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E12: Biden wins, Pfizer vaccine, markets rip, Trump's next act, COVID endgame scenarios & more

Follow the crew: https://twitter.com/chamath https://linktr.ee/calacanis https://twitter.com/DavidSacks https://twitter.com/friedberg Follow the pod: https://twitter.com/theallinpod https://linktr.ee/allinpodcast Show Notes: 0:00 Besties reflect on the election night special, comparing Trump's case to Al Gore's in 2000 4:44 Was this election devastating for extreme-ism in politics? 12:13 Pfizer vaccine, withholding the vaccine from the political news cycle 21:54 COVID endgame scenarios 28:45 Public markets ripping, gridlock great for the economy 34:43 Analyzing exit polls, death of identity politics 50:57 Biggest loser of the election: Journalism 57:43 When will Trump concede? What will his next move be? 1:07:37 San Francisco's collapse - will it eventually go bankrupt? #allin #tech #news

Jason CalacanishostChamath PalihapitiyahostDavid Friedberghost
Nov 10, 20201h 18mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Post-election: Centrism wins, vaccine arrives, markets soar, extremes lose

  1. The hosts dissect the 2020 U.S. election outcome, arguing voters engineered a “soft landing” by firing Trump while blocking a sweeping progressive mandate, signaling a broad preference for centrism. They compare Trump’s legal challenges to Bush v. Gore and conclude they are almost certain to fail, framing his post-election posture as brand management, not a viable path to victory. The discussion then turns to Pfizer’s vaccine timing, COVID endgame scenarios, market reactions, and why gridlock plus stimulus is bullish for equities. They close by criticizing identity politics, cancel culture, and one‑party governance, using San Francisco’s deterioration as a cautionary tale about ideological extremes and fiscal mismanagement.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Voters engineered divided government to reject both Trump and the far left.

The hosts argue the electorate “surgically removed” Trump while denying Democrats a strong down-ballot mandate, signaling a demand for moderate, do‑no‑harm governance rather than ideological projects from either extreme.

Trump’s legal path is vanishingly small, but he’s building a ‘stolen election’ narrative.

Compared to Bush v. Gore, Trump faces bigger margins, more states, and weaker legal teams; the panel pegs his odds as “sub‑10%,” seeing his lawsuits as a way to preserve his winner brand and keep a grievance alive for future politics or media ventures.

The Pfizer vaccine news timing likely reflected de‑politicization, not conspiracy.

They note corporates are incentivized to avoid appearing to swing elections; delaying announcements until after voting—whether results were good or bad—was seen as the only defensible way to avoid being cast as ‘the ref deciding the game.’

COVID’s social and behavioral scars may outlast the virus itself.

While Sax predicts a sharp snap‑back and ‘YOLO’ partying by summer, others think 80%-of-normal is the ceiling for years, with permanent changes like health screening, school testing, and mask norms, plus logistical limits on global vaccination.

Markets love gridlock when paired with stimulus and low taxes.

With a likely Biden presidency and Republican Senate, the group sees fewer legislative shocks for business and ongoing monetary and fiscal support, which they say explains the post-election ‘rip’ and rotation from stay‑at‑home tech into cyclicals like travel and entertainment.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

Voters basically said they were both right. They surgically removed Donald Trump while thwarting the radical left’s dream of total control in Washington.

David Sacks

What the plurality of Americans want is actually just a common, decent, centrist, do‑no‑harm alternative.

Chamath Palihapitiya

I think we’ve been at a rave for four years and everyone’s coming down from the molly… we all just want to sit in the parking lot, get a cappuccino, smoke a cigarette, and relax.

David Friedberg

Identity politics is a stupid, fucking strategy. Forget whether you’re offended by it or not; at this point what’s clear is it doesn’t work.

Chamath Palihapitiya

San Francisco was always the accidental beneficiary of Silicon Valley. It wasn’t San Francisco’s policies that created any of that prosperity.

David Sacks

2020 U.S. election results and the ‘soft landing’ split-government outcomeTrump’s legal challenges, legitimacy narratives, and prospects for 2024Pfizer vaccine announcement timing, Operation Warp Speed, and COVID endgameMarket reaction to election plus vaccine news, and why gridlock is bullishRejection of political extremes, identity politics, and cancel culturePolling failures, demographic voting patterns, and the move toward psychographic targetingSan Francisco as a case study in one‑party rule, taxation, and urban decline

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