Georgia, South Carolina Port Operations Could Be Affected by Baltimore Collision

South Carolina Port

While the discussion continues following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, several opportunities to improve operations and processes have emerged.

Officials at Georgia’s and South Carolina’s ports have vowed to help however they can.

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Commentary: High Gold Price Points to Sustained Inflation

Gold Bars in vault

The economy looms large in the minds of most people and not simply because it is an election year. It affects us directly. We spend a lot of our waking hours at work, and our jobs are often connected to the welfare of families and children. With everything being more expensive, getting a toe hold on mere middle-class status is harder now than it was for older generations. Many people are slipping down a rung or three.

In addition to long-term trends like the decline of manufacturing and the cut-throat financialization of corporate America, unique recent events loom large. COVID lockdowns, soon followed by the government money giveaway—PPP loans, augmented unemployment benefits, rent relief, and other stimulus plans—disrupted our routines and affected the entire economy. While these measures likely prevented a deep recession, the shutdowns ruined a lot of businesses, and the various stimulus funds ended up unleashing inflation.

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Inflation, COVID-Era Spending Policies Result in Teacher Layoffs Nationwide

Teacher instructing students in classroom

School districts across the country are laying off teachers, citing high inflationary costs, budget deficits, and federal COVID-era funding running out after receiving windfalls in federal subsidies for three years.

The federal COVID-era subsidies were funded through ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) grants administered by state education agencies. Financed through the CARES Act and supplemental appropriations, the grant funding expires Sept. 30.

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Part-Time Employment Surges for Another Month While Full-Time Falters

Driver Uber

The number of Americans working part-time jobs surged in March, while full-time jobs declined slightly, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released Friday.

There were 28,632,000 people with part-time jobs in March, 691,000 more than in February, when there were 27,941,000, according to the BLS. In that same period, the number of people employed in full-time positions dropped by 6,000, from 132,946,000 to 132,940,000.

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Increased Crime Cutting into Small-Business Earnings, Survey of Owners Finds

Business Owner

One-third of small-business owners say increased crime is cutting into their earnings, and 7 in 10 grade President Joe Biden’s performance negatively in terms of helping small businesses, a new poll finds.

Pollsters John McLaughlin and Scott Rasmussen conducted the survey, along with the Job Creators Network Foundation in March, among 400 small-business owners. When asked about their sentiments regarding the state of the economy, 46% of small-business owners said the economy is getting worse, while just 27% said it’s getting better.

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Commentary: Job Program for Americans-No Jobs for Illegal Aliens, Period

Illegal migrants at border

I am weary of hearing the trope that we need more illegal aliens because “Americans won’t work those jobs.” My bet is that most Americans share this sentiment as well.

Amidst a myriad of concerns about illegal immigration, one prominent worry among Americans is the potential adverse effects on the U.S. workforce. There is apprehension that undocumented migrants could potentially displace native-born workers, leading to job loss and further exacerbating the nation’s tax burden. The media and the left love to dismiss such considerations as fearful, xenophobic, and bigoted, arguing instead that alien workers fill a vital gap in the American workforce. But these concerns, nevertheless, are valid.

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Study Grades Natural Gas as Best Source for Reliability, Affordability and Environmental Impact

Natural Gas Pawer Plant

A new study finds that natural gas is the most effective energy source meeting growing energy demands affordably and reliably, while balancing environmental and human impact.

The “Grading the Grid” study by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a pro-free market nonprofit, and Northwood University rates natural gas, coal, petroleum, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, solar and geothermal generation sources on their reliability, environmental and human impact, cost, innovation and market feasibility.

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Americans Skipping Meals to Afford Housing Under Biden: Poll

Mom and Kids eating

A major real estate company released a survey on Friday which found that renters and homeowners are significantly reducing their quality of life to afford housing under President Joe Biden.

Nearly one in five homeowners and renters reported skipping meals to afford housing in Biden’s economy, according to a new survey conducted by Redfin. The median asking rental price increased from less than $1,700 when Biden took office in January 2021 to nearly $2,000 as of February, according to Redfin’s data.

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Job Market Continues Hot Streak Despite Persistent Layoffs

Job Interview

The U.S. added 303,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in March as the unemployment rate ticked down to 3.8%, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released Friday.

Economists anticipated that the country would add 200,000 jobs in March compared to the 275,000 jobs that were added in initial estimates for February, and that the unemployment rate would remain unchanged at 3.9%, according to Reuters. The job gains are in spite of persistent layoffs that reached a 14-month peak in March at 90,309.

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