The Morning Sixpack Podcast - August 12, 2025

1. Inflation is holding steady at 2.7%, but the “core” number—excluding food and energy—jumped to 3.1%, meaning the price creep is hitting items people actually buy. Energy costs helped keep the headline number flat, but tariffs and immigration policy shifts are quietly pushing up costs in furniture, pet products, and even haircuts. Economists say the Fed now has plenty of room to cut rates, but those quiet hikes will keep nibbling at wallets long after the headlines fade.

2. Trump fired the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner after a grim jobs report, accusing her—without evidence—of rigging the numbers. He’s replacing her with E.J. Antoni, a Heritage Foundation economist who’s spent a year attacking the agency’s credibility. Economists from both parties warn that the appointment politicizes an office that’s supposed to be independent and data-driven, raising fears the BLS could become another partisan tool rather than a trusted source.

3. Declaring a public safety emergency, Trump took over the D.C. police department and deployed the National Guard, claiming the city is overrun by criminals and homeless people. Crime stats show a sharp drop over the last two years, but Trump pointed to a few high-profile incidents to justify the move. DEA chief Terry Cole will run the department for now, while federal agents flood the city and encampment sweeps loom.

4. Two people are dead and at least ten injured after an explosion ripped through U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works near Pittsburgh, the latest in a string of deadly accidents and environmental violations at the plant. The blast, felt miles away, sent thick black smoke into the air and reignited calls for a full investigation into whether the facility is safe to operate at all. Local residents say the plant’s long history of fires, explosions, and toxic emissions has made it a constant danger.

5. Trump signed a 90-day extension to the trade truce with China, avoiding an immediate tariff spike but leaving all the major disputes unresolved. Talks last month stalled over rare earths, tech export controls, and China’s Russian oil purchases. U.S. farmers may see a short-term boost from Chinese soybean buys, but with the effective U.S. tariff rate already the highest since 1933, businesses on both sides face more uncertainty when the clock runs out.

6. In Austin, Texas, a man with a history of mental health issues opened fire in a Target parking lot, killing two adults and a child before stealing two cars in a chaotic escape that ended with his arrest 20 miles away. The attack rattled shoppers in the midst of back-to-school season and comes just two weeks after a mass stabbing at a Michigan Walmart, adding to a troubling trend of violence at major retail stores.