The Hound | June 17

Union support is now at 70 percent, Trump Department of Labor seeks to strip federal funding of blue states, and more.

June 17, 2026

Hi there,

It’s Wednesday. Trump has delayed the nomination of Jay Clayton to be the Director of National Intelligence in a last ditch effort to pressure the Senate to pass the SAVE Act. And American support at labor unions at around 70 percent, the highest it’s been since LBJ’s administration.

The Trump administration is reportedly withholding anti-fraud funds from several states while relying on little or no publicly available evidence to justify the decision. Americans deserve to know whether these allegations are backed by facts or are being used to justify politically motivated actions.

Yet too much media coverage treats these disputes as partisan disagreements between Washington and state governments rather than examining the lack of evidence behind the administration’s claims. When billions of dollars and essential public services are at stake, journalists should be asking basic questions: What data supports these accusations? What standards are being applied? And why do so many of the affected states happen to be led by political opponents of the administration?

The public deserves reporting that demands proof when government officials make serious accusations, not coverage that simply repeats them.

Read about this, and more, with today’s stories:

Organized Money: Meta Is Dying (The American Prospect)

Until next time,

Harry from The Hound

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