Yesterday in Nevada, President Biden announced a plan to address low housing affordability as he tries to regain voters’ faith through the one place they hurt the most—their rent autopay system.

The proposal, which would last two years, would end tax credits for corporate landlords (those with 50+ units) who raise rent by over 5% a year. The administration estimates it would affect 20 million rental units across the country.

Renters could use the break. Housing costs continue to live rent-free in voters’ minds: Half of all renters in the US are cost burdened by housing, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities, according to a Harvard University study. A Gallup survey in May found that 41% of Americans see inflation and the cost of living as their most important financial problems.

Inside the policy push

Haters (economists) will argue that Biden’s proposal is more harmful than helpful because rent control reduces the supply of affordable housing by disincentivizing developers to build more units. One reason housing is so expensive in the first place is that there’s a shortage of between 4 million and 7 million units, according to a Pew study. Landlords, developers, and bankers argue this proposal will exacerbate that problem.

But…the White House positions it as a temporary bridge. An estimated 1.6 million housing units are expected to come on the market in the next few years, a flood of supply that will, theoretically, bring shelter prices down. Putting a cap on rent increases would help renters get by until then.

Zoom out: Biden’s diving deep into housing policy. He also announced:

• $325 million in grants to fund home-building in seven cities
• A plan to direct federal agencies to repurpose excess land for affordable housing

Time check. It’s doubtful that a divided Congress will pass the proposal before the election, but it’s something Biden would fight for “in a second term,” an administration official told reporters.—CC

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Now they’re planning to list on the Nasdaq (ticker MXRX).

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Bob Menendez was found guilty of bribery, fraud, and extortion. A federal jury convicted the New Jersey senator of all 16 charges he faced for making favorable deals on behalf of foreign officials and three businessmen in exchange for lavish gifts, including gold bars and a Mercedes. His Democratic colleague, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, called for his resignation almost immediately after the verdict was read. A separate trial for Menendez’s wife, Nadine, who allegedly participated in the scheme, was delayed indefinitely while she undergoes cancer treatments.

Amazon is on pace for a record-breaking Prime Day. The annual discount shopping event, which despite its name is actually two days (yesterday and today), could generate up to $14 billion in sales, up 10.5% from last year, according to projections from Adobe Analytics. The news comes as rivals Walmart and Target launch their own discount events this month to help consumers fight inflation during what is typically a slower time of the year for spending. Meanwhile, a Senate investigation found that Prime Day is a major cause of worker injuries due to the “increased volume without increased support.”

Record labels are suing Verizon for $2.6 billion for ignoring piracy. Universal, Sony, and Warner accused the telecommunications giant of disregarding mass online piracy among its internet users despite hundreds of thousands of copyright infringement notices. Verizon is “willfully blinding itself to that information and prioritizing its own profits over its legal obligations,” the lawsuit argues. In 2022, Verizon and other internet providers settled suits with Hollywood production companies for refusing to cut off access for users who picarooned movies.

Former President Donald Trump is leaning into crypto, and Silicon Valley donors are lining up to give him money. Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, big-name VCs who invest in startups like Open AI and SpaceX, told employees of their firm that they will be making large donations to Trump’s presidential campaign, The Information reports.

Andreessen and Horowitz, who have donated $30+ million to pro-crypto super PACs in the past year, have said they are “non-partisan, one issue voters”—and that issue is crypto.

Trump’s growing crypto promises

In 2019, Trump called crypto a scam. But this May, he became the first candidate to accept donations in the currency. He raked in $3 million in crypto in the second quarter of 2024 (part of $331 million total in Q2). And that’s not the only proof he’s changed his mind:

• Trump has also met with crypto bigwigs and is headlining the annual bitcoin conference in Nashville this month.
• The GOP’s recently adopted platform promises to stop Democrats’ “unAmerican Crypto crackdown.”

Big picture: A number of other Silicon Valley tech execs, including the Winklevoss twins, Elon Musk, and David Sacks, have endorsed Trump and donated megabucks to his campaign or pro-Trump PACs. They hope a second Trump administration would mean less regulation.—MM

Treat those pearly whites. Prime Day deals on Boka’s nontoxic, fluoride-free toothpaste are here. Packed with n-Ha, Boka helps maintain healthy teeth + gums and improves your oral microbiome. It’s also safe for sensitive teeth. There’s a flavor for everyone, including Ela Mint, Lemon Lavender, and Coco Ginger. Shop here.

Teens have cooled on careers in the industry enabling their atrocious screen times, according to a recent survey of high achievers. Big Tech lost ground in the ranking of companies teens aspire to work at, while government and healthcare workplaces became more desirable, per Business Insider’s analysis of the survey, conducted by the National Society for High School Scholars.

• Though Google, Amazon, and Apple were still among the Top 10 most coveted employers this year, they all retreated in the rankings from their positions in 2018—as did Microsoft, Instagram, and Netflix.
• On the flip side, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital took the top spot, with the Mayo Clinic (No. 2), Health Care Services Corp. (3), the FBI (5), and NASA (6) all moving up from their 2018 rankings.

Steady employment rules

Tech losing its luster could be a consequence of increasing doubts about the impacts of technology like AI and recent layoffs in the industry. Job stability is the top draw for young people when looking for work, according to a survey of the college class of 2024 by job site Handshake. The survey showed that the share of recent grads applying to government jobs this year almost doubled from 2022.

Zoom out: Pragmatic teens are likely aware of the job stability and hiring trends in healthcare and government. The two sectors accounted for nearly 60% of US job growth in the year leading up to April.—SK

Can you truly call yourself a sneakerhead if you don’t own shoes that a robotic arm shapes out of a mile-long filament and then heat-fuses to a sole while reducing carbon emissions by 75% compared with regular shoes? The Cloudboom Strike LS from Swiss shoe brand On weighs just six ounces and is made out of only seven components (most running shoes require 150–200), the New York Times reported. If you’re interested in seeing how athletes perform wearing what amounts to a second layer of skin on their feet, Kenyan distance runner Hellen Obiri will be racing in the alien shoes in the Paris Olympics before they go on sale to non-Olympians this fall for $330.