High Highs (Bad), Low Lows (Good) | Fetterman's Advice | 2/17/26

The A.M. Update

Aaron McIntire

News, Daily News, Politics

4.9 • 833 Ratings

🗓️ 17 February 2026

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Aaron McIntire dives into a mix of economic extremes with housing affordability hitting unprecedented levels and the federal workforce shrinking to historic lows. He highlights a major ecological mess in the nation's capital involving a massive sewage spill into the Potomac, drawing sharp political reactions. Discussions cover heated exchanges at the Munich Security Conference, advances in mobile nuclear tech for military use, questionable policy ideas abroad like taxing unrealized gains, and candid takes from figures across the spectrum on where the Democratic Party stands amid ongoing cultural and political battles. Plus, a programming note on upcoming absences.

The AM Update, Aaron McIntire, housing affordability crisis, federal workforce cuts, Potomac sewage spill, Hillary Clinton Munich, nuclear reactor transport, AOC commentary, unrealized gains tax Netherlands, John Fetterman interview, Democratic Party future, Stephen A Smith politics

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's Tuesday, February 17, 26, some high highs and low lows, a metaphor alert in the capital,
0:06.8	and going nuclear next on the AM update.
0:12.4	It's official now, according to analysis from a company called Reventure Consulting,
0:18.2	analysis of consumer price index data relative to housing prices housing
0:24.3	prices that cost to just live in this country is at its highest level in recorded
0:30.9	US history recorded US history sits right now at an average of about $200, almost $300,000. This is, of course,
0:41.5	adjusted for inflation. That is the high high we're talking about. How about this low, low?
0:47.5	The U.S. federal workforce has fallen to its lowest level in at least a decade, according to
0:53.0	government data published recently.
0:55.3	Cuts, of course, hit every major public agency in the federal government.
1:00.1	By some measures, the level of federal workforce is at its lowest since the 60s, the
1:07.4	1960s.
1:09.1	It was pretty much always throughout my life, or give or take a few hundred
1:13.2	thousand, around three million public employees. Now that number is down around 2.6 million.
1:20.1	Some recent random statistics to lead off this morning that I saw and caught my eye yesterday.
1:26.2	Also, this caught my eye as well.
1:28.8	Metaphor alert in the Capitol. Right now at six. Urgent warnings to stay out of the Potomac
1:33.8	tonight. The very latest from officials on that catastrophic sewage spill.
1:38.5	That's WDCA in Washington, D.C. There was a massive sewage spill in Maryland that seeped into the Potomac
1:48.5	River. Unbelievable. Now, apologies to that anchor. Even before this sewage spill, why would you
1:55.7	ever go into the Potomac River or into D.C. in general? I mean, I've been there before and I'm wondering the same thing
2:02.0	myself. This has gotten so much attention. Even President Trump posted this on Truth Social yesterday.
	...

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