Stephanie Willerton

Strategic comms for nonprofits. Former: PBS NewsHour, US Senate, Ketchum, tech cos. Mizzou & Fletcher mafias. 📸 of my 👴, a WWII ✈️🧭, rescued by 🇫🇷.

[Sawyer Merritt @SawyerMerritt]

Wow, the S&P Dow Jones Indices has just officially announced that they will NOT be changing their inclusion rules to make it easier for “MegaCap” companies (such as @SpaceX) to be fast-tracked into the S&P 500.

Their reasoning:
"S&P DJI determined that exceptions to the financial viability, seasoning, and IWF requirements should not be granted solely based on market capitalization. The decision not to adopt the proposed exceptions preserves core index principles by maintaining consistent application of these key requirements. Although there may be trade-offs between strict adherence to these eligibility requirements and broad representativeness, the current methodology provides substantial market coverage and sector balance. As a result, the indices can continue to meet their stated objectives while preserving their role as representative and investable benchmarks for the U.S. equity market.

No changes will be made to the eligibility criteria including financial viability screens, seasoning period, or minimum IWF, for the S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400, or S&P SmallCap 600 as a result of the S&P Dow Jones Indices consultation on the treatment of MegaCap companies. Accordingly, there will be no changes to existing methodology for this index family."

This means that the earliest @SpaceX could be eligible to be added to the S&P 500 would now be June 2027.

The requirements that will now remain in place are:
• No changes to S&P 500 eligibility rules for mega-cap companies.
• Mega-cap companies will still need to wait 12 months after their IPO before being considered for S&P 500 inclusion.
• S&P will not waive profitability requirements for mega-cap companies. The company must have positive GAAP net income in the most recent quarter, and the sum of the most recent four consecutive quarters.
• S&P will not waive minimum public float requirements for mega-cap companies. At least 10% of a company's shares must be publicly tradable ("free float").

The S&P rejected proposals that would have:
• Reduced the IPO seasoning period from 12 months to 6 months
• Waived profitability requirements
• Waived minimum public float requirements

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@capitolhunters @MollyJongFast do they also have a military purpose? That would make more sense.

[NBC News @NBCNews]

The CIA is placing several senior officials on administrative leave over their handling of a high-ranking officer who had $40 million in gold bars stashed at his home, according to three people familiar with the decisions. https://t.co/vFoOPOoHRy

[Sheldon Whitehouse @SenWhitehouse]

Todd Blanche was behind the Epstein Files cover-up, the rotten cop-beaters slush fund, and a sleazy tax fraud amnesty for the Trump family and businesses; all while causing an unprecedented "fraud on the court" investigation of the Department... 🧵

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

More than half of the publicly identified donors to President Trump’s White House ballroom project have won new or expanded federal contracts worth more than $50 billion, according to a report from a government watchdog group. https://t.co/wEAqxMA7AG

[Mark Warner @MarkWarner]

NEW: I just introduced an amendment that would block Bill Pulte from being DNI.

If even half of my Republican colleagues that have privately voiced concerns about him vote for this… it should pass.

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

Trump is embracing his inner Mussolini.

[Olivier Knox @OKnox]

Not DC. That's the "Vittoriano" in Rome, a monument to King Victor Emmanuel II and a regular backdrop for Mussolini's military parades. (The flowers in the foreground are red, white and green because: 🇮🇹).

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@NicolleDWallace

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

We currently have a gaping hole where the East Wing used to be, and the supervisor of the project is in Russia showing off his plans to Putin. Wake up, America!

[max seddon @maxseddon]

US fine arts commissioner Rodney Mims Cook Jr. shows off Trump's new White House ballroom at Putin's flagship conference in St Petersburg.

[House Judiciary Dems @HouseJudiciary]

BREAKING: RM @RepRaskin unveils a three-pronged legislative fix to the Trump-Blanche enrichment scheme for criminals and super pardon for Trump, his family and their businesses. 

Raskin's plan would KILL the Blanche super pardon and ensure that claims against the federal government are resolved through legitimate judicial proceedings available to all Americans for all violations of constitutional rights by government agents.

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@SenatorDurbin what's the next move? we can't allow this ballroom to be taxpayer funded.

[The Daily Beast @thedailybeast]

Trump’s favorite architect is in Russia parading designs for the president’s D.C. vanity projects at Putin’s knockoff version of Davos.
https://t.co/fDStBy08va

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@thedailybeast The Albanians can muster a multi-day protest, but we're going to sit quietly while this happens to our White House? https://t.co/qAbWcoE3nV

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

We currently have a gaping hole where the East Wing used to be, and the supervisor of the project is in Russia showing off his plans to Putin. Wake up, America!

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@SenJackyRosen https://t.co/qAbWcoE3nV

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

We currently have a gaping hole where the East Wing used to be, and the supervisor of the project is in Russia showing off his plans to Putin. Wake up, America!

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@SenJackyRosen Please clarify if the project will continue if Senate withholds funds? Will the gaping hole sit there? What is the plan?

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@hillhulse @lukebroadwater @mikeabramsnyt @haeyoun https://t.co/lAl7LQRDFY

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@hillhulse @lukebroadwater @mikeabramsnyt @haeyoun

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

Celebrate the wins.

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

The Kennedy Center ordered employees to remove President Trump’s name from the performing arts venue, strip all references from signs, brochures, the website and other materials — and to update email signatures and letterhead immediately. https://t.co/1J2FEPH33q

[Stephanie Willerton @stephwillerton]

@ddiamond @washingtonpost it's unclear to me whether the ballroom build will continue now that Senate has pulled funding?

[Ryan Goodman @rgoodlaw]

“This guy has absolutely no business working in the intelligence area.”

“You are basically crippling the DNI by virtue of this appointment.”

- Former Defense Secretary, Former CIA Director Leon Panetta, speaking candidly on Bill Pulte appointment to head intelligence agency

[Michael T. Lester @MichaelTLester]

Yesterday I told you the government is pulling 900 ocean monitoring instruments out of the water.

Here is the part that should make every American angry, regardless of where you stand on climate.

Congress voted to fund this network. Not once. Twice. The Trump administration proposed cutting it by 80 percent in 2025. Congress restored the money. Proposed the same cut in 2026. Congress restored the money again.

So the administration labeled it a "descope" and ordered the instruments pulled anyway.

That is not a budget disagreement. That is an executive branch telling the legislative branch that its votes do not matter. The public paid for this infrastructure. Congress protected it. One office in Washington decided the public should not have it.

This is the pattern I document in 𝑾𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒂𝒅 𝑮𝒖𝒚𝒔. It is not about left or right. It is about who decides what Americans are allowed to know about their own planet.

Who should make that call?