President Donald Trump has spent this year unwrapping an economy handed to him by former President Joe Biden. Inside the box: inflation and sticker shock.
From when Biden took office in January 2021 through the end of December 2024, consumer prices rose <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-final-accounting-on-bidenflation-212613508.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIfT9OGeVAKKbHJR4Tc3o4i4IUGV_jwsWj6OEQ8pCpV9PPLtJmCmTCXD4cqtQ1RwqCeiHtlpYZfcCj9KieR8wHDmrBZ3JmV40xfO9AUcSvmmtUin-czVIwgJGFLU1WUxtldZKbbACfYT06DHFrn6jaTYSiXXdyPTtPvvGasDDKHL">21.2</a>%. Even as inflation cools under President Trump, Americans are still living with the higher prices locked in during Biden’s term in office.
With the exception of George Washington, every president’s tenure runs the risk of being defined by the lingering effects of their predecessor’s policies. That reality has put the Trump White House on the defensive. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has repeatedly pushed back against the notion that today’s economy belongs to Trump alone.
She’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/those-were-two-utter-lies-white-house-press-briefing-turns-contentious-over-affordability">described</a> Democrats as “the greatest con artists in history,” who are “trying to claim ownership of an issue that they created.” On offense, the press secretary says that by economic measures, things are actually looking up.
“Every economic metric does in fact show that the economy is getting better and brighter than where it was under the previous administration,” Leavitt said. Shortly after that statement, November inflation came in at 2.7% and GDP growth surged to 4.3% — far exceeding expectations.
While the economic playing field is never fully level, Joe Biden and Donald Trump occupy a rare position as the only presidents in modern U.S. history to both inherit the monetary effects of the other.
President Joe Biden received an average inflation of 1.9% and an economy primed with two stimulus packages from President Trump.
In March of 2020, Trump signed the CARES Act into law, a $2.2 trillion stimulus package that acted as a lifeline to shut-down businesses all over the country. The package was passed unanimously in the Senate and 388 to 5 in the House of Representatives — notably, the five representatives who voted against the bill were Republicans who were concerned about the cost and impacts to the federal deficit.
In December of 2020, Trump signed a second relief package totaling $900 billion, which included another round of direct payments. Six Republican senators voted against the bill; no Democrats opposed it. The House passed the measure 359-53. The 53 who voted against the bill <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/republicans-democrats-voted-against-stimulus-why-1556574?utm_source=chatgpt.com">included</a> 50 Republicans who broke with party leadership. The legislation was a compromise, with Republicans pushing for limited total spending, and Democrats demanding larger checks and extended unemployment benefits.
One year later, Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan into law, more than double the size of Trump’s final stimulus package. The bill sent $1,400 checks to Americans in a bustling economy. Not a single Republican voted to pass the legislation.
Economists later echoed the concern that all three of the stimulus packages inflated the economy. “Both Trump and Biden contributed to the fiscal stimulus that fed into the inflation,” <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Business/republicans-rnc-blame-biden-inflation-economists-misleading/story?id=112022864">said</a> George Selgin, senior fellow at the Cato Institute.
Biden had average inflation during his term of 4.9% while Trump had average inflation of 1.9%. Trump’s inflation reached a high of 2.5% during his first term while Biden’s reached a high of 9.1% in June 2022.
Economist Peter Morici was blunt in his <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Business/republicans-rnc-blame-biden-inflation-economists-misleading/story?id=112022864">assessment</a> of where blame should be issued.
“It was irresponsible to do stimulus when the economy was well on its way to recovery. Blame is falling where it’s due. Biden does bear responsibility for the endurance of COVID inflation.”
As inflation finally began to cool, credit shifted elsewhere. Many point to former Senator Joe Manchin for blocking additional spending that could have further fueled price increases. Left-wing MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough <a href="https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2022/06/14/scarborough-says-you-can-just-thank-joe-manchin-inflation-isnt-worse-n2608707?utm_source=chatgpt.com">remarked</a>, “You can just thank Joe Manchin if you&#8217;re glad that interest rates aren’t even higher,” referring to the interest rate hikes the Federal Reserve had to implement in an attempt to tame inflation.
Billionaire entrepreneur and investor Sam Zell <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/billionaire-praises-manchin-saving-us-catastrophic-biden-bill-1716160?utm_source=chatgpt.com">agreed</a>, saying, “Unfortunately, we only had one senator who stepped up to the line when, in fact, everyone should have stepped up and recognized this was a disastrous policy.”
Others issued credit to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Republican Senator John Kennedy said, “It seems to me that you and some of … your colleagues deserve some credit for that. … I’m not saying things are perfect, but I never imagined that our landing could be this soft.”
The “soft landing” has continued into Trump’s second term with an average of 2.7% inflation so far. But lower inflation does not mean lower prices — and now, voters are left paying the bill. As Americans continue to confront elevated sticker prices, Republicans will be forced to defend seats in an economy still shaped by stimulus spending many warned against.

Biden-Inflation copy

Biden’s Only Gift For Trump Was The Inflation Crisis

Biden Administration

COVID

Donald Trump

Economy

Inflation

Joe Biden

Politics

The suspect in the Brown University shooting who also allegedly killed an MIT professor two days later is found dead, the Trump administration rolls out new rules to defund hospitals that perform transgender procedures on minors, and a positive economic report shows cooling inflation.
It’s Friday, December 19, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251219-member-exclusive">video version can be seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brown-shooting-suspect-found-dead-12-19-25/id1576594336?i=1000741970705" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
&nbsp;
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Brown And MIT Shooter Found Dead, Authorities Say</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1017589" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Brown-Gunman-Found.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
On Thursday, police <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/brown-shooting-suspect-found-dead-by-suicide-in-new-hampshire-storage-facility">found</a> the body of the man who they said was responsible for the deaths of two students at Brown University and a professor at MIT. Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, 48, died by suicide in a storage locker he had rented in New Hampshire. His last known address was in Miami, Florida, but he originally came from Portugal. Authorities said he attended Brown in the early 2000s as a PhD student, but he never completed the program. New Hampshire authorities said Neves Valente also attended the same academic program in Portugal as MIT professor Nuno Loureiro, who was found dead in his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, earlier this week. According to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Neves Valente “entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program (DV1) in 2017 and was granted a green card.” Noem said Thursday night she had <a href="https://x.com/sec_noem/status/2001873077089767435">paused</a> the DV1 program at President Donald Trump’s direction.
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Cuts Funds To Hospitals Performing Trans Treatments</h2>
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The Trump administration has moved to cut off federal funding for hospitals performing transgender procedures and surgeries on minors, a fulfillment of a major Trump campaign promise. A number of new rules are being applied to cut off federal funding to any facility that performs trans procedures on children, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, or surgical operations. The Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services (CMS) will bar hospitals from performing any of these procedures on children under 18 as a condition of participation in Medicare and Medicaid programs. New rules will also block funding of Medicaid’s Children’s Health Insurance Program for trans procedures on anyone under 19. That program, known as CHIP, covers millions of kids nationwide.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Inflation Cools</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1017593" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Inflation-Trends-Down.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
November’s Consumer Price Index report <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/inflation-report-surprises-economists-as-key-metric-drops-to-lowest-level-since-2021">shows</a> that inflation cooled last month, defying expert predictions and providing political relief for President Trump. The report was especially important, as it was the first since September. The October report was lost to the federal shutdown. Economists had originally predicted a month-over-month rise of 3.1%, but inflation actually came in at 2.7%. That is down from a peak 9% in 2022 under President Joe Biden. Looking at core inflation, which strips out prices on volatile goods such as food and gas, the numbers appear even better. In November, CPI was 2.6%, the lowest since March 2021. The Trump administration took a victory lap on Thursday, and investors were also thrilled by the news, as the DOW, NASDAQ, and S&amp;P 500 all climbed significantly.

MRN_251219_V2

Morning Brief: College Killer Found Dead, Kids Protected From Trans Mutilation, & Inflation Cools

Brown University

Morning Wire

Transgender

On Wednesday night, President Trump attempted a reset of the first year of his presidency. It was an effort to seize the narrative away from the Left, which keeps hammering away about “affordability.”
To set the scene: The president obviously is looking forward to the 2026 midterm elections, but Republicans are not in amazing shape for them. They&#8217;re down on the generic congressional ballot by a significant amount at this point. If the elections were held today, there is a high likelihood that Republicans would lose somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 seats.
With that said, the president is attempting to convince Americans that things are getting better.
It was great that he showed charts, a Reagan-esque move. President Reagan used to do this back in the 80s. He would do a national address, and he would take out actual charts and try to educate the American people about what was happening.
President Trump did that last night. He showed Joe Biden&#8217;s price increases and Trump&#8217;s price decreases in a wide variety of areas, ranging from hotel rates up 37.4% under Joe Biden, down 5.1% under Trump; propane rates 24.9% up under Biden, down 4.2% under Trump; gasoline up nearly 31% under Joe Biden, down 7% under Trump; sporting events up nearly 50% under Joe Biden, down almost 10% under Trump.
Those are all good things to show the American people.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2337-president-trump-pushes-the-affordability-reset-button?elementPosition=6&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
The one problem is that when you look at a chart like that, you think that the baseline price has gone down from where it was before Joe Biden — but that&#8217;s not true. If the price rises 40% under Joe Biden and then comes down 10% under Donald Trump, it&#8217;s still higher than it was before Joe Biden took office.
That&#8217;s the embedded part of the economy that President Trump is not really going to be able to wipe away. Years of inflation cannot be wiped away absent some sort of economic downturn.
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But the president was right to point out real wage increases under his tenure and wage decreases under Joe Biden. The private sector wage growth averaged $1,048 since he returned to the White House, versus losses of almost $3,000 under Joe Biden. The president showed the new yearly mortgage cost increase under Joe Biden was up almost $15,000, versus Trump&#8217;s new yearly mortgage cost decrease, down almost $3,000.
When he referred to Obamacare, he pointed out it&#8217;s not the Republicans’ fault, it&#8217;s the Democrats’ fault. It&#8217;s the Unaffordable Care Act.
And that is true.
So here’s the Big Question: Why aren’t Americans feeling it?
There are a few reasons. One is that Americans expect the amounts they currently pay to actively plunge, not just from where they were last year, but from where they were three or four years ago. But if you radically inflate prices and then decrease them marginally, people are still going to feel priced out.
A second reason is that many of the items the president cited as having dropped in price are not the items that Americans most commonly buy. The number one complaint you will hear from Americans right now about pricing is in the grocery store. If you&#8217;re shopping for a family of four for a week of food, you&#8217;re now paying, in some cases, 30-40% more than you were just three or four years ago. And if the places that you most often shop are the places where you feel the most inflation and the most “unaffordability,” that&#8217;s what&#8217;s going to stick in your mind.
Yes, mortgage rates might be down, but how many people are actually taking out a new mortgage this year in the United States? Not very many.
If the thing you buy most frequently is up in price, you&#8217;re going to feel pressed. If the thing you buy once every 20 years is down in price, you&#8217;re not going to feel that quite as much because your last comp wasn&#8217;t last year, your last comp was probably ten years ago, or 15 or 20 years ago. If your last mortgage was taken out at 2.5% under the George W. Bush administration, and your new mortgage is being taken out at 5.75% under the Trump administration, you&#8217;re going to feel like things are more expensive, even though the mortgage rates are down from where they were a year or two ago.
But I&#8217;ve been saying for a while that “affordability” is a weasel word.
Affordability is vague. Affordability is a feeling. You can&#8217;t ask people, “Are things affordable?” and expect them to say yes. Virtually no one who is not truly wealthy thinks of things as “affordable.” For most of my life, everything felt unaffordable, and then at a certain point, we achieved a certain level of income where things felt more affordable.
But you have to move dramatically up in the income ladder in order for things to feel “affordable.” When you think about whether things are affordable or not, what you mean is, am I thinking about the price of the thing that I am buying?
“Affordability” is a feeling. It&#8217;s not a statistical fact.
Thus, President Trump dove into the facts, which was necessary and good.

President Trump Delivers Oval Office Address To The Nation

Trump Pushes The ‘Affordability’ Reset Button 

Affordable

Ben Shapiro

Democrats

Opinion

Inflation cooled in November, coming in lower than what economists predicted, a win for President Donald Trump as he becomes more aggressive in his messaging on the economy.
The consumer price index <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm">report</a> released on Thursday shows that prices rose by 2.7% year-over-year, a drop from the 3% rate shown in the most recent report in September. The 2.7% rate is the lowest overall inflation reading since June and surprised experts who predicted that inflation would jump above 3%.
The Trump administration celebrated Thursday&#8217;s report and pointed to another metric, which shows that key services inflation has fallen to its lowest level since March of 2021. The key services inflation gauge, which takes out housing and energy costs and is closely tracked by the Federal Reserve, also came in at 2.7%.
&#8220;Thanks to @POTUS’ pro-worker economic policies, inflation has fallen to the lowest level since March of 2021,&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/SecretaryLCD/status/2001690975052148759">said</a> Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer. &#8220;The facts are clear: President Trump is making progress to fix the affordability crisis caused by Biden and deliver relief for hardworking Americans.&#8221;
Zooming in on specific items in the consumer price index, food increased 2.6% year-over-year, while energy jumped 4.2%. Electricity was up 6.9% over the past year, and natural gas was up 9.1%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. November&#8217;s report comes after the federal government did not release a consumer price index report in October due to the record-breaking government shutdown.
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Harvard Economics and Public Policy Professor Ken Rogoff <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/2001652780134732233">told</a> CNN that he was &#8220;surprised&#8221; by the inflation report.
&#8220;It was a better number than anyone was expecting,&#8221; Rogoff said, adding, &#8220;People were expecting it to be above 3%. It was well below 3%. I think the president will take this as good news. The investors will think that interest rates will get cut more. So, it was positive news. There&#8217;s no other way to spin it.&#8221;
The stock market also reacted positively to the news, with the Dow Jones, S&amp;P 500, and Nasdaq all making gains on Thursday.
Trump has been focusing on his economic messaging in recent weeks as the Republican Party gears up for the 2026 midterm elections. The president has blasted Democrats over their focus on the so-called affordability crisis, which he calls a &#8220;hoax&#8221; and argues that his economic policies are fixing the &#8220;mess&#8221; that he was left by former President Joe Biden.
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/live-updates-president-trump-addresses-nation-from-white-house">addressed</a> the nation from the Oval Office on Wednesday night, touting his economic policies and announcing a &#8220;warrior dividend&#8221; of $1,776 for American service members. During his address, Trump also highlighted his aggressive immigration policies, arguing that the illegal immigrants who flooded the country under Biden had a negative impact on the U.S. economy.
Trump is set to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-targets-battleground-north-carolina-to-spotlight-his-economic-record?author=Cameron+Arcand&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Trump+Targets+Battleground+North+Carolina+To+Spotlight+His+Economic+Record">visit</a> North Carolina, an important battleground state in the upcoming midterms, on Friday for the next stop on his tour, bringing his economic message directly to his supporters. North Carolina will be the second stop on Trump&#8217;s economy tour after he visited Pennsylvania last week.

Inflation Report Surprises Economists As Key Metric Drops To Lowest Level Since 2021

Trump Administration

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt answered questions on affordability and inflation during a sometimes contentious press briefing on Thursday.
“Every economic metric does in fact show that the economy is getting better and brighter than where it was under the previous administration,” Leavitt noted at the top of the briefing prior to taking questions.
Eric Bolling of Real America’s Voice kicked off the questioning, pointing to declining energy prices.
“Energy prices have been coming down aggressively since Trump’s second term with $55 per barrel and gas prices under $3 for the first time in the past five years,” Bolling began. “Some people in this room want to call this an affordability crisis right now, seeming to want to forget four years prior when we hit 9% inflation. That’s an affordability crisis, but we weren’t calling it that back then. How will President Trump ensure that the legacy media does not flip the script?”
Leavitt responded, calling the media’s coverage of affordability under the Trump administration “a point of frustration” for both herself and the president.
“It’s a great question, Eric,” she said. “It is part of the reason I kicked off this briefing today, setting the record straight with facts about the economic mess that the president inherited from his predecessor Joe Biden.”
Leavitt called affordability a top priority for President Trump, offering several figures to demonstrate her point.
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“Inflation has slowed to an average 2.5% pace; real wages are increasing roughly $1,200 for the average worker; gas prices are down in almost every single state across the country, in 22 states, it&#8217;s below $2.75; the tax cuts will go into effect next year; the best is yet to come, and the president is digging the country out of the economic hole that the previous administration put us in.”
A separate and somewhat heated exchange came during questioning from CNN’s Kaitlin Collins, who asked, “If the economy is as strong as the president has said it is, then why is he telling parents two to three weeks before Christmas that they should only buy two or three dolls for their children?”
Leavitt responded, noting the president’s intention to bring manufacturing back to the United States: “Maybe you’ll pay a dollar or two more, but you will get better quality and you’ll be supporting your fellow Americans by buying American.”
Collins followed up by challenging Leavitt on inflation — but the press secretary pushed back sharply.
“There’s a lot more scrutiny on this issue from this press corps,” responded Leavitt. “My predecessor stood up at this podium and she said inflation doesn’t exist. She said the border was secure, and people like you just took her at her word. Those were two utter lies. Everything I’m telling you is the truth backed by my real, factual data, and you just don’t want to report on it because you want to push untrue narratives about the president.”
Leavitt said she wishes “more people would remind the American public of how we got here and why.”
“It does not mean the president is discarding the American people’s feelings. The president gets it better than anyone, which is why his entire administration has been focused on the economy and energy prices since day one.”
She went on to describe Democrats as “the greatest con artists in history” who are “trying to claim ownership of an issue that they created.”
Reporters also asked three separate questions about the selection of the next Federal Reserve Chair. Leavitt did not reveal when the announcement would be made, but reiterated that President Trump has long called for rate cuts.
“I think the president has been quite clear about what he believes the Fed should be doing, which is lowering interest rates,” said Leavitt. She added that the president was pleased with the quarter point cut this week, but thinks “more should be done.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Holds Press Briefing

‘Those Were Two Utter Lies’: White House Press Briefing Turns Contentious Over ‘Affordability’

Karoline Leavitt

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The Quality Of Literally Everything Is Declining. I’m Investigating To Find Out Why

Corporations

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Matt Walsh

As President Donald Trump focuses his energy on bringing food costs back down, he&#8217;s taking his messaging to the people who serve food to millions of Americans for a living each day: McDonald&#8217;s franchise owners, operators, and suppliers.
Trump is set to address an audience of McDonald&#8217;s franchisees in Washington, D.C., on Monday evening as the White House does a full-court press on economic issues, Axios <a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/11/17/trump-affordability-mcdonalds-summit">reported</a>.
&#8220;The Biden administration started the affordability crisis, but President Trump will end it so all Americans can achieve economic prosperity,&#8221; a White House official told Axios.
Trump is scheduled to speak at 6:00 p.m. ET. The &#8220;Impact Summit&#8221; will also <a href="https://foxbaltimore.com/news/nation-world/trump-to-speak-on-affordability-at-mcdonalds-impact-summit-french-fries-wes-moore-kathy-hochul-rahm-emanuel-rep-pete-aguilar-washington-dc-one-big-beautiful-bill-economy">feature</a> a slate of Democratic speakers, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. It&#8217;s a venue where Republicans and the Trump administration want to make their presence known as the economy comes back to the forefront of the political conversation.
The summit will give Trump a chance to double down on his administration&#8217;s efforts to address the economy and food prices. McDonald&#8217;s CEO Chris Kempczinski warned earlier this month that inflation was continuing to place &#8220;pressure on the industry.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s still a difficult environment, and inflation is proving to be sticky,&#8221; Kempczinski said, according to <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/retail/mcdonalds-ceo-warns-rising-beef-prices-remain-challenge-inflation-stays-sticky">Fox Business</a>. &#8220;I mean, we&#8217;re expecting to see there&#8217;s going to be above-average inflation next year. … We&#8217;re seeing very, very high inflation around beef prices versus what we&#8217;re used to historically, and so I think all of that just keeps putting pressure on the industry.&#8221;
McDonald&#8217;s executives have said that higher overhead costs have forced the company to raise prices, which has driven away many low-income customers.
Year-over-year <a href="https://www.bls.gov/charts/consumer-price-index/consumer-price-index-by-category-line-chart.htm">inflation</a> has gone down from where it stood during most of former President Joe Biden&#8217;s term, but has hovered around 3% during the first eight months of Trump&#8217;s second term. McDonald&#8217;s prices have also risen in recent months, with the average price of the chain&#8217;s signature Big Mac <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-talk-up-economy-meeting-with-mcdonalds-owners-operators-2025-11-17/">jumping</a> to $6.01 as of July, which was up from $5.69 at the same time last year, according to The Economist&#8217;s &#8220;<a href="https://www.economist.com/interactive/big-mac-index">Big Mac Index</a>.&#8221;
Ground beef, overall, has risen 13.5% from last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Trump has argued that high food prices are leftover effects from the Biden administration, which saw inflation rise to 9.1% in June 2022.
The Trump administration has taken more steps recently to address high prices and point out where prices have fallen.
&#8220;Since Day One, the Trump Administration has been on a mission to tame Biden’s inflation crisis, stop the sky-high Biden price increases, and lower costs for everyday families — and while it can’t happen overnight, evidence shows the trend is in the right direction,&#8221; the White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/11/were-making-big-progress-on-prices-and-well-keep-working-to-make-sure-everyone-benefits/">said</a> on Friday.
Trump also removed tariffs on hundreds of food imports on Friday, marking a major pivot in the president’s trade strategy. Trump&#8217;s tariff rollback is aimed at lowering prices for Americans and will apply to food items that are not grown or produced in the United States in “sufficient quantities,” including beef, coffee, tea, bananas, oranges, tomatoes, and tropical fruits and fruit juices.
McDonald&#8217;s is a personal favorite of Trump&#8217;s. The president made a pit stop at a McDonald&#8217;s location in Pennsylvania during the 2024 campaign, where he ran the fry cooker and served food to customers. He has also served McDonald&#8217;s food to special guests in the White House.

Trump To Address McDonald’s Franchise Owners As He Focuses On Driving Down Food Costs

Economics

McDonald’s

President Trump brokers several monumental deals in Asia, the U.S. ramps up its military presence in the Caribbean, and we get an expert opinion on the state of the Trump economy.
It’s Monday, October 27, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251027-member-exclusive">the video version can be seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
<div class="ad-wrapper" data-testid="ad-wrapper"><iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trumps-asia-trip-carriers-to-the-caribbean-10-27-25/id1576594336?i=1000733666489" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Strikes Trade Deals In Asia</h2>
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Topline: President Trump landed in Asia on Sunday to kick off a whirlwind diplomatic tour aimed at securing new trade deals and peace treaties.
Trump arrived in Malaysia, the first stop on his tour of South Asia, which will also include visits to Japan and South Korea.
The main goal of the trip is to lock down more trade deals and open up access to Asian markets. Within hours of his arrival in Malaysia, the president announced new trade agreements with Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Each country will eliminate the vast majority of existing tariffs on U.S. imports, and the latter two will allow for unprecedented American investments in rare earth mineral production.
While this trip was focused on trade, the president also signed a ceasefire deal between Cambodia and Thailand, two longtime foes who were on the brink of war this summer after fighting broke out over a border dispute. Under this new agreement, the two sides will pull back military forces from the border and exchange POWs.
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“I love doing it. I shouldn’t say it’s a hobby, because it’s so much more serious than a hobby — but it’s something that I’m good at and it’s something I love to do,” <a href="https://x.com/clashreport/status/1982325118300004784">said</a> Trump.
Meeting Xi: This trip will be defined by Trump’s sit-down with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The two will meet face-to-face on Thursday for the first time since 2019. Ahead of that high-stakes showdown, Trump expressed optimism regarding a “comprehensive deal” that could end the tit-for-tat trade war that’s lasted all year and resulted in unprecedented tariff rates exceeding 100%.
Ahead of that sit-down, officials from both sides have been meeting virtually non-stop this week to hammer out the framework for a potential deal. Beijing says a “basic consensus” has been reached and that the two sides “engaged in candid, in-depth, and constructive exchanges.”
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump’s Moves Against Drug Trade In South America</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-991433" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Carriers-To-The-Caribbean.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: President Trump ordered the most advanced U.S. aircraft carrier group to the Caribbean last week as he floated the possibility of strikes against drug cartels on land. And the Trump administration placed sanctions on the president of Colombia as tensions continue to rise with the erstwhile U.S. ally.
Venezuela: President Trump moved the USS Gerald R Ford carrier group to join the forces already stationed in the Caribbean. The Ford carrier group is the largest in the U.S. military, so this is an aggressive signal from the president that he isn’t satisfied with a few drug boats blown up here and there.
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham appeared on CBS’ &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; on Sunday and said he had spoken to President Trump about potential land strikes in South America.
“I think that’s a real possibility,” <a href="https://x.com/FaceTheNation/status/1982479665525613037">said</a> Graham. “I think President Trump has made a decision that Maduro, the leader of Venezuela, is an indicted drug trafficker, that it’s time for him to go, that Venezuela and Colombia have been safe havens for narco-terrorists for too long.”
Venezuelan Dictator Nicolas Maduro said last week that there are 5,000 Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles stationed around the country to defend the airspace. He also said that “millions of men and women with rifles would march across the country” if the United States were to attack on Venezuelan soil.
Colombia: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced sanctions on Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his family on Friday. Bessent said in a statement that Petro “has allowed drug cartels to flourish and refused to stop this activity.”
Colombian officials have pushed back, pointing to continued interdiction of cocaine &#8212; but the country’s coca fields have grown continuously since Petro took power in 2022. Trump’s moves against Colombia have received support from Republicans representing sizable communities of Colombian Americans.
“Colombia is once again the number one producer of coke in the world. Colombians don&#8217;t deserve that,” <a href="https://x.com/RepMariaSalazar/status/1982503947744243931">said</a> Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar. “President Trump has a responsibility to stop drugs coming into this country.”
<h2 style="text-align: center;">E.J. Antoni On Inflation and Trump’s Trade Deals</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-991435" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/Growth-Without-Gimmicks.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The latest economic report shows inflation slightly cooler than experts predicted at 0.3% rather than the predicted 0.4%. The White House is touting the numbers as yet more proof that Trump’s economic plan is working.
Morning Wire spoke with economist E.J. Antoni of the Heritage Foundation. (The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Morning Wire: First, big picture – we&#8217;re nine months into Trump&#8217;s second term. How is the economy doing?
Antoni: I&#8217;d say the best way to describe it is that it&#8217;s in the midst of a transition, right? For basically the last two years of the Biden administration, you had a labor market that was being propped up in a lot of ways by government hiring. That&#8217;s gone away. In fact, it&#8217;s been replaced with government firings. And the result of that is a drag on the overall jobs numbers, right? In the same way, when you look at something like the way we measure the economy through gross domestic product or GDP, you had government purchases which were accounting for a very large percentage of that. That&#8217;s all gone away. In fact, it&#8217;s been replaced by a reduction in those government purchases, which is a drag on the headline number. What I&#8217;m trying to get at here is, as the government re-privatizes, as the Treasury Secretary says, you will see what looks like sluggish growth – which I think we&#8217;re in right now – but in reality is actually a returning to health. It&#8217;s almost like the chemotherapy that makes you feel really lousy, but gets rid of your cancer.
Morning Wire: The inflation numbers were a little bit cooler than projected. How do you feel about the state of inflation right now?
Antoni: Pretty good, especially since the number one driver of inflation in that CPI report for the month of September was gasoline prices going up so much, except that increase has completely reversed in the first three weeks of October. Now, prices are actually slightly lower than they were in most markets. We should expect the next CPI report – if we can even get it, it&#8217;s unclear because the government shut down – but if we could get it, we would expect even cooler CPI numbers.
Morning Wire: Treasury data show the tariff collection has really surged in recent months. What is the net effect of Trump&#8217;s tariff plan thus far in the economy? Are they working as advertised?
Antoni: Well, I guess it depends on how we want to say as advertised, right? … But here are the facts. They&#8217;re bringing in way more revenue than anticipated to the Treasury. We can certainly have a debate over who is paying for those tariffs. But, the fact is they&#8217;re bringing in billions of dollars in revenue, in fact, hundreds of billions of dollars when you annualize it. That&#8217;s one of the reasons why September had the biggest surplus ever for the month of September in terms of the Treasury monthly statement. It was because not only have we seen a reduction in overall government spending, but an increase in revenues, overall revenues of course, because the economy&#8217;s growing, but also specifically from customs duties, which are from the increase in tariffs.
Morning Wire: Is the reshoring effect — like Stellantis moving some production to the U.S. — is that a real trend or just a few isolated incidents?
Antoni: It’s certainly a real trend, but it is being blunted to a certain extent right now. You are seeing help to the manufacturing sector, and that some of it is being re-shored. But you&#8217;re also seeing, at least in the short term, some pain inflicted on manufacturing because, again, some of the things being tariffed are actually inputs. You&#8217;re making it more expensive, let&#8217;s say, for a car manufacturer to buy steel from abroad for the time being. Now, once that steel gets re-shored back to the United States and you can buy it domestically, then it&#8217;s a moot point, right? But at least for the time being, you&#8217;re having competing effects there where one is helping, the other is hurting.
Morning Wire: Final question, we&#8217;re about to wrap up the year with a couple months left here. What do you project to happen big-picture with the economy over the next few months?
Antoni: I think we&#8217;re going to continue to see some of these very positive trends with economic growth where, although the public sector, the government is shrinking, we&#8217;re going to continue to see growth in the productive private sector. And in particular, one of the reasons why I&#8217;m so optimistic here is that the growth we have seen thus far this year, which I think will continue, has been driven by increases in earnings, not simply increases in debt. … Their money is going further because earnings growth is outpacing inflation. That&#8217;s a very positive development.

MRN-251027-Thumb-V1

Morning Brief: Trump’s Asia Blitz & Military Build-Up In The Caribbean

Cambodia

China

Colombia

Lindsey Graham

Tariffs

Thailand

Venezuela

Xi Jinping

It’s Friday, and we finally have inflation numbers.
The <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/cpi_10242025.htm">report</a> showed that inflation came in cooler than expected at 0.3% versus a forecast of 0.4%. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) completed the report nine days past the due date and five days before the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) decision.
In a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/10/inflation-remains-low-as-democrat-shutdown-threatens-progress/">statement</a> released today, Karoline Leavitt said, “Under President Trump, America is back &#8211; but inflation is not.” 
Normally, the BLS releases the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report around the middle of the month, typically in the middle of the week. But America’s not in a normal situation, as today is the 24th day of the government shutdown.
To get the inflation numbers from the <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/cpi_10242025.htm">Social Security Administration</a> (SSA), the Department of Labor brought back furloughed employees to complete September’s CPI report. The Social Security Administration uses CPI as a benchmark for cost-of-living adjustments when issuing benefit checks. The SSA needed September’s numbers.
The FOMC decision will be based on the analysis of September&#8217;s CPI report. However, the looming FOMC decision wasn’t enough on its own to bring back the furloughed employees. And the Social Security Administration’s need for the numbers most likely won’t be enough to get a report generated for October. 
Every month, the BLS dispatches staff to collect price data for everyday goods. Before the shutdown, they had already done their “field work” for September, allowing the Bureau of Labor Statistics to finalize the report. Since the lapse in appropriations, employees were not dispatched to gather data for October.    
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This month, the main driver of inflation was gasoline, which rose 4.1%. In times of high global tensions and uncertainty, this index typically increases. Wars and sanctions, or even the fear of them, can drive up gas demand, often raising prices. Sanctions and international conflict have the potential to cause shortages and supply shocks, sending the price of gasoline skyward. 
On Thursday, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control <a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0290">expanded sanctions</a> on Russia’s two largest oil companies. The effects of those sanctions will appear in the next report that the Bureau of Labor Statistics provides. 
Energy also rose 1.5%. In most years, energy typically falls as the cooler months approach. However, America is not in a normal year for energy. AI demands energy. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright stated in a letter to Congress this week that the “United States is experiencing an unprecedented surge in electricity demand.” AI Infrastructure and Data Centers require vast amounts of energy, and that demand is only expected to increase as the technology expands.
Based on information provided by the U.S. Inflation Calculator, since Trump took office, inflation has averaged 2.65% each month.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) stated, “The inflation report today is just the latest warning sign that Donald Trump continues to squeeze the life out of working people in our economy.” 
The Biden Administration had an inflation average of 4.9%. The Federal Reserve has a goal of keeping inflation at 2%.

Safeway Aisles

The Nation Finally Gets Its Inflation Report — And It’s Better Than The Experts Told Us It Would Be

Nine days past the due date, America gets CPI Report 

groceries

Social Security

The economy performed better in the second quarter of 2025 than previously projected, according to revised statistics released Thursday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. 
The second quarter (April, May, and June) saw a 3.8% increase in gross domestic product, according to the latest revision. Previously released estimates for growth initially came in at 3% and then at 3.3%. 
“The increase in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected a decrease in imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, and an increase in consumer spending,” the bureau <a href="https://www.bea.gov/news/2025/gross-domestic-product-2nd-quarter-2025-third-estimate-gdp-industry-corporate-profits">said</a>. “These movements were partly offset by decreases in investment and exports.”
The bureau attributed the increase in GDP primarily to a rise in consumer spending. In the first quarter, GDP declined 0.6% after a surge in imports. 
Sectors that saw significant growth in the second quarter included finance and insurance, information, nondurable goods manufacturing, real estate, healthcare, mining, wholesale trade, and construction. Retail trade, federal government, educational services, and local government all saw declining productivity. 
The White House celebrated the revisions, saying that they reflected the success of President Donald Trump’s economic policies. 
“America’s economic resurgence under President Trump continues: revised data show even stronger real GDP growth of 3.8 percent in Q2 2025 thanks to the Trump agenda of tax cuts, deregulation, tariffs, and energy abundance. And this is just the beginning: new data from today also shows core capital goods orders beat expectations, paving the way for robust investment growth in Q3,” <a href="https://x.com/KushDesai47/status/1971208450311958919">said</a> White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
America’s economic resurgence under President Trump continues: revised data show even stronger real GDP growth of 3.8 percent in Q2 2025 thanks to the Trump agenda of tax cuts, deregulation, tariffs, and energy abundance. And this is just the beginning: new data from today also… <a href="https://t.co/aXvf7CKDLo">https://t.co/aXvf7CKDLo</a>
— Kush Desai (@KushDesai47) <a href="https://twitter.com/KushDesai47/status/1971208450311958919?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 25, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“President Trump pledged to Make America Wealthy Again, and with Joe Biden’s inflation crisis tamed, we are now laying the groundwork for a long-term restoration of American Greatness,” Desai added. 
Numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/real-progress-here-wholesale-inflation-drops-in-august-stunning-economists?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=‘Real+Progress+Here’%3A+Wholesale+Inflation+Drops+In+August%2C+Stunning+Economists">released</a> earlier this month showed that inflation dropped significantly in August, below what economists had expected. The agency reported that the Producer Price Index (PPI) came in at 2.6% year-over-year, far below the 3.3% rise that was forecasted, according to Barron’s.

President Trump Departs Morristown Airport En Route To Washington, DC

U.S. Economy Smashed Q2 Forecasts As Shoppers Went On A Spending Spree

Wholesale prices dropped in August, coming in significantly below what economists had expected, and led to a new record high for the S&amp;P 500 on Wednesday.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the Producer Price Index (PPI) came in at 2.6% year-over-year, far below the 3.3% rise that was forecasted, according to <a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/ppi-wholesale-inflation-data-august-83ddcabb">Barron’s</a>. Wholesale prices dropped 0.1% on a monthly basis, which was also better than what economists were expecting, with the Dow Jones predicting a 0.3% rise, CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/10/ppi-inflation-august-2025-.html">reported</a>.
“Boy, I’m surprised — real progress here! 2.6% on year-over-year headline. We were expecting 3.3%!” <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1965761591179182133">said</a> CNBC’s Rick Santelli.
CNBC host Becky Quick <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1965762391620391046">added</a> that the inflation report was “a real shocker.”
The White House took a victory lap after the report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, blasting “the so-called ‘experts’” who had predicted for months that President Donald Trump’s wide-ranging tariffs would cause prices to skyrocket.
“The latest PPI report shows there is no inflation — wholesale prices fell and smashed economists’ expectations. President Trump has defeated Joe Biden’s inflation crisis while successfully implementing powerful tariffs, which haven’t hiked prices like the so-called ‘experts’ claimed,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. “This is yet another reason for Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell to cut the rates immediately to make everyday life more affordable for Americans.”
In July, the PPI increased by 0.7%, which was the highest month-over-month increase since Trump took office for his second term in January.
The S&amp;P 500 surged to a new record high, climbing another 0.4% after the report came out on Wednesday, according to <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/09/stock-market-today-live-updates.html">CNBC</a>. Computer software company Oracle led the S&amp;P 500 rally, gaining 40% after the company released a surprising forecast, <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/oracle-stock-soars-after-ceo-says-ai-fueled-cloud-revenue-set-to-jump-to-144-billion-154530523.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAI1-i2sXMCo1_r6MGzX2KKW5v4fhoklORnC7L3nznCj71xQWTri54REsRQfjHKpN96sIT2D3X-mIe33cajfQNBG95b7PFPsaXSKelDPTr0nuCMK9FI1ly6yzT1YndXcDiYnJomDW8MBy2nenY0lb0OflSZ1kRI-fPMkS8cSzcexB" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stating</a> that it expects AI-fueled revenue to reach $144 billion by its 2030 fiscal year.
The August inflation report was published just one week before the Federal Reserve Board of Governors meets for its September gathering, as signs indicate that policymakers may lower interest rates after months of pressure from Trump. Fed Chair Jerome Powell <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fed-chair-jerome-powell-hints-at-possible-rate-cut-wall-street-cheers">hinted</a> last month that a rate cut could happen under current economic conditions.
Prices under Trump’s tariffs have continued to defy predictions from economists as American consumers have seen little to no effect on overall prices after the president imposed duties on dozens of countries, including America’s top trading partners. The tariffs, however, will be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/scotus-agrees-to-hear-case-on-trumps-tariffs-after-admin-asks-for-swift-action">considered</a> by the Supreme Court, as the administration warns that a ruling striking down the tariffs would have “ruinous” consequences for the U.S. economy.

‘Real Progress Here’: Wholesale Inflation Drops In August, Stunning Economists

Stock Market

Inflation remains low despite media warnings about tariffs, as the U.S. extends its trade truce with China. The fallout from President Trump&#8217;s federal takeover of the D.C. police intensifies, with the city&#8217;s mayor and the media clashing over the reality of the crime crisis. Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu lays out his post-war plan for Gaza and pushes back on a &#8220;global campaign of lies&#8221; as international pressure mounts.
It’s Wednesday, August 13, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2>Trump Economy Holds Strong as Inflation Defies Predictions</h2>
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Topline: New data show U.S. inflation held steady at a lower-than-expected rate in July, defying dire predictions that President Trump’s tariffs would cause prices to skyrocket. 
Despite warnings from many experts and media outlets, inflation held steady at 2.7% in July, below the 2.8% predicted by economists. The new numbers show that prices for key goods are falling, with gasoline down 10% and eggs down 20%, while real wages are up 1.3% compared to last year. While outlets like The New York Times have tried to frame the numbers negatively, even CNN was forced to acknowledge falling energy and grocery prices. 
The good news comes as the U.S. and China agreed to extend their &#8220;trade truce&#8221; for another 90 days, holding tariffs at a reduced rate while negotiations continue. The administration’s massive trade deals with the European Union, U.K., South Korea, and Japan are already paying dividends. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the new tariffs have already brought in over $100 billion and are projected to reach $300 billion by the end of the year. 
<h2>Fallout Intensifies Over Trump’s D.C. Takeover</h2>
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Topline: The fallout from President Trump’s decision to federalize the Washington, D.C., police force has intensified, sparking a furious debate between city leaders and the media over the reality of the capital&#8217;s crime crisis. 
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has admitted she has no legal recourse to stop the federal intervention, but claims the crime wave is a fiction, stating that the city is at a &#8220;30-year violent crime low.&#8221; She is using the federal takeover to renew her calls for D.C. statehood. That narrative has been echoed by some in the media, with a New York Times reporter referring to a &#8220;nonexistent crime crisis.&#8221; 
However, journalists on the ground in D.C. tell a different story. An ABC News anchor detailed multiple recent shootings near her downtown office, while a CNN contributor said he witnessed a murder in Union Station just a few months ago. 
The D.C. police union is backing the president&#8217;s move, saying crime is &#8220;out of control.&#8221; The union&#8217;s president blamed a 2020 law that &#8220;handcuffed police officers&#8221; for creating a shortage of over 800 officers and making it impossible to properly police the city. 
<h2>Netanyahu Outlines Gaza Plan, Pushes Back on ‘Lies’</h2>
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Topline: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has laid out a five-point vision for a post-war Gaza and is pushing back against what he calls a &#8220;global campaign of lies&#8221; regarding the humanitarian situation in the territory. 
During a press conference, Netanyahu said Israel&#8217;s goal is to &#8220;free Gaza from Hamas terrorists,&#8221; not to occupy it. His five-point plan includes the defeat of Hamas and the release of all hostages, the demilitarization of Gaza, an established security zone on the border, and a new civilian administration that can live in peace with Israel. 
Netanyahu also pushed back on claims that Israel is causing a humanitarian crisis, stating that his country has allowed nearly two million tons of aid into Gaza. &#8220;Our policy throughout the war has been to prevent a humanitarian crisis, while Hamas’ policy has been to create it,&#8221; he said, noting that Hamas loots nearly 90% of aid trucks. A recent Daily Wire exclusive report from Kassy Akiva supported this, debunking a viral story about a Gazan boy who was allegedly killed by Israeli forces at an aid site. 
The comments come as international pressure on Israel mounts. Several European nations, including France, the U.K., and Canada, have recently moved to recognize a Palestinian state. Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticized the move, saying that by rewarding the Palestinians while Hamas still holds hostages, these countries have &#8220;emboldened&#8221; the terror group and made a ceasefire harder to achieve.

MRN 8.13.25 Wed SH1

Morning Brief: Low Inflation, Tariff Truce w/China, D.C. Takeover Fallout, Plans For Post-War Gaza

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