🌎 Poker Face

US announces new tariffs on Mexico, EU

The art of the deal now comes with a 30% markup. On Saturday, Donald Trump revealed plans to impose 30% tariffs on goods from the EU and Mexico, set to take effect August 1 if no agreement is made.

Tariff town

The announcement marks an escalation in the Trump administration’s “reciprocal tariffs” strategy, which is part of a broader push that also targets countries like Canada, Japan, and Brazil, with levies ranging from 20% to 50%. See a tariff tracker here.

Both the EU and Mexico condemned the move:

• Mexico labeled it an “unfair deal” and firmly defended its sovereignty, while also expressing hope for ongoing negotiations.

• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned of “proportionate countermeasures” if tariffs go ahead, but emphasized a desire to resolve issues through diplomacy.

After months of negotiations, no deal was reached with the EU or Mexico as the 90-day pause on the tariffs expired this week. However, some other countries, including the UK, Vietnam, and China, reached new deals or temporary truces with the US.

It’s a big deal: Together, the European Union and Mexico make up about one-third of US imports. Last year, US trade with the EU approached $1 trillion, while trade with Mexico came in around $840 billion.

Why more tariffs?

In general, the administration's aggressive trade strategy seeks to reduce the US’s record $1.2 trillion trade deficit and revitalize US manufacturing. However, Trump says these new levies have a more specific purpose:

• In an address to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump cited Mexico’s failure to stop the flow of fentanyl and other narcotics into the US, saying, “Mexico… has not done enough.”

• Meanwhile, Trump aims to even out the persistent trade deficits the US has with the EU, writing, “Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from Reciprocal,” in a post on Truth Social.

Additionally, Trump mentioned that there would be “no tariff” if the EU or Mexico decided to increase manufacturing inside the US, assuring that he would help them get approvals in “a matter of weeks.”

What did the market have to say? Stocks were mixed after Trump’s announcement, with the Dow and S&P dipping slightly while the Nasdaq edged up, showing investors are cautious, but not overly worried.

New law will force gamblers to pay taxes on losses

Win at the casino? Tax. Lose at the casino? Also tax. While gambling has been taxed similarly to every other profession, a provision in the giant tax law is changing how gamblers pay the federal government.

Poker face

Those who frequent the casino are currently able to deduct 100% of their gambling losses, paying taxes only on their winnings. However, starting in 2026, bettors will only be able to deduct 90% of their losses.

What does that mean? Essentially, if a bettor breaks even at the casino (say they won $10K and lost $10K), they would still owe taxes on the $10,000 they won.

• Since only 90% of gambling losses will be deductible next year, the gambler will have to pay taxes on 10% of their earnings.

• Using the example above, the gambler would owe $1,000 in taxes.

Understandably, gamblers—professional and otherwise—are not happy. Many are warning that the deduction cut could fade out high-stakes and even casual betting.

Calling station

The change was tucked into the over 900-page “One, Big, Beautiful Bill” that passed this year (though no one really knows how) and is expected to generate around $1.1 billion in revenue over eight years.

Since the provision was broadly overlooked, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are already trying to up the stakes and get rid of the new rule:

• The House has already brought in bipartisan legislation—called the FAIR BET Act—which would restore the 100% deduction for gambling losses.

If everyone is against it, how did it get passed? As of writing, its not clear. Reportedly, even high-profile Republicans firmly supporting the bill were shocked by the inclusion of the rule.

Rumor has it the provision may have been added by a congressional staffer—potentially without their boss’s knowledge—to comply with reconciliation rules that require tax legislation to affect federal revenue.

Dinosaur fossils were found in a Denver museum’s parking lot

This is how they should start the next Jurassic Park movie. In an ironic twist, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science—which is known for its dinosaur displays—found a dinosaur fossil under its parking lot.

Dino discovery

During a geothermal test drilling under the museum’s parking lot in January, scientists accidentally struck gold dinosaur bone, in a narrow borehole 763 feet below the surface.

• They found what scientists believe to be the fibrous vertebra of a small, plant-eating dinosaur such as a duck-billed ornithopod or thescelosaurus.

• The fossil fragment is roughly the size of a hockey puck and dates back around 67.5 million years, just before the dinosaur’s mass extinction.

The bone is Denver’s deepest and oldest dinosaur fossil ever found within city limits, encased in what was once a lush, swampy rainforest during the late Cretaceous period. It’s one of a handful ever unearthed through core drilling.

To put it mildly, the museum is absolutely elated:

• Curator James Hagadorn said, “Finding a dinosaur bone [through core drilling] is like hitting a hole-in-one from the moon,” regarding the rarity of such a discovery.

• The museum’s geology team said it’s “like winning the lottery and getting struck by lightning” in your own backyard.

Looking forward: While further excavation is off limits, the fossil (along with plant material found nearby) will now be displayed in the “Discovering Teen Rex” exhibit as part of ongoing geological studies.

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Son of ‘El Chapo’ pleads guilty in US drug trafficking case

Let’s hope he doesn’t pull a Shawshank Redemption like his dad. Late last week, Ovidio Guzmán López—son of infamous Mexican cartel leader Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán—entered a guilty plea in a Chicago federal court, making him the first of the drug lord’s sons to enter a plea deal.

Once the kingpin behind one of the world’s most powerful drug empires, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán is serving a life sentence after his 2019 conviction for leading the Sinaloa cartel and smuggling drugs into the US for over 25 years. His sons, known as “Los Chapitos,” are accused of taking over the cartel’s leadership.

Drug lord

Ovidio, who is part of the Sinaloa cartel's "Chapitos" faction, admitted to overseeing the production and trafficking of large quantities of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, meth, and marijuana into the United States as part of his plea deal.

• As part of the agreement, Ovidio will cooperate with US authorities in potentially helping to disband the cartel.

• Legal analysts highlight that internal testimony like this is “a big step” and could provide a "roadmap" to the cartel’s operations.

Meanwhile, Ovidio’s sentencing has been delayed as he fulfills the deal, as he currently faces drug trafficking, money laundering, and firearms charges. Ovidio is the first of Guzmán’s sons to enter a guilty plea.

Controversy arises: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum criticized the US, saying it “lacks coherence” by negotiating plea deals with individuals from groups it also labels as terrorist organizations.

This crypto creation platform raised $600 million in 12 minutes

Why create memestocks when you can become one yourself? Pump.fun, a popular platform for creating meme coins, reportedly raised $600 million in just 12 minutes over the weekend.

To the moon

The fundraising was conducted through an initial coin offering (ICO), a process similar to an initial public offering (IPO), but it involves selling crypto tokens rather than traditional shares (see explanation).

• The move is one of the largest ICOs in history, bringing the crypto creation platform’s total valuation to roughly $1.32 billion.

Pump.fun’s rapid rise is the latest indicator that the memecoin craze remains, even in the face of regulatory scrutiny and market volatility:

• Launched in 2024, the site is now the world’s most popular platform for creating meme coins—crypto tokens that can be made in minutes that typically hold little real-world value.

• The platform, known for its ease of use and growing suite of tools, has already generated nearly $800 million in fees since its debut.

To avoid regulatory headaches, investors in the US and UK were excluded from the token sale, a common workaround in today’s fragmented crypto legal landscape.

Looking forward: Memecoins remain extremely volatile and unregulated, and analysts say Pump.fun’s staggering ICO will add urgency to ongoing debates around crypto oversight.

FAST FACTS
Catch up on this week’s weird news

Car Cups: A survey of nearly 100,000 new-car buyers shows that cup-holder quality—not fancy tech—is a major driver of satisfaction, as drivers increasingly want cup holders big enough for their giant jugs.

Secret Suspension: Six Secret Service agents have been suspended without pay from 10–42 days after last year’s assassination attempt on President Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Insta-net: Japan broke the internet speed record by achieving a data transfer speed of 1.02 petabits per second. In case you were wondering, that’s 3.5 million times faster than the average US internet connection.

Grok Greeting: Elon Musk announced that xAI’s Grok chatbot will be integrated directly into Tesla vehicles “very soon—next week at the latest.”

Failing Ford: Ford issued a record-breaking 88 safety recalls in the first half of 2025—more than any automaker has in an entire calendar year—and has since added a massive recall of 850,000 vehicles due to faulty fuel pumps.