The first 100 days of Trump’s second term have unfolded within a radically reshaped information environment. In this episode, the Baron team discusses the key Super Influencers shaping the Trump White House, explores what they reveal about the Administration’s agenda, and looks ahead to the next 100 days.

President Trump’s return to the White House already has sent shockwaves through “permanent Washington.” The changes underway constitute the greatest political reform effort attempted in decades. Amid this upheaval and uncertainty, business leaders must navigate unfamiliar challenges and deploy unconventional solutions. This episode of the Political Risk Brief examines the early 20th-century precedent to this revival in American populism. The Baron team then describes the firm’s specific approach to managing risk as the current “Revolution in Political Affairs” attempts to overthrow the old order.

Election 2024 already has reshaped the American political landscape. The Baron team details the “four great betrayals” that produced the most remarkable presidential campaign in decades. Now, once and future President Donald J. Trump leads a fractious coalition on the Right, and the business community must navigate an unfamiliar and changing competitive environment.

As the country hurtles toward a presidential election, surprising uncertainty surrounds the specific policy preferences of a possible second Trump Administration. In this episode, the Baron team highlights trends from the firm’s recent Influencer Analytics study of the most important outside influencers around President Trump and his campaign. Based on Baron’s collection and assessment of more than 16,000 reference citations made by former President Trump and dozens of campaign advisors, the conversation explores the information environment around the Trump Campaign as issues critical to American business – especially taxes, trade, and antitrust – hang in the balance.

The Baron team delves into the political stability of Europe and examines the future of the European project. Based on Baron principal Jonathan Baron’s recent trip to the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, the discussion also covers potential scenarios for the revitalization or decline of Europe as an important consideration for America’s approach to geopolitics.

The denizens of “Gucci Gulch” have fallen on hard times. For even the largest lobbying firms, average monthly retainers have declined during the last decade. To add insult to injury, this lobbying recession has occurred amidst unprecedented overall prosperity for Washington, D.C. Episode 22 of the Political Risk Brief podcast explores this curious trend and corporate political competition in an era of lobbying stalemate.

Leaders in government and business should recognize America’s social capital collapse as the most serious threat to the nation’s political stability and economic strength. In this episode, Baron analyzes the policy implications of a nation “falling apart” and explores potential solutions.

Even as the U.S.-China economic relationship remains pivotal, Beijing increasingly denies outsiders visibility into the nation’s intentions and governance. Previous approaches to understanding and shaping Beijing’s views – whether utilizing either high-prestige “fixers,” or on-the-ground data sources – have proven unreliable. In episode 20 of the Political Risk Brief, the Baron team presents the firm’s recently released Influencer Analytics research on the people, businesses, and institutions that matter to Beijing.