The Upshot
@upshot.nytimes.com
18K followers 780 following 1.3K posts
Data, charts, analysis and games from The New York Times: nytimes.com/upshot
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Reposted by The Upshot
nytimes.com
Elon Musk’s DOGE never came close to cutting as much money by Sept. 30, when the government closes its books on the fiscal year, as he promised. Because its work has been obscured by crude accounting and White House maneuvers, it’s impossible to know how much DOGE actually did cut from the budget.
Not Even Congress Knows How Much Money DOGE Cut
Elon Musk’s team started a behind-the-scenes push for White House control over federal spending that is now an undercurrent of the government shutdown.
nyti.ms
Reposted by The Upshot
nytweather.bsky.social
The storm expected to affect the East Coast this weekend is technically a nor'easter.

But because it won’t be accompanied by the snow that many people associate with nor’easters, some forecasters will avoid calling it that so as not to confuse people.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/09/w...
Storm Could Bring Dramatic Weekend Weather Along the East Coast
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by The Upshot
jswatz.bsky.social
One judge compared their district’s current relationship with the Supreme Court to “a war zone.” Another said the courts were in the midst of a “judicial crisis.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/u...
Federal Judges, Warning of ‘Judicial Crisis,’ Fault Supreme Court’s Emergency Orders
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by The Upshot
donmoyn.bsky.social
Good piece: DOGE was the battering ram, but Russ Vought was the one enabling it, and then hiding it's impacts.
During the months when DOGE was most aggressively canceling contracts, O.M.B. was concealing how it was moving money through to agencies. Mr. Vought removed a legally required public database tracking those records. When a court forced the administration to restore it in August, the spending logs showed O.M.B. exerting unusual control over agency spending, using other documents the public can’t see.

Under a 1974 law, it’s illegal for the administration to “impound” or block money appropriated by Congress (to not spend the funds on those credit cards). But Mr. Vought has made clear he believes that law is unconstitutional and wants to test it in court.
upshot.nytimes.com
Elon Musk’s team started a behind-the-scenes push for White House control over federal spending that is now an undercurrent of the government shutdown.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/u...
Not Even Congress Knows How Much Money DOGE Cut
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by The Upshot
jswatz.bsky.social
“I never really thought about him as being the one who did it,” she said. “But now I’ve really got something to think about, huh?” Trump’s war on solar hurts his own voters. Great @maxinejoselow.bsky.social reporting in the @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/c...
In Georgia, Trump’s Cuts to Solar Projects Hit Some of His Voters
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by The Upshot
meghanhoyer.bsky.social
Parlays have become incredibly popular, with many betting apps encouraging these high-stakes multi-leg bets. But as legs are added, the chance of winning drops faster than the growth of the potential payout - which means sportsbooks have the advantage. Explore the math and and try your own bets:
Americans can’t stop betting parlays. Sportbooks are cashing in.
As betting booms, parlays are accounting for an increasing share of the money wagered on sports, according to a Washington Post analysis of state data.
www.washingtonpost.com
Reposted by The Upshot
donmoyn.bsky.social
Two points:
1) for all the talk of restoring merit, in many cases we are seeing highly qualified people replaced by less qualified White people.
2) Trump and allies have made it harder and harder to explain to students why this is happening.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/u...
Reposted by The Upshot
carlzimmer.com
Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE
nyti.ms
Reposted by The Upshot
gelliottmorris.com
we have been working on this new polling aggregation website for a few months now, and are excited to share it with the world! plenty more features and polls to come.
Reposted by The Upshot
johngramlich.bsky.social
42% of Republicans say Trump has improperly used his office to punish people who say things he doesn't like

40% say he's improperly encouraged federal investigations of his political opponents

31% say he's improperly used his office to enrich himself

www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/...
Dot plot showing partisan differences in Americans' views of how Donald Trump has governed since returning to the White House in January. The chart is based on a September 2025 Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults.
upshot.nytimes.com
Separately, in the administration’s first 200 days, only two of 98 Senate-confirmed appointees to the most senior jobs in government were Black. From NYT Politics:

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/u...
Trump Fires Black Officials From an Overwhelmingly White Administration
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by The Upshot
jonathanfriedman.com
EV’s drive fast, drive smooth, and drive efficiently. And chargers are now everywhere. Awesome @upshot.nytimes.com look at the proliferation of chargers across the country, including a tool to check if your journey is possible www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
See How E.V. Road Trips Went From Impossible to Easy
There are a lot more fast chargers than there used to be. Look up what that could mean for a route near you.
www.nytimes.com
upshot.nytimes.com
If you look at select pollsters, who meet criteria for reliability, the approval numbers for Trump are dismal.

www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by The Upshot
johngramlich.bsky.social
It's hard to overstate the reach of YouTube in the US. 85% of adults use it, as do 90% of teens. A new @pewresearch.org survey shows that 85% of kids 12 and under use it, too (according to their parents) – including a majority of kids under the age of 2. www.pewresearch.org/internet/202...
Bar chart showing that 85% of U.S. children ages 12 or younger watch videos on YouTube, according to their parents. The chart is based on a May 2025 Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults with at least one child age 12 or younger.
upshot.nytimes.com
Charging an electric car battery is usually cheaper than going to the gas pump. But it depends on where you live.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/u...
How Much It Costs to Drive an E.V. and a Gas Car in Every State
www.nytimes.com
upshot.nytimes.com
Do You Have Obamacare or Medicaid Coverage? Tell Us About It.

As major changes to the programs loom, Times reporters want to hear from people who rely on the Affordable Care Act or Medicaid for health insurance. Gift link:

www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/u...
upshot.nytimes.com
‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ has built a delirious new culture of consumption — and trapped users in a vortex of debt.

From the NYT Magazine:

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/07/m...
They Got to Live a Life of Luxury. Then Came the Fine Print.
www.nytimes.com
upshot.nytimes.com
Years ago, progressives defeated a plan to build headquarters for Amazon in Queens. Now a new kind of development is gaining their support. From NYT Metro:

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/n...
In Ashes of Amazon Fight, Tensions Emerge in Huge Bet on N.Y.C. Housing
www.nytimes.com