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Popular Information doesn't just break news; it creates change. Consider a few examples of the impact of this newsletter this year:
On March 17, Popular Information exclusively published an internal Social Security Administration (SSA) memo that revealed plans to significantly limit phone service beginning April 1. The memo said the plan would flood already overburned field offices with millions of additional people, creating "service disruption," "operational strain," and "budget shortfalls." Popular Information's report was covered extensively in the national media and prompted protests from advocacy groups. On April 8, the SSA announced that it was canceling its plans to limit phone service.
On April 15, Popular Information reported that at least 29 people had their ballots in the 2024 general election wrongly discarded by the North Carolina Supreme Court. The state's highest court ruled that about 260 ballots must be tossed because they were cast by people who were "never residents" of the state. The ballots — and thousands of others — were challenged by Jefferson Griffin, a Republican candidate for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court who lost by 734 votes to Democrat Allison Riggs. On April 16, the North Carolina Board of Elections filed a notice in federal court, citing Popular Information's reporting, stating that the votes of people who were wrongly identified would be restored. On May 5, in a decision that referenced Popular Information's reporting, a federal court declared Riggs the winner and Griffin conceded.
On February 3, Popular Information broke the news that DOGE staff at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) received unprecedented access to databases containing sensitive personal information for millions of federal employees. A week later, a coalition of labor unions representing federal workers sued OPM, citing Popular Information's report seven times. On March 24, a federal judge issued an injunction, blocking DOGE's access to the databases.
The Trump administration is targeting publications like Popular Information that publish leaked information. In an April memo, Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) said the Justice Department "will not tolerate unauthorized disclosures that undermine President Trump’s policies." Bondi raised the specter of arresting “members of the news media."
Popular Information needs the resources to prepare for and respond to these potential attacks. If you value our work, you can help us fight whatever comes next by upgrading to a paid subscription today.
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The Republican reconciliation legislation, which Trump calls his "big, beautiful bill," is massive. The latest version, released by Senate Republicans just after midnight on Friday, is 940 pages. For the wealthiest 10% of Americans, the megabill would make them even richer. But it will also inflict pain on millions of vulnerable Americans, dramatically increase the deficit, finance an unprecedented crackdown on immigrants, and send tens of billions to military contractors for dubious new projects.
The bill cleared a key procedural vote on Saturday, when the Senate voted 51-49 to end debate. Two Republican Senators, Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Rand Paul (R-KY), joined all Senate Democrats in opposing the measure. Senate Republican leaders held the vote open for hours and pressured the last few holdouts to advance the legislation. Now, Senate Republicans are barreling toward a final vote on Monday in an effort to get the bill to Trump's desk by his self-imposed deadline of July 4.
The bill is a moving target. Some provisions will be struck due to obscure Senate rules triggered by the reconciliation process, which allows Republicans to bypass a Democratic filibuster. Also, before a final vote, the bill will be subject to an amendment process that could significantly alter the legislation.
Final passage in the Senate is not a certainty; it's possible that the two Republican Senators who supported the procedural vote will oppose final passage. And even if the Senate approves the legislation, this version of Trump's megabill would need to pass the House, where Republicans operate with very thin margins.
But Trump and his allies will apply maximum pressure to jam the megabill through the Senate and House. There is a real possibility that the 940-page bill, or something very similar, will become law.
Here are seven things everyone should know about Trump's megabill:
1. Trump's megabill would cut $930 billion from Medicaid
Approximately 71 million people rely on Medicaid for healthcare. This is especially true in rural communities, "where Medicaid covers 1 in 4 adults." Trump's megabill would cut funding for Medicaid by $930 billion.
The Senate bill uses two primary mechanisms to cut Medicaid spending.
First, it imposes a strict work requirement for most adults without children or those with children 15 or older. There are exemptions for individuals with disabilities, pregnant women, and certain other groups. While this may seem straightforward, it ultimately strips health insurance from individuals who are either unable to find work or are unable to meet the bureaucratic requirements to prove they have been employed. As a result, millions of Americans will lose their Medicaid coverage.
Second, the Senate bill severely restricts the taxes that states can charge healthcare providers, a tactic that many states rely on to increase federal funding and, ultimately, the resources available to reimburse providers. The change would reduce funding for Medicaid by hundreds of billions of dollars. Rural communities, which rely on these taxes to keep hospitals afloat, would be particularly hard-hit. In response, the Senate created a $25 billion fund to support rural hospitals; however, the tax change would cost rural hospitals $119 billion over the next 10 years. It could force hospitals in some rural communities to close. Others would see a reduction in the quality of care provided.
To win the support of Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI), Senate leadership agreed to support an amendment that would further cut Medicaid spending — beyond $930 billion. It would slash federal spending to states that have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. The federal government currently covers 90% of Medicaid expansion costs. It's unclear how much the federal contribution would be reduced under Johnson's amendment or whether Johnson and other Senate hardliners will support the bill if the amendment fails.
Previously, Trump insisted that the legislation is "not cutting Medicaid" and pledged to veto any bill that cuts Medicaid funding beyond "waste, fraud, and abuse."
2. Trump's megabill would increase the number of people without health insurance by 11.8 million
A new analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which provides non-partisan budget analysis to Congress, estimates that Trump's megabill "would increase by 11.8 million the number of people without health insurance in 2034." This is due to both the Medicaid cuts and changes to the Affordable Care Act marketplaces that make it harder for people to enroll.
An additional 4.2 million people will lose their health insurance because the bill allows the enhanced premium credits under the Affordable Care Act, implemented during the Biden administration, to expire.
Larry Levitt of the Kaiser Family Foundation called the bill "the biggest rollback in federal support for health care ever."
3. Trump's megabill would slash nutrition assistance to poor families by $186 billion
Trump's megabill slashes funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $186 billion. This is achieved primarily by shifting financial responsibility for the program from the federal government to the states, which will ultimately result in benefit cuts.
Currently, the federal government splits the cost of administering SNAP with the states and covers the cost of all benefits. The legislation would reduce the federal contribution for administrative costs to 25%. It would also require many states to pay a portion of the benefit costs based on their benefit "error rate." The error rate includes both overpayments and underpayments.
It also imposes work requirements on individuals with children aged 14 or older, and those between the ages of 50-64.
SNAP "provides monthly payments for food purchases to low-income residents generally earning less than $1,632 monthly for individuals, or $3,380 monthly for a household of four." In February 2025, "22.5 million households were enrolled in SNAP, receiving an average monthly household benefit of $353."