Reading archive 2025-05-09

Uproar over surgeon general pick exposes MAHA factions among RFK Jr. allies: Casey Means, a prominent nutrition advocate in the Make America Healthy Again movement, has been described as insufficiently critical of vaccines.

D.C.-area economy starts to show deep impacts of federal spending cuts: Unemployment claims are rising and consumers are pulling back on spending, sparking worries of an economic slump in the region on par with the one that occurred during the pandemic.

Here’s a smart way to fight ticks, according to a tick expert: Spray shoes with permethrin, an insecticide, once a month, says public health entomologist Thomas Mather, who goes by the nickname “The Tick Guy."

Trump tells Congress to raise taxes on the rich in budget bill: The administration is looking at several ways to bring in new tax revenue, but hiking taxes on the wealthy could complicate Republicans’ legislative strategy. - "The idea is similar to what President Joe Biden and later Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned on during the 2024 race for the White House."

Trump suggests lowering tariffs on China ahead of talks: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is expected to meet with his counterparts in Switzerland this weekend.