Hello, my most Friday-ish subscribers!

Nobody’s indispensable, and Billy Long just joined the list of Trump appointees who are keen to do themselves out of jobs by abolishing the agencies they’re leading. Good news if you pay taxes in America, I suppose. Although not such great news if you rely on the revenue from those taxes to pay for important public services like air traffic control.

News You Need2Know

• Boeing’s troubles continue with tragic new crash

• Man who sought to abolish the IRS is new leader

• Coinbase hires top Obama campaigner for $$$

• How Nintendo’s Switch 2 broke sales records

• What’s up with the stock market?

Buy the dip!

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

$BA ( ▼ 1.72% )  $COIN ( ▲ 0.27% )  $NTDOF ( ▼ 2.1% )  $MSFT ( ▼ 0.93% )  

Boeing’s troubles continue with tragic new crash

Boeing’s $BA ( ▼ 1.72% ) troubled recent history deepened Thursday when an Air India Boeing 787-8, carrying over 240 passengers, crashed just five minutes after departing for London. The incident marks the first fatal crash involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner yet is another chapter in a string of challenges for Boeing, many related to the 737 Max jet.

The firm’s stock fell 8% in pre-trading yesterday on news of the crash, dealing a blow to the new leadership’s efforts to rebuild trust after a series of setbacks.

Since its introduction in 2013, the 787 Dreamliner has faced concerns, including battery fires that temporarily grounded the planes. Meanwhile, the Boeing 737 Max was involved in two deadly crashes in 2018 and 2019, tied to a flawed flight-control system. Regulatory agencies grounded all Max jets, sparking global scrutiny of Boeing’s safety practices. The fallout included lawsuits, leadership changes, fraud charges, and billion-dollar penalties. Boeing has also been struggling with labor disputes, culminating in a massive strike of 33,000 workers — the first in 16 years — last summer.

Man who sought to abolish the IRS is new leader

Former congressman Billy Long — a man who once championed abolishing the IRS — is now its boss. That’s right, the guy who wanted to cancel taxes is now in charge of collecting them. Although what do you bet this is the year they decide to audit me, now?

Long, a former auctioneer with *checks notes* zero tax administration experience, was confirmed by the Senate in a 53–44 vote, despite a few lingering concerns about his past involvement with a tax credit scheme that turned out to be as real as Bigfoot.

While leading the IRS sounds daunting, especially since the agency is undergoing massive layoffs and lawsuits over taxpayer data mishandling, Long doesn’t seem fazed. During his confirmation hearing, he hinted at “revisiting” the agency’s free electronic tax filing system.

Ahead of the confirmation vote, Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, sent a letter to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles blasting the requisite FBI background check conducted on Long as a political appointee.

“These issues were not adequately investigated,” Wyden wrote. “In fact, the FBI’s investigation, a process dictated by the White House, seemed designed to avoid substantively addressing any of these concerning public reports. It’s almost as if the FBI is unable to read the newspaper.”

Long is not the only Trump appointee to support dismantling an agency he was assigned to manage. Linda McMahon, the current education secretary, has repeatedly said she is trying to put herself out of a job by closing the department. Rick Perry, Trump’s energy secretary during his first term, called for abolishing the Department of Energy.

Today on the ‘gram: Robotaxis spotted in Austin

Post of the day: Concerns about treatment of Alex Padilla

Quote of the Day

Coinbase hires top Obama campaigner for $$$

In a world where the money's pretend but the stakes are real, Coinbase $COIN ( ▲ 0.27% ) is assembling a team of political Avengers to navigate the crypto cosmos and pass some crypto-friendly legislation. They’ve reeled in David Plouffe, Barack Obama’s maestro from his 2008 campaign, to join their global advisory council.

HOPE. CHANGE. BITCOIN.

You know? Meanwhile, Chris LaCivita, who was part of Trump’s 2024 campaign, is also on board, proving that in crypto, bipartisan cooperation is an actual thing. According to Plouffe, “The folks who own crypto are pretty politically competitive…they are swing voters.”

Trump's own crypto enthusiasm has skyrocketed faster than a meme coin, especially with some encouragement from his sons. At a Coinbase policy conference, he humbly accepted the title of “first crypto president,” calling it a “really big honor.”

Unrelatedly Trump has enriched himself to the tune of millions of dollars by pushing crypto-friendly policies. The New York Times rounded up “a comprehensive accounting” of all this six days ago, if you’re interested. Oh, you’re not? Got it.

Should you check your 401(k) today?

👍️ 

Yes. It’s within 2 percent of its February highs, now.

How Nintendo’s Switch 2 broke sales records

Mark Spoonauer with Tom's Guide joined us to talk about the craze behind the latest Nintendo Switch 2 $NTDOF ( ▼ 2.1% ) and why it’s flying off shelves.

"I think what's funny is that it actually got some criticism for not taking enough risks," Spoonauer said. "But I don't feel like there's anything wrong with improving on what was a very successful formula."

Despite the initial hype, questions linger about sustained demand. "Like $449 is not cheap, and some of the games go up to $80," Spoonauer observed, raising the question: "Is this gonna be a sustained demand, or is it just like an initial mania?" 

He also highlighted the competition, with Xbox $MSFT ( ▼ 0.93% ) announcing its first handheld. "I'm thinking, in a ways, Nintendo needed to release this device at this time because the competition is starting to catch up," he said.

Looking ahead, Spoonauer mentioned that some fans are "bummed that we didn't get an initial, like, full-on Mario title at launch, or Zelda for that matter." He's personally excited for the new Donkey Kong game.

What’s up with the stock market?

We spoke with Bob Lang at Explosive Options (sounds like a risky name for a company, but he’s selling stock options, not, you know…molotov cocktails) to find out what’s going on in the stock market. Lang highlighted the strength of small-cap stocks: "This index has expanded really nicely, which normally doesn't do well when interest rates are high or rising," he said.

It’s an anxious time for investors, but of course, that doesn’t mean sitting on the fence.

“When investors and traders start doubting whether the markets can go higher or not, they start coming back and saying, ‘you know what, look, I'm just going to wait for some sort of catalyst or some sort of reason to go ahead and get long this market,’” Lang said. However, by the time these individuals are ready to invest, "the market's already made its move."

Lang advised caution, too, saying the market is "pretty overbought right now." However, he clarified that "overbought is just a condition. It's not a signal." He suggested that investors should "do some selling, raise some cash, have some puts, have some insurance, and lighten up on your positions" as a prudent approach.

Or you could just stick it in an index fund. You know?

Poll of the Day: No Kings Protest

Poll Results: You’re not exactly a forgiving crowd

We asked: Would you forgive Elon?

You answered:

Would you take Elon Musk's regrets seriously if you were Donald Trump?

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Nope. Some things can't be forgiven. (237)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Sure, give the guy a second chance. He's definitely earned one. (77)

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ Yes, but only after making sure he knows his place. (136)

450 Votes via @beehiiv polls