‘Almost every industry is hiring’: Jobs report blows past expectations in welcome bright spot for economy

Witness reports missing girl running from home half nude — with partially nude couple nearby, cops say

A disturbing discovery was made by police at a Minnesota home after a 14-year-old girl was reported missing from her school on May 26.The parents of the girl called the Maplewood Police Department to report her missing, and the girl's father told police the girl might have been at her friend's home in Oakdale. 'Her whole top half is out, and I'm like, "Whoa, what's going on here? Why are you naked in front of a child?"'Police said they investigated the home and spoke to a woman named Angeline Olson. She told them the girl was not at the home but that she would take the girl home if she showed up there.Police then said they returned to the home after a disturbing report from a neighbor at about 1:30 a.m."I came outside to smoke, and I'm minding my own business, and all of a sudden this little girl comes running past out her house, right in front of me, half naked," said Teaira Vennes, the woman who called police. "Next thing you know, Angel's out the bushes, and Angel comes out naked. Like, her whole top half is out, and I'm like, 'Whoa, what's going on here? Why are you naked in front of a child?'" she added. Police said the Olsons were argumentative and defied orders, so they were detained. When police searched the home, they found the girl in a cardboard box that was under a pile of clothes in the Olson couple's bedroom.Police then obtained warrants to search the couple's digital devices and found sexually explicit videos with the Olsons and the victim. The couple was arrested, and 47-year-old Angeline Olson was charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct. Andrew Olson, 49, was charged with three counts of possessing child sexual abuse material.Their neighbors, who were outraged and terrified by the incident, told KARE-TV that Child Protective Services had taken away their teenage children prior to the incident. "It's not just another story; it's another f**king victim. It's another little girl," Vennes said. "After going through this, I couldn't never imagine that happening to my daughter."RELATED: Indiana teen targeted victims across several states for child sex abuse through social media, cops say "My client is presumed innocent and looks forward to clearing his name where it counts: in court," said John Chitwood, the lawyer for Andrew Olson. Andrew Olson faces up to 18 years in prison if convicted, while Angeline Olson faces up to 30 years if convicted. "They need to be locked up. I hope that they are locked up for a very, very long time," Vennes added.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Trump gives away the game with hires that pose 'grave risk to US security': DOJ alum

President Donald Trump, on Thursday, announced that he plans to nominate Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche to head the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for a full term. The same day, Trump also told reporters that he has no plans to nominate Acting National Intelligence Director Bill Pulte as a permanent replacement for Tulsi Gabbard. Trump's Pulte appointment is drawing widespread criticism, as he has no intel experience. But according to law professor and former federal prosecutor Barbara McQuade, Trump views "incompetence" as a plus — not a minus — in his administration.Trump, McQuade laments in an opinion column for MS NOW, chooses "incompetent" or inexperienced appointees on purpose because they are less likely to question his policies. "Pulte was, and remains, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency — hardly the background one would expect for the leader of America's 18 intelligence agencies," the former DOJ prosecutor writes. "That's particularly true during a time when America is at war with Iran, a hostile foreign adversary whom the U.S. government considers a state sponsor of terrorism…. Pulte replaces Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned from the post last month amid disagreements over the threat posed by Iran."McQuade continues, "Gabbard's resume was thin, but at least she had experience in the military and in Congress. Pulte appears to lack any national security expertise at all. In fact, his only apparent qualification is unflinching loyalty to the president and an eagerness to weaponize the government against Trump's perceived foes."McQuade notes that she was working in DOJ in 2001 when Congress — in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks — created the director of national intelligence (DNI) position, which requires one to oversee "the nation's collection, analysis, and dissemination of information relating to terrorist plots, cyberattacks, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and malign foreign influence.""Why would a president want to fill such a sensitive and important position with someone who lacks any bona fide credentials?" McQuade writes. "Perhaps the appointment reflects what historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat calls 'engineered incompetence.' When a leader appoints an individual to an office that is above their station, the official becomes beholden to the leader — who, in turn, gains absolute control. Knowing they are in over their head, the official is less likely to assert independent judgment or to object when the leader acts in his self-interest instead of the public good."McQuade adds, "Engineered incompetence explains how a Fox News host, (Pete Hegseth), gets appointed secretary of defense and promptly shares sensitive attack plans over a Signal chat…. Effective leaders value candid advice, even when it means hearing things that conflict with their policy preferences. A leader who ignores unpleasant news is one who is unprepared to make clear-eyed choices on behalf of the people he was elected to serve. With a loyalist like Pulte leading the president's daily intelligence brief, the engineered incompetence itself poses a grave risk to our national security."

New May Jobs Report: Payrolls Jump 172K, Unemployment Steady

Economist reveal​ 'clear pain point' in Trump’s economy that jobs report misses

On Friday, the Trump administration celebrated a better-than-expected jobs report, which showed the U.S. gained 172,000 jobs in May. But while President Donald Trump may be patting himself on the back, one respected economist warns that the good news misses a “clear paint point” that shows the economy is shakier than the job numbers suggest. “This is the clear pain point in the economy,” posted Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal. “Wage growth in May was the lowest in 5 years. May wage gains: 3.4 percent (for past year). May inflation: Likely to be ~4 percent.”That’s bad math for the economy, meaning that inflation is outpacing wage gains. Or as Long puts it, “It's easier to get a job now, but it's hard to find a job where your pay will keep up with current inflation.” What’s more, Long notes that wage gains have hit their lowest point in five years, since May 2021, when the pandemic was still wreaking havoc on the global economy. Other experts have agreed with Long’s not-so-fast assessment of Friday’s positive job report.According to Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst Mark Hamrick, “It's very likely, given recent trends, that real wages will continue to fall and workers and their families will find it increasingly difficult to make ends meet.” Hamrick also argues that affordability challenges have reduced job mobility, and that what job growth there has been is limited to a few sectors, which doesn’t bode well for economic strength overall. At the same time, he suggests that a strong labor market makes it less likely that the Fed will cut the interest rate, resulting in higher borrowing costs and slower business expansion. And as U.S. economic policy expert and former chief economist for the GOP Ways and Means Committee, Donald Schneider, noted, there is an interesting correlation between the rising job numbers and the removal of a key Trump policy: tariffs. Schneider shared a chart that plots both the effective tariff rate and job growth, saying, “These things might be related.”The chart indicates that as Trump’s tariffs began to fall at the end of last year, the plunging job growth rate started leveling off. Then tariffs plummeted after the Supreme Court slapped them down in February, and lo and behold, that’s precisely when the job numbers began racing upwards. So as Scheider points out, there appears to be a direct link between the two trends. Trump has announced his intentions to reintroduce tariffs.Europac chief economist Pete Schiff noted another issue with the job news, posting, “Unfortunately, all of those jobs were either in leisure and hospitality, or in government or government-related services. That drives demand for imported goods, increasing trade deficits and goods prices.”As one of his respondents explained, “We are subsidizing consumer demand without creating the domestic goods to match. Pumping government payrolls and service wages gives consumers cash to spend, but since the U.S. isn't producing physical goods, that liquidity immediately leaks out of the country to buy foreign imports.”“Exactly,” Schiff agreed.

May Jobs Report Crushes Expectations. Democrats Most Hurt.

May jobs report shows the summer hiring season started with a bang

Friday’s jobs numbers confirm what small businesses already know: The underlying economy is far stronger than the mainstream media and financial commentators suggest. Employers added 172,000 jobs last […]

Hospitality jobs boom as US prepares for World Cup

It is the third month in a row US jobs figures have beaten expectations.

Employers added 172K jobs last month, sign of resilience amid Iran war

The job market has been recovering this year from a miserable 2025, so far shrugging off higher energy prices and increased economic uncertainty