Breaking: The U.S. added 142,000 jobs in August, below expectations for the second month running. Read more here.
Speaking to the Economic Club of New York on Sept. 5, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump laid out his vision for the U.S. economy that he says would lead to a “national economic renaissance.”
Trump promised to implement many of the same policies from his first term in the White House, pledged to reverse President Joe Biden’s measures, and presented other ideas to stimulate growth.
Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump addresses the Economic Club of New York, on Sept. 5, 2024. Spencer Platt/Getty Images
The GOP nominee proposed creating a government efficiency commission as part of his regulatory overhaul. He vowed to eliminate ten regulations for every new one imposed.
“I will create a government efficiency commission tasked with completing a complete financial and performance audit of the federal government and making recommendations for drastic reforms,” Trump said before a group of business leaders and media personalities.
Billionaire Elon Musk first discussed the government efficiency task force during a conversation broadcast last month on X’s Spaces.
Musk, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla Motors, stated on the social media platform that he would “look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises.
“No pay, no title, no recognition is needed,” he said.
The former president doubled down on various economic policies. Trump proposed making the Trump-era tax cuts permanent, using tariffs to reshore jobs, and rescinding “all unspent funds” under the Inflation Reduction Act.
He also suggested lowering the corporate tax rate to 15 percent. However, companies that “outsource, offshore or replace American workers” would not be eligible for the lower levy and would be subjected to tariffs instead.
“I am promising low taxes, low regulations, low energy costs, low interest rates, secure borders, low, low, low crime and surging incomes for citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed,” Trump said. “My plan will rapidly defeat inflation, quickly bring down prices, and reignite explosive economic growth.”
Trump also took a swipe at Vice President Kamala Harris’ policy proposals, claiming that the Democrat nominee “will take more money out of American pockets.
“My plan will leave the typical family with many thousands of dollars more than they have right now,” he said.
—Andrew Moran
JUDGE LAYS SCHEDULE IN TRUMP ELECTION
Judge Tanya Chutkan posted an updated schedule for the pre-trial process in former President Donald Trump’s D.C. election interference case. The case had been paused for months as the Supreme Court considered Trump’s appeal related to presidential immunity.
Immunity will likely loom large in future proceedings and seemed to be the primary point of contention between the parties during a status conference that started on the morning of Sept. 5. Chutkan’s schedule, which came later that afternoon, laid out deadlines for filings related to immunity, as well as a motion to dismiss related to other issues.
Briefing on immunity is scheduled with multiple deadlines from Sept. 26 through Oct. 29. “After briefing, the court will determine whether further proceedings are necessary,” Chutkan said in her order.
Chutkan appeared to favor Special Counsel Jack Smith’s interest in addressing various issues, including the evidence involved with the defense’s immunity claims, concurrently. Her order directed him to file an opening brief on immunity, due September 26, as well as make evidentiary disclosures before the election.
During the status conference, Trump suggested she adopt a more incremental approach whereby she first considered whether the superseding indictment could stand as a matter of law after the Supreme Court’s ruling on the issue.
The new schedule contains deadlines through November 7 with the final briefing dates related to a potential motion to dismiss challenging the legitimacy of Smith’s appointment.
Florida Judge Aileen Cannon had dismissed Trump’s classified documents case, holding that Smith’s appointment violated the Constitution. Trump attorney John Lauro cited that decision and Justice Thomas’ concurring opinion in Trump v. United States wherein he similarly scrutinized the special counsel’s appointment.
Chutkan was skeptical during the status conference while discussing a potential motion challenging Smith’s appointment. She pressed Lauro on how she should evaluate a motion like that given that the D.C. Circuit already had binding precedent on the issue.
Chutkan reopened a motion to dismiss on statutory grounds with the opportunity for the parties to submit supplemental briefing in October. During the status conference, Lauro indicated he might bring arguments related to Fischer v. United States, a Supreme Court case in which a majority of the justices recently criticized the Justice Department’s application of a financial reform law to Jan. 6 defendants.
–Sam Dorman
BOOKMARKS
Hunter Biden in a surprise move pleaded guilty to federal tax charges yesterday. The plea change came hours before jury selection was to begin in his trial, which will now be called off.
Online nonprofit library Internet Archive will no longer be able to post scanned copies of copyrighted books on the internet following an appeals court decision. Internet Archive had argued that its work fell under the category of “fair use,” since it was digitizing copies of printed books, but the court ruled against this, since “its digital copies do not provide criticism, commentary, or information about the originals.”
President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro decreed that Christmas will take place on October 1 this year during a weekly television address. His reasoning for the change was unclear, but he said “It smells like Christmas.”
A Legionnaires Disease outbreak in a New York nursing home has resulted in the deaths of three senior citizens, with 20 others hospitalized. The disease is a form of water-borne bacterial pneumonia; the nursing home has responded by updating its water filtration systems.
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc. has settled with the Department of Justice to pay $25 million in a price-fixing scheme for its generic cholesterol medication pravastatin. The New Jersey-based drug company had previously been ordered to pay $30 million in a similar scheme.
August was the weakest month for private sector job growth since August 2021, according to payroll data company Automatic Data Processing. It is hoped that predicted interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve will soothe the country’s economic burdens.
