Morning Brew Daily
US Launches Tariff Refund Website & Robots Outrun Humans in Half-Marathon
20 Apr 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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Good morning, Brew Daily Show. I'm Neil Freiman. And I'm Toby Howell. Today, the robots are running half marathons faster than humans.
Then businesses rejoice. You can get in line for a tariff refund starting today. It's Monday, 420. Let's ride. Let's ride.
Good morning and welcome back to the week. I look forward to this day all year marathon day in Boston. Later this morning, more than 30,000 people are set to embark on a hilly 26.2 mile journey from Hopkinton to Boylston street with 500,000 spectators cheering them on this year's race. Hasn't been without a little brand controversy.
Ahead of the marathon, Nike put up a sign at its Newberry Street store that read, runners welcome, walkers tolerated. That sentiment was criticized by some local runners and disability advocates for not being inclusive. And by Friday, the sign was taken down.
I see both sides of it, Neil. Tolerated felt like too harsh of a word, but also stick to your guns at Nike. If this is your brand identity, if you want a highlight winning, just do it. Don't get scared and back down because now you just look bad to everyone involved. Still, it shouldn't overshadow Marathon Day, which is awesome.
We're finally getting some cool weather and even a little bit of a tailwind. So we should see some fast times.
This episode is brought to you by On Investing, an original podcast from Charles Schwab. Each week, host Lizanne Saunders, Schwab's chief investment strategist, and Colin Martin, head of fixed income research and strategy for the Schwab Center for Financial Research, analyze economic developments and bring context to conversations around equities, fixed income, the economy, and more.
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Chapter 2: What is the new tariff-refund portal and how does it work?
I won the pre-show game of Hopscotch, so I'm up first. And my winner of the weekend is tripping because Trump is psyched for psychedelics. On Saturday, the president signed an executive order to accelerate research into the potential therapeutic benefits of drugs like LSD, MDMA, psilocybin, and Ibogaine.
The order peels away some of the red tape that has limited scientists' ability to dig into substances that have shown promise in treating severe depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Most psychedelics are classified as Schedule I drugs, defined as those with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.
But the administration says factors like the rise of opioid deaths and veteran suicides show it's time to speed up research and potential approval processes. Joe Rogan, who was in attendance for the signing, likely played a factor too.
Rogan has long advocated about the potential benefits of psychedelics, particularly the little-known substance Ibogaine, and texted the president asking about increasing access. Sometimes all you have to do is ask because apparently Trump responded saying, "'Sounds great. Do you want FDA approval?'
Now, this order does not immediately shift any psychedelics out from the Schedule 1 drug category, nor does it grant any FDA approvals, but it does do things like pave the way for more tests and pilot programs. Neil, it appears Trump is pretty on board with this, specifically Ibogaine, because at the signing he said, can I have some, please?
Oh, God, I don't know if he wants to. I mean, if he doesn't want to spend 24 hours in a very intense situation. So Ibogaine, I hadn't heard about it until learning about it. this particular story is a psychedelic compound extracted from a Gabonese root bark. That Gabon is a, is a country in West Africa.
It, it, it's a trip that lasts sometimes up to 24 hours and is explained by many people who have done this as very intense, often distressing. But the thing is you do it once according to these people and it completely eliminates drug with withdrawal symptoms. It is a, is a, reset of your brain in 24 hours.
And so there's a thriving industry in countries outside of the United States, particularly Mexico, where a lot of veterans and people with PTSD in the United States or other mental health conditions will go to Mexico and pay up to $15,000 for this treatment of Ibogaine, come back and say they're completely healed.
And there's been a few promoters of it in the United States, including former Texas Governor Rick Perry. So That is maybe the all-star of this particular class of drugs that is being singled out for reducing red tape around research.
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Chapter 3: What implications does the tariff refund process have for consumers?
Marketing your brand these days probably feels harder than finding perfectly ripe strawberries at the start of spring.
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Toby, have you ever flown a friend?
I think you mean phone a friend?
Nope, I mean F-L-O-W-N, flown.
Ah, like when the founders at Unfiltered Hospitality used the rewards to fly a new hire for onboarding? Exactly.
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