On The Record (08-18-26).

This week we named what’s actually happening to the American economy—Corporate Colonialism, the full realization of the Powell Memo’s 50-year project to hand the keys of democracy to the boardroom—and made the case that the real fight isn’t Trump, it’s the day after Trump. Then we got into the AI financing structures that are starting to look uncomfortably familiar: shell companies, off-balance-sheet guarantees, and phantom liabilities that only become real when everything goes wrong at once. If you get 2007 vibes, you’re paying attention.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:38

Housekeeping: 00:01:28

Quick Takes: 00:02:31

Max Notes: 00:06:33

Killer Left Take of the Week: 00:15:17

Chart of the Week: 00:16:57

Outro: 00:22:47

Resources

Reuters: US retail sales slump unexpectedly and sharply after a summer tax-refund boost fades

AARP: July 2026 Employment Data Digest

The Guardian: US navy veterans and military health experts express concern over USS Abraham Lincoln sailors

CNBC: AOC says she’s been saving up to freeze her eggs. Here’s how much the procedure can cost

npr: ICE plans to outfit officers with electric shock gloves

Truthout: Jeffries Says He Opposes Medicare for All — Which Would Save 114k Lives Yearly

Great Memos: The Powell Memorandum

More Perfect Union: We Tracked the Private Jets Your Insurance Premium Paid For

Bloomberg: Bond Traders Are Agonizing Over $70 Billion of Shadow Credit Backstops For AI Companies

UNFTR Resources

Video: On The Record 08-18-26 (The AI Bubble is About to Burst | Corporate Control of Trump.)

Essay: Trump’s Corporate Masters.

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