The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Episode 3588: Tenant Strike; Not Just a 'Vibecession' w/ Isi Breen, Yusra Murad & Mike Konczal
Date: February 25, 2026

EPISODE OVERVIEW

This episode tackles two main topics at the heart of current American politics:

1. The Twin Cities Tenants Rent Strike, with guests Isi Breen and Yusra Murad, spotlighting organized tenant response to recent federal actions and the push for eviction protections and rent relief in Minneapolis and beyond.
2. An exploration of the so-called “Vibecession”—the disconnect between positive economic indicators and negative public sentiment—with economist Mike Konczal, Senior Director at the Economic Security Project.

The episode also briefly recaps and savages Donald Trump’s record-long, yet substance-thin, State of the Union address the previous night.

Note: All ads, promos, and non-content sections are omitted.

1. Trump’s State of the Union: “107 Minutes of Pure Gruel”

[00:12 – 13:45]

• Sam’s Reaction:

  • Sam Seder delivers a withering review of Trump’s State of the Union, calling it “the longest, most boring and predictable State of the Union in history” (03:00).
  • Trump spent significant time spotlighting the men’s Olympic hockey team, blowing out the microphone and conjuring “a combination of a telethon and a trade association award dinner” (06:40), using audience callouts to gin up sentiment.
  • Quote (Trump, 09:57):
    “Our country is winning again. ...People are asking me, please, please, please, Mr. President, we're winning too much. ...But now we're winning too much. And I say, no, no, no, you're going to win again. You're going to win big.”

• Technical Glitches and Awkwardness:

  • Trump’s audio was “crispy and fried” for the rest of the speech. Sam likens the viewing experience to “being a moderator for Facebook, where you have to look at horrible things as part of your job” (11:22).
  • Most memorable content was the near-exclusion of substance—recitations of “winners,” recognition of individuals, but a “garbage fire” with “nothing new introduced…no attempt to recognize any type of the economic issues” (06:00–08:00).

• Protests from the Audience:

  • Rep. Ilhan Omar shouted, “You have killed Americans!” during Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric (13:45).
  • Rep. Al Green held up a sign, “Black people are not apes,” in response to Trump’s previously posted videos (13:00).

2. The Twin Cities Tenants Rent Strike

[24:18 – 41:03]
Guests: Isi Breen & Yusra Murad

Genesis & Context

• Since December, Minneapolis is under “one of the largest, most violent and long lasting federal occupations of any American city in recent history” (24:18 – Isi Breen).
• Immigrant communities are particularly affected: thousands unable to work, losing income, falling behind on rent, facing eviction due to federal ICE presence and economic disruptions.

Quote (Isi Breen, 24:18):
“This mobilization toward a potential rent strike on March 1st, I think really represents the hunger and readiness among people in Minneapolis to take serious action...to compel our elected leaders to step into their power and make decisive decisions toward eviction protections and rent relief.”

Demands & Political Asks

• State and City Policy Levers:

  • Governor Tim Walz can enact a “peacetime state of emergency”—used during COVID—to issue new eviction moratorium and direct relief (26:49, Yusra Murad).
  • There’s a bill for a 90-day eviction moratorium plus $75 million renter relief, but it’s stalled in the Republican-controlled State House.
  • Mayor Jacob Frey has unilateral powers to block evictions and direct aid; City Councilor Robin Wansley is pushing to extend pre-eviction notice periods from 30 to 90 days.

• Eligibility and Process:

  • Relief would focus on those unable to work or who lost jobs due to the occupation and subsequent “eight weeks of lost wages” (30:07, Yusra Murad).
  • Mechanisms vary—statewide moratoriums are universal; relief funds require applications.

Coalition & Participation

• Support includes labor unions, healthcare workers, faith and school communities, tenant organizations, and small immigrant-owned businesses (31:49, Isi Breen).
• Hundreds of tenants already mobilized; new pledges daily, exact numbers withheld due to evolving campaign.

Quote (Isi Breen, 31:49):
“We have in mind not just protections for this particular moment, but how to build a deeper, more protective foundation around housing stability...for inevitable future political or economic shocks.”

How to Get Involved

• For Twin Cities/Greater Minnesota Residents:
  • Take the pledge at twincitiestenants.org, phone-bank, join local trainings and meetings (36:12, Isi Breen).
• For Out-of-State Supporters:
  • Sign up for phone banking through the website—“close to one in three people that we speak to sign up to take the pledge...a shocking level of success” (37:51, Yusra Murad).

3. Why “The Economy Feels Bad”—Not Just a ‘Vibecession’

[43:25 – 72:27]
Guest: Mike Konczal, Economic Security Project

The Vibe Session Dilemma

• Despite positive macroeconomic numbers (low unemployment, rising median incomes), Americans report deep dissatisfaction (“consumer sentiment at 2008 financial crisis levels”).
• “Affordability” has emerged as a political rallying cry, especially among progressives and urban movements.

Quote (Mike Konczal, 44:36):
“People are really upset...and going into the last year with the Trump administration, people actually got more upset about the economy. ...In many indicators, people are at the financial crisis of 2008 levels.”

Explaining the Disconnect

The “Money Illusion” Story

• Economists argue that people are “confused” because prices and incomes both rose; in theory, they should break even (“money illusion”). But this ignores category-level specifics.
• Essentials like housing, food, and healthcare ballooned much faster than other expenses.
  • Working-class and lower-income households spend a larger share on these essentials, making real-life cost-of-living feel much worse than averages suggest.

Quote (Konczal, 48:18):
“The price of essentials went up a lot more… For people really depending on those...they’re not making it up, they’re not confused, they’re spending more to get less of things that they need to survive.”

• Fixed monthly expenses (housing, insurance, utilities, even vet services) are unavoidable and rising. Sam notes, “the stuff that we really have to spend on...we may not even get to enjoy the savings” from lower costs elsewhere (51:01, 52:13).

Planning, Stability, and Uncertainty

• Inflation makes it harder to plan for major life milestones: “It makes it hard to plan...how am I going to start a business, buy a house, have a family?” (52:13, Konczal).

Intergenerational/Distributional Dynamics

• Younger people face a far higher unemployment rate and lack access to homeownership and wealth-building that benefited older generations.
• “K-shaped economy”: the older and wealthy are insulated/dominant in spending, while young and non-homeowners struggle (60:32–61:26, Konczal).

Quote (Konczal, 61:26):
“It’s a really brutal housing market… Rents are up dramatically. It’s very hard for you to imagine how you could build up enough to get a down payment.”

Policy and Political Responses

• Current Administration:

  • Trump’s response: Dismisses affordability concerns as “a made up Democrat word,” shows zero empathy (57:49).
  • Imposes new 10% tariffs and poorly targeted economic policies, compounding future inflation and uncertainty, especially with looming Medicaid cuts and rising healthcare premiums.

• Democratic and Progressive Efforts:

  • Mike highlights the Mamdani campaign in New York as an innovative model focusing on housing policy (rent control, expanding supply, prioritizing affordability).
  • “There’s some innovation happening there and I think there’s going to be more. On healthcare, we kind of know what we have to do, we just got to do it. We know other countries figure out health care. We have not.” (63:34, Konczal)

Private Equity & Service Cost Run-Ups

• Seder points to veterinary and dental services, dominated by private equity, whose price gouging now hits families hard.
• Nursing homes: “elderly people die when nursing homes are taken over by private equity because they just cut services to the bone, jack up rates...” (68:48, Konczal).
• Local/state policy can sometimes push back; AELP (American Economic Liberties Project) is cited as a resource.

4. Closing Moments & Notable Quotes

• Sam on the Trump Administration:
  “Honestly the least competent fascists that I think have been around. It is one of their sort of hallmarks” ([70:06])

• On Housing Crisis Spreading:
  “Problems we once associated with like New York or Washington D.C. or LA...that problem is everywhere now. It’s in the exurbs, medium-sized cities, the Midwest. ...They’re no longer isolated to a handful of blue areas.” ([70:57], Konczal)

• Breaking News (72:11):
  “Lawrence Summers to resign from Harvard as university reviews his Epstein ties. … Manifesting!” (Sam & Konczal)

TIMESTAMPS & HIGHLIGHTS

| Segment | Content | Key Quotes/Notes | |---------|---------|------------------| | 00:12–13:45 | Trump State of the Union recap | “107 minutes of pure gruel.” “Garbage fire” (06:00+); [09:57] Trump’s “We’re winning too much” riff | | 24:18–41:03 | Twin Cities Tenant Strike | “Represents the hunger ...to wield power ...for eviction protections and rent relief” (24:18, Breen) | | 43:25–72:27 | Mike Konczal on economic vibes | “People are really upset ...at the financial crisis of 2008 levels.” (44:36, Konczal) “Affordability” focus, material hardships detailed. | | 68:48–70:57 | Private equity and service cost crisis | “Elderly people die when nursing homes are taken over by private equity…” | | 72:11 | BREAKING: Summers resigns amid Epstein probe | “Manifesting!” |

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The gap between economic data and lived reality is real and urgent. The episode demolishes the “people are just confused” narrative.
• Economic pain centers on unavoidably rising costs for essentials—housing, food, insurance, healthcare—while wage gains are uneven and do not keep up for most.
• Grassroots organizing is filling the leadership vacuum—shown by the Twin Cities rent strike and solidarity campaigns, which offer a model for future crisis response and coalition-building.
• Political rhetoric from the Trump administration is starkly out of touch, while progressive efforts focus on concrete affordability measures and structural reform.
• The long-term effects of private equity monopolization in critical services are a silent but growing source of hardship and policy concern.

RECOMMENDED ACTIONS & LINKS

• For more on the Twin Cities Rent Strike, take the pledge or sign up for phone banking: twincitiestenants.org
• For anti-private equity organizing/resources: American Economic Liberties Project
• For economic analysis: mikekonczal.com

Summary by: The Majority Report Expert Podcast Summarizer, maintaining the irreverent and incisive tone of your hosts.