Jeff Hauser

The economics of AI in 2026 being bubblish is making the pre-IPO companies behave particularly irresponsibly. Like Sam Altman doesn't need much of an excuse... But even a normal person would probably be a panicked nutcase with access to OpenAI financials.

Big Tech's Dem-aligned org in Washington, Chamber of Progress is ostensibly all about "repairing" the relationship between Silicon Valley and Dems. But they're being funded by "Build American AI" the org which is spending millions backing imperiled Republican Senate candidates in crucial states

Google was really trying to hide its water use figures, to the degree that it got the council to try to keep its water use figures secret. The community finally got the actual numbers and found out Google was using 29 percent of the water in the community. www.wired.com/story/what-t...

Some Democrats are making anti-corruption the centerpiece of their midterm messaging, and it looks to be working. The Democratic Senate Campaign Committee Chair has a... different perspective

Who the Hell is Richard Hanania? We’re joined by @letsgomathias.bsky.social and @henryburke.bsky.social to retrace the career arc of a very strange “race realist” poster who’s convinced the rich and powerful that’s he’s some sort of “intellectual.” www.patreon.com/PostingThrou...

Richard Hanania has starred in, "What Can Tyler Cowen Make Happen: The Most Indefensible Elevation." Compared to making Hanania mainstream, getting Abundance into the ostensible center-left was like a minor accomplishment.

Was thrilled to join Posting Through It for a new installment on their great "Who the Hell is..." series. Got to talk about my least-liked substack influencer and how insane I've felt as more centrist pundits have helped promote his work

👀 ““JD Vance has said absolutely nothing about this attempted mass shooting in Illinois,” said Patel, who pointed out the vice president’s muteness on the issue was particularly offensive because his wife, Usha, is Hindu.”

Far from being a "normal" Trump appointee, Doug Burgum has revealed himself to be one of the president's most sycophantic enablers. Burgum told oil and gas executives: "you're the customer." He's given the Dem Senators who voted for him ample reason to regret that confirmation.

While people deliberate whether Sens Whitehouse and Heinrich are right about how the Trump admin would implement BAAJA... Worth recognizing that both voted to confirm Doug Burgum, presumably believing he'd be relatively "reasonable" among Trump appointees. We warned against such gullibility:

This is especially problematic because BAAJA would only compound the harms caused by Trump's Project 2025 + DOGE agenda as well as SCOTUS' right-wing lurch.

THIS!

The fact that BAAJA makes AI data centers pay for their grid connections & protects energy permits (renewables + fossil fuels) is irrelevant to the fact that BAAJA streamlines Trump's ability to site data centers on public lands.

This is so very wrong. The fact that Trump has issued an executive order on siting data centers is precisely the problem. Because BAAJA erodes bedrock environmental protections and will make it far, far easier for Trump to leverage his executive order to site AI data centers on public lands.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Rahm Emanuel has a long record of being the wrong man for every moment. (Published June 2020)

Lula overcoming Musk, Zuckerberg, and some awful stuff cloaked under religion to win against Bolsanaro's spawn despite being 80--wow! Great vindication for leftist economics and actual accountability for corporate political corruption.

And boom: there goes Politico’s right wing on the march narrative with big news coming from Serbia and Brazil this Sunday.

Lula appears poised to win re-election!!!!!!!

A Brazilian union member complains that Meta blocked her union's account for supporting Lula (Subtitles)

Lula overcoming Musk, Zuckerberg, and some awful stuff cloaked under religion to win against Bolsanaro's spawn despite being 80--wow! Great vindication for leftist economics and actual accountability for corporate political corruption.

It would be really, really interesting to put these findings to the fossil fuel industry groups that support the permitting bill and hear their response. Do they agree, and expect BAAJA to reduce their profits? Do they disagree, if so, why? www.latitudemedia.com/news/why-gre...

Now more than ever! Revolving Door Project 13.5 months ago: Democrats Must Oppose the AI Industry, prospect.org/2025/09/05/2...

The ability of the Trump administration to keep breaking the law depends on telling staffers that they will be pardoned www.washingtonsun.com/whitehouse/w...

@fernandez.house.gov (D-NM) comes out against #BAAJA: "We all witnessed President Trump’s destruction of the East Wing; this bill will only give him greater legal authority to bulldoze more of America’s treasures." @altnps.bsky.social @savingplaces.bsky.social @cjaourpower.bsky.social

Put aside pollution from generative AI--the tech is much more likely detrimental than positive. (altho too pointless thus far to endanger THAT MANY jobs. Yet.) Permitting law + the like to be revolutionized for more efficient hacks & slop based on IP theft??? garymarcus.substack.com/p/will-gener...

This piece is amazing. @business shows why desperate billionaire right wing oligarchs like the Ellisons are buying media networks, politicians, and influencers while sliming public interest lawyers: their business model is breaking the law. www.bloomberg.com/news/article... (gift link)

"Most US data centers in the development pipeline rely on natural gas for power, with BloombergNEF warning that the sector has the potential “to derail climate progress in the US.”

The fact is that data center construction is being held back by energy infrastructure and mining and other construction permitting, and with the passage of BAAJA, data center growth (and other polluting industry) will accelerate, increasing climate pollution.

“Anyone wanting to lead the [Democratic] party is going to have to be willing to take on this court and rebalance the scales. If they don’t, their constituents won’t stand for it.” @paulwaldman.bsky.social

Nearly half a billion dollars flooding into our elections from one man. When Elon writes massive checks to GOP super PACs, it can obscure where his money is being spent. But via his own super PAC, America PAC, we can see exactly which elections he wants to buy. Let's dive in... 🧵

Also received word from a partner organization who met with Sen. Heinrich's team where it was "crystal clear" that he would not make *any* changes to BAAJA beyond typos and minor technical changes.

New Mexicos's Pueblos are “going on the offense” to defeat BAAJA after Sen. Heinrich told Pueblo governors he wouldn't entertain amendments to the bill & disrespected those governors by walking out of the meeting while they were in the middle of prayer.

That Oracle stock is net flat over 3+ years while the broader market is up and inflation is nontrivial... it's INSANE that the Ellisons were able to leverage bubbles and Middle East royal cash to buy so much media.

Turns out "move fast and break things" includes breaking the law. An entire industry that expects the public to be OK when developers ask for forgiveness rather than permission is not a great plan for long-term growth.

This piece is amazing. @business shows why desperate billionaire right wing oligarchs like the Ellisons are buying media networks, politicians, and influencers while sliming public interest lawyers: their business model is breaking the law. www.bloomberg.com/news/article... (gift link)

i really do think that a successful impeachment and removal of hegseth is a live possibility if dems win the senate. he is a genuine disaster.

That Oracle stock is net flat over 3+ years while the broader market is up and inflation is nontrivial... it's INSANE that the Ellisons were able to leverage bubbles and Middle East royal cash to buy so much media.

BAD

A new Bloomberg analysis shows ~3,000 MTCO2-e of extra US power pollution between 2025-2035 thanks to data centre growth. That is: = 84 new coal plants /yr = 33k lost jobs globally = 1.2m more ppl pushed into unlivable climate

NO MORE RICH PEOPLE!

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projects easier to build and harder to stop. It is also indisputable that it will allow Trump to spend the next two years issuing leases, permits, and authorizations for fossil fuel projects that the next administration will not be able to undo. Beyond that, emissions estimates are just voodoo.

Here's the thing: there's no way to model the emissions impact of #BAJAA. How many tons of carbon will result from, say, shortening the statute of limitations and limiting the universe of plaintiffs in NEPA cases? What's the impact of restricting judicial remedies or weakening states' ....

Last year, after helping stop Mike Lee’s push to sell off public lands, Sen. Martin Heinrich, a long-time public lands champion, warned anyone plotting another route: “Don’t. Unless you like losing.” Fifteen months later, his co-author on this bill is Mike Lee.

On CNBC this month, Burgum called NEPA, the Endangered Species Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act “the trifecta of how to legally attempt to stop things from being built in America.” The permitting bill rewrites all three.

A startup wants 456 nuclear reactors, a fuel plant, and nuclear waste storage on 9,000 acres of public land in Utah, generating more than twice the electricity the entire state produces. The Senate permitting bill would make sure the next president can’t touch it. 🧵:

You can see their playbook heading into 2028 and beyond. Oligarchs never should have this much control over media in a healthy democracy. It will be up to Democrats to respond w/ beyond just poll tested TPs on "affordability" & policy points. Reconstruction 3.0 must include accountability.

Not coincidental that stock market going down on AI fears WHILE joblessness is low--AI is not yet replacing jobs because it is much better at both routine and scary crime, likely biological weapons, and eroding education and psychic well-being than for replacing people at economically useful tasks.