Dean Baker

So is it bribery? Probably not, legally speaking, as experts told the New York Times that paying everyone regardless of their vote makes a challenge tough.

Dean Baker, a co-founder of a liberal policy group, said it looks bribe-like, but arguably is not different from the sort of campaign promises politicians always make.

It's f***ing horseshit, is what it is.

And depending upon... politicians to fund and or subsidize your existence is in of itself horse shit.

Do-do-do, do-do-do.

It looks like bribes, but arguably is not different from the sort of campaign promises politicians always make.

Dean Baker then wondered why the checks haven't gone out with Republicans already running both chambers.

There's a similar imbalance in disaster relief.

If we take a look at the typical worker, they're not doing fine.

Hi, I'm Dean Baker.

I'm your host for Mostly Economics.

Today we have with us Ed Zitron, having him back since about four or five months ago.

Trump promised his tariff would end the rip-off, so why is the trade deficit exploding? It's been almost a year and a half since Trump's so-called Liberation Day, when he slapped tariffs on our trading partners and promised to wipe out our trade deficit.

How's that going? Economist Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research ran the numbers.

The advanced figure for August came in at 132.6 billion.

That's the second-highest monthly deficit on record.

typical worker, they're not doing fine.

Hi, I'm Dean Baker, the host for Mostly Economics.

Today we have with us Helene Olin, who's the managing editor of the American Economic Liberties Project and the co-author with Harold Pollack of The Index Card, a book on giving advice on personal finance.

So welcome, Helene.

You escaped the AI trade and landed in what was effectively the AI trade wearing a false moustache.

So, if you are stuck in this trade, whether you want to be in it or not, the obvious question to ask is how much money are we talking about? If the AI bubble deflates, how much wealth is likely to be wiped out? Well, let's start with the economist Dean Baker, who runs a website called the AI Bubble Monitor, which sounds like a relaxing website to check over your morning coffee right next to the weather report.

Baker's arithmetic goes like this.

The total US stock market is worth around $80 trillion.

I don't think it ever gets built.

I mean, just, uh, I will get onto what you're, you're hinting at in a second, but I was, I was talking to Dean Baker on Wednesday about the AI bubble and, and those sorts of things, and he made the prediction that, yeah, he thinks that data centers are stuck and are gonna start being paused and canceled.

He, he cited that probably referencing local opposition claiming they had no other choice, which is kind of what a force [chuckles] majeure is that happened the very next day.

You've obviously said that you think this is much more widespread and gonna be happening probably a lot more, but I mean, considering the reaction there was to this, how often can this happen and how quickly can it happen before people start to be like, "Wait a minute.

take a look at the typical worker, they're not doing fine.

Hi, I'm Dean Baker.

I'm your host for Mostly Economics.

Today we have with us Tiffany Moeller, who's the president of End Citizens United.

So welcome, Tiffany.

All my favorite topics.

Thanks so much for having me on, Dean.

It's great to be with you.

Who's going to pay it? I mean, that, that's kind of a simple question.

Hi, I'm Isaac, and on The Tech Report with me today is the senior distinguished fellow for the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, DC, Dean Baker.

Thanks for coming on.

Thanks a lot for having me on.

... you know, trying to put a, you know, a timescale on it, it really depends on at the end of the day people's confidence.

You know, how, what are you, what are you prepared to believe? And to my view they're believing something incredibly implausible but again that was true six months ago also.

Well, Dean Baker, thanks for taking the time.

Thanks a lot, friend.

Edwin as well, the executive director of American Insight, Oversight, I should say, a nonpartisan watchdog organization that advances accountability and democracy by enforcing the public's right to government records.

Jane Klebe, grassroots organizer, author, nonprofit entrepreneur, and chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party, and macroeconomist Dean Baker.

a distinguished fellow and co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

It is a democracy, stupid Saturdays, one to four here on WCPT.