04.02.2025

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'Liberation Day' Arrives

President Donald Trump will announce a long-awaited plan for broad tariffs on several countries at 4 pm ET today. The White House has described the global trade overhaul as necessary to level the playing field while luring manufacturing back to the US. 

Details of the plan remain unclear, though options examined by the administration include a flat 20% tariff on most imports into the US (which analysts say could raise $6T in revenue) and reciprocal tariffs that seek to match import duties placed on US goods by other nations. Once announced, the tariffs are expected to take effect immediately. Exemptions to previously announced 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada will also expire today.

Proposed and enacted tariffs (see visual breakdown) have strained US relationships with allies, including the European Union and Canada, which have vowed to retaliate. Economists warn the tariffs could spur inflation, slow economic growth, and increase the risk of recession. 

Separately, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) broke the record for the longest speech on the Senate floor yesterday as he criticized the Trump administration's broad policy changes in a talk lasting 25 hours and 5 minutes.

Health Agency Layoffs

The US Department of Health and Human Services parted ways with roughly a quarter of its 82,000 workers yesterday as part of the Trump administration's ongoing reduction in force of the government’s 2.4 million workers. The layoffs bring the total estimated federal firings this year to more than 55,000 workers, not including those who accepted buyouts (roughly 75,000). Hundreds of thousands more reductions are expected in the coming months (see chart). 

The Food and Drug Administration saw the biggest cuts yesterday, with 3,500 employees dismissed (about 19% of its workforce), followed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2,400) and the National Institutes of Health (1,200). The cuts or reassignments—expected to cut $1.8B from HHS' $1.8T budget— included dozens of top health officials, including infectious disease expert Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, the successor to Dr. Anthony Fauci.

Elsewhere, the Department of Transportation offered buyouts to thousands of workers in exchange for pay and benefits through Sept. 30. 

Historic Polar Flight 

SpaceX launched its Fram2 mission this week, marking the first crewed spaceflight to orbit Earth over its poles. The Crew Dragon capsule Resilience carries four private astronauts: Maltese cryptocurrency entrepreneur and mission lead Chun Wang, Norwegian filmmaker and vehicle commander Jannicke Mikkelsen, German robotics engineer and pilot Rabea Rogge, and Australian medical officer and polar explorer Eric Phillips.

The crew is flying in a polar orbit at a 90-degree angle to the equator, a historically challenging path due to higher energy requirements and complex recovery logistics. During the three- to five-day mission, they will conduct 22 experiments, including X-ray imaging in space, studies on microgravity’s effects on human health, and attempts to grow mushrooms in space. Upon landing, the crew will test reacclimating to gravity without typical medical and mobility assistance.

The mission honors the Fram, a historic Norwegian ship that explored polar regions starting in the late 19th century. See the mission's first orbital views of Earth’s poles here (via X).

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