DAVE FRIEDMAN: The Energy Layer of the AI Stack: AI’s scaling ceiling isn’t algorithms. It’s megawatts, metallurgy, and lead times.
A lot of people’s mental model of AI is something like Facebook. It’s probably closer to something like SpaceX or Tesla. I agree on “go nuclear or go home” when it comes to meeting AI power demands.
ARREST HER, HOMAN: L.A.-Area Vice Mayor Encourages Gangs to Fight ICE.
MATT TAIBBI: Optimism: The Last Taboo.
OPEN THREAD: Hump Day.
THE CUOMO COMEBACK IS DEAD — and So Might Be the Old Democratic Party:
Cuomo thought he could stage a comeback by mimicking Donald Trump — portraying himself as a victim of political witch hunt, wronged by the media and betrayed by his own party. But unlike Trump, Cuomo doesn’t have a loyal base. Trump’s return worked because he never stopped speaking for ordinary Americans. Cuomo, by contrast, speaks only for himself. New Yorkers saw through it. His campaign for mayor was a transparent play for national relevance, a stepping stone for some future presidential run. He wasn’t running to fix New York City — he was running to bolster his resume.
Even his brother, former CNN host Chris Cuomo, couldn’t save him. After being booted from the network for advising Andrew behind the scenes, chameleon Chris tried to reinvent himself as an independent media figure on NewsNation. The supposedly fair and balanced “Fredo” fell flat too. The Cuomo brand is tainted, and both brothers seem unwilling to admit that the public — and their party — has moved on.
The larger story here, though, isn’t just Cuomo’s failure. It’s what Mamdani’s victory reveals about the Democratic Party’s growing gap. This isn’t just about New York City — it’s about the future of their party nationwide. Mamdani’s wing of the party doesn’t just want to push a few policies leftward. They see people like Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi, and yes, Andrew Cuomo, as obstacles — relics of a Democratic Party built on compromise, corporate donors, and incremental change.
As Yoda would say, “No, there is another…:”
LEADERSHIP: NYC's only hope to avoid an Islamic Socialist nightmare is to re-elect Mayor Adams. The good news is that he's smarter than the average bear, just 2 years ago he paid McKinzey $4M to come up with a solution to leaking trash bags, rolling out the city's 1st trash can. pic.twitter.com/evGs7SnKEz
— @amuse (@amuse) June 25, 2025
THE NEW SPACE RACE: Fourth Axiom Space private astronaut mission launched to ISS.
On a SpaceX Crew Dragon, of course.
BANE SMILES: Zohran Mamdani’s New York: legal prostitution, handcuffed cops and socialism.
For years, the Democratic machine in New York managed to contain its most radical flank with centrist figures like Eric Adams and, before him, Michael Bloomberg. But that firewall has crumbled. Mamdani, backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, the Working Families Party, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is ushering in a new era – one that reads more like a utopian manifesto than a functioning blueprint for the nation’s largest metropolis.
Under Zohran’s New York, we’re looking at government-owned grocery stores, free public transit and permanent political handcuffs on the NYPD. Prostitution? He’s on record supporting full decriminalization. At this point, it wouldn’t be surprising if the next proposal is for city-run brothels.
Some may argue these are bold, visionary policies. But history tells a different story. When governments take over basic market functions – like grocery stores – it rarely ends with stocked shelves and smiling citizens*. Look no further than Venezuela, where state-run food distribution led not to equity but to rationing, shortages, and corruption. The idea that New York City, already struggling with record-high costs of living and regulatory overreach, would somehow succeed where socialist regimes have failed is either delusional or deeply cynical.
Watching the baristas of Manhattan unite, having nothing to lose but their Air Jordans, I think we’re all excited about New York’s Great Leap Forward. As New Deal author Stuart Chase famously said before FDR’s policies prolonged the Depression by seven years, “Why should the Russians have all the fun remaking the world?”
Or to put it another way:
* Boris Yeltsin could not be reached for comment: When Boris Yeltsin went grocery shopping in Houston. “‘When I saw those shelves crammed with hundreds, thousands of cans, cartons and goods of every possible sort, for the first time I felt quite frankly sick with despair for the Soviet people,’ Yeltsin wrote. ‘That such a potentially super-rich country as ours has been brought to a state of such poverty! It is terrible to think of it.’”
MORE:
Show this video to Zohran. A Cuban seeing Costco for the first time gets emotional witnessing the sheer abundance. People who’ve actually lived under socialism are often the most moved by what markets can create. Capitalism is a miracle, actually. pic.twitter.com/sxxoG7W123
— Billy Binion (@billybinion) June 25, 2025
GOODER AND HARDER, CALIFORNIA: Gas prices set to surge across California next week.
California drivers are bracing for a substantial increase in gas prices starting July 1, as multiple new taxes and regulations take effect. Experts are divided on just how high prices will climb, but some estimates suggest they could reach up to $6 per gallon.
The first factor contributing to the price hike is an increase in the state’s excise tax, which will rise by 1.6 cents per gallon. However, this is just the beginning of the cost increases.
A more significant impact is expected from the Low Carbon Fuel Standard program, approved by the state’s air resources board in November. This program aims to reduce California’s greenhouse gas emissions, but will result in stricter regulations on gas producers.
* * * * * * * *
These estimates could worsen if tensions in the Middle East escalate, potentially pushing prices even higher. Additionally, the closure of two refineries – one this year and another next year – could further impact prices. [State Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones] warns that these factors combined could push gas prices up to $8 per gallon by the end of 2026.
Flashback to the L.A. Times in July of 2008: The joy of $8 gas.
I asked ChatGPT 4o if it could create a version of Gavin Newsom recreating the famous “I did that!” Irish democracy (classical reference) stickers from the first couple of years of the Biden administration, and it got halfway through it (with an image onscreen) before the error message popped up, “Thanks for sharing the image! Since your request involves creating a new image of a recognizable public figure (Gavin Newsom) in a specific pose, I can’t generate it due to our content policies on impersonation and manipulation of real individuals’ likenesses.”
Grok spat this out in about 10 seconds. The face seems a little off, but it does look more humanoid than the real Newsom:
THIS SEEMS UNFAIR: Semen Allergies Aren’t Rare After All (And Yes, Men Have Them Too). Especially for the men who are allergic to their own semen.
COLOR ME UNSURPRISED: Smoking may speed cognitive decline.
PRODUCED IN THE USA: Toniiq NAD+ Supplement 1500mg – Ultra High Strength NAD Supplement. #CommissionEarned
THERE ARE NEWER DRUGS ON THE WAY THAT DON’T TO THIS: Studies exploring muscle loss from GLP-1 drugs.
I’d like to see a medication that combines fat loss with myostatin inhibition to promote muscle growth. And apparently there’s one on the way!
So Americans will be skinny and hot. And no doubt leftists will complain.
IRAN’S BOMB DAMAGE ASSESSMENT: Iran’s Stunning Admission That Proves Trump Was Right, CNN Most Hurt.
#JOURNALISM: The NYT warns on “proactive peeing.”
MADE IN THE USA: SimplyVital Collagen, Retinol & Hyaluronic Acid Cream – Anti-Aging Face Moisturizer. #CommissionEarned
HOLLYWOOD’S SLOW-MOTION SUICIDE (CONT’D): These Stars Slammed Trump Voters, Not Just Trump.
Popular entertainment, how does it work?
AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD:
Hamas Claims Responsibility For NYC Mayoral Primary https://t.co/VIxhjE5j2R pic.twitter.com/iUsi928hI1
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) June 25, 2025
WAS IT OVER WHEN CORNEL WEST BOMBED PEARL HARBOR?!
250 million people died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Dude… I really hope he misspokepic.twitter.com/REW5rFYF5B
— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) June 24, 2025
Cornel West looks even more like a Batman supervillain next to the unruffled Scott Jennings and his wry grin to the camera:
5 REASONS TRUMP SHOULD TELL NOBEL WHERE TO SHOVE IT: Yes, Trump has done wonders on the foreign policy scene in recent months, brokering ceasefires between India and Pakistan, as well as Iran and Israel. And so it’s no surprise he’s nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
But here are four reasons, according to Issues & Insights, Trump should withdraw his nomination: Al Gore, Jimmy Carter, Yasser Arafat and Rigobertha Menchu. And here’s the fifth:
“But more embarrassing than all of these (as well as other dubious winners such as Le Duc Tho, Henry Kissinger, the European Union, Mikhail Gorbachev – not Reagan – etc.) is that Trump would be accepting a prize that was given to Barack Obama nine months into his presidency on the basis of …. absolutely nothing.”
FLASHBACK: Bring Back Our Knobs: Analog vs. Digital.
PROPOSAL TO PUT CONGRESS ON A DAVE RAMSEY BUDGET PLAN: And if either Congress or the President screw it up, it’s no more tax-paid junkets for you! It’s my latest for The Washington Stand.
WHITE PROGRESSIVES RUIN EVERYTHING FOR EVERYBODY:
The whitest party in NYC is the Zohran election night party. This is incredible. I’ve never seen so little diversity in NY. pic.twitter.com/Bu7z3tlB1L
— Marina Medvin 🇺🇸 (@MarinaMedvin) June 25, 2025
InstaPundit is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.