August 12, 2024
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Welcome to the news for independent thinkers
Leading the News . . .
US economy slows sharply, shrinking 0.3% in the first quarter, as tariffs weigh . . . The U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter as President Donald Trump's economic agenda took effect, according to new data released on Wednesday. Economists surveyed by LSEG had expected the economy to grow at a 0.3% rate in the quarter. The first quarter's 0.3% contraction was slower than the 2.4% GDP growth recorded in the fourth quarter. The quarterly contraction was the first since the first quarter of 2022. The decline in GDP was attributed primarily to an increase in imports, which count as a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, as well as a decrease in government spending. Fox Business
Politics
We Are Just Getting Started': Trump lauds His First 100 Days . . . President Donald Trump declared it the "most successful 100 days" in American history. "They all want to come back to Michigan and build cars again. You know why, because of our tax and tariff policy," Trump said during his remarks in Warren, Michigan, to mark his 100th day in office. "I'm here in the heartland of our great nation to celebrate the most successful 100 days of any administration in the history of our country, and that's according to many, many people," Trump said. "Everyone is saying. We are just getting started." Daily Signal
Whitmer just got what she wanted from Trump. But she's making a risky bet . . . President Donald Trump hugged Gov. Gretchen Whitmer upon landing Tuesday in Michigan to announce a new fighter mission at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. He lavished praise on her during a speech at the base, referring to her as simply "Gretchen" more than once. But the scene also illustrated the political minefield that Whitmer, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, has had to navigate as she has sought to build a working relationship with Trump at a time when other ambitious Democrats are spoiling for a fight. Washington Post
Republicans pull passenger vehicle fee after blowback from GOP . . . A proposal to create a new $20 fee on most passenger cars to help pay for Trump administration priorities has been canceled. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) released the details Tuesday of his committee's contribution to the larger GOP megabill ahead of a planned Wednesday markup, which included the $20 annual fee indexed to inflation. Graves said it is intended to lay the foundation for eventually doing away with the federal gasoline tax, which has helped pay for transportation projects since it was established in 1932. Politico
Why are Republicans assessing fees? This is meant by "uniparty." What would have happened? The $20 annual fee would have turned into a $40 annual fee in a couple of years and the gas tax would remain. Look for them to try to sneak this in again down the line.
Republican Slams Dem's 'Disgustingly Ignorant' Holocaust Comparison in Battle Over Immigration Bill . . . A Republican Colorado state representative who came to the U.S. legally and is descended from a Holocaust survivor slammed his Democrat colleague for comparing President Donald Trump's recent deportations of illegal aliens to the Nazis rounding up Jews. State Rep. Lorena Garcia, a sponsor of the immigration bill SB 25-276, spoke in a hearing on the bill Monday, condemning the Trump administration for "disappearing people" and comparing his deportations to the Holocaust. Daily Signal
Trump Kicks Doug Emhoff off U.S. Holocaust Memorial . . . CouncilPresident Donald Trump fired former Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, along with others nominated by President Joe Biden, on Tuesday, his 100th day in office. Emhoff's firing is particularly significant because the Biden administration tasked him with leading its so-called "strategy" against antisemitism — a watered-down plan that backed away from previous commitments to consider extreme anti-Israel criticism antisemitic, and which failed to stop anti-Jewish hatred. Breitbart
Finally, an end to Doug Emhoff's massive expenditures of taxpayer money so he could enjoy his free front-row seat to history. The guy traveled all over the place pretending that he was a man of great consequence for the Biden administration.
Culture
Scathing Harvard Report Details Pervasive Anti-Semitism Driven By 'Politicized Instruction' . . . The report raises particular concerns with the Graduate School of Education, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Divinity School, and Medical School, four schools that the Trump administration also targeted for "egregious records of antisemitism or other bias." At those schools, Jewish and Israeli students were routinely ostracized and subject to instruction "that effectively made a specific view on the Israel-Hamas conflict a litmus test for full classroom participation," according to the report. Washington Free Beacon
In one example, a "Pyramid of White Supremacy" graphic disseminated to students stated that those who oppose the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement are engaged in "coded genocide."
Trans-Identifying Male Sweeps Women's Events At U.S. Masters Swim National Championships . . . Ana Caldas, who has also raced under the names Hannah Caldas and Hugo Caldas, swam in five individual events and three relays over the course of the four-day competition in San Antonio — and won every individual race: the 50 yard freestyle, the 100 yard freestyle, the 50 yard breaststroke, and the 100 yard breaststroke. Caldas came in a full three seconds ahead of the second place finisher in the 100 yard freestyle, and four seconds ahead in the 50 and 100 yard breaststroke events. Daily Wire
National Security
Trump says he 'could' bring deported El Salvadoran Abrego Garcia back to US but won't . . . In an ABC News interview aired Tuesday, for Trump's 100th day in office, senior national correspondent Terry Moran asked Trump about Abrego Garcia, whose deportation last month from Maryland is facing legal challenges. "You could get him back. There's a phone on this desk," Moran said, pointing to the phone on the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. "I could," Trump said. "And if he were the gentleman that you say he is, I would do that. But he is not." Just the News
Wisconsin Supreme Court suspends Milwaukee judge accused of helping illegal migrant evade ICE . . . The Wisconsin state Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended a Milwaukee judge who has been accused of allegedly helping an illegal migrant evade an immigration arrest. Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested by the FBI late last week on obstruction charges, after she allegedly helped Eduardo Flores Ruiz evade arrest by "intentionally [misdirecting] federal agents away from the subject." Just the News
Man in custody after hiding in tree for several hours in attempt to avoid ICE . . . A man is in custody after hiding in a tree for several hours in an attempt to avoid U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to authorities. Raul Ical, 29, was a passenger in a vehicle during a traffic stop Tuesday, ICE said in a statement. During the stop, he exited the vehicle and fled on foot, entering the backyard of a nearby residence and climbing into a tree. KSAT
International
China's Export Orders Plunge, Hit by Trump's Tariffs . . . China's economy showed its first big signs of damage from the trade war, as steep U.S. tariffs pummeled export orders and production at the country's factories. A gauge of new export orders fell in April to its lowest reading since Covid-19 was ravaging the country in 2022, while overall manufacturing activity in China was the weakest in more than a year, according to surveys published Wednesday by China's National Bureau of Statistics. Wall Street Journal
That's by China's own accounting, which means it's even worse. China has been cheating on trade deals, stealing our technology, and driving American manufacturers out of business for years. Now things will change.
Here is Trump telling ABC's Terry Moran that he thinks the tariffs won't have a large effect on prices because China is going to "eat them."
Pakistan says it has 'credible intelligence' India will attack within days . . . Pakistan said Wednesday it had "credible intelligence" that India is planning to attack it within days, as soldiers from both sides exchanged gunfire along their borders and Pakistanis headed home in compliance with New Delhi's orders for them to leave the country following last week's deadly attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir. India's moves to punish Pakistan after accusing it of backing the attack in Pahalgam, which Islamabad denies, have driven tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals to their highest point since 2019. Associated Press
The Trump administration should dive in and work to cool things down. War between two nuclear powers should be a priority over all the other places we've stuck our noses in.
Money
Trump complained to Bezos before Amazon said it scrapped idea to display tariff cost . . . President Donald Trump personally called Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on Tuesday to complain about about a report that the online retail giant was considering displaying U.S. tariff costs on its product listings, a source familiar with the matter told NBC News. Within hours of the call, Amazon publicly downplayed the scope of its plan — and then announced that it had been scrapped entirely. CNBC
Drugmakers Have Spent Millions Targeting 'Middlemen'—and It's Paying Off . . . When President Trump signed an executive order this month to try to reduce drug prices, the pharmaceutical industry scored a big win. Within 90 days, the order said, Trump's staff should put together a report "re-evaluating the role of middlemen," who have been the target of one of the most sweeping and expensive lobbying campaigns in recent years. The drug industry, with its campaign against so-called middlemen, or pharmacy-benefit managers such as those owned by CVS Health and UnitedHealth Group, has translated a wonky policy topic into a talking point repeated by a range of groups. Wall Street Journal
Guilty Pleasures
Trump humiliates ABC interviewer during contentious interview . . . The commander-in-chief put ABC senior national correspondent Terry Moran in his place during a tense exchange in which Moran challenged him about suspected MS-13 tattoos on deported illegal immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia. "Hey, they're giving you the big break of a lifetime, you know you're doing the interview," Trump said. "I picked you because frankly, I never heard of you. New York Post
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