Weakening of the Voting Rights Act (VRA): A major theme is the continued erosion of the VRA. A decade ago, a key pre-clearance provision was gutted by the Supreme Court, leading to the implementation of "Voter ID laws, and other measures meant to make it harder to vote, especially for poor and minority voters." The recent ruling by a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit represents another significant setback.

Circumventing the Filibuster: The proximate issue is California's EPA waiver for stricter emissions standards. While legislation to reverse this would be filibustered, Republicans aim to use the CRA, which allows Congress to cancel recent federal agency "rules" with a simple majority and prevents the agency from adopting a similar rule again.

Potential Third Impeachment of Donald Trump

Public Perception and Importance of the Biden Book "Original Sin": A new book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, detailing alleged infirmities of former President Biden,

Commissioner Rob Manfred, who previously declined to reinstate banned players, has now announced that "ALL deceased individuals on the permanently banned list... are now un-banned." This includes Pete Rose.

Market Recovery and Sentiment Plunge: Following a swift dip in April, the S&P 500 has seen a rapid recovery, with a 13.7% gain from April 8th to May 8th. This plunge sent many investor sentiment metrics into "extreme pessimism" territory,

Attitudinal Pessimism vs Behavioral Restraint

A notable risk is the record amount of household stock exposure at the start of 2025, based on asset allocation data. The market has priced in a tariff panic and reversal, but the next phase involves digesting the impact of ongoing, high tariff rates.