When the going gets tough, Biden shows his best

No "WITCH HUNT" tweets to see here. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a reasonably accessible way to hobnob with Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - Biden is [a father]( first. - [Secret audio]( is the worst. - Inflation is in [reverse](. - [Gen Z jobs]( might be cursed. Biden’s Best In 1910, when [Sonora Smart Dodd]( saw a Mother’s Day celebration at a Methodist Episcopal Church, she got an idea. Having been raised by a single father who fought in the Civil War and gave everything to his six children after his wife died in childbirth, she felt her dad deserved a day, too. And so, a national holiday was born on the third Sunday in June. President Joe Biden is no stranger to [single fatherhood](, having been thrust into the role right as his political career was taking off: Source: Joe Biden via Instagram In 1972, he was sworn into the US Senate in a hospital room in Delaware, where his sons were recovering from the car crash that killed his wife and daughter. Biden’s life has been marked by these [moments of grief]( — of one son [passing away from cancer](, and another struggling with drug addiction — moments that many Americans can relate to. And as the Biden family gathers for Father’s Day this year, some grief will no doubt hang in the air. But maybe pride will be in the air, too. After his son Hunter was [convicted]( on three felonies for lying on a gun-purchase form six years ago, Biden spoke out: “I am the President, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today.” Hours after the sitting president’s son was found guilty, he gave a rousing [speech on gun control]( that “underscored his deep humanity, decency, and determination to stay focused on the problems of average Americans rather than drown in bitterness, self-pity, revenge and victimization,” Nia-Malika Henderson [writes]( (free read). Biden’s behavior stands in stark contrast to that of former President Donald Trump, who was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records mere weeks ago. “If elected, Trump will try to wipe away his own legal problems,” Nia-Malika says. Biden, meanwhile, is taking the opposite tack. Instead of calling Hunter’s trial a “RIGGED WITCH HUNT,” Biden respected the outcome and ruled out pardoning his son. Not only has his even-keeled response muddied [Republican claims]( of Biden being a puppet master for the “[Thugs and Monsters](” running the Department of Justice, it’s also led to some awkward political moments. For instance: Nia-Malika says the conviction has created “strange bedfellows.” The right-wing rabble-rousing around Hunter’s behavior has been tamped down, with Florida Representative Matt Gaetz [saying]( the “Hunter Biden gun conviction is kinda dumb, tbh” and the Trump camp [calling]( the verdict a “distraction.” Biden’s willingness to [reassert his faith]( in the justice system speaks volumes about his character as a father to his son — and a father figure to this country. Bridgerton: SCOTUS Edition In honor of [Bridgerton]( Season 3 Part 2 being released tomorrow, here’s how I imagine Lady Whistledown would cover the Supreme Court: But real life is not as salacious as a Shonda Rhimes-produced Netflix drama, even if [tweets]( revealing EXCLUSIVE UNDERCOVER AUDIO of various Supreme Court justices lead you to believe otherwise. First, some background on the annual the Supreme Court Historical Society dinner: According to Noah Feldman, who has previously spoken at the event, it “is a reasonably accessible way for a non-billionaire to hobnob with the justices: Anyone who buys a $500 ticket can attend,” he [writes]( (free read). And since the off-the-record event literally takes place in the halls of the Supreme Court, “the justices are comfortably at home (it’s their office, after all).” In that light, the [secret recordings]( of liberal documentarian Lauren Windsor look like a Whistledown-style ambush, plain and simple. Noah says the false-flag journalist not only pretended she held beliefs about God to get Alito to agree with her, she pushed his wife — the political flag flyer — to reveal more of her biases. “The novelty of the stunt, however, shouldn’t distract us from the real takeaway, which is precisely that the recordings yielded nothing we didn’t already know,” he writes. Read [the whole thing](. Telltale Jobs Charts Did you hear that? It was the collective sigh of relief from monetary policy watchers around the world now that CPI-Fed Day is over. Although Jonathan Levin was [expecting]( the economic data double-header to be a doozy for markets, it went much smoother than it could have. Underlying US inflation appears to be [cooling]( on a broad level — an [encouraging signal]( for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell (and maybe your [savings account](). But Conor Sen [believes]( the Fed will still need to contend with a two-speed job market, which paints “a sobering picture about the [job prospects of young people]( and those who have been seeking work for many months. These two groups find themselves in an environment where employers are reluctant to let go of existing workers but, on the flip side, are also wary of hiring new staff.” No wonder why Betsey Stevenson [says]( fewer workers are willing to quit their jobs. Source: Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey Speaking of layoffs: During Covid-19, US employers were anything but reluctant to let go of workers. Justin Fox [notes]( how widespread job dismissals during the pandemic were followed by a rapid economic comeback which delivered big gains in output per hour worked. The opposite happened in Europe, where far fewer layoffs occurred and productivity stalled as a result. “The US path through the pandemic was certainly much more disruptive of people’s lives,” Justin writes, but it helped the nation get a leg-up on productivity. Sources: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development; Eurostat; US Bureau of Labor Statistics Further Reading EU leaders need to [pay attention]( to the populist right. — Bloomberg’s editorial board Please [stop comparing]( Hong Kong and Singapore. They are totally different. — Shuli Ren The [knives are out in Texas]( for Republican Speaker of the House Dade Phelan. — Mary Ellen Klas A new drug could [slow Alzheimer’s](. But can patients get their hands on it? — Lisa Jarvis Billions of dollars are at risk if [China’s coast guard]( were to quarantine Taiwan. — Karishma Vaswani TikTok’s [disinformation rabbit hole]( harms the democratic process. — Lionel Laurent Mexico’s outgoing president is making [Claudia Sheinbaum’s life]( a lot harder. — Juan Pablo Spinetto The Labour Party promises [1.5 million homes]( in five years. Who will build them? — Matthew Brooker Oliver Blume’s [dual-CEO role]( at Porsche and Volkswagen is becoming harder to justify. — Chris Bryant ICYMI Sony is [acquiring]( Alamo Drafthouse. Pope Francis [can’t stop]( saying gay slurs. Women are [fleeing]( organized religion. I [wonder why](. Americans can now [renew passports]( online. An AI bot is (sort of) [running for mayor]( in Wyoming. Kickers Your summer needs a [smoothie keg](. We’re all thinking about [Paul Mescal’s]( Roman Empire. Wall Street companies are big on [chess battles](. Celtics players are studying [killer whales](. Notes: Please send spiked smoothies and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](