standards. During the first Trump administration, GM supported efforts to roll back California&#8217;s stricter emissions rules, before later adjusting its position when Joe Biden took office. This week, GM announced it would suspend development of its next-generation electric truck, signaling a pivot back to gas-powered vehicles. 
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its foreign imports.

GM Oshawa plant

GM Pledged to Shift Manufacturing to America. It Still Built a Million Cars Overseas.

General Motors

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the decision to cancel the IRS&#8217;s Direct File program during a Senate exchange on Wednesday, arguing the &#8220;free&#8221; service cost taxpayers $72 million annually.
During a hearing, Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) pressed Bessent on why the program was scrapped, calling it &#8220;free and easy to use.&#8221; Bessent pushed back, saying the service was only free to users, not taxpayers.
&#8220;It wasn&#8217;t free,&#8221; Bessent said. &#8220;It was $72 million for about 300,000 taxpayers.&#8221;
Roughly 60% of users did not complete their filings through the platform.
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Sen. <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisCoons?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ChrisCoons</a>: &#8220;Why&#8217;d you shut down Direct File when it was free and easy to use?&#8221; 
<a href="https://twitter.com/SecScottBessent?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecScottBessent</a>: &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t free and the—&#8221;
Coons: &#8220;Direct File was free to taxpayers.&#8221;
Bessent: &#8220;Not to the American people. It was … $72 million for about 300,00 taxpayers.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/fdku7e4vBh">pic.twitter.com/fdku7e4vBh</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2046965475934863719?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2026</a></blockquote>
&nbsp;
Bessent argued that taxpayers could instead use private options such as FreeTaxUSA to file federal returns at no cost.
The IRS launched Direct File as a pilot program to allow taxpayers with relatively simple returns to file directly with the government, bypassing private tax preparation companies. It was rolled out in phases with limited eligibility.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), a supporter of the program, has proposed legislation to reinstate it.
“It doesn’t make any sense for [President Donald] Trump and [former Trump adviser Elon] Musk to get rid of Direct File—unless they want to do a big favor for giant tax prep companies by squeezing more Americans into paying for those products,” Warren said, pointing to Musk&#8217;s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative.
Treasury officials have instead pointed toward expanding the existing Free File program, which relies on private tax software companies to provide free filing options for eligible taxpayers, rather than building a permanent government-run system.

Bessent and Trump

Dems Go After Trump For Ending ‘Free’ Tax Program But Fine Print Steals The Show

The Trump Administration may offer Spirit Airlines a $500 million financial lifeline as the carrier teeters on the brink of collapse, according to reports. 
The federal government is considering providing the airline with a convertible financing facility that would allow it to convert debt into equity. According to Bloomberg, the arrangement could give the government the option to acquire a significant ownership stake in the airline, potentially as much as 90% of a restructured entity. 
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are leading the talks and reportedly met with President Donald Trump on Tuesday night to discuss the proposal. 
Trump signaled support for potential federal assistance earlier this week, saying, “Maybe the federal government should help that one out,” while raising concerns about the possible loss of roughly 14,000 jobs.
Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc.’s shares jumped more than <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/FLYYQ/">500%</a> following reports of the potential deal.  
Spirit&#8217;s financial troubles date back several years, and the airline has accumulated more than <a href="https://www.wsj.com/finance/spirit-airlines-reaches-deal-with-creditors-to-emerge-from-bankruptcy-4b1ddcee">$7 billion</a> in debt. A planned $3.8 billion acquisition by JetBlue in 2022 was ultimately blocked by the Biden administration&#8217;s Department of Justice and later upheld by a federal judge in 2024. Former Attorney General Merrick Garland <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/justice-department-statements-jetblue-terminating-acquisition-spirit-airlines?utm_source=chatgpt.com">described</a> the acquisition’s termination as a “victory on behalf of the American consumer,” arguing the merger would lead to increased fares for customers.
More recently, rising fuel costs tied to the war in Iran have added pressure, with JPMorgan analysts estimating those expenses could increase by as much as <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/airlines/struggling-spirit-airlines-in-talks-with-trump-administration-on-government-investment-0db4f169">$360</a> million.
If negotiations pan out, Spirit Airlines will join a growing list of private companies in which the United States has taken a financial stake in recent years, including Intel, MP Materials, Lithium Americas, Trilogy Metals, and a &#8220;golden share&#8221; in U.S. Steel, recently acquired by Japan’s Nippon Steel.

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Oil prices spiked on Wednesday, with Brent crude climbing over $100 per barrel, after President Donald Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran.
A second ceasefire extension likely caused worry for investors that negotiations are not progressing, which would account for the spike. Additionally, the U.S. benchmark — West Texas Intermediate crude — rose by more than 2% to above $90 a barrel. The national average for gas prices remains near $4 per gallon, which is the highest rate since 2022. 
The lack of progress in negotiations means that repeated Iranian attacks — in addition to the ongoing U.S. blockade of all ships heading to or from Iranian ports — continue to impact oil prices by limiting the amount of oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz.
Also on Wednesday, Iran attacked both a container ship and a cargo ship as they traveled through the strait. Iran claimed the ships had “entered the area without proper authorization and allegedly tampered with their navigation systems.” Iran has stated that it will not tolerate any disruption to the “order and safety of the Strait of Hormuz.”
U.S. indices rose in response with the S&amp;P 500 up just below 1%. The Nasdaq is up 1.2%, and the Dow Jones up 0.7%. Oil futures continued to signal that within the next six months, oil could drop back down not only to the double-digits but could possibly even dip below <a href="https://www.cmegroup.com/insights/economic-research/2026/implications-of-wti-oil-futures-in-backwardation-amid-the-supply-crunch.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com">pre-war prices</a>. Late-2026 futures are trading near $40 per barrel, and expectations point to oil prices easing to the mid-$70s by the end of the year.
Most industries are feeling the impact of higher prices, but the global aviation sector in particular is experiencing significant disruption. Alaska Air and American Airlines have raised checked bag fees, and Alaska Air has withdrawn its profit forecast due to rising jet fuel costs.
Still, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Congress on Wednesday he suspects oil prices will be down soon. &#8220;Future prices are much lower than we are at present. I think the conflict will end. I think gasoline prices will come back to where they were, or perhaps lower.&#8221;

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Brecca Stoll