02 U.S. Politics

President Trump, VP Vance speak in honor of friend Charlie Kirk at massive memorial for slain conservative leader | The Post Millennial– thepostmillennial.com
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“He wasn’t interested in demonizing anyone. He was interested in persuading everyone to the ideas and principles he believed were good, right, and true.”

A massive memorial was held for Charlie Kirk, a young conservative leader slain by an assassin’s bullet on September 10. The Glendale, Arizona State Farm Stadium was fully packed with supporters, friends, family, and colleagues.

The ceremony began with evangelical worship songs, filling the stadium with prayer and communion, bringing people together in faith. Kirk was just 31 years old when he was shot and killed while hosting an open debate with students at Utah Valley University.

Many people who worked with Kirk spoke of his legacy, sharing personal memories and moments they had spent with him over his short life. Those in attendance flew in from across the country.

The White House sent two planes full of staffers and administration officials to the memorial. Members of the Cabinet were in attendance, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and many others.

Charlie Kirk ‘Was Doing the Thing that the People in Charge Hate Most… Calling for Them to Repent’– www.breitbart.com
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Tucker Carlson delivered a Christ-centered speech at Charlie Kirk’s memorial service in Arizona on Sunday, receiving thunderous applause after encouraging the crowd to listen to the assassinated Turning Point USA founder’s message of faith.

The conservative commentator took to the stage at State Farm Stadium in Glendale in front of tens of thousands of people to shift their focus to Kirk’s “Christian Evangelist” beliefs:

“This is the most unbelievable thing I think I’ve ever seen,” Carlson began, referring to the enormous, lively audience. “Whatever happens next in America — I hope it’s in this direction, because God is here, and you can feel it. And Charlie would have loved this, not just because he loved large groups of people, but because ultimately, he was a Christian evangelist.”

Carlson then brought up how people conspired against Jesus in the Bible: 

It actually reminds me of my favorite story ever. So it’s about 2000 years ago in Jerusalem, and Jesus shows up, and he starts talking about the people in power and he starts doing the worst thing that you can do, which is telling the truth about people — and they hate it, and they just go bonkers. They hate it, and they become obsessed with making him stop. ‘This guy’s got to stop talking. We’ve got to shut this guy up.’ And I can just sort of picture the scene in a lamp-lit room with a bunch of guys sitting around eating hummus, thinking about, ‘What do we do about this guy telling the truth about us? We must make him stop talking.’ And there’s always one guy with the bright idea, and I can just hear him say, ‘I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we just kill him? That’ll shut him up, that’ll fix the problem.’

It doesn’t work that way. It doesn’t work that way. Everything is inverted, and the Beatitudes tell it, I think, the most crisply, that everything is sort of the opposite of what you think it’s going to be.

Charlie Kirk’s Widow Erika Says She Forgives Husband’s Alleged Killer– www.usmagazine.com
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During the Sunday, September 21, public memorial service for the late Charlie Kirk, his wife, Erika Kirk (née Frantzve) publicly forgave the man allegedly responsible for her husband’s death.

“I forgive him because it is what Christ did,” Erika, 36, said during her husband’s service, held at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. “The answer to hate is not hate.”

During her remarks, Erika also urged those in attendance to follow her husband’s example as a wife and a husband.

“Please be a leader worth following,” she told the thousands of attendees. “Your wife is not your servant. Your wife is not your employee. Your wife is not your slave. She is your helper. You are not rivals. You are one flesh, working together for the glory of God.”

Charlie, a conservative activist and the founder of right-wing organization Turning Point USA, was shot and killed on September 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University. He was 31.

“Charlie loved life. He loved his life, he loved America, he loved nature which always helped him closer to God,” Erika said during an X livestream two days later, breaking her silence on her husband’s passing. “He loved the Chicago Cubs and my goodness did he love the Oregon Ducks.”

In addition to Erika, Charlie is survived by the couple’s two kids.

“Most of all Charlie loved his children and he loved me with all of his heart and I knew that everyday. He made sure I knew that everyday,” Erika added in her September 12 statement. “Everyday he would ask me, ‘How can I serve you better? How can I be a better husband? How can I be a better father?’ … He was a such a good man. He still is such a good man. He was the perfect father. He was the perfect husband.”

Student Suspended After Wearing MAGA Hat and Getting Into Dispute at School– www.louderwithcrowder.com
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This is America, where freedom of speech is central to the foundation of our republic. You would think that means the public school system fosters a culture where diversity of thought is respected and encouraged—but that’s not always the case, especially at Laguna Beach High School.

On Sept. 11, a student wore a MAGA hat to school in honor of Charlie Kirk, less than 24 hours after his death. Wearing that hat is his God-given right. But because the school has failed to instill the importance of that right, another student decided to throw the hat on the floor.

The first student had the perfect response: ‘If you hate this country, move to Canada—they’ve got open borders anyway.’

Rumors quickly spread, with some accusing him of being xenophobic and falsely claiming he told the other student to ‘go back where you came from’—which he never did. And the worst part? The school chose to suspend him, treating the victim as if he were the aggressor.

Can you believe that happened at a public school in America? I can—because nowadays, so-called ‘educators’ not only fail to teach students the importance of political discourse, they actively disdain it. And there’s no better evidence for that than this story.

I don’t have to tell you why freedom of speech and upholding our constitutional rights are more important now than ever, but the school should—and must—do better. His mother believes the school acted against him because of his political beliefs, and I couldn’t agree more. Yet just because this outcome was expected doesn’t make it any less troubling. These are supposed to be places where political discussions happen the most, yet students are not apprehensive about expressing their opinions for fear of retaliation. That is something that should never be tolerated in this great nation.

At Charlie Kirk’s Funeral, “The Power of Martyrdom” and “a Righteous Fury” Were on Display– www.vanityfair.com
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As the procession of speakers made its way up the chain of conservative command, the service turned further towards setting a political agenda for the aftermath of Kirk’s murder. The goal now is “achieving victory in his name,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller said.

Miller also made appeals to faith, reflecting in his speech on how the angels wept for Kirk. But the tears had turned into fire, he said, and “that fire burns with a righteous fury that our enemies cannot comprehend or understand.”

Second venue opened for Charlie Kirk memorial as colossal crowd of supporters flows though streets– www.theblaze.com
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Blaze News has confirmed that the overflow crowd from the Charlie Kirk memorial service is being directed toward a second arena due to the sheer numbers of supporters.

Tens of thousands of Kirk’s fans showed up as early as 4 a.m. to get in line at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, where the event, “Building a Legacy: Remembering Charlie Kirk,” is taking place.

‘We just want to be a small part of it.’

Democratic NJ governor candidate claims Charlie Kirk wanted to ‘roll back rights of women and black people’– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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Sherrill, who is running against Republican Jack Ciattarelli for New Jersey governor in 2025, said Kirk wanted “to roll back the rights of women and black people.”

“I believe in free speech. And that the First Amendment wouldn’t be necessary if it were only meant to cover language we agreed with. It is meant to protect people like Charlie Kirk who present vile dissenting views. But it is also meant to protect teachers, doctors, and TV comedians who may express views the president doesn’t like,” she said.

“Charlie Kirk was advocating for a Christian nationalist government and to roll back the rights of women and black people — this flies in the face of every value I hold dear and that I fight for. But the Constitution protects free speech, even for those I vehemently oppose,” she added.

Sherrill later said Kirk had “racist, anti-American views” but that his murder was “horrific.”

The House measure was passed on Friday, 310-58, with 58 Democrats voting against it, 38 voting “present,” and 22 not voting.

House Democratic leadership including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA), and Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-CA) voted for the resolution.

Was Kirk ‘Divisive’—or Did He Simply Say What Millions Believe? › American Greatness– amgreatness.com
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is exercised that Charlie Kirk once said that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was “a mistake.”

Rep. Bennie Thompson sees AOC’s charge and raises it: “The fact is,” he said in an official statement, “Charlie Kirk’s rhetoric was divisive, disparaging, and too often rooted in grievance. The beliefs he evangelized normalized fringe views on race, sex, and immigration. Unfortunately, his rhetoric resurrected dangerous prejudices of a dark past.”

Gosh. Here’s a question, Congressman. What sort of grievance would someone have to entertain in order to be moved to describe someone who simply sought to engage young people in conversation as “divisive” and “disparaging?” Follow-up question: Did Charlie Kirk try to “normalize” fringe ideas about “race, sex, and immigration?” Or were the ideas he espoused, in fact (you see that two people can deploy the “in fact™” gambit), perfectly normal ideas that reflected the beliefs of millions of Americans, even if those ideas departed from the Washington consensus?

As for the Civil Rights Act, Charlie Kirk did say its expansion was “a huge mistake.” Here’s the context. A student asked Charlie whether he wanted to get rid of the Civil Rights Act. He replied that he thought we should have a one-page bill that outlawed racial discrimination and left it at that. Most Americans, he went on to note, don’t support forcing women’s sports teams to allow men pretending to be women to compete. But the Civil Rights Act has been interpreted to say just that.

Undeniable Evidence That MAGA Has Entered Its Death Spiral– www.politicususa.com
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The reality of American politics is that all political movements have a life cycle. It is debatable whether MAGA is a political movement or a Trump political brand extension that is centered heavily around the cult of personality that Donald Trump has cultivated.

PoliticusUSA is not beholden to any party, billionaire, or special interest. Our only concern is you, the reader. Please support our work by becoming a subscriber.

The latest AP Poll contains some jarring data about how large parts of the Republican Party now believe that the country is going in the wrong direction under Trump.

The AP found that nearly 75% of respondents feel that the country is going in the wrong direction, including 50% of Republicans.

Via: the AP:

Among Republicans younger than 45, the decline is particularly glaring: 61% say the country is headed in the wrong direction, a spike of 30 percentage points since June, the last time the question was asked.

‘President Trump had no idea’: Karoline Leavitt denies White House role in ABC shelving Jimmy Kimmel; blasts Barack Obama– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied that the administration had any role in ABC’s indefinite shelving of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” following the host’s monologue on the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. She also criticized former President Barack Obama for alleging that the Donald Trump administration “threatens” news organisations critical of the US president.“I can assure you it did not come from the White House and there was no pressure given from the president of the United States. How do I know that? Because I was with the president when this news broke in the United Kingdom,” Leavitt told Fox News Digital.She added that Trump was “unaware” of the decision, which she said was made solely by ABC because Kimmel, a vocal Trump critic, “chose to knowingly lie to his audience” about Kirk’s death during a period of national mourning. Leavitt also echoed Trump’s remarks that the show was taken off air due to poor ratings, which she described as “gutter”.Turning to Obama, Leavitt said, “With all due respect, he has no idea what he is talking about. The decision to fire Jimmy Kimmel and to cancel his show came from executives at ABC. That has now been reported.” Obama had criticised the current administration on X, writing that it “has taken cancel culture to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like.”Kirk, a Trump ally, was shot and killed on September 10 at a university campus in Utah. Kimmel addressed the assassination five days later, criticising Trump supporters for “characterising that the killer (Tyler Robinson) is not one of their own.”Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair Brendan Carr, appointed by Trump earlier this year, had warned of “consequences” for stations that continued to air Kimmel’s programme. ABC’s decision to shelve the show has sparked widespread discussion and controversy.

Why conservatives hate free speech– www.dailykos.com
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The conservative movement has spent the days following the shocking murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk attacking a bedrock American value: free speech.

In the most high-profile incident, the Federal Communications Commission pressured ABC parent The Walt Disney Company to sideline talk show host Jimmy Kimmel after he made a joke mocking President Donald Trump’s response to Kirk’s death. This followed CBS canceling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” shortly after the network paid a $16 million settlement to President Donald Trump over how “60 Minutes” edited an interview with Kamala Harris.

Vice President JD Vance and senior White House aide Stephen Miller have argued that a crackdown on left-of-center groups is necessary to stop people from telling the truth about what a bigot and conspiracy theorist Kirk was.

And Fox News, the Republican Party’s de facto media arm, has joined the anti-First Amendment crusade as well.

“For all the concern about the ‘the First Amendment, the First Amendment,’ what about all the amendments that Charlie Kirk lost? Because Charlie Kirk has no amendments right now. None,” said Fox pundit and former Trump press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, exhibiting her lack of knowledge of the U.S. Constitution that has served her so well for years.

Trump DOJ shut down bribery investigation into Homan for allegedly accepting $50K in cash– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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The Trump administration’s Justice Department shut down a bribery investigation into border czar Tom Homan earlier this year, citing “no credible evidence” for wrongdoing, according to multiple reports.

A new MSNBC report on Saturday said the FBI recorded Homan accepting $50,000 in cash from agents posing as businessmen last year, in exchange for helping these agents win government contracts in a second Trump administration. This case stalled after President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, and was recently closed after FBI Director Kash Patel requested a status update on it.

“This matter originated under the previous administration and was subjected to a full review by FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors. They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing,” a statement from Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

TikTok’s Algorithm Will Soon Be “Controlled By America” – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com
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After years of bipartisan warnings about TikTok’s potential national security risks, users may soon confront a different kind of threat, perhaps even worse: an algorithm “controlled by America.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the detail on Saturday, a key aspect of the emerging agreement announced by the Trump administration last week between the United States and China. The deal could finally settle TikTok’s fate in the US following months of uncertainty with a brief ban, reversal by the Trump administration, and shifting, self-imposed deadlines for an agreement.

“There will be seven seats on the board that controls the app in the US, and six of those seats will be Americans,” Leavitt told Fox News. “The data and privacy will be led by one of America’s greatest tech companies, Oracle, and the algorithm will also be controlled by America.”

It’s unclear what exactly a US-controlled algorithm will involve. Right-wing conspiracy theories? Charlie Kirk memorials? Coupons for MAGA swag? Nor did Leavitt specify which American individuals would be involved in determining an algorithm. We also have little details on how Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, a Trump loyalist, intends to approach the responsibility for managing TikTok’s data and security while the Trump administration weaponizes everything from voting data to confidential Social Security records.

ICE offers big bucks — but California cops prove tough to poach– www.latimes.com
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In the push to expand as quickly as possible, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aggressively wooing recruits with experience slapping handcuffs on suspects: sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and local cops.

The agency even shelled out for airtime during an NFL game with an ad explicitly targeting officers.

“In sanctuary cities, dangerous illegals walk free as police are forced to stand down,” the August recruitment ad warned over a sunset panorama of the Los Angeles skyline. “Join ICE and help us catch the worst of the worst.”

To meet its hiring goal, the Trump administration is offering hefty signing bonuses, student loan forgiveness and six-figure salaries to would-be deportation officers.

ICE has also broadened its pool of potential applicants by dropping age requirements, eliminating Spanish-language proficiency requirements and cutting back on training for new hires with law enforcement experience.

Pentagon official denies report of Charlie Kirk military recruitment drive | Gun Violence News– www.aljazeera.com
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An NBC news report said the military planned to invoke the activist’s memory to recruit a ‘generation of warriors’.

US network NBC first reported the news on Thursday, citing two officials familiar with the matter, but a Pentagon spokesperson quickly dispelled the report to Fox News.

NBC said the Pentagon was debating slogans such as “Charlie has awakened a generation of warriors” as part of its campaign drive, although Kirk himself was not a military veteran.

The military also hoped to work with Kirk’s political organisation, Turning Point USA, as part of its recruitment drive, the story said.

Turning Point was credited with helping US President Donald Trump win at the polls in 2024 through its work with young voters on high school and university campuses.

“This is not happening,” Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson told Fox News later on Thursday.

Wilson blasted NBC for using anonymous sources to publish “false claims” that were “100 percent wrong”, according to the Fox News report.

The two unnamed Pentagon officials in the NBC report said the recruitment plan had been met with resistance from “some Pentagon leaders” who feared they would be seen as capitalising on Kirk’s murder.

Trump stopped Sadiq Khan from attending state banquet with King & slams London mayor as being one of the ‘world’s worst’– www.thesun.co.uk
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DONALD Trump has claimed he stopped Sadiq Khan from coming to the royal banquet during his state visit this week.

Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One, the President said he had insisted that the London Mayor not attend.

Trump ‘grateful beyond words’ for second state visit to UK but key differences remain– www.euronews.com
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US President Donald Trump wrapped up his historic second state visit to the United Kingdom on Thursday saying he was “tremendously thankful” for the pomp and pageantry but some key differences between him and Prime Minister Keir Starmer remain.

When asked about the lack of progress in brokering a deal to end Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “let me down.”

Starmer said he and Trump had discussed how to “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” and that Trump had “led the way here.”

Trump has also not made good on threats to impose new sanctions on Russia and King Charles, in his state banquet speech Wednesday night, offered Trump a gentle nudge, noting “as tyranny once again threatens Europe, we and our allies stand together in support of Ukraine, to deter aggression and secure peace.”

While Starmer has played a major part in European efforts to shore up US support for Ukraine, Trump’s visit offered few major advancements,

The British government has also grown increasingly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the suffering of Palestinian civilians.

Trump says Putin has “really let me down,” as he wraps up historic second state visit to U.K.– www.cbsnews.com
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U.S. companies will be investing 150 billion pounds, the equivalent of over $200 billion, in the U.K. as part of a landmark package announced this week.

“I promised that my government would deliver jobs, growth and opportunity for working people. Today we have secured a historic £150bn of investment commitments from US companies into the UK. Creating 7,600 high quality jobs and driving growth across the country,” Starmer said in a social media post Thursday morning before he welcomed President Trump to his country house, Chequers.

The deal includes the equivalent of over $136 billion in investment in the U.K. from Blackstone over the next decade, according to the British government. It also includes investments from Prologis, Palantir, Amentum, Boeing and STAX.

Stefanik urges Bondi to investigate MSF over alleged Hamas propaganda ties– www.foxnews.com
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FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., requested that Attorney General Pam Bondi undertake an investigation into Doctors Without Borders under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

In a copy of Stefanik’s letter reviewed by Fox News Digital, she accuses Doctors Without Borders, often known by its French acronym MSF, of having gone on a media offensive against U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, accusing the organization of “orchestrated killing.”

Stefanik claimed the attacks “mirror propaganda continuously pushed by Hamas and threaten to undermine the only large-scale humanitarian food operation currently working in Gaza.”

US Treasury sanctions Sinaloa cartel faction Los Mayos in Mexico– abcnews.go.com
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MEXICO CITY — The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday sanctioned members of a Sinaloa cartel faction known as Los Mayos, one of the groups that has tormented Sinaloa’s capital in an ongoing war for control.

The move came on the same day that U.S. Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley is visiting Mexico, and after the Trump administration designated the Sinaloa cartel as a terrorist group earlier this year.

Hurley is meeting with Mexican authorities and business leaders to discuss strategies for combating drug trafficking, cartel operations and illicit financing. The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that the official’s main message will be that the department “will not allow Mexico-based drug cartels to access the U.S. financial system.”

It’s part of an ongoing effort by the Trump administration to crack down on cartels. In addition to pressuring Mexico’s government to more aggressively pursue the criminal groups, the administration has also doled out rounds of sanctions to cartel leaders, banks it alleged facilitated money transfers for cartels and a rapper accused of laundering money for the groups.

Supporters hail Charlie Kirk as friend of Israel, dismiss false claims– www.foxnews.com
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In the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, some critics of Israel have sought to drive a wedge between the conservative activist and the Jewish state, mischaracterizing his recent statements and making wild, unfounded accusations.

Within hours of Kirk’s murder — and before a suspect was identified — unhinged conspiracies spread across social media. The Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism found thousands of posts containing the baseless claims.

Seemingly aware of the effort to co-opt Kirk’s legacy, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eulogized him as a champion of “speaking truth and defending freedom. A lion-hearted friend of Israel, he fought the lies and stood tall for Judeo-Christian civilization.”

GOP’s new Jan. 6 panel sends letters to DOJ, University of Virginia and others– www.politico.com
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The new GOP-led committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack is asking Attorney General Pam Bondi, the University of Virginia and other businesses for information from the previous Democratic-led panel that investigated the Capitol attack.

The Republican leaders claim the information they’re pursuing was never disclosed by the previous panel.

“This is an important first step in unraveling the predetermined narrative the former January 6th Select Committee crafted to hurt President Donald J. Trump,” Chair Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) said in a statement. “Why else would their committee delete or fail to properly archive more than a terabyte of data?”

Many materials in the previous panel’s possession ultimately became public. But some were never released, including footage of witness interviews.

Loudermilk and other Republicans have maintained that the previous panel’s probe was politically motivated. In creating the new GOP investigation, Loudermilk intends to rewrite the record of the Capitol attack.

Some House Republicans push to revamp Fed mandate– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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Republicans on Capitol Hill are pushing to end the Federal Reserve‘s dual mandate of price stability and maximum employment and instead limit its remit exclusively to keeping inflation low.

The Price Stability Act, introduced this week by House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-AR), would require that Fed officials only consider inflation when making monetary policy decisions.

Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN), one of the bill’s co-sponsors, told the Washington Examiner during an interview that changing the Fed’s mandate would be good for the economy. Notably, over the past several years, the U.S. experienced the worst wave of inflation since the 1970s.