--:-- Shemita Basu: Good morning. It's Monday, July 21st. I'm Shemita Basu. This is Apple News Today. On today's show, how federal cuts to Medicaid and SNAP are impacting states' budgets, what to expect if you're expecting a $1,000 baby bonus, and why the Amish don't really have allergies. But first, now that we are six months into President Trump's second term in office, let's take stock of how Americans are feeling about his administration overall and about two major pillars of his agenda, immigration and the economy.
--:-- [Discussion of polls and approval ratings]
--:-- Philip Bump: People who are members of the president's own party love him. People who are not members of the president's own party dislike him. And independents swing back and forth and make up the difference between him being slightly higher and him being slightly lower.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Bump, in his reporting, specifically took a closer look at how support for Trump has evolved over the last decade. It's been about 10 years since he emerged as the leading Republican candidate in the 2016 election. And Bump found his core base has remained relatively steady over that time.
--:-- Philip Bump: We have not seen anything where Donald Trump takes a distinct hit over the long term. When the Republicans fared poorly in the 2022 midterms, he was looked at with, you know, kind of one eyebrow raised. The same thing after January 6th and everyone came back around.
--:-- Shemita Basu: On issues like immigration, however, recent polling suggests the president is losing ground with Americans writ large. A new CNN poll found that a majority of people, 55 percent, think Trump is going too far with his mass deportation campaign. That's a 10-point jump since February.
--:-- Margaret Taliff: These numbers are moving in the wrong direction for the president. It's clear that the average American thinks that his immigration policies are going too far. He's underwater now.
--:-- Shemita Basu: The main points of controversy are around these tough enforcement actions around otherwise law-abiding residents. Trump's economic policy over the last six months introduced a lot of chaos to the markets, especially his on-off tariffs. The value of the U.S. dollar has slumped more than 10 percent this year. That's the worst decline the U.S. has seen over the first six months of any given year since 1973.
--:-- [Discussion of the tax and spending bill]
--:-- Margaret Taliff: His tax and spending bill will add trillions of dollars to the national debt, and polling indicates voters are nervous about that. CNN's poll found 51 percent believe the bill will hurt the economy, compared to 29 percent who think it'll help the economy.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Some economic indicators, like the unemployment and inflation rates, have held relatively steady since Trump took office, though the inflation rate climbed to its highest level in five months in June.
--:-- Philip Bump: From Trump's perspective, because he's not able to run for re-election, the fact is he doesn't need broad support for his policies. The political peril he faces is if Republicans, the core Republicans who are in Congress, if they start feeling as though it is OK to go sideways on him.
--:-- Shemita Basu: So far, they clearly don't feel that way. So the question is, will he be able to maintain this grip that he's had on the core base of Republican primary voters that he's had for years now?
--:-- [Discussion of Medicaid and SNAP cuts]
--:-- Sarah Weyer: Many officials are concerned about the steep cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. While the changes to the programs, including the addition of work requirements for many Medicaid recipients, won't fully take effect until after next year's midterms, so after November of 2026, states often budget a year or even two years into the future, meaning that right now they are faced with having to decide what else might get trimmed back in order to accommodate these changes.
--:-- Shemita Basu: A recent analysis from KFF, a nonpartisan organization focused on health policy, found that about 30 percent of Medicaid enrollees lived in homes experiencing food insecurity in 2022, meaning that these cuts could have double the impact on their lives.
--:-- Sarah Weyer: The estimated new state costs for Medicaid and SNAP are expected to be in the tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars. And unlike the federal government, most states are required to balance their budgets.
--:-- Shemita Basu: At a certain point, they're going to have to cut other programs in order to fill these holes. There's really no way around it for many of these states.
--:-- [Discussion of the baby bonus]
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: The spending bill carved out $15 billion to fund these so-called Trump accounts. They're available to all newborns with Social Security numbers, and parents can either sign up at a bank or other qualifying institution or wait for the government to automatically create an account when they file taxes.
--:-- Shemita Basu: They're really like baby IRAs, so they're almost like an individual retirement account for a child. Once your child's account is created, you can contribute up to $5,000 a year, and that limit will adjust with inflation.
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: Your employer can contribute, too, up to $2,500 annually without adding to your taxable income. For the most part, your child can't touch the account until they turn 18.
--:-- Shemita Basu: And compared to other investment accounts for kids, a Trump account holder has more flexibility for how they can use the money. They can go toward college or buying a first home or starting a small business, anything they want, really.
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: Financial experts have praised that element. But they also point out if your primary goal is to use this account to save for your child's college education, there are some better alternative investment options out there.
--:-- Shemita Basu: For one, Ebling explained, a 529 account. It grows tax-free and offers tax-free withdrawals for eligible expenses, whereas Trump accounts come with more tax complications.
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: The different types of contributions are treated differently for tax purposes when you take the money out. So when they take the money out, they might be surprised to see that there's federal tax and possibly state tax withholding on it, depending where they live.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Financial experts say 529 accounts also have more investment options compared to Trump accounts. They have to be invested in low-cost mutual funds or exchange-traded funds. They're made up mostly of U.S. equities.
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: In other words, investments in specific industries or sectors are not allowed.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Now, to be clear, experts largely agree there's no harm in letting the government's $1,000 contribution to the Trump account compound and grow over your child's lifetime.
--:-- Ashley Ebeling: Many American families don't have the means to set up something like that for their kids at such a young age on their own. The top tip from one financial pro Ebling spoke to was treat this account as a nest egg for your child retirement and convert it to a Roth IRA when they turn 18.
--:-- Shemita Basu: That way it can continue to grow for decades to come without any tax penalties.
--:-- [Discussion of other stories]
--:-- Shemita Basu: Before we let you go, a few other stories we're following. In Gaza, NPR reports that nearly 100 people were killed by Israeli military fire as they sought food aid on Sunday.
--:-- Shemita Basu: That's according to local health authorities and hospital morgue officials. It marks one of the deadliest days in recent months for Palestinians seeking aid.
--:-- Shemita Basu: The Israeli military told NPR it was examining the incident, though it contested the numbers being reported.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Separately, Pope Leo XIV called for an end to the barbarity of the war yesterday after an Israeli strike hit the only Catholic church in Gaza, killing three people last week.
--:-- Shemita Basu: To sports, over the weekend, the WNBA's best players took the court in Indianapolis for the All-Star Game, wearing a clear message on their shirts, pay us what you owe us.
--:-- Shemita Basu: The Athletic reports that the message comes as the players union and the league are negotiating their next collective bargaining agreement.
--:-- Shemita Basu: The current one is set to expire on October 31st. The WNBA is experiencing huge growth in viewership, attendance, and merchandise, and the players are arguing that their salaries should reflect that.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Nafisa Collier, who won the game's MVP trophy, explained their message in a press conference after the game.
--:-- Nafisa Collier: There is no league without the players. And, you know, the past, present, the ones coming up, they're the ones that have put in the blood, sweat, and tears for the new money that's coming in.
--:-- Shemita Basu: And finally, for many people, it seems almost impossible to avoid allergies, whether that means getting a scratchy throat from pollen or tearing up around dogs and cats.
--:-- Shemita Basu: But one group of people appears bafflingly immune, the Amish. In fact, a study suggested that one Amish community living in northern Indiana may be one of the least allergic populations tested in the developed world.
--:-- Shemita Basu: Researchers at the University of Chicago told The Washington Post they're trying to figure out why.
--:-- Shemita Basu: A theory called the Hygiene Hypothesis suggests that when young kids are exposed to microbes like those found on a farm, it helps them develop a stronger immune system to fight allergies.
--:-- Shemita Basu: One researcher told the Post they don't think they can give every family a cow to help allergies, but there might be other identifiable things that the Amish are doing that can help unlock a greater understanding of what makes them so unique to hopefully develop treatments to prevent allergies for young children.
--:-- Shemita Basu: You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the News app right now, we've got a narrated article coming up next. The Hollywood Reporter examines how scammers are increasingly using elaborate methods like AI-generated voice memos of famous actors to cheat people out of money.
--:-- Shemita Basu: If you're listening in the podcast app, follow Apple News Plus Narrated to find that story.
--:-- Shemita Basu: And I'll be back with the news tomorrow.
