By Team Zeteo: Zeteo’s weekly round-up, documenting the growth of authoritarianism in Trump’s second term.
Headlines and subtitles from Zeteo, with the author of each post. Read on Zeteo.
BLS counted 2,677,000 federal employees in October 2026, 333,000 (11.1%) fewer than in January 2025. PEPI tracks 5 presidential actions aimed at government workers; 3 were carried out in full. Since the newest, on June 10, 2026, the count is down 8,000. Civic Forecast calculation from BLS series CES9091000001 and PEPI's ledger of actions aimed at government workers; timing, not cause.
Open in the app144,744 license plate readers were on DeFlock's map on November 6, 2026, against 341,784,859 residents across 51 states and districts. Most per resident: Georgia, 91.5 per 100,000; fewest: Alaska, 4.2. Civic Forecast calculation from DeFlock's OpenStreetMap-compiled camera extract (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL 1.0) over Census ACS 2025 population. Mapped cameras, not all that exist.
Open in the appThe median two-bedroom home costs $1,263 a month, 19.2% of a full-time paycheck, below the 30% the federal government treats as affordable. Average private-sector pay was $38 an hour in October 2026, or $6,587 a month before tax. Civic Forecast calculation from Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings and HUD Fair Market Rents (2027). Gross of tax, on a 2,080-hour year.
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