The Indicator from Planet Money

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Catching up with a fired federal worker, a shrimper and a fraudster

After a firehose of economic news in 2025, we wanted to check back on some of the people we’ve heard from on our show. Today, we check in with a former federal employee caught in the Trump administration's wood chipper, a Louisiana shrimper on Trump’s tariffs and an update on a financial aid scam. Related episodes: Why do shrimpers like tariffs? What’s the long-term cost of federal layoffs? A big bank’s mistake, explained  For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.   Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

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  Tariffs. Consumer sentiment. Cape Ratio. Pick The Indicator of The Year!

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  The ghosts of Obamacare past, present and future

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  Will new loan limits lower the cost of grad school?

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  Can American cities grow AND stay affordable?

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  Nvidia chips for China, frozen Russian funds, and a lot of self-checkout s…

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  How to make $35 trillion ... disappear

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  Bitcoin miners are betting on AI over crypto

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  How a former Fed vice chair would approach rate cuts

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  Take a penny, leave a penny, get rid of the penny

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  Chips up, rent down, and are people really skimping on holiday gifts?

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  A little doomsday feeling is weighing on the economy

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  How Japan’s new prime minister is jolting markets

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  What would it mean to actually refund the tariffs?

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  Why the US chose not to have a passenger train system like Europe

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  Moochers, monopolists and market-based poverty help