okay, so we’re not going to lie - we’re not 100% sure this will land in your inbox at 7am instead of at 8am (or possibly 6am). we’ve been on this earth for more than 80 years (collectively, though we do write like a grumpy 80 year old man at times), and we still have no idea how daylight saving time works. so, we guess the point of this is to say: we hope you enjoy, regardless of what time it is or should be.

big idea: dems bungle election day, but bring home infrastructure

1. dems failed miserably in off-year elections tuesday, losing the virginia governor’s race, barely holding onto the new jersey governorship, and losing dozens of local races across solidly blue areas. let’s be clear - the dems running in these races were highly qualified, good candidates, and were often incumbents. voter turnout was also record-high in some places. yet, dems still lost across the board. progressives can’t even say that it’s all the moderates’ fault, as a socialist lost to a write-in candidate for mayor in buffalo. 
2. what caused the losses? well, Joe’s approval ratings are in the dumps, dems have spent literally months arguing about an infrastructure bill and a climate policy bill, and the economy is good, but not great, with rising inflation. the pandemic stubbornly continues to impact people’s daily lives, which definitely hurts the democrat’s base enthusiasm. so, we guess people are just...tired and frustrated, and that translates electorally to voting out the ruling party. 
3. the good news is that Joe seems to be paying attention, and pushed house progressives to pass the $1 trillion infrastructure bill which has been waiting for their approval for weeks now. Joe will make a big deal out of signing it, and that’ll buy some time for him to figure out how to pass the climate bill through the senate sometime soon. who knows, maybe america will remember why they elected a slightly-senile, aviator-wearing grandpa in time for midterms next year.

this week’s image: volcanic eruptions

• (The Atlantic) a home is covered in ash on the canary islands, where a volcano has been apparently erupting since september 

this week’s number: 1.5 million additional retirees due to COVID

1. an analysis by the Fed found that 1.5 million more americans retired than expected since the pandemic started last year. as we have previously talked about, this is contributing to a falling percentage of americans actually working and contributing value to the economy. the big question economists are asking is if these retirements are temporary - will older workers reenter the workforce to ease shortages when the pandemic flames out and working conditions improve? we guess we can do our part and stop making fun of our older coworkers’ lack of tech literacy...
2. of particular concern are poorer old people who retired at faster rates than rich old people. many retired early because they worked in high-risk service industries, fearing for their health. however, they also typically don’t have enough saved for retirement - which will lead to more people on welfare in the future.

what we’re making: chocolate chip scones

1. listen, we know these look more like blobs of dough than perfectly symmetrical triangles, but trust us when we say these are chocolate chip scones, and they are delicious. we modified a recipe from America’s Test Kitchen, mostly because we love chocolate and don’t know what currants are or why they belong in baked goods.
2. anyways, they’re the opposite of the so-called scones you’ll find in most coffeeshops - light, airy, and flaky and beautifully golden browned. we made a double batch of sixteen, and they all still managed to disappear within a day. must we say more?

reader mailbag:

1. readers A.M. and G.H. reached out and vociferously disagreed with our characterization of the movie “Dune” in last week’s issue. they argued, and we suppose they’re not alone in this critique, that the acting was way overblown and the cinematography is what brought things home for them.
2. listen, we’re not going to argue that the sets were absolutely stunning, and like we said, help transport the viewer to another world. however, let’s be real here - few actors could pull off such a memorable performance with such few lines like Stellan Skarsgård.

and, in case you missed it:

• the Fed is scaling back stimulus measures it enacted during COVID, a step towards raising interest rates next year
• detroit suburbs made electoral history, with hamtramck being the first city in the US with an all-muslim city council, and muslims being elected mayors in dearborn, dearborn heights, and hamtramck
• the supreme court ruled in favor of maine’s wide-reaching vaccine mandate, as Joe announced all employees at companies with more than 100 workers must be vaccinated or tested weekly by january
• a moose crashed through a window into a preschool classroom in saskatchewan this week, which apparently happens so frequently classes continued as normal

the weekly rundown is produced by Yunus, Faisal, and Ahmed. learn more about us and email us your comments and feedback!