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A bold Labor Day prediction made two months ago by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was dredged up Monday and trolled by a smirking MS NOW host.Peter Alexander repeatedly shared a clip of the self-assured member of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet claiming Americans would see the return of $3 gas by Labor Day. "Inflation is going to come back down," Bessent assured Americans in July. "It's largely dominated, as you said, by gasoline. In many states, we're back to around $3.50. I think we can get back to $3.”When a CBS News reporter pressed Bessent to put a date to the pledge, he replied without pause, “Maybe by Labor Day.”After the clip ended, Alexander's eyebrows were raised. “It is Labor Day," he said. "Gas prices, as you are well aware, are nowhere close to $3 than they were a month ago. Right now, the national average is $4.15 per gallon — that's not three bucks. It's way higher than prior to the Iran war, when they were sitting below $3 a gallon.”Alexander noted Vice President JD Vance defended Bessent's comment, putting emphasis on the word "maybe."This did not stop Alexander from sharing some definite facts with his viewers. ”This is the most expensive Labor Day on record," he said, "with travelers facing higher costs on everything from airfare and gas prices.” - YouTube youtu.be

President Donald Trump's recent dump of "New America" AI-slop spurred a former GOP House member on Monday to make a surprising claim.Ex-Rep Charlie Dent (R-PA) grimaced on air when MS NOW host Peter Alexander revealed the president had once again posted an image on Truth Social that referred to New Mexico as “New America.”“I think most Americans look at this and they say, ‘What is he doing?’" said Dent.Dent urged Trump to stop slapping America's name on states and lakes and start addressing the issues affecting everyday Americans.“The president of the United States needs to be focusing on the hard issues, resolving this war, dealing with affordability," Dent said. "He continues to obsess over the ballroom and the Kennedy Center and the reflecting pool — I mean, all these sorts of things that are completely irrelevant to Americans' lives.”Dent called Trump's name obsession "bizarre" and then dropped a surprising theory.“These are not helping the president or his party — it's hurting his own team," said Dent. "It's almost like there's an intentional act to undermine your own party's prospects in the midterms.”

Americans risk exposure to anti-parasite drugs and banned antibiotics in chunks of years-old, potentially rotten meat after a controversial friend of Melania Trump's was invited for a meeting at the White House, according to a new analysis. Eric Schlosser, the author of “Fast Food Nation," penned an opinion piece for the New York Times on Monday in which he strenuously warned Americans to avoid President Donald Trump's 660 million pounds of inexpensive "mystery meat." "They’re small chunks of frozen meat that could have been kept in cold storage overseas for years," wrote Schlosser. "They are the quintessence of generic industrial meat, imported here to be subsequently processed in massive grinders that combine pieces of tens of thousands of cattle from multiple countries, mainly into fast food hamburgers."Schlosser argued that the mysterious source of this meat presents a risk because of the problematic processing practices of meat exporters abroad. Beef from Uruguay was found to be tainted with an anti-parasitic drug and Argentinian beef has repeatedly tested positive for a banned antibiotic that can cause serious blood disorders, Schlosser reported. Those countries have nothing on Brazil, the world's largest beef exporter. "In 2017, the Brazilian federal police raided nearly 200 meatpacking plants after allegations that government inspectors and politicians were being bribed to allow the sale of contaminated beef," Schlosser wrote. "Rotten meat treated with ascorbic acid and other chemicals to mask the contamination had been sold to hospitals and schools in Brazil and also been exported."In August, Trump announced the U.S. United States would allow up to 300,000 metric tons of imported ground beef into the country, without a usual tariff, for the next 90 days — claiming it would lower prices for American consumers. But Schlosser argued that the economics aren't going to pan out for American cattle ranchers or consumers, but meatpacking companies and fast food chains. This is why Schlosser issued a stark warning to his readers. "If you want to eat a hamburger, I suggest going to your local butcher shop, rather than the supermarket, ordering cuts of American beef, and asking for them to be ground on the premises," he wrote. "Otherwise, there’s really no way of knowing what’s in your meat, or how many international borders it crossed to reach your plate."So why did Trump cut this problematic deal?Schlosser has an interesting theory: it came from a White House meeting between Trump and Joesley Batista, the owner of meatpacking giant JBS, who was jailed in Brazil for paying $186 million in bribes to almost 2,000 politicians."Mr. Batista gained the White House meeting last November...because of his friendship with Melania Trump," wrote Schlosser. "Not long afterward, JBS got approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, a privilege the company had sought for almost a decade."

The far-right Alternative for Germany party thanked the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, after decisively winning a key regional election on Sunday, sparking alarm across Europe and around the globe.Ulrich Siegmund, AfD’s lead candidate in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, praised Musk—who has openly advocated for the far-right, xenophobic party—for his support and “clear and highly important perspective on the political developments of our time—including here in Germany.” Siegmund wrote that if AfD ends up leading the state government, the party “would very much welcome the opportunity for strong and constructive cooperation,” adding that “Germany would once again be a place worth investing in.”Siegmund’s post on the social media platform X, which Musk owns, came after AfD won just over 44% of the vote in the Saxony-Anhalt election, trouncing the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz. CDU finished a distant second with 17.1% of the vote.“Well done!” Musk wrote, in German, following AfD’s election win. The mega-billionaire has called AfD “the only hope for Germany.”US President Donald Trump, a political ally of Musk, posted to Truth Social a screenshot of exit polls showing AfD leading the regional election on Sunday afternoon.“Leave it to Trump to celebrate the victory of a far-right German party that shows sympathy for the Nazis, downplays the Holocaust, and flirts with Putin,” Kenneth Roth, the former executive director of Human Rights Watch, wrote on social media in response to the US president.The Associated Press noted that “to win an absolute majority, AfD needed to clinch 42 of the 83 seats in the state parliament, but the party appeared on track to win 39. Depending on the ultimate make-up of parliament, it could still end up leading the state government.” Siegmund would be the first far-right leader to govern a German state since 1945.But other German parties have refused to work with AfD, raising doubts about its ability to form a government in Saxony-Anhalt, which has a population of around 2.1 million people.David Adler, co-general coordinator of the Progressive International, wrote that the election “sent a clear message, to Germany as to all of Europe, that the far-right rampage is not slowing down, but accelerating instead.”AfD focuses heavily on immigration, vowing “deportation from minute one” and calling for abolition of “the fundamental right to asylum.”“In addition to deporting immigrants, the party has proposed cutting funding for public broadcasters, banning gay pride flags in schools, and teaching more Russian, as well as tax breaks for large families and free childcare,” The New York Times reported. The newspaper noted that Siegmund declined to condemn supporters who “chanted his surname... in the style of the Nazi salute, ‘Sieg Heil.’”European officials voiced deep concern about AfD’s surge in the regional election, with France’s Europe minister calling the results “a serious moment.”“Nationalism and xenophobia will never be a solution,” said Benjamin Haddad. “We must listen with humility to the anger, the concerns, the fears, and respond to them. We cannot forget our history. That is the meaning behind the choices made by France and Germany.”Spanish Julen Bollain wrote on social media that “the far-right is managing to turn discontent, economic insecurity, and disaffection into votes.”“AfD is doing something that should especially worry the left: transforming precarity, frustration, and disaffection into political identity and votes,” Bollain added. “And if we don’t manage to give a collective response to the existing social discontent, someone always shows up ready to turn it into fear, hate, and scapegoats. And there they beat us, because they move like fish in water.”This story was published in partnership with Common Dreams. Read the original here.

Slavery’s legacy continues ‘to deprive our country and our people’, says minister, as group prepares to appeal to Jamaica’s head of stateA landmark petition is to be handed to King Charles by Jamaica over slavery reparations, aiming to confront historical crimes that still disadvantage former British colonies, the Caribbean nation’s culture minister has said.The petition will be lodged with Charles, Jamaica’s head of state, on Monday. Continue reading...

Beijing wants banks and insurers to bolster investment in stock market as it helps to replenish cash reservesChina will inject $54bn (£40bn) into its financial sector as Beijing attempts to shore up banks and insurers in the face of faltering economic growth.A host of financial institutions said they were due to receive billions of yuan in capital from state institutions including the ministry of finance and even the company that runs the country’s tobacco monopoly. Continue reading...

A fawning member of President Donald Trump's cabinet on Sunday praised a higher power for his boss's character.Energy Secretary Chris Wright appeared on CNN Sunday morning amid an ongoing war in Iran that has reportedly cost thousands of lives and delivered a severe blow to the global economy with the subsequent and record-breaking spike in gas prices."Thank God for President Donald Trump's courage to take this on," Wright said. Wright argued Trump had acted bravely when he launched an attack on Iran in February without the consent of Congress.Political analyst David Pakman has called this an "optional war," waged in one of the world's largest oil-producing regions, noting it was not prompted by an invasion or attack on the U.S. But Wright argued Trump had protected Americans from the potential threat of an Iran armed with a nuclear weapon."He did not want to kick the can down the road," said Wright. "This is Iran without nuclear weapons — imagine Iran with nuclear weapons." This comment was met with criticism on social media who argued Americans had paid a high price to combat a hypothetical threat. "Iran did not attack us," wrote retired journalist Jack Polakoff. "Oil prices shot up after #Trump launched his unprovoked war. 18 US service members died because of him. It's costing taxpayers billions. We gain nothing."

Exclusive: Tan Dhesi says Argentinian threats make it more crucial than ever that PM increase defence spendingJavier Milei’s threats to the Falkland Islands make it even more important that Andy Burnham increase defence spending immediately, according to the Labour chair of the defence committee.Tan Dhesi said the comments by the Argentinian president this week show why the government should raise military spending to 3% of GDP by 2030. But he said Burnham’s plans remain mired in confusion after the prime minister appeared to reassure him that the 2030 target would be hit, only for Downing Street to later retreat. Continue reading...