Everyone Can Screw Us Now Thanks to Trump, with Julie Morgan

Key takeaways

Trump's policies have exacerbated affordability issues for ordinary Americans, favoring corporate interests over the needs of working individuals.
The dismantling of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau creates a significant gap in consumer protections against predatory lending.
Progressive policies are required to address the complex relationship between corporate power and economic hardship faced by everyday Americans.
Local and state entities can play an essential role in enforcing consumer rights and advocating for economic justice.
Collective action among debtors and community empowerment can potentially provide avenues for addressing systemic financial problems.

Summary

The War on Affordability

Adam Conover discusses how Trump campaigned on helping working Americans but has actually harmed them through tariffs and the dismantling of important legislative safeguards. Key discussions focus on economic shifts that have favored corporations at the expense of average citizens, specifically through the actions taken against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This leads to concerns about rising costs of living and the lack of protection consumers face against predatory lending and business practices.

The Impact of Corporate Power

Julie Morgan highlights how powerful industries are capitalizing on economic challenges, directing their services towards Americans unable to meet basic needs. They discuss the transition from federal loans to more expensive private loans for students, indicating a shift that negatively impacts working-class individuals and exacerbates existing financial issues.

The Role of Progressive Policy

The conversation explores the importance of progressive policies aimed at rectifying the issues Americans are currently facing, such as the need for better educational opportunities, affordable healthcare, and economic fairness. They emphasize the need for ambitious policy frameworks that directly address consumer rights and corporate accountability.

Local and State Action

Conover and Morgan assess the roles of local and state government in mitigating economic challenges. They discuss how state attorneys general can enforce existing laws to protect consumers, and the potential for local actions to create impactful changes despite the federal landscape. They express the importance of grassroots movements and community-led efforts in advocating for fairness and justice.

Rethinking Debt and Collective Action

The podcast delves into the possibility of creating collective movements among debtors to push back against predatory practices in the financial industry. Both hosts support ideas like debtors' unions that empower individuals facing financial struggle to leverage their collective power, leading to potential forgiveness initiatives and systemic changes.

Show notes

Everyone in their right mind already knows the gift: Trump ran on helping working people, then immediately threw working Americans to the wolves in favor of helping the ultra-wealthy. But it’s not just Trump who is screwing us; he’s made it easier for businesses to exploit the average American as well. He recently eviscerated the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which has stood in place to defend average Americans from unethical and predatory business practices. So what happens now, and how can we look to defend ourselves with the wolves circling? To answer this, Adam sits with progressive Julie Morgan, of the progressive think tank the Century Foundation, who worked in both with the CFPB and the Department of Education.

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