Market frenzy hits unprecedented ‘Donald Trump SPAC’ levels

[Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, an unvetted SPAC of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - More [WeWorks are possible](. - Tesla is [downright boring now](. - Dems [fixed a tax mistake](. - [Homemade guns]( are a scourge. LOL Nothing Matters Inc. Redemption stories are rare in business. Yes, people still buy tulip bulbs, and Martin Shkreli may yet [cure Covid](. But for now he’s still in prison. Enron will never again sell electricity in California. Microsoft isn’t bringing back the Zune.  That’s why it’s kind of refreshing to see WeWork stock finally coming to market two years after its IPO went kablooey in a cloud of Adam Neumann’s weapons-grade hubris. No, the company still doesn’t make any money. But it sent Neumann packing, sold the Gulfstream and [otherwise seems to be a model of competent management](, writes Chris Bryant. It’s almost a feel-good story. Unfortunately, the same frothy investment culture that encouraged WeWork to “[be crazier](” is still loading startups onto its magical maglev to Crazy Town, Chris writes. More cash than ever, wielded by more investors than ever, has spawned more unicorns than ever. And now they have SPACs to do away with the sort of pesky vetting that derailed WeWork’s IPO on the way to market. What could possibly et cetera? Donald Trump’s new [SPAC]( both is and isn’t an example of this fever. On the one hand, the former president has die-hard followers who will do whatever he tells them to, which quite often amounts to “Give me more money.” That makes his SPAC sui generis. On the other hand, Matt Levine notes, so much investing these days is [motivated by just such a cultish desire to throw money]( at people and objects of dubious worship, cash-flow analysis be damned. GameStop, Dogecoin, Tesla and the rest have HODLers almost as devoted as the MAGA set. There may even be a path here for, say, Martin Shkreli to find, if not redemption, then restitution. He’d be crazy not to at least try. Bonus Shrug-Emoji Markets Reading: Somebody please wake the markets up to [the big slowdown in China](. — John Authers Tesla Goes Normcore for Halloween Ironically, meme stock Tesla just released an earnings report that was downright traditional and boring. Liam Denning listened to the call and reports Elon Musk was a no-show. Documents with numbers on them were referenced. Analysts were allowed to say “Great quarter, guys” and even ask questions. The trouble, Liam notes, is that [Tesla’s hyper-distended stock price needs more]( than traditional and boring.  But Tesla has made at least one classically sound business decision that could justify some of that valuation, Anjani Trivedi writes: It’s rolling out to the rest of the world [the cheaper, safer batteries it has been using in China](. They’re not cutting-edge, but they’re more reliable and will help Tesla burn a little less cash. It’s like a funny tweet, but good for business. Bonus Renewable Energy Reading: A quick scan of the many crises of the past 50 years proves “[energy security” is a myth](. — Liam Denning Dems in Semi-Array It’s also refreshing to see bad law get drafted and then improved after some complaining. That’s just what has happened to a Democratic plan to get banks to report deposits and withdrawals from customer accounts in an effort to nab tax cheats. The first draft of this plan would have caught just about everybody in its net, which would have swamped the IRS and defeated the purpose of catching bigger fish. Alexis Leondis writes the second draft sets [a far higher bar for bank action and makes a lot more sense](. It still has problems, of course. But then it wouldn’t be Congress if it didn’t. Bonus Congress-Problems Reading: - The Democrats are close to [blowing a chance to secure voting rights](. — Jonathan Bernstein - Joe [Manchin and Lisa Murkowski should leave]( their parties and form a moderate power bloc. — Matthew Yglesias Telltale Charts [Burberry has a new leader, who must finish a tricky turnaround]( at a tricky time, writes Andrea Felsted. Maybe he can harness the ’90s revival as he did at Versace. [Barclays stock traders are finally on par]( with bond traders, writes Paul J. Davies. Further Reading The government must [close all loopholes that let homemade guns proliferate](. — Bloomberg’s editorial board After bad mergers and even worse PR, maybe [AT&T needs some rebranding, too](. — Tara Lachapelle Facebook needs much [more than just a name change](. — Tim O’Brien [Axel Springer’s sex scandal]( shows how it must live up to U.S. standards now. — Chris Hughes Companies still have good reason to [keep putting their HQs in major cities](. — Justin Fox ICYMI Fed officials can [no longer buy stocks and bonds](. How billionaires [pass wealth to their families tax-free](. [Check your onions]( for salmonella. Kickers The [Wu-Tang Clan album once owned by Martin Shkreli]( has a new forever home. For the NFL, [it must be the Season of the Doink](. (h/t Scott Kominers for the first two kickers) Super-hard wood [could replace plastic and steel](. [Cocaine hippos are legally people](, my friend. Correction: At the risk of starting an international incident, Foxconn is based in Taiwan, not the place we said in yesterday’s newsletter. Notes:  Please send Wu-Tang Clan albums and complaints to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Twitter]( and [Facebook](. Like Bloomberg Opinion Today? [Subscribe to Bloomberg All Access and get much, much more](. You’ll receive our unmatched global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( | [Ad Choices]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022