- Pennsylvania House Passes Election Integrity Bill: ‘The System Does Not Work’
By Jack Phillips
The Pennsylvania state House on Tuesday night approved a Republican-backed election reform bill that would include a requirement that voters present identification, among other ...
- Georgia Conducting Secret 2020 Ballot Review—Keeping Plaintiffs in the Dark
By Paul Sperry, Real Clear Investigations
After several Fulton County, Ga., poll monitors testified last year that boxes of mail-in ballots for Joe Biden looked liked they’d been ...
- Former White House Chief of Staff: DeSantis Won’t Run Against Trump in 2024
By Zachary Stieber
Former President Donald Trump’s former chief of staff is alleging that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will not run for president in 2024 if ...
- Arizona-Style Election Audit Needed in Nevada: GOP Chairman
By Jack Phillips
After visiting the election audit of Arizona’s Maricopa County, the head of Nevada’s Republican Party said a similar review is needed in Nevada—although that possibility appears slim, as ...
- McCarthy Responds to Speculation That Trump Should Be Elected House Speaker
By Jack Phillips
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) responded to speculation about former President Donald Trump potentially being voted as House speaker if Republicans take the House majority ...
- Maricopa County Audit Report Expected in August
By Zachary Stieber
The final report for the 2020 election audit taking place in Arizona’s largest county is not expected to be out until August, an official involved ...
- Gov. Abbott Signs Into Law 7 Bills Enforcing Second Amendment in Texas, Including Constitutional Carry
By Katabella Roberts
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on June 17 signed into law seven pieces of gun-rights related legislation aimed at enforcing the protection of Second Amendment Rights in Texas.
The ...
- Pennsylvania Election Audit a ‘Very Real Possibility’: Top Senate Republican
By Jack Phillips
A Pennsylvania Senate Republican suggested that an election audit in the commonwealth is a “very real possibility” after meeting with a group of audit activists at ...
- Probe Into Fulton County Absentee Ballot Forms Started Before Public Announcement: Official
By Zachary Stieber
The investigation into missing ballot drop box forms in Fulton County was launched before a public announcement this week, according to Georgia authorities.
“What prompted the announcement of ...
- Entire Portland Police Rapid Response Team Quits After Officer’s Indictment
By Katabelle Roberts
The entire Portland Police Bureau’s Rapid Response Team (RRT) has left their voluntary positions after an officer was indicted on a protest assault charge.
The team, which ...
- Florida’s ‘Cavalry’ Helps Secure the Border: ‘You’ve Got a Storm and We’re Coming to Help You’
By Patricia Tolson
At a June 16 press conference, Florida’s Ron DeSantis became the first governor to answer the plea for help from fellow Republican ...
- Investigative Issues: An Interview With Donald Trump, Unbowed
By Ben Weingarten, REAL CLEAR INVESTIGATIONS
In a wide-ranging interview from the corner office atop his eponymous New York City tower last week, an unfiltered Donald Trump showed ...
![Strong labor data and positive expectations about the incoming Trump administration pushed the U.S. dollar to a two-year high on Thursday. The U.S. dollar iIndex hit a high of 109.53 on Jan. 2, the first trading day of the year, and the highest since November 2022. The jump came as data released on Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor showed that initial jobless claims hit an eight-month low, suggesting a robust labor market, which is a positive sign for the overall economy. The dollar index was trading slightly lower on Friday at 108.96 as of 08:30 a.m. EST. The dollar index increase is also supported by investor confidence in the upcoming Trump administration, which assumes power this month. According to a recent survey by consulting company Teneo, “global CEOs and investors are optimistic about the economic impact of a second Trump administration, outweighing concerns about tariffs, geopolitical tensions, and trade barriers.” Story continues below advertisement In fact, “50 percent of global CEOs are accelerating activities in areas such as domestic and international investment and hiring based on the outcome of the 2024 U.S. election,” it said. While the dollar strengthened, the euro and sterling declined on Thursday. The euro fell to its lowest level in more than two years while the sterling declined to its lowest in eight months. A Dec. 17 report from JP Morgan predicts the U.S. dollar to reach even new highs over the coming months. Related Stories How Major US Stock Indexes Fared Jan. 2 1/2/2025 How Major US Stock Indexes Fared Jan. 2 Americans Have Hopes Trump Will Deliver on Immigration, Economy, Safety: Gallup 1/2/2025 Americans Have Hopes Trump Will Deliver on Immigration, Economy, Safety: Gallup “November’s election outcome has given way to lower global growth expectations, wider growth gaps between the U.S. and the rest of the world, and higher terminal federal funds rate forecasts for 2025—the perfect trifecta of bullish U.S. dollar cyclical impulse,” said Meera Chandan, co-head of Global FX Strategy at the company. “These are early first-order reactions that may give way to deeper rethinks once the full set of Trump administration policies are known next year [2025], but for now, they constitute a solid economic rationale for carrying a long U.S. dollar stance into the first quarter of 2025.” JP Morgan sees the euro’s outlook as bearish, noting the eurozone is especially vulnerable to trade conflicts. And while sterling was the best-performing currency against the dollar last year, such an outperformance is not expected this year, it said. US Economy Performance in 2025 With President-elect Donald Trump set to take power in less than three weeks, there are mixed views about how things could shape up for the American economy. According to a Dec. 9 post by Morgan Stanley, markets are “bullish on Trump’s second term, hoping for tax cuts and better growth.” “We expect no net stimulus and a decent size hit from tariffs and immigration. This should be bullish for bonds as the Fed continues cutting, but could be a disappointment for frothy stocks,” it said. Regarding tariffs, the most likely outcome is a 20 percent hike on Chinese imports and on vehicles from Mexico and the European Union, Morgan Stanley said. Story continues below advertisement It predicts the U.S. Federal Reserve to continue cutting interest rates to a range of 3 percent 3.5 percent by the end of 2025. S&P Global is forecasting the U.S. economy to grow by 2 percent in 2025 and 2026, following an estimated growth of 2.7 percent last year. The company sees inflation to likely remain above the 2 percent level for “longer than we previously thought.” Goldman Sachs predicts the U.S. economy to “beat expectations” this year. “The U.S. economy is in a good place,” said David Mericle, an economist with the company. “Recession fears have diminished, inflation is trending back toward 2 percent, and the labor market has rebalanced but remains strong.” While Trump’s policy changes are likely to be “significant,” Mericle does not see these actions changing the trajectory of the economy substantially. Goldman foresees the Fed reducing interest rates to a range of 3.25–3.50 percent, with the U.S. GDP predicted to grow by 2.5 percent. There have been three consecutive quarters of economic growth in the first nine months of 2024—1.6 percent in the first quarter, 3 percent in the second, and 3.1 percent in the third.](https://www.usnn.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/US-Dollar-Index-Hits-Highest-Level-in-2-Years-Euro-Falls-jpg.webp "US Dollar Index Hits Highest Level in 2 Years, Euro Falls 5")
