President Donald Trump dismissed inflation concerns on Wednesday, saying, "the numbers were great."
A new report on Wednesday showed inflation rising 4.2 percent in May, marking its highest level in three years and underlining how hard the Iran war is hitting consumers. The Labor Department report is unwelcome news for President Trump and the GOP in an election year where affordability is the dominant issue. Democrats were already…
Senate Republican Majority Leader John Thune was noticeably absent from Wednesday’s Oval Office bill signing ceremony — but top House and Senate leaders — including Speaker Mike Johnson — were present, cheering on the president. Thune did take time to talk with reporters, where he tied Wednesday’s surging inflation numbers to Trump’s Iran war.The Washington Examiner’s David Sivak asked Thune directly why he wasn’t present at the president’s signing of the $70 billion reconciliation bill to fund ICE and the Border Patrol, or to talk about FISA legislation with Trump. Thune noted that Speaker Johnson is “down there anyway” and that he and Johnson “talk regularly,” Sivak reported. Thune appeared to suggest that there might not have been an invitation, adding, “I don’t know that we got asked, but I’ve got stuff going on here, as you know.”Thune spelled out the inflation connection to reporters, as Punchbowl News’ Andrew Desiderio reported. “The sooner we get the situation in Iran stabilized, the Strait [of Hormuz] opened up, those [inflation] numbers will trend in a better direction,” he said. “But obviously right now there are important national security objectives we’re trying to achieve.”“The American people realize that if we’re heading in the right direction and the trendlines are good and the confidence is good long-term — which I [think] it will be because of all the other things we’ve done on the economy — then obviously people will start to see improvement,” he also said. “It may not happen overnight, but it will. But at least for now, we’ve got to do everything we can to keep the pressure on [in] getting the situation in the Middle East resolved.”Getting the situation in Iran resolved was not how President Trump appeared to approach Iran on Wednesday. “Iran’s Military is a complete and total mess,” he wrote on Truth Social. “Much of it, like their Navy and Air Force, doesn’t even exist anymore – They have been completely defeated. Iran is all talk and no action. The Bully of the Middle East is dead!!! They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!”In that Oval Office meeting, Trump also slammed Iran, saying that the U.S. would hit Iran hard again on Wednesday, and insisted the Iranian government is “playing us for suckers.”Thune has distanced himself from the president over time, refusing his repeated demands to pass the controversial SAVE America Act — legislation some call voter suppression — to kill the filibuster, and to fire the Senate parliamentarian. He has also opposed Trump’s intelligence nominee. Thune tried to persuade Trump to back Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), but the president endorsed Ken Paxton instead — and Paxton went on to defeat Cornyn in the May primary runoff.
Rep. Nancy Mace's (R-SC) political career ended decisively Tuesday as the South Carolina congresswoman finished a distant fifth in the state's Republican gubernatorial primary. Former allies and staffers immediately criticized her tumultuous tenure marked by combustible ambition and self-inflicted wounds, reports The Washington Post. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy stated, "I helped her win. But I just watched her change along the way." Mace failed to carry her home county, received no prominent Republican endorsements, and lost President Donald Trump's backing to a rival despite months of courting. Former communications director Will Hampson said Mace had burned down every bridge. Her former adviser also noted she was her own best weapon — and own worst enemy.Mace's erratic public behavior included profanity-laced airport tirades, hour-long House floor speeches accusing men of sex crimes, and offensive comments about a Republican opponent. Former GOP operative Justin Evans concluded, "She had all the ingredients a successful candidate should have. It's just her moral compass was completely missing."Watch the video below. Your browser does not support the video tag.
Consumers are increasingly feeling the strain of the US-Israel war in Iran.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Wednesday defended President Trump’s “I love the inflation” comment amid concerns about skyrocketing energy costs resulting from the Iran war. “It was totally out of context. You know what he was talking about,” the GOP leader told CNN’s Manu Raju at the Capitol. Trump was asked by reporters during…
“No, I love it. The numbers were great,” Trump said.
Do Americans know Messi from Mbappé? Brandon London chats with people on the streets of Manhattan to see how much Americans know about soccer’s superstars with the FIFA World Cup set to begin on Thursday.
The Iran war and Trump's tariffs are pushing prices higher, and neither will be easy to undo.