6 Years of Smartt Takes: Reflection & Updates
Smartt Takes is evolving. After years of refining this newsletter, listening to your feedback, and delivering balanced, political coverage, I’m taking it to the next level.
BLUF/TLDR: Smartt Takes is transitioning to a paid model and separating the astrology coverage into a new newsletter (more below).
I am grateful for the ability to write Smartt Takes. I am thankful for you — an audience who trusts me, stays with me through my various iterations, and gives me feedback on my strengths and shortcomings.
Now, more than ever, it’s important to be tuned into politics and understand the impact it has on our daily lives. I also know that it can be exhausting and emotional to keep up with the headlines, which is why I want to be a helpful resource, and take the burden off of you. I want to make sure you’re well-versed, but that you don’t have to sift through the noise to find balanced, reliable coverage.
Enter Smartt Takes.
Many of you probably don’t know this, but Smartt Takes readership is comprised of 50/50 - half of a readership who identifies as conservative, and half who leans more liberal. I find this to be a unique asset in the world we live in, where it’s hard to trust mainstream media, for fear both sides are cherry-picking information to build a narrative.
I want to be the balanced, reliable resource you can turn to. But, I can’t do it alone. I’m looking to build out my Smartt Takes team, to take this to the next level. This means ensuring consistent, dependable, comprehensive, analytical and typo-free coverage.
I’ve heard your feedback, and I’m listening. I’ve heard that you love the political coverage, not so much the astrology. As a result, I’ve made some difficult, but necessary decisions to elevate Smartt Takes, in order to continue bringing you the comprehensive, analytical high-quality coverage you love.
Starting next month, Smartt Takes will be a paid newsletter. There will still be a free monthly newsletter; however, the rest of the content will be available solely to paid subscribers.
What’s included in the Smartt Takes: Paid Edition ($6/month)
Weekly Political Briefing (delivered every Sunday morning): For the price of a single, non-dairy latte, you will receive my Sunday edition covering key developments in the Trump administration. This includes executive orders, political announcements, regulatory changes, nominee updates, and other national news impacted by the policies. This is a balanced, comprehensive, analytical newsletter that delivers you everything you need to know.
Note: given the current political climate, this may be delivered multiple times per week.
Read last week’s edition:
Week 2: Trump Admin Casts a Wide Berth
·This week was a tough one. On Friday, a medical jet crashed in Philadelphia, killing all 6 people on board. This follows Wednesday night’s deadly crash, where an American Airlines flight crashed headfirst into a military Black Hawk helicopter, into the Potomac River. Details are still unfolding, but reports confirmed that all 67 people involved in the accident died.
NEW Policy Impact: At least once a month, I will choose one policy to expound on, discuss the implications, and dive deep into the historical components. This month will focus on Gaza and the Abraham Accords.
Editorial & Emergency Issues: I will share any editorial or social commentary, as well as emergency issues (example):
Emergency Issue: Congress Is a Sh*tshow
·
With less than seven hours to go, Congress is on the brink of a shutdown, just in time for the holidays.
Complete access to all Smartt Takes archives: See something you missed and want to know more? With a paid Smartt Takes subscription, you will have access to all of my past work at anytime and can use it as a research resource.
Guest Columnists (Hopefully): I have a wide range of people I’m connected to who are experiencing the news we are hearing about in real-time. With a paid model, I hope to bring in some of their expertise and give you behind the scenes insight into the goings-on of the administration.
Switching to paid is quite simple! Just go to settings → manage subscription → upgrade to paid.
Thank you in advance for your support :)
What’s included in the Smartt Takes: Free Edition
A once a month newsletter analyzing the state of affairs in Washington, or a palette cleanser to help digest the world around us and stay hopeful.
Why am I doing this?
After careful consideration — and some kicking and screaming — I’ve concluded that this is the best path forward for Smartt Takes. Switching to a paid model will allow me to spend even more dedicated time and energy to this newsletter each week, and give me the opportunity to further expand my team. I’ll be able to deliver you more coverage to help you both meet and understand the moment.
I believe in access to high quality information. I also believe that that Smartt Takes is a worthy investment and high value product, and I want to dedicate the necessary time and energy to it each week, and be able to write even more.
Are you still doing astrology?
Yes, I love astrology and I think it’s a worthy tool for self development. That said, I don’t think Smartt Takes is the right space for it. After careful consideration, I’ve decided that political astrology deserves its own space — where it can be explored in depth without competing with the fast-paced news cycle.
As such, I’ve started a separate newsletter Smartt Stars, that focuses exclusively on political astrology and personal development. Sign up here to get the first edition. Keep an eye out for my first article on Elon Musk’s birth chart, and its applicability to this moment.
I also still give personal readings, which you can book at my new website: https://www.smarttstrategies.co (check it out, it’s amazing).
Landing Page:
How can I transition my subscription to paid?
If you go into your subscription settings, you can simply switch it to paid, which includes the option to join at $6/month, purchase an annual subscription for $60/year, or become a founding member at $120. Thank you so much to those of you who have already become paid subscribers.
I know this is a big change, but I believe Smartt Takes is worth the investment. With your support, I can make it even stronger—expanding coverage, bringing in new voices, and keeping you ahead of the political curve.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at lesley@smarttstrategies.co, or on instagram at @smartt_takes. I look forward to hearing from you, and thank you for being on this journey with me. Your support means everything to me.
All the best,
Lesley