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The Insider’s Track
Good morning,
Lots of political news to cover this week. Tariffs are back, maybe…Trump is doing a U-turn on Ukraine and sending them more aid… his base is furious about the mess that is the Jeffrey Epstein saga… Elon’s making a run at a third party. But the thing I want to focus on today is something rather small, which didn’t get a lot of notice, but is near and dear to my heart as you’ll know if you’ve been reading for a while: As of this week, you no longer have to take your shoes off when going through airport security.
The TSA is in the process of dropping the hated “shoes off” rule, which has been in place for almost 20 years. The agency, part of Homeland Security, has not officially made the announcement but an internal memo is going around showing it is indeed taking effect nationwide. This is a big win for common sense and good on DHS for finally seeing the light! Is it the biggest thing happening right now? No. But it illustrates something about the Trump admin’s political priorities that gets far too little attention… that is, they are willing to do things that makes life slightly less annoying for regular Americans.
Contrast that with the Democrats. Here in the People’s Republic of New York City, there’s a new law called “Skip the Stuff” which bans food establishments from offering customers complimentary utensils, straws, napkins, condiments, etc. The effect of this law is when you’re grabbing a bite, you now must remember to specifically ask for the tools you will need to consume your sad little lunch. If you don’t remember, you end up like me the other day: eating pasta salad on a bench with my hands and having to ask a passerby for a napkin like a bum.
The point I am trying/failing to articulate here is that if you become known as the political party of annoying and stupid bullshit, while the other party is busy making peoples’ lives slightly less annoying, you will never win another national election. Trump is a political savant who understands this innately. His “no tax on tips” campaign pledge is a great example. The deduction codified in the new tax law is a drop in the bucket compared to the tax savings you get if you’re a millionaire business owner, but it’ll save some service workers a couple bucks and it’s a great, easy-to-remember slogan.
Another one that didn’t get much attention: The EPA is eliminating credits to automakers who adopt the much-despised “stop/start” function, that feature of new cars that automatically turns off the engine when you’re stopped in traffic or at a light. This was an Obama-era fuel-savings rule that didn’t save much fuel, added wear-and-tear to the starter, and was otherwise just simply annoying, especially if you drive in a lot of stop-and-go traffic.
You could take the other side here and argue that these are all unimportant, shiny baubles to distract the public while the administration rips the copper wiring out of the walls of the federal government. Maybe so, but these things have political salience to regular folks who don’t spend all their time reading about how the tax bill heavily favors the rich, or how Trump and his family are profiting off the office of the president to a degree we’ve never seen. None of that matters to a rushed parent trying to herd their kids through TSA, who now won’t have to worry about stopping to take off and then put back on their shoes.
Conversely, every time I forget to ask for a fork for my overpriced pasta salad, I will think poorly of my local elected officials who seem to go out of their way to make my life just a little bit harder.
The Rundown
Kamala Harris’ Comeback Hopes Take a Major Blow
Former vice president Kamala Harris has kept a fairly low profile since losing the 2024 election to President Donald Trump. But as she weighs whether to run for California governor next year, experts say that might be a safer bet than mounting another bid for the White House. Harris has said little about her future plans, though she is expected to announce her decision by the end of the summer. Read more from Newsweek’s Khaleda Rahman.
Also happening:
- New tariff deadline: President Donald Trump is set to convene his Cabinet at the White House on Tuesday, as a deadline approaches that could trigger a sharp increase in tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners. Read more.
- National parks feedback: The Trump administration has placed signs up across National Parks asking for visitors to report any “negative” sentiments about American history shared at the park. Instead, much of the feedback so far expresses negative sentiments about the administration, as seen in responses sent to Newsweek by a National Parks Service employee. Read more.
This is a preview of The 1600—Tap here to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox.
The post The 1600: Annoyance Politics appeared first on Newsweek.
