New analysis on U.S. economy. And, MN prosecutors quit over DOJ probe into Good widow

"President Trump delivered a speech yesterday at the Detroit Economic Club. He touched on the U.S. economy but also meandered into other topics. The president has started traveling around the U.S., addressing a top concern for voters: affordability. The economy is expected to be one of the main issues in this year's midterm elections. Throughout his speech, the president would change topics mid-sentence and insulted more than half a dozen politicians, including former President Joe Biden, NPR's Tamara Keith tells Up First."

"Trump said the economy is great and boasted about the low cost of groceries. He also stated that "affordability" is a fake word by Democrats, but Keith says the riffs of the term risk undercutting his message. The president said he plans to outline a proposal at the World Economic Forum next week to reduce home prices by removing private equity companies from the U.S. housing market."

"The Department of Labor's latest inflation report showed that inflation, overall, neither improved nor worsened from November to December. Natural gas prices have risen more than 10% over the last year, the Labor Department reports. This affects nearly half of the U.S., which uses natural gas for heating, resulting in higher heating bills, NPR's Scott Horsley says. A significant amount of natural gas is used to generate electricity, which in turn drives up prices. Grocery prices were also up sharply last month."

President Trump mixed praise for the economy with frequent tangents and personal attacks during a Detroit speech while focusing on voter concerns about affordability. He called "affordability" a Democratic word and announced plans to propose removing private equity from the U.S. housing market to lower home prices at the World Economic Forum. The Department of Labor reported inflation unchanged from November to December, with natural gas prices rising over 10 percent year-over-year, driving higher heating and electricity costs and contributing to sharp grocery price increases. Most forecasters expect the Federal Reserve to hold interest rates. Several federal prosecutors in Minnesota resigned amid reported Justice Department pressure in an investigation into a fatal shooting.

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