Organized Money

Whether or not you buy into the argument that AI will kill all humanity, it’s inarguable that there’s suddenly a rush to find a regulatory framework for AI in DC with the support of the AI giants themselves. But until recently, Anthropic and OpenAI were full steam ahead—what gives? What if this is actually about something much more mundane? What are they really afraid of?

On today’s episode, we sit down with Organized Money alum David Seligman of Towards Justice, and Colorado State Representative Javier Mabrey to find out. David and Javier have been at the front lines of state-level regulation of AI, which descended into a morass of gubernatorial interference and lobbying muscle, all surrounding one very important, but also very normal issue: legal liability.  We get into the history of Colorado’s AI legislation, the move to repeal and replace it, and the way big tech muscled in at the last moment to get what they wanted, which all just boiled down to not wanting to be liable for their potentially destructive products.

Have you noticed the seemingly endless, catastrophic sounding text messages from political candidates? Messages like: “Barack Needs Your Help!”; “Social Security Is Ending!”; or “Help, We’re Losing The Election!”, all ending with a plea to throw in a donation.
These spam messages are part of a sophisticated and profitable arm of political fundraising that has grown substantially over the last decade. It’s gone from grassroots fundraising to what can arguably be called elder fraud—where small numbers of frightened, sometimes mentally unwell Americans give hundreds or thousands in response to these text messages. 
Today on the show, Matt and David sit down with Adam Bonica, a political scientist and author of “Hook and Squeeze:
How Democratic consultants, committees, and party leaders built a fundraising spam pipeline that funnels money from a captive pool of elderly donors into their own operations.”, to find out how and why the Democratic Party embraced this style of political marketing, why it feels so entrenched in party politics, and what we can do about it.  We’ll also get into the strange story of Adam’s research, which was edited and fact-checked by The New York Times for months, before spiking the story out of fear from political consultants. Read more about the story, and check out Adam’s writing at Data4Democracy.

Michigan's Senate race between Republican Mike Rogers and populist Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is shaping up to be a proxy for the midterm elections as a whole. El-Sayed's message of Money in Your Pocket and Medicare for All has clearly resonated with the season's most energized voters, while his anti-corporate bonafides led him to victory over the more establishment Democrat, Haley Stevens in the primary. 
Today on the show, Matt and David sit down with El-Sayed to discuss markets and his anti-monopoly platform, how Medicare for All will create more competition, the uselessness of PBMs, the way big agriculture bullies Michigan's cherry farmers, beef and meatpacking regulation, the AI bubble, and the importance of Democrats actually doing something if and when they retake congress.

One of Trump’s staunchest constituencies, cattle ranchers (and their congressional representatives) are in revolt. You might think rising beef prices might be good for ranchers, but in fact, most ranchers have little say in how much their stock sells at market, and see little return on what consumers pay. It’s because of a complex, but highly concentrated system of ranchers, feeders, packers, and processors which squeeze the little guy—now exacerbated by weak herds, tariff shenanigans, and an unpopular Trump-backed scheme to import mystery beef. 

Today on the show, Matt and David are joined by Mike Callicrate, owner of Ranch Foods Direct and rancher advocate to help explain how beef gets from the ranch to plate, the ways the system exploits independent ranchers, and why ranchers have finally had enough of Trump’s beef policy, despite their usually-unwavering loyalty. We also discuss the incentives the big meat producers have to push people away from beef and towards chicken and pork, Mike's incredible class action case against Tyson, and legislative and community solutions for a more equitable food ecosystem.

This week, a solo-David is joined by Dan Jacobs, chef, restaurant owner, and active member of the Independent Restaurant Coalition to discuss a looming threat to neighborhood restaurants: the proposed merger between the food giant Sysco, and the cash-and-carry Restaurant Depot. 

Restaurants already operate on thin margins, but this merger threatens to cut off a major source of restaurant bargaining power and a competitive check on the market. As a result, this merger could reverberate through the restaurant industry and local economies, forcing limited menus, thinner margins, and even closures. We also discuss how restaurants are being squeezed by post-pandemic changes in food prices and the labor market, child care needs, and credit card swipe fees. We also get into the value of small restaurants organizing and potential legislative solutions to help keep local dining thriving. 

Finally, we end on another edition of Makan' Fun, our now-regular segment on the ongoing drama surrounding the Paramount Warner Bros. merger.