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|  |  | Tuesday, November 11, 2025 | |  | | Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images | Good morning, Quartz readers! It’s Shannon Carroll with the Daily Brief. Today, markets are soaring on Washington’s maybe-reopening, flights are falling to pieces, Trump is selling imaginary dividends, and Starbucks is apologizing for turning your morning coffee run into a black-market brawl. | | HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW | The record shutdown’s finish line is in sight.
The Senate passed the first hurdle on a deal to reopen through January, but after 40 days of furloughs, the damage to the economy — and trust — runs deeper than paychecks. | The math on Trump’s tariff windfall doesn’t add up. Secretary Scott Bessent says the promised $2,000 check might come as existing tax cuts instead of cash, turning a populist payout into a creative accounting exercise. | Sam Altman’s latest talk came with paperwork. An investigator interrupted the OpenAI chief’s live panel to serve him a subpoena in a protest trial, a reality check for the CEO shaping virtual worlds. | Another dent just hit the Cybertruck. Tesla’s lead engineer announced he’s leaving the company (amid a wave of issues), deepening doubts that the “indestructible” pickup can survive contact with consumers. | | | SPONSORED |  | The Quiet Cost of Staying
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November 30, 2025, by 11:59 PM ET, and the promo code EASY must be entered at the time of sign-up. Only funds deposited within 14 days of the initial deposit date and maintained with partner banks on the Raisin platform for 90 days will be eligible for this bonus. Bonus cash will be deposited by Raisin into the customer’s linked external bank account within 30 days of meeting all qualifying terms. This offer is available to new customers only and may not be combined with any other bonus offers. Raisin may modify or end this offer at any time
and may withhold or revoke bonuses in cases of fraud, abuse, or violation of these terms or Raisin’s Terms of Service.
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| | CAPITOL GAINS | By Day 40 of the government shutdown, even optimism was on furlough. So after the Senate advanced a bill to reopen the government Sunday night, traders on Monday morning didn’t wait for signatures; they just bought the feeling that Washington might function again. The measure, backed by a handful of breakaway Democrats, would end the longest shutdown in U.S. history — a stretch that has left 1.4 million federal employees without pay and made basic governance feel like a spectator sport. The deal stops short of
guaranteeing the healthcare tax subsidies that Democrats wanted, but after six weeks of stalemate, “progress” has become its own political currency.
Markets, ever allergic to uncertainty, decided that an almost-functioning government was close enough. The S&P 500 closed 1.5% higher on Monday, the Nasdaq nearly 2.3%, and optimism rippled through Europe and Asia as traders priced in the possibility of normalcy. Economists said the rally was less about fundamentals than fatigue. And
with the Bureau of Labor Statistics and other agencies frozen, the Fed has been flying blind, its interest-rate calculus reduced to guesswork in the world’s most data-hungry economy.
For six weeks, the capital has run on borrowed time and borrowed goodwill. Now, there’s an end in sight. The House still has to sign off, the president still has to agree, and Washington has a talent for tripping over its own victory laps amid a descent into chaos. The damage won’t vanish with one vote:
Hundreds of thousands of households have missed pay, agencies are backlogged, and the Fed’s next decision will be made in a statistical fog. But for one Monday morning, hope was tradable again. Quartz’s Alex Daniel has more on why a functioning government now counts as a bullish forecast. | | SKY-HIGH DYSFUNCTION | The shutdown has reached cruising altitude — and turbulence. The FAA’s emergency plan to throttle flights at 40 major airports, designed to keep skies safe with too few paid controllers amid the government shutdown, instead produced the worst air-travel day of the shutdown so far: more than 2,800 flights canceled and over 10,000 delayed. Thirteen thousand air-traffic controllers and 50,000 TSA officers are still working without pay, keeping the system aloft largely on duty and fumes.
Airlines are triaging the chaos. United is cutting hundreds of flights early this week, while American and Southwest are prioritizing long-haul and hub-to-hub routes to preserve capacity. New York-area airports have become ground zero for delays, but misery maps show backups from Charleston, South Carolina, to Richmond, Virginia. Airlines for America estimates that over four million travelers have already had plans derailed and that each day of throttled flights is draining roughly $600 million from the wider U.S.
economy.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy insists the cuts aren’t political — though his paycheck still clears while controllers’ don’t. He is warning of deeper reductions, as much as 20% by mid-month, if Congress doesn’t end the shutdown soon. Even if lawmakers reach a deal this week, the FAA says it won’t restore full operations until staffing stabilizes. With Thanksgiving approaching, the nation’s airways have become a real-time metaphor for its government employees:
overworked, underpaid, and running out of runway. Quartz’s Catherine Baab has more on the federal game of chicken
now playing out at 35,000 feet. | | | SPONSORED | | The Quiet Cost of Staying
Put | Most of us leave our money where it’s always been - and most banks count on it. While you’re earning
less than 1% on your savings, they’re lending and investing that same cash at much higher rates. It’s how they turn your deposits into their profits.
Raisin helps you take back control. It’s a free, all-in-one platform that connects you with top savings accounts from over 75 FDIC- and NCUA-insured banks and credit unions.
Right now, you can earn 4.12% APY* with Northpointe Bank - plus up to $1,000 in bonus cash using code EASY when you open by November 31. At that rate, a $50,000 deposit could earn about $2,060 in one year, with an added bonus on top.
A small switch today can make a big difference
tomorrow. | | *APY means Annual Percentage Yield. APY is accurate as of November 10, 2025. Interest rate and APY may change after initial deposit depending on the terms
of the specific product selected. Minimum opening deposit is $1.00.
¹New customers only. Earn a cash bonus when you deposit and maintain funds with partner banks on the Raisin platform. Customers will receive $75 for depositing between $10,000 and $24,499, $250 for depositing between $25,000 and $49,999, $500 for depositing between $50,000 and $99,999, and $1,000 for depositing $100,000 or more. To qualify for the bonus, your first deposit must be initiated between August 1, 2025, and
November 30, 2025, by 11:59 PM ET, and the promo code EASY must be entered at the time of sign-up. Only funds deposited within 14 days of the initial deposit date and maintained with partner banks on the Raisin platform for 90 days will be eligible for this bonus. Bonus cash will be deposited by Raisin into the customer’s linked external bank account within 30 days of meeting all qualifying terms. This offer is available to new customers only and may not be combined with any other bonus offers. Raisin may modify or end this offer at any time
and may withhold or revoke bonuses in cases of fraud, abuse, or violation of these terms or Raisin’s Terms of Service.
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