The Trump-Putin regime? The Coffee Klatch | February 22, 2025

Friends,

Today, Heather and I assess the fifth week of the regime, when Trump took America over to the dark side by endorsing Vladimir Putin’s narrative of how the Ukraine war began and why Europe should defend itself rather than be an ally of the United States.

We also have as our special guest Rohit Chopra, the former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, who was fired by Trump at the same time Trump imposed on the CFPB a stop order that closed much of it down.

Chopra was recently described by Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorganChase, the largest bank in the United States, as “an arrogant, out-of-touch, son-of-a-b***h who just made things worse for a lot of Americans.”

I consider Dimon’s condemnation a strong endorsement of Chopra. (And for the record, I think Jamie Dimon is an arrogant, out-of-touch robber baron who has made things far worse for a lot of Americans — and will shaft even more people now that Rohit Chopra has been fired by Trump.)

Whether the choice is posed by Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Jamie Dimon, or Elon Musk, the question is the same: Do we want democratic capitalism or oligarchy?

Please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, take our poll, and join in the conversation.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe