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Today’s Morning Sixpack follows the money, the messaging, and the fine print. A president pins inflation on his predecessor while admitting his own war moved gas prices. A ballroom fund lists donors with business before the government. A press secretary’s “lawyer” label meets the bar exam. An execution won’t be livestreamed. A judge defends press access. And a diesel promise runs into basic arithmetic.
Trump Blames Biden As Gas Prices Push Inflation Higher
President Donald Trump blamed former President Joe Biden for high prices at a Wednesday rally in Bullhead City, Arizona, hours after new data showed inflation rising again. September’s Consumer Price Index rose 3.7% from a year earlier and 0.6% from August, the largest monthly jump since April. Gasoline climbed 9.1% and accounted for more than half of that increase. Trump also acknowledged that his Iran strikes contributed to the spike, saying he knew gasoline would go up but had no idea by how much. He has promised prices will fall once the war ends, though no timeline exists. Source: Washington Sun
Washington Post Documents Donors Behind Trump’s $333 Million Ballroom Fund
An internal donor spreadsheet obtained by The Washington Post shows private donors had committed $333 million to President Trump’s White House ballroom by late September. At least $77 million came from donors who requested anonymity. Donations flow through the nonprofit Trust for the National Mall into a White House account the president directly controls, outside ordinary campaign disclosure rules. Nvidia, Apple, the Adelson family, and Charles Ergen each committed $25 million, and several donors had business before federal agencies. The Post reported the overlaps but did not establish that any donation led to a government action. Source: The Washington Post
WSJ Reports White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Didn’t Pass Bar Exam
White House press secretary Katie Zacharia took the California bar exam after graduating from Pepperdine law school in 2011 but did not pass, The Wall Street Journal reports. Trump introduced her as an attorney, and she has called herself a lawyer on television, yet her name doesn’t appear in license searches for California, Texas, or Washington, D.C. Asked where she passed the bar, she answered, “When I moved to China.” She later worked in the international practice of a Chinese law firm, where a person familiar with her work says a U.S. bar license was not relevant. Source: The Wall Street Journal
Trump Says Hasan’s Execution Will Not Be Livestreamed
President Trump said Thursday that the scheduled execution of Nidal Hasan, convicted in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, will not be streamed online. Hasan is set to face a firing squad on Dec. 3 at Fort Hood, and victims’ immediate family members may attend in person. A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll found that 80% of Americans opposed livestreaming it. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had said the execution would be public, and the Pentagon had said it would be livestreamed. Hasan would be the first person executed after a U.S. armed forces court-martial since 1961. Source: CNBC
Judge Says Trump Can’t Bar News Outlets Over Their Coverage
A federal judge ruled that President Trump cannot block CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from covering the White House because he dislikes their reporting, at least while the case proceeds to trial. Judge Timothy J. Kelly found that revoking credentials for more than 70 journalists violated the outlets’ free-speech and due-process rights. He said Trump’s own statements suggested the ban was meant to pressure outlets into friendlier coverage. The administration cited national security and accuracy, but the judge found its case inadequate. The Justice Department said it will appeal. Source: NPR
Russian Diesel Deal Unlikely To Bring U.S. Prices Down Soon
A deal announced by President Trump to increase Russian diesel exports is unlikely to significantly ease high U.S. prices anytime soon. Diesel prices are near record levels and up about 77% this year. Russia’s promised October exports work out to roughly 75,000 barrels a day, far below the 693,000 it shipped daily last summer. The Middle East is exporting 809,000 fewer barrels of diesel per day than a year ago. Analysts say the main constraint remains the Strait of Hormuz. Source: The New York Times
That’s your Sixpack for today: big promises, bigger numbers, and a lot of fine print worth reading.
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