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California’s legal cannabis industry, long weighed down by high taxes and regulation, is facing new threats: steep federal tariffs on key imports and a proposed statewide ban on disposable vapes.

A new bill was introduced on April 4 that would place limits on the president's authority to impose unilateral tariffs without congressional approval. The Trade Review Act of 2025 has amassed bipartisan support, including 7 Republican who have signed on to the legislation.

The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps millions of low-income families cover heating and cooling costs, faces serious disruption after the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) laid off all federal staff overseeing the program.

Many have seen the story out of Wisconsin: Susan Crawford defied record-breaking spending by Super PACs to win the April 1 state Supreme Court election. “Crawford beat Musk,” is the headline after the world’s richest man poured millions into the race to defeat her, while liberal billionaires also opened up their own pocketbooks for Crawford.

Litigation is often seen as a zero-sum game of wins and losses. In that lens, a recent 11th Circuit decision that upholds Florida’s closed primary system has been declared another win for political parties and closed primaries. But it’s the wrong framing.

A popular and game-changing rescheduling proposal backed by Donald J. Trump to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) remains formally active but administratively paused by a DEA judge.

According to Buying Time 2025 election spending data as of March 26, 2025, more than $81.4 million has been spent on the Wisconsin Supreme Court race between Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford and Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel, making it the most expensive state judicial election in US history. 

Last week, the national election reform group Open Primaries held a Zoom conversation with former Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd to discuss voters' growing mistrust in American institutions. It was part of the group's ongoing Primary Buzz Discussion Series. 

Throughout American history, political movements have come and gone. Many of these movements have been reactionary, established after elections, events, and shifts in policies and politics. Some began in direct response to other movements, cropping up on the left or the right, often coming back full circle.

By focusing on long-term economic stability and sound leadership, rather than short-term political victory, independent voters want sustainable solutions that benefit both businesses and workers.