January 5, 2024 - Daily Digest
Strong economic report released
Today is January 5, 2024 and here are three critical stories you may have missed. If you enjoy my content and want access to more, exclusive content or to support my work, please consider becoming a paid, monthly subscriber by clicking the link below:
1) Major Jobs Report Shows Strength Of The Biden Economy
The December jobs report released this morning once again showed the robust growth of the United States economy under President Biden's leadership. Some top level numbers from the report include 216,000 new jobs, an unemployment rate of 3.7%, and annual wage growth at nearly 5%. This latest jobs report blew past expectations from economists who initially predicted the United States would add only 160,000 jobs and have an unemployment rate at 3.8%.
Just this year, thanks to President Biden's leadership, the United States economy has added over 2.7 million new jobs. By comparison, in the 16 years of the Trump and Bush Administrations, the United States economy added just 1.6 million jobs. Since taking office, President Biden has now seen over 14.3 million jobs added to the economy.
This graph, on its face, does not tell the full story too. The jobs added during the Clinton and Obama administrations occurred over a 16 year time frame. President Biden has added about half the amount of jobs in less than four years in office. Despite initial fears about a possible recession as the United States recovers following the COVID-19 pandemic, economic growth remains strong, proving once again that Bidenomics is working.
2) House Republican Majority Shrinks
Representative Bill Johnson has submitted his letter of resignation to the United States House of Representatives, effective January 21, 2024. Johnson currently represents Ohio's Sixth Congressional District, a solidly Republican district. Instead of serving in the House of Representatives, Johnson will become the new president of Youngstown State University. As a result of Johnson's early resignation, House Republicans will see their majority shrink even further, with only 219 members in the majority. Their already narrow majority will now shrink to just three seats, with Republicans holding 219 and Democrats holding 213. Johnson's retirement comes just weeks after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy retired early from the House and after the House expelled embattled former Congressman George Santos.
This latest retirement makes it even more difficult for Speaker Mike Johnson and House Republicans to pass any legislation in 2024. Last year, the House Republican caucus was one of the most unproductive in recent history. After weeks of internal strife, resulting in a lengthy initial vote to make McCarthy Speaker, and then another several weeks of uncertainty after Republicans ousted McCarthy, the caucus successfully voted to pass less than thirty pieces of legislation. When comparing it to past Democratic and Republican caucuses, House Republicans were one of the most unproductive caucuses in recent memory.
With Johnson's retirement, Republicans will continue to struggle to pass any legislation, and will need a near 100% attendance during votes to pass bills. If just three Republicans do not show up or defect and vote with Democrats, Speaker Johnson will not be able to pass legislation. This is critical as in 2024 the House is expected to take up several important pieces of legislation including spending bills to keep the government open and an immigration package that may or may not include funding for Ukraine and Israel.
3) Trump Says Jack Smith Should Be Held in Contempt in Frivolous Filing
Donald Trump's attorneys have filed a motion for order to show cause as to why Jack Smith and his team should not be held in contempt of court for filing a motion in limine in the January 6th case despite there being a current stay of the proceedings. The motion asks the Court to force the Special Counsel's team to explain why they should not be held in contempt of court. The primary basis for the filing is a motion in limine filed by the Special Counsel's team last month which sought to preclude Trump and his team from making certain arguments about his actions leading up to and on January 6th.
Specifically, Trump's attorneys suggest that by filing this motion, the Special Counsel's team violated the pending stay imposed by Judge Chutkan while an appeal is pending concerning Trump's presidential immunity arguments. Within this filing, Trump's attorneys parrot much of the same language he does on Truth Social and other social media platforms by claiming that Jack Smith's team is merely an extension of the Biden Administration (which is untrue).
As a result, Trump asks the court for an order to show cause concerning why the Special Counsel's team should "(1) be held in contempt, (2) required to immediately withdraw their MIL and improper productions; (3) forbidden from submitting any further filing or production absent the Court’s express permission while the Stay Order is in effect; and (4) assessed monetary sanctions in the amount of President Trump’s reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in responding to the prosecutors’ improper productions and filings, including in litigating this Motion."