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Donald Trump and Melania Trump stand on stage at the conclusion of the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 18, 2024 in Milwaukee, WI.

What’s inside Melania Trump’s little black book?

After being relatively absent this campaign cycle, Melania Trump has decided the pen will be her sword in Donald Trump’s fight for the White House. The former first lady dropped her memoir, “Melania,” on Tuesday, just 27 days before the election, in which she breaks from her husband on immigration and abortion but refuses to concede that Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

Inside the book’s simple black cover is 182 pages that are equal parts CV and political manifesto. It takes the reader through the greatest hits of her career, from her idyllic childhood in Slovenia to her successful modeling career and QVC jewelry business, to her “focus on cybersecurity and the well-being of children” as first lady. It also avoids any mention of Stormy Daniels or the many other women who have accused her husband of sexual misconduct.

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Annie Gugliotta

Graphic Truth: Burgernomics and how wage growth has outpaced inflation

So you’ve heard of Bidenomics, but what about burgernomics? Allow us to introduce you to the Big Mac Index, which uses the price of a McDonald's Big Mac to assess whether currencies are over- or undervalued relative to the US dollar.

The index shows purchasing (patty) power, or the gap between productivity and living standards, between countries. It compares the local price of a Big Mac in different countries, converted to US dollars. But it's also a good measure of inflation – a hot topic for the US election, with Kamala Harris and Donald Trump both arguing that they have been better stewards of the economy. Of course, both administrations were majorly affected by COVID, which also had an impact on Big Mac prices.

Before the pandemic, you could buy a Big Mac for $4.82 – or a crisp $5 bill with change to spare, but today, you pay $5.69. This might seem like a win for Trump, but in terms of wages, the story is more complicated. In 2020, an average worker could afford about five Big Macs with an hour’s pay, but now, one hour of work could buy you 5.4 Big Macs. This reflects how, since March 2023, wage growth has outpaced inflation, with the average American’s hourly pay increasing by 5.9%, while prices have jumped just 4.1%.

Annie Gugliotta

The Likable Lies of Campaign 2024

Are likable liars the secret weapon of campaign 2024?

After the Tuesday night vice presidential debate ended, there was widespread praise about the demeanor of the candidates, Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. JD Vance. “Voters overwhelmingly characterized the debate as positive in tone,” wrote CBS News, which hosted the debate and then conducted a poll right immediately afterward. The BBC headline used the word “politeness” to characterize the debate. GZERO used “civility.” It’s true. A much-needed Midwestern decency prevailed throughout the VP debate, the expected personal attacks giving way to a wider policy discussion.

After watching the screed-filled mayhem about immigrants eating pets that characterized the Donald Trump-Kamala Harris debate, the VP face-off was like sipping a cold beer in the middle of a heat wave.

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Democratic presidential nominee and US Vice President Kamala Harris helps out at a food distribution center during a visit to storm-damaged areas in the wake of Hurricane Helene, in Augusta, Ga., on Oct. 2, 2024.

REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

Disaster and democracy: How Helene could sway the vote in battleground states

With just over a month before Election Day, Hurricane Helene – which killed at least 125 people and left disaster zones in 66 counties across the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida – could affect the vote.

The storm has halted mail service and disrupted absentee voting. Thousands of polling stations are flooded or inaccessible, with early voting already underway in North Carolina.

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The White House in Washington, DC.

Christian Offenberg via Reuters

The world is knocking on the door

It has already been a dangerous week for the world. After months of trading aerial attacks, Israel’s northern border with Lebanon has shifted from a watchpoint to the brink of a ground invasion and wider regional conflict.

As Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. JD Vance take the debate stage tonight for the only vice presidential debate of this election season, everyone from global leaders to young people is asking: What will the next US president do with the world they are inheriting?

In his final remarks before last week’s United Nations General Assembly, President Joe Biden sought to remind the international audience of his 40-year political career. Biden’s speech framed the Afghanistan withdrawal as much-needed, the global coalition in support of Ukraine a resounding success, and new partnerships like the Quad as pillars for the US’s future.

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Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X, formerly known as Twitter, attends the Viva Technology conference dedicated to innovation and startups at the Porte de Versailles exhibition centre in Paris, France, June 16, 2023.

REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

Secret Service probes Elon Musk over assassination 'joke'

The US Secret Service is probingElon Musk’s social media post from last Sunday questioning why no one has attempted to assassinate President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris. Musk deleted the post after some resistance and issued another claiming it was a joke — but the Secret Service isn’t known for its sense of humor.

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Jess Frampton

Putin’s puppetry: How Russian propaganda divides the West

Early this month, the US Department of Justice announced the indictment of two RT employees, charging that the Russian state broadcaster had broken the Foreign Agents Registration Act and engaged in a “conspiracy to commit money laundering” by covertly funding a right-wing media outlet to spread Russian disinformation abroad.

The Justice Department said RT employees were bound up in a “$10 million scheme to create and distribute content to US audiences with hidden Russian government messaging.” US Secretary of State Antony Blinkenwarned that Kremlin-backed media outlets like RT have effectively behaved as an arm of Russia’s intelligence apparatus, threatening not only the US but countries worldwide.

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Former President Donald Trump seen golfing in Doral, Florida, on Oct. 27, 2022.

Reuters

Trump says rhetoric from Democrats ‘is causing me to be shot at’

President Donald Trump is already blaming Democrats for the apparent assassination attempt on him at his West Palm Beach golf course on Sunday. The incident came roughly two months after a gunman attempted to kill Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania.

“Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at,” Trump said Monday. The Secret Service on Monday said the suspect did not fire any shots and never had the former president in his line of sight. But they admitted that they did not search the perimeter of the golf course before Trump began his game and that the almost-assassin may have been hiding at the course for nearly 12 hours waiting for his target.

Trump — who has routinely employed violent rhetoric — has also pointed the finger at Dems over the attempt on his life in July.

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