The Teller's Tune

The old men in Washington, they're watching the signs Reading the ledgers and drawing the lines Jerome Powell clears his throat, the markets hold still Says the rate will stay high upon Capitol Hill He talks of inflation, a fever to tame Just another new mask on a very old game Of the lean and the fat years, the ebb and the flow For the seeds of tomorrow that struggle to grow. And the wheel keeps on turnin', the sun comes around Same old stories are laid in the ground

New voices are shouting, but the song is the same Just writing another verse in the human refrain. Down on First Street, the gavels all fall In the quiet of marble, they answer the call Nine robed figures consider a plea 'Bout a pill called Mifepristone, for the world to see They said the plaintiffs had no standing to sue So the access remains, for me and for you But the lines they are drawn, and the fight's far from done 'Neath a divided American sun.

And the wheel keeps on turnin', the sun comes around Same old stories are laid in the ground New voices are shouting, but the song is the same Just writing another verse in the human refrain. From Phoenix to Vegas, a heat dome descends The warnings are broadcast, but nature won't bend The asphalt is shimmering, the air's thick and hot A fever on the land, whether we like it or not A heat in the market, a heat in the court A heat in the weather that cuts a life short

It's all the same pressure, it's all the same strain Waiting for clouds, waiting for rain. And the wheel keeps on turnin', the sun comes around Same old stories are laid in the ground New voices are shouting, but the song is the same Just writing another verse in the human refrain.