Big Take, Midterms 2026

The “working class” in America used to conjure a vivid image: factory workers, blue-collar jobs and a political coalition born out of the Industrial Revolution. But as Republicans and Democrats try to court voters ahead of midterms, a question keeps coming up: What is the working class today?

On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks to Bloomberg Opinion columnist Allison Schrager, labor activist Bertha “Mama Cookie” Bradley and Distinguished Professor of Law Joan C. Williams about the moving target of defining and catering policy to working Americans.

Read more: Nobody Knows What ‘Working Class’ Even Means Anymore

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Hosted by Sarah Holder; Guests: Allison Schrager, Joan C. Williams, Bertha “Mama Cookie” Bradley; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Brunella Tipismana Urbano; Edited by Aaron Edwards. Engineering by Emma Munger.

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On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Amanda Gordon and Emily Birnbaum join host Sarah Holder to discuss how political spending is shaping the US midterm elections, who is funding candidates behind the scenes and what’s at stake for both Republicans and Democrats.

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Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Guests: Amanda Gordon and Emily Birnbaum; Edited by Nicole Beemsterboer. Fact-checking by Big Take team; Engineering by Sean Carter. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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As the debate about President Trump’s tax bill — known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill” — plays out among lawmakers in Washington, there’s been increasingly heated criticism of the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. It calculates the costs and savings from the bill — including from the White House. 

On today’s episode of the Big Take, host Saleha Mohsin sits down with CBO director Phillip Swagel to hear how his agency churns out economic forecasts from inside the center of a political storm.

Further listening: Stephen Miran Explains Why There’s No Secret Dollar Pact

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Today on the Big Take, Bloomberg national immigration reporter Alicia Caldwell joins host David Gura from Los Angeles to discuss the protests over ICE immigration raids, the clash between California and the federal government and how this fight could play out in other cities and in the courts.

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Poland’s election of a Trump-backed conservative nationalist president early this week is part of a larger shift to the right across the European continent: Much like in the US, conservative, nationalist and right-wing parties are gaining traction.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Rodney Jefferson and David Gura discuss the growing cultural divide behind Europe’s rising conservative movements and what their growth could mean for migration, climate policy and the future of the EU. 

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As Donald Trump tries to remake global trade, the dollar’s historic dominance in Asia is under pressure. After Taiwan’s currency saw the biggest surge against the dollar in almost 40 years in early May, some money managers are saying the spike signals the acceleration of a bigger trend of moving investments back home.

On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host Rebecca Choong Wilkins talks to Bloomberg’s Ruth Carson about what’s driving Asia’s shift away from the greenback and what a rewiring of global financial ties means for the region’s biggest economies.

Further listening: Carry Trades, Explained
Could the Chinese Yuan Ever Replace the US Dollar?

Watch, from Originals: Why the US Is Getting Downgraded

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Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers Stephen Miran has been a key voice in the Trump administration’s efforts to re-shape US economic policy, from near universal tariffs to a tax bill still in progress.

On today’s Big Take DC podcast, Miran sits down with host Saleha Mohsin to talk about market volatility, the deficit and currency policy.

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President Trump is wrapping a whirlwind trip to the Middle East — complete with a flurry of proposed investment deals , controversial gifts and a major shift in US-Syria policy.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Joumanna Bercetche joins host David Gura to unpack the biggest headlines from the president’s tour of the Persian Gulf and discuss what they tell us about his larger plans for the region. 

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President Trump will celebrate 100 days back in office this week. The milestone comes amid a US-China trade war, ongoing conflict overseas and high-stakes battles over the future of higher education.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Josh Wingrove joins host David Gura to take stock of how Trump has used the last three months to reshape everything from global trade and immigration to the American presidency — and what they reveal about the road ahead.

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The International Monetary Fund released a forecast this week projecting that global GDP will grow just 2.8% — down half a percentage point since US President Donald Trump unleashed a raft of tariffs on April 2. Their projection for US GDP growth was particularly grim: Down nearly an entire percentage point from expectations earlier this year. 

And they’re not alone. As economists try to measure the potential outcome from the current trade war and the whiplash of on-again-off-again tariffs, Bloomberg Economics landed on similar GDP projections

On today’s episode of the Big Take, host Sarah Holder is joined by Bloomberg’s Enda Curran and Bloomberg Economics Chief Economist Tom Orlik to discuss what these projections can — and can’t — tell us about where the trade war could lead.

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